Notable 2011 DeathsKim Jong-IlThe death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il was announced by state television two days after he died. North Korea's news agency reported that he had died at 8:30 a.m. Dec. 17 after having a heart attack on a train, adding that he had been treated for cardiac and cerebrovascular diseases for a long time. He was 69.(credit: CHIEN-MIN CHUNG/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsVaclav Havel In this photo dated on October 28, 2011 former Czech President Vaclav Havel and his wife Dagmar Havlova leave the Spanish Hall during the Independance Day ceremony on October 28, 2011 at the Prague Castle marking the 93rd anniversary of the creation of the independent Czechoslovak state in 1918. Freedom icon and former Czech president Vaclav Havel, hero of the Velvet Revolution that won independence from Soviet rule in 1989, died on December 18, 2011 at the age of 75, his office said. (credit: MICHAL CIZEK/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsCesaria EvoraCesaria Evora, who started singing as a teenager in the bayside bars of Cape Verde in the 1950s and won a Grammy in 2003 after she took her African islands' music to stages across the world, died Dec. 17. She was 70.(credit: THOMAS COEX/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsChristopher HitchensBritish-American writer Christopher Hitchens, a combative and caustic critic, intellectual, atheist and self-defined "conservative Marxist," died Dec. 16 at the age of 62. He was suffering oesophageal cancer.(credit: Amanda Edwards/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsBert SchneiderOscar-winning producer Bert Schneider, credited for inspiring a "New Hollywood" band of independent filmmakers, died Dec. 12 in Los Angeles at 78. With producer-director Bob Rafelson, Schneider also created the Monkees pop band.(credit: Rainbow Releasing)
Notable 2011 DeathsDobie GraySinger Dobie Gray died at the age of 71 on Dec. 7, 2011. Gray's famous songs included "Drift Away" and "The In Crowd." (credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsHarry MorganHarry Morgan, 96, died on Dec. 7, 2011. He was best known for playing Colonel Potter on the TV show MASH, a role which he won an Emmy. (credit: Newsmakers/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsPatrice O'Neal Comedian Patrice O'Neal speaks onstage at Comedy Central's Roast of Charlie Sheen held at Sony Studios on September 10, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. According to reports on November 29, 2011, O'Neil has died from complications of a stroke he suffered last month. He was 41. (credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsKen RussellKen Russell, the British director whose daring and sometimes outrageous films often tested the patience of audiences and critics, died Nov. 27 at age 84. He was nominated for an Oscar for directing 1970's "Women in Love." His other most famous films include "The Devils," "Tommy" and "Altered States."(credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJeno PaulucciJeno Paulucci, a Minnesota entrepreneur who changed Duluth, died Nov. 24 at the age of 93, just four days after his wife passed away. Paulucci was the man behind Chun King brand Chinese food and Jeno's Pizza Rolls.(credit: CBS)
Notable 2011 DeathsGreg HalmanDutch police said Seattle Mariners outfielder Greg Halman, 24, was stabbed to death in Rotterdam, Netherlands on Nov. 21. Police said his brother was arrested as a suspect.(credit: Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsFamily CircusBil Keane, creator of the comic strip "Family Circus," died Nov. 8 at age 89. Keane began drawing the one panel cartoon featuring Billy, Jeffy, Dolly, P.J. and their parents in February 1960 and it is now featured in nearly 1,500 newspapers.(credit: FamilyCircus.com)
Notable 2011 DeathsHeavy DHeavy D died on Nov. 8, 2011 at the age of 44.(credit: Chris McKay/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJoe FrazierJoe Frazier, the former Heavyweight Champion of the World died on Nov. 7, 2011 at age 67.(credit: Al Bello/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsAndy RooneyWriter, humorist and television personality Andy Rooney died on Nov. 4, 2011. He was 92. (credit: Corrigan/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsPianist Roger WilliamsPianist Roger Williams died of complications from pancreatic cancer on Oct. 8, 2011. (credit: David McNew/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsSteve JobsApple founder and visionary Steve Jobs died from cancer on Wednesday, October 5, 2011, at age 56, a premature end for a man who revolutionized modern culture and changed forever the world's relationship to technology through inventions such as the iPad and iPhone. (credit: EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsCharles NapierActor Charles Napier, known for his hard-boiled roles in The Blues Brothers, Rambo, and Silence of the Lambs, passed away Oct. 5. He was 75. (credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsReverend Fred Shuttlesworth The Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, civil rights leader, died on Oct. 5 in Birmingham at the age of 89. (credit: GLENN HARTONG/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsArthur C. NielsenArthur C. Nielsen Jr., who led the company that grew into an international market research firm known for producing the TV ratings known as "the Nielsens," died Oct. 3 at the age of 92.(credit: Jupiter Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsRoger KennedyFormer National Parks Director Roger Kennedy died Sept. 30 of melanoma at his home in Rockville, Md. He was 85.(credit: CHUCK KENNEDY/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsEleanor Mondale PolingEleanor Mondale Poling, the vivacious daughter of former Vice President Walter Mondale who carved out her own reputation as an entertainment reporter, radio show host and gossip magnet, died Sept. 17 after a long battle with brain cancer. She was 51.
Notable 2011 DeathsKara KennedyKara Kennedy, the oldest child of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, died of a heart attack Sept. 16 at a Washington-area health club. She was 51. Her brother Patrick Kennedy said that his sister loved to exercise, but that he thought her cancer treatment "took quite a toll on her and weakened her physically."(credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsDJ MehdiElectro producer DJ Mehdi, the nom de plume of Mehdi Favéris-Essadi, died Sept. 13 after falling off of a roof. He was reportedly celebrating a friend's birthday. He was 34 years old.(credit: Charley Gallay/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsAndy WhitfieldActor and model Andy Whitfield, who most recently starred in the show "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," died after a battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He was 39 years old.(credit: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsCliff RobertsonActor Cliff Robertson, who won an Oscar for playing the lead role in "Charly," an adaptation of Daniel Keyes' novel "Flowers for Algernon," died Sept. 10, one day after his 88th birthday.(credit: Peter Kramer/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsPavol DemitraFormer Minnesota Wild player Pavol Demitra was among the people killed in a plane crash on Sept. 7. A Russian jet carrying Kontinental Hockey League team Lokomotiv crashed while taking off, killing at least 43 people and leaving two others critically injured. Demitra was 36.(credit: Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsGeorge KucharGeorge Kuchar -- who, along with his brother Mike, was one of the leading experimental American filmmakers throughout the 1960s and 1970s -- died Sept. 6 at age 69. His deliciously-titled films like "I Was a Teenage Rumpot" and "Hold Me While I'm Naked" influenced the likes of Andy Warhol and John Waters. He was battling prostate cancer.(credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images for CineVegas)
Notable 2011 DeathsNick AshfordNick Ashford, who with wife Valerie Simpson became a legendary Motown songwriting duo who penned elegant, soulful classics for the likes of Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye and Chaka Khan, died August 22 at age 70. Among their hit songs: "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Found a Cure" and "I'm Every Woman."(credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJerry LeiberSongwriter Jerry Leiber (pictured left, with Mike Stoller), who co-wrote "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Yakety Yak" and other hit songs that came to define early rock 'n' roll, died August 22 at age 78. One of his other masterpieces was Peggy Lee's "Is That All There Is?"(credit: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for Bobbi Marcus PR)
Notable 2011 DeathsRaul RuizRaul Ruiz, a French-Chilean filmmaker who directed John Malkovich in a role as Austrian artist Gustav Klimt and worked to put cinema on an artistic par with literature, died August 19 from a pulmonary infection. He was 70 years old.(credit: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsRick RypienWinnipeg Jets center Rick Rypien was found dead in his home Monday, August 15, nine months after he took a leave of absence to deal with an undisclosed personal matter. He was 27. Rypien received a six-game suspension from the NHL in October 2010 after grabbing a fan on his way to the dressing room in Minnesota.(credit: Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJani LaneJani Lane, front man for the heavy metal band Warrant and author of the band's 1990 hit “Cherry Pie," was found dead in a hotel room near his home in Los Angeles on August 11. He was 47.(credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJohn ShalikashviliFormer Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General (Ret.) John Shalikashvili died on July 23, 2011, at the age of 75.(credit: PAUL RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsAmy WinehouseBritish singer Amy Winehouse died on July 23, 2011, at the age of 27. She won five Grammys, and lived a rock n' roll lifestyle, which eventually got the best of her. (credit: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsSherwood SchwartzTV mogul Sherwood Schwartz, who created '60s cult favorites “The Brady Bunch" and “Gilligan’s Island,” died on July 12 in Los Angeles at age 94. (credit: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsBetty FordFormer First Lady Betty Ford died of natural causes on July 8 at age 93. Ford's husband Gerald Ford took over as U.S. President after Richard Nixon resigned in 1974. Betty Ford's battle with alcoholism led to the creation of the Betty Ford Center, which has helped many deal with addiction since its inception in the early '80s.(credit: STEPHEN JAFFE/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsPeter FalkPeter Falk, the stage and movie actor who became identified as the squinty, rumpled detective in "Columbo," died on June 23. He was 83. Falk also worked closely with renegade director John Cassavetes on films like "A Woman Under the Influence" and "Husbands."(credit: Thos Robinson/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsRyan Dunn"Jackass" star Ryan Dunn died in a single-car crash in West Goshen Township, Penn. early Monday morning. He was one of two people killed in the crash. He was 34.(credit: Michael Buckner/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsElena BonnerElena Bonner of Russia, the widow of dissident physicist Andrei Sakharov, died on June 18, 2011. She was 88. (credit: DOMINIQUE FAGET/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsClarence ClemonsClarence Clemons died on June 18, 2011. He was 69. (credit: Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJames Arness James Arness, the 6-foot-6-inch actor who towered over the television landscape for two decades as righteous Dodge City lawman Matt Dillon in "Gunsmoke," died at age 88 on June 3. He was a Minnesota native, as was his brother Peter Graves.(credit: Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsDr. Jack KevorkianDr. Jack Kevorkian, noted assisted suicide advocate, died June 3 at a Detroit-area hospital at the age of 83. Kevorkian had been released from a Michigan prison in 2007 after serving eight years for second-degree murder. He claims to have assisted in at least 130 suicides.(credit: JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJeff ConawayActor Jeff Conaway, who starred in "Taxi" and the movie musical "Grease," died Friday, May 27 at age 60. He died at the Encino Tarzana Medical Center, where he had been hospitalized in a coma after he tried to treat himself with pain pills and cold medicine while in weakened health. The actor had long battled drug and alcohol addiction, which he blamed in part on back problems and repeated surgeries.(credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsRandy 'Macho Man' SavageRandy "Macho Man" Savage, the professional wrestler known for his raspy voice, the sunglasses and bandanas he wore in the ring and the young woman named Miss Elizabeth who often accompanied him, died May 20 in a car crash in Florida. He was 58.(credit: Frank Micelotta/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsHarmon KillebrewTwins legend Harmon Killebrew lost his battle with esophageal cancer on May 17 at the age of 74. Killebrew currently ranks 11th on the all-time homer list, and his eight seasons with 40 or more homers still is tied for second in league history to Babe Ruth.(credit: harmonkillebrew.com)
Notable 2011 DeathsDerek BoogaardDerek Boogaard (credit: Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsArthur LaurentsArthur Laurents (pictured with actress Chita Rivera) was a famed playwright and screenwriter. His works include the screenplay to Alfred Hitchcock's "Rope" and the books for "West Side Story" and "Gypsy," considered possibly two of the best American musicals ever. He died May 5 at age 93.(credit: Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsOsama bin LadenOsama bin Laden, architect of al Qaeda and mastermind of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, was killed on May 2 by a force of U.S. Navy SEALs. He was 54. His death sparked controversy over whether President Obama should release photos proving his death to the public. He didn't.(credit: AFP/Getty Images)
Notable 2011 DeathsJackie CooperJackie Cooper made Academy Award record books as the youngest-ever nominee for Best Actor, a record that stands to this day. He was 9 when he was honored for his performance in 1931's "Skippy." He died May 3 at age 88.(credit: Paramount Pictures)
May 29 Severe WeatherSevere storms traveled north through the Twin Cities on Tuesday, with high winds taking down trees and clouds looking ominous.
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May 29 Severe WeatherSevere storms traveled north through the Twin Cities on Tuesday, with high winds taking down trees and clouds looking ominous.
May 24 Severe WeatherSevere storms rolled through western Minnesota and the Twin Cities, knocking down trees and power lines.
$17M Downtown Mpls. Apartment Building To House Homeless Youth
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Gorgeous Sunset Drapes Twin Cities In ColorA vibrant sunset filled the skies over the Twin Cities Thursday evening.
Spring Flooding In New UlmWCCO's Angela Davis gives us a look at spring flooding in New Ulm Tuesday.
Awwww, Nate dogg.. RIP
Why must Minneapolis be so racist? Where is Royal Marshall’s notice? Is it because he was black or because he was a conservative? Bigotry of one kind or another.
I’ve been around the world and Minneapolis is the least racist place I’ve been!!
Calvin, this is left wing Minnesota owned by Democrats and their allies in the propagandist twin cities media. WCCO is a liberal news outlet. If you aren’t a Hollywood liberal upon your death, you aren’t “notable” to this station.
Is there only one pick to this gallery?
wow he was that old!! well people the reality is that we ALL have to go 1 day.at least it wasn`t tragic
RIP Eleanor she’ll be missed in 2011 with brain cancer.
Eleanor was so full of life. She will be missed by many!
NO style, NO rhymes…NO talent.
I don’t recall seeing Michael Jackson listed on the obit’s for 2011. They also did not list the death of Dr. Murray(?) career.
Why would he be? He died in 2009!