Happy Rockefeller dies at 88; wife of Nelson Rockefeller

Most people can get a divorce without having the world hang on it," Margaretta "Happy" Rockefeller once told a reporter.
But in 1963, divorce was still a scandal. And she and her husband were not "most people."
That year, she married Nelson Rockefeller, the New York governor and front-runner for the 1964 Republican nomination for president. Their marital history was widely seen as a political drawback that cost him the ticket.
Happy Rockefeller, who ultimately served as the nation's second lady when her husband became Gerald Ford's vice president and used her prominence to help reshape public attitudes toward breast cancer, has died. She was 88.
A family spokesman said she died Tuesday at her home in Tarrytown, N.Y., after a short illness.

Notable Deaths

CaptionNotable Deaths of 2015

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CaptionB.B. King

Ken Hively / Los Angeles Times

The blues legend took the musical genre from the barrooms and back porches of the Mississippi Delta to Carnegie Hall and the world's toniest concert stages. The 15-time Grammy winner created a unique style that made him one of the most respected and influential blues musicians ever. He was 89. Full obituary

The blues legend took the musical genre from the barrooms and back porches of the Mississippi Delta to Carnegie Hall and the world's toniest concert stages. The 15-time Grammy winner created a unique style that made him one of the most respected and influential blues musicians ever. He was 89. Full obituary
(Ken Hively / Los Angeles Times)

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CaptionWilliam Zinsser

Damon Winter / New York Times

The writer and editor wrote "On Writing Well," a writing guide that hit bookstores across America in 1976. With more than 1 million copies sold, it became a sturdy companion for amateurs and professionals alike seeking to express themselves with clarity, economy and human warmth. He was 92. Full obituary

The writer and editor wrote "On Writing Well," a writing guide that hit bookstores across America in 1976. With more than 1 million copies sold, it became a sturdy companion for amateurs and professionals alike seeking to express themselves with clarity, economy and human warmth. He was 92. Full obituary
(Damon Winter / New York Times)

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CaptionRachel Rosenthal

Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times

The celebrated performance and theater artist brought experimental productions and other unclassifiable creations to audiences around Southern California. She was 88. Full obituary

The celebrated performance and theater artist brought experimental productions and other unclassifiable creations to audiences around Southern California. She was 88. Full obituary
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

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CaptionElizabeth Wilson

Archive Photos / Getty Images

Best known for her role as the clueless mother of a confused, young Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) in "The Graduate," Wilson also acted in more than 30 movies and numerous Broadway plays. She was 94. Full obituary

Best known for her role as the clueless mother of a confused, young Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) in "The Graduate," Wilson also acted in more than 30 movies and numerous Broadway plays. She was 94. Full obituary
(Archive Photos / Getty Images)

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Notable deaths of 2015

Photos of leaders, stars and other notable figures who died in 2015.

Notable deaths of 2015

Photos of leaders, stars and other notable figures who died in 2015.

In the early 1960s, the sexual revolution was still a distant rumble and divorce was viewed as a disgrace. So when the politically ambitious scion of the oil-rich Rockefeller clan ended his long first marriage to marry a socialite 18 years his junior — someone who had left her husband and four young children to be with him — the headlines were not confined to the society page.

The Funeral of Eleanor Roosevelt

Celebrities over 100, 90 years old. 2009 Sat, 2009-07-11

Celebrities over 100, 90 years old.

Submitted by Guest on Sat, 2009-07-11 

• Hollywood Gossip

* This page was written in 2009. This page will NOT be updated.
Feel free to send me your updated list.

Celebrities 100 years old or older (as of Summer 2009)

Frederica Sagor Maas 109 (Screenwriter, Essayist, Author) Frederica Alexandrina Sagor Maas (July 6, 1900 – January 5, 2012) was an Americandramatist and playwright, screenwriter, memoirist, and author,^[1] the youngest daughter of Russian immigrants. As an essayist Maas was best known for a detailed, tell-all memoir of her time spent in early Hollywood.^[2] She was one of the rare supercentenarians known for reasons other than longevity
Johannes Heesters 105 (Actor, 87 Year Career, STILL ACTIVE)
Johan Marius Nicolaas "Johannes" Heesters (5 December 1903 – 24 December 2011) was a Dutch-born actor of stage, television and film as well as a vocalist of numerous recordings and performer on the concert stage, with a career dating back to 1921. Active almost exclusively in the German-speaking world from the mid-1930s, he was a controversial figure for his actions during the Second World War and his success in Nazi Germany.^[1] Heesters was considered one of the oldest stage performers in history.
Doris Eaton Travis 105 (Actress, Dancer, Ziegfeld Girl)



Mona Ray (104)

Barbara Kent 102 (Actress)
Barbara Kent (December 16, 1907 – October 13, 2011) was a Canadian-born, American-based film actress of the 1920s and '30s.



Dorothy Young 102 (Performer)
Dorothy Lena Young (May 3, 1907 – March 20, 2011

Miriam Seegar 101 (Actress)
Miriam Seegar Whelan (September 1, 1907 – January 2, 2011) was an American silent film actress.



Pola Illery 100 (Actress)
Pola Illéry (December 18, 1909 – February 15, 2012) was a Romanian silent- and early talking-film actress.

Dorothy Bartlam 100 (Actress)


Dolores Hope 100 (Wife of Comedian-Actor Bob Hope)

Dolores Hope, DC*SG (May 27, 1909 – September 19, 2011)^[1] was an American singer, entertainer, philanthropist and wife of English-born American actor and comedian Bob Hope.

Celebrities 90 years old or older (Summer 2009)

Gloria Stuart 99 (old Lady on "Titanic")
Luise Rainer 99 (Actress)
Carla Laemmle 99 (Actress,niece of the founder of Universal Studios)
Dorothy Janis 99 (Early Hollywood Screen Siren)
Mitch Miller - 98
Lupita Tovar 98 (Mexican sweetheart of the 1930's)
Gustav Lantschner (98)
Yvette Le Bon (98)
Paulette Dubost (98)
Brigette Borchert (98)
Baby Marie Osborne (97)
Mary Carlisle 97 (Original Blonde Bombshell)
Annalisa Ericson (95)
June Havoc (95)
Michael D. Moore (94)
Alicia Rhett 94 (Oldest Living Cast Member of "Gone with the Wind")
Jack LaLanne - 94
Harry Morgan - 94
Olivia de Havilland 93 (Melanie from "Gone with the Wind")
Frank Coghlan Jr. (93)
Isuzu Yamada (92)
Ernest Borgnine - 92
Kirk Douglas - 92
Zsa Zsa Gabor - 92
Lena Horne 92
Joan Fontaine 91 (Olivia de Havilland's sister, Actress also)
Phyllis Diller (91)
Mary Healy 91
Patricia Andrews 91 (Last Living Andrews Sister)
Frances Bay 91
Marjorie Lord 90
Ruth Duccini 90 (Munchkin in "The Wizard of Oz")
Louis Jourdan 90
Betty Garrett 90
Pamela Blake 90
Helen Wagner 90
Ellen Albertini Dow 90
Joyce Redman 90
Radu Beligan 90
Audrey Totter 90
Diana Serra Cary (90)
Virginia Davis (90)
Vondell Darr (90)
Andy Rooney - 90

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Mickey Roony, B.B. King, Dick Clark, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard... are not 90 yet.

»

• 's blog

Soul singer Ben King Dead at 76 Save the Last Dance for Me Song

Stand By Me

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EBONY 

✔@EBONYMag

Legendary soul singe

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Soul singer Ben E. King, whose classic hit "Stand By Me" became an enduring affirmation of love and devotion for generations of listeners, has died.

King died Thursday in New Jersey, his booking agent, Randy Irwin, told CNN. He was 76.

Born Benjamin Earl Nelson in North Carolina, King moved to New York as a boy and first found success as an early member of the Drifters, the doo-wop group famous for such hits as "Save the Last Dance for Me."

But he is remembered most for "Stand By Me," inspired by a gospel song, which he recorded on his own. Buoyed by King's elegant baritone, the tune was a top 10 hit in the U.S. in 1961 and returned to the charts 25 years later when it was prominently featured in "Stand By Me," Rob Reiner's 1986 coming-of-age movie about four adolescent boys.

The song has been covered hundreds of times and has long been a staple at weddings. The Recording Industry Association of America voted it one of the 25 top songs of the 20th century, and music-rights organization BMI named it the fourth-most played song of the century on radio and TV.

Singer Ben E. King in 1977.

In March 2015 the Library of Congressinducted King's original version into the National Recording Registry, saying "it was King's incandescent vocal that made it a classic."

King shared songwriting credits on "Stand By Me" with Elmo Glick, a collective pseudonym for the team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who produced the recording session. The Library of Congress also praised the song as "anchored by perhaps the best known bassline in recording history" and for its "soaring string arrangement."

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/01/entertainment/ben-e-king-singer-obit-feat/

http://www.tmz.com/2015/05/01/ben-e-king-dead-stand-by-me-singer-dies/