Tag: Obituary

  • Paul Reubens Dead at 70

    Paul Reubens Dead at 70

    Actor Paul Reubens, best known for portraying Pee Wee Herman, has died after a battle with cancer. The actor was 70.

    His family confirmed his death in a statement on Instagram.

    Last night we said farewell to Paul Reubens, an iconic American actor, comedian, writer and producer whose beloved character Pee-wee Herman delighted generations of children and adults with his positivity, whimsy and belief in the importance of kindness. Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit. A gifted and prolific talent, he will forever live in the comedy pantheon and in our hearts as a treasured friend and man of remarkable character and generosity of spirit.

    Reubens began his career in the 1970s after joining the Los Angeles live comedy troupe the Groundlings as an improvisational comedian and stage actor. In 1980, he launched “The Pee-wee Herman Show,” a stage production centered on a fictional character he had been developing for years. 

    In 1985, he teamed with Tim Burton on “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure,” the character’s feature film debut, which was a critical and commercial success. Reubens returned three years later for a follow-up film, “Big Top Pee-wee,” helmed by Randal Kleiser. The character transitioned to television from 1986 to 1990, on CBS’ weekend morning show “Pee-wee’s Playhouse.”

  • Tina Turner Dies

    Tina Turner Dies

    Tina Turner, born Anna Mae Bullock on November 26, 1939 was a singer, dancer, actress and author.

    Widely referred to as the “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll”, she rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue before launching a successful career as a solo performer.

    She died today after a long illness at age 83.

  • Jerry Springer Dead at 79

    Jerry Springer Dead at 79

    Talk show host and one-time mayor of Cincinnati Jerry Springer has died. He was 79.

    He was diagnosed with cancer a few months ago which led to his death. A spokesperson confirmed he died peacefully at his home in the Chicago area Thursday morning.

    Springer was best known for his syndicated show, “The Jerry Springer Show”, which ran for 27 years. The show first premiered in 1991 and originally focused on political issues. But once the program’s format cemented into what we all remember, it smashed ratings and became a global staple. 

     According to The Cincinnati Enquirer, Springer was mayor of Cincinnati from 1977 to 1978, as well as serving on the city council throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

    His family issued the following statement to the outlet:

    “Jerry, born Gerald Norman Springer in London, England on February 13, 1944, immigrated to Queens, New York at the age of four along with his parents and older sister. He graduated from Tulane University and Northwestern University Law School, served in the United States Army Reserves and had a long career in law, politics, journalism and broadcasting. He was known for the Jerry Springer Show, the Judge Jerry Show, the Springer on the Radio Show, Baggage, the Jerry Springer Podcast and until recently even his own 60s folk music radio show in Cincinnati. He also wrote an autobiography and once starred in a movie. But he captured the emotions of the country in 2006 with a shockingly long and humorous run on the popular Dancing With the Stars Show.”

    Resquicat in pace

  • Goodbye Friend

    Goodbye Friend

    I have some sad news to report, Harrison Johnson has passed. Most of you will know him by his Disqus screen name Haj.

    Harry was one of the first people I encountered when I joined Disqus going on 5 years ago. He was part of the crew that ran the News for Everyone channel on that platform. Over the years we became friends.

    Harry was an Air Force Vet and loved coding. He helped develop several bots used on Disqus to this day.

    I am at a loss for words, and those who know me will know how unusual that is.

    Until Valhalla friend.

  • Jerry Lee Lewis Deceased

    Jerry Lee Lewis Deceased


    Jerry Lee Lewis dies at 87: report

    Tracy Swartz for New York Post

    Rock ‘n’ roll legend Jerry Lee Lewis died Wednesday at his home in Memphis, TMZ reported. He was 87.

    The talented musician was known for hits such as “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” and “Great Balls of Fire.”

    Lewis won four Grammys, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and two Grammy Hall of Fame Awards. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.

  • LTG David E. Grange Jr. Dead at 97

    LTG David E. Grange Jr. Dead at 97

    LTG David E. Grange Jr., three war veteran and namesake of the Best Ranger competition has died. He was 97.

    Born in upstate New York on 9 April 1925, Grange enlisted in the US Army in 1943. During WWII he was a paratrooper with the 517th PIR and fought in Italy, Southern France and the Ardennes. Following WWII, he was assigned to the 82nd Airborne division where he attended OCS.  He was commissioned a second lieutenant of Infantry in 1950, with an initial assignment with the 187th Airborne Infantry Regiment in Korea.

    Following two tours during the Korean war, Grange was assigned as an instructor at the nascent Ranger school. He then served in a variety of staff positions until 1963, when he served his first tour in Vietnam as a Special Forces advisor. His two subsequent tours in Vietnam (1967-8 and 1970-1) were with the 82nd airborne as a battalion commander and the 101st Airborne as a brigade commander.

    In 1971, following his return stateside, Grange was made the director of the US Army Ranger School. Following that assignment, he was the assistant division commander of the 4th ID, then based in Korea. Grange’s final assignment before his 1984 retirement was Commander 6th US Army.

    Grange is among the few paratroopers in United States Army history to make three combat jumps—one during World War II (Southern France) and two in Korea (the Battle of Yongju and Operation Tomahawk). His other distinctions include three awards each of the Combat Infantryman Badge (for World War II, Korea and Vietnam) and the Silver Star for heroism in combat.

    Grange is highly decorated, with awards including the Defense Distinguished Service Medal; Army Distinguished Service Medal; Silver Star with two Oak Leaf Clusters; Legion of Merit with one Oak Leaf Cluster; Distinguished Flying Cross; Soldier’s Medal; 28 awards of the Air Medal with V; Bronze Star Medal with V and four Oak Leaf Clusters; Joint Service Commendation Medal with V; United States Army Commendation Medal with V and four Oak Leaf Clusters; Air Force Commendation Medal; and the Purple Heart.

    In 1984, the “LTG David E. Grange, Jr. Best Ranger Competition” was named in his honor.

  • Queen Elizabeth II Dead at 96

    Queen Elizabeth II Dead at 96

    British monarch Queen Elizabeth II had died. The first child of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, she was born in London in 1926.

     In November 1947, she married Philip Mountbatten, a former prince of Greece and Denmark, and their marriage lasted 73 years until his death in April 2021. They had four children together: Charles, Prince of Wales; Anne, Princess Royal; Prince Andrew, Duke of York; and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.

    When her father died in February 1952, Elizabeth—then 25 years old—became queen regnant of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon (known today as Sri Lanka), as well as Head of the Commonwealth. Elizabeth reigned as a constitutional monarch through major political changes such as the Troubles in Northern Ireland, devolution in the United Kingdom, the decolonisation of Africa, and the United Kingdom’s accession to the European Communities and withdrawal from the European Union.

    In February the Queen celebrated her Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years as Queen.

    Her eldest son, Charles, Prince of Wales is expected to accede to the throne.

  • Goodbye to the Greatest-

    Goodbye to the Greatest-

    Frankly, I am astonished someone who actually enjoys baseball has not posted this.

    Goodbye to the Greatest — RIP Vin Scully 

    Larry Thornberry for The American Spectator

    It was hardly a surprise, after all he was 94, but the news of Vin Scully’s death Tuesday brings great sadness nonetheless. He was a great broadcaster and a great man who loved baseball, the Dodgers, his family, his country, his God, and the English language, which he deployed better than just about anyone on the planet. America is much diminished by his loss. But what a blessing to have had him for so long.

    Scully turned Dodger baseball games into broadcast destinations for an almost incomprehensible 67 years — 1950 to 2016 — a career that lasted from Don Newcombe to Clayton Kershaw, with stops along the way for Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale. Over the decades, hundreds of Dodger players came and went, as did field managers, GMs, even owners. Heck, the Dodgers even swapped coasts, moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958. But the constant over the decades was Vin Scully, sharing his almost encyclopedic knowledge of baseball history with fans as he described the games and entertained with polished baseball stories he managed to fit around the action. The luxurious pace of baseball not only allows for storytelling but almost requires it to bring a game fully to life. And Vin was one of the best storytellers ever to draw breath.

    It wasn’t the duration of his career but the quality of his civilized, one-of-a-kind style and voice that made him beloved by millions. Ninety percent of young sportscasters at the beginning of their careers want to grow up to be Vin Scully. The other 10 percent lie about it. And the many privileged to have heard this craftsman at work have no trouble understanding why.

    Scully’s presentation was eloquent, elegant, almost poetic, with fine turns of phrase, but always accessible. Nothing of the lecturer about him. He was always conversational. He had the sense of timing and drama that allowed him to give listeners the full impact of the moment without yelling or hype.

    Vin didn’t need a color guy, an analyst, or any of the other supernumeraries that now crowd broadcast booths to help paint a word picture of the game. For the back half of his career, Vin almost always worked alone, unheard of today. He went solo not out of vanity but because he wanted to talk directly to those listening to the game, not to someone else in the booth. So his broadcasts sounded like one man talking to friends watching the game with him and sharing anecdotes and jokes. A one-sided conversation for sure, but a most pleasing one.

    But we needn’t rely on my puny powers to describe what Vin’s work was like. Thanks to online clips, we can go to the man himself. Let’s start with his celebrated call of Kirk Gibson’s dramatic walk-off home run in the first game of the 1988 World Series. Notice how after Gibson’s shot leaves the park Vin remains silent for a full minute or so. Not because he couldn’t think of anything else to say, but because he understood the uses of silence. There was nothing that needed to be said at that time. The roaring crowd and Gibson circling the bases while Dodger players went crackers were telling the story at that moment.

    Here, Vin’s voice is about as excited as it gets when Henry Aaron hit his 715th home run, eclipsing Babe Ruth. Again, there is appropriate silence after the ball leaves the yard, followed by Vin putting the event into social as well as baseball context.

    Another of Scully’s triumphs is his call of the final inning of Sandy Koufax’s perfect game in 1965. This would have been a fine piece of writing when the writer had time to rewrite and polish it. But Vin came up with this, and so much else, pitch-perfectly at the moment, off the top of his head.

    More recently, here’s Vin’s call of Clayton Kershaw’s no-no in 2014, just two years before Vin retired. It’s clear enough here that both Vin and Clayton have plenty of game. And Vin still had game when he made his final call in a Dodgers-Giants game from San Francisco. Here it is.

    Vin’s humor and apt observations came more out of situation than straight joke-telling. In a game he called where Cardinal pitcher Bob Gibson was dominating (no surprise there), Vin called our attention to how quickly Gibson worked by saying, “He pitches like he’s double-parked.” We get a taste of Vin the philosopher from when he told listeners that outfielder Andre Dawson “has a bruised knee and is listed as day to day.” He took a beat and added, “Aren’t we all?” Just so. And Vin couldn’t always resist a pun. When the Philadelphia Phillies had a classy double play combination of Bobby Wine at shortstop and Cookie Rojas at second base, Vin referred to “the plays of Wine and Rojas.”

    Early in his career, Vin was mostly a local voice, first in Brooklyn and then in Los Angeles. This was no small matter as generations of Angelenos and others in Southern California fondly remember summer nights with Vin and the Dodgers on the radio or television. Many of these people became Dodger fans because of Vin’s broadcasts. But when he worked national network games, including All-Star and playoff games as well as 25 World Series, he developed a national following. Honors followed. In 1982, he was elected to the broadcasters’ wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame. In 2009, the American Sportscasters Association made it official, selecting Vin as No. 1 on its list of the “Top 50 Sportscasters of All Time.”

    I became of fan of Scully’s after I’d heard his work on national games. When cable came along and Dodger games became available in Tampa I always tried to tune in to hear Vin’s call of a game I might not otherwise have been interested in. As Dodger games from the left coast start at 10:10 eastern, I wasn’t always awake for the ninth inning. But that wasn’t Vin’s fault.

    For all the honors bestowed on him, and all of the adulation that came his way, Vin always remained humble and gracious toward fans, saying to them in his farewell, “I’ve always needed you more than you needed me.” He was always upbeat, saying countless times how blessed he was, even though there was heartache in his life. His first wife died of an accidental overdose of prescription medicine and a son died in a helicopter crash. His second wife, Sandi, to whom he had been married for 48 years, died last year of ALS. Through it all, Vin prevailed with the help of his faith and his internal strength. Though not without tragedy, Vin’s was a long and well-lived life. A model for more than just wannabe sports announcers. He is already missed. And he can’t be replaced.

    RIP Redhead. Thanks for so many great memories. And thanks for exemplifying so many things that are good about baseball, about America, and about life.

  • Bradford Freeman, Last of Easy Company, Passes

    Bradford Freeman, Last of Easy Company, Passes

    Bradford Freeman, the last surviving member of Easy company 2nd bn 506th parachute infantry regiment, died 3 July at age 97.

    Freeman was a paratrooper and private first class with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during the war. A mortarman, he parachuted into France at age 19 with a base plate attached to his chest on D-Day, June 6, 1944.

    Freeman also parachuted into Operation Market Garden and was wounded during the Battle of the Bulge. He recovered, rejoined his unit and participated in the occupations of Berchtesgaden in Germany and Austria.

    Born Sept. 4, 1924, in Artesia, Miss., Freeman graduated from Artesia High School in 1942. He was a freshman at Mississippi State when he volunteered for the paratroopers. He entered the service on Feb. 4, 1944.

    After the war, Freeman returned to Mississippi, married Willie Louise Gurley on June 29, 1947, and worked 32 years as a mail carrier. He is survived by a sister, two daughters, four grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

    Freeman was preceded in death by Edward Shames, the last surviving officer from Easy Company, who died Dec. 3, 2021, at his home in Virginia Beach, Va.

    Freeman was portrayed in the 2001 HBO miniseries, “Band of Brothers,” by actor James Farmer. The series was based on the bestselling 1992 book, “Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne: From Normandy to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest,” by Stephen E. Ambrose. Freeman was the last of a unit made famous by a series that brought to life the exploits of a generation that largely kept its accomplishments to itself.

    https://youtu.be/vUta1TNoQSg
  • Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams, Last WWII Medal of Honor Recipient, Dead at 98

    Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams, Last WWII Medal of Honor Recipient, Dead at 98

    Hershel “Woody” Williams, who won the military’s highest honor fighting in the Battle of Iwo Jima, died at the age of 98 Wednesday morning, according to a statement from his foundation. He was the final living Medal of Honor recipient from World War Two.

    Williams was born in Quiet Dell, West Virginia, on October 2, 1923. Wiliams enlisted in the Marines because of the Marine dress blue uniform saying the brown Army uniform was “… the ugliest thing in town … I decided I did not want to be in that thing. I want to be in those dress blues.” 

    Woody first attempted to enlist in the Corps in 1942, but at 5′ 6″ was too short. 1943 saw a regulation change and Williams was accepted into the Corps. Williams received his recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, California. Upon completion, he was sent to the Camp Elliott training center in San Diego, where he joined the tank training battalion on August 21, 1943. The following month he was transferred to the training center’s infantry battalion for instruction as a demolition man and in the use of flamethrowers.

    Williams was assigned to the 32nd Replacement Battalion on October 30, 1943, and left for New Caledonia in the southwest Pacific on December 3 aboard the M.S. Weltey Reden. In January 1944, he joined Company C, 1st Battalion, 21st Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division at Guadalcanal. In July and August 1944, he was attached to Headquarters Company and participated in action against the Japanese during the Battle of Guam. 

    Williams’ next and final campaign was at the Battle of Iwo Jima, where he distinguished himself with actions “above and beyond the call of duty”, for which he would be awarded the Medal of Honor. On February 21, 1945, he landed on the beach with the 1st Battalion, 21st Marines. Williams, by then a corporal, distinguished himself two days later when American tanks, trying to open a lane for infantry, encountered a network of reinforced concrete pillboxes. Pinned down by machine gun fire, his company commander asked one of his men to attach a high explosive charge to a pole and, supported by Williams, his flamethrower and several Marine riflemen, shove the improvised weapon into an opening in the enemy’s pillbox. As they fought their way to the pillbox, all of the men, except Williams, became casualties. Undeterred, Williams arrived at the first pillbox, shoved the flamethrower nozzle into the pillbox opening and fired the weapon, killing all of the soldiers inside. He then returned five times to his company area, refueled his weapon, and moved forward to destroy the remaining pillboxes.

    Covered by only four riflemen, he fought for four hours under terrific enemy small-arms fire and repeatedly returned to his own lines to prepare demolition charges and obtain serviced flame throwers. He returned to the front, frequently to the rear of hostile emplacements, to wipe out one position after another. At one point, a wisp of smoke alerted him to the air vent of a Japanese bunker, and he approached close enough to put the nozzle of his flamethrower through the hole, killing the occupants. On another occasion, he was charged by enemy riflemen who attempted to stop him with bayonets and he killed them with a burst of flame from his weapon. Williams has said that much of the action “is just a blank. I have no memory.”

    These actions occurred on the same day that two flags were raised on Mount Suribachi, and Williams, about one thousand yards away from the volcano, was able to witness the event. He fought through the remainder of the five-week-long battle even though he was wounded on March 6 in the leg by shrapnel, for which he was awarded the Purple Heart.

    In September 1945, he returned to the United States, and on October 1 he joined Marine Corps Headquarters in Washington, D.C. He and thirteen other servicemen were presented the Medal of Honor by President Harry S. Truman on October 5, 1945, at the White House.

    Williams’ Medal of Honor citation reads:

    A light blue neck ribbon with a gold star shaped medallion hanging from it. The ribbon is similar in shape to a bowtie with 13 white stars in the center of the ribbon.

    The President of the United States in the name of The Congress takes pleasure in presenting the
    MEDAL OF HONOR
    to

    CORPORAL HERSHEL W. WILLIAMS
    UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS RESERVE for service as set forth in the following CITATION:

    For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as Demolition Sergeant serving with the First Battalion, Twenty-First Marines, Third Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Island, 23 February 1945. Quick to volunteer his services when our tanks were maneuvering vainly to open a lane for the infantry through the network of reinforced concrete pillboxes, buried mines and black, volcanic sands, Corporal Williams daringly went forward alone to attempt the reduction of devastating machine-gun fire from the unyielding positions. Covered only by four riflemen, he fought desperately for four hours under terrific enemy small-arms fire and repeatedly returned to his own lines to prepare demolition charges and obtain serviced flame throwers, struggling back, frequently to the rear of hostile emplacements, to wipe out one position after another. On one occasion he daringly mounted a pillbox to insert the nozzle of his flame thrower through the air vent, kill the occupants and silence the gun; on another he grimly charged enemy riflemen who attempted to stop him with bayonets and destroyed them with a burst of flame from his weapon. His unyielding determination and extraordinary heroism in the face of ruthless enemy resistance were directly instrumental in neutralizing one of the most fanatically defended Japanese strong points encountered by his regiment and aided in enabling his company to reach its’ objective. Corporal Williams’ aggressive fighting spirit and valiant devotion to duty throughout this fiercely contested action sustain and enhance the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

    /S/ HARRY S. TRUMAN

    God Speed Warrior.