Sun-Times columnist Larry Weintraub, 69

Larry Weintraub, a columnist, character and consummate writer whose work graced the pages of the Chicago Sun-Times for 35 years, died Wednesday evening at Weiss Memorial Hospital.

Mr. Weintraub, 69, known for his "Weintraub's World" column, had suffered from liver failure complicated by cardiac problems. He had undergone quadruple bypass surgery in 1995.

"Larry was the kind of a reporter who got his juices up," said former Sun-Times investigative reporter Harlan Draeger. "He would light up when he would catch something that was really newsworthy."

That was often. "He…