James Ramseur - Shot By Bernard Goetz

A brief encounter on a New York City subway on December 22, 1984 changed the life of James Ramseur forever. He was one of the four teenagers who accosted Bernard Goetz and was subsequently shot by the "Subway Vigilante".

The shootings attracted world-wide attention and highlighted the problem of crime and danger on the subway system. All four teens were shot, including one who was paralyzed and suffered permanent brain damage.

In 1987, Goetz was acquitted of attempted murder,but found guilty of illegal possession of a gun, He served 8 1/2 months in prison.

Ramseur, 45, died on December 22, 2011 which was the 27th anniversary of the shootings. He was found dead in a Bronx motel room, the apparent victim of a drug overdose and possible suicide.

Ramseur was incarcerated at the time of Goetz's trail. He had been sentenced for raping and robbing a pregnant woman in 1986. He was released in 2002, but returned to prison in 2005 for a parole violation. He was released in July 2010.

Edie Stevenson- Created "Mikey" Commercial

Edie Stevenson spent her career as a copywriter for print and television ads. Her biggest hit was the "Mikey, He likes It" spot that she did for LIFE cereal in 1973.

The ad became a staple on television throughout the 70's and 80's and was selected in 1999 by TV Guide as number 10 in a list of the top 50 commercials.

Ms Stevenson, 81, died on December 19, 2001 at an assisted living facility in Westport, Mass. from complications resulting from Alzheimer's Disease.

She landed a job as a junior copywriter after her divorce in 1966. She also worked on commercials for Volkswagon, Cutty Sark scotch and Smirnoff vodka.

Paul Leka - Songwriter

Paul Leka was a song writer and producer who wrote and worked for many recording artists dunig the late 60's and early 70's. He wrote "Green Tambourine" for the Lemon Pipers. It went to # 1 in 1967. He also signed REO Speedwagon to their first record contact. He moved onto producing four albums for Harry Chapin, including his only #1 hit: "Cat In the Cradle".

He is best known for co-writing the song "Kiss Him Goodbye". It reached #1 in 1969. It included a long chorus of the band singing "Na, na, na, na, na,na,na, na hye, hye, goodbye."

In 1977, the organist for the Chicago White Sox starting to play the chorus to excite the home fans when the visiting players struck out or a relief pitcher came in. It soon became a staple at stadiums and arenas around the country. It became a way for the home to to taunt the losing visiting team. It continues to enjoy great success today.

Mr Leka died from the effects of lung cancer on October 12, 2011 at his home in Sharon, Conn. at the age of 68.

Peter Gent - Author

Peter Gent wrote a book about the seamier side of football which became the movie, "North Dallas Forty"died at the age of 69 on September 30, 20011 from a pulmonary illness. He was living at his boyhood home in Bangor, Michigan.

Gent was a basketball star at Michigan State University in the 1960's. He was drafted by the NBA Baltimore Bullets, but decided to tryout for the Dallas Cowboys in spite of not having played college football. He made the team as a receiver and spent five seasons with them.

He penned his novel in 1973 dealing with the drugs, sex and greed in professional football. The book was made into the 1979 movie starring Nick Nolte.

He wrote sevral other books including a sequel, "North Dallas After Forty".

Willie Susan Smith Stewart - Reagan Classmate

Willie Susan Smith Stewart was the last member of the class of 1932 of Eureka College that included future President Ronald Reagan. Ms Stewart died on August 17, 2011 at the age of 101 at a hospital in Tyler, Texas.

She spent her entire life in Texas after graduating from Eureka and receiving a master's degree in education from Texas A&M. Her career included decades as a grammar school teacher.

Arthur "Kit" Murray - Test Pilot

Arthur "Kit" Murray was one of the US Air Force test pilots immortalized in Tom Wolfe's 1979 book, "The Right Stuff". In 1954, he became the first person to fly 90,440 feet over the earth, subsequently seeing its curvature. He was considered America's first space pilot.

He died on July 25, 2011 at the age of 92 in a Texas nursing home. Many of his test flights, along with those of Chuck Yeager, laid the foundation for the American space program.

From 1958-1960, he was the flight manager of the X-15 program. One of his pilots, Neil Armstrong, flew the advanced rocket plane at an altitude of 100 kilometers, meeting the international definition of space flight. Armstrong would later become the first to walk on the moon.

Murray flew 50 combat missions during World War II before becoming a P-47 flight instructor. After becoming a test pilot, he was the first to be assigned to the base in California that would later be known as Edwards.

Alan Haberman - Father of the Bar Code

Alan Haberman lead a team of researchers who developed the bar code system seen on products throughout the world today. Back in 1971 when he was an chief executive with First National stores, he was given the assignment of developing a system to keep better track of inventory.

The team met for two years before deciding on the system in use today involving a series of vertical lines and numbers. The original technology, developed in 1949, involved bull's-eye design.

Mt Haberman died on June 12, 2011 in Newton, Mass at the age of 81.

For many years, he served on the Uniform Code Council which administers the universal product code.

George Ballas - Invented the Weed Wacker

George Ballas changed the way people take care of their lawns by designing a product he first called the Weed Eater. His device was initially a tin can with strands of fishing line attached to the rotary of a lawn edger. It performed very well and sales flourished during the 1970's. He later sold his product to Emerson Electric who re-named it the Weed Wacker.

Ballas died on June 25, 2011 ate the age of 85 in Houston,TX of natural causes.

He was also a very accomplished dancer. After serving in the military, he worked for Arthur Murray and Fred Astaire dance studios. He later opened his own studio, Dance City USA, which covered 43,000 square feet and employed 120 instructors. He sold it in 1964. Both of his sons were very accomplished dancers and were featured on "Dancing With the Stars".

He also developed a Houston hotel and was and adjunct professor at Rice University, teaching a course in entrepreneurship.

Mietek Pemper - "Schindler" Typist

Mietek Pemper was the man who typed the names that were on Oskar Schinder's list of Jews trying to evade Nazi persecution during the Holocaust. Schindler was able to save over 1,000 from eventual death in the Nazi Concentration Camps.

Pemper died on June 7, 2011 in Augsburg, Germany at the age of 91

Director Steven Spielberg adapted the book "Schindler's List" into the 1993 film which won seven Oscars. Pemper served as an advisor for the movie.

David Mason - Trumpeter

David Mason spent his career as a classical musician, but was best known for his piccolo trumpet solo on the Beatles recording of "Penny Lane". Mason died at the age of 85 on April 29, 2011 after a short bout with leukemia.

Paul McCartney of the Beatles was looking to enhance "Penny Lane" when he saw Mason on television playing a piece by Bach. The next day he was contacted by the George Martin, the Beatles producer.

He showed up at the 1967 recording session with seven trumpets before settling on the B-flat piccolo trumpet for the high-pitched solo.

McCartney did not write any of the music ahead of time. Instead, he sang the melody and Martin wrote the notes down. The result was the iconic trumpet solo that is a huge part of the song.

Jim Mandich - Played on 1972 Miami Dolphins

Jim Mandich played tight end on the Miami Dolphins from 1970- 1977. He was a member of the 1972 undefeated Super Bowl team and also won another championship with them. He later became the team's radio announcer who was known for being extremely biased for the home team.

He died on April 26, 2011 from bile-duct cancer at the age of 62. He had been diagnosed in early 2010, but continued to work on broadcasts last season.

He spend nine seasons in the NFL, wrapping up his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1978. He finished his career with 121 career receptions, including 23 for touchdowns.

Walter Breuning - World's Oldest Man

Walter Breuning held the title of the world's oldest man and was the second oldest person. He died on April 14, 2011at the age of 114 after being hospitalized for the last month. He had spent the last thirty years at a retirement home in Great Falls, Montana.

He spent 50 years as a clerk with the Great Northern Railway, first in Minnesota before he moved to Montana.

He signed up for the military during World War I, but was never called up for duty.

After he retired at the age of 67 in 1963, he became the secretary for the local chapter of the Shriners. He served in that post until he was 99.

Nikolai Andrianov - Russian Olympic Gymnast

Russian gymnast Nikolai Andrianov was the second most decorated athlete in Olympic history with 15 medals. He was the leader until he was passed by Michael Phelps of the USA who won 16 in swimming.

Andrianov died at the age of 59 on March 21, 2010 in his hometown of Vladimar. According to Russian news sources, Andrianov had suffered from a degenerative neurological disorder for many years.

He won seven Olympic gold medal for the Soviet Union, including four at the 1976 games in Montreal. His 15 medals included Moscow in 1980 and Los Angeles in 1984.

Frank Buckles - WWI Veteran

Almost 4.7 million Americans answered the call to service during World War I. Frank Buckles was the last survivor. He died on February 28, 2011 at his West Virgina farm at the age of 110. Death was due to natural causes.

Buckles quit high school to enlist in the Army at 16 on August 14, 1917. He lied about his age in order to serve. He ended up in France, driving an ambulance behind the front lines.

After the war, he traveled on commercial ships as a purser. He was caught in Manila when the Japanese invaded the Phillippines in 1941. He served 38 months as a civilian prisoner of the Japanese during World War II.

In 1953, he and his wife bought a cattle farm in West Virginia where he lived for the rest of his life.

His passing leaves only two veterans of the 65 million who served in the conflict: an Australian man 109 and a British woman 108.

Bob Cook- Never Missed the Super Bowl

Bob Cook was featured in a television spot for VISA during the NFL season. He was shown, along with three other fans, in the "Never Missed a Super Bowl" ad. The men had been to all previous 44 Super Bowls.

They commented about the extreme measures they had taken over the years to attend the game. Mr Cook fell ill shortly before the game this year and ended up watching his beloved Packers from a hospital bed in Milwaukee.

Mr Cook died on February 10, 2011 at the hospital from a blood infection at the age of 79.

He was the former owner of "Bob Cook's Vagabond Travel Service" in Brown Deer, Wisconsin.

Tony Malinosky - Oldest Baseball Player

Tony Malinosky did not have much of a Major League Baseball career. He played three months in 1937 for the Brooklyn Dodgers, hitting .228 in 35 games. His career was cut short by a knee injury.

Malinosky held the distinction of being the oldest former MLB player. He died on February 9, 2011 at the age of 101 in Oxnard, California.

During World War II he served in the Army and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

He was honored at Dodgers Stadium during the 2009 season when he turned 100. He was a life-long Dodgers fan.

Milton Levine - Inventor

Milton Levine, who co-invented the classic Ant Farm toy, died on January 16, 2011 at the age of 97 in Thousand Oaks, California.

He first conceived of his toy in 1956 while watching ants during a Fourth of July picnic. It reminded him how he had collected them in jars when he was a kid.

He and his brother-in-law E.J. Cossman came up with the idea of a transparent habitat that allowed people to watch ants did tunnels in sand between two plastic panels.

More than 20 million units of "Uncle Milton's Ant Farm" have been sold over the years. He often joked about how the toy allowed him to finance the college education of his children.

Larry Bruno - Coached Joe Namath

Larry Bruno, who coached Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath in high school, died at the age of 88 on December 26, 2010.

Bruno was a long-time high school football coach, but his greatest notoriety came from coaching Namath from 1959-1961 at Beaver Falls High School in Pennsylvania.

Bruno was a star football player in college. He was drafted in the 13th round by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1947, but opted to get into coaching. He spent 1948-1958 at Monaca (PA) HS before finishing his career at Beaver Falls (1959-1978). He compiled a 184-52-9 record including a 10-0 record in 1960 during Namath's senior year.

He was presenter for Namath when Broadway Joe was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.