Passings

I wish to write of two deaths of note.

He was also the inspiration for the Monopoly Man. Laurence Urdang, who worked on more than 100 dictionaires and reference books, died of congestive heart failure at age 81 earlier this month. I hope that by paying tribute to him here, lexicographers will include some of my new words in their upcoming dictionaries.

The irony is strong with this one. Dave Freeman, the 47-year-old co-author of "100 Things to Do Before You Die," has died. Friends say he only finished about half the things on his list. His collaborator on the book Neil Teplica said, "He didn't have enough days, but he lived them like he should have."