One Less Vote For Bush!

international | arts and media | other press Thursday September 16, 2004 14:26 by pat c

Johnny Ramone loses cancer fight

Johnny Ramone, guitarist in punk band The Ramones, has died at the age of 55 following a long fight against cancer.
He passed away at his Los Angeles home on Wednesday afternoon, surrounded by his friends and family, his publicist confirmed.
( I guess this is yet another example of my misantrophy. Any hope of Ted Nugent kicking the bucket as well? pat c)

Ramone, whose original name was John Cummings, had been battling prostate cancer for five years. He will be cremated at a private service on Thursday, and a public tribute is being organised.

Johnny Ramone is the third member of the seminal band to die in the past few years, leaving Tommy Ramone as the only surviving member of the original line-up. Singer Joey Ramone, whose original name was Jeff Hyman, died in 2001 from lymphatic cancer.

Bass player Dee Dee Ramone, real name Douglas Colvin, died of a drug overdose the following year. News of Johnny's cancer fight emerged in June when he was admitted to the Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles for an infection related to the illness.

There was optimism that he would recover after beginning an experimental therapy treatment. He died in his sleep during Wednesday afternoon.

Among those at his bedside were his wife Linda Cummings and friends Eddie and Jill Vedder and Rob and Sherrie Zombie.