Being old, death gets my attention, so I read the obituaries. This is a collection of recent obits, mostly of people whose work touched my life, because I want to say thanks (or maybe give 'em a final fuck you).
There’ll be a roundup like this every weekend, until I’m on the list myself.
Marvin Ray Beck
forgotten man
Francisco Ciatso
wrestler, “The Journeyman”
Herbert Coward
actor, Deliverance
David Emge
actor, Dawn of the Dead
Frank Farian
rock’n’roller, Boney M
Gary Graham
actor, Star Trek: Enterprise
Rod Holcomb
TV director, The Six Million Dollar Man
“Jason”
forgotten man
Jesse Jane
porn actress, Pirates
Norman Jewison
filmmaker, Moonstruck
ABilly S. Jones-Hennin
LGBTQ rights activist
Dexter King
civil rights, the next generation
Brett Dean Nelson
friend of a friend
Charles Osgood
broadcaster, POSSLQ poet
Arno A. Penzias
Big Bang theory
Jerry Pryor
street cleaner
Margaret Riley
film producer, Bombshell
Melanie Safka
rock’n’roller, “Brand New Key”
Marlena Shaw
singer, “California Soul”
Linda K. Shropshire
forgotten woman
Steve Skaggs
baseballer, Toronto Blue Jays
David Skal
author, Dark Carnival
Margo Smith
country singer, “It Only Hurts for a Little While”
Red Swanson
baseballer, Pittsburgh Pirates
I remember the first time I heard “Brand New Key” was as a kid in the mid 90s when it was covered by the band Rasputina! It was one of my favorite tracks on the album and I didn’t even realize it was a cover until years later lol
Is it just a coincidence that Rasputin is basically the most famous song by someone else on this list?