Obituary
R.I.P. Regis Philbin, Beloved Television Personality Dies at 88
Regis Philbin, beloved television personality and game show host, has died at the age of 88 “His family and friends are forever grateful for the time we got to spend with him – for his warmth, his legendary sense of humor, and his singular ability to make every day into something worth talking about. We thank his fans and admirers for their incredible support over his 60-year career and ask for privacy as we mourn his loss,” the Philbin family said in a statement to PEOPLE. TMZ reports that Philbin passed away after suffering from a heart attack. A native of The Bronx, Philbin got his start in showbiz working as a page at The Tonight Show in 1955. After a stint writing for Los Angeles talk show host Tom Duggan and briefly hosting his own show in San Diego, Philbin landed a network TV gig i...
R.I.P. Peter Green, Fleetwood Mac Co-Founder Dies at 73
Fleetwood Mac co-founder and guitarist Peter Green has died at the age of 73. According to a statement from his family, Green passed away “peacefully in his sleep” on Saturday, July 25th. Green co-founded Fleetwood Mac alongside drummer Mick Fleetwood, guitarist Jeremy Spencer and bassist John McVie in 1967. A blues guitarist by trade, Green was instrumental in shaping the band’s early blues rock sound, and wrote early hits including “Albatross”, “Black Magic Woman”, “Oh Well”, “The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)” and “Man of the World”. He was also credited for giving Fleetwood Mac its name. Amid struggles with drugs and mental health, Green left Fleetwood Mac in 1970. He was eventually diagnosed with schizophrenia and spent time in psychiatric hospitals undergoing electr...
Annie Ross, Grammy-Winning Jazz Singer, Dies at 89
Annie Ross, the dexterous jazz singer and leading practitioner of the art of “vocalese” heard on her signature song, “Twisted,” has died. She was 89. Ross died Tuesday at her home in Manhattan of complications from emphysema and heart disease, her former manager, Jim Coleman, told The Washington Post. Ross performed with fellow vocalists Dave Lambert and Jon Hendricks in the acclaimed jazz trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross from 1957 to 1962. They made dozens of instrumental classics their own and recorded several albums, starting with 1957’s Sing a Song of Basie, which employed overdubs to multiply their voices. In 1952, Ross and vocalist King Pleasure had teamed on an album for Prestige that included “Twisted,” her treatment of saxophonist Wardel...
Mitch Slater, Concert Promotion Pioneer, Dies at 59
The Delsener/Slater Presents co-founder was a longtime associate of concert business consolidator Robert Sillerman. Mitch Slater, an industry pioneer who helped shape the modern concert promotion business, died on Tuesday after an extended illness. He was 59. “Our bond was as strong as it gets,” Slater’s older brother, former Capitol Records CEO Andrew Slater, tells Billboard. “When he started out in music, I said, ‘If you could be half as good in business as you are as a brother, you’ll be a great success.’ And he far exceeded that mark.” In 1988, Slater partnered with Ron Delsener to form Delsener/Slater Presents, which became one of the most successful independent concert promotion companies in the U.S. “As brilliant as Ronnie was, Mitch brought some real business acumen to it,” s...
R.I.P. Emitt Rhodes, Power Pop Icon and Home Recording Pioneer Dies at 70
Emitt Rhodes, power pop icon and home recording pioneer, has died at the age of 70. News of Rhodes’ death was confirmed by Omnivore Recordings, which released his final album in 2016. He is said to have passed away in his sleep, but the cause of death was not immediately clear. Rhodes got his start as a drummer in garage rock band The Palace Guard (which also briefly featured My Three Sons actor Don Grady). However, he had his first breakthrough with his next band, The Merry-Go-Round, which had minor hits with the psychedelic “Live” and the melancholic ballad “You’re a Very Lovely Woman”. It is most likely for his 1970 self-titled solo album, though, that he will best be remembered. The album, released on Dunhill Records, was recorded on an Ampex 4-track recorder in his pare...
El Dany, Of Cuban Duo Yomil y El Dany, Dies at 31
Daniel Muñoz Borrego, better known as El Dany and one half of Cuban urban duo Yomil y El Dany, died Saturday morning (July 18) at a hospital in Havana, sources confirm. He was 31 years old. Billboard could not confirm the cause of death. Together with Yomil (real name Roberto Hidalgo Puentes), Muñoz found fame creating a sound he and Hidalgo dubbed “Trapton,” which the duo once described to Billboard as “our brand. It’s a mix of trap with dembow and reggaetón.” That brand allowed Yomil y El Dany to enter the charts in 2016 with their album Sobredosis, which spent one week on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart at No. 8. Most recently, the duo teamed up with Lenier, El Chacal, Srta. Dayana, El Micha and Maurofor the single “No Volveré,” which entered the...
R.I.P. Ken Chinn (a.k.a. Mr. Chi Pig), Singer of Punk Band SNFU Dies at 57
Ken Chinn (aka Mr. Chi Pig) of SNFU Ken Chinn (a.k.a. Mr. Chi Pig), the singer of influential Canadian hardcore-punk band SNFU, has died at the age of 57. No cause of death has been disclosed, but the vocalist previously revealed in a December 2019 interview with Beatroute that he was in failing health and had a short time to live. The origins of SNFU — short for Society’s No F**king Use — date back to 1981, when Chinn first formed the punk band Live Sex Shows in Edmonton with twin-brother guitarists Marc and Brent Belke. While that outfit would break up later that year, the three musicians re-formed as SNFU shortly thereafter, going through a series of drummers and bassists throughout the ’80s. From 1985 through 1988, they released three albums, beginning with their debut, …And No One Els...
R.I.P. Joanna Cole, Author of The Magic School Bus Dies at 75
Joanna Cole, who combined wacky humor and plainspoken science in The Magic School Bus book series, has died at the age of 75. Her publisher Scholastic announced that she died last Sunday, July 12th. According to the New York Times, the cause was idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a disease that leads to irreversible lung scarring. Cole grew up in Newark, New Jersey, and graduated from City College of New York. She spent time as an elementary school teacher, a librarian, and an editor for magazines and children’s books. Her authorial debut was called “Cockroaches”, and she later said it was inspired by her “low-budget New York apartment.” Her humor and inventiveness attracted Scholastic senior editorial director Craig Walker. Walker had been hearing from teachers that they wanted more...
Body of Glee Actress Naya Rivera Recovered in California Lake
The body of Glee actress Naya Rivera was recovered in Lake Piru in Ventura Country, California on Monday, five days after she first went missing. Search and rescue members of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department found Rivera’s body in the early morning hours of Monday. Ventura County Sheriff Bill Ayub believes Rivera’s death was the result of an accidental drowning, as there was no indication of foul play or suicide. Autopsy results are forthcoming. Ventura County Sheriff’s Department began a search for Rivera after her four-year-old son was found floating alone in a rented boat in Lake Piru on Wednesday, July 8th. Police says Rivera rented a boat with her son around 1:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday. Three hours later, her son was spotted floating by ...
Eddie Gale, Jazz Trumpeting Great, Dies at 78
Eddie Gale, a pioneering jazz trumpeter who work on numerous classics with Sun Ra, Cecil Taylor and many more, died Friday (July 10) after a battle with cancer. He was 78. Born in Brooklyn in 1941, Gale got a frontrow seat with the finest jazz musicians of the era, including Bud Powell, the bebop pianist who lived nearby, and trumpeter Kenny Dorham. A fast learner, he soon found himself in jam sessions with the likes of drummers Art Blakey and Max Roach and saxophonists Illinois Jacquet, Sonny Stitt, and Jackie McLean. In the early ’60s, a 20-something Gale connected with Sun Ra. A long-standing professional relationship was formed and Gale toured and recorded with Ra’s Arkestra throughout the ’60s and ’70s. His output with the intergalactic jazz icon included the 1965 set Secrets of ...
Kelly Preston, Actress in ‘SpaceCamp,’ ‘Jerry Maguire,’ Dies at 57
Kelly Preston, the actress who starred in such movies as Jerry Maguire and, most recently, opposite husband John Travolta in Gotti, has died. She was 57. Preston died Sunday after a two-year battle with breast cancer, Travolta wrote on Instagram. “It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer,” he wrote. “She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many. My family and I will forever be grateful to her doctors and nurses at MD Anderson Cancer Center, all the medical centers that have helped, as well as her many friends and loved ones who have been by her side. Kelly’s love and life will always be remembered. I will be taking some time to be there for my...
R.I.P. Kelly Preston, Jerry Maguire and Twins Actress Dies at 57
Kelly Preston, veteran actress of Jerry Maguire, Twins, and Nothing to Love, passed away on Sunday night (June 12th) after a two-year battle with breast cancer. She was 57. Her longtime husband, John Travolta, confirmed the news on Instagram: “It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer. She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many. My family and I will forever be grateful to her doctors and nurses at MD Anderson Cancer Center, all the medical centers that have helped, as well as her many friends and loved ones who have been by her side. Kelly’s love and life will always be remembered. I will be taking some time to be there for my children who have lost their mother, so forgive...
