100 Things To Do author dies in fall at home

The co-author of the best-selling 100 Things To Do Before You Die has died at 47 � having conquered around half the items on his list. Dave Freeman died after falling at his home in California and hitting his head, his father Roy said yesterday.

The co-author of the best-selling 100 Things To Do Before You Die has died at 47 - having conquered around half the items on his list.

Dave Freeman died after falling at his home in California and hitting his head, his father Roy said yesterday.

Mr Freeman, an advertising executive, co-wrote with Neil Teplica the 1999 book, subtitled "Travel Events You Just Can't Miss".

"This life is a short journey," the book says. "How can you make sure you fill it with the most fun, and that you visit all the coolest places on earth before you pack those bags for the very last time?"

Mr Freeman's relatives said he visited about half the places on his list before he died last week, and that between them the authors had been to nearly all of them.

According to Mr Teplica, the book's title meant "you should live every day like it would be your last, and there's not that many people who do".

He added: "It's a credit to Dave. He didn't have enough days, but he lived them like he should have."

The book's recommendations ranged from the familiar - like attending the Academy Awards ceremony and running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain - to the more obscure, such as taking a voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti.

Among his favourites was "land diving" on the Pacific island of Vanuatu, which Mr Freeman once called "the original bungee jumping". Also recommended were the national hollerin' contest in North Carolina, the testicle festival in Montana and Australia's Nude Night Surfing contest.

Another preferred activity was Las Fallas, a festival in Valencia, Spain featuring huge papier-mache and plaster statues that satirise local political figures and celebrities.

"Secretly, they're full of fireworks and dynamite . . . At the stroke of midnight, they light them all on fire in a huge, loud . . . pyromania display," Mr Freeman once enthused.

The success of the book inspired dozens of similar tomes, 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.

The book grew out of the website whatsgoingon.com, which the pair ran together from 1996 to 2001 and which Mr Freeman often said was ahead of its time.

While the book's listings were adventure-based, Mr Teplica pointed out: "It wasn't just physical adventure, it was cultural adventure and spiritual adventure."

Mr Freeman - who according to his family preferred to travel alone because he could cover more territory - was praised for having brought an "off-kilter sensibility" to the book by insisting on irreverent graphic icons. He took particular delight in the logos that stood for "potential to see blood", "dangerous", "down and dirty" and "religious fervour".

"We would try to have odd combinations of logos, such as gluttony' and Grandma approved' on the same thing," Mr Teplica explained.

"The icons gave the book a lot of life, and people really reacted to the categories, which are kind of a snapshot into Dave's brain," he added.

Mr Freeman was deeply affected by the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He was eating breakfast in New York when the first plane hit the north tower of the World Trade Centre. From the roof of his building he saw the second plane crash into the south tower, just blocks away. The attacks led to his decision to move back to Los Angeles in 2002 to be near his family.

Paying tribute to Mr Freeman, his friend Cyndi Yee called him "amazingly fabulous at what he did, which was living big, but also as a business strategist and cultural anthropologist".

Mr Freeman was famous for saying "We're going to the future. Do you want to come along?" according to his father.

"It always made everybody laugh," he added.

A life of great expectations

Las Fallas festival in Spain: The term Fallas refers to both the celebration and the monuments created during the celebration. It takes place between March 15 and 19, when the streets are alive with fireworks, music, artistic lighting, street performances and parades. The most well-known aspect are the ninots - giant papier-mache and plaster figurines that are carried through the city during the big parade. The festival is a tribute to St Joseph.

New York: This is the site of the annual New Year's Eve ball drop. On December 31, 1907, a ball signifying New Year's Day was first dropped at Times Square and the area has held the main New Year's celebration in the city ever since. Around 300,000 people gather to watch the Waterford crystal ball being lowered, marking the new year. An energy-efficient LED ball debuted for the arrival of 2008.

Alaska: The Iditarod is an annual event in which mushers and teams of typically 16 dogs cover 1161 miles in eight to fifteen days from Willow to Nome. The Iditarod began in 1973 as an event to test the best sled dog mushers and teams, evolving into the highly-competitive race it is today. Frequently teams race through blizzards causing whiteout conditions, and sub-zero weather and gale-force winds.

Royal Ascot: This is the world's most famous race meeting, dating back to 1711. More than 300,000 people make the annual visit to Berkshire, and the royal family arrive each day in a horse-drawn carriage. Press coverage of what attendees are wearing often exceeds racing coverage.

And some others:

The National Hollerin' contest in North Carolina
The World Cow Chip Throwing Championship in Oklahoma
The Testicle Festival in Montana
A voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti
The running of bulls in Pamplona, Spain
Australia's Nude Night Surfing contest
Land-diving in Vanuatu - In the tiny Pacific island, for boys to become men, they must leap off tall towers with only vine tied around their ankles.