jobsanger: December 2015

The caricature above, by DonkeyHotey, is of the GOP's "kiddie table" in an early debate (with Lindsey Graham, Rick Santorum, George Pataki, and Bobby Jindal). Only one of those candidates is still in the race -- Rick Santorum (who seems to be better than the others at ignoring reality).

The field that started with 17 candidates has now been reduced to only 12. On Tuesday evening, George Pataki suspended his presidential campaign -- joining Rick Perry, Scott Walker, Bobby Jindal, and Lindsey Graham as used-to-be's. Pataki gave this nice bit of word salad to the incredibly few supporters he was able to muster:

"While tonight is the end of my journey for the White House as I suspend my campaign for president, I am confident we can elect the right person. Someone who will bring us together and who understands that politicians, including the president, must be the people's servant and not their master. I know the best of America is still ahead of us."

I surprised that Pataki lasted this long. He was unable to get more than 1% support in any of the myriad polls that have been released -- and in almost all of them, couldn't even reach 1%. He was wasting what money he had, and everyone else's time.

("The Death of Minnehaha" by William de Leftwich Dodge in 1892.)

Death is the final act of a life (hopefully well-lived). Here is just a sampling of some of the more well-known people who died in 2015.

JANUARY
1- Mario Cuomo, 82, American politician, Governor of New York (1983–1994).
1- Donna Douglas, 82, American actress (The Beverly Hillbillies, Frankie and Johnny, The Twilight Zone).
2- Little Jimmy Dickens, 94, American country music singer ("May the Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose").
3- Edward Brooke, 95, American politician, member of the U.S. Senate from Massachusetts (1967–1979)
3- Bryan Caldwell, 54, American football player (Houston Oilers).
4- Stu Miller, 87, American baseball player (San Francisco Giants, Baltimore Orioles).
4- Stuart Scott, 49, American sports journalist (SportsCenter).
7- Jethro Pugh, 70, American football player (Dallas Cowboys).
7- Rod Taylor, 84, Australian actor (The Time Machine, The Birds).
8- Andraé Crouch, 72, American gospel singer.
9- Samuel Goldwyn, Jr., 88, American film producer (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World).
9- Roy Tarpley, 50, American basketball player (Dallas Mavericks).
10- Taylor Negron, 57, American comedian and actor (Angels in the Outfield, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Bio-Dome).
11- Anita Ekberg, 83, Swedish-Italian actress (La Dolce Vita, Paris Holiday, Back from Eternity).
18- Dallas Taylor, 66, American drummer (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young).
18- Tony Verna, 81, American television producer, invented instant replay.
23- Ernie Banks, 83, American Hall of Fame baseball player (Chicago Cubs).
29- Rod McKuen, 81, American poet, singer and songwriter ("Jean", "Seasons in the Sun").

FEBRUARY
2- Stewart Stern, 92, American screenwriter (Rebel Without a Cause, Rachel, Rachel, Sybil).
5- Anne Moody, 74, American author and civil rights activist.
7- Billy Casper, 83, American Hall of Fame golfer, 51 career PGA Tour wins.
7- Dean Smith, 83, American Hall of Fame basketball coach (North Carolina).
11- Bob Simon, 73, American television journalist (60 Minutes).
11- Jerry Tarkanian, 84, American Hall of Fame basketball coach (Long Beach State, UNLV, San Antonio Spurs, Fresno State).
12- Sam Andrew, 73, American musician (Big Brother and the Holding Company).
14- Louis Jourdan, 93, French actor (Letter from an Unknown Woman, Gigi, Octopus).
14- Philip Levine, 87, American Pulitzer Prize-winning poet.
16- Lesley Gore, 68, American singer ("It's My Party", "Judy's Turn to Cry", "You Don't Own Me").
21- Clark Terry, 94, American jazz trumpeter and flugelhornist.
26- Oscar Díaz, 32, American welterweight boxer, head injury.
27- Leonard Nimoy, 83, American actor and director (Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, Fringe).
28- Anthony Mason, 48, American basketball player (New York Knicks).

MARCH
1- Minnie Miñoso, 92, Cuban baseball player (Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians).
5- Albert Maysles, 88, American documentary filmmaker (Gimme Shelter, Grey Gardens).
8- Sam Simon, 59, American writer, producer and director (The Simpsons, Cheers, The Drew Carey Show).
8- Lew Soloff, 71, American jazz trumpeter (Blood, Sweat & Tears).
16- Andy Fraser, 62, British musician (John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Free) and songwriter ("All Right Now", "Every Kinda People").
20- Jim Berry, 83, American cartoonist (Berry's World).
20- A. J. Pero, 55, American drummer (Twisted Sister, Adrenaline Mob).
21- Chuck Bednarik, 89, American NFL Hall of Fame football player (Philadelphia Eagles).

APRIL
1- Dave Ball, 65, British musician (Procol Harum).
1- Eddie LeBaron, 85, American football player (Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboys).
1- Robert Walker, 54, Canadian-born American animator and director (Aladdin, Brother Bear, Mulan, The Lion King).
2- Tom Towles, 65, American actor (Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, Miami Vice, The Rock).
3- Sarah Brady, 73, American gun control campaigner.
3- Bob Burns, 64, American drummer (Lynyrd Skynyrd).
5- Richard Dysart, 86, American character actor (L.A. Law, Wall Street, The Thing).
6- James Best, 88, American actor (The Dukes of Hazzard, Ride Lonesome, The Twilight Zone).
6- Walter H. Haas, 97, American astronomer.
7- Stan Freberg, 88, American comedian and voice actor (Looney Tunes, Lady and the Tramp).
7- Geoffrey Lewis, 79, American actor (High Plains Drifter, Maverick, The Lawnmower Man).
10- Lauren Hill, 19, American college basketball player, pediatric cancer advocate, brain cancer.
12- Mario Wallenda, 74, American highwire artiste (The Flying Wallendas).
13- Günter Grass, 87, German novelist (The Tin Drum), Nobel Prize laureate in Literature (1999).
14- Percy Sledge, 74, American R&B singer ("When a Man Loves a Woman").
19- Freddie Gray, 25, American police suspect, severed spinal cord.
24- Frankie Lee, 73, American blues singer-songwriter.
25- Don Mankiewicz, 93, American screenwriter (Star Trek, Ironside, Profiles in Courage).
26- Jayne Meadows, 95, American actress (I've Got a Secret, Undercurrent, Song of the Thin Man).
27- Andrew Lesnie, 59, Australian cinematographer (The Lord of the Rings, I Am Legend, The Water Diviner), Oscar winner (2002).
28- Jack Ely, 71, American singer ("Louie Louie").
29- Calvin Peete, 71, American golfer, Tournament Players champion (1985).
30- Ben E. King, 76, American soul and R&B singer ("Stand by Me").
30- Nigel Terry, 69, British actor (The Lion in Winter, Excalibur, Troy).

MAY
2- Michael Blake, 69, American author and screenwriter (Dances with Wolves), Oscar winner (1991).
6- Jim Wright, 92, American politician, member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 12th district (1955–1989), Speaker of the House (1987–1989).
9- Elizabeth Wilson, 94, American actress (The Birds, The Graduate, 9 to 5), Tony Award winner (1972).
12- Tony Ayala, Jr., 52, American light middleweight boxer.
14- B.B. King, 89, American Hall of Fame blues guitarist, singer and songwriter ("The Thrill Is Gone").
19- Happy Rockefeller, 88, American socialite and philanthropist, Second Lady of the United States (1974–1977), First Lady of New York (1963–1973).
20- Mary Ellen Trainor, 62, American actress (Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, The Goonies).
21- Joaquim Durão, 84, Portuguese chess player.
22- John Mosley, 93, American football player (Colorado A&M Aggies) and WWII AF officer (Tuskegee Airmen).
23- Hugh Ambrose, 48, American historian and author (The Pacific).
23- Anne Meara, 85, American comedian (Stiller and Meara) and actress (Archie Bunker's Place, The King of Queens).
23- John Forbes Nash, Jr., 86, American mathematician, laureate of the Nobel Prize in Economics (1994), subject of A Beautiful Mind.
24- Daniel Meltzer, 63, American lawyer, legal adviser to Barack Obama.
28- Reynaldo Rey, 75, American actor and comedian (227, Friday, White Men Can't Jump).
29- Henry Carr, 73, American track and field athlete, Olympic champion (1964).
29- Betsy Palmer, 88, American actress (I've Got a Secret, Mister Roberts, Friday the 13th).
30- Beau Biden, 46, American politician, Attorney General of Delaware (2007–2015).

JUNE
6- Vincent Bugliosi, 80, American attorney and author (Helter Skelter).
6- Ronnie Gilbert, 88, American singer-songwriter (The Weavers) and actress (Running on Empty).
7- Sir Christopher Lee, 93, British actor, voice artist, and singer (Dracula, The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars).
12- Monica Lewis, 93, American singer and actress (Earthquake), voice of Chiquita Banana (since 1947).
14- Anne Nicol Gaylor, 88, American atheism and reproductive rights advocate, co-founder of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
15- Blaze Starr, 83, American stripper, burlesque comedienne and club owner, subject of Blaze.
17- Ron Clarke, 78, Australian long distance runner, Olympic bronze medalist (1964), Mayor of the Gold Coast (2004–2012).
17- John David Crow, 79, American Heisman Trophy-winning football player (Texas A&M, Chicago/St. Louis Cardinals) and coach (Northeast Louisiana).
17- Nelson Doubleday, Jr., 81, American publisher (Doubleday) and Major League Baseball team owner (New York Mets).
18- Danny Villanueva, 77, American football player (Los Angeles Rams, Dallas Cowboys) and broadcasting executive, co-founder of Univision.
22- Don Featherstone, 79, American artist and inventor of the plastic pink flamingo.
22- James Horner, 61, American composer (Titanic, Field of Dreams, Apollo 13), Oscar winner (1998).
23- Dick Van Patten, 86, American actor (Eight Is Enough, Spaceballs, Robin Hood: Men in Tights).
24- Walter Browne, 66, Australian-born American chess Grandmaster, six-time U.S. champion.
24- Marva Collins, 78, American educator.
25- Patrick Macnee, 93, English-American actor (The Avengers, This Is Spinal Tap, A View to a Kill).
26- David Turner, 91, American rower, Olympic gold medalist (1948).
27- Chris Squire, 67, English bass guitarist (Yes).
28- Jack Carter, 93, American comedian (Cavalcade of Stars) and actor (Dr. Kildare, Alligator).

JULY
2- Charlie Sanders, 68, American Hall of Fame football player (Detroit Lions).
3- Diana Douglas, 92, Bermudian-American actress (The Indian Fighter, Days of Our Lives, Planes, Trains and Automobiles).
8- Frances Shea-Buckley, 86, American rear admiral, Director of the Navy Nurse Corps (1979-1983).
8- Ken Stabler, 69, American football player (Oakland Raiders).
8- James Tate, 71, American Pulitzer Prize-winning poet.
15- Aubrey Morris, 89, British actor (A Clockwork Orange, Love and Death, The Wicker Man).
18- Alex Rocco, 79, American actor (The Godfather, The George Carlin Show, The Facts of Life), Emmy winner (1990).
21- Theodore Bikel, 91, Austrian-born American actor (The Defiant Ones, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof), folk singer and composer.
21- E. L. Doctorow, 84, American author (Ragtime, Billy Bathgate, The March).
26- Bobbi Kristina Brown, 22, American media personality and singer.
26- Ann Rule, 83, American true crime author (The Stranger Beside Me).
28- James Jude, 87, American thoracic surgeon, developer of CPR.
30- Lynn Anderson, 67, American country singer ("Rose Garden").
31- Gerald S. O'Loughlin, 93, American actor (The Rookies, In Cold Blood, Ice Station Zebra).

AUGUST
1- Vincent Marotta, 91, American entrepreneur, co-creator of Mr. Coffee.
2- Forrest Bird, 94, American Hall of Fame aviator and inventor.
7- Louise Suggs, 91, American Hall of Fame professional golfer, co-founder of LPGA.
9- Frank Gifford, 84, American Hall of Fame football player (New York Giants) and broadcaster (Monday Night Football).
15- Julian Bond, 75, American civil rights activist and politician, chairman of the NAACP (1998–2010).
17- Yvonne Craig, 78, American actress (Batman, Star Trek, Olivia).
18- Bud Yorkin, 89, American film and television director, producer (All in the Family, Maude, Sanford and Son) and actor.
26- Alison Parker, 24, American news reporter (WDBJ), shot.
26- Adam Ward, 27, American news cameraman (WDBJ) and photojournalist, shot.
30- Wes Craven, 76, American film director, writer and producer (A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream, The Hills Have Eyes).

SEPTEMBER
1- Dean Jones, 84, American actor (The Love Bug, Company, Beethoven).
2- Alan Kurdi, 3, Syrian refugee, drowned.
3- Judy Carne, 76, British actress and comedienne (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In).
6- Martin Milner, 83, American actor (Adam-12, Route 66, Sweet Smell of Success).
12- Frank D. Gilroy, 89, American playwright and screenwriter.
13- Moses Malone, 60, American Hall of Fame basketball player (Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets).
16- Peggy Jones, 75, American guitarist (Bo Diddley).
19- Jackie Collins, 77, British-American novelist.
22- Yogi Berra, 90, American Hall of Fame baseball player and manager (New York Yankees, New York Mets), member of 13 World Series championship teams.
28- Frankie Ford, 76, American singer ("Sea Cruise").

OCTOBER
2- Willie Akins, 76, American jazz saxophonist.
6- Kevin Corcoran, 66, American actor and producer (Old Yeller, Pete's Dragon, Sons of Anarchy).
6- Rich Davis, 89, American businessman, creator of KC Masterpiece barbecue sauce.
8- Paul Prudhomme, 75, American chef, cookbook writer and restaurateur, recipient of the Order of Agricultural Merit (1980).
10- Sybil Stockdale, 90, American human rights activist, co-founder of National League of Families.
11- Smokin' Joe Kubek, 58, American blues guitarist.
12- Joan Leslie, 90, American actress (High Sierra, Sergeant York, Yankee Doodle Dandy).
22- Jerome Kass, 78, American screenwriter (Queen of the Stardust Ballroom).
24- Maureen O'Hara, 95, Irish-American actress (How Green Was My Valley, Miracle on 34th Street, The Quiet Man).
27- Ralph Richeson, 63, American actor (Deadwood, Hancock).
30- Mel Daniels, 71, American Hall of Fame basketball player (Indiana Pacers).
31- Gregg Palmer, 88, American actor (Gunsmoke).

NOVEMBER
1- Houston McTear, 58, American sprinter.
1- Fred Thompson, 73, American politician and actor (Die Hard 2, Law & Order, Sinister), U.S. Senator from Tennessee (1994–2003), minority counsel to the Senate Watergate Committee.
8- Angad Paul, 45, British manufacturing executive and film producer (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, The Tournament).
9- Carol Doda, 78, American topless dancer.
10- Allen Toussaint, 77, American musician, producer, songwriter ("Fortune Teller", "Working in the Coal Mine", "Southern Nights") and arranger.
11- Phil Taylor, 61, English drummer (Motörhead).
13- Bruce Dayton, 97, American retail executive and philanthropist, President and Chairman of Target, founder of B. Dalton.
15- Vincent Margera, 59, American reality television personality (Viva La Bam, Jackass, CK).
15- P. F. Sloan, 70, American singer/songwriter ("Secret Agent Man", "Eve of Destruction", "A Must to Avoid").
16- David Canary, 77, American actor (All My Children, Bonanza).
17- Al Aarons, 83, American jazz trumpeter (Count Basie Orchestra).
21- Bob Foster, 77, American boxer, world light heavyweight champion (1968–1974).
23- Cynthia Robinson, 71, American trumpeter and vocalist (Sly and the Family Stone).
30- Steve Shagan, 88, American novelist, screenwriter, and producer (Save the Tiger, Voyage of the Damned, Primal Fear).

DECEMBER
2-Sandy Berger, 70, American political consultant, United States National Security Advisor (1997–2001).
2- Anthony Valentine, 76, British actor (Colditz, Coronation Street, Escape to Athena).
3- Scott Weiland, 48, American musician (Stone Temple Pilots, Velvet Revolver, The Wondergirls).
4- Robert Loggia, 85, American actor (Jagged Edge, Scarface, Big).
6- Holly Woodlawn, 69, Puerto Rican-born American actress and Warhol superstar.
10- Dolph Schayes, 87, American Hall of Fame basketball player and coach (Philadelphia 76ers).
11- John "Hot Rod" Williams, 53, American basketball player (Cleveland Cavaliers, Phoenix Suns).
12- Evelyn S. Lieberman, 71, American public affairs professional, White House Deputy Chief of Staff (1996).
19- Ozell Sutton, 90, American civil rights activist.
20- Patricia Elliott, 77, American actress (A Little Night Music, One Life to Live), Tony Award winner (1973).
25- George Clayton Johnson, 86, American writer (Logan's Run, Ocean's Eleven, The Twilight Zone).
27- Haskell Wexler, 93, American cinematographer (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Bound for Glory) and film director, Academy Award winner (1966, 1976).
27- Meadowlark Lemon, 83, American basketball player (Harlem Globetrotters).
28- Lemmy, 70, English rock musician (Motörhead, Hawkweed).