Celebrity Death Thread

[Tony G]

is

[Malto Marko]

Whoa!

Been there, done that but, still breathing.......

[YT]

Mark,

If you get a call to deliver flowers to the funeral home, he's probably dead!


or else someone is into romantic necrophelia

[Tony G]

Emanuel Steward never forgot his roots. He was proud to have been a workingman in Detroit — and just as proud for people to know how he rose from an ordinary working background to become one of the most extraordinary figures in boxing history.
As the shockwaves reverberate from the news of Emanuel's passing, memories flood back in an endless highlight loop of a man who grew to embody the best parts of a sport known as "the sweet science."
Emanuel died Thursday after an illness that had hospitalized him in recent weeks. He was 68.
I spent four decades covering boxing for The Detroit News, and there was no individual in boxing whom I spent more time with than Emanuel Steward.
In any setting — the steamy basement gym at the old Kronk Community Center on Detroit's west side, among the Las Vegas glitz crowd, or sitting quietly in his home on Detroit's west side — Emanuel brought sparkle and wisdom.
He put the Kronk team on the sports world's map with a stable of champions that began with Hilmer Kenty and Thomas Hearns and continued until his death with Ukranian heavyweight champ Wladimir Klitschko.
The Kronk team was like a runaway locomotive, and Emanuel was the travel agent, ticket taker,tour guideand conductor. Wherever a Kronk fighter entered the ring, the entourage of family, friends and wannabes followed wearing their red and yellow colors.
Kronk was a little loud, a little bold — and a lot good.
The Detroit sports scene was a better place for Emanuel Steward. It will be sadder and less joyful without him.

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz2ARKbeckg

[Malto Marko]

Too bad that the world of boxing became so crooked.

Don King made a fortune then killed it.

There were a few others that inspired King to try to manipulate the matches then make millions but, collectively, they killed the sport which had the potential to make hundreds of millions if not more, than they have in the last 20 years.

[Tony G]

Legendary Detroit weatherman Sonny Eliot dies

Published On: Nov 16 2012 06:14:31 AM EST Updated On: Nov 16 2012 07:10:00 AM EST

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A Look At Sonny Eliot's Career

DETROIT - The legendary Detroit weatherman who always managed to spread sunshine even when the forecast called for rain, Sonny Eliot, has died.
WWJ reported Friday that family members had confirmed his passing at a home in Farmington Hills. He was 91.
Eliot was an American hero long before he clipped on a microphone, serving on a B-24 bomber in WWII. He was shot down over Germany and spent more than a year as a prisoner of war. He entertained his fellow captives and was morale booster until they were freed.
Quick Clicks

• Sonny Eliot signs off

His professional career began in 1947, and he joined WWJ radio in 1950. Eliot was inducted into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame in 2005.

"Well into his old age, Sonny, when you would talked to this guy, he was always on. You had to have your mind on. The one-liners would just be flying out his mouth," said Local 4 reporter Roger Weber.


[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZD-gKG5-g8"]Sonny Eliot on 50 Years in Broadcasting - YouTube[/ame]

[FVD]

When I most recently came back to MI I heard Sonny on a radio commercial and thought wow he's still alive? One of those local Detroit celebrities I remember as a little kid and growing up. RIP Sonny.

[FVD]

RIP to Twinkie the Kid too:

Hostess, the maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, plans to go out of business, lay off its 18,500 workers and sell its snack cake and bread brands.
The Irving, Texas, company said a nationwide strike crippled its ability to make and deliver its products, which also include Ding Dongs, Ho Ho's and Home Pride bread.
Hostess suspended bakery operations at all its factories and said its stores will remain open for several days to sell already-baked products.
The company had warned employees that it would file a motion in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to unwind its business and sell assets if plant operations didn't return to normal levels by Thursday evening. The privately held company filed for Chapter 11 protection in January, its second trip through bankruptcy court in less than a decade.
"Many people have worked incredibly long and hard to keep this from happening, but now Hostess Brands has no other alternative than to begin the process of winding down and preparing for the sale of our iconic brands," CEO Gregory F. Rayburn said in a letter to employees posted on the company website.
He added that all employees will eventually lose their jobs, "some sooner than others."
"Unfortunately, because we are in bankruptcy, there are severe limits on the assistance the (company) can offer you at this time," Rayburn wrote.
Thousands of members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union went on strike last week after rejecting in September a contract offer that cut wages and benefits. Hostess said Friday the company is unprofitable "under its current cost structure, much of which is determined by union wages and pension costs."
A union representative did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press seeking comment on the company's announcement.
Hostess has said that production at about a dozen of the company's 33 plants has been seriously affected by the strike. Three plants were closed earlier this week.
Hostess had already reached a contract agreement with its largest union, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
The company, founded in 1930, was fighting battles beyond labor costs. Competition is increasing in the snack space and Americans are increasingly conscious about healthy eating. Hostess also makes Dolly Madison, Drake's and Nature's Pride snack

[Islair]

So they went on strike, because they didnt want to make less money. They knew the business was in trouble, and now they are all out of jobs. Morons.

[Tony G]

This is known as the "Fuck me, I'll show you!" approach

[ghandi]

Hostess is a loss for us all...I hope that union is proud.

[bimmer84]

A turtle was happily swimming along a river when a scorpion hailed it from the shore.
A scorpion, being a very poor swimmer, asked a turtle to carry him on his back across a river. "Are you mad?" exclaimed the turtle. "You'll sting me while I'm swimming and I'll drown."
"My dear turtle," laughed the scorpion, "if I were to sting you, you would drown and I would go down with you, and drown as well. Now where is the logic in that?"
The turtle thought this over, and saw the logic of the scorpion's statement. "You're right!" cried the turtle. "Hop on!" The scorpion climbed aboard and halfway across the river the scorpion gave the turtle a mighty sting. As they both sank to the bottom, the turtle resignedly said:
"Do you mind if I ask you something? You said there'd be no logic in your stinging me. Why did you do it?"
"It has nothing to do with logic," the drowning scorpion sadly replied. "It's just my character."

[DanO]

"So they went on strike, because they didnt want to make less money. They knew the business was in trouble, and now they are all out of jobs. Morons."
-------------------------This is a huge problem with unions and its members. They never think/believe the company is in trouble. They think they are full of shit and just blowing shit up their asses during negotiations to "F" the worker. They need to pull their head out of their asses. When I first started working for the city, another worker and friend, wanted me to join him as union stewards. I did, not because I was pro union, but because he wanted me too and we then didn't have to pay union dues. What I found is I was continually having to defend the shitty employee, who I despised myself, because they were shitty employees. Dropped that real quick after one term. Unions have done good things and sometimes still do. They brought pay up as well as safety concerns. Safety concerns are no longer and issue to be concerned about for the union. Union or no union you better have a safe workplace or you're going to get sued. I'd like to believe employers would pay a fair wage without unions but I believe it would digress, at their decision, and we would be working for crap again. I know there are none union company's who pay well but if it weren't for the union setting a rate they have to compete against I think they would regress as well. I think unions are still a necessity but the power they yield needs to be reigned back.

[SeattleLionsFan]

One thing I think we can all agree on. Shitty management has nothing to do with it.

[CGVT]

Let's see...

A job working for less pay and shitty management or demanding more pay and being unemployed...

Hmmmmm.... tough decision.