gcreptile

Hmm, what about Randy Quaid who has been completely bonkers for years: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3264114/Randy-Quiad-arrested-immigration-officials-second-time-Montreal-bizarre-video-emerges-wife-drinking-arguing-park.html Something isn't right there...

I have a feeling Muhammad Ali might die in 2016, but can't explain why. Clive James is going to last another couple of years. I wouldn't focus on the former pope before his older brother dies. I have no idea about Mary Tyler Moore. She might last a decade in a nursing home or something like that, maybe not... I agree that Crowe goes this month. For the sake of my team, I hope Kohl and Bhumibol go this year, it's a possibility. Late 2016 sounds realistic for Castro, but not earlier. Mid 2016 is a good bet for Carter. I'm too unsure abour Harper and Reynolds, and I'm not going to comment on Zsa Zsa.

My condolences.

Whoa! That's big news (as you see he's on my one main list), many of my DP participants are from Michigan where Dingell served, and needless to say they'll be excited errrrrr sad to hear this. SC I looked into it some more and was a bit surprised to see how quickly he has declined physically, for example, here: http://michiganjournal.org/2015/09/22/photos-former-us-congressman-john-dingell-visits-um-dearborn-for-student-governments-constitution-day/ Still, I think I probably chose him one year too soon, but I am not convinced of it anymore.

My pick Ingeburg Herz, matriarch of the Tchibo group, and one of Germany's richest people, is dead: http://www.n-tv.de/wirtschaft/Ingeburg-Herz-ist-tot-article16083166.html(link in german) She died on September 30th, but the news was only made public yesterday. An english link here: http://worldarchy.com/died-tchibo-co-founder-ingeburg-herz-pioneer-of-the-republic/ It lovingly translates the german press release and even translates her family name "Herz" into "heart" - was it Google Translate?

Longest-serving U.S. congress member in history John Dingell hospitalized for heart procedure: http://www.businessinsider.com/ap-former-us-rep.-john-dingell-hospitalized-for-heart-procedure-2015-10?IR=T Just yesterday, I checked his twitter feed and he seemed safe for this year. Still, most likely he's just another one of my growing list of death teases in my DDP team that also includes The King of Thailand, Helmut Kohl and Valerie Harper. I guess there are quite a couple of parallel universes where my team has decent 7-8 hits.

King Salman now hospitalised for dementia: http://en.abna24.com/service/middle-east-west-asia/archive/2015/10/06/713917/story.html Hmm, now I'm somewhat tempted to include him in my team next year to start a streak of Saudi royal house hits, having been successful with King Abdullah this year.

Guantanamo prisoner and likely (but not convicted) terrorist Omar Abu Bakr (43?) was recently released by the US government because of his deteriorating health: http://www.hstoday.us/columns/the-kimery-report/blog/in-keeping-his-pledge-to-empty-out-gitmo-obama-is-releasing-the-most-hardened-al-qaeda-other-jihadis-the-pentagon-deemed-the-most-high-risk/cbf530fdbc22854a69976d9c9bf6c892.html

His long-time drummer Smokey Johnson has died at 78 after a long illness: http://www.nola.com/music/index.ssf/2015/10/smokey_johnson_fats_domino_dru.html Johnson also wrote the Mardi Gras classic 'It Ain't My Fault'.

Game creator and executive Stewart Kosoy has died at 65: http://venturebeat.com/2015/10/06/stewart-kosoy-passes-away-after-long-career-making-and-financing-games/ He worked for Sega and was vice-president GT Interactive during the time the company released classics like Duke Nukem 3d, Quake and Unreal.

It proves to me the POWER OF THE INTERNET for research. Those early years were sort of poor, though inexperience and publicity creating picks may also have played a role.

Legendary german striker Gerd Müller has Alzheimer's: http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/leute/gerd-mueller-fussball-legende-leidet-an-alzheimer-a-1056519.html(link in german) This fact has been hidden from the public for years, apparently. The media knew. The approach of his 70th birthday next month (and Müller's absence from the celebration) might have caused them to make it public. Since February 2015 he has been receiving 'professional care with heavy support from his family'. His doctor also says that Bayern Munich has integrated him 'despite obvious indications of his ailment' for several years. Whatever that means... So the illness has been progressing for years.

Sort of off-topic, but a woman kisses her dead mother 'goodbye' only to find out that the body isn't her mother at all, but that she's still alive: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-34456953 I guess she was very surprised.

Joe Henson, a conservator of rare farm animal breeds, thus, a defender of genetic diversity, has died at 82: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-34456953

New pics of him and Barbara: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3259979/What-broken-neck-George-HW-Bush-recovers-fall-trip-local-BIKER-BAR-rides-speed-boat.html The recovery of his neck is ahead of schedule apparently. They want to attend a few campaign events for Jeb (implying that they believe that Jeb's campaign is actually going somewhere....).

Are we sure Graham is actually alive and not dead and replaced by his son? I think the probability of that is low, but I actually wouldn't rule it out. There was a first generation of evangelicals, like Graham or Schuller, who were serious about the Christian 'movement', but their descendants and successors also know that it's a damn fine business, see, for example, Pat Robertson.

Helmut Schmidt dissolves his long-running discussion group, basically a political salon at his home named Langenhorner Freitagsgesellschaft (Langenhorn's friday society) after 30 years: http://www.abendblatt.de/hamburg/hamburg-nord/article205974393/Das-Ende-der-Langenhorner-Freitagsgesellschaft.html(link in german) This salon met every Friday according to a stable ritual. First there was a 'warm-up' at the local pub, while Schmidt's wife Loki prepared the meal. After her death, the food was provided by catering. Then they went into Schmidt's dining room to discuss the political topics of the day. His guests mostly consisted of local personalities of politics and art, like writer Siegfried Lenz or former mayor of Hamburg, Henning Voscherau. The reason for the dissolution is Schmidt's health. The group tried to find an internal successor, but failed.

Nobody wants to oust him because nobody is strong enough to replace him: https://www.newsday.co.zw/2015/10/05/mugabes-allies-fear-ousting-him-could-see-them-sidelined/ If true, it probably reduces the probability of a violent coup.

Billy Graham releases his 'final' book: http://www.charismanews.com/culture/52435-billy-graham-warns-of-fire-and-brimstone-in-final-book According to the article, scholars have noted a certain change in attitude in there. My theory: this book was written by his son Franklin Graham, who is a bit of a christian fundamentalist. He or his organization most likely also writes Graham's daily sermons that are published in several newspapers. So basically, when Billy Graham describes this book as his 'final' book, it's actually his son suspecting that Billy doesn't have long to live anymore, certainly not long enough to publish another book in his name. Edit: Oops, sorry rockhopperpenguin, who was first with the news, so that my own flimsy musings are the only value of this comment.

Al Abrams, first employee of the famous Motown Records studio and creator of their slogan 'The Sound of Young America' dead at 74: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/al-abrams-motown-records-pioneer-dead-at-74-20151005

"Take a photo of me pretending to be falling down a cliff" said the woman who then fell down a cliff: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3260620/British-tourist-Zoe-Woolmer-encouraged-risky-photo-falling-death.html Well, to be more precise, the tour guide encouraged her. Exemplary photos in the link if you care.

I bet his diagnosis was fake.

Northern-Irish child killer Robert Howard dies in prison custody at 71: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-34438413

Former NAACP president Jerry Mondesire dead at 65: http://www.phillyvoice.com/former-naacp-leader-jerry-mondesire-hospitalized/ Brain aneurysm.

Northern Irish 'boxing hero' Freddie Gilroy hospitalised after a stroke: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/boxing-hero-freddie-gilroy-hospitalised-following-stroke-31581890.html