12th & 13th January, 2004
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Photograph by Donna Marie
Bergeniao 11/11/2003
A Thought for Today
Every time somebody dies a library burns.
THOSE WE LOST IN THE ARTS IN 2003
A PERSONAL NOTE
It has become a custom at years-end to give a final Flight Plan nod to
those in The Arts who departed this world for the next during the past
twelve months. The mortality rate during 2003 seemed unusually high and
included many friends.
Some friends defy an immediate description. It will take time for me to
write meaningfully about the loss of my friend and long-time arranger
conductor, Arthur Greenslade. I couldn’t even manage to write what I
consider an acceptable essay for his funeral. I’ve known Buddy Hackett for
40 years and Alan Bates since his first appearance on The West End, long
before he was a movie star. Charles Bronson and Richard Crenna have been
guests in our house and Edward and I in theirs. Robert & Rosemarie Stack
have been buddies since my old days at Universal.
I was introduced to producer Lewis Allen in Cannes when we both had films
in competition, his wife J. Pressen Allen wrote the play and screenplay
for “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. The versatile Benny Carter arranged
the medley for my first appearance on The Johnny Carson Show. Poet
Kathleen Raine and I met because we shared the same British publisher.
John Schlesinger has been a friend since he directed Midnight Cowboy,
Honey Sanders and I did benefits with David Galligan and I wrote songs
with Gladys Shelly, including the infamous Oliver Twist. I met Dorothy
Louden through another songwriting partner, Skip Redwine. Gregory Hines
and I met during Night of a Hundred Stars.
I only encountered the great English impresario Harold Fielding twice but
productions he presented on the West End resulted in several best-selling
Stanyan original cast albums. Van Johnson in The Music Man, Elaine
Stritch’s brilliant essay of Noel Coward’s Sail Away and the much
acclaimed all star recording of the Complete Show Boat come to mind
immediately
I met composer Herschel Burke Gilbert in an unusual way; his car was
parked in the street outside his house on Benedict Canyon Road. I
rear-ended it with my own then knocked on his door to report the accident.
I worked with Herbie Mann in the 50’s when I read my poetry at San
Francisco’s Jazz Cellar. Skip Ward and I go way back to the days when I
lived on Gardner Street in Hollywood. Mom ran a kind of soup kitchen for
unemployed actors, Skip was a model then and I remember how excited we all
were when he posed for the cover of a Capitol LP.
The famed singer Nina Simone included three of the songs I wrote for Frank
Sinatra in her final album, “The Single Woman.” I knew Barry White
slightly and when he needed a kidney transplant I offered him one of my
own. Unfortunately it was not an acceptable match.
A LEGEND OR TWO
I bumped shoulders with a few of the real Americans we lost in the past
year too. I was serving in Korea when Bob Hope came through with Marilyn
Monroe & Jo DiMaggio. I had a GI band & Hope talked my company commander
into letting me tour Korea & Japan with him. At the end of the tour he
gave me his home phone number and asked me to look him up if I ever got to
Southern California.
Johnny and June Cash were friends since I guested on his TV show in the
60’s. We wrote a couple of songs together and he introduced my concert at
The Grand Ol’ Opry. The night I didn’t win the Oscar for “Jean” I shared a
table at the party after the ceremony with Katherine Ross and Conrad Hall
(he had won that night for his cinematography on “Butch Cassidy & the
Sundance Kid). I was entrusted with watching the little gold-plated guy
while they danced the night away. Ouch. Hall won again last year
(posthumously) for his beautiful work on Road to Perdition.
I used to see Katherine Hepburn on weekends at George Kukor’s swimming
pool. There was a saying in those days; “If you spend your first Saturday
in Tinseland at Kukor’s pool and you are still there a year later, it’s
time to get the hell out of Hollywood."
I don’t remember exchanging more than a few words with Hepburn way back
then, but years later I was signing books in a Westwood bookstore and she
thrust a copy of my latest work under my nose to autograph. I signed it
“To Miss Hepburn with admiration.” She looked at the inscription and
replied, “Funny, you used to call me Kate.”
Gregory Peck has been a neighbor since I moved to my current house in
1969. I met Al Hirschfeld in London when he was signing books at a gallery
during the sale of some of his drawings. I bought one depicting the Jimmie
Carter, Gerald Ford TV debate. By rights I should send it to one of their
libraries.
What icons we lost in 2003. Carney, Ebsen, Hepburn, Hirschfield, Hope,
O’Connor, Peck, Ritter, Rogers, June Carter Cash and Johnny Cash) and how
can we forget David Brinkley, Benny Carter, Nell Carter, Jeanne Crain,
Gregory Hines, Elia Kazan, Robert Stack, Leon Uris, . . . the list goes on
and on. And there are others, some less known – but no less important in
the fields of art, literature, science and the performing arts.
None of those who entertain, enlighten us and contribute to lightening our
load are minor players.
WIT & WISDOM
With so many losses there isn’t room to print more than the basic
statistics. Would there was space to dwell on a quote or two that might
further illuminate each individuals passing. For instance how about this
line from French film maker Maurice Pialot who, amid jeers and boos,
accepted the top prize at the Cannes film festival for Under Satan’s Sun
by telling the audience, “If you don’t like me, rest assured I don’t like
you either.”
Barbara Wace, who died this past year at 95, was a WWII AP reporter who
survived the 45 day siege of the Brest Submarine Station and after loosing
her bedroll and clothes cabled her boss “Skirt Lost, Brest Fallen.”
Irene Diamond makes our ‘arts’ list because sixty years ago as a story
editor for Warner Bros. she persuaded the studio to buy the failed
Broadway play “Rick’s Place.” Rick’s Place? Yep, it was turned into
Casablanca. Most of Miss Diamond’s life was devoted to philanthropy and
being an activist for the down trodden. She donated in excess of 200
Million to AIDS research and other causes.
Two husband and wife teams proved that life is difficult to continue
without the beloved. Johnny Cash succumbed only a few months after June
Carter Cash. And the radio icons Jinx Falkenburg and husband Tex Mcray
died a month apart. At least three of those remembered in the list below
look their own lives just after a spouse died.
Death was a family matter for others too; Carol Mattheu passed away three
months after her daughter Lucy Saroyan. The much-admired John Ritter died
in September and his mother (and widow of Tex) followed him in November.
It’s unexpected but nice when your name crops up in the obituary of
someone (other than your own). Jake Thackery’s obit quoted him as saying
“It's not in the nature of the beast for me to have a hit record, but I
would like more buggers to do my songs. It would save me going out of the
house. Petula Clark and Rod McKuen did a duet of "Lah-Di-Dah" and Jasper
Carrott did a couple, but there aren't many.” We lost singer-songwriter
Thackery at the end of December ninety-two but it wasn’t reported till the
beginning of last year.
And now the list . . .
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
Sheldon Abend,
74, rep. estates, (Shaw, Williams, Runyan) Aug 24
Lewis M. Allen,
81, stage (Annie) & film (Fahrenheit 451) producer, Dec 8
Rod Amateau,
79, writer for radio, films, TV (Phil Sivers Show), June 29
Hy Anzell,
79, actor best known for role of Uncle Joey in Annie Hall, Aug 23
Zin Arthur,
90, bandleader & celebrity photographer. Dec 23
Cholly Atkins,
89, tap-dancer & choreographer for Motown stars, Apr 19
Harold Ashby,
78, saxophonist with Duke Ellington band, Jun 13
George Axelrod,
81, film writer (7 Year Itch, Manchurian Candidate), June 20
Anthony Havlock-Allan,
98, producer (Brief Encounter, Great Expectations) Jan 11
Renata Babak,
69, Bolshoi Opera star who defected to U.S., Dec 31
Analt Balani,
41, Indian director, worked on many ‘Bollywood’ films, Aug 28
Hank Ballard,
75, R&B singer-songwriter (The Twist), March 2
Betty Barry,
79, actress (The Grass Is Green) wife of actor Gene Barry, Jan 31
Alan Bates,
69, Actor 2 Tony’s was nominated for an Academy Award, Jan 27
Skip Battin,
69, guitarist, singer, songwriter (Byrds, Flying Burrito Bros.) July 6
Earl Bellamy,
86, director (Rawhide, Rin, Tin, Tin, Donna Reed Show), Nov 30
Rudolph Bennett,
78, Broadway conductor (La Cage aux Folles), Sep 22
Lucino Berio, 77, versatile Italian composer (Coro, Opera) May 27
Charles Berlitz,
90, writer on paranormal phenomena (Bermuda Triangle, Dec 18
Al Bernie,
83, Comic-impressionist, opened in clubs for major stars, Sep 5
Lyle Bettger,
88, film actor (Nevada Smith, Destry, Sea Change), Sep 24
Charlie Biddle,
76, Bassist Led Montreal's Jazz Scene in 1950s, '60s, Feb 4
Staige D. Blackford,
72, editor Virginia Quarterly Review, June 23
Freddie Blassie,
85, popular pro wrestler (My Breakfast with Blassie), Jun 2
David Bloom,
39, broadcast journalist covered Iraqi war for NBC, Apr 6
Roberto Bolano,
50, respected Chilean novelist & poet, July 15
Frank E. Boldon,
90, journalist, historian of Black life, Aug 28
Erik Braunn,
52, lead guitarist with metal band Iron Butterfly, July 25
Jonathon Brandis,
27, TV & film actor (SeaQuest DSV, LA Law), Nov 12
Jamison Brewer,
87, writer TV (Adams Family, Ironsides) film (Arnold), Sep 11
Bernard Brightman,
82, record collector & founder of Stash Records, Nov 9
David Brinkley,
82, TV journalist (NBC News, ABC This Week with, Jun 11
Rand Brooks,
84, actor (Babes in Arms, Gone with the Wind), Sept 1
Fred J. Brown,
68, sound effects editor (Elmer Gantry, The Deep) Nov 9
Jack Brown,
91, founder Rainbo Records, also invented talking toys, Dec 28
John Browning,
69, pianist, trademarks; elegance, brilliant technique, Jan 26
Mel Bourne,
79, Oscar nom. designer (Interiors, Fisher King), Jan 14
Charles Bronson,
81, Film actor (Once Upon a Time in the West, Death Wish, Aug 30
Felice Bryant,
77, lyricist (Bye, Bye Love, Wake Up Little Susie) Apr 22
Rafi Bukai,
47, influential Israeli director-producer (Aventi Popolo) Dec 9
Horst Buchholz,
67, German actor, (Fanny, Endstation Liebe), Magnificent 7) Mar 3
Fritzi Burr,
78, actress-singer for 7 decades (Chinatown, Friends) Jan 17
Norman Burton,
79, actor, (Towering Inferno, Bloodsport), Nov 29
Rita Burton,
57, executive producer (Roseanne, Bill Cosby Show, Dec 5
Steve Carlin,
84, producer ($64,000 Question, Rootize Kazutti), Feb 4
Art Carney,
85, actor famed as Norton in TV’s The Honeymooners, Nov 11
James Carter,
77, singer, work used in Oh Brother Where Art Thou? Nov 26
June Carter Cash,
73, Singer-songwriter, member of famous Carter Family,
May 15
Malonga Casquelourd,
55, famed Congolese dancer & choreographer, Jun 15
Johnny Cash,
71, singer-songwriter, legend. Known as “Man in Black”. Aug 11
Benny Carter,
95, ”King’ of sax, vocal, film arranger, comp. July 13
Nell Carter,
54, Tony (Ain’t Misbehavin’), TV (Gimmie A Break) actress, Jan 23
Joseph Chaikin,
67, actor & innovative director, June 22
Leela Chitnis,
93, Bollywood singer, film star. Broke India ‘cast system’, July 13
Fred A. Chulack,
77, film editor, (The Out of Towners) Oct 31
Ben Colder (see Sheb Wooley)
Janet Collins,
86, first black prima ballerina at Met. Opera, May 28
Ken Colman,
Boston Red Sox radio & TV announcer, Aug 21
Haroldo de Campos,
founder concrete poetry movement in Brazil, Aug 16
Joe Connelly,
85, TV writer & producer (Leave it to Beaver, Munsters) Feb 13
John Coplans,
83, art critic (co-fooounded Artforum), photographer, Aug 21
Jeanne Crain,
78, actress (Pinky, Home in Indiana, Margie) Dec 14
Richard Crenna,
76, film (Pride of St. Louis) TV (Judging Amy) actor, Jan 17
Elizabeth Croft,
95, actress (Crossroads, Royal Shakespeare Company), Jan 13
Hume Cronyn,
91, respected stage & screen actor (Hamlet, Cocoon) Jun 15
Celia Cruz,
77, Queen of Salsa for 6 decades, 76 albums, 2 Grammy’s, July 16
Johnny Cunningham,
46, fiddler, helped revive Celtic music. Dec 15
Richard Cusack,
77, Emmy winning writer (The Committee), actor (Class), Jun 2
Mazen Dana,
43, Reuters TV combat photographer, Aug 17
Nazeh Darwazeh,
43, Associated Press cameraman, killed in West Bank war, Apr 19
Donald Davidson,
86, one of the foremost philosophers of 20th Century Aug 30
Buddy Deane,
78, Baltimore TV dance show inspired “Hairspray,” July 15
Jacques Deray,
74, influential French director (Borsalino, Le Gigolo), Aug 9
Irene Diamond,
92, story editor (bought Rick’s Place (Casablanca), Jan 21
Harry Ellis Dickson,
94,1st violinist with Boston Symphony for 50 years, Mar 29
Dietrich “Dee” Dirks,
radio broadcasting pioneer. Aug 14
Carlos Eduardo Dolabella,
65, popular Brazilian soap opera star, May 26
Edward B. Donovan,
89, producer director (Little Amego, Magic Lady), Oct 23
Robert Donovan,
90, reporter and author (PT 109, Bio of Harry Truman) Aug 8
Jane New Dorsey,
79, dancer (Ziegfeld Follies), singer, wife of Tommy, 24 Aug
Rusty Draper,
80, singer (Gamblers Guitar, Shifting, Whispering Sands) Mar 28
Ellen Drew,
89, actress (Sing You Sinners, Christmas in July,) Dec 3
Natalya Dubinskaya,
90, leading Kirov Ballerina, inspired Nureyev, Jan 29
Dave Dudley,
75, father of truck-driver songs (Six Days on the Road, etc.) Dec 21
Amram Ducovny,
75, non-fiction author & playwright, father of actor David, Aug 23
John Gregory Dunne,
71, writer (The Studio), screenwriter, Dec 30
Slim Dusty,
76, father of Australian C&W music (Duncan + 100 albums), Sep 19
Manny Dworman,
73, musician, mentor, owned NY’s Comedy Center, Dec 28
Buddy Ebsen,
95, beloved stage film & TV Beverly Hillbillies) star, July 6
Viscountess Mary Eccles,
91, expert on Samuel Johnson & James Boswell, Aug 26
Marianna Elliott,
72, award winning theatre & film costume designer, June 21
Mary Ellis,
102, actress & singer (Rose Marie, Glamorous Nights), Jan 30
Nicholas M. England,
79, authority on music of Africa, scored Kalahari Family, Sep 22
Jules Engle,
94, annimation pioneer (Mr. McGoo, Alvin Show, worked on Bambi) Sep 6
Jennifer Estess,
40, Theatre producer, Dec 16
Jerome Evans,
65, lead singer of R&B group The Furys’, Nov 30
Wyn Ritchie Evans,
102, vaudeville performer & wife of songwriter Ray Evans, Apr 11
Stanley Fafara,
58, Sep 20
Thomas V. Falk,
actor, art director, TV scriptwriter, Aug 23
Jinx Falkenburg,
84, actress, ‘radio talk’ host with husband Tex Mcray, Aug 27
Howard Fast,
88, blacklisted screenwriter (Sparticus, Freedom Road) Mar 12
Mel Ferber,
80, TV director, producer & creator Good Morning America, June 19
Leslie Fiedler,
85, social critic, (Love & Death in the American novel), Jan 29
Harold Fielding,
86, Impresario, produced many US musicals in London, Sept 27
Gerald ‘D. O. Cannon’ Fields,
26, rapper for Murder Inc. record labile, Sep 5
Nina Fonaroff,
89, dancer, principal in Martha Graham troupe, Aug 14
Dorothy Forman,
90, arts philanthropist (Los Angeles Opera), Dec 28
Irving Foy,
94, last of vaudeville’s seven little Foy’s,
Fred Freidberger,
88, TV writer (Rawhide), film producer (Funny Old Guys), Mar 2
Cedric Frances,
87, producer (Darling Lili) and many documentaries, April 7
Gordon Onslow Ford,
90, Parisian surrealist painter, inspired by Miro, Nov 9
King Fukusuke,
72, leading Japanese director, (Toa, Toa, Toa), Jan 12
Giorgio Gabor,
63, Italian pop tenor (Il Signor G, Non Arrossire) Jan 1
Herb Gardner,
69, playwright (A Thousand Clowns, I’m Not Rappaport), Sep 24
Harold Gast,
85, screenwriter (Dr. Kildare, Ben Casey, I Spy) Dec 28
Jack Gelber,
71, playwright (The Connection - won 3 Obie Awards) May 9
Karl Genus,
84, TV director (Studio One, Playhouse 90), May 29
Maurice Gibb,
one of BeeGees (Stayin’ Alive, How Deep is Your Love), Jan 12
Don Gibson,
75, singer-songwriter (Oh Lonesome Me, I Can’t Stop Loving You) Nov 17
Herschel Burke Gilbert,
85, film (Moon is Blue), TV (Rifleman) composer, June 9
John Gilroy,
69, late night Emmy winning producer (Dick Cavett Show), Sep 10
Tom Glazer,
88, folk-singer in tradition of Seeger, Leadbelly & Ives. Feb 21
Lillian Goldenberg,
57, movie marketing exec. (Crying Game, Aliens), Jan 20
Phil Goldman,
39, Silicon Valley engineer, co-founded Web TV, Dec 26
Rubén Gonzålez,
84, pianist found fame in Buena Vista Social Club, Dec 8
Vestal Goodman,
74, Grammy winning ‘Queen of Gospel’, 15 #1 Gospel hits, Dec 29
Alex Gordon,
80, film producer (Requiem for a Gunfight, Lawless Rider) Jun 24
John Gould,
94, author 30 books, wrote of idiosyncrasies of small town Maine, Aug 31
Winston Graham,
93, author (Marnie, Poldark,) announced July 10
Charles Grean,
90, composer (The Thing), arr. (Nat Cole’s Christmas Song), Dec 22
Arthur Greenslade,
80, arranger-conductor (Bassey, Humperdink, McKuen) Nov 27
Kenneth Milton Grimwood,
59, fantasy novelist (Replay, Voice Outside), Jun 5
Antonio Valasco Gutierrez,
42, actor (Kilo Bags, 2, Revenge of the Scorpian), Aug 16
Buddy Hackett,
79, standup & TV comedian with many film roles, June 30
Conrad Hall,
76, cinematographer (Butch Cassidy & American Beauty) Jan 4
Lou Harrison,
85, West Coast Classical Composer, musical maverick, Feb 2
Edmund Hartman,
92, screenwriter (Paleface, Fancy Pants, The Caddy) Nov 29
Lowell S. Hawley,
94, screenwriter (Swiss Family Robinson, Castaways), May 6
Wally Hedrick,
75, Beat-Generation painter & anti-war activist, Dec 17
Virginia Heinlein,
wife, muse of Robert (Stranger in a Strange Land), Jan 18
David Hemmings,
62, actor (Blow Up), director (Murder She Wrote), Dec 3
George Henshaw,
85, TV set decorator (Emmy nom. Magnum PI, Hawaii 5-O, Aug 21
Kathryn Hepburn,
96, immortal stage & screen actresses, 4 Oscars Jun 28
Jake Hess,
76, leading figure in Gospel music (Presley favorite), Dec 16
Wendy Hiller,
90, film & stage actress (Pygmalion, Separate Tables) May 14
Earl Hindman,
61, actor (Wilson in Home Improvement). Dec 29
Gregory Hines,
57, versatile dancer, actor (Cotton Club, Hines Show) Aug 9
Jerome Hines,
81, A Leading Voice at Metropolitan Opera for 41 Years, Feb 5
Julian Hirsch,
81, engineer & knowledgeable writer on audio gear, Nov 21
Al Hirschfeld,
99, caricatures for over 70 years illuminated Broadway and film, Jan 20
Joy Hodges,
88, singer, dancer (To Beat the Band), encouraged Reagan to act, Jan 19
Bob Hope,
100, Icon, stage, radio, TV, films entertained generations of US troops,
Jan 4
Boyce Hollerman,
79, actor (In the Heat of the Night, I’ll Fly Away,) Nov 21
Hans Hotter,
94, leading bass-baritone best known for Wagnerian roles, Dec 6
Larry Hovis,
actor and drama teacher (Sgt. Carter in Hogan’s Heroes)
Michael “Peanuts” Hucko,
85, clarinetist & sax w. Miller, Armstrong, June 19
Bryan Hull,
65, actor (played on Broadway in Fantasticks for 21 years), May 11
John Houston,
82, Theatrical Manager, early days of rhythm and blues, Feb 2
Jeanne Hum,
73, professional whistler, performed Beetles to Beethoven, May 15
Charles “Blackie” Hunt,
73, member of Las Vegas lounge act Charictors, Dec 30
Robert Jackson,
72, muralist, master of trompe l’oel artistry, Aug 15
Josephine Jacobsen,
94, poet & consultant to Lib. of Congress, July 9
George Jay,
85, long time record promoter, Dec 7
Michael Jeter,
51, actor (Green Mile, Evening Shade,Gypsy, Waterworld) Mar 29
David Jiranek,
45, Broadway producer (Edmond, Curse of an Aching Heart), Aug 17
Ted Joans,
74, Beat poet (All of Ted Joans and no More), Apr 25
Michael Kamen,
55, composer (Band of Brothers, Lethal Weapon) Nov 18
Alfred Kantor,
79, painter, chronicled horrors of concentration camps, Jan 16
Steve Kaplan,
45, wrote themes for Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune. Dec 14
Elia Kazan,
94, famed director (East of Eden, On the Waterfront) Sep 28
Michael Kelly,
46, journalist & editor killed while covering Iraq war. April 4
Gordon Kibbee,
89, pipe-organist for movies, radio & TV, Jul 16
Rachael Kempson,
92, actress (The Tempest), mom Redgrave family, May 24
Jean Kerr,
80, playwright (Please Don’t Eat the Daises, Mary, Mary) Jan 5
Helen Kleeb,
96, character-actress films (Magnificent Obsession) TV (Bonanza) Dec 28
Jimmy Knepper,
75, jazz trombonist (Goodman, Thornhill, Herman), Jun 9
Yevgeny Kolobov,
57, director & conductor of Novaya Opera Theatre, June 15
Leonard Koppett,
79, sportswriter (NY Post, NY Times), June 22
Volker Krieger,
59, German jazz, rock guitarist & film composer, June 16
Shirley O’Hara Krims,
76, film actress (Higher and Higher) Dec 13, 02
Meyer Kupferman,
77, prolific jazz, classical & film composer, Nov 26
Don Lamond,
82, drummer in top jazz bands (Goodman, Jones, Getz) Dec 23
Ibram Lassaw,
90, sculptor devoted to abstract forms, Dec 30
Christian Leonhardt,
48, co-founder German film Co,. Das Werk, Aug 27
Jules Levy,
80, TV producer (Rifleman, Big Valley) May 24
Bernard Lewin,
96, Art Dealer, Donor of Latin American art, Jan. 30
Sidney Lippman,
89, songwriter (Too Young, A- You’re Adorable). Dec 25
Harold Loeb,
84, film producer (Soldier Blue, Kelly’s Heroes) May 17
Dorothy Louden,
70, actress (Tony for Annie), film (Garbo Talks), Nov 15
Audrey Love,
100, arts patron, helped finance NY Met & Florida Opera, Nov 22
Frank Lowe,
60, jazz & R&B saxophonist, soloist & side-man, Sep 19
Emil Loteanu,
66, Soviet-era director (Wait for Us at Dawn) Apr, 18
Harriet Luckman,
95, benefactor Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Cal. State, Sep 1
Gavin Lyall,
70, author spy novels (Judas Country, Spy’s Honor), Jan 18
Gisele MacKenzie,
76, recording artist & member of Your Hit Parade, Sep 5
Jack Maher,
78, publisher of Down Beat, influential Jazz magazine, Feb 14
Linda Mancouso,
44, head of family programming for ABC TV, Dec 7
Herbie Mann,
73, popular jazz flutist, advanced Bossa Nova in US, July 2
John Mantly,
83, produced more than 500 hours of prime time TV, Jan 14
William Marshall,
78, (Blacula, Boston Strangler), June 11
Stan Martin,
64, cabaret expert & broadcaster, Jan 27
Carol Matthau,
78, Actress/Writer, muse to Walter & William Soroyan, Jul 20
Bill Mauldin,
81, WWII army sergeant, Pulitzer Prize cartoonist, Jan 22
Sean McClory,
79, TV & movie (The Quiet Man) actor, Dec 10
Maurice McEndree,
71, producer-editor (Faces, Shadows) May 17
Kathie Browne McGavin,
63, actress in over 100 TV episodes, Apr 8
Tex Mcray,
92, journalist created 1st radio talk show in 1946. July 29
Diana Menuhin,
90, ballerina, devoted life to husband Yehudi Menuhin, Jan 25
James W. Mercer,
86, vaudeville performer and musician, Sep 26
Barry Morell,
75, tenor, NY Met & international, specialized in Puccini, Dec 4
Doug Michaels,
59, avant-garde artist. Jun12
Leonard Michaels,
70, writer (Going Places, The Men’s Club), May 10
Patrick Miller,
51, avant-garde leader of ‘Antimiusic’ band, Dec 14
Gordon Mitchell,
80, actor-bodybuilder (Satyricon, Sparticus), Sep 20
Paul Monash,
85, writer-producer live TV (Suspense, Payton Place), Jan 14
Bob Monkhouse,
75, U.K. actor (Carry on films), comic, game show host, Dec 29
Howard Morehead,
76, jazz photographer & former Tuskegee Airman, July 13
John Morris,
69, pioneer of modern Australian film (Breaker Morant, The Club) Apr 16
Peggy Mortimer,
76 versatile Australian singer (classic, pop, opera), Nov 23
Anita Mui,
40, Hong Kong Canto-singer, actress (10 million albums), Dec 30
Douglas Anne Munson,
54, novelist (Dogtown, Soultown), Dec 23
Brianne “Bri” Murphy,
70, cinematographer (Fatso, Nice Dreams), Aug 23
Rod Neal,
82, longtime NBC correspondent, covered U.S. Space program, Aug 15
Trevor Nelson,
34, producer with 60 Minutes, wrote for NYT & WSJ, July 24
Elizabeth Neuffer,
46, award-winning Boston Globe journalist, May 9
David Newman,
66, Oscar & Tony nom. writer (Bonnie & Clyde) June 26
Lionel Ngakane,
75, South African film maker (Jemina and Johnny), Nov 26
Nixau,
59 (?), worlds most famous Bushman (The Gods Must Be Crazy) July 2
Cliff Norton,
84, radio, TV, film actor (Jack Armstrong, Berle show), Jan 25
Alber Nozaki,
91, art director (War of the Worlds,10 Commandments Nov 16
Donald O’Connor,
78, singer, dancer, actor (Singin’ in the Rain), Sept 27
Barney Oldfield,
93, Hollywood journalist, interviewed Grant, Gable, Temple, Apr 26
Rachel “Toni” Oliphant,
86, donor & patron of the arts, Jan 29
Felice Orlandi,
53, character actor (Girl on the Via Flamina), May 21
Lester Osterman,
88, producer, (Da, Moon for Misbegotten, Jan 28
Robert Palmer,
54, rock musician (Addicted to Love) famous for videos, Sep 26
Suzi Parker,
69, model & actress (Funny Face, Kiss Them for Me) May 3
Ljubomir Pantscheff,
89, Bulgarian singer, Vienna Opera, 3 Decades Aug. 30
Philip L. Parslow,
65, producer (Dynasty, Falcon Crest, Paper Chase), Jul 29
Johnny Paychek,
64, singer-songwriter (Take This Job & Shove It) Feb 19
Gregory Peck,
87, award winning actor (To Kill a Mockingbird) Jun 12
Victor Perera,
69, wrote experiences as Sephardic Jew (Unfinished Conquest) Jun 15
Bill Perkins,
79, saxophonist with Stan Kenton & Woody Herman bands, Aug 9
Sarah Pettit,
36, arts editor Newsweek, founded Out Magazine. Jan 15
Sam Phillips,
80, record producer, Presley, B.B. King, Carl Perkins, Jul 30
Maurice Pialat,
77, French painter, actor, filmaker (Under Satan’s Sun) Jan 12
Louise Platt,
88, actress (Stagecoach, Naked City, Guiding Light), Sep 6
George Plimpton,
76, writer (Paper Lion), editor, founder Paris Review, Sep 25
Juan Garcia Ponce,
71, novelist & Mexican Art critic, Dec 27
John Poole,
86, producer, founded KBIG, Santa Catalina radio station,Dec 25
Will Quadflieg,
89, German stage actor (Three Sisters, Faust), Nov 27
Mary Quinne,
90, actress, producer, helped pioneer Egyptian Cinema, Nov 25
Kathleen Raine,
95, British poet & scholar expert on Blake & Yeats, July 6
Maurice Rapf,
blacklisted screenwriter (Cinderella, So Dear to My Heart), Apr 15
Vera Rhuba-Ralston,
Ice skater, actress (Ice-Capades, I Jane Doe) Feb 9
Sylvestre Randafison,
75, Madagascan valiha virtuoso Jul 12
Margaret Raia,
75, actress, at age 10 played a munchkin in Wizard of OZ, Aug 17
Mauro Rasi,
52, Brazilian playwright (Lady of the Savannah’s), April 22
Paula Raymond,
79, MGM contract actress (Crisis, Cevil’s Doorway). Dec 31
Peter Redgrove
, 71, prolific British poet , won Queens Gold Medal. June 14
Noel Redding,
67, songwriter (She’s So Fine), base for Jimi Hendrix, May 12
Donn Reed,
88, famed LA radio reporter, multiple Golden Mike winner, Dec 15
Connie Reeves,
101, worlds oldest cowgirl, Aug 17
Natalya Reshetovskaya,
84, Russian pianist & chemist, May 28
Madelyn Rhue,
68, actress (Cheyenne, Route 66, Rawhide, I Spy) Dec 16
Leni Riefenstahl,
101, German doc. Film maker (Triumph of the Will) Sept 8
Dorothy Ritter,
88, Actress, widow of Tex, mother of John, Nov 5
John Ritter,
54, Emmy, GG, winning TV star (Three’s Company) Sept 11
Margaret Hill Ritter,
81, novelist (Caroline, Caroline), actress, 200 stage plays, Aug 28
Carlos Rivas,
78, actor (King & I, Unforgiven, True Grit) Jun 16
Amanda Rizk,
90, Egyptian film actress (I Want a Solution), Aug 24
Henry Roberts,
92, danced in movies (Stormy Weather, Cotton Club), Nov 8
Rex Robbins,
68, actor, stage (Gypsey, op. Angela Lansbury) fims (Shaft) Sep 23
Patricia Roc,
88, British film actress (Wicked Lady, Millions Like Us), Dec 31
Robert Rockwell,
82, TV actor (Our Miss Brooks, Loretta Young Show) Jan 25
Fred Rogers,
74, beloved host, teacher of TV’s Mr. Rogers Neighborhood,
Bertram Ross,
82, dancer, leading member of Martha Graham Dance Co.Apr 20
Bob Ross,
69, former chef, publisher Bay Area Reporter, Dec 10
Robert Ross,
85, ad exec., novelist (Medici Emerald), Dec 23
Dave Rowberry,
62, keyboards for The Animals
Ying Ruocheng,
74, Chinese Actor Had Role in 'Last Emperor' Dec 27
Honey Sanders,
88, Broadway actress (the Rose Tattoo, Mame), Oct 31
Mongo Santamaria,
80, Cuban percussionist, major Latin Jazz artist, Feb 1
Lucy Saroyan,
57, actress (Hopscotch) daughter of William, sister of Aram, Apr 11
Thomas Savage,
88, author drawn to west (The Pass, Lona Hanson)Jul 25
Walter Scharf,
92, composer-conductor-arranger (Funny Girl, Ben), (Feb 24
Carl Schenkel,
55, film producer (The Mighty Quinn, Knight Moves), Dec 1
John Schlesinger,
77, British film director (Midnight Cowboy, Darling), Jul 26
Richard “Dick” Schuyler,
76, actor, stunt man (Fugitive), Reagan’s double, Mar 29
Martha Scott,
90, film actress (Our Town. 10 Commandments, Ben-Hur, May 28
Eugene “Tim” Scott,
71, TV producer (Maverick, Andy Griffith Show), Jun 15
Erna “Chiquita” Segal,
64, half of 50 & 60’s dance team Chiquita & Johnson, Apr 5
Compay Segundo,
95, Cuban guitarist, singer (Buena Vista Social Club) July 13
Albert Sendrey,
91, film (Neptune’s Daughter) & TV (Peter Pan) composer, May 18
Herbert Senn,
78, Broadway & Boston Opera Company set designer, Aug 13
Charles Shannon,
44, TV actor (The Man Show, Two Minute Drill), Dec 21
Peter Shaw,
84, TV Producer, agent. Husband of Angela Lansbury, Jan 29
Gladys Shelley,
lyricist (How Did He Look, Oliver Twist, I Dig Her Wig, Dec 9
Carol Shields,
68, Canadian novelist, Pulitzer Prize (The Stone Diaries), July 16
LuAnne Simms,
71, singer, recording artist & member Godfrey show cast, Sep 22
Nina Simone,
70, soul singer (Nemme Quittes Pas, A Woman Alone) Apr 21
Howard “Sandman” Sims,
86, dancer, teacher (G. Hines, B. Vereen), 86, May 20
Penny Singleton,
95, actress, 28 ‘Blondie’ films, past pres. AGVA, Nov 12
C. H. Sisson,
89, respected British poet (The London Zoo), Sept 5
Michael Small,
64, film composer (Klute, Marathon Man) Nov 25
Jack Smight,
78, film director (Midway, Airport, Harper) Sep 1
Vincent Smith,
74, painter who depicted Black life and experience Dec 27
Alberto Sordi,
82, Italian born comic actor (The White Sheik), Feb 24
Ira Spring,
84, nature photographer, published many photo collections, Jun 7
Robert Stack,
84, film (Written on the Wind), TV (Untouchables) actor, May 14
Florence Stanley,
79, Broadway (Fools), TV (Barney Miller) actress, Oct 3
Edwin Starr,
61, soul singer best known for Grammy winning War, Apr 2
Elaine Steinbeck,
88, stage manager, executor of husband John’s estate, Apr 27
Meyer Steinberg,
84, real estate developer & community philanthropist, Dec 4
Isabelle Stevenson,
90, American Theatre Wing head, est. Tony Awards, Dec 29
Gary Stewart,
59, singer/writer (She’s actin’ Single, I’m Drinkin’ Doubles, Dec 18
Maxwell Starkman,
82, architect for Museum of Tolerance, Sony Plaza, Dec 29
Michael Stillman,
87, co-founder eclectic Monitor Records, Apr 15
Dick St. John,
63, of 60’s pop duo Dick & Dee Bee (The Mountain’s High), Dec 27
Peter Stone,
73, playwright (Oscar: Father Goose, Emmy: Defenders) Apr 26
Marv Sugarman,
87, TV pioneer, helped get Captain Kangaroo on the air, Jul 20
George E. Swink,
81, film editor (Towering Inferno), producer (outrage), Aug 22
Daniel Taradash,
90, screenwriter (oscar for From Here to Eternity), Feb 22
Julia Tavaloro,
68, poet & author (Look Up for Yes) Dec 19
Vic Taylor,
56, singer who performed with Jamaican bands, June 23
Wallace Terry,
65, Black journalist, covered Civil Rights Movement, May 29
Jake Thackery, 68,
singer-songwriter (La-De Dah, Streets of London) Dec 27, 02
Lynn Thigpen,
54, actress, (Tony; An American Daughter) TV, The District, Mar 12
Francis Thompson,
95, doc. Filmmaker (Oscar for To Be Alive), Dec 26
Tony Thompson,
48, drummer, defined Disco on many major tracks, Nov 12
Floyd Tillman,
88, C&W Icon wrote Slippin’ Around, It Makes No Difference Now, Aug 22
Peter Tinneswood,
66, British TV writer (That Was the Week That Was), Jan 9
Lawrence Tish,
80, former controversial head of CBS, Nov 15
Ed Townsend,
74, R&B singer-songwriter (For Your Love, Let’s Get it On), Aug 13
Les Tremayne,
90, famous radio actor (The Falcon, War of the Worlds) Dec 19
Claude Trenier,
84, of the Trenier Brothers, famous Vegas lounge act, Nov 17
Arthur Trugman,
75, NBC graphic artist (Dinah Shore Show, Laugh In), Nov 11
Leon Uris,
78, novelist (Exodus, QBVII, Mila18, Topaz), June 21
Rick Van Santen,
41, L.A. promoter, helped advance Punk Rock bands, Dec 28
G. Venkateswaran,
56, Tamil producer (Nayakan, Anjali), May 3
Barbara Wace,
95, AP WWII reporter. Jan 16
Eliot Wald,
57, former SN Live writer, brought together Siskel & Ebert, July 12
Alexander Walker,
73, film critic, author of 20 books (Garbo, Clift, Leigh) July 14
Raymond Walters,
91, columnist for New York Times Book Review, Aug 30
Skip Ward,
69, actor (Run Silent, Run Deep, Hombre), producer June 27
Kellie Waymire,
36, TV actress (6 Feet Under, Friends, The X Files) Nov 13
Elizabeth Welch,
99, beloved US born British film, stage & song star, July 15
Speedy West,
79, steel guitar innovator played on over 6000 records, Nov 15
Barry White,
58, velvet-voiced R&B crooner & composer (Love Theme), July 4
Eugene (Doboy) Williams,
43, actor-director, Dec 22, 02
Jerry Williams,
79, pioneer of talk-radio. Apr 29
Wesley Willis,
40, singer-songwriter, Chicago cult figure, Aug 21
Lionel Wilson,
79, actor (kiss and Tell), playwright (Come and be Murdered), Apr 30
Sloan Wilson,
83, writer, novelist (Man in the Grey Flannel Suit), 25 May
Ethel Winnart,
81, 1st woman to become TV executive, (CBS) Nov 30
Kathleen, Winsor,
83, author of blockbuster novel “Forever Amber,” May 26
Emerson Woelffer,
88, Abstract Artist, Inspired 2 Generations of artists, Feb 2
Mel Wong,
64, dancer-choreographer with Pacific & San Francisco Ballet, Jun 17
Sheb Wooley,
82, actor (High Noon, Giant), singer (Purple People Eater), Sept 17
George Wyle,
87, arranger, wrote Ballad of Gilligan’s Island. May 2
Steve Young,
61, senior correspondent CNN, wrote on tech. fields, Apr 27
Webster Young,
71, jazz trumpeter, played with Coltraine, Davis. Dec 13
Warren Zevon,
56, satirical singer-songwriter (Whistle Down the Wind), Sep 7
Vera Zorena,
dancer & actress (Louisiana Purchase, Goldwyn Follies), Apr 9
Research for this list included The New York & Los Angeles Times,
Variety, The Hollwood Reporter and The Death Watch website.
Sleep warm and don’t forget to join Ken on Wednesday for This One Does
It For Me.
1/11/2004 11:47 PM PST.
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