Literotica Cemetary

[JennyOmanHill]

Former NCAA and NWA Champion Jack Brisco Dies

http://www.pwhf.org/halloffamers/bios/biopics/brisco_jack.jpg

Former NWA World Heavyweight Champion and NCAA amateur wrestling champion Jack Brisco died Monday morning at the age of 68 following complications from heart surgery.

Brisco had been dealing with health issues for the past few years which included emphysema. Just a few weeks ago, he visited with his doctor and was told he needed heart surgery. He then underwent triple bypass surgery and had been living in a rehab center.

"He was terrific," said former NWA World Champion Dory Funk, Jr. "I knew him well as a person and a wrestler. There was nothing I enjoyed better than being in the ring with Jack. He brought so much credibility to wrestling. He was the champion for everybody."

"He loved professional wrestling and was proud of his career but he never let it define who he was," said close friend Mark Nulty. "He was just a special guy."

Brisco became a wrestling fan at a very early age and aspired to become a professional wrestler. While growing up, he began amateur wrestling and quickly excelled at the sport. He moved on to become a four-time Oklahoma high school champion and went undefeated.

He continued the sport while attending Oklahoma State. During his two seasons there, he was a two-time NCAA All-American and lost only once which was in the 1964 finals. The following season, he went undefeated and capped off the 1965 season by winning the NCAA National Championship at 191 pounds.

At that point, Brisco decided to leave college and went into professional wrestling. On that stage, he became one of the best technical wrestlers the business has ever seen. His rivalry with Dory Funk, Jr. in the early 1970s is considered one of the best, pure in-ring series of matches that wrestling has ever seen.

"He was the ideal opponent for me and we wrestled over 400 times in about four years," remembered Funk. "He was a super athlete and a super nice guy. Everything that happened between him and me in the ring was terrific and a pleasure."

On July 20, 1973, he reached the top of the mountain when he defeated Harley Race to become the NWA World Heavyweight Champion, a title he held until December 10, 1975 when he lost to Terry Funk.

"He was probably the smoothest wrestler of his era," explained Nulty, who is also a wrestling historian and operates the Web site WrestlingClassics.com. "He was just a smooth athlete. There was nothing that he couldn't do."

Brisco also held multiple tag-team championships while teaming with his brother Gerald who most notably feuded with the brother combination of Terry and Dory Funk, Jr.

While still a very good in-ring performer in 1984, Brisco was tired of the grueling schedule and retired from wrestling at the age of 42. He stayed true to his word and never returned to the squared circle.

"He was the most self-assured person of accomplishment that I've ever met," said Nulty. "He had no desire or no need to tell anybody who he was or what he had accomplished. He was the most comfortable person to live in his own skin that I've even seen."

Jack along with his brother Gerald were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class in 2008.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Dick McGuire, a Fixture With the Knicks for More Than Half a Century, Dies at 84

Dick McGuire, whose deft ball-handling and passing wizardry led the New York Knicks to three straight National Basketball Association finals, and who then coached and scouted for them in a Hall of Fame career that lasted more than half a century, died Wednesday in Huntington, N.Y. He was 84.

His death, at Huntington Hospital, was announced by the Knicks. He lived in nearby Dix Hills on Long Island. At his death he was a senior basketball consultant to the team and was about to leave on a scouting trip when he had an aortic aneurysm, his wife, Teri, said.

Few players in basketball history have been associated with a city as McGuire was with New York. He and his younger brother Al, who also played with the Knicks and who went on to a successful career in college coaching (winning a national championship at Marquette in 1977) and broadcasting, played their playground ball growing up in Far Rockaway, Queens.

After an all-American career at St. John’s University, then located in Brooklyn (it is now in Queens), where he was later voted the best player in the university’s history, Dick McGuire played 11 seasons as a guard in the N.B.A.: eight (1949-57) with the Knicks and three (1957-60) with the Detroit Pistons.

He became the head coach of both teams, leading the Pistons from 1959 to 1963, including one season as a player-coach. He took over a floundering Knicks team in November 1965, replacing a former teammate, Harry Gallatin. The next season he led the team out of the league’s Eastern Division cellar for the first time since 1959.

By Christmas 1967, however, his touch had faded, and he handed over the reins of an underachieving team that included Willis Reed, Dick Barnett, Cazzie Russell and three rookies — Walt Frazier, Bill Bradley and Phil Jackson. The new coach, Red Holzman, reversed the team’s fortunes, made the Knicks contenders and won two league championships, in 1970 and 1973. Holzman had been the team’s chief scout, and he and McGuire effectively traded jobs.

But it was as a player that McGuire left a more indelible mark. In an era before almost every team had a 7-footer or two, before thundering dunks rattled the rims with regularity and before sharpshooters routinely flung jump shots from 25 feet or more, McGuire was a master of cutting and feinting and finding the open man. His nickname was Tricky Dick, a nod to the blind feeds and needle-threading bounce passes that became his trademark. His philosophy was the epitome of old-school team basketball; he preferred passing to shooting. In his rookie season, he set an N.B.A. record, long surpassed, with 386 assists.

“There were times when I’d think, ‘God, tomorrow night I’m going to shoot more,’ ” McGuire told Newsday in 1992. “But I don’t think you can change what you are.”

Richard Joseph McGuire was born on Jan, 26, 1926, in New York City — probably the Bronx, his wife said — and grew up in the Bronx and in Queens. His father, John, and his mother, Winifred, operated a bar and grill in the Bronx, and sometime before Dick went to high school, they moved and opened a different bar in Far Rockaway. He played high school basketball at La Salle Academy in Manhattan. In 1944, as a freshman, he led St. John’s to the National Invitation Tournament title. His college career was divided by a stint in the Army during World War II, and he entered the N.B.A. in 1949, three years after the league was founded.

The Knicks retired the number 15 in 1992 (in honor of him and Earl Monroe), and he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, in Springfield, Mass., in 1993. He and his brother Al, who died in 2001, are the only pair of brothers in the hall.

In addition to his wife, the former Teri Sabbatino, whom he met on Rockaway Beach in 1955 and married the next year, he is survived by a brother, John; a sister, Catherine Mann; three sons, Richard, of Boca Raton, Fla., Michael, of Dix Hills, and Scott, who works as a Knicks scout, of Deer Park, N.Y., and seven grandchildren.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

'Bonanza,' 'Trapper John, M.D.' star Pernell Roberts dies

Pernell Roberts, 81, a strapping actor who was an original cast member of the long-running TV western "Bonanza" and the star of the medical drama "Trapper John, M.D.," died of cancer Jan. 24 at his home in Malibu, Calif.

Mr. Roberts was a Broadway and film veteran before joining the cast of "Bonanza" in 1959. Until abruptly quitting the NBC series in 1965, he played the thoughtful, sensitive Adam Cartwright, one of three sons of a clan whose deeds on and around the Ponderosa ranch delighted audiences and made the series one of the most watched TV shows of the era.

Mr. Roberts rode the range with his two on-screen brothers -- Michael Landon as the brash Little Joe and Dan Blocker as the burly, gentle Hoss -- before hanging up his spurs at the end of the sixth season.

Mr. Roberts had lost his enthusiasm for the role just when the show, which aired until 1973, was at its peak. Fans enjoyed the family dynamics, the obvious bonding and the way the grown sons respected the authority of their father, Ben Cartwright, played by Lorne Greene.

For Mr. Roberts, it seemed too remote from reality. "Isn't it just a bit silly for three adult males to get father's permission for everything they do?" Mr. Roberts told The Washington Post in 1963. "I haven't grown at all since the series began four years ago. I have an impotent role. Everywhere I turn, there's the father image."

Finally, turning his back on Hollywood wisdom and well-meant advice, Mr. Roberts left the family's mythical domain, and his role was written out of the show. A Los Angeles Times critic said the move led most of Mr. Roberts's acting contemporaries to view him as "some kind of nut."

But Mr. Roberts was a thoughtful man. His first wife, Vera Mowry, was a college professor. He performed in "Othello" and "Antigone" in college, marched for civil rights in Selma, Ala., and was perhaps more in tune than many of his fellows with the spirit of the 1960s. "I left for my own good," he said.

Pernell Elvin Roberts Jr. was born in Waycross, Ga., on May 18, 1928, and attended Georgia Tech and the University of Maryland, where academics took a distant second to his burgeoning interest in theater.

Mr. Roberts played tuba in the Marine Corps band at Quantico before focusing on a theater career. After appearing in 18 productions during two years at the newly formed Arena Stage in Washington, he headed to New York, where his credits included Mephistopheles in "Dr. Faustus" and a 1956 Drama Desk Award for his off-Broadway work in the title role of Shakespeare's "Macbeth."

He had roles on Broadway, too, before leaving in 1957 for Hollywood, where he appeared in films including "Desire Under the Elms," a 1958 adaptation of the Eugene O'Neill drama starring Sophia Loren, Anthony Perkins and Burl Ives.

Mr. Roberts's marriages to Mowry, Judith Roberts and Kara Knack ended in divorce. A son from his first marriage, Chris, died in 1989. Survivors include his fourth wife, Eleanor Criswell.

After abandoning the Stetson in "Bonanza," Mr. Roberts made dozens of film and TV appearances. His most prominent role was Dr. John McIntyre, the chief of surgery at a San Francisco hospital who confronted questions of life and death with a calm gravity on "Trapper John, M.D." The show, which was based on the character from the popular film and TV comedy "M*A*S*H," aired on CBS from 1979 to 1986 and brought Mr. Roberts an Emmy nomination for outstanding lead actor in a dramatic series.

Mr. Roberts had a robust baritone that he displayed on folk and western albums with cast members from "Bonanza." He also recorded an album of folk music, "Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies" (1963).

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Rep. John Murtha dies at 77

(CNN) -- Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania, a longtime fixture on the House subcommittee that oversees Pentagon spending, has died following complications from gallbladder surgery, according to his office. He was 77.

The veteran Democratic congressman recently underwent laparoscopic surgery to remove his gallbladder.

Murtha was hospitalized in December and had to postpone a hearing with Defense Secretary Robert Gates on the administration's strategy in Afghanistan. The congressman returned to work after a few days in the hospital and helped oversee final passage of the 2010 defense appropriations bill.

Murtha represented Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District since 1974, making him the chamber's eighth most senior member. According to his biography on the House of Representatives Web site, Murtha was the first Vietnam War combat veteran elected to Congress.

He was considered one of "the kings of pork" on Capitol Hill by taxpayer watchdog groups for requesting tens of millions of dollars in earmarks.

On his House Web site, Murtha strongly defended earmarks, saying, "I believe that elected representatives of the people understand their constituents and districts best."

Supporters said his efforts have helped bring thousands of jobs to western Pennsylvania.

Other controversies dogged Murtha's career. Critics alleged he steered Pentagon contracts to businesses that hired his brother as a lobbyist, but Murtha insisted his brother was treated like everyone else.

Murtha also turned up in the FBI's Abscam investigation in 1980 when undercover agents offered bribes to several members of Congress. Murtha was videotaped turning down a bribe, saying he wasn't interested "at this point." He was not charged.

Murtha came under fire during the 2008 election campaign for saying that part of his state was a "racist area" where constituents would not vote for Barack Obama because he was black.

He later apologized and said, "While we cannot deny that race is a factor in this election, I believe we've been able to look beyond race these past few months."

Murtha won 58 percent of the vote in 2008, his last re-election, while Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain won the district by less than 1,000 votes.

Murtha, a former Marine, also earned a reputation as one of Congress's loudest anti-war voices. He initially supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq, but he stunned much of Washington when he called for a swift U.S. pullout in November 2005, saying, "U.S. and coalition troops have done all they can. ... It's time for a change in direction."

In 2006, Murtha seemed on track to become the House Majority leader, but he lost to Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland. Murtha said he was subject to "swift boat-style attacks" on his ethics record, blasting critics who raised concerns about "unfounded allegations that occurred 26 years ago."

Born June 17, 1932, in West Virginia, Murtha moved with his family to Pennsylvania as a child.

Before joining the House, he was in the Pennsylvania state Legislature. He also served 37 years in the Marines and Marine Corps Reserves. He retired from the Reserves in 1990 and received the Navy Distinguished Service Medal.

Murtha attended Washington and Jefferson College, but dropped out in 1952 to enlist in the Marines. He later graduated from the University of Pittsburgh.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Zelda Rubinstein, Clairvoyant in ‘Poltergeist,’ Dies at 76

http://www.nndb.com/people/464/000032368/zelda-rubinstein-1-sized.jpg

Published: January 27, 2010

Zelda Rubinstein, a 4-foot-3-inch character actress best known for playing the indomitable ghost-purging psychic in “Poltergeist,” died on Wednesday in Los Angeles. She was 76 and lived in Los Angeles.

The cause was complications of a heart attack she had two months ago, her agent, Eric Stevens, said. No immediate family members survive.

Released in 1982, “Poltergeist” featured a brief bravura turn by Ms. Rubinstein as Tangina, the clairvoyant summoned to scour a suburban home of spirits. “This house is clean!” Tangina memorably declared after attempting the job. The Washington Post called her performance one of the best by a film actress that year.

Ms. Rubinstein reprised the role of Tangina in “Poltergeist II” (1986) and “Poltergeist III” (1988).

A medical lab technician who became an actress in her late 40s, Ms. Rubinstein made her film debut in 1981 in the comedy “Under the Rainbow.” Her other films include “Frances” (1982), “Sixteen Candles” (1984), “Teen Witch” (1989) and “Sinbad: The Battle of the Dark Knights” (1998). On television she had a recurring role as the sheriff’s dispatcher Ginny Weedon in the CBS series “Picket Fences.”

Ms. Rubinstein was also known for her public advocacy of AIDS education and the rights of little people, the term she preferred. In 1981 she helped found the Michael Dunn Memorial Repertory Theater, whose tallest actor was 4 foot 6. Mr. Dunn, who died in 1973, was a dwarf actor known for the film “Ship of Fools” (1965).

Zelda Rubinstein was born in Pittsburgh on May 28, 1933; she was, she told The Hartford Courant in 2000, “the only one different in appearance” in her family. After studying at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of California, Berkeley, she became a technician in a blood bank.

At 47 Ms. Rubinstein abruptly decided to change careers, as she explained in The Courant interview.

“I had no idea what I would do next, but I knew it would involve advocacy for those people who were in danger of being disenfranchised,” she said. “I wanted a platform to be visible as a person who is different, as a representative of several varieties of differences. This is the most effective way for me to carry a message saying, ‘Yes you can.’ I took a look at these shoulders in the mirror and they’re pretty big. They can carry a lot of Sturm und Drang on them.”

 

[JennyOmanHill]

'Deadliest Catch' Captain Phil Harris Dies

http://missharleyquinn.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/phil.jpg

Phil Harris, the fishing boat captain from television's wildly popular reality series 'The Deadliest Catch' has died.

The deep-sea fisherman, 53, suffered a stroke on Jan. 29 while in an Alaskan port off-loading a catch. He was flown to Anchorage for surgery and showed signs of recovery through the days following, but ultimately succumbed to the trauma.

"It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to our dad - Captain Phil Harris," his sons Jake and Josh Harris said in a statement posted on the Discovery Channel Web site. "Dad has always been a fighter and continued to be until the end. For us and the crew, he was someone who never backed down."

The reality show, which has filmed five seasons, has been one of the Discovery Channel's most popular. Harris was a central figure for this drama featuring the ageless tale of man taking on the elements. It depicts the crab fishing industry in the dangerous waters off Alaska.

In a statement, Discovery Channel senior vice president Elizabeth Hillman says, "Phil was a devoted father and loyal friend to all who knew him."

"We will miss his straightforward honesty, wicked sense of humor and enormous heart," she said.

Harris had been showing signs of recovery from the stroke. His sons wrote in a Feb. 3 posting on the ship's Web site: "No one ever said Captain Phil Harris wasn't tough. Today, dad showed some good signs of improvement, squeezing our hands and even summoning his trademark Captain's bluntness ... We are encouraged, but still very cautious."

Harris began working on a fishing boat at age 7, and by the time he was 21, he was running a fishing vessel out of Seattle.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

'Boston Legal' actor killed in southern Wisconsin crash

http://static.tvguide.com/MediaBin/Galleries/Shows/A_F/Bi_Bp/Boston_Legal/crops/Boston-JUSTIN-MENTELL6.jpg

An artist and actor who co-starred on the ABC television series "Boston Legal" was found dead near his wrecked Jeep in southern Wisconsin, the Iowa County Sheriff's Department reported.

The 2005 Jeep of Justin M. Mentell, 27, of Waukegan, Ill., was found down a steep embankment off Wisconsin 39, near Moscow Road north of Blanchardville. Someone saw the car while driving along Moscow Road, the only spot from which the wrecked car was visible, said Chief Sheriff's Deputy Jon Pepper.

He said there was no indication of what Mentell was doing in the area. Mentell reportedly had friends in Madison, Pepper said.

The Jeep went off the road and struck two trees, and Mentell, who was driving alone and not wearing seat belt, was thrown from the vehicle, Pepper said. The wreck was discovered at 8:30 a.m., Pepper said, and it was believed to have occurred after 3 a.m. Mentell was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.

The Gorgen Funeral Home in Mineral Point was handling local arrangements, but the funeral will likely by in Texas, funeral home officials said.

Mentell portrayed attorney Garrett Wells on "Boston Legal" from 2005 to 2006.

A native of Texas, Mentell was also known from his high school days in Waukegan as a promising speed skater, competing on the Junior National Speed Skating long track team. He was a 2005 graduate of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, where he was recently honored as a distinguished graduate of the fine rts program.

According to the university's biography of Mentell, he started acting as a child in the Northbrook Children's Theater. As an adult he also appeared in several independent films and the 2009 Disney film "G-Force."

 

[Johnny_Ray_Wilson]

Alexander Haig dies at 85

Former Chief of Staff, Secretary of State, and decorated 4 star General.


Alexander Haig dies, praised by President Obama
AP




WASHINGTON – Former Secretary of State Alexander Haig, a four-star general who served as a top adviser to three presidents and had presidential ambitions of his own, died Saturday of complications from an infection, his family said. He was 85.

Haig's long and decorated military career launched the Washington career for which he is better known, including top posts in the Nixon, Ford and Reagan administrations. He never lived down his televised response to the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan.

Hours after the shooting, then Secretary of State Haig went before the cameras intending, he said later, to reassure Americans that the White House was functioning.

"As of now, I am in control here in the White House, pending the return of the vice president," Haig said.

Some saw the comment as an inappropriate power grab in the absence of Vice President George H.W. Bush, who was flying back to Washington from Texas.

Haig died at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, where he was surrounded by his family, according to two of his children, Alexander and Barbara. A hospital spokesman, Gary Stephenson, said Haig died at about 1:30 a.m.

In his book, "Caveat," Haig later wrote that he had been "guilty of a poor choice of words and optimistic if I had imagined I would be forgiven the imprecision out of respect for the tragedy of the occasion."

Haig ran unsuccessfully for president in 1988.

President Barack Obama praised Haig as a public servant who "exemplified our finest warrior-diplomat tradition of those who dedicate their lives to public service."

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Haig "served his country in many capacities for many years, earning honor on the battlefield, the confidence of presidents and prime ministers, and the thanks of a grateful nation."

"I think of him as a patriot's patriot," said George P. Shultz, who succeeded Haig as the country's top diplomat in 1982.

"No matter how you sliced him it came out red, white and blue. He was always willing to serve."

Haig was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and numerous other honors during his three decades in the Army, and — as vice chief of staff — helped lead the transition to an all-volunteer military, recalled Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey.

Born Dec. 2, 1924, in the Philadelphia suburb of Bala Cynwyd, Alexander Meigs Haig spent his boyhood days dreaming about a career in the military. With the help of an uncle who had congressional contacts, he secured an appointment to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1943.

After seeing combat in Korea and Vietnam, Haig — an Army colonel at the time — was tapped by Henry Kissinger to be his military adviser on the National Security Council under Nixon. Haig "soon became indispensable," Kissinger later said of his protege.

Nixon promoted Haig in 1972 from a two-star general to a four-star rank, passing over 240 high-ranking officers with greater seniority.

The next year, as the Watergate scandal deepened, Nixon turned to Haig and appointed him to succeed H.R. Haldeman as White House chief of staff. He helped the president prepare his impeachment defense — and as Nixon was preoccupied with Watergate, Haig handled many of the day-to-day decisions normally made by the chief executive.

On Nixon's behalf, Haig also helped arrange the wiretaps of government officials and reporters, as the president tried to plug the sources of news leaks.

About a year after assuming his new post as Nixon's right-hand man, Haig was said to have played a key role in persuading the president to resign. He also suggested to Gerald Ford that he pardon his predecessor for any crimes committed while in office — a pardon that is widely believed to have cost Ford the presidency in 1976.

Years after serving as one of Nixon's closest aides, Haig would be dogged by speculation that he was "Deep Throat" — the shadowy source who helped Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein break the Watergate story. Haig denied it, repeatedly, and the FBI's Mark Felt was eventually revealed as the secret source.

Following Nixon's resignation, Haig stayed with the new Ford administration for about six weeks, but then returned to the military as commander in chief of U.S. forces in Europe and supreme allied commander of NATO forces — a post he held for more than four years. He quit during the Carter administration over the handling of the Iran hostage crisis.

Haig briefly explored a run for presidency in 1979, but decided he didn't have enough support and instead took a job as president of United Technologies — his first job in the private sector since high school.

When Ronald Reagan became the 40th president of the United States, Haig returned to public service as Reagan's secretary of state, and declared himself the "vicar of American foreign policy."

His 17-month tenure was marked by turf wars with other top administration officials — including Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger and national security adviser William Clark.

Two months into the new administration, Haig was portrayed as pounding a table in frustration when the chairmanship of a crisis management team went to Bush. Despite the clashes, Haig received high praise from professional diplomats for trying to achieve a stable relationship with the Soviet Union.

In his book, Haig said he had concluded during a 1982 trip to Europe with the president that the "effort to write my character out of the script was under way with a vengeance." He resigned days later.

Describing himself as a "dark horse," Haig sought the Republican presidential nomination for the 1988 elections. On the campaign trail, he told supporters about his desire to "keep the Reagan revolution alive," but he also railed against the administration's bulging federal deficit — calling it an embarrassment to the GOP.

Haig dropped out of the race just days before the New Hampshire primary.

During his career in public service, Haig became known for some of his more colorful or long-winded language. When asked by a judge to explain an 18 1/2-minute gap in one of the Nixon tapes, Haig responded: "Perhaps some sinister force had come in."

And later, when he criticized Reagan's "fiscal flabbiness," Haig asserted that the "ideological religiosity" of the administration's economic policies were to blame for doubling the national debt to $2 trillion in 1987.

Haig is survived by his wife of 60 years, Patricia; his children Alexander, Brian and Barbara; eight grandchildren; and his brother, the Rev. Francis R. Haig.

___

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Winter X Games freeskier C.R. Johnson

http://www.lat34.com/_/Image/_/cr_johnson_hike_11.jpg

Professional freeskier C.R. Johnson died Wednesday on the slopes at Squaw Valley USA after hitting his head on a rock outcropping, the Associated Press reports.

Johnson, 26, was skiing with a group of friends when he fell while trying to negotiate a "very, very tight, rocky area," in a part of the resort known as the Light Towers area, said Jim Rogers, a member of the resort's ski patrol.

Johnson fell face-first, then spun around and struck the back of his head on rocks. Johnson was wearing a helmet at the time of the fall, but Rogers said the helmet took a serious blow.

The ski patrol was contacted shortly before 2 p.m. and tried to revive Johnson on the slopes, but were unsuccessful, according to Placer County Sheriff's Lt. Jeff Ausnow.

Johnson was a familiar site on the slopes of the Lake Tahoe-area resort, where his father had been an avalanche forecaster.

"This is a man of very, very strong skiing talent," Rogers said. "This young man had been a fixture here at Squaw Valley for years. ... He grew up at Squaw Valley."

Johnson was a regular halfpipe contender in Winter X Games competitions until 2005, and is credited for being the first skier to land a 1440 at age 15.
In December 2005, Johnson, filming at Utah's Brighton Ski Resort, suffered a head injury that left him in a coma and resulted in a 34-day hospitalization.

Scott Gaffney, co-director of Matchstick Productions and a good friend of Johnson's, told the Tahoe Daily Tribune that the Tahoe community lost "an inspiration and a happy person" in Johnson.

"I'm going to remember a lot of things about C.R.; we traveled all over the world together. But I think the thing most people are going to remember is his smiling face," Gaffney said. "He was a pretty special person. He just had the greatest outlook on life and was happy to be doing what he was doing."

Johnson, whose first name was Charles, had the following posted on his MySpace page:

I feel it's most important to keep it real and enjoy each moment, you know, take advantage of every opportunity life provides, because who knows what tomorrow may bring.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

British fashion designer McQueen found dead at 40

a bit late
February 11, 2010|

His runway shows were often like performance pieces: One featured models with headwear made of trash. Another showed off 10-inch heels shaped like lobster claws.

At the pinnacle of his success, British fashion designer Alexander McQueen was found dead in his home Thursday, days after posting anguished online remarks about the death of his mother. He was 40.

The circumstances pointed to a possible suicide, but there was no confirmation from police or McQueen's publicists. Authorities said the death was not suspicious, apparently ruling out foul play. They did not indicate how McQueen was discovered.

The Sun tabloid cited an anonymous source on its Web site who said workers found McQueen hanging in his apartment. The newspaper gave no further details. His family issued a statement asking for privacy.

McQueen is credited with helping revive the once-moribund British fashion industry. His edgy pieces were coveted and treasured by stylish women across the globe and seen on numerous red carpets.

Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour called McQueen "one of the greatest talents of his generation."

"He brought a uniquely British sense of daring and aesthetic fearlessness to the global stage of fashion. In such a short career, Alexander McQueen's influence was astonishing — from street style, to music culture and the world's museums," she said in a statement. "His passing marks an insurmountable loss."

McQueen did not design for the celebrities, but they flocked to him for the sheer audacity of his creations, which were instantly recognizable for being dramatic, exquisitely tailored and oh-so sexy.

A stunning dress for Sandra Bullock? A special order for Madonna? Something special for Kate Moss or Naomi Campbell? All these feats seemed easy for the quiet, slim, bearded Englishman who shunned publicity and laughed off the limelight.

Lady Gaga recently made waves when she wore McQueen's spring 2010 lobster-claw shoes in her "Bad Romance" music video.

McQueen's mother died Feb. 2. Some fashion experts speculated that his mood may have also been clouded by pressure to outdo himself again next month at his catwalk show in Paris.

News of his death broke at the start of New York Fashion Week and sent shock waves through the Bryant Park tents.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Frisbee creator Fred Morrison dies

MONROE, Sevier County — For years before and after Utah native Fred Morrison was a prisoner of war in Germany's infamous Stalag 13, he threw all kinds of discs and tried to market them.

Nobody did it better. Wham-O sold more than 200 million Frisbees, Morrison's best invention, before he died at his home in Monroe, Sevier County.

Born and raised in Richfield, Morrison remained impressed by his invention's success throughout his life.

"Who could ever imagine this?" he said in 2007. "From such a simple beginning 50 years ago, to have it become what it has become. My goodness, it's amazing."

During a Thanksgiving Day family picnic in 1937, Morrison and his future wife Lu Nay tossed the lid of a popcorn tin back and forth for fun. The tin dented easily so they moved on to cake pans. Soon Morrison was selling "Flying Cake Pans" for 25 cents each on the beaches of Santa Monica, Calif.

After he learned aerodynamics as a bomber pilot in World War II, Morrison created the Whirlo-Way with another former pilot, Warren Franscioni. They changed the name to the Flyin-Saucer to take advantage of the UFO craze in the 1950s.

Morrison added a deeper, thicker rim in 1955 for the "Pluto Platter." In 1957, Wham-O, a hunting-goods company looking to expand into sporting-goods, picked up Morrison's invention and in 1959 registered the name Frisbee.

The toy gave rise to popular new sports like Ultimate Frisbee and Frisbee Golf.

"The world has changed a lot in the past 50 years, but the original purpose of Frisbee has remained constant," Morrison said on the 50th anniversary of his invention in 2007. "Just seeing the smile on a child's face as he or she catches a soaring disc on a summer afternoon in the park, or a grown-up diving headfirst to grab a falling disc, that is what the spirit of the Frisbee is all about."

Utah House Rep. Kay McIff, R-Richfield, honored Morrison Wednesday on the House floor. McIff said Morrison's Frisbee found its way onto fields and playgrounds around the world and came with a set of simple instructions, written by his wife, who died in 1987: "Flip flap, flies straight."

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Dick Francis, British jockey turned popular mystery author, dies at 89

Dick Francis, 89, a champion jockey for the British royal family who turned to writing crime fiction and helped launch an immensely popular sub-genre of mysteries set in the horse-racing world, died Feb. 14 at a home he kept in the Cayman Islands. No cause of death was reported, but he had prostate cancer diagnosed in the mid-1990s.

In a career spanning four decades and 42 novels, Mr. Francis sold more than 60 million books. His protagonists, often former jockeys themselves, caromed through page-turning murder plots and ruthless kidnapping schemes. They endured impossibly excruciating torture but solved the mystery, nabbed the bad-guy and usually got the girl.

Reviewers said Mr. Francis captured the authentic smells, sounds and sights of the racetrack. Author Carol Flake once wrote in the New York Times that Mr. Francis's plots moved so quickly that "one is tempted to handicap his books rather than review them, assigning each a speed rating and a weight allowance."

As a jockey in Britain after World War II, he won about 350 races during his nine-year career and was Champion Jockey of the 1953-54 season. His success led the Queen Mother to retain him as her jockey for the 1956 Grand National at Aintree, one of steeplechasing's top races.

Mr. Francis often said that if a mystery had not unfolded literally underneath his feet at the Grand National during the mid-1950s, he might have never started writing at all.

Known as one of the most challenging events for horse and man, the four-mile, 856-yard course is filled with tall jumps that if not cleared properly often lead to fatal crashes. Mr. Francis and his mount, Devon Loch, had survived the course and were in the lead strides away from the finish when the big, brown gelding suddenly collapsed in a heap. After the incident, the horse stood up, apparently uninjured and healthy.

News of the spectacular spill spread across Britain, where photos of the horse splayed out on the turf accompanied many front-page news stories.

Mr. Francis, then 37, retired from race riding months later, citing a body too plagued by injuries -- including six collar-bone breaks, five nose breaks, a fractured skull, a broken back and dislocated shoulders. He once suffered a gash on his face after a horse stepped on it.

His fame as Britain's favorite failed hero led an agent to push him to write his autobiography, "The Sport of Queens," which came out in 1957 to positive reviews.

He began writing for London's Sunday Express that year as an expert racing correspondent, an arrangement that continued for 16 years.

Inspired by the success of his autobiography, and the slim wages of journalism work, Mr. Francis decided to write a crime mystery about a jockey who is killed in the middle of a race. "Dead Cert" came out in 1962, and since then Mr. Francis wrote about a book a year.

Reviewers sometimes called his writing formulaic and genre specific. But critic John Leonard, writing in the New York Times, said: "Not to read Dick Francis because you don't like horses is like not reading Dostoyevsky because you don't like God."

His books were devoured by millions, and fans took pride in Mr. Francis's attention to detail and realism.

Among his supporters was the Queen Mother, whom Mr. Francis sent an advance copy of each of his books before they were published. She'd return the favor with a handwritten note reviewing the work.

"How do you think these stories up?" she once wrote to him. "You're getting more bloodthirsty than ever."

The answer was simple. Throughout his career, Mr. Francis often went to the track with his "eyes and ears open." An idea for a plot twist in one of his books -- a rare swine disease that kills several top race horses -- was suggested to him by a veterinarian.

Richard Stanley Francis was born Oct. 31, 1920, near Tenby in South Wales. His father was a professional steeplechase jockey and later a stable manager.

Mr. Francis would write his books sentence by sentence in longhand. His wife, the former Mary Brenchley, who died in 2000, edited and proofread his novels and helped him with his research. For his books "Flying Finish" (1966) and "Rat Race" (1970), which involve scenes on an aircraft, Mr. Francis did not just fall back on his years as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II. He enrolled his wife in flying lessons to make sure he'd written authentic passages about taking the controls of an airplane mid-flight.

Mr. Francis won many awards for his writing, including the Mystery Writers of America's Edgar Allan Poe Award an unprecedented three times.

After he was widowed, Mr. Francis did not write for some time. Recently he began releasing titles co-authored with his son Felix. Their latest book, "Even Money," came out in September. Their next, "Crossfire," is scheduled to be released later this year.

In addition to Felix, survivors include another son, Merrick.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Marie Osmond's son Michael Blosil commits suicide

Michael Blosil is Marie Osmond's 18 year old son. He committed suicide by jumping to his death from his Los Angeles apartment building. Michael's parents Brian Blonsil and Marie Osmond divorced in 2007. Michael Blonsil has been previously treated for depression and was in rehab at the age of 16.

ET Online reports that Michael Blosil left behind a suicide note to explain that he was committing suicide after dealing with a lifelong battle with depression and feeling as if he had no friends and could not fit in to this world. Michael Blosil is one of 8 children, 5 of which were adopted. Michael was the second child to be adopted by Marie and Brian.

Marie Osmond says through her publicist,
"My family and I are devastated and in deep shock by the tragic loss of our dear Michael and ask that everyone respect our privacy during this difficult time."

Donny Osmond, released the following statement regarding the tragedy,
"Please pray for my sister and her family."

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Knack lead singer Doug Fieger dies of cancer

Doug Fieger, who pursued his childhood dreams from suburban Detroit to a brief stint at the top of the pop music world with his band The Knack, died Sunday, Feb. 14, 2010, after a lengthy battle with cancer.

Fieger, who wrote and sang lead vocals on the 1979 hit "My Sharona," was 57.
His death was confirmed by his brother, prominent Southfield attorney Geoffrey Fieger.

He attended Eleanor Roosevelt Elementary School in Oak Park and Oak Park High School. When he died, Fieger was living in Woodland Hills, Calif., and being treated at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He had battled lung cancer for six years.

"Doug didn't wait for the world to come to him -- he made his own destiny, even as early as high school," said David Weiss, who went to school with Fieger in Oak Park and was later known professionally as David Was with the Detroit-born rock-funk band Was (Not Was).

"He was a trendsetter, even in high school," Weiss said. "I think it was in 1964 that he showed up at school with the first bell bottoms anyone had ever seen and a pair of boots -- I think they were pink."

Richard Fishman, now an antiques dealer in California, was in Fieger's first band, the Royal Jammers, when they were both about 11 years old.

He remembers Fieger as a Beatles fanatic with an encyclopedic knowledge of rock history who insisted his first guitar be an expensive Gretsch Country Gentleman, because that's what George Harrison played.

"He collected all this Beatles paraphernalia in a box under his bed," Fishman said.

And when he saw Fieger recently, as he continued his fight with cancer, "he still had everything -- he had an unbelievable guitar collection," Fishman said.

Detroit native Jaan Uhelszki, a former editor at Creem magazine in Detroit who is now a music writer based on the West Coast, knew Doug Fieger when he had the band Sky, which predated The Knack.

"He had a radiant talent," she said.

"He was determined and pugnacious with big dreams, most of which he achieved."

And Detroit News columnist Laura Berman, who grew up next door to the Fiegers in Oak Park, said she never doubted Doug Fieger was headed for stardom.

"He was one of the most extraordinary people that I ever met," Berman said.

"He was the pied piper. He was so charismatic and admired that people would just follow him everywhere."

Fieger was always putting on dramatic productions -- staging his own funeral with his brother Geoffrey's help when he was about 10 and Samuel Beckett's theater-of-the-absurd classic "Waiting for Godot" in high school, she said.

"I'm more surprised that he wasn't a big star all his life than I am that he became a star," Berman said.

"He always felt destined for stardom and intent on making himself a star."

"Get the Knack" sold 6 million copies.

Fieger's ex-wife, Mia, helped care for him during his illness. In addition to his older brother, Geoffrey, survivors include his younger sister, Beth.

In one of the last interviews Fieger gave, he told columnist Neal Rubin of The News in January that he maintained a positive outlook even as he faced death.

"Everybody knows they're going sooner or later," he said.

"I don't know any better than anyone else when I'm going.

"I've had 10 great lives. And I expect to have some more. I don't feel cheated in any way, shape or form."

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Jim Bibby, Who Pitched for Pirates in World Series, Dies at 65

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/pics/jim_bibby_autograph.jpg

Published: February 18, 2010
LYNCHBURG, Va. (AP) — Jim Bibby, who pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1979 World Series, has died. He was 65 and lived in Madison Heights, Va.

His death was confirmed by Community Funeral Home. The cause was not disclosed.

Bibby played 12 years in the majors, starting in 1972. In 1973 he pitched the first no-hitter in Texas Rangers history, beating Oakland, 6-0. He was a member of the Pittsburgh team that won the 1979 World Series, starting two games against Baltimore, including the deciding seventh game.

Bibby’s best season was 1980, when he went 19-6 and was a member of the National League All-Star team. He also played for St. Louis and Cleveland, compiling a career record of 111-101 and a 3.76 earned run average.

Bibby came from an athletic family. Henry Bibby, his brother, played basketball for the Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers and coached the University of Southern California team; he is now an assistant coach with the Memphis Grizzlies of the N.B.A. His nephew Mike Bibby plays for the Atlanta Hawks.

In addition to his brother, he is survived by his wife, Jacqueline, and two daughters, Tamara Bibby and Tanya McClain.

After retiring from the majors, Bibby was the pitching coach for the Lynchburg minor league team for 15 years. He retired after spending a year with the Pirates’ Nashville affiliate in 2000.

 

[JennyOmanHill]

Kathryn Grayson, star of '40s, '50s musicals, dies

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Qi_l_pmRm0g/SXCLYMuh31I/AAAAAAAAAnE/Y_KIteZUKgw/s320/Kathryn+Grayson+as+Lilly+Vanessi+as+Kate.png

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Kathryn Grayson, whose beauty and lilting soprano voice brightened such popular MGM musicals of the 1940s and '50s as "Anchors Aweigh,""Show Boat" and "Kiss Me Kate," has died at age 88.

Grayson died at her Los Angeles home, the actress' longtime secretary and companion, Sally Sherman, told The Associated Press.

"She just went to sleep and didn't wake up," Sherman said Thursday.

Grayson's youthful ambition was to sing opera, but she wasn't able to accomplish that dream until after her movie career ended. While still a teenager, she was placed under contract at MGM at a time when the studio was assembling a stable of musical talent that would dominate the era of great musicals.

"I thought they were wastingc their time and money," Grayson recalled of her first days at the studio. "I even told (studio boss) Louis B. Mayer that. He said he knew a lot more than a 16-year-old girl who is and who isn't good material for pictures.

"He offered a deal: I would make a screen test, and if the studio liked the test, I would shut up forever. If not, I would go.

"It was the longest test in motion picture history. They spent hundreds of thousands of dollars; it was almost a two-reeler. I did everything- opera, popular songs, drama, comedy. ... The studio liked it. I told Mr. Mayer I didn't like it. He went home with a heart attack."

Concerned, Grayson agreed to stay, and she turned down an offer to sing "Lucia" at the Metropolitan Opera. She later learned that Mayer had two ploys to persuade recalcitrant actors: to cry or to claim a heart attack.

Like Lana Turner, Esther Williams, Donna Reed and other MGM newcomers, Grayson was given a tryout as Mickey Rooney's sweetheart in the studio's popular Andy Hardy film series. She played the title role in "Andy Hardy's Private Secretary" and sang Strauss's "Voices of Spring." Mayer was convinced that he had a future star.

She was cast in three minor films, including a musical with Abbot and Costello, then played Gene Kelly's girlfriend in a wartime revue that included major MGM stars, "Thousands Cheer."

"Anchors Aweigh," a 1945 hit with Kelly and Frank Sinatra, confirmed her star status. Her bell-like soprano made her the ideal co-star with Hollywood's full-voiced male singers in operettas and other musicals. She made three films with Howard Keel, two with Mario Lanza, one with Gordon MacRae.

Other musicals included "Two Sisters from Boston,""Ziegfeld Follies,""Till the Clouds Roll By,""That Midnight Kiss,""The Toast of New Orleans,""Lovely to Look At,""The Desert Song" and "So This Is Love."

Born Zelma Kathryn Hedrick on Feb. 9, 1922, in Winston-Salem, N.C., Grayson's father a building contractor and real estate agent. Because of his business, the family moved frequently, eventually settling in St. Louis Her parents recognized her gifted voice and arranged an audition before opera star Frances Marshall. She encouraged the girl to continue her music lessons.

The family then moved to Los Angeles so Kathryn could have more professional training. She came to the attention of Mayer, who had been searching for a lovely young soprano to rival Universal's sensational Deanna Durbin (Durbin had been under contract to MGM, but she was dropped in favor of Judy Garland).

After her movie career ended with "The Vagabond King," Grayson remained active, finally realizing her long-held ambition to sing opera. She also starred in stage productions of "The Merry Widow,""Rosalinda," Naughty Marietta," and "Camelot." She and Howard Keel toured extensively in "Man of La Mancha" and appeared together in Las Vegas. She did concerts in Australia and appeared in a one-woman show of film clips and reminiscences.

She married and divorced MGM contract players John Shelton (1940-1946) and Johnny Johnston (1947-1951). The marriage to Johnston produced her only child, Patricia Towers.

She never wed again after her second marriage, and in a 1988 interview she said she had no intention of writing a memoir because it wouldn't be the "kiss and tell" kind the publishers wanted.

She is survived by her daughter and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

 

[JennyOHill2]

Former Ram Merlin Olsen dies at 69

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Pro Football Hall of Famer and former television actor Merlin Olsen has died. He was 69.

Utah State University assistant athletic media relations director Zach Fisher says Olsen died at a Los Angeles hospital.

He was diagnosed with mesothelioma last year.

Olsen was an All-American at Utah State and a first-round draft pick of the Los Angles Rams in 1962.

The burley giant from northern Utah joined Deacon Jones, Lamar Lundy and Rosey Grier on the Rams' storied "Fearsome Foursome" defensive line known for either stopping or knocking backward whatever offenses it faced. The Rams set an NFL record for the fewest yards allowed during a 14-game season in 1968.

Olsen was rookie of the year for the Rams in 1962 and is still the Rams' all-time leader in career tackles with 915. He was named to 14 consecutive Pro Bowls, a string that started his rookie year.

Olsen was also an established television actor with a role on "Little House on the Prairie," then starring in his own series, "Father Murphy," from 1981 to 1983 and the short-lived "Aaron's Way" in 1988.

Olsen was a consensus All-American at Utah State and won the 1961 Outland Trophy as the nation's best interior lineman. The Rams drafted Olsen third overall in 1962 and he spent the next 15 years with the team before retiring in 1976.

Utah State honored Olsen in December by naming the football field at Romney Stadium "Merlin Olsen Field." Because of his illness, Olsen's alma mater didn't want to wait until football season and made the announcement during halftime of a basketball game.

Olsen was well enough to attend, but did not speak at the event. He stood and smiled as he waved to fans during a standing ovation and chants of "Merlin Olsen!" and "Aggie Legend!"

Utah State is also planning a statue of Olsen at the southeast corner of the stadium.

The Rams also honored Olsen during a game Dec. 20, with a video tribute narrated by Dick Enberg, Olsen's longtime broadcast partner. Olsen did not attend because of his health. His name was already part of the Ring of Fame inside the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis along with other franchise standouts.

He was voted NFC defensive lineman of the year in 1973 and the NFL MVP in 1974, and was voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982

 

[JennyOHill2]

Peter Graves, ‘Mission: Impossible’ Star, Dies at 83

Published: March 14, 2010

Peter Graves, the cool spymaster of television’s “Mission: Impossible” and the dignified host of the “Biography” series, who successfully spoofed his own gravitas in the “Airplane!” movie farces, died. He was 83.

He died of a heart attack at his home in Pacific Palisades, Calif., said Fred Barman, his business manager.

It was a testament to Mr. Graves’s earnest, unhammy ability to make fun of himself that after decades of playing square he-men and straitlaced authority figures, he was perhaps best known to younger audiences for a deadpan line in “Airplane!” (“Joey, do you like movies about gladiators?”) and one from a memorable Geico car insurance commercial (“I was one lucky woman”).

Born Peter Aurness in Minneapolis, the blond, 6-foot-2 Mr. Graves served in the Army Air Forces in 1944 and ’45, studied drama at the University of Minnesota under the G.I. Bill of Rights and played the clarinet in local bands before following his older brother, James Arness, to Hollywood.

His first credited film appearance was in “Rogue River” (1950), with Rory Calhoun. Mr. Graves’s getting a Hollywood contract for the picture persuaded his fiancée’s family to let her marry him. He changed his name for that movie to Graves, his maternal grandfather’s name, to avoid confusion with his older brother.

He soon found himself in classics like Billy Wilder’s “Stalag 17” (1953), where he played a security officer with a secret; Charles Laughton’s “Night of the Hunter” (1955); Otto Preminger’s “Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell” (1955); and John Ford’s “Long Gray Line” (1955).

Mr. Graves became known for taking all his roles seriously, injecting a certain believability into even the campiest plot. He appeared in westerns like “The Yellow Tomahawk” (1954) and “Wichita” (1955); a Civil War adventure, “The Raid” (1954); and gangster movies (“Black Tuesday,” 1954, and “The Naked Street,” 1955). He played earnest scientists in science fiction/horror films: “Killers From Space” (1954), “It Conquered the World” (1956) and “Beginning of the End” (1957, about giant grasshoppers in Chicago). There was also cold war science fiction anti-Communism: “Red Planet Mars” (1952).

Other movies included “East of Sumatra” (1953), “Beneath the 12-Mile Reef” (1953), “A Rage to Live” (1965), “Texas Across the River” (1966), “Sergeant Ryker” (1968), “The Ballad of Josie” (1968), “The Five-Man Army” (1969), “The Clonus Horror” (1979), “The Guns and the Fury” (1981), “Savannah Smiles” (1982), “Number One With a Bullet” (1986), “Addams Family Values” (1993), “The House on Haunted Hill” (1999) and “Men in Black II” (2002).

In 1955 Mr. Graves began his career as a television series regular as the star of “Fury,” a western family adventure series about a rancher named Jim Newton, his orphaned ward and the boy’s black stallion. It ran until 1960 on NBC, helped pioneer television adventure series and solidified Mr. Graves’s TV credentials.

Some of his hundreds of television credits include “Alfred Hitchcock Presents,” “Whiplash” (1961), “The Dean Martin Show” (1970), the Herman Wouk mini-series “The Winds of War” (1983) and “War and Remembrance” (1988), “Fantasy Island” (1978-83) and “7th Heaven” (1999-2005). He served as the host or narrator for numerous television specials and performed in television movies of the week like “The President’s Plane Is Missing” (1973), “Where Have All the People Gone” (1974) and “Death Car on the Freeway” (1979).

Mr. Graves played his most famous television character from 1967 to 1973 in “Mission: Impossible,” reprising it from 1988 to 1990. He was Jim Phelps, the leader of the Impossible Missions Force, a super-secret government organization that conducted dangerous undercover assignments (which he always chose to accept). After the tape summarizing the objective self-destructed, the team would use not violence, but elaborate con games to trap the villains. In his role, Mr. Graves was a model of cool, deadpan efficiency.

But he was appalled when his agent sent him the script for the role of a pedophile pilot in “Airplane!” (1980). “I tore my hair and ranted and raved and said, ‘This is insane,’ he recalled on “Biography” in 1997. Some of the role’s lines (“Have you ever been in a Turkish prison?”) looked at first as if they could get him thrown in jail, never mind ruining his career. He told his agent to tell David and Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, the director-producers, to find themselves a comedian. He relented when the Zucker brothers explained that the secret of their spoof would be the deadpan behavior of the cast; they didn’t want a comedian, they wanted the Peter Graves of “Fury” and “Mission: Impossible.”

Mr. Graves used his familiar earnest, all-American demeanor in service of some of the comic movie’s most outrageous moments. He reprised the role of Captain Oveur in “Airplane II” in 1982.

Starting in the mid-1980s Mr. Graves was the host of a number of television science specials on “Discover.” In 1987, he became the host of the Arts and Entertainment Network’s long-running “Biography” series, narrating the lives of figures like Prince Andrew, Muhammad Ali, pioneers of the space program, Churchill, Ernie Kovacs, Edward G. Robinson, Sophia Loren, Jackie Robinson, Howard Hughes, Steven Spielberg and Jonathan Winters.

In 1997, Mr. Graves was the subject of his own “Biography” presentation, “Peter Graves: Mission Accomplished.” In 2002, Mr. Graves was interviewed for a special about the documentary series, “Biography: 15 Years and Counting.”

Mr. Graves won a Golden Globe Award in 1971 for his performance in “Mission: Impossible” and in 1997, he and “Biography” won an Emmy Award for outstanding informational series.

In 1998, he joined his wife, Joan, in an effort to get Los Angeles to ban gasoline-powered leaf blowers from residential areas, testifying before the City Council, “’We’re all victims of these machines.”

In addition to his brother, he is survived by his wife, Joan Graves, and three daughters, Amanda Lee Graves, Claudia King Graves and Kelly Jean Graves.

 

[JennyOHill2]

Author Barry Hannah dies at 67 in Mississippi

Mar 2, 7:04 AM (ET)

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Author Barry Hannah, whose fiction was laced with dark humor and populated by hard-drinking Southerners, died Monday at his home in Oxford, Miss. He was 67.

Lafayette County Coroner Rocky Kennedy said Hannah died Monday afternoon of "natural causes," declining to elaborate until he shared the details with Hannah's wife, Susan. Kennedy said the death is not under investigation.

Hannah's first novel, "Geronimo Rex," was published in 1972. It received the William Faulkner prize for writing and was nominated for a National Book Award. His 1996 short story collection, "High Lonesome," was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.

Hannah was born and raised in Mississippi. He graduated in 1964 from Mississippi College in Clinton and later earned a master's degree in creative writing from the University of Arkansas.

He taught writing at the University of Mississippi for more than 25 years. In 1996, Hannah told the student newspaper at the University of Mississippi that teaching inspired him.

"The short fiction form that I teach is a great format for fine classroom conversation about the art," Hannah said. "My writing has always been enhanced by my teaching."

He also worked as writer in residence at the University of Iowa, the University of Montana-Missoula and Middlebury College in Vermont.

In 2003, Hannah was given the PEN/Malamud Award, which recognizes excellence in the art of short fiction.

 

[semen4her]

Get a life jenny.

 

[JennyOHill2]

Get a life jenny.

O.K.

 

[islandman]

O.K.

Get a husband too.










Congrats!

 

[JennyOHill2]

Get a husband too.

Congrats!

Thanks!

 

[JennyOHill2]

Former Patriot Mosi Tatupu, father of Seahawks' Lofa, dies

BOSTON (AP) — Mosi Tatupu, one of the most popular players in New England Patriots history known for his inspired special teams play, has died.

Tatupu died at Sturdy Memorial Hospital in Attleboro, hospital spokeswoman Ashley O'Brien said. He was 54. The hospital could not disclose a cause of death.

The Plainville Fire Department responded to Tatupu's home and took him to the hospital, Lt. Richard Ball said.

"I know that I share a heavy heart today with Patriots fans everywhere who have learned of Mosi Tatupu's passing," team owner Robert Kraft said in a statement.

"He was a dominant special teams player and a punishing rusher who loved the Patriots as much as the fans did," he said.

Tatupu was chosen by the Patriots in the eighth round of the 1978 draft out of Southern California and played 13 of his 14 NFL seasons with the team, wrapping up his career with the Los Angeles Rams in 1991.

The bruising 227-pound fullback rushed for 2,415 yards and 18 touchdowns, including a career best 578 yards in 1983. He thrived on snowy and icy fields, running for 128 yards on a snow-covered field in a win over New Orleans that season.

While never a superstar, Tatupu was beloved by Patriots fans for his play on kickoff and punt teams and even had his own cheering section known as "Mosi's Mooses." He was selected to the 1986 Pro Bowl as a special teams player.

Tatupu was selected to New England's 50th anniversary team last season.

After his retirement as a player, Tatupu was the head coach at King Philip Regional High School in Wrentham, where he coached his son Lofa, now a linebacker with the Seattle Seahawks.

He also served as an assistant at Curry College in Milton from 2002-2007, coaching running backs and special teams.

"Mosi was a vital part of the success of our program," said Vinnie Eruzione, athletic director at the Division III school. "There was no better guy."

Tatupu was born in Pago Pago, American Samoa, and was a high school football star in Hawaii. His Hawaii high school career rushing record of 3,367 yards stood for 17 years, according to the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame website.

 

[JennyOHill2]

World's shortest man, He Pingping, dies in Italy

Tue Mar 16, 8:08 am ET
ROME – The world's shortest man has died in Italy, where he was to take part in a TV show, the program's production company said Tuesday.

He Pingping, of China, who was 2 feet, 5.37 inches (74.6 centimeters) tall, had become a recognized figure across the world, often taking part in shows, photo shoots and other events, Guinness World Records said.

Craig Glenday, the Guinness World Records editor-in-chief, said He was "an inspiration to anyone considered different or unusual" and "showed us that, despite the challenges we face, we can still make the most out of life."

Guinness World Records said in a press release He was born in 1988 with a form of primordial dwarfism. He was officially measured in March 2008.

He was taken to a hospital March 3 after he fell ill while rehearsing the Italian program "The Record Show," Marco Fernandez de Araoz of Europroduzione said.

After two days, He was transferred to intensive care, where he was found to have a heart condition and high cholesterol, said Fernandez de Araoz. He said the hospital, where he died, has so far given as his cause of death the heart condition.