At an award ceremony witnessed only by the US Postal Service, George Gallucci ($550) and John Cashman ($170) were each given a generous cash prize for their magnificent celebrity death prognostications for 2007. No telling who will win in 2008, but George is off to another fast start. Please note, that as a contestant, you cannot add George to your list.

All the 2008 picks and celebrity point values are now posted on the site at www.ghoul-pool.com. Although I am the final arbiter of points, I will consider changes. Note that well known pre-existing conditions can shave a point off of a celebs value, thus Suzanne Pleshette only got one point.

Your picks for 2008 were all over the board, with predictable old timers and predictable troubled young starlet’s as well as sprinklings of forgotten movie and tv actors:

* Britney leads the parade, chosen by 16 of you. Lindsay Lohan pales in comparison with 3 picks.
* Estelle Getty is the favorite old actress with 14.
* Politicos make up a good portion of the list, with Fidel Castro, Margaret Thatcher, Nancy Reagan and Betty Ford getting multiple hits. As always, George Bush and Dick Cheney are listed by the wishful thinkers.

Happy Hunting!