Post Mortem

Those remembered and those forgot

T. Rees Shapiro — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:11:29 GMT

Seventy years ago, a group of Americans stationed on a tiny island in the Pacific came under attack from Japanese fighter planes and bombers.

Herbert L. Zincke was one of those to survive the initial assault. When the air raid was over, he combed through the wreckage searching for the dismembered bodies of his fellow airmen.

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Those remembered and those forgot

T. Rees Shapiro — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:11:29 GMT

Seventy years ago, a group of Americans stationed on a tiny island in the Pacific came under attack from Japanese fighter planes and bombers.

Herbert L. Zincke was one of those to survive the initial assault. When the air raid was over, he combed through the wreckage searching for the dismembered bodies of his fellow airmen.

Read full article >>

Those remembered and those forgot

T. Rees Shapiro — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:11:29 GMT

Seventy years ago, a group of Americans stationed on a tiny island in the Pacific came under attack from Japanese fighter planes and bombers.

Herbert L. Zincke was one of those to survive the initial assault. When the air raid was over, he combed through the wreckage searching for the dismembered bodies of his fellow airmen.

Read full article >>

Three deep soul men have died

Terence McArdle — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 22:57:48 GMT

This has been a sad couple of weeks for deep soul and soul-blues fans. We’ve lost three of the most memorable stylists in the genre.

Philadelphia’s Howard Tate, who in collaboration with producer and songwriter Jerry Ragovoy, recorded such late 1960s soul classics as “Ain’t Nobody Home,” “Stop” and “Look At Granny Run Run,” died Dec. 2 at 72. After struggling with cocaine addiction and homelessness, Tate became a preacher only to re-emerge in 2003 with the critically acclaimed album “Rediscovered.” His Billboard obituary is here.

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Three deep soul men have died

Terence McArdle — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 22:57:48 GMT

This has been a sad couple of weeks for deep soul and soul-blues fans. We’ve lost three of the most memorable stylists in the genre.

Read full article >>

‘Son . . . . if you want to be a writer, someday you’ll be.’

Emily Langer — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:17:48 GMT

Yesterday we published an obituary of Piri Thomas, the author of the 1967 memoir “Down These Mean Streets.” Mr. Thomas died Oct. 17 at his home in El Cerrito, Calif., of complications from pneumonia.

The book recounted his coming-of-age in Spanish Harlem, his descent into crime, his seven years in prison and the redemption he found in writing. It was an immediate sensation and helped inspire the generation of “Nuyorican” writers that came from the Puerto Rican community in New York.

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‘I should be as lucky when I go’

T. Rees Shapiro — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 16:03:34 GMT

During the 1930s and 1940s, Norman Corwin was a superstar in radio, the leading news and entertainment medium of the day.

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‘I should be as lucky when I go’

T. Rees Shapiro — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 16:03:34 GMT

During the 1930s and 1940s, Norman Corwin was a superstar in radio, the leading news and entertainment medium of the day.

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A phone call to the past

T. Rees Shapiro — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 20:44:29 GMT

Last week I picked up the phone and dialed a Minneapolis-area number.

“Is this the home of Ken Dahlberg? Kenneth H. Dahlberg?” I asked.

I was trying to get in touch with a member of his family to confirm some details about his life for an obituary in The Washington Post.

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A phone call to the past

T. Rees Shapiro — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 20:44:29 GMT

Last week I picked up the phone and dialed a Minneapolis-area number.

“Is this the home of Ken Dahlberg? Kenneth H. Dahlberg?” I asked.

I was trying to get in touch with a member of his family to confirm some details about his life for an obituary in The Washington Post.

Read full article >>

Ginger McCain and the Grand National

T. Rees Shapiro — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 18:27:29 GMT

The English Grand National at Aintree has been a steeplechasing tradition since 1839 and it is considered the most prestigious and grueling test for thoroughbreds.

The 4.5 mile race is a daunting loop of spruce-covered jumps, including some that stand more than five feet high. The obstacles were never a challenge for Red Rum, the Grand National’s only three-time winner. The acclaimed thoroughbred was trained by Ginger McCain, who died yesterday age 80.

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Ginger McCain and the Grand National

T. Rees Shapiro — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 18:27:29 GMT

The English Grand National at Aintree has been a steeplechasing tradition since 1839 and it is considered the most prestigious and grueling test for thoroughbreds.

Read full article >>

Pietro Sambi, Vatican ambassador, dies at 73

Justin Jouvenal — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 10:39:57 GMT

Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Vatican ambassador to the United States since 2006, died Wednesday night apparently from complications related to lung surgery, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops . He was 73.

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Pietro Sambi, Vatican ambassador, dies at 73

Justin Jouvenal — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 10:39:57 GMT

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Lil Greenwood dies; singer toured with Duke Ellington

Terence McArdle — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 18:12:18 GMT

Lil Greenwood, a veteran blues singer from the 1950s chitlin’ circuit who toured with both the Duke Ellington Orchestra and rhythm-and-blues bandleader Roy Milton, died July 19 in her home town Pritchard, Alabama. She was 86.

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Amy Winehouse dies; ‘Rehab’ singer was 27

T. Rees Shapiro — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 17:05:26 GMT

Amy Winehouse, the obsidian-haired British singer whose hits included “You Know I’m No Good,” and “Rehab” and who publicly struggled with addictions to alcohol and drugs, has reportedly died at her apartment in London. Sky News confirmed Ms. Winehouse’s death.

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Amy Winehouse dies; ‘Rehab’ singer was 27

T. Rees Shapiro — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 17:05:26 GMT

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Sherwood Schwartz dies: Creator of TV’s “Gilligan’s Island” and “The Brady Bunch” was 94

Emma Brown — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 17:21:58 GMT

Sherwood Schwartz, who created and produced two of the most enduringly popular series on television, “Gilligan’s Island” and “The Brady Bunch,” died today at 94.

“Gilligan’s Island,” about the trials and tribulations of seven shipwrecked castaways, aired on CBS for just three seasons, from 1964 to 1967, and was never a favorite of critics. But fans adored its gags and corny jokes, and the show has enjoyed a sort of immortality in reruns and parodies.

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Richard Harding Poff, former Va. Supreme Court justice and congressman, dies

Emma Brown — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 23:09:06 GMT

Richard Harding Poff, a Republican who served ten terms in the U.S. House before resigning in 1972 to become a justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, has died at 87. Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Mr. Poff’s death today, but no details were immediately available.

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Actor Peter Falk dies at 83

Matt Schudel — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 18:11:14 GMT

Peter Falk, who played the gruff-speaking, cigar-chomping TV detective Lt. Columbo, has died in Los Angeles at 83. He reportedly had dementia

Mr. Falk created his most famous character as the rumpled, raincoat-wearing Columbo in a 1968 TV movie. “Columbo” aired as an NBC detective show from 1971 to 1978, and Mr. Falk returned in a series of Columbo TV movies for many years afterward and won several Emmy Awards for acting.

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Writer-adventurer Patrick Leigh Fermor dies at 96

Matt Schudel — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 19:28:00 GMT

Patrick Leigh Fermor, who may have been the greatest travel writer of the 20th century, has died at the age of 96. He was one of those intrepid British adventurers of a bygone age who could recite the odes of Horace from memory, sleep in a barn one night and dance with royalty the next.

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Singer-songwriter Andrew Gold Dies

Lauren Wiseman — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 20:21:32 GMT

Singer-songwriter Andrew Gold, who was best known for his 1977 hit single “Lonely Boy,” and the contagious theme song for the 1980’s television show, “The Golden Girls,” died Friday of a heart attack in Los Angeles. He was 59.

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Singer-songwriter Andrew Gold Dies

Lauren Wiseman — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 20:21:32 GMT

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Singer-songwriter Andrew Gold Dies

Lauren Wiseman — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 20:21:32 GMT

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Lawrence Eagleburger dies at 80

Matt Schudel — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 16:18:00 GMT

Lawrence S. Eagleburger, a longtime U.S. diplomat and fixture in Washington foreign policy circles, who served a brief stint as secretary of State under President George H.W. Bush, has died in Charlottesville at age 80. He was a protege of Henry Kissinger and served presidents of both parties, beginning with Richard M. Nixon. A full obituary will follow.

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