gcreptile

Cataloonia

BälSäc The Jaws 'O Death, aka Michael Derks of GWAR, has bone-marrow cancer: http://loudwire.com/gwar-guitarist-michael-derks-balsac-diagnosed-bone-marrow-cancer/ I know that band! A QO might not be entirely unrealistic...maybe a 20%-30% chance.

Barbara will kill him first.

Hmm, I just read that there are still three living heads of state from WW II. Apart from King Michael, it's Simeon II of Bulgaria, the guy I linked to on the top of this page, and the Dalai Lama, as head of state from Independent Tibet...

Rachel Robinson (widow of Jackie Robinson) in a wheelchair, but otherwise looking about 20 years younger than your typical 95 year old woman: http://www.tmz.com/2017/10/25/rachel-robinson-jackie-robinson-national-anthem-protests/

It happened in 2014 though.

He might enroll for a test program if conventional treatments fail: https://www.abqjournal.com/1083037/sen-mccain-could-seek-treatment-at-unm.html

Hmm, we need at least 14 more names.... who could it be.... 1. John McCain 2. Olivia Newton-John 3. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (already was on it 2 years ago, I think) 4. Johnny Hallyday 5. Benedikt XVI (how come he's not on there, yet?) 6. Dilip Kumar 7. Greg Gilbert 8. Franco Zeffirelli 9. Charlotte Rae 10. Lord Carrington 11. Herman Wouk 12. Bob Barker 13. Linda Nolan 14. Salvatore Riina However, I think we need a few more because some picks lose popularity (Shannen Doherty, Gordon Banks, QE II) and we might have more losses. So maybe Bob Dole and Betty White as well. Edit: Also, Jill Gascoine.

U2's new album was inspired by Bono's unspecified health crisis which was worse than the bike accident a couple of years ago: http://ultimateclassicrock.com/bono-health-crisis/

Hmm.. if the release of the "Debut" has to be 25 years in the past, then Björk is eligible from next year on... unless they count her 1977 album she recorded as a child. Then they were just stupid not to introduce her.

Yep, that was fun! Edit: I don't know, the last time, we were at your town, this time we were in mine. Next time maybe neutral ground?

Herman Wouk

Hey.. Daisy Berkowitz would have received an indirect Guardian obit, because bassist Twiggy Ramirez (said to be the outstanding musician in that band) faces rape allegations: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/oct/25/marilyn-manson-bassist-twiggy-ramirez-jessicka-addams-scott-putesky

Ah, that kills one of my observations. He could only match the previous score with one more hit (Gilbert or Stefansson)...unless THEY die on a 13th.

About the record score, indeed, under the previous scoring system, Spade would "only" be at 148pts. Golden Slumbers would only be at 142pts. The difference is one more Drop 40 for GS, and Sara Coward would have received the unlucky 13th bonus. Still Life would be at 138pts, being overtaken by TJS with 139 pts. So I guess, Spade is one hit away from "really" beating his own record. That's very, very likely still going to happen. And he'd do so with one fewer hit. Edit: Having a look at the Top 30 or so... The Love Boat is the only team with an average score per hit of above 10, and not have their joker dead yet. That high average score was what I was trying to achieve. There just were too few fatalities. (Side note: Day in the Death also sort of counts, though the problem here is that the joker died but didn't obit).

Maybe a new bonus for having your whole team die (and obit)? Not much, 25 pts at most.

Well, we are getting better by the year. Who knows... The 3000 point break might get broken, too.

I stumbled across this group through the Guardian, who is always eager to promote noteworthy women. Here's a recent article on Lady Marion Body, most likely obitable: http://www.newburytoday.co.uk/news/news/22527/stanford-dingley-village-hall-open-for-all.html Edit: Here's the Guardian article: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jan/29/the-bletchley-girls-tessa-dunlop-the-debs-of-bletchley-park-michael-smith-review

Last Bletchley Park "Listener" Alison Robins, dead at 97: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5008185/Last-Bletchley-Park-listener-dies.html Though I still have other Bletchley girls in my longlist. But they might not have been the "listeners"

Maybe. The Excel table that leads to these scores IS my longlist. So I can definitely calculate some quick scores for the regular teams. And will probably do so just for myself anyway. But going through all the several hundred teams to find the favourites eventually making the TOP 20, doing adequate research on the people my longlist missed, and maintaining the live scoreboard is a bit of work. I might try to do it bit by bit but wouldn't commit to it. At the moment, I could rather imagine running one of the regular deadpools if anyone feels like taking a break or something. I'd also be up for some DDP biographical duties. This would take the time I'd otherwise use for my ranking.

Update for Gord Downie, Daisy Berkowitz, a belated Terri Roberts non-obit and score reductions for every person still alive - because time is running out! I simply reduced the score of every living person by a third. So now those who already have more hits will do better in this than those who still have more upward potential, but fewer actual hits. Those with the joker Leah Bracknell -bad luck! But the eventual bonus, should she still die this year, will be bigger. 1. David Quantick's Showbiz Pals (185,93333) (---) 2. Thomas Jefferson Survives (181,67333) (---) 3. Golden Slumbers (180,68) (---) 4. Still Life (178,0333) (---) 5. drollercoaster (163,62) (---) 6. To Kill a Gabor Sister (158,206667) (---) 7. Deceased Hose (154,82) (+1) 8. The Love Boat (154,74) (-1) 9. Buckets of Blood (154,69) (---) 10. Dead Ends (154,08333) (+1) 11. The B-Team (152,936667) (+2) 12. Crossing The Styx (152,90) (+4) 13. Heading Nowhere (151,02) (+2) 14. Day in the Death (150,27) (---) 15. Poochie Died in the way back to his home planet (150,16) (-6) 16. I will not die, it's the world that will end! (149,33333) (-5) 17. Guild of Master Reapers (145,13333) (re-entry) 18. I'm sorry for your trouble (144,816667) (-1) 19. New Years and Drinks All Night (142) (---) 20. Drunkasaskunk (141,53) (---) In spite of the rather dramatic change in the scoring system, not many changes in places (but DQSP is pulling half a pick ahead)! So the method sort of works, but it also shows where I failed the most: My own teams. I undervalued The B-Team and overvalued The Love Boat. But I said since the beginning that I somewhat expected this bias, because if it had been any different, my teams would have been different. Otherwise, I got a couple of things quite right, like last year's no2 and 3 underperforming. I undervalued Charles Bradley and Paul Van Zandvliet. The former was just inside knowledge that led me astray, the latter was misplaced doubt about his obitability. On the other hand, I overvalued the obitability of Ben Suisala, and possibly of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. There will be one more update next month, with another reduction of score of the then still living people by another third.

Yes, I saw that. Sorry for underperforming a little, the research for winning was definitely there. And I had tons of better picks in the B-Team. I feel at least somewhat compensated with the B-Team and Shameless doing as well as they did. But then: Valeri Spiridonov, attractive but stupid pick. A bit like Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a bit gimmicky. Sharon Laws. An athlete. Next time, I give athletes a year more time to have a health downturn. Stefan Karl. Could have worked, and I guess it almost did. But good for him for pulling through, for now. Simon Ricketts. A mistake, easy to make. Next time, I'll think twice about rushing to put a candidate who reveals his illness in December into my team. Maybe it's a better strategy to just finish researching in November and to miss out on the one valuable December pick, but to also be more safe with the ones you have.

I didn't even really consider Daisy Berkowitz as a likely hit anymore. But now my main team has finally overtaken Shameless and is in the triple digits. Didn't I previously say that it's the slowest team of the competition? It's likely going to be the most successful team of the 2nd half of the year though it all depends on Leah Bracknell. But with her, Elias, Hvorostovsky, Nevin (?), Gilbert (?) and DJ Casper (?) I still hope for 70 more points. I also said that I need Stefan Karl to beat GS and Ricketts to beat DQSP. And it won't happen. Well and I need King Michael and Alberto Fujimori to stay alive. Also dicey. Maybe I'll beat myself in the fight for 5th place (but there is still drol!). Late edit: I actually only have two more chances to beat Spade. All his still living picks are on The Love Boat as well, so the chances are: Either I also get the 20/20 and my higher potential wins, or I get one or two differential hits on Christmas. So..... The B-Team has a higher chance of winning than The Love Boat. Probably the difference between 0,1% and 0,01%.

Well for me Daisy Berkowitz qualifies. But I guess outside of our circles he wasn't such a big name. And he dropped out of the Drop 40 this year.

If so... RIP. Seemed like a fine fellow. Very regrettable. And you couldn't have told how bad it was by his social media accounts (didn't check them this week though). I picked him more or less based on statistics. And until now, I would have said it was a mistake. But now, and after the earlier similar hits with Joost and Campbell, it's proving its value. I've wondered a little about his obitability. But Manson's recent publicity with accident and new album are enough to make me stop worrying.