10 Famous Celebrities We Have Tragically Lost To COVID-19
GettyImages The rapid spread of COVID-19 has been devastating for the entire world. There have been 193,779 deaths due to COVID-19 worldwide and that number is only expected to grow. The deadly virus has even effected the entertainment industry tremendously and took the lives of some talented people. Let’s take a look at some celebrities that lost their fight with COVID-19.
Mark Blum
If you watched the show You on Netflix, you might recognize actor Mark Blum who plays the character Mr.Mooney. He also had a breakout role in the 1985 film Desperately Seeking Susan, alongside Madonna. And more recently he starred in the Amazon Prime series Mozart In The Jungle from 2014-2018. Not only did he dominate television screens, but he took his talents to Broadway and appeared in the plays Twelve Angry Men and Lost In Yonkers. Over the years, Blum fought for fair wages and benefits for his peers and was an extremely vital member of the Screen Actor’s Guild. On March 25, 2020, Blum died at the age of 69 due to complications of COVID-19.
Fred The Godson
Fred the Godson was a rapper and DJ that was a member of the 2011 XXL Freshman class of Hip Hop’s most promising rappers with Kendrick Lamar, Meek Mill, YG, Mac Miller and Diggy Simmons. His album City of God featured P. Diddy and Pusha T. He continuously released tracks over the past few years and was a regular guest-DJ on the New York Hot 97 radio show. On March 20, 2020, he released a mixtape he produced called Payback. He died on April 23, 2020, at the age of 35. He is on the younger side of the celebrities that lost their lives from this deadly virus.
Ken Shimura
This beloved Japanese comedian dominated television for five decades. Some even referred to him as “Japan’s Robin Williams.” he joined The Drifters, one of Japan’s most famous comedy groups in 1974. They even had their own show called Hachijidayo Zen’inshūgō! until 1985 which had incredible television ratings. He went on to co-star in a series called Kato-Chan Ken-Chan Gokigen TV until 1992. It was a show that included funny clips sent in by fans. Shimura was the main inspiration behind ABC’S hit show America’s Funniest Home Videos in 1989. He was always amazing at impersonating or coming up with new and exciting characters.
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In 2006, he launched his own comedy theater, Shimurakon, and hosted Tensai! Shimura Doubutsuen a weekly prime-time animal show in which he shared the spotlight with dogs and monkeys. He was slated to carry the Olympic torch during the opening ceremony of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. On March 20, 2020, he lost consciousness. Three days later it was confirmed that he had COVID-19. He died on March 29, 2020, in Shinjuku, Tokyo at the age of 70. His death was a shock to his country as he was one of the first Japanese television pioneers of comedy.
Alan Merrill
Guitarist and songwriter Alan Merill wrote one of the most iconic songs of the ’70s with the hit “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll.” He recorded the song with his band The Arrows in 1975 and it was covered by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts in 1982. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified platinum. He was also a member of singer Meat Loaf’s band for four years. Merill released several albums as a solo artist, with 2019’s Radio Zero being the most recent. He was actually playing live shows in New York up until right before his death. When Merrill started feeling COVID-19 symptoms, he was unable to seek treatment due to the over-crowding of hospitals. When he was finally admitted and tested positive for the virus, his body shut down. He died on March 29, 2020, at the age of 69.
Jay Benedict
Jay Benedict dominated musical theatre in Europe in the ’60s. He starred in theater adaptions of The Rocky Horror Show and The Foreigner alongside Pierce Brosnan. Benedict had a role in In Christopher Nolan’s 2012 hit film, The Dark Knight Rises. He also had a role in James Cameron’s Aliens in 1986. In 1977, he played Deak in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, but they were deleted from the film before release. Benedict had a lot of roles in both French and Spanish shows and dominated French day-time soap operas. He died on April 4, 2020, from COVID-19 complications just a few days before his 69th birthday.
Patricia Bosworth
Patricia Bosworth was an actress turned author of several best-sellers. She is best known for playing Sister Simone alongside Audrey Hepburn in The Nun’s Story in 1959. Bosworth left acting in the 1960s to pursue a career as a journalist. She was the managing editor of Harper’s Bazaar from 1972 to 1974. She went on to work for Vanity Fair in 1984. Also, she authored several biographies of celebrities that went on to become best-sellers such as Montgomery Cliff, Diane Arbus, Marlon Brando and Jane Fonda. She helped tell the stories of these celebrities and uncover some of their secrets.
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Bosworth wrote The Men in My Life: A Memoir of Love and Art in 1950s Manhattan in 2017. It talks about her acting career and why she became a journalist. It also revealed details about the tragedies she experienced in her life. Right before her death, she was working on Protest Song about Paul Robeson’s work to create federal anti-lynching legislation. Bosworth died on April 2, 2020, from pneumonia and complications from COVID-19, at the age of 86.
Adam Schlesinger
Adam Schlesinger was a singer-songwriter and producer responsible for writing some of the most iconic songs in your favorite films and television shows. From Gossip Girl, Saturday Night Live and The Hills, you name it and he had a hand in writing the music for it. He won an Emmy Award in 2012 and another one in 2013 for writing songs performed by Neil Patrick Harris at the Tony Awards both years. More recently he won the 2019 Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics for “Antidepressants Are So Not a Big Deal” and was nominated for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music for “Meet Rebecca” from the show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. He was an executive producer on this show. Schlesinger was hospitalized for a week and put on a ventilator before he succumbed to COVID-19 on April 1, 2020, at the age of 52.
Joe Diffie
Joe Diffie was an extremely popular country singer who has charted more times on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart than we can count. Two of his 11 studio albums are certified platinum. He was also a country music radio broadcaster in Tulsa, Oklahoma which is his hometown. He had five number-one singles in the first half of the 90s. On March 29, 2020, he died from COVID-19 at the age of 61, just two days after he announced that he had contracted the virus.
Floyd Cardoz
Indian Chef Floyd Cardoz dominated the third season of Top Chef Master’s on Bravo in 2011 and became the winner. He was the owner and executive chef at two New York restaurants Paowalla and Tabla. Cardoz is best known for fusing Indian flavors and spices with western cooking techniques. He was a culinary consultant in the 2014 film The Hundred Foot Journey about fusing French and Indian cuisines. Cardoz had recently traveled from Mumbai to New York and admitted himself to the hospital after feeling ill. He died from COVID-19 on March 25, 2020.
Andrew Jack
Andrew Jack worked as a dialect coach for many famous actors including Robert Downey Jr. and Cate Blanchett. He has worked on over 80 movies since the early ’80s. More recently, he appeared in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Star Wars: The Last Jedi as Caluan Emattin. He also lent his voice to the character of Moloch in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Before his death, he was working on The Batman starring Robert Pattinson. He died on March 31, 2020, at the age of 76 from COVID-19.
It is absolutely devastating seeing so many talented celebrities lose their lives to this deadly virus.
We continue to urge people to stay inside and practice social distancing to prevent more COVID-19 related deaths.
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