Notable Showbiz Deaths of 2017

William G. Stewart was born on 15 July 1933 in Habrough, Lincolnshire, England, UK. He was a producer and director, known for Paradise Island (1977), The Bright Side (1985) and Tickets for the Titanic (1987). He was married to Laura Calland, Sally Geeson and Audrey Ann Harrison. He died on 21 September 2017 in England, UK.

Charles Bradley was born on 5 November 1948 in Gainesville, Florida, USA. He was an actor and composer, known for Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017), Stand Up Guys (2012) and Creed II (2018). He died on 23 September 2017 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA.

Gisèle Casadesus was born on 14 June 1914 in Paris, France. She was an actress, known for Loves of Casanova (1947), Paméla (1945) and Sous le figuier (2012). She was married to Lucien Pascal. She died on 24 September 2017 in Paris, France.

Jack Good was born on 7 August 1931 in Greenford, Middlesex, England, UK. He was a producer and writer, known for Father Goose (1964), Catch My Soul (1974) and The Switched-on Symphony (1970). He was married to Margit Tischer. He died on 24 September 2017 in England, UK.

Anthony Booth was born on 9 October 1931 in Liverpool, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Corruption (1968), Till Death Us Do Part (1965) and The Hi-Jackers (1963). He was married to Stephanie Buckley, Nancy Jaeger, Patricia Phoenix and Gale Booth. He died on 25 September 2017 in Todmorden, Yorkshire, England, UK.

Sylvia Butterfield MBE, known professionally as Elizabeth Dawn or Liz Dawn, was an English actress, best known for her role as Vera Duckworth in the long-running British soap opera Coronation Street. First starting on the serial in 1974, she had more of a recurring role as a factory worker until her husband Jack (played by William Tarmey) first appeared in 1979, and later a more concrete role in 1983. For her role as Vera, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2008 British Soap Awards. She was made an MBE in the 2000 Queen's Birthday Honours.

Born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, Dawn started her show business career as a nightclub singer. By the late 1960s she had ventured into acting, often taking small parts in television programmes as well as advertisements. During the 1970s she appeared in a variety of programmes including All Creatures Great and Small and Colin Welland's play Leeds United, as well as an early appearance in Crown Court as a non-speaking background artist.

In January 1990, Dawn was featured on This is Your Life. She published her autobiography, Vera Duckworth - My Story, in 1993.

In 2000, Dawn was chosen as the Lady Mayoress of Leeds and was awarded an MBE in October of that year for her services to charity, having helped raise hundreds of thousands of pounds for hospitals in the Manchester and Leeds areas.

On 12 October 2010, Dawn appeared in a wheelchair at the naming ceremony of the new Cunard cruise ship, MS Queen Elizabeth in Southampton.

She appeared at the 2011 British Soap Awards giving the Lifetime Achievement Award to her former co-star Bill Tarmey.

On 12 June 2014, Dawn was the subject of one of five celebrity specials of The Jeremy Kyle Show. She appeared on the show, talking about her career and health.

On 11 November 2015, it was announced that Dawn was to briefly come out of retirement and make a guest appearance in Emmerdale over Christmas 2015, in the role of Mrs Winterbottom.

Tim Quill was born on 18 October 1962 in Wilmington, Delaware, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Hamburger Hill (1987), Argo (2012) and Hiding Out (1987). He was married to Lisa Jo Casanova Quill. He died on 25 September 2017 in Monmouth, New Jersey, USA.

Jan Tríska was born on 4 November 1936 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He was an actor, known for Ronin (1998), Apt Pupil (1998) and The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996). He was married to Karla Chadimová. He died on 25 September 2017 in Prague, Czech Republic.

Actor/singer/voice artist Barry Dennen possessed a sliver-eyed, sneering look and brittle, biting diction pattern that easily recalled the earlier flamboyant villainy of actor Jay Robinson. For Dennen, this would be best represented in his cruel, no-holds-barred performance of Pontius Pilate in the rock opera sensation "Jesus Christ Superstar." In a career that lasted over five decades, his versatile resume would include a lengthy series of offbeat characterizations not only on the stage, but on film, TV, radio, video games and animated cartoons.

Born in Chicago on February 22, 1938, his family moved to Los Angeles when he was a child. After graduating from UCLA (where actor George Takei was a classmate), Barry began his career in New York City performing in workshops and on the cabaret circuit while living with and nurturing the singing career of then-girlfriend Barbra Streisand.

Having the bohemian desire to explore a wider range of professional opportunities, he decided to travel "across the pond" in 1968 and wound up settling in England. Not long after arriving, he was selected by legendary theater producer Harold Prince to create the role of the Emcee for the original West End presentation of "Cabaret." Barry's magnetic performance opposite Judi Dench as Sally Bowles earned him the Evening Standard Award for "Best Actor in a Musical." The show was preserved on a cast soundtrack album. This major success encouraged him to stay in London. In 1970, he was invited by famed producer Andrew Lloyd Webber to sing the role of Pontius Pilate on the now-heralded double disk concept album of "Jesus Christ Superstar." A year later, he found himself featured in the original Broadway production. While the controversial rock opera received mixed reviews (nominated for five Tony Awards, but won none), Dennen earned raves for his no-holds-barred, show-stopping performance of the emperor who orders the crucifixion of Jesus.

Dennen first appeared on American TV in 1968 as a guest presence on such shows as "Blue Light" and "Batman." After moving to England, he guested on several popular BBC series including "Codename," "Premiere," "Ryan International," "Hadleigh" and "Paul Temple." It was there that he also made his feature film debut in the title role of the drama The Juggler of Notre Dame (1970). He was then cast as Mendel in the international film production of Fiddler on the Roof (1971) directed by Norman Jewison. It was Barry who suggested Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) to Jewison as the director's next acclaimed film project. He took it on and Barry revisited his role as Pilate.

Throughout the 1970s and '80s, Dennen became a bi-continental actor, working both here and in England. His eerie countenance perfectly fit several offbeat films, including the horror opus Madhouse (1974) starring Vincent Price and Peter Cushing; the action comedy Brannigan (1975) starring John Wayne; the irreverent comedy spoofs The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977) and Rabbit Test (1978); the Stephen King shocker The Shining (1980); the equally eccentric sequel to "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" entitled Shock Treatment (1981); the period drama Ragtime (1981), which inspired the Broadway musical; the Eddie Murphy starrer Trading Places (1983); the superhero blockbuster Superman III (1983) and the controversial Turkish drama Memed My Hawk (1984).

He returned to Los Angeles in the mid-1980s. In addition, he had sporadic TV guest parts on such popular shows as "Remington Steele," "Hill Street Blues," "Newhart," "L.A. Law," "My Sister Sam," "Hooperman," "Murder, She Wrote," "Mr. Belvedere," "Murphy Brown" and "Amen." On the California stage, Barry appeared as the ventriloquist's dummy in "Ghetto" (Mark Taper Forum, Los Angeles); the headwaiter in "She Loves Me" (Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles); Mr. Wilson in "Annie Get Your Gun" (A.C.T., San Francisco); and the Major-General in "The Pirates of Penzance" (Santa Barbara Civic Light Opera). Dennen also created the role of Bertold Brecht in the world premiere of "Silent Partners" in Washington, DC. After a decade of being away from the limelight, he was cast as the Old Actor in a 2009 production of "The Fantasticks" at the Freud Playhouse in Los Angeles. As for his most famous theatre role, he would reprise the role of Pontius Pilate in a variety of tours, special one-show productions and anniversary specials over a four-decade span.

Dennen's vocal versatility was utilized quite frequently in video games and in such animated series as "The New Adventures of Jonny Quest," "Ducktales," "Pound Puppies," "The Further Adventures of SuperTed," "The Smurfs" and "Batman: The Animated Series." In 1997, Barry published his memoir "My Life with Barbra: A Love Story," detailing his relationship with Streisand and the nightclub act he created/directed that launched her superstar career.

During his long, pronounced struggle with being gay, Barry would marry British actress Pamela Strong in 1969. They adopted two children, Timothy and Barnaby, before divorcing in 1981. He later entered into a long-term relationship with James McGachy who died of lung cancer in 2001. In June of 2017, the 79-year-old actor suffered a serious brain injury after a fall and died two months later in hospice care on September 26, 2017. A brother, Lyle, survived him.

Kveta Fialová was born on 1 September 1929 in Vel'ké Dravce, Czechoslovakia [now Slovak Republic]. She was an actress, known for Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet (1978), Closely Watched Trains (1966) and Slamený klobouk (1972). She was married to Pavel Hása and Jirí Joska. She died on 26 September 2017 in Prague, Czech Republic.

Paul Rodriguez is known for Mortal Kombat (1995), Idiocracy (2006) and Agent Cody Banks (2003). He was married to Catheryn. He died on 26 September 2017 in Los Angeles California, USA.

Guss Williams was born on 20 May 1961 in Alexandria, Louisiana, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Predator 2 (1990) and Battleship (2012). He died on 26 September 2017 in Covington, Georgia, USA.

Joy Fleming was born on 15 November 1944 in Rockenhausen, Germany. She was an actress, known for Geierwally (1986), Grimm's Fairy Tales for Adults (1969) and Rendezvous mit Caterina Valente (1976). She was married to Bernd Liebenow and ? Strube. She died on 27 September 2017 in Sinsheim-Hilsbach, Germany.

Hugh Hefner was born on 9 April 1926 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was a producer and actor, known for Miss March (2009), Hop (2011) and Beverly Hills Cop II (1987). He was married to Crystal Hefner, Kimberley Conrad and Mildred Williams. He died on 27 September 2017 in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.

The ever-lovely, poised and vivacious blonde Anne Jeffreys was born Annie Jeffreys Carmichael in 1923 in Goldsboro, North Carolina. Firmly managed by her mother, she trained in voice at a fairly early age and received her first break in the entertainment field after signing with the John Robert Powers agency in New York as a junior model. In the interim, she prepared herself for an operatic career and made her debut in a production of "La Boheme" in 1940. The following year, however, Anne won a role in the musical review, "Fun for the Money", that was to be staged in Hollywood. This, in turn, led to her first movie role in the tuneful Rodgers & Hart adaptation of I Married an Angel (1942), starring her singing idols, Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald, in their last cinematic pairing.

Put under contract respectively by Republic then RKO studios, Anne was utilized as a plucky heroine in a flux of 40s "B" westerns and crimers, opposite such stalwarts as Robert Mitchum and Randolph Scott. Also among her roles was the part of "Tess Trueheart" in the "Dick Tracy" series with Morgan Conway as the steel-jawed hero, and a co-star role opposite Frank Sinatra in the war-era musical, Step Lively (1944). None of these, however, were able to propel her into the "A" ranks and her film career quickly dissipated by the end of the 40s. In the meantime, Anne continued to prod her vocal skills with symphonic and stage appearances, including "Tosca" at the Brooklyn Opera House, Kurt Weill's "Street Scene" and the Broadway musical, "My Romance".

After her first marriage was annulled in 1949, Anne met handsome actor Robert Sterling during an extended run (887 performances) of "Kiss Me Kate" on Broadway. She and Sterling married in 1951 and had three sons. In an attempt to revive their flagging careers, the singing couple toured nighteries and hotels in the early 1950s with a highly successful club act. This led to them being cast as sly, engagingly cavalier spirits in the classic Topper (1953) sitcom. Anne played "Marion Kirby" ("the ghostess with the mostest"), alongside Sterling's dapper husband, George Kirby. Successfully, undertaking the ectoplasmic roles originated on film by Constance Bennett and Cary Grant, the two were an absolute hit as the party-hearty ghosts who reclaim their home, to the dismay of current owner Leo G. Carroll.

Anne and Robert weren't able to recreate that same kind of magic when they subsequently co-starred in the short-lived series, Love That Jill (1958). In the 1960s, Anne semi-retired to raise her family, but occasionally took on musical leads ("Camelot", "The King and I") both on Broadway and in regional productions. She later returned full-time to TV and became known for her chic, gregarious, sometimes double-dealing matrons on soap operas (Bright Promise (1969) and General Hospital (1972)). She was nominated for a Golden Globe award for her supporting work in The Delphi Bureau (1972) adventure series, and appeared, occasionally, as the mother of David Hasselhoff on Baywatch (1989). Unlike her husband, who retired decades ago (he died in 2006), Anne remained a tireless performer past age 80. She was recognized over the years for her civic and humanitarian efforts and remained a vibrant presence of "Golden Age" Hollywood society until her death at age 94 on September 27, 2017 in Los Angeles.

Zuzana Ruzicková was born on 14 January 1927 in Pilsen, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. She was married to Viktor Kalabis. She died on 27 September 2017 in Prague, Czech Republic.

Antonio Isasi-Isasmendi was born on 22 March 1927 in Madrid, Spain. He was a writer and producer, known for That Man in Istanbul (1965), They Came to Rob Las Vegas (1968) and The Summertime Killer (1972). He died on 27 September 2017 in Ibiza, Balearic Islands, Spain.

Andreas Schmidt was born on 23 November 1963 in Heggen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He was an actor and writer, known for Pigs Will Fly (2002), Plus-minus null (1998) and Fleisch ist mein Gemüse (2008). He was married to Jennifer. He died on 28 September 2017 in Berlin, Germany.

Benjamin Whitrow was a softly-spoken, RADA-trained English actor who performed on stage from 1959. He worked for seven years in the 1960s under the direction of Laurence Olivier at the National Theatre. He was also a prolific actor on screen, usually seen in avuncular roles. He is probably best remembered for his BAFTA-nominated performance as Mr. Bennet in the BBC's acclaimed version of Pride and Prejudice (1995) and he made his final appearance in Gary Oldman's Churchill film Darkest Hour (2017). In his personal life, he was fond of wild orchids, golf, bridge and collecting books, and had a son, Angus Imrie, with actress Celia Imrie.

Tom Alter, the son and grandson of American Presbyterian missionaries who first came to India in 1916, grew up in north India in the towns of Rajpur and Mussoorie, and studied at Woodstock School. It was while teaching at a school in Jagadhri, Haryana in the early 1970s that Alter picked honed his Hindi and fell in love with the movies, in specific Indian cinema. In that era television was not common in India and so most people went to the movies, often several times a week.

Alter was enamored by the films and in June 1972, after noticing a small classified ad in the newspaper, he enrolled at the prestigious prestigious Film and Television Institute of India of Pune. Alter was one of two people selected out of more than 1000 applicants that year and he learned his craft at the FTII, where he studied with the likes of Benjamin Gilani, Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi, Mithun Chakraborthy and others.

After graduating from FTII, Alter headed straight to Bombay and soon got his first break in the Dev-Anand starrer 'Sahib Bahadur' directed by Chetan Anand. His first release, however, was Ramanand Sagar's 'Charas' in which he played the superstar Dharmendra's CID boss. Steady work came to Alter throughout the 1970s and 80s and he worked with luminaries such as V Shantaram, Raj Kapoor, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Manmohan Desai, Manoj Kumar and Satjajit Rai as well as a host of lesser-known directors. He has also acted in regional cinema - Bengali, Assamese, Telegu, Tamil and Kumaoni films. Alter was witness to the coming of television to India and worked on the small screen in a number of popular serials, the biggest of which was the popular drama 'Junoon' which ran for five years. In it, he played the role of the mob lord Keshal Kalsi - KK, as he was famously known - and his performance earned rave reviews. During this same period Alter acted in the ensemble comedy 'Zabaan Sambhalke', another drama called 'Ghutan', and hosted the health-based talk show 'Mere Ghar Aana Zindagi'.

Some of his most famous movie roles have been as Musa in Vidhu Vinod Chopra's acclaimed crime drama 'Parinda', Mahesh Bhatt's blockbuster romance 'Aashiqui', and Ketan Mehta's 'Sardar', in which Alter essayed the role of Lord Mountbatten. Alter has also accumulated a body of theatrical work, the most recent having been in the theatrical reproduction of William Dalrymple's 'City of Djinns' and the solo play 'Maulana', based on Maulana Azad for which he has received much critical acclaim. He has also received praise for his role in the art film 'Ocean of An Old Man', which has been screened at film festivals around the world. Among several international assignments was the opportunity to work with Peter O'Toole in the Hollywood film 'One Night With The King'.

In addition to acting, Alter has also ventured into direction - he directed a one-shot episode for the short-lived series 'Yule Love Stories' in the mid-1990s - and was a sports journalist in the late 1980s to early 1990s. He has written three books, one non-fiction and two fiction, and in 2008 was awarded the prestigious Padma Shree by the Indian government in recognition for his services to the field of arts and cinema.

Ryûji Saikachi was born on 27 March 1928 in Tokyo, Japan. He was an actor, known for Tokyo Godfathers (2003), Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn (1995) and Dragon Ball Z (1989). He died on 29 September 2017 in Tokyo, Japan.

This lovely, blue-eyed Los Angeles native had a brief but successful television career in the 1970s. Her ancestors, going back five generations, boasted well-established roots in California. They were one of the wealthiest families before selling off vast real estate holdings in Encino and Beverly Hills, ultimately failing to anticipate the coming boom. One of her forebears, a great grandmother, hailed from the Basque region of France and was one of the original pioneer settlers in the San Fernando Valley. Elizabeth's father, Jack Baur, was a veteran casting director at 20th Century Fox. Perhaps over-protective -- having been for many years on the inside of a tough and competitive profession -- he strongly disapproved of his daughter's ambitions and provided little or no help in establishing her in the acting profession.

Despite the absence of formal drama education at high school, Elizabeth (at that time desperate to becoming a 'cow girl' in westerns) remained undeterred and made her screen bow in a corn flakes commercial opposite Jimmy Durante. Eventually, she studied acting at the Estelle Harman Actor's Workshop and then went on to obtain a degree in theatre arts from Los Angeles Valley College. She then made the bold move of enrolling in a talent training program at her father's studio. This finally led to a short-term contract. She began her career with bit roles in Batman (1966) and The Boston Strangler (1968) before landing a recurring role as a rancher's (Andrew Duggan's) ward in Lancer (1968) made for CBS. The series ran for 51 episodes but was hamstrung by being conceptually too similar to NBC's long-running (and more popular) Bonanza (1959). Apparently, Elizabeth did not find her work on Lancer especially taxing as it still permitted her to take on guest spots on other TV shows as well as engaging in her favorite pastimes: playing golf (at which she was apparently quite good) and painting.

The high point of her career came in 1971 when she won out over 100 other hopefuls auditioning for the role of Officer Fran Belding in TV's Ironside (1967), replacing Barbara Anderson who departed the show after season four. She was (in her own words) 'thrilled' to get the part which she later described as her most challenging role. Elizabeth went on to play her likable, down-to-earth character in 89 episodes. After several years of relative inactivity she made her screen swansong in the made-for-TV movie The Return of Ironside (1993).

Monty Hall was born Maurice Halperin on August 25, 1921 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Manitoba in 1945. He's the father of Tony Award winner Joanna Gleason, television writer/director Sharon Hall, and Emmy Award winner television writer/director Richard Hall. He has five grandchildren. He was awarded the Order of Canada for his charitable works for the Variety Clubs International, the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Evangelina Elizondo was born on 28 April 1929 in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico. She was an actress, known for A Walk in the Clouds (1995), Días de otoño (1963) and ¿Nos traicionará el presidente? (1988). She was married to José Luis Paganoni. She died on 2 October 2017 in Mexico City, Mexico.

Thomas Earl Petty was an American musician and actor who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the late 1980s super-group the Traveling Wilburys, and had success as a solo artist.

Petty had many hit records. Hit singles with the Heartbreakers include "Don't Do Me Like That" (1979), "Refugee" (1980), "The Waiting" (1981), "Don't Come Around Here No More" (1985) and "Learning to Fly" (1991). Petty's solo hits include "I Won't Back Down" (1989), "Free Fallin'" (1989), and "You Don't Know How It Feels" (1994). Solo or with the Heartbreakers, he had hit albums from the 1970s through the 2010s and sold more than 80 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Petty and the Heartbreakers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. Petty was honored as MusiCares Person of the Year in February 2017 for his contributions to music and for his philanthropy.

In 2017, Petty died of an accidental drug overdose, at the age of 66, one week after the end of the Heartbreakers' 40th Anniversary Tour.