Maximillian Schell also died.

RIP to two talented actors.

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Sid Caesar, Comedian and One of TV’s First Stars, Dies at 91
By MERVYN ROTHSTEIN and PETER KEEPNEWSFEB. 12, 2014



Sid Caesar, a comedic force of nature who became one of television’s first stars in the early 1950s and influenced generations of comedians and comedy writers, died on Wednesday. He was 91.

The Associated Press reported that his death was announced by Eddy Friedfeld, a family spokesman.

Mr. Caesar largely faded from the public eye in his middle years as he struggled with crippling self-doubt and addiction to alcohol and pills. But from 1950 to 1954, he and his co-stars on the live 90-minute comedy-variety extravaganza “Your Show of Shows” dominated the Saturday night viewing habits of millions of Americans. In New York, a group of Broadway theater owners tried to persuade NBC to switch the show to the middle of the week because, they said, it was ruining their Saturday business.

Albert Einstein was a Caesar fan. Alfred Hitchcock called Mr. Caesar the funniest performer since Charlie Chaplin.

...more at link
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/13/arts/ ... at-91.html

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Tommy Ramone, RIP: Last original member of Ramones passes

Tommy Ramone, aka Thomas Erdelyi, the last surviving member of the original Ramones died today at his home in Ridgewood, Queens. He was 65 and had been in hospice care following treatment for cancer of the bile duct. The time of death was 12:15pm. Claudia Tienan, his partner of 40 years, asked Andy Schwartz, former editor of NY Rocker (among many other things) to make the announcement of his passing.

Tommy and guitarist John Cummings (Johnny Ramone) first got together in a high school garage band called the Tangerine Puppets. When the Ramones formed, he was supposed to be their manager, but ended up becoming the drummer from 1974 to 1978 and producing several of their albums. Tommy was always considered the most “normal” Ramone.

Post Ramones, Erdelyi produced the Replacements Tim album and Redd Kross’s Neurotica. In recent years he’d been playing bluegrass and folk with Claudia Tienan as Uncle Monk.

...more at link
http://dangerousminds.net/comments/tomm ... nes_passes

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

How sad that The Ramones died at such young ages!

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‘Maverick’ actor James Garner dead at 86
Posted by BNO News on July 20, 2014

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA (BNO NEWS) — American film and television actor James Garner, who starred in the classic 1950s western-comedy series “Maverick” and the 1970s detective drama series “The Rockford Files,” died Saturday at his home in Southern California, authorities said. He was 86 years old.

Paramedics responded to the actor’s home in Los Angeles at around 8 p.m. local time on Saturday and pronounced him deceased upon arrival. LA County Chief Coroner Craig Harvey said Garner’s death had not yet been reported to his office, but the Los Angeles Police Department said Garner was believed to have died of natural causes.

...more at link
http://www.bnowire.com/2014/07/20/maver ... ead-at-86/

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

James Garner dead: The Notebook, Maverick and Rockford Files actor dies aged 86
Sunday 20 July 2014



James Garner, who starred in The Rockford Files and The Notebook, has died, aged 86.

The actor died in his Los Angeles home yesterday, Saturday 19 July. His cause of death is not yet known.

Garner had a career both in television and in cinema, although is best known for his role as Jim Rockford in Seventies television series The Rockford Files, for which he won an Emmy. He also played the original gambling Bret Maverick in Fifties comedy Western Maverick, before starring in the big-screen version with Mel Gibson in 1994.

...more at link

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Comedian Joan Rivers Dies at Age 81
by Matt Wilstein | 2:58 pm, September 4th, 2014



Comedian Joan Rivers died today at the age of 81 following complications with throat surgery on her vocal chords. Rivers was rushed to the hospital Thursday after she stopped breathing during the routine procedure. She had been unconscious in a medically-induced coma since she entered the hospital.

...more at link
http://www.mediaite.com/online/comedian ... at-age-81/

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Goodbye Joan. It seemed she had a lot of spunk left so kind of sad to me that this happened.

Singer Joe Cocker dies aged 70



Singer Joe Cocker, best known for his cover of the Beatles' With A Little Help From My Friends, has died aged 70.

The singer song-writer from Sheffield had a career lasting more than 40 years with hits including You Are So Beautiful and Up Where We Belong.

His agent Barrie Marshall confirmed that he had died of an undisclosed illness.

He said he was "simply unique" and "it will be impossible to fill the space he leaves in our hearts."

Known for his gritty voice, Cocker began his singing career in the pubs and clubs of Sheffield in the 1960s before hitting the big time.

He was propelled to pop stardom when his version of The Beatles' With A Little Help from My Friends reached number one.

His duet with Jennifer Warnes, Up Where We Belong - from An Officer And A Gentleman - hit number one and went on to win both a Grammy and an Academy Award.

He was honoured with an OBE in 2007.

... Breaking story at link
http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-30582761

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Pink FloydVerified account@pinkfloyd
Many happy returns to David Gilmour!





69 years old... there's hope for me yet

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Renowned fantasy author Terry Pratchett dies
Published: 5:53AM Friday March 13, 2015



Renowned fantasy author Terry Pratchett has died following an eight-year battle with Alzheimer's disease. He was 66.

Sir Terry was the author of more than 70 books, including the wildly popular Discworld series.

He was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2007, but continued to write, completing several Discworld novels and other stand-alone books in his final years.

His final book was released last winter.

...more at link
http://tvnz.co.nz/entertainment-news/re ... es-6254072

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Cynthia Lennon, the First Beatles Wife, Dies at 75

NewYorkTimes
April 1, 2015

Cynthia Lennon, the first wife of the Beatles’ John Lennon, who chronicled their troubled marriage in two memoirs, died on Wednesday at her home in Mallorca, Spain. She was 75.

The cause was cancer, according to a memorial on the website of her son, Julian.

Ms. Lennon, then Cynthia Powell, met Lennon when he was a student at the Liverpool College of Art in the late 1950s. She was a studious, proper young lady, in stark contrast to him.

...more at link
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/02/arts/cynthia-lennon-the-first-beatles-wife-dies-at-75.html

Soul singer Percy Sledge dies aged 74
14 April 2015



US soul singer Percy Sledge, famed for his song When a Man Loves a Woman, has died aged 74.

Steve Green from talent agency Artists International Management Inc confirmed to the BBC that he died at his home in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on Tuesday.

"He was one of my first acts, he was a terrific person and you don't find that in this business very often," said Green. "He was truly a standout."

...more at link
http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-32301435

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Ben E King: R&B legend dies at 76

R&B and soul singer Ben E King, best known for the classic song Stand By Me, has died at the age of 76.

King started his career in the late 1950s with The Drifters, singing hits including There Goes My Baby and Save The Last Dance For Me.

After going solo, he hit the US top five with Stand By Me in 1961.

It returned to the charts in the 1980s, including a three-week spell at number one in the UK following its use in the film of the same name and a TV advert.

http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-32547474

Losing so many good ones.

Prolific British Actor Christopher Lee Dies at Age 93



ABCNews.com
By Jill Lawless, AP | Jun 11, 2015, 1:15PM ET

(AP-London) Christopher Lee, an actor who brought dramatic gravitas and aristocratic bearing to screen villains from Dracula to the wicked wizard Saruman in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, has died at age 93.

Lee appeared in more than 250 movies, taking on memorable roles such as the James Bond enemy Scaramanga and the evil Count Dooku in two "Star Wars" prequels.

But for many, he will forever be known as the vampire Count Dracula in a slew of gory, gothic British "Hammer Horror" thrillers churned out in the 1950s and 1960s that became hugely popular around the world.

He railed against the typecasting, however, and ultimately the sheer number and range of his roles — including Sherlock Holmes and the founder of Pakistan — secured his place in film history.

"I didn't have dreams of being a romantic leading man," Lee told The Associated Press in 2002. "But I dreamed of being a character actor, which I am."

The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London on Thursday issued a statement confirming that Lee died June 7. Lee's agent said his family declined to comment or provide more details.

...more at link
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/prolific-british-actor-christopher-lee-dies-age-93-31687697

Pro Football Hall of Famer Frank Gifford Dies at 84

ABCNews.com
AP August 9, 2015, 3:28PM ET



In a statement released by NBC News on Sunday, his family said Gifford died suddenly at his Connecticut home of natural causes that morning. His wife, Kathie Lee Gifford, is a host for NBC's "Today."

A versatile star on both offense and defense in an era when NFL players were starting to specialize, Gifford went on to a successful second career as a broadcaster on "Monday Night Football."

Gifford was the NFL's Most Valuable Player in 1956 when he led the New York Giants to a league championship.

"We rejoice in the extraordinary life he was privileged to live, and we feel grateful and blessed to have been loved by such an amazing human being," his family said in the statement. "We ask that our privacy be respected at this difficult time and we thank you for your prayers."

Gifford was the centerpiece of a Giants offense that went to five NFL title games in the 1950s and '60s. Beginning in 1971 he worked for ABC's "Monday Night Football," at first as a play-by-play announcer and then as an analyst.

Later in life he stayed in the spotlight through his marriage to Kathie Lee Gifford, who famously called him a "human love machine" and "lamb-chop" to her millions of viewers.

Gifford hosted "Wide World of Sports," covered several Olympics — his call of Franz Klammer's gold medal run in 1976 is considered a broadcasting masterpiece — and announced 588 consecutive NFL games for ABC, not even taking time off after the death of his mother shortly before a broadcast in 1986.

While he worked with others, including Dan Dierdorf, Al Michaels, Joe Namath and O.J. Simpson, Gifford was most known for the eight years he served as a calm buffer between the folksy Don Meredith and acerbic Howard Cosell.

In its early years the show was a cultural touchstone, with cities throwing parades for the visiting announcers and celebrities such as John Lennon and Ronald Reagan making appearances.

"I hate to use the words 'American institution,' but there's no other way to put it, really," Gifford told The Associated Press in 1993. "There's nothing else like it."

A handsome straight-shooter who came off as earnest and sincere, Gifford was popular with viewers, even if some accused him of being a shill for the NFL.

More at link: http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/pro-football-hall-famer-frank-gifford-dies-84-32977363

George Cole, British TV and film icon, dies at 90
By Alex Ritman, August 7, 201



(The Hollywood Reporter) George Cole, the British actor who became best known in the U.K. in the long-running TV show "Minder" but also starred in major films including "Cleopatra" and "Scrooge" (released in the U.S. as "A Christmas Carol"), has died. He was 90.

Cole died after a short illness on Wednesday in hospital, his agent announced.

...more at link
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/08/07/enter ... -thr-feat/

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light