# Celebrity Death Pool 2020 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** death-pool\ **Created:** [December 1, 2019, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229 "2019-12-01T07:28:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 67
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2020, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1327 "2020-11-19T20:32:56Z")
Another way would be to deem the pick to be the older celeb of that name. We could allow for either age or celebrity status to be the determining factor and trust the Death Mistress to make a fair ruling on a case by case basis. This could prevent absurd situations, ie a regional celebrity the player is unlikely to have known of dies and they get the points because that person was older than the megastar of the same name. Also helpful to have the age option in a Barbara Bush situation, where someone could try to argue a former first daughter was equally well known as a former first lady (I know the elder BB has already surrendered her points and moved into the after-game, but it’s an easy example). If the younger BB had died first, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assess an ambiguous pick as being for the elderly BB. There’s also an argument to be made that everyone has the opportunity to provide enough information upfront to make the identity crystal clear, and in the event that they’ve made an ambiguous pick… No points. Bobby Brown Jr was the younger and the lesser famous person by that name. Either way, he seems the less likely pick. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2020, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1328 "2020-11-19T22:58:15Z")
In this case I am denying the points. The person who died is Bobby Brown Jr. The person picked by Sweetpapalapa is Bobby Brown, assumed to be the elder, since no generational notation was added. This does bear mentioning in the rules. I usually exhort people to check spelling, and this could come under that, or have a mention of it’s own. Forty one people picked Alex Trebek, but when I searched that spelling I came up with thirty eight. The other three all had different spellings of his surname. But I knew who they meant, so those others got their points. And this is a good time to mention… **ELEVEN DAYS UNTIL YOU CAN START PICKING FOR 2021!!!** ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2020, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1329 "2020-11-19T23:20:20Z")
That’s why I always post the birthdate of the person I’m picking in the non-database-ready list. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2020, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1330 "2020-11-20T01:56:40Z")
Jake Scott, all-pro safety with the Miami Dolphins and MVP of Super Bowl VII, has intercepted his last pass at age 75. > **[Former Dolphins All-Pro Safety Jake Scott Dies at Age 75](https://www.miamidolphins.com/news/former-dolphins-all-pro-safety-jake-scott-dies-at-age-75)** > > Former Dolphins safety Jake Scott, born July 20, 1945 in Greenwood, S.C., passed away at the age of 75. ---
**Author:** ![Hoopy\_Frood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoopy_frood/32/8452_2.png) [@Hoopy\_Frood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoopy_Frood)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2020, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1331 "2020-11-21T05:33:20Z")
[Drew Days, III](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/drew-days-iii-dead/2020/11/19/ef2307d6-29cb-11eb-8fa2-06e7cbb145c0_story.html), first African American to lead civil rights division at Justice Department, dies at 79 ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1332 "2020-11-24T05:00:09Z")
David Dinkins, NYC’s first black mayor, has died at the age of 93. ---
**Author:** ![Hoopy\_Frood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoopy_frood/32/8452_2.png) [@Hoopy\_Frood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoopy_Frood)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1333 "2020-11-24T19:38:50Z")
[Dena Dietrich](https://www.honoraryunsubscribe.com/dena-dietrich/), Broadway and character actor who got fame by playing Mother Nature in a margarine commercial, died of natural causes at 91 ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1334 "2020-11-24T20:00:48Z")
Ah, yes, I remember the line “It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature!” But I doubt if I ever knew the name of the actress, until right now. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1335 "2020-11-24T20:18:08Z")
Huh. Three DD-initialed people in a row. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1336 "2020-11-24T20:43:38Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Huh. Three DD-initialed people in a row Screech is on red alert. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1337 "2020-11-24T20:54:52Z")
Ditto Danny Devito, David Duchovny, and maybe Daniel Day-Lewis. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1338 "2020-11-24T21:06:03Z")
Devito outlives all of them, for sure. I’d put their death order as: 1. Duchovny 2. Day-Lewis 3. Devito \<—he’s been 60 for 40 years, so I think he can keep going ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1339 "2020-11-24T21:57:05Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Huh. Three DD-initialed people in a row. > [@Stephe96](#): > > Ditto Danny Devito, David Duchovny, and maybe Daniel Day-Lewis. My Double-Initial Themed list in the other thread has David Dickinson, a British TV host. I clearly should’ve gone even more obscure. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1340 "2020-11-24T22:06:55Z")
Alabama civil rights pioneer Bruce Carver Boynton has died; he was 83. Mr. Boynton inspired the “Freedom Rides” of 1961. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2020, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1341 "2020-11-25T16:29:46Z")
Football legend Maradona passed away. > ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2020, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1342 "2020-11-25T18:34:43Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Football legend Maradona passed away. > > [https://twitter.com/dwnews/status/1331636252081328129?s=19](https://twitter.com/dwnews/status/1331636252081328129?s=19) Well there goes one 2021 pick. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2020, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1343 "2020-11-25T18:36:16Z")
Oh my gosh, it’s nearly that morbid time again! I have plenty of leftovers, though… ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2020, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1344 "2020-11-25T23:17:18Z")
I’ve already got 8 names down for my 2021 list. Now I need to start working on my themed list… ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2020, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1345 "2020-11-25T23:20:13Z")
[Hal Ketchum](https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/24/us/hal-ketchum-country-death-trnd/index.html) at 67 of dementia. That’s way too young. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2020, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229/1346 "2020-11-26T01:01:34Z")
Same… I had him on my themed list for 2021. Dammit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229.md?page=66) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrity-death-pool-2020/844229.md?page=68)