Johnny Carson, 79
Johnny Carson, best known as the beloved Tonight Show late-night TV host who put Americans to bed for nearly 30 years, died from emphysema early in the morning on Jan. 23 of this year at his Malibu, Calif., home. Carson started out as an amateur magician, a radio comedy writer, radio and TV announcer, until he took over The Tonight Show from Jack Paar in 1962. Carson quickly became one of the greatest if not the most influential hosts of all time, impressing audiences with his boyish grin, charm and easy wit. Carson also became an Oscar night staple, emceeing the annual Academy Award ceremony five times between 1979 and 1984. The TV icon taped his final Tonight Show on May 22, 1992, seen by 55 million and left behind a legacy that will not soon be, if ever, seen again. After his retirement, he retreated to his Malibu home and rarely ventured out for public appearances.
Christopher Reeve, 52
Christopher Reeve, known by all for portraying Superman, died on Oct. 10, 2004 from heart failure in Mount Kisco, N.Y. Reeve suffered from permanent paralysis following a near fatal injury when he was thrown from his horse in 1995. After playing the Man of Steel, Reeve had a tough time maintaining a successful film career. Some of his best efforts included The Bostonians and Noises Off…. But it never stopped him. Even after the accident, he continued to work. He won an Emmy for the TV special Without Pity: A Film About Abilities,, which he narrated and was nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance in the TV-movie Rear Window in 1998. Reeve also used his high profile name and unfortunate accident to help the disabled community. He became a determined champion for medical treatments for spinal cord injuries–including controversial stem cell research–and was an outspoken critic of the health care and insurance systems.
Marlon Brando, 80
Acting legend Marlon Brando died of pulmonary fibrosis in Los Angeles on July 1, 2004. Widely considered by many to be the “greatest actor of all time,” Brando was known for bringing “method” acting to the big screen. His breakthrough came with his searing portrayal of Stanley Kowalski in Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire in 1947. He then went on to create some of the cinema’s most indelible characters, including his Oscar-winning performances as On the Waterfront‘s battered Terry Malloy and The Godfather‘s Don Vito Corelone. His eccentric lifestyle, though, kept him in the press for much of his life. In 1972, he refused his Best Actor Oscar in protest of Hollywood’s depiction of the indigenous tribes. Then in 1990, he faced tragedy when his son Christian killed his sister’s fiancé, only to see his daughter Cheyenne commit suicide in 1995, at age 25.
Ray Charles, 73
Ray Charles, considered to be “The Genius of Soul” in the music industry, died on June 10, 2004, of liver failure in his Beverly Hills home. Born Ray Charles Robinson Sept. 23, 1930, the singer, songwriter, and pianist, blind since the age of seven, gained a reputation by incorporating a myriad of musical styles from jazz to R&B to gospel and country. He won 12 Grammy awards for such famous songs as “Georgia on My Mind,” “Hit the Road, Jack!” and his rendition of “America, the Beautiful.” “I was born with music inside me. That’s the only explanation I know of,” Charles said in his 1978 autobiography, Brother Ray. Out of the limelight, his personal life was less rosy: he battled a heroin addiction for decades before finally kicking it cold turkey. He never let the fact that he was blind or black hinder his ability to create and entertain. In a word, Ray Charles was “inspirational.”
Ronald Reagan, 93
Ronald Reagan died of pneumonia in Los Angeles on June 5, 2004, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Reagan began his career playing a radio announcer in Love is on the Air (1937), and went on to appear in more than 50 films over the next two decades, including his memorable role as George Gipp, Notre Dame’s dying football star, in Knute Rockne–All American (1940). After serving as a captain in the U.S. Air Force during WWII, Reagan became immersed in Hollywood politics. He served as president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1947-1952, then he eventually mastered his way to two terms as governor of California. His first marriage to the Oscar-winning actress Jane Wyman ended in part because of his increased political involvement, clearing the way for a later marriage to actress Nancy Davis, who became his biggest asset when he set his political sights higher. In 1980, he became the 40th President of the United States, serving two terms. In that role of a lifetime, the “Great Communicator” displayed constant optimism and a jaunty self-confidence, both of which endeared him to millions.
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Rodney Dangerfield, 82
Dangerfield, one of the more remarkable figures in contemporary comedy, died on Oct. 5, 2004 in Los Angeles of complications from heart surgery. Dangerfield began performing in the 1940s, working his way up from singing waiter to comic. He then returned to entertainment as a middle-aged comedian after working for over a decade as a house painter and aluminum siding salesman in New Jersey. Goggle-eyed, slovenly and sweaty, Dangerfield, with his signature saying, “I don’t get no respect!,” offered a harried, middle-aged everyman type, which enabled him to move from nightclubs to TV commercials to comedy specials to movies, including Caddyshack and Back to School. Dangerfield was always appreciative of a little respect wherever he could find it.
Tony Randall, 84
Tony Randall, best remembered for his hilarious work as the particularly finicky and hard to please Felix Unger in the classic ’70s sitcom, The Odd Couple, died from pneumonia in New York on May 17, 2004. A slim, spry, and ubiquitous comic actor, who began his career in theater, is best known for co-starring in a string of romantic comedies with pals Doris Day and Rock Hudson, including Pillow Talk and Lover Come Back. Along with The Odd Couple, he also had a moderate hit in television with Love, Sidney in the ’80s. Then he finally realized his dream by starting his own theater company, National Actors Theater in 1992.
Ossie Davis (88)
The consummate actor Ossie Davis died Feb. 4 of this year. He was found dead from natural causes in his hotel room in Miami Beach, Fla., where he was making a film. With his wife and frequent collaborator, actress Ruby Dee, Davis was a staple of black theater. His first breakthrough came in 1961, when he wrote and starred in the Broadway hit, Purlie Victorious. Davis debuted in film (along with Sidney Poitier) in No Way Out(1950), a powerful tale of racial hatred directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. He made many films but it wasn’t until later in his career that he got the most recognition, becoming a fixture in Spike Lee’s films such as Do the Right Thing (1989) and Jungle Fever (1991). Davis was also a frequent presence on TV, appearing in numerous TV-movies and several high-minded miniseries including Roots: The Next Generations (ABC, 1979) and Stephen King’s The Stand, as well as being a regular on the CBS sitcom Evening Shade and the CBS family drama Promised Land. In 2001 Davis was awarded a Life Achievement Award by the Screen Actors Guild, and in 2004, Davis and his wife both received the prestigious Kennedy Center Honor. Both Davis and Dee were longstanding political activists who were highly visible during the height of the Civil Rights movement and continue to speak out at rallies for progressive and humanitarian causes.
Spalding Gray, 52
Spalding Gray, best known for his autobiographical one-man shows, died from an apparent suicide Jan. 10, 2004, after he jumped off a bridge into New York’s East River. Although he acted in experimental theater for many years, his first major breakthrough came when he wrote the OBIE-award winning one-man play-turned feature film Swimming to Cambodia, detailing his experiences making the 1984 The Killing Fields, in which he had a small role. As a result of the success of Cambodia, he continued to appear in features–while devoting time to writing his one-man stage performances, including Monster in a Box (1992) and Gray’s Anatomy (1996). His feature film appearances included Beaches and Clara’s Heart(both 1988) and Straight Talk(1992). He co-founded The Wooster Group, one of New York’s experimental theater companies in 1977 and taught at NYU’s Experimental Theater Wing for six years. But Gray suffered from years of depression, especially after a near-fatal car crash in June 2001.
Peter Ustinov, 84
Oscar-winning Peter Ustinov died of heart failure Mar. 28, 2004, in Genolier, Switzerland. Ustinov reached his peak of his fame in the early 1960s for his appearances in sweeping epics, including Spartacus (1960) and Topkapi (1964), which both earned Ustinov a best supporting Oscar. Many American audiences remember him as the famous Agatha Christie mystery solver Hercule Poirot in a series of films, including Death on the Nile (1978) and Evil Under the Sun (1982). On the small screen, Ustinov’s work has often tilted towards the high brow, or substantive or prestige projects . They included his Emmy-winning performances in Hallmark Hall of Fame specials such as A Storm in Summer (1970) and Gideon (1971). As well, he created and hosted Peter Ustinov’s Russia: A Personal History for the BBC in 1986.
Janet Leigh, 77
Janet Leigh, the leading lady often remembered for her breakout role in Alfred Hitchcock’s thriller movie, Psycho, died of vasculitis in Los Angeles on Oct. 3, 2004. Leigh’s first film role was as the female lead of The Romance of Rosy Ridge (1947) but she went onto to star in classic movies such as Orson Welles’ A Touch of Evil (1958) and the harrowing political drama The Manchurian Candidate (1962). Leigh took one-quarter of her usual fee of $100,000 to appear in what would become her signature film Psycho. Dying memorably in the famous shower scene, her gamble paid off and her image indeed changed, garnering her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for the role. Leigh’s also kept her name in the gossip columns with her high-profile marriage to actor Tony Curtis, which lasted from 1951 to 1962 during which time they appeared together in many films. Her husband, Robert Brandt and daughters, Jamie Lee Curtis and Kelley Curtis, survive Leigh.
Others we lost:
