Results tagged “RIP” from Crime Scene

John Hughes, director of culturally significant films such as "The Breakfast Club," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," died suddenly today of a heart attack while taking a morning walk during a trip to Manhattan. He was 59.

Call me old-fashioned, but I don't get the whole Michael Jackson adoration thing.

Perhaps the hundreds of thousands of people heading downtown this morning really want to take part in something that has nothing to do with the still-dead King of Pop.

If they are not going to Staples to remember Jackson, they are there to be part of something bigger than life.

It's not clear.

But why waste an entire day stuck in traffic? Why get pushed around by cops? Why fight sweaty dudes in wife-beaters in what is sure to be a mosh pit outside of Staples Center?

Let's get something straight. Regardless of how much joy Jackson's music may have brought to the masses, he was a sicko.

If there's any proof it probably lies in the multimillion-dollar settlements Jackson reached with purported victims. One of those claimed the singer molested him at age 7 and again at age 10.

That kid's mother was Jackson's maid. Jackson reportedly reached a $2.4 million settlement with the family.

In 1993, Jackson paid $20 million to a 13-year-old who claimed the pop star sexually abused him.

The boy's mother explained later how Jackson begged her to let him sleep with the boy, according to court documents and testimony at trial.

The star and the mom argued about it, but ultimately the boy's mom gave in and allowed her teen to spend nights in Jackson's bed.

After the mom relented, Jackson bought her a Cartier bracelet. Clearly, this was a man who thought he could hurt whomever he wanted and do what he wanted because he had the means to buy his way out of trouble.

The boy may have been molested over a six-month period of time after that.

In 2003, police arrested Jackson and charged him with sex crimes against a 13-year-old boy who had cancer.

At his trial in 2005, prosecutors detailed how Jackson showed porn to young boys on the grounds of his Neverland Ranch. They spelled out how he gave the kids wine, which he called "Jesus Juice."

The state documented how Jackson preyed on the teen cancer survivor and the boy's family - for his own self-gratification.

The victim, a resident of El Monte, told a jury how Jackson groped and fondled him.

A member of the jury that ultimately acquitted Jackson said later he thought Jackson was a child molester. Another said Jackson should stop sleeping with kids.

If Jackson were any other 46-year- old man in that situation, he'd probably still be in prison fending off predators who take no mercy on pedophiles.

Certainly, he'd be listed on the Megan's Law Web site once he got out of the joint.

I guarantee if he was the creepy guy living down the street from any one of us, we'd be repulsed and sickened by his behavior.

If anything, Wacko Jacko's life story should be a cautionary tale about the price of fame and the parents who subject their kids to foul and unspeakable acts.

It's a story about the danger of prescription drug abuse and the doctors who are nothing more than educated street corner pushers.

It's an epic filled with details of bad decision-making by a whole host of people - including those making a pilgrimage Downtown on this summer day.

Danny Gans died early this morning, after a family member called 911 to say Danny was having trouble breathing. By the time paramedics arrived, he was dead.

A ticket rep at Steve Wynn's Encore hotel tells us they just got the call and the entire staff is "shocked and upset."

Gans is a legend in Las Vegas -- the self described "musical impressionist" signed a $150 million contract in 2000. 

We're told Gans died at 3:00 AM at his home in Vegas. There are reports his wife discovered his body and called for help. 

Gans was named "Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year" a record 11-times in a row. He did not perform last night.

Besides being a gifted entertainer, Gans was a pretty good athlete -- in fact, he was drafted by the KC Royals out of high school and played minor league ball.

UPDATE: TMZ has learned a 911 call was made by a family member at 3:44 AM for a 52-year-old man who was "having trouble breathing." By the time medics arrived, Gans had already passed away.

From the Sacramento Bee:

California Highway Patrolman Joseph Sanders was laid to rest today, one day after the 29-year-old officer would have successfully completed his probation period.

Sanders, a Galt High School graduate, had served just 359 days as a CHP officer - his longtime goal - before he was struck and killed one week ago today while conducting traffic in heavy rain on a Los Angeles County highway.

Hundreds of family, friends and uniformed officers gathered in Elk Grove this morning to remember Sanders, who had been assigned to the CHP's Santa Fe Springs area office in Southern California. Law enforcement officers from all across the state -- including a large contingent from Southern California -- and as far away as Texas filled the First Baptist Church to memorialize Sanders.

Sanders' death marks the CHP's first line-of-duty death of 2008 and the 214th in the CHP's 79-year history.

The author's family said he was battling cancer. He died in Los Angeles, according to the AP.

Crichton had several friends at Caltech. Besides the hugely popular "Jurassic Park," Crichton wrote "The Andromeda Strain" and an interesting book about Japanese-American relations that had an LAPD hook, titled "Rising Sun."

Here's a portion of the AP story:

"Through his books, Michael Crichton served as an inspiration to students of all ages, challenged scientists in many fields, and illuminated the mysteries of the world in a way we could all understand," his family said in a statement.

Two of my favorite entertainers gone in two days, Bernie Mac and now Isaac Hayes. They say this stuff happens in threes. I hope not.

From the Associated Press:

Isaac Hayes, the baldheaded, baritone-voiced soul crooner who laid the groundwork for disco and whose "Theme From Shaft" won both Academy and Grammy awards, died Sunday afternoon after he collapsed near a treadmill, authorities said. He was 65.

 

Somewhere on my desk I have a frayed, faded and much abused copy of the 1993 edition of Police Call.

I learned today from LA Observed that Gene Hughes, publisher of the magazine, died recently at age 80.

Police Call was a collection of radio frequencies used by police, fire and other government agencies. Hughes, a scanner junkie, put them together  and made the gibberish understandable to the lay person.

As much as anything I have Hughes (real name Gene Costin) to thank for my ability to tell the difference between real news and real noise.

Here's a bit from the LAO post:

Costin was 13 and living in a Los Angeles foster home in 1940 when he discovered that he could listen in on the LAPD's radios. The rest is history.

Here's a link to Wired's obit. The photo is from Wired also.