Army Archerd, 87, whose breezy column for the entertainment trade publication Daily Variety kept tabs on various Hollywood doings for more than half a century, died Tuesday at UCLA Medical Center of mesothelioma, a cancer of the lungs strongly tied to asbestos exposure. His wife said the cancer was the result of his time spent in shipyards while serving in the Navy during World War II. Over the years, Archerd won praise from the Hollywood establishment for always checking the accuracy of his news tips before printing them. He had an extensive phone directory of much-guarded private numbers that he would use to call movie stars and studio bosses directly to ferret out which rumors were true and which were not. His biggest scoop came in 1985 when he was first to report that veteran leading man Rock Hudson had AIDS. It was the first time a major Hollywood star was disclosed to be an AIDS victim, and it helped break down some of the secrecy surrounding the disease.

Archerd also broke the story that Julia Roberts had jilted fiance Keifer Sutherland in 1991 and that longtime bachelor Warren Beatty had married Annette Bening in 1992. His source for the Beatty-Bening story was Beatty himself. For more than 50 years, Archerd also served as the greeter-interviewer at the Academy Awards. Acting nominees and other celebrities were conducted to a platform alongside the red carpet for a brief chat with Archerd that was heard by the thousands of fans gathered outside the theater.

Norman Crider, 70, a former baton-twirling champion whose internationally known Ballet Shop near Lincoln Center in New York City became a mecca for superstars and dance fans seeking rare ballet books, prints, videotapes and posters, died on Aug. 19 in Indianapolis, where he lived. Situated strategically at Broadway and 63rd Street, the Ballet Shop attracted ticket holders on the way to Lincoln Center from 1974 to 1996.

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