J.D. Rainbolt prepares for drill in the mid-1960s.
Today would have been J. D. Rainbolt’s 101st birthday. Happy birthday, Dad. I miss you.
The article below originally ran in the Lewisville Leader in October, 1998 about finding lost friends. Some of the references are dated. Remember, in 1998 there was a marginal internet. Nobody had ever heard of Google. In those days, my preferred search engine was ‘Ask Jeeves.”
Comrades in Arms
I’m a Baby Boomer; a daughter of the Greatest Generation. Growing up, I listened transfixed as my father told me of his adventures as a communications scout in the World War II. The stories were so real I could feel the snowy winters of France, I could see Generals Eisenhower, Bradley and Patton as they all met at headquarters. I could smell the sickly stench of boxcars burning as Dad’s jeep approached the concentration camp near Landsberg, Germany. Dad and his driver were the first people to find the prison after the Germans had fled. The gates had been broken open and starving Jewish women greeted their American liberators with gifts of cookies.
In many of his tales, he spoke of his young driver, Clifford Linley.
A young and very trim J.D. Rainbolt on the right.
“I trained him,” Dad said of his driver. “I raised him from a private. He drove for me for over a year.”
In a way, I felt like I knew Linley even though I had never met actually met him. He got Dad to meetings on time. They drank together. They were comrades in arms,
Recently, when my dad spoke of the war, he mentioned that he never knew what happened to his driver after Dad assumed a new command in May, 1945. Wistfully, he said he wished he could get in touch with Linley.
I made a mental note and promised myself that someday I would try to track Linley down. A number of times I would watch videos of Dad telling his stories and I would remember the promise to myself. Soon, I’ll do it soon.
Only a day after I had last viewed the video, my editor handed me the assignment to write about people who have tracked down lost loved ones. I began interviewing Mary Pastor, William Tittle and Joyce Austin and became so inspired, I knew the time had finally come to fulfill my promise.
The Search for Linley
Mom thought his name was “Clifton Lindley.” And after an hour searching the internet, I had gotten nowhere. Surprising Dad was no longer an option if I wanted to achieve any degree of success. Although I didn’t want to get his hope up, I confessed my plan to Dad up and got a little more information. I had misspelled the last name and learned that he came from Alabama. Back to the world-wide web. This time I found a host of Linleys listed in his native state. Although there weren’t any Clif or Cliftons listed, I picked out a man whose first name started with C. Why? Why not?
I explained to the lady at the other end that I was looking for one of my Dad’s war buddies. She said she didn’t know him and hung up on me. I have a feeling she must have gotten other strange calls prior to mine. I tried another C. Linley.
This one knew Clifford Linley; he was Linley’s second cousin. I couldn’t believe it. Yes, his cousin served in Europe during the war, in a motor pool. He lives in Georgia. And even though this man didn’t know how to reach him directly, he gave me the phone number for Linley’s sister. She was delighted to hear from me; after all, she heard many of the same stories. She gave me his address and number and before I could dial the it, she had phoned him to introduce me.
Linley found
Lt. Col. Linley greeted my call with true southern hospitality. I told him who I was and about some of the memories my dad had shared. He sounded almost speechless. A Rainbolt out of the blue, literally. He said also had fond memories of their experiences. Linley only lives a few hours away from my in-laws in Georgia and he invited me to come see him next time I visit them. I can’t wait to hear the same stories I heard while sitting at Dad’s feet, this time from the point of view of an 18 year old driver turned Lieutenant Colonel rather than a 25 year old lieutenant.
I told him how he could reach Col. Rainbolt.
Hanging up the receiver I could barely contain my excitement. I must have felt the same way Santa Claus feels when he leaves a kid’s first bicycle.
I could only imagine the surprise Dad would finally experience when he answers the phone and hears his old war buddy exclaim, “This is Lt. Col. Clifford Linley.” I wished I could be there to hear the excitement in their voices as they recall familiar tales and share new ones.
About 20 minutes later, Dad called. “I can’t believe it,” he said. “I just can’t believe it!” he kept repeating. “You just don’t know what this means to me.”
I think I did.
He told me that every night when the commercial ran on television about finding lost persons, he toyed with the idea of calling them to find Linley. It was something he, too, would do “someday.”
But, in all things that matter most to us, we must make the decision that someday is today. I never dreamed that a simple assignment, would make someday—now.
Young Clif Linley.
As I watch the lost loved one commercial on television, I can’t help but smile. Tonight, Dad feels a little more complete and I’ve been able to give him a priceless gift thanks to an ordinary assignment. And also thanks to God for teaching this chronic procrastinator that today is as close as I’m going to get to “someday.”
A final note
Sadly the two old soldiers never got their earthly reunion. Col. Linley invited me to visit him on my next trip to Georgia. Unfortunately, by the time our November visit came around, he was not well enough to see visitors. I learned that he passed away not long afterward. Dad died in February 2014. After Dad’s passing I envisioned the two old warriors sitting in one of Heaven’s watering holes trading stories.
Is there anyone who you’d like to contact? Tell me about it in the comments below.
About Dusty Rainbolt
Author Dusty Rainbolt is an award-winning veterinary journalist according to her answering machine. She is an associate certified cat behavior consultant and member of International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, as well as past president of the Cat Writers’ Association. Her books, columns, reviews and articles have been honored with more than 50 writing awards including three-time recipient of Friskies Writer of the Year. Her just-released award-winning cat behavior book, Cat Scene Investigator: Solve Your Cat’s Litter Box Mystery, is the consummate guide for dealing with a cat who sidesteps his/her appointed toilet. CSI, which provides science-based methods for determining the medical or behavioral causes of feline inappropriate elimination, teaches cat parents to view their cat’s litter box avoidance through the eyes of a detective to determine the cause and, ultimately, the remedy.
Last week I listed the celebrities, scientists and cool people who left behind their earthly shell in 2017. We lost not only human celebrities, we also said goodbye to numerous animal superstars. From wrong-way snails to an influential feline politician, here’s the list of 2017 notable animal deaths.
January
Jan 6 Tilikum (December 1981 – January 6, 2017), nicknamed Tilly, was a 35-year-old captive orca, literally a killer whale. He was involved in the deaths of three people: a trainer at the now-defunct Sealand of the Pacific, a man trespassing in his tank at SeaWorld Orlando, and a SeaWorld Orlando trainer. Tilikum died from a bacterial infection.
Jan 10. AJ. Oldest aardvark in the United States has passed away at the Philadelphia Zoo. The 28-year-old male aardvark died from age-related heart failure.
Jan 12 Tuna, percussionist for the Rock-Cats of the Amazing Acro-Cats. A rescue kitty, she joined the group in 2011. She lost her battle with oral cancer.
The world lost Tuna, the amazing feline percussionist to oral cancer
Jan 17. Colo, the oldest living gorilla in captivity. (December 22, 1956 – January 17, 2017) A western gorilla, she was also known as the first gorilla to be born in captivity anywhere in the world. She celebrated her 60th birthday less than a month before her death. The Columbus Zoo reported that Colo died in her sleep.
February
Feb 9. Packy, a 54-year old Asian elephant. (April 14, 1962 – February 9, 2017) He was the first elephant born in the Western Hemisphere in 44 years. At the time of his death, he was the oldest male Asian elephant in North America. Packy was also one of the tallest elephants in the U.S., with a shoulder height of 10 feet 6 inches and overall height of more than 12 feet. Packy was euthanized after being diagnosed with drug-resistant tuberculosis.
Feb 10. Royal Delta. The 9-year old racehorse died from foaling complications.
Feb 13. Lucky Pulpit. The 16-year old racehorse died of a heart attack.
Feb 19. Charismatic. This 20-year-old 1999 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner died of pelvic hemorrhage.
Feb 21. Long John. (2010 – February 21, 2017) The 6-year old Professional Bull Riders 2015 World Champion Bull became ill and died before surgery could be performed. Long John came in 50th in Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Animals of 2016.
Feb 26 Cabral (2001 – 2017), also known as “JP”, was a gold medalist dressage horse. He was also a Paralympic gold winner (2012). Cabral was 16 when he was put down after contracting a bacterial infection.
March
Mar 1 Kiki. Rainbolt Test Kitty and cover girl. This cutie appeared in Whole Cat Journal, Catnip and in numerous brochures and product labels. Kiki was euthanized March 1 likely from cancer at the age of 12. Originally Kiki was diagnosed with pancreatitis.
Kiki appeared in brochures and on product labels. Photo by Weems S. Hutto.
Mar 5. Vince. (22 September 2012 – 5 March 2017) 4-year-old Dutch-born southern white rhinoceros was shot by poachers inside a zoo near Paris, France.
April
April 14. Shepherd Hills Tested. (2008 – April 14, 2017) was the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bucking bull of the 2013. In 84 times out of the chute only four cowboys had qualified rides. He died from injuries sustained from an accident.
May 17. Unusual Heat. The 27-year-old American racehorse was euthanized.
May
May 22. Devil His Due was a 28-year-old American racehorse who was euthanized.
May 30 Sam. (7-26-2000 – 5-30-2017) Bottle baby turned acclaimed super model, feline/feline and feline/canine ambassador and all round sweet boy was euthanized one week before his 18th birthday as a result of likely lymphoma. This Rainbolt Test Kitty welcomed every new pet regardless of species by curling up with them on their first night.
Sam loved everyone and he was an amazing model
June
June 7. Holy Bull. 26-year-old Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1994 American Horse of the Year was euthanized.
June 27. Better Talk Now. 18-year-old racehorse, winner of the 2004 Breeders’ Cup Turf was euthanized.
June 27. Toytown was a 12-year-old British event horse.
July
July 18. Racehorse, Ben’s Cat, 11, was euthanized.
July 20. Pudsey. (28 December 2005 – 20 July 2017) A Border Collie-mix who won Britain’s Got Talent and appeared in Pudsey: The Movie and Mr. Stink died of blood cancer at 11.
July 20. Xanda. The 6-year-old a son of Cecil the Lion (the beloved black-maned lion shot by hunters in 2016) was legally shot by trophy hunters in Zimbabwe.
July 21. Mayor Stubbs (1997 – 2017) the cat has been the honorary mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska since 1997. A political Independent, Stubbs was elected as a write-in candidate in 1997 because of an absence of human candidates. Like many in office, Stubbs had no real legislative power, which is probably why he always did well in the polls. His career had its ups and downs. He was near-fatally wounded by a neighborhood dog in 2013. Although it was touch and go, Stubbs recovered, but was worse for the wear. Before dabbling in politics, the mayor of Talkeetna was the manager of the town’s Nagley’s Store and West Rib Pub & Grill. The Mayor passed in his sleep from natural causes on July 21 at the age of 20 years and 3 months.
Despite his office, Stubbs couldn’t resist an occasional nip (water with catnip)
July 23. Snooty. (July 21, 1948 – July 23, 2017) The 69-year-old manatee mascot of Manatee County, Florida, and the first recorded manatee born in captivity, drowned.
July 27. Cena N641 was a 10-year old black Labrador retriever bomb detection dog in the US Marine Corps who served three tours of duty in Afghanistan. After leaving the service he became a PTSD therapy dog for one of his Afghanistan handlers. He was euthanized after losing his battle with bone cancer.
August
Aug 9 Shady. This former stray was adopted as a kitten by a woman through Animal Allies of Texas. The woman declawed Shady, then adopted two rambunctious male cats (not declawed) who tormented her mercilessly. At the age of 4 she was returned to the organization declawed and weighing in at 22 pounds. She took up residence with Dusty and Weems and became Weems’ “good buddy.” She participated in a Hills Metabolic weight loss program and lost 6 pounds. Earlier this year Dusty discovered a tumor on her throat diagnosed as hemangiosarcoma. The mass was removed but returned. Shady lost her battle with hemangiosarcoma at the age of 9.
At 4, Shady finally went to a family who loved her
Aug 7. Chantek, a male hybrid Sumatran/Bornean orangutan who learned American Sign Language died of heart disease at 39.
Aug 15. Kasatka. (1976 – August 15, 2017) Kasatka was an orca who lived at SeaWorld San Diego. She was euthanized after suffering untreatable pneumonia at 40.
September
Sept 13. Basi. (1980 – 13 September 2017) The world’s oldest living panda died in China of cirrhosis and renal failure at 37.
Sept 15. Wiarton Willie III. Was a prognosticating 13-year-old albino Canadian groundhog from Wiarton in Ontario who predicted the time of spring’s arrival every February 2, on Groundhog Day. Cause of death is unknown.
Sept 30 BK. This bottle baby came from Lewisville Animal Services with his three sibling at two weeks. Sick as a dog, BK suffered eye damage as a result of feline herpesvirus. Because of his health issues he became permanent Rainbolt Test Kitty. Despite being nearly blind, BK bullied even the largest feline housemate; 15-pound cats cowed in his presence. BK stood for Blind Kitty, Black Kitty, Bully Kitty, Boy Kitty, Baby Kitty. He was euthanized at the age of 12 because of an inoperable mass in his belly.
Despite his eye issues BK was a sweet boy to humans, but he terrified the other cats
October
Oct 11. Jeremy was 2-year-old left-coiled sinistral garden snail with a rare genetic mutation that caused his shell to coil counterclockwise. He was discovered in southwest London. Cause of death is unknown.
Oct 12. Grape-kun. (April 16, 1996 – October 12, 2017) was a Humboldt penguin at Tobu Zoo located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan, who had fallen in love with a cutout of a character from Anime. He died at the age of 20, which officials said was the end of the Humboldt penguin lifespan.
Grape-kun was in love with a cardboard figure of Anime character Hululu
Oct 14. Inside Information, a 26-year-old American racehorse.
November
Nov 7. Paddles. (2016 – 7 November 2017) The First Cat of New Zealand, a ginger and white polydactyl cat, owned by New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, was hit by a car.
Nov 12. Two cats listed in Guinness World Records died of smoke inhalation when their Farmington Hills, Michigan (near Detroit) home caught fire. Arcturus and Cygnus were reported missing and their bodies were found a month later in the basement. The owner tried to locate them during the blaze but emergency personnel forced him to vacate. Arcturus was the world’s tallest domestic cat, measuring at about 19 inches, and Cygnus was the domestic cat with the world’s longest tail, at more than 17 inches.
Nov 14. Little Mama (born between 1937 and 1942, died on November 14, 2017), an African-born chimpanzee was the oldest chimp on record. She died of kidney failure. Her age was estimated to be 79.
Nov 16. Gary the Goat. A comedic performing goat in Australia. Gary the Goat was euthanized at the age of 6 after being diagnosed with bleeding from an acute heart tumor. The body of Gary the Goat was taxidermied.
December
Dec 28 Bettie Bee. Janus (two-faced) kitten died of pneumonia when she was only 18 days old.
Little Bettie Bee only made it 18 days
Who did I leave off? Tell me in the comments below.
About Dusty Rainbolt
Author Dusty Rainbolt is an award-winning veterinary journalist according to her answering machine. She is an associate certified cat behavior consultant and member of International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, as well as past president of the Cat Writers’ Association. Her books, columns, reviews and articles have been honored with more than 50 writing awards including three-time recipient of Friskies Writer of the Year. Her just-released award-winning cat behavior book, Cat Scene Investigator: Solve Your Cat’s Litter Box Mystery, is the consummate guide for dealing with a cat who sidesteps his/her appointed toilet. CSI, which provides science-based methods for determining the medical or behavioral causes of feline inappropriate elimination, teaches cat parents to view their cat’s litter box avoidance through the eyes of a detective to determine the cause and, ultimately, the remedy.
Glen Campbell at the Musicians Hall of Fame Museum with his iconic Ovation Guitar.
The New Year has overtaken us yet again. But before we leave last year in the rear view mirror, I’d like to take a few minutes to say goodbye to important folks we lost. Here’s my 2017 celebrity deaths list. There were some real heart-breakers.
Glen Campbell passed away Aug 8. It was like losing a friend. I had the honor of meeting Glen twice—once in 1973 when I was 18 and again in my mid-20s. The first time, my dad took my friend Sharon Fest (Sinkey) and me to a concert at Hemisfair Arena. I was as giddy as, well, a teenage girl.
Glen was on his – game that night and all too soon the intermission arrived. Scanning the arena, I recognized Glen’s parents, Wes and Carrie, in the audience. Dad gave us permission to say hi to the senior Campbells. They were sweet and kind. After a few minutes, I screwed up my courage and asked Wes if he would get my program book autographed. I was shocked by his answer. “No, honey. If you want that book signed, you’re going to have to do it yourself.”
What did that mean? All of a sudden, he smiled at his wife, stood up and pointed to the stairs. I almost passed out. Mr. Campbell took us backstage past the security guards right up to Glen himself. Wes smiled at his son, and Glen smiled back. “There ya go,” he told us. Then he was gone. I was so shocked, I don’t remember thanking him. I hope I did!
Glen in the flesh
Glen was very kind. He autographed the book, joked with us and then posed for a couple of photos. I even got one of me kissing him on the cheek. Woohoo. (I wish I knew what happened to that picture.) Sharon even got to spend a few minutes with Jerry Reed.
Years later I had moved to Dallas with my Future Ex who worked as an engineer at radio station KLIF. We got the word that Glen would be at the studio for a few minutes while promoting his latest album. When Glen arrived, I was waiting. Once again Glen was kind and gracious. Nervously I said the first thing that popped into my head. “This is my second time meeting you.” He could have blown me off, but Glen laughed and said, “For me too.”
Not only was he nice, I loved him because he had a beautiful voice and insane guitar skills. Rest in peace, Glen. Thanks for the memories.
Glen Campbell poses with Dusty Rainbolt in the mid-1970s at the KLIF studio in Dallas.
Other 2017 Celebrity Deaths
My upcoming blog will acknowledge the notable animal lost in 2017. Here’s a list of notable people we’ve said goodbye to in 2017:
JANUARY
Jan 8 Pioneer Cabin Tree (also known as The Tunnel Tree) was an American giant sequoia in Calaveras Big Trees State Park, California. It was estimated to have been more than 1,000 years old. It measured 33 feet in diameter, but its age and height were unknown. The tree fell and shattered during a storm on January 8, 2017.
Jan 12 Tommy Allsup, guitarist best known for missing the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper on “The Day the Music Died,” died Jan. 12 at 85.
Jan 13 Dick Gautier, who played the robot Hymie on Get Smart died after a long illness at 85.
Jan 16. Eugene Cernan, an astronaut on both the Apollo 10 and Apollo 17 mission died at the age of 82. He was the last person to walk on the moon. I could find no cause of death.
Jan 19. Miguel Ferrer, actor in Twin Peaks, NCIS: Los Angeles and RoboCop, died of cancer at age 61.
Jan 20. Ronald “Bingo” Mundy. The vocalist best known for doo-wop hit “Blue Moon,” died of pneumonia at 76.
Jan 25. Sir John Hurt. (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) British actor known for Alien, The Elephant Man, 1984 and Harry Potter died of pancreatic cancer at 77.
Jan 25. Mary Tyler Moore. The iconic actress best known for her roles on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show and Ordinary People. The seven-time Emmy winner died at the age of 80 of cardiopulmonary arrest. Mary Tyler Moore made me want to be a reporter.
Jan 26. Mike Connors. Best known for playing TV’s Mannix, passed away at the age of 91 from leukemia.
Jan 26. Barbara Hale. American actress who played Della Street on Perry Mason and Sarah Demarest in Airport died of complications from COPD at 94.
Jan 28. Richard Portman was the Oscar-winning sound mixer on Star Wars, The Godfather and The Deer Hunter. He died at the age of 83 from complications from a fall.
Jan 31. Rob Stewart (December 28, 1979 – c. January 31, 2017) a Canadian filmmaker known for the movie Sharkwater, drowned a 37.
FEBRUARY
Feb 5. Betty Collette (December 5, 1930 – February 5, 2017). An American veterinary pathologist. She was the only African-American pathology researcher at Georgetown University School of Medicine in the 1950s. Her research focused on hypertension in animals. She passed away at the age of 86.
Feb 7. Richard Hatch. American actor played Starbuck in the original Battlestar Galactica. He also appeared in The Streets of San Francisco and All My Children. He died of pancreatic cancer at 71.
Feb 12. Al Jarreau. Grammy-winning jazz singer, died Feb. 12 at 76.
Feb 13. Trish Doan. The bassist for metal band Kittie, died at 31. No cause of death could be found.
Twister was such a stupid screenplay, but I loved Bill Paxton in it. Miss ya, Bill.
Feb 25. Bill Paxton. 61-year-old Paxton, who starred in Twister, Apollo 13, Aliens and Titanic, died of complications from heart surgery at age 61.
Feb 26. Judge Joseph Wapner. The real-life judge on The People’s Court TV series, died at 97 of respiratory insufficiency.
MARCH
Mar 1. Gustav Metzger. Auto-destructive’ artist who inspired The Who’s Pete Townshend to smash his guitars. He died at 90.
Mar 6. Robert Osborne. Turner Classic Movies host and film historian passed away in his sleep of natural causes just two months from his 85th birthday on May 3. His body was donated to New York University for medical science.
Mar 17. Lawrence Montaigne. (February 26, 1931 – March 17, 2017) Star Trek fans will remember the 86-year-old actor for his roles of Stonn in “Amok Time” and Decius in “Balance of Terror.” He was also in The Great Escape and Escape to Witch Mountain.
Mar 18. Chuck Berry. American Rock ‘n’ Roll icon and Hall of Fame guitarist, singer and songwriter known for “Johnny B. Goode”, “Maybellene”, “Roll Over Beethoven” died of a heart attack at age 90.
Loved this book by Jimmy Breslin
Mar 19. Jimmy Breslin. Pulitzer Prize-winning author of one of my favorite books as a teenager (The Gang that Couldn’t Shoot Straight) died from complications from pneumonia at the age of 86.
Mar 21. Chuck Barris. The Gong Show host-creator and producer of The Dating Game,” died of natural causes at 87.
Mar 23. Alan Colmes. Former co-host of Fox News’ ‘Hannity & Colmes,’ died of lymphoma at 66.
APRIL
Apr 6. Don Rickles. Insult comedian, who reminded me of my Uncle David Rainbolt died at age 90 of kidney failure.
Apr 22. Erin Moran, who played Joanie Cunningham in Happy Days and Joanie Loves Chachi succumbed to tonsil cancer at the age of 56.
MAY
May 8. Douglas Netter producer of Babylon 5 died at the age of 95.
May 18. Roger Ailes. Television executive, Chairman and CEO of Fox News from 1996–2016 died from a subdural hematoma at 77.
May 23. Roger Moore. He played James Bond in seven 007 movies died at age 89 after a short battle with cancer.
May 30. Elena Verdugo played Marcus Welby, MD’s secretary. She died at 92 of natural causes.
JUNE
June 9. Adam West, TV’s Batman (also Family Guy, Robinson Crusoe on Mars) died at 88 after a short battle with leukemia.
June 15. Bill Dana, 92, comedian, actor and screenwriter (The Bill Dana Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, The Nude Bomb).
June 16. Stephen Furst of Babylon 5, Animal House, St. Elsewhere died at 63 of complications from diabetes.
June 25. Skip Homeier. Skip appeared in Star Trek as Dr. Sevrin in “Way to Eden” and Malakon in “Pattern of Force.”
JULY
July15. Martin Landau, Oscar-winning actor in Ed Wood and TV’s Mission: Impossible, died of cardiac disease at age 89.
July 21. John Heard. Actor known for Home Alone, Big, Prison Break, died after a cardiac arrest at 72. He was best known for his role as the dad in the original Home Alone movies.
July 27. Stan Hart. The 88-year-old writer at Mad Magazine died as a result of progressive supranuclear palsy.
July 27. Sam Shepard. The Oscar-winning actor, playwright, and 1979 Pulitzer prize winner died at 73 from complications from ALS. I loved his portrayal of Chuck Yeager in The Right Stuff. He was also in Black Hawk Down.
AUGUST
Aug 3. Ty Hardin. 87, American actor starred in the TV series Bronco, and appeared in Berserk!, Battle of the Bulge, I Married a Monster from Outer Space, Maverick and PT-109.
We all secretly rooted for Godzilla. This time, Haruo Nakajima really was taken out.
Aug 7. Haruo Nakajima. Godzilla is really dead. Japanese actor best known as the man in the painfully hot rubber Godzilla suit who stomped over miniature bridges and buildings of “Tokyo” died of pneumonia in Japan at 88. He starred in Godzilla, Destroy All Monsters, Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972), Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964) and Seven Samurai (1954).
Aug 8. Glen Campbell. Music legend Glen Campbell, Grammy winner, Country Music Award winner died at 81 after a 10-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease. He sold more than 45 million records, amassed nine Grammy awards, had his own weekly TV show and reached the top of the charts with hits that included “Rhinestone Cowboy” and “Wichita Lineman.” He co-starred with John Wayne in one of my favorite movies of all time, True Grit and later starred in another Charles Portis movie, Norwood.
After receiving his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, he and his wife bravely shared their painful journey with the world. He even went on a farewell tour and appeared in a documentary which chronicled the progression of the disease. His final album Adiós, was released in June.
(L to R) Glen Campbell, Mel Tillis (mentioned Nov 19) and Jerry Reed (who thankfully is still with us.)
Aug 15. Liam Devaney, an Irish hurler died at 82. Don’t know who he is, but I love the idea of an Irish hurler.
Aug 21. Thomas Meehan. Tony Award-winning playwright of The Producers, Hairspray and Annie died of cancer at 88.
SEPTEMBER
Sept 8. Jerry Pournelle. Journalist and science fiction author of CoDominium died at home of heart failure at 84.
Sept 15. Harry Dean Stanton. Actor who appeared in Twin Peaks, Alien, The Green Mile, Big Love died at 91 of natural causes.
Sept 27. Anne Jeffreys. Anne played Marion Kerby opposite her real-life husband Robert Sterling as “the ghostess with the mostess” on the 1950s television series Topper. She was also on General Hospital, and appeared as David Hasselhoff’s mom on Baywatch. Anne “died peacefully in her sleep” at 94.
Sept 30. Monty Hall. Let’s Make a Deal game show host died of congestive heart failure at 96.
Sept 27. Hugh Hefner. Died of cardiac arrest (of course) at 91. Wonder how many STDs he had?
Hugh Hefner’s wax image entertains Dusty at the Hollywood Wax Museum in Branson.
OCTOBER
Oct 3. Tom Petty. The 66-year old American Hall of Fame musician (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Traveling Wilburys) and King of the Hill voice actor succumbed to a heart attack.
Oct 17. Mychael Knight, a third-season contestant on Project Runway, died at 39 possibly from complications associated with irritable bowel disease.
Oct 24. Robert Guillaume. Emmy (1979, 1985), Tony and Grammy Award-winning actor known for Soap, Benson, The Lion King and Sports Night succumbed to prostate cancer at 89.
Oct 24. Fats Domino. The Hall of Fame pianist, vocalist and songwriting rock legend famous for “Blueberry Hill”, “Ain’t That a Shame” and “I’m Walkin’”) died of natural causes at age 89.
Nov 9. John Hillerman, Emmy-winning Magnum P.I. actor died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and congestive heart failure at the age of 84. The native Texas was so masterful in his role of Jonathan Quayle Higgins many fans in Great Britain were shocked to learn he was from Denison, Texas. He perfected his English accent by listening to recordings of Laurence Olivier reciting Hamlet.
He once said, “In my humble opinion, Higgins is one of the best parts in all television.”
In Blazin’ Saddles, playing the part of Howard Johnson, he was able to fully embrace his inner Texan.
John Hillerman as Jonathan Quayle Higgins and companions Zeus and Apollo on Magnum, PI
Nov 12. Wendy Pepper. Project Runway fashion designer “died peacefully on November 12, 2017, surrounded by her loving family” according to her obituary. She was 53. No official cause was given, but there were rumors about stage 4 cancer were circulating around the internet.
Nov. 19. Mel Tillis. Tillis, a regular on the Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour and Country Music Hall of Famer, died of respiratory failure due to diverticulitis at 85.
Nov 19. Della Reese. Singer-actress best known for Touched by an Angel, died 86. Although no cause was given, she suffered from Type 2-diabetes.
Nov 21. David Cassidy. Partridge Family actor-singer and ’70s teen idol, died of liver failure at 67.
Nov 29. Jim Nabors. Andy Griffith Show and Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. actor and amazing tenor, died of natural causes at 87.
Nov 29. Willie John Daly, a 92-year old Irish hurler has no official cause of death.
Nov 30. Alfie Curtis. (28 July 1930 – 30 November 2017) British actor appearing in Star Wars, The Elephant Man and Cribb died at the age of 87 of unknown cause. He was best known for the minor role as Dr. Evazan in original Star Wars (1977), the deformed man at the Mos Eisley Cantina whom Luke Skywalker is confronted with Curtis’ line “I have the death sentence on twelve systems.” The confrontation prompted Obi-Wan Kenobi to intervene and resulting in the first use of a lightsaber in combat.
DECEMBER
Dec 6. Conrad Brooks. Actor known for his roles in the Ed Woods’ campy classics Plan 9 from Outer Space, Glen or Glenda, as well as The Beast of Yucca Flats. He died of blood poisoning at 86.
Dec 13. Vanessa Greene, a 63-year-old British-American television producer (Deadly Desire, Our Son, the Matchmaker) and writer (Star Trek: The Next Generation) died of breast cancer.
Dec 21. Bruce McCandless II. McCandless was the first American astronaut to fly untethered in space on STS-41-B. He died at the age of 80. No cause of death was disclosed.
Dec 28. Sue Grafton. The author of “B” Is for Burglar, Keziah Dane and The Lolly-Madonna War died of cancer at 77.
Dec 28. Rose Marie. The actress best known for her role as television comedy writer Sally Rogers on The Dick Van Dyke Show. (Sally Rogers piqued my interest in writing humor.) She also appeared on The Hollywood Squares and The Doris Day Show. She died of natural causes at 94.
Next week I’ll remember the celebrity animals who passed in 2017.
These are the celebrities who meant something to me. Who would you like to remember? Tell me in the comments below.
Here are my cats’ top eight questions.
Why did you throw away the gift that I brought you? There aren’t any rodent recipes in the Mediterranean Diet cookbook.
