Wayne Rogers, ‘Trapper John’ on ‘M*A*S*H,’ dies 82

William Wayne McMillan Rogers III (April 7, 1933 – December 31, 2015) was an American film and television actor, best known for playing the role of Captain “Trapper” John McIntyre in the CBS television series, M*A*S*H.

He was a regular panel member on the Fox News Channel stock investment television program Cashin’ In, as a result of having built a career as an investor, investment strategist and advisor, and money manager.

Rogers received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2005.

Wayne Rogers cause of death

Rogers died on December 31, 2015, from complications from pneumonia in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 82.

Natalie Cole: Legendary Singer & Nat King Cole’s Daughter Dies 65

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Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and performer. The daughter of Nat King Cole, Natalie rose to musical success in the mid-1970s as an R&B artist with the hits “This Will Be”, “Inseparable”, and “Our Love”. After a period of failing sales and performances due to a heavy drug addiction, Cole re-emerged as a pop artist with the 1987 album, Everlasting, and her cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Pink Cadillac”. In the 1990s, she re-recorded standards by her father, resulting in her biggest success, Unforgettable… with Love, which sold over seven million copies and also won Cole numerous Grammy Awards. She sold over 30 million records worldwide.

Natalie Cole cause of death

Cole canceled several events in December 2015 due to illness. It was reported on January 1, 2016, that Cole had died. Her publicist stated Cole died on December 31, 2015 but gave no details as to cause or place of death. Her family told reporters that she died at Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles of complications from ongoing health issues.

Natalie Cole LIVE – Unforgettable

Lemmy Kilmister, Motörhead frontman, dies 70

Ian Fraser “Lemmy” Kilmister (24 December 1945 – 28 December 2015) was an English musician, singer, and songwriter who founded and fronted the rock band Motörhead. His music was a distinctive part of the heavy metal genre.

Lemmy Kilmister

On 28 December 2015, four days after his 70th birthday, Lemmy died at his home in Los Angeles, California, at 16:00 PST, from an “extremely aggressive cancer”. Motörhead announced his death on their official Facebook page later that day. According to the band, his cancer had only been diagnosed two days prior to his death.

Motörhead – The Tonight Show ’92 – Lemmy on bass & lead vocal

Motörhead – Ace Of Spades

Douglas Tompkins, North Face Founder, Dies 72

Douglas Tompkins (March 20, 1943 – December 8, 2015) was an American conservationist and businessman.

Tompkins co-founded and ran two clothing companies: the outdoor clothing company The North Face; and with his then-wife Susie, the ESPRIT clothing company.

On December 8, 2015, Tompkins was kayaking with five others on General Carrera Lake in southern Chile when strong waves caused their kayaks to capsize. Tompkins spent a “considerable amount of time” in waters under 40 °F (4 °C). He was flown via helicopter to a hospital in nearby Coyhaique, where he died from severe hypothermia. He was 72 years old

Holly Woodlawn, inspiration behind Lou Reed’s Walk on the Wild Side, dies 69

Holly Woodlawn (born Haroldo Santiago Franceschi Rodriguez Danhakl; October 26, 1946 – December 6, 2015) was a transgender Puerto Rican actress and Warhol superstar who appeared in his movies Trash (1970) and Women in Revolt (1972).

Lou Reed refers to Woodlawn in his song “Walk on the Wild Side”, the opening verse of which describes her hitchhiking journey and gender transition:

    Holly came from Miami, F-L-A
    Hitchhiked her way across the USA
    Plucked her eyebrows on the way
    Shaved her legs and then he was a she
    She says, “Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side.”

Death

Woodlawn died of brain and liver cancer in Los Angeles on December 6, 2015.

Woodlawn fell seriously ill in June 2015, and was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. She was so weak that physicians feared for her life. Tests later revealed that she had lesions on her liver and brain. The lesions were later determined to be cancer. Woodlawn’s health improved enough for her to be sent home, where she continued treatment and received in-home healthcare. She was later forced to vacate her West Hollywood, California, apartment due to flooding, and entered an assisted living facility in October.

Chuck Williams, Founder of Williams-Sonoma, Dies 100

Charles E. “Chuck” Williams (October 2, 1915 – December 5, 2015) was the founder of the Williams-Sonoma company and author and editor of dozens of books on the subject of cooking. He turned 100 in October 2015 and two months later died on December 5.

Williams bought the Ralph Morse Hardware Store in Sonoma, California in 1953. Over the next few years, he gradually converted its stock from hardware to French cookware, filling a niche in the market as European cookware was difficult to find for purchase in America at the time. The concept was successful, and he moved his operations to San Francisco in 1958. More than a decade later, in 1971, Williams-Sonoma introduced its first cookware catalog. Soon after, the business began expanding to more locations and now includes over 200 stores nationwide. In addition, in recent years, Williams-Sonoma has begun expanding into Canada, with four stores as of 2005. Chuck Williams sold Williams-Sonoma to Howard Lester in the early 1980’s.

Chuck Williams cause of death

Chuck Williams died of natural causes at his home in San Francisco.

Robert Loggia, ‘Scarface,’ ‘Big,’ dies 85

Salvatore Loggia (January 3, 1930 – December 4, 2015), known as Robert Loggia, was an American actor and director. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Jagged Edge.

His many television credits included appearances on Overland Trail, Target: The Corruptors!, The Untouchables, The Eleventh Hour, Breaking Point, Combat!, Custer, Columbo, Ellery Queen, High Chaparral, Gunsmoke, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Big Valley, The Wild Wild West, Rawhide, Little House on the Prairie, Starsky and Hutch, Charlie’s Angels, The Rockford Files (three times as three different characters), Magnum, P.I., Quincy, M.E., Kojak, Hawaii Five-0, The Bionic Woman, Falcon Crest, Frasier, The Sopranos, Monk and Oliver Stone’s miniseries Wild Palms.

His film roles included Revenge of the Pink Panther, An Officer and a Gentleman, Mercy Mission: The Rescue of Flight 771, based on the Air New Zealand Flight 103 incident, Psycho II, Scarface, Prizzi’s Honor, Over The Top, Independence Day, Necessary Roughness, Return to Me, Armed and Dangerous and Big (for which he won a Saturn Award).

Robert Loggia cause of death.

In 2010, Loggia was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, and died on December 4, 2015, of complications from the disease at his home in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles at the age of 85.

Tribute to Roberto Loggia at MIFF 2011

Scott Weiland, Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver, dies 48

Scott Richard Weiland (born Scott Richard Kline; October 27, 1967 – December 3, 2015) was an American musician and singer-songwriter. During a career spanning three decades, Weiland was best known as the lead singer for the successful rock band Stone Temple Pilots from 1986 to 2013, as well as the supergroup Velvet Revolver from 2003 to 2008. He also established himself as a solo artist, releasing four studio albums, a cover album, a live album and collaborations with several other musicians since 1995.

Weiland has been ranked in the Top 100 Heavy Metal Vocalists by Hit Parader (No. 57).

Scott Weiland Cause of Death

On December 3, 2015, Weiland was found in cardiac arrest on his tour bus in Bloomington, Minnesota, just before he was scheduled to go on stage with his band The Wildabouts. He was 48 years old. No underlying cause of death was immediately given. Police later confirmed during a search of Weiland’s tour bus, small amounts of cocaine were found in the bedroom where Weiland was discovered dead. His Wildabout bandmate Delton Black was arrested and is to be charged with possession of a controlled substance after cocaine was also found in his bedroom on the same tour bus.

Drug use

  • 1995 – Weiland was convicted of buying crack cocaine.
  • 2005 – interview with Esquire, Weiland said that while performing in his first bands as a teenager, his drinking “escalated” and he began using cocaine for the first time.In
  • December 2007 – Weiland was arrested and charged with DUI, his first arrest in over four years (since October 27, 2003).
  • February 7, 2008 – Weiland checked into rehab and left in early March.
  • April 2015 footage showed Weiland, who appeared in the video to be zoned out and giving a bizarre performance.
  • June 2015 – Weiland claimed that he had been off drugs for 13 years. His response was directed towards comments made by Filter’s Richard Patrick, who claimed Weiland was using drugs and even his fans were pushing him closer to death saying “the fans are just sticking up for Scott, and they have no idea of what is going on behind the scenes and it’s actually they’re pushing him into his death, because they’re making him believe that whatever I did is acceptable, and I can be as high as I want and I can do as much drugs as I want.”

Stone Temple Pilots – Plush. (Singer Scott Weiland)

Velvet Revolver – Slither (Singer Scott Weiland)

Phil Taylor, Motorhead Drummer, Dies 61

Phil Taylor (September 21, 1954 – November 11, 2015), better known as “Philthy Animal” Taylor was an English rock drummer in the British heavy metal band Motörhead from 1975–1984 and 1987–1992 recording ten studio albums and the live album No Sleep ’til Hammersmith. The classic mark IV Motörhead line-up consisted of Lemmy, Taylor, and Fast Eddie Clarke.

Phil Taylor cause of death.

Phil Taylor died of Liver failure.  Phil Taylor was 61 years old at the  time of his death.

Motörhead – Ace of Spades

Al Molinaro, Drive-In Owner in ‘Happy Days,’ Dies 96

Albert Francis “Al” Molinaro (born Umberto Francesca Molinaro; June 24, 1919 – October 30, 2015) was an American actor. He was best known for his television sitcom roles as Al Delvecchio on Happy Days and Murray Greshler on The Odd Couple. He also starred in TV commercials for On-Cor frozen dinners for 16 years.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Molinaro studied acting and was offered guest roles on TV sitcoms, including Bewitched, Get Smart, Green Acres, and That Girl.

Al Molinaro caluse of death.

Molinaro died in a Glendale, California, hospital on October 30, 2015, at the age of 96. He is survived by his wife Betty and son Michael, who said his father’s death was the result of complications from an infected gallbladder. Molinaro had three grandchildren.

Happy Days theme