PHOENIX: Margaret Pellegrini, one of the original Munchkins from the 1939 classic movie “The Wizard of Oz,” has died. She was 89.
Pellegrini suffered a stroke Monday at her Glendale home and died Wednesday at a Phoenix-area hospital, said Ted Bulthaup, who owns a Chicago theater where Pellegrini and other Munchkins have made special appearances. Bulthaup said he learned of Pellegrini’s death from her relatives.
With her death, only two of the original 124 Munchkins in the movie are still alive.
Pellegrini has said she was 16 when “The Wizard of Oz” was filmed. She played one of the “sleepy head” kids and wore a flowerpot on her head in the movie.
Later, Pellegrini was a guest speaker at grade schools across the Phoenix metropolitan area for many years.
She usually appeared in costume and told stories about her time as a Munchkin, The Arizona Republic reported. She also told children that the “Wizard of Oz” movie was a moral lesson.
“There are two roads in life that you can take — the wrong road and the right road,” she said. “And remember, there really is no place like home.”
When asked by the newspaper if the Munchkins had sung for the movie, Pellegrini shook her head.
The real singers were “adults, dubbed in,” she said. “They just played the record faster so their voices would sound high.”
Bulthaup had known Pellegrini for more than a decade and said she was an energetic person.
“She really had a very robust personality. She was a great lady,” he said. “She was always on the move. You couldn’t hold her down.”
The surviving Munchkins are Jerry Maren, 93, who lives in Los Angeles, and Ruth Duccini, 95, who lives in Phoenix, Bulthaup said.
‘Wizard of Oz’ Munchkin Margaret Pellegrini dies
‘Wizard of Oz’ Munchkin Margaret Pellegrini dies
IsDB annual meeting sees signing of several deals
RIYADH: The 2024 annual meeting of the Islamic Development Bank Group saw the signing of several agreements, boosting the telecommunications sector in its member countries.
The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit, known as ICIEC, which specializes in providing Shariah-compliant insurance services and is a member of the IsDB, announced the inking of a memorandum of understanding with Huawei Technologies Ltd., the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The memorandum was signed by ICIEC CEO Osama Al-Qaisi and the chief operations officer of Huawei Technologies, Silas Zhang.
Under the agreement, ICIEC continues its collaboration with Huawei to enhance the telecommunications infrastructure and leverage advanced communication technology in IsDB member countries.
According to SPA, ICIEC will provide insurance solutions to support the provision of advanced communication network equipment and offer training to key telecommunications operators in member countries.
Al-Qaisi emphasized that the MoU with Huawei represents a significant roadmap toward supporting the enhancement of vital communication framework in member countries through the integration of advanced technology, extensive expertise, and distinguished insurance solutions offered by ICIEC.
He stated: “We are laying the foundation for strong growth and a qualitative leap in the telecommunications sector in member countries, where this collaboration rises to the level of partnership, enabling member countries to harness their full potential to establish a better and more innovative communications sector.”
The ICIEC also signed a MoU with the Federation of Contractors in Islamic Countries, known as FOCIC.
It was signed by Al-Qaisi, and FOCIC President Zakaria Abdul Rahman Al-Abdul Qadir on the sidelines of the IsDB event.
Al-Qaisi explained that the memorandum stems from the institution’s commitment to enhancing understanding and implementation of Islamic insurance in all member countries, aiming to establish a comprehensive framework for cooperation in the areas of knowledge exchange and technical capabilities in the insurance and contracting sectors.
Digital advancements propelling Saudi Arabia toward Vision 2030 goals: top official
RIYADH: Digital advancements in Saudi Arabia have significantly enhanced efficiency across key sectors, reducing the need for physical visits to government departments and leading to considerable savings, said a top official.
Addressing the annual meetings of the Islamic Development Bank Group, Ahmed Al-Suwaiyan, governor of the Digital Government Authority, highlighted major improvements made through digitalization as part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 initiatives aimed at enhancing basic services.
He underscored the tangible benefits of increased productivity and decreased expenses for governments, citizens, and businesses.
“In Saudi Arabia, as part of the various programs and objectives of Vision 2030 for basic services, whether it is the issuance or renewal of national IDs, driving licenses, or even passports, before digitalization, it took more than four hours, including the waiting time at government departments,” said Al-Suwaiyan.
Today, he added, it actually takes less than two minutes without the need to visit the government department, requiring only three clicks.
“This has actually made us save more than 160 million trips and more than SR23 million annually,” said Al-Suwaiyan.
He emphasized that “this is the value that we are talking about,” highlighting how increasing productivity and reducing costs benefit not only governments but also citizens and enterprises through digitization.
The governor emphasized how digital transformation has influenced each pillar of the Vision 2030 goals, enabling swift advancements within the Kingdom.
“I would like to speak about Vision 2030, where digital transformation is a key enabler that we can see cross-cutting all the different sectors and all objectives in the development of Vision 2030. If we talk about a “vibrant society,” we can see a clear link with the participation and engagement for every citizen. And the same goes for a thriving economy,” he said.
The official further expressed that merely adopting digitization to do so is not the goal. Instead, the authorities’ efforts are simply a “means” to create a more efficient society.
In the Kingdom’s justice sector, a similar transformation has occurred with the establishment of fully operational virtual courts, where 95 percent of all hearings are conducted online.
However, the primary focus is not solely on the implementation of virtual courts, but rather on achieving specific outcomes.
One notable outcome has been the significant reduction in the time taken for case processing, with the average duration decreasing from 217 days to just 30 days, from the opening of the case to the issuance of the resolution.
This reduction in processing time exemplifies the tangible value derived from digital transformation efforts.
Fantasia Barrino-Taylor flaunts Monot in New York
DUBAI: Helmed by Lebanese designer Eli Mizrahi, New York-based label Monot dressed US actress Fantasia Barrino-Taylor for a red carpet appearance at the 2024 Time100 Gala.
Barrino-Taylor showed off a custom look by the label, which featured head-to-toe sequins and wrist cuffs that flared dramatically to cover her hands. The backless number was figure hugging and Barrino-Taylor complemented the outfit with a black, sequined head wrap.
Mizrahi is no stranger to star power and made headlines in 2020 when he enlisted the likes of British supermodel Kate Moss, Italian star Mariacarla Boscono, British model Jourdan Dunn, US celebrity Amber Valletta and China’s Xiao Wen to star in a Monot campaign shot in Saudi Arabia.
The label has garnered a legion of celebrity fans, with US Olympian Simone Biles, model Kendall Jenner, Brazilian influencer Camila Coelho and US model Emily Ratajkowski donning Monot looks in the past.
“The Color Purple” star Barrino-Taylor also made headlines when she attended the Astra Film Awards in Los Angeles in January in a mandarin orange gown by Saudi designer Yousef Akbar.
Barrino, who is also a singer, most recently starred as protagonist Celie in “The Color Purple,” a musical period drama film directed by Blitz Bazawule. The film’s screenplay is based on the stage musical of the same name, which in turn is based on the 1982 novel by Alice Walker. It is the second film adaptation of the novel, following the 1985 film directed by Steven Spielberg and produced by Spielberg and Quincy Jones.
The movie tells the story of Celie, who is torn apart from her sister and her children and faces many hardships in life, including an abusive husband. With support from a sultry singer named Shug Avery, as well as her stand-her-ground stepdaughter, Celie ultimately finds strength.
Barrino showed off Akbar’s gown at an event in Los Angeles and paired it with chunky gold jewelry and slicked back hair.
Humanity at a turning point, Saudi minister tells WEF meeting in Riyadh
- Saudi Arabia wants to lead ‘intelligence revolution,’ Abdullah Al-Swaha, communications and information technology minister, says
- Industry leaders ‘must master AI within years or face irrelevance’
RIYADH: Humanity is at a turning point, pivoting from digital to artificial intelligence, and shifting from the industrial revolution to the intelligence revolution, a senior Saudi official told the special two-day World Economic Forum meeting in Riyadh.
“The world today is not at a tipping point but at a turning point in humanity, which means weare pivoting from digital to AI and maybe later on quantum,” Abdullah Al-Swaha, minister of communications and information technology, said.
Saudi Arabia is ready to embrace that shift, he added.
“The Kingdom is excited with its partnerships with countries and international organizations to carve a path toward inclusive AI adoption,” Al-Swaha told the panel.
“We are pushing today an inclusive agenda, that is innovative, and indisputably multistakeholder to make sure that we lead and leapfrog in this era.”
The Saudi minister noted that global economic output today is worth $100 trillion, of which $32 trillion is attributed to the labor force, and $1 trillion of that ‘is being augmented, accelerated and democratized by generated AI.’
“Over the next five to seven years, it is projected to go to 40 percent. That’s 43 percent of the labor force productivity. And this is why we are pivoting toward intelligence revolution,” Al-Swaha said.
He also cautioned that if “talents and leaders” did not master AI within six or seven years, “they will become irrelevant for any industry they are in.”
UK to build memorial to Muslim soldiers who fought in world wars
- Monument, featuring Islamic calligraphy, will reflect ‘incredible narrative,’ architect says
- About 8m Muslim soldiers and laborers stood alongside Allied forces
LONDON: The UK is building a war memorial to the millions of Muslim soldiers who served alongside British and Commonwealth forces during the two world wars, Sky News reported.
The 13.2-meter-tall monument, which has been several years in the planning, will stand at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. Built from brick and terracotta it will be inscribed with the personal stories of the soldiers.
About 2.5 million Muslim soldiers and laborers served in the militaries of the Allied powers during the First World War and about 5.5 million in the Second World War.
Benny O’Looney, the memorial’s architect, said: “The idea is, as you approach the memorial, it draws you in. And you can see there’s more detail, more information, more craftsmanship.
“The idea is to show a panorama of the Muslim soldiers’ service in the world war from gritty 1914 — this incredible narrative of plugging the gap and saving the expeditionary forces on the Western Front.”
The inspiration for the design, which features Islamic calligraphy, came from journeys to the Indian subcontinent, O’Looney said.
The monument will be erected on a site already containing memorials to Sikhs, Gurkhas and others.
Irfan Malik, a doctor from Nottingham whose ancestors served in both world wars, said: “I’m so glad we are near to fruition now, so that we can remember this forgotten history of the Muslim soldiers in both of the great wars and looking at Muslim contributions globally as well.
“Both of my great-grandfathers — Capt. Ghulam Mohammad and Subedar (roughly equivalent to warrant officer) Mohammad Khan — were part of the Great War and my two grandfathers were part of the Second World War, serving in Burma.
“They all descended from Dulmial village, which is based in the salt range in Punjab in present-day Pakistan, a very famous military village.”
The memorial would serve as a “symbol of remembrance of those campaigns, the sacrifices made and also an opportunity to educate our younger generation to improve community cohesion in this country,” Malik said.
