Author Maya Angelou dies at 86 in North Carolina

Angelou, a renaissance woman and cultural pioneer, died Wednesday at her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She was 86.

Tall and regal, with a deep, majestic voice, she was unforgettable whether encountered in person, through sound or the printed word.

She called herself a poet, in love with the "sound of language," ''the music in language," as she explained to the AP in 2013. But she lived so many lives.

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First man on moon Neil Armstrong dead at 82

Armstrong had his first joyride in a plane at age 6. Growing up in Ohio, he began making model planes and by his early teens had amassed an extensive aviation library. With money earned from odd jobs, he took flying lessons and obtained his pilot's license even before he got a car license.

As commander of the Apollo 11 mission, Armstrong became the first human to set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969. As he stepped on the dusty surface, Armstrong said: "“That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind."

Those words endure as one of the best known quotes in the English language.

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Jerry Nelson, Count of 'Sesame Street,' dies at 78

 In this June 2012 publicity photo released by "Sesame Street," puppeteer Jerry Nelson is shown with "Sesame Street" character Count von Count in New York. Sesame Workshop announced that Nelson, who suffered from emphysema, died at age 78 on Thursday, Aug. 23, 2012, in his Massachusetts home on Cape Cod. (AP Photo/Sesame Workshop, Gil Vaknin) 

‘‘Every description of his characters describes Jerry as well,’’ said ‘‘Sesame Street’’ executive producer Carol-Lynn Parente. ‘‘Silly, funny, vulnerable, passionate and musical, for sure. That voice of his was superb.’’

‘‘We’re having a rough day on the Street,’’ she said.

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Comedian Phyllis Diller, 95

Comedian Phyllis Diller, known for her self-deprecating humor, died "peacefully in her sleep" at her Los Angeles home Monday morning, her manager told CNN. Diller was 95.

"Her son, Perry, found her with a smile on her face," Milt Suchin said.

Thomas W. Prevost Obituary

Prevost, Thomas W. CASTLETON Thomas W. Prevost, 67, of Castleton, died suddenly on Saturday, August 11, 2012 at his residence.

Julia Child: America's 1st Top Chef would be 100 today...

Julia Child, who turned the art of French cooking into prime-time television entertainment and brought cassoulet to a casserole culture in the two volumes of her monumental "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," Mrs. Child was not the first dedicated cook to turn cooking into a spectator sport - James Beard preceded her on television in 1945, Dione Lucas in 1948 - but she brought a fresh, breezy approach to daunting material, expressed in her up-the-scales signature signoff, "Bon appétit!"

Obama Campaign Worker Dies After Collapsing At Headquarters

A 29-year-old Obama campaign staffer died Friday after "collapsing" in the president's campaign headquarters in Chicago, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.  

 

Obama campaign staffer Alex Okrent

I wonder if Rohm has a alibi 

We lost another great one

Ernest Borgnine Dead: Oscar-Winning Actor Dies At Age 95

Borgnine died of renal failure at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center with his wife and children at his side, said spokesman Harry Flynn.

With his beefy build and a huge orb of a head that looked hard enough to shatter granite, Borgnine naturally was cast as heavies early on, notably as Sgt. Fatso Judson, the brute who beat Frank Sinatra's character to death in 1953's Pearl Harbor saga "From Here to Eternity."

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George Prentiss - obiturary

Prentiss, George H. CASTLETON George H. Prentiss, 53, of Castleton, died Thursday, May 31, 2012 at his residence.

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Grace - a eulogy

Farewell Sweet Gracie 

June 5, 2012 at 7:45 am by Jim Letzelter

With the blessing of her parents, I am posting the eulogy I delivered yesterday. There’s no way to be prepared to write one for a 14-year-old girl, and this was difficult. I hope this in some ways helps those who knew Grace to heal, and for those who did not know her to get a sense of the person she was.

For Grace Antoinette Maney, August 20, 1997 – May 31, 2012

Jim Letzelter

Grace

See the touching tribute to Grace

Grace Antoinette Maney

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Maney, Grace Antoinette EAST GREENBUSH Grace Antoinette Maney, 14, of East Greenbush died suddenly Thursday, May 31, 2012 at Albany Medical Center. Grace was born in Bellevue Hospital in Niskayuna. She was a ninth grader at Columbia High School and was a freshman on the varsity lacrosse team. She was an accomplished equestrian and loved Lake George and "being silly" with friends and family.