The Blog of Death

Erik Braunn

Erik Braunn, the former guitarist of Iron Butterfly, died of cardiac arrest on July 25. He was 52.

Braunn was a four-year-old violin savant when he got accepted into the prodigy program at The Boston Symphony. When he was 16, heavy metal band Iron Butterfly asked him to join the group. He played with Ron Bushy, Lee Dorman and Doug Ingle from 1967 to 1969 -- the band's most prosperous period.

In 1968, Iron Butterfly released the album, "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," which sold over 20 million copies, went platinum and stayed on the Billboard Magazines charts for over a year.

Braunn's contribution to the 17-minute song by the same name is one of the most recognizable guitar licks in rock music. Although a three-minute version of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" was released, the longer one was favored by radio DJs who wanted to take an extra long break.

Braunn occasionally reunited Iron Butterfly for concerts, but he was putting together a solo album when he died.

• Listen to a Clip From "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"

• Listen to "Stiletto (A Night in Morocco)" by Erik Braunn

Trevor Nelson

Trevor Nelson, a producer for the CBS TV news show, "60 Minutes," died on July 24 of meningitis. He was 34.

Nelson began his journalism career writing articles for The New York Times, The New Republic and The Wall Street Journal. He spent five years at Christian Science Monitor Radio before joining the Washington bureau of CBS News in 1996. He worked as an associate producer for Lesley Stahl, but was later transferred to the New York office to work for Ed Bradley.

During his seven-year tenure at "60 Minutes," Nelson served as an associate or co-producer on many news reports. In 2000, he was promoted to full-fledged producer, and worked on 20 segments, 15 of which were broadcast. Two received Emmy nominations.

Nelson regularly produced stories with correspondent Steve Kroft, including segments on disgraced journalist Stephen Glass, the New York State attorney general's efforts to clean up Wall Street and the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks. He and Kroft also produced the feature, "All in the Family," a story about how Kellogg Brown & Root, a division of the oil services company, Haliburton, scored a Pentagon contract for a major rebuilding job in Iraq. Haliburton is Vice President Dick Cheney's former firm.

Matt Brown

In the 1970s, Matthew Clelon Brown was a Muscular Dystrophy Association poster child. The picture of the brown-haired, wheelchair-bound boy getting hugged by comedian Jerry Lewis helped put a human face on the disease.

Brown was born with spinal muscular atrophy, a condition that leads to severe muscular weakness and respiratory failure. Doctors predicted he wouldn't live past childhood.

Knowing his time was so limited, Brown got involved with the MDA. From 1977-1978, he served as the group's national goodwill ambassador, traveling all over the U.S. and making appearances on several Labor Day telethons. He was featured on "60 Minutes" and "Good Morning America," and visited with President Jimmy Carter.

Although he suffered from repeated bouts of illness, Brown graduated from high school, married, volunteered with the MDA and became a telemarketer in Eastanollee, Ga. He sold water purification systems and magazines using a special pair of headphones because he couldn't lift up a telephone. He also published his autobiography, "Crying in the Night," in 1995.

"I want to change the illusion that the disabled are invalid and incapable of leading happy, normal lives without discrimination," Brown once said.

Brown died on July 18 of complications from pneumonia and spinal muscular atrophy. He was 35.

Jane Barbe

"The time is now 4:56."

If you've ever called the local phone number for time, you probably heard Jane Barbe's recorded voice.

For four decades, Barbe was the "The Telephone Lady," the voice actress hired by telecommunication companies around the globe to tell millions of customers the date, time and weather. She was also the voice behind the message: "The number you have reached is not in service. Please check the number and try your call again."

Barbe studied drama at the University of Georgia and worked as a featured singer with the Buddy Morrow Orchestra. Her husband, John Barbe, was the band's music arranger.

In 1963, Barbe recorded messages for Audichron, a pioneering voice mail company. Her recordings were then used in 2,000 business and government phone systems. Anyone caught in voice mail purgatory probably heard her request to "Please hold."

"You hear my voice in more than 1,000 cities in the United States, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, South America, Canada. Vocally, I get around," Barbe once said.

Although she had a Southern drawl, Barbe could speak in unaccented English or with an Australian accent. She appeared in TV commercials for Coca Cola and Delta Airlines, and helped found the Atlanta, Ga., branch of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

Barbe died on July 18 from cancer at the age of 74. Her voice will live on.

• Hear a Barbe Recording

Frederic Bradlee

Frederick Josiah Bradlee III, a writer who also acted on Broadway, died on July 12. Cause of death was not released. He was 84.

Bradlee attended Harvard and Columbia universities, but dropped out to become an actor. He performed in seven plays on Broadway, including "The Happy Days" and "Second Threshold," then appeared in the touring company productions of "A Winter's Tale" and "The Man Who Came to Dinner."

Bradlee later worked as a freelance writer and author. He co-edited the anthology, "Vanity Fair: Selections From America's Most Memorable Magazine, a Cavalcade of the 1920s and 1930s," with Cleveland Amory, and wrote the novel, "Esperie."

In 1973, Bradlee published "A Lady in My Life: Suzette Crowinshield De Gersdorff 1868-1941," the autobiographical story of the time he spent with his illustrious grandmother. His brother, Ben Bradlee, is the editor at large at The Washington Post.

Celine Gurdikian

A hearing impairment did not stop Celine Lawler Gurdikian from becoming a champion swimmer.

Gurdikian was the youngest member of the swim team at the 1985 World Games for the Deaf in Los Angeles, where she won medals in the freestyle and butterfly. At the 1989 Silent Olympics in Christchurch, New Zealand, Gurdikian served as the captain of the U.S. team and won several medals.

When a progressive disease damaged her lungs, Gurdikian became a swim coach, giving lessons to deaf children. She also served as the vice president and secretary of the Chester County Association of the Deaf in West Chester, Penn.

Gurdikian, who worked as a portrait photographer, died on July 21 from complications of dermatomyositis. She was 33.

Betsy Hoffman

If a house was haunted, Elizabeth Parkinson Hoffman wanted to know about it.

Hoffman, a retired librarian, published several books on the paranormal. Her book, "In Search of Ghosts" focused on the haunted places she found in the Delaware Valley.

"Here a Ghost, There a Ghost" shared the story of an apartment in New York City that housed the spirit of an old, unkempt man. Those who lived in the unit after his death said they smelled his dirty feet and felt someone watching them.

"This House Is Haunted!" told about the ghosts who haunted her own house in Havertown, Penn. When she and her husband, James W. Hoffman, purchased the home, they saw empty chairs rock by themselves and the shade of the former owner.

"I write books to encourage children to read. No one wants to read about broccoli. I want to write about what kids read," Hoffman once said.

Hoffman graduated with a master's degree in library science from Drexel University in 1961. She served as the chairwoman of the division of libraries for the Pennsylvania Department of Education for a decade, then spent another 16 years working as the director of the Haverford Township Free Library.

Hoffman died on July 16 in her haunted home. She was 82.

H. Warren Ghormley

H. Warren Ghormley, a co-founder of the famous Dick's Drive-in, died on July 19 of Alzheimer's disease. He was 85.

In 1953, Ghormley and Dr. B.O.A. Thomas decided to invest in Dick Spady's fast-food restaurant idea. A year later, the first Dick's Drive-In opened in Seattle.

Over the past half century, Dick's has been hailed as a cherished institution by locals and travel guides for its simple and affordable cheeseburger/fries/shake menu. The restaurant expanded to five locations, and established a scholarship program for its high school student workers.

Richard Walker

Richard L. Walker, a noted scholar of Asian politics and the former ambassador to South Korea, died on July 22 of cancer. He was 81.

Walker's interest in the Far East began in his early 20s when he studied Chinese languages at the University of Pennsylvania. During World War II, he served as an interpreter at Gen. Douglas MacArthur's headquarters in the Pacific Theater of Operations. He was recalled to active duty during the Korean War, and worked in East Asia on numerous occasions for the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Information Agency.

Walker earned a master's degree in Far Eastern and Russian studies and a doctorate in international relations at Yale University, where he became a professor of international studies. In 1961, Walker founded the Institute of International Studies at the University of South Carolina. Under his guidance, it became a respected research center. The Institute was later renamed in his honor.

President Ronald Reagan appointed Walker as the U.S. ambassador to South Korea in 1981. He was unanimously confirmed by the Senate, and served five years in the post, longer than any other American diplomat.

Nicolas Freeling

Nicolas Freeling, the prolific British author of two successful detective series, died on July 20. Cause of death was not released. He was 76.

Freeling served in the Royal Air Force after World War II, then bummed through Europe working as a sous chef. During a stint as a chef in an Amsterdam hotel, Freeling was arrested and questioned about his involvement with a local underworld organization. That interrogation inspired his first Piet Van der Valk detective novel, "Love in Amsterdam." The fictional detective also became the basis of two television series starring Barry Foster that ran on Thames Television in the mid-1970s and early 1990s.

After 13 books, Freeling tired of writing about Inspector Van der Valk, so he killed the character off, much to the dismay of fans. Instead Freeling wrote about Detective Henri Castang, the protagonist of 16 popular mystery novels. Freeling also published seven non-series novels, the nonfiction book, "Criminal Convictions: Errant Passages on Perpetrators of Literary License" and the memoir, "The Kitchen: A Delicious Account of the Author's Years as a Grand Hotel Cook."

In 1964, Freeling won both the Crime Writers Association Gold Dagger award and the Grand Prix de Roman Policier. He won the Edgar Allan Poe award from the Mystery Writers of America in 1966.

Robert Thorne

Dr. Robert Leslie Thorne, the youngest member of the Tuskegee Airmen, died on July 13 of complications from Alzheimer's disease. He was 78.

Thorne was 17 when he enlisted in the Air Force in 1943. Because of his race, the military put him in the Alabama-based Tuskegee Airmen, the pioneering unit that shattered racial misconceptions about the quality of black pilots. Thorne qualified as a bombardier and a navigator; he had just completed his training to become a fighter pilot when World War II ended.

After the war, Thorne applied to the University of Michigan dental school under the G.I. Bill, but was turned down because the school had already reached its racial quota. Undeterred, Thorne applied to the New York University dental school and was accepted.

He spent 40 years in private practice as a dentist in Harlem, and often volunteered his services to the children of New York City.

Bob Hope

Leslie Townes Hope, the comedic actor who entertained millions of soldiers during wartime, died on July 27 of complications from pneumonia. He was 100.

Born in England, Hope and his family emigrated to America in 1907 to settle in Cleveland, Ohio. As a boy, he changed his name to Bob, and took a series of odd jobs to help make ends meet. It was during this time that Hope first worked as a caddy and developed a passion for golf. In later years, Hope would sponsor the Bob Hope Golf Classic, one of the biggest golf tournaments in the U.S.

When he became a teenager, Hope decided to work in show business. He developed a song and dance act laced with comedic monologues, and in the 1920s, played at The Palace during the height of Vaudeville. Hope later landed parts in several Broadway musicals including "Red, Hot and Blue," starring Ethel Merman and Jimmy Durante, and "Roberta," where he met and married nightclub singer Dolores Reade.

He took his schtick to radio, and was signed by Paramount to appear in his first feature film, "The Big Broadcast of 1938," where he sang, "Thanks for the Memory," the song that would become his trademark.

Hollywood beckoned and Hope followed. He teamed up with crooner Bing Crosby for seven "Road" pictures, playing best friends who would do anything to win the attention of Dorothy Lamour. Hope eventually appeared in over 60 films, including "The Lemondrop Kid," "The Paleface," and "My Favorite Blonde."

In the 1950s, Bob started working in television, performing in dozens of comedy shows for NBC. Known as the master of the one-liner, he appeared at the Academy Awards more than 20 times as either a presenter or a host. Although he never won the award for his acting abilities, Hope received several special Oscars for his contributions to entertainment and humanitarianism.

During World War II, Hope began a lifelong career of supporting American troops overseas. His Christmas tours boosted the morale of millions of servicemen and women serving in Germany, France, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf. In response, the Navy christened a support ship the "USNS Bob Hope" and the Air Force renamed one of its cargo planes "The Spirit of Bob Hope."

Hope wrote 10 books, including the 1990 autobiography, "Don't Shoot, It's Only Me." He received 54 honorary degrees and more than 2,000 awards, including the Medal of Freedom from President Lyndon B. Johnson.

In 1998, Queen Elizabeth II of Britain gave him an honorary knighthood and the Library of Congress created the Bob Hope Gallery of American Entertainment. To celebrate his 100th birthday, the famous intersection of Hollywood Blvd. and Vine St. was renamed Bob Hope Square.

• Complete Coverage From The New York Times

William Woolfolk

Golden Age superheroes are mourning the death of William Woolfolk. In the 1940s and 1950s, Woolfolk penned the stories of Batman, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Plastic Man, The Spirit and Superman.

He received the 2002 Comic-Con International Inkpot Award for his outstanding contribution to the field of comics. Other recipients include Mel Blanc, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ray Bradbury and Bob Kane.

Woolfolk also wrote 18 novels, two nonfiction books and numerous magazine articles. His scripts for the '60s TV show, "The Defenders," earned him two Emmy nominations.

Woolfolk died on July 20 of congestive heart failure. He was 86.

Elliot Norton

William Elliot Norton, the veteran Boston theatre critic, died on July 20. Cause of death was not released. He was 100.

After graduating from Harvard College, Norton spent 48 years reviewing theatre for The Boston Post, The Boston Record American and The Boston Herald American (now The Boston Herald). He published almost 6,000 reviews, earning him the nickname, "The Dean of American Theatre Critics."

Norton hosted the "Elliot Norton Reviews" talk show for 24 years on the public television station in Boston, and wrote the book, "Broadway Down East," for the Boston Public Library.

Norton won a special Tony Award for his coverage of theatre and was voted into the Theater Hall of Fame by the American Theater Critics Association. The Elliot Norton Awards were established in 1982 to honor theatre performed in the Boston area.

"Theater was Elliot's religion, and no production, however awful, could shake his profound faith. He was the exemplary critic, never an adversary, always a friend," said Robert Brustein, retired artistic director at the American Repertory Theatre.

Harold Featherstone

Harold G. Featherstone, a former circuit court judge and Florida legislator, died on July 19 of Parkinson's disease. He was 80.

After serving in the U.S. Army's Air Force during World War II and the Korean War, Featherstone graduated from the University of Miami and started practicing civil law.

In 1966, Featherstone was elected to the Florida House of Representatives where he was credited with getting three major bills passed. One mandated that all Florida gas stations accept major credit cards. Another led to the installation of emergency call boxes along the Florida Turnpike. Featherstone also got chiropractic care included in the state's medical insurance coverage.

When his six-year term ended, Featherstone joined 11th Judicial Circuit Court in Dade County. He spent 20 years on the bench, presiding over both criminal and civil cases.

Uday Hussein

Uday Hussein, Saddam Hussein's firstborn son, died on July 22 during a firefight with U.S. military forces in Iraq. He was 39.

Uday joined the Ba'ath Party when he was 12. He studied at Al Kharkh Al Namouthajiya School in Baghdad and graduated from the University of Baghdad College of Engineering.

Uday developed a reputation for violence in 1988 when he murdered his father's personal valet and food taster during a drunken brawl. He was jailed for the crime and sentenced to death, but his father eventually exiled him for a year instead.

After the first Gulf War ended, Uday became the de facto prime minister in Baghdad and head of its paramilitary. He controlled Iraq's print and broadcast media outlets, ran the country's sporting events and founded his own paramilitary group, the Saddam Fedayeen. As head of the Iraqi Olympic Committee, Uday imprisoned and tortured three Iraqi soccer stars for losing in the 2000 Asian Cup.

In 1996, unknown gunmen made an attempt on Uday's life. He was shot eight times, and partially paralyzed from the waist down. In the month after he was discharged from the hospital, Uday killed one of his bodyguards and a woman who spurned his advances.

Although he was elected to the Iraqi Parliament in 2001, Uday lost favor with his father after the assassination attempt. Saddam opted instead to groom Uday's younger brother, Qusay, to succeed him.

Qusay Hussein

Qusay Hussein, the heir apparent of Saddam Hussein, died on July 22 during a firefight with U.S. military forces in Iraq. He was 36.

The second son of Saddam, Qusay was largely ignored as a child. He came into political prominence, however, when his older brother Uday offended Saddam with his violent and erratic behavior.

Qusay was educated at the Al Khararkh Al Namouthajiya School in Baghdad and studied law at Baghdad University before he was named commander of Iraq's intelligence and security services. He lead Iraq's two elite military groups -- the 80,000-member Republican Guard and the praetorian Special Republican Guard, a regiment of 15,000 soldiers charged with protecting the Iraqi president and his family.

After the end of the first Gulf War, Qusay lead the suppression of the Shiite Muslims in southern Iraq. He personally authorized the interrogation, imprisonment and execution of political prisoners and their families, and periodically ordered mass executions. At 25, Saddam ordered Qusay to run the Special Security Organization, the group charged with hiding Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

Like his brother, Qusay was the subject of assassination attempts. In 2001, he was wounded in the arm during a drive-by shooting. His security forces then used a rocket-propelled grenade to destroy the assassins' vehicle.

When American and British forces invaded Iraq in 2003, Saddam chose Qusay to defend Baghdad and Tikrit, the family's home and power base.

Bill Bright

William R. Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, died on July 19 from complications of pulmonary fibrosis. He was 81.

In 1947, Bright found religion. With the help of his friend, the Rev. Billy Graham, Bright launched Campus Crusade at UCLA. The organization's goal was to spread Christianity to college students.

Fifty years after it started, Campus Crusade has become a worldwide organization worth $374 million. It has a staff of 26,000 people in over 190 countries.

"He has carried a burden on his heart as few men that I've ever known. A burden for the evangelization of the world," said Graham.

• Video Message From Bright

Bobby Harper

Bobby "Skinny" Harper, the radio personality who inspired the television character, Dr. Johnny Fever on "WKRP in Cincinnati," died on July 22 of lung cancer. He was 64.

Harper's first on-air job was doing the news for the public address system at William Jewell College. Since the 1960s, Harper has produced radio shows in Peoria, Ill., Detroit and Atlanta.

His antics -- like riding a wild bull and bellyflopping into a giant ice cream sundae -- were popular with listeners but occasionally crossed the line with his employers. Known for his left-wing political speeches and racy humor, Harper was fired several times for his on-air comments.

• Audio of Skinny Bobby on the Radio

Joel Brandon

Joel Alexander Brandon, "The Master Whistler," died on July 15 from pancreatic cancer. He was 56.

Brandon was a Chicago native who studied composition at the American Conservatory of Music. Although he sang and played the flute, Brandon's true talent was whistling.

By sucking air in through pursed lips, Brandon had a three-range octave whistle that won national and international contests. He whistled the "The Star-Spangled Banner" for the White Sox and the San Francisco Giants, and performed with several world-class orchestras. In 1997, Brandon was inducted into the Whistlers Hall of Fame. He released his debut CD, "Haven't We All...?" in 2001.

Jack Davis

Jack Davis, Britain's oldest World War I veteran, died on July 20 of natural causes. He was 108.

Davis joined the army when he was 19. He fought in France and Belgium, and was present at the 1915 battle of Ypres, where German forces used poison gas for the first time.

Just before the Battle of the Somme in 1916, Davis came down with trench fever and was unable to fight. The next day, 19,240 British men were killed. Davis recuperated and returned to the Western Front until the war ended.

"The conditions in which we fought that war were disgusting and distressing and I never thought after that experience that this country would ever go to war again," Davis once said.

John Schlesinger

John Schlesinger, an Academy Award-winning director, died on July 24. Cause of death was not released. He was 77.

Schlesinger served in the British army in World War II, then studied English literature at Oxford University. There he joined the school's Dramatic Society, where he learned to act on the stage. His love of theatre continued throughout his life -- he was an associate director at London's National Theater -- but his true calling was directing film.

Schlesinger worked on two dozen documentaries for the BBC before making his first movie, "Terminus." Throughout the '60s, Schlesinger built up a reputation in Britain as a social realist by making the films, "A Kind of Loving," "Darling" and "Billy Liar."

In 1969, American audiences embraced his film, "Midnight Cowboy," which starred Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight. Schlesinger took home the Academy Award for Best Director, and the movie won for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture. To date, "Midnight Cowboy" is the only X-rated movie to ever win a best picture Oscar.

Schlesinger followed that success with "Sunday Bloody Sunday," which earned him British Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Film, and the violent thriller, "Marathon Man," starring Hoffman and Laurence Olivier. Thanks to William Goldman's script and Schlesinger's deft direction, few moviegoers will ever hear the phrase, "Is it safe?" without shuddering in fear.

In the '80s and '90s, Schlesinger directed several films, including "The Falcon and the Snowman," "Madame Sousatzka" and "Pacific Heights." His last movie, however, was the comedy flop, "The Next Best Thing," starring Madonna and Rupert Everett.

• Audio interviews with the BBC

Ernest Outlaw

Ernest Outlaw, a bass violinist who played jazz at the Chicago Playboy Club, died on July 12 of kidney failure. He was 75.

Outlaw started playing music when he was five or six years old. He taught himself the bass, then learned how to play various woodwind instruments. During World War II, Outlaw toured Europe playing the sax in the 427th Army Band.

After he returned to the states, Outlaw joined the Joe Iaco Trio, the band at the Playboy Club, and played there for 25 years, performing alongside Barbra Streisand, James Moody and Sonny Sitt.

James Davis

James E. Davis, an ex-cop and New York City councilman, was shot and killed inside City Hall on July 23. He was 41.

Davis, who represented central Brooklyn, was murdered by Othniel Askew, a political rival he had escorted past the building's metal detectors. A police officer later shot and killed Askew.

In 1983, Davis was assaulted by two white, New York City police officers. While he sat on his mother's porch, the cops put guns to his head and accused him of car theft. After roughing him up, they took Davis in for questioning and released him. No charges were filed.

Davis's response was to join the police force and attempt to change the system from within. He worked for the city's Corrections Department on Riker's Island and walked a beat in Brooklyn before becoming an instructor at the New York City Police Academy. In 1990, Davis founded "Love Yourself" Stop the Violence, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to stopping violence in American cities. He was elected to the City Council two years ago.

• Complete Coverage From The New York Times

John Davies

John Davies, the president of the New Zealand Olympic Committee, died on July 21 of cancer. He was 65.

Davies was born in London, but moved to New Zealand in 1953. He dedicated his life to running, and competed in both local and national events.

In 1964, Davies won a bronze medal in the 1,500-meter dash at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. He was training for a second shot at the gold when he hurt his Achilles tendon, an injury that ended his running career.

Undaunted, Davies turned to coaching and led the New Zealand team at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. He also trained Dick Quax, who won a silver medal at the 1976 Olympics, and Anne Audain, who took home the gold at the 1982 Commonwealth Games.

Three years ago, Davies was named president of the New Zealand Olympic Committee, a position he held until his death.

Rosalyn Tureck

Rosalyn Tureck was a distinguished pianist whose devotion to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach lasted for over 60 years.

Tureck started playing the piano when she was four years old. She took lessons with Russian pianist Sophia Brilliant-Liven, and made her public recital debut in Chicago at the age of nine.

As a teenager, Tureck auditioned for the Juilliard School of Music in New York by playing most of Bach's 48 preludes and fugues from memory. Although Bach was not considered a good career choice for a concert pianist, Tureck was accepted into the school. But when she made it to the finals of the Naumburg Competition, the jury refused to give her an award for playing an all-Bach program.

During her first week at Juilliard, Tureck taught herself to play the theremin. Her performance of "God Save the Queen" earned her a year-long scholarship, and her 1932 debut at Carnegie Hall consisted of playing a Bach concerto on the electronic instrument. Tureck eventually learned how to play the harpsichord and the clavichord, as well.

While performing numerous Bach concerts at Town Hall in New York, Tureck created a parallel career playing recitals of Chopin, Debussy, Brahms and Beethoven with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. But her adoration of Bach's style only blossomed with time. Twenty years later, Tureck moved to London and formed the Tureck Bach Players and the International Bach Society. These projects, along with her continued performances of his work, earned Tureck the title, the "high priestess of Bach."

In her lifetime, Tureck released more than 20 albums and gave orchestral performances as a soloist and conductor all over the world. She held teaching posts at the Philadelphia Conservatory, Juilliard and Columbia University, and published several books including the three-volume set, "An Introduction to the Performance of Bach."

Tureck died on July 17. She was 88.

John Eisenberg

Dr. John F. Eisenberg, a world-renowned expert of animal behavior and evolution, died on July 6 of renal cancer. He was 68.

Eisenberg started learning about mammals in childhood. As a boy living in Washington state, Eisenberg trapped and studied the rodents that lived in the area. After graduating from Washington State University and the University of California, Berkeley, Eisenberg spent many years studying mammals at the National Zoo.

Eisenberg also taught at the University of Maryland and the University of Florida, wrote over 150 articles on ecology and animal biology and published several books on mammals including the influential text, "The Mammalian Radiations: An Analysis of Trends in Evolution, Adaptation and Behavior."

Exploding Hearts

Three members of the band, Exploding Hearts, were killed on July 20 in an automobile accident.

Bassist Matthew "Matt Lock" Fitzgerald, 20, was driving the band home from a gig in San Francisco when he lost control of his van. He died at the hospital. Lead singer Adam "Baby" Cox, 23, and drummer Jeremy "Kid Killer" Gage, 21, were ejected from the vehicle and died at the scene. Guitarist Terry Six and the band's manager, Rachelle Ramos, sustained minor injuries. Ramos was the only one in the van wearing a seat belt.

Exploding Hearts was an up-and-coming punk-pop group out of Portland, Ore. Their debut album, "Guitar Romantic," received good press; Rolling Stone described it as "Big Star-meets-Ramones."

The band planned to launch a U.S. tour in the fall.

Matt Jefferies

Walter "Matt" Jefferies, the art director for the original Star Trek series, died on July 21. Cause of death was not released. He was 82.

When NBC greenlighted the Star Trek pilot in 1964, Gene Roddenberry hired Jefferies to design the original USS Enterprise NCC-1701. Using his experiences as a pilot and a flight test engineer, Jefferies also created the vessel's internal environment and its inventory of weapons. The ship's "Jefferies Tubes" were named in his honor.

"Matt Jefferies' quiet modesty belied the genius of his work, which set the path for all of us who are lucky enough to follow in his very large footsteps. Today, nearly four decades later, Matt's original Enterprise still stands as a design classic," said Michael Okuda, scenic art supervisor of "Enterprise."

Jefferies' contributions to the Star Trek franchise are the subject of a new documentary, which will be included on the "Star Trek: Generations" collector's edition DVD. It is scheduled for release next year.

• Video interview with the BBC

Prince Carl of Sweden

Prince Carl Gustaf Oscar Frederik Christian Bernadotte, a minor member of the Swedish Royal Family, died on June 27. Cause of death was not released. He was 92.

Prince Carl was a grandson of the kings of Sweden and Denmark, an uncle to the kngs of Norway and Belgium and the fifth in line to the Swedish throne.

His family hoped he would marry Princess Juliana, heir to the Dutch throne, but in 1937, Prince Carl married Countess Elsa von Rosen, a divorcee. Because he had wed a commoner, Prince Carl was forced to renounce his right to the throne. He and Elsa divorced in 1951. Three years later, Prince Carl married Ann Larsson, the daughter of a Stockholm builder, but they divorced in 1961. He wed for the third and final time in 1978 to Kristine Rivelsrud.

During the 1950s, Prince Carl acquired a reputation as a playboy. His relationship with a rich spinster resulted in her bequeathing a large estate in southern Sweden to him. In 1957, Prince Carl and the factor of that estate were charged with embezzling money from the spinster. At trial, the factor was convicted of the crime, but Prince Carl was acquitted. This scandal, however, ruined his reputation and he was forced to move to Spain. The estate was eventually given to the Swedish nation.

Selahattin Ulkumen

The diplomatic interventions of Selahattin Ulkumen, "the Turkish Schindler," saved the lives of 42 Jewish families during World War II.

In 1943, the Germans invaded the Turkish island of Rhodes and ordered all 1,700 Jews to report for "temporary transportation to a small island nearby." Ulkumen, the 30-year-old Turkish consul-general, intervened with the German commander, General von Kleeman. He explained that Turkey was neutral in the war, and that all religions were equal in the eyes of Turkish law. He then asked for all of the Turkish Jews in custody be released. The general agreed and 42 Jewish families were spared. The rest were taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau.

After the incident, two German planes bombed the Turkish consulate. Ulkumen's pregnant wife, Mihrinissa, was seriously injured in the blast. They were deported to Piraeus, where he spent the remainder of the war in jail. Mihrinissa died from her injuries a week after giving birth to their son.

The war ended and Ulkumen returned to Turkey. He worked for the diplomatic service for another three decades, and in 2001, received Turkey's highest honor -- the Supreme Service Medal.

Ulkumen died on June 7. Cause of death was not released. He was 89.

Paul Bernal

Paul J. Bernal, a Taos Pueblo Indian elder who helped recover some of the lands stolen from his tribe, died on July 16. Cause of death was not released. He was 92.

Since the 17th century, European settlers have encroached on Pueblo Indian lands. Then in 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt appropriated the lands surrounding Blue Lake in northern New Mexico, and annexed them into Carson National Forest. The Taos Pueblo Indians tried for decades to get their lands back from the U.S. government, but their efforts were stalled by a language barrier.

Bernal volunteered to serve in the Navy, and was stationed aboard the Ticonderoga during World War II. He polished his English skills, and when he returned home, he became the Pueblo's interpreter and council secretary.

With the help of Juan de Jesus Romero (Deer Bird), the Pueblo's religious leader, Bernal negotiated an agreement with the government for the return of the tribe's lands. The act was signed by President Richard M. Nixon in 1970, and gave the Taos Pueblos 48,000 acres of Carson National Forest to use for "traditional purposes."

Lucille Roberts

Lucille Roberts, a self-proclaimed "exercise nut," turned her passion for working out into a health club empire worth $30 million.

Born in Russia, Roberts and her family immigrated to the U.S. in order to escape religious persecution. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Business School's Owner/Management Program.

In 1969, Roberts and her husband Bob scraped together $15,000 and opened a spa in midtown Manhattan. Her goal was to offer affordable exercise facilities for women who avoided male-dominated health clubs. The concept was an immediate success and two years later, she changed the name of the club to her own.

Roberts eventually opened gyms in 50 other locations. With more than 200,000 members, Lucille Roberts is now one of the largest women-only establishments in the country. When she wasn't running the health club chain, Roberts wrote and published the books "Computercise" and "The Lucille Roberts 14 Day Makeover."

Roberts died on July 17 of lung cancer. She was 59.

Marjorie Fowler

Marjorie Fowler, who received an Academy Award nomination for editing the 1967 film "Doctor Dolittle," died on July 8. Cause of death was not released. She was 82.

Fowler's whole life was spent either in the editing room or in the company of film-making masters. Her father was screenwriter Nunnally Johnson, who adapted John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath" for the screen. He also wrote, produced and directed "The Three Faces of Eve," which Fowler edited. She also married Gene Fowler, Jr., who edited "The Waltons" and "Gilligan's Island."

Fowler's first job was as a contract player at Twentieth Century Fox. She did some story analysis before training to become a film editor. In the 1950s and 1960s, Fowler edited numerous movies, including "Elmer Gantry," "The Outsider" and "Doctor Doolittle." In the '70s, she edited the television show, "Eight Is Enough."

Other than the Oscar nod, Fowler received six nominations for American Cinema Editors "Eddie" Awards, and won for the 1981 TV movie "The Marva Collins Story." The ACE also gave her a Life Achievement Award for working on nearly 40 films in 40 years.

George E. Pappas

Forty years ago,George E. Pappas smothered an overstuffed burrito with cheese and green chiles and gave it a brand name -- the tacorito.

Pappas founded the Holly Inn restaurant in Denver, Colo., in 1960. The popularity of its main dish caused long lines to form outside the establishment, and led Pappas to trademark the entree's name.

"Everybody makes big stuffed burritos now, but 40 years ago, they were unheard of," said George's nephew Michael A. Pappas.

Pappas died on July 7 from heart failure. He was 80.

David Kelly

David Christopher Kelly, an expert on biological warfare, died on July 18 of blood loss. He was 59.

Kelly, who testified before the Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee in Britain on Tuesday, allegedly slit his left wrist and committed suicide. The death is still under investigation.

British newspapers claimed Kelly had met with a BBC journalist and told him the government dossier on Iraq's ability to deploy weapons of mass destruction had been "sexed up." While he admitted to meeting with the reporter, Kelly denied the rest of this charge.

Kelly received a bachelor's degree in bacteriology from Leeds and a masters in virology from Birmingham. He joined the insect pathology unit at Oxford in 1968, and completed his doctorate on the large iridoviruses of insects three years later.

In 1984, Kelly became the head of microbiology at the Chemical Defence Establishment at Porton Down. His years there gave him the background and experience he would need to identify weapons of mass destruction in Russia and Iraq. He was then promoted to chief scientific officer at the Ministry of Defence, and senior adviser to the proliferation and arms control secretariat.

After the Gulf War ended, Kelly led the first team of investigators into Iraq, where he confirmed the presence of a chemical weapons plant in Salman Pak, and a biological weapons site in Al Hakam. As the senior adviser on biological warfare for the United Nations, Kelly visited the country more than 35 times until Saddam Hussein personally ordered that he be ejected in 1998.

Mike Salinas

Mike Salinas, a journalist who brought news of the gay community to the mainstream public's attention, died on June 15. Cause of death is unknown. Police have ruled it an accidental heroin overdose, but a preliminary coroner's report suggests it was a heart attack. Salinas was 46.

In the 1980s, Salinas wrote for the New York Native and the Village Voice. While he had a passion for theatre -- and was the founding editor of Theater Week magazine -- Salinas put most of his energies into covering issues of importance to the gay community. He investigated AIDS organizations he thought were corrupt, covered the Catholic Church sex scandal and published stories about the murder of a gay U.S. soldier.

In 1998, Salinas published a story in the Bay Area Reporter bearing the headline: "No Obits." It was the first time in 17 years that the San Francisco-based weekly newspaper did not publish an AIDS-related obituary.

Elisabeth Welch

Elisabeth Margaret Welch, an actress and cabaret singer who wowed audiences in New York, Paris and London, died on July 15. Cause of death was not released. She was 99.

Despite her father's vehement protests, Welch appeared in the 1923 Broadway musical, "Runnin' Wild," where she was credited for introducing a dance to the tune of the "Charleston." While she appeared in several all-black revues on- and off-Broadway, Welch made a name for herself on the nightclub circuit at the Royal Box in New York. There she sang the Cole Porter classic, "Love for Sale," a song written from a prostitute's point of view that caused a scandal at the time. Irving Berlin caught one of Welch's performances and offered her the lead role in his play, "The New Yorkers."

In the 1930s, Welch traveled to London and became a star of West End musical theatre by performing in "Nymph Errant" and "Solomon." Welch then did a show at the Moulin Rouge in Paris and was instantly crowned a darling of the café society there.

During World War II, Welch joined John Gielgud in entertaining the British troops on Gibraltar and in the Middle East. She also appeared in several British films, including two starring roles opposite Paul Robeson.

When she returned to the states in the 1980s, Welch received sensational reviews for her role in "Black Broadway." She nabbed a Tony nomination for "Jerome Kern Goes to Hollywood," and won an Obie for her one-woman show, "Time to Start Living."

Carol Shields

Carol Ann Shields, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, died on July 16 of breast cancer. She was 68.

Shields moved from the U.S. to Canada in 1957 after meeting and marrying her husband, Donald Hugh. Fourteen years later, she became a Canadian citizen and started writing books about the lives of ordinary men and women.

"I don't very often see decent people in novels. Some people don't believe in them, but I do ... I can hardly think of one novel where you read of a happy marriage. It's not interesting, I suppose, and in this respect I think literature fails us," Shields once said.

At the age of 40, Shields published her first novel, "Small Ceremonies." She followed it up with 12 more books, including several collections of short stories and poetry.

Her novel, "The Stone Diaries," won a Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1995 and was shortlisted for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Booker Prize. She also received a Canada Council Major Award, two National Magazine Awards, the Orange Prize and a CBC short story award. In 2001, Shields wrote a biography of Jane Austen that won the Charles Taylor prize for literary nonfiction.

Gordon Brong

Gordon Brong, a park superintendent in Folsom, Calif., felt animals were nicer than people.

When an orphaned Black bear cub was injured in a 1963 forest fire, Brong offered to house it in the park where he worked. He talked to the city and received permission to build the Folsom Zoo Sanctuary.

For the past 40 years, the zoo has served as a home for injured and orphaned animals. Brong, who loved working there, often spent 18 to 20 hours a day with the bears and the wolves.

Brong died last week from complications of a fall. He was 87.

Bill Shull

Dr. William Henry Shull Jr. helped patients with brain injuries as the director of neurotrauma rehabilitation at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. His training came in handy this year when he suffered a stroke.

"I think this was part of God's plan for me. I care for patients with disabilities, and now I know what it is like to not be able to move," Shull said.

Shull began his residencies and fellowships in rehabilitative medicine, surgery and cardiopulmonary rehabilitation in 1987 after earning a medical degree from Duke University. While working at the hospital, he designed a questionnaire to help survivors and their families understand the effects of acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Shull died on July 11 of malignant melanoma. He was 42.

Reetika Vazirani

Reetika Vazirani, a prize-winning poet, died on Wednesday in an apparent murder-suicide. She was 40.

Vazirani and her 15-month-old son, Jehan, were found dead with their wrists slashed in the Maryland home of novelist Howard Norman. A note and two large kitchen knives were allegedly obtained by police at the scene. Vazirani also left a message on a friend's voice mail that said, "I think I'm going to hurt myself."

Born in India, Vazirani immigrated to the United States in 1968. She graduated from Wellesley College and received a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship to study in India, Thailand, Japan and China.

After earning a master's degree from the University of Virginia, Vazirani worked hard to establish herself in the most prestigious literary circles. Her poetry appeared in The Best American Poetry 2000, The Kenyon Review, The Nation and the Paris Review. Her first book, "White Elephants," earned her a Barnard New Women Poet Prize in 1996. "World Hotel," Vazirani's second book, won the 2003 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award. Vazirani also received the Pushcart Prize for her poem, "Daughter-Mother-Maya-Seeta."

Vazirani, who previously taught in the creative writing programs at the University of Virginia and the University of Oregon, was scheduled to begin teaching at Emory University in the fall.

• Listen to Vazirani Read Her Poetry

Phil Ceccola

Phil Ceccola, a rock photographer who took pictures of everyone from Elvis to the Boss, died on July 13 of brain cancer. He was 48.

Ceccola taught himself how to use a camera. When he was 12 years old, he launched his career as a rock photographer by shooting pictures of a Temptations concert in Atlantic City.

In the 1970s, Ceccola worked as the managing editor of the alternative newspaper, the Drummer, which granted him backstage access to most concerts. He toured extensively with Elvis Presley, and took 20,000 pictures of Bruce Springsteen, including the image that appeared on the cover of the album, "18 Tracks." A collection of Ceccola's Springsteen photos will be published in paperback this fall.

Other musicians caught by Ceccola's lens include Billy Joel, Jimmy Buffett, David Bowie, Fleetwood Mac, Tom Waits and Elton John. For the past three years, while Ceccola fought a brain tumor, he also toured with Rick Springfield.

Alexander Walker

Alexander Walker, who spent more than four decades working as a film critic for the London Evening Standard, died on July 15. Cause of death was not released. He was 73.

Walker started reviewing films in the early 1950s. He joined the Standard seven years later after being recommended for the job by actor Kenneth More. For the next 43 years, Walker covering everything from major movie releases to film festivals for the newspaper.

"One of his most obvious characteristics was that you never knew which way he would go. Surprise was often a key element in his reviews. He resolutely refused to sit on the fence and staleness, caused by watching stream upon stream of bad movies as well as good ones, never set in. His prose was as polished and as fresh at 73 as when he started," Derek Malcolm wrote in The Guardian.

Walker served as a governor of the British Film Institute from 1988-94, won the Critic of the Year prize from the British Press Awards three times and received the chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from France in 1981.

Outside of his film critiques, Walker wrote 20 books, including biographies of Audrey Hepburn, Stanley Kubrick, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter Sellers and Vivien Leigh. At the time of his death, he also planned to write a history of the British film industry.

Hondo

Hondo, a K-9 officer in Independence, Mo., died on July 16 from heat exposure. He was 3 years old.

The German Shepherd was one of the first two police dogs trained at the new Independence Police K-9 training center. Hondo was purchased last year and officially began serving the community in January with Sgt. John Bullard.

Yesterday afternoon, Hondo was sitting inside a police car for about an hour. The vehicle's air conditioning system, which was left on to keep the dog cool, apparently failed even as temperatures reached 97 degrees outside.

Bullard returned to the police cruiser and found Hondo unconscious. Unable to revive him, Bullard started driving to a local animal hospital. En route, the police car crashed into another motorist. The passenger of that car was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

One of the patrol officers responding to the accident took Bullard and Hondo to the animal hospital, but the dog was pronounced dead on arrival.

Eliot Wald

Eliot Wald, a comedic writer who was best known for creating the movie critic team of Siskel & Ebert, died on July 12 of liver cancer. He was 57.

Wald began his writing career at The Seed, an underground newspaper in Chicago. He moved on to freelance as a radio/television critic and rock music writer for local newspapers.

In 1975, Wald took a job as a producer for WTTW Channel 11, where he developed the program, "Coming Soon to a Theater Near You." With a meager $500 budget, Wald paired Tribune film critic Gene Siskel with Roger Ebert of the Sun-Times in a tiny studio where they could face off on the latest Hollywood releases. The show became such a hit that it was eventually syndicated and retitled "Siskel & Ebert."

Wald moved to New York in the 1980s to write for "Saturday Night Live." He also funneled his love of comedy into movies, co-writing the screenplays for "See No Evil, Hear No Evil," starring Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor, and "Camp Nowhere," starring Christopher Lloyd.

In a 1994 interview with the Chicago Tribune, Wald said he had the perfect job. "I sit on a couch and make jokes," he said.

Celia Cruz

Celia Cruz, the queen of salsa and the grande dame of Cuban music, died on July 16 of brain cancer. She was 77.

Growing up in Cuba, Cruz used to sing her brothers and sisters to sleep. Though she had planned on becoming a literature teacher, Cruz began touring the local radio circuit after winning a contest one of her cousins urged her to enter.

Her big break came in 1950 when the popular band, La Sonora Matancera, asked her to become its new lead singer. Cruz received mixed reviews from the band's fans, but gained enough positive feedback to leave Cuba and go on tour.

Once she conquered Latin America, Cruz traveled to New York. There she began a successful solo career and a colloboration with Puerto Rican percussionist Tito Puente.

Cruz's success infuriated Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. He branded her a traitor for leaving Cuba, and when Cruz's mother died in 1962, Castro refused to allow her back in the country to attend the funeral.

The flamboyant singer who was known for wearing nine-inch heels and magnificent wigs, made more than 76 records, and toured all over the world. She won two Grammys and three Latin Grammys and appeared in several films, including "The Mambo Kings" and "The Perez Family." She was even immortalized with a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

Cruz's final CD will be released in August.

• Watch Celia Cruz's Video for "La Negra Tiene Tumbao"

Ernie Boch

Ernest "Ernie" J. Boch Sr. will be remembered from Cape Cod to Martha's Vineyard for his wacky commercials and giving nature.

The multimillionaire businessman and car salesman was known throughout New England for urging customers to "Come on down!" to one of his 18 dealerships and buy a car. These ads featured Boch shouting and smashing windshields to exhort his "smashing deals!" In 2000, Boch Enterprises grossed $847 million in revenues.

A well-known philanthropist, Boch donated money to local hospitals and gave away scholarships to high school students. He also contributed more than $3 million to the Boch Center for the Performing Arts, which will break ground in Mashpee, Mass., this year.

Boch died on Sunday from complications of liver cancer. He was 77.

Tex Schramm

Texas E. Schramm Jr., the president/general manager who transformed the Dallas Cowboys into a winning team, died on July 15 of natural causes. He was 83.

In 1947, Schramm took a job doing public relations for the Los Angeles Rams. Within seven years, he became the club's general manager. He then worked at CBS as an assistant director of sports broadcasting. There he made his mark by producing the first television broadcast of the 1960 Winter Olympics.

That same year, Clint Murchison hired Schramm to turn his expansion team around. The Dallas Cowboys had a dismal record: 0-11-1. But under the guidance of Schramm and coach Tom Landry, the Cowboys rallied and in 1965 finished second in the Eastern Conference.

This taste of victory pushed the Cowboys to achieve 20 consecutive winning seasons, the third-longest winning streak in sports history. They won 13 division titles, played in five Super Bowls and won twice.

Schramm's contributions to the NFL extended far beyond Dallas. Schramm spearheaded the use of instant replay and built the league's scouting system. He also created the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders.

Schramm received the Bert Bell award for outstanding executive leadership in 1978. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991, and will be inducted into the Cowboys' Ring of Honor this season.

• Complete coverage in The Dallas Morning News

Compay Segundo

Máximo Francisco Repilado Muñoz (a.k.a. Compay Segundo), the "elder statesman" of Afro-Cuban music, died on July 13 of a heart attack. He was 95.

Segundo composed his first song, “Yo bengo aquí,” when he was 15 years old. He moved to Havana in 1929, and played with El Conjunto Matamaros as a clarinetist for 12 years.

In 1942, Segundo and Lorenzo Hierrezuelo created Los Compadres. They played in nightclubs and achieved great success throughout Latin America. After the duo disbanded, Segundo formed Compay Segundo y sus Muchachos, a group that lasted until his death.

During his extensive career, Segundo registered 129 songs with the Spanish Performing Society, including "Chan Chan" and "Sarandonga." He began recording again in 1994 after a group of record executives heard him play in a bar. They immediately signed him and released six albums.

Segundo achieved international fame at 90 when he and a dozen Cuban musicians met in Havana to record an album and film a documentary with American producer Ry Cooder. The goal of the "Buena Vista" sessions was to recapture the lost music of the pre-Revolutionary nightclub scene in Havana.

The "Buena Vista Social Club" album sold over a million copies in the U.S. and won a Grammy Award in 1998 for best tropical Latin album. The movie by the same name won a New York Film Critics Circle award for best documentary in 1999, and received an Academy Award nomination that same year.

Ramolao Makhene

Ramolao Makhene, a South African actor and TV star, died on Sunday from liver cancer. His age was not released.

Makhene was a dramatic presence on the stage and in film. In 1984, he received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the play, "Master Harold and the Boys." He made five movies, including the 1995 film, "Cry the Beloved Country," starring James Earl Jones.

Makhene was best known, however, for his work on "Soul City," the popular television drama that's watched by 16 million South Africans.

Joseph Moroz

Joseph S. Moroz Jr., an Army photographer known for taking portraits of generals, died on July 7. Cause of death was not released. He was 84.

Moroz enlisted in the Army in 1940. After graduating from its photography school in Denver, Moroz was sent off to war. While stationed in England, he flew on reconnaissance missions to photograph the German sites the allies planed to bomb.

Moroz so loved his job that he kept reenlisting in the Army until he'd served for 22 years. Once retired from active duty, Moroz took a civilian job at Fort Sheridan in Highland Park, Ill., taking pictures of visiting generals and dignitaries. When Queen Elizabeth visited the U.S., the Army flew Moroz to Washington, D.C., to photograph her.

Dorothy Miller

Dorothy Miller had exquisite taste in art.

Miller, one of the first curators hired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York, was responsible for pioneering exhibitions of new American artists, including Jackson Pollock, Frank Stella and Jasper Johns.

In 1942, Miller put on her first "American" show, which exhibited a selection of unknown artists with eclectic backgrounds and styles. That first show was panned, but many of the artists she featured went on to become giants in the field.

Although she retired from MOMA in 1969, Miller continued to serve the art community by participating on the advisory board that determined the World Trade Center's featured artwork. Most of these pieces were lost in the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks.

Miller died on Friday. Cause of death was not released. She was 99.

Dee Wells

Alberta Constance Chapman Wells, a controversial broadcaster and best-selling author, died on June 24. Cause of death was not released. She was 78.

Although she was an American, Dee Chapman served in the Canadian Women's Army during World War II. Instead of returning to the states when the war ended, she moved to Paris, got a job at the American embassy and married Al Wells, a diplomat. They were posted in Burma, but divorced two years later.

Wells then moved to London and began freelancing for several newspapers. In 1958, the Sunday Express made Wells its books editor. Two years later, Wells married philosopher Freddie Ayer. Their on-again, off-again relationship would also involve a divorce and a second wedding in 1989.

During her journalism career, Wells established herself as a "progressive" writer. When she started making appearances as a commentator on television, her outspoken nature and controversial opinions earned her both fans and critics.

In 1973, Wells published the novel, "Jane," a semi-autobiographical story about a tough, American movie critic living in London and juggling three men. "I was idle and I had a perfectly good typewriter and half a box of paper," Wells once said. The book sold 2 million copies.

Benny Carter

Benny Carter, a legendary saxophonist and accomplished jazz composer, died on Saturday of bronchitis. He was 95.

As a child, Carter was taught to play the piano by his mother and sister. When he was old enough to afford it, Carter purchased an alto saxophone, taught himself how to play it, and spent the next 70 years performing and recording records. Over time, he also learned how to play the trumpet, clarinet, trombone and tenor and baritone saxophones.

Carter started sitting in with bands in Harlem jazz clubs as a teenager. His first full-time job was performing with the Charlie Johnson Orchestra at Smalls' Paradise in New York.

He taught himself how to arrange music, and his first charts were recorded in 1928. That same year, Carter joined the Horace Henderson band. When the leader of the band walked out, Carter was elected as his replacement. He was only 21 years old.

In the 1930s, Carter formed his own band and played at the Savoy Ballroom. Although he was a reserved man, his reputation grew within jazz circles. Pianist Teddy Wilson, trumpeter Miles Davis and drummer Max Roach all played in Carter's band.

Carter broke the color barrier in Hollywood as one of the first black arrangers to write movie and TV soundtracks. He also arranged music for the major singers of his time, including Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Ray Charles.

In the second half of the 20th century, Carter released numerous records and performed throughout the U.S. and Europe. He received the lifetime achievement Grammy in 1987, then released another 20 albums before retiring.

At the end of his career, Carter was honored at the Kennedy Center in Washington. He received the National Medal of Arts from President Bill Clinton, and an honorary doctorate from Princeton University.

Rollie McKenna

Rosalie Thorne McKenna, a photographer best known for taking pictures of American and British literati, died on June 14. Cause of death was not released. She was 84.

McKenna first picked up a camera when she was 30 years old. Although she planned to take pictures of Italian Renaissance architecture, McKenna became interested in portrait photography after taking pictures of London-based writers and artists for the Poetry Center in New York.

For the next three decades, McKenna took pictures of many writers, including Truman Capote, W.H. Auden, T.S. Eliot, Sylvia Plath, Ezra Pound and Robert Frost. Dylan Thomas was one of her favorite subjects. She featured him in the film, "The Days of Dylan Thomas," and published "Portrait of Dylan: A Photographer's Memoir."

Robert Gascoyne-Cecil

Robert Edward Peter Gascoyne-Cecil, the 6th Marquess of Salisbury, bucked the family tradition of working in politics and opted instead to become a soldier and a farmer.

Gascoyne-Cecil was educated at Eton, and received a commission with the Grenadier Guards during World War II. In 1942, he was wounded by a Hurricane that went off target. Twenty-three soldiers were killed, and Gascoyne-Cecil was shot in the lung. He was still being treated for his injury when he joined in the invasion of Normandy with the 2nd Battalion. He was also part of the first British unit to enter Brussels, and later appointed the Resident Minister in North Africa.

After the war, Gascoyne-Cecil followed his father to Parliament. He lost his first election, but won the Bournemouth West by more than 13,000 votes. He only spent four years in office, however, because an illness he contracted in Yugoslavia debilitated him.

Gascoyne-Cecil rested, healed, then devoted himself to running his great estates in Dorset. In 1965, he was elected president of the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers.

Gascoyne-Cecil died on July 11. Cause of death was not released. He was 86.

Howard King

Howard King, a noted nature photographer and trailblazer, died on June 29 of natural causes. He was 97.

When King strained his back in 1958, his doctor suggested he take up hiking. King followed these instructions and became captivated by the redwood forests. He donated his photographs of the ancient, 300-foot trees to the Save the Redwoods League, which published them on postcards and posters. The pictures helped to raise millions of dollars to preserve the redwood forests in California.

King also designed and built trails through the forests. One of the 10-mile trails he plotted was named in his honor. In 1980, the California State Park Rangers Association named him an honorary state park ranger for his conservation efforts.

Skip Battin

Clyde Skip Battin, a country rock singer and bass player, died on July 6 of Alzheimer's disease. He was 69.

Battin's first successful musical partnership was with Gary "Flip" Paxton. As "Skip & Flip," they recorded the pop hits "It Was I" and "Cherry Pie," both of which reached the Top 20 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart in 1959.

Battin later served as a member of the Byrds, Evergreen Blueshoes, Flying Burrito Brothers and New Riders of the Purple Sage. He also released three solo albums.

John Roach

Archbishop John R. Roach, who led the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis for two decades, died Friday of heart failure. He was 81.

Roach graduated from the Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity in 1946, and was ordained the same year. He worked as the parish priest of Saint Stephen, in Minneapolis, taught for a while and then became headmaster of Saint Thomas Academy.

Fourteen years later, Roach founded the Saint John Vianney Seminary and served as its first rector. He also received the first Saint Paul Seminary Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 1975, Pope Paul VI appointed Roach to lead the archdiocese. He was the first Minneosta native to do so. During his tenure, Roach was arrested for drunken driving and for mishandling the clergy sex abuse cases in the 1980s. Roach served until his retirement in 1995.

Zahra Kazemi

Zahra Kazemi, a Canadian photojournalist who was beaten into a coma for shooting pictures outside of an Iranian jail, has died. She was 54.

Kazemi was arrested in Tehran on or about June 23 and accused of spying. According to various news reports, Kazemi was tortured by police until she was unconscious and then hospitalized for her injuries.

Kazemi, who was born in Iran, spent the past 10 years living in Canada. She had joint Canadian and Iranian citizenship, and frequently took freelance assignments for Recto Verso Magazine and Camera Press in Afghanistan, Libya, Iraq and Iran.

Kathleen Raine

Although she was not well known in the U.S., Kathleen Jessie Raine was considered a grande dame of European letters.

Since 1943, Raine has published more than a dozen books of poetry and nonfiction, including a three-volume autobiography.

Britain's Royal Society of Literature named Raine one of the 10 greatest living writers in 1991. The following year, she received the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry. She became a commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and won the Edna St. Vincent Millay Prize from the American Poetry Society.

Raine founded Temenos, a school that studied how philosophy and the arts combined with religion, and published the Temenos Academy Review. She was also a leading authority on W.B. Yeats and William Blake.

Raine died on July 7. Cause of death was not released. She was 95.

Josephine Jacobsen

Josephine Jacobsen, an award-winning poet, died Wednesday of kidney failure. She was 94.

Jacobsen was 10 years old when she published her first poem in St. Nicholas Magazine. But it wasn't until her later years that her work appeared regularly in The New Yorker. She published numerous poetry collections, including "In the Crevice of Time," which received a nomination for a National Book Award.

In 1971, Jacobsen became a Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, a position now called U.S. poet laureate. She also won three awards from the Poetry Society of America: the Shelley Award, the William Carlos Williams Award and the Robert Frost Medal for distinguished lifetime service to American poetry. She was inducted into The American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1994.

"Poetry is like walking along a little, tiny, narrow ridge up on a precipice. You never know the next step, whether there's going to be a plunge. I think poetry is dangerous. There's nothing mild and predictable about poetry," Jacobsen once said.

Chaim Engel

When Chaim Engel escaped from a Nazi concentration camp in 1943, he had three things on his mind: freedom, revenge and love.

Engel was born in Brudzew, Poland, in 1916, and served in the Polish Army. He was captured by the Germans in 1940 and sent to the Sobibor concentration camp because he was Jewish.

While awaiting his extermination, Engel was assigned to labor in the closets, sorting through the clothing of the 250,000 prisoners who were killed there. During this task, Engel found his brother's belongings and vowed to avenge his death. Engel also fell in love with Selma Wynberg, a young woman at the camp. They were forced to dance together to amuse the guards.

Three years later, Engel joined 300 prisoners in a violent uprising that involved killing the guards and escaping from Sobibor. As Engel stabbed an SS sergeant to death, he shouted, "For my father! For my brother! For all Jews!" He then grabbed Selma's hand and ran away as Nazis shot at them. Engel and Selma hid in a hayloft for nine months before traveling to Holland, and then America.

Engel died on July 4 from pneumonia. He was 87.

Ginette Weiner

Her life story sounds like a romantic suspense movie from the '40s.

Ginette Marie Andrée Weiner was born in France in 1924. When Germany invaded during World War II, Weiner became a secret messenger for the French Resistance.

Once a week, Weiner would ride her bicycle 25 miles to deliver the forged German papers her father made in a secret room inside their house. Weiner was a pretty girl, and she flirted with the German soldiers to get past the check points. The papers she carried then helped French soldiers escape the Nazis.

After the war, Weiner fell in love with an American GI, married, and moved to the states where she taught French and did French translations for a Canadian company.

Weiner died on July 1 from complications associated with diabetes. She was 78.

Carolyn Patterson

Carolyn Patterson, the "Grande Dame of the Geographic," died on July 7 of cirrhosis of the liver. She was 82.

Patterson started her writing career as a police reporter for the New Orleans States newspaper. In 1949, she moved to Washington and applied for a job as a file clerk at National Geographic. Instead, the magazine hired her as a research assistant.

Patterson was given the opportunity to write the captions ("legends") for the magazine's world-famous photographs. Ten years later, she became the legends editor. Patterson was the first woman to become a senior editor at National Geographic, and the first woman to have her name published in its masthead.

An adventurous sort, Patterson also wrote articles for the magazine. She covered Winston Churchill's funeral in London and built a hut in Haiti. She dodged the poison arrows of hostile tribesmen in Brazil and went white-water rafting off the coast of Australia.

Patterson served as a past president of the Society of American Travel Writers, and published her memoirs, "Of Lands, Legends and Laughter: The Search for Adventure with National Geographic" in 1998.

Lord Shawcross

Lord Hartley William Shawcross of Friston, a chief prosecutor in the Nuremberg trials, died July 6. He was 101.

Shawcross generated a reputation for meticulous prosecution when he tried William Joyce for high treason and John George Haigh for the murder of Olive Durand-Deacon. As the chief prosecutor for the United Kingdom at the Nuremberg war crimes trial in 1945, Shawcross helped to convict a dozen Nazis, who received prison and death sentences. These convictions were achieved despite Shawcross's objections to capital punishment.

After Nuremberg, Shawcross was knighted. He worked as attorney general until 1951, spent four years as the principle British delegate to the United Nations and served several years in Parliament. Shawcross later became the Chancellor of Sussex University, and earned honorary degrees from nine universities in U.S. and the U.K. His autobiography, "Life Sentence," was published in 1995.

Arnold Nawrocki

Arnold N. Nawrocki marketed a great compliment to sliced bread -- individually wrapped, sliced cheese.

Although Nawrocki first tried to wrap individual slices of cheese in wax paper, he found that cellophane was a more profitable covering. It also helped to extend the shelf life of cheese from a week to more than six months.

Nawrocki died on June 30 from kidney disease. He was 78.

Winston Graham

British novelist Winston Graham, who wrote the popular "Poldark" series, died. Cause of death was not released. He was 93.

Graham wrote 40 books, but he was best known for Poldark, a series of historical novels about a Tory who returns to 18th century Cornwall after the American Revolution. The Poldark story was later turned into a British Broadcasting Corp. television miniseries, starring Robin Ellis and Angharad Rees.

Graham was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and was made an officer of the Order of British Empire in 1983.

Luvuyo Kakaza

Luvuyo Kakaza, the former South African lightweight boxing champion, died on July 4 during a robbery. His age was not released.

Kakaza gained fame in the early '90s for his boxing prowess. He was later stripped of his national title by David "Mixo" Potsane, and forced out of the game in 1996 because of eye problems.

Kakaza's Cape Town home was invaded by a band of robbers last Friday. When Kakaza handed over the keys to his brother-in-law's car, the thieves shot and killed him. Two suspects have been arrested for the murder; another two are still at large.

Ethan James

Ethan James, a 1960s rocker who later became a master of a medieval instrument, died on June 19 of liver cancer. He was 56.

James taught himself to play bass, drums, guitar and piano. He joined the heavy-metal band Blue Cheer in the 1960s, just after their song, "Summertime Blues," became a hit.

In the '70s, James became a music producer and built the Radio Tokyo Studio in Los Angeles. There he worked with many alternative and pop artists such as The Bangles, Jane's Addiction, Black Flag and Sonic Youth.

James returned to performing in 1989 when he discovered a passion for playing the hurdy-gurdy, a medieval instrument that looks like an ancient fiddle with a wheel. When its strings are caressed by a bow, it makes a sound similar to a violin and a set of bagpipes.

"This is not some museum piece. It has been through cycles of popularity and obscurity for the last 1,000 years. I think it is becoming more popular again, which is somehow appropriate in the new millennium," James once said.

After he became a master of the hurdy-gurdy, James toured the U.S. and Europe, often playing at Renaissance faires. He performed with the San Francisco Mozart Festival Orchestra and appeared at the Ashland Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

Mikey Dee

If you're in a rock or pop band in Boston, you probably knew Michael Linick. Linick, a.k.a. Mikey Dee, was well-respected in the Boston scene for his unending support of local music.

Before he became ill, Dee went out almost every night to listen to local bands. He edited the music magazine, The Noise, worked as the director of AAA & Public Radio Promotion at The Planetary Group, played drums for several bands and performed in the Boston Rock Opera's production of "Jesus Christ Superstar." His radio show, "On the Town With Mikey Dee" on WMFO 91.5 FM, featured a live performance from a different band each week.

In 2000, the staff of WMFO changed the name of the station's Studio D to Studio Dee. The following year, he was honored with a Boston Music Hall of Fame Award.

"He was a one man support machine -- support for local bands, clubs and the entire Boston scene in general," said Jason Kendall of the band Deterrents.

Dee suffered a stroke in 2000 after undergoing heart surgery. A series of concerts were held in Boston to fund Dee's therapy and recovery. The events involved more than 200 bands and raised nearly $100,000 for the Mikey Dee Musicians Benefit Trust. That money will now be used to honor Dee and assist Boston-based musicians in serious need.

Dee died on July 6 from complications of pneumonia. He was 40.

Richard Newman

Richard Newman, a well-respected scholar of black studies, died July 7 of a brain tumor. He was 73.

Newman taught at Boston and Columbia universities before taking a job as the director of research at the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African-American Research at Harvard University.

Newman, the son of conservative Republicans who later earned the nickname "America's chief Negro-ologist," wrote essays, books and bibliographies. When asked why a white man would be so interested in African-American history, Newman would reply, ''Would I have to be a 16th-century English woman to study Elizabeth I?''

Ignacio Velasco

Cardinal Ignacio Velasco, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Venezuela, died on July 7. Cause of death was not released. He was 74.

Velasco was ordained in 1955 when he was 25 years old. He spent many years working in the Amazon jungle before rising through the ranks of the church. He was elected titular Bishop of Utimmira and appointed Apostolic Vicar of Puerto Ayacucho in 1989, then raised to the archbishopric of Caracas in 1995.

Velasco was best known for his combustible relationship with President Hugo Chávez. When he was appointed cardinal in 2001, Velasco told Chávez to improve relations with the Catholic Church, which is the predominant religion in Venezuela. Chávez once called the church a "tumor."

Velasco gave his blessing to last year's two-day coup d'etat, but when it ended, he urged Venezuelans to reconcile with the president. Then three months ago, Velasco had a change of heart. This time he said that Chávez was leading Venezuela toward communism, a charge the president angrily denied.

Tom Kelley

Tom Kelley, who spent 35 years shooting pictures for The Washington Post, died June 25 of a stroke. He was 88.

Kelley joined The Post in 1938, and shot everything from hard news to sporting events. A member of the White House News Photographers' Association, Kelley covered six presidents (Franklin D. Roosevelt to Richard Nixon). His coverage of President John F. Kennedy's funeral was featured in a three-page spread in National Geographic.

Laden and Laleh Bijani

After almost three decades together, Laden and Laleh Bijani just wanted to live separate lives. But the operation that was meant to grant the conjoined Iranian twins their wish ended up killing them instead.

Despite being conjoined at the head, the sisters sought separate futures. Ladan wanted to return to Shiraz to study law. Laleh planned to move to Teheran and work as a journalist. They knew the four-day surgery was risky; doctors only gave them a 50-50 chance of survival.

On Sunday, an international team of neurosurgeons and support staff at Raffles Hospital in Singapore began the procedure. Once the twins were separated, doctors planned to take a skin graft from their thighs to cover their exposed brains. But during the surgery, circulation between the twins became unstable and they both lost a lot of blood.

Laden and Laleh Bijani died on July 8. They were 29.

Alex Coreas

Alex Alberto Cornejo Coreas, a U.S. marine who served in Afghanistan, was determined to see the birth of his son.

In December 2002, Coreas learned he had gastric cancer. Doctors removed his stomach, appendix and part of his esophagus, but they were too late -- the cancer had metastasized.

Last April, Coreas was lying in a hospice bed, struggling for life, when his father-in-law was killed in a car accident. By sheer force of will, Coreas left the hospital to attend the funeral. When he returned, his condition worsened.

What worried Coreas most was missing the birth of his child. The baby wasn't due until July 3, but the doctors thought it would be safe to induce his wife Shawna on June 18. When she went into labor, Coreas sat by the delivery table. Although he was barely conscious and couldn't speak, he managed to cut the umbilical cord and hold the newborn before returning to his hospital bed.

On June 25, six days after the birth of his son, Coreas died. He was 34.

Thomas Keough

Lt. Thomas M. Keough was the kind of homicide detective usually only found in good mystery novels.

A third-generation Chicago police officer, Keough spent 32 years on the force and received more than 100 awards from the department during his career, including 12 commendations.

His cases were varied and tough, but Keough always managed to get to the heart of each one. He helped solve the homicide of two children who were killed by their parents in 1986. He worked on the task force that shut down a drug dealing family. And he once solved a murder based on the examination of a single crime scene photo (the killer left his watch on the victim's night stand).

Keough died July 3 of an apparent heart attack. He was 53.

Buddy Ebsen

Christian Rudolph Ebsen Jr. (a.k.a. Buddy Ebsen), the lanky dancer and actor who became famous playing a rich hillbilly and a private investigator on TV, died Sunday. Cause of death was not released. He was 95.

In the '20s, Ebsen and his sister, Vilma, formed a Vaudeville act that eventually performed on Broadway. Then they moved to Hollywood and appeared in the first of MGM's Eleanor Powell movies, "Broadway Melody of 1936." Vilma retired from show business, but Buddy went on to do two more films with Powell.

When MGM head Louis B. Mayer offered him an exclusive $2,000/week contract in 1938, Ebsen turned it down. Mayer gave Ebsen the famous "you'll never work in this town again" speech, but it was a prophecy that proved incorrect when Ebsen was offered the role as the Tin Man in "The Wizard of Oz." Unfortunately, the aluminum powder applied to his skin was toxic and made him so ill that he was hospitalized and replaced by Jack Haley.

Ebsen returned to the stage for several years before landing the part of sidekick, George Russell, in the Disney production of Davy Crockett. The TV series and movies were a cultural phenomenon in the '50s, and caused a coonskin cap fashion craze.

After appearing as Doc in "Breakfast at Tiffany's" in 1961, Ebsen considered retirement. His plans were thwarted, however, when he was offered the part of Jed Clampett on the TV show, "The Beverly Hillbillies." He spent nine years as the head of CBS's most famous hillbilly clan before taking on the role of private investigator Barnaby Jones in the show of the same name. It was a surprise hit that aired for seven years.

Ebsen was also the author of several books including "Kelly's Quest," a novel based on his Barnaby Jones character, and his autobiography, "The Other Side of Oz."

N!xau

N!xau, the Kalahari bushman who achieved international stardom when he appeared in the movie, "The Gods Must Be Crazy," died Saturday. Cause of death was not released. His age was estimated at 59.

Jamie Uys' satirical film examined what would happen if a Coke bottle fell out of a plane and landed in a remote African village. "The Gods Must Be Crazy" was a box office hit and spawned several sequels.

Gertrude Samuels

Gertrude Samuels, who died Wednesday at the age of 93, left a 50-year legacy of pictures and words.

Her career began in 1937 when she dropped out of college to join the staff of The New York Post. She covered national and foreign affairs for The Post and then published stories in Newsweek and Time magazine.

During World War II, Samuels worked as an editor, writer and photographer for The New York Times, where she wrote summaries for the Week in Review and then covered news events for the magazine.

In 1955, Samuels won a George Polk award for excellence in education reporting. However, she was best known for her coverage of the Middle East, particularly during the Six Day War.

Her pictorials were popular; they appeared in National Geographic, Redbook and The Saturday Evening Post. In the 1960s, Samuels collected her photographs and writings into the books: "B-G: Fighter of Goliaths; The Story of David Ben-Gurion" and "The Secret of Gonen: Portrait of a Kibbutz on the Border in a Time of War."

Samuels began freelancing full-time in the '70s, which gave her a chance to write stage plays and books for young adults. Until a few years ago, she worked as a United Nations correspondent for The New Leader magazine.

Norman O'Connor

Rev. Norman James O'Connor, the jazz priest, died June 29 of a heart attack. He was 81.

O'Connor never had a problem mixing his work with his passion for music. Although he played piano with local jazz bands in his youth, O'Connor gave up his dreams of becoming a musician when he enrolled at Catholic University in Washington. Instead, he was ordained as a Paulist priest in 1948 and included jazz in his services.

During his decade as the chaplain at Boston University, O'Connor was named to the board of the first Newport Jazz Festival. Each year he'd appear at the event in his priest collar, and serve as the master of ceremonies. He wrote a weekly jazz column for The Boston Globe and freelanced for music magazines.

In the 1960s, O'Connor worked as the director of radio and television for the Paulist Fathers in New York. He also hosted a syndicated radio show and the local TV show, "Dial M for Music."

Anthony Dapolito

The unofficial mayor of Greenwich Village has died.

Anthony Dapolito woke up each morning to bake the bread he served at the Vesuvio Bakery, a business his father started in the '20s. In the evenings, Dapolito challenged bureaucrats who sought to change the neighborhood he loved.

Dapolito spent 52 years as the unpaid chairman of Community Board 2, which represents the Village, the West Village, SoHo and parts of NoHo, Little Italy and Chinatown. With the help of his political allies, Dapolito successfully fought to remove traffic from Washington Square Park, and stopped a planned freeway from being built in Lower Manhattan.

Dapolito earned the honorary title of "mayor of Greenwich Village" for his tireless community efforts, but he was also called "Mr. Playgrounds," for his work in creating several new playground spaces in the Village. The playground on Thompson Street was even named in his honor.

Dapolito died Wednesday of pneumonia. He was 82.

Briggs Cunningham

Briggs Swift Cunningham Jr. was a millionaire with a penchant for racing.

His father was founder and president of the Citizens' National Bank, and a director of the Pennsylvania Railroad. When Briggs was five, his father died and left his son and daughter half of his estate, a considerable inheritance they couldn't touch until their 40th birthdays.

In 1930, Cunningham married Lucie Bedford, the granddaughter of a cofounder of Standard Oil. It was during their honeymoon in Europe that Cunningham saw his first motor race, the Monaco Grand Prix. It made a huge impression on him.

Cunningham joined two friends in creating The Automobile Racing Club of America. He learned how to race cars and began competing internationally in 1950. Two years later, he placed fourth overall at Le Mans when his co-driver Bill Spear got sick and he had to drive 20 of the 24 hours without relief.

He raced boats as well, and in 1958, he skippered the American 12-meter yacht, Columbia, to win the America's Cup.

After he retired, Cunningham built the Briggs Cunningham Automotive Museum in Costa Mesa, Calif., to house all of the racing cars he collected during his lifetime. It remained open for more than two decades before changing ownership and moving to Florida.

He was inducted into the America's Cup Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Motor Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.

Cunningham died Wednesday. Cause of death was not released. He was 96.

Rachel Millet

Rachel Millet was an independent young Englishwoman who earned a medal for bravery during World War II.

Millet, nee Howell-Evans, was a nurse at the Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital for three years before becoming a matron at a prep school. When war broke out, she joined the Mechanised Transport Corps and learned first aid, map-reading and car maintenance.

After the Fall of France, Millet was recruited as a driver and nurse of the Hadfield-Spears mobile hospital. She was sent to North Africa to aid surgeons with the 1st Division of the Free French. Though she helped out on the wards when it was busy, Millet's main job was driving and maintaining her Ford truck.

Her unit followed the Allies to Italy, where she was asked to join a small French Commando party landing in the South of France. They arrived at night on the wrong beach, and were attacked by American bombers the next morning who thought they were Germans. She was eventually awarded the Croix de Guerre for bravery for that mission.

In 1946, she married René Millet, who worked in the French diplomatic service. The couple traveled to Ankara, Johannesburg and Bangkok, where she helped to start a center for the blind.

Her autobiography, "Spearette: a Memoir of the Hadfield-Spears Ambulance Unit 1940-1945," was published in 1998.

Millet died on June 1. Cause of death was not released. She was 89.

Dean Dunlavey

Dean C. Dunlavey, the Los Angeles trial lawyer who won consumers the right to tape TV shows on their VCRs, died Saturday from complications of a fall. He was 77.

Dunlavey graduated at the top of his class from the University of California, Berkeley in 1955. He was the editor-in-chief of the California Law Review and served as a member of the Order of the Coif.

He taught at Harvard Law School, and earned a master's of law degree, then joined the Los Angeles law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in 1956. He tried nearly 100 cases in his 34-year legal career, but the most important one was Sony Corp. of America vs. Universal City Studios Inc. (a.k.a. the Betamax case).

In the early '80s, Universal City Studios and Walt Disney Productions were granted an injunction against Sony, the manufacturer who sold Betamax video recorders. Universal and Disney claimed the VCR infringed on the copyrights of Hollywood studios because it allowed consumers to record their favorite TV shows.

The case went to the Supreme Court where Dunlavey contended that greed was behind the law suit. He said the movie studios were paid to air their TV shows and were not entitled to further compensation by the consumer.

In a 5-4 decision, the court ruled that consumers do not violate federal copyright law when they tape TV shows for their own use, and that the makers of VCRs were not breaking any laws by selling such products to the public.

Carroll Barbour

Rev. Carroll Barbour didn't care if a person was gay or straight, black or white, sick or ill. If they needed guidance, his church was there to help.

In 1965, Barbour was assigned to a church in Georgia. When he welcomed a group of black college students into his all-white congregation, he was attacked by members of the Ku Klux Klan.

"They hit me and beat me to a pulp, then shoved me under a car. But I had to show them they couldn't silence me. So the next day, I drank three jiggers of bourbon and went to church like nothing happened," Barbour once told The LA Times.

Barbour became rector of St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Hollywood in 1986. Unlike his predecessors, Barbour welcomed those who were sick with HIV and AIDS, a move that angered longtime parish members who vowed to have him removed. They failed, and his pews filled with new followers.

Barbour visited hundreds of sick parishioners every month. He established support groups for patients and their families. He persuaded members of his church to pack up to 200 lunches a week for AIDS and HIV patients at the local hospital. And when his parishioners with the disease died, he presided over their funerals and buried their ashes in an AIDS chapel. In 1991, his oldest son, John, died of AIDS.

Barbour died Tuesday from complications of a pulmonary disorder. He was 72.

Barry White

Barry White's velvet voice could inspire romance in any couple.

The crooner known for his lush baritone and sexy lyrics made several records during the early 1960s as "Barry Lee," but he first topped the R&B charts with "I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby," which also hit number three on the pop chart. He helped launch the disco phenomenon with "Love's Theme," a song he performed with his 40-piece ensemble, The Love Unlimited Orchestra.

Although his popularity peaked 25 years ago, White returned to the spotlight in the 1990s when "You're the First, the Last, My Everything," became the theme song for a character on the Fox TV show, "Ally McBeal." In 2000, he won two Grammys for best male and traditional R&B vocal performance for the song, "Staying Power."

White died July 4 of kidney failure. He was 58.

Dick Iglehart

Richard B. "Dick" Iglehart dedicated his life to keeping criminals off the streets.

Iglehart attended the University of California, Berkeley, and the Santa Clara University Law School and then joined the Alameda County District Attorney's office.

When Iglehart was appointed to chief assistant district attorney, he vowed to prosecute drunken drivers to the letter of the law. He headed a panel dedicated to finding better ways to prevent, investigate and prosecute child abuse. And he helped to draft a ban on assault-style guns shortly after Patrick Purdy killed five children and wounded 29 during a school massacre.

In his career, Iglehart prosecuted more than 120 cases ranging from serial murder, rape and child molestation to political corruption. In January 2000, Iglehart became a Superior Court Judge in Alameda County, Calif., a position he held until his death.

He died of an apparent heart attack on Tuesday. He was 61.

Najeeb Halaby

Najeeb Halaby led a very full life. He was a lawyer and a businessman. He set Naval flying records. He headed the Federal Aviation Administration and ran Pan American World Airways. He appeared on the cover of Time Magazine. He was even the father of a queen.

Halaby graduated from Stanford University and Yale University law school. While working at a Los Angeles law firm, Halaby took flying lessons, which helped him land a job as a flight instructor with the Navy.

During World War II, Halaby test-piloted the first U.S. jet plane, the Bell P-59, and made the first continuous transcontinental jet flight. After the war, he helped Laurence Rockefeller oversee his family's business enterprises.

When President John F. Kennedy appointed Halaby to the FAA in 1961, he decentralized its authority and helped create the FAA Flight Academy in Oklahoma City.

In 1969, Halaby became chief executive of Pan Am. While he was credited with expanding the airline's Inter-Continental Hotel chain, he also oversaw the purchase of an expensive new fleet of Boeing 747s, a move that indebted the company for years.

After Pan Am, Halaby published the autobiography, "Crosswinds: An Airman's Memoir," with Doubleday. He worked as the chairman of the International Advisory Board for Royal Jordanian Airlines, and ran Halaby International, a New York investment business specializing in Middle East aviation ventures. His daughter Lisa became Queen Noor in 1978 when she married King Hussein of Jordan.

Halaby died Wednesday of congestive heart failure. He was 87.

Mark Wells

Mark Wells, who was convicted of four murders in Ontario, Canada, died Saturday of natural causes. He was 42.

Wells was in the process of killing Annette Norman when her sons Richard, 8, and Christopher, 7, walked in and witnessed the crime. Wells stabbed the boys and then slit their throats (one of the boys was still holding a bag of candy when his body was found).

Wells was also found guilty of strangling Christine Tansley, whose body was found in her blood-spattered apartment the day before the Norman murders.

Wells started serving his life sentence in Ontario in 1991 but was moved to the Matsqui Institution in British Columbia to receive treatment for a lengthy terminal illness, and to be closer to his relatives.

Khieu Ponnary

Khieu Ponnary, the first wife of the late Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot and a member of his regime's inner circle, died Tuesday of cancer. She was 83.

Khieu Ponnary was the first female Cambodian to graduate from high school, and the first Khmer woman to earn a bachelor's degree from Phnom Penh's elite Lycee Sisowath. She married Pol Pot in 1956.

Khieu Ponnary participated in her husband's communist revolutionary activities during the 1950s. She went underground in 1965 and then served as the head of the national women's association from 1975 to 1979.

In 1978, after being introduced to cheering crowds as the mother of the revolution, mental illness took hold of Khieu Ponnary. She received treatment in China, but it did nothing to help her condition. In the 1980s, Pol Pot separated from Khieu Ponnary and took another wife.

Joan Lowery Nixon

Joan Lowery Nixon, author of more than 140 books, died Saturday from complications of pancreatic cancer. She was 76.

Nixon always knew she wanted to be a writer. As a child, she made up stories to entertain her sisters. By the time she was 17, Nixon had sold her first story to Redbook.

Each day, Nixon would wake up, feed her children, send them off to school and write for hours. This method led to the publication of her first book, "The Mystery of Hurricane Castle." Over the next four decades, Nixon published dozens of mystery and historical novels for children and young adults. She also wrote books for adults who read a lower level, or who were just learning English.

Nixon was the only four-time winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Juvenile Mystery. She won two Spurs Awards from Western Writers of America, and 18 awards from various states that invited children to vote for their favorite books. Nixon also served as the president of the Mystery Writers of America.

At the time of her death, Nixon had one book in galleys, another at the publisher's and an outline for a third waiting to be written.

E. Carlyle Smith Jr.

E. Carlyle Smith Jr., a conservative Democrat and dedicated public servant, died Sunday of a brain tumor. He was 64.

Smith became politically active after graduating with an architecture and civil engineering degree from Texas Tech University. He worked as a precinct chairman and a delegate to the Texas and national Democratic conventions in 1972. He then served six terms in the Texas House of Representatives.

In his "spare" time, Smith was the president of the Grand Prairie Rotary Club, the Grand Prairie Jaycees and the Community Concerts Association. He was vice chairman and campaign chairman of the YMCA, coached boys baseball and was a district official with the Boy Scouts of America. In 1968, he was named Grand Prairie's Citizen of the Year.

Herbie Mann

Herbie Mann, a seminal jazz flutist who fused his music with Brazilian, Eastern European and African sounds and released more than 100 albums, died on July 1 of prostate cancer. He was 73.

Although he studied the clarinet and saxophone as a child, Mann chose the flute as his preferred instrument. His musical career began at 14 when he played in groups at resorts in the Catskill Mountains.

For a few years, Mann played with the Army Band, touring in Italy, France and Scandinavia. After returning to New York, Mann added a conga player to his group, and launched a popular run in Latin music circles. But it was his visits to Africa and Brazil in the 1960s that brought new sounds to his work.

In the 1970s, Mann released "Memphis Underground," a founding recording of fusion. When he left Atlantic Records and launched his own label, Kokopelli, he spent a year and a half working on 12 recordings, including "Peace Pieces," his tribute to the music of Bill Evans. Mann took a brief side jaunt into disco and then returned to performing jazz with fusion sounds in the '80s and '90s.

Mann's last live concert was May 3 at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, where he received a five minute standing ovation.

Rod Amateau

"Written, produced and directed by..." This is a favorite credit of film school students everywhere and one Rodney Amateau achieved.

Amateau began his career as a staff writer for CBS Radio. Then he moved to 20th Century Fox, where he worked as a junior writer, dialogue coach and screen test director (he was in charge of handling Marilyn Monroe's screen test).

Amateau made his directorial debut in 1952 with "The Bushwhackers," which he co-wrote with Tom Gries. He worked as a stunt double for James Dean on "Rebel Without a Cause," and then joined CBS as a producer, director and writer of "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis." His other television credits include "Mister Ed," "The Patty Duke Show," "The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show," "The Dukes of Hazzard" and "The Fall Guy." He also directed the pilot for "Gilligan's Island."

Amateau died on Sunday of a cerebral hemorrhage. He was 79.

Ivan Allen Jr.

Ivan Allen Jr., the former Atlanta mayor who was credited with keeping the peace during the turbulent civil rights movement of the 1960s, died July 2. Cause of death was not released. He was 92.

Allen's two terms as mayor were busy ones. A Democrat, Allen welcomed integration when other southern leaders decried it, earning Atlanta the nickname, "the city too busy to hate." In 1963, at the request of President Kennedy, Allen testified before Congress in support of the Civil Rights Act. He was the only elected Southern official to do so.

Allen helped bring professional sports to Atlanta by leading the efforts to build Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. He presided over the creation of MARTA, the city's transit system. And when a plane crashed in 1962, killing more than 100 Atlanta leaders, Allen founded the Memorial Arts Center in their memory.

Joey Lattanzi

Joseph W. Lattanzi, a Grammy-nominated musician and radio personality, died on June 28 of cancer. He was 52.

Lattanzi worked as a trumpet player and music arranger. He and his wife, singer/drummer Patti Nasuti, performed at nightclubs and hosted "The Joey & Patti Show" on Cruisin' 92.1, WVLT FM in Vineland, N.J. They also worked with a wide variety of musicians, including Bobby Rydell, Tito Puente, Count Basie and Alice Cooper.

In 2000, Lattanzi was nominated for a Grammy for his song "Love Me," which was included in the HBO movie, "Luminarias."

Carl Kreitzberg

To help scientists better forecast how much snow will fall during a nor'easter, Carl W. Kreitzberg led a team of researchers right into the heart of one.

Kreitzberg's interest in weather patterns developed when he flew crop dusters as a teenager. He earned a bachelor's degree in meteorology and a doctorate in atmospheric sciences from the University of Washington. He later became a seaplane pilot, a flight instructor and a professor of atmospheric science at Drexel University.

In the 1980s, Kreitzberg was named associate director of the Experiment on Rapidly Intensifying Cyclones Over the Atlantic project. His job was to take a team of scientists into the heart of a winter storm, just as it intensified, to test new meteorological equipment. Kreitzberg also studied how storms formed off the Atlantic Coast and researched new ways to forecast flash floods and acid rain.

Kreitzberg died on Thursday of brain cancer. He was 66.

Bernard Goldhirsh

Bernard A. Goldhirsh turned a love of sailing into a modern media success story.

Goldhirsh started sailing while attending MIT. After college, he taught science at a private school in Cambridge, and took students on sailing trips.

In 1970, Goldhirsh launched Sail magazine. When its circulation exceeded 100,000, Goldhirsh sold it for an estimated $10 million.

With the proceeds from the sale, Goldhirsh launched Inc. magazine. It also flourished. After circulation reached 650,000, Goldhirsh sold it for an estimated $200 million and gave 10 percent of the proceeds to his employees.

Goldhirsh died Sunday of a brain tumor. He was 63.

Mordechai Hod

General Mordechai Hod spent his whole life either in the cockpit of a plane, or deciding where planes should fly.

As a young man, Hod volunteered for the British Army. When the state of Israel was founded, he joined its air force and became the first fighter pilot to earn his wings in an Israeli air force course.

Hod was granted command over the air force in 1966. A year later, he ordered a preemptive strike to destroy hundreds of Arab aircraft on bases in Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Jordan. The operation, which was known as Moked, launched the Six Day War and helped Israel capture the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Arab Jerusalem, the Golan Heights and the Sinai Desert. The desert was later returned to Egypt as a peace offering.

After his military service, Hod founded the Kal cargo airline, and served as the chairman of El Al, Israel's national airline.

Hod died on June 29. Cause of death was not released. He was 76.

Floyd Fithian

Floyd Fithian, a former congressman from Indiana, died on June 27 of Parkinson's disease. He was 74.

Fithian, a Democrat, served in the House of Representatives from 1975 to 1983, and on the Small Business, Government Operations, Foreign Affairs and Agriculture committees.

After his final term in office, Fithian spent two years as the finance director of the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, and 11 years as the chief of staff for Sen. Paul Simon, D-Ill.

In 2003, Fithian was one of 72 former Congressmen to sign a petition that urged the U.S. and British governments to seek peaceful solutions, rather than war, in Iraq.

Robert McCloskey

Robert McCloskey, an award-winning illustrator and author, died on June 30. Cause of death was not released. He was 88.

McCloskey published "Blueberries for Sal," "Make Way for Ducklings" and six other children's books. He illustrated 10 books for other authors, including his mother-in-law, Ruth Sawyer, and won the Caldecott Medal for children's book illustration twice.

"I think in pictures. I fill in between pictures with words. My first book I wrote in order to have something to illustrate," McCloskey once said.