2020 snatched so many from us. Mothers. Fathers. Boyfriends. Girlfriends. Brothers. Sisters. Icons. Unknowns.
Some deaths were natural, while many like Gilligan’s Island’s Dawn Wells, Star Wars’ Darth Vader David Prowse and Nick Cordero succumbed to a new evil known as “complications from COVID.” That mother-effer cancer also reared its head. Among its victims, legendary guitarist and founding member of Van Halen, Eddie Van Halen, actress Kelly Preston and director Lynn Shelton.
Then there was the tragic death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna.
Sigh.
Here’s the good news, though. Even if Helen Reddy, Kenny Rogers and Bill Withers have departed to another plane, they are not really gone as we will continue to sing their songs. We will roar like Reddy. Be a Gambler like Rogers and have a lovely day with Withers.
We’ll continue to watch Kirk Douglas and Olivia De Havilland in their iconic films and we will read John Le Carre. We will march and carry the torch that Civil Rights icon John Lewis started on the Edmund Pettus Bridge.
The point is, the ones who have left, haven’t really. It’s like leaving your bed in the morning. The outline of your form is still on the pillow. They have touched all of our senses in some indescribable way. And we are better human beings for it. Through their perseverance and passion, they made us laugh. Made us cry. Made us think.
Made us love.
At Reel 360, we don’t mourn their passings. Instead, we celebrate who they were and still are, as their contributions will live on in our hearts and memories. Each one below is truly Resting in Power and resting in a little place in our hearts:
Actress Dawn Wells 
Founding Member of Whodini John “Ecstasy” Fletcher 
Boba Fett Jeremy Bulloch 
Dancer and Actress Anne Reinking 
Country Music Icon Charley Pride 
The Original James Bond Sean Connery 
Darth Vader David Prowse 
Iconic Guitarist Eddie Van Halen 
Game Show Host and Personality Alex Trebek 
The beloved Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg 
Lost in Space Producer Kevin Burns 
Actor Chadwick Boseman 
Activist Daisy Coleman 
TV Icon Regis Philbin 
Roots Founding Member Malik B. 
Civil Rights Legend John Lewis 
Actress Naya Rivera 
Actress Kelly Preston 
Actor Nick Cordero 
TV News Icon Hugh Downs 
Founding Fleetwood Mac Member Peter Green 
Comedy Legend Carl Reiner 
Comic Book Artist Dennis J. O’Neil 
Publicist Nancy Ryder 
Comedian and Actor Fred Willard 
Director Lynn Shelton 
Music Executive Andre Harrell 
Musician and Entertainer Little Richard 
Filmmaker John J. Lafia 
Playboy Playmate Ashley (Mattingly in swimwear ad) 
Actor Orson Bean 
Former NBA Commissioner David Stern 
NBA Legend Kobe Bryant 
Ugly Betty Creator Silvio Horta 
Comedy Writer Buck Henry 
Tough Guy Actor Robert Conrad 
Country Music Legend and Actor Kenny Rogers 
NFL Today’s Phyllis George 
Singer Helen Reddy 
Pussy Galore Honor Blackman 
Author John Le Carre 
Inside The Actor’s Studio’s James Lipton 
Comedian and Actor Jerry Stiller 
Actor Brian Dennehy 
Good Times’ Actress Janet Du’Bois 
Actor and Producer Kirk Douglas 
Singer Bonnie Pointer 
Legendary Composer Ennio Morricone 
Actor Wilfred Brimley 
The First Avenger Diana Rigg 
Iconic Soul Singer Bill Withers 
Good Times’ Actress Janet Du’Bois 
Monty Python Founding Member Terry Jones 
Pitching Legend Tom Seaver 
Baseball Legend Phil Niekro 
Director Joel Schumacher
If you’d like to read many of their full obituaries, CLICK HERE.
ALSO READ: 2020 in Review: Reel Chicago’s Biggest Stories
We also realize 2020 has had a devastating effect on some of our extended family – you our readers. If you have lost someone this year due to COVID or anything else, you have our sincere thoughts and empathy.
They are gone, but never forgotten. Happy New Year from the Reel 360 team.
Colin Costello is the West Coast Editor of Reel 360. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @colinthewriter1