Gregg Toland

popular name: Liberace

date_of_death: 02/04/1987

age: 67

cause_of_death: Pneumonia as a complication of AIDS

claim_to_fame: Show Business

best_know_for: Liberace was an American pianist, singer, and actor. He had a successful career spanning four decades of concerts, recordings, television, motion pictures, and endorsements. At the height of his fame from the 1950s to 1970s, Liberace was the highest-paid entertainer in the world with established concert residencies in Las Vegas and an international touring schedule. Liberace embraced a lifestyle of flamboyant excess both on and off stage, earning the nickname "Mr. Showmanship".

popular name: Allan Sherman

date_of_death: November 20, 1973

age: 48

cause_of_death: Respiratory failure

claim_to_fame: Show Business

best_know_for: Allan Sherman was an American musician, satirist, actor and television producer who became known as a song parodist in the early 1960s. In the fall of 1962, if an album sold 10,000 copies, Warner Bros. Records considered it a success. Then Allan Sherman released My Son The Folk Singer, an album of Jewish themed parody songs that sold close to 400,000 copies in three weeks on the way to over one million sales. Among the single recordings that helped to push his annual income beyond $500,000 at the height of his popularity were “Crazy Downtown,” and “Hello Mudduh, Hello Fadduh,” which described the horrors of a summer camp and won for Mr. Sherman a Grammy Award in 1963 for the best comic performance. But just as quickly as his star rose, Mr. Sherman's saw his popularity vanish post JFK and with the rise of Beatlemania. Audiences lost their desire for his particular form of comedy and the British Invasion dominated the airwaves. In his final years, Sherman's alcoholism and weight gain caused severe deterioration of his health; he later developed diabetes and struggled with lung disease. In 1966, his wife Dee filed for divorce and received full custody of their son and daughter. Sherman lived on unemployment benefits for a time and moved into the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital for a short time to lose weight. He died while entertaining his friends during the night of November 20, 1973, at his West Hollywood home.

popular name: Fred Astaire

date_of_death: June 22, 1987

age: 88

cause_of_death: Pneumonia

claim_to_fame: Show Business

best_know_for: Fred Astaire was an American dancer, singer, actor and choreographer whose style, elegance and graceful approach to movement made him the most acclaimed dancer in motion picture history. Born Frederick Austerlitz on May 10, 1899, in Omaha, Nebraska, he began performing as a child with his sister Adele in vaudeville before transitioning to Broadway. Following Adele's retirement, Astaire moved to Hollywood, where he formed a legendary on-screen partnership with Ginger Rogers. Together, they starred in a string of iconic musicals in the 1930s, such as Top Hat, Swing Time, and Shall We Dance, showcasing his elegant, seemingly effortless dance style. Over his career, Astaire appeared in over 30 musical films and continued performing into the 1980s. Known for his innovation in dance choreography and integration of dance into storytelling, he left a profound impact on the genre. Fred Astaire can be found resting at Oakwood Memorial Park and Cemetery in Chatsworth, California.