"Cowboy" Jack Clement, 1931-2013

Until I read his obituary I was not familiar with Mr. Clement by name but I know his work.

“Cowboy” Jack Clement, who became one of the most influential backstage forces in country and rock music by producing artists ranging from Johnny Cash to U2 and by helping discover performers such as Jerry Lee Lewis and groundbreaking black country star Charley Pride, died Aug. 8 at his home in Nashville. He was 82.
[...]
 “Jack was a musical mastermind, in a sense, but what made him stand out to people was he had this sense of fun and a little bit of mischief in everything he did,” said Michael McCall, a historian at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville. “He had a whimsical, creative spirit about him, and he inspired that in other people. In an industry that puts a high value on conformity, he was the ultimate non-conformist, and people loved him for it.”

Godspeed, Cowboy.  

A brief reference to the "assistant secretary of Commerce for Observation and Predictions" in the Washington Post this morning sounded almost too improbable to be serious except that it involves the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, which is in the Department of Commerce.  I  could not find a link to that specific office on the NOAA website but did identify the position of  Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction in Kathryn Sullivan's biography.

Of course, the original brief reference was about Dr. Sullivan's appointment as NOAA head and Commerce undersecretary so none of this should be a surprise.  What makes this little side trip especially pleasing is that I learned about a very talented woman who has chosen a career in public service.  My hope meter went up a notch.

postscript

An earlier biography describes some of Dr. Sullivan's duties as assistant secretary of commerce for environmental observation.