Peter Tork of the Monkees Dies 77

Peter Halsten Thorkelson (February 13, 1942 – February 21, 2019), better known as Peter Tork, was an American musician, composer and actor, best known as the keyboardist and bass guitarist of the Monkees.

On March 3, 2009, Tork reported on his Web site that he had been diagnosed with adenoid cystic carcinoma, a rare, slow-growing form of head and neck cancer.

On March 4, 2009, Tork underwent successful surgery in New York City. On June 11, 2009, a spokesman for Tork reported that his cancer had returned. Tork was reportedly “shaken but not stirred” by the news, and said that the doctors had given him an 80% chance of containing and shrinking the new tumor. Tork died from complications of the disease on February 21, 2019, at his home in Mansfield, Connecticut.

Gene Okerlund, ‘Mean Gene’, WWE Hall of Fame Announcer, Dies 76

Eugene Arthur Okerlund (December 19, 1942 – January 2, 2019), better known by his ring name “Mean” Gene Okerlund, was an American professional wrestling interviewer, announcer and wrestler. He was best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling. Gene was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006 by Hulk Hogan. He was eventually signed to a lifetime contract with WWE and worked for promotional programs, mostly WWE Network programming and, occasionally, the TV series.

Okerlund died on the morning of January 2, 2019, at the age of 76 in a Sarasota, Florida hospital. This was later confirmed on WWE social media and its official website later that day. It was revealed by his son, Todd Okerlund, that he had received three kidney transplants and had suffered a fall in the weeks leading up to his death.

Hulk Hogan San Francisco Promo 1988

George Bush, 41st US President, Dies 94

George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States from 1989 to 1993. Prior to assuming the presidency, Bush served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States from 1981 to 1989. As a member of the Republican Party, he had previously been a U.S. Representative, Ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence. During his career in public service, he was known simply as George Bush; from 2001 until his death, he was often referred to as “George H. W. Bush”, “Bush 41”, or “George Bush Sr.” to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, the 43rd President of the United States.

George Bush Cause of Death

Bush suffered from vascular parkinsonism, a form of Parkinson’s disease that had forced him to use a motorized scooter or wheelchair since at least 2012. He died on November 30, 2018, aged 94, at his home in Houston, Texas.

President Bush Super Bowl LI Coin Toss, February 2017

Scott English, Producer & ‘Mandy’ Songwriter, Dies at 81

Scott English (Sheldon David English, January 10, 1937 – November 16, 2018) was an American songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the co-writer of “Brandy” with Richard Kerr (and in Pittsburgh, he is best known for the DooWop ballad “High on a Hill”). This song became a No. 1 hit for Barry Manilow in 1974, under the revised title of “Mandy”. English had also released a single of “Brandy”, which reached No. 12 in the UK Singles Chart in November 1971, and entered the US charts in March 1972.

Cause of death is not known.

Scott English – Brandy 1975

Douglas Rain, Voice Of Computer Hal In ‘2001,’ Dies 90

Douglas Rain (March 13, 1928 – November 11, 2018) was a Canadian actor and narrator. Though primarily a stage actor, he provided the voice of the HAL 9000 computer for the film 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and its sequel, 2010 (1984).

Rain died on November 11, 2018, at the age of 90 at St. Marys Memorial Hospital in St. Marys, Ontario, of natural causes.[5][6] He leaves three children and a grandchild behind.

Burt Reynolds, ‘Smokey and the Bandit’, ‘Deliverance’, dies 82

walk of fame

Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor, director and producer. He first rose to prominence starring in television series such as Gunsmoke (1962–1965), Hawk (1966), and Dan August (1970–1971).

His breakout film role was as Lewis Medlock in Deliverance (1972). Reynolds played the leading role in a number of subsequent box office hits, such as The Longest Yard (1974), Smokey and the Bandit (1977), Semi-Tough (1977), Hooper (1978), Smokey and the Bandit II (1980), The Cannonball Run (1981) and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982).

After a few box office failures, Reynolds returned to television, starring in the sitcom Evening Shade (1990–1994). He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Boogie Nights (1997).

Bankruptcy

Despite his lucrative career, in 1996 he filed for bankruptcy, due in part to an extravagant lifestyle, a divorce from Loni Anderson and failed investments in some Florida restaurant chains. The filing was under Chapter 11, from which Reynolds emerged two years later.

Death

Reynolds died at a Florida hospital on September 6, 2018. He had been suffering from heart problems for a number of years. He was 82.

Burt Reynolds on the Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson

‘Golden Girls’ producer Paul Junger Witt dies 77

globeglobeglobe

Paul Junger Witt (March 20, 1941 – April 27, 2018) was an American film and television producer. He, with his partners Tony Thomas and Susan Harris (also his wife), produced such hit TV shows as Here Come the Brides, The Partridge Family, The Golden Girls, Soap, Benson, Empty Nest and Blossom. The majority of their shows have been produced by their company, Witt/Thomas Productions (alternately Witt/Thomas/Harris Productions), founded in 1975. Witt also produced the hit films Dead Poets Society, Three Kings, Insomnia, and the successful made-for-TV movie Brian’s Song. He was a graduate of the University of Virginia.

Witt died of cancer in Los Angeles on April 27, 2018, at age 77.

Paul Junger Witt cause of death

Paul Junger Witt talks about Casting Sophia for Golden Girls (2006)

Milos Forman, Oscar-Winning Director, Dies 86

Milos Forman (18 February 1932 – 13 April 2018),  was a Czech American film director, screenwriter, actor, and professor, who until 1968 lived and worked primarily in former Czechoslovakia.

Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Amadeus, have acquired particular renown, each of which gained him an Academy Award for Best Director. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was the second film to win all five major Academy Awards (Best Picture, Actor in Leading Role, Actress in Leading Role, Director, and Screenplay) following It Happened One Night in 1934, an accomplishment not repeated until 1991 by The Silence of the Lambs.

Forman was also nominated for a Best Director Oscar for The People vs. Larry Flynt. He also won Golden Globe, Cannes, Berlinale, BAFTA, Cesar, David di Donatello, European Film Academy, and Czech Lion awards.

Milos Forman Cause of Death

Forman died at Danbury Hospital near his home in Warren, Connecticut, after a short illness on the night of Friday, 13 April 2018, at the age of 86.

Academy Awards

  • 1975: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
  • 1984: Amadeus.

Golden Globe

  • 1975: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
  • 1984: Amadeus.
  • 1996: The People vs. Larry Flynt.

Isao Takahata, Japanese Animation director, Dies 82

Isao Takahata (October 29, 1935 – April 5, 2018) was a Japanese film director, screenwriter and producer. Takahata was the co-founder of Studio Ghibli along with long-time collaborative partner Hayao Miyazaki. Takahata earned critical international acclaim for his work as a director of anime films, which included the war-themed Grave of the Fireflies, the drama Only Yesterday, the ecological adventure Pom Poko, and the comedy My Neighbors the Yamadas. Takahata’s last film was The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, which was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Animated Feature Film at the 87th Academy Awards.

Isao Takahata cause of death

Takahata had been diagnosed with lung cancer, and died on April 5, 2018, at a hospital in Tokyo at the age of 82.