Notebook

By Melissa August, Elizabeth L. Bland, Sean Gregory, Benjamin Nugent, David Robinson and Rebecca Winters

DIED. LARRY RIVERS, 78, iconoclastic painter and sculptor who helped pave the way for the Pop Art movement; of liver cancer; in Southampton, N.Y. After studying the old masters in Paris, Rivers injected ironic humor into the earnest, Abstract Expressionist-dominated art world of the 1950s, with such works as Washington Crossing the Delaware, a parody of the famous American painting. A saxophonist, writer and sometime actor (appearing in the Beat-era underground film Pull My Daisy), he was both self-promoting and self-deprecating. Hospitalized once in the '80s, he envisioned his obituary headline as GENIUS OF THE VULGAR DIES AT 63.

RESIGNED. KATHLEEN KEARNEY, 47, secretary of Florida's Department of Children and Families, who was criticized for her department's admission four months ago that it had failed to notice the disappearance of a 5-year-old girl, Rilya Wilson, for more than a year; in Miami. Appointed to replace her by Governor Jeb Bush was Jerry Regier, a conservative Christian who immediately drew fire for old ties to a group that wrote an essay in support of childhood spankings.

SENTENCED. CHARLES ANDREW WILLIAMS, 16; to 50 years to life in prison; for a 2001 shooting rampage in his high school that killed two and wounded 13, reminiscent of the shootings at Columbine High School; in El Cajon, Calif.

RECOVERING. JASON PRIESTLEY, 32, former star of TV's Beverly Hills 90210; from a concussion, broken back and broken feet sustained while practicing for an Infiniti Pro Series car race; in Indianapolis, Ind. Doctors say Priestley, who lost control of his vehicle and hit a wall, is breathing on his own and can recognize family and friends.

DIED. MICHAEL HOUSER, 40, singer-guitarist for the rock group Widespread Panic, among the most popular of the jam bands influenced by the Grateful Dead; of pancreatic cancer; in Athens, Ga.

DIED. NEAL TRAVIS, 62, gossip columnist for the New York Post, novelist and editor; of cancer; in New York City. The New Zealand native wrote a daily column that often taunted the rich and famous. Once told to go easy on President Bill Clinton, Travis shot back, "He's no better than any other man with his zipper open."

DIED. ED HEADRICK, 78, inventor who perfected the Frisbee; in San Francisco. Though other scientists developed the first, wobbly Frisbees, Headrick gave the top of the disk aerodynamic ridges, patenting the smooth-flying projectile still popular today. Later he founded the International Frisbee Association. His family said they will honor his request that his ashes be molded into memorial disks.

DIED. ENOS SLAUGHTER, 86, Hall of Fame outfielder who spent his 19-year Major League Baseball career with four teams, most illustriously the St. Louis Cardinals, whom he helped win the 1946 World Series; in Durham, N.C.

BY MELISSA AUGUST, ELIZABETH L. BLAND, SEAN GREGORY, BENJAMIN NUGENT, DAVID ROBINSON AND REBECCA WINTERS