The Atlanta Constitution from Atlanta, Georgia • B7

Filename: B7-METRO-AJCD0207-AJCD DateTime created: Feb 6 2013 Username: SPEEDDRIVER04 Magenta Black 7B AJCD Thursday, Feb 07, 2013 METRO 7B THURSDAY, FEB. 7, 2013 THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION 3 Metro Obituaries CREDIBLE. COMPELLING. COMPLETE. B7 STUART FREEBORN, 98 artist brought Yoda to life a script for a film called 'Star "He was so genuine about it, I thought, well, young as he is, I believe in him.

He's got something. I'll do what I can for him," Freeborn told the BBC. Nick Maley, a makeup artist who worked with Freeborn in the 1970s, called him a mentor who "ran his department like a headmaster." "It was my years working with him that helped me learn how to think, how to solve problems, how to not take the most obvious path," Maley said. "Everybody will remember him for 'Star but he did so much more than that. No one should overlook the groundbreaking work he did on '2001: A Space That was really the forerunner of 'Star Wars' and used a lot of the same technology." Freeborn's wife, Kay, died in 2012.

Freeborn's three sons -Roger, Ray and Graham also died before him. ed. His "Star Wars" creatures may be reinterpreted in new forms by new generations, but at their heart, they continue to be what Stuart created for the original films." Freeborn's granddaughter, Michelle Freeborn, said he died Tuesday in London from a combination of ailments due to his age. Michelle Freeborn, who lives in Wellington, New Zealand, said her grandfather was "like a hero" to her and inspired her and her late father to get into the movie business, too. "He was a really fun and imaginative individual." she said.

"He gave you the feeling that if you wanted to achieve something, you should just get on and do it, and don't ever use excuses. He enjoyed life and the amazing world we live in." Freeborn's six-decade career led him to work on many classics, including Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Born in London in 1914, Freeborn was the son of a Lloyds of London insurance broker. He told a BBC documentary last year that he resisted pressure to follow in his father's footsteps, because "I felt I was different." He began his film career in the 1930s, working for Hungarian-born director Alexander Korda, and honing his makeup skills on stars including Mar-lene Dietrich and Vivien Leigh. Freeborn later worked with Kubrick, transforming Peter Sellers into multiple characters for "Doctor Strangelove" before designing the apes for "2001" 's "Dawn of Man" sequence. But he will likely be best remembered for his work on "Star Wars" creating characters such as the 7-foot-tall wookie Chewbacca and the slug-like Jabba the Hutt.

Freeborn recalled being approached by "this young fellow" named George Lucas, who told him, "I've written Some in GOP worry about Broun Insider continued from Bl month, he was the only member of the Georgia Republican delegation to vote against U.S. House Speaker John Boehner's re-election as speaker. On Wednesday, before he dashed down to Georgia, Broun, R-Augusta, cast the only Republican vote against a bill by U.S. Rep. Tom Price of Roswell a potential rival for Chambliss' seat that would have required Obama to detail when he would balance the federal budget.

"Unconstitutional," Broun's spokeswoman said. Whether you call him independent or a loose cannon, it is this trait that worries some Republicans. Over the weekend, The New York Times reported that big GOP donors the people who financed Rove's efforts to clear a path for Mitt Romney are prepared to spend millions of dollars to keep Senate nominations away from Broun and tea partyers like him. They don't want a repeat of 2012, when Todd Akin of Missouri's Senate campaign crumbled over the phrase "legitimate rape." Or when Richard Mourdock's Indiana effort ran aground on his explanation of why a raped woman should be denied access to abortion. They don't want a Republican shot at control of the U.S.

Senate spoiled again. In Georgia, GOP thinking goes, Broun's nomination could result in the immediate reani-mation of a down-at-the-heels Democratic Party. It is an assessment that Democrats agree with. "Congressman Broun represents the worst and most extreme element of the Republican Party. If there is a living God, Broun will be the party's nominee in 2014.

Unfortunately, as Democrats, we're simply not that lucky," said Michael Berlon, chairman of the state Democratic Party. "But if he's the nominee, we almost certainly take the seat." If nothing else, Berlon thinks Broun's candidacy will make it easier to recruit a Democratic candidate. For20 months, he'll be talking about "Paul Broun's Republican Party." "Broun doesn't believe in science. He's talked about how he doesn't believe the president was born in the United States. He thinks the president is either alternately a Marxist or he's a Nazi.

And he's not afraid to say that," Berlon said. "I don't understand how that translates into any credible run for the U.S. Senate. And I think it's embarrassing to Georgia and the Republican Party." It is easy to write off Broun. His latest campaign report showed a mere $155,000 in cash on hand.

Potential GOP rivals such as U.S. Reps. Jack Kingston of Savannah, Phil Gin-grey of Marietta and Price all have treasuries stacked with well over $1 million each. Broun's handout to reporters on Wednesday was a single-sheet resume a reflection of the state of his finances. But Broun isn't the kind of candidate who needs a lot of money.

"I think that he's going to do well whether or not he wins the financial race," said former state Rep. Steve Davis of McDonough, who showed up at the Buckhead Grand Hyatt to greet Broun. Also remember that Broun is somewhat used to opposition from establishment Republicans. In 2007, in a special election, Broun beat the state Capitol's pick, state Sen. Jim Whitehead.

In 2008, Broun defeated state Rep. Barry Fleming a favorite of then-House Speaker Glenn Richardson. In 2012, Broun coasted past a Republican who objected to Broun's sometimes odd pronouncements. He faced no Democratic opposition, but a University of Georgia biologist angered by Broun's dismissal of evolution launched a write-in campaign for the long-dead Charles Darwin. Broun beat him, too.

Timmy Sanders (right) is one of more than 1,200 volunteers that are helping with cleanup in Adairsville. "It's phenomenal what the city and volunteers have been able to do," Adairsville Police Chief Robert Jones said. Nearly everyone in town was affected by last week's tornado, including resident William Lopez (left), his wife and three children, who were displaced due to the damage, kent d. johnson kdjohnsonajc.com Makeup George Lucas praises film legend for work on 'Star Wars' characters. By Jill Lawless Associated Press LONDON Stuart Freeborn, a pioneering movie makeup artist behind creatures such as Yoda and Chewbacca in the "Star Wars" films, has died.

He was 98. LucasFilm confirmed Wednesday that Freeborn had passed away, "leaving a legacy of unforgettable contributions." "Star Wars" director George Lucas said in a statement that Freeborn was "already a makeup legend" when he started working on "Star Wars." "He brought with him not only decades of experience, but boundless creative energy," Lucas said. "His artistry and craftsmanship will live on forever in the characters he creat- Town now prepared for future Cleanup continued from Bl The timing couldn't have been worse. Ellis' house, which Brown said she'll eventually inherit, can be repaired. And Brown said when it's ready, she'll return and move in.

But Ellis won't. Brown swept the carport Wednesday afternoon after spending much of the day planning for her uncle's eventual funeral. Still, Brown and her neighbors have been encouraged by the number of people showing up to help, some of them strangers. More than 1,200 volunteers have already helped with cleanup efforts in Adairsville, Jones said. "It's phenomenal what the city and volunteers have been able to do." Jones said the response from law enforcement also has been overwhelming, with dozens from neighboring counties and beyond showing up ready to help.

A dusk-to-dawn curfew, in place during the days immediately after the storm, may not have pleased everyone, but Cutbacks mean $10M surplus DeKalb schools continued from Bl The current budget is $730 million. Half a decade ago, it would have taken a couple of minutes to trim that kind of expense Pay raises for 3 amid budget cuts Fulton continued from Bl for countywide services like courts, libraries and social services. It also covers the costs of administrative departments like the County Commission, county manager, personnel and purchasing. With property tax revenue diminished by the real estate collapse, balancing the 2013 budget proved difficult. To avoid cuts to libraries, criminal justice programs and other services, commissioners cut elsewhere.

Among the reductions: $700,000 to house jail inmates in other counties, $436,000 for youth programs, $300,000 from the Sheriff's Department and $26,000 for arts programs. Commissioners cut total general fund spending nearly 2 percent, though they're still rely- "It's changed the landscape physically, but also how we're going to be prepared, if something like this were to ever happen again," Jones said. There are still many unknowns for the area, such as whether the large manufacturing plant will rebuild and employ residents again. There still paying down that debt. After the public meeting, school board members retired to a private room for another in a series of closed sessions.

The topic: "legal and personnel matters." A few hours later they emerged, and Walker said he had no response to rumors that the board was planning to replace Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson. On Wednesday, the school system responded to an open records request from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for any agreement terminating Atkinson's contract by saying no missioner was exempted because the committee did not want to impinge the office's ability to collect property taxes that pay the bills. Commissioners were exempted because their budget is relatively small and because they need employees to respond to constituent concerns, he said. Most of the commission's budget goes to cover the cost of its 33 employees, including the seven elected commissioners. The commission budget has another distinction: it includes the only raises for county employees this year.

Three commissioners each gave a raise to one employee. Commissioners' salaries were unchanged. Pitts questioned the raises at the Jan. 23 meeting, saying "the timing is not right." But no one proposed eliminating the raises or otherwise trimming the commission budget that day. Hausmann, for example, upgraded a part-time employee to full time at a cost of $7,000.

The employee now earns $47,000. "She's still, in my opinion, underpaid for the amount of work she does," Hausmann said. they kept other crimes at a minimum, Jones said. Storm victims were not going to be victims of looting and scams too, if he had anything to do with it. Dealing with an emergency of this magnitude will serve as a learning experience, making the town more prepared for the future, Jones said.

from a comparatively plump budget, Perrone told them. "But after compounding cuts for five or six years, that $24 mil lion is going to be very difficult." There was some good news: The deep cutbacks approved last summer put the system on track for a $10 million surplus at the end of the current fiscal year. But, Perrone said that will need to be applied to last year's budget deficit of $16 million. It's illegal for local governments, including school systems, to run a deficit without a repayment plan. Any surplus, Perrone said, must go toward ing on $53.8 million in reserves to balance the budget.

They approved the budget by a vote of 5-2, with Commissioners Liz Hausmann and Robb Pitts voting against it. "Everybody has got to share in the sacrifices. Everybody's going to take a hit today," Commissioner Emma Darnell said at the Jan. 23 meeting. "It's got to be fair." But everybody didn't take a hit.

Though the commission's $3.3 million budget is slightly lower than the one approved a year ago, it's 17.5 percent more than commissioners actually spent last year. That's the biggest increase in spending of any general fund department. The commission budget received special treatment from the start. As they prepared a proposed 2013 spending plan, county officials asked departments to trim up to 5 percent from their target budgets, the amount needed to maintain operations. Only two departments were exempted: the Board of Commissioners and the Tax Commissioner's Office.

Eaves, who served on the budget committee that made the decision, said the tax corn- is no electricity in some areas. Brown can't stop her eyes from tearing up while talking about the storm damage. But still, she counts her blessings. "I'm thankful. I'm just so thankful that we're alive," Brown said.

"These are good people up here. We'll handle it." such documents existed. "We want the public to know, but we don't want the public to know prematurely," Walker said. On Monday, former Georgia labor commissioner Michael Thurmond emerged from a similar closed session and said the board asked about his leadership philosophy and that the words "interim" and "superintendent" were used. Atkinson has declined to address the rumors.

At the conclusion of Wednesday's meeting, the board called another executive session for 3 p.m. today. Hausmann said her staff helps constituents navigate the county bureaucracy. She said one staffer spent New Year's Eve getting someone's water turned back on. Asked if it was fair to give commission employees raises when other county employees got none, Hausmann said, "I wish we could give raises to everyone." Darnell and Commissioner Joan Garner also each gave raises to one employee.

Garner said she's cut other expenses the last two years to keep a promise to give raises. Darnell did not respond to requests for comment. The total cost of the three raises: about $16,000. Honkisz, of the taxpayers foundation, said commissioners did a "fairly reasonable" job with this year's budget, which trims spending and doesn't raise taxes. But he said they exhibited poor leadership in exempting themselves from cuts and granting raises.

"It seems to me to be ridiculous," he said. "Why set that kind of tone, particularly once you've done a pretty good job with the rest of the budget?" Magenta Black 7B AJCD File name: B7-METRO-AJCD0207-AJCD DateTime created: Feb 6 2013 Username: SPEEDDRIVER04.