Guess who died in 2024

[Edgy MD]

Carlboard

[metirish]

Wayne Kramer, co-founder of Detroit's MC5, dies in Los Angeles

What a player

[cal sharpie]

Yeah, the MC5 were important to me as a lad. The drummer, Dennis Thompson, is the only living member making him the MC1.

[Edgy MD]

If there was anybody who brought it more epically than Kramer, they did a good job keeping it a secret.

[dgwphotography]

Carl Weathers, best known as Apollo Creed, 76. Stole some scenes in Arrested Development, too.

The Count of Monte Fisto, my favorite of all of Apollo's nicknames.

[Edgy MD]

Yeah, Stallone deserved a screenplay Oscar just for coming up with that. Most of the nicknames Creed had were cliched and derivative, as you'd expect an overhyped self-promoting heavyweight champion fighter to use, but that's the sort of really, really forced tabloid punning that's so perfectly absurd that it sticks.

It's so on-the-nose perfect that it's totally wasted on a fictional athlete, and Carl Weathers should have become a professional boxer just so somebody could carry that mantle.

[MFS62]

Richard Caster - 75 - Jets tight end.
Later

[metirish]

Bob Beckwith , aged 91 , retired firefighter who stood on the rubble of 9/11 with George Bush

[Marshmallowmilkshake]

Country star Toby Keith at 62.

[metirish]

Country star Toby Keith at 62.

Oh wow , stomach cancer apparently

[MFS62]

We were at Harrah's in Las Vegas about 20 years ago and he was the featured act in the theater.
We were among the few guests staying at the hotel who weren't wearing cowboy hats and/or boots.
RIP

Later

[G-Fafif]

Henry Fambrough, the last of the founding Spinners, 85. He lived long enough to enjoy the group’s Rock ’n Roll Hall of Fame (which he really did).

From the touring group’s Facebook page:

Henry Lee Fambrough, a founding member of the legendary R&B/Soul vocal group, The Spinners, died peacefully in his northern Virginia home today.

An Army veteran, Fambrough was known for his iconic “handlebar” mustache, captivating audiences with his smooth moves onstage. His euphonious baritone voice is featured prominently on standout Spinners singles, album cuts, and B-sides such as “Ghetto Child,” “I Don’t Want To Lose You,” and “Just As Long As We Have Love.”

Fambrough’s transition marks the end of an era, as he was the last surviving founding member of The Mighty Spinners. Members of the lineup during The Spinners’ classic hitmaking era were Bobbie Smith, Billy Henderson, Pervis Jackson, and Philippe Wynne.

The Spinners scaled the heights of musical stardom, earning the industry’s most elite honors, including a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and most recently, induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last year.

Fambrough is survived by his wife of 52 years, Norma, daughter Heather Williams, son-in-law, Ronald, sister, Martha, and a host of loving cousins, extended family, friends, and music industry colleagues.

[Edgy MD]

It's the bane of the baritones. So often, the tenor gets first dibs, and the baritone gets the b-side.

[MFS62]

Seiji Ozawa, Conductor- 88

He led the Boston Symphony Orchestra for 29 years.

RIP

Later

[MFS62]

William Post - 96
Creator of the Pop Tart

https://www.newsweek.com/pop-tarts-tart ... fe-1869766

Later

[metirish]

I know we have some people here that absolutely love Pop Tarts , I think at one point many years ago there was even a thread on it

[metirish]

Alexey Navalny , only surprise is that Putin didn't have him killed years ago

Navalny on HBO is worth watching

[MFS62]

Lefty Driesell- basketball coach- 92
https://nypost.com/2024/02/17/sports/ha ... cOsv-iiGW4

He is the only coach in NCAA history to have been named Coach of the Year in four different conferences (Southern Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference, Colonial Athletic Association, Atlantic Sun Conference).

He was coaching at Maryland when my daughter went there.
RIP

Later

[MFS62]

Flaco - the owl that was a big news story when it escaped a NY zoo - 13
https://www.thedailybeast.com/flaco-the ... e?ref=home

Later

[metirish]

This was always going to happen, while we cheered his freedom Manhattan was not a good place for Flaco , he was never going to just stay in Central Park, I never went in to see and take pictures,, dozens of birders followed Flaco around the city , I certainly didn't want to be part of that.

Hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of birds die yearly in NYC for building collisions , as spring migration starts over the next month it is not uncommon to see dozens of migratory birds dead on sidewalks

[whippoorwill]

:(

That is sad

[RealityChuck]

Steve Miller, who with his partner Sharon Lee, wrote the popular Liadan Universe space opera novels died on 2/20.

I've known Steve for many years (and Sharon for even longer) from science fiction conventions. They've attended Albacon several times. Last November, he contacted programming for the Astronomicon convention in Rochester. He was surprised to hear I was running programming there.

Sharon is posting about it and about how she is coping on Facebook. Here is Steve's Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Mil ... on_writer)

`

[whippoorwill]

I’m sorry Reality Chuck. It’s always hard losing a friend

[Benjamin Grimm]

Comedian Richard Lewis, 76, yesterday from a heart attack.

[MFS62]

He made me laugh.
RIP
Later