Jeff Van Note, Mary Louise Weller, Verne Allison, and John Anderson Die

These folks played football for Kentucky and then center for the Atlanta Falcons for 18 years; was a movie/TV star best known for Animal House; was a co-founder for the R&B vocal group The Dells; and was a Country Hall of Fame singer/songwriter known for “Wild and Blue”, “Straight Tequila Night”, and the 1983 “Swingin'”.

Jeffrey Aloysius Van Note (February 7, 1946 – October 2, 2026) was an American professional football player best known as the longtime center for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL), becoming one of the most respected and durable players in franchise history. Born in South Orange, New Jersey, he grew up in Kentucky and attended St. Joseph Preparatory School in Bardstown, where he developed his football skills before attending the University of Kentucky.

Playing for the Kentucky Wildcats from 1965 through 1968, he initially played as a fullback before moving to defensive end and earning second-team All-Southeastern Conference honors. The university provided the foundation for a professional career that would span nearly two decades. The Atlanta Falcons selected Van Note in the 11th round of the 1969 NFL Draft, initially envisioning him as a linebacker.

After he was released during his rookie season, he played for the Alabama Hawks, a minor-league football team in Huntsville, Alabama, before returning to the Falcons. Head coach Norm Van Brocklin moved him to center, a position he had never previously played, and Van Note won the starting job in 1970. He remained with Atlanta throughout his 18-season NFL career, appearing in 246 games and starting 226, while missing only four games over his professional career.

Renowned for his toughness, intelligence, quickness, technique, and consistency, he became an anchor of the offensive line even during seasons when the Falcons struggled as a team. Van Note earned six Pro Bowl selections, in 1974, 1975, and 1979 through 1982, and was named second-team All-Pro by The Associated Press in 1979 and 1982. During Atlanta’s 25th-anniversary season in 1991, fans voted him the franchise’s most popular player.

He retired after the 1986 season and subsequently established a second career in broadcasting, working as a color commentator for Falcons and Kentucky Wildcats football and contributing to Atlanta sports radio. He was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Atlanta Falcons Ring of Honor in 2006, cementing his status as one of the organization’s all-time greats. In his personal life, Van Note was married to his wife, Dee, for nearly 60 years,

and they had three sons, Beau, Ben, and Blaine. Remembered for his humility, loyalty, kindness, and dedication to teammates and fans, he died on Friday, October 2, 2026, at the age of 80. The Falcons announced his death but did not disclose a cause. His wife, Dee, had died before him; his survivors included his three sons and other family members. His legacy endures as a model of professional longevity and commitment to one team, and as a defining figure in Atlanta Falcons history.

Mary Louise Weller (October 2, 1946 – October 1, 2026) was an American actress, model, equestrian, and writer best known for playing Mandy Pepperidge, the sophisticated sorority sister in the classic comedy National Lampoon’s Animal House (1978). Born in New York City, New York, she was raised in Los Angeles, California, and grew up around entertainment-industry figures; actor and comedian Danny Kaye, a friend of her parents, was her godfather.

Details of her formal education are not widely documented, but she developed an early passion for horses and trained with the U.S. Equestrian Team as a teenager, later pursuing competitive riding alongside her entertainment career. Weller began working as a model before entering films, making an early appearance in Hail! (1972) and appearing uncredited in Serpico (1973). Her breakthrough came in Animal House,

in which she played Mandy Pepperidge, a member of the Pi House sorority whose romantic entanglements with fraternity members provide part of the film’s comedy. Although she recognized the potential of the screenplay, she was reportedly warned that the role might become the one for which audiences would remember her, a prediction that proved accurate. Her other film credits included the supernatural horror movie The Evil (1978),

The Bell Jar (1979), Forced Vengeance (1982), and Bloodtide (1982). On television, she appeared in series including Baretta, Kojak, Starsky & Hutch, Fantasy Island, CHiPs, and Quincy, M.E., as well as the 1980 television film Once Upon a Spy, opposite Ted Danson. Her final screen appearance came in 1983, after which she largely stepped away from acting and concentrated on her horses and other creative interests.

In the 1980s, she lived on a three-acre property in Malibu, California, and explained that acting had helped finance her equestrian lifestyle. Weller also pursued writing, receiving a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to stage her play Four Alone at the Greenhouse Theater in Pasadena, California, and developing a screenplay inspired by jockey Mary Bacon.

Her personal life included a marriage to Merritt Blake from 1981 until their divorce in 1982; she had no children. Her longtime partner was Michael Roy Curtis, an equestrian-course designer, and she remained devoted to horses throughout her life. Although she received no widely documented major acting

awards, her memorable performance in Animal House secured her a lasting place in American comedy-film history. Weller died on Thursday, October 1, 2026, at the age of 79, following a brief illness, one day before her 80th birthday. Her survivors included her longtime partner, Michael Roy Curtis, and her cousin, nonfiction author Sheila Weller. Remembered for her contribution to one of the most influential comedy films of the 1970s, as well as her equestrian pursuits and creative work beyond Hollywood, Weller left behind a legacy that extended beyond her best-known screen role.

Verne Allison (1936 – October 7, 2026) was an American rhythm-and-blues singer and songwriter best known as a founding member and second tenor of the Dells, one of the most enduring vocal groups in the history of soul music. Born in 1936, Allison grew up in Harvey, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, where he attended Thornton Township High School and developed friendships with fellow students who shared his interest in singing. In 1952, while still a teenager,

he joined Marvin Junior, Charles “Chuck” Barksdale, Johnny Funches, and brothers Michael “Mickey” and Lucius McGill to form a vocal group originally called the El-Rays. The group changed its name to the Dells and achieved its first major success with “Oh, What a Night,” a doo-wop recording released in 1956 that became a lasting classic. Allison’s smooth second-tenor voice helped provide the close harmonies that

distinguished the group’s sound, complementing Junior’s powerful baritone and the soaring falsetto of later member Johnny Carter. The Dells evolved from their early doo-wop beginnings into a sophisticated soul group, earning acclaim for recordings including “Stay in My Corner,” “There Is,” “Always Together,” and “Give Your Baby a Standing Ovation.” Allison also contributed as a songwriter, co-writing Dells songs including “Dry Your Eyes” and “Movin’ On.”

The group’s career extended across several decades, and its enduring reputation was strengthened by its appearance in the 1991 film The Five Heartbeats, whose fictional vocal group drew inspiration from real-life acts such as the Dells. The group recorded “A Heart Is a House for Love” for the film’s soundtrack, scoring another successful R&B hit decades after its first chart breakthrough.

Allison remained committed to performing with the Dells for approximately six decades, continuing even after undergoing successful triple-bypass heart surgery in 2000. The group eventually retired from regular performances around 2012. One of the defining achievements of Allison’s career came in 2004, when the Dells were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in recognition

of their lasting influence on American vocal-group music. Although he did not receive widespread individual awards apart from recognition associated with the group, his contributions as a singer, songwriter, and founding member helped establish the Dells as an important link between 1950s doo-wop and later soul and R&B. Allison was also a father, and his son, Verne “VA” Allison Jr., pursued a career in music and production, extending the family’s musical legacy.

His personal life included his wife, Christine, who was also reported to have died before him. Following the deaths of fellow Dells members Johnny Funches, Johnny Carter, Marvin Junior, Lucius McGill, and Chuck Barksdale, Allison’s passing left Michael “Mickey” McGill as the last surviving member of the group’s classic lineup. Verne Allison died on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at the age of 90;

the cause of death was not publicly disclosed in the available reports. His survivors included his son, Verne “VA” Allison Jr., and other family members. Remembered for his remarkable longevity in the music business, his songwriting, and the distinctive harmonies that helped define the Dells, Allison left a legacy woven into the history of American popular music.

John David Anderson (December 13, 1954 – October 21, 2026) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist celebrated for his distinctive, expressive voice and his influential role in the development of neotraditional country music. Born in Apopka, Florida, he grew up surrounded by the region’s orange groves and developed an interest in

music during childhood, receiving his first guitar at age seven. By seventh grade, he was playing in garage rock bands, but listening to country legends Merle Haggard and George Jones inspired him to pursue country music professionally. After graduating from Apopka High School, Anderson moved to Nashville, Tennessee, determined to establish himself as a recording artist.

He initially worked as a construction laborer, helping build the roof of the new Grand Ole Opry House during the day while performing in Nashville honky-tonks at night. His breakthrough came after music publisher Al Gallico helped him secure a recording contract with Warner Bros. Records in 1976. Anderson scored his first

significant country hit with “I’ve Got a Feelin’ (Somebody’s Been Albums’)” in 1977 and built a reputation for a vocal style that combined traditional country influences with an unmistakable, yearning delivery. His 1980 recording of Billy Joe Shaver’s “I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal (But I’m Gonna Be a Diamond Someday)” earned him a Grammy nomination for Best Male Country Vocal Performance.

His 1982 single “Swingin’” became his signature song, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard country chart and winning the Country Music Association’s Single of the Year award in 1983. Other major hits included “Wild and Blue,” “Black Sheep,” “Straight Tequila Night,” “Seminole Wind,” “Money in the Bank,” and “I Wish I Could Have Been There.” Anderson released more than 20 studio albums and achieved five No. 1 country singles, enjoying major commercial success during both the 1980s and early 1990s.

His 1992 album Seminole Wind was particularly acclaimed for its blend of traditional country music and environmental themes. He received the Academy of Country Music’s Career Achievement Award in 1993 and shared in the Country Music Association’s Album of the Year award in 1994 for the Eagles tribute album Common Thread: The Songs of the Eagles.

In 2014, he was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and in 2024, he received country music’s highest institutional honor with induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Later in his career, he continued recording and performing, releasing Years in 2020, an album produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys, and collaborating with younger artists who admired his influence. His personal life centered on his wife,

Jamie Anderson, whom he married more than four decades before his death, and their two daughters, Brionna and Alexa. He was also a devoted grandfather, known to his grandchildren as “Pop,” and enjoyed spending time with his family on their farm in Smithville, Tennessee, as well as pursuing outdoor activities, hunting, and fishing. Anderson died in his sleep at his home on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, at the age of 71; his family did not publicly disclose a cause of death.

He was survived by his wife, Jamie; daughters Brionna and Alexa; his grandchildren; his brother, Tim; and his sisters, Karen, Gail, and Donna. Remembered for his musical originality, songwriting, humility, and devotion to his family, Anderson left a lasting influence on generations of country performers and an enduring catalog of songs that helped define modern traditional country music.