Today is March 29th. Passover begins at sundown. And pastry lovers are celebrating National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day today.

Corey Haim, the 80s teen movie idol who grew into a cautionary tale of the perils of childhood fame, has been found dead of an apparent drug overdose at the age of 38.

Kreepie Kats, long a staple of this website, died earlier this week at the hands of their creator. They were burned to death. It was bittersweet and gruesome. Creator Jim Behrle was unavailable for comment as a ghastly video surfaced...

Ugh, horrible and scary: A man was killed by a falling tree limb in Central Park this afternoon. Nowhere in this city is apparently safe anymore. (Also: first whales, now trees? Is something happening?) [NYT] [Image via CentralPark.com]

A true innovator, Alexander McQueen will be remembered not only as a fashion designer but also as an auteur of the runway. Here's a collection of his best women's ready-to-wear moments from 1999-2009. Fashion week will miss you, McQueen.

Fans Pay Tribute to Alexander McQueen Outside MePa Store [Racked]
Alexander McQueen, Designer, Is Dead at 40 [NYT]

In a tragic start to New York Fashion Week, supremely talented 40-year-old British fashion designer Alexander McQueen was found dead today at his apartment in London. He reportedly committed suicide.

Band-aid heiress Casey Johnson died of diabetic-related complications, the LA County coroner's office announced this afternoon. As for Brittany Murphy, who died a couple of weeks before Johnson, the cause of death was pneumonia "complicated by an iron deficiency, anemia and multiple drug intoxication." The drugs found in her body weren't of the illegal variety, though. It was a "a mixture of prescription and over-the-counter medications." [AP, Reuters]

Memphis punk Jay Reatard's death caused by "cocaine toxicity," and "alcohol was a contributing factor."

David Brown, the producer of such films as The Sting, Jaws, The Verdict, and Driving Miss Daisy—and the husband of legendary editor Helen Gurley Brown—is dead at 93. [NYT]

Reclusive author J. D. Salinger has died. He was 91. Salinger, creator of Holden Caulfield and the Glass family, was an unofficial spokesman for every alienated or precocious teenager in the English-speaking world.

JD Salinger, the reclusive author of The Catcher in the Rye, is dead at 91. He follows author/historian Howard Zinn, who died yesterday, and author Louis Auchincloss, who died on Tuesday. [NYT]

Jets owner Woody Johnson says he's endured a "brutal couple of weeks" since learning of the death of his troubled (and estranged) daughter, Casey Johnson.

In your mawkish Monday media column: James Dobson coming to your sexxxy radio dial, a rumor of perfidy at McGraw-Hill, an editor passes away, and Larry King and Pete Wentz team up to save Haiti.

Sexxxy R&B singer Teddy Pendergrass, who started out singing for the Blue Notes and went on to a successful solo career creating your go-to good lovin' music, died of cancer yesterday at age 59. We know you by now, Teddy.

Casey Johnson—the troubled heiress, socialite, daughter of Jets owner Woody Johnson, and alleged fiancée of reality TV "star" Tila Tequila—was found dead in Los Angeles this morning. She was 30. [TMZ, NYDN, E!]

It was a miserable, terrible year full of death and loss. Here are a few of the things we will miss, and the things that we wish had died in their place. Please offer your own suggestions in comments.

Roy Disney, nephew of Walt and a troublemaker in the Disney boardroom, has died. [LAT]

Celebrity photographer A.J. Sokalner was working the rope line at the ACE Awards in Manhattan last night. Just after Lady Gaga arrived, he collapsed and died of a heart attack. Not how anyone deserves to go. [PDN]

Jeffry Picower, the billionaire investor and philanthropist accused of collecting $7 billion in profits from Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme, was found dead in his Palm Beach swimming pool on Sunday afternoon. An investigation into his death is underway. Update: The medical examiner who performed an autopsy now says the drowning was the result of a massive heart attack.