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Bennie Pete, Whose Brass Band Kept New Orleans Dancing After Katrina, Has Died At 45

Pete, born in the Upper Ninth Ward, "started playing the tuba at 10 and joined a marching band in middle school. At 18, he helped bring together two brass bands, the Looney Tunes and the High Steppers, into the Hot 8." - The New York Times

Jane Powell, Hollywood Musical Star, 92

Her parents pushed her into showbiz when she was only 2 years old, and eventually she became a star opposite Fred Astaire in Royal Wedding and Howard Keel in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. - Washington Post

Yolanda Lopez, Who Celebrated Working Class Women In Her Art, 78

López "created one of the most famous artworks in Chicano history by boldly recasting the Virgin of Guadalupe in her own image — as a young, strong, brown woman wearing running shoes and a wide grin." - The New York Times

Adalberto Alvarez, 72, Bandleader Who Revitalized Cuban Dance Music

Álvarez "was known as 'El Caballero del Son' (the 'Gentleman of Son') because of his passion for the genre and the infectious enthusiasm with which he repopularized it. Son is at the root of salsa, among other Latin dance genres, and is considered the bedrock of the Cuban sound." - The New York Times

Jane Powell, Wholesome Star Of Classic Movie Musicals, Dead At 91

"An actress and singer who first appeared in movies as a teenager, (she) became a sunny stalwart of Hollywood musicals in the 1940s and 1950s, most notably opposite Fred Astaire in Royal Wedding and Howard Keel in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers." - The Washington Post

Playwright Jean-Claude van Itallie Dead At 85

" was a mainstay of the experimental theater world, … especially known for America Hurrah, a form-bending trio of one-acts that opened in 1966 in the East Village and ran for more than 630 performances." (In Alabama, authorities shut it down after two.) - The New York Times

Soprano Carmen Balthrop Dead At 73

Part of the third generation of Black opera singers to become international stars, she performed throughout Europe and the US, achieving wide fame in the title role of Scott Joplin's Treemonisha. Her second career was as a beloved voice teacher at the University of Maryland. - The Washington Post

Why Short, Soft-Spoken, Fey Truman Capote Was So Popular With The Strong And Powerful

"In the beginning, they'd look down on him. But everybody who took the time to speak with him was captivated by his intellect; it was his stardust. … These super-masculine men were first intrigued by his intellect, then they were impressed by the force of his personality." - Hyperallergic

Japan’s ‘Nobel For The Arts” To James Turrell, Yo-Yo Ma, Sebastião Salgado, Glenn Murcutt

The Praemium Imperiale, including ¥15 million ($136,000) for each recipient, is awarded for painting (Salgado, a photographer), sculpture (Turrell, a light artist), music (Ma, a cellist), architecture (Murcutt), and theater/film (no prize awarded this year). - Deutsche Welle

Remembering Producer Liz McCann

Linda Winer: "She thrived on the gamble, what she relished as the “craziness” of her unlikely life and this “business of strange accidents.” - American Theatre

George Wein, Who Invented The Outdoor Popular Music Festival As We Know It, Dead At 95

His Newport Jazz Festival, founded in 1954 and packed with major stars from the beginning, was the template for everything from Woodstock to Lollapalooza to Coachella. Wein himself started dozens of other events, including the Newport Folk Festival and New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. - The Washington Post

Michel Laclotte, Champion Of The Musee D’Orsay And The New Louvre, 91

Though debate was hot about the M d'O, as it's now marketed in Paris, that "was a tepid academic tiff compared with the one that erupted when plans for a multiphase renovation and expansion of the Louvre, called the Grand Louvre, were unveiled in the early 1980s." - The New York Times

Nino Castelnuovo, Star Of The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg, 84

"If he achieved international notice with Umbrellas, he did not truly attain fame in Italy until 1967, for his role as Renzo in a television series based on Alessandro Manzoni’s 1827 literary epic, The Betrothed." - The New York Times

Lashana Lynch And The Case Of The Long-Delayed Bond Movie

The actor still won't talk about her potential future in the franchise. Lynch: Bond "could be a man or woman. They could be white, black, Asian, mixed race. They could be young or old. ... Even if a two-year-old was playing Bond, everyone would flock to the cinema to see." - The Guardian (UK)

Nickolas Davatzes, A Force Behind The A&E And History Channels, 79

Davatzes' analysis and plans changed cable. He said, "By network standards, ... our viewership will always be limited. But that is the function of cable — to present enough alternatives so that individuals can be their own programmer." - The New York Times

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