What they think My Word: A. G. Newmyer III
'Like Jett Travolta, I collapsed at age 16 as a result of a major seizure.
Unlike Jett, I didn't hit my head or suffer other significant trauma. I was much more fortunate and recovered fully. That seizure, 43 years ago, was my last, though not my first.';
Jett's death can help bring understanding
January 25, 2009
Like Jett Travolta, I collapsed at age 16 as a result of a major seizure. Unlike Jett, I didn't hit my head or suffer other significant trauma. I was much more fortunate and recovered fully. That seizure, 43 years ago, was my last, though not my first.Like Jett, my family never mentioned "epilepsy" in any public discussion of my condition. Neither did my bevy of doctors ever use the word. There was talk of "fainting spells" and "dizziness," with occasional references to seizures. In fact, until elected to the board of directors at The Epilepsy Foundation during the 1990s, I didn't realize that any person who has two or more seizures is described as having epilepsy.The epilepsy world's shield of privacy and fondness for euphemisms relate directly to stubborn and pervasive stigma. The Travolta tragedy offers an opportunity to rethink our understanding of and attitudes toward epilepsy. The code of silence masks the fact that more than 3 million Americans have epilepsy, as do more than 50 million worldwide. More of us in the U.S. have epilepsy than multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and Parkinson's disease -- combined.Stigma is toxic in so many ways. The impact of public attitudes and awareness affects self-esteem for teenagers and others with epilepsy, public support for allocating research dollars among competing conditions, training levels for first responders who often don't recognize seizures and use inappropriate force to restrain convulsing patients, and career paths for those whose seizures are not controlled by medications.
My teenage years were hardly a bundle of fun. Given the pernicious stigma, my family and doctors may have done me a huge favor by avoiding the epilepsy label. In a survey of U.S. teens regarding epilepsy in 2007, only about a quarter of teenagers report being familiar with epilepsy. More than half underestimate the prevalence of epilepsy, getting the number wrong by a factor of 10. Only about a third know that most seizures are not life-threatening.Our nation's fascination with celebrities and their health conditions affects not only levels of public understanding, but also levels of public and private research dollars in search of a cure. The impact of President Ronald Reagan on the Alzheimer's community, Michael J. Fox on Parkinson's and Lance Armstrong on testicular cancer are well-known. We can only imagine the supreme impact that Chief Justice John Roberts might have in reducing workplace stigma if he chose to discuss his "occasional benign seizures" more frontally.The Hollywood community may hold the key to broader understanding and acceptance of epilepsy. Danny Glover occasionally speaks of his epilepsy. TV star Greg Grunberg of Heroes, whose son has epilepsy, has been far more willing to use the word and engender discussion than my parents were. Their candor provides help and hope to millions around the world as the epilepsy community prepares to come out of the closet.
Showing posts with label Obituary. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Obituary. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Obits in the News ~ Mid January 2009
Obituaries in the news
By The Associated Press – Jan 12, 2009
Maurice Albertson
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Maurice Albertson, an architect of the Peace Corps and a Colorado State University professor emeritus, died Sunday. He was 90.
Albertson died at Columbine Care Center West, said family friend Mims Harris. He fell ill following a trip to Indonesia in November and did not recover.
Albertson and fellow CSU researchers Andrew Rice and Pauline Birky-Kreutzer responded to a request in 1960 from the federal government for a model to encourage the nation's youths to serve in Third World countries. The three wrote a book that set up the basic design of the Peace Corp.
The program was officially launched in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy. It now has more than 190,000 volunteers serving in 139 developing countries.
"Maury was an extraordinary man who truly embodied the best of America," Peace Corps Director Ronald A. Tschetter said in a statement. "The many people whose lives Maury touched will always remember him, and for those of us in the Peace Corps family, we will remain forever indebted to him for his vision and commitment to volunteerism and international fellowship."
Albertson spent 30 years at CSU, serving as the first director of its research foundation, director of International Programs and a professor of civil engineering. He was honored in 2006 with an honorary doctorate from CSU for his humanitarian work.
___
Claude Berri
PARIS (AP) — Claude Berri, a fixture for more than 50 years in contemporary French cinema as an actor, writer, director and producer, died Monday. He was 74.
His agent, Dominique Segall, said Berri died of a "cerebral vascular" problem — language often used to describe a stroke — after being hospitalized early Sunday.
Berri produced Roman Polanski's "Tess" in 1979 and directed "Jean de Florette" in 1986 and "Manon des Sources" ("Manon of the Spring"), both adapted from Marcel Pagnol's vision of the French countryside.
Berri's short film "Le Poulet" (The Chicken) won an Oscar in 1965.
He was in the midst of directing "Tresor" ("Treasure") — his 20th directing project — when he died, Segall said. "It will continue despite his departure," the agent added.
With more than 125 movies to his credit, Berri was a prolific talent who delved into both the drama and the comedy of human foibles.
___
Rene Herms
DRESDEN, Germany (AP) — Rene Herms, a six-time German champion runner who reached the 800-meter semifinals of the 2004 Olympics, died Saturday. He was 26.
Herms was found dead in his apartment in the eastern town of Lohmen. Police said there were no indications of foul play or suicide. His apartment is to be searched again.
The runner reportedly had the flu over the New Year's holidays but trained as recently as Friday.
Authorities said there will be an autopsy within a few days, and chief prosecutor Christian Avenarius said Monday he expects the results "fairly quickly." Herms' wife, Steffi, had refused to allow an autopsy, but Avenarius said her permission was not required.
___
Lt. Gen. Harry W.O. Kinnard
NEW YORK (AP) — Retired Lt. Gen. Harry W.O. Kinnard, a paratroop officer who suggested the famously defiant answer "Nuts!" to a German demand for surrender during the 1944 Battle of the Bulge, died Jan. 5. He was 93.
Kinnard, a career soldier who in later years was the principal architect of the Army's concept of using helicopters in infantry warfare in Vietnam, died in Arlington, Va., his family told The New York Times.
A native of Dallas, Kinnard graduated from West Point in 1939 and spent 30 years in uniform, retiring in 1969.
He parachuted into Normandy on D-Day with the newly organized 101st Airborne Division and was decorated for heroism during its drive against German forces in the Netherlands.
___
Tom O'Horgan
NEW YORK (AP) — Tom O'Horgan, a leader in New York's experimental theater scene in the 1960s who went on to direct the exuberant, often freewheeling Broadway productions of "Hair" and "Jesus Christ Superstar," died Sunday. He was 84.
The director died of natural causes at his home in Venice, Fla., said Marc Cohen, a close family friend.
O'Horgan made his name off-off-Broadway at such performance spaces as Caffe Cino, Judson Memorial Church and particularly La Mama in the East Village. Yet it wasn't until he restaged "Hair" (taking over for another director) — when the show moved from off-Broadway's Public Theater to Broadway's Biltmore Theater in April 1968 for a lengthy run — that he was noticed by mainstream audiences.
___
Doc Seaman
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Daryl K. "Doc" Seaman, the co-owner of the Calgary Flames and part of the original group that brought the team from Atlanta, has died. He was 86.
The Flames confirmed Seaman's death on Sunday but didn't give the cause of death.
Seaman was one of six businessmen who helped bring the Flames to Calgary in 1980.
Born in Rouleau, Saskatchewan, but a resident of Calgary, Seaman was a prominent figure in Canada's oil and gas industry. He was invested as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1993.
___
Bill Stone
LONDON (AP) — Bill Stone, one of Britain's last surviving World War I veterans, died Saturday. He was 108.
The Ministry of Defense said Stone died from a chest infection.
Stone is the last known veteran in Britain to have fought in both World War I and World War II. He was one of just three World War I survivors who took part in last year's services to mark the 90th anniversary of the end of World War I.
William Stone was born in Devon, in southwest England, on September 23, 1900, the 10th of 14 children. He followed his three older brothers into the Royal Navy on his 18th birthday — he had wanted to join when he was 15, but his father refused to sign his papers. He joined the coal-fired battle cruiser HMS Tiger just weeks before the Allies declared victory. He stayed with the Royal Navy after the end of the war, sailing all over the world, from Cape Town, South Africa, to Jakarta, Indonesia.
By The Associated Press – Jan 12, 2009
Maurice Albertson
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Maurice Albertson, an architect of the Peace Corps and a Colorado State University professor emeritus, died Sunday. He was 90.
Albertson died at Columbine Care Center West, said family friend Mims Harris. He fell ill following a trip to Indonesia in November and did not recover.
Albertson and fellow CSU researchers Andrew Rice and Pauline Birky-Kreutzer responded to a request in 1960 from the federal government for a model to encourage the nation's youths to serve in Third World countries. The three wrote a book that set up the basic design of the Peace Corp.
The program was officially launched in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy. It now has more than 190,000 volunteers serving in 139 developing countries.
"Maury was an extraordinary man who truly embodied the best of America," Peace Corps Director Ronald A. Tschetter said in a statement. "The many people whose lives Maury touched will always remember him, and for those of us in the Peace Corps family, we will remain forever indebted to him for his vision and commitment to volunteerism and international fellowship."
Albertson spent 30 years at CSU, serving as the first director of its research foundation, director of International Programs and a professor of civil engineering. He was honored in 2006 with an honorary doctorate from CSU for his humanitarian work.
___
Claude Berri
PARIS (AP) — Claude Berri, a fixture for more than 50 years in contemporary French cinema as an actor, writer, director and producer, died Monday. He was 74.
His agent, Dominique Segall, said Berri died of a "cerebral vascular" problem — language often used to describe a stroke — after being hospitalized early Sunday.
Berri produced Roman Polanski's "Tess" in 1979 and directed "Jean de Florette" in 1986 and "Manon des Sources" ("Manon of the Spring"), both adapted from Marcel Pagnol's vision of the French countryside.
Berri's short film "Le Poulet" (The Chicken) won an Oscar in 1965.
He was in the midst of directing "Tresor" ("Treasure") — his 20th directing project — when he died, Segall said. "It will continue despite his departure," the agent added.
With more than 125 movies to his credit, Berri was a prolific talent who delved into both the drama and the comedy of human foibles.
___
Rene Herms
DRESDEN, Germany (AP) — Rene Herms, a six-time German champion runner who reached the 800-meter semifinals of the 2004 Olympics, died Saturday. He was 26.
Herms was found dead in his apartment in the eastern town of Lohmen. Police said there were no indications of foul play or suicide. His apartment is to be searched again.
The runner reportedly had the flu over the New Year's holidays but trained as recently as Friday.
Authorities said there will be an autopsy within a few days, and chief prosecutor Christian Avenarius said Monday he expects the results "fairly quickly." Herms' wife, Steffi, had refused to allow an autopsy, but Avenarius said her permission was not required.
___
Lt. Gen. Harry W.O. Kinnard
NEW YORK (AP) — Retired Lt. Gen. Harry W.O. Kinnard, a paratroop officer who suggested the famously defiant answer "Nuts!" to a German demand for surrender during the 1944 Battle of the Bulge, died Jan. 5. He was 93.
Kinnard, a career soldier who in later years was the principal architect of the Army's concept of using helicopters in infantry warfare in Vietnam, died in Arlington, Va., his family told The New York Times.
A native of Dallas, Kinnard graduated from West Point in 1939 and spent 30 years in uniform, retiring in 1969.
He parachuted into Normandy on D-Day with the newly organized 101st Airborne Division and was decorated for heroism during its drive against German forces in the Netherlands.
___
Tom O'Horgan
NEW YORK (AP) — Tom O'Horgan, a leader in New York's experimental theater scene in the 1960s who went on to direct the exuberant, often freewheeling Broadway productions of "Hair" and "Jesus Christ Superstar," died Sunday. He was 84.
The director died of natural causes at his home in Venice, Fla., said Marc Cohen, a close family friend.
O'Horgan made his name off-off-Broadway at such performance spaces as Caffe Cino, Judson Memorial Church and particularly La Mama in the East Village. Yet it wasn't until he restaged "Hair" (taking over for another director) — when the show moved from off-Broadway's Public Theater to Broadway's Biltmore Theater in April 1968 for a lengthy run — that he was noticed by mainstream audiences.
___
Doc Seaman
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Daryl K. "Doc" Seaman, the co-owner of the Calgary Flames and part of the original group that brought the team from Atlanta, has died. He was 86.
The Flames confirmed Seaman's death on Sunday but didn't give the cause of death.
Seaman was one of six businessmen who helped bring the Flames to Calgary in 1980.
Born in Rouleau, Saskatchewan, but a resident of Calgary, Seaman was a prominent figure in Canada's oil and gas industry. He was invested as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1993.
___
Bill Stone
LONDON (AP) — Bill Stone, one of Britain's last surviving World War I veterans, died Saturday. He was 108.
The Ministry of Defense said Stone died from a chest infection.
Stone is the last known veteran in Britain to have fought in both World War I and World War II. He was one of just three World War I survivors who took part in last year's services to mark the 90th anniversary of the end of World War I.
William Stone was born in Devon, in southwest England, on September 23, 1900, the 10th of 14 children. He followed his three older brothers into the Royal Navy on his 18th birthday — he had wanted to join when he was 15, but his father refused to sign his papers. He joined the coal-fired battle cruiser HMS Tiger just weeks before the Allies declared victory. He stayed with the Royal Navy after the end of the war, sailing all over the world, from Cape Town, South Africa, to Jakarta, Indonesia.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Monday, March 31, 2008
Fear of death leads to Obituary obsession
Obituary enthusiast used hobby to overcome fear of death
By Jaana Laitinen
Hannu Luntiala, 55, suffered long from a fear of death. It started to eat at him already in his youth, when he found tobacco.
"The pleasure of smoking was combined with a sense of guilt. It became a dilemma. I stopped smoking later, but the fear was there and it stayed."
Soon he found himself reading death notices in newspapers. Reading between the short lines he tried to guess what the cause of death might have been. He did not get much out of the texts, he noticed. The pieces were narrow and dull, and repeated the same verses. He moved on to obituaries. He says that they revealed a world that he had never experienced before.
"They had fascinating life stories, hilarious narratives and unintended drama. An entire life condensed into 30 to 40 lines."
It was apparent in many of the obituaries that the deceased person had not quite lived life to the full. The life might include "huge amounts of work", and not much else. From time to time there might be a story about a person who dared to live as he or she wanted. Such lives are often short and hard, but by no means empty. Luntiala admits that he admires people who dare to live the kind of life that results in a good obituary. "They are bohemians, who do not care about education or careers. The obituary of author Kari Kontio was magnificent." Luntiala began to start writing obituaries himself. He wrote them about both imaginary people, as well as celebrities, from popular singer Sammy Babitzin to French President Charles de Gaulle. Some described people who kept their noses to grindstones, but there was also dark humour about a memorial service at the crematorium next to "the Mega Burn furnace". The stories have now been published in a book called In Memoriam. Luntiala has yet to write his own obituary. "Actually, everybody should write his own obituary once every ten years after reaching the age of 40. It is a way to see if one's life has gone as one would have liked." If someone else writes an obituary for Luntiala some day, he has a request. "I hope that it says that he saw that there is more to life than just work." For Luntiala, jazz and writing help him unwind from his job. He has previously published a collection of short stories as well as a text message novel. Luntiala nevertheless enjoys his work as director-general of the Population Register Centre. "I once saw a movie where a police officer was told that if you screw this one up, we'll send you to work at the population registry", Luntiala laughs. "People have an unbelievable image of the work that we do here. This is a vantage point into society. I enjoy this job, and now that I am boss, I can pretty much decide how to do this thing." Luntiala's fear of death is easing. Writing obituaries helps. He also stopped trying to run away from death. "I ran around in the forest like crazy for ten years. Then they measured that my oxygen intake is at the same level as that of a man lying on the sofa. I stopped right there." However, he is still not on completely good terms with death. "Death is a great injustice. It comes so soon. Life could be twice as long, or at least half of life could be free time. Now people are allowed to do what they want to do for five per cent of their lifetime. "I've been expecting people to rise to the barricades to shout that death is wrong. Who they would be protesting against, I don't know." Luntiala has two adult sons - both of fans of heavy metal music. He met the two recently, and was startled when he saw the back of one of them as he was walking away. The black T-shirt had just one word: "Kuolemanpelko" - "fear of death". "I thought that it must be in the genes. Now my son has it."
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 17.3.2008
By Jaana Laitinen
Hannu Luntiala, 55, suffered long from a fear of death. It started to eat at him already in his youth, when he found tobacco.
"The pleasure of smoking was combined with a sense of guilt. It became a dilemma. I stopped smoking later, but the fear was there and it stayed."
Soon he found himself reading death notices in newspapers. Reading between the short lines he tried to guess what the cause of death might have been. He did not get much out of the texts, he noticed. The pieces were narrow and dull, and repeated the same verses. He moved on to obituaries. He says that they revealed a world that he had never experienced before.
"They had fascinating life stories, hilarious narratives and unintended drama. An entire life condensed into 30 to 40 lines."
It was apparent in many of the obituaries that the deceased person had not quite lived life to the full. The life might include "huge amounts of work", and not much else. From time to time there might be a story about a person who dared to live as he or she wanted. Such lives are often short and hard, but by no means empty. Luntiala admits that he admires people who dare to live the kind of life that results in a good obituary. "They are bohemians, who do not care about education or careers. The obituary of author Kari Kontio was magnificent." Luntiala began to start writing obituaries himself. He wrote them about both imaginary people, as well as celebrities, from popular singer Sammy Babitzin to French President Charles de Gaulle. Some described people who kept their noses to grindstones, but there was also dark humour about a memorial service at the crematorium next to "the Mega Burn furnace". The stories have now been published in a book called In Memoriam. Luntiala has yet to write his own obituary. "Actually, everybody should write his own obituary once every ten years after reaching the age of 40. It is a way to see if one's life has gone as one would have liked." If someone else writes an obituary for Luntiala some day, he has a request. "I hope that it says that he saw that there is more to life than just work." For Luntiala, jazz and writing help him unwind from his job. He has previously published a collection of short stories as well as a text message novel. Luntiala nevertheless enjoys his work as director-general of the Population Register Centre. "I once saw a movie where a police officer was told that if you screw this one up, we'll send you to work at the population registry", Luntiala laughs. "People have an unbelievable image of the work that we do here. This is a vantage point into society. I enjoy this job, and now that I am boss, I can pretty much decide how to do this thing." Luntiala's fear of death is easing. Writing obituaries helps. He also stopped trying to run away from death. "I ran around in the forest like crazy for ten years. Then they measured that my oxygen intake is at the same level as that of a man lying on the sofa. I stopped right there." However, he is still not on completely good terms with death. "Death is a great injustice. It comes so soon. Life could be twice as long, or at least half of life could be free time. Now people are allowed to do what they want to do for five per cent of their lifetime. "I've been expecting people to rise to the barricades to shout that death is wrong. Who they would be protesting against, I don't know." Luntiala has two adult sons - both of fans of heavy metal music. He met the two recently, and was startled when he saw the back of one of them as he was walking away. The black T-shirt had just one word: "Kuolemanpelko" - "fear of death". "I thought that it must be in the genes. Now my son has it."
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 17.3.2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
Pearl Cornioley ~ Resistance Fighter ~ is dead
Pearl Cornioley, Resistance Fighter Who Opposed the Nazis, Is Dead at 93
By DOUGLAS MARTIN
Published: March 11, 2008
Pearl Cornioley, who parachuted into Nazi-occupied France to work as a courier between the British and the French resistance and rose to command 3,000 underground fighters, died on Feb. 24 in the Loire Valley of France. She was 93.
Pearl Cornioley was known by many names in World War II.
Her death, at a hospital, was confirmed to The Associated Press by Caroline Cottard, the secretary of the retirement home where Ms. Cornioley lived.
Ms. Cornioley, who was 29 when she was sent to France in 1943, commanded troops who killed 1,000 German soldiers and wounded many more — while suffering only a tiny number of casualties themselves. She presided over the surrender of 18,000 German troops.
Her unit interrupted a railway line that connected the south of France to Normandy more than 800 times in June 1944, the month of D-Day. It also regularly attacked German convoys.
Sometimes carrying a case of cosmetics to pose as a traveling saleswoman, she had many brushes with danger. She hid in a cornfield as German troops fired random shots into the field. She was almost killed by a resistance leader who doubted her identity. The Germans offered a million-franc reward for her capture.
Pearl Witherington, as she was known at the time of her wartime exploits, was British by birth and French by upbringing. Her code name was Wrestler, her nom de guerre was Pauline, and in wireless transmissions to Britain, she was “Marie.”
Ms. Cornioley was an operative of the Special Operations Executive, which the British formed to support and coordinate resistance in the occupied countries of Europe. Agents from many walks of life, from business to journalism to academia, joined what was essentially a by-invitation-only club. Women were welcome because they might be viewed as less suspicious, and many proved to be excellent agents.
‘The girls who served as secret agents in Churchill’s Special Operations Executive were young, beautiful and brave,” Marcus Binney wrote in his book “The Women Who Lived for Danger: The Agents of the Special Operations Executive” (2002).
“At a time when women in the armed forces were restricted to a strictly noncombatant role in warfare, the women of S.O.E. trained and served alongside the men,” he continued. “They fought not in the front line but well behind it.”
Ms. Cornioley stood out. In his book “Set Europe Ablaze” (1966), E. H. Cookridge called her “one of the main pillars of the network” of the S.O.E. and the resistance fighters they supported. She was the only woman to become a network leader.
Cecile Pearl Witherington was born in Paris on June 24, 1914. A great-grandfather was a chemist who introduced the recipe for Worcestershire sauce to Lea & Perrins, and a grandfather was an architect in London, according to Mr. Binney. Her father traveled the world for a Swedish company that supplied paper for banknotes.
Her father’s heavy drinking and spendthrift habits shattered the family, obituaries in British newspapers said. As the eldest of four daughters, Ms. Cornioley started working at 17 as a secretary and made extra money by teaching English at night.
When the Germans invaded France in 1940, she was working for the air attaché at the British Embassy. The family left Paris in December and followed a circuitous route to London. There, Ms. Cornioley got a job at the Air Ministry.
But she burned with anger over France’s defeat and began searching for a way to fight back. Luckily, her French was superb.
“And anyway I didn’t like the Germans,” she was quoted as saying in an obituary in The Independent. “Never did. I’m a baby of the 1914-18 war.”
Through an acquaintance, she found her way to the S.O.E., which she joined on June 8, 1943. In training, she was recognized as the best shot, male or female, the service had seen. The commander wrote, “Very capable, completely brave.”
On the night of Sept. 22-23, she parachuted into France, near Châteauroux. Her two suitcases landed in a lake, where they were lost. Within hours, she was reunited with her French fiancé, Henri Cornioley, who had escaped from a German prison camp and joined the resistance. The two then worked closely.
This mix of love and war has caused many to see Ms. Cornioley as the inspiration for Sebastian Faulks’s popular 1998 novel, “Charlotte Gray.” In 2001, the book was made into a movie of the same name, directed by Gillian Armstrong and starring Cate Blanchett.
Ms. Cornioley insisted that romance was not her motivation for going to war. In an interview with The Telegraph in 2002, she said: “There was a job to be done. I didn’t put my life at risk just so I could be with Henri.”
But in October 1944, after being separated and almost killed, the couple made it to London, where they married. They moved to Paris, where Mr. Cornioley worked as a pharmacist and Ms. Cornioley as a secretary for the World Bank.
He died in 1999. Ms. Cornioley is survived by their daughter, Claire.
In 1995, Ms. Cornioley published her memoirs, which she wrote with Hervé Larroque. One tale concerned a “really cute” rabbit she took everywhere with her. The rabbit was oblivious to machine-gun fire.
Ms. Cornioley received many honors, but the one that stuck in her mind was the one she turned down. That was Member of the British Empire, or M.B.E. She had been offered the civil version, not the military one.
She sent an icy note saying she had had done nothing remotely “civil.”
By DOUGLAS MARTIN
Published: March 11, 2008
Pearl Cornioley, who parachuted into Nazi-occupied France to work as a courier between the British and the French resistance and rose to command 3,000 underground fighters, died on Feb. 24 in the Loire Valley of France. She was 93.
Pearl Cornioley was known by many names in World War II.
Her death, at a hospital, was confirmed to The Associated Press by Caroline Cottard, the secretary of the retirement home where Ms. Cornioley lived.
Ms. Cornioley, who was 29 when she was sent to France in 1943, commanded troops who killed 1,000 German soldiers and wounded many more — while suffering only a tiny number of casualties themselves. She presided over the surrender of 18,000 German troops.
Her unit interrupted a railway line that connected the south of France to Normandy more than 800 times in June 1944, the month of D-Day. It also regularly attacked German convoys.
Sometimes carrying a case of cosmetics to pose as a traveling saleswoman, she had many brushes with danger. She hid in a cornfield as German troops fired random shots into the field. She was almost killed by a resistance leader who doubted her identity. The Germans offered a million-franc reward for her capture.
Pearl Witherington, as she was known at the time of her wartime exploits, was British by birth and French by upbringing. Her code name was Wrestler, her nom de guerre was Pauline, and in wireless transmissions to Britain, she was “Marie.”
Ms. Cornioley was an operative of the Special Operations Executive, which the British formed to support and coordinate resistance in the occupied countries of Europe. Agents from many walks of life, from business to journalism to academia, joined what was essentially a by-invitation-only club. Women were welcome because they might be viewed as less suspicious, and many proved to be excellent agents.
‘The girls who served as secret agents in Churchill’s Special Operations Executive were young, beautiful and brave,” Marcus Binney wrote in his book “The Women Who Lived for Danger: The Agents of the Special Operations Executive” (2002).
“At a time when women in the armed forces were restricted to a strictly noncombatant role in warfare, the women of S.O.E. trained and served alongside the men,” he continued. “They fought not in the front line but well behind it.”
Ms. Cornioley stood out. In his book “Set Europe Ablaze” (1966), E. H. Cookridge called her “one of the main pillars of the network” of the S.O.E. and the resistance fighters they supported. She was the only woman to become a network leader.
Cecile Pearl Witherington was born in Paris on June 24, 1914. A great-grandfather was a chemist who introduced the recipe for Worcestershire sauce to Lea & Perrins, and a grandfather was an architect in London, according to Mr. Binney. Her father traveled the world for a Swedish company that supplied paper for banknotes.
Her father’s heavy drinking and spendthrift habits shattered the family, obituaries in British newspapers said. As the eldest of four daughters, Ms. Cornioley started working at 17 as a secretary and made extra money by teaching English at night.
When the Germans invaded France in 1940, she was working for the air attaché at the British Embassy. The family left Paris in December and followed a circuitous route to London. There, Ms. Cornioley got a job at the Air Ministry.
But she burned with anger over France’s defeat and began searching for a way to fight back. Luckily, her French was superb.
“And anyway I didn’t like the Germans,” she was quoted as saying in an obituary in The Independent. “Never did. I’m a baby of the 1914-18 war.”
Through an acquaintance, she found her way to the S.O.E., which she joined on June 8, 1943. In training, she was recognized as the best shot, male or female, the service had seen. The commander wrote, “Very capable, completely brave.”
On the night of Sept. 22-23, she parachuted into France, near Châteauroux. Her two suitcases landed in a lake, where they were lost. Within hours, she was reunited with her French fiancé, Henri Cornioley, who had escaped from a German prison camp and joined the resistance. The two then worked closely.
This mix of love and war has caused many to see Ms. Cornioley as the inspiration for Sebastian Faulks’s popular 1998 novel, “Charlotte Gray.” In 2001, the book was made into a movie of the same name, directed by Gillian Armstrong and starring Cate Blanchett.
Ms. Cornioley insisted that romance was not her motivation for going to war. In an interview with The Telegraph in 2002, she said: “There was a job to be done. I didn’t put my life at risk just so I could be with Henri.”
But in October 1944, after being separated and almost killed, the couple made it to London, where they married. They moved to Paris, where Mr. Cornioley worked as a pharmacist and Ms. Cornioley as a secretary for the World Bank.
He died in 1999. Ms. Cornioley is survived by their daughter, Claire.
In 1995, Ms. Cornioley published her memoirs, which she wrote with Hervé Larroque. One tale concerned a “really cute” rabbit she took everywhere with her. The rabbit was oblivious to machine-gun fire.
Ms. Cornioley received many honors, but the one that stuck in her mind was the one she turned down. That was Member of the British Empire, or M.B.E. She had been offered the civil version, not the military one.
She sent an icy note saying she had had done nothing remotely “civil.”
Hugo Claus
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) — Hugo Claus, an artist, poet, playwright and novelist whose books painted a scathing picture of repression and hypocrisy in bourgeois Flanders, died Wednesday, his wife said. He was 78.
Claus, who had Alzheimer's disease, died by euthanasia at Middelheim Hospital in Antwerp. "He himself picked the moment of his death and asked for euthanasia," his wife, Veerle De Wit, said in a statement.
Claus produced about 200 works during his career but was best known for his classic "The Sorrow of Belgium" — a scathing attack on social injustice, stifling family relationships and Roman Catholic repression in his native Flanders in northern Belgium.
The partly autobiographical work defined his career and shot him to prominence on the international scene.
Often writing out of anger and guilt, Claus relied on pitiless realism in his work.
Claus also directed several movies and, as a painter, belonged to the Cobra group, centering on spontaneous, intuitive painting.
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) — Hugo Claus, an artist, poet, playwright and novelist whose books painted a scathing picture of repression and hypocrisy in bourgeois Flanders, died Wednesday, his wife said. He was 78.
Claus, who had Alzheimer's disease, died by euthanasia at Middelheim Hospital in Antwerp. "He himself picked the moment of his death and asked for euthanasia," his wife, Veerle De Wit, said in a statement.
Claus produced about 200 works during his career but was best known for his classic "The Sorrow of Belgium" — a scathing attack on social injustice, stifling family relationships and Roman Catholic repression in his native Flanders in northern Belgium.
The partly autobiographical work defined his career and shot him to prominence on the international scene.
Often writing out of anger and guilt, Claus relied on pitiless realism in his work.
Claus also directed several movies and, as a painter, belonged to the Cobra group, centering on spontaneous, intuitive painting.
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