2020

Dead Pool 11th & 18th July 2021

No movement on the league table, but with this bumper two-week newsletter, there is loads to read about.

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Pope Francis has been seen leaving hospital in  Rome, 10 days after undergoing surgery to remove half his colon. A car carrying the 84-year-old was spotted leaving Gemelli Polytechnic hospital in the Italian capital on Wednesday morning. Francis had half of his colon removed for a severe narrowing of his large intestine on 4th July, his first major surgery since he became pope in 2013. It was a planned procedure, scheduled for early July when the pope’s audiences are suspended and he would normally take some time off. The Pope on Sunday made his first public appearance since the surgery, standing for about 10 minutes while delivering his weekly prayer from the balcony of his suite surrounded by young cancer patients. Francis will have several more weeks to recover before beginning to travel again in September. There are plans for him to visit Hungary and Slovakia between 12th and 15th September before a brief trip to Glasgow in November to participate in the COP26 climate conference. The Vatican had originally said Francis could be discharged last weekend, but later said he would stay a few days extra for further recovery and rehabilitation therapy. On the eve of his release, he visited the paediatric cancer ward, which is located on the same floor as the papal hospital suite. The Argentine pope had part of one lung removed when he was a young man but has otherwise enjoyed relatively robust health.   

US country singer Ashley Monroe has revealed she is starting chemotherapy after being diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer. Monroe, a member of the band Pistol Annies, wrote on Instagram that she had been diagnosed with Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia after going to the doctor for routine lab work. According to cancer.org, Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia is a form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. “A few months ago my doctor was doing some routine lab work and found that I was anaemic,” Monroe, 34, wrote. “I was like, FINE, I’ll just double up on cheeseburger patties, take some extra vitamins and call it a day. Well my red blood count just kept falling, and they found out my iron, b12, folic acid numbers were actually fine. short story long, they did a bone marrow biopsy, (ouch), and VOILA… a rare kind of blood c word called ‘Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia’.” Monroe added that she was “thankful” for the support of her family and friends, and for her “angel son”, whom she is “fighting for the most”. Monroe formed the Pistol Annies alongside Miranda Lambert and Angaleena Presley in 2009. She has also enjoyed a successful solo career.   

The president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro has reportedly been hospitalised after suffering from abdominal pains. He was admitted to the army hospital in the capital city of Brasilia for testing in the early hours of Wednesday, according to media reports. Mr Bolsonaro is expected to remain under observation for 24-48 hours. The 66-year-old had reportedly complained about persistent hiccups in the days before he was admitted to hospital. Mr Bolsonaro’s health has been in the spotlight during his presidency, particularly since he was stabbed and seriously injured on the campaign trail in 2018. His attacker was acquitted in 2019 on the grounds that he was mentally ill. Adelio Bispo de Oliveira pierced Mr Bolsonaro’s intestine, putting his life in danger, when he stabbed the leader with a knife in the streets of Juiz de Fora, north of Rio de Janeiro. The far-right politician was placed in intensive care and lost 40 per cent of his blood but sadly survived and went on to win the presidential election. According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders (US), non-stop hiccups can be caused by ‘brain lesions, tumours, intestinal diseases, and liver or kidney disorders.’ We can only pray and hope for the people of Brazil that one (or all) are the cause of his hiccups!  

Security minister James Brokenshire has announced he is standing down from the government to concentrate on his fight against cancer. The Old Bexley and Sidcup MP resigned as Northern Ireland secretary in 2018 for surgery to remove a lesion on his right lung, but returned to Theresa May’s cabinet later that year as housing secretary and joined the Home Office under Boris Johnson in 2020. He announced in January he was taking a leave of absence from ministerial duties for surgery on a tumour. But in a letter to Mr Johnson, he today said that his recovery from treatment and return to full duties was “taking longer than anticipated”. “I have therefore concluded that it is best that I stand down from my ministerial role and focus on restoring my health,” he said. Mr Brokenshire said he hoped “to be able to serve again in some way in the future”. The 53-year-old father-of-three has previously said that his lung cancer diagnosis came as a “jolt” as he had never smoked. In a letter written in crayon accepting his resignation from the government, Mr Johnson said: “I look forward to welcoming you back as soon as possible.”   

The son of former middleweight boxing champion Chris Eubank died on Friday, a month after becoming a father. His widow, Salma Abdelati, said the 29-year-old had the heart attack while in the sea in Dubai. She said she was grateful “he was able to spend a few short and happy weeks with his son before his death”. Sebastian, who had followed in his father’s footsteps to become a professional boxer, had been due to turn 30 on 18th July. In a statement, his widow said: “Dubai Police and the coroner have confirmed that after a full post-mortem Sebastian Eubank tragically died from a massive heart attack whilst in the sea and probably could not have been saved even if out of the water. There was evidence of a pre-existing heart condition we were all unaware of. While still very painful, it is of some comfort that Sebastian died after having one of his favourite meals with one of his closest friends whilst doing his favourite thing at his favourite place in Dubai where he often went to swim. He was standing in the water close to shore watching the sunset at Cove Beach in Dubai.” Figures from around the boxing world and beyond paid tribute to Sebastian, the middle child of Eubank’s five children, following the news of his death. His father called his son a “deep thinker who liked to challenge accepted wisdom” in an earlier tribute to him. Eubank said the family was devastated at the loss of Sebastian, who grew up in Hove but had been living in Dubai, where he was “a leader in the adoption of a healthy lifestyle and of alternative therapies”. Sebastian, who boxed using the name Alka Lion, made his debut in February 2018 against Polish fighter Kamil Kulczyk. His brother, Chris Eubank Jr, also a professional boxer, said on Twitter: “Rest easy little brother, I love you and you will be missed always.”   

A Los Angeles rapper was shot dead in his car in a brazen daylight attack last week while he was live-streaming on Instagram in what police believe was a gang-related killing. Zerail Rivera, who went by the name Indian Red Boy, was murdered in Hawthorne on July 8th at about 4.10pm while speaking to a friend on Instagram from inside his car. The disturbing video, which is being shared widely online, shows the 21-year-old smiling and laughing with his friend as the gunman approached his window. Rivera could be seen glancing out the window just as the gunshots started to ring out. He could be seen trying to cover his head with his arms as at least 12 shots were fired. His friend, social media influencer Kapone, can be heard saying: ‘What the fuck? Bro, what the fuck? Where you at?’ A bloodied Rivera could be seen mouthing ‘help’ repeatedly to the camera before whispering ‘I’m in Hawthorne’. He dropped his camera seconds later and the live-stream ended. Police responding to reports of the shooting found Rivera ‘slumped in the front seat’. He had been shot multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene. The gunman fled before authorities arrived. No one has been arrested in relation to the shooting. Police are still reviewing surveillance video from the area but they believe it was a walk-up shooting and that Rivera was targeted. They say it was likely gang-related but have not provided further details.

On This Day 11th July

  • 1804 – A duel occurs in which the Vice President of the United States Aaron Burr mortally wounds former Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton.  
  • 1960 – To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is first published, in the United States.  
  • 1962 – First transatlantic satellite television transmission.  
  • 1979 – America’s first space station, Skylab, is destroyed as it re-enters the Earth’s atmosphere over the Indian Ocean.  

On This Day 18th July

  • 1944 – World War II: Adolf Hitler survives an assassination attempt led by German Army Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg. 
  • 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11’s crew successfully makes the first manned landing on the Moon in the Sea of Tranquility. Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to walk on the Moon six and a half hours later.  
  • 1982 – Hyde Park and Regent’s Park bombings: The Provisional IRA detonates two bombs in Hyde Park and Regent’s Park in central London, killing eight soldiers, wounding forty-seven people, and leading to the deaths of seven horses.  
  • 2012 – James Holmes opened fire at a movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 and injuring 70 others.  

Deaths on 11th July

Deaths on 18th July

  • 1923 – Pancho Villa, Mexican general and politician, Governor of Chihuahua (b. 1878). 
  • 1973 – Bruce Lee, American actor and martial artist (b. 1940). 
  • 2005 – James Doohan, Canadian-American actor (b. 1920). 
  • 2011 – Lucian Freud, German-English painter and illustrator (b. 1922). 
  • 2012 – Alastair Burnet, English journalist (b. 1928). 
  • 2017 – Chester Bennington, American singer (b. 1976). 

Last Meals

Francis Crowley was an American murderer. His crime spree lasted nearly three months, ending in a two-hour shootout with the New York City Police Department on May 7th 1931, that was witnessed by 15,000 bystanders and received national attention. In 1932 he was executed in New York’s electric chair. 

Crowley was born in New York City on October 31st 1912, the second son of an unwed German mother who gave him up for adoption. He had a hatred for police, with some speculating that his absent father was a police officer.

This hatred for the police was compounded by police killing his brother John when Crowley was 12 years old. John was alleged to be involved in the killing of NYPD Officer Maurice Harlow on February 22nd 1925. Shortly thereafter John Crowley was killed in a confrontation with police officers while resisting arrest on a charge of disorderly conduct. By his late teens, Francis Crowley had a reputation as a troubled youth with a criminal history. 

On February 21st 1931, Crowley and two other young men crashed a dance hosted by the American Legion in the Bronx. Several Legionnaires tried to remove them from the venue, so Crowley drew a gun and wounded two men before fleeing. He was charged with attempted murder and went into hiding. He was confronted by police on March 13th. He escaped into an office building on Lexington Avenue after shooting Detective Ferdinand Schaedel. Two days later, Crowley and four others robbed a bank in New Rochelle, New York.

A month later, Crowley and two friends broke into the West 90th Street apartment of real estate broker Rudolph Adler. Adler attempted to resist them, and Crowley shot him five times using two pistols, which earned him the nickname “Two Gun”. Adler’s dog Trixie attacked the robbers and drove them from the house, saving her owner’s life. 

On April 27th, Crowley was out joyriding in a stolen vehicle with his partner Rudolph “Fats” Durringer and dance hall hostess Virginia Brannen. Brannen resisted Durringer’s advances, so Durringer shot and killed her while still in the car. Crowley then helped him dump her body at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers. New York City police found Brannen’s body and escalated their efforts to find Crowley. 

On April 29th he was spotted in the Bronx driving a green Chrysler Imperial sedan along 138th Street near the Morris Avenue Bridge. Police pursued him, but he escaped after a running gun battle. Detectives found that the bullets extracted from a police car matched those that killed Virginia Brannen and those from other unsolved shootings. The following day, Crowley’s car was found abandoned with bullet holes and bloodstains on the inside. On May 6th, Crowley was sitting in a parked car with his 16-year-old girlfriend Helen Walsh on Morris Lane in North Merrick, Long Island when he was approached by police officers Frederick Hirsch and Peter Yodice, who asked for identification. Crowley fired at them, killing Hirsch and wounding Yodice. He then sped off. 

The following day, Crowley, Walsh, and Durringer were tracked down to a fifth-floor apartment in a rooming house on West 91st Street. The residence belonged to a former lover of Crowley’s, who notified the police upon seeing Crowley with another woman. Outside the building, a force of 300 police officers armed with rifles, machine guns, and tear gas assembled. The events attracted 15,000 bystanders. 

Crowley and the police exchanged gunfire for nearly two hours, with the police firing an estimated 700 rounds into the building. While Walsh and Durringer reloaded Crowley’s pistols, Crowley threw back several tear gas grenades that the police had thrown into the apartment through a hole cut into the roof. After suffering four gunshot wounds and bleeding heavily, he finally surrendered. Arresting officers found two pistols strapped to his legs.  

On May 29th, less than three weeks after his arrest, Crowley was tried and convicted of the murder of police officer Frederick Hirsch. His partner, Fats Durringer, was found guilty of the murder of Virginia Brannen. Both men were sentenced to death on June 1st. Crowley was sentenced to death by electric chair.

Crowley spent his last year on death row at Sing Sing Prison in Ossining, New York. He remained a disciplinary problem – stuffing his prison uniform down a toilet, setting fire to his bed, and frequently crafting homemade weapons. His attitude became somewhat more serene as his execution neared: He reportedly adopted a starling that frequently flew into his cell. For his last meal, Crowley enjoyed steak and onions, french fries, apple pie, ice cream and melted ice cream?!?! 

On January 21st 1932, Crowley’s last words to Warden Lewis Lawes were to ask for a rag. Referring to Durringer’s death in the same electric chair, Crowley said, “I want to wipe off the chair after this rat sat in it.” It is not clear if the request was granted.

Crowley was only 19 when he was executed.

Last Two Week’s Birthdays

Vin Diesel (54), Kristen Bell (41), Elizabeth McGovern (60), James Brolin (81), Priyanka Chopra Jonas (39), Paul Verhoeven (83), Richard Branson (71), Donald Sutherland (86), Alex Winter (56), Eric Winter (45), David Hasselhoff (69), Will Ferrell (54), Phoebe Cates (58), Corey Feldman (50), Travis Fimmel (42), Diane Kruger (45), Brigitte Nielsen (58), Forest Whitaker (60), Celia Imrie (69), Jesse Ventura (70), Adam Savage (54), Phoebe Waller-Bridge (36), Jackie Earle Haley (60), Matthew Fox (55), Kyle Gass (61), David Mitchell (47), Harrison Ford (79), Sharon Horgan (51), Patrick Stewart (81), Ken Jeong (52), Michelle Rodriguez (43), Anna Friel (45), Melissa O’Neil (33), Bill Cosby (84), Tamsin Greig (55), Cheryl Ladd (70), Stephen Lang (69), Caroline Quentin (61), Craig Charles (57), Sofía Vergara (49), Chiwetel Ejiofor (44), Jessica Simpson (41), Peter Serafinowicz (49), John Simm (51), Tom Hanks (65), Kelly McGillis (64), Pamela Adlon (55), Courtney Love (57), Fred Savage (45), Scott Grimes (59), Richard Roundtree (79), O.J. Simpson (74), Richard Wilson (85), Kevin Bacon (63), Anjelica Huston (70), Jaden Smith (23), Jeffrey Tambor (77), Shelley Duvall (72), Jack Whitehall (33), Ringo Starr (81), Eva Green (41), Sylvester Stallone (75), Kevin Hart (42), Burt Ward (76), Geoffrey Rush (70), Jennifer Saunders (63), 50 Cent (46), and Huey Lewis (71).

18th July 2021 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool: Round up of 2020

This year has been rather exceptional with the coronavirus picking off celebrities of all ages. However, it doesn’t seem as deadly as 2016, where it felt like anyone who wasn’t listed were dying just to spite us; I’m thinking of you David Bowie!!!  

Anyhow, we have a winner to declare! Congratulations to Louise for topping the table with 467 points from 4 deaths. If you could send me your contact details I can send off the trophy to you! Honourable mentions go to Laura for the most deaths (7) and to Stu and myself for not scoring a bean throughout the year. Well done all of you! 

Right, let’s have a quick look at who we lost in 2020. 

January:

  • Derek Acorah – The self-styled spiritual medium, whose real name was Derek Johnson, died right at the beginning of the year aged 69. It was revealed he had been treated in intensive care following a “brief illness”. So far he’s refused to contact the living world since his departure.  
  • Terry Jones – The Welsh actor and Monty Python star passed away aged 77. His family said he died at his home in London after battling a rare form of dementia. In a statement, the actor’s family said: “His work with Monty Python, his books, films, television programmes, poems and other work will live on forever, a fitting legacy to a true polymath.” 
  • Kobe Bryant – The basketball legend and his 13-year-old daughter died in a helicopter crash that killed nine people in total. The five-time NBA champion and two-time Olympic gold medallist was 41. 
  • Nicholas Parsons – The Just a Minute host died aged 96 after a short illness. He was best known for the show, where panellists have to speak for one minute without hesitation, deviation, or repetition. He first fronted the show on its inception in 1967. BBC director general Tony Hall said: “Very few people have done so much to entertain audiences over the decades and no-one deserves to be called a broadcasting legend more than Nicholas Parsons. 

February:

  • Kirk Douglas – The actor died at the age of 103. The venerated star, patriarch of an acting dynasty was one of the few remaining survivors of Hollywood’s golden age, was best known for films including Spartacus, Paths of Glory and The Vikings. His eldest son, Michael Douglas, a two-time Oscar-winner, announced his father’s death with a touching tribute that failed to address his aggressive and murderous personality and the likelihood he was a paedo rapist. 
  • Caroline Flack – The former Love Island TV presenter and Strictly Come Dancing winner was found dead at the age of 40 at her London home after taking her own life. Flack, who was described as “vulnerable” by her management, had pleaded not guilty to assaulting her boyfriend Lewis Burton at her former flat. Her death came just weeks before the trial was due to begin. 
  • Dieter Laser – The German actor who played sadistic surgeon Josef Heiter in 2009 shock horror film The Human Centipede. He died at the age of 78, with The Human Centipede director Tom Six describing him as a “force of nature, an unique human being and an iconic actor”. 

March:

  • Max von Sydow – Swedish actor Max von Sydow died at home in France aged 90. He’s mostly lnown for his roles in Flash Gordon, Game Of Thrones, The Exorcist and The Seventh Seal. He once said of his most famous role “The film you hear about the most is The Exorcist. When people come up to me and say, ‘Oh, you scared me!’ I was the good guy in that film!” 
  • Michel Roux – Chef Michel Roux died aged 79. He opened the first Michelin-starred restaurant, Le Gavroche, in Britain in the ’70s alongside his brother Albert. 
  • Roy Hudd – Comedian and actor Roy Hudd died at the age of 83 after a short illness. His agent said he had passed away peacefully with his wife Debbie at his side. Hudd was born in Croydon and started his career as a messenger for an advertising agency, window dresser and a commercial artist before his professional debut in 1957.  
  • Kenny Rogers – The Country music legend with a career that spanned six decades, with hits including Coward Of The County, The Gambler and Islands In The Stream, with Dolly Parton. The Houston-born singer, known for his trademark husky voice and silver beard, broke through into the world of pop to sell more than 100 million records. He also gained fame as an actor, starring in TV movies based on The Gambler and other songs, making him a superstar in the 1970s and 80s. He died peacefully in a hospice, surrounded by family, aged 81.

April:

  • Eddie Large – Comedian Eddie Large died at the age of 78 after contracting coronavirus while in hospital. The comedian, famous for his double act with Syd Little, had a long-running comedy sketch show on BBC One in the 1970s and 1980s. 
  • Lord Bath – Lord Bath of Longleat was 87 when he died after testing positive for coronavirus. The “gloriously” eccentric Alexander Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath, ran Longleat Safari Park. The flamboyant aristocrat was known for his colourful dress sense and was a regular feature of the Animal Park television show about his estate.  
  • Honor Blackman – Actress Honor Blackman, best-known for playing Pussy Galore, died at the age of 94. She died peacefully of natural causes at home in Lewes, Sussex, surrounded by her family. Her numerous and varied roles included Cathy Gale in The Avengers and Bond girl Pussy Galore in Goldfinger. 
  • Sir Stirling Moss – The motor racing great died at the age of 90 following a long illness. His wife Lady Moss said: “It was one lap too many. He just closed his eyes.” Though Moss famously never won the Formula One title, he finished runner-up four times and came third three times in a career during which he won 16 Grands Prix. 
  • Tim Brooke-Taylor – The Goodies star died aged 79 after contracting coronavirus. The actor, best known as part of the 1970s comic trio, was survived by his wife Christine. Alongside Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie, The Goodies TV show attracted millions of viewers in its heyday. 
  • Bill Withers – Famous for timeless classics including Lean On Me, Lovely Day, Just The Two Of Us and Ain’t No Sunshine. His death from heart complications at the age of 81. 

May:

  • Little Richard – Sir Mick Jagger led tributes to Rock ‘n’ Roll singer Little Richard following his death at the age of 87. Little Richard, who inspired musicians including The Beatles, David Bowie and Sir Elton John, was a Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer and renowned for hits such as Tutti Frutti and Long Tall Sally. 
  • Florian Schneider – Co-founded Kraftwerk alongside Ralf Hutter in 1970 after meeting as students in Dusseldorf. The band’s pioneering use of drum machines and synthesisers influenced countless musicians who came after them. Schneider died after a short cancer disease just a few days after his 73rd birthday.
  • Roy Horn – Best known as part of the Las Vegas performing duo of Siegfried & Roy, who were world renowned for their shows involving white lions and tigers, alongside Siegfried Fischbacher. However, the act unravelled in October 2003 when a tiger named Mantecore mauled him during a live performance, severing his spine and inflicting several other injuries, permanently affecting his ability to move, walk and speak. Horn died at the age of 75 after contracting coronavirus. 

June:

  • Willie Thorne – The snooker legend died in hospital in Spain after a short battle with leukaemia. He was 66. He had been in an induced coma in the intensive care ward at Torrevieja Hospital, Spain, after suffering respiratory failure. Thorne was diagnosed with leukaemia earlier in the year and had several health issues while undergoing chemotherapy treatment. 
  • Dame Vera Lynn – Forces’ Sweetheart Dame Vera Lynn died at the age of 103. A statement said: ”The family are deeply saddened to announce the passing of one of Britain’s best-loved entertainers at the age of 103.‘’  
  • Ian Holm – The Lord Of The Rings star was remembered as “charming, kind and ferociously talented”, following his death at the age of 88. The actor, who was acclaimed for his roles in Chariots Of Fire, Alien and Brazil, was also a prolific and accomplished star of the Royal Shakespeare Company and was described as Harold Pinter’s favourite actor. He died peacefully in hospital after a Parkinson’s-related illness, with his family and carer at his bedside.

July:

  • Ennio Morricone – The legendary movie composer died at the age of 91 after breaking his hip in a fall. The Italian composer created music for more than 400 films, but was best-known for the soundtrack to 1966 Spaghetti Western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Morricone was rated as one of the world’s most influential composers after writing scores for cinema – including 70 award-winning films – television and 100 classical works. 
  • Jack Charlton – The former Leeds and England defender who won a World Cup winner’s medal in 1966, died in July. He was 85. Charlton had been diagnosed with lymphoma in the last year and was also battling dementia. He spent his entire 21-year playing career at Leeds, making a joint club record 773 appearances, before retiring as a player in 1973 and going on to enjoy a successful and colourful career as a manager.  
  • Kelly Preston – the wife of John Travolta, died aged 57 after battling breast cancer for two years. The actress starred in films such as Mischief, Twins and Jerry Maguire. Alongside a photograph of her, Travolta announced her death saying: “It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer. She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many.“ The couple had been married for nearly 30 years. Their son, Jett, died at the age of just 16 after suffering a seizure during a family holiday in the Bahamas in 2009. 
  • Naya Rivera – Tributes were paid to the former Glee star, after her death was confirmed at the age of 33. The actress went missing during a boating trip at Lake Piru in Southern California with her four-year-old son, Josey Hollis, and her body was found days later. Demi Lovato, who played Rivera’s on-screen girlfriend on the show, said she will “forever cherish” starring alongside her. 
  • Dame Olivia de Havilland – The two-time Oscar winner and for decades the last surviving star of Gone With the Wind, died at the age of 104. The actress died of natural causes at her residence in Paris, where she had lived for more than six decades. She emerged as a star during the classic movie era – first as a romantic partner for Errol Flynn in swashbucklers such as Captain Blood and The Adventures of Robin Hood and then as Melanie Hamilton Wilkes in Gone With the Wind. 

August:

  • Chadwick Boseman – The actor, best known for playing superhero Black Panther, died at the age of 43 after a battle with cancer. In an announcement that stunned Hollywood, Boseman’s family said he had been diagnosed with colon cancer four years ago and died surrounded by his loved ones, including wife Taylor Simone Ledward. He never discussed the illness publicly and films including Black Panther, Da 5 Bloods and Avengers: Endgame were all filmed “during and between countless surgeries and chemotherapy,” the family said. 

September:

  • Dame Diana Rigg – The actress, known for roles from The Avengers to Games of Thrones, died at the age of 82. Her daughter Rachael Stirling said: “My Beloved Ma died peacefully in her sleep, at home, surrounded by family. She died of cancer diagnosed in March, and spent her last months joyfully reflecting on her extraordinary life, full of love, laughter and a deep pride in her profession. I will miss her beyond words.”  
  • Jackie Stallone – The mother of Hollywood actor Sylvester Stallone, died at the age of 98. The famous celebrity astrologer and women’s wrestling promoter had a memorable – although brief – stint in the Celebrity Big Brother house in 2005. A surprise contestant, Stallone entered much to the shock of co-housemate and former daughter-in-law Brigitte Nielsen, with whom she had a frosty relationship. 
  • Michael Lonsdale – Best known for his role as James Bond villain Hugo Drax in 1979’s Moonraker, Lonsdale made more than 100 films and performed on stage in a career in entertainment that spanned 60 years. Lonsdale died peacefully at his home in Paris, aged 89, with his agent of 20 years saying it was simply old age. “His spirit was alive but his body was tired,” he said.

October:

  • Eddie Van Halen – The world of rock and roll mourned the “Mozart for guitar” Eddie Van Halen following his death at the age of 65. The revered guitarist was Van Halen’s creative force as they blurred the line between hard rock and heavy metal on their way to becoming one of the biggest bands in the world in the 1980s. Van Halen died after a “long and arduous” battle with cancer.  
  • Frank Bough – The former TV presenter died at the age 87. A family friend told the BBC Bough died in a care home. Bough was one of the best-known TV hosts in the 1970s and 1980s and was part of the launch of the BBC’s Breakfast TV show in 1983. His career with the BBC ended in 1988 when he was sacked over a sex-related scandal. 
  • Bobby Ball – The 76-year-old comedian died of coronavirus in hospital. One half of the duo Cannon & Ball, Bobby’s death was confirmed by his manager and wife Yvonne said: “I will always miss him, he was so joyful, full of fun and mischievous.” The Cannon and Ball Show ran for nine years from 1979 and in more recent times they found success on the panto circuit and cameos on TV. 
  • Sean Connery – The film star, most famous for playing James Bond, passed away at the age of 90. Sean, who played 007 in the likes of Goldfinger, Thunderball and You Only Live Twice, won an Oscar in 1988 when he was named best supporting actor for his role as an Irish cop in The Untouchables and also starred in films like The Rock and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. 
  • Johnny Nash – Best known for the 1970s reggae hit I Can See Clearly Now, which sold more than a million copies and sat at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart for four weeks. He largely dropped out of the spotlight in the late 1980s. He died of natural causes, aged 80, his son said. 

November:

  • John Sessions – The actor and comedian died at the age of 67 after suffering a heart attack. He was best known for his work on Spitting Image and Whose Line Is It Anyway? 
  • Des O’Connor – The much loved entertainer died at the age of 88. The TV legend passed away in hospital a week after suffering a fall in his Buckinghamshire home. He will be best remembered for shows such as Take Your Pick, Countdown, The Des O’Connor Show and Today with Des and Mel. The presenter was also a singer and recorded 36 albums as a singer, five of which made it to the UK Top 40. 
  • Geoffrey Palmer – The actor, known for his roles in such sitcoms as Butterflies, As Time Goes By and The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, died aged 93. Versatile and prolific, he was known and loved for his hangdog expression and the often testy demeanour he gave to his characters. 
  • Ray Clemence – Former Liverpool, Tottenham and England goalkeeper Ray Clemence was hailed as a “true legend” and “a giant of a man” after his death at the age of 72. Clemence, who won three European Cups and five First Division titles during a trophy-laden spell at Anfield, was without question one of the greatest of his generation. 
  • Diego Maradona – The Argentinian football legend famous for his Hand of God, died aged 60. He was regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time and helped Argentina win the World Cup in 1986, the pinnacle of an illustrious career. 
  • David Prowse – The British actor who played Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, died aged 85. The weightlifter-turned-actor, who also earned an MBE for playing the Green Cross Code Man to promote road safety, died after a short illness. Prowse won the role playing Vader due to his impressive 6ft 6in physique, but with his West Country accent deemed not quite suitable, the part was instead voiced by James Earl Jones. 

December:

  • Peter Alliss – The “voice of golf” died at the age of 89 after a successful playing career where he won more than 20 tournaments during and played on eight Ryder Cup teams. His move into broadcasting came about after he was overheard by the BBC’s Ray Lakeland talking to a friend on a flight back from a tournament in Ireland in 1960. 
  • Dame Barbara Windsor – Babs died aged 83 in a care home. Best known for her roles in EastEnders and the Carry On films, she was considered a national treasure in the UK after finding fame as a buxom blonde in the Carry On films. Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2014, she made the news public in 2018. Her husband Scott Mitchell said her final weeks were “typical of how she lived her life” and “full of humour, drama and a fighting spirit until the end”. 
  • John le Carré – Cold War espionage author David Cornwell, known by his pen name John le Carré, died aged 89 after a battle with pneumonia. Among his 25 novels were acclaimed best-sellers including Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, and The Night Manager. His most well-known character was the career intelligence officer George Smiley – made even more famous by Alec Guinness in the TV series of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. 
  • Eileen Pollock – Was a star of stage and screen who appeared in films including Far And Away in 1992, alongside Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, and Angela’s Ashes in 1999. But she was best known for playing “tart” Lilo Lill, mistress of Freddie Boswell, in Bread, the TV comedy that centred around the working class Boswell family in Liverpool, which ran from 1986 to 1991. She died peacefully in her sleep at home in London, aged 73.

1st January 2021 | Categories: 2020, 2021 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 27th December 2020

Here we are again, the last newsletter of the year. Comes around so quickly!! With just a few days to go, anything could happen! I’ve already had about a dozen 2021 lists and they’re all fantastic! You will have to think deeply if you haven’t submitted yours already. 

Just so you know, the winner will be declared on Friday 1st January, which will also be the day I’ll send out the 2020 review, a copy of everyone else’s list and a new email address list if you want to send the group a klaxon for instance. 

Donations to keep us running will be the same as usual, PayPal page on the website. The page will be opened on 1st January for four weeks, and as always, you’re not obliged to contribute as 2020 has been a shit year for all of us. But if you think a years worth of newsletters, a trophy, a few giggles and a cool website is worth a couple of quid, your contribution will be thankfully received; running costs for 2021 will be roughly £140, about the price of a pint each if we have our usual numbers taking part, although that usually ends up being the price of a night out and a taxi for me to make up the shortfall. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

In a candid recent interview comedy legend  Billy Connolly confessed he feels close to death, and thinks about it “quite a lot”. Connolly was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2013, “I don’t think I’ve got that long”, he said to us. “I don’t want to be a comedian you feel sorry for”, said the performer who has chosen to remain off the stage as he doesn’t feel comfortable with the symptoms of the disease showing. “There’s an American boy who says, ‘Shaking is the new cool.’ He’s got it on a T-shirt. And bless him, but I don’t want to do it,” said Connolly. In 2019, the Glaswegian comic announced his poignant, provocative last tour The Sex Life of Bandages, in which he joked about the disease “Drooling has taken over my life,” he mused. “It’s so unattractive.” The Sydney Opera House date of the final tour was released as a film. Connolly explained how his condition is getting worse. “Nothing’s working,” he said, revealing that his condition is affecting his mood. “I’m having a bit of a sad time”. The comic has tried alternative treatments to curb symptoms of the brain disorder, which causes shaking, stiffness, affects balance and causes difficulty walking. Some research suggests Cannabis helps: “but I get bombed out of my head”, said Connolly on trying the remedy in Florida, where he now lives and there is a Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act. “I don’t like it. My daughter bought me cigarettes with CBD. It helped a little, but not enough to write home about.” Voted “most influential comedian of all time” in a 2012 poll, the comic also received a special recognition National Television Award in 2016, and was knighted in 2017.   

Tom Parker, 32, has shared on Instagram that since beginning radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment, he has been suffering from “bad” memory loss. The Wanted singer explained how the brutal hospital sessions have left him forgetting what he has “just done” throughout the day. Tom said: “As some of you know, I have been through chemo and radio, haven’t I? “Which was pretty god-damn brutal, but some of the side effects from the chemo and radio are you get bad memory loss.” He then asked his wife Kelsey Harwick: “Mine was already bad, wasn’t it? His spouse responded: “Horrendous already, so now I’m like… literally, it’s even worse!” Tom elaborated that he struggled to remember daily activities, but would sometimes recall “weird” things, such as a present he bought for his daughter Aurelia. He continued: “But it’s the weirdest thing because like, I’ll go to her [Kelsey], ‘What did I just do?’ But I can remember stuff like this…” Tom is best known for being in boyband The Wanted, who achieved fame in the early 2010s with singles including All Time Low and Glad You Came. 

Australian golfer Greg Norman is in hospital after suffering from coronavirus. The 65-year-old, who won two Open championships in 1986 and 1993, confirmed  on his Instagram page that he had been admitted to hospital on Christmas Day due to contracting Covid-19. The former professional golfer posted a picture from his hospital bed, along with a second image of a doctor standing behind a protective screen that showed Norman in isolation from other patients. Norman added: “This sums it all up. My Christmas Day. On behalf of millions, fuck CoVid. This get this shit behind us never to experience it again.” Several golfers sent their best wishes to Norman, with British trio Justin Rose, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter among those to wish the Australian golfing great a “speedy recovery”. Norman, who earned the nickname The Great White Shark, spent more than 300 weeks at the top of the world golf rankings, and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2001.  

Johnny Ruffo recently announced the heartbreaking news his brain cancer had returned after he experienced “an unexpected week of seizures and excruciating headaches.” The 32 year old former Home And Away actor kicks off another round of chemotherapy over the festive season. The actor and talented singer first battled the illness in 2017, and had since been given the all clear after brain surgery and multiple rounds of chemotherapy. Johnny wrote on social media “After an unexpected week of seizures and excruciating headaches it is with a heavy heart that i have to let you know i now have another huge battle ahead of me as my brain cancer has returned,”. He added: “though i will dig deep and beat this s*hit disease again #f***cancer.” The former X factor Australia’s doctors had actually discovered his first tumour by chance when he headed to hospital suffering from migraines. At the time, the star underwent life-saving surgery to have the 7cm tumour removed before undergoing chemotherapy and radiotherapy. 

On This Day

  • 537 – The construction of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople is completed. 
  • 1831 – Charles Darwin embarks on his journey aboard HMS Beagle, during which he will begin to formulate his theory of evolution.  
  • 1836 – The worst ever avalanche in England occurs at Lewes, Sussex, killing eight people.  
  • 1939 – The 7.8 Mw  Erzincan earthquake shakes eastern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). At least 32,700 people were killed.  
  • 2007 – Former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto is assassinated in a shooting incident.

Deaths

  • 1923 – Gustave Eiffel, French architect, co-designed the Eiffel Tower (b. 1832)  
  • 1958 – Harry Warner, Polish-American film producer, co-founded Warner Bros. (b. 1881)  
  • 1982 – Jack Swigert, American pilot, astronaut, and politician (b. 1931)  
  • 1994 – Fanny Cradock, English author and critic (b. 1909)  
  • 2003 – Alan Bates, English actor (b. 1934)  
  • 2007 – Benazir Bhutto, 11th Prime Minister of Pakistan (b. 1953) 
  • 2012 – Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., American general and engineer (b. 1934)  
  • 2016 – Carrie Fisher, American actress, screenwriter, author and producer (b. 1956)

Last Female on Death Row?

A ruling by a federal judge to delay the execution of the only woman on federal death row could push the new date into the early days of the administration of President-elect Joe Biden, who has said he would work to end federal capital punishment. The woman, Lisa Montgomery, had been scheduled to be executed the 8th of December, but that date was delayed after two of her lawyers tested positive for the coronavirus shortly after travelling to a federal prison in Texas to visit her in November. Should Montgomery’s life be spared as a result of the series of delays caused by the infection of her lawyers, it would be a rare reprieve for a prisoner from a virus that has swept through prisons, infecting inmates crammed into shared spaces.

But if the Department of Justice appeals the decision, a higher court would most likely overturn it. Since the Supreme Court paved the way for federal executions to proceed in June after a 17-year hiatus, the justices have been largely unreceptive to requests for reprieve from federal inmates scheduled for execution. The Justice Department had rescheduled her execution for January 12th, but Judge Randolph Moss of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled Thursday that the January execution date had been unlawfully rescheduled because a stay order, which was issued because of her lawyers’ illnesses, was still in effect. 

Montgomery, of Melvern, Kansas, was convicted in 2008 of killing Bobbie Jo Stinnett, who was 23 years old and eight months pregnant at the time, and cutting a baby from her abdomen. She tried to pass off Stinnett’s baby as her own before admitting to the crime. A jury convicted her of kidnapping resulting in death in federal court in Missouri.

Montgomery’s lawyers have said that she has severe mental illness, which was inherited from both of her parents and worsened by the abuse she endured as a child, including being sex-trafficked by her mother and gang-raped by men. 

Federal execution rules state that a prisoner will receive notice of his or her execution date at least 20 days in advance. However, when the rescheduled date is fewer than 20 days from the earlier execution date, the prisoner must be notified only “as soon as possible.” The stay in Montgomery’s case barred the government from executing her before December 31st. How long the government will wait to execute her after that point remains unclear. Once Biden is sworn in on January 20th, the chances of Montgomery’s execution become increasingly unlikely. Representatives for Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether he would intervene in Montgomery’s case should her execution fall under his purview. A spokesperson for the president-elect told us that Biden “opposes the death penalty now and in the future.”

If Montgomery is executed, it would be the first federal execution of a woman since 1953, when Bonnie Heady was killed in a gas chamber for the kidnapping and murder of a 6-year-old boy in Kansas City, Missouri. The Trump administration resumed federal executions in July for the first time since 2003.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Timothée Chalamet (25), Wilson Cruz (47), Gérard Depardieu (72), John Amos (81), Maryam d’Abo (60), Jared Leto (49), Kit Harington (34), Temuera Morrison (60), Shane Meadows (48), Phil Spector (81), Sissy Spacek (71), Helena Christensen (52), Annie Lennox (66), Nadiya Hussain (36), Anil Kapoor (64), Ricky Martin (49), Finn Wolfhard (18), Harry Shearer (77), Carla Bruni (53), Ralph Fiennes (58), Vanessa Paradis (48), Samuel L. Jackson (72), Jane Fonda (83), Kiefer Sutherland (54), Steven Yeun (37), Julie Delpy (51), and Michael Horse (71).

27th December 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 20th December 2020

Afternoon all. Now that Christmas has been cancelled you have even more time to think  about your list for 2021. Remember, you need to choose 13 names altogether; 1 Dead Cert,  1 Woman, and 1 Maverick (anyone under 50yo not expected to die). The rules can be seen if you click on this link. You can e-mail your submissions to mail@thedeadpool.rip With only 11 days to go, you better get your thinking caps on. Between eating sprouts and crying about not seeing your much despised siblings, the time will soon fly by. Tell all your friends if you have any!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Jeff Bridges has given fans an update on his health while he undergoes treatment for cancer. The 71-year-old actor revealed he had been diagnosed with Lymphoma in October. “Although it is a serious disease, I feel fortunate that I have a great team of doctors and the prognosis is good,” he wrote in a statement shared on Instagram. “I’m starting treatment and will keep you posted on my recovery,” he added. Now, Bridges has revealed that his treatment is progressing well and that he has shaved his head and bought a new puppy. On Monday, the Big Lebowski star uploaded a photograph of himself reclining on a chair on what appears to be the balcony of a beachfront flat. Dressed in a zip-up jumper, Bridges is pictured with a towel on his chest while his puppy lies on top. “Here’s the latest,” he wrote in the caption before listing a series of bullet points. “Feeling good, shaved my head, got a puppy – Monty, had a birthday – 71, man,” Bridges wrote. It’s not clear which type of lymphoma Bridges has, but around 15,000 people are diagnosed with a type of Hodgkin lymphoma in the UK each year.  

Johnny Knoxville and Steve-O have been sent to hospital after just two days of filming Jackass 4. The actors and stunt performers, known for their work on previous Jackass films, were reportedly jumping on a full speed treadmill while carrying “band equipment”, including a tuba, when they sustained injuries. Jackass star Bam Margera posted about the incident, saying in a video: “It’s the second day of filming Jackass already and Steve-O and Knoxville were hospitalised by jumping on a full-speed treadmill with band equipment – like a fucking tuba. So yeah, I’m here are the clinic now, taking a piss test. Rock’n’roll, oh yeah – I’ve got the scars too. Yeah man.” The fourth Jackass film was originally due to be released in cinemas next March, but has been pushed back until 2nd July 2021 because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Jackass 4 will be the first film involving the whole Jackass cast to be made since the death of cast member Ryan Dunn in 2011, at the age of 34. Earlier this year, Jackass 3D star Stevie Lee also died “unexpectedly” at the age of 54. Yeah, I was just as surprised as you that Jackass is still a thing, but I suppose if watching a bunch of 50 year olds doing stupid things was boring, Top Gear would have been cancelled years ago.  

Ian McKellen has become one of the first prominent public figures to receive the coronavirus vaccine, with the actor getting his injection at a London hospital on Wednesday. The 81-year-old McKellen said he felt “euphoric” after rolling up his wizards sleeve and receiving his first dose, which was made possible by meeting the criteria for Britain’s eligible groups. “I would have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone. It’s a very special day! Anyone who has lived as long as I have is alive because they have had previous vaccinations.” While technically older than the NHS, McKellen still remembered the impact that public health care had on his life, saying he “wouldn’t be alive if it hadn’t been for the NHS.” He went on to note that “we’re all equal under the vaccination.” He went on to ramble a bit and wanting to hug clinicians before he was returned to his home. Great British Baking Show judge and necklace icon Prue Leith, who is 80 years old, also received the coronavirus vaccine this week, allowing herself to be filmed and assuring people that it was a “painless jab.” Two excellent candidates for our game, possibly gambling with their futures if you are inclined to think that way? 

On This Day

  • 1924 – Adolf Hitler is released from Landsberg Prison. Despite being sentenced to five years, Hitler was granted early release and ended up only serving about nine months. Possibly the worst case of early release parole ever! 
  • 1946 – The popular Christmas film It’s a Wonderful Life is first released, concentrating on James Stewart’s real life PTSD and suicidal tendencies! Merry Xmas! 
  • 1955 – Cardiff is proclaimed the capital city of Wales. Yay! 
  • 1987 – In the worst peacetime sea disaster, the passenger ferry Doña Paz sinks after colliding with the oil tanker ‘MT Vector in the Tablas Strait of the Philippines, killing an estimated 4,000 people (1,749 official).  

Deaths

  • 1968 – John Steinbeck, American novelist and short story writer. (b. 1902)  
  • 1995 – Madge Sinclair, Jamaican-American actress (b. 1938)  
  • 1996 – Carl Sagan, American astronomer, astrophysicist, and cosmologist (b. 1934)  

Trump’s Legacy? 

Last Friday, child killer Alfred Bourgeois became the tenth inmate of 2020 to be executed by the federal government since the Trump administration ended a 17-year hiatus on executions earlier this year. An administration which has insisted it stands for law and order is doing all it can to bring ‘justice to victims of the most horrific crimes’ before Joe Biden, who has pledged to attempt to phase out capital punishment, takes over the reins on January 20th. Trump has scheduled more executions than any president for at least a century, after reinstating the death penalty in July. His administration has already carried out more than double the number of executions America had seen over the previous three decades. Not only that, in the last weeks of his presidency, Trump’s administration is encouraging officials to use execution methods that are widely condemned as barbaric. 

His Justice Department recently published new rules expanding permissible execution methods to include electrocution, poison gas, hanging and even death by firing squad if lethal injection is unfeasible or the necessary drugs are not available. The wording also suggests that if the state where the crime was committed does not have the death penalty, a judge can designate another state to carry out the execution. 

So many of Trump’s boasts — from his ‘record’ inauguration crowd to his ‘record’ economy — have proved to be hollow, but he looks certain to enter the record books for the number of executions he can pack into his last months in office. Most presidents spend this time finding people to pardon, but Trump — determined to execute ten people in a year, more than any president in this or the last century — seems set on doing the opposite. 

When convicted killer Orlando Hall was executed last month, it was the first federal execution during a ‘transition period’ between one president and the next since 1889.  

The federal system’s preferred execution method is lethal injection, usually by a dose of a cocktail of drugs that first sedates the prisoner and then stops the heart. However, a spate of cases of condemned prisoners apparently suffering in agony after being injected prompted the drugs’ makers to refuse to supply them and juries to be more hesitant about demanding the death penalty. The Trump administration has tried to get round drug shortages by using a single one — pentobarbital, a widely available sedative often used to euthanise pets — for executions, after all, what’s good enough for Fido is good enough for a rapist! Whatever the public’s misgivings about pentobarbital, they’re nothing on the widespread disgust among activists that the U.S. may now, once again, shoot, hang or electrocute people. 

Nine states still authorise the electric chair as an execution alternative, eleven permit lethal gas, while three have hanging and three have death by firing squad on their books. Death penalty experts say that given the locations of the current inmates of federal Death Row, the most likely of these gruesome alternatives to end up being used would be electrocution, as 17 prisoners committed their offences in states that have it as a back-up execution method. Lethal gas would be the next most likely. Oklahoma is the only firing squad state with prisoners on federal Death Row but it’s a last resort there, only to be used after the three other options have been ruled out.  

The U.S. remains the only country in the world to use the electric chair, but Tennessee is the only state that still uses ‘Old Sparky’ regularly. Since 2018, five men have died there, strapped to a wooden chair, a metal skullcap-shaped electrode covering the head and another electrode attached to an ankle. They are then given two lengthy jolts of 1,750 volts. Although death should be instantaneous, it is a notoriously grisly spectacle — sometimes with flames several feet long leaping from the condemned man’s mask-covered head as his over-heating body swells and turns bright red. Experts say it isn’t painless, chiefly because the current sends the muscles into uncontrollable and agonising spasms.

The firing-squad method started to be used in the mid-19th century. The convicted person is usually hooded and strapped to a chair, with a white cloth pinned over the heart which either five or eight riflemen must shoot at simultaneously. Up to three of the squad will be firing blanks so that none of them can be certain they discharged the fatal bullet. 

Lethal gas, allegedly a humane method, was first adopted by Nevada in 1922 and last used in 1999. The prisoner is seated inside an airtight room and hydrogen cyanide gas is pumped in. Again, unconsciousness and death should be painless, but witnesses have reported seeing eyes popping and skin turning purple. 

Opponents of capital punishment, who say that more than 70 per cent of the world’s countries have abolished the practice — including every close ally of the U.S. — had hoped America might soon follow suit. But it certainly won’t while Trump is in the White House. 

Trump’s enthusiasm for capital punishment is hardly new, going back at least as far as 1989, when five young black and Latino men were arrested for the vicious rape of a woman in New York’s Central Park. Mr Trump paid for a full-page advert in the New York Times that demanded ‘Bring Back The Death Penalty. Bring Back Our Police!’ In the event, the five served their prison sentences only to be exonerated after a fellow inmate confessed. 

There are currently 52 offenders on federal Death Row, most of them at Terre Haute, Indiana, each one crossing their fingers that they’ll be spared until Binden takes power in January. 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Jonah Hill (37), Jenny Agutter (68), Nicole de Boer (50), Lucy Pinder (37), Annie Murphy (34), Jake Gyllenhaal (40), Kristy Swanson (51), Alyssa Milano (48), Jennifer Beals (57), Richard Hammond (51), Sarah Paulson (46), Milla Jovovich (45), Katheryn Winnick (43), Eugene Levy (74), Bill Pullman (67), Laurie Holden (51), Ernie Hudson (75), Bernard Hill (76), Krysten Ritter (39), Miranda Otto (53), Billy Gibbons (71), Michelle Dockery (39), Don Johnson (71), Charlie Cox (38), Helen Slater (57), Garrett Wang (52), Vanessa Hudgens (32), Natascha McElhone (51), Miranda Hart (48), Ted Raimi (55), and Vicki Michelle (70).

20th December 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 13th December 2020

With a great sense of loss we had to say goodbye to Barbara Windsor at the good old age of 83, but for the following who listed her, a fantastic 67 points! Lee, Laura, Iwan, Nickie, Rachel, Ceri, Louise, Doug, Ron,  and Abigail. Well done all of you! But Debbie trumps you all as she had Babs down as her Woman, so 167 points! A round of applause for Debbie! Almost everyone has scored this year, apart from Stu and myself! I think both of us need to go back to the drawing board. I don’t know about you lot, but I was super surprised to learn that Chuck Yeager was still alive! 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

England Rugby World Cup winner Steve Thompson has been diagnosed with dementia at the age of 42. The former Northampton Saints and England hooker is part of a group of players taking legal action against the RFU over brain injuries they say were brought on from playing the game, obviously not taking any responsibility themselves. Thompson was part of the 2003 team that won the William Webb Ellis trophy after Jonny Wilkinson’s drop goal against Australia, but he says he no longer remembers anything about the tournament or the final itself. “I have no recollection of winning the World Cup in 2003, or of being in Australia for the tournament. Knowing what I know now, I wish that I had never turned professional,” he said. “It was not uncommon for me to be left dazed, seeing white spots and not knowing where I was for a few seconds, sometimes I would pass out completely. It was just an accepted part and parcel of training. I really wished that I had ended my career earlier, maybe my diagnosis might not be so bleak.” However, Matt Dawson, the 48 year old former England captain says he won’t be joining the negligence claim, even though he has been “worried for a while” about his cognitive functions. Speaking on the Rugby Union Weekly podcast, Dawson says it was his choice to play the game, and he “knew what he was getting into”. “No one forced me to do this,” he said. “In my era they acted with their best knowledge of the scenario. I don’t feel the game has let me down. The whole of my life is because I chose to play rugby, I’m a big boy, I made that decision. I picked my vocation and I will take the consequences, I’m owning up to them, I’m having them so I’ve got to deal with them.  

In another blatant disavowal of responsibility, Simon Cowell is reportedly considering legal action against the manufacturers of his electric bike after breaking his back in a terrifying accident back in August which was by no means his own fault. The TV mogul, 61, and his team are said to be ‘weighing up’ legal options and have been ‘pressing’ the manufacturers, Swindon Powertrain. One lawyer claimed that a successful lawsuit could see Simon get up to £10million for medical bills and loss of earnings!! It comes as a whistleblower from the manufacturers reportedly claimed the £20,000 electric bike an ‘accident waiting to happen’ due to Simon’s lack of training. The former employee claimed the Swind EB-01 bike, which can reach up to 60mph and is banned on public roads in the UK, should not be used without specialist training. Simon broke his back in August after falling from his electric bike, leaving him forced to undergo a six-hour surgery to try and fix the injuries. The accident occurred when the powerful machine ‘flew up in the air and did an accidental wheelie’ after he tired to change gears. The music boss is thought to have been ‘surprised by the power’ of the bike and knew immediately that he ‘was in trouble’ even though he knew he bought a 60mph super-electric bike! Following the accident, Simon tweeted: ‘Some good advice… If you buy an electric trail bike, read the manual before you ride it for the first time.’ More or less admitting he’s a knob. Thankfully his recent injuries and ongoing recovery saw him sit out of the resumed 2020 series of Britain’s Got Talent after it returned following England’s first lockdown.

Linda Nolan, 61, has addressed her health concerns after being diagnosed with cancer during the coronavirus pandemic. The Nolans band member has been battling the disease at the same time as her sister Anne Nolan, 70. Linda and Anne were diagnosed within days of each other, with Anne suffering from breast cancer and Linda with secondary cancer. Linda opened up after receiving a warning from her doctors saying that if she contracts Covid or the flu this winter she “will die”, as her immune system is depleted from chemotherapy. “That’s what me and my sister Anne were told, we will die because we have nothing to fight it with, because chemotherapy depletes your immune system.” Linda then took the opportunity to encourage those who are in the same position as her to get the free flu jab this year to protect themselves. She added: “So it is vitally important that you get the jab and the thing is it’s so easy, it takes 10 minutes out of your day.” The star divulged: “I’ve finished my chemo and I’ve had some scans and I’m actually getting the results of them soon. So fingers crossed the chemo’s worked and we get good news. I feel okay, I get tired, and both Anne and I are suffering with neuropathic pain in our fingers and feet, my feet are really bad actually. It doesn’t even describe it because it’s 10 times worse than ordinary pins and needles. But apart from that we’re okay, we’re doing well.”

On This Day

  • 1577 – Sir Francis Drake sets sail from Plymouth, England, on his round-the-world voyage. 
  • 1972 – Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt begin the third and final EVA or “Moonwalk” of Apollo 17. To date they are the last humans to set foot on the Moon.
  • 2003 – Iraq War: Operation Red Dawn: Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is captured near his home town of Tikrit.  

Deaths

Festive Murders

It is supposed to be a season of goodwill and celebrating, a time to relax with the family. However for some, Christmas can be a great time to murder a relative or two just like Justin Lee Klopp who hacked his wife to death on Christmas Day – hitting her repeatedly in the head with an axe and cutting her throat with the chopper after an argument. Klopp had been married to Stephanie Kilhefner, 34, for three years when he turned to murder. After the brutal slaughter he wrapped her body in a bag, put it in an outbuilding and took their two children to his parents to celebrate Christmas. The children, aged five and two, were marking the holiday with their grandparents when he phoned police to confess to the killing. He later hanged himself in prison. 

Bruce Pardo, 45, killed nine people including his ex wife after going on the rampage dressed as Santa Claus with four handguns and a flame-thrower at a Christmas Eve party. A recording of a woman caught in the conflict calling police, revealed her saying: “He’s shooting my whole family. My mum’s house is on fire.” She goes on: “We need someone immediately. My daughter’s been shot. She was shot in the face.” Former aerospace engineer Pardo had recently gone through a bitter divorce with ex-wife Sylvia, 43, who died alongside her parents and three of her four siblings. He later shot himself dead.  

It took more than two decades for the murder of Ed, 81, and 83-year-old Minnie Maurin to be solved. The couple’s dead bodies were found in woodland on Christmas Eve 1985 after they had been shot dead. Their surviving children had worked tirelessly to find their killers, and finally got justice for their parents in 2012. The  couple were reported missing on 19th December and found five days later. It transpired they had been kidnapped and driven to a cash point by Rick and his now dead brother, John Riffe, and forced to withdraw $8500 in cash. They were then forced to drive to a rural road, shot inside their car and dragged into woodland. It is believed many witnesses remained quiet after seeing the brothers for fear of retribution from the pair, who were known drug dealers. The Riffe brothers did not know the elderly couple but targeted them because they were wealthy. Two of the couple’s surviving children got to see the killers of their parents brought to justice.    

In 2011 Aziz Yazdanpanah is believed to have killed seven members of his own family while dressed in a Santa suit. He targeted his family, which included his children and his wife, just after they had opened their presents and then turned the gun on himself. It is believed Yazdanpanah turned up at the apartment in the morning because he hadn’t been invited to the party, after separating from his wife in March of that year. Ho Ho Ho! 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Steve Buscemi (63), Jamie Foxx (53), Christopher Plummer (91), Dick Van Dyke (95), Taylor Swift (31), Tony Curran (51), Robert Lindsay (71), Jennifer Connelly (50), Mädchen Amick (50), Bill Nighy (71), Sarah Douglas (68), Kenneth Cranham (76), Ben Browder (58), Kenneth Branagh (60), John Malkovich (67), Judi Dench (86), Beau Bridges (79), Michael Dorn (68), Donny Osmond (63), Kim Basinger (67), Teri Hatcher (56), Dominic Monaghan (44), Nicki Minaj (38), Jennifer Carpenter (41), Ellen Burstyn (88), C. Thomas Howell (54), Jeffrey Wright (55), and Kristofer Hivju (42).

13th December 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 6th December 2020

A quiet week on the deaths front, plus a bad week if you co-founded a major chain of  restaurants. Apologies for the briefness of this weeks newsletter, I’ve been a bit busy and there’s been a lack of worthy deadly news. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Everyone’s favourite tax dodger, Lewis Hamilton, is “not great”, according to Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, as the F1 world champion battles with ‘mild’ symptoms of coronavirus. Hamilton was ruled out of this weekend’s Sakhir Grand Prix earlier this week after testing positive for Covid-19 and has been self-isolating ever since. His Mercedes seat has been taken up by fellow Briton George Russell, the young Williams driver, who was the fastest man in Bahrain during Friday practice, which makes you wonder if it’s talent or machine that makes a winner. “He is not great,” Wolff said. Covid-19 is something you mustn’t take lightly and he is in safe hands. That is the most important. But it is those early days that are always not so nice.” He added: “Mild symptoms and then obviously, as you can imagine, a race driver out of his car and combine it with Covid, he would rather sit in there [the team garage].” I think the rest of us would rather he paid the £3.3m in tax he owes from buying his own private jet for £16.5m amongst other dodges he’s thought to have made.  

Staying in the world of F1, I’m sure most of you would have seen the amazing scenes as Romain Grosjean suffered a work related accident. Grosjean’s accident at Bahrain was horrific. His Haas car crashed at 137mph, with an impact force of 53G. It split in two and speared through the metal barriers. The halo cockpit protection device had been decisive in keeping him alive but he was swiftly engulfed in a huge fireball. Incredibly, he ultimately escaped with only burns to his hands. On Friday, Grosjean related how time appeared to slow down for him as the events, which lasted 28 seconds, unfolded. He had undone his seatbelt, and attempted to extricate himself from the wreckage but could not do so. “I sat back down and then thought about Niki Lauda, his accident, thought it couldn’t end like this, it couldn’t be my last race, couldn’t finish like this. No way,” he said. “I tried again and I’m stuck. So I go back and then there is the less pleasant moment where my body starts to relax. I am at peace with myself and I am going to die. I ask the question: ‘Is it going to burn my shoes or my hand? Is it going to be painful? Where is it going to start?’. To me, that felt like two, three, four seconds. I guess it was milliseconds at the time. Then I think about my kids and they cannot lose their dad today.” The 34-year-old tried again and, finally able to raise himself, had to push up and out of the twisted metal. As Grosjean climbed from the car he was helped by the occupants of the medical car. taken to hospital, he was examined and discharged on Wednesday. “What is the hardest is not what I went through but what I put people through: my family, my parents, my wife and kids, my friends,” he said. “For two minutes 43 seconds they thought their friend, their father and husband was dead and that is what makes me cry, that I made people suffer to that extent.” 

On This Day

  • 1897 – London becomes the world’s first city to host licensed taxicabs.  
  • 1917 – Halifax Explosion: A munitions explosion near Halifax, Nova Scotia kills more than 1,900 people in the largest artificial explosion up to that time.  
  • 1953 – Vladimir Nabokov completes his controversial novel Lolita.  

Deaths

Last Week’s Birthdays

Noel Clarke (45), Nick Park (62), Andrew Flintoff (43), Frankie Muniz (35), Jeff Bridges (71), Marisa Tomei (56), Tony Todd (66), Tyra Banks (47), Pamela Stephenson (71), Jay-Z (51), Amanda Seyfried (35), Brendan Fraser (52), Julianne Moore (60), Daryl Hannah (60), Holly Marie Combs (47), Jean-Luc Godard (90), Ozzy Osbourne (72), Lucy Liu (52), Britney Spears (39), Nelly Furtado (42), Bette Midler (75), Woody Allen (85), Emily Mortimer (49), Sarah Silverman (50), Riz Ahmed (38), Elisha Cuthbert (38), Ridley Scott (83), Ben Stiller (55), Richard Brake (56), and Mandy Patinkin (68).

6th December 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 29th November 2020

Welcome all, let us begin with dishing out some points! Congratulations to Abigail for  correctly guessing that Darth Vader himself would finally succumb and truly pass to the Dark Side! 65 points!! Which makes it intensely interesting at the top of the table. 

Seeing that we only have a month to go, I decided to do some housekeeping. I went through all of your lists and found that I have missed a few deaths, so here’s some belated points! Trish gets 49 points for the passing of Marge Champion back in October; Iwan gets 57 points for the demise of Geoffrey Palmer in early November and Dave J. gets 50 points for the death of Javier Perez De Cuellar back in March! Well done everyone!!!

You now have just over FOUR weeks to work on your 2021 lists, but knowing you lot, half of you will be rushing to get them done at New Years Eve. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Remember the chap who lead you all like a Judas Sheep to slaughter to dump a bucket of cold water over your head for charity? Well, his name was Patrick Quinn, he was one of the men responsible for driving the insanely popular Ice Bucket Challenge fundraising campaign, has died on Sunday morning aged 37. Quinn, a New Yorker, was diagnosed with the incurable neurological disease  amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in 2013. His viral campaign raised $220m (£163m) for ALS research. The Ice Bucket Challenge did not begin with Quinn, but he and his family and friends helped it become a global social media phenomenon in the summer of 2014. To complete the challenge, people would dump a bucket of ice water over their heads and post the video to social media, challenging others to do the same or make a donation to ALS research. Most people didn’t get the idea of the challenge, they donated money and did the challenge, that’s how idiotic the genre populace is. The challenge drew high-profile participants like former President George W Bush, Oprah Winfrey, Lady Gaga and even the twunt Donald Trump, although I never saw that video and I wonder how his wig took the punishment, and one wonders how he took part in a charitable event as he hasn’t got one decent charitable atom in his whole blobby body!  

Although not famous enough for our purposes, John Gilbert Getty, grandson of J. Paul Getty and heir to an oil fortune has been found dead. The 52-year-old heir was found dead in a hotel room in Texas, according to reports. Apparently “John was a talented musician who loved rock and roll. He will be deeply missed.” Getty is said to have been found unresponsive in a hotel room in San Antonio, Texas, on Friday. His death was not believed to be suspicious, but the cause is yet to be confirmed. Getty’s death is one of several tragedies to recently befall the family – his mother Ann died in September and his older brother Andrew died of a gastrointestinal haemorrhage in 2015. Andrew was also found to have a toxic level of methamphetamine in his system at the time of his death. In the same year, Forbes ranked the Getty family as the 56th richest in America with a $5.4bn (£4bn) fortune. Looks like billions of dollars doesn’t help keep you alive.  

Again, not famous enough for our use, rapper 21 Savage wrote a heartbreaking tribute to his British brother who was stabbed to death on a south London estate. Terrell Davis – a 27-year-old drill rapper known as TM1way – was killed on the Blenheim Gardens estate in Brixton. He had been taking some shopping to his grandmother when he got into an argument with an old friend, who suddenly lunged forward and stabbed him, a family source said. Don’t you wish you had friends like that? Mr Davis and 21 Savage – who was born in Plaistow, east London before emigrating to the US as a child – have the same father, Kevin Emmons. The Grammy-award winning artist wrote on Instagram: ‘Can’t believe somebody took you baby bro. I know I took my anger out on you I wish I could take that shit back.’ He also posted a picture of him and his brother as young boys – as well as a series of more-recent images of Mr Davis. The source said: ‘They are brothers. They used to speak on the phone quite a bit and on WhatsApp. I don’t think Savage has been back to Britain for a while because he’s had some legal problems in the US.’   

A 93-year-old woman who at 88 was the oldest competitor in the 2016 London Marathon has died. Iva Barr, from Bedford, was a member of Bedford Harriers Athletics Club from its early days and ran marathons for “30-odd years”. She took part in the first London Marathon in 1981 and only stopped running a few years ago. The club said she “encouraged and was an inspiration to many of our older and younger runners” and would be missed. The 2016 London run was her 20th marathon and afterwards she confirmed it had been her last. She tackled the first 14 miles before taking the Underground to Westminster, and walked the final part to the finish at The Mall. At the time she said she would “never forget” her final attempt, despite not quite completing the route. “I rather wanted to go out in a blaze of glory,” she said. “That didn’t happen, but I still had a great day.” Ms Barr was not the oldest person to have ever taken part in a London Marathon. Fauja Singh, from Ilford, east London, ran in the event in 2012 at the age of 101 and was believed to be the world’s oldest marathon runner when he completed the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in 2011. 

On This Day

  • 1781 – The crew of the British slave ship Zong murders 133 Africans by dumping them into the sea to claim insurance.   
  • 1877 – Thomas Edison demonstrates his phonograph for the first time. 
  • 1972 – Atari releases Pong, the first commercially successful video game.  

Deaths

  • 1872 – Mary Somerville, Scottish astronomer, mathematician, and author (b. 1780)
  • 1924 – Giacomo Puccini, Italian composer and educator (b. 1858)  
  • 1975 – Graham Hill, English race car driver and businessman (b. 1929)  
  • 1981 – Natalie Wood, American actress (b. 1938)  
  • 1986 – Cary Grant, English-American actor (b. 1904)  
  • 2001 – George Harrison, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and former Beatle (b. 1943)  

 Last Meals

Natalie Wood was an American actress who began her career in film as a child actor and successfully transitioned to young adult roles. She was the recipient of four Golden Globes, and received three Academy Award nominations. She starred in a host of well known films in the 60’s & 70’s, including Miracle on 34th Street, Rebel Without a Cause, The Searchers, West Side Story and many more. 

During the 1970s, Wood began a hiatus from film and had a child with husband Robert Wagner, whom she had previously married and divorced. 

Wood famously drowned off Catalina Island on November 29th, 1981, at age 43. She died in mysterious circumstances during the making of Brainstorm while on a weekend boat trip to Catalina Island on board Wagner’s yacht Splendour. Outside of drowning, many of the circumstances are unknown; it was never determined how she entered the water. 

Wood was with her husband Robert Wagner, Brainstorm co-star Christopher Walken, and Splendour‘s captain Dennis Davern on that evening. Shortly after docking their boat, at Avalon Harbor on Catalina Island, Wood, Wagner and their guest Walken went ashore to do some shopping. Later that evening, the threesome ate dinner together in the dining room of Doug’s Harbor Reef Restaurant. The meal would be Natalie’s last. Although what they ate is a mystery, they did consume two bottles of Soave Bolla wine, Margaritas, a joint and Quaaludes. 

From Davern’s witness statement he stated that the mood was tense when thy returned to the Splendour. A bottle of wine was opened after Wood lit some candles. Shortly after a conversation began between Wood and Walken, Wagner grabbed the open wine bottle and with rage crashed it upon the coffee table and screamed out to Walken, “Do you want to fuck my wife, is that what you want?” The glass shattered throughout the salon. After the bottle smashing, Walken retreated to his cabin and closed the cabin door. He remained there until morning. Wood was mortified and went immediately to the master bedroom. Wagner followed her within minutes, and then a terrible argument proceeded. Davern knocked on their bedroom door from the main salon to try to calm the situation. Wagner answered to tell him to go away and to not interfere. The loud arguing continued and Davern heard things (objects, possibly people) hitting the walls and things being thrown at the ceiling of the master bedroom, directly beneath where he stood.  

Next, Wagner and Wood were on the open back deck arguing loudly. By then it was 11:00p.m. The arguing sounded fast and furious. The only full sentence Davern could completely decipher during the entire argument was “Get off my fucking boat” said by Wagner. Davern was terribly concerned but waited about 15 minutes before going to the deck. When he arrived on the rear open deck, only Wagner was present, and he stood near the far rear wall of the yacht. Wagner appeared sweaty, flushed, anxious, nervous, and disheveled. He told Davern “Natalie is missing” and asked him to search the yacht. He immediately went to Walken’s cabin and opened his door. He appeared to be sound asleep. He then went to the bedroom, but it was empty. He met up with Wagner in the wheelhouse and he informed Davern the dinghy was missing, too. Davern immediately wanted to radio for help and to turn on the searchlight, but Wagner told him, sternly, “We are not going to do that. We will wait and see if she returns.” His choice led Davern to presume that he knew his wife was in the dinghy and had taken off in it. While they waited, Wagner opened a bottle of scotch and discussed with Davern the repercussions of bringing any immediate attention to the situation and Wagner claimed he did not want to tarnish his image. After an hour passed, Wagner began crying and repeated, “She’s gone, she’s gone, she’s gone” which Davern believed a strange thing to say. Over two hours passed before Davern finally convinced Wagner to make a call for help.

Natalie Wood was found floating facedown at 7:45 a.m., a mile away from the boat, with a small Valiant-brand inflatable dinghy beached nearby. The autopsy report revealed that  she had bruises on her body and arms, as well as an abrasion on her left cheek, but no indication as to how or when the injuries occurred. 

In his memoir Pieces of My Heart, Wagner admitted that he had an argument with Wood before she disappeared. The autopsy found that Wood’s blood alcohol content was 1.4% and that there were traces of a motion-sickness pill and a painkiller in her bloodstream, both of which increase the effects of alcohol. 

At the time, Los Angeles County coroner Thomas Noguchi ruled the cause of her death to be accidental drowning and hypothermia. According to Noguchi, Wood had been drinking and she may have slipped while trying to re-board the dinghy. Her sister Lana expressed doubts, alleging that Wood could not swim and had been “terrified” of water all her life, and that she would never have left the yacht on her own by dinghy. 

In 2011, the Los Angeles County Chief Coroner amended Wood’s death certificate and changed the cause of death from accidental drowning to “drowning and other undetermined factors”. The addendum stated that Wood might have sustained some of the bruises on her body before she went into the water, but that this could not be definitively determined, however the bruises were substantial and fitting for someone who had been thrown out of a boat. 

One thing is for certain, we will never find out what truly happened aboard the Splendour that fateful evening, unless we gat a deathbed confession from Wagner, whom at the age of 90 might be sooner than you think. 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Gemma Chan (38), Diane Ladd (85), Don Cheadle (56), Tom Sizemore (59), Jeff Fahey (68), Gena Lee Nolin (49), Karen Gillan (33), Ed Harris (70), Ryan Kwanten (44), Judd Nelson (61), Martin Clunes (59), Jon Stewart (58), Armando Iannucci (57), Sharlto Copley (47), Robin Givens (56), Bill Nye (65), Kristin Bauer van Straten (54), Mark Margolis (81), Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson (32), Rita Ora (30), Tina Turner (81), Christina Applegate (49), John Larroquette (73), Bruno Tonioli (65), Katherine Heigl (42), Sarah Hyland (30), Shirley Henderson (55), Colin Hanks (43), Stephen Merchant (46), Denise Crosby (63), Billy Connolly (78), Dwight Schultz (73), Conleth Hill (56), Ricky Whittle (39), Miley Cyrus (28), and Michelle Gomez (54). 

29th November 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 22nd November 2020

If you thought you were big and tough and Covid wasn’t going to get you, today I can share that a 34yo contender to be the Worlds Strongest Man died of the virus. So it doesn’t matter how tough you think you are, everyone is still a target. So with that in mind and that the vaccine is still a few months away for most of us, you have less than 6 weeks to come up with a list of potentials who are still friends with Donald Trump for instance. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

A French stuntman famous for airborne feats using jetpacks and carbon-fibre wing packs has been killed in an inevitable training accident in Dubai. Vincent Reffet was part of the company Jetman Dubai. The 36-year-old went viral for flights over the Gulf city’s waterfront and the Alps. A statement said Reffet died “during training in Dubai” but did not give any further details. An investigation into his death is now under way and is expected to disclose that he went splat on the ground somehow. “Vince was a talented athlete, and a much-loved and respected member of our team. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and all those who knew and worked with him.” Reffet was the child of skydivers and had performed numerous stunts throughout his career, including BASE-jumping off the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. Reffet’s exploits often went viral on social media, including one occasion when he jumped from a mountain into a moving plane!    

My apologies beforehand, there’s a lot of Bobby’s in this tale. Bobby Brown’s son, Bobby Brown Jr, has died aged 28 – five years after the singer lost his daughter Bobbi Kristina and eight years after the death of her mother Whitney Huston. Bobby Jr was the half-brother of Bobby’s daughter with Whitney Houston, Bobbi, who passed away aged 22, in 2015. Bobby Jr was reportedly found dead at his home, cause of death is yet to be established but foul play is not suspected, so we can rule out Bobby Brown offing his family one by one. However, going from family history, we can suspect drowning and/or toxic levels of alcohol and cocaine to be a factor in his death. Bobby Jr is one of Bobby Brown’s seven children, most likely they are also called Bobby. He was involved in the family’s reality show on Bravo – Being Bobby Brown – when he was 13, starring alongside Bobbi Kristina. Bobby Jr’s mother is Kim Ward, who had dated Bobby for 11 years on and off, before he sparked a relationship with Whitney, leading to them getting engaged. 

If you thought Wipeout was just a bit of fun and games, think again! An unidentified male Wipeout contestant died shortly after completing the show’s obstacle course. “We are devastated to have learned of his passing and our deepest sympathy goes out to the family,” a TBS spokesperson said in a statement. Apparently, he contestant suffered an undisclosed medical emergency on the show’s Santa Clarita set and was being treated by on-site medical personnel before being taken to the hospital, where he ultimately died. In order to participate in the show, contestants must pass a medical examination in order to proceed, so a death on-set was very unexpected. Hosted by John Cena, Nicole Byer, and Camille Kostek, Wipeout is a TBS reboot of the original, which ran for seven seasons on ABC between 2008 and 2014. The show’s official description reads, ”Each game is three rounds, with each round featuring a jaw-dropping, multi-stage obstacle course with numerous strategy and decision points designed to further challenge the stamina of the competitors and deliver hilarious and surprising wipeouts. And of course, the iconic staple of the show—the big balls!”

On This Day

  • 1307 – Pope Clement V issues the papal bull Pastoralis Praeeminentiae which instructed all Christian monarchs in Europe to arrest all Knights Templar and seize their assets.   
  • 1963 – U.S. President John F. Kennedy is assassinated. 
  • 1977 – British Airways inaugurates a regular London to New York City supersonic Concorde service.  
  • 1986 – Mike Tyson from Brooklyn, New York becomes the youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history at age 20. 
  • 1990 – British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher withdraws from the Conservative Party leadership election, confirming the end of her Prime-Ministership. The world rejoices!  
  • 2005 – Angela Merkel becomes the first female Chancellor of Germany.

Deaths

  • 1718 – Blackbeard, English pirate (b. 1680)  
  • 1963 – Aldous Huxley, English novelist and philosopher (b. 1894) 
  • 1963 – John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States (b. 1917) 
  • 1963 – C. S. Lewis, British writer, critic and Christian apologist (b. 1898)   
  • 1980 – Mae West, American actress, singer, and screenwriter (b. 1893)  
  • 1986 – Scatman Crothers, American actor and comedian (b. 1910)  
  • 1993 – Anthony Burgess, English novelist, playwright, and critic (b. 1917)  
  • 1996 – Mark Lenard, American actor (b. 1924)  
  • 1997 – Michael Hutchence, Australian singer-songwriter (b. 1960)  

 Last Meals

On the last night of his life, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, dined on Chicken Virginia, bread rolls, green beans and pumpkin pie. The meal was simple because the chefs from the Rice Hotel didn’t have the correct equipment for an elaborate dinner for 3200 covers at the Sam Huston Coliseum for the testimonial dinner JFK was residing over. Once done, he and his entourage boarded Air Force One on a flight  to Fort Worth. On arrival at 11:35pm, despite the late time and rainy weather, the President and Mrs. Kennedy take some time to shake hands with well-wishers gathered outside the hotel before retiring to their assigned suite (Room 850) for the night.

On the morning of November 22nd, 1963, JFK ate breakfast in his room at the Hotel Texas in Fort Worth. According to the hotel’s executive chef, Otto Druhe, he served the president “coffee, orange juice, two boiled  (five-minute) eggs, some toast, and marmalade on the side.” Nothing too substantial as President Kennedy was scheduled to deliver a speech and share a steak luncheon with local government, business, religious, and civic leaders and their spouses at the Trade Mart in downtown Dallas at 1pm, however unbeknownst to him, he would never make it.  

What happened next is indelibly etched on everyones mind, even if you weren’t born yet. At 12:29 p.m. CST, the presidential limousine entered Dealey Plaza after a 90-degree right turn from Main Street onto Houston Street. Over two dozen known and unknown amateur and professional still and motion-picture photographers captured the last living images of President Kennedy. Witnesses recalled the shooting occurred shortly after the limousine made the sharp left-hand turn from Houston onto Elm Street. Most of the witnesses thought that the first shot was fired after the president had started waving with his right hand. Several onlookers recalled hearing at least three shots, with the second and third shots bunched distinctly much closer together than the first and second shots. The assassination complete the limousine began speeding up, Mrs. Kennedy was heard to scream “I have his brains in my hand!” The limousine driver and police motorcycles turned on their sirens and raced at high speeds to Parkland Hospital, passing their intended destination of the Dallas Trade Mart along the way, and arriving at about 12:38 p.m, unfortunately, way too late for Kennedy. 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Scarlett Johansson (36), Jamie Lee Curtis (62), Mads Mikkelsen (55), Mark Ruffalo (53), Michael Kenneth Williams (54), Terry Gilliam (80), Goldie Hawn (75), Alexander Siddig (55), Björk (55), Liza Tarbuck (56), Sean Young (61), Ming-Na Wen (57), Bo Derek (64), Joe Biden (78), Jerry Hardin (91), Jodie Foster (58), Meg Ryan (59), Adam Driver (37), Terry Farrell (57), Robert Beltran (67), Chloë Sevigny (46), Owen Wilson (52), Linda Evans (78), Delroy Lindo (68), Alan Moore (67), Rachel McAdams (42), Tom Ellis (42), Martin Scorsese (78), Danny DeVito (76), Sophie Marceau (54), Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (62), RuPaul (60), Jonathan Ross (60), Missi Pyle (48), Maggie Gyllenhaal (43), Martha Plimpton (50), and Gigi Edgley (43).

22nd November 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 15th November 2020

A quiet week for famous deaths, but the ones that did die have thrown quite a few points  towards us. With he passing of Alex Trebek I can award 70 points to Doug, Abigail, Lee, and Paula; Laura steals 170 points for listing him as her Cert. In addition I can dole out 62 points to Gwenan for correctly guessing that Des O’Conner would sadly die this year. Plus, with the joyful demise of Peter Sutcliffe, only Nickie scores 76 points as he hurtles towards hell! The league table looks very interesting at the top end, several of you could easily win this year! I must remind you that causing the deaths of any of your listed celebrities will result in a disqualification. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

McFly star Dougie Poynter took a “lethal dosage” of Valium after feeling responsible for the band splitting up. Poynter found himself struggling without McFly despite being the one who suggested they come to an end in 2016. The musician, who attempted suicide in 2011, relapsed after falling out with his bandmates and friends Tom Fletcher, Danny Jones and Harry Judd. Speaking in new documentary McFly: It’s All About Us, Poynter said: “On the one hand, I felt inspired because friends in LA would take me to see other bands and stuff. “On the other hand, I was like, ‘But my band’s broken and it’s all my fault’.” Poynter said that “Valium was a way of just making all that disappear”. Fletcher, Jones and Judd soon realised that Poynter was “taking something”, with Judd saying: “He sort of told me what he’d been taking – he was like, at that lethal dosage”. In an attempt to repair their friendship, Poynter asked his bandmates to join him at group therapy. Judd acknowledged that, while there may have been hard feelings initially, “we realised Dougie did nothing wrong – and that’s the biggest lesson from all this”. Speaking about being a part of McFly, Poynter, who won I’m a Celebrity in 2011, said: “It’s all I really know and all I really want to know.”      

Jesy Nelson has sparked further concern this week after pulling out of two big Little Mix events with ill health. The ‘talented’ 29-year-old singer is feared to have secretly quit the group by worried fans who received their copies of the band’s new album missing her signature. While Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall had all signed the special copies of Confessi, Jesy’s distinctive handwriting had been left off the cover. Fans were quick to point out Jesy has recently been unwell, so may not have been with her bandmates during the signing session. Little Mix’s rep told Mirror Online: “We’re not making any further comment on Jesy currently for private medical reasons.” It comes after Jesy pulled out of last Friday’s Little Mix: The Search final after falling ill. She also turned down Sunday’s MTV EMA, leaving her three co-stars to host the virtual event instead. Last week fans thought Jesy looked “over it” in a since-deleted Little Mix video promoting their sixth studio album. While Leigh-Anne, Jade and Perrie were full of beans speaking about Confetti, Jesy was seen rolling her eyes and looking downbeat. Just hours after the video vanished from the band’s socials, a Little Mix rep said: “Jesy is unwell and will not be appearing on tonight’s final of Little Mix The Search. “She will also not be hosting or performing at tomorrow’s MTV EMA’s.” No further information was given about Jesy’s condition.   

Sinéad O’Connor is entering a year-long rehab program following “a very traumatic six years.” In a Twitter-thread on Tuesday announcing the postponement of her shows originally scheduled for next year to 2022, the 53-year-old singer-songwriter revealed to fans that she’ll be seeking treatment for “trauma and addiction.” Declaring that “recovery starts now,” the “Nothing Compares 2 U” singer wrote that “this year was the end” of her trauma and suffering. O’Connor, reflecting on the struggles she has faced, revealed that this year she lost someone “beloved,” which cause her to “become briefly addicted to a drug other than weed.” O’Connor explained she has been addicted to marijuana for 34 years, which she called a “lifetime.” The Grammy winner also revealed that “the last year has been very traumatic” as one of her children – she’s mom to sons Jake, 32, Roisin, 25, and Shane, 15 – was “unwell.” O’Connor did not detail that scenario, though she confirmed that her child “is thriving now.” “I grew up with a lot of trauma and abuse. I then went straight into the music business. And never learned really how to make a normal life,” she wrote. “Never took proper time to heal. Wasn’t ready to either.” Asking fans to be “supportive and understanding,” she encouraged them to hold onto their tickets, promising that she will “be back with a new album and tour.” She apologized “to anyone this causes inconvenience to.” She also requested that her music business partners support her in “taking this step toward making a life I am happy in. So that we can all make some money !!!” 

On This Day

  • 1943 – German SS leader Heinrich Himmler orders that Gypsies are to be put “on the same level as Jews and placed in concentration camps”.
  • 1949 – Nathuram Godse and Narayan Apte are executed for assassinating Mahatma Gandhi.  
  • 1971 – Intel releases the world’s first commercial single-chip microprocessor, the 4004.

Deaths

Last Meals

Bobby Wayne Woods was an American convicted murderer, kidnapper and rapist executed by the state of Texas for the murder and rape of 11-year-old Sarah Patterson in 1997.  

A seventh-grade dropout, Woods was so illiterate that he had to refer to a spelling list just to write simple notes to his family. He had IQ scores of 80 and 78 during elementary school. His IQ score right before his murder trial was 70, and another in 2002 returned 68. Woods also worked as a short-order cook and roofer. 

In the early morning of April 30th 1997, Woods went to the home of his ex-girlfriend, Schwana Patterson, 35, who had had kicked him out a few days earlier. Her two children, 11-year-old Sarah and 9-year-old Cody, were sleeping inside. Woods crawled through an open window into the children’s bedroom. He grabbed Sarah’s foot and began beating her chest, then sexually molested her. Woods then forced both children to leave through the window in their nightclothes, put them in his car, and drove to a cemetery. There, he beat and stomped Cody on the head and strangled him. With Cody left for dead, Woods drove away with Sarah and found a secluded area where he raped her and cut her throat, resulting in her death. Cody survived and managed to raise the alarm. 

Based on Cody’s statement, police found Woods and asked him where Sarah was, hoping to find her alive. Woods answered, “You will not find her alive. I cut her throat.” He then led them to her body.

Because the Woods case was heavily reported in Dallas-area media, Woods’s trial was held in Llano, Texas. During his trial Woods admitted to kidnapping Patterson’s children and beating Cody Patterson unconscious. A psychologist representing the defence testified that Woods was mentally retarded and was not a threat to society. In response, a psychiatrist representing prosecution testified that Woods was not mentally retarded and could commit future violent crimes. 

Woods received a 40-year sentence for the abduction and assault of Cody Patterson and was sentenced to death for Sarah Patterson’s rape and murder. Schwana Patterson was also tried on charges of child neglect and was found guilty. She was sentenced to 23 years in prison.   

Prior to his execution, Woods last meal consisted of two chicken fried steaks, two fried chicken breasts, three fried pork chops, two hamburgers with lettuce, tomato, onion and salad dressing, four slices of bread, half a pound of fried potatoes with onion, half a pound of onion rings with ketchup, half a pan of chocolate cake with icing and two pitchers of milk. 

Woods was executed by lethal injection at 6:48 p.m. local time on December 3, 2009 in the Huntsville Unit state prison. His final words were “Bye. I’m ready.”

Last Week’s Birthdays

Jonny Lee Miller (48), Edward Asner (91), Beverly D’Angelo (69), Petula Clark (88), Olga Kurylenko (41), Russell Tovey (39), Sandahl Bergman (69), Paul McGann (61), Gerard Butler (51), Whoopi Goldberg (65), John de Lancie (72), Jimmy Kimmel (53), Anne Hathaway (38), Ryan Gosling (40), Gustaf Skarsgård (40), Wallace Shawn (77), Max Grodénchik (68), Neil Young (75), Leonardo DiCaprio (46), Demi Moore (58), Stanley Tucci (60), Calista Flockhart (56), Taron Egerton (31), Hugh Bonneville (57), Neil Gaiman (60), Tracy Morgan (52), Robert Duncan McNeill (56), and Lou Ferrigno (69).

15th November 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 8th November 2020

A fairly standard week with a few recognisable faces departing the mortal world. Despite their passing we can all be happy due to the news that the despicable Wotsits Hitler has been deposed. Yes, we can now breathe a little easier, even with Covid, as Trump is a loser! 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Diego Maradona, 60, was in recovery after a “successful” surgery to treat a subdural hematoma, a blood clot on the brain, a source close to the former World Cup winner said late on Tuesday. The operation was to address the clot, often caused by a head injury, and which can put pressure on the brain. “The operation proceeded normally and without complications and was successful,” the source told us, adding that the diagnosis was a chronic subdural hematoma. The person did not give details on the potential recovery period. The intervention, which was risky due to the ex-footballer’s delicate general health, lasted about two hours and was carried out by a team led by Leopoldo Luque, Maradona’s neurosurgeon and personal physician. Luque said earlier that the procedure was a “routine surgery” and that Maradona had been “lucid” and understood and agreed with the procedure. Maradona was admitted to the Ipensa clinic in La Plata, Argentina, on Monday for anaemia and dehydration, before being transferred to Olivos Clinic in Buenos Aires province.  

Jeff Bridges, the acclaimed actor who became a cult icon with his role in “The Big Lebowski,” shocked his legions of fans when he announced Monday he has been diagnosed with lymphoma, a type of blood cancer. Bridges, 70, said his prognosis was “good,” adding that he was starting treatment. But he did not specify whether he had been diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma or non-Hodgkin lymphoma, the two main subtypes of lymphoma. “As the Dude would say,” the actor tweeted, referring to his “Lebowski” character, “New SHIT has come to light. Although it is a serious disease, I feel fortunate that I have a great team of doctors and the prognosis is good,” Bridges said. Bridges expressed gratitude to his family, friends and medical team and promised to keep fans posted on his recovery. Bridges is a seven-time Oscar nominee known for his roles in Starman, True Grit, The Last Picture Show and many other films. He won an Academy Award in 2010 for Crazy Heart and was most recently nominated for playing a grizzled lawman in Hell or High Water. Bridges is the son of the former actors Lloyd and Dorothy Bridges, who died in 1998 and 2009, respectively. 

Al Roker shared on “Today” that he will undergo surgery following a prostate cancer diagnosis. The beloved American weatherman said it was discovered after a routine medical checkup in September. “It’s a good news-bad news kind of thing,” he said. “Good news is we caught it early. Not great news is that it’s a little aggressive, so I’m going to be taking some time off to take care of this.” Roker said he wanted to go public with his illness because 1 in 9 men will be diagnosed with the disease in their lifetime “but for African American men that number’s 1 in 7 and is more deadly.” “So if you detect it early this is a really treatable disease and it’s why I wanted to take you along my journey so we can all learn together how to educate and protect the men in our lives,” he said. Roker is scheduled to have surgery next week at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. Dr. Vincent Laudone is his surgeon and said the cancer “appears somewhat limited or confined to the prostate” but given that it’s aggressive the decision was made to remove the prostate. Roker said his wife, journalist Deborah Roberts, has been his fiercest advocate and later added he doesn’t want people feeling sorry for him. Roker’s colleagues rallied around him Friday and he said he’s feeling optimistic about his cancer battle. “We’ll just wait and see, and hopefully in about two weeks, I’ll be back” on “Today,” he said. 

On This Day

  • 1519 – Hernán Cortés enters Tenochtitlán and Aztec ruler Moctezuma welcomes him with a great celebration. This went well… 
  • 1605 – Robert Catesby, ringleader of the Gunpowder Plot, is killed.  
  • 1895 – While experimenting with electricity, Wilhelm Röntgen discovers the X-ray. 
  • 1939 – In Munich, Adolf Hitler narrowly escapes the assassination attempt of Georg Elser.  
  • 1965 – The Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965 is given Royal Assent, formally abolishing the death penalty in the United Kingdom, except in cases of high treason, “piracy with violence” (piracy with intent to kill or cause grievous bodily harm), arson in royal dockyards and espionage, as well as other capital offences under military law. The death penalty would be abolished in all cases in 1998. 
  • 1973 – The right ear of John Paul Getty III is delivered to a newspaper outlet along with a ransom note, convincing his father to pay $2.9 million.    
  • 1987 – Remembrance Day bombing: A Provisional IRA bomb explodes in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland during a ceremony honouring those who had died in wars involving British forces. Twelve people are killed and sixty-three wounded.  
  • 1999 – Bruce Miller is killed at his junkyard near Flint, Michigan. His wife Sharee Miller, who convinced her online lover Jerry Cassaday to kill him (before later killing himself) was convicted of the crime, in what became the world’s first Internet murder. 
  • 2016 – Donald Trump is elected the 45th President of the United States, defeating Hillary Clinton, the first woman ever to receive a major party’s nomination. This went well… 

Deaths

  • 1674 – John Milton, English poet and philosopher (b. 1608)  
  • 1887 – Doc Holliday, American dentist and poker player (b. 1851)  
  • 1978 – Norman Rockwell, American painter and illustrator (b. 1894)  

1st Internet Murder 

Sharee Miller is an American woman convicted of plotting the murder of her husband, Bruce Miller, over the Internet with her online lover Jerry Cassaday, who later committed suicide. 

Miller’s husband, Bruce Miller, was killed by a shotgun blast inside his junkyard office on the evening of November 8, 1999. Believing at first the death was a result of a botched robbery, police failed to find a credible lead and the case went cold for months. In February the following year, Sharee Miller’s online lover, ex-cop Jerry Cassaday, killed himself in Missouri and left a suicide note in which he admitted to carrying out the murder and accused Miller of planning the deed. Cassaday’s accusation, and Fb instant chat message logs left behind by the former police officer as evidence of the set-up, eventually led Miller to be thrown in prison for life on conspiracy and second-degree murder charges.

The confession noted “I drove there and killed him. Sharee was involved and set it up, I have all the proof and I am sending it to the police, she will get whats coming. I have been so stupid, but now you know the real story of why I went into such a state of depression… because I just couldn’t tell anyone the truth… She just wanted all her money and no more husband, well she got her wish, but she is soon to learn that she cant do that to people… Now I know it was all just more lies and games from Sharee, she didn’t care what it took or who she hurt to get what she wanted.

In 2008, Miller won an appeal and was released from prison the following year, after a judge agreed with her lawyers’ argument that the suicide letter should not have been admitted as evidence against her because Cassaday was not available for cross-examination.

In December 2009, Sharee Miller was found using Facebook again. Miller’s lawyer David Nickola said that there was no reason for his client to be barred from using a computer, but Sharee’s Facebook page was temporarily deactivated when it attracted publicity. “I don’t think there’s anything inappropriate about it,” Nickola said. He states that Sharee used Facebook to keep in touch with her family members and her son who is overseas in the military. “She’s an innocent person out in society and she’s doing positive things,” Nickola said.

In 2012, still pleading innocence, Miller was sent back to prison to continue to serve her original sentence after a court re-interpreted the admissibility of the suicide letter. However 16 years after the murder, a remorseful letter was sent to Genesee Circuit Judge Judith A. Fullerton, where Miller admitted to arranging for her husband to be killed by her lover. “Judge Fullerton, I did it. Almost the way the prosecutor said I did,’ Miller wrote in a letter. “I knew it was going to happen and I allowed it. I allowed a man to kill another man based on my lies and manipulation.” 

In her letter, Miller also accused three different attorneys, including her current lawyer, David Nickola, of refusing to listen to her admission of guilt. Nickola denied the accusation, and said that if Miller’s confession had come sooner, she could have taken a plea deal offered before the trial, served 15 years in prison, and been a free woman by now, the Flint Journal reported.  Miller is currently still serving her live sentence at the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Parker Posey (52), Tara Reid (45), Matthew Rhys (46), Gretchen Mol (48), Alfre Woodard (68), Richard Curtis (64), Gordon Ramsay (54), Jack Osbourne (35), Adam Devine (37), Ethan Hawke (50), Emma Stone (32), Rebecca Romijn (48), Thandie Newton (48), Taryn Manning (42), Sally Field (74), Lori Singer (63), Michael Cerveris (60), Maria Shriver (65), Nigel Havers (69), Conchita Wurst (32), Famke Janssen (56), Sam Rockwell (52), Tilda Swinton (60), Robert Patrick (62), Tatum O’Neal (57), Armin Shimerman (71), Tamzin Outhwaite (50), Elke Sommer (80), Eric Menyuk (61), Matthew McConaughey (51), Ralph Macchio (59), Olivia Taylor Dudley (35), Loretta Swit (83), Dolph Lundgren (63), Kate Capshaw (67), Tom Savini (74), Roseanne Barr (68), Dylan Moran (49), David Schwimmer (54), Stefanie Powers (78), and k.d. lang (59).

8th November 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 25th October 2020

Sad times when a Disney character dies… But what else would 2020 be if not totally crap? At least The Amazing Randi will now be able to annoy proper psychics by haunting their crystal balls from now on, he’d had a long life considering most of his career was based on spoiling magicians secrets and debunking faith healers.  

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Hollywood star Robert Redford, 84, is “in mourning” following the death of his son James at the age of 58. Activist and filmmaker James Redford died on Friday after being diagnosed with liver cancer, his wife Kyle confirmed via Twitter. His famous father’s publicist, Cindi Berger, said: “The grief is immeasurable with the loss of a child.” “Jamie [James] was a loving son, husband and father,” added Berger, who asked for privacy for the Redford family “during this difficult time”. “His legacy lives on through his children, art, filmmaking and devoted passion to conservation and the environment.” Redford’s son James made documentary films, including The Big Picture: Rethinking Dyslexia. His latest film Playing Keeps, which explored the importance of play and downtime in our lives, was given a virtual premiere online at this month’s Mill Valley Film Festival in California. His wife of 32 years, Kyle, shared the news of his death online, alongside pictures of the couple and their two children. She told the Salt Lake Tribune that James had discovered the cancer diagnosis late last year while awaiting a liver transplant. His liver disease had returned two years ago, she added.  

Arnold Schwarzenegger is recovering after undergoing heart surgery. The Terminator star told fans he feels “fantastic” after being given a new aortic valve. The 73-year-old was given a new pulmonary valve in 2018 to replace the one he received in 1997, due to a congenital heart defect. He’s now more machine than human! In a post to social media, Schwarzenegger thanked doctors at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, and said he had been enjoying the local sights since his operation. Photos showed him in a hospital bed with his thumbs up, and other pictures of him exploring the area. “Thanks to the team at the Cleveland Clinic, I have a new aortic valve to go along with my new pulmonary valve from my last surgery,” he wrote. “I feel fantastic and have already been walking the streets of Cleveland enjoying your amazing statues. Thank you to every doc and nurse on my team! Schwarzenegger’s son Patrick commented on the Instagram post, joking: “PLEASE DON’T GO WORK OUT TODAY.”  

Thanks to Paul G. for this little beauty of a story from The Yorkshire Herald but to be taken with a pinch of salt I suppose! A furious row has broken out between a local tattoo artist and his client after what started as a typical inking session left both of them requiring emergency hospital treatment. Furious film fan and part-time plus-size XXXL model Tracey Munter, 23, had visited the ‘Ink It Good’ Tattoo Emporium in Wellgate, Yorkshire last week, to have the finishing touches applied to a double buttock representation of the chariot race scene from the iconic 1959 film, Ben Hur. Tattooist Jason Burns takes up the story. “It was a  big job in more ways than one.”   he told us “I’d just lit a roll-up and was finishing off a centurions helmet. It’s delicate, close up work. The next thing is, I  sense a slight ripple in the buttock cleavage area just around Charlton Heston’s whip, and a hissing sound – more of a whoosh than a rasp – and before I know what’s happening, there’s a flame shooting from her arse to my fag and my beards gone up like an Aussie bush fire.” Jason says he rushed to the studio sink to quell the flames, only to turn round and see Tracey frantically fanning her buttock area with a damp towel. The fire had travelled down the gas cloud and set fire to her thong, which was smoking like a cheap firework. “To be honest”, said Jason, “I didn’t even realise she was wearing one. You’d need a sodding mining licence and a torch to find out for sure. She could have had a complete wardrobe in there, and I’d have been none the wiser.” Jason and Tracey were taken to Rotherham District Hospital accident and emergency department where they were treated for minor burns and shock. Both are adamant that the other is to blame. “I’m furious,” said Jason, “I’ve got a face like a mange-ridden dog, and my left eyebrow’s not there anymore. I don’t know about Ben Hur – Gone With The Wind would be more appropriate. You don’t just let rip in someone’s face like that. It’s dangerous.” But Tracey remains both angry and unrepentant; “I’m still in agony,” she said, “and  Charlton Heston looks more like Sidney bloody Poitier now. Jason shouldn’t have had a fag on the go when he’s doing close up work; there’s no way I’d guff on purpose. He’d had me on all fours for nearly an hour. I can only put up with that for so long before nature takes its course. My Kev knows that I give him my five-second warning, and I’d have done the same for Jason, but I didn’t get chance – it just quietly crept out.” Ted Walters from the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service wasn’t surprised when we asked him to comment on what had happened “People don’t appreciate the dangers.“  he told us, “We get more call-outs to flatulence ignition incidents than kitchen fires these days now that people have moved over to oven chips. We have a slogan ‘Flame ‘n fart – keep ’em apart’. Anyone engaging in an arse-inking scenario would do well to bear that in mind in future.” On behalf of the entire Fire and Rescue service, we wish them both a swift recovery.

On This Day

  • 1415 – Hundred Years’ War: Henry V of England, with his lightly armoured infantry and archers, defeats the heavily armoured French cavalry in the Battle of Agincourt.
  • 1854 – The Battle of Balaclava takes place during the Crimean War. It is soon memorialised in verse as The Charge of the Light Brigade.  

Deaths

Last Meals

Edmund Zagorski was an American convicted murderer from Michigan who was executed by the state of Tennessee for the 1983 murders of John Dotson and Jimmy Porter in Robertson County. Zagorski lured the two men into a wooded hunting ground under the pretence of selling them 100lb (45 kg) of marijuana – before shooting them and slitting their throats. 

Zagorski first met John Dale Dotson on April 5th 1983 at a trout farm. Zagorski introduced himself to Dotson and his wife Marsha under the guise of being a mercenary based in Central America named Jesse Lee Hardin. Zagorski convinced Dotson that he would be able to sell as much as 100 pounds of marijuana for around $25,000 as early as April 21st. Following this, the two scheduled a meeting in a wooded hunting ground in Robertson County for 6:00 pm on Saturday, April 23rd 1983. Before he left to meet Zagorski on April 23rd, Dotson was described by his wife Marsha as “somewhat hesitant” and allegedly asked her to call a friend if he failed to return that night. After leaving, he met his friend James “Jimmy” Porter at Porter’s tavern, near the arranged meeting location. Dotson had a change of clothes, a backpack and a revolver. The two men promptly left in Porter’s truck to meet Zagorski. At around 5:30 pm, the owner of the trout farm where Zagorski and Dotson first met heard gunshots coming from the area where he knew the three men had arranged to meet. However, little action was taken as gunshots were common in the area due to deer hunting. Almost two weeks later, on May 6, the bodies of Dotson and Porter were found in that same wooded area. The bodies had decomposed quickly, in part due to a burgeoning heat wave; however it was concluded that both men had been shot and their throats had been slit. Ballistics tests matched a bullet casing found at the scene to a gun owned by Zagorski.  

In late April, days after the murders, Zagorski arrived at a friend’s house in Ohio. The friend in question observed that Zagorski was in possession of numerous items belonging to Dotson and Porter, including Porter’s red Datsun truck, as well as a large amount of money. Zagorski was ultimately arrested on May 26th 1983 following a shootout with Ohio police, during which he shot a number of officers, before he himself was shot, subdued, and arrested. Zagorski was convicted of murdering Dotson and Porter and was sentenced to death by electrocution.  

At around 4pm on November 1st 2018, Zagorski ate a final meal of pickled ham hock and pig tails: he had previously rejected a special last meal. Zagorski was executed by electrocution on Thursday, November 1st 2018, at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, being pronounced dead at 7:26 pm. His last words were reportedly, “Let’s rock”.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Craig Robinson (49), Nancy Cartwright (63), Katy Perry (36), Glynis Barber (65), Kevin Kline (73), F. Murray Abraham (81), Ryan Reynolds (44), Emilia Clarke (34), Sam Raimi (61), ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic (61), Christopher Lloyd (82), Jeff Goldblum (68), Saffron Burrows (48), Bob Odenkirk (58), Derek Jacobi (82), Catherine Deneuve (77), Jesse Tyler Ferguson (45), Andrew Scott (44), Ken Watanabe (61), Everett McGill (75), Kim Kardashian West (40), Viggo Mortensen (62), Danny Boyle (64), Snoop Dogg (49), Sandra Dickinson (72), Rebecca Ferguson (37), Michael Gambon (80), and John Lithgow (75).

25th October 2020 | Categories: 2014, 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 18th October 2020

A distinct lack  of deathly news this week, maybe we’re experiencing a calm before a storm… As we are slowly nearing the end of the year, maybe this is the time to think about next years list. Personally, I keep a notebook of potentials I stumble upon throughout the year, but I usually pick a theme, this year was Star Trek actors, maybe next year will be Sitcom stars from the 80’s or Tory politicians of 2020…. Anyhow, start thinking! 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

The Wanted singer Tom Parker has been diagnosed with an inoperable and terminal brain tumour – just weeks before he is due to become a father for the second time. The 32-year-old boy band member announced the news to fans on Monday morning. In a shared message posted on Instagram, Parker and wife actor Kelsey Hardwick wrote: “Hey guys, you know that we’ve both been quiet on social media for a few weeks and it’s time to tell you why. “There’s no easy way to say this but I’ve sadly been diagnosed with a brain tumour and I’m already undergoing treatment.” They continued: “We decided, after a lot of thought, that rather than hiding away and trying to keep it a secret, we would do one interview where we could lay out all the details and let everyone know the facts in our own way. “We are all absolutely devastated but we are gonna fight this all the way. “We don’t want your sadness, we just want love and positivity and together we will raise awareness of this terrible disease and look for all available treatment options. “It’s gonna be a tough battle but with everyone’s love and support we are going to beat this. Tom and Kelsey” Parker said that the diagnosis came after he suffered a series of unexplained seizures. Following a number of tests, doctors broke the news he had a tumour known as a grade four glioblastoma, adding that it was “the worst case scenario”. The singer added that he has already begun radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment in an effort to prolong his life. I’m still in complete shock, it’s so much to take in,” he said. “I knew something wasn’t right, but I never expected it to be this. You never think this will happen to you.”     

On This Day

  • 1851 – Herman Melville‘s Moby-Dick is first published as The Whale.
  • 1867 – United States takes possession of Alaska after purchasing it from Russia for $7.2 million.  
  • 1922 – The British Broadcasting Company (later Corporation) is founded by a consortium, to establish a nationwide network of radio transmitters to provide a national broadcasting service.  
  • 1929 – The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council overrules the Supreme Court of Canada in Edwards v. Canada when it declares that women are considered “Persons” under Canadian law.
  • 1954 – Texas Instruments announces the first transistor radio.  
  • 1963 – Félicette, a black and white female Parisian stray cat becomes the first cat launched into space.  
  • 2019 – NASA Astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch take part in the first all-women spacewalk when they venture out of the International Space Station to replace a power controller.

Deaths

  • 1871 – Charles Babbage, English mathematician and engineer, invented the mechanical computer (b. 1791)  
  • 1931 – Thomas Edison, American engineer and businessman, invented the light bulb and phonograph (b. 1847)  
  • 2007 – Alan Coren, English journalist and author (b. 1938)  
  • 2012 – Sylvia Kristel, Dutch model and actress (b. 1952)

Last of the Space Animals 

As you saw above, today is the anniversary of the first cat launched into space! Félicette was one of 14 female cats trained for spaceflight by the French space program. The cats ‘training’ included having electrodes implanted onto their skulls so their neurological activity could be monitored throughout the flight. Electrical impulses were applied to the brain and a leg during the flight to stimulate responses. Most of the data from the mission was of good quality, and Félicette survived the 14 minute flight, the only cat to have survived spaceflight! A second feline was launched on 24th October, but the mission resulted in a fatality. The boffins don’t like to advertise is that most animals blasted off into space don’t survive. 

Sadly, Félicette was euthanised two months after the launch so that scientists could perform a necropsy to examine her brain. Of the remaining 12 cats that were trained, the fate of 11 is known. One cat’s health was deteriorating after the electrode surgery, so the scientists had them removed. The group adopted her as their mascot and gave her the name Scoubidou, as she had a scoubidou braid around her neck, a popular style at the time. The other nine cats were ‘decommissioned’ at the end of the program. France continued its biological payload research, changing to monkeys. A monkey known as Martine was launched on 7th March 1967 and Pierrette six days later. They were both successfully recovered.

France’s feline biological rocket payloads were preceded by rats and followed by monkeys. According to an article in Space.com on 8th November 2017, the participation of Félicette in the space race, “… was certainly not voluntary, but it was a huge milestone for France, which had just established the world’s third civilian space agency (after the Soviet Union and the U.S.). Félicette’s mission helped bring France into the space race.” Although Félicette’s flight was much less popular than other spaceflights at the time, probably due to  photos of her with electrodes implanted on her skull and the new animal rights movement.

While some non-human animals which traveled in space were celebrated as heroes—the chimpanzee Ham was buried at the International Space Hall of Fame in New Mexico, U.S.A., and the Soviet dog Laika has a bronze monument at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre near Star City in Russia; but for more than 50 years after her mission, there was no monument for Félicette. Then, in 2017 a crowdfunding campaign was started by Matthew Serge Guy to erect a bronze statue of Félicette to commemorate her contribution to science. In April 2019, Guy announced that the statue was to be located in Eastern France at the International Space University. It is 5ft tall and depicts Félicette “perched atop Earth, gazing up toward the skies she once traveled”. Guy wrote in a Kickstarter update, “It’s crazy to think a video I put online has resulted in this. The internet’s an alright place sometimes.” Félicette has since been commemorated on postage stamps around the world.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Zac Efron (33), Jean-Claude Van Damme (60), Pam Dawber (69), Felicity Jones (37), Michael McKean (73), Mark Gatiss (54), George Wendt (72), Eminem (48), Angela Lansbury (95), Tim Robbins (62), Suzanne Somers (74), Peter Bowles (84), Gary Kemp (61), Dominic West (51), Steve Coogan (55), Lesley Joseph (75), Cliff Richard (80), Sacha Baron Cohen (49), Himesh Patel (30), Paul Simon (79), Chris Carter (64), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (31), Hugh Jackman (52), Robin Askwith (70), and Les Dennis (66).

18th October 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 11th October 2020

Afternoon poolers, not many deaths to report this week, but plenty to read and digest on a boring Sunday afternoon. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

The UK’s oldest person with Down’s Syndrome has died aged 78, despite his family being told when he was born that he was only expected to live for 12 years. Robin Smith, from Kettering in Northamptonshire, set a new record as Britain’s oldest living person with Down’s Syndrome when he turned 78 on October 9th last year. He lived life to the full and was a massive fan of both Cliff Richard and Elvis Presley. But he tragically died on September 27 at Northleigh Residential Home in Kettering, where he had lived since 1986. Tributes have flooded in from his friends and family, who have described him as a ‘beautiful soul’ with an unforgettable laugh. Workers at the care home said that Mr Smith, who loved yoga and aerobics, ‘lit up a room with his twinkly eyes and cheeky smile’. People with Down’s Syndrome are expected to live until their 50s but the life expectancy was much lower in the 1940s. A Down’s Syndrome Association spokesperson said: ‘Thanks to medical advances and the care and love of those around them, the average life expectancy for people with Down’s syndrome is now between 50 and 60 years, with a small number of people living into their seventies and beyond.’ When Mr Smith was a child, very little was known about Down’s Syndrome and wide-spread ignorance often resulted in children with the condition being abandoned or even killed. Many were sent to institutions where medical conditions associated with the syndrome – such as heart problems – were not properly treated. For this reason, countless youngsters died in childhood.  

Lucille Ball’s only granddaughter Desiree S. Anzalone has died at the age of 31 following a battle with breast cancer. Desiree had been first diagnosed at the age of 25 and underwent a double mastectomy and chemotherapy treatment. She was in remission but in 2018 learned the cancer had progressed to Stage four and spread to her liver, lungs and bones. Sharing the news of her tragic death, Desiree’s mother Julie paid tribute to her ‘special little girl’ in an emotional statement. Watching her slip away was just, I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. No mother should have to watch that,” she added. Desiree was named after her grandfather Desi Arnaz Sr, who was Lucille’s co-star on I Love Lucy and real life husband. Speaking in 2019, Desiree said she felt her actress grandmother would have been proud of her. She said she believed that ‘Lucy and I share the same gumption in regards to my fight with stage 4 breast cancer.’ Sadly, due to coronavirus social-distancing restrictions, Desiree’s mum Julie wasn’t able to see her poorly daughter as much as she’d like to in her final months this year. “The COVID-19 kept us apart,” explained Julie. “I wasn’t able to see her as much as I usually do because she was compromised and I didn’t want her getting sick in any kind of way. “I mean, I saw her, but not as much; we’d hang out every day practically she was here. Plus, she lived with me for a while.” Lucille Ball died in 1989 at the age of 77 after suffering an abdominal aortic aneurysm.   

The woman who became the world’s oldest female skydiver has died, aged 88. Former teacher Dilys Price, from Cardiff, was scared of heights when she did her first jump in her fifties. But she went on to complete hundreds of parachute jumps all over the world, and set the Guinness World Record for the oldest female solo parachute jump. She also founded the Touch Trust charity championing art and creative movement programmes for disabled people. Learning Disability Wales said she “transformed the lives of thousands of people with profound multiple disabilities and people with autism”. In 2018 Ms Price told BBC Wales: “Skydiving is my passion, there you have the ultimate beauty of the sky… you just feel so free.” After taking up the sport when she was 54, she went on to complete 1,139 solo jumps all over the world. She was no ordinary skydiver – with a background in drama and dance, she specialised in air acrobatics and freestyling. The University of Wales Trinity Saint David, where she was an honorary fellow, said she was a “remarkable, amazing and inspiring” woman. Aged 80, the former Cardiff College of Education lecturer set the Guinness World Record for the oldest solo parachute jump (female). At 86 she sold her parachute, but went on to do a tandem skydive with former Wales rugby star Gareth Thomas. She was awarded an OBE for services to people with special needs in 2003, and was honoured for her work at the Pride of Britain awards in 2017. Back in 2018, Ms Price, who went on to model for Helmut Lang, said she wanted to inspire older people to keep active.  She said: “We only get one shot at life”. 

The Trump is back at the White House after a dramatic nine days in which he tested positive for coronavirus, was flown to hospital, was given experimental drugs and made an impromptu drive-by to meet supporters while still sick. But how ill has Trump been and has he recovered? Mr Trump’s doctors said he had a fever when admitted to hospital on 2nd October but by the time the president left hospital on Monday, they said he hadn’t had a fever for 72 hours. This would mean Mr Trump’s 10-day isolation countdown would have begun on Saturday. But just like Typhoid Mary, he’s been spreading it about like nobody’s business! The second presidential debate, scheduled for 15th October, is well within the infection timeframe and the commission organising the event in Miami has said it would now have to take place remotely. Mr Trump has since pulled out of the event saying he was “not going to waste my time on a virtual debate”, knowing full well that he could kill his opponent by just breathing on him. But while Mr Trump is pushing to get back work and onto the campaign trail, among the wider US population, there is evidence that coronavirus patients – especially those in older age groups – take some time to recover from the disease, so there is a glimmer of hope still! 

On This Day

  • 1910 – Theodore Roosevelt becomes the first U.S. president to fly in an airplane.  
  • 1984 – Aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger, astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan becomes the first American woman to perform a space walk.  
  • 2001 – Polaroid files for federal bankruptcy protection.

Deaths

  • 1721 – Edward Colston, English merchant and politician (b. 1636)  
  • 1961 – Chico Marx, American comedian (b. 1887)  
  • 1967 – Stanley Morison, typographer, known for Times New Roman font (b. 1889)  
  • 2019 – Alexei Leonov, Soviet/Russian cosmonaut and first human to conduct a spacewalk (b. 1934)

Last Meals

Mathias Kneißl, known as Robber Kneißl  was a German outlaw, poacher and popular social rebel in the Dachau district, in the Kingdom of Bavaria. Kneißl became famous for having caused the largest manhunt in Bavaria of the time. Chased by the police, Kneißl became a legendary hero with the rural people because of his witful and artful fight against the authorities. 

Mathias Kneißl was the eldest of six children of a poor innkeeper. In 1886 his father purchased the mill at Sulzemoos Schacher. At age 16 he was imprisoned for the first time, because members of his family were suspected of stock rustling. His father died in 1892 while in police custody. Kneissl then began accompanying his brothers on robberies. 

In 1893 he was arrested for the second time. His younger brother Alois had been shot by police while resisting arrest and died of tuberculosis after four years in prison. Mathias Kneißl was sentenced to five years and nine months in prison. After serving his sentence, he was released in February 1899 and worked as a carpenter in Nußdorf am Inn. After six months Kneißl was dismissed by his master, because his colleagues refused to work with him any longer. Due to his bad reputation, he was unable to find another job, therefore a life of crime was all he had to fall back upon.      

For two years, Kneißl was pursued by the police. After his accomplices were arrested, he continued committing armed robberies on his own. An attempt to arrest him occurred on 30 November 1900 in Irchenbrunn Altomünster. In a massive gun battle, two policemen were injured so badly that they subsequently died. Three months later, in March 1901, Kneißl was captured at Geisen Egenhofen by sixty policemen. During the preceding gunfight, Kneißl was seriously injured by a bullet in the abdomen.

In November 1901 Kneißl was placed on trial at Augsburg. He was charged with two murders, attempted murder, as well as armed robbery and extortion. At his trial, which was followed by the media with great attention, Kneißl reportedly said: “I can suffer no wrong. I cannot bend, I would rather kill myself.” Kneißl confessed to most of the charges, but denied an intent to kill against the two policemen who were shot by him. However, the court found him guilty of murder, premeditated bodily harm with fatal consequences, extortion and for aggravated robbery. The Court then sentenced him to receive the death penalty for murder and 15 years imprisonment on the other charges. Sentenced on a Monday, Kneißl allegedly sarcastically remarked: “Well, that’s a good start of a week.” 

Kneißl was awakened shortly after seven o’clock on the morning of 21st February 1902. Somehow he managed six glasses of beer for his last meal before he was executed via  guillotine.

Strangely enough, a small and charming beer garden called Räuber-Kneißl-Garten has been name after him, which is located behind the Maisach brewery in the town of Maisach, 25km north west from the centre of Munich. The Räuber Kneißl Dunkel (dark lager) named in memory of the infamous bandit is brewed according to an original and ancient recipe from the Maisach brewery. 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Michelle Trachtenberg (35), Joan Cusack (58), Emily Deschanel (44), Claudia Black (48), Jane Krakowski (52), Stephen Moyer (51), Lennie James (55), John Nettles (77), Dawn French (63), Dan Stevens (38), Rose McIver (32), Charles Dance (74), Manu Bennett (51), Martin Kemp (59), Guillermo del Toro (56), Scott Bakula (66), Tony Shalhoub (67), Brandon Routh (41), Chris O’Dowd (41), Brian Blessed (84), Sharon Osbourne (68), Matt Damon (50), Sigourney Weaver (71), Kristanna Loken (41), Chevy Chase (77), Paul Hogan (81), Ardal O’Hanlon (55), Bruno Mars (35), R.L. Stine (77), Soon-Yi Previn (50), Shawn & Aaron Ashmore (41), Tim Minchin (45), Simon Cowell (61), Thom Yorke (52), Ioan Gruffudd (47), Britt Ekland (78), Kate Winslet (45), Guy Pearce (53), Jesse Eisenberg (37), Karen Allen (69), Glynis Johns (97), Clive Barker (68), Neil deGrasse Tyson (62), and Stephanie Cole (79).

11th October 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 4th October 2020

Welcome poolers! Another week passes, sadly Trump is still alive as we speak, but who knows what will happen… I thought I’d let you know that if you had the prescience to have listed Archie Lyndhurst as a Maverick you could have scored 231 points. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Trump entered his third day in the hospital today after contracting the coronavirus and falling ill last week, even as confusing and contradictory accounts about his medical condition added to the general lack of concern for the 74-year-old president’s well-being. Seeking to project an optimistic image to the world, President Trump released a four-minute video on Saturday evening from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., to say that he is “starting to feel good” and would “be back soon.”  Even  though he looked like he’d been bitch slapped by Dolly Parton’s untethered tits. Wearing a blue jacket, cuff links and an American flag pin but no necktie, the president looked much paler than he did during his debate in Cleveland on Tuesday with former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. Thanking the staff at Walter Reed, Mr. Trump said that he “wasn’t feeling so well.” But that optimism was not shared by everyone close to the president and just a few hours earlier, Mark Meadows, the president’s chief of staff, had offered a darker picture. “The president’s vitals over the last 24 hours were very concerning,” Mr. Meadows said. “And the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care.” Many doctors stressed the critical period of time — about seven to 10 days after infection — when a patient’s condition can take a turn for the worse. Some people respond to an infection with an overly exuberant immune response that can worsen their illness and in this case hopefully prove fatal.  

The first person cured of HIV – Timothy Ray Brown – has died from cancer. Mr Brown, who was also known as “the Berlin patient”, was given a bone marrow transplant from a donor who was naturally resistant to HIV. It meant he no longer needed anti-viral drugs and he remained free of the virus, which can lead to Aids, for the rest of his life. The International Aids Society said Mr Brown gave the world hope that an HIV cure was possible. Mr Brown, 54, who was born in the US, was diagnosed with HIV while he lived in Berlin in 1995. Then in 2007 he developed a type of blood cancer called acute myeloid leukaemia. His treatment involved destroying his bone marrow, which was producing the cancerous cells, and then having a bone marrow transplant. The transfer came from a donor that had a rare mutation in part of their DNA called the CCR5 gene. CCR5 is a set of genetic instructions that build the doorway that human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) walks through to infect cells. Mutations to CCR5 essentially lock the door and give people resistance to HIV. After the treatment, levels of HIV in Mr Brown’s blood fell to undetectable levels and he no longer needed anti-retroviral therapy. He was in effect “cured”. But the leukaemia, that led to his HIV cure, returned earlier this year and spread to his brain and spinal cord. “It is with great sadness that I announce that Timothy passed away… surrounded by myself and friends, after a five-month battle with leukaemia,” his partner Tim Hoeffgen posted on Facebook. He added: “Tim committed his life’s work to telling his story about his HIV cure and became an ambassador of hope.” Mr Brown’s cure was too risky and aggressive to be used routinely – it remains principally a cancer treatment. The approach is also too expensive for the 38 million people, many in sub-Saharan Africa, thought to be living with an HIV infection.    

Brian May has described recovery as a “long climb back” after suffering a heart attack earlier this year. The Queen guitarist previously said that he was “very near death” after being admitted to hospital in May. Doctors discovered that three of his arteries to be blocked and in danger of stopping the blood supply to his heart. “It is a long climb back,” May, 73, told The Dead Pool of his health. “I’ve had complications due to the drugs I’m on, one of which was a stomach explosion that nearly killed me.” May, who still performs with Queen + Adam Lambert, admitted that he had been baffled by the heart attack, which was a symptom of an arterial disease. “I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, I don’t have high cholesterol and I was exercising through the tour, so why did it happen?”, he questioned. “At least I now have a heart that is working far better than it was.” May initially told fans about the incident after admitting to ripping his buttock muscles while gardening. “In the middle of the whole saga of the painful backside, I had a small heart attack,” he said. “I say small – it’s not something that did me any harm. It was about 40 minutes of pain in the chest and tightness and that feeling in the arms and sweating.” May said he turned down open heart surgery and instead opted to have three stents put in.  

Elvington Airfield has struck again! The former RAF base near York, famously the scene of Richard Hammond scraping his head into the concrete whilst driving a jet powered car upside down. He suffered serious brain injuries when he crashed at almost 300mph, some might say he made a full recovery. Back to this week though, Zef Eisenberg, a millionaire fitness firm founder was killed attempting a British land speed record. Motorsport UK said the 47-year-old’s Porsche 911 Turbo S “went out of control at high speed at the end of a run” on Thursday. Guernsey-based Mr Eisenberg was involved in a “near-death” 230mph crash at the same airfield in 2016. Mr Eisenberg has now left behind his partner Mirella D’Antonio and two children. Sports nutrition firm Maximuscle said it was “devastated” at the news of the Mr Eisenberg’s death, who had “worked tirelessly” on his “brain child” during his ownership of the company before it was sold to pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline in 2011 for  £162m. Mr Eisenberg ran the Madmax Race Team, which attempts speed records with motorbikes and cars. Before his previous crash, in which he suffered 11 broken bones including his pelvis, he had set other speed records at the airfield. He returned to racing in 2017, despite concerns he would never walk again, now he’ll never se his wife and children again.  

On This Day

  • 1883 – First run of the Orient Express.  
  • 1927 – Gutzon Borglum begins sculpting Mount Rushmore. 
  • 1957 – Sputnik 1 becomes the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth.

Deaths

  • 1226 – Francis of Assisi (b. 1182)  
  • 1669 – Rembrandt, Dutch painter and illustrator (b. 1606)  
  • 1947 – Max Planck, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1858)  
  • 1970 – Janis Joplin, American singer-songwriter (b. 1943) 
  • 1989 – Graham Chapman, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1941)

Of Funerals and Pythons

Graham Chapman was an English comedian, writer, actor, author, and one of the six members of the British surreal comedy group Monty Python. In his personal life, Chapman was openly homosexual and a strong supporter of gay rights, and was in a long-term partnership with David Sherlock. He was an alcoholic during his time at Cambridge and the Python years, but quit drinking shortly before working on Life of Brian and remained sober for the rest of his life. 

In 1988, Chapman made a routine visit to a dentist, who found a small but malignant tumour on one of his tonsils, leading to both being removed via a tonsillectomy. The following year, the cancer had spread into Chapman’s spinal cord, where another tumour was surgically removed. Chapman had several chemotherapy treatments and surgeries during the final months of his life, but ultimately the cancer was declared inoperable. According to his brother, Chapman was visibly upset by the death of his mother that July, by which time he was terminally ill. Shortly afterwards, Chapman filmed scenes for the 20th anniversary of the first broadcast of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, the final time he appeared on television. 

Chapman died on 4th October 1989 in Maidstone Hospital. At the time of his death, he was being visited by Sherlock, brother John and his sister-in-law, and fellow Pythons Palin and Cleese, the latter of whom had to be led out of the room to deal with his grief. Peter Cook had intended to visit, but arrived too late and was visibly shaken by the news. 

The five surviving Python members had decided to stay away from Chapman’s private funeral to prevent it from becoming a media circus and to give his family some privacy. They sent a wreath in the shape of the Python foot, with the message: “To Graham from the other Pythons with all our love. PS: Stop us if we’re getting too silly”. The Rolling Stones also sent a floral arrangement, saying “Thanks for all the laughs.”  

A public memorial service was held at St. Bartholomew’s on 3 December, two months after his death. The service began with a chorus of the hymn “Jerusalem” sung in Engrish with a mock Chinese accent. Cleese delivered a eulogy to Chapman with shock humour that he believed Chapman would have appreciated, and later became the first person at a televised British memorial service to say “fuck”. Palin also delivered a eulogy to Chapman, as did Idle, quipping that Chapman had decided to die rather than listen to Palin once again. Idle led the other surviving Pythons and Chapman’s close friends and family in a rendition of the song “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life“, from Life of Brian, and later closed his remarks by saying: “I’d just like to be the last person at this meeting to say ‘fuck’.” 

Ten years after Chapman’s death, his ashes were first rumoured to have been “blasted into the skies in a rocket” with assistance from the Dangerous Sports Club. In a second rumour, Chapman’s ashes had been scattered on the mountains of Snowdonia, Wales, where he had visited regularly as a climber.

Week’s Birthdays

Melissa Benoist (32), Dakota Johnson (31), Alicia Silverstone (44), Christoph Waltz (64), Susan Sarandon (74), Liev Schreiber (53), Sarah Lancashire (56), Nick Mohammed (40), Alicia Vikander (32), Denis Villeneuve (53), Lena Headey (47), Neve Campbell (47), Clive Owen (56), Seann William Scott (44), Gwen Stefani (51), Tommy Lee (58), Greg Proops (61), Avery Brooks (72), Sting (69), Ian McNeice (70), Brie Larson (31), Julie Andrews (85), Zach Galifianakis (51), Randy Quaid (70), Monica Bellucci (56), Kieran Culkin (38), Omid Djalili (55), Ian Ogilvy (77), Erika Eleniak (51), Ian McShane (78), Mackenzie Crook (49), Luke Goss (52), Naomi Watts (52), Hilary Duff (33), Hana Mae Lee (32), Jeffrey Jones (74), Brigitte Bardot (86), and Dita Von Teese (48).

4th October 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 27th September 2020

Strangely enough, only one of us guessed that Jackie Stallone would depart us this year, so Vic is the only recipient of points this week, 52 of them in fact! Well done Vic!! That only leaves five of us who haven’t scored yet this year, which includes myself :/ 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

A Massachusetts man has died after eating an excessive amount of black liquorice, doctors said this week. The unusual case was reported in the New England Journal of Medicine and details the death of a 54-year-old construction worker. The man collapsed inside a fast-food restaurant and was taken to a hospital, where he died the next day. Doctors discovered he had dangerously low potassium, which led to heart rhythm and other problems. Doctors wrote that the man had maintained “a poor diet, consisting primarily of several packages of candy daily,” which threw his nutrients out of whack. One doctor cited in the study described the man’s diagnosis as, “Metabolic, renal, vascular, and cardiac toxic effects from apparent mineralocorticoid excess due to liquorice consumption.” The problem, according to a report from the Associated Press, lies in the consumption of glycyrrhizic acid, a sweetening compound found in black liquorice and in other foods containing liquorice root extract. It can deplete potassium levels, cause high blood pressure, and imbalance electrolytes. “The key message here for the general public is that food containing liquorice can potentially be hazardous to your health if eaten in large quantities,” said Dr Neel Butala, a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, who contributed to the case study. “I don’t think people realise it. It’s not labeled that way.” In 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published a warning about the dangers of black liquorice consumption, advising that eating only two ounces of black liquorice a day for two weeks could lead to an irregular heart rhythm and may require hospitalisation. With Halloween coming up next month, perhaps this new study will serve as a reminder to enjoy candy in moderation. 

If you noticed, this week was all about cows, especially in the North of England. Yet another pensioner has died after being charged by cows, meaning two people in northern England have been killed in such circumstances this month. Malcolm Flynn was walking along the Pennine Way near Thirlwall Castle and Gisland in Northumberland when the animals stampeded. The 72-year-old from Carlisle was so badly injured during the incident that he died at the scene. The tragedy occurred just 10 days before popular school teacher David Clark was killed by a herd of cows while walking his dog near Richmond in North Yorkshire. Some 98 people have been killed by cows in the UK over the last 20 years, according to the government’s Health and Safety Executive – 22 members of the public and 76 farm workers. In the vast majority of public deaths, a dog is the trigger. It is advised that if you are charged, let the dog go and walk calmly away in the opposite direction, most likely you will survive and the dog will outrun the cows for later collection. Or just avoid fields with cows in, not all rights of way are worth it. 

On This Day

  • 1936 – Mrs Wallis Simpson obtains her divorce, which would eventually allow her to marry King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, thus forcing his abdication from the throne.
  • 1962 – By refusing to agree to the firing of a nuclear torpedo at a US warship, Vasily Arkhipov averts nuclear war.  
  • 1992 – United States Navy radioman Allen R. Schindler, Jr. is murdered by shipmate Terry M. Helvey for being gay, precipitating debate about gays in the military that results in the United States’ “Don’t ask, don’t tell” military policy.

Deaths

  • 939 – Æthelstan, English king (b. 894)  
  • 1988 – Charles Hawtrey, English actor, singer, and pianist (b. 1914)  
  • 2013 – Lou Reed, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (b. 1942)

The Man Who Saved the World

Vasili Arkhipov was a Soviet Navy officer credited with preventing a Soviet nuclear strike (and, presumably, all-out nuclear war) during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Such an attack likely would have caused a major global thermonuclear response. As flotilla commander and second-in-command of the diesel powered submarine B-59, Arkhipov refused to authorise the captain’s use of nuclear torpedoes against the United States Navy, a decision requiring the agreement of all three senior officers aboard. 

On 27 October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, a group of eleven United States Navy destroyers and the aircraft carrier USS Randolph located the diesel-powered, nuclear-armed Foxtrot-class submarine B-59 near Cuba. Despite being in international waters, the United States Navy started dropping signalling depth charges, explosives intended to force the submarine to come to the surface for identification. There had been no contact from Moscow for a number of days and, although the submarine’s crew had earlier been picking up U.S. civilian radio broadcasts, once B-59 began attempting to hide from its U.S. Navy pursuers, it was too deep to monitor any radio traffic. Those on board did not know whether war had broken out or not. The captain of the submarine, Valentin Grigorievitch Savitsky, decided that a war might already have started and wanted to launch a nuclear torpedo. 

Unlike the other subs in the flotilla, three officers on board B-59 had to agree unanimously to authorise a nuclear launch: Captain Savitsky, the political officer Ivan Semonovich Maslennikov, and the flotilla commodore (and executive officer of B-59) Arkhipov. Typically, Soviet submarines armed with the “Special Weapon” only required the captain to get authorisation from the political officer to launch a nuclear torpedo, but due to Arkhipov’s position as Commodore, B-59‘s captain also was required to gain Arkhipov’s approval. An argument broke out, with only Arkhipov against the launch. Even though Arkhipov was second-in-command of the submarine B-59, he was in fact Commodore of the entire submarine flotilla, including B-4, B-36 and B-130. 

Arkhipov eventually persuaded Savitsky to surface and await orders from Moscow. This effectively averted the general nuclear war which probably would have ensued if the nuclear weapon had been fired. The submarine’s batteries had run very low and the air-conditioning had failed, causing extreme heat and high levels of carbon dioxide inside the submarine. They were forced to surface amid the American pursuers and return to the Soviet Union as a result. 

Immediately upon return to Russia, many crew members were faced with disgrace from their superiors. One admiral told them “It would have been better if you’d gone down with your ship.” Olga, Arkhipov’s wife, even said “he didn’t like talking about it, he felt they hadn’t appreciated what they had gone through.” 

In 2002, retired Commander Vadim Pavlovich Orlov, a participant in the events, held a press conference revealing the subs were armed with nuclear torpedoes and that Arkhipov was the reason those devices had not been fired. Orlov presented the events less dramatically, saying that Captain Savitsky lost his temper, but eventually calmed down. 

When discussing the Cuban Missile Crisis in 2002, Robert McNamara, the U.S. Secretary of Defence at the time, stated, “We came very close” to nuclear war, “closer than we knew at the time.” Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr., an advisor for the John F. Kennedy administration and a historian, continued this thought by stating “This was not only the most dangerous moment of the Cold War. It was the most dangerous moment in human history.” Thomas Blanton, who was then director of the US National Security Archive, said that Arkhipov “saved the world”.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Anna Camp (38), Gwyneth Paltrow (48), Indira Varma (47), Meat Loaf (72), Denis Lawson (73), Avril Lavigne (36), Jim Caviezel (52), Linda Hamilton (64), Olivia Newton-John (72), Lysette Anthony (57), Serena Williams (39), Anne Robinson (76), Will Smith (52), Michael Douglas (76), Mark Hamill (69), Catherine Zeta-Jones (51), Michael Madsen (63), Heather Locklear (59), Felicity Kendal (74), Kevin Sorbo (62), Sven-Ole Thorsen (76), Rosalind Chao (63), Karl Pilkington (48), Bruce Springsteen (71), Tom Felton (33), Billie Piper (38), Sue Perkins (51), Ruth Jones (54), Joan Jett (62), Nick Cave (63), Bill Murray (70), Stephen King (73), David Wenham (55), Alfonso Ribeiro (49), and Ricki Lake (52).

27th September 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 20th September 2020

Welcome once again to another issue of the newsletter! We have points to award due to the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Well done to Jemm and Louise, who both had her down as their Woman, so an epic 163 points, and also to Mark who scored the normal 63 points! Well done all of you, its certainly made the top half of the leader board interesting. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Jacquie Beltrao – one of the main Sky News presenters and former Olympic gymnast – has given fans an update on her health, following her incurable cancer diagnosis. She was recently diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time. The 55-year-old’s cancerous lump in her breast has shrunk to half its original size. The former gymnast was initially told the difficult news in June, after doctors reportedly first told her she had the condition in 2013. Jacquie recalled that “neither my doctors nor I could believe” how much the growth had shrunk by. “When I was told it was incurable, I burst into tears and thought, ‘That’s it, I’m going to die’.” She recalled: “I felt so sad that I’d never go to my daughter’s wedding, see my sons graduate, or become a grandma.” Jacquie stated that while she is “not out of the woods yet” doctors have told her it is “possible to keep the cancer under control”. She has also has revealed that she “lost so much” weight after following a strict diet, amid her devastating cancer diagnosis. Jacquie has been sticking rigidly to a ketogenic diet – a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet that excludes sugar. “If I’ve done everything I can to stay well, I can’t beat myself up if things go wrong,” she explained. Jacquie continued: “I’d have Rich Tea biscuits with my tea, strawberries and grapes by the punnet. Boiled sweets when I was tired.” The former Olympics gymnast revealed she has lost a stone in weight after following the new plan. Jacquie admitted: “We’ve eaten a ton of salad and tuna and yes, it is really hard. “I will relax it soon to incorporate rice, because I’ve lost so much weight [at least a stone, she is 5ft 6in and weighs 8st 4lb] but so far I haven’t fallen off the wagon.”  

Linda Nolan shared the emotional moment she rang the cancer bell to mark the end of her chemotherapy. The 61-year-old reached the milestone just weeks after her sister Anne finished her rounds of chemo. ‘It was an amazing feeling and I felt so emotional, especially when all the nurses came out and cheered. It’s been such a lovely day.’ Linda was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006 but has been told the secondary cancer found in her pelvis in 2017 had since spread to her liver and is not curable. The pair have already lost one of their sisters, Bernie, to secondary breast cancer seven years ago. Anne recently opened up her conflicting emotions as she finished chemotherapy for breast cancer, knowing sister Linda’s illness is incurable. Anne told us: ‘Chemo was absolutely horrendous for me and I was so happy it finally was over, but at the same time I felt a terrible melancholy that Linda wasn’t ringing the bell with me. ‘I started my chemo a week before Linda, so she still has one more round to go, but she said to me: “Anne, I will ring the bell, but we all know my cancer is never going away.”’ 

In yet another attention seeking stunt, Justin Bieber has confirmed that he is suffering from an “incurable disease”. The world famous singer took to social media to explain his diagnosis and what this means for his current and future health. The ‘singer’ hit back at claims that he looked “like shit” on Instagram. Addressing his some 142 million followers, The Bieber, 25, confirmed that he has been recently diagnosed with Lyme disease and that he is “battling” and “overcoming” the illness. He wrote: “While a lot of people kept saying Justin Bieber looks like shit, on meth etc. they failed to realise I’ve been recently diagnosed with Lyme disease, not only that but had a serious case of chronic mono which affected my, skin, brain function, energy, and overall health. It’s been a rough couple years but getting the right treatment that will help treat this so far incurable disease and I will be back and better than ever NO CAP.” *According to Urban Dictionary, “No Cap” means either “no lie” or “for real”, or back in my day it meant a cold head.  

Amy Schumer revealed on September 8th that she has Lyme disease, but she didn’t make a fuss about it. The 39-year-old comedian shared the news with her 10 million followers on Instagram, opening up about how she might have had it for years. Schumer captioned the throwback photo herself, “My first ever fishing pole. Anyone get LYME this summer? I got it and I’m on Doxycycline. I have maybe had it for years. Any advice? Can you have a glass of wine or 2 on it? I know to stay out of the sun. I’m also taking these herbs from cape cod called Lyme-2. Please comment or text me on my number in my bio. I also want to say that I feel good and am excited to get rid of it.” 

Lyme disease is transmitted to humans from infected blacklegged ticks, according to the CDC, and is the most common vector-borne disease in America. Typical symptoms include headache, fatigue, fever and a skin rash known as erythema migrans. However, Lyme disease is completely treatable. The drug Schumer is taking, doxycycline, is one of the top-recommended drugs for adults with Lyme disease. Three to four weeks of antibiotic therapy is recommended for successful treatment. If Lyme disease is left untreated, more severe symptoms may arise as the infection can spread to the joints, the heart and the nervous system. To answer Schumer’s question, drinking while on doxycycline can make the drug less effective if you have liver problems. However, if the patient is healthy, it’s okay to have a drink or two without making the antibiotics less effective.

On This Day

  • 1973 – Billie Jean King beats Bobby Riggs in the Battle of the Sexes tennis match at the Houston Astrodome.  
  • 2000 – The United Kingdom’s MI6 Secret Intelligence Service building is attacked by Real Irish Republican Army using a Russian-built RPG-22 anti-tank missile. Expect more after Brexit. 
  • 2017 – Hurricane Maria makes landfall in Puerto Rico as a powerful Category 4 hurricane, resulting in 2,975 deaths, $90 billion in damage, and a major humanitarian crisis.  
  • 2018 – At least 161 people die after a ferry capsized close to the pier on Ukara Island in Lake Victoria and part of Tanzania.

Deaths

Nutty Biographies

William Seabrook was an American occultist, explorer, traveler, cannibal, journalist and author. Born in Westminster, Maryland; he began his career as a reporter and City Editor of the Augusta Chronicle in Georgia and later became a reporter for The New York Times. Besides his books, Seabrook published articles in popular magazines including Cosmopolitan, Reader’s Digest, and Vanity Fair. 

He was married several times but all of his relationships ended up in divorce, perhaps because of his alcoholism, sadism and obsessions; like the time he traveled to West Africa and came across a tribe who partook in the eating of human meat. Seabrook writes about his experience of cannibalism in his novel, Jungle Ways; however, later on Seabrook admits the tribe did not allow him to join in on the ritualistic cannibalism. Instead, he obtained samples of human flesh from a hospital and cooked it for himself, as you do. 

Or the week he spent with occultist Aleister Crowley, which inspired him to write a story based on the experience and to recount the experiment in Witchcraft: Its Power in the World Today. He was an extensive traveler, having lifelong fascination with the occult practices of satanism and Haitian Vodou, which he witnessed and described firsthand in Third World countries, as documented in his book The Magic Island. The book is credited with introducing the concept of a zombie to popular culture. 

In December 1933, Seabrook was committed at his own request and with the help of some of his friends to Bloomingdale, a mental institution in Westchester County, near New York City, for treatment for acute alcoholism. He remained a patient of the institution until the following July and in 1935 published an account of his experience, written as if it were no more than another expedition to a foreign locale. The book, Asylum, became another best-seller. 

On September 20, 1945, Seabrook committed suicide by drug overdose

Last Week’s Birthdays

Jon Bernthal (44), Kristen Johnston (53), Sophia Loren (86), Moon Bloodgood (45), Asia Argento (45), Michelle Visage (52), Michelle Visage (52), George R.R. Martin (72), Danielle Panabaker (33), Jeremy Irons (72), David McCallum (87), Jimmy Fallon (46), Twiggy (71), Jason Sudeikis (45), Jada Pinkett Smith (49), Cassandra Peterson (69), Mickey Rourke (68), Jennifer Tilly (62), Danny John-Jules (60), David Copperfield (64), Tom Hardy (43), Tommy Lee Jones (74), Oliver Stone (74), John Bradley (32), Brendan O’Carroll (65), Jimmy Carr (48), Prince Harry (36), Sam Neill (73), Andrew Lincoln (47), and Walter Koenig (84). 

20th September 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 13th September 2020

Without doubt, this weeks big news is the passing of Dame Diana Rigg. As always, with much loved celebrities, nobody had her listed. But onward we go… 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Two-time major champion John Daly has revealed he has undergone surgery after being diagnosed with bladder cancer. The 54-year-old American says the cancer was discovered during an appointment related to kidney stones. Daly – winner of the 1991 US PGA Championship and 1995 Open – had surgery to remove the cancer but said there was an 85% chance it could return and require further treatment. “They will probably have to cut it out again, It’s probably going to come back, and then another three months, that you don’t know,” the five-time PGA Tour winner said. “Luckily for me they caught it early, but bladder cancer is something that I don’t know all the details about. But it doesn’t look like it may go away. We will just see what happens. Maybe there’s a miracle. “I always tell people I’ve lived one hell of a life. No matter what happens, I’m not scared to die or anything. I’m still working, I’m still living life, I’m still doing the things I need to do. I can accept the challenge. I’m not scared of that. “I just want my kids to be OK and everyone else in my family.” Daly last played a PGA Tour event at last year’s Safeway Open, where he missed the cut. His 1991 US PGA Championship win saw him claim a major despite only entering the tournament with days to spare when Nick Price withdrew from the field.

Yet another “influencer” has kicked the bucket. Beauty blogger and influencer Ethan Peters, known as Ethan Is Supreme, has died at the age of 17. Ethan’s father Gerald told us: “He was a kind soul, who accepted everyone for who they were.” His friend, fellow influencer Ava Louise, also posted saying she’d lost her “best friend in the entire world”. Both have said that Ethan was struggling with addiction, but his official cause of death is not yet known. Ethan had over half a million Instagram followers and 139,000 YouTube subscribers. A Vice article last year described his makeup style as “characterised by its desire to catch your attention” and “dramatic, emotional and, at times, gory.” He started young, saying that by the summer of 2017 he’d hit 100,000 followers and left his private Christian school because his social media activity “violated their moral conduct code.” He moved to an online school instead. There was some negative response on social media after news of Ethan’s death broke. He had been accused of racism and transphobia in the past. But fans also spoke in his defence – including one of his inspirations, fellow makeup artist Manny MUA, who posted: “He’s made many many mistakes… but to say he deserved to pass away is horrible and inhuman.” The 17-year-old had recently started his own clothing line called Hellboy. Dunno about you, but at 17 I was too busy chasing after girls and trying to find the next bottle of 20/20 to influence fuck all.  

Remember Michael Schumacher? Nope, nor do I. But former Ferrari boss Jean Todt has revealed he saw Michael last week and says the seven-time Formula One world champion is fighting to overcome the devastating injuries that have kept him out of public view for almost seven years. Following a skiing accident on the French Alps in December 2013, Schumacher’s condition has been kept a closely guarded secret from those outside his Lake Geneva home. FIA president Todt, 74, is among just a handful of visitors to see the 51-year-old. The Frenchman oversaw five of Schumacher’s seven titles as team principal for Ferrari. On the eve of the Italian constructor’s 1,000th race, Todt told us: “I saw Michael last week. He is fighting. My God, we know he had a terrible and unfortunate skiing accident which has caused him a lot of problems. But he has an amazing wife next to him, he has his kids, his nurses, and we can only wish him the best and to wish the family the best, too. All I can do is to be close to them until I am able to do something, and then I will do it.” So basically he’s still cabbaged. 

On This Day

  • 1501 – Italian Renaissance: Michelangelo begins work on his statue of David. 
  • 1848 – Vermont railroad worker Phineas Gage survives an iron rod 11⁄4 inches (3.2 cm) in diameter being driven through his brain; the reported effects on his behaviour and personality stimulate discussion of the nature of the brain and its functions.  
  • 1899 – Henry Bliss is the first person in the United States to be killed in an automobile accident.  
  • 1956 – The IBM 305 RAMAC is introduced, the first commercial computer to use disk storage.  
  • 1985 – Super Mario Bros. is released in Japan for the NES

Deaths

  • AD 81 – Titus, Roman emperor (b. AD 39)
  • 1996 – Tupac Shakur, American rapper, producer, and actor (b. 1971)

Almost Fatal Injuries

Phineas P. Gage (1823–1860) was an American railroad construction foreman remembered for his improbable survival of an accident in which a large iron rod was driven completely through his head, destroying much of his brain’s left frontal lobe, and for that injury’s reported effects on his personality and behaviour over the remaining 12 years of his life‍—‌effects sufficiently profound (for a time at least) that friends saw him as “no longer Gage.” 

Gage was the first of five children born to Jesse Eaton Gage and Hannah Trussell (Swetland) Gage of Grafton County, New Hampshire. Little is known about his upbringing and education beyond that he was literate. 

On September 13, 1848, Gage was direct­ing a work gang blast­ing rock while pre­par­ing the road­bed for the Rut­land & Bur­ling­ton Rail­road south of the village of Cav­en­dish, Ver­mont. As his attention was attracted by his men working behind him. Looking over his right shoulder, and inad­vert­ent­ly bringing his head into line with the blast hole, Gage opened his mouth to speak; in that same instant the tamping iron sparked against the rock and the powder exploded. Rocketed from the hole, the tamping iron — ‌11⁄4 inches in diameter, three feet seven inches long, and weighing 131⁄4 pounds —‌ entered the left side of Gage’s face in an upward direction, just forward of the angle of the lower jaw.  

Continuing upward outside the upper jaw and possibly fracturing the cheekbone, it passed behind the left eye, through the left side of the brain, then completely out the top of the skull through the frontal bone. The tamping iron landed point-first some 80 feet (25 m) away, “smeared with blood and brain”. Gage was thrown onto his back and gave some brief convulsions of the arms and legs, but spoke within a few minutes, walked with little assistance, and sat upright in an oxcart for the 3⁄4-mile (1.2 km) ride to his lodgings in town. About 30 minutes after the accident physician Edward H. Williams, finding Gage sitting in a chair outside the hotel, was greeted with “one of the great understatements of medical history”

When I drove up he said, “Doctor, here is business enough for you.” I first noticed the wound upon the head before I alighted from my carriage, the pulsations of the brain being very distinct. The top of the head appeared somewhat like an inverted funnel, as if some wedge-shaped body had passed from below upward. Mr. Gage, during the time I was examining this wound, was relating the manner in which he was injured to the bystanders. I did not believe Mr. Gage’s statement at that time, but thought he was deceived. Mr. Gage persisted in saying that the bar went through his head. Mr. G. got up and vomited; the effort of vomiting pressed out about half a teacupful of the brain [through the exit hole at the top of the skull], which fell upon the floor!  You will excuse me for remarking here, that the picture presented was, to one unaccustomed to military surgery, truly terrific; but the patient bore his sufferings with the most heroic firmness. He recognised me at once, and said he hoped he was not much hurt. He seemed to be perfectly conscious, but was getting exhausted from the haemorrhage. His person, and the bed on which he was laid, were literally one gore of blood. 

With Williams’ assistance Harlow shaved the scalp around the region of the tamping iron’s exit, then removed coagulated blood, small bone fragments, and “an ounce or more” of protruding brain. After probing for foreign bodies and replacing two large detached pieces of bone, Harlow closed the wound with adhesive straps, leaving it partially open for drainage; the entrance wound in the cheek was bandaged only loosely, for the same reason. A wet compress was applied, then a nightcap, then  further bandaging to secure these dressings. 

12 days after the accident, Gage was semi-comatose, “seldom speaking unless spoken to, and then answering only in monosyllables” the globe of the left eye became more protuberant with infected tissue pushing out rapidly from the internal canthus and wounded brain coming out at the top of the head.” By the 14th day, “The exhalations from the mouth and head are horribly fetid. Will not take nourishment unless strongly urged. The friends and attendants are in hourly expectancy of his death, and have his coffin and clothes in readiness.”  Galvanised to action, Harlow decided to reopen the wound and “cut off fungi which were sprouting out from the top of the brain and filling the opening, and made free application of caustic to them. 

On the 24th day, Gage “succeeded in raising himself up, and took one step to his chair”. One month later, he was walking “up and down stairs, and about the house! By November 25 (10 weeks after his injury), Gage was strong enough to return to his parents’ home in Lebanon, New Hampshire. 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Evan Rachel Wood (33), Shannon Elizabeth (47), Toby Jones (54), Julie Kavner (70), Doug Bradley (66), Martin Freeman (49), Heather Thomas (63), Pink (41), Miles Jupp (41), Adam Sandler (54), Henry Thomas (49), Hugh Grant (60), Eric Stonestreet (49), Jeffrey Combs (66), Julia Sawalha (52), Rachel Hunter (51), Guy Ritchie (52), Colin Firth (60), Virginia Madsen (59), Elizabeth Henstridge (33), Roxann Dawson (62), Johnny Vegas (49), Alfie Allen (34), and Linda Gray (80). 

13th September 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 6th September 2020

A fairly standard no scoring week, thankfully Nickie kept me abreast of the news as I was taking a busman’s holiday in North Wales, where I noticed first hand the lack of social distancing and mask wearing that holidaymakers seem to be entitled to. I suppose those who feel the real urgent need to go on a holiday are the ones who are most likely to transmit and die of the covids.  

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Bill Oddie has been suffering from an “almost fatal” condition throughout the summer.  The British TV personality and former member of The Goodies revealed the news to his Twitter followers. He told them he has been “very ill” with “lithium toxicity”. “Just so you know, I have been very ill most of this summer. Lithium toxicity. Almost fatal!” he wrote on social media. “I am still here but very confused about most things! But then aren’t many of us. He added: “It fuddles my brain. Confusion. Will I return? I Really dunno. I do hope so. Please wish me luck. XX.” Lithium is a type of medicine known as a mood stabiliser. According to the NHS, too much of it in the blood can trigger serious side effects, including a loss of appetite and the feeling of confusion. Oddie – a known conservationist and birdwatcher – first shot to fame as a member of the comedy trio The Goodies. Earlier this year, his co-member Tim Brooke-Taylor died from Covid-19, aged 79.   

As you saw above, DJ Erick Morillo — best known for his 1993 hit, “I Like to Move It” — has died. Law enforcement sources tell us the DJ and music producer’s body was found on Tuesday morning in Miami Beach, the circumstances surrounding his death are currently unclear. Best known for his work in international house music, Morillo produced his biggest hit in the ’90s with the electro-dance track “I Like to Move It”, which he put out under the stage name Reel 2 Real. He’s a 3-time winner of the DJ Awards’ Best House DJ and a 3-time winner of Best International DJ, including his most recent win in 2009. Morillo’s death comes a few weeks after he was arrested in Miami on sexual battery charges. The alleged victim claims she and Morillo went to his place after they were both DJing. She alleges she resisted his sexual advances, and then went to sleep at his place, but woke up nude … with Morillo standing next to her, also nude. He’d turned himself in on August 6th.   

Britain’s Got Talent and X Factor star Ian Royce has died aged 51 following a health battle, with the tragic news announced on his Twitter account on Tuesday evening. A statement was shared on his verified Twitter account with his 68,100 followers which read: “It is with our greatest regret that we have to tell you all that Ian has passed away today from severe pneumonia and multiple organ failure. “He was in no pain and was surrounded by friends and family. He put up a good fight but is in a better place now. Roxanne.” The tweet was immediately inundated with well wishes to Ian’s family from fans, friends and former colleagues. One said: “Incredibly shocking and sad news. Hugs to you Roxy and the rest of the family. Ian was one of those unsung legends, he never gave up and despite his own struggles his outspoken outlook helped others. RIP Ian.” Last year, aged 50, Ian’s showbiz pals including Ant McPartlin, Declan Donnelly, Simon Cowell, Olly Murs and Robbie Williams rallied behind him as he opened up about his rehab stint. In an emotional statement, the ITV favourite said: “I just wanted to let you all know that my first 28 days of treatment have come to an end and I will now be going abroad for the next three months to continue my treatment and really work on me and issues that have been buried deep for 40 years.” He continued: “As well as my alcohol addiction I have also surrendered to my sex and love addictions stemming from my past which have affected my relationships greatly. Ian was best known as the warm up guy for ITV shows Britain’s Got Talent and The X Factor.

On This Day

  • 1620 – The Pilgrims sail from Plymouth, England on the Mayflower to settle in North America. 
  • 1901 – Leon Czolgosz, an unemployed anarchist, shoots and fatally wounds US President William McKinley at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. 
  • 1952 – A prototype aircraft crashes at the Farnborough Airshow in Hampshire, England, killing 29 spectators and the two on board.  
  • 1972 – Munich massacre: Nine Israeli athletes die (along with a German policeman) at the hands of the Palestinian “Black September” terrorist group after being taken hostage at the Munich Olympic Games. Two other Israeli athletes were slain in the initial attack the previous day.  
  • 1997 – The Funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales takes place in London. Well over a million people lined the streets and 2 1⁄2 billion watched around the world on television.

Deaths

  • 1998 – Akira Kurosawa, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1910)  
  • 2007 – Luciano Pavarotti, Italian tenor (b. 1935)  
  • 2012 – Terry Nutkins, English naturalist, television presenter and author (b. 1946)  
  • 2018 – Burt Reynolds, American actor, director and producer (b. 1936)   
  • 2019 – Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwean politician, 2nd President of Zimbabwe (b. 1924)

Last of The Khmer Rouge?

The Khmer Rouge’s chief jailer, who killed 16,000 Cambodians, ordered babies to be beaten to death and carried out medical experiments on live prisoners has died peacefully in hospital aged 77. Kaing Guek Eav, known as Comrade Duch, had been serving a life prison term for war crimes and crimes against humanity having locked up and abused thousands of men, women and children seen as enemies of the regime or who disobeyed its orders. Under his rule, torturers beat and whipped prisoners and shocked them with electrical devices, before their children were then also killed to stop any fears of the next generation taking revenge. When he finally faced a trial over the regime’s crimes, some 30 years on from the atrocities, he called himself ‘criminally responsible’ for babies’ deaths, with many infants having their young bodies battered against trees. Duch died at Cambodian Soviet Friendship Hospital on Wednesday, having developed breathing difficulties at the Kandal provincial prison he was being held two days earlier. The body is now to be examined for a cause of death before being handed to his family.   

Duch, whose trial took place in 2009, was the first senior Khmer Rouge figure to face the U.N.-backed tribunal that had been assembled to deliver justice for the regime’s brutal rule in the late 1970s, which is blamed for the deaths of 1.7 million people – a quarter of Cambodia’s population at the time. The communist Khmer Rouge regime that ruled Cambodia from 1975-79 was accused of genocide for causing the deaths of so many of their countrymen from executions, starvation and lack of medical care due to its radical policies. Only after neighbouring Vietnam pushed the Khmer Rouge from power did the scale and barbarity of their rule become absolutely clear.  

As commander of the top-secret Tuol Sleng prison code-named S-21, Duch was one of the few ex-Khmer Rouge who acknowledged even partial responsibility for his actions, and his trial included his own wrenchingly graphic testimony of how people were tortured at the prison. The site in Phnom Penh, which had been a secondary school before the Khmer Rouge came to power, is now a museum with stunning evidence of the cruelty with which the Khmer Rouge persecuted even its own members they accused of disloyalty. Men, women and children seen as enemies of the regime or who disobeyed its orders were jailed and tormented there, and only a handful survived. ‘Everyone who was arrested and sent to S-21 was presumed dead already,’ he testified in April 2009. The tribunal since Duch’s trial has convicted two top echelon Khmer Rouge leaders, while two other defendants died before their trials could be completed.

Youk Chhang, head of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, which has collected voluminous archives about the country’s tragedy, said Duch’s death ‘is a reminder to us all to remember the victims of the Khmer Rouge. And that justice remains a difficult road for Cambodia.’ 

Like many key members of the Khmer Rouge, Duch was an academic before he became a revolutionary. The former maths teacher joined Pol Pot’s movement in 1967, three years before the U.S. started carpet-bombing Cambodia to try to wipe out Northern Vietnamese troops and Viet Cong inside the border. The Khmer Rouge seized power in 1975 and immediately attempted a radical transformation of Cambodia into a peasant society, emptying cities and forcing the population to work on the land in the country they renamed Democratic Kampuchea. They backed up their rule with ruthless elimination of perceived enemies, and by 1976, Duch was the trusted head of its ultimate killing machine, S-21. Tribunal judges said he signed off on all executions there and was often present when interrogators used torture to extract confessions, including pulling out prisoners’ toenails, administering electric shocks, and waterboarding. Despite his denials, the judges said he had at times taken part in the torture and executions himself. The torture and executions that took place at Tuol Sleng were routinely recorded and photographed, and when the Khmer Rouge were forced from power in 1979, the thousands of documents and film negatives left at the prison became proof of the regime’s atrocities. Duch fled, disappearing for almost two decades in northwestern Cambodia and converting to Christianity until a chance discovery by a British journalist in 1999 led to his arrest. 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Idris Elba (48), Naomie Harris (44), Michael Winslow (62), Mathew Horne (42), Rose McGowan (47), Michael Keaton (69), Raquel Welch (80), Carice van Houten (44), Paddy Considine (47), Bob Newhart (91), George Lazenby (81), Damon Wayans (60), Beyoncé (39), Michael Berryman (72), Charlie Sheen (55), Keanu Reeves (56), Salma Hayek (54), Keith Allen (67), Zendaya (24), Burn Gorman (46), Lily Tomlin (81), Steve Pemberton (53), Craig McLachlan (55), Gloria Estefan (63), Richard Gere (71), and Chris Tucker (49).

6th September 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 23rd August 2020

Good afternoon everyone! A rather benign week for the listed, however plenty of news and potential for 2021, with four months to go, some of the newsworthy celebrities might hold on ’til January for us to list them. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Veteran radio DJ James Whale has revealed he has cancer in his kidney, spine, brain and lungs. The 69-year-old us that he received the diagnosis two weeks ago. It comes 20 years after he had one kidney removed because of a tumour. “It’s in my remaining kidney,” he said. “I’ve got a couple of small lesions in my lungs. I’ve got it in my spine. I’ve got it in my brain.” Whale has hosted a nightly evening phone-in show on TalkRadio since 2016. But the often controversial and confrontational host has been absent for the past month. He told us that he went to the doctor when he started forgetting names on air. “The woman looked worried and she said, ‘I’m so sorry. I’ve got really, really bad news for you. I’m afraid 20 years ago you had kidney cancer. Well, it looks like it’s probably come back. You’ve got a tumour on your kidney.’ “And I thought, ‘OK, well, 20 years later I’ll have to do all over again.’ And then she said, ‘I’m sorry. Sadly its spread. You’ve got small lesions in your brain and your lung, in your spine, in your pituitary gland.’” He said he already had the tumour in his pituitary gland. He has been on immunotherapy and hormone replacement treatment, and is already feeling the benefits. “I haven’t got a proper prognosis yet because it’s very early days, but this immunotherapy is a very new way of treating cancer – it gets the immune system to attack the tumours,” he said. “I’m probably going to be on tablets for the rest of my life but I’ve gone from being like a little shrunken, old man in the chair who’s not eating and could hardly walk up the stairs, to where I can run upstairs.” A drove of hateful fascists, including TV hosts Piers Morgan and Charlotte Hawkins, fellow TalkRadio presenters Julia Hartley-Brewer and Ian Collins, and Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage were among those sending well wishes. After his initial experience of cancer, Whale set up the James Whale Fund for Kidney Cancer in 2006, which merged with Kidney Cancer UK in 2015. Whale’s wife Melinda died of lung cancer two years ago.    

A singer recorded his final moments alive before his car was hit by a train in a live stream. Tavy Pustiu, 29, was regarded as one of Romania’s rising music stars before his life was tragically cut short. In the live-stream of the horrific accident, Tavy films himself listening to music in a car which his wife is driving. He jigs along to the beat and looks at the camera as the vehicle approaches a level crossing in the city of Ploiesti, in Romania’s Prahova County. The musician looks jovial and smiles at his wife, who is seen scanning the crossing for any oncoming trains. But she fails to spot one speeding right towards them. The final moments of the video capture the singer screaming in terror when he realises the danger he is in. Tavy died on the scene and his wife – who has not been named – remains in a critical condition and is on life support at the Prahova County Hospital. A local police spokesman in Prahova over said: “As a result of a collision between a train and a car on the level crossing a 29-year-old man who was the passenger in the front of the car was declared dead and a 24-year-old woman who was the driver was injured. “The accident happened because of non-compliance with the rules at the level crossing.” The train had been travelling between Maneciu and Ploiesti Sud and police said that it had been complicated for firemen to remove the pair from the wreckage. Pictures from the scene of the crash show the pair’s white car stuck underneath the front of the train. Just one month before his death, Tavy had posted on Facebook saying: “One day, the wrong train will take you to the right destination.”  

A South African who was thought to be the oldest man in the world has died at the age of 116. Fredie Blom’s identity documents showed he was born in Eastern Cape province in May 1904, although that was never verified by Guinness World Records. When he was teenager, his entire family was wiped out by the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic. He went on to survive two world wars and apartheid. Mr Blom told the BBC in 2018 that there was no special secret to his longevity. “There’s only one thing – it’s the man above. He’s got all the power. I have nothing. I can drop over any time but He holds me,” he said. Mr Blom spent most of his life as a labourer – first on a farm and then in the construction industry – and only retired when he was in his 80s. Although he gave up drinking many years ago, he was a regular smoker. However, a coronavirus-related lockdown imposed by the South African government reportedly meant he was unable to buy tobacco to roll his own cigarettes on his 116th birthday. Mr Blom’s family said he died of natural causes in Cape Town on Saturday. “Two weeks ago oupa [grandfather] was still chopping wood,” family spokesman Andre Naidoo told us. “He was a strong man, full of pride.” But within days Mr Blom shrank “from a big man to a small person”, he added.  

Microsoft has finally killed Internet Explorer! The browser will be finished on 17th August, 2021, the company said. In a blog post, Microsoft explained that the Microsoft Teams web app will no longer support Internet Explorer 11 – the most recent and final iteration of the browser – from November 30th, 2020. The remaining Microsoft 365 apps and services will end support for the browser next year. Replacing the browser is the equally shit Microsoft Edge, the computer giant’s new browser which relies on Chromium open-source software, developed by Google for Google Chrome. That gives Edge more features than Internet Explorer, or you could just use Chrome. The move towards Chromium for Microsoft’s browser, compared to its previous proprietary browser, has larger ramifications for the future of the open internet. Chromium is now the basis of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Brave, Vivaldi, Avast Secure Browser, and Opera. This means that Google has greater influence when it comes to what features are developed, practices accepted, and which usability concerns are deemed vital. 

On This Day

  • AD 79 – Mount Vesuvius begins stirring, on the feast day of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire.  
  • 1305 – Sir William Wallace is executed for high treason at Smithfield, London. 
  • 1966 – Lunar Orbiter 1 takes the first photograph of Earth from orbit around the Moon.  
  • 1973 – A bank robbery gone wrong in Stockholm, Sweden, turns into a hostage crisis; over the next five days the hostages begin to sympathise with their captors, leading to the term “Stockholm syndrome”.  
  • 1991 – The World Wide Web is opened to the public.

Deaths

William Wallace’s Final Days

The movie ‘Braveheart’ was a blockbuster hit and is based on the life and death of legendary Scottish hero William Wallace as he fought for independence. You already know that the Hollywood version of events was quite different to the reality; even Mel Gibson referred to it as ‘historical fantasy.’ What you may not be aware of is the genuinely grisly nature of Wallace’s death which was far more graphic and horrifying than depicted on screen. He may have lived by the sword, but he died by a variety of other means. 

Wallace was captured at Robroyston near Glasgow on August 3, 1305. He was handed over to Sir Robert de Clifford and Sir Aymer de Valence and taken to Carlisle Castle. Rather than executing him immediately, Edward wanted to transport the prisoner to London to show other would-be rebels what happened to those who defied the crown. He was forced to travel another 300 miles to London where a terrible fate awaited him. 

There was a show trial in London, but in reality, there was zero chance that Wallace would escape with his life. While his death scene in Braveheart is excruciatingly painful, it was a mild demise compared to what really happened. After the inevitable guilty verdict on August 23, 1305, he was sentenced to die in one of the worst ways imaginable. Wallace was about to be hung, drawn, and quartered. 

The English apparently took him from  Westminster Hall and stripped him naked. Then they tied him to a hurdle and horses dragged him around six miles to Smoothfield where the pain began. During the journey, bystanders threw excrement and other assorted pieces of garbage at the unfortunate Scot, and he was also beaten with sticks and whipped by the angry mob. In Braveheart, Wallace endures the painful trip to the gallows but he is clothed, and while the crowd throws items at him, he is not struck by excrement. He received the ‘drawn’ punishment for committing treason, but there was much worse to come. Wallace had also been found guilty of robbery and murder, and the sentence for these crimes was hanging. Alas, the rebel didn’t get off so easily so while he was half-strangled by the rope, he wasn’t allowed to die. In Braveheart, we see knives on the table, but we don’t see what happened below Wallace’s waist. In reality, his executioner ‘emasculated’ him; this means Wallace’s testicles and penis were cut off. Next, the prisoner’s intestines were removed and burned in front of him. If Wallace weren’t already dead at this point, the next step would have finished him off. The executioner ripped the Scot’s heart out of his chest; there were instances when a criminal’s heart was still beating when the executioner displayed it to the crowd and declared it to be the heart of a traitor. We don’t know if Wallace’s heart was still beating when it was taken out of his body. The final brutal step involved chopping Wallace’s head off with an axe. After the execution, his body was divided into four pieces and displayed in areas around the country as a showcase of Edward’s power. For example, Wallace’s head was stuck on a pike on London Bridge. The heads of John and Simon Fraser joined that of Wallace on the Bridge later on. Wallace’s limbs were sent separately to Berwick, Stirling, Perth, and Newcastle. 

It is often assumed that William Wallace died such a cruel death because of his continued resistance to King Edward I. However, new research suggests that he was targeted because Edward believed Wallace wanted the Scottish Crown. In 2011, historians from Glasgow University found evidence which suggests the English thought Wallace was trying to become the King of Scotland.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Ray Park (46), Charley Boorman (54), Richard Armitage (49), Kristen Wiig (47), Ty Burrell (53), James Corden (41), Dua Lipa (24), Mark Williams (61), Laura Haddock (35), Carrie-Anne Moss (53), Hayden Panettiere (31), Kim Cattrall (64), Amy Adams (46), Ben Barnes (39), James Marsters (58), Andrew Garfield (37), Demi Lovato (28), Misha Collins (46), Ray Wise (73), John Noble (72), Sylvester McCoy (77), David Walliams (49), Melissa Fumero (38), Matthew Perry (51), Jill St. John (80), Jonathan Frakes (68), Diana Muldaur (82), Ian McElhinney (72), Jim Carter (72), Simon Bird (36), Edward Norton (51), Andy Samberg (42), Christian Slater (51), Robert Redford (84), Madeleine Stowe (62), Roman Polanski (87), Denis Leary (63), Robert De Niro (77), Sean Penn (60), Rachel Hurd-Wood (30), and Belinda Carlisle (62).

23rd August 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 16th August 2020

This day seems to be quite a deadly one. Although I haven’t listed each occasion, there seems to have been quite a few plane crashes and numerous previous celebrity deaths on this day. So try not to travel today… Oh… Also apologies for the tardiness of this weeks issue, life got in the way again and my leading story had to be wiped because Brutha Trump went and died before I could tell you he was critically ill, so rewrites and more rewrites! 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Bollywood’s Sanjay Dutt has been diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer, reports claim. The 61-year-old star – who recently announced on Twitter that he is taking a break from work to focus on medical treatment – is said to be “devastated” by the heartbreaking diagnosis. It is thought that the Naam actor is jetting to America to start treatment right away. An insider told us: “Baba is devastated. He has little children. Fortunately, they are in Dubai right now with their mother. But breaking this awful news to them would be an ordeal.” The friend also added that Bombay native Sanjay is pretty shaken but trying to stay positive, as they added: “It is curable. He needs instant and rigorous treatment for which he leaves immediately.” The actor recently posted a statement on Twitter where he announced that he would be taking a “short break” from work. According to local media, Sanjay was taken to Mumbai’s Lilavati hospital on August 8th after complaining of breathlessness and chest discomfort. He later announced on Twitter that his test for COVID-19 was negative and he was discharged from the hospital on August 10th.  

Robert Trump, the younger brother of President Donald Trump, has died. The president visited his 72-year-old brother at a hospital in Manhattan on Friday, according to White House spokesman Judd Deere. Trump was already scheduled to visit his property in Bedminster, New Jersey, on Friday, so he’s not going out of his way. The White House did not immediately release details about why Robert Trump had been hospitalised, but officials said that he was seriously ill. Robert Trump was previously hospitalised in the Spring with an undisclosed serious condition. A senior administration official said Friday that the President “has a very good relationship with his brother and his brother is very special to him.” Robert Trump was a former top executive at the Trump Organisation. He was one of four other siblings to the President, including the late Fred Trump, Jr.  Robert Trump recently filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Trump family seeking to stop publication of a tell-all book by the president’s niece Mary titled “Too Much and Never Enough.” The president has said that Mary Trump’s book was a violation of a nondisclosure agreement she signed in connection to a financial settlement she received from the Trump family. Mary is the daughter of the brothers’ eldest sibling, Fred Trump Jr., who struggled with alcoholism and died in 1981 at the age of 43. No family members joined Fred Jr., who was known as Freddy, at the hospital on the night he died, Mary Trump said, adding that Donald Trump went to the movies with another sibling instead. And you thought your family has issues…  

Actress Alyssa Milano has said her hair is falling out as a result of coronavirus and urged people to wear face masks to stop the spread. The Charmed actress shared a video on Instagram in which she is brushing her hair, to demonstrate clumps of hair coming out. She said: “I just wanted to show you the amount of hair that is coming out of my head as a result of Covid.” She ends the video by showing the hair that has come out to the camera and said: “One brushing. This is my hair loss from Covid-19. Wear a damn mask.” Whilst not enough to make a merkin, one look at her ‘hair loss’ confirms she’s being overly dramatic. Milano has previously said she felt like she was dying while suffering from coronavirus. She revealed on Instagram that she has tested positive for Covid-19 antibodies after three earlier tests suggested she had not contracted the virus. She shared the message alongside an image of herself using breathing equipment after she fell ill in March. “I had never been this kind of sick,” she wrote. “Everything hurt. Loss of smell. It felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest. “I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t keep food in me. I lost 9 pounds in 2 weeks. I was confused. Low grade fever. And the headaches were horrible.” She added: “I also want you to know this illness is not a hoax.  

Simon Cowell is recovering from a six-hour surgery after breaking his back. The 60-year-old star was rushed to hospital last week after falling off his new electric bicycle in Malibu, California, and he has now emerged from a successful surgery but will require a few months to fully recover. A source told the New York Post’s Page Six: “It was a long surgery, they had to fuse his bones and implant a rod. But thank goodness he’s going to be okay and will have a few months of recovery.” Simon’s representatives previously confirmed he had broken his back in the fall. However, nobody checked on the bike and I’m sure all of you would like to know if its ok. At the time of writing, nobody is sure, but the said bike wasn’t all it seemed to be. The $21,500 machine is capable of 60mph and has a 20,000 watt motor, whereas the legal limit in the UK is 250w. So this is a tale of a man who thought he could handle a beast and it bit him.  

Antonio Banderas is celebrating a big birthday in a slightly different way this year. On Monday, the Spanish actor shared a post on social media in which he revealed he is recovering from a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. As it is also his 60th birthday, the Pain and Glory star accompanied the statement with what appears to be one of his own baby photos from some six decades ago. Banderas wrote in the post that he was doing well, aside from feeling more tired than normal, and that is confident that, by following medical advice, he’ll recover soon. He went on to add that he’s been making the most of the isolation, reading, writing, resting and making plans to commemorate his 60s — something he’s looking forward to and hopeful about. The actor was in the middle of filming the comedy Official Competition with Penélope Cruz earlier this year, when shooting was suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

On This Day

  • 1819 – Peterloo Massacre: Seventeen people die and over 600 are injured in cavalry charges at a public meeting at St. Peter’s Field, Manchester, England.  
  • 1858 – U.S. President James Buchanan inaugurates the new transatlantic telegraph cable by exchanging greetings with Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. However, a weak signal forces a shutdown of the service in a few weeks. Nothing new there then… 
  • 1906 – The 8.2 Mw Valparaíso earthquake hits central Chile, killing 3,882 people.  
  • 1930 – The first colour sound cartoon, Fiddlesticks, is released by Ub Iwerks.  
  • 1946 – Mass riots in Kolkata begin; more than 4,000 people would be killed in 72 hours.  
  • 1960 – Joseph Kittinger parachutes from a balloon over New Mexico at 102,800 feet (31,300 m), setting three records that held until 2012: High-altitude jump, free fall, and highest speed by a human without an aircraft.  

Deaths

  • 1888 – John Pemberton, American pharmacist & chemist, invented Coca-Cola (b. 1831)  
  • 1899 – Robert Bunsen, German chemist and academic (b. 1811)  
  • 1938 – Robert Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1911)  
  • 1948 – Babe Ruth, American baseball player and coach (b. 1895)    
  • 1956 – Bela Lugosi, Hungarian-American actor (b. 1882) 
  • 1977 – Elvis Presley, American singer, guitarist, and actor (b. 1935)  
  • 2003 – Idi Amin, Ugandan politician and despot, 3rd President of Uganda (b. 1928)  
  • 2018 – Aretha Franklin, American singer-songwriter (b. 1942)   
  • 2019 – Peter Fonda, American actor, director, and screenwriter. (b. 1940)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Taika Waititi (45), Steve Carell (58), James Cameron (66), Julie Newmar (87), Madonna (62), Jennifer Lawrence (30), Ben Affleck (48), Natasha Henstridge (46), Joe Jonas (31), Jim Dale (85), Tony Robinson (74), Mila Kunis (37), Halle Berry (54), Steve Martin (75), Joseph Marcell (72), Sarah Brightman (60), Cara Delevingne (28), Bruce Greenwood (64), Chris Hemsworth (37), Anna Gunn (52), Ian McDiarmid (76), Hulk Hogan (67), Antonio Banderas (60), and Rosanna Arquette (61).

16th August 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 9th August 2020

A fairly average week; not a lot going on and you might be hard pressed to picture the faces of those who have died. However it does give me the opportunity to apologise profusely to Nickie for missing that she had Olivia De Havilland last week!! Obviously I have awarded her the missed points and took penance in the form of self-flagellation and tea without sugar. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Simon Cowell has broken his back falling off his new electric bike in the courtyard of his Los Angeles home. The 60-year-old music mogul was taken to hospital and is undergoing surgery, his spokeswoman said. “He’s doing fine, he’s under observation and is in the best possible hands,” she said earlier. Cowell, best known for hit shows The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent, is spending lockdown in the US, where he now lives. Cowell, who has a six-year-old son Eric with his partner Lauren Silverman, was reportedly testing his new bike when the accident occurred. Piers Morgan was among those who wished Cowell “a full and speedy recovery” on social media.  

Former Pope Benedict XVI, 93, was seriously ill after a visit to Germany, it has been reported. German newspaper Passauer Neue Presse reported on Monday that Benedict had become frail and his voice was barely audible, according to his biographer Peter Seewald. But the Vatican has responded to the report saying Benedict’s condition “was not particularly worrying” and reassured the public he was overcoming a painful but not grave ailment. Mr Seewald told the newspaper that the ex-pontiff was suffering from shingles, a viral infection that causes painful rashes. “The health conditions of the Pope Emeritus are not particularly worrying, apart from being those of an old man of 93 who is overcoming the most acute phase of a painful but not grave illness,” said the Vatican in a statement. Benedict resides in a former convent in the Vatican gardens. He left Italy for the first time since his resignation in 2013 for a farewell visit to his older brother Georg in Bavaria, where they were born. Georg Ratzinger died on 1 July aged 96. Both brothers were ordained priests on the same day in 1951. While on his four-day visit to the Bavarian city of Regensburg, Benedict was visited by Mr Seewald, who said the former pope told him he might pick up writing again if he regains his strength.     

Linda and Anne Nolan, members of Irish pop group The Nolans, have revealed they have both been undergoing treatment for cancer during lockdown. The sisters, who are aged 61 and 69 respectively, shared the news on the official Twitter account for the band. The tweet, which included a picture taken recently of Linda and Anne together, stated: “For the past few months during lockdown, Linda and Anne have been battling cancer and chemotherapy together.” The announcement concluded with a message of hope, which read: “We will get through this together, as a family.” The sisters spoke about undergoing chemotherapy together at Blackpool’s Victoria Hospital after receiving their cancer diagnoses days apart. Seven years ago, their sister Bernie Nolan, lead vocalist of The Nolans, died of breast cancer at the age of 52. Looking back at the moment she and Anne told their siblings of their cancer diagnoses, Linda said the family “laughed and cried”. “Forget the Chemical Brothers, we’ve become the Chemo Sisters,” she said. Anne, the eldest of the Nolan sisters, said that she is “scared of dying”, stating: “I love my life so much. I love my daughters, my grandchildren, my friends, all my family. I want to live for as long as I possibly can.” Linda added: “It’s just really hard and I’m scared of dying. I don’t want to die. I want to be around and see my great nieces and nephews grow up, and that’s why I’m putting everything I’ve got into trying to get well.” Linda has incurable cancer in her liver, the third time she has experienced a recurrence from breast cancer, which she was diagnosed with in 2006. She developed cellulitis (a bacterial skin infection) and lymphedema (a chronic condition that causes swelling in the body’s tissues) in her arm in 2007 and secondary cancer on her pelvis three years ago. Anne has been diagnosed with stage three breast cancer, 20 years after being diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time in 2000. 

Will Young is said to be devastated following the death of his twin brother Rupert, who has battled with mental health issues. 41-year-old Rupert, who was born ten minutes after Will, spoke previously about his struggles with depression and alcoholism. Circumstances surrounding Rupert’s death remain unclear, though a spokesperson for the Young family said they have been left wracked by grief over their loss. “Will’s relationship with Rupert had been tough over the years at times, and they had both spoken about the mental health problems which had made it challenging. “But there were hopes he had turned a corner and they are a very loving family – and utterly devastated by his passing.” Rupert had been diagnosed with dysthymia – a depressive mood disorder – in 2005. He previously admitted he struggled with living his famous brother’s shadow. Speaking in a 2008 interview, Rupert said: “I woke up one morning and turned on the TV. There was William on Richard & Judy, giving the most amazing performance of one of his songs. “I had spent the night before drinking with tramps in a car park and cutting myself. “It seemed bizarre to me that two people who are genetically the same could behave in such different ways. “I realised that something had gone very wrong. But I didn’t know what, or why, and nor did anyone else.” Troubled Rupert said he was then in and out of hospital ‘more than ten times’. “I saw the top doctors and psychiatrists in the country, but the mental health system here is overloaded…I was never actually properly assessed.” They just told me I was an addict and that was why I was the way I was,” he said. 

UB40 singer Duncan Campbell is recovering in hospital after suffering a stroke. A statement from the band said the 62-year-old, from Birmingham, is ‘up and about’ and doing well, and there is hope for a ‘speedy’ recovery. Campbell replaced his brother Ali as lead singer of the British reggae group in 2008, after Ali quit over a disagreement about management. A statement on Tuesday said: ‘We can confirm that our lead singer and brother Duncan Campbell was taken to hospital after suffering a stroke. ‘While we can report that he is already up and about, we ask fans to respect Duncan and the family’s privacy as he works his way back to what we all hope will be a strong and speedy recovery. ‘We look forward to seeing you all on the road next spring.’ The news follows the band’s announcement last week that their UK tour dates due to take place in December had been rescheduled to March next year because of the Covid-19 outbreak. Ali has been highly critical of his replacement and said watching his brother perform the band’s songs ‘makes my skin crawl’. He has since toured as part of the breakaway group UB40 Featuring Ali, Astro & Mickey, and the two groups regularly hit out at each other in public. Duncan sang in a harmony group with his brothers when they were children as well as performing with their father, folk singer Ian Campbell. Last year UB40 saxophonist Brian Travers, a founding member of the band, was forced to miss the group’s 40th anniversary tour after suffering a seizure at home. He was later diagnosed with a brain tumour, undergoing surgery on the day he was due to begin the tour. 

On This Day

  • 1173 – Construction of the campanile of the Cathedral of Pisa (now known as the Leaning Tower of Pisa) begins; it will take two centuries to complete.  
  • 1930 – Betty Boop makes her cartoon debut in Dizzy Dishes.  
  • 1945 – World War II: Nagasaki is devastated when an atomic bomb, Fat Man, is dropped by the United States B-29 Bockscar. Thirty-five thousand people are killed outright.
  • 1969 – Followers of Charles Manson murder pregnant actress Sharon Tate (wife of Roman Polanski), coffee heiress Abigail Folger, Polish actor Wojciech Frykowski, men’s hairstylist Jay Sebring and recent high-school graduate Steven Parent.  
  • 1974 – As a direct result of the Watergate scandal, Richard Nixon becomes the first President of the United States to resign from office. His Vice President, Gerald Ford, becomes president.

Deaths

Last Meals

Karla Faye Tucker was an American woman sentenced to death for killing two people with a pickaxe during a burglary. She was the first woman to be executed in the United States since Velma Barfield in 1984, and the first in Texas since Chipita Rodriguez in 1863. 

Tucker was born and raised in Houston, Texas, the youngest of three sisters. Her father Larry was a longshoreman. The marriage of her parents was troubled, and Tucker started smoking cigarettes with her sisters when she was eight years old. During her parents’ divorce proceedings when she was 10 years old, Tucker learned that her birth was the result of an extramarital affair. By age 12, she had begun taking drugs and having sex. She dropped out of school at age 14 and followed her mother Carolyn, a rock groupie, into prostitution. In her early 20’s she began hanging out with bikers and met a woman named Shawn Dean and her husband Jerry Lynn Dean, they introduced her to Daniel Ryan Garrett who was almost twice her age and began dating. On June 12 1983, after spending the weekend using drugs with Garrett and their friends, Tucker and Garrett entered Jerry Dean’s apartment, intending to steal a motorcycle that Dean was restoring there. During the burglary, Tucker and Garrett entered Dean’s bedroom, where Tucker sat on him. In an effort to protect himself, Dean grabbed Tucker above the elbows, whereupon Garrett intervened. Garrett struck Dean numerous times in the back of the head with a ball-peen hammer that he found on the floor. After hitting Dean, Garrett left the room to carry motorcycle parts out of the apartment. Tucker remained in the bedroom. The blows Garrett had dealt Dean caused him to begin making a “gurgling” sound. Tucker wanted to “stop him from making that noise” and she then picked up a three-foot pickaxe that was laying against the wall and began hitting Dean. Garrett then re-entered the room and dealt Dean a final blow in the chest. Garrett left the bedroom again to continue loading Dean’s motorcycle parts into his car. Tucker was once again left in the room and only then noticed a woman who had hidden under the bed covers against the wall. The woman, Deborah Ruth Thornton, had argued with her husband the day before, went to a party and ended up spending the night in Dean’s bed. Upon discovering Thornton, Tucker grazed her shoulder with the pickaxe. Thornton and Tucker began to struggle, but Garrett returned and separated them. Tucker proceeded to hit Thornton repeatedly with the pickaxe and then embedded the axe in her heart. Tucker would later tell people and testify that she experienced intense multiple orgasms with each blow of the pickaxe. The next morning, one of Dean’s co-workers who had been waiting for a ride entered the apartment and discovered the victims’ bodies. Police investigation led to the arrests of Tucker and Garrett, five weeks after the killings.  

In September 1983, Tucker and Garrett were indicted for murder and tried separately for the crimes. Tucker was charged with the murders of both Dean and Thornton, but after she testified against Garrett at his trial, the charge for the murder of Thornton was dropped. Though the death penalty was hardly ever sought for female killers, Tucker, along with Garrett, was sentenced to death in late 1984. Garrett died of liver disease in 1993 while awaiting execution. Although Tucker as a model prisoner and that, after 14  years on death row, she likely had been reformed, The board rejected her appeals and hours before her execution, Texas Governor George W. Bush refused the final 11th-hour appeal to block her execution. 

On February 2nd, 1998, state authorities took Tucker from the unit in Gatesville and flew her on a TDCJ aircraft, transporting her to the Huntsville Unit. For her last meal, Tucker requested a banana, a peach, and a garden salad with ranch dressing. She was executed by lethal injection on February 3rd, 1998. As the deadly chemicals were being administered, she praised Jesus Christ, licked her lips, looked at the ceiling, and hummed. She was pronounced dead at 6:45 p.m. C.S.T., eight minutes after receiving the injection.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Anna Kendrick (35), Gillian Anderson (52), Rhona Mitra (44), Sam Elliott (76), Eric Bana (51), Melanie Griffith (63), Audrey Tautou (44), Jes Macallan (38), Jes Macallan (36), Dustin Hoffman (83), Keith Carradine (71), Katie Leung (33), Connie Stevens (82), Charlize Theron (45), Abbie Cornish (38), Michael Shannon (46), David Duchovny (60), Tobin Bell (78), Leslie Odom Jr. (39), M. Night Shyamalan (50), Michelle Yeoh (58), Barbara Windsor (83), Geri Horner (48), Mark Strong (57), Tawny Kitaen (59), Loni Anderson (75), Kara Tointon (37), Meghan Markle (39), Billy Bob Thornton (65), Barack Obama (59), Carol Arthur (85), Evangeline Lilly (41), Stephen Graham (47), Martin Sheen (80), John C. McGinley (61), Michael Ealy (47), John Landis (70), Steven Berkoff (83), Mamie Gummer (37), and Martha Stewart (79).

9th August 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 2nd August 2020

Let’s start off by awarding the points! With the passing of Olivia De Havilland – Nickie, Laura,  Dave J, Paul G, Paul C, and Sylvia each get 46 points; and not to be outdone – Liz, Mark, Shân, and Doug each get a whopping 146 points for listing her as one of their Big Three. Well done all of you, it’s certainly shook up the leaderboard somewhat. 

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Elton John has claimed he’d “be dead” if he hadn’t quit drugs and alcohol 30 years ago. The singer celebrated his 30th year of sobriety with a touching Instagram post, in which he showed the many cards sent to him by family and friends to mark his anniversary. “Reflecting on the most magical day having celebrated my 30th Sobriety Birthday,” John wrote in a caption. “So many lovely cards, flowers and chips from my sons, David, friends in the Program, staff at the office and in our homes. I’m truly a blessed man,” he continued. “If I hadn’t finally taken the big step of asking for help 30 years ago, I’d be dead. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all the people who have inspired and supported me along the way.” He also uploaded a picture of himself cutting into a cake shaped like the number 30, and one showing off his 30-year sobriety coin. Coincidently, it’s also thirty years since he wrote a good song. So, if you see the little fella one evening in  London town, buy him a drink, set him up a line of coke and see if he helps one of us on the Pool to score some points.  

Tamar Braxton has confirmed that she attempted suicide in early July, while calling out reality television for “toxic exploitation”. The musician, reality TV star and sister of singer Toni, was taken to hospital on 16th July after being found unresponsive in a Los Angeles hotel suite by her boyfriend. In an Instagram post, accompanied by a photograph of her and son Logan, Braxton said that she had tried to take her own life. “Mental illness is real,” she wrote. “We have to normalise acknowledging it and stop associating it with shame and humiliation. The pain that I have experienced over the past 11 years has slowly eaten away at my spirit and my mental health … It was only God’s grace and His mercy on my attempt to end my pain and my life that I am here to utilise my voice.” Braxton also wrote that she had been “betrayed, taken advantage of, overworked and underpaid” throughout her time on reality television. She cited it as the source of her mental illness, and pledged to help “those who suffer from mental illness, including those of us whose mental illness was only a result from the toxic, systematic bondage that dwells in television.” She claimed that attempts to change her work circumstances had been ignored.    

The ongoing car crash known as Katie Price has confirmed she’s broken both her feet and ankles in a post on Instagram. Sharing a photo of both her legs encased in bandaging, Katie said: “Yes it’s true I have broken my ankles and my feet, I have to have both feet operated on and pins put in been told I won’t be able to walk for 3 to 6 months.” The mother-of-five, 42, is currently in Turkey on holiday but is expected to cut her holiday short in order to return home for further treatment. Katie is said to have spent the night in hospital on Wednesday after jumping off a wall at a theme park in Turkey and fracturing both heels in the process. Katie is on holiday with her boyfriend Carl Woods and two of her children, Junior and Princess, as well as Princess’ friend. Katie’s eldest son Harvey, 18, has recently experienced health issues which resulted in him having to miss the holiday to Turkey. So they basically left him in intensive care whilst they all fucked off on a jolly. Daughter Princess, 13, said: “I’m actually having the best holiday ever.”   

Dame Barbara Windsor has been moved into a care home due to the worsening of her Alzheimer’s. Scott Mitchell, who has been married to the former EastEnders star for 20 years, said he made the decision after being advised by her neurologist. He told us: ”I feel I’m on an emotional rollercoaster. I walk around, trying to keep busy, then burst in to tears. It feels like a bereavement.” Mitchell added: ”It’s always been my biggest fear that one day I would have to take her somewhere and she’d be thinking: ‘Why would he do this to me?’” Back in June, he said Windsor, 82, would eventually need full-time care as she regularly feels “unsettled” and had trouble walking around their house. Mitchell revealed he took Windsor to the care home in mid-July, adding: “It feels like another chapter gone.” To occupy his time, Mitchell said he has decorated her room with pictures of their family, as well as the one of her receiving her Damehood from the Queen in 2016. Windsor was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2014.  

Although not famous enough for our little game, for those of you who enjoy Deadliest Catch , star Mahlon Reyes has died at the age of 38. Reyes, who was a deckhand on a crab fishing boat featured in the Discovery Channel series, suffered a heart attack on 25th July. His wife confirmed the news, telling us he initially survived and was rushed to hospital. Reyes – real name Joseph – never regained consciousness and died surrounded by his loved ones the following day. Long-running reality series Deadliest Catch began in 2005, and follows fishermen aboard fishing vessels in the Bering Sea during the Alaskan king crab and snow crab fishing seasons. Some of Mahlon’s ashes will be placed in the Bering Sea by his fellow members. He is best known by viewers as the deckhand on boats, the Seabrooke and Cape Caution. He was also a part of the fishing team led by Captain ”Wild“ Bill Wichrowski. Mahlon, who last appeared in the series in 2015, is survived by his wife and four children.

On This Day

  • 1870 – Tower Subway, the world’s first underground tube railway, opens in London, England, United Kingdom. Choo choo!
  • 1939 – Albert Einstein and Leo Szilard write a letter to Franklin D. Roosevelt, urging him to begin the Manhattan Project to develop a nuclear weapon. Yay!
  • 1990 – Iraq invades Kuwait, eventually leading to the Gulf War. That went well. 

Deaths

Last Meals

Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck were an American serial killer couple. They were convicted of one murder, are known to have committed two more, and were suspected of having killed up to 20 victims during a spree between 1947 and 1949.

After their arrest and trial for serial murder in 1949, they became known as “The Lonely Hearts Killers” for meeting their unsuspecting victims through lonely hearts ads. They both met through a lonely hearts ad themselves, both coming from similar backgrounds of a tragic childhood and a difficult life. 

Fernandez served in Spain’s Merchant Marine corps during WWII where a steel hatch fell on him, fracturing his skull and injuring his frontal lobe. The damage caused by this injury may well have affected his social and sexual behaviour. Beck, allegedly due to a glandular problem was overweight and underwent puberty prematurely. At her trial, she claimed to have been raped by her brother. She went on to claim that, when she had told her mother what happened, her mother had beaten her, claiming that she was responsible. 

Once together she posed as Fernandez’s sister, giving him an air of respectability. Their victims, feeling more secure knowing there was another woman in the house, often agreed to stay with the pair. Beck also convinced some victims that she lived alone and that her “brother” was only a guest. Beck was extremely jealous and went to great lengths to make sure Fernandez and his “intended” never consummated their relationship. When he did have sex with a woman, Beck subjected both to her violent temper. In 1949, the pair committed the three murders for which they later were convicted. Janet Fay, 66, became engaged to Fernandez and went to stay at his Long Island apartment. When Beck caught her in bed with Fernandez, she brutally attacked Fay’s head with a hammer in a murderous rage. Fernandez then strangled Fay. Fay’s family became suspicious when she disappeared, so Fernandez and Beck fled. 

Beck and Fernandez traveled to Byron Center Road in Wyoming Township, Michigan, a suburb of Grand Rapids, where they met and stayed with Delphine Downing, a 28-year-old widow with a two-year-old daughter. On February 28th, Downing became agitated, and Fernandez gave her sleeping pills to calm her. The daughter witnessed Downing’s resulting stupor and began to cry, which enraged Beck. Panicked, Beck choked the child but didn’t kill her. Fernandez thought Downing would become suspicious if she saw her bruised daughter, so he shot the unconscious woman. The couple then stayed for several days in Downing’s house. Again enraged by the daughter’s crying, Beck drowned her in a basin of water. They buried the bodies in the basement, but suspicious neighbours reported the Downings’ disappearances, leading the police to arrive at the door on March 1st, 1949 and arrested Beck and Fernandez.  

Fernandez quickly confessed. The pair vehemently denied committing 17 murders that were attributed to them, and Fernandez tried to retract his confession, saying he made it only to protect Beck. Their trial was sensationalised, with lurid tales of sexual perversity. Newspaper reporters described Beck’s appearance with derision, and she wrote protesting letters to the editors. Fernandez and Beck were convicted of Janet Fay’s murder—the only one for which they were tried—and sentenced to death. They were both executed by electrocution on March 8th, 1951. Prior to their deaths, Beck enjoyed fried chicken, fried potatoes and salad and Fernandez ate an onion omelet, french fries, chocolate candy, and a Cuban cigar.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Sam Worthington (44), Edward Furlong (43), Kevin Smith (50), Joanna Cassidy (75), Jason Momoa (41), Michael Biehn (64), Wesley Snipes (58), Emilia Fox (46), Dean Cain (54), Rico Rodriguez (22), J.K. Rowling (55), Christopher Nolan (50), Arnold Schwarzenegger (73), Hilary Swank (46), Terry Crews (52), Lisa Kudrow (57), Laurence Fishburne (59), Jean Reno (72), Carel Struycken (72), Frances de la Tour (76), Sian Gibson (44), Wil Wheaton (48), Leslie Easterbrook (71), Rachel Miner (40), David Warner (79), Elizabeth Berkley (48), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (50), Donnie Yen (57), and Taylor Schilling (36).

2nd August 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 26th July 2020

Let’s begin by congratulating Sarai for scoring on what had to be the dullest week of the year until yesterday! She correctly guessed that Regis Philbin would depart this year, so 62 points awarded! Apologies for the lack of interesting content this week, by Thursday I started listing people with silly names, like Dick Bond… Yeah… I know…  

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

RuPaul’s Drag Race star Chi Chi DeVayne has provided an update on his health after being hospitalised with suspected kidney failure. DeVayne – an American drag queen and reality star – said he is “better” but “drugged out” after undergoing a biopsy. Speaking to his fans on Instagram Live, DeVayne said: “I told them I need some of that shit they put me on so I can take it home.” DeVayne spent three hours on dialysis “to see if they can get his kidneys back functioning”. “It went by smooth – they injected me with some stuff before I went in and I didn’t feel a thing,” he said. DeVayne – whose real name is Zavion Davenport – rose to fame in the eighth season of RuPaul Drag Race, and also appeared on the third All Stars outing. He told his fans he is “ready to get back to doing what I love”, adding: ”I’m gonna fight to survive of course but I’ve been fighting too mentally, because this is a new experience for me. But I got it under control. I’m gonna be okay.” Upon being admitted to hospital, DeVayne had said: “I let it go too long without going to the doctor and these are the consequences. Take care of your body.”  

Australian actor Mel Gibson was admitted to hospital in April after contracting coronavirus, it has emerged. A representative for the 64-year-old Braveheart star confirmed that Gibson had been in private hospital care for at least one week. He has since tested negative for the virus several times. “He tested positive in April and spent a week in the hospital,” said Gibson’s rep, who also revealed that Gibson had been treated with the drug Remdesivir while in hospital. “He has tested negative numerous times since then as well as positive for the antibodies,” they continued. Gibson is the latest celebrity to have been reported as contracting the virus, which can be deadly. Gibson was at the centre of a controversy last month, when actor Winona Ryder alleged that Gibson referred to her as an “oven dodger”, in an anti-semitic reference to her Jewish heritage. A representative for Gibson denied the allegations, stating that they were “100 per cent untrue” and accused Ryder of continuously lying about the encounter.   

All Blacks great Andy Haden is battling a cancer relapse and is “gravely ill”. The former lock, who played 117 matches and 41 tests for the All Blacks between 1972 and 1985, is considered one of the greats of the game. He also captained the All Blacks on eight occasions. A spokesperson for the family told us: “Andy is gravely ill and the family would appreciate that their privacy is respected at this difficult time”. In 2003 Haden, now 69, confirmed he had chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and was undergoing treatment. Haden played a part in one the All Blacks’ most controversial wins in the 1978 test against Wales in Cardiff when he dived out of the line-out and gained a penalty for Brian McKechnie to kick the winning goal. After his rugby career he ran a celebrity management service, with clients including Kiwi supermodel Rachel Hunter.

On This Day

  • 1745 – The first recorded women’s cricket match takes place near Guildford, England.  
  • 1803 – The Surrey Iron Railway, arguably the world’s first public railway, opens in south London, United Kingdom.  
  • 1989 – A federal grand jury indicts Cornell University student Robert T. Morris, Jr. for releasing the Morris worm, thus becoming the first person to be prosecuted under the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.  

Deaths

  • 1919 – Edward Poynter, English painter and illustrator (b. 1836)
  • 1952 – Eva Perón, Argentinian politician, 25th First Lady of Argentina (b. 1919)  
  • 1984 – Ed Gein, American serial killer (b. 1906)  

A Sad Comic Strip About Death 

Last Week’s Birthdays

Kate Beckinsale (47), Jason Statham (53), Sandra Bullock (56), Helen Mirren (75), Kevin Spacey (61), Nana Visitor (63), Eve Myles (42), Mick Jagger (77), Matt LeBlanc  (53), Iman (64), Elisabeth Moss (38), Anna Paquin (38), Summer Glau (39), Jennifer Lopez (51), Lynda Carter (69), Danny Dyer (43), Daniel Radcliffe (31), Woody Harrelson (59), Charisma Carpenter (50), Ronny Cox (82), Slash (55), Willem Dafoe (65), Danny Glover (74), Rhys Ifans (53), Terence Stamp (82), Louise Fletcher (86), Alex Trebek (80), Paloma Faith (39), Ross Kemp (56), John Woodvine (91), Diana Rigg (82), John Francis Daley (35), and Gisele Bündchen (40).

26th July 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

Dead Pool 19th July 2020

Another exceptionally busy week for the evil flying monkeys, it’s not every week the list of deaths rolls onto two pages; also some very surprising deaths and tragic losses. An interesting expiration was that of Emmerdale’s Paula Tilbrook, who died in December last year but has only just announced last week. That one is a point award quandary for sure, luckily nobody listed her so I dodged a bullet there. But your thoughts on the subject would be greatly appreciated and probably ignored. So, onto points! With the tragic passing of John Lewis, our Lee scores 70 points, however Louise scores a fantastic 170 points as she listed him as her Cert. Well done both of you!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

In Other News

Katie Price has confirmed her son Harvey is in intensive care, expressing her gratitude for hospital workers who are looking after the 18-year-old. On Sunday evening, Price shared a tweet informing her 1.9m Twitter followers of her son’s condition. Harvey, who was born in May 2002, has partial blindness, autism and Prader-Willi syndrome, a rare genetic condition that can cause physical issues and behavioural difficulties. In her tweet, Price wrote: “I can confirm that Harvey is in intensive care and in the best hands. “I would like to thank the ambulance services and the hospital staff for the quick response and making him stable.” Price did not confirm why her son had been admitted to hospital. Harvey’s father is retired footballer Dwight Yorke, who Price dated in the early 2000s. The former Loose Women panellist has five children in total, of which Harvey is the eldest. The 42-year-old shares two children with ex-husband Peter Andre and two children with ex-spouse Kieran Hyler. Earlier this month, Price announced an upcoming BBC film about her son Harvey which would see her “open up about what it’s really like to be a mum of a disabled child approaching adulthood”. In June, the media personality gave evidence in a parliamentary inquiry about online abuse, speaking about the impact social media abuse has had on Harvey.       

It truly is the end times! A teenager has died after contracting bubonic plague in Mongolia, according to the country’s health ministry. Officials said a 15-year-old boy living in the Govia-Altai province in western Mongolia became unwell on Sunday. He died on the way to hospital in the Tugrug district of the province. Officials suspected he was killed by the Black Death. This was confirmed by lab tests conducted on Monday. “The result of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test revealed on Monday night that bubonic plague caused the death of a 15-year-old boy,” Dorj Narangerel, Mongolia health ministry spokesperson, said at a news conference on Tuesday. Health authorities said the boy had eaten marmot meat with two friends three days before his death. The two friends and 15 others the boy came into contact with have been placed in isolation, officials added. It comes a week after the World Health Organisation said it was monitoring another case of bubonic plague in the Inner Mongolia region, which is part of China. Officials in the city of Bayan Nur issued an early epidemic warning on 5th July, one day after a hospital in the region reported that a man had displayed symptoms of the disease. Health officials later confirmed that the unidentified herdsman had tested positive for the illness and was placed in quarantine, where he recovered. It was not immediately known at the time how the man contracted the disease. The WHO said it was not treating the outbreak as high risk. “We are monitoring the outbreaks in China, we are watching that closely and in partnership with the Chinese authorities and Mongolian authorities,” WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris told a UN press briefing in Geneva. The bubonic plague is a highly infectious disease that killed up to 200 million people during the Middle Ages and is spread mostly by rodents infected by fleas. Without prompt and effective treatment, up to 60 per cent of cases of bubonic plague are fatal, while untreated septicaemia and pneumonic plague are invariably fatal, according to the WHO.   

The United States government on Tuesday carried out the first federal execution in 17 years, putting to death a man who killed an Arkansas family in a 1990’s plot to build a whites-only nation in the Pacific Northwest. The execution came despite the objection of the victims’ family. Daniel Lewis Lee, 47, of Yukon, Oklahoma, died by lethal injection at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana. “I didn’t do it,” Lee said before he was executed. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, but I’m not a murderer … You’re killing an innocent man.” The decision to move forward with the execution – the first by the Bureau of Prisons since 2003 – drew scrutiny from civil rights groups and the relatives of Lee’s victims, who had sued to try to halt it, citing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. Critics argued that the government was creating an unnecessary and manufactured urgency for political gain. “The government has been trying to plough forward with these executions despite many unanswered questions about the legality of its new execution protocol,” said Shawn Nolan, one of the attorneys for the men facing federal execution. Lee’s execution took place after a series of legal volleys that ended when the Supreme Court stepped in early on Tuesday in a 5-4 ruling and allowed it to move forward. Four scheduled federal executions had been suspended by Judge Tanya Chutkan of the US district court in Washington, DC, on Monday to allow for legal challenges to the lethal injection that was to be used. In staying the executions, Chutkan ruled that the use of a single drug, pentobarbital, to carry out the executions could cause “extreme pain and needless suffering” and may violate a constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Lee became the first federal inmate to be executed in the US since 2003 and the first since President Donald Trump announced plans to resume federal executions. 

On This Day

  • 1545 – The Tudor warship Mary Rose sinks off Portsmouth.  
  • 1843 – Brunel’s steamship the SS Great Britain is launched, becoming the first ocean-going craft with an iron hull and screw propeller, becoming the largest vessel afloat in the world.  
  • 1969 – Chappaquiddick incident: U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy crashes his car into a tidal pond at Chappaquiddick Island, Massachusetts, killing his passenger Mary Jo Kopechne.

Deaths

Last Meals

Following on from the pervious article, Death Row inmate Daniel Lewis Lee wanted three last meals — but what he ate may remain a mystery. Before his execution, the triple murderer rambled about his first, second and final meal and said his order request “should speak for itself.” But the Bureau of Prisons declined to comment on what the 47-year-old white supremacist chowed down before he died by lethal injection on Tuesday at the federal prison in Terre Haute,  Indiana. “We will not be providing details of Mr. Lee’s last meal,” a BOP spokesperson said. Lee was convicted of killing guns dealer William Mueller, his wife, Nancy, and her 8-year-old daughter, Sarah Powell, in 1996 in Tilly, Arkansas. He implored the media at his execution to ask the judge about DNA evidence that was left out of the trial. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, but I’m not a murderer. You’re killing an innocent man,” said Lee, who was a member of the Aryan People’s Republic.

Last Week’s Birthdays

Benedict Cumberbatch (43), Jared Padalecki (37), Ramin Djawadi (45), Kristen Bell (39), Vin Diesel (52), Elizabeth McGovern (58), Priyanka Chopra (37), Donald Sutherland (84), Alex Winter (54), Eric Winter (43), David Hasselhoff (67), Will Ferrell (52), Phoebe Cates (56), Corey Feldman (48), Travis Fimmel (41), Diane Kruger (44), Brigitte Nielsen (57), Forest Whitaker (59), Terry O’Quinn (68), Celia Imrie (68), Jesse Ventura (69), Adam Savage (53), Phoebe Waller-Bridge (35), Jackie Earle Haley (59), David Mitchell (46), Simon Merrells (55), Kyle Gass (60), Harrison Ford (78), Patrick Stewart (80), Ken Jeong (51), and Cheech Marin (74).

19th July 2020 | Categories: 2020 | Leave A Comment »

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