DIED. LEOPOLD PAGE, 87, Holocaust survivor whose zeal and persistence led to the publication (and, eventually, the film version) of Schindler’s List; in Los Angeles. Polish-born Page survived World War II after being rescued from a concentration camp in 1944 when he was included in the list of 1,200 Jews that Oskar Schindler employed in his munitions factory. Owner of a leather goods shop in Beverly Hills after the war, Page spent 40 years badgering writers to take up Schindler’s story, finally succeeding when Australian author Thomas Keneally came into the store to buy a briefcase in 1980. Page also personally persuaded director Steven Spielberg to make the movie, which went on to win seven Oscars.
DIED. S. DILLON RIPLEY, 87, patrician head of the Smithsonian Institution whose flair and insight guided it through its greatest period of growth; in Washington, D.C. During Ripley’s two-decade reign as secretary, the Smithsonian founded seven research facilities and eight museums, including the U.S. capital’s most popular, the Air and Space Museum. The number of annual visitors increased nearly threefold to 30 million.
DIED. GYULA OBERSOVSZKY, 74, Hungarian poet and journalist who played a leading role in the failed 1956 revolt against Soviet rule; in Budapest. On the second day of the uprising, Obersovszky founded an independent newspaper, Truth, and after the revolt’s repression launched a samizdat called We Are Alive. Sentenced to hang for organizing demonstrations against the Red Army, Obersovszky was saved after the intervention of Western intellectuals, including Bertrand Russell.
DIED. ROBERT LUDLUM, 73, prolific author whose convoluted cold war espionage tales sold more than 290 million copies worldwide and whose preposterous yet compelling plots helped define the genre of airport fiction; in Naples, Florida. After working as an actor and theater producer for 20 years, Ludlum turned his hand to writing at the age of 40. His first novel, The Scarlatti Inheritance, published in 1971, was an instant hit; his subsequent 21 books all topped the best-seller lists.
DIED. PETER HAYES, 52, renowned Australian racehorse trainer and member of one of his country’s foremost racing dynasties, in a light airplane crash; in western Victoria state. The son of legendary trainer Colin Hayes and brother of champion Hong Kong trainer David, Peter Hayes took over the family’s internationally acclaimed Lindsay Park stud in 1995. Known for his quiet courtesy, he was the leading trainer in Victoria and Adelaide three times in the past five years.
CHARGED. MOHAMAD EZAM MOHAMAD NOR, 34, youth leader of the Malaysian opposition National Justice Party, with sedition over his reported call in a newspaper interview for mass protests to topple the government; in Kuala Lumpur. Mohamad Ezam accused the government of using smear tactics against him and said that he was misquoted by the Mingguan Malaysia newspaper, to which he had spoken only of peaceful planned protests.
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