Text size:

On the Net: Paul Newman remembered in cyberspace in online tributes and videos

By JAKE COYLE | AP Entertainment Writer

6:51 PM EDT, October 2, 2008

When Paul Newman died last week, the outpouring of grief was universal. And across the Web, fans posted their memories of Newman.

Many posted their favorite clips of Newman on YouTube and other video sites, while others wrote about him on their Web sites. But two sites have sought to collect such expressions of sorrow for when icons like Newman — as well as family members and friends — die.

Tributes.com was started in late September by Jeff Taylor, who founded the job search site Monster.com. By culling from the Social Security Administration's Death Index database, the site has the dates on which 84 million Americans died, going back more than a century.

When Newman died at 83 following a long battle with cancer, the site offered The Associated Press obituary, links to YouTube videos of Newman and places to buy memorabilia.

It also offered a "memory book" where anyone can "share a memory" of the deceased. In these posts, many simply give their prayers, though some have posted their personal experience of Newman or his films.

One writer recalled years ago riding a Harley-Davidson while dressed in a shirt and tie. When Newman, filming in the area, spotted the unlikely sight, he burst out laughing.

The idea of Tributes.com and its memory book is to bring social networking to obituaries. Its slogan: "Because every life has a story."

Creating an obituary up to 3,000 words is free, but other larger tributes with multimedia cost annual fees.

Tributes.com is similar to Legacy.com, a 10-year-old site with a greater connection to traditional newspaper obituaries. (One of its investors is the Tribune Co.) The site says it's visited by more than 10 million users each month.

For Newman's death, Legacy.com similarly offered The AP obit and a "guest book" for visitors to sign their names and write any thoughts.

The site collaborates with 650 newspapers to publish their obituaries on the Web and connect people with the newspaper they'd like an obit to run in. Legacy.com also offers a way to create a "living legacy" Web site to honor a deceased friend or relative. The site provides extensive help in dealing with grief, as well.

___

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: "T-Pain v. His Vocoder"

For certain rappers and R&B singers, a vocoder is a precious tool. Typically, it's used to synthesize one's voice to sound metallic and robotic. T-Pain is just such a vocoder devotee. The R&B singer, who will next month release his third album "Thr33 Ringz," this week stars in a video for FunnyOrDie.com parodying his dependance on the vocoder. While in a studio recording, his vocoder takes on HAL-like qualities and begins dictating the entire operation. His pride wounded, the machine asks T-Pain, "How come you get all the fame, money and girls?" The vocoder makes T-Pain sing a song that begins, "Thank you, vocoder. You are wonderful ... ." (Note the video contains adult language.) Watch it at:

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/86a76df842

___

EDITOR'S NOTE — What's your favorite Web site? E-mail AP Entertainment Writer Jake Coyle at jcoyle(at)ap.org