Even though I was alive during the last decade of Andy Warhol’s life I don’t remember him.  My family was not the type to keep up on the latest art trends, or even have cable on a regular basis.  By the time he passed away in 1987 his TV show, his magazine and his art had all passed me by.

     In 1988, when I entered the ninth grade, my art teacher introduced us to Andy’s work.  I liked the colors but was not really impressed with the pop genre.  My teacher said a lot of people thought Andy had died of AIDS.  I thought Andy had died in the 60’s when Valerie Solanis shot him.   Apparently, he did die for a minute but they brought him back.

     Andy’s death has always been a bit of a mystery.  During ‘Remembering Andy, A Conversation with John Waters and Vincent Freemont’, John Waters inquired to Vincent about Andy’s death.  He said he had been under the impression that Andy passed away as a result of gall bladder surgery complications, that had strung from the 1960’s shooting.  Vincent disagreed and then added that he was unable to legally speak about the official cause of death.  I assume this means it is still under investigation.

	The reported cause of death on February 23, 1987 in the Washington Post headlines, “Andy Warhol, Pioneer of Pop Art, Dies After Heart Attack.”  They mention the gall bladder surgery then quote a spokesman as saying that his death was “clearly unexpected.”  I have read other theories about his death but they all result in the same ending.  Andy is gone and he is not coming back this time.
St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cemetery, Pittsburgh, PA