Nancy Wilson, Grammy-winning ‘song stylist,’ dies at 81

During George H.W. Bush’s single term as president, the Berlin Wall fell and the Soviet Union collapsed. In 1991, Bush formed a U.S.-led coalition that drove the Iraqi army out of Kuwait, the U.S. military’s most successful offensive since World War II. But dissent within the GOP and economic woes hobbled his bid for reelection in 1992, and he lost to Bill Clinton.

Stephen Hillenburg created the animated Nickelodeon series “SpongeBob SquarePants.” The show won Emmys in the U.S. and Britain, was translated into more than 60 languages and sparked huge merchandising opportunities worldwide. He was 57.

Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci infused politics and psychological depth into such era-defining films as “Last Tango in Paris” and “The Last Emperor.” The Oscar winner influenced a crop of emerging filmmakers, including Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese. He was 77.

Oscar-winning screenwriter William Goldman penned the scripts for “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “All the President’s Men.” His 1983 book, “Adventures in the Screen Trade,” asserted that there were no easy answers in show business. He was 87.

Country star Roy Clark headlined the cornpone TV show “Hee Haw” for nearly a quarter century. The guitar virtuoso was known for such hits as “Yesterday When I Was Young” and “Honeymoon Feeling.” He was 85.

Writer Stan Lee helped create Spider-Man and other superheroes, transforming Marvel Comics into a powerhouse brand. The blockbuster films based on his characters racked up billions at the box office. He was 95.

Burt Reynolds reigned as Hollywood’s wisecracking, good-ol’-boy box-office champ in the late 1970s and early ’80s in movies such as “Smokey and the Bandit” and “The Cannonball Run.” He made pop culture history as Cosmopolitan magazine’s first nude male centerfold. He was 82.

Neil Simon’s comic touch in “The Odd Couple,” “Barefoot in the Park” and many other hits on stage and screen made him the most commercially successful playwright of the 20th century — and perhaps of all time. From “Come Blow Your Horn” in 1961 to “45 Seconds From Broadway” in 2001, 30 of Simon’s plays opened on Broadway, including five musicals for which he wrote the book. He was 91.

Arizona Sen. John McCain survived 5½ years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam to become one of the highest-profile, most confounding and pugnacious personalities in American politics. As a twice-defeated presidential candidate, he used his celebrity to heighten his influence in Congress and emerge as one of the GOP’s most prominent leaders. He was 81.

Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan was one of the world’s most celebrated diplomats, despite presiding over some of the worst failures and scandals at the world body. He served two terms, from Jan. 1, 1997, to Dec. 31, 2006, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize jointly with the U.N. in 2001. He was 80.

Known as the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin was nominated for 44 Grammy Awards, and won 18. Her hits include “Respect,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “I Say A Little Prayer” and “Chain of Fools.” She was 76.

British author V.S. Naipaul, who was born in Trinidad, won the 2001 Nobel Prize in literature for his “incorruptible scrutiny” of postcolonial society. His books explored colonialism and decolonization, exile and the struggles of the everyman in the developing world. He was 85.

John Mack rose to become one of L.A.’s most influential black figures during his long tenure running the city chapter of the Urban League and later spent eight years on the Police Commission. He helped lead the city past the infamous Rodney King beating and 1992 riots and later helped oversee reform of the Los Angeles Police Department. He was 81.

After spending more than two decades in New York kitchens, Anthony Bourdain rose to fame with his 1999 New Yorker essay, “Don’t Eat Before Reading This,” which became the basis for his bestselling book, “Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly.” His willingness to speak his mind and ability to connect with the people made him a likable TV personality on the Food Network, the Travel Channel and CNN. He was 61.

George Deukmejian served two terms as California governor and built his career on fighting crime, hardening the state’s criminal-justice stance and shoring up its leaky finances. He spent almost 28 years in Sacramento, enjoying a reputation as someone of unquestioned integrity but whose manner was so severe that he earned the nickname “Iron Duke.” He was 89.

Tim Bergling, the Swedish DJ and producer who performed as Avicii, helped kick-start the electronic dance music explosion of the 2010s. Bergling was one of EDM’s first crossover pop successes in the U.S. He was 28.

Miloš Forman came of age as a filmmaker in postwar Czechoslovakia, and his memory of totalitarianism would forever be his muse. In every one of his films, including “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” “Ragtime,” “Amadeus,” “The People vs. Larry Flynt” and “Man on the Moon,” Forman celebrated real-life outsiders and eccentrics who challenged the establishment with heroic self-expression. He was 86.

The former wife of Nelson Mandela, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela was also a prominent anti-apartheid activist and politician. She campaigned relentlessly for her husband’s release during his 27-year imprisonment, raised two daughters alone, faced harassment by South African security forces and served more than a year in prison. In later life, she was a member of South Africa’s parliament, but scandals cut her influence in the ruling African National Congress. She was 81.

Steven Bochco was the driving force behind some of TV’s most popular series for more than 30 years, with a specialty for serialized dramas with large ensemble casts and edgy plot points. The television writer-producer who brought “Hill Street Blues,” “L.A. Law” and “NYPD Blue” to the small screen was nominated for 30 Emmys and won 10. He was 74. Full obituary

Appointed to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in 1980 by President Jimmy Carter, Stephen Reinhardt was dubbed the “liberal lion” of the federal circuit courts. His rulings in favor of criminal defendants, minorities and immigrants were often overturned by the more conservative U.S. Supreme Court. He was 87. Full obituary

Charles Lazarus founded Toys R Us and transformed it into an iconic piece of Americana. The World War II veteran’s business model became one of the first retail category killers: big stores that are so devoted to one thing, and have such an impressive selection, that they drive smaller competitors out of business. He was 94.

Hubert de Givenchy dressed Audrey Hepburn for seven of her movies and once shipped a black dress overnight to Jacqueline Kennedy when she requested it for the funeral of her husband. One of the first French fashion designers to create an international empire under his signature, Givenchy had a statuesque physique, perfect grooming and Old World manners. He was 91.

As the executive in charge of NBC’s daytime programming in the early 1970s, Lin Bolen was the highest ranking woman in television and an agent of change. Bolen was so driven, so confident and so energetic that many co-workers were convinced that Faye Dunaway’s ratings-obsessed character in the film “Network” was based on her. She was 76.

Mathilde Krim rose to prominence as an AIDS researcher and global crusader in the early fight against the deadly disease. Both fascinated and horrified by the mysterious virus that was taking a heavy toll on gay communities across America, Krim sought to both understand the disease and raise funds for better and quicker research. She was 91.

In a 52-year career, Keith Jackson covered an array of sports for radio and TV, but he was best known as ABC’s voice of college football — and for the homespun phrases he used in reporting it. Linemen were not guards and tackles, they were “the big uglies.” And, of course, there was “Whoa, Nellie!,” which became known as his signature phrase. He was 89.

A Los Angeles art world fixture, Ed Moses was one of the city’s most productive and experimental artists of the last half-century. Moses formed the “Cool School” of artists — which included Ed Ruscha, Robert Irwin, Larry Bell, Edward Kienholz, John Altoon, Ken Price and Billy Al Bengston — at L.A.’s influential Ferus Gallery in the 1950s and ‘60s. He was 91.

Often called the “Father of South African jazz,” Hugh Masekela was also an anti-apartheid activist who succeeded in fusing politics with his music, making his songs and performances compelling and timeless. The trumpeter, flugelhornist, singer and composer was affectionately known locally as “Bra Hugh.” He was 78.