Famous Friends We Lost In 2017
Each new year we realize that we are not immortal. Our time does eventually run out.
For some it’s later in life and for others the end comes all too soon.
We mark the passage of the rich and famous with mixed feelings. They touched our lives even though, in most cases, we never actually knew them in real life.
We just felt like we did. They were friends who visited us and were always welcome.
Here are a few that will be sadly missed that we lost in 2017.
Gone But Not Forgotten
- Miguel Ferrer, Actor – Bob Morton in “Robocop” and Owen Granger in NCIS: Los Angeles – age 61
- John Hurt, Actor – John Merrick in “The Elephant Man” (1980) – age 77
- Mary Tyler Moore, Actress – Laura Petrie on The Dick Van Dyke Show(1961-1966) and Mary Richards on The Mary Tyler Show (1970-1977) age – 80
- Mike Connors, Actor – Joe Mannix in TV show “Mannix” (1967-1975) – age 91
- Barbara Hale, Actress – Della Street on TV show “Perry Mason” (1957-1966) – age 94
- Richard Hatch, Actor – Captain Apollo in “Battlestar Galactica”(1978-80) – age 71
- Joseph Wapner, Judge – L.A. County Superior Court and TV show “The Peoples Court” (1981-93) – age 97
- “Professor” Irwin Corey, Actor/Comedian – frequent guest on game and talk shows for four decades – age 102
- Bill Paxton, Actor – “Aliens”, “Predator 2”, “True Lies”, “Apollo 13”, “Twister” – age 61
- Robert Osborn, Film historian – host of Turner Classic Movies and The Movie Channel – age 84
- Chuck Berry, Singer/Songwriter – 1950s rock & roll pioneer, “Maybellene” (1955), “Johnny B. Goode” (1958) – age 90
- Chuck Barris, Game Show Host/Creator – “The Gong Show” (1977-80), the “Dating Game”and “The Newlywed Game” – age 87
- Don Rickles, Comedian/Actor – comedic style was “King of the insults”, starred in P.O. Sharkey(1976-78) – age 90 (kidney failure)
- J.Geils, Muscian – J. Geils Blues Band, “Centerfold”, “Freeze Frame” – age 71 (natural causes)
- Erin Moran, Actress – Joanie Cunningham on “Happy Days” and “Joanie Loves Chachi” – age 56 (stage 4 cancer)
- Roger Ailes, former Chairman and CEO of Fox Television Stations Group & Fox News – age 77 (excessive bleeding from a fall)
- Sir Roger Moore, Actor – Simon Templer in “The Saint” (1962-’69), James Bond in seven films (1973-’89) – age 89 (cancer)
- Gregg Allman, Muscian – The Allman Brothers Band, “Midnight Riders”, “Ramblin Man” – age 69 (liver cancer)
- Adam West, Actor – Bruce Wayne on “Batman”(1966-’68) – age 88 (Leukemia)
- Stephen Furst, Actor – Dr. Elliot Axelrod on “St. Elsewhere”, Flounder in “Animal House” – age 63 (type II diabetes complications)
- Gary DeCarlo, Singer – “Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Good Bye” (1969) – age 75 (cancer)
- Martin Landau, Actor – “Mission: Impossible” (1966 -1973), “Space: 1999” (1976-’77) – age 89
- John Heard, Actor – Father in “Home Alone” and “Home Alone 2” – age 72 (complications from back surgery)
- Glen Campbell, Singer/Songwriter – “By the Time I Get to Phoenix”, “Wichita Lineman”; nominated for 21 Grammy's and won 10 – age 81 (Alzheimer’s disease)
- Jerry Lewis, Comedian/Actor/Humanitarian – “The Bellboy” (1960), Nutty Professor (1963), Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon (1966-2010) – age 91
- Tobe Hooper, Horror Films Writer/Director – “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” (1974) and “Poltergeist” (1982) – age 74
- Harry Dean Stanton, Actor – Tramp in “Cool Hand Luke” (1967), Private Willard in “Kelly’s Heroes” The detective in “Christine” – age 91
- Hugh Hefner, Publisher – editor-in-chief and publisher of Playboy magazine (1953 – present) – age 91
- Monty Hall, Game Show Host (CA/US) – hosted and produced “Let’s Make a Deal” (1963 – 1991 incl syndication) – age 96 (heart failure)
- Tom Petty, Singer/Songwriter – Tom Petty and the Heart Breakers: “I Won’t Back Down”, “Free Fallin”, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee (2002) – age 66 (sudden heart attack)
- Fats Domino, Singer/Songwriter – “Ain’t That a Shame” (1955), “Blueberry Hill” (1956), he sold over 65 million records – age 89
- Robert Guillaume, Actor – Benson on the TV-series “Soap” (1977-’81) and “Benson” (1979-’86) – age 89 (prostate cancer)
- John Hillerman, Actor – played Jonathan Higgins II on Magnum, P.I.(1980-88), won a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award – age 84
- Della Reese, Singer (multi genre)/Actress – Tess in TV show “Touched by an Angel” (1994-2003); as a singer “Don’t You Know?” (1959) – age 86
- Mel Tillis, C&W Singer/Songwriter – “I Ain’t Never”, “Good Woman Blues”; CMA Entertainer of the Year 1976 – age 85
- David Cassidy, Actor/Singer – portrayed Keith Partridge in TV series “The Partridge Family” (1970-74) – age 67 (early onset dementia)
- Jim Nabors, Actor/Singer – Gomer Pyle on TV shows; “The Andy Griffith Show” and “Gomer Pyle USMC” – age 87
- Dick Enberg, Sportscaster – did play by play reporting for most sports for most major networks from the mid 1960s till 2016 – age 82
- Rose Marie, Actress/Singer – played Sally Rogers on The Dick Van Dyke Show(1961–66) – age 94
- Penny Chenery Tweedy, Owner of Triple Crown Winner “Secretariat”
Those Lost In 2018
- Ray Thomas, Musician (UK) – founding member of the rock group The Moody Blues “Nights In White Satin” – age 76 (prostate cancer)
- Jerry Van Dyke, Actor – played David Crabtree in TV show “My Mother the Car“(1965) and Luther Van Dam on “Coach” (1989-’97) – age 86
- John Young, Captain, USN / NASA Astronaut – flew on the first manned Gemini mission (1965) and five more missions including a moon walk (1972) – age 87
Some Final Thoughts
Thanks for the memories. R.I.P. (Source)