The Obituary Thread

[Shrykespeare]

Only one notable celebrity death in the past month. Gotta be a record.

Michael J. Pollard, actor, 80 - appeared in Bonnie and Clyde, Tango & Cash, Scrooged, and many other movies.

[W]

Big Bird has passed. Legendary puppeteer Carol Spinney was the eight foot toddler and Oscar the Grouch for 45 years.

[Shrykespeare]

Celebrity Deaths in December 2019:

Ron Liebman, 82, Norma Rae, Rhinestone
Rene Auberjonois, 79, actork "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine", "Benson"
Caroll Spinney, 85, puppeteer, did the voice for Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and others on "Sesame Street"
Danny Aiello, 86, actor, Do the Right Thing, The Professional
Neil Innes, 75, composer, did most of Monty Python's composing for Flying Circus, Holy Grail, and Life of Brian
Phillip McKeon, 55, teen actor, "Alice"
Don Imus, 79, radio personality

[Chienfantome]

Wait what ? Danny Aiello died ?? I hadn't heard.

[W]

Former NBA Commissioner David Stern passed away today at 77.

[Shrykespeare]

Former NBA Commissioner David Stern passed away today at 77.

Wow, that didn't take long for the year to get underway.

Respected the hell out of the man, especially in the early 90s, when I was a season ticket holder for the Suns,

[W]

They said when Stern took over in 1984 the NBA was making $10 million a year in TV rights. When he left 30 years later it was over $900 million. He turned the NBA into a forward thinking league that embraced things just as they become popular (TV, internet, social media) and he grew it into a worldwide league (especially Europe and China). Pretty much the exact opposite of the MLB.

Probably did the best job of any US sports commissioner ever.

[Buscemi2]

I'd say MLB is much more worldwide than you'd think. It's big in Latin America, has been making a push in Asia, and has even gone into Europe. I think it's more global than the NFL (besides Mexico, where is it really taking off on a global scale?).

Even if it's perceived to be in decline domestically, there's always going to be an international market.

And speaking of baseball, Don Larsen, the only pitcher to throw a perfect game in the World Series, has passed away at 90.

[Shrykespeare]

Jeez. That's two. Probably lose another sports celeb by the weekend. These things always happen in threes.

[W]

Neal Peart Rush drummer/lyricist (67). By anyone’s measure one of the top drummers ever.

[Shrykespeare]

Buck Henry, who co-wrote The Graduate and made numerous appearances on SNL in the 70s, has passed.

So has Edd "Kookie" Byrnes of 77 Sunset Strip.

[W]

Kobe Bryant just died in a helicopter crash... He used to take one every day to practice if I remember right. Damn.

[Buscemi2]

And not long after LeBron passed him on the scoring list. Surreal.

[numbersix]

That's crazy. Even I knew who he was. RIP

[BanksIsDaFuture]

Kobe Bryant just died in a helicopter crash... He used to take one every day to practice if I remember right. Damn.

This one hurts.

And his 13 year old daughter also died. Can't imagine what Vanessa is going through right now.