Milestones Apr. 12, 2004

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MISTRIAL DECLARED, in the fraud trial of L. DENNIS KOZLOWSKI and MARK H. SWARTZ, former executives of Tyco International; after a juror whose name was publicized as a lone holdout during jury deliberations received a threatening letter; in New York City (see page 47).

DIED. FRANCES SCHREUDER, 65, onetime New York City socialite who served 13 years in prison for persuading her 17-year-old son Marc to kill her father; of chronic pulmonary disease; in San Diego. Prosecutors alleged that in 1978 Schreuder feared her profligate spending would cause her to be disinherited by her wealthy father Franklin Bradshaw. Her son's murder of his grandfather inspired two books and two TV mini-series.

DIED. JOHN SACK, 74, war correspondent and pioneer of New Journalism; of complications from prostate cancer; in San Francisco. Sack reported from the battlefields of every major U.S. conflict, from Korea to Afghanistan, most notably for Esquire magazine. His 33,000-word piece "Oh My God! We Hit a Little Girl," an unflinching account of an infantry company in Vietnam, is the longest article ever to appear in Esquire. After he interviewed Lieut. William Calley, who was convicted of killing civilians at My Lai, Sack was indicted on federal felony charges, later dropped, for refusing to hand over his notes.

DIED. EDWARD J. PISZEK, 87, founder of Mrs. Paul's seafood empire; in Fort Washington, Pa. In 1946, cooking in a bar while on strike from his job at General Electric, Piszek discovered that his deviled crabs, which had become the house favorite, tasted just as good after a week in the freezer. He and friend John Paul, a bread salesman, each pitched in $350 and starting selling frozen fish sticks. He bought out Paul in the 1950s but denied his mother's request to rename the brand Mrs. Piszek's.

DIED. EMILY MORISON BECK, 88, dogged editor of three editions of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations; in Canton, Mass. Between 1952 and 1980, she scoured works of literature and history to update and refine the essential reference book. In the classics, she favored Shakespeare and the Bible, expanding the contributions from both, but also introduced quotes from Muhammad Ali, Bob Dylan and popular films (e.g., "E.T., phone home").

DIED. DOWAGER VISCOUNTESS DILHORNE, 93, who trained pigeons to carry secret communications during World War II; in Northamptonshire, England. Lady Dilhorne's carrier pigeons returned to her home west of London with coded messages strapped to their legs that had been sent by secret agents and resistance fighters in Germany and occupied Europe. Her daughter Eliza Manningham-Buller is head of Britain's MI5 Security Service.