Obituary News

Mel Ferrer Star of Sun Also Rises Dies

Source: All About Jazz
June 3, 2008

Mel Ferrer, the tall, darkly handsome star of such classic films as Lili, War and Peace and The Sun Also Rises, as well as producer and director of movies starring his then-wife, Audrey Hepburn, has died at age 90. Ferrer died Monday at a Santa Barbara convalescent home, his son Mark Ferrer said on Tuesday. He had been in failing health for the past six months and had recently moved to the home from his nearby ranch in Carpinteria, his ...

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Bo Diddley Beat Marked Rock 'N' Roll

Source: Michael Ricci
June 3, 2008

Diddley's swaggering stage presence influenced artists including James Brown, Mick Jagger and Jimi Hendrix. A primal guitar sound and stage swagger influenced music from Elvis to rap. But he never got the full rewards of a pioneer.

Primal rock and blues musician Bo Diddley, who helped cast the sonic template of rock more than 50 years ago with a signature syncopated rhythm that became universally recognized as “the Bo Diddley beat," died Monday. He was 79. The Bo Diddley Sound ...

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Bo Diddley Dead at 79

Source: All About Jazz
June 3, 2008

Legendary Guitarist Bo Diddley Dead at 79

Bo Diddley Bo Diddley, legendary guitarist and founding father of rock & roll, died on Monday (June 2) after months of prolonged health issues. He was 79.

Diddley died of heart failure in his Archer, Florida home. He had suffered a heart attack in August, three months after suffering a stroke while touring in Iowa; he had returned to Florida for rehabilitation.

Not only was Diddley's voice and 5/4 rhythm approach instantly recognizable, ...

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Bo Diddley His Life and Times

Source: Michael Ricci
June 2, 2008

Bo Diddley, a founding father of rock 'n' roll whose distinctive ”shave and a haircut, two bits” rhythm and innovative guitar effects inspired legions of other musicians, died Monday after months of ill health. He was 79. Diddley died of heart failure at his home in Archer, Fla., spokeswoman Susan Clary said. He had suffered a heart attack in August, three months after suffering a stroke while touring in Iowa. Doctors said the stroke affected his ability to speak, and ...

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Bo Diddley Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
June 2, 2008

Rock Pioneer Bo Diddley Dies at age 79 JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A spokeswoman says rock pioneer Bo Diddley has died.

The spokeswoman says Diddley died of heart failure today. He had suffered a heart attack in August 2007, three months after suffering a stroke while touring in Iowa. Doctors said the stroke affected his ability to speak, and he had returned to Florida to continue rehabilitation. Diddley was known for his homemade square guitar, dark glasses and black ...

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Robert H. Justman Star Trek Creative Force Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
June 2, 2008

Robert H. Justman, a producer who was one of the creative forces behind the original “Star Trek" television series of the 1960s as well as the 1980s-era “Star Trek: The Next Generation," has died. He was 81. Justman died Wednesday at his Los Angeles home of complications from Parkinson's disease, his son Jonathan said. Justman's death came within days of those of his “Star Trek" friends and colleagues Joseph Pevney, who directed some of the original series' most popular episodes, ...

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'60s Psychedelia Artist Alton Kelley Passes Away

Source: All About Jazz
June 2, 2008

Alton Kelly 1940 - 2008

[Petaluma, CA - Sunday, June 1, 2008] Legendary artist Alton Kelley created a graphic style that rocked the world beginning in the psychedelic Sixties. His concert posters, logo designs, LP album covers, and fine art have forevermore defined that time. Kelley, born June 17, 1940, passed away peacefully at home June 1st of complications from a long illness.

He is survived by the true love of his life, Marguerite Trousdale Kelley. He also leaves his ...

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Yves Saint Laurent Icon of French Fashion Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
June 1, 2008

Yves Saint Laurent, the French fashion designer who created a bold a new dress code for women during the feminist revolution of the 1970s and helped launch the era of the celebrity designer with his jet-set lifestyle, died Sunday at 71. The designer died at his Paris home following a long illness, Pierre Berge, his longtime friend and business partner, told the Associated Press. From the start of his career at 21, when he replaced his mentor, Christian Dior, as ...

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