Welcome, God and All...
Once more I (perhaps as a sort of penance these days) compile for myself and for those who may read it, a list of the famous, near famous, and even infamous who entered eternal life in the last twelve months.
Why do I do it? We as Christians are encouraged to pray for the dead - for Catholics it is a duty. It is a reminder that sooner or later it will be our turn to cross the bridge to the afterlife. I do it now, rather than at the end of the calendar year, because Holy Mother Church has chosen now, as daylight continues to fade and autumn prepares for winter. This is the real meaning of this sacred yet subdued triduum, contrasted with the Paschal Triduum in the spring, celebrating new life in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.
My list is somewhat random. It includes many names known to most people, especially my contemporaries; and I encourage you to remember those loved ones and friends of yours who are unknown to me and therefore unlisted.
2023
October
26 - Richard Moll, 80, American actor (Night Court, House, Batman: The Animated Series).
31 - Ken Mattingly, 87, American astronaut (Apollo 16, STS-4, STS-51-C).
November
7 - Frank Borman, 95, American astronaut (Gemini 7, Apollo 8) and airline executive (Eastern Air Lines), stroke.
14 - Arthur Simon, 93, American Lutheran minister, founder of Bread for the World.
17 - Suzanne Shepherd, 89, American actress (The Sopranos, Goodfellas, Requiem for a Dream), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney failure.
19 - Rosalynn Carter, 96, American mental health activist, first lady of the United States (1977–1981), and of Georgia (1971–1975), complications from dementia.
December
1 - Sandra Day O'Connor, 93, American jurist, associate justice of the Supreme Court (1981–2006), member of the Arizona Senate (1969–1975) and chancellor of W&M (2005–2012), complications from dementia and respiratory illness.
5 - Norman Lear, 101, American Hall of Fame television writer and producer (All in the Family, Maude, The Jeffersons), cardiac arrest.
8 - Ryan O'Neal, 82, American actor (Love Story, Barry Lyndon, Paper Moon) and boxer, congestive heart failure.
26 - Tom Smothers, 86, American comedian, musician (Smothers Brothers) and actor (Get to Know Your Rabbit, Serial), lung cancer.
29 - Maurice Hines, 80, American dancer, singer and actor (The Cotton Club).
31 - Shecky Greene, 97, American comedian and actor (History of the World, Part I, Splash, Tony Rome).
2024
January
13 - Joseph Zadroga, 76, American 9/11 survivor advocate, traffic collision.
16 - Peter Schickele, 88, American composer and musical satirist (P. D. Q. Bach).
23 - Ice Train, 56, American professional wrestler (CWA, WCW).
23 - Charles Osgood, 91, American news anchor (CBS News Sunday Morning), complications from dementia.
24 - Harry Connick Sr., 97, American attorney, district attorney of New Orleans (1973–2003).
February
2 - Carl Weathers, 76, American actor (Rocky, Predator, The Mandalorian) and football player, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
5 - Toby Keith, 62, American country singer ("Should've Been a Cowboy", "How Do You Like Me Now?!", "Red Solo Cup") and songwriter, stomach cancer.
10 - Bob Moore, 94, American food executive, founder of Bob's Red Mill.
10 - William Post, 96, American inventor (Pop-Tarts).
11 - Randy Sparks, 90, American musician (The New Christy Minstrels, The Back Porch Majority) and songwriter ("Green, Green").
13 - Twomad, 23, Canadian YouTuber and Twitch streamer, accidental morphine overdose.
22 - Edith Ceccarelli, 116, American supercentenarian.
23 - Flaco, 13, American owl, window collision.
27 - Richard Lewis, 76, American comedian and actor (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Anything but Love, Robin Hood: Men in Tights), heart attack.
28 - Virgil, 72, American professional wrestler (WWF, WCW) and actor (Bridge and Tunnel), complications from strokes and dementia.
March
2 - Jim Beard, 63, American keyboardist (Steely Dan).
3 - Presto, 31, German rapper, cancer.
7 - Steve Lawrence, 88, American singer ("Go Away Little Girl", "Footsteps") and actor (The Blues Brothers), complications from Alzheimer's disease.
11 - Eric Carmen, 74, American musician (Raspberries), singer ("Hungry Eyes"), and songwriter ("All by Myself").
27 - Joe Lieberman, 82, American politician, member of the U.S. Senate (1989–2013), Connecticut attorney general (1983–1989) and member of the Connecticut State Senate (1971–1981), complications from a fall.
29 - Louis Gossett Jr., 87, American actor (An Officer and a Gentleman, Roots, Iron Eagle), Oscar winner (1982), complications from COPD.
April
1 - C. W. McCall, 93, American country singer ("Convoy", "'Round the World with the Rubber Duck", "Roses for Mama") and politician, mayor of Ouray, Colorado (1986–1992), lung cancer.
2 - Estelle Harris, 93, American actress (Seinfeld, Toy Story, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody).
5 - Bobby Rydell, 79, American singer ("Wild One", "Wildwood Days") and actor (Bye Bye Birdie), pneumonia.
17 - DJ Kay Slay, 55, American disc jockey and record executive, COVID-19.
20 - Robert Morse, 90, American actor (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Tru, Mad Men), Tony winner (1962, 1990).
23 - Orrin Hatch, 88, American politician, senator (1977–2019) and president pro tempore of the U.S. Senate (2015–2019), complications from a stroke.
May
4 - Bob Avellini, 70, American football player (Chicago Bears), cancer.
16 - Dabney Coleman, 92, American actor (9 to 5, Tootsie, The Guardian), Emmy winner (1987), cardiac arrest.
27 - Bill Walton, 71, American Hall of Fame basketball player (UCLA Bruins, Portland Trail Blazers, Boston Celtics), and sportscaster, colorectal cancer.
June
4 - C.Gambino, 26, Swedish rapper, shot.
18 - Willie Mays, 93, American Hall of Fame baseball player (New York / San Francisco Giants, New York Mets), World Series champion (1954), heart failure.
20 - Donald Sutherland, 88, Canadian actor (M*A*S*H, Ordinary People, The Hunger Games), Emmy winner (1995).
23 - Julio Foolio, 26, American rapper, shot.
23 - Tamayo Perry, 49, American surfer and actor (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Blue Crush), shark attack.
27 - Martin Mull, 80, American actor (Clue, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Roseanne) and musician.
July
6 - Joe Egan, 77, Scottish singer (Stealers Wheel) and songwriter ("Stuck in the Middle with You", "Star"), heart attack.
10 - Dave Loggins, 76, American singer and songwriter ("Please Come to Boston", "Pieces of April", "If I Had My Wish Tonight").
12 - Bob Booker, 92, American writer and record producer (The First Family), heart failure.[
13 - Richard Simmons, 76, American fitness instructor and television personality (General Hospital, Match Game, Hollywood Squares), complications from a fall.
18 - Lou Dobbs, 78, American political commentator (Lou Dobbs Tonight), television producer (CNNfn) and writer.
18 - Jerry Fuller, 85, American songwriter ("Young Girl", "Travelin' Man", "Show and Tell"), lung cancer.
18 - Bob Newhart, 94, American comedian and actor (The Bob Newhart Show, Newhart, Elf), Emmy (2013) and Grammy (1961) winner.
27 - Vladimir Petrov, 66, American professional wrestler (Jim Crockett Promotions, UWF, WWF).
August
1 - Leonard Engelman, 83, American makeup artist (Ghostbusters, Batman Forever, How the Grinch Stole Christmas).
1 - Daniel Selznick, 88, American film and television producer (Blood Feud, The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind, Hoover vs. The Kennedys).
9 - Carl Weathersby, 71, American blues guitarist (Albert King, Billy Branch).
13 - Wally Amos, 88, American businessman (Famous Amos) and television personality (Learn to Read), complications from dementia.
13 - Greg Kihn, 75, American musician (The Greg Kihn Band), songwriter ("Jeopardy"), and radio host (KFOX), complications from Alzheimer's disease.
15 - BeatKing, 39, American rapper ("Then Leave"), pulmonary embolism.
15 - Bob Weatherwax, 83, American dog trainer.
18 - Phil Donahue, 88, American talk show host (The Phil Donahue Show) and filmmaker (Body of War).
21 - John Amos, 84, American actor (Good Times, Roots, The West Wing), heart failure.
September
2 - James Darren, 88, American singer ("Goodbye Cruel World") and actor (Gidget, T. J. Hooker), heart failure.
5 - Sérgio Mendes, 83, Brazilian bossa nova musician ("The Look of Love", "The Fool on the Hill", "Never Gonna Let You Go"), Grammy winner (1993), complications from long COVID.
9 - James Earl Jones, 93, American actor (Star Wars, Fences, The Lion King), Tony winner (1969, 1987).
17 - JD Souther, 78, American Hall of Fame singer-songwriter ("You're Only Lonely", "Her Town Too", "New Kid in Town").
20 - David Graham, 99, British actor (Thunderbirds, Doctor Who, Peppa Pig).
27 - Dame Maggie Smith, 89, British actress (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Harry Potter, Downton Abbey), Oscar winner (1969, 1978).
28 - Kris Kristofferson, 88, American Hall of Fame singer-songwriter ("Me and Bobby McGee", "Help Me Make It Through the Night") and actor (A Star Is Born), Grammy winner (1972, 1974, 1975).
30 - Pete Rose, 83, American baseball player (Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies, Montreal Expos) and manager, World Series champion (1975, 1976, 1980), heart disease.
October
17 - Mitzi Gaynor, 93, American actress (There's No Business Like Show Business, The Birds and the Bees, South Pacific), singer and dancer.
19 - John Kinsel Sr., 107, American World War II veteran (Navajo Code Talkers).
23 - Gary Indiana, 74, American novelist, playwright and art critic (The Village Voice), lung cancer.[
23 - Jack Jones, 86, American singer ("Wives and Lovers", "Love Boat") and actor (Over the Garden Wall), leukemia.
24 - DJ Clark Kent, 58, Panamanian-American DJ, hip hop record producer and music executive, colon cancer.
25 - Phil Lesh, 84, American Hall of Fame musician (Grateful Dead) and songwriter ("Box of Rain", "Truckin'").
29 - Teri Garr, 79, American actress (Tootsie, Young Frankenstein, Close Encounters of the Third Kind), complications from multiple sclerosis.
May their souls and the souls of all the departed, through Your mercy, O Lord, rest in peace.
Until we meet again, may God be with you - and may God have mercy on us all...
+the Phoenix
