“Darnley Portrait” c. 1757
On this day in 1603, Queen regnant of England and Queen regnant of Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death, The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth I died at Richmond Palace at the age of 69. Born in Greenwich Palace in the Chamber of Virgins on Sunday 7 September 1533, and named after both her grandmothers, Elizabeth of York and Elizabeth Howard. She was the second child of Henry VIII of England to survive infancy born in wedlock; her mother was Henry’s second wife, Anne Boleyn. Following the death of Henry on 28 January 1547, Elizabeth’s half-brother Edward VI would rule for six years until his death at the age of fifteen, Lady Jane Grey would rule for nine days and Elizabeth’s half-sister Mary I would rule for five years until her death at the age of 42. Elizabeth’s 44 year reign provided welcome stability for the kingdom and helped forge a sense of national identity. Elizabeth’s reign is known as the Elizabethan Era, famous above all for the flourishing of English drama, led by playwrights such as William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe. Elizabeth never married. Apparently she was in love with her childhood friend Lord Robert Dudley. Unfortunately due to the scandal surrounding the death of his wife, marriage to him was not possible. On her marital status she said; “If I follow the inclination of my nature, it is this: beggar-woman and single, far rather than queen and married”. And; “And, in the end, this shall be for me sufficient, that a marble stone shall declare that a queen, having reigned such a time, lived and died a virgin.” Elizabeth opposed a French presence in Scotland. She feared that the French planned to invade England and put her first cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots, who was Catholic and considered by many to be the heir to the English crown on the throne. When Mary was forced by the Protestant Scottish lords to abdicate in favour of her son James, Mary fled to England seeking the protection of Elizabeth. Perceiving her as a threat, Elizabeth had her arrested. After 19 years in custody in a number of castles and manor houses in England, she was tried and executed for treason for her alleged involvement in three plots to assassinate the queen. Elizabeth weathered the storm of religious division, surrounded herself with wise advisors who were dedicated to her, and used her own considerable political savvy, some would say luck, to become one the most beloved monarchs of all time. The impoverished and tattered country she had inherited had become one of the richest, most powerful nations in the world.
The Final Footprint – Elizabeth’s coffin was carried downriver at night to Whitehall, on a barge lit with torches. At her funeral on 28 April, the coffin was taken to Westminster Abbey on a hearse drawn by four horses hung with black velvet, where she was entombed. Her death marked the end of the Tudor dynasty. Many books and movies have featured Elizabeth, including Elizabeth (1998) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007), both starring Cate Blanchett in the title role. She was nominated for an Academy Award for both films. The first film was nominated for best picture. Other notable Final Footprints at Westminster include; Robert Browning, Lord Byron, Geoffrey Chaucer, Oliver Cromwell, Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens, Edward The Confessor, George II, George Friederic Handel, Stephen Hawking, James I (James VI of Scotland), Samuel Johnson, Ben Jonson, Charles II, Edward III, Edward VI, Henry III, Henry V, Henry VII, Richard II, Rudyard Kipling, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, John Milton, Sir Isaac Newton, Laurence Olivier, Henry Purcell, Mary I, Mary II, Mary Queen of Scots, Thomas Shadwell, Edmund Spenser, Lord Alfred Tennyson, Dylan Thomas, and William III.
On this day in 1882, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow died from peritonitis at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at the age of 75. Born on February 27, 1807 in Portland, Maine. His works include “Paul Revere’s Ride”, The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline. He was the first American to translate Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy and was one of the Fireside Poets from New England.
He studied at Bowdoin College and became a professor at Bowdoin and later at Harvard College after spending time in Europe. His first major poetry collections were Voices of the Night (1839) and Ballads and Other Poems (1841). He retired from teaching in 1854 to focus on his writing, and he lived the remainder of his life in the Revolutionary War headquarters of George Washington in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His first wife Mary Potter died in 1835 after a miscarriage. His second wife Frances Appleton died in 1861 after sustaining burns when her dress caught fire. After her death, Longfellow had difficulty writing poetry for a time and focused on translating works from foreign languages.
Longfellow wrote many lyric poems known for their musicality and often presenting stories of mythology and legend. He became the most popular American poet of his day and also had success overseas. He has been criticized by some, however, for imitating European styles and writing specifically for the masses.
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On August 22, 1879, a female admirer traveled to Longfellow’s house in Cambridge and, unaware to whom she was speaking, asked him: “Is this the house where Longfellow was born?” He told her that it was not. The visitor then asked if he had died here. “Not yet”, he replied. In March 1882, Longfellow went to bed with severe stomach pain. He endured the pain for several days with the help of opium before he died surrounded by family. He had been suffering from peritonitis. He is entombed with both of his wives at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Other notable final footprints at Mount Auburn include; Winslow Homer, Julia Ward Howe, Amy Lowell, Bernard Malamud, and Frances Sargent Osgood.
Photograph by Nadar c. 1878
On this day in 1905, novelist, poet and playwright Jules Verne died at his home in Amiens, 44 Boulevard Longueville (now Boulevard Jules-Verne) from diabetes at the age of 77. Born Jules Gabriel Verne on 8 February 1828 in Nantes, France.
Verne was trained to follow in his father’s footsteps as a lawyer, but quit the profession early in life to write for magazines and the stage. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the Voyages extraordinaires, a popular series of scrupulously researched adventure novels including Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873).
Verne has been the second most-translated author in the world since 1979, ranking between Agatha Christie and William Shakespeare. He has sometimes been called the “Father of Science Fiction”, along with H. G. Wells and Hugo Gernsback.
In May 1856, Verne traveled to Amiens to be the best man at the wedding of a Nantes friend, Auguste Lelarge, to an Amiens woman named Aimée du Fraysse de Viane. Verne, invited to stay with the bride’s family, took to them warmly, befriending the entire household and finding himself increasingly attracted to the bride’s sister, Honorine de Viane Morel, a widow aged 26 with two young children. Verne won the favor of Morel and her family, and the couple were married on 10 January 1857.
Jules Verne Funeral Procession, headed by his son and grandson, 1905
Jules Verne and Madame Verne ca. 1900
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Verne is entombed in La Madeleine Cemetery in Amiens, France
On his deathbed, 1905
Monument to Jules Verne in Redondela, Spain
#RIP #OTD 1909 playwright (The Playboy of the Western World, Deirdre of the Sorrows), poet, Irish Literary Revival key figure, John Millington Synge died; Hodgkin lymphoma; Elpis Nursing Home, Dublin, aged 37. Mount Jerome Cemetery, Harold’s Cross, Dublin
#RIP #OTD in 1968 pioneer film director, one of the first filmmakers to make a narrative fiction film, as well as the first woman to direct a film, Alice Guy-Blaché died in a nursing home in Mahwah, New Jersey aged 94. interred at Maryrest Cemetery in Mahwah
On this day in 2008 actor Richard Widmark died at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut, at the age of 93. Born Richard Weedt Widmark on December 26, 1914 in Sunrise Township, Minnesota.
He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, Kiss of Death (1947), for which he also won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer. Early in his career, Widmark was typecast in similar villainous or anti-hero roles in films noir, but he later branched out into more heroic leading and supporting roles in Westerns, mainstream dramas, and horror films among others.
For his contributions to the motion picture industry, Widmark has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6800 Hollywood Boulevard. In 2002, he was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Widmark was married to screenwriter Jean Hazlewood from 1942 until her death in 1997. In 1999, Widmark married Susan Blanchard, the daughter of Dorothy Hammerstein and stepdaughter of Oscar Hammerstein II; she had been Henry Fonda’s third wife.
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He was buried at Roxbury Center Cemetery.
On this day in 2016, stand-up comedian, actor, director, writer, and producer Garry Shandling died in his home in Los Angeles, California at age 66 from a pulmonary embolism. Born Garry Emmanuel Shandling on November 29, 1949 in Chicago. Perhaps best known for his work in It’s Garry Shandling’s Show and The Larry Sanders Show.
Shandling began his career writing for sitcoms, such as Sanford and Son and Welcome Back, Kotter. He made a successful stand-up performance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and became a frequent guest-host on the series. Shandling was for a time considered the leading contender to replace Johnny Carson. In 1986, he created It’s Garry Shandling’s Show for Showtime. It was nominated for four Emmy Awards (including one for Shandling) and lasted until 1990. His second show titled The Larry Sanders Show, which began airing on HBO in 1992, was even more successful. Shandling was nominated for 18 Emmy Awards for the show and won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 1998, along with Peter Tolan, for writing the series finale. In film, he had a recurring role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in Iron Man 2 and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. He also lent his voice to Verne in Over the Hedge. Shandling’s final performance was as the voice of Ikki in The Jungle Book.
Shandling was neither married nor had any children. He revealed little about his personal life. He shared an apartment with his fiancée Linda Doucett from 1987 until 1994. On The Larry Sanders Show, Doucett portrayed Darlene, Hank Kingsley’s doting assistant.
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Shandling was cremated.
#RIP #OTD in 2021 actress (Play Misty for Me, Grand Prix, Arrested Development, Archer) Jessica Walter died in her sleep at her Manhattan home, aged 80. Cremation
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On this day in 1842, writer Stendhal died in Paris at the age of 59. Born Marie-Henri Beyle on 23 January 1783 in Grenoble. Perhaps best known for the novels Le Rouge et le Noir (The Red and the Black, 1830) and La Chartreuse de Parme (The Charterhouse of Parma, 1839), he is highly regarded for the acute analysis of his characters’ psychology and considered one of the earliest and foremost practitioners of realism.
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On this day in 2006, singer and songwriter Cindy Walker died at the Parkview Regional Hospital in Mexia, Texas at the age of 87. Born July 20, 1918 in Mart, Texas. As a songwriter Walker was responsible for a large number of popular and enduring songs recorded by many different artists.
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On this day in 2011, multiple Academy Award nominated actress and two-time winner, social activist, champion of AIDS awareness, Liz, Elizabeth Taylor, died from congestive heart failure in Los Angeles at the age of 79. Born Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor on 27 February 1932 in Hampstead Garden Suburb, London. My all-time favorite movie in which she appeared was George Steven‘s epic Giant (1956) based on the Edna Ferber novel and starring Rock Hudson and James Dean. My other favorites include; Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) based on the Tennesse Williams play and co-starring Paul Newman; Suddenly, Last Summer (1959) based on the Williams play and co-starring Katharine Hepburn and Montgomery Clift; Cleopatra (1963) co-starring Richard Burton; Relections in a Golden Eye (1967) based on the novel by Carson McCullers and co-starring Marlon Brando. In 1959, Taylor converted from Christian Science to Judaism. Taylor was married eight times to seven men; Conrad Hilton, Jr. (1950-1951 divorce), Michael Wilding (1952-1957 divorce), Mike Todd (1957-1958 his death), Eddie Fisher (1959-1964 divorce), Richard Burton (1964-1974 divorce, 1975-1976 divorce), John Warner (1976-1982 divorce) and Larry Fortensky (1991-1996 divorce). Taylor married Fortensky at Michal Jackson’s Neverland Ranch. Taylor attended Jackson’s private funeral. Long Live Liz!
The Final Footprint – Taylor was entombed in the Great Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California, the day after her death in accordance with Jewish custom. The Great Mausoleum was fashioned after Campo Santo in Genoa, Italy and contains many of the most highly sought after final resting spaces within Forest Lawn Glendale. Within the Great Mausoleum is the Court of Honor where individuals are inducted as “Immortals” by Forest Lawn’s Council of Regents and the structure is protected by guards and is not accessible by the public. Time Magazine described it as the “New World’s Westminster Abbey”. Other notable Final Footprints at Forest Lawn Glendale include; L. Frank Baum, Humphrey Bogart, Lon Chaney, Nat King Cole, Natalie Cole, Sam Cooke, Dorothy Dandridge, Walt, Disney, Don Drysdale, Errol Flynn, Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, Michael Jackson, Louis L’Amour, Lash LaRue, Carole Lombard, Ida Lupino, Tom Mix, Merle Oberon, Red Skelton, Casey Stengel, Jimmy Stewart, Spencer Tracy, and Bobby Womack.
The Final Footprint – Goethe is entombed in the Ducal Vault in Weimar’s Historical Cemetery. Friedrich Schiller is entombed there as well. A bronze statue of Goethe and Schiller was erected in Weimar. The Goethe Monument was erected in Chicago’s Lincoln Park.
On this day in 2018, jazz singer and actress Morgana King died, aged 87, of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in Palm Springs, California. Born Maria Grazia Morgana Messina on June 4, 1930 in Pleasantville, New York. She began singing at a young age and a professional singing career at sixteen years old. In her twenties, she was singing at a Greenwich Village nightclub when she was recognized for her unique phrasing and vocal range, described as a four-octave contralto range.
On this day in 1617, Native American woman, Pocahontas died in Gravesend, Kent, England at the approximate age of 21. Born about 1595 in what is now Virginia. She was the daughter of Powhatan, the paramount chief of Tsenacommacah, an alliance of about thirty Algonquian-speaking groups and chiefdoms in Tidewater Virginia. Pocahontas was known for having assisted colonial settlers at Jamestown and for reportedly saving Captain John Smith‘s life. She converted to Christianity and married the English settler John Rolfe. They had a son, Thomas Rolfe and her many descendants include; Edith Bolling Galt Wilson, wife of Woodrow Wilson; Admiral Richard Byrd; Virginia Governor Harry Flood Byrd; fashion-designer and socialite Pauline de Rothschild; former First Lady Nancy Reagan. The Rolfes left Virginia for England in 1616. She died just as they were beginning a return trip to Virginia.
On this day in 1974, transgender actress Candy Darling died of lymphoma, aged 29, at the Columbia University Medical Center division of the Cabrini Health Center in New York City. Born James Lawrence Slattery on November 24, 1944 in Forest Hills, Queens, New York. Perhaps best known as a Warhol Superstar. She starred in Andy Warhol’s films Flesh (1968) and Women in Revolt (1971), and was a muse of the protopunk band The Velvet Underground. She appeared in Klute with Jane Fonda and Lady Liberty with Sophia Loren. Her theatre credits include two Jackie Curtis plays, Glamour, Glory and Gold (1967) and Vain Victory: The Vicissitudes of the Damned (1971). She was also in Tennessee Williams‘ play Small Craft Warnings, at the invitation of Williams himself. Darling and friend Taffy are paid tribute to in the chorus of The Rolling Stones’ 1967 song “Citadel”. Darling is the subject of the song “Candy Says”, the opening track on The Velvet Underground’s third, self-titled album in 1969. The second verse of Lou Reed’s 1972 hit “Walk on the Wild Side” is devoted to Darling.
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The Final Footprint – Newton is entombed in Westminster Abbey. His monument is north of the entrance to the choir against the choir screen, near his tomb. Executed by the sculptor Michael Rysbrack (1694–1770) in white and grey marble with design by the architect William Kent. The monument features a figure of Newton reclining on top of a sarcophagus, his right elbow resting on several of his great books and his left hand pointing to a scroll with a mathematical design. Above him is a pyramid and a celestial globe showing the signs of the Zodiac and the path of the comet of 1680. The Latin inscription on the base translates as: “Here is buried Isaac Newton, Knight, who by a strength of mind almost divine, and mathematical principles peculiarly his own, explored the course and figures of the planets, the paths of comets, the tides of the sea, the dissimilarities in rays of light, and, what no other scholar has previously imagined, the properties of the colours thus produced. Diligent, sagacious and faithful, in his expositions of nature, antiquity and the holy Scriptures, he vindicated by his philosophy the majesty of God mighty and good, and expressed the simplicity of the Gospel in his manners. Mortals rejoice that there has existed such and so great an ornament of the human race!” Other notable Final Footprints at Westminster include; Robert Browning, Lord Byron, Charles II, Geoffrey Chaucer, Oliver Cromwell, Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens, Edward III, Edward VI, Edward The Confessor, Elizabeth I, George II, George Friederic Handel, Stephen Hawking, Henry III, Henry V, Henry VII, James I (James VI of Scotland), Samuel Johnson, Ben Jonson, Rudyard Kipling, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Mary I, Mary II, Mary Queen of Scots, John Milton, Laurence Olivier, Henry Purcell, Thomas Shadwell, Edmund Spenser, Lord Alfred Tennyson, Dylan Thomas, and William III.
On this day in 1964, 
He was given a full IRA guard of honour, which escorted his coffin. It was described by several newspapers as the biggest Irish funeral of all time after those of Michael Collins and Charles Stewart Parnell. He is interred at Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin. Other notable final footprints at Glasnevin include; Michael Collins, Maud Gonne, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and Seán MacBride.
On this day in 1982, heavy metal guitarist Randy Rhoads died in a plane accident in Leesburg, Florida, at the age of 25. Born Randall William Rhoads on December 6, 1956 in Santa Monica, California. Rhoads played with Quiet Riot and Ozzy Osbourne. A devoted student of classical guitar, Rhoads combined his classical music influences with his own heavy metal style. Despite his short career, Rhoads, who was a major influence on neoclassical metal, is cited as an influence by many guitarists.
On this day in 1997, artist Willem de Kooning died from complications of Alzheimer’s disease at the age of 92 in East Hampton, New York. Born April 24, 1904 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. He moved to the United States in 1926, and became an American citizen in 1962. On December 9, 1943, he married painter Elaine Fried.
On this day in 2007, actor and comedian, Larry Bud Melman, died at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Islip, New York at the age of 85. Born Calvert Grant DeForest on 23 July 1921 in Brooklyn. Perhaps best known for his appearances on Late Night with David Letterman and the Late Show with David Letterman. He was the cousin of actor DeForest Kelley of Star Trek fame. His appearances on Letterman were so funny. I used to watch Letterman back in the day when I could stay awake past 2300 hours.
On this day in 2008, science fiction writer, science writer and futurist, inventor, undersea explorer, and television series host Arthur C. Clarke died in Colombo, Sri Lanka from respiratory failure at the age of 90. Born Arthur Charles Clarke on 16 December 1917 in Minehead, Somerset, England, UK.
On this day in 1980 artist Tamara de Łempicka died in Cuernavaca, Mexico at the age of 81. Born Tamara Rozalia Gurwik-Górska on 16 May 1898 in Warsaw, Poland. She spent her working life in France and the United States. Perhaps best known for her polished Art Deco portraits of aristocrats and the wealthy, and for her highly stylized paintings of nudes.
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On this day in 2009, actress Natasha Richardson died at the age of 45 at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan from an epidural hematoma, after hitting her head in a skiing accident at the Mont Tremblant Resort in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, Canada. Born Natasha Jane Richardson on 11 May 1963 in Marylebone, London. Richardson was a member of the Redgrave family, being the daughter of actress Vanessa Redgrave and director/producer Tony Richardson, and the granddaughter of Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson.
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On this day in 2010, U. S. Navy and Marine
Corp veteran, Texas Longhorn, actor and wine maker, Fess Parker, died at his home in Santa Ynez, California at the age of 85. Born Fess Elisha Parker, Jr. on 16 August 1924 in Fort Worth, Texas. Parker graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in history in 1950. Perhaps best known for his portrayals of Davy Crockett in the Walt Disney 1955 – 1956 television mini-series and as television’s Daniel Boone from 1964 – 1970. Parker founded and operated the Fess Parker Family Winery and Vineyards in Los Olivos, California. The wine labels have a logo of a golden coonskin cap and the winery sells coonskin caps. Parker was married once to Marcella Belle Rinehart (1960 – 2010 his death).
The Final Footprint – Parker is interred with is parents in Santa Barbara Cemetery in Santa Barbara, California. His grave is marked by and individual bronze marker with a coonskin emblem and the term of endearment; IN LOVING MEMORY. Other notable Final Footprints at Santa Barbara include; Laurence Harvey, Suzy Parker (no relation) and Kenneth Rexroth.
On this day in 2017, musician, singer, songwriter, rock and roll pioneer, Chuck Berry died at his home in St. Charles County, Missouri at the age of 90. Born Charles Edward Anderson Berry on October 18, 1926 in St. Louis, Missouri. With songs such as “Maybellene” (1955), “Roll Over Beethoven” (1956), “Rock and Roll Music” (1957) and “Johnny B. Goode” (1958), Berry refined and developed rhythm and blues into major elements that made rock and roll distinctive. Writing lyrics that focused on teen life and consumerism, and developing a music style that included guitar solos and showmanship, Berry was a major influence on subsequent rock music.
On this day in 180 AD, Joint 16th Emperor of the Roman Empire, Philosopher King, Marcus Aurelius died in the city of Vindobona (modern Vienna) or in Sirmium, Serbia, the age of 58. Born Marcus Annius Catilius Severus on 26 April 121 in Rome. He ruled with Lucius Verus as co-emperor from 161 until Verus’ death in 169. Aurelius was the last of the Five Good Emperors, and is also considered one of the most important Stoic philosophers. During his reign, the Empire defeated a revitalized Parthian Empire in the East; Aurelius’ general Avidius Cassius sacked the capital Ctesiphon in 164. In central Europe, Aurelius fought the Marcomanni, Quadi, and Sarmatians with success during the Marcomannic Wars, with the threat of the Germanic tribes beginning to represent a troubling reality for the Empire. A revolt in the East led by Cassius failed to gain momentum and was suppressed immediately. Aurelius’ Stoic tome Meditations, written in Greek while on campaign between 170 and 180, is still revered as a literary monument to a philosophy of service and duty, describing how to find and preserve equanimity in the midst of conflict by following nature as a source of guidance and inspiration. Aurelius married his first cousin Faustina the Younger in 145. During their 30-year marriage Faustina bore 13 children.
The Final Footprint – Aurelius was cremated and immediately deified and his cremated remains were returned to Rome, and rested in Hadrian’s mausoleum (modern Castel Sant’Angelo) until the Visigoth sack of the city in 410. His campaigns against Germans and Sarmatians were also commemorated by a column and a temple built in Rome. In the 1964 movie The Fall of the Roman Empire he was portrayed by Alec Guinness and in the 2000 movie Gladiator he was portrayed by Richard Harris. Both movie plots posited that Aurelius was assassinated because he intended to pass down power to Aurelius’s adopted son, a Roman general, instead of his biological son Commodus.
On this day; the traditional death date of fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland, Saint Patrick. Known as the “Apostle of Ireland”, he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, the other patron saints being Brigit of Kildare and Columba. He is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Lutheran Churches, the Old Catholic Church, and in the Eastern Orthodox Church as equal-to-the-apostles and Enlightener of Ireland.
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On this day in 1990, French actress and fashion model, Capucine jumped to her death from her eighth-floor apartment in Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland, where she had lived for 28 years, at the age of 57. Born Germaine Lefebvre on 6 January 1933 in Toulon, France. Capucine is best known for her comedic roles in North to Alaska (1960) starring John Wayne, Stewart Granger and Fabian; The Pink Panther (1963) starring David Niven and Peter Sellers; What’s New Pussycat? (1965) starring Sellers and Peter O’Toole.
The Final Footprint – Bean and his son Sam are interred at the Whitehead Museum in Del Rio, Texas. Bean’s grave is marked by a flat granite marker inscribed; JUSTICE OF THE PEACE / LAW WEST OF THE PECOS. Lillie Langtry recounted how she visited the area following the death of Bean in her autobiography, The Days I Knew (1925).
On this day in 1970 singer Tammi Terrell died from a brain tumor in Philadelphia at the age of 24. Born Thomasina Winifred Montgomery on April 29, 1945 in Philadelphia. Perhaps best known as a singer for Motown Records during the 1960s, most notably for a series of duets with Marvin Gaye. Terrell’s career began as a teenager, first recording for Scepter/Wand Records, before spending nearly two years as a member of James Brown‘s Revue, recording for Brown’s Try Me label. After a period attending college, Terrell recorded briefly for Checker Records, before signing with Motown in 1965. With Gaye, Terrell scored seven Top 40 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, including “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”, “Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing” and “You’re All I Need to Get By”. Terrell’s career was interrupted when she collapsed into Gaye’s arms as the two performed at a concert at Hampden–Sydney College on October 14, 1967, with Terrell later being diagnosed with a brain tumor.
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On this day in 1975, blues guitarist, singer, songwriter T-Bone Walker died of bronchial pneumonia following a stroke in Los Angeles, at the age of 64. Born Aaron Thibeaux Walker on May 28, 1910 in Linden, Texas. He was a pioneer and innovator of the jump blues and electric blues sound. Much of his output was recorded from 1946 to 1948 for Black & White Records, including his most famous song, “Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)” (1947). Other notable songs he recorded during this period were “Bobby Sox Blues” (a number 3 R&B hit in 1947) and “West Side Baby” (number 8 on the R&B singles chart in 1948). He won a Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording in 1971 for Good Feelin’.
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On this day in 2019, guitarist, The King of the Surf Guitar, Dick Dale died 
On this day in 44BC, Roman general, statesman, Consul, and notable author of Latin prose, Julius Caesar was assassinated by a group of rebellious senators led by Marcus Junius Brutus, on the steps of the Senate in Rome. He was 55. born into a patrician family, the gens Julia, which claimed descent from Iulus, son of the legendary Trojan prince Aeneas, supposedly the son of the goddess Venus, in July 100 BC, in Rome. Caesar played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire. In 60 BC, Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey formed a political alliance that was to dominate Roman politics for several years. Their attempts to amass power through populist tactics were opposed by the conservative ruling class within the Roman Senate, among them Cato the Younger with the frequent support of Cicero. Caesar’s victories in the Gallic Wars, completed by 51 BC, extended Rome’s territory to the English Channel and the Rhine. Caesar became the first Roman general to cross both when he built a bridge across the Rhine and conducted the first invasion of Britain. These achievements granted him unmatched military power and threatened to eclipse the standing of Pompey, who had realigned himself with the Senate after the death of Crassus in 53 BC. With the Gallic Wars concluded, the Senate ordered Caesar to step down from his military command and return to Rome. Caesar refused the order, and instead marked his defiance in 49 BC by crossing the Rubicon with a legion, leaving his province and illegally entering Roman Italy under arms. Civil war resulted, and Caesar’s victory in the war would put him in an unrivaled position of power and influence. After assuming control of government, Caesar began a programme of social and governmental reforms, including the creation of the Julian calendar. He centralised the bureaucracy of the Republic and was eventually proclaimed “dictator in perpetuity”, giving him additional authority. But the underlying political conflicts had not been resolved, which resulted in his assassination.
The Final Footprint – According to Plutarch, after the assassination, Brutus stepped forward as if to say something to his fellow senators; they, however, fled the building. Brutus and his companions then marched to the Capitol while crying out to their beloved city: “People of Rome, we are once again free!” They were met with silence, as the citizens of Rome had locked themselves inside their houses as soon as the rumor of what had taken place had begun to spread. Caesar’s dead body lay where it fell on the Senate floor for nearly three hours before other officials arrived to remove it. His body was cremated, and on the site of his cremation the Temple of Caesar was erected a few years later (at the east side of the main square of the Roman Forum). Only its altar now remains. A lifesize wax statue of Caesar was later erected in the forum displaying the 23 stab wounds. A crowd who had gathered there started a fire, which badly damaged the forum and neighboring buildings. A new series of civil wars broke out, and the constitutional government of the Republic was never fully restored. Caesar’s adopted heir Octavius, later known as Augustus, rose to sole power after defeating his opponents in the civil war. Octavius set about solidifying his power, and the era of the Roman Empire began. Much of Caesar’s life is known from his own accounts of his military campaigns, and from other contemporary sources, mainly the letters and speeches of Cicero and the historical writings of Sallust. The later biographies of Caesar by Suetonius and Plutarch are also major sources. Caesar is considered by many to be one of the greatest military commanders in history.
On this day in 1975, prominent Greek shipping magnate, Aristotle Onassis, died in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, of respiratory failure at the age of 69. Born Aristotle Socrates Onassis on 15 January 1906 in Karatass, a suburb of Smyrna (now İzmir, Turkey). During his lifetime he was one of the wealthiest and most famous men in the world. Onassis married twice; Athina Livanos (1946 – 1960 divorce), daughter of shipping magnate Stavros Livanos and Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (1968 – 1975 his death). Onassis reportedly had a notorious affair with Maria Callas shortly after the two met in 1957. Onassis was quoted as saying, “There [was] just a natural curiosity; after all, we were the most famous Greeks alive in the world.” Livanos divorced Onassis over the affair. He ended his relationship with Callas to marry Kennedy.
The Final Footprint – Onassis was entombed in a sarcophagus beside the chapel next to his son Alexander in the Island of Skorpios Cemetery on Skorpios Island in the Ionian Sea off the western coast of Greece, a private island owned by Onassis.
