In Memoriam 2012

This year may be the most emotional year for famous deaths.  Since January, many of our most notable people in sports, entertainment and other major parts of the world have died in 2012.  Here is a look back at some of those passing away over the last 12 months:

January 19- Sarah Burke (29) died from injuries sustained in a superpipe accident.

January 20- Etta James (73), singer who had a major hit with the song "At Last," died after a long bout with Leukemia.

January 22- Joe Paterno (85), legendary Penn State football coach who was fired after getting win number 409, passing Eddie Robinson for most wins in Division 1 football history, for the Jerry Sandusky child abuse scandal, died after a battle with Lung Cancer.

January 26- Robert Hegyes (60), actor who portrayed Juan Epstein in the show "Welcome Back Kotter," died

February 1- Don Cornelius (75), the creator and host of the legendary show "Soul Train," died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

February 11- Whitney Houston (48), legendary singer with hits like "I Will Always Love You," the theme song for "The Bodyguard," a film in which she also starred in, was found dead in a hotel room in Los Angeles.  Cause of death was unknown (remember, source for all of this is ranker.com.  This is what they have, so if you remember how she passed, I'll be happy to change it).

February 16- Gary Carter (57), legendary Major League Baseball catcher who was a part of the Montreal Expos and New York Mets, died from complications of a brain tumor.

February 29- Davy Jones (66), lead singer of the Monkees, known for legendary hits like "Daydream Believer" and "Last Train to Clarksville," died after suffering a heart attack.

March 2- James Wilson (80), American political scientists known for creating the "Broken Windows" theory, died of Leukemia.

March 5- Robert B. Sherman (86), longtime songwriter for Disney films such as "The Jungle Book" and "Mary Poppins," died of natural causes.

April 6- Thomas Kinkade (54), legendary American painter, died of an overdose.

April 7- Mike Wallace (93), legendary correspondent for CBS News and reporter for the network show "60 Minutes," died of natural causes.

April 18- Dick Clark (82), legendary host of shows like "American Bandstand" and "Pyramid" who rang in a new year every year for 40 years, died after suffering a heart attack post surgery.

May 2- Junior Seau (43), legendary NFL player who spent much of his career with the San Diego Chargers and New England Patriots, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.

May 4- Bob Stewart (91), legendary creator of game shows such as Pyramid and The Price is Right, died of natural causes.

May 4- Adam "MCA" Yauch (47), member of the hip hop group The Beastie Boys, died after a long battle with cancer.

May 6- George Lindsey (83), best known as Goober from "The Andy Griffith Show," died after a long illness.

May 8- Maurice Sendak (83), Author of the famous children's book "Where the Wild Things Are," died of complications from a stroke.

May 17- Donna Summer (63), legendary disco singer with such hits as "Last Dance" and "She Works Hard For the Money," died after a battle with cancer.

May 20- Robin Gibb (62), one of the co-founders of The BeeGees, died after a long bout with cancer.

June 2- Richard Dawson (79), mainly known as the host of the game show "Family Feud," as well as a panelist for "Match Game" and co-star in the TV series "Hogan's Heroes," died from complications of esophageal cancer.

June 5- Ray Bradbury (91), author of legendary sci-fi books like "Fahrenheit 451" and "Something Wicked This Way Comes," died peacefully in his home.

June 12- Henry Hill (69), Gangster-turned-informant who's life was the basis for the film "Goodfellas," died at an Los Angeles hospital of natural causes.

June 17- Rodney King (47), Best known as the victim of a police brutality case involving the Los Angeles Police Department, was found dead at his home after an apparent drowning.

July 3- Andy Griffith (86), legendary actor known for starring in "The Andy Griffith Show" and "Matlock," died of natural causes.

July 8- Ernest Borgnine (95), an Oscar-award winner for his role in the movie "Marty" and starred in the series "McHale's Navy" who recently was the voice of Mermaid Man in the Nickelodeon series "Spongebob Squarepants," died of natural causes.

July 23- Sally Ride (61), former astronaut who became the first American female to travel into space, died of pancreatic cancer.

July 24- Sherman Hemsley (74), known as George Jefferson from the TV Series "All In the Family" and "The Jeffersons," died in his home of natural causes.

July 31- Gore Vidal (86), legendary writer of books and screenplays, died from complications of pneumonia.

August 9- Mel Stuart (83), director of the classic film "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," died of Cancer.

August 13- Johnny Pesky (92), former baseball player with the Boston Red Sox who was teammates with the likes of Ted Williams and Bobby Doerr, died of natural causes.

August 14- Ron Palillo (63), best known as Horshack in the TV series "Welcome Back Kotter," died of a heart attack.

August 18- Scott Mckenzie (73), singer of the hit song "San Francisco" and songwriter to the Beach Boys hit "Kokomo."

August 19- Tony Scott, best known as the director for the film "Top Gun," committed suicide by jumping off a bridge in San Pedro, California.

August 20- Phyllis Diller (95), legendary comedian with over 7 decades of jokes and laughs, died peacefully in her sleep "with a smile on her face" according to reports.

August 24- Jerry Nelson (78), puppeteer best known as the Count on "Sesame Street," died of unspecified causes.

August 25- Neil Armstrong (82), the first man to ever walk on the moon, died due to complications from blocked coronary arteries.

September 1- Hal Davis (91), famous songwriter who had major hits such as "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head."

September 3- Michael Clarke Duncan (54), most known for his role as John Coffey in "The Green Mile," died at a hospital where he was being treated after suffering a heart attack in July.

September 25- Andy Williams (84), singer/songwriter most known for the hit songs "Love Story" and "Moon River," died from bladder cancer.

October 10- Alex Karras (77), former NFL player who became an actor.

October 14- Arlen Specter (82), former senator of Pennsylvania, died from complications of non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

October 21- George McGovern (90), former congressman who later was the democratic party nominee for the 1972 Presidential Election against President Nixon, died from natural causes.

November 23- Larry Hagman (81), legendary actor known to all for his role as JR Ewing in the hit TV series "Dallas," died from complications of cancer.

November 24- Hector "Macho" Camacho (50), former boxing champion who won four world championships during his career, died four days after being shot in face and neck as a passenger of a car in Puerto Rico.

November 27- Marvin Miller (95), former Major League Baseball Players Association executive director who opened the door to players free agency during his term.

December 1- Rick Majerus (64), legendary college basketball coach of Utah and, most recently, Saint Louis, died of heart failure.

December 5- Dave Brubeck (92), acclaimed jazz musician, died of heart failure.

December 9- Jenni Rivera (43), a Mexican-American singer, was killed in a plane crash in northern Mexico.

December 12- Ravi Shankar (92), Indian Sitar maestro who brought his music to the western world.

December 17- Senator Daniel Inouye (88), Democrat from the state of Hawaii who was the senate's President Pro tempore, 3rd in line to the presidency behind the Vice President and Speaker of the House, died of respiratory complications.

December 24- Jack Klugman (90), actor who starred in the film "12 Angry Men" and the TV series "The Odd Couple" and "Quincy, M.E."

December 27- Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf (78), a key figure in the first war on Iraq (Operation Desert Storm) back in the 1990s.

We also cannot forget those who died in a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, a mall Portland, Oregon, Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, and other places in this country, because of the senseless acts of others.  We continue to show support for those who lost love ones and the places where they were taken away from.

Finally, we remember our own family and friends who are no longer with us.  Whether they were someone who you knew for only a few years or what seemed like forever, we can never forget their take on our lives and the lives of others.  Keep them in mind forever and may god bless all who are no longer with us up at those pearly gates of heaven.  We miss you all and will never be forgotten.  Rest in Peace.

Connecticut Shooting

It has become a dark and saddening day for all of us in the United States after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.  As of right now, I am not going over the numbers of who has died and who are injured after the event, but the way this day has gone, I do need to address this situation.

First of all, I've been watching all of the coverage since about Noon this afternoon.  Just like most of you, I have been watching with sadness and heartbreak after the deaths of so many people, especially innocent children.  There are so many people who need our prayers and blessings after this heinous act today.  I want to go through this tragic event in multiple ways.

The news coverage has been a big of a "hit and miss" scenario.  CNN's coverage has been the main one that I've been looking at throughout the day and they have been better than the others.  Going to local reports and getting first-hand takes on the shooting.  Now all the other cable networks have done this as well.  Fox news may have gone out of their reporting basis when they tried interviewing a mother of one of the students in the school not too long after the shooting was first reported.  But I guess it is better than trying to interview children, which some networks did do and has come as upsetting to some people I have talked to.

The social media coverage has been a great way of seeing how others are dealing with it.  I have been on Facebook ever since the tragedy took place and seen how friends have been reacting to the tragedy (so many heartbroken).  On Twitter, so many celebrities have been tweeting their prayers out to those affected.  The social media places are also important places to get updates on the shooting.  Many individuals have been sending retweets on the topic from news organizations.  It may not be the best way to follow, but it can become a way to keep in touch with certain situations.

As far as gun control is concerned, this has become the third major shooting in the last 2 weeks.  Who could forget the murder-suicide of the Kansas City Chiefs football player who shot and killed his girlfriend before killing himself.  Then, on Tuesday, a shooting at a Portland, OR, mall killed 2 people.  When you total that with the Theater mass shooting in Colorado and other shootings, we have to discuss how we can keep these things from happening.  I can't say if there is a way to stop these things, but I hope that some day, we can stop these heinous actions from happening.

In conclusion, I want to hear from anyone and everyone about this situation and give me your take on gun control.  How can we stop these acts from happening in this country?  Is there a way to stop it?  Let me know.  And to those who lost a love one today in this shooting, my thoughts and prayers go out to all of you and may God bless all of you forever and ever, Amen.