QUOTE FOR THE DAY

Outspoken media personality and former professional kickboxer Andrew Tate took it upon himself to tweet a shot at environmental activist Greta Thurnberg, boasting of his car collection. Tate wrote on Twitter –

"Hello @GretaThunberg, I have 33 cars. My Bugatti has a w16 8.0L quad turbo. My TWO Ferrari 812 competizione have 6.5L v12s. This is just the start. Please provide your email address so I can send a complete list of my car collection and their respective enormous emissions."

To this climate activist Greta Thunberg responded:

"Yes, please do enlighten me. email me at smalldickenergy@getalife.com."

NEW YEAR'S EVE

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Today being New Year’s Eve in Oz, here are some facts, items of trivia and information about New Year around the world that may be of interest . . .

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The first ever New Year celebrations took place back in 2000 BC when the Mesopotamians started this tradition of celebrating New Year. The calendar of the ancient Near East was usually filled with festivals that honoured the gods, according to the season. One of the most famous of these festivals was the Akitu Festival of Babylon. The festival began on the first day of the month of Nisannu and lasted for 12 days. Nisannu, which coincides with April, traditionally marked the beginning of the year as it followed the vernal/March equinox.

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In ancient Rome, the new year initially began on March 15 (the so-called ides of March), because at that time consuls (the most important state officials) took their office. That day has also celebrated the festival of Anna Perenna – the Old Italian goddess of the New Year – which marked the beginning of spring. In order to celebrate this day, people went down to a valley near Rome (today’s piazza Euclide), where they celebrated and drank from the holy spring. Moreover, it was believed that if a woman made love in the valley for the first time, it would be a good omen for the future. No doubt an idea promoted by males.

In 153 BCE – for reasons not entirely clear – there was a change and consuls were appointed from that day on January 1. Julius Caesar and his calendar reform in 46 BCE established 1 January as the first day of the new year. This day became a New Year’s holiday, in Italy and in all provinces of the empire.

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On New Year eve, many people from the sections of United States eat black-eyed peas with a belief that they bring good luck in the coming year.

There are a couple of popular legends about how and why black-eyed peas came to symbolise good fortune in the U.S.:

• According to folklore, the Union Army raided the Confederate Army's food supplies during the Civil War. They took everything edible the soldiers had except for the peas and pork, believing they were meant for animals and not for humans. The Confederates were "lucky" to have the remaining food to get them through the cold winter.

• Another legend holds that slaves ate black-eyed peas on January 1, 1863, the day the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect because they were all they had. This, according to the story, is why black-eyed peas have been eaten every New Year's Day since.

Though black-eyed peas are associated with general good luck, most widely circulated traditions — for one reason or another — link that fortune with monetary gain. Here are a few possible explanations:

• "Eat poor on New Year's, and eat fat the rest of the year" is a popular Southern expression, according to The Farmers' Almanac. If you believe that theory, it makes perfect sense to dine on peas on January 1.

• Black-eyed peas swell when they're cooked, which symbolizes an expansion of wealth.

• Dried beans (kind of, if you squint) look like coins.

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In Denmark it is a good sign to find your door heaped with a pile of broken dishes at New Years. Old dishes are saved year around to throw them at the homes where their friends live on New Years Eve. Many broken dishes were a symbol that you have many friends.

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Another custom followed by Denmark is making an evening meal named Kransekage. In this custom, they prepare a dessert, which is a cone-shaped cake and it is decorated with flags and firecrackers.

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Spanish people eat exactly 12 grapes, no less, no more on 31st midnight. While eating grapes, they make wishes to the god. People following this tradition believe that it would bring good luck to them.

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In Japan, on the occasion of the New Year bells are rung for 108 times in Buddhist Temples around the country. They do it as a sign of welcoming the New Year God named Toshigami.

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Greek people hang onions to their doors on the New Year eve as a tradition. They do it with a belief that it will bring good luck to the children in house.

Another tradition that Greek people follow is breaking pomegranates at their doorsteps. Similar to the other traditions of different countries, this tradition is also believed to bring good luck and happiness.

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New Year is not called as New Year in Belgium. They call it Sint Sylvester Vooranvond. People over there prepare champagne and children write letters to parents with good wishes and lots of love.

There is a similar tradition in Italy called Sylvester Stallone . . . nahh, I made that up.

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Finnish people have a unique tradition that they follow in the New Year day they call molybdomancy. The tradition involves telling fortunes and in the name of it they melt led in a small pan and the melted solution is put into a cold water bowl. The metal then turns into solid form and the shape that it forms into is used to predict the fortune of the person in the coming year.

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Although in 46 BC, Julius Caesar decreed to celebrate the New Year on 1st January, nevertheless it was adopted by England and the American province of England in 1752.

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The name of the month January is derived from a two-faced God named Janus. The God has one face looking front and the other looking back.

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Exchanging gifts on New Year Eve also dates back to ancient times. Back in time, Persians used to gift eggs on New Year which means productivity.

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On New Year day, Japanese people eat long noodles with a belief that they will have long life.

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Pork is considered as a mandatory food on the New Year day by the people of Portugal, Hungary, Austria and Cuba as they believe that it denotes prosperity.

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The best known of Scotland's Hogmanay traditions, the first footing sees the first person to pass a home’s threshold after the bells (usually a tall, dark stranger for extra luck) who would bring gifts such as salt for food (health), coal for the fire (warmth), and something sweet. These strangers may also bring a bottle of whisky to share with a dram being poured to celebrate the new year.

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So famous that even Robert Louis Stevenson has written about them, Black Buns are a type of dense and rich fruit cake often made at this time of year in Scotland and used as the sweet for the ritual of first-footing.

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People of Greece, Mexico and Netherlands prepare or buy ring-shaped pastries and cakes on the New Year eve which marks that the year has come to a full circle.

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America also follows the Rose Bowl tradition which is not seen anywhere in the world. Under this tradition, 18 million flowers are exhibited with floats.

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Dutch people follow this custom of burning Christmas trees and putting on fireworks on New Year’s Eve. They belief behind this tradition is that, burning Christmas trees denotes removing the old and putting on fireworks means welcoming the new.

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QUOTE FOR THE DAY

 

FUNNY FRIDAY

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The last Funny Friday of the year, Byters and readers. I hope that the past year has been a good one for you or, if not good, then hopefully at least not too bad. I know that some of my friends and colleagues have suffered losses of a personal nature, hopefully the past 2 days of remembering those we lost in 2022 has not been too saddening.

The last few years have been eventful and unprecedented, what will the new year be like?

Let’s instead focus for a brief moment on lighter items associated with the end of the year and the start of a new one. This last Funny Friday has a smattering of new year items.

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SOME HUMOUR:

__________

Sent to me by John P (thanks John):

Most people know that I often give up drinking around Christmas. But this week I decided to have a few Christmas tipples. I just want to warn people to be careful about drink driving during the holiday period and to be aware that police are out there in force checking on people.

Last night I was out for a few drinks. One thing led to another and I had a few too many champagnes and then went onto whisky. Not a good idea. Knowing I was over the limit, I decided to take a bus home. Sure enough, I passed an RBT unit where they were pulling over drivers and performing breathalyser tests. Because I was in a bus they just waved it past.

I arrived home safely and without incident, which was a real surprise as I've never driven a bus before and I am not even sure where I got it from.

__________

I gave up drinking for the new year.

Sorry, that came out wrong.

I gave up.

Drinking for the new year.

__________

What did the Brits use for heat before the coal and firewood?

Electricity

__________

A Russian proverb for the New Year:

On average we live pretty well.

Worse than last year, but certainly better than next year.

__________

Happy New Year!

Sorry. I suffer from premature congratulation.

__________

My new year’s resolution is I’m going to be less condescending.

Condescending means talking down to people, by the way.

I'm always shocked when people call me condescending, because that's a very big word.

_________

Whoever coined the term ‘delivery’ for childbirth made a big mistake.

It should have been called takeout instead.

__________

Last year, one of my new year resolutions was to stop being so arrogant and cocky

I realised a week into January I didn't need to bother because I am already perfect.

__________

I’ve given up social media for the New Year and am trying to make friends outside Facebook while applying the same principles.

Every day, I walk down the street and tell passersby what I’ve eaten, how I feel, what I did the night before, and what I will do tomorrow. Then I give them pictures of my family, my dog, and me gardening. I also listen to their conversations and tell them I love them.

And it works. I already have three people following me… two police officers and a psychiatrist.

__________

What do we want?

Bigger placards.

When do we want them?

No

__________

Why are the great pyramids in Egypt?

The British couldn't fit them on their ships.

__________

Grandpa was talking to his grandson.

Grandpa: "What has 4 legs but isn't alive?"

Grandson: " A chair ha!! ha!!! nice try Gramps.."

Grandpa: It's your dog Billy, I backed over the little bastard in the driveway"

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A week after John bought a bull, he complained to his friend, “All that bull does is eat grass. Won’t even look at a cow.”

“Take him to the vet,” his friend suggested.

The next week, John is much happier. “The vet gave him some pills, and the bull serviced all of my cows!” he told his pal. “Then he broke through the fence and bred with all my neighbor’s cows! He’s like a machine!”

“What kind of pills were they?” asked the friend.

“I don’t know, but they taste like peppermint.”

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LIMERICK OF THE WEEK:

One of mine . . .

Is year's ending what you want to see?

Was it happy, crappy, sad or of glee?

Let's say adieu to 2022,

I wish all of you

A happy and joyous 23.

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GALLERY:

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RELIGION SPOT:

I looked down and saw a $100 note on the sidewalk. Being the good Christian that I am, I thought, what would Jesus do?

So I went to the liquor store and turned it into wine

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CORN CORNER:

__________

A friendly reminder that gyms get really busy around the new year as people make their resolutions

So it’s best to wait for it to die down, usually around January 2nd.

__________

Rick Astley will give you any of the Pixar films in his collection.

Except for . . . 

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QUOTE FOR THE DAY

 

THOSE WE LOST IN 2022, PART 2

PAUL SORVINO
Date of death:	25 July, 2022
Age at death:	83
About:	American actor who often portrayed authority figures on both the criminal and the law enforcement sides of the law. Sorvino was particularly known for his roles as Lucchese crime family caporegime Paulie Cicero (based on real life gangster Paul Vario) in Martin Scorsese's 1990 gangster film Goodfellas and as NYPD Sergeant Phil Cerreta on the second season of the TV series Law & Order.
By the way:	His budding career was threatened when asthma compromised his ability to talk and sing. But the breathing exercises he learned thirty years ago allowed him to breathe normally thereafter. In 1993, he founded the Paul Sorvino Asthma Foundation, with the goal of building asthma centres for children and adults across the United States.
Cause of death:	Sorvino died of natural causes, according to his representative Roger Neal. Sorvino had dealt with health issues in the last years of his life.

 

TONY DOW
Date of death:	27 July, 2022
Age at death:	77
About:	Dow was an American actor, film producer, director and sculptor who portrayed Wally Cleaver in the iconic television sitcom Leave It to Beaver from 1957 to 1963. From 1983 to 1989, Dow reprised his role as Wally in a television movie and in The New Leave It to Beaver.
By the way:	Dow was a junior Olympics diving champion.
Cause of death:	In May 2022, Dow was diagnosed with liver cancer.  On July 26, 2022, after a premature report of Dow's death, his family announced that he was alive at his home in Topanga, California. However, it was reported that he was in his "last hours" and under hospice care. Dow died the following day.

 

JUDITH DURHAM
Date of death:	5 August, 2022
Age at death:	79
About:	Australian singer, songwriter and musician who became the lead singer of the Australian folk music group the Seekers in 1963. The group became the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the United States and have sold over 50 million records worldwide. Durham left the group in mid-1968 to pursue her solo career, which included being a great jazz performer. In 1993, Durham began to make sporadic recordings and performances with the Seekers, though she remained primarily a solo performer. On 1 July 2015, she was named Victorian of the Year for her services to music and a range of charities.
By the way:	In 2000, Durham broke her hip and was unable to sing "The Carnival Is Over" at the closing ceremony of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney with the Seekers. However, she sang it from a wheelchair at the 2000 Paralympics shortly thereafter.
Cause of death:	Durham was born with asthma and at age four she caught measles, which left her with a life-long chronic lung disease, bronchiectasis. Durham died from that disease at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne.

 

OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN
Date of death:	8 August 2022
Age at death:	73
About:	British-Australian singer, actress and activist who was a four-time Grammy Award winner, Her music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and two number-one albums on the Billboard 200: If You Love Me, Let Me Know (1974) and Have You Never Been Mellow (1975). Eleven of her singles (including two Platinum) and 14 of her albums (including two Platinum and four 2× Platinum) have been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In 1978, Newton-John starred in the musical film Grease, which was the highest-grossing musical film at the time and whose soundtrack remains one of the world's best-selling albums. It features two major hit duets with co-star John Travolta: "You're the One That I Want"—which is one of the best-selling singles of all time—and "Summer Nights". With global sales of more than 100 million records, Newton-John established herself as one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Newton-John, who battled breast cancer three times, was an advocate and sponsor for breast cancer research. She also was an activist for environmental and animal rights causes.
By the way:	In 1988, she visited Australia to make a television special titled Olivia Down Under (1988) to coincide with the Bicentennial. She and Cliff Richard performed and King Charles III and Princess Diana were also present.
Cause of death:	Newton-John died from cancer at her home in the Santa Ynez Valley of California. As a mark of respect, Melbourne and Sydney lit up many of their landmarks. Prior to her death, she had disclosed that this was actually her third bout with breast cancer, as she had a recurrence of the disease in 2013 in addition to her initial 1992 diagnosis. With the 2017 recurrence, the cancer had spread to her bones and progressed to stage IV.

 

ANNE HECHE
Date of death:	12 August 2022
Age at death:	53
About:	Anne Heche was an American actress, known for her roles in a variety of genres in film, television, and theatre, receiving numerous accolades, including a National Board of Review Award and multiple Emmy Awards. She came to recognition portraying Vicky Hudson and Marley Love in the soap opera Another World (1964), which won her a Daytime Emmy Award and two Soap Opera Digest Awards. She came to mainstream prominence in the late 1990s with roles in the crime drama film Donnie Brasco (1997), the disaster film Volcano (1997), the slasher film I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997), the action comedy film Six Days Seven Nights (1998), and the drama-thriller film Return to Paradise (1998). From 1999 to 2001, Heche took fewer acting roles and concentrated on directing projects.  Her acting roles from the 2000s onward focused on independent films, TV series, and some stage roles. Events in Heche's personal life often upstaged her acting career. From 1997 to 2000, she was in a high-profile same-sex relationship with comedian Ellen DeGeneres, sometimes described as "the first gay supercouple".
By the way:	Surname is pronounced "Haysh". Immediately following her split with DeGeneres in 2000, she had a highly publicized psychotic break in which she appeared at a rural ranch house outside of Fresno, California claiming to be an entity named "Celestia" who would take humanity to heaven in a spaceship. In 2001, she published a memoir titled Call Me Crazy that alleged extensive childhood sexual abuse by her father.
Cause of death:	On August 5, 2022, Heche was critically injured when she crashed her car into a house at high speed. She died at a hospital in Los Angeles on August 11, 2022.

 

LILIAN FRANK
Date of death:	13 August, 2022
Age at death:	92
About:	Burmese-born Australian hairdresser, fashion influencer, philanthropist, fundraiser, and society columnist. She was born in Rangoon, Burma (now Yangon, Myanmar), in 1930. Her family fled to British India during World War II, from where she was sent to live with an aunt in the United Kingdom. She finally settled in Melbourne, Australia, in the 1950s. She established her first hairdressing salon in the city, and she later opened one in Toorak, Victoria. She became known for her celebrity clientele, including Queen Elizabeth II and Jean Shrimpton. She wrote a gossip column for the Herald Sun for about 40 years.
By the way:	In 1977 Frank was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), for services to charities (she was highly involved in charities such as the Royal Children's Hospital and Odyssey House, Melbourne) 1In 991 she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM), for service to the community and in 2001 was awarded the Centenary Medal, for services to the community through fund-raising and charity.
Cause of death:	Cause of death not disclosed.

 

Queen Elizabeth 11
Date of death:	8 September 2022
Age at death:	96
About:	Elizabeth II was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. Her father acceded to the throne in 1936 upon the abdication of his brother Edward VIII, making the ten-year-old Princess Elizabeth the heir presumptive. She was educated privately at home and began to undertake public duties during the Second World War, serving in the Auxiliary Territorial Service. In November 1947, she married Philip Mountbatten, a former prince of Greece and Denmark, and their marriage lasted 73 years until his death in 2021. They had four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward. When her father died in February 1952, Elizabeth—then 25 years old—became queen of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon (known today as Sri Lanka), as well as head of the Commonwealth. Elizabeth reigned as a constitutional monarch through major political changes such as the Troubles in Northern Ireland, devolution in the United Kingdom, the decolonisation of Africa, and the United Kingdom's accession to the European Communities and withdrawal from the European Union. The number of her realms varied over time as territories gained independence and some realms became republics. Significant events included Elizabeth's coronation in 1953 and the celebrations of her Silver, Golden, Diamond, and Platinum jubilees in 1977, 2002, 2012, and 2022, respectively. Although she faced occasional republican sentiment and media criticism of her family—particularly after the breakdowns of her children's marriages, her annus horribilis in 1992, and the death in 1997 of her former daughter-in-law Diana—support for the monarchy in the United Kingdom remained consistently high throughout her lifetime, as did her personal popularity.
By the way:	Her reign of 70 years and 214 days was the longest of any British monarch and the longest verified reign of any female monarch in history.
Cause of death:	Elizabeth died at Balmoral Castle, Aberdeenshire, in September 2022, at the age of 96, and was succeeded by her eldest son, Charles III. Her state funeral was the first to be held in the United Kingdom since that of Winston Churchill in 1965.

 

Coolio
Date of death:	23 September, 2022
Age at death:	59
About:	Artis Leon Ivey Jr, known professionally as Coolio, was an American rapper. First rising to fame as a member of the gangsta rap group WC and the Maad Circle, Coolio achieved mainstream success as a solo artist in the mid-to-late 1990s with his albums It Takes a Thief (1994), Gangsta's Paradise (1995), ad My Soul (1997). He is best known for his 1995 Grammy Award–winning hit single "Gangsta's Paradise".
By the way:	He created the web series Cookin' with Coolio and released a cookbook.
Cause of death:	Coolio was discovered unresponsive on a bathroom floor and was pronounced dead by first responders. He was 59 years old at the time of his death. Police have opened an investigation into his death, though foul play is not suspected, and Coolio's manager stated he appeared to have suffered cardiac arrest.[

 

LORETTA LYN
Date of death:	4 October 2022
Age at death:	90
About:	Loretta Lynn was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums and had numerous hits such as "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)", "Don't Come Home A-Drinkin' (With Lovin' on Your Mind)", "One's on the Way", "Fist City", and "Coal Miner's Daughter". In 1980, the film Coal Miner's Daughter was made based on her life. Lynn received many awards and other accolades for her groundbreaking role in country music/ She was nominated 18 times for a Grammy Award, and won three times. As of 2022, Lynn was the most awarded female country recording artist, and the only female ACM Artist of the Decade (1970s). Lynn scored 24 No. 1 hit singles and 11 number one albums.
By the way:	She ended 57 years of touring on the road after she suffered a stroke in 2017 and broke her hip in 2018.
Cause of death:	Lynn died in her sleep at her home in Hurricane Mills on October 4, 2022, at the age of 90. No cause of death was immediately given.

 

EILEEN RYAN
Date of death:	9 October 2022
Age at death:	94
About:	Eileen Ryan was an American actress. The wife of actor and director Leo Penn, she was the mother of actors Sean Penn and Chris Penn, and of singer Michael Penn. During the 1960s and 1970s, Ryan periodically had roles in television shows, such as The Twilight Zone, Bonanza, and others directed by her husband Leo Penn. Ryan resumed acting on a more frequent basis in 1986, when she appeared with her sons Sean and Chris in At Close Range as the brothers' grandmother. She subsequently featured as the mother of Sean Penn's character in Judgment in Berlin (1988), which was directed by her husband.
By the way:	Ryan married Leo Penn in 1957. They met the year before while she was performing in The Iceman Cometh at the Circle in the Square Theatre. At the time, he was an actor and active union member, who was blacklisted from the late 1940s to the late 1950s. They remained married for over 40 years until his death in 1998. Together, they had three children. One of them, Chris, predeceased her in 2006.
Cause of death:	Ryan died a week before her 95th birthday, at her home in Malibu, Californi, cause not disclosed.

 

Angela Lansbury
Date of death:	11 October 2022
Age at death:	96
About:	Irish-British and American actress and singer whose career spanned eight decades and who  played various roles across film, stage, and television. Although based for much of her life in the United States, her work attracted international attention as well as a large number of awards. To escape the Blitz, she moved to the United States in 1940, studying acting in New York City. Proceeding to Hollywood in 1942, she signed to MGM and obtained her first film roles, in Gaslight (1944), National Velvet (1944), and The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945), earning various awards. She appeared in eleven further MGM films, mostly in minor roles, and after her contract ended in 1952, she began to supplement her cinematic work with theatrical appearances. Moving into musical theatre, Lansbury gained stardom for playing the leading role in the Broadway musical Mame (1966), which won her her first Tony Award and established her as a gay icon. Amidst difficulties in her personal life, Lansbury moved from California to Ireland's County Cork in 1970, before continuing to make theatrical and cinematic appearances throughout that decade. These included leading roles in the stage musicals Gypsy, Sweeney Todd, and The King and I, as well as in the hit Disney film Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971). Moving into television in 1984, she achieved worldwide fame as the fictional sleuth Jessica Fletcher in the American whodunit series Murder, She Wrote, which ran for twelve seasons until 1996, becoming one of the longest-running and most popular detective drama series in television history. Through Corymore Productions, a company that she co-owned with her husband Peter Shaw, Lansbury assumed ownership of the series and was its executive producer during its final four seasons. She also moved into voice work, contributing to animated films like Beauty and the Beast (1991) and Anastasia (1997). In the 21st century she toured in several theatrical productions and appeared in films such as Nanny McPhee (2005) and Mary Poppins Returns (2018). Her final film appearance was as herself in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022).
By the way:	At the time of her death, Lansbury was one of the last surviving stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema.
Cause of death:	Cause of death has not been announced, her family saying in a  statement: “The children of Dame Angela Lansbury are sad to announce that their mother died peacefully in her sleep at home in Los Angeles at 1:30 AM today, Tuesday, October 11, 2022, just five days shy of her 97th birthday.”

 

Robbie Coltrane
Date of death:	14 October, 2022
Age at death:	72
About:	Robbie Coltrane, was a Scottish actor and comedian who gained worldwide recognition in the 2000s for playing Rubeus Hagrid in the Harry Potter film series. He was appointed an OBE in the 2006 New Year Honours by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to drama. Coltrane started his career appearing alongside Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, and Emma Thompson in the sketch series Alfresco. In 1987, he starred in the BBC miniseries Tutti Frutti with Thompson, for which he received his first British Academy Television Award for Best Actor nomination. Coltrane then gained national prominence starring as criminal psychologist Dr. Eddie "Fitz" Fitzgerald in the ITV television series Cracker, a role which saw him receive the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor in three consecutive years from 1994 to 1996. Coltrane appeared in George Harrison's films Mona Lisa and Nuns on the Run and as Valentin Dmitrovich Zukovsky in the James Bond films GoldenEye and The World Is Not Enough
By the way:	When not on the stage or in front of the cameras he painted, wrote and illustrated children's books and wrote three film scripts.
Cause of death:	Coltrane died at Forth Valley Royal Hospital in Larbert, Scotland after having been ill for two years prior to his death. The death certificate listed the causes as multiple organ failure complicated by sepsis, a lower respiratory tract infection, and heart block. He had also been diagnosed with obesity and Type 2 diabetes.

 

JERRY LEE LEWIS
Date of death:	28 October, 2022
Age at death:	87
About:	American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis’s 1957 hit "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" shot him to worldwide fame. He followed this with the major hits "Great Balls of Fire", "Breathless", and "High School Confidential". His rock and roll career faltered in the wake of his marriage to Myra Gale Brown, his 13-year-old cousin once removed. His popularity quickly eroded following the scandal and with few exceptions such as a cover of Ray Charles's "What'd I Say", he did not have much chart success in the early 1960s. His live performances at this time were increasingly wild and energetic. In 1968, Lewis made a transition into country music and had hits with songs such as "Another Place, Another Time". This reignited his career, and throughout the late 1960s and 1970s he regularly topped the country-western charts. In the 21st century, Lewis continued to tour around the world and released new albums. His 2006 album Last Man Standing was his best selling release, with over a million copies worldwide. This was followed by Mean Old Man in 2010, another of his bestselling albums. In 1989, his life was chronicled in the movie Great Balls of Fire, starring Dennis Quaid.
By the way:	Lewis was the last surviving member of Sun Records' Million Dollar Quartet and the album Class of '55, which also included Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Elvis Presley.
Cause of death:	Cause of death not stated.

 

Irene Cara
Date of death:	25 November 2022
Age at death:	63
About:	American singer, songwriter and actress of Black, Puerto Rican and Cuban descent. Cara rose to prominence for her role as Coco Hernandez in the 1980 musical film Fame, and for recording the film's title song "Fame", which reached No. 1 in several countries. In 1983, Cara co-wrote and sang the song "Flashdance... What a Feeling" (from the film Flashdance), for which she shared an Academy Award for Best Original Song and won a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1984.
By the way:	Was one of the five finalists for the Little Miss America pageant at age 3.
Cause of death:	Cara died at her home in Largo, Florida, the cause of her death is unknown.

 

CHRISTINE McVIE
Date of death:	30 November 2022
Age at death:	79
About:	English musician and songwriter best known as keyboardist and one of the vocalists of the band Fleetwood Mac. She began working with Fleetwood Mac in 1968, initially as a session player, before joining the band in 1970. Her first compositions with Fleetwood Mac appeared on their fifth album, Future Games. She remained with the band through many changes of line-up, writing songs and performing lead vocals, before partially retiring in 1998. She was described as "the prime mover behind some of Fleetwood Mac's biggest hits".  Eight songs written or co-written by McVie, including "Don't Stop", "Everywhere" and "Little Lies", appeared on Fleetwood Mac's 1988 Greatest Hits album.  She appeared as a session musician on the band's last studio album, Say You Will. She also released three solo studio albums.
By the way:	During the production of Rumours, she had an affair with Fleetwood Mac's lighting engineer, Curry Grant, which inspired the song "You Make Loving Fun".
Cause of death:	McVie’s family shared a statement that disclosed the musician died after a battle with a “short illness.”

 

KIRSTIE ALLEY
Date of death:	5 December, 2022
Age at death:	71
About:	American actress whose breakout role was as Rebecca Howe in the NBC sitcom Cheers (1987–1993), for which she received an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe in 1991. From 1997 to 2000, she starred as the lead in the sitcom Veronica's Closet, earning additional Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. On film, she was perhaps best known for her role as Mollie Jensen in Look Who's Talking (1989) and its two sequels, Look Who's Talking Too (1990) and Look Who's Talking Now (1993).
By the way:	Opened a literacy and tutoring centre in her hometown of Wichita, Kansas called Lillie's Learning Place, named after her daughter.
Cause of death:	Alley died from colon cancer which had only been recently discovered.