Rolling Obituary Thread: 2017

BRACE YOURSELVES

R.I.P., Brace :(

Fuck 'em, they knew the risks

Brace Forsyth
(oh man if he dies in the next couple of weeks I'm going to feel like shit, but he did tweet last week that he was fine and that he wanted people to stop asking if he was well)

Woke up yesterday convinced Forsyth was dead but it was just a dream.

It's interesting how Forsyth's go-to stock joke has shifted from "alright alright I'm old!" to "alright alright I'm not dead!".

he's escaped the embrace of both death and operation yewtree so far, it surely can't be long until at least one catches up with him

Keeping my fingers crossed for Trump and some of his team, Putin, Shinzo Abe, George Galloway, Piers Morgan, Alex Jones, some of the worst Tories, Vox Day and a bunch more racist assholes. Maybe Yiannopolos will die in a hair dyeing accident.

Berlusconi too would be nice.

Roll up, roll up, who's going (to be) first?

Roll up, roll up

there is a 'Band members that die in the right order', is there not?

Good, so far, ay?

I guess keep bumping this thread at random just to be sure

Well, half an hour left of today, and we're already ahead of last year.

(Won't bump anymore today)

can you imagine how weird it would be if noone died in 2017?

Peter Noone?

Shane McGowans mum, car crash

john berger, and derek parfit

"...my death will break the more direct relations between my present experiences and future experiences, but it will not break various other relations. This is all there is to the fact that there will be no one living who will be me."

Pretty good profile of Parfit from 2011: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/09/05/how-to-be-good

Reading that piece probably helped bend me around to the idea of self as divisible. Nowadays I think a gestalt self is just as ridiculous as God, and argue with my cat about it.

I also mean to read Reasons and Persons one day, I really do

I was going to say William Christopher, but he passed away on Dec 31 - just as Wayne Rogers did in 2015 (one of the first entries on the 2016 thread). So hopefully Alan Alda and Loretta Swit take care of themselves next NYE :(

"Take care of" is an ambiguous phrase

I realised that when I wrote it :(

Jamie Farr, Gary Burghoff and David Ogden Stiers are thankfully still with us too.

There was a bunch of press stuff about John Berger after his 90th birthday about two months ago, commenting on how sharp he still was. Similarly, I'm amazed how good he looked for 90 (I would have easily believed 70), not that I'm concerned about his looks but, I guess he made me think of the type of 90 year I aspire to be if I make it there. RIP

Om Puri

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jan/06/om-puri-indian-actor-dies-aged-66?

Tilikum is gone. And I only saw Blackfish the other day.

RIP Big Cynthia, southern soul singer at 47.

http://www.soultracks.com/story-big-cynthia-dies

The Houston native was the daughter of legendary Motown artist Junior Walker and she went on to become one of the brightest stars of the Southern soul scene.

Francine York, who had mid-sized roles in a great many 60s US TV shows.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/francine-york-dead-batman-doll-squad-actress-was-80-961611

xp aw man RIP she was great.

he did tweet last week that he was fine and that he wanted people to stop asking if he was well

He hasn't tweeted since October though? Unless he's deleted the one you're referring to.

Or maybe it was on Facebook or some other social media site and I remembered wrongly?

Nat Hentoff, at 91. His son reported it on Twitter.

Awww, I used to read his civil rights/civil liberties and first amendment column in the Village Voice. Sometimes read his jazz critic writing too.

There's a list (possibly incomplete) of albums he wrote liner notes for here; I've got at least 80 of those. He was easily one of the biggest influences on my personal tastes and listening habits. I spoke to him on the phone once; I don't remember what about, but it was jazz-related.

Very good documentary a couple of years ago. Checked the Voice thinking they might have something up, but can't see anything.

'Father of Portuguese democracy' and socialist Mario Soares, 92

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38542535

Rafsanjani!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-38548591

Aw, peter sarstedt died.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38548507

There was a rumor circulating on Twitter that Soares died New Year's Day, but Portuguese law would have required the immediate declaration of a national day of mourning, so they kept it quiet so that pre-planned fireworks displays etc. could go on as scheduled.

Can I just say that I've never knowingly heard any of sarstedt's songs, but his bit is amazingly well written. I do still love it when I hear it.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-38548591

Rafsanjani.

See: MENA thread?

Zygmunt Bauman :(

Clare Hollingworth, the Daily Telegraph correspondent who broke the news of World War Two, has died in Kong Kong aged 105.

The British journalist was hailed for her "scoop of the century" after she spotted German tanks on the Polish border in August 1939 . . . She had been a reporter at the newspaper for less than a week.

Roman Herzog, President of Germany from '94 to '99.

Tigger Stack

Tony Rosato, part of SCTV for a year or two (before NBC, I think).

http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2017/01/11/tony-rosato-veteran-of-sctv-and-saturday-night-live-dead-at-62.html

had a rough later life

Graham Taylor:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38599231

Just saw that, shocker.

Always seemed a lovely guy. RIP.

Rosato was also on SNL during Lorne's five years in the wilderness. Guess we'll see if the show acknowledges his passing.

Guitarist Tommy Allsup :(

http://lubbockonline.com/entertainment/2017-01-11/friend-allsup-guitarist-who-toured-holly-used-life-after-coin-flip-good

Nice words from Elton on Graham Taylor, http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38600446

They played an interview earlier where GT was talking about how Ingerland Thugs were actually physically threatening him in public places after that Sun cover, fuck every one of them and Kelvin MacKenzie. RIP Graham.

Bronski Beat keyboardist Larry Steinbachek dies at 56

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38597071

Lord Snowdon:

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-38611497

There's a name from the distant past.

Exorcist author/screenwriter William Peter Blatty:

http://www.hotpress.com/The-Exorcist/news/Exorcist-creator-William-Peter-Blatty-has-passed-away/19485204.html

Repeater Books just announced the death of Mark 'K-Punk' Fisher. He was 48.

Magic Alex

Repeater Books just announced the death of Mark 'K-Punk' Fisher. He was 48.

― jane burkini (suzy), Saturday, January 14, 2017 2:23 PM (twenty-one minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

oh no! RIP

awful news. RIP

wtf??!?!?

RIP, that's terrible. His blog was excellent.

wow, what happened? that's pretty shocking. I also followed his blog back in the day.

Dick Gautier

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/dick-gautier-dead-get-smart-actor-was-85-964369

RIP

he also played batman in this psa
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szZsKdJYR-A

Haven't clicked on any link yet, but he also played Conrad Birdie in the original Broadway cast of Bye Bye Birdie, no?

I'd never heard of Zhou Youguang, but this is a fascinating obit.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/14/world/asia/zhou-youguang-who-made-writing-chinese-as-simple-as-abc-dies-at-111.html

yes Redd, and as the Nesteroff book enlightened me, he was a nightclub comic before that

Vegas fixture Buddy Greco

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-me-buddy-greco-20170112-story.html

http://host.madison.com/news/local/obituaries/heggestad-dr-kay-a-m-d/article_f227a2bb-51dc-53cd-bb5b-f4fec9f20a0e.html

Philadelphia gangster Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo

Mark Fisher. Man that blows.

Jimmy Snuka

aw man

Americana singer-songwriter Greg Trooper.

NASA reporting Eugene Cernan

https://twitter.com/NASA/status/821082534821892098

aw man ;_;

I was lucky enough to see Apollo 17 launch to the moon and then later met the crew where they put up with hundreds of questions from 7 year old science kid me and graciously signed a bunch of stuff. https://twitter.com/quartzcity/status/821121238537879552

RIP Gene.

California historian and former state librarian Kevin Starr
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-kevin-starr-obit-20170115-story.html

RIP, Gene. Elvis you need to come post that over on DSKY-DSKY Him Sad: Official ILB Thread For The Heroic Age of Manned Spaceflight

Elvis that is so cool, what a great memory/experience!!!

Also, that signed stuff is worth an absolute fortune now.

overlooked last week: CORE reactionary Roy Innis

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/roy-innis-embattled-leader-of-the-congress-of-racial-equality-dies-at-82/2017/01/09/674873ec-d681-11e6-b8b2-cb5164beba6b_story.html

That explains why he hasn't met with Trump.

Producer-engineer Bill Price (Clash, Sex Pistols, Pete Townshend, Pretenders, many others).

(actually passed away December 22, 2016)

Nigerian funkateer William Onyeabor

^ I listened to his records on the plane back from London a few weeks ago, great stuff

At least he got some recognition before he died.

huh, for some reason I thought he had passed away a long time ago.

Mark Fisher. Man that blows.

Indeed it is. Just found out today.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jan/18/mark-fisher-k-punk-blogs-did-48-politics?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Wtev, we've been mourning and collecting obits in this thread

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-38664893

had no idea that former Wolves director Rachael Heyhoe Flint was 77

Wtev, we've been mourning and collecting obits in this thread🔗

Thanks

soprano Roberta Peters

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/19/arts/music/roberta-peters-soprano-with-a-dramatic-entrance-dies-at-86.html?_r=0

George Beall, US attorney for Maryland who torpedoed Spiro Agnew

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/maryland-news/george-beall-who-led-prosecution-of-vice-president-spiro-agnew-dies-at-79/2017/01/18/9f498460-dcef-11e6-acdf-14da832ae861_story.html?utm_term=.f125faa64eea

had no idea that former Wolves director Rachael Heyhoe Flint was 77

One of the great musical names remembered from childhood - RIP

yeah I was going to type 'a classic name' but didn't in case that might diminish the scale of her achievements but then really it's true

Miguel Ferrer

http://deadline.com/2017/01/miguel-ferrer-dead-ncis-los-angeles-crossing-jordan-1201890002/

NOOOOOO

Holy shit, what?

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/9b/44/c4/9b44c47d3267ceb6d4a0924882f9955d.jpg

what

just this morning The Hollywood Reporter announced that (Ferrer) will be playing iconic DC Comics villain Deathstroke in the animated film Teen Titans: The Judas Contract.

jesus

wayne barrett, formerly of the village voice

^muckraking foe of Trump and Ed Koch

http://www.wnyc.org/story/personal-remembrance-wayne-barrett

Wayne Barrett was a good guy, this sucks

rip usa

Maggie Roche of the Roches
Karl Hendricks of the Karl Hendricks Trio

bad day for members of eponymous bands

corrs heading for bunker

Jim's already in there wearing his tin foil hat.

claiming for the setup there but nice finish regardless

rip karl. only 46

Mike Kellie, drummer for Spooky Tooth and the Only Ones

Jan Stoeckart aka Jack Trombey, Dutch composer. Best known for the theme from 'Callan' and the theme from 'Van der Valk ', 'Eye Level' which was a U.K. Number one in 1962.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDdSWjpPJDg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0O-2oAvNTo

Um, 1972.

wasn't a hit as such until 1973, i only mention this because it's a vivid childhood tune and both years are a little earlier than i'd've guessed

Heh, our school band played Eye Level terribly.

that Eye Level theme was used as a jingle in the US for... Royal Dutch Airlines?

RIP Yordano Ventura and Andy Marte.

Two baseball players killed in separate car accidents today.

Jaki Liebezeit :(
http://pitchfork.com/news/71067-can-drummer-jaki-liebezeit-dead-at-78/?mbid=social_twitter

Pete Watts from Mott The Hoople.

http://www.vintagevinylnews.com/2017/01/passings-pete-overend-watts-of-mott.html?m=1

Gorden Kaye: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38718282

I somehow never noticed he spelled his first name a weird way until he died.

That's not much of a tribute, sorry.

he's from my neck of the woods so this will be front page on the local rag, he nearly died in a car crash 20 odd years back so was on e/t. Allo Allo was absolute cack, but he seemed like a nice guy.

People you thought were dead. RIP.

More than 20 - 1990 Burns night storms

Apocryphally lead to schoolyard jokes and one school head declaring that there is nothing funny about Gorden Kaye.

Actually lead to a crucial privacy case when a Sunday Sport journalist snuck into the hospital and photoed / "interviewed" him recovering from brain surgery. He lost the case - there is no common-law right to privacy.

1,200 performances of 'Allo 'Allo on stage, apparently.

I thought he was dead too!

Allo Allo is a crappy show that makes me feel inordinately nostalgic when I think of it. I loved it as a kid.

^^ otm. 'twas simpler times.

rip

another local luvvie once asked him if he supported Town and he replied " no, they don't come and watch me when I'm performing badly".

Ha! Nice.

RIP

Jean Georgakarakos, the "G" in legendary free jazz label BYG Records.

butch trucks

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/butch-trucks-allman-brothers-founding-member-dead-at-69-w462870

How have I never heard that there was a southern rock dude named Butch Trucks.

Dunno but having to refrain from SBing you for that

Or FPing you, whatever the kids are doing today.

gil ray of game theory/loud family

rough week for drummers

Aww man. RIP.

He had apparently just finished work on the upcoming Game Theory album, which was already tragic as it was being pieced together (by Ray and friends and former bandmates) from material that Scott Miller left behind upon his death in 2013.

mary tyler moore

https://twitter.com/AP/status/824341181140258833

oh man

holy shit, noooooooooooo

well it's you, girl, and you should know it.

my goodness

she was so great in ordinary people

2016, man

I'm worried about how my wife will take this. She's watched and re-watched the full run of Dick Van Dyke many times over and recently also went through the full set of the MTM show. I'd call her a true fan.

meow

she's so goddamn delightful & cool in the Dick Van Dyke Show, i have been watching a lot of those reruns lately

https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2017/01/25/harry-mathews-1930-2017/

:(

rip hm

Tam Dalyell

... people you thought were etc

Mike Connors of Mannix, at 91 of leukemia, after being diagnosed just a week ago.

http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/mike-connors-dead-dies-joe-mannix-1201971140/

Patricia Crampton, translator of children's literature including the Miffy books.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jan/27/patricia-crampton-obituary?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

nc state great, nba not-so-great charles shackleford, 50

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/college/article129133999.html

John Hurt

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/john-hurt-dead-elephant-man-809521?utm_source=twitter&utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=Direct

Oh shit.

shit

https://emmapeelpants.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/wife1.jpg

NSFW (& LOL at the soundtrack)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHk-ooDV2HE

Barbara Hale, the final member of the classic-era Perry Mason cast

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/tv/barbara-hale-who-played-della-street-on-perry-mason-dies-at-94/2017/01/27/a18c6b20-e4d3-11e6-a547-5fb9411d332c_story.html?postshare=5031485558807924&tid=ss_fb&utm_term=.76ddf97c8cfd

sad that she never bagged perry

Oh God, that article that mookieproof posted needs a thread/poll of its own.

RIP to both John Hurt and Barbara Hale. Loved old reruns of Perry Mason as a kid.

when only gyles brandreth gives an acceptable answer you're in trouble

John Hurt in Love and Death in Long Island is one of the most heartbreaking and smartest performances I've ever seen.

the second half of the 'what i want in a wife' article is rather worse

https://emmapeelpants.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/wife2.jpg

Obviously Sir Ian never found what he was looking for.

started reading 1984 (yet again) yesterday, was wondering how john hurt was going. sucks.

God, ya took the wrong Caligula

Obviously Sir Ian never found what he was looking for.

― "I must believe that my charm was not in my ass." (C. Grisso/McCain)

Well, she doesn't exist, so how could he?

I'm just boggling at the idea that the chairman of the Zionist federation was one of the most eligible bachelors.. 'Very desirable'

Or Jimmy Savile.

Well, quite.

morbs otm

Think I was in the theatre watching Jackie when this was reported.

Seeing reports (in French) that Emmanuelle Riva has passed away from cancer.

http://mobile.lemonde.fr/disparitions/article/2017/01/28/l-actrice-emmanuelle-riva-est-morte_5070497_3382.html?xtref=http://criterionforum.org/forum/viewtopic.php

Benny Hill's answer in that article is pretty funny too, in retrospect. I guess he and McKellen tried to answer the question as honestly as they could while still being in the closet.

https://emmapeelpants.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/wife3.jpg

(article is from Cosmopolitan magazine, April 1972)

maybe take that to a tutting thread elsewhere

I had a lot of plans for today, but "see someone attempt to out Benny Hill before breakfast" was honestly not one of them.

heh

poor John Hurt went on that celeb genealogy programme talking about how he liked a bit of the black stuff, and then he was bitterly disappointed to discover he was a complete Yorkshire pud.

xxxp
What I Want In A Wife article from Cosmopolitan (April 1972) - least vile man on this list?

Benny Hill's skill at staying in the closet was such that he's still there, apparently

maybe take that to a tutting thread elsewhere

dead committed anti-feminists are among the creepiest people not alive imo

im hale & hearty thank u

John Hurt is such a good actor, but even when he was young he looked on the verge of death. Just beaten and broken, which is partly what made him so perfect for many of his roles.

It's a bad day to be 77: Alexander Chancellor has also died.

Hurt always carried two extra decades of gravitas. Just 43 filming 1984:
https://jambatt.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/screen-shot-2011-09-10-at-6-11-51-pm.png

I've never seen A Man for All Seasons--wonder if a lot of people first saw him in Midnight Express like I did.

He has a wonderful ageless quality as the Fool in Lear.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQE3muaVRnY

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/nation-now/2017/01/25/marvell-thomas-stax-soul-musician-dies-memphis/97064840/

Rufus' son, Carla's brother who played a big role on Isaac Hayes' Hot Buttered Soul and other Stax efforts

English-friendly stuff on Emmanuelle Riva

http://variety.com/2017/film/news/emmanuelle-riva-dead-amour-dies-1201972169/

https://www.theguardian.com/film/gallery/2017/jan/28/emmanuelle-riva-a-life-in-pictures-hiroshima-mon-amour

What's the Melville film she is in with Belmondo, Leon Morin, Prêtre?

RIP, Marvell Thomas. My understanding is that he filled in on keyboards/was the house keyboardist when Booker T was away at college.

yes, Redd

they were in at least one other together (not Melville)

Time for "Burning Hearts," by My Favorite.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuBIz0G_pls

Black Sabbath's (offstage) keyboards / 2nd guitar / Ozzy vocal-doubler guy Geoff Nicholls:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/geoff-nicholls-black-sabbath-keyboardist-dead-at-68-w463564

http://www.johnwetton.com/

Rock music legend John Wetton sadly passed away in the early hours of this morning, Tuesday 31st January 2017, after a long and courageous battle against colon cancer.

RIP. Your King Crimson was the best King Crimson.

Namco's Masaya Nakamura
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/30/business/pac-man-masaya-nakamura-dead.html

Your King Crimson was the best King Crimson.

Absolutely. And with all members still alive, I'd been able to hold onto hope of a reunion. No more.

He'd been sick for a while, right? There were some recent pictures of him where he looked...not well. Great singer, as rough as his voice could be it fit Crimson so well. "Exiles" is one of my favorite vocal performances ever.

Bobby Freeman, of "Do You Wanna Dance?" & "C'Mon and Swim" fame

http://www.vintagevinylnews.com/2017/01/passings-bobby-freeman-1939-2017.html?m=1

Marta Becket, creator of the Amargosa Opera House in Death Valley, 92. I had a chance to go see her there 5-10 years ago but couldn't because of car problems.

http://www.reviewjournal.com/local/nevada/marta-becket-who-made-amargosa-opera-house-famous-dies-92

Deke Leonard, of Man, habitué of ILM's Horrible 70s album titles like I've Got My Own Album To Do thread

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-38827091

Desmond Carrington (had just looked him up the other day to see if he was still alive following the shuffling of Brian Matthews off the Radio 2 roster)

http://radiotoday.co.uk/2017/02/radio-2-stalwart-desmond-carrington-dies-at-90/

"Do You Wanna Dance," for me, is more foolproof than "Louie, Louie" or "Hey Joe" or just about any song ever. The Ramones and the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas all have great versions, and the original's greater than all of them.

"do you wanna dance" died? :(

that's one of my favorite songs of all time, i was going to do a poll of the different versions once but didn't feel like linking to all the versions

You should. I don't know of any besides those four (the four most famous?), but even there I suspect it'd be close (and that the Ramones, not Bobby Freeman, would win).

I found an email with 12 different versions w youtubes so apparently I was pretty serious about this at some point! Maybe I will. I love that song so much.

Cliff Richard, Bette Midler charted with it

Morbs beat me to it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGpwgSo3THE

I was checking out some stuff on the Kent label website the other day, and on one of their comps (don't remember which) they've got Freeman doing a JBs-style "Do You Wanna Dance '70"--sadly not on youtube.

You mean actually sad, right, not, you know, "sad"?

Well, "sadly" in that I'd like to hear more than the 30-second clip Kent had up. Sounded cool.

David Stroughter of Majesty Crush and P.S. I Love You
http://www.metrotimes.com/city-slang/archives/2017/02/01/rip-majesty-crushs-david-stroughter

Ah that's a shame. Met him once in the late nineties, friendly guy.

Hearing Marc Spitz (the music writer) has passed.

47... christ
http://pitchfork.com/news/71369-music-journalist-marc-spitz-dead-at-47/

Sonny Geraci, 69, lead singer of the Outsiders and Climax.

http://www.vintagevinylnews.com/2017/02/passings-sonny-geraci-of-outsiders-and.html

we can only hope that Wally Tax will be there to greet him at St. Peter's gate

Lol. RIP.

David Axelrod (the musician)

:(

Joost van der Westhuizen

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/38882762

granddad, chicago's 86yo lungfish

https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20170206/downtown/bye-granddad-shedd-aquarium-puts-down-86-year-old-lungfish

;_; rip granddad

"For a fish who spent much of his time imitating a fallen log, he sparked curiosity, excitement and wonder among guests of all ages"

Tom Lux, American poet.

Film preservationist David Shepard

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/movies/david-shepard-film-preservationist-dies-at-76.html

beloved doubletalk comedian Professor Irwin Corey, 102

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/professor-irwin-corey-dead-comedian-928653

Hans Rosling :(

xp aw :(

Oh no... I learned a lot from his talks and interviews.

Alec McCowen

https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2017/feb/07/alec-mccowen-obituary

he's so very funny in Hitchcock's Frenzy, which i recently rewatched

100-year old Danish Jazz violinist Svend Asmussen, who played with Josephine Baker, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, the Swe-Danes. He was jailed during the German occupation, and he played until he was 94. A legend.

Richard Hatch, of both Battlestar Galactica incarnations.

Alan Simpson, half of Galton & Simpson who wrote Steptoe & Son and Hancock's Half Hour.

https://twitter.com/PA/status/829305950494404608

RIP.

Tara Palmer Tomkinson.

Woahh

who killed tara palmer?

sorry

Brain tumour. Poor woman.

Shame, I always quite liked her.

In Kensington & Chelsea right now, place seems hushed

"66% of Americans consider the United States to be a safe country, to only 23% who consider it unsafe. Perhaps as an outgrowth of that sentiment only 45% of voters support Trump’s Executive Order on immigration, to 49% who are opposed to it. Among those who do support it you have to wonder how well thought out their position is- by a 51/23 margin Trump voters say that the Bowling Green Massacre shows why Trump’s immigration policy is needed."

http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2017/02/americans-now-evenly-divided-on-impeaching-trump.html

whoops sorry

the soon-to-be-dead

chavo guerrero sr

Al Jarreau :-(((

http://www.theroot.com/al-jarreau-a-unique-musical-stylist-dead-at-76-1792272875/amp

;_;

http://www.click2houston.com/news/familys-brutal-obituary-for-galveston-man-raises-eyebrows

RIP Al.... voice from heaven

Raymond Smullyan, logician and puzzle creator

Leslie's hobbies included being abusive to his family, expediting trips to heaven for the beloved family pets and fishing, which he was less skilled with than the previously mentioned.

Quality obit imo

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/harry-sievey-dies-frank-sidebottom-12599905

Harry Sievey, son of Chris/Frank Sidebottom.

jazz pianist/singer Barbara Carroll

http://www.playbill.com/article/barbara-carroll-jazz-pianist-is-dead-at-92

manga creator Jiro Taniguchi

I've only read The Walking Man, which is beautiful, but here's a nice obit from The Comics Journal: http://www.tcj.com/jiro-taniguchi-1947-2017/

junie morrison

Oh no! RIP Junie ;_;

oh no

Listening to "One Nation" now.

Dutch artist Dick Bruna.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61N5GHbVpIL.jpg

Aw, a friend of mine is going to be totally gutted by that news.

Good job my son is too young to understand ;_;

@WWE
BREAKING: WWE is saddened to learn that WWE Hall of Famer George “The Animal” Steele has passed away at age of 79. wwe.me/MVu3KZ

also catholic conservative michael novak

Singer-songwriter Peter Skellern. Had no idea he'd become a priest.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-39006899

Blimey.

I associate Peter Skellern with Richard Stilgoe and that is not a good thing, in any way. However this was a good song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSYJ4tYpyQ8

(xps) RIP Dick Bruna

Nicole Bass, 52

thanks for posting that song tom, surprised how good it is

It's the Lancashire Steely Dan.

kind of curious to know whether anyone has ever sampled that bass tbh

rip dick bruna ;_;

Bob Michel

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/robert-michel-longest-serving-minority-leader-in-us-house-dies-at-93/2017/02/17/8c49b51c-f511-11e6-8d72-263470bf0401_story.html

Warren Frost, father of Mark, Donna's dad in twin peaks and Susan's in Seinfeld

Never knew his name until now, but Frost had some brilliant deadpan moments on Seinfeld.

Otm - I always think of his reaction to George riffing on the pointlessness of laughter ("we open our mouth and go 'HA-HA ' - what is that?")

I never cared for his jokes

Frost was especially great on Seinfeld because of the way he was paired with Grace Zabriskie from Twin Peaks. His best moment for me was hissing contempt at her in the Cheever episode.

"He was the most wonderful person I've ever known. And I loved him deeply--in a way you could never understand."

I love his throwaway "wear some more lipstick" as a retort to Zabriskie's passive-aggressive digs at him.

Clyde Stubblefield.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoQ4AtsFWVM

Man, him and Jaki in the same span ...

Damn, with him, Jaki, and Junie, Heaven just got alot funkier.

Ugh so bummed about Clyde, such a genius SUCH A GENIUS

I can't find it on youtube but the Cold Sweat on the Say It Live And Loud Dallas 1968 album is the best drumming I have ever heard.

Norma McCorvey aka Jane Roe

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/02/18/515972447/norma-mccorvey-roe-of-landmark-roe-v-wade-ruling-on-abortion-dies-at-69

Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, linked to 1993 World Trade Center attack

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/omar-abdel-rahman-blind-sheik-convicted-in-1993-world-trade-center-attack-dies-at-78/2017/02/18/807c4f2c-f603-11e6-8d72-263470bf0401_story.html

ivan 'the russian bear' koloff (born oreal perras in montréal)

http://people.com/sports/wrestler-ivan-koloff-russian-bear-dead

A few days ago, but Bobby Freeman, of "Do You Want To Dance" fame, at 76. Didn't know Jerry Garcia played guitar on the 1958 hit.

http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-bobby-freeman-20170215-story.html

Alan Aldridge - graphic illustrator and artist (including album covers for Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy and A Quick One)

RIP.

(xp) That Jerry Garcia credit is disputed

love Aldridge

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/56/06/eb/5606ebc2cee88058103f5d90c8cc8adf.jpg https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/e8/d3/4a/e8d34a21fac41177b2c300ff0be30998.jpg

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/fc/3c/72/fc3c7201d45b669237a87daedd906c07.jpg http://www.penguinsciencefiction.org/images/2620_ALFRED_BESTER_Tiger_Tiger_1967.jpg

Wish I could say the same, but RIP nonetheless.

Did he also do The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics? Hard for me to know, since the version I bought from the Scholastic Book Club long ago as a schoolboy actually had no illustrations.

I guess it did have an image on the cover, over 100 photographs and an introduction by Richard Brautigan, along with the lyrics of course.

https://pictures.abebooks.com/MEDFORDBOOKS/md/md773933138.jpg

We had a Beatles For Guitar book which had illustrations by Alan Aldridge. I don't know where it came from, no-one in my family liked the Beatles, I think my brother might have borrowed it from someone to learn some songs. Always hated the illustrations too.

(xp) That cover looks more like John Byrne.

... no, having seen a bigger version it's definitely Alan Aldridge!

Byrne was tapped up to do the cover for The Beatles, though wasn't used until it appeared on Beatles Ballads in 1980.

https://img.discogs.com/gYvCsrUU93QEvdIPbpMj5P2VbT0=/fit-in/600x600/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-2431327-1343218241-1881.jpeg.jpg

We had the same book, Tom D, in similar 'Beatle-less' circumstances. Maybe they were issued to the populace like vaccines...

David Fricke's dad passed away and his rock critic son penned a sweet obit for him.

http://m.legacy.com/dignity-memorial/obituary.aspx?n=Charles-Fricke&lc=4577&pid=184172595&mid=7297739

Seem to recall Tom D also saying had done some extensive reading in The Beatles: An Illustrated Record, which is what I almost mistakenly called the lyrics book, despite the complete lack of fandom in the D. family.

In a way I think of this as an example of his exemplary music fandom, reading up on bands he doesn't like, or else reading to completion basically unreadable books about bands he does like, such as John "Drumbo" French's Beefheart book.

Actually, I never finished the John French book, which, given that I did finish John Tilbury's Cornelius Cardew biography gives you some idea of how much of a chore it became. I met John French not long after I gave up on his book, I never mentioned that though. As for The Beatles: An Illustrated Record, that was from when I had a flatmate who was a Beatles obsessive, and it's not exactly a hagiography!

No it isn't. I seem to remember a lot of stuff like "schmaltz reared its ugly head again," or words to that effect, whenever Macca came up with another song that strings on it.

I think everyone's solo stuff got a bit of a kicking, but, boy, the authors hated George's albums with a vengeance.

You're right, now that I think of it. Wonder if they hated them as much as Alfred does, though.

Richard Schickel

http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-richard-schickel-dies-20170219-story.html

Stanley Bard, longtime manager of the Chelsea Hotel, 82

Guitarist-composer Larry Coryell

Saw Richard Schickel speak a few years ago--he was excellent. (Can't remember what he was introducing.)

Guitarist-composer Larry Coryell

One of my friends worked in a bookshop in Camden and, one day, there this was this very loud and enthusiastic American in the shop - not in itself an unusual occurrence. Anyway, this extremely bright and positive fellow engaged my friend in some intense conversation and said at the end, "My name's Larry, I'm playing a gig tonight, you should come along". But he didn't go. Next time I met my friend, he said, "Have you ever heard of a guy called Larry Coryell?" I was like, "Hell yes!"

His Spaces album is pretty ace. RIP

I was in a club with him a few years ago for another guitar player's birthday celebration. I assume he must have been one of the guys who sat in at one point but don't really recall. What I do remember is that he was well dressed, friendly and articulate.

Seijun Suzuki, film director

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1665343290147993

RIP

Leah Adler, Steven Spielberg's mother, at 97

seijin suzuki was the god, RIP

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/alan-colmes-co-host-of-hannity-and-colmes-and-liberal-in-lions-den-of-fox-news-dies-at-66/2017/02/23/e95ddfae-f9d9-11e6-be05-1a3817ac21a5_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-more-top-stories_obit-colmes-1140a%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.febe499b386c

RIP, punching bag

according to TMZ, Bill Paxton has died at 61.

"complications from surgery" apparently :(

Holy shit. I once spent half an hour interviewing him in a hotel room and he was a real character, about 20 minutes into it he turned the tables and started interviewing me. He had a really fascinating life.

http://www.tmz.com/2017/02/26/bill-paxton-dead-dies/

he was a damn good director too - Frailty is a contemporary horror classic

Game over, man

particularly love him in Near Dark, A Simple Plan, One False Move, but I was always happy to see him.

he was a damn good director too - Frailty is a contemporary horror classic

Great film. Discovered it via ILX I think.

he was also great on Big Love, though it descended into schlock maybe three seasons in

noooo

he was the only reason I even attempted to watch the Training Day tv show

fuckin loved Paxton ;_;

he should have been nominated for at least one damned academy award or golden globe award for film and not just TV, but he was never flashy enough (to his considerable credit.)

judge wapner of the peoples court

Mentioned over on a Marvin Gaye thread, but Leon Ware

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/leon-ware-renowned-soul-songwriter-dead-at-77-w468706

A Simple Plan was amazing.

And Leon Ware - damn, I Want You is one of my favourite Marvin LPs. And Inside My Love one of my favourite Minnie tunes.

Gerald Kaufman

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39099489

Oh, that's a biggie.

Hideo Ikeezumi, founder of the incredible PSF label (gave the world Fushitsusha, High Rise, and much, much more).

Jeez...

Toshio Nakanishi, aka Tycoon To$h, Japanese New Wave icon, founder of The Plastics and Melon

Nicholas Mosley, author of numerous novels and memoirs, some about his dad Oswald. Died at age 93, his most recent novel came out in 2014.

RIP Tommy Gemmell ;_;

Scoring vs. Inter Milan, European Cup Final, 1967

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i31RBFSpqbk

Rubber legs vs. Inter Milan, European Cup Final, 1967

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i31RBFSpqbk

Scoring vs Feyenoord, European Cup Final, 1970

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFz0hXtzQj4

Kicking a German up the arse, 1969

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnja51VticQ

Oops, here are the rubber legs, as promised...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvlaOgEHHn4

:-(

Gustav Metzger

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/mar/02/auto-destructive-art-pioneer-gustav-metzger-dies-aged-90

Lovely obit for Don Markham - Merle Haggard's horn player.
http://www.bakersfield.com/entertainment/luckiest-man-in-oildale-haggard-s-horn-player-close-friend/article_659d39cd-5764-588b-b457-55102611ce43.html

forgot to mention, read the comments on that for a fun story from Merle's bus driver.

sad news about Tommy Gemmell

Free jazz pianist Misha Mengelberg

Very sad. He had such an amazing career, going from accompanying Eric Dolphy to being one of the key figures of the European scene for decades.

I missed this at the time - Alex Young, passed away Feb 27 aged 80. A God to Evertonians a generation before mine and titular subject of Ken Loach's 1968 BBC drama-doc The Golden Vision.

8 caps for Scotland. Typical.

Well, they were World Champions without him.

Tommy Page!

http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7710182/tommy-page-ill-be-your-everything-singer-and-former-billboard-publisher-dies-at-46?utm_source=twitter

Miriam Colón, who played Al Pacino’s Cuban mother in Scarface and founded the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater in 1967

http://variety.com/2017/film/news/miriam-colon-dead-scarface-actress-dies-1202002194/

Willard Grant Conspiracy frontman Robert Fisher

http://www.vanyaland.com/2017/02/13/rip-willard-grant-conspiracys-robert-fisher-has-died-after-cancer-battle/

Tommy Page!

Man, I have no memory of that single at all.

Yeah I've never heard that song but I know this one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DH2StgTvP4

Aw, that's so sad. I was briefly fixated on Tommy Page as the ultimate Cool Dude when I was like eleven.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C6Qb3Z3XEAEykEs.jpg:small

Dammit, I was already gutted about other things. Still, he had a damn good run as the face of TCM.

;_;

that's a tough one

Damn, a friend and I were just speculating about his health last night. RIP

Gerald Hirschfeld, veteran cinematographer who shot Fail-Safe, Cotton Comes to Harlem, Young Frankenstein

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/gerald-hirschfeld-dead-young-frankenstein-fail-safe-cinematographer-was-95-977763

one of the true greats of the underground cartoonists, Jay Lynch RIP
http://www.tcj.com/jay-lynch-1945-2017/

Ric Marlow, who co-wrote the oft-recorded "A Taste of Honey"

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/ric-marlow-dead-taste-honey-songwriter-was-91-983854

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/arts/music/dave-valentin-dead-latin-jazz-flutist.html?_r=0

Had a stroke in 2012 and had Parkinson's.

Caught that on the WBGO feed. Glad I got to see him once at the Jazz Standard. RIP.

Fred Weintraub, owner of NYC's The Bitter End hotspot in the '60s

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/fred-weintraub-whose-bitter-end-club-showcased-comic-singing-talent-in-1960s-dies-at-88/2017/03/08/73ccd9fa-041c-11e7-b1e9-a05d3c21f7cf_story.html?utm_term=.91de108a9c33

Lynne Stewart, radical attorney

https://www.democracynow.org/2017/3/8/rip_lynne_stewart_peoples_lawyer_fmr

John Surtees, only person ever to be world motorcycle and Formula One champion.

http://bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/35126201

Joni Sledge

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/mar/12/joni-sledge-group-sister-sledge-dies-60

Robert James Waller, author of The Bridges of Madison County

http://variety.com/2017/film/obituaries-people-news/robert-james-waller-dead-bridges-of-madison-county-author-dies-1202006294/

http://music.blog.austin360.com/2017/03/12/evan-johns-60-left-his-mark-on-austin-music-as-a-firebrand-guitarist/

Hard-living guitarist who learned from bluesmen at Smithsonian folklife fest, Danny Gatton, punk rock and more and made his own guitar sounds in DC till 1984, and after that in Austin, Texas

Johns’ stint in the LeRoi Brothers led to his participation in Big Guitars From Texas, a local all-star “guitar army” whose 1985 album “Trash, Twang & Thunder” earned a Grammy nomination.

I grew up listening to this album on countless family cartrips. One of the great roots records of the 80s. RIP

John Lever, drummer for the Chameleons.

http://www.slicingupeyeballs.com/2017/03/13/john-lever-chameleons-dies/

RIP, that's awful

HOLY shit, what terrible news.

Ed Whitlock

http://runningmagazine.ca/ed-whitlock-dies-at-86/

Ran a 2:54 marathon at age 73. Was still running sub 4 up until last year.

Tommy LiPuma, record producer, exec.

http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/obituary/7721006/tommy-lipuma-obit

On Facebook seeing that Maxx Kidd, who ran late 70s /early 80s DC go-go music label TTED has died. Kidd was also a mid-70s era DC soul songwriter, and later played a role in go-go getting on Island Records and that failed movie Good to Go.

Dan Lucas
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/mar/14/dan-lucas-guardian-cricket-rugby-union-writer-dies?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

so far, this year seems heavy on ppl known to either US or UK nearly exclusively

(eg footie/rugby persons, Pofessor Irwin Corey)

The threshold for this thread has always been....niche

It is true I have no idea who most of these dead Americans are.

A lot of the time it doesn't matter if I haven't heard of them - I just like a good obituary.

Dan Lucas used to write for Drowned in Sound and Louder than War, in case you haven't read that far down.

i managed to completely miss his coverage despite reading a lot of the guardian sports section by not caring about those two sports but jesus sudden death at 31. so tragic.

also the whole point of this obit thread was to collect obituaries of people whose passings would not generate enough reaction to merit a separate thread, there is really no low bar beyond being involved in public life in some way

Jay Lynch, of Garbage Pail Kids (and apparently lots of other stuff I don't know) fame

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/12/arts/design/jay-lynch-underground-comics-creator-dies-at-72.html

http://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2017/03/16/520453907/james-cotton-legend-of-the-blues-harmonica-dies-at-81

Derek Walcott, poet.

Damn - I met Walcott a couple of times and he was very charming. And I really like a bunch of his work.

Ron Drever, experimental physicist who confirmed the existence of gravitational waves: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/15/science/ron-drever-physicist-who-helped-confirm-einstein-theory-dies-at-85.html

really broken up over walcott.

Walcott? Oh wow, RIP.

Chuck Berry, 90

Interested in how much media attention this gets in the next couple of days. It won't be enough. (Checking CNN right now, and they have a slotted program on, so I realize they won't cut in, even if they should. But they don't even have anything on the news ticker at the bottom of the screen.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5ezeUM6c74

I love this one and plenty others, RIP.

xpost

CBC sent me a "Breaking News" notification on this, so it seems to rank as some degree of newsworthy.

CNN will pay the most minimal attention possible because there is no salacious angle (I'm assuming he didn't OD or anything like that).

Discussion going on here: Chuck Berry R.I.P.

I jumped the gun on CNN--it's the lead on their website, with the headline in pretty big type.

I know it seems weird to care about this, I just want to see it get the attention it deserves.

main page on the bbc and it was on their main late night bulletin

America's fixated on Moby Dick 24/7, so it wouldn't surprise me to see more reverential treatment in Britain.

What bizarre behaviour

Why would it be strange to want to see a man who didn't receive adequate recognition during his lifetime--he got a lot, granted, but he still was dwarfed by Presley--have his monumental importance properly recognized today? With lots of celebrities, you don't have to worry about that--they get ample. With Chuck Berry, I'm not sure that's a given.

rock is dead they say

Top story on BBC TV news. Quotes from Muck Jagger et al, interview with Eric Burdon.

Legendary comics artist Bernie Wrightson.

https://www.bleedingcool.com/2017/03/19/comic-legend-bernie-wrightson-passed-away/

Wow. Bernie was a real hero of mine, his aesthetic was really important to me growing up, helped show me the direction I really wanted to go in. Those dark dank places and sinewy crouching, twisting rotting bodies.

^ rippvmic

I don't know what that means.

vmic = very much in character

I don't know, using an RIP post to compliment to recently deceased on their depictions of 'dark dank places and sinewy crouching, twisting rotting bodies' seemed RAGish to me.

For anyone unfamiliar with Wrightson I recommend Creepy Presents Bernie Wrightson, his work on House Of Mystery and House Of Secrets, Swamp Thing: Dark Genesis, his Frankenstein book and Freak Show.

Jimmy Breslin

read a lotta Jimmy B in my youth, as we got the NY Daily News. Saw him on the street once or twice too; the quintessence of an oldschool tabloid muckraker.

Wrightson was a hugely important figure to me growing up. Berry even moreso. Painful 1-2 punch there.

Breslin would have been a good candidate for the "Celebrities You Didn't Know Were Still Alive" threads.

Great Twitter thread on Breslin:

https://twitter.com/dcnunnally/status/843506591836004356

xp Chuck Berry was a good one too, my brother was shocked he was still alive.

robert silvers of the nyrb

RIP Bernie, dude was a total master, did a bunch of stuff that has def stuck w me through the years.

David Rockefeller

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/03/20/520841767/david-rockefeller-philanthropist-banker-and-collector-dies-at-101

trisha brown

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/20/arts/dance/trisha-brown-dead-modern-dance-choreographer.html?_r=0

http://dcist.com/2017/03/local_jazz_legend_buck_hill_dead_at.php

Buck Hill could have been a jazz big name playing in NY and touring, but he instead stayed in DC working as a Postal Service letter carrier by day, sax blower by night

Martin McGuinness
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-39185899

That's a big one

Wondering who will be 'paying tribute' to him... oh, here's one just as I was typing this, Alastair Campbell.

Colin Dexter
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/mar/21/inspector-morse-creator-colin-dexter-dead

RIP

;_;

Chuck Barris

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/chuck-barris-dead-gong-show-929310

NSFW

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDxDYIQL6Nc

Berry & Barris, helluva deadpool combo

High school: Neil Young, Fernwood 2 Night, and The Gong Show. (Too ashamed to post a Gene Gene clip after the James Baldwin documentary.)

RIP Chuck. I was a devoted Gong Show fan summers and holidays during its run.

poisoned by a cia umbrella tip.

re: that gong show clip, the 70s sure were a creepy time.

It's been a bad week for people called Chuck B.

rip sib

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/sib-hashian-dead

:(

poisoned by a cia umbrella tip.

― Einstein, Kazanga, Sitar (abanana), Wednesday, 22 March 2017 14:01 (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

kind of amazing that this was posted less than an hour before the new most famous murder(s) on westminster bridge

James Cotton

http://www.memphisflyer.com/MusicBlog/archives/2017/03/16/james-cotton-king-of-the-blues-harp-dead-at-81

xp that was waterloo bridge

Alto saxophonist Arthur Blythe, of Parkinson's disease.

:( RIP Arthur.

[really, this ought to teach me to double-check dates. i would appreciate if a mod were to delete my previous post.]

David Stoey, playwright-novelist (This Sporting Life, Home)

https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2017/mar/27/david-storey-author-of-this-sporting-life-dies-aged-83

^Storey

Home was really good. An old man's play before he was one.

Ahmed Kathrada, South African freedom fighter jailed for 26 years

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/29/ahmed-kathrada-obituary

Bill Minor, Mississippi journalist of the civil-rights era

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/wilson-bill-minor-conscience-of-mississippi-journalism-during-civil-rights-era-dies-at-94/2017/03/28/870cd774-13c4-11e7-ada0-1489b735b3a3_story.html?utm_term=.a271215fe457

Gilbert Baker, designer of the rainbow LGBT flag. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/31/gilbert-baker-rainbow-flag-inventor-gay-rights-dies

James Rosenquist
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/01/arts/james-rosenquist-dead-pop-art.html

I just saw F111 for the first time, still an essential piece of painting

http://www.synthtopia.com/content/2017/04/01/roland-founder-ikutaro-kakehashi-has-died/

Elyse Steinman, guitarist for criminally underrated NYC-based retro Southern rock band Raging Slab.

Club Penguin

Yevtushenko

I only got around to reading Yevtushenko last year (maybe even this year), which was an odd blind spot for me as I read quite a lot of Russian poetry. RIP

Brian Oldfield, '70s icon of the shot put

http://www.mastersathletics.net/uploads/pics/brian_Oldfield.jpg

http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-brian-oldfield-20170328-story.html

Darcus Howe

I used to like the "what say you?" cut of his jib on The Devil's Advocate. RIP

just watching a youtube of the one where he causes rasta uproar by alleging that Haile Selassie had a Swiss bank account and was bit of a sybarite/rum bugger!

Radley Metzger

http://www.therialtoreport.com/2017/04/02/radley-metzger-2/

Used to see Darcus Howe on TV all the time in the 90s, still remember this best of course -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vou_Ani-lKE

He was a good sport to put up with it

Metzger wow, rip, that's very sad. The Opening of Misty Beethoven is classic.

I remember Darcus Howe going nuts at Joan Rivers for saying that race doesn't mean a damn thing and everyone should just relax. For some reason I was off work and listening to Radio 4 that day.

I have strong memories of him getting shouted down by an impartial BBC interviewer for saying he wasn't surprised by the 2011 riots

provocateurs can be so boring but i always enjoyed Darcus, he looked like he was having fun and like he realised what a load of bollocks opinions on TV are

Howe, Metzger, Kakehashi and Yevtushenko all going within twenty four hours is a weird quadfecta of my interests.

My mother hated Darcus and there was a sense he was probably more of a jerk offscreen than on but he was such a huge and important voice - and as has been said - a rare and necessary provocateur.

the Imran Khan ball tampering episode of The Devil's Advocate, quite oddly, features G Boycott getting a round of applause by the Asians in the audience for condemning the "paki-bashing" of The Telegraph and British tabloids at the time. Mind you, being a wife-beater doesn't necessarily make one a racist as well.

Louisiana born, Chicago based bluesman Lonnie Brooks

http://wxrt.cbslocal.com/2017/04/02/lonnie-brooks-dies-at-age-83/

I used to pal around in bars with Radley Metzger's girlfriend. When she told me she was dating him I was stunned - he seemed like a mythical character from another era, not like someone you might come across irl (plus he was much older than her)

Chelsea Brown of the original Laugh-In cast

Bob Burns, the original drummer for Lynyrd Skynyrd (he's on the early demos, Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd, and Second Helping).

http://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/former-lynyrd-skynyrd-drummer-dies-bartow-county-c/53970940

don rickles

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/don-rickles-dead-legendary-comic-was-90-720153

jeeeezus

Gary Austin, founder of the Groundlings comedy troupe

http://peewee.com/2017/04/03/rip-gary-austin/

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-et-cm-gary-austin-groundlings-20170402-story.html

Elyse Steinman, guitarist for criminally underrated NYC-based retro Southern rock band Raging Slab.

Ah damn, just noticed this news. Completely agreed, they were one of those bands that were either too early or too late.

Don Rickles, the man who invented "problematic."

Rickles is a real loss. RIP

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/us/obituary-lolis-elie-dead-new-orleans-civil-rights-lawyer.html?_r=0

an undaunted civil rights pioneer whose advocacy as a lawyer, protest organizer and negotiator helped propel the racial desegregation of New Orleans

rickles dying makes me nervous for newhart

Glenn O'Brien, as announced here:

https://www.facebook.com/jerry.saltz/posts/10155389282874267

A favorite TV Party moment: Glenn hosts Klaus Nomi, there to show off his pastry abilities:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCbvM63_TcU

Man I knew he did a few things in life but I hadn't quite realized HOW much:

http://glennobrien.com/site/#/bio

The complete collection of TV Party on bluray was just announced within the past week or so, too.