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Saddos, the lot of them.

John Jacob Astor IV died on this day 111 years ago, aged 47. - Astor was (of course) a member of the wealthy Astor family, who got their money from the fur trade. His sister Helen married a James Roosevelt- making him the half-brother-in-law of president Franklin D. Roosevelt. - Astor published a science fiction novel titled A Journey in Other Worlds in 1894, making predictions on what the year 2000 would be like. Among the things it got right was a global phone network (kind of like the Internet) and solar power. - In 1897, he built the Astoria Hotel- this soon became the original Waldorf-Astoria, which was demolished to construct the Empire State Building. - Astor served in the Philippines during the Spanish-American War (rather than using his fame and money to buy himself out), and became a colonel. - Astor married his second wife Madeleine when he was 47 and she was 18. While in France, he got her pregnant, and he wanted their baby to be born in America. They boarded the RMS Titanic in Cherbourg along with their dog named Kitty. - After the ship fatefully scraped the iceberg on the night of April 14, Astor remained unconvinced the ship would sink- he and his wife went to the ship's gym, and he even cut open the lining of a lifejacket thinking it wouldn't work. - Astor eventually helped his wife into Lifeboat #4, and then ordered two female passengers to fill up the remaining seats. He was last seen alive at 1:55 AM on the starboard bridge, smoking a cigarette. - Astor's cause of death remains uncertain- reports stated that he either drowned, froze, or was crushed when the first funnel collapsed about 20 minutes after he was last seen. - At the time of his death, Astor was one of the world's richest people, with a net worth of $87 million (equivalent to $2.5 billion today).

Radha Devi Joshi dead.

Sorted. Thanks!

Angie at the TCM Classic Film Festival yesterday. Wow! Doesn't she look and sound the healthiest 91 year old ever? Drop Angie and Imelda for 2024, DL Committee!!! https://variety.com/2023/film/news/tcm-festival-angie-dickinson-steven-spielberg-classic-film-1235583643/

A couple of weeks ago I was told I passed my final research paper, which means I have obtained my bachelor at university! It's something I'm quite happy with. And all of that while taking part in deathpools, talking about having priorities And this evening I got the news we'll get a kitten, she'll be welcomed in our home in May if everything goes to plan. It'll be the first time we have a cat since our last one passed away aged 17 at the end of 2021. It will be quite a change to suddenly have such a young animal at home but I'm looking forward to it.

Australian singer John Farnham undergoes surgery for an as yet undisclosed type of cancer today, aged 73. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-23/john-farnham-admitted-to-hospital-for-cancer-treatment/14029044

Seeing as there is talk in the media about how many famous people we have lost this year following Victoria Wood`s death it strikes me how many have come completely out of the blue to the public (Bowie ,Rickman ,Wogan , Corbett (although he was quite old) Gest and now Wood).So I thought seeing as our comprehensive research appears to be eclipsed by quite a few complete surprises maybe we should do a kind of informal pool to guess the next unexpected celeb or "national treasure" that conks out with no warning. Here are the rules: -1 name per user -Named Celeb must be 85 or under. -The celeb can not be KNOWN PUBLICLY to be afflicted with Alzheimer`s or any form of dementia , any type of cancer, MND ,Parkinsons,diabetes,or have suffered a stroke or heart attack IN THE PAST.They must not have been in rehab or sectioned in the last 20 years also. -Unnatural deaths count as long as it isn`t expected i.e death row inmates. -Celebs can`t be obese. -If your pick announces any issues with health mentioned above that is ok as long as it was announced after you posted them. I am going for William Roache

Just kidding.

Obviously I have to post The Script's UK #1 (September 2012) Hall Of Fame (though I prefer Breakeven):

English/American singer and actress Shani Wallis, who is known for the role of Nancy in the 1968 Oscar-winning film musical "Oliver!", is 90 today.

Kenneth McAlpine is the most selected pick in the F1 groups so it is points all round 1. Kenneth McAlpine bg, lf, td, mn, dg, ti, ms, ro, af, gr, oc, to, bp, di No-one moves into a winning position but @RoverAndOut now has three in one category and @Death Impends has one in three separate categories @gcreptile & @Spade_Cooley are out in the lead with four hits each

Eight men crucified in the Philippines. Oldest of them are Wilfredo Salvador, 66 and Ruben Enaje, 62. It's Enaje's 34th and possibly last time.

Can't see anything news-wise but David Hepworth has said on Twitter that Chris Farlowe has died. EDIT after checking this year's DDP team: Oh FFS, I had him in my team the other year too as well...

Legendary Vancouver disc jockey Red Robinson has died, his family announced. Robinson began his radio career in 1954 at Vancouver’s CJOR, and his website credits him as the first DJ in Canada to play rock ’n’ roll music on a regular basis. He was elected into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame in 1997 and the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2000, retiring from radio in 2007. SC

The tightest of the history of the Premier League, or of the history of English highest division ? Cause it’s not the same 30 or 134 years !

A Belgian has commited suicide after talking for 6 weeks with an Artifical Intelligence who ultimately told him « I’d like you to die »

Did a ten minute introduction to a repeat of "Elizabeth R" on BBC Four last night, looked rather rough but seemed as sharp as ever.

Leicester East is Keith Vaz's old constituency and where my sister-in-law lives

Anyone else misread that as 'A President with a Porpoise'?

Barry Humphries please

John Oswald, aka Jani Lane, lead singer of glam/hair metal band Warrant (they did that annoying "Cherry Pie" song years ago) has been found dead in a hotel room: http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermo...wsitemID=161881 He had a history of drug and alcohol problems. EDIT: Now being reported on mainstream news sites, too: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-12/warr...nd-dead/2836906

I've found a great compilation of motorsports crashes from the good old days of yore, long before helmets, seatbelts and basic fire safety conspired to ruin the entertainment. It's amazing how many of the drivers thrown out of their vehicles manage to get up and scamper off. http://vimeo.com/20247765

Jean-Michel Baron "Motorcyclist Jean-Michel Baron died Thursday at the age of 56, after 24 years spent in a vegetative state following a crash on the [1986] Dakar Rally".

That rant index of 52 is one of the highest I can remember. Is there a "top ten" anywhere? Following the demise of Top of the Pops earlier in the year, it might be a nice homage to pay.