• Joe Rollino once lifted 475 pounds. He used neither his arms nor his legs but, reportedly, his teeth. With just one finger he raised up 635 pounds; with his back he moved 3,200. He bit down on quarters to bend them with his thumb.
• People called him the Great Joe Rollino, the Mighty Joe Rollino and even the World’s Strongest Man, and what did it matter if at least one of those people was Mr. Rollino himself.
• On Monday morning, Mr. Rollino went for a walk in his Brooklyn neighborhood, a daily routine. It was part of the Great Joe Rollino’s greatest feat, a display of physical dexterity and stamina so subtle that it revealed itself only if you happened to ask him his date of birth: March 19, 1905. He was 104 years old and counting.
• A few minutes before 7 a.m., as Mr. Rollino was crossing Bay Ridge Parkway at 13th Avenue, a 1999 Ford Windstar minivan struck him. The police said he suffered fractures to his pelvis, chest, ribs and face, as well as head trauma. Unconscious, he was taken to Lutheran Medical Center, where he later died.
• New York is a city of extraordinary lives and events, and here, indisputably, was one of them — one of the city’s strongest and oldest, struck down on a Monday morning by a minivan in Brooklyn.
• “Pound for pound, in the feats that he practiced, he was one of the greatest performing strongmen we’ve ever had, if the lifts he’s credited with are accurate,” said Terry Todd, a co-director of the Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports at the University of Texas, who knew Mr. Rollino for more than four decades. “He certainly wasn’t one of the strongest all-time strongmen, because of his size. To ask a well-trained 130-pound man if he can lift what a well-trained 400-pound man can lift is asking an unreasonable question. But for his size, Joe was apparently one of the strongest men who ever lived.”
• Mr. Rollino stayed away from meat. And cigarettes. And alcohol. He said he walked five miles every morning, rain or shine. At the height of his career, he weighed between 125 and 150 pounds and stood about 5-foot-5.

RIP, Old Lion.

Wrestler, personality Captain Lou Albano dies at 76 

• Legendary wrestling figure Captain Lou Albano, perhaps best known for his association with pop singer Cyndi Lauper, died Wednesday, according to World Wrestling Entertainment.
• Albano was recognizable by his penchant for unbuttoned Hawaiian shirts and a trademark beard, which was usually bound by a rubber band.

RIP!

‘Laugh-In’ actor Henry Gibson dies at 73

He ruled in ‘Blues Brothers’. RIP.

mudwerks:

BBC NEWS | UK | England | Sussex | Guitarist death to be re-examined

The death of former Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones is to be reviewed following new evidence, it has been revealed.

Police in Sussex were handed new information connected to the musician’s untimely death 40 years ago.

Mr Jones, was found dead at the bottom of a swimming pool at a house in Cotchford farm, Hartfield, East Sussex.

An inquest recorded a verdict of death by misadventure but speculation continued that he was murdered.

A spokesman for Sussex police said the force had been handed documents connected with Jones’s death, prompting the review.

But he added it was too early to launch a fresh investigation.

He added: “These papers will be examined by Sussex Police, but it is too early to comment at this time as to what the outcome will be.”

Jones, who was 27 when he died, was a founding member of the Rolling Stones.

mudwerks:

pleasedontsqueezetheshaman:

Say it ain’t so. Les Paul started it all.

RIP, the OG Ripper!

Some awesome movie memories, too many to list. Thanks, John.

The Mothman

John A. Keel, author of the Mothman Prophecies and many well-received books on UFOs, passed away July 3, 2009. RIP.

don’t stop till ya get enough.

• LOS ANGELES – The forensics expert hired by David Carradine’s family has concluded that the “Kung Fu” actor did not commit suicide, but said that more information was needed from Thai investigators before the cause of death could be determined.
• Carradine’s brothers, Keith and Robert Carradine, each read part of a prepared statement to reporters from The Associated Press at a Los Angeles hotel Thursday morning. In their first appearance since their older brother was found hanging in a Bangkok hotel room closet last week, they thanked supporters and asked for privacy.
• Keith Carradine last week asked the FBI to take a role, and Thai authorities later said they would allow FBI agents to observe their investigation, but not take an active role. FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said earlier this week that the agency would not make any more comments about its role in the Carradine investigation, but that agents stationed in Thailand have a good relationship with local authorities.
• Agents typically only get involved in the deaths of U.S. citizens abroad when foul play is involved, she said.

Actor David Carradine found dead

• (CNN) — American actor David Carradine has been found dead in a Bangkok, Thailand, hotel, according to his personal manager, Chuck Binder.

Kung Fu was one of my favorite rerun shows as a kid. RIP Dave.

Dom DeLuise Dies At 75

• Dom DeLuise, the portly actor-comedian whose affable nature made him a popular character actor for decades with movie and TV audiences as well as directors and fellow actors, has died. He was 75.

Rest in Peace, Dom. Thanks for the laughs.