Oscar-nominated songwriter, poet
NEW YORK -- Rod McKuen, the husky-voiced "King of Kitsch" whose avalanche of music, verse and spoken-word recordings in the 1960s and '70s overwhelmed critical mockery and made him an Oscar-nominated songwriter and one of the best-selling poets in history, has died. He was 81.
McKuen died Thursday morning at a rehabilitation center in Beverly Hills, Calif., where he had been treated for pneumonia and had been ill for several weeks, his half brother Edward McKuen Habib said.
His best-known songs, some written with the Belgian composer Jacques Brel, include "Birthday Boy," "A Man Alone," "If You Go Away" and "Seasons In the Sun," a chart-topper in 1974 for Terry Jacks. He was nominated for an Oscar for "Jean" from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and for "A Boy Named Charlie Brown," the title track from the Peanuts movie.
Frank Sinatra, Madonna, Dolly Parton and Chet Baker were among the many artists who recorded his material, although McKuen often handled the job himself, in a hushed, throaty style he honed after an early life as a rock singer cracked his natural tenor.
McKuen is credited with more than 200 albums -- dozens of which went gold or platinum -- and more than 30 collections of poetry. Worldwide sales for his music top 100 million units while his book sales exceed 60 million copies.
Often compared to Love Story author Erich Segal, he was dubbed "The King of Kitsch" by Newsweek, while the magazine Mademoiselle preferred "Marshmallow Poet."
One of last 4 surviving Doolittle Raiders
SEATTLE -- Lt. Col. Edward Saylor, one of four surviving Doolittle Raiders who attacked Japan during a 1942 mission credited with lifting American morale during World War II, has died. He was 94.
Rod Saylor said his father died of natural causes on Wednesday in Sumner, Wash.
He was a young flight engineer-gunner and among the 80 airmen who volunteered to fly the risky mission that sent B-25 bombers from a carrier at sea to attack Tokyo on April 18, 1942. The raid launched earlier than planned and risked running out of fuel before making it to safe airfields.
Tom Casey, a manager for the Doolittle Raiders, said in an interview that despite the risks, "they all volunteered to go anyway."
The 16 B-25 bombers, each carrying five men, dropped bombs on targets such as factory areas and military installations and headed to designated airfields in mainland China realizing that they would run out of fuel, according to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.
Three crew members died as Raiders bailed out or crash-landed their planes in China, but most were helped to safety by Chinese villagers and soldiers. Of eight Raiders captured by Japanese soldiers, three were executed and another died in captivity.
Saylor grew up on a ranch in Brusett, Mont., and enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1939, Casey said. Saylor served in the Air Force for 28 years before retiring as a lieutenant colonel.
Last year, the Raiders were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for heroism and valor.
Metro on 01/31/2015