The Death of a Giant Richard Holbrook the Lion of Bosnia and Hercigovina

Actor Tony Curtis, 85, dies in Las Vegas home

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/actor_tony_curtis_dead_in_las_vegas_oMRiuESv9tmvMmmdklHkyM#ixzz111wYPqpa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Curtis
Tony Curtis (June 3, 1925 — September 29, 2010) was an American film actor. He played a variety of roles, from light comedy, such as the musician on the run from gangsters in Some Like It Hot, to serious dramatic roles, such as an escaped convict in The Defiant Ones, which earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Bernard Schwartz
June 3, 1925(1925-06-03)
Bronx, New York, United States
His parents were Hungarian Jewish immigrants from Mátészalka, Hungary
Curtis died at his Henderson, Nevada (near Las Vegas) home on September 29, 2010, of cardiac arrest.

Born Bernard Schwartz in The Bronx, NY on June 3, 1925, Curtis was born to a Hungarian immigrant family and endured a miserable childhood that would affect future relationships with both his wives and his own children. His mother was schizophrenic and frequently beat him and his brothers Julius and Robert (who was later diagnosed with the same disease). Sadly, at the age of eight, Curtis was placed in an orphanage because of his parents’ extreme poverty, and later, after his brother Julius was killed in a traffic accident in 1938, Curtis was sent to identify the body. He finally got a whiff of a better life when he landed his first acting role (as a girl) in a neighborhood play about King Arthur’s adventures. After serving in the Navy during World War II – where he witnessed the surrender of Japan in Tokyo Bay in 1945 – Curtis returned to civilian life and studied acting at New York’s Dramatic Workshop, while practicing his craft in the “Borscht Belt” circuit in the Catskills. He was discovered by casting director and talent agent Joyce Selznick (the niece of famed “Gone with the Wind” producer David O. Selznick), and headed for Hollywood in 1948. Billed initially as James Curtis and later as Anthony Curtis, he was signed to a contract with Universal and began appearing in bit and supporting roles in a string of largely forgettable dramas and genre pictures – save for the Western classic “Winchester ’73” (1950) – which capitalized on his darkly handsome features.
In 1951, he married Janet Leigh, an attractive starlet on the rise, and their overpoweringly photogenic qualities made them popular news items in the Hollywood gossip magazines. With Leigh, Curtis scored his first success as a leading man in “Houdini” (1953), a fictionalized biopic of the famed magician; he also became a father to two daughters, Kelly Curtis (born 1956) and Jamie Lee Curtis (born 1958), both of whom would go on to enjoy acting careers of their own. Though Curtis and Leigh appeared the idyllic picture of an attractive married couple, the gossip columns frequently whispered about or hinted at the true nature of his sexuality – actually a moment when a star truly knows they’ve arrived.

Cartoonist Paul Francis Conrad (June 27, 1924 – September 4, 2010

Paul Francis Conrad was an American political cartoonist from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. During college, Conrad started cartooning at the University of Iowa for the Daily Iowan.[2] While serving with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, during World War II, Conrad received a B.A. in art in 1950.[3] After receiving his degree, he worked for the Denver Post, where he spent 14 years before joining the Los Angeles Times.
Pulitzer-winning cartoonist dies at 86
Paul Conrad, the political cartoonist who won three Pulitzer Prizes and used his pencil to poke at politicians for more than 50 years, died Saturday, his son said. He was 86.
http://www.tributes.com/search/obituaries
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Entertainment/20100905/paul-conrad-obit-100905/

Alaska Senator Ted Stevens Dead at 86 had Happy Life

Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens, Sr. (November 18, 1923 – August 9, 2010 was a United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009, and thus the longest-serving Republican senator in history.

Sen. Ted Stevens Prosecutors Hid Evidence, Report Concludes

A court-appointed special prosecutor has determined that serious misconduct by Justice Department prosecutors tainted the federal investigation and trial of former Sen. Ted Stevens, according to a report released Thursday.

"The investigation and prosecution of U.S. Senator Ted Stevens were permeated by the systematic concealment of significant exculpatory evidence which would have independently corroborated Senator Stevens's defense and his testimony, and seriously damaged the testimony and credibility of the government's key witness," the report noted.

In August 2008, Stevens was indicted on seven counts of false statement charges for allegedly trying to conceal information on his Senate financial disclosure forms related to a renovation project of his home in Girdwood, Alaska, and other gifts including a puppy from a charity event, a massage chair, and a statue of giant salmon.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Stevens

DILLINGHAM, Alaska — An amphibious plane carrying former Sen. Ted Stevens crashed into a remote mountainside during a fishing trip, killing the state's most beloved political figure and four others and stranding the survivors on a rocky, brush-covered slope overnight.
Three teenagers and their parents, including the former head of NASA, were on the plane when it plowed into the mountain Monday afternoon with so much force that it left a 300-foot gash on the slope, federal investigators said.
A doctor and two EMTs hiked to the scene Monday evening and tended to the survivors' broken bones, cuts and bruises during a cold and frightening night on the mountain with the pungent odor of jet fuel wafting through the air.
A 13-year-old boy survived but had to spend the night near his dead father and the senator. A mother and her 16-year-old daughter died. Former NASA chief Sean O'Keefe survived along with his teenage son.
The 86-year-old Stevens' death stunned lawmakers and residents alike because of his pre-eminence in Alaska history: A decorated World War II pilot who survived a deadly 1978 plane crash, he was the longest-serving GOP senator in history and became the patron saint of Alaska politics as he brought billions of federal dollars home.
One failed effort – the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" – became part of his national legacy, as did corruption convictions that helped foil his 2008 campaign after 40 years in office. The case was later tossed out.
"He is one of the real giants," said Paul Brown, a consultant who was having lunch at an outdoor cafe in Anchorage. "He dedicated his life to this state."
Investigators with the NTSB arrived Tuesday at the crash site outside Dillingham, located on Bristol Bay about 325 miles southwest of Anchorage. The cause was not immediately known, but weather is one area investigators will examine.
The flights at Dillingham are often perilous through the mountains, even in good weather. NTSB chairwoman Deborah Hersman said weather conditions at the time of the accident included light rain, clouds and gusty winds.

Hersman said the group had eaten lunch at a lodge and boarded a 1957 red-and-white float plane between 3 p.m. and 3:15 p.m. local time for a trip to a salmon fishing camp. The FAA had previously said the plane took off between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.
Lodge operators called the fish camp at 6 p.m. to inquire when the party would be returning for dinner, but were told that they never showed up. Civilian aircraft were dispatched, and pilots quickly spotted the wreckage a few miles from the lodge, Hersman said.
The doctor and EMTs were flown to the area and hiked to the wreckage as fog and rain blanketed the area and nightfall set in, making it impossible for rescue officials to reach the scene until daybreak.
Pilot Tom Tucker helped shuttle the medical personnel to the scene.
He said the survivors were all in relative good condition. It was rainy and cold, and he believes their heavy duty fishing waders protected them when they went into shock.
"We covered them up with blankets and made them as comfortable as we could," he said.
He said there was no rhyme or reason to how some survived the crash. The pilot was killed, but a passenger in the co-pilot's seat survived. "The front of the aircraft was gone," he said. "He was just sitting in the chair."
They made a tarp tent over the missing cockpit to keep him dry.
The Federal Aviation Administration said the DeHavilland DHC-3T was registered to Anchorage-based General Communications Inc., a phone and Internet company.
Four survivors were taken to Providence Hospital in Anchorage with "varying degrees of injuries," Alaska State Troopers said. Former NASA spokesman Glenn Mahone said O'Keefe, 54, and his son had broken bones and other injuries.
Sean O'Keefe was listed in critical condition late Tuesday afternoon, while son Kevin was listed in serious condition and sleeping. "There's no way he can talk in his condition," Providence Hospital spokesman John Hogue said of the younger O'Keefe.
The other survivors were William "Willy" Phillips Jr., 13; and Jim Morhard, of Alexandria, Va.
The victims were identified as Stevens; pilot Theron "Terry" Smith, 62, of Eagle River; William "Bill" Phillips Sr.; Dana Tindall, 48, an executive with GCI; and her 16-year-old daughter Corey Tindall.
Stevens and O'Keefe were fishing companions and longtime Washington colleagues who worked together on the Senate Appropriations Committee that the Republican lawmaker led for several years. Stevens became a protege to the younger O'Keefe and they remained close friends over the years. Morhard and the elder Phillips also worked with Stevens in Washington.
Plane crashes in Alaska are somewhat common because of the treacherous weather and mountainous terrain. Many parts of the state are not accessible by roads, forcing people to travel by air to reach their destinations.
Stevens was one of two survivors in a 1978 plane crash at Anchorage International Airport that killed his wife, Ann, and several others.
In a similar accident by another GCI-owned plane, an amphibious, float-equipped Havilland plane flipped after landing on Lake Nerka in 2002. The pilot drowned and a passenger was injured. The plane was landing on the lake in front of the lodge when the accident occurred.
Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski said the state had lost a hero and "I lost a dear friend," praising his service during World War II. He flew cargo planes over "the hump" in the Himalayas and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
"Alaska has lost one of its greatest statesmen and a true pioneer of our state with the passing of Senator Ted Stevens," said Murkowski's counterpart, Mark Begich, who defeated Stevens in 2008 and who lost his politician father in a plane crash in 1972.
A White House spokesman said President Barack Obama called Stevens' widow, Catherine, on Tuesday afternoon to express his condolences.
"A decorated World War II veteran, Sen. Ted Stevens devoted his career to serving the people of Alaska and fighting for our men and women in uniform," Obama said in prepared remarks.
Stevens was appointed in December 1968 and became the longest-serving Republican in Senate history. (The late Strom Thurmond was in the Senate longer than Stevens, but he spent a decade there as a Democrat before switching to the GOP.)
"He always kept his word to me and to other senators. In moments of legislative battle, he would come onto the floor wearing his Hulk tie, and he would growl and act like a bulldog. But then he would spot friends on the floor and give a wink and a grin," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.
The wiry octogenarian was a legend in his home state, where he was known as "Uncle Ted." Though he was built like a birch sapling, he liked to encourage comparisons with the Incredible Hulk – an analogy that seemed appropriate for his outsized place in Alaska history.
He was named Alaskan of the Century in 1999 for having the greatest impact on the state in 100 years. He brought in "Stevens money" that literally helped keep the remote state solvent. The Anchorage airport is also named in his honor.
"He did his job and he did it well," said Royce Metz, a bookstore worker. "That's all I want to know about a politician: Do your job."
But one of his projects – infamously known as the "Bridge to Nowhere" – became a symbol of pork-barrel spending in Congress and a target of taxpayer groups who challenged an appropriation for hundreds of millions of dollars for bridge construction in Ketchikan.
Stevens' standing in Alaska was toppled by corruption allegations and a federal trial in 2008. He was convicted of all seven counts – and narrowly lost to Begich in the election the following week. But five months later, Attorney General Eric Holder dropped the indictment and declined to proceed with a new trial because of prosecutorial misconduct.
Stevens never discussed the events publicly.
The Stevens crash is the latest in a long line of aviation accidents to claim political figures over the years in the U.S., including Pennsylvania Sen. John Heinz in 1991, South Dakota Gov. George Mickelson in 1993, Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan in 2000 and Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone in 2002.

Alaska Senator Ted Stevens was the longest-serving Republican senator in US history, serving from 1968 until January 2009.  Senator Stevens was killed [Assassinated] on 9 August 2010 when an amphibious single engine DeHaviland DHC-3T airplane he was on crashed into the side of an Alaska mountain near the Bristol Bay fishing town of Dillingham, while on a fishing trip.

The Formidable Death 90-Years Barrier Senator Robert Byrd Demise at 92



Byrd mother

Statements from other politicians on Robert C. Byrd started rolling in shortly after the senator’s death was announced around 5 a.m. Here’s a round-up:

Sen. Robert Byrd dead at 92; West Virginia lawmaker was the longest serving member
of Congress in history CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Robert Carlyle Byrd, the longest-serving member of Congress in United States history, who spent much of his career as a conservative Democrat and ended it by fiercely opposing the war in Iraq and questioning the state's powerful coal industry, died Monday. He was 92.

Sen. Robert Byrd dead at 92; West Virginia lawmaker was the longest serving member of Congress in history

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Celebrities 100 years old or older (as of Summer 2009)

Frederica Sagor Maas 109 (Screenwriter, Essayist, Author)
Johannes Heesters 105 (Actor, 87 Year Career, STILL ACTIVE)
Doris Eaton Travis 105 (Actress, Dancer, Ziegfeld Girl)
Mona Ray (104)
Barbara Kent 102 (Actress)
Dorothy Young 102 (Performer)
Miriam Seegar 101 (Actress)
Pola Illery 100 (Actress)
Dorothy Bartlam 100 (Actress)
Dolores Hope 100 (Wife of Comedian-Actor Bob Hope)

Celebrities 90 years old or older (Summer 2009)

Gloria Stuart 99 (old Lady on "Titanic")
Luise Rainer 99 (Actress)
Carla Laemmle 99 (Actress,niece of the founder of Universal Studios)
Dorothy Janis 99 (Early Hollywood Screen Siren)
Mitch Miller - 98
Lupita Tovar 98 (Mexican sweetheart of the 1930's)
Gustav Lantschner (98)
Yvette Le Bon (98)
Paulette Dubost (98)
Brigette Borchert (98)
Baby Marie Osborne (97)
Mary Carlisle 97 (Original Blonde Bombshell)
Annalisa Ericson (95)
June Havoc (95)
Michael D. Moore (94)
Alicia Rhett 94 (Oldest Living Cast Member of "Gone with the Wind")
Jack LaLanne - 94
Harry Morgan - 94
Olivia de Havilland 93 (Melanie from "Gone with the Wind")
Frank Coghlan Jr. (93)
Isuzu Yamada (92)
Ernest Borgnine - 92
Kirk Douglas - 92
Zsa Zsa Gabor - 92
Lena Horne 92
Joan Fontaine 91 (Olivia de Havilland's sister, Actress also)
Phyllis Diller (91)
Mary Healy 91
Patricia Andrews 91 (Last Living Andrews Sister)
Frances Bay 91
Marjorie Lord 90
Ruth Duccini 90 (Munchkin in "The Wizard of Oz")
Louis Jourdan 90
Betty Garrett 90
Pamela Blake 90
Helen Wagner 90
Ellen Albertini Dow 90
Joyce Redman 90
Radu Beligan 90
Audrey Totter 90
Diana Serra Cary (90)
Virginia Davis (90)
Vondell Darr (90)
Andy Rooney - 90

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Marion Knott at her family's Knott's Berry Farm theme park in Buena Park at 92 years.


http://www.wvgazette.com/

http://blogs.wvgazette.com/squawkbox/2010/06/28/statements-on-the-death-of-robert-c-byrd/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/28/AR2010062801241.html

Art Linkletter Dies at Age 97

'People Are Funny' Host Art Linkletter Dies at Age 97.
In 1969, his 20-year-old daughter, Diane, jumped to her death from her sixth-floor Hollywood apartment. He blamed her death on LSD use, but toxicology tests found no LSD in her body after she died.
Linkletter was born Arthur Gordon Kelly on July 17, 1912, in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. His unwed mother put him up for adoption when he was a baby; when he was about 7, he and his adoptive parents moved to the United States, eventually settling in San Diego.
http://www.popeater.com/2010/05/26/art-linkletter-dies/

Lena Horne Legenderary Singer

"Stormy Weather" was Lena Horne's signature song as well as a chillingly apt metaphor for her career. Long celebrated for her striking beauty and silky voice.
When she arrived in Hollywood in 1941, she had already sung with the orchestra of white bandleader Charlie Barnet, making it one of the era's few integrated swing bands. She also had been a cabaret sensation at the prestigious Cafe Society Downtown club in New York's Greenwich Village.
Refusing to play maids or other stereotypical parts then offered to black actors, Horne had a nonspeaking role as a singer in her first MGM movie, "Panama Hattie," a 1942 comedy.
While with the all-black Noble Sissle Society Orchestra, she made her recording debut in 1936, singing "That's What Love Did to Me" and "I Take You."

Daryl F. Gates dies at 83; chief of the LAPD Los Angeles Police Department

Daryl F. Gates dies 83 chief LAPD Los Angeles Police Department

Anatoly F. Dobrynin, Longtime Soviet Ambassador to the U.S., Dies at 90

Anatoly F. Dobrynin, the Soviet ambassador to Washington from 1962 to 1986, whose behind-the-scenes diplomacy was credited by many historians with helping to resolve the Cuban missile crisis and ease tensions in the cold war era, has died, the Kremlin announced Thursday. He was 90.
Known to American colleagues as Doby, he served six Soviet leaders: Nikita S. Khrushchev, Alexei N. Kosygin, Leonid I. Brezhnev, Yuri V. Andropov, Konstantin U. Chernenko and Mikhail S. Gorbachev. In his 24 years in Washington — the most by far of any Soviet ambassador — he became dean of the diplomatic corps and worked with six American presidents and seven secretaries of state.
In later years, Mr. Dobrynin’s diplomacy covered much of the cold war: American and Soviet roles in Vietnam, strategic arms control talks, wars in the Middle East, summit meetings, Soviet invasions of Czechoslovakia in 1968 and Afghanistan in 1979, the downing of a Korean jetliner by Soviet warplanes in 1983, and other flash points.
Anatoly F. Dobrynin, the Soviet ambassador to Washington from 1962 to
1986, whose behind-the-scenes diplomacy was credited by many historians
with helping to resolve the Cuban missile crisis and ease tensions in
the cold war era, has died, the Kremlin announced Thursday. He was 90.
His tenure began in 1962 with the most dangerous confrontation of the
nuclear age. Khrushchev, gambling for strategic advantage, had set up
missile bases in Cuba, and President John F. Kennedy had blockaded
Soviet ships that were carrying missiles. As pressure on Kennedy to bomb
or invade Cuba mounted, his brother, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy,
met secretly three times with Mr. Dobrynin in October.
Those meetings were critical, enabling President Kennedy and Khrushchev
to communicate freely. After each, Mr. Dobrynin cabled Khrushchev, and
the attorney general briefed the president. Robert Kennedy later
disclosed that Mr. Dobrynin had remained calm through the crisis,
analyzing options and speaking carefully.
The solution to the crisis had two parts: a public American pledge not
to invade Cuba in exchange for withdrawal of the Soviet missiles, and a
private Kennedy agreement to withdraw obsolete missiles from Turkey and
Italy. Historians say that the latter was a face-saving device for
Khrushchev, and that the president wanted it private so that it would
not seem a concession to nuclear blackmail.
Anatoly Dobrynin, a Soviet diplomat who represented Moscow during the Cuban missile crisis and later in key superpower negotiations to curb the growth of nuclear arsenals, has died at age 90,
Anatoly Dobrynin, Soviet diplomat at centre of Cuban missile crisis, dead at 90
Anatoly F. Dobrynin, whose diplomacy is credited by many as having helped to resolve the Cuban missile crisis and subdue Cold War era tensions, died at the age of 90 on Thursday. He served as the Soviet ambassador to Washington from 1962 to 1986. Dobrynin was the singular channel for Soviet-American relations. Known to Americans as Doby, he served six Soviet leaders, spent 24 years in Washington, and became dean of the diplomatic corps while working with six American presidents and seven...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20100408/eu-obit-anatoly-dobrynin/
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/index?loc=interstitialskip
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anatoly_Dobrynin
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/09/world/europe/09dobrynin.html
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.obituaries/msg/3f975ad2779575ff

Tom Dixon dies at 94; L.A. radio's voice of classical music

Tom Dixon dies L.A. Radio's Voice of Classical Music for over 50 years
At KFAC, KUSC and other stations, Dixon was known for his mellow baritone and keeping his authoritative commentary to a minimum. He was considered L.A.'s longest running radio host.

Tom Dixon, who was a familiar voice to classical-music lovers for more than 50 years as a Los Angeles radio host, has died. He was 94.
Dixon died March 13 of age-related causes at a rehabilitation facility in Burbank, said his wife, Catherine.
Don Barrett, publisher of LARadio.com.
Jim Svejda, an announcer at classical station KUSC-FM (91.5) who knew Dixon, said he "was a total pro and a consummate gentleman of the old school."
"He was just the nicest guy, totally knowledgeable, totally prepared," Svejda said. "He loved the subject, never got tired of the subject, and he always made you feel that he was as excited to discover the stuff as you were."
Dixon already was a seven-year broadcast veteran in 1946 when he became a host on the classical station KFAC. It remained his home for the next 40 years.
Fired from KFAC by its new owners along with other hosts in early 1987, Dixon presided over a nighttime classical music program at KUSC from 1987 to 1988 before moving to KKGO-FM (105.1), another classical station.
When he retired in 1998 at 82, Dixon was known as the Southland's longest-running radio host.

Azhar Muslim Sheikh Mohammed Sayed Tantawi the Obama White House mourns

As the grand sheikh of Al-Azhar University, he was a voice for faith and tolerance who was widely respected in Muslim communities in Egypt and around the globe, and by many who seek to build a world grounded in mutual respect. 
Sheikh Tantawi graciously hosted President Obama last June in Cairo, and we remember well his hospitality.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and those who mourn him on this
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/03/obama-sheik-mohammed-sayed-tantawi.html

Muhammad Sayyid Tantawy محمد سيد طنطاوي
Grand Imam of Al-Azhar
In office 27 March 1996 – 10 March 2010
Preceded by	Gad el-Haq Ali Gad el-Haq
Succeeded by	Mohamed Ahmed el-Tayeb
Grand Mufti of Egypt
In office 28 October 1986 – 27 March 1996
Preceded by	Abd al-Latif Abd al-Ghani Hamzah
Succeeded by	Nasr Farid Wasil
Personal details
Born	28 October 1928 Sohag, Egypt
Died	10 March 2010 (aged 81) Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Alma mater	Al-Azhar University

Alexander Haig a Man with Huge Inflated Ego Dead at 85

War Warrior.
As of now, I am in control here in the White House.
Alexander Haig
Syria is a terrorist state by any definition and is so classified by the State Department. I happen to think Iran is too. Iraq, Iran, Syria, they're all involved.

http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-alexander-haig,0,3157369.story
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Haig

John Murtha dies at 77 Pennsylvania Democrat

Reporting from Washington - John Murtha, the Democratic congressman from Pennsylvania and decorated former Marine whose fierce opposition to the Iraq war helped catalyze public sentiment against the conflict, died Monday. He was 77.
Murtha died at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va., surrounded by his family, his office announced. He had been hospitalized with complications from gallbladder surgery.
http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-john-murtha9-2010feb09,0,1702976.story