Archive for February, 2014

Dorothy Stratten

Posted in Westwood Memorial Park with tags , on February 14, 2014 by Cade

stratten1February 28, 1960 – August 14, 1980

Hollywood. Amiright?

Dorothy Stratten was smack in the middle of her Hollywood dream (by way of becoming Playboy’s Playmate of the Year) when she was murdered by the very man who had hitched his way on her coattails all the way from Vancouver. She had turned her popularity from the men’s magazine into a budding film career and even found herself in a relationship with a real-life Hollywood director. Of course, her jealous (and unstable) husband didn’t like that, so he did what any rational person would do: killed her and himself with a shotgun after an argument about money and divorce.

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Buddy Rich

Posted in Westwood Memorial Park with tags , , on February 14, 2014 by Cade

rich1September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987

Bernard “Buddy” Rich played the drums. He played the drums really, really well. He had a temper. He (allegedly) liked to fire musicians in the middle of sets if the need arose. He played with all the big names like Tommy Dorsey, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. He also led his own bands. And he had a bit of a temper.

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Frank Zappa

Posted in Westwood Memorial Park with tags , on February 14, 2014 by Cade

zappa1December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993

Frank Vincent Zappa was an influential, experimental musician who broke onto the popular music scene with his band’s (the Mothers of Invention) 1966 album Freak Out! Zappa’s style defied category as his works and compositions included rock, jazz and classical elements. His music drew on influences from everything from R&B to jazz. Over the course of his almost 40 year career, he experimented with sound and quietly influenced countless musicians that would follow. Continue reading

Russell Stover

Posted in Mt. Moriah Cemetery with tags on February 14, 2014 by Cade

stover1May 6, 1888 – May 11, 1954

Candy magnate, Russell Stover was a chemist who revolutionized the chocolate candy industry. He was the first to create a chocolate confection that would harden when it came in contact with cold – inventing the Eskimo Pie – and founded the chocolate company that bears his name. Continue reading

Dan Quisenberry

Posted in Mt. Moriah Cemetery with tags , , on February 7, 2014 by Cade

quis1February 7, 1953 – September 30, 1998

The giant scoreboard that towers over center field at Kansas City’s Kauffman Stadium said it best throughout the 1980’s. When Dan Quisenberry – the closer with the unmistakable submarine delivery – entered the game, a graphic appeared that read: “There’s no berry like a Quisenberry.”

Dan Quisenberry was one of the most dominant closing pitchers in the American League all through the early ’80’s. He set the single-season saves record 5 times and retired with a total of 244 saves. Continue reading