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	Radio NZ March 6 2007; 20:34 Veteran newspaper columnist Frank Haden died on Tuesday. He was 77. Mr Haden announced his retirement in December 2006 after 50 years in newspapers when prostate cancer made it impossible for him to continue to write. Born in 1929 and raised in Christchurch, he gave up a job as a law clerk at 19 to enter journalism at a quarter of the salary. Raised as a Catholic, his disillusionment with the church was credited with a lifetime of challenging authority, including newspaper proprietors. Haden was known widely as a hard-headed journalist of the old school and during his career was assistant editor of The Dominion and editor of the Sunday Times and Auckland Star. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Merle, and their four daughters.