RIP thread

[patwynnfan]

Actor and disability campaigner Lord Rix has died aged 92, his family said. The president of the learning disability charity Mencap had been terminally ill and urged Parliament to change the law on assisted dying. He had previously opposed an assisted dying law, but said his illness had left him "like a beached whale" and in constant discomfort. As Brian Rix, he performed on stage and TV, specialising in a series of post-war "Whitehall farce" comedies. For more than 30 years his farces, which starred the likes of comic greats Tommy Cooper and Sid James, were hits on TV and stage, and earned Rix the reputation for his trousers always falling down. Reforms It was after his eldest daughter was born in 1951 with Down's syndrome that he began campaigning for people with learning disabilities. From 1980 to 1988 he was secretary general of Mencap, becoming chairman in 1988 and then president 10 years later - a role he occupied until his death. In 2006 short breaks for carers became Law - an issue he had been lobbying on for 12 years. In the same year he introduced amendments to the Childcare Bill, which extended childcare provision for disabled children from 16 to 18. His work on the 2006 Electoral Administration Bill also led to people with a learning disability being able to vote. The crossbench peer voted against an Assisted Dying Bill in 2006 because of concerns that people with learning disabilities might become the unwilling victims of euthanasia. But his own experience of dying led him to change his position.

[Greenman]

Re Kenny Baker. I seem to recall he was one of the band of robbers/bandits in the film 'Time Bandits' and I think he was the one that answers John Cleese.
"Hello, my name is Hood, Robin Hood and you're one of those bandits are you?"
"Well jolly good, jolly good, so how long have you been a robber?"
"Four foot, three sir!"
"Good heavens, really? that long, well the orphans are going to be absolutely delighted with all this" (Don't hold me to the exact quotes)

I wonder what it was like stuck in what was to all intents and purposes a glorified electronic bin? RIP Kenny.

[Greenman]

I never got farce, I mean how many times can you find a man losing his trousers and haring around a stage in and out of doors before it becomes boring? His daughter Louisa is a famous actress and she was the girlfriend of the late Mel Smith in his comedy 'Colin's Sandwich'

[johnbear]

Guitarist For 3 Doors Down Died Age 38 Accidental Drug Overdose.
http://loudwire.com/former-3-doors-d...berts-dead-38/

[patwynnfan]

Lou Pearlman, the Svengali-like manager behind Nineties boy bands like Backstreet Boys, 'N Sync, O-Town and more, died Friday night behind bars while serving a 25-year prison sentence stemming from a $300 million Ponzi scheme. He was 62.The Federal Bureau of Prisons' inmate locator confirms that Louis Pearlman died in custody on August 19th, with sources also telling Billboard that Pearlman had died. No cause of death was provided.
"Mixed emotions right now, but RIP Lou Pearlman," 'N Sync's Chris Kirkpatrick tweeted following news of Pearlman's death. Lance Bass added, "Word is that #LouPearlman has passed away. He might not have been a stand-up businessman, but I wouldn't be doing what I love today [without] his influence. RIP Lou."
After a failed venture in the aviation business in the mid-Eighties, Pearlman, the cousin of Art Garfunkel, shifted towards music after becoming inspired by the New Kids on the Block's success. Pearlman created Trans Continental Records and placed an ad in the Orlando area seeking young male singers. Following a multi-million dollar talent search, Pearlman founded the Backstreet Boys, a quintet that would go on to become the bestselling boy band in history.
Looking to further cash in, Pearlman repeated the formula in 1995 to form 'N Sync, the chart-topping group that launched the career of Justin Timberlake. Now established as a mogul in the industry, Pearlman went on to manage similar groups like LFO, Take 5 and O-Town, which spawned out of the reality series Making the Band.
However, Pearlman's business relationship disintegrated after the majority of groups he managed sued him in Federal Court for fraud and misrepresentation, with each group claiming that Pearlman pocketed most of the money his groups made. Pearlman was also dogged by allegations of molestation from his cadre of young singers, accusations that first surfaced in a 2007 Vanity Fair profile.
As Pearlman's music empire crumbled, he was still convincing investors to pump money into his Trans Continental Airlines Travel Services Inc. and Trans Continental Airlines Inc., two fictitious companies that existed only on paper. By 2007, Florida regulators had uncovered Pearlman's $300 million Ponzi scheme. Sensing arrest, Pearlman fled to Bali, where he was eventually caught in 2007. He was indicted on charges of conspiracy, money laundering and making false statements and sentenced to 25 years in prison. He was scheduled for release in 2029.

[snowy25]

Architects guitarist Tom Searle has died, aged 28, after a battle with cancer.

A post by his twin brother Dan on the band's Facebook page said Tom had been living with cancer for three years.

[patwynnfan]

US doctor and epidemiologist Donald Henderson, who led a successful campaign to wipe out smallpox worldwide, has died at the age of 87. Hailed as a "giant" in the field of public health for his work in the 1960s and 70s, Henderson died of complications after breaking a hip. One of the world's deadliest diseases, smallpox killed hundreds of millions of people in the last century alone. Apart from causing great pain, it often caused lesions on the face and body. And it killed about one in three of those infected. It was officially declared to have been eradicated in 1980 - the first infectious disease to have been fought on a global scale. The World Health Organization appointed Henderson, known as D.A, to lead its drive to stamp out the disease in 1966. At the time it was still endemic in Africa and Asia. Few gave him much chance of success. But Henderson focussed on isolating outbreaks of the disease and systematically vaccinating people, rather than a mass vaccination programme. After his work for the WHO, Henderson went on to serve as science and bioterrorism adviser to three US presidents as well holding other academic and medical postsHenderson "truly changed the world for the better," a tribute from Tom Inglesby, Director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for Health Security said. "He led the effort to rid the world of smallpox. He advised presidents. He was honoured by countries around the planet. He changed the way schools of public health teach the next generation. "With all of that, he still took the time to be a mentor to countless young people, and was a great friend. He is truly irreplaceable, and I will miss him."

[Brecht]

Belgian jazz musician Toots Thielemans dies aged 94.



https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...s-dies-aged-94

[patwynnfan]

Pioneering TV weatherman Trevor Baker has died at the age of 94, ITV has announced. Nicknamed Trevor the Weather, he began his broadcasting career with the BBC before presenting weather bulletins on Southern Television and TVS throughout the 1960s, 70s and 80s. ITV said he had been a "much loved" presenter. A family statement said he died at his home in London following a short illness. Swansea-born Baker joined the Met Office at the age of 18 before serving with the RAF during World War Two. In the early 1960s he began his TV career with the BBC before joining Southern Television in Southampton as a regular presenter on the Day by Day programme and was later given his own show -The Trevor Baker All Weather Show. Because of his Welsh origins, he soon established the nickname Trevor the Weather although to many viewers he was simply known as Trevor. He continued appearing on the Coast to Coast regional news programme after TVS took over the ITV franchise for southern England. After his retirement in 1987 he spent 20 years working as a volunteer at Southampton General Hospital, taking a confectionery trolley around the wards.

[K_D]

Originally Posted by Brecht

Belgian jazz musician Toots Thielemans dies aged 94.



https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...s-dies-aged-94

Stephane Grappelli and Toots Thielemans - Hit The Road Jack (1984):
Ray Charles Cover
https://tmblr.co/ZoHQpk2B5GOId