R.I.P. CELEBRITY DEATHS 2020(NON WRESTLERS)

[jimsteel]

Joel Rogosin, Producer on 'The Virginian,' Ironside' and 'Magnum, P.I.,' Dies of COVID-19 Complications at 87

Joel Rogosin, an Emmy-nominated writer and producer on such shows as The Virginian, Ironside, Magnum, P.I. and Knight Rider, has died. He was 87.

Rogosin died Tuesday at the Motion Picture & Television Fund's Country House and Hospital. He is the fifth resident to die of complications from the coronavirus, a spokeswoman for the MPTF said.

Rogosin started out in Hollywood in 1957 as a messenger at Columbia Pictures, and by 1961 he was producing ABC's 77 Sunset Strip, then the No. 1 show on television. He also worked on other series in the Warner Bros. Television stable, including Hawaiian Eye and Surfside 6.

He went on to produce and/or write for The Blue Knight, The Bold Ones: The New Doctors, The New Lassie and a pair of Jerry Lewis telethons.

Rogosin received his first two Emmy nominations in 1970 and '71 for producing Ironside and his third in 1983 for producing Magnum, P.I.

[jimsteel]

Jerry Bishop, Longtime 'Judge Judy' Announcer, Dead at 84

[jimsteel]

Chernobyl Diaries' Star Dimitri Diatchenko Dead at 52

imitri was found dead Wednesday at his home in Daytona Beach, FL ... the actor's brother tells TMZ. We're told Dimitri's death was not related to the novel coronavirus, and there are no signs of foul play.

Dimitri's family says they had not heard from him in a few days, so they called police Wednesday for a wellness check, and that's when his body was discovered. The fam believes Dimitri died late Monday night or early Tuesday morning.

Our law enforcement sources tell us the coroner's office has Dimitri's body. We're told the cause of death is pending the medical examiner's investigation.

[jimsteel]

'AGT' Star and Comedian Grandma Lee Dead at 85


Comedian Grandma Lee -- who cracked the top ten on Season 4 of "America's Got Talent" -- has died ... according to her family.

Lee's son, Kelly, tells TMZ ... she died Friday afternoon at her assisted living facility in Jacksonville, FL, but it was not related to the coronavirus.

Kelly says his stand-up comic mom was doing shows up until November, but after a gig in Tampa, she fell in her hotel room and broke her hip. Sadly, he says she never fully recovered.

According to Grandma's family ... she passed with her 2 sons holding her hands after spending the past few days reading texts from friends and Facebook posts. They say there will be a service celebrating her life once COVID-19 conditiions allow for it.

[jimsteel]

Power Rangers and Lord of the Rings Actor Bruce Allpress Dies at Age 89

[throwingtoasters]

variety.com/2020/tv/obituaries-people-news/gene-dynarski-seinfeld-star-trek-actor-dies-dead-1234589717/

Gene Dynarski, ‘Seinfeld’ and ‘Star Trek’ Actor, Dies at 86

Gene Dynarski, who appeared as Izzy Mandelbaum Jr. on “Seinfeld” and on the original “Star Trek” television series, has died. He was 86.

Dynarski died on Feb. 27 at a rehabilitation center in Studio City, his friend, playwright Ernest Kearney announced.

The actor starred in the 1997 “Seinfeld” episode “The English Patient” as the son of Lloyd Bridges’ character. The pair reprised their roles in another episode,“The Blood,” on the next season.

Dynarski also worked on two Steven Spielberg films, “Duel” and “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” among several television projects, including “Star Trek,” “Batman” and “The X-Files.”

Kearney recounted in a blog post that Dynarski seemed to have a talent for rubbing people the wrong way.

“Spielberg recognized Dynarski’s talents and used him a second time in his sci-fi epic Close Encounters of the Third Kind. In one of the film’s best scenes, Dynarski played the supervisor who sends Richard Dreyfuss to investigate the mysterious blackouts. And here’s a good example of Dynarski pissing off the wrong people.

“He pissed off Spielberg. Pissed him off to the point where, after its 1977 debut, Spielberg cut Dynarski out of all the film’s subsequent releases. It wasn’t until the release of the 30th Anniversary Ultimate Edition that included the 1977 edition that Dynarski’s performance could be seen again,” Kearney wrote.

The Brooklyn native had a small role in Steven Spielberg’s 1971 telefilm “Duel” as a truck driver in a cafe and appeared in two episodes on the original “Star Trek,” once in the 1966 episode “Mudd’s Women” as the miner Ben Childress and as Krodak in “The Mark of Gideon” in 1969.

Dynarski also starred as one of the Egghead’s henchmen in the 1960s Batman series and played a character who falls victim to a bat creature in an episode of “The X-Files” in 2000.

In 1979, he opened the Gene Dynarski Theatre near Sunset Boulevard and Western Avenue in Los Angeles. Tom Hanks, Ed Harris and Elisabeth Shue also performed shows there before it shut down in the mid-1990s.

Before getting acting jobs through casting director Lynn Stalmaster, Dynarski worked at a bowling alley and served in the U.S. Navy. He made his onscreen debut on an episode of “Ben Casey,” the ABC medical drama.

He is survived by two daughters.

[on_the_edge]

Mandelbaum, Mandelbaum, Mandelbaum

[jimsteel]

Joanna Clare Thomas passed away at 43. She is a British professional female bodybuilder, now living in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She is the younger sister of British professional female bodybuilder Nicola Shaw. She is the youngest female bodybuilder to win her IFBB pro card, at the age of 21.

[jimsteel]

Little Women Atlanta star Ashley 'Minnie' Ross dead at 34 after hit-and-run car accident

[jimsteel]

Troy Sneed, Grammy-nominated gospel singer, dies at 52 from coronavirus complications
Sneed sang with the Georgia Mass Choir and appeared with the choir in the 1996 film “The Preacher’s Wife,” starring Whitney Houston and Denzel Washington.

Sneed traveled throughout the United States early in his career to sing the gospel with the Georgia Mass Choir. He arranged music on their albums and appeared with the choir in the 1996 film “The Preacher’s Wife,” starring Whitney Houston and Denzel Washington.

Sneed helped form Youth For Christ, which was comprised of members between the ages of 12 and 18 from the Georgia Mass Choir. He served as a producer on Youth For Christ’s “The Struggle Is Over,” which landed at No. 1 on Billboard’s gospel songs chart in 2006.