BBC Radio disc jockey John Peel, champion of many cutting edge rock acts that went on to notoriety and influence, died at age 65. He was "perhaps the only British D.J.
known by name to American rock fans," writes the
New York Times. For all his influence, Peel was surprisingly accessible, reports the
Washington Post: "[B]asically, if you wrote him, he'd send you a postcard back, often with his phone number, sometimes 'signed' with a rubber stamp that read '
John Peel, The World's Most Boring Man.'