Remembrances

Donald Byrd onstage, in an image circulated by his record label at the time, Blue Note Records.

Music & Culture

Remembering Donald Byrd, Jazz Trumpeter Who Spanned Generations

11:23am August 06, 2013

by Frannie Kelley

After he helped to develop the bluesy, driving hard bop style in the '50s and '60s, his funkier commercial hit recordings shaped black pop music through the advent of hip-hop. A committed music educator, the Detroit native was 80 when he died last week.

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Arts

In His Own Words: Remembering Poet Robert Hayden

6:38pm August 04, 2013

Robert Hayden was born in Detroit 100 years ago Sunday. He became the first African-American to receive the honor now known as "poet laureate." Among his most famous works is the collection of short poems called Elegies for Paradise Valley. We hear an excerpt from the collection, as read by the author in 1976.

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Science

Wildlife Sound Archivist Remembered

1:46pm August 03, 2013

Twenty years ago Saturday, Ted Parker, one of the world's greatest field biologists and sound archivists, died in a plane crash. He made nearly 11,000 wildlife recordings, and could identify some 4,000 different bird species by just the sound of their vocalizations. In this audio montage from Cornell Lab of Ornithology, director John Fitzpatrick offers a remembrance.

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Former Democratic representative from Louisiana Lindy Claiborne Boggs attends the Distinguished Service Award ceremony at the Capitol on May 10, 2006.

Fresh Air Remembers Former Louisiana Congresswoman Lindy Boggs

5:51pm July 29, 2013

Boggs moved to Washington in 1941, when her husband was elected to Congress. After his plane disappeared on a campaign trip through Alaska, she ran for his seat and won, becoming the first woman elected to Congress from her state.

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Former Democratic Rep. Lindy Claiborne Boggs attends the Distinguished Service Award ceremony at the Capitol in May 2006 in Washington, D.C.

Politics & Government

Ex-Rep. Lindy Boggs: Advocate For Women, Dedicated To Family

1:01pm July 27, 2013

by Linda Wertheimer

The former congresswoman from New Orleans and U.S. ambassador to the Vatican died Saturday morning. She was 97. NPR's Linda Wertheimer traces her life and accomplishments, along with her personal legacy.

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National

Key Witness Against Emmett Till's Killers Led A Quiet Life

5:43pm July 25, 2013

by Karen Grigsby Bates

In 1955, it was virtually unheard of for a black man to testify against a white person. Willie Reed, who changed his last name to Louis after fleeing to Chicago, died last week at 76.

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Veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas broke barriers and became a White House fixture, but her famous bluntness caused her downfall in the end.

Veteran Journalist Helen Thomas Leaves An Outspoken Legacy

3:09pm July 23, 2013

by David Folkenflik

In her long career, Thomas broke barriers and became a White House fixture — but her famous bluntness caused her downfall in the end. She died Saturday morning at the age of 92.

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Carline Ray, who sang with The International Sweethearts of Rhythm and Mary Lou Williams died on July 18 at the age of 88.

Carline Ray: A Pioneer For Women In Jazz Dies At 88

2:56pm July 23, 2013

A pioneering musician, and the mother of jazz singer Catherine Russell, Carline Ray died July 18. In the 1940s, Ray found a home in the all-female band The International Sweethearts of Rhythm as a guitarist and vocalist. In 2012, Fresh Air spoke with Russell about her mother.

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Festivalgoers play a giant game of Twister during the Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts in southwest England last month.

National

Chuck Foley, Co-Creator Of Twister, Dies At 82

10:40am July 12, 2013

by Doreen McCallister

Foley and business partner Neil Rabens invented the game — which they originally wanted to call Pretzel — for Milton Bradley in 1966. Twister is now manufactured by Hasbro, and the company says it remains a top seller.

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Jim Nayder, host of the The Annoying Music Show and Magnificent Obession, died this week. Weekend Edition Saturday host Scott Simon, left, remembers his good friend.

Music & Culture

'Annoying Music' Host Leaves 'Magnificent Obsession' Behind

4:46pm June 30, 2013

by Scott Simon

Jim Nayder, host of Chicago Public Radio's The Annoying Music Show and Magnificent Obsession, died this week. Weekend Edition Saturday host Scott Simon remembers his good friend.

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