The Derby Dead Pool

The online competition to guess which famous people won't make it to the end of the current year. If they're elderly, ill, or just live a high-risk lifestyle, stick 'em in your team, and for each one whose death you correctly predict, you'll score points. DDP was dreamt up in Derby, England (hence the name...) by Big-Iain back in 1996, then was run from 2003 to 2007 by Siegfried Baboon and Rude Kid. From 2008 to 2009, it was run by Octopus of Odstock, and from 2010 The Man in Black...

Latest Stiffs: 4th April 2015 by The Man in Black

The Iron rewarded for the Brady hunch...

Easter's here and once more we have another job lot of stiffs who unlike some have at this time, won't be coming back...
Sarah Brady's husband James died 33 years after being shot by John Hinckley (who was aiming for President Reagan) last August. His widow campaigned for gun control with her husband in the years following.
She was 73. The Anfield Iron claim a unique hit.
Portuguese film director Manoel de Oliveira had an astonishing 80 year career as a film director, although he only really got going in the 1980s with the end of Portugal's dictatorship. He was nominated for the Palme d'Or 5 times and made his last film in 2012 when he was over 100. He died aged 106.
Robert H. Schuller was a TV evangelist, known for his "Crystal Cathedral", a symbol of his success before it started to go awry amidst family feuds. So a suitably religious pick for Easter. He died aged 88 and was a pick for many of the big hitters, including joint leaders Crazycarl and Thomas Jefferson Survives, who are still locked together at the end of the first quarter on 51 points.
Centenarian hits were thin on the ground in 2014, not so in 2015 and Misawo Okawa is the biggest hit so far in that respect. Okawa held the title of the World's Oldest Person for almost two years, pretty good going as some title holders don't last too long, often only a few days. She was 117.

(Brady) + = 10pts

(de Oliveira) (11 teams) = 4pts (1 team) = 8pts

(Schuller) (14 teams) = 6pts

(Okawa) (25 teams) = 3pts (2 team) = 6pts

Never say Dietl

German film director Helmut Dietl was nominated for the Best Foreign Picture at the 1993 Academy Awards for the satire 'Schtonk!' which concerned the infamously faked "Hitler diaries" which duped German and British newspapers. He died of cancer aged 70.
Robert L Hite was a member of the so-called "Doolittle Raid" on Tokyo in 1942, the USA's first major response to the Japanese after declaring war in December 1941. He was 95 and a unique hit for DDP veteran The Vyrdolak.
Gene Saks has a fruitful partnership with writer Neil Simon, most famously with 'The Odd Couple', Simon's comedy about two contrasting friends living together which starred Hollywood legends Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, which was a broadway and movie hit. Saks was 93 and a hit for another odd couple.
Roy Douglas was a classical composer who worked with the legendary Vaughan Williams until his death in 1958. He was 107 and another hit for the centenarian hunters.

(Dietl) (2 teams) = 7pts

(Hite) + = 8pts

(Saks) (2 teams) = 5pts

(Douglas) (8 teams) = 3pts (1 team) = 6pts

The Two (dead) Ronnies

Another composer who has scored is Ronald Stevens who has died aged 87 and was described in his obit as one of the great pianist-composers. Two theme teams win the points, including ...and Its Goodnight From Him, who get another hit with Ron Suart. Suarts football career as a player was with the likes of Blackpool and Wigan. But he is best remembered for his association with Chelsea FC, as assistant to managers Tommy Docherty and Dave Sexton and briefly becoming manager himself in 1974 at a time when Russian billionaires was the stuff of fiction. He was 94.
Our final hit is Kara Tippetts, a classic case of the terminally-ill mother, who caused a stir last year by publically urging another terminally-ill woman, Brittany Maynard from committing suicide. The plea failed and Maynard killed herself last Novemmber. Tippetts died the old fashioned way, aged 38. Very Ill Turned Very Dead get a unique hit.

(Stevenson) (2 teams) = 6pts

(Suart) + + = 16pts

(Tippets) + = 13pts

Latest Stiffs: 23rd March 2015 by The Man in Black

Yew bet your life!

Lee Kuan Yew was the highly influential Prime Minister of Singapore from 1959-1990. His 31 year reign saw the former British colony transform itself to a major financial hub. However the velvet glove of economic propsperity had an iron fist underneath and Yew was criticised for his harsh stance on freedom of speech and corporal punishment. For all that he was a hugely popular figure, winning 7 general elections, although whether they were legitimate or not is a moot point. Still, beat that, Maggie! He died aged 91. Half a dozen teams get their deposit back...
Another key politician whose recently departed is former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser. Fraser controversially succeeded Gough Whitlam in 1975, after the former was sacked by the Governor-General. Despite being the opposition leader, Fraser pretty much continued the liberal approach of his Labor Party predecessor, with particular reference to the aboriginal people and accomodating Australia's increasingly diverse population before his exit in 1983. He outlived his old rival by six months and died aged 84.

(Yew) (6 teams) = 5pts

(Fraser) (3 teams) = 6pts

Keep 'em peeled for those obits!

Shaw Taylor was a familiar figure on British television for many years as the presenter of 'Police 5', a tv spot in which the public were encouraged to contact the police regarding unsolved crimes. This was years before 'Crimewatch' took it up a level. Taylor died aged about 90, he was known for wearing glasses and was recognisable for his suave, cockney voice, so if you spot knocking about then let us know, in the strictest confidence...
On my (no doubt hastily written) description for Mike Porcaro, I said he was the bass player for "1970s soft rockers Toto". Porcaro actually joined his other brothers in the band in 1982, just as the group really hit paydirt with the international hit 'Africa', a hardy perennial of the 80s to this day if radio airplay is any guide. He had been suffering from Lou Gehrig's Disease for some years and died aged 59. Among the 26 teams who picked him was Taking the Michael, who stretch their lead in the Theme Team League.
We'll keep the musical theme going, with the passing of pianist Peter Katin at 84. Katin was famed for his interpretation of the likes of Chopin and Shubert and was a unique hit for Dead and Dusted 3.

(Taylor) (4 teams) = 5pts

(Porcaro) (26 teams) = 9pts

(Katin) + = 9pts

Odds and ends: March 2015

Winter may be over but we've had a real blizzard of hits and finds recently, so here's an update.
American character actor Daniel von Bargen died on March 1st. He was best known for playing Mr Kruger in the final series of the celebrated sitcom 'Seinfeld'. He had suffering from diabetes, he even tried to kill himself because of the condition. He was 64 and a unique hit for Insert Name Here.
Stuart Wagstaff was born in England, but mnoved to Australia in 1958, where he became a popular entertainer and actor. He was 90. Cricketer Bob Appleyard overcame tuberculosis and family tragedy to become one of England's finest county cricket bowlers in the 1950s. He won 9 caps for the national side. He later became a successful businessman, at one time crossing swords with the notorious mogul Robert Maxwell.
He died aged 90 and was a unique hit for debutant Pity da Foolz.
The wonderfully-named Providencia Paredes was personal assistant to that most photogenic of US first ladies, Jackie Kennedy. Paredes missed the tragic events in Dallas in November 1963, but did pick out Jackie's dress! Paredes was 90 and a unique hit for Spanish-speaking theme team Muertos.
Leandra Becerra Lumbreras was one of the perennial claimants to the title of oldest person in the World. Lumberas claimed to have lived through the Mexican revolution of 1910. She was (reputedly) 127 years old and a hit for a pair of teams, with Partridge As Reaper not much change for the joker.
Hans Erni was a Swiss artist whose output ranged from postage stamps to sculptures in a career often hampered by his communist sympathies. He died aged 106 with a trio of teams benefitting. No change at the top with Crazycarl and Thomas Jefferson Survives maintaining the joint lead...

(von Bargen) + = 11pts

(Wagstaff) (2 teams) = 5pts

(Appleyard) + = 8pts

(Paredes) + = 9pts

(Lumberas) (2 teams) = 3pts (1 teams) = 6pts

(Erni) (3 teams) = 4pts

Latest Stiffs: 14th March 2015 by The Man in Black

Kids can be so cruel...

Do the depart man

We have the first blockbuster hit for DDP 2015 as TV writer/producer Sam Simon passes away from terminal cancer aged 59. Simon, along with cartoonist Matt Groening and James L. Brooks created arguably the World's most successful cartoon series, 'The Simpsons' in 1989 and was credited with bringing together its acclaimed writing team. Simon quit the show in 1993 with a massive severance package and devoted the rest of his life to charitable causes. His ongoing treatment for cancer made him a grower in dead pool circles and he departs with 170 nominations, making him the highest-rated hit since Nelson Mandela in December 2013. Because of his popularity as a pick, most of the great and the good had him in their teams and so Crazycarl and Thomas Jefferson Survives remain joint leaders...

(170 teams) = 9pts (61 teams) = 18pts

Terry's no longer for Discworld

Popular fantasy author Sir Terry Pratchett has died after an eight-year battle with Alzheimer's disease. Pratchett was a prolific writer best known for his humourous tales of Discworld, which started with 'The Colour of Magic' in 1983. He went on to write 40 more installments.
A regular character in the novels was Death himself and so it's fitting that he had the final word. Pratchett was 66 and a hit for several teams though notably not any of the regular contenders...

(23 teams) = 7pts

Maysles heads for grey graveyards

Albert Maysles along with his brother David made a series of acclaimed documentary films, most notably 'Gimme Shelter' which covered the Rolling Stones' disasterous 1969 concert at the Altamont Speedway Free Festival, when a black teenager was stabbed to death by the Hells Angels. Other films included 'Salesman' in 1968 and 1975's 'Grey Gardens' which looked at two reclusive socialites living in a run down estate. Albert joins his brother in the editing room in the sky aged 88. Aptly, documentary theme team Little Eadie's Euthanizers take the points.
Jim Molyneaux led the Ulster Unionist Party from 1979-1995 during a period of increasing tension in Northern Ireland. Facing opposition from within the loyalist movement by Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionist Party, Molyneaux's somewhat less confrontational approach kept the UUP as the leading party in the province before the emergence of the peace process in the late 90s. He died aged 94 with with two teams scoring.
Daevid Allen formed the pioneering psychedelic rock group Soft Machine in 1966 with Robert Wyatt and Kevin Ayers. In 1967, the Australian was refused entry into the UK (I wonder why?) and so formed Gong instead, in Paris. They released a series of eccentric, space-rock style albums before Allen left in 1975. Allen continued to plow his idiosyncratic furrow until his death aged 77. God, it's really heavy how these 60s rockers have got so old, man. Two teams get a unlucky thirteen bonus in their bibs too...

(Maysles) + = 9pts

(Molyneaux) (2 teams) = 5pts

(Allen) + (2 teams) = 9pts

List of the Lost - Latest Entrants

Gerda van der Kade-Koudijs, Cesar Cova, J�rgen Ingmann, Mar Dinkha IV, Evelyn Furtsch

List of the Missed - Latest Entrants

Christopher Greener, Minnie Mi�oso, Dave Mackay, Frei Otto, Ib Melchior, Walter Grauman, Gregory Walcott, Lil' Chris, Tomas Transtr�mer, Chuck Bednarik

Player of the Month - February

David Quantick's Showbiz Pals - 17 points

Latest News

Folk singer Joni Mitchell is in intensive care after being found at home. Big Yellow taxi for Joni? Meanwhile, the UK General Election campaign begins with Nigel Farage expected to play a crucial role. Just don't go on any planes and particularly ones with nutty German pilots, Nigel...
The Theme Team League is up with Taking the Michael leading the way...

Message to all current competitors: There will be no more regular emails except in certain circumstances, such as rules and invitation to next year's competition.

Further Information

Derby Dead Pool is hosted by The Man In Black with contributions from Big-Iain, Rude Kid, Siegfried Baboon, Octopus of Odstock, WEP 2.0 - World's Eternity Prophet Reloaded, The Grey Horde, Thomas Jefferson Survives, Bibliogryphon, David Quantick's Showbiz Pals, Dickie's Gone the Way of the Dinosaurs & The End Of The World As We Know It

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