NEWSMAKERS
NEWSMAKERS
Pips member William Guest dies
LOS ANGELES
William Guest, a member of Gladys Knight and the Pips, has died. He was 74.
Guest’s sister-in-law, Dhyana Ziegler, says he died Thursday in Detroit of congestive heart failure.
Guest performed with the Grammy-winning group from 1953 to 1989. They released such hits such as “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “Midnight Train to Georgia.”
Mark Twain coin will be boon for museums
HANNIBAL, Mo.
Mark Twain once quipped, “The lack of money is the root of all evil.”
But starting early next year, some of Twain’s favorite places – his Missouri hometown, the New England community where he spent a big part of his adult life and two universities – all stand to benefit from the U.S. Mint’s gold and silver coins honoring the author and humorist.
Up to 100,000 gold coins and 350,000 silver coins bearing Twain’s mug will be available throughout 2016 or until they are sold out, U.S. Mint spokesman Mike White said.
Each year, the mint strikes two commemorative coins to benefit nonprofit organizations. As collectables, the coins are worth far more than their $1 face value for silver and $5 for gold. For example, 2015 commemorative silver coins recently were priced at about $52, gold for about $360.
Each carries a surcharge – $35 for gold, $10 for silver – to be divided evenly among the Mark Twain House & Museum in Hartford, Conn.; University of California, Berkeley, for a program to study and promote the legacy of Twain; Elmira College in Elmira, N.Y.; and the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum in Hannibal, Mo.
Associated Press