PASSINGS: Billy Loes, Dorothy Elizabeth Watson, Qian Weichang, Al Goodman

Billy Loes

Starting pitcher for Brooklyn Dodgers

Billy Loes, 80, who pitched on three pennant-winning Brooklyn Dodgers teams in the 1950s, died July 15 at a hospice in Tucson, said his wife, Irene. He had diabetes for several years and had open heart surgery a few years ago, she said.

A right-hander from New York, Loes pitched for the Dodgers (1950, 1952-56), Baltimore Orioles (1956-59) and San Francisco Giants (1960-61). He had an 80-63 record with 645 strikeouts and a 3.89 earned-run average during his 11-season career. He was an American League All-Star in 1957.

Loes was a starter for the Dodgers when they won National League pennants in 1952, ’53 and ’55. He never won more than 14 games in a season, but once said he didn’t want to be a 20-game winner “because then I’d be expected to do it every year.”

He started Game 6 of the 1952 World Series for the Dodgers against the Yankees at Ebbets Field. The Dodgers led 1-0 in the seventh inning when Loes gave up a home run to Yogi Berra and a single by Gene Woodling.

Then Loes balked by letting the baseball slip from his hand while he was on the pitching rubber, sending Woodling to second base. With two out, Vic Raschi, the Yankees’ starting pitcher, hit a ball off Loes’ leg, and it caromed into right field for a single, scoring Woodling. The Yankees went on to a 3-2 victory, tying the series at three games apiece. The Yankees won the World Series the next day.

Dorothy Elizabeth Watson

Mother of L.A. congresswoman

Dorothy Elizabeth Watson, 100, the mother of Rep. Diane Watson, died Sunday at an assisted-living home in Pasadena after a short illness, according to a statement from the congresswoman’s office.

In February, the congresswoman, a Los Angeles Democrat who represents the 33rd Congressional District, announced she was retiring from her post to spend more time with her mother, who recently had broken a hip.

She was born Dorothy Elizabeth O’Neal on Jan. 4, 1910, in Chicago, the third of eight children born to Belle and James Lyle O’Neal. As a child, she moved with her family to California, where they had a farm in Watts.

While attending Los Angeles City College, she met her future husband, Bill Watson, who went to work for the Los Angeles Police Department. They had four children, and Dorothy later returned to L.A. City College for her degree. She worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 34 years.

In addition to the congresswoman, Watson is survived by two other children, William “Billy Boy” Watson Jr. and Patricia “Patsy” Bradfield; two stepdaughters, Rylonna and Wylene; 14 grandchildren; and numerous great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.

Qian Weichang

Scientist, former head of Shanghai University

Qian Weichang, 97, a scientist who was a pioneer of mechanics and applied mathematics in modern China, died Friday in Shanghai, the state press agency said.

Qian, a former president of Shanghai University and other colleges, was renowned for his work in physics, mechanics and applied mathematics, the official Xinhua News Agency said. He was a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Also known as Chien Wei-zang, he was born in Wuxi county in eastern Jiangsu province, Xinhua said. Qian graduated from Tsinghua University with a degree in physics in 1935, according to his official biography listed on the Shanghai University website.

He earned his doctorate in applied mathematics at the University of Toronto in Canada in 1942, then went to work as a research engineer for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at Caltech. He returned to China in 1946 and became a mechanics professor and later vice president at Tsinghua University.

During the tumult of the Cultural Revolution, he was called a reactionary and removed from his official posts within the Communist Party, Xinhua said. Between 1968-1971, he was sent to work in a steel factory in Beijing before he was rehabilitated by the party in 1979, it said.

Al Goodman

R&B singer had 2 hits with trio in 1970s

Al Goodman, 67, who sang baritone on such soul classics as “Love on a Two-Way Street” and “Special Lady,” died Monday of heart failure during surgery to remove a tumor at Hackensack Medical Center in New Jersey, his family told CNN.

A Mississippi native, Goodman was a member of the Moments — an R&B group that formed in Hackensack in the late 1960s — along with Harry Ray and William Brown. They had a soul hit in 1970 with “Love on a Two-Way Street” and again in 1975 with “Look at Me (I’m in Love).”

Last year, rapper Jay-Z sampled “Love on a Two-Way Street” for his hit, “Empire State of Mind.”

In 1978, the trio left Joseph and Sylvia Robinson’s Stang label and renamed the group Ray, Goodman and Brown. A year later, they had a hit with “Special Lady.” The group made regular appearances on the soul charts into the 1980s.

— Times staff and wire reports

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