Should Auld Acquaintance . . . 2008 Deaths

by Dick Mac

Freddie Hubbard, musician, 70
George Rene Francis, oldest living man in America, 112
Robert Graham, sculptor, 70
Delaney Bramlett, musician, 69
Harold Pinter, playwright, 78
Eartha Kitt, singer, 81
Robert Mulligan, director, 83
Mike "Mad Dog" Bell, pro wrestler, 37
Majel Barrett Roddenberry, actress, 76
Martha (Sunny) von Bülow, heiress, socialite, and philanthropist, 76
Sam Bottoms, actor, 54
Sammy Baugh, athlete, 94
W. Mark Felt, 'Deep Throat' of Watergate, 95
Bettie Page, 1950s pin-up model, 85
Odetta Holmes, folk singer, 77
Irving Brecher, writer, 94
Betty James, toy executive, namer of "slinky", 90
Gerald Schoenfeld, influential figure in theater, 84
Edna Parker, worlds oldest person, 115
William Gibson, playwright, 94
Yma Sumac, singer, 86
Michael Crichton, author, 66
Studs Terkel, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, 96
Shakir Stewart, 'Def Jam' records executive VP
Rudy Ray Moore, comedian and filmmaker, 81
Edie Adams, actress, 81
Jack Narz, game-show host, 85
Levi Stubbs, Four Tops lead singer, 72
Neal Hefti, TV theme music writer, 85
House Peters Jr. , actor, 92
Paul Newman, legendary actor, 83
Norman Whitfield, Motown hitmaker, 67
Richart Wright, Pink Floyd founding member and keyboardist, 65
Martin Tytell, Typewriter Wizard, 94
Bill Melendez, 'Peanuts' animator, 91
Jerry Reed, singer and actor, 71
Don LaFontaine, voice talent, 68
Michael Pate, actor, 88
Edwin Guthman, journalist, 89
Phil Hill, race-car driver, 81
Hazel Warp, Hollywood stuntwoman, 93
Geoffrey Perkins, comedy producer, 55
Walter "Killer" Kowalski, pro wrestler, 81
Jerry Finn, music producer, 39
LeRoi Moore, musician, 46
Manny Farber, film critic and artist, 91
Gene Upshaw, athlete and Union Chief, 63
Jack A. Weil, western wear maker and oldest CEO, 107
Jerry Wexler, rhythm and blues pioneer, 91
Sandy Allen, world's tallest woman, 53
Anthony Hart, Carey Hart's motocross-racing brother, 21
Isaac Hayes, musician, 65
Bernie Mac, actor / comedian, 50
Bernie Brillstein, producer, 77
Skip Caray, baseball announcer, 68
Alexander Solzhenitsyn, writer, 89
Estelle Getty, actress, 84
Olive Riley, world's oldest blogger , 108
Hiroaki (Rocky) Aoki, Benihana founder, 69
Bobby Murcer, athlete, 62
Michael DeBakey, pioneering heart doctor, 99
Clem McSpadden, congressman / rodeo announcer, 82
Evelyn Keyes, actress, 91
Tony Snow, presidential press secretary, 53
Jesse Helms, former senator, 86
Larry Harmon, Bozo the Clown, 83
Fyodor Uglov, oldest practicing surgeon, 103
David Caminer, Pioneer in Computers, 92
Dody Goodman, comedian, 93
George Carlin, counterculture comedian, 71
Cyd Charisse, legendary dancer, 86
Stan Winston, movie special effects guru, 62
Esbjorn Svensson, musician, 44
Charlie Jones, NBC sportscaster, 77
Tim Russert, NBC political journalist, 58
Jim McKay, sportscaster, 86
Alton Kelley, psychedelic artist, 67
Mel Ferrer, actor-director, 90
Bo Diddley, guitarist, 79
Yves Saint Laurent, fashion icon, 71
Luc Bourdon, NHL Canucks defenseman, 21
Alexander Courage, 'Star Trek' theme composer, 88
Joseph Pevney, 'Star Trek' TV director, 96
Harvey Korman, comic actor, 81
Thelma Keane, inspiration for 'Family Circus' Mommy, 82
Sydney Pollack, director, 73
Hamilton Jordan, political adviser, 63
J.R. Simplot, fry innovator, 99
Bruce "Utah" Phillips, folk singer, 73
Dick Martin, comic, 86
Edward N. Lorenz, scientist, 90
John Phillip Law, actor, 70
John Rutsey, musician"Rush", 55
George P. Cressman, meteorologist, 88
Eddy Arnold, musician, 89
Robert Rauschenberg, artist, 82
Warren Cowan, Hollywood press agent, 87
Robert Mondavi, vintner, 94
Danny Federici, E Street Band keyboard player, 58
Hazel Court, actress, 82
Richard Widmark, actor, 93
Wayne Frost, 'Flashdance' breakdancer "Frosty Freeze",44
Ollie Johnston, Disney animator, 95
Charlton Heston, Hollywood legend, 84
Abby Mann, writer, 80
Sean Levert, singer, 39
Jules Dassin, director, 96
Isreal "Cachao" Lopez, Mambo pioneer, 89
Jon Hassler, author, 74
Paul Scofield, actor, 86
Ivan Dixon, actor/director, 76
Arthur C. Clarke, writer, 90
Joseph Weizenbaum, programmer "Eliza", 85
Anthony Minghella, director, 54
Ola Brunkert, former drummer for ABBA, 62
Gary Gygax, Dungeons & Dragons creator, 69
Jeff Healy, musician, 41
Michael Conley, punk musician, 48
Buddy Miles, drummer, 60
Mike Smith, singer, 64
Kon Ichikawa, director, 92
Myron Cope, Steelers announcer, 79
W.C. "Bill" Heinz, writer, 93
William F. Buckley Jr., conservative commentator, 82
Roy Scheider, actor, 75
Margaret Truman Daniel, presidential daughter, 83
Earl Butz, agriculture secretary, 98
Shell Kepler, actress, 49
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, guru, 91
Gordon Hinckley, Mormon president, 97
Haji Muhammad Suharto, former Indonesian dictator, 86
Christian Brando, son of Marlon Brando, 49
Billy Poole, extreme skier, 28
Heath Ledger, actor, 28
John Stewart, Kingston Trio singer/songwriter, 68
Georgia Frontiere, NFL Rams owner, 80
Frances Lewine, journalist, 86
Allan Melvin, 'Brady Bunch' actor, 84
Suzanne Pleshette, actress, 70
Bobby Fischer, chess master, 64
Maila Nurmi, TV's 'Vampira', 85
Brad Renfro, actor, 25
Christopher Bowman, figure skater, 40
Edmund Hillary, legendary mountaineer, 88
Johnny Grant, 'honorary mayor of Hollywood', 84

As always, my year-round source for obituaries is Deathwatch Central.