gcreptile

So, you didn't make Carey Lander your joker (as I did). And if I had to guess, my current joker will die in December. I'll submit three teams this year. The main team will be a somewhat boring cancer team whose entries have all already been mentioned on this board (as it currently stands). My B-Team will be a little more eclectic, featuring the odd terrorist, the possible uniques and a few old people, a bit like my main team this year. And my theme team.

Drag Queen and fingernail artist Lateasha Shuntel dies and all the ladies of Ru Paul's Drag Race offer their condolences: http://www.queerty.com/beloved-drag-performer-found-dead-rupauls-drag-race-queens-share-condolences-20151118

This death even made it to the Guardian: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/30/deso-dogg-syria-air-strike-killed-isis-rapper-from-germany-says-us But the problem is, he might still be alive: http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/islamischer-staat-denis-cuspert-deso-dogg-ist-moeglicherweise-am-leben-a-1063393.html(link in german) US secret service believes he's dead, german security believes they heard him on a phone.

Noted American sculptor David Hostetler dead at 88: http://woub.org/2015/11/18/noted-athens-sculptor-david-hostetler-passes-away/

South African Rugby legend John Gainsford dead of cancer at 77: http://www.supersport.com/rugby/springboks/news/151118/Bok_legend_John_Gainsford_passes_away

Accepting a role in Top Gun 2 or not? And still wearing the scarf: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3322723/Val-Kilmer-sends-fans-frenzy-announcing-Gun-2-return-backtracks-comments-confusing-Facebook-posts.html

That death didn't really change anything. Crowe is still the most crucial case this year. The tiny, tiny chance of DQSP with Kris Travis still remains (though for me, he's out, as I said before). Golden Slumbers still has an outside chance to win with Hadzic and Brinson - which are worth 21 pts, one more than DDT is now ahead of him.

His fall resulted in an aneurysm, which however has been removed successfully: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3322668/Bruce-Forsyth-undergoes-successful-keyhole-surgery-doctors-discovered-aneurysm-following-fall-home.html

And now he looks a little frail again, can't make up his mind: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3323131/Frail-Burt-Reynolds-looks-dapper-black-look-red-tie-heads-Late-Stephen-Colbert-appearance.html

Comedy writer Gordon Stretch is dead at 87: http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/comedy-writer-gordon-stretch-died-10457582 He wrote for The Two Ronnies, Roy Hudd and Know Your Place. I admit, I'm stretching the limits of notability here.

Seymour Lipkin, prime piano teacher of the USA, tenured at Juilliard, has died at 88: http://slippedisc.com/2015/11/sad-news-americas-foremost-piano-teacher-has-died/ Polish conductor Jerzy Katlewicz is also dead at 88: http://slippedisc.com/2015/11/goreckis-premier-conductor-has-died/

He will also be speaking at Helmut Schmidt's funeral, just as he spoke at Egon Bahr's funeral a month (?) ago.

By my count, the current Death List is made up of 32 people who were basically chosen because they were old and famous. These picks are basically unaffected by technological progress. It just means that in the future, the age-related picks might already be a little older when chosen. Then there are a couple of half ill/half old people, Gabor, Graham, Castro, King of Thailand... Then there are the longshot picks, the sort of ill but not necessarily terminally ill gambles Large, Roberts, Kercheval, and Nash, I guess. The really terminally ill people, Simon, Crowe, Nimoy, Harper, Woodhead, James and Van Der Westhuizen are a minority. It looks like medical advances have really helped Harper and James. Maybe Van der Westhuizen would have died a long time ago if this was the 20th century? Though I think that the way the Death List is set up, one shouldn't expect a marked decline in numbers. But this year, we got lucky with age-related deaths, which is why there might be a record. Plus, there was the freak accident of John Nash. A statistical present. I guess this is why the record might last a while, unless the committee changes its approach. However, my argument would also mean that DDP scores decline in the future. This year isn't over yet, but as far as I can tell, the chance of anyone reaching 100 pts depend most likely on the death Martin Crowe. His continued survival symbolizes the medical progress in a way. But then for ruthless DDP players, new technology also plays a bigger role than for the committee choosing old, universally famous people.

Who knows... maybe he's planned it for many years. Maybe the secret to his success is that he creates online histories of virtual people, plants fake news reports, makes up interviews and creates cancer fundraisers years in advance. And then he lets these virtual people die whenever he needs it and keeps the donations. A devious plan with lots of benefits.

A Guardian article on Lewy Body Dementia, the disease now getting more publicity because of Robin Williams: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/nov/17/dementia-lewy-bodies-disease-kathleen-anduze-robin-williams As I said before, it could be that Greville Janner has it, because he has symptoms of both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. I also believe that political protest climber Edwin Drummond has it, since he also suffers from hallucinations, among other things.

Doubt it as he says he no longer tests positive.. But if you were a, ahem, young and aspiring porn actress, would you risk it? Would you believe him? Also, in Germany, hiding your HIV status and having unprotected sex is a crime. It seems that this is also true in America (see TMZ). And finally, I'd really need the hit in 2015, to finish the year with a somewhat decent result. (Cynical? Yes, but if the rumours of Charlie's revelation are true, then he doesn't really deserve any sympathy.)

I wonder if his revelation will put an end to his hookers-and-blow parties. That seems to be the only thing that keeps him going.

Hmm, still not exactly a shoo-in for 2016 selection though. Article simply said she couldn't attend, NOTHING about being TOO ILL to attend. Don't bring hyperbole to this site it's the last thing we need. SC Ah, not hyperbole, but I found the news originally in a Telegraph article, here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/movie-news/spike-lee-oscar-acceptance-diversity/ It literally says there that she was too ill. But the Telegraph has a paywall policy ("only allowed to read x articles for free), so I linked the Daily Mail article about the same thing instead, and didn't realize they used a different wording. But I looked further and this version here: http://variety.com/2015/film/awards/debbie-reynolds-governors-awards-statement-1201639989/ says that she is in an "unexpectedly long recovery" from recent surgery.

Yes that would count but you link doesn`t seem to work. Ah, the "is" from my sentence made it into the link... http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/nov/16/former-creighton-president-schlegel-dies-at-72/ Yep that counts just as the obituary has been provided by the associated press. The Unknown man :213 Sir Creep:167 gcreptile:142 Death Impends:141 Shaun of the Dead :124 Morbidkid :121 Bibliogryphon:102 Grim up North :101 Captain Chorizo:73 Maryportfuncity:64 Handrejka:50 Rotten Ali:50 Jiroemon Kimura:19 Deathray :17 msc:15 Updated for Schlegel (another name I hadn`t heard of).That puts Sir Creep and gcreptile in second and third place respectively but both still a wide margin behind the unknown man.Also just checked and no one had Warren Mitchell.I could have sworn I saw his name on my master list but I am pretty sure I must be mistaken. It's turning out to be an interesting contest. The Unknown Man is leading with his slow-but-steady approach of choosing the right nonagenarians, whereas I, for example, chose younger and riskier types (in terms of obitability and of mortality chance). And the Unknown Man is leading even though the setup of this contest is more discriminatory age-wise than the DDP. For example, in the DDP, the death of Maria Gaidar (Russian defector to the Ukraine) would yield the points of 2 Helmut Schmidts (10 points vs. 5 points). But in Shaun's Deadpool, her death is like 4,5 Helmut Schmidts (82 points vs. 16 points). And in addition, choosing riskier types should be better in Shaun's Deadpool with 50 names, than in the DDP with only 20 names. There is a better chance that at least one of those risky picks, like, say, George Zimmerman, or some young terrorist, comes through and counts. In the DDP, picking 20 nonagenarians that actually die might just barely be enough to win (with 105 points), if we go by experience of the last couple of years. So, if this contest is set up to favour "gambling" a little more, then picking 50 nonagenarians that actually die (small chance of that, but I'm just writing down my thoughts), "shouldn't" be enough to win. But the counter-argument against this is that a contest just running for a couple of months, does not last long enough to statistically lead to this advantage of risk over reliability. Let's see how it goes on...

Yes that would count but you link doesn`t seem to work. Ah, the "is" from my sentence made it into the link... http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/nov/16/former-creighton-president-schlegel-dies-at-72/

Debbie Reynolds too ill to receive her honorary award: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3319232/Billie-Lourd-accepts-honour-grandmother-Debbie-Reynolds-behalf-supported-mother-Carrie-Fisher-Governors-Awards.html

Dancehall legend Ninja Man hospitalized being "seriously ill": http://urbanislandz.com/2015/11/14/ninja-man-hospitalized-after-falling-ill/ But.... he's also currently suspected of murder and waiting for his trial, so the "mystery" of his illness might turn into a "mystery" recovery.

Here's a potentially golden idea: Bobby Rush, US representative notable for being the man who beat Barack Obama in his first campaign for Congress (and a former black panther), is "fighting cancer", according to this news: http://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/7/71/1099647/sweet-bobby-rush-2 He battled cancer before and was declared cancer-free in 2008, so I assume that the cancer is back. And to be honest, he doesn't look very good on that photo there. Edit: Curiously, he was on my mind before. So I googled him and thought that the other Bobby Rush, the blues musician aged 82, might also be a possibility.

I think so, too - but the New York Times is not an acceptable obit in this contest.

Stravinsky expert, conductor and author Robert Craft is dead at 92: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/15/arts/music/robert-craft-stravinsky-adviser-and-steward-dies-at-92.html?_r=0