The Game

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Kevin Duckworth

Kevin Jerome Duckworth (April 1, 1964 – August 25, 2008) was an American professional basketball player at center in the National Basketball Association, most notably as a member of the Portland Trail Blazers.[edit] Early life and careerDuckworth was born in Harvey, Illinois and grew up in Chicago, where he played basketball at Thornridge High School.[1] He attended Eastern Illinois University (EIU), where he set a university record of 867 rebounds, a record that still held at the time of his death.[1]He also led EIU to the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament Championship in 1985 and was the Conference Player of the Year in 1986.[1]Duckworth was the ninth pick in the 2nd round of the 1986 NBA Draft, chosen by the San Antonio Spurs. Later that season, he was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers for rookie Walter Berry.His rookie season was unspectacular, as Duckworth came off the bench to back up center Steve Johnson (who in turn got the starting center position when Sam Bowie suffered a broken leg). However, the next season Johnson went down with an injury (in addition; Bowie broke his leg again at the beginning of the season), and Duckworth was pushed into the starting role, from where he averaged 15.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Also, after having previously never averaged over 70.0 percent from the free throw line, he shot 77% that year, rebounded well, and played good defense - earning him the 1988 NBA Most Improved Player Award.

Position(s):Center
Jersey #(s):54, 00
Height:7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Weight:275 lb (125 kg)
Born: April 1, 1964Harvey, Illinois
Died: August 25, 2008 (aged 44)Gleneden Beach, Oregon

Career information
Year(s): 1986–1997
NBA Draft: 1986 / Round: 2 / Pick: 33
College: Eastern Illinois University
Professional team(s)
San Antonio Spurs (1986–1987)
Portland Trail Blazers (1987–1993)
Washington Bullets (1993–1995)
Milwaukee Bucks (1995–1996)
Los Angeles Clippers (1996–1997)
Career stats
Points
8,085
Rebounds
3,945
Blocks
316
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com

Career highlights and awards
1987-88 NBA Most Improved Player Award
1989, 1991 NBA All-Star
1990, 1992 NBA Finals

The following season, Duckworth improved his averages to 18.1 points and 8.0 rebounds, and was named to the Western Conference All-Star team. After the 1988-89 campaign, Bowie was traded to the New Jersey Nets for Buck Williams and Johnson, who was at the end of his career, was left unprotected in the 1989 expansion draft, allowing Duckworth to become the starting center.
The 1990 and 1991 seasons were also successful for Duckworth and the Blazers. Although 1988-89 was statistically Duckworth's best season, the team enjoyed greater success the in the following years - advancing to the NBA Finals in 1990, and posting a 63-19 record in 1990-91. The presence of Williams as the starting power forward, with rebounding as main assignment, allowed Duckworth to concentrate on scoring and defense.[citation needed] In 1991 Duckworth was also selected as an NBA All-Star for a second time.

Duckworth's production began to slip in 1991-92, as his physical conditioning deteriorated somewhat. He was constantly outplayed in the 1992 NBA Finals, and was even less productive in the following season, in which the Blazers failed to advance past the first round of the playoffs. At the end of 1992-93, Duckworth was traded to the Washington Bullets for forward Harvey Grant.
Duckworth played four more seasons in the NBA, two for the Bullets, one for the Milwaukee Bucks, missing most of the season due to injuries, and one for the Los Angeles Clippers (1996-97). He retired from professional basketball after that season.

In 1996, Duckworth and Kermit Washington opened Le'Slam Sports Cafe in Vancouver, Washington.[2][3]He settled in Tigard, Oregon, with his girlfriend and her two children.
He was a Heritage Ambassador for the Trail Blazers and was active in the community. He spent several years at the end of his life working at and helping out with Royal Marine Sales, a small locally owned company where he bought and sold small yachts.[4]

Kevin Duckworth, former NBA All-star and Trail Blazer dies age 44
Duckworth died of a heart attack on Monday, August 25, 2008 in Gleneden Beach, Oregon, near the coastal town of Lincoln City. He collapsed in his hotel room, and emergency services were unable to revive him. His death was confirmed by the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office. Duckworth was in town as part of a Trail Blazers group hosting a free kids basketball clinic. An autopsy identified the cause of death as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with congestive heart failure. He was 44.[5]

Pee-Wee Herman

Who is Paul Ruben? The world knows him as Pee-wee Herman .Paul Rubenfeld was born August 27, 1952 in Peekskill, New York, and grew up in Sarasota, Florida, where his parents, Judy and Milton, owned a lamp store. His mother was a teacher and his father also worked as an automobile salesperson[1] and had flown for the British in World War II, later becoming one of the founding pilots of the Israeli Air Force during the 1948 war of independence.[2] During winters, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus called Sarasota home, and young Paul counted such big-top families as the Wallendas and the Acchinis among his neighbors. The circus sparked his interest in entertainment. When he was 11 years old, he joined the local Asolo Theater and Players of Sarasota Theater, and during the next six years, he appeared in a variety of plays. After graduating from Sarasota High School in 1970, he attended Boston University for one year before deciding to seek his fortune as Paul Reubens in Hollywood. There, he enrolled as an acting major at the California Institute of the Arts and accepted a string of pay-the-rent jobs ranging from pizza chef to Fuller Brush salesman. In the 1970s, Reubens performed at local comedy clubs and made four guest appearances on The Gong Show. He soon joined the Los Angeles-based improvisational comedy team The Groundlings and remained a member for six years, working with Bob McClurg, John Paragon, Susan Barnes, and Phil Hartman. Hartman and Reubens became friends, often writing and working on material together. Reubens wrote sketches and developed his improvisational skills. He also forged a significant friendship and working relationship with Hartman, with whom he developed the "Pee-wee Herman" character. In 1977, The Groundlings staged a performance in which its members created characters that one might see in a comedy club. Paul decided to play a guy that everyone immediately knew would never make it as a comic, partly because Reubens couldn't remember jokes in real life - he had trouble remembering punch lines and couldn't properly piece information in sequential order. This performance gave birth to the Pee-wee Herman persona.

Reubens has a sister,[3] Abby Rubenfeld, a prominent Tennessee attorney and adjunct professor at Vanderbilt University Law School [4], who is the former chair of the Individual Rights and Responsibilities section of the American Bar Association [5] [6] and of the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association.

Reubens auditioned for Saturday Night Live for the 1980-1981 season, but wasn't accepted into the cast. Instead, he started a stage show with the Herman character. Originally, Reubens imbued "Pee-wee" with sexuality that was later toned down as the character made the transition from raucous nightclub to children's television (though innuendo was still apparent, particularly between the Cowboy Curtis and Miss Yvonne characters). The stage show was popularized by HBO when The Pee-wee Herman Show aired in 1981.
In 1980, Reubens landed a minor role in the film The Blues Brothers as a waiter.[8] That same year, he also had a slightly bigger role in the Disney film Midnight Madness. He also appeared in Cheech & Chong's 1981 film Nice Dreams, as an ill-mannered receptionist who is found by Chong snorting cocaine under a restaurant table. Reubens' character asks Chong, "You're the guy from the hamburger train, right?" (this line is later sampled by the rock group Primus in their song "Hamburger Train"). Reubens also appeared in Cheech & Chong's Next Movie (1980) and Meatballs Part II (1984).

Following the success of The Pee-wee Herman Show, in the early and mid 1980s Reubens made several guest appearances on Late Night with David Letterman as Pee-wee Herman. These performances gave Pee-wee an even bigger following than he had with his HBO special. In 1983, Pee-wee Herman traveled the United States with The Pee-wee Herman Show, making highly publicized stops at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis and Caroline's in New York City.
In 1984, Pee-wee Herman sold out New York City's Carnegie Hall. Reubens went on to say that it was his appearances on David Letterman's show that made Pee-wee a star.


While on a Warner Bros. set, Reubens noticed that most of the people rode around on bicycles, and asked when he would get his. Warner Bros. presented him with a refurbished 1940s Schwinn; Reubens then abandoned the Pee-wee Herman script he was writing in favor of one about Herman's love for his bike and his efforts to locate it once it was stolen. Hartman, Reubens, and Michael Varhol co-wrote the script for Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and in 1985 the film, directed by Tim Burton and scored by Danny Elfman, was released. Reubens was the originator of the "Pee-wee dance" in the movie, and he had performed it publicly many times prior to the making of the film.

The following year (1986), Pee-wee (along with Hartman) found a home on the small screen with the Saturday-morning children's program Pee-wee's Playhouse on the American CBS network for the next five years (Shirley Stoler, Johann Carlo, Gilbert Lewis, and Roland Rodriguez only appeared on the show for the first 13 episodes before their characters were dropped from the show). In the case of Lewis, he was fired and a new actor, William Marshall, was hired to play the King of Cartoons. The show starred Pee-wee living in a wild and wacky house, known as the Playhouse, full of talking chairs, animals, robots, and other puppet and human characters. During the time Pee-wee's Playhouse aired, it garnered 22 Emmy Awards.
In 1987, he provided the voice of REX, the bumbling pilot droid in the Disneyland attraction, Star Tours, and reprised the role of Pee-wee Herman in a cameo appearances in the film Back to the Beach and TV show Sesame Street. In 1988, Reubens reprised the role of Pee-wee Herman in a sequel to Pee-wee's Big Adventure, entitled Big Top Pee-wee. Also that year, "Pee-wee" was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

On July 26, 1991, Reubens was arrested in Sarasota, Florida for masturbating publicly in an adult theater during a screening of Nurse Nancy. The news media went into a frenzy and the scandal marked the near-death of the character "Pee-wee Herman," reducing both the actor and the persona to a ubiquitous punchline. Although the series Pee-wee's Playhouse had already ended by that time, CBS reacted by dropping its reruns from their lineup. Reubens made a deal with the Sarasota County court: in exchange for a fine and producing a few PSAs, he was given a clean record.
Despite the negative publicity and backlash from CBS, many spoke out in support of Reubens. Bill Cosby defended Reubens, saying "Whatever (Reubens has) done, this is being blown all out of proportion." Reubens' fans also organized rallies of support. According to Entertainment Weekly, "several dozen vocal Pee-weeites picketed in L.A. and New York [a week later], and 250 demonstrated in San Francisco the following day." Supportive fans chanted, "All we are saying is give Pee-wee a chance!"[9][10]

2002
Reubens was arrested again in 2002 in connection with an investigation involving child pornography. Public news stories concerning his case cast doubt upon the suggestion that Reubens intentionally acquired child pornography, as he stated that he was a collector of "erotic artwork" and that he had a sizable collection of vintage erotica with samples dating back to the 18th century. On March 19, 2004, child pornography charges against him were dropped by Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo after Reubens pleaded guilty to a separate "misdemeanor obscenity" charge.
"The DA waited 364 days (one day before the statute of limitations would have run out) and then alleged that some of it was 'child pornography' — decades-old physique poses, old art photos, and yellowed nudist magazines. Some of the nude photos were of minors — when the pictures were taken many years ago. All of the photos, Reubens maintained, were legal when they were first published. The charges were reduced to 'obscenity', and Reubens pleaded guilty and paid a US$100 fine in exchange for probation."[11] Said Reubens: <>R>“
Personally, I think we're living in a very scary time. Do we let the legal system decide in a courtroom what's obscene and what's not obscene? I didn't want to be in a situation where there was a possibility I could go to jail... I mean, that just seemed insane to me.
One thing I want to make very, very clear, I don't want anyone for one second to think that I am titillated by images of children. It's not me. You can say lots of things about me. And you might. The public may think I'm weird. They may think I'm crazy or anything that anyone wants to think about me. That's all fine. As long as one of the things you're not thinking about me is that I'm a pedophile. Because that's not true. Prior to his arrest, Reubens had made a guest appearance on the hit TV series Everybody Loves Raymond, playing the role of Amy McDougall's comic-book-obsessed brother (Russel McDougall). His arrest prompted the show's star, Ray Romano, to object to Reubens being a part of the show's cast and actor Chris Elliott was cast as the character of Peter McDougall, apparently a second brother of Amy's, to replace Reubens' role.

After 1991, Reubens drifted from public view. He made cameos in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and in Batman Returns. The latter film reunited him with his Big Adventure director, Tim Burton, and co-star, Diane Salinger. He performed in another Tim Burton production, 1993's The Nightmare Before Christmas in the role of Lock. After that, he took small parts in Matilda and Dunston Checks In.
In 1995, he landed a recurring role on the hit TV series Murphy Brown as the network president's scheming nephew and Murphy's 76th secretary. The role earned him rave reviews and his first and only non-Pee-wee Emmy nomination. He appeared on the show until 1997.
In 1999, Reubens came back into the edge of the limelight as a character in the movie Mystery Men where he played "The Spleen", one of a group of wannabe superheroes. He was capable of subduing his adversaries with noxious blasts of "ass perfume". It was during the filming of this movie that Reubens appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 1999 in one of his very first interviews not as Pee-wee. It was also on that interview that Reubens first announced plans to start writing a new Pee-wee movie. The next year, Reubens appeared as a murdering cowboy named Arvid Henry in Dwight Yoakam's movie South of Heaven, West of Hell.
In November 2000, Reubens was chairman of the 30th Anniversary Alumni Reunion at his alma mater, CalArts.
In 2001, Reubens was the host of the short-lived TV show based on the game You Don't Know Jack. On this show, he portrayed a character named Troy Stevens. That same year, he received his most rave reviews for a non-Pee-wee role when he played a hairdresser/drug dealer in the Johnny Depp hit Blow. In an interview discussing the film, Reubens said of his character in the film (which was based on a real person who is still in hiding), "I wanted to make him like some kind of comic relief." 2004 saw the start of Reubens appearing in the public eye more regularly. In a 2004 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Reubens said that he was working on a few television and movie ideas, and that Hollywood, he hoped, had not seen the last of Reubens or his alter ego, Pee-wee. Reubens has also stated a strong possibility of a Pee-wee's Playhouse movie on an NPR interview with Terry Gross on December 27, 2004. A third Pee-wee movie was also suggested. Both, said Reubens, are actively being worked on, but no dates or official announcements were made as of this date.
Reubens, an avid video gamer since 1981, reprised his role as Lock in the video game The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge. Reubens did not voice Lock when he appeared in Kingdom Hearts II, however.
He also appeared in the second music video version of The Raconteurs song "Steady, As She Goes". It showed the band in a comical soapbox car race. Reubens played the bad guy who sabotages the race.
In early July 2006, Cartoon Network began running a promo during its Adult Swim lineup. The promo consisted of a black screen with the text, "Remember This?" displayed, while the beginning of the Pee-wee's Playhouse theme song played in the background. The commercial then faded to the text "Coming July 10, 2006." A later press release and many other promos confirmed that the show's 45 original episodes would air on the block Monday to Thursday at 11 P.M. ET starting on that date.[13] However, later on in August 2006, Adult Swim started airing Pee-wee's Playhouse at 12:00 A.M. ET.
On July 11, 2006, Reubens made a rare talk show appearance to promote Pee-wee's Playhouse on the Late Show with David Letterman, and made mention that a script was completed for a Pee-wee's Playhouse Movie which would take the characters from the 1980s television show out of the playhouse for the first time and into the real world. In a Time interview, Reubens said production would start early next year for the film.[14]
On July 30, 2006, Reubens played Rick of the citizen's patrol on the popular Comedy Central show Reno 911!. The character, Rick, wore a red beret with numerous pins on it, a pair of white gloves, and a small cape. Rick always found clues and evidence that the officers would have otherwise never found, usually making them look very novice. He spoke with a scratchy whisper throughout the entire episode until near the end when officer Dangle plays a voice recorder where Rick is making chicken noises and laughs like Pee-wee Herman.
On Saturday, August 5, 2007 at a showing of Pee-wee's Big Adventure in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, CA, Reubens made an appearance on stage before the show, bringing with him almost the entire cast of the film to the uproarious applause and standing ovation. E.G. Daily (Dotty), Judd Omen (Mickey), Diane Salinger (Simone), Daryl Keith Roach (Chuck the bike shop owner), and Mark Holton (Francis) were all present.
Paul announced that Pee-wee's Playhouse: The Movie has been greenlit in late summer 2006, although there is no word on what studio greenlighted the project. This film is family oriented, and is going into production around February 2007. In October 2006, Reubens made a rare public appearance at an east-coast fan convention, "Chiller Theater," with "Pee-wee's Playhouse" co-star, Lynne Marie Stewart. There he donned a gray suit with a bold red necktie, and signed autographed pictures and other memorabilia-- along with posing for photographs with fans.[15]
Reubens played a prince on the 30 Rock episode "Black Tie", which aired on February 1, 2007. Paul Reubens played a veteran journalist on the FX series "Dirt". The episodes were titled "The Secret Lives of Altar Girls" (aired Feb. 6, 2007) and "Come Together" (aired Feb. 13, 2007). On February 25th, 2007, Reubens made an appearance on the Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! as the moon in the closing segment of the episode "Cats". Reubens makes a cameo in Reno 911!: Miami as Terry's dad. Reubens appears in The Tripper with David Arquette and Courteney Cox. It was released April 20, 2007. Starting May 2, 2007, Paul Reubens reprised his role as Golly Gopher in the television series based on Re-Animated. Paul has made an appearance on The Andy Milonakis Show in season 3, as "Weird Beard the Weirdly Bearded Weirdsman." He's also done the voice for the character Paul, in the episode "Puddins" of "Tom Goes to the Mayor".[16]
Reubens appeared as the Pee-wee Herman character for the first time since 1992 at Spike TV's 2007 Guys' Choice Awards in June 2007. [17]
In early 2007 Nike SB released a style of Nike SB sneakers, Grey/Heather Dunk High Pro SB, that use a grey and white color scheme with red detail inspired by the colors of Pee-wee Herman's trademark suit and an illustration on the insole suggesting Reubens' theater arrest. No explicit reference is made to the inspiration as they are unauthorized. They are part of a "Fallen Heroes" pack which also features shoes inspired by Milli Vanilli, MC Hammer, and Vanilla Ice. [18]
As of 2008, Reubens resides in the Hollywood Hills area of Los Angeles, California. He is ready to begin work on the Movie Pee-wee's Playhouse is a proposed 2009 film by Paul Reubens, allegedly greenlighted by Paramount Pictures.[21]
Reubens' third scripted movie, written at the same time as his adult-oriented Pee-wee script, was announced in late summer 2006. He first announced he had finished the script on the Late Show with David Letterman, and later revealed further details to Time reporter Dennis Van Tine.[22] Filming was expected to start in early 2007. According to IMDb, it is expected for a release in 2009 because of delays.

Ruben had received Emmy Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Graphics and Title Design.

Ellas Otha Bates

Ellas Otha Bates was none by his stage name Bo Diddley (December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008, he was an original and influential American rock & roll singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He was known as The Originator because of his key role in the transition from blues to rock & roll. He introduced more insistent, driving rhythms and a hard-edged guitar sound on a wide-ranging catalog of songs. He was also known for his technical innovations, including his trademark rectangular guitar. Bo Diddley received an honorary degree from the University of Florida in August 2008 that was accepted by his daughter, Evelyn Kelly, on his behalf.
Early life and career
Born in McComb, Mississippi, USA as Ellas Otha Bates,[1] he was adopted and raised by his mother's cousin, Gussie McDaniel, whose surname he assumed, becoming Ellas McDaniel. The family moved to Chicago when he was seven.[2] He took violin lessons as a youth, but was inspired to become a guitarist after seeing John Lee Hooker.
He worked as a carpenter and mechanic, but also began a musical career playing on street corners with friends, including Jerome Green (c. 1934–1973),[3] as a band called the Hipsters (later the Langley Avenue Jive Cats). During the summer of 1943–44, he played for tips at the Maxwell Street market in a band with Earl Hooker.[4] In 1951, he landed a regular spot at the 708 Club on Chicago's South Side, with a repertoire influenced by Louis Jordan, John Lee Hooker, and Muddy Waters.
In late 1954, he teamed up with harmonica player Billy Boy Arnold, drummer Clifton James and bass player Roosevelt Jackson, and recorded demos of "I'm A Man" and "Bo Diddley". They re-recorded the songs at Chess Studios with a backing ensemble comprising Otis Spann (piano), Lester Davenport (harmonica), Frank Kirkland (drums) and Jerome Green (maracas). The record was released in March 1955, and the A-side, "Bo Diddley", became a #1 R&B hit.
McDaniel would adopt the stage name "Bo Diddley". The origin of the name is somewhat unclear, as several differing stories and claims exist. Some sources state that it was his nickname as a teenage Golden Gloves boxer, while others claim that it originates from the a one-stringed instrument called the diddley bow. Bo Diddley himself has said that the name first belonged to a singer his adoptive mother was familiar with, while harmonicist Billy Boy Arnold once said in an interview that it was originally the name of a local comedian that Leonard Chess borrowed for the song title and artist name for Bo Diddley's first single.[5]


Bo Diddley was well known for the "Bo Diddley beat," a rumba-like beat (see clave), similar to "hambone", a style used by street performers who play out the beat by slapping and patting their arms, legs, chest, and cheeks while chanting rhymes. Somewhat resembling "shave and a haircut" beat, Diddley came across it while trying to play Gene Autry's "(I've Got Spurs That) Jingle, Jangle, Jingle".[6] Three years before Bo's "Bo Diddley", a song that closely resembles it, "Hambone", was cut by Red Saunders' Orchestra with The Hambone Kids.
In its simplest form, the Bo Diddley beat can be counted out as a two-bar phrase:
"One and two and three and four and one and two and three and four and..."
The bolded counts are the clave rhythm. Shave and a haircut, another clave derivative, also fits, as does the non-musician's count of "one-two-three one-two".
His songs (for example, "Hey Bo Diddley" and "Who Do You Love?") often have no chord changes; that is, the musicians play the same chord throughout the piece, so that the rhythms create the excitement, rather than having the excitement generated by harmonic tension and release. In his other recordings, Bo Diddley used a variety of rhythms, from straight back beat to pop ballad style to doo-wop, frequently with maracas by Jerome Green.

Bo Diddley during an April 21, 2005 concert at the Lucerna Bar in Prague
Also an influential guitar player, he developed many special effects and other innovations in tone and attack. Bo Diddley's trademark instrument was the rectangular-bodied Gretsch, nicknamed "The Twang Machine." Although he had other similar-shaped guitars custom-made for him by other manufacturers, he fashioned this guitar himself around 1958 and wielded it in thousands of concerts over the years. In a 2005 interview on JJJ radio in Australia, Bo implied that the design sprang from an embarrassing moment. In an early gig, while jumping around on stage with a Gibson L5 guitar, he landed awkwardly hurting his groin.[7] [8][citation needed] He then went about designing a smaller, less restrictive guitar that allowed him to keep jumping around on stage while still playing his guitar. He also played the violin, which is featured on his mournful instrumental "The Clock Strikes Twelve", a 12-bar blues.[9]
He often created lyrics as witty and humorous adaptations of folk music themes. The song "Bo Diddley" was based on the lullaby "Hush Little Baby." Likewise, "Hey Bo Diddley" is based on the folk song "Old MacDonald". The rap-style boasting of "Who Do You Love", a wordplay on hoodoo, used many striking lyrics from the African-American tradition of toasts and boasts. His "Say Man" and "Say Man, Back Again" both share a strong connection to the insult game known as the dozens. For example: "You got the nerve to call somebody ugly, why you so ugly the stork that brought you into the world ought to be arrested".[10]


On November 20, 1955, he appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, a popular television variety show, where he infuriated the host. "I did two songs and he got mad," Bo Diddley later recalled. "Ed Sullivan said that I was one of the first colored boys to ever double-cross him. Said that I wouldn't last six months". The show had requested that he sing the Merle Travis penned, Tennessee Ernie Ford hit "Sixteen Tons", but, when he appeared on stage, he sang "Bo Diddley" instead. This substitution resulted in his being banned from further appearances.
He continued to have hits through the late 1950s and the 1960s, including "Pretty Thing" (1956), "Say Man" (1959), and "You Can't Judge a Book By the Cover" (1962). He released a string of albums whose titles — including Bo Diddley Is a Gunslinger and Have Guitar, Will Travel — bolstered his self-invented legend. Between 1958 and 1963, Checker Records released 11 full-length albums by Bo Diddley. Although he broke through as a crossover artist with white audiences (appearing on the Alan Freed concerts, for example), he rarely tailored his compositions to teenage concerns.
In 1963, he starred in a UK concert tour with the Everly Brothers and Little Richard. The Rolling Stones, still unknown at that time, appeared much lower on the same bill. Over the decades, his performances have ranged from sweaty Chicago clubs to rock and roll oldies tours. He appeared as an opening act for The Clash in 1979 and as a guest of the Rolling Stones. On March 25, 1972, he played with The Grateful Dead at the Academy of Music in New York City. The Dead released this concert as volume 30 Dick's Picks of their live album series.
In addition to the many songs recorded by him, in 1956 he co-wrote, with Jody Williams, the pioneering pop song "Love Is Strange", a hit for Mickey & Sylvia in 1957.[11]
Bo Diddley has included women in his band, being one the first American male musicians to do so. This includes Peggy Jones (aka Lady Bo, born 1940), Norma-Jean Wofford (aka The Duchess, c. 1942–2005), Cornelia Redmond (aka Cookie) and Debby Hastings, who led his band for the final 25 years of his performing career. He also set up one of the first home recording studios.[2]


In the early 1970s, the soundtrack for the ground-breaking animated film "Fritz The Cat" contained his song "Bo Diddley", in which a crow idly finger-pops along to the track.
In recent years, Bo Diddley achieved numerous accolades in recognition of his significant role as one of the founding fathers of rock and roll. In 1986, he was inducted into the Washington Area Music Association's Hall of Fame. The following year saw his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His pioneering contribution to rockabilly has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. In 1996, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. The following year saw his 1955 recording of his song "Bo Diddley" inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame as a recording of lasting qualitative or historical significance. He received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998.
His pawnbroker character's offering Louis Winthorpe III "fifty bucks" created one of more quoted scenes in 1983's Trading Places. In the late 1980s, he teamed with Bo Jackson in Nike's infamous "Bo Knows" commercials, saying his one line: "Bo, you don't know Diddley!"
The start of the new millennium saw Bo Diddley inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame and into the North Florida Music Association's Hall of Fame. He received a Pioneer in Entertainment Award in 2002 from the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters, and a Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) Icon Award.
In 2003, U.S. Representative John Conyers paid tribute to Bo Diddley in the United States House of Representatives describing him as "one of the true pioneers of rock and roll, who has influenced generations".[12]
In 2004, Mickey and Sylvia's 1956 recording of his song, "Love Is Strange," was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame as a recording of qualitative or historical significance, and he was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Blues Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him #20 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[13].
In 2005, Bo Diddley celebrated his 50th anniversary in music with successful tours of Australia and Europe, and with coast-to-coast shows across North America. He performed his song "Bo Diddley" with Eric Clapton and Robbie Robertson at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 20th annual induction ceremony and in the UK, Uncut magazine included his 1958 debut album "Bo Diddley" in its listing of the '100 Music, Movie & TV Moments That Have Changed The World'.
In 2006, Bo Diddley participated as the headliner of a grass-roots organized fundraiser concert, to benefit the town of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, which had been devastated by Hurricane Katrina. The "Florida Keys for Katrina Relief" had originally been set for October 23, 2005, when Hurricane Wilma barreled through the Florida Keys on October 24 causing flooding and economic mayhem. In January 2006, the Florida Keys had recovered enough to host the fundraising concert to benefit the more hard-hit community of Ocean Springs. When asked about the fundraiser Bo Diddley stated, "This is the United States of America. We believe in helping one another."[14]. In an interview with Holger Petersen, on Saturday Night Blues on CBC Radio in the fall of 2006 [15] Bo Diddley commented about the racism that existed in the music industry establishment during the early part of his career that saw him deprived of his royalty revenue from the most successful part of his career.
He spent many years in New Mexico, not only as a musician, but also for 2 1/2 years as a law officer.[16]He lived in Los Lunas from 1971 to 1978 while continuing his musical career. Bo Diddley served for two and a half years as Deputy Sheriff in the Valencia County Citizens' Patrol; during that time he personally purchased and donated three highway patrol pursuit cars.[16]
For the remainder of his life he resided in Archer, Florida, a small farming town near Gainesville, Florida, where he attended a born again Christian church with some of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He continued to tour around the world. As of the last two years of his life, he had intended to record some faith-based songs, at least some of which would be utilizing his own original music.
Bo Diddley performed a number of shows around the country in 2005 and 2006 with the Johnnie Johnson Band, featuring Johnson on keyboards, Richard Hunt on drums and Gus Thornton on bass.

May 13, 2007 Bo Diddley was admitted to intensive care in Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska, following a stroke after a concert at Council Bluffs, Iowa on May 12.[17] Starting his Saturday, May 12, 2007 show, he complained that he didn't feel well. He referred to smoke from the wildfires that were ravaging the area surrounding his Florida home and seemed lethargic and slightly dazed. Later he warmed to the encouragement of the audience and delivered a surprisingly energetic performance for a man of his age. Later that evening, after the concert, he suffered a stroke. The next day, as Bo Diddley was being taken to the airport, it was apparent that he required hospitalization and he was taken by ambulance to Creighton University Medical Center.[18] He had a history of hypertension and diabetes, and the stroke affected the left side of his brain, causing receptive and expressive aphasia (speech impairment).[19] The stroke was followed by a heart attack, suffered in Gainesville Florida, August 28, 2007.[20]
While recovering from the stroke and heart attack, Diddley came back to his home town of McComb in early November 2007 for the unveiling of a plaque devoted to him on the National Blues Trail stating that he was "acclaimed as a founder of rock and roll." He was not supposed to perform, but as he listened to the music of local musician Jesse Robinson who sang a song written for this occasion, Robinson sensed that he wanted to perform and handed him a microphone. That was the first and last time that Bo Diddley performed publicly since suffering a stroke.[21]

Bo Diddley died on June 2, 2008 of heart failure at his home in Archer, Florida.[22] Garry Mitchell, a grandson of Diddley and one of more than 35 family members at the musician's home when he died at 1:45 a.m. EDT (05:45 GMT), said his death was not unexpected. "There was a gospel song that was sung (at his bedside) and (when it was done) he said 'wow' with a thumbs up," Mitchell told Reuters, when asked to describe the scene at Diddley's deathbed. "The song was 'Walk Around Heaven' and in his last words said "I'm going to heaven."[23]
At the time of his death, Diddley's survivors included his 4 children, Evelyn Kelly, Ellas A. McDaniel, Tammi D. McDaniel, and Terri Lynn McDaniel; 15 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and 3 great-great-grandchildren; and a brother, Kenneth Haynes of Biloxi, MS.[24]
His funeral, a four-hour "homecoming" service, took place on June 7, 2008 at Showers of Blessings Church in Gainesville, Florida and kept in tune with the vibrant spirit of Bo Diddley's life and career. The many in attendance chanted "Hey Bo Diddley" as a gospel band played the legend's music. A number of music notables sent flowers, including: George Thorogood, Tom Petty, and Jerry Lee Lewis.[25] [26] Little Richard, who had been asking his audiences to pray for Bo Diddley throughout his illness, had to fulfill concert commitments in Westbury and New York City the weekend of the funeral. He took time to remember Bo Diddley, his friend of a half-century, performing his namesake tune in his honor.[27]
After the funeral service, a tribute concert was held at the Martin Luther King Center, also in Gainesville, and featured his touring band, The Debby Hastings Band, and guest artist Eric Burdon.
The Bo Diddley beat has been used by many other artists, including Elvis Presley ("His Latest Flame"); Bruce Springsteen ("She's The One"); U2 ("Desire"); The Smiths ("How Soon Is Now?"); Roxette ("Harleys And Indians (Riders In The Sky)"); Dee Clark, a former member of the Hambone Kids (see above) ("Hey Little Girl"); Johnny Otis ("Willie and the Hand Jive"); George Michael ("Faith"); Normaal ("Kearl van stoahl"); Elton John ("Billy Bones And The White Bird"); The Strangeloves ("I Want Candy"); Ace Frehley ("New York Groove"); KT Tunstall ("Black Horse and the Cherry Tree"); Primal Scream ("Movin' on up"); David Bowie ("Panic in Detroit"); The Pretenders ("Cuban Slide"); The Police ("Deathwish"); Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders ("The Game of Love"); The Supremes ("When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes"); Jefferson Airplane ("She Has Funny Cars"); The Beatles ("She's a Woman"); The White Stripes ("Screwdriver"); The Byrds ("Don't Doubt Yourself, Babe"); Tiny Letters ("Song For Jerome Green"); The Stooges ("1969") and Guns N' Roses ("Mr Brownstone"). The early Rolling Stones sound was strongly associated with their versions of "Not Fade Away" and "I Need You Baby (Mona)". The Who's "Magic Bus" also is based upon the distinctive "Bo Diddley Beat". Warren Zevon sang "Bo Diddley Is a Gunslinger."
Diddley's own songs have been frequently covered. The Clash recorded "Mona" during the London Calling sessions. "The Story of Bo Diddley" was recorded by both The Animals and Bob Seger, the former including an Eric Burdon rap about meeting Bo, Jerome and the Duchess, and their reactions to the Animals using their material. The Who, The Remains and The Yardbirds covered "I'm a Man", and The Woolies, George Thorogood, Ronnie Hawkins and Juicy Lucy had hits with "Who Do You Love", which was also covered by Quicksilver Messenger Service, who also covered "Mona", Patti Smith and The Jesus and Mary Chain, and was a concert favorite of The Doors. Chris Isaak covered "Diddley Daddy" on his third album, Heart Shaped World. Diddley's "Road Runner" was the opening track on The Pretty Things' eponymous first album in 1965, and was also frequently covered in concert by bands including Humble Pie and The Who, and on Aerosmith's album Honkin' on Bobo. Guru Guru - a Krautrock band - performed "Bo Diddley" on their live album Essen 1970, though the track cuts off rather abruptly at the twelve-minute mark. Both Eric Clapton and Creedence Clearwater Revival covered "Before You Accuse Me". Velvet Underground drummer Maureen Tucker counts Diddley as one of her chief influences and covered "Bo Diddley" on her solo album, Life in Exile After Abdication. Tom Petty has played "I Need You Baby (Mona)" in concert, and performed it with Diddley himself in 1999.[20] A short version of "Who Do You Love" appears as a bonus track on the CD reissue of the Grateful Dead's album Europe '72.
In 1963, Buddy Holly's version of "Bo Diddley" provided Holly with a top-ten posthumous hit in the UK, peaking at No. 7 in the summer of that year. The B-side of Holly's 1958 hit, "Oh Boy", namely "Not Fade Away" (written in part by Holly under the pseudonym Charles Hardin [he was christened Charles Hardin Holley]) also featured the classic Bo Diddley beat and inspired The Rolling Stones 1964 version, which was their third UK release (peaking at No. 3 in the UK early in 1964) and their first release in the United States. The Rolling Stones also recorded a cover of "Mona (I need you)" in their first album.
Muddy Waters' "Mannish Boy" (originally "Manish Boy") was an adaptation of Bo Diddley's "I'm a Man" and also an answer song, the title being Muddy Waters' take on his younger rival. Tiny Letters recorded a song called "song to Jerome Green," about Bo's maraca player. "Say Man" was Bo Diddley's only Top 40 hit. David Lindley recorded a tribute song entitled "Pay Bo Diddley". The Jesus and Mary Chain covered "Who Do You Love" on their 12" "April Skies" in 1987 and in the same year recorded a tribute song "Bo Diddley is Jesus" on a 2x7". Elliott Murphy used both his name and beat in his song "Bilbao Bo Diddley". Ronnie Hawkins recorded and covered "Hey Bo Diddley", "Bo Diddley" and "Who Do You Love" during his many recording sessions, including those with his backing band of the time, The Hawks, who later became known as The Band. The Finnish rock/blues band Max on the Rox also covered "Who Do You Love" in their second album, Rox II.
Diddley was popular with proto-punk musicians and later in the punk scene. For example both the New York Dolls and The Lurkers recorded their own version of his song "Pills", and Diddley was the opening act on The Clash's first U.S. tour.
Diddley's song "Who Do You Love" can be heard in the intro credits to the movie La Bamba. He appeared on a 2003 episode of the sitcom According to Jim entitled "Bo Diddley", had a small role as a pawnbroker in the 1983 film Trading Places, starring Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd, and appeared in George Thorogood's "Bad To The Bone" video. The song "Bad To The Bone" itself is a re-work of Diddley's "I'm A Man." Eric Clapton's 1989 "Journeyman" and 1992 "Unplugged" included electric and acoustic covers of Diddley's "Before You Accuse Me".
The country singer Kenny Rogers admitted to being a big fan of Bo Diddley, inviting him several times on his TV show in the 1970s and sometimes singing "Bo Diddley" in concert.


Bo Diddley was honored by the Mississippi Blues Commission with a Mississippi Blues Trail historic marker placed in McComb, his birthplace, in recognition of his enormous contribution to the development of the blues in Mississippi.[28]