Dead Pool 26th August 2018

As per usual, my lead story this week was John McCain stopping his treatment for brain cancer, alas he never made the week to star in his own pre-death article. However, both Louise and Douglas score 69 points each for his inevitable death. Well done both of you!

Look Who You Could Have Had:

  • Barbara Harris, 83, American actress (The Apple Tree, Freaky Friday, Nashville), Tony winner (1967), co-founder of The Second City, lung cancer.  
  • Ed King, 68, American Hall of Fame guitarist (Strawberry Alarm Clock, Lynyrd Skynyrd) and songwriter (“Sweet Home Alabama”), lung cancer.  
  • Robin Leach, 76, British writer and television host (Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous), complications from a stroke.  
  • Lindsay Kemp, 80, English choreographer and actor (The Wicker Man).  
  • Stefán Karl Stefánsson, 43, Icelandic actor (LazyTown), bile duct cancer.  
  • John McCain, 81, American politician and Navy officer, member of the U.S. Senate (since 1987) and House of Representatives (1983–1987), presidential candidate (2008), glioblastoma.

In Other News

The family of the late US musician Prince is suing his doctor, alleging he failed to properly treat the singer for an opioid addiction. A lawsuit filed in Minnesota, reported by ABC news, alleges that failures by Dr Michael Schulenberg played a “substantial part” in the star’s death. Prince died in 2016, aged 57, from an accidental overdose of the painkiller fentanyl, a powerful opioid. Dr Schulenberg has denied any wrongdoing. Earlier this year, prosecutors said no criminal charges would be brought over Prince’s death. But the family’s lawsuit, filed in Hennepin County District Court on Friday, alleges that Dr Schulenberg’s actions had played a part. “He failed to appropriately evaluate, diagnose, treat and counsel Prince for his recognisable opioid addiction, and further failed to take appropriate and reasonable steps to prevent the foreseeably fatal result of that addiction,” the lawsuit read. The family of the singer – whose real name was Prince Rogers Nelson – is seeking unspecified damages in excess of $50,000 (£39,000). Prince was found unresponsive in a lift at his Paisley Park Studios, Minnesota, on 21st April 2016. Evidence showed Prince had thought he was taking the prescription drug, Vicodin, when in fact he was taking a counterfeit Vicodin pill laced with potentially deadly fentanyl. Prosecutors said there was no evidence that the pills that killed Prince had been prescribed by a doctor.   

Britain’s Got Talent star Antonio Francis has died aged 54. The reality star, also known as ‘Popeye’, passed away after suffering a stroke. Antonio memorably appeared on BGT with his unique routine, which saw him popping his eyeballs out of their sockets in time with the music. Francis’s death was confirmed by his son Dan, who appeared on BGT also, as part of the band Luminites. On a GoFundMe page for his funeral costs, Dan said: ‘He had slowly been losing his memory a years prior and had been in out of hospital with minor stroke, high blood pressure, heart failure and other organ issues but we never knew the full extent of his illness as he wouldn’t ever say the real problem. Last week a family friend realised he had missed an appointment and knew something was up so went to check on him at his flat. When there was no answer the security opened my dad’s door and he was found unconscious on his bedroom floor. He was rushed into hospital where we were told he was in a coma and wouldn’t have much time left. We had worked out that he must have been in a coma for over 5 days so it was a miracle that he was still alive with no food or drink and having a stroke.” Sadly Antonio wasn’t famous enough for a Wiki listing.    

A man who managed to fight off a shark attack has now contracted a severe flesh-eating infection. Blain Shelton, from Texas, was swimming off the shore of Boliver Island in Galveston County when a shark bit into his leg. The 42-year-old managed to escape, but exposure to the seawater left him with a severe flesh-eating infection. Mr Shelton was admitted to hospital for treatment for the shark bite on his lower thigh, but after he was released the severe pain near the wound only worsened. Upon returning to hospital, doctors said that a flesh-eating bacterial infection was leading to his skin rotting away. “I’d heard there was bacteria in the water, I just never treated it serious,” Mr Shelton said. “But to tell you the truth, if you’ve got a scratch on your arm or your leg, I wouldn’t get in that water. And if you do, bring some alcohol with you to clean it the second you get out. It’s nothing to play with.” Mr Shelton is recovering in hospital and has amassed hospital bills of $30,000 (£23,350). 

On This Day

  • 1346 – Hundred Years’ War: The military supremacy of the English longbow over the French combination of crossbow and armoured knights is established at the Battle of Crécy.  
  • 1768 – Captain James Cook sets sail from England on board HMS Endeavour.  
  • 1883 – The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa begins its final, paroxysmal, stage.

Deaths

  • 1930 – Lon Chaney, American actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1883)   
  • 1974 – Charles Lindbergh, American pilot and explorer (b. 1902)  
  • 1980 – Tex Avery, American animator, director, and voice actor (b. 1908)  
  • 2004 – Laura Branigan, American singer-songwriter and actress (b. 1952)  
  • 2017 – Tobe Hooper, American film director (b. 1943)

Last Week’s Birthdays

Alexander Skarsgård (42), Sean Connery (88), Rachel Bilson (37), Tim Burton (60), Tom Skerritt (85), Gene Simmons (69), Claudia Schiffer (48), Billy Ray Cyrus (57), Regis Philbin (87), Rupert Grint (30), Steve Guttenberg (60), Jared Harris (57), Dave Chappelle (45), Stephen Fry (61), Richard Armitage (47), Kristen Wiig (45), James ‘The Cunt’ Corden (40), Honor Blackman (93), Mark Williams (59), Ty Burrell (51), Valerie Harper (79), Hayden Panettiere (29), Carrie-Anne Moss (51), Kim Cattrall (62), Kenny Rogers (80), Amy Adams (44), Ben Barnes (37), Andrew Garfield (35), Jonathan Ke Quan (47), Demi Lovato (26), James Marsters (56), Misha Collins (44), John Noble (70), Ray Wise (71), David Walliams (47), Sylvester McCoy (75), Matthew Perry (49), Jonathan Frakes (66), Kevin Dillon (53), Jim Carter (70), Simon Bird (34) and Diana Muldaur (80).

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