the last famous person you were surprised to discover was actually still alive

Herb Alpert

not news to this thread but aww: https://www.google.com/amp/www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-4607626/amp/Kirk-Douglas-reveals-marriage

Amazed that Mary Ward who played 'Mother' in Prisoner Cell Block H is still alive, at 103

Ilyich Ramírez Sánchez/Carlos the Jackal. Was even in court earlier this year for one of his 1974 attacks.

horrible Minneapolis sports columnist Sid Hartman, who, I just learned, was also the general manager for the Minneapolis Lakers basketball dynasty—in 1949

Harry Dean Stanton, until yesterday. I could have sworn he died at some point in the last two or three years and that I already experienced the media discussion of his passing.

^ proving the point I was making on the HDS thread.

Wink Martindale is still kicking.

― WilliamC, Sunday, October 1, 2017 1:28 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

tbf he's only 83 but if you'd asked me i'd've guessed that's how old he was in 1990.

Lt. William Calley

New Yorker cartoonist George Booth

REALLY?

I thought he might've died in the 70s!

Ross Perot

I knew he was alive, but I've been really surprised that he's kept silent (as far as I know) on the last three elections at least. He must have been constantly sought out for opinions and quotes.

was recently surprised to discover that brecht scholar and theatre critic eric bentley is alive and about to turn 99

also nice to know j.p. donleavy is still pottering around his irish estate

― no lime tangier, Monday, August 31, 2015 6:25 AM (two years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Donleavy checked out last month, but Bentley's still here at 101!

Bill Maynard, whose birthday is today.

Sumner Redstone (94)

i thought gary oldman was dead. i thought it happened last year and there was a heap of news about it. i can even remember being surprised.

Alan Rickman/Gary Oldman?

that occurred to me too, but i thought i remembered them dying in different months

you got Mandela'd my friend

Not really famous, but pretty surprising: John McCain's mom.

Larry Storch

Dick Van Dyke

― 3.5" flopson (The Reverend), Friday, May 6, 2011 1:40 AM (six years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

John McCain's mom - wow, she looks amazing for 105!

Lee Iacocca

June Lockhart (b. 1925), best known as a TV mom on Lassie and a mom-scientist on Lost In Space.

I saw her last night in a small but memorable part in Meet Me In St. Louis (as an east-coast romantic rival who turns out to be good-hearted) and it was driving me crazy who she looked like, until I realized it was Heather Graham on Arrested Development; Graham, of course, appeared in the godawful film version of Lost in Space as the daughter to Mimi Rogers's version of Lockhart's old character. (Lockhart is also in the film, in a cameo as a holographic space principal.)

John Cullum, who I saw in the Christine Chubbuck movie last night. I would have sworn he died 5-7 years ago, and that's why they stopped having him as Lee Garner Sr. on Mad Men.

Kenneth Anger

doris day, 95yo

ugly dave gray

lulu

Sydney Devine.

Dick Van Dyke

― 3.5" flopson (The Reverend), Friday, May 6, 2011 1:40 AM (six years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

― © l0u1s jagg3r/richards (Pillbox), Sunday, December 10, 2017 6:35 AM (two weeks ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

You just had to point it out.

Oops I misread the announcement, it's Rose Marie that died. RIP.

Leslie Phillips

John Simon, because Clemenza said he died on the Critical Vendettas thread, and I was all like, "Yeah, he did", but then I looked it up, and he's still chuggin' on at 92.

johnny young

paul sorvino

I'm not surprised he's alive, but I'll just say that there are some days in which I take comfort knowing that Tom T. Hall is still out there somewhere, hopefully not in a cold hotel bar in Des Moines.

Jackie Mason.

As a collective, it is surprising to me that basically all of the James Bond girls of the 1960s are still alive. Ursula Andress, Honor Blackman, Shirley Eaton, Daniela Bianchi, Claudine Auger, Luciana Paluzzi, Martine Beswick, Mie Hama, and Diana Rigg - all in their 70s, 80s, or 90s (Blackman). A semi-exception is Karin Dor, who played a villain in You Only Live Twice.

Clarissa Eden, wife of Anthony Eden (British Prime Minister from 1955-1957) - and she's not even the oldest living Prime Minister's spouse, as Mary Wilson is more than four years older than her.

― Camaraderie at Arms Length, Wednesday, November 30, 2016 1:39 PM (one year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Mary Wilson still going and is 102 as of today

That's cool, congratulations, Mary.

Imelda Marcos

read an article in this week's TLS about Louis-Ferdinand Céline and discovered that his widow Lucette is still alive, 105 years old

Clu Gulanger

^^ Outlived his co-star in The Killers Lee Marvin by 30 years. Although his other co-star Angie Dickinson is still alive as well.

Gina. Lollobrigida is 90 and finally got her star on Hollywood Blvd. yesterday. She seems determined not to go before Sophia Loren.

kenneth anger