# The Celebrity Death Pool 2009 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** death-pool\ **Created:** [December 1, 2008, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262 "2008-12-01T23:40:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2008, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/221 "2008-12-24T12:24:37Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > With all these revisions to include Michael Jackson he’s now in the top 13 of celebrity choices, at, _by my non-official count_, 11th place. > > I plan to ensure the death of all my 2008 choices by going with the top twelve choices of Dopers this year, with Kim Jong-il bumped from(currently) #13 to make room for Fred Phelps. Just in case there are any revisions I’ll post on the 31st. This approach would not have worked well in 2008. Of the top 13 picks, only one died (Suzanne Pleshette, in 10th place). Fidel Castro Ariel Sharon Farrah Fawcett Britney Spears Amy Winehouse Elizabeth Taylor Kirk Douglas Billy Graham Muhammad Ali Suzanne Pleshette Elizabeth Edwards Dick Cheney Lindsay Lohan Of those, 8 of them are in this year’s top 13 and ties. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2008, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/222 "2008-12-24T13:24:24Z")
Well, I only had one celebrity die from my list this year(Charlton Heston) and never more than tree. At least this is a different approach. And I may change my mind before the 31st. But Phelps **will** be on the list, no matter what I do. I want to get _some_ satisfaction when that jerk finally joins the choir invisible.😃 ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2008, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/223 "2008-12-24T13:27:58Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > But Phelps **will** be on the list, no matter what I do. I want to get _some_ satisfaction when that jerk finally joins the choir invisible.😃 Not to disparage your reasoning, but I think that a great deal of people are going to get _some_ satisfaction when that jerk passes on. Whether they’ve got him on their Death Pool list, or not. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![drewbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drewbert/32/15890_2.png) [@drewbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewbert)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2008, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/224 "2008-12-25T01:55:15Z")
Just a few changes from last year (not that I needed to…) Fidel Castro John Glenn Henry Kissinger Michael Jackson Adam “Pacman” Jones Dick Clark Ed Koch Sid Caesar Bob Dole Billy Graham Mickey Rooney Ted Kennedy Walter Cronkite Alternates: Pervez Musharraf Angela Lansbury Peter Falk ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2008, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/225 "2008-12-25T03:04:58Z")
Amy Winehouse Hugh Heffner James Garner Harry Morgan Martin Sheen Kelsey Grammer Fidel Castro Ted Kennedy B. B. King Clint Eastwood Queen Elizabeth George Steinbrenner Lou Holtz Just fixing the spelling ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2008, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/226 "2008-12-25T03:57:33Z")
> [@Oredigger77](#): > > Hugh Heffner > > Just fixing the spelling Or not. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2008, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/227 "2008-12-25T16:48:02Z")
> [@Paul in Saudi](#): > > Please forgive me. I seem to have listed Paul Harvey twice. Further, I did not pick up on it even when someone tried to give me a clue. Please add ex-FLOTUS Nancy Reagan in for the second Paul H. Again, I appreciate all your work on this and am sorry to have caused you the trouble. > > Billy Graham > Kirk Douglas > Margaret Thatcher > Elizabeth Taylor > Ronnie Biggs > Harold Pinter > Dick Cheny > Fidel Castro > Paul Harvery > Bob Barker > Ariel Sharon > Nancy Reagan > Ernest Borgnine > > Alternate: > Mohammed Ali Inserting Ali as a substitute for the departed Harold Pinter. ---
**Author:** ![Dosipede](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dosipede](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dosipede)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2008, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/228 "2008-12-25T18:07:45Z")
1. Fidel Castro – cigars 2. Robert Mugabe – maybe he’ll get cholera 3. Michael Jackson – bandwagon pick 4. Keith Richards – he’s not really immortal, is he? 5. Dick Cheney – also not immortal, right? 6. Chevy Chase – Lotta cocaine in the past 7. Ludacris – list wouldn’t be complete without one rapper 8. David Lee Roth – haven’t heard much from him recently 9. Ben Stein – Bueller? Bueller? 10. Randy Couture – I lost a bet on that Lesnar fight 11. Courtney Love – I dunno how she made it this long 12. Ron White – lots of bourbon 13. Salman Rushdie – how’s that fatwa coming? Alternative: Donald Rumsfeld Fidel Castro Robert Mugabe Michael Jackson Keith Richards Dick Cheney Chevy Chase Ludacris David Lee Roth Ben Stein Randy Couture Courtney Love Ron White Salman Rushdie Donald Rumsfeld ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2008, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/229 "2008-12-25T18:15:23Z")
Michael Jackson seems to getting a perverted sense of popularity here. And to think he thought he lost his peeps. ---
**Author:** ![Lok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e8c25b/32.png) [@Lok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lok)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2008, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/230 "2008-12-25T18:33:20Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Michael Jackson seems to getting a perverted sense of popularity here. And to think he thought he lost his peeps. Bah, a bunch of johnny-come-latelies. I have had him on my list since 2003. Now that it looks like I might actually get some points from him, _everyone_ jumps on the bandwagon. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/231 "2008-12-26T00:08:05Z")
> [@cbawlmer](#): > > Do I get some kind of no-prize for having two people on my list die before the year could start? I’ve revised my list again, so now my list is: > > John Goodman > Fidel Castro > Fyvush Finkel > Kirk Douglas > Ariel Sharon > **Eartha Kitt** > Patrick Swayze > Lex Luger aka Lawrence Wendell Pfohl > Jack Kevorkian > Ray Harryhausen > Ron Silver > Zsa Zsa Gabor > Jerry Lewis > > Alternates: > William Schallert > Beverly Clearly > Doris Day Nor do you get a prize for having three die. I will replace Eartha Kitt with William Schallert. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/232 "2008-12-26T00:10:03Z")
> [@swampbear](#): > > I’ll just submit my list of immortals thereby ensuring they live yet another year. 😃 > > Fidel Castro > Dick Van Dyke > Imelda Marcos > Willie Mays > Wilford Brimley > Elizabeth Taylor > Eartha Kitt > Ruth Wetheimer > Charles Manson > Yoko Ono > Walter Cronkite > Mickey Rooney > Billy Graham > > Alternates: > Dick Clark > Muhammad Ali > Bob Newhart Looks like you’ve lost your magic touch of immortality. I will replace Eartha Kitt with Dick Clark. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/233 "2008-12-26T00:35:23Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > Looks like you’ve lost your magic touch of immortality. You say that like it’s a _bad_ thing. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/234 "2008-12-26T00:45:10Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > You say that like it’s a _bad_ thing. Well, I was thinking about changing the DP rules to allow dopers to be nominated, then bribing you to pick me. But that’s starting to look like a death sentence - I’d be gone by the end of the year. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/235 "2008-12-26T03:05:37Z")
Fidel Castro Hulett Smith Britany Spears Tone Loc Dick Cheney Ron White Patrick Swayze Henry Kissinger Bob Dole Walter Cronkite Jimmy Carter Sirhan Sirhan George H.W. Bush \*Hulett Smith is a former Governor of the State of WV from 1965-1969 ---
**Author:** ![critter42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@critter42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/critter42)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/236 "2008-12-26T04:21:08Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > Nor do you get a prize for having three die. Hey - why not? “Premature Expiration” - award for the most people on the next year’s list to die during the current year 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![cbawlmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@cbawlmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cbawlmer)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/237 "2008-12-26T05:37:18Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > Nor do you get a prize for having three die. I will replace Eartha Kitt with William Schallert. Fair enough! I had her in the 2008 pool too. ---
**Author:** ![want2know](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/50afbb/32.png) [@want2know](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/want2know)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/238 "2008-12-26T19:13:53Z")
Gary Coleman Barbara Bush Patrick Swayze George Steinbrenner OJ Simpson Mike Tyson Queen Elizabeth II Doug Stanhope Katt Williams Andy Dick Willie Nelson Amy Winehouse Ted Kennedy ---
**Author:** ![swampbear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampbear/32/467_2.png) [@swampbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampbear)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2008, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/239 "2008-12-26T23:46:59Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > Looks like you’ve lost your magic touch of immortality. I will replace Eartha Kitt with Dick Clark. Thanks **amarone**! I was comin’ in with a revised list. _Sniff_ I really am sad about Eartha Kitt. ---
**Author:** ![Purple\_Scottie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a698b9/32.png) [@Purple\_Scottie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purple_Scottie)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2008, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262/240 "2008-12-27T00:01:09Z")
1.Fidel Castro 2. Clint Eastwood 3. Patrick Swayze 4. Amy Winehouse 5. Ted Kennedy 6. Barrack Obama 7. Stephen Hawkins 8. Barbara Bush 9. Caroline Kennedy 10. Lindsey Lohan 11. Judi Dench 12. Julie Christie 13. Queen Elizabeth Alternates Dick Cheney Larry King Ariel Sharon [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-celebrity-death-pool-2009/475262.md?page=13)