‘Mockingbird’ director dies

‘Mockingbird’ director dies

HARTFORD, Conn. — Robert Mulligan, who directed the classic film “To Kill a Mockingbird,” with its sensitive look at a child’s world shaken by the racism of a Southern town, has died at 83.

Mulligan died early Saturday at his home in Lyme, Conn., after a battle with heart disease, his wife, Sandy, said Monday.

Mulligan was nominated for an Oscar for “Mockingbird,” the adaptation of Harper Lee’s best-selling, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel.

The 1962 film starred Gregory Peck, who won the best-actor Oscar for his portrayal of Atticus Finch, the small-town lawyer who defends a black man falsely accused of rape.

Levert death spurs action

CLEVELAND — The death of R&B singer Sean Levert in Cleveland has led to a proposed new policy that provides more flexibility in giving inmates their anti-anxiety medication. The member of the 1980s R&B trio LeVert and son of lead O’Jays singer Eddie Levert died March 30 after becoming ill at the Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland.

The jail administrator and a jail doctor proposed the change to allow inmates to get their prescribed medication as soon as their prescriptions are verified. Levert’s widow, Angela Lowe, filed a wrongful death lawsuit in June accusing jail officials of neglecting his medical needs.

Today’s birthdays

Actress Susan Lucci is 62. Singer-musician Adrian Belew is 59. Rock singer Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam) is 44. The first lady of France, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, is 41. Actor Corey Haim is 37. Actress Estella Warren is 30.