Which celebrity death affected you the most?

Harlan Ellison and in some ways Anthony Bourdain were part of a dying breed of splendid old bastards. Seeing them fall is like watching the last of the big lizards die off.

 

I'd go with Princess Diana, not so much because I care anything about the monarchy but because from a news standpoint, it went on forever and everyone had to put out localized stories for what seemed like weeks.

Another one that hit me recently barely constitutes celebrity: Lari White, the country singer from the 90s. Beyond her basically being my age and her cancer absolutely horrifying, her husband is an in-law of my best friend. It's one of those that hit close to home in more ways than one.

Months after a celebrity's death, I usually don't give them a second thought. This Christmas season, Lari's husband's family keeps coming to mind. I can't say the same about, say, Kate Spade's husband or Heath Ledger's kid. The others temporarily depress me, but her death has legitimately affected me.

"Castaway" came on last night and I hung on to the end to see her small bit and thought again how awful her husband and kids must feel right now. They're playing Anthony Bourdain's cooking shows as well, but his girlfriend hasn't crossed my mind.

So on that one, "affected" is the right word for me.

 

weird thread

Was JFK a "celebrity"?

RFK?

MLK, jr?

Or are we only talking about actors and singers and ballplayers?

In which case, maybe Clemente.

 

Not sure if there is a most but the first was Len Bias.

Which ended up being kind of ironic later on in life even though I'm not dead yet.

 

Apologies for not clarifying. Yes, politicians count. Same goes with a leader in civil rights movement.

 

It’s hard to gauge now, however, do you believe he would have been on MJ’ level if he never passed?

 

no apology necessary

 

Stevie Ray Vaughan.

 

I'll second Carrie Fisher especially because of the proximity to Episode VIII.

David Bowie and Robin Williams are certainly up there.

 

The more I learn about Terry Kath, the lead guitar and songwriter for Chicago, the more his death really bugs me. Screw the ones who destroy themselves with drugs, Kath was killed cleaning a rifle.

 

Pretty much all the folks who die "cleaning a rifle" are suicides.

 

According to Wiki (!) and other reports, it was not a rifle, and he was not cleaning it.

By 1978, Kath was regularly carrying guns around and enjoyed playing with them. Around 5 p.m. January 23, after a party at the home of roadie and band technician Don Johnson, in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, Kath began to play with his guns. He spun his .38 revolver on his finger, put it to his temple, and pulled the trigger. The gun was not loaded. Johnson warned Kath several times to be careful. Kath then picked up a semi-automatic 9-mm pistol and, leaning back in a chair, said to Johnson, "Don't worry about it ... Look, the clip is not even in it." To assuage Johnson's concerns, Kath showed Johnson the empty magazine. Kath then replaced the magazine in the gun, put the gun to his temple and pulled the trigger. Apparently unbeknownst to Kath, the semi-automatic had a round in the chamber. He died instantly from the gunshot, 8 days shy of his 32nd birthday.