The RIP Famous Person Thread

[Happy As Larry]

Dickey Betts, Allman Brothers Band co-founder and guitarist, dies aged 80

uitar legend Dickey Betts, who co-founded the Allman Brothers Band and wrote their biggest hit, Ramblin’ Man, has died. He was 80.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer died at his home in Osprey, Florida, David Spero, Betts’ manager of 20 years, confirmed. Betts had been diagnosed with cancer and had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Spero said.

“He was surrounded by his whole family and he passed peacefully. They didn’t think he was in any pain,” Spero said by phone.
Betts shared lead guitar duties with Duane Allman in the original Allman Brothers Band to help give the group its distinctive sound and create a new genre – southern rock. Acts including Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kid Rock, Phish and Jason Isbell – among many others – were influenced by the Allmans’ music, which combined the blues, country, R&B and jazz with 60s rock.

Founded in 1969, the Allmans were a pioneering jam band, trampling the traditional notion of three-minute pop songs by performing lengthy compositions in concert and on record. The band was also notable as a biracial group from the deep south.

Duane Allman died in a motorcycle accident in 1971, and founding member Berry Oakley was killed in a motorcycle crash a year later. That left Betts and Allman’s younger brother Gregg as the band’s leaders, but they frequently clashed, and substance abuse caused further dysfunction. The band broke up at least twice before reforming, and has had more than a dozen lineups.

The Allman Brothers Band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and earned a lifetime achievement Grammy award in 2012. Betts left the group for good in 2000, and also played solo and with his own band Great Southern, which included his son, guitarist Duane Betts.

The group released a self-titled debut album in 1969. A year later came the album Idlewild South, highlighted by Betts’ instrumental composition In Memory of Elizabeth Reed, which soon became a concert staple.

The 1971 double album At Fillmore East, now considered among the greatest live albums of the classic rock era, was the Allmans’ commercial breakthrough and cemented their performing reputation by showcasing the unique guitar interplay between Allman and Betts.

The group also had two drummers – “Jaimoe” Johanson, who is Black, and Butch Trucks.
Duane Allman died four days after Fillmore was certified as a gold record, but the band carried on and crowds continued to grow. The 1973 album Brothers and Sisters rose to No 1 on the charts and featured Ramblin’ Man, with Betts singing the lead and bringing twang to the Top 40. The song reached No 2 on the singles charts and was kept out of the No 1 spot by Half Breed by Cher, who later married Gregg Allman.

The soaring sound of Betts’ guitar on Ramblin’ Man reverberated in neighborhood bars around the country for decades, and the song underscored his knack for melodic hooks. Ramblin’ Man was the Allmans’ only top 10 hit, but Betts’ catchy seven-and-a-half-minute instrumental composition Jessica, recorded in 1972, became an FM radio staple.

Betts also wrote or co-wrote some of the band’s other best-loved songs, including Blue Sky and Southbound. In later years the group remained a successful touring act with Betts and Warren Haynes on guitar. Gregg Allman and Butch Trucks died in 2017.
After leaving the Allmans for good, Betts continued to play with his own group and lived in the Bradenton area with his wife, Donna.

[Happy As Larry]

[misskit]

RIP Dickey Betts.


Makes me think back to the time I walked in the house and found Jaimoe sitting at the dining table with my then husband. I was introduced but didn’t ask why he was there. I just figured drugs.

[helge]

While Rodney King meant a conviction would probably have started a riot, the defence strategy was nonetheless to create doubt over the evidence, and a racist cop being in charge of it was exactly what they needed. Couple that with "The glove don't fit" and you've created all the doubt you need.

When Fuhrman was asked under oath if he ever planted evidence on a crime scene, he "took the fifth".

And it was over and should be.

Didn't exactly help that the leading detective, Tom something, drove around with blood samples taken from Simpson.

[harrybarracuda]

The American journalist Terry Anderson, who was abducted by Islamic militants in 1985 and spent six years as a hostage in Lebanon, died Saturday, his daughter, Sulome Anderson, announced in a statement. He was 76.




Anderson’s cause of death was linked to complications from a recent heart surgery, Sulome said.

“Terry was deeply committed to on-the-ground eyewitness reporting and demonstrated great bravery and resolve, both in his journalism and during his years held hostage,” said Julia Pace, senior vice president and executive editor of the AP, in a statement. “We are so appreciative of the sacrifices he and his family made as the result of his work.”

Anderson was the Associated Press’ Beirut bureau chief at the time of his abduction, which came on just minutes after he’d dropped his tennis partner—a former AP photographer—at his home after an early morning tennis match on March 16, 1985.

He wrote in a book that men, armed with pistols, flung his car door open and they ripped him out, dragging him into a Mercedes-Benz that sped away—the same car he recalled cut him off the day prior.

The kidnappers identified themselves as Shia Hezbollah militants of the Islamic Jihad Organization. Anderson said the men blindfolded him and kept him chained in over a dozen hideaways in and around Beirut, where he endured various beatings but was never outright tortured.

His abductors said they kidnapped him to retaliate against Israel’s use of American weapons in its strikes against targets in Lebanon, indicating it was merely the nationality of Anderson—an Ohio native—that made him a target.

Anderson was finally released in 1991, having spent a grueling 2,454 days as a hostage. He returned to the AP’s New York office a hero, famously wearing a sweatshirt that read, “Hello World” with a picture of him on it.

Once back stateside, the AP reported that he “led a peripatetic life,” traveling across the country to speak and teach journalism, but also to operate a blues bar, a Cajun restaurant, a gourmet restaurant, and even a horse ranch.

He carried out those ventures even as he publicly battled with post-traumatic stress disorder—something that was widely reported and played a factor in him being awarded millions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets after a federal court concluded it played a role in his capture.

That wealth didn’t last, however. Anderson made some bad investments and filed for bankruptcy in 2009, the AP reported, and he eventually slowed down. He retired as a professor from the University of Florida in 2015 and moved to live on a ranch in northern Virginia.

Just a week before his death, his daughter recalled that Anderson said he’d seen all he ever wanted to see in this lifetime.
“He never liked to be called a hero, but that’s what everyone persisted in calling him,” said Sulome Anderson. “I saw him a week ago and my partner asked him if he had anything on his bucket list, anything that he wanted to do. He said, ‘I’ve lived so much and I’ve done so much. I’m content.’”

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/terry-ande...010632909.html

[Happy As Larry]

Tributes paid to Frank Field, former Labour minister, who has died aged 81 | Frank Field | The Guardian

Tributespaid to Frank Field, former Labour minister, who has died aged 81

Tributesfrom across the political spectrum have been paid to the formerLabour minister and welfare campaigner FrankField,who has died at the age of 81.
LordField, who dedicated his career in Westminster to tackling socialissues, including child poverty and modern slavery, served as an MPfor 40 years.




Messagesof support came from across the political divide, with praise for “aman of often uncomfortable principle” with an “unwavering moralcompass”.
In2021, he revealedhe had been diagnosed with terminal cancer whenhis speech was read out in the House of Lords to support a change inthe law on assisted dying.


Fieldwas one of the longest-serving MPs in the Commons, only losing hisseat in the 2019 general election after forming his own party.



TonyBlair, under whose government Field served as welfare reformminister, said: “Frank had integrity, intelligence and deepcommitment to the causes he believed in. He was an independentthinker never constrained by conventional wisdom, but always pushingat the frontier of new ideas.
“Evenwhen we disagreed, I had the utmost respect for him as a colleagueand a character. Whether in his work on child poverty or in his timedevoted to the reform of our welfare system, he stood up and stoodout for the passion and insight he brought to any subject.”
Theformer home secretary Priti Patel wrote on X: “Frank was a kind andcompassionate man and a great parliamentarian. His unwavering moralcompass, commitment to working cross-party and unshakable principlesdefined him and will be greatly missed.”
ChrisBryant MP, the shadow minister for creative industries and digital,said Field was “a man of often uncomfortable principle [who] madeour politics better”.




TheConservative MP Tracey Crouch wrote: “I am genuinely devastated tohear that Frank Field has died. He was one of parliament’s nicestpeople. Kind, softly spoken & generous in praise. He has been vpoorly so there is comfort knowing he is now at peace but he will behugely missed.”
Theshadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, described Field as “a greatparliamentarian, crusader for social justice and source of wisecounsel”. He wrote: “What a blessing to have known him andbenefited from his advice and kindness, even as his illness grippedhim.”
Theformer justice secretary and Conservative MP Robert Buckland, wrote:“Very sad to hear of the death of Frank Field. He made a uniquecontribution to public life. His blend of compassion, thoughtfulness,decency, shot through with steel, will be greatly missed.”


Afamily statement, issued by his parliamentary office, said: “FrankField (Rt Hon Lord Field of Birkenhead, CH) has died at the age of 81following a period of illness.
“Frankwas director of the Child Poverty ActionGroup between 1969 and 1979, and the member of parliament forBirkenhead between 1979 and 2019.
“Duringthat time, he served as a minister for welfare reform and led theindependent review on poverty and life chances. He also chaired theCommons work and pensions select committee (and its predecessorcommittee on social services and social security) as well as thejoint committee on the draft modern slavery bill.


Fieldwas first elected as the Labour MPfor Birkenhead in Merseyside in 1979. He was made a cross-bench peerin 2020, where he became Lord Field of Birkenhead, and two yearslater was made a member of the order of the companions of honour.
Hecontinued to serve on the boards of Cool Earth, Feeding Britain andthe Frank Field Education Trust.
Fieldwas welfare reform minister in Tony Blair’s first government in1997 and went on to chair the work and pensions select committee.
Helater resigned the Labour whip over antisemitism and “nastiness”in the party under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership. He stood in the 2019general election for his newly formed Birkenhead Social Justice partybut lost the seat to Mick Whitley for Labour.
Fielddied on Tuesday in a London care home. He gave his support to theassisted dying bill in 2021, which would make it legal for terminallyill adults in England and Wales to seek support to end their lives.


Ina statement read by Molly Meacher, who had tabled the bill, Fieldsaid: “I’ve just spent a period in a hospice and I’m not wellenough to participate in today’s debate. If I had been, I wouldhave spoken strongly in favour of the second reading [of the bill].
“Ichanged my mind on assisted dying when an MP friend was dying ofcancer and wanted to die early, before the full horror effects setin, but was denied this opportunity.”
Hisfamily said in their statement: “Frank is survived by two brothers.He will be mourned by admirers across politics but above all he willbe greatly missed by those lucky enough to have enjoyed his laughterand friendship.”

[david44]

A true gentelman who worked tirelssessly for the underdog RIP

[harrybarracuda]

Duane Eddy, the twangy guitar man, 86.

[harrybarracuda]

Richard Tandy, ELO Keyboardist, 76

Richard Tandy dead: Electric Light Orchestra keyboardist dies at 76 - Mirror Online

[Looper]

Yosser Hughes RIP



Bernard Hill: Titanic and Lord of the Rings actor dies



Bernard Hill: Titanic and Lord of the Rings actor dies

[harrybarracuda]

Great actor. I might try The Responder, good reviews.

English actor Bernard Hill, known for his memorable scenes in the two blockbuster films, has died at age 79, his agent Lou Coulson announced on Sunday (5 May).

Hill joined the Lord of the Rings franchise in the second film of the trilogy, 2002’s “The Two Towers”. He played Théoden, King of Rohan, reprising the role in Return of the King, a film that won 11 Academy Awards.

One of the film’s most memorable scenes features Hill’s character getting his outmatched crew fired up for a battle they would likely lose. His rousing battle cry on horseback sends his troops thundering downhill toward the enemy and his own imminent death.

“Arise, arise, riders of Théoden!” Hill shouts. “Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered! A sword day, a red day, ere the sun risses! Ride now! Ride now! Ride! Ride for ruin and the world’s ending! Death! Death! Death!

In Titanic, Hill played Captain Edward Smith, one of the only characters based on a real person in the 1997 tragic romance starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. The film also won 11 Oscars.

As the damaged ship takes on water, Hill’s character silently retreats to the wheelhouse. With the cabin groaning under punishing waves, he takes his final breath, grabbing the wheel as water smashes the windows and floods the room.

Before becoming a well-known face in Hollywood, Hill made a name for himself in the 1982 British TV miniseries “Boys from the Blackstuff” about five unemployed men.

The role earned him a nomination at the 1983 British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards, and the show won the BAFTA for best drama series that year.

His death on Sunday coincided with the premiere of the second series of the BBC drama “The Responder”, in which Hill played the father of the show’s star, Martin Freeman.

“Bernard Hill blazed a trail across the screen, and his long-lasting career filled with iconic and remarkable roles is a testament to his incredible talent,” said Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama. “Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this sad time.”

https://www.euronews.com/culture/202...ngs-dies-at-79

[S Landreth]

• Dick Rutan, co-pilot of historic round-the-world flight, dies at 85

Burt Rutan was alarmed to see the plane he had designed was so loaded with fuel that the wing tips started dragging along the ground as it taxied down the runway. He grabbed the radio to warn the pilot, his older brother Dick Rutan. But Dick never heard the message.

Nine days and three minutes later, Dick, along with copilot Jeana Yeager, completed one of the greatest milestones in aviation history: the first round-the-world flight with no stops or refueling.

A decorated Vietnam War pilot, Dick Rutan died Friday evening at a hospital in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, with Burt and other loved ones by his side. He was 85. His friend Bill Whittle said he died on his own terms when he decided against enduring a second night on oxygen after suffering a severe lung infection.

“He played an airplane like someone plays a grand piano,” said Burt Rutan of his brother, who was often described as has having a velvet arm because of his smooth flying style.

Burt Rutan said he had always loved designing airplanes and became fascinated with the idea of a craft that could go clear around the world. His brother was equally passionate about flying. The project took six years.

There was plenty to worry Burt during testing of the light graphite plane, Voyager. There were mechanical failures, any one of which would have been disastrous over a distant ocean. When fully laden, the plane couldn’t handle turbulence. And then there was the question of how the pilots could endure such a long flight on so little sleep. But Burt said his brother had an optimism about him that made them all believe.

“Dick never doubted whether my design would actually make it around, with still some gas in the tank,” Burt Rutan said.

Voyager left from Edwards Air Force Base in California just after 8 a.m. on Dec. 14, 1986. Rutan said with all that fuel, the wings had only inches of clearance. Dick couldn’t see when they started dragging on the runway. But at the moment Burt called on the radio, copilot Yeager gave a speed report, drowning out the message.

“And then, the velvet arm really came in,” Burt Rutan said. “And he very slowly brought the stick back and the wings bent way up, some 30 feet at the wingtips, and it lifted off very smoothly.”

They arrived back to a hero’s welcome as thousands gathered to witness the landing. Both Rutan brothers and Yeager were each awarded a Presidential Citizens Medal by President Ronald Reagan, who described how a local official in Thailand at first “refused to believe some cockamamie story” about a plane flying around the world on a single tank of gas.

“We had the freedom to pursue a dream, and that’s important,” Dick Rutan said at the ceremony. “And we should never forget, and those that guard our freedoms, that we should hang on to them very tenaciously and be very careful about some do-gooder that thinks that our safety is more important than our freedom. Because freedom is awful difficult to obtain, and it’s even more difficult to regain it once it’s lost.”

Richard Glenn Rutan was born in Loma Linda, California. He joined the U.S. Air Force as a teenager and flew more than 300 combat missions during the Vietnam War.

He was part of an elite group that would loiter over enemy anti-aircraft positions for hours at a time. The missions had the call sign “Misty,” and Dick was known as “Misty Four-Zero.” Among the many awards Dick received were the Silver Star and the Purple Heart.

He survived having to eject twice from planes, once when his F-100 Super Sabre was hit by enemy fire over Vietnam, and a second time when he was stationed in England and the same type of plane had a mechanical failure. He retired from the Air Force with the rank of lieutenant colonel and went on to work as a test pilot.

Burt Rutan said his brother was always having adventures, like the time he got stranded at the North Pole for a couple of days when the Russian biplane he was in landed and then sank through the ice.

Dick Rutan set another record in 2005 when he flew about 10 miles (16 kilometers) in a rocket-powered plane launched from the ground in Mojave, California. It was also the first time U.S. mail had been carried by such a plane.

Greg Morris, the president of Scaled Composites, a company founded by Burt Rutan, said he first met Dick was when he was about seven and over the years always found him generous and welcoming.

“Bigger than life, in every sense of the word,” Morris said, listing off Rutan’s legacy in the Vietnam War, testing planes and on the Voyager flight. “Any one of those contributions would make a legend in aviation. All of them together, in one person, is just inconceivable.”

Whittle said Rutan had been courageous in his final hours at the hospital — sharp as a tack, calm and joking with them about what might come next after death.

“He’s the greatest pilot that’s ever lived,” Whittle said.

Dick Rutan is survived by his wife of 25 years Kris Rutan; daughters Holly Hogan and Jill Hoffman; and grandchildren Jack, Sean, Noelle and Haley.