The Death Pool

Team Harold Pinter Suffers A Nobel Loss

2008-12-25T10:01:00.002-05:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

British playwright and Nobel laureate Harold Pinter, famous for his brooding, unforgiving portrayals of domestic life, has died aged 78, British media reported on Thursday. Pinter, who had been suffering from cancer, died on Wednesday.

Pinter's second wife, Lady Antonia Fraser, told the Guardian newspaper he was "a great."

"It was a privilege to live with him for over 33 years. He will never be forgotten," she said.

Congratulations and 18 points each awarded to Last Call and The Kick the Bucket List. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Reuters]

W. Mark Felt Heads Toward Watergates of Heaven

2008-12-19T01:37:00.003-05:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Mark Felt, the FBI official who as the anonymous journalistic source "Deep Throat" helped bring down President Richard M. Nixon, died on Thursday at his home in Santa Rosa, Calif. He was 95.

"He was an important person for the history of our nation, but also such a gem and such a treasure to our family," said his grandson Nick Jones, who confirmed the death. "He was a great man."

Congratulations and 6 points each awarded to Famous Last Words, CraigsDeathList.org, Go to Hell, Daddy to Be Dead Mates, The Kick the Bucket List, and They Are Now As Cold As Ice. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Chicago Tribune]

Sammy Baugh Passes For the Final Time

2008-12-17T23:52:00.002-05:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Sammy Baugh, who set numerous passing records with the Washington Redskins in an era when NFL teams were running most every down, died Wednesday night, his son said. Baugh, who was 94 and had numerous health issues, died at Fisher County Hospital in Rotan, David Baugh said.

David Baugh said his father had battled Alzheimer's and dementia for several years. He had been ill recently with kidney problems, low blood pressure and double pneumonia.

"It wasn't the same Sam we all knew," his son told The Associated Press. "He just finally wore out."

Congratulations and 18 points awarded to CraigsDeathList.Org and Live Free or Die Hard. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Associated Press]

Non-Singing Sinatra Van Johnson Has Last Tune

2008-12-13T19:08:00.003-05:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Van Johnson, a '40s and '50s Hollywood heartthrob whose film career spanned six decades, has died. He was 92.

In addition to stage productions of Damn Yankees and The Music Man, Johnson also graced the small screen with guest spots on The Love Boat, Fantasy Island and I Love Lucy. His last acting appearance was in 1992's Clowning Around.

Congratulations and 18 points awarded to CraigsDeathList.Org and BRONXBOY. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]

It's Not Always Sunny in Philadeadphia

2008-12-06T18:07:00.001-05:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Martha "Sunny" von Bulow, the heiress who spent the last 28 years of her life in So oblivion after what prosecutors alleged in a pair of sensational trials were two murder attempts by her husband, died Saturday at age 76.

Martha von Bulow was a personification of romantic notions about high society — a stunning heiress who brought her American millions to marriages to men who gave her honored old European names.

But she ended her days in a coma, giving no sign of awareness as she was visited by her children and tended around the clock by nurses.

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Future Corpses of America. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[ABC News]

William Gibson Counted on a Miracle

2008-11-28T09:15:00.002-05:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Playwright William Gibson, whose "The Miracle Worker" has thrilled audiences for nearly a half-century with the true story of the deaf-blind Helen Keller's rescue from a world of ignorance, has died. He was 94.

"The act of writing makes everything possible to me," Gibson said in a 2003 interview with The Associated Press at his home in Stockbridge, Mass. "I've always found the business of writing has helped me to live."

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Extended Weekend at Bernie's. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[AP]

Studs Terkel's Active Life Comes to a Close

2008-11-01T18:45:00.002-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Studs Terkel captured the essence of Chicago in the pages of his best-selling oral histories, chronicling common people and celebrities alike. Along the way he became an ageless master of listening and speaking, a broadcaster, activist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Terkel died Friday at age 96.

"He found his home in Chicago and he found it in the gritty aspect of Chicago life," said Russell Lewis, chief historian at the Chicago History Museum. "The ne'er-do-wells, the outcasts, the bums, all these people were people he was curious about. They intrigued him."

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Go To Hell. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[AP]

Arthur Andrews Gone from Sweet House, Alabama

2008-10-27T14:34:00.005-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Glenn Andrews Sr., the Anniston businessman who created a Republican interlude in this area's Democratic representation in Washington in the mid-1960s, died at his home Thursday night at 10:30. He was less than four months from his 100th birthday.

An Alabama native, Andrews was a Princeton graduate whose early employers included National City Bank of New York, IBM and Kodak. At the time he ran for what was then the Fourth Congressional District seat in 1964, Andrews was chairman of the Calhoun County Republican Party and was a member of the state Republican Committee. He held the office for a single two-year term before being defeated by Democrat Bill Nichols in 1966.

Congratulations and 18 points each awarded to Tomb Raiders Redux (This Time with Candy) and Oldies But Goodies. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Anniston Star]

Levi Stubbs Goes Out on Tops

2008-10-17T12:55:00.004-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Levi Stubbs, the robust voiced front man who sang on the Four Tops’ biggest hits, died today at home in Detroit. He was 72. Stubbs, who had not toured with the Tops in several years because of medical issues, passed away in his sleep at about 6 a.m.

Detroiter Abdul (Duke) Fakir remains the only surviving original member of the group, which formed in 1950s Detroit and became one of Motown Records’ biggest successes with songs such as “Reach Out I’ll Be There” and “Bernadette.” Founding members Lawrence Payton and Obie Benson died in 1997 and 2005, respectively.

Congratulations and 18 points each awarded to Live Like You Were Dying and Dead Place. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Detroit Free Press]

Cell Pioneer George Palade's Body Left for Science

2008-10-10T10:46:00.002-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Dr. George Palade, who won a Nobel Prize in 1974 for his work isolating and identifying cell structure and helped create one of the leading cell biology programs in the nation at the University of California, San Diego, has died. He was 95. Palade died Tuesday, the university announced.

"George Palade was not only one of the leading scientists of his era, but was a pioneer in modern cell biology, using electron microscopy to study and describe subcellular structures for the first time," said Dr. David A. Brenner, vice chancellor for health sciences.

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Live Free or Die Hard. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[AP]

Boris Yefimov Drawn Out of the Picture

2008-10-05T13:07:00.002-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Russian political cartoonist Boris Yefimov, who was despised by German Nazi despot Adolf Hitler, has died in Moscow at the age of 109, his family says. During his career, Yefimov created an estimated 70,000 drawings that all worked toward improving his native land, The New York Times reported Sunday. Despite Hitler vowing to shoot the cartoonist on sight due to his cartoons about the Nazi leader, Yefimov enjoyed a successful art career in Russia for 70 years.

Yefimov once said in an interview that he was dedicated to covering the political world through his drawings.

"When you are a political cartoonist, you have to keep pace with politics," he said.

Congratulations and 18 points each awarded to Future Corpses of America and Oldies But Goodies. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[United Press International]

Goodbye, Newman; Paul Heads For the Stars

2008-09-27T19:39:00.002-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Paul Newman, one of the last of the great 20th-century movie stars, died Friday at his home in Westport, Conn. He was 83. The cause was cancer, said Jeff Sanderson of Chasen & Company, Mr. Newman’s publicists.

It was a rapid rise for Mr. Newman, but being taken seriously as an actor took longer. He was almost undone by his star power, his classic good looks and, most of all, his brilliant blue eyes. “I picture my epitaph,” he once said. “Here lies Paul Newman, who died a failure because his eyes turned brown.”

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Do Not Resuscitate. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[New York Times]

Fail To The Chief: Sherrill Headrick Stopped

2008-09-11T00:04:00.003-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Sherrill Headrick, a former Dallas Texans and Kansas City Chiefs linebacker, died Wednesday. He was 71. The team announced Headrick's death. The Kansas City Star reported on its Web site that Headrick died of cancer. Chiefs officials had no details, including where the former TCU star lived or where he died.

Nicknamed "Psycho" by his teammates for his aggressive play and personality, he was inducted into the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1993.

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to It's Always Sunny in Philadeadphia. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[AP]

Anita Page is Eternally Silenced

2008-09-06T22:32:00.003-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Anita Page, the beautiful blond MGM actress who appeared in the films of Lon Chaney, Joan Crawford and Buster Keaton during the transition from silents to talkies, has died. She was 98.

She had a major role—as the doomed bad girl—in "Our Dancing Daughters," a 1928 film that featured a wild Charleston by Crawford and propelled them both to stardom. It spawned two sequels, "Our Modern Maidens" and "Our Blushing Brides."

Congratulations and 18 points each awarded to Live Free or Die Hard and Kraut's Picks. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[San Jose Mercury News]

Oscar Brodney's Screen Time Runs Out

2008-09-04T17:24:00.003-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

It has come to our attention that Oscar Brodney passed away earlier this year.

Oscar-nominated screenwriter died six days shy of his 101st birthday! Mr. Brodney was nominated for an Oscar and a WGA for "The Glenn Miller Story." He was nominated for another WGA for "The Gal Who Took the West." Mr. Brodney wrote over 50 films and TV shows during his career.

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Oldies But Goodies. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Entertainment Insiders]

Death Gets Thomas H. Weller

2008-08-25T15:41:00.003-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Dr. Thomas H. Weller, who shared the 1954 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his research on the polio virus, died Saturday. He was 93.

In a 2003 New York Times interview, George Miller, a Yale virologist, described the breakthrough by Dr. Weller and his colleagues as "one of the major discoveries in virology, cell biology, and molecular biology in the 20th century."

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Live Free or Die Hard. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Boston Globe]

"Papa Jack" is Gone for a Weil

2008-08-14T09:09:00.002-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Denver icon "Papa Jack" Weil died Wednesday. The founder and operator of Rockmount Ranch Wear was famous for greeting customers, some famous, most not, at his Wazee Street store for more than six decades. Weil was believed to be the oldest working CEO at 107 and his family says he was "to Western shirts what Henry Ford was to cars."

"Through his influence for over 100 years we learned the importance of hard work and balancing careers with humor and compassion. We came to know the importance of integrity and responsibility, the strength within us to deal with life's challenges, the beauty of carefully chosen words in difficult situations, the power of story-telling and example in conveying values.

"His highest values include respect for others."

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Live Like You Were Dying. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Denver Post]

Alexander Solzhenitsyn is Nobel in Life and Death

2008-08-03T19:37:00.003-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Alexander Solzhenitsyn, the Nobel Prize-winning Russian author whose books chronicled the horrors of dictator Josef Stalin's slave labor camps, has died of heart failure, his son said Monday. He was 89.

He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1970, an unusual move for the Swedish Academy, which generally makes awards late in an author's life after decades of work. The academy cited "the ethical force with which he has pursued the indispensable traditions of Russian literature."

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to BestDeathPoolRosterEver.BlogSpot.Com. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Yahoo! News]

Randy Pausch Has Gone Above and Beyond

2008-07-25T09:39:00.004-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon University computer science professor whose final lecture inspired millions, has died of pancreatic cancer. According to Mr. Pausch's Web site, a biopsy last week revealed that the cancer had progressed further than expected, based on recent PETscans.

"Since last week, Randy has also taken a step down and is much sicker than he had been," the Web site said. "He's now enrolled in hospice. He's no longer able to post here so I'm a friend posting on his behalf because we know that many folks are watching this space for updates."

Congratulations and 7.2 points awarded to BestDeathPoolRosterEver.BlogSpot.Com, Famous Last Words, Live Like You Were Dying, Last Call, and Kraut's Picks. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

Golden Girl Estelle Getty Now Buried Treasure

2008-07-22T13:45:00.005-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Actress Estelle Getty has died at the age of 84.

Her son, Carl Gettleman, says the co-star of the TV show "The Golden Girls" died early Tuesday at home in Los Angeles. Gettleman says she suffered from advanced dementia.

The diminutive actress spent 40 years struggling for success before landing the role of a lifetime in 1985, playing the sarcastic octogenarian Sophia on "The Golden Girls."

Congratulations and 9 points awarded to I AM READY TO MEET MY MAKER, TIREMAN422, the Garden of eden, and Last Call. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[AP]

Not Your Average Jo, Stafford is Outgoing

2008-07-18T00:05:00.003-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Jo Stafford, 90, an exceptionally versatile singer who worked with Frank Sinatra, Tommy Dorsey and the Pied Pipers and shared a Grammy Award with her conductor-husband for their parody of a tone-deaf lounge act, died July 16 at her home in Century City, Calif. She had congestive heart failure.

She earned the nickname "G.I. Jo" but jokingly called herself "Miss Outgoing Freight," a War Department euphemism for artillery shells and tanks sent to the front lines.

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to M"h By You Buddy. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Washington Post]

Michael Debakey's Heart Just Wasn't Into It

2008-07-12T23:28:00.004-04:00

Michael Debakey, the world-famous cardiovascular surgeon who pioneered bypass surgery and invented a host of devices to help heart patients, has died in Houston at the age of 99. Debakey performed more than 60,000 heart surgeries, including such luminaries as Presidents Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon, former Russian President Boris Yeltsin, the Shah of Iran, King Hussein of Jordan, Turkish President Turgut Ozal and Nicaraguan leader Violetta Chamorro. Despite that, Debakey was clear:

He said celebrities didn't get special treatment on the operating table: "Once you incise the skin, you find that they are all very similar."

Congratulations and 9 points awarded to Angelos or Bust, Go to Hell, The Kick the Bucket List, and Kraut's Picks. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Associated Press]

Tony Snow Falls in the Dead of Summer

2008-07-12T23:03:00.002-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Tony Snow, a former press secretary to President George W. Bush who brought his outspoken style as a Fox News commentator to the White House, died in Washington early today of cancer. He was 53.

"It was a joy to watch Tony at the podium each day," Bush said in a statement. "He brought wit, grace, and a great love of country to his work."

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Go To Hell. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Bloomberg]

Bobby Murcer Suffers From Early Exit

2008-07-12T22:53:00.004-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Former New York Yankees outfielder and broadcaster Bobby Murcer has died from brain cancer, the Yankees said on Saturday.

"Bobby Murcer was a born Yankee, a great guy, very well-liked and a true friend of mine. I will really miss the guy," Yankees chairman George Steinbrenner said in a statement.

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Yiz-Score: 2007 DP Champ. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Reuters]

Evelyn Keyes has Now Gone with the Wind

2008-07-12T22:47:00.003-04:00

Scoring Update! The points change, death remains the same...

Evelyn Keyes, 91, a leading lady of dozens of Hollywood films who wryly dismissed much of her career, noting that she was most remembered for a bit part as Scarlett O'Hara's younger sister Suellen in "Gone With the Wind," died July 4 at a care facility in Montecito, Calif. She had uterine cancer.

[S]he told film scholar Eddie Muller: "I never got the part, the starring role that sends you shooting way up there, into the top ranks. I thought that would come. I obviously wasn't going to marry and have a family and give it all up.

"I was married, sure, but those weren't marriages -- they were legalized love affairs. So we wouldn't have the big stink -- Oh my God, they're living together! So what do you do? You get married."

Congratulations and 24 points awarded to Remains to Be Seen. The Rosters and Standings have been updated.

[Washington Post]