R.I.P. John Hughes, 1950-2009

In addition to directing many classic 1980s films, John Hughes was also a brilliant writer.

A scene (set in St. Louis) from the 1983 National Lampoon's Vacation, which he single-handedly wrote:

R.I.P. Bob Bogle, 1934-2009

"Pioneering guitarist Bob Bogle, whose rock-instrumental band the Ventures scored a pair of hits in the 1960s with "Walk, Don't Run" and "Hawaii Five-O," has died, the group said on Tuesday. He was 75."



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R.I.P. Holly/Valens/Richardson

On February 3, 1959, a small-plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, United States killed three American rock and roll musicians: Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, as well as the pilot, Roger Peterson. The day was later called The Day the Music Died by Don McLean in his 1971 song "American Pie".

R.I.P. Ron Asheton, 1948-2009

"Famed rock-and-roll guitarist and longtime Ann Arbor resident Ronald "Ron" Asheton was found dead in his home on the city's west side this morning, police said. Asheton, 60, was an original member of The Stooges, a garage-rock band headlined by Iggy Pop and formed in Ann Arbor in 1967."

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R.I.P. Dock Ellis, 1945-2008

"Dock Ellis, who infamously claimed he pitched a no-hitter for Pittsburgh under the influence of LSD and later fiercely spoke out against drug and alcohol addiction, died Friday. He was 63."

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NPR Interview from March 2008, "An LSD No-No"

Subversive Cinema: R.I.P. Bruce Conner, 1933-2008

"Bruce Conner, a San Francisco artist renowned for working fluently across media, died at his home of natural causes on Monday. He was 74...

...Mr. Conner first got noticed for the short films he assembled from scavenged documentary and B-movie footage. Several of his films, including "A Movie" (1958), a sort of paean to human failure, and "Crossroads" (1977), are regarded as classics of independent filmmaking, even though Mr. Conner shot no original footage for them...

...Mr. Conner announced his own death erroneously on two occasions, once sending an obituary to a national art magazine, and later writing a self-description for the biographical encyclopedia Who Was Who in America."


Breakaway, 1966

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See this post from January about Conner's music video for Devo's Mongoloid

-Klax

R.I.P. George Carlin, 1937-2008

"George Carlin, whose astringent stand-up comedy made him an heir of Lenny Bruce, who gave voice to an indignant counterculture and assaulted the barricades of censorship on behalf of a generation of comics that followed him, died on Sunday in Santa Monica, Calif. He was 71 and lived in Venice, Calif."



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So, we lose yet another great American.

-Klax

R.I.P. Bo Diddley, 1928-2008

"Bo Diddley, a singer and guitarist who invented his own name, his own guitars, his own beat and, with a handful of other musical pioneers, rock ’n’ roll itself, died Monday at his home in Archer, Fla. He was 79.The cause was heart failure, a spokeswoman, Susan Clary, said."



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R.I.P. Will Elder 1921-2008

"Will Elder, a legendary illustrator and co-founder of Mad magazine, has died. He was 86. An influence on subversive comic artists like R. Crumb and Daniel Clowes, Elder "could render anything he could see with the precision of a photograph," writes David Hajdu in his new book The Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How It Changed America, "yet he had no inclination to waste his time on anything other than his overriding interest, pranksterism." Inducted into the Comic Book Hall Of Fame in 2003, Elder also worked for E.C. Comics and Playboy, who published his Little Annie Fanny comics for more than 25 years." -The AVClub

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R.I.P. Albert Hofmann 1906-2008

Albert Hofmann, who died on Tuesday aged 102, synthesised lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in 1938 and became the first person in the world to experience a full-blown acid trip.



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