# Whitney Houston Dies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 12, 2012, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569 "2012-02-12T01:04:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/141 "2012-02-12T14:24:12Z")
> [@spankthecrumpet](#): > > My favourite Whitney moment, which I think I first saw on Eurotrash, was the interview with Gainsborough. > > Youtube link: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMdXi6f5KRg](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMdXi6f5KRg) Wow, an encounter between Serge Gainsbourg and Whitney Houston in which Whitney Houston comes off with more dignity. Who’da thunk it? 'Course Gainsbourg would only live about five more years, right? Maybe he was on the downslide. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/142 "2012-02-12T14:53:09Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > If Al and the Rev both die in the same car crash who will speak on their behalf? When (I believe) Sam Goldwyn died, his funeral was packed with people, and Dorothy Parker famously remarked “Give the people what they want, and they will turn out for it.” There’s no chance I will ever be asked to speak at the hypothetical double funeral you mention, but if I were, I would use C.S. Lewis’ line - > [@](#): > > Now he is at peace. And so are we. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/143 "2012-02-12T15:15:57Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > When (I believe) Sam Goldwyn died, his funeral was packed with people, and Dorothy Parker famously remarked “Give the people what they want, and they will turn out for it.” > > There’s no chance I will ever be asked to speak at the hypothetical double funeral you mention, but if I were, I would use C.S. Lewis’ line - > Regards, > Shodan Once again, your beliefs are mistaken. It was Harry Cohn’s funeral, and I can’t remember who said, but I don’t think it was Parker. ETA: Red Skelton. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/144 "2012-02-12T15:16:41Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > If this guy’s Raggedy Ann could talk we’d all run in horror at the reason for those patches. Oh geez, don’t tell me Pinocchio’s been goin’ down on her again. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![ryobserver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b2d939/32.png) [@ryobserver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ryobserver)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/145 "2012-02-12T15:21:16Z")
My favorite moment so far was on CNN this morning: Cathy Crowley introduced the “Whitney Houston is still dead” update with the words “Didn’t she almost have it all.” Of course she said it over the obligatory clip of “I Will Always Love You”, but at least she referenced a different song. Houston had a fine voice; I hated the way she wasted it on IWALY. I don’t recall seeing the video of “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” before. Damn, was she really that young once? ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/146 "2012-02-12T15:23:11Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > If we’re going for the disturbing yet somehow appropriate thread title, the front runner right now on the net is “Whitney Houston beats Bobby Brown to death”. That’s too bad, because it is so derivative. The [NY Post used the headline](http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/mediamonkeyblog/2007/dec/17/whatstastegottodowithit) when Ike Turner died (“Ike Turner beats Tina Turner to death”). ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/147 "2012-02-12T15:39:19Z")
The present tense of the thread title is presently making me tense. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/148 "2012-02-12T16:13:02Z")
> [@orderfire](#): > > IWALY: That would be Dolly Parton’s songwriting licks there. Absolutely: and Dolly performed it better. I remember she closed her variety show every week with it. I cannot listen to the Whitney version. However, some of Whitney’s songs were wonderful: I Wanna Dance With Somebody is one of my favorites. Now the tributes begin. VH1 and HLN have now become All Whitney All The Time channels. And some poor person was up all night writing a tribute for tonight’s Grammy awards. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/149 "2012-02-12T16:54:56Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > If we’re going for the disturbing yet somehow appropriate thread title, the front runner right now on the net is “Whitney Houston beats Bobby Brown to death”. Stolen from the brilliant \*NY Post \*headline when Ike Turner died! ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/150 "2012-02-12T18:04:54Z")
And it was so much more appropriate for Ike and Tina than for Whitney and Bobby. Whitney hot shots Bobby to death, maybe? ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/151 "2012-02-12T18:07:34Z")
> [@orderfire](#): > > IWALY: That would be Dolly Parton’s songwriting licks there. I’m waiting to hear if any media will play that when Dolly dies. 10 to 1 they don’t. I know people who believe Whitney wrote that song for the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/152 "2012-02-12T18:10:28Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > Indeed, the confusion is coming from a news report from September 13… September 13th, _2001_: > [@](#): > > …in Tuesday’s edition of the New York Daily News — which was evidently published before horrific terrorist attacks brought the city to a standstill — Seltzer denied fresh reports that her celebrity client was on drugs. Slow news week, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/153 "2012-02-12T18:27:57Z")
A [few years too late](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/27_Club) Whitney… ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/154 "2012-02-12T18:48:11Z")
What a cautionary tale this is. Whitney Houston at one time was likely one of the richest people on planet Earth, had access to any form of substance abuse clinic or treatment, and she either didn’t take advantage of it, or it didn’t work for her. I’ve heard people reference drug addiction as a long slow suicide and this seems to be a perfect example. (Saying this with the expectation and assumption that drug use had something to do with this.) I don’t understand the opprobrium directed at Bobby Brown. He’s no model citizen, and it’s popularly thought that Whitney was America’s Sweetheart before they got married, but I’ve always heard that Whitney had a wild side that her Clive Davis-Arista handlers fought hard to keep under wraps. As janky as he can be, I think he genuinely loved her and vice-versa… and unless he was administering heroin into her veins, I don’t think he’s at fault here. I honestly haven’t watched the Whitney SSB since it aired back in the day… and I caught a snippet of it this morning. Holy shit, that was amazing. It’s in the pantheon of great SSB performances - Marvin Gaye, Jimi Hendrix, and Whitney. And they all died before their time. ☹ I still maintain that she was hamstrung as an artist by boring, dated production. I think her finest moments were her remake of “I’m Every Woman” and IWALY. But if you strip away the 80s cheese you can still be moved by her work - [listen to the isolated vocal track from “How Will I Know.”](http://www.vh1.com/music/tuner/2012-02-12/whitney-houstons-isolated-vocal-track-for-how-will-i-know-is-mesmerizing/) I’d listen to that on my iPod daily! There’s a Motown release of MJ’s singles that has a ton of isolated vocals - and that’s how you can really appreciate the power of artists of this caliber. I hope they do the same for Whitney, because her voice as an instrument is undeniable. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/155 "2012-02-12T18:54:32Z")
> [@Hippy\_Hollow](#): > > I still maintain that she was hamstrung as an artist by boring, dated production. I think her finest moments were her remake of “I’m Every Woman” and IWALY. But if you strip away the 80s cheese you can still be moved by her work - [listen to the isolated vocal track from “How Will I Know.”](http://www.vh1.com/music/tuner/2012-02-12/whitney-houstons-isolated-vocal-track-for-how-will-i-know-is-mesmerizing/) You know, this is a great point. As I thought about it more, it’s not that I don’t like Whitney Houston, it’s that I don’t like her _songs._ There’s a difference. I do appreciate the vocal range and power that she had - but I hate all of her big popular songs because of the arrangement, as you said, the cheesy 80s production. And I don’t love slow ballads either. I think if she had collaborated with a songwriter and producer who I liked, I’d appreciate her more. But I can’t get past the cheesiness and totally boring blandness, as I see it, of her songs. It’s like in _American Psycho_ when Bateman plays Whitney Houston for the escorts at his house and gives them a dissertation on how great she is - that scene was there for a reason. _To make him look crazy!_ ---
**Author:** ![Winnie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e480ec/32.png) [@Winnie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winnie)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/156 "2012-02-12T18:58:52Z")
> [@Hippy\_Hollow](#): > > I still maintain that she was hamstrung as an artist by boring, dated production. I think her finest moments were her remake of “I’m Every Woman” and IWALY. But if you strip away the 80s cheese you can still be moved by her work - [listen to the isolated vocal track from “How Will I Know.”](http://www.vh1.com/music/tuner/2012-02-12/whitney-houstons-isolated-vocal-track-for-how-will-i-know-is-mesmerizing/) WOW. Just… wow. I really don’t have words. THAT is talent. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/157 "2012-02-12T18:58:58Z")
How sad. Whitney Houston was my wife’s favorite singer when I met her, so for her birthday, I gave her a copy of Whitney’s duel with Jermaine Jackson, “If You Say My Eyes Are Beautiful,” which I figured (correctly) she didn’t have, as it was released on one of his albums, not one of hers. This in the pre-iTunes, pre-Amazon, pre-Ebay days…I called a number of records stores, found the Jackson album on vinyl, found someone else who’d copy it to cassette for me. Heck of a song, way more obscure than it deserves to be. Well, that’s my Whitney Houston memory. RIP, Whitney. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/158 "2012-02-12T19:24:09Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > You know, this is a great point. As I thought about it more, it’s not that I don’t like Whitney Houston, it’s that I don’t like her _songs._ There’s a difference. I do appreciate the vocal range and power that she had - but I hate all of her big popular songs because of the arrangement, as you said, the cheesy 80s production. And I don’t love slow ballads either. > > I think if she had collaborated with a songwriter and producer who I liked, I’d appreciate her more. But I can’t get past the cheesiness and totally boring blandness, as I see it, of her songs. It’s like in _American Psycho_ when Bateman plays Whitney Houston for the escorts at his house and gives them a dissertation on how great she is - that scene was there for a reason. _To make him look crazy!_ I suspected this is what you meant upthread. Clive Davis and the Arista brass were so desperate to cross Whitney over (in other words, out of the R&B genre and into the pop charts) they went to the lowest-common denominator pablum. Her second album is chock full of hits but they sound dated. Now, on her third album, L.A. Reid and Babyface produced some tracks, including “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight.” That’s how she should have been produced. In fairness, though, the stuff we think about from a 2012 perspective as crazy was quite different back then. It’s hard to imagine artists like Donny Hathaway and Minnie Riperton, for example, as “Black” artists instead of undeniably talented artists, period, but in the 1970s and even 1980s, that’s how it went down. Michael Jackson, Prince, Lionel Ritchie, and Whitney herself had a lot to do with knocking down those barriers. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/159 "2012-02-12T19:40:37Z")
I wasn’t a very girlie teenager, but I always bought the Back-to-School issue of Seventeen. That’s where I first encountered Whitney, in the very early 80s, as a fresh faced teen model. I was so fascinated by her looks at the time (a more pretty Benetton [remember them?] model with natural hair), that I followed up and read her mini biography in the magazine. She said she aspired to be a singer. Fast forward a couple of years and I, as someone who only listened to Christian rock, couldn’t have missed her sudden popularity. She was everywhere and her music was infinitely danceable and infectious. After I switched over at some point to ‘secular’ music, her song “I’m Your Baby Tonight” is particularly linked to a young man I remember fondly. So, a couple of good memories of Whitney. I do still like IWALY and her rendition of the SSB. I felt bad for her troubles and addictions, always hoping she could get free of them. It’s terribly sad to lose someone with such great talent so young and to understand the pain that her loved ones have ahead of them. I pray she’s finally at peace and that her daughter will be okay. There’s talk on other sites (who knows if it’s accurate considering the wild speculation that comes out immediately following something of this magnitude) that she, too, has already had a stint in rehab. If so, one can only hope she doesn’t go down the same path and gets whatever she’s dealing with under control. Let’s just wish that this doesn’t mean a relapse. Poor girl. Poor Whitney. May she rest in peace. ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569/160 "2012-02-12T20:09:48Z")
> [@BlankSlate](#): > > Man, she had a beautiful smile. I liked IWALY until it was played to death. I can understand not liking it but calling it screeching? Nah. One of the greatest voices ever in pop music. Something about the purity of the sound when she hit a note and held it. Otherwordly. Fuck cocaine. Ain’t cocaine’s fault (or Crack’s or whatever). Or Bobby Browns. She did that shit to herself. That said, super talented and a shameful waste of the last fifteen years or so. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitney-houston-dies/612569.md?page=9)