Death Anniversary Thread

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American composer Sammy Fain died on this day 35 years ago, aged 87.

 

[John "요한" Sulu 429]

On this day 1 year ago, Italian-born actress Marisa Pavan, who starred in "The Rose Tattoo", passed away at the age of 91.

[John "요한" Sulu 429]

On this day 3 years ago, Norwegian prime minister Kåre Willoch, who served his term from 1981 to 1986, passed away at the age of 93.

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Chuck Yeager died on this day 4 years ago, aged 97.

- Yeager enlisted in the US Air Force just three months before Pearl Harbor (the anniversary of which is incidentally today), and during the war would be stationed in England to assist the RAF. He would be shot down once in March of 1944 and would be returned with the help of the French resistance movement, and would shoot down 5 enemy planes on October 12 of that year (making him a flying ace).

- After the end of the war, Yeager would remain with the Air Force as a test pilot for high-speed planes. On October 14, 1947, Yeager would become the first person to ever reach a supersonic speed while piloting a Bell X-1 rocket-powered plane, with the news not being broken by the military for eight months (likely due to not wanting Russia to know because of the Cold War). Said plane is now in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

- Yeager would continue to try beating his record, and developed a rivalry with pilot Albert Scott Crossfield (the first person to reach Mach 2 speed). He would achieve a speed of Mach 2.44 (1872 mph / 3013 km/h) shortly before Crossfield was to be celebrated as the fastest man alive at a celebration of the Wright Brother's 50th flight anniversary. He stopped trying to break his own records after a 1963 accident where a faulty ejection caused his emergency oxygen tank to catch fire and burn his face. Yeager retired from the Air Force in 1975, as a one-star general.

- Yeager would often attend ceremonial air shows where he would recreate his feat, most notably flying in 2012 (65th anniversary of his flight) at the age of 89. He was also known for lending his name to EA's series of flight simulator games between 1987 and 1991:

 

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American film, stage and television actress Jeanne Cagney died on this day 40 years ago, aged 65.

 

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Caroll Spinney died on this day 5 years ago, aged 85.

- Spinney developed in interest in puppetry at a young age, and would make money by performing locally. In the 1950s, he would appear on Boston-area TV shows that included The Judy and Goggle Show (puppeteering the titular Goggle) and Bozo's Big Top.

- Spinney met Jim Henson in 1962, and seven years later began to star in Sesame Street as the puppeteer and voice for Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch:

As Big Bird, he had the leading role in 1985's Follow That Bird:

He would also reprise said role on other TV shows such as Mister Rogers' Neigborhood, The Electric Company, and Between the Lions. One of the few roles he had outside of Sesame Street that weren't the characters he portrayed on it was voicing a dog in the 1993 film Homeward Bound.

- Spinney was diagnosed with dystonia in 2015, and would retire from performing in 2018. The last episodes to feature his voice aired posthumously (in 2020).

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American actor Luther Adler died on this day 40 years ago, aged 81.

 

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Paul Simon died on this day 21 years ago, aged 75.

(not to be confused with Paul Simon of Simon and Garfunkel)

 

- Simon started off as a newspaper editor before being elected to the Illinois House of Representatives, and then the state's Senate in 1963. He was elected the lieutenant governor of Illinois in the 1968 election- pairing him with Republican governor Richard Ogilvie, and the only instance in the state's history where the governor and lieutenant governor were from opposing parties. Despite the partisan divide, he would work with Ogilvie to draft Illinois' most recently-adopted state constitution.

- Simon ran for governor of Illinois in 1972 but lost, and decided to take his political ambitions to a national scale and won a seat in the US House in 1974. After serving five terms he ran for the US Senate, and flipped the seat from incumbent Chuck Percy by 90,000 votes.

- In 1987, Simon would launch a campaign for president as a dark horse candidate- largely irrelevant to most of the nation, but he soon became first in the polls for the Iowa caucuses. He would come in a narrow second place behind Dick Gephardt, and after more and more disastrous primary results, he would withdraw from the race after the Wisconsin primary- though he did win his home state of Illinois. To promote his campaign, he would also make an appearance on Saturday Night Live:

(him with future senator Al Franken, who portrayed him on the show)

- Simon retired in 1996, and died seven years later due to complications from heart surgery.

 

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American stage and film actor Laird Cregar died on this day 80 years ago, aged 31.

 

[John "요한" Sulu 429]

On this day 2 years ago, American Air Force colonel Joseph Kittinger, who was the first person to conduct stratospheric space diving, passed away at the age of 94.

[John "요한" Sulu 429]

On this day 3 years ago, American actress Cara Williams passed away at the age of 96.

[John "요한" Sulu 429]

On this day 3 years ago, Italian motion picture director and screenwriter Lina Wertmuller passed away at the age of 93.

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Otis Redding died on this day 57 years ago, aged 26.

- Redding took an interest in music at a young age, singing gospel music for local places during his childhood. He considered Little Richard to have been his biggest influence.

- Redding went professional by being signed to Atlantic Records in 1962, releasing his first song "These Arms of Mine". In 1965, he wrote and sang "Respect"- a song better known by Aretha Franklin's iconic 1967 cover of it:

In 1966 he made his signature song, a cover of the 1932 song "Try a Little Tenderness"- he was initially dissuaded by his producers due to their segregationist outlooks:

(this video above was from his final performance)

- Redding prematurely died when the plane he was in crashed in a Wisconsin lake due to inclement weather. His song "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" was posthumously released and became the first song by a dead singer to top the Billboard Hot 100, and was his only chart-topper:

 

 

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American stand-up comedian and actress Shirley Hemphill died on this day 25 years ago, aged 52.

 

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Alma Mahler died on this day 60 years ago, aged 85.

- Alma was born as Alma Schindler to the noted Austrian painter Emil Schindler. She would decide to follow her father into the arts by composing piano music:

- However, Alma was more well-known for her many relationships (and three marriages) with artists and musicians of her day. She was the girlfriend of the painter Gustav Klimt and the composer Alexander Zemlinsky- but the first one she married was Gustav Mahler in 1902. Mahler disapproved of Alma's aspirations of becoming a composer (possibly not wanting her to become more famous than him). After the death of their young daughter Maria in 1907, Alma would begin having an affair with the architect Walter Gropius, with Gustav seeking counselling from none other than Sigmund Freud.

- Gustav Mahler died in 1911, and after Alma had a brief relationship with painter and playwright Oskar Kokoschka, she would remarry to Gropius in 1915. She had a daughter (Manon) with him. But he would be drafted into World War I, and once again she sought a romantic relationship while her husband was off fighting- this time with author Franz Werfel, having an illegitimate son with him. Alma and Walter would divorce in 1920.

- Alma would not marry Werfel until 1929, and the two would flee Austria in 1938, leaving for France before fleeing there to the U.S. in 1940. After Franz's death in 1945, Alma would move to New York City, where she remained until her death. Her body would be repatriated to Austria.

- After reading her obituary, Tom Lehrer would write a song about her life for his album That Was The Year That Was:

 

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American professional baseball player, scout and manager Jim Bottomley died on this day 65 years ago, aged 59.

 

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Norman Bridwell died on this day 10 years ago, aged 86.

- Bridwell began his career as a commercial artist before applying at several publishers to become a children's book illustrator. Rejected many times (likely due to his style often involving white spots within the characters akin to a child's drawing ability), he would make his first book based on one of them- that being 1963's Clifford the Big Red Dog:

Bridwell would write many books in the Clifford series, and the character later became the mascot of the publishing company that published it (Scholastic). It has also been adapted into a live-action/animated movie and two PBS Kids cartoons:

(Fun fact: Emily Elizabeth was named after his daughter.)

- Bridwell would also write The Witch Next Door in 1965, writing six books in that series:

- Bridwell died from prostate cancer, unfortunately hastened by a fall.

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American author of novels, short stories, plays and screenplays Joseph Heller died on this day 25 years ago, aged 76.

 

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Pope Callixtus II died on this day 900 years ago, aged 59.

- Callixtus' birth name was Guy, and he was the son of William I, Count of Burgundy- making him related to many medieval European monarchs.

- At 23, Callixtus became the archbishop of Vienne (France, not Vienna in Austria), and would preside over clergy meetings discussing the excommunication of Holy Roman Emperor Henry V in 1112 (Henry had abducted Pope Paschal II in order to coronate him at the start of his reign over Germany), successfully arguing in favor of the punishment.

- Callixtus was elected pope in 1119 following the death of Pope Gelasius II. He was very popular among the citizens of Rome, causing Antipope Gregory VIII (the person Henry recognized as pope) to flee. In 1122, Callixtus and Henry would finally reconcile by signing the Concordat of Worms, where Henry relinquished claims to select his own clergy. The terms would be codified in the Lateran I ecumenical council the following year, which would also lay out punishments for simony (selling church offices) and those who robbed from churches in battle.

- Callixtus was tolerant of Europe's Jewish population, issuing the Sicut Judaeis papal bull in 1120- stating they were free to practice their religion, and should not be harmed or proselytized. This bull would unfortunately be largely ignored by Europe's Christians.

- Callixtus died after five years as pope, and was succeeded by Pope Honorius II.

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American actor Rufe Davis died on this day 50 years ago, aged 66.

 

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

George Washington died on this day 225 years ago, aged 67.

- When Washington was young, he aspired to become a mapmaker, and in 1749 was named the surveyor of Culpeper County, Virginia. During this time he was also a diplomat to the Iroquois Confederacy- the Iroquois called him 'Conotocaurius', which meant 'town destroyer' (George's great-grandfather John Washington was an infamous figure to the local Susquehannock tribe, as he ordered five chiefs killed before they could negotiate with his regiment).

- During the American Revolution, British soldiers would often intercept letters written by Washington- one notable example being a 1781 letter to his dentist. His teeth were not made out of wood- rather they were constructed from brass, gold, hippopotamus ivory... and teeth bought and extracted from his slaves.

- Rather than the popular belief that Washington retired after two terms because he did not want to become a king, Washington initially planned to be a one-term president (retiring after the 1792 election), but stayed due to infighting within his cabinet and the need to build up foreign policy.

- Washington is credited with creating the American Foxhound breed of dog, desiring to breed a hound that was faster and more adept at sniffing out foxes. Some of his own dogs' names are known- among which were 'Scentwell' and 'Sweetlips'.

- Washington contracted epiglottitis after a day of riding out in cold rain, hastened by bloodletting in an attempt to cure him (it was standard medical procedure back then).

[The Ashes Urn 1,359]

American writer, reporter and political commentator Walter Lippmann died on this day 50 years ago, aged 85.

 

 

 

[Drewsky1211 4,817]

Glenn Miller died on this day 80 years ago, aged 40.

- Miller's first name was actually Alton, and he went by an alternate spelling of his middle name (it originally had one N).

- Miller would form a band with some of his friends during high school, and would soon become a freelance trombonist for big bands. Notably he worked for the Dorsey Brothers, writing several songs for them.

- Miller formed the Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1938, and their first hit was 1939's "In the Mood":

The band would have a string of hits over the next few years, many of which became swing music staples- "Pennsylvania 6-5000", "Chattanooga Choo Choo", "Tuxedo Junction", and the original version of "At Last":

- Miller would enlist in the US Army in 1942 to serve in World War II. Rather than have him serve in combat, the military would use him and his band to entertain soldiers and boost troop morale. They would be stationed in England in June of 1944. Miller was planned to be restationed to Paris in December of that year. Miller grew impatient due to delays made because of inclement weather, and would soon learn that an acquaintance would be flying there and so joined him without notifying his superiors. The plane took off- and went missing, believed to have crashed into the English Channel due to either a mechanical failure from freezing weather, or poor visibility from fog. Miller was declared dead in absentia a year later, and the wreckage remains to be found.

[John "요한" Sulu 429]

100 years ago from 2 days ago, English-born American labor union leader Samuel Golfers passes away at the age of 74.

[Death Impends 8,043]

6 hours ago, Drewsky1211 said:

Glenn Miller died on this day 80 years ago, aged 40.

 

 

This also means Ray Anthony, his Orchestra's last surviving member, has now outlived Miller by 80 years.