The Death of Michael Jackson

Here's a collection of links and info about the death of Michael Jackson.

Legendary pop star Michael Jackson has died from a cardiac arrest in Los Angeles, at the age of 50. Michael is survived by three children - Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr, Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince “Blanket” Michael Jackson II.

• 'King of Pop' Michael Jackson dead at 50
• Report: Overdose of prescription drugs may have killed Michael Jackson
• News sites swamped following Michael Jackson's death
• TMZ broke the story about Michael Jackson
• Fans mourn Michael Jackson on Twitter
• In memorium: Michael Jackson dead at 50
• Michael Jackson - The Official Site
• Michael Jackson on Flickr
• Michael Jackson's life was infused with fantasy and tragedy
• I won't forget those days when Michael thrilled us all
• Top Michael Jackson Memorabilia and Souvenirs

Author Michael Crichton Has Died at 66

The US elections almost made me miss this: Michael Crichton, author of "Jurassic Park", "The Andromeda Strain", "Sphere" and many more books, has died yesterday in Los Angeles "after a courageous and private battle against cancer", according to an announcement on his Web site.

Chrichton was a brand-name author, known for his stories of disaster and systematic breakdown, such as the rampant microbe of "The Andromeda Strain" or dinosaurs running amok in "Jurassic Park," one of his many books that became major Hollywood movies. His books have sold over 150 million copies worldwide. His works were usually based on the action genre and heavily feature technology.

Crichton's works were frequently cautionary and his plots often portrayed scientific advancements going awry, commonly resulting in worst-case scenarios. A notable recurring theme in Crichton's plots is the pathological failure of complex systems and their safeguards, whether biological ("Jurassic Park"), military/organizational ("The Andromeda Strain") or cybernetic (Westworld).

In addition to his books, Crichton created the hit television show "ER".

Steven Spielberg, who worked many times with Crichton, released the following statement:

"Michael's talent out-scaled even his own dinosaurs of 'Jurassic Park'. He was the greatest at blending science with big theatrical concepts, which is what gave credibility to dinosaurs again walking the earth...There is no one in the wings that will ever take his place".

>> Books by Michael Crichton
>> Michael Crichton on Wikipedia
>> Michael Crichton's Official Site

Pink Floyd's Richard Wright has Died

Richard Wright, Pink Floyd founding member and keyboard player, died Monday at the age of 65 after battling cancer. Wright wrote significant parts of the music for classic albums such as Meddle, Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here, as well as for Pink Floyd's final studio album The Division Bell.

In the early days of Pink Floyd, Wright, along with Syd Barrett, was seen as the group's dominant musical force. The London-born musician and son of a biochemist wrote and sang several songs of his own.

Wright played with the surviving members of Pink Floyd in 2005 at Live 8. Wright had performed on every Pink Floyd tour.

■ Read more about Richard Wright's musical career



A Tribute to Richard Wright

Golden Girl Estelle Getty Dies at 84

Estelle Getty, best known for her portrayal of Sophia Petrillo on The Golden Girls, died Tuesday (July 22nd). Getty died just 3 days before her 85th birthday. Getty passed away in her home, surrounded by family.

Her first screen appearance was in 1978, in Team-Mates. She later played small parts in Tootsie and Mask. But it was her 1982 role on Broadway as Harvey Fierstein's interfering mother in the play Torch Song Trilogy, that catapulted her into the limelight and landed her the role of Sophia on The Golden Girls in 1985.

On The Golden Girls - which from 1985 until 1992 she played Sophia Petrillo, the mother of Bea Arthur's character Dorothy. She won an Emmy in 1988 for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and won a Golden Globe for the same role in 1986. Getty also won a Razzie Award for her work in 1992's Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot.

Her last role, according to IMDB, was an episode of the short-lived TV series Ladies Man, in 2000.

From the message appearing on her website: "Estelle's legacy will live on and on through the comedy and laughter she gave to us all, which will forever keep us laughing out loud.

For us here, who have known and cared for her for so many years, we've lost our dear little friend who always kept us entertained by filling our days with joyful laughter. Estelle's fans across the globe have lost the feisty little lady known as Sophia Petrillo, whose quick wit, cutting remarks, and outrageous punch lines will forever be quoted and remembered..."

Related Links:

• Estelle Getty on imdb
• Estelle Getty in Wikipedia
  
• The official site of Estelle Getty
• The Golden Girls Site
• Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot - movie page on imdb
  

The Last Message of Arthur C. Clarke

Arthur C. Clarke has Passed Away

Yet another legend has passed away from the face of the earth: Science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke died at age 90.

After a diverse career as a writer, underwater explorer, space promoter and science populariser, Clarke said he would like to be remembered primarily as a writer and wished for peace in his adopted home Sri Lanka where had lived since 1956. Clarke was mostly known for his creation "2001: A Space Odyssey".

Clarke was knighted in 1998. He wrote dozens of novels and collections of short stories and more than 30 nonfiction works during his career, and served as a television commentator during several of the Apollo moon missions.

Among his novels: Prelude to Space, The Sands of Mars, Islands in the Sky, Childhood's End, Earthlight, The Deep Range, Dolphin Island, Glide Path, 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010: Odyssey Two, The Songs of Distant Earth, 2061: Odyssey Three, The Ghost from the Grand Banks, The Hammer of God and much more.

"Its origin and purpose still a total mystery"

>> Arthur C. Clarke, 1917-2008
>> Arthur C. Clarke on Wikipedia
>> Sir Arthur C. Clarke Fan Site

"It's better to burn out than fade away"

The death of the young and talented Heath Ledger came as a big shock. Ledger, best known for his role in "Brokeback Mountain" was 28 years old. He was found in his SoHo apartment with a bottle of sleeping pills near him.

The police does not suspect foul play. The Associated Press reported that his father, Kim Ledger, called his death "tragic, untimely and accidental". It always is, isn't it?
It's always a tragedy when a life is lost. It seems like a bigger tragedy when that life has been young and successful.

Ledger, of course, isn't the first star of our generation to die young. First that came to my mind was Kurt Cobain, who was lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter for the rock band Nirvana.

On April 8, 1994, Cobain was discovered in the spare room above the garage at his Lake Washington. A shotgun was found at Cobain's side. Cobain's death certificate concluded his death was a result of a "self-inflicted shotgun wound to the head". The report estimates Cobain has died on April 5, 1994.

There was also the lovely and talented River Phoenix, who died on October 31, 1993, at the age of 23. Phoenix overdosed on heroin and cocaine. His death is considered one of show-business's most shocking and tragic - especially because no one could see it coming. Phoenix has been quoted as stating that "I don't want people to forget me". I guess he got his wish.

Another famous heroin-related death is that of Sid Vicious (John Simon Ritchie), who was an English punk rock musician, the bass player of the Sex Pistols. On February 2, 1979, during a small party that was meant to celebrate his getting out of jail on bail, he obtained some heroin and overdosed. Though he was revived, he then fell asleep and died in his sleep. New York Chief Coroner Michael Baden explained at the time, when a person has an accidental heroin overdose, and then falls asleep, their heart slows with every REM phase.

Famous guitarist Jimi Hendrix was found dead on September 18, 1970, in the basement flat of the Samarkand Hotel in London. His death was never fully explained. The assumption is that he died in bed after drinking wine and taking nine Vesperax sleeping pills, then asphyxiating on his own vomit. Hendrix was 27 years old at his time of death.

Legendary film star James Dean has also found his death in a very early stage. Dean has died on September 30, 1955, in a head-on car crash. He was 24 years old. Dean was driving a Porsche 550 when he had the accident. Since his death, his car became infamous for being the vehicle that killed not only him, but several others in the years following his death. In view of this, many have come to believe that the actor's vehicle and all of its parts were cursed.

The murder of the famous rapper Notorious B.I.G. (Christopher George Latore Wallace) took place about 11 years ago. On March 9, 1997, Biggie was killed by an unknown man in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, California. He was 24 years old. His double-disc set "Life After Death", released two weeks later, hit #1 on the U.S. album charts and was certified Diamond in the year 2000.

All died young, at the peak of their careers, with what seemed like many more years of glory and stardom. For them, it wasn't meant to be. Cobain wrote in his suicide note: "It's better to burn out than fade away". Whether they wanted to die or not, that's how they will remembered - beautiful, glorious, shining stars. Forever young.

Disgusting, isn't it?

The anti-whaling campaign on the net seems to attract a lot of attention, although I'm not really sure what good an online petition will do. The Japanese have proves that they don't really care what the world says, so I don't think some virtual signatures are going to persuade them to stop.

In the mean time, I bumped into this powerful and somewhat disturbing ad, that tries to fight the slaughter of whales:

Also, there might be another tiny hope, coming from the Aussies: Australia's new government may send a navy ship to Antarctica to track Japan's whaling fleet and gather evidence to mount a legal challenge.

According to Reuters, "Australia is a strong opponent of whaling and Rudd's government is mulling a legal case against Japan in the International Court of Justice in The Hague".

Still, we are not talking about STOPPING the Japanese. Seems like Australia only plans to watch, gather info and maybe sue later. I don't expect the Australian Navy to ram into the Japanese murder-boats, but some sort of interruption would be appreciated. I guess all the action will be created by the Sea Shepherd and their friends. All the luck, guys. May Neptune give you strength.

More on the subject:

>> Is Japan Whaling for Spite?
>> Japan Sets Out to Murder 1,000 Whales