Year: 2012

“Sweet Joe” Russell, who spent half a century harmonizing with the Persuasions, an influential vocal group widely regarded as the “kings of a cappella,” has died. (May 5, 2012)

Joe Russell Cause of death
Joe Russell in a Brooklyn hospice after a long struggle with diabetes.
Joe Russell was 72 years old at the time of his death

The Persuasions are an a cappella group that began singing together in Brooklyn, New York in the mid 1960s. They have performed interpretations of both secular and non-secular music, and have covered a wide range of musical genres.

The Persuasions with Jerry Lawson – 1974 Performance and Interview
Joe? Russell in the middle (on the step)

Breaking News, More Coming

Adam Nathaniel Yauch (August 5, 1964 – May 4, 2012) was a founding member of hip hop trio, the Beastie Boys. He was frequently known by his stage name, MCA, and other pseudonyms such as Nathanial Hörnblowér.

Yauch died on May 4, 2012. He announced in 2009 that he was being treated for cancer, but it is not yet known if his death was a direct result of the cancer

Beastie Boys Live on Conan (performance and interview)
Adam (MCA) wears sunglasses on the stage

Tiaina Baul “Junior” Seau, Jr., (January 19, 1969 – May 2, 2012) was an American football linebacker. A ten-time All-Pro and 12-time Pro Bowl selection, Seau was a member of the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team.

He played college football at the University of Southern California and was the progenitor of the “NFL-USC linebacker”. He was drafted fifth overall by the San Diego Chargers during the 1990 NFL Draft, later played for the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots, and retired from pro football in 2010.

Personsl
Seau survived with minor injuries a 100-foot fall down a cliff in his SUV in October 2010; he said he had fallen asleep at the wheel. Hours earlier he was arrested for domestic violence after his girlfriend reported an incident to the police. He was never charged.

Junior Seau cause of death
On May 2, 2012, Seau was found dead by his girlfriend at his home in Oceanside, California, with a gunshot wound to the chest that was ruled a suicide by the San Diego County medical examiner’s office.

Seau’s family decided to allow researchers to study his brain for possible damage due to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a condition traced to concussion-related brain damage with depression as a symptom.

* 40 years before Twilight, there was Dark Shadows.   Motion picture version of “Dark Shadows”, starring Johnny Depp, is scheduled to release in 2012.

John Herbert Frid (December 2, 1924 – April 13, 2012) was a Canadian theater, television, and film actor, best known for having played the role of vampire Barnabas Collins on the gothic television soap opera Dark Shadows.

Jonathan Frid cause of death
Jonathan Frid died of natural causes on April 14, 2012, at Juravinski Hospital in Hamilton, Ontario.
Jonathan Frid was 87 years old at the time of his death.

The Tragic Loves of Barnabas Collins – “I Wasn’t Her” 

Mark Lavon “Levon” Helm (May 26, 1940 – April 19, 2012), was an American rock multi-instrumentalist and actor who achieved fame as the drummer and frequent lead and backing vocalist for The Band.

Helm was known for his deeply soulful, country-accented voice, and creative drumming style highlighted on many of The Band’s recordings, such as “The Weight”, “Up on Cripple Creek”, “Ophelia” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”. His 2007 comeback album Dirt Farmer earned the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album in February 2008, and in November of that year, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him #91 in the list of The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. In 2010, Electric Dirt, his 2009 follow-up to Dirt Farmer, won the first ever Grammy Award for Best Americana Album, an inaugural category in 2010. In 2011, his live album Ramble at the Ryman was nominated for the Grammy in the same category and won.

On April 17, 2012, his wife and daughter announced on Helm’s website that he was “in the final stages of his battle with cancer” and thanked fans while requesting prayers.

Levon Helm cause of death
Levon Helm died on April 19, 2012, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.
Levon Helm was 71 years old at the time of his death

Levon Helm (on Drums & vocal) & John Hiatt – The Weight

Greg Norman Ham (September 27, 1953 – April 19, 2012) was an Australian songwriter, actor and saxophone player known for playing multiple instruments in the 1980s band Men at Work. In addition to the saxophone, he played flute, organ, piano and the synthesiser. He replaced Greg Sneddon in the band.

As an actor, Ham was a regular cast member on While You’re Down There.

Later in life, Ham taught guitar at Carlton North Primary School in Melbourne.

Greg Ham cause of death
Ham was found dead at his home in Carlton North, Melbourne, on 19 April 2012. Further details on his death and its circumstances are yet to be clarified.
Greg Ham was 58 years old at the time of his death.

Men At Work – Who Can It Be Now (1981)
Greg Ham on Saxophone

Richard Wagstaff “Dick” Clark (November 30, 1929 – April 18, 2012) was an American game-show host, radio and television personality, and businessman. He served as chairman and chief executive officer of Dick Clark Productions, which he has sold part of in recent years. Clark is best known for hosting long-running television shows such as American Bandstand, five versions of the game show Pyramid, and Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.

Clark has long been known for his departing catchphrase, “For now, Dick Clark…so long,” delivered with a military salute, and for his youthful appearance, earning the moniker “America’s Oldest Teenager.”

Dick Clark cause of death
Dick Clark died of a massive heart attack in his home after undergoing a procedure.
Dick Clark was 82 at the time of his death.

Clark suffered a significant stroke in late 2004. With speech ability still impaired, Clark returned to his New Year’s Rockin’ Eve show on December 31, 2005/January 1, 2006. Subsequently, he appeared at the Emmy Awards on August 27, 2006, and every New Year’s Rockin’ Eve show since then.

Daytime Emmy Awards tribute to American Bandstand and Dick Clark

Mike Wallace won at least 20 Emmy Awards

Myron Leon “Mike” Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. During his career, which spanned over sixty years, he interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers.

He was one of the original correspondents for CBS’ 60 Minutes which debuted in 1968. Wallace retired as a regular full-time correspondent in 2006, but still appeared occasionally on the series until 2008.

Wallace’s youngest son is journalist Chris Wallace, host of Fox News Sunday.

Mike Wallace cause of death
Cause of death is not released.
Mike Wallace died in Connecticut, where he resided, at 8 p.m. on April 7, 2012.
Mike Wallace was 93 years old at the time of his death.

Health
Mike Wallace wore pacemaker for over 20 years.  He had a long history of cardiac care and underwent triple bypass heart surgery in January 2008.

Mike Wallace interviews Bette Davis (1980)

James Charles “Jim” Marshall, OBE (July 29, 1923 – April 5, 2012), known as The Father of Loud or The Lord of Loud, was an English businessman, and pioneer of guitar amplification. His company, Marshall Amplification, has created kit used by some of the biggest names in rock, producing amplifiers with an iconic status. Marshall has been listed as one of the four forefathers of rock music equipment along with Leo Fender, Les Paul and Seth Lover.

Jim Marshall cause of death
Jim Marshall had cancer and endured a series of strokes.
Jim Marshall was 88 years old at the time of his death..

*Earl Scruggs created that classic banjo picking style

Earl Eugene Scruggs (January 6, 1924 – March 28, 2012) was an American musician noted for perfecting and popularizing a three-finger banjo-picking style (now called Scruggs style) that is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music. Although other musicians had played in three-finger style before him, Scruggs shot to prominence when he was hired by Bill Monroe to fill the banjo slot in his group, the Blue Grass Boys.

On September 24, 1962, Scruggs recorded “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” for the TV show The Beverly Hillbillies, which became an immediate country music hit. 

Earl Scruggs Cause of Death
Scruggs died from natural causes on March 28, 2012, in a Nashville hospital

Earl Scruggs Breakdown

The Ballad Of Jed Clampett (1962) – Earl Scruggs on banjo