Donald Baim NATICK, Mass (AP) _ Dr. Donald Baim, a renowned cardiologist and medical device executive, died Friday following surgery to treat a form of cancer, his family said in a statement. He was 60. Baim had undergone recent surgery to remove diseased tissue caused by adrenal cancer, a rare form of the disease that attacks the adrenal glands. Baim, a former Harvard medical school professor, most recently served as chief medical officer for Boston Scientific Corp., a leading manufacturer of pacemakers, defibrillators and other implants. He joined the company in 2006. Boston Scientific Chief Executive Ray Elliot called Baim, a pioneer in the development of interventional cardiology. Baim joined Harvard Medical School in 1981 and established the interventional cardiology program at Beth Israel medical center, a teaching hospital for Harvard students. The program specialized in training surgeons to use new medical devices, including stents. The mesh-metal tubes are used to prop open arteries after they have been cleared of fatty plaque. Baim edited the standard medical textbook for using the devices. ___ Nick Counter LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Nick Counter, a longtime negotiator for Hollywood producers who led the studios through two grueling writers' strikes last year and in 1988, has died. He was 69. The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers says Counter died at a Los Angeles hospital on Friday. Counter served as the group's president for 27 years and negotiated more than 300 collective bargaining agreements with entertainment industry guilds and unions on behalf of movie studios, television networks and independent producers. Current AMPTP President Carol Lombardini says Counter's ability to find consensus at the bargaining table led to a sustained era of labor peace. His family says he was most proud of his work with the industry health and pension plans. ___ Art D'Lugoff NEW YORK (AP) _ Art D'Lugoff, whose famed New York City nightclub, the Village Gate, featured performers from jazz great Duke Ellington to 1960s counterculture rocker Jimi Hendrix, has died at age 85, his brother said. D'Lugoff, who lived in the Bronx, died Wednesday at a Manhattan hospital. His brother, Dr. Burt D'Lugoff, said an autopsy was performed Friday to determine the cause of death. Continued... |