Death Anniversary Thread

[Handrejka 1,840]

18 hours ago, Gooseberry Crumble said:

On this day in 2005  Liberal Democrat MP  Patsy Calton  died from  breast cancer aged 56. She was first diagnosed with cancer in 1997 and it returned early 2005. 

 

Patsys political career began in Stockport Metropolitan council  were she rose to the level of deputy leader but was first elected to the House of Commons in 2001  , beating sitting conservative MP  Stephen  Day  but only just- she achieved an ultra slim majority of 33.

She was relected in 2005  with a much increased majority of over 4000 despite  not being well enough to  campaign for votes. 

 Patsy died less than four weeks after  she was relected and just five days  after she was sworn back in the House of Commons seriously ill in a wheelchair by speaker  Michael Martin.  Martin broke with convention at Patsys swearing in and shook her hand and kissed her saying Welcome home Patsy. 

I think what happened to Patsy is terribly  sad so I hope this doesn't sound  cruel or insensitive  but I genuinely  struggle to put myself in her shoes  and understand why when she was clearly  dying  after her cancer returned in her  spine in February 2005  she bothered to put herself forward for reelection? 

Perhaps some rules over nomination papers? I'm not sure but I do vaguely recall there was some muted criticism of the situation just after she died but it obviously didn't gain much traction because of the sadness of the circumstances and  fear of seeming heartless.

I completely agree.

[Hell 1,327]

American actor and filmmaker Dennis Hopper died on this day 12 years ago, aged 74.

 

 

American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five term Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party nominee for president of the United States in 1964 Barry Goldwater died on this day 24 years ago, aged 89.

 

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Duane "Dick" Bryers,  US artist, died ten years ago aged 100.

 

 

Creator of "Hilda", a buxom scantily-clad lady who adorned calendars from the 1950s to the 1980s.

160 Sexy Illustrations of Hilda

 

 

[Gooseberry Crumble 5,211]

On this day in 1995  former Southampton  FC  footballer Bobby Stokes died aged 44.  

Bobby famously scored the only goal and winning goal  in the 83rd minute of the FA cup final  in 1976 , clinching  victory for Southampton  against Manchester United. 

He played for the Saints aka Southampton from 1968 to 1977 and then for Portsmouth  from 1977 to 1978.

He struggled to shake off a severe bout of bronchial pneumonia  and died aged 44.

 

 

On this day in 1986  american fashion designer  Perry  Ellis died aged 46.

  His career in fashion started in a department store in Richmond Virginia  were he worked  to get experience as a buyer and merchandiser for  Miller and Rhoads department store. 

He later cofounded his own retail store  'A Sunny Day' and subsequently paired up with Sportswear company  John Meyer in New York. 

He later worked for The Vera Companies who at the time were famous for  their polyester double knit  pantsuits,  to design a collection  exclusively for them- his first women's Sportswear line  named 'Portfolio' 

     This arrangement proved to be very fruitful and successful  with an abundance of new ideas leading to popular new   classics  that were a hit with the female shopper.

Perry eventually went on to form his own fashion house in 1977 - 'Perry Ellis International ' whose most famous and popular  efforts included introducing the trend for the double layering of shoulder pads on top of each other- hence what is referred to as the shoulder pad look which is synomous with 1980s fashion in the US, UK  and beyond. 

Flounce mini skirts ,better known as  rah rah skirts in Britain,  that Perry introduced with Norma Kamali were also a big success story. 

Perry was a great believer in the philosophy being careful not to take fashion too seriously otherwise you kill it creatively. 

Perry Ellis died aged just 46 but what of is unclear and somewhat contested . Officially he died of encephalitis  but some subsequent  sources and listings  say he died of AIDS  but his company at the time was reluctant to acknowledge this at that time because of the huge stigma and hostility in american society towards  those with the illness. 

  

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Milton Bradley died on this day 111 years ago, aged 74.

Bradley was originally a lithographer, but moved onto creating board games after his business failed (this was due to him making a lithograph of Abraham Lincoln, and people wanting their money back once he started growing his iconic beard as the lithograph was now outdated). In 1860, his first creation, The Checkered Game of Life, was released. The game had a strong sense of morality- the goal was to earn points by landing on morally just spaces, and it was played with a 6-sided top instead of dice (dice were a symbol of gambling back then). His company would update the game into the modern-day The Game of Life a century later.

While he was the founder of the Milton Bradley Company, most of their most popular games were released long after his death- these include Candy Land (1949), Yahtzee (1956), Operation (1965), Twister (1966), Battleship (1967), and Simon (1978). His company was bought by Hasbro in 1984, who merged it with its former competitor Parker Brothers in 1998 to form Hasbro Games, ending it. Both Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers' brand names were phased out in 2009.

 

[The Ashes Urn 1,331]

American musician West Arkeen died on this day 25 years ago, aged 36.

 

[Gooseberry Crumble 5,211]

On this  day  in 1321  Birger King of Sweden died aged 40/41.

This is  quite a Nordic  saga! Very Game of thrones as much monarchy was back then.

 Birger was the son  of King Magnus ll of Sweden. But Magnus himself had only become monarch  after he lead  a  rebellion against his elder brother King Valdemar,after  disputes over taxation and 'personal  matters' , successfully toppling him from the throne. 

King Valdemar  died when his son Birger was only 10 but he had appointed  an influential statesman of the time Torglis Knutsson  as his sons  guardian  and constable of the realm.  So Birger was effectively  King at the tender age of 10 but not initially  with much power being exercised by him.

In 1302  when  King Birger came of age and was ready and willing to embrace his role as monarch and to become  a husband to Martha of Denmark  ,daughter of King Eric V of Denmark  he was formally crowned  King of Sweden. But pretty much from the beginning of his reign there was an argument with the church of Sweden over the interpretation  of privileges 1280 which  had been the price  Birgers father had paid to secure the churches support  when he usurped his brother from the throne years before. 

                    Birgers two brothers  Erik  and Valdemar spotted a weakness and decided to take advantage  of the disagreement between church and monarch  and tried establishing mini  kingdoms in parts of Sweden fermenting rebellion and dissent.  Civil war broke out but by 1306 the situation had somewhat simmered down and Birgers two brothers were prepared  to acknowledge their nephew  Birger son as the rightful successor to the throne.  But this acknowledgement  was not without cost because  King Birger  insisted  on his brother Duke Valdemars  father in law  was executed  as a token of reconciliation between the three brothers. 

So later that year  animosity still brewing King Birger was taken hostage by his two Duke brothers on one of the royal estates.  Still King in name but largely powerless and held captive for two years before  his brother in law now the King of Denmark  intervened and forced his brothers to release him in 1308. 

         Upon release he fled to Denmark but very much was by then King of Sweden in name only and having given up Swedish territory and  some royal estates to his brothers. 

  Four years later in 1312  King Birgers  two brothers both married into the Norwegian Royal family on the same day in a massive double wedding in Oslo They both then started to expand their Kingdoms and territory joining up parts of Norway with parts of Sweden their brother  Swedens King had effectively ceded to them.

This tense power play rumbled on for several years  but in 1317  Birger launched a successful capture of both his brothers during a traditional  royal Swedish  Christmas  banquet and according to historical  record starved his brothers to death on a cellar in Nykoping Castle. 

            But jubilation was short lived  as his brothers supporters  ousted him from power  less than a year later  and had to go into exile again in Denmark where he died   three years later. His son and  heir   Magnus  was killed in  battle trying to retake Sweden  in 1320 leaving no direct heirs-  meaning that Birgers  three year old nephew Magnus,  son of his treacherous  brother   Duke Erik, who was already King of Norway with his mother as regent , was to be the next King of Sweden .

 

 

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Petronius Maximus, Roman emperor, died on this day 1567 years ago, aged 58.

Maximus became emperor a day after the assassination of Valentinian III- whom he possibly had ordered killed himself: it is theorized that it was either due to Valentinian either blocking his political advancement or raping his wife. In order to ascend to the throne, he immediately married Valentinian's widow, who was suspicious of him.

 

Maximus cancelled the marriage of his stepdaughter Eudocia to Huneric, the prince of the Vandals, and instead married her with his son Palladius. Huneric's father, King Geiseric, was enraged by this, seeing this to be in violation of a peace treaty signed in 442 between him and Valentinian. Geiseric sailed for Rome with his army (he made an agreement with Pope Leo I not to kill any civilians or destroy any buildings). As the Vandals looted the gold and silver supply, Maximus decided to flee- he was met by an angry mob of Romans, and he was stoned to death, and his body was desecrated and thrown into the River Tiber. He had reigned for just under eleven weeks.

 

[Gooseberry Crumble 5,211]

On this day in 2001 american actress,  radio and television presenter and celebrity game show panellist Arlene  Francis  died aged 93.

The acting part of Arlene career began in local theatre and off Broadway plays  but her first film role was in 1932 horror film  'Murders in the rue morgue' were she played a  a streetwalker  pursued by a dangerous mad scientist  played by horror move icon Bela Lugosi  who iconicly  played Count Dracula.

 Her other screen acting roles were on and off and quite sporadic  until the 1970s  including a film role playing the wife of James Cagneys character in Billy Wilder directed film One,two, three.

 

The main focus and success in Arlenes career in showbusiness  was in either presenting or being a regular guest contributor on TV and radio talk shows.  From hosting NBC networks  Daytime magazine show  'Home' aimed at housewives  to in 1938 becoming the first and only female host  of the Radio version of the gameshow  'What's my line?'.

  A lovematch style Dating show on the Radio  called Blind Date were six men behind a wall tried to appeal to three women on the other side of the wall  to choose them for an all expenses paid date  was also a big success for her- although at the time it was considered to be rather risque!

 

But it was  as a regular  panellist on the  television   version of gameshow  'What's my line?' that Arlene achieved most fame  and moneys as for a number of years she was  the highest paid game show panellist in the US  commanding  fees much higher than other panellists. 

Arlene Francis was considered a pioneer for women in television and an established firm favourite on the 'gameshow  circuit'.  

              In her personal life she married twice  , finding much contentment in her second  marriage to actor/producer Martin Gabel  but in the 1960s was involved in two tragedies.  In 1962 the couple were sued by  the widow of a man who was killed in New York after being hit on the head  by one of Arlenes dumbbells  that had fallen from their 8th  floor Ritz apartment.  The couple were not at home at the time of the incident but their maid on their instructions  had shampooed the carpet and left all the windows open to air  the scent thus sadly allowing an unsecured dumbbell to roll out. They settled the lawsuit for an amount that would be several million in todays money. 

   The following year Arlene was involved in a serious car crash in Long Island . She was not at fault  but one of the five passengers in  the car that  hit her  died and the physical and mental trauma she experienced took a good while to recover  from.

Arlene died  from alzheimers disease and cancer  in San Francisco  having outlived her husband by 15 years.

 

   

 

 

 

[The Ashes Urn 1,331]

Canadian-American film actress Dorothy Patrick died on this day 35 years ago, aged 65.

 

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15th President of the United States James Buchanan died on this day 154 years ago, aged 77.

Initially a Federalist, Buchanan was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1814. He served for two years, and in 1820, he was elected to the US House of Representatives, as one of three people concurrently representing Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district. In 1828, he joined the newly-founded Democratic Party, and left Congress in 1831 after serving five terms. Buchanan was appointed as the ambassador to Russia by Andrew Jackson in 1832, and served for a year. He was elected to the US Senate, serving until 1845, when he was appointed Secretary of State under James K. Polk. In 1853, Franklin Pierce appointed him as the Minister to the United Kingdom. He was elected President in 1856.

 

Buchanan believed that slavery was a "states' rights" issue, and his presidency oversaw the Dred Scott v. Sanford case, which denied citizenship to African-Americans. In 1857, a financial crisis ensued, which saw increased unemployment in northern cities. He also successfully replaced Brigham Young as Governor of the Utah Territory after a Mormon militia killed a group of settlers headed for California. Buchanan did not seek re-election.

 

In December of 1860, South Carolina declared secession from the United States, and seven states had seceded by the end of his presidency. Buchanan believed that secession was unconstitutional, but that it was also unconstitutional for him to stop them. His inaction during this time has caused Buchanan to be considered one of the worst American presidents (in some lists, THE worst) of all time.

 

Buchanan is also the only president so far to have never been married, but he was engaged at one point to a woman named Anne Coleman. Rumors about them spread, and Coleman called off the engagement. She died soon after, and Buchanan wrote a letter to Anne's father (who forbade him from attending her funeral) saying that everything would be explained in a future letter- shortly before his death, he ordered his letters burned. It is also rumored that he may have been bisexual, and having relations with his housemate, (the future Vice President) William R. D. King.

[Gooseberry Crumble 5,211]

On this day in 1941  Hans Berger  a german neurologist  died aged 68.

He is best known for being the inventor of  electroencephalography (EEG) method of recording electrical  activity in the brain which helped in the diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy  as well as  assessing the extent of brain damage  or if brain death has occurred.  He also discovered the alpha  brainwave. 

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Its 20 years since the death of former South African cricket captain (Wessel Johannes) "Hansie" Cronje, aged 32.

    

In 200, Cronje was charged with match fixing and barred from involvement in cricket for life. He was killed in a plane crash after his scheduled flight from Johannesburg was cancelled and he hitched a lift in a HS 748; approaching George airport, the pilots lost visibility, and were unable to land; while circling the plane crashed into the Outeniqua Mountains; all three on board were killed.

 

Conspiracy theories abounded that Cronje was killed by betting syndicates to cover up match-rigging. 

[The Ashes Urn 1,331]

American singer-songwriter Tony Thompson died on this day 15 years ago, aged 31.

 

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French fashion designer who founded his eponymous fashion label Yves Saint Laurent died on this day 14 years ago, aged 71.

 

 

American politician who served as the 28th vice president of the United States from 1913 to 1921 under President Woodrow Wilson Thomas R. Marshall died on this day 97 years ago, aged  71.

 

 

British Liberal Democrat politician who was Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 1999 to 2006, and a Member of Parliament from 1983 to 2015 Charles Kennedy died on this day 7 years ago, aged 55.

 

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On this day in 1997  american tennis player  who won nine Grand Slam titles  died in New York aged 88.

Helen was said to have  a powerful serve and  overhead smash , a good backhand  but never excelled in mastering the art of hitting  a flat forehand  despite being coaches by some of the best. 

Nevertheless  that did not overly hinder  her sporting success,  nine grand slam titles,  ranked in the top ten US tennis players  by the respected US Tennis association every year between  1927 and 1941 except 1930 and 1938- and ranked number 1 by them in 1936 and  featured heavily in the worlds top ten between  1928 and 1939 among her best accomplishments. 

In 1933 she dared to break with tradition and was the first woman  to wear man tailored shorts at Wimbledon. 

Away from tennis during World War two Helen  served as a commander in Navy intelligence- one of only five women to achieve that status  in the Navy. 

 Helen Jacobs was openly lesbian in her own social circle and was in a relationship for nearly ten years with Henrietta Bingham,   daughter of the US ambassador to the United Kingdom Robert Bingham.

[Drewsky1211 4,073]

Peter Sallis died on this day 5 years ago, aged 96.

Sallis was initially a theatre actor- the peak of this was in 1968 from the first West End production of Cabaret, in which he played Herr Schultz. He also starred in episodes of Danger Man, The Avengers, and Doctor Who.

 

In 1973, Sallis was cast as Norman "Cleggy" Clegg in Last of the Summer Wine. This character was the only one to appear in all 295 episodes of the show, and he delivered the last line of the series in its 2010 finale: "Did I lock the door"?

 

In 1983, stop-motion animator Nick Park asked Sallis to voice the main character in a short film he was making, and Sallis accepted on the basis that Park donate  £50 to his favorite charity. The film was released in 1989- it was called A Grand Day Out- the first Wallace and Gromit cartoon. Sallis would go on to voice the character until the 2010 miniseries Wallace and Gromit's World of Invention, and Ben Whitehead took over the role.

The character's affinity for Wensleydale cheese caused sales of it to increase by 23% following the release of the only theatrical Wallace and Gromit film, Curse of the Were-Rabbit, in 2005.

 

Sallis retired from acting in 2010 due to failing eyesight. In 2013, he made his first appearance on the DeathList, and would make a consecutive five appearances before his death.

[The Ashes Urn 1,331]

American jazz trumpeter and bandleader Bunny Berigan died on this day 80 years ago, aged 33.

 

 

 

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Jazz trumpeter Doc Cheatham died on this day 25 years ago, aged 91.

 

Classical guitarist Andrés Segovia became the very first DeathList hit on this day 35 years ago, aged 93.

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American actor in film and television best remembered for his role as Ellery Queen in the 1970s TV series of the same name, and his screen partnership with Paula Prentiss in four films, starting with Where the Boys Are Jim Hutton died on this day 43 years ago, aged 45.

 

 

American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees Lou Gehrig died on this day 81 years ago, aged 37.

 

[Gooseberry Crumble 5,211]

On this day in 2010  american actress  Rue McClanahan died aged 76.

Rue  played one of television comedys best shameless  tarts Blanche  in legendary tv sitcom  The Golden Girls. 

[Salmon Mousse 466]

Baseball legend Lou Gehrig passed away on this date in 1941, aged 37, of Lou Gehrig's Disease.... in hindsight, he probably should've seen that coming (I didn't look back but I have to imagine this joke's been made before)

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Jack Kevorkian died on this day 11 years ago, aged 83.

In 1959, Kevorkian began to express some- let's call them "interesting" ideas about euthanasia. He advocated for death row inmates to be executed via medical experiments (while under anesthesia), and their organs harvested and transplanted into sick patients following execution. As a doctor, he successfully transfused blood from a cadaver into a living patient, hoping that the US military would be interested in this technique to help soldiers who were bleeding out in battle.

 

In the 1980s, Kevorkian began to openly advocate for assisted suicide. He became a counselor for terminally ill people in 1987. His first assisted suicide occurred in 1990, when Kevorkian euthanized a 54-year old woman suffering from early-onset Alzheimer's. He was charged with murder, but these charges were dropped, as Michigan (where he lived) had no laws regarding voluntary euthanasia. However, his medical license was still revoked.

 

Between 1990 and 1998, Kevorkian helped 130 terminally ill patients end their lives, through the use of a machine that would administer lethal drugs or chemicals, that the patient had to voluntarily activate. His final patient was a 52-year old man with ALS, and a videotape of the event was broadcast when Kevorkian was the guest of a 60 Minutes episode two months later. Three days after the interview aired, Kevorkian was charged with second-degree murder, and was found guilty in a trial that occurred the next year. He was sentenced to 10 to 25 years in prison, and was released on parole for good behavior after serving eight years of his sentence.

 

Kevorkian made his only appearance on the DeathList in 2007 (the year of his release) in the number 47 spot. In 2008, he ran in the election for Michigan's 9th congressional district, finishing in a distant third. Kevorkian died from a thrombosis related to longtime kidney disease- without the use of assisted suicide.

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American professional boxer and activist Muhammad Ali died on this day 6 years ago, aged 74.

 

 

Mexican-American actor Anthony Quinn died on this day 21 years ago, aged 86.

 

 

Iranian political and religious leader who served as the first supreme leader of Iran from 1979 until his death in 1989 Ruhollah Khomeini died on this day 33 years ago, aged 86.

 

 

American politician and lawyer from Illinois Stephen Douglas died on this day 161 years ago, aged 48.

 

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Katia & Maurice Krafft died 31 years ago today. 

 

They were husband & wife volcanologists, well-known for often being first on the scene at volcanic eruptions. Realising other peoples interest in the footage they had made of Mount Stromboli, they made a career out of filming eruptions, which funded their expeditions.

 

The died on a ridge of Mount Unzen in Japan, along with 41 others, when lava left a channel and engulfed them. All were killed instantly.

 

Their career is documented in the 2022 film Fire of Love.