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Friends, fans search for solace after death of The
Who's Entwistle
By JAN MOLLER 
REVIEW-JOURNAL 

The legendary bassist known to his fans as "the quiet
one" spent his final evening in Las Vegas living up to
that reputation. 

John Entwistle, who died Thursday of an apparent heart
attack at age 57, checked in Wednesday to the Hard
Rock Hotel, where The Who had been scheduled to kick
off a three-month North American tour Friday night. 

About 10 p.m. Wednesday, Entwistle and his longtime
friend and manager, Cy Langston, were joined in a
hotel bar by Laura Eveleigh and her husband, Bill, who
had arrived that day from Colorado to help Entwistle
with an art show. 

As Entwistle sipped decaffeinated coffee and two
snifters of Remy Martin brandy, there was no
indication he was in ill health. 

"We talked about his animals. We talked about the new
artwork he had done. We even talked about the
wonderful sessions they (The Who) had in London,"
Laura Eveleigh said. "He was fine. That's the thing
that's so shocking to all of us." 

In a casino that caters to a young, hip crowd, several
patrons came over to have their picture taken with the
group. Some of them had no idea that the gray-haired
man helped define an earlier generation with the rock
anthem "My Generation" and its famous plea, "Hope I
die before I get old." 

"I said (to Entwistle), 'Some of these young kids
don't know who you are, but they know you're famous,'
" Eveleigh said. 

Eveleigh and her husband left the bar about midnight,
expecting to see Entwistle the following day at the
Aladdin, where the art show was taking place. But
Entwistle instead was found dead in his room shortly
before noon Thursday by Langston, according to several
people familiar with the circumstances. 

Las Vegas police said Friday there was no sign of
trauma or violence and no drug paraphernalia found in
Entwistle's room. An autopsy was performed Friday, but
Clark County Coroner Ron Flud said it will take
several weeks to determine an exact cause of death. 

Although Entwistle was a cigarette smoker and was
known to take heart medication, he routinely underwent
physical examinations before embarking on a concert
tour, said another longtime friend and business
partner. 

"As far as I know, he was in excellent health," said
Steve Luongo, a drummer who toured with Entwistle as
part of another band. 

The Who canceled Friday night's show at the Joint and
a concert scheduled for tonight in Irvine, Calif. 

But the band announced Friday that the rest of the
tour will continue, with a new bass player, veteran
musician Pino Palladino, replacing the man who helped
co-found The Who in the early 1960s. 

That news received mixed reaction from fans who
strolled past the Joint on Friday afternoon to mourn
Entwistle and take pictures of the makeshift shrine of
flowers and cards erected outside the 1,800-seat
venue. 

"I find that hard to believe," said Don Procopio, a
Philadelphian who had won tickets to Friday night's
concert through a radio station promotion. "It's big
business, I guess. It's all about the money." 

Trish Pottersmith of Boulder, Colo., who is planning
to attend 10 concerts on the current tour, said she's
not about to change her plans. 

"I'm going to be there to support them," said
Pottersmith, showing off a bare midriff on which the
band's name was tattooed. "I think it's going to be a
very healing thing." 

A Hard Rock spokeswoman said the Las Vegas concert
will be rescheduled, but a date had not been chosen as
of Friday. Fans who had tickets to Friday night's
concert either may exchange them for tickets to the
rescheduled show or receive a full refund at their
point of purchase. 

Bandmates Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey made no
public comment Friday, except for a brief statement
that Townshend's Web site attributed to them. 

"The Ox has left the building -- we've lost another
great friend," the statement read.


=====
-Brian in Atlanta
The Who This Month!
http://www.thewhothismonth.com
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