If life is indeed a journey, then each new year acts as sort of rest area, where we can pause for a moment, try to chart the road ahead and where we stand on it, and also to look back. We take note of those whose journey has ended. They’re not with us any more, but we can at least note their passing and offer them a tip of the hat in recognition of their achievements.

            Some names you’ll recognize: George Carlin, Paul Newman, Suzanne Pleshett, William Buckley, Sir Edmund Hillary, and Charlton Heston. Bo Diddley died in 2008 as well; he was a music pioneer enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Diddley helped transform old Southern blues into what we today call rock and roll. It’s said that he influenced Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix, and Eric Clapton, among others.

            Richard Widmark is no longer with us. He was an “actor’s actor,” and appeared in more than 70 films between 1947 and 1996, including “Halls of Montezuma” (1950), “The Alamo” (1960), and “Judgment at Nuremberg” (1961). I never miss a Richard Widmark film.

            One of my own favorite actors, Paul Scofield, passed away as well in 2008. He’s probably best noted for his starring role as Sir Thomas More in “A Man for All Seasons,” and as the writer Mark Van Doren in “Quiz Show.” One of his obituaries said that he “was an actor of extraordinary intelligence noteworthy for his striking presence and distinctive voice, and for the clarity and unmannered intensity of his delivery.” That pretty much says it all.

            But as you may guess, I’m especially attracted to the lesser-known personalities, those whom you may not know.

            Frank Mundus left us in 2008. He was the real-life shark fisherman who was the inspiration for the character Quint in Peter Benchley’s “Jaws.” Apparently he was as real, unmannered, and colorful a character as the book and film portrayed him to be, and we’ll always miss colorful characters. He piloted a fishing boat up until the day he died on September 10, 2008.

            Donna Stewart-Hardaway also passed. She was one of the child Munchkins in the 1939 film classic “The Wizard of Oz.” Oddly enough, she was not the last living Munchkin; six others still survive.

            Kermit Scott is no longer with us. Professor Scott taught philosophy at Yale, but his real legacy is that Kermit the Frog was named after him. Young Kermit Scott was a childhood friend of Muppet-creator Jim Henson in Mississippi back in the 1940’s. It’s nice to know (and not all that surprising) that Kermit was named after a philosopher.

            Speaking of professors, Jan Kemp died just a few weeks ago at age 59. An English instructor at the University of Georgia, she complained that the school’s administration changed a number of football players’ failing grades in her course so that they could play against Pittsburg in the big New Year’s Day game of 1982. The university rewarded her whistle-blowing with a dismissal notice, citing her for “disruptive conduct.” Kemp sued the University for firing her and won a million-dollar damage suit and reinstatement. The publicity her protest and court case generated forced some changes in how U. Georgia and other schools started making athletes actually pass courses.

            Maudie Hopkins died on August 17, 2008, as “the last publicly-known surviving widow” of a Civil War veteran. Back in 1934, the 19-year-old Hopkins married William Cantrell (then 86), who had served in the Virginia Infantry during the War Between the States. During the Depression, it wasn’t unusual for young women to marry older veterans for their pensions in an effort to escape poverty. Her obituary was carefully-worded because there are other widows of Civil War veterans still alive (according to the government), but they want to avoid publicity.

            Larry Harmon, the owner and popularizer of the Bozo the clown character, died in 2008. He bought the character from Capitol Records (which had sold a read-along record with the clown), started appearing as the colorful personality and - and this is where he got famous - by syndicating the character (played by local talent) in hundreds of US cities and abroad. Here in Boston, Frank Avruch acted the part on WHDH-TV from 1966 through the 70’s, but there were hundreds of “local Bozo’s” all around the country. The very word “bozo” has entered our language, meaning a clown or stupid person.

            Senator Jesse Helms passed away. He opposed school integration, the Civil Rights Act, and the Voting Rights Act between 1973 and 2002 as a United States Senator from North Carolina. I didn’t even know such people were still around, and as a matter of fact, Helms isn’t anymore.

            Fred Baur expired last year. He invented the Pringles can, and - at his request - was buried in one.

            Last - but by no means least - is Colman J. Meadows III, age 19 from Senoia, Georgia. Private Meadows was killed in Afghanistan last week, bringing the number of American deaths there to 629 - and that’s only Afghanistan. Another 4213 have given their lives in service to our country in Iraq. All Americans owe them a debt of gratitude - and we ought to take note of their heroic sacrifice.

            Time goes on. Our days on this earth are numbered, and sooner or later, we will all drop away from the long line of humanity marching inexorably to tomorrow. This is merely a quick and necessarily incomplete backward glance to recognize some of those who left us in 2008.

            We will miss them.

Bill Walsh is a Billerica resident and regular contributor to the Billerica Minute Minuteman. E-mail him at bmhswalsh@aol.com.