Celebrity Death Thread

[The Cat]

Drew, Gibby was patrollilng right field but some intoxicated fans were making life pretty dangerous for him. I can't remember now if a couple of them had run onto the field or if objects were being thrown at him. Funny I can fremember Kell's comments but can't remember exactly what happened...It may be that the cameras never showed what was happening.

[Newbomb Turk]

Singer Dan Seals of England Dan and John Ford Coley dead of cancer

JOHN GEROME AP Entertainment Writer
8:38 AM CDT, March 26, 2009

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Dan Seals, who was England Dan in the pop duo England Dan and John Ford Coley and later had a successful country career, has died of complications from cancer. He was 61.

His longtime manager Tony Gottlieb says Seals died Wednesday evening at his daughter's home in Nashville.

Seals was diagnosed with lymphoma in April 2007.

England Dan and John Ford Coley had hits including "I'd Really Like to See You Tonight" and "Nights Are Forever," both in 1976.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Seals had country hits like "Bop," ''You Still Move Me," ''Love on Arrival," and a duet with Marie Osmond, "Meet Me in Montana."

His older brother, Jimmy, was the Seals in Seals & Crofts who recorded the hits "Summer Breeze" and "Diamond Girl" in the 1970s.

[CGVT]

RIP.

(Man, I hated his music...)

[YT]

RIP!

[-Deborah-]

As a tribute to the recently deceased George Kell, FSN Detroit will air an encore presentation of "FSN Basement: All-Star Edition" at 12:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Sunday. The 30-minute special features interviews with Kell and his former announcing partner, Al Kaline, as they recall playing for the Detroit Tigers and working together in the broadcast booth.

[Drew]

Drew, Gibby was patrollilng right field but some intoxicated fans were making life pretty dangerous for him. I can't remember now if a couple of them had run onto the field or if objects were being thrown at him. Funny I can fremember Kell's comments but can't remember exactly what happened...It may be that the cameras never showed what was happening.

Thanks Bill.

[Drew]

RIP.

(Man, I hated his music...)

How could you hate his music? 'I'd really love to see you tonight' and 'Thinking about you' were great making-out songs.

[Rocky Bleier]

Not raunchy enough. Too syrupy sweet.

[Drew]

Syrup was my bait of choice.

;)

[The Cat]

Drew and Rocky...Use bold letters or something, with those avatars, I can't appreciate a thing you are writing.

[-Deborah-]

Gus Cifelli dies; football star, judge's life full of success

BY DAN CORTEZ ? FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER ? March 29, 2009

Gus Cifelli knew what it meant to succeed. He won three national championships on the gridiron at Notre Dame. He helped lead the Detroit Lions to the 1952 NFL Championship and later was elected to the 48th District Court in Bloomfield Hills.


"Magnificent is the word for him," his wife, Gladys Cifelli, said.

Mr. Cifelli of Bloomfield Hills died of natural causes Thursday at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak. He was 84.

A native of Philadelphia, Mr. Cifelli joined the Marines. After earning a Purple Heart for his service in the Pacific Theater, he went on to the University of Notre Dame and studied philosophy while playing for the football team.

Once his career with the Lions was over, Mr. Cifelli earned a law degree from the University of Detroit Mercy. He spent 27 years as a judge, including more than a decade as chief judge of the 48th District Court. He retired from the bench in 2000.

John Panelli played with Mr. Cifelli at Notre Dame and with the Lions.

"He was a good ballplayer," said Panelli, 83, of Beverly Hills.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Cifelli is survived by his son, Stephen Czeizler; daughters Deborah Brownlow and Shelley Czeizler; two brothers; five grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.

Visitation is 3 to 8 p.m. today and Monday at A.J. Desmond & Sons, 32515 Woodward, Royal Oak. A funeral mass is set for Tuesday at St. Hugo of the Hills Stone Chapel, 2215 Opdyke in Bloomfield Hills.

Mr. Cifelli is to be buried at Highland Cemetery, 943 N. River St., Ypsilanti.

[SeattleLionsFan]

Between him and former Supreme Court Justice Whizzer White, the lions have had some pretty significant judicial superstars on the team...

[The Cat]

By JOHN KEKIS (AP Sports Writer)

Updated 51 minutes ago
POST VIEW

Lou Saban, who coached O.J. Simpson in the NFL and ran the New York Yankees for George Steinbrenner during a well-traveled career that spanned five decades, died Sunday. He was 87.
Saban died around 4 a.m. at his home in North Myrtle Beach, S.C., his wife, Joyce, said. He had heart problems for years and recently suffered a fall that required hospitalization, she said.
Saban played football at Indiana University and for the Cleveland Browns of the NFL before embarking on an unmatched head coaching career that included stops with the Boston Patriots and Buffalo Bills of the old American Football League and the NFL's Denver Broncos, along with college jobs at Miami, Army, Northwestern and Maryland.
Saban, who was 95-99-7 in 16 seasons of pro football, also was president of the New York Yankees from 1981-82 and coached high school football from 1987-89.
"He has been my friend and mentor for over 50 years, and one of the people who helped shape my life," Yankees owner George Steinbrenner said in a statement. "Lou was tough and disciplined, and he earned all the respect and recognition that came his way. He spent a lifetime leading, teaching and inspiring, and took great satisfaction in making the lives around him better. This is a tremendous loss to me personally."
Saban shared the last name of another prominent football coach, Alabama's Nick Saban. Joyce Saban said the two men might have been second cousins, but said the families weren't exactly sure whether they were related.
Louis Henry Saban was born in Brookfield, Ill. in 1921 and was a 1940 graduate of Lyons Township High School. After starring at Indiana, Saban played for the Browns from 1946-49 and the next year accepted his first head coaching position - at Case Institute of Technology in Cleveland.
In 1955, he took over at Northwestern for a year, then moved to Western Illinois until entering the pro ranks in 1960 to coach the Boston Patriots of the newly formed AFL.
From there, Saban went to the Bills in 1962 and guided them to AFL championships in 1964 and 1965, the only championships the Bills have ever won. After a stint with the Broncos, Saban returned to Buffalo. During his second stint with the Bills from 1972-76, he oversaw O.J. Simpson's record-breaking, 2,003-yard rushing season in 1973.
"He was like a father to me," former Bills defensive back Booker Edgerson said. "He steered me in the right direction. He gave me advice. Some of it, I didn't like, but isn't that what a father does?"
Edgerson, who also played for Saban at Western Illinois and with the Broncos, said he last saw Saban in October at a Western Illinois banquet honoring the coach.
"Lou Saban was a great teacher," Edgerson said. "He knew how to build football programs. He could have built any program - football, baseball, basketball, whatever. Even though his patience was short-tempered, he allowed players to let out their anxieties and frustrations."
After quitting the Bills in midseason of 1976, Saban spent two years as athletic director at Miami, where he recruited future Buffalo quarterback Jim Kelly.
Saban later became known for how quickly he changed jobs. He coached Army in 1979, was AD at Miami and spent 19 days as athletic director at Cincinnati. He went on to coach high schools, colleges and in the Arena Football League.
Saban spent the 1990s starting or rebuilding programs at places like Peru State, Canton Tech and Alfred State, where he left before the team played its first game. He coached Central Florida in 1983-84.
"I've coached at all levels, covered the gamut, and I've never really seen any difference," Saban said after being hired to coach Alfred in upstate New York in 1994. "My coaching techniques are pretty much the same, with some adjustments for what younger players can and can't do."
Saban spent five years at Canton Tech in northern New York - the longest stint of his career - before leaving after the 2000 season. In one of his last jobs, he coached Division III Chowan State in North Carolina, leaving in 2002 after the team went 0-10.
"He was an original," Joyce Saban said. "He was one of a kind."
Funeral arrangements were incomplete. Joyce Saban said the family would have a mass at Our Lady of the Sea Catholic Church in North Myrtle Beach on Saturday.
---

[Dan V]

They're killing me Whitey, they're killing me--Lou's famous line is still commonly used in our workplace....

[Newbomb Turk]

Legendary porn star Marilyn Chambers, real name Marilyn Ann Briggs, was found dead in her mobile home Sunday in Santa Clarita by her daughter McKenna. The cause of death has not yet been determined. An autopsy is pending.

Marilyn rose to fame after starring in the X-rated classic Behind The Green Door in 1972. She starred 16 adult films in the 70’s and 80’s. She got her start as the cover girl on boxes of Ivory Soap detergent boxes.

Marilyn Chambers was 57 years-old.

I'll bet her mobile home was a double wide......