Grieving: Feminist Bella Abzug says the 3...

Grieving: Feminist Bella Abzug says the 3 1/2 years since her husband, Martin, died have been the most difficult of her life. “I still have this tremendous pain,� she says in the current issue of Ms. magazine. Despite her reputation for independence, she says she was “dependent, clearly, on Martin. He would embrace me in his furry chest . . . and protect me from the meanness . . . in the kind of life I lead.�

Denial: Kitty Dukakis, wife of Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, denies in her new autobiography that she tried to commit suicide last year, the Boston Herald reported Sunday. In “Now You Know,� Kitty Dukakis, 53, says she was unable to sleep Nov. 6 and later found a bottle of rubbing alcohol in the bathroom. Not realizing it was different from beverage alcohol, she drank it. She had a toxic reaction and was hospitalized.

Separating: Physicist Stephen Hawking, 48, considered one of this era’s greatest minds, has separated from Jane, his wife of 25 years. Hawking, author of “A Brief History of Time,� is in a wheelchair and had been cared for by Jane. A London paper quoted an unidentified former student: “She is a committed Christian, and, as he increasingly became interested in scientific . . . explanations, it became more difficult for them.�

Not Peanuts: Jimmy Carter’s first political endorsement since leaving the White House boosted the hopes of a 26-year-old man who is a friend of his daughter, Amy. Georgia House candidate Chris Mitchell, who works at the Carter Center and says he has long idolized the former President, received the political blessing Friday in the Atlanta suburb of Stone Mountain. Mitchell got his Carter connection when he met Amy one night in Americus, Ga.