Mondale Daughter Eleanor Dies at 51

Former Sen. Charles Percy also dead

(AP) - Two notable obituaries from the wires today:

• Kara Kennedy, 51, the oldest child of the late Ted Kennedy, died at a Washington health club, reports AP . She had battled lung cancer since 2002. "She's with dad," said brother Patrick. "Her heart gave out." She has a son and daughter, both teens, with her now-divorced husband, Michael Allen. She kept a fairly low profile but was active in charity and philanthropic circles. More at the Boston Globe .

Spearheaded '60s conservation movement, Wilderness Act

(AP) - Stewart Udall, an elder in a famed political family who led the Interior Department as it vastly expanded public lands and helped win passage of major environmental laws, has died at the age of 90. During his 1961-1968 tenure as Interior secretary, Udall sowed the seeds of the modern environmental movement. He later became a crusader for victims of radiation exposure from the government's Cold War nuclear programs. More»

(NEWSER) - Susan Atkins, one of the women who killed at the behest of Charles Manson, died last night after a battle with brain cancer that had paralyzed her and cost her one leg. She was 61. She died inside the California Institute for Women, where she had been in hospice care. Atkins, who served 38 years of a life sentence for eight murders, including that of actress Sharon Tate, was said to be a model prisoner, but authorities repeatedly denied her parole, and last year’s request for compassionate release. More»

Senator wrote letter delivered by Obama

(NEWSER) - In the months before he died, Ted Kennedy penned a letter to Pope Benedict beseeching the pontiff's prayers—and enlisted no less a messenger than the leader of the free world to deliver it, reports CNN. “I am writing with deep humility to ask that you pray for me as my own health declines,” Kennedy wrote in the letter Barack Obama hand-delivered in July. “I know that I have been an imperfect human being, but with the help of my faith I have tried to right my path.” More»

(NEWSER) - When Ted Kennedy was diagnosed with brain cancer, he insisted that he would have a "good ending for myself," and friends tell the New York Times that the late senator's last 15 months were filled with joy. He and his wife Vicki spent evenings watching 24 and James Bond films, and in July he enjoyed near-nightly dinner parties with family. He also raced to finish work and his memoirs, saying, "I've got to get this right for history." More»