As if there haven't been enough celebrity deaths, now the sad news that the great impressionist - comedian Fred Travalena has passed away at his Encino, CA home at age 66. Examples of some of his work are here from a Merv Griffin Show, and a later one from a live performance.
posted by Seekerofsplendor on Jun 29, 2009 - 35 comments

Polly wants a Prozac. Fred the Parrot tries to bite his neck off after his owner dies, vets prescribe bird-friendly anti-depressants.
posted by BrnP84 on Nov 20, 2008 - 22 comments

Fred Kaplan gives President Obama suggestions on foreign policy repair.
posted by wittgenstein on Nov 6, 2008 - 22 comments

When the Rolling tones recorded an old blues tune called You Gotta Move on Sticky Fingers back in 1971, it was another instance of a tune by an old black man, known only to blues aficionados, suddenly becoming part of the consciousness of a gazillion people who probably never would've heard it otherwise. But let's pay a little visit to the man who originally wrote and recorded the song, Mississippi Fred McDowell, shall we? Here's a jumping version of Shake 'em On Down, his haunting Going Down to the River, the gospel blues of When I Lay My Burden Down, Highway 61, My Babe (you'll note the similarity to "This Train"), Louise, and his version of the American folk/blues standard John Henry. And don't miss the beautiful 1969 documentary featuring McDowell at Internet Archive, Blues Maker, which features some superlative acoustic performances, and footage of the people and environment of the Mississippi delta country.
posted by flapjax at midnite on Sep 23, 2008 - 40 comments

Fred the Undercover Cat dead at 15 months.
posted by rxrfrx on Aug 12, 2006 - 31 comments

Portraits of Stuffed Monkeys.
posted by brain_drain on Jul 27, 2006 - 9 comments

"Brett Meisner has helped to put the 'rock' back into 'rock and roll' forever!" said Kurt Loder in 2003. Given Meisner's impact as a music critic and rock 'n' roll badboy, this is something of an understatement...
posted by ph00dz on May 30, 2005 - 8 comments

Copper - tales about Copper and Fred, his dog. By Kazu Kibuishi.
posted by PenDevil on Jul 30, 2004 - 6 comments

National Fred Davis Registry - Do you know Fred Davis? How about Fred Davis? They're both on the registry, along with a whole bunch of other Freds.
posted by fnirt on Apr 18, 2002 - 4 comments