ABC Radio Network spokesman Louis Adams said Harvey died Saturday at his winter home in Phoenix, Ariz., surrounded by family. No cause of death was immediately available.
Harvey, who was born and raised in Tulsa, Okla., was married to the late Lynne Cooper of St. Louis who died less than a year ago. They had one son, Paul Jr.
He was a news commentator and talk-show pioneer whose staccato style made him one of
Paul Harvey - Broadcasting Icon
the country’s most familiar voices. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George W. Bush in 2005.
Known for his resonant voice and trademark delivery of “The Rest of the Story,” Harvey had been heard nationally since 1951, when he began his “News and Comment” for ABC Radio Networks.
In a statement, ABC Radio Networks President Jim Robinson calls Harvey “one of the most gifted and beloved broadcasters in our nation’s history.”
He began his radio career in 1933 in Tulsa, while he was still in high school, his Web site said.
Paul Harvey News consisted of more than 1,200 radio stations and 400 Armed Forces Network stations that broadcast around the world and 300 newspapers, his biography reported.
A virus that weakened his vocal cord forced him off the air in 2001. But he returned to work in Chicago and was still active as he passed his 90th birthday.
My Grandfather, on my Mom’s side used to listen to Paul Harvey, when she was a little girl. What a loss, a legend in broadcasting is now gone. Harvey was a Conservative, it showed in his broadcasts. Here are two clips of Harvey in his prime from 1963, right before Kennedy was assassinated:
Eartha Kitt, a sultry singer, dancer and actress who rose from South Carolina cotton fields to become an international symbol of elegance and sensuality, has died, a family spokesman said. She was 81.
Andrew Freedman said Kitt, who was recently treated at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, died Thursday in Connecticut of colon cancer.
Kitt, a self-proclaimed “sex kitten” famous for her catlike purr, was one of America’s most versatile performers, winning two Emmys and nabbing a third nomination. She also was nominated for several Tonys and two Grammys.
Her career spanned six decades, from her start as a dancer with the famed Katherine Dunham troupe to cabarets and acting and singing on stage, in movies and on television. She persevered through an unhappy childhood as a mixed-race daughter of the South and made headlines in the 1960s for denouncing the Vietnam War during a visit to the White House.
[…]
Kitt was plainspoken about causes she believed in. Her anti-war comments at the White House came as she attended a White House luncheon hosted by Lady Bird Johnson.
“You send the best of this country off to be shot and maimed,” she told the group of about 50 women. “They rebel in the street. They don’t want to go to school because they’re going to be snatched off from their mothers to be shot in Vietnam.”
For four years afterward, Kitt performed almost exclusively overseas. She was investigated by the FBI and CIA, which allegedly found her to be foul-mouthed and promiscuous.
You do not speak evil of the dead. Just that simple. If this woman is to be remembered for anything at all. It is for having the guts to stand up in the White House and denouce an unconsitutional war. Which is what Vietnam was. I give her props for that. Plainly put, the broad had balls.
May she rest in peace, a true class act, all the way.
Paul M. Weyrich, chairman and CEO of the Free Congress Foundation and first president of The Heritage Foundation, died this morning around 1 a.m. He was 66 years old. Weyrich was a good friend to many of us at Heritage, a true leader and a man of unbending principle. He won Heritage’s prestigious Clare Boothe Luce Award in 2005.
I think, if you’re a Christian, This would be a good time to say a prayer for his family.
I will not lie about it. I did not know the man, or anything about him. But from what I read he was quite the leader. Conservatism, is a bit dimmer today. 🙁
So, I am giving you, the other side of the story, from the horses mouth; without commentary from me.
I did not ask that you agree, I simply ask that you listen and hear this man out. Now I am almost sure, that the Blogs, that I have linked to, will remove my trackback, like the Neo-Con Fascists that they are. I mean, it is all about controlling the message with those guys. 🙄
Here we go:
Part 1:
Part 2:
Media Q & A:
Media Q & A Part 2:
Media Q & A Part 3:
There you have it. The other side of the story. You decide.
I figured she would…. anyhow, Because everyone and their uncle’s brother is talking about it. I guess I’ll follow the herd here. (Walk like a buffalo…..80’s humor, sorry… 😛 )
Hillary Rodham Clinton has decided to give up her Senate seat and accept the position of secretary of state, making her the public face around the world for the administration of the man who beat her for the Democratic presidential nomination, two confidants said Friday.
Mrs. Clinton came to her decision after additional discussion with President-elect Barack Obama about the nature of her role and his plans for foreign policy, said one of the confidants, who insisted on anonymity to discuss the situation. Mr. Obama’s office told reporters Thursday that the nomination is “on track” but Clinton associates only confirmed Friday afternoon that she has decided.
“She’s ready,” said the confidant. Mrs. Clinton was reassured after talking again with Mr. Obama because their first meeting in Chicago last week “was so general,” the confidant said. The purpose of the follow-up talk, he added, was not to extract particular concessions but “just getting comfortable” with the idea of working together.
A second Clinton associate confirmed that her camp believes they have a done deal. Senior Obama advisers said Friday morning that the offer had not been formally accepted and no announcement will be made until after Thanksgiving. But they said they were convinced that the nascent alliance was now ready to be sealed.
Mrs. Clinton’s spokesman, Philippe Reines, issued a statement Friday afternoon cautioning that the nomination is not final. “We’re still in discussions, which are very much on track,” he said. “Any reports beyond that are premature.”
I am, without apology or any sort of repentance, a diehard Jimi Hendrix fan. I just received word from my mom, that the last of the original Jimi Hendrix Experience has died.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Mitch Mitchell, drummer for the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience of the 1960s and the group’s last surviving member, was found dead in his hotel room early Wednesday. He was 61.
Mitchell was a powerful force on the Hendrix band’s 1967 debut album “Are You Experienced?” as well as the trio’s albums “Electric Ladyland” and “Axis: Bold As Love.” He had an explosive drumming style that can be heard in hard-charging songs such as “Fire” and “Manic Depression.”
The Englishman had been drumming for the Experience Hendrix Tour, which performed Friday in Portland. It was the last stop on the West Coast part of the tour.
Hendrix died in 1970. Bass player Noel Redding died in 2003.
An employee at Portland’s Benson Hotel called police after discovering Mitchell’s body.
Erin Patrick, a deputy medical examiner, said Mitchell apparently died of natural causes. An autopsy was planned.
“He was a wonderful man, a brilliant musician and a true friend,” said Janie Hendrix, chief executive of the Experience Hendrix Tour and Jimi Hendrix’ stepsister. “His role in shaping the sound of the Jimi Hendrix Experience cannot be underestimated.”
Bob Merlis, a spokesman for the tour, said Mitchell had stayed in Portland for a four-day vacation and planned to leave Wednesday.
“It was a devastating surprise,” Merlis said. “Nobody drummed like he did.”
He said he saw Mitchell perform two weeks ago in Los Angeles, and the drummer appeared to be healthy and upbeat.
Merlis said the tour was designed to bring together veteran musicians who had known Hendrix — like Mitchell — and younger artists, such as Grammy-nominated winner Jonny Lang, who have been influenced by him.
Blues-rock guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd, who is 31 and was part of the tour, said Mitchell was to the drums what Hendrix was to the guitar.
“Today many of us have lost a dear friend, and the world has lost a rock n’ roll hero,” he said.
Mitchell was a one-of-a-kind drummer whose “jazz-tinged” style was influenced by Max Roach and Elvin Jones, Merlis said. The work was a vital part of both the Jimi Hendrix Experience in the 1960s and the Experience Hendrix Tour that ended last week, he said.
“If Jimi Hendrix were still alive,” Merlis said, “he would have acknowledged that.”
During his career Mitchell played with the best in the business — not just Hendrix, but also Eric Clapton, John Lennon, Keith Richards, Jack Bruce, Jeff Beck, Muddy Waters and others.
Mitchell performed with Hendrix and Redding at the Monterey Pop Festival in June 1967, the U.S. debut of the Jimi Hendrix Experience. He also was member of a later version of the band that performed the closing set of the Woodstock Festival in August 1969 — where Hendrix played a psychedelic version of “The Star-Spangled Banner” before the band launched into “Purple Haze.”
The Jimi Hendrix Experience was inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame in 1992. According to the Hall of Fame, Mitchell was born July 9, 1947, in Ealing, England.
Terry Stewart, chief executive of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, said Mitchell transformed his instrument from a “strictly percussive element to a lead instrument.”
“His interplay with Jimi Hendrix’s guitar on songs like ‘Fire’ is truly amazing,” Stewart said Wednesday. “Mitch Mitchell had a massive influence on rock ‘n’ roll drumming and took it to new heights.”
Hendrix, Redding and Mitchell held their first rehearsal in October 1966, according to the Hall of Fame’s Web site.
In an interview last month with the Boston Herald, Mitchell said he met Hendrix “in this sleazy little club.”
“We did some Chuck Berry and took it from there,” Mitchell told the newspaper. “I suppose it worked.”
Mitch Mitchell, the innovative drummer who anchored the Jimi Hendrix Experience, has died at the age of 62. Mitchell passed away on November 12 in Portland, Oregon of natural causes. The London native had completed an 18 city American tour as a featured performer with Experience Hendrix, a series concert series celebrating the legacy of Jimi Hendrix featuring an all-star line-up of artists including his one-time Hendrix bandmate and dear friend Billy Cox. Other performers on the tour included Buddy Guy, Hubert Sumlin, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Jonny Lang, Brad Whitford of Aerosmith, Robby Krieger of the Doors, Mike McCready of Pearl Jam as well as members of Los Lobos and others. Portland was the tour’s last stop and Mitchell had been staying in town for some vacation time before his planned return to England.
Janie Hendrix, CEO of Experience Hendrix, LLC commented, “We’re all devastated to hear of Mitch’s passing. He was a wonderful man, a brilliant musician and a true friend. His role in shaping the sound of the Jimi Hendrix Experience cannot be underestimated. Over the course of the recent tour, he seemed delighted with the interchange with the other musicians and the audiences. There is no question that he was doing what he loved.”
Mitchell began working with Experience Hendrix, the family owned company established by James “Al” Hendrix shortly after its inception. He had been featured in many of the documentaries and programs issued by the company over the years.
Before signing on as the drummer with the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Mitchell had built a reputation through his work with The Pretty Things, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames and had been one of the top session drummers of the time starting at the age of 14. His drumming technique was an amalgam of rock and jazz styles as he was heavily influenced by the likes of Elvin Jones and Max Roach. He joined the Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1966 and performed with Hendrix and bassist Noel Redding at their US debut at the Monterey Pop Festival in June of 1967. He was also, most notably, part of the later version of the Jimi Hendrix Experience that included Billy Cox who performed the closing set of the Woodstock Festival on August 18, 1969. Following the death of Jimi Hendrix in 1970, Mitchell worked with producer Eddie Kramer in completing work on both The Cry of Love and Rainbow Bridge albums.
Prior to his music career, Mitchell was a noted child actor who starred in the TV series Jennings At School as well as numerous feature films. After falling in love with American jazz, blues and rock ‘n’ roll, he abandoned acting and devoted the rest of his life to music.
Mitchell was part of a super group known as “The Dirty Mac” that appeared in the 1968 TV special The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus joining with John Lennon, Eric Clapton and Keith Richards. He later recorded and performed with bands including Ramatam as well as with Terry Reid, Cream’s Jack Bruce, Jeff Beck, Junior Brown and others. Mitchell is survived by his mother, his wife of 24 years, a daughter and two grand children.
Some videos in honor of Mitch:
An interview from the Movie “A Film About Jimi Hendrix” from 1973″:
There was an amazing ability of Mitch’s and that was to be able to follow Jimi Hendrix. Believe me when I tell you, that was no easy task; especially after the experience broke up and he did his new thing. Where Buddy Miles was more rough and tumble or the “Cement Mixer” type of a drummer, Mitch was elegant, a more formally trained drummer that seemed to always know what Jimi wanted.
So, they’re all gone now, Jimi, Noel, Mitch and Buddy… Only one left is Billy Cox. God be with him. All we have left is the music and the memories. I can speak for myself, Jimi’s Music, which included Mitch’s and Buddy’s and Noel’s Music; touched my life greatly. They broke doors down, took music to whole new level. They just don’t build them like that anymore.
Life is too damned short, and right now Dean Barnett’s family and friends are going through hell. I hope they are able to cope, and I am going to call my parents and tell them I love them and then hug my cat. I suggest you do the same thing with the ones you love. This whole racket is just way too short, and at times is a cruel hoax. Forty-one is just way too damned young.
At times, Life is a hoax and throws us a curve like this. If you read this John, thanks for the decency. I think everyone should be little more like this. It could only help our current political divisions. After all Politics is not our actual real lives. I mean, it is one thing to bitch and rant on a Blog about the politics of the day, but real life is another.
I mean, it is tough at times, we full time Bloggers, like John and I, we wrap ourselves into this so deeply. It does help sometimes to pull back from the laptop and take a inventory of what’s around you and take time to smell the roses.
There are many things that I could write about this man. Most of it has already been written by writers who get paid a hell of a lot more money than me. Paul Newman; The name itself evokes images of a rebel. It also conjures up other images; Quality, integrity, Living what you believe, having the guts to stand up for what you believe in and just being a man.
Paul Newman was the real deal, he lived what he believed. He established a camp for children who are on their last dime in life. He knew the pain, he lost one of his own kids to a drug overdose in 1978. This was Newman’s way of making making someone else’s life a little brighter in a time of terrible suffering. Newman answered the call to War in the 1940’s. In short, he was, in fact, a part of the greatest generation ever. I do not believe that it would be an embellishment of truth to say that Newman was, in fact, an FDR Democrat.
I do not claim to be a movie fanatic or someone who watches lots of movies. But the name Paul Newman has always been a part of the actors of whom I highly respect. Unlike some of the people that reside in this thing we call the Blogosphere, I do not go around wearing my damn politics on my sleeve and I do have more respect than some as well. Yes, Paul Newman was, in fact, a Democrat. He was of the old school Democratic Party, before it became enjoined at the hip to Communist Socialism. From that old school came another great actor, who would go on to be one of our greatest Presidents, Ronald Reagan.
Put your gun down Butch and rest a while. God knows, you’ve earned it.
May he rest in peace and my God be with his family.
LONDON (AP) — Richard Wright, a founding member of the rock group Pink Floyd, died Monday. He was 65.
Pink Floyd’s spokesman, Doug Wright, who is not related to the artist, said Wright died after a battle with cancer at his home in Britain. He says the band member’s family did not want to give more details about his death.
Wright met Pink Floyd members Roger Waters and Nick Mason in college and joined their early band, Sigma 6. Along with the late Syd Barrett, the four formed Pink Floyd in 1965.
The group’s jazz-infused rock and drug-laced multimedia ”happenings” made them darlings of the London psychedelic scene, and their 1967 album, ”The Piper at the Gates of Dawn,” was a hit.
In the early days of Pink Floyd, Wright, along with Barrett, was seen as the group’s dominant musical force. The London-born musician and son of a biochemist wrote songs and played the keyboard.
”Rick’s keyboards were an integral park of the Pink Floyd sound,” said Joe Boyd, a prominent record producer who worked with Pink Floyd early in its career.
This indeed is very sad news. I’ve listened to Pink Floyd for years.
You know, I know that this Blog is mainly about politics. But this one is more personal to me. Whenever a writer, irregardless of his political stance, dies. I always feel horrible about it. Yes, it bothers me to see when another pen is silenced in this trade.
The La Times, The AP, and The New York Observer are all reporting that writer David Fostor Wallace has committed suicide. He died from hanging himself. His wife discovered him upon returning to her house. He was only 46 years old.
Quoting the New York Observer:
Infinite Jest author David Foster Wallace is dead of an apparent suicide, according to reports from the Associated Press, The Los Angeles Times and others.
According to AP:
Wallace’s wife found her husband had hanged himself when she returned home about 9:30 p.m. Friday, said Jackie Morales, a records clerk with the Claremont Police Department.
Wallace taught creative writing and English at nearby Pomona College.
Mr. Wallace, who received a MacArthur Foundation “genius grant” in 1997, just saw the release of McCain’s Promise: Aboard the Straight Talk Express David Foster Wallace, a book-length expansion of his 2000 campaign report about Republican presidential nominee John McCain. A film version of his book Brief Interviews with Hideous Men is in production with The Office‘s John Krasinski adapting and directing.
The La Times Says:
Gary Kates, the college’s dean, called Wallace’s death “an incredible loss.”
“He was a fabulous teacher,” Kates said Saturday. “He was hands-on with his students. He cared deeply about them. . . . He was a jewel on the faculty, and we deeply appreciated everything he gave to the college.”
In addition to his wife, Karen Green, and his parents, Wallace is survived by a sister.
A memorial service is planned at Pomona College.
My heart breaks for his family. I cannot being to fathom the loss that his wife, parents and siblings are feeling. My thoughts and prayers are with this man’s family during this horrible time of loss. God Bless them.
Like I said, Politics is one thing, but a human life is another. It’s something that we do not value anymore. May this man truly rest in the peace that he was searching for.
