Music arranger and composer Lew Anderson, who was the third person to play silent sidekick Clarabell the Clown on the popular 1950s children’s TV show Howdy Doody, died of prostate cancer the same day, aged 84.
62-year-old Norwegian-born actress Eva Norvind (Eva Johanne Chegodayeva Sakonskaya), who appeared in a number of Mexican films during the 1960s, including Facto de Sangre and Santo versus the Martian Invasion, drowned on May 14th off the coast of Zipolite, Oaxaca, when she was dragged under by a wave and thrown against the rocks. After a controversial statement over birth control ended her film career in Mexico in the late 1960s, she relocated to New York in the 1980s and developed the persona of dominatrix “Ava Taurel” in a number of short films and erotic role-playing documentaries. Her daughter, Naqilea Norvind, is an actress in Mexico.
69-year-old former milkman Freddie Garrity, lead singer with the 1960s Manchester group Freddie & the Dreamers, died in Wales of complications from emphysema on May 19th. The band’s hits include “I’m Telling You Now”, “You Were Made for Me” and “If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody”.
Zoë Rae (Zoë Rae Bech), one of the earliest child stars of the silent film era, died on May 20th, aged 95. She made her screen debut at the age of three in 1914, and two years later Carl Laemmle signed her to a five-year contract at Universal for $100.00 per week. Billed as “Little Zoë, the Universal Baby”, she worked with John Ford, Rupert Julian and Lon Chaney (The Kaiser: The Beast of Berlin, 1918). “I was just fascinated by him,” she later recalled. “He was a very pleasant gentleman, in my eyes, and very dedicated.”
64-year-old Jamaican ska and reggae singer Desmond Dekker (Desmond Adolphus Dacres) died of a heart attack on May 25th in Surrey, England. As Desmond Dekker and the Aces he had such hits in the 1960s as “Israelites” and “It Mek”.
American actor Paul Gleason, usually seen in supporting roles as authority figures, died of a rare form of lung cancer on May 27th, aged 67. He had only been diagnosed three weeks earlier. A former professional baseball player and drinking companion of writer Jack Kerouac, Gleason’s many credits include Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze, He Knows You’re Alone, Arthur, Ghost Chase, Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence, Abominable, the 1985 Star Wars spin-off Ewoks: The Battle for Endor, and episodes of TV’s The Green Hornet (“Alias the Scarf”, with John Carradine), Beauty and the Beast, Tales from the Crypt (“The Reluctant Vampire”), Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Dark Skies.
British actor and film and TV writer David Butler died the same day, aged 78. He appeared in the 1970 horror thriller Crucible of Horror.
British musical entertainer Derek Scott died on May 27th, aged 84. Following World War II, he formed a comedy duo with Tony Hancock, and he later composed the music for Hancock’s 1960s TV series and the film The Punch and Judy Man. Scott also composed many songs for The Muppet Show and was the voice of the piano-playing dog, Rolfe.
American leading man Robert Sterling (William John Hart), best remembered for his role as the ghostly George Kirby in the 1953–56 TV series Topper, died on May 30th, aged 88. He had suffered from shingles for a decade. The son of baseball star William S. Hart (not to be confused with the silent screen actor), Sterling appeared in Mandrake the Magician, Beware Spooks!, and the 1961 film version of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea as Captain Lee Crane, along with episodes of TV’s Lights Out, Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Twilight Zone and Fantasy Island. He was married to actresses Ann Sothern from 1943–49 and Anne Jeffreys (who he co-starred with in Topper) from 1951 until his death.
Johnny Grande, who played piano for Bill Haley and His Comets on their 1954 hit “Rock Around the Clock”, died on June 2nd, aged 76. He also played on “See You Later, Alligator” and “Rockin’ Through the Rye”.
Grateful Dead and The Tubes keyboard player Vince Welnick apparently committed suicide the same day, aged 55.
75-year-old radio actor James Barrett, who voiced the part of Dan Reid, the young nephew of The Lone Ranger, died on June 4th. He also worked on The Green Hornet and Sergeant Preston of the Yukon.
59-year-old Texas-born singer, songwriter and musician Billy Preston, best known for playing keyboards on the Beatles’ 1970 album Let it Be, died of a heart infection and kidney failure on June 6th. He had been in a coma since November the previous year. Often referred to as “the Fifth Beatle” after he was credited on “Get Back”, Preston was the first musical guest to appear on TV’s Saturday Night Live when the show premiered in 1975.
American character actor Robert Donner, a founding member of Harvey Lembec’s comedy-improv group The Crazy Quilt Comedy Company, died of a heart attack on June 8th, aged 75. After his friend and neighbour, Clint Eastwood, encouraged him to try drama, Donner appeared in more than 100 films and TV shows. Best known for his recurring role as Exidor on Mork and Mindy (1978–82), he also appeared in Agent for H.A.R.M., The Spirit is Willing, The Horror at 37,000 Feet, High Plains Drifter, Damnation Alley, Hysterical, Alan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold, Alien Nation: Dark Horizon and episodes of TV’s Ghost Story, The Six Million Dollar Man, The Incredible Hulk, Voyagers!, Blue Thunder, Starman and Early Edition.
Former model and exploitation actress Audrey Campbell (aka “Audrey Theile”) died after a long illness the same day, aged 76. She suffered from kidney and respiratory problems for many years. Best remembered for her role as Madame Olga in the 1964 sexploitation trilogy White Slaves of Chinatown, Olga’s House of Shame and Olga’s Girls, she also appeared in 50,000 B.C. (Before Clothing) and TV’s original Dark Shadows.
Hollywood leading man Arthur Franz died of heart failure and emphysema on June 17th, aged 86. His film credits include Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man, Flight to Mars, Invaders from Mars (1953), Back from the Dead, The Elame Barrier, Monster on the Campus, The Atomic Submarine, Sisters of Death and Dream No Evil. On TV he starred as Bill Winters in the 1959 series World of the Giants and appeared in episodes of Science Fiction Theatre, Man Into Space, One Step Beyond, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Invaders, Land of the Giants and The Six Million Dollar Man.
American character actor Richard Stahl (aka “Dick Stahl”) died on June 18th, aged 74. His numerous credits include The Student Nurses, Billy Jack, Slaughterhouse-Five, Beware the Blob, Terminal Island, Good Against Evil, High Anxiety, Hi Honey – I’m Dead, plus episodes of TV’s Search, Struck by Lightning, Highway to Heaven and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.