Ed Koch has Bob Barker's Birthday Exactly. Does He Win Both Showcases?

It was Bono who crooned " Where you live should not decide/ Whether you live or whether you die."

It was Lynne Cossman, Mississippi State research fellow, who wrote that "place" definitely has significance when scientifically examining mortality rates on the local and national level.

It was us who said that no matter where you live, as long as you are alive, we say "Happy Birthday!"

Today is somebody's birthday! Whose Birthday? ex-New York Mayor Ed Koch's Birthday. How Old Is He? 1,2,3,4... 83! And Never been Kissed By... Death

Koch appears on 1 2007 Death Pool roster and because we're throwing you this party, we leave you with a little goody bag-

• The mayor of New York in Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters II, and The Real Ghostbusters was supposed to resemble Koch in both appearance and attitude, and is even given the first name "Ed" in the film novelization by Richard Mueller.
  

Ray... If someone asks you if you're a mayor, you say... YES!

Today is somebody's birthday! Whose Birthday? Price is Right host retiree Bob Barker's Birthday. How Old Is He? 1,2,3,4... 84! And Never been Kissed By... Death

Barker appears on 8 2007 Death Pool rosters and because we're throwing you this party, we leave you with a little goody bag-

• Bob Barker is the oldest winner of any MTV award. In 1996, at the age of 73, Barker won the MTV Movie Award for Best Fight for his role in the Adam Sandler movie "Happy Gilmore."
  

I guess Barker has not "had enough... Bitch!"

... And Many More!

The Holiday Season Brings Out the Host in People

Hosting a show for a long time can be awfully tiring. Just ask Bob Barker.

So we're happy to see Dick Clark on his feet for the third year in a row, after missing his "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" event in 2004 while recovering from a debilitating stroke.

But that's not the only familiar face you'll be seeing again in the coming weeks.

Retirement Living TV announced that Walter Cronkite would be featured on some network segments, capping months of negotiations with the 91-year-old former raising newsman.

Cronkite signed off from CBS News for the last time on March 6, 1981, he has stayed true to his parting words, "old anchormen, you see, don't fade away; they just keep coming back for more."

All three of these men were included this week on a list of "The 50 Greatest TV Icons," compiled by cable's TV Land and the writers of Entertainment Weekly magazine. It will fuel a two-hour special on the network airing Friday at 8 p.m. EST, as well as a feature story in the upcoming issue of Entertainment Weekly.

Take that, Lassie.

[New York Daily News]
[Reuters]
[WTOP]

I Hope This Ends With a Showcase Showdown

Bob Barker gets to tell the Hollywood Boulevard Christmas parade to come on down this year; He's the next conductor. Why would he agree to this? Well, with no more Barker's beauties flocking around him (yes- I am assuming they were employed by CBS and not directly by Bob Barker as his harem), he has no doubt moved on to Vanessa Hudgens. That's right:

Yes, there will be a Hollywood Christmas parade this year. Game show icon Bob Barker and the cast of "High School Musical" will help lead the annual holiday parade.

No word on whether all the reindeer, or Bob himself, will need to be spayed and neutered.

[cbs2.com]

TWID Notes! Volume 3

This Week in Death brings you: Notes from around the pool! We take you from the shallow to the deep end, and catch you up on all the news you need to know to be a Syms-like educated death pool competitor.

Please accept TWID's sincere apology for our one day delay. The TWID committee was slightly ill this week. Don't worry, had it been serious, it would be one of the headlines...

I would still rather be Charlie Norwood than Scott Norwood
Georgia U.S. Rep. Charlie Norwood could be forced to miss work as he fights through chemotherapy for cancer that has spread to his liver, his spokesman said.
http://www.macon.com/mld/macon/news/politics/16448046.htm

Conte Can't-e Hack it
Guinea's president, Lansana Conte, is unfit for the country's top office, Guinea's Trade Unions have said. They say that his health condition is not good enough to lead Guinea and thus should step down.
http://somalinet.com/news/world/Africa/6656

Healthy Enough for...... A NEW CAR!
Barker, who turned 83 in December, said he wanted to retire "while I'm still young," and credits his vegetarian diet for his good health. He had a different answer when asked how he's able to maintain his energy. "Booze," he said to a laugh.
http://keyetv.com/entertainment/entertainment_story_019121601.html

And now for something completely different...

Which Came First- the Cancer or the Egg?
A common breed of hens known as ISA browns were genetically modified such that they lay eggs containing certain cancer-fighting drugs, according to a new study published in the upcoming issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
http://foodconsumer.org/7777/8888/C_ancer_31/011407342007_GM_chickens_lay_cancer-fighting_eggs.shtml

Obama's Assassination Chances Rise like his Popularity
Sen. Barack Obama launched a historic campaign Tuesday to become the first black president of the United States and immediately tried to turn his political inexperience into an asset with voters seeking change.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070116/D8MMJ9E81.html

It was a big week for non-points related deaths...

He's not First; He's Last
Benny Parsons made a career of beating the odds, rising up from a childhood of poverty in the North Carolina foothills to a job as a Detroit cabbie, and eventually, becoming a NASCAR champion. He died Tuesday in Charlotte, N.C., where he had been hospitalized since Dec. 26 because of complications from his treatment. He was 65.
http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/news/story?seriesId=2&id=2732630

Pookie Passes on. Three Men and a Baby Live On
Thornton James "Pookie" Hudson, lead singer of the Spaniels doo wop group best known for the 1954 hit "Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight," has died. He was 72.
http://www.examiner.com/a-513604~Doo_wop_singer__Pookie__Hudson_dies_at_72.html

No Crying in Baseball; Death/ Sobbing Policy Undetermined
Betty Trezza, a pioneering player in the World War II-era All-American Girls Professional Baseball League and a model for one of the characters in the 1992 movie "A League of Their Own," has died. She was 81.
http://wcco.com/sports/local_story_018160347.html

He was Kind of a Big Deal and Had Many Leather Bound Books
Former U.S. Sen. George A. Smathers, a polished, dashing politician who forged friendships with presidents, waged war against communism, resisted civil rights legislation and was an early voice cautioning of Fidel Castro's rise to power, died Saturday. He was 93.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/4485495.html

Final "Greetings from Asbury Park"
Former professional wrestler Scott Bam Bam Bigelow has passed away from an unknown cause at age 45. Bigelow, a native of Asbury Park, New Jersey, retired from professional wrestling officially in 2004.
http://media-newswire.com/release_1041696.html

20 days, 4 deaths and counting...
The Commissioner's Council