Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly adaptations of his plays. He received more combined Oscar and Tony nominations than any other writer.
During 1966, Simon had four shows playing at Broadway theatres simultaneously: Sweet Charity, The Star-Spangled Girl, The Odd Couple and Barefoot in the Park.
In 1991, Simon was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for Lost in Yonkers
In 2006, Simon received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor
Neil Simon Cause of Death
In 2004, Simon received a kidney transplant from his long-time friend and publicist Bill Evans.
Neil Simon died on August 26, 2018, after being on life support while hospitalized for renal failure. He also had Alzheimer’s disease. He was 91. The cause of death was complications of pneumonia, according to his publicist, Bill Evans. Simon died around 1 a.m. Sunday at New York-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City.
Aretha Louise Franklin (March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer and songwriter. Franklin began her career as a child singing gospel at New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, where her father, C. L. Franklin, was minister. In 1960, at the age of 18, she embarked on a secular career, recording for Columbia Records but only achieving modest success. Following her signing to Atlantic Records in 1967, Franklin achieved commercial acclaim and success with songs such as “Respect”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, “Spanish Harlem” and “Think”. By the end of the 1960s she had gained the title “The Queen of Soul”.
Franklin has won a total of 18 Grammy Awards and is one of the best-selling musical artists of all time, having sold over 75 million records worldwide.
On August 13, 2018, Franklin was reported to be gravely ill at her home near Detroit. She was reported to be under hospice care and surrounded by friends and family. Stevie Wonder and Jesse Jackson, among others, had visited her.
Death
On August 16, 2018, it was reported that Franklin had died at home in Detroit, aged 76. The cause was reported to be advanced pancreatic cancer.
Brian Christopher Lawler (January 10, 1972 – July 29, 2018) was an American professional wrestler. He was the son of professional wrestler Jerry Lawler and brother of wrestling referee Kevin Christian. He was best known for his career in the World Wrestling Federation (now known as WWE), where he performed as Brian Christopher and Grand Master Sexay. Lawler was a one-time WWF Tag Team Champion as part of Too Cool with Scotty 2 Hotty, and won 44 titles within the United States Wrestling Association.
In early July 2018, Lawler was again arrested and jailed for driving under the influence and for evading police. On the early morning of July 29, 2018, Lawler was found hanging in a cell at the Hardeman County Jail and was observed to be brain dead. His life support was disabled after his father Jerry Lawler had arrived to the hospital to bid his farewell. Lawler was pronounced dead at around 4:40 p.m. EST at the age of 46.
Joseph Walter Jackson (July 26, 1928 – June 27, 2018) was an American talent manager and patriarch of the Jackson family of entertainers that includes his children Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson. He was inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2014.
Joe Jackson cause of death
Joe Jackson died of pancreatic cancer in June 26, 2018. He was 89 years old at the time of his death. He died at a hospice in Las Vegas.
Michael Jackson’s Father, Joe Jackson – Piers Morgan Interview January 30, 2013
Anthony Michael Bourdain (June 25, 1956 – June 8, 2018) was an American celebrity chef, author, and television personality. He was noted by popular sources as one of the most influential chefs in the world.
Anthony Bourdain Cause of Death
Bourdain was found dead of an apparent suicide by his friend Eric Ripert on June 8, 2018, in his hotel room in Strasbourg, France, where he was shooting an episode of Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown.
Anthony Bourdain feat. Serj Tankian in Armenia – Parts Unknown
Gerard Marenghi (January 24, 1920 – May 2018), known as Jerry Maren, was an American actor who was the last surviving Munchkin of the 1939 MGM film The Wizard of Oz, in which he portrayed a member of the Lollipop Guild. He became the last known survivor of the Munchkin cast, following the death of fellow Munchkin Ruth Duccini on January 16, 2014.
Jerry Maren cause of death
Maren died in San Diego, California at a nursing facility center in May 2018 at the age of 98 after suffering from dementia.
Kate Valentine (born Katherine Noel Brosnahan, December 24, 1962 – June 5, 2018), known professionally as Kate Spade, was an American fashion designer and businesswoman. She was the namesake and former co-owner of the designer brand Kate Spade New York.
Kate and Andy Spade founded Kate Spade New York in 1993. She sold 56% of the company to Neiman Marcus Group in 1999, and the rest of the company in 2006. In 2016, she and her partners launched a new fashion brand called Frances Valentine.
Personal life
Spade married Andy Spade, the brother of actor/comedian David Spade, in 1994. The couple had one child, Frances Beatrix Spade, born in February 2005. Her niece is actress Rachel Brosnahan.
Kate Spade Cause of Death
On June 5, 2018, Spade was found dead after an apparent suicide by hanging in her Manhattan apartment.
Margaret Ruth Kidder (October 17, 1948 – May 13, 2018), professionally known as Margot Kidder, was a Canadian-American actress and activist. She rose to fame in 1978 for her role as Lois Lane in the Superman film series, alongside Christopher Reeve. Kidder began her career in the 1960s appearing in low-budget Canadian films and television series, before landing a lead role in Quackser Fortune Has a Cousin in the Bronx (1970).
In 2015 Kidder won an Emmy award for Outstanding Performer in Children’s Programming for her performance in R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour.
Kidder dated former Canadian prime minister Pierre Trudeau, directors Brian De Palma and Steven Spielberg, writer/director Tom Mankiewicz, and actor/comedian Richard Pryor. She was married and divorced three times. Kidder’s first husband was American novelist Thomas McGuane, with whom she had her only child, daughter Maggie McGuane, born in 1976. She was married to actor John Heard in 1979 for only six days, and was married to French film director Philippe de Broca from 1983 to 1984.
Kidder was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which was the cause of a widely publicized manic episode that she experienced in April 1996. At the time, Kidder had been working on an autobiography when her laptop computer was infected with a virus, which caused it to crash and her to lose three years’ worth of drafts. Kidder flew to Los Angeles to have the computer examined by a data retrieval company, who ultimately were unable to retrieve the files. Kidder then entered a manic state and disappeared for four days. She was found in a backyard by a homeowner and was taken by the Los Angeles Police Department to Olive View Medical Center in a distressed state, the caps on her teeth having been knocked out during a rape attempt. She was later placed in psychiatric care.
Margot Kidder cause of death
Margot Kidder died in her sleep on May 13, 2018, at her home in Montana at the age of 69.[51] The cause of death has not been disclosed.
Verne Troyer (January 1, 1969 – April 21, 2018) was an American actor, stunt performer and comedian. He was notable for his height of 2 ft 8 in (81 cm), the result of achondroplasia dwarfism, which made him one of the shortest men in the world. He was best known for playing Mini-Me in the Austin Powers series of comedy films, and for his brief appearance as Griphook the goblin in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
Verne Troyer cause of death
Troyer had died at the age of 49. No cause of death was given.
In April 2018, Troyer was admitted to a hospital after an incident in his home. He had previously been admitted to rehab to undergo treatment for alcohol addiction.
Harry Laverne Anderson (October 14, 1952 – April 16, 2018) was an American actor, comedian and magician. He is best known for the role of Judge Harry Stone on the 1984–92 television series Night Court.
In addition to eight appearances on Saturday Night Live between 1981 and 1985, Anderson had a recurring guest role as con man Harry “The Hat” Gittes on Cheers, toured extensively as a magician, and did several magic/comedy shows for broadcast, including Harry Anderson’s Sideshow (1987). He was also notable for his role as Richie Tozier in the 1990 Tommy Lee Wallace miniseries It.
Harry Laverne Anderson cause of death
On April 16, 2018, Anderson died in his sleep of a cardioembolic cerebrovascular accident complicated by influenza at his home in Asheville at the age of 65. In late January 2018, Anderson had a bout of influenza, and subsequently suffered several strokes.
Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly adaptations of his plays. He received more combined Oscar and Tony nominations than any other writer.
