In Remembrance...2008

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British animator Oliver Postgate, who was the cousin of Angela Lansbury, died yesterday. He was 83.

Postgate was responsible for a string of iconic British kid shows, including The Clangers and Bagpuss.

 

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Robert Provsky, who made hundreds of appearances on stage and screen, including Mrs. Doubtfire and Hill Street Blues, died Monday of complications from a heart procedure. He was 77.

 

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Bettie Page, model and pin-up queen of the 1950s, died Thursday, December 11, 2008 in Los Angeles. She was 85 years old.

 

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Actor Van Johnson died today. He was 92.

Among Johnson's films were A Guy Named Joe, The Caine Mutiny, Brigadoon, and 30 Seconds Over Tokyo. He also performed on stage and television (The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, and Batman, among others). He was also a painter, and some of his works have sold for as much as $10,000.

 

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Robin Toner, the first female national political correspondent for The New York Times, died yesterday of colon cancer. She was 54.

 

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NFL great "Slingin'" Sammy Baugh, the last surviving member of the first batch of inductees to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and considered one of the best all-around players, died yesterday. He was 94.

 

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Majel Barret, the widow of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and a major player in the Star Trek franchise, died today of leukemia. She was 78.

Barret played nurse Christine Chapel in the original series, and Luxwanna Troi and the voice of the ship's computer in The Next Generation.

 

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Actor Sam Bottoms, brother of Timothy Bottoms, died Tuesday of a brain tumor. He was 53.

Bottoms made his debut in The Last Picture, and made numerous film and TV appearances, most notably in Apocalypse Now.

 

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British comedy actor Jack Douglas, who appeared in the Carry On series, as well as The Benny Hill Show and The Goodies, died today of pneumonia. He was 81.

 

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Mixed martial artist Justin Levens, who participated in Ultimate Fighting championships and World Extreme Cagefighting, and his wife, Sarah McLean Levens, were found shot dead, apparently a murder-suicide. He was 28.