msc

RIP By all accounts one of the nice guys on TV.

Yes, I have been sitting on that godawful Gorbachev pun headline for 7 years, and yes, I am glad the Cmme didn't nab it for the front page first!

PERISH-STROIKA! 15/50 30th August 2022 One of the most noteworthy statesmen of the 20th Century, Mikhail Gorbachev has died after a long illness. In the modern world, after 20 plus years of Vladimir Putin, it is perhaps strange to look back on a time when a Russian leader was praised, worldwide, as a diplomat and peacemaker. Even Putin himself felt compelled to give tribute to his predecessor and long time rival. Rumours the Russian leader was last spotted in the vicinity of a Moscow hospital clutching a pillow cannot be confirmed, however. A committed Communist from an early age, Gorbachev belonged to the generation of politicians in Russian who felt they would have to wait until the old guard died before they were given any opportunities. This proved entirely accurate, but in a stroke of luck for Mikhail (and the world), just as the Cold War got to its coldest in decades, the entire old guard snuffed it in a matter of a few years. The world had gone from "Only Nixon can go to China" to watching Threads and fearing nuclear Armageddon. Over in America, they had the softer and friendlier The Day After, which terrified the shit out of elderly President Ronald Reagan. Gorbachev was elected to the Politburo in 1979, but by then, through his involvement in Russian agriculture (which had suffered three bad harvests in a row through mismanagement) he had already had his Damascus moment on reform. He was also to prove a canny political operator, not revealing to the old men who controlled his career that he disagreed with their invasion of Afghanistan. He became close with Yuri Andropov, who replaced the brutal Brezhnev in 1982, and when Andropov died in 1984, he named Gorbachev as his successor, only for the older Politburo members to say that, aged 53, Mikhail was too young and inexperienced to be leader. So he would have to wait his time. He would have to wait...13 months. In those 13 months, he became chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, in which he travelled the world as an official representative, and made friendly contacts in America and with Margaret Thatcher herself. He also built up friendships and allies in Russian political circles, as everyone knew the ailing Chernenko would barely last as leader. When the man died, Gorbachev was made the new General Secretary, as he was now a mature and experienced 54 years old. He spent his first year in charge smiling at crowds, and encouraging the older Politburo members to retire or take honorary alumni positions, at which point they were replaced with younger allies. Ironically, Gorbachev managed to gain a majority on the Politburo through bribery and persuasion faster than Stalin had by just killing people. And then he brought in Perestroika and Glasnost. Under the former, market reforming and decentralisation occurred. Under the latter, greater degrees of political freedom and freedom of speech, which directly led to the other countries in the USSR announcing their political freedom. Dissidents were freed and private enterprise encouraged. Talks were held on nuclear limits with Reagan, and the cold war thawed out, despite both men' distrust of the other. Gorbachev had hoped his reforms would lead to a democratic USSR, but the union cracked up instead, and in his defining moment as leader, he agreed to the reunification of Germany. He had gone the typical Russian route of sending in the tanks earlier on when states declared independence, but once the Baltic countries declared independence, he announced it was an internal matter instead. And so went the entire bloc, one by one. In 1991, a coup of hardliners attempted to party like it was 1917, but the popular drunk Russian, Boris Yeltsin, lead a popular uprising against it to protect Gorbachev. Gorbachev and Yeltsin were rivals, but everyone saw where this was heading, by the end of the year, Boris Yeltsin was in charge. Of the country, as well as the vodka cabinet. Gorbachev's legacy is complicated. He was not a flawless liberal and if we had more space we could brush on his multi-faceted achievements - but we've already written quite a bit! Through most of the world, he is acclaimed as the Soviet leader who ended the dreadful Cold War and brought independence, however unintentionally, to the former USSR. In the former Iron Curtain countries, his legacy is more mixed, though the Polish Gazeta Wyborcza paid tribute, noting Gorbachev as the right man in history at the right time. (Yes, Rad, a Polish newspaper quoted on Deathlist, who'd have thought it?) His popularity in Ukraine was not great after muddled comments post-Invasion of Crimea in 2014, although Gorbachev's last public statements were against the 2022 invasion. In Russia, however, there was a strong wind of media opinion that he brought their whole house of cards crashing down, a view promoted by his strongman successor Putin. In 2017, he had an approval rating in Russia of -31, which is worse than Donald Trump and Boris Johnsons in their respective countries. Gorbachev was not easily forgiven. In 1996, he ran to be the democratically elected President of Russia, and won 0.5% of the popular vote. Not a typo. While many of his predecessors and successor would cry foul and harm people, Gorbachev instead became the star of a surprisingly successful Pizza Hut advert campaign! It had Russians arguing his legacy before all agreeing that at least he brought pizza. It was banned in Russia, and the money was used to fund The Gorbachev Foundation, which promotes Russian history and democracy. In summary, Gorbachev's legacy can be summed up thusly. As General Secretary, he could have strengthened his own position and wealth, and been leader for life, like so many before him. Instead, through acting in what he felt was the best interests of the country, he wound up dismantling his own position. In terms of the people who successfully climb the Greasy Pole, that attribute is, indeed, rare. Gorbachev was an ever-present since the first Crowdsourced Deathlist, and was 91 years old.

BIG SKY GUY DIES 14/50 20th August 2022 American golfer Tom Weiskopf has died after suffering from the dreaded pancreatic cancer. Admired for his talents and especially his swing, Weiskopf was unfortunate to be around in the time of Jack Nicklaus's prime. As a result, he was a frequent contender, but his only major triumph was at the 1973 Open in Scotland, where he beat Nicklaus to the victory. He was a member of the US's Ryder Cup teams of both 1973 and 1975, and won both of them, despite the point scoring excellence of Pete Oosterhuis (who now suffers from dementia). His reputation for flare ups on the course gave him the nickname The Towering Inferno, and after retirement he became a CBS sports analyst and designed golf courses. Tom Weiskopf was 79 years old, and this was his debut on The Crowdsourced Deathlist.

LET'S GET METAPHYSICAL 13/50 8th August 2022 Beloved singer and actress Olivia Newton John has died after a long battle with cancer to give The Crowdsourced Deathlist another success. Newton-John was a celebrity while still in her teens, appearing on Australian TV and signing for Decca Records. She toured Europe and in the early 1970s, had a number of UK top 20 hits under her belt. In 1974, she represented Britain at the pinnacle of international relations, The Eurovision Song Contest, but not even a neutron bomb could stop the rise of ABBA that year. By the mid-70s she had even delved into country music, to the ire of country music purists, and then won a Grammy for her efforts, which probably riled them even more! And then, came Grease, the film that turned this well known young woman into an international icon. As Sandy, she sent pulses (of not just her co-stars, and not just the men, so I reliably hear) racing, and the songs became hits on every continent, including Summer Nights and the annoyingly catch You're The One That I Want. Olivia originally didn't want the role, viewing herself, at 28, as two old for the part. At which point the producers no doubt said: "Yes, and John Travolta could pass for 40 instead but that's not going to stop the royalties for the next gazillion years!" After Grease, she released Physical, a song banned by radio stations and then later called the most popular song ever written about shagging by readers of Billboard! In the 1990s she successfully battled breast cancer, but it returned in a more malignant state in 2017. In the 30 years between first diagnosis and eventual demise, Newton-John raised millions for charity, and promoted cancer awareness for young women, helping in her path to save countless other lives. She was 73, and was making her fourth appearance on the list. Australia, still reeling from the double loss of Newton-John and Judith Durham in the same week, plans to give her a state funeral.

We didn't, because if my fag pack calculations are correct, the post above had an error, and its actually an 148 day gap, rather than 150 days as last year.

How do we do this thing again? Starmer-Smith, as he looked like a corpse months ago and I just added him to my 2023 shortlist.

Always knew Big Gorb reminded me of Laurent Fignon.

To be fair he also managed Celtic to a bunch of them. Joke still stands.

Can't even win that award!

In not dead news, last year @maryportfuncity mentioned that Mungo Jerry's Ray Dorset had open heart surgery in August 2021. Well, he showed up on Talking Pictures this week and was looking well. Just thought I'd mention.

Surprised he doesn't have his own thread after 2 decades tbh. Anyhow, Richard Dawkins showed up in the University Challenge 60th anniversary doc. Given his health issues recently, he looking in decent nick compared to a few years ago. But even so, reminder that he's 81 and not as robust as he once was.

The Hairy Biker with cancer is "in the trenches but getting there", according to the Hairy Biker without the cancer.

From 2019. Also:

Also, worth noting that there's never been a Prime Ministerial change in September as people tend to know the Queen is at Balmoral that month - and that was before she was 96.

The Laird of Balgonie has died (RIP). If anyone sees a nice qualifying obit before me, please let us know. More an eventual broadsheet name than a Daily mail breaking news one.

cough - @arghton - cough. I still think he'd got a QO though he's not going to drop dead from that ailment.

I would never have taken him off the list in the first place. This feels like a 2022 miss yet to come.

One of the more recognisable backbenchers in the 90s. I keep picking the wrong MPs on the DDP! Radice retired abruptly recently so was probably on folks radar.

Every time this thread gets updated, I think for sure its confirmation Pat Arrowsmith has died the one year I forgot to pick her in anything. 128 days to go, Pat, you can do it!

The Keppels are all related. When Judith Keppel won Millionaire, the press ran stories about her being a third cousin of Camilla. Judith Keppel pointed out that she'd never met the woman in her life (to that point). George Thomas Keppell (Earl of Albemarle) 1799-1891 Father of William Courts Keppel 1832-1894 Father of George Keppel 1865-1947 Father of Sonia Keppel 1900-1986 Mother of Rosalind Maud Cubitt 1921-1994 Mother of Camilla 1947-present Also Father of William Courts Keppel father of Arnold ALlen Cecil Keppell 1858-1942 father of Walter Egerton Lucian Keppell 1882-1979 father of Derek William Keppel 1911-68 father of Elizabeth Keppell 1941-2014 mother of Charles Villier 1963-2022 So Camilla and this dead chap share the same great-great-great grandfather. Though Camilla was an older generation so it was only her great-great grandfather. That was too much research for so uninteresting a person!

I did actually give this a shot earlier but got to the Victorian era without finding the link and gave up. Distant, distant cousins by looks of it.

He's done very well to make it, given he wasn't expected to survive his stroke suffered shortly before the covid lockdowns.

Is there anyone here who WONT struggle with these sorts of price rises? If so, I accept bribes. Projection was something like 75% of households to struggle on the estimate (which was below 3000!) so that must include most of us here.

Incidentally, speaking of the Hays Code, @Gooseberry Crumble might like the story of how Hitchcock got around the Code when he wanted to show a lengthy kiss between Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, but the rules limited the number of seconds it could be shown on screen. So he set it up so every three seconds there was a pause in the onscreen action, so that the scene had to be accepted by censors as it followed the rules to the letter! (I have no idea when I wrote this, it just showed up in the Reply bit saved. Hope you appreciate this "saved" lost post, Mr Crumble.) Anyhow, LQ Jones was mourned at the time - among many many great bits on his CV, he had one of the great cameo roles in Columbo.