Sunday, January 31, 2016

In Memoriam - 2015

My own list of notable people (and others) we lost in 2015 whose time on this planet left some impression, big or small, on me. Of course, like all the other lists, it doesn't include everybody, so feel free to remark on anyone you'll miss in the comments.



 
First of all, my father-in-law
Henry Kittleson
May 13, 1929 - December 8, 2015
lawyer

Donna Douglas
September 26, 1933 - January 1, 2015
actor
The Beverly Hillbillies

Lance Percival
July 26, 1933 - January 6, 2015
actor
Yellow Submarine, The Water Babies

Samuel Goldwyn Jr.
September 7, 1926 - January 9, 2015
producer
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)

Taylor Negron
August 1, 1957 - January 10, 2015
actor
Young Doctors In Love

Rod Taylor
January 11, 1930 - January 7, 2015
actor
The Birds, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, Inglourious Basterds, The Time Machine (1960)

Richard Bonehill
c. 1948 - February 4, 2015
actor
The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi

Gary Owens
May 10, 1934 - February 12, 2015 
announcer / voice-over artist / disc jockey
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, Dynomutt: Dog Wonder 

Louis Jordan
June 19, 1921 - February 14, 2015
actor
Gigi, Swamp Thing, Octopussy 

Lesley Gore

May 2, 1946 - February 16, 2015
singer / songwriter
"It's My Party"

Leonard Nimoy
March 26, 1931 - February 27, 2015
actor / director
Star Trek, In Search Of..., Atlantis: The Lost Empire

Sam Simon
June 6, 1955 - March 8, 2015
producer / writer
The Simpsons, The Tracey Ullman Show, Cheers, Taxi

Lou Silverstone
May 17, 1924 - March 9, 2015
writer
MAD Magazine, Cracked Magazine

Eugene Patton, aka Gene Gene the Dancing Machine
April 25, 1932 - March 9, 2015
dancer / stagehand
The Gong Show

Jimmy Greenspoon
February 7, 1948 - March 11, 2015
musician
Three Dog Night

Terry Pratchett
April 28, 1948 - March 12, 2015
writer
The Discworld series, Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch

Mike Porcaro
May 29, 1955 -  March 15, 2015
musician
Toto 

Andy Fraser
July 3, 1952 - March 16, 2015
musician
Free

Gregory Walcott
January 13, 1928 - March 20, 2015
actor
Plan 9 from Outer Space

 A. J. Pero
October 14, 1959 - March 20, 2015
musician
Twisted Sister 

James Best
July 26, 1926 - April 6, 2015
actor
The Dukes of Hazzard, The Killer Shrews

Milton DeLugg
December 2, 1918 - April 6, 2015
composer
The Munsters, The Gong Show, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians

Stan Freberg
August 7, 1926 - April 7, 2015
humorist / voice-over artist
Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America, Three Little Bops, Rabbit's Kin

Herb Trimpe
May 26, 1939 - April 13, 2015
comic book artist
The Incredible Hulk, first appearance of Wolverine

Richard Corliss
March 6, 1944 - April 23, 2015
film critic
Time Magazine

Jayne Meadows
September 27, 1919 - April 26, 2015
actor
Song of the Thin Man, City Slickers

Andrew Lesnie
January 1, 1956 - April 27, 2015
cinematographer
The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit trilogy

Ben E. King
September 28, 1938 - April 30, 2015
singer
"Stand By Me", "I (Who Have Nothing)"

 Nigel Terry
August 15, 1945 - April 30, 2015
actor
The Lion in Winter, Excalibur

Michael Blake
July 5, 1945 - May 2, 2015
writer
Dances With Wolves

Gilbert Lewis
August 6, 1941 - May 7, 2015
actor
Pee-Wee's Playhouse

B. B. King
September 16, 1925 - May 14, 2015
musician
"Lucille"

Anne Meara
September 20, 1929 - May 23, 2015
actor / comedian
Stiller and Meara, Archie Bunker's Place, Awakenings

Richard Johnson
July 30, 1927 - June 5, 2015
actor
The Haunting (1963)

Christopher Lee
actor
May 27, 1922 - June 7, 2015
Horror of Dracula, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Man With the Golden Gun, Hugo

Robert Chartoff
August 26, 1933 - June 10, 2015
film producer
Rocky, Raging Bull

Ron Moody
January 8, 1924 - June 11, 2015
actor
Oliver!, The Twelve Chairs

James Horner
August 14, 1953 - June 22, 2015
film composer
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Aliens, Avatar

Dick Van Patten
December 9, 1928 - June 23, 2015
actor
High AnxietyEight Is Enough, Spaceballs

Blaine Gibson
February 11, 1918 - July 5, 2015
sculptor / animator
Pirates of the Caribbean ride, The Haunted Mansion ride

Irwin Keyes
March 16, 1952 - July 8, 2015
actor
Intolerable Cruelty

Omar Sharif 
April 10, 1932 - July 10, 2015
actor
Lawrence of Arabia

Roger Rees
May 5, 1944 - July 10, 2015
actor
Cheers

Satoru Iwata
December 6, 1959 - July 11, 2015
video game programmer

Dave Somerville
October 2, 1933 - July 14, 2015
singer
"Little Darlin'" with the Diamonds

Alex Rocco
February 29, 1936 - July 18, 2015
actor
The Godfather, A Bug's Life, The Simpsons

Theodore Bikel
May 2, 1924 - July 21, 2015
actor / singer
The African Queen, My Fair Lady

E. L. Doctorow
January 6, 1931 - July 21, 2015
writer
Ragtime, Billy Bathgate

Patrick Macnee
February 6, 1922 - June 25, 2015
actor
The Avengers (1961-1969), A View to a Kill, This Is Spinal Tap


Dick Maugg
August 29, 1931 - July 28, 2015
pitchman
Bartles & Jaymes wine coolers
  
Roddy Piper
April 17, 1954 - July 31, 2015
wrestler / actor

Uggie
February 14, 2002 - August 7, 2015
canine performer
The Artist, The Campaign

Susan Sheridan
March 18, 1947 - August 8, 2015
actor
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy radio series, The Black Cauldron

Lenny B. Robinson
September 28, 1963 - August 16, 2015
"The Baltimore Batman"
  
Yvonne Craig
May 16, 1937 -  August 17, 2015
actor
Batman (1966-1968), Star Trek (1966-1969)

Oliver Sacks
July 9, 1933 - August 30, 2015
neurologist / writer
Awakenings

Wes Craven
August 2, 1939 - August 30, 2015
director
A Nightmare on Elm Street, Wes Craven's New Nightmare, The Scream films


Brad Anderson
May 14, 1924 - August 30, 2015
cartoonist
Marmaduke 

Dean Jones
January 25, 1931 - September 1, 2015
actor
That Darn Cat! (1965), The Ugly Dachshund, The Love Bug, The Shaggy D. A.

Judy Carne
April 27, 1939 - September 3, 2015
actor
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In

Jean Darling
August 23, 1922 - September 4, 2015
actor
The Our Gang / Little Rascals comedies

Dickie Moore
September 12, 1925 - September 7, 2015
actor
The Our Gang / Little Rascals comedies

Ben Cauley
October 3, 1947 - September 21, 2015
musician
"Soul Finger" with the Bark-Kays

Catherine E. Coulson
October 22, 1943 -  September 28, 2015
actor
Twin Peaks 

Kevin Corcoran
June 10, 1949 - October 6, 2015
actor / director / producer
Old Yeller, Toby Tyler, The Shaggy Dog (1959), Swiss Family Robinson

Cory Wells
February 5, 1941 - October 20, 2015
singer
"Mama Told Me Not to Come" with Three Dog Night 

Marty Ingels
March 9, 1936 - October 21, 2015
actor / voice-over artist
The Great Grape Ape Show, Pac-Man (1982-1983)

Murphy Anderson
July 9, 1926 - October 22, 2015
comic book artist
Superman, Hawkman, Action Comics

Al Molinaro
June 24, 1919 - October 30, 2015 
actor
Happy Days, The Odd Couple (1970-1975)

Melissa Mathison
June 3, 1950 - November 4, 2015
screenwriter
E. T. the Extra-Terrestrial, The Black Stallion

George Barris
November 20, 1925 - November 5, 2015
auto customizer
Batman (1966-1968), The Munsters, Jurassic Park

Gunnar Hansen
March 4, 1947 - November 7, 2015 
 actor
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Carol Doda
August 29, 1937 - November 9, 2015
actor / exotic dancer
Head

Michael C. Gross
October 3, 1945 - November 16, 2015
artist / graphic designer / film producer
National Lampoon, Heavy Metal, Ghostbusters

 
Cynthia Robinson
January 12, 1944 - November 23, 2015
singer / musician
"Dance To the Music" with Sly and the Family Stone

Robert Loggia
January 3, 1930 - December 4, 2015
actor
Jagged Edge, Big

Nicholas Smith
March 5, 1934 - December 6, 2015
actor
Are You Being Served?, The Twelve Chairs, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

Haskell Wexler
February 6, 1922 -  December 27, 2015
cinematographer
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Meadowlark Lemon
April 25, 1932 - December 27, 2015
athlete / actor
The Harlem Globetrotters

Lemmy Kilmister
December 24, 1945 - December 28, 2015
singer / songwriter / musician
"Ace of Spades" with Motörhead

Natalie Cole
February 6, 1950 - December 31, 2015
singer / songwriter
"This Will Be" 

Beth Howland
May 28, 1941 – December 31, 2015
actor
Alice