Saturday, December 31, 2011

IN MEMORIUM, 2011


While the best and worst of everything lists are compiled by others as another year draws to a close, The Free Choice E-zine continues it annual tradition of pausing to briefly look back and remember those that are sadly no longer with us.
Unfortunately we cannot post the whole list; but amongst our family, friends, and loved ones; as well as those within law enforcement, the medical/emergency services, and the military who lost their lives helping and/or protecting others during 2011, we have also lost...

ACTORS
James Arness (Gunsmoke)
Trevor Bannister (Are You Being Served? Last of the Summer Wine)
Roberts Blossom (Home Alone, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Doc Hollywood)
William Campbell (Love Me Tender, 1960s Star Trek)
Charlie Callas (Switch, History of the World: Part 1)
Jeff Conway (Grease, Taxi, Babylon 5)
Jackie Cooper (The Little Tramp, Superman 1)
John Dye (Touched By An Angel)
Peter Falk (Columbo, The Princess Bride)
Michael Gough (Batman, Sleepy Hollow)
Farley Granger (Rope, Strangers on a Train)
Edward Hardwicke (Watson to Jeremy Britt’s Sherlock Holmes)
Len Lesser (Kelly’s Heroes, Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond)
Kenneth Mars (in the original versions of The Producers and Young Frankenstein)
Harry Morgan (Dragnet, M*A*S*H)
Charles Napier (The Blues Brothers, Rambo: First Blood: Part 2)
David Nelson (The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet)
Pete Postlehwaite (The Usual Suspects, Inception)
“Uncle Frank” Potenza (The Jimmy Kimmel Show)
Francesco Quinn (Platoon)
Cliff Robertson (Charly, Spiderman 1, PT109)
Roy Skelton, long time supporting voice actor on Doctor Who, Rainbow
Karl Slover (The Wizard of Oz)
Leonard Stone (General Hospital, Soylent Green, Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory)
Andy Whitfield (Spartacus: Blood and Sand)

ACTRESSES
Frances Bay (Happy Gilmore, The Middle, Twin Peaks)
Annette Charles (Grease)
Mary Fickett (All My Children)
Betty Garrett (Take Me Out To The Ballgame, On The Town, Laverne and Shirley)
Jane Russell (The Outlaw, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes)
Maria Schneider (Last Tango In Paris)
Clarice Taylor (Sesame Street, The Cosby Show)
Elizabeth Taylor (Cleopatra, Butterfield 8)
Sada Thompson (Family)

ATHLETES/SPORTS FIGURES
Margo Dydek, of the Connecticut Suns Women’s Basketball Association
Joe Frazier, boxer
Greg Halman, professional baseball player with the Seattle Mariners
Harmon Killebrew, former play and announcer for the Minnesota Twins baseball team
Jack LaLanne, fitness guru
Randy “Macho Man” Savage, professional wrestler
Bubba Smith, former professional football player turned actor
Gene Smith, professional baseball player with the “Negro” Leagues
Duke Snider, professional baseball player with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers

CREATIVE PERSONNEL
Eduardo Barreto, comic book artist
John Barry, movie composer (From Russia With Love, Out of Africa)
David Broder, journalist and author
Joseph Brooks, songwriter (You Light Up My Life)
David Burton, artist
Sue Carroll, journalist
Gene Colan, long time comic book artist
Ed Flesh, art director who created the actual Wheel of Fortune wheel
Helen Frankenthaler, painter accredited with developing the color field style
Dolores Fuller, actress (Glen or Glenda, Jailbait) and songwriter for Elvis Presley movies
Christopher Hitchens, author and journalist
Bil Keane, creator of The Family Circus
Don Kirshner, record producer (The Monkees, The Archies)
Jerry Lieber, songwriter of hits including: Stand By Me, Hound Dog, and Jailhouse Rock
Sidney Lumet, director (12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon)
Hugh Martin, songwriter (Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, The Trolley Song)
Anne McCaffrey, author/creator of Pern, Restoree, Acorna, and much more
Dwayne McDuffie, comic book writer/artist/editor (Milestone Media, DC Comics)
Barbara Orbison, record producer and widow of Roy Orbison
Bill Rechin, created the comic strips Out of Bounds and Crock
Jerry Robinson, comic book artist who created Batman’s Joker
Sylvia Robinson; singer, record producer, co-founder of Sugar Hill Records
Ken Russell, director (Tommy)
Sol Saks, child actor turned writer who created Bewitched
Sherwood Schwartz, television producer, creator of Gilligan’s Island and the Brady Bunch
Joe Simon, comic book artist and co-creator of Captain America with the late Jack Kirby
Jack Smith, artist
Leonard B. Stern, creator of The Honeymooners concept and creator of Mad Libs
Fred Steiner, composer of original Perry Mason, Star Trek, and Twilight Zone television themes
Cy Twombly, artist
Lanford Wilson, playwright
Tom Wilson, Senior; Creator and original artist on Ziggy comic strip
Laura Ziskin, movie producer and co-founder of Stand Up 2 Cancer

ENTERTAINERS
Dolores Hope, singer and widow of Bob Hope
“Heavy D”, rapper/actor (The Cider House Rules, Boston Public)
Patrice O’Neal, comedian (Head of State, Scary Movie 4, Opie and Anthony)
Andy Rooney, long time 60 Minutes commentator

HISTORIC
Warren Christopher, Secretary of State for former United States President Bill Clinton
James Elliot, astronomer who discovered the rings of Uranus
Geraldine Ferraro, first female candidate for President of the United States
Betty Ford, widow of former United States President Gerald Ford and founder of a famous clinic
Muammar Gaddafi, leader of Libya
Vaclav Havel, playwright and former President of Czechoslovakia
Rusty Hevelin, noted name in pulp and science fiction fandom
Steve Jobs, technology pioneer and co-founder of Apple Computers
Kim Jong-il, leader of North Korea
Jack Kevorkian, aka “Doctor Death”
Sargent Shiver, first director of the Peace Corps

MUSICIANS
Nick Ashford of Ashford and Simpson
Clarence Clemons, saxophonist of The E Street Band
Nate Dogg, rapper
Andrew Gold, singer/songwriter (Lonely Boy, Thank You For Being A Friend)
Dobie Gray, singer/songwriter (Drift Away)
Gil Scott-Heron, poet and author
Jami Lane, singer for Warrant
Paul Motain, jazz drummer
Gary Moore, Thin Lizzy guitarist
Joe Morello, jazz drummer
“Pinetop” Perkins, blues man
Johnny Preston, singer (Running Bear)
Gerry Rafferty, former member of Stealers Wheel and solo artist (Baker Street)
Gerard Smith, bassist with TV on the Radio
Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, blues man
Phoebe Snow, blues performer/writer
Mikey Welsh, bassist for Weezer
Vesta Williams, rhythm and blues singer (Once Bitten, Twice Shy)
Amy Winehouse, singer
Snooky Young, jazz trumpeter

DISHONORABLE MENTION
Osama bin Laden, terrorist founder of al-Qaeda responsible for September 11, 2001 attack against America and other acts of terrorism against the world

NOTE: Except for the last one, all categories and the names within them are alphabetical.

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