They're dropping like flies!

[Grace]

I googled Fred Travelena. My husband remembers him - I still don't.

Anyway he died at age 66 from a recurrence of an aggressive form of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

[Medusa]

I started a thread about Fred Travalena. There's a link there to read about him. He was really funny. We went to see him when he appeared in Cleveland years ago.

[momoffuzzyfaces]

here is a link:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/0...ef=mpstoryview

[lvpets2002]

Oh my my == Yes Fred T. was like Danny Gann in which he as well died at a young age of (I think 48) last month.. You know they did not say to much about his death.. He was out at Vegas doing shows..

[Medusa]

Danny Gann! I knew there was one that I couldn't recall!

[Freedom]

What I have noticed, that is scary -- used to be that when the "famous" folks would die I'd think "oh yeah, I remember Mom / Dad talking about him / her." (Bogart, Garbo, etc)

Now, it is my OWN MEMORY!

Of all these, F. Travalena is the only one I never even heard of. The rest: I knew OF them!

[blue]

THe Celeb worship in general, its been all over the news and talk radio for the last week or so, its disrespectfull to the dead. How many threads have been on PT alone over a celeb kicking off?

At least Farrah's family and friends took a dignified approach to her passing. McMahon's family isnt all over the news either, taking the dignified approach.

For those that want to point out that I will find humor in death, I hope that when I die my friends and loved ones will remeber my funny times or crack jokes at my expense. Ild rather leave them smiling then crying, but thats just me.

[Grace]

For those that want to point out that I will find humor in death, I hope that when I die my friends and loved ones will remeber my funny times or crack jokes at my expense. Ild rather leave them smiling then crying, but thats just me.

No, that applies to me, also. I'd much rather have a celebration of my life, than weeping and wailing. When my mom died, we had a short, graveside service - then we all went to a restaurant and told stories about our memories of her. Most of them brought a smile or laugh. That's what I want.

[Karen]

My mother's funeral was full of laughter, funny stories and smiles at memories shared. My boss of the time, who attended, decided that if my Dad, now a widower after 40+ years of marriage and having watched his wife suffer from ALS, could smile, well, it was okay for him to as well.

To each his or her own.

[Taz_Zoee]

My friend that recently passed away was one of the funniest guys I've ever known. At his funeral they showed a slide show, there were funny pictures that we laughed at. Some of the things the Reverend said were funny as well. That's exactly how Eric would have wanted it. He was always making people laugh.

[TamanduaGirl]

Edit: Of course it is celeb worship. There were two 50 year old local men whose obits were in our local paper the other day. No one is wailing on a street corner - laying wreaths and flowers and toys on their front lawns.

Actually that happens a lot. Can't seem to drive 5 miles in some areas without seeing flowers and crosses beside the road or those white bikes in cities. And people do break down and cry on street corners for people they knew and congregate with others that knew them.

All the people morning a celebrity did know a part of that celebrity even if they never met that person. And really we never know all of a person so we all only know parts of people.

It really comes off more like jealousy. "celebrities shouldn't be normed more than normal people" But if that's true then "popular people shouldn't be mourned more than unpopular people" but then "people with homes and families shouldn't be mourned more than people who have neither" The amount of people morning will directly relate to how many knew you and if you are a celebrity then lots of people know you, again even if it's just a part of you, and why shouldn't they mourn the lost of that part they loved and did know?

I do think the media tends to go over board but they always do.

[Vela]

Laughing at things someone did in life and at pictures and stories about them is not the same thing as making fun of their actual death and treating it like a joke or making comments to the effect of "Good you are dead, now I don't have to hear your voice anymore!"

I guarantee you if someone said that at a funeral of your friend or loved one and meant it, you'd be highly upset.

Some comments and lighthearted things relating to the recent deaths of celebrities are humorous and meant as a tribute, some are not funny at all and if someone can't differentiate between why that is so, that's too bad.

Celebrities are "known" to the public in general, and someone like Michael Jackson was known worldwide for 40 years. Only a few people knew the man down the street who died, compared to a celebrity of 40 years, of course reactions are going to be different.