11

Apr. 9 -- The Munchkin Coroner

Who?

Meinhardt Frank Raabe, one of the last surviving cast members of The Wizard of Oz

How?

Heart attack

The legacy:

As memorable as the Munchkin coroner was in The Wizard of Oz, Raabe really only got 13 fleeting seconds of screen time (declaring the Wicked Witch of the East to be deceased), and his few lines were dubbed over by another actor altogether. But don't go crying for old Meinhardt, because he not only ended up surviving just about everyone else from the movie but also went on to serve as a pilot during World War II, enjoy a 50-year marriage with his sweetheart and get cast as the Oscar Mayer spokesman. And yes, that meant he got to ride around in that sweet Wienermobile. Jealous?

10

May 9 -- The Inventor of the Bazooka

Who?

Edward Uhl, inventor of the most hilariously named weapon ever conceived

How?

Heart failure

The legacy:

Edward Uhl, like most young men in the 1940s, had a problem: How in blazes was he supposed to rocket-launch a grenade toward Nazi tanks without blowing his own face off? Luckily, also like most men in the 1940s, Uhl enjoyed the national pastime of walking past junk piles filled with scrap metal. And it was on one such constitutional that he came across the answer to all his grenade-launching problems: a tube. Uhl figured out that a shoulder-mounted tube could launch a bomb without injuring the launcher. And then he exclaimed, "Ba-ZOOOOO-ka!" And the rest is history.

9

June 3 -- The Original GILF

8

July 1 -- Cinderella

Who?

Ilene Woods, the voice of Cinderella

How?

Causes related to Alzheimer's disease

The legacy:

To really appreciate what Ilene Woods brought to the Disney princess franchise, have a listen to her predecessor, the voice of Snow White:

It's like listening to Edith Bunker mate with Emo Philips and then sing about it as operatically as possible. Now check out an 18-year-old Ilene Woods:

Her honey-smooth voice is dripping with sex. And with Woods as the star, Cinderella became Disney's first hit in 13 years, which provided the cash flow to keep the studio in business. Are we saying you can thank Woods for the empire that would later produce Miley Cyrus? Yes. Yes we are.

7

July 12 -- A Splendid American

6

July 27 -- Inventor of Cheez Doodles

Who?

Morrie Yohai, inventor of Cheetos' puffy cousins, Cheez Doodles

How?

Cancer

The legacy:

As the president of Old London Foods, Yohai made his lasting contribution to the world of obesity by inventing Cheez Doodles back in the 1950s. Yohai was first of many to realize that Americans would line up to eat cheese-based snacks if they were stripped of natural coloring and correct spelling and involved the word "doodles."

Yo, hi!

5

Sept. 20 -- The Real Lynyrd Skynyrd

Who?

Forby Leonard Skinner, gym teacher and longhair opponent

How?

Alzheimer's disease

The legacy:

The 1960s were the one time in history when the length of your hair established where you stood on every important issue of the day: Short hair equaled pro-government, pro-war, pro-square music. Long hair equaled the opposite of all those things. So, Leonard Skinner was a Florida gym teacher firmly established in the short-hair camp, and he had no love for students on the other side of the hair-length war. And three of those students were Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington and Bob Burns and their sexy, sexy hair.

After countless visits to the office on account of their tresses, the boys decided they'd get their revenge by naming their fledgling band after the one man who seemed the most bothered by them. And to avoid a lawsuit from said square, they replaced all the vowels in "Leonard Skinner" with Y's. But it turned out Mr. Skinner had a decent sense of humor about the whole deal, even after the band used a sign from his realty company in their album art:

4

Sept. 26 -- The Owner of Segway

Who?

Jimi Heselden, owner of Segway Industries

How?

Apparently by driving his Segway off a cliff

The legacy:

Heselden started out as a coal miner but got laid off during the Great Miners' Strike of 1984-85. And instead of blowing his relief money on rent, bills and crumpets like all the other miners, he used his money to open a workshop. And it was in that workshop that he invented a barrier system that totally made him rich enough to be counted as one of Britain's biggest philanthropists. By 2010, he was rich enough to buy the pinnacle of class and sophistication, Segway Industries.

Unfortunately, 2010 was the year Heselden's luck ran out. His body was discovered in a river by a cliff, and his all-terrain Segway was found nearby.

3

Oct. 20 -- The Smut Merchant

2

Oct. 22 -- Rocky and Bullwinkle's Dad

Who?

Alex Anderson, creator of Rocky and Bullwinkle

How?

Complications from Alzheimer's disease

The legacy:

If there's one thing we'll learn from Alex Anderson, it's that you should never pass up an opportunity to watch documentaries about annoying cartoon characters from the 1960s, especially when you're the one who created the characters. Because you might just find that your name was left out of the story, and that all the credit for your annoying-ass characters went to your former business partner and childhood friend. And then, if it's 1996, and you're Alex Anderson, you just might find yourself suing the shit out of your former business partner's estate and winning "court-mandated acknowledgment" of being responsible for this crapcicle:

Good job!

And thanks to Anderson and his lawsuit, no one was ever exploited by the animation industry ever again (except the entire nation of South Korea).

1

Nov. 27 -- The Man Who Saved Star Wars

Who?

Irvin Kershner, film director

How?

Lung cancer

The legacy:

Irvin Kershner will always be beloved by nerds the world over for directing the best movie of all time. "I know," you say knowingly, "The Empire Strikes Back is my favorite movie too." Empire Yeah, right! We're talking about RoboCop 2. "RoboCop 2? The best movie of all time?" you reply, in a hoarse whisper. "That's not true ... THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Search your feelings. You know it to be true.

Lisa-Skye Ioannidis is a comedian based in Melbourne, Australia. Find more of her here. Nicholas Rasche is a writer and comedian also based in Melbourne. Paul Rasche likes smoking.

And don't forget to check out the overlooked deaths of years past, in Where Aren't They Now?: 15 Overlooked Deaths of 2008 and Where Aren't They Now? 13 Overlooked Deaths of 2009.

And stop by Linkstorm to learn about the birth, death and resurrection of the savior: RoboCop.

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