July 2007

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Epidemiologist who battled tuberculosis dead at 92

Dr. George Wills Comstock died Sunday, July 15, of prostate cancer, according to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. For four years, beginning in 1947, Comstock, an epidemiologist, conducted the first trials of the BCG vaccine for tuberculosis in Georgia and Alabama. The studies found the vaccine largely ineffective, prompting the U.S. government to discontinue vaccinating children with it. In a 1957 trial in 29 villages near Bethel, Alaska, Comstock discovered the drug isoniazid (INH) was effective in preventing TB. Five years later, he founded the Johns Hopkins Training Center for Public Health Research and Prevention in Hagerstown. During the following 30 years, he oversaw community-based research studies on diseases including cancer, heart disease, and an eye disease known as histoplasmosis. Comstock spent 20 working for the U.S. Public Health Service and over 40 years teaching at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. Comstock was 92.

Sources: Associated Press, NYTimes.com

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 27, 2007 9:47 AM | Comments (0)

 

Umpire who called more than 3,000 baseball games dead at 90

Longtime major league umpire Henry Charles "Shag" Crawford died Wednesday, July 11, at an assisted living facility in a Philadelphia suburb. He was born in Philly in 1916, and served in World War II. Crawford began as a minor league umpire in 1950. He became a National League umpire in 1956, officiating in 3,082 baseball games, including three World Series, three All-Star Games, and two NL Championships. Crawford retired in 1975. During the 1969 World Series, Crawford ejected Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver during an argument in Game 4. Crawford officiated at the first game at Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium, and was a co-founder of the umpire's union. His son Jerry became an umpire in 1976, and another son, Joey, became an NBA official in 1977. Crawford was 90.

Sources: Associated Press, worldumpires.com

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 25, 2007 2:34 PM | Comments (0)

 

Co-founder of Matchbox Toys dead at 87

Jack Odell, who died on Saturday, July 7, in London, was an engineer when he joined a British die-casting company in the late 1940's that had begun producing toys. Odell was inspired to create a tiny toy car when, in 1952, his daughter stated her school allowed only personal items that would fit into a matchbox. The tiny steamroller he created for his daughter would be the forerunner of the Matchbox Toy empire. With business partner and fellow World War II veteran Leslie Smith, Odell created a line of miniature vehicles in 1953, with Queen Elizabeth's coronation coach an early favorite with over one million copies sold. At its peak, Matchbox sold more than one million cars a day, more than the number of real ones the world's automakers were producing. "We produce more Rolls-Royces in a single day than the Rolls-Royce company has made in its entire history," Odell told the New York Times in 1962. In the late 1960's, Mattel Incorporated began their own line of miniature toy cars called Hot Wheels. In 1982, Matchbox was sold to Universal Toys, then later to Tyco Toys, which was acquired by Mattel in 1997. Matchbox cars are still sold today through Mattel. Odell was 87.

Sources: BBC News, NYTimes.com

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 19, 2007 11:41 AM | Comments (0)

 

Background music composer for Hogan's Heroes, The Tonight Show, and The Flintstones, et al. dead at 78

Composer Will H. Schaefer died of cancer Saturday, June 30, in a nursing home in Cathedral City near Palm Springs, California. Schaefer was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and was the arranger and assistant conductor with the U.S. Fifth Army Band during the Korean War. During his service he wrote music for "Radio Free Europe" and "The Voice of America." During his prolific career, Schaefer composed and recorded music for over 700 commercials, earning three Clio Awards for his work. Schaefer also created background music for TV shows, including Super Friends, Hogan's Heroes, The Jetsons, The Tonight Show, The Flintstones, Scooby Doo, and The Flying Nun. His music for the Disney TV movie The Skytrap earned Schaefer an Emmy Award nomination, and his concert piece for the 1976 Bicentennial celebration, "The Sound of America," earned him a Pulitzer Prize nomination. Schaefer was 78.

Sources: imdb.com, Associated Press, Variety.com

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 18, 2007 4:20 PM | Comments (0)

 

"Unchained Melody" lyricist dead at 99

Hy Zaret died at his home Monday, July 2, about a month shy of his 100th birthday. "Unchained Melody" was written for the 1955 film called Unchained, and the song earned Zaret and composer Alex North Academy Award nominations for best song. The song has been recorded over 300 times by performers such as Elvis Presley, U2, and Lena Horne. The most famous version is by the Righteous Brothers, who, with Phil Spector producing, recorded the tune in 1965. It hit No. 4 on the Billboard charts, and became a hit again 25 years later when it appeared on the soundtrack to Ghost. According to the American Society of Composers, "Unchained Melody" became one of the 25 most-performed musical works of the 20th century. Zaret was 99.

Sources: Associated Press, oscars.org, IMDB.com

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 13, 2007 8:47 AM | Comments (0)

 

Founder of Amsterdam Red Light District "goodwill" center dead at 94

Alida Margaretha Bosshardt died Monday, June 25, of old age, according to Salvation Army spokeswoman Hella van der Schoot. Boddhardt joined the Salvation Army in 1934 and established a "goodwill" center in Amsterdam's Red Light District following World War II. The shelter assisted prostitutes and their children, the homeless, and drug addicts. Bosshardt spent more than 50 years in the Salvation Army, retiring in 1978 at age 65, but continued to volunteer and attend meetings until recently. In 2004, she received a knighthood in the Netherlands' Order of Oranje Naussau and the Israeli Holocaust museum gave her a "Righteous Among the Nations" award for helping Jewish children during the war. Bosshardt was 94.

Sources: Yahoo! News, Wikipedia

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 6, 2007 12:03 PM | Comments (0)

 

Defender of religious freedom in landmark 1961 case dead at 96

Roy R. Torcaso died Saturday, June 9 at the Himalayan Elderly Care assisted living home in Silver Spring, Maryland. Torcaso, an athiest, was working for a construction company in 1959 when his boss encouraged him to become a notary public. At the courthouse, Torcaso refused to take the state oath given to notaries, part of which included professing the existence of God. He was disqualified and the state barred his commission. In the case of Torcaso vs. Watkins, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Torcaso's favor, declaring the Maryland test for public office unconstitutionally invaded one's freedom of belief and religion guaranteed by the First Amendment and protected by the Fourth Amendment. In a quote from a recent Washington Post obituary, Torcaso stated at the time, "The point at issue is not whether I believe in a Supreme Being, but whether the state has a right to inquire into my beliefs." Torcaso was 96.

Sources: about.com, Washington Post, supremecourtus.gov, law.cornell.edu

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 5, 2007 2:03 PM | Comments (0)

 

Man who popularized bratwurst in the United States dead at 92

Ralph F. Stayer died Sunday, June 24, in his sleep at a Florida nursing home. Stayer was born in Ely, Minnesota, on March 15, 1915, and moved to Milwaukee as a teenager. He dropped out of school one month before graduation to support his parents and five younger siblings in the Civilian Conservation Corps. Stayer bought a butcher shop in 1945 and drew upon the Austrian and Slovenian heritage of he and his wife, Alice, to create a better-tasting bratwurst. Stayer built his butcher shop into the Johnsonville Sausage Co. Over the next 40 years, Johsonville grew into a multi-million dollar company, selling brats in over 40 countries and seasonally at 4,000 McDonald's restaurants and 16 NFL stadiums. Stayer was 92.

Sources: latimes.com, johnsonville.com

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 2, 2007 10:03 AM | Comments (0)

 

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