Carl Weathersby obit

Carl Weathersby, blues guitar player, dies at 71

Carl Weathersby received early encouragement to play guitar from Albert King and later played rhythm in King’s band. He was inducted into the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame in 2017.

 

He was not on the list.

Carl Weathersby, a guitarist who came up in the Chicago blues scene and was a protege of guitar great Albert King, died Friday. He was 71.

Mr. Weathersby was born in Jackson, Miss., on Feb. 24, 1953, but he moved to East Chicago, Indiana, when he was 8. He started playing guitar a few years later, helped along by some of his father’s musician friends who would stop by the house.

One of those friends was King, who heard Mr. Weathersby playing King’s rendition of “Crosscut Saw” one night while he was visiting. King picked up the guitar and showed Mr. Weathersby how he played it and offered some encouragement.

Mr. Weathersby went on to serve in the military in Vietnam, later becoming a steelworker and prison guard. In 1979, he began playing rhythm guitar for King. Three years later, he joined Billy Branch’s Sons of Blues band, where he spent 15 years. After he left the band, Mr. Weathersby occasionally returned as a guest star.

King, who along with B.B. King and Freddie King were known as the “three kings of the blues,” died in 1992. Branch, one of the great blues harmonica players, has been a fixture on the Chicago blues scene since the 1970s.

“Over the years I watched as Carl’s guitar and singing skills continued to develop and mature, ultimately making him one of the most skilled and dynamic bluesmen of our times,” Branch wrote in a Facebook post. “His vocals were heartfelt and passionate. His guitar skills were unmatched. He had come into his own.”

Mr. Weathersby eventually started releasing music under his own name, putting out nine albums between 1996 and 2019. He was inducted into the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame in October 2017.

In total, Mr. Weathersby, who was regularly in the lineup of the Chicago Blues Festival, played on more than 33 albums, a mixture of live and studio recordings between his solo career and with groups such as the Sons of Blues and the Chicago-based blues band Mississippi Heat.

His final release, 2019’s “Live at Rosa’s Lounge,” was recorded at the Logan Square venue, where he returned for another performance in 2021. A few years prior, he had a recurring stint at Kingston Mines in Lincoln Park.

In his later years, Mr. Weathersby struggled with the effects of diabetes, and a GoFundMe for his medical costs raised more than $16,000 in 2019.

Kevin Sullivan obit

Kevin Sullivan dead at 74

 He was not on the list.

News broke on Friday morning that “The Taskmaster” Kevin Sullivan had died. He was 74.

Long-time Florida wrestling personality Barry Rose confirmed the death of his long-time friend: “With the heaviest of hearts, we are devastated to have to report the passing of the legendary Kevin Sullivan. May he RIP and his family, friends and fans find comfort in how much he was loved.”

In early July, the family had revealed that Sullivan had been in grave danger:

The GoFundMe request for financial aid, set up by his daughter, Nicole, noted that on May 12, 2024, while at a Florida autograph signing, that “Kevin suffered a devastating accident. He underwent emergency surgery that saved his leg and life but faced severe complications, including sepsis and encephalitis. This unforeseen catastrophe has placed an immense financial burden on his family, as Kevin has been in and out of consciousness in the ICU, far from home. Despite these challenges, Kevin has shown incredible resilience. Months later, he is still fighting to regain his independence.”

Friends, colleagues and fans rallied around Sullivan and the campaign quickly reached far beyond it’s goal.

Over the last few days, a number of “Thank you Kevin” and “Get well Kevin” videos and posts were created for Sullivan to see.

Ric Flair wrote on X: “Kevin Sullivan Has Been One Of My Closest Friends In The Business. His Knowledge Of All Sports, Not Just Wrestling, Is Unparalleled. He Is One Of The Most Brilliant Minds In The History Of Our Business. Kevin Led WCW To A Year And A Half Victory Over WWE, And Dealt With So Many Personalities Like Hall, Nash, The NWO, Eric Bischoff, The Nature Boy Ric Flair, And Hulk Hogan! Stay Strong Kevin!!!! We Need You”

Kevin Francis Sullivan was born on October 26, 1949, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. At age eight, he rheumatic fever. “I was in bed for a year, I didn’t walk for a year. I actually started in my basement, I found a set of weights. We lived in a four decker and I found a set of weights and that’s how I started working out.”

His wrestling school was really the television, and each Saturday, he’d take over the family’s TV in their Cambridge tenement. Soon, he wrestling around the northeast and into Quebec, having not really “officially” trained. He did spend some time in Boston learning from Ed May and Paul Del Monico — hardly big names. Sullivan proved to be a sponge, though, and soaked up knowledge wherever he went.

Heading to Florida in 1972, after 13 months in Tennessee, proved to be the jumpstart his career needed, and he studied under the learning tree of promoter Eddie Graham.

“Eddie Graham used to say it takes five years to understand what you’re doing. For me, it was about five years or maybe a little earlier because I had some great teachers,” Sullivan told Alex Marvez of the Wrestling Observer. “When I first came down here, me and Mike (Graham) were partners. The other day, someone told me they remembered when me and Mike Graham won our first titles. I couldn’t even remember who we beat. I got to wrestle Bobby Shane, which was like wrestling a guy with Brian Pillman’s talent. I got to wrestle against Dory and Terry Funk. I wrestled guys who used to use me as a punching bag. There was Jack and Jerry Brisco, Danny Hodge … I was very lucky to have that opportunity.”

At only 5-foot-9, but solidly built, wrestling at around 250 pounds, Sullivan made it work against bigger opponents. Superstar Billy Graham saw that often. “He was a tremendous talent, especially for his stature. He could make people forget the difference in size, especially when wrestling [Blackjack Mulligan],” Graham (Wayne Coleman) told journalist Scott Williams in 2004. “Mulligan would have to get on his knees, and he was still bigger than Kevin, but Kevin Sullivan, he was able to carry it with guys twice his height. Very, very intense and a lot of believability, and personally, a great friend.”

He learned everywhere he went. In the WWWF of 1975-76, he was dwarfed by the bigger opponents, but size never mattered to him.

Sullivan was a master politician as well as booker.

In so many interviews, both with this website and others, he is asked to talk about other people and not himself. He had insight galore.

In his 2012 interview with SlamWrestling, he talked about former colleagues he would see at an upcoming fanfest, but little about his own life or career.

In a 2018 interview with Steven Johnson, talking about storytelling, Sullivan was able to both celebrate current wrestlers and put over the past.

“I hate to say this because the guys today are much better athletes than my generation or any generation before this. But they’re trying to write for these guys and it doesn’t work. You have to be pretty close to that character,” Sullivan told Johnson.

The greatest talkers were from his generation, said Sullivan, naming Superstar Billy Graham, Blackjack Mulligan, Dusty Rhodes, Ernie Ladd, King Curtis Iaukea. The comparisons hurt modern day storytelling. “When you watched these guys, the pressure was on you to perform and come through with a good interview. After a while you knew if the interview worked, you could draw people in. Some of those guys weren’t the greatest performers but the way they talked was so believable,” he said, launching into a King Curtis. On live TV, the television show was running a minute short, so Iaukea was tapped, and he just went out and counted from 60 to 0.

“You have to be willing to put your ego aside to tell a story. I always say about babyfaces to be a knight in shining armor, you have to slay a dragon not a salamander, meaning you have to really put the heel over and fight from the bottom much like Ricky Morton does,” added Sullivan.

In 1984, he’d portray a cult-like leader in Championship Wrestling from Florida, gaining wide fame through the gimmick. He was “The Prince of Darkness” Kevin Sullivan.”

All the devil stuff, it was very unique,” Graham told Williams. “Kevin made me laugh a lot, and he was crazy, but he performed that bit to a ‘T.’ Kevin was funny guy, a great guy. He was someone I had known for long time, and he was very funny. But he was able to really convince the people. They had that fear, that he was legit.” Though the devil or Satan were not mentioned in the Florida interviews, it was inevitable to invoke the whole “You can’t kill the Devil” aspect in 1992 when news erroneously broke of Sullivan’s death. John Arezzi wrote about it in his Pro Wrestling Spotlight Newsletter in March 1992. Arezzi wrote:

Calls were placed to George Napolitano, other wrestlers, promoters, and reporters. No one knew anything. Finally at 5 pm I spoke to Kip Frey, who informed me that he spoke to Kevin earlier in the day. Whewww! From relief, my feelings turned to anger. Who started this rumor, and why? That night I must have received twenty-five calls, all telling me Kevin Sullivan was dead. And, there must have been a dozen different causes of his death. From a drowning, to being shot, to the drug O.D. The stories were getting more fantastic as they were coming in. I was really angry about all this, but getting more curious about how Kevin and Nancy (“Woman”) Sullivan were reacting. The following day I got Nancy on the phone. She told me that it was a madhouse at their place for the past two days. They literally got over 100 calls about Kevin’s “death.” I asked her to have Kevin call me. Later that evening my phone rang. “This is a dead man calling.” I picked up to speak to my dearly departed friend, Kevin.

Then Arezzi got Sullivan on the phone:

All this started on Friday (February 14th). I got a call from Janie at the WCW offices. She said she heard that I died in a car wreck. I assured her I was OK and that was the end of it. On Sunday Nancy and I went to get Hump (Oliver Humperdink) to go to the Ed Gantner Memorial Service. In the car Hump told me he got a call from a girl he knows in Charlotte, North Carolina who said I was shot in a bar. This gets even stranger. We stayed away from home on Sunday. Monday we got home around 5:30 pm and in our parking lot is the Chief of Police, who is a good friend of mine. He was ready to knock down my door because he heard I was dead inside the apartment. We got in the house and there were a hundred calls on the machine. Here I was at a memorial service for a friend and everyone is saying I’m dead. It’s nuts! The craziest story we heard was that Hump came to my house with two guys. There was a drug deal that went bad and I had a gun fight. I was shooting everyone, I was killed and Hump was kidnapped. What the hell could you get for ransom for Humperdink, two pairs of sweatsocks? Then we heard Nancy was locked up for conspiracy. It was mad. At least I know I got a lot of friends.

Apparently the rumor started on the Comp-U-Serve computer service, which has a wrestling insider information program. The mix-up probably resulted with confusion over Buzz Sawyer’s death, and some idiot not knowing his facts. The story is funny, in a way now. But when you hear about the death of a friend, its scary. Nancy summed it up when she said, “Remember one thing John, you can’t kill the devil.

For all Sullivan’s championships in wrestling — whether in the territories like Florida, Central States, the Northeast, Georgia, the Gulf Coast, Tennessee, or on a national scale, like in World Championship Wrestling — his influence on the business may have been greater behind the scenes.

 For those who wanted to learn and listen, Sullivan was there.

At the Cauliflower Alley Club in 2015, Almighty Sheik Joe Cabibbo thanked Sullivan for talking to him for hours about booking. “You teach me so much every time you talk to me on the phone.”

“He was such a genuine human being and we became friends the second we met. I thought the world of him,” added Barry Rose.

Family-wise, Sullivan had four children from three marriages.

In his first marriage, there were two children Shannon and Ben.

His most-known union was to Nancy Toffoloni, who was a fitness model in and around Florida and began appearing as a valet. She later left Sullivan for Chris Benoit, in a case of Sullivan, as booker, essentially booking his own divorce, and she was assigned to spend time around Benoit. When Benoit killed Nancy and their son, Daniel, in 2007, Sullivan was wrongly implicated in the double murder suicide by overzealous fans.

His third marriage, to Linda Taylor, a former bodybuilder, resulted in two daughters, Nicole and Bianca. The Sullivans ran the Froggy’s Fitness gym in the Upper Florida Keys for a time.

Sullivan has been celebrated by his peers plenty, including a Men’s Wrestling Award from the Cauliflower Alley Club in 2022, the NWA Hall of Fame (2014), the New England Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame (2013), and more.

Funeral arrangements are not known at this time.

Susan Wojcicki obit

Susan Wojcicki, Former YouTube CEO, Dies at 56

She was also one of the first people to join Google after it was founded in 1998. 

She was not on the list.

Susan Wojcicki, the former CEO of YouTube and one of the first employees at Google after it was founded in 1998, has died. She was 56.

Her husband, Dennis Troper, announced on Facebook Friday night that Wojcicki died after a two-year battle with non-small cell lung cancer. “It is with profound sadness that I share the news of Susan Wojcicki passing,” he wrote. “My beloved wife of 26 years and mother to our five children left us today after 2 years of living with non-small cell lung cancer.”

Troper continued in his post, “Susan was not just my best friend and partner in life, but a brilliant mind, a loving mother, and a dear friend to many. Her impact on our family and the world was immeasurable. We are heartbroken, but grateful for the time we had with her. Please keep our family in your thoughts as we navigate this difficult time.”

Wojcicki revealed in February 2023 that she was stepping down from her role at YouTube after nine years leading the Google-owned company. At the time, she shared in a note to staff that she was leaving to “start a new chapter focused on my family, health, and personal projects I’m passionate about.”

The former executive was the 16th person to be hired at Google, initially joining the company in 1999 — after it was co-founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin the year prior — to build out its ad business and analytics products. She then transitioned into the YouTube CEO role after Google acquired the video platform in 2014. Under Wojcicki’s leadership, YouTube grew into one of the leading social and video platforms for digital creators, allowing them to monetize their content through the company’s YouTube Partner Program. YouTube also launched its own short-form video offering, Shorts, to compete with TikTok.

Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, paid tribute to Wojcicki on X (formerly Twitter), writing, “Unbelievably saddened by the loss of my dear friend @SusanWojcicki after two years of living with cancer. She is as core to the history of Google as anyone, and it’s hard to imagine the world without her. She was an incredible person, leader and friend who had a tremendous impact on the world and I’m one of countless Googlers who is better for knowing her. We will miss her dearly. Our thoughts with her family. RIP Susan.”

Born on July 5, 1968, in Santa Clara, California, Wojcicki was raised by her father, Stanley Wojcicki (died in May 2023), who worked as a physics professor at Stanford University, and her mother, Esther Wojcicki, who was a teacher and journalist.

She later spent the majority of the ’90s continuing her education, studying history and literature at Harvard University (A.B., 1990), economics at the University of California, Santa Cruz (M.S., 1993) and business at the University of California, Los Angeles (M.B.A., 1998).

Before joining the team at Google, she had previously been employed by Intel Corporation, Bain & Co., and R.B. Webber & Co.

In addition to Troper and Esther, Wojcicki is survived by her five children.

James Marcus obit

Clockwork Orange Actor James Marcus Has Died 

He was not on the list.

Marcus was born as Brian T. James in Romford, Essex on 23 June 1942. He is best known for his performance as Georgie, one of the droogs in Stanley Kubrick's controversial film A Clockwork Orange (1971). Before becoming an apprentice printer, he spent the majority of his teenage life performing gigs. After studying acting courses at the 15 Drama School in London, he had several roles in plays based on the works of Shakespeare. His first appearance on TV was the BBC show Hello, Good Evening and Welcome (1968). He also landed a role in the 1969 war comedy, The Virgin Soldiers.

In 1970, Kubrick got in touch with the young actor for an audition for his upcoming project, an adaptation of Anthony Burgess' novel A Clockwork Orange. Apart from his fight scenes, Kubrick was also impressed by James's dark demeanour and this won him the role. During filming, Kubrick described James as "very professional".

His other television appearances include UFO, Softly, Softly: Taskforce, The Sweeney, Doctor Who, Z-Cars and The Professionals. He also appeared in the Robin Askwith vehicle Let's Get Laid (1977) with John Clive, another Clockwork Orange actor. He also appeared in The Naked Civil Servant (1975) with John Hurt, and McVicar (1980) with Roger Daltrey.

One of his other memorable roles is that of station officer Sidney Tate in the pilot and series 1–3 of the popular LWT Fire fighting drama London's Burning. He also directed the nihilistic Tank Malling (1989) which featured Ray Winstone.

In August 2024, acting union Equity announced that Marcus had died.

Television

Year     Title            Role            Other notes

1969    The Doctors            Postman          1 episode

1970    The Borderers            Stallholder       1 episode

1970            Manhunt         Private            1 episode

1970    Special Branch L.A.C. Higgs    1 episode

1971    UFO            SHADO Operative            1 episode

1971    Softly Softly: Task Force   Jeff            1 episode

1974    Doctor at Sea   Eddie            1 episode

1974    The Chinese Puzzle            Johnson          6 episodes

1974    Doctor Who: Invasion of the Dinosaurs            Peasant            1 episode

1975    The Sweeney            Myles            1 episode

1978    Doctor Who: Underworld            Rask            3 episodes

1980–1989            Minder            Bertie/Phil/Morrie            3 episodes

1981    The Chinese Detective            Charlie            2 episodes

1986            C.A.T.S Eyes  2nd Observer            1 episode

1986            Casualty          Bill            1 episode

1986–1990            London's Burning            Sidney Tate     22 episodes

1991            Dodgem         Tucker            3 episodes

1992–1995            Woof!            Sgt Caldwell            5 episodes

1993    You Bet!            Himself/Sidney Tate

1995            Heartbeat        Clive Loxton 1 episode

2001            Eastenders        Sid            1 episode

 

Film

Year     Title            Role            Other notes

1969    The Virgin Soldiers              Uncredited

1971    A Clockwork Orange Georgie           

1975    The Naked Civil Servant            Clerkenwell Tough       

1976    Escape from the Dark              

1978    Let's Get Laid            Rusper

1980            McVicar         Det Sgt Sewell 

1980    Never Never Land            P.C. Stubbs  

Carl Bevan obit

Drummer from 1990s rock band 60ft Dolls dies

 

He was not on the list.

Musician and artist Carl Bevan has died at the age of 51, his partner has announced on social media.

Bevan rose to prominence as the drummer of the 1990s punk rock band 60ft Dolls.

The trio supported bands Oasis and the Sex Pistols and played Glastonbury before splitting in 1998.

Bevan, originally from Glynneath in Neath Port Talbot but grew up in Newport, returned to the public eye as a landscape artist in 2018 after quitting music.

Bevan's partner, Bev, confirmed the "devastating" news on Bevan's Facebook page.

Bevan, who was inspired to take up music by his father Ray, is survived by his daughter Connie.

"I will miss you Carl, I'm so proud of you," dad Ray wrote on Facebook, calling his son a "beautiful, talented, funny genius".

"My life will never be the same without you."

Good friend and former 60ft Dolls bandmate Richard Parfitt also led the tributes to Bevan

"Carl Bevan was a brilliant drummer, a brilliant artist and a brilliant friend," the 60ft Dolls frontman said on X. "So long little brother X."

The Dolls supported fellow rockers Ash during their early years and their drummer Rick McMurray added on X: "So sorry to hear this. He was truly one of a kind."

Bevan was a teenager when the 60ft Dolls burst on to the scene in the 1990s and admitted he had a reputation as a party animal.

"There was a lot of gigs, a lot of laughter and stuff got broken and brain cells sacrificed in the name of rock'n'roll," he told the BBC in 2020.

The 60ft Dolls were part of what was labelled "Cool Cymru" in the 1990s, along with Manic Street Preachers, Super Furry Animals, Catatonia and Stereophonics.

The Dolls' 1996 record The Big 3 reached top 40 in the album chart and included chart singles Happy Shopper and Talk To Me.

They shared bills with the Foo Fighters and Iggy Pop and played festivals including Reading, T in the Park, and Glastonbury.

After what he described as a misspent youth making music and memories with two mates Parfitt and Mike Cole in the band, the musician mellowed and his most recent work was making landscape paintings.

"Painting has been amazing for my sanity, especially in lockdown," Bevan recalled in 2020.

He started painting scenes from pictures taken while on walks with his beloved cavapoo dog Billy in a makeshift studio in his house in Cardiff before moving into a permanent space at Bridge Studios in the Fairwater area of the city.

Dave Sweetapple obit

Dave Sweetapple (Witch, Sweet Apple, Eerie), RIP

 He was not on the list.

Dave Sweetapple, bassist of Witch, Eerie, and Sweet Apple, has reportedly passed away at 58 years old. Tee Pee Records owner Kenny Sehgal says that he died in his sleep, and that he got the news while at SonicBlast Festival in Portugal, who projected a photo of Sweetapple on the main stage in tribute.

Other tributes to Sweetapple have been pouring in, including from Damian Abraham of Fucked Up, who writes, “RIP DAVE SWEETAPPLE. The first time I met Dave was at the 2008 SXSW. I approached him and @jmascis at a show Fucked Up was playing and he immediately asked me is I knew about Sudden Impact and within minutes we were exchanging our favorite Schzoid songs and bonded for life. Dave’s impact on music was immense and too big to sum up with a single band, really. While he certainly played in some amazing bands, he also took photos for countless zines and records (Dag Nasty’s 85-86, to name one). He also co-ran the awesomely underrated Mag Wheel Records, in its early years; as well as doing behind the scenes work at Tee Pee Records. I can’t tell you how much it hurts to know I’ll never get to talk Maritimes punk and HC with him again. Sending love to the whole Dinosaur Jr. extended family. I love you all so much. I’m crying looking at your picture Dave and I know you would be cracking on me for it. Give O a big hug for all of us and AF’s version of Crucified still smokes the original. I love you.”

John Brannon of Negative Approach writes, “Check it out, R.I.P. Dave Sweetapple I just saw Dave 5 days ago when he took this pic of us after the N.A. TV Eye gig and he was totally fine. I’m in complete shock.”

Roadburn Fest writes, “Dave Sweetapple left an indelible mark on the lives of many, many people and will be sorely missed. Not only was he a talented musician himself but he also nurtured creativity in others, as a mentor, facilitator, and guide.”

Desertfest NYC writes, “Dave Sweetapple was an integral part in us launching Desertfest NYC back in 2019. We are shocked & devastated to hear of his sudden passing. Talented, captivating & caring beyond measure, Dave had a wicked sense of humour & touched the lives of so many ❤️💫 Our love & thoughts are with Robin, all his many friends & family plus the Witch & Tee Pee Records crew. – Sarika, Reece, Matte, Jake & the whole DF NYC team”

UPDATE: Dave’s Witch and Sweet Apple bandmate J. Mascis cancelled his Dinosaur Jr. set at Outlandia Festival due to a “death in the family.”

RIP, Dave. See more tributes below.

Chi Chi Rodriguez obit

Chi Chi Rodriguez, Hall of Fame golfer known for antics on the greens, dies at 88

 

He was not on the list.

Juan “Chi Chi” Rodriguez, a Hall of Fame golfer whose antics on the greens and inspiring life story made him among the sport’s most popular players during a long professional career, died Thursday. He was 88.

Rodriguez’s death was announced by Carmelo Javier Ríos, a senator in Rodriguez’s native Puerto Rico. He didn’t provide a cause of death.

“Chi Chi Rodriguez’s passion for charity and outreach was surpassed only by his incredible talent with a golf club in his hand,” PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement. “A vibrant, colorful personality both on and off the golf course, he will be missed dearly by the PGA Tour and those whose lives he touched in his mission to give back. The PGA Tour sends its deepest condolences to the entire Rodriguez family during this difficult time.”

He was born Juan Antonio Rodriguez, the second oldest of six children, in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, when it was blanketed with sugar cane fields and where he helped his father with the harvest as a child. The area is now a dense urban landscape, part of San Juan, the capital of the U.S. island territory.

Rodriguez said he learned to play golf by hitting tin cans with a guava tree stick and then found work as a caddie. He claimed he could shoot a 67 by age 12, according to a biography provided by the Chi Chi Rodriguez Management Group in Stow, Ohio.

No one from Puerto Rico had ever made it to the PGA Tour and Rodriguez was determined to not only get there but to beat the best. “They told me I was a hound dreaming about pork chops,” he once told Sports Illustrated.

He served in the U.S. Army from 1955-57 and joined the PGA Tour in 1960 and won eight times during his 21-year career, playing on one Ryder Cup team.

The first of his eight tour victories came in 1963, when he won the Denver Open. He followed it up with two the next year and continued through 1979 with the Tallahassee Open. He had 22 victories on the Champions Tour from 1985-2002, and had total combined career earnings of more than $7.6 million. He was inducted into the PGA World Golf Hall of Fame in 1992.

His playing record doesn’t look like Hall of Fame material. He contributions to the game with his showmanship and charity and devotion to youth development was gigantic.

He started an academy for children in the Tampa, Florida, area in the 1970s, focusing on those who were at risk. “Why do I love kids so much? Because I was never a kid myself. I was too poor to really have a childhood,” Rodriguez once said.

And his humor never left him. He had a passion for baseball, and when the U.S. Senior Open went to Canterbury outside Cleveland in 1996, he was asked why he was why he gave up the sport. “I used to steal bases,” Rodriguez said as the room erupted in laughter.

Rodriguez was perhaps best known for fairway antics that included twirling his club like a sword, sometimes referred to as his “matador routine,” or doing a celebratory dance, often with a shuffling salsa step, after making a birdie putt. He often irritated fellow players in what he insisted was meant as good-natured fun. He was hospitalized in October 1998 after experiencing chest pains and reluctantly agreed to see a doctor, who told him he was having a heart attack.

“It scared me for the first time,” Rodriguez recalled in a 1999 interview with The Associated Press. “Jim Anderson (his pilot) drove me to the hospital and a team of doctors were waiting to operate. If I had waited another 10 minutes, the doctor said I would have needed a heart transplant.

“They call it the widow-maker,” he said. “About 50% of the people who get this kind of heart attack die. So I beat the odds pretty good.”

After his recovery, he returned to competition for a couple of years but phased out his professional career and devoted more of his time to community and charity activities, such as the Chi Chi Rodriguez Youth Foundation, a charity based in Clearwater, Florida, founded in 1979.

In recent years, he spent most of his time in Puerto Rico, where he was a partner in a golf community project that struggled amid the recession and housing crisis, hosted a talk show on a local radio station for several years, and appeared at various sporting and other events.

He showed up at the 2008 Puerto Rico Open and strolled through the grounds in a black leather coat and dark sunglasses, shaking hands and posing for pictures but playing no golf. “I didn’t want to take a spot away from young men trying to make a living,” he said.

Steve Symms obit

First a fruit farmer, then Congress. Former Idaho Republican senator dies at 86

 He was not on the list.

Former Idaho U.S. Sen. Steve Symms died Friday. He was 86.

Flags flew at half-staff Friday for the former Canyon County fruit farmer who represented Idaho for two decades: four terms in the U.S. House and two in the Senate. First elected to Congress with no political experience in 1972, the Republican went on to challenge high-ranking Sen. Frank Church in the 1980 election, toppling him in one of the most contested races in Idaho history and closing a door on Democratic Idaho lawmakers in the Senate that has not been reopened to this day.

At early campaign rallies, Symms would say that “we need to take a bite out of government” before chomping down on an apple from his family’s farm, Phil Reberger, who ran his Senate campaigns and served as his chief of staff in the Senate, told the Idaho Statesman by phone.

“He could uniquely identify with the average voter,” Reberger said.

Symms served in the Senate during Ronald Reagan’s presidency and channeled the conservative energy of the era and the Sagebrush Rebellion, a movement that pushed back against federal control of public lands in the West. The 40th president visited Boise for a Symms campaign rally in 1986, when Democratic Gov. John V. Evans challenged the senator for his seat in a competitive race.

While on Capitol Hill, Symms, a former Marine, often supported military spending and decreased regulation.

Former Idaho U.S. Sen. Steve Symms died Friday. He was 86.

Flags flew at half-staff Friday for the former Canyon County fruit farmer who represented Idaho for two decades: four terms in the U.S. House and two in the Senate. First elected to Congress with no political experience in 1972, the Republican went on to challenge high-ranking Sen. Frank Church in the 1980 election, toppling him in one of the most contested races in Idaho history and closing a door on Democratic Idaho lawmakers in the Senate that has not been reopened to this day.

At early campaign rallies, Symms would say that “we need to take a bite out of government” before chomping down on an apple from his family’s farm, Phil Reberger, who ran his Senate campaigns and served as his chief of staff in the Senate, told the Idaho Statesman by phone.

“He could uniquely identify with the average voter,” Reberger said.

Symms served in the Senate during Ronald Reagan’s presidency and channeled the conservative energy of the era and the Sagebrush Rebellion, a movement that pushed back against federal control of public lands in the West. The 40th president visited Boise for a Symms campaign rally in 1986, when Democratic Gov. John V. Evans challenged the senator for his seat in a competitive race.

While on Capitol Hill, Symms, a former Marine, often supported military spending and decreased regulation.

In 1988, Symms made headlines for claiming that Democratic presidential candidate Michael Dukakis’ wife, Kitty, had burned an American flag during an anti-war demonstration two decades earlier. He later said he had no evidence to make the claim, according to previous Statesman reporting.

Steve Symms was ‘a true patriot’

Born in Nampa, Symms grew up on a fruit farm, graduated from Caldwell High School and attended the University of Idaho. He spent three years in the Marine Corps and ran for Congress in 1972.

Eight years later, the former farmer set his sights on a seat in the Senate.

A conservative Republican, Symms ran far to the right of Church, the powerful head of the Foreign Relations Committee who had spent nearly a quarter century in Washington. He advocated for a national abortion ban and opposed gun control, consumer protection and labor unions. He also fought against limits on exploitation of public lands, a notable contrast with Church, who pushed to create more wilderness areas in rural Idaho.

Symms was one of six senators to vote against the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.

Sen. Jim Risch said in a statement that Symms’ “commitment to Idaho and conservative principles has stood as an inspiration for our state leaders.”

After two Senate terms, he chose not to run again in 1992 and retired. He became a lobbyist and lived in northern Virginia with his second wife, Loretta, who died last year.

Republican Gov. Brad Little called Symms a “patriot” in a Friday statement, and ordered flags in the state lowered to half-mast.

“Sen. Steve Symms was a true patriot — a military veteran and dedicated public servant whose roots in agriculture helped informed his decisions back in D.C. representing Idaho’s interests,” Little said. “Symms routinely pushed back on government overreach, stood up for the working people of Idaho, and defended the freedoms we hold dear as Americans.”

Mitzi McCall obit

Mitzi McCall, Comic Game Show Cut-Up Who Followed the Beatles on TV, Dies at 93

 She was not on the list.

Mitzi McCall, the eternally bubbly, diminutive comedian who, with her husband and partner Charlie Brill, became a staple of game shows and talk shows — and shared a spot on one of TV's most iconic evenings — has died.

Brill announced McCall's death at 93 in a heartfelt Facebook post on Friday.

"I lost my Mitzi last night. Rest in peace my one and only love...Rest in peace and laughter," he wrote.

McCall and Brill had the ultimate good news/bad news gig of following the U.S. TV debut of the Beatles on the February 9, 1964, episode of "The Ed Sullivan Show."

Though it became a night that changed music and television, for McCall & Brill, "It went lousy! It was terrible," McCall said through laughter in 2014 to CBS. The couple appeared between performances by the Fab Four, meaning they had to both follow them and open for them in the space of a few harried minutes.

"Mr. Sullivan," McCall told the outlet, "changed our act when we got to New York. When he saw what we were doing in the dress rehearsal, he was kind enough to warn us that his audience was going to be 14-year-old kids and that they probably wouldn't understand what we were trying to do."

Brill observed that Sullivan's changes to their act were not helpful, and both remembered not being able to hear each other over the audience's screams for more Beatles.

As nerve-racking as it was, McCall referred to the experience of bombing after the Beatles "an honor. We were there when the world changed."

McCall, born September 9, 1931, in Pittsburgh, spent her life in show biz. As early as 1948, she was appearing onstage, and she had her own local "Kiddie Castle" TV show shortly thereafter, at the dawn of the medium.

After heading to Hollywood, she made her national TV debut as a voice actress — a vocation she would lean into later in life — on a 1955 episode of "The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse." That same year, she shared screen time with comedy great Jerry Lewis in the feature "You're Never Too Young."

Other early film work included "Machine-Gun Kelly" (1958) and "The Cry Baby Killer" (1958). She made guest appearances on TV on everything from "The Twilight Zone" (1960) to "Maude" (1974), perhaps most famously on episodes of "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" (1968-1969).

Married and divorced early on, McCall met Brill in 1959, married him in 1960, and stayed with him until her passing, in the process becoming one of Hollywood's most successful husband-and-wife teams. They worked steadily on the road, gaining fame as reliably funny talk show guests.

The duo killed on game shows, especially "Match Game" and "Tattletales," in the '70s It was a format that allowed them to dominate with their husband-and-wife material and innuendo during a period when television was becoming less staid.

On one typical episode of "Tattletales," McCall was asked how quickly she would spend it if she were handed $10,000 in a windfall. "I wanna run amok at Saks and Gucci," she exclaimed. "One day. One day... Who knows if you're gonna be here tomorrow? Spend it!"

Later in her career, McCall joined Brill on episodes of "Silk Stalkings" (1993-1999) and worked extensively as a voice actor on such animated series as "The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show" (1971-1972), "The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang" (1980-1981), "Snorks" (1984-1985), "Paw Paws" (1985-1986), and even "American Dad!" (2008).

Gen Z would have seen her guesting on "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody" (2007) and "Hannah Montana" (2007).

McCall, who was the godmother of actresses Melissa and Sara Gilbert, is survived by her husband and by their daughter, Jenny Brill.

Actress

Hence the Gray

Landlord

CompletedShort

 

Adventures in Odyssey (1987)

Adventures in Odyssey

8.6

TV Series

Beaulah Kramer (voice)

2018

1 episode

 

Mia Wasikowska in Crimson Peak (2015)

Crimson Peak

6.5

Additional Voices (voice)

2015

 

Miranda Bailey, Amy Davidson, Mitzi McCall, Michael Rivkin, Zach Selwyn, Reno Wilson, Toby Meuli, Bronston Jones, Steve Turner, Andy Martinez Jr., Courtney Scheuerman, Brian Rousso, Narisa Suzuki, Nicole I. Butler, Don DiPetta, Hitoshi Masaki, and Jenna Cardia in Tales from the Toilet (2015)

Tales from the Toilet

8.1

Short

Ruth

2015

 

William Salyers and J.G. Quintel in Regular Show (2010)

Regular Show

8.5

TV Series

Librarian (voice)

2011

1 episode

 

Birds of a Feather (2011)

Birds of a Feather

7.2

Beatrice

2011

 

Birds of a Feather (2010)

Birds of a Feather

6.6

TV Movie

Beatrice

2010

 

Limbo Lounge (2010)

Limbo Lounge

8.2

Nell

2010

 

Zachary Levi and Yvonne Strahovski in Chuck (2007)

Chuck

8.2

TV Series

Blanche

2009

1 episode

 

Robin Williams in World's Greatest Dad (2009)

World's Greatest Dad

6.9

Bonnie

2009

 

Patrick Stewart, Curtis Armstrong, Dee Bradley Baker, Chris Diamantopoulos, Jeff Fischer, Scott Grimes, David Koechner, Seth MacFarlane, Kevin Michael Richardson, Wendy Schaal, Daisuke Suzuki, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Mike Barker, Mike Henry, Rachael MacFarlane, and Matt McKenna in American Dad! (2005)

American Dad!

7.4

TV Series

Old Woman #1 (voice)

2008

1 episode

 

Hard Four (2007)

Hard Four

4.1

Myrna Segal

2007

 

No More Heroes (2007)

No More Heroes

8.1

Video Game

Speed Buster (voice)

2007

 

Miley Cyrus in Hannah Montana (2006)

Hannah Montana

5.4

TV Series

Woman

2007

1 episode

 

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Spider-Man 3

6.4

Video Game

Additional Voices (voice)

2007

 

The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005)

The Suite Life of Zack & Cody

6.6

TV Series

Doreen

2007

1 episode

 

The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (2003)

The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy

7.6

TV Series

Nanny (voice)

2006

1 episode

 

Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure (2005)

Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure

8.0

Video Game

Additional Voices (voice)

2005

 

Tak 3: The Great Juju Challenge (2005)

Tak 3: The Great Juju Challenge

7.5

Video Game

Thunder Fist (voice)

2005

 

Free for All (2003)

Free for All

6.4

TV Series

Sylvia Jenkins (voice)

2003

7 episodes

 

Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits (2003)

Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits

7.6

Video Game

Geedo (voice)

2003

 

Jessica Biel, Beverley Mitchell, Barry Watson, David Gallagher, Catherine Hicks, Mackenzie Rosman, and Happy in 7th Heaven (1996)

7th Heaven

5.3

TV Series

Mrs. Tallridges

2002

2 episodes

 

John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Ray Romano, and Chris Wedge in Ice Age (2002)

Ice Age

7.5

Glyptodont (voice)

2002

 

Port Charles (1997)

Port Charles

6.8

TV Series

Maggie Murphy

2001

3 episodes

 

Jenna Elfman and Thomas Gibson in Dharma & Greg (1997)

Dharma & Greg

6.4

TV Series

Florence

2001

1 episode

 

Clifford the Big Red Dog: Reading (2000)

Clifford the Big Red Dog: Reading

Video Game

Loretta (voice)

2000

 

Clifford the Big Red Dog: Thinking Adventures (2000)

Clifford the Big Red Dog: Thinking Adventures

Video Game

Loretta (voice)

2000

 

Lacey Chabert, David Eccles, Flea, and Tom Kane in The Wild Thornberrys (1998)

The Wild Thornberrys

6.6

TV Series

Vulture (voice, as Mitzi McAll)

2000

1 episode

 

Terry Farrell, Ted Danson, Alex Désert, Shawnee Smith, and Hattie Winston in Becker (1998)

Becker

7.3

TV Series

Mrs. Gould (as Mitzi McCall-Brill)

1999

1 episode

 

Histeria! (1998)

Histeria!

7.6

TV Series

Golda Meir (voice)

1999

1 episode

 

Matthew McConaughey in Edtv (1999)

Edtv

6.1

Fig Lady

1999

 

Mitzi Kapture and Rob Estes in Silk Stalkings (1991)

Silk Stalkings

6.5

TV Series

Fran Lipschitz

Sylvia

1993–1999

17 episodes

 

Toran Caudell, Spencer Klein, Jamil Walker Smith, and Phillip Van Dyke in Hey Arnold! (1996)

Hey Arnold!

7.6

TV Series

Pearl (voice)

1998

1 episode

 

Alright Already (1997)

Alright Already

6.6

TV Series

Miriam Lerner

1997–1998

21 episodes

 

Caroline in the City (1995)

Caroline in the City

6.2

TV Series

Lois

1998

1 episode

 

Christine Cavanaugh, Charlie Adler, and David Eccles in Aaahh!!! Real Monsters (1994)

Aaahh!!! Real Monsters

7.2

TV Series

Custodian Monster (voice)

1997

1 episode

 

Charlie Adler, Dee Bradley Baker, Dan Castellaneta, and Candi Milo in Cow and Chicken (1997)

Cow and Chicken

6.5

TV Series

Receptionist (voice)

1997

1 episode

 

ABC Afterschool Specials (1972)

ABC Afterschool Specials

7.1

TV Series

Manager

1996

1 episode

 

Nancy Travis and Kevin Kilner in Almost Perfect (1995)

Almost Perfect

7.0

TV Series

Ronnie Shutterman

1996

1 episode

 

Ellen DeGeneres, Joely Fisher, and Clea Lewis in Ellen (1994)

Ellen

6.1

TV Series

Rochelle Shapiro

1996

1 episode

 

Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1990)

Captain Planet and the Planeteers

6.7

TV Series

Mame Slaughter (voice)

1995

1 episode

 

Dabney Coleman in Madman of the People (1994)

Madman of the People

6.4

TV Series

Katie

1995

1 episode

 

Shannon Tweed in Hot Line (1994)

Hot Line

6.1

TV Series

Mrs. Kornhauser

1994

1 episode

 

Quest for Glory IV: Shadows of Darkness (1994)

Quest for Glory IV: Shadows of Darkness

8.7

Video Game

Bella Markarov (voice)

1994

 

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards in Seinfeld (1989)

Seinfeld

8.9

TV Series

Donna

1994

1 episode

 

Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man (1994)

Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man

7.7

TV Series

Mistress Nina (voice)

1994

1 episode

 

Bobby's World (1990)

Bobby's World

7.2

TV Series

(voice)

1994

1 episode

 

Mother Goose and Grimm (1991)

Mother Goose and Grimm

8.2

TV Series

Mother Goose (voice)

1991–1992

10 episodes

 

Monster in My Pocket: The Big Scream (1992)

Monster in My Pocket: The Big Scream

6.3

TV Movie

(voice)

1992

 

The Opposite Sex and How to Live with Them (1992)

The Opposite Sex and How to Live with Them

4.9

Freida Crown

1992

 

Kellie Martin, Chris Burke, Patti LuPone, and Bill Smitrovich in Life Goes On (1989)

Life Goes On

7.2

TV Series

Midge

1991–1992

4 episodes

 

John Goodman, Roseanne Barr, Sara Gilbert, Michael Fishman, Alicia Goranson, and Laurie Metcalf in Roseanne (1988)

Roseanne

7.0

TV Series

Peg

1992

1 episode

 

Darkwing Duck (1991)

Darkwing Duck

7.6

TV Series

Ammonia Pine (voice)

1991

3 episodes

 

Yo Yogi! (1991)

Yo Yogi!

5.0

TV Series

Talula LaTrane (voice)

1991

8 episodes

 

Leslie Nielsen and Betty White in Chance of a Lifetime (1991)

Chance of a Lifetime

5.9

TV Movie

Bea

1991

 

Ed Gilbert and R.J. Williams in TaleSpin (1990)

TaleSpin

7.5

TV Series

Una (voice)

1991

1 episode

 

Gravedale High (1990)

Gravedale High

6.5

TV Series

Miss Burns

1990

1 episode

 

Dragnet (1989)

Dragnet

5.6

TV Series

Receptionist

1990

1 episode

 

Susan Sarandon and James Spader in White Palace (1990)

White Palace

6.5

Sophie Rosen

1990

 

Deep Blood (1989)

Deep Blood

3.3

Ben's Mather [sic]

1989

 

Paw Paws (1985)

Paw Paws

6.9

TV Series

Additional Voices (voice)

1985–1986

21 episodes

 

The Twilight Zone (1985)

The Twilight Zone

7.7

TV Series

Middle-Aged Woman (segment "Tooth and Consequences")

1986

1 episode

 

Snorks (1984)

Snorks

6.4

TV Series

Additional Voices (voice)

1984–1985

23 episodes

 

Lucky Luke (1983)

Lucky Luke

7.2

TV Series

Ma Dalton (English version, voice)

1984

1 episode

 

The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries (1984)

The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries

7.2

TV Series

Additional Voices (voice)

1984

1 episode

 

The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang (1980)

The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang

5.4

TV Series

Additional Voices

Shazalle

Elektra 6000 (voice)

1980–1981

24 episodes

 

The Ri¢hie Ri¢h/Scooby-Doo Show (1980)

The Ri¢hie Ri¢h/Scooby-Doo Show

6.3

TV Series

(voice)

1981

8 episodes

 

The Flintstone Comedy Show (1980)

The Flintstone Comedy Show

6.6

TV Series

Penny Pillar (voice)

1980

1 episode

 

Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo (1979)

Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo

6.3

TV Series

Additional Voices (voice)

1979–1983

 

Paula Abdul, Kirk Burnett, Karen Capelle, P. David Ebersole, Joanne Scott, Lisa Tucker, and Jan Russell in Junior High School (1978)

Junior High School

7.4

Short

Mrs. Dewey (as Lil Cocker)

1978

 

Meredith Baxter, Kristy McNichol, James Broderick, Gary Frank, and Sada Thompson in Family (1976)

Family

7.6

TV Series

Sally

1978

1 episode

 

Mark Hamill in Fred Flintstone and Friends (1977)

Fred Flintstone and Friends

6.7

TV Series

(voice)

1977

 

Gravity (1976)

Gravity

8.1

Short

Mother

1976

 

Bea Arthur in Maude (1972)

Maude

7.3

TV Series

Estelle Ellinger

1974

1 episode

 

Sally Field in The Girl with Something Extra (1973)

The Girl with Something Extra

6.7

TV Series

The Missus

1974

1 episode

 

The Flintstone Comedy Hour (1972)

The Flintstone Comedy Hour

6.5

TV Series

Penny (1972) (voice)

1972–1973

 

Love, American Style (1969)

Love, American Style

6.8

TV Series

Carol Harris's mother (segment "Love and the Old-Fashioned Father")

Tangerine Glick (segment "Love and the Private Eye") (voice)

1972

2 episodes

 

Honeymoon Suite

TV Series

1972

 

The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show (1971)

The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show

5.6

TV Series

Penny (voice)

1971–1972

16 episodes

 

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967)

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In

8.0

TV Series

Regular Performer

1968

4 episodes

 

87th Precinct (1961)

87th Precinct

8.2

TV Series

The Sailor's Girl

1961

1 episode

 

The Jim Backus Show (1960)

The Jim Backus Show

7.4

TV Series

Sophie

1961

1 episode

 

The Dennis O'Keefe Show (1959)

The Dennis O'Keefe Show

7.4

TV Series

Hatcheck Girl (as Mitzie McCall)

1960

1 episode

 

Rod Serling in The Twilight Zone (1959)

The Twilight Zone

9.1

TV Series

Waitress (uncredited)

1960

1 episode

 

The Cry Baby Killer (1958)

The Cry Baby Killer

5.1

Evelyn

1958

 

Charles Bronson in Machine-Gun Kelly (1958)

Machine-Gun Kelly

6.1

Harriet (uncredited)

1958

 

War of the Satellites (1958)

War of the Satellites

5.1

Mitzi

1958

 

Svengali and the Blonde

TV Movie

Clo-Clo

1955

 

You're Never Too Young (1955)

You're Never Too Young

6.5

Skeets Powell

1955

 

The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse (1953)

The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse

7.8

TV Series

Penny (voice)

1955

1 episode

 

Writer

Free for All (2003)

Free for All

6.4

TV Series

Writer (uncredited)

2003

7 episodes

 

Scott Baio, Willie Aames, Julie Cobb, April Lerman, Michael Pearlman, Jonathan Ward, and James Widdoes in Charles in Charge (1984)

Charles in Charge

6.1

TV Series

story

written by

teleplay

1987–1988

6 episodes

 

Mr. Belvedere (1985)

Mr. Belvedere

6.5

TV Series

written by

1988

1 episode

 

Paul Fusco and Mihaly 'Michu' Meszaros in ALF (1986)

ALF

7.4

TV Series

written by

1986

1 episode

 

Rocky Road (1985)

Rocky Road

7.5

TV Series

written by

1986

1 episode

 

Tiffany Brissette in Small Wonder (1985)

Small Wonder

7.0

TV Series

written by

1985

1 episode

 

It's Not Easy (1982)

It's Not Easy

5.5

TV Series

written by

1983

2 episodes

 

Valerie Bertinelli, Bonnie Franklin, Pat Harrington Jr., and Mackenzie Phillips in One Day at a Time (1975)

One Day at a Time

6.6

TV Series

written by

1978–1982

3 episodes

 

Simone Griffeth, Betty Kennedy, and Lawrence Pressman in Ladies' Man (1980)

Ladies' Man

6.8

TV Series

written by

1980–1981

3 episodes

 

Stockard Channing in The Stockard Channing Show (1980)

The Stockard Channing Show

6.8

TV Series

story

teleplay

written by

1980

2 episodes

 

Willie Aames, Betty Buckley, Grant Goodeve, Dianne Kay, Connie Needham, Lani O'Grady, Adam Rich, Susan Richardson, Dick Van Patten, and Laurie Walters in Eight Is Enough (1977)

Eight Is Enough

6.6

TV Series

story

1979

1 episode

 

13 Queens Boulevard (1979)

13 Queens Boulevard

7.7

TV Series

written by

1979

1 episode

 

Here's Edie (1963)

Here's Edie

6.5

TV Series

Writer

1964

1 episode

 

Script and Continuity Department

Scott Baio, Willie Aames, Julie Cobb, April Lerman, Michael Pearlman, Jonathan Ward, and James Widdoes in Charles in Charge (1984)

Charles in Charge

6.1

TV Series

executive script consultant

1988

2 episodes

 

It's Not Easy (1982)

It's Not Easy

5.5

TV Series

executive script consultant

1983

1 episode