TVSquad

The honorary mayor of Hollywood has died.

Johnny Grant was the unofficial mayor of Hollywood, CA. Unofficial because the city doesn't really have a mayor, but Grant was sort of an ambassador for the city since 1980, hosting red carpet ceremonies, Oscar ceremonies, and inducting over 500 celebrities into the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He also helped entertain troops overseas during the Korean War, Vietnam War, and in the Middle East. Early in his career he did various radio shows and was also an actor, with small roles in such movies as White Christmas, The Babe Ruth Story, and The Oscar.

Grant died of natural causes in his apartment at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. He was 84.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Bill Idelson: He is probably best remembered as Sally's longtime boyfriend Herman Glimscher on The Dick Van Dyke Show. He also wrote for the show and several others over the years, including The Andy Griffith Show, M*A*S*H, The Bob Newhart Show, Happy Days, The Odd Couple, Bewitched, Get Smart, The Ghost & Mrs. Muir, The Twilight Zone, The Flintstones, and many others, and acted on dozens of shows since the 50s, and even played the son on the Vic and Sade radio show. He died from complications from a hip injury at age 88.

Each year in our "Top TV Stories" posts we look back at the number of celebrities and behind the scenes people that have passed away during the year. This is always a hard list to put together, so if I've missed anyone, please let me know in the comments and I'll add them to the list.

This year we also lost someone very close to us.

Merv Griffin
Tom Snyder
Joel Siegel
Anna Nicole Smith
Robert Goulet
Joey Bishop

Gallery: People we lost in 2007

I really dread writing this post, because it just slams home the fact that Adam is really gone.

If you're new to TV Squad, Adam was a longtime writer here at TV Squad (and other WIN blogs, including Adjab). He passed away in September at the age of 30. We had a special tribute day for him where we ran our favorite posts of his and let readers post their condolences. That banner on the left of the TV Squad page will be taken down at the end of this year, but we'll make sure to put it back up every year to remember Adam.

Not that we could ever forget. We all miss you Adam.

Hit the FF button to check out the Top TV Stories one-by-one:
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Alternatively, browse the list from here:

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Floyd Red Crow Westerman: The American Indian actor and activist was known for many roles, including Albert Hosteen on The X-Files and Ten Bears in the movie Dances with Wolves. He also appeared in Walker, Texas Ranger, Dharma and Greg, L.A. Law, Northern Exposure, Judging Amy, Roseanne, Murder, She Wrote, MacGyver, and many other shows. He died of leukemia at age 71.

If you're not familiar with the name Roger King then you are most certainly familiar with the company King World Productions and the TV shows that they have produced.

King was the current CEO of CBS Television Distribution. King World merged with the network in 2000. Among the many shows that King World brought to the world: Oprah, Wheel of Fortune, and Jeopardy. Those shows have been so successful that we'll even forgive the company for unleashing Dr. Phil on the world. When he got to CBS, King was responsible for the syndication of shows such as Everybody Loves Raymond and CSI.

King died of a stroke in Florida over the weekend.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Jeanne Bates: She was best known as Nurse Wills on the 1950s medical series Ben Casey. She appeared on many TV shows over the years, including That 70's Show, Wings, The Young and the Restless, Dallas, Three's Company, Quincy, M.E., Charlie's Angels, The Rockford Files, Cannon, The Saint, Hawaii Five-O, The Twilight Zone, and many others. She also appeared in several movies such as Die Hard 2, Grand Canyon, Eraserhead, the 1943 The Phantom serial, and the 1951 version of Death of a Salesman. She died of cancer at age 89.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Evel Knievel: He was the most famous motorcycle stunt artist, and he seemed to be on ABC's Wide World of Sports every other week in the 70s. His most famous jumps were his Caesar's Palace jump and his Snake River Canyon jump in a rocket. Though he made more than he missed. He died of complications from diabetes and pulmonary fibrosis at age 69. Oddly, just two days ago he settled a lawsuit with Kanye West.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Sigrid Valdis: She was best known as playing Hilda on Hogan's Heroes. She went on to marry costar Bob Crane on the set of the show in 1970 (her married name was Patricia Crane). She also appeared in other shows, including The Wild, Wild West and Kraft Suspense Theater, as well as the movies Our Man Flint and Marriage on the Rocks. She died of lung cancer at age 72.

I little piece of your childhood just passed away.

Dick Wilson has died at the age of 91. He played Mr. Whipple on the long-running series of commercials for Charmin bathroom tissue. He would lurk around corners in the grocery store waiting for some hapless housewife to pick up a package of and squeeze it, then he'd come up to them and say "Please don't squeeze the Charmin!" Then he'd squeeze the tissue himself. It seemed like Whipple didn't do anything else for that grocery change except watch out for people who might come down that aisle and squeeze the Charmin, but it's one of the more memorable ad campaigns in TV history. He made over 500 commercials from 1964 to 1985! He also appeared in many TV shows, including Bewtiched, Maude, The Bob Newhart Show, Quincy, M.E., Adam-12, Hogan's Heroes, The Partridge Family, and I Dream of Jeannie.

Godspeed Mr. Whipple. Two classic ads after the jump!

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Ronnie Burns: He was the son of George Burns and Gracie Allen and played himself on The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show and The George Burns Show. He also appeared in other TV shows, including The Honeymooners, Playhouse 90, The Jack Benny Show, and Happy. He died of cancer at age 72 in Pacific Palisades, CA.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Laraine Day: She was probably best known for starring in such movies as Foreign Correspondent, Mr. Lucky, The Locket, and several Dr. Kildare movies, but she also had a variety show of her own in the 1950s and was a panelist on I've Got A Secret. She later made appearances on such shows as Murder, She Wrote, Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Lou Grant, Medical Center, Airwolf, Hotel, and others. She was also known as "The First Lady Of Baseball" because of her marriage to Leo Durocher. She died in Utah at age 87.

First it was Bobby, then Silvio and now Satriale's.

Last month, the familiar building that served as one of the hangouts for Tony Soprano and his crew was demolished. Manny Costeira, owner of the property, told people, "We whacked the pork store" after selling the empty building and the property it sits on.

The well-known "pork store" had been closely identified with The Sopranos for the entirety of the show's run. Unfortunately, after the show's cancellation, the empty building became little more than a tourist attraction.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Henry Cele: He was probably best known for his role in the classic TV miniseries Shaka Zulu in 1986. He also starred in several movies, including The Ghost and the Darkness, Point of Impact, and two other Shaka Zulu movies. Before becoming an actor he was a pro soccer player. He died of a chest infection at age 58.

A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Chef Tell (Paul Erhardt): He was better known to TV viewers as Chef Tell, who cooked on several shows over the years, including his PBS series In The Kitchen With Chef Tell, Regis & Kathie Lee, Evening Magazine, and Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. According to some, the "Swedish Chef" character on The Muppet Show was based on Erhardt. He died of heart failure at age 63.