I killed Glenn Ford…
Thursday, August 31st, 2006By looking at his wikipedia page.
I don’t know if it is my age, but for the last few years I’ve been a lot more aware of people I know about dying. Other than, I am ashamed to say, John Peel. I was not a BBC Radio 1 or 2 listener, having grown up in Ireland where we also have our own radio stations to conten and also since my father is not musically inclinded so is more of a BBC 5 live / Irish sporting events in Irish listener, and my mother likes her classical music. My husband, an English man through and through, was shocked.
Lately I’ve taken to reading wikipedia’s page of recent deaths to see who I have heard of has passed away, and the number of people I recognise has increased. Some ot this due to my love of old films.
My own particular John Peel like shock was when Linda Smith died not too long ago. This did leave me reeling as she was one of my favourite panelists on The New Quiz.
I think the first person of note I remember hearing about dying was Roald Dahl. I remember I heard about it one morning from my parents. I dealt with it by immediately retiring to my room and reading all of his books that I had on hand.
Yesterday evening, I was doing my ususal evening rummage around wikipedia which involves me picking a person at random, and seeing who they link to. Ella Fitzgerald linked me some how to ‘That’s Entertainment’ which led me to Eleanor Powell, who had at one time been married to Glenn Ford. I noted to my husband that he was still alive, and we both saw the irony that he was still alive whereas Christopher Reeve was not, especially given the light of his character’s fate in Superman.
Imagine my shock this morning when I logged on to BBC news and saw that he had died!
I probably should put a warning out to any actors and actresses such as Mel Ferrer - I have been looking at your wikipedia entry but I didn’t mean anything by it!
