Val Kilmer known for a multitude of roles has died of pneumonia in Los Angeles. He was 65.
Kilmer was born December 31, 1959, in Los Angeles, California. He attended Chatsworth High School at the same time as Kevin Spacey. His high school girlfriend was Mare Winningham. He became the youngest person at the time to be accepted into the Juilliard School’s Drama Division.
Initially a stage actor, Kilmer’s first starring role in film was the spy comedy Top Secret!, released in 1984. His next film continued in the comedy genre with 1985’s Real Genius. 1986 saw him playing Iceman in Top Gun alongside Tom Cruise. The 1988 film fantasy film Willow was his next starring role. He played Madmartigan alongside his future wife, Joanne Whaley.
The 90’s were the big decade for Val. Most of his most well known roles occurred during that decade. Kilmer played Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s The Doors, Doc Holliday in Tombstone, Chris Shiherlis in Heat, Bruce Wayne/Batman in Batman Forever among others.
Kilmer continued acting through the 2000s. His last appearance was a reprise of his role in the original Top Gun in 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick.
In 2015 Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer. A subsequent surgery damaged his vocal cords.
He passed surrounded by family according to his daughter. He is survived by his two children, Mercedes and Jack.
Sergeant Joe Harris, who was believed to be the oldest surviving WWII paratrooper died on 15 March in Los Angeles. He was 108.
Harris was born on June 19, 1916, in West Dale, Louisiana. He began his military service in 1941 when he was 24. By the time he was honorably discharged in November 1945, he had completed 72 parachute jumps.
After the war, he worked for the U.S. Border Patrol. He also spent more than 60 years in Compton, California, where Pittman said he was the neighborhood patriarch, a man everyone on the block knew and gravitated to.
Harris was among the last surviving members of the historic 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion, nicknamed the Triple Nickles. The battalion did not serve overseas during World War II, primarily because it never reached full strength for an Airborne Infantry Battalion. Instead they were shipped to the west coast to battle fires started by Japanese Fu-Go balloon bombs.
He is survived by his son and two daughters along with five grandchildren. His wife, Louise Harris, died in 1981.
He will be honored with a full military funeral on April 5.
Born in Marshall Texas on January 10, 1949, Foreman was raised in Houston. He was a self-described troubled youth, dropping out of school at the age of 15. His turnaround started when he saw an ad for the Job Corps at 16. He earned his GED and several job skills in the Job Corps.
In 1968 George won a gold medal at the Mexico City Olympic Games. He beat the Soviet Union’s Jonas Cepulis by a referee stoppage. Foreman had beaten Cepulis bloody in the first round and forced a standing eight count in the second before the ref stopped the fight.
Foreman later said earning the Gold was the achievement he was most proud of in his boxing career.
George turned pro following the Olympics in 1969. He went undefeated in the first three years of his career, amassing a record of 32-0 with 29 knockouts.
In 1972, still undefeated and the #1 ranked contender in both the WBC and the WBA, two of the major sanctioning bodies, George squared off against undefeated and undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Joe Frazier. Before the fight, Frazier was 29–0 (25 KO) and Foreman was 37–0 (34 KO).
Frazier was knocked down six times by Foreman within two rounds (the three-knockdown rule was not in effect for this bout). In ABC’s rebroadcast, Howard Cosell made the memorable call, “Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier!”
After the second knockdown, Frazier’s balance and mobility were impaired to the extent that he was unable to evade Foreman’s combinations. Frazier managed to get to his feet for all six knockdowns, but referee Arthur Mercante eventually called an end to the one-sided bout.
Foreman would take his first loss in Kinshasa Zaire in 1974 against Muhammad Ali.The Rumble in the Jungle was one of the most anticipated fights ever and it did not disappoint. Ali rope-a-doped his way to a victory and putting Big George on the canvas for the first time.
George first retired in 1979 after a health scare after a fight in Puerto Rico. After this experience, Foreman became a born-again Christian, dedicating his life for the next decade to God. Foreman stopped fighting and became an ordained minister, initially preaching on street corners before becoming the minister of the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ in Houston
In 1987, after 10 years away from the ring, Foreman surprised the boxing world by announcing a comeback at the age of 38. After fighting a series of tomato cans, Foreman had a series of title shots. He fought – and lost to – Evander Holyfield, Alex Stewart and Tommy Morrison.
In 1994, George faced Michael Moorer for the IBF and WBA titles. Foreman was not ranked at the time, but his name recognition got the fight scheduled. Through the first 9 rounds, Moorer out-boxed Foreman. In the 10th however, George tagged Moorer with a short right to the chin and put out his lights. At age 45 George Foreman was World Champion again.
George only had a couple of title defenses. He wound up being stripped of his titles because of scheduling.
It was during this second run that George partnered with Salton on the George Foreman Grill.
He made more from the partnership with Salton than he did in his boxing career.
George Foreman died at age 76 surrounded by his family.
John ‘Paddy’ Hemingway, the last surviving pilot of the Battle of Britain has died. He was 105.
Hemingway was born on 17 July 1919, in Dublin.
On 7 March 1939, he was appointed in service as a pilot officer. By early 1940, following the outbreak of the Second World War, he was in service with No. 85 Squadron RAF in France, destroying a Heinkel He 111 on 10 May.
During the Battle of Dunkirk he flew supporting missions over the English Channel. Hemingway fought in the Battle of Britain, waged from July to October 1940. His plane was damaged on 18 August while over the Thames Estuary, and he was forced to bail out. He was again shot down over Eastchurch on 26 August; making Hemingway 85 Squadron’s first official combat victim over Britain.
On 1 July 1941, Hemingway was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. On 7 July 1941, he began serving with No. 1452 Flight RAF. On 1 January 1944, he was made a temporary squadron leader. He served as an air traffic controller during the Invasion of Normandy. From April to December 1945 he commanded No. 43 Squadron RAF. The squadron served in Italy, and Hemingway was shot down for a fourth time.
Paddy continued serving in the RAF after WWII. He retired on 12 September 1969.
Gene Hackman, known for his roles in several films including the French Connection and Unforgiven was found dead in his home in New Mexico. He was 95. HIs wife, Betsy Arakawa, 63, was found dead at the same time. No foul play is suspected.
Hackman was born in San Bernardino, California, in 1930, but grew up in the mid-west. He left home at age 16 and lied about his age to enlist in the United States Marine Corps. He served four and a half years as a field-radio operator. Hackman was stationed in China (Qingdao and later in Shanghai). When the Communist Revolution conquered the mainland in 1949, he was assigned to Hawaii and Japan. Following his discharge in 1951, Hackman moved to New York City.
In 1956, Hackman began pursuing an acting career.Hackman acted in several Broadway plays. His part in the 1964 Broadway hit Any Wednesday opened the path for consistent work in film. His first credited role came in the 1964 film Lilith.
His turn as Buck Barrow in 1967’s Bonnie and Clyde got him his first Oscar nomination, as best supporting actor. Hackman was nominated for a second Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his role in I Never Sang for My Father in 1970.
In 1971, he took home the trophy for best actor for his portrayal of Popeye Doyle in the French Connection.
Over the years, Hackman made appearances in many cultural touchstone films. Mississippi Burning – where he earned a second Best Actor nomination, Hoosiers, A Bridge Too far, Superman and Postcards From The Edge are all on the must-watch list.
In 1992 he teamed up with Clint Eastwood in Unforgiven. His portrayal of “Little Bill” Daggett earned him his second Oscar, this time for Best Supporting actor. Hackman took over every scene he appeared in. Quite a feat when starring alongside Eastwood and Morgan Freeman.
Hackman appeared in several more films after Unforgiven including the Royal Tennenbaums and Runaway Jury. He retired from acting in 2004.
Alongside his two Oscars, Hackman won two BAFTA awards and three Golden Globes.
Lt. Col. Harry Stewart Jr, a decorated World War II pilot who broke racial barriers as a Tuskegee Airmen and earned honors for his combat heroism, has died. He was 100.
Stewart was one of the last surviving combat pilots of the famed 332nd Fighter Group also known as the Tuskegee Airmen. The group were the nation’s first Black military pilots.
The Tuskegee Airmen National Historical Museum confirmed his death. The organization said he passed peacefully at his home in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, on Sunday.
Stewart was born in Newport News, Virginia, on July 4, 1924. After living near Langley Field, a United States Air Force base located between Hampton, Virginia, and Newport News, Virginia, Stewart and his family moved to Queens NY near LaGuardia Airport and the North Beach Airport when he was two years old.
At 18 years old, Stewart volunteered for the United States Army Air Forces, taking and passing the Pilot Cadet exam. On June 27, 1944, Stewart completed cadet pilot training, receiving his wings and graduating in the Tuskegee Airmen Class 44-F-SE. Stewart learned to fly before he learned how to drive an automobile.
Stewart shot down three German aircraft in one day during World War II. He is one of only four Tuskegee Airmen, along with Joseph Elsberry, Clarence D. Lester and Lee Archer, to have earned three victories in a single day of aerial combat. He was awarded the Distingushed Flying Cross for that action.
Stewart was also a member of the all-African American 332nd Fighter Group Weapons pilot team that won the United States Air Force’s inaugural “Top Gun” team competition in 1949.
Stewart had hoped to become a commercial airline pilot after he left the military, but was rejected because of his race. He went on to earn a mechanical engineering degree New York University. He relocated to Detroit and retired as vice president of a natural gas pipeline company.
George Hardy and fellow 1949 Top Gun winner James H. Harvey are now the only surviving Tuskegee Airmen.
Baseball legend Bob Uecker has died. He was 90 years old.
Robert George Uecker was born January 26, 1934 in Milwaukee Wisconsin. He enlisted in the US Army in 1954 and eventually made the rank of corporal. Following his military service, Bob signed a minor league contract with his hometown Milwaukee Braves in 1956.
Uecker made his big league debut as a catcher with the club in 1962. In 1964 he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. He was part of the World Series champion Cards that year. He would be traded to Philadelphia after the 1965 season. The Phillies would trade him to the now-Atlanta Braves in 1967. That would be Bob’s final year playing baseball.
In his six years in the majors, Bob played in 297 games and had 731 at bats, 146 hits, 14 homers, 74 RBI and had a .200 batting average. That line put him near the bottom for hitters of that era. What set him apart was his .981 fielding percentage behind the plate. That number would have been higher if it weren’t for a full season of catching knuckleballer Phil Neikro.
In 1971, Bob would make his debut as the radio play-by-play announcer for the Milwaukee Brewers. He would call games for the next 54 years. He is the second longest tenured radio announcer in Baseball after Royals broadcaster Denny Matthews.
Along with his radio announcing duties, Bob hosted a sports bloopers show, Bob Uecker’s Wacky World of Sports. He also appeared as an announcer for the WWF, calling matches at WrestleMania III and WrestleMania IV.
Uecker appeared in several commercials, TV shows and movies. He was the face of Miller Light in the 1980s. His best known film role was as broadcaster Harry Doyle in the Major League series.
James Earl Carter Jr., elected the 39th President of the United States in 1976, has died. He was 100.
Carter was born 1 October, 1924, Plains, GA to Bessie and James Carter Sr. After starting university at Georgia Southwestern, Carter received an appointment to the Naval Academy. He graduated 60th out of 821 midshipmen in the class of 1947 and was commissioned as an ensign.
Carter would become a submariner and worked for admiral Hyman Rickover in the development of the US nuclear sub force. He continued on active duty until the death of his father in 1953.
Carter would enter politics in the early 1960’s, running for state Senate in 1962. He won that race after it was discovered there was vote fraud committed by his opponents backers. He lost his first run for Governor of Georgia in 1966, but won in 1970. He would remain governor until 1976.
In 1974, Carter announced he was running for President. Carter had entered into a crowded field and had little name recognition outside the south. His opponents derisively asked “Jimmy Who?”. In response to this, Carter began to emphasize his name and what he stood for, stating “My name is Jimmy Carter, and I’m running for president.”
The tactic worked. Carter won the Democrat nomination and faced Gerald Ford in the 1976 Presidential election. He won, receiving 297 electoral votes and 50.1% of the popular vote to Ford’s 240 electoral votes and 48.0% of the popular vote.
He went on to be one of the worst Presidents in American history. The list of policy failures is too long to parse here, but generally speaking, if it was the wrong thing to do, Carter and his administration did it.
In the 1980 Presidential election, Carter would face Ronald Reagan. It would turn into a bloodbath. Reagan would carry 44 states and get 489 electoral votes to Carter’s 6 and 49.
After leaving the Presidency, Carter embarked on a journey of charitable works. He worked with several charity groups, most notably Habitat for Humanity and the Carter Center.
At 100, Carter was the longest living former President. He had been in hospice care since February 2023. He was diagnosed with melanoma that had metastasized to his brain prompting the move to the care facility. He celebrated his 100th birthday in Georgia on 24 October this year.
Carter will be buried outside his home in Plains Georgia.
Rickey Henderson was born on December 25, 1958, in Chicago, Illinois, in the back seat of an Oldsmobile on the way to the hospital. Henderson later joked, “I was already fast. I couldn’t wait.” He died today at the age of 65.
Henderson was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the fourth round of the 1976 Major League Baseball draft. He played with nine teams over a prolific 25-year career, spending the bulk of it with the A’s, with whom he played 14 seasons over multiple stints.
Henderson, a 10-time All-Star and 1990 American League MVP, was the game’s greatest base stealer, racking up 1,406 stolen bags in his career, an MLB record that still stands. He is also MLB’s leader in runs scored with 2,295.
Fernando Valenzuela, probably best known for his stint in Los Angeles Dodgers in the 80’s died yesterday in LA at the age of 63.
Fernando was born November 1, 1960 in a small town in Sonora Mexico as the youngest of 12 children. He began his baseball career with the Mayos de Navojoa of the Mexican Pacific League in 1977. He played Mexican ball until he was discovered by Dodgers scout Mike Brito in 1979.
Valenzuela made his MLB debut in September of 1980 and pitched 172⁄3 scoreless innings in 10 appearances. He would start the Dodgers first game of the 1981 season. He began the strike shortened season 8–0 with five shutouts and an ERA of 0.50. His performance during the ’81 season won him the Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young awards. To date Fernando is the only player to win both in a single season.
The 81 season was the start of ‘Fernandomania’. Valenzuela was a media and fan sensation. Following his debut, Valenzuela, nicknamed El Toro (the Bull) by fans, settled down into a number of years as a workhorse starter and one of the league’s best pitchers.
Fernando Valenzuela went on to have the highest WAR (wins above replacement, ask in the comments if you’d like a more complete explanation), 41.45, of any Mexican born player in MLB history. His league honors include:
