Rated one of Pennsylvania's top blog/sites, the LuLac Political Letter delves into issues of politics on all levels (with special concentration on Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties: thus the name LULAC) and pop culture.
The LuLac Political Letter was also named Best Political Blog of the Year for 2014 by NEPA BLOGCON and most recently David Yonki was named Best Blogger of the year 2015 by the publication Diamond City.
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
The LuLac Edition #4,197, December 31st, 2019
LOOKING AT THE NEW YEAR THROUGH A DIFFERENT LENS!
Dr. David DeRose and Dr. Helen Chandoha-Knott (Photo: Facebook)
I always dreaded the New Year because one leaves the certainty of the old for the unpredictability of the new. This year was a year of unanticipated changes in my life. One of my favorite sayings at work is “Let’s clear this one off the table-get it done and over with”. As I end ’19, the table is clear and set for whatever 2020 throws at me. One last thing I needed to do this year was deal with a vision issue. For those of you who don’t know, I have had no vision in my right eye for decades now. Nothing! When I was told in September that I needed a Cornea Transplant in my left eye, the only working eye, I was stunned. Then I realized I was pretty much kidding myself. I thought back to the difficulty I had locating stuff on my various desk tops. I was not seeing clearly across the Square when my work partner (Matt Engel) and I did those Farmer’s Market appearances on Monday and Thursday. Then there was faking my way through the innings at the Rail Riders games but the biggest wake up was having difficulty recognizing people whose office I had just left just 5 minutes before in City Hall corridors. So after a hot 2 minutes, I asked my Doctor for the first appointment he had. The weeks leading up the surgery were scary. As usual, I took the worst case scenario route and began counting steps in the house and even at work. The surgery was December 17th at Lehigh Valley Eye Surgical Center. My surgeon was Dr. David DeRose whose staff I peppered with over 4 e mails containing a plethora of questions, all of which I am told they found both wildly pompous and entertaining. The surgery lasted 30 minutes, I was awake while it was happening and after it, I had to lie down for three days straight without a pillow. Being still, even with my trusty cane just isn’t a Yonk thing. After a week, my Doctor told me that I had good Karma and I’d be seeing things with a clarity I never knew. I’m cleared to go to work in the New Year. My thanks to Dr. David DeRose and the staff at Lehigh Valley Eye Associates in Allentown , Dr. Helen Helen Chandoha-Knott from Engle Eye, Krista at Lehigh Valley Eye Surgical Center in Bethlehem who attended to me right after the surgery, my A.I.D. (Angel In Disguise) Mary Ann, the hundreds of people who humbled me by praying for a good outcome (my sister nearly wore out a rug pacing, no word on how many rosaries she blew through!) and my boss Henry Radulski who assured me I’d be dancing in the streets by New Year’s Eve. Dancing in North Wilkes-Barre after midnight? I don’t know about that. But…as I told my pastor Father Jack Lambert when he administered a blessing and sacrament of the sick, “I still have a lot to do……….and I want to see what the heck it is I’m doing!” Thanks to Dr. DeRose, all of the aforementioned, but most importantly the person who made the decision to donate to an eye bank. Restoring sight to patients suffering from corneal blindness is only made possible through cornea donation. The process of cornea donation starts with an individual’s decision to be an eye, tissue, and organ donor, or a family’s consent to donation, and then results in a cornea transplant for a patient suffering from corneal blindness. I never make promises I can’t keep so rest assured, this new way of looking and seeing will never, ever be taken for granted. It is because of that donor that I’m back on track. That donor will be honored every day of my life. In the meantime…..Happy New Year to all as I come at you in 2020…..with 20/25 vision!
1. Mayor Bill Courtwright in Scranton resigns his seat and pleads guilty to corruption counts. 2. Senator John Yudichak, a lomng time Democratic office holder changes his party registration to Independent. The move stunned the local political community. Yudichak is in his third term as Senator from the 14th District and cited the inability of both parties to work together in Harrisburg. 3. In The Lac, two incumbent County Commissioners, one a Democrat Patrick O’Malley, the other a Republican lose their primary bids. In the General election Democrats Jerry Notarranni and Attorney Debi Dominick squared off against Mike Giannetta and Chris Chermak. Natarrianni and Dominick won as the Dems and Chermak prevailed as the Minority Commissioner. 4. History was made in the city of Scranton Tuesday night as the first woman was elected to the mayor’s office. She won the special election to serve the remainder of former mayor Bill Courtright’s term after he pleaded guilty to corruption charges in July. She won 40 percent of the votes. 5. Residents and municipal officials who likely will be hit with a new stormwater management fee expressed their concerns at a public comment session at the Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority armed with plenty of questions. The state Department of Environmental Protection is requiring municipalities that drain water into the Susquehanna River to submit stormwater permit plans by September showing how they will reduce sediment by 10 percent. 6. In Wilkes-Barre incumbent Mayor Tony George and former Councilman George Brown have a rematch of their 2015 battle. This time Brown wins in a walk capturing the nomination on both tickets. 7. In Hazleton, Mayor Jeff Cusat wins re-election as he embarks on his second term. 8. The start of the year in Wilkes Barre is marred by 5 shootings in the course of a few days in February The shooters are apprehended within short time. 9. It was a good night for the Republicans in Luzerne County , who took four of the available seats on the council, which serves as the legislative body of county government. The GOP wasn’t even fielding a full ticket but Republicans LeeAnn McDermott, Walter L. Griffith Jr., Stephen J. Urban and Kendra Radle. Won to form a new majority on County Council. 10. Activist Gene Stilp arrested defacing KKK brick on Wilkes-Barre monument. Wilkes-Barre police arrested activist Gene Stilp after he tried to deface a Ku Klux Klan brick that was placed on a city-owned monument.
Police and City Administrator Rick Gazenski repeatedly warned Stilp against taking his hammer and chisel to the East Coast Knights of the True Invisible Empire brick that was prominently placed on the monument, but Stilp persisted with his plan despite the threat of arrest.
1 Super Bowl LIII is hosted at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. Tom Brady, the quarterback of the New England Patriots football team, wins his sixth championship, the most NFL world championships ever won by a single player 2.Toronto wins first championship. In the 2019 playoffs, the Raptors won their first Eastern Conference title and advanced to their first NBA Finals, where they won their first NBA championship. 3. The Washington Nationals, a wild card entry win their very first championship for the Distrait since 1933. 4. The NFC Championship Game was an overtime thriller between the New Orleans Saints and the Los Angeles Rams. But it will forever be remembered for the no-call on the blatant pass interference by Rams’ Nickell Robey-Coleman. The game ended 26-23, Rams, and though there were a few missed calls throughout the game, nothing changed the news cycle—or the NFL rulebook—like that particular blunder. 5. The St. Louis Blues are the 2019 Stanley Cup Champions. Dan Rosen : The Blues are the first team in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup after being in last place in the league after at least 30 games played. Pierre LeBrun : Ryan O’Reilly was awarded the 2019 Conn Smythe Trophy.
1. Governor Tom Wolf takes office for a second term. Ln. Governor John Fetterman is sworn in as the new second in command. 2. Former Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski stunned by 15-year prison sentence that lawyer calls "cruel". Pawlowski resigned in 2018 after being convicted. He is appealing the sentence. 3. Governor Tom Wolf signs a historic election reform bill. One of the features will be a no excuse absentee ballot that will enable early voting. 4. In Philadelphia, Mayor Jim Kenney cruised to a second term, easily defeating Republican challenger Billy Ciancaglini. Kenney received more than 82% of the votes. Kenney is immediately touted as a Democratic contender for Governor in 2022. He responded by saying he just got elected but wouldn’t rule anything out. 5. Kendra Brooks, a third party candidate for City Council in Philadelphia makes history by becoming the first Third Party candidate to win an office. 6. The Philadelphia Phillies fire Manager Gabe Kapler and hire Joe Girard. 7. Democrats and Republicans each picked up a seat on an appellate court in Pennsylvania’s only statewide election Tuesday. Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Daniel McCaffery, a Democrat, and Republican Megan McCarthy King, a Chester County assistant district attorney won. The King victory is significant to the 2020 elections because she ran an avowed pro life platform which garnered huge support for her among Trump Republicans, 8. President Trump returns to the state in an attempt to reinvigorate the slim base that put him over the top by just 22,000 votes in 2016. Trump’s rallies attract an average of 20,000 people. 9. The Wolf Administration responded to the final rule released by the United States Department of Agriculture that limits states’ ability to waive work requirements based on local unemployment rates. The announcement from the Trump Administration jeopardizes food security for at least 78,000 people in Pennsylvania who depend on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to afford food. SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, is the most important anti-hunger program because it helps some of our most vulnerable Pennsylvanians make ends meet. 10. Senator John Yudichak shocks the political world by leaving the Democratic party and switching to Independent.
1. President Donald Trump becomes the third President in American history to be impeached. Predictably, he cries like a child like moron. 2. A four-page summary of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report into U.S. President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign is published by the U.S. Attorney General William Barr. It concludes that there was no collusion with Russia – the basis of the investigation – but on the issue of obstruction of justice states: "While this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him. 3. The day after Mueller testifies before Congress, the Trump–Ukraine scandal is an ongoing political scandal breaks wide open. Everything revolves around efforts by U.S. President Donald Trump to coerce Ukraine and other foreign countries into providing damaging narratives about 2020 Democratic Party presidential primary candidate Joe Biden as well as information relating to Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. Trump enlisted surrogates within and outside his official administration, including his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani and Attorney General William Barr, to pressure Ukraine and other foreign governments to cooperate in supporting conspiracy theories concerning American politics. Trump blocked but later released payment of a congressionally mandated $400 million military aid package to allegedly obtain quid pro quo cooperation from Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine. A number of contacts were established between the White House and the government of Ukraine, culminating in a July 25, 2019, phone call between Trump and Zelensky. 4.U.S. President Donald Trump announces that the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was killed in a U.S. special forces operation. It was reported that al-Baghdadi detonated a suicide vest after being chased into a tunnel. 5. 2019 Dayton shooting: Ten people, including the perpetrator, are killed and 27 others injured in a mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio, United States, just 13 hours after the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas. 6. A mass shooting at a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas, United States, leaves 22 people dead and 24 others injured. 7. Hurricane Barry strikes the Gulf Coast, killing one and causing over $500 million (2019 USD) in damages 8. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reports, on August 15, that July 2019 was the hottest month on record globally, at 0.95 °C (1.71 °F) above the 20th-century average. In March 2019 North American blizzard: A winter storm completes its explosive intensification over the Southern Rocky Mountains region, which began the day before, becoming a powerful "bomb cyclone" and triggering severe blizzard conditions across much of the Southwestern and Central United States. 9. Bishop Theodore Edgar McCarrick is defrocked, following historical sexual abuse allegations. He becomes the most senior Catholic figure to be dismissed from the priesthood in modern times 10. President Trump's ex-lawyer Michael Cohen tells Congress that Trump had advanced knowledge of leaked Democratic emails during the 2016 Presidential campaign.
1. ENGLAND British Prime Minister Theresa May announces her resignation as Conservative leader, effective June 7, 2019. Boris Johnson becomes Prime Minister. Later in the year The 2019 United Kingdom general election takes place, for all 650 seats in the House of Commons. Johnson’s Conservative party wins in romp over the Labor party. 2. President Donald Trump approves deployment of several hundred troops and military equipment to Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates following the September 14 attack on Saudi oil refineries. Both Saudi Arabia and Iran vow to defend themselves.. 3. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is indicted on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust 4. The 2019 North Korea–United States summit is held in Hanoi, Vietnam. It is the second summit between United States President Donald Trump and the North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un. 5. Russia formally adopts the Paris climate agreement. The United States, under climate change denier, Diaper Don DID NOT! 6. The 2019 Canadian federal election takes place, for all 338 seats in the House of Commons of Canada. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party win a narrow victory to form a minority government. 7. 51 people are killed and 50 others injured in terrorist attacks on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand: Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre, both of which were the target of shootings by Australia-born Brenton Harrison Tarrant. It is the deadliest mass shooting and terrorist attack in New Zealand's history and described by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as "one of New Zealand's darkest days". Subsequently, Facebook announced they had disabled 1.5 million videos of the gunman's rampage. 8. WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange is arrested after seven years in Ecuador's embassy in London 9. During Holy Week, a major fire engulfs Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, resulting in the roof and main spire collapsing. 10. Pope Francis abolishes pontifical secrecy in sex abuse cases; the move follows the Vatican's Meeting on the Protection of Minors in the Church months prior The Pope also raises the definition of "child pornography" from 14 to 18 years old. Francis insisted on the centrality of protecting immigrants and refugees, who represent all those who are “discarded from globalized society.” He insisted these marginalized groups, “represent a voice crying in the wilderness of our humanity” and that Jesus lying in the manger “has the face of our brothers and sisters most in need.”
We continue a LuLac tradition, a review of notable people who passed away in 2019.
JANUARY
Walt McKeel, 46, American baseball player (Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies. Kris Kelmi, 63, Russian singer-songwriter (Autograph), heart attack. Jerry Buchek, 75, American baseball player (St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets). Daryl Dragon, 76, American musician and songwriter (Captain & Tennille, The Beach Boys), renal failure.
Bob Einstein, 76, American actor (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Ocean's Thirteen) and performer (Super Dave Osborne), leukemia. Otto Schnepp, 93, Austrian-born American scientist Joe Casely-Hayford, 62, British fashion designer, cancer.
Sylvia Chase, 80, American news anchor (KRON, ABC World News Tonight) and journalist. style="color: #3d85c6;">John Falsey, 67, American writer and producer (St. Elsewhere, I'll Fly Away, Northern Exposure), fall. Herb Kelleher, 87, American businessman, co-founder of Southwest Airlines.
Harold Brown, 91, American government official and nuclear physicist, Secretary of Defense (1977–1981), pancreatic cancer. Rick Down, 68, American baseball hitting coach (New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets) Lenny Green, 86, American baseball player (Detroit Tigers, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox Oldenburg Baby, 21, German abortion survivor, lung infection. Susanne Humphrey, 74, American medical librarian (National Library of Medicine). J. D. Gibbs, 49, American race car driver, co-owner of Joe Gibbs Racing, degenerative neurological disease Jumping Johnny Wilson, 91, American basketball player (Harlem Globetrotters) Bonnie Guitar, 95, American country musician ("Dark Moon") Sanger D. Shafer, 84, American country songwriter ("All My Ex's Live in Texas", "Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind")
Mel Stottlemyre, 77, American baseball player (New York Yankees) and coach (New York Mets, Houston Astros), multiple myeloma. Dick Brodowski, 86, American baseball player (Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians) Eli Grba, 84, American baseball player (New York Yankees, Los Angeles Angels), pancreatic canc Carol Channing, 97, American actress (Hello, Dolly!, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Thoroughly Modern Millie), singer and dancer, Tony winner (1964)
Helen Smith, 97, American baseball player (All-American Girls Professional Baseball League). Margaret Wigiser, 94, American baseball player (All-American Girls Professional Baseball League) Russell Baker, 93, American writer (Growing Up), Pulitzer Prize recipient (1978, 1983), complications from a fall. Kaye Ballard, 93, American actress (The Mothers-in-Law, The Doris Day Show) and singer ("Fly Me to the Moon"), kidney cancer. Maxine Brown, 87, American country singer (The Browns), complications of heart and kidney disease. James Frawley, 82, American television and film director (The Monkees, The Muppet Movie), Emmy winner (1967), heart attack. Rosemary Bryant Mariner, 65, American naval aviator, ovarian cancer.
Steve Bell, 83, American television anchor (Good Morning America, World News This Morning) and academic (Ball State University) Michel Legrand, 86, French composer (The Thomas Crown Affair, Summer of '42, Yentl), conductor and jazz pianist, Oscar winner (1968, 1971, 1983)
james Ingram, 66, American R&B singer-songwriter ("Baby, Come to Me", "I Don't Have the Heart", "Yah Mo B There"), Grammy winner (1982, 1985), brain cancer.
Dick Miller, 90, American actor (Gremlins, The Little Shop of Horrors, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm)
FEBRUARY
John J. Duffy Jr., 85, American criminal defense attorney.[4] Alice Dye, 91, American amateur golfer and golf course designer (TPC at Sawgrass) Lisa Seagram, 82, American actress (A House Is Not a Home, Caprice, The Beverly Hillbillies), dementia Clive Swift, 82, English actor (The National Health, Keeping Up Appearances, A Passage to India) and songwriter Wade Wilson, 60, American football player (Minnesota Vikings, Oakland Raiders) and coach (Chicago Bears), heart attack.
Bob Friend, 88, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets, New York Yankees.
John Dingell, 92, American politician, member of the U.S. House of Representatives (1955–2015), prostate cancer.Albert Finney, 82, English actor (Tom Jones, The Gathering Storm, Big Fish), chest infection.
Frank Robinson, 83, American Hall of Fame baseball player (Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles) and manager (Cleveland Indians), bone cancer Jerry Casale, 85, American baseball player (Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers). Bruce Williams, 86, American Hall of Fame radio host (WCTC, WMCA) Lyndon LaRouche, 96, American political activist, founder of the LaRouche movement Ray Price, 88, American speechwriter (Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford), stroke. Lee Radziwill, 85, American socialite Patrick Caddell, 68, American pollster, complications from a stroke Karl Lagerfeld, 85, German fashion designer (Chloé, Fendi, Chanel), pancreatic cancer.
Joe Gibbon, 83, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants, Cincinnati Reds) Sue Casey, 92, American actress (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Rear Window, American Beauty)
Peter Tork, 77, American musician and actor (The Monkees), complications of adenoid cystic carcinoma.
Katherine Helmond, 89, American actress (Soap, Who's the Boss?, Brazil), Golden Globe winner (1980, 1988), complications from Alzheimer's disease.
Johnny Romano, 84, American baseball player (Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, St. Louis Cardinals Edward Nixon, 88, American business consultant and political campaigner (Richard Nixon 1968 presidential campaign)
André Previn, 89, German-born American composer (Gigi, Elmer Gantry) and conductor (My Fair Lady), Oscar winner (1959, 1960, 1964, 1965)
MARCH
Joseph Flummerfelt, 82, American conductor, stroke. Jack Gregory, 74, American football player (Cleveland Browns, New York Giants). Fred Hill, 84, American baseball coach (Rutgers University Keith Harvey Miller, 94, American politician, Alaska Secretary of State (1966–1969) and Governor (1969–1970), pancreatic cancer. King Kong Bundy, 63, American professional wrestler (WCCW, WWF) and actor (Married...with Children). Kelly Catlin, 23, American cyclist, Olympic silver medalist (2016) and world champion (2016, 2017, 2018), suicide by asphyxiation Dan Jenkins, 90, American author and sportswriter (Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest, Playboy) George Benson, 90, American jazz saxophonist Russell Gary, 59, American football player (New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles), heart attack Frank Cali, 53, American mobster, head of Gambino crime family (since 2015), shot Harry Hughes, 92, American politician, Governor of Maryland (1979–1987), member of the Maryland House of Delegates (1955–1959) and Senate Leroy Stanton, 72, American baseball player (New York Mets, California Angels, Seattle Mariners), traffic collision.
Birch Bayh, 91, American politician, U.S. Senator (1963–1981), member (1954–1962) and Speaker (1958–1960) of the Indiana House of Representatives, pneumonia. Dick Dale, 81, American guitarist and surf music pioneer ("Let's Go Trippin'", "Misirlou"), heart failure Andre Williams, 82, American R&B singer and songwriter ("Shake a Tail Feather"), colon cancer. Coy Luther "Luke" Perry III became a teen idol for playing Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210 from 1990 to 1995, and again from 1998 to 2000. He also starred as Fred Andrews on the CW series Riverdale, had guest roles on notable shows such as Criminal Minds, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Simpsons, and Will & Grace, and also starred in several films, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), 8 Seconds (1994), The Fifth Element (1997), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), his final feature
APRIL
Billy Mainwaring, 78, Welsh rugby union player (Aberavon, Bridgend, national team) Jim Glaser, 82, American country music artist ("You're Gettin' to Me Again"), heart attack. Richard Green, 82, American sexologist and psychiatrist.
Fritz Hollings, 97, American politician, member of the U.S. Senate (1966–2005), Governor of South Carolina (1959–1963) Samuel “Bay” Taylor, 90, American baseball player (Kansas City Monarchs) Gary Stewart, 62, American music executive and archivist (Rhino Records, Apple Inc. Georgia Engel, 70, American actress (The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Open Season, Everybody Loves Raymond).
Forrest Gregg, 85, American Hall of Fame football player (Green Bay Packers) and coach (Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns), complications from Parkinson's disease Yvette Williams, 89, New Zealand Hall of Fame athlete, Olympic (1952) and Commonwealth (1950, 1954) champion Chet Coppock, 70, American broadcast journalist (WMAQ, WSNS-TV) and sports talk personality (Sporting News Radio), traffic collision. Reggie Cobb, 50, American football player (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Green Bay Packers, New York Jets), heart attack. Peter Colotka, 94, Slovak academic, lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the Slovak Socialist Republic (1969–1988) Larry "Flash" Jenkins, 63, American actor (Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Fletch, The White Shadow), heart attack.
Barry Latman, 82, American baseball player (Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, Houston Astros). Jo Sullivan Loesser, 91, American actress (The Most Happy Fella), heart failure.
Richard Lugar, 87, American politician, U.S. Senator (1977–2013), mayor of Indianapolis (1968–1976), complications from CIDP Peter Mayhew, 74, English-American actor (Star Wars), heart attack.
MAY
Max Arthur, 80, British military historian and actor (Doctor Who). Susan Beschta, 67, American punk rock musician and judge, brain cancer Fatimih Dávila, 31, Uruguayan model, Miss Uruguay (2006), homicide. Larry Dick, 64, American football player (Maryland Terrapins, Saskatchewan Roughriders) Chris Reccardi, 54, American animator, storyboard artist, cartoon director (The Ren & Stimpy Show, Samurai Jack, The Powerpuff Girls) and musician, heart attack. Gloria Schiff, 90, American fashion editor and model. John Sterling 79, American bluegrass musician (The Seldom Scene), Grammy winner (1992), heart failure. David Montgomery, 72, American baseball executive (Philadelphia Phillies), cancer. Larry Howard, 73, American baseball player (Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves). Harold Lederman, 79, American boxing judge and analyst (HBO World Championship Boxing), cancer.
Peggy Lipton, 72, American actress (The Mod Squad, Twin Peaks, The Postman) and model, Golden Globe winner (1970), colon cancer. Jumpin Jackie Jackson, 79, American basketball player (Harlem Globetrotters). Ajmal Khan, Pakistani botanist.
MacArthur Lane, 77, American football player (St. Louis Cardinals, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs). Doris Day, 97, American actress (Pillow Talk, Calamity Jane), singer ("Que Sera, Sera") and animal welfare activist, Golden Globe winner (1958, 1960, 1963, 1989), pneumonia.
Tim Conway, 85, American actor and comedian (McHale's Navy, The Carol Burnett Show, SpongeBob SquarePants), complications from normal pressure hydrocephalus. Bobby Diamond, 75, American actor (Fury, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis) and attorney, cancer.
Herman Wouk, 103, American author (The Caine Mutiny, The Winds of War, War and Remembrance), Pulitzer Prize winner (1952 Austin Eubanks, 37, American motivational speaker, survivor of the Columbine High School massacre, heroin overdose. Edmund Morris, 78, Kenyan-born British-American writer and biographer (The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, Dutch: A Memoir of Ronald Reagan), Pulitzer Prize winner (1980), stroke Bart Starr, 85, American Hall of Fame football player (Green Bay Packers) and coach, Super Bowl MVP (1967, 1968), complications from a stroke Kelly Paris, 61, American baseball player (Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox). Thad Cochran, 81, American politician, member of the U.S. Senate (1978–2018) and the House of Representatives (1973–1978), renal failure. Leon Redbone, 69, Cypriot-American singer-songwriter and actor (Elf), complications from dementia.
JUNE
John Gunther Dean, 93, American diplomat. Dr. John, 77, American Hall of Fame singer-songwriter ("I Walk on Guilded Splinters", "Right Place, Wrong Time"), heart attack. Maida Heatter, 102, American pastry chef Eric Patterson, 26, American football player (Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots), shot.
Dave Marshall, 76, American baseball player (New York Mets, San Francisco Giants) Larry Franco Zeffirelli, 96, Italian film and stage director (Romeo and Juliet, Jesus of Nazareth, The Taming of the Shrew) and Senator (1994–2001Foss, 83, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets) Alan Brinkley, 70, American historian, complications from frontotemporal dementia.
Gloria Vanderbilt, 95, American socialite, artist and fashion designer, stomach cancer. Bubba Green, 61, American football player (Baltimore Colts), cancer Judith Krantz, 91, American author (Scruples, Princess Daisy, Till We Meet Again Dave Bartholomew, 100, American Hall of Fame musician, bandleader and songwriter ("Ain't That a Shame", "I Hear You Knocking", "I'm Walkin'"), heart failure.
Billy Drago, 73, American actor (The Untouchables, The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr., Pale Rider), complications from a stroke. Beth Chapman, 51, American bounty hunter and reality television personality (Dog the Bounty Hunter, Dog and Beth: On the Hunt, Dog's Most Wanted), throat cancer. Luis Mercedes, 51, Dominican baseball player (Baltimore Orioles, San Francisco Giants), complications from diabetes.
JULY
Derrill Osborn, 76, American fashion executive (Neiman Marcus) Tyler Skaggs, 27, American baseball player (Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels), drug overdose Leila Leah Bronner, 89, American Jewish historian and Bible scholar. Lee Iacocca, 94, American automobile executive (Ford Motor Company, Chrysler) and writer (Where Have All the Leaders Gone?), complications from Parkinson's disease.
Arte Johnson, 90, American comedian and actor (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), Emmy Award winner (1969), bladder and prostate cancer.
Steve Cannon, 84, American novelist, playwright, and arts impresario (A Gathering of the Tribes), sepsis. Bob Fouts, 97, American broadcaster (San Francisco 49ers) and sports reporter (KPIX, KGO) Ross Perot, 89, American billionaire businessman, philanthropist and presidential candidate, founder of Electronic Data Systems and the Reform Party, leukemia.
Rip Torn, 88, American actor (Cross Creek, The Larry Sanders Show, Men in Black), Emmy winner (1996)
Jim Bouton, 80, American baseball player (New York Yankees, Houston Astros), writer (Ball Four), and actor (The Long Goodbye), cerebral amyloid angiopath.
Walt Michaels, 89, American football player (Cleveland Browns) and coach (New York Jets). was a professional American football player and coach who was best remembered for his six-year tenure as head coach of the NFL's New York Jets from 1977 to 1982. In 1977, Michaels was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, the National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame and into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame on Long Island in the Baseball Category with the Class of 1997. Michaels was also the coach of the New Jersey Generals when they were owned by Donald Trump. Michaels would then coach the New Jersey Generals in the USFL for two years beginning in 1984. One month after the conclusion of the 1985 season, Michaels and his staff were let go by Generals' team owner Donald Trump after the team merged with the Houston Gamblers. The Generals never played another game, however, as the 1986 season was cancelled and the league folded after winning a mere $1 verdict in its antitrust lawsuit against the NFL. He was a native of Swoyersville. Denise Nickerson, 62, American actress (Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, Dark Shadows, Smile), seizure.
Joe Grzenda, 82, American baseball player (Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Athletics, New York Mets). Russell Smith, 70, American singer-songwriter (Amazing Rhythm Aces), cancer Adam Bob, 51, American football player (New York Jets), liver disease
Ernie Broglio, 83, American baseball player (St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs), cancer. Ben Kinchlow, 82, American author, minister and televangelist, co-host of The 700 Club. Mitch Petrus, 32, American football player (New York Giants), heatstroke.
Don Mossi, 90, American baseball player (Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers. Christopher C. Kraft Jr., 95, American aerospace engineer, Director of Johnson Space Center (1972–1982) Chaser, 15, American Border Collie with the largest-tested non-human memory Edward Lewis, 99, American film producer (Spartacus, Grand Prix, Missing). Trudy, 63, American gorilla, world's oldest gorilla in captivity.
AUGUST
Ian Gibbons, 67, English keyboardist (The Kinks), bladder cancer Stu Rosen, 80, American voice director and actor (Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling, The Legend of Prince Valiant, Fraggle Rock: The Animated Series), cancer. Lizzie Grey, 60, American rock musician (London, Spiders & Snakes), complications from Lewy body disease Toni Morrison, 88, American author (The Bluest Eye, Song of Solomon, Beloved), Nobel laureate (1993), Pulitzer Prize winner (1988). Jeffrey Epstein, 66, American financier (Bear Stearns), philanthropist (Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation) and convicted sex offender, suicide by hanging Barbara March, 65, Canadian actress (Star Trek), cancer Ningali Lawford, 52, Australian actress (Bran Nue Dae, Last Cab to Darwin), asthma attack Peter Fonda, 79, American actor and screenwriter (Easy Rider, Ulee's Gold, 3:10 to Yuma), lung cancer. Felice Gimondi, 76, Italian racing cyclist, Tour de France (1965), Vuelta a España (1968) and Giro d'Italia (1967, 1969, 1976) winner, heart attack.
Al Jackson, 83, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets, St. Louis Cardinals) Jack Perkins, 85, American reporter and television host (NBC Nightly News, Biography)
Larry Siegel, 93, American humorist (Mad Magazine, The Carol Burnett Show), Parkinson's disease.
Paul Smith, 88, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs).[306] Sasson Somekh, 86, Iraqi-born Israeli writer and translator.[307] Jack Whitaker, 95, American sportscaster (CBS, ABC), The NFL Today host (1971–1974)
David Koch, 79, American businessman (Koch Industries) and political financier (Americans for Prosperity) Donnie Green, 71, American football player (Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles, Detroit Lions) Jim Langer, 71, American Hall of Fame football player (Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings), heart failure.[520] Jim Leavelle, 99, American homicide detective, police escort for Lee Harvey Oswald, heart attack Valerie Harper, 80, American actress (The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Rhoda, Valerie), Emmy Award winner (1971, 1972, 1973, 1975), leptomeningeal carcinomatosis.
SEPTEMBER
Eddie Money was born Edward Joseph Mahoney, and was known as an American rock singer and songwriter who had success in the 1970s and 1980s with 11 Top 40 songs including "Baby Hold On", "Two Tickets to Paradise", "Think I'm in Love", "Shakin'", "Take Me Home Tonight", "I Wanna Go Back", "Walk on Water", and "The Love in Your Eyes".
Archbishop Nikon of Boston, 73, American Eastern Orthodox prelate, Archbishop of the Albanian Archdiocese (since 2003) and New England (since 2005 Sander "Sandy" Vanocur was an American television journalist who focused on U.S. national electoral politics.
Peter Lindbergh, 74, German fashion photographer (Stern, Vogue, Rolling Stone) and film director. Carol Lynley, 77, American actress (Harlow, Bunny Lake Is Missing, The Poseidon Adventure), heart attac José de Jesús Pimiento Rodríguez, 100, Colombian Roman Catholic cardinal, Archbishop of Manizales (1975–1996), heart attack Wally Westlake, 98, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, Cleveland Indians) José Moreno, 61, Dominican baseball player (New York Mets, San Diego Padres), pulmonary failure Al Carmichael, 90, American football player (Green Bay Packers, Denver Broncos) and stuntman (Spartacus) John Wesley, 72, American actor (Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot, Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad, Hang 'Em High), multiple myeloma Fred McLeod, 67, American sportscaster (Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons) Mardik Martin, 84, Iranian-born Iraqi-American screenwriter (Raging Bull, Mean Streets, New York, New York).[182] T. Boone Pickens, 91, American businessman and philanthropist Tom Waddell, 60, Scottish-American baseball player (Cleveland Indians Mike Stefanik, 61, American racing driver, seven-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion, plane crash.
Cokie Roberts, 75, American journalist (ABC News, NPR), political commentator and author, complications from breast cancer Barron Hilton, 91, American businessman, Chairman of Hilton Hotels Corporation (1966–2007), co-founder of the AFL and owner of the Los Angeles Chargers (1960–1966 Carl Ruiz, 44, American chef and television personality, heart attack. Wally Chambers, 68, American football player (Chicago Bears, Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
Robert Zelnick, 79, American journalist (ABC News) Bobby Mitchell, 75, American baseball player (New York Yankees, Milwaukee Brewers) Jessye Norman, 74, American opera singer, Grammy winner (1984, 1988, 1989, 1998), Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2006), multiple organ failure.
OCTOBER
Elijah Eugene Cummings was a civil rights advocate who served in the United States House of Representatives for Maryland's 7th congressional district from 1996 until his death in 2019. The district includes just over half of the city of Baltimore, including most of the majority-black precincts of Baltimore County, as well as most of Howard County. He previously served in the Maryland House of Delegates. He was a member of the Democratic Party from 1996.
Cummings served in the Maryland House from 1983 through 1996. That year, he was elected to the U.S. House. Cummings served as the chair of the Committee on Oversight and Reform from January 2019 until his death in October of this year. Bill Bidwill, 88, American football team owner (Arizona Cardinals). Cecil Butler, 82, American baseball player (Milwaukee Braves) Ginger Baker, 80, English Hall of Fame drummer (Cream, Blind Faith, Ginger Baker's Air Force), subject of Beware of Mr. Baker Rip Taylor, 88, American actor (The $1.98 Beauty Show, Chatterbox, Down to Earth) and comedian Dallas Harms, 84, Canadian country musician.
Jackie Hernández, 79, Cuban baseball player (Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates), World Series champion (1971), cancer Bill Macy, 97, American actor (Maude, The Producers, The Jerk)
Roger Williams, 71, American newspaper publisher, suicide WillieJosip Elic, 98, American actor (The Twilight Zone, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest), complications from a fall. Brown, 78, American Hall of Fame football player (Denver Broncos, Oakland Raiders) and coach Ray Jenkins, 89, American journalist, newspaper editor and presidential adviser, winner of Pulitzer Prize (1955), heart faiikure Mike Stone, 80, American baseball executive, president of the Texas Rangers, commissioner of the Northern League John Conyers, 90, American politician, Dean (2015–2017) and member of the U.S. House of Representatives (1965–2017).[510] Kelly C. Crabb, 72, American sports and entertainment lawyer.
John Witherspoon, 77, American actor (Friday, The Wayans Bros., The Boondocks)
William Milliken, 97, American politician, Governor of Michigan (1969–1983). Lou Palmer, 84, American sportscaster (SportsCenter, WFAN), lung cancer.
Diahann Carroll born Carol Diann Johnson; was an American actress, singer, model, and activist. She rose to prominence in some of the earliest major studio films to feature black casts, including Carmen Jones (1954) and Porgy and Bess (1959). In 1962, Carroll won a Tony Award for best actress, a first for an African American woman, for her role in the Broadway musical No Strings.
Her 1968 debut in Julia, the first series on American television to star a Black woman in a non-stereotypical role, was a milestone both in her career and the medium. In the 1980s, she played the role of Dominique Deveraux, a mixed-race diva, in the prime time soap opera Dynasty. Carroll was the recipient of numerous stage and screen nominations and awards, including the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress In a Television Series in 1968. She received an Academy Award for Best Actress nomination for the film Claudine (1974). She died on October 4, 2019 after a battle with breast cancer.
NOVEMBER
Jim Coates, 87, American baseball player (New York Yankees, California Angels). Bob Johnson, 83, American baseball player (Washington Senators, Baltimore Orioles, Oakland Athletics) Charles Rogers, 38, American football player (Detroit Lions), liver failure George Breen, 84, American Hall of Fame swimmer, Olympic silver (1956) and bronze medalist (1956, 1960), pancreatic cancer Werner Doehner, 90, German-born American, last living survivor of the 1937 Zeppelin airship Hindenburg disaster. Ramakant Gundecha, 57, Indian classical singer, heart attack. Annie Hall, 69, British businesswoman, High Sheriff of Derbyshire (2017–2018), drowned. William Wintersole, 88, American actor (The Young and the Restless, General Hospital, Leadbelly), complications from cancer.[ André Zimmermann, 80, French racing cyclist, Tour de l'Avenir winner (1963).
Zeke Bratkowski,88, back up Qurterback for the World Chmpion Green Bay Packers. Also an offensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles in the early 90s as well as other teams. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/12/sports/football/zeke-bratkowski-dead.html Godfrey Gao, 35, Taiwanese-Canadian model and actor (The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Love is a Broadway Hit, Legend of the Ancient Sword), cardiac arrest.
William Ruckelshaus, 87, American attorney, member of the Indiana House of Representatives (1966–1968), Acting Director of FBI (1973) and Administrator of EPA (1970–1973, 1983–1985) Frank Biondi, 74, American film and television executive, CEO of HBO (1983), Viacom (1987–1996) and Universal Studios (1996–1998), bladder cancer Will Brunson, 49, American baseball player (Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers), heart attack. Nick Clifford, 98, American construction worker, last surviving Mount Rushmore carver. Barbara Hillary, 88, American adventurer, first black woman to reach both poles. Barbara Mandel, 93, American activist (National Council of Jewish Women) and philanthropist (Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum).
Michael J. Pollard, 80, American actor (Bonnie and Clyde, Scrooged, House of 1000 Corpses), cardiac arrest. Ryan Costello, 23, American baseball player (Pensacola Blue Wahoos.
DECEMBER
PHASE 2, 64, American graffiti artist. Vaughan Johnson, 57, American football player (Jacksonville Bulls, New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles), kidney disease Danny Aiello, 86, American actor (Do the Right Thing, The Godfather Part II, Moonstruck)
Jack Scott, 83, Canadian-American rock and roll singer and songwriter ("My True Love", "Burning Bridges")
Chris Cotton, 32, American comedian. Philip McKeon, 55, American actor (Alice)
Pete Frates, 34, American baseball player (Boston College) and inspiration for the Ice Bucket Challenge, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Chuck Heberling, 94, American basketball and football referee (NFL) and administrator, director of the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (1976–1997)
Robert Walker Jr., 79, American actor (Ensign Pulver, The Ceremony, Star Trek) Leonard Goldberg, 85, American film and television producer (Charlie's Angels, Blue Bloods, WarGames), president of 20th Century Fox (1987–1989), injuries sustained in a fall. Mark Butler, 61, American business executive, co-founder, CEO and president of Ollie's Bargain Outlet (since 2003) and majority owner of the Harrisburg Senators Shelley Morrison, 83, American actress (Will & Grace, The Flying Nun, General Hospital), heart failure Pat Sullivan, 69, American Hall of Fame football player (Auburn Tigers, Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins) and coach, Heisman Trophy winner (1971 Paul Volcker, 92, American economist, Chair of the Federal Reserve (1979–1987 Juice Wrld, 21, American rapper ("All Girls Are the Same", "Lucid Dreams", "Bandit")
René Auberjonois, 79, American actor (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, MASH, Benson), Tony winner (1970), lung cancer
Junior Johnson, 88, American Hall of Fame racing driver (NASCAR Cup Series) and team owner (Junior Johnson & Associates). William Higgins, 74, American gay pornographic film director (Big Guns), heart attack. Tony Britton, 95, British actor (Operation Amsterdam, Sunday Bloody Sunday, The Day of the Jackal) Allee Willis, 72, American Hall of Fame songwriter ("I'll Be There for You", "September") and lyricist (The Color Purple), cardiac arrest.
Ashley Massaro, an ex-WWE wrester was found hanging in an apparent suicide, multiple sources connected with the situation tell TMZ Sports. The 39-year-old was found unconscious inside of her Suffolk County, NY home early Thursday morning -- and she was transported to a nearby hospital where she was later pronounced dead. The death is being classified as "non-criminal."
Jerry Herman born Gerald Sheldon Herman was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway musical theater. He composed the scores for the hit Broadway musicals Hello, Dolly!, Mame, and La Cage aux Folles. He was nominated for the Tony Award five times, and won twice, for Hello, Dolly! and La Cage aux Folles. In 2009, Herman received the Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre. He was a recipient of the 2010 Kennedy Center Honors.
Don Imus, WARM TALK, ME AND DON IMUS Former WABC Radio morning man and one of the first shock jocks, Dom Imus died today. The Imus show was syndicated and first heard on Bob Cordaro’s Sports station on the FM side. Then the “I-Man” was acquired by the suits at WARM to replace the late Terry McNulty in the morning. Imus came to town in ’99 and did his program from a location in Moosic. Then he was slated to come gain in 2000 but something went haywire.les Manager of the Mighty 590 Tim Durkin called a “hybrid format”. During that time WARM had music in the morning and then after the Sports Line with Ron Allen which alternated between being on at 5 or 6pm, WARM went talk all night.
It wasn’t until the mid 90s that WARM went all Talk. By the end of the decade WARM had been in a battle with WILK AM for Talk Show supremacy in the market. WARM featured the syndicated Don Imus program followed by Ron Neyhard and Kevin Lynn and then having the very liberal Tom Likus on at night. Later on due to budget cuts Nyehard was moved to sports exclusively and Lynn became the sole local talent. WARM continued its popular remotes with Lynn doing remotes for Pittsburgh Steeler games. Rob Neyhard continued his popular series “Rob On the Road” where he went to various businesses. WARM had lost the Eagles and Penn State football in a bidding war but continued sports with the acquisition of the Steelers.
Neil Innes,the British comedy songwriter who worked with Monty Python and played in the Beatles parody group the Rutles — died Monday, the BBC reports. He was 75. Innes was known as the “seventh Python” for the work he did with the comedy troupe throughout the Seventies. He contributed to several of their albums and was one of just two non-members — along with Douglas Adams — to write for their acclaimed sketch show, Monty Python’s Flying Circus. He also appeared in and wrote music for several Python films and skits.
Frank Tavares, Tavares was the announcer of NPR's funding credits. For three decades, he told listeners who supported NPR programs. Tavares was recently diagnosed with ALS, and died December 30th in Florida.
Marion Gibbons Chesney, aka M.C. Beeton, was a Scottish writer of romance and mystery novels since 1979. She wrote numerous successful historical romance novels under a form of her maiden name, Marion Chesney, including the Travelling Matchmaker and Daughters of Mannerling series.
Using the pseudonym M. C. Beaton, she also wrote many popular mystery novels, most notably the Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth mystery series. Both of these book series have been adapted for TV. She also wrote romance novels under the pseudonyms Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Charlotte Ward, and Sarah Chester.
Writing as Marion Chesney, her final endeavour was an Edwardian mystery series featuring Lady Rose Summer, a charming debutante with an independent streak, and Captain Harry Cathcart, an impoverished aristocrat. In an interview, she stated that she ceased writing the Edwardian series due to the pressure of writing for the Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth series.
Jack Shelton, an acclaimed jazz musician whose trumpet graced the award-winning song “The Shadow of Your Smile” and who was known to TV viewers as the puckish sidekick to talk show host Merv Griffin, died Dec. 27 at 88.
His longtime manager and partner, Dianne Jimenez, confirmed the death but did not provide other details.
Mr. Sheldon was a prominent part of the vibrant West Coast jazz movement in the 1950s alongside fellow artists Art Pepper, Stan Kenton and Shorty Rogers. He also played with jazz and pop greats including Benny Goodman, Peggy Lee, Lena Horne and Frank Sinatra.
He was also the voice for the TV cartoon explnation o how a bill gets passed in Congress.
DEATHS OF LOCAL INTEREST
Wil Toole The LuLac Edition #4,032, March 17th, 2019
Grace Darrow Cuozzo who became the first woman in Hazleton to secure party nomination in a mayoral race. She won the Democratic nomination in 2011 after defeating Joseph Corradini but fell short in the general election of 2015.
Location: Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, United States
Political analyst for WBRE TV's Pa. Live program and post election commentator for WBRE TV's Eyewitness News Daybreak show. Author of the book "A Radio Story/We Wish You Well In Your Future Endeavors" and "Leges Vitae" "26 Rules of Life" and the new novel, "Weather Or Knot". The blog editor also writes various news articles and columns as well as upcoming literary projects. The blog editor was a frequent guest on WYOU TV'S INTERACTIVE NEWSCASTS when political issues were discussed on the national, state and local level. Yonki was a weekly panelist on WYLN TV 35's Friday Topic A program. He also appeared on the Hazleton, PA. station on Election Night doing coverage and did special projects and stories for WYLN TV 35's 10PM Newscast "Late Edition".
