Ben Gazzara (August 28, 1930 – February 3, 2012) was an American film, stage, and Emmy Award winning television actor and director.
Ben Gazzara had an extensive career but a lot of men remember him as Brad Wesley (the bad guy) from Roadhouse (Starring Patrick Swayze).
In the 1950s, Gazzara starred in various Broadway productions, most notably Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, directed by Elia Kazan. He was nominated three times for the Tony Award. Gazzara had a long and varied acting career, with spells as an accomplished director, mostly in television. He directed Columbo episodes "A Friend in Deed" and "Troubled Waters".
Gazzara appeared in thirty-eight films—many for TV—in the 1990s. He worked with a number of renowned directors, such as the Coen brothers (The Big Lebowski), Spike Lee (Summer of Sam), David Mamet (The Spanish Prisoner), Walter Hugo Khouri (Forever), Todd Solondz (Happiness), John Turturro (Illuminata), and John McTiernan (The Thomas Crown Affair).
Ben Gazzara cause of death Ben Gazzara was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1999. On February 3, 2012, he died of pancreatic cancer at Bellevue Hospital Center in New York. Ben Gazzara 81 years old at the time of his death
Part 1 - Opening Night - Ben Gazzara & Gena Rowlands
Bob Anderson (September 15, 1922 – January 1, 2012) was an English actor and fencer. Anderson also owns a claim to fame for being a swordfighting trainer for several films, as well as a stunt double for Darth Vader in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. He is one of seven people to have played that character. He was born in Hampshire.
Anderson did not receive much recognition for his role in the Star Wars films for years after their initial release, in part because David Prowse was so lauded for his portrayal that director George Lucas did not want to detract from the boost it gave the actor's career. In a 1983 interview, however, Mark Hamill paid homage to Anderson's contribution, saying: "Bob Anderson was the man who actually did Vader's fighting. It was always supposed to be a secret, but I finally told George I didn't think it was fair any more. Bob worked so bloody hard that he deserves some recognition. It's ridiculous to preserve the myth that it's all done by one man."
As a competitive fencer, he represented Great Britain at the Olympic Games in 1952 and the World Championships in 1950 and 1953 in the sabre event. He finished tied for fifth in the team sabre event at Helsinki in 1952.
After his retirement from fencing competition, Anderson emigrated to Canada, where he went on to become technical director of the Canadian Fencing Association. Anderson died on New Year's Day 2012 in a West Sussex hospital. He was 89.
Billie Jo Spears (January 14, 1937 – December 14, 2011) was an American country music singer. She reached the top-10 of the Country music charts five times between 1969 and 1977, her biggest hit being "Blanket on the Ground", which, in 1975, became her only number one. She was known for her bluesy voice.
Billie Jo Spears cause of death Billie Jo Spears died of cancer on December 14, 2011 Billie Jo Spears was 74 years old at the time of her death.
Bill McKinney (September 12, 1931 – December 1, 2011) was an American character actor whose most famous role was the sadistic mountain man in the movie Deliverance. McKinney was also recognizable for his performances in seven Clint Eastwood films, most notably as Union cavalry commander Captain "Redlegs" Terrill in The Outlaw Josey Wales.
He appeared in First Blood (1982), Against All Odds (1984), Heart Like a Wheel (1983), Back to the Future Part III (1990), and The Green Mile (1999). As well as films, McKinney has appeared in the classic TV movie The Execution of Private Slovik (1974), while guest-starring on some of the top TV shows, including The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, Starsky and Hutch, The A-Team, Murder, She Wrote and Columbo.
Bill McKinney Cause of Death Bill McKinney was died of esophagus cancer. He smoked for 25 years when he was younger. Bill McKinney was 80 years old at the time of his death.
William Aloysius Keane (October 5, 1922 – November 8, 2011), better known as Bil Keane, was an American cartoonist notable for his work on the long-running newspaper comic The Family Circus, which began its run in 1960 and continues in syndication.
Keane was the president of the National Cartoonists Society from 1981 to 1983 and was the emcee of the Society's annual awards banquet for 16 years.
Bil Keane cause of death Bil Keane died from congestive heart failure at his home in Paradise Valley, Arizona (near Phoenix) Bil Keane was 89 years old at the time of his death.
Beryl Davis (March 16, 1924 – October 28, 2011) was a British big band singer; born into a show business family, her father was Harry Davis, and her sister is Lisa Davis Waltz, a teen actress in the 1950s and 1960s.
Born in Plymouth, England, she began to sing for her father's band, and became popular singing for British and Allied troops during World War II. Glenn Miller discovered her in London, and she sang for the Army Air Force Orchestra.
She moved to Los Angeles post-war with her father's big band, and with Frank Sinatra for one year on "Your Hit Parade."
She was part of "The Four Girls" singing group, with Jane Russell, Rhonda Fleming, and Connie Haines. They recorded sixteen singles, and albums that became best sellers.
Beryl Davis Cause of Death Beryl Davis died from complications of Alzheimer's disease. Beryl Davis was 87 years old at the time of her death.
"Bluebirds in the Moonlight" (Beryl Davis, 1939)
Connie Haines - Beryl Davis - Rhonda Fleming - Jane Russell
Billie Wayne Grammar (August 28, 1925 – August 10, 2011), known professionally as Billy Grammar, was an American country music singer and noted guitar player. He is best known for the million-selling "Gotta Travel On", which made it onto both the country and pop music charts in 1959. It was Grammar's first hit record, and his most enduring.
In 1990, Grammar was inducted into the Illinois Country Music Hall of Fame, along with Tex Williams, Lulu Belle and Scotty, and Patsy Montana. Grammar suffers from a degenerative eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa. He became completely blind. On February 27, 2009, he was honored by the Grand Ole Opry for his 50 years as a member.
Billy Grammer cause of death Grammar died on August 10, 2011, at 12:20 a.m. He was in Benton Hospital being treated for a long-term illness, which included suffering a heart attack in January. Billy Grammer was 85 years old at the time of his death. He was eighteen days short of his 86th birthday.
Charles Aaron "Bubba" Smith (February 28, 1945 – August 3, 2011) was an American actor and former athlete. He was a professional football player in the 1960s and 1970s who became an actor in the late 1970s. He was well known for his tremendous size at 6 ft 7 in (2 m).
He is perhaps best known for his role as Moses Hightower in the Police Academy movie series
Smith spent nine seasons in the NFL as a defensive end. He was the first overall selection in the 1967 NFL draft, chosen by the Baltimore Colts. The Colts won Super Bowl V at the end of the 1970 season, earning Smith his only Super Bowl ring.
Bubba Smith cause of death Bubba Smith was found dead in his home on August 3, 2011, apparently of natural causes
Elizabeth Ann Bloomer Warren Ford (April 8, 1918 – July 8, 2011), better known as Betty Ford, was the wife of former United States President Gerald Ford and served as the First Lady of the United States from 1974 to 1977. As First Lady, Ford was active in social policy and shattered precedents as a politically active presidential wife.
Following her White House years, she continued to lobby for the ERA and remained active in the feminist movement. She is the founder, and served as the first chairwoman of the board of directors, of the Betty Ford Center for substance abuse and addiction and is a recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal (co-presentation with her husband, Gerald R. Ford, October 21, 1998) and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (alone, presented 1991, by George H.W. Bush).
On April 8, 2011, Ford turned 93, the same age that her late husband, President Ford reached on his last birthday, July 14, 2006.
Death 0f Betty Ford Betty Ford died on July 8, 2011 in Rancho Mirage, California. Cause of death was not released.
Bob Flanigan (August 22, 1926 – May 15, 2011), was an American tenor vocalist and founding member of The Four Freshmen, a jazz vocal group
Flanigan, who was born in Greencastle, Indiana, was a respected trombonist, and also played bass guitar with the outfit for several decades, beginning on September 20, 1948, and sang the top part.
After retiring from performing in 1992, Flanigan maintained the band's name and was responsible for the group's changing cast of performers.
Bob Flanigan Cause of Death Bob Flanigan died of congestive heart failure at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada, on May 15, 2011. Bob Flanigan was 84 years old at the time of his death.
Four Freshmen - Poinciana (1952) Bob Flanigan on Bass You can see Beach Boys and Manhattan Transfer were influenced by their style.
Betty Garrett (May 23, 1919 – February 12, 2011) was an American actress, comedienne, singer and dancer who originally performed on Broadway before being signed to a film contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. While there, she appeared in several musical films before returning to Broadway and making guest appearances on several television series.
Later, she became known for the roles she played in two prominent 1970s sitcoms: Archie Bunker's liberal neighbor Irene Lorenzo in All in the Family and landlady Edna Babish in Laverne & Shirley.
In later years, Garrett appeared in television series such as Grey's Anatomy, Boston Public and Becker as well as in several Broadway plays and revivals.
Betty Garrett won a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for a role of landlady Edna Babish in Laverne & Shirley.
Death of Betty Garrett Betty Garrett died of an aortic aneurysm in Los Angeles on February 12, 2011, Betty Garrett was 91 years old at the time of her death.
Roberto "Bobby" Alfonso Farrell (October 6, 1949 – December 30, 2010) was a dancer and performer, best known as the male member of the successful 1970s pop and disco group Boney M.
Death of Bobby Farrell Bobby Farrell died in a hotel in St Petersburg. He was complaining of breathing problems after performing with his band the evening before. The cause of death is still unknown. Bobby Farrell was 61 years old at the time of his death
William Lindsey "Bill" Erwin (December 2, 1914 – December 29, 2010) was an American television, film, and stage actor with over 250 television and film credits. As a veteran character actor, he was widely known for his role of Sid Fields, an embittered, irascible man on Seinfeld – for which he received an Emmy nomination – as well his regular appearances in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Film In the late 1950s, Erwin was in such pictures as "A Streetcar Named Desire" He played Jack Nicholson's father in "Cry Baby Killer," He would later co-star alongside Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour in the Somewhere in Time.
Erwin has appeared in Planes, Trains and Automobiles, She's Having a Baby, Home Alone, and Dennis the Menace.
Television His TV credits were even more numerous in the 1950s as he appeared in such television shows as I Love Lucy, Crusader, Trackdown, Colgate Theatre, "Perry Mason" and The Rifleman. In the 1960s, Erwin appeared in television shows such as: The Andy Griffith Show, Mister Ed, Maverick, The Twilight Zone, 87th Precinct, The Fugitive, and Mannix. Continuing his growing television stardom, Erwin, in the 1970s, was found in such television shows as: Barnaby Jones, Cannon, and Gunsmoke. Entering into the 1980s and 1990s, Erwin established his legacy on television by appearing in shows like ER, Highway to Heaven, Voyagers, Seinfeld, Dukes of Hazzard, Married With Children, Growing Pains, Full House, The Golden Girls, Moonlighting, My Name is Earl, and Star Trek: The Next Generation. He had been on television continuously from 1948 to 2006.
In the Seinfeld episode ("The Old Man"), Erwin played Sid Fields ("Sid Fields" was the name of the writer for Abbott and Costello, and a person admired by Jerry Seinfeld), a member of the Foster-A-Grandpa Program. Erwin was Jerry's foster grandparent, and his aggressive character and sheer hatred for Jerry made the relationship fail. Furthermore, Erwin's character bit Kramer on the arm causing him to lose his dentures. Irwin received an Emmy nomination for outstanding guest actor for the role, and later reunited with Michael Richards when he guest starred on the short-lived The Michael Richards Show.
In the 2000s, Erwin appeared on Monk, The West Wing, King of Queens, Everwood and My Name Is Earl.
Death of Bill Erwin Bill Erwin died of natural causes in Studio City. Bill Erwin was 96 years old at the time of his death.
"The Twilight Zone" Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up? Bill Erwin as Peter Kramer (The Shop Owner? - need a fact check )
Billy Taylor (July 24, 1921 – December 28, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. He was the Robert L. Jones Distinguished Professor of Music at East Carolina University in Greenville. Since 1994, Taylor was the artistic director for jazz at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
With over twenty three honorary doctoral degrees, Taylor is also the recipient of two Peabody Awards, NEA Jazz Masters Award (1998) an Emmy Award (1983) for "Outstanding Informational, Cultural or Historical Programming", a Grammy Award (2004) and a host of prestigious and highly coveted prizes, such as the National Medal of Arts (1992), the Tiffany Award, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from Down Beat Magazine. He was also honored in 2001 with the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) Jazz Living Legend Award, and election to the Hall of Fame for the International Association for Jazz Education.
Death of Billy Taylor Billy Taylor of died of heart failure. Billy Taylor was 89 years old at the time of his death.
I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free - Billy Taylor
Bernard Wilson (1946 – December 26, 2010) was a second tenor and baritone R&B, funk and soul music vocalist who was a member of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes and thus helped to define the “Sound of Philadelphia” in the 1970s.
Death of Bernard Wilson Bernard Wilson died at a hospital in New Jersey after suffering a stroke and a heart attack. Bernard Wilson was 64 years old at the time of his death
Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes - If You Don't Know Me By Now
Bernard Wilson is on the far right (red, orange) Lead Singer is Teddy Pendergrass (March 26, 1950 — January 13, 2010)
Share your memory on famous dead actors celebrities, Recently deceased celebrities. Singers, actors died recently. Hollywood Death and Cause of death. Share your memory, talk about your favorite dead Hollywood celebrities.
Elizabeth Ann Bloomer Warren Ford (April 8, 1918 – 
Recent comments
8 hours 14 min ago
1 day 15 hours ago
2 days 16 hours ago
2 days 16 hours ago
4 days 3 hours ago
4 days 16 hours ago
5 days 16 hours ago
5 days 19 hours ago
6 days 16 hours ago
6 days 23 hours ago