So many celebrity deaths...

[satindesire]

It's been a bad time for celebrities lately...

Farrah Fawcett, Ed McMahon, Billy Mays, Michael Jackson, David Carridine, Bernie Mac, Heath Ledger...when will it end?

Let's all say a prayer for their families today folks.

 

[unregistered]

 

[Sir_Winston54]

I had a chance shortly before the new year to join a "death pool" group, and actually considered it seriously before deciding to pass on the expense. I'm just about positive that I'd have been - at worst - one of the very very few that included both MJ and David Carradine on my list.

There have been quite a few lost this year. Sobering, in a way. Reminds me that none of us have a guarantee of anything beyond this moment, so we should try to make the most of each one we get.

 

[satindesire]

What really shocks me is how young most of these people were!

I guess it just goes to show you that we can't really depend on the modern miracles of science and medicine for everything, and we really have the luck of the draw just like everyone else on the food chain.

 

[Homburg]

From a few vids I saw from Pitchmen, Billy Mays looks like he might have been an alright guy.

 

[MisterSir]

They say celebrities die in threes, but leave it to Billy Mays to throw in one extra COMPLETELY FREE!

taken from TFLN. I have to admit when I use jokes that aren't mine.

 

[Homburg]

They say celebrities die in threes, but leave it to Billy Mays to throw in one extra COMPLETELY FREE!

taken from TFLN. I have to admit when I use jokes that aren't mine.

*snort*

 

[Daddy2mylilgirl]

They say celebrities die in threes, but leave it to Billy Mays to throw in one extra COMPLETELY FREE!

taken from TFLN. I have to admit when I use jokes that aren't mine.

lol...

 

[jockdom]

Sorry to sound a cold bastard but celebirity deaths don't bother me (apart from John Peel), sure it's a shame for the families but I'm not going to shed any tears for someone I didn't know. All these public out pourings of grief ,ie princess Diana, are totaly over the top.

 

[the captians wench]

Sorry to sound a cold bastard but celebirity deaths don't bother me (apart from John Peel), sure it's a shame for the families but I'm not going to shed any tears for someone I didn't know. All these public out pourings of grief ,ie princess Diana, are totaly over the top.

I kinda had the same conversation with Jounar, who agrees as well.

Even the few I totally lust over, I can't see crying over. *shrug* Sure it's sad but not really heart breaking.

 

[Homburg]

Sorry to sound a cold bastard but celebirity deaths don't bother me (apart from John Peel), sure it's a shame for the families but I'm not going to shed any tears for someone I didn't know. All these public out pourings of grief ,ie princess Diana, are totaly over the top.

I was actively down when Johnny Cash died. That's about as far as I've gotten emotionally.

 

[graceanne]

Sorry to sound a cold bastard but celebirity deaths don't bother me (apart from John Peel), sure it's a shame for the families but I'm not going to shed any tears for someone I didn't know. All these public out pourings of grief ,ie princess Diana, are totaly over the top.

Yeah, pretty much. I'm feel bad for the family members/friends but can go all day without thinking about their death until something reminds me. *shrugs*

 

[Sir_Winston54]

Yeah, pretty much. I'm feel bad for the family members/friends but can go all day without thinking about their death until something reminds me. *shrugs*

I was more upset to hear that Paul Harvey passed on than any of the others. But then, I grew up listening to him from the time I was about 7 or 8. Now *he* was a personality.

 

[BiaTcHiNFiRe]

Sorry to sound a cold bastard but celebirity deaths don't bother me (apart from John Peel), sure it's a shame for the families but I'm not going to shed any tears for someone I didn't know. All these public out pourings of grief ,ie princess Diana, are totaly over the top.

I felt the same way when I saw this thread. *shrug*

Stories of people who died while saving someones life while this big watter we had here few days ago sadness me more than death of Michael Jackson and the others. I like his songs, well some lol, and its sad of course - death is always sad, but thats it. Think I just got this attitude we all die one day, so I take it like that.

 

[Sir_Winston54]

Add Karl Malden, 97, who passed on today. He was a hell of a good actor - comedy, drama, action...

 

[MisterSir]

Mollie Sugden as well, who was 86.

 

[Sir_Winston54]

Mollie Sugden as well, who was 86.

My 81-year-old mother liked her a lot in "Are You Being Served?" which plays in reruns on the local PBS station every Saturday evening (well, the ones that they don't have fundraisers ).

 

[shy slave]

Add Karl Malden, 97, who passed on today. He was a hell of a good actor - comedy, drama, action...

I thought he was great in 'Streets of San Fran'

I am sorry to hear about Mollie Sugden too, it does seem to be a spate of celebs dying.

Have to admit I am with JD and Wenchie on the sadness factor.
It is a shame to have people who we know through the media die, but it does not affect me in a deep way.

I do send out thoughts for their friends and families who knew them and whose lives are now changed because of the death

 

[FurryFury]

I tend to be pretty cold on people I don't know, or like or whose projected demeanor I didn't like at all, as well.

I honestly think some people get off in a strange way on bad news, reinventing the dead as saints and suddenly being best friends and/or hugely impacted in some way by them.

 

[Sir_Winston54]

And Miss Kitty, who played "Kitty" on TNT's "The Closer."

Kleenex Alert: The Closer's Kitty Dies

All animal lovers know that the day may come when they'll have to say a forever goodbye to their pet. That moment came last night on The Closer when Brenda Johnson, played by actress Kyra Sedgwick, had to put her beloved cat Kitty to sleep.

Closer creator James Duff says he wanted to include this storyline partly because Miss Kitty, the cat who played the part of Kitty on the series, had fallen ill, too. "She was dying. That's one of the reasons we did this. We knew she was headed out and we didn't want to replace her,” Duff tells PEOPLE Pets. “I figured before she goes, let's deal with this on the show."

Duff was passionate about portraying this difficult aspect of tough cop Brenda's life to help "humanize" her to viewers. "It's part of everyday life for a lot of people," the producer explains, adding that Sedgwick herself had to put her own family cat down just weeks before filming the episode. "She actually broke down weeping one day and had to pull herself together to go back and film the final scene. You just don't know how to deal with these emotions sometimes."

And watching Sedgwick film that scene stirred up plenty of emotion on the set. "There were lots of people weeping when she went through the last scene with the cat," says Duff. "Her last moments with Kitty are so heart-wrenching. Everybody felt that way. In fact, I got more comments on the day we shot that scene than on any other scene we had in the show. We were all upset."

Miss Kitty – a rescue – first appeared on the show in the third episode of the first season. And her character had many lives on the police drama: She was rescued by Brenda as a stray, was thought to be a male but ended up giving birth to kittens, ran away and was ultimately diagnosed with kidney issues. "The character developed an unlikely relationship with the cat, because no matter how tough you think you are, you're vulnerable to pets," Duff says.

The storyline about the cat's illness arced over two episodes: first the diagnosis, and then Sedgwick's character debating whether to put her cat down. "When we first see our pets struggle, we hope it's temporary. Accepting the terminal aspect of the pet is not done in a day – it takes a while," says Duff. The episode portrays the cat being euthanized privately in Johnson's home, still in her arms, as she says tenderly to her, "It's only because I love you so much."

Though heartbreaking, Duff is glad he included the storyline in the show, and hints that Johnson's character may someday welcome another pet – or even a child – into her home. As for Miss Kitty, she'll always hold a special place in the cast and crew's heart. She died shortly after last night’s [6/22/09] episode was filmed.

The Closer airs Monday nights at 9 p.m. on TNT.​

Full story included above, and linked here for anyone who'd like to see the pic of Kyra Sedgwick cuddling "Kitty."

And yes, to me, pets are people, too.

 

[FurryFury]

LOL! I actually care more about pets than people sometimes.

Here's what bothered me about this storyline. Kitty had kittens, what happened to them???

 

[Homburg]

What about Mr Rogers? Tell me you (Americans) weren't sad when Mr Rogers died.

 

[Sir_Winston54]

LOL! I actually care more about pets than people sometimes.

Here's what bothered me about this storyline. Kitty had kittens, what happened to them???

Given that Miss Kitty was a rescue, one could probably presume that her babies were adopted out to good families - probably a number of them among the cast and crew (if she actually *had* them and it wasn't just a storyline. I missed the season where she had kittens, so I never saw her with them).

ETA: Your question made me curious, FF, so I found producer James Duff's blog and asked. I'll let you know what response I get.

What about Mr Rogers? Tell me you (Americans) weren't sad when Mr Rogers died.

Actually... no. I didn't like Mr. Rogers or his message. I thought he was a bad example, trying to convince kids that everything is sweetness and light. Sorry, but I believe that kids should know that not everything in life turns out for the best, that they should *hope* for it, but not expect it, and not be devastated when things turn out less than had been hoped for. Sort of a reality point of view, if you know what I mean. Maybe that makes me a bad person; I dunno.

 

[Homburg]

Actually... no. I didn't like Mr. Rogers or his message. I thought he was a bad example, trying to convince kids that everything is sweetness and light. Sorry, but I believe that kids should know that not everything in life turns out for the best, that they should *hope* for it, but not expect it, and not be devastated when things turn out less than had been hoped for. Sort of a reality point of view, if you know what I mean. Maybe that makes me a bad person; I dunno.

*blink*

Have you watched any other TV programming for kids? It has been more "realistic" lately, but only on limited shows. Mr Rogers at least tried to teach kids to use their imagination, as well as get along with others. It was not just fast movement, bright colours, and rapid camera cuts like most kids shows.

 

[RawHumor]

I can't think of another recent period when there were so many celebrity deaths in such a short time. It feels odd.

There has never been a period when we've so loosely defined the term "celebrities" and when news has been so easy to come by.

Ten years ago, if a commercial pitchman died, nobody would report about it and nobody would care.

Some of these celebrities, I've never heard of. Some of them were in their 80's or 90's, and if not for the other celebrity deaths, very little mention would have been made of their demise.

People like to make order out of randomness, and group things that don't really belong in groups.