Obituaries In The Performing Arts, 2006 ― Film, Television, Radio, Theatre, Dance, Music, Cartoons and Pop Culture

The entertainment world lost a number of legendary stars and a host of other men and women involved in film, television, stage and music in 2006. The obituaries of more than 1300 people are included, along with pictures of the vast majority. Losses include Godfather of Soul James Brown, Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin and former President of the United States Gerald Ford. Other notables who died include legendary film director Robert Altman, 60 Minutes broadcast journalist Ed Bradley, legendary animator Joe Barbera, and Dark Shadows creator Dan Curtis. Hollywood lost such screen legends as Jack Palance, June Allyson, Shelley Winters, Maureen Stapleton, Red Buttons, and leading man Glenn Ford. Classic television lost Mayberry’s favorite deputy, Barney Fife (Don Knotts), and Gunsmoke’s deputy Chester Goode (Dennis Weaver). The obituaries of these and other performers and filmmakers, musicians and producers, dancers and composers, writers and others associated with the performing arts who died in 2006 can be found in this comprehensive reference work. For each, the date, place and cause of death are provided, along with a career recap and citations from major newspaper and periodical stories reporting the death. Filmographies are provided for film and television performers, and photographs of many of the individuals are included. Individual books in this annual series are available dating back to 1994. A subscription plan is available for future issues.

Harris M. Lentz III, independent scholar and prodigious researcher, is the author of numerous reference works. He lives in Horseshoe Lake, Arkansas.