Boxing writer Bert Sugar died Sunday of cardiac arrest at the age of 75 in Mount Kisco, N.Y., according to the Associated Press via ESPN.
Known for his always donning a fedora and smoking cigars, Sugar is credited with writing over 80 books on boxing and in 2005, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
"Bert was obviously a showman in the way he did things outwardly, very flamboyant," said Jack Hirsch, the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. "But in quiet moments I found him to be an extremely modest individual."
Born in Washington, D.C., Sugar became a lawyer before working in advertising. It was not until the 1970s that Sugar began delving into writing.
"Around ringside, it's not going to be the same with Bert not there," Hirsch said.
March 2012 Archives
Rev. Curtis Herron led the Zion Baptist Church, one of Minneapolis' largest black congregations, for forty years and used his influence to affect social change, dying March 18 at 80 according to the Star Tribune.
A native of Kansas City, Kan., Herron moved his family to Minneapolis in 1970 after graduating form the University of Kansas and Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Early on at Zion, Herron organized boycotts against Carson Pirie Scott and Dayton's for their mistreatment of black customers.
His most memorable piece of activism came in 1999 when he was among those arrested for protesting the demolition of public housing in north Minneapolis. "Just because you're under attack doesn't mean that you aren't protected," Herron was quoted as saying in regards to times of trouble.
Herron's son, Brian, a former Minneapolis City Council Member who plead guilty to extortion in 2001, now leads the church.
John Billman, a World War II veteran and two-time national football champion under legendary Minnesota Gopher coach Bernie Bierman, died March 16 at the age of 92 according to the Star Tribune.
Raised in northeast Minneapolis, Billman enrolled at the University of Minnesota in 1939, playing football under Bernie Bierman before graduating with a degree in mortuary science in 1942.
He then enlisted in the Navy, serving as the captain of a PT boat in the South Pacific.
"Dad was so proud that he served his country, although he never talked about war stories," his daughter, Jennifer Redmond, said to the Star Tribune. "But his favorite TV show was 'McHale's Navy'."
Retiring from his mortuary business in 1983, Billman traveled the world with his wife Kit, while involving himself in philanthropy, starting fellowship and scholarship programs for horticulture, athletics, international studies, cancer research and Navy ROTC.
Jocky Wilson rose to prominence in 1982 after winning the World Championships, then again in 1989, dying yesterday at 62 of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the BBC reports.
Born in 1950 in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, Wilson learned to play the game in local bars, getting serious about the sport in his mid-20s, and turning professional in 1979. From then until 1991 Wilson had a stretch where he made at least the quarter-finals every year at the World Championships.
"He was such a good laugh to be with," said 15-time world champion Phil Taylor, said. "People talk about the great characters in darts and he's one of the greatest." Wilson was sometimes known to remove his dentures while playing.
Wilson left the game in 1995 and entirely receded from the limelight.
"I'm just an ordinary working boy," Wilson said in 1990. "Mixing with people is what I'm good at. Even if I had a million quid, I'd do the same."
John Demjanjuk, a man dogged by debates about his identity as a possible World War II war criminal, died on March 17 in a nursing home in southern Germany.
Born Ivan Demjanjuk in Ukraine on April 3 1920, Demjanjuk joined the Red Army and was captured by German forces in eastern Crimea in 1942, according to the BBC. His activities after that point remain debated. He moved to Cleveland after the war, becoming a naturalized citizen and working as an auto mechanic.
In 1985, Demjanjuk was extradited to Israel to stand trial for war crimes after evidence came to light that he might be 'Ivan the Terrible,' an infamous guard at the death camp in Treblinka. Convicted in 1988 by Israeli courts, the verdict was quashed in 1993 after new evidence pointed to another Ukrainian man as the real guard in question,.
Regaining his citizenship, Demjanjuk returned to the United States, only to be charged again in 2009 by a Munich court. Convicted in 2011, Demjanjuk's family maintains his innocence.
"[Demjanjuk died] a victim and a survivor of Soviet and German brutality," his son, John Demjanjuk Jr., said. " History will show Germany used him as a scapegoat to blame helpless Ukrainian P.O.W.'s for the deeds of Nazi Germans."
"I've gotta be the only superstar in the league that's going through what I'm going through right now," Chicago Bulls star Derrick Rose said in regards to his lack of calls from officials, after the Bulls home 104-99 win on Monday, according to ESPN.
That was enough to cost the normally cool and collected reigning MVP $25,000 on Tuesday.
Rose managed to channel his frustration with the referees during Monday's game against the New York Knicks, scoring 32 points but going to the line only nine times while taking hits on drives to the basket all game according to Sports Illustrated.
ESPN reports that Rose did not practice on Tuesday but will start for the Bulls Wednesday against the Miami Heat in a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference Finals.
"We did it again," Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Tuesday after his victories in the Alabama and Mississippi state primaries according to video of the speech on MSNBC.
The speech was laden with thanks to all those involved, from the constituents of those respective states to his family to, of course, God.
Santorum showed some levity, joking about his daughter Elizabeth "sacrifice" that found her campaigning for her father in Hawaii, a primary that he eventually lost to Mitt Romney by 20 percent of the vote according to the Associated Press.
Santorum looks forward to these next primaries, seeing a chance to ride his swelling momentum, saying that he would spend the next two days campaigning in Puerto Rico, eliciting a surprised gasp from the audience.
"Now, Missouri is next," Santorum said. "We will compete everywhere."
British Prime minister David Cameron held a joint press conference with President Barack Obama at the White House Wednesday, addressing progress in Afghanistan according to the BBC.
Despite the heavy losses of Afghan, British and American lives, both leaders were resolute in their desires to see the mission completed, with Aghan forces taking complete control by 2014.
"Our alliance is not one of convenience but rather a matter of conviction," Cameron said according to C-SPAN. "We will not give up on this mission; it must not be a safe haven for terrorists."
The president and prime minister attended the opening day of March Madness Tuesday, witnessing two record-setters according to ESPN.
The BBC reports the leaders will have a state dinner Wednesday evening, as Cameron's visit this week continues.
