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Carol Raye dead at 99.

No, reptile is away from his computer this week and he updates that bit!

From the Businesspersons' thread: Times Obit for 1960s model Jan de Souza, Johnny Gold's widow: https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/jan-de-souza-obituary-kbkzdbqtk

Tim White, the Fighting Irishman who was Andre The Giant's sometime handler and WWE referee, reportedly dead:

As Gennady Burbulis has died, Fokin is now the last living signatory of the Belovezh accords.

On this day in 2012 former Second Lady of the United States, Judy Agnew, wife of republican Vice President to Richard Nixon Spiro Agnew ,died aged 91-outliving her husband by over 16 years. Her time as Second Lady of the US came to an abrupt end after nearly 5 years when her husband was forced to resign in late 1973 as a result of a financial scandal. He was replaced by future US President Gerald Ford.

Birgitte The Duchess of Gloucester , wife of the Queens cousin The Duke of Gloucester and working member of the royal family for nearly 50 years and patron of over 60 charities , celebrates her 76th birthday today. Probably one of the most uncontroversial members of the british royal family .

American actress Jean Arthur died at the age of 90 on this day in 1991. An actress of stage and screen Jeans film career began in the silent movie era in the 1920s and continued until the mid 1950s . Her credits include three Frank Capra films Mr Deeds goes to town (1936) alongside Gary Cooper, You can't take it with you (1938) with James Stewart and Mr Smith goes to Washington (1939) again with the legendary James Stewart. Other acting credits include - Bringin home the bacon(1924) ,The Drugstore Cowboy (1925), Easy come easy go (1928) , The virtuous Husband (1931), More than a secretary (1936), The talk of the town (1941) Jean initially retired from film in 1944 after her contract with Columbia Pictures came to its end. Such was her relief at the time she is reported to have ran outside the studios happily shouting I'm free I'm free! However after a period of turning down roles and refusing to be tempted out of retirement she did accept a number of roles, One opposite Marlene Dietrich and most famously a western film called Shane opposite Alan Ladd and Van Heflin- this film being the most commercially successful of her career. Her later stage work in Broadway was very intermittent because as time went on Jean suffered more and more serious bouts of stage fright and psychosomatic illness. She did however manage to try some big roles including as Joan of Arc in a George Bernard Shaw play Saint Joan and Leonard Bernsteins stage adaptation of Peter Pan. In her personal life Jean was married twice, the first marriage annulled after one day and the second to a film producer Frank Ross Jnr which ended in divorced after 17 years. She had no children. In the 1970s she was briefly jailed and given a fine and probation for trespassing on a neighbours property , her reason being she was consoling a pet dog she felt was being mistreated. Jean Arthur died in 1991 but seemed to have arranged in advance for there not to be a funeral.

Family's message on the above...

Scottish author and playwright J.M Barrie, best known for being the author and creator behind Peter Pan ,died on this day in 1937 aged 77.

Former foreign minister and well known politician, Uffe Ellemann-Jensen, dead at age 80. Its a big deal in Denmark and all news sites here are plastered with breaking news. Danish source: https://nyheder.tv2.dk/politik/2022-06-19-uffe-ellemann-jensen-er-doed English source: https://foxmetronews.com/news/former-danish-foreign-minister-dies/ Marks the 2nd hit on my Danish list.

American actress Nancy Marchand died on this day in the year 2000 aged 71. Best known in her later career for starring in hit US sitcom Cheers and crime drama The Sopranos. The film adaptation of Agatha Christie mystery novel Sparkling Cyanide in the 1980s is also one of her acting credits.

On this day in 2006 american film director Vincent Sherman died aged 99. He directed a number of films during the golden age of Hollywood some that went on to become regarded as classic or iconic. Amongst the films he directed were The Young Philadelphians(1959) with Paul Newman ,Barbara Rush and Robert Vaughn as the lead actors, film noir Nora Prentiss (1947) with Ann Sheridan and Kent Smith, The Hasty Heart (1949) lead actor future US President Ronald Reagan and Patricia Neal. But some of his most critically acclaimed, successful and best known work was with Hollywood legends Joan Crawford and Bette Davis. The Damned Don't cry(1950) was a hugely successful but dark film about organised crime that he directed Joan Crawford in. His films with Bette Davis include Mr Skeffington (1944) which also starred Claude Rains, and Old Acquaintance (1943) with both Bette and Miriam Hopkins . Vincent had a three year affair with Joan Crawford and an onset affair with Bette Davis. He also worked with a number of the biggest names of the era including Ava Gardner, Humphrey Bogart ,Ginger Rogers, Rita Hayworth and Clark Gable.

On this day in 1858 English physician and epidemiologist John Snow , considered one of the founders of modern epidemiology due to his research on anaesthesia and medical hygiene, died aged 45. Born and raised in one of the poorest districts in the city of York, Snow was the eldest of nine children and his interest and aptitude for both maths and medicine was apparent from a young age. Infact aged 14 he started an apprenticeship in Newcastle in which he didn't just gain the inevitable experience and knowledge as a surgeons apprentice but dealt with a large outbreak of cholera in coal mining village Killingworth. Treating the victims and arguably solidifying his interest in this field of medicine. He found the accepted wisdom on what the mode of transmission of cholera was as unpersuasive and lacking. This outbreak combined with the unsanitary conditions in his poor neighbourhood as a child in part as a result of frequent flooding from the River Ouse, were instrumental in establishing his interest in this field and his determination to find a better way of preventing and managing such outbreaks. He continued to show potential and progressed to the Hunterian school of medicine in London. He became part of a small group of medics who regularly held discussions on research to tackle the "dreadful scourge the cholera ". A severe outbreak of cholera in Soho London created an opportunity to prove the worth of his research and scientific skill. He believed the handle of a water pump was the culprit and his removal of the pump contained indeed stopped the outbreak. He went on to argue for his findings that cholera was caused by poor water sanitation and faecal matter contaminating the water supply. Whilst the authorities initially accepted his intervention in order to contain the immediate short term situation , in the longer term there was reluctance to accept faecal/human waste in the water supply as being the root cause of the outbreaks as it was regarded as too unpleasant and likely too difficult to correct countrywide. Eventually wiser heads prevailed when the esteemed William Farr backed his findings years later in 1866 but in truth years were wasted because so many in political and scientific circles didn't want to believe it and buried their heads like ostriches. Ultimately Snows research findings were key in prompting big changes in the water and waste systems of London, best practice soon spreading to other cities and ultimately the world leading to an improvement in general public health. If John Snows role in public health wasn't already enough he also was crucial in the developing of the safe and effective use of anaesthetics and at one point was regarded as the most accomplished anaesthetist in Britain. In the more basic era of the field his research on the inhalation of the vapor of ether and the use of chloroform lead to the establishing of safe doses, methods of administering anaesthetic, understanding of the bodies reactions to them. Chloroform potency had previously been underestimated resulting in many adverse reactions including the death of a teenage girl while having minor toenail surgery . Snow designed appropriate apparatus to administering anaesthetic safely and effectively. Infact due to anxiety about chloroform it's use was limited and semi taboo until Queen Victoria asked Snow to administer it to her her during the births of her 8th and 9th children Leopold and Beatrice. When knowledge of this became widespread especially in medical circles its use also became pretty quickly widely accepted. Public health and medicine were revolutionised by his contribution and talent and it is noted that his refusal to patent his findings that allowed it to flourish more quickly and spread the benefits more widely.

On this day in 1999 the founder of the Monster Raving Loony Party Screaming Lord Sutch, committed suicide aged 58. His party with its intentionally bizarre policies very much served the purpose of satirising british politics and other political parties. Lord Sutch , also a musician, was an eccentric mainstay at many a UK parliamentary by election and added some colour to the proceedings.

On this day in 1594 German goldsmith Jacob Kroger was executed by hanging for stealing the jewellery of Anne of Denmark wife of King James Vl of Scotland and King James l of England and Ireland. Jacob was a highly skilled Goldsmith at the time who was an apprentice of some of the most prestigious and best master goldsmiths at the time including Dierrsen who was known for their Antelope Hallmark and decorative cutlery and crockery beloved of royalty and the gentry all over Europe. He lived in the principality if Luneburg that was ruled by no other than the brother in law of Anne of Denmark-wife of King James Vl of Scotland. So a combination of good connections and good reputation as highly skilled at his craft brought him into close proximity with a very impressed Anne who made him a member of her household. He travelled back to Scotland with her and was accommodated wherever the Queen was staying whether it be Dunfermline Palace or Holyroodhouse. He went on to serve as the Queens chosen jeweller tasked with both making and maintaining her collection. However dissatisfaction with the arrangements grew and plans for betrayal were brewing. Both Jacob and a french footman by the name of Guillaume Martyn decided to steal much of the Queens jewellery and flee back to their homelands after becoming increasingly angry and frustrated that their requests to be paid properly rather than just given accommodation were totalling ignored despite much pleading and petition on their parts. 'Very weary of their service' is how scholars describe their state of mind when they decided to steal from the Queen.. After stealing they immediately fled Edinburgh at night, crossed the Tweed near Kelso and made their way to the north east of England. It was three days before their betrayal and theft was discovered and word was sent to get the message to officials in London. The pair stayed several days in Newcastle were they encountered fugitive the Earl of Bothwell who when he quickly realised who they were and what they had done seized the Queens poessions from them . If they hadn't of decided to ease up their pace and spend some time in Newcastle and the north east it is likely they would never have met Bothwell and history may have turned out very different for them. Instead they met their match in North Shields. Arrests soon followed by the sheriff and Earl of Northumberland- all three arrested as the Earl of Bothwell has fugitive status for his earlier attempts to topple the King in a planned rebellion. At the time there was a clash of authority because the King wanted all three of them returned to Scotland to face punishment but the men were in England and a significant number of the gentry and landowners in North England were sympathetic towards the fugitive Earl. So for a time they were held at a castle in Tynemouth until the way ahead was resolved. They were eventually returned to Edinburgh and fugitive Earl Bothwell who was actually an ally of the Kings wife Anne of Denmark- and she a supporter or sympathiser of sorts of his- believing her husband to be too harsh and unmerciful towards him- tried to argue that his seizing of the Queens jewels and saving them from falling into foreign hands was an act of loyalty and friendship. In other words he was trying to bargain his way back into favour with the King or at least to avoid severe punishment for past actions. Nothing officially declared as to why but he was spared in a fashion by the king- the Queens intervention the explanation favoured by most scholars. Full reconciliation was not to be but at this point he was spared. No such mercy for Jacob Kroger and the french footman who were both hanged on this day in 1594 after a brief trial.

Ron Farmer, midfielder for Coventry City mainly but also played for the two Nottinghams, reportedly dead aged 86: https://www.ccfc.co.uk/news/2022/june/news-rip-ronnie-farmer/

On this day in 1818 Egwale Seyon the Emperor of Ethiopia, a member of the Solomonic Dynasty better known as the House of Solomon died after 'ruling ' the country for around 17 yèars. I say 'ruled' because his leadership was seen as very weak , limited and largely ineffective with him confining himself to one city Gondar. Egwale was the son of Hezqeyas , one of the previous Emperors of Ethiopia who lost power due to both his inability to manage the regional and tribal clashes within the country and because he fell out with one of his main supporters who felt Hezqeyas had acted against his interests and was ungrateful for his support and the expectations/conditions that went with that. Never side in the falling out would concede or submit to the other leading to effective formal declarations of War about how they will not submit to the wishes of the other. Eventually he was toppled which over time created a power vacuum as the role of Emperor over the following years was held by a number if different appointees all who tended to rule factionally and mainly pleasing only the wishes of one tribe or province. Eventually this situation was seen as undesirable and unsustainable so a handful of people who represented the three main groupings and regions in Ethiopia decided to make Egwale Seyon Emperor in 1801 to try and break the cycle and pattern of short lived bad leadership. However some observed at the time that these three representatives were more self interested and perhaps wanting stability at any price rather than proper resolution. In a sense wanting to try and solidify their wealth and position and influence in the top tier of Ethiopian society. Infact Egwale married the sister of one of the tribal type leaders who made him Emperor. Emperor Egwale Seyons reign was not the success hoped for. It was marked by a three way civil war between the Ras Gugas, Ras Zewde and Gojjam regions which it descended further into relatively quickly. Whilst few were impressed by his reign they also had the problem of not being to agree between them who could replace him and govern in a more unified and effective way. There were two attempts to kill him in 1804 and 1808- the latter attempt supported by one if the three regional armies in the country. A year later in 1809 an intention to replace him with a former Emperor was thwarted because the Res Zewde army faction refused to assist in his removal from power , most likely because they had deep doubts about the proposed replacements alignment with their interests. Throughout nearly all of his reign he only left Gandar once. His ability to exert any significant authority or control over the rest of the country was hugely limited and he did not have the capacity to change this- to all practical reality the rest of the country was controlled governed and carved up by others whilst he was too scared to leave what he felt was the closet thing to a safe retreat. He was regarded as diluting the prestige and reputation of royalty. Diminishing it because his political impotence and lack of grandeur- few riches, servants and property by royal standards, eclipsed the country and the importance of his national role. The only real notable achievement from his reign is that he early on wasxa benefactor to the Berhan Selassie Church which has become known for its fantastic and beautiful art collection in large measure as a result of his support. His death was generically put down to his weak sickly constitution.

On this day in 1992 , exactly thirty years ago, australian actress Gerda Nicolson, died aged 54 after collapsing from a brain haemorrhage in her theatre dressing room a few weeks earlier and never regaining consciousness. Gerda was primarily a theatre actress but she was best known for her role as steely but reforming prison governor Ann Reynolds in cult australian television soap Prisoner Cell Block H. She played the role from 1983 until the end of 1986 when the show was axed. Gerda was also well known in Australia for previously starring in long running hit TV drama Bellbird.

On this day in 1981 american actor , singer and game show host Allen Ludden died aged 63. He was most famous for hosting the television gameshow Password on ABC and CBS. He was also the husband of legendary actress and 'Golden Girl' Betty White.

Mick Fleetwood already died once on live television presenting the 1989 BRIT awards

German TV Actor jan Vedder dead at 64 years: https://www.stern.de/lifestyle/leute/jan-fedder--deutschland-trauert-um-eine-echtes-original-9067656.html

French actress Claudine Auger, most recognized as the Bond girl Dominique "Domino" Derval in the film "Thunderball", dead at 78 years https://www.france24.com/en/20191219-auger-thunderball-bond-girl-dies-aged-78 She was awarded the title of Miss France Monde and was first runner-up in the 1958 Miss World contest.

DEAD https://www.bild.de/unterhaltung/leute/leute/walter-freiwald-ist-tot-medienbericht-66170828.bild.html

Breaking News: Czech pop star Karel Gott who has released twenty-six studio albums and has been voted Most Favorite Male Singer multiple times in the Czech Republic died at 80 years: https://magazin.aktualne.cz/kultura/hudba/zemrel-karel-gott-legende-ceske-pop-music-bylo-80-let/r~aac1fd90dddc11e9858fac1f6b220ee8/