Final Exits, 22-28 June 2011

Elaine Stewart in the film The Bad and the Beautiful, 1952.

Obituaries for 22-28 June 2011

22
* Sir John Agnew, 6th Baronet, 60, British landowner, prostate cancer.
* Kader Asmal, 76, South African politician, heart attack.
* Anatoli Bitkov, 38, Russian journalist and broadcaster, homicide. (Russian)
* Fanny de Sivers, 90, Estonian linguist and translator. (Estonian)
* Carmelo Juan Giaquinta, 81, Argentinian Roman Catholic prelate, Archbishop of Resistencia (1993–2005).
* Harley Hotchkiss, 83, Canadian businessman, member of Hockey Hall of Fame, prostate cancer.
* Robert Miller, 72, American art dealer, infection.
* Cyril Ornadel, 87, British conductor and composer.
* Coşkun Özarı, 80, Turkish football player and coach.
* David Rayfiel, 87, American screenwriter (Out of Africa, Three Days of the Condor), heart failure.
* Jared Southwick, 34, American rock guitarist (The Dream Is Dead), liver and kidney condition.
* Mike Waterson, 70, British folk singer, cancer.
* John Waite, 81, South African cricketer.
* Zbyněk Zeman, 82, Czech historian.

23
* Vladislav Achalov, 65, Russian general and activist.
* Gene Colan, 84, American comic book artist (Daredevil, Howard the Duck), complications from cancer and liver disease.
* Gaye Delorme, 64, Canadian musician, heart attack.
* Peter Falk, 83, American actor (Columbo, Murder, Inc., Pocketful of Miracles, The Great Race).
* Stéphane Franke, 47, German athlete. (German)
* Len King, 86, Australian politician and jurist, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia (1978–1995).
* Dennis Marshall, 25, Costa Rican footballer, car crash.
* Patricia Merbreier, 86, American actress and television personality (Captain Noah and His Magical Ark).
* Basil Mitchell, 94, British philosopher.
* Christiane Desroches Noblecourt, 97, French Egyptologist.
* Attilio Ruffini, 85, Italian politician, Minister of Defence (1977–1980) and Minister of Foreign Affairs (1980). (Italian)
* Fred Steiner, 88, American television composer (Perry Mason, Star Trek, The Twilight Zone).

24
* Tomislav Ivić, 77, Croatian football coach (Ajax, Anderlecht). (Dutch)
* Nisar Ahmed Khan, 110, Pakistani supercentenarian, thought to be oldest Pakistani.
* Richie Myers, 81, American baseball player (Chicago Cubs), complications from a fall.
* F. Gilman Spencer, 85, American Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper editor.

25
* George Ballas, 85, American entrepreneur, inventor of the Weed Eater.
* Nick Charles, 64, American sportscaster (CNN Sports Tonight), bladder cancer.
* Shelby Grant, 74, American actress (Our Man Flint, Fantastic Voyage, Medical Center), brain aneurysm.
* Martin H. Greenberg, 70, American anthologist, cancer.
* Jan Kułakowski, 80, Polish politician, Member of the European Parliament (2004–2009).
* J.O. Patterson, Jr., 76, American politician and religious leader, first black mayor of Memphis (1982).
* Alice Playten, 63, American actress, heart failure.
* Goff Richards, 66, English brass band arranger and composer, illness.
* Betty Roberts, 88, American politician and judge, Oregon Supreme Court (1982–1986), pulmonary fibrosis.
* Margaret Tyzack, 79, British actress, short illness.

26
* Roberto Bruce, 78, Chilean comedian, cardiac arrest. (Spanish)
* Simon Heere Heeresma, 79, Dutch writer. (Dutch)
* Norma Lyon, 81, American farmer and butter sculpture artist.
* Sidney Hollis Radner, 91, American collector of Harry Houdini memorabilia.
* Alan Rodger, Baron Rodger of Earlsferry, 66, British Supreme Court judge.
* Christopher Shale, 56, British political aide.
* Jan van Beveren, 63, Dutch football player and coach. (Dutch)
* Barry Wilkins, 64, Canadian hockey player (Vancouver Canucks), lung cancer.

27
* Lorenzo Charles, 47, American basketball player (NC State, Atlanta Hawks), bus accident.
* Mike Doyle, 64, English footballer (Manchester City), liver failure.
* Michel Yehuda Lefkowitz, 97, Israeli rabbi.
* Erling Olsen, 84, Danish politician, natural causes. (Danish)
* Elaine Stewart, 81, American actress and model, after long illness.
* Charles W. Whalen, Jr., 90, American politician, U.S. Representative from Ohio (1967–1979).
* Maciej Zembaty, 67, Polish writer and singer. (Polish)

28
* Giorgio Bernardin, 83, Italian footballer. (Italian)
* Carlos Diarte, 57, Paraguayan footballer, cancer. (Spanish)
* Richard Fox, 57, British jockey and actor.
* Aleksey Mazhukov, 75, Russian composer. (Russian)
* Aleksandr Novikov, 64, Russian politician, former deputy mayor of Moscow, suicide. (Russian)
* Richard Harding Poff, 87, American politician, U.S. Representative from Virginia (1953–1972).

Peter Falk Dies at 83

Peter Falk in Decoy (TV, 1959)

Saturday, 25 June 2011

Actor Peter Falk has died at the age of 83.

Falk is best known for his portrayal of the rumpled, seemingly slow-witted television detective Columbo, a role that earned him four Emmy awards.

One of Lieutenant Columbo's trademarks was an ever-present, wrinkled raincoat that was plucked from Falk's personal closet.

In 2006 Falk wrote a book about his professional and personal lives entitled Just One More Thing – named after his Columbo catchphrase.

Surgeons removed Falk's cancerous right eye when he was three. He was fitted with a glass eye and went on to become a high school athlete.

Falk earned a master's degree in public administration and worked for the state of Connecticut as an efficiency expert before deciding to become an actor.

In the early 1960s, he won his first Emmy for his role as a truck driver who befriends a lonely, pregnant girl in The Price of Tomatoes, a segment of The Dick Powell Show.

Falk was nominated twice for an Academy Award – in 1960 for Murder, Inc. and a year later for Pocketful of Miracles.

A versatile actor, Falk appeared in the original stage productions of works by Paddy Chayefsky, Neil Simon and Arthur Miller. He also worked with film directors Frank Capra, John Cassavetes, Blake Edwards and Mike Nichols and studied with legendary acting coach Eva Le Gallienne.

The cause of Falk's death was not given, but in recent years he had suffered from Alzheimer's disease.

Peter Falk is survived by his wife and two daughters.

Final Exits, 15-21 June 2011

Frank Zappa and Wild Man Fischer, circa 1968

Obituaries for 15-21 June 2011

15
* Bob Banner, 89, American television producer and director (The Carol Burnett Show), Parkinson's disease.
* Joko Beck, 94, American Zen Buddhist teacher, founder of the Ordinary Mind School, after long illness.
* John Ehrman, 91, British historian.
* Bill Haast, 100, American snake expert, director of the Miami Serpentarium.
* Linda Scheid, 68, American politician, Minnesota state senator (since 1997), ovarian cancer.
* Sir Apenera Short, 95, Cook Islands politician, Queen's Representative (1990–2000).
* Mae Wheeler, 77, American singer and event producer, after long illness.

16
* Gerald Abramovitz, 82, South African architect and designer, assault-related injuries.
* James Allason, 98, British politician and soldier, MP for Hemel Hempstead (1959–1974).
* Wild Man Fischer, 66, American street musician, heart failure.
* Abrar Hussain, 46, Pakistani Olympic boxer, shot.
* Yehuda Kiel, 94, Israeli educator and biblical scholar.
* Östen Mäkitalo, 72, Swedish electrical engineer.
* Pavel Stolbov, 81, Russian Olympic gold medal-winning (1956) gymnast. (Russian)

17
* David Brockhoff, 83, Australian rugby union player and coach.
* Betty Fox, 71, Canadian cancer research activist, founder of the Terry Fox Foundation.
* Ben Grussendorf, 69, American politician, Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives (1985–1989; 1991–1993).
* Ruth M. Kirk, 81, American politician, Maryland House of Delegates (1983–2011).
* Fernando Larraín Munita, 76, Chilean humorist, prostate cancer. (Spanish)
* Carlos Mosse, Argentine politician, lung cancer. (Spanish)
* Rex Mossop, 83, Australian rugby player and television commentator.
* Nathan Sharon, 86, Israeli biochemist. (Hebrew)

18
* Echendu Adiele, 32, Nigerian footballer.
* Ulrich Biesinger, 77, German football player. (German)
* Yelena Bonner, 88, Russian human rights activist, after long illness.
* Wilza Carla, 75, Brazilian actress. (Portuguese)
* Frederick Chiluba, 68, Zambian politician, President (1991–2002), heart attack.
* Clarence Clemons, 69, American saxophonist (E Street Band), complications following a stroke.
* Karl Frei, 94, Swiss Olympic gold medal-winning (1948) gymnast. (German)
* Brian Haw, 62, English protestor and peace campaigner, lung cancer.
* Gustaf Kjellvander, 31, Swedish singer-songwriter. (Swedish)
* Bob Pease, 70, American integrated circuit engineer.
* John Perumattam, 89, Indian Syro-Malabar Catholic hierarch, Bishop of Ujjain (1968–1998).
* Shlomo Pinto, 57, Israeli paralympic athlete. (Hebrew)
* Morris Pollard, 95, American microbiologist.

19
* Don Diamond, 90, American actor (F Troop, The Adventures of Kit Carson, Zorro).
* Tom Hungerford, 96, Australian author.
* John Kerr, Sr., 67, Scottish-born American soccer player.
* Joel Simon, American movie executive (WWE Studios), pancreatic cancer.
* Angelos Tzekis, 60, Greek politician.

20
* Ryan Dunn, 34, American reality television star (Jackass, Viva La Bam), car accident.
* Magomet Isayev, 83, Russian Esperantist, translator and linguist. (Russian)
* Miguel Ángel López Velasco, 55, Mexican journalist, shot.
* Vladimir Pettay, 38, Russian football referee, plane crash.
* Clodosbaldo Russián, 72, Venezuelan public official, Comptroller General (since 1999), kidney failure.

21
* Kothapalli Jayashankar, 76, Indian educator and politician, after long illness.
* Robert Kroetsch, 83, Canadian author.
* Suresh Tendulkar, 72, Indian economist, cardiac arrest.
* Maria Gomes Valentim, 114, Brazilian supercentenarian, world's oldest person.

Final Exits, 8-14 June 2011

Obituaries for 8-14 June 2011

8
* Anatole Abragam, 96, French physicist. (French)
* Larry Border, 60, American politician, member of the West Virginia House of Delegates (since 1990), stroke.
* Angie Garany, 30, Croatian reality television star (Farma), complications from a car accident. (Croatian)
* Nasir Jalil, 56, Singaporean footballer.
* Clara Luper, 88, American civil rights activist, after long illness.
* John Mackenzie, 83, British film director (The Long Good Friday, Ruby).
* Paul Massie, 78, Canadian BAFTA-winning actor and theater professor.
* Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, 38?, Comorian al-Qaeda terrorist, planned 1998 United States embassy bombings, shot.
* Jim Northrup, 71, American baseball player (Detroit Tigers, Montreal Expos, Baltimore Orioles), seizure.
* Steve Popovich, 68, American record executive, founder of Cleveland International Records.
* Alan Rubin, 68, American trumpeter (The Blues Brothers), lung cancer .
* Roy Skelton, 79, British actor (Rainbow, Doctor Who), stroke.
* Oliver William Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 85, British Anglican priest, Dean of Lincoln (1969–1989).

9
* Jorge Berlanga, 52, Spanish writer, hepatic disease. (Spanish)
* Jameel Fakhri, 67, Pakistani television, film and stage actor, brain hemorrhage.
* M. F. Husain, 95, Indian artist, heart attack.
* Josip Katalinski, 63, Bosnian footballer, after long illness. (Croatian)
* Tomoko Kawakami, 41, Japanese voice actress (Fushigi Yûgi, Revolutionary Girl Utena), ovarian cancer.
* Claude Léveillée, 78, Canadian actor and songwriter, apparent heart attack.
* Mike Mitchell, 55, American basketball player (Cleveland Cavaliers, San Antonio Spurs), cancer.
* Godfrey Myles, 42, American football player (Dallas Cowboys), heart attack.
* Vladimir Tumanov, 84, Russian lawyer, Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Russia (1995–1997). (Russian)
* Ignazio Vella, 82, American artisanal cheesemaker and businessman, long illness.
* Pavel Vinnik, 85, Russian film actor. (Russian)

10
* Jeanne Bice, 71, American entrepreneur and television personality.
* Pam Brown, 58, American politician, Nebraska state senator (1995–2006), ovarian cancer.
* Yuri Budanov, 47, Russian military officer and war criminal, shot.
* Cosimo Caliandro, 29, Italian middle distance runner, motorcycle collision.
* Theo Dubois, 100, Canadian rower.
* Abdi Shakur Sheikh Hassan, Somali politician, Interior Minister (since 2010), suicide bombing.
* Kenny Hawkes, British DJ and music producer, after short illness.
* Esmond Kentish, 94, Jamaican Test cricketer.
* Sir Patrick Leigh Fermor, 96, British author and soldier.
* Brian Lenihan, Jnr, 52, Irish politician, TD for Dublin West (since 1996) and Minister for Finance (2008–2011), pancreatic cancer.
* Darryl Pandy, 48, American house vocalist ("Love Can't Turn Around"), after short illness.
* Jim Rodnunsky, 54, Canadian technician, inventor of the Cablecam system, brain cancer.
* Al Schwimmer, 94, American-born Israeli businessman, founder of Israel Aerospace Industries.
* György Szabados, 71, Hungarian physician, pianist, and composer.
* Sven-Olof Walldoff, 82, Swedish conductor and composer.

11
* Shaun Best, 43, Canadian photographer (Reuters).
* Giorgio Celli, 75, Italian entomologist and politician (The Greens–European Free Alliance). (Italian)
* Robert Marie Jean Victor de Chevigny, 90, French-born Mauritanian Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Nouakchott (1973–1995).
* Jyotirmoy Dey, 56, Indian journalist, shot.
* Gunnar Fischer, 100, Swedish cinematographer (The Seventh Seal).
* Eliyahu M. Goldratt, 64, Israeli physicist and management guru.
* Kurt Nielsen, 80, Danish tennis player, only Dane to have played in a men's Grand Slam singles final. (Danish)
* Graham B. Purcell, Jr., 92, American politician, U.S. Representative from Texas (1962–1973).
* Seth Putnam, 43, American musician (Anal Cunt).
* James Rahal, Jr., 77, American physician and West Nile Virus expert, Rosai–Dorfman disease.
* Idwal Robling, 84, Welsh Olympic footballer and broadcaster.
* Raúl Marcelo Pacífico Scozzina, 89, Argentinian Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Formosa (1957–1978).
* Jack Smith, 82, British artist.
* William Carrington Thompson, 95, American politician, Virginia House of Delegates (1959–1968), Virginia Senate (1968–1973) and Supreme Court (1980–1983).

12
* René Audet, 91, Canadian Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Joliette (1968–1990).
* Christian Collardot, 77, French Olympic athlete. (French)
* Geoffrey Fisken, 95, New Zealand World War II flying ace.
* Carl Gardner, 83, American singer (The Coasters).
* Alan Haberman, 81, American grocer, first to use the barcode system, heart and lung disease.
* John Hospers, 93, American philosopher, first Libertarian Party presidential candidate (1972).
* Hoda Saber, 52, Iranian dissident, heart attack following a hunger strike.
* Kathryn Tucker Windham, 93, American author and journalist.
* Sir John Wilton, 89, British diplomat.
* Laura Ziskin, 61, American film producer (Pretty Woman, Spider-Man, What About Bob?), breast cancer.

13
* Germano Meneghel, 49, Brazilian vocalist (Olodum). (Spanish)
* Betty Neumar, 79, American murder suspect.
* Pablo Ruelas Barraza, 38, Mexican journalist, shot. (Spanish)
* William J. Spahr, 89, American CIA analyst and author, pneumonia.

14
* Tom Addison, 75, American football player (New England Patriots).
* Milivoj Ašner, 98, Croatian-born Austrian Nazi war criminal.
* Ambrose Griffiths, 82, British Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Hexham and Newcastle.
* Asad Ali Khan, 74, Indian musician, recipient of the Padma Bhushan.
* Augusto Ramírez Ocampo, 77, Colombian politician, Mayor of Bogotá (1982–1984), Foreign Minister (1984–1986), heart ailment.
* Oscar Sambrano Urdaneta, 82, Venezuelan writer. (Spanish)
* Peter Schamoni, 77, German film director.
* Mack Self, 81, American rockabilly musician.

Famed British Peace Activist Brian Haw Dead at 62

Brian Haw on 24 February 2007 (Photo: David Hunt)

Famed British Peace Activist Brian Haw Dead at 62
Sunday, 19 June 2011

Brian Haw, a peace activist who for years held a nearly non-stop vigil in a tent across from Britain's parliament, has died, his family announced Sunday.

Almost everyone who worked in or visited the London landmark had seen him. A former carpenter and member of the Merchant Navy, Haw set up his tent near opposite the Houses of Parliament in 2001 to protest British and U.S. sanctions against Iraq.

His protests became more vocal and elaborate when the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were launched — accusing Western leaders of mass murder and draping his tent with posters and pictures.

British courts rejected efforts to evict Haw and he often tussled with passersby who argued with him.

But many others, including some members of Parliament, praised Haw for what they say was his commitment to peace and refusal to keep silent.

Haw was being treated for lung cancer in Germany when he died Saturday. He was 62 years old.

Soviet-Era Human Rights Activist Yelena Bonner Dies at 88

Yelena Bonner (left), Andrei Sakharov and Sofiya Kalistratova in Moscow, 1977. (Photo: M.A.Kallistratova)

Soviet-Era Human Rights Activist Yelena Bonner Dies at 88
Sunday, 19 June 2011

Veteran Soviet-era rights activist Yelena Bonner, widow of Nobel Peace laureate Andrei Sakharov, has died in the United States at the age of 88.

Bonner died of heart problems Saturday in Boston, where she lived with her son and daughter.

Bonner was a relentless critic of human rights abuses by Soviet-era authorities. She was born in Turkmenistan in 1923 to a Jewish mother and an Armenian father. Her father was executed and her mother sentenced to a labor camp under Soviet leader Josef Stalin.

After a career as a nurse, Bonner married nuclear physicist and fellow dissident Andrei Sakharov in 1972. Both became vocal critics of nuclear weapons proliferation. When the Kremlin banned Sakharov from collecting his 1975 Nobel Peace Prize, Bonner went to Oslo to accept it for him.

In the 1980's, authorities sentenced the couple to internal exile in the city of Gorky for criticizing the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

After Sakharov's 1989 death, Bonner remained an outspoken critic of Russian military action in Chechnya and of former Presidents Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. State Department says it is profoundly saddened at Bonner's death, calling her an extraordinary voice among human rights defenders.

Her family says Bonner will be cremated and her ashes buried in a Moscow cemetery beside Sakharov.

Springsteen Sax Star Clarence Clemons Dies

Clarence Clemons ("The Big Man") playing his saxophone part on "Night" early in a show during Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's Working on a Dream Tour. Estadio José Zorrilla, Valladolid, Spain, August 1, 2009. (Photo: Manuel Martinez Perez)

19 June 2011
Springsteen Sax Star Clarence Clemons Dies
VOA News

Clarence Clemons, the burly star saxophonist of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, died Saturday, six days after suffering a stroke following surgery. Clemons was 69.

His bandleader, Springsteen, announced on his website Clemons' loss was "immeasurable." Springsteen said "we are honored and thankful to have known him and had the opportunity to stand beside him for nearly 40 years."

Clemons died at his home in the southern U.S. state of Florida. His health had been fragile in recent years after the musician underwent hip and knee surgeries.

Clemons' powerful raw style was featured on many hits by Springsteen, including "Jungleland" and "Born to Run."

Clemons last appeared with Springsteen and his longtime band in December.

Clemons is the second E Street Band member to die. Longtime keyboard player Danny Federici died of cancer nearly three years ago at the age of 58.