Now Hear This: People Trends and Ideas - January/February 2011

People Trends and Ideas

Holocaust survivor farewell Mr Goodwrench salute to disabled vets

She's a Survivor Judging from her page, Alice Herz-Sommer is an inspiration to many. The 107-year-old Londoner, once a concert pianist in Central Europe, is believed to be the oldest living survivor of the Holocaust. A documentary about her life, Alice Dancing Under the Gallows, is in the works for release later this year. Herz-Sommer, who performed more than 100 concerts while in a concentration camp, says she refuses to hate those who imprisoned her and her family: "I … have lost everything, including my husband, my mother and my beloved son [who died in 2001]," she says. "Yet, life is beautiful." Farewell, Mr. Goodwrench He's hawked General Motors parts and service since the mid-1970s, sponsored NASCAR racing, and has been parodied by comedians Stephen Colbert and Jay Leno. But the iconic Mr. Goodwrench will be no more. A leaner GM says Mr. Goodwrench will be replaced Feb. 1 by new brand-specific labels, such as Chevrolet Certified Service. GM has closed Pontiac, Hummer, Saab and Saturn and wants to focus marketing and advertising dollars on its surviving brands — Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac. Salute to Disabled Vets More than 3 million disabled vets will be honored when the planned is finished. A groundbreaking was recently held on a two-acre triangular site near the U.S. Capitol in Washington. The memorial "expresses our pride, our love and our respect for the service, integrity and courage of America's disabled veterans," says Rick Fenstermacher, CEO of the memorial foundation. The $86 million marble, bronze and glass tribute, to be completed in about two years, will feature a star-shaped fountain. Mike Tucker is a writer in Virginia.
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