Obituary News

Roy Talbot Calypso Musician Dies at 94

Source: Michael Ricci
May 24, 2009

Roy Talbot, the last surviving member of the original Talbot Brothers of Bermuda, one of the top calypso groups of the 1950s, died on May 15 in Paget, Bermuda. He was 94 and lived in Harris Bay.

Mr. Talbot lent his voice to the Talbots distinctive blended harmonies and cut a striking figure onstage with his homemade bass. Called the doghouse or the Bermudavarius, it was fashioned from a Swift meatpacking crate and had a single string made from fishing ...

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Joan A. Stanton, Radio Voice of Lois Lane, Dies at 94

Source: Michael Ricci
May 23, 2009

Joan A. Stanton, who was known as Joan Alexander in the 1940s when she was the voice of Lois Lane on the radio version of The Adventures of Superman, died on Thursday in Manhattan.

She was 94 and lived in Manhattan and East Hampton, N.Y. The cause was an intestinal blockage, said her daughter, Jane Stanton Hitchcock.

Mrs. Stanton was a dark-haired beauty, model and stage actress before she became a radio star, performing on many shows, including Perry Mason, ...

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Buddy Montgomery Jazz Pianist and Vibraphonist Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
May 22, 2009

Buddy Montgomery, a jazz pianist and vibraphonist best known for his work with the guitarist Wes Montgomery, his older brother, died on May 14 at his home in Palmdale, Calif. He was 79.

The cause was a heart attack, said his granddaughter Mykah Montgomery.

Mr. Montgomery and another brother, the bassist Monk Montgomery, were members of Wes Montgomerys quartet on and off during the 1960s. They first worked with him when he was critically acclaimed but little known outside the ...

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Carol Cole Daughter of Nat King Cole Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
May 22, 2009

Carol Cole, 65, sister of Natalie, had been in charge of their father's estate and recordings and had recently overseen production of Re: Generations.

The collection released in February of Cole's recordings remixed in a variety of new R&B, hip-hop, Latin and rock treatments. She also had been a stage, TV and screen actress in the 1960s and '70s before retiring from performing.

Natalie Cole receives kidney

Singer Natalie Cole got a new kidney this week, her representatives said Wednesday. ...

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Wayne Allwine Voice of Mickey Mouse Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
May 20, 2009

Allwine got the role in 1976. He was only the third person -- Walt Disney was the first -- to voice the character. 'It's really not about me; it's about Mickey, and Mickey is Walt's,' he once said.

Wayne Allwine, a Walt Disney Studios voice-over artist who was the voice of Mickey Mouse for more than three decades, has died. He was 62.

Allwine, an Emmy Award-winning former sound effects editor and foley artist, died of complications of diabetes early ...

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Alfred Appel Jr. Professor Wrote on Jazz, Literature Passes

Source: Michael Ricci
May 19, 2009

Alfred Appel Jr., 75, a Northwestern University English professor who was a leading expert on Russian American author Vladimir Nabokov and a scholar of modern art and jazz, died of heart failure May 2 at a hospital in Evanston, Ill.

As a Cornell University undergraduate, Appel studied under Nabokov and in 1970 produced one of his best-known works, “The Annotated Lolita."

The book laid out the layers of literary references and word play in Nabokov's story of a middle-aged man's ...

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Lee Solters Prominent Publicist for Hollywood Stars and Broadway Plays Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
May 19, 2009

Lee Solters, 89, a longtime publicist who worked with some of the biggest names of Broadway and Hollywood, died Monday of natural causes at his home in West Hollywood, according to Jerry Digney, his partner in the public relations firm of Solters & Digney.

In the 1960s, Solters was considered the top publicist on Broadway and worked on numerous legendary productions including “Guys and Dolls," “Funny Girl," “The King and I," “My Fair Lady" and plays by Tennessee Williams, Arthur ...

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Rafael Escalona Colombian Folk Balladeer Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
May 19, 2009

Rafael Escalona, who absorbed the ways and wisdom of wandering troubadours to become a beloved writer of ballads that became classics of Colombia folk music and inspired the novelist Gabriel Garca Mrquez, died Wednesday in Bogot. He was 81.

The death was announced by the government of Colombia. Reports on the cause of death differed.

Mr. Escalona was a pioneering songwriter and singer of vallenato, the folk music of Colombias remote Caribbean region. The sound, driven by the plaintive wail ...

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