Animation Greats William Hanna and Joe Barbera with Tom and Jerry
Joe Barbera, half of the Hanna-Barbera animation team that produced such beloved cartoon characters as Tom and Jerry, Yogi Bear and the Flintstones, passed away Monday, December 18th , a Warner Bros. spokesman said. He was 95.
I don’t know about you, but I was rasied on Hanna-Barbera cartoons — The Flinstones and The Jetsons being two of my favorites — and even had my first crush on animated boy adventurer, Johnny Quest. The picture below represents many of Hanna-Barbera’s most popular and enduring/iconic characters. That really takes me back. Maybe it’s cheaper to make all cartoons in Asia these days, but you sure don’t see the same quality as you did back in the day.
Another little piece of the music industry as we once knew it (read: back in the ’70s) is lost forever with the passing of Ahmet Ertegun, founder of the once great Atlantic Records, who died on December 14th, 2006. Ertegun was 83 years old. In an added note of poignancy, he had been in a coma for weeks after injuring his head in a fall at a Rolling Stones concert on October 29th.
Not only did Ertegun sign Led Zeppelin, but Ahmet Zappa, Frank’s youngest son is also named after him. A couple of years ago, when I was temping to supplement my meager income as a freelance writer, I did a few days stint at Atlantic Records working their switchboard. A few times when Ertegun’s assistant was away from her desk and I had to cover his phone, I got to pick up his extension and say “Mr. Ertegun’s office.” It actually gave me a tiny thrill to say that. Sadly, I never got to meet him even though he was just down at the end of the corridor from where I was sitting.
Speaking from Los Angeles, singer Daryl Hall (Hall & Oates) had the following to say about Ertegun’s passing:
“Ahmet Ertegun was a giant in the record business. He cared first and foremost about the ARTIST and the MUSIC – much more than the business. He believed that if the Artist was true to him or herself, good business would follow. Sadly in today’s atmosphere, this isn’t the case. But, during Ahmet’s days of influence it was! He was one of the first people to realize our potential and supported us during our beginning – the most important time. We couldn’t have done what we did without Ahmet and Arif Mardin’s support and encouragement. He changed music and created what I consider its golden age. He will be sorely missed.”
On June 6th, 2006, Billy Preston, often known as the fifth Beatle, passed away at the age of 59. Preston was recruited to record with The Beatles by George Harrison and performed on The White Album, Let it Be and Abbey Road. He also played with major artists like Neil Diamond, Ray Charles and The Rolling Stones, wrote the Joe Cocker 1974 hit “You Are So Beautiful” and had a dozen or so hits of his own. My personal favorite was “Will It Go ‘Round In Circles,” which was a #1 hit when I was 12.
Preston had been in a coma since November 2005, after suffering kidney failure brought on by a lifelong drug addiction. Rest In Peace.
Billy with The Beatles during the recording sessions for Let It Be
It is with a not-that-heavy heart that I am announcing the recent death of my Guest Book. After spending too much time, several times a day, cleaning out innumerable spam messages for such can’t-live-without-it items as Texas Hold’ Em Gambling Websites, Viagra, “David’s Prom Dresses” and Cialis, I decided it would be in the best interest of my right wrist to close the Guest Book to new comments. No one had left a new message in six months anyway. Words of faint praise and clever communications can still be sent to me directly or left on my FaceBook Fan Page.
