This year our generation has seen a plethora of celebrity deaths, including, but not limited to, those of actors Farrah Fawcett and Patrick Swayze. Both actors were taken by cancer after long and brave struggles against it. They were both stars from before our time, but deserve a proper tribute that has been overshadowed by the other, more controversial, deaths of  celebrities. Farrah’s death in particular was overshadowed by the controversial and shocking death of Michael Jackson and deserves a fair mention.

Farrah Fawcett was born February 2, 1947 in Corpus Christi, Texas, and became an actress in the late 60’s. Her fame came from her role on Charlie’s Angels, playing the character of Jill Munroe. This role made her a 70’s icon, and although our generation does not remember the original Charlie’s Angels, their legacy has been remade for our generation with a movie. Remember the I Love the 70’s on Vh1 where they had a segment named “Look who has a Farrah Do (Don’t you wish you had one too?)”. This was because Farrah’s hair was just as iconic as she was. Chances are, you are pretty oblivious to her legacy, but ask your mom who her favorite Angel was or ask your dad whose posters he had on the inside of his locker, chances are it was Farrah. The actress was diagnosed with cancer in 2006. The next year she claimed to be cancer free, but she passed away two years later from the cancer she had supposedly been freed from. She died June 25, 2009, in Santa Monica, California, at the age of 62.

Patrick Swayze was another death that has passed our generations radar. I think to most teenagers he is most recognizable as the closeted pedophile in Donnie Darko or the mysto surfer in Point Break. He made his name with Dirty Dancing and chances are, your mom had a crazy crush on him. He was born August 18, 1952, in Houston, Texas, and started acting in the late 70’s after doing a stint in professional dancing. Unlike the other celebrities who have died this year, he got the chance to say goodbye to the public, revealing that he was going home to pass away after a 20 month battle with pancreatic cancer. He was doing well under chemotherapy until he passed away September 14th of this year in Los Angeles, California, at 57 years old.

Although neither Farrah or Patrick died with such a controversy like Jackson did, they were valiant fighters of a disease that claims 7.6 million people each year around the world. We will miss their artistic talent.

Images courtesy of People.com