Keith D. Milby :: blog

Rue McClanahan, who played sexed-up Blanche Devereaux–a randy Southern belle who was as quick with the bons mots as she was with the double entendres–on The Golden Girls from the mid-’80s to the early ’90s, died Thursday at age 76 of a stroke. McClanahan died within two years of her Golden Girls costars Bea Arthur and Estelle Getty, leaving Betty White as the only surviving Golden Girl.

via Armchair Commentary: Rue McClanahan, 1934-2010.

Actor Dennis Hopper, whose 50-year film career spanned such classics as “Rebel Without a Cause,” “Easy Rider,” “Apocalypse Now” and “Blue Velvet” died Saturday following a battle with prostate cancer, Reuters reported. He was 74.

via FOXNews.com – Actor Dennis Hopper Dies at 74 After Suffering From Prostate Cancer.

Gary Coleman, the adorable, pint-sized child star of the smash 1970s TV sitcom “Diff’rent Strokes” who spent the rest of his life struggling on Hollywood’s D-list, died Friday after suffering a brain hemorrhage. He was 42.

via ‘Diff’rent Strokes’ star Gary Coleman dies | The Daily Caller – Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment.

Lena Horne, who broke new ground for black performers when she signed a long-term contract with a major Hollywood studio and who went on to achieve international fame as a singer, died on Sunday night in Manhattan. She was 92.

via Lena Horne, Sultry Singer and Actress, Dies at 92 – Biography – NYTimes.com.

Actress Dixie Carter, who played an outspoken liberal on the sitcom “Designing Women” and received an Emmy nomination for a guest role on “Desperate Housewives,” has died, according to TV gossip show “Entertainment Tonight.” She was 70.

Details about the time, place and cause were not immediately known.

via “Designing Women” Actress Dixie Carter Dies – ABC News.

John Forsythe, the actor who made his fortune as TV’s affable “Bachelor Father” and the scheming oil tycoon in “Dynasty,” has died. He was 92.

via FOXNews.com – Actor John Forsythe Dies at 92.

Fess Parker, a baby-boomer idol in the 1950s who launched a craze for coonskin caps as television’s Davy Crockett, died Thursday of natural causes. He was 85.

Family spokeswoman Sao Anash said Parker, who was also TV’s Daniel Boone and later a major California winemaker and developer, died at his Santa Ynez Valley home. His death came on the 84th birthday of his wife of 50 years, Marcella.

via Fess Parker, TV’s `Davy Crockett,’ Dies at 85 – ABC News.

Actor Peter Graves was found dead Sunday at his home in Pacific Palisades, according to law enforcement sources. Graves, who stared in “Mission: Impossible,” “Airplane!” and Billy Wilder’s “Stalag 17″–apparently died of natural causes, the sources said.

via Actor Peter Graves found dead at his home in Pacific Palisades | L.A. NOW | Los Angeles Times.

Two of the oldest people in the world have died on the same day.

Mary Josephine Ray, who was certified as the oldest person living in the United States, died Sunday at age 114 years, 294 days. She died at a nursing home in Westmoreland but was active until about two weeks before her death, her granddaughter Katherine Ray said.

“She just enjoyed life. She never thought of dying at all,” Katherine Ray said. “She was planning for her birthday party.”

Ray died just hours before Daisey Bailey, who was 113 years, 342 days, said L. Stephen Coles, a director of the Gerontology Research Group, which tracks and studies old people and certifies those 110 or older, called supercentenarians.

“It’s very rare that two of our supercentenarians die on the same day,” Coles said.

via My Way News – 2 of oldest people in US die: in NH 114, Mich. 113.

Former Secretary of State Alexander Haig, who served Republican presidents and ran for the office himself, has died.

The Haig family says he died Saturday at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore from complications associated with an infection. He was 85.

via FOXNews.com – Former Presidential Adviser Haig Dies.

A climber who fell into the crater of Mount St. Helens volcano on Monday has been found dead, an official said Tuesday.

A U.S. Naval helicopter lifted the body of Joseph Bohlig, 52, from the south crater wall at 2:45 p.m. local time and flew it to Carson, Washington, for transport to the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsy, said David L. Cox, undersheriff of the Skamania County Sheriff’s Office.

via Climber found dead in Mount St. Helens crater – CNN.com.

Doug Fieger, power pop hitmaker for the Knack, has died at 57 in his Woodland Hills, Calif., home. Best known for the 1979 No. 1 smash “My Sharona,” the singer-songwriter had reportedly been battling lung and brain cancer for years.

via Doug Fieger, Frontman for the Knack, Dies at 57 – E! Online.

Former longtime East Texas congressman Charlie Wilson has died. Staff at Lufkin Memorial Hospital confirmed the report. He was 76

via Charlie Wilson dies at age 76 | The Daily Caller – Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment.

Boa Sr, who died last week aged about 85, was the last native of the Andaman Islands who was fluent in Bo.

via Last member of 65,000-year-old tribe dies, taking one of world’s earliest languages to the grave | Mail Online.

Mime Legend Marcel Marceau Dies at 84

Marcel Marceau, the master of mime who transformed silence into poetry with lithe gestures and pliant facial expressions that spoke to generations of young and old, has died. He was 84.

Wearing white face paint, soft shoes and a battered hat topped with a red flower, Marceau breathed new life into an art that dates to ancient Greece. He played out the human comedy through his alter-ego Bip without ever uttering a word.

I was truly fascinated with this girl I met many years ago, ‘84, and she was the one that introduced me to the art of Marcel Marceau. I am forever thankful for that experience. She also introduced me to The Brother from Another Planet for which I often reference in my memories. Especially whenever I see Joe Morton in some other role on television or a movie.

I may have lost touch with the girl, but I will always have the memories.

He will forever be remembered for the music he left with us.

Luciano Pavarotti, opera’s biggest superstar of the late 20th century, died Thursday. He was 71. He was the son of a singing baker and became the king of the high C’s.

Pavarotti, who had been diagnosed last year with pancreatic cancer and underwent treatment last month, died at his home in his native Modena at 5 a.m., his manager told The Associated Press in an e-mailed statement.

His wife, Nicoletta, four daughters and sister were among family and friends at his side, manager Terri Robson said.

“The Maestro fought a long, tough battle against the pancreatic cancer,” Robson said. “In fitting with the approach that characterised his life and work, he remained positive until finally succumbing to the last stages of his illness.”

The passing of a legend. He has been around all of my life of course. He has influence many aspects of entertainment even more than I realize.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Merv Griffin, the former talk-show host who became a Hollywood billionaire by investing in real estate and creating the popular game shows “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune,” has died of prostate cancer at age 82, a spokeswoman said on Sunday.

Griffin’s first success came from singing the 1950 novelty hit “I’ve Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts,” and he spent 23 years hosting a talk show that bore his name. For years it was the most successful syndicated television program in the United States.

President Ford was in office just as I was coming to the age of conciseness, so I barely remember him.

till, I am sorry to see him go. He certainly lived a nice long life.