Sam Roberts
Posts
Joe Sharkey, Travel Writer Who Survived Midair Collision, Dies at 77
He offered advice to business travelers in hundreds of columns in The Times. His eyewitness account of a disaster was front-page news.
Mortimer Downey, Force for Mass Transit in U.S. and N.Y., Dies at 87
He devised innovative financing to revive New York City’s subway. In Washington, as a U.S. Transportation Department leader, he bolstered Amtrak and secured federal funds...
David Mitchell, Weekly Editor Who Exposed a Corrupt Cult, Dies at 79
His tiny California newspaper won a Pulitzer Prize for its exposé of Synanon, a renowned drug rehabilitation program that had turned into a violent operation.
Vincent Asaro, Mobster Acquitted in Lufthansa Heist, Dies at 86
In a stunning verdict, he was found not guilty of participating in the storied 1978 theft, retold in the film “Goodfellas.” Then he went to...
Larry Chance, Who Helped Keep Doo-Wop Alive for Decades, Dies at 82
His career began in 1957, when he and some friends from the Bronx formed the vocal group that would become the Earls. He recorded his...
Documentary on New York City’s 1970s Fiscal Crisis Wins Film Prize
A documentary about the city’s fiscal crisis of the 1970s, co-directed by the son of one of its saviors, wins the Library of Congress Lavine/Ken...
Nancy Buirski, Award-Winning Documentary Filmmaker, Dies at 78
She won Emmy and Peabody Awards for “The Loving Story,” about a Virginia couple’s successful challenge to a ban on interracial marriage.
Robert H. Giles, Newspaper Editor and Nieman Curator, Dies at 90
He headed the journalism program at Harvard after overseeing Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the Kent State shootings and corruption in Michigan.
Herbert J. Siegel, Investor in Major Media Deals, Dies at 95
As head of Chris-Craft Industries, he played a role in the Time-Warner merger and sold 10 television stations to Rupert Murdoch.
Rhoda Karpatkin, Who Led Consumer Reports for Decades, Dies at 93
The first woman to be named executive director of Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports, she expanded its readership and its influence in Washington.