Doug Henning lent a hippie-ish flair to the sometimes somber world of magic. Spinning tricky illusions in a tie-dye shirt, mop of hair and goofy grin, Henning brought levity to levitation. In recent years he became more devoted to Transcendental Meditation; his dream was to build a spiritual theme park near Niagara Falls. He died of liver cancer at 52.
Latino rapper Christopher Rios (a.k.a. Big Pun) weighed nearly 700 pounds, but his high-speed rhymes flowed with tiptoe agility. He was nominated for a Grammy last year. Pun, 28, died of problems related to his obesity, according to his manager.
Sherry Keene-Osborn, 54, reported for NEWSWEEK from Colorado, covering major news stories such as the JonBenet Ramsey case and the Columbine shootings. She was smart, perceptive and as kind as she was persistent.
