Don Cornelius, creator and host of the legendary Soul Train dance show, passed away early this morning (February 1st, 2012) of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Cornelius was 75 years old. The NY Times Arts section has an excellent Obit at This Link. Farewell, Don Cornelius. You were a true original, and you will be missed.
Tag Archives: suicide
RIP Jack Kevorkian
Jack Kevorkian, a true America hero and compassionate human being, has passed away from complications of an underlying disease at the age of 83. “Evidently,” according to the obituary at the previous link, “his suffering never reached a level where he sought a way out, as did the terminally-ill patients he assisted throughout his controversial and storied career.” A few months ago I watched the fantastic HBO bio-pic about Kevorkian, You Don’t Know Jack, which earned Al Pacino an Emmy and a Golden Globe award for his portrayal of Kevorkian, and it was SO GOOD! I recommend you add it to your Netflix Queue as soon as possible, as in right now! God speed you, Dr. Kevorkian. God speed you home.
Classic Post Punk Album: Throbbing Gristle’s 20 Jazz Funk Greats
RIP Peter “Sleazy” Christopherson
On This Date, December 10th in 1979: Industrial music pioneers Throbbing Gristle released their third album, 20 Jazz Funk Greats (Industrial Records). The album’s cover photograph was taken at Beachy Head, a chalk headland on the south coast of England. The cliff located there is the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain, rising to 530 feet above sea level.
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Darby Crash: Dead at Twenty-Two
On This Date, Decemebr 7th in 1980: Darby Crash (born Jan Paul Beahm), lead singer of The Germs, died of an intentional heroin overdose at the age of 22. For anyone curious about Darby, The Germs, and the LA Punk Rock scene of the late 70s/early 80s, I highly recommend the bio pic, What We Do is Secret. Despite a lot of criticism from people who were there; to be honest, I was there also, and I think the film got a lot of things right. Favorite Germs Song: “Richie Dagger’s Crime.” RIP Darby.
Remembering Ian Curtis
July 15, 1956 – May 18, 1980
One This Date, May 18th in 1980: Joy Divison vocalist, Ian Curtis committed suicide by hanging himself in the kitchen of his home. Curtis, who had suffered from epilepsy and depression, was just 23 years old. To all his fans, and to those that didn’t really know anything about him or the band’s music, but who still love a compelling and beautifully directed / photographed biography, I highly recommend the film Control, directed by Anton Corbijn, which is just excellent and available now on DVD.
