The Who2 Blog

The last known survivor of American forces in World War One visited the White House his week. Dude is 107.

Stephen Schwartz, composer of Godspell and Wicked, turns 60 today.

Actor Patrick Swayze has pancreatic cancer but is “responding well to treatment,” according to Reuters.Swayze’s publicist refuted claims by The National Enquirer that Swayze had been given five weeks to live.

It’s been 45 years, amazingly, since the death of country singer Patsy Cline. That’s 1.5 times her own lifespan of 30 years.And it’s 26 years ago today for John Belushi. He was 33 when he died in 1982. (Side note: Ayn Rand died the very next day.)

(The first in a series of excerpts from the biographies of popular musicians.)Today: R&B singers Pretty Ricky.”Miami heat is nothing compared to Pretty Ricky’s scorching musical inferno. Not since the days of music legends like The Beatles, the Jackson 5 or more recently NSync has there been such a fevered pitch, creating hysteria and chaos when crowds glimpse brothers Spectacular, Pleasure, Slick Em and Baby Blue.”(From their official site.)

John McCain is the Republican nominee for president in 2008.

In the recent flap over Mick Jagger and the Hell’s Angels, we discovered this Q&A he did with BBC News readers last October. A sampler:Q: “I’d like to know if the Mick Jagger one sees on stage is the real persona or a caricature developed over time and influenced by what you think the public expect.”

Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama battle it out today in Texas and Ohio. The winner takes a big step towards the Democratic nomination.On the Republican side, John McCain has things pretty much sewn up.For good local coverage, try these elections pages of the Dallas Morning News and the Columbus Dispatch.

It seems a storm saved Mick Jagger from being assassinated by the Hell’s Angels in 1969.The Angels “were offended by Jagger’s effeminate dancing,” says Reuters.

Quick question: What actor is tied with Jack Nicholson for the most male acting Oscars in film history?(And the envelope goes to…)We mentioned Walter Brennan in an earlier post about Harrison Ford’s movie career and women (and hair). But we didn’t talk much about the man himself.

Alas, James Bond is back in his forties.March 2 birthday boy Daniel Craig was born in 1968. That’s still quite frisky, but as we pointed out a few years ago, Craig was the first under-40 actor to play Bond in 35 years. That helped make him a believably reckless and energetic Bond in Casino Royale.Well, it was nice while it lasted.

Harrison Ford’s krazy-hair appearance at the Oscars (in HD!) has us thinking about his leading-man status.Ford was born in 1942, so he’ll be straining the actuarial charts as a swashbuckler in this summer’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Fascinating news about Prince Harry’s secret posting to the front lines in Afghanistan. The BBC has full coverage.

Happy leap day! Wired magazine has a nifty piece on how Julius Caesar added the bonus day to February every four years.And how Pope Gregory XIII took back one leap day every hundred years or so.

William F. Buckley died on Monday at age 82. Here’s how obituary writers are summing up his life:”William F. Buckley Jr., the erudite Ivy Leaguer and conservative herald who showered huge and scornful words on liberalism as he observed, abetted and cheered on the right’s post-World War II rise from the fringes to the White House…” -The Associated Press

“They told me to guarantee she won’t grunt or she can’t play.”The sad words of Duncan Edwards, father of nine-year-old Lauryn Edwards, who’s been banned from her local tennis club for grunting. Lauryn says she’s just emulating her favorite player, “notorious grunter” Maria Sharapova.

Conservative commentator William F. Buckley has died at age 82. Reports The Washington Post: “His assistant Linda Bridges said Buckley was found dead by his cook at his home in Stamford, Conn. The cause of death was unknown, but he had been ill with emphysema, she said.”

Fred Rogers, the star of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, died five years ago today.He’d still be only 79 now. He was born the same year as poet Maya Angelou, artist Andy Warhol, and revolutionary Che Guevara.

An exciting week for rapper Ja Rule. He’s a leap year baby, born 29 February 1976, so he’ll be celebrating his 8th natal day on Friday.He’s part of our fascinating quartet of February 29th babies — along with Shaker founder Mother Ann Lee, killer Aileen Wuornos (of Monster fame), and nutty prankster/painter Balthus.