Gary Carter was 57. The Kid was an 11-time All-Star catcher for the Montreal Expos and the New York Mets and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2003.

Neil Hope was 35. He played Derek “Wheels” Wheeler on Degrassi: The Next Generation, Degrassi Junior High and The Kids of Degrassi Street. Neil actually passed away on November 25, 2007, but this was only made public today January 12.  I was a big Degrassi fan, and just last year

Whitney Houston was 48. She reigned as pop music's queen until her majestic voice and regal image were ravaged by drug use, erratic behavior and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown. She is the only artist to chart seven consecutive No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits with "Saving All

Ben Gazzara was 81. He was an intense actor best known for starring in the John Cassavetes films "Husbands", "The Killing of a Chinese Bookie" and "Opening Night".  I remember him best as Jackie Treehorn, the pornography mogul and loan shark in the Coen brother's cult classic, The Big Lewbowski.

Angelo Dundee was 90. He was the brilliant motivator who worked the corner for Muhammad Ali in his greatest fights and willed Sugar Ray Leonard to victory in his biggest bout.

Don Cornelius was 75. He created "Soul Train," a show  instrumental in bringing acts like James Brown, Aretha Franklin and Michael Jackson to a larger audience.

Robert Hegyes was 69. He portrayed Epstein in the 1970s television series Welcome Back, Kotter.

Joe Paterno was 85. He was head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011, accumulated 409 wins, the most in NCAA Division 1 history.

Etta James was 73. Her powerful, versatile and emotionally direct voice could enliven the raunchiest blues as well as the subtlest love songs, most indelibly in her signature hit, “At Last.” For my money, nothing beats "I'd Rather Go Blind."

Sarah Burke was 29. She was a Canadian freestyle skier and four-time Winter X Games champion who was the first woman to land a 1080 in competition.

Jim Huber was 67. He was an Emmy Award winning journalist and essayist with Turner Sports and PGA.com.  I remember him co-anchoring CNN Sports Tonight with Nick Charles, Fred Hickman, Vince Cellini and others in the 90s.  His work was always top notch. His tweets the last few days

Joe Bodolai was 63. He was best known for producing and writing such television shows as Comics!, The Kids in the Hall and Saturday Night Live. He also co-wrote the first draft of the film Wayne's World with Mike Myers. Before he took his own life, Joe Bodolai published his

Kim Jong Il was 69. He has been the leader of North Korea, an impoverished communist country if ever there was one, since the death of his father Kim Il-sung in 1994.

Christopher Hitchens was 62. He was a contrarian writer and public intellectual, whose targets ranged from God and Mother Teresa to Henry Kissinger.

Harry Morgan was 96. He was the the prolific character actor best known for playing the acerbic but kindly Colonel Sherman T. Potter, commander of the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital unit in Korea, in the long-running television series "M*A*S*H." Check out this great rant by Col.

Dobie Gray was 71. He was the singer and songwriter who had a top 5 hit in 1973 with the song “Drift Away.” I always liked that song...

Patrice O'Neal was 41. He was best known for his work as a stand-up comedian but also appeared in several films like "25th Hour," "Scary Movie 4" and "Furry Vengeance." The Comedy Central Roast curse lives on.

Charlie Lea was 54. He posted a 62-48 record with 535 strikeouts and a 3,54 ERA in 923.1 innings over seven MLB seasons, pitching a no-hitter for the Montreal Expos in 1981.

Bil Keane was 89. He created the comic strip "Family Circus" which began its run in 1960 and continues in syndication. If you're like me, you were a much bigger fan of "The Dysfunctional Family Circus".

Heavy D was 44. He was the former leader of the hip-hop group Heavy D and the Boyz who recorded the hits "Somebody for Me", "Gyrlz, They Love Me" and "Now That We Found Love". I heard "Now That We Found Love" on Slacker Radio's '90s Hip Hop station just

Smokin' Joe Frazier was 67. He was the former boxing heavyweight champion who was the first man to beat Muhammad Ali. Click play above to see the Fight of the Century from March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York.

Andy Rooney was 92. His prickly wit was long a mainstay of CBS News and whose homespun commentary on "60 Minutes," delivered every week from 1978 until 2011, made him a household name. I watched a lot of 60 Minutes over the past 20 years, but I didn't touch that

Earl McRae was 69. He was a broadcaster and writer known in Toronto for his work at the Toronto Star and as a CBC-TV sports anchor.  Most recently he spent twenty years writing for the Ottawa Sun.

Dan Wheldon was 33. He won the Indianapolis 500 twice and was the IndyCar series champion in 2005.

Dr. Robert Buckman was 63. He was a popular medical advice columnist, humourist and leading cancer specialist at Toronto's Princess Margaret Hospital.