Hey Brother, Can You Spare a Job?

(NEWSER) - All four living former presidents will attend Ted Kennedy’s invitation-only funeral, the Boston Herald reports. President Obama will also be there, breaking off his Martha’s Vineyard vacation to deliver a eulogy. Gordon Brown also plans to attend, as will Irish PM Brian Cowen. “Sen. Kennedy is being honored as though he were a former sitting president,” observed one political scientist. More»

Non-Bush ex-president has already made one

(NEWSER) - Obituaries are a newspaper standby, but the New York Times has removed the journalistic middleman with its series of video obits, Editor & Publisher reports. After starting 2 years ago with humorist Art Buchwald’s greeting of “Hi, I’m Art Buchwald and I just died,” the Times has added 30 more to its “Last Word” stockpile. More»

Leaders traditionally release limited number of pictures

(NEWSER) - When the five current, former, and future occupants of the Oval Office mugged together at the White House last week, one could almost hear the cash registers cha-chinging, reports Politico. All five will sign a limited 250 copies of the photo—with each keeping 50—instantly jacking the value to an estimated $6000 per photo. Works out to a cool $300000 for any chief exec looking for a little pocket money. More»

Bush wishes Obama success in the future

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama met with a pair of George Bushes, Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter today for a photo-op and lunch at the White House, the Chicago Tribune reports. "I want to thank the president-elect for joining the ex-presidents for lunch,'' Bush said, looking to Obama. "And one message that I think we all share is that we want you to succeed.” More»

Stress causes grays and wrinkles, but nobody agrees whether presidents die early

(NEWSER) - Four to eight years as leader of the free world gave George W. plenty of wrinkles and gray hairs—but just what are the presidency’s long-term aging effects? One doctor found that presidents generally have shorter-than-average lifespans, the Boston Globe reports, while another pegs two years for every one spent in the Oval Office. "For eight years in office, they age 16 years,” he argues. More»