Nora Ezell (90) winner of a National Endowment of the Arts award for her quilts honoring the life of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the civil rights era in Alabama, and the saga of the American Indian, among others. Ezell's quilts were bold statements of creative freedom. A self-taught artist, she used mixed media and vibrant colors, often working without patterns. She died of heart disease in Tuscaloosa, Alabama on September 6, 2007.

Eliot Fremont-Smith (78) former book critic for the New York Times and the Village Voice, and a founding board member of the National Book Critics Circle. In his years at the Times (1961-68), Fremont-Smith helped to usher in an era of modern criticism by tackling the types of books that his predecessors had largely shied away from—notably the erotic French novel The Story of O and Gore Vidal's Myra Breckenridge, about a transvestite. Fremont-Smith died of heart failure in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina on September 5, 2007.

Burt Hasen (85) New York City painter who drew inspiration from his experience working with aerial maps as a military technician during World War II. Hasen's densely worked canvases often had an overhead perspective, whether they suggested an aerial view of a fantasy terrain or a bomb target, some molecular life-form under a microscope or a mass of hieroglyphs on a stretched animal skin. Toward the end of his life, many of his seemingly abstract paintings were based directly, and in detail, on maps. He had been ill for several months and died in New York City on September 7, 2007.

Madeleine L'Engle (88) author of A Wrinkle in Time (1962) and other tales woven with themes of science, religion, and love and read by millions of children and adults. For decades, L'Engle was also librarian at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Manhattan. She was the widow of actor Hugh Franklin (played Dr. Charles Tyler Sr. on the ABC-TV soap All My Children; d. 1986). L'Engle died in Litchfield, Connecticut on September 6, 2007.

Jimmy Lee Sudduth (97) Alabama folk artist known for painting with mud, berries, and other elements to create compelling images of people, buildings, and his dog, Toto. A prolific, self-taught artist who began painting as a child, Sudduth had exhibited his work at the Corcoran Gallery and the Smithsonian Institution's Festival of American Folklife, both in Washington, DC, and in museums in New Orleans, Birmingham, Montgomery, and his hometown. He died in Fayette, Alabama on September 2, 2007.

John D. Cooper (68) Cal State Fullerton geologist widely known for his research on the evolution of eastern California and for curating a significant collection of fossils unearthed during the development of Orange County. Cooper was recognized as an international expert in sequence stratigraphy, a relatively new branch of geology that attempts to link prehistoric sea-level changes to sedimentary deposits. He died of a heart attack during a morning hike near his Chino Hills, California home on September 3, 2007.

Eva Crane (95) Briton who earned a doctorate in nuclear physics, then abandoned the field to devote herself to expanding and spreading knowledge about bees as a researcher, historian, archivist, editor, and author. For more than 50 years Crane worked in more than 60 countries to learn more about honeybees, sometimes traveling by dugout canoe or dog sled to document the human use of bees from prehistoric times to the present, and wrote some of the most important books on bees. She died in Slough, England on September 6, 2007.

Dr. Joseph W. Eschbach (74) leading kidney specialist whose studies in the Ô60s led to a dramatic improvement in the treatment of anemia in patients on dialysis. Eschbach looked at the role of a natural hormone, erythropoietin (EPO), in the formation of red blood cells and helped to establish that EPO stimulates the production of red cells in bone marrow and could lead to a treatment for anemia in humans. In 1989, the Federal Drug Administration approved the hormone, called Epogen, which remains in use. Eschbach died of lung cancer in Bellevue, Washington on September 7, 2007.

Philippe Jaffre (62) executive vice president of engineering company Alstom and former chairman of oil group Elf Aquitaine. Jaffre played an important role in turning around Alstom's fortunes in 2003-04, when he was chief financial officer. He led Elf Aquitaine (1993-99) but resigned after the company announced a merger with rival Total Fina. The company is now known as Total SA. Jaffre died in Paris, France on September 5, 2007.

Alex the Parrot (31) African Grey parrot that knew his colors and shapes, learned more than 100 English words, and with his own brand of one-liners established himself on TV shows and in scientific reports and news articles as perhaps the world's most famous talking bird. Alex was found dead in his cage and was determined to have died late the preceding night, in Waltham, Massachusetts on September 6, 2007.

Nina Schneider (94) author who with her husband, Herman (d. 2003), wrote dozens of science books for children that deftly explained the intricacies of stars, plants, the human body, and even the networks of pipes and cables below city streets. Starting in the mid-'40s, the Schneiders wrote nearly 80 books, Nina assuming the role of the questioning child and Herman, a former science teacher, providing the answers. Nina Schneider died of a stroke on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts on September 8, 2007.

Stuart J. Sperber (70) pioneer of the practice of growing trees in wooden boxes, which enabled year-round planting and helped his Calabasas, California-based landscaping company, ValleyCrest Tree Co., to develop into a nursery industry giant. Sperber died of throat cancer 16 days before his 71st birthday, in Tarzana, California on September 7, 2007.

Fred Spira (83) photo historian and collector of photographic gadgets credited with helping to standardize modern camera equipment and making it accessible to amateurs. Spira was the owner of Spiratone, a photographic accessories business that he started in 1941 as a film-development lab; by the late '50s the company had grown into a multimillion-dollar business, selling lenses, filters, and lighting and darkroom equipment. Spira's success enabled him to persuade major producers to standardize photographic accessories and make them more affordable. He died of Alzheimer's disease in Whitestone, Queens, New York on September 2, 2007.

Seth Tobias (44) hedge-fund manager who founded and ran Circle T Partners LP, an investment company, and appeared frequently as a financial-news commentator on TV, including on CNBC and the Bloomberg TV channel, to comment on the stock markets and other issues. Tobias was found dead of an apparent heart attack in the swimming pool at his home near Palm Beach, Florida on September 4, 2007.

J. D. Williams (81) political scientist at the University of Utah for 40 years whose students included President George W. Bush's adviser Karl Rove. A Democrat, Williams was the first director of the school's Hinckley Institute of Politics and riled many conservative contributors when he called for President Richard Nixon's impeachment in 1973. He died of cancer in Salt Lake City, Utah on September 3, 2007.

Carter Albrecht (34) guitarist and keyboardist with the Dallas rock bands Sorta and Edie Brickell & the New Bohemians. Albrecht had played on the New Bohemians last album Stranger Things, but wasn't in the group when they had their big hit with "What I Am." He was shot and killed by his girlfriend's neighbor, who thought he was a burglar, as he tried to kick in the neighbor's front door, in Dallas, Texas on September 3, 2007.

Bill Boyle (54) New York Daily News senior managing editor whose cool head and sharp editing skills made him a revered figure at the tabloid for the last 21 years. Boyle guided much of the paper's coverage of major stories—particularly the 9/11 terrorist attacks and their aftermath. He died more than a year after he was diagnosed with melanoma, in New York City on September 8, 2007.

Anthony Cavagnaro (41) guitarist and vocalist for the New York rock band Buddhahood. The band was scheduled to perform on September 8 at Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica, New York. Cavagnaro was killed in a car accident in Potter, New York on September 7, 2007.

Anthony Day (74) longtime editorial page editor of the Los Angeles Times who helped to transform the paper into a respected voice in national affairs. Day led the Times's editorial page (1971-89) after being recruited by publisher Otis Chandler, who sought to add credibility to an editorial page long viewed as reactionary and protective of local business interests. Under Day's direction, the Times crusaded against government curbs on freedom of the press. He died of emphysema in Santa Fe, New Mexico on September 2, 2007.

Michael Evans (87) British-born stage and screen actor best known to TV audiences for his long-running role as Col. Douglas Austin on the CBS soap opera The Young & the Restless. Evans also starred on Broadway with a young Audrey Hepburn in the original nonmusical production of Gigi (1951). He appeared (1980-95) on Y&R as best friend and sidekick of arrogant billionaire Victor Newman, played by Eric Braeden. Among Evans' films was Bye Bye Birdie (1963). He died in Woodland Hills, California on September 4, 2007.

Robert Garlock (41) New York City-based publicist who represented such Hollywood stars as Penelope Cruz, Hugh Grant, and Uma Thurman. Garlock was known as a gentlemanly, old-school publicist who had a great sense of style, He impressed colleagues with the way he handled and nurtured his clients, also including Kate Winslet, Clive Owen, Hilary Swank, Sigourney Weaver, and Johnny Depp, among others. Garlock died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in New York City on September 2, 2007.

Marcia Mae Jones (83) former child star in such films as The Champ and Heidi who maintained an adult career in TV Westerns and sitcoms. Although she never achieved the stardom of Shirley Temple, Jones can be seen in several Temple films as part of a circle of children surrounding the curly-headed moppet, and herself played important roles in such films as The Garden of Allah, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and These Three. Jones started acting in films at age 2 and was proud of being a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild at age 6. She died of pneumonia in Woodland Hills, California on September 2, 2007.

John Kuca (39) bassist, guitarist, and drummer for the Portland-based indie alternative rock band Vertigo Butterfly, which had released an album earlier this year. Kuca had also previously played in several Seattle-based bands like The Fellini Outtakes, The Long Faces, and Mabry Hood. He was found dead along with his wife, Luray (39), vocalist with Vertigo Butterfly, and their daughter, Ruby (5), at their apartment in an apparent murder-suicide in Portland, Oregon on September 7, 2007.

Janis Martin (67) rockabilly pioneer billed as "The Female Elvis." Martin rose to fame in the '50s as Elvis Presley's label mate at RCA Victor. Her first record and biggest hit, "Will You Wil-lyum," was released in 1956, when Martin was just 15. She appeared on The Tonight Show and American Bandstand and toured with Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Faron Young, Hank Snow, Porter Wagoner, and Jim Reeves before temporarily retiring from show business in 1958. The late '70s rockabilly revival introduced her to a new generation of fans. She died of cancer in Durham, North Carolina on September 3, 2007.

Luciano Pavarotti (71) legendary Italian opera singer whose vibrant high C notes and ebullient showmanship made him the most beloved and celebrated tenor since Caruso and one of the few opera singers to win crossover fame as a popular superstar. For serious fans, the unforced beauty and thrilling urgency of his voice made Pavarotti the ideal interpreter of the Italian lyric repertory, especially in the '60s and '70s when he first achieved stardom. He became a true media star in the mid-'70s, appearing in TV commercials and outdoor megaconcerts and in stadiums around the world; a concert in New York City's Central Park in 1993 drew 500,000 fans. Instantly recognizable from his charcoal black beard and tuxedo-busting girth, he later teamed with Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras to tour as the "Three Tenors" (pictured above). Pavarotti had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2006 and underwent further treatment in August. He died in Modena, Italy on September 6, 2007.

Percy Rodrigues (89) actor whose role as a neurosurgeon in the '60s TV series Peyton Place broke ground because he was cast as an authority figure when relatively few black actors were given such parts. Rodrigues also had a long career as a voice actor, perhaps best known for his ominous narration of the movie trailers and radio and TV ads for the film Jaws (1975). He died of kidney failure in Indio, California on September 6, 2007.

"Jon Jon" Stravers (33) musician who was musical director of the Children's Dance Institute and had taught music at Boise, Idaho dance studios. Stravers composed music for the studio performances in which he played madolin, guitar, piano, and drums and even made many instruments himself, including his own Native American flutes. He was killed with his son, Jonah (3), when their vehicle collided head-on with that of Bryant C. Hays (26), who was also killed, on state highway 34 near Akron, Colorado on September 2, 2007.

Mark Weil (55) internationally known theater director in Uzbekistan whose troupe, Ilkhom ("Inspiration" in Uzbek), caused controversy at home with its experimental productions. Weil made his name as a dissident artist when he directed plays for other companies in Moscow and conceived and directed unconventional productions for Ilkhom in the Soviet era. In recent years, his updating of the classics and treatment of subjects like homosexuality were considered sensitive in an increasingly repressive Uzbek society. He was fatally stabbed by two young men in front of his apartment building. Before he died, he was able to say that he had not been robbed and did not know his assailants, in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, on September 6, 2007.

Charlotte Zucker (86) actress whose filmmaker sons, Jerry and David Zucker, cast her in bit parts in 17 movies, including Airplane! (1980) and The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad (1988). Charlotte Zucker died two weeks after being diagnosed with advanced cancer, in Shorewood, Wisconsin on September 5, 2007.

Effi Barry (63) ex-wife of former Washington, DC Mayor Marion Barry, who endured her husband's drug abuse and infidelity during his years in office. The Barrys separated in 1990, shortly after he was caught on videotape at a downtown hotel smoking crack cocaine with an ex-model and asking her to have sex with him. They were divorced in 1993. A former model herself, Effi Barry learned she had leukemia in 2006 and campaigned for more black Americans to join the registry for bone marrow transplants. She died of the disease in Annapolis, Maryland on September 6, 2007.

Sir John Compton (82) three-time prime minister of St. Lucia who guided the tiny Caribbean island to independence from Britain and infuriated China by restoring ties with Taiwan. Compton became prime minister most recently in December 2006. He did not resume leadership duties after suffering a series of mild strokes in late April. He died in Castries, St. Lucia on September 7, 2007.

Jennifer Dunn (66) former US congresswoman (R-Wash.) who became the most powerful Republican woman in Washington state history during six terms representing Seattle's east-side suburbs. Dunn was known for her work on tax issues, promoting women-owned businesses, and sponsoring the Amber Alert bill for locating missing children. She died of a blood clot in Alexandria, Virginia on September 5, 2007.

Paul E. Gillmor (68) US congressman (R-Ohio) whose political career covered 40 years. Gillmor, who represented Ohio's heavily Republican 5th District in the Bowling Green area, was first elected to Congress in 1988. He led legislative efforts in such areas as cleanups of commercially contaminated sites known as brownfields and was a strong advocate of a constitutional amendment to ban unfunded mandates on the states. He was found dead by staff members who went to his apartment after he failed to show up at his office, in Arlington, Virginia on September 5, 2007. An autopsy showed that he died of blunt head and neck trauma consistent with a fall down stairs.

Edward M. Gramlich (68) former member (1997-2005) of the Federal Reserve board who raised warnings about the housing boom. In June, Gramlich published Subprime Mortgages: America's Latest Boom & Bust, a book likely to serve as a blueprint for Washington policymakers seeking to find ways to stem a rising tide of mortgage delinquencies and the steepest slump in housing in 16 years. Gramlich died of acute myeloid leukemia in Washington, DC on September 5, 2007.

Edward McGaffigan Jr. (58) longest-serving member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. One of two Democrats on the commission, McGaffigan was appointed to the NRC, which regulates the nuclear industry, in 1996 and again in 2000 by President Bill Clinton and was nominated for a third term by President George W. Bush in '05. He died after a lengthy battle with metastatic melanoma, a particularly dangerous form of skin cancer, in Arlington, Virginia on September 2, 2007.

James Philomena (60) former Mahoning County (Ohio) prosecutor (1989-97) convicted of taking bribes to fix cases. Philomena pleaded guilty in 1999 to conspiracy to violate the federal racketeering statute, making him one of the highest-ranking officials to be convicted as part of a US Justice Department probe of organized crime in northeast Ohio. In 2001, he pleaded guilty to state charges of bribery and perjury. He died of prostate cancer in Youngstown, Ohio on September 2, 2007.

Paul Boland (65) associate justice of the California State Court of Appeal, widely respected for having mentored scores of law students and for developing an innovative program that influenced the way law is taught at schools throughout the nation. Boland died of cancer less than a week after being diagnosed, in Pasadena, California on September 5, 2007.

John Bryan (56) St. Petersburg, Florida city councilman who resigned and was under investigation after being accused of sexually abusing his two adopted daughters, ages 12 and 15, and a young woman he formerly employed as a nanny. In court Bryan acknowledged a sexual relationship with the woman, now 38 and living in another state, claiming it was consensual and happened after she turned 18, but later agreed not to have any contact with his daughters. He was found dead in his garage of an apparent suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning in Floral City, Florida on September 7, 2007.

Adrian Esquino Lisco (68) spiritual leader of the indigenous community who rose to prominence in El Salvador and called attention to atrocities committed during the 1980-92 civil war. Esquino Lisco died of kidney failure and other complications of diabetes in San Salvador, El Salvador on September 8, 2007.

Vince Greer (24) Missouri man who at age 15 shot and killed his mother and wounded his father at their St. Ann, Missouri home on Thanksgiving Day 1997. Greer was convicted of the crime in 2000. The conviction was overturned by an appellate court, which ruled that the trial was tainted by the testimony of a surprise witness, but Greer was convicted again in 2003 and was serving life in prison. He died in St. Louis, Missouri on September 7, 2007.

Bryant Hays (26) driver who may have fallen asleep at the wheel when his pickup truck veered into the wrong lane of traffic and slammed head-on into a car driven by local musician "Jon Jon" Stravers, killing him and his 3-year-old son, Jonah, on Colorado 34. Hays was also killed in the accident near Akron, Colorado on September 2, 2007.

Mia Henderson (18) student at the University of Arizona, stabbed to death by her dormitory roommate, Galareka Harrison (18), as she slept. Harrison also forged a note in which Henderson supposedly admitted falsely accusing her of theft and mentioned suicide. Henderson was murdered in Tucson, Arizona on September 5, 2007.

Rev. D. James Kennedy (76) pioneering Christian broadcaster and megachurch pastor whose fiercely conservative worldview helped to fuel the rise of the religious right in American politics. Kennedy was influential in the founding of the religious right, but did so more often from behind the scenes, as attention focused on his allies, Revs. Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell. Kennedy died from complications of a heart attack he suffered on December 28, 2006, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on September 5, 2007.

Tony Roach (30) repentant South Carolina parolee and drifter who confessed to and was convicted of murdering Ronnie Dawn Hewitt (37) after he climbed through a bedroom window of her Amarillo, Texas apartment in June 1998. Evidence showed that Roach strangled her with a belt, then raped her, ate food from her refrigerator, and set the apartment on fire. He was executed by lethal injection in Huntsville, Texas on September 5, 2007.

Kelly & Erin Stanley (18, 19) Indiana teen sisters. Kelly Stanley had helped police by, among other things, gaining access "to various computer sites" after her older sister, Erin, was found dead at their home on September 1. Authorities ruled that death a homicide, possibly strangulation. When Kelly was found dead six days later, authorities said both deaths appeared to be caused by "similar action on the part of another party." They refused to release the tape of the 911 call until September 17. Kelly Stanley was found dead at her home in Centerville, Indiana on September 7, 2007.

Clarke Bynum (45) former Clemson basketball standout who once helped to thwart a plane hijacking. The 6-foot-7 Bynum averaged five points and two rebounds in four seasons with the Tigers (1980-84) but may have been better known for subduing a man who attacked a pilot in the cockpit of a British Airways jet in December 2000. He died of cancer in Sumter, South Carolina on September 3, 2007.

Gustavo Eberto (24) Argentine soccer goalkeeper who played for the Argentine U-20 team in the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship. Eberto died of testicular cancer in Buenos Aires, Argentina on September 3, 2007.

Gift Leremi (22) South African international football player who had played in the midfield for Mamelodi Sundowns in the Premier Soccer League in South Africa. Leremi was killed in a car accident in Johannesburg, South Africa on September 3, 2007.

Max McNab (83) winner of the Stanley Cup as a player with the Detroit Red Wings in 1950 who later was general manager of two NHL teams (San Diego Gulls, Washington Capitals) in a nearly 50-year hockey career. McNab joined the Red Wings in 1948. His championship came two years later when the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup in double overtime of Game 7 against the New York Rangers. He suffered a massive stroke on Sept. 1 and died the next day, in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 2, 2007.

Dennis Storer (75) founder of the soccer and rugby programs at UCLA who later significantly raised the profile of both sports on a national level. A former captain in the British army's Royal Engineers, Storer went to California from his native Birmingham, England in 1966 to work on his master's degree at USC, then his doctorate at UCLA, and started coaching soccer and rugby as club programs. During his tenure (1967-73), UCLA soccer evolved to a full-fledged NCAA sport. UCLA rugby teams won three national championships (1968, '72, '75) while under Storer's guidance (1966-82). He died of cancer in Malibu, California on September 8, 2007.

Jane Tomlinson (43) British marathon runner who outran terminal cancer in seven inspiring years of astonishing athletic activity and fund-raising for charity. Tomlinson had lived with breast cancer since 1990, but being told in 2000 that she had just six months to live inspired her to become a superathlete. Starting with a 10-km race in 2001, she later ran several marathons and an Iron Man triathlon, and in '06 she completed a 6,780-km (4,213-mile) bicycle ride from San Francisco to New York City. She also pedaled the length of Britain in 2003 and from Rome, Italy to her hometown of Leeds in '04. She died in Leeds, England on September 3, 2007.