LEONARD J. SOUTH Died Jan. 6, 2006 - Cinematographer Leonard J. South died of pneumonia at age 92. Mr. South was also suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease. Leonard South was one of Alfred Hitchcock’s regular collaborators. He began working for Hitchcock as a camera operator in the days when cinematographer Robert Burks oversaw the photography of Hitchcock’s films. Mr. South was hired as the cinematographer on Hitchcock’s final film Family Plot. Mr. South was the camera operator on the best films made by Alfred Hitchcock. He personally shot two of Hitch’s most famous scenes: the crop-duster attack in North By Northwest and the final attack on Tippi Hedron by The Birds. Mr. South's Hitchcock credits include Strangers on a Train, Dial M for Murder, Rear Window, To Catch a Thief, The Trouble With Harry, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Vertigo, North by Northwest, Psycho, The Birds, Marnie, Torn Curtain, Frenzy and Family Plot. Mr. South appears as himself in some of the Making Of documentaries found on the new 15 DVD Alfred Hitchcock Masterpiece Collection. Mr. South worked as a camera operator for other directors also. He worked on such films as Hondo, Houseboat and The Cincinnati Kid. In 1968, Mr. South moved up and began his career as a cinematographer. He shot Hang ‘Em High, Clint Eastwood’s first post-Sergio Leone Western. Rod Serling called on Mr. South to lens nearly 20 Night Gallery episodes. Most of Mr. South’s work from 1970 on was in TV. He shot a number of Made for TV movies as well as such TV series like Designing Women and The Rockford Files. Mr. Smith did work on the occasional feature film such as Disney’s Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo and The North Avenue Irregulars. Mr. South served his country in the US Army Air Force during WWII.

MARGARET RUTH WOOD Died Feb. 4, 2006 - Her only film scene ended up on the cutting room floor. However, Margaret Ruth Wood’s legacy to the world of cinema is immeasurable. She was the mother of Oscar-winning director, movie star, action hero, 20^th Century Icon and Man With No Name Clint Eastwood. Margaret Ruth Wood died at age 97. One of the most heartwarming Oscar acceptance speeches ever given was delivered by Clint Eastwood in 1993 when he spoke about his mother, stating that she was the most important woman in his life. Mr. Eastwood won the Oscar for his film Unforgiven. By the way, Unforgiven was the one film in which Margaret Ruth Wood would have appeared, had her scene not been cut by the director, Clint Eastwood!

ROBERT "BOB" MARSHAK, Died February 14, 2006 - Still Photographer lost his battle with pancreatic cancer and died at the age of 53. He was a member of ICG Local 600 for 12 years. His credits include: Spanglish, Silver City, Mona Lisa Smile, Something's Gotta Give, Solaris, xXx, Full Frontal, Ocean's Eleven, Good Advice, The Fast and the Furious, Traffic, Erin Brockovich, The Limey, The Big Brass Ring, No Code of Conduct, Rush Hour, Violon rouge, Le, Bad Day on the Block, Money Talks, Nothing to Lose, The Arrival, Home for the Holidays, White Man's Burden, Mad Love, Roommates, Terminal Velocity, Barcelona, Fresh, Striking Distance, Naked in New York, That Night, Passion Fish (photo effects & still photographer), The Gun in Betty Lou's Handbag, City of Hope, Dogfight, Thousand Pieces of Gold, Out for Justice, Queens Logic, Green Card, Navy Seals, Miss Firecracker, Her Alibi, Eight Men Out, Call Me, Matewan, Forever, Lulu, The Brother from Another Planet.

ALFRED BAALAS Died Feb. 28, 2006 - Cameraman Alfred Baalas died at age 96. Mr. Baalas was a member of the 1928 graduating class of Hollywood High! He served his country in the US Army during WWII. Prior to the war, Mr. Baalas began working as an assistant cameraman for Technicolor Picture Corp. He made training films during the war. The long-time member of I.A.T.S.E. and the International Cinematographers Guild who worked as a cameraman on many classic films. He helped capture the images on such films as Mutiny on the Bounty, The Ten Commandments, South Pacific, the original version of Around the World in 80 Days, High Noon, The Searchers, Rio Bravo, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Dirty Harry and Play Misty for Me.

GORDON PARKS Died Mar. 7, 2006 (93) -  a photojournalist, film director, writer, playwright and composer. Gordon Parks was one of America’s premiere photojournalists in the post WWII era. He worked for Life Magazine from 1948 through 1968. A tumultuous era in US history. During his time with Life, Gordon Parks directed two short documentaries. His first short film Flavio came about from a Life Magazine assignment in Brazil. Mr. Parks chronicled the story of a poor Brazilian boy who was very ill. His photo essay resulted in worldwide monetary donations, which saved the child and his family. Gordon Park’s photography of poverty were not only taken in third world countries. He aimed his camera at the ugly underbelly of poverty and racism in the US. In 1969, Gordon Parks turned to feature film directing. He became the first Black American to directed a studio feature. Gordon Park’s The Learning Tree was based on his own autobiographical novel. He wrote the script, composed the score and directed the film. The Learning Tree was one of the first films placed in the National Film Registry. In 1971 Gordon Parks directed his second film. Shaft was a success, grossing 12 times its production budget. Richard Roundtree starred as the tough, sexy private detective. An urban hero who appealed to all races. Shaft spawned several excellent sequels and a TV series. Mr. Parks directed the first sequel Shaft’s Big Score. He only directed a few films after Shaft. Mr. Parks directed the cop comedy The Super Cops. Mr. Parks was the subject of the TV documentary Half Past Autumn: The Life and Works of Gordon Parks. Gordon Parks’ film legacy also lived through his blood. His son Gordon Parks Jr. directed the films as Superfly, Thomasina and Bushrod, Three the Hard Way and Aaron Loves Angela. The younger Mr. Parks was tragically killed in a 1979 plane crash in Kenya while scouting locations for a film.

PAUL HIPP Died Apr. 10, 2006 - Cinematographer Paul Hipp died at age 68. Mr. Hipp’s career began in porn and ended up in family films. Along the way he also shot a number of horror and sci-fi films. Paul Hipp lenses such early adult classics as Thar She Blows! and Trader Hornee. His horror film credits include The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant and The Boogens. From soft core porn to such films as In Search of the Historic Jesus and The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams. Talk about your varied career! Mr. Hipp often worked with such noted exploitation icons as David F. Friedman and William A. Castleman.

THOMAS JAMES ABERCROMBIE 75 BALTIMORE, MD (April 4, 2006) ­ Thomas James Abercrombie, 75, a legendary National Geographic magazine photographer and writer, an NPPA life member since 1952 and a WHNPA member since 1960, died Monday afternoon at Johns Hopkins Hospital following heart surgery. Abercrombie was on the magazine¹s staff for 38 years. For the October 1966 issue of the magazine he took the first photographs of Mecca published in the Western world. He joined National Geographic in 1956 five years after graduating from Macalister College in St. Paul, MN, with a degree in art and journalism. Before National Geographic he was a staff photographer for The Milwaukee Journal, where he was Newspaper Photographer of the Year for his portfolio in 1954.

ANTHONY JAMES RYAN Died Apr. 15, 2006 - Long-time Russ Meyer collaborator Jim Ryan died at age 84. The two men met during WWII when they were combat photographers together in Europe. Mr. Ryan costarred with Russ Meyer’s second wife Eve in the 1961 nudie Eve and the Handyman. Eve Meyer was killed in the famous collision between two 747 Jumbo Jets in the Canary Islands in March 1977. Jim Ryan acted in two other Russ Meyer film. His biggest contributions were as a writer and producer of several of Russ Meyer’s films. Mr. Ryan wrote the stories for Vixen!, Black Snake and Up! He was a producer on Finders Keepers, Lovers Weepers (also actor), Vixen!, Cherry, Harry & Raquel, Black Snake and Supervixens! He was also an assistant cameraman on Vixen!

HERBERT RADITSCHNIG Died May 6, 2006 - Cinematographer and camera operator Herbert Raditschnig died of complications from a stroke at age 72. Mr. Raditschnig was well known for his skill as an alpine photographer. He shot mountain sequences for the James Bond films Goldeneye and For Your Eyes Only. Mr. Raditschnig was the cinematographer on Bergwind, The Outing and The 500 Pound Jerk. Other credits include Five Days One Summer, Scream of Stone and White Rock.

MIKE CHEVALIER Died June 12, 2006 - Cinematographer and cameraman Mike Chevalier died of a heart attack while participating in a Hash House Harriers run. He was 62 years old. The Hash House Harriers are groups world wide who like to finish up a run with cold beer. The group was founded in England in the 1930s. Instead of a pub crawl, I guess it is a pub run or jog. Mike Chevalier worked behind the camera in various capacities. He was a camera operator, assistant cameraman, director of photography and cinematographer. Mr. Chevalier was cinematographer on the award-winning documentary 16 Days of Glory, which covered the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Mr. Chevalier worked on such films as Superman, Rocky II, Big Wednesday, 1941, Rocky III, Heartbrteak Ridge, Colors and JFK..

MONTY BERMAN Died June 14, 2006 - Producer/cinematographer/director Monty Berman died at age 94. Mr. Berman rose from camera operator and cinematographer to successful B-movie movie producer. Horror movie fans remember Mr. Berman for producing such films as Blood of the Vampire, The Crawling Eye, Jack the Ripper and Mania. Mr. Berman was partners with producer Robert Baker. The pair made over 30 films together. Mr. Berman also photographed and directed a number of them. He was an assistant camera operator on Carol Reed’s classic Film Noir The Third Man. Mr. Berman later produced several TV series including The Saint.

JAY DEE SKIDMORE Died June 15, 2006 - Naval photographer Jay Dee Skidmore died at age 78. Mr. Skidmore made a career of the Navy. He served during WWII and Korea. Mr. Skidmore was one of the men who developed the Navy’s underwater cameras. He worked as a cameraman for American master John Ford. Mr. Skidmore was a stuntman in the submarine movie Run Silent, Run Deep. He helped photograph the 1959 film Up Periscope. Mr. Skidmore also did cameraman work for ABC’s Wide World of Sports.

MOOSE Died June 22, 2006 - Moose, the Jack Russell Terrier who played ‘Eddie’ for ten years on the hit TV series Frasier died of old age at age 16. Moose also played the older Skip in the excellent family film My Dog Skip.

ROLAND SCHLOTZHAUER Died June 30, 2006 - Cinematographer Roland Schlotzhauer was killed in a helicopter crash while filming scenes for the Sean Astin film The Final Season in Iowa. Witnesses say that the pilot clipped some power lines sending the helicopter into a cornfield. Producer Tony Wilson and the pilot survived, but remain in critical condition. Mr. Schlotzhauer was known as an expert cameraman specializing in aerial work in helicopters. Mr. Schlotzhouer’s other credits include Raising Jeffery Dahmer, Spike Lee’s CSA: The Confederate States of America and several IMAX features included Celebrate Detroit, Kansas City Presents and We the People.

NICHOLAS WEBSTER Died Aug. 12, 2006 - Director Nicholas Webster died at age 94. Mr. Webster directed documentaries, feature films and TV. Award-winning TV documentary writer-producer-director Nicholas Webster, who also directed features such as Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, died in Santa Monica after an extended illness. He was 94. His 1961 documentary Walk in My Shoes for the ABC Close Up about blacks in America was Emmy-nommed as Show of the Year. Other subjects he covered included I Remember, a return to the Auschwitz concentration camps; Meet Comrade Student about Russian education, and The Long Childhood of Timmy, about childhood mental retardation. He also directed ABC's first color special, a tour of The Vatican. He also directed documentaries for NBC (David Brinkley's Journal) and CBS (The Twentieth Century, with Walter Cronkite.) Moving to feature films, he directed the film version of Ossie Davis' Broadway play Purlie Victorious, with Alan Alda and Ruby Dee; and directed Pia Zadora in her first film, the 1964 cult pic Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. Other features included Mission Mars with Darren McGavin and Nick Adams; and No Longer Alone, plus the feature release documentary Manbeast: Myth or Monster. In 1969 he wrote, produced, and directed the ABC special, The Draft -- Who Serves? on the growing opposition to the war in Vietnam, winning the Christopher Award. Through the 1970s he directed primetime dramas Bonanza, Mannix, The FBI, and The Waltons. Combining his drama and documentary experience, he produced and directed the Emmy nommed The Last Days of John Dillinger for David Wolper, followed by Showdown at O.K. Corral. He co-wrote, directed and produced docu-musical, Johnny Cash Ridin' the Rails, The Great American Train Story, with partner Dyann Rivkin. He also directed, co-produced and wrote many In Search Of...  programs with Leonard Nimoy, as well as historical recreation segments of Ripley's Believe it or Not. His 1997 autobiography, How To Sleep On A Camel, Adventures of A Documentary Film Director, notes that he directed his Hollywood High senior class movie in the late 1920s, and was a bit player in All Quiet on the Western Front. He went on to be a cutter at MGM, an army cinematographer during World War II, a documentarian for the U.S. Department of Agriculture after the war, and a commercial director in New York before returning to Hollywood in the 1960s. He was a former Board Member of the International Documentary Association. Webster is survived by his wife Diana, sons Brett, a cinematographer,  Lance, an entertainment publicist; and daughters Juliet and Cynthia.

JOE ROSENTHAL Died Aug. 20, 2006 - Pulitzer prize winning photographer Joe Rosenthal died of natural causes at age 94. Mr. Rosenthal took one of the most famous photographs of WWII. He captured the image of the US Marines raising the flag on Mt. Suribachi during the February 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima. The picture was also immortalized on a US postage stamp. Mr. Rosenthal’s photo was the basis for the Marine Corps War Memorial in Washington D.C. Mr. Rosenthal appeared in a number of documentaries about the famous photo including The Heroes of Iwo Jima and his photograph is the subject of Academy Award winning Actor-Director Clint Eastwood's two films Flags of our Fathers, and its sister movie Letters From Iwo Jima.

NELLIE CONNALLY Died Aug. 31, 2006 - She spoke one of the most ironic lines in US history. On November 22, 1963 Texas first lady Nellie Connally turned around in her seat and told President John Kennedy "Mr. President, you can’t say that Dallas doesn’t love you." An instant later three bullets killed the president and seriously wounded her husband, then Texas governor John Connally. Nellie Connally died in her sleep at age 87. She was the last surviving passenger in the JFK limo. Nellie Connally appeared in The Zapruder Film, one of the most closely scrutinized pieces of celluloid ever filmed. Ms. Connally also appeared in a number of documentaries and feature films dealing with the assassination of JFK. He credits include The Shot That Shook the World, Oliver Stone’s JFK and Nixon, Ruby, Executive Action and Four Days in November.

TIM HOLLINGS Died Sept. 17, 2006 - Cinematographer and businessman Tim Hollings died of a brain tumor at age 55. Mr. Hollings lensed the award-winning Canadian film Storm. He also appeared in a documentary about the making of Storm. Mr. Hollings later started his own company: Manda Film and Video.

SVEN NYKVIST Died Sept. 20, 2006 - He was one of the true masters in the world of cinematography. The right-hand-man of Ingmar Bergman on over 20 of the grand director’s films. His work was elegant and simple. Simple but not easy. If it were easy, then anyone with a camera could be Sven Nykvist. He was a "one and only." Multi-Oscar winning cinematographer Sven Nykvist died after a lengthy illness at age 83. He had suffered from a rare form of dementia for some time. Sven Nykvist collaborated with Swedish master Ingmar Bergman on over 20 films. Though the two worked together once in the early 1950s, it was the 1960 film The Virgin Spring which marked the beginning of their steady collaboration. Bergman’s work in the 1960s is one of the most powerful bodies of work by any director in the history of cinema. There is no doubt that much of the power of those films was in large part due to the camera work of Sven Nykvist. His technique was the opposite of Film Noir, yet no less exciting and influential. Mr. Nykvist achieved beauty through simplistic lighting. He perfected the use of natural lighting, which enhanced the introspective subject matter of the director’s work and the actor’s performances. He was a master of Black and White and also Color cinematography. Sven Nykvist’s credits with Ingmar Bergman include Through a Glass Darkly, Winter Light, Hour of the Wolf,The Silence, Shame, The Serpent’s Egg, Persona, Scenes From a Marriage and The Passion of Anna. Sven Nykvist was nominated for three Oscars. He won twice for Bergman’s Cries and Whispers and Fanny and Alexander. His third nomination was for Philip Kaufman’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being. Other awards include a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Cinematographers, two BAFTA nominations, three nominations including one win from the British Society of Cinematographers, a win at Cannes, a Cesar Award, an Independent Spirit Award, a Guldbagge Award and a myriad of other such accolades from film festivals and critic societies around the world. Sven Nykvist was sought out by other great directors. Bergman fan Woody Allen worked with him on four projects including Crimes and Misdemeanors. Mr. Nykvist helped Roman Polanski achieve a twisted madness in The Tenant. Fellow Swede Lasse Halstrom called on Sven Nykvist twice, most notably in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? Mr. Nykvist’s cinematography was one of the few things that did work in Bob Raphelson’s remake of The Postman Always Rings Twice. He helped achieve the feeling of the hopeless doom of Stalin’s political prisons in One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. He captured the beauty of ancient in the 1972 adaptation of Herman Hesse’s novel Sidhartha. He worked with Louis Malle on Pretty Baby and Black Moon. Other notable cinematography credits include Richard Fleischer’s The Last Run, The Dove, King of the Gypsies, Cannery Row, Star 80, Agnes of God, Chaplin and Sleepless in Seattle. Sven Nykvist also directed a handful of films. Those include The Ox, One on One and Gorilla. He was the father of director Carl-Gustaf Nykvist. Carl-Gustaf documented his father’s career in Light Keeps Me Company. More valuable to students of film is the amazing documentary Visions of Light.

JIM GLENNON Death announced Oct. 20, 2006 - Emmy-winning cinematographer Jim Glennon died at age 64. Mr. Glennon won an Emmy for his work on the HBO series Deadwood. He was the son of Oscar-nominated cinematographer Bert Glennon (Stagecoach). Mr. Glennon first worked his craft as a camera operator and assistant cameraman on such films as The Conversation, Breaking Away, The Electric Horseman, Absence of Malice, Altered States, True Confessions, Taps and Fast Times at Ridgemont High. He was the location director of photography on Return of the Jedi. Mr. Glennon’s was the cinematographer on nearly 60 films and TV shows. His many credits include El Norte, Flight of the Navigator, The West Wing, About Schmidt, Local Boys and Big Love.

VINCENT ALEXANDER FINNIGAN passed away peacefully at home on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2006. He is survived by his five children, five grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. Mr. Finnigan was a former President of the Professional Photographers Society of Greater Washington D.C., a member of the Professional Photographers of America (achieving the Photographic Craftsman Award), a member of the White House News Photographers Association (where he founded the White House News Photographers Association High School Photography seminar which is an on-going annual event), and a member of the National Press Photographers Association. He was a free-lance photographer for over 50 years in the Washington, D.C. area, covering a wide range of assignments, from portraits and weddings, to political events and international news stories (as a photo correspondent for the Keystone Press based in Europe). Mr. Finnigan's photographic assignments took him around the globe to Asia, Australia, South America, Europe, and all over North America.

ARNIE SACHS 78, died Nov. 3 at his daughter's home in Dunkirk of bone cancer. A Washington news photographer who took a memorable image from 1963 of a young Bill Clinton shaking hands with President John F. Kennedy in the White House Rose Garden.  Mr. Sachs was on a freelance assignment for the American Legion that July 24 when Clinton came from Arkansas to the White House for the Legion's youth leadership group, Boys Nation. Mostly, he photographed Legion officials posing with the president. "Next thing I know, this kid barrels through the line and grabs the president's hand, so I took the shot," he later told the Baltimore Jewish Times. In his memoir, "My Life," Clinton said he was determined to shake the president's hand, but the moment with Kennedy did not instigate his presidential aspirations. However, Mr. Sachs's picture was heavily promoted during the 1992 Democratic national convention and has since been much reproduced. Benjamin Ginsberg, a Johns Hopkins University political science professor, told the Baltimore Jewish Times that the picture was important for how it appeared to make Clinton Kennedy's heir apparent. Arnold Sachs was born June 17, 1928, in the Bronx, N.Y., and began his professional life as a jeweler's apprentice. Bored by his job and riveted by the pictures he saw in the New York Daily Mirror, a Hearst tabloid, he opted for a photojournalism career. He soon sold his first picture, of a house fire in his neighborhood. In 1946, he became a messenger boy for Hearst newspapers in New York, and five years later, he was a Washington-based photographer for Hearst's International News Photos wire service. His most enduring shot of the period, "Fallen Integration Fighter" (1957), showed a Little Rock protester lying on the ground and trying to wrest a bayonet from a paratrooper as the soldiers march over him. That picture won the White House News Photographers' Association grand prize and spot news awards. He also worked for the old Washington Star and, starting in the early 1960s, spent more than 20 years with Agence France-Presse. For much of his life, he and his wife also co-owned and operated a photographic news agency and a retail store in Southeast Washington. Consolidated News Photos and the Congressional Photo Shoppe, respectively, operated from the same store a block from Capitol Hill. He covered political conventions and spacecraft launches and took many freelance assignments that brought him in contact with world leaders in Washington. In all, he covered 11 presidents, from Harry S. Truman to George W. Bush and 13 inaugurals. Mr. Sachs, an Oxon Hill resident, was a Democratic Party volunteer in Prince George's County. He took campaign pictures for Del. Charles S. Blumenthal (D-Prince George's) when Blumenthal, running for the U.S. House in 1976, made a parachute jump to recall his hale days as a World War II paratrooper. Sachs pioneered the use of satellite photo transmission in the 1960s, and during the Eisenhower administration became the first photographer to cover a presidential press conference using 35mm film, according to the web site of the White House News Photographers Association. Blumenthal did not win the race but got a great deal of publicity. Mr. Sachs, who described civil rights as a lifetime concern, played a role in getting the White House News Photographers' Association to include Maurice Sorrell of Johnson Publications as one of its first black members. He won the association's lifetime achievement award for still photography in 2001. His wife of 54 years, Lorraine Chimkin Sachs, died in 2004. Survivors include four children, Ronald M. Sachs of Silver Spring, Howard L. Sachs of Woodbridge, Todd S. Sachs of Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., and Susan Sachs Brown of Dunkirk; two sisters; six grandchildren; and a great-grandson. (Photo by Ron Sachs)

 

WILLIAM M. BAGNALL 80, died Nov. 22, 2006 (Details Soon), Cinematographer, Photographer, Editor & Publisher. Born in March of 1926.

 

 

TIMOTHY BARRY, 54 - Died December 27, 2006, he was an assistant cameraman for KTLA-TV Channel 5 in Los Angeles, died while trying to pull his Niece and Grandniece from the surf, he dove into the surf off Ventura in an attempt to rescue relatives, who both survived.

By Gregory W. Griggs, LA Times Staff Writer December 27, 2006 -  Barry, who lived on Bangor Lane just two houses from the beach, ran to the water and dove into the surf to help the girl and her mother, his 24-year-old niece. The mother made it back to shore herself and the girl was rescued, but authorities said the circumstances were unclear.  The names of the mother and daughter were not released, but they were identified as Paso Robles residents. The mother was treated and released from Ventura County Medical Center, but intended to stay with her daughter, who was to be kept overnight for observation, according to a family member. Authorities said the first emergency call came in about 11:15 a.m., reporting that a woman and a child had been swept off a rock jetty. Waves were estimated at 12 feet high. Lt. Jack Futoran, who supervises the 60 state lifeguards who patrol most of the sand from Oxnard to Carpinteria, said the child already was on the beach by the time rescuers arrived. Barry, however, was unconscious and floating face-down in the water, Futoran said. He was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 11:47 a.m., according to the county coroner's office. An autopsy was scheduled for today. "It was a totally selfless act; he didn't even hesitate to jump in the water," said Sue Barry, his wife of 11 years. "I am truly going to miss him, because he was such a wonderful man, very giving." About three dozen relatives were visiting the Barry's at their home in the Pierpont section of Ventura on Tuesday when the accident happened, Sue Barry said. Timothy Barry recently worked on the Hollywood Christmas Parade and was scheduled to work the upcoming Rose Bowl Parade and a Clippers basketball game, Sue Barry said. Barry is also survived by sons Josh, 25, and Chris, 32, daughter-in-law Kelly and a 4-year-old grandson, Conner.