The Celebrity Obituary Thread

[The Schofield Kid]

Ben Gazzara, an intense actor whose long career included playing Brick in the original “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” on Broadway, roles in influential films by John Cassavetes and work with several generations of top Hollywood directors, died on Friday in Manhattan. He was 81.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/04/movies/ben-gazzara-actor-of-stage-and-screen-dies-at-81.html

[Doug]

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/04/movies/ben-gazzara-actor-of-stage-and-screen-dies-at-81.html

Oh, crap, I just saw that on the internet.  I like Ben Gazzara a lot.  Road House was playing on AMC (what's new!) a couple days ago and caught a bit of it, but I really like him in so many of those great movies from the 70s.  He and Peter Falk were always great together.  And of course as Jacky Treehorn in The Big Lebowski...

R.I.P

[LCat]

I can't believe Ben Gazzara was 81--That much time can't have elapsed!

RIP, Ben.

[Lin Sunderland]

RIP Ben Gazzara.

You are right about the time rushing by LCat.

[Gant]

This is sad to hear.I always enjoyed him as an actor. Killing of a Chinese Bookie springs to mind.

R.I.P Ben

[KC]

I saw Gazarra in his last Broadway appearance, in Clifford Odets' Awake and Sing, in 2006. An actor who had a small part in that is a friend of mine, and two years ago, the cast had a reunion get-together in a restaurant near the theater. I went with my friend, and so I actually got to meet Ben and his charming German wife, Elke.

R.I.P.

[Doug]

Whitney Houston dies at age 48

It's sad the way her life spiraled out of control.  R.I.P.

[KC]

That is very, very sad. R.I.P.

[higashimori]

So sad........Rest in Peace, Whitney. 

[Southern cat]

That's shocking news. R.I.P. Whitney.

[Sylvie]

So sad news this morning ... Rest in peace Whitney ...

Her beautiful song was chosen by my Love and I for our wedding at Church in 1994 : "I will Always Love You"

[Gant]

I hadn't heard this very shocking news.

R.I.P  Whitney.

[Lin Sunderland]

I too was shocked when the news came over the radio this morning.

RIP Whitney you will be sadly missed.

[higashimori]

 " Irish actor David Kelly dies aged 82 "

 

Kelly also played a vicar in The Italian Job
Irish stage and screen actor David Kelly, known for films such as Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, has died aged 82.

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17020494

 R.I.P.

[The Schofield Kid]

Irish actor David Kelly dies aged 82

I always remember him from the British TV show, Robin's Nest where he played a one armed dishwasher and of course his stint as O'Reilly in Fawlty Towers was a riot. "I love a woman with spirit" he said to Sybil, then she belted him with an umbrella. Classic stuff.

[Lin Sunderland]

RIP David.

I remember him in Robin's Nest too. He played a great part and yes I do remember him in Fawlty Towers too. He had such a hang dog expression.

[AKA23]

These were my thoughts on Whitney Houston's death:

Over this past weekend, we learned of the loss of Whitney Houston, another great artist, from what looks to be a combination of prescription drugs and alcohol. Her death, along with those of Amy Winehouse, Michael Jackson, and countless others before them, should serve as a cautionary tale to those of us who seek refuge in drugs and alcohol to cope with the challenges and sorrows of today's world. Whether it be food, sex, drugs, or alcohol, sadness and emptiness cannot be solved by the use of man's poisons. Rather than resolving the emptiness and sorrow within our souls, they create a whole new problem, and leave nothing but devastation and destruction in their wake. For those who seek to use drugs or alcohol to quell the loneliness or emptiness of the human soul, I urge them to reconsider. I urge them to turn to God, seek help in the comfort of friends and trained professionals, and believe in their capacity for growth, healing, and change. Life will always beat us down, but we can always make the choice to get back up. On this day, let's remember the beautiful life that was Whitney Houston's, but let's also learn the lesson that the loss of her life has taught. Let us all seek comfort in God, and the love of friends and family, rather than man's poisons. These are the only things that have ever worked to heal suffering, and they are the only things that ever can. Let's believe in ourselves, rather than ceding our power and control to disease and addiction.

[The Schofield Kid]

^
Well said, AKA23. I've turned to alcohol in the past when nothing was going right and it doesn't help any and like you said just creates new problems.

[LCat]

I'm part Cherokee; alcohol was passed down with cigarettes. Both have hurt my family, because they don't really help anyone cope. They have even caused death.

[LCat]

I cannot believe Gary Carter is gone. RIP

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/17/gary-carter-dead-hall-of-famer-remembered_n_1285879.html