'100 Things to do before you die' Co-author Dave Freeman dies at 47 in LA
Dave Freeman, co-author of the travel guide 100 Things to Do Before You Die, has died at age 47 after hitting his head in a fall at his home, according to the Associated Press. Freeman died Aug. 17 after the fall at his Venice home, his father, Roy Freeman, told the Los Angeles Times on Monday.
An advertising agency executive, Freeman co-wrote the 1999 book subtitled Travel Events You Just Can’t Miss with Neil Teplica.
Freeman’s relatives said he visited about half the places on his list before he died. The book’s recommendations ranged from attending the Academy Awards to taking a voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti.
The book's recommendations ranged from the obvious — attending the Academy Awards and running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain — to the more obscure — taking a voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti and "land diving" on the Island of Vanuatu, which Freeman once called "the original bungee jumping."
It included goofy graphics with each entry, indicating that some activities were "down and dirty," and others "grandma friendly."
The success of "100 Things" inspired dozens of like-minded books, with titles such as "100 Things Project Managers Should Do Before They Die" and "100 Things Cowboys Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die."
Freeman graduated from the University of Southern California in 1983, briefly working for an ad agency in Newport Beach before moving to New York to work for Grey Advertising.
On Sept. 11, 2001, Freeman watched the second plane hit the World Trade Center from his apartment just blocks away. He moved back to Southern California to be closer to his family.