Up to the Minute

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WHAT'S THE BUZZ?


Film Noir



Since I’ve gotten heavily involved with DVDs, I’m discovering some things that never interested me before like John Wayne westerns. Another is film noir. This genre is not only entertaining and enjoyable, but quite addicting. With its dark moody atmosphere, B-movie looks, its cops, robbers, tough guys and sassy dames, and oh, those old cars! Film Noir is surprisingly involving. These films were made mostly with no-name stars, familiar and unfamiliar character actors, and fledgling directors, some who were “on their way up.” The dialog was crisp and clever, often by big name authors and playwrights, the pacing was/is fast-paced and production values most often superb. Film noir became so popular that big name actors and directors wanted in. Critics and fans alike praised these films which are now classics. They are thriving on DVD and I have quite a library of film noir. So far, I’ve yet to see a bad one. Some of my favorites are: Call Northside 777; Kiss of Death; Clash by Night; Detour (one of the top film noir flicks); Hitch-Hiker; D.O.A; Narrow Margin; all Bogart film noirs, especially Dark Passage, and two newer film noirs: Chinatown and L.A. Confidential. I can’t wait to see more and I highly recommend the films listed above and any other film noir delights.

HAIL TO THE ACADEMY!



I am thrilled by the recent (2004) Oscar honors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences [AMPAS]. Never have the recipients been so deserving nor has the Academy agreed so with critics, fans and the media upon the honorees. In fact they were more than kind to the magnificent trilogy The Lord of the Rings. With this and recent inclusion of Independent films the Academy has "come of age." It is reflecting the tastes of the rest of the world. I know I am not alone in my feelings on the outcome of this year's Academy Awards. I thank the Academy and its members for restoring their credibility and integrity.

WHY THE LORD OF THE RINGS: RETURN OF THE KING HAS TO WIN THE BEST PICTURE OSCAR



The number one answer to this question is that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS) desperately needs to restore credibility and integrity to its goals. The Academy blew it with Citizen Kane, E.T. and Fargo as well as the first two installments of this cinematic masterpiece. In the mid 21st century how many people will remember the films Gandhi, The English Patient and even A Beautiful Mind? I guarantee you they WILL remember E.T., Fargo and Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring as film classics. And, is Chicago really a better film than Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers? Is Forest Gump better than The Shawshank Redemption? Watch them all and then dare to say yes. Rarely does a trilogy like Lord of the Rings come along and take you on a journey so involving, so magnificent and so rewarding. This is not a sword and sorcery drama nor is it frivolous in any way. It contains strong messages and life affirming values and lessons. Such heart and work has gone into the creation of this marvel as to boggle the mind. The art of the cinema has been raised to levels not yet imagined by Peter Jackson and his crews. Even if it was up against The Passion of Christ with the original cast I would still say it must be properly hailed and honored. It proves that filmmaking is indeed art!


MORE ON DVDs



Thanks to this Website I’m able to vent my frustrations on things that bother me. Not that it does any good, but my list of Films Wanted on DVD has dwindled quite substantially as one after another are released; many of them quite obscure. Somebody out there IS listening. I have a lot of DVD related pet peeves, chief among them being poor video quality and dirty (uncleaned, pitted and scratched) prints of films being produced quickly just to “cash in.”

Another is Security Tape(s). Must they use such sticky, hard-to-remove tape on the DVD cases? In many cases I’ve destroyed the packaging trying to get the tape off. I’m not alone in this. I’ve taken a poll and many DVD buyers are just as fed up as I am. On older DVDs many times the tape is so old it won’t come off without scrubbing with Goo Gone (orange oil). The worst to remove is the top label. Sometimes it tears the film label under the plastic covering. I’m getting better at opening these DVDs but it takes about 15 mins. minimum to do and it still drives me crazy! And all because of thieves.

Now let’s talk about the 2 basic types of DVD packaging. Keep Cases and Snap Cases are the most common. I order a lot of DVDs and I find that about 1 out of 3 Snap Cases (those with cardboard covers and plastic edging) arrive with a broken hub. You can hear the pieces rattling in the case before you open the package. This means a month or more wait for a return copy. The tape on Snap Cases, however, is easily removed. Occasionally Keep Cases (all plastic snap shut cases) will arrive with broken hubs and a scratched DVD; another long wait for a return copy. The newest thing is multiple stacked DVD cases with 4 or more DVDs piled one on top another. I worry about scratches on this type case. Some are very difficult to get off the hub and you need to be extremely careful and patient in removing them.

The MOST WANTED FILMS on DVD



Here is MY List of the most wanted Films on DVD. I feel it is near complete although there may be a few titles I missed. These are my favorites and I emphasize MY. Some are already available but at very high prices e.g. Criterion Collection films; these I have marked [affordable] meaning a lower priced version is needed. Others are available thru Goodtimes a company with a poor track record of DVDs. Most are grainy, scratched, dirty, some scenes are missing, dialog is interrupted and they are of extremely poor quality. Alpha Video DVDs can be "iffy" too as they deal in older films. I have received some poor quality DVDs from the big companies also. Films to stay away from:

Black Stallion;
Escape from Fort Bravo [very grainy, filmed in washed-out Ansco Color
Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Rev. Jim Jones;
Indictment: The McMartin Trial;
Maid in America:
Mrs. Brown;
Patterns; [Critics Choice]
Pride of Jesse Hallem [TVM];
Story Lady, The;
as all were either scratched and/or dirty and I was also uhappy with the quality of the release of:
The Desperate Hours [1955];
with lots of flickering on the video and more recently:
For Whom the Bell Tolls;
which had some out-of-focus scenes and Family Plot with too many dirt specks and scratches.
The Miami Vice TV Series Season 1


should have been cleaned before printing to DVD. Most of these are dirty, bad quality DVDs. Dirt, scratches, hair and nicks are intolerable on DVDs. Some companies are in such a hurry to make money they distribute a poor product. All films transferred to DVD should at the very least be thoroughly cleaned as is best possible. Dirt grains and particles on films are inexcusable. The battle of Pan & Scan/Full Screen vs. Letterbox/Widescreen is still on but more and more people are choosing Widescreen and rightly so. The picture, besides being full and complete, is sharper, the colors richer and eventually we will all have rectangular screens. Obviously, all films on my list would preferably be in WS. Getting back to my List, films with more than one version include the year of release.


I have removed quite a few titles (at least 85) from this list as they are now available on DVD. Is somebody actually listening? If so, take special note of "Missing Link" (1988) and "Abe Lincoln in Illinois" (with Raymond Massey),"The African Queen", "AMAZING STORIES", "Back from Eternity", "The Big Sky", "The Best Man", "Conspiracy of Hearts", "Counterpoint", "Crusoe", "The Comic" with Dick Van Dyke, "1492: Conquest of Paradise", "Delta Heat", "Downhill Racer" with Redford, "Dreamer of Oz" a great TVM of L. Frank Baum's creation of the "Wizard of Oz", "Young Tom Edison" and "Edison the Man", "84 Charlie Mopic", "The Emigrants" and "The New Land", Jan Troell's Masterpiece, "Escape from Fort Bravo" (a clean print), "Far North" with Jessica Lange, "Guns of Fort Petticoat", "The Green Years", "The Green Journey" aka "The Love She Sought", "The Happy Years", "Rasputin" (HBO -PLEASE CLEAN THE FILM), Sands of the Kalahari", "The Savage Innocents", "Seven Cities of Gold", "Sign of the Cross", "The Spikes Gang", "The Story of G.I. Joe", "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington", "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn", "The 27TH Day" and "Westward the Women." Paramount Pictures seems to be the slowest in releaasing their films on DVD. Aren't they losing more than we?
Here is my FULL List:


1492: Conquest of Paradise
Abandon Ship
A.D. [Anno Domino - 1985 TV mini-series]
African Queen, The [COMING in MARCH 2010]
All I Desire [d. Douglas Sirk - 1953] [How about a Douglas Sirk Box Set]
All My Sons [1948]
Amahl and the Night Visitors [Worldvision – 1978]
Ambulance, The
America in the 40s [Reader's Digest Prod. avail. only on VHS]
American Romance, An [1944]
American Shaolin: King of the Kickboxers 2
Angels Wash Their Faces
Apartment for Peggy, An
At Play in the Fields of the Lord
Back from Eternity [
Barrets of Wimpole Street [1934]
Battle Circus [1953]
Best Man, The [1964]
Big Sky, The
Black Sleep, The [1956]
Black Stallion [a re-mastered - CLEAN print]
Bombardier [1943]
Bonnie Prince Charlie [1948 - David Niven]
Borgia Stick, The [1967 - TVM]
Call of the Wild [TVM - Rick Schroder - 1993]
Catered Affair, A [1956]
Charlemagne [1996 - mini-series]
Chicago Deadline [1949 - film noir]
Choices of the Heart: The Magaret Sanger Story [1995 - TVM]
Christmas Toys, The [1986 - TVM]
Come to the Stable [1949]
Comic, The [1969 - Dick Van Dyke]
Confessions of a Nazi Spy [1939]
Conspiracy of Hearts [1960]
Corsican Brothers, The [1941]
Counterpoint [1968 – Charlton Heston] (Did this film disappear off the face of the Earth?)
Crack in the World [1965]
Cross of Lorraine [1943]
Crowded Sky, The
Crusoe [1988 – Aidan Quinn]
Cry of the City [1948 - film noir]
D.I., The
Dark Mirror - [1946 - film noir]
Dark of the Sun [1968]
Dark Past [1948 - film noir]
Dark Waters [1944 - film noir]
Deadline U.S.A. [1952]
Delta Heat [1992]
Desperate Hours, The (1955) [a re-mastered - CLEAN print]
Deperate Journey [1942]
Destination Gobi
Destroyer [1943]
Douglas Sirk Box Set including: All I Desire; Interlude; Tarnished Angels; There's Always Tomorrow
Down to the Sea in Ships [1949]
Downhill Racer
Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet
Dragonwyck
Dreamchild
Dreamhouse [TV Movie – 1981 – John Schneider]
Dust Be My Destiny [1939] [John Garfield]
84 Charlie Mopic
Emigrants, The [1971 - see also: New Land, The]
Fairies [2003]
Far North [1988]
Farmer's Daughter, The [1947]
55 Days at Peking
Flash [1998 - TV Movie]
Fooling Around
Forbidden Interlude [1957]
1492: Conquest of Paradise
Frisco Kid [1935 w/J. Cagney]
Full of Life (1956) [Richard Conte, Judy Holliday & Trudy Marshall]
Glass Key [1942 - film noir]
Goodbye, Miss 4th of July [1988 - TVM]
Great Waltz, The [1938]
Green Journey [TVM - 1990 - Angela Lansbury - see: Love She Sought]
Green Years, The
Guns of Fort Petticoat, The
Guy Named Joe, A [1943]
Happy Years, The [1950 w/ Dean Stockwell]
Hawaiians, The [1970]
Hell's Heroes [1930]
High Barbaree [1947]
Homeward Bound [TVM – 1980]
House of Numbers
Hudson's Bay [1941]
I, the Jury [1953 - film noir]
Indictment: The McMartin Trial [a re-mastered - CLEAN print]
Interlude [d. Douglas Sirk - 1957]
Isadora
Island, The [1980]
Johnny Eager
K-2 [1992 - Not Goodtimes]
Kid and the Clown, The [1961]
Kidnapped [1948]
King of the Hill [1993 – S. Soderbergh dir.]
King of the Khyber Rifles
Lassiter
Last Angry Man, The [Paul Muni and Pat Hingle versions]
Last Days of Pompeii [mini-series 1984]
Last of the Mohicans [1936 - Randolph Scorr vers.]
Laurel Avenue [TV Mini-Series – 1993]
Laurel & Hardy [all sound shorts – Features: Pardon Us; Pack Up Your Troubles; A Chump at Oxford; Swiss Miss; Bohemian Girl; Our Relations; Saps at Sea; Flying Deuces SEE: A word on L&H films below]
Left Hand of God, The
Little Lord Fauntleroy [1980 – TV Movie – A. Guinness, R. Schroder]
Little Riders, The [EXCELLENT family film - Made for Cable 1996]
Love with the Proper Stranger [1963]
Love She Sought, The aka Green Journey [TVM - 1990 - Angela Lansbury - Excellent]
Luck of the Irish [1948]
Magic of Ordinary Days, The [2005 Hallmark Hall of Fame MTV]
Magnificent Ambersons, The
Magnificent Yankee, The
Maid in America [a re-mastered - CLEAN print]
Main Street After Dark
Male Animal, The
Man Between, The [1953]
Man on a Tightrope [1953]
Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains [1987 - TVM]
Mask of Dimitrios, The
Mass Appeal
Master of Ballantrae [TVM – 1984 – Michael York]
Masterminds
Matter of Sex, A [1984 - TVM]
Meeting of Minds aka Steve Allen’s Meeting of Minds [1980s – all episodes]
Men Don't Leave
Miracle of the Bells [1948]
Missing Link [Excellent family film-directed by Carol & David Hughes] [1988 -MCA Home Video]
Mrs. Brown [a re-mastered - CLEAN print]
Mountain, The [1956 - Spencer Tracy & Robert Wagner]
Mudlark, The
Murder, He Says [1945 - Hilarious Comedy w/Fred MacMurray & Marjorie Main]
New Land, The [1972 – sequel to The Emigrants]
North Star [1943]
North Star aka Tashunga [1996]
Northwest Mounted Police
Northwest Passage
Oklahoma Kid, The (1939)
Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss [1988 – Jean Shepherd auth.]
On Dangerous Ground [1952 - film noir]
On Our Merry Way
Operation Daybreak [1976]
Oxford Blues
Patterns [1956] BEWARE: Critics Choice copy which is pitiful quality
Personals, The [1982]
Phase IV [1974]
Pied Piper, The [1942]
Pitfall [1948 - film noir]
Photographing Fairies [1997]
Purple Haze
Rasputin [HBO Made for Cable – 1996 – A. Rickman - HBO: please clean the print before production]
Retreat, Hell! [1952]
Rhapsody in Bloom
Ride the Pink Horse [1947 - film noir]
Rob Roy: Highland Rogue [Disney]
Run [1991 - Patrick Dempsey]
Sahara [TV Movie – 1995 – James Belushi]
St. Louis Kid, The
Safari [1956]
Sally and Saint Anne
Salome
Salute to the Marines
Samson and Delilah [1949 - New Remastered Print]
Sands of the Kalahari
Savage Innocents, The [Anthony Quinn]
Sea Wolf, The
Secret of the Incas
Secrets of the U.S. Mint [NOVA Documentary]
Seven Cities of Gold [1955]
Siege of Firebase Gloria [1989]
Solomon and Sheba [1956]
Sophisticated Gents [1981 - TVM]
Spikes Gang, The
Stanley and Livingstone [1939]
Story Lady, The [a remastered - clean print]
Story of G.I. Joe, The [1945]
Story of Mankind, The
Story of Three Loves [1953]
Studs Lonigan [1979 - TV mini-series]
Summer Holiday [1948]
Sunrise at Campobello [Now Available at TCM]
Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventures of Pecos Bill...
Tarnished Angels, The [d. Douglas Sirk - 1958]
Task Force [1949]
10 North Frederick
Tennessee Johnson [Van Heflin & Lionel Barrymore - 1942]
Tenth Man, The [TVM – 1992 – A. Hopkins & D. Jacobi]
Test Pilot [1938)
That's Life
There's Always Tomorrow [d. Douglas Sirk - 1956]
This Land is Mine
Three Came Home [1950 – C. Colbert]
To Each His Own [1946]
Tortilla Flat [1942]
Tree Grows in Brooklyn, A [1945] [WHEN? WHEN? WHEN?]
Twenty Mule Team [1940]
27th Day [1957]
Tycoon [John Wayne]
Union Station [1950]
Vestige of Honor [TV Movie - 1990]
War Lord, The [1965]
War Paint [1953 - western]
Washington-Behind Closed Doors [TVM]
War Lord, The [1965]
Westward the Women [1951]
Whistle Down the Wind [1961]
White Cliffs of Dover
Who's Minding the Mint
Window, The [1949]
Wild North, The [1952]
Wuthering Heights [1939]
Young Bess
Young Love, First Love [TVM - 1979]

FOOTNOTE: I have to admit that I am such a movie lover that when one of the GEMS on either this List (above) or the TV List (below) turns up on the Upcoming DVD lists on the many Websites I search, I get an adrenaline rush the likes of winning a Billion Dollar Sweepstakes. It's a real HIGH for me and I add the Date of release to the Lists immediately.

A WORD ON L&H FILMS:
Laurel and Hardy were the Greatest Comedy team ever! Like all actors, they made a few "bad films" primarily in the 1940s with MGM where Stan Laurel, the genius behind their chemistry and comedy, had little to NO control over the quality of the films, thus the comedy is very weak and sadly they were both getting older and in poor health. Utopia, for example, their final film together is hard to watch as they were both deteriorating, Stan was ill and Ollie later had a serious stroke. Some of their Silent films, too, are not up to par. So, in conclusion, the Boys best work remains their excellent short films and the feature length films prior to the MGM films. Flying Deuces is evidence of what was to follow, as it has great moments and weak ones. So please do not judge Laurel & Hardy on their MGM 1940s films, or most of their silents!. See them in their prime!

TV SERIES:
AFI Tributes to... [All from John Ford to Sean Connery]
AMAZING RACE [ALL EPISODES - We want Amazing Races 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10]
American Chronicles
Anything and Everything with David Attenborough
Bob Newhart Show, The [ALL SEASONS - 1 thru 4 now available]
Coach [Seasons 4 thru 9] [Come on Universal! More Episodes PLEASE!]
Earth: The Final Conflict Season 2 [Hey Universal! The Fans want the early Episodes]
Frasier [ALL Seasons - 1 thru 10 now available]
Get a Life [More Episodes]
Mary Tyler Moore Show [Seasons 5 thru 7 - 1 thru 4 now available] [COMING in 2009]
Meeting of Minds [ALL EPISODES]
Science Fiction Theatre

ALSO NEEDED are Remastered [CLEANED] Versions of:
BLACK STALLION,THE;
CHRISTMAS WITHOUT SNOW, A
CURE, THE;
DESPERATE HOURS, THE [1955] (serious video transfer problems)
FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS;
GUYANA TRAGEDY - THE REV. JIM JONES STORY (serious video transfer problems)
INDICTMENT: THE McMARTIN TRIAL;
MAID IN AMERICA;
MRS. BROWN;
PRIDE OF JESSE HALLEM, THE;
STORY LADY, THE;
all of which were released without a good cleaning and most in horrific condition. They contained dirt and hair specks, scratches, video (horizontal) fluttering, bad splices, missing dialog, washed out/faded color and other flaws. They were atrociously dirty and I feel the producers of these DVDs owe me my money back and an apology for selling such...crap! When I buy a DVD I expect ONLY the highest quality print available and in most cases the distributors deliver. Be warned the above DVDs are not worth a nickel!

Here's some good news from Meadowlane Productions, Steve Allen & family's Production Company. They are seriously considering release of Steve's masterpiece "Meeting of Minds" on DVD. Also, beware of an Amos 'n' Andy Collection of 70 episodes of the TV series and a bonus feature that includes an Intro to the TV series and most of the radio shows {audio only). The episodes are there and the extras are fun but the quality of the transfer runs from fair to very poor with some episodes. The films are a bit dirty, some cut up a bit and the transfer ranges from fuzzy and flickering to a few fairly good episodes. Some episodes contain Blatz beer commercials. The episodes stand on their own as quality comedy with fun plots and plot twists and some really excellent endings. The set costs about $127 including shipping and it's a 4 DVD set with lots of stuff on each one. Let's hope some day someone does a decent transfer of this controversial but fabulously entertaining series.


And here's a good question for ADV Video, why can't we get Earth: Final Conflict Seasons 1 & 2 which were the best? Only Seasons 3, 4 & 5 are available.


HAPPY 100th BOB HOPE


Best Wishes to the great American comic Bob Hope on his 100th birthday! Here is a man who has entertained his fellow human beings for over 80 years. Not only is he an American Icon but he is one of the funniest humans on this planet. I can honestly say that I've never laughed harder at any single comic than Mr. Hope. His films of the early years (1930s-1960s) are classics of comedy. Some of my favorites: "Casanova's Big Night", "Paleface" and "Son of Paleface", "The Lemon Drop Kid" and the "My Favorite...." series. His teaming with his buddy Bing Crosby created the second greatest comedy team in film history (next to the great "Laurel & Hardy"). His visits to our troops over the years meant so much to them and their families that they revere Mr. Hope. His TV specials were quite clever and fun too. That sloped nose, that Hope stride, that quick mind and neat smile will be forever burned in to the minds of all who knew or remember him. God, Thank You for giving us Bob Hope!


Sorry! But...


I just can’t believe how out of touch the critics and the Hollywood community are with the general public. Seeing the films the critics picked as so called Best and now the Hollywood Foreign Press via their Golden Globes. The People’s Choice Awards, which I quite often debase because I most often do not agree with them, were much more on target this year in their choices. People do not particularly care for these depressing, slow-moving films that the critics lean towards. People like to be entertained and none of the winning films this year or in many years past are NOT entertaining. Which films are classics Gandhi or Close Encounters, Chariots of Fire or Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Last Emperor or Star Wars, Out of Africa or Fargo? Which films will people watch over and over again American Beauty or The Lion King, The English Patient or The Shawshank Redemption, An American in Paris or Executive Decision? The Best films of 2002 were not Chicago or The Hours or Adaptation or About Schmidt. The Best films of 2002 were: Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones, Spider-Man, Ice Age, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Behind Enemy Lines, Stuart Little 2 and Signs, to name just a few. When will these stuffed shirts honor the entertainment films? We don’t want to be depressed at the movies…we want to be entertained!


TRULY AN AMAZING RACE


Some people really look down on you if you admit to enjoying a “reality TV series.” It’s much like buying/reading the National Enquirer. Even those at TV Guide who endorse certain 'reality shows' call them ‘Guilty Pleasures.’ Yet some of them are very entertaining, albeit voyeuristic. I guess shows such as “Jerry Springer”, “Rikki Lake” and “Sally Jesse Raphael” are considered reality shows as are “The Bachelor”, “Anna Nicole Smith” and those awful, but entertaining, dating series: “Shipmates”, The 5th Wheel”, “Elimidate” and others. Some of the better reality series are: “The Mole”, “Survivor”, “Meet the Folks”, The Real World” and yes, even “The Osbournes.” But the Best by far is “The Amazing Race.” Even the host Phil Keoghan and the theme music are better than most other reality shows. What makes this one stand above the others is the way it is conceived. It’s basically a race around the world by two person teams, stopping in exotic locations as well as some third world countries, the performance of some tricky and often dangerous tasks just to get information on the next leg of the journey. There is strategy involved, allegiances, luck: both good and bad, turmoil amongst and between the teams, lots of laughs and much, much more. It is so fast-paced that I’m sometimes on the edge of my chair. I tape the show while I’m at work and watch it when I get home. I’m usually having my supper during the show and I end up scarfing it down as the pace of the show quickens. This show is quite involving. The sad thing is that it’s usually rated among the 70 bottom shows in the Nielsen ratings and the best it’s done is 43rd place. It deserves better. Most people are unaware of how involving the show is. Watch two episodes and you WILL be hooked. You will have a team to root for and you may find one or more to hate! The critics love the show, TV Guide ranked it the Best Reality series on TV and CBS knows it is good and promises a 4th season next year. Give this show a try, especially if you love travel, but even if you don’t. I think you’ll agree with me, the critics and TV Guide.


STAR WARS II: ATTACK OF THE CLONES DELIVERS!


I've always felt, since first seeing Star Wars, that George Lucas is a genius much like Charles Dickens or Mark Twain. He's taken us on an exciting voyage to new places to see fascinating characters, awesome inventions and wonderful stories. Proof of this comes in viewing his latest film in the Star Wars series, Attack of the Clones. Anyone who says this film is boring, slow moving or not up to par is way out of line. The film is action packed, well paced and the visuals are mind blowing. Those who are disappointed are people who saw the first film series as kids. They expect the films to change as they do. Well, wake up kiddies! The films have always been the same, it's you who are different. Those of us who saw the films as adults have realized these are family films, not The X-Files or American Beauty. They have always had the same elements. You will find a few "cutesy" characters that you don't particularly like. Not that this happens in everyday life. Wake up! Lower your expectations and enjoy these fantastic masterpieces. If your expectations remain too high you will always be disappointed.


WHAT'S WITH ROGER EBERT?


It seemed to begin last year with his review of "Gladiator." His complaints about the film were so ridiculous: it's too dark, the dialog wasn't sharp, it was historically inaccurate, the casting was bad, and so on he went. What's weird about this is that he was wrong in most every area. Check out the film yourself! Of late he has nixed via his Thumbs Down some very good films. I realize he prefers social dramas, foreign films, independently produced films and the like; what I usually refer to as Cinema Snobbery. This is OK but don't give a bad review to a good film just because it's in the mainstream. I value his opinions and sometimes agree with him but lately he's been way off and way out! The most recent examples were "Spiderman" and "Star Wars III: Attack of the Clones." I have always opposed Siskel & Ebert & Roeper's THUMBS UP or DOWN approach. I recall both of them reviewing the film "Grumpier Old Men" saying how great Burgess Meredith was and how beautiful Sofia Loren was and how very good she was in this film but because they felt Walter Matthau was sluggish and Lemmon also they gave it Thumbs Down. I remember them giving other films they liked Thumbs Down for some other ridiculous reason. Why use this system? Why not the 4 star **** system? If it's got some value for someone it deserves to be seen. At any rate, keep your eyes and ears on Roger Ebert these days and see what I mean about his reviews. He's never been so far off before!


WHAT A SUMMER (2002) FOR MOVIES!


Having seen the first real Blockbuster for the summer of 2002, "Spiderman", I can say that this could be one of the biggest summers ever. Just as fun as the movie, which was absolutely terrific, were the previews of coming attractions. Such films as "Stuart Little 2", "The Hulk", "Men in Black 2", Austin Powers in "Goldmember" and of course "Star Wars 2: Attack of the Clones" will get me shelling out my $5.50 (bargain matinee prices only) on many coming summer days. These are just a few of the films coming up but boy do they look promising...at least from the previews. "Spiderman" really delivered. It was awesome in all areas: casting, acting, cinematography, music score, pacing, stunts, special effects, directing, script and all. This was by far the best comic book tranferred to the screen. It made the Batman and Superman films look cheesy and pale in comparison. As for "Star Wars: Attack of the Clones", if you're expectations aren't so damned high you should enjoy it as well. I loved "SW: Phantom Menace" because I didn't expect it to be the greatest film ever made as most SW fans seemed to. At any rate, you can't say they don't make good films anymore.

WHO CREATED WINKY DINK?


Back in 2000 I wrote a tribute to the recently departed Harold W. Prichett, a man who supposedly created the popular 1950s game show in which kids would purchase a Winky Dink set (which included four crayons of different colors, a sheet of plastic and other membership kit items) in order to play along with the show at home. The plastic sheet would adhere to your TV and following instructions from host, Jack Barry or Winky Dink himself you could rescue him by drawing a bridge for crossing water, or a tree he could hide behind, etc using the crayons. Any child of the 1950s remembers this show with a great fondness and nostalgia. Now, another so called Winky Dink creator has passed on to eternal rest. Did both he and Mr. Prichett co-create Winky Dink? And why does everyone seem to want credit for this series? I researched my books and could find no actual written credits for the series. Most books claim that host, the late Jack Barry co-created the show with producers Dan Enright and Ed Friendly. The IMDb lists Mr. Prichett and a Mr. Edwin Brit Wyckoff as creators. One source mentions two men presented the idea to Barry and Enright early on. Could this be Mssrs. Prichett and Wyckoff or is Mr. Louis Heyward who died in March 2002 at age 81 also involved? Curious that so many people want credit for this show.

WINKY DINK - CLARIFICATION


Here is an E-mail that should clarify the Winky Dink Question:
Subj: From Website - UTTM
Date: 4/23/02 11:19:32 AM Central Daylight Time
From: King.Spud's.Website.-.UTTM@mail.modwest.com
Reply-to: wyckoff@aol.com
To: DJohn48946@aol.com

FROM King Spud's Website
Sender's Name: edwin brit wyckoff
Sender's E-Mail: wyckoff@aol.com
Message: Harry W. Prichett and Edwin Brit Wyckoff created Winky Dink and You, 1952. Barry Enright & Friendly produced. CBS aired for 3 1/2 years. Louis 'Deke' Heyward was a wonderful writer for BEF, the first of many. Winky was historic breakthrough including audience in a physical,personal way never done before or since. Everyone wants to have been there and done that. They didn't. We did. Please help keep the record straight.

OSCARS 2002 - WRONG AGAIN


I should allow my self to cool down before making these comments but the Academy frustrates me to no end! Granted the Academy Awards is their "baby" and they can do whatever they want and award Oscars to anyone they want, but then don't call them the BEST! Everything was going smooth on Sunday night. Halle Berry made history being awarded an Oscar she really deserved. It was a great moment, but it was lessened by what followed. The Best Actor did not get his award, instead they gave it to the third, or arguably the fourth best performance on their list. Why? They wanted to make a statement. They wanted to stop the incessant whining of the black community. Maybe Russell Crowe's personality turned them off, but they claim they're honoring the Best Actor. Not since John Wayne won for True Grit has such an undeserved award been given. Well, I hope this will stop the whining now and let's get back to awarding the BEST. Lest someone label me a racist for stating what I believe to be the truth, let me say that I truly believe the best American actors today are blacks: Danny Glover (who should have won for "Grand Canyon" but was not even nominated); Morgan Freeman (who should have two Oscars in his pocket by now: "Driving Miss Daisy" Best Supporting Actor and "The Shawshank Redemption" Best Actor; James Earl Jones (he should have an Oscar for his work in "Field of Dreams" and "A Family Thing"). Many white, Hispanic and oriental actors have also been overlooked by the Academy too. This is bound to happen.

As for the show itself, it was very, very long and not as enjoyable as some recent telecasts. Whoopi was a bit off. I did laugh at a few of her lines though and I do like her a lot. My favorite parts of the show are clips of films and tributes to film history. I really liked the New York tribute and what a kick to have Woody Allen introduce it. I enjoyed the illustrated explanations of some of the categories and as always the In Memoriam segment. I usually enjoy the Special Oscars but there were one or two too many this time around. It was great to see Randy Newman finally win. It's so shocking to realize that his score for "The Natural", one of the best film scores ever, lost out to another. I can't comment too much on all the awards until I see some more of those nominated. I will say I'm happy for Denzel but I wish he would have deserved it. As for Mr. Crowe, congratulations, we know you were truly the Best Actor!

1st ANNUAL AFI AWARDS


On January 5, 2002 the American Film Institute will initiate its first annual film awards. This should be really good. This is an organization whose 'seemingly' annual Lists are so ludicrous and questionable. Any organization who ranks Laurel & Hardy behind the Marx Brothers, Fields, Chaplin, Keaton, Abbott & Costello, Mel Brooks and Woody Allen is not playing with a full deck. Every one of their Lists omits film classics and places questionable films and some good ones out of rank. Their List of comedies excluded completely my number one choice...Planes, Trains and Automobiles. It listed only one Laurel & Hardy comedy and at 96th place. The Court Jester at 98th. Other Lists were equally questionable.

So now they'll try their hand at selecting the Best of each year's films. This ought to be good. This group, AFI, is as 'image concerned' as AMPAS, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. They should give the Televison Academy, who dole out the Emmy Awards annually, a run for the money as the worst Awards givers in history. This group should stick to the preservation of film and not dabble in such folly.

GOLDEN GLOBES 2002 - NOMINATIONS


Just a few comments on the recent Golden Globe 2002 Nominations; and it's hard to comment when you haven't seen all the films and TV Shows. Based on all the buzz I've been hearing I was surprised at some inclusions and some omissions. First off, the most obvious omissions for Best Actor in a Movie Drama were Kevin Kline in "My Life as a House"; Tom Cruise in "Vanilla Sky" Jim Carrey in "The Majestic" and Tom Wilkinson "In the Bedroom." These actors were originally considered frontrunners with Wilkinson considered a shoo-in. Missing for Best Picture Drama were: "The Majestic", "Black Hawk Down" and "My Life as a House." Granted this wasn't a great year for movies...or TV, but we'll always have someone or something left out. In the actress category there are no blatant omissions that I can detect nor in the supporting categories. As for "Ali", I just can't buy Wil Smith (who I really like a lot) as Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali and even harder to swallow is Jon Voight as Howard Cosell. I had a tough time buying Voight as FDR in "Pearl Harbor." In the Musical/Comedy category I still don't know if, or how much, I liked "Moulin Rouge." It was a very odd movie, at times ultra confusing but it had great music and dance numbers and some fine animation effects and brilliant art direction. My favorite movie of the year was "Shrek" and some others I really enjoyed were: "Jurassic Park III", "Planet of the Apes", "A Knight's Tale" and "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring." There may be a few I'm forgetting.

As for TV Shows, I'm no longer a good judge, as the current sitcoms with a few exceptions, no longer satisfy me. I watch "Everybody Loves Raymond", "Frasier" and "Enterprise" pretty religiously. I like reality shows like "Amazing Race" and "Survivor" and I do enjoy "The Weakest Link." I know "X-Files", "The Practice", "Law and Order", "NYPD Blue" and others are good but they don't "call out" to me. I will say that "Everybody Love Raymond" should have garnered a Best Comedy Series nomination, as well as nominations for Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Brad Garrett, Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts. The Golden Globes will be awarded on Jan. 20, 2002 on NBC. I'll be there watching!


FEEL GOOD MOVIES AND ENTERTAINMENT


At no time in our history has there been a stronger need for movies and entertainment to come into our lives to calm us, soothe us, make us feel better and even give us a good laugh! For that reason I'd like to recommend some films and mini-series, cartoons and entertainments that can do just that. First off, most of the films you see listed below on mine and the A.F.I.'s Lists of great movies, comedies and adventure films will fit the bill. If you want a good laugh, you just can't do better than to watch one of Laurel & Hardy's shorts or feature films of the 1930s. Avoid their later films of the 1940s. Some other perfect comedies would be Bringing Up Baby, Arthur, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Airplane, Galaxy Quest, the Naked Gun series, Dumb and Dumber if you enjoy stupid humor as I do. A nice romantic comedy or drama would also help a lot. As Good as it Gets, The African Queen, Marty, Avalon, any Cary Grant movie, Jerry Maguire, Gone With the Wind, The Horse Whisperer, The Bridges of Madison County, Untamed Heart, When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, Big, The Enchanted Cottage all will do the trick. You can also forget your troubles by getting into a good historical drama like: Valmont, Barry Lyndon, Rob Roy, Braveheart, Gladiator, Ben Hur, Spartacus, The Bible, Gettysburg, The Fall of the Roman Empire, the mini-series: Masada, Roots, Lonesome Dove, Merlin, The Odyssey and others. Others I would highly recommend are: Toy Story 1 & 2, A Bug's Life, Star Wars, Back to the Future, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Missing Link (1988 version, very hard to find but great!), Black Beauty (1994 vers.), Pinocchio, Dumbo, any other Disney film, Shrek (due out soon!), Dinosaur, Wayne's World, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, What About Bob?, Little Big Man, Spaceballs, The Culpepper Cattle Co., Summer of '42, E.T.: the Extra Terrestrial, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Battleground, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, any Bogart or Cagney movie and one of the best "feel good" movies ever, the 1980 TVM version of Little Lord Fauntleroy with Alec Guinness and Rick Schroder. You can't lose with these choices. Some of my favorite films are action-adventure films but maybe we need to stay away from these for a while. Laughing is always great therapy so visit your video/DVD store now!

A.F.I.'s 100 YEARS - 100 THRILLS


The A.F.I. (The American Film Institute) has created its own franchise of listing the Top 100 actors, actresses, film genres, etc. These Lists are better known for their omissions than the films listed. The most recent list of theirs is 100 Years - 100 Thrills, a list of heart pounding, thrill inducing, edge-of-your-seat films. Many of those listed do not seem to meet the criteria, e.g. The China Syndrome (a real snoozer); Body Heat and Blue Velvet (erotic, but thrilling?); Rebecca, 12 Angry Men, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The Maltese Falcon, All the President's Men and others (great films but pulse pounding? Heart stopping?) and then there are personal choices which for me would be no 2001: A Space Odyssey, Taxi Driver, Dial M for Murder, A Clockwork Orange, Raging Bull and many others. Also important and quite debatable is positioning. Many would be higher on MY own List and many would be further back, some as far back as in the 300's or 400's.

If you want to see the List it is posted on the A.F.I.'s Website at:

http://www.afionline.org



You can also view the nominee List of over 400 titles which was narrowed down to the 100 choices. Of course no one will argue the Top 3 choices which were: Psycho, Jaws and The Exorcist; and on one will argue the number of Hitchcock and Spielberg films on the List. The positioning is another issue. So, we can agree the List has merit and is fun to discuss and dispute the choices. So here are some films that I cannot believe were not included [and some did not even make the List of 400 nominees]: Charade (one of the best films Hitch didn't make); Frenzy, The Man Who Knew Too Much (two of Hitch's best); Back to the Future; Robocop; The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms; Them!; The Creature from the Black Lagoon; Predator; Enemy Mine; Enemy of the State; Breakdown; Outbreak; Mighty Joe Young; The Empire Strikes Back; Return of the Jedi; Jason and the Argonauts; Seventh Voyage of Sinbad; Mysterious Island; From the Earth to the Moon; Clash of the Titans; Journey to the Centre of the Earth; Fantastic Voyage; Basic Instinct; Executive Decision; Air Force One; Mercury Rising; The Towering Inferno; The Incredible Shrinking Man; In the Line of Fire; Lethal Weapon; Lethal Weapon 2; The Odessa File; The Boys from Brazil; Misery; The Parallax View; Three Days of the Condor; Shoot to Kill; Midnight Run; Papillon; War of the Worlds; White Heat; Tarzan the Ape Man; Superman; Superman 2; The Saboteur and Foreign Correspondent (two more great Hitchcock films); The Man Who Never Was and so many more deserving films. Did these voters not see these films? Or did they just forget them, which is quite possible. I will match any film on the above list of omissions with Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, 2001: A Space Odyssey and other inclusions for overall suspense. What do you think?

CHEERS TO THE SCREEN ACTORS GUILD


Finally someone took the initiative and did a tribute to the great character actors. On last Sunday's (3/11/2001) SAG Awards show the members of the Screen Actors Guild presented a salute/tribute to the great character actors who add so much to films and get so little back. I have asked the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences [AMPAS] to consider such a tribute but they seem uninterested. Although the presentation by SAG was short and included only a handful of character actors, it was at least well produced. Just as it began to really get on track, it was over. Of course if I were in charge it would have included hundreds of actors with names and fairly decent film clips. Perhaps a half hour series on E! Television, Bravo or some other worthy network would be the way to honor these terrific thespians. A half hour honoring three or four actors with numerous clips could go on for years. Is there an audience for such programming? I'd think so, especially from the e-mail I get in appreciation of the great character actors. Still, we must salute SAG for their effort. Well done SAG!

STEVE ALLEN - MY HERO


Today I lost another of my all time heroes. In case you haven't seen the Sad Goodbyes List below, Steve Allen passed away today. He was a man who always made me laugh. From his days on the Sunday Steve Allen Show with Don Knotts, Louis Nye, Tom Poston, Dayton Allen, Gabe Dell and others through his stint as the original host of the Tonight Show on through his 1960s late night talk show my favorite, to Meeting of Minds, Steve always delivered top notch entertainment. One look at his 'Big Bill Allen' sportscaster classic skit where he lost his composure and laughed that shrill, squeaky Steve Allen laugh and I was on the floor. The man was a comic genius in my mind. No one could interview the average, ordinary person as well as Steve; whether in his audience or on the street. I was never a jazz fan so I don't appreciate some of his music, but 'Gravy Waltz' and 'Something Big' were pretty good. He could compose music on the spot. What a genius. There was not much he couldn't do. I'd sent him fan letters over the years and was always thrilled by receiving a glossy of him in the mail. But it was in the 1980s when Steve showed me an even more impressive, awesome side of himself with his creation of 'Meeting of Minds.' It was a talk show with personalities of world history from various eras in time meeting and discussing issues and topics of their time and ours with Steve as Moderator. It ran on PBS and won accolades and awards most deserved. He made me enjoy intellectual conversation so much that I sent him my best fan letter ever. In it I related the story of my visit to his TV show of the '60s. Steve's Show was in our cities as a Winter Carnival event. I was working and tickets were extremely hard to come by. My mother, a heart patient and not in great health, somehow got hold of two tickets via a radio program. She called me at work and told me to feign illness and she would pick me up at work to go to the show. I did so and we headed for the theatre where it was being taped. There was a long line and it was -25 below zero that day. After waiting in line nearly an hour her lips began turning blue and I asked the police who had a warm-up wagon nearby if she could wait in there as she was a heart patient. They were very accommodating and let her wait 'til the line moved in. She knew how much I loved Steve Allen and wanted me to see my hero.


So I related this to Steve in a letter I wrote praising Meeting of Minds. It touched Steve's heart so that he sent me a warm letter, two autographed copies of the Meeting of Minds books, a portfolio of copies of fan letters on Meeting of Minds plus another folder of promo flyers and other Meeting info. It came months after I'd written him and I was flabbergasted to say the least. Steve Allen had a heart, he was a humanitarian and I think we all knew that much about him. He was a great husband devoted to Jayne, a great father very proud of his kids, he was ultra creative and astoundingly funny and a concerned citizen and his death will make the world a bit emptier. I never thought I'd ever tear up at seeing the 'Big Bill Allen' skit, but I did today. We will miss you Steve.


DVDs RULE!


I recently took the plunge and purchased a state-of-the-art Sony DVD player with built in amp and Surround Sound and boy, do I love it. It is one of the best moves I've ever made as a Couch Potato! In my quest for the 'perfect picture', I've come very close to the ultimate! Here are some of my observations: 1. You must have a great TV to fully realize the DVD's potential, as it is only as good as your TV. 2. Your sound system is equally important to enjoy every aspect of the DVD format. 3. Most DVDs are close to perfect, although I have a few DVDs, in which I feel the studios should have used a better print of the film. 4. Stick with Letterbox/Widescreen Eds. as the quality is magnificent and you get used to this format more quickly than you might think. (Some DVDs have both Pan & Scan and Letterbox but not all so check them out) 5. Newer, more recently released films will be of better quality than those made before 1970, yet some older films are in excellent shape. 6. Some films have many 'extras' (making of.. featurettes, interviews with the filmmakers, cast & crew information, theatrical & TV trailers and more. Special/Collector Editions will be loaded with extras. 7. Watch for sales at your local video sales stores and never pay the retail price unless you are desperate! 8. Plan a way to store them. I've yet to figure a way.


I am absolutely thrilled with them. I already have 43 DVDs in only a little over a month's time. There are so many more I want. I actually created a Wish List at Amazon.com where you send copies of the List to friends and relatives. Sounds a little crass but you become eligible for a drawing held on your birthday and may win some of those on your list. You have to use your e-mail address to register. I only did it to have a chance at the drawing and I'm hoping I win and will get every DVD on my Wish List. I sent a copy to my brother and a friend (with explanation). Tomorrow is my birthday so I'm crossing my fingers. Among my favorite DVDs so far are: Toy Story 1 & 2 The Toy Box Ed. (Includes both films and tons of 'extras' on both discs plus an additional disc of only 'extras'); Terminator 2 The Ultimate Ed. (fabulous extras of over 6 hours and one disc.); Independence Day Special Ed.; Amadeus (very few features but the quality of this masterpiece is awesome.); Braveheart; Jurassic Park & Jurassic Park: The Lost World (excellent features will make you admire Spielberg even more, if that's possible); Men in Black (superb) to mention just a few. Another thing that's fun is to see how each DVD designs its Menus. Some are fabulous others are pretty neat. All I can say is that the VHS-Video is now as obsolete as the 33-1/3 vinyl record and the 8-track tape. I highly recommend purchasing a DVD player while they are still pretty reasonably priced.


BOOM MIKES


In today's newspapers (Sept. 10, 2000) in Roger Ebert's excellent syndicated column he commented on Hollywood/Movie Myths. These are questions that have become legendary because people do not believe the answers necessarily and the myths prevail. They involved such subjects as Marisa Tomei's Best Supporting Actress Oscar being awarded wrongly by a drunken Jack Palance (a Myth), Ghosts and corpses appearing in the films "Three Men and a Baby" and "The Wizard of Oz" (more Myths). The one that I found hard to believe is the question asked repeatedly: "Who is responsible when a boom mike appears in a film frame: the director or the film projectionist?". Ebert's answer was the projectionist, which really floored me. This means that in 99% of films the boom mike appears in the frame and it is the projectionist's job to "frame" the film properly. How can this be? How close must the microphone be to properly pick up the sound? I would really like to have some input from those "in the know", meaning industry people: boom mike operators, directors, continuity folks, etc. I doubt that many film industry folks visit my little, insignificant Website, but should any of you stumble onto this Web, I'd appreciate hearing from you on this particular aspect of filmmaking. I remember watching the "Walking Tall" series on TV and noticing the boom mike in almost every shot; indoors and outdoors. This was a fairly decent film, but the boom mike's visibility took a lot away from a good film. I blamed the director. Was I wrong? Was it some dork at the local TV station? I really want to know!


DVDs HAVE ARRIVED


In recent weeks I've been checking out the "DVD situation" to see what's now available on DVD and the pricing of them. Last year was the last time I checked things out and there was very little available then and the prices were pretty much out-of-reach for the average consumer. I'm now happy to report that two weeks ago I noticed more than one rack of DVDs in our local electronics store and upon checking, I was thrilled to see that most of the titles I could conjure up were actually available, and in the $20 price range and some were on sale at $14 to $16...pretty reasonable. The DVD Players have always been quite reasonable...at least to me. They range from $100 - $295, and I may purchase a Sony at $500 that has a tuner/amp and 5 speakers for surround sound. Every week some top-notch current films and some classic older films are released on DVD and now I'll be watching that List regularly. I must admit that some of my favorites have yet to be released including the Star Wars series, the Indiana Jones series, the Back to the Future series and the Godfther series, but I'm sure they will be released eventually. Many old classics are already out including: It's a Wonderful Life, the James Bond films, older musicals and others. More good news is that a few mini-series are out and others are on the way including: Lonesome Dove; I, Claudius; Leprachauns and others. So, now is the time to seriously consider DVD!


ISSUES & OPINIONS


Every Friday the people at Site Meter send me a report on the visitors to my Web. Each Page gets a certain amount of visitors every week, the largest amount of visitors being at the Great Character Actors Pages & Index. Then follows the Oscars Page and the TV Page. The rest get an average of from 20-35 visitors per week...not a lot but gratifying to me anyway. The worst Page for visitors is my favorite Page for "spouting off." I had to laugh when I saw the last few tallies of visitors. I realized I'd been talking to myself. This is the Page where I let "the bad guys" have it! I spout off on the Emmy Academy, the AFI, the AMPAS/Oscars, the TV networks and the morons that run them, even the cable Networks are slipping. I compare my Lists with the AFI biased "Cinema Buffs" Lists. I wondered why I never heard any feedback from vistors. There weren't any visitors. Who cares what I think anyway. It struck me funny and I had to comment.


EMMY NOMINATIONS


Anyone who checks in here regularly knows my feelings on the Emmy Awards, still I feel compelled to comment on the Emmy Nominations of last week (July 20, 2000). This organization always "gets it wrong". On the plus side I was surprised and thrilled to see the entire cast of "Everybody Loves Raymond", including Brad Garrett as brother Robert, get a nomination. Also, they did recognize Vanessa Redgrave's magnificent and moving performance in "If These Walls Could Talk 2", but as a supporting role? It was a lead role! They missed big time on James Whitmore's bravura performance as a guest on episodes of "The Practice"; an inexcusable oversight. This was definitely not a quality year for television and it shows in the fact that HBO got the major nominations. I'll give them a C+ this year as they did fairly well. But rest assured, when it comes down to the final selections...they will "blow it!"

SURVIVOR


Now, a few words about the summer blockbuster hit series..."Survivor". I admit it, I'm hooked! This is one engrossing television show. Although the setup or situation is cleverly contrived, it is the survivors themselves that make the show work. Psychologists can, and will, analyze the lure of this show on the public and psychoanalyze the survivors themselves but still it is fascinating as entertainment. The various personalities of the survivors help the viewer decide who they'd boot off the island. Being a middle-aged person, I find myself rooting for the older, and grumpier, guys. Richard's cockiness was a turnoff at first but something about him won me over. Rudy is the grumpiest by far after B.B. was eliminated but there's a weird charm about him. It was sad to see some of them go...especially Sonja, the first and most genial of all the survivors. As for Greg, Joel and Ramona it was good riddance. Next let's get rid of that deadbeat Gervase...he's gotta go! This is a really fun show!

BIG LOSSES


Last week we lost two of the most talented performers in all of show business and the world is a little sadder because of it. WALTER MATTHAU was one of our great actors as well as one of the funniest. His cantankerous characters were legend in films and we'll never forget that slouched physique, that rubbery face, that slow drawl and that twinkle in his eye. He and his pal, Jack Lemmon, rank up there with the great screen teams: Laurel & Hardy; Hope & Crosby; Hepburn & Tracy; Bogie & Bacall and The Nicholas Brothers. Speaking of the latter, with HAROLD NICHOLAS' death this week ended one of the greatest dance acts in all of history. Anyone who has witnessed these two brothers, Harold and Fayard, will never forget their astounding dance routines which rank up there with Mr. Astaire. Their athleticism, creativity, love for performing and, especially, longevity were amazing to behold. Fabulous tap routines combined with leaps to match Olympians, sophisticated style and a love of what they were doing which beamed across to the audience made them world favorites. Their struggle against racism was rarely discussed, perhaps they considered it a fact of life, but they just kept dancing on and by the twilight of their years they were rewarded with the awards and kudos they so much deserved. God bless these great performers!

AFI's 100 Top Comedies


We know that this List will be extremely controversial as have been the other AFI Lists. The criteria used is ridiculous in all these Lists to date. Those choosing are mostly age 40 or less. Nothing produced prior to their lives is even considered, unless already labeled a classic. The list is much on the pretentious or snobby side, meaning 'Cinema.'

On seeing the preview for the upcoming AFI 100 Comedies Special, I found my predictions to be 100% accurate. Most comedies in the preview are recent, dating from 1960 on. Most are not funny, but in some cases (i.e. Chaplin) merely clever or innovative. Some are merely romantic films. And some are shockingly bad!

My criteria for such a List would be: 75% = laughs; 15% = cleverness and 10% = warmth/a feel good atmosphere. Comedies are supposed to be funny. It is extremely difficult to film a successful comedy and most attempts to date are failures. I would not rule out stupid or dumb comedies if they deliver fun and laughs. This means films like 'Dumb and Dumber', 'Airplane' and the 'Naked Gun' series would fit the criteria. In viewing the previews of the upcoming Special I saw films that would not even make my List of 300 Best Comedies. In order for this list to have credibility and validity it must include: Laurel & Hardy films, Bob Hope's early movies including the 'Road to..' pictures with Crosby & Lamour, classics like 'Bringing Up Baby', which should rank in the Top 3, newer classics like 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles' and 'What About Bob.' Seeing tripe like 'Caddyshack', 'Mel Brooks films' which are ALL uneven and garbage like 'Animal House', Adam Sandler, Chris Farley and David Spade films really tells me that this List will be ludicrous. We'll rip it apart soon after we view it! See: ISSUES & OPINIONS

I very much enjoyed the BBC production of "A Walk with the Dinosaurs" on Discovery Channel this weekend and its followup, equally as entertaining, "The Making of A Walk with the Dinosaurs." The only negatives were Discovery Channel's incessant interruptions to visit their On-line site for further information, the long and multiple commercial breaks and their ever present dizzying Logo on the screen. This is as distracting as having someone poking you in the ribs and waving their hands in front of your face while trying to watch something. Extremely annoying! Why must networks continue these irritating practices. Does anyone agree with me on what a nuisance they are?

Oscar Buzz: This bit about racial discrimination within the Academy is pure "hogwash." Based on the fact that Denzel Washington was not awarded the Best Actor Oscar some groups are yelling, "Discrimination!" Does that mean that Haley Joel Osment lost because of youth discrimination? Did Richard Farnsworth lose because of old-age discrimination? Maybe so, but who tells the board of an Awards Committee who they can or cannot choose? Only the Committee/Academy itself defines the criteria. You can't tell people who to vote for. If there were racial discrimination against the Academy, Hattie McDaniel, Sidney Poitier, Louis Gossett, Whoopi Goldberg, Cuba Gooding and others would not have won! It simply boils down to the fact that the Academy liked Kevin Spacey's performance more than it liked Denzel's. Sure many of us don't agree, but to yell, "Discrimination!" is ludicrous. Cut it out!

Is there anyone better than Billy Crystal as Oscar host...I don't think so!

Thank God for E! channel's very fun coverage of Oscar arrivals and post Oscar parties and to Entertainment Tonight's always terrific Oscar coverage...no one does it better than ET.

How about Cameron Diaz, Hilary Swank, Angelina Jolie, Minnie Driver and Selma Hayak for Hollywood glamour.

Did you notice Hollywood's young actors out in force last night? But where were the old Hollywood veterans? I miss them. Saw Karl Malden and James Coburn but where were the rest?

If you're really a movie fan though, the clips of old actors and Hollywood history are your favorite part of the show. My only complaint is the pacing. Please no clips under 3 seconds long. No multiple, montage clips onscreen at one time...we can't see any of them and its confusing. And please, more clips!

And how about passing out rotten tomatoes to the audience and if any acceptance speech goes over 2 minutes...yell "FIRE!" Let 'em have it whether they are a holocaust survivor, a nun, in a wheelchair, the Pope, a little kid or an old lady. FIRE!

Here's a little tip on film reviewers. Two guys who are even more in tune with the general public in the films they like are: Jay Leno & David Letterman. When they go out of their way to recommend a film I've found that quite often they are "right on the money." Most recently Leno recommended "Straight Story" very highly and he is correct in saying it's a heart-warming, very moving film.

It does look like American Beauty will now sweep the Oscars and win the Big 5 Awards (Picture; Actor; Actress, Director; Screenplay) unless Hilary Swank and maybe Richard Farnsworth, my favorites, can upset the apple cart.

Since Roger Ebert, who I admire along with his late partner Gene Siskel, recently picked his Top 10 Films of the 1990s, I will list mine. You'll notice that although I enjoy hearing Roger's reviews of films we very much differ in the types of films we enjoy the most. Roger, and Gene too, seem to like bloody, violent type films and their directors (Tarantino, Scorsese, DePalma, etc.) as well as very serious film themes, and realism. I tend to shy away from such things...in fact, I want to escape from such negativity and serious drama. Yes some of my films are violent but not gratuitous violence...save for maybe the one film we agree on "Fargo." My Top 10 Films of the 1990s reflect that and they are:

    1. Braveheart
    2. Dances With Wolves
    3. Fargo
    4. Shawshank Redemption
    5. Rob Roy
    6. Men in Black
    7. Toy Story & Toy Story 2 (Roger listed 3 films: Red, White & Blue as one)
    8. Gettysburg
    9. Amistad
    10.Saving Private Ryan

Honorable Mention:

    Europa, Europa
    Schindler's List
    Terminator 2
    Black Beauty (1995)

One of the sad aspects of "getting up there in years" is watching all of one's heroes and heroines pass on...some to immortality. In the past few years people of my generation have lost Buffalo Bob Smith; Roy Rogers; Gene Autry; Gail "Annie Oakley" Davis; Clayton "Lone Ranger" Moore and so many others. Today we learned of the passing of one not well-known but who had an influence on early kids television. He was Harold W. Prichett who created Winky Dink, a TV character who kids actually aided in his quests. It was a neat gimmick. You sent in a few boxtops and a dollar and were sent, via U.S. mail, a Winky Dink set which consisted of four crayons, a sheet of see-through plastic the size of your TV screen and a soft rag for erasing. When "Winky Dink and You" aired on Saturday mornings kids would fight over the crayons, as the black crayon was used most often. There would be an adventure or quest in which the animated Winky Dink would eventually need help in crossing a river or mountain gap and the kid with the black crayon would be asked to draw a bridge or a boat to aid Winky Dink across...then after he'd crossed you'd erase the bridge or boat so those pursuing him could not follow. Oh how we fought over that black crayon. Such ingenuity. Thank you Mr. Prichett for such wonderful memories of many a Saturday morning for kids of the 1950s!

A few notes on Character Actors: #1. I hope those of you who visit those Pages will notice the convenient INDEX at the top of each Page. Many folks miss it. #2. I do hear from the families and relatives of a few of these great actors (Albert Salmi, Robert Middleton, Tim Scott, Sid Tomack, John Ireland and others) and this is very rewarding to me, and for them also apparently. I've yet to hear from any of the surviving actors but am still very hopeful. I hope that they would feel it an absolute honor to be included on such a fabulous list of great thespians. #3. I'm actually learning a lot by doing the Character Actors Pages. I discover "new" character actors quite often. They've been around a while but I never identified the names with the faces. The latest is a charming actress whom I've seen numerous times but never connected with her name or her numerous roles: Norma Varden is her name and she was a gem of an actress. Her very nostalgic voice invokes her image if you hear it and she had a very kindly aristocratic face. This is my reward for creating Great Character Actors.

Hedy Lamarr really was a timeless beauty, even though she considered it a "curse."

Jester Hairston, who played the Kingfish's brother-in-law Leroy on "Amos "n" Andy" on TV, was a real trouper! He appeared on 2 other series: "That's My Mama" and "Amen!" as well as composed many choral works. He must've fought the Amos 'n' Andy stereotyping all his life, except that, arguably, the Amos 'n' Andy image was not as negative as some of those you see today!

Some comments on Music in the 90's and 1999: Best artist of 1999 = None; Best Song of 1999 = None; Best Pop/Rock Group of 1999 = None. Best Pop/Rock Group of the 90's = R.E.M. ( a dubious distinction); Best Artist of the 90's = Madonna (again a dubious distinction); Best Song of 90's = None. Pop/Rock Music died in the 1990s.

How could the Hollywood Foreign Press ignore Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace and The Green Mile in their Golden Globe nominations?

Was just browsing through a back issue of Entertainment Weekly magazine which listed the Top 100 Scenes from Movies. The list was so ludicrous I won't comment too much but to say that any such List that has The Godfather's Wedding Scene as No. 1 and the Chariot Race from Ben Hur as No. 49 (it should be 1st) is mere drivel. Also, this List and other Lists in the magazine steer clear of any films made before 1950, meaning it was conducted by either Baby Boomers and/or Generation Xers and they actually believe the world was created in the year they were born!

Great News! There won't be any of those dopey dance numbers on this year's Oscar telecast. Did anyone like those?

Best movies of 2000 to me were: Gladiator; Dinosaur; Castaway; The Patriot

Did we need another remake of 'A Christmas Carol'? Who's next PeeWee Herman?

Am I the only one irritated by shrinking of credits in movies and TV programming? or: Showing promos and gabbing over the music score? or: Logos on the corner of the TV screen through an entire movie or program?

The fabulous mini-series "Masada" with Peter O'Toole in arguably his greatest role is now available in its 6 hour entirety on video at a bargain price of $39.99 and worth every penny.

Wouldn't it be great to see reruns of the old TV series: Andy's Gang; Topper; Barney Miller; My Little Margie; Captain Midnight; Fury; Sky King; Crusader Rabbit; Rawhide; Yancy Derringer; The Invaders; mini-series such as Masada; Backstairs at the White House and others?

BOGIE & KATE
Chosen Top Stars of 20th Century by AFI
(see: Issues & Opinions for details and other top stars)


VIDEO of the MONTH

(Winter 2007)
ZATHURA
113 mins. - 2005

A very entertaining film and perfect for a cold winter night to snuggle up and watch with a bucket of popcorn. It's based on a book by Chris Van Allsburg, the man responsible for Jumanji and The Polar Express. The thing here is that the less you know about the story and plot, the more fun it is to watch the action unfold. I will say that it has a touching storyline, dazzling special effects, a really good cast and it moves fast. I couldn't figure out what was going to happen next and that's the way I like a movie to roll. The less predictable, the more fun it is to enjoy. I Can guarantee you'll get a kick out of this film unless you are a vegetable.


BEST MOVIES I'VE SEEN OF LATE = Lord of the Rings Trilogy; Spiderman 2; Ray; Secondhand Lions; Life as a House; I, Robot; A Painted House [TVM]; The Notebook; Alien vs. Predator (I really liked it!); Timeline; Before Sunset; King Kong (2005); A History of Violence; Chronicles of Narnia; Crash; Collateral; Ice Age; The Incredibles; Finding Nemo; Shrek & Shrek 2; The Corpse Bride; March of the Penguins; The Story of the Weeping Camel; North Country; Kingdom of Heaven; Troy; Memoirs of a Geisha; Brokeback Mountain; Chicken Little; Just Like Heaven; The Prince and I; Sideways; Little Miss Sunshine; Dragonfly; Zathura; Star Wars Trilogy; Babel; Transformers; Juno; Cloverfield; Lars and the Real Girl; Enchanted; Michael Clayton; 3:10 to Yuma; Bourne Trilogy;

BEST MOVIES I'VE SEEN ON VIDEO OR CABLE OF LATE = Helen of Troy (TVM); Rhapsody in Bloom; Warrior Queen (TVM); Path to War(TVM); Sleeper Cell; Our Fathers; Silent Night; The Kingdom; Bernard and Doris; Rome [Mini-series]; The Tudors [Mini-series]; Island on Bird Street; Comanche Moon;


BEST ENTERTAINMENT SOURCES:

TELEVISION: tie - E! [Entertainment Channel]; E.T. [Entertainment Tonight]

 PRINT MEDIA: Entertainment Weekly; Rolling Stone; USA Today

INTERNET: IMdb (Internet Media Database) and E! Online

BEST DISCOVERY WATCHING SUMMER RERUNS = Dancing with the Stars; Kid Nation

BEST REALITY SHOW = Amazing Race

BEST CURRENT TV SHOW (Drama) = Amazing Race; 24; Sleeper Cell; Enterprise; Smallville; Heroes (Honorable Mention: Inside the Actors Studio

BEST CURRENT TV SHOW (Comedy) = Amazing Race

BEST CURRENT TV SHOW (Miscellaneous) = Ebert and Roeper;

BEST TV SHOW OF ALL TIME (Drama) = Combat (Honorable Mention: Gunsmoke)

BEST TV SHOW OF ALL TIME (Comedy) = Amos 'n' Andy (Honorable Mention = The Bob Newhart Show)

BEST TV SHOW OF ALL TIME (Variety) = The Steve Allen Show (1960s)

BEST TV TALK SHOW OF ALL TIME = Home and Family
(Honorable Mention): Steve Allen's Meeting of Minds; Latenight with David Letterman; The Steve Allen Show (syndicated 1960s)

FAVORITE TV ACTORS/PERSONALITIES = Harry R. "Tim" Moore (see: Character Actors); Bob Newhart; Vic Morrow; Steve Allen; Jeff Smith; Ebert & Roeper; "Buffalo Bob" Smith; George Reeves; James Nusser; Leo G. Carroll (see: Character Actors); David Letterman; Jay Leno; Craig Ferguson; Jimmy Kimmel; Kiefer Sutherland; Dennis Haysbert; David Attenborough

FAVORITE TV ACTRESSES/PERSONALITIES = Marion Lorne; Elizabeth Montgomery; Mary Tyler Moore; Frances Horwich; Jesslyn Fax; Suzanne Pleshette; Patricia Heaton; Doris Roberts;

BEST RECENT SONG = Bad Day (Daniel Powter)
FAVORITE MUSICAL GROUP = BeeGees (Honorable Mention: INXS; Simple Minds; Beatles; Queen; ABBA)

FAVORITE SINGER (Male) = a 4-way Tie - Johnny Cash; Josh Groban; Leonard Cohen; and I cannot forget my fellow Minnesotan, of whom I am extremely proud and a huge fan: Prince; (Honorable Mention: Michael Hutchence; Freddie Mercury; Enrique Eglesias)

FAVORITE SINGER (Female) = Karen Carpenter (Honorable Mention: Celine Dion; Barbra Streisand; Betty Buckley; Madonna; Cyndi Lauper)

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTORS = Oliver Hardy; Cary Grant; Humphrey Bogart; James Cagney; James Mason; William Holden; Steve McQueen; Jimmy Stewart; Danny Glover; Jack Nicholson; Morgan Freeman; Peter O'Toole; Sean Connery; Richard Harris; James Earl Jones; Anthony Hopkins; Harrison Ford; Robert Duvall; Robert Mitchum; Dustin Hoffman; James Coburn; Tom Hanks; Liam Neeson; Gabriel Byrne; Daniel Day-Lewis; Michael Douglas; Dennis Haysbert; Gene Hackman; James McAvoy; Brian McArdie;Robert Downey Jr.; Leonardo DiCaprio

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTRESSES = Jane Darwell; Patricia Neal; Audrey Hepburn; Katharine Hepburn; Jessica Lange; Kathy Bates; Emma Thompson; Sara Allgood; Angela Lansbury; Kate Reid; Susan Hayward; Cameron Diaz; Ann Haney; Frances Sternhagen; Bonnie Bartlett; Hilary Swank; Judi Dench; Anne Hathaway; Kate Winslet

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RECOMMENDED BOOKS ON MOVIES & TELEVISION


Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide 2007

Video Movie Guide 2007 by Mick Martin & Marsha Porter

Roger Ebert's Video Companion 2007 by Roger Ebert

The Complete Directory to Primetime Network TV shows 1948-Present (Current Ed.)

Total Television (Current Ed.) by Alex McNeil

On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old Time Radio by John Dunning

Inside Oscar: Unofficial History of the Academy Awards by Mason Wiley & Damien Bona

People Entertainment Almanac 2007 by Cader Books (Issued annually)

The Film Encyclopedia by Ephraim Katz

The Filmgoer's Companion Latest ed. by Leslie Halliwell

Illustrated Encyclopedia of Movie Character Actors by David Quinlan

Who Is That? by Warren B. Meyers [out of print but worth searching rare books shops for]

Character People by Ken D. Jones; Arthur F. McClure & Alfred E. Twomey

Reel Heroes to Real Heroes and Real Heroes to Reel Heroes by Richard Williams [Trafford Publishing]

O.K. You Mugs: Writers on Movie Actors edited by Luc Sante


Television Guest Stars: An Illustrated Career Chronicle of 678 Performers of the Sixties & Seventies by Jack Ward

Reel Characters by Jordan R. Young

Feature Players Vol. 2 by Tom & Jim Goldrup

Feature Players Vol. 3 by Tom & Jim Goldrup

B Western Actors Encyclopedia by Ken Holland
Cowboy Cliffhangers by Donn J. Moyer available from Wild West Publishing

CowPokes 'n' CowBelles by Donn J. Moyer available from Wild West Publishing

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RECOMMENDED MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACKS on CD


Gettysburg by Randy Edelman

Dances With Wolves by John Barry

Music For A Darkened Theatre by Danny Elfman

Braveheart by James Horner

Rob Roy by Carter Burwell

Last of the Mohicans by Randy Edelman

Dragonheart by Randy Edelman

How the West Was Won by Alfred Newman

James Bond 30th Anniversary Limited Ed. by Various artists

The Science Fiction Album (multiple disks) by City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra

Sci-Fi's Greatest Hits Vols. 1 thru 4 Various artists

Titanic by James Horner

Bernard Herrmann Film Scores by Royal Philharmonic

Bernard Herrmann Fantasy Scores

Barry Lyndon Soundtrack by Various Artists

Alive Soundtrack by James Newton Howard

Ice Age & Ice Age 2

Shrek Soundtrack by Harry Gregson-Williams & John Powell

Transformers


SAD GOODBYES to:


Iron Eyes Cody [native-American actor; see: Great Character Actors]; Susan Strasberg [actress; daughter of Lee Strasberg]; Della Lind [actress; appeared with Laurel & Hardy in "Swiss Miss"]; Robert Shaw [Choral & Orchestra Leader; recording artist]; Buzz Kulik [director "Brian's Song", "Hunter", etc.]; Herman Wedemeyer [actor, 'Duke' Lukela on "Hawaii 5-0"]; Huntz Hall [actor in Dead End Kids, Bowery Boys]; Ed Herlihy [TV & radio announcer, actor]; Lili St. Cyr [stripper, actress]; Bobby Troup [songwriter "Route 66", actor "Emergency" TV series]; Danny Dayton [actor "Sgt. Bilko" & "All in the Family"]; Gene Siskel [film critic: Sneak Previews; At the Movies and Siskel & Ebert]; Noam Pitlik [actor, director; played Mr. Gianelli on "The Bob Newhart Show"]; Dusty Springfield [singer]; Richard Kiley [actor on stage, screen and television; narrator]; Stanley Kubrick [director, "Barry Lyndon"; "Spartacus"]; Peggy Cass [actress; TV panelist "To Tell the Truth"]; Lee Philips [actor "Marty", "12 Angry Men"; TV director]; Garson Kanin [screenwriter; director "Pat and Mike", "Born Yesterday"]; Kirk Alyn (actor in Superman serials of 40s]; Stefan Schnabel [actor; "Houdini", "Counterfeit Traitor"]; David Strickland [actor; on TV's "Suddenly Susan"]; Billye Ree Wallace [actress; Nana on "Seinfeld"]; Joe Williams [Jazz singer, actor; Grandpa Al on "The Cosby Show"]; Bob Peck [actor; starred in "Jurassic Park"]; Lecil Martin aka Boxcar Willie [singer; entertainer]; Jean Vander Pyl [actress; voice of TV's "Wilma Flintstone"]; Anthony Newley [actor; singer]; Bill Wendell [TV announcer, Latenight with David Letterman]; Ellen Corby [actress; Grandma Walton on TV's "The Waltons"]; Faith Domergue [actress; "It Came From Beneath the Sea", "This Island Earth"]; Wenceslao Moreño aka Senor Wences [ventriloquist]; Charles "Buddy" Rogers [actor; "Wings"]; Bert Remsen [character actor of movies & TV]; Al Hirt [Jazz trumpeter; musician]; Rory Calhoun [film actor; star of TV's "The Texan"]; Oliver Reed [actor; "The Three Musketeers" (1974), "Crossed Swords/The Prince and the Pauper" (1976)]; Dirk Bogarde [actor; "Doctor in the House", "Darling"]; Dana Plato [actress; "Diff'rent Strokes"]; Shel Silverstein [children's author; songwriter "A Boy Named Sue", "Sylvia's Mother"]; Shirley Dinsdale Layburn [ventriloquist; First ever recipient of an Emmy Award]; Henry Jones [character actor; "Bad Seed", "Vertigo" and "Phyllis" TV series]; Vanessa Brown [actress; "Tarzan and the Slave Girl", "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir."]; Hillary Brooke [actress; "My Little Margie" TV series; "Road to Utopia", "The Enchanted Cottage"]; Mel Torme [Jazz singer; composer; actor]; DeForest Kelley [actor; 'Bones' the Doctor on Star Trek]; Sylvia Sidney [actress; "Mars Attacks!"; "Damien: Omen II"; "Beetlejuice"]; Edward Dmytryk [director; "The Caine Mutiny"; "The Left Hand of God"; "The Mountain"]; Mario Puzo [author; "The Godfather"]; Guy Mitchell [singer, "Sparrow in the Treetops", "My Heart Cries for You"; actor, "Those Redheads from Seattle"]; John Stears [special effects inventor; created Jedi lightsaber; James Bond's Aston-Martin; R2D2 & C3PO]; Ronny Graham [actor; comedy writer, M*A*S*H]; Roberta Sherwood [singer, "You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry", "Up A Lazy River"]; Donal McCann [actor, "The Dead"]; Sandra Gould [actress; 2nd Gladys Kravitz on "Bewitched"]; Anita Carter [singer; soprano member of the famed Carter Family]; Kathryn Murray [dancer; TV's "Arthur Murray Dance Party"]; Victor Mature [actor; star of 40s & 50s; "The Robe", "Kiss of Death", "My Darling Clementine']; Jennifer Patterson [Chef, co-star of TV's "Two Fat Ladies"]; Ross Elliott [character actor; Sheriff Abbott on TV's "The Virginian"]; James Macaulay [character actor; prosecuting attorney in "Perry Mason" TV movies]; Brion James [character actor; villain in many films including "Blade Runner"]; Mary Jane Croft [whiny voiced character actress; neighbor on "Ozzie & Harriet" and "I Love Lucy"]; Marguerite Chapman [actress; "Relentless, "Seven Year Itch"]; Laurette Luez [actress; "Kim", "D.O.A."]; Bobs Watson [former child actor; PeeWee in "Boys Town"]; Allen Funt [creator & host of TV's "Candid Camera]; Ruth Roman [actress; star of 1940s & 50s, in Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train"]; George C. Scott [actor; Oscar winner for "Patton"; TV star of East Side/West Side]; Bernadette O'Farrell [actress; Maid Marian on TV's "Adventures of Robin Hood" of 1950s]; Dick Patterson [actor; "Bye, Bye Birdie", TV's "Carol Burnett Show" & "Here's Lucy"]; Robert "Gorilla Monsoon" Marella [pro wrestler; TV commentator]; Lee Richardson [actor; "Prizzi's Honor", "Q & A"; known for perfect diction]; Richard B. Shull [character actor; TV's "Holmes & Yoyo"]; Jean Shepherd [humorist; writer; radio performer; author of "A Christmas Story", "The Greatest 4th of July"; "Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss"]; Hoyt Axton [singer; actor "Gremlins"]; Frank De Vol [movie & TV composer; actor; composed Family Affair, The Brady Bunch, My Three Sons themes]; Ian Bannen [actor; "Braveheart", "Flight of the Phoenix"]; Donald Mills [singer; last surviving member of the groundbreaking music group "The Mills Brothers"]; Mabel King [actress; 'Mama' on "What's Happening?"; starred in "The Wiz", "The Jerk", "Scrooged"]; Billy Benedict [character actor; 'Whitey' of the Bowery Boys; see: Great Character Actors Page 5]; Bethel Leslie [actress; star of stage, movies and television]; Hazel Fredrick [unwitting actor; lady gawking at Mary as she throws hat in the air on credits of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"]; Gene Rayburn [Game show host and panelist; star of TV's "The Match Game"]; Madeline Kahn [actress; "Young Frankenstein"]; Harold Wertz [child star of 'Our Gang' shorts; known as "Bouncy"]; Shirley Hemphill [actress; Shirley the waitress of "What's Happening?" TV series]; Rex Allen [actor; star of Westerns and Disney narrator]; Desmond Llewelyn [actor; 'Q' in James Bond films]; Hank Snow [country singer]; Clayton Moore [actor; Television's "The Lone Ranger"; also appeared in serials of the 1940s]; Dick Peabody [actor; 'Littlejohn' on "Combat" TV series]; 



Marguerite Churchill [actress; "The Big Trail"];

Arthur Batanides [character actor; starred in "Police Academy" series];

John Newland [actor; TV host of "Alcoa Presents" & "One Step Beyond"];

Hedy Lamarr [actress of 30s & 40s; "Tortilla Flat", "Samson and Delilah"];

Jester Hairston [actor; composer; starred as 'Leroy' on "Amos 'n' Andy"  and 'Rolly' on "Amen" TV series];

Frances Drake [actress of 30s & 40s; starred in "Les Miserables", "The Invisible Ray"];

Maxine Hicks [actress in Silent films; starred in TV's "Just the 10 of Us"];

Fran Ryan [actress; appeared on "Gunsmoke", TV commercials; see Great Character Actors];

Ralph Manza [character actor; starred on TV in "Banacek" and General Hospital"];

Alan North [character actor; best known as Leslie Nielsen's sidekick on TV's "Police Squad", appeared in movies "Serpico"; "Plaza Suite"];

Doris Kenner-Jackson [singer; member of the "Shirelles" singing group.."Soldier Boy", "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow"];

Todd Karns [actor; played Harry Bailey in "It's a Wonderful Life"; son of Roscoe Karns];

Doug Henning [magician; illusionist];

Jim Varney [actor; played 'Ernest' in commercials and movie series; starred in "Toy Story 2" as voice of Slinky Dog];

Roger Vadim [film director; "Barbarella"];

Charles Schulz [creator of 'Peanuts'];

Harold W. Prichett [creator of TV's "Winky Dink and You" series];

George Duning [film composer; scored "From Here to Eternity", "Picnic", "Bell, Book and Candle", Houseboat" and others];

John Colicos [actor; movies & TV; 'Baltar' on TV's "Battlestar Galactica", appeared on "General Hospital"];

Charles Gray [actor; played Ernst Blofeld in James Bond films];

Alex Dreier [announcer; newsman; actor];

Durward Kirby [radio & TV announcer; actor; starred on TV's "The Garry Moore Show"];

Helen Martin [actress; appeared on TV's "227" and in films "Momma Doll" & "Bulworth"];

Christopher Cary [actor; on TV's "Garrison's Gorillas" TV series];

Claire Trevor [actress; won Oscar for "Key Largo"];

Larry Linville [actor; Frank Burns on TV's "M*A*S*H"];

Lila Kedrova [actress; won Best Supporting Actress Oscar for "Zorba the Greek"];

Arthur Morton [film composer; composed music for "Patton"; "Chinatown"; TV's "The Waltons" and "Peyton Place'];

Richard Collier [character actor; appeared in "Blazing Saddles", many TV series];

Steve Reeves [actor; played Hercules in film series];

Douglas Fairbanks Jr. [actor; raconteur; played swashbuckler roles like his father];

 Robinson Stone [actor; played the shell-shocked 'Joey' in the film classic "Stalag 17"];

Craig Stevens [actor; played 'Peter Gunn' on TV series];

Sir John Gielgud [actor; Shakespearean actor; Oscar winner for "Arthur"];

Francis Lederer [actor; movies & TV];

Tex Beneke [singer; orchestra leader, took over Glenn Miller's orchestra];

Tito Puente [band leader; percussionist];

Sybil Trent [actress; legendary radio voice of "Let's Pretend"];

Robert Homme [actor; played "The Friendly Giant" on TV in the 1950s];

Elinor Nathan [radio actress; played Amos' wife Ruby on "Amos 'n' Andy"];

Nancy Marchand [actress; starred on TV's "Lou Grant" as Mrs. Pynchon and "The Sporanos"];

Lew Gallo [actor; TV producer];

David Tomlinson [actor; played father in "Mary Poppins"];

Nicholas Clay [actor; appeared in films "Excalibur" and "Lionheart"];

Logan Ramsey [character actor of movies & TV; husband of Anne Ramsey; appeared in "Walking Tall" film series];

Vittorio Gassman [Italian film actor; appeared in "Bitter Rice" and "Sleepers"];

Walter Matthau [actor; half of one of the screen's most successful comedy duos with Jack Lemmon; appeared in "Charade"; "The Odd Couple"; "The Sunshine Boys"; "Hopscotch" and "Grumpy Old Men"];

Ray Scherer [veteran NBC TV news reporter];

Terry Forrestal [stuntman; worked on "Braveheart"; "Titanic"; "Goldeneye" and others];

Harold Nicholas [dancer extraordinaire; youngest of the two Nicholas Brothers and, with brother Fayard, half of one of the world's greatest dance duos];

Meredith MacRae [actress; appeared on TV's "My Three Sons" and "Petticoat Junction" as Billie Jo; daughter of Gordon & Sheila MacRae];

G. Wood [character actor; appeared in the films "M*A*S*H", "Brewster McCloud" and "Harold and Maude"];

Claude Sautet [French film director];

Max Showalter [character actor of movies & TV; appeared in "Music Man"; "Sixteen Candles"; "Racing With the Moon"];

Sir Alec Guinness [actor, legend; starred in "Bridge on the River Kwai"; "Star Wars"];

Loretta Young [actress; star of movies & television; won Oscar for "The Farmer's Daughter"];

Val Dufour [actor; appeared on many soap operas "Search for Tomorrow"; "Edge of Night", etc.];

Mary K. Wells [actress-writer; appeared in soap operas "Edge of Night" and was writer for "All My Children"];

Joan Marsh [actress; worked as a child in silents and in fims of 1930s & 40s];

Jacques Rupp [artist, animator; created "Lady and the Tramp"];

Carl Barks [artist, animator; creator of Donald Duck and Scrooge McDuck];

Jean Speegle Howard [actress; mother of Ron and Clint Howard; appeared in "Apollo 13"];

David Haskell [actor; appeared on TV's "Santa Barbara" and in the stage & film versions of "Godspell"];

Joseph H. Lewis [director of acclaimed B-movies; "Bombs Over Burma", "Retreat, Hell!" and "Gun Crazy"];

Beah Richards [actress; starred in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?", "Beloved"; won an Emmy in 2000 for appearance in "The Practice"];

Ruth Lewis [actress, appeared in "30 Seconds Over Tokyo", "The Lady Takes a Sailor"; gossip columnist];

Richard Mulligan [actor; starred in and won Emmys for "Soap" as Bert Campbell and "Empty Nest"];

Carmencita Johnson aka Carmen Robertson [child actress of 1920's & 1930's, appeared in Our Gang shorts];

Peter Gennaro [choreographer for Television and stage; worked on "Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall";

Ann Doran [veteran character actress; starred in "National Velvet" on TV and films "Rebel Without A Cause" and "The High and the Mighty"];

Carl Sigman [songwriter; wrote "All in the Game"; "Pennsylvania 6-5000"; "Bongo, Bongo, Bongo"; "Enjoy Yourself"; "What Now My Love"; "Theme from Love Story" and many others];

Miriam Wolfe [actress; starred on radio in "Let's Pretend", on TV in its early years on "Studio One" and on stage];

Richard Farnsworth [character actor; twice nominated for Oscars for "Comes A Horseman" and "Straight Story"];

David Dukes [actor of stage, screen and television; starred on TV in "Winds of War", "War and Remembrance" and in the film "Gods and Monsters"];

Peter Turgeon [actor; starred in films "Airport" as a whiny, obnoxious passenger and "Dear Heart"];

Vincent Canby [film & theatre critic];

Rick Jason [actor; starred as Lt. Hanley on the popular TV series "Combat"];

Gwen Verdon [actress/dancer; Broadway star; appeared in the film "Cocoon"];

Julie London [actress; star of the 1950s; appeared in "Voice in the Mirror"];

Jean Peters [actress; starred in films of 1950s including "Captain from Castille" and "Niagara"; was married to Howard Hughes];

Zeke Manners [radio personality; known as radio's Hillbilly; composed "Pennsylvania Polka"];

Marie "Mother Snyder" [mother of talk host Tom Snyder; whose exploits were followed on her son's talk shows];

Muriel Evans [actress; star of 1930s and 40s; appeared with Laurel & Hardy, Hopalong Cassidy and others];

Steve Allen [comedian; actor; author; composer; pianist; American original; starred as first mainstream host of "Tonight Show"; composed many songs including "This Could Be the Start of Something Big"; created the Emmy winning series "Meeting of Minds"; hosted many of his own talk shows; guest starred as game show panelist; Member of Television Hall of Fame];

Ring Lardner Jr. [screenwriter; was blacklisted in 1950s; scripted "Woman of the Year" and "M*A*S*H"];

Bea Marcus [actress; best known for her performance in the TV commercial "I've fallen and can't get up"];

Frances Mercer [actress of the 1930s & 40s; starred in "The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle"];

Robert Trout [CBS newsman; reporter];

Werner Klemperer [actor; son of conductor Otto Klemperer; appeared on "Hogan's Heroes" TV series as Colonel Klink];

Hoyt Curtin [composer; composed theme music for Hanna-Barbera cartoons];

Marie Windsor [actress; starred in film noir classics of the 1940s & 50s];

George Montgomery [actor; starred in films and on TV; appeared in many westerns];

Nick Stewart [actor; played Lightnin' on the "Amos 'n' Andy" TV series, was last surviving cast member];

Victor Borge [musician; actor; Danish pianist performed mixing comedy with music];

Pauline Curley [actress; starred opposite Douglas Fairbanks and others in silent films];

Billy Barty [actor; 3' 10" tall who founded Little People of America; starred in films from age 3 and worked in television and on stage];

Jose Gonzalez Gonzalez [actor; starred in many westerns on TV and in movies];

Jason Robards Jr. [actor; star of stage, screen and television; won Oscars for appearances in films "All the President's Men"; "Julia"];

Leo Gordon [character actor; adept at playing bad guys and tough guys in movies and on TV];

Julius Epstein [screenwriter; wrote "Casablanca" script];





Ray Walston - 86 [character actor; played Uncle Martin on TV's "My Favorite Martian"; Judge Bone on "Picket Fences"; starred in films including: "Damn Yankees" and "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"];

Jose Greco - 82 [dancer; choreographer; world famous Flamenco dancer];

Doris Leader Charge - 69 [Native American linguist; was adviser in Lakota Sioux language for the film “Dances With Wolves” also played Pretty Shield in the film];

Jack McVea - 86 [singer; had hit in 1940s with "Open the Door Richard"];

Les Brown - 88 [Big Bandleader; known by the monnicker "Les Brown and his Band of Renown"; had big hit with "Sentimental Journey" sung by Doris Day];

Nancy Parsons - 58 [character actress; appeared in films "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden' and "Porky's" as the waitress];

Joan Robinson - 72 [actress; starred on TV in its early days; appeared on "Edge of Night", "Hallmark Hall of Fame"];

Michael Williams - 65 [actor; husband of actress Dame Judi Dench; appeared in films "Marat/Sade" (1966), Kenneth Branagh's version of "Henry V" and "Educating Rita"];

Al Waxman - 65 [actor; starred in TV series "Twice in a Lifetime" and "Cagney and Lacey"];

Michael Cuccione - 16 [actor; singer; starred in MTV's series "2gether" and appeared on "Baywatch"];

Virginia O'Brien - 81 [actress; starred in films of the 1940s including "The Harvey Girls" and "Till the Clouds Roll By"];

Sandy Baron - 64 [standup comic; actor; appeared on TV's "Seinfeld" as Jack Klompus and in the films "If It's Tuesday This Must Be Belgium" and "Leprechaun II"];

Scott Marlowe - 68 [actor; starred as troubled youth in films of the 1950s including "The Restless Breed" and on TV in character roles in 1960s, 70s & 80s];

Jean-Pierre Aumont - 90 [French actor; starred in "Lili" with Leslie Caron, "Day For Night"];

David Byrd - 68 [character actor; starred in films including "The Hudsucker Proxy" and on TV as Harry Stipe in "Everybody Loves Raymond"];

Dale Evans - 88 [actress; starred with husband Roy Rogers in many popular westerns and on their own TV series];

Lewis Arquette - 65 [character actor; son of actor, raconteur Cliff "Charley Weaver" Arquette; father of the acting Arquettes including Rosanna, Patricia and David Arquette; he starred on TV's "The Waltons" as J.D. Pickett and as the Narrator in the mockumentary comedy film "Waiting for Guffman"];

Burt Kennedy - 78 [director; directed mostly western films and TV series including the films "The War Wagon" and "Dirty Dingus Magee"];

Roger Karas - 72 [animal advocate; best known as announcer at "Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show"; also President of A.S.P.C.A.];

Howard Koch - 84 [producer; produced "Maverick" and "The Untouchables" TV series and films including: "The Manchurian Candidate" and "Airplane!"];

Stanley Kramer - 87 [director; directed many great films including: "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", "High Noon"; "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World"];

Gail Fisher - 65 [actress; played secretary Peggy on "Mannix" TV series with Mike Connors];

Len Wayland - 80 [character actor; extremely prolific character actor guested on many series from TV's infancy];

Rosemary DeCamp - 90 [actress; played motherly roles; starred in "Yankee Doodle Dandy"; on TV in "The Bob Cummings Show", "Life of Riley" and "That Girl"; see: Great Character Actors Page 3];

Edward Winter - 63 [character actor; starred as Col. Flagg on TV's "M*A*S*H; in films "The Buddy System" and "From the Hip"];

Portia Nelson - 80 [actress; played Mrs. Gurney on "All My Children" and Sister Berthe in the film "The Sound of Music"];

Morton Downey Jr. - 67 [acerbic talk show host; star of "The Morton Downey Jr. Show"; parttime actor who appeared in the films "Predator II" and "Meet Wally Sparks"];

Louis Edmonds - 77 [actor; starred on soap operas "Dark Shadows" and "All My Children"];

Glenn Hughes - 50 [singer; performed as biker dude with the Village People];

Ann Sothern - 92 [actress; starred as Maisie in the film series "Maisie" and on TV as star of the "Private Secretary" series];

John Phillips - 65 [singer and songwriter; founder and member of singing group "The Mamas and the Papas"; father of actresses Mackenzie & Chynna Phillips];

Peggy Converse - 95 [actress; appeared on stage and in films including: "Father is a Bachelor", "Miss Sadie Thompson" and "The Accidental Tourist"];

Norma MacMillan - 79 [actress and voice-over artist; was voice of Casper the Friendly Ghost in cartoons and Gumby; mother of Stefan and Alison "Nellie Olson" Arngrim];

William Hanna - 90 [cartoonist; who, along with his partner Joseph Barbera, created such characters as Tom & Jerry, Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, The Flintsones and The Jetsons];

Elena Del Rubio - in her mid 70s [singer; member of the singing Del Rubio Triplets with her 2 sisters; group performed from the 1950s thru the 1990s];

Toby Wing - 85 [actress; was pinup girl in 1930s; appeared in films "True Confession", "42nd Street"];

Jackie Kahane - 79 [stand-up comic; along with Bill Cosby was chosen by Time magazine as Top Comedian of 1961];

Anthony Steel - 80 [actor; starred in British films including: "Malta Story" and "The Mudlark"; also appeared in "Master of Ballantrae" with Errol Flynn; was married to Anita Ekberg];

Walter Craig - 88 [actor; aka Anthony Dexter; appeared in the film biography of "Valentino", "Captain John Smith and Pocahantas", "Captain Kidd and the Slave Girl" ];

Brother Theodore Gottlieb - 94 [comedian; billed as Brother Theodore, his bizarre but entertaining humor was a staple of such TV talk shows as "The Steve Allen Show" and "Latenight with David Letterman" ];

David Graf- 50 [actor; starred in the "Police Academy" comedy film series; also appeared in the films "Guarding Tess" and "The Brady Bunch Movie"];

Beatrice Straight - 86 [actress; won Best Supporting Actress Oscar for "Network"; was star of stage, screen and television; appeared as Queen Mother on the TV series "Wonder Woman"];

Harry Secombe - 79 [comedian and actor; starred in Britain's famed comedy series "The Goon Show"; played Mr. Bumble in the Oscar winning film "Oliver"];

Nyree Dawn Porter - 61 [actress; star of stage, screen and television; appeared on TV's "The Forsyte Saga" and "Madame Bovary" and the 1970s series "The Protectors" with Robert Vaughn];

Joey Ramone - 49 [singer; was lead singer of The Ramones rock group; sang with The Clash and The Sex Pistols];

Michael Ritchie - 62 [film director; directed such classic films as: "Downhill Racer", "The Candidate" and "The Bad News Bears"];

Jack Haley Jr. - 67 [director and producer; directed films and TV specials including: "That's Entertainment" and "That's Dancing"; son of actor Jack Haley; was married to Liza Minnelli];

Perry Como - 87 [singer; actor; Television star; American National Treasure; some of his song hits were: "Round and Round", "Hot Diggity", "Catch A Falling Star", "Impossible"; "Magic Moments"];

Deborah Walley - 57 [actress; starred in "Gidget" and "Beach Blanket" movies of the 1960s and in "Benji"; on TV she was a regular on the series "The Mothers-in-Law"];

Jason Miller - 62 [playwright; actor; wrote "That Championship Season"; starred in the film "The Exorcist"];

Ralph Tabakin- 79 [actor; discovered late in life, he starred on the TV series "Homicide: Life on the Street" as Dr. Scheiner the Medical Examiner; also appeared in the film "Diner"];

Joe Baker - 73 [English comedian; actor; impressionist; appeared in the films "Dumb and Dumber", "Robin Hood: Men in Tights"; did a crackerjack impression of Lou Costello];

Whitman Mayo - 70 [actor; starred as 'Grady' on TV series "Sanford and Son"; also appeared in the films "Boyz N the Hood" and "Of Mice and Men"];

Harry Townes - 80 [actor; veteran character actor appeared on many TV series including "Gunsmoke", "Bonanza", "Perry Mason", "Star Trek"];

Anne Haney - 67 [actress; chiefly character roles see: Great Character Actors Page 8; starred in the films "Hopscotch"; "Liar, Liar", "Mrs. Doubtfire"; on such TV series as "Ally McBeal", "Cheers" and "Coach"];

Arlene Francis - 93 [actress; TV Panelist; best known for her appearances on TV's "What's My Line?"; starred in the films: "Murders in the Rue Morgue", "Stage Door Canteen", "All My Sons" and "The Thrill of It All"];

Ramon Bieri - 71 [veteran character actor; appeared on "Bret Maverick" TV series as Elijah Crow; "Sarge" TV series as Barney Verick; appeared in such movies as: "The Andromeda Strain"; "Badlands" and "Ghosts of Mississippi"]

Hank Ketcham - 81 [cartoonist; creator of "Dennis the Menace" which was adapted for film and TV];

Imogene Coca - 92 [actress; comedienne; pioneer TV actress starred with Sid Caesar on "Your Show of Shows" in the 1950s; more recently starred in films including "National Lampoon's Vacation"];

Anthony Quinn - 86 [actor; painter; sculptor; raconteur; Hollywood legend; starred in such films as: "Road to Morocco", "Back to Bataan", "Zorba the Greek", "Lust for Life", "Guns of Navarone", "Jesus of Nazareth"];

John Hartford - 63 [singer; songwriter; star of 60's TV; wrote the song "Gentle on My Mind"];

Leonard Tepper - 61 [actor; rotund bald man who appeared as a regular in skits and pranks on "Late Show with David Letterman" from 1996-2001; also appeared in the films: "Home Alone 2"; "Class of Nuke 'Em High" and "Awakenings"];

Bert Kramer - 66 [character actor; appeared on the TV series "The Fitzpatricks" as Mike Fitzpatrick and "The Young and the Restless" as Brent Davis; appeared in the films: "Lady Sings the Blues", "Moment by Moment" and "Volcano"];

Carroll O'Connor - 76 [actor; TV legend who portrayed Archie Bunker on "All in the Family"; also appeared on TV's "In the Heat of the Night" and in films including: "Cleopatra" and "Hawaii"];

John Lee Hooker - 80 [legendary blues singer];

Bill Matney - 76 [NBC newsman and reporter];

Jack Lemmon - 76 [Oscar winning actor; starred in many films including: "Mister Roberts"; "Some Like It Hot"; "Days of Wine and Roses"; "The Out-of-Towners"; and with his good friend Walter Matthau in "The Odd Couple" and "Grumpy Old Men"];

William Bryant - 76 [character actor; starred on TV series: "Combat", "Branded", "Switch" and "General Hospital"; also appeared in the films "Chisum", "Gray Lady Down" and "Two Minute Warning"];

Corinne Calvet - 75 [actress; starred in sultry film roles in the 1940s & 50s; appeared in films including "Rope of Sand", "What Price Glory?" and "On the Riviera"];

Chet Atkins - 77 [guitarist; composer; country music legend];

Joan Sims - 71 [actress; starred in the British "Carry On..." movie series];

Ted Berman - 81 [animator; worked on Disney's "Bambi" and "Fantasia"];

James Bernard - 75 [film composer; composed scores for many of Britain's Hammer horror films];

Gunther Gebel-Williams - 66 [Circus performer; TV celebrity; was the modern day Clyde Beatty...one of the finest animal trainers and performers in circus history];

Dr. Frances Horwich - 94 [educator; pioneer of children's television programming; best known as 'Miss Frances' the host of 1950's TV series "Ding Dong School"; she used the same methods as most schoolteachers long before "Sesame Street" and "Mister Rogers"];

Alex Nicol - 85 [character actor; starred in films including "Strategic Air Command", "Tomahawk" as well as spaghetti westerns; was a regular on the TV series "Return to Peyton Place"];

Dame Dorothy Tutin - 70 [stage actress; appeared on Masterpiece Theatre's TV production of "Six Wives of Henry VIII"];

Larry Adler - 87 [musician; world class harmonica virtuoso];

Lorenzo Music - 64 [comedy writer; actor; did the voices of Carlton the Doorman on the TV series "Rhoda" and Garfield the Cat in cartoons];

Alan Rafkin - 73 [director; one of the top TV sitcom directors and multiple Emmy winner; he directed such sitcoms as "M*A*S*H"; "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "The Andy Griffith Show"];

A.D. Flowers - 84 [special effects man; specialized in explosions, gun battles, fires, floods, etc.; worked on "Apocalypse Now", "The Godfather" and "The Poseidon Adventure"];

Kim Stanley - 76 [actress; twice Oscar nominated for "Frances" with Jessica Lange and "Seance on a Wet Afternoon"; was primarily a stage actress];

Walter Reed - 85 [character actor; appeared in the films "Young Man with a Horn", "Superman and the Mole Men", "War Paint" and "The Horse Soldiers"; appeared on many TV series in the 1950s and 1960s ];

Betty Everett - 61 [singer; best known for her hit 1964 song "The Shoop Shoop Song"];

Walter Reed - 85 [character actor; appeared in many westerns; his films include: "Tora, Tora Tora", "The High and the Mighty"; also appeared on TV western series];

Kathleen Freeman - 78 [veteran character actress; appeared in many Jerry Lewis films; on many TV series as a regular; was currently starring on Broadway in "The Full Monty"; see: Great Character Actors Page 1];

Aaliyah - 22 [singer; actress; best known as R&B singer but she had sung on the soundtracks for films including "Anastasia" and "Dr. Doolittle 2"];

Jane Greer - 76 [actress; starred in "Out of the Past"; "The Prisoner of Zenda" and "Against All Odds"; also appeared in the TV series "Twin Peaks"];

John Nelson - 85 [jazz musician; played piano with the Prince Rogers Trio; was father of rock star Prince and co-wrote "Computer Blue" and "Scandalous" with his son];

Troy Donahue - 65 [actor; was teen idol in 1950s & 1960s; often paired with Sandra Dee; starred in "A Summer Place"; "Parrish" and "Rome Adventure"];

Pauline Kael - 82 [legendary film critic and author; worked for the New York Times];

Heywood Hale Broun - 83 [journalist; reporter; appeared often on CBS Television as commentator, analyst];

Justin Wilson - 87 [chef; humorist; hosted TV series as the "Cajun Cook"];

Julie Bishop - 87 [actress; was former child star under her birth name Jaqueline Wells; appeared in the films "Action in the North Atlantic", "Sands of Iwo Jima", "Westward the Women" as Julie Bishop; also starred in the TV series "My Hero" with Bob Cummings];

Raymond Johnson - 90 [radio actor, personality; was host of the legendary "Inner Sanctum" radio series; portrayed "Mandrake the Magician" and "Don Winslow of the Navy" on radio];

Dorothy McGuire - 85 [actress; appeared in many classic films including: "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn"; "Old Yeller"; "The Enchanted Cottage" and "Friendly Persuasion"; also starred on TV's "Peyton Place"];

Fred de Cordova - 90 [producer; director; best known as producer of "The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson"; also produced and directed "Burns and Allen", "The Jack Benny Show" and "My Three Sons" on TV; he had directed over 50 films including: "Bedtime for Bonzo"];

Samuel Z. Arkoff - 83 [producer; formed AIP (American International Pictures); he produced films aimed at the 'teen age Drive-In' market including: "I Was a Teenage Werewolf"; "Machine Gun Kelly"; Beach Blanket Bingo"];

Isaac Stern - 81 [musician, violinist extraordinaire];

Victor Keung Wong - 74 [actor; appeared in the films "The Joy Luck Club"; "The Golden Child" and "The Last Emperor"];

Lani O'Grady - 46 [actress; appeared on TV's "Eight is Enough" as daughter Mary;];

Gloria Foster - 64 [stage actress; African-American actress appeared in guest roles on Television series and often in films; last seen as 'The Oracle' in "The Matrix"];

Judith Jordan - 61 [actress; although primarily a stage actress she appeared in guest roles on many TV series including: "Roseanne", "Quincy", "L.A. Law" and "Highway to Heaven"];

Dagmar (nee Virginia Ruth Egnor) - 79 [actress; model; raconteur; talk show guest; appeared in early television on the forerunner of the "Tonight Show", "Broadway Open House"];

Herbert Ross - 91 [choreographer; film director; directed films: "The Turning Point", "The Goodbye Girl" and "Footloose"];

Jay Livingston - 86 [composer; co-wrote with Ray Evans many popular and Oscar winning songs for movies including: "Buttons & Bows" from "Paleface", "Que Sera, Sera" from "The Man Who Knew Too Much" and "Mona Lisa" from "Captain Carey, U.S.A.", also wrote "Silver Bells", "Dear Heart" and "Tammy" all for various movies];

Polly Rowles - 87 [actress; star of stage, films and TV; appeared in the films "Springtime in the Rockies" and "Sweet Liberty"; appeared on such TV series as "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "Naked City" and "The Defenders"; her best known role was in a Hanes underwear commercial as Inspector No. 12];

Otis Young - 69 [actor; starred in the western series "The Outcasts" (1968-69); starred in the film "The Last Detail" with Jack Nicholson; later became acting teacher and playwright];

Janet Shaw (Ellen Clancy) - 82 [actress; blonde starred in over 50 films in the 1930s & 40s; appeared with Bette Davis in "Jezebel"];

Pat Ast - 59 [actress; starred in Andy Warhol films and 'B' movies; appeared in "Reform School Girls" and "The Incredible Shrinking Woman"];

Diana van der Vlis - 66 [actress; blue-eyed blonde was a star of stage, screen and television; appeared on such series as "The Fugitive", "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." and "Ryan's Hope"; in such films as "The Incident" and "The Man With the X-Ray Eyes" ];

Eugene 'Pineapple' Jackson - 84 [actor; musician; singer; starred in the early "Our Gang" film shorts as 'Pineapple', Farina's brother; in later years he guested on such TV series as "The Rockford Files", "Julia" and "Sanford and Son"; he worked in silent films with Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks and later with Gene Autry, Judy Garland, Gene Kelly and others];

Kathleen Ankers - 81 [scenic designer for TV programs including: "Latenight with David Letterman", "Rosie O'Donnell Show' and others; participated in skits on Latenight portraying various characters: Bookmobile Lady, Foul-Mouthed Elderly Lady, etc.];

Albert Hague - 81 [actor; played Mr. Shorofsky on the "Fame" TV series and movie];

Peggy Mount - 85 [British actress; appeared in the films: "Sailor Beware!", "Finders Keepers" and "Hotel Paradiso"];

Gardner McKay - 69 [actor; starred on TV's "Adventures in Paradise"];

O. C. Smith - 65 [singer; wrote and sang "Little Green Apples"];

John Mitchum - 81 [actor; brother of Robert Mitchum];

George Harrison - 58 [singer; member of the legendary group "The Beatles"; known as 'the Silent Beatle'; sang and wrote solo tunes "My Sweet Lord", Here Comes the Sun" and others; appeared in the films "Help", "A Hard Days Night" and "Yellow Submarine"; also was a member of the "Travelin' Wilburys"];

Foster Brooks - 89 [comedian; portrayed a drunk in most of his comedy routines; frequent TV talk show guest];

Dick Schaap - 67 [popular sports announcer; journalist];

Sir Nigel Hawthorne - 72 [British actor; Oscar nominated for his role in "The Madness of King George"; also appeared in "Demolition Man", "Amistad", "Madeline" and on TV in "Victoria and Albert"];

Eileen Heckart - 82 [actress; starred in the films "The Bad Seed", "Butterflies Are Free"; on TV in the mini-series "Backstairs at the White House" as Eleanor Roosevelt; on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" as Mary's Aunt Flo];





Meg Wylie - 84 [actress; star of movies & TV; appeared on TV's "General Hospital"];


Bibi Osterwald - 83 [actress; appeared in movies "Caddyshack", "Glimmer Man" and "As Good As It Gets"];


Avery Schreiber - 66 [comedian; actor; was half of the "Burns and Schreiber" comedy team with Jack Burns; starred in movies & TV; recently appeared in a series of Doritos commercials];


Bill McCutcheon - 77 [character actor; appeared in many TV commercials in the 1960s & 70s; movies included "Viva Max!", "Steel Magnolias" and "Mr. Destiny"];

Ted Demme - 38 [director; brother of film director Jonathon Demme; films include: "Beautiful Girls", "The Ref" and "Blow"];

Carrie Hamilton - 38 [actress; daughter of Carol Burnett; appeared in TV series "Fame"; films included: "Shag" and "Cool World"];

Peggy Lee - 81 [Legendary Jazz singer; actress; sang "Fever"; "Is That All There Is?"; appeared in the films "Stage Door Canteen", "Pete Kelly's Blues" and "Lady and the Tramp"];

Harold Russell - 88 [actor; was disabled; won Oscar for his first role in "The Best Years of Our Lives" playing a double amputee; also appeared in the films "Inside Moves" and "Dogtown"];

Evelyn Scott - 86 [actress; best known for her role as Ada Jacks on TV's "Peyton Place"; appeared in the films "Wicked Woman" and "The Green-Eyed Blonde"];

Irish McCalla - 82 [actress; best known for her role as TV's Sheena, Queen of the Jungle; films included "River Goddess" and "She Demons"];

Hildegard Knef - 76 [German actress; films included "Decision Before Dawn", "Diplomatic Courier", "Svengali" and "Mozambique"];

George Nader - 90 [actor; star of B movies; films include "Robot Monster", Sins of Jezebel" and "Carnival Story"];

Guy Stockwell - 67 [actor; brother of Dean Stockwell; starred in the films "The Beat Generation", "The War Lord" and "Tobruk"];

Barry Foster - 70 [British character actor; appeared in the films "Dunkirk", "Ryan's Daughter", "The Wild Geese" and in Hitchcock's classic "Frenzy" as the villain Rusk];

Waylon Jennings - 64 [Country singer; actor; best known as "The Outlaw"; sang themes to "The Dukes of Hazzard" and film "The Pursuit of D.B. Cooper"];

Howard K. Smith - 87 [newscaster; journalist; worked with ABC News division; appeared in many films as Himself including "The Best Man", "The Candidate" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind"];

Mattie Shaw - 68 [mother of Rock star Prince; was in the film "First Steps" (1985)];

Chuck Jones - 89 [animator; worked for Warner Brothers Cartoons; he created Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner, Pepe Le Pew and Marvin the Martian; animated Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig cartoons also];

Mel Stewart - 72 [black character actor; known for comical roles; films included "Steelyard Blues", "Let's Do It Again", "Whose Life Is It Anyway?"; starred in many TV series];

Lawrence Tierney - 82 [character actor; had long career in films; films included "The Falcon Out West", "Dillinger", "Back to Bataan", "Prizzi's Honor" and "Reservoir Dogs"; was a regular on TV series including "Hill Street Blues"];

Spike Milligan - 83 [British comedian; mostly on TV; appeared in films such as "Yellowbeard", "Monty Python's Life of Brian"];

Mary Stuart - 75 [actress; star of soap operas including "One Life to Live", "The Guiding Light" and "Search for Tomorrow"; appeared in films including: "Triple Threat", "June Bride" and "Adventures of Don Juan"];

Irene Worth - 85 [actress; films included "One Night with You", "The Scapegoat", "Rich Kids" and "Lost in Yonkers"];

Sylvester L. "Pat" Weaver - 93 [Legendary TV producer; created "The Today Show", "The Tonight Show" and others; was father of Sigourney Weaver; brother of actor Doodles Weaver; Member of Television Hall of Fame];

Rosetta LeNoire - 90 [veteran black character actress; starred in many TV series including "Gimme a Break", "Amen", "Family Matters"; her films include "Anna Lucasta", "The Sunshine Boys" and "Moscow on the Hudson"];

Eileen Farrell - 82 [Opera singer; gifted Soprano who appeared on many TV talk shows as a raconteur; appeared in the film Interrupted Melody"];

Dudley Moore - 66 [Oscar winning actor; comedian; piano player; he starred in many films but the film "10" made him a star; other films included "Bedazzled", "Foul Play", "Micki and Maude" and "Arthur"];

Milton Berle - 93 [comedian; actor; starred in every aspect of show business: vaudeville, theatre, films, radio, television, music videos; was a Member of Television Hall of Fame; was first Superstar of Television; starred on Texaco Star Theatre; was a brilliant comic who never lost his comic touch; made an excellent transition to drama; films include: "Who's Minding the Mint?" and "The Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World];

Billy Wilder - 95 [legendary director; his films include "Ninotchka", "Double Indemnity", "Sunset Boulevard", "Stalag 17", "Sabrina", "Witness for the Prosecution" and "Some Like It Hot"];

Jack Kruschen - 80 [character actor; best known for his role in "The Apartment"; other films were "The Unsinkable Molly Brown", "Harlow" and "Freebie and the Bean"; was a regular on the "Webster" TV series as Papa Papadapolis];

Nobu McCarthy - 67 [Asian actress; starred in films "The Geisha Boy", "Wake Me When It's Over" and "The Karate Kid, Part II"];

John Agar - 81 [actor; played leading man and buddy roles; films included "Sands of Iwo Jima", "Revenge of the Creature", "Waco" and "The Undefeated"];

Rusty Burrell - 76 [bailiff; appeared on the popular TV show "The People's Court"];

Robert Urich - 55 [actor; starred on many TV series including "Spenser: For Hire", "Vega$", "Crossroads" and the mini-series "Lonesome Dove"];

Reginald Rose - 81 [producer; produced such TV projects as "Studio One", "The Defenders", "Studs Lonigan", "Escape from Sobibor"];

Linda Lovelace - 52 [actress; starred in the notorious film "Deep Throat"];

Ron Soble - 70 [veteran character actor; best known as Jim on the TV series "The Monroes"; appeared in the films "The Cincinnati Kid", "True Grit", "Chisum", "Papillon" and "Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo"];

Darwood Kaye - 72 [ex-child actor; starred in the "Our Gang"/"Little Rascals" series as Waldo];

Joe Cobb - 85 [ex-child actor; starred in the "Our Gang"/"Little Rascals" series as Joe; appeared mostly in the silent films];

Dee Dee Ramone - 50 [singer; member of the rock group The Ramones; appeared in the film "Rock 'n' Roll High School"];

Signe Hasso - 91 [Swedish actress; appeared as sultry blondes; films included "The Story of Dr. Wassell", "The Seventh Cross", "The House on 92nd Street" and "A Double Life"];

James Luisi - 73 [character actor; best known for his role as Lt. Doug Chapman on TV's "The Rockford Files"; appeared in the films "Moment by Moment", "Norma Rae", "Star 80" and "The Hidden"];

Dolores Gray - 78 [actress; films included "Mr. Skeffington", "It's Always Fair Weather", "Kismet" and "Designing Woman"];

John Entwhistle - 57 [musician; bassist for the rock group "The Who"];

Rosemary Clooney - 74 [Legendary singer; actress; sang "Come On-A My House"; starred in the film classic "White Christmas"];

Katy Jurado - 78 [actress; voluptuous Mexican actress of sultry roles; films included "High Noon", "San Antone", "Broken Lance", "Trapeze", "Barrabas" and "Under the Volcano"];

John Frankenheimer - 72 [director; films included "Birdman of Alcatraz", "The Manchurian Candidate", Seven Days in May", "The Train" and "Ronin"; also directed the cable TV movie "Path to War"];

Ward Kimball - 88 [animator; One of Disney's Nine Old Men];

Rod Steiger - 77 [actor; Oscar winner for "In the Heat of the Night"];

Leo McKern - 82 [actor; one of the truly great British character actors; best know to TV viewers as the barrister on "Rumpole of the Bailey"; films included: the Beatles "Help!"; "A Man for All Seasons" and the "Omen" series as Bugenhagen];

Maurice Denham - 92 [British character actor; appeared in the films "Day of the Jackal", "Our Man in Havana" and "Animal Farm"];

Kenny Gardner - 89 [singer; was featured tenor with Guy Lombardo and the Royal Canadians; best know for his rendition of "Enjoy Yourself, It's Later Than You Think"];

Josh Ryan Evans - 20 [actor; suffered from a form of dwarfism - Achondroplasia; starred as a doll 'Timmy' on the NBC soap opera "Passions"; also appeared in the A&E mini-series "P.T. Barnum" as Tom Thumb and in the film "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas"];

Jeff Corey - 88 [veteran character actor; was among those blacklisted in the 1950s; ran a prestigious acting school while he was blacklisted; appeared in such film classics as "The Cincinnati Kid", "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "Little Big Man" and many more. [See Great Character Actors Page 3];

Norman Jolley - 86 [actor/writer; starred in Westerns of the 1940s; also wrote for early TV series such as "Space Patrol"; "Wagon Train" and "Cimarron City"];

William Warfield - 82 [singer; baritone; best known for his rendition of Ol' Man River in the 1951 film "Showboat"];

Lionel Hampton - 94 [musician; vibraphonist extraordinaire; one of the all-time Jazz greats; composed "Flying Home";
 performed with Benny Goodman, Gene Krupa and all the Jazz greats];

J. Lee Thompson - 88 [film director; directed action films including: "The Guns of Navarone", "Cape Fear" with Robert Mitchum and many Charles Bronson films];

Ted Ross - 68 [actor; black actor of stage and screen was best known for two roles: the Cowardly Lion in "The Wiz" and chauffeur Bitterman in "Arthur" with Dudley Moore; also starred in the TV series: "The Cosby Show" and "A Different World"];

Michael Elphick - 55 [actor; British born; appeared in the films "The Elephant Man", "Gorky Park" and "The Krays"];

Katrin Cartlidge - 41 [actress; British born, appeared in the films "Breaking the Waves" and "From Hell"];

Kim Hunter - 79 [actress; starred in the films "Streetcar Named Desire" and "Planet of the Apes"];

Jack Kelk - 81 [radio actor; best known as Homer on the "Henry Aldrich" radio program];

Cliff Gorman - 65 [actor; primarily a stage actor he did appear in films including: "Rosebud", "Night and the City" and "Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai" as well as on TV series including: "Law and Order" and "Murder, She Wrote"];

LaWanda Page - 81 [character actress; best known for her role as Aunt Esther on TV series "Sanford & Son"];

James Gregory - 90 [character actor; best known for his role as Inspector Luger on the TV series "Barney Miller"; appeared in the classic film "The Manchurian Candidate" (See: Great Character Actors Page 2)];

Tony Martinez - 82 [Latino actor; one of first Latinos in American TV; starred as farmhand Pepino on TV series "The Real McCoys"];

Allen Parkinson - 83 [businessman; entrepreneur; built the Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park, California into one of the finest wax museums in the world; gained his fortune creating the product Sleep-Eze];

Whitney Blake – 76 [actress; starred in TV series of 1960's including her role as Dorothy Baxter on "Hazel" with Shirley Booth; also was a co-creator of the "One Day at a Time" TV series];

Bruce Paltrow - 58 [producer/director; directed episodes of "St. Elsewhere" and "The White Shadow" TV series; was husband of actress Blythe Danner and father of actress Gwyneth Paltrow];

Carmen Phillips - 65 [character actress; appeared in films & TV; credits included "Perry Mason"; "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" on TV and films "Easy Rider"; "Marnie" and "Oceans Eleven"];

Buddy Lester - 86 [actor; comedian; starred in films with the 'Rat Pack' including "Oceans Eleven" and "Sergeants Three"; also worked in Jerry Lewis films including: "The Patsy", "The Nutty Professor" and "The Big Mouth"; was a regular on the TV series: "The New Phil Silvers Show" in 1963-64];

Teresa Graves - 54 [actress; beautiful black actress/singer was one of "Laugh-In's" go-go dancers along with Goldie Hawn and Judy Carne; she starred in her own TV series "Get Christie Love!" 1974-75];

Phyllis Calvert - 87 [actress; mostly in British films of the 1940s; appeared in "2000 Women"; "The Man in Gray" and "There'll Always Be an England"];

Morag Hood - 61 [actress; primarily a stage actress, she was best known for her role in the 1972 BBC TV production of "War and Peace" with Anthony Hopkins];

Ray Conniff - 85 [band leader; composer; famous for "Somewhere My Love"; "'S Wonderful"; Grammy winner for many albums; produced the classic Christmas Album "We Wish You a Merry Christmas"];

Dennis Patrick - 84 [actor; appeared as a regular, Vaughn Leland, a banker, on TV series "Dallas"; also appeared on soap opera "Dark Shadows"; movies included "The Air Up There" and "War and Remembrance" a mini-series];

Keene Curtis - 79 [actor; star of stage, screen & TV; had role of upstairs restaurant owner on "Cheers"; was veteran character actor];

Derek Bell - 66 [musician; member of the great Irish band "The Chieftains"; he played harp, keyboard and other instruments; he also added an air of wit to the group];

Jay R. Smith - 87 [former child actor; starred in the Little Rascals/Our Gang films from 1925-29; he was the kid with a million freckles and a big smile];

Bernard Fresson - 71 [French actor; appeared in "Hiroshima Mon Amour"; "The French Connection II" and "Six Pack"; also appeared in the 1972 TV mini-series "Les Miserables"];

Adolph Green - 87 [playwright; lyricist; partnered with Betty Comden for many years to create some classic Broadway plays and musicals including: "On the Town" and "The Bells Are Ringing" and the films "Singin' in the Rain" and "Band Wagon"];

Beulah Quo - 79 [longtime Asian character actress; founded the East-West Players, a theatre for Asian American actors; starred in many films including: "Flower Drum Song", "Chinatown", "Macarthur" and "Gypsy"; much TV work also];

Richard Harris - 72 [actor; International star of stage & screen ; credits included: "Camelot", "A Man Called Horse", "Orca", "The Molly Maguires", "The Field", "Unforgiven", "To Walk with the Lions", "Gladiator", "The Count of Monte Cristo" and the Harry Potter films; was a raconteur, singer and author; everyone's favorite Irishman];

Peggy Moran - 84 [actress; appeared in horror films of the 1930s & 40s; credits include: "The Mummy's Hand", "The Mummy's Tomb", "Horror Island" and "Ninotchka" with Greta Garbo];

Jason Mizell - 37 [rap singer; known as 'Jam Master Jay', he headed the rap group Run DMC, one of the first rap groups to record a Top 40 hit "Walk This Way" which they recorded with the rock group Aerosmith];

Kam Fong - 84 [character actor; starred as Detective Chin Ho Kelly on the "Hawaii 5-0" TV series; his full name was Kam Fong Chun];

Raf Vallone - 86 [character actor; one of the great Italian actors he appeared in films including: "The Cardinal", "El Cid", "Bitter Rice", "Two Women", "Nevada Smith" and "The Godfather III"];

Larry Dobkin - 83 [character actor; appeared in many films and TV programs including: "The Ten Commandments”, “North by Northwest” and “I Love Lucy”, “Gunsmoke” and “The Waltons”];

Lonnie Donegan - 71 [British novelty singer;  best known for his hits "Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor…” and “My Old Man’s a Dustman”];

Jonathan Harris - 87 [actor; played the beloved, but cowardly Dr. Zachary Smith on TV’s “Lost in Space” series; also appeared on many TV series as guest star; films included: “Botany Bay” and voiceovers in “A Bug’s Life” and “Toy Story 2”];

Barbara Berjer - 82 [actress; starred in soap operas for four decades in "As the World Turns" and "Another World"];

Margaret 'Peg' Phillips - 84 [actress; played the shopkeeper Ruth-Ann Miller on the TV series "Northern Exposure"; started acting late in her life and worked on "Northern Exposure" from 1990-95];

Billy Mitchell - 71 [singer; member and lead singer of The Clovers, a 1950s doo wop group; known for the hit song "Love Potion No. 9"];

Billy Guy - 66 [singer; member of the group The Coasters; a baritone; hit song was ”Searchin'"];

Eddie Bracken - 87 [comedy actor; one of the last stars of the 1940s; he appeared in the films "Hail the Conquering Hero”, “The Miracle of Morgan's Creek" and more recently "Home Alone 2" and "National Lampoon's Vacation"; he also worked on Broadway and was a Tony award nominee];

James Coburn - 74 [actor; one of the last of the classy, macho men of films, he was both star and character actor; films included ”The Magnificent Seven", "The Great Escape"; "Our Man Flint"; Charade" and more recently "Affliction" for which he won an Oscar, "Monsters, Inc."; see Great Character Actors Page 4]; 

Parley Baer - 88 [character actor; best known as Mayor Stoner on "The Andy Griffith Show" and neighbor Darby on "The Ozzie & Harriet Show" TV series; also appeared in many films including: "Away All Boats", "The F.B.I. Story" and "Last of the Dogmen"; see: Great Character Actors Page 4];

Jackie Gayle - 76 [comedian; although he opted for standup comedy in nightclubs, he did appear on TV occasionally and in films such as "Tin Men", "Mr. Saturday Night" and "Bulworth" where he proved to be a talented actor];

Noel Regney - 80 [songwriter, composer; although his name was not well-known he did compose two of the great songs of the 20th century: ”Dominique" made famous by Souer Sourire, the Singing Nun and "Do You Hear What I Hear? one of the last great Christmas songs to be written];

Lin McCarthy - 84 [veteran character actor; worked in films and on TV for 40 years; films included: "The D.I."; "The Face of a Fugitive"; he had guested on most TV series];

Roone Arledge - 71 [producer; TV executive; was a force behind ABC News and Sports; created "Monday Night Football"]; 

Billie Bird - 94 [character actress; started in vaudeville as a child and in later years played a sassy little old lady in films and on TV; films included" "Dennis the Menace" (1993), "Home Alone" and "Ernest Saves Christmas"; she was a regular on the TV series "Dear John"];

Glenn Quinn - 32 [actor; born in Ireland; played Becky's not-so-bright boyfriend Mark on TV's sitcom "Roseanne"; also starred on TV's "Angel" series; appeared in the films "Dr. Giggles", "Campfire Tales" and the TV movie "Call Me Anna"];

Adele Jergens - 84 [actress; played blonde-bombshell types in films of the 1940s & 50s; appeared in the films: "Fuller Brush Man", "Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man", "Side Street" and the sci-fi film "The Day the World Ended"];

Brad Dexter - 85 [actor; second member of "The Magnificent Seven" to pass away this year; his other films included: "The Asphalt Jungle", "Run Silent, Run Deep", "None But the Brave" and "Von Ryan's Express"; also guested on many TV series including: "Wagon Train" and "Death Valley Days"];

Kenneth Tobey - 85 [veteran character actor; starred in the sci-fi film classic "The Thing"; Was best known on TV for his role on the series "Whirlybirds" as Chuck Martin; other films were: "Gunfight at the OK Corral", "Davy Crockett and the River Pirates", "Dirty Mary and Crazy Larry"; see Great Character Actors Page 8];

George Roy Hill - 81 [film director; won Oscar for "The Sting"; also directed "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "Slaughterhouse Five", "Hawaii", "The World According to Garp" and "The Great Waldo Pepper"];

Mary Brian - 96 [actress; was star of silent films; appeared in the films "Peter Pan" and "Beau Geste" silent versions; appeared in sound films including: The Virginian" and "Dragnet"];




Royce D. Applegate - 63 [actor; appeared in the films "Gettysburg", "Splash", "The Rookie", "O Brother, Where Art Thou" and "Gods and Generals"; also appeared in the TV series "Dallas", "CHiPs" and "Twin Peaks"];

Maurice Gibb - 53 [singer; recording star; member of the rock group "The Bee Gees"; was fraternal twin brother of Robin Gibb; was great harmonizer, played bass and keyboard];

Dick Simmons - 89 [actor; best known for his title role as "Sergeant Preston of the Yukon" on the 1950s TV series; he also appeared in the films: "Love Laughs at Andy Hardy"; "Lady in the Lake" and "The Three Musketeers"];

Paul Monash - 85 [scriptwriter; a very familiar name in television credits, he wrote the screenplays to the TV version of "All Quiet on the Western Front" which won an Emmy; also scripted films: "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "Slaughterhouse Five" and "Big Trouble in Little China"];

Richard Crenna - 75 [actor; best known for his roles as: Walter Denton on "Our Miss Brooks" on radio & TV, Luke McCoy on TV's "The Real McCoys" and as Col. Trautman in the "Rambo" films; he also appeared in the films: "Wait Until Dark" and "The Sand Pebbles"];

Al Hirschfeld - 99 [artist, caricaturist; did famous drawings of stars of stage, screen and television as well as other famous personalities; designed controversial postage stamps of film comedians which many felt demeaning, as portraits would have been a better tribute];

Bill Mauldin - 81 [cartoonist; parttime actor; he kept people on the 'Home Front' informed as to the regular G.I.'s  during World War II with his cartoons of Willie and Joe "Up Front"; also appeared in an occasional film including: "The Red Badge of Courage" and "Teresa" (1951)];

Nedra Volz – 94 [actress; starred in the TV series: Diff'rent Strokes" as Adelaide Brubaker, "The Dukes of Hazzard" as Emma Tizdale; also in films including: "10" with Dudley Moore and "Lust in the Dust"; see Great Character Actors Page 5];

Fritzi Burr – 78 [actress; appeared in "Chinatown" as secretary, also on many TV series including: "Seinfeld", "The Rockford Files" and "Friends"];

Nell Carter – 53 [popular singer/actress; starred in TV series "Gimme a Break"; began on Broadway stage in many productions];

Cliff Norton - 84 [actor; comedian; appeared in films including: "Funny Lady", "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World"; guested on many TV series including: "Dr. Kildare", "Ben Casey" and "The Beverly Hillbillies"];

Robert Rockwell - 82 [actor; best known as Mr. Boynton on TV's "Our Miss Brooks" and the title role of TV's "The Man from Blackhawk"; appeared in films including: "War of the Worlds"];

Anthony Eisley - 78 [actor; starred on TV's "Hawaiian Eye" as Det. Tracey Steele opposite Robert Conrad; also was a stock television character actor appearing as a guest on many TV series including: "The Outer Limits" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"; he also appeared often in theatre productions];

Stacy Keach Sr. - 88 [character actor; father of actors Stacy Keach and James Keach; he appeared on many TV series and in commercials; also appeared in films including: "Pretty Woman" and "Cobb"];

Joe Connelly - 85 [producer and writer; who with partner Bob Mosher created such TV series as: "Leave It to Beaver", "The Munsters", "Blondie" and "90 Bristol Court"];

Vera Hruba Ralston - 79 [actress; Czech-born ice skating star who switched to acting; she appeared in the films: "The Fighting Kentuckian", "Storm Over Lisbon", "Dakota" and "Fair Wind to Java"];

Fred Rogers - 74 [TV personality; starred as "Mister Rogers" kids show host on PBS];

Alberto Sordi - 82 [Italian actor; known for comic roles];

Walter Scharf - 92 [film composer; composed the scores to many films including: "Funny Girl", "White Christmas", "Ben", "Mission: Impossible" and the TV mini-series "Blind Ambition"];

Anne Burr McDermott - 84 [actress; starred on stage and in early TV soap operas including: "As the World Turns" and "City Hospital"];

Horst Buchholz - 69 [actor; third member of the cast of "The Magnificent Seven" to die within a year; his other films included: "One, Two, Three" and most recently "Life Is Beautiful"]

Hank Ballard - in his 70s 
[songwriter; composed "The Twist" for Chubby Checker and "Finger Poppin' Time"]

Johnny Carpenter - 88 [actor; starred in early westerns including: "Navajo Trail", "The El Paso Kid", "Badman's Gold" and "National Velvet" in which he acted as stuntman; in retirement he taught disabled children how to ride horses];
 
Steve Carlin - 84 [producer; he produced "The $64,000 Question" and one of TV's first copycat productions "Rootie Kazootie" which was a knockoff of Howdy Doody but had better production values and was a success in its own right];

George Miller - 61 [standup comedian; appeared often on his friend David Letterman's "Latenight" and "Late Show"; worked the comedy club circuit across the USA];

Lynne Thigpen - 54 [actress; starred on TV's "The District"; also appeared on TV series "Where In The World Is Carmen San Diego?", "Thirtysomething" and "L.A. Law"; films in which she appeared were: "Godspell", "Tootsie", "The Insider", "Random Hearts" and "Shaft"];

Bernard Schwab - 94 [co-owner of the famed Schwab's Pharmacy in Beverly Hills; with his three brothers founded one of the most famous drugstores/delis in the world; a hangout for producers and directors as well as stars, some were discovered while "hanging out" at Schwab's];

Michael Jeter - 50 [character actor; best known for his role on TV's "Evening Shade" as an assistant coach and as Mr. Noodle on TV's "Sesame Street"; appeared in the films: "The Green Mile"; "Sister Act 2"; "Mouse Hunt" and "The Polar Express"];

Edwin Starr – 61 [singer; had 1970s hit with "War"; the song asked, "War, what is it good for?" and answered, "Absolutely NOTHING!"];

Rusty Draper – 80 [country western singer; actor; hit songs were "Shifting, Whispering Sands" and "Freight Train"; he acted in the TV series "Laramie" and "Rawhide"];

Leslie Cheung - 46 [actor; pop singer; Hong Kong born actor starred in the film "Farewell My Concubine" and "A Better Tomorrow"];

Anthony Caruso - 86 [character actor; extremely versatile character actor adept at playing villains or good guys; appeared in many films including: "Johnny Apollo", "Cattle Queen of Montana" and "The Glass Key"; guest starred on virtually every TV series from the 1950s thru the present; see: Great Character Actors Page 2];

Anne Gwynne - 84 [actress; starred in films and serials of the 1930s & 40s; films/serials included: "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe", "The Black Cat", "House of Frankenstein", "Black Friday" and "Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome"];

Babatunde Olatunji - 75 [African drummer extraordinaire; Nigerian shared an Emmy with drummer Mickey Hart of the Who; recorded albums including "Love Drum Talk"];

Eva Narcissus Boyd - 59 [singer; known professionally as "Little Eva"; her biggest hit was "Locomotion" in 1962; also sang "Keep Your Hands Off My Baby" and "Swingin' on a Star"];

Vera Zorina - 86 [ballerina; actress; primarily a dancer she appeared in quite a few films also; she was married to George Ballanchine who was her choreographer; films included: "Louisiana Purchase" with Bob Hope, "On Your Toes", "Star Spangled Rhythm" and "Follow the Boys"];

Kathie Browne McGavin - 63 [actress; worked in TV and films in 1950s & 1960s; was wife of actor Darren McGavin; appeared in the films: "The Brass Bottle" and "Brainstorm"; guested on such TV series as "Gunsmoke", "Mannix", "Star Trek" and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"; was a regular on the series "Hondo"];

Graham Jarvis - 72 [character actor; very familiar, bespectacled, bald actor starred mostly on TV in such series as: "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" as Charlie Haggers, the mini-series "Blind Ambition" as John Ehrlichman, "Fame" as Bob Dyrenforth; appeared in the films: "The Out of Towners", "What's Up Doc", "Mr. Mom" and "Son in Law"];

Nina Simone - 70 [singer; sang mostly jazz, but also gospel, blues and soul; was involved in civil rights movement];

Karen Morley - 93 [actress; appeared in the films "Scarface" (1930s version), "Mata Hari" and "Dinner at Eight"; was blacklisted during the McCarthy era of the 1950s];

Sydney Lassick - 80 [character actor; best known for his role as Mr. Cheswick in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"; also appeared in the films: "Lady in White", "Shakes the Clown", "Johns" and "Man on the Moon"; appeared on many TV series including: "Amazing Stories", "Night Court" and "The X-Files"];

Irving Foy - 94 [vaudevillian; last surviving member, and youngest of the vaudeville act "The Seven Little Foys" celebrated in the Bob Hope film "The Seven Little Foys"; famed entertaining family was a highlight of the vaudeville circuit];

Andrea King - 84 [actress; popular in the 1940s & 50s; most often cast as the 'bad girl' in films; appeared in such films as: "Hotel Berlin", "God Is My Co-Pilot", "The Beast With Five Fingers" and "My Wild Irish Rose"];

Barney Oldfield - 93 [press agent; worked as an aide to Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower during WWII; later was agent for Errol Flynn, Elizabeth Taylor, Ronald Reagan and others];

Addie McPhail - 97 [silent screen actress; was last wife of Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle; starred in the films: "Up a Tree", "Three Sisters" and "Midnight Daddies"];

Suzy Parker - 69 [model; actress; was a supermodel of the 1950s; appeared in the films: "Kiss Them for Me", "Best of Everything" and "Circle of Deception"; was married to actor Bradford Dillman];

Robert Stack - 84 [actor; star of screen and TV; best known as Eliot Ness on "The Untouchables", "Unsolved Mysteries", "The Name of the Game" and "Most Wanted" on TV; starred in many films including "Good Morning, Miss Dove", "Is Paris Burning" and "Airplane"];

June Carter Cash - 73 [singer; songwriter; musician; country music legend; she was a member of the legendary 'Carter Family' along with her mother and sisters; married to country music/folk great Johnny Cash; teamed with him on the songs: "Jackson", "It Ain't Me Babe"];

Dame Wendy Hiller - 90 [actress; star of stage and screen; appeared in the films: "Murder on the Orient Express", "Elephant Man", "A Man for All Seasons" and "David Copperfield"; won an Oscar for her role in "Separate Tables"; appeared often on Broadway stage];

Lionel Wilson - 79 [actor; worked on Broadway; was best known for his voice work in animated cartoons; did Voice of "Tom Terrific" on "Captain Kangaroo" TV series as well as other characters Crabby Appleton, Mighty Manfred the Wonderdog; also "Courage the Cowardly Dog" on Cartoon Network];

Lucy Saroyan - 57 [actress; daughter of author William Saroyan; stepdaughter of Walter Matthau; appeared in the films: "Hopscotch"; "Greased Lightning" and "Blue Collar"];

Rachel Kempson - 92 [actress; wife of Sir Michael Redgrave and matriarch of the Redgrave clan including: Vanessa, Corin and Lynn Redgrave; her granddaughter Natasha Richardson; known as 'Lady Redgrave'; starred mostly in theatre; films included: "Tom Jones", "Out of Africa" and "Georgy Girl" with her daughter Lynn;]

Al Hartley - 81 [illustrator; illustrated the "Archie" comic books for over 30 years; one of the better comic book artists; also worked with Marvel prior to 1963 drawing Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk];

Howard 'Sandman Sims' - 86 [legendary Tap dancer; appeared at Harlem's famed Apollo Theatre];

Martha Scott - 90 [actress; one of the great character actors adept at playing mothers of all types in such films as "The Ten Commandments", "Ben Hur", "The Desperate Hours" and "The Howards of Virginia" as well as on TV series including "The Bob Newhart Show" and "Dallas"; see: Great Character Actors Page 5];

Richard Cusack - 77 [actor; writer; patriarch of the Cusack family of actors including John and Joan Cusack; appeared in the films "My Bodyguard", "The Fugitive" and "Return to Me"; also wrote "Jack Bull" an HBO film];

Freddie Blassie - 85 [pro wrestler; cult figure; wrestled in the Golden Years of wrestling along with Gorgeous George and others; appeared in Andy Kaufman's cult film "My Breakfast With Blassie" a spoof of "My Dinner With Andre"; coined the phrase "pencil-necked geek"];

Trevor Goddard - 37 [actor; Australian born, he was a regular on the TV series "JAG" as Lt. Cmdr Michael 'Mic' Brumby; also appeared in films including: "Men of War", "Mortal Kombat" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl"];

David Brinkley - 82 [veteran newsman; worked at NBC News and best remembered as half of the "Huntley-Brinkley Report" with newsman Chet Huntley];

Gregory Peck - 87 [actor; screen legend; starred in many classic films including: "The Yearling", "Spellbound", "Keys of the Kingdom", "Duel in the Sun", "Roman Holiday", "Moby Dick", "To Kill a Mockingbird", "The Omen", "MacArthur", "The Boys from Brazil" and "The Scarlet and the Black"];

Hume Cronyn - 91 [actor; star of stage, screen and television; husband of the late Jessica Tandy; appeared in films including: "The Green Years", "Shadow of a Doubt", "Cocoon", "The Seventh Cross" for which he received an Oscar nomination, "batteries not included" and "People Will Talk"; primarily a stage actor he worked everywhere from Broadway to regional theatre including Minneapolis' Guthrie Theatre; on TV appeared in TV movies such as "Dancing with the White Dog" and series such as "Hawaii 5-0"];

William Marshall - 78 [actor; African-American who portrayed everything from title role in "Blacula" to Othello on stage and Frederick Douglass; also appeared in the films: "Demetrius and the Gladiators" and "Something of Value"; appeared on TV series including: "Star Trek" and "The Jeffersons"];

Katharine Hepburn - 96 [stage screen and TV legend; acknowledged as the greatest actress of the 20th century; starred in the classic films: "Bringing Up Baby"; "The Philadelphia Story"; "Alice Adams"; "On Golden Pond"; "Adam's Rib"; "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner"; The African Queen"; "Woman of the Year"; "The Lion in Winter" and many more];

Buddy Hackett - 78 [comedian; actor; raconteur; starred in the movies: "Music Man"; "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World; frequent guest on TV Talk Shows; standup comic; starred on his own sitcom on TV "Stanley"];

Barry White - 58 [R&B/Pop singer; known for his ultra smooth bass voice; had a style all his own; some of his hits were "Love Serenade", "You're the First, the Last, My Everything"];

N!xau – 59 [African Kalahari Bushman/actor; starred in the very popular films "The Gods Must Be Crazy" and "The Gods Must Be Crazy 2"; His name is not a typo, the exclamation point takes the place of a clicking sound which is part of his language; he was very endearing in the film and acquired cult-hero status to a degree; he continued his primitive bushman way of life after the films were released];

Buddy Ebsen - 95 [actor; dancer; best known for his roles as Jed Clampett on TV's "The Beverly Hillbillies" and Detective Barnaby Jones on "Barnaby Jones"; was featured in many films including: "Davy Crockett", "Captain January" with Shirley Temple, "Breakfast at Tiffanys", "Attack" and "Mail Order Bride"];

Carol Matthau - 78 [actress; author; widow of actor Walter Matthau; wrote book of her memoirs with her husbands William Saroyan and Walter Matthau; began as actress and studied drama with Matthau; mother of actor Charlie Matthau and good friend of the late Truman Capote];

John Schlesinger - 77 [film director; best known for his Oscar winning Best Picture "Midnight Cowboy"; also directed "Billy Liar", "Sunday, Bloody Sunday" and "Darling"];

Bob Hope - 100 [actor; comedian; vaudevillian; radio personality; TV star; humanitarian; American Icon; star of numerous hilarious comedies, many with his partner Bing Crosby; films included: "Road to Morocco, "Paleface", "The Seven Little Foys", "Casanova's Big Night"; please see my Tribute to Bob Hope on the Up to the Minute Page];

Sam Phillips - 80 [record producer; entrepreneur; founded Sun Records; was responsible for discovering such greats as: Johnny Cash; Roy Orbison; Carl Perkins; Jerry Lee Lewis & Elvis Presley];

Gregory Hines - 57 [dancer, actor, singer; was part of the dancing team of Hines, Hines & Dad; switched to acting and appeared in such films as: "History of the World - Part 1", "Running Scared", "The Cotton Club", "White Nights" and "Waiting to Exhale"; also starred on stage in Theatre and won a Tony for his role in "Jelly's Last Jam"];

Roy Neal - 82 [NBC news correspondent; mainly covered space flights and aeronautics for NBC News];

Jinx Falkenburg - 82 [model; actress; appeared often on TV & radio as an actress; her career mirrored Betty Furness' as she acted as spokesmodel for various products; appeared in the films "Sing for Your Supper" and "Cover Girl"];

Charles Bronson - 81 [actor; leading man in many classic films including: "The Magnificent Seven", "The Great Escape", "The Dirty Dozen", "Mr. Majestyk" and the "Death Wish" series; was married to actress Jill Ireland until her death];

Rand Brooks - 84 [character actor; best known for his role as Charles Hamilton the ill-fated first husband of Scarlett O'Hara in the film classic "Gone With the Wind"; also as Hopalong Cassidy's sidekick 'Lucky' and as Cpl. Boone on TV's "The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin"; memorable roles but not the type he desired to play; see: Great Character Actors Page 9];

Gisele MacKenzie - 76 [singer; actress; best known as a regular on TV's "Your Hit Parade"; also acted in movies and on TV];

Warren Zevon - 56 [singer; songwriter; best known for his hit song "Werewolves of London" he wrote for the likes of Bob Dylan, Linda Ronstadt, Bruce Springsteen and others; worked with the Everly Brothers early in his career];

Leni Riefenstahl - 101 [legendary German film maker; survived Hitler's Nazi Germany by producing propaganda films; was a revered, and sometimes despised, documentary film director; best known works were: "Triumph of Will" and "Olympia"];

Warren Kremer - 82 [cartoonist; along with Alfred Harvey of Harveytoons created the character Richie Rich; he also streamlined the original drawings of Casper the Friendly Ghost and Wendy the Witch];

Mike Stokey - 84 [producer; game show host; created and hosted the 1950s TV game show "Pantomime Quiz" which starred Hollywood actors and actresses playing a form of Charades; later the show was renamed "Stump the Stars" in the 1960s];

Larry Hovis - 67 [actor; starred in the TV series "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C." and "Hogan's Heroes" as Carter; he also appeared as a regular on "Laugh-In"];

Johnny Cash - 71 [singer; poet; actor; legend; possibly the greatest country singer ever he was known as 'The Man in Black'; married into the great Carter family his wife June Carter Cash died in May; some of his hits included: "Ring of Fire", "I Walk the Line", "Big River", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Mister Garfield", "Five Feet High and Rising"; a member of the Country Hall of Fame; member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; received Kennedy Center Honors and many other awards; acted in TV movies and series as well as Hollywood films including: "Five Minutes to Live" and "A Gunfight"];

John Ritter - 54 [actor; starred in TV series "The Waltons", "Three's Company" and currently "8 Simple Rules"; appeared in films including "Sling Blade; was the son of Western star Tex Ritter];

Jules Engel - 94 [Disney animator; worked on the dance scenes in "Fantasia"; also animated the series "Alvin and the Chipmunks"];
Garner Ted Armstrong - 73 [TV Evangelist; was the voice of television's "The World Tomorrow"];

Sheb Wooley - 82 [singer; character actor; real life cowboy; his acting roles included: scout Pete Nolan on the TV series "Rawhide", the films "Giant", "Distant Drums", "The Outlaw Josey Wales" and "Hoosiers"; he is best known as a singer for his recording of "The Purple People-Eater"];

Gordon Jump - 71 [character actor; best known as Mr. (Arthur) Carlson on the TV series "WKRP in Cincinnati" and currently as the Maytag Repairman in commercial ads; also appeared in movies including: "Ruby and Oswald" and "Conquest of the Planet of Apes"];

Louise Platt - 88 [actress; had short career; was last survivor of the 1939 John Ford classic film "Stagecoach" appearing as Lucy Mallory; also appeared on the TV series: "Naked City" and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"; was a regular on the soap opera "The Guiding Light" 1958-59];

Gordon Mitchell - 80 [bodybuilder turned actor; starred in Italian sword & sandal films as well as the films "Prisoner of War", "Man With the Golden Arm" and "The Ten Commandments"];

George Plimpton - 76 [author; actor;
raconteur; was urbane and witty author of books including: "Out of My League", "Paper Lion" and "The Bogey Man"; appeared in the films "Good Will Hunting", "Rio Lobo", "Reds", "L.A. Story" and "Paper Lion"; appeared on many talk shows and documentaries];

Robert Palmer - 54 [singer; sang pop/rock hits including: "Addicted to Love" (a Grammy winning song); "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On", "Simply Irresistible" and "Some Like it Hot"; became quite popular after appearing in videos of the above songs; known for always being nattily dressed];

Donald O'Connor - 78 [actor; singer; dancer; he was a veteran hoofer and appeared in many musicals including the classic "Singin' in the Rain"; started out as a child star and appeared in "Beau Geste" as the young Beau Geste; also starred in the "Francis the Talking Mule" movie series; other films include "The Buster Keaton Story" and "There's No Business Like Show Business"];

Elia Kazan - 94 [legendary film director; was controversial figure during HUAC hearings; directed such film classics as "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn", "On Waterfront" and "East of Eden"; also directed many plays on Broadway; recently received an Honorary Oscar for his career work];

Lyle Bettger - 88 [character actor; adept at villains, especially Nazis; appeared in westerns also; films included: "The Greatest Show on Earth", "Nevada Smith", Gunfight at the OK Corral"; see: Great Character Actors Page 9];

William Steig - 95 [cartoonist; author; created the character "Shrek!"];

Denis Quilley - 75 [British actor of stage and screen; appeared in the films: "Life at the Top", "Anne of the Thousand Days" and "King David"];

Julie Parrish - 62 [actress; worked in films and TV of the 1960s; appeared in the sitcom "Good Morning World"; also starred with Jerry Lewis in "The Nutty Professor"];

Florence Stanley - 79 [character actress; best known for her role as Bernice, wife of Det. Phil Fish, on the "Barney Miller" TV series; also starred on the TV series "My Two Dads" as Judge Wilbur; appeared in the films: "Outrageous Fortune", "Up the Down Staircase" and "Atlantis: The Lost Empire"];

Janice Rule - 72 [actress; films included: "Bell, Book and Candle", "3 Women" and "The Swimmer" with Burt Lancaster; also appeared on the Broadway stage; she retired from films in the 1960s and became a professional psychoanalyst];

Jack Elam - 86 [veteran character actor; one of the most well known and popular of all character actors he was adept at playing villains, mostly in westerns; he appeared in scads of movies and TV shows; he is probably best known for his role as "Toothy Thompson" on "Bronco" and "Sugarfoot" western series; movies included "Dirty Dingus Magee" and "Rio Lobo"];

Elliott Smith - 34 [songwriter; was nominated for an Oscar for his song "Miss Misery" from "Good Will Hunting"; he performed the song on the Oscar telecast];

Fred 'Rerun' Berry - 52 [actor; starred as 'Rerun' on the TV sitcom "What's Happening?" from 1976-79 and "What's Happening Now?" a revival of the series in 1987; He also appeared on "Star Dating" a series on E! cable network and "Doggie Fizzle Televizzle" on MTV with Snoop Dogg];

Earl Peyroux - 78 [chef; hosted PBS series "Gourmet Cooking" for over 600 episodes];

Rod Roddy - 66 [TV announcer; worked for many years on the game show "The Price is Right"; jovial and rotund his "Come on down!" and flamboyant, sequined jackets were prominent features on the popular show];

Bobby Hatfield - 63 [singer; half of the legendary singing duo 'The Righteous Brothers' recent [2003] Inductees of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; partnered with bass Bill Medley they recorded such hits as "Unchained Melody" and "You've Lost That Loving Feeling"];

Hal England - 71 [veteran actor; guest starred on many TV series from "Bewitched" to "Quantum Leap"; was active in the Actors Studio and "Shakespeare in the Park"; a veteran of stage, screen and television];

Art Carney - 85 [actor; best known for his TV role as Ed Norton on "The Honeymooners"; also won Oscar for his dramatic role in 1974's film "Harry and Tonto"; was adept at both comedy and drama; other films included: "The Greatest Show on Earth", "Gambit" and "The Late Show'];

Dorothy Fay Ritter - 88 [actress; wife of Tex Ritter; mother of John Ritter; starred in western films of the 1930s & 1940s as Dorothy Fay; among her films were: "Law of the Texan", "White Eagle", the 1940 action serial "The Green Archer", "The Philadelphia Story" and "Lady Be Good"];

Penny Singleton - 95 [actress; best know for her role as Blondie in the "Blondie" movie series opposite Arthur Lake as Dagwood Bumstead; from 1938 to 1950 she portrayed Blondie in both the film series and on the 1950s TV series; she started out as a chorus girl on Broadway; her latest claim to fame was as the voice of Jane Jetson in the animated TV series "The Jetsons"; other films in which she appeared were: "After the Thin Man", "Boy Meets Girl" and "The Best Man" in 1964];

Dorothy Loudon - 70 [actress; mostly on Broadway Stage where she won a Tony in 1977 for her role in "Annie"; also replaced Carol Burnett on "The Gary Moore Show"; appeared on quiz shows as a panelist and in other film and TV productions];

Kay E. Kuter - 78 [character actor; played Newt Kiley on both "Petticoat Junction' and "Green Acres" TV series];

Michael Kamen- 55 [film composer; composed the scores to such films as "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves", "Mr. Holland's Opus", the "Die Hard" and "Lethal Weapon" series and the TV mini-series "Band of Brothers"];

Arthur Conley - 57 [singer; his style was soul and rhythm and blues; his biggest hit was "Sweet Soul Music"; he moved to Amsterdam, Holland and was a television star there up until his death];

Don Gibson - 75 [singer-composer of country-western music; his hits included: "I Can't Stop Loving You", "Sweet Dreams" and "Oh, Lonesome Me"];

Gene Anthony Ray - 41 [dancer-actor; was a star of the film and TV series "Fame"; also starred in the film "Out of Sync"; he was a gifted dancer];

Robert Brown - 82 [British actor; best known as 'M' in 4 James Bond films; he replaced Bernard Lee as "M' from "Octopussy" on; he also appeared in the 1950s TV series "Ivanhoe" opposite Roger Moore as his sidekick; other films in which he appeared were: "Helen of Troy", "300 Spartans" and "Ben Hur"];

David Holt - 76 [ex-child actor; appeared in such films as "The Courage of Lassie", "Beau Geste" and "Tom Sawyer" (1936) as his bratty brother Sidney, and "Pride of the Yankees" as the child for which Lou Gehrig hit a homerun];

Jonathan Brandis - 27 [actor; was a teen idol of the mid 1990s; starred in the TV series "SeaQuest DSV" as Lucas Wolenczak; also appeared in the films: "Sidekicks" and "Ladybugs" with Rodney Dangerfield in which he played a soccer star on a girls' team in drag];

Hal Walker - 70 [newsman; a pioneering black journalist who worked on CBS network news];

Albert Nozaki - 91 [art director/designer; his masterwork was on the film classic "War of the Worlds"; also worked on the films "The Ten Commandments" and "Houdini"];

David Hemmings - 62 [actor; one of a group of hot young British actors of the 1960s which included: Michael Crawford, Michael Caine, Albert Finney and Terence Stamp among others, he debuted in the film "Blowup"; among his other films were: "Camelot", "Barbarella", "Islands in the Stream", "Gangs of New York" and "Gladiator"];

Ellen Drew - 89 [actress; worked her way up from contract player to leading lady; starred opposite Dick Powell, Bing Crosby, Rudy Vallee and others in films of the 1940s & 50s; films included: "Christmas in July", "Sing You Sinners", "Buck Benny Rides Again" and "Outlaw's Son"];

Sean McClory - 79 [Irish-born character actor; started his career at Dublin's famed Abbey Theatre; appeared in many TV series including: "Gunsmoke", "Bonanza", "Have Gun - Will Travel", "Mannix" and "Fantasy Island"; appeared in the films: "The Quiet Man", "Island in the Sky", "The Long Gray Line", "Guns of Fort Petticoat" and "The Dead"];

Jeanne Crain - 78 [actress; a star of the 1940s she appeared in many classic films including: "A Letter to Three Wives", "Margie", "An Apartment for Peggy", "Cheaper by the Dozen", and "People Will Talk" with Cary Grant; she earned an Oscar nomination for her role in Elia Kazan's film "Pinky"];

Madlyn Rhue - 68 [classy character actress; mostly on TV as guest star in such series as: "The Untouchables", "The Fugitive", "Route 66" and "Perry Mason"; she appeared in a few films including: "Operation Petticoat", "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" and "The Ladies Man" with Jerry Lewis];

Hope Lange - 70 [lead actress; a natural blonde and natural beauty, she appeared in films of the 1950s and 60s; was nominated for an Oscar for her role in the film "Peyton Place"; other films were: "Bus Stop", "The Young Lions", "Death Wish" and "Blue Velvet"; she also starred in the TV series: "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir"];

Les Tremayne - 90 [character actor; most often played military officer types; starred in many classic films including: "War of the Worlds', "North by Northwest"; see Great Character Actors: Page 7];

Dave Dudley - 75 [Country singer and DJ; sang mostly songs of truckers during the CB/Smokey Bear craze of the mid 1970s; best known for his song "Convoy"];

Alan Bates - 69 [actor; yet another of the group of hot young British actors of the 1960s which included: the late David Hemmings; Michael Caine; Terence Stamp; Richard Harris; Albert Finney and others; his films included: "Zorba the Greek", "Look Back in Anger", "Georgy Girl", "The Go-Between", "The Sum of All Fears", "The Mothman Prophecies", "An Unmarried Woman", "Gosford Park" and "The Fixer" for which he received an Oscar nomination; he was working on the "Spartacus" mini-series at the time of his death];

Dick St. John - 63 [singer; half of the 1960s duo Dick and Dee Dee (Mary Sperling); best known for their hit song "The Mountain's High"; popular singers of the 1960s their other hits were: "Young and in Love", "Thou Shalt Not Steal"]

Earl Hindman - 61 [actor; best known for his role as Wilson on the TV series "Home Improvement", the always wily, partially hidden neighbor of Tim Allen; his other work included a role on the Soap "Ryan's Hope" and the films "Ballad of the Sad Cafe", "The Parallax View"  and "Final"];




Ingrid Thulin - 77 [legendary Swedish actress and star of Ingmar Bergman films; film credits include: "Wild Strawberries", "Cries and Whispers" and "Magician" Visconti's "The Damned" and Minnelli's "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse"];

Lynn Carpenter - 76 [character actress; starred in the films: "A League of Their Own" as the senior Geena Davis character and "Queen of Outer Space"];

Bob Monkhouse - 75 [British actor; comedian; game show host; appeared in the films: "Carry on Sergeant", "Dentist in the Chair" and "The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom"];

Paula Raymond - 79 [actress; appeared in films of the 1950s including: "The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms", "Adam's Rib", "Crisis" and "The Duchess of Idaho"; she guest starred on such TV series as "Perry Mason", "Have Gun, Will Travel" and "77 Sunset Strip"];

Johnny Sands - 76 [actor; started in Hollywood as an usher in movie theaters and worked up to actor; his films included: "The Stranger", "The Affairs of Geraldine", "Till the End of Time" and "Aladdin and his Lamp" but is best remembered as Shirley Temple's boyfriend in "The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer"];

Uta Hagen – 84 [actress; teacher of drama/acting; author; although she appeared mostly on the Broadway stage and taught acting students, she did appear in movies and TV in very memorable roles; her films included: "The Boys from Brazil", "Victory", "The Other" and "Reversal of Fortune"; on TV she appeared on "Kraft Television Theatre", "The Long, Hot Summer" (series), "Lou Grant", the 'new' "Twilight Zone", "Oz" and the animated "King of the Hill"];

Ron O'Neal - 66 [actor; played title role in the famed Blaxploitation film "Superfly"; also appeared in the films: "The Master Gunfighter", "When a Stranger Calls" and "A Force of One", also appeared as a regular on the TV series "The Equalizer"];

Philip Crosby - 69 [actor; singer; last of Bing Crosby's four sons by his first marriage to Dixie Lee; sang in an act with his brothers called "The Crosby Brothers" for a short time; appeared in films including: "Robin and the Seven Hoods", "None But the Brave"];

Terry Lester - 53 [actor; best known for his role as Jack Abbott on the TV Soap "The Young and the Restless" prior to 1989 when Peter Bergman took over the role];

Noble Willingham - 72 [veteran character actor; best known for his role as the bartender C.D. Parker on TV's "Walker, Texas Ranger"; he guested on many TV series and appeared in such films as: "The Last Picture Show", "Paper Moon", "Chinatown", "City Slickers" and "Ace Ventura, Pet Detective"];

Ann Miller – 80 [dancer; actress; one of the greatest female dancers ever, she worked well into the 1990s; her cheery disposition added to her charms and she always remained popular; best known for her work in "Sugar Babies" on Broadway and a Campbell Soup commercial in the 1980s; her films included: "Easter Parade", "Kiss Me Kate", "On the Town" and "Hit the Deck"; she appeared often on TV variety shows including: "Hollywood Palace" and "The Ed Sullivan Show"];

Dean Miller - 75 [actor; starred on the 1950s TV series "December Bride" as Matt Henshaw, the husband of the title character; he also appeared in the films: "Skirts Ahoy!" and "The Girl Who Had Everything"];

Billy May - 87 [band leader; composer; arranger; he worked with Frank Sinatra and Peggy Lee];

Bob Keeshan - 76 [actor-performer; best known as two of television's most endearing children's characters: Captain Kangaroo and Clarabell the Clown of the "Howdy Doody Show"; Captain Kangaroo ran from 1955-1984; he also wrote books, recorded children's records and was a member of Television's Hall of Fame];

Bernard Punsly - 80 [actor; last surviving member of the Dead End Kids who made a series of entertaining films after their successful debut in the films: "Dead End" and "Angels with Dirty Faces" with Humphrey Bogart and James Cagney; the group was made up of Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, Billy Halop, Bobby Jordan, Punsly and later Gabriel Dell and Ernie Morrisson; the group later evolved into "The Bowery Boys"; after he retired from acting he became a physician which he practiced for over 50 years ];

Jack Paar - 85 [comedian; raconteur; acerbic, hyperactive and unpredictable talk show host; hosted the Tonight Show during the 1960s; most controversial of Tonight Show hosts, he introduced many fascinating personalities to his audience including: Genevieve, Cliff 'Charley Weaver' Arquette, Dody Goodman, Alexander King, Oscar Levant and his favorite, Jonathon Winters];

Don 'Hard-Boiled' Haggerty - 78 [wrestler turned actor; appeared in the films: "Paint Your Wagon" his film debut, "A Dream of Kings", "Who Is Killing the Stuntmen?" and "Million Dollar Mystery"; on TV he appeared on: "The Incredible Hulk", "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" and "Mr. Belvedere"];

Jan Miner - 86 [actress; her name isn't familiar but her face was; she was best known as 'Madge' in the Palmolive dishwashing liquid commercials on TV; she worked on the Broadway stage mostly, appearing in many productions; her films were few and included: "Endless Love", "The Swimmer", Mermaids" and "Lenny"; she guest starred on TV occasionally and worked in radio early in her career];

Joe Viterelli - 66 [actor; played mostly gangsters in films of the 1980s, 90s and 2000s; films included: "Analyze This", "Analyze That", "Bullets Over Broadway" and "Shallow Hal"];

Don Cornell - 86 [big band singer; sang with Red Nichols and Sammy Kaye's bands; hit songs were: "It Isn't Fair" and I'll Walk Alone"];

Carl Anderson - 58 [Black actor/singer; extremely talented and underrated performer best known for his portrayal of Judas in the film "Jesus Christ Superstar; also appeared in the film "The Color Purple" and guest starred on TV series including "Hill Street Blues"; recorded albums including one Grammy nominated album with Nancy Wilson];

John Randolph - 88 [character actor; excellent actor best known for his role in the film "Seconds" and as Emily Hartley's father on "The Bob Newhart Show"; he was a prolific actor starring on stage, films and TV as well as radio in his early years; films include: "Frances", "Earthquake", "Serpico" and "Prizzi's Honor"; also played Roseanne Barr's father on "Roseanne" and appeared on numerous TV shows; see: Great Character Actors Page 5];

Beatrice Winde - 79 [African-American actress; appeared on TV in "The Sopranos", "Law and Order" and "NYPD Blue"; films included: "The Super", "Dangerous Minds" and "Jefferson in Paris"];

Alvino Rey - 95 [big band leader, musician; had a hit with "Deep in the Heart of Texas"; was a virtuoso guitar player; the King Sisters were featured with his band];

Cecily Adams - 39 [actress; daughter of actor Don Adams (Get Smart); appeared in many TV series including: "#rd Rock from the Sun", "That 70s Show" and "Eerie, Indiana"; films included: "American Heart", "Wave Babes" and "Home Room"];

Spalding Gray - 62 [actor; author; performance artist; best known for his monologues: "Swimming to Cambodia" and "It's a Slippery Slope"; films in which he appeared are: "The Killing Fields", "Beaches", "True Stories" and "The Paper"];

Frances Dee - 96 [actress; a star of the 1930s & 40s; she was married to actor Joel McCrea; her films included: "Little Women" with Katharine Hepburn, "Of Human Bondage" and "Wells Fargo"];

Paul Winfield - 62 [African-American actor; he was one of America's great actors; best known for his title role in "King" the mini-series on Martin Luther King Jr.; films included: "Sounder", which made him a star, "Conrack", "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan", "Terminator", "Presumed Innocent", "Cliffhanger" and "Mars Attacks" ];

Robert Pastorelli - 49 [actor; was best known as the housepainter 'Eldon' on "Murphy Brown" TV series and as 'Timmons' the mule driver in "Dances with Wolves"; his other films included: "Beverly Hills Cop II", "Sister Act 2", "Eraser" and "Michael"; he had just completed the sequel to "Get Shorty" entitled "Be Cool"];

Genevieve - 83 [French singer; raconteur; was a frequent guest on the "Jack Paar Show" telling stories and fracturing the English language];

Mercedes McCambridge - 87 [actress; Best Supporting Actress Oscar winner for "All the King's Men"; starred in films including: "Johnny Guitar"; "Giant"; "A Farewell to Arms" and "Cimarron"; also dubbed her raspy voice for Linda Blair's 'Regan' in "The Exorcist"];

J.J. Jackson - 62 [disk jockey; pioneering v.j. (video jockey) on MTV; he was one of the 1st vjs on MTV; a tall, heavy-set black man with a teddy bear personality, he was one of the video network's most popular vjs];

Jan Sterling - 82 [blonde actress of the 1950s; won a Golden Globe for her performance in "The High and the Mighty"; also appeared in "1984" with Edmond O'Brien, "The Big Carnival", "Pony Express" and "First Monday in October"];

Jan Berry - 62 [singer-composer; half of the Rock duo Jan & Dean with Dean Torrence; helped introduce the California 'surfer' sound; hits included: "Little Old Lady from Pasadena", "Dead Man's Curve" and "Surf City"];

Peter Ustinov - 82 [character actor/superstar; raconteur; one of the all-time greats; films included: "Topkapi" and "Spartacus" for which he won Oscars, "Quo Vadis", "We're No Angels" and "Lorenzo's Oil"; see: GREAT CHARACTER ACTORS Page 8];

Alistair Cooke - 92 [writer; broadcaster;
TV host; hosted Masterpiece Theatre for PBS; wrote of America as a British correspondent stationed in USA since WWII];

Art James - 74 [game show host; starred on the game shows: "Concentration", "Say When!", "Face the Music", "Blank Check" and others];

Carrie Snodgress - 57 [actress; was nominated for Best Actress Oscar for "Diary of a Mad Housewife", other films included: "Wild Things", "Pale Rider" with Clint Eastwood, "The Fury", "A Night in Heaven" and "Blue Sky"; she guest starred on many TV series also];

Peggy DeCastro - 82 [singer; a member of the singing DeCastro Sisters trio; they were billed as the "Cuban Andrews Sisters"; with her sisters Cherie and Babette they were best known for their hit song "Teach Me Tonight"; they also appeared in the film "Copacabana"];

Frances Rafferty - 81 [actress; Starred as Spring Byington's daughter on TV's "December Bride"; also starred in the films: "Girl Crazy" and "Thousands Cheer" and "Swing Shift Maisie"];

Art Devlin - 81 [former ski jumper; sports broadcaster and commentator];

Albert Paulsen - 71 [versatile character actor; starred on many TV series including: "Combat", "The F.B.I.", "I Spy" and many others; see: Great Character Actors Page 4.];

Gilbert Lani 'Zulu' Kauhi - 66 [best known as Zulu his billing on the popular TV series "Hawaii 5-0"; He played Detective Kono Kalakaua on the series, a huge, burly Hawaiian who was shown bashing a door down in the show's opening credits; although the show's characters were macho, tough guys, they were one of the most memorable, endearing casts in television history];

Alan King - 76 [comedian; actor; appeared often on "The Ed Sullivan Show"; his comedy routines about men vs. women, marriage, life & death were classic; a member of the Friars Club, he hosted many 'roasts'; appeared in films including: "Bye Bye Braverman", "Casino", "Memories of Me", "Bonfire of the Vanities" and "Wolfen"];


Olive Osmond - 79 [matriarch of the singing Osmond Family which included Donnie & Marie Osmond and the Osmond Brothers];

Rudy Maugeri - 73 [musician; singer; founder of the 1950s Doo Wop group "The Crewcuts" whose hits were: "Crazy 'Bout Ya Baby" and "Sh-Boom"];

Tommy Farrell - 82 [actor; starred in westerns as a sidekick during the 1950s golden age of westerns; also appeared in the films: "A Guide For the Married Man" and "Kissin' Cousins" with Elvis Presley; was a regular on the TV series "Adventures of Rin Tin Tin" as Cpl. Thad Carson];

Floyd Kalber - 79 [newsman; longtime member of NBC television news; he covered political conventions and did stints on the "Today Show"; he won 5 Emmy awards];

Anna Lee - 91 [actress; appeared in films including: "How Green Was My Valley" and on TV in the soap "General Hospital" as Lila Quartermaine];

June Taylor - 86 [dancer/choreographer; staged the Busby Berkeleyesque dance sequences on the "Jackie Gleason Show" for many years];

Tony Randall - 84 [actor; starred on radio, stage, TV and films; best known for his role as Felix Unger on television's "The Odd Couple"; starred in many films of the 1950s & 1960s including: "Pillow Talk"; "Boy's Night Out" and "Seven Faces of Dr. Lao"];

Portland Mason Schuyler - 55 [child actor; was the daughter of James & Pamela Mason; starred in films of the 1950s; films included: "The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit"; "Cry Terror!" and "Bigger Than Life"];

Jack Bradbury - 89 [artist and Disney animator; also did comic books; Worked on the films: "Ferdinand the Bull", "Fantasia"; Pinocchio" and "Bambi"];

Gene Wood - 78 [announcer; worked mostly on classic Game Shows including: "Family Feud"; "Classic Concentration"; "Password" and "The Match Game"];

Richard Biggs - 44 [actor; starred on the TV series "Babylon 5" as Dr. Stephen Franklin and the soap "Days of Our Lives";
he was hearing impaired since birth and devoted much of his time to working for the hearing impaired];

Gil Fox - 88 [artist/illustrator; worked mostly in comic books; created "Plastic Man" and "The Spirit"];

Irene Manning - 91 [actress; starred in musicals of the 1940s including: "Yankee Doodle Dandy", "The Desert Song", "Hollywood Canteen" and "Shine On Harvest Moon"];

Trudy Marshall - 84 [actress of the 1940s who appeared in "Dancing Masters" with Laurel & Hardy and such film classics as "The Fighting Sullivans", "Purple Heart", "Sentimental Journey" and "The Fuller Brush Man"; she was the mother of actress Deborah Raffin];


Ronald Reagan - 93 [actor; 40th President of the United States; was former President of the Screen Actors Guild (1947-52 & 1959-60); Governor of State of California (1966-74); married to actress' Jane Wyman & Nancy Davis; films included: "Dark Victory", "Knute Rockne All American", "Kings Row" for which he received an Oscar nomination, "The Hasty Heart", "Bedtime for Bonzo", "Hellcats of the Navy" and "The Killers"];

Ray Charles - 73 [singer extraordinaire; American Icon; American Treasure; American Legend; he was adept at any music style: pop, R&B, jazz, country, and anything else; among his hits were: "America the Beautiful", "Georgia On My Mind" and "I Can't Stop Loving You"; he was a standout on the recording of "We Are the World"; Like Durante; Chevalier; Satchmo; Astaire and Crosby he is irreplaceable];

Lu Leonard - 77 [character actress; starred on stage, films and TV; best know for her role as William Conrad's secretary on "Jake and the Fat Man" TV series; appeared in the films: "Micki and Maude", "Annie" and "Starman"];

Donald Trumbull - 95 [special effects technician; worked on the films: "The Blue Max" (for which he won an Oscar); "The Wizard of Oz", "Silent Running" with his son Douglas Trumbull and "Star Wars"];

Marlon Brando - 80 [actor; superstar known as “an actor’s actor”; starred in “On the Waterfront”, “A Streetcar Named Desire”, “Guys and Dolls”, “Superman”, “The Godfather” (Oscar winner), “Last Tango in Paris” and “Apocalypse Now”; brought a new realism/method acting to films];

James Arnold - 72 [singer; a member of the pop group "The Four Lads"; hits included "Standing on the Corner", "Moments to Remember" and many others];

Eric Douglas - 46 [actor; son of Kirk Douglas who struggled with drugs; appeared in films including: "Delta Force 3" and a few TV shows];

Jeff Smith - 65 [minister; TV cooking show host; best known as "The Frugal Gourmet"; he hosted a very popular cooking show on PBS and some cable channels where he frugally prepared recipes of American historical eras and also ethnic cuisines; with his white beard and pleasant persona he had legions of fans; he also authored a series of cookbooks];

Isabel Sanford - 86 [actress; best known as "Louise 'Weezie' Jefferson" of the TV series' "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons"; she also appeared in films including: "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner"];

Dorothy Hart - 82 [cover girl; actress; appeared in the films: "The Naked City" and "Tarzan's Savage Fury" with Lex Barker];

Georgine Darcy - 68 [actress; blonde actress best known for her role as Miss Torso in the Hitchcock classic "Rear Window"; she was also a regular as Gypsy on the "Harrigan & Son" TV series and guested on many other TV show];

Richard Ney - 87 [actor; best known for his role in "Mrs. Miniver"; his other films included: "The Late George Apley", "Ivy" and "Joan of Arc" (1948) with Ingrid Bergman; He also guested on TV series including "The Outer Limits"];

Jerry Goldsmith - 75 [film composer; one the many great film composers, he was probably best known for his score of the film "Patton"; his other film scores included: "Planet of the Apes", "Chinatown", "The Sand Pebbles" and "The Omen" for which he won an Oscar; his TV compositions included the themes from: "The Waltons", Dr. Kildare", "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." and my favorite "Star Trek: Voyager"; to hear his theme from "Star Trek: Voyager" log on to our TV Page];

Elie Abel - 83 [reporter/journalist; worked for NBC News where he was a news reporter and also for the New York Times];

Joan Morgan - 99 [silent screen actress; author; playwright; British actress starred in the films: "The Road to London"; "Little Dorrit" and "Her Reputation" (a talkie)];Fran Ryan [actress; appeared on "Gunsmoke", TV commercials; see Great Character Actors];

Eugene Roche - 75 [character actor; plump and jolly-faced, he was best known as the "Ajax" man as well as P.I. Luther Gillis ("Magnum P.I."), lawyer E. Ronald Mallu ("Soap") and ;Editor Harry Burns ("Perfect Strangers"); his films included: "Slaughterhouse Five", "Cotton Comes to Harlem", "Foul Play" and "Executive Decision"; Ed. Note: He is one of only a handful of the character actors on this Website to have seen and enjoyed his entry (see Page 8 of GCA), Thanks to his son Eammon];

Sam Edwards - 89 [character actor; played the "ordinary guy" in many radio, TV shows and films; he appeared on TV in "Dragnet", "Gunsmoke" & "Mission: Impossible", in films like: "Hello, Dolly!" and "Twelve O'Clock High"; he was the voice of Thumper in Disney's "Bambi" and Tigger and Owl in "Winnie the Pooh"];

Virginia Grey - 87 [actress; began her career in silent films with Mary Pickford and Gloria Swanson; later sound films in which she appeared included: "Sweet Rosie O'Grady", "The Great Ziegfeld" and in 1970 "Airport"];

Rick James - 56 [rock performer; known as Superfreak, he was a master of the Funkadelic sound; his songs included: "You and I", "Bustin' Out", "Mary Jane" and "Garden of Love"];

Lou Walker - 66 [actor; appeared in the films: "My Cousin Vinnie", "The Fighting Temptations" and "Cold Sassy Tree"; also was in the mini-series: "North and South" and "Chiefs"];

Fay Wray- 96 [actress; starred in the film classic "King Kong" (1933); attractive blonde who tamed King Kong also appeared in the films: "Doctor X", "The Wedding March", "Vampire Bat", "The Bowery", "Viva Villa!", "Hell on Frisco Bay", "Tammy and the Bachelor" and the TV movie "Gideon's Trumpet" with Henry Fonda but her legacy was "King Kong"];


Frank Maxwell - 87 [actor; starred as Dan Rooney on TV's "General Hospital" daytime soap; also starred on TV's "Felony Squad", "The Second Hundred Years" and "Our Man Higgins"; was head of AFTRA and one time Vice President of Actors Equity];


Gypsy Boots aka Robert Bootzin - 89 [TV talk show guest; health food advocate; raconteur; with his long scraggly hair and beard...years before the hippie movement and loads of frenetic energy, he was a frequent guest on "The Steve Allen Show" of the 1960s pushing health foods like fruits, vegetables and nuts; a Los Angeles/Hollywood icon who appeared at numerous local events: parades, Laker, Raider & Dodger games];

Tony Mottola - 86 [composer; guitarist; worked often with Frank Sinatra; was a member of the Tonight Show orchestra from 1958-1972];

Julia Child - 91 [chef; TV show host; best known as "The French Chef"; wrote scads of cookbooks; was an American Icon and beloved by TV fans the world over; appeared on the PBS network for over 40 years];

Elmer Bernstein - 82 [film & TV composer; one of the all-time great film composers, he had composed over 250 film and movie scores; among his best were: "The Magnificent Seven", "The Ten Commandments", "The Great Escape" and "Airplane"];

Burnu Acquanetta - 83 [actress; billed as Acquanetta, she was a star of B-movies; best known for her role in the Johnny Weissmuller film "Tarzan and the Leopard Woman"; she also appeared in the films: "Arabian Nights", "Captive Wild Woman" and "The Sword of Monte Cristo"];

Laura Branigan - 47 [singer; pop/rock performer; best known for her Grammy winning hit "Gloria"; also appeared on the TV series "CHiPs" and in the films "Backstage" and "Mugsy's Girl"; sang duo with David Hasselhoff of "I Believe" for "Baywatch" TV series ];

Frank Thomas - 92 [cartoonist/artist; one of the last remaining of Disney's 'Nine Old Men' who worked on the animated films of Disney's Golden Era of films; he created the spaghetti eating scene in "Lady and the Tramp" and Pinocchio's incarceration in the birdcage by Stromboli; he worked on the classics "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs', "Bambi" and "Cinderella" as well];

William 'Billy' Pierson - 78 [actor of stage, screen and television; best known for his role as Marko the Mailman with the nasally voice in "Stalag 17" on stage & screen; his films included: "Operation Madball" and "Fun with Dick and Jane"; he was a regular on the TV series "Martin Kane, Private Eye" and "The Cop and the Kid"];

Johnny Ramone - 55 [guitarist; birth name was Jeff Hyman; was one of the original Ramones rock group members and a co-founder of the group whose hits were: "I wanna be sedated" and "Blitzkrieg Bop"];

Skeeter Davis - 72 [country singer; longtime member of The Grand Ole Opry; best known for her hit song "End of the World"; was born Mary Frances Penick; took the name Skeeter Davis when she was part of the Davis Sisters duo];

Ray Drusky - 74 [singer/songwriter; performed at the Grand Ole Opry; songs included: "Yes, Mr. Peters", "White Lightnin' Express", "Long, Long Texas Road" and "Peel Me a Nanner"];


Izora Armstead - 62 [singer; with Martha Wash comprised the pop/rock group 'The Weather Girls'; their hit song of the Disco era was "It's Raining Men"];

Janet Leigh - 77 [actress; best known for her role in Hitchcock's "Psycho"; other films included: "Little Women" (1949), "Scaramouche",; "The Vikings", "Touch of Evil", "The Manchurian Candidate", "Houdini" and "Prince Valiant"; was married to Tony Curtis and their daughter is actress Jamie Lee Curtis];

Rodney Dangerfield - 82 [comedian/actor; was one of America's most popular personalities; he starred in films later in his career including: "Caddyshack", "Easy Money", "Back to School", he was born Jacob Cohen; was an idol of many young standup comics; his standup routines were classic gems and his catch phrase, "I don't get no respect!" was untrue as he was one of the most respected comedians in show biz];

Christopher Reeve - 52 [actor; best known for his role as Superman in a series of films; became paraplegic after a horseback riding accident; also appeared in the films: "Somewhere in Time", "Gray Lady Down", "Monsignor", "The Bostonians", "Remains of the Day" and "Above Suspicion"];
	
Bruce Palmer - 58 [bassist; played bass guitar for the band "Buffalo Springfield"; played with Neil Young for a time in his early band "the Mynah Birds"; "Buffalo Springfield" was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997];

Julius Harris - 81 [actor; deep-voiced black actor who played the villain Tee Hee in the James Bond film "Live and Let Die" also played Idi Amin in "Raid on Entebbe"; he was a member of the Negro Ensemble and had been acting for over 40 years];

Robert Merrill - 87 [opera singer; a baritone, he starred at the Metropolitan Opera; a fixture on many TV talk shows of the 1950s, 60s and 70s; guested often on Variety shows such as "The Ed Sullivan Show"];

Vaughn Meader - 68 [comedian; best remembered for his creation of the satirical, best-selling recording "The First Family" a comical look at the John F. Kennedy White House; also for his excellent impersonation of JFK on the album];

Lester Lanin - 97 [bandleader; best known for performing with his orchestra at society events and at the White House];

Peggy Ryan - 80 [actress/singer/dancer; best known as Donald O'Connor's dance partner in films; she started, like Shirley Temple, in "Baby Burlesks", a series of short films starring talented toddlers; her films included: "When Johnny Comes Marchin' Home", "Mr. Big", "This Is the Life", "The Merry Monahans" and "All Ashore" with Mickey Rooney, her final film];

Howard Keel [actor-singer; starred in musicals for the most part; best known for his roles in the films: "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" and "Show Boat"; also for a starring role as Clayton Farlow on the "Dallas" TV series];

Ed Kemmer - 84 [actor; best known for his portrayal of 'Commander Buzz Corry' on the 1950's TV series "Space Patrol"; he also appeared on many TV soap operas including: "The Guiding Light", "The Edge of Night", "As the World Turns" and "All My Children"];

Harry Lampert - 88 [comic book artist; he was co-creator of the comic book "The Flash" with writer Gardner Fox in 1940; he also wrote books on bridge];

Norman Rose - 87 [character actor; best known for his role in the Colombian coffee commercials as Juan Valdez; also as the voice of God in Woody Allen's film "Life and Death"; he worked on stage, in films and on radio and television];

Dayton Allen - 85 [actor/comedian; started in radio and on early TV; voiced both live and puppet characters on the "Howdy Doody" kids television program; even better known as one of Steve Allen's Men-On-The-Street along with Don Knotts, Tom Poston, Louis Nye, Bill Dana and Gabe Dell; he recorded a comedy album "Why Not?" which was his catch phrase on the Allen Show];

John Drew Barrymore - 72 [actor; member of the famed Barrymore family of actors; was father of actress Drew Barrymore; films included: "The Big Night", "While the City Sleeps", "Winchester '73" and "This Savage Land"];

Jerry Scoggins - 93 [singer; best known for singing the theme for "The Beverly Hillbillies", 'The Ballad of Jed Clampett'];

Larry Buchanan - 81 [film director; was a master of bad movie making; gave Ed Wood competition as worst movie-maker of all time; his films include: "Mars Needs Women", "Zontar" and "The Thing from Venus"];

Jerry Orbach - 69 [actor; best known of late for his role on TV's "Law and Order" series as Det. Lennie Briscoe; spent most of his time in the Broadway Theatre and later in films and on television; his films included: "Dirty Dancing", "Prince of the City", "The Flamingo Kid" and "Brewster's Millions"; was also the voice of Lumiere in Disney's animated "Beauty and the Beast'];

Artie Shaw - 94 [band leader/clarinetist; one of the last remaining orchestra leaders of the Big Band era; best known for his versions of "Begin the Beguine", "Stardust" and "Lady Be Good"];


William Boyett - 77 [veteran character actor; appeared as a regular on many TV series; best known for his role as Sgt. "Mac" MacDonald on "Adam-12"; other series included: "Highway Patrol", "General Hospital", "Family Affair", "My Three Sons" and "Dragnet"];




Frank K. Freas - 82 [artist/cartoonist; won many Hugo awards for his illustrations in Science Fiction magazines and books; best known for his illustrations of pop culture Icon Alfred E. Neuman for Mad magazine];

Amrish Puri - 72 [Indian actor; starred mostly in Bollywood movies in India; best known for his role as villain Mola Ram in "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom", also appeared in the film "Gandhi"];

Gene Baylos - 98 [comedian/nightclub comic; a comedians' comedian who never got a "big break"; started working the Borscht Belt in the Catskills; did appear on some comedy series including: "Car 54, Where Are You?; "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and on "Hollywood Palace" and "Ed Sullivan Show" doing his routines];

James Griffin - 61 [musician/songwriter; co-founder of the 1970s pop group "Bread"; he also won an Oscar for co-writing the song "For All We Know" a Carpenters hit];

Ruth Warrick - 88 [actress; best known for her role as the first wife of the title character in "Citizen Kane" and for her role on the TV soap "All My Children" as Phoebe Tyler Wallingford; she also appeared in many films including: "The Corsican Brothers", Disney's "Song of the South", "Irene" and "Journey into Fear"];

Virginia Mayo - 88 [actress; star of films of the 1940s & 50s; strawberry-blonde and beautiful, she played mostly chorus girls, comic foils and an occasional vixen; her many films included: "The Princess and the Pirate", "White Heat", "Captain Horatio Hornblower", "Best Years of Our Lives"; she also appeared often on stage];

Johnny Carson - 79 [comedian/talk-show host; known as the King of Latenight, he brought the latenight talk-show to new heights; he hosted the Tonight Show for 30 years and became an American Icon; started out in TV as host of the game show "Who Do You Trust?" with his sidekick Ed McMahon, who followed him to the Tonight Show];

Ray Peterson - 65 [pop/rock singer; Popular in the 1960s with his signature hit, the ballad "Tell Laura I Love Her"; his other songs included: "The Wonder of You" and "Corrina, Corrina"];

Patsy Rowlands - 71 [actress; best known for her appearances in the British film's "Carry On..." series; She also appeared in the films: "Tess" as the landlady; "Tom Jones" and "A Kind of Loving"];

Dan Lee - 35 [animator; worked at Pixar and created the character of Nemo in the very popular film "Finding Nemo"; he also worked on the films: "Toy Story 2"; "Monsters, Inc." and "A Bug's Life"];

Ossie Davis - 87 [actor; legendary Black actor was a pioneer of theater and screen; political activist; with his wife Ruby Dee was the African-American version of Lunt & Fontaine; his films included: "The Cardinal"; "The Hill"; "The Scalphunters"; "Cotton Comes to Harlem"; "Do the Right Thing"; "Grumpy Old Men" and its sequel "Grumpier Old Men"; recently had won the Cecil B. DeMille Award of the Golden Globes and Kennedy Center Honors with his beloved wife Ruby Dee];

John Vernon - 72 [character actor; specialized in villainous roles and was probably best known for his role as Dean Wormer in "Animal House"; his other films included: "Point Break"; "Topaz"; "Dirty Harry" and "The Outlaw Josey Wales" see: GREAT CHARACTER ACTORS Page 6];

Merle Kilgore - 70 [songwriter; wrote one of Johnny Cash's biggest hits "Ring of Fire"; other songs included: "Wolverton Mountain" and "Johnny Reb"; he also acted in the films "Coal Miner's Daughter" and "Nashville"];

George Herman - 85 [news reporter/correspondent; worked with CBS News for over 30 years; hosted "Face the Nation" from 1969-1983];

Arthur Miller - 89 [playwright; American Literary giant, he was best known for his plays "The Crucible" and "Death of a Salesman"; was married to actress Marilyn Monroe];


Beverly Dennis - 79 [actress; starred with Red Buttons as his wife on TV's "The Red Buttons Show"; also appeared in films including: "Westward the Women" and "Take Care of My Little Girl"];

Brian Kelly - 73 [actor; best known as the father, Porter Ricks, in the 1960s TV series "Flipper"; also appeared in the films: "Flipper's New Adventure"; "Around the World and Under the Sea" and "Thunder Island"; on TV he was a regular in the TV series: "21 Beacon Street" and "Straightaway"];

Dan O'Herlihy - 85 [actor; underrated and virtually under used by the movie community, he easily would have achieved star status; he was a Best Actor Oscar nominee for his title role in "The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe"; among the films in which he appeared were: "Robocop" and "Robocop 2", "The Last Starfighter", "Fail Safe", "Odd Man Out" and "MacArthur"; he was a regular on the TV series: "The Travels of Jamie McPheeters" with Kurt Russell as his father, "The Long, Hot Summer" and "Twin Peaks"];

John Raitt - 88 [singer-actor; father of songstress Bonnie Raiit; worked mostly on Broadway in musical theatre; he appeared in some films including: "Flight Command"; "Billy the Kid"; Joe Smith, American"; "Ship Ahoy" and "The Pajama Game"];

Sandra Dee - 66 [actress; popular young 1950s & 60s actress, starred as Gidget in films, also took over the role of Tammy from Debbie Reynolds; her other films included: "Imitation of Life"; "Until They Sail" and "A Summer Place"; was often paired with the late actor Bobby Darin to whom she was married for a time];

Simone Simon - 93 [French actress; blonde beauty starred in "The Curse of the Cat People"; made a few films in America in the 1940s and later returned to her native France];

Harry Simeone - 94 [choral director; he headed one of the great choral groups in American history; specializing in Christmas music, he created the definitive versions of "The Little Drummer Boy" and "Do You Hear What I Hear?" two Christmas classics];

Martin Denny - 93 [orchestra leader/arranger; he was a master of the "Tiki Sound", Polynesian music with a slight jazz touch, vibraphone and exotic bird and jungle sounds; Quiet Village was one of his biggest hits];

Joe Carter - 78 [singer/guitarist; a member of country music's famed Carter Family; he sang bass with the group; he was a cousin of June Carter Cash and her sisters;];

Teresa Wright - 86 [Oscar Winning actress; played "sweater girls" and the "girl next door" types; won Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in "Mrs. Miniver"; other films included: "The Little Foxes", "Pride of the Yankees", "Best Years of Our Lives", "Shadow of a Doubt" and John Grisham's "The Rainmaker" in 1997];

Richard Lupino - 75 [actor; member of famed Lupino family of actors; was a cousin of Ida Lupino; appeared in films including: "Rhapsody", "Midnight Lace" and "Avengers of the Reef"; also appeared on many TV series including: "The Phil Silvers Show" and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"];

Nicole DeHuff- 79 [actress; just beginning her career; she appeared in the films: "Meet the Parents", "Suspect Zero" and "See Arnold Run"; on TV she appeared on the series" "The Court", "CSI Miami", "Monk", "Without a Trace" and "The Practice" ];

Vance Gerry - 75 [animator; worked on layouts for Disney animation department; he worked on such films as: "Robin Hood", "The Aristocats", "The Rescuers", "101 Dalmatians", "The Sword in the Stone" and many others];

Bobby Short - 80 [singer; he was probably America's best known and best loved lounge singer; he worked mainly in New York's Cafe Carlyle, but had appeared occasionally on TV talk and variety shows];

Barney Martin - 82 [character actor; best known for playing Morty Seinfeld, Jerry's dad on the "Seinfeld" TV series; started his career as a comedy writer for such series as "The Steve Allen Show" and "Name That Tune"; film debut was in Woody Allen's "The Producers"; other films included: "Arthur" as Liza Minelli's father, "Love with the Proper Stranger", "Charly" and "Hot Stuff"];

Don Durant - 72 [singer/actor; early on sang with the Ray Anthony band; after guest stints on "Sgt. Preston of the Yukon", "Maverick" and "Perry Mason" he was cast in his own TV series "Johnny Ringo" in the title role];

Paul Henning- 93 [legendary writer-producer; created such series as "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Petticoat Junction" and "Green Acres"; he started out writing for radio comedy shows such as "Fibber McGee and Molly" and for Rudy Vallee and Joe E. Brown];

Anthony George - 84 [actor; he played Don Corey on the "Checkmate" TV series and Agent Cam Allison on "The Untouchables"; was also a regular on the soaps "One Life to Live" and "Search for Tomorrow"];

Jason Evers - 83 [actor; appeared as a regular on the TV series: "Channing"; "Wrangler" and "The Guns of Will Sonnett"; appeared in the films: "The Brain that Wouldn't Die" and "Pretty Boy Floyd"];

Debralee Scott - 52 [actress; best known for her roles on "Welcome Back Kotter" as Rosalie 'Hotzi' Totzi, "Angie" as Marie Falco and "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" as Cathy Shumway; she also appeared in the films "Dirty Harry", "American Graffiti" and "Earthquake"; she was a regular on the game shows "The Match Game" and "Password Plus"];

John Fred Gourrier - 63 [rock musician; was leader of John Fred and his Playboy Band; had a hit with their song "Judy in Disguise" in the 1960s, song was a parody of the Beatles tune "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds";  ];

Jose Melis - 85 [bandleader; classically trained pianist; led the Tonight Show band during the Jack Paar era];

Ruth Hussey - 93 [actress; starred as Jimmy Stewart's sassy girlfriend in "The Philadelphia Story" for which she received an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actress; other films included: "Tennessee Johnson", "Flight Command", "The Uninvited", "Northwest Passage", "The Great Gatsby" and "Stars and Stripes Forever"; she also appeared on stage on Broadway and on TV];

Sir John Mills - 97 [actor; star of stage, screen and television; patriarch of the Mills family of actors, including daughters Juliet and Hayley; Oscar winner as Best Supporting Actor for "Ryan's Daughter"; films included: David Lean's "Great Expectations", "Goodbye Mr. Chips" with Robert Donat, "Tunes of Glory" and "Dunkirk"];

Mason Adams - 86 [character actor; best known for his smooth, tenor voice in radio and TV commercials; he was also a fine actor, probably best known for his role as managing editor Charlie Hume on the "Lou Grant" TV series; his film roles included: "Omen: The Final Conflict", "Toy Soldiers", "Son in Law" and "Houseguest"; See: Great Character Actors Page 9];

Maria Schell - 79 [actress; German beauty was the sister of Maxmillian Schell; her films included: "The Brothers Karamazov", "The Hanging Tree" and "Superman" with Christopher Reeve];

Kay Walsh - 46 [British character actress; appeared in the films: "In Which We Serve", "Cast a Dark Shadow", "Night Crossing" and Hitchcock's "Stage Fright"; was director David Lean's 2nd wife];

William J. Bell - 78 [writer/producer; he was producer and co-creator of two of the most popular soaps on daytime television: "The Young and the Restless" and "The Bold and the Beautiful"; he wrote for both series];

George P. Cosmatos - 64 [film director; was known as a fixer-upper director and often replaced directors on troubled movie sets; such was the case on 1993's hit film "Tombstone" which he rescued from director Kevin Jarre and turned into a top moneymaker; he also directed "Rambo: First Blood", "Of Unknown Origin" and "Leviathan"];

Joe Grant - 96 [artist/writer; worked at Disney Animation studios; he wrote the screenplay for "Dumbo", designed the Queen and Wicked Witch on "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", selected music and created storylines for "Fantasia"; later headed the newly created Character Model Department at Disney Studios];

Elisabeth Fraser - 85 [actress; best known as Sgt. Bilko's love interest on "The Phil Silvers Show" on television; appeared on stage and in films over her 40 year acting career; films included: "The Man Who Came to Dinner", "Young at Heart", "The Graduate" and "Nine to Five"];

Jay Marshall - 85 [ventriloquist; magician; he was the current Dean of the Society of American Magicians; he worked from vaudeville to Broadway to Las Vegas to television; his ventriloquist act consisted of Lefty, a white sock with 2 black buttons and a very persnickety attitude; he appeared on the Ed Sullivan show numerous times; Lefty now resides in the Smithsonian Institute along with Charlie McCarthy and Kermit the Frog; Marshall was well loved by his magician colleagues];

Monica Zetterlund - 67 [Jazz singer; actress; the talented Swedish actress appeared in many films including Vilhelm Moberg's classics: "The Emigrants" and "The New Land"; as a jazz singer she performed with Zoot Sims, Thad Jones and others and made many recordings];

June MacCloy - 95 [actress; she was one of filmdom's first statuesque blondes but with a distinctive sultry low voice; her films included: "Reaching for the Moon", "June Moon" and "Go West" with the Marx Brothers];

Frank Gorshin - 72 [actor; impressionist extraordinaire; best known for his role as 'the Riddler' on the Batman TV series of the 1960s; appeared in many films; numerous appearances on variety and talk shows where he performed impressions of Richard Widmark, Boris Karloff, Al Jolson and many others; of late he had been performing as George Burns in a one-man show on Broadway and on tour];

Stephen Elliott - 86 [character actor; had roles on the TV series "Beacon Hill", "Falcon Crest" and "Chicago Hope"; was probably best known for his role as Burt Johnson, Dudley Moore's nemesis in "Arthur" and "Arthur 2: On the Rocks"; his other films included" "The Hospital", "The Hindenburg" and "Death Wish"];

Howard Morris - 85 [actor; comedy writer; started his career as a writer for "Your Show of Shows" with Sid Caesar; was best known as an actor for his recurring role as Ernest T. Bass on "The Andy Griffith Show"; he also did voice-overs for animated films and was the voice of Gerald McBoing, Boing; his films included: "The Nutty Professor", "Boys Night Out" and "High Anxiety"];

Ismail Merchant - 68 [film producer; along with partner James Ivory produced some of the classiest films of recent years including: "A Room with a View", "Howard's End", "Remains of the Day" and "Jefferson in Paris"];

Thurl Ravenscroft - 91 [actor/voice-over artist; in over a half century of work he created memorable voices including 'Tony the Tiger', the singer of "You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch" in the classic Christmas cartoon and many various Disney characters];

Eddie Albert - 99 [actor; best known for his role as Oliver Douglas on the TV sitcom "Green Acres"; he also starred in many movies including: "Roman Holiday", "Oklahoma", "I'll Cry Tomorrow", "Teahouse of the August Moon", "The Sun Also Rises" and "The Heartbreak Kid"];

J.D. Cannon - 83 [character actor; stern-faced with slick black hair, he always played a straight-laced, no nonsense type; best known for his role as Peter B. Clifford, N.Y.C. chief of detectives on the TV series McCloud starring Dennis Weaver; he had guest starred on most TV series of the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s. His films included: "Cool Hand Luke", "Krakatoa East of Java", "Heaven With a Gun", "Cotton Comes to Harlem" and "Raise the Titanic"];

Leon Askin - 97 [character actor; although of Austrian descent, he could play anything from Arabs and Russians to Orientals, Mexicans and Italians; he was best known for his role as Gen. Burkhalter on TV's "Hogan's Heroes"; his films include" "One, Two, Three", "Valley of Kings", "The Robe", "The Perils of Pauline" and "Airplane 2: The Sequel"; see: Great Character Actors Page 3];

Anne Bancroft - 73 [actress; one of the great American actresses and a star of the 1960s, 70s and 80s; best known for Oscar winning role as Ann Sullivan in "The Miracle Worker" and as Mrs. Robinson in "The Graduate"; other films were: "The Turning Point", "The Elephant Man", "Torch Song Trilogy", "G.I. Jane" and "Point of No Return"; was the wife of comedian/director Mel Brooks];

Dana Elcar - 77 [veteran character actor; best known for his role as Peter Thornton on TV's "MacGyver" series (1986-1992); in recent years he had lost his sight due to glaucoma but he continued to act on MacGyver, his blindness being written into the script for his character; a most prolific actor, he was seen on many TV series of the last 50 years; starred on stage, television and in movies including: "The Sting", "All of Me", "Condorman" and "Buddy Buddy"; see: Great Character Actors Page 8];

Lane Smith - 69 [character actor; best known for two roles: President Richard Nixon in "The Final Days" and as Editor Perry White in television's "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman" in the 1990s; his other films included: "The Mighty Ducks", "The Distinguished Gentleman" and "My Cousin Vinny"; he appeared on many TV series as guest star];


Lon McAllister - 82 [actor; youthful star of the 1930s and 1940s]; his films included: "Winged Victory", "Stage Door Canteen", "The Red House" and "Home in Indiana"; he retired at age 40 to become a real estate investor];

Shana Alexander - 79 [journalist; TVC commentator; appeared on TV's "60 Minutes" in the debate feature Point/Counterpoint where she delivered the liberal viewpoint on various issues];

Paul Winchell - 82 [ventriloquist; voiceover artist; inventor; comedian; with his dummies Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smiff, possibly the greatest ventriloquist in history and second only to Mel Blanc as a "man of a thousand voices"; currently best remembered as the voice of "Tigger" in the "Winnie the Pooh" Disney cartoon series he also voiced the "Smurfs"; also remembered for the scrubbing bubbles TV cleanser commercial; his invention of the artificial heart is still being used today]; 

John Fiedler - 80 [character actor; best known for his roles as Mr. Peterson on "The Bob Newhart Show" and as the voice of Piglet in the Disney animated "Winnie the Pooh" animated films; he was definitely one of the great character actors with roles in films including: "Twelve Angry Men", "The Odd Couple", "True Grit", "That Touch of Mink" and more; see: Great Character Actors Page 4];

Shelby Foote - 88 [historian; novelist; commentator; colorful figure who did the brilliant commentary on Ken Burns' "Civil War" series and others for PBS; his comments and observations on the Civil War and its historical personalities kept viewers riveted to their TV sets during the run(s) of this series];

Luther Vandross - 54 [singer; R&B artist; Grammy winner whose hits included: "Here and Now", "Any Love" and "Dance With My Father"];

Ernest Lehman - 89 [screenwriter; his works included: "North by Northwest", arguably his best; "Sound of Music"; "Executive Suite"; "Sabrina"; "Hello, Dolly"; "From the Terrace"; "The Prize" and "Sweet Smell of Success"];

June Haver - 79 [actress; blonde actress of the 1940s; her films included: "Home in Indiana"; "The Dolly Sisters"; "Oh, You Beautiful Doll"; "I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now?"; after retirement she briefly spent time as a nun; she later married actor Fred MacMurray and was married to him until his death in 1991];

Frances Langford - 92 [singer; actress; performer; best known for her USO tours with Bob Hope; she was a pinup girl for many GIs; her film appearances include: "Every Night at Eight" and "Palm Springs"; she also co-starred with Don Ameche on the popular radio show "The Bickersons"];

Gretchen Franklin - 94 [British actress; best known for her role as Ethel Skinner on the BBC series "EastEnders"];

Kevin Hagen - 77 [character actor; best known for his role as Doc Baker on the "Little House on the Prairie" TV series]; also starred on TV series: "Yancey Derringer" as John Colton, "General Hospital" (1986) as Toughie and in "Amazing Stories"; his films include: "Pork Chop Hill", "Shenandoah", "The Learning Tree", "The Hunter" with Steve McQueen and "The Ambulance"];

Geraldine Fitzgerald - 91 [actress; Irish-born redhead who starred in films for over 40 years; films included: "Wuthering Heights:, "Ten North Frederick", "The Pawnbroker", "Harry and Tonto" and more recently "Arthur"];

James Doohan - 85 [actor; best known for his roles as Montgomery 'Scotty' Scott the engineer of the Starship Enterprise on the "Star Trek" TV series; ironically he starred in a 1953 TV series called "Space Command"; his other films included: "The Cage", "Test Pilot", "The Wheeler Dealers", "36 Hours", "The Satan Bug" and "Scalplock"];

Myron Floren - 85 [musician; popular accordionist featured on TV's "The Lawrence Welk Show" and one of the favorites of the Welk orchestra];

Ford Rainey - 96 [character actor; appeared in numerous films and TV series; trained as a classic Shakespearean actor; his films included: "White Heat", "Parrish", "Kings of the Sun", "The Sand Pebbles", "The Gypsy Moths", "The Parallax View" and "Coyote Moon"; See: Great Character Actors Page 5];

Pat McCormick - 78 [comedian; actor; comedy writer; best known as a writer and skit participant for "The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson"; appeared on TV series and in films including: "Smokey and the Bandit", "Buffalo Bill and the Indians" and "A Wedding"];

Hildegarde - 99 [singer; nightclub performer; one of the first entertainers to use a single name, she inspired others to do so; her career spanned seven decades; in her day these female singer/nightclub performers were called chanteuses; she obviously inspired 'Dagmar'];

Peter Jennngs - 67 [reporter; journalist; news anchor; popular anchor for the ABC Evening News for decades];

Barbara Bel Geddes - 82 [actress, star of stage, screen and television; a striking blonde woman who was one of America's top stage actresses and also found success in films and television; she is best remembered for her roles in the films: "Vertigo", "Panic in the Streets" and "I Remember Mama and on TV for her role as Miss Ellie on the prime time soap "Dallas"];

Matthew McGrory - 32 [actor; 7-foot plus, he is best known for his role as the giant in Tim Burton's film "Big Fish"; he had roles in other films including: "Sasquatch" in the title role of a bigfoot creature, "Men in Black 2" as an alien and "House of 1000 Corpses" as a zombie named Tiny];

Dorris Bowdon - 90 [actress; best known for her role as Tom Joad's (Henry Fonda) sister in the film classic "The Grapes of Wrath"; other films in which she appeared were: "Young Mr. Lincoln" and "Drums Along the Mohawk" all directed by John Ford; she retired from acting after marrying screenwriter Nunnally Johnson who scripted "Grapes of Wrath"];

Joe Ranft - 45 [artist/animator; writer/producer; best known for his work as head of Pixar Animation's story dept.; he co-wrote "Beauty and the Beast" and "Lion King"; he was storyboard supervisor for "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?", "The Nightmare Before Christmas", "James and the Giant Peach" and "Toy Story 1 & 2"; he did voices of Elmo St. Peter (The Brave Little Toaster), Heimlich (A Bug's Life), Wheezy the Penguin (Toy Story 2)and Jacques the French Fish (Finding Nemo)];

Herta Ware - 88 [actress; star of stage, film and TV; wife of actor Will Geer; mother of Ellen Geer; with her husband established Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga, Cal.; her films included: "Cocoon" and "2010" the sequel to "2001: A Space Odyssey"; on TV she guested on such series as: "Amazing Stories", "Golden Girls" and "Star Trek: Next Generation"];

Alexander Golitzen - 90s [art director/set designer; a familiar name in the credits of many classic films, he was one of filmdom's best art directors winning 3 Oscars for his work; some of his films were: "Spartacus", "Foreign Correspondent", "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "Imitation of Life"];

Brock Peters - 78 [veteran actor; one of the many great American black actors, who excelled at both comedy and drama; probably his best known role was of the black man accused of rape in "To Kill a Mockingbird"; his other films were: "Carmen Jones", "Porgy and Bess" and "The L-Shaped Room"; on TV he was a regular on the series Battlestar Galactica"];

Bob Denver - 70 [actor; played two of the most popular characters on television: Maynard G. Krebbs of "The Affairs of Dobie Gillis" and Gilligan of the "Gilligan's Island" TV series; He also appeared on other TV series: "Dusty's Trail", "The Good Guys" and "Far Out Space Nuts"; his films included: "Take Her, She's Mine", "For Those Who Think Young", "Who's Minding the Mint", "The Sweet Ride" and "Back to the Beach"];

Chris Schenkel - 82 [sportscaster; announcer; one of the best sports announcers with his rich, resonant baritone voice and easy-going style; he worked initially for CBS but excelled after his transfer to ABC Sports; most of his work involved football and the Olympics];

Robert Wise - 91 [director; one of America's finest film directors who directed classic films in a 40 year career; his films were quite diverse from horror and sci-fi to musicals and westerns; among his memorable films were: "The Day the Earth Stood Still", "West Side Story", "The Sound of Music", "The Andromeda Strain" and "Star Trek: The Motion Picture"; he received the AFI Lifetime Achievment Award in 1998];

John Bromfield - 83 [actor; starred as a lawman in two TV series: "Sheriff of Cochise" and "U.S. Marshal"; was married to actress Corrine Calvet; his films included: "Revenge of the Creature", "Curucu, Beast of the Amazon", "Flat Top", Sorry, Wrong Number" and "Rope of Sand"];

Constance Moore - 84 [actress; starred in films of the 1940s; played opposite Buster Crabbe in the serial "Buck Rogers"; her other films included: "Delightfully Yours", "Show Business", "You Can't Cheat an Honest Man" with W.C. Fields and "In Old Sacramento"];

Tommy "Butch" Bond - 79 [actor; as a child star he was one of the most popular members of Our Gang aka The Little Rascals; early on he was one of the regular kids but when Alfalfa came along he was relegated to the "bully"; he also played Jimmy Olsen in the Superman 1940s serials and Joey Pepper in the 1940s series "Five Little Peppers"; he later worked as a stage manager/director/producer in television];

Don Adams - 82 [actor-comedian; best known for his role as secret agent Maxwell Smart on the TV series "Get Smart"; he started as a standup comic and later turned to TV doing voice work in animated series; he was the voice of "Tennessee Tuxedo" and "Inspector Gadget"; he appeared on "The Bill Dana Show" in 1963; his films included: "Jimmy the Kid", "The Nude Bomb" and "Back to the Beach"];

Nipsey Russell - 80 [comedian; raconteur; he was a very talented black stand-up comic who was a whiz at poetry and could create a poem "on the spot"; guest starred on many talk, variety and game shows; starred in the movie "The Wiz"];

Ronnie Barker - 76 [British comedian; one of Britains popular "two Ronnies" who appeared on a television show of the same title; his partner was Ronnie Corbett; he also appeared on the BBC series "Porridge"];

Hamilton Camp - 70 [actor; folk singer; comedian; he was part of the folk duo of Camp & Gibson with Bob Gibson; he is probably best known for many memorable film and TV roles, often as a New Englander; his films included "Bedlam" and "Sweet Joy"; he had appeared on "M*A*S*H", "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "WKRP in Cincinnati" among other TV series];

Louis Nye - 92 [comedian; actor; best known as one of the funniest of Steve Allen's 'Men on the Street' whom he'd interview on his Sunday night "Steve Allen Show"; he portrayed a man named Gordon Hathaway and coined the phrase "Hi-ho Steverino!"; he also appeared in the hilarious role of Sonny Drysdale, rich playboy, on "The Beverly Hillbillies" series; his humor was quite unique];

Eugene "Porky" Lee aka Gordon Lee - 71 [former child star/actor; best known for his wonderful portrayal of "Porky", the cute, little chubby member of the Our Gang/Little Rascals of Hal Roach Studios; he starred in 42 Our Gang/Little Rascals comedy shorts up to his 6th birthday; as an adult he turned to a teaching career; he was born Eugene Lee but his adoptive parents called him Gordon after his favorite Our Gang director Gordon Douglas];

Lloyd Bochner - 81 [actor; played suave, sophisticated villains and heroes; on TV he was a regular on the series: "One Man's Family", "Hong Kong" and "Dynasty"; his films included: "The Detective", "Tony Rome", "Point Blank", "Ulzana's Raid" and "Naked Gun 2-1/2: The Smell of Fear"];

Skitch Henderson - 87 [musician/orchestra leader; was first bandleader for "The Tonight Show"; was founder and conductor of the New York Pops Orchestra];

Sherry North - 72 [actress; always the sultry blonde bombshell, she starred in numerous films and on TV series and TV Movies; she is probably best known of late for her portrayal of Kramer's mother on "Seinfeld"; her films included: "The Best Things In Life Are Free", "Living it Up" with Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis, "The Outfit" with Robert Duvall and "The Shootist" with John Wayne; on TV she appeared on series including: "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "The Fugitive", "Murder She Wrote", "Hawaii 5-0", "The Golden Girls" and "Fantasy Island"];

Ralph Edwards - 92 [Television Pioneer; Game Show host; he created and produced: "Truth or Consequences" and "This is Your Life" for early television, the latter lasting into the 1980s; he also hosted both shows];

Harold J. Stone - 92 [character actor; best known for playing villains; he also appeared as a regular on TV shows including: "The Goldbergs", "Bridget Loves Bernie", "My World and Welcome to It" and "I Spy"; his films included: "The Big Mouth" with Jerry Lewis, "Spartacus", "The Greatest Story Ever Told" and Hitchcock's "The Wrong Man"; see: Great Character Actors Page 9];

Pat Morita - 73 [actor; best known for his roles as Mr. Miyagi in the "Karate Kid" film series and as Arnold the restaurant owner on the "Happy Days" TV series; his other films included: "Honeymoon in Vegas", "Spy Hard", "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" vocals in Disney's animated "Mulan" and "Center of the World"; he also guest starred on many TV series including: "M*A*S*H", "The Odd Couple" and "Green Acres"];

Keith Andes - 85 [character actor; played in B movies but also on stage; appeared with Marilyn Monroe in "Clash by Night"; other films included: "The Farmer's Daughter", "Tora, Tora, Tora" and "Back from Eternity"; he also appeared as guest on many TV series; See: Great Character Actors Page 5];

Constance Cummings - 95 [actress; started out as a stage actress on Broadway; in the 1930s and 1940s she appeared in many films including: "Lover Come Back", "Behind the Mask", "Looking for Trouble" and "Blithe Spirit"; in the 1960s thru the 1980s she appeared in a number of TV movies];

Stan Berenstain - 82 [children's book author; co-creator of the popular Berenstain Bears series of books, with his wife Jan];

Jocelyn Brando - 86 [actress; older sister of actor Marlon Brando; on TV she played Mrs. Reeves on "Dallas" and guest starred on many TV series from the 1950s thru the late 1970s; her films included: "The Big Heat", "The Ugly American", "The Chase", "Mommie Dearest" and "Movie Movie"];

Marc Lawrence - 95 [character actor; one of the great gangster/villain portrayers in the history of film; in a career that began in 1932 in "If I Had a Million" and ran thru 2003 in "Looney Tunes: Back in Action", he was one of the most prolific actors in film. His other films include: "Key Largo", "Johnny Apollo", "Brigham Young", "Shepherd of the Hills", "The Unconquered", "The Asphalt Jungle", "Helen of Troy", "Diamonds Are Forever", "Marathon Man" and "The Big Easy"; See: Great Character Actors Page 9];
 
Wendie Jo Sperber - 47 [actress; best known for her roles as Amy on the TV series "Bosom Buddies" with Tom Hanks and Peter Scolari and Linda McFly, Michael J. Fox's sister in the "Back to the Future" films; her films included: "I Wanna Hold Your Hand", "1941", "Used Cars" and "Mr. Write"; she also appeared on numerous TV series];

Jack Colvin - 71 [actor; was a regular on  "The Incredible Hulk" series as reporter Jack McGee; he guested on many TV series including: "The Rat Patrol", "Kojak", "The Rockford Files", "Quincy" and "Murder, She Wrote"; his films included: "Scorpio" and "Rooster Cogburn"];

Richard Pryor - 65 [comedian; actor; started his career as a standup comic, albeit an off color, controversial one; on television he pushed the censors to their limits; he later appeared in films including: "The Silver Streak", "Stir Crazy", "The Toy", "Superman III" and "Brewster's Millions"; he continued doing standup until he was stricken with a heart attack and later multiple sclerosis];


Jean Parker - 90 [actress; she was a lovely brunette star of films of the 1930s and 40s; her films included: "Rasputin and the Empress" with the Barrymores, Capra's "Lady for a Day", "Little Women" as Beth with Katharine Hepburn, "The Gunfighter" with Gregory Peck and "Flying Deuces" with Laurel & Hardy];

Mary Jackson - 95 [character actress; played Miss Emily Baldwin on TV's "The Waltons"; her films included: "Fun with Dick and Jane" and "Airport" as a nun];

Beverly Tyler - 78 [actress; starred in films of the 1940s including: "The Green Years", "My Brother Talks to Horses", "Best Foot Forward" and "The Palomino"; also appeared on the Broadway stage];

John Spencer - 58 [actor; best known for his role as chief of staff Leo McGarry on TV's "West Wing"; he was also a regular on "The Patty Duke Show" and "L.A. Law"; his films included: "The Rock", "Cop Land" and "The Negotator"];

Enzo Stuarti - 86 [singer; was frequent guest on "The Ed Sullivan Show", "The Mike Douglas Show", "The Tonight Show" and many other talk and variety shows of the 1960s, and 70s; was known for a series of Ragu spaghetti sauce commercials; also appeared often on the Broadway stage];

Vincent Schiavelli - 57 [character actor; his film credits are quite impressive and include: "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", "Amadeus", "Ghost" and "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"; he also appeared often on TV including an Italian Cooking show as he was a gourmet chef; see: Great Character Actors Page 6];

Michael Vale - 83 [actor; best known for his work in the Dunkin' Donuts commercial on TV and in print; a serious actor who studied in New York with Tony Curtis, Ben Gazzara and Rod Steiger; his films included: "Marathon Man" and "A Hatful of Rain"; he appeared on numerous TV series and also on the Broadway stage];

Roy Stuart - 78 [actor; best known for his role as Coporal Boyle, an aide to Sgt. Vince Carter on the "Gomer Pyle, USMC" television series; he had guest starred on many TV series including: "Bewitched", "Mister Ed", "Golden Girls" and "Mama's Family"; He had also appeared on the Broadway stage];

Candy Barr - 70 [stripper; actress; she gained celebrity status through her work as a stripper; appearing in the notorious stag film "Smart Aleck" and as protege to notorious celebrities such as Mickey Cohen and Jack Ruby; she was listed in Playboy magazine as one of the most desirable women of the 20th century];

Barry Cowsill - 51 [singer; musician; he was bassist for the family singing group "The Cowsills"; their hit rock songs included: "Hair" and "The Rain, the Park and Other Things"];





Patrick Cranshaw - 86 [character actor; mostly in elderly roles; his films included: "Bonnie and Clyde", "Herbie: Fully Loaded" and "Old School" where he stole every scene he appeared in];

Lou Rawls - 72 [singer; sang pop and rhythm and blues; with a beautiful velvet, baritone voice he won Grammy Awards and other music industry accolades; he was very active with the United Negro College Fund; he started singing gospel music];

George Walsh - 88 [announcer; known as the "Voice of Gunsmoke"; he introduced the show on radio at its inception and continued on as its announcer through both its runs on radio and television];

Birgit Nilsson - 87 [opera singer/soprano; best known for her interpretation of Wagner's operas; she was the epitome of the large, female opera singer bedecked in armor with spear in hand];

Shelley Winters - 85 [actress; one of America's finest actresses, she went from buxom blonde to character actress never missing a beat; she won multiple awards for acting including the Oscar for her roles in "Diary of Ann Frank" and "A Patch of Blue"; as big as life off the screen as on, she was a fascinating individual as well as a terrific actress; her films included: "A Place in the Sun", "Night of the Hunter", "Poseidon Adventure", "Lolita" and "S.O.B."; on TV she had a role as Roseanne's fesity grandmother on "Roseanne"];

Don Stewart - 70 [actor; best known for his role as Michael Bauer on the sopa opera "The Guiding Light" for 16 years; he also appeared in films including: "Lost" (1983), "American Ninja" and "The Betty Ford Story" a TVM];

Wilson Pickett - 64 [singer; rhythm & blues and soul were his specialty; he was a rock legend of the "Soulful 1960s"; his big hits were" "In the Midnight Hour", "Mustang Sally" and "Funky Broadway"; He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1991];

Anthony Franciosa - 77 [actor; leading man of the 1960s; his best known films were: "A Hatful of Rain" (for which he won an Oscar Nomination), "A Face in the Crowd", "Wild is the Wind", "The Long, Hot Summer", "Period of Adjustment", "Rio Conchos" and "The Pleasure Seekers"; he was married to actress Shelley Winters for a time];

Janette Carter - 82 [singer/musician; last surviving child of country music's "Carter Family", who in recent years preserved her parents' old-time style with weekly performances in Kingsport, Tenn; she sang and played autoharp; was sister-in-law of Maybelle Carter, June Carter Cash's mother]

Chris Penn - 40 [actor; best known for tough guy roles; was younger brother of actor Sean Penn; films included: "Rumble Fish", "All the Right Moves", "Footloose", "Reservoir Dogs" and "Mulholland Falls"; he also appeared on the TV series: "Entourage" and "Everwood"];

Fayard Nicholas - 91 [tap dancer; surviving member of the Nicholas Brothers, probably of the best tap dance act of the 20th century; the two brothers, Harold and Fayard, tap danced well over 50 years together; their athleticism and astonishing leaps combined with brilliant tap dancing wowed audiences from the 1940s into the 1990s live and on film; their films included: "Stormy Weather", "Kid Millions", "Pie, Pie Blackbird (a short) and "Uptown Saturday Night"; the brothers also received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1991];

Al Lewis - 95 [character actor; very adept at comedy parts; created two of television's most memorable characters: Leo Schnauzer on the series "Car 54, Where Are You?" and Grandpa Munster, a comic vampire on TV's "The Munsters" and he also appeared in a cameo role in the big screen version of "Car 54...."; he was quite active well into his 90's making personal appearances at fan events, political gatherings, etc.; his films also included: "They Shoot Horses Don't They?" and "Married to the Mob"];

Reuven Frank - 85 [producer; TV pioneer; NBC news producer who created the "Huntley-Brinkley Report" with Chet Huntley & David Brinkley; he believed that pictures and good storytelling-like reporting improved newscasts; he also produced ground breaking documentaries such as "The Tunnel" in 1962 about an escape through the Berlin Wall];

Phil Brown - 89 [actor; whose best known role was as "Uncle Owen" in the classic film "Star Wars"; mostly a London stage actor, "Star Wars" brought him fans the world over, some of whom he met at "Star Wars" conventions];

Pedro Gonzales Gonzales - 80 [character actor; one of the two best recognized Mexican character actors along with Alfonso Bedoya; John Wayne was responsible for his Hollywood career bringing him to the U.S. to appear in his films including: "The High and the Mighty", "McLintock", "Hellfighters", "Rio Bravo", "Chisum" and others; other films included: "Support Your Local Gunfighter" and "The Love Bug"; TV appearances included: "Burke's Law", "Wanted: Dead or Alive" and "Gunsmoke"];

Richard Bright - 68 [character actor; appeared as Al Neri in three "Godfather" films; his other films included: "Once Upon a Time in America", "Looking for Mr. Goodbar", "The Getaway" and "Beautiful Girls"; His TV credits included: "The Sopranos", "Hill Street Blues" and "Law & Order]; 

William Cowsill - 58 [singer; was lead singer of the family rock group "The Cowsills"; with his three brothers, sister and mother formed the famed group upon which "The Partridge Family" TV series was based];

Curt Gowdy - 86 [sportscaster; worked for NBC Sports broadcasting football and baseball mostly; he was also host of "The American Sportsman];

Andreas Katsulas - 59 [character actor; prolific Greek-American actor best known for his role as G'Kar, an alien (in full makeup) on television's "Babylon 5"; another role in which he stood out was as the one-armed man, Sykes, in the 1993 film "The Fugitive" with Harrison Ford; he had a regular role on the long-lived soap opera "The Guiding Light"; his other films included: "King of America", "The Sicilian" and "Executive Decision"; he also appeared on such TV series as: "Murder She Wrote", "NYPD Blue", "Diagnosis Murder" and "Star Trek: Next Generation"];

Don Knotts - 81 [actor; comedian; created one of the top 3 characters ever to appear on television as Deputy Bernard P. 'Barney' Fife on "The Andy Griffith Show"; he won 5, well deserved, Emmy Awards as Barney Fife; started out after high school as a ventriloquist; another popular character of his was as one the "Men on the Street" along with Tom Poston, Louis Nye, Dayton Allen and Bill Dana on "The Steve Allen Show"; his films included: "The Incredible Mr. Limpet" and "The Apple Dumpling Gang"; he also was a regular on TV's "Three's Company"; see: Great Character Actors Page 4];

Darren McGavin - 83 [actor; very prolific on TV and in films, he is best remembered for his roles as Kolchak on "Nightstalker", Mike Hammer on television and perhaps his most memorable role as the Father in the film classic "A Christmas Story" by Jean Shepard; his other films included: "The Man with the Golden Arm", "The Delicate Delinquent" with Jerry Lewis, "Airport '77", "Summertime" with Katherine Hepburn and "The Natural" ];

Dennis Weaver - 81 [actor; best known for his role as Chester Goode on TV's "Gunsmoke" and Sam McCloud on "McCloud"; he also starred in Steven Spielberg's first film "Duel" a precursor to "Jaws" with a truck in place of the shark; he also starred in the TV series "Gentle Ben"; his films included: "A Touch of Evil" his first film, "Gentle Giant", "Seven Angry Men" and "The Bridges at Toko-Ri"; he had been working on Starz Western channel introducing western films and TV series];

Jack Wild - 53 [actor; best known for his Academy Award nominated role as 'the Artful Dodger' in the film "Oliver!"; he also appeared as a teenager in the children's TV series "H.R. Pufnstuf"; his last role was as 'Much' in the 1991 Kevin Costner film: "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves"];

Gordon Parks - 93 [photographer; author; filmmaker; he directed films including: "The Learning Tree", "Shaft" and "The Super Cops"; as a photographer he did portraits of people ranging from Aaron Copland to Barbra Streisand];

Anna Moffo - 79 [opera singer; a star soprano for the Metropolitan Opera, she gained a new audience appearing on 
"The Bell Telephone Hour" in the];

Maureen Stapleton - 80 [actress; best known for her Oscar winning role in "Reds" and as the distraught wife of the bomber (Van Heflin) in "Airport" for which she was also nominated as Best Supporting Actress; her other films included: "Cocoon", "Lonelyhearts", "Interiors" and "Bye Bye Birdie"; she acted most often in Broadway theatre];

Oleg Cassini - 92 [couturier; fashion Icon; fashion designer to the stars; was designer for Jacqueline Kennedy during her tenure as First Lady; born in France and living in Russia during the Czar's reign, he fled to Europe after the Czar was overthrown and later to the U.S. in 1936 where he lived until his death];

Buck Owens - 76 [country-western singer; best known as the co-host of television's "Hee Haw" with Roy Clark, a down home version of "Laugh-In"; prior to "Hee Haw" he had an illustrious career as a country singer with 20 No. 1 hits and many awards including induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame; his hits with his backup group, the Buckaroos, included: "Together Again", "I've Got a Tiger by the Tail" and "Act Naturally"];

Richard Fleischer -89 [director; directed an eclectic collection of film classics including: "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", "The Vikings", "Soylent Green", "Narrow Margin", "Fantastic Voyage", "The Boston Strangler", "Tora! Tora! Tora!" and "Doctor Dolittle"; his family were producers of Popeye and Betty Boop cartoons];

Myron Healey- 82 [character actor; considered one of the Top 10 villains in western film and television history; worked from 1948 on in B-westerns with the likes of Johnny Mack Brown, Whip Wilson and Jimmy Wakely; he received the Golden Boot Award from the Motion Picture and Television Fund in 2000];


June Pointer - 52 [singer; with her sisters Anita & Ruth formed the very popular Pointer Sisters rock group; their hits included: "I'm So Excited", "Jump", "Fire", "Slow Hand" and "He's So Shy" among others; June was the youngest of the sisters; Ruth's daughter, Issa, replaced her in the group; the Pointer Sisters were Grammy winners];

Gary Gray - 69 [child actor; played numerous juvenile roles, mostly in westerns, during the 1950s and early 60s; his films included: "Return of the Bad Men", "Rachel and the Stranger", "The Great Lover" with Bob Hope, "The Girl from Jones Beach" and "The Next Voice You Hear"; also appeared on such TV series as: "Annie Oakley", "I Love Lucy" and "The Legend of Wyatt Earp"];

Alida Valli - 84 [actress; Croatian born but of Italian descent, she starred in films of the 1930s and 40s; She was best known by her last name 'Valli'; her films included: "The Third Man", Hitchcock's "The Paradine Case", "A Month by the Lake", "The Miracle of the Bells", "The White Tower" and "Walk Softly, Stranger"];

Lew Anderson - 84 [actor/musician; best known for his role as Clarabell the clown on the pioneering kid's show of the 1950s & 60s "The Howdy Doody Show"; he replaced Bob Keeshan as Clarabell and had a very long run as the character on TV and in numerous personal appearances; he was also known as a topnotch musician/arranger/bandleader prior to and after his run on Howdy Doody];

Frankie Thomas - 85 [actor; best known for his role as Tom Corbett on the early 1950's TV series "Tom Corbett, Space Cadet"; he also worked on stage in both Hollywood and New York; his films included: "The Major and the Minor", "A Dog of Flanders" and "Boys Town"];


Freddie Garrity - 69 [singer; headed the 1960s rock group "Freddie and the Dreamers"; the group had a hit song in "I'm Telling You Now"; he created the comical dance 'The Freddie'];

Mary Ritt - 95 [puppeteer; created, with her husband Paul, 'Ritt's Puppets' which appeared on many TV series and films; the characters included: Geoffrey the Giraffe, Albert the Chipmunk, Calvin the Crow and Magnolia the Ostrich; best known for the TV series "In the Park" and for an appearance in the Jerry Lewis film "The Errand Boy"];

Desmond Dekker - 64 [Reggae singer; became the first Reggae superstar; his biggest hit was "The Israelites" in the 1960s; other hits were: "007 (Shanty Town)" and "The Harder They Come"];

Henry Bumstead - 91 [film art director; a very familiar name seen in numerous film credits, most particularly classic films, he had won 2 Oscars for art direction on "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "The Sting" as well as many other Oscar nominations; the films he worked on included: "Come Back, Little Sheba", "Vertigo", "Cinderfella", "Slap Shot", Scorsese's "Cape Fear" and many Clint Eastwood films including "Mystic River" and "Million Dollar Baby" over a career of nearly 70 years];

Paul Gleason - 69 actor; very prolific character actor who portrayed mostly characters of varying degrees of villainy; best known for his role in the 1980s Brat Pack film "The Breakfast Club" as school principal Richard Vernon; his other films included: "Die Hard", "Trading Places" and "National Lampoon's Van Wilder"; he had also appeared as guest on many TV series including: "Seinfeld", "Friends", "L.A. Law" and "Dawson's Creek'];

Robert Sterling - 88 [actor; star of television and movies; he was best known for his role as the jovial ghost, George Kerby, on the TV series "Topper" with Leo G. Carroll in the title role as Cosmo Topper; his films included: "Two-Faced Woman", "The Penalty", "Bunco Squad", "Show Boat" (1951) and "Return to Peyton Place"; he was married to Ann Sothern and later to his co-star on "Topper", Anne Jeffreys, who played Marian Kerby];

Billy Preston - 59 [musician/keyboardist; popular in the 1970s, he had No. 1 hits with "Outa Space", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from Nothing"; he'd worked with everyone from Little Richard to the Red Hot Chili Peppers];

Ingo Preminger - 95 [producer; talent agent; he was the brother of director Otto Preminger and was best known as one of the first to hire blacklisted actors during the McCarthy era in Hollywood, he produced films including "M*A*S*H"];

Robert Donner - 75 [character actor; he was one of the great character actors who specialized in oddball, off-beat characters; he is probably best known for his role as the zany cult leader, Exidor, on the TV series "Mork & Mindy"; his films included: "Cool Hand Luke", "Vanishing Point", "High Plains Drifter", "The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing" and "Hoot"; he appeared as a guest star on many TV series including: "The Waltons", "Columbo", "The Incredible Hulk", "Matlock" and "MacGyver"];

Eric Benson - 77 [radio actor; anyone who grew up in the first half of the 20th century should remember the terrific radio series for kids, "Let's Pretend" on which Eric Benson played mostly giants, ogres and villains; the series ran from the 1930s thru the early 1950s and was sponsored by Cream of Wheat cereal; he also starred in other Chicago based radio series including The Shadow; he was blacklisted during the McCarthy era for not turning in his friends];

Arthur Franz - 86 [character actor; prolific actor who specialized in amiable, friendly types; his film credits include "Hellcats of the Navy', "Sands of Iwo JIma", "The Caine Mutiny", "Invaders from Mars", "Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man" and "The Sniper" his one starring role; on TV he apppeared in many series from the Golden Age of Live TV thru the 1970s];

Aaron Spelling - 83 [Television producer; legendary figure who produced some of the most successful series in the history of television; his programs included: Beverly Hills, 90210", "Burke's Law", "Love Boat", "Fantasy Island", "Mod Squad", "Hart to Hart", "Starsky & Hutch" and "Seventh Heaven"; he also produced TV and theatrical films];

Moose aka Eddie - 16 [animal actor; this extremely well-trained, very charismatic dog, a Jack Russell terrier, was best known and loved as Eddie on the "Frasier" TV series; a born scene stealer, he also appeared in the film "My Dog Skip"; trained by Mathilde Halberg, he retired at age 10 and was replaced on "Frasier's" final 2 seasons by a look-alike Jack Russell terrier named Enzo];

Lennie Weinrib - 71 [actor/director; mostly in early television; best known as the voice of "H.R. Pufnstuf" on that children's TV series; he had appeared on many shows including: "My Favorite Martian", "77 Sunset Strip", "Twilight Zone", "The Munsters" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show"; he also did voice-overs on many animated series including: "Scooby Doo", "The Fintstones" and "Garfield" as well directing movies aimed at the younger set like: "Beach Ball", "Out of Sight" and "Wild, Wild Winter"];

Jan Murray - 89 [comedian/game show host; he went from standup comedy to hosting game shows such as "Treasure Hunt"; as a successful comic he appeared on almost every variety show from "Ed Sullivan" to "Hollywood Palace" to the "Jack Benny" and "Dean Martin" shows; he was also a fine actor appearing in films ("A Man Called Dagger", "Tarzan and the Great River" and "Thunder Alley") to TV series ("Love American Style", "The Name of the Game" and "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.")];

Jack Smith - 92 [singer/recording artist; radio actor/host; best known as 'Smiling' Jack Smith, he was a popular singer and radio personality from the 1930s thru the 1950s; he was a regular, along with actor Cliff Arquette, on the radio show "Glamour Manor" and he was a regular on "The Prudential Hour"; he became known to television viewers when he replaced host/creator of "You Asked For It" Art Baker on that series];

June Allyson - 88 [actress; known as both "The Perfect Wife" and "The Girl Next Door", she was an extremely popular leading actress with a raspy soft voice and a very sweet demeanor; she was often paired with either James Stewart or Van Johnson in films; her films include: "Two Girls and a Sailor", "The Sailor Takes a Wife", "High Barbaree", "The Stratton Story", "Little Women" (1949), "Battle Circus", "The Glenn Miller Story", "Strategic Air Command" and "My Man Godfrey"; she was married to Dick Powell and appeared on his TV series, "The Dick Powell Show", as well as many other TV series and guest roles];

Barnard Hughes - 90 [character actor; one of the truly great character actors, he was also a Broadway star and known for many recurrent and guest roles on multiple television series; anyone who had seen him remembers, if not his name, his face and great talent; one of his best known roles was as Herb Hartley, Bob's father on "The Bob Newhart Show"; he had his own series' "Doc" and "Mr. Merlin" and won an Emmy for an appearance on "Lou Grant"; his films included: "Midnight Cowboy", "Oh, God!", "Tron", "Doc Hollywood" and Sister Act 2"; see: Great Character Actors Page 4];

Syd Barrett - 60 [singer; songwriter; founder of the rock group 'Pink Floyd'; he wrote many of the groups first songs and created their "image"; he left the group after a bout with LSD and mental illness in 1967];

Kasey Rogers - 82 [actress; born Imogene Rogers, she starred in films as Laura Elliott and later changed her name to Kasey Rogers; she appeared in Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train", "Special Agent", "Silver City" and "Two Lost Worlds"; she is probably best known for her role on TV's "Bewitched" as Louise Tate and on "Peyton Place" as Julie Anderson, Betty Anderson's long-suffering mother];

Red Buttons - 87 [actor; comedian; one of the best, he was successful as both a top-notch actor and a very funny comedian; he first became successful with his own TV show in the 1950s; he later became even more successful as a dramatic actor highlighted by his winning a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role in "Sayonara"; his other films included "Winged Victory", "The Longest Day", "The Poseidon Adventure" and "The Ambulance"];

Mickey Spillane - 88 [author/actor; best known as the creator and possibly alter-ego of "Mike Hammer" the popular, fictitious private detective; the Mike Hammer series had many incarnations on radio, TV and in films; Spillane himself appeared on TV and in films playing either Hammer or similar type characters, most notably in "KIss Me Deadly"];


Carrie Nye - 69 [actress; appearing on stage and in films, she was also the wife of TV personality Dick Cavett; her films included: "The Group", "The Seduction of Joe Tynan" and "Creepshow"; she also appeared as a regular on the soap "The Guiding Light" and some TV Movies];

Kurt Kreuger - 89 [character actor; of Swiss descent, he was typecast as a Nazi in many films because of his continental flair and German accent, which led to his frustration and eventual leaving of Hollywood films; his films included: "Paris Underground", "Unfaithfully Yours", "The Enemy Below" and "The St. Valentine's Day Massacre"];

Jack Warden - 85 [character actor; always the gruff, wisecracking buddy, detective, coach or businessman, he was one of the most prolific actors in show business; he was twice nominated for Best Supporting Actor Oscars for "Shampoo" and "Heaven Can Wait" both of whom co-starred Warren Beatty; he starred on stage, screen and television; his films also included: "All the President's Men" and "12 Angry Men"; on TV he starred with Wally Cox on "Mr. Peepers"; see: Great Character Actors Page 8];

Mako - 72 [character actor; one of the truly great character actors and one of the finest Asian actors; he had appeared on numerous TV series early on but it was his appearance in the film classic "The Sand Pebbles" (1966) that made him a star; he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for that role and thus began a great career; his other films included: "Conan the Barbarian", "Seven Years in Tibet" and "Pearl Harbor" see: Great Character Actors Page 5];

John Alderson - 90 [character actor; British born actor who learned to ride a horse and acted in many westerns including: "Blazing Saddles", "Young Guns II" as well as TV series such as "Gunsmoke", "Death Valley Days", "Bonanza", "Maverick" and "Have Gun, Will Travel"];

Mike Douglas - 81 [singer; talk show host; he sang with the Kay Kyser Band in the 1940s and 50s and had hits including: "The Old Lamplighter", "Ole Buttermilk Sky" and more recently "The Men In My Little Girl's Life"; he began in the 1960s on local talk shows graduating to his nationally syndicated series "The Mike Douglas Show" on which his guests ranged from former U.S. Presidents to Dolly Parton, Bob Hope, John Lennon and Yoko Ono];

Bruno Kirby - 57 [character actor; best known for his role as the young Clemenza in "The Godfather Part II"; his other films were: "City Slickers", "When Harry Met Sally", "Good Morning, Viet Nam" and "Donny Brasco"; he had appeared on TV in "Fame", "Hill Street Blues" and more recently HBO's "Entourage"];

Glenn Ford - 90 [actor; veteran of films for 53 years; popular through four decades of film and more on television; his films included: "Blackboard Jungle", "Gilda", "The Big Heat", "The Courtship of Eddie's Father", "Midway" and "Superman"; he starred in the TV series: "Cade County" and "The Family Holvak" as well as the mini-series "Once an Eagle"];

Joseph Stefano - 84 [screenwriter; best known as the writer of Hitchcock's "Psycho"; also created the classic TV series "The Outer Limits"; other screenwriting credits included" "The Black Orchid", "The Naked Edge" and "Eye of the Cat"];

Steve Irwin - 44 [conservationist; wildlife expert; TV personality; best known as "The Croc Hunter" he was quite popular on television sharing his knowledge of alligators, crocodiles and other reptiles, amphibians and sea creatures; he often pushed crocodiles and gators to their limits of tolerance of humans and seemed oblivious to danger; he was a frequent guest on the "Tonight Show", "Regis & Kelly Live" and the Animal Panet cable channel];

John Conte - 90 [actor; starred on stage, film, radio and TV over a long career, mostly in radio; he appeared with Sid Caesar on TV's "Your Show of Shows" and guested on shows including "Bonanza" and "Perry Mason"; he appeared in the film "The Man with the Golden Arm" with Frank Sinatra as 'Drunky'; he started the NBC affiliate station in Palm Springs, California];

Pat Corley - 76 [character actor; best known for his role as barkeep 'Phil' on the "Murphy Brown" television series; he also played a baseball team owner on "Bay City Blues" and coroner Wally Nydorf on "Hill Street Blues"; his films included: "Coming Home", "Against All Odds" and "True Confessions"];

Mickey Hargitay - 80 [body builder; actor; was husband of actress Jayne Mansfield and father of actress Mariska Hargitay; his career somewhat reflected that of fellow body builder Arnold Schwarzenegger on a smaller scale; his films mostly B-films included: "Bloody Pit of Horror", "The Loves of Hercules", "Promises! Promises!" and "Primitive Love"; Schwarzenegger portrayed him in the TV movie "The Jayne Mansfield Story"];

Robert Earl Jones - 96 [actor; father of actor James Earl Jones; began his career on the Broadway stage in "The Hasty Heart"; his best known role was as con man Luther Coleman in "The Sting"; his other film credits included: "Cockfighter", "The Cotton Club" and "Witness"];

Sven Nyquist - 83 [cinematographer; he was one of the great cinematographers and an Oscar winner for "Cries and Whispers" and "Fanny and Alexander"; he worked with the likes of Ingmar Bergman and Woody Allen; his other films included: "Sleepless in Seattle", "Cannery Row". "JFK" and "Crimes and Misdemeanors"];

Edward Albert - 55 [actor; son of actor Eddie Albert and actress Margo; starred in "The Butterflies are Free" opposite Goldie Hawn in his first big film; he appeared on many TV series including: "Falcon Crest", Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" and "Port Charles"; his other films included: "The Greek Tycoon", "Guarding Tess" and "40 Carats"];

William J. "Billy" Mauch - 84 [child actor; one of the famed Mauch Twins with his brother Bobby; starred in "The Prince and the Pauper" in 1937 starring Errol Flynn as Tom Canty (the pauper);  other films included: "White Angel", "Anthony Adverse", "Penrod and Sam" as Penrod, "Penrod and his Twin Brother" & "Penrod’s Double Trouble" with his brother; "The Accused" (1949), "Roseanna McCoy", "Bedtime for Bonzo" and "People Will Talk"];

Freddy Fender - 69 [singer; Tex-Mex crooner with the twangy tenor voice who had hits in both country and pop; his best known hits were: "Before the Next Teardop Falls:, "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" and "Secret Love"; he also appeared in the film "The Milagro Beanfield War" directed by Robert Redford and in 1999 was awarded a Star on Hollywood Boulevard's Walk of Fame];

Herbert B. Leonard - 84 [producer; produced quality TV series such as: "Naked City" and "Route 66" as well as entertainment series including "Rin Tin Tin"; his film credits included: "Popi", "The Perils of Pauline" (1967) and "Going Home" starring Robert Mitchum];

Phyllis Kirk - 79 [actress; best known for her roles in "Two Weeks with Love", "About Face" and "House of Wax"; when her film career waned she turned to the theatre and television;  she co-starred with Peter Lawford on the TV series "The Thin Man" as Nora Charles as well as appearing as guest star on many TV series and game shows as a panelist];

Jane Wyatt - 94 [actress; remembered for her role as the mother, Margaret Anderson on TV's "Father Knows Best" with Robert Young and also as Mr. Spock's mother on "Star Trek" in the various series and films; she also appeared in such film classics as: "Lost Horizon", "None but the Lonely Heart" and "Gentleman's Agreement"; she also appeared on the Broadway stage in the 1930s & 40s];

Arthur Hill - 84 [actor; best known for his role as "Owen Marshal, Counsellor at Law" on that television series and for many great guest appearances on many TV series always in a role of integrity and/or intelligence; also remembered for his role in the film "The Andromeda Strain" and other films including: "A Bridge Too Far", "Harper" and "The Ugly American"];

Paul Mauriat - 81 [orchestra leader; this French conductor sold many recordings of pop songs throughout the world; his greatest hit was his recording of "Love is Blue"; he also had a hit with Petula Clark's "I Will Follow Him"];

Ed Bradley - 65 [journalist; newsman; best known for his work on "60 Minutes"; his impeccable interviewing and reporting skills were rewarded with many awards over his most distinguished career; he had a knack for getting interviews with reclusive and introverted people in the news];

Basil Poledouris - 61 [film composer; one of the greats, he composed often powerful film scores throughout his career; some of his best film scores were: "Conan the Barbarian", "The Hunt for Red October", "Robocop", "Starship Troopers" and the classic mini-series "Lonesome Dove",];

Jack Palance - 87 [actor; one Hollywood's greats, his tough guy image worked for him as villain or hero; nominated for three Oscars and won for "City Slickers" late in his career; his other films included: "Shane", "Sudden Fear", "Panic in the Streets", "Sign of the Pagan", "House of Numbers" and "Halls of Montezuma"; he is also fondly remembered for hosting the TV series "Ripley's Believe It or Not"];

Milton Selzer - 88 [actor; one of the great Jewish character actors; he worked primarily in television guesting on more TV series than any other actor, it would be easier to name the shows he did not appear on than those he did; he also appeared in a number of classic films including: "The Cincinnati Kid", "Shoot to Kill", "Capricorn One" and "Sid and Nancy"; [see: Great Character Actors Page 3];

Bettye Ackerman - 82 [actress; best known for her role as Dr. Maggie Graham on TV's "Ben Casey"; she was the wife of "Ben Casey" co-star Sam Jaffe; her film debut was in "Face of Fire"; he guest starred on many TV series and was a regular on the daytime Soap "Return to Peyton Place"];

Jeremy Slate - 80 [actor; a very familiar face, he appeared as a guest on over 100 TV series; was a regular on the series "The Aquanauts" and the Soap "One Life to Live"; his films included: "Hell's Angels '69", "Girls! Girls,!Girls!", "G.I. Blues", "I'll Take Sweden", "The Devil's Brigade" and "True Grit";];

Philippe Noiret - 53 [actor; French film great starred in over 125 films but was best known for his role in the Foreign classic "Cinema Paradiso"; was awarded 2 Cesars (French version of the Oscar) for his work];

Betty Comden - 89 [lyricist/songwriter; playwright; was surviving half of the team of Comden & Green; her partner Adolph Green died in 2002; best known for their musicals: "On the Town", "Wonderful Town", "Applause", "Hallelujah, Baby!" and the film "Singin' in the Rain"; they won Tony Awards for the latter three musicals and also received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1991];

Emmett Kelly, Jr. - 83 [circus clown; son of the famed Emmett "Weary Willie" Kelly; was probably, after his father, the best known circus clown this side of the commercial Ronald McDonald; like his father he portrayed a hobo clown];

Peter Boyle - 71 [veteran character actor; best known for his role as Frank Barone on TV's "Everybody Loves Raymond" and playing the monster in the comedy "Young Frankenstein"; won an Emmy in 1996 for his excellent guest appearance on the "X-Files"; his films included: "Taxi Driver", "The Candidate" and the "Santa Clause" series; see Great Character Actors Page 4];

Chris Hayward - 81 [cartoon/television writer/creator; one of the geniuses behind the hilarity at Jay Ward Cartoon Studios [Crusader Rabbit, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Fractured Fairy Tales, etc.]; he created the character of Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties; kept the studios on track with its special brand of puns, silliness & satire; also helped create TV's "The Munsters"];

Joe Barbera - 95 [cartoonist/animator; with his partner William Hanna created Hanna-Barbera's cartoon empire featuring such characters as Tom & Jerry, Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear, The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Scooby Doo, Jonny Quest, The Smurfs and many more; their style was simply drawn cartoons styled in the mode of Sitcoms, some familiarly patterned after classic TV series e.g. The Flintstones and The Honeymooners];

Mike Evans - 57 [actor; best known for his role as Lionel Jefferson on both TV's "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons"; he was also the creator of the series "Good Times" and served as a writer on the show; he also starred in the mini-series "Rich Man, Poor Man" and guested on such TV series as "The Streets of San Francisco", "Love, American Style" and "Walker, Texas Ranger"];

James Brown - 73 [legendary soul singer; known as "The Godfather of Soul" and one of the first inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; dubbed the "hardest working man in show business" his performances were unique with brilliantly staged acts involving dance and song; songs included: "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Feel Good", "Please, Please, Please" and "Living in America"];

Frank Campanella- 87 [character actor; was younger brother of actor Joseph Campanella; played mostly tough guys; first role was Mook the Moon Man on TV's "Captain Video and the Rangers" in 1949; movies included: "Dick Tracy", "Pretty Woman" and "Beaches"; guested on numerous TV series including: "St. Elsewhere"; "Maude", "Rockford Files" and "All in the Family"];

Lois Hall - 80 [actress; former leading lady to B-movie western stars Johnny Mack Brown, Charles Starrett and Whip Wilson; starred in serials of the 1940s & 50s; she also appeared in early television on such series as: "The Range Rider" and "The Cisco Kid" and more recently "Six Feet Under" and "Cold Case"];





Yvonne De Carlo - 84 [actress; leading lady who began her career by playing exotic types in films such as: "Salome - Where She Danced", "Song of Scheherazade", "Desert Hawk", "Casbah" and eventually evolved into a beauty in western films: "Frontier Gal", "River Lady" and "Calamity Jane and Sam Bass". She was best known for later role as Lily Munster in television's 1964-66 "The Munsters" series; her other films included: "The Ten Commandments" as Moses wife Sephora, "Band of Angels", "McClintock" and "American Gothic"];

Carlo Ponti - 94 [film producer; the Italian producer was best known as the spouse of actress Sophia Loren who was ostracized by the Catholic curch for marrying a divorcee; he produced international films including: "Dr. Zhivago", Fellini's "La Strada", "Blow-Up", "The Cassandra Crossing" and "The Verdict"];

Darlene Conley - 72 [actress; best known for her role as fashion mogul Sally Spectra on the television soap opera "The Bold and the Beautiful"; she also appeared on the shows "Days of Our Lives", "General Hospital" and "The Young and the Restless"; her films included: "The Birds" and "Valley of the Dolls"];

Denny Doherty - 66 [folk/pop singer and songwriter; member of the pop/rock quartet The Mamas and Papas; along with John and Michelle Phillips and Cass Elliot had many popular hits including: "California Dreaming", "Monday, Monday", "Words of Love", "Go Where You Wanna Go" and "Dedicated to the One I Love"; The Mamas and Papas were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1995];

Art Buchwald - 81 [journalist/columnist/humorist; was also a frequent television talk show guest; winner of a Pulitzer Prize; he was admired by journalist colleagues, politicians and Presidents and the general public for his wit and humor];

Ron Carey - 71 [comedian; character actor; best known for his role as the ambitious, precocious Officer Carl Levitt on the "Barney Miller" TV series; a member of one of TV's best comedy ensembles along with Steve Landesberg, Abe Vigoda, Jack Soo, Ron Glass, Max Gail and straightman Hal Linden; his films included: "Fatso", "History of the World - Part 1" and "The Out of Towners"; he also did stand up comedy];

Bob Carroll Jr. - 88 [comedy writer; anyone who ever watched "I Love Lucy" has seen his name, along with writing partner Madelyn Pugh (Davis), on the credits; they were the main writers for the series; they worked on all of Lucille Ball's sitcoms including "The Lucy Show"; they also wrote the screenplay for the film "Yours, Mine and Ours" and produced the "Alice" TV series with Linda Lavin];


Gian Carlo Menotti - 95 [composer; opera director; was definitely the greatest living composer of operas; best known for creating the classic Christmas opera "Amahl and the Night Visitors", the story of a poor, lame peasant boy and his protective mother who are visited by the Magi who are searching for the infant Christ child; the first opera ever commissioned for television by NBC and in English, it was both entertaining and musically satisfying and, according to Menotti, inspired by Bosch's painting 'The Adoration of the Magi'; Menotti also won two Pulitzer Prizes for his operas "The Consul" and "The Saint of Bleecker Street"; he wrote his first opera, "The Death of Pierrot", at age 11];

Lee Bergere - 88 [character actor; starred on stage and television; best known for his role on the original Star Trek series episode "The Savage Curtain" as Abraham Lincoln who aided Captain Kirk in a fight against Genghis Khan and a Klingon; was a regular on "Dynasty" as Joseph Aynders; he guest starred on many TV series including: "Falcon Crest" and "Hot L Baltimore"];

Tige Andrews - 86 [character actor; best known for his role as Captain Greer on "The Mod Squad" TV series and as Lt. Russo on "The Detectives" along with Robert Taylor; a most prolific, veteran character actor, he guested on many TV series over the years; he appeared in the film "Mister Roberts" and other John Ford films];

Elizabeth Tashjian - 94 [museum curator; nut expert; raconteur; she was lifted from obscurity by Johnny Crason to guest on his "Tonight Show" and became one of his favorites; she owned and operated The Nut Museum in Old Lyme, Connecticut and was an expert on all varities of nuts and thusly the perfect foil for Carson; this appearance led to many others on Letterman, Leno, The Chevy Chase Show and others; she was quite charming and a perfect talk show guest];

Billy Henderson - 67 [rock musician; singer; co-founder of the R&B group 'The Spinners'; the group had hits including: "I'll Be All Around", "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love", "One of a Kind (Love Affair)" and "The Rubberband Man"];

Barbara McNair - 72 [singer; actress; TV Host; beautiful, sultry and extremely talented she began as a nightclub singer and graduated from there to the Broadway stage, television and films; in 1969 she had her own TV variety show; few realized she was black with her light skin;  she broke many show biz barriers; she had a recurring role on  "General Hospital" and guested on many other series; as a singer she recorded albums and appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show"; her films included: "Change of Habit" as a nun, "They Call Me Mister Tibbs!" and "If He Hollers Let Him Go!"];

Frankie Laine - 93 [singer; one of the last of the great crooners of the 1940s & 50s; with his booming baritone voice and energetic style he created many memorable hit songs including: "Mule Train", "Rawhide", "I Believe", "Cool Water", "That Lucky Old Sun", "Granada" and "Moonlight Gambler" to name a few; he began as a nighclub singer and soon became a star selling millions of recordings; he sang everything from blues, jazz and country to popular songs];

Anna Nicole Smith - 39 [Playboy centerfold; actress; TV personality; with platinum blonde bleached hair, tons of makeup and an extroverted demeanor she tried to emulate her idol Marilyn Monroe and sadly found the same abuse by a starved, "tabloidized" media that Monroe did; she appeared on every tabloid TV show, including her own reality TV series, as she craved attention; her films included: "The Hudsucker Proxy", "Naked Gun 33-1/3: The Final Insult"; her death suited the tabloids with her final media frenzy];

Ray Evans - 92 [songwriter; with his partner Jay Livingston co-wrote 3 Oscar winning hits and many other great standards; "Que Sera, Sera" won an Oscar from Hitchcock's "The Man who Never Was", "Buttons and Bows" from "The Paleface" starring Bob Hope and "Mona Lisa" from the film "Captain Carey, M.D." which starred Alan Ladd; they received many other nominations as well; they wrote the themes for the TV series "Mr. Ed" and "Bonanza"; other songs they wrote together included: "Silver Bells", "Dear Heart" and "Tammy" from the film "Tammy and the Bachelor"];

Janet Blair - 85 [actress; musical-comedy star; popular in the 1940s, the vivacious actress was probably best known for her title role in the film "My Sister Eileen"; her films included: "Once Upon a Time", "The Fuller Brush Man", "Broadway", "The Fabulous Dorseys", "The Black Arrow" and "Public Pigeon No. 1"; she also starred on live TV in the early 1950s and off and on up to the 1970s when she co-starred with Henry Fonda on the series "The Smith Family"];

Walker Edmiston - 81 [actor; voiceover actor; puppeteer; best known as Ernie the elf in the Keebler TV commercials; also did puppetry and voices for the 1950s TV show "Time for Beany"; as an actor he appeared on "Gunsmoke", "Big Valley", "Mission: Impossible", "Batman", "Dukes of Hazzard" and "Knots Landing"];

Bruce Bennett nee: Herman Brix - 100 [actor; as Herman Brix he was one of the first actors to portray Tarzan in 1935; as Bruce Bennett he appeared in such classic films as "Treasure of the Sierra Madre", "Mildred Pierce", "Sahara" and "Dark Passage" as well as "The Officer and the Lady" and "Atlantic Convoy"; he also appeared in many serials in the 1930s and 40s];

Bobby Rosengarden - 82 [jazz drummer; band leader; this top percussionist worked with many superstars of classical music, rock, pop and jazz in the recording studio, but he was best known as the bandleader on TV's "Dick Cavett Show"; he wrorked with the likes of Jimi Hendryx, Igor Starvinsky, Harry Belafonte and Arlo Guthrie];

Richard Jeni - 45 [standup comic; best known for his many appearances on "The Tonight Show"; also appeared in many HBO Comedy Specials; a popular fixture on the comedy club circuit he also appeared in the films: "The Mask" with Jim Carrey and "The Aristocrats"];

Betty Hutton - 86 [actress/singer; vivacious blonde star of musicals of the 1940s & 50s; best known for her role in Cecil B. DeMille's Academy Award winning film "The Greatest Show on Earth" her other films included: "Star Spangled Rhythm", "Miracle of Morgan's Creek", "Incendiary Blonde", "Annie Get Your Gun" and "The Perils of Pauline"; starred in her own TV series in 1959 "The Betty Hutton Show" as well as guesting on such shows as "Burke's Law", "Gunsmoke" and "Baretta"; she retired from show business and worked as a housekeeper in a priest's rectory for many years];

Gareth Hunt- 65 [actor; best known for his role on the 1970s revival of the "Avengers" TV series "The New Avengers" as Mike Gambit; got his start on the series "Upstairs, Downstairs" as footman Frederick Norton; he also appeared on other British series including "East Enders", "Doctors" and "New Tricks"];

Stuart Rosenberg - 79 [film & TV director; best known for his film "Cool Hand Luke"; also directed the films: "Brubaker", "Voyage of the Damned" and "The Laughing Policeman"; he also directed TV episodes of "The Untouchables", "Naked City", "The Defenders" and "Twilight Zone"];

Calvert DeForest aka Larry 'Bud' Melman - 85 [cult figure; TV personality; non-professional actor who became beloved cult figure Larry 'Bud' Melman on TV's "Latenight with David Letterman" introducing skits, interviewing man-on-the-street types, performing stunts and appearing in skits; his troubles reading cue cards and memorizing lines were both endearing and hilarious; he became the symbol and representative of both "Latenight" and "The Late Show with David Letterman"];

Carol Richards - 84 [singer; with Bing Crosby popularized the classic Christmas song "Silver Bells"; also dubbed voices of non-singing actresses in a number of films including "Silk Stockings" and "Brigadoon"; she was a regular on TV's "The Bob Crosby Show" in the 1950s];

Herman Stein - 91 [film composer; a prolific composer of film scores primarily for low budget B movies, some of them classicss; his scores include; "The Creature from the Black Lagoon"; "Tarantula", "The Incredible Shrinking Man"; "It Came from Outer Space" and "This Island Earth"; he also wrote scores for the "Francis the Talking Mule" and "Ma & Pa Kettle" films];

Lynn Merrick - 85 [actress; a fixture in many of the B-Westerns of the 1940s, she often co-starred with Don 'Red' Barry including "Two Gun Sheriff and "Sweethearts of the Sage"; she also starred in films such as: "The Blonde from Brooklyn", "Meet Miss Bobby Sox", "Voice of the Whistler", "Boston Blackie Booked on Suspicion" and "I Love Trouble"];

Bob Clark - 67 [film director; he directed two unlikely film classics: "Porky's" a sexy coming of age film and Jean Shepherd's "A Christmas Story" a beloved Christmas fable of life in the 1940s; his other films were: "Turk 182", "Rhinestone", Jean Shepherd's "It Runs In the Family" aka "A Summer Story" and "Loose Cannons"];

Calvin Lockhart - 72 [actor; strikingly handsome, Bahamas born, he appeared in the films "Uptown Saturday Night" and "Cotton Comes to Harlem"; other films included: "Wild at Heart", "Coming to America" and "Predator 2; he also had a recurring role on TV's "Dynasty" and appeared in Broadway musicals including "Reggae"];

Edward Mallory - 76 [actor; best known for his role as Dr.Bill Horton on the TV soap "Days of Our Lives"; he also directed soap operas and produced documentaries for The History Channel and A&E];

Stan Daniels - 72 [TV writer/Producer; he earned a total of 8 Emmy Awards for his work on "Taxi" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"; he wrote for "The Bill Cosby Show" and "The Dean Martin Show" prior to his work on MTM and he co-created and wrote for both "Taxi" and the MTM spinoff "Phyllis" starring Cloris Leachman; other shows in which he was involved were "Roc" in the 1990s and "Lily" starring Brenda Vaccaro];

Kurt Vonnegut - 84 [author; cultural Icon; wrote many novels including "Slaughterhouse Five" a surreal time travel saga which was made into a film in the 1970s];

Roscoe Lee Browne - 81 [veteran Afro-American character actor; a popular comic actor who was equally adept at drama his films included: "Topaz", "The Liberation of L.B. Jones", "Up Tight", "The Cowboys" with John Wayne and voice work in "Babe"; he starred on TV's "Soap", "Falcon Crest" and guest shots on "Cosby Show", "Law and Order" and "A Different World"; See: Great Character Actors Page 9];

Barry Nelson - 89 [actor; a handsome leading man, he appeared in many films and guested on numerous TV shows from the 1950s thru the early 1990s; he was the first actor to portray James Bond on television in 1954 in a one hour version of "Casino Royale"; his other films included: "Shadow of the Thin Man", "Rio Rita", "Bataan", "A Yank on the Burma Road", "A Time to Kill", "Airport" and "The Shining"];

Kitty Carlisle aka Kitty Carlisle Hart - 96 [actress; game show panelist; philanthropist; television icon; one of my favorite television personalities ever, she was probably best known as a panelist on TV's "To Tell the Truth" but she also appeared in films including: the Marx Brothers' "A Night at the Opera", "She Loves Me Not", "Here Is My Heart" and "Radio Days"; married to playwright Moss Hart, she was also active in fund raising for the arts and will always be remembered as one of Show Business' Grand Dames];

Tommy Newsom - 78 [musician; backup bandleader; dubbed as 'Mr. Excitement" he subbed often for Doc Severinsen as 'The Tonight Show's' bandleader and was the perfect foil for host Johnny Carson; a competent saxophonist he worked his way up from band member to assistant music director and retired when Carson retired];

Dabbs Greer - 90 [character actor; his career ran from 1949 thru 2003 encompassing radio drama, films, stage and television; he's probably best remembered for his role as Rev. Alden on the TV series "Little House on the Prairie"; he was the original Chester on "Gunsmoke" on radio; his films included:"The Damned Don't Cry", "Father's Little Dividend", "Monkey Business" with Cary Grant, "Shenandoah" and "The Green Mile"; see: Great Character Actors Page 4];

Tom Poston - 85 [actor; comedian; one of Steve Allen's Original Men on the Street along with Don Knotts, Louis Nye, Dayton Allen and Bill Dana; also best known for his roles on both "Newhart" and "The Bob Newhart Show", the latter as 'The Peeper'; he also had roles on "Mork and Mindy" and "Dream On" as well as a panelist on "To Tell the Truth"; he recently married his co-star on The Bob Newhart Show, Suzanne Pleshette];

Jack Valenti - 85 [Hollywood Lobbyist; Innovator; Presidential Aide; he is best known as both President Kennedy's & President Johnson's aide as well as the creator of the Motion Pictures Rating system; a fixture at many Academy Awards presentations and very familiar with his fastidious dress style and head of silver hair];

Gordon Scott - 80 [actor; body builder; best known for his role as Tarzan in the 1950s; his portrayal of Tarzan was as a handsome, well-educated man who spoke fluent English in "Tarzan's Fight for Life", "Tarzan the Magnificent", "Tarzan and the Lost Safari" and "Tarzan's Great Adventure"; his other films included: "Hercules", "Buffalo Bill, Hero of the Far West" and "The Tramplers" ];

Charles Nelson Reilly - 76 [comedian; actor; TV personality; best known for his appearances on television game shows, most notably "The Match Game"; also was a frequent guest on talk shows especially The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson"; in later years he returned to acting in theatre where he had won a Tony award in 1962 for his role in "How to Succeed in Busines...."];

Don Herbert - 89 [TV Personality; kids show host; best known to any child of the 1950s as "Mr. Wizard"; he fascinated kids by demonstrating scientific principles with every day objects and most likely inspired many of today's scientists towards their careers; he made Saturday morning kids TV something very special; amazingly he had no advanced science degrees; his show, "Watch Mr. Wizard" won a Peabody award; he also appeared as Mr. Wizard on many TV talk shows including "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson"];

Mala Powers - 75 [actress; one of the foremost actresses of the 1950s; best known for her role as Roxanne opposite Jose Ferrer in "Cyrano de Bergerac"; her other films included: "Edge of Doom", "Rose of Cimarron", "City Beneath the Sea", "City That Never Sleeps" and "Storm Rider"; after he film career waned she became active on radio, stage and television];

Donna King Conkling - 88 [singer; one of the singing 'King Sisters' group (Maxine, Luise, Donna & Alyce King) who gained fame in the 1930s & 40s; appeared with her sisters and their families on TV's "The King Family Show" in the 1960s; the sisters performed with Artie Shaw's band and also appeared in films including: "Meet the People", "Cuban Pete" and "Sing Your Worries Away"];

Joel Siegel - 63 [film critic; worked for ABC News and Good Morning America; as entertainment editor for GMA he interviewed many stars of yesterday and today; he also was nominated for a Tony Award for writing the 'book' for the Broadway musical "The First"];

Art Stevens - 92 [animator; artist; worked for Disney Studios for over 40 years; he started as an animator on "Fantasia" in 1940 and directed both "The Fox and the Hound" and "The Rescuers"; his credits as an animator also included: "Peter Pan", "101 Dalmatians", "Robin Hood" and "Mary Poppins"];

Boots Randolph - 80 [musician, saxophonist; famous for his recording of "Yakety Sax" which was immortalized by comedian Benny Hill on his television show; he performed in Nashville night clubs for over 30 years, recorded more than 40 albums and toured for years with fellow artists Chet Atkins and Floyd Cramer; he performed on albums by the likes of Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Brenda Lee and Al Hirt];

Beverly Sills - 78 [coloratura soprano; American diva; Brooklyn born, she became America's own Diva bringing opera into the mainstream; nicknamed 'Bubbles' from birth, she appeared often on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson; she served 10 years as general director of the New York Opera];

Charles Lane - 102 [character actor; one of the most recognizable character actors ever and one of the greatest, he appeared in over 200 films and hundreds of TV series; probably the best curmudgeon in films and TV; his films included: "It's a Wonderful Life", "You Can't Take It With You", "Tarzan's New York Adventure", "Arsenic and Old Lace", "The Mating Game" and "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World"; on TV he appeared on such series as "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Bewitched", "Twilight Zone", "Perry Mason" and "Get Smart"; see Great Character Actors Page 2];

Kerwin Matthews - 81 [actor; best known for his role as Sinbad in the Ray Harryhausen classic film "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad"; his handsome looks landed him roles in films including: "The Devil at 4 O'Clock", "Man on a String", "Pirates of Blood", "Battle Beneath the Earth","The Three Worlds of Gulliver", "Jack the Giant Killer" and "The Waltz King" as Johann Strauss, his favorite role];

 Tammy Faye Bakker Messner - 65 [Televangelist; TV personality; got her start with her ex-husband Jim Bakker on the PTL program; when her husband got in trouble with PTL funding and elicit affairs they divorced but Tammy was a survivor and kept her spirits up by writing acting and pursuing TV appearances on talk and reality shows; she remarried Roe Messner in 1993; her charm paid off with appearances on TV’s “Roseanne” and “The Drew Carey Show”];

Laszlo Kovacs - 74 [film cinematographer; renowned for his work in films including: “Easy Rider”, “Five Easy Pieces”, “Paper Moon”; “What’s Up Doc?” and “My Best Friend’s Wedding”; he and his lifelong friend Vilmos Zsigmond (both natives of Hungary) were two of Hollywood’s best cinematographers];

Laura Devon - 76 [actress; enjoyed a brief acting career in the 1960s, appearing in such films as: "Red Line 7000", "Gunn" with Craig Stevens, "A Covenant of Death" and "Goodbye Charlie"; she also appeared in the TV series: "Route 66", "Twilight Zone" and "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour"];

Ingmar Bergman - 89 [legendary Swedish film director; his films included: "Cries and Whispers", "Wild Strawberries", "The Seventh Seal" and "Fanny and Alexander"; was honored by the Motion Picture Academy with the Irving Thalberg Award in 1970; and won the Best Foreign Film Oscar three times for: "The Virgin Spring", "Through a Glass Darkly" and "Fanny and Alexander" ];

Tom Snyder- 71 [talk show host; TV personality; his were the most successful and enjoyable talk shows ever from "The Tomorrow Show" on NBC thru to "The Late, Late Show with Tom Snyder on CBS; he had a knack for drawing the best out of his guests and was also a great audience for them; he was known primarily for his boisterous guffaw and his 70s hairstyles and sideburns];

Michel Serrault - 79 [actor; French film star best known for his hilarious role as a drag queen with a heart in the classic film comedy "La Cage Aux Folles"; he also repeated the role in two sequels; his other films included: "La Enfants Du Pays" (Hometown Boys), "Artemisia" as father of a female artist, "Joyeux Noel" and "Le Papillion"];

Michelangelo Antonioni - 94 [Italian film director; best known as director of the film classics "Blow Up" and "L' Avventura", the latter considered his masterpiece and winning at Cannes; his other films included: "Beyond the Clouds", "Story of a Love Affair", "The Outcry", "Zabriskie Point", "The Passenger" with Jack Nicholson and "L'Eclisse" another winner at Cannes];

Tommy Makem - 74 [Irish folk singer; best known for his work with The Clancy Brothers singing group; his smooth but raspyish voice timbre was perfection for great Celtic music; the group was annually booked in different cities on St. Patrick's Day; they were best known for their hit song "The Unicorn" but all their Irish tunes were fantastic and they sold millions of albums; Makem and the group were pioneers of Irish folk music and brought it into the mainstream];

Lee Hazlewood - 78 [singer; songwriter; record producer; best known for writing, performing on and producing the recording/song "These Boots Are Made for Walking" an iconic record of the 1960s with Nancy Sinatra; he had a fine masculine, baritone singing voice but mostly worked as songwriter/producer];

James Callahan - 76 [character actor; a very familiar Irish face in many TV series from the late 50s through to the present, he was best known for his recurring role as the curmudgeonly Grandpa Powell on TV's "Charles in Charge"; he appeared in films also including: "Lady Sings the Blues", "Outlaw Blues" and his last film "Born"];

Merv Griffin - 82 [Television Innovator; entrepreneur; producer; Talk Show Host; band singer; actor; started out as a radio host and band singer with the Freddie Martin band; had a big hit recording of "I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts" in the 1940s and later acted in films; he created the hit Game shows Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune among others; had his own extremely popular talk show "The Merv Griffin Show" from the 1960s thru the late 1980s; of late he was quite successful in real estate and continued producing];

Stanley Myron Handelman - 77 [comedian; Brooklyn born Jewish comic was popular on TV in the late 1960s and early 70s; hid trademarks were a flat cap and oversized glasses along with a cerebral comedy style; he appeared on such shows as: "The Ed Sullivan Show", "The Tonight Show", "The Merv Griffin Show" and "The Dean Martin Show" where he got his start on television; he also was the opening act for Frank Sinatra and was a close friend of Rodney Dangerfield for whom he wrote comedy material];

Myoshi Umeki - 78 [actress; Oscar Winner; Japanese born, she radiated charm, shyness and innocence in her Oscar Winning role as Katsumi opposite Red Buttons (also an Oscar winner) in "Sayonara" in 1957; she was also known for her role as Mrs. Livingston on TV's "The Courtship of Eddie's Father" with Bill Bixby; she started her career as a nightclub singer in her native Japan; her other films included: "Cry for Happy", "The Horizontal Lieutenant" and "A Girl Named Tamiko"];

Luciano Pavarotti - 71 [charismatic Opera singer; actor; the world's most beloved Opera performer who charmed audiences everywhere and brought opera to the masses; his beautiful tenor voice added verve and class to popular music as well and his stage presence was awesome; he made one film "Yes, Giorgio"];

Marcia Mae Jones - 83 [actress; former child star; worked with the likes of Shirley Temple, Jackie Cooper, Bonita Granville and Jane Withers; appeared in probably the best version of "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" as Becky Thatcher with Tommy Kelly; her other films included: "The Champ", "Heidi", "The Little Princess", "The Garden of Allah" and a small role in "The Way We Were"; in the 1950s she appeared on many TV series including: "I Married Joan", "The Cisco Kid", "My Three Sons", "Peyton Place", "Mister Ed" and "Cannon" and later she had a recurring role on the Soap "General Hospital"];

Jane Wyman - 90 [actress; popular star to generations; Best Actress Oscar winner in 1949 for "Johnny Belinda"; she was married to Ronald Reagan until their divorce in 1948, they had 2 children Michael and Maureen; her films also included: "The Lost Weekend", "The Glass Menagerie", "The Yearling", "The Blue Veil", "Magnificent Obsession", "All That Heaven Allows" and "So Big"; she starred on TV's "Falcon Crest" in the 1980s and also guested on "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" as Jane Seymour's mother as well as many other TV series including: "Wagon Train", "Checkmate" and "Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law"];

Ralph Kent - 68 [artist; known at Disney as "Keeper of the Mouse"; as an 8 yr old boy from Buffalo, N.Y. he wrote a letter to Walt Disney asking for a job, Disney's reply suggested he study art and practice drawing as there were no jobs for 8 yr olds. He took the advice and made his dream come true after being hired by Disney as an art consultant; he eventually became in charge of marketing and protecting the 'Disney Image' having say over Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters' products and imagery];

Percy Rodrigues - 89 [actor; Canadian black actor of Portuguese and African heritage had breakthrough roles on TV's "Peyton Place" as neurosurgeon Dr. Harry Miles and on "Star Trek" as a high ranking Commodore; he was notorious for fighting for authoritarian or professional type roles; his films included: "The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter", "Come Back Charleston Blue" and "Deadly Blessing"; he also appeared in the Mini-Series "Roots: The Next Generations"; his rich baritone voice led to much work as Narrator in films and television];

Brett Somers - 83 [actress/comedian; game show panelist; best known as a regular on TV's "The Match Game" with Gene Rayburn; she was married to actor Jack Klugman in 1953, they separated in 1974 but were never divorced; she appeared often with Klugman on his television series "The Odd Couple" as his ex-wife];

Alice Ghostley - 81 [character actress; one of the great character actresses, she was best known for her role as shy witch Esmeralda on TV"s popular "Bewitched" serires and for her role as Bernice on the series "Designing Women"; she began in theatre and won a Tony Award in the 1960s for a role in "The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window"; she guest starred on numerous TV series and her films included: "To Kill A Mockingbird", "The Graduate" and "Viva, Max!"; See: Great Character Actors Page 2];

Marcel Marceau - 84 [world famous mime; made many appearances on TV variety shows: "The Ed Sullivan Show", "Hollywood Palace", etc.; best known for his white-faced character Bip; also appeared in films including: "Babarella" and Mel Brooks' "Silent Movie"];

Michael Evans - 87 [actor; British born stage and screen actor probably best known for his role as Col. Douglas Austin on the soap "The Young and the Restless"; he guested on many TV series including "The Bob Newhart Show", "Mannix", "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." "Combat" and "Dr. Kildare"; his films included: "Bye Bye Birdie", "The Plainsman", "Time After Time" and "The Sword and the Sorcerer"];

Lois Maxwell - 80 [actress; best known for her role as Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond films from "Dr. No" thru to "A View to A Kill" in 1985; Canadian born, she won a Golden Globe Award as Most Promising Newcomer in 1948 for appearing in a Shirley Temple film "That Hagen Girl"; her other films included: "The Dark Past", "Crime Doctor's Diary", "Lady in the Fog", "Aida", "Lolita" and "The Fourth Angel" in 2001];

George Grizzard - 79 [actor; although primarily a stage actor, he occasionally appeared in films and as a guest on TV series including: "The Millionaire", "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "Twilight Zone", "Ben Casey", "Hawaii 5-0", "Murder, She Wrote" and "Law and Order"; his films included: "From the Terrace", "Advise and Consent", "Warning Shot", "Comes A Horseman", "Wonder Boys" and "Flags of Our Fathers"];

Jimmy Hutmaker - 75 [folk hero; was the inspiration for The Rolling Stones classic song "You Can't Always Get What You Want"; colorful Excelsior, Minnesota 'town character' known by everyone in the area as 'Mr. Jimmy' always smoking a cigar, talking to everyone and anyone; Mick Jagger on tour in Excelsior in 1964, met him in the town drugstore while ordering a cherry coke; Mr. Jimmy pointed out that it wasn't a cherry coke and muttered the line 'you can't always get what you want' inspiring Jagger's song];

Teresa Brewer - 76 [singer; began in pop music in the 1950s where her biggest hit was "Music, Music, Music"; her bubbly, perky personality and squeaky, but smooth, voice brought her great popularity and fame; she switched to jazz music in the 1970s];

Carol Bruce - 87 [actress; she gained fame late in her long career as 'Mama Carlson' on TV's "WKRP in Cincinnati"; she began in theatre on Broadway in the 1940s and starred in films in that era including: "This Woman is Mine", "Behind the Eight Ball" and "Keep 'em Flyin'" with Abbott & Costello; her other films included: "American Gigolo" and "Planes, Trains and Automobiles"; she also guest starred on many TV series];

Joey Bishop - 89 [comedian; actor; talk show host; he was the last survivor of Hollywood's 'Rat Pack' which included: Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. and Peter Lawford; he appeared with them in "Ocean's 11" and "Texas Across the River" as well as starring in other films including: "The Naked and the Dead", "Onionhead", "Who's Minding the Mint" and "Valley of the Dolls; he had a sitcom, "The Joey Bishop Show" (1961-64), for a time and later had his own latenight talk show with Regis Philbin as his announcer in 1967 thru 1969];

Deborah Kerr - 86 [actress; was a screen legend around the world; elegant, extremely classy and sophisticated the British born actress scored big in numerous popular films including: "From Here to Eternity", "The King and I", "Heaven Knows Mr. Allison", "The Black Narcissus", "An Affair to Remember", "Tea and Sympathy", "Major Barbara", "Julius Caesar", "Separate Tables" and "Edward My Son" receiving numerous Best Actress Oscar nominations; she was awarded a Special Honorary Oscar in 1994];

Lonny Chapman - 87 [actor; founding artistic director of the Group Repertory Theatre in North Hollywood; he began his acting career on stage in New York and later moved to Los Angeles where he appeared on numerous TV series and films including: "Young at Heart", "Baby Doll", "The Birds", "Take the Money and Run", "The Reivers", "Norma Rae", "Reindeer Games" and "The Hunted"];

Robert J. "Bobby" Mauch - 86 [child actor; with his brother Billy were billed as The Mauch Twins; best known for his role as Prince Edward in 1937’s "The Prince and the Pauper" with Errol Flynn and his brother Billy; his other films included: "Penrod and His Twin Brother" & "Penrod’s Double Trouble" with Billy and "Sons of the Plains", "Football Rodeo" and "I'll Tell the World"];

Porter Waggoner - 80 [singer; country music star; sang great duets with Dolly Parton; his solo songs included: "Green, Green Grass of Home", "Please Don't Stop Loving Me", "Wagonmaster", "Misery Loves Company"; was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2003];

Robert Goulet - 73 [singer; actor; began in Broadway musicals, most particularly "Camelot", and later produced recordings of the popular songs from them; made many TV appearances on variety shows mostly, including: "The Ed Sullivan Show", "Hollywood Palace" and "The Tonight Show"; he also appeared on dramas and sitcoms and in films including: "Naked Gun 2-1/2", "Gay Purr-ee" and "Atlantic City"; he also continued on Broadway most recently in "La Cage Aux Folles"];

Friedman Paul Erhardt - 63 [Chef/TV personality; known as 'Chef Tell' he was the first of the barrage of television chefs and cooking artists to share their craft on TV; he appeared in his own syndicated series as well as regular stints on talk shows including: "Live with Regis and Kathhy Lee"; he earned the nickname 'Tell' after appearing in a play as William Tell];

Lillian Ellison aka 'The Fabulous Moolah' - 84 [wrestler; TV entertainer; her professional wrestling career lasted over 50 years into the early 1990s; was the first woman inducted into the Professional Wrestlers Hall of Fame; although she was portrayed as a really tough dame, she was quite charming and cordial in TV interviews; she adopted a 17 yr old little person, Katie Glass, as her daughter and trained her as wrestler];

Thomas W. Dawes - 64 [musician; composer; headed the rock group "Cyrkle" which had 2 top 10 hits "Red Rubber Ball" written by Paul Simon and "Turn Down Day"; he wrote commercial jingles for a time including Alka Seltzer's famous "Plop, Plop, Fizz, Fizz" and later turned to more seriious endeavors including co-writing book, music and lyrics to the musical "Talk of the Town" about the famed literary group 'Algonquin Round Table'];

George Osmond - 90 [show business manager; patriarch of the singing Osmond Family, including the Osmond Brothers, Donnie & Marie and Jimmy Osmond; he originally worked in real estate, insurance sales and as a postmaster in Ogden, Utah; he was also active in the Mormon Church; with his wife he formed The Children's Miracle Network in honor of his two eldest sons, Virl & Tom who were hearing impaired; the Osmond Brothers: Wayne, Merrill, Jay and Alan began singing as a Barbershop Quartet at Disneyland and were later joined by Donnie & Jimmy and were managed by George];

Laraine Day - 87 [actress; popular in the 1940s and '50s this beautiful brunette was born La Raine Johnson but later changed her name to honor her drama teacher Elias Day; she was featured in the Dr. Kildare films with Lew Ayres as 'Nurse Mary Lamont' and in a series of westerns with George O'Brien initially and later in films such as "The High and the Mighty"; she also guested in many TV series and as a panelist on game shows including "I've Got A Secret"];

Delbert Mann - 78 [director; best known for his Oscar winning film of Paddy Chayevsky's "Marty" and "The Bachelor Party"; his other films included: "Desire Under the Elms", "Separate Tables", "Dark at the Top of the Stairs", "A Gathering of Eagles" and "Dear Heart"; he later turned to TV movies of the classics e.g. "David Copperfield", "Kidnapped" and the notorious TV version of "Heidi" which gained fame for cutting off a nail-biting football game to go on the air];

Ronnie Burns - 72 [actor; handsome son of George Burns and Gracie Allen; appeared as himself on their show; also starred in his own TV series "Happy" in 1960 plus other series including: "The Honeymooners", "The Jack Benny Show" and "Playhouse 90"];

Monty Westmore - 84 [makeup artist; third generation member of the famed Westmore family of Hollywood makeup artists, he worked on over 100 films and often worked closely with Joan Crawford and Paul Newman; he worked on films such as "The Towering Inferno, "Jurassic Park", "Shawshank Redemption", "Stand By Me", "Star Trek: Insurrection","Chaplin", Se7en" and "Hook"; on TV he worked for 7 years on "The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet"];

Sigrid Valdis - 72 [actress;  best known for her role as Col. Klink's secretary on TV's "Hogan's Heroes"; her character was Col. Hogan's (Bob Crane's) love interest on the show and the couple actually married in real life; besides acting in other TV series e.g. "The Wild, Wild West", she appeared in films including: "Marriage on the Rocks", "The Venetian Affair" and "Our Man Flint"];

Dick Wilson - 91 [character actor; although he started acting in movies & TV he became best known as the pop icon "Mr. Whipple" in the 'don't squeeze the Charmin' TV commercials; he guest starred on such TV series as "Adventures of Jim Bowie", "Sergeant Preston of the Yukon", "Wagon Train", "The Untouchables", "Perry Mason" and many others; his films include: "The Tattered Dress", "Diary of a Madman", "Our Man Flint", "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken", "Caprice" and "The Incredible Shrinking Woman"];

Michael Blodgett - 68 [actor; author/screenwriter; best known as an actor for his role as Lance Rocke in the 1970 cult film "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" which was written by film critic Roger Ebert; he also appeared in the films: "40 Guns to Apache Pass", "The Trip", "There Was a Crooked Man" and "The Carey Treatment"; he hosted local TV shows in Los Angeles in the 1970s and later in the 1980s wrote novels and screenplays including the films "Run", "Turner & Hooch" and "Rent-a-Cop"];

Evel Knievel - 69 [daredevil; American Icon; known for his outlandish daredevil stunts on his motorcycle; jumping over Grand Canyon, Caesar's Palace fountains in Las Vegas, lines of trucks, cars or buses and oftimes missing resulting in injuries and over 35 broken bones; he was a showman in the tradition of Phineas T. Barnum, Houdini and others];

Jeanne Bates - 53 [actress; this veteran actress' career spans almost 50 years; she starred in "The Phantom" movie serial in 1943 as the heroine through 1950s TV shows and soaps, guest shots on TV shows of the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s as well as films including "Grand Canyon", Die Hard 2" and later "Mulholland Drive" in 2001 and "That 70s Show" in 2002;];

Hollis Alpert- 91 [author; film critic; this influential film critic was a co-founder of the National Society of Film Critics, which was open to critics from all media, and freelanced as critic for various publications then later was named main critic for The Saturday Review; he also wrote biographies of The Barrymores, Fellini, etc. as well as books on Broadway Theatre and films];

Marit Allen - 66 [movie costume designer; she created costumes for such diverse films as: "Ride With the Devil", "The Hulk", "Brokeback Mountain", "Little Shop of Horrors", "Eyes Wide Shut", "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels", "Mrs. Doubtfire" and this year's "La Vie en Rose" as well as the upcoming "Justice League of America"];

Ike Turner - 76 [singer/musician; Rock & Roll pioneer; was married to Tina Turner and launched her career; member of the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame; despite his faults and destructive behavior he was considered a Rock Icon];

Floyd 'Red Crow' Westerman - 71 [actor; musician/folk singer; activist; he was best known as the wise and warmhearted chief, Ten Bears in the film classic "Dances with Wolves; born on a South Dakota Indian Reservation and educated at North College there, as a folk singer he performed with the likes of Jackson Brown, Willie Nelson and Bonnie Raitt as he considered himself a musician first and acting came second; on television he was a regular on "Walker, Texas Ranger" as Uncle Ray Firewalker and "Dharma & Greg" as George Little Fox; his other films included: "Renegade", "The Doors", "Clearcut", "500 Nations" (mini-series), "The Brave", "Grey Owl" and "Hidalgo"; he guested on many TV series including: "The X-Files", "Roseanne", "Northern Exposure", "Judging Amy", "MacGyver" and "Murder, She Wrote"];

Dan Fogelberg - 56 [singer; songwriter; he was known for his beautiful vocals, inspirational subject matter and fine instrumental work; his album "The Innocent Age" rendered 3 hit songs "Leader of the Band", "Hard to Say" and "Same Old Lang Syne"; his most recent release was "Full Circle" in 2003];

Jack Linkletter - 70 [announcer/game show host; the son of TV Legend Art Linkletter, he followed in his father's footsteps as a host/announcer; he was the host of "Hootenanny" in the 1960s and was host of the 1950's game show "Haggis Baggis"; other shows included: "On the Go", "America Alive" and "Here's Hollywood" as well as major parades, The Miss Universe Pageant and other Special Events over the past 50 years];

Oscar Peterson - 82 [jazz musician; he was a piano virtuoso and Jazz Legend; born in Montreal, Canada he had performed with many jazz greats including: Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzie Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Stan Getz and Louis Armstrong to mention just a few];

Michael Kidd - 92 [choreographer; worked on Broadway and in Hollywood; his innovative and creative choreography was featured on Broadway in "Finian's Rainbow", "Guys and Dolls", "Can-Can" and "Li'l Abner" and in Hollywoos films including: "The Band Wagon", "Knock on Wood" and "Seven Brides foe Seven Brothers"];






Johnny Grant - 84 [radio and TV personality; promoter; "Honorary Mayor of Hollywood"; part-time actor; he was a round, jolly man and was Hollywood's biggest promoter; in 1943 as a star struck serviceman visiting Hollywood, he vowed to return and did as a radio personality (later TV) promoting Hollywood and its image; he produced the annual Hollywood Santa Claus Lane Parade until recently and hosted the awarding of Stars on Hollywood's Walk of Fame; another of his loves was touring with the USO visiting troops overseas, as an actor he appeared in such films as: "White Christmas" and "The Oscar"; he emceed other Hollywood events and became the lifetime Honorary Mayor of Hollywood and was known as Hollywood's greatest booster];

Maila Nurmi aka Vampira - 85 [actress; TV hostess; got her start as a TV hostess introducing horror films to the audience as the character Vampira, a ghoulish, vampire-like woman; her main claim to fame was her appearances in director Ed Wood's notorious B-movies including "Plan 9 from Outer Space" considered the worst movie ever made and "Bride of the Monster"; she inspired both Morticia Addams and Elvira who were similar ghoulish characters; her other films included: "The Beat Generation", "The Big Operator", "I Passed for White", "Sex Kittens Go to College" and "The Magic Sword"];

Jack Eagle - 81 [comedian; actor; the pudgy, 5 foot, 4 inch Jewish comedian was best known for his very memorable role as 'Brother Dominic' in the classic Xerox commercials of the 1970s; his career began as a stand-up comic in the Catskills of New York; he was also a trumpet player during the big-band era; his acting was mostly in commercials];

Pete Candoli - 84 [jazz musician; a veteran jazz trumpeter, he worked with many jazz greats including: Tommy Dorsey, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Tex Beneke and Les Brown; was known for his high register work; he arranged for the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland and Peggy Lee];

Joe Ames - 57 [singer; eldest of the Ames Brothers singing group; the Ames Brothers, Joe, Ed, Gene and Vic were one of the biggest acts of the 1950s and Joe was the anchor with his signature Bass voice; in the 60s, as an avid opera fan, he left for Germany to forge a career as an opera singer but ended up managing other talents];

Brad Renfro- 25 [actor; he began as a child actor in the film "The Client" with Susan Sarandon and received rave reviews which led to a very promising career in films; his films included: "Sleepers", "The Cure", "Telling Lies in America", "Bully", "Ghost World", "Deuces Wild", "The Jacket" and "Apt Pupil"; sadly his battle with drugs and alcohol led to his downfall];


Allan Melvin- 84 [character actor; he was truly one of the greatest and most recognizable character actor to generations of television fans; he had regular roles on many series from the 1950s thru the 1990s including as: Corporal Henshaw on "The Phil Silvers Show" aka "Sergeant Bilko, Barney Hefner on "All in the Family" & "Archie Bunker's Place" and Sam the butcher/Alice's boyfriend on "The Brady Bunch"; he appeared in one film "With Six You Get Eggroll" in 1968; he guested on many TV series, comedy & drama, too numerous to mention; he played a bully on "The Andy Griffith Show" who threatens and challenges Deputy Barney Fife and many other very memorable roles; See: Great Character Actors Page 4];

Suzannne Pleshette - 70 [actress; played half of one of the most perfect and endearing couples in TV sitcom history, 'Emily Hartley' to Bob Newhart's psychiatrist 'Bob Hartley' on the very popular "Bob Newhart Show; she was married to the late actor Tom Poston; a sharp and intelligent, dark-haired beauty with a signature husky voice she had appeared in films including: "The Geisha Boy" with Jerry Lewis, "Rome Adventure", Hitchcock's "The Birds", "Fate is The Hunter", "Youngbood Hawke", "Nevada Smith" with Steve McQueen, "If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium" and "Oh, God! Book 2"; early on she guest starred on numerous TV series 
including: "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "Gunsmoke", Marcus Welby, M.D.", "Columbo" and many others, she had recently appeared as a regular, 'Lois Whitley' on "Will and Grace"];

Lois Nettleton - 80 [actress; she was a veteran character actress who appeared mainly on stage and television; on television she had guested on numerous shows including: "Captain Video" in the 1950s, "Twilight Zone", "Naked City", "Route 66", "East Side, West Side", "Dr. KIldare" and "The Fugitive" in the 1960s, "Cannon", "Mary Tyler Moore Show", "Marcus Welby, M.D." in the 1970s on thru "Seinfeld", "Coach" and "Baywatch" in the 1990s; her films include: "A Face in the Crowd", "Period of Adjustment", "Dirty Dingus Magee" and "The Feminine Touch";  she'd of late been busy in theatre and had been married to author, humorist Jean Sheherd of "A Christmas Story" fame];

Heath Ledger - 28 [actor; top leading man and movie star on the verge of a promising career with fine performances among his credits, including: "Ten Things I Hate About You", "Two Hands", "The Patriot" with Mel Gibson, "A Knight's Tale", "Monster's Ball", "The Four Feathers" (2002), "The Brothers Grimm" with Matt Damon, "Brokeback Mountain", "Casanova", "I'm Not There" and "The Dark Knight"; he received an Oscar nomination for "Brokeback Mountain"];

Manuel Padilla, Jr. - 51 [actor; of Hispanic ancestry and best remembered as a child actor, he starred in many TV series, mostly westerns, and films; he appeared in the films: "Dime with a Halo", "The Young and the Brave", "Black Spurs", "Tarzan and the Valley of Gold", "Tarzan and the Great River", "A Man Called Horse" and "The Great White Hope"; on TV he appeared on series including: "Gunsmoke", "Bonanza", "Then Came Bronson", "Police Story" and "Happy Days"];

Margaret Truman Daniel - 83 [singer; actress; although she had careers as a singer and actress, she was best known as the daughter of President Harry S. Truman; after 8 years as a concert singer she moved into an acting career on radio; she appeared in "The Jackpot" with Jimmy Stewart, a radio comedy/drama version of the film (1950) and other radio productions];

Dwight Hemion - 81 [producer; director; one of the great television producer/directors, he started by directing the "Tonight Show" in 1950 with Steve Allen as host and later worked with the likes of Sinatra, Streisand, Presley and Pavarotti; his work producing and directing TV Specials drew huge ratings and many accolades including numerous Emmy wins; in recent years he worked on "The Kennedy Center Honors" series];

Shell Kepler - 49 [actress; best known for her role as the gossip Amy Vining on TV soap "General Hospital", her character later appeared on the soap "Port Charles" also; her other credits include: films "The Great American Girl Robbery" "Getting Wasted" and "Homework" and TV guest appearances on "CHiPs" and "Three's Company"];

Barry Morse - 89 [actor; best known for his role as the relentless Lt. Gerard on TV's "The Fugitive" where he pursued David Janssen's Richard Kimble; a classically trained actor at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he was an unlikely candidate to portray the American Lt. Gerard and few people knew he was English; he appeared in films from the 1940s thru to 2005 as well as a regular in many TV series, Mini-Series, TV movies and guest appearances on numerous TV series];

Roy Scheider - 76 [actor; best known for his roles in "Jaws", "The French Connection" and "All That Jazz", the latter two of which he was nominated for acting Oscars; early on in his career he appeared in TV soaps "The Edge of Night" and "Secret Storm" but his big break came with "The French Connection"; his other films included: "Klute", "Marathon Man", "The Russia House", "Naked Lunch", "The Rainmaker" (1997), "Romeo is Bleeding" and "The Punisher"; on TV he starred as Captain Nathan Bridger on "SeaQuest DSV"];

David Groh - 68 [actor; best known for his role as Joe Gerard on the TV series "Rhoda" starring Valerie Harper; the handsome, curly black-haired actor was the perfect match for Rhoda as the easy going Joe; he appeared as guest on numerous TV series ranging from "Police Story" and "The Love Boat" to "J.A.G" and "The X-Files"; his films including: "Two-Minute Warning", "Panic in the Park", "White Cargo", "Get Shorty" and "Acts of Betrayal"];

Ben Chapman - 79 [actor; many may not recognize his face and he never got a star making role, but one of his roles was iconic, that being the title role in "The Creature from the Black Lagoon" as the Gill Man; his other films included: "Pagan Love Song", a bit part in "Ma & Pa Kettle at Waikiki" and "Jungle Moon Men"];

Buddy Miles - 60 [musician; singer; was the drummer for Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsys; he had a hit song in his own right with "Them Changes"; he was also founder, drummer and often lead singer for his own group Electric Flag; in the 1980s he was the lead voice of the California Raisins commercials];

Mike Smith - 64 [Rock singer; was lead singer for the 1960s British rock band The Dave Clark Five; their hits included: "Glad All Over", "Catch Us If You Can" and "Over and Over"; the band will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 10, 2008 and he was scheduled to attend in spite of being paralyzed in an accident in 2003 and being wheelchair bound];

Leonard Rosenman - 83 [film & TV composer; won Oscars for his scores of "Barry Lyndon" and "Bound for Glory"; among his other works were: "East of Eden", "Star Trek IV: the Voyage Home", "Cross Creek" and "Rebel Without a Cause"; he also created the themes and scores for the TV series: "The Defenders", "Combat" and "Marcus Welby, M.D."];

Gloria Shayne Baker - 84 [composer; her biggest claim to fame is the popular Christmas classic "Do You Hear What I Hear?"; other songs included: "Goodbye Cruel World", "Almost There" and "The Men in My Little Girl's Life"];

Anthony Minghella - 54 [Director/Producer; more often directing he won a Best Picture & Director Oscar for his work on "The English Patient"; his other films as director included: "Truly, Madly, Deeply", "The Talented Mr. Ripley", "Cold Mountain" and "The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency"; he produced the recent Oscar nominated film "Michael Clayton; his directing credits also included the excellent "Storyteller" TV series with Jim Henson Productions];

Arthur C. Clarke - 90 [Science Fiction author; he worked with director Stanley Kubrick on "2001: A Space Odyssey"; he had great influence on the space programs of the U.S. and U.S.S.R. as well as Gene Rodenberry who created "Star Trek" and the science community world wide; he appeared often on TV and hosted his series: "Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious Universe"];

Ivan Dixon - 78 [actor; best known as Kinchloe on TV's "Hogan Heroes"; his films included "Porgy and Bess", "Something of Value", "A Raisin in the Sun", "Nothing But a Man", "A Patch of Blue" and "Car Wash"; he guest starred on numerous TV series];

Paul Scofield - 86 [actor; this great British actor was primarily a renowned actor of the stage but was equally adept on movie screens; he is best known for his Oscar winning performance in "A Man for All Seasons"; his other films included: "That Lady", "The Train" with Burt Lancaster, "King Lear", "A Delicate Balance" with Katharine Hepburn, "Quiz Show" for which he received a Supporting Actor Oscar nomination and "The Crucible" with Daniel Day-Lewis and Joan Allen];

Richard Widmark - 93 [actor; one of the last of the great Hollywood Stars of movies; his first role as Johnny Udo in "Kiss of Death" won him an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actor; he was one of the 'Kings' of film noir either as a hero or a psychopathic bad guy; the Minnesota born actor's films also included: "Night and the City", "No Way Out" (1950), "Pickup on South Street", "Street with No Name", "The Bedford Incident", "Judgment at Nuremburg", "Cheyenne Autumn", "Madigan", "How the West Was Won", "Coma", "Murder on the Orient Express" and "Against All Odds"];

Jules Dassin - 96 [director; an American director working in Europe due to being blacklisted in the U.S. in the McCarthy era of the 1950s, he was adept at film noir; his films included: "The Naked City", "Night and the City", "Brute Force", "Thieves Highway", "Topkapi", "Never on Sunday" and "Rififi"; he was at one time in the 1930s a member of the Communist Party until he resigned in 1939 after he became disillusioned with the Soviet Union signing a non-agression pact with Hitler, but that was enough for HUAC and Hollywood to blacklist him];

Charlton Heston - 83 [actor; bigger than life star of epic films; best known for his roles in the epics "The Ten Commandments" and "Ben Hur", the latter for which he won a Best Actor Oscar and the film garnered a, then record, 11 Oscars; other films in which he appeared were "Planet of the Apes", "El Cid", "The Agony and the Ecstasy", "Touch of Evil", "Khartoum", "55 Days at Peking", "The Greatest Story Ever Told", "The Buccaneer", "Major Dundee", "The Three Musketeers (1973)" and its sequel "The Four Musketeers", "The Hawiians", "Airport 1975" and "The Wreck of the Mary Deare"; his connections with the NRA alienated him from many of his fans but he was still a star in all aspects of the word];

Stanley Kamel - 65 [actor; he was a regular on the "Monk" TV series as Monk's psychiatrist Dr. Charles Kroger; he appeared as a regular on many TV series including: "Beverly Hills, 90210", "Melrose Place", "Murder One", "L.A. Law" and the soap "Days of Our Lives];

Ollie Johnston - 95 [artist/animator; last surviving member of a group of animation artists known as 'Disney's Nine Old Men'; he worked primarily for Disney Studios, creating and animating many famed Disney characters including: the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Bambi and Thumper, Mowgli and Baloo, Mr. Smee (Peter Pan) and many others; he was, like Walt Disney, Chuck Jones and others of the Nine Old Men, fascinated by trains and miniature trains and had a one-inch scale steam driven train of his own; he and best friend and fellow 'Old Man' Frank Thomas were the subject of a 1995 documentary titled "Frank & Ollie"; they were both honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and Ollie was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2005];

Hazel Court - 82 [actress; known as the "Scream Queen of British Horror Flicks"; red-headed, green-eyed voluptuous beauty who became queen of the 1950-60 British horror films and later American horror films and television; she was married to the late actor Don Taylor; her films included: "Masque of the Red Death", "The Curse of Frankenstein", "Devil Girl from Mars", "The Raven" and "Doctor Blood's Coffin"; she guest starred on numerous TV series including: "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "Mannix" "The Farmer's Daughter" and "Rawhide"];

Danny Federici - 58 [musician/keyboardist/accordionist; an original member of Bruce Springsteen's 'E Street Band' he worked with Springsteen for 40 years; although a low-profile member of the band, he was a renowned keyboardist with a very fluid style];

Al Wilson - 68 [soul singer; very popular 1970s soul artist with a silky smooth voice, he had No. 1 hits with "Snake" and "Show and Tell"];

Paul Davis - 60 [singer/songwriter; sang in the melodic, soft rock style; had hits with: "I Go Crazy", "65 Love Affair", "You're Still New to Me" and his duet with Marie Osmond "Ride 'Em Cowboy"; wrote songs with his partner George Soule];

Joe Feeney- 76 [singer; a popular Irish tenor best known as a regular on "The Lawrence Welk Show" from 1957-1982; he performed in venues from Carnegie Hall to Disneyland];

Joy Page - 83 [actress; dark haired beauty who landed a role in "Casablanca" as the Bulgarian newlywed refugee trying to escape to freedom; she was Jack Warner's stepdaughter which helped her land the role; her other films included: "Kismet", "The Bullfighter and the Lady" and "The Shrike"];

Jim Hager - 66 [singer/musician/comedian; best known for singing country/rock songs as a member of 'The Hagers' with his identical twin brother, Jon; they appeared as regulars on the long-running country music hit series "Hee Haw"; they sang played guitar and banjo and performed comedy skits];

Eddy Arnold - 89 [Country singer/crooner; CMA Hall of Famer; a legendary performer, he often crossed the line from country music to mainstream; some of his best known songs were: "Make the World Go Away", "Cattle Call", "Bouquet of Roses" and "Any Time"; he often worked with famed guitarist Chet Atkins; he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1966; he appeared often on TV variety shows and later became an entrepeneur with his Eddy Arnold Chicken Shops];

Jerry Wallace - 79 [pop and Country singer; popular in the 1950s and best known for his hit songs: "Primrose Lane" and "How the Time Flies"; he was nominated in 1972 for CMA Male Vocalist of the Year and his song "To Get To You" for Single of the Year];

John Phillip Law - 70 [actor; a tall, slim, blond, he played the male lead in most of his films, which included: "Barbarella" as a blind angel with Jane Fonda, "Golden Voyage of Sinbad" in the title role, "The Russians are Coming, the Russians are Coming!" as a young soviet naval man, "Hurry Sundown" and others];

Dick Martin - 86 [comedian; actor; producer/director; the zanier half of one of the greatest Comedy Teams ever, 'Rowan and Martin'; after teaming together as standup comics for years, they became even more popular with TV's Emmy Award winning "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In"; his offbeat humor carried over after Laugh-In to guest appearances on sitcoms as well as directing many of them; he coined many catch phrases including "you bet your sweet bippy!"];

Dick Sutcliffe - 90 [television producer/performer; a pioneer of early television in the 1950s with one of the first religious themed children's shows "Davey and Goliath", a stop-motion animated puppet series; the program taught religious principles and values to children using puppetry];

Sydney Pollack - 73 [film director; actor; producer; legendary Academy Award nominee and winner for "Out of Africa", he was also a very skilled actor as evidenced in "Tootsie" and "Michael Clayton"; he also directed "Tootsie", "The Way We Were" and "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?"; he produced "Michael Clayton" and other films and his last work was a documentary, "Sketches of Frank Gehry", an architect and friend of his];

Earle Hagen - 88 [composer; Emmy Award winning composer of very memorable TV theme songs including "The Andy Griifith Show's" the Fishin' Hole, "The Dick Van Dyke Show", "I Spy", "That Girl", "The Mod Squad" and "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C." among others; he also composed the jazz standard "Harlem Nocturne"];

Harvey Korman - 81 [comedian; actor; this legendary comic was one of the reasons "The Carol Burnett Show" was the best ever for comedy skits; the characters he created along with the zany Tim Conway were among the most hilarious in TV history; half the fun was watching him trying to keep a straight face opposite the loony genius Conway; he and the show were multiple Emmy winners];

Alexander Courage - 88 [composer; orchestrater/arranger; he worked in radio, TV and films; best known for his "Star Trek" theme, he began in radio composing themes for shows such as Hedda Hopper's "This Is Hollywood" and "The Adventures of Sam Spade, Detective"; for TV he composed the themes to "The Waltons", "Eight is Enough", "Lost in Space" and "Judd for the Defense"; for films he orchestrated and arranged for musicals including: "Funny Face", "Guys and Dolls" and "Gigi"];

Yves Saint Laurent - 71 [Legendary fashion designer; right up there with Coco Chanel and Christian Dior, he was one of the most famous fashion designers in the world with many of his clients in the Hollywood community and his works often featured in films and "on the red carpet"];

Bo Diddley [nee: Otha Ellas Bates] - 79 [Rock and Roll Icon; singer/guitarist; a founding father of Rock 'n' Roll, he created his own styles of rhythm, guitar beats and effects as truly a one-of-a-kind original; a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, his songs include: "Shave and a Haircut", "Bo Diddley", "Mona", "Say, Man", "Who Do You Love" and "Ride On"];

Mel Ferrer - 90 [actor; director; a leading star of the 1950s, he appeared in the films: "Scaramouche", "Born to Be Bad", "Rancho Notorious", "The Brave Bulls", "Lili", "War and Peace" and "Wait Until Dark"; although he made his mark in acting, he preferred directing and did not enjoy acting; he was marrried to Audrey Hepburn for a time and directed her in "Wait Until Dark"; he acted and directed in many TV series including "Falcon Crest as lawyer Phillip Erickson; his film directing debut was in 1945's "Girl of the Limberlost"];

Jim McKay - 87 [sportcaster; one of the most venerated and eloquent of all sportscasters, he was best known as the host of "ABC's Wide World of Sports" as well as host/announcer of the annual Olympics Ceremonies; he proved his mettle during the tragedy of the 1972 Munich Olympics when terrorists disrupted and murdered 11 Israeli athletes, with calm and solemn commentary on the horrific events that occurred; he was the key man for epic sports events for three television networks];

Robert J. Anderson - 75 [child actor; best known for his superb performance as the young George Bailey in the film classic "It's A Wonderful Life" at the age of 12; known in his youth as Bobby Anderson, he also appeared in the films: "Young People" with Shirley Temple, "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" and "The Bishop's Wife" with Cary Grant; in the 1950s he appeared on TV's "Spin & Marty" series in a supporting role];

Tim Russert - 58 [journalist; newsman; TV Host; best known as the host of television's longest running news show "Meet the Press", he was a much respected reporter, not afraid to ask the "tough" question to politicians, Presidents and other world leaders, authors, and other newsmakers; he hosted political debates, was an author and frequent talk show guest; he was revered by both his peers and his interviewees];

Danny Davis - 83 [musician; bandleader; he formed and conducted the  music group "The Nashville Brass" who pumped out instrumental recordings of country music hits much in the style of Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass; he originally started in Nashville producing records for Chet Atkins, Floyd Kramer, Willie Nelson and other country artists];

Stan Winston - 62 [special effects master; makeup effects expert; one of the greats in the world of film and TV special effects he originated many of the effects used in film today and was constantly creating new effects technology; he worked on such blockbusters as: TV's "Gargoyles", "The Bat People", "Roots" and "Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman", to the films "Terminator 2", "Aliens", the "Jurassic Park" series, 1982's "The Thing", "Edward Scissorhands", "Batman Returns" and "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence"];

Cyd Charisse - 86 [dancer; actress; she acted and danced her way through movie musicals from the 1940s thru to the 1990s; her most prolific period was in the 40s and 50s; she also appeared on Broadway; her films included: "Silk Stockings", "Singin' in the Rain", "The Band Wagon", "Ziegfeld Follies" "It's Always Fair Weather", "Brigadoon" and "Fiesta"];

George Carlin - 71 [comedian; actor; controversial comic dubbed the 'Dean of Counterculture Comedy', he was known for his routines "7 words you cannot say on TV" and the "Hippy Dippy weatherman" among others; he was arrested several times for obscenity and fought battles with drugs and alcohol but found success with comedy specials on HBO; he acted in films and on TV occasionally; his films included: "Car Wash", "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure", "Prince of Tides" and "Dogma"];

Dody Goodman - 93 [character actress; talk show guest; an apple cheeked, cherubic little lady with a whiny drawl, she appeared on TV in "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" and "Fernwood Tonight" and films including "Splash", "Grease" and voice only in "The Chipmunk Adventure"; she was a popular and frequent guest on the "Jack Paar Show" with her witty repartee and charming demeanor];

Don S. Davis - 65 [character actor; best known for his roles on "X Files" as Capt. William Scully, father of Agent Scully and as Maj. Briggs on "Twin Peaks"; he also appeared on the "Stargate" series; his films included: "Journey of Natty Gann", "Stakeout", "Watchers", "A League of Their Own" and "Cliffhanger"];

Evelyn Keyes – 91 [actress; one of the last surviving stars of the epic masterpiece "Gone with the Wind", she played Scarlett's sister Suellen; her other films included: "Here Comes Mr. Jordan", "The Jolson Story", "Mrs. Mike", "Johnny O'Clock", "The Prowler", "The Buccaneer" and "The Big Combo"; she was married several times to some of Hollywood's biggest names including: Mike Todd, bandleader Artie Shaw and John Huston];

Les Crane - 74 [talk show host; radio personality; a handsome and personable radio talk host with a cocky, but 'well read', style; he was a predecessor of the so-called 'shock jocks' of today; his radio show led him to his own "Les Crane Show" on latenight TV, where he became the first challenger of latenight king Johnny Carson; his show was more on a par with Phil Donahue or Joe Pyne than the entertaining "Tonight Show" and although its guests included the likes of Richard Burton, Shelley Winters, the mother of Lee Harvey Oswald and Bob Dylan, it lasted only a few months in 1964];

Jo Stafford - 90 [singer; she was popular from the 1930s thru the 1960s, but mostly in the 1940s among GIs in World War II; she began singing in a trio with her sisters as lead singer and later with the group 'The Pied Pipers' and the Tommy Dorsey orchestra from 1939 to 1942; in 1952 she had 2 chart toppers with "You Belong to Me" and "Hambone";];

Estelle Getty - 84 [actress; best known for her role as Sophia, mother of Bea Arthur's character on "The Golden Girls" TV series, the role brought her an Emmy Award; she was adept at portraying mothers, even though she was younger than the roles she played; a Broadway actress, she played Harvey Fierstein's mother in "Torch Song Trilogy"; in films she played Cher's mother in "Mask", Sylvester Stallone's mother in "Stop! or My Mom will Shoot"];

Lou Teicher - 83 [musician; pianist; best known as half of the popular 1960s piano duo of Ferrante & Teicher, with his partner Arthur Ferramte; he was a classically trained pianist and in 1947 he teamed with Ferrante and they performed primarily classical music, later they added popular music along with movie themes, Americana, etc. and rose in popularity among a mainstream audience; they played with symphony orchestras around the world as well as for presidents, prime ministers and royalty];

Bernie Mac - 50 [comedian; actor; born Bernard Jeffrey McCullough, he began as a standup comic and later acquired his own TV series "The Bernie Mac Show"; he appeared in films including: "Bad Santa", "Mo' Money", the "Oceans Eleven" series and "Transformers"];

Isaac Hayes - 65 [musician; singer; songwriter; popular in the 1960s & 70s as a soul singer-performer, his album "Hot Butered Soul" was a groundbreaker and made him a star; he won an Oscar and Grammy awards for his song "Theme from Shaft"; he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002; he also did voice-over as Chef in the "South Park" TV animated series and was the "Voice of Nick at Nite" on Nickelodeon cable channel];

George Furth - 75 [actor; playwright; wrote books for the plays "Company" and "Twigs" and others; also won a Tony for "Company; he acted in films including: "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "Shampoo" as well as appearing as guest on mant TV series];

Fred Crane- 90 [actor; best known for his role as Brent Tarleton, one of Scarlett O'Hara's suitors, in "Gone with the Wind"; he was one of the Tarleton twins along with George "Superman" Reeves in the opening scene of the classic film; he and Reeves became close friends and Reeves was best man at his wedding; he started in Hollywood as a classical music announcer in radio; after "Gone with the Wind" he acted primarily on TV series; he moved to Atlanta in 2000 and operated a bed & breakfast in an antebellum mansion which included his own GWTW museum];

Ralph Young - 90 [singer; entertainer; the heavyset half of the popular singing duo Sandler & Young; he was 2 decades older than his partner Tony Sandler, a European singer from France; Young got his start singing in the Big Band era with Tommy Reynolds Band and Les Brown's Band of Renown; they appeared together on many Variety shows of the 1960's including "Hollywood Palace" and "The Ed Sullivan Show"];

Tad Mosel - 86 [scriptwriter; worked mostly on television teleplays but also in theatre and films; won a Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1961 for "All the Way Home"; worked mostly in the 'Golden Age of Live TV' in the 1950s on such shows as "Playhouse 90", "Philco Television Playhouse" and "Studio One"];

Don LaFontaine - 68 [voiceover artist; he was called "King of Voiceovers"; his familiar voice was heard on thousands of movie trailers and TV series promos; he had some input in these voiceovers and coined the phrase "In a world where..." which was heard in many movie trailers and previews];

Bill Melendez - 91 [animater; voice artist; he was best known for animating the "Peanuts" films/cartoonsas well as voicing the character of Snoopy; earlier in his careerhe worked on animating the films "Bambi", "Pinocchio", "Fantasia" and "Dumbo" for Disney and also worked on the "Garfield"and "Cathy" cartoons for television];

Jerry Reed - 71 [country music singer; actor; he was popular in the 60s & 70s for his songs including: "When You're Hot, You're Hot!" and "Amos Moses"; his movies included: "The Waterboy" and the "Smokey and the Bandit" series with Burt Reynolds];

Ike Pappas - 75 [reporter/journalist; he was a CBS correspondent for many years covering the Vietnam War and the Kennedy Assassination among other historic events];

Michael Pate - 88 [actor; Australian born, he worked for 20 years in Hollywood on many TV series and movies; his recognizable face appeared on such TV series as: "Rawhide", "Gunsmoke", "The Rifleman" and "Zorro" among others; his films included: "The Court Jester", "El Alamein", "P.T. 109" and "The Silver Chalice"; he returned o Australia in the 1960s and worked in films and TV in his home country];

James Griffin - 61 [musician/songwriter; co-founder of the 1970s pop group "Bread"; he also won an Oscar for co-writing the song "For All We Know" a Carpenters hit];

Walter "Killer" Kowalski - 81 [professional wrestler; one of the most popular wrestlers of the 1950s and one of the first to appear on television; his contemporaries were "Yukon Eric", "Gorgeous George" and "Haystack Calhoun; in the ring he was considered a villain, but outside he was known as a pussycat];

Ralph Kovel - 88 [author/writer; appraiser; collector; he literally wrote the book(s) on antiques and collectibles; from toys, bubble gum cards, magazines, antiques, etc. he appraised their value in his books; his TV series "Kovel's Collectibles" ran on TV in the 1980s & 90s];

Anita Page - 98 [actress; the 'blonde bombshell' starred in silent films with Lon Chaney, Joan Crawford and Buster Keaton; she acted on and off in films including "Our Darling Daughters", "While the City Sleeps" and "Broadway Melody" up to 2008 in "Frankenstein Rising"; among her good friends were silent stars Jean Harlow and Marion Davies];

Richard Wright - 65 [musician/songwriter; co-founder of the British psychedelic-rock group "Pink Floyd"; he was a keyboardist and wrote songs for the group; their top selling albums included: "Dark Side of the Moon", "Us and Them" and "The Final Cut"; their biggest hit song was "The Wall"];

Wonderful Smith - 97 [comedian; actor; radio star; Wonderful Smith, his real name, started out in night clubs as part of the Duke Ellington Revue "Jump for Joy" along with others including Dorothy Dandridge in the 1940s; his comedy routines were so popular that he was offered jobs in radio, films and later TV; his last appearance was in "This is Spinal Tap"];

Nappy Brown - 78 [blues singer/R&B artist; popular in the 1950s, his singing style involved nonsense syllables, strange pronunciation, with a heavy beat; it had touches of early rock 'n' roll; his songs included: "Don't Be Angry", "Piddily Patter Patter" and "Well Well Well Baby-La];

Connie Haines - 87 [singer; her style was reminiscent of Teresa Brewer, peppy, rhythmic and saucy; she sang with Frank Sinatra in the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and later had a solo career; her songs included: "What Is This Thing Called Love", "Oh! Look at Me Now", "Will You Still Be Mine" and "Snootie Little Cutie"];

Paul Newman - 83 [legendary actor; he was the definition of a Movie Star and a fine actor as well; his appearance in "Somebody Up There Likes Me" in the 1950s rocketed him to stardom; his boyish good looks and steely blue eyes endeared him to the movie public; his films included: "Exodus", "Cool Hand Luke", "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "Hud", "The Hustler", "The Verdict", "The Towering Inferno", "Absence of Malice" and "Cars"; he and wife Joanne Woodward were philanthropists and his "Newman's Own..." product's proceeds went to charity];

House Peters Jr. - 92 [actor; best known for his work in commercials as he portrayed the consumer icon 'Mr. Clean'; he appeared in many cowboy movies and won the "Golden Boot Award" for his westerns; he appeared as guest in many TV series including: "The Twilight Zone", "Perry Mason" and "Gunsmoke"; his father Robert House Peters Sr. was a silent films star and has a star on Hollywood Boulevard's Walk of Fame];

Nick Reynolds - 75 [musician/singer; he was a founding member of the popular folk group "The Kingston Trio"; with partners Dave Guard and Bob Shane they began the folk music revival in the 1950s which included Peter, Paul & Mary, The Weavers and Bob Dylan among others; their many hit songs included "Tom Dooley"];

Stan Kann - 83 [musician; collector; performer; he was best known for his frequent appearances on the "Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" and the "Mike Douglas Show" on which he befuddledly displayed his collection of ancient vacuum cleaners and carpet sweepers where they'd almost always malfunction in some comical way; he began as a Wulitzer organist in a local theater in St. Louis];

George 'Wydell' Jones - 71 [doo-wop singer; he wrote the hit song "Rama Lama Ding Dong" which he also sang as a member the group "The Edsels"; he performed in the famed "Apollo Theater" in Harlem];

Irene Dailey - 88 [actress; most notably on the Broadway Stage and on television as well as a few films; on stage she was lauded for her performance in "The Subject was Roses"; on television she appeared as Liz Matthews on the soap "Another World" from the 1970s thru the 1990s and guest starred on many series; her films included: "No Way to Treat a Lady", "Five Easy Pieces" and "The Amityville Horror"];

Lloyd Thaxton - 81 [television host; producer/director; he hosted the popular syndicated 1960's "Lloyd Thaxton Show" a teen themed program which included Rock 'n' Roll music guest stars and dancing, lip sync competitions, comedy and variety; he also produced the Emmy winning series "Fight Back! With David Horowitz" and hosted game shows on ABC];

Eileen Herlie - 90 [actress; Scottish born,  former Broadway actress who is best known for her role as Myrtle Fargate on the long running TV soap opera "All My Children"; she also starred in 10 films including: "For Better, For Worse", "Freud" and "The Seagull"];

Kim Chan -  [actor; Chinese born, he played many Asian roles in films and on TV; probably his best known role was as Jerry Lewis' houseboy in Martin Scorsese's film "King of Comedy"; his other films included: "A Face in the Crowd", "Jumpin' Jack Flash" and "The Fifth Element"; he also appeared in the 1990's TV series "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues"];

Gil Stratton - 86 [sportscaster; actor; probably best remembered for his role in "Stalag 17" as Cookie who also narrates the film; his other films included: "Girl Crazy", "Mr. Belvedere Goes to College", "Monkey Business", "Tucson" "Battle Zone" and "Here Come the Marines"; on TV he appeared on "Dragnet", "The Red Skelton Show" and "Police Story"];

Neal Hefti - 85 [musician; composer/arranger; record producer; jazz influenced, he was best known for composing the themes for the "Batman" and "The Odd Couple" TV series; he played trumpet in Woody Herman's band and with Count Basie; he composed often for TV series and films including: "Sex and the Single Girl", "How to Murder Your Wife", "Duel at Diablo", "A New Leaf" and "Barefoot in the Park"; he arranged songs for the likes of Charlie Spivak, Harry James, Woody Herman and Buddy Rich and he produced records occasionally for them and Frank Sinatra];

Edie Adams - 81 [actress; comedian; singer; a perky blonde woman she trained at Juilliard and performed in nightclubs as a singer, later moving on to the Broadway stage and then television; she won a Tony award for her performance as Daisy Mae in "Li'l Abner"; married to Ernie Kovacs and appearing on his popular TV show she became famous for 'hawking' Muriel Cigars in commercials; her film appearances included: "The Apartment", "The Best Man" and "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World"];

Levi Stubbs - 72 [singer; his dynamic baritone voice served him well as lead singer/frontman of the R&B Motown group 'The Four Tops'; they had a revival of their music in recent years and their popular hits included: "Baby, I Need Your Loving", "Reach Out (I'll Be There)", "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)" and "Bernadette"; The Four Tops were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990];

Jack Narz - 85 [game show host; a popular, congenial, mellow-voiced host he appeared on such game shows as "Dotto", "Concentration", "Top Dollar", "Seven Keys" and "Beat the Clock"; he was subpoenaed to appear in court during the game show scandals of the 1950s as his show "Dotto' was found to be rigged but he was cleared of any wrongdoing when a Polygraph test proved he was unaware of any fraud];

Richard Sylvan Selzer aka Mr. Blackwell - 86 [actor; model; fashion designer/critic; he was best known as Mr. Blackwell - Fashion Critic famed for his annual Lists of the Best and Worst Dressed celebrities; he started as an actor/model later becoming a fashion designer and fashion agent; in 1960 he began his annual listings which included snide commentary, especially with his Worst Dressed Lists];

Estelle Reiner - 94 [singer; actress; she was the wife of Carl Reiner and mother of Rob Reiner; began as a lounge singer and later appeared in movies, mostly in cameo roles, including: "Marathon", "Fatso", "The Man with Two Brains" most notably in "When Harry Met Sally"];

Delmar Watson - 82 [former child actor; news photographer; he and his brother were child stars of movies of the 1930s and 40s; he appeared as Peter in the Shirley Temple film "Heidi" and also with his brothers as sons of the Governor in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" with Jimmy Stewart; the Watson boys were all very prolific in films of that era and later all worked in the newspaper business];

Yma Sumac - 86 [singer; Peruvian born she had incredible range as a singer, from high soprano to low bass; exotic and raven haired with a classic beauty she performed songs of ancient Peru which required difficult range of a singer; she became an International sensation in the 1950s and was still active in recent years having her own website; she often wore traditional Indian costumes which added a mystique to her unique style];

Michael Crichton - 66 [author; producer; with his medical background (a graduate of Harvard Medical School) he was best known for his scientifically based novels: "Jurassic Park", "Coma", "The Andromeda Strain" and "Congo", all of which have been made into movies; also created the popular TV series "E.R." and won an Emmy for that series];

Miriam Makeba - 76 [singer; exiled from her native South Africa, she became an International star singing folk songs of Africa; known as 'Mama Afrika' she performed up to the end and died onstage performing her current hit "Pata Pata"; one her most popular songs was "The Click Song" sung in Xhosa, the language of the 'bushmen of the Kalahari Desert' which consists of various clicking sounds];

Clive Barnes - 81 [Theatre critic; famed for his work in Britain and for The New York Times and New York Daily News; he was considered an expert on Dance and musical theatre as well as drama];

Robert Lucas - 46 [musician; singer; he was lead vocalist/frontman for the 1960s rock group 'Canned Heat'; known as a blues and boogie band he played harmonica (a signature of the group), and bottleneck guitar as well as sang with the group; his voice was lilting, almost haunting especially in their two big hits "Goin' Up the Country" and "On the Road Again"; he later pursued a solo career writing and recording 7 solo albums];

Odetta Holmes - 77 [folk singer; activist; knowm only as 'Odetta', she along with Miriam Makeba is the last of the two great African American folk artists; active mostly during the 1950's and 60's civil rights causes, she was trained in classical music, folk and blues; her unique husky voiced style and charismatic demeanor influenced folk artists Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, as well as rock/soul singers Janis Joplin and Tracy Chapman; She recorded albums including "Odetta sings Ballads and Blues", was awarded the Medal of Arts and Humanity in 1999 by President Clinton, the Living Legend Award from the Library of Congress and Kennedy Center Honors in 2004];

Paul Benedict - 70 [actor; best known for his role as Harry Bentley, the British neighbor on TV's "The Jeffersons"; he trained as an actor in Boston with the likes of Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino and Dustin Hoffman; he was born in New Mexico and suffered from acromegaly as a youngster which caused coarse features; his films included: "Cold Turkey", "Jeremiah Johnson", "This is Spinal Tap" and "Waiting for Guffman" as well as appearing as guest on many TV series];

Forrest J. Ackerman - 92 [magazine editor; fan extraordinaire; literary agent; anyone with more than a slight affection for Science Fiction was familiar with Mr. Ackerman, known to his fans as 'Forrie'; he was definitely the greatest science fiction fan and expert ever and had produced magazines and acted as agent to sci-fi writers; he coined the term 'sci-fi' and had an enormous, definitive sci-fi museum in his home; he did commentary on DVDs, his friends/admirers included: Stephen King, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, John Carpenter and others associated with sci-fi];

Beverly Garland - 82 [actress; the familiar blonde actress was most prolific on television for many of her 50 years in show business; she appeared in B-movie classics including: "Not of This Earth", "D.O.A.", "The Rocket Man" and "Swamp Women"; she had guested on numerous Televison series and was a regular on "My Three Sons" and "Decoy"];

Nina Foch - 84 [actress; sexy blonde actress who was featured in many film noir roles and enjoyed a long career acting and teaching actors at UCLA and the AFI; her film credits include: "The Dark Past", "Johnny O'Clock", "A Song to Remember", "An American in Paris", "Scaramouche", "The Ten Commandments" and "Spartacus"; she also appeared on TV series including: "Route 66", "The Virginian", "Rawhide", "Gunsmoke", "Dharma & Greg" and "The Closer"];

Dennis Yost - 65 [singer; lead singer of the rock group 'The Classics IV' with his throaty, baritone voice fronted the aptly named group with such classic songs as "Traces", "Spooky" and "Stormy"; he claimed they were the first "soft rock" group; unlike most soft rock groups, the Classics IV's songs were more melancholy than upbeat];

Robert Prosky - 77 [character actor; this cherubic veteran character actor was best known for his roles on the TV series "Hill Street Blues" as desk sergeant Stan Jablonski and "Cheers" as Kirstie Alley's father; he had worked on stage, screen and television earning a Tony nomination for "Glengarry Glen Ross"; his films included: "Mrs. Doubtfire", "The Natural", "Christine", "Rudy", Dead Man Walking" and many others; see: Great Character Actors Page 7];

Van Johnson - 92 [actor; one of the last of the great Movie Stars of the "Golden Age"; very popular, red haired, freckle-faced leading man/"boy next door" of the 1940s and 50s who worked with all the great actresses of the era; his films included: "High Barbaree" with June Allyson, "30 Seconds Over Tokyo", "A Guy Named Joe" with Spencer Tracy, "23 Paces to Baker Street", "Battleground" one the greatest War films, "In the Good Old Summertime" with Judy Garland, "The Caine Mutiny" with Humphrey Bogart, "Brigadoon" and "The Last Time I Saw Paris"];

Sam Bottoms - 53 [actor; one of the four acting Bottoms brothers with Tim, Joe & Ben; he was best known for his roles in Clint Eastwood's "The Outlaw Josey Wales" and "Bronco Billy" as well as Coppola's "Apocalypse Now" as sailor/surfer Lance Johnson; He also appeared in "The Last Picture Show" with brother Timothy, "Gardens of Stone" and "Seabiscuit"; he guest starred on many TV series including: "21 Jump Street", "NYPD Blue", "X-Files" and "Murder She Wrote" as well as playing Cal in the mini-series "East of Eden"];

Majel Barrett Roddenberry- 76 [actress; the wife of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, she was a staple in the Star Trek franchise appearing in every incarnation of the very populary sci-fi TV and movie series; she began as Nurse Chapel on the original series and appeared as Diana Troi's mother, Lwaxana, on Next Generation and others in the series as well the "computer voice" on all Star Trek series; she had initially appeared as a guest on many other TV series including: "Bonanza", "Leave it to Beaver" and "The Lucy Show"];

Harold Pinter - 78 [playwright; a highly influential, popular playwright, he was a Nobel Prize winner and often imitated dramatist; among his works were: "The Birthday Party", "The Caretaker", "Celebration", "The Room" and "The Homecoming" which recieved a Tony Award];

Eartha Kitt - 81 [singer; dancer; actress; truly an American Original, her sultry, sexy unique singing and dancing style spread over into her acting style proving her an incomparable and beloved entertainer; she was probably best known to later generations as Catwoman of the ultra popular 1960s television series "Batman" and my favorite of the performers who portayed that role; she was also a fascinating guest/raconteur on TV talk shows; among her most popular songs were "C'est Si Bon", "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" and "Santa Baby" and her films included: "St. Louis Blues", "Boomerang" and "Harriet the Spy"];

Ann Savage - 87 [actress; femme fatale star of the 1940s, she was the one of the main reasons the film "Detour" (1945) is considered one of the Top film noir offerings of all time; she appeared in other films including: "One Dangerous Night", "Saddles and Sagebush", "Scared Stiff", "Dancing in Manhattan" and "Ever Since Venus"; she appeared on TV in the 1950s in series including "Death Valley Days", "Fireside Theater" and "Gang Busters"];

Bernie Hamilton - 80 [actor; best known for his role as Capt. Harold Doby on TV's "Starsky & Hutch"; he began his career in the film "The Jackie Robinson Story" and appeared in many films including: "Mysterious Island", "Carmen Jones", "The Devil at 4 O'Clock", "The Swimmer", "The Organization" and "Scream Blacula Scream"; on TV he guest starred in numerous series including: "Ramar of the Jungle", "Ironside", "The Dick Van Dyke Show", "The Virginian" and "All in the Family"];




Edmund Purdom - 84 [actor; British actor best known for two film roles "The Prodigal" and "The Student Prince" in which he replaced beloved operatic singer Mario Lanza who had gained too much weight; his other films included: "The Egyptian", "Athena", "The King's Thief", "Strange Intruder" and "Sword of Freedom". After jobs got scarcer in the 1950's he moved to Italy where he worked in low budget sword & sandals films];

Pat Hingle - 84 [character actor; he was a truly great character actor probably best remembered for his role as Commissioner Gordon in all four of the "Batman" films, although his other films, TV movies and theater roles were equally as memorable; his trademarks were his tall, stocky frame and his folksy drawl; equally adept as hero or villain, his films included: "On the Waterfront", "Splendor in the Grass", "Norma Rae", "The Grifters", "Hang 'em High", "Sudden Impact", "Muppets in Space", the four "Batman" movies and "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby"; he appeared on stage in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", "The Prize", "The Dark at the Top of the Stairs" and "The Odd Couple"; he guest starred on numerous TV show for over 50 years; see: Great Character Actors Page 3];

Olga San Juan - 81 [actress/singer; known as the 'Puerto Rican Pepperpot' she was famous for singing and dancing roles in musicals with stars like Fred Astaire and Bing Crosby in the 1940s; she got her start in radio and moved into films including: "Blue Skies", "Duffy's Tavern", "One Touch of Venus", "The Countess of Monte Cristo" and "The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend"; she was married to actor Edmond O'Brien and earlier in her career worked often with Tito Puente];

Cheryl Holdridge - 64 [actress; singer; a very pretty blonde with an ebullient personality, she was one of the original Mouseketeers from the "Mickey Mouse Club" and second in popularity only to Annette Funicello; she later appeared on many TV series as a guest star including: "Bachelor Father", "Bewitched", "My Three Sons", "The Rifleman" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show"; on "Leave it to Beaver" she played Wally's girlfriend in many episodes];

Jon Hager - 67 [singer/comedian; half of the singing duo 'The Hagers', with his late twin brother, Jim; they were very popular regulars on the "Hee Haw" television variety show; Jim Hager died in May 2008; after "Hee Haw" they continued their act in nightclubs and on TV until Jim's death];

Don Galloway - 71 [actor; handsome and virile, he was best known his role as Det. Sgt. Ed Brown on the "Ironside" TV series with Raymond Burr; he started out on TV in soap operas and also appeared as a regular on the sitcom "Tom, Dick and Mary" in the 1960s; his film roles included: "The Big Chill", "The Rare Breed" and "Rough Night in Jericho"];

Steven Gilborn - 72 [actor; he appeared on Stage, Screen and Television but was perhaps best known for his role as Ellen Degeneres' father on the TV series "Ellen" in the 1990s; he also appeared in guest roles on "The Wonder Years", "Law & Order", "The West Wing" and "NYPD Blue"; his films included: "The Brady Bunch Movie", "Nurse Betty", "Wedding Bell Blues" and "Private Parts"];

Ricardo Montalban - 88 [actor; one of the great Latino actors, popular for over 60 years, handsome, debonair, with eloquent diction, he was best known for his role as Mr. Roark on TV's "Fantasy Island" and for his unforgettable  role as Khan on "Star Trek" and in the film "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan"; before that he appeared as a leading man in many films of the 1940s including "Neptune's Daughter", "Fiesta", "Kissing Bandit", "Battleground" and "Border Incident"; his other films included: "Two Weeks with Love", "Sayonara" as an Asian, "The Singing Nun" and "Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad"; he appeared as guest on numerous TV series];

Patrick McGoohan - 80 [actor; this distinguished American-born, British actor was best known for his role as Number 6 on the popular cult TV series "The Prisoner" and "Danger Man" in the 1960s; He also appeared in the Oscar winning film "Braveheart" as Longshanks aka Edward I; his other films included: "Ice Station Zebra", "The Moonshine War", "Mary, Queen of Scots" with Vanessa Redgrave, "Silver Streak", "Escape from Alcatraz", "A Time to Kill" and "The Phantom"; he also guest starred on many TV series including: "Disneyland" as Dr. Syn aka The Scarecrow, "Columbo", "Murder, She Wrote" and "The Simpsons"];

Bob May - 69 [actor/stuntman; he portrayed the popular robot in the Television series "Lost in Space"; he got the job because the robot suit actually fit him; the voice of the robot was done by actor, Dick Tufeld; his films included: "The Nutty Professor" and "The Patsy" with Jerry Lewis, "The New Interns" and "Hardly Working"];

Susanna Foster- 84 [actress; best known for her role in the 1943 version of "Phantom of the Opera" opposite Claude Rains; her only other films were: "The Great Victor Herbert", "Climax" with Boris Karloff and a remake of the classic film noir "Detour" in 1992; she quit films in 1945 to raise her sisters and get them away from their alcoholic mother];

Veatrice Rice - 58 [TV personality; she began as a guard/attendant on the "Jimmy Kimmel Show" latenight series and early on got involved in skits and other features on the show; to fans she was known simply as Veatrice and she performed comically as a foul mouthed, "tell-it-like-it-is" character along with Kimmel's Uncle Frank and Guillermo who also started out as guards and attendants on the show];

Charles H. Schneer - 88 [film producer; a partner of Ray Harryhausen he produced most of Harryhausen's films including: "20 Million Miles to Earth", "Earth vs. the Flying Saucers" the "Sinbad" series, "Mysterious Island", "Jason and the Argonauts" and "Clash of the Titans" all stop-motion animation films by Harryhausen, animation pioneer; he also produced other films including the only movie which starred Ronald Reagan and Nancy Davis, "Hellcats of the Navy"];

Billy Powell - 56 [musician; keyboardist/singer; he was the last surviving original member of the blues-rock group Lynyrd Skynyrd of the 1970s; four members of the group, including lead singer Ronnie Van Zantband, were killed in a plane crash in 1977, Powell was seriously injured; the band's hits included: "Free Bird" and "Sweet Home Alabama"; Lynyrd Skynrd was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006];

Clint Ritchie - 70 [actor; best known for his role as Clint Buchanan on the TV soap opera "One Life to Live]; he appeared as a guest on many 1960 and 70s TV series including: "The Wild, Wild West", "Batman", "Marcus Welby, M.D." and "Police Story"; he appeared in films including: "Patton", "Against a Crooked Sky", "Treasure of Matecumbe" and "A Force of One"; he worked on "One Life.." for two decades];

Dewey Martin - 68 [musician/singer; he was the drummer for the popular 60s & 70s rock group Buffalo Springfield; he also performed with Wilson Pickett off and on and sang with him in "The Midnight Hou"; he performed vocals in Buffalo Springfield's hits including: "Good Time Boy" and "For What It's Worth"];

James Whitmore - 87 [veteran character actor; he worked in theater, television and films and was one of the truly great character actors; he could play sly, flinty, but reliable characters better than anyone; he loved the stage the most, as he hated waiting around on movie and TV sets while things were being set up; he performed memorable one-man shows on Presidents Harry Truman & Teddy Roosevelt and Will Rogers; he was Oscar nominated for his role in "Battleground" one of the greatest war films; he won an Emmy for his guest appearance on TV's "The Practice"; his films also included: "Asphalt Jungle", "Them!", "Oklahoma!", "Planet of the Apes" and "The Shawshank Redemption"; He also had his own TV series "The Law and Mr. Jones" (1960-62) and another "Temperature's Rising" (1972-73); see: Great Character Actors Page 5];

Blossom Dearie - 84 [jazz/cabaret singer; pianist; songwriter; performed mostly in cabarets and jazz clubs; sang with a jazz octet 'The Blue Stars' in the 1950s performing in Paris but her true stomping grounds were in New York City; she also recorded 6 albums in the 1960s; she performed from the 1950s thru to 2006];

Shirley Jean Rickert - 82 [actress; dancer; a former petite, white-blonde, child star with a kewpie doll hairdo, she was a member of Hal Roach's Our Gang troup; after retiring from the Our Gang comedies she performed in bit parts in films including: "Five Little Peppers", "In Old Oklahoma", "Royal Wedding" and "Singing in the Rain"; she also danced in films and in New York];

Philip Carey - 83 [actor; tall, rugged, handsome and blonde he was best known for his roles on TV's "Laredo" as Captain Edward Parmalee and as Asa Buchanan on the TV soap "One Life to Live"; his other films included: "Operation Pacific", "Springfield Rifle", "Calamity Jane" "Mister Roberts" and "The Long Grey Line"; he guest starred on many TV series: including: "Felony Squad" "Ironside", "All in the Family" and "Little House on the Prairie"];

Louie Bellson - 84 [musician; composer and arranger; band leader; he was a legendary drummer in the same vein as Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich; he played with all the great orchestras of the "Big Band" era including: Tommy Dorsey, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Harry James and Duke Ellington; Ellington called him the 'greatest drummer in the world' and he had a reputation as a most accomplished musician; he was married to singer/actress Pearl Bailey; he performed with Louis Armstrong, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie and others];

Howard Zieff - 81 [director; although not very well known, he directed 9 films, a few of them real gems; he started out directing television commercials and became a top director of extremely popular and award winning ads; his best known commercial was for Alka Seltzer known for it's famed line: "Mama mia! That's a spicy meatball"; his films included: "Private Benjamin", "Slither", "Hearts of the West", "Dream Team", "My Girl" and "My Girl 2"; after "My Girl 2" he was forced to retire due to the effects of Parkinson's disease];

Paul Harvey - 90 [newsman; American radio Icon; best known and admired for his smooth, tranquil style and soothing voice, he began each broadcast with "Hello Americans! This is Paul Harvey....a pause..Standby for the News"; Although a conservative, he struck a chord with all types of listeners with his folksy, comforting demeanor; he  received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005];

Robert Quarry - 83 [actor; best known for his portrayal of vampire Count Yorga in films of the 1970s; he also portrayed Khorda in "Deathmaster"; his other films included: "Count Yorga, Vampire", "The Return of Count Yorga", "Sugar Hill", "Madhouse" and "Rollercoaster"; he appeared on many TV series including: "Ironside", "The Rockford Files", "Quincy, M.E."and "Cannon"];

Sydney Chaplin - 82 [actor; second son of Charlie Chaplin, his mother was Lita Grey who was 16 when she married 35 year old Charlie Chaplin; he was a stage actor for the most part, appearing on Broadway in such plays as "Bells are Ringing" and "Funny Girl" with Streisand; he appeared in some of his father's films including: "Countess from Hong Kong" and "Limelight" plus "Land of the Pharaohs", "Confession", "Wonderful Town", and "Follow That Man"; he also appeared on some TV shows including: "The Bionic Woman", "Baretta", "Switch" and "Police Woman"];

Hank Locklin - 91 [singer; a member of the Grand Ole Opry for 49 years; best known for his hits "Please Help Me I'm Falling", "Why, Baby, Why", "Let Me Be the One" and "Send Me the Pillow You Dream On"; he began singing in two groups the "Four Leaf Clover Boys" and the "Rocky Mountain Boys" before going solo];

Jimmy Boyd - 70 [singer; actor; red-haired and freckle-faced, he began as a  child in the 1950s with the hit song "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" and he became so popular it led to an acting career as a child star; other hit songs were: "Dennis the Menace", "The Little Boy and the Old Man" and "Tell Me a Story"; as an actor his films included: "Racing Blood", "The Second Greatest Sex", "Inherit the Wind", "High Time", "Mean Dog Blues" and "Brainstorm"; he was a regular on TV's "Bachelor Father" and guested on "My Three Sons", "Broadside" and "Batman"];

Ron Silver - 62 [actor; activist; his distinguished career began on Broadway acting in theatre and winning a Tony Award; he appeared in films and on TV; he was a regular on the TV series "West Wing" as Bruno Gianelli, "Chicago Hope" as Tommy Wilmette and on "Law and Order" as Bernie Adler; his films included: "Silkwood", "Ali", "Reversal of Fortune", "Enemies: A Love Story" and "Xenophobia"; he was a liberal, active in both the Democrat and Republican parties];

Altovise Davis- 65 [actress/dancer; the 3rd wife of Sammy Davis Jr., she met him while working on Broadway in "High Time"; she guested on TV series including: "CHiPS" and "Charlie's Angels"; she organized a touring musical review "Mr. Bojangles": The Ultimate Entertainer" in 2006 in honor of her late husband];

Millard Kaufman - 92 [screenwriter; he was nominated for Oscars twice for his screenplays of "Take the High Ground" and "Bad Day at Black Rock"; his other screenplays included: "Never So Few", "The War Lord", "The Klansman" and TV Movies including: "Enola Gay"; he created the character of Mr. Magoo for a short film, "Ragtime Bear" and the character was so popular that he landed his own cartoon series];

Coy Watson Jr. - 96 [actor; child star; the eldest of 9 siblings, the "Watson Kids", who lived across the street from Mack Sennett Studio and three other nearby studios were often hired for films  beginning in 1913; his brothers included Delmar and Bobs who appeared in such films as "Heidi", "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" and "Boys Town"; Coy who appeared in earlier films grew tired of film and later bacame a newspaper photographer and his brothers also followed photography as later careers];

Natasha Richardson - 45 [actress; popular British born actress was a star of theatre, films and television much aclaimed around the world; born into an illustrious acting family the Redgraves and Richardsons she was the daughter of Vanessa and niece of Lynn and Corin Redgrave and granddaughter of Sir Michael Redgrave; her film credits included: "Gothic", "A Month in the Country", "Patty Hearst", "The Handmaid's Tale", "Widow's Peak", "Nell", "The Parent Trap" (1998), "Maid in Manhattan" and "Wild Child"; she also starred in TV Movies and mini-series];

Betsy Blair - 85 [actress; theatre and film actress best known for her Oscar nominated role as Clara in the Oscar winning film "Marty"; her other films included: "Another Part of the Forest", "The Snake Pit", "Mystery Street" and "Kind Lady"; she worked often on Broadway and appeared on TV in many teleplays during the Golden Age of live television and also in many series as guest star as well as the mini-series "Scarlett"];

Irving R. Levine - 85 [reporter/journalist; after graduating from Columbia School of journalism he joined International News Service where he started in Vienna and later covered the Korean War. Best known as a network correspondent, he was a fixture at NBC News for years starting as a foreign correspondent in London, Moscow and Rome and later returning to Washington D.C. to cover the economy];

Dan Seals - 61 [singer; guitarist a Texan he was best known in the 70s as half of the rock duo England Dan and John Ford Coley; the duo had Top 10 hits the most popular of which was "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight"; he later went solo and stuck with his roots in country music which led to another successful career; he was the brother of Jim Seals of the popular duo of Seals & Croft];
 
Maurice Jarre - 84 [film composer; French-born, he was one of the great film composers whose music bordered on classical; he won Oscars and other awards for his work which included film scores for: "Doctor Zhivago", "Lawrence of Arabia", "A Passage to India", "Dead Poet's Society" and "Jesus of Nazareth"];

Monty Hale - 89 [actor; singer; he was one of the last of the singing cowboys of the 1930s & 40s; he was a popular draw in the B-westerns of that era beginning with "The Big Bonanza" in 1944; his other films included: "Home on the Range" "Sun Valley Cyclone", "Out California Way", "The Man from Rainbow Valley" and later in the 1950s "Giant"];

Miguelangel Suarez - 69 [actor; Puerto Rican born actor appeared mostly in Spanish language films; he did appear in American films including: Woody Allen's "Bananas", "Stir Crazy", "Havana", "The Survivor", "Paradise Lost", "Under Suspicion", "Che" and "Illegal Tender"];

Jane O'Brien Dart aka Jane Bryan - 90 [actress; beautiful and popular actress of the late 1930s, often cast as an ingenue and who in 1939 gave up her career to marry her soulmate, Justin Dart, heir to the Rexall Drug empire; her films included: "Marked Woman", "Kid Galahad" (1937), "Brother Rat", "Each Dawn I Die" and "Invisible Stripes"; she was 'tutored' by Bette Davis and became, with her husband, great friends of Ronald and Nancy Reagan after her marriage to Dart, who convinced Reagan to get into politics];

Maxine Cooper Gomberg - 84 [actress; best known for her role in the film noir classic "Kiss Me Deadly" as Mickey Spillane's secretary; her other films included: "Autumn Leaves", "Zero Hour" and "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?"; she appeared on many TV shows in the 1950s & 60s as well as TV movies; she married producer Sy Gomberg in 1957 and retired from acting in the 1960s];

Jack Cardiff - 94 [cinematographer; director; born in Yarmouth, England, he was a master of cinematography and an Oscar winner for "Black Narcissus"; his other films included: "Under Capricorn", "The Black Rose", "The African Queen", "The Barefoot Contessa", "War and Peace" and "The Vikings" some of which he was nominated for Oscars; he also directed 15 films];

Ken Annakin - 94 [film director; British born, he had a flair for both comedy and action films; his films included: "Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines", Disney's "The Story of Robin Hood" and "Swiss Family Robinson", "The Longest Day", "Battle of the Bulge", "Call of the Wild" (1972 with Charlton Heston) and "The Pirates of Penzance"];

Bea Arthur - 86 [actress; she was a gem of an actress with her gruff style and her husky voice; best known as Maude Findlay on the classic TV series "Maude" and as Dorothy Zbornak on "Golden Girls" and winning an Emmy for both roles in 1977 and 1988; she began on the Broadway Stage and won a Tony for "Mame" in 1966; her films included: "Lovers and Other Strangers" and "For Better or Worse"];

Dom DeLuise - 75 [actor; comedian; this rotund comic actor was a guarantee for laughs no matter if he was on a talk show, TV series or movie; his hilarious films included: the "Smokey and the Bandit" series, "History of the World Part 1", "Silent Movie", "Spaceballs", "Robin Hood Men in Tights", "The World's Greatest Lover", "Blazing Saddles" and "The Muppet Movie"; on TV he appeared often on talk shows including: "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson", "The Steve Allen Show", "Oprah", "Mike Douglas Show", "The Merv Griffin Show" and others and he was great with ad libs; he was also a gourmet and was expert at Italian Cooking and wrote cook books; he was an American Treasure];

Donald 'Ean' Evans - 48 [musician; singer; he was a member of the legendary rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd joining in 2001; he was the band's bassist; the original group was formed in 1966 and in 1977 lost original members, including its primary songwrite Ronnie Van Zant, in a plane crash; their biggest hits included: "Sweet Home Alabama", "Free Bird" and "What's Your Name"];

Mickey Carroll - 89 [actor; he was one of the last surviving Munchkins from the classic film "The Wizard of Oz"; an interesting fact is that his godfather was Al Capone; Jack Haley, a friend and mentor introduced him to Hollywood and acting where he appeared in the "Our Gang" series and other films; he met Judy Garland while under contract with MGM and she offered him the role in "Wizard of Oz"];

Joan A. Stanton - 94 [stage actress; model; radio actress; dark haired and beautiful, she began in theatre and modelling but became best known in radio; she is best remembered as radio's Lois Lane opposite Bud Collyer's Superman on "The Adventures of Superman", she also played Della Street on radio's "Perry Mason" series];

Jane Randolph - 93 [actress; dark haired beauty who was best known for her role as Alice Moore in the original version of "Cat People" in 1942; a star of the 1940s, her other films included: "Jealousy", "Railroaded", "Dive Bomber", "The Falcon Strikes Back", "T-Men" and "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein"];

David Carradine - 72 [actor; best known for his role as Caine on the innovative TV series "Kung Fu" and for his role as Woody Guthrie in "Bound for Glory"; the son of veteran character actor John Carradine, he and his brothers Keith and Robert followed the path of their famous father; his other films included: "Bus Riley's Back in Town", "Boxcar Bertha", "Mean Streets", "Death Race 2000", "Cannonball!", "Gray Lady Down", "The Long Riders", "Q: the Winged Serpent", "Bird on a Wire", "Macon County Jail", "Kill Bill Vol. 1" and "Kill Bill Vol. 2"];

Huey Long - 105 [musician; singer; last surviving member of the legendary pop/jazz group "The Inkspots"; although he only spent 9 months in 1945 with the group, it was in their heyday when they reccorded and played some of their best works; he was a guitarist and his career lasted 80 years in jazz, bebop, dixieland, pop and swing music; he started playing ukulele with his own group "The Three Deuces" and eventually performed with all the greats in each field];

Bob Bogle - 75 [musician; guitarist; was co-founder, with Don Wilson, of the legendary instrumental rock group "The Ventures"; he was the lead guitarist of the group; best known for their hits "Walk - Don't Run" and a version of "Hawaii 5-0"; other hits were: "Telstar", "Calcutta", "Apache", "Pipeline" and "Perfidia"; the Ventures formed their own record company "Blue Horizon"];

Ed McMahon - 86 [TV and radio announcer; host; he was an American Icon as the second banana on TV's "Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson; he began his career as an announcer in radio, graduating to television where he hooked up with 'up & coming' star Johnny Carson as co-host, announcer and sidekick on "Do You Trust Your Wife?" aka "Who Do You Trust?" in the 1950s; when Carson was promoted to be Host of "The Tonight Show" he insisted that Ed join with him, the rest is history; McMahon later had his own TV series "Star Search", a talent show which discovered many artists who went on to fame in the entertainment fields; he also hosted other special events and loved his work];

Farrah Fawcett - 62 [actress; model; pinup girl; a stunningly beautiful blonde, she was destined for fame and found it as one of "Charlie's Angels" along with co-stars Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith; she also appeared in other TV series including: "Harry O", "The Six Million Dollar Man" (with then husband Lee Majors) and "Spin City" as well as guest roles on multiple TV series; she displayed her acting abilities in the acclaimed TV film "The Burning Bed" for which she earned an Emmy nomination; she later married actor Ryan O'Neal and had a son Redmond; her films included: "Myra Breckinridge", "Sunburn", "Extremities", "Cannonball Run" and "The Apostle"];

Michael Jackson - 50 [pop singer; dancer; self-proclaimed King of Pop, he began with the rock/pop group 'The Jackson Five' with his brothers as lead singer and later enjoyed a solo career producing record breaking albums such as "Thriller"; his concerts drew millions of fans around the world and he became a pop icon; his hits included: "Billie Jean", "Beat It", "Bad", "Ben", "Don't Stop til You Get Enough", "Can You Feel It", "Dirty Diana", "Will You Be There" and "The Way You Make Me Feel"];

Billy May - 50 [pitchman; advertising spokesman; a current fixture on television and infomercials, he was a burly, black-bearded, very successful pitchman with an agressive but likable style which made him popular even on talk shows];

Gale Storm- 87 [actress; singer; she was best known for the very successful 50s sitcom "My Little Margie" in the title role; the popular series included: Charles Farell as her father Vern Albright, Don Hayden as her boyfiend Freddie Wilson, Clarence Kolb as Mr. Honeywell, Hilary Brooke as Vern's girlfiend Roberta and Gertrude Hoffman as Mrs. Odetts; she had a career as a singer, but it was her fame on sitcoms that the public loved; she starred in a later series "Oh! Susanna" aka "The Gale Storm Show" opposite actress Zasu Pitts];

Fred Travalena - 66 [comedian; impressionist; he was one of the Top Impressionists/Impersonators in the U.S.; along with Rich Little; David Frye; John Byner; Will Jordan and Guy Marks, he was adept at impersonations (including vocal and facial likenesses) of Clint Eastwood, Joe Pesci, Robert DeNiro and Dr. Ruth Westheimer as well as other actors, comics, politicians and famous personalities; he was dubbed "The Man of a Thousand Faces" and "Mr. Everybody"];

Karl Malden - 97 [actor; truly one of America's great screen legends, he went from character actor to stardom; he excelled on stage, radio, television and films; he began on the New York stage and made the transition to flms easily; his films included: "On the Waterfront", "The Hanging Tree", "A Streetcar Named Desire", "Halls of Montezuma", "Fear Strikes Out", "The Great Impostor", "I, Confess", "Birdman of Alcatraz", "Nevada Smith", "The Cincinnati Kid", "One-Eyed Jacks", "Patton" on TV he starred in two popular TV series: "The Streets of San Francisco" and "Skag" and he starred in TV movies including: "Miracle on Ice", "Call Me Anna" "The Highjacking of the Achille Lauro", "Word of Honor" and "Absolute Strangers];

Harve Presnell - 75 [singer; actor; the handsome Presnell originally trained as an opera singer, but later found his rich baritone voice was equally suitable for Broadway musicals; after working on Broadway he moved on to movies, appearing in the hit film: "The Unsinkable Mollie Brown" with Debbie Reynolds; unfortunately musical films were waning in popularity and he found little film work until he was cast as Jerry Lundegard's father-in-law the Coen brother's hit 1996 film: "Fargo"; his career was revived as a character actor and his films included: "Saving Private Ryan", "Larger Than Life", "Face/Off", "The Legend of Bagger Vance" and "Evan Almighty"];

Anna Karen Morrow - 94 [actress; the attractive brunette was a regular on the 60s TV series "Peyton Place" as a housekeeper; she had also guest starred on other seies including: "Gunsmoke", "Hazel", "Star Trek"; her films included: "The Price of Fear", Hitchcock's "The Wrong Man" with Henry Fonda and "It Happened in Athens"];

Ken Roberts - 99 [radio announcer; this tall, dark and handsome radio personality was one of the greats of radio; anyone who had ever listened to the radio in its heydays knew his smooth, calming, resonant voice as does anyone who has heard tapes of various radio programs; he announced for "the Shadow" one of the most popular radio programs ever; he made the transition to television announcing for: "Candid Camera", "Dollar a Second", "The Secret Storm" and "Love of Life"; his son is actor Tony Roberts];

Drake Levin - 62 [rock musician; guitarist; he played lead guitar with the rock group 'Paul Revere and the Raiders' for three years giving the group its signature sound of  pulsing guitar riffs and guitar solos; he worked with the group during the period of their hit tunes "Kicks" and "Just Like Me"; after leaving the Raiders he worked as a blues musician and later with the group 'the Sinners'];

Walter Cronkite - 92 [journalist; CBS news anchor; a true American Icon; perhaps one of the greatest journalists in American history and the greatest American news anchorman ever; known affectionately by his fellow citizens as "the most trusted man in America"; began his career as a radio news broadcaster and then he worked for United Press (later UPI); he was a war correspondent during WWII which gained him fame; in 1950 Edward R.Murrow recruited him to work for CBS; in 1953 he began his series "You Are There" interviewing historical figures during historical events with veteran actors portraying them; he anchored political conventions beginning in 1952 and later he became CBS's anchor for the Evening News from 1962 to 1981; he was calming, reassuring and trustworthy which led to his popularity and the admiration of the American public];

Dallas McKennon - 89 [character actor; voice artist; best known for his role as 'Cincinnatus' a bartender on TV's "Daniel Boone" series; he was even better known as a voice artist in animated films, specials and voiced characters in theme parks; his best known voices were: Gumby, Buzz Buzzard in Woody Woodpecker, dogs in "101 Dalmatians" and "Lady and the Tramp", Ben Franklin (animatronic figure) at Disney's Epcot and the warning voice on Big Thunder Railroad; his films included: "Bend in the River", "The Birds" and "Clambake"; he also guested on many TV series];

Gordon Waller - 62 [singer; musician; acoustic guitarist; he was half of the 60s Pop Duo of 'Peter & Gordon' with his high school buddy, Peter Asher; arriving in America as part of the "British Invasion" of the 1960s, the duo sang beautiful harmonious ballads including" "A World Without Love" their biggest hit; other hits included: "Nobody I Know" and "I Don't Want to See You Again" written by Paul McCartney, and their versions of "I Go to Pieces", "True Love Ways" and "Lady Godiva"; ];

Brenda Joyce - 92 [actress; the beautiful blond was best known for playing Jane in five "Tarzan" films opposite two Tarzans; her first was in "Tarzan and the Amazons" with Johnny Weismuller and the rest were with Lex Barker; her other films included: "The Rains Came" with Tyrone Power, "Pillow of Death", "Maryland", "Private Nurse", "Thumbs Up", "The Enchanted Forest" and "The Spider Woman Strikes Back"; she also appeared as herself on two episodes of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood"]; 

Frederick J. Eikerenkoetter II aka Reverend Ike - 74 [TV Evangelist; flamboyant minister who headed a large New York City congregation as well as radio and television audiences across the country; he preached the values of material prosperity with catch phrases like "Prosperity Now!", "positive self-image psychology" and "Thinkonomics"];

Virginia Carroll - 95 [actress; dark haired beauty whose range included leading lady to character actress in B-movies; she starred in many westerns opposite Tex Ritter, Don "Red" Barry, Gene Autry and others; her films included: "Roberta", "A Tenderfoot Goes West", "Bad Men of Tombstone" and "Overland Trails"; she appeared on many TV shows in cluding: "Adventures of Superman", "Dragnet", "Perry Mason" and "Leave it to Beaver"];

Budd Schulberg - 95 [screenwriter; controversial screenwriter who was at one time a member of the communist party (thru the 1930s) and who testified at the HUAC hearings, naming names of communists; he won an Oscar for his "On the Waterfront" screenplay; other films he wrote for were: "Winter Carnival", "City Without Men", "A Face in the Crowd", "Five Were Chosen" and "Nuremberg"; his novels included: "The Harder They Fall" and "What Makes Sammy Run"];

John Hughes - 59 [director; screenwriter; producer; he worked on some of the finest films of the 1980s & 90s; he kept the "brat pack" busy in his teen angst films: "Pretty in Pink", "She's Having a Baby", "The Breakfast Club", "Weird Science", "Sixteen Candles" and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" as well as other hilarious comedies: "Uncle Buck", "Dennis the Menace", "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" with Steve Martin and the great John Candy; he wrote and produced such gems as: National Lampoon's "Vacation", "European Vacation" and "Christmas Vacation", "The Great Outdoors", "Some Kind of Wonderful", the "Home Alone" series, and others];

Les Paul - 94 [musician; guitarist; inventor; Les Paul was an American Icon; he was an innovator who invented and perfected the electric guitar which changed the world of music; he was also a fine musician and with his wife Mary Ford became one of the top duos in the history of pop music; he mingled with guitar greats from all fields of music including: Jeff Beck, Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Chet Atkins and played for the likes of Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong];

John Quade - 71 [character actor; he most often played the heavy in films and on television; he is probably best known for his role as Sheriff Biggs in the TV Mini-series "Roots" and as Chola the motorcycle gang leader in two Clint Eastwood films "Every Which Way But Loose" and "Any Which Way You Can; his other films included: "Papillon", "The Outlaw Josey Wales", "La Bamba" and "Cattle Annie and Little Britches"; on TV he appeared in "Return to Lonesome Dove"; "Hill Street Blues", "The A-Team", "CHiPs", "Quincy M.E." and "The Fall Guy"];

Ruth Ford - 98 [actress; she started on stage in New York and became a part of the "bohemian crowd" along with William Faulkner, Stephen Sondheim, Cecil Beaton, Orson Welles and others; she later turned to Hollywood and films becoming a B-movie queen; her films included: "Truck Buster", "Lady Gangster", "Murder on the Waterfront", "The Keys of the Kingdom", "Wilson" and "Act One"; she also appeared on many live TV shows in the 1950s and was married to both Zachary Scott and Peter van Eyck];

Robert Novak - 78 [political columnist; TV personality; this feisty ultra-conservative political columnist/analyst/commentator was known as the "Prince of Darkness"; he started out as a cub reporter and worked up to become a popular columnist; he later became a conservative Washington pundit on CNN cable network where he gained his greatest fame];

Don Hewitt - 86 [television producer; TV journalist/innovator; he was insstrumental in shaping the careers of newsmen Edward R. Murrow, Walter Cronkite and Douglas Edwards; he was the creator of "60 Minutes" which changed the face of television journalism by combining news with show business like never before; he presided over such things as Presidential debates, NASA space missions and other political media events];

Ed Reimers - 96 [TV announcer; part-time actor; although best known for his "you're in good hands with Allstate" commercials, he was announcer on many "Golden Age" TV series; his smooth, resonant voice and white hair were his trademarks and he was a voice of television for many decades; he appeared as an actor on such shows as: "Star Trek" and "The Millionaire" and in films including "The Loved One"];

Larry Knechtel - 69 [musician; keyboardist; best known for his time with soft rock group 'Bread'; he began as a studio musician with the 'Wrecking Crew' at which time he won a Grammy for his arrangement of "Bridge Over Troubled Water"; he joined Bread in 1971 during the height of their popularity; he later worked with other singers including the Dixie Chicks];

Dominick Dunne - 83 [author; film producer; he wrote of true-life crime inspired stories and was best known for covering the O.J. Simpson trial; he loved fame and celebrity whicch is why he moved to Hollywood to produce films including; 'Play It as It Lays", "Ash Wednesday", "Boys in the Band" and "Panic in Needle Park"; he loved to schmooze with movie stars and celebrities and admitted to being a 1st class name-dropper; he was the father of actors Griffin Dunne and the late Dominique Dunne];

Erich Kunzel - 74 [orchestra conductor; he brought symphonic music to the mainstream as conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra since 1965; he also brought pop music to the symphony orchestra; he recorded scores of albums including many movie music score albums; he and the orchestra appeared in many venues from The Grand Ol' Opry to Carnegie Hall];

Army Archerd – 87 [columnist/reporter; TV Host; he was a Hollywood reporter who covered the stars and who was the most trusted of all Hollywood columnists; if a star told him things "off the record" his word was respected; he was probably best known as the annual host of the "Peoples Choice Awards" and perennial interviewer of stars at the Academy Awards];

Larry Gelbart - 81 [comedy writer; one of the great comedy writers, he was best known for creating the TV series "M*A*S*H" and the award winning film the "Tootsie"; his other works included: "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum", "Oh, God!", "The Wrong Box" and "Movie Movie"; he began his career writing jokes for the likes of Eddie Cantor, Sid Caesar, Bob Hope, Red Buttons and Jack Paar];

Paul Burke - 83 [actor; a handsome lead actor, mostly on television, he was best known for his work on TV's "Naked City" as Detective Adam Flint; other series he starred in were: "12 O'Clock High" as Col. Joe Gallagher and "Dynasty" as Congressman Neal McVane; his films included: "Valley of the Dolls", "The Thomas Crown Affair" with Steve McQueen, "Daddy's Gon A-Hunting" and "The Fool"; he also guest starred on TV series too numerous to mention];

Patrick Swayze - 57 [actor; dancer; a very popular and beloved film actor, he is best known for the films "Dirty Dancing" and "Ghost"; he was an exceptional dancer learning from his mother, a dance teacher, and  he had studied ballet with the Harkness Ballet School and the Joffrey Ballet; his other films included: "The Outsiders", "Youngblood", "Uncommon Valor", "Road House", "Next of Kin", "City of Joy", "Tall Tale", "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything Julie Newmar", "Three Wishes", "Donnie Darko", "One Last Dance" and "Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights"; he last starred in the TV series "The Beast" as Charles Barker];

Zakes Mokae - 75 [actor; black and born in Johannesburg, South Africa, he appeared on stage, in films and on television; he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London; his partner, fellow South African playwright, Athol Fugard brought him work in plays such as: "The Blood Knot", "Boesman and Lena", "A Lesson from Aloes" and "Master Harold and the Boys" for which he won a Tony Award; his films included: "Fragment of Fear", "The Island", "Cry Freedom", "A Dry White Season", "Gross Anatomy", "A Rage in Harlem", "Outbreak" and "Krippendorf's Tribe"; he appeared on many TV series including: "Knight Rider", "Law & Order", "The X-Files" and "Monk"];

Fred Coghlan Jr. - 93 [child actor; best known for his role as Billy Batson in the "Captain Marvel" serials of the 1940s; He appeared in over 100 films; as a younger child he was known as Junior Coughlan in films including: "Public Enemy", "Penrod and Sam", "Last of the Mohicans" (1932), "Charlie Chan at the Race Track" and "Angels with Dirty Faces"; Later films included: "Men of Boys Town", "Knute Rockne, All-American", "Golden Gloves" and "Follow the Band"];

Henry Gibson - 73 [actor; comedian; best known as the droll Flower Child Poet on "TV's Laugh-In" he was an original cast member; he later moved to films and TV appearances; His films included: "The Nutty Professor" with Jerry Lewis, "Kiss Me Stupid", "Nashville", "The Blues Brothers", "Inner Space", "The 'burbs'", "Asylum", "Magnolia" and "Wedding Crashers"; he appeared on numerous TV series including: "King of the Hill" as voice of Bob Jenkins, "Boston Legal" as Judge Clark Brown, "Bewitched", "The Beverly Hillbillies", "77 Sunset Strip", "F-Troop", "Dick Van Dyke Show", "Love, American Style", "Hollywood Squares", "Fantasy Island" and "Malcolm in the Middle"];


Mary Travers - 72 [folk singer; blonde straight-haired singer who along with Peter Yarrow and Paul Stookey formed the popular folk singing group "Peter, Paul and Mary"; with her booming voice and powerful vocals she sang such memorable songs as: "If I Had a Hammer", "Puff, the Magic Dragon", "Lemon Tree", "Blowin' in the Wind", "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" and "Leavin' on a Jet Plane"; the group stayed together from the 1960's to the present and never lost popularity];

Jack Manning - 93 [character actor; he was a star of radio, stage, screen and television for more than half a century; he began on stage with the likes of Helen Hayes, Paul Robeson, Uta Hagen and Jose Ferrer; he appeared on radio in the 1940s on the shows "The Green Hornet", "The Shadow", "The Aldrich Family" and "The Goldbergs"; on TV he appeared on: "Studio One", "Kojak", "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "The Paper Chase" as Dean Rutherford and "The Waltons"; his films included: "Walk East on Beacon", "Where's Poppa?", "The Owl and the Pussycat", "The Great Northfield, Minnesota Raid" and "The Great Waldo Pepper"];

Arthur Ferrante - 88 [musician, pianist; along with his partner Lou Teicher, who died in 2008, was part of the duo of 'Ferrante and Teicher' aka 'The Grand Twins of the Twin Grands'; they sold over 90 million records, garnered 22 gold & platinum records and performed 5,200 concerts worldwide; they performed, at face to face grand pianos, a variety of movie themes, classical and popular music; their songs included: "Exodus", theme from "The Apartment", "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Tonight" from West Side Story];

John Hart – 91 [actor; best known for his roles as The Lone Ranger replacement for Clayton Moore for 52 episodes of "The Lone Ranger TV series during a pay dispute and as Hawkeye in the TV series "The Last of the Mohicans" in the 1950s; he also played Jack Armstrong: The All-American Boy in the 1947 serial and the title role in "The Adventures of Captain Africa" a 1957 serial; he reprised his role as Lone Ranger on both "The Greatest American Hero" and "Happy Days" and appeared in a cameo role in the 1981 controversial "The Legend of the Lone Ranger" with Klinton Spilsbury as the Masked Man; he also worked in stage productions at the famed Pasadena Playhouse];

Joanne Jordan - 88 [Television Spokesmodel; actress; she was a common fixture on TV through the 1950s along with Betty Furness and Bess Myerson; she was a spokesperson for Hazel Bishop cosmetics, Johnson's Wax, Dove dish detergent, Lilt permanents and Kodak; she appeared on the TV series "Space Patrol" in the early 60s as Queen Mirtha; she appeared in films including: "I Cover the Underworld" and "Son of Sinbad" and many half hour variety shows on TV];

Pamela Blake - 94 [actress; B-movie actress best known for her roles in film noir and 1940s serials; born in Oakland, she headed for Hollywood after winning a beauty contest at age 17; in her early films she used her real name, Adele Pearce, later she chose Pamela Blake as her stage name; her films included: "This Gun for Hire" with Alan Ladd, "Full Confession", "Mr. & Mrs. Smith", "One Crowded Night", "Kid Dynamite", "The Omaha Trail" and "Swing Fever"; later she appeared on many early 1950s TV shows including: "Boston Blackie", "The Cisco Kid" and "Range Rider"; she retired in 1953 to raise her kids];

Steven Gately - 33 [singer; actor; he was one of the two lead singers of the British-Irish soft rock group 'Boyzone'; a handsome Irish lad he had a honey smooth voice which melded well with co-lead Ronan Keating's more rugged voice; the group had hits with their version of the BeeGees' "Words", "No Matter What" written for them by Andrew Lloyd Webber; "Love Me for a Reason" and "Baby Can I Hold You" among others; others in the group were: Shane Lynch, Mikey Graham and Keith Duffy all Irish along with Keating and Gately; the group formed in 1993 and broke up in 2000 with Keating and Gately going solo; Gately also performed in stage productions including "Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat"; the group is reuniting for a tour in 2010];

Lou Albano - 76 [Pro-wrestler; actor; he was known as Captain Lou Albano, a wrestler who with his partner Tony Altimore were known as "the Sicilians"; he managed wrestlers after he retired, but was a popular, charismatic character in the wrestling circuit, often wearing a collection of rubber bands in his beard; he gained greater fame with Cyndi Lauper in the 1980s appearing as her father in a video, after which he remained an actor];

Al Martino - 82 [singer; one of the original Italian crooners, he had hits with "Spanish Eyes", "Volare" and "Speak Softly Love"; his biggest claim to fame was landing the role of Sinatra-like singer Johnny Fontaine in the film classic "The Godfather"; the character was loosely based on Frank Sinatra; he appeared on many TV variety shows also];

Joseph Wiseman - 91 [actor; best known for his role as Dr. No in the James Bond film "Dr. No"; he was a star of stage and screen and although Dr. No was Asian, Wiseman was not; his other films included: "Detective Story", "Viva Zapata!", "The Garment Jungle" and "The Unforgiven"; he also appeared on television appearing on: "The Untouchables", "The Twilight Zone", "The Streets of San Francisco" and "Law and Order"; he appeared as crime boss Manny Weisborg on the 1980s series "Crime Story"];

Vic Mizzy - 93 [film and television composer; he wrote some of the most memorable and popular TV themes including: "The Addams Family", "Klondike", "Kentucky Jones" and "Green Acres"; he composed for Don Knotts films: "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken", "The Reluctant Astronaut", The Shakiest Gun in the West" and "The Love God"; he also wrote some hit songs including: "Three Little Sisters" and "The Jones Boy"];

Collin Wilcox -  [actress; best known for her role as Mayella Ewell the young white woman who accuses a black man (Brock Peters) of rape in the classic film "To Kill A Mockingbird"; the North Carolinian was primarily a stage actress who trained at the University of Tennessee and the Actors Studio in New York; her films included: "Twice Upon A Time", "Catch-22", "The Revolutionary", and "The Journey of August King"; she also appeared on many TV series including: "Ben Casey", "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "The Defenders", "Little House on the Prairie" and "Christy"];

Milton Supman aka 'Soupy Sales' - 95 [comedian; vaudevillian; TV performer; few knew him by his birth name Milton Supman (pronounced: Soupman) but adults and kids of the 1960s knew him as 'Soupy Sales'; although he started out in vaudeville he became famous after hosting a Detriot kid's show called "Lunch with Soupy" which evolved into a network series for kids, "The Soupy Sales Show"; the show included wild, slapstick humor with Soupy, his dogs White Fang and Black Tooth, who made Scooby Doo sound articulate, a puppet called Pooky and many salesmen of everything from  doorbells to elixirs who usually slapped a pie in Soupy's face, in fact it became trendy and all the rage to get hit in the face with a pie on "The Soupy Sales Show", recipients of pies included: Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Alice Cooper and many others];

Lou Jacobi - 95 [character actor; star of stage, screen and television; the rotund Jewish actor was probably best known for his roles as the fidgety Mr. Van Daan in "The Diary of Anne Frank" (1959) and as Gabriel Krichinsky patriach of a Baltimore Jewish family in "Avalon" (1990); his other films include: "Song Without End", "Irma La Douce", "Little Murders", "Arthur" and "My Favorite Year"; he appeared on numerous TV series including: "Barney Miller", "Love, American Style", "Sanford and Son", "St. Elsewhere" and "L.A. Law"];

Carl Ballantine - 92 [Magician; comedian; actor; best known for his role as Gruber on "McHale's Navy" television series; he began his career as "The Amazing Ballantine - World's Greatest Magician" an inept, comic magician whose tricks mostly failed, in the 1940s; he worked in nightclubs and later on TV variety shows; he turned actor and appeared on many series including: "Car 54, Where Are You?", "That Girl", "The Monkees", "Mayberry, RFD", "I Dream of Jeannie" and "The Partridge Family"; he appeared in films including: "Penelope", "Speedway", "The Shakiest Gun in the West", "The World's Greatest Lover", "Just You and Me, Kid" and "My Giant"];

Edward Woodward - 79 [actor; star of stage, screen and television; best known for his role as Robert McCall "The Equalizer", a very popular television series in which he played an ex-secret service agent who operated on his own solving difficult, often hopeless situations for his clients with a minimum of chaos and violence, a rarety on TV; he also appeared on the British TV series "Callan" as David Callan an agent/assassin for British counter-intelligence; his films included: "Breaker Morant", "Young Winston", "The Wicker Man", "The Appointment", "King David", "Uncle Tom's Cabin" an excellent TV movie and "Mister Johnson"];

Ken Ober - 52 [comedian; game show host; actor; best known as the host to the trivia game, fun show "Remote Control" on MTV in the 1980s; a tongue-in-cheek game show involving pop culture trivia; he started as a talk radio host and eventually tried acting and later became a TV producer; his films included: "Bounty Tracker", "Who's the Man?" and "Loaded Weapon 1"; on TV he guested on shows including: "Who's the Boss?", "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and "The Equalizer"];

Dennis Cole - 69 [actor; blonde, blue-eyed handsome surfer-like actor best known for his role on TV's "The Felony Squad"; appeared on many TV shows of the 1960s, 70s & 80s including as a regular, along with Rod Taylor on "Bearcats"; after retiring from acting he became a real estate broker and later performed on cruise ships in musical acts];

Jan Leighton - 87 [character actor; he worked mostly in TV commercials playing historical figures, mimmicking actors, sports figures, etc. He is best remembered as playing Fidel Castro in a Bic Lighter commercial; he also worked in radio and made an occasional movie or TV guest spot];

Richard Todd - 90 [actor; born in Dublin, a dashing, handsome swasbuckler type, he is probably best remembered for his Oscar nominated role in "The Hasty Heart" and "A Man Called Peter"; his other films included: "Dam Busters", a few films for Disney including "The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men" and Rob Roy the Highland Rogue", Hitchcock's "Stage Fright", "The Sword and the Rose", "The Virgin Queen" with Bette Davis, and "The Longest Day" and "D-Day: The Sixth of June" an event in which he actually took part as a British paratrooper];

Liam Clancy- 74 [singer/troubadour; the last of the popular Irish singing group "The Clancy Brothers"; the white sweater-clad brothers, who often worked with fellow Irish singer Tommy Makem traveled the world over singing their Irish tunes including: "The Unicorn", "Whiskey yer the Devil" and other popular ballads; they were in high demand on St. Patrick's Day and whoever booked them had scored a coup; brothers Tom Clancy died in 1990 and Paddy in 1989. Tommy Makem died in 2007];

Gene Barry - 90 [actor; starred on stage, screen and television; best known for his roles in "Bat Masterson" and "Burke's Law", in the title roles, as well as starring in the film classic "War of the Worlds"; with his debonair style he was cast in "The Name of the Game" TV series and appeared on stage in "La Cage Aux Folles"; he guest starred on many TV series and late in his career did voice-overs in television commercials];

Val Avery - 85 [character actor; best known for playing tough guy, nasty types, but was adept at playing an occasional good guy; his films included: "The Harder They Fall", "Hud", "Hombre", "The Magnificent Seven", "The Anderson Tapes" and "The Pope of Greenwich Village"; he appeared as guest on many TV series including: "The Fugitive", "Columbo", "The Odd Couple" and "Gunsmoke"];

Roy E. Disney - 79 [producer; director; business executive; the nephew of Walt Disney, he became the "protector" of Walt Disney Enterprises and was dedicated to maintaining the integrity of his uncle's ideas and his company; early on he produced and directed Disney's nature films and after the deaths of Walt Disney and his father he took over the Company until 1977 and later remained on the Board of Directors where he fought and battled for the Disney company's intregrity;];

Jennifer Jones - 90 [actress; lovely brunette who is best remembered for her film debut in "Song of Bernadette" for which she won the Oscar for Best Actress in 1943; she was married to Robert Walker and divorced in 1949 and later to producer David O. Selznick who became her mentor; her other films included: "A Portrait of Jennie", "Duel in the Sun", "Madame Bovary", "Ruby Gentry", "The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit", "Good Morning, Miss Dove", "A Farewell to Arms" and "The Towering Inferno"];

Brittany Murphy - 32 [actress; brown-eyed, blonde-haired beauty whose short career began with a role in the film "Clueless" a contemporary version of Jane Austen's novel "Emma"; she was cast often as a ditzy blonde, but could handle the role of the romantic lead as well; her films included: "Uptown Girls", "8 Mile" with Eminem; "Girl Interrupted", "Sin City", "The Devil's Arithmetic", "Little Black Book" and "Acros the Hall"; she also did some voiceover work in the film "Happy Feet" and the TV series "King of the Hill"];

Arnold Stang - 91 [character actor; his trademarks were his thick, coke-bottle-bottom spectacles a bowtie and his whiny gargly sounding voice; he began acting as a young child and had a long career; he was best known for a few roles: spokesman Chunky chocolate bars (What a chunk of chocolate!), a cast member of "The Milton Berle Show" in the 1950s and his role as a gas station attendant along with Marvin Kaplan, whose station is destroyed single-handedly by Jonathon Winters in "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", he could play drama as well as comedy; his film credits include: "The Man with the Golden Arm", "The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm" and "Dondi"; he appeared very often on TV shows and did numerous voiceovers in animated films and commercials; see Great Character Actors Page 5];

Alaina Reed-Amini - 63 [actress; singer; best known for her roles as Olivia, the photographer on the popular childrens TV series "Sesame Street" and as Rose Lee Holloway on "227" a comedy series situated in an apartment building starring Marl Gibbs; she worked often in musical theatre on Broadway and appeared as guest on many TV series];

Connie Hines - 78 [actress; best known for her role as Carol Post, wife of Wilbur on TV's "Mr. Ed"; got her start in acting after winning a role in the film "A Thunder in Carolina" in 1960; she had started on stage briefly in Boston; after appearing in roles on TV series including: "The Millionaire", "Sea Hunt" and "Riverboat" she landed the role on "Mr. Ed"; after the show ended she appeared on TV series, "Mod Squad", "Bonanza", "Medical Center" off and on];

Yvonne King Burch - 89 [singer; one of the original singing "King Sisters" of the big band era; the group varied from four to six, only one not related; they had hits with "Mairzy Doats" and the "Hut-Sut Song"; they performed with orchestra leaders Horace Heidt and Artie Shaw, later appearing with guitarist, Alvino Rey, who was married to her sister Luise; in the 1960s other members of the family joined them and were billed as "The King Family"; she was married to Buddy Cole and her daughter was actress Tina Cole; after Cole's death she married TV producer William Burch];






Jean Carroll - 98 [comedian; actress; she was a pretty, blonde pioneering female standup comic who was popular in clubs and on stage in the 1940s & 50s who wrote her own monologs and material; she appeared often on the Ed Sullivan Show and had her own sitcom, "The Jean Carroll Show" aka "Take It From Me"; her routines were similar to Joan Rivers and Phyllis Diller (husband jokes) and Roseanne Barr (Housewife tedium); only Moms Mabley predates her as a female standup comedian];

Art Clokey - 88 [filmaker; he was the creator of Gumby the cultural icon of children's progamming and of SNL spoofery; he and his wife Ruth created the famous stop-motion animation figure who debuted on the "Howdy Doody" TV series and later starred in his own series along with his horse Pokey in the 1950s & 60s;  kids of the era wanted their own popular Gumby toy figure; the popular series was later spoofed on "Saturday Night Live" by comedian Eddie Murphy dressed in a green rubber suit];

Teddy Pendergrass - 59 [singer; legendary R&B singer with an ultra sexy, raw, but smooth, baritone voice; he had hits with: "Close the Door", "It Hurt Now", "Love T.K.O." and others; at the height of his career, in the 1980s, he was involved in a horrendous automobile accident which left him paralyzed and cut short his career;];

Jean Simmons - 80 [actress; radiant, dark-haired beauty who, in the 1950s was No. 1 film actress in Britain and elsewhere; her soft-spoken, down to earth qualities made her a popular star in such films as: "Young Bess", "The Robe", "The Black Narcissus" and "Spartacus"; she showed her range in such films as "Great Expectations", "Elmer Gantry", "Angel Face", "The Actress", "Desiree" and "Guys and Dolls"; on TV she appeared in the mini-series "The Thorn Birds" and guested on shows such as "Hawaii 5-0"];

Pernell Roberts - 81 [actor; best known for his roles as Adam Cartwright on TV's "Bonanza" and as M*A*S*H's Trapper John on the spinoff TV series "Trapper John M.D."; he left "Bonanza" after 6 seasons because of a dispute with its producers and appeared as a guest in such series as: "Mission: Impossible", "The Odd Couple", "Paper Chase", "Vega$", "Police Woman" and "Rockford Files" and soon after was signed on for "Trapper John M.D."]

Johnny Seven - 83 [actor; prolific character actor, probably best known for his role as "Lt. Carl Reed" on the TV series "Ironside" which starred Raymond Burr in the title role; he appeared on numerous TV series as a guest star including: "The Untouchables" "Naked City", "Gunsmoke", "Get Smart", "Batman" and "Murder She Wrote"; his films included: "The Last Mile", "The Apartment", "What Did You Do in the War Daddy?" and "Navajo Run" in which he starred];

Zelda Rubinstein - 76 [actress; the diminutive Ms. Rubinstein was only 4' 3" but her screen presence was immense and memorable; she was best known for her key role as a clairvoyant (Tangina)in "The Plotergeist" series of films; she made her film debut in "Under the Rainbow" and her other films included: "Frances", "Sixteen Candles", "Teen Witch" and "Sinbad: The Battle of the Dark Knights"; on TV she was a regular on "Picket Fences" and guested on many other series];

Ian Carmichael - 89 [actor; debonair British actor whose career lasted over 60 years and who often portrayed buffoons and aristocrats on film and television; probably best known for his role as detective Lord Peter Wimsey; working with many great stars, his films included: "Private's Progress", "Betrayed" with Clark Gable & Lana Turner, "I'm All Right Jack" & "Lucky Jim" both with Terry-Thomas and Richard Attenborough and "School for Scoundrels" with Alistair Sim; he also starred on Broadway in "Boeing-Boeing"];

Kathryn Grayson - 88 [actress; a stunningly beautiful brunette with an operatic voice, she was a popular star of movie musicals of the 1940s & 50s; among her films were: "Andy Hardy's Private Secretary", "Anchors Aweigh", "Kiss Me Kate", "Show Boat", "That Midnight Kiss", "The Toast of New Orleans", "So This is Love", "It Happened in Brooklyn" and "The Vagabond King"; She appeared in a few TV series in the 1950s and her final appearance was on an episode of "Murder, She Wrote"];

Lionel Jeffries - 83 [actor; wonderfully charming veteran British character actor of stage and screen was probably best known for his roles in the films "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" and Ray Harryhausen's "First Men in the Moon"; his trademark bristling walrus-like mustache and his jovial spirit bade him well in his long film and stage career; he also directed films including "Railway Children" and his other films included: "Bhowani Junction", "The Baby and the Battleship", "Lust for Life", "Doctor at Large", "Blue Murder at St. Trinian's", "Dunkirk", "The Nun's Story" with Audrey Hepburn, "Call Me Bwana" with Bob Hope, "The Long Ships" and "Camelot" with Vanessa Redgrave and Richard Harris; he also appeared on many British TV series including "The Adventures of Robin Hood" with Richard Greene];

Caroline McWilliams - 66 [actress; best known for her roles as Sally on the TV soap opera spoof "Soap" and as Marcy Hill on the TV series "Benson"; she began her acting career on the New York stage and eventually landed on the TV soap "The Guiding Light"; she guest starred on many TV series including: "Beverly Hills 90210" and "Judging Amy"; her films included: "White Water Summmer" and "Mermaids"];

Nan Martin - 82 [actress; the dark haired actress was a star of stage, screen and TV; she played more mothers than anything else, including Freddie Krueger's, Ali McGraw's in "Goodbye, Columbus" and Douglas Brackman's dying mother on "L.A. Law"; besides her many roles on the stage, her television credits included roles on: "The Untouchables", "The Twilight Zone", "NYPD Blue", "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation", Nip/Tuck and "The Drew Carey Show." Her films included: "Shallow Hal", "For the Love of Ivy", "Toys in the Attic", "Mrs. Harris" and "Cast Away" with Tom Hanks];

Corey Haim - 38 [actor; popular child star of the 1980s of whom fame took its toll on his short life; he starred in films including: "Firstborn", "Secret Admirer", "Murphy's Romance", "Lucas", "The Lost Boys", "License to Drive", "Blown Away", "Demolition High" and the TV movie "Merlin"; he also appeared on the TV series: "The Edison Twins", "Roomies" and the reality show "The Two Coreys" with his best friend Corey Feldman; he battled drug addiction for years and was in and out of re-hab];



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