It has been a pretty epic year for celebrity deaths. Boldfaced names have been dropping like flies -- and sometimes in threes -- causing much grief and retrospection all over the land.

Obviously the death of Michael Jackson received the most attention this year. However, before you rush to call MJ's the most tragic death of 2009, consider that Patrick Swayze was also a pretty good dancer -- and the King of Pop would have been completely incapable of defending the Double Deuce from local thugs. And he sure as hell couldn't sling OxiClean like Billy Mays. We've selected seven nominees for tragic celebrity death of the year. Choose the one you found most tragic. If we've missed your favorite dead celebrity of '09, let us know in the comments and accept our condolences.


Which Celebrity Death of 2009 Makes You Most Sad?
Patrick Swayze -- the most badass of all triple threats.564 (23.5%)
Billy Mays -- where am I going to get my soap?306 (12.8%)
Brittany Murphy -- rolling with the homeys on the other side.325 (13.5%)
John Hughes -- not to be forgotten.109 (4.5%)
Michael Jackson -- certainly had the biggest memorial service.726 (30.3%)
The Taco Bell Chihuahua -- a credit to its breed. 247 (10.3%)
David Carradine -- TMI-death.122 (5.1%)


Patrick Swayze
Fighter. Philosopher. Dancer. Lover. Swayze was all that and a guy with a great sense of humor and earnest approach to his craft. In retrospect, we were only allowed to make all those silly jokes about the greatness of Chuck Norris because Patrick Swayze said it was OK.
Billy Mays
What happens to our beards when we die? Do they last for centuries, like the hair on our head? Or quickly fade to nothing, like the skin on our faces? Before anyone goes and digs up old Billy Mays, it's important to remember that his beard was unique and probably isn't representative of what happens to most beards.
Brittany Murphy
Perhaps we've been hypnotized by the media's compulsion to say some nice things about a famous person who has just died, but she really was a very good actress. And quite the hot mess of sexiness, too.
John Hughes
More than anyone else, John Hughes defined the '80s.
Michael Jackson
There is very little to be said about Michael Jackson that hasn't already been said many times (and then translated into every single one of the world's languages).
Taco Bell Chihuahua
Some corporate pitch dogs get too big for their collars. Eventually, they start wearing sunglasses and scheming on human women. (Spuds Mckenzie, we're looking at you.) Gidget, the Taco Bell Chihuahua, kept it simple with a few catch phrases and a funny Mexican accent. But man, that dog could sell some gorditas.
David Carradine
An alternate theory to his widely reported death by auto-erotic asphyxiation is that "the artist formally known as 'Grasshopper'" was slayed by a gang of real-life ninjas.