Saturday, April 16, 2011

Compost thou art, and to compost thou shalt return . . .

Swedish "promession" firm will freeze-dry your corpse, then crumble it up and spread it in the garden -- via UPI.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Trevor Bannister

Comic actor -- via the Sun. He wil be best remembered for his role as Mr. Lucas in the British sitcom, "Are You Being Served?"

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Arthur Marx

Writer -- via deadline.com. His claim to fame might erroneously be seen as being the son of Groucho, but he was a talented and prolific writer, turning out books and writing for screen, radio and television.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Paul Kriwaczek

Historical writer and innovative television producer and director -- via the Guardian.

Lewis Binford

Archaeologist -- via The Hindu.

Lacy Gibson

Blues guitarist -- via Spinner.

Leslie Barringer

Street poet and former child actor -- via the Toronto Star.

Angela Scoular

Actress -- via the Telegraph.

Sachin Bhowmick

Screenwriter -- via Hindustan Times.

John Bottomley

Singer/songwriter -- via newswire.ca.

Ron Hickman

Designer and inventor -- via the Guardian. Two of his top creations are very different indeed -- the Lotus sports car and the Black & Decker Workmate!

Gerald A. Lawson

Video game pioneer -- via theroot.com. He invented the ROM game cartridge!

Peter Ruehl

Humor columnist -- via the Sydney Morning Herald.

Billy Bang aka William Vincent Walker

Jazz violinist and composer -- via NPR. One of the great exponents of free jazz.

Daniel Catan

Composer noted especially for his operas -- via the Bellingham Herald.

Adam Lusekelo

Journalist and humor columnist -- via ippmedia.

Murtaza Hassan aka Mastana

Comedic actor of stage and television -- via the Pakistan Times.

Don Merton

Conservationist -- via stuff.co.nz.

Stephen Watson

Poet -- via BOOK Southern Africa.

Donald Shanks

Bass-baritone -- via the Australian.

Pierre Gauvreau

Painter -- via Radio Canada.

Eddie Joost

Shortstop with the (Philadelphia) A's, Reds, Red Sox and the (Boston) Braves -- via philly.com. He was the oldest living player from a World Series-winning team, the 1940 Reds. He is mentioned in the famous, funny baseball jazz tune by Dave Frishberg, "Van Lingle Mungo."

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Peter Stelzer

Actor and producer -- via legacy.com.

Sir Geoffrey Chandler

A pioneering advocate of ethical business principles -- via the Guardian.

Jess Osuna

Actor -- via legacy.com.

Richard Earl Patterson

Drummer, singer, tap dancer and musical archivist -- via the Ottowa Citizen.

Arthur Lessac

Voice and speech teacher -- via legacy.com. His first work? On the musical revue "Pins and Needles" from 1937!

Hedda Sterne

Artist who defied classification -- via the New York Times.

Roger S. Nichols aka The Immortal

Sound engineer and producer -- via audioz.info. He was the one to capture the sound of perfectionists Steeley Dan; he also worked extensively with John Denver. Who else did he record? the Beach Boys, Stevie Wonder, Crosby Stills & Nash, Roy Orbison, Placido Domingo, Rickie Lee Jones, Mark Knopfler and many others. He went to high school with Frank Zappa -- they goofed around and recorded Frank's early music together.