Edward M. Kennedy, Senator from Massachusetts, has died at age 77. After a rocky youth (including scandals of cheating and reckless driving), Kennedy followed his brothers into politics, making health care his cause, and eventually went on to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Anticipating his own death, he had been trying to create a quick transition for his replacement as a vote on health care reform rapidly approached.
posted by ocherdraco on Aug 25, 2009 - 659 comments

People die and different folk celebrate and mourn in various ways. However, while it does seem as if everyone is blogging about baseball and boxing or UFC during these times that try men's souls'... not everyone can write about it for the CTV network. John will be missed by both Blue Jay and Expo fans and perhaps fight fans as well. Please take a moment of your time to click on some links, thank you.
posted by christopher.taylor on Mar 26, 2009 - 3 comments

Alison Des Forges, American historian of Africa, MacArthur genius and top human-rights advocate, was an impassioned observer of the Rwandan genocide, lobbying the United States and United Nations to intervene in the killings, saving some Rwandans from certain death, and later writing one of the definitive histories of the events, "Leave none to tell the story". She testified at hundreds of trials and inquiries resulting from the genocide. Last night, she perished aboard Flight 3407. "Her death is a devastating blow," said the president of Human Rights Watch, where she worked as an advisor. "She epitomized the human rights activist — principled, dispassionate, committed to the truth and to using that truth to protect ordinary people."
posted by docgonzo on Feb 13, 2009 - 24 comments

Paul Benedict, who was best known as the affable English neighbor Harry Bentley on the sitcom "The Jeffersons," has died at age 70.
posted by porn in the woods on Dec 5, 2008 - 41 comments

Death of a legend.
posted by homunculus on Jun 28, 2008 - 46 comments

Legendary special effects artist Stan Winston has passed away from cancer at the age of 62. From Mr. Roboto to the Terminator to Iron Man, he leaves an almost unparalleled body of work.
posted by dersins on Jun 16, 2008 - 62 comments

Tim Russert dead at 58.
posted by swift on Jun 13, 2008 - 245 comments

Barry Morse - an actor with an extremely rich and varied career, popular in many roles but iconic as the (original) pursuer of Dr Richard Kimble in the (original) tv series The Fugitive, and memorable to Sci Fi fans as Professor Victor Bergman in Space: 1999, has passed on. He was 89. [more inside]
posted by Henry C. Mabuse on Feb 5, 2008 - 11 comments

1995 world Rally Champion Colin McRae has died in a helicopter crash with his 5 year old son.
posted by gergtreble on Sep 15, 2007 - 54 comments

ObitFilter: Madeleine L'Engle, Newberry-winning and banned author, died Thursday aged 89.
posted by dw on Sep 7, 2007 - 147 comments

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

U. G. Krishnamurti is no more.
posted by homunculus on Apr 1, 2007 - 23 comments

Sven Nykvist leaves us. A master at the subtle manipulation of light, the multiple academy award winner and longtime Ingmar Bergman collaborator (including Persona, and the Through a Glass Darkly/Winter Light/The Silence trilogy) has passed away at 83.
more obits [1] [2] more about him [1] [2]
posted by juv3nal on Sep 21, 2006 - 22 comments

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

RIP Vincent Schiavelli , a character actor who appeared in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Buckaroo Banzai, Amadeus, Death to Smoochie and a ton of other films. A cult favorite, he was one of those actors you looked at and thought, "who is that guy?".
posted by dbiedny on Dec 26, 2005 - 81 comments

Ed Bacon, friend to skaters, died Friday. He presided over a successful urban renewal campaign (a rarity), yet leaves behind a complex legacy in the city he loved. [bugmenot]
posted by deafmute on Oct 16, 2005 - 18 comments

Funeral Arrangements: Shot out of a Cannon “The optimal, best-case scenario is the ashes will be shot out of a cannon,” ... Other arrangements were pending.

Talk about a funeral that I am going to hate missing...
posted by lilboo on Feb 23, 2005 - 36 comments

“I bid you peace…” Jeff Smith, The Frugal Gourmet, dead at 65. One of television’s most popular cooking shows throughout the 80s and 90s, The Frugal Gourmet defined the genre. An ordained United Methodist chaplain, Smith lost his PBS show in 1997 after eight men accused him of sexual assault during the 1970s. Denying the allegations, Smith nonetheless settled the cases out of court. Did the Frugal Gourmet do the ultimate shark jump? Maybe someone should ask Elmo.
posted by wfrgms on Jul 10, 2004 - 28 comments

Harry Potter: RIP Private Harry Potter from the Worcestershire Regiment was killed in action at Hebron on 22/7/1939 aged 19 years, 10 months old. This is a genuine photo of the grave of a British soldier that died during the time of the “Arab Rebellion” and is buried in the British military cemetery in Ramla Israel.
posted by Postroad on Mar 3, 2004 - 17 comments

Rerun Dead at 52 Fred Berry, who played Rerun on tv's What's Happening is dead. {Warning, 2nd link has audio but it's the cool theme song to the show.}
posted by nyxxxx on Oct 22, 2003 - 15 comments

Uday & Qusay's death - a failure?! Salam Pax thinks the U.S. "wasted a chance to show Iraqis they really are doing something". Robert Fisk asked in yesterday's press conference "Surely, the possibility of the immense amount of information they could have given coalition forces" justified efforts to try to take them alive. The military had time, the element of surprise, special forces troops, and nonlethal weapons -- so why did they attack with rockets and TOW missiles? Where is Saddam? Could we have learned more about Iraq's WMD programs? Is it better for the Bush administration to not have some questions answered?
posted by insomnia_lj on Jul 24, 2003 - 108 comments

BBC's Jim Muir explains how Kaveh Golestan, Pulitzer-winner BBC's Iranian cameraman, was killed last week in Northern Iraq: "But the extent of Kaveh's injuries was far greater than could have been inflicted by two anti-personnel mines. I believe the Iraqis had done what they apparently often do, which is to plant an anti-personnel mine on top of an anti-tank mine so that the one detonates the other." More about Golestan on Google.
posted by hoder on Apr 5, 2003 - 13 comments

Al Hirschfeld passed away today at 99. He was probably one of, if not the, most famous caricaturists in history, drawing an enormous range of stars, from Chaplin and Bergen to Seinfeld and Benny. The Line King was a '96 documentary about his work and the stars he drew in an 70+ year career as an illustrator. Very sad to think that the popular pasttime of counting the Ninas in the drawings has ended.
posted by PeteyStock on Jan 20, 2003 - 13 comments

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

Josh Clayton-Felt, lead singer of 90's alterntive rock band School of Fish spent the last few years of his life battling his record company (A&M cum Universal) and his last few weeks fighting a highly aggressive cancer that rendered him comatose just weeks after its December, 1999 discovery. When he lost his fight with cancer in January, 2000, the rights to the third re-recording of his final album had just been returned to him. Dreamworks released it earlier this month to favorable reviews. It can also be heard in its entirety here.
posted by Sinner on Feb 20, 2002 - 15 comments

Ex Enron Vice Chair Commits Suicide J. Clifford Baxter was found dead in his car in a Houston suburb Firday. Texas police said the cause of death was suicide.
posted by Lanternjmk on Jan 25, 2002 - 40 comments

George Harrison is gone. It's not totally unforseen, but is still a little sad. Here comes the sun has always been one of my favorites. It has a gentle way of making me smile. That's a nice legacy to leave people .
posted by dness2 on Nov 30, 2001 - 88 comments

Katharine Graham , Washington Post publisher dead at 84
posted by GriffX on Jul 17, 2001 - 2 comments

Beethavean Scottland died last night of head injuries sustained in a boxing last week. Will boxing ever be safe?
posted by dfowler on Jul 3, 2001 - 14 comments