Valley of Life | Online Memorial Blog

1940s heartthrob Van Johnson passed away on Friday, December 12, 2008 at the age of 92.  Johnson won audiences over playing the good looking soldier or pilot in several MGM movies including A Guy Named Joe and Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, both with fellow actor Spencer Tracy.  Johnson was rated the biggest male box office attraction in 1945 and was named “The Voiceless Sinatra” for his swoon-like persona and good looks that drew in female audiences. He also appeared in Two Girls and A Sailor, Brigadoon and The Caine Mutiny.

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Legendary model Bettie Page passed away on Thursday, December 11, 2008 in Los Angeles after suffering from pneumonia three weeks ago which led to a heart attack. She was 85 years old.  Page’s curvy body and long black hair are recognizable by nearly everybody. She made regular appearances in men’s magazines throughout the 1950s and later became a cult icon for vixens all over.

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American actor Paul Benedict who entertained audiences as Harry Bentley on The Jeffersons passed away on Monday, December 2, 2008 at the age of 70.  He was found dead in his Martha Vineyard home. A cause of death has not yet been given.  Though Benedict was best known by most as the stuffy English neighbor on the 1975-85 TV show, I first took notice of him in the Christopher Guest movies, A Mighty Wind and Waiting for Guffman.  He also played the judge in the 1991 Addams Family movie. But where I remember him the most fondly is as the Mad Painter on Sesame Street who painted numbers every where.  His comedy was memorable and his talent and work spanned several decades.

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Broadway actress Patricia Marand died on Thursday, November 27, 2008 at the age of 74.  Marand was best known for her role as Lois Lane in the 1966 Broadway musical, “It’s a Bird…It’s a Plan…It’s Superman.”  The play earned her a Tony Award nomination that year.  Marand was also a regular guest on The Merv Griffin Show.

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New York Times dance critic Clive Barnes passed away early today, Wednesday November 19, 2008 at the age of 81. His wife indicated that Barnes passed away from complications due to cancer at Mt. Sinai Hospital in Manhattan. Barnes was considered a driving force in bringing dance to a broader audience with his charismatic style.  Barnes once categorized himself as “your typical working-class overachiever” a sentiment found very true as he was working and writing reviews for The New York Post up until just a few weeks ago.

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