In Memoriam: Entertainment Industry Celebrity Deaths

[Vermicious Knid]

Noooo! I love her work. Only 74 :(. She's the only author I ever read who managed adjective-filled paragraphs without tipping over into purple prose. She was so original even when working with archetypes and fantasy tropes. If you never have, go out and read at least one of her books.

[dalek]

Ukranian fantasy author Serhiy Dyachenko has died.  Together with his wife Maryna, he wrote over 30 novels.  I think the best known of his works that was translated into english is probably Vita Nostra.

https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2022/05/rip-serhiy-dyachenko.html

[MissAlmond]

Actor James Olson who starred in Rachel, Rachel and The Andromeda Strain has died, age 91.

https://deadline.com/2022/05/james-olson-dead-actor-obituary-rachel-rachel-andromeda-strain-1235020291/

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/james-r-olson-dead-andromeda-strain-rachel-rachel-1235143789/

https://www.thewrap.com/james-olson-actor-70s-tv-hits-dead-91/

[LegalParrot81]

1 hour ago, MissAlmond said:

Actor James Olson who starred in Rachel, Rachel and The Andromeda Strain has died, age 91.

https://deadline.com/2022/05/james-olson-dead-actor-obituary-rachel-rachel-andromeda-strain-1235020291/

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/james-r-olson-dead-andromeda-strain-rachel-rachel-1235143789/

https://www.thewrap.com/james-olson-actor-70s-tv-hits-dead-91/

He was one of those grand character actors, whose name you never knew, but who you always recognized.

[Macbeth1966]

7 hours ago, LegalParrot81 said:

He was one of those grand character actors, whose name you never knew, but who you always recognized.

OMG - I saw pictures of him and you are right.

He was in everything.

He was acting between 1956-1990.  If you were watching tv in the 1970s - you couldn't miss him.

Bonanza, Streets of San Francisco, Maude, Lou Grant, Hawaii Five-O, Bionic Woman, Battlestar Galactica, Mannix, Cannon, The Rookies, Little House on the Prairie, Columbo, McCloud.  And he was in the movie Ragtime.  His last role was on Murder She Wrote.

[SunnyBeBe]

A televised Memorial service for Naomi Judd is scheduled for Sunday at 6.  Also, that a firearm was used in the suicide. 
 

https://people.com/country/ashley-judd-confirms-naomi-judd-died-by-suicide-gunshot-wound/

[SunnyBeBe]

I saw on tv that the Judd Memorial is supposed to be aired on CMT channel.  

[Blergh]

5 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

A televised Memorial service for Naomi Judd is scheduled for Sunday at 6.  Also, that a firearm was used in the suicide. 
 

https://people.com/country/ashley-judd-confirms-naomi-judd-died-by-suicide-gunshot-wound/

And the younger Miss Judd has said that she had just left her mother to retrieve a family friend in another part of the house when. .. the worst happened! 

 

[Spartan Girl]

Poor Ashley. There was nothing she could’ve done, but that’s still probably going to haunt her for the rest of her life.

[Blergh]

Yes, I think it's likely that both Judd sisters, Miss Judd's widower Mr. Strickland and all their loved ones will be haunted by 'if onlys' and there's nothing to be gained by pouring salt in the wounds.

However, if nothing else, I hope everyone who has a loved one who has suffered from depression- and, especially, has expressed suicidal ideas who has ANY inkling that said loved one has access to firearms and/or other means to harm themselves  in their own domicile will do  everything in one's power to get rid (or, at the very least, secure) these items from their loved one's reach. 

Edited May 14, 2022 by Blergh

[chediavolo]

11 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Poor Ashley. There was nothing she could’ve done, but that’s still probably going to haunt her for the rest of her life.

I can understand being so deeply distraught with depression and finding no relief that you commit suicide. But never having been there and trying not to pass judgment I still can’t understand how you could do something like that to your child

[Domestic Assassin]

18 minutes ago, chediavolo said:

I can understand being so deeply distraught with depression and finding no relief that you commit suicide. But never having been there and trying not to pass judgment I still can’t understand how you could do something like that to your child

Sometimes people that deep into depression are convinced they are doing their children a favor, that their very existence is doing their children (and everyone else in their lives) more harm than good. They are not thinking rationally.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Domestic Assassin

[SunnyBeBe]

The fact there was a firearm in the home is shocking to me, considering the history there. I wonder if the daughters knew.  She could have tried another method, but the firearm is just so much faster.  

[Ohiopirate02]

31 minutes ago, Domestic Assassin said:

Sometimes people that deep into depression are convinced they are doing their children a favor, that their very existence is doing their children (and everyone else in their lives) more harm than good. They are not thinking rationally.

Her depression had to be very deep for her to stop caring about who's going to find her.  Once you reach that point, there really is nothing stopping you from permanently ending your pain.  

[Yogisbooboo64]

11 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Poor Ashley. There was nothing she could’ve done, but that’s still probably going to haunt her for the rest of her life.

Never been a fan, but watching her talk about it on GMA the other day was one of the most uncomfortable experiences I've ever had.

How Naomi passed is none of our business, goddammit sometimes celebrities need privacy....I hated that Ashley and the family felt they had to share something so devastating with the public.

[bluegirl147]

1 hour ago, chediavolo said:

I can understand being so deeply distraught with depression and finding no relief that you commit suicide. But never having been there and trying not to pass judgment I still can’t understand how you could do something like that to your child

My grandmother shot and killed herself when I was a year old. I was in the house when she did it. My mother is the person who found her.  Over fifty years later it is something that still affects my family. Unfortunately this is something Ashley and Wynonna and Naomi's husband will have to deal with for the rest of their lives.  

On the other side of this I wrestled with depression when I was a teenager and young adult.  I tried to kill myself twice.  Once I became a mother I never again considered suicide because I would never let my child experience what my parents and I experienced.

My heart goes out to anyone who is struggling with mental illness and those who love those struggling with mental illness.

[Zella]

28 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

My grandmother shot and killed herself when I was a year old. I was in the house when she did it. My mother is the person who found her.  Over fifty years later it is something that still affects my family. Unfortunately this is something Ashley and Wynonna and Naomi's husband will have to deal with for the rest of their lives.  

On the other side of this I wrestled with depression when I was a teenager and young adult.  I tried to kill myself twice.  Once I became a mother I never again considered suicide because I would never let my child experience what my parents and I experienced.

My heart goes out to anyone who is struggling with mental illness and those who love those struggling with mental illness.

I'm so sorry you went through that. My grandmother had a pastor whose mother shot herself when she was in the room with him when he was 4 or 5, and it also has had a lifelong effect on him and the rest of that family. 

[LegalParrot81]

2 hours ago, chediavolo said:

I can understand being so deeply distraught with depression and finding no relief that you commit suicide. But never having been there and trying not to pass judgment I still can’t understand how you could do something like that to your child

As my uncle told us after his failed attempt, he thought he was leaving his family better off.  He said that on that day, the darkness was so all enveloping and true rational thought was gone, he just needed to get out of the blackness and he thought the only way to do that was to take his own life.     

It's been years and lots of intense therapy and he still has hard days, weeks, but thankfully he's still here. 

[scarynikki12]

So funny in Tremors. ❤️

 

[bluegirl147]

4 minutes ago, scarynikki12 said:

So funny in Tremors. ❤️

 

Loved him in Secret Admirer.

[RunningMarket]

Fred Ward to me is Earl Smooter in Sweet Home Alabama. May he RIP.

[chediavolo]

4 hours ago, Domestic Assassin said:

Sometimes people that deep into depression are convinced they are doing their children a favor, that their very existence is doing their children (and everyone else in their lives) more harm than good. They are not thinking rationally.

I meant the decision to have her daughter find her with, I’d assume, her brains blown out. She is going to be messed up for the rest of her life. And I suffer from depression and thoughts of death.  I can’t imagine how down the  hole you have to be to want your child to find you like that.

Edited May 13, 2022 by chediavolo

[magicdog]

Not Fred Ward!!!!  So bummed!

 

I loved Remo WiIliams!  I always wished for more movie adventures!!

[LegalParrot81]

Oh man, I loved Fred Ward.  😢

[Bastet]

6 hours ago, Domestic Assassin said:

Sometimes people that deep into depression are convinced they are doing their children a favor, that their very existence is doing their children (and everyone else in their lives) more harm than good. They are not thinking rationally.

That's exactly what every single person I know who has survived a suicide attempt explains when someone raises the "What about your poor family?" question.

4 hours ago, scarynikki12 said:

So funny in Tremors. ❤️

I love the chemistry between Fred Ward and Kevin Bacon in that movie.  I also loved him as Gus Grissom in The Right Stuff.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Bastet

[DearEvette]

Oh RIP Fred Ward.

I saw Tremors because we were at the movie theatre and the show we were planning to see had sold out or maybe we had misread the start time.  And the next movie starting was Tremors.  We were like, oh, what the hell, he are here, may as well.  We LOVED it.  I loved him and KB in it.  It will always go down as a happy surprise movie that was better than its title or marketing. And I always see his face first and foremost when I think of that movie.

[Slade347]

Fred Ward was one of those actors who made every movie he was in better. He had a lot of great performances (The Right Stuff, Tremors, The Player to name just a few), but in some ways my favorite film with him might have been the third Naked Gun movie. I loved him in that.

RIP 😞

[Vermicious Knid]

NPR did a roundup of cultural figures who died from Covid. Some of these I had forgotten were attributed to that.

[SunnyBeBe]

4 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

NPR did a roundup of cultural figures who died from Covid. Some of these I had forgotten were attributed to that.

That is shocking!  I knew there were a lot, but to see it that way! Omg…..heartbreaking.  

[Bastet]

9 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

NPR did a roundup of cultural figures who died from Covid. Some of these I had forgotten were attributed to that.

Yeah, I had completely forgotten that COVID is what got Terrence McNally.

4 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

That is shocking!  I knew there were a lot, but to see it that way!

And that's "just some" of them, as they stated.  In particular, there's a pretty long list of country music artists from which they selected a handful.  (I wish they'd spotlighted K.T. Oslin along with Joe Diffie, Charley Pride, and John Prine, as she was every bit as influential and trailblazing [first woman to win the CMA's Song of the Year Award, for the anthem "'80s Ladies"].)

As an aside, their summary of Phil Spector is perfect:

Quote

Phil Spector, 81 - The groundbreaking producer and convicted murderer, responsible for pop music's "wall of sound" and the death of Lana Clarkson, died January 16, 2021.

[SusanM]

I didn't remember reading that Cloris Leachman had died of Covid.   I don't know why knowing this adds an extra level of sadness to her passing for me but it does.

[Cinnabon]

4 minutes ago, SusanM said:

I didn't remember reading that Cloris Leachman had died of Covid.   I don't know why knowing this adds an extra level of sadness to her passing for me but it does.

I didn’t remember that either. 

[Bastet]

On 5/14/2022 at 12:50 PM, SusanM said:

I didn't remember reading that Cloris Leachman had died of Covid.

The COVID connection didn't come out until the autopsy report was released.  She died as the result of a stroke, with COVID a contributing factor, not the primary cause of death.

Edited May 16, 2022 by Bastet

[chediavolo]

16 minutes ago, Bastet said:

That didn't come out until the autopsy report was released.  She died as the result of a stroke, with COVID a contributing factor, not the primary cause of death.

Never mind

Edited May 14, 2022 by chediavolo

[shapeshifter]

May 11 update on the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins: 
https://apnews.com/article/alec-baldwin-entertainment-new-mexico-shootings-281d8947c86907af2c3e8b18b445316e

[SunnyBeBe]

If you get a chance check out the Memorial service for Naomi Judd on CMT!  Lots of tributes including Oprah, Bono, Bette Middler, and more.  Dynamic musical performances, heartfelt words…..her children and husband speak, honesty.  It’s the most touching ceremony I’ve ever seen.  As painful as her loss is…..this farewell was a blessing.  

[stonehaven]

That was a great memorial and loved it so much. Did it get cut off at the end?

[Gramto6]

30 minutes ago, stonehaven said:

That was a great memorial and loved it so much. Did it get cut off at the end?

Yes it was great. On Dish 's CMT it went about 10-15 minutes into the next hour.

[Hiyo]

Black Dahlia Murder singer Trevor Strnad dies aged 41.

[SunnyBeBe]

11 hours ago, stonehaven said:

That was a great memorial and loved it so much. Did it get cut off at the end?

It ran over and on the live airing, they allowed it.  It might be cut on reruns.  

[Bookish Jen]

On 5/14/2022 at 9:38 AM, SunnyBeBe said:

That is shocking!  I knew there were a lot, but to see it that way! Omg…..heartbreaking.  

It still breaks my heart to see Adam Schlesinger on that list. He was so talented and had so much work to do.

[SunnyBeBe]

9 minutes ago, Bookish Jen said:

It still breaks my heart to see Adam Schlesinger on that list. He was so talented and had so much work to do.

He was one of the early patients due to covid.  He was loved by so many.  
 

 

[Bookish Jen]

7 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

He was one of the early patients due to covid.  He was loved by so many.  
 

 

Thanks for sharing. I already saw this, and my heart was broken once again. He was so prolific. Sure, most people knew him from Fountains of Wayne, but he worked with other bands. He also wrote for TV, film, and the stage. He had won Grammys and an Emmy. He was nominated for an Oscar and a Tony. No doubt, if he had lived, he would have won an Oscar and a Tony.

I'm so glad I got to see Fountains of Wayne in concert many years ago. 

[MargeGunderson]

I was very saddened by Adam Schlesinger’s death as well. He was such a talented songwriter. 

[CarolinaPam]

Maggie Peterson, Charlene Darling from “The Andy Griffith Show”, has died.

https://www.newsobserver.com/entertainment/tv/warm-tv-blog/article261483542.html

[Browncoat]

57 minutes ago, CarolinaPam said:

Maggie Peterson, Charlene Darling from “The Andy Griffith Show”, has died.

https://www.newsobserver.com/entertainment/tv/warm-tv-blog/article261483542.html

She had such a lovely voice.  My local station recently showed the episode where they were looking for a husband for Charlene's daughter, Andylina (who was an infant).  She sang "There Is A Time":  A gorgeous song.

 

[Annber03]

8 hours ago, Bookish Jen said:

I'm so glad I got to see Fountains of Wayne in concert many years ago. 

I saw them back in 2007, when they opened for Crowded House. Up to that point all I'd known from them was "Stacy's Mom", but their set got me to check out more of their work. They were really entertaining live. 

Schlesinger also worked on the music for Stephen Colbert's Christmas special. A very huge loss to the TV/film/music world, indeed. 

[Miss Anne Thrope]

1 hour ago, Annber03 said:

I saw them back in 2007, when they opened for Crowded House. Up to that point all I'd known from them was "Stacy's Mom", but their set got me to check out more of their work. They were really entertaining live. 

Schlesinger also worked on the music for Stephen Colbert's Christmas special. A very huge loss to the TV/film/music world, indeed. 

I loved his work on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend too - he wrote crazy brilliant songs, sometimes about semi-taboo topics, that were both hilarious and well-crafted .  Given the loss his family experienced, I feel guilty mourning the loss of his future music compositions, but he was freakin' amazing.  IMO, of course. 

[magicdog]

6 hours ago, Annber03 said:

Schlesinger also worked on the music for Stephen Colbert's Christmas special. A very huge loss to the TV/film/music world, indeed. 

He was also part of The Monkees' 2016 album, "Good Times".  He wrote "Our Own World" and "I Was There (And I'm Told I Had a Good Time)" the latter he co-wrote with Micky Dolenz.  He played several instruments on the album as well.  He helped make it the best Monkees record since the 60s IMO.

He also helped with their Christmas album, "Christmas Party".

[Annber03]

2 minutes ago, magicdog said:

He was also part of The Monkees' 2016 album, "Good Times".  He wrote "Our Own World" and "I Was There (And I'm Told I Had a Good Time)" the latter he co-wrote with Micky Dolenz.  He played several instruments on the album as well.  He helped make it the best Monkees record since the 60s IMO.

He also helped with their Christmas album, "Christmas Party".

That's right, yes! My mom has that album (she's a HUGE Monkees fan), and we've talked about his contributions on there. You can definitely hear his particular sound echoing through that album. Very cool that the Monkees thought to bring in people like him. There were quite a few excellent songwriters involved on that album.