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PHOTOS: Notable deaths in 2015 - In Memoriam

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Grammy-winning singer Natalie Cole, who is also the daughter of Nat "King" Cole, died from complications of ongoing health issues on Dec. 31, 2015. She was 65.
Wayne Rogers, best known as Trapper John McIntyre on "M.A.S.H.," died from complications of pneumonia on Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015. He was 82.
Lemmy Kilmister of the band Motorhead passed away Dec. 28, 2015 following a brief battle with cancer. He was 70.
Former Harlem Globetrotter Meadowlark Lemon died Sunday, Dec. 27, 2015 in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was 83.
Martin E. Brooks, best known for his role on the 1970s series "The Six Million Dollar Man," died Monday, Dec. 7, 2015 following a brief hospitalization in Los Angeles. He was 90.
Douglas Tompkins, right, the co-founder of The North Face, died from hypothermia in a kayaking accident in Chile, authorities said Dec. 9, 2015.
Robert Loggia, who played drug lords and mobsters and danced with Tom Hanks in "Big," died at age 85 on Dec. 4, 2015, after battling Alzheimer's.
Scott Weiland, the former frontman for the Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver, died in his sleep while on a tour stop in Bloomington, Minnesota on Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015.
Sandy Berger, President Bill Clinton's top national security aide, died Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015.
Former University of Houston basketball coach Guy V. Lewis died at the age of 93 on Thursday, Nov. 26, 2015.
Actor David Canary (R), known for his dual roles as Adam and Stuart Chandler on ABC's "All My Children," died of natural causes on Monday, Nov. 16, 2015. He was 77.
Former President Kim Young-sam, who formally ended decades of military rule in South Korea, died Nov. 21, 2015, at age 87.
Vincent Margera (left), known to MTV viewers as 'Don Vito,' died Sunday, Nov. 15, 2015 after battling liver and kidney failure. He was 59.
Actor Nathaniel Marston, known for his role in the ABC soap opera ''One Life to Live,'' died in November from injuries in an October car crash. He was 40.
In this Sept. 21, 1978 file photo, Carol Doda performs at the Condor Theater in San Francisco.
Legendary New Orleans musician and composer Allen Toussaint died in Madrid on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015 after suffering a heart attack at the age of 77.
Gunnar Hansen, best known for his role as Leatherface in "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," died at the age of 68 on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2015.
This 1966 photo provided by Lozzi Media Services and Barris Kustom Industries shows designer George Barris with the original Batmobile in Los Angeles.
Former Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn. speaks at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2008. Thompson died Sunday, Nov. 1, 2015, at the age of 73.
In a photo, provided in 1974 by ABC, actor Al Molinaro poses dressed as Murray the cop. He died of complications of gallstone problems at age 96 Friday, Oct. 30, 2015.
Sam Sarpong, a model and TV actor, died after jumping to his death from the Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena on Monday, Oct. 26, 2015. He was 40.
Phil "Flip" Saunders, president, coach and part-time owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves, died from his battle with cancer on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2015. He was 60.
Maureen O'Hara, who appeared in such classic films as "The Quiet Man" and How Green Was My Valley," died at 95 on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015.
Arnie Klein, Michael Jackson's dermatologist, died of natural causes at a hospital in Palm Springs on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015.
Marty Ingels, a comedian, actor and talent agent who was married to actress Shirley Jones for nearly 40 years, died Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2015. He was 79.
Cory Wells, one of the lead singers of Three Dog Night, died on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2015. He was 74.
Dean Chance, who won the 1964 Cy Young Award and later pitched a no-hitter, died Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015.. He was 74.
Chef Paul Prudhomme, seen in this Feb. 2, 2007 file photo, died on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2015 due to an illness. He was 75.
Erik Roner, an extreme sports and MTV star, died Monday, Sept. 28, 2015, in a skydiving accident in Northern California.
Actor, writer and producer Jack Larson died of natural causes Sunday, Sept. 20, 2015 at his home in Brentwood. He was 87.
Novelist Jackie Collins died of breast cancer Saturday, Sept. 19, 2015, according to family members. She was 77.
Dean Jones, Disney's favorite young actor known for such lighthearted films as "That Darn Cat!," died of Parkinson's Disease at age 84 on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015.
Wes Craven, iconic horror movie director who created the "Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Scream" franchises, died on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2015. He was 76.
'Awakenings' author and neurologist Oliver Sacks died Sunday, Aug. 30, 2015 at his home in New York City. He was 82.
Kyle Jean-Baptiste, the first African-American and youngest person to ever play the role of Jean Valjean in 'Les Miserables', died Friday, Aug. 28, 2015.
Ex-NBA star Darryl Dawkins, sesen in this file photo from Sunday, Oct. 6, 2013, died Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015 at a hospital, the Lehigh County, Pennsylvania coroner's office said.
Justin Wilson, of England, died Monday, Aug. 24, 2015 from a head injury suffered when a piece of debris struck him during the Pocono IndyCar 500 auto race in Long Pond, Pa.
Emma Didlake, the oldest known World War II veteran, died on Sunday, Aug. 16, 2015, at the age of 110.
Julian Bond, a civil rights activist and longtime board chairman of the NAACP, died Saturday, Aug. 15, 2015.
Pro Football Hall of Famer Frank Gifford died of natural causes at his Connecticut home on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2015. He was 84.
Cilla Black, a big-voiced British singer and TV host, died at the age of 72 on Saturday, Aug. 1, 2015.
Lynn Anderson, whose strong, husky voice carried her to the top of the charts with 'Rose Garden,' died at the age of 67 on Thursday, July 30, 2015.
Bobbi Kristina Brown, the daughter of the late Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, died Sunday July 26, 2015.
E.L. Doctorow, American author whose historical novels include 'Ragtime' and 'The March', died July 21 at 84.
Theodore Bikel, the Oscar and Tony-nominated actor who played the role of Tevye in thousands of productions of the musical "Fiddler on the Roof, died on July 21. He was 91.
Alex Rocco arrives at the 'Magic City' premiere on Monday, June 3, 2013, in L.A. Rocco's daughter, Jennifer, announced his death on July 18, 2015.
Joan Sebastian, one of Mexico's great ballad singers, died Monday, July 13, 2015 at 64.
Roger Rees, the Tony Award-winning Welsh-born actor and director who played multi-millionaire Robin Colcord on the TV show "Cheers," died Friday, July 11, 2015. He was 71.
Christian Audigier, best known for the Ed Hardy brand and the Von Dutch trucker hats, died at the age of 57, his publicist confirmed on Friday, July 10, 2015.
Actor Omar Sharif is shown in this undated file photo. Sharif, of 'Lawrence of Arabia' and 'Doctor Zhivago,' died of a heart attack in Cairo, his agent told the Associated Press.
Legendary NFL quarterback Ken Stabler died from complications associated with colon cancer on Wednesday, July 8, 2015. He was 69 years old.
Sculptor Blaine Gibson, who was behind some of Disney's most iconic statues, has died, the company announced Monday, July 6, 2015. He was 97.
Jerry Weintraub is seen at the Governors Ball at the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards at Nokia Theatre on Sunday Sept. 22, 2013, in Los Angeles. Weintraub died Monday, July 6, 2015.
Scot Breithaupt, a pioneer in the sport of bicycle motocross known as BMX, was found dead in a tent in a vacant lot in Indio, California Saturday, July 4, 2015. He was 57.
The reclusive beekeeper who co-founded Burt's Bees, and whose face and wild beard appeared on labels for the natural cosmetics, died on Sunday, July 5, 2015. Burt Shavitz was 80.
Diana Douglas, the first wife of Kirk Douglas and mother of Michael Douglas, died in Los Angeles on Saturday, July 4, 2015. She was 92.
Nicholas Winton, a humanitarian who almost single-handedly saved more than 650 Jewish children from the Holocaust, died at the age of 106 on Wednesday, July 1, 2015.
Jack Carter, whose brash comedy made him a television star, died of respiratory failure at his Beverly Hills, California home on Sunday, June 28, 2015.
Chris Squire, the bassist and co-founder of the progressive rock band Yes who recently announced he had leukemia, died Sunday, June 28, 2015. He was 67.
Dick Van Patten, star of 'Eight is Enough' and 'The Love Boat,' died in Santa Monica on Tuesday, June 23, 2015, due to complications from diabetes.
Oscar-winning composer James Horner died on Monday, June 23, 2015, in a plane crash in Los Padres National Forest.
Danny Villanueva, former president of the Los Angeles Galaxy team, died Thursday, June 18, 2015 due to complications from a stroke. He was 77.
Kirk Kerkorian, an eighth-grade dropout who built Las Vegas' biggest hotels, died at the age of 98 on Monday, June 15, 2015.
John S. Carroll, former editor of the Baltimore Sun and the Los Angeles Times, which won 13 Pulitzer Prizes during his five-year tenure, died Sunday, June 14, 2015. He was 73.
Jazz legend Ornette Coleman, the visionary saxophonist who pioneered 'free jazz' and won a Pulitzer Prize in 2007, died Thursday, June 11, 2015. He was 85.
WWE Hall of Famer Virgil Runnels, aka 'The American Dream' Dusty Rhodes, passed away on Thursday, June 11, 2015. He was 69.
Vincent Bugliosi, the prosecutor in the Charles Manson trial who went on to write the best-selling true-crime book, 'Helter Skelter,' died Monday, June 8, 2015. He was 80.
British actor Christopher Lee, known for roles from Count Dracula to the wicked wizard Saruman in 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy, died on June 7, 2015. He was 93.
Beau Biden, son of Vice President Joe Biden, died after battling brain cancer on Saturday, May 30, 2015. He was 46.
Betsy Palmer, seen here in this January 1992 file photo with Bryant Gumbel, died of natural causes on Friday, May 29, 2015. The 'Friday the 13th' actress was 88.
Tennis great Doris Hart, who won each Grand Slam tournament at least once, and once won three Wimbledon titles in a single day, died Friday, May 29, 2015 at the age of 89.
U2 tour manager Dennis Sheehan died at Marquis Hotel in West Hollywood on Wednesday, May 27, 2015. He was 68.
Actress and comedian Anne Meara died Saturday, May 23, 2015. She was 85.
Famed mathematician John Nash died in a taxi crash on the New Jersey Turnpike on Saturday, May 23, 2015. He was 86.
Former NFL linebacker Adrian Robinson died Sunday, May 17, 2015. He was 25.
B.B. King, whose heartfelt vocals earned him the nickname King of the Blues, died Thursday, May 14, 2015 at his home in Las Vegas. He was 89.
Chris Burden, the artist who created the famous 'Urban Light' display outside the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, died Sunday, May 10, 2015.
Joanne Carson, the second wife of 'Tonight Show' host Johnny Carson, died Friday, May 8, 2015 at her Los Angeles home. She was 83.
Errol Brown, the lead singer of the band Hot Chocolate, died of liver cancer on Wednesday, May 6, 2015 in the Bahamas. He was 71.
Jim Wright (left), a veteran Texas congressman who was the first House speaker in history to driven out of office in midterm, died Wednesday, May 6, 2015. He was 92.
Ellen Albertini Dow, a feisty character actress best known for her salty rendition of 'Rapper's Delight' in 'The Wedding Singer,' died Monday, May 4, 2015. She was 101.
Grace Lee Whitney, who played Captain Kirk's assistant on the original 'Star Trek' series, died of natural causes on Friday, May 1, 2015. She was 85.
Ben E. King, the American soul singer and former member of The Drifters, died Thursday, April 30, 2015. He was 76.
Calvin Peete, the most successful black player on the PGA Tour before the arrival of Tiger Woods, died Wednesday, April 29, 2015. He was 71.
Jean Nidetch, a New York housewife who tackled her own obesity and went on to start Weight Watchers, died Wednesday, April 29, 2015. She was 91.
Jack Ely, co-founder of The Kingsmen and best known for his 1963 rendition of 'Louie, Louie,' died Tuesday, April 28, 2015 after a long battle with an illness. He was 71.
Actress and TV personality Jayne Meadows, who often teamed with her husband Steve Allen, died Sunday, April 26, 2015 of natural causes. She was 95.
Sawyer Sweeten, who played one of Ray Romano's twin sons in the CBS comedy 'Everybody Loves Raymond,' was reported dead Friday, April 24, 2015. He was 19.
Mary Doyle Keefe, the model for Norman Rockwell's iconic 1943 Rosie the Riveter painting, died Tuesday, April 21, 2015. She was 92.
Singer Percy Sledge, who recorded the classic 1966 soul ballad 'When a Man Loves a Woman,' died Tuesday, April 14, 2015 of natural causes. He was 74.
Comedian Stan Freberg, who gained fame with his parodies of popular music, his satirical advertising campaigns & his penchant for poking fun at American culture, died April 7, 2015
Actor James Best, who played Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane on 'The Dukes of Hazzard,' died Monday, April 6, 2015, from complications of pneumonia. He was 88.
Actor Richard Dysart, who played senior partner Leland McKenzie in the long-running TV courtroom drama 'L.A. Law,' died Sunday, April 5, 2015, after a long illness. He was 86.
Pioneering dermatologist Dr. Fredric Brandt, an early proponent of Botox, died Sunday, April 5, 2015. He was 65.
Robert Burns Jr., the former drummer and a founding member of the Southern hard rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, died Friday April 3, 2015 in a single-vehicle crash in Georgia.
Tom Towles, the mustached character actor who popped up in several Rob Zombie's movies, died on Thursday, April 2, 2015, from complications following a stroke. He was 71.
Rev. Robert H. Schuller, the Crystal Cathedral megachurch founder, died on Thursday, April 2, 2015, at the age of 88.
Cynthia Lennon, the first wife of Beatles great John Lennon, died Wednesday, April 1, 2015, at her home in Spain. She was 75.
Leslie A. Williams, a former member of the Tuskegee Airmen, which broke the military color barrier during World War II, died Monday, March 30, 2015 of natural causes. He was 95.
Gene Saks, the Tony Award-winning director who brought to life many of Neil Simon's works onstage and on screen, died from pneumonia on Saturday, March 28, 2015. He was 93.
Dr. George Fischbeck, longtime KABC weatherman, died on Wednesday, March 25, 2015, at the age of 92.
Gary Ross Dahl, the creator of the wildly popular 1970s fad the Pet Rock, died March 23, 2015, of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 78.
Singapore's first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew died Monday, March 23, 2015 following a bout with severe pneumonia. He was 91.
Lisa Colagrossi, a reporter for sister station WABC-TV in New York, died Friday, March 20, 2015. The 49-year-old suffered a brain hemorrhage while returning from covering a story.
Jack Haley, a UCLA alumnus who went on to play for the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers, died on Monday, March 16, 2015. He was 51.
Former Toto bass player Mike Porcaro (left) died Sunday, March 15, 2015 at age 59. No cause was given, but he had suffered from Lou Gehrig's disease for several years.
Bill Badger, who though wounded himself, was credited with saving lives in the shooting that severely wounded U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords, died March 11, 2015, of pneumonia.
Richard Glatzer, who wrote and directed the Alzheimer's drama 'Still Alice' alongside his husband while battling ALS, died Tuesday, March 10, 2015. He was 63.
'Body of Proof' actor Windell Middlebrooks, also known for playing the no-nonsense beer delivery guy in Miller High Life beer commercials, died Monday, March 9, 2015. He was 36.
Sam Simon, co-creator of ''The Simpsons,'' died March 8 after a battle with colon cancer. He was 59.
F. Ray Keyser Jr., the former Republican governor of Vermont, died on March 7, 2015 at the age of 88.
Major league baseball's first black player in Chicago, Minnie Minoso, died Sunday, March 1, 2015.
Actor Daniel von Bargen, best known for playing George Costanza's dim-witted boss Mr. Kruger on 'Seinfeld,' died Sunday, March 1, 2015. He was 64.
Charmayne 'Maxee' Maxwell, a member of the 1990s girl group Brownstone, died Friday, Feb. 27, 2015 after cutting her neck in a fall at her Los Angeles home.
Beloved 'Star Trek' actor Leonard Nimoy, aka Mr. Spock, died Friday, Feb. 27, 2015 of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at his Los Angeles home. He was 83.
Anthony Mason, the rugged power forward who was a defensive force in the NBA from the 1990s into the early 21st century, died Saturday, Feb. 28, 2015. He was 48.
Ben Woolf, who played Meep on 'American Horror Story: Freak Show,' died Feb. 23, 2015 from injuries he sustained after being hit in the head by a car side mirror. He was 34.
Henry Segerstrom, an arts philanthropist and managing partner of South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, died Friday, Feb. 20, 2015. He was 91
Singer-songwriter Lesley Gore, who topped the charts in 1963 at age 16 with her epic song of teenage angst, 'It's My Party,' died Monday, Feb. 16, 2015 of lung cancer.
Beloved Mexican soap opera and movie actress Lorena Rojas died Monday, Feb. 16, 2015 in Miami surrounded by loved ones. The 44-year-old had battled cancer since 2008.
Clark Terry, a legendary jazz trumpeteer who mentored Miles Davis and Quincy Jones, died on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015. He was 94.
Veteran KTLA television reporter Stan Chambers died on Friday, Feb. 13, 2015, at the age of 91.
The New York Times media columnist David Carr died at the office on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2015. He was 58.
Longtime '60 Minutes' correspondent Bob Simon was killed in a car crash in Manhattan, New York Feb. 11, 2015. He was 73.
Former UNLV basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian died Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2015 after years of health issues. He was 84.
Dean Smith, the coaching innovator who won two national championships at North Carolina, an Olympic gold medal and induction into basketball's Hall of Fame, died Feb. 7, 2015.
U.S. Rep. Alan Nunnelee of Mississippi, a fiscal and social conservative elected to Congress in a Republican wave of 2010, died Friday, Feb. 6, 2015. He was 56.
Charlie Sifford, who fought the Caucasian-only clause on the PGA Tour and became its first black member in 1961, died Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015. He was 92.
Bay Area rapper Dominic Newton, better known by his stage name 'The Jacka,' was killed Monday, Feb. 2, 2015, in a shooting in East Oakland.
Screenwriter and two-time Academy Award nominee Stewart Stern, who's best known for writing the screenplay for 'Rebel Without a Cause,' died Monday, Feb. 2, 2015. He was 92.
Ann Mara, the matriarch of the NFL's New York Giants for the past 60 years, died Sunday, Feb. 1, 2015. She was 85.
Lizabeth Scott, whose long tawny hair, alluring face and low seductive voice made her an ideal film noir star in the 1940s and '50s, died Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015. She was 92.
Carl Djerassi, the chemist widely considered the father of the birth control pill, died of complications of cancer on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015, at the age of 91.
Rod McKuen, the husky-voiced 'King of Kitsch' whose recordings in the 60s and 70s won him Oscar nominations, died on Jan. 29, 2015, at the age of 81.
Charles H. Townes, the co-inventor of the laser and a Nobel laureate who unapologetically spoke of his strong spiritual faith, died Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015, at the age of 99.
Pioneering radio and TV host Joe Franklin, who gave breaks to the likes of Al Pacino and Bill Cosby on his variety show, died of cancer, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2015. He was 88.
Hall of Fame slugger Ernie Banks, the two-time MVP who never lost his enthusiasm for baseball despite years of playing on losing Chicago Cubs teams, died Friday, Jan. 23, 2015.
King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud of Saudi Arabia died Friday, Jan. 23, 2015 (local time) at the age of 90.
Actor and stand-up comedian Taylor Negron died Saturday, Jan. 10, 2015 after battling cancer. He was 57.
Australian actor Rod Taylor, known for his role in Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds," died on Friday, Jan. 9 2015. He was 84.
Samuel Goldwyn, Jr., an independent film champion, died from congestive heart failure Friday, Jan. 9, 2015. He was 88.
Music legend Andrae Crouch, who won seven Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, died Thursday, Jan. 8, 2015. He was 72.
Francesca Hilton, daughter of Zsa Zsa Gabor and Conrad Hilton, died of an apparent stroke/heart attack on Monday, Jan. 5, 2015. She was 67.
Stuart Scott , a longtime ESPN sportscaster, died on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2015, after a battle with cancer. He was 49.
Former Massachusetts U.S. Sen. Edward Brooke, the first black to win popular election to the Senate, died Saturday, Jan. 3, 2015. He was 95.
Little Jimmy Dickens, seen here in this photo from March 1977, died of cardiac arrest on Friday, Jan. 2, 2015. He was 94.
Actress Donna Douglas, a 1960s TV icon who played Elly May Clampett on 'The Beverly Hillbillies,' died on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2015. She was 81.
Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo died of natural causes due to heart failure on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2015. He was 82.
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Grammy-winning singer Natalie Cole, who is also the daughter of Nat "King" Cole, died from complications of ongoing health issues on Dec. 31, 2015. She was 65.

Take a look at the celebrities and other well-known figures we have lost this year.


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