Death and Public Memorial
Lane died from a dementia-related illness caused by Alzheimer's disease on 22 October 2009. During the last eighteen months of his life, due to his deteriorating health, he was forced from his Sydney apartment into Montefiore Nursing Home in Randwick in Sydney's east. A private Jewish funeral ceremony attended by close family and friends was held at Macquarie Park Cemetery a day after his death.
On 5 November 2009 a public memorial was held for Lane at the South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club. The memorial was open to all members of the public, asking only for a donation to Alzheimer's Australia. Over 1100 people crammed into the showroom at the club which had a usual capacity of only 600. Other members of the public viewed the memorial on televisions around the club. The memorial celebration featured live performances and speeches from Lane's close friends, such as Rhonda Burchmore, Bert Newton, Mike McColl-Jones, Mike Cleary, Toni Lamond and Helen Reddy. Lane's son opened the memorial with "They're Playing Our Song", which was his father's opening number, and earned a standing ovation for his performance. Lane was remembered as a generous performer who possessed a matching personality off the television screen as he did on. During Bert Newton's tribute, he removed his toupee, to reveal largely bare-terrain underneath. The memorial ended with a recording of Lane's performance of "Once Before I Go" on the final Don Lane Show which received a standing ovation to audience tears and applause.
Read more about this topic: Don Lane
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