DIED. Carl D. Perkins, 71, liberal Democratic Congressman from Kentucky since 1949, chairman of the powerful House Education and Labor Committee since 1967 and one of the wiliest, most determined minds ever to hide behind a country-bumpkin exterior; of an apparent heart attack; in Lexington, Ky. In the 1960s Perkins helped steer Lyndon Johnson's antipoverty legislation through Congress; he had also pushed relentlessly for federal aid for vocational training in 1963 and for primary and secondary education in 1965. Perkins later became probably the most outspoken House critic of Reagan Administration budget cuts.

DIED. Gilbert Renault, 79, much decorated hero of France's World War II Resistance, who under the nom de guerre Colonel Remy organized for Charles de Gaulle the Free French intelligence service, which, among other things, procured German plans for the coastal defenses in Normandy and helped make possible the selection of the Allies' D-day landing sites; of a heart attack; in Guingamp, France. After the war Renault joined, then quit, De Gaulle's political organization, and recounted his adventures in several colorful and popular memoirs.

DIED. Philip Van Doren Stern, 83, prolific, versatile novelist, editor and historian, whose Civil War-era writings include a biography of Robert E. Lee, an anthology of Lincoln's writings and a history of the Confederate navy; of a heart attack; in Sarasota, Fla. An editor at Pocket Books between 1933 and 1954, he presided during World War II over the Armed Services Editions, those much treasured paperbacks light enough to be carried into battle. Author or editor of 44 books, he also wrote The Greatest Gift, a 1944 Christmas fantasy about a man who discovers that life is worthwhile, which became the basis for Frank Capra's 1946 movie It's a Wonderful Life.

DIED. Fred Waring, 84, band and chorus leader known as "the man who taught America to sing," whose group, the Pennsylvanians, sustained its sweet, soothing blend of voices and instruments through more than six decades of road tours, radio, television and movie appearances and more than 2,000 recordings; after a stroke; in Danville, Pa. A Penn State engineering student who was rejected by the college glee club, he formed his first band (a jazz quartet) in 1917, eventually adding voices and more instruments. Between its 1933 debut and 1949, it presented one of radio's most popular shows; the advent of rock dimmed its luster, however, and in the years before Waring's official 1980 retirement the size of both the group and its audiences shrank. On the side, in 1937, Waring used his tinkering skills to perfect, patent and market his Blendor, one of the first food processors, which earned him royalties for the rest of his life.