the last famous person you were surprised to discover was actually still alive

Jorge Luis Borges's wife, Maria Kodama. She has an Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mariakodama/?hl=en

E. O. Wilson. I could have sworn that I’d heard that he’d died a few years ago!

Don Fardon. Not that he's that old so much that I'm not sure that he's been heard of since about 1969.

French actress, Micheline Presle, 99.

Sad to see Renée Simonot, Catherine Deneuve's mother, died in July this year... at the age of 109!

I’m going to say Stanley Baxter again - who first popped up on this thread 18 years ago, and gets a mention every few hundred posts - prompted by his (2016ish?) appearance on a Victor Lewis-Smith profile of Kenneth Williams which aired on Sky Arts the other day.

As long as we keep mentioning Stanley B, he’ll still be around.

Melvyn Hayes. I was amazed to hear him give a quote about Lionel Blair's death. Not a great quote, either.

Ah, there's video. For a moment there I was worried it was another "Benny Hill laments passing of 'great friend' Frankie Howerd" situation. Poor Ben wasn't in a position to be giving any quotes that day.

Ken Morse, of rostrum camera fame, only 77! Could swear he'd popped off yonks ago. Non-Brits, don't worry about it.

Roger Cook, investigative reporter. Again, he isn't that old but you just never see him or hear about him anymore.

Lucinda Lambton also. ‘Only ’ 78, but seems to have disappeared from her previously busy career as commentator on antiques , suburbs and architectural follies.

Monica Vitti - aged 90!

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/filmguide/images/0/0b/959DD869-FE59-4B02-950F-41A1E2993F5B.jpeg

not surprised he's alive, but I was recently surprised to find out Gene Hackman is 91.

Kyoko Kagawa, who delivered the "Isn't life disappointing" line in Tokyo Story, is not only still alive at 89 but still acting.

Folk singer and broadcaster, Jimmie Macgregor, 91.

(He joins Stanley Baxter, Glen Michael, Una McLean and John Cairney in the 90+ Scottish celebrity club).

I was looking up the best selling book of the 1970s for a trivia contest and: Xaviera Hollander, 78.

FW de klerk

Monica Vitti - aged 90!

Second behind Gina Lollabrigida, 94. Just ahead of Sophia Loren, 87. Bringing up the rear, the baby of the bunch, Claudia Cardinale, 83.

Lea Massari, Vitti’s co-star in L’Avventura, also still going at 88.

Starring in L'Avventura is a good portent of a long life, and as I've mentioned before, so is starring in 8 1/2 which gives us the octogenarians Anouk Aimée (89), Sandra Milo (88), Claudia Cardinale, and Barbara Steele (83).

Susan George, only 71 though. (Had been trying to find out the name of the film "Fright" today)

tbh not really sure why i would be surprised at that, maybe cos not heard about her since the 70's

Starring in L'Avventura is a good portent of a long life, and as I've mentioned before, so is starring in 8 1/2 which gives us the octogenarians Anouk Aimée (89), Sandra Milo (88), Claudia Cardinale, and Barbara Steele (83).

Barbara Steele (83).

Bob Carolgees (and by extension, his dog Spit) (73)

that extension feels a little shaky

Folk singer and broadcaster, Jimmie Macgregor, 91.

(He joins Stanley Baxter, Glen Michael, Una McLean and John Cairney in the 90+ Scottish celebrity club).

And, apropos of a conversation I was having with some friends at the weekend, Gudrun Ure is still with us at the age of 95.

Spit is 73?

In puppet dog years.

Starring in L'Avventura is a good portent of a long life

Unfortunately Monica Vitti has apparently been suffering from Alzheimers for quite a few years

Armin Mueller-Stahl, 90.

... and Mario Adorf, also 90.

Wow, excellent scores. So were you recently watching Lola?

I was about to but decided to not to.

Have you seen it before?

She's dead now, but if you'd told me a week ago that the wife of Anthony Eden was still alive I'd have found that pretty surprising

(xp) Yes. It was just too late to start watching a two hour film.

Kim Novak!

Marina Nikolayevna Oswald Porter, widow of Lee Harvey Oswald - just 80 years old

Actress Neile Adams, who was married to Steve McQueen from the 1950s to early '70s. Enrique Iglesias is her great-nephew. 89 years old.

Frank Serpico, 85 and active on Twitter

Frederic Raphael, 90.

He’s someone who I have a personal interest in and I wonder how his death will be reported, whether it will be just on the obituaries page a few days later or as news reports on the day.

Not sure he's that well known anymore.

shouldn't have crossed kubrick, been totally eyes wide shat

I think he is now best known for co-writing Eyes Wide Shut; this piece he wrote for the film's 20th anniversary a couple of years ago reads like parody ("How come Eyes Wide Shut seems, as the cant says, ‘more relevant’ after 20 years?")

https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/features/frederic-raphael-reflects-writing-eyes-wide-shut-with-stanley-kubrick

and for always appearing in Private Eye's yearly literary review round-up, claiming the prize for the most obscure/high-toned/expensive book review of the year.

I would be surprised if his death made the television news. Perhaps there should be a remake of 'Glittering Prizes'...

Oh, it looks like that was Freddy in conversation - a bracing experience, I would imagine.

Perhaps there should be a remake of 'Glittering Prizes'...

They could at least air it again on BBC Four or iPlayer. And maybe ITV could do the same for his follow-up After the War (fat chance).

it's true that only a cant would think EWS is relevant, it sucks and is dumb (sorry morbs)

Andrew Loog Oldham (in fact he's only 77 but somehow I'd assumed all those uppers and downers would have taken their toll already)

After the War is on the youtube :)

Needs more promotion!

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0924916/

Actress Jacqueline White (best known for The Narrow Margin (1952)), 99.