Joel T. Broyhill
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP)–Former congressman Joel T. Broyhill, who represented northern Virginia for more than two decades and who escaped from a German prison camp in World War II, died Sunday. He was 86.
Broyhill died of congestive heart failure and pneumonia at his Arlington home, his son-in-law said.
Broyhill, a Republican first elected to Congress in 1952 to represent the new 10th Congressional District, developed a reputation for constituent service that became legendary.
He was also known for his opposition to the establishment of home rule in the District of Columbia, and he frequently clashed with Walter Washington, who would become the city’s first mayor, and Marion Barry, who was a community activist during Broyhill’s time in Congress.
Broyhill lost his seat in 1974 to Democrat Joseph L. Fisher. His defeat was considered one of the biggest upsets nationally that year.
Broyhill was born Nov. 4, 1919 in Hopewell, Va., and attended Fork Union Military Academy and George Washington University. He joined the Army in 1942 and was taken prisoner in the Battle of the Bulge. After six months in Nazi prison camps, Broyhill escaped and rejoined advancing American forces.
In civilian life, Broyhill worked in the family real estate business, M.T. Broyhill and Sons.
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Norman Lewis
LOS ANGELES (AP)–Norman Lewis, who wrote or edited more than 60 books on language and grammar, including the best-selling “30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary” and “Word Power Made Easy” died Sept. 8. He was 93.
The former faculty member at Rio Hondo College died of age-related causes at an assisted-living home in Whittier, said Ted Snyder, the college’s former director of public relations.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1912, Lewis published his first article, a book report that appeared in the now-defunct New York Telegram, at age 11.
In 1939, he sold his first nonfiction work–a quiz on the varieties of manias–to Leisure magazine for $1.
As a student at Columbia University, where he earned a master’s degree, Lewis wrote his first book, a sixth-grade textbook called “Journeys Through Wordland,” in 1941.
Lewis was highly regarded as a leading authority in English-language skills. The book, which Lewis co-wrote with publisher Wilfred Funk, is considered one of the most widely used and popular how-to books of its kind. It was first published in 1942, and the latest edition came out in 2003.
Lewis, who taught English at Rio Hondo from 1964 to 1995, also edited the well-known “Roget’s New Pocket Thesaurus in Dictionary Form.”
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Byron Nelson
IRVING, Texas (AP)–Byron Nelson, who had the greatest year in the history of professional golf when he won 18 tournaments in 1945, including a record 11 in a row, died Tuesday. He was 94.
The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office said he died of natural causes.
Known as Lord Byron for his elegant swing and gentle manner, Nelson won 31 of 54 tournaments in 1944-45. Then, at age 34, he retired after the 1946 season to spend more time on his Texas ranch.
Nelson was born Feb. 4, 1912, on the family farm and started in golf in 1922 as a caddie at Glen Garden Country Club in Fort Worth. One year, he won the caddies’ championship, defeating Ben Hogan in a playoff.
As a hemophiliac, Nelson was excused from military service during World War II. But despite the weak fields, his accomplishments in the war years were astounding.
Nelson finished second seven times in 1945, was never out of the top 10 and at one point played 19 consecutive rounds under 70. His stroke average of 68.33 for the season is still the record.
Nelson’s 52 PGA Tour victories–a mark tied by Tiger Woods this year–was fifth on the career list behind Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, Hogan and Arnold Palmer. He was elected to the PGA Hall of Fame in 1953 and to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.
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Fred N. Spiess
LA JOLLA, Calif. (AP)–Research scientist Fred N. Spiess, who briefly headed the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, died Sept. 8 of cancer, the school said. He was 86.
Spiess was acting director of Scripps from 1962-63 and director from 1964-65. From 1980-88, he served as director of UC’s Institute of Marine Resources.
He designed and built instruments, took them to sea for deployment and led numerous expeditions to investigate the deepest parts of the world’s oceans.
A co-inventor of FLIP, a 355-foot-long floating instrument platform, Spiess helped further ocean research by creating a stable base for scientific exploration on the rough seas.
Born in Oakland, Spiess earned his undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley and a master’s degree from Harvard University. He returned to Berkeley for a doctorate in physics.
Spiess served in the Navy during World War II and was stationed on a submarine in the Pacific.
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Thomas Stewart
ROCKVILLE, Md. (AP)–Thomas Stewart, an American baritone known for his portrayals of Norse god Wotan and other Wagnerian roles, died Sunday. He was 78.
Stewart died while playing golf near his home in Rockville, according to Evelyn Lear, his wife.
Stewart was known as a commanding singer who took an imaginative approach to his diverse roles, which included Aeneas in Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas,” Jochaanan in Strauss’s “Salome,” and the title role in “Don Giovanni.”
Stewart nurtured young singers as part of the Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart Emerging Singers Program, in company with the Wagner Society of Washington D.C.
Stewart was born Aug. 29, 1928, in San Saba, Texas. He studied with Mack Harrell at the Juilliard School and later sang with the New York City Opera and the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
He married Lear in 1955. They moved to Berlin, where they sang at the State Opera and then throughout Europe, before returning to the United States for long careers with the Metropolitan Opera.
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