R.I.P. Celebrities(Non Wrestlers or Sports related) 2023

[jimsteel]

Legendary cartoonist Bill Tidy who appeared on Countdown, Blankety Blank and Watercolor Challenge dies aged 89

[jimsteel]

Rick Scheckman, Longtime David Letterman Collaborator, Dies at 67

[jimsteel]

ARTILLERY Drummer JOSUA MADSEN Dies After Getting Hit By A Bus

He was 45

[jimsteel]

South African rapper Costa Titch dies after performing at music festival

He was 28

[on_the_edge]

The grim reaper has his scythe on automatic right now it seems. RIP to all that passed.

[jimsteel]

Kenzaburo Oe, Nobel Laureate and Critic of Postwar Japan, Dies at 88

With his powerful novels and essays, Mr. Oe tried to ensure that Japan learned the lessons of its 20th-century militarism.

[throwingtoasters]

A legend...



Rolly Crump, a Disney animator who helped create the look of early Disneyland attractions like It’s a Small World and the Enchanted Tiki Room, died Sunday in Carlsbad, Calif. He was 93.

The Facebook page for his autobiography announced his death.

Crump didn’t come from a formal art education, but his amateur drawings helped him get a job at the Walt Disney Co. when he was just 22, working on films such as “Peter Pan,” “Lady and the Tramp,” “Sleeping Beauty” and “101 Dalmations,” mostly as an animation assistant.

Crump was known for his eccentric beatnik style and pop art approach, which was evident in his personal art projects, such as a series of posters celebrating drugs. He created posters for rock groups and jazz artists; his artwork drew the attention of Walt Disney, who moved him from the animation department to designing for Disneyland. Crump joined the fledgling Walt Disney Imagineering Department in 1959, contributing to designs for attractions including the Haunted Mansion, It’s a Small World, Tomorrowland and the Enchanted Tiki Room.

Disney Legend Tony Baxter, who worked alongside with Crump on EPCOT and other Imagineering projects for Walt Disney World, told Variety, “Rolly was always able to see a different way of doing things. I think that fascinated Walt Disney, who was always looking for innovations. When Rolly was right with his innovative approaches, they often turned out to be among the most memorable aspects of Disney Parks. Another thing that distinguished Rolly was his total enjoyment of creative work, and being around other creative people at Imagineering.”

His tiki vision also informed the South Seas design of the Disneyland Hotel’s bar Trader Sam’s, and influenced other artists in the genre. His designs continue to influence the look of all the Disney parks.

Crump’s colorful pop art design sensibility can be seen in the original design for It’s a Small World and its iconic clock, first constructed for the New York World’s Fair, which he created using sketches from Disney artist Mary Blair.

Born in Alhambra, Calif., Crump worked at Disney until the 1970s when he left, providing designs for other theme parks including Knott’s Berry Farm and Busch Gardens.

He returned to Disney to create designs for the Epcot Center’s “The Land” and the “Wonders of Life” pavilions. He was named a Disney Legend in 2004.

His autobiography, “It’s Kind of a Cute Story,” was published in 2012.

Crump is survived by his wife, three children and three grandchildren.

[jimsteel]

An Oak Ridge Boys veteran died earlier this month. Gospel singer (Wesley) Calvin Newton, — the quartet's lead singer for three years in the 1950s — preceded the four current members of the group, but the band was set to pay tribute to him during a funeral in Georgia on Monday (March 13).

Newton is a Korean War veteran, member of the GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame and the Tri State Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame. His obituary notes his nearly 10 years of performing experience before he was asked to join the Oak Ridge Quartet after being discharged.



"Crying in the Chapel" and "I Believe" were two songs they recorded that Newton was featured on

He was 93

[jimsteel]

Phyllida Barlow, Sculptor of the “Nonmonumental,” Dies at 78

The British sculptor found international acclaim in the early 2010s after retiring from a successful teaching career.

British artist Phyllida Barlow, best known for sculptures crafted of everyday materials that she described as “nonmonumental,” died yesterday, March 12, at the age of 78 in London. Her passing was confirmed by Hauser & Wirth, her representing gallery since 2010.

Barlow found international acclaim in the early 2010s after retiring from a successful teaching career and went on to represent Britain at the 2017 Venice Biennale. Her site-specific sculptures evoke the destructed landscapes of London in the immediate aftermath of World War II, when Barlow was a child, suggesting death, gore, and violations of the human body. Just as Barlow forced the viewer to make sense of her sculptures’ subject matter, the artist also created optical illusions with weight and structure. She combined heavy materials such as cement and metal with low-cost commodities including styrofoam and plywood, building imposing, large-scale works that appeared to defy gravity and stand at risk of falling over.

[jimsteel]

Chicago nightlife icon Jojo Baby has died

Chicago nightlife icon Jojo Baby - born Joseph Arguellas - has passed away at 51.

"It's with a heavy heart we say goodbye to JoJo Baby who was so near and dear to us all at Metro & SmartBar, as well as to so many in the drag community," the venue posted to Instagram on March 14. "JoJo knew no boundary to creativity and contributed so much to our nightlife in Chicago and beyond. We take comfort in knowing they will leave a lasting legacy of love and imagination on this world, and we will honor their memory by striving to live our lives in the same way."

A larger-than-life performer in the Chicago club scene for decades, Jojo Baby was most recently the unmistakable host of SmartBar's weekly underground house and disco party, QUEEN!