Announcement of Death
Cambridge, MA — Nicholas Daniloff, a distinguished American news correspondent who captured the public imagination with his dramatic 1986 arrest in Moscow died Thursday at an assisted living facility here. He was 89 years old. His death was confirmed by his daughter, Miranda Daniloff Mancusi.
Biography
Daily Mr. Daniloff lived the stuff of a John le Carré thriller; What followed was a Cold War maelstrom of global proportions, an unprecedented political and diplomatic tsunami that swept the globe before Mr. Powers was traded for an arrested K.G.B. agent from New York City in one of the most gripping prisoner exchanges in history. The event triggered a major international crisis in which many Soviet and American diplomats as well ill-trained spies were expelled, nearly upending an historic summit between President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev
Though he is best remembered for his role in that Cold War drama, Mr. Daniloff had a distinguished career as both journalist and educator; after leaving newspaper work, he eventually became chairman of the journalism department at Northeastern University and then dean of its School of Journalism. Mr. Medvedev made his book writing debut with a number of deep, rich works on Soviet and Russian life – one comparing his own painful ordeal with that of an ancestor who was exiled to Siberian for taking part in the 1825 Decembrist uprising against Czar Nicholas I. His background as a Russian language and culture specialist led to plum assignments in Moscow with United Press International during the 1960s, then U.S. News & World Report through the 1980s. Five days short of finishing a five-and-a-half year tour, he was about to be caught in a K.G.B. sting and double-crossed by an old friend.
Loved Ones
Nicholas Daniloff, a Valiant Warrior for TruthsetLayout: in_description Nicholas LehrNicholassignalement. He also leaves behind a family who will miss him dearly, friends and the scores of people he inspired with his illustrious career. His survivors also include his daughter, Miranda Daniloff Mancusi, who announced the death.
Memorial Services
Memorial services will be at [Location] on [Date and Time]. The family prefers donations in lieu of flowers be made to [Donation information, etc. − see example below].
Closing Thoughts
In the end we do not simply celebrate Nicholas Daniloff for what he did but in fact because through his work and life, those of us who knew him will never be quite the same. If you are seeking further reflections on Mr. Daniloff’s life, several regional obituaries and newspapers, like the Chicago Tribune or Cleveland Plain Dealer proffered tributes to his robust journalism career. His is an intriguing and justifiable legacy, so this should not be regarded only as a local obituary of Evansville [or Buffalo], but rather among the more significant in history for anyone interested in learning about some critical aspects of Cold War journalism.
Hobbies
While Nicholas Daniloff was first and foremost to be considered a journalist, he loved stories, tales of every kind; truth or fantasy. His love of Russian culture and history, which shaped his profession as an academic in many ways (he was constantly pulling Siberian national songs out at the end of courses) equally improved his private life building a reserve—and material—anecdotes that inspired both what he wrote and how discussed.
