#RIP #OTD in 1910 mezzo-soprano, pedagogue, composer (operas Cendrillon, Le dernier sorcier) Pauline Viardot died in Paris, aged 88. Montmartre Cemetery, Paris
#RIP #OTD in 1911 Romantic composer (Das Lied von der Erde, Symphonies 1-10) Gustav Mahler died at the Löw sanatorium in Vienna, aged 50. Grinzing cemetery, Vienna
On this day in 1980, Mt. Saint Helens erupted killing 57 people including, USGS volcanologist David A. Johnston, Reid Blackburn, a National Geographic photographer. and innskeeper Harry R. Truman. Mount St. Helens is an active stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, 96 miles south of Seattle, Washington and 50 miles northeast of Portland, Oregon. The catastrophic eruption produced an eruption column that reached 80,000 feet into the atmosphere and volcanic mudslides that reached the Columbia River, nearly 50 miles away; deposited ash in 11 U. S. states and parts of Canada; destroyed 4 billion board feet of timber, 250 homes, 47 bridges, 15 miles of railways, and 185 miles of highway. 
The Final Footprint – The Johnston Ridge Observatory was built near the site of Johnston’s camp on that morning and is named in his honour. A memorial located at the observatory lists the names of the 57 people believed to have been killed by the eruption.
#RIP #OTD in 1990 actress (The Valachi Papers, The Mechanic), singer Jill Ireland died; breast cancer; her Malibu CA home, aged 54. Cremated remains placed in a cane buried with husband Charles Bronson at Brownsville Cemetery, West Windsor, Vermont
#RIP #OTD in 1995 actress (Bewitched, A Case of Rape, The Legend of Lizzie Borden) Elizabeth Montgomery died from cancer at her Beverly Hills home, aged 62. Cremation
#RIP #OTD in 1995 ballet dancer (Bolshoi Ballet Premier danseur), actor (Witness, The Money Pit, Die Hard) Alexander Godunov died from hepatitis secondary to chronic alcoholism at his home in Shoreham Towers, West Hollywood, aged 45. Cremated remains scattered in the Pacific
On this day in 2017, musician, singer and songwriter Chris Cornell died from suicide by hanging at the MGM Grand in Detroit, at the age of 52. Born Christopher John Cornell (né Boyle) on July 20, 1964 in Seattle. Perhaps best known as the lead vocalist for the rock bands Soundgarden and Audioslave. Cornell was also known for his numerous solo works and soundtrack contributions since 1991, and as the founder and frontman for Temple of the Dog, the one-off tribute band dedicated to his late friend Andrew Wood.
In my opinion, Cornell is one of the chief architects of the 1990s grunge movement, and is well known for his extensive catalog as a songwriter, his nearly four-octave vocal range, and his powerful vocal belting technique. He released four solo studio albums, Euphoria Morning (1999), Carry On (2007), Scream (2009), Higher Truth (2015) and the live album Songbook (2011). Cornell received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his song “The Keeper”, which appeared in the 2011 film Machine Gun Preacher, and co-wrote and performed the theme song to the James Bond film Casino Royale (2006), “You Know My Name”. His last solo release before his death was the charity single “The Promise”, written for the ending credits for the 2016 film of the same name. He was nominated for 16 Grammy Awards and won three.
In 1985, Cornell started dating Susan Silver, the manager of Alice in Chains, Soundgarden and Screaming Trees, and they got married in 1990. He and Silver divorced in 2004. In 2004, he married Vicky Karayiannis, a Paris-based American publicist of Greek heritage.
The Final Footprint
Cornell’s body was cremated on May 23, 2017. His funeral took place on May 26, 2017, at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles. The ceremony began with the cemetery’s speakers playing Audioslave’s “Like a Stone”, as well as Cornell’s last solo song released before his death, “The Promise”. Chester Bennington performed Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah”. At the end of the funeral, Temple of the Dog’s song “All Night Thing” accompanied mourners as they exited. Cornell’s cremains were placed next to his friend Johnny Ramone’s cenotaph statue at Hollywood Forever.
Seattle’s Space Needle observation tower went dark from 9:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. PST on May 18, 2017, in honor of Cornell and his contributions to the city’s music scene. In the same night, Ann Wilson paid tribute to Cornell singing Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun” on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. Pearl Jam released a tribute on their website with a picture of Cornell entitled “Chris”. Cornell’s Audioslave bandmate, Tom Morello, wrote a poem in tribute to him. Alice in Chains paid tribute with a photo of Cornell on their social media pages with the caption, “We are heartbroken”. Faith No More changed the homepage of the band’s official website to a tribute to Cornell after his death.
The Seattle Mariners held a pregame tribute to Cornell prior to their game against the Chicago White Sox on May 19 with a moment of silence and videoboard tribute to Cornell. Oakland Athletics’s player Trevor Plouffe changed his walk-up music to “Black Hole Sun” to honor Cornell. Linkin Park dedicated their performance of “One More Light” on Jimmy Kimmel’s show, in tribute to Cornell. During the 2017 Billboard Music Awards, Imagine Dragons’ lead singer, Dan Reynolds, paid tribute to Cornell remembering his life and career and asking for a moment of silence as a photo of Cornell filled television screens at home and the monitors in the venue. On May 23, 2017, Norah Jones performed a solo piano cover of “Black Hole Sun” at Detroit’s Fox Theatre, the theatre Chris last performed in. On April 14, 2018, Ann Wilson and Jerry Cantrell paid tribute to him during the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony with a rendition of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun”. At the end of the performance, a photo of Cornell was displayed on a screen behind the stage and Cantrell turned around and raised his fist saluting Cornell. U2 dedicated the song “Running to Stand Still” to Cornell at their May 20, 2017 concert at the Rose Bowl. Before that concert began, “Black Hole Sun” played over the PA. One year later, they saluted Cornell with a snippet of “Black Hole Sun” during their concert in Inglewood, Calif., on May 16, 2018. Guns N’ Roses paid tribute to Cornell on their Not In This Lifetime… Tour. Since May 27, 2017, “Black Hole Sun” is played at every concert, and “You Know My Name” is the outro song of every show and gets played after the encore of the band.
Other notable Final Footprints at Hollywood Forever include; Mel Blanc (yes, his epitaph is “That’s All Folks!”), Cecil B. DeMille, Victor Fleming, Judy Garland, Joan Hackett, John Huston, Jayne Mansfield’s cenotaph, Hattie McDaniel‘s cenotaph, Tyrone Power, Nelson Riddle, Mickey Rooney, Bugsy Siegel, Carl “Alfalfa” Switzer, Rudolph Valentino, Fay Wray, and Anton Yelchin.
