My friend Peter Reveen (above, with me at the opening of the Red Robinson Show Theatre) has died at age 77. Peter died at his home in Las Vegas of complications from diabetes and dementia. He immigrated to Canada from Australia in 1961. Reveen, the illusionist and hypnotist who toured extensively in Canada, developed a show that emphasized audience involvement. He made his final tour of Canada in 2008 in Atlantic Canada. He worked on making his show a family show. Peter wrote many books including The Superconscious World. He also managed Lance Burton, one of the greatest all time Las Vegas illusionists. Peter’s son Ty took over his  show in 2011. Over his 50 year career he presented 6,000 live performances throughout Canada, the U.S., Australia and the United Kingdom. He still holds the record for the most consecutive sold out shows at Vancouver’s Orpheum Theatre. The man they call Reveen is gone… but his memory will live on.

Two other losses on this same day. Annette Funicello is dead at age 70. Annette got her start on Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse Club television show, and is best remembered for her role with Frankie Avalon in all those Hollywood beach movies. Every young guy was in love (from a distance) with Annette in those beach movies. She made her last appearance in Back to the Beach, a movie partly shot in Vancouver, where she once again co-starred with Frankie and special guest Dick Clark. She fought  MS bravely with a positive attitude right up to the end.

Former Prime Minister of England Margaret Thatcher is gone also. She was a polarizing political leader in the U.K. but accomplished a lot. She will be remembered for not going with the Euro as a currency to replace the Pound Sterling. She had predicted the current economic results by simply stating that the various European countries have very little economically in common and that the nations that fail in the group would have to be bailed out by the European Common Market. She was right and gets the last laugh. Many on the left disagreed with her and to this day have little good to say about her.  Margaret Thatcher was known as the Iron Lady and faced adversity head-on. Regardless, she will go down as one of the true world leaders during her time in office.