The Facts of Life's Charlotte Rae Dead at 92
Charlotte Rae, the actor who portrayed Mrs. Garrett on Diff’rent Strokes and The Facts of Life, has died. She was 92 years old.
French Pop Star and Icon France Gall Has Died
Singer France Gall, who rose to fame in 1965 after winning the Eurovision Song Contest at 17, has died at age 70.
Edith Windsor, Marriage Equality Activist and LGBTQ Rights Pioneer, Dies at 88
Edith Windsor, an activist whose landmark Supreme Court case is largely responsible for dismantling 1996's Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and making gay marriage legal in America, died on Tuesday at the age of 88.
Henry Heimlich, Inventor of Antichoking Technique, Dies at 96
Dr. Henry J. Heimlich, the thoracic surgeon best known for developing and popularizing his lifesaving antichoking technique, the Heimlich maneuver, died at Cincinnati’s Christ Hospital on Saturday after suffering a heart attack in his home on Monday. Heimlich was 96.
Architect Zaha Hadid, First Woman to Win the Pritzker Prize, Dies at 65
Architect Zaha Hadid, the first woman to win the Pritzker Prize, the field’s highest honor, died Thursday in Miami. She was 65.
Natalie Cole, R&B Icon, Has Died
Natalie Cole, the singer whose career spanned four decades and who was the daughter of Nat King Cole, died Thursday in a Los Angeles hospital from congestive heart failure, TMZ reports. She was 65.
Ingrid Sischy, Publishing Visionary and Cultural Barometer, Has Died
Ingrid Sischy, the longtime art and culture critic who served as editor-in-chief of Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine during its very best days, died Friday at the age of 63. She had been battling breast cancer.
Bounty Hunter Shoots, Kills Country Star Randy Howard
Randy Howard was an early ‘80s country star who toured with the likes of Willie Nelson and released novelty numbers like “All American Redneck” (“He’s got a pick-up truck/he loves to fuck”) and “My Nose Don’t Work No More” which is, obviously, about snorting too much cocaine. Unfortunately, like all the best country…
Norman Bridwell, Creator of Clifford the Big Red Dog, Has Died
Norman Bridwell, the creator of Clifford, that big red dog who was as lovable as he was implausibe, has passed away at the age of 86. His books, which grace the shelves of any kindergarten and elementary school classroom will live on in his memory.
Report: L'Wren Scott Was Closing Her Business This Week
Cathy Horyn writes a moving tribute about her friend and recently deceased designer L'Wren Scott, which includes the tidbit that she was planning on closing her label soon, with an announcement this week.
Elmore Leonard Was Great To Women
Elmore Leonard passed away Tuesday morning at the age of 87 of a stroke, "at home surrounded by his loving family." If you're not familiar with this man with a particularly notable name, he was an author who wrote best-selling books about, as the AP put it in one particularly artful tweet, "schemers, clever conmen and…
Mary Thom, Titan of Feminism, Dies in a Motorcycle Accident
Mary Thom, a founder and editor of Ms. magazine, an author several times over, and one of the most articulate feminist voices in the latter half of the 20th century, was killed Friday when she crashed her motorcycle on a highway in Yonkers, New York. She was 68.
Awful New York Times Obit for Rocket Scientist Rhapsodizes About Her Beef Stroganoff
Yvonne Brill, a rocket scientist who in the 70s invented a propulsion system to help keep satellites from straying out of their orbits like distracted puppies, died on Wednesday at the age of 88. Brill's system became the industry standard for satellites, and her contribution to the rocket science racket proved so…
Broadway Star and Oscar-Winner Celeste Holm Dies at 95
Celeste Holm, best known for her role in the original 1943 production of Roger and Hammertein's Oklahoma!, as well as an Oscar-winning turn in Gentleman's Agreement, died on Sunday from a heart attack brought on by severe dehydration at the age of 95. Holm's acting career spanned more than 70 years, and though she…
Celebrated Feminist Poet Adrienne Rich Has Died
Adrienne Rich, one of the feminist movement's most powerful, influential, and accomplished writers, has passed away at the age of 82. The New York Times has a long obituary which is worth reading in full, but they summarized her impact nicely:
Obituaries Are the Best Place for Score-Settling
After 94 years of life, Josie Anello was probably looking forward to ascending to Heaven and spending eternity far away from her bickering children. So she must have been quite disappointed to pass the Pearly Gates and pick up the newspaper (yes, they have newspapers in Heaven) and find this gem of an obituary, which…
Whitney Houston Will Be Missed
NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 11: Outside a mournful Apollo Theatre in Manhattan on February 11, 2012. (Photo by Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images)
Details of Whitney's Death Emerge: Xanax and Alcohol May Be to Blame
If you don't already know, let me be the first to apologize for ruining what should have been a placid Sunday of Grammy-snarking — Whitney Houston, the diva that even Bret Easton Ellis's misogynistic, socially-numb serial killer held in high esteem, died last night at the heart-breaking age of 48. Houston's…
Penn State Football Coach Joe Paterno Dies at 85
Joe Paterno, former football coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions, died this morning shortly after 10 am ET in State College, PA after experiencing serious complications from his lung cancer treatment. Paterno's 46-season, two national championship legacy was tarnished in November with allegations that assistant…
Evelyn Lauder, Creator Of Pink Ribbon Campaign, Has Died
Evelyn Lauder, an impressive businesswoman and a fierce champion of breast cancer research, died yesterday at age 75 from ovarian cancer.
