That's fairly sad, but not unexpected, given the health issues she had been struggling with for years. She was a beautiful woman who I remember seeing in , "The Last Dragon". It was one of those gems you don't expect much out of, but ended up being quite fun with a lot of quotable lines.
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
Obviously there was a rounding error, and 2016 is the real year the Mayans said the world would end
If we're going to have apocalyptic event I just hope we end up with something similar to the Mad Max universe, in the future there is only suped up cars, mutants, Australians, S&M gear and football pads.
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
/rant
I'm not certain how a 40k player, an Ork 40k player, does not know of Wayne England. Or how someone living on the planet doesn't know of David Bowie.
Obviously there was a rounding error, and 2016 is the real year the Mayans said the world would end
If we're going to have apocalyptic event I just hope we end up with something similar to the Mad Max universe, in the future there is only suped up cars, mutants, Australians, S&M gear and football pads.
The actor George Gaynes died on Monday, at the age of 98, his daughter confirmed.
Gaynes starred in all seven Police Academy movies and had a lead role in the 1980s sitcom Punky Brewster.
Obviously there was a rounding error, and 2016 is the real year the Mayans said the world would end
If we're going to have apocalyptic event I just hope we end up with something similar to the Mad Max universe, in the future there is only suped up cars, mutants, Australians, S&M gear and football pads.
That would actually be quite a desirable situation for me.
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
/rant
I'm not certain how a 40k player, an Ork 40k player, does not know of Wayne England. Or how someone living on the planet doesn't know of David Bowie.
I never heard of David Bowie until he died, same thing with Wayne England.
Obviously there was a rounding error, and 2016 is the real year the Mayans said the world would end
Well, the Mayan calender didn't include leap years or the error in the modern calender that assumes Jesus was born in 0AD (when evidence suggests he was actually born in 4BC, which would set the tone right, seeing as its 4 years on from 2012 Mayan Apocalypse
There's a number of theories about what year Jesus was actually born, but needless to say, there is pretty much universal agreement it wasn't 1 AD (there is no 0 AD). Theories generally try to correlate his birth with historical characters mentioned in the Bible whose lives are recorded a bit more completely (Herod the Great namely), and the only range that really works is 4-7 BC, 4 generally being the one with the most support. It really shouldn't be a shock that our predecessors, especially when textual criticism wasn't yet a thing, might have been off by a few years when adjusting the calendar
Anyway, going back on topic, we clearly only have one option; We go to mount doom, and forge a magic sword. We'll need a peasant, some academic windbag, and a hot chick with a really fethed up childhood. We give them the sword and tell them to use the Delorean to travel through time and kill 2016 itself
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
/rant
I'm not certain how a 40k player, an Ork 40k player, does not know of Wayne England. Or how someone living on the planet doesn't know of David Bowie.
I never heard of David Bowie until he died, same thing with Wayne England.
No I get that, you said that. I just don't understand how.
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
/rant
I'm not certain how a 40k player, an Ork 40k player, does not know of Wayne England. Or how someone living on the planet doesn't know of David Bowie.
I also didn't know who David Bowie was until he died...
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
/rant
I'm not certain how a 40k player, an Ork 40k player, does not know of Wayne England. Or how someone living on the planet doesn't know of David Bowie.
I never heard of David Bowie until he died, same thing with Wayne England.
You didn't know who David Bowie was until his death? What kind of media deprived rock were you living under?
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
/rant
I'm not certain how a 40k player, an Ork 40k player, does not know of Wayne England. Or how someone living on the planet doesn't know of David Bowie.
I never heard of David Bowie until he died, same thing with Wayne England.
You didn't know who David Bowie was until his death? What kind of media deprived rock were you living under?
Check his profile. He is in high school. Same with Iron Captain. David Bowie wasn't really relevant the last few years, not a big surprise kids 14-18 might not know about him. Rabble rabble, something about lawns.
You've killed off Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Maurice White, Wayne England, Antonin Scalia, and now Vanity?! STOP IT! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU!
Although I never knew any of these except Alan Rickman....
/rant
I'm not certain how a 40k player, an Ork 40k player, does not know of Wayne England. Or how someone living on the planet doesn't know of David Bowie.
I never heard of David Bowie until he died, same thing with Wayne England.
You didn't know who David Bowie was until his death? What kind of media deprived rock were you living under?
Check his profile. He is in high school. Same with Iron Captain. David Bowie wasn't really relevant the last few years, not a big surprise kids 14-18 might not know about him. Rabble rabble, something about lawns.
I'm currently 18 and have been a big fan of the Duke since about 2012, though it was introduced to me by my father.
I wasn't really a Bowie fan, he was before my time, but I still appreciate his contribution to music and was sad at his passing. What made me really sad though was the tributes paid to David Zowie, because "House Every Weekend" was a "smashing summer tune."
Harper Lee, the author of To Kill A Mockingbird, has died at the age of 89.
The news was confirmed by the mayor's office in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama.
The novelist was born Nelle Harper Lee on 28 April 1926.
In 1960, she published To Kill A Mockingbird, which was a huge critical and commercial success and won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
It sold more than 30 million copies worldwide.
She did not release another novel until last year, when Go Set A Watchman was published.
Lee was born 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. She was the youngest of four children of lawyer Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch Lee.
She was a guardedly private person, respected and protected by residents of her town, rarely giving interviews.
Alan Rickman dying is horrible. I so wish he coulda lived and we coulda swapped... I dunno McJagger or somebody for him.
One has a horrible feeling that one is, ultimately going to regret asking this, but who is McJagger ?
... you don't mean the singer from the Rolling Stones do you ?
Oh... Yeah. Rolling Stones singer guy. I certainly think giving up that man is worth getting back Alan Rickman In my defense. I've only ever heard his name said verbally and never written, with artists having names like they do today. I wasn't sure if it was stage name or whatever.
LordofHats wrote: I barely know about David Bowie, and I only know because of the Venture Bros. And I'm in my twenties.
I was going to mention Venture Bros. as something that might have made Bowie relevant to younger folks but then remembered that those episodes aired over 10 years ago, so, still not really new material.
Having spent the last few years teaching 18-22 year olds I don't have a lot of faith in younger people being aware of a lot of media from even the late 90's and early 2000's. I'm 33, and all of my movie and TV references receive mostly blank stares from my students. Seems if it isn't on Instagram or Vine or whatever is hot right now a lot of youth aren't picking up on it.
Feth, my students didn't even know what Fight Club was. That hurt my heart. My solution was to add it to my syllabus. Ha!
I ran into a couple teens at the local game store who didn't know who Bruce Willis or Pamela Anderson were. I died a little that day. Of course, Green Day is now getting played on my local classic rock stations (NYC and Fairfield County), so...I guess it's time to admit we're gettin old, folks!
Paul Daniels has an incurable brain tumour, he's not dead yet but it's likely 2016 will claim him this year. If you grew up in the 80s you probably watched Paul Daniels Magic Show.
No-one has mentioned Viola Beach, a young band just starting out, who all died together with their manager by accidentally driving their car into a river in Sweden on Friday.
Kilkrazy wrote: No-one has mentioned Viola Beach, a young band just starting out, who all died together with their manager by accidentally driving their car into a river in Sweden on Friday.
Recently, the niece of the late Genovese Capitano Salvatore "Sally Dogs" Lombardo, business owner, and reality T.V. star, Angela "Big Ang" Raiola, lost her battle with cancer. She was 55.
I'm totally on-board with honoring the lives of famous people close to our hearts by grieving for their deaths, but the 2016 thing is getting to be a bit of a meme.
Overlord Thraka wrote: Alan Rickman dying is horrible. I so wish he coulda lived and we coulda swapped... I dunno McJagger or somebody for him.
Nah, not Mick Jagger for Alan Rickman. Kim Kardashian instead!
Unfortunately I think exchanges without a receipt must be something of equal value. An amateur pornstar/full time waste of space/reality TV star in a show about herself...could never come close to Alan Rickman. Most of my generation know him as Professor Severus Snape, a role he brought to life like no other could, but Die Hard was his best work imo. But it would take a real sacrifice to get Alan back. The remaining members of Queen for example.
have no idea how many bits I nicked from that for various RPGs over the years.
NO! With the loss of Terry Pratchett last year and now Umberto Eco, most of the non-40k books on my bookshelves are written by dead people. I am no longer "with it" in the literature scene. Quick, what are the youth of today reading?
I will mourn the passing of Umberto Eco by going over my maps of the Templar's activities again and continue to throw volumes of Foucault's Pendulum at anyone that suggests the Davinci Code as a good read.
have no idea how many bits I nicked from that for various RPGs over the years.
NO! With the loss of Terry Pratchett last year and now Umberto Eco, most of the non-40k books on my bookshelves are written by dead people. I am no longer "with it" in the literature scene. Quick, what are the youth of today reading?
I will mourn the passing of Umberto Eco by going over my maps of the Templar's activities again and continue to throw volumes of Foucault's Pendulum at anyone that suggests the Davinci Code as a good read.
Sorry to hear about this.
Unfortunately, I've never read the book. But I did watch the film adaptation, which I thought was a fairly decent film.
Not a celebrity, but Eric 'Winkle' Brown has died aged 97. A man of vast flying experience, I suggest if you any interest in german WW2 aircraft, his book 'Wings of the Luftwaffe' is essential reading.
Eco was a lot more than a novelist -- he was a fairly brilliant mind in the field of semiotics. His A Theory of Semiotics was what I'd throw at science and engineering majors when they'd tell me how "easy" my liberal arts classwork was.
Howard A Treesong wrote: Not a celebrity, but Eric 'Winkle' Brown has died aged 97. A man of vast flying experience, I suggest if you any interest in german WW2 aircraft, his book 'Wings of the Luftwaffe' is essential reading.
I've just been reading about him - from the wiki
'He flew aircraft from Britain, the United States, Germany, Italy and Japan and is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as holding the record for flying the greatest number of different aircraft. The official record is 487, but includes only basic types. For example, Captain Brown flew fourteen versions of the Spitfire and Seafire and although these versions are very different they appear only once in the list. The list includes only aircraft flown by Brown as "Captain in Command".
Because of the special circumstances involved, he didn't think that this record would ever be beaten.
He also held the world record for the most carrier landings, 2,407, partly compiled in testing the arrestor wires on more than twenty aircraft carriers during World War II.'
2.400 carrier landings.
Having read his wiki in full, to experience and survive all that he did and then live another 70 years - Win. RIP old chap.
Irish actor Frank Kelly, best known for playing Father Jack in comedy Father Ted, has died aged 77.
Kelly had been a veteran of the stage and screen for 60 years.
As well as appearing on the Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted, Kelly had more recent roles in Emmerdale and Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie.
He revealed last November that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, although said he would continue to work.
Kelly had received the all-clear from bowel cancer in 2011. He was treated for skin cancer last year and also had heart problems.
George Kennedy joins the list. Passed away at 91. Known for films such as Naked Gun, Spartacus (1960) and a whole list of other movies and tv shows.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Kennedy
I think you're confusing Airport for Airplane. Airport is a serious movie, and Airplane is a comedy full of crazy gags and spoofs. Either way I'm sorry to hear that George Kennedy died, I always thought he was a good actor and he was in a lot of movies back then.
So, who else has died (apart from David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Alan Rickman, Maurice White, Vanity, Antonin Scalia, Wayne England, Harper Lee and George Kennedy)? I've lost track.
I feel like nobody will survive. Did they die of old age? Or what?
Well George Kennedy was 91, it was probably a factor.
I seem to remember he was in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, which I saw so long ago I can't even recall what happens, beyond him being pretty good in it. Earthquake too, from when star-studded meant it. RIP dude.
I think you're confusing Airport for Airplane. Airport is a serious movie, and Airplane is a comedy full of crazy gags and spoofs. Either way I'm sorry to hear that George Kennedy died, I always thought he was a good actor and he was in a lot of movies back then.
You are correct damn similar names
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot that is a good movie with a young Lebowski, i mean the Dude
A computing legend has died. The inventor of email, Ray Tomlinson, suffered an apparent heart attack on Saturday, according to reports. He was 74 years old.
Tomlinson sent the very first email back in 1971; at the time, he was working in Boston at Bolt, Beranek, and Newman (BBN), a company that was instrumental in the development of a very early version of the internet, called ARPANET. As an employee, he was "looking for problems [ARPANET] could solve," Tomlinson told The Verge in a 2012 interview.
Others had thought about sending messages to other users before, and there were some early versions that let you share notes to users on the same computer, but Tomlinson came up with the SNDMSG command. Unlike what came before it, SNDMSG actually sent mail files to the recipient's computers. It was the first networked messaging program.
He also decided to use the @ symbol to designate a user from its host. The decision lifted the humble symbol from obscurity to international icon — it even entered MOMA's collection in 2010. The fact it was little-used at the time made it appealing to Tomlinson, as it reduced ambiguity. Also, as he liked to say, "It's the only preposition on the keyboard."
Unfortunately for us, the very first email has been lost to time. As he said in an NPR interview from 2009, they were just random strings of text. "The first e-mail is completely forgettable ... and, therefore, forgotten." Thanks to his invention, Tomlinson won't be.
Victoria McGrath , the Boston Marathon Bombing survivor, the photo of whom being carried to safety by Boston firefighter Jimmy Plourde became an iconic image of the tragedy, was killed in Dubai in a car accident.
KaptinBadrukk wrote: So, who else has died (apart from David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Alan Rickman, Maurice White, Vanity, Antonin Scalia, Wayne England, Harper Lee and George Kennedy)? I've lost track.
Ouze wrote: Now I'll never know how Game of Thrones ends.
C'mon. You know, deep in your heart, that the ending is already written. GRRM is just sitting on it because he wishes to die of natural causes, not "Angry fans reenacting their favorite scenes".
We have more sad to report today. Drewe Henley, who was widely know as "Red Leader" in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, has passed away at the age of 75. Henley had a fantastic career which began back in the early 1960's. He was known for his roles in films such as Nothing But The Best(1964) and When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth(1970), as well as several Television series including The Doctors and Space: 1999. Henley would go on to have a small but pivotal role in "Star Wars", as it was know at the time, portraying pilot Garven Dreis. Dreis, who was acknowledged on screen as Red Leader, flew alongside Luke Skywalker(Mark Hamill), Wedge Antilles(Denis Lawson) and Biggs Darklighter(Garrick Hagon) amidst the Battle Of Yavin and through the iconic trench of the first Death Star.
Shortly after appearing in Star Wars Henley was diagnosed with depression and he retired from acting, subsequently running a bed and breakfast with his wife.
Emmy-winning actor Larry Drake, who played Benny on “L.A. Law,” died Thursday, his rep confirmed. He was 66.
A cause of death has not yet been revealed. According to TMZ, which first reported the news, Drake was found dead by his friend in his Hollywood home.
Drake played the developmentally disabled office assistant Benny Stulwicz on “L.A. Law.,” which was praised for handling Benny’s odyssey in a very progressive fashion, especially for the time, as he gets the job, finds his own apartment and gets a girlfriend over time, sometimes having to fight for his legal rights with the help of the attorneys who employ him. Drake recurred on the series from 1987-94.
He was Emmy nominated for the role three times, in 1988, 1989 and 1990, winning the first two times out. He reprised the role for “L.A. Law: The Movie” in 2002.
The actor was equally memorable in Sam Raimi’s stylish Liam Neeson fantasy action film “Darkman” (1990) as the villainous Robert G. Durant, appearing in the sequels as well.
He also starred as the homicidal physician of the title in the 1992 horror movie “Dr. Giggles.”
Drake had a supporting role in Rowan Atkinson’s hit 1997 comedy “Bean” as Elmer, and he appeared in “American Pie 2” in 2001 as Natalie’s dad.
In television, Drake was a series regular on ABC’s sci-fi series “Prey” in 1998 as Dr. Walter Attwood. Debra Messing and Frankie Faison were also in the cast.
In the 2000s, he nabbed a handful of voicework roles for animated TV series and guested on “Six Feet Under,” “Crossing Jordan,” “7th Heaven” and “Boston Legal.”
The actor had most recently appeared in the 2009 horror film “Dead Air,” directed by and starring his “L.A. Law” co-star Corbin Bernsen.
Drake was born in Tulsa and graduated from the University of Oklahoma.
The actor began appearing in small roles in movies in the early 1970s and made his television debut in a 1983 adaptation of Thornton Wilder’s “The Skin of Our Teeth” on PBS’ “American Playhouse.”
He was twice married, to actress Ruth de Sosa (1989-91) and Marina Drujko (briefly in 2009). Both marriages ended in divorce.
I have an immense soft spot for the 1st darkman movie
Most people here won't know him, but former German minister for Foreign Affairs, Guide Westerwelle, passed away recently, succumbing to the cancer he fought for the last few years
He was a very well-received foreign minister by other countries, had a strong will and was a genuinely nice person. He was the first openly gay foreign minister in the world and did a /lot/ for gay acceptance / rights off the big stage. I had the pleasure of working with him twice and his loss greatly saddened both me and my wife.
Being a cancer survivor myself, this all makes me even sadder and all of our love goes to his ever-supporting husband and their families right now.
He won't I suppose be overly familiar to many on here, but I was listening to The Low End Theory just yesterday in the car, brilliant from start to finish. RIP the Funky Diabetic.
Netherlands great Johan Cruyff dies of cancer aged 68
Netherlands footballing great Johan Cruyff has died of cancer aged 68.
Cruyff, who made his name as a forward with Ajax and Barcelona, won the Ballon d'Or three times.
Regarded as one the greatest players of all time, he won three consecutive European Cups with Ajax and went on to manage Barcelona to their first European Cup triumph in 1992.
Cruyff helped his country reach the World Cup final in 1974, where they lost to West Germany.
It was at the 1974 World Cup where he first showcased the 'Cruyff turn' in a match against Sweden.
Cruyff, who had double heart bypass surgery in 1991, was diagnosed with cancer in October 2015.
In February, Cruyff said he felt he was "2-0 up in a match" against lung cancer and he was "sure I will end up winning".
Barcelona won four consecutive La Liga titles from 1990-91 to 1993-94 under his guidance.
BBC Radio 5 live will broadcast a special programme paying tribute to Cruyff at 19:00 GMT on Thursday.
Da Boss wrote: So, is this thread just going to morbidly track every single "notable" death this year? Because people die every year.
To be fair only a few of these are actually "notable" (David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Garry Shandling, Abe Vigoda, Keith Emerson, etc).
Opinions they differ, People have different people they idolize.
That is true, but some of these people dying are real deep cuts (like Eric 'Winkle' Brown who the feth is that?) where you would have to be well informed about sports or history to even really care I'm thinking of this from the average person (everyone has heard of David Bowie) and what they
Frankly, unless someone bothers to do some sort of statistical analysis, I'm just going to chalk the whole thing up as recognition bias.
Wikipedia lists 70 deaths so far in 2016 (notable ones, obviously! taking the world population of 7.4 billion and crude death rate of 7.89 deaths/1000 people, about 14.5 million people have died so far this year). It lists 77 people in the same period of 2015, so the "famous death rate" has actually decreased by 9%.
Kevin Turner, former NFL fullback for the Patriots and Eagles, and founder of the Kevin Turner Foundation, passes away due to the ALS he was battling since 2010. He was 46.
And the link to his foundation, which researches possible links between a higher than normal onset of ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease), and repeated brain trauma (CTE) among athletes.
AndrewGPaul wrote: Frankly, unless someone bothers to do some sort of statistical analysis, I'm just going to chalk the whole thing up as recognition bias.
Wikipedia lists 70 deaths so far in 2016 (notable ones, obviously! taking the world population of 7.4 billion and crude death rate of 7.89 deaths/1000 people, about 14.5 million people have died so far this year). It lists 77 people in the same period of 2015, so the "famous death rate" has actually decreased by 9%.
Finally someone said it. Didn't a similar thread pop up last year too?
Being Scottish, Ronnie Corbett was a staple through, probably most of my life on Hogmanay. Even when he wasn't doing shows anymore, there was always at least one sketch being rerun at that time.
Four candles may be one of the funniest sketches ever written. The updated BlackBerry version with Harry Enfield was quite good too. His monologues were masterpieces.
Gareth Thomas, best known to genre fans as the eponymous Blake in Terry Nation’s Blake’s 7, has died aged 71 of heart failure.
The news was reported on Blake’s 7 Online. Thomas had a long and distinguished career, training at RADA, and appearing in numerous Royal Shakespeare Company productions onstage. Prior to the two years he spent on Blakes 7 (and his return for the final episode), he appeared in the movie of Quatermass and the Pit, and The Avengers, as well as the 1970s SF serial Star Maidens, and as one of the leads in Children of the Stones. He went on to star in Knights of God and guest starred in an episode of Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood.
He returned to the role of Blake for Big Finish and B7 Media’s series of audio adventures, as well as playing parts in other productions for the company.
Automatically Appended Next Post: The 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.
filbert wrote: She died of an apparent overdose, I believe.
There is no actual cause of death yet but that is a theory. It usually is predicated on the fact that she was in pain quite a bit from professional wrestling. Stephen Toblowsky, who worked with her on a film, talked of how nice she was but that she had a lot of pain and even had stories of wrestling with broken ribs and having to take pain meds to get though it.
Wtf 2016, are we going to have anybody left by the end of the year? I'll have to boot up Mortal Kombat 9 and play as Prince Rain in his Purple outfit. It's an homage character, so he'll be used for a bit tonight out of respect.
Prince passing kind of hits me as his songs were very much a part of the musical tapestry of my youth and some of his songs, in particular, 1999, Lets go crazy, I would die 4 U, and Purple Rain, are still part of my play list.
He supposedly has a huge unpublished catalog that I am interested to see if it will get released now that he is gone.
timetowaste85 wrote: Wtf 2016, are we going to have anybody left by the end of the year? I'll have to boot up Mortal Kombat 9 and play as Prince Rain in his Purple outfit. It's an homage character, so he'll be used for a bit tonight out of respect.
timetowaste85 wrote: Wtf 2016, are we going to have anybody left by the end of the year? I'll have to boot up Mortal Kombat 9 and play as Prince Rain in his Purple outfit. It's an homage character, so he'll be used for a bit tonight out of respect.
How to pay homage to Chyna...hmmm....
Well, I hate wrestling and I'd feel VERY awkward watching a porno of somebody who recently died. So...any ideas?
Well, holy gak. Normally, I just roll my eyes at the ghoulishness of this thread, but Prince's death actually got to me. Not really a fan so much, but his music was always around when I was growing up.
timetowaste85 wrote: Wtf 2016, are we going to have anybody left by the end of the year? I'll have to boot up Mortal Kombat 9 and play as Prince Rain in his Purple outfit. It's an homage character, so he'll be used for a bit tonight out of respect.
How to pay homage to Chyna...hmmm....
Well, I hate wrestling and I'd feel VERY awkward watching a porno of somebody who recently died. So...any ideas?
Back in 3rd grade, I had to write a poem for homework.. and I hated homework so I forgot about it till it was almost time for bed. I didn't feel like coming up with stuff that rhymed, so I grabbed my sister's Prince album and copied down the lyrics to Little Red Corvette. I remember getting a B. Thanks Prince!
Thats my only Prince story. Not nearly as good as Dave Chappelle's ...
Was also an under-rated guitarist... that dude could shred.
Underrated? I think it's pretty well known that Prince was a very talented multi-instrumentalist plus he was a pop mega star in the 80's and well respected by critics and general audiences alike. That being said this particular celebrity death (usually I don't care that much unless it's someone
important to me) is rough for me (almost on the same level as David Bowie) as I'm a Prince fan, Dirty, Mind Sing O Times, Purple Rain, 1999 all incredible albums.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Necros wrote: Back in 3rd grade, I had to write a poem for homework.. and I hated homework so I forgot about it till it was almost time for bed. I didn't feel like coming up with stuff that rhymed, so I grabbed my sister's Prince album and copied down the lyrics to Little Red Corvette. I remember getting a B. Thanks Prince!
Thats my only Prince story. Not nearly as good as Dave Chappelle's ...
I think that was Charlie Murphy's story (Eddie Murphy's brother) but it was told through the Chappelle Show so I could see how one would think that.
Jehan-reznor wrote: Damn purple rain was one of my favorite movies when i was younger, and Chyna? WTF! i am sure WWE will come out with a "tribute" DVD/Bluray now.
Would be nice, but I doubt they'll do it. Chyna is something of a "non-entity" in the WWE. Her parting from the company was less than smooth.
Jehan-reznor wrote: Damn purple rain was one of my favorite movies when i was younger, and Chyna? WTF! i am sure WWE will come out with a "tribute" DVD/Bluray now.
Would be nice, but I doubt they'll do it. Chyna is something of a "non-entity" in the WWE. Her parting from the company was less than smooth.
Like Bret Hart and The ultimate warrior, when money can be made they turn around, even Bishops worked at WWE!
I saw him countless times,including a tiny club with Mavis Staples, where he mainly played guitar - it was much like it would have been seeing Hendrix at the Marquee.
He was maybe the best act I ever saw in the 80s, better than Bowie, certainly better than the Stones, and he worked harder than James Brown (who, to be fair, was getting on). Sheila E, double bass drum kit, stupendous solo in the middle of a sign o the times song, and at the end he declaims: "not a bad drummer... for a girl!"
Frank Ocean was namechecking When You Were Mine, so I played it last night. An absolutely perfect pop song.
And feth Don't bypass the language filter like this please. reds8n 20161!
Why so many celebrities have died in 2016
By Roland Hughes and Laura Gray
BBC News
7 hours ago
From the section Entertainment & Arts
Prince performs at the Apollo Theater in New York. Photo: October 2010Image copyrightReuters
Image caption
Prince died on 21 April at the age of 57
We are only four months in, but it's already been a dark, dark 2016.
It now seems rare for a week to pass without a significant celebrity death being reported - from David Bowie in the second week of January, to actor Alan Rickman a week later, to comedian Victoria Wood and Prince this week.
"Enough, 2016" and a more vulgar alternative are phrases people are uttering more and more regularly. So is this wave of celebrity deaths the new normal?
The answer is yes, according to the BBC's obituary editor Nick Serpell, who ought to know about such things.
He said that the number of significant deaths this year has been "phenomenal".
Looking at the basic statistics, there's a very clear upward trend. Nick prepares obituaries for BBC television, radio and online, that run once a notable person's death is confirmed.
The number of his obituaries used across BBC outlets in recent years has leaped considerably.
It's a jump from only five between January and late March 2012 to a staggering 24 in the same period this year - an almost five-fold increase, according to research by the BBC Radio 4's More or Less programme.
And that's before counting some of the notable deaths in April, including American singer Merle Haggard, the former drug smuggler Howard Marks and this week's two notable departures.
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But might it just be that the BBC has increased its store of obituaries to such an extent it means plenty more are being used?
There are indeed more obituaries in the BBC's files - some 1,500 in total - than when Nick started 10 years ago, he says. He adds a few more every week.
But look elsewhere and the picture bears out.
Media captionVictoria Wood inspired a new generation of female comics in a hugely successful career on television and on stage.
Here in the UK, the Daily Telegraph maintains a gallery of famous people who have died, and updates it throughout the year. Up to this time in 2014, the number of those in the gallery was 38. By this time last year, the number of people in the gallery was 30. This year, the number is already 75.
At the beginning of every year, the (rather morbid) website deathlist.net lists 50 celebrities it believes may pass away that year. In six of the last 10 years, two or fewer of its predictions had come true by this time - this year, five names have died so far.
This all invites the question: why?
There are a few reasons, Nick Serpell says.
"People who started becoming famous in the 1960s are now entering their 70s and are starting to die," he says.
"There are also more famous people than there used to be," he says. "In my father or grandfather's generation, the only famous people really were from cinema - there was no television.
"Then, if anybody wasn't on TV, they weren't famous."
The baby-boom factor
Media captionThe many faces of David Bowie
Many of those now dying belonged to the so-called baby-boom generation, born between 1946 and 1964, that saw a huge growth in population. In the US for example, the census bureau said that 76m people in 2014 belonged to the baby boomer generation - some 23% of the population.
Here in the UK, people aged 65 or older make up almost 18% of the population - a 47% increase on forty years ago.
With more babies born into the baby-boom generation, it meant more went on to eventually become famous.
Now, those famous former babies, aged between 70 and 52, are dying.
The age-bracket 65 to 69 is the one, in England and Wales for example, where death rates really start to increase - some 14.2 per 1,000 men in that age bracket died in 2014, compared with 9.4 per 1,000 in the 60 to 64 age bracket.
Among the major deaths this year, many - including Prince (57), Alan Rickman (69), David Bowie (69) and Victoria Wood (62) - were baby-boomers.
Obituary: David Bowie
What makes a celebrity?
Another factor that may play into the impression that more celebrities are dying is that we have heard of more celebrities than before.
"Over the past 10 years, social media has played a big part," Nick Serpell says.
Hours before Prince's death was announced, tributes were paid to the American former wrestler and porn star Chyna, who died aged 45.
But the news of her death was not confined to the US - close to 400,000 tweets using the word Chyna were sent worldwide on Thursday, and interest peaked in cities such as Lagos in Nigeria and Lima in Peru.
These days, it is far easier to hear news of whether anyone has died than at any time in the past.
Media captionA look back at some of Alan Rickman's most memorable roles
Will this carry on?
The bad news? Yes, probably. "Over the next 10 years, these people will get into their 80s and it is going to continue at this level," Nick Serpell says.
"And that doesn't count the surprise deaths, when people die that shouldn't."
For the time being, the normally half-hour compilation of obituaries Nick produces for BBC News at the end of every year will be extended: this year, he says he has already been given permission to make it an hour long.
Hivefleet Oblivion wrote: I saw him countless times,including a tiny club with Mavis Staples, where he mainly played guitar - it was much like it would have been seeing Hendrix at the Marquee.
He was maybe the best act I ever saw in the 80s, better than Bowie, certainly better than the Stones, and he worked harder than James Brown (who, to be fair, was getting on). Sheila E, double bass drum kit, stupendous solo in the middle of a sign o the times song, and at the end he declaims: "not a bad drummer... for a girl!"
Frank Ocean was namechecking When You Were Mine, so I played it last night. An absolutely perfect pop song.
His talent level was just unreal. Amazing performer, *terrific* guitar player, and oh yeah, one of the most prolific songwriters ever.
Back in 3rd grade, I had to write a poem for homework.. and I hated homework so I forgot about it till it was almost time for bed. I didn't feel like coming up with stuff that rhymed, so I grabbed my sister's Prince album and copied down the lyrics to Little Red Corvette. I remember getting a B. Thanks Prince!
Terrific The first two verses are so well written.
RIP Prince, some truly timeless tracks he had. Very talented.
As a Minnesotan I have spent the last day in mourning. This sucks, Prince was a national treasure. This is one of the few celebrity deaths that actually made me sit up and notice.
For those interested this Thursday AMC and Carmike are showing Purple Rain in the theaters. I'll be going as I like seeing older films in theaters but my wife was a fan and saw Prince in concert a few times so that is why she wants to go.
They also did it last Saturday but that time is gone like Roy Batty releasing a dove that may or may not be crying.
Alan Young — who answered to the name “Willburrrrrrrrrrrrr” on Mister Ed, the wacky 1960s sitcom that revolved around a talking horse — has died. He was 96.
Young — who for six seasons played straight man to a golden palomino, a gelding who was named Bamboo Harvester — died Thursday of natural causes at the Motion Picture & Television Home in Woodland Hills. He was there for more than four years.
Young himself was the voice of a talking bird, playing Scottish miser Scrooge McDuck (the uncle of Donald Duck and great uncle of Huey, Dewey and Louie) on the 1987-1990 syndicated series DuckTales.
And a decade before Mister Ed, the good-natured actor hosted CBS’ The Alan Young Show, which won an Emmy Award for best variety show and earned Young a trophy for best actor as well.
On the big screen, Young played David Filby (and his son James) in MGM’s sci-fi classic The Time Machine (1960), starring Rod Taylor.
In his most famous role, Young portrayed Wilbur Post, an unassuming, accident-prone architect who is married to Carol (Connie Hines). They live in a nice home in the San Fernando Valley with a barn, where the chatty Mister Ed resides — but only Wilbur can hear him speak.
In a 1990 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Young said Wilbur was “naive and bumbling,” while “Ed was a wily one. I think it’s the same chemistry that made Laurel and Hardy and Jackie Gleason and Art Carney: It’s the one guy making a fool of the other guy.”
And a decade before Mister Ed, the good-natured actor hosted CBS’ The Alan Young Show, which won an Emmy Award for best variety show and earned Young a trophy for best actor as well.
On the big screen, Young played David Filby (and his son James) in MGM’s sci-fi classic The Time Machine (1960), starring Rod Taylor.
In his most famous role, Young portrayed Wilbur Post, an unassuming, accident-prone architect who is married to Carol (Connie Hines). They live in a nice home in the San Fernando Valley with a barn, where the chatty Mister Ed resides — but only Wilbur can hear him speak.
In a 1990 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Young said Wilbur was “naive and bumbling,” while “Ed was a wily one. I think it’s the same chemistry that made Laurel and Hardy and Jackie Gleason and Art Carney: It’s the one guy making a fool of the other guy.”
Burt Kwouk, who was best known for playing Inspector Clouseau's manservant Cato in the Pink Panther films, has died aged 85.
He appeared in seven Pink Panther films opposite Peter Sellers as Clouseau's servant who regularly attacked his employer to keep him alert.
He also starred in BBC sitcom Last of the Summer Wine from 2002 to 2010.
Born in Manchester but raised in Shanghai, the actor was awarded an OBE in the 2011 New Year Honour List.
A statement issued by his agent said: "Beloved actor Burt Kwouk has sadly passed peacefully away.
"The family will be having a private funeral but there will be a memorial at a later date."
On the big screen Kwouk also appeared in three James Bond films including Goldfinger and You Only Live Twice.
He also played Major Yamauchi in the 1980s wartime television drama Tenko.
My local radio station was talking about him; they've had him on the show and interviewed him. Apparently they were saying he was a really awesome guy!
Gordie Howe, a legendary figure in Detroit sports and widely acclaimed as one of the greatest hockey players in history, died shortly before 8 a.m. Friday, the Red Wings confirmed. He was 88.
Howe died surrounded by family at his son Murray's house. He suffered a series of strokes in recent years.
Howe combined strength and mobility, brute intimidation and prolific scoring, a blend of skills rare in the NHL, which he performed with transcendent ability.
A winner of four Stanley Cups, six scoring titles and six MVPs, Howe is third in NHL history with 1,850 points, including 801 goals and 1,049 assists, despite playing in a defensive era.
He tallied 20 or more goals in 22 straight seasons, 1949-71. He ranked among the top five scorers 20 times.
Both Wayne Gretzky and Bobby Orr, sometimes heralded as the greatest hockey players in history, say Howe topped them.
Not as big of news as Howe or Ali, but Anton Yelchin, best known in his role of Chekov in the Star Trek reboots, passed away under rather bizarre circumstances.
Anton Yelchin was way too young to die. Even younger than me. And I loved him as Chekov, turning all the V's into W's with his Russian accent. RIP Mr. Chekov.
Gordie Howe, a legendary figure in Detroit sports and widely acclaimed as one of the greatest hockey players in history, died shortly before 8 a.m. Friday, the Red Wings confirmed. He was 88.
Howe died surrounded by family at his son Murray's house. He suffered a series of strokes in recent years.
Howe combined strength and mobility, brute intimidation and prolific scoring, a blend of skills rare in the NHL, which he performed with transcendent ability.
A winner of four Stanley Cups, six scoring titles and six MVPs, Howe is third in NHL history with 1,850 points, including 801 goals and 1,049 assists, despite playing in a defensive era.
He tallied 20 or more goals in 22 straight seasons, 1949-71. He ranked among the top five scorers 20 times.
Both Wayne Gretzky and Bobby Orr, sometimes heralded as the greatest hockey players in history, say Howe topped them.
Aw, please no!
Compel wrote:My facebook is saying that Anton Yelchin, aka Chekov in the new Star Trek films, has just been killed in a car crash.
Anton Yelchin, who played Chekov in recently released Star Trek films, has died in a car accident at the age of 27.
The actor had risen to prominence with several blockbuster films in recent years - and has a starring role in Star Trek Beyond, which is due to be released in July.
Publicist Jennifer Allen confirmed Yelchin was killed early on Sunday morning.
According to TMZ, the star died in a "freak accident" after getting pinned between his car and a brick mailbox at his home.
Yelchin was discovered after concerned friends visited his home in San Fernando Valley, California, because he had failed to attend a rehearsal hours earlier.
An only child, Yelchin was born in Russia and moved to the US as a baby with his parents, who were professional figure skaters.
Fellow TV and film stars, as well as fans, have begun paying tribute to Yelchin on Twitter.
British comedian Matt Lucas wrote: "Dreadful news about Anton Yelchin. I thought he was an amazing actor."
Actress Anna Kendrick described Yelchin's death as "unreal" and a "huge loss".
Who also played (rather well I thought) Kyle Reese from Terminator Salvation RIP
Actor Ron Lester, who portrayed Billy Bob in the 1999 football movie "Varsity Blues," died Friday evening in Dallas, Texas, according to his representative Dave Bradley. He was 45.
"He was not in pain and passed away peacefully," Bradley said. Lester's fiancee Jennifer Worland was with Lester when he died.
He died of organ failure - specifically his liver and his kidneys, Bradley said.
Lester openly talked about his struggle with his illness on Twitter, posting in November that his "liver and kidneys are starting to heal." He thanked Worland for her support.
At one point Lester weighed 508 pounds but lost 348 pounds according to his Twitter account. Besides his most memorable role as Billy Bob, he also had TV appearances in "Freaks & Geeks," "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" and "CSI New York."
I really hope if they decide to do a new ST movie after this tragedy that they break canon and have Chekov transfer to another ship (permanently, instead of coming back like WoK) instead of replacing the actor. I'm not sure if anyone agrees, but I feel it would do him more respect to have his character ride off into the sunset of the movies instead of him just getting replaced.
timetowaste85 wrote: I really hope if they decide to do a new ST movie after this tragedy that they break canon and have Chekov transfer to another ship (permanently, instead of coming back like WoK) instead of replacing the actor. I'm not sure if anyone agrees, but I feel it would do him more respect to have his character ride off into the sunset of the movies instead of him just getting replaced.
Ya know, that probably wouldn't be a bad thing... I mean, the timelines are already different, so it would make sense to write that in.
Ensis Ferrae wrote: Probably only the Americans (and only those who are sports fans here) will care, but apparently Buddy Ryan, the famed NFL coach died today.
I heard about this on the radio on my way in to work.
Ensis Ferrae wrote: Probably only the Americans (and only those who are sports fans here) will care, but apparently Buddy Ryan, the famed NFL coach died today.
He was one hell of a defensive coach. A snipit from an ESPN article:
Monsters Of The Midway
Buddy Ryan's 46 defense led the NFL in seven categories during the Chicago Bears' Super Bowl-winning season of 1985. After setting an NFL record with 72 sacks in 1984, the '85 team was third in the NFL with 64. 1985 BEARS NFL RANK Points allowed 198 1st Total yds. allowed 4,135 1st Rushing yds. allowed 1,319 1st 1st downs allowed 236 1st Rushing TD allowed 6 1st Interceptions 34 1st Forced turnovers 54 1st
kronk wrote: 87 is a good run. He did a lot of good for a lot of people.
Indeed... I actually met him when I was in middle school. We were reading his book "Night" in one of my classes and he was able to come by and talk with us and answer questions and whatnot. That was a long time ago though.
KaptinBadrukk wrote: The Deep Space Nine fan club on Facebook is saying that Barry Jenner has died.
Screw you 2016!!!! No more Star Trek Actors!!!!
Yeah, I'm watching DS9 on Netflix currently, and I've recently seen several episodes that had Admiral Ross in them. I like the character a lot, so I was very sad to hear that the actor died.
The British actor who played R2-D2 in the Star Wars films has died at the age of 83 after a long illness.
Kenny Baker, who was 3ft 8in tall, shot to fame in 1977 when he first played the robot character.
He went on to play the character in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, as well as the three Star Wars prequels from 1999 to 2005.
Baker also appeared in a number of other much-loved films in the 1980s, including The Goonies, Time Bandits and Flash Gordon.
His niece, Abigail Shield, paid tribute to her uncle. She told the Guardian: “It was expected, but it’s sad nonetheless. He had a very long and fulfilled life. He brought lots of happiness to people and we’ll be celebrating the fact that he was well loved throughout the world. We’re all very proud of what he achieved in his lifetime.”
Baker and Shield’s father, Ian, grew up in Birmingham. She said: “When he was a child, he was told that he probably wouldn’t survive through puberty, being a little person in those times, they didn’t have a very good life expectancy. He did extremely well in his life. He was very ill for the last few years so we had been expecting it. He had been looked after by one of his nephews, who found him on Saturday morning.”
Baker met his wife Eileen after an appearance on the Michael Parkinson TV chat show. She wrote in and said she was a little person too and wanted to meet him. “They got married soon after,” Shield said. “Sadly she died of epilepsy about 20 years ago.”
Shield added: “He had problems with his lungs and was often in a wheelchair. He was very poorly for a long time. He was asked to go out to LA for the new Star Wars premiere but he was told he was too ill to travel. Luckily he did manage to meet George Lucas again when he came to Manchester.”
Yeah, given how short a life he was told by doctors he could expect to live, given all he did in his time, whilst I'm sad to learn of his passing, from all accounts he'd been in a lot of pain and v sick for a long time and without his beloved wife for almost 20 years. A good innings. Brava!
R2-D2 is, like, one of the most iconic sci-fi characters ever. Kenny Baker's legacy will live forever, but it still sucks that he died. My condolences to his family, may the force be with them all!
This is the one to hit me the hardest in recent memory.
Reading this part of the family's statement just gets me:
“The decision to wait until this time to disclose his condition wasn’t vanity, but more so that the countless young children that would smile or call out to him ‘there’s Willy Wonka,’ would not have to be then exposed to an adult referencing illness or trouble and causing delight to travel to worry, disappointment or confusion. He simply couldn’t bear the idea of one less smile in the world,”
Willy Wonka is one of my favorite movies. I want to watch it now to honor him, but I also know I just wouldn't be able to make it all the way through just yet.
Gene Wilder passing hits me hard. Don't know how accurate the reports are yet, but I have heard it was do to complications due to alzheimers (know I butchered that). I can relate, my grandma had alzheimers when she passed. Took care of her for a year. That was probably the hardest year of my life.
I was listening to an interview with his family today, and it appears that Gene wanted to keep the Alzheimers secret from anybody else. They said that he really wasn't that concerned about himself if other people found out about it, but that whenever they went out in public children would still recognize him as Willy Wonka and would light up with smiles. He was worried that their parents would act differently around their children, and he didn't want to take any smiles away from this world.
Tannhauser42 wrote: This is the one to hit me the hardest in recent memory.
Reading this part of the family's statement just gets me:
“The decision to wait until this time to disclose his condition wasn’t vanity, but more so that the countless young children that would smile or call out to him ‘there’s Willy Wonka,’ would not have to be then exposed to an adult referencing illness or trouble and causing delight to travel to worry, disappointment or confusion. He simply couldn’t bear the idea of one less smile in the world,”
Willy Wonka is one of my favorite movies. I want to watch it now to honor him, but I also know I just wouldn't be able to make it all the way through just yet.
Yeah this one is sorta up there with Robin Williams. Gene Wilder was a big childhood icon. I still won't miss that boat ride in the Willy Wonka movie though.
Twitter user Joe Scaramanga writes, “Lovely Gene Wilder story in the Grauniad comments…”
I met him sometime in the early 1990s – I can’t pinpoint the year – when he came with a friend to visit the Turner Study Room at the Tate Gallery, which I was in charge of at the time.
He was strikingly shy, but as polite as could be, and tremendously appreciative of the experience that the Study Room offered.
It was only later in the day that I found out a bit more about his visit.
Before coming to the Study Room, he had taken time to have a conversation with a sweet- natured and approachable Irish attendant called Catherine, who told me what happened.
She had asked for, and received, his autograph – “Oh, to Catherine, please – thank you”.
On leaving the Study Room, he and his friend explored new areas of the Gallery – and, since the attendants rotate their positions, he unexpectedly saw Catherine again up ahead.
Whereupon, shyness banished and now in performance mode to the astonishment of visitors nearby, he yelled “Catherine!! How are you?? You don’t write, you don’t phone…!”
Can't believe Willy Wonka is gone. My roommate told me today. He truly brought joy to my childhood, he was an awesome actor, and truly will be missed. This year sucks so hard for famous deaths. It's unnatural.
Director/Screenwriter Curtis Hanson passed away at 71. Movies you might know him from: Hand That Rocks the Cradle, 8 Mile, Wonder Boys, and LA Confidential. His first screenwriting project was an adaptation of The Dunwhich Horror by HP Lovecraft for Roger Corman. He also directed an episode of Greg The Bunny.
I always loved his version of LA Confidential. While it did not have the breadth of the book it was able to capture the essence and feeling it evoked; it was a good example of how properly adapt a work from a different medium.
Just saw today that Alexis Arquette died too. You might remember him/her from Adam Sandler's Wedding Singer movie. She/He was one of the first transgender people in Hollywood that I knew of.
Not sure how many baseball fans are here, but a young super star pitcher for the Florida Marlins, Jose Fernandez was killed in a boating accident this weekend.
kronk wrote: Not sure how many baseball fans are here, but a young super star pitcher for the Florida Marlins, Jose Fernandez was killed in a boating accident this weekend.
He was quite the phenom. It is hard to say if he would have a long career since he already had to undergo shoulder surgery. He missed most of the 2014 and 2015 seasons, because of it. However, he was rookie of the year (rare for a pitcher) in 2013, and this year, was leading all of baseball in strikeouts at the time of his death, and was on pace for a 20 win season despite playing for a below average team (Marlins).
If you like strike outs, he was an exciting young player to watch. Darn shame.
Jean Alexander, who played Coronation Street's Hilda Ogden and Auntie Wainwright in Last of the Summer Wine, has died aged 90.
Alexander portrayed Hilda Ogden, a sharp-tongued, put-upon housewife who was one of Coronation Street's best known characters, from 1964 to 1987.
She appeared as shopkeeper Auntie Wainwright, the "absolute favourite part" of her career, for 22 years.
She died peacefully in hospital on Friday, her niece said.
Alexander had been admitted to Southport hospital, Merseyside, for tests but was discharged after a couple of days and allowed to return to her nursing home, her niece Sonia Hearld said.
But on Tuesday she was readmitted to hospital, three days before her death.
"My aunt died sadly earlier today," Mrs Hearld, of Selby, North Yorkshire, said on Friday.
With her curlers, headscarf and piercing voice that could not be ignored (no matter how much fellow Coronation Street character Annie Walker tried), Hilda Ogden was, to many, the most iconic character in Coronation Street's 56-year history.
Jean Alexander ensured we always rooted for the downtrodden cleaning lady, who embodied classic-era Coronation Street's perfect balance of drama and comedy.
In the hall of Alexander's home in Southport, pride of place was given to a signed photo of Laurence Olivier - a big fan.
Soap stars do not often get much credit, but Olivier's recognition showed how highly Alexander was regarded by the very best - and that, perhaps, if Hilda had not kept her so busy, Alexander could have held her own in roles alongside some of them.
So she should not be thought of as "just" a soap star - she was one of the finest British actresses of her time.
Cast members of the show have been paying tribute to Alexander on Twitter.
Sally Dynevor, whose character Sally Webster first appeared in the soap in January 1986 almost two years before Alexander left, wrote: "Jean Alexander, RIP. What a wonderful woman, and such an amazing and talented actress."
Jennie McAlpine, who has played Fiz Brown since 2001, tweeted: "So sorry to hear about Jean Alexander. I would have loved to work with her. Thankful to have met her though. Rest in Peace Jean x."
And Antony Cotton, who has played Sean Tully since 2003, said Alexander was "magnificent", adding: "My favourite episode of Coronation Street ever, was Hilda singing 'Wish Me Luck...'"
Daran Little, Coronation Street script writer from 2000 to 2010, said Alexander "reached into the hearts of viewers - she was everyone's nan, everyone's nosy neighbour".
Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he said: "I think the great thing about Jean playing Hilda is that Jean was absolutely nothing like Hilda - she was sophisticated and quiet, she was an ex-librarian, she used to love doing crosswords and she used to pad up coat hangers for charity.
"And when she put the curlers on, she became something else."
'Playing against the script'
Prior to her role as Hilda, Alexander had a brief appearance in Coronation Street in 1962 as a landlady who rented a room to a disturbed young woman.
Eighteen months later Alexander, who was born in the Toxteth area of Liverpool, started her role as Hilda, forming a comedy double act with her on-screen husband, Stan, who was played by Bernard Youens.
Speaking about Hilda, Alexander said: "The character was originally written as a rather stereotyped character, as Stan was, you know, big fat man and lazy husband and little nagging wife.
"After a few weeks we thought this was going to get a bit boring so we started playing against the script - same words but trying to give them a bit more character, rounding them out a bit."
Mr Little said that Alexander began to draw out Hilda's hen-pecking of Stan, moving away from being a battered wife.
"She used to talk regularly about how Stan used to wallop her and she was very much in his shadow and then she just, they decided together to turn it around - not that Hilda ever hit Stan but she certainly did with her vocal chords."
After Youens died in 1984 Stan's character was written out.
Following Stan's death, a scene in the soap showed Hilda silently unwrapping a parcel of his belongings and breaking down when she opened his glasses case.
Alexander left the soap three years later.
HILDA OGDEN'S GREATEST SCENES
The muriel In 1976, a proud Hilda acquired her "muriel" - the wallpaper with a mural of a mountain range to which she pinned her famous flying ducks.
Woman, Stanley Hilda won a night in a luxury hotel for a second honeymoon in 1977. After kissing Hilda, Stan asked what her lipstick tasted of. The reply came: "Woman, Stanley. Woman."
Stan's death After actor Bernard Youens died in 1984, his character Stan was written out. Hilda was seen silently unwrapping a parcel of his belongings and breaking down when she opened his glasses case.
Hilda's departure Hilda decided it was time to move in 1987, and half the nation tuned in to watch as her neighbours finally showed some affection for her by throwing a surprise party in the Rovers Return.
She later joined Last of the Summer Wine in 1988 as the junk shop owner Auntie Wainwright, a role she would play for 22 years.
But Hilda Ogden was the character she remained best known for.
In 2005 a TV Times poll voted her the nation's favourite soap character.
I cannot honestly claim to be a fan as such but -- perhaps subject to age -- one cannot deny she was quite iconic in her day.
And even though I was naught but a bairn myself, and therefore basically "forced" to watch what my parents were watching -- I do remember being moved by the scene they mention with regards to the death of her characters husband.
Steve Dillon is dead? Holy crap! He wasn't very old, either. He was still a teenager when he started doing Judge Dredd in 2000 AD and the Abslom Daak backup strips in Doctor Who.
The lead singer of the British pop band Dead or Alive suffered cardiac arrest on Sunday, Burns' loved ones shared in a letter posted to his Twitter account.
A poet, a prophet, a gentleman, a genius, a legend. He will be sorely missed.
There was a sense in his recent album and the surrounding interviews that he knew this was coming and had come to terms with it, but I had hoped it would not be so soon.
I really liked him, and not just in The Man From U.N.C.L.E. He was in The Magnificent Seven and Battle Beyond The Stars, both of which movies I like, as well as other things. Like many actors, he did guest appearances on a lot of TV shows as well. He will be missed.
Ran into him at an airline lounge at O'Hare Airport about a fifteen years ago. Told him I was a fan of U.N.C.L.E. and he signed a cocktail napkin for me. RIP.
Actress Florence Henderson, best known for playing Carol Brady on classic 1970s sitcom “The Brady Bunch,” has died. According to reports from the Associated Press, she passed surrounded by family in Los Angeles. She was 82.
Henderson’s career spanned more than fifty years, beginning on Broadway when she was 18. Amongst her achievements she was the first woman to guest host “The Tonight Show,” a frequent “Hollywood Squares” panelist, a spokeswoman for numerous products, a “Dancing with Stars” contestant, a Weird Al Yankovic music video star, and a host of her own series.
She also guest starred on countless TV dramas and comedies from “The Love Boat” to “Murder, She Wrote,” “L.A. Law,” “Roseanne,” “Ellen,” “The King of Queens,” “It’s Garry Shandling’s Show,” “The Muppet Show,” “30 Rock” and more.
Those who knew Henderson took to social media to remember the actress, including Maureen McCormick, who played her on-screen daughter Marcia Brady.
Tannhauser42 wrote: Don't know if it counts as "geek media", but Fidel Castro has died.
Oh wow. There goes one of those people you'd never thought would ever be gone. He was such a huge living icon. He was also the last Communist revolutionary leader still alive. Truly this is the end of an era.
I wonder what will happen to Cuba now, but maybe that is better suited to a thread in off topic.
Tannhauser42 wrote: Don't know if it counts as "geek media", but Fidel Castro has died.
Oh wow. There goes one of those people you'd never thought would ever be gone. He was such a huge living icon. He was also the last Communist revolutionary leader still alive. Truly this is the end of an era.
I wonder what will happen to Cuba now, but maybe that is better suited to a thread in off topic.
Well, Raul is still around and they did a transfer of power from FIdel to Raul a couple of years ago. Fidel hasn't looked at all well in the few public appearances of him there have been in that time.
After Raul, though? I don't know. It will certainly be an interesting time.
(plus kid-inspiring magic tricks) 
