Kay Davis 1920 - 2012

Kay Davis, a vocalist in the Duke Ellington Orchestra from 1944 to 1950, has died. She was renown for her wordless vocals. Ellington, in his memoir Music Is My Mistress, said of Davis:

Kay Davis was an honor student of Northwestern University, where she studied opera and majored in music. She had perfect pitch, could sight-read, and had all the gifts, so we decided to use her voice as an instrument. This was in addition to her interpretations of regular songs with words, and it proved very successful on several numbers. I shall never forget her first Carnegie Hall appearance in January 1946. Subtitled "A Blue Fog You Can Almost See Through," "Transbluency" was a last minute kind of composition, and the two featured musicians (Jimmy Hamilton on clarinet and Lawrence Brown on trombone) had to have music stands at the mike, because it had been completed too late for them to memorize. So we put Kay's part on a music stand at the mike, just like those of the musicians, and the performance was a smash.

Dick Anthony Williams 1934 - 2012

Actor and theater producer Dick Anthony Williams has died.

Whitney Houston 1963 - 2012

Rest in peace, Whitney.

Gisele Stands By Her Man

Gisele Bundchen makes the case that spouses of professional athletes should be seen rather than heard. Here she defends husband Tom Brady from the unsolicited observations of rabid New York Giants fans by scapegoating Patriot receivers for failing to catch balls thrown their way.

The Gronk

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski should not be permitted on a dance floor, whether it follows a victory or a defeat.

Poor Mitt

According to the Republican presidential candidate Willard Mitt Romney, the very poor are doing well in this struggling economy and therefore are not a high priority for him:

"I’m not concerned about the very poor; we have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very rich, they’re doing just fine. I’m concerned about the very heart of the America, the 90 percent, 95 percent of Americans who right now are struggling, and I’ll continue to take that message across the nation.”

Don Cornelius 1936 - 2012

Yesterday Los Angeles policemen summoned to a residence found Soul Train creator Don Cornelius suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He died en route to the hospital.

Cornelius was a pioneer in the television industry in presenting images of black folks that before had gone unnoticed and unacknowledged in mainstream media.

In his passing, I wish him love, peace and soul.