@heartny I saw them around 1995. That group was timeless. (No pun intended, but their album Days of Future Passed was one of my all-time favorites.)
/youtube Moody blues, Days of future passed
Here’s one we missed from August. Can I put it here?
—-
Ron Turcotte died Aug 22, 2025. He was the jockey who famously rode Secretariat to his Triple Crown triumph and rode Secretariat in the insane Belmont win in 1973.
He also won the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes in 1972 riding Riva Ridge.
His career as a jockey ended in 1978 after a racing fall that rendered him paraplegic.
He seems to have largely lived a positive life after that, and to have used his fame to promote assistance for disabled and injured jockies, and was a major fundraiser in that cause.
—-
A few words about Secretariat and the 1973 Belmont Stakes:
Secretariat won by 31 or 32 lengths. There is no comparable win anywhere in international stakes racing history among top flight horses. Nothing even close to that margin.
Secretariat ran each quarter mile faster than the previous quarter mile The horse was still accelerating at the finish line. This is unheard of in thoroughbred racing at that distance.
Secretariat’s time in the Kentucky Derby has not yet been equaled in the intervening 52 years.
Secretariat may have set a record in the Preakness Stakes. The track clock was not operating properly that day. Maryland racing commissioners later credited the horse with a record winning time after examining race footage; but as this time was not certified by the official track clock, the record is considered unofficial.
Secretariat’s time in the the Belmont Stakes is the world record for any horse over 1-1/2 miles, by a good margin. Even after 52 years.
Secretariat was going so fast at the Belmont finish line that he also holds completely unofficial world record times for 1-5/8 mile and for 1-3/4 mile distances (clocked by hand I believe) even tho after he crossed the finish line, Ron Turcotte started slowing him down.
How was Secretariat so fast? Perfect well-muscled confirmation; combined (as determined after his death in 1989 from laminitis) with autopsy info that his heart and lungs were in perfect condition even in old age, and were much larger than those of any other racehorse ever examined. The horse could simply process more oxygen and pump more blood than any other racehorse.
The reason the race announcer says that Secretariat won the Belmont by 25 lengths: with that sort of large distance it’s not possible for watchers to judge # of lengths of victory with accuracy during a race. Secretariat actually won by 31 or 32 lengths, as determined by photographs and video footage.
The horse apparently loved to run all this life.
The most famous photograph of Turcotte may be this one on Secretariat, near the Belmont finish line
Paul Daniel “Ace” Frehley, co-founder and lead guitarist of the legendary rock band Kiss and a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, has died following injuries suffered during a fall last month, according to a statement from his family. He was 74.
"Ed Williams, the onetime broadcasting teacher who portrayed Ted Olson, the earnest lab scientist with a pocket protector and a kinky side, on the Police Squad! TV show and original Naked Gun movies, has died. He was 98.
Williams died Oct. 2 in Los Angeles, his granddaughter Stephanie Williams told The Hollywood Reporter…"
@Lynnerizer@shahnm
It’s quality vs quantity.
I’ve met several folks that were in better shape at 98 than some of the 70 year olds I dealt with in the ER. If I’m still functional and cogent I will opt to stick around.
@chienfou@Lynnerizer@shahnm many many months ago when I was still a hospital nurse, I had a patient whose primary caregiver was her mother. Patient was not developmentally delayed or anything. She was just dependent and in that good health and so her mother took care of her. The patient was in her seventies
"Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers star running back Doug Martin has died, his family said on Sunday. He was 36.
Martin’s family released a statement to FOX Sports confirming his death. TMZ Sports first reported that the ex-NFL player had passed away. His cause of death was not made known…"
June Lockhart, a popular actress of the 1950s and '60s known for her roles in “Lost In Space,” “Lassie,” and “Meet Me in St. Louis,” died of natural causes on Oct. 23 in Santa Monica, Calif. She was 100.
@mossygreen I’ve always loved how in their videos Marc Almond wildly over-emotes while Dave Ball just stolidly wears some variety of fake facial hair.
OK Dave, we need you to wear fake sideburns and mime dying while mowing the lawn, and then Marc will angrily tear apart a chrysanthemum with his teeth while crouching over your coffin.
/youtube soft cell frustration video
"Diane Ladd, the prolific Oscar-nominated actress and mother of Laura Dern, has died. She was 89.
Dern shared news of her mom’s death on Wednesday, Nov. 3 in a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter. “My amazing hero and my profound gift of a mother, Diane Ladd, passed with me beside her this morning” at her home in Ojai, California, the statement read. “She was the greatest daughter, mother, grandmother, actress, artist and empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created…”
"Former Vice President Dick Cheney, considered by many political observers to be the most politically active and influential vice president in U.S. history, has died.
“Richard B. Cheney, the 46th Vice President of the United States, died last night, November 3, 2025,” his family said in a statement. “He was 84 years old. His beloved wife of 61 years, Lynne, his daughters, Liz and Mary, and other family members were with him as he passed. The former Vice President died due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease…”
@shahnm
He was very influential in presidential politics for over two decades, for better or for worse, including in US Iraq policy.
His daughter Liz lives to continue the political DNA.
(But I haven’t heard of her shooting anyone … yet.)
"Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, 24, died Thursday morning. Kneeland’s cause of death is said to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound following a police chase for a traffic violation, according to the Frisco Police Department and Texas Department of Public Safety.
While pursuing Kneeland as he chose not to stop amid his traffic violation, DPS officers lost sight of his vehicle. When Kneeland’s automobile was eventually found, it appeared to have been involved in an accident. Police subsequently found Kneeland, deceased at the time of discovery, while searching the surrounding area…"
The actress was best known for her starring role in 1987’s Anna, which earned her a Golden Globe award and an Oscar nomination. She appeared in over 250 film and TV productions, including 1991’s JFK and 2003’s Bruce Almighty.
TMZ first confirmed Kirkland’s death via her manager, Michael Greene. Greene noted that Kirkland had been in hospice care and died on Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 4:50 a.m. ET. Kirkland was put into hospice over the weekend with her rep sharing that she’d suffered from dementia for the past year, per TMZ…"
"The time has come. After more than 230 years (production of the penny started between 1792 and 1793), we’re finally done pressing the one-cent coin due to inflation.
*
The U.S. Mint made approximately 3.2 billion pennies in FY 2024 (ending September 30), at a cost of 3.69 cents per penny … which led to a loss of $85.3 million in just one year…"*
"Alice and Ellen Kessler – German twin entertainers who performed together and rose to fame in the 1950s and ’60s – have reportedly died after choosing to end their lives together.
According to the German news outlet Bild, the former dynamic duo died at their home near Munich, Germany by assisted suicide…"
Such sad news
https://www.aarp.org/entertainment/celebrities/jane-goodall-obit-primatologist.html
@tinamarie1974 She made monkey business everybody’s business.
I was always intrigued though that so many of her “friends” resembled my in-laws.
She lived a long life and she made her mark in the world.
Dame Patricia Routledge
(“Hyacinth Bucket”)
https://variety.com/2025/tv/global/patricia-routledge-dead-keeping-up-appearances-1236537733/
paraphrasing here “It’s pronounced: Bouquet!”
Joan Kennedy, First Wife of Ted Kennedy and the Last Survivor of Camelot, Dies at 89
https://people.com/politics/joan-kennedy-dead/
"Joan Bennett Kennedy, the first wife of Sen. Ted Kennedy, died early in the morning on Oct. 8, PEOPLE confirms. She was 89 years old.
GoLocalProv published an obituary announcing the news, revealing that she died peacefully in her sleep at her Boston home…"
Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, Loyola University Chicago icon, dies at 106
https://sports.yahoo.com/mens-college-basketball/breaking-news/article/sister-jean-dolores-schmidt-loyola-university-chicago-icon-dies-at-106-040416295.html
Moody Blues Legend John Lodge Dies Suddenly and Unexpectedly’
.
So glad I got to see him in person in 2023.
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/moody-blues-john-lodge-dies/
@heartny I saw them around 1995. That group was timeless. (No pun intended, but their album Days of Future Passed was one of my all-time favorites.)
/youtube Moody blues, Days of future passed
Diane Keaton, Oscar-Winning ‘Annie Hall’ Star, Dies at 79
https://variety.com/2025/film/news/diane-keaton-dead-annie-hall-1236546710/
@heartny Oh no!
@heartny @Kyeh I keep seeing all these people dying that are my age give or take a few years and every time my heart just sort of goes oh God
@heartny
Godfather Ii
Annie Hall
@heartny
@heartny
Here’s one we missed from August. Can I put it here?
—-
Ron Turcotte died Aug 22, 2025. He was the jockey who famously rode Secretariat to his Triple Crown triumph and rode Secretariat in the insane Belmont win in 1973.
He also won the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes in 1972 riding Riva Ridge.
His career as a jockey ended in 1978 after a racing fall that rendered him paraplegic.
He seems to have largely lived a positive life after that, and to have used his fame to promote assistance for disabled and injured jockies, and was a major fundraiser in that cause.
—-
A few words about Secretariat and the 1973 Belmont Stakes:
Secretariat won by 31 or 32 lengths. There is no comparable win anywhere in international stakes racing history among top flight horses. Nothing even close to that margin.
Secretariat ran each quarter mile faster than the previous quarter mile The horse was still accelerating at the finish line. This is unheard of in thoroughbred racing at that distance.
Secretariat’s time in the Kentucky Derby has not yet been equaled in the intervening 52 years.
Secretariat may have set a record in the Preakness Stakes. The track clock was not operating properly that day. Maryland racing commissioners later credited the horse with a record winning time after examining race footage; but as this time was not certified by the official track clock, the record is considered unofficial.
Secretariat’s time in the the Belmont Stakes is the world record for any horse over 1-1/2 miles, by a good margin. Even after 52 years.
Secretariat was going so fast at the Belmont finish line that he also holds completely unofficial world record times for 1-5/8 mile and for 1-3/4 mile distances (clocked by hand I believe) even tho after he crossed the finish line, Ron Turcotte started slowing him down.
How was Secretariat so fast? Perfect well-muscled confirmation; combined (as determined after his death in 1989 from laminitis) with autopsy info that his heart and lungs were in perfect condition even in old age, and were much larger than those of any other racehorse ever examined. The horse could simply process more oxygen and pump more blood than any other racehorse.
The reason the race announcer says that Secretariat won the Belmont by 25 lengths: with that sort of large distance it’s not possible for watchers to judge # of lengths of victory with accuracy during a race. Secretariat actually won by 31 or 32 lengths, as determined by photographs and video footage.
The horse apparently loved to run all this life.
The most famous photograph of Turcotte may be this one on Secretariat, near the Belmont finish line
@f00l
What if someone had said no?
Interesting stuff nonetheless…
@f00l Was Secretariat by any chance from the planet Krypton?
That’s about the era when Kal-El arrived.
@chienfou
If someone has said no, I suppose I’d have had to throw a major public sulk fit.
So enjoyable for everyone, yes?
; )
@f00l @phendrick You may be on to something…
Susan Stamberg, NPR ‘founding mother,’ dies at 87 : NPR https://share.google/aTjaFAibpRplBmLET
@Cerridwyn What a great write up of a fascinating career. And I didn’t know she was responsible for putting Car Talk on the air! I loved that show.
@Cerridwyn @Kyeh Car Talk was the best!!!
@Cerridwyn @Kyeh “Don’t drive like my brother!” Those two cracked me up!
@Cerridwyn @sillyheathen I miss it! And all their wonderful “staffers,” like statistician Marge Inoverra.
@Cerridwyn
@Cerridwyn
I so loved listening to her.
Even tho I wasn’t into her cranberry Thanksgiving thing.
Paul Daniel “Ace” Frehley, co-founder and lead guitarist of the legendary rock band Kiss and a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, has died following injuries suffered during a fall last month, according to a statement from his family. He was 74.
https://variety.com/2025/music/news/ace-frehley-kiss-lead-guitarist-dead-1236554943/
@heartny
Ed Williams, ‘Police Squad!’ and ‘Naked Gun’ Actor, Dies at 98
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/ed-williams-dead-police-squad-naked-gun-1236402916/
"Ed Williams, the onetime broadcasting teacher who portrayed Ted Olson, the earnest lab scientist with a pocket protector and a kinky side, on the Police Squad! TV show and original Naked Gun movies, has died. He was 98.
Williams died Oct. 2 in Los Angeles, his granddaughter Stephanie Williams told The Hollywood Reporter…"
@shahnm Ted Olson in action
He was great, IMHO.
Warning: Might offend viewers who don’t have a warped sense of humor.
@shahnm
98 is a good long life, can’t say that I want to be here when I’m 98. Jus sayen.
@Lynnerizer @shahnm
It’s quality vs quantity.
I’ve met several folks that were in better shape at 98 than some of the 70 year olds I dealt with in the ER. If I’m still functional and cogent I will opt to stick around.
@chienfou @shahnm
Yes I agree, my mom is in better health than me! She’s going to live into her 90’s for sure!
@chienfou @Lynnerizer @shahnm many many months ago when I was still a hospital nurse, I had a patient whose primary caregiver was her mother. Patient was not developmentally delayed or anything. She was just dependent and in that good health and so her mother took care of her. The patient was in her seventies
@Cerridwyn @chienfou @shahnm
That’s amazing!
Ex-NFL star Doug Martin dead at 36
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/ex-nfl-star-doug-martin-dead-36
"Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers star running back Doug Martin has died, his family said on Sunday. He was 36.
Martin’s family released a statement to FOX Sports confirming his death. TMZ Sports first reported that the ex-NFL player had passed away. His cause of death was not made known…"
@shahnm
YIKES! That’s way too young.
George Smoot - Nobel prize winner
Just now watched him on The Big Bang Theory rerun
https://news.berkeley.edu/2025/09/29/nobelist-george-smoot-whose-satellite-experiments-validated-the-big-bang-theory-dies-at-80/#:~:text=Smoot%2C a physicist at UC,died in Paris on Sept.
@llangley oh hey, I just saw it as well
June Lockhart, a popular actress of the 1950s and '60s known for her roles in “Lost In Space,” “Lassie,” and “Meet Me in St. Louis,” died of natural causes on Oct. 23 in Santa Monica, Calif. She was 100.
https://variety.com/2025/film/news/june-lockhart-dead-lost-in-space-lassie-1236561320/
@heartny 100 is impressive!
Former New York Jets star Nick Mangold dies at 41 due to complications of kidney disease
https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/26/sport/nfl-nick-mangold-dies-kidney-disease
Dave Ball, the composing half of electronic music duo Soft Cell, 1959-2025.
/youtube say hello wave goodbye original video full
@mossygreen I’ve always loved how in their videos Marc Almond wildly over-emotes while Dave Ball just stolidly wears some variety of fake facial hair.
OK Dave, we need you to wear fake sideburns and mime dying while mowing the lawn, and then Marc will angrily tear apart a chrysanthemum with his teeth while crouching over your coffin.
/youtube soft cell frustration video
One of the original Star Trek directors dies at 102
https://screenrant.com/ralph-senesky-death-obituary/
Diane Ladd, Oscar-nominated actress and Laura Dern’s mom, dies at 89
https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2025/11/03/diane-ladd-dead-laura-dern/87071302007/
"Diane Ladd, the prolific Oscar-nominated actress and mother of Laura Dern, has died. She was 89.
Dern shared news of her mom’s death on Wednesday, Nov. 3 in a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter. “My amazing hero and my profound gift of a mother, Diane Ladd, passed with me beside her this morning” at her home in Ojai, California, the statement read. “She was the greatest daughter, mother, grandmother, actress, artist and empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created…”
Former Vice President Dick Cheney dead at 84
https://abcnews.go.com/amp/Politics/former-vice-president-dick-cheney-dead-84/story?id=11021827
"Former Vice President Dick Cheney, considered by many political observers to be the most politically active and influential vice president in U.S. history, has died.
“Richard B. Cheney, the 46th Vice President of the United States, died last night, November 3, 2025,” his family said in a statement. “He was 84 years old. His beloved wife of 61 years, Lynne, his daughters, Liz and Mary, and other family members were with him as he passed. The former Vice President died due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease…”
@shahnm
He was very influential in presidential politics for over two decades, for better or for worse, including in US Iraq policy.
His daughter Liz lives to continue the political DNA.
(But I haven’t heard of her shooting anyone … yet.)
Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, Grateful Dead singer, 78
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/donna-jean-godchaux-mackay-grateful-dead-singer-dies-at-78
https://youtube.com/shorts/JZWuO7tmBnc?si=egX0KY_LsmacfVZ-
Cowboys DE Marshawn Kneeland, 24, dies from apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after police chase
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/marshawn-kneeland-dies-cowboys/
"Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, 24, died Thursday morning. Kneeland’s cause of death is said to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound following a police chase for a traffic violation, according to the Frisco Police Department and Texas Department of Public Safety.
While pursuing Kneeland as he chose not to stop amid his traffic violation, DPS officers lost sight of his vehicle. When Kneeland’s automobile was eventually found, it appeared to have been involved in an accident. Police subsequently found Kneeland, deceased at the time of discovery, while searching the surrounding area…"
James Watson, Co-Discoverer of the Structure of DNA, Is Dead at 97
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/science/james-watson-dead.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
@Kyeh
Wow… been a long time since I thought of Watson and Crick!
here’ a link that isn’t paywalled.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/james-d-watson-scientist-who-co-discovered-dnas-double-helix-shape-dies-at-97
@chienfou BTW, that NYT link shouldn’t be paywalled - I put it in as a “gift.” You see it says “articleShare?”
@Kyeh
My bad… looking at it more closely I see it says “create a free account”.
@chienfou Oh, I see. Still kind of a hassle.
Paul Tagliabue
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46905612/former-nfl-commissioner-paul-tagliabue-dies-age-84
Sally Kirkland, Veteran Actress and Oscar Nominee, Dies at 84
https://people.com/sally-kirkland-actress-dies-at-84-8749851
"Sally Kirkland has died at the age of 84.
The actress was best known for her starring role in 1987’s Anna, which earned her a Golden Globe award and an Oscar nomination. She appeared in over 250 film and TV productions, including 1991’s JFK and 2003’s Bruce Almighty.
TMZ first confirmed Kirkland’s death via her manager, Michael Greene. Greene noted that Kirkland had been in hospice care and died on Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 4:50 a.m. ET. Kirkland was put into hospice over the weekend with her rep sharing that she’d suffered from dementia for the past year, per TMZ…"
The Penny Dies at 232
A long decline into irrelevance ended on Wednesday in Philadelphia.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/business/penny-coin-legacy.html
https://www.axios.com/2025/11/12/last-penny-minted-philadelphia-coin-shortage
https://notthebee.com/article/the-last-penny-will-be-minted-today
"The time has come. After more than 230 years (production of the penny started between 1792 and 1793), we’re finally done pressing the one-cent coin due to inflation.
*
The U.S. Mint made approximately 3.2 billion pennies in FY 2024 (ending September 30), at a cost of 3.69 cents per penny … which led to a loss of $85.3 million in just one year…"*
@shahnm Guess if they were losing money it only makes cents to stop making 'em!!
@MrGoodGuy @shahnm That’s illogical, Captain. You don’t make cents by not making cents.
@MrGoodGuy @phendrick @shahnm
/youtube Stop Making Sense
Cleo Hearn, Cowboys of Color Rodeo founder, died at the age of 86.
Hearn spent more than five decades in rodeo, breaking barriers and mentoring young riders.
Ryan Gillin News On 6 has more on his legacy: https://www.newson6.com/tulsa-oklahoma-news/cowboys-of-color-founder-cleo-hearn-dies-at-86-leaves-lasting-legacy
The Kessler Twins
Dead at 89
https://www.tmz.com/2025/11/18/kessler-twins-dead-same-day-suicide/
"Alice and Ellen Kessler – German twin entertainers who performed together and rose to fame in the 1950s and ’60s – have reportedly died after choosing to end their lives together.
According to the German news outlet Bild, the former dynamic duo died at their home near Munich, Germany by assisted suicide…"
@shahnm That’s kinda sweet.
@shahnm They still looked healthy and happy last month: (pic from story on CNN)
Reggae pioneer Jimmy Cliff dies at 81
https://www.npr.org/2025/11/24/nx-s1-4526570/jimmy-cliff-obituary-reggae
Hey Jimmy…Thanks, Mon! The world owes you one for breaking out Reggae from the Jamaica shores.
Mother Viola Fletcher, one of the last two remaining survivors of the 1921 Tulsa race massacre, age 111
https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/24/us/tulsa-massacre-viola-ford-fletcher-survivor
/image Viola Fletcher
Burt Meyer, Chicago toymaker behind classics like Lite-Brite, Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots, has died at 99.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/obituaries/2025/11/07/burt-meyer-marvin-glass-mouse-trap-rock-em-sock-em-robots-games-toys
Fuzzy Zoeller
️
https://www.golfdigest.com/story/fuzzy-zoeller-dies-74-masters-us-open-tiger-woods-2025
British playwright Tom Stoppard, a playful, probing dramatist who won an Academy Award for the screenplay for 1998’s “Shakespeare In Love,” has died. He was 88.
https://apnews.com/article/stoppard-obit-britain-playwright-2721a8178c7e9691fdbd84e8fc9c0736
Leslie Fish, the godmother of Filk
https://scifi.radio/2025/11/29/filk-legend-leslie-fish-has-died/
Guitar legend Steve Cropper dies at 84
https://bluesrockreview.com/2025/12/guitar-legend-steve-cropper-dies-at-84.html