R.I.P. Celebrities(Non Wrestlers) 2022

[jimsteel]

Rudy Hernandez, a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher, passed away at the age of 90.

The news was posted on social media by his daughter. Hernandez was signed by the New York Giants before the 1950 season. He was acquired by the original, modern-era Washington Senators from the San Francisco Giants before the 1959 season, and later drafted by the new Washington Senators from the Minnesota Twins in the 1960 MLB expansion draft.

When he made his major league debut on July 3, 1960 Hernández became only the fourth native of the Dominican Republic to play in the major leagues, and the first pitcher. He preceded Juan Marichal by sixteen days.

He is one of a small number of ballplayers to play for both of the American League's Washington Senators franchises, and one of only three to play for them in consecutive seasons. (Hal Woodeshick and Héctor Maestri are the others.)

Hernández appeared in twenty-one games for the original Washington club, and also appeared in seven games for the expansion Senators. He pitched in a total of 13 games and finished, a 4–2 record, and a 4.12 ERA.

His best game occurred on July 9, 1960, when he pitched three scoreless innings of relief to earn a victory against the Baltimore Orioles.

[TTX]

Irene Cara of Fame and many hit songs passes

www.yahoo.com/entertainment/irene-cara-fame-flashdance-feeling-120630422.html

[jimsteel]

George Donnelly, a former defensive back in the NFL passed away at the age of 80.

The following is an excerpt from his online obituary: "George Donnelly, who starred for the Illinois Rose Bowl Champions in 1964, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 80. Donnelly earned three varsity letters with the Fighting Illini from 1962-1964. In 1964, he was named co-captain and earned All-Big Ten and All-American honors. His two interceptions against Washington in the 50th Rose Bowl game secured an Illinois victory in front of a capacity crowd that included General and Mrs. Dwight D. Eisenhower. That team finished with an 8-1-1 record and a #3 ranking in the final Associated Press poll. Donnelly was selected with the 13th pick of the 1st round of the 1965 NFL draft and played three seasons for the San Francisco 49ers. At the University of Illinois, Donnelly and Dick Butkus were co-captains for the 1963 season, and Donnelly tied the NCAA record of 8 interceptions in one season.

Illinois played in the 50th Rose Bowl Game on January 1, 1964, against the Washington Huskies. Donnelly had two interceptions in the game, both setting up Illini touchdowns. The first came in the third quarter, allowing Illinois to score their first touchdown of the game. Then in the fourth quarter, with Illinois up by a score of 10-7, Washington drove downfield, trying to score the go-ahead and possible game-winning touchdown, but Donnelly intercepted the ball on the 4-yard line and ran it back to the 15. This game-saving interception allowed Illinois to capitalize on that momentum and move the ball 85 yards, scoring their second touchdown of the game to put Illinois ahead 17-7. While in the NFL, he played in 33 games and started in 19 of them. He recorded two interceptions during his 3 year career with the 49ers.

[jimsteel]

John Y. Brown, a former Governor of Kentucky and an owner in both the ABA and NBA, passed away at the age of 88.

The following is an excerpt from Mr. Brown's online obituary which details his full life: "John Y left the law and, with investor Jack Massey, purchased Kentucky Fried Chicken from Harland Sanders. Over the next seven years, Brown served as CEO of KFC, transforming it into an international fast food chain that was briefly the largest fast food service in the world before selling it to Heublein, Inc. in 1971.
John Y was a proud Kentuckian and loved promoting his home state every chance he could. He took great satisfaction during his KFC years that Colonel Sanders became one of the three most recognized faces in the world and Kentucky became a household name. Brown was a serial entrepreneur, helping start many other fast-food businesses over the course of the next four decades, including Ollies Trolley, Kenny Rogers Roasters, Buckheads, Roadhouse Grill and many others. In 2009, Harvard Business School named Brown as one of the top 200 American business leaders of the 20th century alongside business luminaries like Ray Kroc, Sam Walton, Walt Disney, and Bill Gates.

In 1972-74, John Y launched the Democratic National Telethon to raise millions for the then struggling national Democratic Party. He was later named lifetime honorary treasurer of the Democratic Party. In 1970 Brown was part of a group of Louisville businessmen who purchased the Kentucky Colonel's basketball team from the American Basketball Association. By 1973, Brown was the majority owner and turned the Colonel's management over to his wife, Ellie Brown, and an all-female board of directors. This was a first in professional sports and over the next two years, the Kentucky Colonels broke ticket sales records and won the ABA championship. The Kentucky Colonels challenged the then NBA champions, the Golden State Warriors, to a single championship game for $1 million but the Warriors declined.

The Colonels folded when the ABA merged with the NBA in 1976. Brown became part-owner of the NBA's Buffalo Braves that same year and the following year traded the Buffalo Braves franchise for the Boston Celtics before selling his interest in 1979 to run for governor of Kentucky. In 1979, Brown married CBS sportscaster and former Miss America Phyllis George. Just weeks after their nuptials, John Y announced he was running for governor. The couple ran an energetic media-savvy campaign with the slogan "Running government like a business" leading to Brown becoming Kentucky's 55th governor. As governor, Brown brought in top Kentucky business leaders as cabinet secretaries and created a more diverse cabinet than previous administrations. He cut the government by 22% and introduced reforms to install competitive bidding and reduce patronage. He created innovative programs that still exist today, such as the Governor's Scholars program. Perhaps his greatest legacy as governor is using his business and marketing skills to promote Kentucky nationally and abroad – both Kentucky's unique products as well as attracting major businesses like UPS. The Courier-Journal summed up his administration as "wholly honorable" and praised efficiencies and many business-like approaches. Brown joked that of all his accomplishments as governor, the one he was remembered most for was creating the UK and UL Dream Games and wearing a half-blue and half-red sports coat to the first game. Brown was also a philanthropist who built the Pamela Brown Auditorium at Louisville's Actor's Theatre in honor of his sister and helped fund the downtown Louisville YMCA. He also helped establish the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging at the University of Kentucky and was instrumental in creating the Muhammad Ali Center.
Apart from his business, political and philanthropic endeavors, John Y's happiest times were being surrounded by family. He is survived by five children: entrepreneur Lincoln Brown and CNN anchor Pamela Brown, who he had when married to Phyllis George Brown. Then former secretary of state, John Y Brown III, Lexington kindergarten teacher Sissy Brown and real estate developer Sandy Steier, with Ellie Moore, 12 grandchildren, and longtime partner Mary Ellen Wheeler."

[jimsteel]

Scottish rugby legend Doddie Weir dies aged 52, six years after motor neurone disease diagnosis

[TTX]

I remember reading about John Brown in my book about ABA. Interesting fellow.

[on_the_edge]

Irene Cara was hot in the 80's on many levels. Sadly, she kind of faded from public eye. RIP

[jimsteel]

Freddie Roman, beloved comedian, dies at age 85 after suffering a heart attack

[jimsteel]

The Charlotte Hornets have announced that former team broadcaster Gerry Vaillancourt passed away at the age of 72.

“The Hornets are saddened to learn of the passing of Gerry Vaillancourt. Gerry V has been a mainstay on our TV and radio broadcasts since 1990-2002, serving in roles including radio analyst, TV analyst, and TV studio host. He also hosted sports talk radio shows on several local stations throughout that time and returned to the Charlotte airwaves in that same format in 2017. His analysis and opinions will be greatly missed, and our condolences go out to his family, friends, and colleagues.”

[jimsteel]

'Eric The Trainer' Fleishman, Celebrity Trainer, Dead At 53