The Rebel Forum 2012 Celebrity Death Pool

Jables · #1 12-16-2011, 09:42 AM

The Rebel Forum 2012 Celebrity Death Pool

Back for it's 9th year! We're keeping the full set of rules for the sake of any newcomers, although I expect most of the 2012 players to be holdovers from previous years who already know the rules... and nothing is really changing from 2011.

"What's a celebrity death pool?", you ask... Simple, just make two lists of celebrities* that you think will kick the bucket, buy the farm, cash in their chips (a.k.a. DIE) in the coming year, 1/1/12-12/31/12. Your first list should have 15 celebrities of any age, and your second list should have 5 celebrities under age 50 (as of 1/1/12)... we'll call these your "tragedy picks".

Number the lists from #1-15 and #1-5, with #1 being who you feel is most likely to die, and so on down the line. As the obits roll in, you will score 15 points if your #1 pick dies, decreasing down to 1 point for your #15 pick. The tragedy picks have higher scores... #1 will be worth 20 points, #2 will be worth 16 points, #3 will be worth 12 points, #4 will be worth 8 points, and #5 will be worth 4 points. They don't have to die in a tragic way, we just refer to them as tragedy picks since, unlike many of your other selections, they aren't being picked largely for being old and decrepit. Also, there is nothing keeping you from putting people under 50 years old on your main list of 15 if you have lots of younger entries, they just don't all qualify for the tragedy scoring... One last extra scoring point: if one of your celebrities dies and you are the only person playing to have guessed that celebrity, you will score 1 extra point.

I ask that you also submit "Alternate" picks for me in addition to your lists of 15 regular and 5 tragedy selections. This is in case one of your picks dies between the time you submit and the start of 2012 or I have to throw out one of your picks for not being a celebrity. If that happens, your Alternate Pick will move to the bottom of your list and all others will move up one spot. Same thing goes if a celebrity dies in a previous year, but for some reason the news doesn't become official until much later... in that case I will retroactively add points for that celebrity in the pool for the year in which they are reported to have died. That celebrity would then be removed from your list, all others would move up one spot, and I'd add your Alternate Pick to the bottom. However, if someone on your list is dead before 2012 or I have to reject one of your celebrities, and you don't have an alternate name for me, that's your own fault.

I've tried to close up most loopholes in the rules, so just try and make life easy on me by picking legitimate celebs. If you have any questions on if someone is eligible, feel free to just ask me via PM. Anyone who has been allowed and is still alive is still eligible, and I'm willing to go back and re-evaluate anyone I might've ruled against in the past. For a fairly reliable list of many celebrities alive-or-dead status, check out these web sites (http://www.whosaliveandwhosdead.com and http://www.deadoraliveinfo.com/dead.nsf)

Since there is some degree of judgment as to who is and is not a celebrity (see below), I hope to get a fellow poster that isn't interested in competing, to volunteer to be part of an independent (i.e. not an alternate ID of somebody competing) arbitrator to make judgment calls on questionable choices. PM me if you're interested in helping with this.

I ask that you PM your entries to me by midnight, Dec 29th, which gives you about 2 weeks to work on your lists. It will also allow me and my helper (if any) time over the holidays to determine who is famous and who isn't. Entries should be PMed to me in order to keep the chances of an unusual pick remaining unique, as well as to prevent people from submitting a conglomerate list of the most popular picks. Since it's only fair that others shouldn't know who is being picked, I will only moderate this contest and not be an active competitor. Another reason for cutting off entries before midnight on New Years Eve is that it gives time to compile the frequencies of the names selected so we can submit an AO-composite entry in the Derby Death Pool.

* What constitutes a celebrity?

Celebrities are musicians, actors, writers, athletes, political and religious figures and the such... pretty much any public figure recognizble by name alone.

* What is not a celebrity?

Anyone who is known more for being related to another celebrity by birth, marriage, or romance (which is entirely different from marriage) than for any of their own fame/accolades is not a celebrity.
Anyone who is known solely for their health history and/or current condition more than any accomplishments is not a celebrity. Individuals prominently renowned for being amongst the world's oldest living people, multiple transplant survivors, etc are not eligible.
Persons known to be on death row or whose death is a certainty do not qualify. Don't try and take the guesswork out of this! Famous prisoners that die of natural causes will count towards the pool.

Should you enter a celebrity with a name shared by other celebrities or quasi famous people, please specify exactly which you are referring to. For example, if you tell me that you want Dr. Dre on your list, I can't exactly tell if you mean a) the rapper & producer from Aftermath/Death Row Records or b) the former host of Yo! MTV Raps (or to a lesser extent if I thought you made a typo, c) the celebrity therapist Dr. Drew)? Without clarifying which celebrity you are referring to, it will become my discretion.

What are we playing for? Tom has confirmed that there will be a prize of some sort for the 2012 contest... some sort of AO-branded giveaway or maybe a personalized emoticon or something, who knows... We've yet to have a year finish with a tie for first place, and until it arises, I haven't decided on a tiebreaker to determine the winner. Most number of deaths? Least number of deaths? Who had the final top score first? You can make arguments for all of them really... For now I like to say it would be based on the order the entries were received (plus it might help them trickle in earlier for me)

I'll freely admit that I'm not on the RF/AO nearly as much as I used to be, so after I handle all of the set-up work for the 2012 version of the game, frummie will then handle all of the updates on a go-forward basis (yeah, that's more or less what's he's been doing for me lately). Feel free to use this thread as a discussion area, try and break the news on new deaths before he beats you to it, etc. Any help in acknowledging relevent deaths will be a big help in keeping score!

I will post the full list of entrants and selections once all entries have been received and verified.

Lastly, some links to the previous years' pools:
The Rebel Forum 2004 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by Ray Finkle, Runner-up urysohn
The Rebel Forum 2005 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by father of two, Runner-up Butters
The Rebel Forum 2006 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by working girl, Runner-up hotkarl
The Rebel Forum 2007 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by Werewolf, Runner-up working girl
The Rebel Forum 2008 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by working girl, Runner-up Werewolf
The Rebel Forum 2009 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by working girl, Runner-up Joker
The Rebel Forum 2010 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by zeuz, Runner-up Wannabe Actuary
The Rebel Forum 2011 Celebrity Death Pool - Won by frummie, Runners-up Patience/Werewolf
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frummie · #2 12-16-2011, 09:44 AM

Let the head's roll!

Editted to say: Since I do the updates, Jables gave me the lists today (January 4, 2012) so I can put in the links when a celebrity passes.

Check here for updates.

Spoiler:

(in order of entry received)

Browncoat

1. Chuck Norris *
2. Bruno Tonioli *
3. Boy George *
4. Keith Richards *
5. Thomas Kinkade * -- Died 04/06/2012
6. Carol Channing *
7. Lady Gaga *
8. Tommy Lee Jones *
9. Spike Lee *
10. Maya Angelou *
11. Jerry Stiller *
12. Harry Reid *
13. Michelle Obama *
14. Tom Arnold *
15. Rowan Atkinson *

T1. Mischa Barton
T2. Helen Hunt *
T3. Jenna Elfman *
T4. Shia LaBeouf *
T5. Molly Shannon *

frummie -- 2011 Champion

1. Zsa Zsa Gabor
2. LeRoy Ellis * -- Died 06/02/2012
3. Gary Carter -- Died 02/16/2012
4. Buddy Ryan *
5. Florence Green * -- Died 02/04/2012
6. Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi -- Died 05/20/2012
7. Roger Ebert
8. Eric Massa *
9. Michael Dokes -- Died 08/11/2012
10. Johnny Lam Jones *
11. Derryn Hinch
12. Suu Kyi *
13. Gregory Ulas Powell * -- Died 08/12/2012
14. Hosni Mubarak
15. Flynn Robinson *

T1. Orlando Thomas *
T2. Jerome Harrison
T3. John Hartson *
T4. Kerry Katona *
T5. Paras Shah *

udjw828

1. Michael Douglas
2. Aretha Franklin
3. Ronnie Biggs
4. Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi -- Died 05/20/2012
5. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
6. Eli Wallach
7. Yitzhak Shamir -- Died 07/01/2012
8. Ravi Shankar -- Died 12/11/2012
9. Jake LaMotta
10. Ariel Sharon
11. Margaret Thatcher
12. Jack Klugman
13. Ruth Bader Ginsburg
14. Jerry Herman *
15. Betty White *

T1. Pete Doherty
T2. Chyna *
T3. Robbie Knievel *
T4. Tara Reid *
T5. Lindsay Lohan

keyser soze

1. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
2. Gary Carter -- Died 02/16/2012
3. Joe Paterno -- Died 01/22/2012
4. Harold Camping *
5. Zsa Zsa Gabor
6. Jerry Sandusky *
7. Olivia de Havilland
8. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
9. Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi -- Died 05/20/2012
10. Johnny Pesky * -- Died 08/12/2012
11. Derryn Hinch
12. Larry King *
13. Nelson Mandela
14. Billy Graham
15. Ariel Sharon

T1. Ethan Zohn
T2. Nevin Shapiro *
T3. Gheorghe Muresan *
T4. Julian Assange *
T5. Steve Kragthorpe *

Malik Shabazz

1. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
2. Zsa Zsa Gabor
3. Billy Graham
4. John Paul Stevens *
5. Michael Douglas
6. Kirk Douglas
7. Yitzhak Shamir -- Died 07/01/2012
8. Olivia de Havilland
9. Herman Wouk *
10. Eli Wallach
11. Ernest Borgnine -- Died 07/08/2012
12. George McGovern *
13. Jayne Meadows *
14. I. M. Pei *
15. Mike Wallace -- Died 04/07/2012

T1. Michael Jordan *
T2. Joaquin Phoenix *
T3. Dwight Gooden *
T4. Quentin Tarantino *
T5. Vanessa L. Williams *

General Apathy

1. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
2. Yitzhak Shamir -- Died 07/01/2012
3. Eli Wallach
4. Erich Priebke *
5. Al Molinaro *
6. Dom Mintoff * -- Died 08/20/2012
7. Tony Martin -- Died 07/30/2012
8. Ravi Shankar -- Died 12/11/2012
9. Denis Healey *
10. Ronnie Biggs
11. Zsa Zsa Gabor
12. Olivia de Havilland
13. Ray Bradbury -- Died 06/06/2012
14. Jack Klugman
15. Anna Wing *

T1. Kevin Connolly *
T2. Adrian Grenier *
T3. Kevin Dillon *
T4. Jerry Ferrara *
T5. Jeremy Piven *

Patience -- 2011 Co-Runner Up

1. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
2. Margaret Thatcher
3. Marilyn Horne *
4. Robin Gibb -- Died 05/20/2012
5. Billy Graham
6. Gary Carter -- Died 02/16/2012
7. Yitzhak Shamir -- Died 07/01/2012
8. Jerry Lewis
9. Fidel Castro
10. Harald V of Norway *
11. Jacques Barzun -- Died October 25, 2012
12. Andy Williams -- Died 09/25/2012
13. Penny Marshall
14. Zsa Zsa Gabor
15. João Havelange *

T1. Ethan Zohn
T2. George Michael
T3. Artie Lange
T4. Ali Lohan *
T5. Shannon Miller

The Arbitrary

1. Gary Carter -- Died 02/16/2012
2. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
3. Zsa Zsa Gabor
4. Bobby Doerr *
5. Fidel Castro
6. Vidal Sassoon * -- Died 05/09/2012
7. Roger Ebert
8. Ray Bradbury -- Died 06/06/2012
9. Margaret Thatcher
10. Billy Graham
11. Nelson Mandela
12. Ariel Sharon
13. Nancy Reagan
14. Dick Clark * -- Died 04/18/2012
15. Abe Vigoda

T1. Charlie Sheen
T2. Lindsay Lohan
T3. Kate Moss
T4. Whitney Houston * -- Died 02/11/2012
T5. Daniel Radcliffe *

Werewolf -- 2007 Champion, 2009 Runner Up, 2011 Co-Runner Up

1. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
2. Robin Gibb -- Died 05/20/2012
3. Derryn Hinch
4. Billy Graham
5. Hugo Chavez
6. Ronnie Biggs
7. Dennis Frederiksen *
8. Michael Dokes -- Died 08/11/2012
9. Andy Williams -- Died 09/25/2012
10. Fidel Castro
11. Diane Allen *
12. Margaret Thatcher
13. Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi -- Died 05/20/2012
14. Ariel Sharon
15. Bhumibol Adulyadej *

T1. Raven Alexis *
T2. Tamara Grigsby *
T3. Ethan Zohn
T4. Jerome Harrison
T5. Giuliana Rancic

Joker -- 2009 Runner Up

1. Robin Gibb -- Died 05/20/2012
2. Stephen Hawking *
3. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
4. Nancy Reagan
5. Kirk Douglas
6. Ernest Borgnine -- Died 07/08/2012
7. Eli Wallach
8. Mickey Rooney *
9. Fidel Castro
10. Henry Morgentaler *
11. Roger Ebert
12. Jake LaMotta
13. Michael Douglas
14. Henry Kissinger
15. Ariel Sharon

T1. Charlie Sheen
T2. Pete Doherty
T3. Lindsay Lohan
T4. Rihanna*
T5. Antoine Dodson *

Abused Student

1. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
2. Patty Andrews *
3. Fidel Castro
4. Kirk Douglas
5. Zsa Zsa Gabor
6. Penny Marshall
7. Jerry Lewis
8. Glen Campbell *
9. Marty Allen *
10. Luise Rainer
11. Michael Douglas
12. Jimmy Dickens *
13. Boutros Boutros-Ghali *
14. Nancy Reagan
15. Bob Barker

T1. Lindsay Lohan
T2. Kate Moss
T3. Mischa Barton
T4. Britney Spears *
T5. Christina Aguilera *

actexp

1. Zsa Zsa Gabor
2. Dick Cheney *
3. Noel Neill *
4. Mike Wallace -- Died 04/07/2012
5. Kirk Douglas
6. Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh
7. Billy Graham
8. Abe Vigoda
9. Eli Wallach
10. Nancy Regean
11. Ariel Sharon
12. George H. W. Bush
13. Jimmy Carter *
14. Fidel Castro
15. Marjorie Lord *

T1. Courtney Love *
T2. Pete Doherty
T3. Mike Tyson *
T4. Artie Lange
T5. Paris Hilton *

Short Bus

1. Aretha Franklin
2. Fidel Castro
3. Joe Paterno -- Died 01/22/2012
4. George H. W. Bush
5. Doyle Brunson *
6. Queen Elizabeth II *
7. Nelson Mandela
8. Nancy Reagan
9. Hugo Chavez
10. Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud *
11. Yoko Ono *
12. Clint Eastwood *
13. Hugh Hefner *
14. Chuck Berry *
15. Michael Douglas

T1. Andy Dick *
T2. Prince Henry of Wales *
T3. Adrienne Curry *
T4. Artie Lange
T5. Bam Margera

Doctor Who

1. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
2. Leila Denmark -- Died 04/01/2012
3. Frederica Sagor Maas * -- Died 01/05/2012
4. Józef Kowalski *
5. Leopold Engleitner *
6. Irving Kahn *
7. Zhou Youguang *
8. John Donnelly *
9. Eldred G. Smith *
10. Kathryn Wasserman Davis *
11. Walter Walsh *
12. Wesley E. Brown * -- Died January 23. 2012
13. Jacques Barzun -- Died October 25, 2012
14. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
15. Ida Pollock *

T1. Bobcat Goldthwait *
T2. Michael Balzary *
T3. Axl Rose *
T4. Tommy Lee *
T5. MC Hammer *

trondogss

1. Hosni Mubarak
2. Zsa Zsa Gabor
3. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
4. Eli Wallach
5. Clarence "Ace" Parker *
6. James William "Bill" Glassford *
7. Tony Martin -- Died 07/30/2012
8. Arthur Joseph Kenney *
9. Ernest Borgnine -- Died 07/08/2012
10. Lee MacPhail * -- Died 11/08/2012
11. Irwin Corey
12. Kirk Douglas
13. Herbert Lom * -- Died 09/27/2012
14. Abe Vigoda
15. Nancy Reagan

T1. Steven Adler *
T2. Tila Tequila *
T3. Natasha Lyonne *
T4. William Perry *
T5. Giuliana Rancic

Rosebud

1. C. Everett Koop *
2. Kirk Kerkorian *
3. Jack Klugman
4. Bernard Kalb *
5. Ralph Kiner *
6. Henry Kissinger
7. Charles Keating *
8. Ed Koch *
9. George Kennedy *
10. B. B. King *
11. Ali Khameini *
12. Al Kaline *
13. Hamid Karzai *
14. Tom Kennedy *
15. Sid Krofft *

T1. Garry Kasparov *
T2. Cedric the Entertainer *
T3. Keira Knightley *
T4. Bernie Kosar *
T5. Nicole Kidman *

working girl -- 2006 Champion, 2007 Runner Up, 2008 Champion, 2009 Champion

1. Robin Gibb -- Died 05/20/2012
2. Zsa Zsa Gabor
3. Billy Graham
4. Nelson Mandela
5. Margaret Thatcher
6. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
7. Ariel Sharon
8. Michael Dokes -- Died 08/11/2012
9. Jock Hobbs * -- Died 03/13/2012
10. Ali Abdullah Saleh *
11. Andy Williams -- Died 09/25/2012
12. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
13. Ray Bradbury -- Died 06/06/2012
14. Ruth Bader Ginsburg
15. Annette Funicello *

T1. Ethan Zohn
T2. Russell Watson
T3. George Michael
T4. Azzam The American *
T5. Verne Troyer *

Traina

1. Robin Gibb -- Died 05/20/2012
2. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
3. Larry Hagman * -- Died 11/23/2012
4. Margaret Thatcher
5. Andy Williams -- Died 09/25/2012
6. Ronnie Biggs
7. Aretha Franklin
8. Gary Carter -- Died 02/16/2012
9. Leila Denmark -- Died 04/01/2012
10. Zsa Zsa Gabor
11. Billy Graham
12. Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh
13. Tony Martin -- Died 07/30/2012
14. Bob Barker
15. Muhammad Ali *

T1. Wade Hayes *
T2. Shannon Miller
T3. Pete Doherty
T4. Tatum O'Neal *
T5. Lindsay Lohan

Cynical Realist

1. Luise Rainer
2. Olivia de Havilland
3. Editta Sherman *
4. Billy Graham
5. Fidel Castro
6. Zsa Zsa Gabor
7. Art Modell * -- Died September 6, 2012
8. Al Jaffee *
9. Helen Thomas *
10. Hugo Chavez
11. Marvin Miller *
12. Joan Fontaine
13. Barbara Hale *
14. Irwin Corey
15. Helmut Schmidt *

T1. Lisa D'Amato *
T2. Mindy McCready *
T3. Kari Ann Peniche *
T4. Charlie Sheen
T5. Joey Kovar * -- Died 08/17/2012

Wannabe Actuary -- 2010 Runner Up

1. Etta James -- Died 01/20/2012
2. Zsa Zsa Gabor
3. Andrew Walker *
4. Robin Gibb -- Died 05/20/2012
5. Joe Paterno -- Died 01/22/2012
6. Ralph Wilson *
7. Carroll Shelby * -- Died 05/10/2012
8. Frank Kelly *
9. James Garner *
10. Aretha Franklin
11. Kirk Douglas
12. Oscar Niemeyer -- Died 12/05/2012
13. Lorraine Warren *
14. Ruth Bader Ginsburg
15. Eli Wallach

T1. Ethan Zohn
T2. Dylan Tombides *
T3. Russell Watson
T4. Gabriel Iglesias *
T5. Bam Margera