They Died 2021

8 THEY DIED 2021 L ARRY KING, the suspenders-sporting everyman whose broadcast interviews with world leaders, movie stars and ordinary Joes helped define American conversation for a half-century, has died. He was 87. King died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, his production company, Ora Me- dia, tweeted. No cause of death was given, but a spokesperson said January 4 that King had CO- VID-19, had received supplemental oxygen and had been moved out of intensive care. His son Chance Armstrong also confirmed King’s death, CNN reported. A long-time nationally syndicated radio host, from 1985 through 2010 King was a nightly fixture on CNN, where he won many honours, including two Peabody awards. With his celebrity interviews, political deba- tes and topical discussions, King wasn’t just an enduring on-air personality. He also set himself apart with the curiosity he brought to every in- terview, whether questioning the assault victim known as the Central Park jogger or billionaire industrialist Ross Perot, who in 1992 rocked the presidential contest by announcing his candidacy on King’s show. He was the plainspoken go-between through whom Beltway bigwigs could reach their public, and they did, earning the ‘Larry King Live’ show prestige as a place where things happened, whe- re news was made. King conducted an estimated 50,000 on-air in- terviews. In 1995 he presided over a Middle East peace summit with PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat, King Hussein of Jordan and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. He welcomed everyone from the Dalai Lama to Elizabeth Taylor, from Mikhail Gor- bachev to Barack Obama, Bill Gates to Lady Gaga. King boasted of never overpreparing for an interview. His non-confrontational style relaxed his guests and made him readily relatable to his audience. – AP Broadcasting giant Larry King dies at 87 P U B L I S H E D J A N UA R Y 2 4 , 2 0 2 1 He was the plainspoken go-between through whom Beltway bigwigs could reach their public, and they did, earning the ‘Larry King Live’ show prestige as a place where things happened, where news was made.