Monday, March 11, 2013

Fred Ridgeway

Actor -- via the Guardian.

Peter Beales

Horticulturalist and rose grower -- via the Telegraph.

Noel Botham

Muckraker -- via the Telegraph.


Pat Halcox

Trumpeter -- via the Guardian.

Albert Hirschman

Humanitarian, teacher, and writer -- via the Telegraph.

Peter Gilmore

Actor -- via the Telegraph.

Ken Hodges



Musician; member of Spanky and Our Gang -- via the Omaha World-Herald.

Melvin Rhyne

Jazz organist -- via the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Mido Macia

Victim of police violence -- via ioi.co.za.

Colin Gieg

Bassist -- via my friends on Facebook.

"Colin Gieg (bass) was born in San Mateo, California and raised in Bakersfield where he studied piano at age 7, followed by guitar and then bass in high school. Moving to Los Angeles in 1960, Gieg studied at Westlake College of Music, the Los Angeles Conservatory and was a student of the renowned Ralph Peña. This start prepared Gieg for a career in California which included performing with the Four Freshmen, Sue Raney, Don Ellis Jazz Orchestra and bassist for several years with Johnny Mathis.

Gieg’s musical inertia was temporarily interrupted by a stint in the army, after which he moved to Denver. That was in 1970, and he has since performed at numerous jazz parties and festivals as well as national and international tours. Some of the many major artists Gieg has performed with include: Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Williams, Rosemary Clooney, Chet Baker, Teddy Edwards, Ken Peplowski, Houston Person, Peter Appleyard, Carl Fontana, Clark Terry, Bill Watrous, Plas Johnson, Sylvia Sims, Ralph Sutton, Peanuts Hucko and Flip Phillips just to name a few."




Menachem Froman

Rabbi -- via the New York Times. He worked for peace with the Palestinians, encouraged the participation of women, and sought the higher path.

Sybil Christopher

Actress, director, nightclub owner, and artistic director of the Bay Street Theatre -- via Playbill.

Masao Yamaguchi

Anthropologist -- via The Japan Times.

Armando Trovjoli

Composer for film and stage -- via the Guardian.

Rafael Puyana

Harpsichordist -- via the Guardian.

Diane Wolkstein

Writer, storyteller, and folklorist -- via the New York Times.



Steve Demeter

Former MLB player -- via cleveland.com.

Cecil Womack

Soul/R & B singer and songwriter -- via the Independent.



George 'Red' Witt

Former MLB relief pitcher -- via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Bill Glynn

Former MLB player -- via legacy.com.

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Edith Houghton

Outstanding baseball player and scout -- via the New York Times.


John E. Karlin

Industrial psychologist -- via the New York Times. The father of human factors engineering, he worked at Bell Labs, studying and testing in order to create the most efficient dials and keypads for phone use. By extension, his designs have permeated modern life and manufacturing.

Sipo Mzimewa

Minister -- via the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Shelby Whitfield

Broadcaster -- via the Washington Post.

Patricia Hughes

Announcer -- via the BBC.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Claude King

Singer and songwriter -- via  . Famous for his hit rendition and co-writing of "Wolverton Mountain."

Brenda Box

Editor -- via NPR. A CSU alum!


Allan Calhamer

Postal worker and inventor of the game "Diplomacy" -- via the New York Times. This obit shows you why Margalit Fox is the best. What a great story.



Kenny Ball

Trumpeter -- via the Telegraph.

Mohammad Asfour

Demonstrator -- via the BBC.

Harrison Groutage

Artist -- via the Salt Lake City Tribune.

Ceal Phelan

Actress -- via philly.com.

Robin Sachs

Actor and voice actor -- via the BBC. Seemingly destined to work in sci-fi and horror, he started his film career in the cult classic "Vampire Circus," and moved on to play in "Galaxy Quest," "Babylon 5," and other such shows and video games.




Jackie Kastrinelis

Cruise-ship singer -- via ABC.

Ira Rubin

Bridge champion -- via the New York Times.

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Alvin Lee aka Graham Alvin Barnes

Guitarist; best known for his work with Ten Years After -- via Spinner. Alvin Lee! I loved him. I wore out my copy of the "Undead" LP, which tutored me as to the blues-jazz-rock continuum and how Brit rock spun the American idiom into new forms. What an amazing sound and presence.










Stuart Freeborn


Makeup artist -- via the New York Times. The "grandfather of modern make-up design" created the look for Yoda and many other "Star Wars" characters; among his other outstanding jobs include Lean's "Oliver Twist," Korda's "Thief of Baghdad," the first run of "Superman" films, "The Bridge on the River Kwai,"  "2001: A Space Odyssey," "Murder on the Orient Express," and "Dr. Strangelove."


Alexander Dolmatov

Dissident -- via the BBC.

Archie Roy

Astronomer, writer, proofreader, and psychic researcher -- via the Guardian.

Shpritz Anthony

Theater guy -- via the Sacramento Bee.

Larry Killick

Athlete, soldier, businessman, writer, nice guy. I knew Larry until after his death only as a sweet guy and a friend. He was related through marriage to my wife through his wife. We met several years ago, and discovered quickly that we both loved jazz; how pleased he was when he found I could identify "Big Noise from Winnetka"! Soon we were chatting about old-time radio, 20th-century history, and more, laughing and joking despite the 40-year difference in our ages. Despite our brief time together, I really hit it off with him and had a lot of fun with him. Thanks, Larry! You are awesome!

It wasn't until he passed on that I found out that he had been a famous athlete! Who'd a-thunk it?

Lawrence Findley Killick was born in Burlington, VT on May 31, 1922, and departed this earth on January 31, 2013 at the age of 90.

Larry attended the University of Vermont and Dartmouth, playing basketball for both schools. He was in the UVM Basketball Hall of Fame and the New England Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, and was one of Sports Illustrated, "50 Greatest Sports Figures of the Century", from the state of Vermont. After playing college ball, he played professional basketball for the Baltimore Bullets.

A patriotic American, he was a captain in the Marine Corps, serving in the Pacific Theater during WWII, as well as the Korean War.

Larry married Rhoda Hershoff in 1960 and they moved their family from New York City to Brevard County in 1962. He worked with Carroll Distributing and soon became an active member of the business community, serving on several boards of directors.

One of his personal successes was having his memoirs published; his book, Boots, Hoops and Troops, recounted his time in the Marines, basketball and the war.

Larry Killick was a loving husband, father and grandfather. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Rhoda; his daughter, Debbie; his sons, Alan (Holly), Tom (Kellie) and Barrett (Heather); and six grandchildren, Leighton, Ariel, Aiden, Joelle, Brody and Kyson.

A celebration of his life will be held at the Holiday Inn Melbourne-Viera Conference Center (8298 N. Wickham Rd.) on Saturday, March 2nd at 2 pm. 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Space Coast Honor Flight (PO Box 560975, Rockledge, FL 32956).

He will be missed by many. We love you Larry. Semper Fi!

Nir Toib

Filmmaker -- via Haaretz.

Garrett Lewis

Set decorator -- via the Hollywood Reporter. Formerly a dancer, he worked extensively on Broadway.

'Uncle Cliff' Hammond

Amusement park owner -- via the ABQ Journal.

Shanu Lahiri

Artist -- via indiatvnews.com.

Mohammed El-Gindy

Activist -- via the Huffington Post.