PLEASE NOTE: This article was written for celebrities who died in 2008, so for those of you looking for a link to my 2009 article, please look on the front page of my site after Dec. 31 to find the 2009 listing.

During 2008 we said farewell to many old friends, including members of the ever dwindling group of movie people surviving from the Golden Age. You'll find a listing of names below, with several of them linked to tribute articles elsewhere on this site. We have also included some musicians, TV people and other folks who you may not recognize but who've contributed to our popular culture. With some few exceptions, this list includes only American and British actors and filmmakers, most of whom were over the age of 65.

Scroll to the bottom of this article for a drop-down box featuring a complete listing of all Classic Movie Star tribute articles on this site. If you know of any people who died who I've neglected to mention or any sites I've neglected to list in any of the articles, please send me an email and let me know. If I missed anybody, it was not intentional.

Some of the movie and TV people who died this year:

January

Bill Belew, 76. Costume designer. Jan. 7.

Johnny Grant, 84. Honorary Hollywood mayor. Jan. 9.

Maila Nurmi, 85. TV's "Vampira." Jan. 10.

Brad Renfro, 25. Actor. Jan. 15.

Allan Melvin, 84. Actor. Jan. 17.

Ugo Pirro, 87. Italian scriptwriter. Jan. 18.

Lois Nettleton, 80. Actress. Jan. 18.

Suzanne Pleshette, 70. Actress. Jan. 19.

John Stewart, 68. Member of Kingston Trio. Jan. 19.

Heath Ledger, 28. Actor . Jan. 22.

Christian Brando, 49. Marlon Brando's son. Jan. 26.

Margaret Truman Daniel, 83. Singer, mystery writer. Jan. 29.

February

Shell Kepler, 49. Actress. Feb. 1.

Barry Morse, 89. Actor. Feb. 2.

Gus Arriola, 90. Cartoonist. Feb. 2.

Eva Dahlbeck, 87. Actress. Feb. 8.

Roy Scheider, 75. Actor. Feb. 10.

Freddie Bell, 76. Musician. Feb. 10.

David Groh, 68. Actor. Feb. 12.

John Brunious, 67. Jazz musician. Feb. 12

Kon Ichikawa, 92. Japanese director. Feb. 13.

Perry Lopez, 78. Actor. Feb. 14.

Alain Robbe-Grillet, 85. Writer. Feb. 18.

Robin Moore, 82. Writer. Feb. 21.

March

Ivan Dixon, 76. Actor. March 16.

Anthony Minghella, 54. Director. March 18.

Paul Scofield, 86. Actor. March 19.

Arthur C. Clarke, 90. Writer. March 19.

Rafael Azcona, 81. Writer. March 24.

Richard Widmark, 93. Actor. March 24.

Abby Mann, 80. Screenwriter. March 25.

Jules Dassin, 96. Director. March 31.

April

Charlton Heston, 84. Actor. April 5.

Ollie Johnston, 95. Disney animator. April 14.

Hazel Court, 82. Actress. April 15.

Al Wilson, 68. Singer. April 21.

Paul Davis, 60. Singer. April 22.

May

Eddy Arnold, 89. Country singer. May 8.

John Phillip Law, 70. Actor. May 15.

Alexander Courage, 88. Composer. May 15.

Dick Martin, 86. Comedian. May 24.

Sydney Pollack, 73. Director, actor. May 26.

Harvey Korman, 81. Actor. May 29.

Harry Bernsen Jr., 82. Producer. May 31.

June

Mel Ferrer, 90. Actor. June 2.

Bo Diddley, 79. Musician. June 2.

Bob Anderson, 75. Actor. June 6.

Dino Risi, 91. Director. June 7.

Jean Desailly, 87. Actor. June 11.

Stan Winston, 62. Special effects wizard. June 15.

Cyd Charisse, 86. Actress. June 17.

Jean Delannoy, 100. Filmmaker. June 18.

George Carlin, 71. Comedian. June 22.

July

Evelyn Keyes, 91. Actress. July 4.

Jo Stafford, 90. Singer. July 16.

Larry Haines, 89. Actor. July 17.

Charles Joffe, 78. Producer. July 16.

Estelle Getty, 84. Actress. July 22.

Bruce Adler, 63. Actor. July 25.

Johnny Griffin, 80. Jazz musician. July 25.

Youssef Chahine, 82. Egyptian director. July 27.

August

Alexander Solzhenitsyn, 89. Writer. Aug. 3.

Bernie Brillstein, 77. Agent, studio head. Aug. 7.

Bernie Mac, 50. Comedian, actor. Aug. 9.

Isaac Hayes, 65. Musician. Aug. 10.

Howard G. Minsky, 94. Producer. Aug. 11.

George Furth, 75. Actor, playwright. Aug. 11.

Leopoldo Serran, 66. Screenwriter. Aug. 20.

Fred Crane, 90. Actor. Aug. 21.

Jacqui Landrum, 64. Choreographer. Aug. 29.

September

Jerry Reed, 71. Country singer. Sept. 1.

Don LaFontaine, 68. Announcer. Sept. 1.

Bill Melendez, 91. Producer, animator. Sept. 2.

Anita Page, 98. Actress. Sept. 6.

Charlie Walker, 81. Country musician. Sept. 12.

Connie Haines, 87. Singer. Sept. 22.

Oliver Crawford, 91. Writer. Sept. 24.

Paul Newman, 83. Actor. Sept. 26.

October

House Peters Jr., 92. Actor. Oct. 1.

Nick Reynolds, 75. Folksinger. Oct. 1.

Servando Gonzalez, 85. Director. Oct. 4.

Eileen Herlie, 90. Actress. Oct. 8.

Neal Hefti, 85. Composer. Oct. 11.

Edie Adams, 81. Singer, actress. Oct. 15.

Levi Stubbs, 72. Singer. Oct. 17.

Dee Dee Warwick, 63. Singer. Oct. 18.

Rudy Ray Moore, 81. Comedian. Oct. 19.

Mr. Blackwell, 86. Fashion designer, critic. Oct. 19.

Merl Saunders, 74. Jazz musician. Oct. 24.

Estelle Reiner, 94. Actress. Oct. 25.

Gerard Damiano, 80. Director. Oct. 25.

John Daly, 71. Producer. Oct. 31.

Studs Terkel, 96. Writer. Oct. 31.

November

Jimmy Carl Black, 70. Musician. Nov. 1.

Michael Crichton, 66. Writer. Nov. 4.

B.R. Chopra, 94. Bollywood director. Nov. 5.

John Leonard, 69. Critic. Nov. 5.

Miriam Makeba, 76. Singer. Nov. 10.

Maria Elena Marques, 83. Actress. Nov. 11.

Mitch Mitchell, 61. Musician. Nov. 12

Irving Brecher, 94. Writer. Nov. 17.

Clive Barnes, 81. Critic. Nov. 19.

John Michael Hayes, 89. Screenwriter. Nov. 19.

Gerald Schoenfeld, 84. Producer. Nov. 25.

William Gibson, 94. Playwright. Nov. 25.

Patricia Marand, 74. Actress. Nov. 27.

December

Paul Benedict, 70. Actor. Dec. 1.

Odetta, 77. Folksinger. Dec. 2.

Forrest J Ackerman, 92. Editor, literary agent. Dec. 4.

Beverly Garland, 82. Actress. Dec. 5.

Nina Foch, 84. Actress. Dec. 5.

Dennis Yost, 65. Musician. Dec. 7.

Robert Prosky, 77. Actor. Dec. 8.

Bettie Page, 85. Model. Dec. 11.

Van Johnson, 92. Actor. Dec. 12.

Davy Graham, 68. Musician. Dec. 15.

Sam Bottoms, 53. Actor . Dec. 16.

Majel Barrett Roddenberry, 76. Actress. Dec. 18.

Robert Mulligan, 83. Director. Dec. 20.

Eartha Kitt, 81. Actress. Dec. 25.