Albany Times Union (Sunday)

Obamas lose pet

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Former presidenti­al dog Bo died Saturday from cancer at the age of 12.

Bo, the Portuguese water dog who became the first presidenti­al pet in the Obama White House, romping in the halls of power, died on Saturday.

Bo, who was 12, had cancer, Michelle Obama said on Instagram. Barack Obama said the family had lost “a true friend and loyal companion.”

“For more than a decade, Bo was a constant, gentle presence in our lives — happy to see us on our good days, our bad days, and everyday in between,” the former president wrote on Twitter.

“He tolerated all the fuss that came with being in the White House, had a big bark but no bite, loved to jump in the pool in the summer, was unflappabl­e with children, lived for scraps around the dinner table, and had great hair,” Obama added.

Bo arrived at the White House as a 6-month-old puppy in April 2009, a gift from Sen. Ted Kennedy of Massachuse­tts and his wife, Victoria, to the first children, Malia and Sasha Obama.

The girls named the dog Bo because their cousins had a cat with the same name and because Michelle Obama’s father was nicknamed Diddley, after the musician Bo Diddley.

Bo was known for cavorting on the South Lawn in front of the White House press corps, barking at news conference­s and attracting fan mail from children across the country.

He also posed with his tongue out for an official White House portrait and was the subject of a children’s book, “Bo, America’s Commander in Leash.”

In 2013, Bo was joined at the White House by a second Portuguese water dog, Sunny, after Michelle Obama said that Bo needed more interactio­n with other dogs.

After Malia and Sasha went to college, Bo helped the couple adjust to life as empty nesters.

“This past year, with everyone back home during the pandemic, no one was happier than Bo,” she wrote. “All his people were under one roof again — just like the day we got him.”

“Video vixen Tawny Kitaen dies at 59

Tawny Kitaen, the sultry red-haired actress who appeared in rock music videos during the heyday of MTV and starred opposite Tom Hanks in the 1984 comedy “Bachelor Party,” has died. She was 59.

The Orange County coroner’s office said she died at her home in Newport Beach on Friday. The cause of death was not immediatel­y released.

Her daughters, Wynter and Raine, confirmed their mother’s death on Kitaen’s Instagram account. “We just want to say thank you for all of you, her fans and her friends, for always showing her such support and love.

You gave her life everyday,” their statement said.

Kitaen became the rock world’s “video vixen” after appearing on the cover of two albums from the heavy metal band Ratt and starring in several music videos for Whitesnake.

She also starred as the fiancee to Hanks’ character in the comedy “Bachelor Party,” and as Jerry Seinfeld’s girlfriend in a 1991 episode of “Seinfeld.“Other TV credits included a stint as co-host of “America’s Funniest People” and on the reality shows “The Surreal Life” and “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.”

Kitaen had a tumultuous personal life, which included a brief marriage to Whitesnake’s lead singer, David Coverdale, and a rocky marriage to baseball pitcher Chuck Finley, with whom she had two daughters.

Early rock ‘n roll star Price dies at 88

Singer-songwriter

Lloyd Price, an early rock ‘n roll star and enduring maverick whose hits included such up-tempo favorites as “Lawdy Miss Clawdy,” “Personalit­y” and the semi-forbidden “Stagger Lee,” has died. He was 88.

Price died Monday at a long-term care facility in New Rochelle of complicati­ons from diabetes.

Price, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998, was among the last survivors of a post-world War II scene in New Orleans that anticipate­d the rise of rock in the mid-1950s. He was unusually independen­t, running his own record label, holding on to his publishing rights, serving as his own agent and manager, and would often speak of the racial injustices he endured.

One of 11 siblings, Price was in his late teens when he wrote his first hit. “Lawdy Miss Clawdy” hit No. 1 on the R&B charts in 1952, sold more than 1 million copies and became a rock standard. He spent the mid-1950s in military service and began a career restart with the 1957 ballad “Just Because,” and hit the top with “Stagger Lee.” He followed with the top 10 hits “Personalit­y” and “I’m Going To Get Married.”

His career in music continued, sporadical­ly. He and his business partner Harold Logan started a label in the early 1960s, Double L Records, and they also ran a New York nightclub. After Logan was murdered, in 1969, Price eventually moved to Nigeria and didn’t return until the 1980s.

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 ?? Doug Mills / New York Times ?? Then President Barack Obama is greeted by Bo, the first family's dog, upon returning to the White House on March 15, 2012. Bo, a Portuguese water dog, died on Saturday.
Doug Mills / New York Times Then President Barack Obama is greeted by Bo, the first family's dog, upon returning to the White House on March 15, 2012. Bo, a Portuguese water dog, died on Saturday.
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