The Great Beyond

“As Dr. Jehan El-Bayoumi was attending to Holbrooke in the emergency room at George Washington University Hospital, she told him to relax and asked what she could do to comfort him, according to an aide who was present. Holbrooke, who was in severe pain, said jokingly that it was hard to relax because he had to worry about the difficult situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan.” [WaPo, via Weigel]

Confession – I used to hang out at Elaine’s once in a while in the early 2000s, and I met one of my myriad girlfriends there. Talked with Elaine a couple times – always a gracious host. And they could cook risotto right – the true test of a restaurant.

(AP) – Elaine Kaufman, the colorful restaurateur whose East Side establishment, Elaine’s, became a haven for show business and literary notables, died Friday at the age of 81.

Ms. Kaufman died at a Manhattan hospital of complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder and pulmonary hypertension, according to a statement issued by the restaurant’s representative.

Her restaurant, featured in Woody Allen’s Manhattan, is the oldest of the old school on the island.

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Leslie Nielsen, ‘Airplane!’ and ‘Naked Gun’ star, dies at 84 [Entertainment Weekly]

Penthouse magazine founder Bob Guccione dead at 79 [AP/Houston Chronicle]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k812fxnpLAM

[LAT: Tony Curtis Dies at 85]

Bonnie and Clyde director Arthur Penn dies aged 88 [BBC]

Edwin Newman, TV Journalist, Dies [NYT]