George Lindsey, who spent nearly 30 years as the grinning Goober on "The Andy Griffith Show" and "Hee Haw," has died. He was 83. A press release from Marshall-Donnelly-Combs Funeral Home in Nashville said Lindsay died early Sunday morning after a brief illness. Funeral arrangements were still being made. Lindsey was the beanie-wearing Goober on "The Andy Griffith Show" from 1964 to 1968 and its successor, "Mayberry RFD," from 1968 to 1971. He played the same jovial character — a service station attendant — on "Hee Haw" from 1971 until it went out of production in 1993. "America has grown up with me," Lindsey said in an Associated Press interview in 1985. "Goober is every man; everyone finds something to like about ol' Goober."
Adam Yauch, one-third of the pioneering hip-hop group the Beastie Boys, has died at the age of 48, Rolling Stone has learned. Yauch, also known as MCA, had been in treatment for cancer since 2009. The rapper was diagnosed in 2009 after discovering a tumor in his salivary gland.
Yauch sat out the Beastie Boys' induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April, and his treatments delayed the release of the group's most recent album, Hot Sauce Committee, Pt. 2. The Beastie Boys had not performed live since the summer of 2009, and Yauch's illness prevented the group from appearing in music videos for Hot Sauce Committee, Pt. 2.
Yauch co-founded the Beastie Boys with Mike "Mike D" Diamond and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horowitz in 1979. The band started off as a hardcore punk group, but soon began experimenting with hip-hop. The band broke big with their first proper album, Licensed to Ill, in 1986, and further albums Paul's Boutique, Check Your Head and Ill Communication cemented the band as a true superstar act.
In addition to his career with the Beastie Boys, Yauch was heavily involved in the movement to free Tibet and co-organized the Tibetan Freedom Concerts of the late Nineties. In 2002, he launched the film production company Oscilloscope Laboratories.
This one sucks. Men at Work was my first real band I ever got into. Yeah, yeah, whatever. Greg was a great musician and a good person. Here's the write up:
Greg Ham, a musician with the iconic Australian band Men at Work, was found dead in his Melbourne home on Thursday, Australian reports said.Victoria state police confirmed that the deceased was the 58-year-old resident of the house but did not identify him by name, in keeping with local practice. Ham was 58 and neighbors said he was the lone occupant of the house.Two concerned friends who had not heard from Ham in some time found the body after going to check on him, police said, declining to release any details on how Ham died or if the circumstances were suspicious."There are a number of unexplained aspects to it which has caused our attendance here today, and we're assisting the local detectives to determine what has occurred," Detective Senior Sergeant Shane O'Connell told reporters.Newspapers including The Australian and The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Ham had died.Men at Work frontman Colin Hay issued a statement expressing a deep love for his longtime friend, whom he met in 1972 when they were seniors in high school. Hay recalled decades of shared experiences with Ham — from appearing on "Saturday Night Live," to flying through dust storms over the Grand Canyon, to getting lost in the rural Australian countryside."We played in a band and conquered the world together," Hay said. "I love him very much. He's a beautiful man. The saxophone solo on 'Who Can It Be Now' was the rehearsal take. We kept it, that was the one. He's here forever."Ham was perhaps best known for playing the famous flute riff in the band's smash 1980s hit "Down Under." But the beloved tune came under intense scrutiny in recent years after the band was accused of stealing the catchy riff from the children's campfire song "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree." The publisher of "Kookaburra" sued Men at Work, and in 2010 a judge ruled the band had copied the melody. The group was ordered to hand over a portion of its royalties.Ham later said the controversy had left him devastated, and he worried it would tarnish his legacy."It has destroyed so much of my song," he told Melbourne's The Age newspaper after the court ruling. "It will be the way the song is remembered, and I hate that. I'm terribly disappointed that that's the way I'm going to be remembered — for copying something."On Thursday, neighbor John Nassar praised Ham, whom he had known for about 30 years."He was a lovely human being, never judgmental about anyone," Nassar told reporters. "He was a very friendly human being."Ham also played the saxophone and keyboards, and more recently worked as a guitar teacher."Down Under" and the album it was on, "Business As Usual," topped the Australian, American and British charts in early 1983. The song remains an unofficial anthem for Australia and was ranked fourth in a 2001 music industry survey of the best Australian songs. Men at Work won the 1983 Grammy Award for Best New Artist.Australian rock historian Glenn Baker, who was Australian editor of Billboard magazine when Men At Work was at its peak touring the world, recalled Ham as bursting with energy during the band's glory days."When they came back (from tour), it was generally Greg who I would interview because he'd tell the best stories and he was effervescent, energetic, good fun, good-humored and good-natured," Baker said. "He was having a great time."___
A true American iCON for sure. Thank you for teaching white people how to dance....well at least trying to teach them!
Host and TV producer Dick Clark has died. He was 82. It was first reported by the news Wednesday afternoon. A rep told the site that Clark underwent surgery Tuesday night and suffered a "massive" heart attack following the procedure. Clark started his career as a radio announcer at WRUN in Utica, N.Y., when he was 17. His long-running show, "American Bandstand," was on the air from 1957-1989. "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" began in 1972 and continues to this day with Ryan Seacrest. Clark launched the American Music Awards in 1973. He became a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee in 1993. Clark suffered a stroke in December 2004. He continued performing even after the stroke, even though it had affected his ability to speak and walk.
Ugh. Well such is life and in life you have to mention the passings of someone you enjoyed. Today is that day. An official from the medical examiner's office for Martin County, Florida confirmed they received a call from Martin Memorial Hospital informing them that Jones had passed away.Jones is survived by his wife Jessica and 4 daughters from previous marriages. He was 66-years-old. Jones joined The Monkees in 1965 ... along with Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork ... and together they churned out a bunch of hugely popular songs including 3 number 1 hits -- "Daydream Believer," "Last Train to Clarksville" and "I'm a Believer." The group was initially cast by TV producers who wanted to create a scripted series about an actual rock n' roll band. But the group exploded, and Jones in particular became a Beatles-caliber heartthrob.The Monkees songs were covered by huge bands like Coldpay, and Smash Mouth's version of "I'm a Believer" was famously featured in "Shrek."
The effervescent Hall of Fame catcher whose single for the Mets in the 1986 World Series touched off one of the most improbable rallies in baseball, died Thursday. The Kid was 57.Carter was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor last May, two weeks after finishing his second season as coach at Palm Beach Atlantic University. Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said Carter died at a hospice in the West Palm Beach, Fla., area.
I know! Sorry for the lack of updates over here. I've been busy and I'm not the only one! Death has been busy as well these past few weeks. Here's a foursome that left us. We had a crack whore in a tub, an old man who "didn't see anything", a great singer, and a wonderful actor who made us laugh and cry. And here's something else to make you cry. Slabber Debbie already has two!! Debbie racks up an impressive 42 points. Don't be discouraged! We have a loooooooong year ahead of us! Let's get SLABBING!!!!!!!!
