Gone In '06

January 7 - Lou Rawls, singer, of cancer, 72
January 12 - Eldon Dedini, cartoonist ("Playboy"), of esophagus cancer, 84
January 14 - Shelley Winters, actress, of heart failure, 85
January 19 - Wilson Pickett, soul singer ("Mustang Sally"), of a heart attack, 64
January 31 - Coretta Scott King, civil rights activist, following a stroke, 78
February 3 - Al Lewis, actor (Grandpa on "The Munsters"), after a lengthy illness, 82
February 5 - Franklin Cover, actor (Tom Willis on "The Jeffersons"), of pneumonia, 77
February 6 - Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, actor ("Rio Bravo"), of natural causes, 80
February 9 - Phil Brown, actor (Uncle Owen in "Star Wars: A New Hope"), after a lengthy illness, age not reported
February 16 - Ernie Stautner, NFL football player (Pittsburgh Steelers), 80
February 20 - Curt Gowdy, sportscaster (NBC), of leukemia, 86
February 24 - Don Knotts, actor ("Three's Company"), of lung problems, 81
February 24 - Dennis Weaver, actor ("McCloud"), 81
February 25 - Darren McGavin, actor ("A Christmas Story"), of natural causes, 83
March 1 - Jack Wild, actor ("H.R. Pufnstuf"), of cancer, 53
March 6 - Kirby Puckett, major leaguer (Minnesota Twins), following a stroke, 45
March 13- Maureen Stapleton, actress ("Reds"), of lung disease, 80
March 13 - Peter Tomarken, game show host ("Press Your Luck"), in a private plane crash, 63
March 25 - Richard Fleischer, film director ("Soylent Green"), 89
March 25 - Buck Owens, country singer / TV host ("Hee Haw"), cause not reported, 76
March 27 - Dan Curtis, TV director/producer ("Dark Shadows"), of a brain tumor, 78
March 28 - Caspar Weinbergar, U.S. secretary of defense (1981-87), 88
March 30 - Gloria Monty, TV producer ("General Hospital"), of cancer, age not reported
April 5 - Gene Pitney, pop singer ("24 Hours From Tulsa"), of natural causes, 65
April 11 - June Pointer, pop singer (The Pointer Sisters), of cancer, 52
April 23 - Linn Sheldon, Cleveland children show host "Barnaby", of congestive heart failure, 86
April 27 - Steve Howe, major leaguer (Los Angeles Dodgers), in an auto accident, 48
May 8 - Iain MacMillan, photographer ("Abbey Road" album cover), cause not reported, 67
May 10 - Val Guest, science fiction filmmaker ("The Quatermass Experiment"), 94
May 11 - Frank Thomas Jr., actor ("Tom Corbett, Space Cadet"), following a stroke, 85
May 14 - Lew Anderson, actor (Clarabell the Clown on "The Howdy Doody Show"), of complications from prostate cancer, 84
May 27 - Paul Gleason, actor ("The Breakfast Club"), of mesothelioma lung cancer, 67
May 27 - Craig "Ironhead" Heyward, NFL football player (New Orleans Saints) / Zest spokesman, of a brain tumor, 39
May 27 - Alex Toth, comic artist ("Space Ghost"), case not reported, 77
June ? - Moose, actor (Eddie on "Frasier"), 16 ½
June 6 - Billy Preston, pop musician ("Will It Go Round in Circles"), of kidney failure resulting from chronic hypertension, 59
June 8 - Robert Donner, actor (Exidor on "Mork & Mindy"), from a heart attack, 75
June 11 - Tim Hildebrandt, artist (Star Wars movie poster), from complications of diabetes, 67
June 18 - Richard Stahl, actor ("Beware! The Blob"), of Parkinson's disease, 74
June 21 - Theo Bell, NFL football player (Pittsburgh Steelers), of kidney disease, 52
June 23 - Aaron Spelling, TV producer ("Charlie's Angels"), following a stroke, 83
June 24 - Patsy Ramsey, person of interest in the murder of her daughter, JonBenet Ramsey, of ovarian cancer, 49
June 26 - Jeffrey Brock, actor (Fleegle on "The Banana Splits"), of a brain tumor, 64 or 65
June 28 - Lennie Weinrib, voice actor ("H.R. Pufnstuf"), following a stroke, 71
July 6 - Kasey Rogers, actress (Louise Tate on "Bewitched"), of cancer, 79
July 7 - Syd Barrett, rock musician (Pink Floyd), of complications from diabetes, 60
July 8 - June Allyson, actress ("Too Young to Kiss", Depends commercials), after a lengthy illness, 88
July 9 - Christian Drake, actor ("Them!"), cause not reported, 82
July 11 - Barnard Hughes, actor (Buzz Richman on "Blossom"), after a brief illness, 90
July 13 - Red Buttons, actor ("Sayonara"), of vascular disease, 87
July 16 - Mickey Spillane, author (Mike Hammer series), 88
July 19 - Jack Warden, actor ("Heaven Can Wait"), after a long illness, 85
August 11 - Mike Douglas, TV talk show host ("The Mike Douglas Show"), 81
August 13 - Tony Jay, voice actor ("The Hunchback of Notre Dame"), of complications from lung cancer surgery, 73
August 14 - Bruno Kirby, actor ("City Slickers"), of complications from leukemia, 57
August 29 - Jumpin' Gene Simmons, rockabilly musician, after a long illness, 69
August 30 - Glenn Ford, actor ("Superman"), 90
September 4 - Steve Irwin, wildlife documentary host ("Crocodile Hunter"), stung by a stingray while taping a documentary, 44
September 11 - Pat Corley, actor (Phil the bartender on "Murphy Brown"), of congestive heart failure following heart surgery, 76
October 14 - Freddy Fender, country singer ("Before the Next Teardrop Falls), after a lengthy illness, 69
October 19 - Phyllis Kirk, actress ("House of Wax"), of a post-cerebral aneurysm, 79
October 20 - Jane Wyatt, actress (Margaret Anderson on "Father Knows Best"), of natural causes, 96
October 21 - Sandy West, rock drummer (The Runaways), of cancer, 46
October 28 - Arnold "Red" Auerbach, NBA basketball coach (Boston Celtics), of a heart attack, 89
November 3 - Paul Mauriat, orchestra conductor ("Love Is Blue"), 81
November 8 - Basil Poledouris, film & TV soundtrack composer ("Les Miserables"), of cancer, 61
November 9 - Ed Bradley, TV journalist ("60 Minutes"), of leukemia, 65
November 10 - Gerald Levert, R&B singer ("Baby Hold On to Me"), cause not reported, 40
November 10 - Jack Palance, actor ("City Slickers"), of natural causes, 87
November 17 - Ruth Brown, R&B singer ("Teardrops In My Eyes"), of complications from a stroke and heart attack, 78
November 17 - Bo Schembechler, college football coach (Michigan), after collapsing (probably of heart failure), 77
November 20 - Robert Altman, film director ("M*A*S*H"), of complications from cancer, 81
November 20 - Andre Waters, NFL football player (Philadelphia Eagles), shot (suicide), 44
November 26 - Dave Cockrum, comic book artist (X-Men), of complications from diabetes, 63
November 27 - Casey Coleman, sports announcer (Cleveland Browns), of pancreatic cancer, 55
November 29 - Emmett Kelly Jr., clown, of complications from pneumonia, 83. He was the son of clown Emmett Kelly
December 9 - Martin Nodell, aka Mart Dellon, comic book artist (Green Lantern), 91
December 10 - Jay "Jaybird" Drennan, country music disk jockey (Akron, OH), from a blood clot following surgery for a broken ankle, 78
December 12 - Peter Boyle, actor (Frank Barone in "Everybody Loves Raymond"), of multiple myeloma and heart disease, 71
December 14 - Mike Evans, actor (Lionel Jefferson on "All in the Family"), of throat cancer, 57
December 18 - Joe Barbera, animator ("Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?"), 95
December 25 - James Brown, soul singer ("I Got You (I Feel Good)"), of heart failure, 73
December 27 - Len "Boom" Goldberg, disc jockey (Cleveland WMMS), 74
December 27 - Gerald Ford, U.S. President (R, 1974-77), 93
December 29 - Saddam Hussein, Iraqi president (1979-2003), executed by hanging, 69

This is only a partial list of famous people who passed away in 2006. Most of this list is courtesy of Who's Alive And Who's Dead.

Merry
Christmas
Everybody!

A Classic Cartoon Christmas, Three

I made my own volume three to "A Classic Cartoon Christmas". Here's the track listing --

1. 'Christmas At The Farm' from The Garfield Christmas Special (1987). I downloaded this and track 3 a couple of years ago (don't remember where, though).
2. 'Christmas Chimes Are Calling Santa Claus' from the Rankin/Bass special 'Twas The Night Before Christmas (1974). This track is courtesy of Check The Cool Wax. Check out his blog for a ton of cool Christmas music.
3. 'Christmas Is Here' from The Garfield Christmas Special.
4. 'Flintstone Christmas Night' from the CD A Christmas In Bedrock (1999).
5. 'Jingle Jingle Jingle' from Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964). From the CD soundtrack.
6. 'Linus and Lucy' by the Vince Guaraldi Trio from A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965). From the CD soundtrack.
7. 'The Most Wonderful Day Of The Year' from Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964).
8. 'To Every Child In The World A Toy' by Jim Cummings from The Story Of Santa Claus (1996).
9. 'Trim Up The Tree' from How The Grinch Stole Christmas (1966).
From the CD soundtrack.
10. 'We Are Santa's Elves' from Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964).
11. 'We're Gonna Pull It Off' by Jim Cummings, Miko Hughes, Kathryn Zaremba and Tim Curry from The Story Of Santa Claus (1996).
12. 'What Child Is This' by The Vince Guaraldi Trio from A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Edited 12/12/2010 - Download link re-upped to Mediafire. Added three more songs to the mix.

13. 'Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer' by Tony Bennett from Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer and The Island of Misfit Toys (2001)
14. 'Christmas Town' by The Pointer Sisters from Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie (1998)
15. 'The Garfield Twelve Days of Christmas' by Garfield (Lorenzo Music) from an episode of Garfield & Friends (1994)

Click below to download--

--> A Classic Cartoon Christmas, Three <--

Christmas Parodies - The Drew Carey Show

This track is from the CD "Cleveland Rocks! Music From The Drew Carey Show" (1998).

From the episode "The Vacation"
Originally aired 12/17/97

In an attempt to win a Winfred-Louder workspace decoration contest, Mimi offers up a choir-in-a-workspace number that unfortunately loses to Drew's edible gingerbread desk-and-office space.


Christmas Parodies - Mimi & Boys Choir

Merry Christmas Santa Claus (You're A Lovely Guy) - Max Headroom **Updated 11/28/07**

I was a fan of Max Headroom back in the 80's, I remember the Coke commercials and his TV series. I even have the set of Max Headroom trading cards. I was not aware of this song until it was posted on Falalalala a couple of years ago. It was originally released as a single on Chrysalis Records in 1986.

Link updated 11/28/07.

Click below to download --

--> Merry Christmas Santa Claus (You're A Lovely Guy) <--

A Classic Cartoon Christmas, Too

Here's the sequel to 1996's A Classic Cartoon Christmas. 1997's A Classic Cartoon Christmas, Too. I love these old specials, especially the ones by Rankin/Bass.

Track Listing

1. Heat Miser from "Year Without A Santa Claus"
2. Snow Miser from "Year Without A Santa Claus"
3. We Wish You A Hairy Chestwig from "The Ren & Stimpy Show Crock O' Christmas"
4. The First Toymaker To The King from "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town"
5. No More Toymakers To The King from "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town"
6. Silver And Gold from "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer"
7. There's Always Tomorrow from "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer"
8. Holidays from "Madeline's Favorite Songs"
9. Follow That Star from "The Beginner's Bible Sings"
10. The Lord's Blessing from "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol"

Link updated 11/14/07

Click below to download --

--> A Classic Cartoon Christmas, Too <--

O Tannenbaum

Our Tree

Sorry it has taken so long between posts. I hope to have A Classic Cartoon Christmas, Too up by tomorrow. To tide you over, here's a picture of our tree. Merry Christmas!

A Classic Cartoon Christmas

Here's a great CD released by Nick At Nite Records in 1996. It features 14 songs from the following classic cartoon TV specials --

How The Grinch Stole Christmas
Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
Frosty The Snowman
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Muppet Family Christmas (are The Muppets cartoons?)
and
The Little Drummer Boy

Track Listing
1. Welcome Christmas from How The Grinch Stole Christmas
2. Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer by Burl Ives
3. We're A Couple Of Misfits by Billie Richards & Paul Soles
4. Frosty The Snowman by Jimmy Durante
5. Put One Foot In Front Of The Other by Mickey Rooney & Keenan Wynn
6. Christmas Time Is Here by The Vince Guaraldi Trio
7. Hark, The Herald Angels Sing by The Vince Guaraldi Trio
8. Medley: Jingle Bells/Jingle Bell Rock by The Muppets
9. You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch by Thurl Ravenscroft
10. Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town by Fred Astaire
11. O Tannenbaum by The Vince Guaraldi Trio
12. The Little Drummer Boy by The Vienna Boys Choir
13. A Holly Jolly Christmas by Burl Ives and Chorus
14. We Need A Little Christmas by The Muppets

I will (hopefully) post part two of this in a week or so. Stay tuned.

Link Updated 11/14/07

Click below to download --

--> A Classic Cartoon Christmas <--



For more classic cartoon goodness visit Check The Cool Wax for Rankin/Bass 'Twas The Night Before Christmas Complete Story and Original Soundtrack. He also has lots of other cool Christmas stuff.