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Charles Hargroder, political columnist
09/17/02
BATON ROUGE -- Charles M. Hargroder, a former political columnist and chief Baton Rouge correspondent for The Times-Picayune for almost three decades, died Sunday of heart failure related to diabetes and other illness at Lakewood Quarters in Baton Rouge. He was 76.
Mr. Hargroder, known to the Baton Rouge political establishment as "Charlie," was born in Franklin and moved to Baton Rouge at age 11. He graduated from Baton Rouge High School and majored in journalism at Louisiana State University.
Although his career centered on politics and political reporting for The Times-Picayune, Mr. Hargroder launched his career as a reporter for The Advocate, Baton Rouge's daily newspaper, from 1947-50. From 1950-52, he served in the Army at Fort Gordon, Ga., where he was editor of the post newspaper, The Rambler.
Mr. Hargroder worked for the Monroe News-Star from 1952-53, then went to work for Gov. Robert Kennon as his executive assistant from 1953-56.
In 1956, he became a press aide to U.S. Rep. Hale Boggs, D-New Orleans. From 1957-59, Mr. Hargroder was the regional representative for the federal Inter-Industry Highway Safety Commission.
In 1959, he went to work for The Times-Picayune on its state desk, writing and editing stories. In 1961 he was named the newspaper's capital correspondent, assigned to cover the governor's office, the Legislature and state agencies. He wrote his last column for the newspaper in January 1988 and retired three months later.
In retirement, Mr. Hargroder wrote a novel, "Ada and the Doc," which deals with a murder decades ago in Franklin. The book was published in 1999.
Mr. Hargroder was frequently denounced by the politicians he covered for his investigative stories. His reporting helped secure the public listing of unclassified, politically appointed state employees and their salaries, and helped convince state officials that money in the treasury must be invested and earn interest.
"I consider the newspaper as a check and balance often equal to the three departments of government," he once told an interviewer. "An alert press serves to direct public opinion to those shadows of government which need the light of public pressure."
He was a "very respected and one of the most influential and trusted journalists" to work the political beat, said Jack Wardlaw, who retired as capital bureau chief of The Times-Picayune in February and worked alongside Mr. Hargroder for many years. "He was a good reporter who worked hard and was very good at what he did," both investigative stories and daily news coverage of the Capitol.
During legislative sessions, Mr. Hargroder usually covered the 39-member Senate and became an expert on its inner workings. He was frequently referred to as "the 40th senator."
Mr. Hargroder was president of the Capitol Correspondents Association, an organization of journalists who cover the statehouse.
Survivors include a brother, Rivers Eugene Hargroder of Baton Rouge, an uncle, a niece and several cousins.
A funeral will be held Wednesday at 10 a.m. at Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 825 Government St., Baton Rouge. Visitation will begin at 9 a.m. Burial will be in Roselawn Memorial Park in Baton Rouge.
MITCHELL, JACQUELYN JOHNSON DUMAS
09/06/02
Jacquelyn Johnson Dumas Mitchell, a teacher in the Caddo Parish school system in Shreveport and an ordained minister, died Thursday of cancer at Metropolitan Hospice. She was 53. Mrs. Mitchell was born and lived in New Orleans before moving to Shreveport five years ago. She graduated from McDonogh No. 35 High School and Xavier University with a degree in sociology. She was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. She was a former human resources staffer at Hibernia National Bank, Bank of New Orleans, Federal Reserve Bank, Gulf Oil Co. and Central Gulf Lines Corp. She founded the Women of Discipline Ministry in New Orleans and several church-based tutoring and outreach programs, including a prison ministry. She was a former member of Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church and its Deaconess Board. She was a member of Mount Sinai Missionary Baptist Church in Shreveport, where she was a Sunday school teacher, a deaconess and a member of the Women's Ministry. Survivors include her husband, Leroy Mitchell Jr. of Shreveport; two daughters, Lanette Dumas Simmons and Marti A. Dumas; a stepson, Darien W. Mitchell of Chicago; a stepdaughter, Tammy Jackson of Chicago; her mother, Viola B. Johnson; four brothers, Donald Johnson of San Francisco and Craigus, Michael and C. Kenneth Johnson; a sister, Terri Johnson; and four grandchildren. A funeral will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Zion Travelers First Baptist Church, 406 Adams St. Visitation will begin at 9 a.m. Burial will be in Providence Park Cemetery. Estelle J. Wilson Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
PATIN, OSCAR JR.
09/05/02
Oscar Patin Jr., a retired supervisor with Redd Janitorial Services, died Monday at Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He was 79. Mr. Patin was born in New Orleans and lived therefor the past 30 years. He was a graduate of St. Paul High School in Lafayette and attended Xavier University. He served in the Army for 20 years. Survivors include his wife, Geraldine "Geri" Patin; two sons, Roger Patin of Eatontown, N.J., and John Patin III; a daughter, Lydia Patin of Red Bank, N.J.; a stepson, Charles Washington of Gulfport, Miss.; a stepdaughter, Cassandra Green; a brother, Errol Patin of Lafayette; two sisters, Andrea Prejean and Gwen Houston, both of Lafayette; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild. A funeral will be held Friday at noon at D.W. Rhodes Funeral Home, 3933 Washington Ave. Visitation will be today from 6 to 8 p.m. and Friday at 11 a.m. Burial will be in Mount Olivet Cemetery.
WATSKY, MARTIN S.
09/06/02
Martin S. Watsky, a retired pharmacist, died Thursday at his home. He was 81. Mr. Watsky was born in Romania, lived in New Orleans for 73 years and in Metairie for the past six years. He graduated from Tulane University, attended Tulane School of Law and graduated from Loyola Pharmaceutical School. He was a former employee of Pharmaceutical Dose Service, Pharm America and K&B; drugstores for 35 years. He served in the Navy during World War II aboard the USS Windsor. He was a member of B'nai B'rith, Louisiana Pharmacy Association, Jewish War Veterans, Congregation Beth Israel and Shir Chadesh Congregation. Survivors include his wife, Shir A. Rosenberg Watsky; two sons, David Watsky of Dallas and Steven Watsky of New Orleans; two daughters, Leslie Duncan Benner of El Segundo, Calif., and Cherie R. Lampert of Metairie; two stepsons, Alex Axinn of Memphis and Gerald Axinn of New Orleans; a stepdaughter, Eva Meyers of Scottsdale, Ariz.; two sisters, Sylvia Brooks and Lee Goldberg of Cleveland; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. A graveside service will be held today at 1 p.m. at The New Beth Israel Cemetery, 4444 Elysian Fields Ave. Tharp-Sontheimer-Tharp Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
BURLEY, WILLIAM OWEN
09/07/02
William Owen Burley, a retired general contractor, died Tuesday in Transylvania Community Hospital in Brevard, N.C. He was 81. Mr. Burley was born in Ferriday, lived in River Ridge for 20 years, and had been a resident of Brevard since 1985. He was a World War II veteran, serving in the Navy Seabees for three years. Survivors include his wife, Helen Warren Burley; three daughters, Margaret Clark of Albuquerque, N.M., Nancy Campbell of Mansfield, Texas, and Mary Ann Mancina of Mandeville; two sons, Steve Burley of Arlington, Texas, and Scott Burley of Mandeville; two brothers, Fred Burley of Dallas and Henry Burley of Mandeville; and 12 grandchildren. A memorial service will be held Sunday at 12:45 p.m. at First Christian Church of Greater New Orleans, 8121 Airline Drive, Metairie. Burial will be private in Garden of Memories.
ROBINSON SR., MICHAEL EVANS
08/22/02
Michael Robinson, local gospel great
Michael Evans Robinson Sr., a gospel music songwriter, producer and musician, died Saturday of a stroke at his home. He was 30.
Mr. Robinson was a lifelong resident of New Orleans. He attended Francis W. Gregory Junior High School, John F. Kennedy Senior High School and the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts.
Mr. Robinson served as musical director at Greater St. Stephen Ministries for the past 14 years and performed with and arranged music for gospel performers such as Kirk Franklin and Shirley Caesar and many groups, including the New Samaritan Mass Choir, the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship International Super Mass Choir and The Christianaires.
"Michael has been a part of the Greater St. Stephen musical staff since he was a teenager, and I watched him develop into one of gospel music's finest musicians and songwriters," said Bishop Paul S. Morton Sr., senior pastor at Greater St. Stephen Ministries.
"For New Orleans, this is very tragic," said Bob Jones, vice president of Festival Productions in New York and producer of the Newport Jazz Festival.
Jones said that over the years, he watched Mr. Robinson and Raymond Myles, a New Orleans gospel great who was shot and killed in 1998, "moving up the ladder" from young musicians into adulthood. "To have them taken away is just heart-rending," he said.
Mr. Robinson was "a person who was able to move people spiritually in a musical way," Jones said.
"Michael had an amazing musical mind: very agile and adroit," said Leo Sacks, a record producer and songwriter at Honey Darling Records and a freelance producer for Sony.
Mr. Robinson was a driving force in gospel music who excelled on keyboard, piano, synthesizer and drums and was "the embodiment of the spirit of the Gospel Tent" at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Sacks said.
"Michael was like a big kid," Sacks said. "He had a youthfulness and playfulness about him."
Mr. Robinson was big in stature, weighing more than 300 pounds, Sacks said. "He would wear his signature ‘Big Daddy' clothes with the words ‘Large and in charge' on the back."
Bass player Donald Ramsey said Mr. Robinson was a "gentle giant" whose "heart was just as big as he was."
Ramsey, 42, said he performed with Mr. Robinson in June during the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Colorado and recorded a song called "Fight the Fight" with him in New Orleans in July.
Mr. Robinson was a musician who played with big artists but remained humble, Sacks said. He recently helped produce a remix of the Earth Wind & Fire song "Burnin' Bush" for the group Destiny's Child, Sacks said. It was Mr. Robinson who came up with a way of "taking this old-school-message song into a new dimension." he said.
"He was a messenger of God who was just getting started," Sacks said.
"Your life speaks for you, and he was well-loved," said Carla Bowens, director of music and arts for the New Samaritan Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. Bowens said she and 26 fellow church members will fly to New Orleans for the funeral. "He was a musical genius and a very caring and loving individual."
Survivors include his wife, E. Monica Robinson; a son, Michael Evans Robinson Jr.; a daughter, E'moni Michaela Robinson; his mother, Gwendolyn Robinson; four brothers, Edward Robinson, Edward Johnson and Charles and James Kennedy; two sisters, Courtney and Jacqueline Kennedy; and his grandmother, Annie B. Robinson.
A musical tribute honoring Mr. Robinson will be held Friday at 7 p.m. at Greater St. Stephen Ministries, 5600 Read Blvd. A funeral will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Greater St. Stephen. Visitation will begin Saturday at 9 a.m. Burial will be in Providence Memorial Park.
DUCHANE, JOYCE MARIE
09/06/02
Joyce Marie Duchane, a sitter, died Tuesday of complications from lupus at Memorial Medical Center. She was 42. Ms. Duchane was a lifelong resident of New Orleans. She graduated from Walter L. Cohen High School. She was a member of First Mount Calvary Baptist Church. Survivors include a son, Landry Terrell Duchane; a daughter, Quntessa Tajuana Duchane; three brothers, Morel, Arthur and John Ellis Jr.; four sisters, Cynthia Ann Thompson, Adele White, Shirley Garner and Odessa Ellis; and two grandchildren. A funeral will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. at First Mount Calvary Baptist Church, 2919 Sixth St. Visitation will begin at 9 a.m. Burial will be in Providence Memorial Park. Magee Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Francis Jacob Jr., 90, radio and TV pioneer
10/01/02
Francis Jacob Jr., a New Orleans broadcasting pioneer who helped build WWL radio and create WWL-TV, died Saturday at his home. He was 90.
Mr. Jacob, whose connections to WWL dated to his days as a student, held the position of chief engineer when he retired from the TV station in 1974.
Mr. Jacob was born in New Orleans and lived in Metairie.
After graduating from Jesuit High School, he began his broadcasting career in 1930 when he entered the Gulf Radio School in New Orleans. That year, he began work as a vacation relief operator and later an engineer and studio supervisor for WWL-AM, which at the time broadcast from the Loyola University campus.
As a WWL employee during the next decade, Mr. Jacob helped form a broadcasting local of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, making WWL one of the first unionized radio stations in the United States. He also planned the construction of the station's studios at the Roosevelt Hotel, now the Fairmont.
Mr. Jacob rose through the ranks at WWL, becoming engineering supervisor. He led a team of engineers that built most of the station's equipment and installed a 10,000-watt and later a 50,000-watt transmitter that made WWL-AM one of the most powerful clear-channel stations in the country, audible at night across much of the country.
Mr. Jacob also was the engineer for many shows on WWL, such as the "Dawnbusters" morning program, live jazz broadcasts from French Quarter nightclubs and big-band performances from the Blue Room of the Roosevelt.
In the 1950s, he became lead engineer for the planning and development of WWL-TV, which went on the air Sept. 7, 1957, from newly built studios on North Rampart Street. Mr. Jacob soon was promoted to chief engineer and held that position for many years.
After his retirement, Mr. Jacob remained active in the local broadcasting industry. He was a consultant during the creation of WLAE-TV, the Archdiocese of New Orleans' PBS affiliate, in 1983. He also worked for the Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, assisting in the recording and production of weekly radio broadcasts.
In 1997, Mr. Jacob was inducted into the New Orleans Broadcasting Hall of Fame, sponsored by the Greater New Orleans Broadcasters Association.
He was a parishioner of St. Patrick Catholic Church.
Survivors include three sons, Don and Jerry Jacob and Francis Jacob III; a daughter, Cathy J. Gaffney; a sister, Marie Louise McDonald; eight grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
A Mass will be said Wednesday at 10 a.m. at Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home, 5100 Pontchartrain Blvd. Visitation will be today from 5 to 9 p.m. and Wednesday from 9 to 10 a.m. Burial will be in Lake Lawn Park Mausoleum.
