('Cause they're dead)
MIKE MCALARY (12/25/98)-Journalist. Mr. McAlary was
a pulitzer prize winning journalist renowned for breaking one of the largest
police brutality stories in New York City history. Mike blew the lid off
the now infamous 70th precinct. A place where'd they'd just as soon kick
your ass as take your statement (or so we're told). Mike had some major issues
with his colon. Fortunately for Mike, not one of them involved a
plunger.
MICHELLE THOMPSON (12/24/98)-Actress. Ms. Thompson
is best known for her portrayal of Theo's girlfriend on the Cosby Show
and Steve Urkel's love interest on Family Matters. Michelle also played
Callie on the soap opera, The Young and the Restless. She ain't restless
anymore, but she sure was too damn young.
NORMAN FELL (12/14/98)-Actor. Mr. Fell was a brilliant
comedic actor who stared in over 50 movies and made for T.V. movies as well
as doing countless guest appearances on sitcoms. But, Norman is best known
as Mr. Roper, that gay hating landlord from Three's Company. Uh, Norman,
four's a crowd.
LAWTON CHILES (12/13/98)-Politician. Mr. Chiles was
the Governor of Florida. In addition, Lawton served in the United States
Government. It was during his run for the U.S. Senate that Lawton earned
the nickname "Walkin' Lawton." He walked across Florida to meet his constituents.
Mr. Chiles had a heart attack while riding his life cycle. If that one ain't
an oxymoron, we don't know what is.
FLIP WILSON (11/25/98)-Comedian and drag queen. Mr.
Wilson got his start making guest appearances on variety and comedy shows
such as Ed Sullivan, Love American Style, and Laugh-in. In
the late 1960's Flip did a television special that showcased his talents.
This special led to a 4 year run with his own Emmy award winning show, The
Flip Wilson Show. You may recall Flip's famous character, Geraldine.
Flip would always discuss her in the third person and never admit that it
was him doing the character. Geraldine popularized a few great lines including,
"What you see is what you get" and "The devil made me do it." Actually Flip,
the cancer made you do it.
ALAN PAKULA (11/19/98)-Producer and director. Mr.
Pakula got his start in pictures as a production assistant for Paramount.
In his early career he produced numerous films including To Kill A
Mockingbird. However, Alan's real claim to fame came from his directorial
efforts which included Klute, All The Presidents Men, Sophie's Choice,
and The Devil's Own. Mr. Pakula died at the age of 70 when a truck
threw up a loose piece of metal from the roadway which, in turn, penetrated
the windshield of Alan's Volvo and then Alan's head. The head penetration
caused Alan to veer his car from the Long Island Expressway and crash into
a a dividing wall. Forget Sophie's Choice, Alan's choice should have
been to take the damn train.
ESTHER ROLLE (11/18/98)-Actress. Ms. Rolle appeared
in numerous movies including A Raisin in the Sun, Driving Miss Daisy,
and Rosewood. Esther was best known however, for her portrayal of Florida
Evans, the self assured mother of a low income black family. Esther's character
was created for the 1970's T.V. series Maude. The character was so
well received that it spawned a spin-off, Good Times. As far as we're
concerned, Good Times is a 1970's T.V. classic. "Scratching and
not surviving."
BOB KANE (11/3/98)-Artist. Mr. Kane created and drew
the original Batman comic stories for DC Comics starting in 1939. Bob always
considered himself a doodler and was amazed that his work had become such
a part of American pop culture. In fact, Bob's creation has been a commercial
success in comics, television, and movies. In addition, who can forget "Jingle
bells, Batman smells, Robin laid and egg?" And if you think Batman smells,
give Bob about two weeks.
RODDY MCDOWALL (10/3/98)-Actor. Mr. McDowall was
a versatile actor who just didn't turn down roles. Roddy played in numerous
"B" movies in the 1950's hit it big with some classics in the 1960's, and
rode that career the rest of his life. He did Broadway and he did T.V. The
guy just loved to perform. Among his roles were several portrayals in Planet
of the Apes pictures, Matthew in The Greatest Story Ever Told,
and Peter Vincent in the Fright Night pictures. One of his last roles
was as Mr. Soil in a picture called A Bug's Life. Yup, Mr. Soil, we
can't make this stuff up.
GENE AUTRY (10/2/98)-Actor and singer. Mr. Autry
was actually an actor and a singer at the same time. Autry played many a
role as a cowboy. But what made him different was he bought himself a $5
guitar, sat on his horse, played guitar, and sang. Autry's trademark, Back
in the Saddle Again is a cowboy classic. In addition, Gene was the first
owner of the California Angels. Oddly, now Gene is a California
angel.
FLORENCE GRIFFITH JOYNER (9/21/98)-Athlete. Ms. Joyner
was a triple gold medalist in Track and Field at the 1988 Olympics. Florence
was characterized by her flamboyant running outfits, the fact that she ran
with jewelry on, and her long finger nails. All traits unusual for someone
running for speed. Florence had cardiac failure at the age of 38. Think we'll
be turning in those running shoes and heading out for burgers
now.
GEORGE WALLACE (9/13/98)-Politician. Mr. Wallace
was a former Governor of Alabama who made two bids at the Presidency. But
what really brought George into the spotlight were the facts that 1) he was
an avid segregationist and 2) he was shot and consequently paralyzed by a
would be assassin. Mr. Wallace was the guy who stood at the door of the
Montgomery, Alabama school when they tried to first enroll black students.
Ya know what, he ain't standing anymore.
AKIRA KUROSAWA (9/6/98)-Director. Mr. Kurosawa was a well known Japanese
movie director. Among his classics are The Seven Samurai and
Rashomon." In addition, Akira won an award at Cannes in 1985 for his
self proclaimed "life's work," Ran which means Chaos. Akira
has been quoted as saying, "Take 'myself,' subtract 'movies,' and the remainder
is 'zero.' Guess someone subtracted 'movies.'
E.G. MARSHALL (8/25/98)-Actor. Mr. Marshall was
a character actor noted for playing politicians. So noted was E.G., that
folks on the street would think he was, in fact, a politician. Everet's most
notable role was that of Lawrence Preston in The Defenders, a popular
1960's TV show. In addition, Mr. Marshall did 12 films including, Town
Without Pity. Well, it isn't very pretty, what a town without pity, can
do!
LEWIS POWELL (8/25/98)-Supreme Court Justice. Mr.
Powell was nominated to the Supreme Court by none other than Tricky Dick
Nixon himself. Lewis often cast the deciding vote in a case and was thus
dubbed "The Fifth Vote" and the "Majority Maker". Though some found Powell's
opinions somewhat right of center, most information indicates Lewis' opinions
were without ideological motivation, based on law alone. Seems the law of
nature got old Lew at the tender age of 90.
PHIL LEEDS (8/18/98)-Comedian. Mr. Leeds started
in the comedy world in the 1920's. Phil did a number of smaller parts in
movies and a hell of a lot of small character parts on television series.
Just to names a few of Phil’s projects, All in the Family, Maude,
Barney Miller, Night Court, Three's Company, Ally McBeal, Wings, Friends,
and Ellen. Mr. Leeds most recent film work was the Richard Dreyfuss
picture Krippendorf's Tribe. Now we can safely say it wasn't just
the film that died.
PERSIS KHAMBATTA (8/17/98)-Actress. Ms. Khambatta
was big news in India for a few years in the 1960's when she represented
them in the Miss Universe contest. She won! Persis did a couple of motion
pictures and TV appearances here in the U.S. Most notably Ms. Khambatta played
the bald Lieutenant, Ilia, in Star Trek-The Motion Picture. Check
this out: Persis won the Miss India title wearing a dress she grabbed "off
the rack" shortly before the contest. We hear that her mortician is heading
over to K-MART to get her final duds. Heck, it worked once.
JIM MURRAY (8/17/98)-Sports Writer. Mr. Murray was
a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist who covered the sports scene. Jim helped
create the cornerstone of sports periodicals in the country today, Sports
Illustrated. Mr. Murray was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987.
In addition, Jim was legally blind since 1979. Mr. Murray died on Sunday,
August 17, 1998 of cardiac arrest. He didn't even see it
coming.
SYLVIA FIELD TRUEX (8/10/98)-Actress. Ms. Truex appeared
in a few of films and television shows. Most notably, Sylivia played Mrs.
Wilson on Dennis the Menace in the late 50s and early 60s. "Mrs. Wilson,
can Mr. Wilson come out and play? Mrs. Wilson? Mrs. Wilson? Mrs.
Wilson!"
SHARI LEWIS (8/2/98)-Kids show host. Ms. Lewis got
her start on The Captain Kangaroo Show and went on to host numerous shows
of her own. The common thread in all the shows were her famous sock puppets,
Charlie Horse, Hush Puppy, and of course, Lamb Chop. Lewis won numerous Emmys
and Parent's Choice awards as well as several other awards. In additon to
puppeteering, Lewis would perform musical numbers on her shows. One of her
most famous was The Song That Never Ends. Guess what? It
ended.
"BUFFALO" BOB SMITH (7/30/98)-Kids show host. Mr.
Smith hosted the now famous Howdy Doody Show for thirteen years starting
in 1947. Bob was born in Buffalo (duh) and got his start in vaudeville. He
went on to host a radio show. From there, it was on to NBC and to puppeteering
fame. Hey kids, what time is it? It's Howdy Doody's time.
JEROME ROBBINS (7/29/98)-Choreographer, Director.
Mr. Robbins choreographed and directed both ballet and broadway musicals.
Among some of his best known shows include The King and I, Fiddler on
the Roof, The Pajama Game, Peter Pan, and West Side Story. Jerome
was known as a demanding man who always produced wonderful results. Except,
of course, the time he demanded that the stroke wouldn't kill
him.
ALAN SHEPARD (7/22/98)-Astronaut. Mr. Shepard was
the first American in space. He flew 302 miles up on May 5, 1961. It took
15 minutes. He later manned an Apollo mission, Apollo 14. When he arrived
on the moon ya know what he did? He hit golf balls. The guy travels all the
way to the moon and hits golf balls. Shepard was 74. We think that's about
par for this course.
BOB MCALLISTER (7/21/98)-Kids Show Host. Mr. McAllister got started
as a magician. He moved on to ventriloquism and, after winning a talent contest,
landed a job hosting a kid's show in Norfolk and Baltimore. His talent at
hosting these shows landed him a contract with ABC television. Bob hosted
the popular T.V. show Wonderama starting in 1967. Later he hosted
a spin off show called Kids are People Too for which he won an emmy. Bob
never lost his magic roots. He taught adult classes in magic at Stuyvesant
High School in Manhattan. He could not, however, make his tumors disappear.
ROBERT YOUNG (7/21/98)-Actor. Mr. Young entered films
in 1931. He went on to perform on a radio show in a role that was later adapted
to T.V. It was that T.V. role that made him famous. Robert was the nation's
most loved father on Father Knows Best. In the late 1960s he became
well known again as the nations most loved doctor on Marcus Welby M.D.
Robert was 91 years of age. Let's face it, young he wasn't.
HUGH REILLY (7/17/98)-Actor. Mr. Reilly played Paul
Martin, dad of Timmy Martin. Timmy, of course, was the little punk ass who
owned Lassie on the T.V. show of the same name. Hugh didn't have a real glamorous
career nor did he perform in hundreds of great movies or T.V. shows. But
damn, he played against a dog and the dog got better billing and more name
recognition. We figured we owed the guy something.
RICHARD MCDONALD(7/14/98)-Fast Food Dude. Mr. McDonald,
with his brother, founded a little fast food joint in the Chicago area. They
called the place McDonalds. After a few years running the joint the brothers
sold the place to a fella named Ray Kroc. The rest is history. The original
"Over eighty quadrillion, sixty billion, thousands of millions served" slogan
was created by Richard. Reports are unclear, but it is rumored that Richard
had a Big Mac Attack.
HAROLD BUTLER (7/9/98)-Not So Fast Food Dude. Mr.
Butler was the founder of the Denny's restaurant chain. You may remember
the chain because they got in a bit of hot water for providing poor service
to several black government agents awhile back. The agents brought suit against
Denny's. Say what you want, a Grand Slam still tastes pretty good to us.
And those bacon and eggs...Mmmmmmm.
KAY THOMPSON (7/7/98)-Actress, Musician, Author.
Ms. Thompson not only sang with the Mills Brothers, she was an arranger and
singer with the Fred Waring's band and a pianist with the St. Louis Symphony.
Later, she moved on to acting and ultimately performed on her own show for
radio (Kay Thompson and Company) and acted in a one women show in 1954. In
addition, Kay is the author four books based on a bratty little girl from
New York who lives in the Plaza Hotel. The girl and book series are called
"Eloise". They include "Eloise", "Eloise in Paris", "Eloise at Christmastime",
"Eloise in Moscow" and just recently out, "Eloise in
Coffin."
ROY ROGERS (7/6/98)-Cowboy, Actor, Fast Food Dude.
Mr. Rogers (Nah, not the sweater guy) was known as the "King of the Cowboys."
With trusty horse - Trigger and loving wife - Dale Evans, Roy made his career
acting and singing. Rogers appeared in over 100 movies and numerous television
shows. But most importantly to the Guys at the O.B.E., Roy made a pretty
good roast beef sandwich...Even if it did taste a bit like Trigger from time
to time. (DISCLAIMER: That of course, is just our
opinion).
MAUREEN O'SULLIVAN (6/23/98)-Actress. Ms. O'Sullivan,
at nine, wanted to be a pilot. As she aged, her aspirations changed. She
went on to do over 60 feature films. Her most famous role was Jane, Tarzan's
girl and ultimate wife. In addition, Maureen gave birth to seven children
including Mia Farrow. Momma Mia...see ya.
REG SMYTHE (6/13/98)-Cartoonist. Mr. Smythe was the
creator of that drinker among drinkers and brow beaten husband deluxe, Andy
Capp. Reg began drawing the strip in 1957 and quickly gained recognition.
Today, the strip is well known world wide. In addition, Andy Capp's picture
graces a tasty snack called Pub Fries (and Hot Fries). Andy Capp is well
known for being late, especially after a night of drinking. We're not sure
if Reg was much of a drinker, but he certainly is late.
Hiccup!
LEO BUSCAGLIA (6/12/98)-Author. Mr. Buscaglia wrote
a bunch of books about love. Ya know, lots of that 1970's feel good crap.
As a general rule of thumb, if the book you're about to buy is in the self
help section of the store, you should put it down, head over to the Humor
section and buy something there. In the end, it's probably a safer bet. Just
ask Leo....he couldn't even help himself out of a heart attack. Love our
ass, how about some nitro pills next time Leo.
STEVE SANDERS (6/10/98)-Musician. Mr. Sanders was
the front man for country music band The Oak Ridge Boys. He sang lead on
such hits as "Lucky Moon" and "No Matter How High." Before singing, Steve
played guitar for the band, most notably on the hit "Elvira." Mr. Sanders
blew his head off. Rumor is it was a sign of support for Charlton
Heston.
BARRY GOLDWATER (5/29/98)-Politician. Mr. Goldwater
was a senator from 1952 to 1964. In 1964 he ran, unsuccessfully, for president
against Lydon Johnson. He was re-elected to the senate in 1974 and served
until 1987. What makes Barry kinda wacky fun is that he believed, to his
core, that secret UFO research was going on in the U.S. government and that
the government was hiding a heap of information on UFO's. This guy was X-Files
before X-Files was X-files. Now, he is X-pired.
PHIL HARTMAN (5/28/98)-Comedian. Mr. Hartman did
eight seasons on "Saturday Night Live" where he was known for his impersonations
of numerous celebrities. Hartman went on to get a leading role in NBC's "New's
Radio" playing the very sarcastic Bill McNeal. Phil also did voice work on
the animated series "The Simpsons", most notably as Troy McClure......"Hi,
I'm Troy McClure. You may remember me from such movies as "My Wife Shot
Me."
JOHN DEREK (5/22/98)-Actor, Director, Bo's Husband.
Mr. Derek appeared in numerous classics including "Exodus" and "The Ten
Commandments." Then he directed a bunch of terrible pictures including "Ghost's
Can't Do It" and "Bolero." Laugh all you want, he has been married to Pati
Behrs, Ursula Andress, Linda Evans and Bo Derek. After sex with Bo, what
else is there to live for?
FRANCIS ALBERT SINATRA (5/14/98)-Singer, Actor,
Philosopher, and so much more. It would be grossly inappropriate for the
O.B.E. to attempt to sum up the life of our hero in three or four lines.
Instead we thought it would be best to give you just a flavor for a great
man who sadly is no longer with us. Hey, That's
Life!
MARJORY STONEMAN-DOUGLAS (5/14/98)-Environmentalist,
Author. Ms. Douglas was a vocal proponent of saving the Florida Everglades
since the early 1900s. Her battle, which started to prevent the Everglades
from being converted to farmland, continued right up to her death. She focused
both public opinion and poltical decision making on preservation of the
Everglades. She even wrote a book on the topic called "The Everglades: River
of Grass." She died at the age of 108 and is to be creamated. Her ashes will
be spread across Everglade National Park. Damn polluter.
ALICE FAYE (5/9/98)-Actress. Ms. Faye, original name
Alice Leppert, grew up in hell's kitchen and went on to become a famous
singer/actress starring in motion pictures including "Tin Pan Alley" and
Alexander's Ragtime Band." Alice was married to band leader Phil Harris for
54 years (a marriage they said wouldn't make six months). After years under
contract with FOX, she gave up movie life in favor of home life. After years
on the Earth, she gave up all life for no life.
BEBE REBOZO(5/8/98)-Banker. So why is a banker famous?
Easy! He was pals with a president (hey, look at McDougal). Not just any
president mind you; Mr. Rebozo was there when Richard Nixon got the Watergate
phone call. According to Bebe, they laughed about it. Bebe stood by Nixon
throughout the Watergate scandal. Mr. Rebozo died from undisclosed causes.
We suspect it was embarrassment over his support for that scoundrel
Nixon.
EDDIE RABBITT (5/7/98)-Musician. Mr. Rabbit bounced
between country and pop music. Although a country singer and songwriter,
he had several pop hits in the late 1970's and early 1980's. Eddie wrote
a hit tune for Elvis ("Kentucky Rain") as well as those pop wonders "I Love
a Rainy Night", "Drivin' My Life Away," "Step by Step" and a duet with Crystal
Gayle, "You and I." He developed lung cancer over the last few years. The
Rabbitt died (wonder if this means we're pregnant?).
ELDRIDGE CLEAVER (5/1/98)-Militant. In the 1960's
Mr. Cleaver was was shaking up "Whitey" good as a leader of the Black Panthers.
But, by the 1980's Eldridge had become a drug addict. After years of battling
drug abuse, Mr. Cleaver cleaned up his act and became a Born Again Christian
in the early 1990's. Darn, he even became a Republican. He died at the age
of 62 from an undisclosed cause. We suspect it was "The
Man."
CHRISTIAN MORTENSEN (4/27/98)-Very Old Person. Mr.
Mortensen was, up until recently, the world's oldest man. He lived in California
and attributed his longevity to drinking lots of bottled water and smoking
an occasional cigar. Now, there was that fella in Nepal who died on April
20, 1998. He claimed to be 141 but had no proof. Mortensen had a birth
certificate indicating he was over 115 years old. Now he's got a death
certificate to match.
JAMES
EARL RAY (4/23/98)-Assassin. Mr. Ray is famous for one reason only...'cause
he confessed to shooting and killing Martin Luther King Jr. outside the Lorraine
Motel, Memphis Tennessee in April of 1968. He would later deny that he killed
King, professing that a mystery person known only as "Raoul" killed King.
Mr. Ray has been ill for years and has spent his time slipping in and out
the hospital and a coma (keeping Death Watchers on the edge of their seats).
Ray's father was quoted as saying his son was not smart enough to have pulled
off such a crime by himself. Ray was heard to mumble, "Gee, thanks
dad."
LINDA MCCARTNEY (4/17/98)-Photographer, Quasi-musician.
Ms. McCartney (nee Eastman) was a well known photographer when she married
Paul McCartney of Beatles fame in 1969. After the band's break up,
Paul went on to do solo work and formed a little band called Wings. Linda
played keyboards and sang, though she did neither very well. Linda was an
outspoken vegetarian and even wrote a "meatless" cookbook and had a vegetarian
line of foods. Boy, Linda keels over and Yoko is still around. Sometimes
life just isn't fair!
MARIE LOUISE MEILLEUR (4/16/98)-Very old person. Ms.
Meileur was said to be the world's oldest woman. She was 117. Marie had 10
kids, 85 grandchildren, 80 great grandchildren, and 57 great, great
grandchildren. Think about this, her oldest living child is 89. She was no
tap dancer, comedian, singer, movie star or the like, but she did bear an
uncanny resemblance to Victor Borge.
POL POT (4/16/98)-Mass Murderer. He was the leader
of Cambodia from 1975 to 1979. He was responsible for the death of over 1.7
million of his own people. In a word, he was a dick. He died of a heart attack.
Strange, we didn't think this bastard had a heart.
WENDY O. WILLIAMS (4/6/98)-Musician. Ms. WIlliams
was the front gal for the punk rock legends the Plasmatics. She was famous
for performing in skimpy outfits (or no outfit at all, using things like
shaving cream or audio tape as clothing). The Plasmatics would get on stage
or T.V. and blow up cars, televisions, instruments, you name it. Seems Wendy
got a little carried away and blew up her own head with a
shotgun.
TAMMY WYNETTE (4/6/98)-Singer. Ms. Wynette was a country
music legend; "Stand by Your Man" and "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" being among the hits.
She worked picking cotton, waiting tables, as a receptionist, serving drinks,
making shoes, and as a beautician before she started her singing career.
She was married 5 times (stand by your man, man, man, man, and man), was
kidnapped and beaten once, went bankrupt, and cut 30 albums. We'd be dead
too.
ROB PILATUS (4/4/98)-Faker. Mr. Pilatus and his pally
Fabrice Morvan pretended to have singing careers in the 1980's under the
name Milli Vanilli. We say pretended 'cause, as you may recall, they never
really sang a stitch; they lip-synched it all. What a bunch of weenies. Rob
overdosed. We aren't sure if he was Milli or Vanilli but we're certain he
shouldn't have drank and taken pillies.
BELLA ABZUG (3/31/98)-Politician, feminist. Ms. Abzug
was the first Jewish woman to win a seat in Congress. She ran for that seat
in 1970 using the slogan "A woman's place is in the house." In the 1970's,
during her stint in congress, she strongly opposed the Vietnam war. Bella
was a strong advocate for peace, feminism, and human rights. Her trademarks
included her hats and her feisty persistent attitude. Damn we hope God is
a gal. 'Cause if he isn't, he's in for a rash of crap.
DR. BENJAMIN SPOCK (3/16/98)-Doctor, author. Dr. Spock
is famous for his book on raising children, appropriately called, "Baby and
Child Care." Spock was also an Olympic rower and ran for president in 1972.
Although dubbed the "father of permissiveness" for his liberal manner of
child rearing, his book has enjoyed immense popularity worldwide for more
than 50 years. And no, he is not a Vulcan (so I wouldn't hold your breath
for the sequel).
LLOYD BRIDGES (3/10/98)-Actor. Mr. Bridges has been
a member of the acting community for over fifty years. Lloyd was in well
over 100 motion pictures and appeared on numerous TV shows, most famously
his staring role in Sea Hunt. Lloyd was not above comedy as is evidenced
by his roles in "Hot Shots" and "Airplane-The Movie". Guess he picked a bad
day to quit breathing.
JIM MCDOUGAL (3/8/98)-Businessman. Mr. McDougal is
best know for his role in the Whitewater affair which has plagued the Clinton
Presidency like roaches under the sink. Jim was serving a prison term for
fraud associated with the Whitewater Land Deal. Mr. McDougal had cut a deal
with the Independent Counsel's office regarding the investigation into the
Whitewater matter. I don't think this was what he had in mind when he was
offered a reduced sentence.
J.T. WALSH (2/27/98)-Actor. Mr. Walsh started his
acting career in 1975 at the age of 31. Prior to that he had been a social
worker, journalist, salesman and teacher. J.T. is best known for playing
cowardly bad guys. Although he's not a household name, he has worked in films
consistently for over 15 years playing over 60 movie and television roles.
In 1995 he played Ted Hannon in the motion picture "The Little Death." In
1998 he played J.T. Walsh in the big death.
ANTONIO PROHIAS (2/24/98)-Cartoonist. Mr. Prohias
was born in Cuba where he established himself as a well known cartoonist.
He left for NYC in 1960 as Castro came to power. He started work at MAD magazine
where he drew the now famous SPY vs. SPY strip. Appropriate dress for the
funeral is black or white.
HENNY YOUNGMAN (2/24/98)-Comedian, Actor. Mr. Youngman
was a classic old school comedian who earned his reputation in the Borscht
Belt. Besides performing stand-up, he appeared in numerous movies, spoke
at countless roasts, and likely ate thousands of lunches at the Friars Club.
In comedy circles Henny was known as the "king of the one liner." Now he's
the king of the flat liner.
GRANDPA JONES (2/19/98)-Musician, Comedian. Grandpa,
Louis Marshall Jones, joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1947. At that time he
had already been known as Grandpa for 11 years. His Grandpa character and
banjo playing earned him a spot on the variety show "Hee Haw" which ran from
1968 to 1993. For those of you who were wondering, we think his April 8th,
1998 appearance at the Cross Country Trail Ride in Eminence, Missouri has
been indefinitely postponed.
HARRY CARAY (2/18/98)-Broadcaster. Mr. Caray announced
for numerous ball clubs, ending with the Chicago Cubs. Harry's trademark
yells of, "Holy Cow" and his leading the fans in singing "Take me out to
the ball game" are legendary to Cubs fans. He collapsed at a restaurant on
February 14, 1998, was hospitalized, and four days later, died. Rumor has
it that he was removed from the restaurant on a seventh inning
stretcher.
CARL WILSON (2/6/98)-Musician. Mr. Wilson played guitar
for one of the biggest groups of the 1960s, The Beach Boys. The band immortalized
the sun, surf, cool cars, and sexy chicks lifestyle which became a symbol
of the California beach culture. Mr. Wilson died from cancer at the age of
51. Guess the summer wasn't endless after all.
FALCO (2/6/98)-Musician. Hansi Hoelzl, aka FALCO,
had pop hits in North America in the 1980s with "Rock Me Amadeus" and "Der
Kommissar". FALCO released more than 15 albums in Europe. Mr. Hoelzl was
living in the Dominican Republic where he hoped to build a recording studio.
His jeep collided with a bus. In 1998, the Austrian pop star Falco becomes
road kill.
JACK LORD (1/21/98)-Actor, artist. Mr. Lord performed
in various movies and TV series throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Jack studied
art at NYU and some of his paintings are in permanent collections (even at
the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC). But of course, Jack is best known
for his portrayal of Steve McGarrett in the TV series Hawaii Five-O. Mr.
Lord died of heart failure at the age of 77. He requested no funeral. So,
don't book it Dano.
CARL PERKINS (1/19/98)-Musician, song writer. Carl
played rock-a-billy music when rock-a-billy was king, the 1950's. Although
a popular musician in his own right, he is best known for the works he wrote
for others. This dude wrote Blue Suede Shoes for Elvis and a bunch of tunes
that the Beatles performed. Carl had several successive strokes in December
of 1997. It was one stroke for the money, two for the show, three really
got him, then go Carl go!
JUNIOR WELLS (1/15/98)-Musician. Mr. Wells, a world
famous bluesman, was especially well known for his harmonica playing. Junior,
real name Amos Blackmore, was born in Memphis, Tennessee on December 9, 1934.
He was considered to be one of the last great Chicago bluesmen. After fighting
lymphoma for several months, Junior died at the age of 63. Not so well after
all.
SONNY BONO (1/5/98)-Singer, actor, and politician. Mr. Bono performed
throughout the 1960's and 70's with his then wife, Cher. Both the duo and
the marriage fell apart. Sonny went on to become the mayor of Palm Springs
and ultimately a United States congressman. Sonny was skiing and ran into
a tree. The tree won. If life's an uphill battle, then death's a downhill
slalom.
MAE QUESTEL (1/4/98)-Actress and vocal talent. Ms.
Questel started a long career in the cartoon business by providing the voice
of Betty Boop and later Olive Oyl. She later performed in person in a bunch
of pictures including "Funny Girl". In 1988 she revisited her vocal role
as Betty Boop in the acclaimed film "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" Mae was in
over 130 movies, either in person or as a vocal talent. That's a lot of movies!
She was born in 1908 but still looked like she did sixty years ago as the
photo to the left illustrates.