NBA, Olympic coach Chuck Daly dies at 78

Charles Jerome "Chuck" Daly died. Daly was an American basketball head coach. He is famous for coaching the Detroit Pistons for nine years, winning consecutive NBA championships in 1989 and 1990, and for coaching the gold medal-winning basketball Dream Team in the 1992 Summer Olympics. During his 14-year NBA career, Daly also coached the Cleveland Cavaliers, New Jersey Nets and Orlando Magic. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame on May 9, 1994. (July 20, 1930 - May 9, 2009[1])

The Detroit Pistons, a club that had never recorded back-to-back winning seasons, hired Chuck Daly in 1983. The Pistons got into the playoffs every year he was there and reached the NBA finals three years in a row, winning two consecutive championships, in 1989 and 1990. Daly, who retired from coaching the first time, after the 1993-94 season with the New Jersey Nets, coached a total of 14 NBA seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, New Jersey Nets and Orlando Magic. He compiled a 564-379 (.598) career record, 13th best among all coaches and ninth best by percentage. On the combined NBA/ABA victory list, Daly's 564 wins places him 17th all-time. His 74-48 playoff record, which includes back-to-back NBA championships ranks fourth best in NBA history by wins and eighth best by percentage (.607). He is the only Hall of Fame coach to win both an NBA championship and an Olympic gold medal. In the strictest sense, Chuck Daly is a player's coach. His success at all levels of competition has been built around taking diverse personalities and creating a harmonious, successful team. Daly had started his coaching career at Punxsutawney High School, the home of the famous ground hog Phil, in Pennsylvania. He was a high school coach for seven years, then became an assistant at Duke University. He spent two years as head coach at Boston College, before going to the University of Pennsylvania in 1971. Daly guided Penn to four Ivy League championships and two second-place finishes in six years. He compiled a 151-62 record in eight college seasons, including four straight 20-win seasons at Penn. He died Saturday morning in Jupiter, Fla., with his family by his side, the Pistons said. The team announced in March the Hall of Fame coach was being treated for pancreatic cancer.
In 1978, Daly joined the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers as an assistant coach. During the 1981 season, he was hired as head coach by the Cleveland Cavaliers, but was fired before the season ended. He then returned to the 76ers as a broadcaster until he was hired in 83' by the Pistons. He gained worldwide notoriety as coach of the famed Olympic Dream Team, but long before Barcelona and the gold medal, Daly had established himself as one of the game's premier coaches. Daly was coach of the U. S. "Dream Team" that swept to an easy gold medal at the 1992 Olympics. He had resigned from the Detroit job and was hired by the NBA's New Jersey Nets that fall. After two seasons with the Nets, Daly retired. However, he returned to coaching in 1997 with the Orlando Magic. Daly spent two more seasons in Orlando before retiring permanently at the end of the 1998-99 season.

Daly died of pancreatic cancer on May 9, 2009. He had been diagnosed with the disease the previous March.

Dominick "Dom" DeLuise died he was 75

Dominick "Dom" DeLuise died he was 75. DeLuise was an American actor, comedian, film director, television producer, and chef. He was the husband of actress Carol Arthur, and the father of actor, writer, director Peter DeLuise, and actors David DeLuise and Michael DeLuise.
(August 1, 1933 – May 4, 2009)

DeLuise was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Italian American parents Vincenza "Jennie" (née DeStefano), a homemaker, and John DeLuise, who was a civil servant. DeLuise graduated from Manhattan's High School of Performing Arts. He later attended Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts.


DeLuise generally appeared in comedic parts, although an early appearance (in the movie Fail-Safe as a nervous enlisted airman) showed a possible broader range. His first acting credit was as a regular performer in the television show The Entertainers in 1964. In the 1970s and 1980s, he often co-starred with Burt Reynolds; together they appeared in the films The Cannonball Run and Cannonball Run II, Smokey and the Bandit II, The End, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and All Dogs Go to Heaven. DeLuise was the host of the television show Candid Camera from 1991 to 1992.

TV producer Greg Garrison hired DeLuise to appear as a specialty act on the popular Dean Martin show. DeLuise ran through his "Dominick the Great" routine, a riotous example of a magic act gone wrong, with host Martin as a bemused volunteer from the audience. Dom's catch phrase in broken Italian dialect, No Applause Necessary, Sava to the End. The show went so well that DeLuise was soon a regular on Martin's program, participating in both songs and sketches. Garrison also featured DeLuise in his own hour-long comedy specials for ABC. (Martin was often just off-camera when these were taped, and his distinctive laugh can be heard loud and clear.)

DeLuise was probably best known as a regular in Mel Brooks's films. He appeared in The Twelve Chairs, Blazing Saddles, Silent Movie, History of the World, Part I, Spaceballs & Robin Hood: Men in Tights. In Silent Movie (1976), Brooks plays a film director and his strange friends, DeLuise (as "Dom Bell") and Marty Feldman, struggle to produce the first major silent film in forty years. Brooks' late wife, actress Anne Bancroft, directed Dom in Fatso (1980). He also had a cameo in Johnny Dangerously as the Pope, and in Jim Henson's The Muppet Movie as a wayward Hollywood talent agent who comes across Kermit the Frog singing "The Rainbow Connection" in the film's opening scene.



DeLuise exhibited his comedic talents while playing the speaking part of the jailer Frosch in the comedic operetta Die Fledermaus at the Metropolitan Opera. In the production, while the singing was in German, the spoken parts were in English.

An avid cook and author of several books on cooking, in recent years he appeared as a regular contributor to a syndicated home improvement radio show, On The House with The Carey Brothers, giving listeners tips on culinary topics. He also wrote several children's books.



DeLuise died in his sleep around 6 p.m. on May 4, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. He was hospitalized at the time, suffering from kidney failure and respiratory problems.DeLuise was 75 years old.

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Beatrice Arthur died she was 86

Beatrice "Bea" Arthur died she was 86. Arthur was an American comedian, actress, and singer. In a career spanning seven decades, Arthur achieved success as the title character, Maude Findlay, on the 1970s sitcom Maude, and as Dorothy Zbornak on the 1980s sitcom The Golden Girls; she won Emmys for both roles.

(May 13, 1922 – April 25, 2009)

Arthur was born Bernice Frankel to Philip and Rebecca Frankel in New York City on May 13, 1922.[2] Her family soon moved to Maryland where her parents operated a women's clothing shop. She attended the now-defunct Blackstone College in Blackstone, Virginia where she was active in drama productions.

Arthur began her acting career as a member of an off Broadway theater group at the Cherry Lane Theatre in New York City in the late 1940s. On stage, her roles included "Lucy Brown" in the 1954 Off-Broadway premiere of Marc Blitzstein's English-language adaptation of Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera, "Yente the Matchmaker" in the 1964 premiere of Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway, and a 1966 Tony Award-winning portrayal of "Vera Charles" to Angela Lansbury's Mame. She reprised the role in the 1974 film version opposite Lucille Ball. In 1981, she appeared in Woody Allen's The Floating Lightbulb.[3]



In 1972, Arthur was cast as the title character in the television series Maude. She played Maude Findlay, an outspoken liberal living in the affluent community of Tuckahoe, Westchester County, New York, with her husband, Walter (Bill Macy) and divorced daughter Carol (Adrienne Barbeau). The show was a spin-off from All in the Family, on which Arthur had appeared a couple of times in the same role, playing Edith Bunker's cousin, a feminist, and antithesis to the bigoted, conservative Archie Bunker, who described Maude as a "New Deal fanatic". Her role garnered several Emmy and Golden Globe nominations, including her Emmy win in 1977 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.

In 1978, she costarred in the poorly-received The Star Wars Holiday Special, in which she had a song and dance routine in the Mos Eisley Cantina.

After appearing in the short-lived 1983 sitcom Amanda's (an unsuccessful U.S. version of the British hit series Fawlty Towers), Arthur was cast in the hit sitcom The Golden Girls in 1985, in which she played Dorothy Zbornak, a divorced substitute teacher living in a Miami house owned by Blanche Devereaux (Rue McClanahan). Her other roommates included widow Rose Nylund (Betty White) and Dorothy's Sicilian mother, Sophia Petrillo (Estelle Getty). Getty was actually a year younger than Arthur in real life, and was heavily made up to look significantly older. Arthur's character, Dorothy, had a caustic sense of humor and was prone to making witty and sarcastic wisecracks. The series was a huge hit, remaining a top ten ratings fixture for six seasons. Her performance led to several Emmy nominations over the course of the series and an Emmy win in 1988. Arthur decided to leave the show after seven years and in 1992, the show was moved from NBC to CBS and retooled as The Golden Palace in which the other three actresses reprised their roles. Arthur made a guest appearance in a two-part episode, but the show only lasted for one season before it was cancelled.


After Arthur left The Golden Girls, she made several guest appearances on television shows and even organized and toured with her one-woman show. She made a guest appearance on the American cartoon Futurama, in the Emmy-nominated episode, "Amazon Women in the Mood", as the voice of the Femputer who ruled the giant Amazonian women. She also appeared in an episode of Malcolm in the Middle as Dewey's babysitter. She was nominated for a guest-star Emmy for her performance. She also showed up as Larry David's mother on Curb Your Enthusiasm.

In 2002, she returned to Broadway starring in Bea Arthur on Broadway: Just Between Friends, a collection of stories and songs (with musician Billy Goldenberg) based on her life and career. The show was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Special Theatrical Event, but lost to Elaine Stritch: At Liberty.

In 2005, she participated in the Comedy Central roast of Pamela Anderson, delivering a deadpan reading of excerpts from Pamela's book Star: The Novel, most notably the part that describes receiving sodomy-related advice.


Arthur was inducted into Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in 2008.[4] On June 8, 2008, The Golden Girls was awarded the Pop Culture award at the Sixth Annual TV Land Awards. Arthur accepted the award with co-stars Rue McClanahan and Betty White.[5]


Influences
In 1999, Arthur told an interviewer of the three influences in her career: "Sid Caesar taught me the outrageous; [method acting guru] Lee Strasberg taught me what I call reality; and [the original Threepenny Opera star], Lotte Lenya, whom I adored, taught me economy."[6]


Arthur was married twice, first to Robert Alan Aurthur, a screenwriter, television, and film producer and director, whose surname she took and kept though with a modified spelling, and second to director Gene Saks from 1950 to 1978 with whom she adopted two sons, Matthew (born July 14, 1961), an actor, and Daniel (born May 8, 1964), a set designer.

She primarily lived in the Greater Los Angeles Area and had sublet her apartment on Central Park West in New York City and her country home in Bedford, New York.


According to her spokesman, Dan Watt, Beatrice Arthur died peacefully at her home in the Greater Los Angeles Area in the early morning hours of April 25, 2009, aged 86. She had been suffering from cancer, but Watt declined to go into specific details.[7][6][8]

In addition to her sons, she is survived by a sister who lives in Montreal, Quebec, and two granddaughters.

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Nick Adenhart Angels pitcher died in crash he was 22

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Los Angeles Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart and two other people were killed early Thursday by a suspected drunk driver just hours after the rookie made his first start of the season.
The Angels postponed Thursday night's game with Oakland, and players planned to gather to remember their teammate, manager Mike Scioscia said.
About Adenhart
Nick Adenhart was selected by the Angels in the 14th round of the 2004 draft. At the time of his death, he was the youngest pitcher on a big league roster.• Age: 22 (born Aug. 24, 1986)• MLB debut: May 1, 2008• Career MLB record: 1-0 (4 starts)• Career minor league record: 37-28
"It is a tragedy that will never be forgotten," he said at an Angel Stadium news conference.
Adenhart, 22, from Silver Spring, Md., was a passenger in a silver Mitsubishi Eclipse that was broadsided in an intersection in neighboring Fullerton at about 12:30 a.m. local time by a minivan that apparently ran a red light, police said.
The impact spun around both vehicles, and one then struck a third car, but that driver was not hurt, police said.
The minivan driver fled the crash scene on foot and was captured a half-hour later. Police identified him as Andrew Thomas Gallo, 22, of Riverside, and said he had a suspended license because of a previous drunken driving conviction.
Preliminary results indicated Gallo's blood-alcohol level was above the legal limit, police Lt. Kevin Hamilton said, adding that Gallo could face charges including vehicular manslaughter or possibly murder.
Adenhart died in surgery at the University of California, Irvine Medical Center. A 27-year-old man in the car and the driver, 20-year-old Courtney Frances Stewart of Diamond Bar, were pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
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The Angels said no other members of their organization were involved in the accident. A 24-year-old man who was in the same car as the three killed remained hospitalized in critical condition, police said.
Stewart's mother said her daughter and Adenhart had known each other since last season but were not dating as far as she knew, Hamilton said.
The mother said Adenhart and the others had gone dancing at a club about a block away from the crash site, although the crash scene appeared to indicate the car was heading in the direction of the club, Hamilton said.
Stewart died in the crash, along with another occupant of Adenhart's car, Henry Pearson. According to friends of Adenhart at Cal State Fullerton, Pearson was a law student who wanted to be a sports agent. The fourth occupant, Jon Wilhite, survived the wreck. Wilhite is a former catcher for the Cal State Fullerton Titans.
The Los Angeles Times identified the third person killed as Henry Pearson, and the car's lone survivor as Jon Wilhite, a former catcher for the Cal State Fullerton Titans.
A 21-year-old passenger in the van driven by Gallo was treated for minor injuries, police said.
Fans, some wearing Angels shirts or carrying flowers, gathered at the intersection Thursday, and a shrine of flowers and stuffed animals had started growing outside the entrance to Angel Stadium.
Adenhart's death came just hours after he made his fourth major league start, throwing six scoreless innings in Wednesday night's loss to Oakland.
[+] Enlarge
AP Photo/Nick UtNick Adenhart was a passenger in the Mitsubishi that was broadsided; two others were killed, and a fourth is in critical condition.
Adenhart's father, Jim, had flown out from Baltimore to watch the game.
"He summoned his father the day before and he said, 'You better come here because something special's gonna happen,' " said Adenhart's agent, Scott Boras.
After the game, "he was so elated ... he felt like a major leaguer," Boras said, weeping.
Adenhart also is survived by his mother, Janet.
"He lived his dream and was blessed to be part of an organization comprised of such warm, caring, and compassionate people," the family said in a statement issued through the team.
"The Angels were his extended family. Thanks to all of Nick's loyal supporters and fans throughout his career. He will always be in everyone's hearts forever."
The Major League Baseball Players Association said its members were shaken and saddened about the accident.
"Just hours before the accident, Nick demonstrated his passion for baseball and his prospects for a very bright future when he pitched six scoreless innings for the Angels," the association said in a statement.
“
He had his whole life ahead of him. He's only 22, he's still a kid. He was a great kid, he was funny, he was very popular in the clubhouse and off the field. People loved him. ” -- Angels outfielder Torii Hunter
Adenhart was the Angels' No. 3 starter. Adenhart struggled with a 9.00 ERA in three starts with the Angels last season, but Scioscia said last month the pitcher had worked hard during the winter and arrived at spring training with a purpose.
Angels outfielder Torii Hunter was sleeping when his wife called him, asking whether the news was true. Hunter immediately called the Angels' team trainer, who confirmed that Adenhart had been killed.
"I'm in shock right now," Hunter said. "He just pitched last night. It doesn't seem like this is happening.
"This is real life. This isn't about baseball. This is his whole life, he had his whole life ahead of him. He's only 22, he's still a kid. He was a great kid, he was funny, he was very popular in the clubhouse and off the field. People loved him."
Adenhart, a 6-foot-3, 185-pounder from Silver Springs, Md., was a 14th-round pick in the 2004 draft, and made his major league debut on May 1, 2008, also against the Athletics.
He made two other major league starts, getting his only decision in a victory over the Chicago White Sox on May 12. He was 37-28 in the minor leagues from 2005 to 2008, including 9-13 last year at Triple-A Salt Lake.
The Salt Lake Bees game Thursday night also was postponed.
[+] Enlarge
Courtesy Fullerton Police DepartmentPolice apprehended Andrew Gallo half an hour after he fled the scene of the crash.
He got his break this year with a good spring training and the fact the team needed help in the starting rotation, with John Lackey, Ervin Santana and Kelvim Escobar all starting on the disabled list.
Adenhart also was a member of the 2006 national team that qualified the United States for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He started one game for Team USA during qualifiers, held in Cuba, earning a no-decision and striking out six batters in an 8-7 win over Brazil.
"One of the highlights of managing for USA Baseball is the opportunity to work with bright, young players who are eager to learn the game. Nick embodied all of those attributes," Davey Johnson, manager of the 2006 team, said. "He was a joy to manage in Cuba and was a key contributor to our success there. This is such a tragedy -- his career was just getting started."
Information from ESPN.com's

Steven Bach died he was 70

Steven Bach [1][2] was senior vice-president and head of worldwide productions for United Artists studios. In Final Cut (1985), Bach chronicles his involvement in the troubled production of Heaven's Gate (1980), a film widely considered to have been the decisive reason for the financial bankruptcy of United Artists.
Bach is the author of The Life and Legend of Marlene Dietrich and Dazzler: The Life and Times of Moss Hart. He taught film studies at Columbia University and Bennington College.

(April 29, 1938 – March 25, 2009)
His biography of the Nazi-associated filmmaker Leni: The Life and Work of Leni Riefenstahl (2007) overturns many of the claims Riefenstahl put forward in her self-defence regarding her contact with Hitler's regime, and was named by the New York Times as one of the most notable books of 2007.
Bach died after a brief illness in March of 2009. He was survived by his companion, Werner Röhr.[1]

Hal Durham died he was77

Longtime Grand Ole Opry announcer Hal Durham has died at age 77. The McMinnville, Tenn. native was with the legendary country music program for 32 years, beginning his stint as the voice of the Opry in 1964. He also served as general manager from 1978 - 1993 and as program director of the Opry's radio home, WSM.

Hal Durham, who helped assure the Grand Ole Opry's transition into the modern era, died over the weekend at his home in Cape Coral, Fla. Mr. Durham, a McMinnville, Tenn., native who also served as a WSM announcer and executive, was 77.

Mr. Durham's contributions to the Opry were substantial and necessary. He served four years as manager and began his 15-year run as general manager when he succeeded E.W. "Bud" Wendell in 1978.

By that point, country had evolved well beyond its roots as an acoustic music format, and top country artists were drawing arena-level audiences that necessitated playing lucrative tour dates away from Nashville.

The general manager reacted to these factors by altering both the Opry's stage setup and its membership rules.

Under Mr. Durham's leadership, full drum sets were allowed on the Opry stage.

Before, drummers had to appear with only a snare and a cymbal, and when percussion was first allowed on the Opry in the 1950s, drummers such as Buddy Harman had to actually strike a brush against a drum head that was affixed to a standup bass.

Mr. Durham also significantly relaxed membership requirements with regard to required personal appearances, clearing the way for artists with heavy touring schedules to become Opry members without having to commit to multiple Opry appearances each month.

Natasha Richardson died she was 45

Natasha Jane Richardson died she was 45. Richardson was a British actress known for her performances on stage and screen. She was a member of the Redgrave family and the daughter of the actress Vanessa Redgrave and the director/producer Tony Richardson. Richardson rose to international stardom with her Tony award-winning performance as Sally Bowles in the musical play Cabaret in New York City on Broadway in 1998.
Richardson was brought up in London; she attended St. Paul's Girls' School before training at London's Central School of Speech and Drama. Richardson was married twice. Her first marriage was to filmmaker Robert Fox, whom she divorced in 1992. She married Irish actor Liam Neeson in late 1994. Richardson and Neeson have two sons: Micheál and Daniel. Her father died of AIDS-related causes in 1991. Richardson helped raise millions of dollars in the fight against AIDS through the charity amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research. Richardson died on 18 March 2009 from injuries sustained in a skiing accident.[1]
(11 May 1963 – 18 March 2009)
Richardson was born in London, England, as a member of the Redgrave family, known as a dynasty in theatre and acting. She was daughter of the late director and producer Tony Richardson and actress Vanessa Redgrave,[2] and granddaughter of the late actors Sir Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson.[2][3] Her sister is Joely Richardson.[2] She is also the niece of actress Lynn Redgrave and actor Corin Redgrave,[2] and cousin of Jemma Redgrave. Richardson made her film debut at the age of four in a film directed by her father, The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968).[2] She attended St. Paul's Girls' School for several years, and then trained at London's Central School of Speech and Drama.


Richardson began her career in regional theatre, at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds, England. Her screen debut in Every Picture Tells a Story in 1984, was followed by a CBS miniseries, Ellis Island. A year later, Richardson appeared in a revival of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull; her first professional work in London's West End. That same year she made her UK television debut alongside Jeremy Brett and David Burke in The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes appearing as Violet Hunter in the episode "The Copper Beeches". Soon after, she starred in a London stage production of High Society, adapted from the acclaimed Cole Porter film, and successively portrayed Mary Shelley in the 1987 Ken Russell film, Gothic. In 1998 she won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance as Sally Bowles in the Roundabout Theatre Company's production of the Sam Mendes–Rob Marshall helmed revival of Kander & Ebb's Cabaret.[2] In 2005, she appeared again with the Roundabout, this time as Blanche DuBois in their revival of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire,[2] opposite John C. Reilly's Stanley Kowalski.


The same year she starred opposite Kenneth Branagh and Colin Firth in A Month in the Country, directed by Pat O'Connor. A major moment in advancement was her starring role in The Handmaid's Tale (1990), playing opposite Robert Duvall and Faye Dunaway. She starred in Nell (1994) alongside her future husband, Liam Neeson, and Jodie Foster.

Her first marriage was to filmmaker Robert Fox, from 1990 to 1992.[4] She married Irish actor Liam Neeson in late 1994 at the home they shared near Millbrook, New York.[5] Richardson and Neeson had two sons: Micheál and Daniel. Richardson helped raise millions of dollars in the fight against AIDS since her father, director Tony Richardson, died of AIDS-related causes in 1991.[6] Richardson was actively involved in amfAR, becoming a board of trustees member in 2006, and participated in many other AIDS charities including Bailey House, God's Love We Deliver, Mothers' Voices, AIDS Crisis Trust and National AIDS Trust, for which she was an ambassador. Richardson received amfAR's Award of Courage in November 2000.[7]
A long-time smoker,[8][9][10] Richardson was also an outspoken opponent of the ban on smoking in New York City restaurants.[11]


Wikinews has related news: British actress Natasha Richardson dies at age 45
On 16 March 2009, Richardson was injured in a skiing accident at the Mont Tremblant Resort.[12] She was taken to Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal after suffering a traumatic brain injury.[13] She was listed as being in critical condition,[14] and her husband, Liam Neeson, was reported to have joined her after flying from Toronto, where he was filming a movie.[13] Richardson was flown on March 17 by private jet to Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan and visited by her sons, mother Vanessa Redgrave, and sister Joely Richardson.[15] She died on 18 March 2009 at age 45.[1]
At approximately 7:00 p.m. EDT, Liam Neeson's publicist issued this statement to the press:
Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha. They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time.[1]