General "RIP" announcements that might be of interest

William Windom, Emmy Winner and TV Everyman, Dies at 88

William Windom, who won an Emmy Award playing an Everyman drawn from the pages of James Thurber but who may be best remembered for his roles on “Star Trek” and “Murder, She Wrote,” died on Thursday at his home in Woodacre, Calif., north of San Francisco. He was 88.
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William Windom with the Emmy Award he won in 1970 for his role in the sitcom, “My World and Welcome to It.” The cause was congestive heart failure, said his wife, Patricia. Mr. Windom won the Emmy for best actor in a comedy series in 1970 for his performance in “My World and Welcome to It,” a whimsical program based on James Thurber’s humorous essays and fantastic cartoons. He subsequently toured the country with a solo show based on Thurber’s works.


But filmgoers and television viewers may be more likely to associate him with roles that, though also fanciful, had a distinctly darker tone. He teamed up with Rod Serling on episodes of both “The Twilight Zone” (“Five Characters in Search of an Exit” in 1961 and “Miniature” in 1963) and “Night Gallery;” played the president in “Escape From the Planet of the Apes;” and had a memorable role in an early episode of “Star Trek.” He was also a guest star on dozens of other television shows.

It was not until 1985 that Mr. Windom found another role that drew upon his avuncular side with such success: He appeared in more than 50 episodes of “Murder, She Wrote” as the leading physician of Cabot Cove, Me., and a close friend of Jessica Fletcher, the lead character played by Angela Lansbury.

William Windom was born on Sept. 28, 1923, in Manhattan to Paul Windom, an architect, and the former Isobel Wells Peckham. He was named after his great-grandfather William Windom, a congressman from Minnesota who also served as the secretary of the Treasury under Presidents James A. Garfield and Benjamin Harrison.

Mr. Windom attended Williams College in Massachusetts. Before becoming an Army paratrooper in World War II, he joined the Army Specialized Training Program, under whose auspices he studied at The Citadel, Antioch College and the University of Kentucky.

While stationed in Frankfurt, West Germany, during the postwar Allied occupation, he enrolled in the new Biarritz American University in France. “To be honest, I signed up because I thought it would be an easy touch,” he told The New York Times in an interview for this obituary in 2009, “and we had heard that actresses had round heels.”

It was in Biarritz that he did his first bit of acting, playing the title role in “Richard III,” and when he returned to the United States, he continued to perform at Fordham University — his sixth institution of higher education. “I figure it all adds up to about two years’ worth of education,” he said.

Mr. Windom found work in the New York theater as well as in radio and on television, making numerous appearances on live dramas in the early 1950s. He ultimately appeared in more than a dozen Broadway plays, including a four-show season with the American Repertory Theater and a 1956 revival of Noel Coward’s “Fallen Angels.” He also performed for several seasons in summer stock in places like Bucks County, Pa., and the Southbury Playhouse in Connecticut, and he later toured the United States and other countries with one-man shows about Thurber and the World War II journalist Ernie Pyle.

Mr. Windom made his first film appearance as the prosecuting attorney in the 1962 drama “To Kill a Mockingbird,” sparring with Gregory Peck’s defense lawyer. His subsequent movies included Arthur Hiller’s “The Americanization of Emily” in 1964, Robert Altman’s “Brewster McCloud” in 1970 and the John Hughes comedy “She’s Having a Baby” in 1988.
Another notable television role was as the male lead in the “The Farmer’s Daughter,” a situation comedy that ran on ABC from 1963 to 1966. His character, a Minnesota congressman (like Mr. Windom’s grandfather), is a widower who hires a Swedish-American governess (Inger Stevens) to care for his sons.

Mr. Windom, who was also a tournament chess player, was married five times. Besides his wife of 37 years, Patricia, he is survived by four children, Rachel, Heather, Hope and Rebel; and four grandchildren.

Mr. Windom’s biggest critical success was “My World and Welcome to It,” which was broadcast for only one season, 1969-70. But in certain circles, he is probably better known for the “Doomsday Machine” episode of “Star Trek.” He played Commodore Matt Decker, the sole survivor of a spacecraft who, along with the crew of the Enterprise, tries to neutralize a planet-destroying robot ship.

Despite the fame that television brought him, it was a stage role that Mr. Windom remembered most fondly.

“A lot of people today think the first thing they saw is the first thing that ever happened, and that means ‘Star Trek’ or ‘Murder, She Wrote,’ ” he told The Times. “But the thing I’m most proud of is playing ‘Richard III’ in Biarritz.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08…r-is-dead-at-88.html?_r=1

Always liked Windom. My family used to The Farmer Daughter every week and after I was married, my wife and I used to My World And Welcome To It. Always seemed like an easy going guy. He was also in Hour Of The Gun as Texas Jack Vermillion who was part of Wyatt Earps posse.

Also, read that Tony Scott, who directed Top Gun and Days Of Thunder killed himself by jumping off a bridge in L.A.

I read that too. So sad.

RIP William and Tony Scott.

RIP william windom and tony scott

Well, William, you had a great life....glad your wife was still with you. I greatly enjoyed your career on the screen. Thanks, Keith

Here's the Tony Scott story. What a shame.

Director Tony Scott, whose box-office hits included Top Gun, Days of Thunder and Beverly Hills Cop II, died after jumping from a bridge in Los Angeles Harbor, the Los Angeles Times reports. He was 68.

Witnesses told authorities that Sunday at around 12:35 p.m. the filmmaker left his parked Toyota Prius on the Vincent Thomas Bridge, scaled a fence and then leapt without hesitation. A note with contact information was left in the vehicle, says the newspaper.

Los Angeles Port police pulled his body from the water four hours later. A suicide note was recovered in his office, reports the Times. Its contents have not been disclosed.

The British-born Scott, the younger brother of director-producer Ridley Scott (Alien, Gladiator), lived in Beverly Hills. He had twin sons with his third wife, actress-model Donna Wilson.

Family spokesman Simon Halls confirmed Scott's death and said the family requests "that their privacy be respected at this time."

Ridley and Tony Scott ran Scott Free Productions, whose TV shows include The Good Wife. Tony Scott frequently worked with Denzel Washington, on Crimson Tide, Man on Fire, Deja Vu and The Taking of Pelham 123. Most recently they collaborated on Unstoppable.

Scott recently finished shooting the drama Out of the Furnace, starring Christian Bale.

In a Tweet Sunday, director Ron Howard wrote, "No more Tony Scott movies. Tragic day."

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20622557,00.html

Singer Scott McKenzie, who performed "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)" - which became a hit in 1967 during the city's "Summer of Love" - has died.

A statement on McKenzie's website says the 73-year-old died on Saturday in Los Angeles. McKenzie battled Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a disease that affects the nervous system, and had been in and out of the hospital since 2010.

"San Francisco" was written by John Phillips, the leader of the 1960s group The Mamas and the Papas. But McKenzie sang it and it has stood as an anthem for the 1960s counterculture movement.

McKenzie also co-wrote "Kokomo," a No. 1 hit for The Beach Boys in 1988, and toured with The Mamas and the Papas in the 1990s.

http://www.legacy.com/obituari…pid=159310377#fbLoggedOut

RIP Scott, a great inspiration to aged hippies like me!!

R.I.P. to both Tony Scott and Scott McKenzie. Gave us a lot of culture through their talents. May you both continue to inspire in years to come.

A shame what Tony did to end his life.

Cheers Hondo

It was just revealed a little while ago that Tony had inoperable brain cancer...

Just FYI.

Just read on TMZ...Phyllis Diller died this morning.

This is too incredible.



William Windom started out in TV until his big break on the big screen as the lawyer opposing Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird. But his loyality stayed with TV in The Farmer's Daughter, My World and Welcome to it, Murder, She Wrote. He was 88. R.I.P. William!

Way too many leaving us.

Cheers Hondo

Here is another one to say goodbye.



Phyllis Diller has left us. Loved to see her with Bob Hope. She will be missed. R.I.P. Phyllis.

Cheers Hondo

Quote from Hondo Duke Lane

Here is another one to say goodbye.
R.I.P. Phyllis.

Cheers Hondo

RIP Phyllis,

Quote from The Tennesseean

Just read on TMZ...Phyllis Diller died this morning.

Posted the day before by The Tennesseean

Is it just me or have a huge number of prominent people died recently?

Probably me. The older you get, the more you notice death.

Hi

Its been a bad week RIP to the many who have passed away

Regards

Arthur

Just read a few minutes ago that Tony Scotts family says he did not have brain cancer/tumor.

Also, this past Saturday, Willie "El Curro" Champion passed away from cancer. Willie was a Flamenco guitarist and his wife Theresa, a Flamenco dancer. They appeared in Dukes, The Alamo, in the scene in the cantina where Theresa is dancing on the table, with Willie playing the guitar. Willie's guitar licks are also heard when the movie begins.