The Italian director staged sumptuously visualized operas, which often resembled Renaissance paintings brought to life. On film, he brought Shakespearean and biblical tales to the big screen.
The Houston-based dancer-turned-rapper, part of the successful trio Geto Boys, was one of the first to bring cinematically macabre imagery to rap lyricism.
Over a career stretching back to the 1950s, Malcom John Rebennack came to be a living symbol of the city of New Orleans and its bottomless musical character.
As executive chef and co-owner of Dooky Chase's restaurant, Chase made the eatery a hub for the African American community of New Orleans and a meeting place for pioneers of the civil rights movement.
Through a career that spanned six decades, the psychedelic pioneer captivated the rock establishment while remaining at an arm's length from the mainstream.
William "Lynn" Weaver, whose StoryCorps interviews have been among the most memorable, died on Saturday. He came to StoryCorps many times — to pay tribute to his father and remember his childhood.
Cochran used his considerable influence, including serving as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, to direct billions of dollars to Mississippi.
Redbone's career was defined by biographical mystery and a musical ear obsessed with the sounds of yesteryear. He also sang the theme to Mr. Belvedere.
Tony Horwitz won the Pulitzer Prize in 1995 for his Wall Street Journal reporting and was known for his history books, including Confederates in the Attic. He died Monday at age 60.
Horwitz's publisher says he died of apparent cardiac arrest. A Pulitzer Prize winner for covering the hardships of low-wage workers, the peripatetic writer sought truths obscured by history's cliches.
The former All-Star and Gold Glove winner spent 22 years in the Major Leagues, but his career was overshadowed by a fateful mistake in the 1986 World Series.
Former Boston Red Sox first-baseman Bill Buckner has died at 69. Best known for a fielding error that helped cost Boston the 1986 World Series, Buckner was cheered by Red Sox fans in recent years.
"Disappear? We're not going to do that," she said. She went 10 times to the courthouse before the registrar would sign her up to vote. Then she worked to guard the right and never missed an election.
Binyavanga Wainaina, one of Africa's best-known writers and gay rights activists, died Tuesday at 48. NPR's Audie Cornish talks with Kenyan blogger and journalist James Murua about Wainaina's legacy.
The author founded a platform for young Kenyan authors and came out as gay in a place where homosexuality has long been illegal. "Binyavanga was unbound in his imagining," said a friend and colleague.
Shore died on Saturday surrounded by his family, his son announced on Twitter. The Comedy Store went on to become a hotbed for famous performers like David Letterman and Robin Williams.
Wouk was famous for writing The Winds of War, Marjorie Morningstar and The Caine Mutiny, which won a Pulitzer Prize. He also helped popularize themes that writers like Philip Roth later tackled.
