Gone But Not Forgotten 2008

I am currently working on a compilation post for a few of the many artists and other notables who died in 2008. Naturally the list below is not complete, but it gives you an idea on what I am drawing from for the compilation. The list was compiled from the following sources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7.

January 7 – Philip Burnett Franklin Agee (CIA case officer) age 72
January 10 – Rod Allen (aka Rodney Bainbridge, lead vocalist and bassist for The Fortunes) age 63
January 15 – Brad Renfro, actor (Mark Shay in “The Client”) age 25
January 17 – Bobby Fischer (world class chess champion) age 64
January 18 – Lois Nettleton, actor (Evelyn in “Crossing Jordan”) age 80
January 19 – Suzanne Pleshette, actress (”Bob Newhart Show” and “Rome Adventure”), age 70
January 20 – John Stewart Musician, Songwriter (was a member of the Kingston Trio)
January 22 – Heath Ledger, actor (A Knight’s Tale” and “Brokeback Mountain”) age 28
January 26 – Christian Brando, son of actor Marlon Brando, age 49
February 1 – Shell Kepler, actress (Amy Vining on “General Hospital” ) age 49
February 2 – Barry Morse, actor (Lt. Philip Gerard on “The Fugitive”) age 89
February 5 – Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (taught transcendentalist meditation to the Beatles) age 96
February 10 – Roy Scheider, actor (Police Chief Brodie in “Jaws”) age 75
February 12 – Van Johnson, actor (major star at MGM during WWII and after)
February 13 – David Groh, actor (Rhoda’s hubby Joe, on “Rhoda”) age 68
February 15 – William Patrick Bennett (Toronto blues singer) age 56
February 26 – George Allen Miles, Jr (aka Buddy Miles, drummer for Jimi Hendrix) age 60
February 27 – William F. Buckley (author and conservative commentator) age 82
February 28 – Mike Smith Musician (was the lead vovalist for The Dave Clark Five) age 64
March 2 – Jeff Healey (blues-rock guitarist and jazz trumpeter) age 41
March 13 – Martin Fierro (tenor saxophonist: jazz, freeform rock, avant-garde) age 66
March 18 – Arthur C. Clarke, writer (”2001: A Space Odyssey”) age 90
March 19 – Paul Scofield, actor (”A Man for All Seasons”) age 86
March 24 – Richard Widmark, actor (”How the West Was Won,” “Madigan” ) age 93
April 5 – Charlton Heston, actor (Moses in “The Ten Commandments”) age 84
April 8 – Cedella Booker (mother of Bob Marley) age 81
April 9 – George Butler (jazz record producer) age 78
April 18 – Joy Page, actress (appeared in Casablanca as the newlywed) age 83
May 5 – Jerry Wallace (1950’s country singer) age 79
May 8 – Richard Edward Arnold (aka Eddy Arnold, country music legend) age 89
May 11 – John Rutsey (original drummer for Rush) age 55
May 23 – Bruce “Utah” Phillips (anarchist folk singer and storyteller) age 73
May 24 – Dick Martin (Rowan & Martin’s Laugh In 1968-1973) age 86
May 24 – James Harrell McGriff (aka Jimmy McGriff, jazz/funk organist) age 72
May 26 – Earle Hagen (composer, Andy Griffith show theme) age 89
May 26 – Sidney Pollock, director (directed The Way We Were and many others) age 73
May 29 – Harvey Korman, actor (best known for his role on the Carol Burnett Show) age 81
June 2 – Bo Diddley, musician (one of the founding fathers of “Rock & Roll”) age 79
June 7 – Jim McKay, sportscaster (voice of “the agony of defeat” who anchored ABC Wide World of Sports)
June 10 – Red Shea (guitarist for Gordon Lightfoot, Ian Tyson, Tommy Hunter) age 70
June 13 – Tim Russert, political journalist and host of NBC’s “Meet the Press”
June 17 – Cyd Charisse, dancer – stylized dance on screen (performed repeatedly with Fred Astaire)
June 22 – George Carlin, comedian (best known for his use of off color language) age 71
July 3 – Oliver Schroer (Canadian fiddle player who combined folk and classical arrangements) age 52
July 4 – Sen. Jesse Helms, (CIA goon, 5 term Senator from North Carolina and outspoken conserative) age 86
July 12 – Tony Snow, (reporter, White House Press Secretary until cancer forced his retirement) age 53
July 22 – Estelle Getty, actress (best known for her role on The Golden Girls) age 85
July 22 – Joe Beck (jazz guitarist) age 62
July 25 – Johnny Griffin (jazz saxophonist) age 80
August 9 – Bernie Mac, comedian (starred in his own sitcom titled The Bernie Mac Show) age 50
August 10 – Isaac Hayes, musician (famous for writing the musical theme to Shaft) age 65
August 18 – Pervis Jackson, musician (was the bass voice of the Spinners) age 70
August 19 – LeRoi Moore (saxophonist, Dave Matthews Band) age 46
August 30 – Eldon Rathburn (composer of Labyrinthe for NFB for Expo67) age 92
September 2 – Jerry Reed, Musician, Actor (co-starred in Smokey & the Bandit) age 71
September 15 – Richard Wright (keyboardist for Pink Floyd) age 65
September 19 – Earl Palmer (Hall of Fame session drummer who worked with Little Richard, Fats Domino, Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Costello, The Monkees, Tom Waits, The Righteous Brothers, and many, many more)
September 20 – Napoleon Brown Culp (aka Nappy Brown, soul singer) age 78
September 26 – Paul Newman, actor, race car driver, philanthropist (starred in 50 films best known for Butch Cassidy and the Sun Dance Kid) age 83
October 10 – Alton Ellis (Founder of The Flames and creator of the rocksteady reggae beat) age 70 – (Flames bandmate David ‘Baby G’ Gordon also died at age 70, date unknown)
October 11 – Neal Hefti (jazz trumpeter, composer) age 85
October 15 – Frank Kerr (aka Frankie Venom, lead singer, Teenage Head) age 51
October 17 – Levi Stubbs, Singer (front man for the Four Tops) age 72
October 19 – Richard Blackwell, Fashion Critic (best known for his “Ten Worst Dressed Women” yearly list) age 86
October 24 – Merl Saunders, Musician/Keyboardist (played with The Grateful Dead) age 74
October 25 – Estelle Reiner, Actress (Wife of Carl and Mother of Rob Reiner) age 94
October 29 – Blair MacLean (comedian, MacLean and MacLean) age 62
November 1 – Yma Sumac (South American singer known for multi-octave range) age 86
November 1 – Jimmy Carl Black (born James Inkanish, Jr., drummer, The Mothers of Invention) age 70
November 4 – Byron Lee (leader of the Dragonnaires, a Jamaican ska, calypso and soca band) age 73
November 10 – Miriam Makeba (South African folk singer) age 75
November 12 – John “Mitch” Mitchell (drummer for Jimi Hendrix Experience) age 62
November 20 – Ermine Bramwell (Cherry Green, member of the original Wailers) age 65
November 24 – Kenny MacLean (bassist for Platinum Blonde) age 52
December 1 – Paul Benedict, Actor (best known as the quirky neighbor on the Jeffersons), age 70
December 2 – Odetta Holmes (American folk singer) age 77
December 11 – Bettie Page (1950s pin-up model) age 85
December 25 – Eartha Kitt, Singer (smooth purrr like voice, sang Santa Baby and many others), age 81
December 29 – Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (aka Freddie Hubbard, jazz trumpeter) age 70