RIP

[Kobi]

Jerry Nelson, the puppeteer known for playing the instructional Count von Count on Sesame Street, died Thursday. He was 78.

Besides the non-threatening vampire, Nelson, a Tulsa native who grew up in Washington, D.C., also performed Gobo Fraggle on Fraggle Rock and The Muppet Show's Sgt. Floyd Pepper of the Electric Mayhem band; "Pigs in Space" stalwart Dr. Julius Strangepork; Kermit the Frog's nephew Robin; and Gonzo's girlfriend Camilla the Chicken, among other roles, says the site.

He first trained with American puppeteer Bil Baird, who was responsible for the lively "Lonely Goatherd" marionette sequence in the 1965 movie blockbuster The Sound of Music, starring Julie Andrews.

That same year, Nelson worked with Muppet creator Jim Henson on TV's The Jimmy Dean Show, a variety program on which Kermit and the gang first became popular with American audiences.

Nelson's Sesame Street stint began in the '70s, and he continued to be the Count until his retirement in 2004.

http://www.people.com/people/article...ntent=My+Yahoo

[Kobi]

Neil Armstrong was a soft-spoken engineer who became a global hero when as a steely-nerved pilot he made "one giant leap for mankind" with a small step onto the moon. The modest man, who had people on Earth entranced and awed from almost a quarter-million miles away, but credited others for the feat.

Armstrong commanded the Apollo 11 spacecraft that landed on the moon July 20, 1969, capping the most daring of the 20th century's scientific expeditions. His first words after becoming the first person to set foot on the surface are etched in history books and the memories of those who heard them in a live broadcast.

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," Armstrong said.

In those first few moments on the moon, during the climax of a heated space race with the then-Soviet Union, Armstrong stopped in what he called "a tender moment" and left a patch to commemorate NASA astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts who had died in action.

Although he had been a Navy fighter pilot, a test pilot for NASA's forerunner and an astronaut, Armstrong never allowed himself to be caught up in the celebrity and glamour of the space program.

"I am, and ever will be, a white socks, pocket protector, nerdy engineer," he said in February 2000 in one of his rare public appearances. "And I take a substantial amount of pride in the accomplishments of my profession."

http://news.yahoo.com/neil-armstrong...--finance.html

[princessbelle]

Kobi, i can't thank you enough for keeping this thread going. I think i told you this in a rep but you are like my CNN. I don't watch the news and i get real updates here.

However, when i see you've posted something new and this thread comes up on the front page, i sorta cringe and am afraid to look and see who passed.

I want to know though. It's just so sad the older *we* get more and more peeps that had tremendous impact on our lives, or those that remind us of a time in our lives, have left us.

Such is life i suppose.

When Armstrong landed on the moon, i believe i was about 6 or 7. Such an amazing televised event. One i will never forget. The whole family gathered around the TV in utter amazement.

Thank you Neil Armstrong for changing our world, our universe and our lives.

[BullDog]

I remember watching him step out onto the moon. I watched on a small black and white tv. I was 7 I think. I wanted to be an astronaut after that.

RIP Mr. Armstrong

[princessbelle]

Originally Posted by BullDog

I remember watching him step out onto the moon. I watched on a small black and white tv. I was 7 I think. I wanted to be an astronaut after that.

RIP Mr. Armstrong

It's not too late to be an astronaut. Be the first butch in space. *be still my heart.

And if you were 7, i must have been about 4.

[girl_dee]

On this 7th anniversary of Katrina, you were euthanized in the group home where we left you to be safe in. The world is a sadder place without you. All of your *kids* miss you everyday. So many owe their lives to you!

Hurricane Isaac is reminding me of that tragic day, hopefully what happened to you will never happen to another, you deserved better.






PINO Rosemary Pino ""Mama'' tragically departed this world to meet her Heavenly Father on Monday, August 29, 2005 during Hurricane Katrina. Throughout her life, Mama was a pioneer for rights of the gay and lesbian community. In addition, she worked diligently for human rights and AIDS. With her beloved business partner and devoted friend of 56 years, Margie Normand, they owned and operated numerous gay bars including, The Grog, De Ja Vu', Pino's, The Blue Odyssey, and Club 621. Prior to the bar business, Pino worked for Hibernia Bank and Camp Leroy Johnston. Mama was heavily involved with the gay carnival organizations. A member of A.G.G.I., honorary mom for the Krewe of Polythemus and the Krewe of Armenius, she also served as a board member for the Krewe of Ishtar (an all women's gay club). Standing only five feet high, Mama's distinctive laugh and bubbly personality made her appear to be six feet tall. She volunteered for The Lighthouse for the Blind and taught blind children to swim. She loved to swim and played softball until she was forty years old. Mama fought for the underdog and often adopted gay kids whose parents had disowned them. She supported her friends and everyone who ever met her adored her and her fun loving spirit. Mama enriched other's lives and will be sadly missed by her surviving sister, Joyce Pino Cantrell; business partner, Margie Normand; close personal friends, Bonnie, Kathy, Sis, Cindy, Dee, Sue, Judy, Rusty, Mark, Keith, Linda, Beverly, and Anisha; and countless other friends. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, December 20, 2005 at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, 448 Metairie, Road, Metairie, LA. Visitation will begin at 10:00 AM at the church. Burial will follow in Metairie Cemetery. LAKE LAWN METAIRIE FUNERAL HOME is in charge of arrangements.

[Kobi]

Steve Franken's first screen role was in 1958 as "Willie" in CBS' Playhouse 90 dramatic series. He was then cast as playboy dilettante Chatsworth Osborne, Jr., on the CBS series The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.

Franken also appeared in The Lieutenant, The Rat Patrol, Bewitched, Love American Style, and Adam 12.

He also appeared in the films Follow Me Boys! , The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu, The Party, and The North Avenue Irregulars.

[chefhmboyrd]

Originally Posted by BullDog

I remember watching him step out onto the moon. I watched on a small black and white tv. I was 7 I think. I wanted to be an astronaut after that.

RIP Mr. Armstrong

I remember my dad sat me in front of the TV, I was barely 4.
He said "you will remember this day for the rest of your life. Watch history in the making"
I rememeber.......

[Kobi]

Born on Feb. 15, 1927, in Turin, Martini was ordained a priest in the Society of Jesus in 1952. After terms as rector at the Gregorian and Biblical Institute, he was named archbishop of Milan in 1979 and held the post until his retirement in 2002; within that time he was also head of the European Bishops’ Conference for six years, until 1993.

Martini frequently voiced openness to discuss divisive issues for the church, such as priestly celibacy, homosexuality and using condoms to fight HIV transmission. While not at odds with church teaching, his views nevertheless showed his progressive bent. He was an intellectual and a noted biblical scholar, yet he had a warm and personable style and seemed to connect with his flock like few high-ranking prelates.

Martini was well known and well-liked by Italians, many of whom got to know him by his frequent contributions to leading daily Corriere della Sera, which for three years ran a popular column “Letters to Cardinal Martini,” in which Martini would respond directly to questions submitted by readers.

The topics covered everything from the clerical sex abuse scandal to whether it was morally acceptable for a Catholic to be cremated (”it’s possible and allowed,” he wrote). His responses were filled with Biblical citations and references to church teachings, but were accessible as well, written as if he were chatting with his readers rather than preaching to them.

Martini also wasn’t afraid to discuss issues that, while important to many lay Catholics, are usually considered off-limits by his colleagues.

In 2006, he raised eyebrows at the Vatican when he told the Italian weekly L’Espresso that condoms could be considered a “lesser evil” in combating AIDS, particularly for a married couple. While somewhat revolutionary at the time, his views seem to have struck a chord: Four years later, Benedict himself came close to echoing Martini’s sentiment when he said a male prostitute who intends to use a condom might be taking a step toward a more responsible sexuality because he was looking out for the welfare of his partner.

In 2009, Martini insisted he was misquoted by a German publication as calling for a re-evaluation of priestly celibacy as a means to combat pedophilia among priests.

But he returned to the topic of priestly celibacy earlier this year— as well as a host of other thorny issues like artificial procreation, embryo donation and euthanasia — in his last book “Believe and Know,” a conversation with a left-leaning Italian politician and doctor who had been his same interviewer for the 2006 Espresso article.

Martini retired as Milan archbishop in 2002 and moved to Jerusalem to devote himself to prayer and study. He had long established relations with the Jewish community, writing books and articles on the relations between Christianity and Judaism.

“Without a sincere feeling for the Jewish world, and a direct experience of it, one cannot fully understand Christianity,” he wrote in the book “Christianity and Judaism: A Historical and Theological Overview.” ‘’Jesus is fully Jewish, the apostles are Jewish, and one cannot doubt their attachment to the traditions of their forefathers.”

In a statement Friday, the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi paid tribute to his fellow Jesuit, saying his style as a pastor set him apart. He quoted Martini as writing in his book “The Bishop” that a bishop can’t guide his flock with decrees and prohibitions alone.

“Instead point to the interior formation, on the love and fascination with the Sacred Scripture, present the positive reasons for what we do according to the Gospel,” Martini wrote. “You will obtain much more than with rigid calls to observe norms.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/nation...b_story_1.html

[Gráinne]

Originally Posted by chefhmboyrd

I remember my dad sat me in front of the TV, I was barely 4.
He said "you will remember this day for the rest of your life. Watch history in the making"
I rememeber.......

I remember my dad snapping pictures of the TV set as we watched. He said the same thing: "This is something you will tell your children and grandchildren".

It's amazing to me that my dad was born when aviation alone was in its infancy, and he lived to see the Moon landing and the space shuttle.

[Kobi]

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Hal David, who along with partner Burt Bacharach penned dozens of timeless songs for movies, television and a variety of recording artists in the 1960s and beyond, has died. He was 91.

Bacharach and David wrote many top 40 hits including "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head," ''Close to You" and "That's What Friends Are For."

"As a lyric writer, Hal was simple, concise and poetic -- conveying volumes of meaning in fewest possible words and always in service to the music," ASCAP's current president, the songwriter Paul Williams, said in a statement. "It is no wonder that so many of his lyrics have become part of our everyday vocabulary and his songs... the backdrop of our lives."

Many lyrics and tunes from Bacharach and David continue to resonate in pop culture, including "Do You Know the Way to San Jose" and "I Say A Little Prayer" to "What The World Needs Now Is Love." Their music was recorded by legendary singers including The Beatles, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Neil Diamond and their longtime partner Dionne Warwick.

David and Bacharach met when both worked in the Brill Building, New York's legendary Tin Pan Alley song factory where writers cranked out songs and attempted to sell them to music publishers. They scored their first big hit with "Magic Moments," a million-selling record for Perry Como.

In 1962 they began writing for a young singer named Dionne Warwick, whose versatile voice conveyed the emotion of David's lyrics and easily handled the changing patterns of Bacharach's melodies. Together the trio created a succession of popular songs including "Don't Make Me Over," ''Walk On By," ''I Say a Little Prayer." ''Do You Know the Way to San Jose," ''Trains and Boats and Planes," ''Anyone Who Has a Heart," ''You'll Never Get to Heaven" and "Always Something There to Remind Me."

B acharach and David also wrote hit songs for numerous other singers: "This Guy's in Love with You" (trumpeter Herb Alpert in his vocal debut), "Make It Easy on Yourself" (Jerry Butler), "What the World Needs Now is Love" (Jackie DeShannon) and "Wishin' and Hopin'" (Dusty Springfield). They also turned out title songs for the movies "What's New, Pussycat" (Tom Jones), "Wives and Lovers" (Jack Jones) and "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence" (Gene Pitney).

The hit-making t eam broke up after the 1973 musical remake of "Lost Horizon." They had devoted two years to the movie, only to see it scorned by critics and audiences alike. David, meanwhile, went on to collaborate successfully with several other composers: John Barry with the title song of the James Bond film "Moonraker;" Albert Hammond with "To All the Girls I've Loved Before," which Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson dueted on; and Henry Mancini with "The Greatest Gift" in "The Return of the Pink Panther."