Miss

You know when you miss someone...I mean really miss them. You get nostalgic and damn near despondent when you see the world - or at least your world - without them? Below are four of my most treasured people. Perhaps out there you could tell me some of yours?

Age 82, October 2004. Brain issues.

Without question, the stand-up comedian who made me laugh the hardest...and my list of side-splitters is long and full...Rodney holding top spot is saying something. In typical fashion, when he went into the hospital for the brain surgery, he was asked by a personal friend how long his stay would be. He responded with, "If all goes well, about 2 weeks. If not, about an hour and a half". Funny, funny man...even when facing the end of the road.

79. October, 2005. Natural causes.

The man who brought me from adolescence into adult hood every night at 11:30 from the time I was 14 years old. I'd sneak down after mom and dad went to sleep and watch his show every night without failure. Funniest moment for those old enough to see his show: He was doing Karnac the Magnificent. He looks at the camera with the envelope to his forehead and says, "Name the sound a sheep makes when exploding." On cue, Ed McMahon repeats it, "Name the sound a sheep makes when exploding."

Karnac rips the envelope open, blows into it to open it, and says, "Ssssssss, boom, bah".

That was over 30 years ago, and I'm still laughing now.

42. May, 1989. Ovarian Cancer

As Emily Latella, Roseanne Rosanna Danna, and soooo many other characters, Gilda was one of the 3 or 4 unbelievably talented comedians who put SNL on the map - and kept it there. 42 is waaaaaaaay to young to check out. As Emily, she once came on talking about how upset she was about the "Presidential Erection". Chevy Chase stopped her, and corrected the word. "That's election, miss Latella. Election - not erection."

"Oh...NEVER MIND"

42. October, 1999. Aircraft malfunction.

Bold, talkative, confrontational and frank, Payne was never afraid to tell anyone what was on his mind - and he did so often. A distinctly different personality in a sport that screams out for personalities of any kind, Payne was never confused with anyone else out there. Hall of Fame player Lee Trevino recalled when he had a talk with Payne when he was a rookie on the PGA Tour in 1982 about Payne's propensity to wear plus-four trousers, a cap generations removed as well, and loud, flamboyant colors: "Son, [Trevino said to him] if you're going to talk with that mouth and wear those clothes, you damn sure better figure out how to play out here - and I mean in a big hurry before people laugh at you." A PGA championship, 2 United States Open championships, 5-time Ryder Cup player for his country, and dozens of regular PGA tour wins later, Payne had indeed figured it out.