Bombing Victim Lu Lingzi Remembered Back Home

The Chinese national was studying statistics at Boston University. She was killed in Monday's bombing at the Boston Marathon.

A Chinese newspaper has identified the third Boston Marathon bombing victim as Lu Lingzu, a Boston University graduate student, according to the Associated Press. Lu, from Shenyang, China, was studying statistics in Boston. A second Chinese national and BU student, Zhou Danling, was also injured in the blasts. She is listed in stable condition in a Boston hospital, according to Chinese officials. Lu's death has led to an outpouring from friends, family and concerned neighbors in China. Lu's Sina Weibo page already has 20,000 comments from shocked and upset friends (Sina Weibo is a Chinese social media service that combines Twitter- and Facebook-like features).  A former neighbor in China was elegiac when talking about Lu on his Sina Weibo …

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Rex Trailer Dies at 84; Share Your Memories, Photos

Boston TV icon hosted a children's show in the 1950s-1970s. Do you have any photos from back in the day?

      Rex Trailer, a Boston TV icon who had been recovering from pneumonia recently, has died. Trailer hosted “Boomtown,” a children’s show with a Western theme on WBZ-TV from 1956-1974.  How did a Western cowboy make his mark in Boston? According to Wikipedia, his corporate overlords gave him a choice of Cleveland or Boston. But he's remembered for more than his cowboy get-up. The Boston Globe wrote in an editorial last year: Kids adored Trailer’s rodeo tricks. But mostly they adored him for his consistent kindness and competence. Trailer was 84. A funeral is being planned, but no date has been set yet, according to his website.  Meantime, what are your memories of Rex Trailer? Did you ever meet him or have your picture taken with him? If…

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John Silber, Former Boston University President for 25 Years, Dead at 86

The longtime Boston University president and political figure in Massachusetts passed away on Sept. 27, 2012.

John R. Silber, who served as president at Boston University for more than two decades and was an influential - and controversial -  figure in Massachusetts politics, died on September 27 of kidney failure. He was 86.  Dr. Silber is credited with bringing Boston University from a commuter school to new levels of academic excellence, and was nearly elected governor of Massachusetts in 1990, losing narrowly to Bill Weld. Dr. Silber began at Boston University in 1971, served as president until 1996, then as University chancellor until 2003. During his tenure at BU, Dr. Silber expanded the university's campus, recruited accomplished professors and faculty, and improved BU's reputation considerably. Dr. Silber was widely known for his jarring …

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Bruce Bolling, 67, First Black Boston City Council President

Bolling was the Boston City Council President in 1986-1987. He died on Sept. 11.

Bruce Bolling, the first black Boston City Council president, died from cancer on Sept. 11. He was 67. Several politicians released statements about Bolling's passing. “I am saddened to learn of the passing of former City Councilor Bruce Bolling.  There are many who came before me who helped set the stage that allowed me to get elected," said Felix Arroyo, At-Large Boston City Councilor. "I have had the privilege of knowing Bruce my whole life. He has always been a friend and mentor to me, but most importantly, he was a great leader, husband and father. He will be missed.” City Council President Stephen Murphy tweeted: "He was a man who always championed the causes of others, never once thinking of himself." At-Large Boston City Councilor …

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Obituary: Edwin "Ned" Newdick

Mr. Newdick restored two run-down Tremont St. buildings in the 60s, before 'Restaurant Row' existed.

Ned Newdick, one of the South End's 1960s real estate pioneers, died in a Providence nursing home on Wednesday. He was eighty-eight. In 1970 Ned and his wife, Sally, who lived at 43 Upton Street, acquired two delapidated buildings, 574 to 580 Tremont Street, for just $74,000. With foresight, the Newdicks signed a lease with the soon-to-be "Calypso Cafe", which became the first restaurant on "Restaurant Row". When the Newdicks bought the Tremont Street properties, a gypsy had been telling fortunes at the 574 Tremont St. street level store. Ned worked tirelessly by hand to restore his run-down properties, creating a stylish basement apartment with a rose garden from a rat-infested space backing up on Alley 701. Ned's skills as a landscape …

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OBITUARY: Sheila Cheimets

Ms. Cheimets, a resident of Chester Square, passed away at the age of 75.