The RIP Famous Person Thread

[harrybarracuda]

Alan Douglas, record producer who expanded Hendrix's legend, dies at 82
BY STEVE CHAWKINS
Los Angeles TimesJune 17, 2014



Alan Douglas, a record producer who worked with a panoply of rock and jazz legends but is most closely associated with the phenomenal posthumous success of Jimi Hendrix, has died at his home in Paris. He was 82.

Douglas, who had been ill in recent months, died June 7 after complications from a fall, his daughter Kirby Veevers said.

Douglas recorded luminaries such as Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus, Eric Dolphy and Muddy Waters, sometimes blending talents from disparate styles of music.

Heading United Artists' jazz division in his mid-20s before establishing his own company, Douglas branched out into exuberantly radical books, promoting works by Timothy Leary and Lenny Bruce.

Douglas also is seen by many as laying the groundwork for hip hop with his early 1970s recordings of the Harlem-based group the Last Poets.

The producer got to know Hendrix in the late 1960s. They lived near each other in New York's Greenwich Village and Hendrix bought stylish leather jackets at a shop owned by Stella Benabou, Douglas' second wife.

In interviews, Douglas said he hung around with Hendrix backstage at Woodstock during the musician's long wait to perform what became his signature piece: a piercing, haunting rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner."

Four years after the 27-year-old Hendrix died of a drug overdose in 1970, Douglas acquired the rights to produce music that the guitar player had never released. Drawing on more than 1,000 hours of tapes, he cultivated new audiences for Hendrix, who rose to a level of popularity he never knew during his abbreviated lifetime.

In 1992, record stores were selling an estimated 3 million Hendrix albums a year - "mostly to people who were not yet born when he was alive," according to the Independent, a British newspaper.

However, die-hard Hendrix fans blasted Douglas for tampering with greatness, occasionally bringing in his own studio musicians and over-dubbing Hendrix's original sidemen.

"When the rhythm tracks aren't working, you replace them. That's what Jimi would have done," the producer insisted, explaining the technique he used on an album called "Crash Landing."

"I did what I had to do and it sold 2 million copies."

When an interviewer for Bam, a San Francisco music magazine, said critics likened the practice to remixing the Bible, Douglas was unpersuaded.

"Well, look what Christianity did to the Old Testament, man," he said. "And now they're BOTH accepted."

After a complex legal dispute, Hendrix's father took control of his son's music in 1995.

Born Alan Douglas Rubenstein in Boston on July 20, 1931, Douglas grew up in Chelsea, Mass., and attended Colby College in Waterville, Maine, on a football scholarship. He and his brother Jerry worked at the family mattress business before plunging into entertainment. Jerry Douglas became an actor as Alan worked his way into the New York jazz scene.

"He had an amazing ear," his daughter Kirby said, "and he was a very avant-garde guy. He could see trends before they became trends."

When she was in fourth grade, her father sent Kirby two of his records to represent his occupation in a class career day. One started with Lenny Bruce barking out obscenities and the other was a racially charged rant from the Last Poets.

"I got sent directly to the principal's office," she recalled with a laugh.

In 2012, Douglas and two co-authors pieced together Hendrix's diaries and notes for an account of his life called "Starting From Zero." A documentary is in the works.

Douglas' first three marriages ended in divorce.

In addition to his daughter Kirby and brother Jerry, Douglas' survivors include his wife, Lucia Solazzi Douglas Rubenstein; daughter Solo Douglas; three grandsons; and sister Beverly Shuman.

[harrybarracuda]

Daniel Keyes, 'Flowers for Algernon' Author, Dies at 86
10:01 PM PDT 6/17/2014 by THR Staff



Cliff Robertson in 1968's "Charlie"

Daniel Keyes, the author whose novel Flowers for Algernon was turned into an Oscar-winning film, died Sunday at the age of 86. He died from complications of pneumonia, his daughter Leslie told The New York Times.

Keyes published the novella Flowers for Algernon in 1959. He turned the story, which centers on a low-IQ man who becomes a genius, into a novel in 1966. It tied for the Nebula Awards' novel of the year and went on to sell 5 million copies.

The film adaptation, Charly, earned star Cliff Robertson a best actor Oscar in 1968.

Keyes was born Aug. 9, 1927, in Brooklyn, New York. His other works include the 1981 novel The Minds of Billy Milligan, about a criminal with multiple personalities, and the 1999 memoir Algernon, Charlie and I.

He is survived by his daughters, Leslie and Hillary Keyes, as well as a sister, Gail Marcus.

[harrybarracuda]

Saving All My Love for You songwriter Gerry Goffin dies at 75

GERRY GOFFIN, who famously penned the Aretha Franklin track (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman, has died.



Gerry co-wrote some of the biggest hit songs of the 1960s with his former wife and longtime collaborator Carole King - including The Loco-Motion and Up on the Roof.

Carole King announced her ex-husband's death on Facebook, explaining he was her "first love".

"He had a profound impact on my life and the rest of the world... His words expressed what so many people were feeling but didn't know how to say."

Goffin met and married King in 1958 while attending Queens College; The couple were later hired by pop music producer Don Kirshner to write songs for his song publishing firm, Aldon Music.

The couple divorced in 1968 but they remained friends and were inducted together into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.

In addition to the hits he wrote with King, Goffin teamed up with Michael Masser - the pair co-wrote Saving All My Love for You, a chart-topper for Whitney Houston.

[Latindancer]

Suddenly I feel very old

Carole King is now 72 !

[harrybarracuda]

I wonder how many lives she saved?



Stephanie Kwolek, a DuPont chemist who invented the synthetic fibers used in Kevlar body armor, has died at the age of 90, her colleagues said Friday.

A fellow chemist told The Associated Press that Kwolek died Wednesday at a Wilmington, Del., hospital following a brief illness. Kwolek was a groundbreaking scientist and mentor to other women in the field. The astonishingly strong fibers she invented are used around the world in bulletproof body armor.

She earned a degree in chemistry from a women's college at what is now Carnegie Mellon University. After she graduated in 1946, she thought about going to medical school, according to the American Chemical Society, but instead applied for a job as a chemist with the DuPont company.

"She found an opportunity at DuPont because many men were in the military at the time," reports the Wilmington News Journal. Kwolek continued to flourish there long after World War II ended, doing extensive work on polymers.

Her most extraordinary invention came in 1965. She was part of a team trying to create a stronger synthetic fiber, and according to DuPont, the scientists involved were struggling. Then Kwolek "broke the deadlock," DuPont says, "by devising a liquid crystal solution that could be cold-spun."

The watery substance at first looked like a mistake. The American Chemical Society says: "Most researchers would have rejected the solution because it was fluid and cloudy rather than viscous and clear. But Kwolek took a chance and spun the solution into fibers more strong and stiff than had ever been created."

"I never in a thousand years expected that little liquid crystal to develop into what it did," Kwolek told the News Journal in 2007.

What it developed into was Kevlar, a material in body armor that has saved thousands of lives. The substance is also used in tires, helmets, kayaks and spacecraft — not to mention extreme sports equipment.

Kevlar is long-lived, lightweight and five times stronger than steel, and it can bend without shattering, reports the News Journal. NPR's Nell Greenfieldboyce visited a Kevlar factory in 2005 and found that Kevlar has another extraordinary trait. "I wasn't prepared for how surprisingly beautiful it is," she said. "It looks like these beautiful bobbins of just thousands of gold threads. ... It's like you're going to make a tapestry."

Kwolek headed polymer research at DuPont's Pioneering Lab until her retirement in 1989, according to the American Chemical Society. She won the National Medal of Technology and the Perkin Medal for her achievements and was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1994.

[Mr Lick]

A slightly more flattering pic of Gerry Goffin and Carole in 1959

[snakeeyes]

Guildford Four's Gerry Conlon Dies, Aged 60


Mr Conlon with a letter of apology from former PM Tony Blair

Gerry Conlon, one of the so-called Guildford Four who were wrongly convicted over an IRA pub bombing in 1974, has died aged 60.

He was jailed for life the following year - along with Paul Hill, Carole Richardson and Paddy Armstrong - for the attack that killed five people and wounded 65 others.

Mr Conlon and the rest of the Guildford Four served 14 years of a life sentence before their convictions were overturned in 1989.

He was later played by Daniel Day-Lewis in the film In The Name Of The Father.

In a statement his family said: "This morning we lost our Gerry.

"He brought life, love, intelligence, wit and strength to our family through its darkest hours.

"He helped us to survive what we were not meant to survive.

We recognise that what he achieved by fighting for justice for us had a far, far greater importance - it forced the world's closed eyes to be opened to injustice... we believe it changed the course of history.

"We thank him for his life and we thank all his many friends for their love."

Mr Conlon died in his home in the Falls Road area of Belfast after a lengthy illness.

Tributes have beeen paid by Alex Attwood, SDLP Stormont Assembly member for the area, and Sinn Fein preident Gerry Adams.

"He'd given an awful lot but yet had so much more to give," Mr Attwood said.

"What he learned from his time in prison and campaign for release was the importance of not only raging against his own injustice but fighting for those who had also suffered miscarriages of justice."

Mr Adams said: "Gerry and his father Giuseppe were two of the most infamous examples of miscarriages of justice by the British political and judicial system.

"To his family and friends I want to extend my sincere condolences."

Mr Conlon's father Giuseppe, was jailed as part of a discredited investigation into an alleged bomb making family - the Maguire Seven - and died in prison.

His mother Sarah, a tireless campaigner for their freedom, died in 2008 aged 82.

In 2009 Mr Conlon wrote about the personal and emotional battles he suffered as a result of his incarceration and fight for freedom.

He suffered two breakdowns, attempted suicide and became addicted to drugs and alcohol following his release.

"The ordeal has never left me," he said.


Guildford Four's Gerry Conlon Dies, Aged 60

[luckyjim]

It would be interesting to know who, outside his immediate family and political proteges who cares. I imagine there'll be media/political moves to be made on the back of his death.
Bound to be a buck to be made there some where.

[Mr Lick]

Blackadder 'Nursie' actress Patsy Byrne dies aged 80



Patsy Byrne (right) playing Nursie, beside Miranda Richardson as Elizabeth I

British actress Patsy Byrne, best known for her role as Nursie in Blackadder II, has died aged 80.

She died on Tuesday at Denville Hall, a retirement home for actors, in Hillingdon, north-west London.

The Kent-born actress appeared in a number of TV and theatre roles in the early stages of her career.

However, she was best known for part in the 1986 BBC comedy series Blackadder II where she played Nursie - a kind but dim-witted nursemaid to Elizabeth I.


Byrne also had roles in the ITV sitcom Watching and the classic police series Z Cars. She also made appearances in I, Claudius, Holby City and played Mrs Nubbles in the BBC's 1979 adaption of The Old Curiosity Shop.



Byrne's other roles included Z Cars




She also appeared opposite Rex Harrison in the BBC's 1971 adaptation of Chekov's play Platonov

[billy the kid]

who, outside his immediate family and political proteges who cares.

RIP Gerry Conlon. Not only the Guildford 4 but the Birmingham 6 had their lives destroyed by the evil filth they call british justice.

[Mr Lick]

What happened to the Renault 5?

[mingmong]

me Dad had a Reno 8!

[rebbu]

who, outside his immediate family and political proteges who cares.

RIP Gerry Conlon. Not only the Guildford 4 but the Birmingham 6 had their lives destroyed by the evil filth they call british justice.

RIP Gerry Conlon.

[KEVIN2008]

An innocent man and a life devastated by British injustice and for a heinous crime committed by violent sadistic Irish republicans,who also let Gerry rot in prison.

[Gerbil]

Nasty Nigel has carked it.

[pseudolus]

Nasty Nigel has carked it.

Lythgoe? Farage? Mansell?

[Gerbil]

Nasty Nigel has carked it.

Lythgoe? Farage? Mansell?

"Starting the news section of the column with the death of a porn star is a first and is perhaps an indicator of just how well-known this farang porn star was in the region. Naughty Nigel, or Notorious Nigel as he preferred to be called, passed away on Monday this past week in Bangkok. Nigel featured in sex clips - not full blown movies - and had unprotected sex with hundreds of girls and many transsexuals too. Needless to say, many rumours circulated about the medical condition Nigel was afflicted with, but it was malignant melanoma, or in layman's terms, skin cancer which gave him a red card. Nigel had sought alternative treatment but it was unsuccessful and he finally checked out this past Monday. The infamous Englishman has been in and out of Bangkok since the '90s and became one of the most recognisable farangs in South-East Asia as the farang porn star who featured in hundreds of clips with working girls from across South-East Asia. There was a time when Nigel was all over the Internet and he was frequently seen around Bangkok's bar areas. He moved around the region, making porn movies in Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia and quite possibly elsewhere. On the forums of the day posters would often comment on the girls he did the dirty with, some getting some warped pleasure from saying that they had shared some of the girls Nigel had bedded. As he became better known, Nigel would find himself unwelcome in many Nana Plaza bars. Managers put the word out to door security to keep him out while mamasans were instructed to tell the girls to steer clear of him. I hadn't spotted him around the traps for several years, but occasionally I would hear reports that he was seen here or there. For some time he was said to live in Soi Sribumphen where he was often seen, a neighbourhood known for cheap accommodation, junkies and street walkers. Nigel lived on the fringes of society, was a drug dealer for a period and at one time was involved in transnational credit card fraud. Several years ago he was stabbed in the slums of Klong Toey, a huge scar later visible on his stomach. He had a business card that simply read: Notorious Nigel, listed his phone number and a last line that read: Fuck Off Man U. Like him or loathe him, Naughty Nigel was a Bangkok legend."

[billy the kid]

,who also let Gerry rot in prison.

the police knew of their innocence when the Balcomb crew were arrested.
they gave the inside information showing where bombs were placed
but the authorities refused to act on it.

[Latindancer]

Notorious Nigel wasn't that dude from XHampster, was he ? The one who screwed all those Filipinas, unprotected ?

[xanax]

. Like him or loathe him, Naughty Nigel was a Bangkok legend."

Really, does being a low life criminal, drug dealer, fraudster and seedy porn 'actor' make this nobody a 'legend'? notorious certainly. It was strongly rumoured at one time he had HIV and that would not be surprising if true. Thailand is well shot of him.

[FloridaBorn]

Notorious Nigel wasn't that dude from XHampster, was he ? The one who screwed all those Filipinas, unprotected ?

I'm thinking not just Filipinas there is/was one guy doing a lot of Thai bar girls and usually a web site posted across the vid but I can't remember the title it's been so long ago..

[Latindancer]

Asianpussypatrol ? He did quite a few Thai girls too.....unprotected. Mad as a hatter.

I saw a few and realized it was the same guy....he was pink-skinned, a little hairy, with long, almost feminine fingers.

[david44]

An innocent man and a life devastated by British injustice and for a heinous crime committed by violent sadistic Irish republicans,who also let Gerry rot in prison.

As stakeknife,enniskilling shewn there were egregious acts from all sides,greysteel carlingford lock,Lamon the whatabboutery is eternal,thanks perhaps not to god but exhaustion and the much maligned Americans and Canadians things are not perfect but better.

[FloridaBorn]

Asianpussypatrol ? He did quite a few Thai girls too.....unprotected. Mad as a hatter.

I saw a few and realized it was the same guy....he was pink-skinned, a little hairy, with long, almost feminine fingers.

Found it, Asian street meat... Not these dudes, skinny and trampy looking, actually there is a couple of them, either could be a Nigel as I picture one.. But their vids are real trash..

[harrybarracuda]

Eli Wallach, a veteran stage and screen star of classic westerns such as “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly,” died on Tuesday at the age of 98.
The Brooklyn-born actor was known for his versatility in roles that ranged from a Mexican bandit in “The Magnificent Seven” to a Mafia don in “The Godfather: Part III.”
His death was confirmed by his daughter, according to The New York Times.
Wallach won a Tony Award in 1951 for his performance in Tennessee Williams’ “The Rose Tattoo.”
He played Tuco opposite Clint Eastwood’s “Blondie” in the 1966 spaghetti western “The Good The Bad and the Ugly,” and also starred with Yul Brynner in the John Sturges film “The Magnificent Seven.”
“As an actor, I’ve played more bandits, thieves, warlords, molesters and mafioso that you could shake a stick at,” Wallach said in November 2010.