Obituaries for 2016

[apples]

RIP, sad to see Joe go.

Yes it is. The only one left is Vin Scully.

[apples]

Patty Duke, Oscar Winner and Sitcom Star, Dies at 69

http://news.yahoo.com/patty-duke-oscar-winner-sitcom-star-dies-69-164024164.html

Patty Duke, who won a best supporting actress Oscar for her performance as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker and starred as two cousins, different as night and day, on her own sitcom, has died, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. She was 69.

"This morning, our beloved wife, mother, matriarch and the exquisite artist and champion of mental health, Anna Patty Duke, closed her eyes, quieted her pain and ascended to a beautiful place," read a family statement.

Although she performed in films, theater and TV, Duke was most successful in her TV acting career. Overall, she won three Emmy Awards: The Miracle Worker, Captains and Kings and My Sweet Charlie, among eight total nominations.

She was also nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Insight. Duke won a Golden Globe as Most Promising Newcomer for The Mira

[apples]

Merle Haggard dead at 79

http://www.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2016/04/06/merle-haggard-dead-at-age-79/81272486/

Merle Haggard 1937-2016

Merle Haggard, the working man?s poet, an architect of the Bakersfield Sound, and an artist who influenced country music like few others, died Wednesday in California. He had just turned 79 years old, and had been in failing health for some time, leading to the cancellation of several concert dates, including two nights at the Ryman Auditorium that were originally scheduled for March.

Over the course of his half-century career, Mr. Haggard recorded 40 No. 1 country singles, and wrote some of the genre?s most revered classics, which have been recorded by Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, The Byrds, Vince Gill, The Grateful Dead, and countless others.

Mr. Haggard?s life, which took him from a San Quentin prison cell to the Country Music Hall of Fame, was a truly American success story. ?In some ways, his life sounds like fiction, but if it were fiction, no one would believe it,? said Harris on the night of his Hall of Fame induction.

[apples]

BREAKING NEWS: Liza Minnelli's ex-husband David Gest is found dead aged 62 in Four Seasons hotel in Canary Wharf

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3536122/Reality-TV-star-David-Gest-died-aged-62.html

    TV personality and former husband of Liza Minnelli was found dead at the east London hotel this morning
    Police were called to reports of his 'unexplained death' at 10:17 and say his family have been informed
    A close friend announced his death, saying he was 'larger than life, a huge talent and a showbiz icon'
    He was due to start UK tour called 'David Gest Is Not Dead But Alive With Soul' based on his success in Big Brother

[PzLdr]

Never heard of the guy...But RIP

[apples]

Doris Roberts Dead at 90


http://www.tmz.com/2016/04/18/doris-roberts-dead/

Doris Roberts, the beloved mom from "Everybody Loves Raymond," has died ... TMZ has learned.

We're told Doris passed away Sunday in L.A.

She won 5 Emmy awards, 4 of them for 'Raymond.' She's also starred in tons of other TV shows and movies, like "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" and "Grandma's Boy."

She's survived by her son, Michael Cannata Jr., who she had with her first husband. Doris' second husband, William Goyen, died in 1983.

Doris was 90 years old.

We last saw her about a month ago where we frequently got her -- going to the movies at the ArcLight in Hollywood. Doris said she wasn't feeling great, but she was as witty as ever.

She was good in Everybody loves Raymond. Remington Steele too. R.I.P.

[Paladin2016]

Doris was awesome on ELR. I don't know how many of you may also watch "The Middle", another Patricia Heaton vehicle, but Doris had a guest shot on one of the shows in which she played the teacher of Patricia's youngest son, the oddball Brick. "The Middle" is funny but that particular episode was particularly good due to the interaction between Patricia and Doris.

[apples]

Doris was awesome on ELR. I don't know how many of you may also watch "The Middle", another Patricia Heaton vehicle, but Doris had a guest shot on one of the shows in which she played the teacher of Patricia's youngest son, the oddball Brick. "The Middle" is funny but that particular episode was particularly good due to the interaction between Patricia and Doris.

I remember that one.

[apples]

Former WWE superstar Chyna dies at 45

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2016/04/21/former-wwe-superstar-chyna-dies-at-45/?intcmp=hpbt4

Former WWE superstar Joanie Laurer, also known as Chyna, has died at the age of 45, her manager said in a statement on Twitter early Thursday.

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The immediate cause of death was unknown. Laurer?s manager told Pro Wrestling Sheet that she was found dead in her Redondo Beach, Calif., home Wednesday, and she had been taking medication for anxiety and sleep deprivation. It?s unclear if her medications played a part in her death, but TMZ reported that authorities are investigating her death as a possible overdose.

In a bizarre video posted on her YouTube channel on Sunday, Chyna was seen with smudged makeup, drinking water and juice. The star made a smoothie during the 13-minute video and wore feathers as she took the camera around her home and rambled to fans.

[apples]

Prince Dead at 57


https://www.tmz.com/2016/04/21/prince-dead-at-57/

0421_remembering_prince_launch_2The artist known as Prince has died ... TMZ has learned. He was 57.

Prince's body was discovered at his Paisley Park compound in Minnesota early Thursday morning.

Multiple sources connected to the singer confirmed he had passed.

The singer -- full name Prince Rogers Nelson -- had a medical emergency on April 15th that forced his private jet to make an emergency landing in Illinois. But he appeared at a concert the next day to assure his fans he was okay. His people told TMZ he was battling the flu.

[apples]

BREAKING NEWS: Prince, 57, dies at Minnesota estate just days after he was rushed to hospital from private plane with 'severe flu'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3552300/Fatality-Prince-s-estate-Minnesota-days-musician-rushed-hospital.html

Prince has died aged 57 at his estate in Minnesota, just days after he was rushed to hospital from his private plane with flu.

Paramedics were called out to his Paisley Park estate at 9.43am and Carver County Sheriff's Department confirmed that there had been a fatality.

A forensics team and a medical examiner are at the scene.

Prince - full name Prince Rogers Nelson - was hospitalized six days ago with flu symptoms.

[apples]

Prince 'overdosed a week ago on Percocet taken for a chronic hip problem': Star suffered for years 'but refused to get an operation because of his Jehovah's Witness faith'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3554087/Prince-dies-aged-57.html

Prince overdosed on the opiate Percocet six days before he died and had to be given a 'save shot' sources said
Drug is a highly-addictive painkiller that contains acetaminophen and oxycodone and is used to treat acute pain
Friends said he had long-term hip issues but was rumored to refuse surgery because he was a Jehovah's Witness
Pop superstar's autopsy began today, although the results of the investigation could take weeks, officials said
Prince's private plane made an emergency landing in Moline, Illinois, so he could be rushed to hospital last week
The 57-year-old music icon was then seen on Wednesday at a Walgreens pharmacy looking 'frail and nervous' 
He died aged 57 at his Paisley Park estate in Minnesota on Thursday after being found unresponsive in an elevator
Legendary singer and songwriter sold more than 100million records in his sparkling 40-year music career
Prince was known for his sexually charged lyrics and was romantically linked to a number of male and female stars

Dang. Hoping this wasn't true.

[jafo2010]

Never understood how anyone could be a JW and have a functioning brain at the same time.

[apples]

Prince may be worth much less than previously estimated, much more in death

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2016/04/26/princes-sister-says-singer-had-no-will-asks-to-be-appointed-estate-executor.html?intcmp=hpbt4

Prince's sister says the superstar musician had no known will when he died, and filed paperwork Tuesday asking a Minneapolis court appoint a special administrator to oversee his estate.

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The amount of money Prince left behind is unclear. A fortune originally estimated in the hundreds of millions could be much, much less, and future earnings off the pop star's catalogue and brand could dwarf what he died with.

Prince owned a dozen properties in and around his famous Paisley Park complex in suburban Minneapolis: mostly rural pieces of land and some houses for family members. Public records show those properties were worth about $27 million in 2016.

Prince sold over 100 million albums on his lifetime, according to
Warner Music Group. And Pollstar, a concert industry magazine, said that in the years that his tours topped the charts ? 10 years over four decades performing ? the tours raked in $225 million in ticket sales. Prince's best-earning touring year, when he took in $87.4 million, was 2004, the year he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and two  decades after the soundtrack to "Purple Rain" went multi-platinum.

[apples]

Alan Young, star of 1960s sitcom 'Mr. Ed,' dies at 96

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2016/05/20/alan-young-star-1960s-sitcom-mr-ed-dies-at-96.html

Actor-comedian Alan Young, who played the amiable straight man to a talking horse in the 1960s sitcom "Mister Ed," has died, a spokeswoman for the Motion Picture and Television Home said Friday. He was 96.

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The English-born, Canadian-educated Young died Thursday, according to Jaime Larkin, spokeswoman for the retirement community where Young had lived for four years. His children were with him when he died peacefully of natural causes, she said.

Young was already a well-known radio and TV comedian, having starred in his own Emmy-winning variety show, when "Mister Ed" was being readied at comedian George Burns' production company. Burns is said to have told his staff: "Get Alan Young. He looks like the kind of guy a horse would talk to."

Mr. Ed was a golden Palomino who spoke only to his owner, Wilbur Post, played by Young. Fans enjoyed the horse's deep, droll voice ("WIL-bur-r-r-r-r") and the goofy theme song lyrics ("A horse is a horse, of course, of course ... "). Cowboy star Allan "Rocky" Lane supplied Mr. Ed's voice.