Obituary for World War I death

An obituary is a notice of the death of a person, usually published in a newspaper, written or commissioned by the newspaper, and usually including a short biography. It is similar to a death notice (also known as a funeral notice), which is also published on the obituary page. A death notice is a paid advertisement written by family members and placed in the newspaper either by the family or the funeral home. ^[1] Image File history File links Download high resolution version (301x850, 175 KB) // Caption Heights Boy Died On French Battlefield. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (301x850, 175 KB) // Caption Heights Boy Died On French Battlefield. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Writing obituaries

Because of the short time between the notification of a death and the next publication deadline, many news organizations (such as the Associated Press) have on file pre-written obituaries for notable individuals who are still alive; these obituaries are updated when the well-known person dies. Occasionally the author of an obituary will die before its subject. For example, Walter Sullivan's obituary of the noted physicist James Van Allen was published by the AP after Van Allen's death in 2006, even though Sullivan predeceased Van Allen by almost a decade.[1] The Associated Press, or AP, is an American news agency, the worlds largest such organization. ... James Van Allen at National Air & Space Museum (NASM), 1981, Photo courtesy of NASM. Explorer I model and Pioneer H probe in background James Alfred Van Allen (September 7, 1914 – August 9, 2006) was an American space scientist at the University of Iowa. ...

In 2006, Bill McDonald of the New York Times answered readers' questions about obituaries as part of the Times's Talk to the Newsroom feature. He confirmed that the Times had over 1,200 obituaries on file, some written as far back as 1982. He also said that the Times's policy was to always give the cause of death when available and, since the publication of a premature obituary for Katharine Sergava, to also always identify the person who advised the newspaper of the death. The hope was that attribution would reduce the chance of another embarrassing and (to the family) painful error. [2] The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ... Katharine Sergava is a dancer and actress, best known for portraying the dream-ballet version of Laurey, the heroine, in the original production of Oklahoma! In 2003 she was erroneously reported dead in the Daily Telegraph and New York Times. ...

Premature obituaries

Main article: List of premature obituaries

By definition, obituaries should always be posthumous. But occasionally obituaries are published, either accidentally or intentionally, while the person concerned is still alive. Most are due to hoaxes, confusions between people with similar names, or the unexpected survival of someone who was close to death. Some others are published because of miscommunication between newspapers, family members and the funeral home, often resulting in embarrassment for everyone involved. Various notable people have had their death announced in error. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Irish author Brendan Behan said that there is no such thing as bad publicity except your own obituary. In this regard, some people will seek to have an unsuspecting newspaper editor publish a premature death notice or obituary as a malicious hoax, perhaps to gain revenge on the "deceased". To that end, nearly all newspapers now have policies requiring that death notices come from a reliable source (such as a funeral home), though even this has not stopped some pranksters such as Alan Abel. Brendan Francis Behan (Irish: Breandán Ó Beacháin) (February 9, 1923 - March 20, 1964) was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist and playwright who wrote in both Irish and English. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Alan Abel (b. ...

Premature obituaries usually occur to famous people, such as Bob Hope or Pope John Paul II. One of the better known premature obituaries of recent years is the August 2001 Daily Telegraph obituary of Dorothy Southworth Ritter, the mother of American television star John Ritter. Bob Hope, KBE (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003), born Leslie Townes Hope, was an English-Born American entertainer who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, on radio and television, in movies, and in performing tours for U.S. Military personnel, well known for his good natured humor and career longevity. ... Coat of Arms of Pope John Paul II. The Letter M is for Mary, the mother of Jesus, to whom he held strong devotion Pope John Paul II (Latin: , Italian: Giovanni Paolo II, Polish: Jan PaweÅ‚ II) born   [] (May 18, 1920, Wadowice, Poland – April 2, 2005, Vatican City) reigned as... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... This article deals with The Daily Telegraph in Britain, see The Daily Telegraph (Australia) for the Australian publication The Daily Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper founded in 1855. ... Dorothy Fay Dorothy Fay (April 4, 1915 – November 5, 2003) was an American actress. ... John Ritter as Jack Tripper on Threes Company. ...

Obituaries in particular publications

At The Times [of London], John Thadeus Delane [Editor, 1841-77] was the first Editor who took a particular interest in obituaries. He recognised that the death of an important person was an event that required the publication of more than just a brief death notice. The first Obituaries Editor of The Times was appointed in 1920.

Obituaries are a notable feature of The Economist, which publishes precisely one full-page obituary per week, reflecting on the subject's life and influence on world history. Past subjects have ranged from Ray Charles to Uday Hussein. The Economist is a weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd and edited in London, UK. It has been in continuous publication since September 1843. ... Ray Charles was the stage name of Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004), a pioneering American pianist and soul musician who shaped the sound of rhythm and blues. ... Uday Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti (June 18, 1964 Baghdad – July 22, 2003 Mosul), (Arabic: ) was the eldest son of Saddam Hussein and his first wife, Sajida Talfah. ...

The British Medical Journal encourages doctors to write their own obituaries for publication after their death. The British Medical Journal (BMJ) is a medical journal published weekly in the United Kingdom by the British Medical Association (BMA)which published its first issue in 1845. ...

Pan Books publishes a series called The Daily Telegraph Book of Obituaries, which are anthologies of obituaries under a common theme, such as military obituaries, sports obituaries, heroes and adventurers, entertainers, rogues, eccentric lives, etc. 1961 Pan Books edition of Ian Flemings James Bond novel Goldfinger is an example of the type of publication for which Pan Books became popular. ... This article deals with The Daily Telegraph in Britain, see The Daily Telegraph (Australia) for the Australian publication The Daily Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper founded in 1855. ... An anthology is a collection of literary works, originally of poems, but in recent years its usage has broadened to be applied to collections of short stories and comic strips. ...

See also

• Eulogy
• Funeral
• List of premature obituaries
• Lists of people by cause of death
• Recent deaths

This article does not cite its references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Various notable people have had their death announced in error. ... This is an index of lists of people who died, by cause of death, in alphabetical order of cause. ... The following is a list of figures who died in 2005. ...

References

The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 202nd day of the year (203rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• I Remember You : Free Online Obituaries for everyone
• The Smoking Gun: CNN.com premature obituaries
• Obituaries Research Guide - tips for finding obituaries
• "How To Write An Obituary - A Step-by-Step Guide"

Further reading

• Marilyn Johnson, The Dead Beat: Lost Souls, Lucky Stiffs, And The Perverse Pleasure of Obituaries, Harper Perennial, ISBN 0-060758-76-7
• Alana Baranick, Jim Sheeler, and Stephen Miller, Life on the Death Beat: A Handbook for Obituary Writers, Marion Street Press, ISBN 1-933338-02-4
• Hugh Massingberd, Daydream Believer: Confessions of a Hero-Worshipper (London: Macmillan, 2001), p.245.