From Prince to a Princess; 10 Celebrity Deaths in 2016

Screencap from Return of the Jedi of Carrie Fisher playing Princess Leia

Normally in any other year, I can identify 10 or less celebrities that passed away that had a large impact on me in some way. Whether it is in what I enjoyed watching, what opened me to new types of art, or are part of the background soundtrack of my life, the following people had some sort of impact on me without my ever meeting them once.

This year was different. It was almost as if the Grim Reaper was a sales associate at a retail store and was working his ass off to not only meet a quota, but to also exceed it. One celebrity after another passed away this year, regardless of what they were famous for. Movies, music, politics, and more. It didn't matter what they did to gain notoriety.

What's worse is that it feels like the Grim Reaper is racing to take a few more down before the year comes to a close. So I give you a top 10 list of celebs that passed away that impacted me in some way. This is not to say these celebs are the most impactful than others that passed away this year, it's just the ones that meant the most to me in some way. Your list may be very different.

1. David Bowie: Kicking off the year the wrong way, David Bowie died on January 10. The very first music video I remember while growing up was Bowie's "Lets Dance." Later on, I would receive David Bowie's Never Let Me Down album as one of my very first cassette tapes I owned. I played that tape out until it finally died on it's own. He also played made an impact on the movie industry, but it was his role as Nikola Tesla in The Prestige that I enjoyed the most. I couldn't imagine a better casting choice to play the Tesla role. To this day, some of Bowie's music still rates as some of my favorite music.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work: "Rebel, Rebel"

2. Prince: This one shocked me. He was still young and visibly never seemed to age much. A pop music legend, just as Bowie was, Prince was known for his singing, writing, image, and his eccentricities. What stood out to me the most was his ability to play the music, not just sing over it. Prince is perhaps one of the best guitar players of his generation, but this ability is not what you think of when you think of "The Purple One." He also had the ability to play various other instruments from piano to drums to even having been credited for creating his own instruments to get the right sound that he needed for a song. He also was the writing genius behind other hit songs that he didn't sing on and behind other hit bands such as Morris Day and The Time.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work: "Guitar"

3. Abe Vigoda: Known as Fish on Barney Miller, Vigoda stood out to me for his work in The Godfather as Salvatore Tessio. He just carried a mobster-like presence about him that made him believable as a possible rival to the Corleone family. Later on, though not a major role, Vigoda would appear on Late Night with Conan O'Brien as himself in various skits.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work: The Godfather as Sal Tessio

4. Alan Rickman: Only within days of Bowie dying, Rickman passed away too. Perhaps known for his roles in Die Hard and in the Harry Potter movies, Rickman is about as distinguished of an actor as one can get. One of the best voices in the entertainment industry, Rickman could hold his own against anyone. Bruce Willis or Jason Mewes...it didn't matter. Rickman played the voice of God (the Metatron) in Dogma and it didn't even feel like a stretch. During this same year, he would go on to play Alexander Dane in Galaxy Quest. Later on, Rickman would go on to be the perfect choice for Marvin the Paranoid Android in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. When he died, it was a shock because much of the world had no clue he was suffering from cancer.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work:  Dogma as the Metatron

5. Gene Wilder: Possibly best known for his role as Willy Wonka, Wilder had a charm about him that made movie fans instantly connect to him. His likeability helped him excel in his roles he played in Mel Brooks' movies. As Dr. Frederick Frankenstein in Young Frankenstein, Wilder won awards not only for his acting, but also for his writing. His ability to play off of Cloris Leachman, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Teri Garr, and Madaline Kahn was outstanding and hilarious. Many people also loved him in Blazing Saddles and The Producers.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work: Young Frankenstein as Dr. Frederick Frankenstein.

6. Jose Fernandez: As the rising star pitcher of the Miami Marlins, Fernandez not only had the talent to be an all-star for years to come, but he was one of those type of players you wanted to root for because he genuinely seemed like a good guy and looked like he enjoyed being on there one the field. He had overcome a major injury to come back in 2016 and put up Cy Young Award level numbers until his death in August. In a time where many players appear to only care about the money, Fernandez was the type of player that inspired a new generation of baseball fans to play for the love of the game instead.

7. Anton Yelchin: Still a young actor, Yelchin died when he was pinned in between his car and the security gate of his house. Even though he was only 27-years-old, he still had done enough in his career to establish that he was a talented actor. He took over the role of Chekov in the Star Trek reboot and despite not looking a whole lot like the original Chekov played by Walter Koenig, Yelchin made the role his. Chekov wasn't his only large role in an established series. Yelchin played Kyle Reese in Terminator Salvation and nailed the role. While writing my book, A Hundred Kisses, I had mentally cast Yelchin as the lead character.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work: Chekov in the Star Trek trilogy reboot

8. George Martin: Famously known as the "Fifth Beatle", Martin's producing skills elevated the Fab Four into legendary status. Martin produced over 700 records in his career and was knighted by the Queen of England for his work. Martin was one of only six producers to have number one hit albums in three different decades.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work: The music for the Cirque du Soleil show, Love, featuring music and images from the Beatles

9. Arnold Palmer: The Babe Ruth of golf, Palmer was a golfing legend, winning 62 PGA tournaments. Beyond his incredible golfing abilities and where he has affected me the most, Arnold Palmer is credited for creating the drink named after himself. Three parts tea to one part lemonade, Arnold is said to have famously asked for this drink while at the bar of the Cherry Hills Country Club in Denver, Colorado during the 1960 U.S. Open. Wanting a non-alcoholic drink, he ordered the drink that he said he would have often at his own home. A woman sitting nearby, overheard Palmer's order and told the bartender that she wanted the Palmer drink. A similar incident happened in Palm Springs and the name began to spread. To this day, I'm an Arnold Palmer drink addict.

10. Carrie Fisher: Most famously known as Princess Leia in the Star Wars series of movies, Fisher was the daughter of celebrity royalty. Her mother was Debbie Reynolds, her father was Eddie Fisher, the sister to Joely Fisher, and her stepmother for a time was Elizabeth Taylor. As Slave Leia, her gold bikini costume might be one of the most iconic movie costumes of all-time. Slave Leia's costume is perhaps the most cosplayed role in the cosplay world. What should be noted is that she had other hit roles in movies such as When Harry Met Sally, Shampoo, and The 'Burbs. She even played a small role as the nun that Jay tried to give oral to in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. It's not widely known, but she also punched up the scripts for The Wedding Singer, Sister Act, and Last Action Hero. When the news broke that she had a massive heart attack just before Christmas, it didn't seem real. She seemed too young and feels like one of those actors/actresses that almost seem immortal because of her most famous roles.

Personal Favorite Piece of Work: Marie in When Harry Met Sally

Top 10 Cultural Events of 2016

Screencap from the movie Suicide Squad; Will Smith (left) as Deadshot and Margot Robbie (right) as Harley Quinn

Well, as you all know, 2016 was a jam packed year full of events that most people want to forget about. Obviously, if you're an American you can attest to this fact. Politics aside, there were plenty of other events, for better or worse, that occurred this year that will make it memorable for various reasons. I give you a look at 10 cultural events that changed America this year (that don't involve politics).

1. Musicians and actors galore died this year: Pop culture took some massive hits this year. Prince and David Bowie's deaths were massive and unexpected, but they weren't the only cultural icons to die this year. The music industry lost Glenn Frey, Leonard Cohen, Merle Haggard, Maurice White, George Martin, Natalie Cole, and Vanity. The silver screen and boob tube didn't go without their shocking deaths either. Alan Rickman, Gene Wilder, Doris Roberts, Anton Yelchin, Garry Marshall, Mickey Rooney, Alan Thicke, Noel Neill, Theresa Saldana, Patty Duke, Florence Henderson, Garry Shandling, Abe Vigoda, David Margulies, and Pat Harrington Jr. As far as writers go, Harper Lee passed on as well. And the sports world took massive hits when Arnold Palmer and Muhammad Ali passed on...oh and Chyna died too.

2. Cuba is ripe for the change: Now I know I said I would try to stay out of politics, but I put this topic here because of the cultural significance. President Obama visited Cuba early in the year and just recently with the death of Fidel Castro, the door to Cuba opening up to the world has cracked open a little bit. A country rich with music, sports, and art, if Cuba were to join the rest of the world in the 21st century, a new wave of pop culture and sports stars could feasibly find its way into America. From a tourism standpoint, people can visit the very same beaches that the mob once hoped to turn into a second Las Vegas with nightclubs and casinos. Fidel's brother Raul is still in power and he is surrounded by hardliners, but maybe with continued pressure to join the rest of the world, Cuba's oppressive system will eventually collapse.

3. Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize for Literature...and he couldn't care less: Now it may be debatable that song lyrics count as literature, but the Nobel committee apparently thought so. The awarded Dylan with the award, but they failed to receive an immediate response from the music legend. Once they did, Dylan informed the committee that he wouldn't be able to attend the ceremony and that he "might" make it to Stockholm in 2017. At least that's what we think he said, but sometimes Dylan can be hard to understand.

4. The Cubbies finally won the World Series: Just a year too late to make Back to the Future writer, Robert Zemeckis, look like a genius, the Chicago Cubs not only made their first World Series appearance since 1945, they won their first World Series since 1908. Events such as World War I, the Titanic sinking, and women gaining the right to vote, happened more recently than a Cubs World Series victory. The last time the had made it to the World Series, black baseball players hadn't even been integrated into Major League Baseball.

5. The rise of data collecting devices hit an all-time high: On the surface, devices like Amazon's Echo and Dot with the virtual assistant known as Alexa; and Google's "Google Home" seem pretty cool, but that's only if you don't value your privacy. With a generation of youth that values privacy less than the previous generation, it should be no surprise that a device that presumably captures, stores, and utilizes keywords you say in front of it, has begun to integrate itself into many Americans' everyday lives. Las Vegas hotels have started installing Amazon Echo into their rooms to control functions such as temperature and to possibly order room service. What you don't see is that the information collected helps companies customize the advertisements you are exposed to and stores this information on a database that will either be sold or hacked one day.

6. Apple went toe-to-toe with the government: Shortly after the San Bernardino, California terrorist attack, the FBI wanted to hack into one of the shooter's phones to gain a better idea if the attackers were directed to conduct the attack or if they were lone wolves. A debate erupted when Apple told the government that they wouldn't develop software to allow the United States to access the shooter's personal information from his phone. On one side of this debate was that Apple should be patriotic and do what they can to assist the government to possibly prevent further terrorist efforts. On the other side of the debate was that giving the US government the necessary software to break into Apple produced phones would only lead to a slippery-slope of determining when the software should and shouldn't be used. Eventually the government announced that they were successful in hacking the shooter's phone without the help of Apple. Even then, debates across the country argued when does patriotism override one's right to privacy?

7. Nerds across America wandered around the map to catch fictional creatures: Pokémon Go sprung up out of nowhere to become one of the most successful games in cellphone history. People who rarely stepped foot outside in the real world were forced to visit new places to catch fictional characters that only they could see with the help of their phones. Along the way, the occasional car accident or mugging would occur, but that still didn't appear to hurt the game's popularity. But just as fast as the game gained popularity, the game would decline severely in users within three months of the game's release.

8. Nintendo rehashes their old games...again: When the Nintendo company comes up with a hit game or character, they keep releasing games and re-releasing games with these same characters over and over again. This year was no different. A popular item for Christmas is the Nintendo NES Classic Edition which brings back 30 of those games you played to death in 1980's. All the games are pre-installed into the system, so now you don't have to have all those cartridges that you used to blow into before shoving it into your system.

9. Los Angeles gains at least one NFL team with the possibility of a second coming soon: Several NFL teams flirted with the idea of moving to Los Angeles. In the end, the Rams moved back to LA and the Chargers might not be far behind. The country's second largest city went from no teams to possibly two. So far, the Rams haven't done well, even behind a head coach that had experience guiding a team that changed cities. It took in what seemed forever for the Rams to even play their number one overall draft pick from the 2016 NFL Draft.

10. Every other female under the age of 30 dressed up as Harley Quinn for Halloween: Suicide Squad hit theaters earlier this year and the character of Harley Quinn broke free from being popular with comic book fans to becoming popular with all of America. Margot Robbie's portrayal of Joker's former girlfriend became an instant hit with both males and females alike. By the time Halloween rolled around, tons of women were wearing t-shirts reading "Daddy's Lil Monster" while wearing booty shorts and fishnets. It's conceivable that this costume could end up becoming the Halloween male version of The Crow where guys would still dress up as the undead character years after the movie release. With several more movies in slated to be released featuring Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, her costume is bound to be seen for years to come.

Best Christmas Movies You Should Have Seen

It's that time of year where no matter where you are, especially if you are out shopping, you are surrounded by Christmas music, decorations, lights, and just about everything imaginable. On television, cable stations flood their outgoing feed with Christmas movies that they can only show at this time of the year. Many of these movies are crap, but some are almost requirements to have seen if you call yourself American. In no particular order, I present to you the top ten Christmas movies you should have seen.

1. Miracle On 34th Street: I start with this one because actor Edmund Gwenn, who played Kris Kringle himself, played the part of Santa flawlessly; possibly the best Santa in a movie ever. Recently it also has popped up on some people's Google searches because Susan, the little girl that Santa befriends, is played by Natalie Wood, the focus of the reopened accidental death case involving Robert Wagner and Christopher Walken. In a post World War II (1947) era, this movie solidified the image of a glorified 1940's and 1950's era that many reminesce about.

2. Bad Santa: The opposite of Edmund Gwenn's Santa, Billy Bob Thornton plays a dark and twisted robber who poses as a mall Santa to rob mall anchor stores. It's everything that is wrong with Christmas, but somehow still comes off as humorous. Also this movie features that last filmwork by actor John Ritter. At the end of the movie, the darkened heart of Billy Bob opens up as he risks everything to get the little boy a Christmas present. On a side note, this movie also features one of the best movie lines of all time, "Fuck me Santa! Fuck me Santa! Fuck me Santa," as said by actress Lauren Graham.

3. The Grinch: Speaking of dark hearts cracking open at the end, the Grinch is possibly the best character that Dr. Seuss ever created. Now the Jim Carey version lacked what the animated one did...heart. The animated one is about best Christmas movie to watch with your young ones, but not be bored by some message that will make you want to down a shot of Jack Daniels after they go to bed. The Grinch also has a twentieth century classic Christmas song, You're A Mean One Mr. Grinch.

4. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation: Chevy Chase's Clark Griswold is the everyday dad trying to create the perfect Christmas for his family. From a house massively decorated in lights and annoying his neighbors to a family dinner ruined by the police busting in after Clark kidnaps his boss over a laughable Christmas bonus, Clark feels the pain of a Christmas not going to plan.

5. It's A Wonderful Life: This one speaks well to the current climate of American society...the banker is the evil guy. Featuring an almost suicide by Jimmy Stewart's character until an angel intervenes, this movie actually flopped while it was shown at the theaters. Through television, it survived and became a staple of television stations for over a half a century. This movie also coined the phrase, "Everytime a bell rings, an angel gets his wings."

6. A Christmas Story: The best Christmas movie of the 1980's, this movie features a boy focused on trying to get a Red Ryder BB Gun for Christmas. He deals with a Santa that pushes him down a slide, licking a frozen pole, and a father who receives the sexiest lamp ever. Peter Billingsley's glasses also became an iconic look for the nerdy boy.

7. Scrooged: Bill Murray plays a television exec who has lost his Christmas spirit. A spectacularly funny performance by Carol Kane as the Ghost Of Christmas Present is the perfect match to Billy Murray's Frank Cross. In their pairing, unexpectedly bust Bill's balls...literally.

8. Gremlins: Not very well known as a Christmas movie, Gizmo was possibly the cutest Christmas present a parent could present their son. Unfortunately the three important rules were broken and a small town's Christmas is overun by small, green looking monsters. Despite the troubles, eighties children grew up wanting to own their very own mogwai.

9. Home Alone: Mac's best performance of his career, he was chased by Goodfellas star Joe Pesci and Wonder Years voice Daniel Stern. Forgotten by his departing family on their Christmas vacation, Mac survives on his own and staves off the would be burgulars from robbing his home.

10. A Charlie Brown Christmas: More like a Christmas short movie, I still count this classic because of genuine warm feeling you get when you watch it,. Charlie Brown picks the worst Christmas tree in the lot, which at first couldn't even support one Christmas decoration, but with the help of his friends, has the classic tree any family should have. A b-story of Snoopy decorating his doghouse is also classic.

Honorable Mentions:
The Nightmare Before Christmas (I know many of you are reading this and saying what the hell?! Only honorable mention? Yes, I dislike Disney. Plus unlike some of the other Christmas specials/movies Disney has done in the past, this one is massively commercialized.)

Elf (James Caan is one of the best actors of all time and Will Ferrell is so new to the life experiences he comes across. Zooey Deschanel would also make a big step in this to mainstream her career.)

Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer (A holiday classic, with the best characters being Yukon Cornelius and Bumble the Yeti.)

Die Hard ( Yes, you read that write. Almost making my list, this is probably the most action packed Christmas movie ever. It features a performance by Alan Rickman that is outstanding. He is one of the best villains in movie history.)