There are some talented people who died too soon in the last decade who we would love to pay homage to. When a celebrity passes, we all feel a sense of loss as they will no longer grace our screens with their presence. Even though we may not have known them personally, we have sometimes developed a connection with them by seeing them perform and in many ways, they speak to and inspire us.some of these people made a difference in many ways: on the screen, musically and through their charity work . Here are some of the talented people who died too soon in the last decade that we will miss.
1. Paul Walker
Best known for his role in the Fast and Furious films, Paul Walker is one of the most recent philanthropic actors that Hollywood is mourning and one of the talented people who died too soon. Walker was someone who used his fame and money for the greater good by setting up Reach Out Worldwide, a charity which was raising money for The Philippines after the country was devastated by a typhoon. He began modelling at the age of two when he starred in a television commercial for Pampers. And even though he continued to act and model, his real passion was marine biology. At the tender age of 40, Walker tragically passed away in a road accident on November 30th, 2013.
2. Amy Winehouse
A talented singer with so many problems, the music industry suffered a dreadful loss when she died of alcohol poisoning on July 23rd 2011 at the age of 27. With such a unique sense of style and an amazing voice, she had so many years of albums and accolades ahead of her but it was not meant to be. On her short time here, she did manage to win five Grammy Awards for her 2008 album Back to Black. She is forever immortalised through the musical legacy she has left behind.
3. Michael Jackson
Love him or loathe him and controversy aside, I defy anyone not to feel their ovaries skip a beat when they see the super cute young Michael Jackson in his younger days, dancing and singing passionately with the other members of the Jackson Five. And although his more recent music didn’t quite live up to the music of his earlier days, his talent and vision as a musician and performer will be sorely missed.
4. Christopher Reeve
Growing up, Christopher Reeve was my perfect man and I idolized him. Tall, dark, handsome and possessing the ability to fly and save peoples’ lives – what’s not to love! This Man of Steel encapsulated the idea of strength and heroism, which made it all the more ironic and tragic when he was paralyzed in a horse riding accident in 1995. Reeve and his wife Dana set up the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Foundation and raised millions of dollars to help those who have been affected by spinal cord injuries. The foundation also works to find cures and treatments for paralysis which has been caused by other neurological disorders and injuries.
5. Patrick Swayze
A fabulous actor, Patrick Swayze will always be associated with one of my all time favourite films, Dirty Dancing. I know, it’s such a chick flick but everyone remembers his famous words before he takes Baby away from the corner and shows everyone how talented she is. Following a long battle with pancreatic cancer, Swayze died in 2009 at the age of 57. Multi-talented, he was an actor, dancer and singer-songwriter. Swayze didn’t let his diagnosis of cancer stop him. He continued to work and his final performance can be seen in the TV crime series The Beast, which critics hailed as his best performance of his career.
6. Heath Ledger
Heath Ledger has left a legacy of amazing movies behind; 19 in total, showing that he was far from just a Hollywood pretty boy and was actually very talented. Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight, were just two of the films which I think show him at his very best, but I absolutely adore him in his role at Patrick Verona in the 1999 reworking of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, Ten Things I Hate About You. Ledger died in 2008 at just 28 years of age.
7. Luther Vandross
With a voice like velvet, soul singer Luther Vandross sold 25 million albums and won dozens of awards. He passed away in 2005, two years after suffering a major stroke and was just 54 years old. Vandross came from humble beginnings and was born in a housing project in New York. He started as a backing singer for David Bowie in the 1970s and then performed with the likes of Chaka Khan and Ringo Starr as a session singer.
