RSSRetired NASCAR Driver Dick Trickle dead at 71 of Apparant Suicide, Self-Inflicted Gunshot Wound … RIP
Former NASCAR drive Dick Trickle died Thursday at the age of 71 form an apparent suicide. According to Lincoln County, NC, sheriff’s department, the incident occurred at 12:02 p.m. ET at Forest Lawn Cemetery off Highway 150 in Boger City, NC where Trickle died from a self-inflicted gun shot wound. Prior to his death, he called the Lincoln County Communications Center and stated that “there would be a dead body and it would be his.” How tragically sad. Trickle was a throw back of days gone by in NASCAR racing and frankly one I wish still existed rather the over-commercialized one of today.
Richard “Dick” Trickle (October 27, 1941 – May 16, 2013) … RIP
Retired stock-car driver Dick Trickle, known for his colorful name and short-track prowess, died on Thursday from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was 71.
According to the Lincoln County, N.C., sheriff’s department, the incident occurred at 12:02 p.m. ET at Forest Lawn Cemetery off Highway 150 in Boger City.
The Lincoln County Communications Center received a call, apparently from Trickle, that “there would be a dead body and it would be his.” Center workers tried to place a return call to the number but did not get an answer.
Emergency units found Trickle’s body lying near his pickup truck when they arrived.
Lt. Tim Johnson, who heads the Lincoln County detective department, said that at the family’s request, no additional information would be released at this time.
Fantastic VIDEO of Dick Trickle smoking a cigarette during the race in a NASCAR world that was so much more different than the sanitized one of today … When it used to be called ”Winston” Cup racing
More on the life of Richard “Dick” Trickle and his legendary short tack racing from CNN.
Richard “Dick” Trickle — who parlayed a legendary reputation as a short-track driver into a full-time career on stock car racing’s biggest stages in the 1990s — died Thursday of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, a North Carolina sheriff’s office said. He was 71.
The Wisconsin-born Trickle raced during the 1970s and 1980s, then broke through as a full-time and widely recognized NASCAR driver in 1989. By that time, according to a Sports Illustrated article, the 48-year-old grandfather of two had won some 1,200 stock car competitions in 31 years of racing.
Legendary Comic and Impersonator Jonathan Winters Dies at Age 87 … RIP
The death of true comedy …
Legendary comic and impersonator Jonathan Winters has passed away at his home in Montecito, California at age 87. The world just got a little less funny with his passing. Jonathan Winters was simply hysterical. Remember an era of comedy that was not mean spirited, laced with profanity and witty, neither do I. But during Winters’ era it was. Winters was a comic genius who could switch in and out of character impersonations like we switch a light switch or today’s generations change their Facebook status, tweet or text. Winters inspired generations of improve comics, probably none better than Robbin Williams. And as fate would have it, Winters would later have a role on Williams’ popular TV show ‘Mork & Mindy’ VIDEO) as his son Merth. However, I remember Winters best for his role in It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Just priceless comedy. The gas station scene (VIDEO) with Winters and Fred Silver … just too funny. This movie just never gets old. And who can forget when Jonathon Winters was a special guest crime solving with the Scooby Doo gang (VIDEO) where he played himself, Jonathan Winters, the not so famous comedian, hahaha. We shall miss you.
Jonathan Winters, November 11, 1925 – April 11, 2013 - RIP
Mr. Winters was at his best when winging it, confounding television hosts and luckless straight men with his rapid-fire delivery of bizarre observations uttered by characters like Elwood P. Suggins, a Midwestern Everyman, or one-off creations like the woodland sprite who bounded onto Jack Paar’s late-night show and simperingly proclaimed: “I’m the voice of spring. I bring you little goodies from the forest.”
A one-man sketch factory, Mr. Winters could re-enact Hollywood movies, complete with sound effects, or create sublime comic nonsense with simple props like a pen-and-pencil set.
The unpredictable, often surreal quality of his humor had a powerful influence on later comedians like Robin Williams but made him hard to package as an entertainer. His brilliant turns as a guest on programs like “The Steve Allen Show” and “The Tonight Show” — in both the Jack Paar and Johnny Carson eras — kept him in constant demand. But a successful television series eluded him, as did a Hollywood career, despite memorable performances in films like “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World,” “The Loved One” and “The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming.”
Jonathan Winters roasts Johnny Carson
Jonathan Winters on the Jack Paar Show from 1964
Posted April 13, 2013 by Scared Monkeys Celebrity, Deceased, Facebook, Fun, Humor, Obituary, You Tube - VIDEO | one comment |
Annette Funicello, One of the Original and Most Beloved Mouseketeers, Dies at Age 70 … Rest in Peace
One of America’s original Mouskeeteer sweethearts has passed …
Annette Funicello, one of the original and most beloved ‘Mousketeers’ from the 1950′s Mickey Mouse Club has died at the age of 70. According to a Disney statement, Funicello “died peacefully from complications due to multiple sclerosis, a disease she battled for over 25 years” at a Mercy Southwest Hospital in Bakersfield, CA. Annette Funicello went on from a Mouseketeer to one of America’s sweethearts acting in numerous movies, including those memorable beach party movies in the early 1960′s with Frankie Avalon like “Bikini Beach” and ”Beach Blanket Bingo”. She also recorded more than 30 albums. Annette Funicello represents a time and innocence in America long since past and a movie star that with such incredible fame, always remained humble. Doctors diagnosed Funicello with multiple sclerosis, a degenerative neurological disease, in 1987. She kept the illness a secret until 1992, the year she established The Annette Funicello Research Fund for Neurological Diseases.
Annette Funicello: October 22, 1942 – April 8, 2013 … RIP
“We are so sorry to lose Mother,” her three children said in a statement. “She is no longer suffering anymore and is now dancing in heaven. We love and will miss her terribly.”
Funicello was just 13 when she was selected by Walt Disney himself to be one of the original Mouseketeers of the “Mickey Mouse Club,” the 1950s television variety show aimed at children.
Funicello, who had a background in dance, quickly became one of the most popular Mouseketeers.
She “was and always will be a cherished member of the Disney family, synonymous with the word Mouseketeer, and a true Disney Legend,” Disney chairman and CEO Bob Iger said.
She remained with Disney after leaving the “Mickey Mouse Club,” appearing in TV shows including “Zorro” (1957), “The Nine Lives of Elfego Baca” (1958) and starring in the Disney feature films “The Shaggy Dog” (1959), “Babes in Toyland” (1961), “The Misadventures of Merlin Jones” (1964) and “The Monkey’s Uncle” (1965).
The most enduring images of Funicello, though, may be of her in a swimsuit, her primary wardrobe when she co-starred with teen idol Frankie Avalon in beach party movies in the early 1960s. These included “Beach Party” (1963), “Muscle Beach Party” (1964), “Bikini Beach” (1964), “Beach Blanket Bingo” (1965), and “How to Stuff a Wild Bikini” (1965).
Annette Joanne Funicello was born on Oct. 22, 1942, in Utica, N.Y., and as the first grandchild on either side of the family was indulged to the point of being, in her own words, a “spoiled brat.” At age 2, she learned the words to every song on the hit parade, her favorite being “Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive.”
In 1946, her parents decided to move to Southern California in the hope of doing better economically. They lived in a trailer park until her father, a mechanic, found work. They settled in Studio City and later moved to Encino.
Disney: Beloved Disney Mouseketeer and Iconic Teen Star Annette Funicello Dies at Age 70.
“Annette was and always will be a cherished member of the Disney family, synonymous with the word Mousketeer, and a true Disney Legend. She will forever hold a place in our hearts as one of Walt Disney’s brightest stars, delighting an entire generation of baby boomers with her jubilant personality and endless talent. Annette was well known for being as beautiful inside as she was on the outside, and she faced her physical challenges with dignity, bravery and grace. All of us at Disney join with family, friends, and fans around the world in celebrating her extraordinary life.”
- Bob Iger, Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company.
Beach Blanket Bingo … Annette Funicello & Frankie Avalon
One thing is for certain, this is truly a sad day.
Posted April 9, 2013 by Scared Monkeys Celebrity, Deceased, Facebook, Obituary, You Tube - VIDEO | 2 comments |
Long Time Movie Critic Roger Ebert Dead at 70 after Battle with Cancer … RIP
Roger Ebert, the long time movie critic has died at the age of 70 after his battle with cancer. Ebert had previously battled cancer in his thyroid and salivary glands, losing the ability to speak and eat on his own. Ebert co-hosted the weekly TV series ‘At the Movies’ with Gene Siskel, his fellow Chicago based movie critic, who himself had passed away in 1999. The man was brilliant in the critique of movies and I can remember watching ‘At the Movies’ all of the time to hear both Siskel and Ebert’s opinions and critiques. However, as much as he was knowledgeable about movies, his liberal politics was quite something different. But that is another story for another day. As stated at Ann Althouse, on Tuesday, Mr. Ebert blogged that he had suffered a recurrence of cancer following a hip fracture suffered in December, and would be taking ‘a leave of presence.’ Who would have known that is all would have ended so quickly?
To both Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, thank you both for your fine movie critiques over the years and we will see you both, ‘At the Movies’.
Roger Ebert: June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013, RIP
For a film with a daring director, a talented cast, a captivating plot or, ideally, all three, there could be no better advocate than Roger Ebert, who passionately celebrated and promoted excellence in film while deflating the awful, the derivative or the merely mediocre with an observant eye, a sharp wit and a depth of knowledge that delighted his millions of readers and viewers.
“No good film is too long,” he once wrote, a sentiment he felt strongly enough about to have engraved on pens. “No bad movie is short enough.”
Ebert, 70, who reviewed movies for the Chicago Sun-Times for 46 years and on TV for 31 years, and who was without question the nation’s most prominent and influential film critic, died Thursday in Chicago.
“We were getting ready to go home today for hospice care, when he looked at us, smiled, and passed away,” said his wife, Chaz Ebert. “No struggle, no pain, just a quiet, dignified transition.”
Siskel & Ebert on Film Criticism and Political Correctness
GENE SISKEL: You have to summon up the courage to say what you honestly feel. And it’s not easy. There’s a whole new world called political correctness that’s going on, and that is death to a critic to participate in that.
EBERT: Political correctness is the fascism of the ‘90s. It’s kind of this rigid feeling that you have to keep your ideas and your ways of looking at things within very narrow boundaries, or you’ll offend someone. Certainly one of the purposes of journalism is to challenge just that kind of thinking. And certainly one of the purposes of criticism is to break boundaries; it’s also one of the purposes of art. So that if a young journalist, 18, 19, 20, 21, an undergraduate tries to write politically correctly, what they’re really doing is ventriloquism.
‘One Day at a Time’ TV Mom Bonnie Franklin dies at Age 69, Rest in Peace
‘One Day at a Time’ mom Anne Romano dies …
Bonnie Franklin, better known to many as Ann Romano, the divorced working mother with two teen daughters, in Norman Lear’s groundbreaking sitcom ‘One Day at a Time’ has passed away at the age of 69 from complications of pancreatic cancer. In September 2012 it was made public that Bonnie has been diagnosed with aggressive pancreatic cancer. Sadly, she lost that battle Friday night. Bonnie Franklin played a divorced woman in her 30′s who was raising two teenagers and building a new life for herself in her hometown of Indianapolis. Probably at the time I never realized the sitcoms ground breaking role because I was too busy having a crush on Valerie Bertinelli, Barbara Cooper. However, the show tackled many of the day to day issues of a divorced mom that was happening all too often in the 70′s. On a personal note, I actually had the opportunity to meet Bonnie Franklin as I knew an individual in New Jersey that was close friends with her. She came across and an extremely nice person. Sadly, cancer has taken another life.
Rest in Peace
Bonnie Franklin, Valerie Bertinelli, Mackenzie Phillips and Pat Harrington Jr. of ‘One Day At a Time.’ CBS
Bonnie Franklin, the actress who created an indelible television character playing a divorced, working mother of two headstrong daughters on the long-running series “One Day at a Time,” died Friday at her Los Angeles home. She was 69.
The cause was complications from pancreatic cancer, her family announced.
By the mid-1970s, Franklin was a theater veteran who had earned a Tony nomination for her performance in the Broadway musical “Applause” when she was offered a different kind of role, one that was not then the usual fare on network television.
Developed by Norman Lear, the new CBS series would tell the story of Ann Romano, a divorced woman in her 30s who was raising two teenagers and building a new life for herself in her hometown of Indianapolis. Franklin’s character wasn’t the first divorced woman on network television; but the role, like those of other characters in Lear’s groundbreaking sitcoms, was infused with a new level of social realism.
One Day at a Time – ‘Pressure’ (1 of 3)
I was an avid fan of the show that ran from 1975 to 1984. What made the show great was not that it delved into social issues of the day like teen sex, divorce and birth control. The show and the ’One Day at a Time’s’ producer Normal Lear never forgot one important fact, it was a comedy.
“One Day at a Time” ran from December 1975 to May 1984, and its ratings ranked in the top 20 in eight of those seasons and in the top 10 in four. Ms. Franklin was nominated for an Emmy Award and twice for a Golden Globe.
The show’s topicality fell squarely in the tradition of its developer, Norman Lear, who had gained renown for introducing political and social commentary to situation comedy with “All in the Family” and other shows. Its co-creator was Whitney Blake, a former sitcom star who, as a single mother, had reared the future actress Meredith Baxter.
Like Archie and Edith Bunker in “All in the Family,” Ann and her daughters, Julie and Barbara Cooper (Mackenzie Phillips and Valerie Bertinelli), used comedy in the service of grappling with serious and thorny real-world matters.
Franklin’s TV daughters Valerie Bertinelli and Mackenzie Phillips react to her death.
Bonnie Franklin is survived by her mother, Claire Franklin; stepchildren Jed Minoff and Julie Minoff; two grandchildren; her brothers, Dr. Bernard Franklin and Richard Franklin; and sisters, Victoria Kupetz and Judith Bush.
It is so very sad that cancer, especially pancreatic cancer, is so unforgiving. Unfortunately, pancreatic cancer spreads quickly and is often diagnosed too late, when it’s already begun spreading in the body. The following is a list of other actors and celebrities who have recently passed away from pancreatic cancer:
- Patrick Swayze, star of “Ghost” and “Dirty Dancing” died after a battle with pancreatic cancer in September 2009, at the age of 57.
- Steve Jobs, the founder and CEO of Apple battled the disease for an estimated seven years before succumbing to pancreatic cancer at the age of 56.
- Donna Reed was first admitted to the hospital with bleeding ulcers, but screening tests revealed that she was suffering from a tumor in her pancreas. She died of the cancer within six weeks of diagnosis.
- Ben Gazzara, a long-time dramatic actor, died in early 2012 from pancreatic cancer
- Fred Gwynne, The actor probably best known as the patriarch on the 1960s television series “The Munsters,” Gwynne died from pancreatic cancer at age 66,
- Michael Landon, famous for his roles in period Western dramas, like” “Bonanza” and “Little House on the Prairie,” but the actor was also well-known for his battle with pancreatic cancer.
