WILLIAM A. WILSON, 95

First U.S. ambassador to the Vatican

William A. Wilson, the first American to serve as ambassador to the Vatican and a member of President Ronald Reagan's "kitchen cabinet" of advisers, has died. He was 95.

Wilson was among a group of about a dozen conservative, wealthy Los Angeles businessmen who became confidants and advisers to Reagan, first as he sought to become governor of California, and later, president. They also helped bankroll his campaigns for office.