Trini Lopez, Singing Star Who Mixed Musical Styles, Dies at 83

In Memorium

Trini Lopez onstanges in all black with guitar in hand waving to fans

His blend of American folk, Latin and rockabilly music captivated listeners worldwide. His secret: arrangements that people could dance to. He died of Covid-19.

Trini Lopez, who had worldwide hit records in the early 1960s by creating a unique mix of American folk, Latin and rockabilly music, died on Tuesday at a hospital in Rancho Mirage, Calif. He was 83.

His longtime friend and collaborator Joe Chavira said the cause was complications of Covid-19.

Mr. Lopez’s two biggest records — “If I Had a Hammer” and “Lemon Tree” — had both been hits as well for the folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary several years earlier. But Mr. Lopez’s versions soared even higher on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.

His “Hammer” reached No. 3 (Peter, Paul and Mary’s had gotten as high as No. 10), and his “Lemon Tree” got to No. 10 (theirs had peaked at No. 35). They also had more international impact.

Mr. Lopez’s version of “If I Had a Hammer” shot to No. 1 in 36 countries and sold more than a million copies. His stylistic advantage? Arrangements that listeners could dance to.

“Making songs danceable helped me a lot,” Mr. Lopez told The Classic Rock Music Reporter in 2014, adding, “Discotheques back in those days were not only playing my songs, they were playing my album all the way through.”

For yet another draw, Mr. Lopez punctuated many of his songs with joyous hoots and trills drawn from Mexican folk, emphasizing his ethnic heritage at a time when many Latin performers kept theirs hidden. “I’m proud to be a Mexicano,” he told The Seattle Times in 2017.

His groundbreaking mix of sounds connected with listeners right from the start, with his debut album, “Live at PJ’s,” recorded at a popular Los Angeles nightclub and released in 1963. The disc went gold, fueled by the success of “If I Had a Hammer.” The album also featured a version of “La Bamba,” the traditional Mexican song that another pioneering Latin rocker, Ritchie Valens, had turned into a Top 40 hit five years earlier.

He racked up other Top 40 hits with “Kansas City” and “I’m Coming Home, Cindy.” He made Billboard magazine’s adult contemporary Top 40 15 times.

Continue on to The New York Times to read the complete article.

Mexican actor Raymundo Capetillo dies at 76 after reported hospitalization with COVID-19

In Memorium

Mexican actor Raymundo Capetillo has died at the age of 76, according to an announcement made by “Extensión Cultural INBAL,” a Mexican government Twitter account.

“We deeply regret the sensitive death of the first actor Raymundo Capetillo. In addition to his career in film, theater and television, he was a committed promoter of reading throughout the country,” stated Extensión Cultural INBAL.

According to recent statements made to the press by Tanya Roberta, the actor’s niece, Capetillo was hospitalized in Mexico with COVID-19 complications.

Mexico’s National Association of Actors (ANDA) also posted a message of condolence to the actor’s family and friends: “We deeply regret the death of our colleague José Loza Martínez, a member of our union and guest of the Actor’s House, which occurred on July 12 yesterday. Our condolences to your family and friends. Rest in peace.”

Capetillo was born on September 1, 1943 in Mexico City, where he began acting in the late 1960s. He worked in television, film and theater. Some of his most famous performances were “Los Perros de Dios” in 1974 and “Santo en Anonymous Mortal” in 1975. The actor is also remembered for starring in popular soap operas, such as “Muchacha Italiana Viene a Casarse,” “Rosa Salvaje” and “Cadenas de Amargura.”

Continue on to ABC News to read the complete article.

Famed Chicano author Rudolfo Anaya dies at age 82

In Memorium

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.- KOB 4 has confirmed that author Rudolfo Anaya has died. Anaya is best known for his novel, Bless Me, Ultima, and considered one of the most revered authors of Chicano literature.

Anaya’s niece, Belinda Henry, told KOB 4 her uncle had been in declining health and died early Sunday at his home in Albuquerque, where he was surrounded by close relatives. He was 82 years old.

“He loved his family more than any accomplishment,” Henry said. “He was an exceptionally intelligent and gifted author and certainly one of the most generous persons with his time. His influence has been felt worldwide.”

Anaya was born in New Mexico in 1937. He graduated from Albuquerque High School and earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of New Mexico. He would later return to the university to teach creative writing until his retirement.

Anaya was presented with the 2015 National Humanities Medal by President Obama for “pioneering stories of the American Southwest.”

Continue on to KOB News to read the complete article.

WWII Navajo Code Talker Roy Hawthorne Sr. dies in Arizona at 92

GovernmentIn Memorium

Navajo Code Talker Roy Hawthorne, who used his native language as an uncrackable code during World War II, died Saturday.

At 92, he was one of the last surviving Code Talkers.

Hawthorne was 17 when he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and became part of a famed group of Native Americans who encoded hundreds of messages in the Navajo language to keep them safe from the Japanese. Hawthorne served in the 1st Marine Division in the Pacific Theatre and was promoted to corporal.

The code was never broken.

“The longer we live, the more we realize the importance of what we did, but we’re still not heroes — not in my mind,” Roy Hawthorne said in 2015.

But Hawthorne’s son, Regan Hawthorne, said Monday his father leaves a proud legacy.

“They went in out of a sense of duty and a spirit of responsibility to their country,” Regan Hawthorne said, adding he didn’t know about his father’s military service until he was in his 20s.

“I grew up not knowing my dad was a Code Talker. He never talked about it, didn’t see the need to talk about it,” he said.

The Code Talkers believed they were just doing their job, he said, and shied away from receiving accolades for their service.

“When we read about the effect the Navajo Code had on shortening the war because of its effectiveness, we think about the guys who did that,” Regan Hawthorne said. “(But) they’re simply humble men who performed what they sensed to be a duty to protect all they cherished.”

He said his father and other Code Talkers returned home from the war and “simply came back to work and went back to making a life.”

As of 2016, there were about a dozen Code Talkers still living. The exact number of Code Talkers is unknown because their work was classified for years after the war ended.

Continue onto AZ Central to read the complete article.

Air Force Civilian Service

Robert Half

ALDI

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