RIP Notable Figures

[Chicat]

Him rubbing the Jack Daniel’s behind his ear cracks me up every goddamn time.

[dovecanyoncat]

I knew I was an unwanted baby when I saw that my bath toys were a toaster and a radio.

[EastCoastCat]

His appearances in the Miller Lite commercials are legendary.

[EastCoastCat]

Gus Williams, all-American guard out of USC who led the SuperSonics to the title in ‘79 against the Bullets passed away.

[Chicat]

I knew I was an unwanted baby when I saw that my bath toys were a toaster and a radio.

When he was patiently explaining to Howard Cosell during a game they were announcing why Howard was basically an idiot calling for a bunt in a late game situation, Cosell retorted, “Do you have to be so truculent Bob? You do know what ‘truculent’ means, don’t you?”

Ueker replied without missing a beat, “Sure I do. If you let me borrow your truck, that’s a truck you lent.”

[UAEebs86]

[dovecanyoncat]

Check out those '70s sideburns! Oh daddy!

[UAEebs86]

Dick Button, Olympic great and voice of skating, dies at 95

https://apnews.com/article/dick-button- ... 4d8737b219


NEW YORK (AP) — Dick Button was more than the most accomplished men’s figure skater in history. He was one of his sport’s great innovators and promoters, the man responsible not only for inventing the flying camel spin but describing it to generations of fans.

He was an athlete and actor, a broadcaster and entrepreneur.

“Dick was one of the most important figures in our sport,” said Scott Hamilton, the 1984 Olympic champion. “There wasn’t a skater after Dick who wasn’t helped by him in some way.”

The winner of two Olympic gold medals and five consecutive world championships, Button died Thursday in North Salem, New York, at age 95. His death was confirmed by his son, Edward, who did not provide a cause, though Button had been in declining health.

[gouacats]

Tom Robbins died yesterday. I enjoyed his novels.

[CatsbyAZ]

^^

Should I read one of Robbins' novels, which do you most recommend?

[gouacats]

^^

Should I read one of Robbins' novels, which do you most recommend?

It's been a long time since I've read one (like 30 years), but I remember liking Even Cowgirls Get the Blues back in college. I haven't read any of the ones he wrote after 1994, but I might have to give those a read.

[pc in NM]

^^

Should I read one of Robbins' novels, which do you most recommend?

It's been a long time since I've read one (like 30 years), but I remember liking Even Cowgirls Get the Blues back in college. I haven't read any of the ones he wrote after 1994, but I might have to give those a read.

Another Roadside Attraction and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues were two of my favorites.

[azgreg]

[Chicat]

The voice of my youth as a Yankee fan. He was so great.

[UAEebs86]

Clint Hill, Secret Service agent who leaped onto JFK’s car after the president was shot, dies at 93

https://apnews.com/article/clint-hill-o ... ebfa567bb4

By JACK DURA
Updated 2:18 PM MST, February 24, 2025

Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent who leaped onto the back of President John F. Kennedy’s limousine after the president was shot, then was forced to retire early because he remained haunted by memories of the assassination, has died. He was 93.

Hill died Friday at his home in Belvedere, California, according to his publisher, Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. A cause of death was not given.

Although few may recognize his name, the footage of Hill, captured on Abraham Zapruder’s chilling home movie of the assassination, provided some of the most indelible images of Kennedy’s assassination in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.

Hill received Secret Service awards and was promoted for his actions that day, but for decades blamed himself for Kennedy’s death, saying he didn’t react quickly enough and would gladly have given his life to save the president.

[MrMeow]

Clint Hill, Secret Service agent who leaped onto JFK’s car after the president was shot, dies at 93

https://apnews.com/article/clint-hill-o ... ebfa567bb4

By JACK DURA
Updated 2:18 PM MST, February 24, 2025

Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent who leaped onto the back of President John F. Kennedy’s limousine after the president was shot, then was forced to retire early because he remained haunted by memories of the assassination, has died. He was 93.

Hill died Friday at his home in Belvedere, California, according to his publisher, Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. A cause of death was not given.

Although few may recognize his name, the footage of Hill, captured on Abraham Zapruder’s chilling home movie of the assassination, provided some of the most indelible images of Kennedy’s assassination in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.

Hill received Secret Service awards and was promoted for his actions that day, but for decades blamed himself for Kennedy’s death, saying he didn’t react quickly enough and would gladly have given his life to save the president.

The median home price in Belvedere, CA is $4.3m. Ol Clint must have sold a lot of books

[Merkin]

They should make a movie about someone like him starring Clint Eastwood.

[Chicat]

They should make a movie about someone like him starring Clint Eastwood.

Haha, I think I already saw that one…

[UAEebs86]

https://www.chess.com/news/view/boris-s ... away-at-88

10th World Champion Boris Spassky, 1937-2025


PeterDoggers

Updated: Feb 28, 2025, 8:08 AM


GM Boris Spassky, the 10th world champion of chess who defeated “Iron” GM Tigran Petrosian in 1969 to reach the chess Olympus and who lost his title to GM Bobby Fischer in the Match of the Century in 1972 in Reykjavik, died on Thursday aged 88. His death was confirmed by the Chess Federation of Russia.

Spassky, who was the oldest living world chess champion—a title now passing to GM Anatoly Karpov—was eloquent and funny, a freethinker, and an anti-Communist. In the late 1960s, he was the best player among the Soviet contingent that was put to a halt by Fischer.

"You can't imagine how relieved I was when Fischer took the title off me," Spassky would later say. "Honestly, I don't recall that day as unhappy. On the contrary, I've thrown off a very strong burden and breathed freely."

[azgreg]

[84Cat]

Sports columnist, author John Feinstein dies at age 69

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/colleg ... r-AA1AS3JL

[azgreg]

[dovecanyoncat]

Sports columnist, author John Feinstein dies at age 69

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/colleg ... r-AA1AS3JL

I'll always remember him with Bob Edwards. Both gone.

[dovecanyoncat]

Thank you for what you did, Raul.

[84Cat]

Sonics legend Slick Watts dies at 73

“Slick, out of all the players, Slick was Seattle. That was his thing was Seattle,” Hall of Famer and former teammate Spencer Haywood said Saturday.

https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/son ... ies-at-73/

[EastCoastCat]

Sonics legend Slick Watts dies at 73

“Slick, out of all the players, Slick was Seattle. That was his thing was Seattle,” Hall of Famer and former teammate Spencer Haywood said Saturday.

https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/son ... ies-at-73/

Remember his bald head (back then it wasn't as common) and headband.

[dovecanyoncat]

'End of an era': Last surviving Battle of Britain pilot dies

The last surviving Battle of Britain pilot, John 'Paddy' Hemingway, has died at the age of 105.

Mr Hemingway, who is originally from Dublin, joined the Royal Air Force as a teenager before World War Two.

At 21, he was a fighter pilot in the Battle of Britain, a three-month period when air force personnel defended the skies against a large-scale assault by the German air force, the Luftwaffe.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/en ... 68b7&ei=57

[azgreg]

RIP George Foreman.

[wyo-cat]

George.

RIP.

[UAEebs86]

https://apnews.com/article/kitty-dukaki ... 18e0b38d0d

Kitty Dukakis, wife of former governor and presidential candidate, dies at 88


BROOKLINE, Mass. (AP) — Kitty Dukakis, the wife of former Massachusetts governor and Democratic presidential candidate Michael Dukakis, who spoke openly about her struggles with depression and addiction, has died. She was 88.

Dukakis died on Friday night surrounded by her family, her son, John Dukakis, said on Saturday by telephone. She fought to make the world better, “sharing her vulnerabilities to help others face theirs,” her family said in a statement.

“She was loving, feisty and fun, and had a keen sensitivity to people from all walks of life,” the family said. “She and our dad, Michael Dukakis, shared an enviable partnership for over 60 years and loved each other deeply.”

Dukakis won high marks as a political campaigner during her husband’s 1988 presidential efforts, stumping tirelessly for him. She was called a key influence in his decision to seek the presidency.

She even figured in the opening question of a 1988 presidential debate, when her husband was asked: “Governor, if Kitty Dukakis were raped and murdered, would you favor an irrevocable death penalty for the killer?” Dukakis said he would not, and his unemotional response was widely criticized.

[RichardCranium]

Raul Grijalva

Raul Grijalva Funeral