RIP, Bob.
I had him on my prospective list for 2025, thinking he’d just make it through 2024.
With this, 10% of the picks are 
.
Bob Newhart: DEAD!
Mr. Newhart was an American comedian and actor. He was known for his deadpan and stammering delivery style. Beginning as a stand-up comedian, he transitioned his career to acting in television, most notably in “The Bob Newhart Show” and “Newhart”. He also starred in movies, the most famous being “Elf”. He received numerous accolades, including three Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2002. He died yesterday at age 94.
soyleche is on the board, and Macroman and Ezekial_Cumberland also score.
| Standings: | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| contestant | Normal Deaths | Tragic Deaths | Unique Deaths | Total Points |
| PatientZombie | 4 | 1 | 0 | 60 |
| Hotkarl | 5 | 1 | 2 | 56 |
| Ted_Hoffman | 4 | 1 | 1 | 50 |
| Maphistos_Sidekick | 3 | 1 | 0 | 43 |
| ArthurItas | 4 | 1 | 1 | 38 |
| Ezekial_Cumberland | 4 | 0 | 0 | 36 |
| frummie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| traina | 3 | 0 | 1 | 22 |
| Macroman | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| soyleche | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
Keep watching those obits!
Not sure what constitutes official news of a death, but one of my picks was reportedly killed:
Top Hamas commander Mohammed Deif killed in Israeli strikes, IDF says (msn.com)
Per wikipedia, Hamas is denying that he’s been killed.
ETA: wikipedia now showing 13 July 2024 as his death, but still stating it is “unconfirmed by independent sources”.
Mike Sertich was on my short list, but didn’t quite make the cut for me here. He was too obscure for other contests. RIP.
1 Like
James Earl Jones : DEAD!
Mr. Jones was a famous actor, appearing in more than 80 movies including Field of Dreams, The Man, Conan the Barbarian, Coming to America and Dr. Strangelove. He lent his baritone voice to The Lion King as Mufasa and to Star Wars as Darth Vader. He died today at age 93. Noooooooooo!
soyleche gets a unique hit.
Standings:
| contestant | Normal Deaths | Tragic Deaths | Unique Deaths | Total Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PatientZombie | 4 | 1 | 0 | 60 |
| Hotkarl | 5 | 1 | 2 | 56 |
| Ted_Hoffman | 4 | 1 | 1 | 50 |
| Maphistos_Sidekick | 3 | 1 | 0 | 43 |
| ArthurItas | 4 | 1 | 1 | 38 |
| Ezekial_Cumberland | 4 | 0 | 0 | 36 |
| frummie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| traina | 3 | 0 | 1 | 22 |
| Macroman | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| soyleche | 2 | 0 | 1 | 20 |
Why do I only put people on my list that make me sad?
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RIP
Mutombo was one of my favorites. He was a great humanitarian.
I consider my inclusion of him on this list this year some of my better research. There was an announcement about him having brain cancer a couple of years ago, but I saw no updates on his condition in the interim. I had some specific reasons why I thought he might pass this year, but it was more reading the tea leaves rather than any reporting on his illness.
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Dikembe Mutombo: DEAD!
Mr. Mutombo was a Congolese-American professional basketball player. He played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Outside of basketball, he is known for his humanitarian work.
A 7-foot-2-inch center, Mutombo moved to the United States from the Democratic Republic of the Congo at age 21 to play college basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas. In 1991, the Denver Nuggets chose him with the fourth overall pick of the NBA draft. During his NBA career, he played for six teams, in the NBA Finals for the Philadelphia 76ers in 2001 and for the New Jersey Nets in 2003. He received the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award four times. He led the NBA in blocked shots three times, led the league in rebounds twice, and was named to eight All-Star teams. He is wagging his finger in the afterlife as he died of cancer on Monday at age 58.
ArthurItas gets a unique hit.
Standings:
| contestant | Normal Deaths | Tragic Deaths | Unique Deaths | Total Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PatientZombie | 4 | 1 | 0 | 60 |
| Hotkarl | 5 | 1 | 2 | 56 |
| Ted_Hoffman | 4 | 1 | 1 | 50 |
| ArthurItas | 5 | 1 | 2 | 46 |
| Maphistos_Sidekick | 3 | 1 | 0 | 43 |
| Ezekial_Cumberland | 4 | 0 | 0 | 36 |
| frummie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| traina | 3 | 0 | 1 | 22 |
| Macroman | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| soyleche | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
Keep watching those obits!
I am a Jimmy Carter fan, but I don’t know why family would wheel him out in this condition for a photo op. He looks like a cadaver.
https://x.com/CBSNews/status/1841209959008063941?t=coOkfnAos124KLGNGeHo6A&s=19
Oh no. That’s awful. They should have allowed him some dignity 
He’s 100 and has been on hospice for a few years now, right? I think I would question CBS on their choice of photos to release more than the family for taking him outside. For all we know, he may have had a really good time before and after falling asleep with his mouth wide open looking like a cadavar.
The media is going to line up trying to cover a former presdients 100th birthday since that’s never happened before. The person with the camera is clearly off in the distance. All seems fine until the oversharing on social media.
I am not certain the family thought of this as a photo op. He may have been honored by the flyover and wanted to see it, and wanted people to know that. I also don’t think his advanced age and weak physical condition deprive him of dignity. People come in all shapes, sizes, and abilities. As much as you might lament your loved one’s decline into poor health, it doesn’t mean they are less of a person.
2 Likes
I thought for sure someone had Ethel Kennedy on their list, but no - it doesn’t appear so.
I had her as one of my alternates, but I figured she’d last at least as long as Henry Kissinger did so she was going to move up in a few years.
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Sinwar was killed. Not a hit for me here, but I had him pretty high in my other pool. Someone gets a hit here.
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Yahya Sinwar: DEAD!
Mr. Sinwar was a leader of Hamas, credited with masterminding the October 7, 2023 massacre in Southern Israel. He was killed October 16 at age 61.
Ezekial_Cumberland gets a unique hit.
Standings:
| order | contestant | Normal Deaths | Tragic Deaths | Unique Deaths | Total Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PatientZombie | 4 | 1 | 0 | 60 | |
| Hotkarl | 5 | 1 | 2 | 56 | |
| Ted_Hoffman | 4 | 1 | 1 | 50 | |
| ArthurItas | 5 | 1 | 2 | 46 | |
| Maphistos_Sidekick | 3 | 1 | 0 | 43 | |
| Ezekial_Cumberland | 5 | 0 | 1 | 40 | |
| frummie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 22 | |
| traina | 3 | 0 | 1 | 22 | |
| Macroman | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 | |
| soyleche | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
Keep watching those obits!
Hi All, I plan to post the 2025 pool soon. You may PM me your picks anytime between now and December 26 11:59 pm eastern. Make sure to “spoiler” your picks in the PM so I don’t see them before I submit my picks.
I’ll check Mohammed Dief later this week.
1 Like
Even with Dief hitting, we’ve been really quiet for a while. People are running out of time to say they kicked the bucket in 2024.
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