The only thing I love more than getting a Celebrity Death Alert from a friend is getting one from my MOTHER! She alerted me to the death of Prince Markie Dee, a rapper, songwriter, producer, and radio personality. He got his start winning a talent contest with a couple of friends at Radio City Music Hall in 1983. The show's promoter signed them to a contract and suggested they call themselves the Fat Boys. Nice.
Poor guy, he died one day short of his 53rd birthday. No cause of death as of press time. Here's a video of a their biggest hit, a song from their first album, "Wipeout." Whose idea was it for them to collaborate with The Beach Boys? Love that idea! And I imagine the Fat Boys and the Beach Boys had a good time together.