Life In Legacy - Week of 03/01/2003

News and Entertainment
Bob Brandy - Children'sTV show host in Chattanooga, Tennessee who starred in "The Bob Brandy Show" from 1958 until 1978, which featured his wife Ingrid and horse Rebel, died Feb. 28. His age and cause of death were unstated.
Steve Carlin - Television and children'srecord producer best known for creating TV's "The $64,000 Question" in the 1950's, who later created and produced the Emmy-nominated "Science All Stars" and TV kids how "Rootie Kazootie', died Feb. 4 in New York of Alzheimer'sdisease at age 84.
Jane Casey - Mother of Harry Casey, lead singer of KC & the Sunshine Band, died Feb. 24 of diabetes and kidney failure in Florida at age 73.
Erving Charles - Busy New Orleans bass player and member of Fat'sDomino'sband who had been featured on scores of recordings since the 1960'sand had also worked with greats like Irma Thomas, Clarence "Frogman" Henry, Dave Bartholomew and Marva Wright, died Feb. 26 of a heart attack in New Orleans at age 61.
Ginni Clemmens - Blues and folk singer, guitarist and songwriter who recorded seven albums including several children'srecords and who worked with notables like Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger and Cass Elliot, was killed in a car accident on Feb. 15 in Maui, HI at age 66.
Gogo DeLys (real name Marie Belanger) - Singer of the 1920'sand 1930'swho toured with the Jimmy Grier Band, who in 1935 became one of the original featured singers on "Your Hit Parade', eventually getting her own show on NBC radio "Gogo DeLys Sings', died Feb. 19 in Los Angeles of natural causes at age 94.
Jonathon Eberhart - Folk singer who recorded both solo and as a member of the group Boarding Party, who was a close associate of Pete Seeger and helped him sail the sloop Clearwater on its maiden voyage and sang at performances along the way, and who had a second career as an award-winning aerospace writer for Science News magazine, died Feb. 18 in Washington, DC of multiple sclerosis complications at age 60.
Howie Epstein - Longtime bass player for Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, who joined the group in 1982 and was fired in 2001 because of ongoing "personal problems', and who was also in the news in 2001 with girlfriend Carlene Carter when they were arrested in New Mexico after three grams of heroin were found in the couple's car, died Feb. 24 in Santa Fe, NM of an apparent heroin overdose at age 47.
Earl Forest - Drummer and singer who was one of the legendary "Beale Streeters", an informal group of friends that formed in the early 50'sand played on each other'srecordings and included R&B stars Bobby Bland, Johnny Ace, Junior Parker and Rosco Gordon, who played on several of B.B. Kings famous sessions (including "Three O'Clock Blues'), and who had a top 10 R&B hit in 1953 with "Whoopin" and Hollerin'', died Feb. 26 of cancer in Memphis at age 76.
Tom Glazer - Folk singer and songwriter who was a Big City folk singer in the 1940'swith legends Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Leadbelly, but who is best known for "On Top of Spaghetti', the novelty song with a children'schorus that became a surprise hit in 1963, died Feb. 21 in Philadelphia at age 88.
Mike "The Doctor" Gonsalves - Longtime DJ at WHJY in Providence, Rhode Island who played rock and heavy metal Monday thru Friday from 8PM to midnight and hosted the weekly radio program "The Metal Zone', was killed in the fire that swept through music club The Station in West Warwick, RI that killed 96 people set off by pyrotechnics during a Great White concert on Feb. 20. He was 40 years old.
Susan Johnson - Big-voiced Broadway singer from the 1950s and 1960s considered one of Broadway's top belters during that era in shows like "The Most Happy Fella', "Brigadoon" and "Whoop-Up!', died Feb. 24 of emphysema in Sacramento, CA at age 75.
John Lanchbery - One of ballet'smost sought after conductors and arrangers of ballet scores who was long associated with the American Ballet Theatre, and was known for his collaborations with the Royal Ballet in Britain and its choreographer Frederick Ashton, died Feb. 26 of cancer in Melbourne, Australia at age 79.
Vincent Liff - Half of the busy Broadway casting duo of Johnson-Liff with Geoffrey Johnson, who cast more than 150 Broadway and touring productions including the original "The Wiz" in 1975, and numerous other landmark musicals such as "Cats", "Les MisGables" and "The Phantom of the Opera", died Feb. 25 of brain cancer in New York at age 52.
Beth Marion - Actress who starred in a string of B-western movies between 1935 and 1938 opposite cowboy stars like Johnny Mack Brown, Tom Tyler and Buck Jones, but got married and retired from acting in 1938, died Feb. 18 of undisclosed causes in Jacksonville, OR at age 90.
A.J. Murphy - Sax and flute player who was part of the Houston blues and jazz scenes for decades and was bandleader for A.J. Murphy and the Houston All-Star Revue, died Feb. 19 of undisclosed causes just moments after speaking at the funeral of guitarist Kenny Abair . He was 56.
Arthur Polson - Renowned Canadian composer, conductor and violin soloist, who toured extensively throughout Canada and the U.S. and was soloist for some of the world'sleading entertainers including Arthur Fielder, Victor Borge and Jack Benny, died Feb. 26 of a heart attack in Vancouver at age 68.
Marcel Prawy - Internationally respected classical music expert who was known as Austria's "opera guide of the nation" for his long years on radio and TV explaining to generations of Austrians the intricacies of opera and other classical music, died Feb. 23 of a lung embolism in Vienna at age 91.
Esther Ridgeway - Singer, who with her sisters Gloria and Gracie, formed the highly respected backup group The Ridgeways, who toured, recorded and sang background for Aretha Franklin and Anita Baker, among others, who had a minor hit of their own in 1981 with "I Don't Know What I'd Do (If You Ever Left Me)", and appeared in the film "Blues Brothers 2000', died on Feb. 22 of a heart attack in Detroit at age 43.
Fred Rogers - American icon who hosted the public television children'sshow "Mister Roger'sNeighborhood" for more than 30 years, who began each show in a set that looked like a comfortable living room singing "It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood", and whose message in the show remained simple and consistent, to love yourself and others, died Feb. 27 of stomach cancer in Pittsburgh at age 74.
Ulrich Roski - Popular German singer, songwriter, pianist and guitarist who was also a comedian, died Feb. 20 in Berlin at age 58.
Walter Scharf - Noted composer and arranger who scored the music for about 250 movies and TV programs including the films "Funny Girl', "White Christmas" and "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" and the TV shows "Hawaii Five-0" and "Mission: Impossible', who wrote such classic hits as "Ben" (#1 for Michael Jackson), and earned 10 Oscar nominations for his efforts, died Feb. 24 of heart failure in Brentwood, CA at age 92.
Alberto Sordi - Italian movie star known for his comedic roles who appeared in more than 160 movies like the 1954 classic "An American In Rome', Fellini's "The White Sheik" and "The Great War', died Feb. 24 of a heart attack in Rome at age 82.
Jeremy Stabile - Television producer and writer who worked on shows like "The Leeza Gibbons Show" and "The Donny and Marie Show', and was currently a producer of "The Dr. Phil Show', died Feb. 13 in Los Angeles after collapsing on the way to dinner with friends of a suspected heart ailment (autopsy pending). He was 28.
Daniel Taradash - Screenwriter best known for his Oscar-winning adaptation for the 1953 film "From Here to Eternity', still considered one of the all-time best book adaptations, who also adapted "Picnic" and "Storm Center" (which he also directed), died Feb. 22 of cancer in Los Angeles at age 90.
Peter Tewksbury - TV and film director best known for directing the TV shows "Father Knows Best" and "My Three Sons', who later directed the films "Sunday in New York" and two Elvis Presley vehicles, "Stay Away, Joe" and "The Trouble with Girls", died Feb. 20 in Brattleboro, VT of undisclosed causes at age 79.
Eugene Troobnick - Charter member of the Second City comedy troupe that formed in Chicago in 1959 with Troobnick, Paul Sills, Howard Alk and Bernard Sahlins, who went on to a successful career as a character actor appearing in films like "All that Jazz', "Funny Lady" and "Deconstructing Harry" and guest appearances in many TV shows, died Feb. 19 in Seattle at age 75.
Otha Turner - Mississippi fife master whose unique style of fife and drum music received national accolades and who released his first CD "Everybody'sHollerin" Goat" at age 90 (called one of the top 5 blues albums of the 90'sby Rolling Stone magazine), and whose music was featured in the "Gangs of New York" soundtrack, died Feb. 27 in Como, MS at age 94. His daughter Bernice Turner-Pratcher, who was a drummer and manager for his band also died Feb. 27 of stomach cancer at age 48.
Titos Vandis - Familiar actor who appeared in dozens of films and TV shows both in his native Greece as well as the U.S. in films like "Never on Sunday', "Topkapi', Woody Allen's "Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Sex" (as the shepherd) and "The Exorcist" (as Father Karras'suncle), died Feb. 23 of cancer in Athens at age 86.

Sports
Tony Altomare - Professional for the WWF for about 25 years best known for his tag team duo with Captain Lou Albano as the "Sicilians', died Feb. 18 in Stamfort, CT of heart failure at age 74.
Chris Brasher - Olympic steeplechase gold medal winner at the 1956 games, who achieved his greatest fame in 1954 when he paced Roger Bannister the day that he became the first person to break the 4-minute mile, and who went on to start the London Marathon in 1981, died Feb. 28 in Chaddleworth, Berkshire, England at age 74.
Don Landrum - Major league outfielder who played seven seasons from 1957 to 1966 with the Phillies, Cardinals, Cubs and Giants, who compiled a lifetime batting average of .275, died Jan. 9 in Pittsburgh, CA at age 66.
Kevin O'Shea - Basketball player who played guard for 3 seasons in the NBA with the Lakers and Bullets in the early 50's, but who is best remembered for earning All-American honors for four years while playing college basketball at Notre Dame, who became the first four-year winner (and only basketball player) in Notre Dame history, died Feb. 21 in San Francisco at age 77.
Frederick "Fritz" Pollard Jr. - Olympic hurdler who won a bronze medal for the U.S. in the 1936 Olympic games in Berlin, who was an All-American football player at the University of North Dakota while there broke and still holds the world record in high hurdles, who was the son of the legendary Fritz Pollard, Sr.- who was the 1st black producerto produce a full length film. He was inducted into the NFL Pro football Hall of Fame, and the first black coach in the NFL, died Feb. 15 in Washington, DC of Alzheimer'scomplications at age 87.

Art and Literature
Quentin Anderson - Literary critic, cultural historian and author, who was an authority on Ralph Waldo Emerson and Walt Whitman, and penned several books including "The American Henry James" and "Making Americans: An Essay on Individualism and Money", died Feb. 18 in Morningside Heights, NY at age 90.
Sam Angeloff - Founding senior editor of People Magazine from the magazine'sinception in 1974, who helped launch US magazine in 1978 and became it'seditor-in-chief, died Feb. 21 of Alzheimer'sdisease in Seattle at age 63.
Maurice Blanchot - French novelist and critic known for his odd and unique writing style in works like "Thomas The Obscure" and "Death Sentence', died Feb. 20 in Yvelines, France at age 95.
Christopher Hill - Noted Marxist and historian who glorified the free-thinking period of 17th-century England which he called "the English Revolution" in books like "The World Turned Upside Down', died Feb. 24 at age 91.
Pavel Hlava - Czech sculptor who cut glass into sculptures that can be found in more than 20 art museums throughout the world, died Feb. 22 in Prague at age 78.
Fred Hudson - Screenwriter, playwright and president of the Frederick Douglass Creative Arts Center in New York, who taught hundreds of aspiring black writers, actors and directors the tricks of the trade, including performers Danny Glover, Garrett Morris, Samuel L. Jackson and S. Epatha Merkerson, died Feb. 13 in New York of heart failure at age 74.
Louis LaRusso II - Playwright known for works that portrayed life and events in the working class town of Hoboken, NJ like "Knockout', "Wheelbarrow Closers" and the Tony-nominated "Lamppost Reunion', died Feb. 23 of bladder cancer in Jersey City, NJ at age 67.
Robert Merton - One of the 20th century'smost influential sociologists known as "Mr. Sociology", who coined such well-known terms as "self-fulfilling prophecy', "focus group" and "role models', who studied the anatomy of racism, the behavior of scientists and the workings of the mass media, among many other subjects, died Feb. 23 in New York at age 92.
John Pullen - Author who with his book "The Twentieth Maine', is credited with rekindling interest in Civil War citizen-soldier Joshua Chamberlain (commandeer of a volunteer regiment in the Civil War and later governor of Maine and portrayed by Jeff Daniels in the film "Gettysburg'), and who in 1999 published ''Joshua Chamberlain: a Hero's Life and Legacy'', died Feb. 25 in Brunswick, ME at age 89.

Politics and Military
Shlomo Argov - Israeli ambassador to Britain who in 1982 was shot in the head by Palestinian militants in an assassination attempt, an event which triggered Israel'sinvasion of Lebanon, died Feb. 23 in Jerusalem of those injuries at age 73.
Eugene J. Carroll - Navy rear admiral who became best known after his retirement from the Navy as an aggressive and vocal advocate for global nuclear disarmament, died Feb. 19 of a heart attack in Washington, DC at age 79.
Fidel Sanchez Hernandez - President of El Salvador from 1967 until 1972 who was considered a military hero for directing the 1969 invasion of Honduras in a territory dispute, died Feb. 28 of heart failure in San Salvador at age 85.
Mike McKool - Texas state senator from 1968 to 1972 who in 1972 set a world filibustering record in an effort to persuade the Texas Senate to increase funding for mental health and retardation (42 hours and 33 minutes), and was a longtime Democratic Party activist in Texas, died Feb. 22 in Dallas at age 84.

Social and Religion
Dr. Alex Cameron - The "pronouncer" at the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee for the last 23 years who was an English professor at the University of Dayton, who was well-known to millions who tuned into the annual nationally televised ESPN broadcast championship, and who was featured in the recent Oscar-nominated documentary "Spellbound', was found dead on Feb. 24 of unknown but natural causes at his home in Kettering, OH at age 65.
Pei Chen - College student from China who was studying the piano at the University of Missouri at Kansas City Conservatory of Music, and who was severely injured after being struck by a car while crossing the street in a crosswalk on Feb. 3 (the 19-year-old driver who hit Chen switched lanes to pass the other cars stopped at the crosswalk), died on Feb. 14 of those injuries. She was 20 years old.
Sister M. Kathleen Clark - Founder of Casa de los Ninos, the U.S.'slargest crisis nursery for neglected and abused children located in Tucson, AZ, who was named one of America's most unsung heroes by Newsweek magazine in 1988, died Feb. 21 in Los Angeles at age 83.
Eddie Dodson - Notorious Hollywood bank robber who holds records for most banks robbed at 64 and most banks robbed in one day at 6 (Nov. 29, 1983), who robbed banks to support a cocaine and heroin addiction, and who served 13 years in prison, died Feb. 21 in Los Angeles of liver failure and cancer at age 54.
Harry J. Gaynor - Founder and president of the National Burn Victim Foundation and an expert witness in burn cases, who started the foundation to help burn victims and establish treatment facilities, and created a disaster response system that was activated on Sept. 11, 2001, died Feb. 26 in Morristown, NJ at age 82.
Frankie Hewitt - Founder of the Ford'sTheatre Society in the 1960'swho led the revival and restoration of the theatre which "went dark" after Abraham Lincoln'sassassination in 1865 and had served mostly as a government warehouse, and who had received the National Humanities Medal from President Bush on Feb. 27, died Feb. 28 of cancer in Maryland at age 71.
Rev. E.V. Hill - Ultra-conservative pastor of Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles which has one of the nation'slargest African American denominations, who was a confidant of Martin Luthur King, but who unlike many of his counterparts was a staunch Republican and aligned himself with such conservative preachers as Jerry Falwell, died Feb. 24 of pneumonia in Los Angeles at age 69.
Amos King - Florida man who while serving time prison in 1977, slipped away from a prison work release program, and raped and brutally murdered 68-year-old Natalie Brady, then set her house on fire, and who had survived death warrants signed by three governors, was executed by lethal injection on Feb. 26 in Starke, FL at age 48.
Kokomo - 1,200 lb. pygmy sperm whale who was found on Jan. 22 stranded in the Florida Keys with a spear wound near his blowhole, and was transported to a pool at a resort hotel in Islamorada, died of pneumonia on Feb. 27 in Key Largo at age of about 20.
Lin Wang - The oldest known Asian elephant living in captivity, who served in World War II for the Japanese in China dragging army cannons and supplies through the jungles of Burma until his capture by the Chinese in 1943, and who retired to a zoo in Taiwan in 1954, died Feb. 26 of heart and lung failure in Taiwan at age 86.
Bernard Loiseau - Well-known French chef and restaurateur, who was one of the great chefs of the Burgundy wine-growing region and ran the H?el de la C?e d'Or, was found shot to death in his home in Saulieu, France, an apparent suicide, at age 52.
John McMorran - Florida man who defied logic by becoming the U.S.'soldest man and the fifth oldest man in history, who smoked cigars, drank beer and ate greasy food throughout his life, who was too old to enlist for service during World War I, died Feb. 24 in Lakeland, FL of extraordinary old age at age 113.
Amy Bess Miller - Founder of the acclaimed Hancock Shaker Village museum in Pittsfield, Massachusettes, which is on the site of the original Shaker settlement, and who wrote several books including "Shaker Medicinal Herbs" and "The Best of Shaker Cooking", died Feb. 23 at age 90.
Paul Stevens - Outspoken opponent of the death penalty who turned his grief for a murdered daughter into a prison ministry for death row inmates, died Feb. 25 in Madisonville, KY at age 81.
Rev. Harold H. Wilke - Armless minister, author and social activist whose early advocacy for people with disabilities helped set the stage for the movement that would win freedoms and protections for the disabled, died Feb. 25 in Pomona, CA of heart failure at age 88.
Richard Head Williams - Texas man who cut the throat of Jeanette Williams, a 44-year-old paralyzed crack addict, in a bizarre contract killing arranged by two of her "friends" to collect insurance money in 1997, was executed by lethal injection on Feb. 25 in Huntsville, TX at age 33.

Business and Science
Chris DeBleser - CEO and founder of consulting firm and website Yet2.com, a company that links buyers with sellers of new computer technologies, died Feb. 17 of amyloidosis in Marblehead, MA at age 47.
Andrew Dingwall - Inventor who held over 100 patents including the first microprocessor used in automobiles and circuitry used in the
Pioneer 10 satellite that left the solar system, was found dead Feb. 24 in a brook behind his house (according to his wife, he got out of bed around 1 AM and never returned) in Princeton Township, NJ. He was 75.
Roy Grace - Art director at the Doyle Dane Bernbach advertising agency during the 1960'sand 70'swho helped create some of the most memorable ad campaigns during the creative revolution in advertising including the "Spicy Meatball" ad for Alka-Seltzer and the"Gorilla" ad for American Tourister, died of prostate cancer on Feb. 26 in New York at age 66.
Arthur Hauspurg - President and CEO of New York electric company Con Edison from 1973 until 1990, who oversaw the improvement of Con Ed's transmission system and the design of stronger links to neighboring utilities during his tenure, died Feb. 19 while vacationing in Barbados at age 77.
Albert Hibbs - Scientist who helped design the Explorer I space orbiter launched in 1958, but who became best known as the NASA spokesman who explained the intricacies of space flight on television, and who went on to host the children'sprogram "Exploring" in the 1960's, died Feb. 24 after heart surgery in Pasadena, CA at age 78.
Harold Kelley - Influential social psychologist who was instrumental in the evolution of attribution theory, which looks at how people attribute causes for behavior, and who made important contributions with studies on understanding patterns of behavior between people in relationships, died Jan. 29 of cancer in Los Angeles at age 82.
Warren Lasko - Mortgage banker credited with creating Fannie Mae'sfirst adjustable-rate mortgage and its first mortgage-backed securities program, and who established the Mortgage Bankers Association as the premier voice of real estate finance, died Feb. 20 in Chevy Chase, MD of esophageal cancer at age 62.
Thomas Leonard - Founder and CEO of CoachVille, the virtual boot camp that trains people to be personal and business coaches and is the largest of this type of business, who wrote several books including "Working Wisdom: Top 10 Lists for Improving Your Business" and "The Portable Coach", died of a heart attack on Feb. 11 in Phoenix at age 47.
Ruth Levine - Pharmacologist and pioneer in the field of drug absorption who wrote the definitive pharmacology textbook ''Pharmacology: Drug Actions and Reactions'" for teaching pharmacology at the preprofessional level, died Feb. 23 of cancer in Brookline, MA at age 84.
Felice Lippert - Co-founder of Weight Watchers who partnered with dietician Jean Nidetch in 1963 to market Nidetch'sweight-loss-through-nutrition program which became an international phenomenon with millions of subscribers to its weight control regimen, died Feb. 22 of lung cancer in Manhasset, NY at age 73.
Tod McClaskey - Co-founder of the Red Lion hotel chain with partner Ed Pietz, who opened the first hotel in 1959 in Vancouver, Washington, and which became the largest privately held hotel chain west of the Mississippi River by the time they sold it in 1984, died Feb. 22 in Rancho Mirage, CA at age 91.
Pioneer 10 - U.S. spacecraft launched on March 7, 1972, which set many firsts, becoming the first spacecraft to pass through the asteroid belt, the first to obtain close-up images of Jupiter and then the first to venture out of the solar system when it passed the orbit of Pluto, fell silent after its last transmission on Jan. 22 at a position 7.6 billion miles from the earth after a 31 year mission.
Dr. Elliott Shapiro - Psychologist and educator who is the last surviving founding member of the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy (which he formed with Frederick and Laura Perls), and who was known for fighting public school squalor and bureaucratic lethargy in the New York City public schools in the 1960's, died Feb. 17 in Manhattan at age 91.
Dean Thornton - President from 1985 to 1993 of Boeing's Commercial Airplane Group, the division which oversees production of the company's commercial jetliners, collapsed and died while skiing on Feb. 25 in Sun Valley, ID at age 74.
Dr. Luke C.L. Yuan - Experimental physicist at the Brookhaven National Laboratory, who was the husband of the late physicist Dr. Chien-Shiung Wu, known for her work disproving the law of conservation of parity, died Feb. 11 while visiting relatives in Beijing (he lived in New York) at age 90.