William Safire

William Safire, Nixon Speechwriter and Times Columnist, Is Dead at 79

William Safire, a speechwriter for President Richard M. Nixon
and a Pulitzer Prize-winning political columnist for The New
York Times who also wrote books on politics and a treasury of
articles on language, has died at age 79.

Irving Kristol

Irving Kristol, Godfather of Neoconservatism, Is Dead at 89

Irving Kristol, the political commentator who, as much as
anyone, defined modern conservatism and helped revitalize the
Republican Party in the late 1960s and early 1970s,
setting the stage for the Reagan presidency and the years of
conservative dominance that followed, died Friday. He was 89.

Patrick Swayze

Hollywood actor Patrick Swayze, best known for his roles in the hit films "Dirty Dancing" and "Ghost," has died after a long battle with pancreatic cancer, his publicist said Monday.

Mary Travers

Mary Travers, one-third of the popular 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary who were perhaps best known for their hit "Puff (The Magic Dragon)," died in a Connecticut hospital after battling leukemia for several years. She was 72.

Henry Gibson

– Henry Gibson, the veteran comic character actor best known for his role reciting offbeat poetry on "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In," has died. He was 73.

Edward M. Kennedy

Edward M. Kennedy, Senate Stalwart, Dies at 77

Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, a son of one of
the most storied families in American politics, a man who
knew triumph and tragedy in near-equal measure and who will
be remembered as one of the most effective lawmakers in the
history of the Senate, died late Tuesday night. He was 77.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/27/us/politics/27kennedy.html

Robert D. Novak

Robert D. Novak, Conservative Columnist, Is Dead at 78

Robert D. Novak, the pugnacious political columnist and cable
television fixture whose scoops reached across five decades
and whose nickname, "the prince of darkness," was invoked
with renewed fervor in 2003 when, acting on a tip, he
revealed the name of a C.I.A. officer, setting the stage for
a criminal investigation, died Tuesday at his home in
Washington. He was 78.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver

Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Founder of Special Olympics, Is Dead at 88

Eunice Kennedy Shriver, a member of one of the most prominent
families in American politics and a trailblazer in the effort
to improve the lives of people with intellectual disabilities
died Tuesday morning. She was 88.

A sister of President John F. Kennedy and Senators Robert F.
Kennedy and Edward M. Kennedy and the mother-in-law of Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, Mrs. Shriver never held
elective office. Yet she was no stranger to Capitol Hill, and
some view her work on behalf of the mentally retarded,
including the founding of the Special Olympics, as the most
lasting of the Kennedy family's contributions.

Corazon Aquino, Ex-Leader of Philippines, Is Dead

Corazon Aquino, Ex-Leader of Philippines, Is Dead. Former Philippines President Corazon Aquino, who swept away a dictator with a "people power" revolt and then sustained democracy by fighting off seven coup attempts in six years,
died on Saturday, her son said, The Associated Press reported. She was 76.

Frank McCourt

Sunday, July 19, 2009 -- 6:42 PM ET
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Frank McCourt, Author of 'Angela's Ashes,' Dies at 78

Frank McCourt, a former New York City schoolteacher who
turned his miserable childhood in Limerick, Ireland, into a
phenomenally popular, Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir,
"Angela's Ashes," died on Sunday, his publisher said.

Read more...

Walter Cronkite

Walter Cronkite, Longtime Anchor, Is Dead at 92

Walter Cronkite, who pioneered and then mastered the role of
television news anchorman with such plain-spoken grace that
he was called the most trusted man in America, died Friday at
his home in New York. He was 92.

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/17/walter-cronkite-iconic-anchorman-dies/?emc=na


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/18/us/18cronkite.html?emc=na

Robert McNamara

By TIM WEINER

Former Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara Dies at 93

Former Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara died Monday,
according to his wife, The Associated Press reported. Mr.
McNamara, who led the Defense Department during the Vietnam
war under presidents Kennedy and Johnson, was 93.

Karl Malden

Wednesday, July 1, 2009 -- 4:12 PM ET
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Karl Malden, Everyman Actor, Dies at 97

Karl Malden, the Academy Award-winning character actor whose
half-century in show business carried him from the theater to
films and then to television, where he policed the streets of
San Francisco and became indelibly identified with a
commercial for traveler's checks, died Wednesday at his home
in Los Angeles. He was 97.

Michael Jackson

Thursday, June 25, 2009 -- 6:32 PM ET
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Michael Jackson Is Dead, A.P. Reports

Michael Jackson, the pop star, has died, The Associated Press
reported, citing a person with knowledge of the situation.
Earlier, Mr. Jackson, unconscious, had been rushed to a Los
Angeles hospital.