The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 83

ANGELES TIMES THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2001 B11 Obituaries Helen Bennett; Actress, Beauty Queen Helen Bennett, 89, beauty queen, model and character actress known for her blond coiffure. Born in Springfield, Bennett was named Miss Missouri in 1937. After attending the University of Missouri and the acting school of the Goodman Theater in Chicago, she became a model in New York City. She also appeared in such 1940s Broadway shows as "Dream Girl." Monsieur Leon, a prominent New York hairstylist who championed the well-groomed "new look" in the late 1940s, named Bennett along with actresses Claudette Colbert, Kathryn Grayson, Gertrude 1 Lawrence and Norma Shearer as the five women in America with 1 the best-dressed hair. In Hollywood, Bennett appeared in such movie serials as "Lost City of the Jungle" and "The Scarlet Horseman" in 1946, and the movies "On the Threshold of Space" in 1956 and "Return to Peyton Place" in 1961.

She had also worked in radio and was a founding member of the Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters. On Sunday in Santa Monica. Carl Johnson; Building Contractor Carl Johnson, 84, building contractor whose company remodeled complexes for Lockheed and handied other major projects. Among Johnson's other clients were General Motors, Western and United Airlines and the U.S. government.

He was a graduate of UC Berkeley. Johnson operated his Carl W. Johnson Co. based in Burbank and specializing in industrial and commercial projects for several decades. He managed to weather the early 1980s recession, although it meant cutting his staff from 59 to 14 people.

Laying off loyal employees, Johnson told The Times in 1982, "is a very tough thing," adding, "A lot of us are taking jobs at cost just to keep good people busy." On Thursday in Newport Beach. Llebling; Movie and TV Casting Director Terry Liebling, 58, casting director for such films as "Apocalypse Now" and "The Two Jakes." Liebling's career in both New York City and Los Angeles spanned the past three decades-from the television series "Rhoda" starring Valerie Harper in 1974-79 through the feature film "Trial and Error" starring Michael Edwards and Jeff Daniels in 1997. Among the other major films she helped cast were "Nine to Five," "The Empire Strikes Back," "Paternity," "The Postman Always Rings Twice" and "Sharky's Machine." Liebling, whose maiden name was Hamlisch, served on the board of the Casting Society of America. On Saturday in Los Angeles of breast cancer. Sally Mansfield; Early TV Actress Sally Mansfield, 77, actress in early television and such films as "The Leather Saint." A Chicago native, she studied at the Actors Company of Chicago, the Children's Summer Theatre in Chicago and Sherwood Music School.

Mansfield began her career in New York City in 1945 on radio. Her voice was heard on several soap operas and in plays and commercials. She also danced with the Don Arden Dancers at nightclubs throughout the New York area and in Las Vegas. Winning a Paramount Pictures contract in 1951, Mansfield appeared in several Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin films and in the 1956 "The Leather Saint" starring Paul Douglas and John Derek. In the early 1950s, she beat out 300 other actresses to win the role of Vena Ray on one of television's earliest science fiction series, "Rocky Jones, Space Ranger" starring Richard Crane.

She was selected Miss Emmy to publicize the annual television awards program in 1954. On Jan. 28 in Westlake Village of lung cancer. Edgar Patterson; Driver for Earl Warren Edgar Patterson, 89, former driver to Earl Warren who helped shape the justice's views on race relations. Patterson befriended Warren when the politician was California attorney general.

After Warren was elected the state's governor, he tapped Patterson, a state police officer, to be his driver. Historians have attributed Warren's early i interest in segregation to his talks with Patterson, who told him about Sacramento stores and restaurants that refused to serve blacks. Patterson, who also drove for Gov. Goodwin J. Knight, maintained his ties with Warren after President Dwight D.

Eisenhower named Warren chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1953. It was Warren who wrote the landmark decision in Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, which prohibited school segregation. Patterson went on to receive a bachelor's degree from Sacramento State College and become a teacher there and a state parole agent.

He worked for the California Department of Corrections until 1976 and taught until 1994. Announced on Tuesday in Sacramento of pneumonia. Lawyer Says Woman's Killer Has Brain Defect 1999 left, and twin Kin Narita in a 1998 photo; Reuters the pair became national symbols of graceful aging. Gin Kanie, 108; She and Twin Sister Became Elderly Celebrities in Japan By VALERIE REITMAN TIMES STAFF WRITER TOKYO-Gin Kanie, the 108- year-old celebrity twin who was a poster child for graceful longevity in rapidly graying Japan, died Wednesday of natural causes. She outlived her sister, Kin Narita, who died early last year.

The image of the beloved twins-spry, laughing, wrinkled and always identically dressed in traditional kimonos -adorned items ranging from prepaid telephone cards and stamps to household cleaners throughout Japan. Nearly everyone who saw the tiny, cheerful great -grandmothers with close-cropped snow white hair hamming it up on talk shows and meeting celebrities had the same reaction: kawaeeeeeeeeee, or "so000o cute." Each of their deaths made front-page headlines across Japan. On Wednesday, tapes of their television appearances highlighted many news programs. Her local Nagoya newspaper splashed a headline across its front page that read, "Japan's Granny: Sayonara." The twins, whose real names were indeed Gin and Kin, translated respectively as Silver and Gold, were unknowns until vaulting into the limelight on their 100th birthday in 1992. The mayor of Nagoya and the prefectural governor came to visit them at Kanie's home on the national holiday known as Respect for the Aged Day, trailed by television cameras.

The attention landed the twins a spot in a popular commercial touting a household cleaner, each in her heavy Nagoya accent saying "Hyakusha," or "I'm 100." The twins traveled more as centenarians than they had in their first 10 decades. First it was the bullet trains across Japan to make appearances. Then they traveled overseas for the first time at age 102, to a conference in Taiwan attended by 1,000 pairs of twins. In 1997, they visited South Korea. Then there were the nonstop meetings with Japanese celebrities.

The twins dined on chanko-nabethe staple stew-like dish -with famed sumo wrestler Akebono. They chatted it up several times with the Oprah of Japan, Tetsuko Kuroyanagi, on her talk show. They were models of health: Narita was hospitalized for the first time in 1998 for 17 days because of a stomach ulcer. Kanie was hospitalized for the first time the same year for 10 days because of pneumonia. But their shared birth date wasn't always an asset.

In traditional Japan, twins were thought to be jinxed. "When we were little, we didn't go places together, because being a twin wasn't cool," Narita once said in a television interview. Born Aug. 1, 1892, the twins saw Japan evolve from a destitute, isolationist nation into a modern economic power. During a TV interview in which Narita mentioned "the war," the host had to ask her to clarify which one.

Like many other peasants at the time, their parents were illiterate. The father asked a respected Shinto priest to name the little girls. Though born second, Narita was considered to be the elder sister, recalled Mineyo Kanie, her niece, in a phone interview last year. It was believed at the time of their birth that an older twin needed to remain a little longer in the womb while sending the younger twin out first. They were the first and second of seven children, and their tenantfarmer parents had to give most of the rice they grew to the landlord.

The family had little to eat. In those days, girls often didn't go to school. But their father believed in education, Narita later recalled. They took turns going to school on alternate days, taking care of the other children on their days off while their parents toiled in the fields. Both sisters also married farmers.

In an arranged marriage, Nari- ta was wed at 19 without having previously set eyes on the groom. And the honeymoon? "I went back to work in the field on the next day" cultivating wheat and bean crops, she later said. Narita bore 11 children, but five died young. Kanie, who married two years after her sister, had five daughters, four of whom are still living. Both husbands died decades before the twins.

Commenting last year on their personalities, Mineyo Kanie, now 77, said the twins were similar, though Narita had more of a sense of humor. In a television special shortly after Narita's death on Jan. 23, 2000, the hostess mourned with son Yukio Narita and daughter-in-law Kikue. As they watched clips of the sisters appearing on past shows, Yukio Narita said, "Her death was very peaceful, but the whole family felt like we wanted to take care of her longer." When Kanie saw her twin's body, all she could say was, "My sister, you've grown so cold, you've grown so cold." Later she kept repeating, "What to do, what to do?" She told reporters: "I can't think of anything. Only tears keep coming down." In the weeks after the death, her daughter said last year, Kanie began to slip.

"She appears a bit lonely, and she says so," said Mineyo Kanie. "Sometimes she misunderstands, as if Kin were still around, only sick. My heart aches for her." The elderly Kanie never really recovered. Like many Japanese families who care for their aging parents at home, Kanie was tended in her last weeks by her daughters. Until just a few weeks ago, she'd ask them to carry her outside on their backs.

Kanie also is survived by four grandchildren and nine greatgrandchildren. The funeral is scheduled for Friday. Norm Reed; Long Beach Civic Enthusiast When Norm Reed directed a Long Beach City College training program that placed 500 disadvantaged people i in new jobs last year, it was what his friends and colleagues said was yet another example of his integrity, commitment and love for his native city. The active veteran of nearly a dozen city improvement agencies and civic groups died Sunday of injuries from a car accident while driving to church. He was 52, and his death triggered an outpouring of grief in Long Beach.

"He was one of the people in this community who absolutely loved his city," said Long Beach Mayor Beverly O'Neill, for whom Reed worked as a legislative aide from 1994 to 1996. "He never intruded but always led." Born in Long Beach in 1949, Reed spent his teens in Orange County but returned to Long Beach in 1971 after earning a bachelor's degree in planning and city development from USC. At the time of his death, he was pursuing a master's degree in business administration at Pepperdine University and was director of several community development projects by Long Beach City College. "He enjoyed learning things and always wanted to learn more," said his mother, Lenora Reed. "All the time, he wanted to progress." Reed's thirst for progress didn't stop with his own.

It extended to all of Long Beach. 117 4 president of the Long Beach Grand Prix Committee of 300, and was made an honorary member of the Long Beach Fire Department. He taught sensitivity classes to help firefighters become more aware of the needs of poor and disadvantaged groups. He also volunteered to teach at a Cambodian community center, and was instrumental in helping One, a local gay and lesbian group to organize an AIDS Walk and open a community center, friends and colleagues said. He also served on the board of the First Congregational Church of Long Beach.

"He lived his life and did his job treating others the way he wanted to be treated," said friend and roommate Art Arbizu. "Whatever he did, he did with the greatest of his ability, and he made everybody feel like they were important." Reed is survived by his mother, who lives in Long Beach. Services will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at First Congregational Church of Long Beach, 241 Cedar Ave. A reception will immediately follow.

His remains will be cremated and scattered at sea in a private ceremony. For the Record Hoffa's disappeara A wire service obituary of Anthony Giacalone in Sunday's Times misstated the date on which Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa disappeared. Hoffa disappeared July 30, 1975. Law: In urging against death penalty, he tells jurors Justin Merriman also suffers from psychological problems dating back three years before '92 slaying. By TRACY WILSON TIMES STAFF WRITER Convicted killer Justin Merriman suffers from a congenital brain defect and severe psychological problems that should spare him the death penalty, a defense lawyer argued Wednesday.

Attorney Willard Wiksell told jurors he is not making excuses for Merriman, a skinhead gang member who was found guilty of firstdegree murder last month in the 1992 slaying of college student Katrina Montgomery. But Wiksell said untreated mental problems may explain why Merriman killed Montgomery, and offer a reason why he should not be executed. "He doesn't know how to stay out of trouble," Wiksell said. "He is severely impaired." The penalty phase of Merriman's trial got underway Tuesday, but defense attorneys delayed their opening argument until after the prosecution had rested its case. On Wednesday, Wiksell told jurors they will hear testimony this week from three psychologists who evaluated Merriman and a psychiatrist who conducted a brain scan.

Those experts will say Merriman, a 28-year-old Ventura gang member, suffers from behavioral, learning and psychological problems that were made more severe by prolonged drug and alcohol abuse, Wiksell said. The problems were first diagnosed by a court-appointed psychologist in 1989-three years before Montgomery' slaying--when Merriman was facing assault charges in Juvenile Court. But Wiksell said Merriman found no help. According to court testimony, Merriman was sent to the California Youth Authority and in less than a year was transferred to state prison for attacking a correctional officer. "He was crying out for treatment," Wiksell said in his opening statement.

"He didn't get any." After Merriman was indicted in 1999 on murder charges, defense lawyers hired Patrick Barker to evaluate him. A Ventura clinical psychologist, Barker frequently works for both prosecutors and defense attorneys in preparing inmate psychological profiles. In interviews with Merriman and his parents, Barker learned the family was "badly dysfunctional" and that his father was an alcoholic. The defendant told Barker he began to use drugs early to escape his home life. Merriman's mother said her son became addicted to methamphetamine at age 11.

School records show Merriman was caught dealing speed in the seventh grade. Barker reached the same conclusion after giving Merriman psychological tests in 1999. He found Merriman has below-average intelligence--he scored 88 on an IQ test -and poor impulse control. Barker described Merriman as hostile, distrustful, cold and lacking empathy. Barker diagnosed the defendant as having an antisocial personality disorder.

He testified he is certain Merriman would offend again if released from custody. At Barker's suggestion, defense attorneys retained neuropsychologist Jordan Witt to determine whether Merriman had ever suffered head trauma. Witt testified Wednesday that Merriman suffers from a brain defect, not unlike a congenital heart condition. "His brain was somehow created differently," Witt said. Witt told jurors that based on his interviews with Merriman, he concluded the defendant aggravated his condition by using drugs and getting into fights in which he lost consciousness.

But Deputy Dist. Atty. Ron Bamieh took issue with Witt's diagnosis, challenging his credentials and conclusions, saying they were based on self-serving statements from the defendant. In other testimony Wednesday, Merriman's maternal grandmother told jurors she loved her grandson and believes he is innocent. Beverlee Waterhouse helped raise Merriman after his parents divorced when he was 2 years old.

Waterhouse told the jury her daughter, Beverlee Sue Merriman, remarried Dean Merriman, who adopted Justin and his sister, Ember, when they were children. Defense investigator Fred DeFazio testified he had tried to contact Dean Merriman, who lives in Casitas Springs, but that Dean Merriman wanted nothing to do with the case. Testimony is scheduled to resume this morning before Superior Court Judge Vincent J. O'Neill Jr. State Revokes License of Compton Cemetery Owner By OSCAR JOHNSON TIMES STAFF WRITER Regulations: Among numerous violations officials cited was the burial of several bodies per grave.

By LOUIS SAHAGUN TIMES STAFF WRITER State officials Wednesday revoked the license of a Compton cemetery accused of grave desecration and failure to properly dispose of human remains. The revocation was part of a settlement reached between the Department of Consumer Affairs' Cemetery and Funeral Bureau and Evergreen Memorial Care owner of Woodland Cemetery in Compton and Evergreen Cemetery in Los Angeles. Under the settlement, Woodlawn must be sold or transferred to new owners within 270 days of the revocation of its license, which takes effect March 22, said Tracy Weatherby, a spokeswoman for the bureau. The owners also must retain a bureau-approved third party to provide for maintenance and public visitation of the 120-year-old cemetery, where no future burials will be permitted, she said. "Revocation is the most severe discipline the bureau can impose, and it is reserved for the most egregious violations," said Glen V.

Ayers, chief of the Cemetery and Funeral Bureau. "But we are doing more than revoking a license: We are also looking to the future by providing recourse for those who purchased graves at Woodlawn and by finding long-term solutions for the care of the cemetery." Attorney Stephan Sadowsky, who is representing Evergreen Memorial Care, said, "It's a fair settlement. Given the history of Woodlawn, where the current owners inherited these problems from prior owners it serves to protect the innocent consumers who were injured." The owners must set aside 200 graves at Evergreen Cemetery and create a $50,000 fund to provide cash payments to customers with rights at Woodlawn they can no longer use, Weatherby said. They also must pay $210,000 in investigation and prosecution costs. The bureau revoked Evergreen Cemetery's license, but that revocation was stayed and the license was placed on five years' probation.

Woodlawn was shut down in March after state investigators found bone fragments scattered about and discovered that cemetery operators had created 16 multiple graves by cutting across the existing graves of 48 bodies. They found that 61 bodies were buried in the 16 new multiple graves. The bureau charged Evergreen Memorial Care with grave desecration, unlawful interment of more than one body in a single grave without proper authority, failure to properly dispose of human remains, failure to inter cremated remains, failure to keep adequate records of ownership of transfer of plots, and unlawful expenditure of Woodlawn and Evergreen endowment funds. The settlement applies only to licensing disciplinary proceedings before the bureau and has no effect on civil or criminal actions. At least one civil lawsuit is pending in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Norm Reed He was the chairman of the city's Economic Development Commission, an active member of the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and a former member of the Downtown Development Policy Board. Reed's previous jobs included director of community projects for Goodwill Industries and executive director of Leadership Long Beach where he helped develop leadership training programs. "He was so committed to instilling a sense of trusteeship in leaders in our community," said Leadership Executive Director Jane Wallace. "He did it by example." As a volunteer, Reed served as GEES any car. cars.com Sell on latimes.com lattmes.com/placead latimes.com virtually cars.com 1-800-LATIMES, ext.

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