The Daily Goodbye

Nelson Wallulatum, 84, chief of the Wasco Indians who defended his people's fishing rights and sovereignty for half a century, died May 13.

He had been a leader of the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs, whose reservation in central Oregon comprises a fraction of the tribes' traditional homeland, since 1959. According to the Portland Oregonian, Mr. Wallulatum was instrumental in securing access for tribal members to traditional fishing spots on the Columbia River after it was dammed east of Portland.

Comic book artist Al Williamson, who wrote and drew "Flash Gordon" during the 1960s and later produced the "Secret Agent X-9" and "Star Wars" strips, died May 12 at age 79, according to comicon.com.

The president and chief operating officer of General Motors Corp. throughout most of the 1980s, F. James McDonald, died May 13 at his home in Florida. He was 87.