Mike Douglas was 81.  He was host of "The Mike Douglas Show" for 21 years.

Bob Thaves was 81.  He was the creator of the long-running comic strip “Frank & Ernest”.

Al Balding was 82.  He became the first Canadian to win a PGA Tour event when he won the Mayfair Open in 1955.

Bill Long was 88.  He was one of the Ontario Hockey League's legendary coaches, coaching the London Knights for 12 years and compiling a 275-214-50 record.

Jack Warden was 85.  He was an Emmy-winning and Academy Award-nominated actor who played gruff cops, coaches and soldiers in a career that spanned five decades.

Mickey Spillane was 88.  He was the creator of the hardboiled detective Mike Hammer.

Red Buttons was 87.  He was the the carrot-topped burlesque comedian who became a top star in early television and then in a dramatic role won the 1957 Oscar as supporting actor in "Sayonara."

Syd Barrett was 60.  He was the troubled Pink Floyd co-founder who spent his last years in reclusive anonymity.

June Allyson was 88.  She was the sunny, cracked-voiced "perfect wife" of James Stewart, Van Johnson and other movie heroes.

Kenneth Lay was 64.  He was the founder of Enron who was convicted of helping perpetuate one of the most sprawling business frauds in U.S. history.

Aaron Spelling was 83.  He was one of TV's most prolific producers, bringing "Charlie's Angels," "Dynasty," "Love Boat," "Beverly Hills 90210," "Melrose Place," "Starsky and Hutch," and "Fantasy Island" to the small screen.

Ken Thomson was 82.  He transformed the media empire founded by his father and became the richest person in Canada.

Moe Drabowsky was 70.  He was the prankster pitcher who delighted in putting pythons in teammates' shoes and wound up as a World Series star for the Baltimore Orioles when they won their first championship in 1966.

Billy Preston was 59.  He was a soul musician who collaborated with some of the greatest names in the music industry, including The Beatles, Sam Cooke, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eric Clapton, Sammy Davis Jr., Sly Stone, Aretha Franklin, George Harrison, The Jackson 5, Quincy Jones, Bob Dylan, and The

Vince Welnick was 55.  He took over as the Grateful Dead's keyboard player in 1990 after a succession of predecessors met untimely deaths.

Paul Gleason was 67.  He was the character actor best known for playing the angry high school principal Richard Vernon in "The Breakfast Club."

Craig "Ironhead" Heyward was 39.  He was a former NFL running back who played for the New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Rams, and the Indianapolis Colts in an 11-year career.

Desmond Dekker was 64.  He brought the sound of Jamaican ska music to the world with songs such as "Israelites."

Ian Copeland was 57.  He was a pioneering booking agent and music promoter credited with helping launch the "new wave" alternative rock movement of the 1970s and '80s with such bands as the Police, the B-52's and R.E.M.

Freddie Garrity was 69.  He was the lead singer of the 1960s pop band Freddie and the Dreamers who hit the top of the charts with the 1965 hit "I'm Telling You Now".

Dan Ross was 49.  He set the record for most Super Bowl receptions with the Cincinnati Bengals in 1982.

Floyd Patterson was 71.  He was a boxer who became the first two-time heavyweight champion of the world.

Lorne Saxberg was 48.  During his 27-year career at CBC, he was a widely recognized news anchor in television and radio, who was famous for his deeply sonorous voice and his easy-going delivery.

Earl Woods was 74.  He was Tiger Wood's father, the architect and driving force behind his phenomenal career.

John Kenneth Galbraith was 97.  He was the University of Toronto graduate who went on to become an influential liberal economist, best-selling author and presidential advisor.