Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

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Kitty
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Kitty »

Walils Windsor - I didn't know about the controversy surrounding her, I just thought it was a fantastically glamorous story, and it seemed like something symbolic had died.

Kenneth Williams - but that was very sad - can still remember that I was in the dining room, but a radio filtered through with the news. That it was possibly suicide made it all the sadder.

Must have been "aware" of others before, of course, but they were two that stand out in my memory.
Gwendoline lay down, angry. She determined to make herself miserable and cry.
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Ming »

Silky-Elf wrote:WHY SHOUTING?
BECAUSE WRITING ALL IN CAPITALS, AND IN LARGE TEXT LOOK LIKE SHOUTING.

AND WHY ARE WE SHOUTING? IS THE MATCH OVER?

I LOSE!!

:lol:
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Silky-Elf »

OH!! I AM SORRY MIING! :oops: I NEVER KNEW THIS. THIS REALLY IS THE FIRST TIME I AM USUING A FORUM :oops:

MY KEYOBARD IS IN ARABIC AND WORST OF ALL THE CAPS LOCK KEY HAS STUCK DOWN AND NOW ITS NOT WORKING.

MY FATHER WILL BE HOPEFULLY BRINDING A NEW KEYBOARD SHORTLY :D :)
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by tam »

Elvis Presley...I was thirteen and babysitting when they announced it on t.v. I wasn't really a fan, but understood the impact it had on his fans. I was also obsessed with Paul McCartney's "death." My friends and I would sit and study album covers, play records backwards, etc. etc. Silly, but very intriguing at the time!!
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by dsr »

Possibly Pope John Paul I for me. I wasn't really all that interested in "celebrities", and the Royals were staying healthy at the time. I didn't notice his predecessor dying, but JP1's death made such headlines that even I couldn't miss them. What year was it, about 1977?
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by lizarfau »

dsr wrote:Possibly Pope John Paul I for me. I wasn't really all that interested in "celebrities", and the Royals were staying healthy at the time. I didn't notice his predecessor dying, but JP1's death made such headlines that even I couldn't miss them. What year was it, about 1977?
I think 1978. Then another pope took over and only had the job for a few weeks before he too died and JPII took over.

I remember various Soviet presidents popping their clogs in quick succession - Brezhnev, Andropov (I think), Chernenko ...

The first "sleb" death I recall, though, was a prince somebody or other who died in a plane crash in about 1973. He and some other bloke were having a plane race over the UK and the prince's plane crashed near Bobbington. I remember watching the planes fly over our house (I grew up near Wolverhampton, which is close to Bobbington) and then hearing that he'd died. Another early memory for me was the Israeli athletes killed during the Munich Olympics - I remember hearing about their deaths and everyone saying that would be the last Olympics.
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by RDMorrell »

About the earliest "celebrity" death I can recollect was the IRA murder of Lord Louis Mountbatten on 27 August 1979. I was seven. I don't recall being particularly affected by it, but I knew he was someone "important" and associated with the Royal Family, so his death was rather a big deal. I was five when Elvis Presley died, but frankly don't remember anything about it - perhaps because neither of my parents have been Elvis fans. (But my mum is a bit of a "royalist", so she reacted more to Lord Mountbatten's death.) In fact, to this day I don't think I own anything by Elvis. However, I do like to mimic his way of saying "Thank you very much" sometimes.
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Keith Robinson »

It's weird, but when I think back I vividly remember certain celebrity deaths but I then realize they're all too recent for me to mention -- Freddie Mercury (1991) and Benny Hill (1992) for example! Going further back, I remember the news about Carry On star Kenneth Williams (1988) -- but still, I was 18 then, so not exactly an early memory. Sid James died in 1976 but that was TOO early for me -- as far as I was concerned he had always been dead by the time I started watching Carry On movies.

Probably the most important and earliest "celebrity death" I vividly remember is actually the seven crew members of the Challenger Space Shuttle. I remember watching the return of the maiden voyage of Columbia in 1983 at school -- the teachers all wanted to watch, so they sat our class in front of the TV, and it was great. And in January 1986 I was watching live when Challenger blew up a minute after launching. Not wanting to be morbid about it, Wikipedia have a link to a video clip showing the explosion; it gave me a shiver when I saw it again.

http://www.spacetoday.org/SpcShtls/Chal ... n1986.html
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Ming »

Thanks for the link, Keith. Fascinating stuff.
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Moonraker »

We didn't have celebrities in my childhood days. They belong firmly to the modern era. In the 50s, there were statesmen, talented actors, accomplished musicians - and a footballer's wife was where she should be, in the footballer's kitchen.

Although alive (just), I cannot remember the actual death, but do remember people still talking about it later - King George VI. I remember the then Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan dying as well. I vividly recall Alec Douglas Home being appointed PM, he had a face like a skull!

The first death to really make an impact was that of John Kennedy. When the news was released, I was at Choir Practice at our local church, and I remember clearly the feeling of horror expressed by everyone.

The first death that affected me personally was John Lennon's. I was truly shocked that his life had been terminated so abruptly.
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Julian »

I cannot remember exactly but like Ming, I'll go for Mother Teresa (Blessed Teresa of Calcutta for Catholics) and Princess Diana. :)

Thanks for the link, Keith. Very interesting. :)
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Daisy »

Like Nigel, my first memory of a celebrated person's death was that of King George V1on Feb.6th 1952. I was in bed with the flu and heard the news on a small portable radio which kept me company for the week or so I was laid low! It was during that week I also completed a school project for biology using much of Enid Blyton's Nature Lovers book for my inspiration. I got the best mark I ever received for it!
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Tony Summerfield »

I'm with you on this one Daisy, I remember exactly where I was when I heard of the death of George VI on the wireless. Related to this of course but not really relevant to this thread, was the first time I saw a television set, when we got a day off school the following year and I watched the Coronation - a tiny picture in a crowded room but we all marvelled at it! Perhaps this would be a good topic for a new thread!
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by lizarfau »

Moonraker wrote: In the 50s, there were statesmen, talented actors, accomplished musicians - and a footballer's wife was where she should be, in the footballer's kitchen.
I think you're forgetting Joy Beverly, Nigel - she was married to Wolves and England captain Billy Wright. The Posh of her day, perhaps?!
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Re: Who's the first celebrity death you can remember?

Post by Moonraker »

lizarfau wrote:
Moonraker wrote: In the 50s, there were statesmen, talented actors, accomplished musicians - and a footballer's wife was where she should be, in the footballer's kitchen.
I think you're forgetting Joy Beverly, Nigel - she was married to Wolves and England captain Billy Wright. The Posh of her day, perhaps?!
You are so right, Liz. Ah, the dear Beverley Sisters...at least all her assets were genuine. :oops:
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