Free Republic

Edward Brooke, the Massachusetts Republican who was the first African-American to be popularly elected to the US Senate, died on Saturday at the age of 95, the state Republican Party said. Brooke was Massachusetts attorney-general when he was elected to the US Senate in 1966, at a time when the country was gripped by racial unrest. Before his election, there were two other African-American senators shortly after the Civil War. But until early in the 20th century, senators were picked by state legislatures and not by popular vote. In the Senate, Brooke joined a small band of liberal Republicans who...

Little Jimmy Dickens, a diminutive singer-songwriter known for his sense of humor and as the oldest cast member of the Grand Ole Opry, has died. He was 94. Dickens died Friday at a Nashville-area hospital of cardiac arrest after suffering a stroke on Christmas Day, Opry spokeswoman Jessie Schmidt said. Dickens, who stood 4-foot-11, had performed on the Opry almost continuously since 1948. His last performance was Dec. 20 as part of his birthday celebration. He sang "Out Behind The Barn" and delivered his trademark comedy. He had turned 94 a day earlier. "The Grand Ole Opry did not have...

Donna Douglas -- who famously portrayed Elly May Clampett on the legendary 60s TV series "The Beverly Hillbillies" -- passed away Thursday at her home in Louisiana with friends and family by her side. Douglas' granddaughter confirmed the death to TMZ. Donna starred on "The Beverly Hillbillies" for all nine seasons and even returned for the 1981 reunion TV movie.

NY1 has learned that former Governor Mario Cuomo has died at the age of 82. This comes just hours after Andrew Cuomo was publicly inaugurated for his second term as the 56th governor of New York. Governor Cuomo said in his speech at One World Trade Center that his father was unable to attend because he was too ill. He also said he and his family had spent New Year's eve with the senior Cuomo. Governor Cuomo had also changed his initial plans for his swearing in ceremony to take place in Manhattan as opposed to Albany.

Ever-eloquent Mario Cuomo, a son of Queens who rode his rhetorical gifts to three terms as New York governor and tantalized Democrats by flirting with a run for President, died Thursday, two sources close to the family said. He was 82. Cuomo passed away six hours after his oldest son, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, was formally sworn-in to a second term in Manhattan. The elder Cuomo was too ill with a serious heart condition to attend.

Edward Hermann, perhaps best known for playing Richard Gilmore on "The Gilmore Girls"- died this morning in a hospital in New York. He was 71.

Actress Luise Rainer, who became the first winner of consecutive Oscars in the 1930s, has died at the age of 104. The German-born star was named best actress in 1936 and 1937 - a feat achieved by only five actors in Academy Awards history to date. Her achievement made her a force in the golden age of Hollywood cinema, but was also a curse, making her last major film in 1943. She settled in London and made occasional appearances on film and TV. Rainer appeared in US small screen series The Loveboat in 1984, while her last substantial film role...

Joseph Sargent, who directed The Taking of Pelham One Two Three and MacArthur for the big screen and captured three Emmys for his telefilm work, died Monday at his home in Malibu from the lung disease COPD, publicist Dick Guttman announced. He was 89 ...  In addition to the taut New York City subway hostage drama The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) starring Walter Matthau and the 1977 biopic MacArthur toplined by Gregory Peck, Sargent directed the features The Hell With Heroes (1968) starring Rod Taylor; White Lightning (1973) with Burt Reynolds; and Jaws: The Revenge (1987) ... He gained...

<p>Joe Cocker has died aged 7 after a battle with lung cancer.</p> <p>His management confirmed his passing to Britain's IITV News.</p> <p>Born John Robert Cocker in Sheffield, he achieved international success as a blues/rock singer beginning in the 1960s and recorded 40 albums.</p>

Acclaimed actress Billie Whitelaw, famous for her roles on stage and screen, has died at the age of 82. The Coventry-born star, who was made a CBE in 1991, worked in close collaboration with playwright Samuel Beckett, who described her as a perfect actress ... She was well known for her role as Mrs Baylock in horror film The Omen ...

Former heavyweight champion Ernie Terrell of Chicago survived 15 punishing rounds in a ferocious 1967 fight with Muhammad Ali. An irate Ali wreaked havoc on Mr. Terrell, who had called him Cassius Clay instead of addressing him by his then-new Muslim name. Ali danced around Mr. Terrell and repeatedly jabbed him in the match, shouting, “What’s my name?!” ... Mr. Terrell, 75, who lived for decades near 111th and Halsted, died Tuesday at Little Company of Mary Hospital of complications of Alzheimer’s disease, his wife said. He was 75 ...

Richard C. Hottelet, the last of the original "Murrow's Boys," the pioneering group of wartime journalists hired by CBS radio newsman Edward R. Murrow, has died. He was 97. CBS News spokesman Kevin Tedesco said that Hottelet died early Wednesday morning at his home in Wilton. Hottelet was a foreign correspondent for the United Press in Berlin at the start of World War II ? and even spent several months in a Nazi prison ? before joining CBS in London in 1944. He reported from many battlefronts, and went on to become CBS' correspondent for the United Nations, an assignment...

Actress, philanthropist and former Miss America Mary Ann Mobley died Tuesday morning in Beverly Hills, Calif., after a second battle with breast cancer, one of her daughters has announced in a statement to NBC News. She was 75. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, Mobley, was crowned Miss America in 1959 and became one of the few Miss Americas to launch a successful TV and movie career. She graduated from "Ole Miss" in 1958 and was the university's first Carrier Scholar and the first woman voted into the Alumni Hall of Fame. In 1962, Mobley made her successful Broadway debut in the...

Ken Weatherwax, who played the child character Pugsley on "The Addams Family" television series in the 1960s, has died. He was 59. Weatherwax died of a heart attack at his Box Canyon, California, home over the weekend, said Joey D. Vieira, his half brother. Weatherwax's body was found on Sunday.

David Ferrier, who is best known for his appearances in the early 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation as one-half of the Heavenly Bodies as "Gigolo" Jimmy Del Ray, has passed away. PWInsider.com has confirmed that Ferrier died Saturday night following what is believed to have been a heart attack. He was 52-years-old.

The father of video games, Ralph H. Baer, has passed away at age 92. He came to rest in his New Hampshire home on the night of Saturday, Dec. 6 according to Wikipedia and a Facebook post by video game historian Leonard Herman, a friend of Baer. Dubbed the "Thomas Edison of the home TV game" by Popular Electronics Magazine in 1980, Baer's Odyssey game system was the first home video game system. The patent for the idea was filed on August 10, 1970 and the system was released by Magnavox in 1972.

We at PJ Media were saddened to learn that the daughter of Victor Davis Hanson, author, educator, and PJ Media columnist, died on November 13 after a short illness. Susannah Merry Hanson was 27. In a beautiful, moving tribute to his daughter, Dr. Hanson tells us of Susannah’s marvelous gifts: Susannah, known to her family and friends as “Suzy,” was beloved by anyone who encountered her infectious laugh and her zeal for life and adventure. But she was perhaps best known for the human kindness she extended to everyone she met. She was especially drawn to the sick and elderly,...

'Ian McLagan of the Faces and Small Faces has died at the age of 69, after suffering a stroke. Ultimate Classic Rock reports that the legendary keyboard player suffered a "massive stroke" and passed away in hospital in Austin, Texas. McLagan was born in 1945 in Middlesex. He joined the Small Faces in 1965 and continued to play with the band after they changed their name to the Faces in 1969, when Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood joined. The Faces split in 1975, and McLagan began work as a session musician, playing with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne,...

Jean Beliveau, one of the greatest legends to ever play in the National Hockey League, has passed away. He was 83. Elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972, Beliveau scored 507 goals and 712 assists in 1,125 games over parts of 20 seasons, all as a member of the Montreal Canadiens. Beliveau was the first player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as Stanley Cup playoffs MVP, winning the award in the Canadiens’ 1965 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks. In the end, Beliveau won the Stanley Cup 10 times with the Canadiens. Along with being the captain of...

Frank Yablans, the president of Paramount Pictures during the fertile early ’70s era that produced films including “The Godfather” and “Chinatown,” died of natural causes Thursday at his home in Los Angeles, according to his son, ICM Partners agent Eddy Yablans. He was 79. Renowned for a hearty sense of humor and temperamental outbursts, Yablans was later COO of MGM/United Artists and co-wrote the screenplay for “Mommie Dearest,” which he also produced.