This person died in 2020 at age 78. He grew up in Oneonta, New York. He began his career in the 1960s, hitchhiking and busking around the country before establishing himself in Greenwich Village. In 1971, he took his struggling friend Jimmy Buffett to Key West for the first time. Mainstream radio programmers didn’t play his music, perhaps because of his gruff, braying singing voice and his reputation for being intoxicated onstage. He became a mainstay of the Texas Outlaw movement that catapulted Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings to fame, years after his best known composition, “Mr. Bojangles”. Today’s dead celebrity is Jerry Jeff Walker.

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

If you enjoyed this episode, you may also like Episode 19 “Singing Mailman” (John Prine) and Episode 23 “Book Rancher” (Larry McMurtry)

Transcript of this episode

New York Times Obituary for Jerry Jeff Walker

Jerry Jeff Walker official website

“OK Buckaroos” documentary trailer

Jerry Jeff performs on Austin City Limits in 1976

Homer Simpson sings Mr. Bojangles

“Jerry Jeff Walker, Remembered By…” in Texas Monthly

“The Long, Lonesome Roads of Jerry Jeff Walker” in The New Yorker

Django Walker official website

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died 2012 at age 82. He was among the most recognizable faces in the world. He built an entertainment empire, which expanded into game shows, awards shows, comedy specials, talk shows, children’s programming, reality programming, and movies. His signature show had remarkable longevity and became a cultural touchstone for the baby-boomer generation. He was the perpetually youthful-looking television host of “American Bandstand” and “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve”. Today’s dead celebrity is Dick Clark.

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

If you enjoyed this episode, you may also like Episode 16 “Quintessential Quizmaster” (Alex Trebek) and Episode 10 “Countdown King” (Casey Kasem)

Transcript of this episode

New Year’s Rockin’ Eve December 31, 1999 (millennium)

New Year’s Rockin’ Eve December 31, 2001 (post 9/11)

Dick Clark interviews Prince on American Bandstand

David Spade as Dick Clark’s receptionist on SNL

SNL spoof of $25,000 pyramid

From Rock to Disco to Hip Hop with Dick Clark article from Slate

“Dick Clark: Eternally Light” article from The New Yorker

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died in 2019 at age 76. In 1958 when he was 14, his father died immediately after performing a roast for Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. His dry delivery piqued the interest of Tom Smothers, who offered him a job in the late 1960s as a writer on the “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.” He was roommates with Steve Martin for a number of years, and his younger brother is the renowned comedian and filmmaker Albert Brooks. His most famous and long-lived character was a witless, deadpan parody of bravado-fueled stuntmen like Evel Knievel. He starred as Larry Middleman in “Arrested Development” and as Larry David’s frenemy, Marty Funkhouser, in “Curb Your Enthusiasm”. Today’s dead celebrity is Bob Einstein. 

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

If you enjoyed this episode, you may also like Episode 29 “Zen Comedian” (Garry Shandling) and Episode 11 “Stiletto Comic” (Joan Rivers)

LINKS:

Transcript of this episode

New York Times Obituary for Bob Einstein

Super Dave Osborne King of the Road video

Super Dave Bungee Jump video

Scene in Modern Romance with Bob Einstein and Albert Brooks

“Super Dave, In Memoriam” article in The Yorker

“Mourning Marty Funkhouser” article in The Ringer

Bob Einstein Official Website

The Super Bob Einstein Movie HBO Documentary

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died 2016 at age 82. She starred in “Fanny” on Broadway in the mid-1950s, and did national tours of “Oklahoma!” and “The Sound of Music”. In 1966, she was one of the first women to guest host “The Tonight Show”. She surprisingly appeared in Bobcat Goldthwait’s offbeat comedy “Shakes the Clown”, in which she played an unnamed woman who has a one-night stand with the title character. She starred in an upbeat, globally syndicated TV comedy as Carol Brady, a woman with three daughters who marries a widower who has three sons, collectively known as “The Brady Bunch”. Today’s dead celebrity is Florence Henderson.

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

Transcript of this episode

New York Times Obituary for Florence Henderson

Profile on Florence Henderson from CBS News

Q Scores explained by the Washington Post

14 Best TV Moms from Parade Magazine

Shakes the Clown opening scene starring Florence Henderson

Video for Weird Al’s “Amish Paradise”

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died 2021 at age 57. He appeared regularly on the Nickelodeon show “Yo Gabba Gabba”. He collaborated with artists such as the Beastie Boys and Will Smith, and appeared in the movie “Men in Black II”, in which he played an alien disguised as a postal worker who communicates via beatboxing. He was known as the “clown prince of hip-hop” for his playful style and joyous charm, and his most renowned song is the hit singalong  “Just a Friend”. Today’s dead celebrity is Marcel Theo Hall, better known as Biz Markie.

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

LINKS:

Transcript of this episode

New York Times Obituary for Biz Markie

“Just A Friend” official video

“Vapors” official video

Men In Black II scene featuring Will Smith and Biz Markie

Biz;s Beat of the Day on Yo Gabba Gabba!

“20 Years Ago Biz Markie Got the Last Laugh” from NPR

“Hip Hop Wouldn’t Be the Same Without Biz Markie” article in MIC magazine

“Farewell Biz Markie...” article from Rolling Stone

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died in 2020 at age 73. He was a relative unknown in 1970 when Kris Kristofferson first heard him play one night at a Chicago club. Roger Ebert, the film critic, wrote an early review of him with the headline “Singing Mailman Who Delivers a Powerful Message in a Few Words.” He won a Grammy for best new artist in 1972, and again in 2020 for Lifetime Achievement. Today’s dead celebrity is John Prine.

This episode originally published May 4, 2022.

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

LINKS:

Transcript of this episode

New York Times Obituary for John Prine

John Prine official website

‘John Prine’s Perfect Songs’ in the New Yorker

‘John Prine Isn’t Counting the Time’ from The Ringer

Video for ‘When I Get to Heaven’

Kacey Musgraves sings “Burn One with John Prine” live

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died in 2016 at age 69. In an acting career spanning more than 40 years, he played a panoply of fascinating characters. He had his early successes in stage works involving the Royal Shakespeare Company. Though he was never nominated for an Academy Award, he won many accolades, but shrugged off the value of awards in general. He gained a worldwide audience in “Die Hard,” playing Hans Gruber, the devious, well-spoken terrorist who took over the fictional Nakatomi Plaza. He had a starring role in the iconic 2003 film “Love Actually”, and more recently, played the notorious professor Severus Snape in the “Harry Potter” series. Today’s dead celebrity is Alan Rickman. 

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne.This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

LINKS:

Transcript of this episode

New York Times obituary for Alan Rickman

Emma Thompson tribute to Alan Rickman

Kevin Smith tribute to Alan Rickman

Hans Gruber fall in Die Hard

Alan Rickman’s voicemail bit on Family Guy

Alan Rickman takes Jimmy Fallon to task

Alan Rickman behind the scenes of Harry Potter as Snape

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died in 2017 at age 77. One of his early commercial films was a segment for Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. His first movie was made for $100K and was released when racial tensions were high in the United States. Of his creations, he said “they are multipurpose, you can’t really get angry at them, they have no hidden agendas, they are what they are. I sympathize with them.” He was a horror visionary who created the modern zombie genre with his 1968 cult film, “Night of the Living Dead”. Today’s dead celebrity is George Romero. 

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss, and features guest co-host Drew Tinnen. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

Links:

Transcript of this episode

New York Times obituary for George Romero

Drew Tinnen article about Romero on the set of Night of the Living Dead

Drew Tinnen article about Romero’s Knightriders

The American Nightmare documentary

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died in 2019 at age 69.  His father died when he was a teenager, and his mother was a stenographer for the California Highway Patrol. During his two decades in the major leagues, he amassed 2,715 hits, won a batting title, and twice led the league in doubles. When he retired, he moved with his family to a ranch in Meridian, Idaho. His long, solid career was overshadowed by a crushing error that possibly cost the Boston Red Sox Game 6 of the 1986 World Series against the New York Mets, further perpetuating “The Curse of The Bambino”. Today’s dead celebrity is Bill Buckner.

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

LINKS:

Transcript of this episode

New York Times obituary for Bill Buckner

Clip of the 1986 error

Bill Buckner attempting to catch Hank Aaron’s 715th home run

Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 8 Episode 9 clip with Bill Buckner guest appearance

The “Buckner Bridge” in Massachusetts

ESPN’s “Bill Buckner Behind The Bag” featuring Judy Buckner

TIME Magazine’s “Bill Buckner Forgave Boston” article

“Saying Goodbye to the Bill Buckner Myths” from The New Yorker

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This person died in 2012 at age 63. She grew up singing in church and decided in her teens to make music her career. In the late 1960s she joined the Munich company of the rock musical “Hair” and relocated to Germany. Her voice sailed over dance floors and leapt from radios from the mid-’70s well into the ’80s. Her music was a template for 1970s disco. Her hits include “Hot Stuff”, “Bad Girls”, and “She Works Hard for the Money”. Today’s dead celebrity is Donna Summer.

Famous & Gravy is created and co-hosted by Amit Kapoor and Michael Osborne. This episode was produced by Jacob Weiss. Visit our website at famousandgravy.com and also enjoy our free mobile quiz game at deadoraliveapp.com

LINKS:

Transcript of this episode

New York Times obituary for Donna Summer

Donna Summer on Fresh Air

A&E Biography on Donna Summer

Donna Summer on the Arsenio Hall Show

Homer Simpson’s ‘I Work Hard For the Money’

Dead or Alive quiz game

Famous & Gravy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Famous & Gravy official website

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.