Milestones

By Melissa August, Harriet Barovick, Elizabeth L. Bland, Unmesh Kher, Kate Novack, Sora Song and Heather Won Tesoriero

CRUMBLED. THE OLD MAN OF THE MOUNTAIN, the stern granite profile, which has for generations been the state's most recognizable landmark, carved naturally by a glacier 30,000 years ago into New Hampshire's Cannon Mountain; as a result of erosion, after decades of efforts to preserve it; in Franconia Notch State Park. The 40-ft. face has appeared on license plates, postage stamps and the state quarter. New Hampshire officials are debating whether to restore the monument.

DIED. SUZY PARKER, 69, 1950s supermodel whose red hair, green eyes and much envied bone structure made her Coco Chanel's "signature" face and the highest-paid model of her day; after a series of illnesses; in Montecito, Calif. A favorite subject of Richard Avedon, she inspired the Audrey Hepburn role in the 1957 film Funny Face, in which she also appeared. Her brief film career included a lead role in the 1957 comedy Kiss Them for Me opposite Cary Grant.

DIED. JACK GELBER, 71, influential playwright whose 1959 work The Connection was a milestone of stage experimentation; of a form of blood cancer; in New York City. With its raw depiction of a world of dope addicts and its blurring of the line between stage life and real life, The Connection put off many critics ("A farrago of dirt"--the New York Times), but helped pave the way for more innovations in style and subject matter.

DIED. RUSSELL B. LONG, 84, Democratic Senator from Louisiana for 38 years; of apparent heart failure; in Washington. First elected in 1948, a day shy of his 30th birthday, he became the first Senator preceded in the chamber by both parents: the legendary Huey P. Long and Rose McConnell Long. A master of procedural rules and tax arcana, he was responsible for, among other things, the earned-income tax credit and the $1 taxpayer checkoff box to fund presidential campaigns.

DIED. GEORGE WYLE, 87, creator, along with producer Sherwood Schwartz, of one of TV's most whistleable tunes, The Ballad of Gilligan's Isle, the theme from the popular 1960s sitcom Gilligan's Island; of leukemia; in Tarzana, Calif. He wrote more than 400 other songs, including the Christmas classic The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

DIED. WALTER SISULU, 90, steadfast, low-profile crusader against apartheid who, with close friend Nelson Mandela, led the African National Congress (A.N.C.), co-founded its Youth League and engineered the struggle for South African democracy; in Soweto, South Africa. Sisulu, who recruited Mandela into the A.N.C. and later served as his trusted adviser during Mandela's presidency, spent a quarter-century with Mandela in the Robben Island prison. The son of a construction worker and a maid, he inspired reverence among inmates with his teachings and strength. "It was not possible to despair," he said after his release. "The spirit of the people outside was too great."