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Home » Entertainment News » In Memoriam: Celebrity Deaths 2018

In Memoriam: Celebrity Deaths 2018

Jason Fraley | @JFrayWTOP

December 26, 2018, 12:02 AM

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Before we turn the page to 2019, it’s important to look back at the famous people we lost in 2018.

In addition to politicians (George H.W. Bush, John McCain), scientists (Stephen Hawking) and televangelists (Billy Graham), we also lost plenty of influential figures in the world of entertainment.

Click through the gallery for a chronological look back at those who died this year.

Click through the gallery for a chronological look back at those who died this year.

(WTOP collage via AP)

WTOP collage via AP
Jan. 5: Jerry Van Dyke

Actor of “Coach”

AP Photo/Chris Martinez, File
Dolores O'Riordan of Irish rock group "The Cranberries" perfoms at the Sant Jordi Club in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, Oct. 4, 2012. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Jan. 15: Dolores O’Riordan

Singer of The Cranberries

AP Photo/Manu Fernandez
Jan. 19: Dorothy Malone

Actress of “Written on the Wind”

AP Photo, File
Dennis Edwards attends the 26th Annual Heroes and Legends Awards held at The Beverly Hills Hotel on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2015, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by John Salangsang/Invision/AP)
Feb. 1: Dennis Edwards

Singer of The Temptations

(Photo by John Salangsang/Invision/AP)

John Salangsang/Invision/AP/John Salangsang
Feb. 4: John Mahoney

Actor of “Frasier”

AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File
Feb. 9: Reg E. Cathey

Actor of “House of Cards”

Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File
Feb. 11: Vic Damone

Singer of “An Affair to Remember”

AP Photo/Ed Bailey, File
Feb. 23: Lewis Gilbert

Director of three James Bond films

YouTube
March 3: David Ogden Stiers

Actor of “M*A*S*H”

AP Photo/Huynh, File
March 4: Russell Solomon

Founder of Tower Records

Michael A. Jones/The Sacramento Bee via AP, File
Television writer/producer Steven Bochco poses for a portrait at his office on Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2016, in Santa Monica, Calif. In his memoir "Truth Is a Total Defense: My Fifty Years in Television" Bochco takes the reader through his prolific career, which he began at 22 as a story editor on a popular NBC drama, "The Name of the Game," and continues today with his latest creation, "Murder in the First," in its third season on TNT. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
April 1: Steven Bochco

Creator of “Hill Street Blues”

(Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP/Chris Pizzello
April 13: Milos Forman

Director of “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”

AP Photo/Abdeljalil Bounhar, File
April 15: R. Lee Ermey

Actor of “Full Metal Jacket”

Charles Sykes/AP Images for IAVA and Victory Motorcycles
April 20: Avicii

EDM musician

AP Photo
April 21: Verne Troyer

Actor of “Austin Powers”

Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
May 8: Anne Coates

Editor of “Lawrence of Arabia”

Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File
May 13: Margot Kidder

Actress of “Superman”

AP Photo/Reed Saxon
May 14: Tom Wolfe

Author of “The Right Stuff”

AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews
FILE - In this May 13, 2004 file photo, designer Kate Spade poses with handbags and shoes from her next collection in New York. Law enforcement officials say Tuesday, June 5, 2018, that New York fashion designer Kate Spade has been found dead in her apartment in an apparent suicide. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
June 5: Kate Spade

Clothing designer

(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)

 

AP/Bebeto Matthews
Anthony Bourdain speaks during South By Southwest at the Austin Convention Center on Sunday, March 13, 2016, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Rich Fury/Invision/AP)
June 8: Anthony Bourdain

Chef and host of “No Reservations”

(Photo by Rich Fury/Invision/AP)

Rich Fury/Invision/AP/Rich Fury
Vinnie Paul, co-founder and drummer of metal band Pantera, has died at 54. File. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)
June 22: Vinnie Paul

Drummer of Pantera

(Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)

Amy Harris/Invision/AP/Amy Harris
Joe Jackson attends The Friars Foundation Gala honoring Robert De Niro and Carlos Slim at The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2014, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
June 27: Joe Jackson

Founder of The Jackson 5

(Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/Evan Agostini
July 5: Claude Lanzmann

Director of “Shoah”

AP Photo/Jeff Christensen, File
Actor Tab Hunter is shown in this undated photo. (AP Photo)
July 8: Tab Hunter

Singer of “Young Love””

(AP Photo)

ASSOCIATED PRESS
July 13: Nancy Sinatra

Wife of Frank Sinatra

AP Photo/Murray Becker, File
FILE - In this Sept. 15, 2014, file photo, Charlotte Rae arrives at the 2014 PALEYFEST Fall TV Previews - "The Facts Of Life" Reunion in Beverly Hills, Calif. Rae recounts in her new autobiography, her own life bore little resemblance to the sitcom-grade serenity of her "Facts of Life" character, Edna Garrett, instead marked by challenges that included son Andy’s autism and her husband's late-in-life disclosure that he was bisexual and wanted an open marriage. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, FILE)
Aug. 5: Charlotte Rae

Actress of “The Facts of Life”

(Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, FILE)

Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP/Richard Shotwell
Aug. 16: Aretha Franklin

Singer of “R-E-S-P-E-C-T”

AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Aug. 21: Barbara Harris

Actress of “Freaky Friday”

AP Photo/Marty Lederhandler, File
Aug. 22: Ed King

Founder of Lynyrd Skynyrd

AP Photo/Stuart Ramson, File
Aug. 24: Robin Leach

Host of “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”

Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Aug. 26: Neil Simon

Playwright of “The Odd Couple”

 

AP Photo/Gary Stuart, File
Sept. 6: Burt Reynolds

Actor of “Smokey & The Bandit”

AP Photo/Red McLendon
Sept. 7: Mac Miller

Hip-hop star

Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File
Sept. 4: Bill Daily

Actor of “I Dream of Jeannie”

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File
Sept. 27: Marty Balin

Singer of Jefferson Airplane

Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File
Oct. 6: Scott Wilson

Actor of “In Cold Blood”

Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File
FILE - In this Nov. 1, 1997 file photo, actress/director/author Sondra Locke poses for a photograph at a garden in Beverly Hills, Calif. A death certificate obtained by The Associated Press shows Oscar-nominated actress Locke died Nov. 3, 2018, at age 74 at her home in Los Angeles of cardiac arrest stemming from breast and bone cancer. She was nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actress for 1968's "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter," her first film. (AP Photo/ Damian Dovarganes, File)
Nov. 3: Sondra Locke

Actress of “The Outlaw Josey Wales”

(AP Photo/ Damian Dovarganes, File)

AP/Damian Dovarganes
Nov. 11: Douglas Rain

Actor of “2001: A Space Odyssey”

Robert C Ragsdale/Stratford Festival via AP
Nov. 12: Stan Lee

Creator of “Spider-Man”

AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File
Roy Clark picks his way through a performance at his theater in Branson, Mo., Oct. 14, 1996. Clark was the first big name to have a theater in Branson and lead the way for others to come. He gives his last performance in Branson next month. (AP Photo/John S. Stewart)
Nov. 15: Roy Clark

Musician/host of “Hee Haw”

AP Photo/John S. Stewart
Nov. 24: Ricky Jay

Star of “Boogie Nights”

Getty Images/Jamie McCarthy
Nov. 26: Stephen Hillenburg

Creator of “SpongeBob SquarePants”

Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File
FILE - Feb. 1972 file photo of Italian movie director Bernardo Bertolucci. Bertolucci, who won Oscars with "The Last Emperor" and whose erotic drama "Last Tango in Paris" enthralled and shocked the world, has died at the age of 77. Bertolucci's press office, Punto e Virgola, confirmed the death Monday, Nov. 26, 2018, in an email to The Associated Press. (AP Photo)
Nov. 26: Bernardo Bertolucci

Director of “The Last Emperor”

(AP Photo)

AP
TV actresses Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams smile at the Emmy Awards in Los Angeles, Sept. 9, 1979. The duo play television's "Laverne and Shirley." (AP Photo/George Brich)
Dec.  17: Penny Marshall

Actress of “Laverne & Shirley,” director of “Big”

AP Photo/George Brich
(1/45)
Dolores O'Riordan of Irish rock group "The Cranberries" perfoms at the Sant Jordi Club in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, Oct. 4, 2012. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Dennis Edwards attends the 26th Annual Heroes and Legends Awards held at The Beverly Hills Hotel on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2015, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by John Salangsang/Invision/AP)
Television writer/producer Steven Bochco poses for a portrait at his office on Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2016, in Santa Monica, Calif. In his memoir "Truth Is a Total Defense: My Fifty Years in Television" Bochco takes the reader through his prolific career, which he began at 22 as a story editor on a popular NBC drama, "The Name of the Game," and continues today with his latest creation, "Murder in the First," in its third season on TNT. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
FILE - In this May 13, 2004 file photo, designer Kate Spade poses with handbags and shoes from her next collection in New York. Law enforcement officials say Tuesday, June 5, 2018, that New York fashion designer Kate Spade has been found dead in her apartment in an apparent suicide. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
Anthony Bourdain speaks during South By Southwest at the Austin Convention Center on Sunday, March 13, 2016, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Rich Fury/Invision/AP)
Vinnie Paul, co-founder and drummer of metal band Pantera, has died at 54. File. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)
Joe Jackson attends The Friars Foundation Gala honoring Robert De Niro and Carlos Slim at The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2014, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Actor Tab Hunter is shown in this undated photo. (AP Photo)
FILE - In this Sept. 15, 2014, file photo, Charlotte Rae arrives at the 2014 PALEYFEST Fall TV Previews - "The Facts Of Life" Reunion in Beverly Hills, Calif. Rae recounts in her new autobiography, her own life bore little resemblance to the sitcom-grade serenity of her "Facts of Life" character, Edna Garrett, instead marked by challenges that included son Andy’s autism and her husband's late-in-life disclosure that he was bisexual and wanted an open marriage. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, FILE)
FILE - In this Nov. 1, 1997 file photo, actress/director/author Sondra Locke poses for a photograph at a garden in Beverly Hills, Calif. A death certificate obtained by The Associated Press shows Oscar-nominated actress Locke died Nov. 3, 2018, at age 74 at her home in Los Angeles of cardiac arrest stemming from breast and bone cancer. She was nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actress for 1968's "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter," her first film. (AP Photo/ Damian Dovarganes, File)
Roy Clark picks his way through a performance at his theater in Branson, Mo., Oct. 14, 1996. Clark was the first big name to have a theater in Branson and lead the way for others to come. He gives his last performance in Branson next month. (AP Photo/John S. Stewart)
FILE - Feb. 1972 file photo of Italian movie director Bernardo Bertolucci. Bertolucci, who won Oscars with "The Last Emperor" and whose erotic drama "Last Tango in Paris" enthralled and shocked the world, has died at the age of 77. Bertolucci's press office, Punto e Virgola, confirmed the death Monday, Nov. 26, 2018, in an email to The Associated Press. (AP Photo)
TV actresses Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams smile at the Emmy Awards in Los Angeles, Sept. 9, 1979. The duo play television's "Laverne and Shirley." (AP Photo/George Brich)

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