[Milsurplus] Robin Gibb of Bee Gees, R.I.P.

[Hue Miller]

Why am I posting here a mention of Robin Gibb of the 1980s pop musical 
group,
Bee Gees? Well, not so nonsensical: read on.

I happened to be listening to Radio New Zealand this A.M. and the program
carried a short interview with a WW2 veteran N.Z. aircrew wireless operator
who was, I gather, travelling to the U.K. for the opening of the 'Bomber 
Command
Memorial". Little difficult for me to make out, considering his accent and 
the
fluctuations of shortwave reception. But at the conclusion of the interview, 
the
interviewer mentioned Robin Gibb in connection with the fund raising for the
Memorial. Here's what a little internet lookup developed:

"After a career spanning six decades, Gibb last performed on stage in 
February 2012
supporting injured British servicemen and women at a charity concert at the 
London
Palladium. On 20 May 2012, Gibb died at the age of 62 from liver and kidney 
failure.
.......
"On 14 August 2010, while performing in Belgium, Gibb began to feel 
abdominal pains.
On 18 August, he was rushed to a hospital in Oxford, England and underwent 
emergency
surgery for a blocked intestine, the same condition that killed Maurice 
Gibb, recovered
and returned to perform concerts in New Zealand and Australia. During this 
time, Gibb
was also involved in promoting fund-raising for the memorial dedicated to 
RAF Bomber
Command in Green Park, London. Gibb also wrote The Titanic Requiem with his 
son
Robin-John, which was recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra to 
commemorate
the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic in 2012.[47] Gibb 
continued to make
television appearances and other events following his surgery, but in April 
2011 he was
forced by health problems to cancel his tour of Brazil.[46] Another concert 
in Paris was
cancelled in October 2011. On 14 October, Gibb was due to perform the 
charity single
with The Soldiers, but was again rushed to hospital with severe abdominal 
pains."

Above from the Wikipedia entry:      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Gibb

Site with short video of Robin Gibb talking about the merit of a memorial to 
Bomber
Command's 55,000 lost airmen, with some WW2 vintage film background:

http://www.squidoo.com/ClassicWWIIBombers

Article on plan for Bomber Command Memorial, from newspaper Telegraph U.K. :

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/raf-bomber-command/9070661/1m-lifeline-for-Bomber-Command-memorial.html

More depth to this gentleman than I ever had imagined. Rest In Peace, Robin 
Gibb.

via: Hue Miller