RIP

[kriesel]

Actor on Leave it to Beaver, 2022-07-27 https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/27/enter...bit/index.html
see also https://mersenneforum.org/showthread.php?t=27973

[richs]

Captain Joseph Hazelwood, Master of the Exxon Valdez:

https://gcaptain.com/captain-joseph-...z-passes-away/

[Dr Sardonicus]

Originally Posted by richs

Captain Joseph Hazelwood, Master of the Exxon Valdez:

https://gcaptain.com/captain-joseph-...z-passes-away/

I remember when the ship ran aground and spilled millions of gallons of oil into Prince William Sound. That was in 1989.

The article is interesting in that it indicates that there was plenty of blame to go around.

I was prompted to look up something I had recalled from not long after. In 1992 Hazelwood got a job teaching marine navigation. My reaction when I heard about that was basically, "Wait - WHAT???" But reading about it, he was teaching about the responsibilities of standing watch on a ship's bridge. He wasn't on his ship's bridge when it ran aground, but he knew firsthand what could happen if the bridge watch failed to perform its duties properly.

Of course, as the article indicates, it is the Master's responsibility to assign bridge duties properly...

[xilman]

Nichelle Nichols, aka Lieutenant Uhura at age 89.

[Dr Sardonicus]

Bill Russell

NBA legend Bill Russell, an 11-time NBA champion with the Boston Celtics and the first Black head coach in the league, passed away "peacefully" Sunday, according to a family statement from his verified Twitter account. He was 88.

"It is with a very heavy heart we would like to pass along to all of Bill's friends, fans, & followers," the statement reads. "Bill Russell, the most prolific winner in American sports history, passed away peacefully today at age 88, with his wife, Jeannine, by his side. Arrangements for his memorial service will be announced soon.

[rogue]

Originally Posted by xilman

Nichelle Nichols, aka Lieutenant Uhura at age 89.

"Hailing frequencies closed, captain".

[PhilF]

Originally Posted by rogue

"Hailing frequencies closed, captain".

In ham radio speak she would be a "Silent Key".

[Dr Sardonicus]

I watched Star Trek when it first went on the air. Nichelle Nichols was a very attractive woman, and the uniform her character, Lieutenant Uhura wore, showed her very shapely legs pretty far up. This alone dispelled one racial stereotype, which is that Black women have skinny legs. She certainly didn't.

But more substantively, Communications Officer Lieutenant Uhura was in a position of authority, and was competent, levelheaded, bright, and resourceful.

At one point, Nichelle Nichols wanted to leave the show. But she was persuaded to stay by a fan who considered her character to be inspirational, and thought that this was very important. That fan was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

I note that in the first Star Trek pilot episode "The Cage," the Enterprise was under the command of Captain Pike, and the First Officer was a woman, portrayed by Majel Barrett, who in 1969 married producer Gene Roddenberry. I only recall the character being called "Number One." (Mr. Spock, portrayed by Leonard Nimoy, was Science Officer.)

NBC rejected this episode. A new pilot episode, "Where No Man Has Gone Before," with Captain Kirk et al was accepted, and the series followed. (Majel Barrett did the computer's voice in Star Trek, and in the later series Star Trek: The Next Generation portrayed Lwaxana Troi, mother of Deanna Troi.)

And so Majel Barrett's character went by the boards. But a new woman in authority appeared - a Black woman - Communications Officer Lieutenant Uhura. And the name Uhura has a certain significance. Uhura is the Swahili word for freedom.

[storm5510]

Originally Posted by Dr Sardonicus

I watched Star Trek when it first went on the air. Nichelle Nichols was a very attractive woman, and the uniform her character, Lieutenant Uhura wore, showed her very shapely legs pretty far up. This alone dispelled one racial stereotype, which is that Black women have skinny legs. She certainly didn't.

I was 10 years old when the series started in 1966. Looking back, she had the appearance of someone in her mid 20's. Not 30-something.

I read she had decided to quit the series early on, but she was talked out of it by Martin Luther King. He told her that her presence was extremely important. Her IMDB page says she appeared in 69 episodes.

[Uncwilly]

Vin Scully, sports broadcasting legend, at 94 age with a 67 year career.
https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2022/08/02/vin-scully-dodgers-broadcaster-for-67-years-dies-at-94/

[Dr Sardonicus]

David McCullough

NEW YORK (AP) — David McCullough, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author whose lovingly crafted narratives on subjects ranging from the Brooklyn Bridge to Presidents John Adams and Harry Truman made him among the most popular and influential historians of his time, has died. He was 89.

I received a copy of his book The Great Bridge about the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, as a gift. I didn't read it for some time, but was glad when I did.

Many years later, I met a man who grew up in Brooklyn who did not know about the book, and loaned it to him. He really liked it.