Remember...

Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams, Jan. 1
Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting in downtown Denver early Jan. 1. Williams, a second-round pick in the 2005 draft out of Oklahoma State, started nine games as a rookie due to injuries. This season, he took over as the starter for Lenny Walls alongside Champ Bailey, and was second on the team with four interceptions and tied for third with 86 tackles.




Spinners singer Billy Henderson, Feb. 2
Singer Billy Henderson, right, a member of the band the Spinners who sang "I'll Be Around" and other hits, died of complications from diabetes on Feb. 2. He was 67. The 1972 song "I'll Be Around" was part of a string of top 20 Spinners hits that included "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love,""Then Came You" and "The Rubberband Man." Henderson is pictured with other Spinners members, from left John Edwards, Bobby Smith, Henry Fambrough and Pervis Jackson.
(AP/Marty Lederhandler)



Funk Brother Joe Hunter, Feb. 2
Joe Hunter, left, , Motown's first bandleader and a three-time Grammy winner with the Funk Brothers, died on Feb. 2. He was 79. Hunter was a diabetic, but the cause of his death was not known at press time. Hunter was Motown legend Berry Gordy Jr.'s first hire. He backed up acts such as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles on piano in the late 1950s and also served as Motown's first bandleader in the early days. He is pictured with other Funk Brothers members, Eddie Willis, center, and Joe Messina.
(Karen Sas)



Singer Barbara McNair, Feb. 4
Singer Barbara McNair, who became a film and television star in an era when such opportunities were opening up for black women, died on Feb. 4 after a battle with throat cancer. She was 72. McNair made her Hollywood acting debut in 1968 in the film, "If He Hollers, Let Him Go." She later starred opposite Sydney Poitier in "They Call Me Mister Tibbs" and with Elvis Presley in "Change of Habit." She hosted television's "The Barbara McNair Show," a musical and comedy program in the late 1960s and early 1970s. As a singer, one of her biggest hits was "You Could Never Love Him."
(AP/Racine Journal Times, Ron Kuenstler)



Olympic medalist Willye White, Feb. 6
Willye White, a two-time Olympic medalist in track and field and the first woman to compete for the United States in five Olympics, died of pancreatic cancer on Feb. 6. She was 67. White competed in five consecutive Olympic Games between 1956 and 1972. She was a 16-year-old high school sophomore when she won a silver medal in the long jump at the 1956 Games in Melbourne, Australia. She won her second silver medal in 1964 as a member of the 4x100-meter relay team in Tokyo.
(Chicago Tribune/Ovie Carter)