Final Chapters: Darrall Imhoff, Stevie Ryan, Gene Conley

Darrall Imhoff was a former NBA player who also won an NCAA championship and an Olympic gold medal. He died June 30 of a heart attack in Bend, Ore., according to the Portland Trail Blazers. He was 78. Imhoff led California to the 1959 NCAA title and played alongside Oscar Robertson and Jerry West on the 1960 Olympic team that won gold in Rome. He was the No. 3 pick in the 1960 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks and also played for the Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers, Cincinnati Royals and Trail Blazers in his 12-year career. He played in the 1967 NBA All-Star Game while with the Lakers.

Stevie Ryan was an actress and comedian who gained fame with impersonations of celebrities on YouTube. She died July 1 at her home in Los Angeles. A Los Angeles County coroner's spokesman said her death has been ruled a suicide. She was 33. Ryan did impersonations of celebrities that included Justin Bieber, Kim Kardashian and Amy Winehouse. She also had a sketch comedy show on VH1, "Stevie TV," and co-hosted a relationship talk show with Brody Jenner.

Gene Conley was one of the few players in history to win championships in two major professional sports. He died July 4, according to the Boston Red Sox, the team he played for during 1961-63. He was 86. Conley pitched for the Milwaukee Braves when they won the World Series in 1957 and won three NBA titles with the Boston Celtics from 1959 to 1961. He played 11 years in the majors with the Braves, Philadelphia Phillies and Red Sox and was chosen to three All-Star teams. He spent six seasons in the NBA with the Celtics and New York Knicks.

John Blackwell Jr. was a drummer who was best known for his work with Prince starting in the early 2000s. He died July 4 in Tampa, Fla., after battling brain cancer for more than a year, according to his wife. He was 43. Blackwell was the drummer for Prince's post-Revolution band, the New Power Generation. He also played with such artists as Patti LaBelle, Justin Timberlake and D'Angelo.

Max Runager was a punter in Super Bowls for the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. He was found dead June 30 in his car in a parking lot in Orangeburg, S.C., The Times and Democrat of Orangeburg reported. No foul play was suspected. He was 61. Runager was drafted by the Eagles in the eighth round in 1979. He spent 11 seasons in the NFL with the Eagles, 49ers and Cleveland Browns. He was with the Eagles when they lost the Super Bowl after the 1980 season and the 49ers when they won the championship following the 1984 season.

Libby Adler Mages was a Chicago theatrical producer whose shows landed a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize. She died of a heart attack July 2 at a hospital in Chicago, according to her daughter. She was 93. Mages won a Tony for her show "Thoroughly Modern Millie" and a Pulitzer for "Three Tall Women."

Joaquin Navarro-Valls was a suave, silver-haired Spaniard who was a close confidant of Pope John Paul II, serving for more than two decades as chief Vatican spokesman. He died July 5 after a long illness. The Opus Dei movement in Rome, of which Navarro-Valls was a member, said on its website that he had been suffering from pancreatic cancer. He was 80. Navarro-Valls was the first journalist to be director of the Vatican press office. He accompanied the pope (who died in 2005) on more than 100 international trips.

Joseph Nkaissery was Kenya's interior minister and a retired general. He died July 8 at a hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, a month before Kenya's presidential election. He died a few hours after being admitted for a check-up, according to Joseph Kinyua, President Uhuru Kenyatta's chief of staff. He was 67.

Nancy P. Jeffett was instrumental in arranging the first network broadcast of women's tennis. She died July 6 according to a news release. She was 88. Jeffett was among the first female promoters in the sport. She staged the Maureen Connolly Brinker Memorial Tournament in 1969. Three years later, it became the first televised women's tournament and the first to award prize money. She was the only American woman who wasn't a Wimbledon champion to be an honorary member of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.

Compiled from news service reports by Chris Carter, ccarter@kcstar.com

Let's block ads! (Why?)