Celebrity deaths, illness, divorce and remembrance
Jerome David "J. D." Salinger (January 1, 1919 – January 27, 2010) was an American author, best known for his 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, as well as his reclusive nature. His last original published work was in 1965; he gave his last interview in 1980.
Death of J.D. Salinger
Salinger died of natural causes on January 27, 2010, at his home in Cornish, New Hampshire.
###
Earl Wild, 94, an American-born piano virtuoso who was often called "the last of the great Romantic pianists," died Jan. 23 at his home in Palm Springs, Calif. He had congestive heart failure.
Mr. Wild had to be "the world’s only pianist to have composed for Sid Caesar, toured with Eleanor Roosevelt and been ranked in dexterity with Vladimir Horowitz," The Washington Post pointed out in 198
Zelda Rubinstein (May 28, 1933 – January 27, 2010) was an American actress and human rights activist, best known as eccentric medium Tangina Barrons in the movies Poltergeist (1982) and its sequels, Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986), and Poltergeist III (1988). She also made guest appearances in the TV spin-off Poltergeist: The Legacy (1996), as a seer, Christina. Rubinstein was also known for her outspoken activism for little people and her early participation in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
Illness and death of Zelda Rubinstein
On December 29, 2009, it was reported that, after a month-long stay at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, her close companion and her family made the decision to take Rubinstein off life support due to both kidney and lung failure. On January 2, 2010, friends reported she was not near death, and was well on her way to recovery. On January 27, 2010, Rubinstein died at Barlow Respiratory Hospital in Los Angeles, aged 76.
Zelda Rubinstein – (perhaps) The best scene from Poltergeist
Pernell Elvin Roberts (May 18, 1928 – January 24, 2010) was an American television actor and singer. He was best known for his roles as Ben Cartwright’s eldest son, Adam Cartwright, on the western series Bonanza (a role he played from 1959 to 1965), and as chief surgeon, Dr. John MacIntyre, the title character on Trapper John, M.D. (1979-1986).
Born: Pernell Elvin Roberts Waycross, Georgia, U.S.
Died: Malibu, California, U.S.
He came to prominence playing Ben Cartwright’s urbane eldest son, Adam, in the Western television series Bonanza. Despite the show’s success, he left after the sixth season in 1965 due to disagreements with the writers and a desire to return to legitimate theatre.
He was known for his activism, which included participation in the Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965, and pressuring NBC to refrain from hiring whites to portray minority characters.
Death of Pernel Roberts
Roberts died of cancer at his home in Malibu, California on January 24, 2010, aged 81
Pernell Roberts
James Mitchell (February 29, 1920 – January 22, 2010) was an American actor and dancer. Although he is best-known to television audiences as Palmer Cortlandt on the soap opera All My Children (1979 – 2009), theatre and dance historians remember him as one of Agnes de Mille’s leading dancers. Mitchell’s skill at combining dance and acting was considered something of a novelty; in 1959, the critic Olga Maynard singled him out as “an important example of the new dancer-actor-singer in American ballet”, pointing to his interpretive abilities and “masculine” technique
Personal life
Mitchell’s longtime partner was the Oscar award-winning costume designer Albert Wolsky
Death of James Mitchell
James Mitchell died on January 22, 2010, in Los Angeles, a matter of weeks before what would have been his 90th birthday. His death came after suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease complicated by pneumonia.
Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE (January 31, 1929 – January 22, 2010) was an English actress who appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with British-made films during and after World War II, followed mainly by Hollywood films from 1950.
In 1953, she starred alongside Spencer Tracy in The Actress, a film that was one of her personal favourites. Among the many films she appeared in during this period were The Robe (1953), The Egyptian (1954), Guys and Dolls (1955), The Big Country (1958), Elmer Gantry (1960), (directed by her second husband, Richard Brooks), Spartacus (1960), and The Happy Ending (1969), again directed by Brooks and for which she received her second Oscar nomination.
She had two daughters, Tracy Granger (born 1956) and Kate Brooks, one by each marriage – their names bear witness to Simmons’ friendship with Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn.
Breast Cancer
Jean Simmons was a breast cancer survivor (treated some years ago)
Death of Jean Simmons
Jean Simmons died of lung cancer in Santa Monica, California.
Jean Simmons was 80 years old at the time of her death
Marlon Brando & Jean Simmons – Guys and Dolls – I’ll Know
Jean Simmons’ filmography continues on next page
Jean Simmon Filmography
* Sports Day (1944)
* Give us the Moon (1944)
* Mr. Emmanuel (1944)
* Kiss the Bride Goodbye (1945)
* Meet Sexton Blake (1945)
* The Way to the Stars (1945)
* Caesar and Cleopatra (1945)
* Great Expectations (1946)
* The Woman in the Hall (1947)
* Uncle Silas (1947)
* Black Narcissus (1947)
* Hungry Hill (1947)
* Hamlet (1948)
* The Blue Lagoon (1949)
* Adam and Evelyne (1949)
* So Long at the Fair (1950)
* Cage of Gold (1950)
* Trio (1950)
* The Clouded Yellow (1951)
* Angel Face (1952)
* Androcles and the Lion (1952)
* Young Bess (1953)
* Affair with a Stranger (1953)
* The Robe (1953)
* The Actress (1953)
* She Couldn’t Say No (1954) (AKA Beautiful but Dangerous )
* Demetrius and the Gladiators (1954)
* The Egyptian (1954)
* A Bullet Is Waiting (1954)
* Désirée (1954)
* Footsteps in the Fog (1955)
* Guys and Dolls (1955)
* Hilda Crane (1956)
* This Could Be the Night (1957)
* Until They Sail (1957)
* The Big Country (1958)
* Home Before Dark (1958)
* This Earth Is Mine (1959)
* Elmer Gantry (1960)
* Spartacus (1960)
* The Grass Is Greener (1960)
* All the Way Home (1963)
* Life at the Top (1965)
* Mister Buddwing (1966)
* Divorce American Style (1967)
* Rough Night in Jericho (film) (1967)
* Heidi (1968)
* The Happy Ending (1969)
* Say Hello to Yesterday (1971)
* Mr. Sycamore (1975)
* The Dain Curse (TV) (1978)
* Dominique (1978)
* Beggarman, Thief (TV) (1979)
* A Small Killing ((TV, 1981)
* The Thorn Birds (TV, 1983)
* December Flower (TV, 1984)
* Midas Valley (TV, 1985)
* Yellow Pages (1985)
* North and South (1985)
* North and South Book II (1986)
* Perry Mason: The Case of the Long Lost Love (1987)
* The Dawning (1988)
* Great Expectations (1989)
* Star Trek: The Next Generation (1991)
* Dark Shadows (1991) Elizabeth Collins Stoddard / Naomi Collins
* They Do It with Mirrors (1991)
* How to Make an American Quilt (1995)
* Daisies in December (TV) (1995)
* Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) (voice)
* Jean Simmons: Rose of England (2004) (documentary)
* Howl’s Moving Castle (Hauru no ugoku shiro) (2004) (voice)
* Through the Moebius Strip (2005)
* Shadows in the Sun (2008)
Carl Smith (March 15, 1927 – January 16, 2010) was an American country music singer. Known as "Mister Country," Smith was the husband of June Carter (later June Carter Cash) and Goldie Hill, the drinking companion of Johnny Cash, and the father of Carlene Carter. He was one of country’s most successful male artists during the 1950s, with 30 Top 10 hits. His success continued well into the 1970s, when he had a charting single every year except one. He is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame.
In 1952, Smith married June Carter (who later became the wife of Johnny Cash), the daughter of Maybelle Carter of the Carter Family. In 1955 the couple had a daughter, Rebecca Smith, who later became known as Carlene Carter, a country singer in her own right.
During the rest of the 1950s, Smith made regular appearances on Billboard’s country charts, racking up many hits, including 30 in the Top 10. His biggest hits include "Loose Talk", "Wicked Lies", "Hey Joe!" and "You Are the One". He only had five number one hits in his career; "Loose Talk" was his last, in 1955.
In 1957, Smith and June Carter divorced. That same year, he married country music singer Goldie Hill, best known for the number one hit "I Let the Stars Get In My Eyes".
Death of Carl Smith
Carl smith died of natural causes
Carl smith was 82 years old at the time of his death
Carl Smith – Loose Talk
Bobby Charles (born Robert Charles Guidry, February 21, 1938 – January 14, 2010) was an American singer and songwriter.
Charles helped to pioneer the south Louisiana musical genre known as swamp pop. His compositions include the hits "See You Later, Alligator," which he initially recorded himself as "Later Alligator", but which is best known from the cover version by Bill Haley & His Comets; and "Walking to New Orleans", written for Fats Domino.
"(I Don’t Know Why I Love You) But I Do" was a 1950s classic that Charles composed which Clarence "Frogman" Henry had a major hit with and which was on the soundtrack to the 1994 blockbuster Forrest Gump. His composition "Why Are People Like That?" was on the soundtrack to the 1998 movie Home Fries.
In September 2007, The Louisiana Music Hall of Fame honored Charles for his contributions to Louisiana music with an induction.
Death of Bobby Charles
Charles collapsed in his home near Abbeville and died January 14, 2010.
Bobby Charles – No Use Knockin