Those We Lost In 2015

As with every year, 2015 saw the loss of many notable people in the public eye from the entertainment industry, sports and politics. I've gathered a short list cross section of several of those we lost from the entertainment industry listed here in chronological order according to date of death.

January 1             Donna Douglas, 81

Best known for her role as Elly May Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies television series.

January 7             Rod Taylor, 84

Australian born actor who starred in numerous movies, most notably the movie of H.G. Welles' novel The Time Machine and Hitchcock's The Birds. He also had many guest starring roles in various television series.

February 14        Louis Jourdan, 93

French actor who starred in such musicals as Gigi with Leslie Caron and Can Can with Frank Sinatra and Shirley MacLaine. On the dramatic side, he played the James Bond villain in Octopussy. He also had numerous television roles and was equally adept playing the good guy and the bad guy.

February 27        Leonard Nimoy, 83

Certainly best known as Spock, half-human and half-Vulcan character from the original Star Trek television series in the late 1960s followed by a series of highly successful Star Trek theatrical movies. In addition to acting, he also directed and was a published author.

May 14                 B. B. King, 89

Legendary blues musician

June 7                  Christopher Lee, 93

British actor who was considered the master of the horror genre and a renowned film villain.

June 25               Patrick Macnee, 93

British actor best known for his role as the suave, sophisticated British secret agent John Steed with his trademark bowler hat and umbrella in The Avengers television series. He appeared in many films and guest starring roles in numerous American television series.

July 10                Omar Sharif, 83

The Egyptian born actor is best known for his starring role opposite Peter O'Toole in Lawrence Of Arabia and his starring role in Dr. Zhivago.

July 21                Theodore Bikel, 91

Stage and film actor who created the lead roles on Broadway in The Sound Of Music and Fiddler On The Roof. He had many film roles, including the Russian submarine captain in The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming, and numerous guest starring roles in various television series.

August 30           Wes Craven, 76

Filmmaker who defined the horror genre with his movie franchises of Nightmare On Elm Street and Scream as well as other movies.

September 1       Dean Jones, 84

Starred in several Disney movies including The Love Bug as well as many television roles.

September 6       Martin Milner, 83

Best known for his starring roles in Route 66 television series as well as Adam-12. His career spanned half a century starting as a young teenager and included both movies and guest starring roles on several television series.

October 24                   Maureen O'Hara, 95

Born in Ireland, she enjoyed a long career in American films. Her most notable role was probably the original Miracle On 34th Street. She also co-starred with John Wayne in several movies, her favorite being The Quiet Man set in Ireland.

October 30                   Al Molinaro, 96

The character actor is best known for his co-starring role as the owner of 'Arnolds' for several seasons of the Happy Days television series.

November 28      Marjorie Lord, 97

A film actress probably best known for her starring role opposite Danny Thomas in the television series, Make Room For Daddy.

December 4        Robert Loggia, 85

An actor best known for his character roles as tough guys, gangsters, cops, in movies and on television but became 'famous' for his role with Tom Hanks in Big with particular emphasis on the scene where the two of them played the giant piano keys by dancing on them.

And there you have it. As I said, a very short cross section on those who have entertained us over the decades.