Thursday, June 24, 2010

William Hollman - Helicopter Pilot

William Holloman was a member of the distinguished Tuskegee Airmen during World War II. The Tuskegee program was the only way Black pilots were allowed to fly.

He flew on numerous combat missions. After the war, he became a commercial pilot. He was called back to service in 1966 and became the first Black helicopter pilot during war in Viet Nam.

Mr Holloman, 85, died June 11, 2010 in Renton, Washington after suffering a heart attack. He had lived in the area for many years after growing up in St Louis.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Crispian St. Peters - British Singer

Crispian St. Peters was a British pop singer best known for his 1966 hit "Pied Piper" which reached the Top Ten in Brittan and America. He died on June 8, 2010 at his home in Swanley, Kent, England. He was 71 and had been recovering from a major stroke since 1995.

He began performing when he was 17, changing from his birth name of Robin Peter Smith to his stage name of Crispian St. Peters.

His stroke ended his 30 year singing career with a number of bands, but he continued to add to his 200 written sings.

He also scored a huge hit with his version of "You Were Always On My Mind".

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Jerry Stephenson - Member of 1967 Red Sox

Jerry Stephenson pitch for seven season in the Major Leagues, compiling a 8-19 record with the Boston Red Sox, Seattle Pilots and the Los Angeles Dodgers. He is best known for being a member of the 1967 "Impossible Dream" Boston Red Sox team that won the American League pennant.

Mr. Stephenson, 66, died of cancer at his home in Anaheim, California on June 6, 2010.He was signed out of high school by the Red Sox in 1961 and made his Major League debut two years later at the age of 19. Ironically, he was scouted by his father who was working for the Red Sox.

He spent five years with Boston. During the 1967 campaign, he had a 3-1 record with one save. He won a game in late August against Chicago which put the team into first place. He pitched in Game 4 of the World Series.

In 1969, he was released by the Sox and signed with Seattle. He spent a year with them before finishing his career with the Dodgers in 1970.

He spent 25 years as a scout for the Dodgers and another 14 with the Sox before retiring last October when he became ill.

Friday, June 4, 2010

Chris Haney - Developed "Trivial Pursuit"

Chris Haney developed the highly successful board game, "Trivial Pursuit", along with his friend Scott Abbott. Mr Haney died on May 31, 2010 in Toronto, Canada of undisclosed causes.

He came up with the game's idea in 1979 while working as a copy boy at The Canadian Press. While playing "Scrabble" with co-worker Scott Abbott, they discussed the concept of a trivia game.

Over the next two years, they would write 6,000 questions on their color-coded category cards. They were able to raise $40,000 in investment capital and found a small game maker to market the product.

Sales became brisk with $800 million worth of games being sold in 1984. The licensing rights change hands several times before they were bought by Hasbro in 2008.

By the time of his death, the game had sold over 100 million copies in 26 countries and 17 languages. The sales made Mr. Haney very wealthy with a portfolio of golf courses, vineyards and race horses.