“Deaths elsewhere - baltimoresun.com - Baltimore Sun” plus 3 more

Deaths elsewhere - baltimoresun.com - Baltimore Sun
3 histories receive Bancroft Prize - Fosters Daily Democrat
Beatle news briefs: Paul poll jumping; EMI makes ... - Examiner
Industrial Design by Architects - Dexigner

Deaths elsewhere - baltimoresun.com - Baltimore Sun

Posted: 23 Mar 2010 01:01 AM PDT

SID FLEISCHMAN, 90

Children's book author

Sid Fleischman was a successful suspense novelist and screenwriter, whose credits included the screenplay for his novel "Blood Alley," when he decided to write a book that his young children could read so they would understand just what it was he did at home all day.

"I seem to have written a children's book," Mr. Fleischman wrote to his agent in New York. "If you're not interested, just drop it in the waste basket."

The 1962 lighthearted tale of an Old West traveling magician and his family, "Mr. Mysterious & Company," sold to the first publishing house that read it, launching Mr. Fleischman into a long and much-honored career as a children's book author.

Mr. Fleischman, whose book "The Whipping Boy" earned him the prestigious Newbery Medal in 1987, died of cancer Wednesday at his home in Santa Monica, Calif., the day after his 90th birthday, said a son.

"Sid was a national treasure in the field of children's books," said Lin Oliver, a children's book author and executive director of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. "It really is a monumental loss for the field."

Known for his humor, love of language, adventuresome plotting and nose for history, Mr. Fleischman wrote more than 50 children's books.

"He was a true master of the craft and a writer's writer," said Ms. Oliver, adding that Mr. Fleischman wrote in many genres, including novels, tall tales, picture books and biographies.

"By the Great Horn Spoon!" a lively tale of the California Gold Rush, has been required fourth-grade reading in California and was turned into the 1967 movie "The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin."

Mr. Fleischman had written more than 30 children's books when he won the Newbery Medal for "The Whipping Boy."

He was inspired to write the book after discovering the practice of the royal houses of Europe, where, he told the Los Angeles Times in 1987, "the prince, the heir to the throne, couldn't be punished. So if they had a rotten prince, they installed a commoner off the streets, and he took the punishment for the prince. The injustice of it enraged me. The lunacy of it!"

Mr. Fleischman came to enjoy writing for children. In another 1987 Times interview, he recalled the fan letters from children.

"Adult readers never write," he said. "It was the first time I ever felt in touch with my audience."

The list of Mr. Fleischman's books include two biographies for young readers in recent years, "Escape!: The Story of the Great Houdini" and "The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West." "Sir Charlie," a biography of Charlie Chaplin, will be published in June.

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3 histories receive Bancroft Prize - Fosters Daily Democrat

Posted: 23 Mar 2010 12:03 AM PDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Biographies of Abigail Adams and Depression-era photographer Dorothea Lange are among the winners of the prestigious Bancroft Prize for history.

Columbia University announced Wednesday that three authors will each receive $10,000 for the Bancroft.

The prize goes to Linda Gordon for "Dorothea Lange: A Life Beyond Limits"; Woody Holton for "Abigail Adams"; and Margaret D. Jacobs for "White Mother to a Dark Race: Settler Colonialism, Maternalism, and the Removal of Indigenous Children in the American West and Australia, 1880-1940."

Previous winners of the Bancroft, founded in 1948, include John Dower's "Embracing Defeat" and Sean Wilentz's "The Rise of American Democracy."

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Beatle news briefs: Paul poll jumping; EMI makes ... - Examiner

Posted: 23 Mar 2010 12:11 AM PDT

Comment

EMI IN THE NEWS AGAIN: Various business media sites, including the Wall Street Journal and Times Online, are reporting that EMI is holding talks to license its catalog to other labels. Times Online says the Beatles are included in the talks. The hope is that parent firm Terra Firma Capital Partners Ltd. can stave off Citigroup from taking over and putting it up for sale.

VOTING STILL ON IN PAUL POLL: Our poll on the Paul McCartney Examiner side has over 1,000 votes. So far, the two leading vote getters are "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" and "She Loves You." Voting is scheduled to go until next Tuesday, the day of the first Hollywood Bowl show, but we're not against extending it.

CILLA BLACK COULD BE "CORONATED": The UK Mirror says Cilla Black may get a cameo role on the long-running UK soap "Coronation Street." The article has a picture, if you're interested.

GOIN' DOWN TO THE CROSSROADS: Seattle Beatles tribute band Créme Tangerine will headline the 2010 2010 Bite of Crossroads from 7:30 p.m. to10 p.m. March 27 at Crossroads Bellevue Late Night Stage, 15600 NE 8th St., Bellevue, WA 98008. Admission is free. After the show, the band will sign copies of their disc "The Abbey Road Project."

LENNON BOOK PREVIEWED AT FEST: Jude Southerland Kessler will read excerpts from "Shivering Inside," the second in a series of her historical biographies of John Lennon, at the Fest for Beatles Fans March 26-28 in Secaucus, N.J. "Shivering Inside" is due out in October. She'll be pre-selling copies of the second book at the Fest, and also have copies of her great first book, "Shoulda Been There." Her website is at http://www.ontherockbooks.com or you can email her at rjkess@comcast.net.