Death Anniversary Thread

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On this day 33 years ago  in 1989,   21 year old up and coming american actress  Rebecca Schaeffer was murdered  by  19 year old Robert John Bardo ,a man who had been stalking her for three years.

In the months prior to Bardo  shooting Rebecca to death in her West Hollywood home he seemed to lose some interest in her and switched his obsessive attention  to pop stars Debbie Gibson and Tiffany.  But when he saw Rebecca Schaeffer in an intimate bed scene with another actor in new film ' Scenes from the class struggle in Beverly Hills ' he became enraged and felt she needed to be punished for becoming just another 'Hollywood whore'. Sadly watching this film seemed to act as a catalyst to her  shocking murder. 

During her all too brief life she starred in a number of daytime US  television soaps such as  Guiding Light and One life to live  , had a small role in Woody Allen film  Radio Days and a starring role in CBS  sitcom 'My Sister Sam'.

Her last film also starring Dyan Cannon - 'The End of Innocence '  was released posthumously  in 1990.

 

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On this day  25 years ago  in 1997,  James Goldsmith , a  wealthy british businessman  and founder of the eurosceptic  Referendum Party that became a vehement opponent and thorn in the side of of John Majors government in its final years, died aged 64. 

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Syngman Rhee died on this day 57 years ago, aged 90.

 

Rhee first entered politics by protesting against the pro-Japanese emperor, and was imprisoned for plotting against him in 1899. He attempted to escape, and was sentenced to life imprisonment- he was released once the Russo-Japanese War began, thanks to the help of Korean reformist leaders. In 1905, he emigrated to the United States, eventually settling in Hawaii and advocating for re-independence from Japan. In 1920, Korea's government-in-exile located in Shanghai appointed him as Acting President, and he moved there. Rhee was impeached and removed from office in 1925 for alleged misuse of power, and he returned to the US and moved to Washington, DC in 1939.

 

Korea was freed from Japan once they were defeated in World War II, and Rhee was elected the country's first president in 1948. Rhee soon began to crack down on communists, and in some instances, assassinated some of their politicians. This caused Kim Il-sung, the premier of the Soviet-controlled northern partition, to launch an invasion in 1950, triggering the Korean War. Once the North Koreans occupied Seoul, Rhee relocated his government to Busan. American involvement chased the invaders back to North Korea, and negotiated a ceasefire (that is still ongoing) in 1953, which Rhee objected to.

 

Rhee was a corrupt president who embezzled money from the public, and desperate to cling to power, ordered the arrest of opposition politicians after they vetoed an amendment that would cause the upcoming election to be decided by popular vote. Rhee received 74% of the vote in the 1952 election, and later amended the constitution to allow him to serve unlimited terms, being re-elected in a landslide in 1956 and 1960 (he got 100% of the vote in the latter due to his main opponent's death before the election). When Rhee's hand-picked successor won the Vice Presidency in a landslide, the opposition party claimed that the vice presidential election was rigged, leading to riots. Rhee fled to the United States as protestors stormed his presidential house.

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Its 25 years since the death of writer & musician Frank Farrell, at the age of 50, most likely as a result of an unhealthy relationship with alcohol.

 

Best known for being Bass player in Supertramp, Farrell had previously played with Birmingham band Breakthru, and subsequently with Fields & Renaissance. In between he was head roadie for Johnny Johnson & the Bandwagon and the first musical director of The Rocky Horror Show (he left after a disagreement with Richard O'Brien).

 

During his Renaissance years, he also played bass for, and wrote songs with, Leo Sayer including the international hit Moonlighting.

 

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American baseball pitcher Spec Shea died on this day 20 years ago, aged 81.

 

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On this day in 2014   american actor  James Garner died aged 86.

Among the more well known works he acted in both film and television  include   Move over Darlin- with Doris Day (1963) , The Great Escape (1963) , Blake Edwards directed movie  Victor/Victoria (1982) alongside Julie Andrews  and  in television  Private Detective and ex con Jim Rockford in long running  drama The Rockford Files .

He made quite a succesful transition from  predominantly working in film during the golden age of Hollywood to more television roles in his later career.

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On this day 29 years ago in 1993  Vince Foster , lawyer and  Deputy White House counsel  under Bill Clinton's Presidency  died aged 48 after death via a  self inflicted  gunshot. 

Despite five separate investigations into his death that concluded he committed suicide as a result of severe clinical depression  , conspiracy theories and suspicions persist  in some circles that he was murdered. 

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Tammy Faye Bakker died on this day 15 years ago, aged 65.

 

Tammy married televangelist Jim Bakker in 1961, with their show The PTL Club debuting in 1974. During the show's run, Tammy was known for her more tolerant views of homosexuals, and interviewed a gay minister diagnosed with AIDS in one episode- she would continue to be an ally to the LGBTQ+ community until her death. The pair managed to gain hundreds of millions of dollars in donations, and in 1978, opened Heritage USA- a Christian theme park that rivalled Disney theme parks in attendance.

 

Things were looking bright- until 1987. That year, Jerry Falwell bought out the PTL Club from the Bakkers, and a rape accusation was made against Jim. In 1989, Jim would soon be convicted for fraud, and Heritage USA soon closed in part from damage from Hurricane Hugo. In 1992, Tammy divorced Jim while he was imprisoned.

 

Tammy married Roe Messner in 1993- and like Jim, was also convicted for fraud, in 1996. That year, she was diagnosed with colon cancer, which went into remission. In 2004, she was diagnosed with lung cancer, which also went into remission- it returned by 2005. At this time, she was a regular guest on The Larry King Show, where she discussed her ongoing battle. By the end of 2006, Tammy had difficulty swallowing and was soon put into hospice care, which caused her appearance on the 2007 list at #19. Tammy's final public appearance was on The Larry King Show on July 18 as a final goodbye for her fans- this above picture of her was from the program, and she weighed only 65 pounds (29.5 kilograms).

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British born writer Nicolas Freeling died 19 years ago aged 76.

 

Freeling (born Davidson) travelled extensively, and was working as a chef in an Amsterdam restaurant when he was detained for taking home some food/suspicion of being involved in underground gangs and spent three weeks on remand. During this time, inspired by the worldly detective who'd interviewed him, he began writing a story of a similar worldly detective; on his release, he and his wife were deported and once settled in London, he finished his debut novel, featuring the Dutch detective Piet Van Der Valk. 

 

After killing off the titular hero, he wrote offshoot "The Widow", featuring Arlette Van der Valk, and a replacement detective series set in Strasbourg, featuring Henri Castang.

 

Non-fictions works included cook books, and a couple of semi-autobiographical books The Kitchen Book & The Village Book.

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Italian inventor and electrical engineer Guglielmo Marconi died on this day 85 years ago, aged 63.

 

 

 

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Hong Kong and American martial artist, martial arts instructor, actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and philanthropist Bruce Lee died on this day 49 years ago, aged 32.

 

 

American singer, best known as the lead vocalist of rock band Linkin Park Chester Bennington died on this day 5 years ago, aged 41.

 

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On this day in 1998 US professional  female wrestler  June Byers died aged 76.

The texan was in many ways a trailblazer for women in the sport  , most impressively  she was a female world champion three times.

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On this day fifty years ago in 1972   american track and field  athlete   Ralph Craig  died aged 83.

He won two Olympic gold medals in sprinting at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm. 

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Byzantine emperor Manuel II died on this day 597 years ago, aged 75.

In 1390, Manuel was forced to become an honorary hostage to the Ottomans, and had to participate in their campaign to conquer the Byzantine's last Anatolian enclave. When his father, John V, died the following year, Manuel escaped and rushed to Constantinople to crown himself. This resulted in sultan Bayezid I blockading the city beginning in 1394, lasting until 1402 when they had to retreat to fight the Turco-Mongol leader Timur.

 

In 1399, Manuel began a tour of Europe, visiting Italy, France, and England- he was the only Byzantine Emperor to visit England. During this time, John VII was left in charge of the empire, seizing a small amount of land back from the Ottomans. Manuel returned in 1403, just in time for the children of Sultan Bayezid to begin a civil war against each other- Manuel caused Byzantine-Ottoman relations to improve by befriending the new sultan, Mehmed I- however, things turned sour once he got involved with their next succession crisis in 1422, with sultan Murad II sieging Constantinople.

 

Manuel was soon debilitated by a stroke, and lived his last few years as a monk under the name Brother Matthew. His son, John VIII, took the throne once he died.

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Five years ago Deborah Watling died, aged 69.

 

Best known for her role as Victoria, companion to Patrick Troughton's second Doctor, she also had regular roles in The Newcomers (1969) and Danger UXB (1979) and numerous other credits in both film and TV.

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American actor John Heard died on this day 5 years ago, aged 71.

 

 

American astronaut, naval aviator, test pilot, and businessman Alan Shepard died on this day 24 years ago, aged 74.

 

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American professional baseball first baseman Jimmie Foxx died on this day 55 years ago, aged 59.

 

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On this day ten years ago in 2012 English cricketer  Don Wilson died aged 74.

He played on and off for Englands national cricket team between  1964-1971 and for Yorkshire County Cricket club between 1957-1974.

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Picture it..  ! On this day 14 years ago in 2008  american actress  Estelle Getty, best known for playing  wisecracking Sophia Petrillio  in legendary  US sitcom The Golden Girls and spin off series The Golden Palace when onscreen daughter  played by Bea Arthur left,  died aged 84.

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Giuseppe Piazzi died on this day 196 years ago, aged 80.

On New Year's Day in 1801, Piazzi observed a previously-unidentified object that moved across the stars. Initially announcing it to be a comet, Piazzi had suspicions that he discovered a "new star"- that being a planet: "since its movement is so slow and rather uniform, it has occurred to me several times that it might be something better than a comet".

 

Piazzi named his celestial discovery "Ceres Ferdinandea"- the first part being the Roman goddess of agriculture, and the second being named after his monarch, Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies. Eventually, this "planet" was discovered to be part of a large group of previously-unnamed objects- asteroids- and was demoted from its planetary status in 1867. In 2006, Ceres (which Ferdinandea was dropped from due to political reasons) was promoted to a dwarf planet, and was visited by a spacecraft for the first time in 2015.

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Its 34 years since the death of actor Patrick Newell.

 

Recognisable for his large size, he was often cast as an inept villain or comic foil. He claimed to have gained weight to ensure he continued to be cast in niche roles. He's probably best remembered as the wheelchair-using spymaster "Mother" in The Avengers, often seen to be briefing Steed from the unlikeliest of locations. He'd made two previous appearances so its possible his large size did indeed have the desired effect.

 

Another major role was in the "gluttony" segment of the film The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins (where he played the doctor rather than the glutton).

 

He also appeared in programmes as diverse as The Benny Hill Show (playing a bunny girl) and Doctor Who (in The Android Invasion, playing Colonel Faraday, as Nicholas Courtenay was unavailable to play the Brigadier). 

 

Despite losing weight he died of a heart attack aged 56.

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American Major League Baseball center fielder Lloyd Waner died on this day 40 years ago, aged 76.

 

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On this day in 1950 the 10th  Prime Minister  of Canada  William Lyon MacKenzie King  died aged 75.

 

He served as  Prime Minister  three times in non consecutive terms. He was thee dominant political figure of his era.

He was the leader of the Liberal Party from 1919-1948  and was Canadas  Prime minister   from 1921-1926, he resigned briefly in 1926 after  King Byng  affair  - essentially there was a big constitutional crisis when the governor general of Canada refused  Prime Minister Kings  request to dissolve Parliament so he could call a general  election. Briefly replaced  as PM for less than 3 months by Arthur Meighen , leader of the Conservative party   when the crisis was resolved and an election held , King won and served a second term from 1926-1930.

 

However as they went into the 1930 general election,  just as the deep economic  problems of that decade were starting to manifest,  King was seen to badly mishandled the country's economic woes. He underplayed the situation and  believed the economic depression  was just a minor blip as part of the down part of the business cycle and not a major crisis. 

      The voters  punished him  and the  Liberal Party at the ballot box and they lost the election 

Five years later  he won the next General election  and  became the Prime Minister  who lead  Canada through the latter part of the economic depression of the 1930s  and World War two.

He left office in 1948  and died from pneumonia in 1950.

King remained single all of his life and reportedly  found the lack of  a wife problematic at the many social functions his political career and office required he attend as he was not a natural host or social butterfly.  Often relied on close female friends to help in this regard. 

However  an examination of his diaries years after he died has lead a number of historians to conclude  that he was likely gay and secretly in love with  Lord Tweedsmuir  who in 1935  he appointed as the Governor General of Canada .

 

A deep interest in spiritualism , séances etc   was also revealed in his diaries - something that may have counted against him with the general public if it had of been widely known at the time. Friends however insist that he lost interest in spiritualism  pretty much from the beginning of world war two and never regained that interest for the rest of his life. 

 

 

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Ulysses S. Grant, 18th President of the United States, died on this day 137 years ago, aged 63.

Here's a list of interesting facts about Grant:

 

- Like Harry S. Truman, the "S" in his name stood for nothing. He added it because his original initials were H.U.G. (Hiram Ulysses Grant).

- Grant loved horses since a young age, and it was during his childhood that he became a pro at horseback riding- one circus horse that was trained to buck everyone off it could not get an 11-year-old Grant off of it. During the Civil War, he ordered one of his soldiers tied to a tree for six hours for whipping their horse.

- During his presidency, Grant was given a speeding ticket while driving a horse-drawn carriage.

- Despite his reputation as a fearless general, Grant was known to have hemophobia (fear of blood), and ordered meat that he ate charred.

- The photo above of Grant wearing a beanie was one of the last ones taken of him, three and a half weeks before his death of throat cancer (Grant was a lifelong smoker). He was largely in debt, though his widow Julia received compensation from his posthumous memoir sales (the memoirs were published by his friend, Mark Twain).

- Despite Groucho Marx's famous You Bet Your Life question, Grant is technically not buried in Grant's tomb- his sarcophagus is above ground.

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English singer and songwriter Amy Winehouse died on this day 11 years ago, aged 27.

 

 

American actor Montgomery Clift died on this day 56 years ago, aged 45.