R.I.P. George H. W. Bush (1924 - 2018)

Former President George H. W. Bush passed away on Friday, November 30th at the age of 94.  Along with being the 41st President of the United States, he was Vice-President from 1981-1989 under former President Ronald Reagan, Director of the CIA, Liaision to China, Republican National Committee Chairman, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Congressman, and a World War II Naval veteran who survived a plane crash during a mission in the Pacific campaign.

He and his wife, Barbara Pierce, were married for 73 years before she died on June 8th of this year. They had six children, the eldest, George W., was the 43rd President of the United States, making George H.W. only the 2nd man to be father to a President and President himself.

James adds to his lead 4 - 2. With former President Bush's passing, Tomb Bowl history was made as this was the first time in its 15 years that either James or John selected at least four celebrities who have passed in a year. December has been a wild month in the history of the Tomb Bowl, so we should prepare for anything to happen!

May his family find consolation and may he rest in peace.

You can read a biography of Mr. Bush's life on whitehouse.gov linked here.

R.I.P. Stan Lee (1922 - 2018)

Stan Lee, writer, editor and publisher of comics and creator of some of the most beloved characters in American literature, died on Novemebr 12th at the age of 95.

Involved in the comics business for nearly 80 years, Lee is best known for his time at Marvel Comics and creating such classic characters as Spiderman, the Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, Daredevil, and the X-Men. In his later years, he was known for his presence on the comic convention circuit and his cameos in every Marvel motion picture.

With Mr. Lee's passing, John draws closer to James 3 - 2.

Rest in peace and Excelsior, Stan!

For a biography of Stan Lee, click here to read his Wikipedia page.

R.I.P. John McCain (1936 - 2018)

Editor's Note: My apologies for the gaps in the three entries that are past due updates. I want to give John his due that he has two names in Tomb Bowl XV.

Senator John McCain died on August 25th at the age of 81 succumbing to complications from brain cancer.  The Vietnam War veteran and prisoner of war and 2008 presidential candidate passed away four days shy of his 82nd birthday.  He is remembered for his sacrifices while held captive for five years in southeast Asia during the Vietnam War as well as one of the few members of Congress who sought bipartisan resolutions to our nation's problems.

With his passing, John has his first movement on the scoreboard. James still leads 3 - 1.

May his family find consolation and may he rest in peace.

For a biography of John McCain, read his entry in Wikipedia.

R.I.P. Joe Jackson (1928 - 2018)

Today, Joe Jackson, rock-and-roll talent agent and patriarch of the Jackson family of popular music, died at the age of 89. He had been diagnosed with a terminal cancer.

In the early 1960's, he managed the act of his sons Marlon, Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, and Michael, and released their first single fifty years ago. When the were rebranded as "The Jackson 5," they signed a record deal with Motown Records and received acclaim for hits like "ABC," "I Want You Back," and "The Love You Give."  Michael went onto international stardom and siblings Randy and Janet went onto successful careers with Joe at the helm.

With Mr. Jackson's passing, James now leads John in Tomb Bowl XV by a score of 3 - 0.  There was a feverish anticipation to see George H.W. Bush's health following a trip to the hospital after his wife, Barbara's, funeral almost locked up this year's competition for James. Former President Bush recovered from his illness and we head to the halfway point of the year with John finding himself in a considerable deficit.

Only time will tell how Tomb Bowl XV will end... 

 May the soul of Joe Jackson rest in peace.

You can read more about Joe Jackson's life in this obituary by Rolling Stone.

R.I.P. Barbara Pierce Bush (1925 - 2018)

On Tuesday, Barbara Pierce Bush, wife of former President George H.W. Bush and mother of former President George W. Bush, died at the age of 92.

She was in the public eye for over a half century and is only the second woman in American history to be the wife of one President and the mother of another President.  Her public career was filled with a passion for developing literacy throughout the country and was seen by many as "America's grandmother."

With her passing, James now leads 2 - 0.  All eyes in the Tomb Bowl remain in Texas to see whether or not the elder George Bush will pass before this upcoming Tuesday. If that occurs, James would not only pick up a 3rd member of his list, but enact the first automatic win in Tomb Bowl history.

For more information on Mrs. Bush's life, read her  obituary in the Washington Post.

The Tomb Bowl members offer their condolences to the Bush family and prayers that Mrs. Bush rests in peace.

R.I.P. The Rev. Billy Graham (1918 - 2018)

On February 21st, beloved Christian minister and televangelist The Rev. Billy Graham passed away at the age of 99.  Dubbed "America's Pastor," he spent nearly 7 decades preaching the Good News and the truth that God loves us all throughout the country.  Due to his large revivals held in stadiums and broadcast around the world, it is believed that he has preached to more people around the world than any other person.

With his passing, the first activity on the Tomb Bowl XV board took place. James has his first point and a 1 - 0 lead one-sixth through the year.

Well done, good and faithful servant.

For more on the life of The Rev. Billy Graham, click here to read this article from NPR.

Tomb Bowl XIV Ties It Up!

We had a little access issue to the Tomb Bowl site, so we weren't able to post earlier that with the  beast of a year that 2017 was giving way to 2018, Tomb Bowl XIV concluded with John winning outright 2 - 1.   101-year-old philanthropist David Rockefeller and  91-year-old actor/comedian/singer/director/all around swell guy Jerry Lewis was all John needed to secure his sixth lifetime Tomb Bowl victory.

Fats Domino's passing on October 25th gave James some proverbial "life" in the contest, but all it did was prevent him from being shutout.  He has yet to win the Tomb Bowl since he moved out of state. (Some writers have begun to call it the "Kenner Kurse", but we will refrain from calling it such.)

With the win, both John and James have identical 6 - 6 - 2 records in Tomb Bowl history.  It is only the second time since they began in 2004 that they are all tied up life time heading into January 1st [Tomb Bowl IX (2009) 4 - 4 - 1 records]

For 2018's Tomb Bowl XV, John, having champion's first pick, added 101-year-old author Beverly Cleary and U.S. Senator John McCain who is fighting another bout of cancer.

James added beloved comedian and actor Jerry Stiller as well as the patriarch of the famous musical Jackson family, Joe Jackson.

Only time will tell whether or not the lifetime record will be unknotted by New Year's Eve.

Stay "tombed"...

R.I.P. Fats Domino (1928-2017)

Legendary rock and roll artist Antoine "Fats" Domino passed away today from natural causes in his beloved hometown of New Orleans, LA, at the age of 89.  He was a pioneer in bringing New Orleans-style rhythm-and-blues stride piano to rock and roll's early days. Domino is well known for hits such as "I'm Walking," "I Want To Walk You Home," "Ain't That A Shame," "My Blue Heaven," and "Blueberry Hill." 

In his later years, Domino received national attention when he needed to be rescued from his complex in the Ninth Ward due the flood waters of Hurricane Katrina in August, 2005.

With his passing, James gets his first action in Tomb Bowl XIV and now trails John 2 - 1. Since he died well after Mardi Gras weekend, James does not receive double points.

For a local New Orleans obituary on the life and legend of Fats Domino, click the link here.

May he rest in peace.

R.I.P. Jerry Lewis (1926-2017)

After a nearly six-month lull in Tomb Bowl XIV, movement on the scoreboard took place yesterday as Jerry Lewis, legendary comedian, actor, singer, director, entertainer, and philanthropist, died at the age of 91.

Mr. Lewis was a Labor Day staple in our household as his Labor Day Telethon to raise awareness and funds for the Muscular Dystrophy Association and his rendition of "You'll Never Walk Alone" to close out the program was an annual event not to be missed for our parents and us.

Jerry Lewis was a "charter member" of the Tomb Bowl, having been on James' list since its inception in 2004. James "released" him from his list two years ago, after 12 Tomb Bowls, and John promptly scooped him up for his roster.  John was two weekends away from receiving a double point bonus had Jerry passed Labor Day weekend.  With Mr. Lewis' passing, John now holds a 2 - 0 advantage over James close to two-thirds of the way through the year.

You can read more about Jerry Lewis' life in this obituary posted in today's New York Times.


We pray that his soul rests in peace.

R.I.P. David Rockefeller (1915 - 2017)

After 2016's 'carousel of celebrity passings,' the 'first quarter' of 2017 was relatively quiet.  There was a brief period of time at the beginning of the year when James almost had Tomb Bowl XIV locked up with George H.W. & Barbara Bush hospitalized at the same time.  However,  they looked quite healthy on the field for the Super Bowl LI coin toss in his home town of Houston, TX.

Today, however, Tomb Bowl XIV had its first action on the board as banker, philanthropist, and Rockefeller empire heir David Rockefeller died at the roubst age of 101.

John now takes a 1 - 0 lead.

To read more on the life and legacy of David Rockefeller, read his obituary in the New York Times.

May he rest in peace.

R.I.P. Zsa Zsa Gabor (1917-2016)

In a year that will be remembered, among many things, for the seemingly high volume of celebrity deaths, Tomb Bowl XIII has remained rather inactive.  James took the early lead with Abe Vigoda's passing in late January, but then there was no movement while major names were leaving this mortal realm left and right.

On December 18th, however, Hungarian socialite and actress Zsa Zsa Gabor died at the age of 99, roughly 2 months shy of her 100th birthday. Zsa Zsa was among the first celebrities of recent history to be famous for no reason other then being attractive, paving the way for empires like the reality television stars of today.

Ms. Gabor's passing gave John his first point of Tomb Bowl XIII and tied the score at 1-1. This was a crucial pickup for John so late in the year as, in the event of a tie, he would still hold first pick in January 1st's selections for Tomb Bowl XIV and he still would retain possession of the coveted Tomb Bowl Tombstone.

However, having lost celebrities like George Michael and Carrie Fisher both within a 48 hour span, anything can happen in Tomb Bowl XIII!

For more information on Ms. Gabor's life, please visit her obituary in Variety Magazine linked here.

R.I.P. Abe Vigoda (1921-2016)

January 2016 has been quite a month when it comes to celebrity deaths.  Greats like David Bowie, Alan Rickman, and Glenn Frey among many others have left us and ventured into the life after this one.

It was, however, a quiet month for both James & John.  We were starting to wonder if any of their Tomb Bowl picks would be within this month's list of the departed.

Today, brought the first shift in Tomb Bowl XIII, as longtime actor of stage, television and screen Abe Vigoda passed away this morning at the age of 94.  Mr. Vigoda was on James' list as his "Ironic Death" stipulation.  Reports are that he died in his sleep at home and not involved in a fishing accident, so James is only up 1 - 0.  We're only 26 days into 2016, and devoted followers of the Tomb Bowl know that anything can happen between now and when the ball drops on December 31st.

For more on the life of Abe Vigoda, please visit his obituary in the New York Times.

[Edit: This  was re-posted to keep all Tomb Bowl passings in chronological order.]

R.I.P. Christopher Lee (1922 - 2015)

Tomb Bowl XII only saw one celebrity death take place, when British actor Christopher Lee, best known as "The Man With The Golden Gun", Count Dracula, Count Dooku in "Star Wars: Attack of the Clones," and Sarumon from the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, died on June 7th at the age of 93.

The passing gave John his first point of the year.  While Lee was John's "Ironic Death" Stipulation, he did not die due to impalement, so John only led 1 - 0.   Little did anyone know that Lee's passing was all John needed to secure a long-awaited victory.

Read more about the long and full life of Christopher Lee here.

What You Missed Between Posts

As mentioned, it was a busy 18 months between Tomb Bowl posts.

To be fair to our Tomb Bowl fans, here's what you missed:

Tomb Bowl XI - 2014

• No other celebrity deaths took place on either James or John's lists following the last post on June 24, 2014. When 2014 came to a close, James continued his Tomb Bowl Tombstone reign with a 3-1 victory. 

Tomb Bowl XII - 2015

• James & John were able to make their picks in Brooklyn for the last time for a while as James accepted a job in New Orleans and his family moved in early 2015. 
• 93-year-old actor Abe Vigoda, 98-year-old actress Olivia de Havilland, and 20-year-old pop singer Justin Bieber were new additions to 6-time champion James' list. 92-year-old actor Christopher Lee was John's lone addition to his list, trusting that he had a solid enough roster to break his half-decade drought. 
• James & John agreed to add a new stipulation to the Tomb Bowl beginning this year - the "Ironic Death" stipulation. What's that, you may ask? Well, say one of us had George Washington and a cherry tree fell on him or Thomas Edison got electrocuted, that's an "Ironic Death." 
• It was a quiet year for Tomb Bowl XII, but...

..."The Streak" was broken!  John edged out James 1-0 for his first Tomb Bowl Win in six years & his first time holding the Tomb Bowl Tombstone! (More information on Christopher Lee, the lone death in Tomb Bowl XII in an upcoming post.)

Major Updates

After 18 months off (June 2014 - December 2015 was a busy period for me), Tomb Bowl XI was completed & Tomb Bowls XII & XIII are now up!

More info on the Tomb Bowl coming soon...

R.I.P. Eli Wallach (1915 - 2014)

Film legend Eli Wallach passed away on June 24th.  The actor of such classics as "The Magnificent Seven," "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly," "The Godfather Part III" and "The Misfits" died at the ripe old age of 98.

For most of us, we remember Wallach as one of the three actors to don the silver suit and portray the frost-bitten fiend Mr. Freeze on the "Batman" TV Series in the 1960s.

With Wallach's passing, John gains his first point in Tomb Bowl XI.  With James still hold a 3 - 1 advantage, can John mount a comeback for the ages, as James has done in years past?  Only time will tell...

R.I.P. Peter Seeger (1919-2014)

It came to my attention that, while it was mentioned that James held a 3-0 lead on John, we didn't alert the fans of the first passing of the year and the first point on the Tomb Bowl Board.

On January 27th, folk singer icon and activist Pete Seeger passed away at the age of 94.  The composer of such seminal American folk classics as "Where Have All The Flowers Gone?," "If I Had A Hammer," and "Turn! Turn! Turn!", Seeger was active in political and environmental issues until his death.

Learn more about the life of Pete Seeger here.

R.I.P. Casey Kasem (1932 - 2014)

Yesterday, the world learned of the passing of famous disc jockey, voice actor and TV personality Casey Kasem.  In the news as of late as part of a battle over his whereabouts and finally his end-of-life care between his children and most recent wife, Jean, Kasem passed away from complications of Lewy Body Dementia at the age of 82.  

He was famous for the weekly syndicated pop radio countdown show "America's Top 40" and, for most of us younger folks, as the voice of Shaggy in the "Scooby Doo" cartoon series.

Kasem's passing gives James a commanding 3 - 0 lead in Tomb Bowl XI.  Only a similar score in Tomb Bowl in 2008 matches this year's results.

For a tribute to Kasem, click here.

R.I.P. Mickey Rooney (1920-2014)

It's been more than two months, but on April 6th, legendary actor, singer and dancer of the stage and screen Mickey Rooney passed away at the age of 93.

His passing, following a rich life filled with love, laughter and success, gave James a 2 - 0 advantage in Tomb Bowl XI. He hasn't had such an advantage in the Tomb Bowl since Tomb Bowl VIII in 2010, when John was swept 3 - 0.

To read a story on his life, click here.

JAMES - TOMB BOWL X CHAMPION!

I know it's a little late, but January has been a busy month.

With the New Year being run in, another Tomb Bowl came to an end. With a 'December to Remember,' James pulled out an impressive come from behind victory with the passing of Nelson Mandela and Peter O'Toole 10 days apart from one another.

This unexpected activity led James to claim his second straight victory. He also has a five year streak of holding the Tomb Bowl Tombstone, including 2011's tie.

The picks for Tomb Bowl XI? Stay tuned...