Entertainment world suffered big losses in ’05

updated 12:35 p.m. ET Dec. 19, 2005

With Willy Loman, playwright Arthur Miller created a universal symbol of the struggles of the ordinary man and the fading of his dreams.

Willy was not the toiler in the fields so often portrayed in the arts, but a worker with a frayed white collar. A salesman.

"Death of a Salesman" made Miller famous in 1949 as an artist of the theater. By the time he died in 2005 at age 89, he was hailed as one of the great playwrights of the century.

We also said goodbye this year to Nobel Prize winner Saul Bellow, who in novels such as "The Adventures of Augie March" explored the anxieties and cultural clashes of modern life.

We lost Johnny Carson, who night after night for three decades helped us laugh ourselves to sleep as host of "The Tonight Show." His political jabs targeted Richard Nixon, but he was equally at home clowning around in corny costumes, tossing off a risque quip or gently interviewing a child or colorful senior citizen.

August Wilson, who was killed by liver cancer at age 60, dramatized the story of 20th century black life in a matchless cycle of 10 plays, including two that won Pulitzers, "Fences" and "The Piano Lesson."

Richard Pryor pushed racial humor to (then) the limit in the 1970s, paving the way for even edgier artists who followed. Hunter Thompson, who took his own life, forged a singular brand of personal journalism.

Actress Anne Bancroft played the determined teacher in "The Miracle Worker" and the Older Woman in "The Graduate." Architect Philip Johnson mastered the simple lines of the modernist style and then plunged into postmodernism with his AT&T Building. And Peter Jennings spanned the globe as anchor of ABC's "World News Tonight."

Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, blues musician, and Austin Leslie, restaurateur, both died after being driven from their Louisiana homes by Hurricane Katrina.

We also said farewell to the deep-voiced men who spoke for Tony the Tiger and the Jolly Green Giant, and to the singers of two of the funniest hit records of the 1960s: "You Talk Too Much" and "Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)."

Here, a roll call of artists, performers and pop culture figures who died in 2004. (Cause of death of younger notables is given when available.)

January
Frank Kelly Freas, 82. Influential illustrator of science fiction books and for Mad magazine. Jan. 2.

Will Eisner, 87. Artist who revolutionized comic books ("The Spirit"), helped pioneer the graphic novel. Jan. 3.

Danny Sugerman, 50. Associate of The Doors; cowrote acclaimed Jim Morrison biography. Jan. 5. Lung cancer.

Spencer Dryden, 66. Jefferson Airplane's drummer in band's glory years. Jan. 10.

James Griffin, 61. Member of 1970s pop group Bread ("Make It With You"); co-wrote Oscar-winning song "For All We Know." Jan. 11.

Thelma White, 94. Actress; played a dope peddler in "Reefer Madness." Jan. 11.

Amrish Puri, 72. Bollywood's favorite villain; also in British and American movies. Jan. 12.

Charlotte MacLeod, 82. Mystery writer; protagonists were often amateur sleuths. Jan. 14.

Victoria de los Angeles, 81. Spanish soprano known for masterful tonal control. Jan. 15.

Ruth Warrick, 88. Star of soap opera "All My Children"; career launched in "Citizen Kane." Jan. 15.

Marjorie Williams, 47. Washington Post columnist, author. Jan. 16. Liver cancer.

Virginia Mayo, 84. Versatile Hollywood star of 1940s, 50s ("White Heat," "The Best Years of Our Lives"). Jan. 17.

Lamont Bentley, 31. Regular on sitcom "Moesha." Jan. 18. Car crash.

Vivian Green, 89. British historian; inspiration for John le Carre's spymaster George Smiley. Jan. 18.

Consuelo Velazquez, 84. Mexican songwriter whose "Besame Mucho" became a standard. Jan. 22.

Johnny Carson, 79. The quick-witted "Tonight Show" host who became a national institution. Jan. 23.

Philip Johnson, 98. Architect who promoted the "glass box" skyscraper and then smashed the mold with daring postmodernist designs. Jan. 25.

Ray Peterson, 65. His 1960 hit "Tell Laura I Love Her" exemplified the era's teen tragedy song. Jan. 25.

Jim Capaldi, 60. Drummer of British rock group Traffic ("Paper Sun"). Jan. 28. Cancer.

Ephraim Kishon, 80. Best-selling Israeli humorist. Jan. 29.

Eric Griffiths, 64. A member of the schoolboy band that evolved into the Beatles. Jan. 29.

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