Rolling Obituary Thread: 2018

You know the drill.

Twitter reporting that Peggy Cummins of film noir classic Gun Crazy has died age 92.

Rick Hall, of Muscle Shoals/Fame Studios

https://www.rollingstone.com/country/news/rick-hall-father-of-muscle-shoals-music-dead-at-85-w514854

was thinking last night about how freaked out everyone was over the abundance of celebrity deaths in 2016, that definitely didn't carry over into 2017, and i was trying to think of other years that were like that... remembered that ingmar bergman and antonioni died on the same day in 2007, which is arguably crazier than the cavalcade in 2016 imo

Honestly, I think Bowie and Prince were just so shocking that it sort of readied us for virtually anybody kicking the bucket. When Tom Petty died, sad and untimely though it was, it just didn't feel as epochal as the passing of Bowie and Prince. There's going to be a steadily accelerating wave of notable deaths, given that youth culture and celebrity as we know it sort of kicked into gear in the 1950s and really only hit its stride in the '60s.

Anyway, RIP Rick Hall.

I mean, the '50s died last yeat but Chuck, Fats and Jerry Lewis were ancient.

^^And all had been known to be in declining health for years, which many of the big 2016'ERS had been able to keep under wraps to varying degrees.

xpost Hah, I thought you meant Jerry Lee Lewis, who is, of course, still alive, though probably barely. And Little Richard is still around, too.

I thought he meant Jerry Lee too, almost Googled to make sure.

It’s been mentioned elsewhere, but 1977 took some pretty big names: Presley, Bolan, Nin, Nabokov, Callas, 2 x Marx brothers etc etc

So, will Mark E Smith make it through the year?

Probably more chance of Tom Hanks winning the Booker Prize tbh

fred bass, owner of new york bookstore the strand

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/03/obituaries/fred-bass-strand-bookstore-dies-at-89.html?_r=0

Fuck Jerry Lee Lewis. I hope he dies this year.

Jerry Van Dyke

http://variety.com/2018/tv/news/jerry-van-dyke-coach-actor-dead-dies-1202655598/

Longest-serving U.S. astronaut John Young

http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-010618a-astronaut-john-young-obituary.html?utm_source=fark&utm_medium=website&utm_content=link&ICID=ref_fark

I liked John Young; he was the Apollo astronaut notorious for cursing while on mike during his flight/moonwalk.

Poor Dick Van Dyke, losing his brother and two of his old castmates in the last year.

Unbelievable that John Young flew the first Gemini and the first Shuttle mission. Oh and landed on the moon.

John Young hurts, considering my favorite present this year was the LEGO scale model of the Saturn V.

any moonwalkers left besides Aldrin?

My dad took me to NYC to see the Apollo 16 astronauts get the Keys to the City from Mayor Lindsay.

had an "is he/isn't he dead" moment with Buzz the other day

there are 5 left btw

Recommend the book Moondust: In Search of the Men Who Fell to Earth, by Andrew Smith, to those who have not read.

Cinamon Hadley, the model for Death in Gaiman's The Sandman:

https://www.comicmix.com/2018/01/06/cinamon-hadley-the-girl-who-was-death-has-died/

Peter Preston

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2018/jan/07/peter-preston-former-guardian-editor-dies-aged-79

France Gall, ye-ye star and singer of Gainsbourg's Poupee de Cire Poupee de Son.

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/france-gall-dead-french-singer-eurovision-michel-berger-a8146276.html

France Gall

http://www.lefigaro.fr/culture/2018/01/07/03004-20180107ARTFIG00037-mort-de-france-gall-une-chanteuse-qui-donnait-tout-pour-la-musique.php

Ray Thomas of the Moody Blues

http://teamrock.com/news/2018-01-05/ray-thomas-r-i-p

Geez, Jerry Van Dyke:

http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/06/entertainment/jerry-van-dyke/index.html

Not sure if "stay safe" really applies to either Dick Van Dyke (92) or Carl Reiner (95).

Producer Chris Tsangarides. A huge loss to rock and metal in particular, but the dude worked on an unbelievable number of records.

People I know who recorded with him said he was a really good guy, sad news.

Tony Calder, promoter and co-founder of Immediate records with Andrew Loog-Oldham.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/jan/07/tony-calder-obituary

xpost -- yeah Tsangarides's death is a real loss, what a credit list. Remember being happy to see him turn up in Anvil! The Story of Anvil and he had some of the best moments! Would have been great to get a book from him at some point, probably would have been the hard rock/metal equivalent to something like Are We Still Rolling?.

2018 is warming up now, the deaths are beginning to roll in.

Jesse Crumb, artist and son of Robert

https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2018/jan/8/jesse-crumb-eureka-resident-and-son-famed-cartooni/

aw man, that's sad.

Mikio Fujioka, aka Ko-Gami of Babymetal's backing band, age 36.

“Kami Band member Mikio Fujioka has passed away at the age of 36. Mikio Fujioka fell from a high astronomical observation deck on December 30, and died on January 5, with his 2 daughters next to him.”

The “Little” Guitar Kami of #BABYMETAL ‘s #Kamiband has passed away in the METAL GALAXIES. We hope that he is now with his GUITAR MASTER A.Holdsworth and enjoying an epic guitar session with him.

We are the one
Together
We're the only one
You are the one
Forever#RIP #THEONE pic.twitter.com/NMUg3mhmes

— BABYMETAL (@BABYMETAL_JAPAN) January 9, 2018

Jeff "Antennae Jimmy Semens" Cotton of Captain Beefheart's Magic Band, 68.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Cotton

Cotton died from complications of cancer on January 6, 2018.

The Boogie Report email newsletter and folks on Facebook are reporting that Denise LaSalle, Mississippi born r’n’b/soul singer has died as a result of surgery complications. Her biggest hit was “Trapped by a Thing called Love.” This century she recorded some great Southern soul for labels like Malaco and Ecko.

https://www.soul-source.co.uk/articles/news-soul/denise-lasalle-r-i-p-r3749/

RIP. In the UK she's definitely best known for her cover of 'My Toot Toot', which was a top ten hit in 1985.

that was a big morning-zoo hit in the '80s too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZL3Wwo6RGyw

betty jane willis, who released a couple of singles in the '60s, including this leon russell-produced cover of buck owens' 'act naturally'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5NShyAiE1I

this is an in-depth obituary

https://www.ocregister.com/2018/01/04/betty-jane-willis-more-than-another-homeless-death-she-was-a-soul-singer/

Any source for the Jeff Cotton death other than wikipedia (which is no source at all)? He's been notoriously hard to find for decades.

Only Gary Lucas's Facebook page, which is probably no source at all either. Hmm. Let's see if a proper statement comes out, apologies for jumping the gun if it turns out to be a false alarm.

Sleuthing reveals his wife died early last year, but I can't find anything on his dying other than that Lucas post.

Maura - thank you for that Betty Willis obit, very sad, but nice they spoke with her daughter, former coworker and Bill Medley to tell a little of her story.

Starting to look like Jeff Cotton isn't true, but nothing more than FOAF reports either way. I do know his wife died of cancer last year -- that might be the source of the rumors.

Neave Brown, architect of low-rise social housing in Camden, recently awarded RIBA medal for same. Lived until his death in north London’s Dunboyne Road flats, which he designed. Here’s an interview from October conducted by one of my best friends:

https://www.ribaj.com/culture/humanity-as-a-design-tool-riba-royal-medal-neave-brown

BREAKING: Edgar Ray Killen, convicted in 1964 'Mississippi Burning' slayings of 3 civil rights workers, dies in prison. https://t.co/dKu8bikhBC

— The Associated Press (@AP) January 12, 2018

Marilyn McCoo, get thee to a physician.

Evelyn Berezin, creator of the first word processor and designer of United Airlines’ 1960s online booking system.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/dec/19/evelyn-berezin-obituary?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Cool career! May her memory be a blessing.

RIP. Pretty sure United still uses that system

Donald Moffat, a perennial of stage, film, and TV

https://www.theatermania.com/new-york-theater/news/donald-moffat-dies-at-87_87380.html

I saw him play Larry Slade opposite Robards in The Iceman Cometh.

File under "did not know he was still alive." I forgot he was on that Logan's Run TV series in the 70s. Yeesh.

So, will Mark E Smith make it through the year?

― Mark G, Wednesday, January 3, 2018

:(

Yeah, sigh. Probably the most picked in this year's deadpool..

RIP Donald

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbubW7IxNG8

Peter Masterson, theatre/film guy who directed Geraldine Page's Oscar role in The Trip to Bountiful

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/peter-masterson-playwright-actor-and-filmmaker-dies-at-84/2018/12/20/77bff1bc-04a3-11e9-b5df-5d3874f1ac36_story.html

Paddy Ashdown.

Simcha "Kazik" Rotem. Last survivor of the Warsaw uprising.

improv pioneer David Shepherd

https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/ct-ent-david-shepherd-second-city-1219-story.html

(Peter Masterson = dad of Mary Stuart Masterson)

Sister Wendy Beckett

https://www.rte.ie/news/2018/1226/1019145-sister-wendy-dead/

Honey Lantree of the Honeycombs

RIP, Honey, even if I wasn’t aware that you were still with us until recently

It's been 5 (five) yeras, but I would like to take this time to celebrate/eulogize acclaimed writer Maya Angelou, who died five (5) years ago. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees.[3] Angelou is best known for her series of seven autobiographies, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her international recognition and acclaim.

We take this moment on ILXOR to remember Maya.

also, Honey Laneytree.

Excuse me, Lantree.

was Maya Angelou an original member of the Bobbettes and/or the session guitarist who played the wah-wah bits in Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On"? if not, I'm afraid she doesn't meet the notability requirements for this thread

Israeli novelist Amos Oz: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/dec/28/amos-oz-dead-israeli-novelist-writer-dies

Bre Payton, staff writer at The Federalist, at 26.

David Cavanagh, editor of Select in the 90s and author of some great, great books. (His Creation Records history also functions as a hell of a portrait of the UK indie scene as such in the 80s and 90s, and was the best source of a history of Postcard Records for a long while as well.)

Ringo Lam, director of (most notably) City On Fire.

that is a loss for sure, though for me Full Contact is the go-to Ringo Lam picture.

the shadow he cast was a bit larger than his filmography might indicate; he doesn't have nearly the number of films (nor quality films) to his name as someone like Johnnie To, nor the same number of outsized classics as someone like John Woo, nor the industry-wide domination of someone like Tsui Hark. Nor the arthouse bonafides of Wong Kar-Wai and others. He faded after awhile, and after he made a pair of well-received films in the late nineties w/Victim and Full Alert, he moved into making a lot of Van Damme films and the Dennis Rodman action flick Simon Sez. But City on Fire, Prison on Fire, and Full Contact are absolutely astonishing movies, the latter is probably one of the most awe-inspiring low-grade action films of all time, if not THE most.

Been meaning to see Burning Paradise but I might bump Full Contact ahead.

Yeah Full Contact is a hell of a thing. Should bust out my copy.

was disappointed to find how little of Lam, Woo, To, et al's filmography is available on streaming services.

Johnny To’s stuff sometimes pops up on Mubi but yeah

like, I can't even find the Killer or Hard Boiled

John Woo's got several up on Amazon/Netflix: Red Cliff (which is fantastic in its complete version, however this is the truncated version), Manhunt (his most recent one, mixed reviews abound), and his Dolph Lundgren flick Blackjack. The best Johnnie To available on streaming that I've seen is Breaking News, which is mid-tier To but pretty interesting as a police standoff thriller with *ideas*.

lots of the available To is from the '90s, before he hit his stride and he was at that point making pretty interesting but not very gripping films.

June Whitfield according to twitter, but haven't seen a legit source yet.

Agent has confirmed, according to PA.

Ab Fab's Dame June Whitfield dies aged 93

Man, that sucks.

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-46706705

Norman Gimbel, film and TV lyricist.

Guitarist James Calvin Wilsey (Chris Isaak, The Avengers) Dead At 61

http://stereoembersmagazine.com/chris-isaak-guitarist-james-calivn-wilsey-dead-at-61/?fbclid=IwAR09UBr-7Hpo-V_C3ESXICqNVgypOBxw0_PbEQm8wYRm0Eyq01OpgMzMZEI

☠️ is really cramming them in before the end of the year

like, what is that today? 6?

Guitarist James Calvin Wilsey (Chris Isaak, The Avengers) Dead At 61

was disappointed to find how little of Lam, Woo, To, et al's filmography is available on streaming services.

Randomly enough I just searched for Johnnie To movies on Netflix the other day and they have a pretty good set right now. None of the more famous Johnnie films but still pretty cool ... they used to only have Three (which I didn't like much).

Netflix has Loving You (1996), Lifeline (1997), Justice My Foot (1992), Mad Monk (1993), The Barefooted Kid (1993), Don't Go Breaking My Heart (2011), Blind Detective (2013), Three (2016)

Norman Gimbel, film and TV lyricist

Whenever you hear a bossa nova classic sung in English it's about even odds the lyrics are his.

(Sometimes they're from Ray Gilbert or Gene Lees, who are also no longer with us).

RIght. Or every once in a while Tom Jobim even wrote them himself. Not a big fan of the Gimble or Gilbert bossa lyrics tbh.

Okay, I guess I like some of his lyrics more than I thought. "How Insensitive" for bossa, "Sway" and "Bluesette" in other styles.

Ray Sawyer.

http://www.wkrg.com/news/mobile-county/dr-hook-s-ray-sawyer-chickasaw-native-dead-at-81/1681232151

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ux3-a9RE1Q

"Oh, that's beautiful."

Oh noooooooo. Will be watching this epic triumph / trainwreck in tribute:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4c3W-XoNXM

aw shit

https://youtu.be/7LXpnNKNxJI