On this day in 1947, The Black Dahlia, Elizabeth Short‘s body was found in the Leimert Park district of Los Angeles, the victim of a gruesome and much-publicized murder, at the age of 22. Born Elizabeth Short on 29 July 1924 in Boston, Massachusetts. Short acquired the nickname posthumously by newspapers in the habit of nicknaming crimes they found particularly colorful. Short’s unsolved murder has been the source of widespread speculation, leading to many suspects, along with several books and film adaptations of the story. 
The Final Footprint – Short was buried at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California. A 1975 TV movie, “Who Is the Black Dahlia?” featured Lucie Arnaz in the role of Elizabeth. James Ellroy wrote The Black Dahlia in 1987. It was a fictionalized account of Elizabeth, the events in her life eventually leading to her death, and two obsessed cops who attempt to find her killer. A fictionalized account of Black Dahlia murder was featured in the program American Horror Story: Murder House in episode 9 Spooky Little Girl. She was portrayed by actress Mena Suvari. In the episode, Elizabeth was murdered by a young doctor who resided in the show’s haunted house. Short is portrayed in the episode as a ghost who has lost her memory and is doomed to linger on the house’s premises. True Confessions, a 1981 film starring Robert De Niro and Robert Duvall was loosely based on the murder case. The film was adapted from a 1977 novel of the same name by John Gregory Dunne. A movie titled The Black Dahlia, based on Ellroy’s book, was released in September 2006 directed by Brian De Palma and starred Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Aaron Eckhart and Hilary Swank. Mia Kirshner played Elizabeth.
#RIP #OTD in 1955 surrealist painter, husband of Kay Sage, Yves Tanguy died from astroke at Woodbury, Connecticut, aged 55. His cremated remains were kept until Sage’s death in 1963. Their remains were scattered by his friend Pierre Matisse on the beach at Douarnenez in Brittany
On this day in 1983, major organized crime figure, the “Mob’s Accountant”, Meyer Lansky died of lung cancer at the age of 80 in Miami Beach. Born Meyer Suchowlansky in Grodno (then in Russian Empire, now in Belarus) on 4 July 1902. Along with his associate Charles “Lucky” Luciano, Lansky was instrumental in the development of the “National Crime Syndicate” in the United States. For decades he was thought to be one of the most powerful individuals in the country. Lansky developed a gambling empire which stretched across the seas. He was said to own points in casinos in Las Vegas, Cuba, The Bahamas and London. Although a member of the Jewish Mob, Lansky undoubtedly had strong influence with the Italian Mafia and played a large role in the consolidation of the criminal underworld (although the full extent of this role has been the subject of some debate, as he himself denied many of the accusations against him). Despite all the reports, the U.S. Justice Department never found Lansky guilty of anything more serious than illegal gambling. 
The Final Footprint – Lansky is interred in Mount Nebo Miami Memorial Gardens in West Miami. The character Hyman Roth, portrayed by Lee Strasberg, and certain aspects of the main character Michael Corleone from Francis Ford Coppola‘s film The Godfather Part II (1974), appear to be based on Lansky. Shortly after the premiere in 1974, Lansky phoned Strasberg and congratulated him on a good performance (Strasberg was nominated for an Oscar for his role), but added “You could’ve made me more sympathetic.” Roth’s statement to Michael Corleone that “We’re bigger than U.S. Steel” was actually a direct quote from Lansky, who said the same thing to his wife while watching a news story on the Cosa Nostra. The Godfather character Johnny Ola is similar to Lansky’s associate Vincent Alo. Additionally, the character Moe Greene, who was a friend of Roth’s, appears to be modeled upon Bugsy Siegel. The film reflects real life in that Lansky was denied the Right of Return to Israel and returned to the U.S. to face criminal charges, but fabricated details regarding Roth’s attempts to bribe Latin American dictators for entry to their countries, as well as Roth’s ultimate fate. Maximilian “Max” Bercovicz, the gangster played by James Woods in Sergio Leone’s opus Once Upon A Time In America, appears to be inspired by Lansky. Mark Rydell played Lansky in the 1990 Sydney Pollack film Havana, starring Robert Redford. The film Bugsy (1991), a biography of Siegel, included Lansky as a major character, played by Ben Kingsley, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance. In the 1991 film Mobsters, he is played by Patrick Dempsey. Lansky is portrayed by Dustin Hoffman in the 2005 film The Lost City, which presents a fictionalized account of Lansky’s involvement in Cuba.
On this day in 1993, lyricist, songwriter and musician, multiple Academy Award-winner, Sammy Cahn, died in Los Angeles, California at the age of 79 from heart failure. Born Samuel Cohen on 18 June 1913 in The Lower East Side of Manhattan. My favorite Cahn songs are; “(Love is) The Tender Trap”, “Come Fly with Me” and “My Kind of Town”. Cahn and composer Jimmy Van Heusen wrote many songs for Frank Sinatra. Cahn was married twice; Gloria Delson and Virginia “Tita” Curtis. 
The Final Footprint – Cahn is interred at Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park and Mortuary (a Dignity Memorial® provider) in Los Angeles. His grave is marked by a full ledger granite marker inscribed with his name, birth and death years and; SLEEP WITH A SMILE. Other notable final footprints at Westwood include; Ray Bradbury, Truman Capote, James Coburn, Rodney Dangerfield, Janet Leigh, Farrah Fawcett, Hugh Hefner, Brian Keith, Don Knotts, Burt Lancaster, Peter Lawford, Peggy Lee, Jack Lemmon, Karl Malden, Dean Martin, Walter Mathau, Marilyn Monroe, Carroll O’Connor, Roy Orbison, George C. Scott, Dorothy Stratten, Natalie Wood, and Frank Zappa.
#RIP #OTD in 1994 singer (“Everybody’s Talkin'”, “Without You”), songwriter (“One”) Harry Nilsson died of heart failure in his Agoura Hills, California, home at the age of 52. Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks Memorial Park, Westlake Village, California
#RIP #OTD in 1998 blues singer (“Messin’ with the Kid”, Hoodoo Man Blues), harmonica player, Junior Wells died in Chicago, aged 63. Oak Woods Cemetery, Chicago
On this day in 2018, musician, singer and songwriter Dolores O’Riordan died as a result of accidental drowning in a bathtub due to sedation by alcohol intoxication at the London Hilton on Park Lane hotel in Mayfair, London, at the age of 46. Born Dolores Mary Eileen O’Riordan on 6 September 1971 in Ballybricken, County Limerick, Ireland. She was the vocalist for rock band The Cranberries from 1990 until their break-up in 2003, later reuniting with her band in 2009, which she led until her death in 2018.
O’Riordan’s first solo album, Are You Listening?, was released in May 2007 and was followed up by No Baggage in 2009. O’Riordan was known for her lilting mezzo-soprano voice, her emphasised use of keening, and her strong Limerick accent.
On 18 July 1994, O’Riordan married Don Burton, the former tour manager of Duran Duran, at Holy Cross Abbey in Co. Tipperary. The couple divorced in 2014.
The Final Footprint
Funeral plans included a service reserved for extended family and close friends. A three-day memorial in her hometown, with O’Riordan lying in repose, lasted from 20–22 January at St Joseph’s church. O’Riordan’s songs were played, while photographs of the singer performing and one of her with Pope John Paul II were placed along the walls.
She was buried on 23 January after a service at Saint Ailbe’s Roman Catholic Church, Ballybricken, County Limerick; it began with the studio recording of “Ave Maria” as sung by O’Riordan and Luciano Pavarotti. At the end of the service the Cranberries’ song “When You’re Gone” was played. O’Riordan was buried alongside her father at Caherelly Cemetery in Hebertstown, County Limerick.
On this day in 2019, actress, singer, dancer, and comedian Carol Channing died of natural causes at her home in Rancho Mirage, California, at the age of 97. Born Carol Elaine Channing on January 31, 1921 in . Perhaps best known for starring in Broadway and film musicals. Her characters usually had a fervent expressiveness and an easily identifiable voice, whether singing or for comedic effect.
Channing began as a Broadway musical actress starring in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in 1949 and Hello, Dolly! in 1964, and winning the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the latter. She revived both roles several times throughout her career, playing Dolly on Broadway for the final time in 1995. She was nominated for her first Tony Award in 1956 for The Vamp, followed by a nomination in 1961 for Show Girl. She received her fourth Tony Award nomination for the musical Lorelei in 1974.
As a film actress, she won the Golden Globe Award and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Muzzy in Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967). Her other film appearances include The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) and Skidoo (1968). On television, she appeared as an entertainer on variety shows, from The Ed Sullivan Show in the 1950s to Hollywood Squares. She performed The White Queen in the TV production of Alice in Wonderland (1985), and she had the first of many TV specials in 1966, entitled An Evening with Carol Channing.
Channing was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1981 and received a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in 1995. She continued to perform and make appearances well into her 90s, singing songs from her repertoire and sharing stories with fans, cabaret-style. She released her autobiography Just Lucky I Guess in 2002, and Larger Than Life was released in 2012, a documentary film about her career.
Channing in 2009
Channing was married four times. Her first husband was Theodore Naidish, whom she married when she was 20 in 1941. He was a writer, who in 1944 wrote Watch Out for Willie Carter. Her second husband Alexander F. Carson, known as Axe, or “The Murderous Ax”, played center for the Ottawa Rough Riders Canadian football team and was also a private detective. They married in 1950 and divorced in September 1956.
In September 1956, following the entry of the divorce decree from Carson, Channing married her manager and publicist Charles Lowe. Channing filed for divorce from Lowe in 1998, but her estranged husband died before the divorce was finalized. After Lowe’s death and until shortly before her fourth marriage, the actress’s companion was Roger Denny, an interior decorator. In 2003, while recording the audiobook of her autobiography Just Lucky, I Guess, at VideoActive Productions, NYC, produced and directed by Steve Garrin, she rekindled her romance with her junior high school sweetheart, Harry Kullijian, and they married on May 10, 2003. They later performed at their old junior high school in a benefit for the school. They also promoted arts education in California schools through their Dr. Carol Channing and Harry Kullijian Foundation. The couple resided in both Modesto, California, and Rancho Mirage, California. Harry Kullijian died on December 26, 2011, the eve of his 92nd birthday.
The Final Footprint
On January 16, the lights on Broadway were dimmed in her honor. A crowd congregated outside the St. James Theater, as it had also been the anniversary of the opening of the original Broadway production of Hello, Dolly!. She was cremated and her cremated remains were scattered between the Curran theater and the Geary theater in San Francisco.
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