Jilly Cooper
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British author Dame Jilly Cooper, DBE, beloved for her series The Rutshire Chronicles, died on Oct. 5 at 88. Born in London in 1937, Cooper became a journalist and wrote popular columns for the Mail on Sunday and The Sunday Times. She published her first book, How to Stay Married, in 1969. It was quickly followed by a guide to working life, How to Survive from Nine to Five, in 1970. But Cooper is perhaps best known for her Rutshire Chronicles, published in 1988, featuring her beloved hero Rupert Campbell-Black and consists of 11 books including Riders and Rivals. The beloved franchise was adapted into the TV series Rivals by Happy Prince for Disney+, on which Cooper served as an executive producer. Rivals, which has become a hit for the streamer follows Cooper’s novel on the infamous scoundrel and old money MP Rupert Campbell-Black and his rivalry with Tony Baddingham that seeps into the 1980s-set world of Rutshire, a fictional county in the Cotswolds, England. Following the premiere of season 1 in October 2024, a second season began production this summer, slated for a 2026 release. Cooper is survived by her children, Felix and Emily.
Ike Turner Jr.
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Izear “Ike” Turner Jr., the son of rock icon Tina Turner and her ex-husband Ike Turner, died Oct. 4 at age 67. Born in 1958 to parents Ike Sr. and Lorraine Taylor, Ike Jr. was adopted by the Queen of Rock and Roll upon her 1962 marriage to the record producer. He grew up amid their whirlwind careers and eventually sought his own place in the music industry as a producer and musician. In 2007, he won the Best Traditional Blues Album at the Grammys as a producer for his father’s 2006 album Risin’ With the Blues. He also played in tribute band The Love Thang Band, alongside singer Sweet Randi Love. Ike Jr. is preceded in death by both of his parents and two of his brothers, Craig and Ronnie.
Kimberly Hébert Gregory
HBPO
Kimberly Hébert Gregory, the actress best known for her role on the HBO comedy Vice Principals, died on Oct. 3 at age 52. No cause of death was disclosed. After beginning her acting career in the Chicago theater scene, Gregory’s first onscreen credits came in 2007, with a small role in the Kerry Washington and Chris Rock comedy, I Think I Love My Wife, and a brief appearance in the Gossip Girl pilot. Many more TV credits would follow, including roles in New Amsterdam, Grey’s Anatomy, Two and a Half Men, Law & Order, Shameless, and The Big Bang Theory. After a recurring gig on Devious Maids, she booked her breakthrough role as Dr. Belinda Brown, the fiery principal of North Jackson High School on Vice Principals. The two-season comedy also starred Walton Goggins and Danny McBride. Gregory would go on to appear on shows including Kevin (Probably) Saves The World, Craig of the Creek, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Better Call Saul. She is survived by her ex-husband and their son.
Patricia Routledge
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Patricia Routledge, the award-winning British actress and singer best known for her role as Hyacinth Bucket on Keeping Up Appearances, died on Oct. 3 in Chichester, England. She was 96. Born Katherine Patricia Routledge on Feb. 17, 1929, in Birkenhead, England, Routledge began her career as a stage actress at the Liverpool Playhouse in the early 1950s and went on to act with the Royal Shakespeare Company, in the West End, and on Broadway. The actress won a Tony Award for her 1968 Broadway appearance in the musical Darling of the Day (a tie with Leslie Uggams, for Hallelujah, Baby!) and its British equivalent, the Laurence Olivier Award, as the Old Lady in a 1988 production of Candide at the Old Vic. She became a household name as Keeping Up Appearances‘ snotty Hyacinth, who insisted her last name was pronounced ‘Bouquet’ and wore pearls and floral print dresses, showcasing her aspiration to be middle class despite her working class reality. The sitcom ran in Britain from 1990 to 1995, making its debut on American television in 1993. The role bagged her two BAFTA TV nominations, and she was voted the UK’s most popular actress at the BBC’s 60th anniversary awards a year after the series concluded. And following the show’s succession run, Routledge went on to lead her second big BBC series, Hetty Wainthropp Investigates (1996-98), based on characters from a David Cook novel. Routledge never married or had children, and although she never formally retired, one of her last stage appearances was as the two-faced Lady Markby in An Ideal Husband at the 2014 Chichester Festival Theater.
Jane Goodall
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Jane Goodall, the legendary zoologist who dedicated her life’s work to the study of chimpanzees, died from natural causes on Oct. 1. She was 91. Born in London in 1934, Goodall began researching chimps in what is now Tanzania’s Gombe Stream National Park in 1960, kicking off a lifelong career that revolutionized primatology. Goodall’s research revealed that chimps are capable of using tools to fish for ants, that they hunt and eat smaller primates, and that they would sometimes cannibalize their own in acts of aggression. Goodall also advocated against animal testing in medical research, warned of climate change’s dangerous effects on wildlife, and promoted a meatless diet, penning the vegan cookbook Eat Meat Less in 2021. Goodall published over two dozen books in her lifetime, and also participated in a number of documentaries, including 2010’s Jane’s Journey and 2017’s Jane. Goodall also voiced herself in episodes of The Wild Thornberrys and The Simpsons, and was the inspiration for Stevie Nicks’ 1994 song “Jane.”
Joshua Allen
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Joshua Allen, the season 4 winner of So You Think You Can Dance, died Sept. 30 at age 36. The dancer was only 18 years old when he won the fourth season of Fox’s beloved dance competition series and took home the $250,000 cash prize. He later returned to the series as All-Stars alongside the late Stephen “tWitch” Boss, who was the runner-up to Allen on SYTYCD in 2008. After his SYTYCD win, Allen went on to appear as a featured dancer in Step Up 3D alongside Boss and fellow SYTYCD finalist Katee Shean. He also appeared in the dance comedy Freak Dance, on season 2 of Oxygen’s Dance Your Ass Off, and as a featured dancer in 2011’s Footloose remake starring Kenny Wormald, Dennis Quaid, and Julianne Hough. Allen frequently appeared as a dancer in videos and commercials for Honda and McDonald’s, and he was featured as a dancer on NBC’s Community and in an episode of FX’s American Horror Story.
Chris Dreja
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Chris Dreja, the rock photographer who cofounded British rockers the Yardbirds and co-wrote many of their songs, died on Sept. 25. He was 79. Dreja was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 for his work with his influential band. Following his death, his former bandmate Jimmy Page paid tribute to him: “I heard today of the passing of musician Chris Dreja, who passionately played with the iconic Yardbirds, on rhythm guitar and then the bass. I hadn’t seen him in a while, and I wish I had. RIP Chris.”
Claudia Cardinale
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Actress Claudia Cardinale, known for acting in several of the most celebrated movies in cinema history — Federico Fellini’s 8 ½, Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West, and Peter Sellers’ comedy The Pink Panther, all in the 1960s — died Sept. 23. She was 87. Born in Tunisia, Cardinale won a trip to the Venice Film Festival as a teenager, when she was named “The Most Beautiful Italian in Tunis.” Though she hit her stride in the ’60s, Cardinale took home the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 1993 Venice Film Festival and appeared mostly in films outside of the U.S. through 2022.
Henry Jaglom
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Independent filmmaker Henry Jaglom died Sept. 22 at age 87. Jaglom worked in Hollywood for more than 50 years, during which he often wrote, directed, and acted in his own projects, including Venice/Venice, and Last Summer in the Hamptons, Déjà Vu. He regularly costarred alongside his wife, Victoria Foyt. His films Eating (1990), Babyfever (1994), and Going Shopping (2005) became known as his “Women’s Trilogy. In 1989, his film New Year’s Day was nominated for the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.
Jim Mitchum
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Jim Mitchum, who costarred as a teenager with father Robert Mitchum in the movie Thunder Road and went on to act in dozens of other projects, died Sept. 20. He was 84. After his debut in the 1958 film noir with his father, the younger Mitchum was cast in movies such as The Victors, with Albert Finney and George Hamilton in 1963, and the 1965 John Wayne film In Harm’s Way, which was directed by Otto Preminger. His last acting credits were in the ‘90s and included 1990’s Enemy, in which he acted alongside Peter Fonda.
Ben Scripps
Jeopardy
Ben Scripps, a Jeopardy alum who won twice on the show in 2020, died at age 52 on Sept. 20, in Holland, Mich. Born in 1972 in Cadillac, Mich., Scripps studied broadcasting at Central Michigan University and worked for the news team at Cadillac’s local CBS station, Channels 9 & 10, where he began by covering high school football games and ended his career producing the news from behind the switcher board. Scripps, who aspired to appear on Jeopardy from a young age, won $18,000 during his first appearance on the show on May 18, 2020, which came during Alex Trebek’s final year as host. He triumphed again the following day with an additional $19,358, bringing his two-day total to $38,158. His streak ended on May 20 when he lost to Nathan Berger.
Robert Redford
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Robert Redford, the movie star and founder of the Sundance Film Festival, died Sept. 16 at his home in Utah. He was 89. Born Aug. 18, 1936, in Santa Monica, Calif., Redford starred in more than two dozen films over a career spanning over half a century, including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), Three Days of the Condor (1975), and All the President’s Men (1976). In 1973, he starred in two big hits, The Way We Were and Best Picture Oscar winner The Sting, the latter producing his only Oscar nomination for acting. Behind the camera, he became the first actor to win a Best Director Oscar for his debut film, 1980’s Ordinary People. He also created the Sundance Film Festival and Institute in Park City, Utah. Redford’s last feature directorial project was 2012’s The Company You Keep, but he continued acting through the final decade of his life and appeared in films like 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Redford is survived by his wife, Sibylle Szaggars, daughters Shauna and Amy, and seven grandchildren.
Marilyn Knowlden
Bowman Funeral Home
Marilyn Knowlden, a former child star of the 1930s and ’40s who appeared in such high-profile films as Little Women, Les Misérables, and David Copperfield, died Sept. 15 at 99. Though her screen credits ended in 1944, she packed many titles into her relatively short time in Hollywood, including Imitation of Life in 1934 and Angels With Dirty Faces in 1938.
Stuart Craig
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Stuart Craig, the Oscar-winning production designer known for creating the visual worlds of all eight Harry Potter films and the three Fantastic Beasts spinoffs, died Sept. 14 at 83. After studying film design at the Royal College of Art, Craig worked on such movies as Casino Royale; Three Sisters; Scrooge; The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes; The Secret Garden; and Notting Hill. He won three Oscars, for Gandhi (1982), Dangerous Liaisons (1988) and The English Patient (1996). His work on the Harry Potter films also carried over into the Wizarding World attractions at Universal’s theme parks in Los Angeles, Florida, Beijing, and Japan.
Pat Crowley
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Pat Crowley, the prolific actress who appeared on the ABC soap Dynasty and the ’60s sitcom Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, died of natural causes on Sunday, Sept. 14. She was 91. The young star made her Broadway debut as a high school senior, playing the lead in Southern Exposure in 1950. She then broke into film three years later, with roles in Paramount’s Forever Female and Money From Home, winning the 1953 Golden Globe for New Star of the Year for her dual performances. Crowley later led Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, the 1965-67 NBC series based on the 1960 movie starring Doris Day. She went on to accrue over 100 screen credits, with guest-starring roles on TV shows including The Untouchables, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, The Twilight Zone, Columbo, Friends, Hawaii Five-O, Frasier, Charmed, and Murder, She Wrote. Crowley also appeared on several daytime soaps, including the General Hospital spinoff, Port Charles, Dynasty, Generations, The Bold and the Beautiful, and Falcon Crest.
Bobby Hart
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Bobby Hart, the songwriter who worked on some of the Monkees’ greatest hits, died Sept. 12 at 86. Born in Phoenix in 1939, Hart began playing music as a kid and met his best friend, Tommy Boyce, in the ’50s. Together they would go on to write a series of popular Monkees tunes, including the theme song for the TV series that spawned the fictional group. In addition to their work on The Monkees, Hart and Boyce released three albums and had one big hit, the gold-selling single “I Wonder What She’s Doing Tonight,” which reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967.
Charlie Kirk
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Charlie Kirk, the right-wing commentator and founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot during an event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10. He was 31. Known for his viral “Prove Me Wrong” series, Kirk emerged in recent years as an influential media and internet personality after founding Turning Point at 18. He became a frequent Fox News guest and a staple on college campuses, where he would man a booth and invite students to challenge his stances. Similarly, at events he would bring audience members on stage to debate him. Kirk was a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, who announced his death.
Paula Shaw
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Paula Shaw, an actress who appeared in the Hallmark Channel series Cedar Cove and multiple TV movies for the network, died Sept. 10 at 84. In a career that dated back to 1969, she also appeared on classic TV shows such as Little House on the Prairie and Starsky and Hutch. Shaw also portrayed the mother of horror icon Jason Vorhees in the 2003 movie Freddy vs. Jason. In addition, Shaw was part of the Actors Studio, and she worked internationally teaching acting and self-expression.
Rick Davies
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Rick Davies, the influential co-founder and vocalist of the English rock band Supertramp, died on Sept. 5 at the age of 81. Davies wrote, composed, and sang many of the band’s most iconic hits, like “Bloody Well Right” and “Goodbye Stranger.” Born in Swindon, England, in 1944, Davies formed Supertramp (originally called Daddy) in 1969 with Roger Hodgson, his primary creative partner until a bitter falling out prompted Hodgson’s exit in 1983. Davies carried Supertramp to multiple Grammy wins and several bestselling albums, and his music remains resonant, appearing in films and series like The Office, I, Tonya, and The Simpsons. Davies is survived by Sue, his wife since 1977 and the band’s manager since 1984.
Mark Volman
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Mark Volman, a founding member of the ’60s rock group the Turtles, died on Friday, Sept. 5, at the age of 78. Born in Los Angeles on April 19, 1947, Volman began playing music and performing at an early age. It was at Westchester High School where he met classmate and future bandmate Howard Kaylan, joining the latter’s band, the Crossfires. After graduating from high school in 1965, he and Kaylan founded the Turtles alongside lead guitarist Al Nichol, rhythm guitarist Jim Tucker, bassist Chuck Portz, and drummer Don Murray. Together, the group released their No. 1 hit “Happy Together,” as well as such songs as “It Ain’t Me Babe,” “You Baby,” “She’d Rather Be with Me,” and “Elenore.” After the band split in 1970, he and Kaylan reinvented themselves as the duo Flo & Eddie. They toured with Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention, created infamous background vocals on various hit albums from T. Rex to Bruce Springsteen, wrote for children’s television shows like Strawberry Shortcake, and earned a reputation for irreverent humor and versatility. Volman returned to college in his ’40s, earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in screenwriting at Loyola Marymount University before teaching music business at several institutions, most notably Belmont University in Nashville. He is survived by his significant other, Emily Volman; his ex-wife Pat Voman and their daughters, Hallie Volman and Sarina Miller; and his brother, Phil Volman.
Ted Mann
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Ted Mann, a writer and producer on TV shows including NYPD Blue and Deadwood, died Sept. 4 in Los Angeles. He was 72. Before working on what became his signature shows, Mann had written episodes of series such as Wiseguy and Miami Vice. After joining NYPD Blue in 1993, Mann was nominated for his first of seven Emmys, both individually and as part of a team. He later worked on Homeland.
Rolling Ray
Rolling Ray/Instagram
Social media personality Rolling Ray was reported dead on Wednesday, Sept. 3, at the age of 28, a spokesperson at Maryland’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner confirmed to Entertainment Weekly. A cause of death has not been revealed. The influencer, born Juan Raymond Harper, first rose to fame in 2018 after appearing on MTV’s Catfish: Trolls. He began to gain mainstream attention thanks to viral clips of an appearance on Divorce Court with Judge Lynn Toler, which quickly turned him into an internet sensation. The reality star also gained online notoriety for coining catchy phrases such as “purr” and “you’re not that girl” which became prevalent on social media. Ray used a wheelchair due to paralysis and shared serious health issues throughout the years, including burns from a 2021 fire, COVID and pneumonia diagnoses in 2022, as well as pneumonia and a blood infection in August 2024. Despite his health scares, the online personality gained a healthy following of fans that included famous figures like fellow reality star Joseline Hernandez and Cardi B. Even Beyoncé has sent Ray free Ivy Park clothing and a hand-autographed photo with a personalized message in the past.
Graham Greene
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Graham Greene, the actor known for his Oscar-nominated role as Kicking Bird in the 1990 Western epic Dances With Wolves, died Sept. 1 at 73. Born in Canada, Greene made his big-screen debut in the 1983 sports drama Running Brave and went on to appear in such movies and TV shows as The Green Mile, Maverick, The Twilight Saga, The Last of Us, Reservation Dogs, American Gods, and Echo. He also helped run the Centre for Indigenous Theatre’s Native Theatre School in Toronto.
Kelsey Bateman
Prime Video
Kelsey Bateman, who appeared as a contestant on season 3 of the hit VH1 reality dating series Rock of Love, died on Aug. 27 at age 39. Bateman made it into top 10 of her season, which saw 23 women from across the country vie for the heart of Bret Michaels, the frontman of the hair metal band Poison. Born on May 6, 1986, in St. George, Utah, Bateman was remembered in her official obituary as “beloved daughter, sister and best friend whose presence brought light and laughter to all who knew her.”
Katie Slaton
Katie Slaton/Facebook
Katie Slaton, the cousin of 1000-Lb. Sisters stars Tammy and Amy Slaton who appeared on several episodes of the TLC reality series, died Aug. 25 at 37, after battling a rare form of stomach cancer. Amanda Halterman, Slaton’s other cousin and Tammy and Amy’s older sister, wrote in a heartfelt tribute. “She was a force to be reckoned with and showed love that was accepting and given freely.”
Floyd Levine
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Floyd Levine, the character actor and father of fellow actor, producer, and former Paramount studio executive Brian Robbins, died Aug. 24 in Los Angeles. He was 93. Born in New York in 1932, Levine worked as a cab driver to support an acting career that featured bit roles in Super Fly and Kojak before he moved his family to L.A. His expansive credits include TV shows Three’s Company, The Love Boat, T.J. Hooker, Days of Our Lives, Cagney & Lacey, and Head of the Class, starring opposite his son Robbins in the latter sitcom in a 1989 episode. He appeared across several of his producer and director son’s projects, including sitcom Kenan & Kel and films Good Burger, Coach Carter, and Norbit. Other notable stints include shows Melrose Place, Charlie’s Angels, Hart to Hart, Wonder Woman, and Baywatch, and films Bloodbrothers, A Long Way Home, Meet Dave, The Hangover, and A Thousand Words. Along with Robbins, Levine is survived by his casting director daughter Sheryl Levine, son Marc, and several grandchildren. His wife, Rochelle, died in May 2022 at the age of 85.
Verónica Echegui
Juan Naharro Gimenez/WireImage
Spanish actress Verónica Echegui, who had worked in films and TV shows for two decades, died of cancer at a hospital in Madrid on Aug. 24, per The Daily Mail. She was 42. Echegui appeared in projects including Yo soy la Juani (2006), El patio de mi cárcel (2008), Katmandú, un espejo en el cielo (2011), and My Heart Goes Boom! (2020). She was nominated five times for the country’s national Goya Awards: four times for her acting performance and once, in 2022, winning in the category of Best Short Fiction Film for Tótem Loba, which she wrote and directed. In 2013, she starred alongside Sigourney Weaver and Bruce Willis in action thriller The Cold Light of Day, with Sam Claflin in Prime Video’s 2022 romantic comedy Book of Love, and in this year’s Apple TV+ series Love You to Death. Her last project, crime series Ciudad de sombras (City of Shadows), was scheduled to release on Netflix this year.
Jerry Adler
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Jerry Adler, the veteran actor who spent six seasons as Herman “Hesh” Rabkin on The Sopranos, died peacefully in his sleep on Aug. 23, a rep for the Adler family told EW. After starting his career as a stage and production manager on several Broadway shows, Adler pivoted to acting in his 60s. He appeared on episodes of True Colors, One Life to Live, and Northern Exposure; and booked regular gigs on Mad About You, Hudson Street, and Alright Already. But one of his best known roles would come in 1999, when David Chase called him in to play a loan shark and associate of Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) on The Sopranos. The actor would later play Bob Saget’s father on Raising Dad and crude lawyer Howard Lyman on CBS’ The Good Wife. He also had a memorable role in the film Manhattan Murder Mystery as Paul House. Adler is survived by his four daughters.
Eduardo Serra
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Eduardo Serra, the two-time Oscar nominated cinematographer of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows duology, and a frequent collaborator of directors Claude Chabrol and Patrice Leconte, died Aug. 22 at age 81. Born in Lisbon in 1943, Serra established himself as a sought after DP in France after lensing two films by the film star Christian Drillaud. He went on to shoot seminal films by French greats like Michel Blanc and François Leterrier, before expanding internationally to collaborate with talents like England’s Michael Winterbottom (Jude), New Zealand’s Vincent Ward (Map of the Human Heart), and Portugal’s Luís Filipe Rocha (Amor e Dedinhos de Pé). Serra became a crossover Hollywood success with M. Night Shyamalan on Unbreakable and Edward Zwick on Blood Diamond. He was nominated twice for Best Cinematographer at the Academy Awards, for 1997’s The Wings of the Dove and 2003’s The Girl With the Pearl Earring.
Reggie Carroll
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Comedian Reginald “Reggie” Carroll was killed in a fatal shooting on Aug. 20. He was 52. The Baltimore-born entertainer was known for touring the country with his stand-up routine and collaborating with the likes of Mo’Nique and Katt Williams. Carroll also made the occasional onscreen appearance, showing up in the showcase series Showtime at the Apollo, the special Knockout Kings of Comedy, and the Moesha spinoff The Parkers.
Brent Hinds
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Brent Hinds, the founding lead guitarist for Mastodon, died August 20 after a motorcycle accident in Atlanta. He was 51. Born in Helena, Ala., in 1974, Hinds began his musical pursuits playing the banjo at the behest of his father. Hinds moved to Atlanta to pursue a music career in the late 1990s, and he connected with bassist Troy Sanders, with whom he played in the band Four Hour Fogger. The duo later joined forces with drummer Brann Dailor and rhythm guitarist Bill Kelliher to form Mastodon in 2000. The group ultimately released eight studio albums as a quartet, with Hinds sharing vocal duties with Sanders and, later, Dailor. The group has been nominated for six Grammys to date, winning the award for Best Metal Performance for “Sultan’s Curse” from their seventh album, Emperor of Sand, at the 2018 ceremony. Hinds departed Mastodon in March 2025. He also played with Fiend Without a Face, West End Motel, Giraffe Tongue Orchestra, and Legend of the Seagullmen.
Judge Frank Caprio
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Frank Caprio, the municipal judge who became a household name for presiding over cases in his Rhode Island courtroom on the reality series Caught in Providence, died Aug. 20 after “a long and courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.” He was 88. Francesco Caprio was born in Providence, R.I., on Nov. 24, 1936, as the second of three sons. He was appointed to the Providence Municipal Court in 1985, and served as chief judge until his retirement in January 2023. Caprio rose to prominence when clips of the proceedings he presided over, which mainly included low-level citations and ran for over two decades on local television, went viral on social media. Viewers found that Caprio showed an unusual mercy and kindness to those who appeared before him in court, earning him the nickname of the “Nicest Judge in the World.” After the clips of him went viral, Lionsgate’s Debmar-Mercury division began distributing Caught in Providence throughout the U.S. in 2018. The show was renewed for a second season of syndication in January 2019. The reality series was executive produced by Providence resident Paula Abdul, and nominated for Daytime Emmys in 2021, 2022, and 2023. Caprio was nominated on his own in 2024 for Outstanding Daytime Personality. He is survived by his wife, five children, seven grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
Terence Stamp
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Terence Stamp, the prolific English star of international masterpieces like Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Teorema and Federico Fellini’s Toby Dammit and the memorable villain of Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman and its sequel, Superman II, died on Aug. 17 at the age of 87. Stamp was born in the Stepney borough of London’s East End on July 22, 1938. He won a scholarship to undergo classical training at the prestigious Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. His debut film role, the titular part in Peter Ustinov’s 1962 adaptation of Herman Melville’s Billy Budd, won him an Academy Award nomination at only 24. In the first few years of his screen career, he starred opposite legends like Laurence Olivier and Melvyn Douglas, worked with directors like William Wyler and Joseph Losey, and earned the Best Actor prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Stamp appeared as the memorable General Zod in two Superman films, winning a broad fan base. He starred in two films by Tim Burton toward the end of his career, turning in one final, electric performance in Last Night in Soho in 2021.
Tristan Rogers
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Tristan Rogers, the soap star known for his long run playing Robert Scorpio on more than 1,400 episodes of General Hospital, died Aug. 15, at 79. Born in Melbourne, Australia, Rogers also played the private investigator Hunter Jones in 27 episodes of The Bold and the Beautiful in 1997. He later portrayed Colin Atkinson on more than 100 episodes of The Young and the Restless in the early 2010s. He received a Daytime Emmy for playing Doc on Amazon’s Studio City in 2020, and scored another nomination for the same role in 2021. He acted in more than 100 episodes of the web soap opera The Bay as well. Rogers’ other screen credits included The Love Boat, The Rescuers Down Under, Babylon 5, The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest, and Aaahh! Real Monsters.
Ronnie Rondell Jr.
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Ronnie Rondell Jr., a stuntman who was famously pictured afire on the cover of Pink Floyd’s 1975 album Wish You Were Here, died Aug. 12 at a senior living facility in Missouri, his family announced in an obituary. He was 88. Over a career that began in the 1950s and continued through 2003, Rondell also appeared on TV shows such as Charlie’s Angels, Mod Squad, Baretta, and Gunsmoke. He played a part in films including Blazing Saddles, Lethal Weapon, and The Matrix Reloaded. One of three men to found the stunt company Stunts Unlimited in 1970, he also worked as a stunt coordinator on movies including The Mighty Ducks and Batman and Robin. Rondell’s survivors include his wife of 56 years, Mary.
Danielle Spencer
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Former child star Danielle Spencer, who became a household name playing Dee Thomas on the ABC sitcom What’s Happening, died on Aug. 11 at age 60. Born in the Bronx, N.Y., and raised by her mother, Cheryl, a French teacher, and stepfather, actor Tim Pelt, Spencer began acting at age seven in a repertory company co-founded by Pelt. She mostly booked bit parts before booking What’s Happening! in 1976, when she was 11 years old. Spencer played Dee Thomas, the smart-aleck younger sister of Roger “Raj” Thomas (Ernest Thomas) and daughter of Mabel (Mabel King). Her character became known for her catchphrase, “Ooooh, I’m gonna tell Mama!” Initially a summer replacement that had a successful four-week run, the series ran for three seasons. Almost a decade later, the series was revived as What’s Happening Now from 1985-88. Spencer reprised her role as a college-aged Dee on a recurring basis. When the original What’s Happening ended its three-season run, Spencer and her family moved to the Ivory Coast before she returned to the U.S. to attend the University of California, Davis, to pursue veterinary medicine. Following the cancellation of What’s Happening Now, she attended Tuskegee University Veterinary School in Alabama and became a veterinarian in 1996. Spencer is survived by her mother, Cheryl, and her brother Jeremy, a jazz musician.
David Ketchum
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David Ketchum, the prolific television writer and comedic actor best known for his role as the hapless Agent 13 on the cult 1965 sitcom Get Smart, died Aug. 10 at age 97. Ketchum made his TV debut in 1961, appearing on episodes of such programs as The Jim Backus Show and The Munsters before joining season 2 of Get Smart in 1966 as Agent 13, a character whose signature became finding himself stationed in tight, uncomfortable spaces — mailboxes, fire hydrants, etc. — while undercover for assignments. His other memorable TV roles include Mel Warshaw on I’m Dickens, He’s Fenster and Spiffy on Camp Runamuck, plus guest spots on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Odd Couple, The Partridge Family, Maude, Mork & Mindy, and Happy Days. Ketchum also wrote episodes of Get Smart, and other classic shows like MacGyver, The Love Boat, Lottery!, Laverne & Shirley, T.J. Hooker, M*A*S*H, Here’s Lucy, The Bionic Woman, Wonder Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, and Full House.
Bobby Whitlock
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Keyboardist and rock singer Bobby Whitlock, who co-founded the pioneering group Derek and the Dominos alongside Eric Clapton, died on Aug. 10 at age 77. Whitlock was born in Memphis in 1948 and quickly found himself at the heart of the city’s booming soul and blues scene. He was signed to the iconic Stax Records label, which helped break the careers of acts like Otis Redding and Isaac Hayes. Through Stax, he joined the touring band of husband and wife duo Delaney & Bonnie, where he met Clapton, bassist Carl Radle, and drummer Jim Gordon. The quartet formed the short-lived Derek and the Dominos, but managed to release the seminal Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs in 1970. Beyond the Dominos, Whitlock played on the sessions for George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass, performed at John Lennon’s 1969 “Peace for Christmas” concert, and released 14 albums as a solo artist, six with his wife, CoCo Carmel.
Ray Brooks
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Ray Brooks, an English TV and film actor known for roles in Mr. Benn, The Knack … and How to Get It, Big Deal, and Taxi, died Aug. 9 at 86. His role as Terry Mills in Taxi in 1963 jumpstarted his career, and he followed that up with a role on the long-running ITV soap Coronation Street a year later. Around this time, Brooks also had small roles in British films such as H.M.S. Defiant, Play It Cool and Some People, but rose to prominence in the Cannes Palme d’Or winner The Knack …and How to Get It. In the ’80s, he had recurring roles on the TV series Big Deal and Running Wild. In later years, he was known for playing Joe Macer on the long-running BBC soap opera EastEnders. Other acting credits include Two Thousand Acres of Sky, Growing Pains, The Pickwick Papers, Death of an Expert Witness, King Rollo, Two People, Jackanory, Rooms, Pathfinders, Black and Blue, A Thinking Man as Hero, among several others.
Rob Riley
FatCat Filmworks Ltd.
Rob Riley, an actor and former Saturday Night Live writer, died Aug. 8 from complications from a stroke. He was 80. Born in Long Grove, Ill., Riley began his career in the Chicago improv scene, joining the famed Second City improv troupe in the 1980s and working alongside the likes of Jim Belushi, Tim Kazurinsky, and George Wendt. He was a writer for SNL between 1984 and 1985. Riley also made a name for himself in the Chicago theater scene, including productions of The Mystery Circle and Cadillac. He had several minor television and film roles, with credits including 2010’s A Nightmare on Elm Street, Chicago Fire, and Groundhog Day — in which he played a DJ whose voice wakes up Bill Murray each day when his radio alarm clock goes off. He is survived by his wife, actress Nonie Newton-Riley, and his son.
T-Hood
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T-Hood, the rapper behind hits like “Ready 2 Go” and “Percolator,” died on Aug. 8 at 33 after being shot outside a Georgia residence in what police described as a domestic dispute. T-Hood, born Tevin Hood, was a rising star in the Atlanta rap and hip-hop scene, having dropped his last single, “Girls in the Party,” just months before his death. In addition to several successful solo singles, T-Hood also collaborated on the song “Big Booty” with B.o.B.
Jon Miyahara
Hulu
Superstore star Jon Miyahara, who played Brett on all six seasons of the NBC comedy, died Aug. 6 at age 83. On the show, which followed the employees of a fictional store named Cloud 9, Miyahara played Brett in a total of 105 episodes throughout its run from 2015 to 2021 — including the series premiere and finale. His character was famously thought to be dead in the season 2 finale after a tornado destroyed the store. After his coworkers held a memorial for him, it was revealed at the beginning of the following season that he had been alive and well the whole time and escaped the storm by driving home. Miyahara, who, per his IMDB profile, was born Aug. 8, 1941, in Los Angeles, also played Bob in one episode of the TV series Holding Tight in 2022.
Eddie Palmieri
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Afro-Caribbean music artist Eddie Palmieri, whose work “helped usher in the golden age of salsa into New York City” died Aug. 6, following a long illness, his daughter, Gabriela Palmieri, told The New York Times. He was 88. The influential artist had worked professionally since the 1960s, and he made major contributions to the subgenre of Latin jazz. The pianist, composer, and bandleader received the title of Jazz Master from the National Endowment for the Arts in 2013. The same year, the Latin Grammys gave him a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Terry Reid
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Terry Reid, an English musician, songwriter, and guitarist whose voice earned him the nickname Superlungs, died Aug. 4 at 75. As a solo recording and touring artist, he put out six studio albums and four live albums, and was a revered vocalist, supporting act and session musician in the industry, with Aretha Franklin once saying, “There are only three things happening in England: the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, and Terry Reid.” He was so well regarded that Reid is perhaps best known for the gigs he famously turned down: He was asked by Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple to be those bands’ lead singer, but he declined in both instances.
Jane Morgan Weintraub
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Jane Morgan Weintraub, a singer, Broadway performer, and TV star, died Aug. 4 at 101. As a singer, Weintraub first found success in France and the U.K. before ultimately having luck in the U.S., where she eventually achieved six gold records. Well known albums include The American Girl From Paris and All the Way — and perhaps her best-known hit was 1957’s “Fascination,” which was featured in the Audrey Hepburn movie Love in the Afternoon. On the stage, she appeared in the Broadway productions of Ziegfeld Follies of 1957, The Jack Benny Show (1963), and in the titular role of Mame (1968-69). Weintraub made her TV debut on Celebrity Time in 1951. Her television credits include The Victor Borge Show, The Colgate Comedy Hour, Cavalcade of Stars, The Jack Benny Program, The Jimmy Dean Show, The Jonathan Winters Show, The Mike Douglas Show, and The Hollywood Palace. She made more than 50 appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show, and also starred in a number of TV specials, including three of her own.
Loni Anderson
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Loni Anderson, the two-time Emmy-nominated star of the classic CBS sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, died on Aug. 3 at age 79. Born in Saint Paul, Minn., in 1945 to an environmental chemist and a model, Anderson slowly rose through the ranks of show business with bit parts on series like S.W.A.T., Barnaby Jones, and The Bob Newhart Show. Her big break came in 1978 with a plum role on WKRP in Cincinnati, in which she played Jennifer Marlowe, the fictional station’s clever, enterprising, and endlessly enthusiastic receptionist. The actress went on to reprise her role on The New WKRP in Cincinnati for two years, joined the main cast of Nurses, a spinoff of Golden Girls spinoff Empty Nest, and appeared in guest roles in films A Night at the Roxbury and series like Melrose Place and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Anderson is survived by her husband, folk musician Bob Flick; her son, Quinton Anderson Reynolds; daughter Deidra Hoffman and son-in-law Charlie Hoffman; and numerous stepchildren, grandchildren, and step-grandchildren.
Kelley Mack
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Kelley Mack, an actress and producer best known for playing Addy on The Walking Dead, died Aug. 2 at age 33. In total, the star was credited with 35 acting roles throughout her career. Her first on-screen credit came in the 2019 short film Violet, which she followed up with her role as Hilltop Colony resident Addy on the ninth season of AMC’s hit zombie show. Other memorable TV stints include playing Penelope Jacobs in season 8 of Chicago Med, and on Fox’s 9-1-1. On the film side, she starred as Alice in Broadcast Signal Intrusion in 2021, and as Wilda in Delicate Arch in 2024. In the upcoming film Universal, she’s credited in the role of Ricky, and also serves as executive producer on the project, which hails from writer-director Stephen Portland. She also played Tina in Mr. Manhattan, and starred in and produced several shorts. Mack also had several notable commercials and voice-over roles to her credit, including in the Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
Jonathan Kaplan
20th Century Fox Film Corp/Courtesy Everett
Jonathan Kaplan, five-time Emmy-nominated director for TV and films, died at his home in Los Angeles on Aug. 1 after a battle with liver cancer. He was 77. Kaplan was born in Paris on Nov. 25, 1947, to actress Frances Heflin and film composer Sol Kaplan. He moved to Los Angeles and then New York at a young age. He began his career as a child actor in the Broadway production of The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, helmed by Elia Kazan. Kaplan earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago and then studied film at New York University, where he was tutored by Martin Scorsese. The Goodfellas director recommended him to Roger Corman, who produced his first feature film, the sex comedy Night Call Nurses (1972). Kaplan directed seven additional features throughout the 1970s, including The Student Teachers (1973), The Slams (1973), Truck Turner (1974), and his first major-studio film, White Line Fever (1975). His filmography includes directing two actresses to Academy Award nominations: Jodie Foster in The Accused (1988) and Michelle Pfeiffer in 1992’s Love Field. Foster nabbed her first Academy Award for Best Actress. Kaplan directed several music videos, as well as episodes of ER, Fallen Angels, Law & Order: SVU, Crossing Jordan, Without a Trace, Brothers and Sisters, and Witches of East End. His final theatrical release was 1999’s Brokedown Palace, starring Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsale. Kaplan is survived by his daughter, Molly Kaplan; his sister, actress Nora Heflin; and his nieces, Hannah and Eliza.
David Roach
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David Roach, the raspy-voiced frontman of Junkyard, died on Aug. 1 at 59, his bandmates announced. News of his death came months after the singer first opened up about his battle with an aggressive form of skin cancer. In 1987, the Austin, Texas, native co-founded Junkyard in Los Angeles. The group’s core lineup included Roach on vocals, Chris Gates and Brian Baker on guitar, Clay Anthony on bass, and Patrick Muzingo on drums. Together, they soon became a recognizable name in the city’s Sunset Strip music scene, then a popular place for on-the-rise hard rock acts. Junkyard signed with Geffen Records, and their self-titled debut album arrived in 1989. It was a modest success, peaking at No. 105 on the Billboard 200, with singles including “Blooze,” “Hollywood, “and “Simple Man.” They next released Sixes, Sevens & Nines before splitting up in 1992. They sporadically reunited over the years, eventually putting out the comeback album High Water in 2017.
Jeannie Seely
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Jeannie Seely, the Grammy-winning singer of “Don’t Touch Me” and country music icon, died Aug. 1 at 85. Prior to her death, which was a result of complications from an intestinal infection, Seely had been battling a number of health issues, including undergoing multiple back surgeries this spring for vertebrae repairs, as well as two emergency abdominal surgeries. Nevertheless, Seely performed at the Grand Ole Opry earlier this year on Feb. 22, which marked her 5,397th Opry performance, more than any other artist in the institution’s 100-year history. Known as “Miss Country Soul” for her soul-inspired vocals, Seely first broke through with the 1966 single “Don’t Touch Me,” which rose to No. 2 on the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart. Other charting songs included “A Wanderin’ Man” (1967), “I’ll Love You More (Than You’ll Need)” (1968), and her duet with Jack Greene “Wish I Didn’t Have to Miss You,” the latter of which peaked at No. 2 on the US country chart in 1969. In addition to her recording career, Seely also appeared in the Willie Nelson film Honeysuckle Rose, played Mrs. Jenkins in the 2002 film Changing Hearts, and she starred in stage productions including Always, Patsy Cline; The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas; Could It Be Love; and more. She also published her own book in 1988 titled Pieces of a Puzzled Mind.
Paul Mario Day
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Paul Mario Day, the English singer best known for being the original vocalist for iconic metal band Iron Maiden, died at 69. Day’s bandmates from More — which he formed in 1980 and remained with until 1982 — announced the news of his death on July 29, paying tribute to his legacy as “a huge part of the new wave of British heavy metal” and “a well-loved figure in British rock music.” Day only served as the vocalist for Iron Maiden’s first official lineup for less than a year. He had been recruited by bassist Steve Harris to join the band in late 1975, and left the group after 10 months following claims he lacked both energy and charisma. Day went on to front for More and Wildfire, before joining a reformed version of Sweet as their lead vocalist alongside guitarist Andy Scott and drummer Mick Tucker. Day eventually relocated to Australia in the ’80s, where he continued to operate as an active musician until his death. He is survived by his wife Cecily.
Alon Aboutboul
Warner Bros.
Alon Aboutboul, the veteran Israeli actor known for playing a doomed nuclear scientist in the hit superhero movie The Dark Knight Rises, died July 29, at 60. Aboutboul began his acting career in Israeli projects like Ricochets and Bar 51 in the 1980s, as well as American projects like Rambo III and the Tom Hanks film Every Time We Say Goodbye. In the ’90s, he primarily focused on Israeli projects like Planet Blue, Passover Fever, and Marco Polo: The Missing Chapter. In the 2000s, he led the TV drama Shabatot VeHagim for five seasons and played supporting roles in Steven Spielberg’s Munich as well as Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies. In the 2010s, he played drug lord Avi Drexler on FX’s Snowfall, and appeared on shows like NCIS, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Homeland, and Fringe. He also acted in American films like London Has Fallen, Septembers of Shiraz, and Beirut.
Tom Lehrer
Anthony Pidgeon/Redferns
Tom Lehrer, the Harvard-trained mathematician and musical satirist, died on July 26 at 97 years old. Born in Manhattan on April 9, 1928, Lehrer began taking piano lessons from an early age and wrote some of his earliest songs inspired by Broadway show tunes he loved. He graduated early from the Loomis Chaffee School in Connecticut before going to Harvard, where he majored in mathematics and received his bachelor’s degree in 1946, at age 18. Lehrer began his songwriting while attending Harvard and released his first album in 1953. Songs by Tom Lehrer ultimately sold an estimated half-million copies. He released several more albums before he stopped performing in 1960. Lehrer resumed briefly in 1965 and then stopped for good in 1967. He went on to teach courses on mathematics and musical theater at various institutions, including Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of California. In October 2020, he relinquished the rights to all his songs, except for the melodies of those few that used his words but someone else’s music.
Junior Edwards
History/YouTube
Junior Edwards, an alligator hunter who starred in the History Channel docuseries Swamp People, has died. His grandson announced the news on July 26. Spanning 15 seasons to date, Swamp People follows the proud descendants of French Canadian refugees who settled in the swamp region of Louisiana in the 18th century as they struggle to preserve their way of life during alligator-hunting season. Junior appeared regularly on the show from 2010 until 2015 alongside his son, William “Willie” Edwards, and grandson, “Little” Willie. After starring as an original cast member throughout the first six seasons, he returned for season 12 in 2021.
Jeffrey Louis Starr
Rendleman and Hileman Funeral Home
Jeffrey Louis Starr, who appeared in two Bad News Bears sequels, died on July 25. His brother, Kevin L. Starr, announced his death on Facebook, saying Jeffrey “lived an amazing life and shared his light with countless people.” Born on Feb. 20, 1964, in Cape Girardeau, Miss., Starr went on to appear as catcher Mike Engelberg in 1977’s The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training and the following year’s The Bad News Bears Go to Japan, both sequels to the smash hit sports comedy The Bad News Bears, starring Walter Matthau. Starr’s official obituary notes that he is survived by his wife Linda, sons Brandon and Jacob and several grandchildren.
Hulk Hogan
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Hulk Hogan, the charismatic wrestler who brought the sport to the mainstream, died July 24 from cardiac arrest at his home in Clearwater, Fla. He was 71. Born Terry Bollea before adapting his ubiquitous stage name, he began his pro wrestling career 1977 but gained wider global recognition after he signed with World Wrestling Entertainment in the ‘80s, ushering in the period of Hulkamania. He headlined WWE’s flagship WrestleMania eight times and won the WWE championship six times. A two-time WWE Hall of Fame inductee, he retired from the sport in 2012. Hogan also parlayed his flare for the theatrics into Hollywood, appearing in films Rocky III, No Holds Barred, Suburban Commando, and Santa with Muscles, as well as shows The A-Team, Robot Chicken, and his own family reality show Hogan Knows Best. Hogan is survived by his widow and third wife, Sky Daily, and his two children, Brooke and Nick, from a previous marriage.
Cleo Laine
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Celebrated jazz singer and actress Cleo Laine died July 24 at her home in Wavendon, England, her daughter, Jacqui Dankworth, told the New York Times. She was 97. The singer began her career by performing at London jazz clubs in the ’50s. She had, the newspaper wrote, become “one of the most celebrated jazz singers in England” by the mid-’60s.” She debuted in the U.S. in 1972 — after the height of “Beatle hysteria,” she noted — and went on to perform onstage and record popular albums, often working with her late husband, Sir John Dankworth, who died in 2010. She won a Grammy in 1986, for her album Cleo At Carnegie — The 10th Anniversary Concert, and she was named Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1997. Laine is survived by her daughter, son Alec, four grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. In 2019, her son Stuart preceded her in death.
Don Zimmerman
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Prolific film editor Don Zimmerman, who worked on beloved movies such as Coming Home, Being There, Night at the Museum, and two Rocky sequels, died of acute myeloid leukemia at his home on July 24, the honorary organization American Cinema Editors confirmed to Deadline. Zimmerman was 81. He was nominated for an Oscar for his work on Coming Home, the 1978 drama about life during the Vietnam War that starred Jane Fonda, Jon Voight, and Bruce Dern. His other work includes the movies The Nutty Professor, Galaxy Quest, Staying Alive, and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. He is survived by his wife, Donna, five children who work in the entertainment industry — Dan, Dean, Debi, Dana and David — and seven grandchildren.
Chuck Mangione
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Chuck Mangione, the Grammy-winning jazz artist, died on July 22 at 84. As a trumpeter and flugelhorn player, Mangione gained acclaim for his work in the Jazz Brothers — which he formed with his older brother, Gap — and as a member of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. Mangione won his first Grammy for the 1976 album Bellavia and his second for the Children of Sanchez soundtrack, but it was his mega-hit single, “Feels So Good,” that catapulted him to worldwide recognition. He also garnered attention for composing and performing “Give it All You Got,” which was the theme song for the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. Recent years have seen new audiences introduced to Mangionge via his gig as a guest character on King of the Hill, where he played himself as a Mega Lo Mart spokesperson. Across his 60-year career, Mangione recorded over 30 albums, and was nominated for 14 Grammy Awards. “Feels So Good” has remained ubiquitous and is frequently used in movie soundtracks, including 1996’s Fargo, 2009’s Zombieland, and 2016’s Doctor Strange.
Ozzy Osbourne
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Ozzy Osbourne, the Black Sabbath frontman and reality star, died on July 22. He was 76. Just weeks before his death, Osbourne and his legendary rock band performed a farewell show to a hometown crowd of 40,000. In January 2020, Osbourne revealed that in 2003 he’d been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, saying at the time, “It’s not a death sentence.” Also known as the Prince of Darkness, Osbourne pioneered heavy metal with his screeching vocal performances and unpredictable on-stage antics as a member of Sabbath in the late 1960s and 1970s. He also launched a successful solo career after splitting from the band, and achieved further notoriety when he shared the spotlight with family on his 2000s MTV reality series The Osbournes. In addition to being a two-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Osbourne won three Grammys as a solo artist and two as a member of Black Sabbath. His first win came for Best Metal Performance With Vocal for “I Don’t Want To Change The World” in 1994, followed by a win for Best Metal Performance for a live rendition of “Iron Man” in 2000.
Alfie Wise
20th Century Fox/ Everett
Alfie Wise, a frequent costar of Burt Reynolds in movies such as 1981’s Cannonball Run and 1977’s Smokey and the Bandit, died July 22 of natural causes at the Thomas H. Corey VA Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla., his fiancée, Stephanie Bliss, told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 82. Wise’s partnership with Reynolds included 10 films in all, beginning with The Longest Yard in 1974. The Pennsylvania native also appeared on TV’s Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, as well as in series The Fall Guy, Trauma Center, and Reynolds’ B.L. Stryker and Evening Shade.
Dan Ziskie
Patrick Harbron/Netflix
Dan Ziskie, the character actor known for playing politicians and military officials in various screen projects, died July 21, at 80. Born in Detroit, Ziskie portrayed construction magnate C.J. Liquori in 18 episodes of HBO’s Treme, and played the vice president of the United States in six episodes of House of Cards. A veteran of Chicago’s Second City comedy troupe, Ziskie is also known for a provocative sketch on Chappelle’s Show in 2004, which saw him play the patriarch of a white family whose surname is a homophone of a racial slur. Ziskie appeared on shows like Quantum Leap, Law & Order, Ghostwriter, ER, Sex and the City, 24, NCIS, and Ugly Betty, and was an accomplished photographer. He released Cloud Chamber, a book collecting his portraits of everyday New Yorkers, in 2017, and saw his work featured in The New York Times, The Guardian, the Financial Times, and more.
Malcolm-Jamal Warner
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Malcolm-Jamal Warner, the actor best known as Theodore Huxtable on groundbreaking sitcom The Cosby Show, died July 20 from an accidental drowning in Costa Rica. He was 54. Warner rose to prominence as the only son of Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad’s characters on the show, seminal for its depiction of an affluent Black family, before headlining Malcolm & Eddie alongside Eddie Griffin from 1996 to 2000. Other notable credits include Reed Between the Lines as Tracee Ellis Ross’ onscreen husband, as well as the most recent Major Crimes, The Resident, 9-1-1, and Alert: Missing Persons Unit. He was also a poet and musician.
Budd Carr
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Budd Carr, best known for establishing the role of music supervisor in film and TV, died on July 20 at the age of 79. Carr started his career as a member of the band One Eyed Jacks before becoming a music agent to the band Kansas and managing the group through its glory days. In the 1980s, Carr became a music supervisor, revolutionizing the field during a time when studios rarely outsourced to procure songs for feature films and television. Carr became a close collaborator of Oliver Stone, serving as a music supervisor on all of his movies, including Platoon, Wall Street, The Doors, Born on the Fourth of July, JFK, Natural Born Killers, Nixon, Alexander, W. World Trade Center and Snowden. His other notable works include Heat, Evan Almighty, Any Given Sunday, Twister, Hotel Rwanda, Donnie Brasco, Beyond Borders, Stigmata, Seven Years In Tibet and Hoosiers. He received two Guild of Music Supervisor Awards nominations, for the movie Get It On: The James Brown Story and the series Californication. Carr is survived by his wife of 55 years, Jeanne, and their three adult children, Elizabeth Carr-Ernst, Ryan and Jonathon.
Tom Troupe
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Tom Troupe, a prolific character actor who appeared in dozens of series, including Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, and Frasier, died of natural causes on July 20. He was 97. Born July 15, 1928, Troupe grew up acting in local theater productions before making the move to New York City, where he was awarded a scholarship by Uta Hagen to attend classes at the Herbert Berghof Studio. After serving in the Korean War, for which he was awarded a Bronze Star, Troupe returned to New York City and made his Broadway debut in the 1957 stage adaptation of The Diary of Anne Frank. He moved to Los Angeles the following year and quickly found success as a character actor on television, landing roles in episodes of shows such as Lock Up, Rawhide, Lawman, The Fugitive, and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. He also enjoyed success on the silver screen, playing characters in a variety of films, including 1959’s The Big Fisherman, 1968’s The Devil’s Brigade, 1987’s Summer School, and 1991’s My Own Private Idaho. Troupe and his wife, actress Carole Cook, who died in 2023, were jointly honored with the L.A. Ovation Award for Career Achievement in 2002.
Kenneth Washington
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Kenneth Washington, the last surviving cast member of TV’s Hogan’s Heroes, died July 18, according to Variety. He was 88. Before landing on the final season of the classic sitcom, on which he played Sgt. Richard Baker, Washington had appeared on shows such as I Dream of Jeannie, Star Trek, Petticoat Junction, and My Three Sons. He was also cast in the 1973 movie Westworld and in TV movies such as J. Edgar Hoover. Washington last appeared in a 1989 episode of The Cosby Show spinoff A Different World. After acting, he went back to school and taught courses about Black actors in film and oral interpretation at Loyola Marymount University and Southwest College. Washington is survived by wife Alice Marshall, brother Johnnie, sister Aaliyah Akbar, children Kim Lee, Kenneth Jr., and Quianna Stokes-Washington, as well as three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Robbie Pardlo
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Robbie Pardlo, best known as a member of the R&B group City High, died July 17 at the age of 46. Pardlo founded City High alongside his high school girlfriend, Claudette Ortiz, and their classmate Ryan Toby. Mentored by Wyclef Jean on his Wooga Booga label, the group found success with their first single, “What Would You Do,” which sampled “The Next Episode” by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. The track peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned City High a nomination for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal at the 2002 Grammy Awards. The group released their first and only album, City High, in 2001, with Pardlo taking lead on the LP’s production. City High disbanded shortly after its release. Pardlo continued making music with the band First Take.
Alan Bergman
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Alan Bergman, the award-winning songwriter and lyricist who teamed with his wife, Marilyn, to write lyrics for some of television’s most memorable theme songs, died on July 17 at 99. The husband-wife duo wrote lyrics for stars like Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, and Barbara Streisand — the latter of whom even released an album in 2011 titled, What Matters Most: Barbra Streisand Sings the Lyrics of Alan and Marilyn Bergman. Their music has been featured in films such as Yentl, Tootsie, and Sabrina, scoring a myriad award nominations and wins. Between 1970 and 1996, the Bergmans received a total of 16 Oscar nominations, winning thee, for “The Windmills of Your Mind” from The Thomas Crown Affair, “The Way We Were” from the movie of the same name, and the song score for Streisand’s Yentl in 1983. The Bergmans also wong three Grammy Awards, including Song of the Year for “The Way We Were.” Among their many accolades, the Bergmans received a Trustee Award in 2013 and were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1979. Marilyn died in 2022.
Connie Francis
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Pop star Connie Francis, best known for dominating the charts in the late 1950s and early ’60s with hits like “Pretty Little Baby” and “Stupid Cupid,” died on July 16 at 87. Born Concetta Franconero on Dec. 12, 1938, in Newark, N.J., Francis began her music career when she was very young. She started playing the accordion at age 3, and by the age of 11, she was appearing on local television variety shows such as Marie Moser’s Starlets, and then on Ted Mack’s national show Original Amateur Hour and Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts. She later secured a four-year run as one of the child entertainers on Startime. As she grew up, Francis embarked on a pop career, releasing songs in the 1950s and early 1960s, and becoming the most popular female singer in the U.S. between 1958 and 1964. She sold more than 40 million records and topped the Billboard charts with No. 1 hits like “My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own” and “Don’t Break the Heart That Loves You.” Other memorable tracks included “Stupid Cupid” and “Who’s Sorry Now.” Francis officially retired in 2018. In addition to her music career, Francis acted in movies, including a supporting role in the 1960 comedy Where the Boys Are and the lead role in 1963’s Follow the Boys. She also earned a special Golden Globe in 1964 for her contributions to the recording industry. Francis is survived by son, Joey Garzilli, whom she and then-husband Joseph Garzilli adopted.
Eileen Fulton
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Eileen Fulton, who was one of the first “bad girls” of daytime television, died on July 14 in her hometown of Asheville, N.C., after “a period of declining health.” Born Margaret Elizabeth McLarty on Sept. 13, 1933, Fulton began her rise to daytime stardom in 1960, when she was cast as Lisa Miller on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns. Though she was originally written to be a “nice girl” with a summerlong arc, Fulton delivered a performance that transformed Lisa into a mainstay villain of the soap, inspiring passionate responses from its fans. Fulton left the show several times over the years, at one point to star in the short-lived spinoff Our Private World. But she ultimately stuck with the series until its 2010 cancellation, having played the character for five decades and ending her run as one of the longest-tenured soap opera stars in U.S. history. In 2004, she was awarded a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award for the role. Fulton was also a singer and an author. She retired in 2019.
Rene Kirby
20th Century Fox
Rene Kirby, the actor best known for his role in 2001’s Shallow Hal, died on July 11 at 70. Kirby was born on February 27, 1955, with spina bifida, a condition that occurs when a fetus’ spine and spinal cord don’t close properly early in a pregnancy, which can cause difficulty walking. Kirby instead learned to walk on his hands. He worked for IBM for two decades before landing Shallow Hal, the Farrelly Brothers rom-com starring Jack Black and Gwyneth Paltrow. His character, Walt, also had spina bifida and was written specifically for him. Kirby would later appear as Phil Rupp in another Farrelly brothers movie, 2003’s Stuck on You, and made his final screen appearance in a 2005 episode of Carnivàle. Kirby is survived by his mother and six siblings.
David Kaff
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David Kaff, the British musician and actor known for playing keyboardist Viv Savage in This Is Spinal Tap, died July 11, at 79. Born David Kaffinetti in 1946, Kaff first rose to notoriety with the prog-rock band Rare Bird in the late 1960s. The band released five albums between 1969 and 1974, becoming the very first band to have music released by Charisma Records. Kaff was perhaps best known for his role in This Is Spinal Tap, the 1984 mockumentary film co-written and directed by Rob Reiner in his feature directorial debut; it also starred Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer, and Michael McKean. Kaff’s role in the film was small, and his most famous line comes in the film’s credits, when he’s asked for his life motto and says, “Have a good time… all the time.” After his role in Spinal Tap, Kaff performed in a series of other bands, including the Oakland-based Model Citizenz as well as Mutual of Alameda’s Wild Kingdom.
David Gergen
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David Gergen, a political analyst for CNN and PBS who also served as an adviser to four U.S. presidents, died July 10, at 83. Born and raised in Durham, N.C., Gergen was educated at Yale and Harvard and served in the Navy for more than three years. His contacts there got him a job writing in President Nixon’s administration, which would become the first of four presidents he served. He went on to advise presidents Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton in different capacities, making Gergen the rare cross-party adviser. He was also a successful author, writing about his White House duties in the best-selling 2000 book Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership, Nixon to Clinton. More recently, he wrote Hearts Touched With Fire: How Great Leaders Are Made. Gergen ventured into journalism in 1978, when he became managing editor of Public Opinion. By the mid-’80s Gergen was the editor of U.S. News & World Report, and also a columnist there. That led to a very successful foray into political analysis — he served as frequent TV commentator for The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour on PBS and was a mainstay on CNN throughout his career.
Bun Hay Mean
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Bun Hay Mean, the French comedian who appeared in films like Asterix & Obelisk: The Middle Kingdom, died July 10 after falling from a building in Paris. He was 43. Mean’s agency said that he “slipped and fell several stories” while trying to grab his phone from a balcony gutter just before he departed for Montreal. Born in the Bordeaux suburb Lormont in 1981, Mean studied computer science before moving to Paris to pursue comedy in his mid-20s. He began his screen career in the early 2010s with supporting roles in films like De L’huile sur le Feu and The Chef. Mean rose to prominence in the Parisian comedy scene when he joined the Jamel Comedy Club in 2014 and debuted his first stand-up show, Chinois Marrant dans la Légende de Bun Hay Mean, the same year. Over the next decade, Mean appeared in movies like Problemos and The Misadventures of Hedi and Cokeman as well as TV shows like Craignos and Platane.
James Carter Cathcart
2009 James Carter Cathcart
James Carter Cathcart, the voice actor known for portraying multiple characters in the English-language dubs of numerous Pokémon projects, died July 8 at age 71. Born in New Jersey in 1954, Cathcart began his career as a member of the Laughing Dogs, a rock band that frequently performed at New York’s CBGB in the 1970s. Sometimes credited as Jimmy Zoppi, Cathcart was primarily known for his prolific contributions to the English versions of numerous Pokémon projects, first playing Fergus in 1998’s Pokémon: The First Movie before taking over the iconic roles of Meowth, Team Rocket’s James, and Professor Oak in subsequent projects. Cathcart is credited in more than 30 Pokémon projects, several of which also list him as a script adaptor. He also provided voice performances in Yu-Gi-Oh, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, One Piece, Mission Odyssey, Funky Cops, and Ape Escape 2.
Mark Snow
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Mark Snow, the veteran television composer best known for creating the iconic theme song for The X-Files, died July 4 at 78. Per Variety, Snow died at his Connecticut home and is survived by his wife Glynnis, three daughters, and grandchildren. Snow was born Martin Fulterman on Aug. 26, 1946, in Brooklyn, N.Y. A graduate of Juilliard, Snow started out in the ’70s writing for full orchestra, before turning to writing film and television scores after relocating to Los Angeles in 1974. Snow was among the first to transition to the all-electronic milieu in the late 1980s, working alone in his home studio. The 15-time Emmy-nominated composer has crafted some of the most memorable music for the small screen, including scoring over 200 episodes of X-Files, Smallville, the Ghost Whisperer, Blue Bloods, Hart to Hart, T.J. Hooker, and Helter Skelter. He’s received 30 ASCAP awards (from 1986 to 2016), many for most performed underscore or most performed theme. In 2013, the Society of Composers & Lyricists honored him with its Ambassador award. A year later, the TV Academy’s music peer group honored him with a Career Achievement Award.
Young Noble
Young Noble/Instagram
Rapper Young Noble, a member of the hip-hop group Outlawz and frequent Tupac Shakur collaborator, died on July 4 at 47 years old. Per PEOPLE, the rapper died by suicide in Atlanta, Ga. Noble was born Rufus Lee Cooper III on March 21, 1978, in Sierra Madre, Calif. He met future Outlawz members Hussein Fatal and Yaki Kadafi after moving to New Jersey at the age of eight. He moved back to California at 16, and he joined Outlawz in early 1996. Noble was the final member added to the group after being personally selected by founder Tupac Shakur before Shakur was fatally shot in Las Vegas in September that year. Noble made his debut on Shakur’s album The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory, appearing on four songs including “Hail Mary.” While Noble has been included in several projects alongside his Outlawz members, he released his first solo album, Noble Justice, in 2002. Seven albums followed that, including his most recent solo project, The Last Outlaw, which dropped in 2024.
Julian McMahon
Byron Cohen/The WB
Julian McMahon, the Australian actor best known for headlining Nip/Tuck, died the week of July 4 at age 56 after a battle with cancer. The son of former Australian prime minister William McMahon, the actor worked as a model before beginning his screen career on Australian soap operas The Power, The Passion and Home and Away. In 1994, he joined the American soap Another World, and played Detective John Grant on NBC’s primetime crime drama Profiler. McMahon gained further recognition when he joined the cast of the WB’s Charmed in 2000, playing the half-demon assassin Cole Turner. McMahon led Nip/Tuck, the Ryan Murphy–created plastic surgery series that ran for six seasons on FX, from 2003 to 2009. He later led CBS’ FBI: Most Wanted for three seasons. On the big screen, McMahon was best known for playing Victor Von Doom 2005’s Fantastic Four and its 2007 sequel Rise of the Silver Surfer. His other credits include Runaways, Hunters, Premonition, and RED.
Michael Madsen
Miramax/courtesy Everett
Michael Madsen, the actor best known for his collaborations with Quentin Tarantino, died July 3 at age 67 from cardiac arrest at his home in Los Angeles. Madsen was best known for his chilling turn as the psychopathic Vic Vega, also known as Mr. Blonde, in Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs. He later went toe-to-toe with Uma Thurman’s Bride in Kill Bill Volume 2, portraying the assassin Sidewinder. Madsen also worked with Tarantino in small roles in The Hateful Eight and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. His massive filmography also included projects like Thelma & Louise, the James Bond film Die Another Day, The Doors, Sin City, The Natural, Donnie Brasco, Free Willy, Species, Mulholland Falls, and Scary Movie 4. He later appeared on TV shows like 24, Powers, The Mob Doctor, Celebrity Big Brother, and Golden Boy. Madsen is survived by his sons Christian, Max, Calvin, and Luke.
Sophia Hutchins
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Sophia Hutchins, Caitlyn Jenner’s manager and close friend who appeared in the reality star’s show I Am Cait, died at 29 in an ATV accident on July 2. The businesswoman was driving the vehicle down a street near Jenner’s Malibu home when she hit the bumper of a car, with the impact sending her and the ATV over the shoulder of the road and down a 350-foot ravine. Hutchins and Jenner first met in 2015 through their hairstylists, and she was in multiple episodes of Jenner’s E! docuseries, I Am Cait. In addition to serving as Jenner’s manager, she was also the CEO and director of the Caitlyn Jenner Foundation and the founder of the sunscreen brand Lumasol.
Jimmy Swaggart
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Jimmy Swaggart, the reverend who rose to prominence during the golden age of televangelism in the 1980s before a prostitution scandal rocked his evangelical empire, died July 1 at the age of 90. One of the most well-known Pentecostal televangelists in America, his ministry reached up to 2 million households and raised $150 million a year in revenue before his fall from grace in the late ‘80s, after he was photographed with a prostitute at a motel. In an infamous broadcast, he conceded that he had “sinned.” He remained in the pulpit after the scandal, launching his own network, SonLife Broadcasting, in 2010. He was also a gospel music artist, having recorded more than 200 gospel albums. The cousin of the late rock n’ roll pioneer Jerry Lee Lewis and country singer Mickey Gilley, Swaggart was recently inducted into the Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame Class of 2025 the month before his death.
Kenneth Colley
LUCASFILM
Kenneth Colley, the British actor known for his role as Admiral Piett in the original Star Wars trilogy, died on Monday, June 30. He was 87. Colley’s agent, Julian Owens, confirmed the actor’s death to Entertainment Weekly, sharing that he died peacefully at his home with friends at his bedside in Ashford, Kent, after being admitted to a hospital with an injured arm and quickly contracting Covid, which developed into pneumonia. While Colley is known for his role as Admiral Piett — which he reprised in the 2012 animated film Lego Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out — he’s earned an eclectic array of credits, including roles in Clint Eastwood’s Firefox, Aki Kaurismäki’s I Hired a Contract Killer, Ken Russell’s The Rainbow, and the Second World War series War and Remembrance.
He also notably played Jesus in Monty Python’s Life of Brian alongside John Cleese, Graham Chapman, and Michael Palin.
Jim Shooter
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Jim Shooter, who served as Marvel’s editor in chief in the 1980s, died at his home in Nyack, N.Y., on June 30, his son, Ben Shooter, told The New York Times. He was 73. While a cause of death was not provided, Shooter was diagnosed with cancer in 2024. He worked for both Marvel and DC Comics as a teenager and, as Marvel’s controversial leader in the ’80s, transformed it into the juggernaut brand it is today, making deals for its stories to be adapted into films and its characters made into toys. “I honestly think he saved the comics industry,” journalist Harry Broertjes, who worked with Shooter, told the outlet. Shooter was fired from the company in 1987, after it came under new ownership. He went on to establish several of his own comic book companies.
Maureen Hingert
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Maureen Hingert, the Sri Lankan actress and former Miss Universe runner-up contestant who starred in films such as The King and I and Gun Fever, died of liver failure on June 29. She was 88. Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka (then known as Ceylon), in 1937, Hingert was just 18 years old when she was crowned the winner of the Miss Ceylon beauty pageant in 1955. She would go on to represent her home country at the televised Miss Universe competition in Long Beach, Calif., that same year, where she was the 2nd runner-up. Competing in Miss Universe earned Hingert a contract with Universal and an uncredited role in the 1956 Western, Pillars of the Sky. She would star in several more projects — including the Academy award-winning musical adaptation of The King and I — before landing her first credit in the 1957 sitcom, The Adventures of Hiram Holliday. Under the name Jana Davi, Hingert starred in a series of Westerns including The Rawhide Trail and Gunmen from Laredo before retiring from acting in the early 1960s.
Rick Hurst
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Rick Hurst, the actor known for playing Deputy Cletus Hogg on The Dukes of Hazzard, died on June 26 at age 79. His Dukes costar announced his death with a heartfelt tribute on the Facebook page of the show’s museum, Cooter’s Place in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. Hurst was born Jan. 1, 1946 in Houston, Texas. The actor had some success early in his acting career, with roles on TV series such as Sanford and Son, The Partridge Family, Gunsmoke, Happy Days, Little House on the Prairie, and M*A*S*H throughout the ’70s. But it was landing the part of Boss Hogg’s cousin on The Dukes of Hazzard that made Hurst a household name. He appeared in 55 episodes of the CBS series from 1979 to 1982, and reprised his role for two Dukes TV films in 1997 and 2000. Hurst also appeared in shows like Murder She Wrote, 227, The Wonder Years, Family Matters, and Melrose Place. He starred in movies such as Earth Girls Are Easy (1988), The Karate Kid Part III (1989), Steel Magnolias (1989), and Anywhere But Here (1999). His last onscreen appearance was on a TV short titled B My Guest in 2016. Hurst is survived by his two sons, Ryan Hurst, an actor who appeared on Sons of Anarchy throughout its run, and Collin Hurst.
Lalo Schifrin
Bob Riha, Jr./Getty
Composer, pianist, and conductor Lalo Schifrin, who wrote the iconic theme song for the TV series Mission: Impossible — which was eventually adapted into a movie franchise starring Tom Cruise — as well as dozens of films, including Dirty Harry, Cool Hand Luke, The Sting 2, The Amityville Horror, and the Rush Hour franchise, died on June 26. He was 93. Schifrin’s son, the writer and director Ryan Schifrin, told Deadline that his father died “peacefully.” Over his 40-year career, the prolific musician won four Grammys and was nominated for six Oscars. He was given an honorary Oscar in 2019, making him one of only three composers who had earned that award. The Buenos Aries–born artist was discovered in the 1950s by Dizzy Gillespie, and later collaborated with artists including Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, and Stan Getz.
Walter Scott Jr.
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Walter Scott Jr., who helped found the R&B group the Whispers, died June 26 surrounded by his family in Northridge, Calif., following a six-month struggle with cancer, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He was 81. He and his twin brother, Wallace Scott “Scotty,” started the Whispers, who began releasing albums in 1980 and saw five of them go gold. The group’s hit songs included “Rock Steady,” “And the Beat Goes On,” “Love at Its Best,” “Love Is Where You Find It,” and “Lady.” The Whispers’ publicist, Desirae Lee Benson-Brockington, remembered Scott fondly on Facebook, writing, “His contribution to music, culture, and the hearts of so many will never be forgotten.”
Kylie Page
Kylie Page/Facebook
Kylie Page, an adult film star, died on June 25 at the age of 28. Born in Tulsa in 1997, Page became known for the over 200 erotic films and scenes she made with outfits like Vixen Media Group and Brazzers. She was remembered by the latter company “for her laughter, kindness and bringing light wherever she went,” and by childhood friend Micquelle Riley as “unbelievably precious and special and interesting and smart and beautiful.”
Bobby Sherman
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Bobby Sherman, the pop singer and actor who rose to fame as a teen heartthrob in the 1960s, died at 81, his wife announced June 24. Sherman began his career as a singer on such shows as Hollywood a Go Go and Shindig! before landing his breakout role as the shy logger Jeremy Bolt on the comedy western series Here Come the Brides. He also embarked on a music career during that launched his teen idol status, recording more than 100 songs, including such chart hits as “Little Woman,” “Easy Come, Easy Go,” “La La La,” and “Julie, Do Ya Love Me.” He continued to act, appearing on such shows as The Partridge Family and its short-lived spinoff Getting Together; The Love Boat; Murder, She Wrote; and Sanchez of Bel Air. A guest appearance on an episode of Emergency! inspired a different career path for Sherman in the ’90s, as a paramedic and medical training officer in his native L.A. He left the entertainment industry during that time, becoming a technical reserve police officer with the LAPD. He would also serve as deputy sheriff with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, retiring in 2010.
Rebekah Del Rio
Universal PIctures
Rebekah Del Rio, the singer-songwriter who performed a defining Spanish-language cover of Roy Orbison’s “Crying” in David Lynch’s 2001 classic Mulholland Drive, died June 23 in Los Angeles. She was 57. Del Rio met the late Lynch through their mutual agent Brian Loucks, who brought “Llorando,” Del Rio’s cover of the Orbison song, to the auteur’s attention. Her performance is featured in the seminal Club Silencio scene in the surrealist noir starring Naomi Watts and Laura Harring, reducing the women to tears before she faints on stage. She would reunite with the filmmaker on Twin Peaks: The Return, performing alongside Moby in an episode. Del Rio also lent her voice to the Sin City, Southland Tales, Streets of Legend, and Man on Fire soundtracks. She released albums Nobody’s Angel, All My Life, and Love Hurts Love Heals.
Mick Ralphs
Fin Costello/Redferns
Mick Ralphs, who co-founded the influential rock bands Bad Company and Mott the Hoople, died at 81, according to an announcement June 23. Bad Company, the British rockers who pumped out hits in the ’70s including “Feel Like Makin’ Love” and “Can’t Get Enough,” are one of the 13 acts selected for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 2025 class, which will be inducted in November. Ralphs’ bandmate Paul Rodgers said in a statement, “Our Mick has passed, my heart just hit the ground. He has left us with exceptional songs and memories. He was my friend, my songwriting partner, an amazing and versatile guitarist who had the greatest sense of humour. Our last conversation a few days ago we shared a laugh but it won’t be our last. There are many memories of Mick that will create laughter.” Ralphs is survived by “the love of his life,” Susie Chavasse, his two children, and three stepchildren.
Joe Marinelli
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Actor Joe Marinelli, who was best known for his work on General Hospital, Santa Barbara, and The Morning Show, died, his agent Julie Smith told Entertainment Weekly. He was 68. Martinelli’s wife of three decades, musician Jean Martinelli, told The Hollywood Reporter that his June 22 death followed a struggle with stomach cancer. Beginning in 1984, Marinelli was a guest star on popular shows including The West Wing, ER, L.A. Law, House, The King of Queens, and Desperate Housewives. He appeared on Santa Barbara, on which he portrayed cross-dressing gangster Bunny Tagliatti, between 1988 and 1990, and then played the character of Joseph Sorel on General Hospital a decade later. Marinelli was show director Donny Spagnoli on The Morning Show. The late actor’s friend and colleague, Leigh J. McCloskey, shared a tribute on Facebook, in which he referred to Marinelli as “a great acting partner, teacher, philosophical friend, passionate believer in people, and a storyteller extraordinaire that with laughter and depth revealed the human spirit so beautifully and in so many different ways.”
Lynn Hamilton
ABC via Getty
Lynn Hamilton, a renowned actress who starred on The Waltons, died on June 19 at 95. Born Alzenia ‘Lynn’ Hamilton in Yazoo City, Miss., on April 25, 1930, Hamilton began her career in Chicago’s community theater scene. At 29, she made her Broadway debut in 1959’s Only in America and went on to appear in numerous Broadway and Off Broadway productions, while also taking her talents to the small screen with roles on the television series Gunsmoke and Room 222. One of her most memorable roles was as Donna Harris on NBC’s Sanford and Son. She also starred as Miss Verdie on The Waltons, Vivian Potter on the daytime drama Generations, ex-con Cissie Johnson on the 1991 nighttime soap Dangerous Women, and Georgia Anderson in Roots: The Next Generation. Her additional TV credits include roles on 227, The Golden Girls, NYPD Blue, Cold Case, and Judging Amy.
Dave Scott
Michael Tullberg/Getty
Dave Scott, the choreographer for films such as You Got Served and Step Up 2: The Streets, and shows like So You Think You Can Dance and Dancing With the Stars, died on June 16. He was 52. Scott formed teen R&B group B2K in 2012, and was the choreographer and co-creator of teen R&B group Mindless Behavior and in 2012, co-choreographed the Ubisoft video game The Hip Hop Dance Experience with Laurieann Gibson and b-boy David “Kid David” Shreibman. He choreographed for various films, including You Got Served (2004), Step Up 2 (2008), Stomp the Yard (2007), Dance Flick (2009), House Party 4 (2001), Coach Carter (2005), and the 2013 film Battle of the Year: The Dream Team based on the 2007 documentary Planet B-Boy. Scott was also behind several TV productions, working as a guest choreographer on The Wade Robson Project in 2003, a guest choreographer on Step It Up and Dance in 2008, and on season 7 of Dancing With the Stars. He was also the recurring hip-hop choreographer from season 3 on of So You Think You Can Dance.
Anne Burrell
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Anne Burrell, the celebrity chef best known for hosting Worst Cooks in America on Food Network, died June 17 at age 55. Her death was later ruled a suicide. Born in Cazenovia, N.Y., in 1969, Burrell studied at the Culinary Institute of America and Italian Culinary Institute for Foreigners in Asti, Italy, in the 1990s. She made her TV debut as Mario Batali’s sous chef on Iron Chef America in 2005. She then headlined the Food Network series Secrets of a Restaurant Chef beginning in 2008. The series ultimately ran for nine seasons. She starred on Worst Cooks in America from 2010 to 2024 across 27 seasons, mentoring a new team of inexperienced cooks through culinary boot camp every season. She also appeared on other Food Network shows like Beat Bobby Flay, The Best Thing I Ever Ate, and The Next Iron Chef.
Kim Woodburn
Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock
Kim Woodburn, the British TV personality who fronted How Clean Is Your House? and competed on Celebrity Big Brother, died June 16 at age 83. Woodburn’s manager told Entertainment Weekly in a statement that she died following a “short illness,” while her husband, Peter, confirmed the news on social media.
Joanna Bacon
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Joanna Bacon, the British character actress who famously starred as the mother of Natalie (Martine McCutcheon) in Love Actually, died June 14 at 72 following a battle with cancer. Born in London, Bacon was inspired to leave her career at Longmans Publishing and become an actress after training at the Actors Institute. She quickly found success starring in several regional theater productions, making her stage debut at the Harlow Theatre Company before going on to land roles in celebrated productions at the Hampstead Theatre, the Sheffield Crucible, Stratford East, and the National Theatre. She made the leap from stage to screen in the 1990s, appearing in programs like Perfect Scoundrels, EastEnders, Murder Prevention, Him & Her, Breeders, and Moonflower Murders. In addition to Love Actually, she also starred in films such as Last Orders, RocknRolla, Easy Virtue, A Quiet Passion, and She Will.
David Hekili Kenui Bell
Disney
David Hekili Kenui Bell, who appeared in the live-action version of Lilo & Stitch, died June 12, weeks after the May 23 release of the blockbuster, his sister announced in a post on Facebook. Bell also acted in the reboots of Hawaii Five-O and Magnum P.I. He had been set to appear in the upcoming project The Wrecking Crew, with Jason Momoa and Morena Baccarin, according to IMDb. His sister noted that his voice plays at Kona International Airport, a role he particularly enjoyed. “He was and will remain a bright and shining star,” Jalene Kanani Bell wrote.
Ananda Lewis
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Ananda Lewis, known for hosting BET’s Teen Summit and, in the late ʼ90s, MTV shows such as Total Request Live, died June 11, her sister announced. Lewis, who was 52, had gone on to host her own talk show and to publicly share her struggle with breast cancer. The former VJ said in 2020 that she regretted having avoided mammograms and hoped to keep others from doing so. “I need you to get your mammograms,” she advised her followers. Following her death, MTV gave a statement: “We’re saddened to learn of the passing of beloved MTV VJ, Ananda Lewis. Through her on-air hosting and interviews, Ananda helped raise a generation of music fans. Our thoughts are with her family & loved ones.” In its own statement, BET noted that after leaving the network, “Ananda continued to soar in her career leaving an imprint that was and continues to be felt by many.”
Brian Wilson
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Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys songwriter who penned hits like “Good Vibrations” and “God Only Knows,” died at age 82, his family announced June 11. A cause of death was not immediately available. Born in 1942 in Inglewood, Calif., Wilson formed the band that became the Beach Boys in 1961 alongside his brothers Carl and Dennis Wilson, his cousin Mike Love, and their friend Al Jardine. Wilson served as the band’s primary songwriter and bassist, and wrote increasingly complex songs and experimented with studio production techniques throughout the 1960s. His experimentation culminated with 1966’s Pet Sounds, which boasted songs like “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” and is widely considered one of the greatest pop albums ever recorded. Wilson’s intensifying mental health struggles yielded inconsistent contributions to the Beach Boys’ subsequent albums in the 1970s and ’80s. He released his first solo album, Brian Wilson, in 1988, and eventually completed a new version of the long-abandoned Beach Boys album Smile in 2004. He continued recording and performing live through the 2020s, ultimately recording 12 solo albums and contributing (in various capacities) to 28 of the Beach Boys’ 29 studio albums.
Terry Louise Fisher
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Terry Louise Fisher, who co-created the ’80s TV hit L.A. Law and wrote for the same era’s Cagney & Lacey, died June 10, at 79. Her and Steven Bochco’s legal drama ran from 1986 to 1994. She also wrote and produced Cagney & Lacey, a drama about two female police detectives, from 1983 to 1985. She won three Emmys: Outstanding Drama Series for Cagney & Lacey in 1985 and both Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series and Outstanding Drama Series for L.A. Law in 1987. Before her TV career, Fisher had worked in entertainment law. She also authored two books in the 1970s.
Harris Yulin
Moviestore/Shutterstock
Harris Yulin, the prolific character known for such films and TV shows as Scarface and Ghostbusters II died June 10, at 87. In a career spanning six decades, he played more than 100 roles on stage and screen Born in Los Angeles, Yulin landed his first screen role in the 1970 satire End of the Road, starring alongside James Earl Jones and Stacy Keach. He later made his Broadway debut in 1980’s Watch on the Rhine. One of the actor’s most memorable roles came in 1983, when he played corrupt police officer Mel Bernstein in Brian De Palma’s classic gangster movie Scarface. His additional film credits included Clear and Present Danger, Looking for Richard, Bean, and Training Day. Yulin also had a string of memorable television appearances, on shows including Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Frasier, 24, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Entourage. More recently, he played Buddy Dieker, the terminal housemate and eventual friend of the Byrde family on the Netflix crime drama Ozark.
Sly Stone
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Sly Stone, the legendary singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who led his band the Family Stone to make an indelible mark on music history, died June 9 at 82 after battling COPD and other health issues. Born Sylvester Stewart in Denton, Texas, Stone was raised in the Bay Area of California, where he embraced music from a young age, learning to play the keyboard, guitar, bass, and drums by 11. He also performed gospel music with his siblings (and future bandmates), Freddie and Rose. They would form Sly and the Family Stone in 1966, a groundbreaking group that produced music on the cusp of funk, soul, R&B, and psychedelic rock. They fused genres and pioneered a sound that would lay track for funk and soul music throughout the ’70s and ’80s. Though their 1967 debut album, A Whole New Thing, failed to make a mark, their experimental sound started turning heads the following year with their first hit single, “Dance to the Music.” The dance floor stomper was the first in a string of acclaimed singles, including, “Everyday People,” “Stand!,” “Hot Fun in the Summertime,” “I Want to Take You Higher,” and “Family Affair.” The group went on to triumph at Woodstock in 1969 before breaking up in 1975.
Chris Robinson
ABC /Courtesy Everett
Chris Robinson, beloved soap star and renown TV doctor, died June 9 on his ranch near Sedona, Ariz. He was 86. Robinson got his start with an uncredited role in the 1957 Tony Curtis-starring flick The Midnight Story. He went on making guest appearances on series such as Colt. 45, Hennesey, The Donna Reed Show, Wagon Train and The Fugitive, before scoring a series-regular role on the 1960s ABC war drama, 12 O’Clock High. In 1976, he was thrust into the daytime soap opera world with his General Hospital debut as Dr. Rick Webber, the two-time husband of Denise Alexander’s Lesley and adoptive father of Genie Francis’ Laura Collins. Robinson was a series regular on GH for 10 years and briefly returned in 2002, as well as playing Jack Hamilton on CBS’ The Bold and the Beautiful from 1992-2002, with a final appearance in 2005. The actor became so known for his various roles as TV doctors that he was tapped as the official pitchman for Vicks Formula 44 cough syrup during the mid ’80s. His infamous commercial line, in which Robinson reminds viewers “I’m not a doctor, but I do play one on TV,” quickly became a national catchphrase and the perfect statement for anyone looking to mockingly state the obvious.
Peter-Henry Schroeder
Lifetime
Peter-Henry Schroeder, a character actor known for playing a Klingon chancellor on Star Trek: Enterprise and a film producer in the Oscar-winning movie Argo, died June 7 at 90. Born in Syracuse, N.Y., Schroeder served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and subsequently moved to Los Angeles, where he became a respected actor, director, producer, and recording artist. Early in his career, he found success at Capital Records and Ascot, releasing the singles “Where’s the Girl for Me” (1960) and “Memories of Marilyn” (1964). He launched his own production company, PHS Productions; was a guest teacher at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts; and established the Actor/Artist Group Workshop, mentoring “hundreds of actors [and] continuing his legacy behind the scenes as a passionate teacher of the craft,” per an obituary posted to his website. Schroeder’s survivors include daughter Valerie Lynn Schroeder, son Peter Henry Schroeder II, and two grandsons.
Wayne Lewis
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Wayne Lewis, a founding member of the R&B group Atlantic Starr, died June 5 at 68. Lewis spent several decades as the vocalist and keyboardist of Atlantic Starr, the band he co-founded in 1976 alongside drummer Porter Carroll Jr., bassist Clifford Archer, percussionist-flutist Joseph Phillips, and Lewis’ brothers David (vocals, guitar) and Jonathan (keyboard, trombone). Throughout the late ’70s through early ’90s, Atlantic Starr scored several hits on the R&B charts, including “Circles,” “Always,” and “Masterpiece.”
Arthur Hamilton
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Arthur Hamilton, the Oscar-nominated songwriter behind the classic hit “Cry Me a River,” died June 4 at 98. The prolific composer and lyricist originally penned the bluesy ballad for Ella Fitzgerald to sing in the 1950s-set film Pete Kelly’s Blues, but the recording didn’t make it off the cutting room floor. Julie London would go on to use the song for her 1955 debut album, and it soared to No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Cry Me a River” has also been recorded by Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Ray Charles, Harry Connick Jr., Susan Boyle, Michael Bublé, Björk, and Aerosmith, among many others. Hamilton would go on to be nominated for an Oscar, two Emmys, and a Golden Globe throughout his career.
Edmund White
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Edmund White, a pioneer of queer literature who broke ground with his semi-autobiographical novels chronicling gay life and the gay revolution, died of natural causes on June 3 at his home in Manhattan. He was 85. Born in Cincinnati in 1940, White made a major mark in the publishing world, writing honestly about the queer experience and chronicling the evolution of a community no longer afraid to declare and celebrate its existence. He wrote more than 30 fiction and nonfiction books, including notable novels like A Boy’s Own Story and The Married Man, which drew from his life, and Fanny: A Fiction, a historical novel about the author Frances Trollope and social reformer Frances Wright. Several of his works were best-sellers. The Chicago Tribune once called him “the godfather of queer lit.” He was the recipient of Lambda Literary’s 2018 Visionary Award, the National Book Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019, and the PEN/Saul Bellow Award for Achievement in American Fiction in 2018. White is survived by his husband, Michael Carroll, whom he married in 2013, and his older sister, Margaret Fleming.
John Brenkus
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John Brenkus, the creator and host of the Emmy-winning TV series Sport Science, died May 31 at 54 after “battling depression,” according to a statement issued by his production company. Born in Washington, D.C., Brenkus attended the University of Virginia and originally aspired to be a film director. He launched Sport Science on Fox Sports Network in 2007, and the show moved to ESPN into the 2010s. The series won six Sports Emmys, following Brenkus as he uncovered “sports’ biggest myths and mysteries by using cutting-edge technology to measure momentum, friction and the laws of gravity,” according to an ESPN synopsis. Sport Science segments demonstrated sports through scientific principles and concepts, and science through sports, such as showing how golfers were able to drive balls such great distances and explaining the physics of Wiffle balls.
Jonathan Joss
Derek Storm/Everett
Jonathan Joss, the actor best known for voicing John Redcorn on King of the Hill and for starring as Chief Ken Hotate on Parks and Recreation, died June 1 after being shot in San Antonio. He was 59. Born in 1965, Joss got his start appearing in several Westerns — including the 1994 rodeo biopic 8 Seconds alongside Luke Perry and Stephen Baldwin — before landing his beloved role as John Redcorn on King of the Hill in 1997. He would go on to provide the voice for the kindhearted character across the animated series’ entire 13-season run, until 2010. Joss’ other credits included films such as the 2016 remake of The Magnificent Seven and True Grit, and television shows like Ray Donovan; Tulsa King; and Walker, Texas Ranger.
Valerie Mahaffey
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Valerie Mahaffey, the Emmy-winning star of Northern Exposure and Young Sheldon, died at the age of 71 on May 31 after a battle with cancer. Born in Indonesia in 1953 to a Canadian mother and an American father, Mahaffey’s six-decade career in Hollywood earned her enduring acclaim for roles like Eve, the wealthy hypochondriac on Northern Exposure (which won Mahaffey an Emmy in 1992), Alma Hodge, Orson’s (Kyle MacLachlan) unhinged first wife on Desperate Housewives, and Victoria MacElroy, the titular character’s English teacher on Young Sheldon. Mahaffey also turned in memorable appearances in series like The West Wing, Grey’s Anatomy, and Cheers, and films like Sully, Seabiscuit, and two Perry Mason made-for-TV movies. Mahaffey earned acclaim and an Independent Spirit Award nomination for one of her final big-screen performances, as Madame Reynard in the Michelle Pfeiffer indie drama French Exit.
Renée Victor
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Renée Victor, who provided the voice of Abuelita Elena in Pixar’s Coco, died of lymphoma on May 30 at 86. Born in San Antoni, on July 25, 1938, Victor began her career on the stage, singing and dancing professionally across Europe, Latin America, and the South Pacific. In addition to working with such musicians as Xavier Cugat and Perez Prado, Victor performed with her husband under the banner, Ray and Renée, which earned them the nickname, “the Latin Sonny & Cher.” She pivoted to television in the ’70s, landing roles in Masquerade, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, and Matlock, The Tony Danza Show, and ER. In 2005, she joined the cast of Weeds as Lupita, the housekeeper to Mary-Louise Parker’s Nancy Botwin. From there, Victor appeared on several shows, including Gentefied, All Rise, Snowpiercer, Dead to Me, Mayans M.C., and A Million Little Things. In 2017, Victor provided the voice of the stern and protective Abuelita Elena in Pixar’s Coco, a film that garnered two Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song. The film notably featured an all-Latin cast. Victor is survived by her two daughters, Raquel and Margo.
Loretta Swit
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Loretta Swit, the actress who played Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan on M*A*S*H, died at 87 on May 30. The TV and stage star gained fame from playing the voluptuous head nurse in the Mobile Army Surgical Hospital unit on the long-running CBS comedy, winning two Emmys for the role. Her early TV work included roles on Ironside, Love, American Style, and Hawaii Five-0. She even originated the role of Det. Christine Cagney in the TV movie Cagney & Lacey, before Sharon Gless went on to assume the part in the series spinoff.
Devin Harjes
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Devin Harjes, an actor on series like Boardwalk Empire, Daredevil, and Gotham, died at 41 on May 27. A native of Lubbock, Tex., Harjes moved to New York City after finding his passion for acting in the Dallas-Fort Worth arts scene. He starred in off-Broadway productions like One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and small independent films like Boyz of Summer before launching a TV career with a memorable two-episode stint on Boardwalk Empire as the boxer Jack Dempsey. Further roles on series like Orange is the New Black and Blue Bloods led to a substantial role as Pete Baylor on seasons 2 and 3 of the Netflix supernatural drama Manifest.
Peter Kwong
Peter Kwong, the actor best known for his role as Rain, one of the Three Storms in the 1986 cult classic Big Trouble in Little China, died in his sleep overnight May 27, his agent confirmed to Entertainment Weekly. He was 73. The martial artist earned his first professional acting credits in the ’70s, with TV series such as Wonder Woman and Little House on the Prairie, then went on to appear in Dynasty, 227, Miami Vice, and Full House. His ‘80s work also included The Golden Child, alongside Eddie Murphy, and 1989 action-drama Gleaming the Cube. Over the following decades, Kwong was on shows such as General Hospital, My Wife and Kids, and JAG. He made one of his final appearances on a 2020 episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Along the way, he served in leadership roles for organizations such as SAG and the Television Academy.
Michael Sumler
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Michael Sumler, Kool & the Gang’s resident hype man known as “Chicago Mike,” died May 25 in a car accident in Mableton, Ga. He was 71. Sumler spent more than three decades with the legendary R&B and funk group, whipping up audiences and acting as a stylist and choreographer. He was immortalized in 2024 when the band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Sumler was mourned on social media by Mableton Mayor Michael Owens and Con Funk Shun, the funk group he played with the night of his death. “We had no idea that Sunday night’s Love’s Train would be your last ride,” the group said. “Rest in heavenly peace.”
Ed Gale
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Ed Gale, who provided the physical performance behind the killer doll Chucky in the Child’s Play movies, died May 27 at 61. Born in Plainwell, Mich., Gale moved to Los Angeles to become an actor and ultimately accrued more than 130 credits in movies, TV shows, and commercials. He made his film debut in 1986, suiting up as one of several performers portraying the title character in Howard the Duck. (Chip Zien voiced Howard.) Gale next donned a devilish doll suit as Chucky in Child’s Play. While Brad Dourif voiced the iconic horror character, a toy possessed with the soul of a serial killer, Gale physically portrayed the character in the original film and sequels Child’s Play 2 and Bride of Chucky. His other screen credits included Spaceballs, Baywatch, 3rd Rock From the Sun, My Name Is Earl, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, and Friday the 13th: The Series.
Presley Chweneyagae
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Presley Chweneyagae, the South African actor who rose to international fame with his role in the Oscar-winning film Tsotsi, died May 27 at 40. Born Oct. 19, 1984, in Mafikeng, Chweneyagae worked in theater, television, and film for three decades. As a young actor, he catapulted to stardom at 21 with his breakthrough role in Tsotsi, a crime drama directed by Gavin Hood. The film about a hardened criminal who begins caring for an infant was widely praised, earning a Golden Globe nomination and winning the 2006 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It marked the first South African film to win the award. Chweneyagae went on to feature in a number of screen projects, including Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, More Than Just a Game, State of Violence, and Africa United.
Rick Derringer
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Rick Derringer, the influential guitarist, McCoys frontman, and Grammy-winning producer for Weird Al Yankovic, died May 26 at 77. The son of an Ohio railroad foreman, Derringer grew to become one of the most pioneering guitarists and successful musicians of his generation, spawning the chart-topping hit “Hang On Sloopy” with his band the McCoys before he’d even turned 18. “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo,” the lead single from his 1973 debut, All American Boy, has endured generation after generation, showing up on the soundtracks for 1993’s Dazed and Confused soundtrack and the fourth season of Stranger Things in 2022. He later collaborated with musicians and musical acts like Cyndi Lauper, Steely Dan, Barbra Streisand, and Weird Al Yankovic, the latter earning him two Grammys across their six-album collaboration.
Phil Robertson
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Phil Robertson, the outdoorsman, entrepreneur, and star of the reality series Duck Dynasty, died May 25 at 79. Robertson founded Duck Commander, a company dedicated to making duck calls and other duck-hunting paraphernalia in 1973. He grew it into a multi-million dollar business, which then became the focus of the A&E reality show Duck Dynasty. The series, which ran from 2012 to 2017, chronicled the lives of Robertson and his family and the day-to-day of their business. Robertson courted controversy multiple times during his career, most notably in 2013 when he was temporarily suspended from the show over remarks he made about homosexuality in an interview. No cause of death was given for Robertson, but he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2024. His son, Willie, is set to be the star of Duck Dynasty: The Revival, a new iteration of the reality show.
Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina
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Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina, the Algerian director whose 1975 drama Chronicles of the Years of Fire marked the first African entry to win the Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or, died May 23 at 91. Lakhdar-Hamina’s film screened again at the festival this year as part of the Cannes Classics programming, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its win. The acclaimed film retells the Algerian war of independence through the eyes of a peasant farmer, exploring the roots and evolution of the liberation movement under harsh French colonial rule. The filmmaker competed for the Palme d’Or four times, with films including The Winds of the Aures, Sandstorm, and Last Image.
James Lowe
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James Lowe, the musician and record producer best known as the frontman of psychedelic rock band the Electric Prunes, died peacefully of natural causes on May 22. He was 82. Formed in Los Angeles in 1965, the band released such hits as “I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)” and “Get Me to the World on Time.” Lowe would go on to work as an engineer and producer after the group first disbanded in the ’70s, collaborating with the likes of Todd Rundgren and pop duo Sparks. He reunited with his Electric Prunes bandmates Mark Tulin, Ken Williams, and Michael Weakley in the late ‘90s after the band went through several lineup changes, and continued to perform with the group until the end of his life, including at a 2023 Los Angeles tribute show in honor of the legendary Nuggets compilation album featuring psychedelic and garage rock singles of the ’60s. Lowe is survived by his wife of six decades and their three children.
George Wendt
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George Wendt, the prolific TV star who appeared on all 11 seasons of the beloved sitcom Cheers, died May 20 at the age of 76. Born in Chicago in 1948, Wendt got his start at the famed Second City comedy theater, where he met Bernadette Birkett, his future wife and the mother of their three children, Hilary, Joe, and Daniel. After several small roles in films like Clint Eastwood’s Bronco Billy and guest spots on series like Taxi and M*A*S*H, Wendt landed the role that would transform him into an enduring star. Wendt appeared as the lovably coarse barfly Norm Peterson on each of Cheers‘ 275 episodes, picking up six consecutive Emmy nominations from 1984 to 1989. Wendt would reprise and lampoon his iconic character for years to come after Cheers wrapped, on series like Wings, St. Elsewhere, and The Simpsons. He is survived by his wife, children, and nephew and fellow actor Jason Sudeikis.
Ben Rathbun
Ben Rathbun, who appeared on the TLC reality series 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days, died May 19 at 55. Rathbun and wife Mahogany Roca starred together in season 5 of the show, from December 2021 to April 2022. The reality series is a prequel to TLC’s hit 90 Day Fiancé, which follows couples who unite in the U.S. under a special visa. Before the 90 Days tells of how these couples first got to know each other. Rathbun and Roca revealed that they’d tied the knot during an episode of 90 Day Diaries in February 2024. In addition to Roca, Rathbun’s survivors include his four children with ex-wife Lisa Perry Rathbun.
Latonya Pottain
TLC
Latonya Pottain, who appeared on a 2023 episode of TLC’s My 600-lb Life, died May 17, in Shreveport, La., the nearby Natchitoches Parish Coroner’s Office confirmed to Entertainment Weekly. She was 40. The preliminary cause of death was officially noted as “acute on chronic congestive heart failure,” but the investigation was not yet complete. Pottain had said after the show aired that she was working with a trainer and attempting to lose enough weight to undergo weight loss surgery, but she was later the subject of a GoFundMe campaign after health struggles had caused her to gain more weight.
Roger Nichols
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Roger Nichols, the songwriter who teamed up with partner Paul Williams to pen one of the Carpenters’ most enduring hits, “We’ve Only Just Begun,” died May 17 at 84. Nichols was best known for his collaborations with Williams, his longtime writing partner who penned lyrics while Nichols focused on the music. Together, they conjured such hits as Three Dog Night’s “Out in the Country” (1970); Art Garfunkel’s “Traveling Boy“; and “I Never Had It So Good,” recorded by Barbra Streisand in 1975. For the Carpenters, they also wrote “I Won’t Last a Day Without You” and “Rainy Days and Mondays.”
Lorna Raver
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Lorna Raver, the veteran actress who played a memorable role as a projectile-vomiting, demon-summoning loan applicant in Sam Raimi’s Drag Me to Hell, died May 12, at 81. Born in York, Pa., Raver packed up for New York city in the late 1970s to pursue a career on stage. Roles in productions like Robin Swicord’s Last Days of the Dixie Girl Café led to a move to Los Angeles, where Raver’s career took hold on television. The actress built a career with eye-catching guest roles and one-off spots on series like Weeds; The Practice; Beverly Hills, 90210; Grey’s Anatomy; The Bold and the Beautiful; and its CBS sister soap, The Young and the Restless. She replaced Millie Perkins on the long-running daytime series as Rebecca Kaplan, a Holocaust survivor and the mother to Don Diamont’s Brad Carlton. Raver remembered her defining role as the spurned and vengeful Mrs. Ganush in 2009’s Drag Me to Hell as “a blast,” saying of the punching, kicking, biting, screaming, and vomiting required of the part, “I had no anticipation I would enjoy it so much.”
Michael McStay
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Michael McStay, the British actor known for roles in Doctor Who and Coronation Street died on May 11 at 92. A prolific actor across several decades, McStay found early fame as Sergeant Perryman on the ITV detective series No Hiding Place. After appearing in over 80 episodes of the British drama, McStay went on to appear in such films as Peter Yates’ 1967 thriller Robbery and 1977’s The Stick Up. His TV credits include episodes of The Black Arrow, Park Ranger, Spy at Evening, EastEnders, and Ted and Alice. McStay memorably featured in two episodes of BBC’s Doctor Who as Derek Moberley in 1976. Though he only had a brief role as the ill-fated zoologist, McStay spoke fondly of being embraced by the fandom as recently as May 2024. McStay made his final onscreen appearance as Alan Hoyle in the ITV soap Coronation Street, a role he took over from actor John Woodvine when the character returned in 2011.
Sabu
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Terrance Brunk, an American professional wrestler better known by his wrestling moniker Sabu, died May 11 at 60. Sabu started his wrestling career learning from his uncle, Ed “The Sheik” Farhat. But he broke out with success of his own in the 1990s, during his time with ECW, where, according to ESPN, he “combined high-flying antics with ultraviolent matches that featured barbed wire, chairs, tables and more.” Accolades include being named a two-time ECW champion, ECW tag team champion, and ECW world television champion. Sabu also had stints in New Japan Pro Wrestling, WCW, and TNA, as well as a brief stint in WWE in the aughts. He also memorably performed at WrestleMania 23 in 2007. Just weeks before his death, Sabu competed in a WrestleMania retirement match against Joey Janela. Memorable wrestling feuds included those with Rob Van Dam and Taz.
Morris the alligator
Universal/ Everett
Morris, an alligator actor with a prolific filmography who wrestled Adam Sandler in a memorable scene in Happy Gilmore, died on May 11 of natural causes. He was 80-100 years old. Embarking on his big Hollywood career in 1975, Morris appeared in films like Interview with the Vampire, Dr. Doolittle 2, and Blues Brothers 2000 before retiring to the Colorado Gator Farm in 2006. The Farm noted in its announcement of Morris’ death, “While we knew this was inevitable, we are very saddened by his passing to old age.” Sandler shared a tribute of his own to social media days later, quipping, “Goodbye, Morris. We are all gonna miss you. You could be hard on directors, make-up artists, costumers — really anyone with arms or legs — but I know you did it for the ultimate good of the film.”
Robert Benton
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Robert Benton, the influential filmmaker who co-wrote the screenplay for Bonnie and Clyde and won the Oscar for Best Director for Kramer vs. Kramer, died May 11 at 92. Born Sept. 29, 1932, in Dallas, Benton got his start in show business collaborating with David Newman on the book for the 1966 Broadway musical It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… It’s Superman. The year after, the writing team hit it big when Warren Beatty picked their Bonnie and Clyde spec script up for development. A landmark of the New Hollywood movement, the film earned the first of several Academy Award nominations Benton would collect over the course of his four-decade career. The divorce drama Kramer vs. Kramer helped launch a young Meryl Streep to fame, and Benton beat out the likes of Bob Fosse and Francis Ford Coppola for Best Director gold at the 1980 Oscars. He won Best Adapted Screenplay the same year and took home another screenplay trophy for 1984’s Places in the Heart. Benton’s other films include Still of the Night, Nobody’s Fool, and The Human Stain.
James Foley
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James Foley, the director behind Glengarry Glen Ross and two Fifty Shades of Grey sequels, died the week of May 8 at age 71. His death followed a yearlong battle with brain cancer. Born in Brooklyn in 1953, Foley studied film at USC before making his feature directorial debut with 1984’s romantic drama Reckless. He followed that project with 1986’s At Close Range with Sean Penn and Christopher Walken — and featured Madonna’s song “Live to Tell,” for which Foley helmed the music video. He went on to direct the videos for the singer’s “Papa Don’t Preach” and “True Blue” the same year. Foley’s 1992 adaptation of David Mamet’s play Glengarry Glen Ross starred Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin, and more, and became the filmmaker’s most critically acclaimed project. Foley later helmed Fear, Perfect Stranger, Fifty Shades Darker, and Fifty Shades Freed, as well as episodes of Twin Peaks, Hannibal, and House of Cards. “I am saddened by his passing,” Pacino, who earned a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nom for Glengarry, told EW in a statement. “I knew Jamie, I worked with Jamie, I loved Jamie. He will be missed.”
Millena Brandão
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Brazilian actress Millena Brandão, a child star known for her work on Netflix’s Sintonia, died May 2. She was 11. Her parents, Thays and Luiz Brandão, explained that she had been sick since April 24, when she came down with a severe headache, pain in her legs, and other symptoms. She was diagnosed with dengue fever, Thays said, but her condition worsened and she returned to the hospital twice more, once after fainting at home. She began to have “two to three cardiac arrests per day.” Her mom said it was “13 arrests in total.” From there, doctors said her brain was no longer functioning. Brandão’s parents remembered her as “the light in our lives” who had “joy that infected everyone around you.”
Kirk Medas
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Kirk Medas, the reality star who was part of the cast of MTV’s Jersey Shore successor Floribama Shore for all four of its seasons, died May 2 at age 33. Medas’ family established a GoFundMe campaign on May 1 to raise funds for his medical treatment, explaining that the reality star was being treated in the ICU fighting necrotizing pancreatitis. In addition to starring on Floribama Shore from 2017 to 2021, Medas also made guest appearances on shows like How Far Is Tattoo Far? and Fear Factor. Several Floribama Shore cast members paid tribute to Medas on social media, including Codi Butts, who wrote, “My heart is absolutely broken. I wish this was a bad dream that I could just wake up from. Thank you Kirk for giving me some of the best years of my life. You have made me a better person. I will forever love you and cherish our friendship!”
Charley Scalies
HBO
Charles “Charley” Scalies Jr., the talented actor best known for his roles as Thomas “Horseface” Pakusa on The Wire and as Tony Soprano’s high school football coach in The Sopranos, died May 1 at 84 following a long battle with Alzheimer’s. Scalies was born in 1940 and grew up telling jokes at his father’s pool hall, above which the family lived. After taking a hiatus from acting to raise his own family, Scalies returned to the stage in the early 1990s and landed his first film role as a driver in the Al Pacino-headlined 1995 drama, Two Bits. He would go on to star in films such as 12 Monkeys and Jersey Girl, as well as television series like Homicide: Life on the Street, Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, and Cold Case over the next decade.
Ruth Buzzi
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Ruth Buzzi, the comedian and actress who made audiences guffaw as the purse-wielding spinster Gladys Ormphby on the groundbreaking sketch comedy series Laugh-In, died May 1, at 88. She appeared in myriad TV shows and films, but her most memorable role was the wary Gladys, who would use her handbag to wallop those who got a little too close, on NBC’s Laugh-In, which ran for six seasons between 1968 and 1973. She was the only cast member to appear in every season, winning a Golden Globe and earning two Emmy nominations for her work. She was also a fixture on the Carol Burnett and Bob Newhart-hosted The Entertainers, The Steve Allen Comedy Hour, and The Dean Martin Show. Buzzi appeared in episodes of The Monkees, Emergency, CHiPs, Days of Our Lives, The Love Boat, and Sesame Street, and in such movies as The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again, Freaky Friday, and Bad Guys. She performed on stage as well, and was in the original Broadway production of Sweet Charity.
Jill Sobule
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Jill Sobule, the singer-songwriter behind the trailblazing ode to queer love “I Kissed a Girl,” and “Supermodel,” the signature tune from the Clueless soundtrack, died on May 1 at 66. Sobule died in a house fire in Minneapolis a day before she was scheduled to perform songs from her Drama Desk-nominated musical F— 7th Grade at a theater in Denver. Sobule was born in the Colorado capital in 1959, launching to fame with her self-titled 1995 album, which contained both “I Kissed a Girl” and “Supermodel.” She released an additional eight studio albums, five EPs, two live albums, and one compilation over her prolific career. Sobule is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule; nephews Ian, Matthew, and Robert; and several cousins.
Priscilla Pointer
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Priscilla Pointer, the acclaimed star of Carrie, Dallas, and the mother of actress Amy Irving, died on April 28. She was 100. Irving said Pointer “died peacefully in her sleep at the age of 100, hopefully to run off with her 2 adoring husbands and her many dogs.” Pointer got her start on stage, co-founding the San Francisco Actor’s Workshop with Herbert Blau, Beatrice Manley, and husband Jules Irving. Pointer’s big break came with a 1972 role on the daytime soap Where the Heart Is, and she made her theatrical film debut alongside daughter Amy in Brian De Palma’s 1976 adaptation of Carrie. She went on to star in some of the most acclaimed films and series of the 20th century, including Blue Velvet, Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and ER. She had three children with Irving, Amy, Katie, and writer/director David Irving, and married Robert Symonds after Jules died of a heart attack in 1979.
Lulu Roman
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Lulu Roman, singer and star of country variety show Hee Haw, died April 23 at the age of 78. Born Bertha Louise Hable in Dallas, Roman got her start as a go-go dancer in the Texas go-go scene but found fame as a comedic actress on the long-running CBS sketch comedy and country music variety Hee Haw, making her debut on the first episode in 1969 and playing an eclectic mix of characters. Roman, who had been vocal about her struggles with drug use, left the show after she was arrested for drug possession in 1971, but experienced a rebirth after she discovered Christianity in 1973 and rejoined the variety show, where she also delighted audiences with her gospel vocals. Roman recorded over a dozen albums and duetted with the likes of Dolly Parton and George Jones. She was granted a Dove Award by the Gospel Music Association in 1985 and inducted into the Country Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 1999, among other accolades. Roman’s other credits included spin-off Hee Haw Honeys, The Love Boat, and Touched by an Angel. She published a memoir, This Is My Story; This Is My Song!, in 2019.
Lar Park Lincoln
Everett Collection
Lar Park Lincoln, the actress known for playing the scheming Linda Fairgate on Knots Landing and Tina Shepard in the movie Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood in the ʼ80s, died April 22. She was 63. No cause was given. The actress amassed dozens of credits on TV movies and series, including Beverly Hills, 90210, Hunter, Highway to Heaven, Freddy’s Nightmares, and Murder, She Wrote. Lincoln’s stint on Knots began in 1987 and continued until 1991. Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood was released in 1988. She continued to act and appeared on QVC for years. Lincoln coached aspiring actors, too, authoring a book, Get Started Not Scammed, and founding Actors Audition Studios
Will Hutchins
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Actor Will Hutchins, a former Warner Bros. contract player who starred in the ’50s Western Sugarfoot and later shared the screen with Elvis Presley, died of respiratory failure on April 21. He was 94. Hutchins was known for his role as main character Tom Brewster on Sugarfoot, although he played his evil cousin, the Canary Kid, on several episodes, too. He worked with Presley on the movies Spinout, in 1966, and Clambake the following year. Hutchins’ credits also include the 1968-1969 TV version of the comic strip Blondie, on which he played the part of Dagwood Bumstead, and, in his final film work, 2010 Katie Holmes movie The Romantics. He had left Hollywood in 1981 for work in the circus, where he was a ringmaster and a clown.
Pope Francis
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Pope Francis, who oversaw a groundbreaking pontificate as the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died on April 21 at age 88. He made his final public appearance a day prior, on Easter Sunday, to bless thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square. Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Dec. 17, 1936, Francis made history upon his 2013 appointment to the papacy as the first pope from the Americas, the first Jesuit pope, and the first pope since the eighth century not to be from Europe. As the leader of the Catholic Church for 12 years, Francis was known to frequently clash with traditionalists due to progressive stances that included speaking out against climate change and expanding the Church’s acceptance of same-sex couples and transgender people. He forged relationships with several Hollywood stars over his tenure as pope, including Martin Scorsese, Whoopi Goldberg, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Leonardo DiCaprio, George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, and Angelina Jolie. In 2016, Francis made headlines as the first pope to appear in a feature film, due to a brief cameo in the Ambi Pictures indie, Beyond the Sun, a faith-based film in which he appeared as himself. Francis was also the subject of Pope Francis: A Man of His Word, a 2018 Wim Wenders documentary based on his life, in addition to 2020’s Francesco and 2022’s In Viaggio: The Travels of Pope Francis.
Damien Thomas
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British actor Damien Thomas, who starred in the classic horror film Twins of Evil, died April 18 at Salisbury Hospice in Wilshire, England. He was 83. The cause of death was progressive supranuclear palsy. Thomas was best known for playing vampire Count Karnstein in the beloved 1971 movie, but his work also included turns in the 1983 TV miniseries Jane Eyre, 1980’s Shogun, director Roman Polanski’s 1986 movie Pirates, 2010 drama Never Let Me Go, and dozens more projects. His survivors include his wife, Julia, as well as children Dom, Maud, and Phoebe, along with stepchildren Kirsty, Hannah, and Gabe.
Wink Martindale
Family Channel/courtesy Everett
Wink Martindale, the longtime radio and TV personality known for hosting game shows like Tic-Tac-Dough and Gambit, died April 15 at 91. Though he began his career as a radio disc jockey, his first stint as game show host came on NBC’s What’s This Song? in 1964. He followed that up with Words and Music on NBC and Gambit on CBS. His biggest success was Tic-Tac-Dough, which he hosted from 1978 to 1985. Martindale also emceed popular game shows including Headline Chasers (which he created and executive-produced), High Rollers, The Last Word, The Great Getaway Game, Trivial Pursuit, Debt, and Instant Recall. Meanwhile, his radio work didn’t end in his youth. Martindale had stints at various stations, including KGIL-AM, KKGO-FM/KJQI, Gene Autry’s KMPC, and KABC. His radio credits included Your Hit Parade, Music of Your Life, 100 Greatest Christmas Hits of All Time, and The History of Rock ‘n’ Roll. In later years, he had a recurring spot on The Howard Stern Show.
Patrick Adiarte
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Patrick Adiarte, an actor known for The King and I, Flower Drum Song, and M*A*S*H, died April 15 at 82. Adiarte first broke out in the 1952 stage production of The King and I opposite Yul Brynner as one of the royal children. When the show was adapted for the screen in 1956, Adiarte took part again, this time in the role of Prince Chulalongkorn. He also earned acclaim for the Broadway show Flower Drum Song and starred in its 1961 film adaptation. Adiarte is best known for his recurring role in the beloved series M*A*S*H as Korean orphan Ho-Jon. Brady Bunch fans will also remember his role in the show’s three-part Hawaiian vacation storyline. Other credits include episodes of It Takes a Thief, Ironside, Bonanza, Hawaii Five-O, and Kojak.
Sophie Nyweide
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Sophie Nyweide, the former child actor known for her work in Lukas Moodysson’s 2009 drama Mammoth and Darren Aronofsky’s biblical epic Noah, died April 14 at 24. Nyweide was just 6 when she booked her first movie, playing the title role in the 2006 drama Bella. She appeared across several more films and TV shows, portraying the daughter of Michelle Williams and Gael García Bernal in Mammoth and the daughter of Enid Graham and Michael Cullen Noah Baumbach’s Margot at the Wedding, which also starred Nicole Kidman. Nyweide worked with Jessica Alba in An Invisible Sign and James Franco in Shadows & Lies. Her TV credits included a 2007 episode of Law & Order and an appearance as herself in a 2015 episode of reality news program What Would You Do?, which marked her final screen appearance.
Nathaniel Pelletier
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Nathaniel Pelletier, an actor and crew member on the Hallmark series When Calls the Heart, died on April 11. He was 53. Pelletier’s obituary notes that he “passed away suddenly” while alone at home in Langley, British Columbia. Born in Toronto on Oct. 15, 1971, Pelletier appeared on several episodes of seasons 9, 10, and 11 of When Calls the Heart while also serving as a member of the transportation department. Production manager Mike Magnusson said that Pelletier “leaves a void of spirit we will not be able to replace” in a tribute shared by the official When Calls the Heart Instagram account. In his own heartfelt remembrance, series star Martin Cummins said of Pelletier, “He was a gentle soul and it was my honor to call him friend.”
Jean Marsh
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Jean Marsh, who co-created and co-starred in the 1970’s PBS drama Upstairs, Downstairs — a forerunner of Downton Abbey — died April 13 from complications of dementia, her close friend, filmmaker Michael Lindsay-Hogg, told the New York Times. Marsh portrayed Rose, the head parlor maid of the house, on the series that aired from 1974 to 1977 in the United States. She won the Emmy for best actress in a drama in 1975, after having spent 20-plus years acting in lower-profile projects. After the success of Upstairs, Downstairs, Marsh appeared in guest spots on shows including The Waltons, Doctor Who, and Murder, She Wrote. Her final credited appearance was in the 2022 Disney+ series Willow.
Ted Kotcheff
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Ted Kotcheff, the Canadian filmmaker who helmed hit movies like First Blood and Weekend at Bernie’s, died April 10 at 94. Born in Toronto to a family of Bulgarian immigrants, Kotcheff began his career directing TV programs at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. He went on to direct television and theater in the U.K., and found major success in 1971 when he directed both the Australian New Wave film Wake in Fright, which competed at the Cannes Film Festival, and a TV production of Edna, the Inebriate Woman, which won him a BAFTA TV Award. Kotcheff later made Hollywood films like Fun With Dick and Jane, with Jane Fonda and George Segal, and North Dallas Forty, with Nick Nolte. Kotcheff introduced the world to Sylvester Stallone’s John Rambo in 1982’s First Blood, which launched a franchise and made more than $125 million at the global box office. The 1989 comedy Weekend at Bernie‘s also proved to be a major success and spawned a sequel in 1993. Kotcheff executive-produced the first 13 seasons of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as well.
Nicky Katt
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Character actor Nicky Katt, known best for his film and television roles in Dazed and Confused, Boston Public, and Boiler Room, has died at age 54. Katt’s attorney John Sloss confirmed the news to Entertainment Weekly but did not disclose the actor’s cause of death. Born on May 11, 1970, Katt got his start at the age of 7, appearing in shows like Code Red, Father Murphy, Fantasy Island, and Herbie, the Love Bug, among numerous others. His breakout role was the bully Clint Bruno in the 1983 classic Dazed and Confused. Directed by Richard Linklater, the classic coming-of-age film focused on a group of Austin teenagers celebrating the last day of high school in 1976. Katt starred in the film alongside Matthew McConaughey, Parker Posey, and Ben Affleck. The actor reportedly died on April 8, according to Variety.
William Finn
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William Finn, one of the first artists to put to music the tragedy of the AIDS epidemic, which he did in his 1992 musical Falsettos, and achieved further success with 2005’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, died April 7. He was 73. The cause was pulmonary fibrosis, partner Arthur Salvadore told the New York Times. Finn won two Tonys for Falsettos, for the score he wrote and for its book, and it was revived in 2016. Spelling Bee, which debuted on Broadway in 2005, ran for nearly three years and has since been produced more than 7,000 times, per Music Theater International.
Clem Burke
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Clem Burke, drummer for legendary rock band Blondie, died April 6 after a private battle with cancer. He was 70. Burke joined Blondie in 1975, a year after frontwoman Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein formed the group in New York City, and has appeared across all of Blondie’s albums — from the landmark Parallel Lines to comeback No Exit. He has also performed with the likes of Bob Dylan, The Ramones, Eurythmics, Iggy Pop, Joan Jett, and the Go-Go’s, among others. Blondie remembered Burke as “the heartbeat” of the band, adding that his “talent, energy, and passion for music were unmatched, and his contributions to our sound and success are immeasurable.”
Jay North
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Jay North, the titular star of the classic CBS sitcom Dennis the Menace, died April 6 at 73. North’s passing at home in Lake Butler, Fla., after a years-long battle with cancer was confirmed by his longtime friend Laurie Jacobson, who wrote in a Facebook post, “He had a heart as big as a mountain, loved his friends deeply. He called us frequently and ended every conversation with ‘I love you with all my heart.’ And we loved him with all of ours.” North was cast on the Hank Ketcham comic strip adaptation at only 6 years old. He played the series star Dennis Mitchell, a good-hearted yet mischievous prankster, for four seasons, and had a prolific TV acting career through the mid-1970s. He appeared on series like Wagon Train, The Lucy Show, and Arabian Knights, but largely stepped away from the industry after the 1974 film The Teacher. He is survived by wife Cindy and her daughters from a previous marriage.
Michael Haley
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Michael Haley, the actor who voiced the titular superhero on the gritty MTV animated series The Maxx, died April 5 at 67 following a battle with cancer. Haley was born in 1957 and began acting in his youth in Southern California, appearing as a background player in the 1976 remake of King Kong and the 1978 hit Grease. Upon graduating high school, Haley was accepted to London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts but ultimately declined the opportunity to focus on his work in Los Angeles and New York. Haley was best known for his work on The Maxx, which was released in 1995 and ran for 13 episodes. He also contributed voice work to Blizzard Entertainment’s seminal video game Diablo, and later worked as a broadcast engineer for southern California’s PBS station, KCET, until 2015. He continued taking small acting roles until the end of his life.
Dave Allen
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Dave Allen, the influential bassist and founding member of the influential post-punk band Gang of Four, died on April 5 after a struggle with early-onset dementia. He was 69. Allen’s death at his home in Portland, Ore., was announced with a post on the official Gang of Four Instagram account, which read, “Jon and I [Hugo] went to see him and spent a lovely afternoon with him and the family. We talked and laughed for hours, sharing rich and vivid memories of good times together. Adventures, careers in music, raising families, our interwoven lives spanning half a century. We’ve been so very lucky to have had the Ace of Bass in our lives.” Allen co-founded the band in 1976 in the city of Leeds in northern England alongside vocalist Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, and drummer Hugo Burnham. Their propulsive, genre-bending sound and stridently progressive lyrics kept them at the forefront of rock’s avant-garde for decades. The band is currently preparing to mount a farewell tour, which they note Allen “wanted nothing more” than to participate in.
Michael Hurley
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Michael Hurley, a folk singer-songwriter who inspired musicians such as Cat Power, Lucinda Williams, and Yo La Tengo, died April 1, his family announced. He was 83. No cause of death was given. “I never thought of a career in music,” Hurley told the New York Times in 2021. “What I do is goof off — and try to get away with it.” He performed his songs about subjects such as love and werewolves in New York City’s Greenwich Village in the ’60s and released his first album, First Songs, in 1964. He went on to release about 30 in all.
Val Kilmer
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Val Kilmer, the star of Top Gun, and Batman Forever, died on April 1 of pneumonia. He was 65. After a battle with throat cancer, which was discussed in the 2021 documentary, Val, with son Jack taking on the bulk of the narration as a tracheostomy tube made it difficult for the actor to speak, Kilmer’s final appearance was opposite Tom Cruise in 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick, the sequel to their 1986 hit. Kilmer’s other notable roles included spy spoof Top Secret, as rock icon Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s The Doors, as gunslinger Doc Holliday in Tombstone, opposite Robert De Niro and Al Pacino in Heat, the voice of Moses in The Prince of Egypt, porn star John Holmes in Wonderland, and a tough-as-nails gay P.I. in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.
Brandyn Barbara Artis
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Brandyn Barbara Artis, an actress who appeared in films such as THX 1138, At the Top of the Pyramid, and The Doctor, died March 31. She was 81. In addition to her work in those films, Artis’ oeuvre also included television work on such shows as Man From Atlantis, The White Shadow, Knots Landing, Dynasty, and General Hospital. Artis was also a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and wrote the autobiographical one-woman play Sister, Girl. In 2011, she wrote the romance novel Running Barefoot in Paris.
Patty Maloney
Peacock
Patty Maloney, the diminutive actress best known for her work on the Star Wars Holiday Special, Little House on the Prairie, and the projects of producers Sid and Marty Krofft, died March 31. She was 89. Maloney, who often worked with late actor Billy Barty, began her career in the circus. She earned her first professional credits in the ’70s on the popular TV series of the day, including Charlie’s Angels, Rhoda, and The Love Boat. Over the next two decades, her credits consisted of projects as diverse as children’s TV shows and films, such as Smurfs, The Addams Family, and Ernest Saves Christmas, and more adult fare like Star Trek: Voyager, Married… with Children, and Nash Bridges.
Richard Norton
Everett
Richard Norton, an Australian actor, martial arts expert, and stunt coordinator who trained such stars as Charlize Theron and Liam Neeson, died on March 30. He was 75. Born Jan. 6, 1950, in Croydon, Australia, Norton began practicing judo when he was 11. He was initially trained to become a bodyguard and worked for such acts as ABBA, David Bowie, Stevie Nicks, Fleetwood Mac, and John Belushi. While serving as a fight choreographer, his credits included the 1993 CBS series Walker, Texas Ranger, The Condemned, Dark Phoenix, and both James Gunn’s Suicide Squad films. Along with coordinating stuntwork on both Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga and Mad Max: Fury Road, Norton also played the role of the Prime Imperator, a lead henchman to the villainous Immortan Joe. Across his career, Norton worked one-on-one with several screen stars, training Theron, Neeson, Scarlett Johansson, Sophie Turner, Anya Taylor-Joy, Ben Affleck, Margot Robbie, Charlie Hunnam, and more. He is survived by his wife, Judy.
Richard Chamberlain
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Richard Chamberlain, the leading man who launched his career as the dashing title character of NBC’s Dr. Kildare, died from complications following a stroke on March 29 at 90, two days away from his 91st birthday. The beloved TV actor, who won three Golden Globes and earned four Emmy nominations across his career, became a TV staple after landing the role of young medical intern Dr. James Kildare. The hour-long medical drama was an immediate hit, airing until 1966. Chamberlain’s success continued from there: He starred in 1978’s Centennial, originated the role of John Blackthorn in 1980’s Shōgun, and found further success with 1983’s The Thorn Birds. His work across the three projects earned him the nickname “King of the Miniseries.” Chamberlain also appeared in such notable films as Petulia, Julius Caesar, The Music Lovers, The Last Wave, The Three Musketeers, and The Towering Inferno.
Young Scooter
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Young Scooter, an Atlanta-based rapper who frequently collaborated with Gucci Mane and Future, died March 28 at age 39. Born Kenneth Bailey in 1986 in Walterboro, S.C., Scooter released his breakthrough mixtape, Finessin’ & Flexin, in 2011 on Future’s record label Freebandz. He appeared on six tracks on Gucci Mane’s 2012 mixtape Trap God, and received further attention for his own 2013 mixtape Street Lottery, which included the single “Colombia,” which spawned a remix featuring Rick Ross, Gucci Mane, and Birdman. Scooter released 17 more mixtapes in the 2010s and an additional six in the 2020s, including Fast Lane Juugin, which was released in February. His best-performing song was his feature on Future and Juice WRLD’s 2018 single “Jet Lag,” which peaked at No. 72 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. In the 2010s, the rapper appeared on tracks alongside the likes of Waka Flocka Flame, Lil Wayne, Chief Keef, Mike Will Made-It, Childish Gambino, Akon, and Migos.
Denis Arndt
CBS/Courtesy Everett Collection
Denis Arndt, a Tony-nominated actor who appeared in Basic Instinct and S.W.A.T., died March 25 at 86. Throughout his career, Arndt worked on David E. Kelley shows, beginning with L.A. Law and Picket Fences. Kelley would bring him back for roles on Chicago Hope, Ally McBeal, The Practice, Boston Public, Boston Legal, and Mr. Mercedes. On the film side, he had roles in Distant Thunder (1988), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), Metro (1997), Bandidas (2006), and Undisputed (2006). Though he appeared in many regional theater productions throughout the years, his first and only Broadway stint earned him a Tony nomination for his turn opposite Mary-Louise Parker in Heisenberg. In addition to his acting career, Arndt was a Vietnam veteran helicopter pilot who was awarded the Purple Heart twice.
Larry Tamblyn
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Larry Tamblyn, a founding member and the lead singer of the band The Standells, has died at 82. His nephew, Dennis Tamblyn, announced his death on March 21 in a post to his Facebook, and the official band page followed with a similar post the day after. No cause of death has yet been revealed. The Los Angeles-born rocker, who was the brother of actor Russ Tamblyn and uncle of actress Amber Tamblyn, formed the influential garage group in the early 1960s with guitarist Tony Valentino, bass guitarist Jody Rich, and drummer Benny King. The quartet released the hit “Dirty Water” in 1965, which can still be heard today as the official victory anthem of the Boston Red Sox. The band appeared in several low-budget and B films during their heyday, including the exploitation classic Riot on Sunset Strip from 1967. Larry got the band back together in 2009, which led to their last album, 2013’s Bump, and a final tour in 2014, their first since the 1960s.
George Foreman
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George Foreman, the boxing legend and grill entrepreneur, died on March 21 at the age of 76. Foreman was born in 1949 in Marshall, Tex., ascending to the very top of his sport by the time he was 19. He was a two-time world heavyweight champion and Olympic gold medalist, amassing a 37-0 record in his first four years as a pro boxer. But Foreman didn’t stop there, ushering in several successful afterlives after he stepped out of the ring as the mogul behind a popular portable grill, a TV star with his own ABC sitcom, and Masked Singer scene stealer. Foreman is survived by his wife and 11 children, including five sons, all named “George Foreman,” and six daughters.
Jack Lilley
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Jack Lilley, the actor, stuntman, and wrangler known for his work on Westerns including Little House on the Prairie, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, and Rawhide, died Mar. 19 at 91. Born in Santa Clarita, Calif., Lilley got his start in entertainment with an uncredited role as a cowhand in the 1956 Western film Gun for a Coward. He would go on pull double duty as an actor and stunt coordinator on films like 1974’s Blazing Saddles and television series like Rawhide, The Wild Wild West, and The High Chaparral. He was featured in more than 35 episode of Little House throughout its run from 1974 until 1983, and also appeared in its three made-for-TV movies. Lilley is survived by three sons, five grandchildren, and six great grandchildren.
Émilie Dequenne
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Émilie Dequenne, the Belgian actress whose debut performance in the 1999 film Rosetta won her the Best Actress prize at the Cannes Film Festival, died at 43 on March 16. Her family and longtime agent, Danielle Pain, announced to AFP that she died in a hospital outside Paris following a battle with adrenocortical carcinoma, which she had announced in October 2023. Dequenne became an international star overnight with her searing performance in the Dardenne brothers’ naturalistic drama, which she appeared in at only 17. She built over the next two and a half decades one of the most enviable filmographies of her generation of European actresses, featuring collaborations with directors like André Techiné, Emmanuel Mouret, Catherine Corsini, and André Forcier. One of Dequenne’s last films, Lukas Dhont’s Close, was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Jesse Colin Young
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Jesse Colin Young, one of the voices behind the Youngbloods’ 1960s anthem “Get Together,” died March 16 at 83. Young and his group’s most famous song reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1969, and contained the famous lyrics, “Come on people now / Smile on your brother / Everybody get together / And try to love one another right now.” Their version of the track, originally the work of songwriter Chet Powers, was part of the self-titled debut album for the band, which also featured Jerry Corbitt, Lowell “Banana” Levinger, and Joe Bauer. While “Get Together” was their most successful hit, even ending up on the soundtracks of Forrest Gump and The Simpsons decades later, the Youngbloods recorded five albums in all before breaking up in 1972. In the following decades, Young wrote and recorded music as a solo artist, and he and his wife, Connie Young, formed an independent record label. He released his final album, Dreamers, in 2019.
Wings Hauser
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Actor Wings Hauser, died March 15 at his home in Santa Monica, Calif., years after being diagnosed with COPD, his daughter, Bright Hauser, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. He was 77. Hauser appeared on TV shows beginning in the ’70s from Baretta and Emergency! to The A-Team, China Beach, House, and Castle. He was in the movies Vice Squad, Norman Mailer’s Tough Guys Don’t Dance, and Michael Mann’s The Insider. He was perhaps best known for his role as Greg Foster on The Young and the Restless, which he first played in 1977 through 1981, before returning to it in 2010. In addition to Bright, Hauser was the father of Yellowstone actor Cole Hauser.
Bruce Glover
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Bruce Glover, the esteemed character actor who starred opposite Sean Connery as Bond villain Mr. Wint in Diamonds are Forever, died on March 12 at 92. Across his decades-long career, Glover accrued over 100 onscreen credits, and appeared in dozens of plays. Born on May 2, 1932 to parents Herbert and Eva, Glover began his career with a string of TV shows including Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, Mission: Impossible, and The Dukes of Hazard. His most high profile gig came in 1971, when he landed the role of assassin Mr. Wint alongside Putter Smith’s Mr. Kidd in the James Bond film Diamonds are Forever. Glover furthered his success as Duffy in 1974’s Chinatown and hustler James Coburn in 1975’s Hard Times. He also appeared in the cult hit Walking Tall, and TV shows including Hart to Hart, The A-Team and Murder, She Wrote. The late actor is survived by his son, actor Crispin Glover, with whom he shared his final credit in 2015’s Influence. His wife, Betty Glover, died in 2016.
Mark Dobies
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Mark Dobies, an actor known for his work on soap operas, sitcoms, and other popular TV series, died March 11 at 65. Dobies portrayed Dr. Noah Chase on Guiding Light and later appeared on One Life to Live and All My Children as D.A. Theodore Daniel Colson. Between 1997 and 2016, he had roles on shows including Just Shoot Me, Nash Bridges, Home Improvement, Melrose Place, and Gossip Girl. In 2004, Dobies starred in the Off Broadway revival of The Normal Heart at the Public Theater in New York City.
Stedman Pearson
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Stedman Pearson, the eldest of the five siblings that made up the British pop group Five Star, died at 60 on March 10. Born in Romford, Essex, England, on June 29, 1964, Pearson studied dance and fashion in college, which would serve him well when the siblings became a group act in 1983. Stedman was not only a singer and dancer for Five Star, but also helped design their costumes. Often compared to The Jackson 5, the Pearson siblings had 10 singles climb the UK charts, including “System Addict,” “Can’t Wait Another Minute,” and “Rain or Shine.” Their sophomore album, Silk and Steel, hit No. 1, and in 1987, they sold out six nights at Wembley Arena on their UK tour and won the Brit award for Best British Group, becoming the first black group to do so. The band initially broke up in 1995 but began performing together again in 2001. They later reunited in 2012 and, after sister Lorraine departed, continued as a four-piece group until 2016. Stedman also made TV appearances in 2006 and 2008 on The All Star Talent Show and Celebrity Scissorhands.
Simon Fisher-Becker
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Simon Fisher-Becker, who played Fat Friar in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Dorium Maldovar in Doctor Who, died on March 9. He was 63. Born in London, England, in 1961, Fisher-Becker had roles in more than a dozen TV shows, like Puppy Love and Getting On. He also appeared in the 2012 Oscar-winning adaptation of Les Misérables.
D’Wayne Wiggins
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D’Wayne Wiggins, one of the founders of R&B group Tony! Toni! Toné!, whose songs included ’90s hits “Feels Good” and “If I Had No Loot,” died March 7 after a struggle with bladder cancer. He was 64. Wiggins played guitar and provided vocals for the group, which was formed in 1986 in Oakland alongside his half-brother Raphael Saadiq and cousin Timothy Christian Riley. They recorded four albums and had a string of hits, which also included the Grammy-nominated “Anniversary,” as well as the tracks “It Never Rains (in Southern California)” and “(Lay Your Head on My) Pillow.” After they split, Wiggins continued to work in music, often working with up-and-coming artists, including Destiny’s Child, Zendaya, and H.E.R. A reconfigured Tony! Toni! Toné! were again up for a Grammy at the 2004 ceremony for their collaboration with Alicia Keys, “Diary.” Wiggins and his original bandmates, Saadiq and Riley, reunited for a tour in 2023.
Brian James
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Brian James, songwriter and founding guitarist of the Damned, died March 6 aged 70. James penned the British punk single, “New Rose,” and served as the band’s lead songwriter on their debut album, Damned Damned Damned (1977), though he would depart to work on solo outings after the release of their poorly received sophomore album. This included being a founding member of The Lords of the New Church, which launched in 1981 and released three studio albums before their breakup in 1989 (James would regroup with them for brief stints in later years). The original members of the Damned also reunited memorably in 1988 and 2022 for a UK tour. Additionally, James also had notable collaborations with Iggy Pop, Stewart Copeland of the Police, Wayne Kramer of MC5, Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses, and Clem Burke of Blondie, among others.
Pamela Bach-Hasselhoff
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Pamela Bach, an actress and the ex-wife of David Hasselhoff, died March 5 in Los Angeles at the age of 62. She made her Hollywood debut in a 1973 episode of soap The Young and the Restless and went on to appear on shows Otherworld, T.J. Hooker, and Knight Rider. She wed Hasselhoff, whom she met on set of Knight Rider, in 1989 but separated in 2006. Bach, who also went by Pamela Hasselhoff, also starred in shows Cheers, The Fall Guy, and Sirens, and movies Appointment with Fear, Nudity Required, and Mansion of Blood.
DJ Funk
DJ Funk/Facebook
DJ Funk, the influential Chicago music producer who coined the term “ghetto house” and pioneered the subgenre, died from cancer March 5, at 54. The artist, whose real name was Charles Chambers, began his career in the ’90s as a DJ at parties and underground raves, before building his reputation via collaborations with other up-and-coming artists. His 1999 album Booty House Anthems sold 1 million copies across the U.S., leading to the release of two additional volumes. His catalog boasted such tracks as “Pump It,” “Run” and “Work Dat Body,” which became dance floor staples across America. In 2006, he launched his record label, Funk Records, which he used to release several singles, mixtapes, and EPs.
Roy Ayers
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Roy Ayers, an acclaimed vibraphonist, record producer and composer who is widely considered “The Godfather of Neo Soul,” died March 4 at 84. He is best known for his compositions “Everybody Loves the Sunshine,” “Lifeline,” and “No Stranger to Love” — among others. According to the New York Times, “Everybody Loves the Sunshine,” which was included on Ayers’ album of the same name, has been sampled nearly 200 times by the likes of Tupac Shakur, Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, and Snoop Dogg. In total, he released nearly four dozen albums, including Let’s Do It, You Send Me, and Fever. Ayers also made guest appearances on albums from Rick James, Whitney Houston, George Benson, the rapper Guru and more.
George Lowe
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George Lowe, a voice actor known for bringing Space Ghost to life in Space Ghost Coast to Coast, died March 2 at 67. Lowe first utilized his vocal talents working at local Florida radio station WWJB when he was 15. From there, he did voice-over work for TBWS and Cartoon Network before eventually landing his iconic lead role in the aforementioned animated series in 1994. The show first ran from 1994 to 1999 on Cartoon Network. It was later revived in 2001 on Adult Swim, where it aired through 2004. Lowe also voiced the beloved character in the Space Ghost Coast to Coast spinoff Cartoon Planet, as well as Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters, The Brak Show, Jellystone, and Robot Chicken, among others.
Joey Molland
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Joey Molland, the rock guitarist and last surviving member of Badfinger, died on March 1 at 77. Born in Liverpool, England, on June 21, 1947, Molland began his recording career in earnest when he was 20. After playing in the short-lived group Gary Walker & the Rain, Molland joined Badfinger as their guitarist in 1970. The Welsh band was one of the first artists that the Beatles signed to their Apple Records label. The core Badfinger lineup of Molland, singer-guitarist Pete Ham, singer-bassist Tom Evans, and drummer Mike Gibbins recorded five albums, which yielded such hit singles as “No Matter What,” “Without You,” “Day After Day,” and “Baby Blue.” They stayed together until 1974. Molland also made appearances on George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass and The Concert for Bangladesh, and played guitar on John Lennon’s 1971 album, Imagine. In later years, Molland recorded music as a solo artist and a member of the group Natural Gas, and he launched his own incarnation of Badfinger (dubbed Molland’s Badfinger) in the early ’80s. He remained active with the band until his death.
Angie Stone
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Angie Stone, the R&B and soul singer behind songs like the hit “Wish I Didn’t Miss You,” died in a car accident on March 1 at the age of 63. Born in 1961, the three-time Grammy nominee formed the hip-hop trio the Sequence as a teen in the late 1970s, signing with Sugar Hill Records and releasing the single “Funk You Up,” later sampled by Dr. Dre. She also released music as a member of Vertical Hold and Devox. Her first solo album, 1999’s Black Diamond, spawned the hit single “No More Rain (In This Cloud).” She released nine more solo albums, including Mahogany Soul and The Art of Love & War, finding further success with singles like “Wish I Didn’t Miss You” and “Baby.” Stone also acted in projects like the movie The Hot Chick, the sitcom Girlfriends (for which she also wrote the theme song), and Broadway’s Chicago, and appeared on reality shows like Celebrity Fit Club and Celebrity Wife Swap.
David Johansen
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David Johansen, the larger-than-life frontman of the flashy, in-your-face 1970s rock band New York Dolls, died Feb. 28. He was 75. Born in 1950, Johansen formed the New York Dolls in 1971, revolutionizing punk and rock music alongside groups like the Velvet Underground, the Stooges, and MC5. Following the Dolls’ dissolution in 1975, Johansen would release four solo albums and two live albums under his own name, four albums under the pseudonym Buster Poindexter, and two additional albums as David Johansen and the Harry Smiths. He also acted in projects like John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s experimental film Up Your Legs Forever, Scrooged, Miami Vice, Oz, The Equalizer, and Freejack.
Jan Schwieterman
Paramount Pictures
Jan Schwieterman, the Good Burger actor who played owner of the titular restaurant’s rival, Mondo Burger, in the 1997 film, died Feb. 28. His brother, Chad Schwieterman, shared the news on social media. He was 52. In addition to the Nickelodeon film that became a cult classic, beginning in 1994, Schwieterman had roles in TV shows such as McKenna, ER, Felicity, and MTV’s Undressed. He was also cast in movies including NightMan, Fallen Arches, and Warlock III: The End of Innocence. In 2007, he made his final credited appearance in Along the Way.
Gene Hackman
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Gene Hackman, two-time Oscar-winning actor for the movies The French Connection and Unforgiven, was found dead on Feb. 26 at age 95. The bodies of the Hollywood icon and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were discovered inside their Santa Fe, N.M., home. It was later revealed Hackman died from heart disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributory factor, on or around Feb. 17, while Arakawa died days earlier at 65 was caused by hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a disease usually contracted from exposure to mouse droppings that affects the lungs. The actor made his big screen debut in Mad Dog Coll, and had early roles in The Defenders, and Bonnie and Clyde, the latter of which snagged him his first Oscar nomination. Hackman earned a total of five career Academy Award nods for prestige projects, winning once as Best Actor and and another as Best Supporting Actor. He also starred in Wes Anderson’s 2001 comedy hit The Royal Tenenbaums, as Lex Luthor in multiple Superman franchise movies, The Poseidon Adventure, Mississippi Burning, and The Conversation.
Michelle Trachtenberg
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Michelle Trachtenberg, who broke out as the child star of Harriet the Spy and went on to play notable roles on the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Gossip Girl, died Feb. 26, at 39. After getting her start on Nickelodeon’s The Adventures of Pete & Pete and the soap All My Children, the precocious actress landed the lead role in the film adaptation of beloved children’s book Harriet the Spy, starring alongside Rosie O’Donnell. Trachtenberg went on to play stubborn little sister Dawn to Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy Summers on BTVS and the conniving Georgina Sparks on both the original Gossip Girl and Max’s reboot. Her other screen credits included Inspector Gadget, EuroTrip, Ice Princess, and 17 Again with the late Matthew Perry.
Roberta Flack
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Roberta Flack, whose tender vocals made her one of R&B’s most beloved singers, died Feb. 24, at 88. Born in North Carolina to musical parents, Flack learned to play the piano at 9. A prodigy, she soon became one of the youngest students ever accepted to Howard University when, at 15, she was offered a full scholarship to study music. She began her professional singing career in 1968 and would release two albums before her career truly took off: 1969’s First Take, which has since garnered wide acclaim, and 1970’s Chapter Two. Her rise to prominence came when director Clint Eastwood used one of her songs, “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” in his first film, 1971’s Play Misty for Me. Flack’s rendition of the tune — originally penned by British folkie Ewan MacColl — soon became a smash hit and won the 1973 Grammy Award for Record of the Year. The very next year, Flack’s “Killing Me Softly With His Song” (first recorded by Lori Lieberman in 1971) took home a Grammy in the same category. Flack continued scoring hits throughout the ’70s and ’80s, often dueting with artists such as Donny Hathaway and Peabo Bryson. In 1996, her music once again felt suddenly ubiquitous, as the Fugees’ cover of “Killing Me Softly With His Song” dominated pop radio. Later, Flack would be honored for her influential contributions to music across genres with such accolades as a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1999 and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.
Robert John
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Robert John, the singer behind the Grammy-nominated 1979 song “Sad Eyes” died Feb. 24, his son Michael Pedrick confirmed to Rolling Stone. John was 79. Pedrick said his father had still been recovering from a stroke he had a few years ago. “He was a really good dad,” Pedrick said. The Brooklyn-born artist released his first album when he was 12 and went on to score a hit a decade later with “If You Don’t Want My Love.” His take on “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” also made the charts in 1972, before his signature song hit the airwaves. John recorded his final album in 1980.
Sha’Vi Lewis
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Fashion designer Sha’Vi Lewis, who competed on the 18th season of the competition reality series Project Runway, died Feb. 24, at 38. The show’s producers said in a statement, “We are deeply saddened by Sha’Vi’s passing. He was a talented designer whose loss is profoundly felt by our Project Runway family. Our condolences go out to his family, friends and all who knew him.” Lewis made it about halfway through his season, which aired from 2019 to 2020, and finished in 10th place. Prior to the show, he served as creative director for the menswear brand Stephen F and had his own clothing line. Lewis’ castmate Brittany Allen also paid tribute to him on social media, writing, “The world and this industry will be dim without your light in it.”
Chris Jasper
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Chris Jasper, the venerable soul artist and Isley Brothers member who sang about the power of love and the importance of making the world a better place on tracks like “For the Love of You” and “Caravan of Love,” died Feb. 23 at 73 following a battle with cancer. Born in Cincinnati, Jasper lived in the same apartment complex as the Isley family and formed a band with Marvin and Ernie Isley in high school. The trio later joined the Isley Brothers in 1973, transforming them from a vocal group into a self-contained, self-producing funk band with songs like “For the Love of You,” “Between the Sheets,” and “Fight the Power.” When the band broke up, Jasper teamed up with Marvin and Ernie to form Isley-Jasper-Isley and would go on to release the Billboard chart-topping hit, “Caravan of Love,” before embarking on his own solo career. As a member of the Isley Brothers, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, and his other accolades include an induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and the National R&B Society Lifetime Achievement Award.
Lynne Marie Stewart
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Lynne Marie Stewart, the character actress known for her work on Pee-Wee’s Playhouse and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, died Feb. 21 after a short illness. She was 78. Stewart was best known for her collaborations with Paul Reubens in a multitude of Pee-wee projects, playing Miss Yvonne and a number of other characters. She also was responsible for numerous hilarious scenes in It’s Always Sunny, in which she played the chaotic, off-the-walls neurotic mother of Charlie (Charlie Day). Born in Los Angeles in 1946, Stewart was an early member of the Groundlings, a seminal improv comedy troupe that also included Reubens, Kathy Griffin, Phil Hartman, and Jon Lovitz. On the big screen, Stewart played supporting roles in massive films, including Bridesmaids (in which she played Maya Rudolph’s mother), American Graffiti, Clear and Present Danger, The Running Man, and Children of a Lesser God. On television, Stewart appeared in episodes of Laverne & Shirley, MASH, The Golden Girls, The Jeffersons, Night Court, Hawaii Five-O, Arrested Development, Grey’s Anatomy, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and 2 Broke Girls.
Voletta Wallace
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Voletta Wallace, the mother of late rapper Christopher Wallace, better known as the Notorious B.I.G. died of natural causes in hospice care at her home in Stroudsburg, Pa., Monroe County Coroner Thomas Yanac confirmed on Feb. 21. Wallace was an advocate for her son’s legacy following the 27-year-old’s tragic death in a drive-by shooting on March 9, 1997, and she sought justice for him. Wallace participated in several projects meant to keep her son’s legacy alive, including the 2021 Netflix documentary Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell. “As long as I have life, there’s hope,” she told EW at the time. “I’ll never give up. And I hope when I’m not in this world anymore, my friends and family will carry on the fight. There is always hope.”
Jerry Butler
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Jerry Butler, the soul singer-songwriter and hit maker known as the Iceman, died Feb. 20 at the age of 85. His storied career began in the late 1950s as the original lead singer of the Impressions, who were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1991 and coined the “sound of the Civil Rights Movement.” They released such hits as “For Your Precious Love.” Butler left the group in 1960 and went solo, topping Billboard charts with “He Will Break Your Heart,” “Let It Be Me,” and “Only the Strong Survive.” Inspired by Chicago’s first Black Mayor Harold Washington, he entered politics in 1985, having been elected as a Democrat to the board of commissioners for Cook County. He held the position for over three decades, retiring in 2018. Butler also authored an autobiography, Only the Strong Survive: Memoirs of a Soul Survivor, in 2000.
Peter Jason
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Peter Jason, the prolific character actor whose work in film and television has spanned nearly six decades, died Feb. 20 at 80. With more than 260 credits to his name, the Hollywood native was best known for his role as card-dealer-turned-sheriff Con Stapleton on the HBO series Deadwood and as a frequent collaborator of filmmakers Walter Hill and John Carpenter. He appeared in nine of Hill’s features, including The Driver and 48 Hrs., and seven of Carpenter’s, including Prince of Darkness and Escape From L.A. Other credits include shows Kung Fu, Gunsmoke, Mad Men, and Justified, as well as movies Texas Lightning, The Karate Kid, and Heartbreak Ridge.
Souleymane Cissé
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Souleymane Cissé, an award-winning Malian writer-director and lifelong champion of African cinema, died Feb. 19 at 84. He first broke out with his debut feature-length movie, Den Muso, in 1975. But it was Cissé’s fourth film, Yeelen, that cemented his legacy, making him the first Black African filmmaker to win the Cannes Film Festival’s Jury Prize and earning a nomination for Best Foreign Film at the 1989 Spirit Awards. Martin Scorsese once called Yeelen “one of the great revelatory experiences of my moviegoing life.” Cissé’s other directorial efforts include Waati, Tell Me Who You Are, O Sembene!, and several short films. His last screen credit was as a producer, writer, and director of the documentary Our House in 2015.
Rick Buckler
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Rick Buckler, best known as the drummer for British rock band the Jam, died Feb. 17 at 69. That band — which also consisted of Paul Weller and Bruce Foxton — was formed in 1972 while the trio were still in secondary school. It took five years, but their first album, In the City, was released in 1977. In total, the Jam released one live album and six studio albums, the last of which hit No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart, and at one point they released 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the UK, including “That’s Entertainment,” “Just Who Is the 5 O’Clock Hero?,” “Going Underground,” “Start!,” “Town Called Malic,” “Beat Surrender” and more. Other bands Buckler either formed or joined up with over his career include Time UK, Sharp, and the Gift.
Paquita la del Barrio
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Legendary Mexican singer Paquita la del Barrio, who was known for her tremendous voice and for being a feminist icon, died Feb. 17 at her home in Veracruz, Mexico, according to her social media accounts. No cause of death was disclosed, but the artist had struggled with health issues in her final years. Her powerful songs, such as “Rata de dos patas” and “Tres veces te engañé,” earned her accolades such as nominations from the Grammys and the Latin Grammys. In 2021, she won the Billboard Latin Music Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Alice Hirson
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Actress Alice Hirson, who was known for work on soap operas and for playing the mother of Ellen DeGeneres’ character on her groundbreaking ’90s sitcom, Ellen, died Feb. 14 of natural causes at the Motion Picture & Television Fund’s Country House and Hospital in Los Angeles. She was 95. Hirson’s long list of roles since the 1960s included TV shows such as One Life to Live, General Hospital, Another World, Dallas, and 7th Heaven. Hirson also made a name for herself in films including Private Benjamin, Being There, Blind Date, and The Glass House.
Biff Wiff
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Biff Wiff, a comedic character actor known for his roles in I Think You Should Leave and Everything Everywhere All at Once, died following an extended battle with cancer, his management firm announced on Feb. 14. Wiff kicked off his decades-long career with a small part on the Gidget sequel series, The New Gidget. He went on to appear in popular shows like Moonlighting, Roseanne, Reba, iCarly, Pretty Little Liars, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Westworld, 9-1-1, Dave, and PEN15. He later made a splash with his first appearance in a season 2 episode of I Think You Should Leave, in which he played a profane Santa Claus who was also the star of an action film called Detective Crashmore. Wiff returned for the third season, giving a meme-worthy performance in the “Shirt Brother” sketch alongside star Tim Robinson. More recently, Wiff appeared in two episodes of the reality comedy series Jury Duty and played a small part in the Oscar-winning sci-fi comedy Everything Everywhere All at Once.
Peter Navy Tuiasosopo
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Peter Navy Tuiasosopo, an actor known for roles in New Girl, Magnum P.I. and many others, died Feb. 10. He was 61. Tuiasosopo’s first credit came in 1991, as Manumana in the sports comedy film Necessary Roughness. From there, he went on to appear in two episodes of Down the Shore and costar in the TV series Danger Theater as detective Al Hamoki. His impressive list of television credits also includes 8 episodes as Kaleo on Hawaii and 7 episodes of Young and the Restless as Koa. He guest-starred in numerous other series including NCIS, Mob City, Ray Donovan, black-ish, Mayans M.C. and most recently Magnum P.I. He also had a recurring role on New Girl as Big Bob. On the film side, Tuiasosopo appeared in a number of movies, including in the role of Willie Dumaine in 12 Rounds alongside John Cena, as well as The Fast and the Furious, A Perfect Getaway, Batman & Robin, BASEketball, Charlie’s Angels, Austin Powers in Gold Member, Savage and The Scorpion King, among others.
Tom Robbins
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Counterculture writer Tom Robbins, whose works included the 1976 book Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, died Feb. 9 at his home in La Conner, Wash., his family announced. He was 92. In 2014, Robbins told NPR that he was a storyteller even as a kid, when he would tell himself tales as he carried a stick. “I would beat the ground as I told the story,” he said. “And we moved fairly frequently. We would leave houses behind where one section of the yard was completely bare from where I destroyed the grass. But I realized much later in life that what I was doing was drumming. I was building a rhythm.” His other books included Another Roadside Attraction (1971), 1980’s Still Life With Woodpecker, and his 2014 memoir Tibetan Peach Pie.
Tony Roberts
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Tony Roberts, the character actor best known for playing Woody Allen’s best friend in Annie Hall, died Feb. 7 at 85. Born in Manhattan in 1939, Roberts made his Broadway debut in 1962’s Something About a Soldier. He went on to act in Barefoot in the Park and earned a Tony nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play for How Now, Dow Jones. Roberts first collaborated with Allen in the 1960s plays Don’t Drink the Water and Play It Again, Sam, earning another Tony nom for the latter and reprising his character in the 1972 film adaptation. Roberts later reteamed with Allen in Stardust Memories, A Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy, Hannah and Her Sisters, and Radio Days. His other notable films included the 1973 crime drama Serpico and the 1974 subway thriller The Taking of Pelham One Two Three. Roberts also appeared in movies like Million Dollar Duck, Amityville 3-D, and Switch, as well as on TV shows like The Love Boat, Matlock, The Carol Burnett Show, and Law & Order.
Irv Gotti
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Irv Gotti, Murder Inc. Records cofounder and influential hip-hop and rap record producer died Feb. 5 after helping to launch the careers of iconic genre artists like Ja Rule and Ashanti. He was 54. In addition to developing Ja Rule’s debut album Venni Vetti Vecci and Ashanti’s first LP, Gotti produced numerous iconic singles throughout the years, including DMX’s “What’s My Name?” and Jennifer Lopez’s “I’m Real” remix.
Lee Joo-Sil
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Lee Joo-Sil, an actress known for Squid Game and Train to Busan, died Feb. 2. She was 81. Born 1944 in South Korea when the country was under Japanese rule, Lee began her career on the stage, appearing in productions of Death of a Salesman and Macbeth. She made her screen debut on the series Jeonwonilgi in 1980, and would go on to appear in films A Single Spark, The Uninvited, Running Wild, Punch Lady, and Commitment. In 2016’s Train to Busan, Lee played the mother of protagonist Seok-Woo (Gong Yoo). Her TV credits included Lady President, Ordinary Love, Stormy Woman, The Witch’s Diner, and The Uncanny Encounter. Lee’s two-episode arc on season 2 of Squid Game, as the mother of Wi Ha-joon’s former detective Hwang Jun-ho, marked her final onscreen appearance.
Marianne Faithfull
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Marianne Faithfull, the Grammy-nominated singer and actress known for hits like “As Tears Go By” and “Come and Stay With Me,” died Jan. 30. She was 78. Faithfull rose to prominence as a singer at the height of the Swinging Sixties with her single “As Tears Go By,” which was written by Rolling Stones members Keith Richards and Mick Jagger. Her relationship with Jagger dominated the tabloids from 1965 until 1970, during which time she penned her own albums and starred in several films, including the 1968 erotic drama The Girl on a Motorcycle. After their breakup, Faithfull struggled for years with drug abuse and homelessness before having a career resurgence following the release of her Grammy-nominated 1979 album, Broken English. She continued to sing, write, and act over the course of the next 40 years, appearing in such films as Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette and writing three books.
Ryan Whyte Maloney
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Ryan Whyte Maloney, a singer and musician who was one of Blake Shelton’s top five finalists on The Voice season 6, died Jan 28 at 44. Maloney was born in Traverse City, Mich., in 1981, and started playing guitar, violin, cello, and drums when he was 9. From there he started writing songs and formed the band Indulge, with which he recorded the album Tomorrow’s Another Day in 2005. After 10 years with that band, Maloney struck out on his own, which led to him recording the solo album Where I’ve Been and eventually starring on The Voice in 2014. On the NBC singing competition, Maloney received a four-chair turn with his blind audition song, “Lights,” by Journey. He chose to be on Shelton’s team, where he went through two battle rounds and made it to Shelton’s top five finalists. Maloney returned to the show to perform in the season finale.
Ken Flores
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Ken Flores, the Chicago-born comedian who was a rising star in the stand-up world, died on Jan. 28. He was 28. Flores’s family announced his passing on the comedian’s Instagram the day after, asking fans to “please respect our privacy at this time as we are all shocked and devastated” by the loss of “our friend, brother, and son Kenyi Flores.” The comedian was in the midst of his “Butterfly Effect Tour,” his first solo headlining comedy tour of the country. Flores created the Chicago Laugh Factory’s popular LatinXL comedy show in 2022 before embarking to Los Angeles to pursue his career. He had become a regular at L.A. comedy institutions like The Comedy Store and Hollywood Improv, and appeared as a guest on the Netflix is a Daily Joke podcast last year. Hollywood Improv eulogized Flores on X on Jan. 29, with a post that read in part, “We were honored to share your talent on our stages. You were greatness, and it was only a matter of time until the whole world saw it.”
DJ Unk
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DJ Unk, the Atlanta hip-hop artist behind the 2006 hit “Walk It Out,” died Jan. 24. He was 43. Born in 1981, Platt began DJing as a teenager, joining forces with DJ Jelly and DJ Montay to form the Southern Style DJs. He signed to Big Oomp in 2000, eventually releasing his debut album, Beat’n Down Yo Block, on Koch Records in 2006. The album included the hit single “Walk It Out,” which peaked at No. 2 on Billboard‘s R&B/Hip-Hop charts and No. 10 on the Hot 100 chart. A remix of the song featured André 3000 and Jim Jones. Another single from the album, “2 Step,” also became a hit, and spawned a remix featuring T-Pain, E40, and Jones. Unk released his sophomore album, 2econd Season, in 2008. He later dropped several singles in the early 2010s, including “Get Em Up,” “Trap It Out,” and “Have a Toast.” He released his third album, Fresh Off Dem Papers, in 2017.
Barry Michael Cooper
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Barry Michael Cooper, the investigative-reporter-turned-screenwriter who penned a trio of influential films dubbed the “Harlem trilogy,” died Jan. 21 at 66. Born and raised in Harlem, Cooper began his writing career as a music critic for the Village Voice. He soon gained notoriety for his reporting, including the 1987 cover story “Kids Killing Kids: New Jack City Eats Its Young,” detailing Detroit’s violent drug-trade scene in gory detail. The piece put him on the radar of Quincy Jones, who asked Cooper to rewrite a screenplay about ’70s drug lord Nicky Barnes, leading him to pen the 1991 film New Jack City. The critically acclaimed crime thriller starred Wesley Snipes, Ice-T, Allen Payne, and Chris Rock, and marked the first entry in Cooper’s trilogy. Next he penned Sugar Hill, a drug-hustling drama that reunited him with Snipes, and Above the Rim, the basketball drama led by Tupac Shakur. Cooper would later team up with Spike Lee to write and produce the Netflix series She’s Gotta Have It, based on Lee’s debut feature.
Garth Hudson
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Garth Hudson, the keyboardist, saxophonist, and multi-instrumentalist who was the last surviving member of Rock and Roll legends, the Band, died Jan. 21 at 87. The Canadian musician served as the principal architect of the Band’s sound. Born into a family of musicians on on Aug. 2, 1937, Hudson began piano lessons at an early age. He was playing professionally with dance bands by age 12 and went on to study music at the University of Western Ontario, where he was classically trained in piano, music theory, harmony and counterpoint. When he joined the Band in 1961, part of his deal was being paid an additional $10 per week to give his bandmates music lessons. Originally named the Hawks, the group — consisting of Hudson, Levon Helm, Robbie Robertson, Richard Manuel, and Rick Danko — served as a backing band for Ronnie Hawkins before splitting from the singer to play with Bob Dylan on his electric 1965-66 world tour. In time, the Hawks became the Band and sent shockwaves through the music industry, popularizing Americana music with classic songs like “The Weight,” “Up on Cripple Creek,” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.” They called it quits after a 1976 farewell concert, and Hudson went on to work as a session musician with many artists, including Van Morrison and Leonard Cohen. The band later reformed for a couple more records; Hudson also worked with his bandmates on several solo projects and films. The Band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008.
Bertrand Blier
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Bertrand Blier, the provocative French filmmaker whose 1978 rom-com Get Out Your Handkerchiefs won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, died Jan. 20 at 85. The son of pianist Gisèle Brunet and actor Bernard Blier, the writer-director was immersed in the arts from a young age, and made his directorial debut with the cinema verité documentary Hitler — Never Heard of Him at 24. He would next direct his father and future César Award winner Suzanne Flon in the 1967 thriller If I Were a Spy. Blier’s breakthrough came in the form of 1974’s Going Places, a comedy that stirred controversy for its vulgarity but would garner acclaim and a sizable cult following, also launching the career of its star, Gérard Depardieu. After Blier’s Oscar win, he would find continued success with such titles as Buffet Froid (for which he won a César), Our Story (his second César win), and Too Beautiful For You (which earned him the Cannes Film Festival Grand Jury Prize for Best Director). His final film was 2019’s Heavy Duty, with Depardieu and Christian Clavier.
Lynn Ban
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Lynn Ban, a celebrated jewelry designer who starred on Netflix’s Bling Empire: New York, died Jan. 20, just weeks after undergoing emergency brain surgery following a skiing accident. She was 52. Ban starred on the first season of Netflix’s Bling Empire spinoff, Bling Empire: New York, which spotlighted the luxurious lives of a group of wealthy Asian Americans residing in the Big Apple. In addition to appearing on the reality series, Ban was the owner of Lynn Ban Jewelry, and her designs have been worn by celebrities like Rihanna and Beyoncé.
John Sykes
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John Sykes, the electrifying guitarist who rocked the world in legendary bands Whitesnake and Thin Lizzy, died Jan. 20 at 65. Sykes rose to prominence as a member of heavy metal outfit Tygers of Pan Tang, recording two albums with the band before departing in 1982. He later joined Thin Lizzy and is credited with co-writing the single “Cold Sweat” on the band’s twelfth and final album, Thunder and Lightning. Following Thin Lizzy’s dissolution, Sykes was recruited by English hard rock band Whitesnake. He recorded guitar parts for their highly-successful 1984 album, Slide It In, and was heavily involved in the recording process for the band’s seventh studio album, co-writing nine songs on the album including hits “Is This Love” and “Still of the Night.” However, due to disagreements with frontman David Coverdale, Sykes was fired from Whitesnake before the album’s release in 1987. Sykes would go on to create his own band, Blue Murder, and perform as a member of the touring version of Thin Lizzy for over a decade. He also released four solo albums.
Jan Shepard
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Jan Shepard, an actress who appeared on dozens of TV Westerns and performed opposite Elvis Presley in the films King Creole and Paradise, Hawaiian Style, died Jan. 17 at 96. Born in Quakertown, Pa., Shepard came to Los Angeles in 1949 and got involved in the local theater scene. She would go on to book roles on such television series as Death Valley Days, The Lone Ranger, The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp, Rawhide, Gunsmoke, Laramie, Lawman, The Virginian, Perry Mason, and Mannix. Her big-screen credits also included the B-movie Attack of the Giant Leeches and the drama Third of a Man.
Jules Feiffer
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Jules Feiffer, the Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist and author who famously illustrated Norton Juster’s beloved children’s book The Phantom Tollbooth, died of congestive heart failure on Jan. 17. He was 95. As a teenager, Feiffer got his start as an assistant to Will Eisner, helping to write and illustrate his crimefighter comic book stripThe Spirit. He joined The Village Voice in 1956, penning his own weekly comic book strip, Feiffer, at the publication until 1997. In addition to his career as a cartoonist, Feiffer wrote more than 35 works throughout his lifetime, including his 1958 comic strip collection Sick, Sick, Sick, the 1963 novel Harry the Rat with Women, and the screenplay for the 1960 animated film Munro, which won an Oscar for Best Animated Short Film. He also illustrated several children’s books like The Phantom Tollbooth and The Odious Ogre. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his political cartoons in 1986 and was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Writers Guild of America in 2010. He is survived by his wife, JZ Holden, and three children.
Francisco San Martin
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Francisco San Martin, a soap actor who appeared on Days of Our Lives and The Bold and the Beautiful, died Jan. 16. He was 39. Born in Spain but raised in Montana, San Martin originated the role of Dario Hernandez on Days of Our Lives in his TV debut, appearing on the soap between 2010 and 2011 before he was recast. It led to a bit role in the 2013 romance drama Behind the Candelabra alongside Matt Damon and Michael Douglas. San Martin also starred as telenovela actor Fabian on the CW’s Jane the Virgin, and the shorts Hotter Up Close and Dot.
Bob Uecker
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Bob Uecker, the beloved sports broadcaster and comedic actor died Jan. 16. He was 90. Uecker parlayed his stint as an unremarkable MLB catcher into a successful second act as a Hall of Fame broadcaster and comedy star in all three of the Major League and Mr. Belvedere, and cameoed on shows like Who’s The Boss?, Futurama, and Teen Titans Go. He also made regular appearances on The Johnny Carson Show, the Late Show with David Letterman, and hosted Bob Uecker’s Wacky World of Sports and Bob Uecker’s War of the Stars. In 1982, Uecker published a memoir titled Catcher in the Wry: Outrageous but True Stories of Baseball. He was honored by the Baseball Hall of Fame with the Ford C. Frick award in 2003 and was similarly recognized by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, the Radio Hall of Fame, and the WWE.
Joan Plowright
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Dame Joan Plowright, the venerable stage and screen actress and widow of Laurence Olivier, died Jan. 16. She was 95. Over the course of her more than 65-year career in entertainment, Plowright delivered celebrated performances in films such as Equus and in plays such as John Osborne’s The Entertainer, which saw her work alongside Olivier, and her Tony-winning turn in A Taste of Honey. Plowright and Olivier later reprised their roles for the 1960 film adaptation of The Entertainer, and were married a year later. When Plowright was not onstage, she could likely be found onscreen, appearing in several film and television projects including Mike Newell’s 1991 historical drama Enchanted April, for which her performance as Mrs. Jane Fisher saw her both nominated for an Oscar and win a Golden Globe. Plowright also won a second Golden Globe that same evening for her for her performance in HBO’s made-for-television film, Stalin. She was made a dame by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004, and worked for another decade in entertainment before retiring in 2014.
David Lynch
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David Lynch, the acclaimed filmmaker behind the monumental mystery series Twin Peaks and films like Mulholland Drive and Blue Velvet, died January 15. He was 78. Lynch’s unique and constant fascination with dreamlike rhythms, character doppelgangers, Americana, offbeat humor, ambient soundscapes, and the tension between darkness and light led critics and cinephiles to describe works with similar qualities as “Lynchian.” After studying painting and experimenting with short filmmaking, Lynch completed his first film, Eraserhead, in 1977. In the ’80s, he directed the biopic The Elephant Man, the sci-fi epic Dune, and the controversial neo-noir Blue Velvet. In 1990, Lynch’s romance road film Wild at Heart earned the Palme d’Or at Cannes, and his TV series Twin Peaks captured the zeitgeist by blending soap opera, mystery, and horror elements. Lynch returned to the series with the 1992 prequel movie Fire Walk With Me, and later helmed an 18-episode revival for Showtime in 2017 that ultimately capped his career. Later projects included the acclaimed Mulholland Drive and the dizzying Inland Empire. Though some of his films polarized critics at the time, they have all gained strong acclaim from audiences and critics alike.
Paul Danan
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Paul Danan, the British actor and reality star best known for playing Solomon “Sol” Patrick on the long-running sudser Hollyoaks, died on Jan. 15. He was 46. An Essex native, Danan rose to prominence portraying Sol — the adopted son of Jill Patrick (Lynda Rooke) — on Hollyoaks from 1997 until 2001. His performance as the troubled teenager landed him a Best Actor nomination at the Inside Soap Awards in 1999. Danan would go on to star in spotlight roles on television shows such as The Queen’s Nose, Casualty, and Adventure Inc, before making the leap to reality television. He appeared on several popular programs including Celebrity Big Brother, Celebrity Coach Trip, and two seasons of Celebrity Love Island in 2005 and 2006. Danan, who was open about his struggles with substance abuse, founded the Morning After Drama theater company, which offers free arts-based workshops to those in active recovery, in 2020.
Jeannot Szwarc
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Jeannot Szwarc, a French director known for Supergirl, Jaws 2, Somewhere in Time, and numerous notable TV projects, died Jan. 14. He was 87. His work in Hollywood began in earnest on the television side, with his first credit to that effect coming as a writer, producer, and eventually director of Ironside in the late ’60s. Throughout the early 1970s, he directed episodes for a slew of shows including It Takes a Thief, Matt Lincoln, and Sarge. He helmed 7 episodes of Marcus Welby, M.D. and 19 episodes of Night Gallery, before then working on several different TV movies. His first feature credit as a director came in 1973’s Extreme Close-Up, which he followed up with 1975’s Bug, before finally stepping into Steven Spielberg’s shoes to direct Jaws 2 in 1978. That gig kicked off the film side of his oeuvre, which went into high gear in the ’80s and ’90s with movies including Enigma, Supergirl, Hercule & Sherlock, and Somewhere in Time. In later years, Szwarc continued to work in television, directing episodes of JAG, Scandal, Bones, Castle, Ally McBeal, Smallville, Supernatural and Grey’s Anatomy.
Tony Slattery
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Tony Slattery, the British actor and comedian known for his sharp improv skills on Channel 4’s Whose Line Is It Anyway?, died on Jan. 14. He was 65. He appeared across seven seasons of the Clive Anderson-hosted improv game show and was an alum of Cambridge University’s comedy troupe Cambridge Footlights alongside then-students Stephen Fry, Emma Thompson, Hugh Laurie, and Sandi Toksvig. Slattery’s movie credits include Peter’s Friends opposite former peers Fry, Thompson, and Laurie; The Crying Game; and How to Get Ahead in Advertising, while TV credits include Saturday Stayback, Behind the Bike Sheds, Gems, and This Is David Harper. He also appeared on the West End stage, starring in musicals Me and My Girl, Radio Times, and Neville’s Island, the latter of which earned him an Olivier Award nomination.
Leslie Charleson
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Leslie Charleson, the actress best known for her role as Monica Quartermaine on General Hospital, died on Jan. 12. She was 79. Producer Frank Valenti confirmed Charleson’s death in a post on the official General Hospital Instagram which read in part, “Her enduring legacy has spanned nearly 50 years on General Hospital alone and, just as Monica was the heart of the Quartermaines, Leslie was a beloved matriarch of the entire cast and crew.” The Kansas City, Mo.-born actress appeared in brief stints on soaps like As The World Turns and Love Is a Many Splendored Thing before joining the GH cast as Monica, the matriarch of the powerful Quartermaine family. Monica owns Quartermaine Mansion, is former chief of staff of General Hospital, and is known for her enduring and often fractious relationship with ex-husband Alan (Stuart Damon). Charleson’s moving performance throughout Monica’s breast cancer storyline of the mid- to late-1990s earned her the last of four Daytime Emmy nominations. With her last onscreen appearance in December 2023, Charleson became General Hospital‘s longest-tenured cast member.
James McEachin
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James McEachin, the actor known for appearing on All in the Family and in multiple Clint Eastwood projects, died Jan. 11 at 94. Born in 1930 in Rennert, N.C., McEachin enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1947 and was wounded in an ambush during the Korean War. He then became a songwriter known as Jimmy Mack, working with artists like Otis Redding and the Furys. McEachin pivoted to acting in the 1960s, and appeared on shows like Hawaii Five-O, It Takes a Thief, and The Rockford Files. He portrayed Solomon Jackson and Mr. Turner on separate episodes of All in the Family in the 1970s, and briefly headlined the series Tenafly. McEachin also appeared in four films opposite Eastwood: Coogan’s Bluff, Play Misty For Me, Every Which Way but Loose, and Sudden Impact. In his later career, he was best known for playing Lt. Ed Brock in numerous Perry Mason TV movies. McEachin received the Purple Heart and Silver Star in 2005, and spent his final years writing books and working on military-based projects.
Sam Moore
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Sam Moore, the Grammy-winning soul singer and one-half of the duo Sam & Dave, died Jan. 10. He was 89. Born in 1935 in Miami, Moore began singing at a young age in church and clubs before joining forces with Dave Prater to form Sam & Dave. The duo released a string of R&B hits in the mid-1960s, including “Hold On! I’m Comin’,” “When Something Is Wrong With My Baby,” “I Thank You,” and, most notably, “Soul Man,” which won the 1968 Grammy for Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance, Vocal or Instrumental, and surged in popularity when John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd covered the song as the Blues Brothers on their 1978 album, Briefcase Full of Blues. Sam & Dave split up in 1970, and Moore recorded a solo album that wasn’t released until 2002. Sam & Dave were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 following Prater’s death in a car accident. In 2006, Moore released the solo album Overnight Sensational, featuring collaborations with Mariah Carey, Bruce Springsteen, Fantasia, Sting, Jon Bon Jovi, Billy Preston, Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, and many more.
Bill Byrge
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Bill Byrge, best known for playing Ernest’s neighbor Bobby in several of the Ernest comedy films, died on Jan. 9. Byrge’s first onscreen credit came in 1985 as the gas station attendant in sci-fi comedy Dr. Otto and the Riddle of the Gloom Beam, which also starred Jim Varney. So began a long partnership between the two, which included the 1988 film Ernest Saves Christmas and TV show, Hey, Vern, It’s Ernest!, 1990’s Ernest Goes to Jail, 1991’s Ernest Scared Stupid and 1994’s Ernest Goes to School. Byrge also reprised the character and produced 2010’s Billy & Bobby the Whacky Duo on Vacation!, which was released 10 years after Varney died in 2000 of lung cancer at age 50. Byrge had an additional uncredited role in the 1988 short Harry the Dirty Dog.
Peter Yarrow
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Peter Yarrow, the singer, songwriter, and political activist who was a major figure in the folk revival movement of the 1960s as one third of the music trio Peter, Paul and Mary, died on Jan. 7 at 86 after a four-year battle with bladder cancer. Along with Noel Paul Stookey and Mary Travers (who died in 2009), Yarrow helped to comprise the folk trio beloved for their politically-charged songs and three-part harmonies. The group played a critical role in turning the folk music scene into a massively popular movement in the 1960s. Throughout their time together, they earned five Grammys, released two No. 1 albums, and scored six top-10 hits. The trio split up in 1970 to pursue solo careers, a year after Yarrow pleaded guilty to taking indecent liberties with a 14-year-old girl. He served three months in jail and was ultimately pardoned by President Jimmy Carter in 1981. In subsequent years, the musician continuously apologized for and expressed regret over the incident. Peter, Paul and Mary reunited in 1978 for an anti-nuclear-power concert and remained together until Travers’ death, at which point Yarrow and Stookey continued to perform both separately and together. Stookey is now the last surviving member of the group.
Mike Rinder
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Mike Rinder, a former high-ranking Scientology executive who became a vocal critic of the church and cohosted the Emmy-winning docuseries Scientology and the Aftermath with Leah Remini, died on Jan. 5. He was 69. Rinder renounced Scientology in 2007, becoming a prominent whistleblower against the organization. He was featured in the Emmy- and Peabody-winning HBO documentary Going Clear in 2015, before teaming up with the King of Queens actress for the A&E docuseries Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. Remini and Rinder continued their partnership with the podcast,Scientology: Fair Game.
The Vivienne
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The Vivienne, the drag entertainer who won the inaugural season of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK and competed on All Stars 7, died on Jan. 5 at 32. A cause was not disclosed. The British queen won fan affection and RuPaul’s admiration for her stunning looks on the runway and comedic prowess, including a fan-favorite Snatch Game impersonation of U.S. President Donald Trump. She returned as the only international franchise representative on the all-winners cast of All Stars 7, again wowing the judges with her fashions and excelling at the season’s comedy challenges. In addition to her tenure on Drag Race, The Vivienne also regularly appeared in British films and TV programs, including the Absolutely Fabulous movie in 2016 and as a contestant on season 15 of the celebrity-focused Dancing on Ice show in 2023.
Jeff Baena
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Jeff Baena, the independent filmmaker who collaborated with his wife, Aubrey Plaza, on projects like The Little Hours and Life After Beth, died Jan. 3. He was 47. Medical examiner records indicated that Baena’s death was ruled a suicide by hanging. Born in Miami in 1977, Baena made his screenwriting debut with 2004’s I Heart Huckabees, a collaboration with director David O. Russell that starred Dustin Hoffman. Baena began dating Plaza in 2011, and made his directorial debut with 2014’s Life After Beth, Baena released 2016’s Joshy, a dark comedy that centered on a protagonist (Thomas Middleditch) reeling from the death of his fiancée (Alison Brie). Brie headlined Baena’s next two projects, 2017’s The Little Hours (which also starred Plaza) and 2020’s Horse Girl. He later created the experimental dramedy series Cinema Toast in 2021, which reunited him with a number of past collaborators, including Plaza (who made her directorial debut in an episode) and Brie. His final film was 2022’s Spin Me Round, a dark comedy he wrote with Brie, who also starred alongside Alessandro Nivola and Plaza.
Brenton Wood
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Brenton Wood, the soul singer and songwriter known for a string of ’60s hits including “The Oogum Boogum Song,” “Gimme Little Sign,” and “Catch You on the Rebound,” died Jan. 3 at 83. Born Alfred Jesse Smith in Shreveport, La., Wood grew up singing wherever he could — audience or not — and began to write songs and excel at playing the piano while attending high school and junior college in Compton, Calif. He first went into a studio in 1957, and went on to release music and tour for decades. His manager said that on his last night, Wood shared a message for fans: “Catch you on the rebound.”
Wayne Osmond
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Wayne Osmond, the singer and musician known for performing alongside his siblings as a member of the Osmond Brothers, died Jan. 1 at 73. He was 64. Born in Ogden, Utah, in 1951, he began his musical career in a barbershop quartet with his brothers Alan, Jay, and Merrill, gaining prominence during a televised Disneyland performance in 1961 and regularly appearing on several TV shows throughout the 1960s. After adding brothers Donny and Jimmy to their lineup, the Osmonds performed as a pop group, nabbing a No. 1 hit with “One Bad Apple” in 1971. Wayne, who had perfect pitch, helped arrange the band’s harmonies and played lead guitar. Though the group’s popularity dwindled as younger siblings Jimmy, Donny, and Marie launched solo careers in the mid-’70s, the original four Osmond Brothers reunited as a country act in the ’80s and performed until the 2010s. Wayne eventually retired from the band in 2012, following treatment for a brain tumor that left him deaf. He reunited with the group for a performance in Honolulu in 2018, then had one final performance on The Talk in 2019 to celebrate Marie’s birthday.
