Amy Jade Winehouse was found dead in her London home at the age of 27. CNN and BBC are providing breaking coverage of the story. The powerful British soul and R & B singer had a history of struggling with drugs and alcohol. [more inside]
posted by KillaSeal on Jul 23, 2011 - 322 comments

I've never known of a single colleague who has been tortured, or who lives with the threat of death and persecution for their work, in such a confused state of mind that they believe that working in the defence of individual and collective freedoms is an act of heroism. We know full well that it is nothing more than an exercise in survival and shared dignity. [more inside]
posted by Ahab on Feb 6, 2011 - 10 comments

"Joey, have you ever been in a Turkish prison?" Veteran actor Peter Graves--who was the star of the original Mission Impossible TV series, most famously (for some of us) played Capt. Oveur in Airplane!, and was the Emmy-winning host of Biography--has died of natural causes. He was 83.
posted by zardoz on Mar 14, 2010 - 93 comments

Girl, Interrupted: The Life and Death of Brittany Murphy "Part of the shock surrounding Murphy's death is clearly related to her age, though it may also be attributed to the fact that Murphy has been in the public eye for over 15 years, starting out in Hollywood when she was 14... It's something we've watched progress this entire decade: young women who are held up as the next big thing (Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears) and then brushed aside or openly mocked after they no longer fit an expected mold. It is both a story of self-destruction and mass-destruction, the business of creating and destroying a star; sometimes it's caused by internal forces, and sometimes it's fed by the rest of the world."
posted by ocherdraco on Dec 20, 2009 - 139 comments

Mrs. Slocombe is no longer free. Actress Mollie Sugden has died at 86, after a long illness. Best known as the irascible Mrs. Slocombe in the long running British sitcom "Are You Being Served?" who famous cared a great deal about her pussy.
posted by dnash on Jul 1, 2009 - 84 comments

With the world buzzing about celebrity deaths, it was an opportune moment for hoaxsters. A rumour that Jeff Goldblum had died spread quickly on Twitter, and "'Jeff Goldblum dead' was at 11am the third-most popular search term on Google". The actor's agent quashed the rumour, but not before Australian TV broadcast it as fact, complete with a touching montage tribute. Still, now he knows what it will be like when he really goes: "A surprise funeral? For me?"
posted by robcorr on Jun 26, 2009 - 78 comments

Children's TV host Mark Speight found dead in a remote part of Paddington station in London.
posted by auralcoral on Apr 13, 2008 - 23 comments

Lee Hazlewood died.
posted by tugena13 on Aug 6, 2007 - 36 comments

Mike Douglas dead.
posted by KevinSkomsvold on Aug 11, 2006 - 42 comments

Own the Bus that Drowning Pool's Lead Singer was found Dead in. Is this a hoax or a morbid curiosity collectible? Would you buy a Haunted Painting or celebrity death memorabilia? [link via actionmanmagazine board]
posted by drezdn on Aug 15, 2002 - 19 comments

Spenser: Retired Robert Urich 1946-2002 :(
posted by WolfDaddy on Apr 17, 2002 - 20 comments

It's too late to enter Luke's Death Pool, but you can visit the previous "participants" in the game at Find a Grave. It's pretty useful, you can search by birthdate, deathdate, and by their claim to fame among other criteria. Many even have photos of the grave site like Orson Welles, Nat King Cole (died 35 years ago today), and Smokey Bear. Useful and bizarre.
posted by mathowie on Feb 15, 2000 - 5 comments