obituary

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Marian Robinson, Michelle Obama's Mother, Dies at 86

Matriarch was a 'reassuring presence' at White House during Barack Obama's tenure

(Newser) - On election night 2008, as Barack Obama sat nervously in a Chicago hotel suite and awaited news on whether he would become the country's first Black president, his mother-in-law was by his side. "Are you ready for this, Grandma?" Obama asked Marian Shields Robinson, who years earlier had...

His Life Was Threatened While Producing The Godfather

Albert Ruddy's last words: 'The game is over, but we won the game'

(Newser) - Albert S. Ruddy, a colorful, Canadian-born producer and writer who won Oscars for The Godfather and Million Dollar Baby, developed the raucous prison-sports comedy The Longest Yard and helped create the hit sitcom Hogan's Heroes, has died at age 94. Ruddy died "peacefully" Saturday at the UCLA Medical...

World's Longest-Serving Flight Attendant Dies
World's Longest-Serving
Flight Attendant Dies
OBITUARY
May 27, 2024 4:22 PM CDT

World's Longest-Serving Flight Attendant Dies

'Fly high, Bette,' American Airlines says

(Newser) - Bette Nash, who started working as a flight attendant before Boeing launched its first jetliner and never officially retired, has died at age 88. Nash, who started flying with Eastern Airlines in November 1957, held the Guinness World Record for the longest career as a flight attendant. ABC News reports...

Bill Walton Was a Star With a 'Zest for Life'
Bill Walton Was a Star
With a 'Zest for Life'
obituary
May 27, 2024 3:08 PM CDT

Bill Walton Was a Star With a 'Zest for Life'

Hall of Famer won championships in high school, college, and the NBA

(Newser) - Bill Walton, a Hall of Fame center who won basketball championships in high school, college, and the NBA before becoming a celebrated broadcaster, died Monday. He was 71 and had been battling cancer, the Washington Post reports. He was rated as one of the best ever players at each level,...

American Pro Golfer Is Dead at 30
American Pro Golfer
Is Dead at 30
updated
May 26, 2024 1:10 PM CDT

American Pro Golfer Is Dead at 30

Grayson Murray had spoken openly about his struggles with alcoholism, depression

(Newser) - Grayson Murray, a pro golfer who had been brutally honest about his struggles with alcohol and depression, has died at age 30. The PGA announced the stunning news on Saturday, one day after Murray abruptly pulled out of the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, reports CBS Sports . His...

With His Brother, He Crafted the World's Most-Played Song

Richard Sherman of Disney and 'It's a Small World' fame dies at 95

(Newser) - Richard M. Sherman, one half of the prolific, award-winning pair of brothers who helped form millions of childhoods by penning the instantly memorable songs for Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang—as well as the most-played tune on Earth, "It's a Small World (After...

Archaeologist Shared More Than a Fedora With Indiana Jones

Multilingual Schuyler Jones worked around the world, laughing at catastrophe

(Newser) - Schuyler Jones, a globe-trotting American adventurer whose exploits drew comparisons to iconic movie character Indiana Jones, has died. He was 94. Jones' stepdaughter, Cassandra Da'Luz Vieira-Manion, posted on Facebook that Jones died on May 17, saying, "He was a fascinating man who lived a lot of life around...

Documentary Filmmaker Spurlock Dies at 53

He first gained fame with 'Super Size Me,' about the dangers of eating too much McDonald's food

(Newser) - Documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, an Oscar-nominee who made food and American diets his life's work—famously eating only at McDonald's for a month to illustrate the dangers of a fast-food diet—has died at age 53. Spurlock died Thursday in New York from complications of cancer, according to...

Precious Moments Artist 'Never Took the Credit'
Precious Moments Artist
'Never Took the Credit'
OBITUARY
May 24, 2024 6:45 AM CDT

Precious Moments Artist 'Never Took the Credit'

Sam Butcher's drawings of biblical figures led to thousands of collectible figurines

(Newser) - Sam Butcher, the artist who created the Precious Moments figurines depicting angelic teardrop-eyed children, has died. He was 85. The company said in a Facebook post that he died early Monday surrounded by family, per the AP . It said his life's mission was "to share God's gift...

Founding Member of Train Dies After Slipping in Shower

Charlie Colin, 58, was found at a friend's home in Brussels

(Newser) - A founding member of the pop-rock band Train has died. Carolyn Stephens, sister to Charlie Colin, the group's bassist, confirmed the death of her brother at the age of 58 to the AP . Colin's mother tells TMZ that Colin had slipped and fallen in the shower while housesitting...

He Helped Launch the Careers of Cruise, Nicholson, Ford

Francis Ford Coppola's longtime collaborator Fred Roos dead at 89

(Newser) - Fred Roos, the Oscar-winning producer of The Godfather Part II who helped launch the careers of numerous superstars from Jack Nicholson to Tom Cruise, has died. He was 89. He died at his home in Beverly Hills, California, on Saturday, a representative said Tuesday, just days after his and Francis...

Inspiration for Gordon Gekko Dies
Inspiration for
Gordon Gekko Dies
OBITUARY
May 20, 2024 1:22 PM CDT

Inspiration for Gordon Gekko Dies

Rogue trader Ivan Boesky was 87

(Newser) - Financier Ivan Boesky, who died Monday, was at the center of an insider-trading scandal in the 1980s but he may be best remembered for the movie character he partly inspired: Gordon Gekko, the villain in Wall Street . "Greed is all right, by the way," Boesky said in a...

Bruce Nordstrom, of Eponymous Store Chain, Dies at 90
Nordstrom
Scion Dies
at 90
OBITUARY
May 20, 2024 11:26 AM CDT

Nordstrom Scion Dies at 90

Bruce Nordstrom helped transform his family's business into an upscale nationwide chain

(Newser) - Bruce Nordstrom, a retail executive who helped expand his family's Pacific Northwest department store chain into an upscale national brand, has died. Seattle-based Nordstrom Inc. said its former chairman died at his home on Saturday. He was 90, reports the AP . "Our dad leaves a powerful legacy as...

Alice Stewart Called Herself Conservative but Independent

CNN commentator worked on a series of Republican presidential campaigns

(Newser) - Alice Stewart, a CNN political commentator and veteran political adviser who worked on a number of Republican presidential campaigns, has died at age 58, the news network reported. Police in northern Virginia told CNN that Stewart's body was found outdoors in the Bellevue neighborhood early Saturday morning and that...

Actor Exceled at Playing 'Caustic, Cynical' Characters

Dabney Coleman's roles included the boss in '9 to 5'

(Newser) - Dabney Coleman, the mustachioed character actor who specialized in smarmy villains like the chauvinist boss in 9 to 5 and the nasty TV director in Tootsie, has died. He was 92. Coleman died Thursday, his daughter, Quincy Coleman, told the Hollywood Reporter . No other details were immediately available. "The...

Pathologist Tried to Prove JFK Assassination Theory

Cyril Wecht plunged into high-profile death investigations

(Newser) - Dr. Cyril Wecht, a pathologist and attorney whose cynicism and positions on high-profile deaths such as President John F. Kennedy's 1963 assassination caught the attention of prosecutors and TV viewers alike, died Monday. He was 93. No location or cause of death were provided, the AP reports. Wecht's...

Short-Story Master Alice Munro Is Dead

She was the first lifelong Canadian to win the Nobel

(Newser) - Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honored short-story writers, has died at age 92. A spokesperson for her publisher confirmed the death of Munro, winner of the Nobel literary prize in...

David Sanborn Was Influential as Solo Artist, With Others

Saxophonist won six Grammys, recorded solo on 'Young Americans'

(Newser) - David Sanborn, an influential saxophonist who blended jazz, pop, and R&B in his solo work while playing with the biggest pop and rock artists of the era, died Sunday. A statement posted to his social media accounts said he'd long battled prostate cancer, CNN reports. He was 78....

She Played an Iconic Role in an Iconic Movie
She Played an Iconic Role
in an Iconic Movie
obituary
May 13, 2024 2:30 AM CDT

She Played an Iconic Role in an Iconic Movie

Actress Susan Backlinie, who played the shark's first victim in 'Jaws,' dead at 77

(Newser) - Susan Backlinie, the actress who played perhaps one of the most iconic roles in Jaws, died Saturday morning of a heart attack at her southern California home, her husband tells TMZ . She was 77. Backlinie was a stunt performer who specialized in swimming work when she was cast as Chrissie...

B-Movie Icon Roger Corman Is Dead at 98
He Was a B-Movie Giant,
Launched A-Level Stars
obituary
May 12, 2024 6:10 AM CDT

He Was a B-Movie Giant, Launched A-Level Stars

Roger Corman is dead at 98

(Newser) - Roger Corman, the "King of the Bs" who helped turn out such low-budget classics as Little Shop of Horrors and Attack of the Crab Monsters and gave many of Hollywood's most famous actors and directors early breaks, has died at age 98. Corman died Thursday at his home...

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