Ireneparalegal
03-22-2006, 01:28 AM
The following is a list of people who had died while doing what they love:
Jerome Rodale (died June 5, 1971)
In a New York Times Magazine interview, this 72-year-old longevity guru announced, "I'm going to live to be 100, unless I'm run down by a sugar-crazed taxi driver." A guest on the Dick Cavett Show the next day, while Cavett was discussing politics with journalist Pete Hamill, Rodale's head dropped to his chest and he was heard to let out what sounded like a snore. "Are we boring you, Mr. Rodale?" asked Cavett. There was no response -- Rodale was dead. The show was never broadcast.
Irene Ryan (died April 26, 1973)
Best known as "Granny" on TV's Beverly Hillbillies, this spritely 71-year-old suffered a stroke while performing in the Broadway musical Pippin and died six weeks later.
Jon-Erik Hexum (died October 12, 1984)
Hexum died of a gunshot wound after he accidentally shot himself in the head with a .44-caliber magnum pistol loaded with blanks while on the set of the TV series Cover-Up. Wadding from the blank cartridge had been driven into his skull. Hexum was replaced in the series by Antony Hamilton, but the show didn't last all that long, running only from 22 September 1984 to 6 July 1985 before being canceled.
Redd Foxx (died October 11, 1991)
Actor/comedian Redd Foxx underwent a heart attack on the set of The Royal Family, a new sitcom he was to appear in. Best known for his curmudgeonly role in Sanford and Son, this time it really was the big one, Elizabeth.
John Ritter (died September 11, 2003)
During the taping of the TV sitcom 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, the 54-year-old actor was stricken by a previously undiagnosed heart problem. He died in hospital later that night.
Jerome Rodale (died June 5, 1971)
In a New York Times Magazine interview, this 72-year-old longevity guru announced, "I'm going to live to be 100, unless I'm run down by a sugar-crazed taxi driver." A guest on the Dick Cavett Show the next day, while Cavett was discussing politics with journalist Pete Hamill, Rodale's head dropped to his chest and he was heard to let out what sounded like a snore. "Are we boring you, Mr. Rodale?" asked Cavett. There was no response -- Rodale was dead. The show was never broadcast.
Irene Ryan (died April 26, 1973)
Best known as "Granny" on TV's Beverly Hillbillies, this spritely 71-year-old suffered a stroke while performing in the Broadway musical Pippin and died six weeks later.
Jon-Erik Hexum (died October 12, 1984)
Hexum died of a gunshot wound after he accidentally shot himself in the head with a .44-caliber magnum pistol loaded with blanks while on the set of the TV series Cover-Up. Wadding from the blank cartridge had been driven into his skull. Hexum was replaced in the series by Antony Hamilton, but the show didn't last all that long, running only from 22 September 1984 to 6 July 1985 before being canceled.
Redd Foxx (died October 11, 1991)
Actor/comedian Redd Foxx underwent a heart attack on the set of The Royal Family, a new sitcom he was to appear in. Best known for his curmudgeonly role in Sanford and Son, this time it really was the big one, Elizabeth.
John Ritter (died September 11, 2003)
During the taping of the TV sitcom 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, the 54-year-old actor was stricken by a previously undiagnosed heart problem. He died in hospital later that night.