12/19/2011 6:23:44 PM - It’s with great sadness that we share the news that Bob Brookmeyer passed away last night, just three days shy of his 82nd birthday. Bob was an integral force in music, making some of the greatest groups in jazz history what we know and admire today. Whether as a composer, arranger or trombonist, his voice is immediately discernible from the very first note, always bringing a smile and one word: "Brookmeyer."

For many of us, Bob has always been a tremendous inspiration and an overflowing wealth of knowledge. You'd be hard to find a large ensemble composer that doesn't have Bob's name on the top of their list of favorites. For those lucky enough to have the opportunity to study with him, we were given more than just an education in the art of being a great composer, we were given a level of both love and support that expanded far beyond the classroom. He had a wonderful ability to cultivate our inner strengths, yet pull us out of our comfort zones and stretch us farther than we could have ever imagined possible.

Bob's newest album, STANDARDS, which was officially released a few weeks ago, was a record Bob was incredibly proud of. It is a true masterpiece in every sense of the word, with each arrangement encompassing everything that is "Bob Brookmeyer."

Bob, you were an amazing force and a fearless leader to all jazz composers. Thank you for your years of inspiration, support, and for leaving a legacy of music to continually inspire us for years to come.

T.J. Bass (1932-2011)

— posted Wednesday 14 December 2011 @ 2:40 pm PST


Thomas J. Bassler, 79 who wrote SF as T.J. Bass, died December 13, 2011. He began publishing as Bass with “Star Itch” in If (1968), and in addition to several stories, he wrote two novels nominated for Nebula Awards: fix-up Half Past Human (1970) and The Godwhale (1974). He ceased writing SF in the ’70s, though he did co-author a non-fiction book on exercise and nutrition in 1979. A medical doctor, Bassler was an early proponent of running to improve health.

Bassler was born July 7, 1932 in Clinton IA, and attended St. Ambrose College and the University of Iowa, earning his medical degree in 1959. He worked as a deputy medical examiner in Los Angeles from 1961-64, and went into private practice as a pathologist in 1964. (Locus)

Animator Dan Mills dies at 80
Worked on 'Family Guy,' 'He-Man'
By Variety Staff

Animator and layout artist Dan Mills, whose credits included TV series "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" and "Family Guy," died Dec. 5. He was 80.
Over the course of a career that lasted from 1956 until his retirement in 2002, Mills worked for Disney, Snowball, Hanna-Barbera, Filmation, Hyperion, Universal and Fox Animation.

Mills was a layout supervisor for "He-Man" and "She-Ra: Princess of Power" in 1985, the 1989 series "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" and the 1990 feature toon "Happily Ever After."

As a layout artist he earned credits on films including "The Secret of the Sword," "Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night," "Freddie as F.R.O.7.," "Asterix Conquers America," "The Page Master" and "Cats Don't Dance" and TV series "Pandamonium" and "Family Guys."

Animator credits include "Linus! The Lion Hearted" in 1964, the "ABC Afterschool Special" episode "Cyrano" and TV series "These Are the Days," "Partridge Family 2200 AD," "Jabberjaw" and "Godzilla."

Mills was story director on three series in 1973, "Goober and the Ghost Chasers," "Inch High, Private Eye" and "Speed Buggy," art director for the 1965 series "Captain Fathom" and a model artist on "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids."

In his final credit, he was a storyboard artist for the 2002 made-for-video pic "The Hunchback of Notre Dame II."

It's been a bad month for comic book people.

Eduardo Barreto, who was best known for his work on various Superman
and Teen Titans titles, died on 15 December at the age of 57 in a
hospital in Montevideo, Uruguay. He's believed to have died from
complications of the meningitis he contracted last year. That illness
forced Barreto to stop drawing the daily newspaper strip Judge Parker,
which he'd been handling for four years.


Among Barreto's best work in comics were the graphic novels Under a
Yellow Sun, which featured various Superman characters in a non-super
spy-novel setting, and Lex Luthor: The Unauthorized Biography, a
Superman book that, unusually, had no Superman in it, although Clark
Kent was featured prominently. It's a sign of our times that a comic
book artist best known for his work in American comics and newspapers
could easily work out of his home studio in Uruguay, thanks to the
Internet and fast air freight.


Barreto is survived by his son Diego, also an artist, and his daughter
Andrea, a colorist.