Good God, is there any end to this???

Dont forget all those members of the Red Army Choir...

 

Very sad, most of those lost this year where far to young, my heart goes out to their loved ones.

 

Really sad

 

You will find that Dec,Jan,Feb and march have the highist dead rates of the year Janurary being the worst

 

You will also find that there are more and more "celebrities" every year with the increase in different areas of entertainment. e.g. in the 1940s, there might have been only 15 film actors & actresses who would have been regarded as "celebrities". There was no TV, etc.

 

I've got to agree, although most of those mentioned I do know, there are loads of so called celebs out there that have done nothing more than appear on "reality TV" which is a joke in itself, there is nothing more false or stage managed than "reality TV".

 

I think, if you took an average age of those who have died this year, you may be surprised.
I know much is made of our "aging populations" but in my experience (father died at 56; mother at 69, father-in-law at 70, mother-in-law 69), if you take the old adage of 3 score and 10 (70 years) as the average lifespan, most of those from the arts and entertainment genre who have died were either around that age, or even beyond (as one example, Liz Smith aged 95). Couple that with some of the life choices/styles of some ... well, without meaning any detriment to them, or those who are left behind mourning their passing, most of the deaths were inevitable.

Absolutely!

Totally agree. In our lifetimes there has been an explosion of people in the arts and entertainment industry who have become familiar faces to us all as a result of the variety of mediums we are exposed to now (by comparison, as you so rightly highlighted). Good point, well presented

 

Sorry, but I disagree with that. I could certainly come up with at least 40 actors/actresses from that decade with no problem. Add politicians, entertainers and so on and the list would be at least double. I would expect other members could do the same.

 

Regardless of whether there's more celebrities now than a generation ago or not, and regardless of the 'grade' of celebrity, I think three facts are pertinent when one dies.

1. A person has died. That is a fellow human being. They shouldn't really be reduced to a number or grade.

2. That person will have had family and friends, and in them, they will live on.

3. As a celebrity, they had an effect on people who may have never even met them in person. That effect is real. In the case of George Michael for example, many of my generation, even if not particularly fans, will be reminded that a key figure from their youth has passed, and this means something which was a constant in their lives has ceased, reminding us of the inevitable passage of time and the changes that brings. Some might grieve, which is legit. Some might say 'oh', and then just carry on whatever they were doing. All perfectly valid individual responses. But I don't think it is right to debate numbers or quality when it comes to death of human beings.

 

I think people get far too emotional these days when well know people die.
It seemed to reach gigantic proportions when princess Diana died and has in some cases got worse over the years.

I tend to get more cut up when its a friend, or worse still a family member, who dies.

Celebs are just that, you probably never knew them, sad, but not someone you're going to rush out a by a bunch of flowers for and cry in the streets.
Although lots seem to these days.

 

Indeed. But they have the right to express their feelings however they wish, as long as they aren't hurting others in doing so.

And is it such a bad thing? Maybe it's global media, travel, some sort of cultural education or something else, but the classical and in my opinion stupid tally ho stiff upper lip element of the English character seems to be giving way to a more open expressive nature as is common just about everywhere else in the world outside of England. I don't think that's a negative thing. I personally used to have this stupid attitude that we don't tell our friends and family how important they are to us, and we don't laugh at things that defy convention, or cry in front of anyone. Then you get older and you start losing people, and you wonder if they knew what they meant to you, or if their surviving friends and relatives know, or if anyone knows how you feel. So I've binned off the silly English stiff upper lip. I personally don't get emotional at the death of a celebrity, but I'm not going to judge those that do.