It’s that time of year again, when we honor those who influenced us
in sometimes obvious and sometimes anonymous ways.
In 2011 we lost many of these colorful characters, and while we
respectfully mourn their passing, our reflection upon their
contributions provides additional meaning to their lives and ours.
Here are just a few of the ones we lost in 2011, and some thoughts
about the legacies they leave us:
Some brought us acting excellence
Elizabeth Taylor – She defined Hollywood stardom
Joanne Siegel – She was the original Lois Lane
Tony Geiss – He wrote the scripts for Kermit, Elmo and Big Bird
Len Lesser – He was Uncle Leo from Seinfeld
Michael Gough – He was the butler in Batman
Anne Francis – She starred with Leslie Nielsen (d. 2010) in Forbidden Planet
Karl Slover – He was an original munchkin in The Wizard of Oz
Barbara Sturt – She was Sgt. Carter’s girlfriend in Gomer Pyle
Harry Morgan – He played dry characters from Dragnet to MASH
Peter Falk – As Colombo, his absent-minded brilliance connected with us
Some entertained us
Tom Carnegie – He was the legendary voice of the Indianapolis 500
Randy “Macho Man” Savage – He wrestled (yes, it is entertainment)
Norma Zimmer – She was Lawrence Welk’s Champagne Lady
Flo Gibson – She was the ubiquitous voice of audio books
Some brought us great music
John Barry – He wrote those James Bond theme songs
Edgar Villchur – He invented the acoustic suspension loudspeaker
Charles Kaman – He brought us the helicopter, and the electronic acoustic guitar
George Green - He wrote Hurts So Good
Amy Winehouse – She defined a new genre of jazz
Some were New York traditions
Murray Handwerker - He brought us Nathan's hot dogs
Gregory Papalexis – He brought us Sabrett’s
It was a tough year for hot dogs.
Ruth Roberts – She wrote the Meet the Mets theme song
Andy Rooney – He defined cantankerous wit
Some brought us great inventions
Hubert Schlafly – He invented the teleprompter (Obama says thank you)
Gerald Lawson – He developed the first home video game
Alan Haberman – He brought us the ubiquitous barcode.
Harry Coover – He invented Super Glue (a cyanoacrylate, if you must know)
CJ Lambertsen – He developed Scuba (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus).[
Norio Ohga – He standardized CDs at 12 centimeters and 75 minutes in length.
John McCarthy – He fathered Artificial Intelligence
John Sinfelt – His unleaded gasoline cleared the air
Some were our animal friends
Knut – The Berlin Zoo's famous polar bear, he was 4
Sadler’s Well – Racehorse great, he was 30
Pusuke – He was the world's oldest-living dog, at 26 (that’s 117 in human years).
Trouble - Leona Helmsley's dog-heir who inherited $2 million
Heidi - A cross-eyed Virginia Opossum at Germany's Leipzig Zoo
Shrek – New Zealand celebrity sheep who long evaded shearing, was 12
Some we recognize for their longevity
Maria Gomes Valentim - Brazilian who was the world's oldest person, at 114
Some just made our own lives better
Greta Waitz- She changed the sport of running for women
John J. Kelley- Boston Marathon great who revolutionized American running
Jack LaLanne – He was the first fitness guru
Sean Collins – He forecasted wave conditions in San Diego
Jane Packer – She was the world’s most influential florist
Paul Meier – His randomized clinical trials revolutionized medicine
Norman Ramsey – His MRI has saved countless lives
Some made humanity better
Frank Buckles – He was the last WWI doughboy
Karin Hägglund - She was the first female television news anchor in Sweden
Jack Oliver – He confirmed that continents were really drifting
John Sanderson – Antarctic explorer, and my dear friend
And some just put life into perspective
Steve Jobs – He was the Thomas Edison of our time; visionary,
applied and driven to excellence. Lacking early direction in life,
he eventually found himself and channeled his energy in ways that
changed the way we work and live. To start your New Year with a fresh
perspective, take a few moments to experience his speech to the
Stanford University graduation Class of 2005.
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html