Obituary Stories category, Page 26
Rachel Zoll, much-admired AP religion writer, dead at 55
Rachel Zoll, who for 17 years as religion writer for The Associated Press endeared herself to colleagues, competitors and sources with her warm heart and world-class reporting skills, died Friday in Amherst, Massachusetts, after a three-year bout with brain cancer. She was 55. Zoll covered religion in all its aspects,...
Olympia Dukakis, Oscar-winning ‘Moonstruck’ star, dies at 89
MAPLEWOOD, N.J. — Olympia Dukakis, the veteran stage and screen actress whose flair for maternal roles helped her win an Oscar as Cher’s mother in the romantic comedy “Moonstruck,” has died. She was 89. Allison Levy, her agent at Innovative Artists, said Saturday that Dukakis died Saturday morning in her...
Astronaut Michael Collins, Apollo 11 pilot, dead of cancer
Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, who piloted the ship from which Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin left to make their historic first steps on the moon in 1969, died Wednesday of cancer, his family said. He was 90. Collins was part of the three-man Apollo 11 crew that effectively ended...
Dr. William Balash’s half-century of medicine reflected deep concern for patients
A former colleague of Dr. William Balash will never forget the snowy night in January several years ago when he received a phone call at 2 a.m. One of Balash’s patients was in the intensive care unit of Allegheny Valley Hospital. He wasn’t doing well. “Dr. Balash cared about his...
Rapper Shock G of Digital Underground found dead in FloridaVideo
Rapper Shock G, who was famous for the hit single “The Humpty Dance,” died Thursday night, according to Digital Underground co-founder Chopmaster J. He was 57. A report from TMZ said that Shock G, named Gregory Jacobs by birth, died at a hotel in Tampa, Fla. RIP to Hip Hop...
Les McKeown, who fronted the Bay City Rollers, dies at 65Video
LONDON — Les McKeown, the former lead singer of the 1970s Scottish pop sensation Bay City Rollers, has died suddenly at the age of 65, his family said Thursday. A statement from his family posted on social media said: “It is with profound sadness that we announce the death of...
Former Scottdale district judge dedicated to God, family, community
Former Scottdale police officer and longtime District Judge J. Bruce King was a man dedicated to the important things in life, his friends said. “He was first dedicated to God. Second, dedicated to his family and, third, dedicated to his community,” said Roger Eckels, a former Mt. Pleasant Township district...
Longtime Penn Hills science teacher James Schultz has died; grief counseling available
Longtime Penn Hills teacher James Schultz has died at the age of 64, district officials announced April 9. He began teaching in the district in 2001, most recently Linton Middle School and high school science classes via the district’s cyber academy. Superintendent Nancy Hines called Schultz “a true professional” and...
‘Chernobyl’ and ‘Harry Potter’ actor Paul Ritter dies at 54Video
LONDON — Versatile British actor Paul Ritter, whose roles ranged from a hapless suburban patriarch in sitcom “Friday Night Dinner” to a Soviet engineer who helps cause a nuclear disaster in “Chernobyl,” has died, his agent said Tuesday. He was 54 and had been suffering from a brain tumor. A...
Retired Norwin teacher loved traveling, going to Olympics
Retired Norwin High School teacher Leslie “Les” M. Harvath had a lifelong love for the game of baseball, from playing on a Little League championship team to starring for the Norwin Knights and Duquesne Dukes that led to a tryout with the Pittsburgh Pirates and then imparting his knowledge of...
Larry Davis, pioneering dean of Pitt School of Social Work, dies at 74
Editor’s note: Mr. Davis’ age was incorrect in the original version of this story. When Larry Davis was promoting his most recent book “Why Are They Angry With Us?” in February 2016, he shared his frustration over the lack of progress when it came to race relations in America. “The...
G. Gordon Liddy, unrepentant Watergate burglar who became talk show host, dies at 90
G. Gordon Liddy, the tough-guy Watergate operative who went to prison rather than testify and later turned his Nixon-era infamy into a successful television and talk show career, has died at age 90. Liddy died Tuesday at his daugher’s house in Virginia, his son Thomas P. Liddy told The Washington...
Harrison World War II veteran Howard Traenkner dies at 100
Howard Traenkner of Harrison was born at the end of one pandemic and died in the midst of another one. A World War II Navy veteran, he was born as the Spanish flu pandemic was trailing off. He died Saturday, at 100, of natural causes, his family said. “I think...
Obama family matriarch has died in a Kenyan hospital at 99
Sarah Obama, the matriarch of former U.S. President Barack Obama’s Kenyan family has died, relatives and officials confirmed Monday. She was at least 99 years old. Mama Sarah, as the step-grandmother of the former U.S. president was fondly called, promoted education for girls and orphans in her rural Kogelo village....
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Larry McMurtry dies at 84
DALLAS — Larry McMurtry, the prolific and popular author who took readers back to the old American West in his Pulitzer Prize-winning “Lonesome Dove” and returned them to modern-day landscapes in works such as his emotional tale of a mother-daughter relationship in “Terms of Endearment,” has died. He was 84....
‘Arrested Development’ actor Jessica Walter dies at 80
LOS ANGELES — Jessica Walter, who played a scheming matriarch in TV’s “Arrested Development,” has died. She was 80. Walter’s death was confirmed Thursday by her daughter, Brooke Bowman. The actor’s best-known film role included playing the stalker in Clint Eastwood’s 1971 thriller, “Play Misty for Me.” Walter’s daughter said...
‘Virginia Woolf,’ ‘Goldbergs’ star George Segal dies at 87
LOS ANGELES — George Segal, the banjo player turned actor who was nominated for an Oscar for 1966’s “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” and starred in the ABC sitcom “The Goldbergs,” died Tuesday in Santa Rosa, Calif, his wife said. He was 87. “The family is devastated to announce that...
Texas Roadhouse CEO Kent Taylor dies amid covid-19 struggle
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Kent Taylor, founder and CEO of the Texas Roadhouse restaurant chain, has died. He was 65. His family and the company say he took his own life as a result of suffering from symptoms related to covid-19, including severe tinnitus. Taylor’s family and the company on Sunday...
‘Amityville Horror’ killer Ronald Defeo Jr. dies in prison at age 69
NEW YORK — Convicted “Amityville Horror” killer Ronald DeFeo Jr., who in 1974 shot and killed his parents and four younger siblings inside their Long Island home in a grisly case that inspired a book and a movie, has died in prison, officials said. He was 69. DeFeo was serving...
Roger Mudd, longtime network TV newsman, dies at 93Video
Roger Mudd, the longtime political correspondent and anchor for NBC and CBS who once stumped Sen. Edward Kennedy by simply asking why he wanted to be president, has died. He was 93. CBS News says Mudd died Tuesday of complications of kidney failure at his home in McLean, Va. During...
Carla Wallenda, member of famed high-wire act, dies at 85
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Carla Wallenda, a member of “The Flying Wallendas” high-wire act and the last surviving child of the famed troupe’s founder, has died at the age of 85. Her son, Rick Wallenda, said on social media she died Saturday in Sarasota, Fla., of natural causes. She was...
Eileen Hertweck, wife of The Clarks guitarist, dies
Eileen Hertweck, wife of The Clarks guitarist Rob Hertweck, died on Saturday of leukemia, at the age of 42. The Pittsburgh music community is in mourning. Clarks bass player Greg Joseph posted a message on Facebook with a photo of the couple and their two daughters, ages 13 and 10....
Beat poet, publisher Lawrence Ferlinghetti dies at 101
Poet, publisher and bookseller Lawrence Ferlinghetti, who helped launch and perpetuate the Beat movement, has died. He was 101. Ferlinghetti died at his San Francisco home Monday, his son Lorenzo Ferlinghetti told The Associated Press Tuesday. Ferlinghetti was known for his City Lights bookstore in San Francisco, an essential meeting...
Longtime editor Genevieve Young left legacy in publishing
NEW YORK — Genevieve Young was a publishing editor with a long and diverse legacy. She entered the business in the early 1950s, when there were few female editors and even fewer Asians. She worked with authors ranging from Herman Wouk to Betty Rollin and played a key role in...
West Leechburg mourns the loss of longtime borough Secretary Pat Grantz
The community of West Leechburg is mourning the loss of a longtime, steadfast borough employee. Patricia Ann Grantz of West Leechburg died Feb. 7. She was 82. Grantz served as borough secretary and treasurer for 43 years. “She was the rock that kept everything together,” West Leechburg Mayor Jim Gallucci...
