The Dreaded Gaboon Viper

The Greatest Female Golfer

Remembering Mickey Wright, A.E. Hotchner, Joseph Shabalala Mickey Wright was the leader on the women’s golf tour for over a decade in the 1950’s and 1960’s. She won more than 80 tournaments and Ben Hogan said she had the best swing of any golfer, man or woman, he had ever seen. A.E. Hotchner was the writer and bon vivant who served as a companion to Ernest Hemingway in Hemingway’s later years. Hotchner also went on to found a successful charity food company with his Connecticut neighbor, Paul Newman. Joseph Shabalala was the South African musician and singer who founded and led the group Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

The Dreaded Gaboon Viper

Remembering Orson Bean, Robert Conrad, Roger Kahn Orson Bean was the quick-witted actor who starred on Broadway opposite Jayne Mansfield and Phyllis Newman and in the 1960 movie Anatomy of a Murder. He is best known for his television appearances on the Tonight Show and most notably on the game show To Tell the Truth (1956-1968). Robert Conrad was the handsome television actor who starred in three shows: Hawaiian Eye (1959-1963), Black Sheep Squadron (1976-1978), and his signature role The Wild, Wild West (1965-1969). Roger Kahn was the Brooklyn-born writer who penned one of the best books on baseball, The Summer Game (1972).

The Discovery of Growth Factor and the Revolution

Remembering Stanley Cohen Stanley Cohen was awarded one half of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, along with Rita Levi-Montalcini, for the discovery of nerve growth factor. Dr. Cohen eventually went on to discover epidermal growth factor (EGF). By understanding the mechanism of how EGF works, he was in part responsible for the tyrosine kinase inhibitor revolution (tyrosine kinase being an enzyme involved in the mechanism), which brought a host of whole new pharmacologic treatments to diseases from cancer to autoimmune conditions.

The Last Act for Folk Music

Remembering Bob Shane, Fred Silverman, The Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture Bob Shane was the last surviving member of the Kingston Trio, the most popular folk group of the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. Fred Silverman was the television executive and producer, who worked at the three major networks and helped engineer turnarounds at CBS and ABC. He was responsible for putting on some of the most memorable television shows of the 1970’s and 1980’s. The Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture in Arizona taught students architecture and carried on the tradition of the namesake architect for more than 80 years.

Safety in Green Bay

Remembering Willie Wood, Jack Burns, Mary Higgins Clark, Peter Serkin Willie Wood was the Hall of Fame safety for the legendary Green Bay Packer teams of the 1960’s. His interception and long return in Super Bowl I remains one of the most memorable plays in Super Bowl history. Jack Burns was the comedian and writer who was part of two great comedy duos – first with George Carlin and later with Avery Schreiber. Mary Higgins Clark was the novelist who specialized in suspense stories. She wrote over 50 best sellers in her career. Peter Serkin was the classical pianist who carried on in the family tradition of his father, Rudolf Serkin.