Departures: Notable deaths of 2008

Edie Adams, 81, Oct. 15—blonde beauty who won a Tony Award for bringing Daisy Mae to life on Broadway.

Philip Agee, 72, Jan. 7—unprosecuted former CIA officer who turned against the intelligence agency and exposed many undercover agents overseas, prompting Congress in 1982 to pass a law against exposing covert U.S. operatives.

Alexy II, 79, Dec. 2—Patriarch (head archbishop) since 1990 of the Russian Orthodox Church, which claims more than 100 million adherents as the world's largest Orthodox body.

Sandy Allen, 53, Aug. 13—Guinness-recognized world's tallest female (from Indiana) at 7 feet, 7 inches.

Eddy Arnold, 89, May 8—country singer who recorded 100 albums, sold more than 85 million recordings, and had more Top 10 hits (92—including the No. 1 "Make the World Go Away") and consecutive Top 10 hits (67) than anyone in country music history.

"Steady Eddie" Brinkman, 66, Sept. 30—record-setting Gold Glove-winning shortstop and an American League All-Star with a 15-year career in the majors.

William F. Buckley Jr., 82, Feb. 27— prolific author, founder of National Review magazine in 1955, host of the political affairs show Firing Line 1966-1999, syndicated newspaper columnist, and witty, sharp-tongued commentator and lecturer who made conservatism intellectually respectable.

George Carlin, 71, June 22—foul-mouthed and prolific comedian whose "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television" routine led to a landmark Supreme Court indecency ruling in 1978 that upheld the government's authority to sanction stations for broadcasting offensive language during hours when children might be listening.

Cyd Charisse, 86, June 17—graceful dancer and actress who starred in MGM musicals of the 1950s, notably with Fred Astaire (Silk Stockings) and Gene Kelly (Brigadoon).

Arthur C. Clarke, 90, March 19— British science fiction writer and futurist best known for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Al Copeland, 64, March 23—founder of the Popeyes Famous Fried Chicken chain, beginning with a single struggling shop in 1971.

Michael Crichton, 66, Nov. 4—mega-selling author who made scientific research terrifying and irresistible in such thrillers as Jurassic Park, Timeline, and The Andromeda Strain, many of them made into major Hollywood movies.

Margaret Truman Daniel, 83,  Jan. 29—singer, novelist, and only child of President Harry S. Truman.

Michael E. DeBakey, 99, July 11—world-famous cardiovascular surgeon (60,000 heart operations) from Baylor who pioneered such now-common procedures as bypass surgery and invented many devices to help heart patients.

Jacob Daniel "Jake" DeShazer, 95, March 22—bombardier on the historic one-way B-25 Doolittle Raid on Japan during World War II who became a Christian in a Japanese POW camp by reading a Bible lent to him by a guard, and after the war returned to Japan in 1948 as a missionary and helped to establish 23 churches.

Bo Diddley, 79, June 2—pioneer rock 'n' roll guitarist and songwriter ("Shave and a Haircut," "Who Do You Love?").

George Docherty, 97, Nov. 27— Presbyterian pastor whose sermon at New York Avenue Presbyter-ian Church in Washington in 1954, with President Dwight Eisenhower sitting in the pew, spurred the administration and Congress to insert "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Avery Dulles, 90, Dec. 12—conservative Catholic theologian from Fordham and the first U.S. Jesuit to be named a cardinal in 2001.

Sister Emmanuelle, 99, Oct. 20—Belgium-born Catholic nun who spent years among scavengers in Cairo's slums, helping to create a network of clinics, schools, and gardens.

Louis H. Evans Jr., 82, Oct. 29—influential evangelical pastor of National Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., 1973-1991, who counted President and Mrs. Ronald Reagan among his congregants.

Mel Ferrer, 90, June 2—actor, director, and producer who starred as a crippled puppeteer in Lili (1952) and lead man in War and Peace and The Sun Also Rises, and appeared on TV's Falcon Crest 1981-84.

Bobby Fischer, 64, Jan. 17—one of the world's greatest chess players and the only American ever to win the official World Chess Championship (1972).

Moses Judah Folkman, 74, Jan. 14—pioneer medical researcher in Boston whose work to cut off cancer from its blood supply cured the disease in mice, gave humans hope for a cure, and has led to many new cancer drugs.

Steve Fossett, 63, legally declared dead Feb. 15—millionaire adventurer who set many air, sea, and land records, including the first solo circumnavigation of the world in a hot-air balloon (2002) and first solo flight around the world without stopping to refuel (2005); he apparently perished following a long-unfound private plane crash Sept. 3, 2007.

Eugene Freedman, 82, Feb. 19—merchant of gifts and collectibles who created the Precious Moments figurines.

William Gibson, 94, Nov. 16—playwright whose The Miracle Worker has thrilled audiences for nearly a half--century with the true story of Helen Keller.

Dody Goodman, 93, June 22—comedian known for her appearances on Jack Paar's late-night TV talk show and as the mother on the soap-opera parody Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.

Robert W. Greene, 78, April 10—veteran Newsday investigative journalist who led reporters from across the country in an effort to uncover corruption in Arizona following the murder of a reporter in Phoenix, and who helped to organize the Investigative Reporters and Editors group.

Isaac Hayes, 66, Aug. 10—singer-songwriter and actor whose work on 1971's Shaft launched blaxploitation films and won an Oscar.

William Brevard Hand, 84, Sept. 6—senior U.S. district judge known for his ruling in 1982 in support of school prayer in Alabama's public schools, a decision overturned on appeal.

Lynne Harvey, 92, May 3—wife and key collaborator of broadcaster Paul Harvey; she produced shows and developed his signature feature, "The Rest of the Story."

Jesse Helms, 86, July 4—stalwart champion of the conservative movement from North Carolina who spent three sometimes contentious decades (1972-2002) in the U.S. Senate.

Charlton Heston, 83, April 5—actor whose memorable roles included Moses in The Ten Commandments (1956), Michelangelo in The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965), and his Academy Award-winning title role in Ben-Hur (1959). An advocate of political conservatism, he also served as president of the National Rifle Association 1998-2003.

(Sir) Edmund Hillary, 88, Jan. 11—New Zealand mountaineer and explorer who with Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay in 1953 became the first to scale the world's tallest peak, the 29,035-foot summit of Mount Everest.

Gordon B. Hinckley, 97, Jan. 27—president/prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who led the Mormons in an era of expansion (1995-2007), increasing membership from 9 million to 13 million.

Albert Hofman, 102, April 29—Swiss chemist who discovered the mind-altering drug lysergic acid diethylamide-25 (LSD) in 1938, while studying the medicinal effects of a fungus found on wheat. It was used experimentally in psychiatry, but horror stories led the U.S. to ban it in 1966.

Hamilton Jordan, 63, May 20—political strategist and President Jimmy Carter's chief of staff 1979-1980.

Carl N. Karcher, 90, Jan. 11—founder in 1956 of the Carl's Jr. fast-food chain now with 1,000 stores in Western states.

Ted Key, 95, May 3—cartoonist best known for his comic strip "Hazel," about a bossy but lovable maid, and for the genius dog Mr. Peabody that he created for TV's animated The Bullwinkle Show.

Richard Knerr, 82, Jan. 18—co-founder of Wham-O, the company that invented the Hula Hoop and the Frisbee.

Harvey Korman, 81, May 29—actor best known for comedic roles on TV's The Carol Burnett Show and in the hit movies Blazing Saddles (1974) and High Anxiety (1977).

Tom Lantos, 80, Feb. 11—longtime congressman, D-Calif., and the only Holocaust survivor to serve in Congress.

Joshua Lederberg, 82, Feb. 2—medical scientist who won a Nobel Prize for discovering that bacteria can mate and exchange genes, leading to the knowledge of how bacteria become resistant to antibiotics.

Heath Ledger, 28, Jan. 22—Australian actor who appeared in Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight.

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, 91, Feb. 5—Indian spiritual leader who introduced Transcendental Meditation to the West and rose to greater fame after the Beatles visited his ashram in 1968.

Marcial Maciel, 87, March 26—conservative Mexican priest who founded the far-flung Legionaries of Christ religious order but became the most prominent Catholic official to be disciplined by the Vatican after former Legion seminarians in 1997 accused him of sexual abuse.

Stephen Marlowe, 79, Feb. 22—fiction writer who created the Chester Drum private detective series in 1955.

Dick Martin, 86, May 24—comedian best known as co-host of the hit comedy TV show Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In (1968-73).

Jim McKay, 86, June 7—globe-spanning sportscaster from ABC's Wide World of Sports thrust into anchoring the network's coverage of the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre.

Victor A. McKusick, 86, July 22—geneticist and key architect of the Human Genome Project, and winner of the National Medal of Science in 2001.

John McWethy, 61, Feb. 6—chief national security correspondent for ABC News who escaped—and covered—the 9/11 terrorist attack on the Pentagon.

W.D. Mohammed, 74, Sept. 9—leader of the black supremacist Nation of Islam who redirected thousands of its followers into mainstream Islam.

Barry Morse, 89, Feb. 2—actor who portrayed detective Philip Gerard in the 1960s TV series The Fugitive.

Imad Mugniyah, 45, Feb. 12—Hezbollah terrorist and leader of the Islamic Jihad Organization who was on America's Most Wanted list.

Pete Newell, 93, Nov. 17—Hall of Fame basketball coaching legend who won an NCAA championship (University of California) and Olympic gold medal in 1960.

Paul Newman, 83, Sept. 26—actor best known as the blue-eyed star of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid who helped found food company Newman's Own, donating all proceeds to charity.

Larry Norman, 60, Feb. 24—pioneer of Christian rock at the advent of the Jesus movement awakening in the late 1960s (first solo album: Upon This Rock).

Yuri Ivanovich Nosenko, 81, Aug. 23—former KGB spy who became the CIA's "most valuable and economical defector" during the Cold War.

Ike Pappas, 75, Aug. 31—CBS newsman reporting live as Jack Ruby shot presidential assassin Lee Harvey Oswald.

Edna Parker, 115, Nov. 26—Indiana woman who became the Guinness-recognized world's oldest person in August 2007.

Randy Pausch, 47, July 25—Carnegie Mellon professor diagnosed with cancer who gave a "Last Lecture" that became an internet sensation and best-selling book.

House Peters Jr., 92, Oct. 1—actor best known as the original Mr. Clean in Procter & Gamble's commercials.

Ruth Stafford Peale, 101, Feb. 6—co-founder with her late husband, Norman Vincent Peale, of the global inspirational organization Guideposts in 1945.

Suzanne Pleshette, 70, Jan. 17—beautiful, husky-voiced television, film, and theater actress best known for her TV role as Emily Hartley on The Bob Newhart Show (1972-1978).

Sydney Pollack, 73, May 26—actor, producer and Oscar-winning director of star-laden films The Way We Were, Tootsie, and Out of Africa.

George Pollard, 88, April 17—portrait painter of leaders like Harry Truman, John Kennedy, and Pope John Paul II.

Dith Pran, 65, March 30—Cambodia-born photojournalist whose survival from genocide by that country's murderous Khmer Rouge revolutionaries in 1979 became the subject of the award-winning film The Killing Fields.

Paulos Faraj Rahho, 65, March 13 (body found)—Iraqi Archbishop of Mosul and leader of the Chaldean Church, kidnapped by gunmen and presumed slain.

Joyce "Dottie" Rambo, 74, May 11—gospel singer and prolific songwriter whose 2,500-plus songs included the 1982 Gospel Music Association Song of the Year, "We Shall Behold Him."

Irvine Robbins, 90, May 5—co-founder of Baskin-Robbins, who brought 31 flavors of ice cream (and hundreds of custom concoctions) to corner stores throughout America.

Preacher Roe, 92, Nov. 9—revered pitcher from the Ozarks and four-time NL All-Star.

Hal Roth, 81, Oct. 25—avid sailor and author of 12 books who circumnavigated the globe three times by small boat.

Tim Russert, 59, June 13—widely respected NBC television journalist who moderated the political affairs show Meet the Press (1991-2008) and was the network's Washington Bureau Chief.

Yves Saint-Laurent, 71, June 1—French designer who headed the House of Dior at age 21, and revolutionized women's fashion.

Roy Scheider, 75, Feb. 10—actor best known as the police chief in the 1975 blockbuster film Jaws.

Pramod Karan Sethi, 80, Jan. 6—surgeon from India who invented a low-cost $30 prosthesis known as the Jaipur foot, allowing millions of below-the-knee amputees in developing countries to live normal lives.

Dan Shomron, 70, Feb. 5—former Israeli military chief and the paratrooper who commanded the famed 1976 hostage rescue at Entebbe airport in Uganda.

Tony Snow, 53, July 12—conservative writer, commentator, and first host of the Fox News Sunday TV news program (1996-2003) who became White House press secretary in 2006.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn, 89, Aug. 3—Nobel Prize-winning author whose books chronicled the horrors of the Soviet gulag system, helped erase sympathy for the Soviet Union among leftist intellectuals, and inspired millions to stand strong in the face of repression; sheltered in America before returning to Russia, he also criticized Western culture for what he considered its weakness and decadence.

Morgan Sparks, 91, May 3—scientist with Bell and Sandia laboratories credited with inventing the first practical transistor, a semiconductor device that led to such products as personal computers, cell phones, and DVD players.

Jo Stafford, 90, July 16—honey-voiced band singer ("I'll Be Seeing You") who starred in radio and television and sold more than 25 million records of ballads and folk songs.

Levi Stubbs, 72, Oct. 17—Four Tops frontman whose dynamic and emotive voice drove such Motown classics as "Reach Out (I'll Be There)."

Suharto, 86, Jan. 27—brutal army general who became president of Indonesia (1967-1998) and presided over a period of relative stability and economic growth before being driven from office over charges of corruption and human-rights abuses.

(Sir) John Templeton, 95, July 8—investments manager and Princeton Seminary trustee for 42 years who dedicated much of his fortune to promoting religion and reconciling it with science; his annual $1.4 million Templeton Prize is given to honor advancement in knowledge of spiritual matters.

Richard Towne "Dick" Sutcliffe, 90, May 11—Lutheran creator of the popular religious children's TV show Davey and Goliath.

Studs Terkel, 96, Oct. 31—1985 Pulitzer Prize-winning author (The Good War) who hosted the long-running Chicago-based Studs Terkel Program and was considered the father of oral history.

Tasha Tudor, 92, June 18—fantasy-driven author and illustrator of nearly 100 children's books, including the award-winning Mother Goose (1944) and 1 Is One (1956).

Gene Upshaw, 63, Aug. 20—All-Star lineman for the Oakland Raiders for 15 years who went on to win untold millions of dollars for NFL players as their union leader.

Mickey Vernon, 90, Sept. 24—two-time American League batting champion with the Washington Senators and seven-time All-Star first baseman during a 20-year career in the major leagues.

Dee Dee Warwick, 63, Oct. 18—soul singer noted for both her solo work ("Foolish Fool") and her performances with her older sister Dionne.

Richard Widmark, 93, March 24—radio and film actor best known for playing hoodlums in such films as Kiss of Death (1947) and Night in the City (1950).

Sherwood Wirt, 97, Nov. 8—Presbyterian minister, author of 42 books, writing teacher, former president of the Evangelical Press Association, and long-time editor of Decision magazine.

Here's my list, which supplements the list above (sorry if there are any duplications). It adds figures from pop culture, military, politics and the arts:

January
4 Joyce Carlson, 84, artist, designer of Disney's "It's a Small World" rides.
18 Richard Knerr, 82, co-founder of Wham-O, inventor of the frisbee and Hula Hoop.
18 Ugo Pirro, 87, Italian screenwriter (Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, The Garden of the Finzi-Contini's), for which he won two Academy Awards as Best Foreign Film.
19 Mildred Noble, 86, American writer and Native American activist.
22 Miles Lerman, 88, American creator of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
22 Claude Piron, 76, Swiss linguist and Esperanto author.
26 Zhang Hanzhi, 72, Chinese diplomat and linguist, English tutor for Mao, Nixon interpreter for 1972 visit.
27 Gordon B. Hinckley, 97, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
28 Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens, 69, Primate of the Church of Greece.

February
1 Floyd Boring, 92, Secret Service agent, helped foil Truman assassination attempt.
2 Earl Butz, 98, politically incorrect politician, Secretary of Agriculture (1971–1976).
3 Samuel Boyle, 59, New York City bureau chief of Associated Press (1981–2002).
6 John Alvin, 59, artist best known for movie posters (Star Wars, Blade Runner, E.T.).
9 Scot Halpin, 54, American one time drummer for The Who.
9 Merril Sandoval, 82, Navajo Code Talker, World War II.
11 Frank Piasecki, 88, aeronautical engineer who invented the tandem rotor placement in helicopter design.
12 David Groh, 68, actor (the husband on Rhoda).
14 William Modell, 86, chairman of Modell's Sporting Goods.
18 Alain Robbe-Grillet, 85, French writer (Last Year at Marienbad).
21 Sunny Lowry, 97, first British woman to swim the English Channel.
21 Robin Moore, 82, author (The French Connection, The Green Berets).
22 Richard Baer, 79, scriptwriter (The Munsters, Leave It to Beaver, Bewitched).
24 Floyd Matthews, 105, American oldest living submariner.

March
1 Raúl Reyes, 59, Colombian FARC second-in-command, airstrike.
3 Norman "Hurricane" Smith, 85, British singer, recording engineer (The Beatles, Pink Floyd) and record producer.
4 Gary Gygax, 69, co-creator of role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons.
4 Leonard Rosenman, 83, Academy Award-winning composer, (East of Eden, Rebel Without a Cause, Star Trek IV).
12 Howard Metzenbaum, 90, U.S. Senator from Ohio (1974, 1976–1995).
23 Neil Aspinall, 66, British road manager for The Beatles and executive of Apple Corps.
25 Herb Peterson, 89, fast food pioneer, inventor of the McDonald's Egg McMuffin.
31 Jules Dassin, 96, American Academy Award–nominated film director (The Naked City, Rififi, Never on Sunday), widower of Greek film star Melina Mercouri.

April
7 Ruth Greenglass, 84, American atomic spy for the Soviet Union, wife of David Greenglass, sister-in-law of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.
9 Abu Ubaidah al-Masri, Pakistani Al Qaeda senior operative, death from probable hepatitis confirmed on this date.
17 Danny Federici, 58, keyboardist for Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.

May
1 Deborah Jeane Palfrey, 52, escort agency proprietor, suicide by hanging.
2 Mildred Loving, 68, civil rights pioneer, challenged Virginia interracial marriage law (Loving v. Virginia).
4 Colin Murdoch, 79, New Zealand inventor of the disposable hypodermic syringe and the tranquilizer gun.
8 Eddy Arnold, 89, country music singer.
9 Nuala O'Faolain, 68, Irish journalist and author.
16 Robert Mondavi, 94, American winemaker, benefactor of the Mondavi Center, member of California Hall of Fame.
20 Zelma Henderson, 88, last surviving plaintiff in Brown v. Board of Education.
26 Jerry C. Begay, 83, Navajo code talker and World War II veteran.
26 Donald L. Pilling, 64, admiral, Vice Chief of U.S. Naval Operations (1997–2000).

June
1 Anne d'Harnoncourt, 64, (American) chief executive of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
2 Frank Tsosie Thompson, 87, Navajo code talker, World War II veteran.
3 Paul Sills, 80, theater director and comedian, co-founder of The Second City improv troupe.

July
1 Clay Felker, 82, editor and journalist (New York magazine).
12 Olive Riley, 108, Australian woman believed to be the world's oldest blogger.
13 Patricia Buckley Bozell, 81, founder of Catholic journal Triumph, sister of William F. Buckley, Jr. and mother of L. Brent Bozell III (Media Research Center founder).

August
6 Anthony Russo, 71, whistleblower (Pentagon Papers).
9 Bernie Mac, 50, comedian and actor (The Bernie Mac Show, "Oceans" movies).
11 James Hoyt, 83, U.S. soldier, member of the Buchenwald liberation team.
15 Jerry Wexler, 91, record producer (Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Led Zeppelin, Wilson Pickett, Dusty Springfield, Bob Dylan), coined the term "rhythm and blues".
15 Gladys Powers, 109, British-born Canadian last female veteran of World War I, served with the WAAC and WRAF.
17 Dave Freeman, 47, author (100 Things To Do Before You Die), of injuries from fall.
20 Stephanie Tubbs Jones, 58, member of the House of Representatives (D-Ohio) since 1999.

September
1 Don LaFontaine, 68, voice-over artist ("in a world where...").

October
1 Nick Reynolds, 75, folk musician (The Kingston Trio).
5 Mohamed Moumou, 43, Iraqi al-Qaida second-in-command, shot.
14 Robert Furman, 93, American spy during World War II, foreign intelligence chief for Manhattan Project.
19 Richard Blackwell, 86, fashion critic ("Mr. Blackwell's Ten Best- or Worst-Dressed Women").
22 Lou Dorfsman, 90, CBS television graphic designer.

November
1 Yma Sumac, 86, Peruvian soprano.
2 Madelyn Dunham, 86, maternal grandmother of Barack Obama.
10 Miriam Makeba, 76, South African "click" singer.

December
2 Odetta, 77, folk singer and human rights activist.
5 Richard Topus, 84, World War II messenger pigeon trainer and business executive.
6 Sunny von Bülow, 76, heiress, cardiopulmonary arrest.
8 Mohammad Bobi, Afghan Taliban commander, airstrike.
12 Van Johnson, 92, actor (Battleground, The Caine Mutiny, Brigadoon, Batman).
18 Conor Cruise O'Brien, 91, Irish politician, writer and academic.
18 W. Mark Felt, 95, Deputy Director of the FBI, "Deep Throat" in the Watergate scandal.
18 Paul Weyrich, 66, American conservative activist (co-founder, Heritage Foundation; coined the term "moral majority"; CEO of Free Congress Foundation, a conservative think tank).
19 Sir Bernard Crick, 79, British political theorist.

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