Remembrances

Calif. Special Education Teacher Was Killed In Las Vegas Shooting

7:01am October 03, 2017

by Ina Jaffe

Sandy Casey, 35, was a special education teacher at Manhattan Beach Middle School, south of Los Angeles. She was attending the concert with her fiancé Christopher Willemse.

Rock & Roll Hall Of Famer Tom Petty Dies At 66

5:00am October 03, 2017

by Andrew Limbong

Singer-songwriter Tom Petty's songs celebrated defiance and a strong-will — such as: "Refugee," "American Girl," "Breakdown," and "Won't Back Down."

Maureen Scalia holds one of her favorite photos of her and her husband, the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, in their home in Virginia.

Antonin Scalia's Less Well-Known Legacy: His Speeches

10:08am October 02, 2017

by Nina Totenberg

Scalia Speaks is an anthology of the late justice's speeches on everything from the arts, turkey hunting, games and sports, faith and judging — and even the "Italian view of the Irish."

Monty Hall, in a 1969 photo, hosts Let's Make A Deal.

Arts

Monty Hall, Host Of 'Let's Make A Deal,' Dies At 96

10:09pm September 30, 2017

by Glen Weldon

The unctuous, ingratiating game host was, always, in on the joke, which proved the secret to his enduring appeal.

Hugh Hefner poses at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles in 2010.

Arts

Hugh Hefner: Looking Back At A Controversial Life

7:02am September 30, 2017

by Scott Simon

Hugh Hefner died this week at the age of 91. NPR's Scott Simon says Hefner "made history, and then tripped over it."

Hugh Hefner at his Playboy Mansion home in 2006.

Arts

Hugh Hefner On Early 'Playboy' And Changing America's Values

1:30pm September 29, 2017

by Terry Gross

In 1999, Hefner told Fresh Air that his magazine was a reaction to his own upbringing. "I believe and hope that Playboy [has] played some small part in changing the values ... of our time," he said.

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Hefner looks over proof sheets for Playboy in 1961 in Chicago.

Arts

'Playboy' Founder Hugh Hefner, Champion Of Free Speech And 'Smut', Dies At 91

11:33pm September 27, 2017

by Scott Simon

Hefner's magazine was blamed for (or credited with) setting off a cultural revolution in America, but within a few years he was branded a male chauvinist.

Charles Bradley performing on July 16, 2017 in Louisville, Kentucky. Bradley passed away on Sept. 23, 2017 at the age of 68.

Music & Culture

'Screaming Eagle Of Soul' Charles Bradley Dies At 68

6:29pm September 23, 2017

by Andrew Flanagan

The singer, inspired as a teen by James Brown, didn't release his first album until 2011, at the age of 62. For the six years that followed, through a battle with cancer, he never wasted a moment.

The obituary for Jake LaMotta was, in many ways, written by Robert De Niro's portrayal in Raging Bull.

Arts

'I Kind Of Look Bad In It': The Life Of Jake LaMotta, The Legacy Of 'Raging Bull'

4:37pm September 21, 2017

by Chris Klimek

Critic Chris Klimek says Martin Scorsese's landmark 1980 film provides an unflattering portrait of Jake LaMotta, who died Wednesday — a portrait the boxer was only too happy to sit for.

Former world middleweight champion boxer Jake LaMotta attends a dinner in New York City in 2012. LaMotta has died at 95.

Jake LaMotta, Boxer Of 'Raging Bull' Fame, Dies At 95

5:34pm September 20, 2017

by Camila Domonoske

LaMotta, the middleweight champion whose story inspired Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro, was famous for his fury both in and out of the ring. Later in life, he became a stand-up comedian.