Obituaries in the news

Aime Cesaire

FORT-DE-FRANCE, Martinique (AP) — Aime Cesaire, an anti-colonialist poet and politician who was honored throughout the French-speaking world and was an early proponent of black pride, has died. He was 94.

Cesaire died Thursday at a Fort-de-France hospital, where he was being treated for heart problems and other ailments, a government spokeswoman said.

He was one of the Caribbean's most celebrated cultural figures and was revered in his native Martinique.

Cesaire's best known works included the essay "Negro I am, Negro I Will Remain" and the poem "Notes From a Return to the Native Land."

Born June 26, 1913, in Basse-Pointe, Martinique, Cesaire moved to France for high school and university. He returned to Martinique during World War II and served as mayor from 1945 to 2001, except in 1983-84.

Cesaire helped found the Black Student journal in Paris in the 1930s, which launched the idea of "negritude," urging blacks to cultivate pride in their heritage. His 1950 "Discourse on Colonialism" became a classic of French political literature. His works also resonated in Africa.

Cesaire helped Martinique shed its colonial status in 1946. In 2005, he refused to meet with then-Interior Minister Sarkozy because of his endorsement of a bill citing the "positive role" of colonialism.

Despite the snub, Sarkozy successfully led a campaign last year to change the name of Martinique's airport in honor of Cesaire. Cesaire eventually met with Sarkozy in March 2006 but endorsed his Socialist rival, Segolene Royal, in the 2007 French elections.

___

Danny Federici

NEW YORK (AP) — Danny Federici, the longtime keyboard player for Bruce Springsteen whose stylish work helped define the E Street Band's sound on hits from "Hungry Heart" through "The Rising," died Thursday. He was 58.

Federici, who had battled melanoma for three years, died at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. News of his death was posted late Thursday on Springsteen's official Web site.

According to published reports, Federici last performed with Springsteen and the band last month, appearing during portions of a March 20 show in Indianapolis.

He was born in Flemington, N.J., a long car ride from the Jersey shore haunts where he first met kindred musical spirit Springsteen in the late 1960s. The pair often jammed at the Upstage Club in Asbury Park, N.J., a now-defunct after-hours club that hosted the best musicians in the state.

It was Federici, along with original E Street Band drummer Vini Lopez, who first invited Springsteen to join their band.

Federici became a stalwart in the E Street Band as Springsteen rocketed from the boardwalk to international stardom.

Federici played accordion on the wistful "4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" from Springsteen's second album, and his organ solo was a highlight of Springsteen's first top 10 hit, "Hungry Heart." His organ coda on the 9/11-inspired Springsteen song "You're Missing" provided one of the more heart-wrenching moments on "The Rising" in 2002.

___

George Pollard

KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) — Portrait artist George Pollard, whose subjects included Presidents Harry Truman and John Kennedy, Pope John Paul II, and Muhammad Ali, died Thursday. He was 88.

He died in his sleep at his Kenosha home, said his wife, Nan Pollard.

Pollard, who grew up on a farm near Sheboygan, attended art schools in Milwaukee and Pittsburgh before he enlisted in the Marines in World War II and served 39 months in the South Pacific.

He painted a portrait of Gen. Douglas MacArthur in Australia and later was recruited to do one of first lady Eleanor Roosevelt when she toured the South Pacific.

Kennedy was a senator in the presidential race in 1960 when Pollard went to Milwaukee and persuaded him to pose for a portrait by showing him sketches he had done in the war.

Truman reacted to a Pollard portrait by remarking, "Young man, I think you flattered me just right," Nan Pollard said.

His other subjects included musician Ray Charles, Green Bay Packers greats Bart Starr and Brett Favre, and baseball's Nolan Ryan. He was the official portrait artist for the Milwaukee Bucks and Milwaukee Brewers for about 25 years.

Back To Top

	Burt Glinn, Magnum Photographer, Dies	Associated Press	Sun Apr 13	0
	Veteran Disney animator Ollie Johnston dies at 95	Associated Press	Tue Apr 15	0
	Martinique poet Aime Cesaire dies at 94	Associated Press	Thu Apr 17	0
	E Street Band member Danny Federici dies at 58	Associated Press	Thu Apr 17	3
	Aimé Césaire, Martinique Poet and Politician, Dies at 94	The New York Times	Sat Apr 19	2