Famous Deaths on January 21

September 26, 2024

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January 21 Calendar

1699 Obadiah Walker, English writer (b. 1616)
1704 Willem Bastiaensz Schepers, Dutch merchant and admiral, dies at about 83
1706 Adrien Baillet, French scholar and critic, dies at 56
1710 Johann Georg Gichtel, German mystic and religious leader, dies at 71
1722 Charles Paulet, 2nd Duke of Bolton, English supporter of William III of England (b. 1661)
1731 Thomas Woolston, English theologian (b. 1669)
1746 Gottfried Kirchhoff, German composer, dies at 60
1766 James Quin, British actor (Covent Garden Theatre), dies at 72
1773 Alexis Piron, French dramatist (La Métromanie), dies at 83
1774 Mustafa III, Ottoman Sultan (1757-74). dies of a heart attack at 56

King of France (1774-93), beheaded during the French Revolution at 38

1795 Samuel Wallis, English explorer (Wallis Island), dies at 66
1809 Josiah Hornblower, American statesman (b. 1729)
1814 Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, French writer and botanist (Paul et Virginie), dies at 77
1815 Matthias Claudius, German poet (Death and the Maiden), and journalist (Der Wandsbecker Bote), dies at 74
1823 Cayetano José Rodríguez, Argentine cleric, journalist and poet (b. 1761)
1831 Achim von Arnim [Ludwig Joachim von Arnim], German Romantic poet and writer (Des Knaben Wunderhorn),u dies at 49
1851 (Gustav) Albert Lortzing, German Spieloper composer and actor (Zar und Zimmerman), dies at 49
1859 Henry Hallam, British lawyer and historian who wrote on European history, dies at 81
1870 Alexander Herzen, Russian writer (b. 1812)
1871 Jan Jacob Rochussen, Dutch Governor-General of Dutch East Indies (1845-51), dies at 73
1872 Franz Grillparzer, Austrian playwright (Sappho/Libussa), dies at 81
1872 Thomas Bragg, American politician, 34th Governor of North Carolina (1859-61), dies at 61
1879 John Blair Scribner, American magazine and book publisher, dies of pneumonia at 28
1881 Wilhelm Matthias Naeff, Swiss Federal Councilor (b. 1802)
1882 Anton Emil Titl, Austrian composer, dies at 72
1883 Jacopo Tomadini, Italian composer, dies at 62
1884 Auguste Franchomme, French cellist and composer, dies at 75
1888 Stephan Hale Alonzo Marsh, British born composer who worked in Australia (Australia's 1st opera), dies at 83
1891 Calixa Lavallee, Canadian composer (O Canada), dies at 48
1892 John Couch Adams, English astronomer (co-discover Neptune), dies at 72
1894 Guillaume Lekeu, Belgian composer (Épithalame), dies of typhoid fever at 24
1901 Elisha Gray, American inventor (telephone prototype), dies at 65
1903 Hermanus Schaepman 'the doctor', Dutch poet, Roman Catholic priest, theologian, and politician, dies at 58
1914 Theodor Kittelsen, Norwegian artist (b. 1857)
1919 Gojong, Emperor Gwangmu of Korea (1897-1907), dies at 66

1927 Floris H Verster, Dutch painter/cartoonist/etcher, dies at 65
1928 George Washington Goethals, American army general and civil engineer who supervised the construction of the Panama Canal, dies at 69
1931 Felix Blumenfeld, Russian composer, conductor and pianist, dies at 67
1932 Lytton Strachey, English biographer and critic (Benson Medal 1923), dies at 51
1933 George Moore, Irish novelist and painter (Esther Waters), dies at 80
1937 Marie Prevost, Canadian actress (b. 1898)
1938 George Méliès, French early filmmaker (A Trip to the Moon), dies at 76
1942 Henryk Opieński, Polish violinist, conductor, choral director, composer (Zygmunt August and Barbara), and musicologist (Moniuszko), dies at 72
1943 Otakar Sini, composer, dies at 61
1944 Gustaaf Schamelhout, Flemish physician and writer, dies at 74
1944 Heinrich zu Sayn-Wittgenstein, German major and pilot, shot down
1945 Rash Behari Bose, Indian revolutionary leader against the British Raj in India, dies at 58

Italian light opera composer, dies at 72

British author (Animal Farm, Nineteen Eighty-Four), dies at 46

1952 Katie Sandwina [Katie Brumbach], Austrian-American weight-lifter (Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus), dies at 67
1955 Archie Hahn, American athlete (Olympic gold 60m, 100m, 200m 1904), dies at 74
1955 Maarten Pleun Vrij, Dutch lawyer, criminology professor (University of Groningen, 1928-47), and jurist (Supreme Court Justice, 1947-55), dies at 59
1956 Sam Langford, Canadian boxer (World Coloured Heavyweight Champion x 5 1910-18), dies at 72
1957 Arthur L Bowley, English statistician/economist, dies at 87
1959 Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, American actor (Our Gang; Beginner's Luck; General Spanky), shot by an acquaintance during a financial dispute at 31

1959 Lamar Stringfield, American composer, dies at 61
1961 John Joseph Becker, American composer and conductor, dies a day before his 75th birthday
1962 André Lhote, French painter and art historian (Traité du paysage), dies at 76
1963 Al St. John, American vaudeville and silent film comic (Young and Dumb),and talkie character actor billed as "Fuzzy" St. John (Outlaws of the Plains), dies of a heart attack at 70
1963 Franz Jung, German writer and political activist, dies at 74
1964 Joseph Schildkraut, Austrian actor (Cleopatra, Joseph Schildkraut Presents, Diary of Anne Frank), dies from a heart attack at 68
1965 Harvey Zorbaugh, doctor/TV host (Play the Game), dies at 68
1967 Ann Sheridan, American actress (They Drive by Night, Dodge City, Another World), dies of cancer at 51
1968 Will Lang Jr., American magazine executive (b. 1914)
1971 Richard B Russell, (Sen-D-Ga), dies at 73
1974 Jan Arends, Dutch poet and author, commits suicide at 48
1974 Ken Viljoen, South African cricket batsman (27 Tests, 2 x 100, HS 124; Griqualand West, Orange Free State, Transvaal), dies at 63
1974 Lewis L Strauss, head US Atomic Energy Comm (1953-58), dies at 78
1975 Ernst Gernot Klussmann, German composer, dies at 73
1975 Marie Lohr, actress (Pygmalion, Small Hotel, Escapade), dies at 84
1977 John Vincent, American composer, dies at 74
1977 Sandro Penna, Italian poet, dies at 70
1977 Zoltan Vasarhelyi, composer, dies at 76
1978 Freda Utley, British scholar and author. (b. 1898)
1979 Aleksei Leontiev, Soviet developmental psychologist and philosopher (activity theory), dies at 75
1981 Allyn Joslyn, American actor (They Won't Forget; Cafe Society), dies at 79
1981 James Stronge former Ulster Unionist Member of Parliament, assassinated by IRA, alongside his father Norman
1981 Norman Stronge, former Ulster Unionist Member of Parliament, assassinated by IRA alongside son James
1983 Lamar Williams, American musician (The Allman Brothers Band), dies of cancer at 34
1984 Giannis Skaribas, Greek writer, dramatist, and poet (b. 1893)

American soul singer-songwriter and performer ("Lonely Teardrops"; "Higher And Higher": "I Get the Sweetest Feeling"), dies from stroke complications at 49

1985 Eddie Graham, American professional wrestler and promoter, dies at 55
1985 James Beard, American culinary expert and author (Delights & Prejudices), dies at 81
1987 Charles Goodell, American politician (b. 1926)
1987 Pieter G Buckinx, Flemish writer (7th Day), dies at 83
1988 Abraham Sofaer, Burmese born British actor (Naked Jungle, Elephant Walk), dies at 91
1989 Billy Tipton [Dorothy Tipton], American jazz pianist, saxophone player, and bandleader, dies from an untreated hemorrhaging peptic ulcer at 74 [1] [2]
1989 Carl Furillo, American baseball outfielder (NL Batting Champ 1953; MLB All-Star 1952, 53; World Series 1955, 59; Brooklyn/LA Dodgers), dies from leukemia at 66
1991 Frank Mitchell, actor (Music is Magic, Prairie Gunsmoke), dies
1992 (William Thomas) "Champion Jack" Dupree, American boxer, blues and boogie-woogie pianist, singer-songwriter (Walkin' The Blues), and WWII P.O.W., dies of cancer at 81
1993 Charlie Gehringer, American Baseball HOF 2nd baseman (6 x MLB All Star; World Series 1935; AL MVP & batting champion 1937; Detroit Tigers), dies at 89
1993 Jan Zimmer, Slovak composer, dies at 66
1994 Basel al-Assad, Syrian president Hafez al-Assad's son and chosen successor, dies in car accident at 31
1995 Flavio "Negao" Pires da Conceicao, drug Trafficker, dies at 25
1995 John Halas, Hungarian-American cartoonist and animator (Animal Farm), dies at 82
1995 Philippe Casado, Moroccan-French bicyclist, dies at 30
1996 René Marc Jalbert, sergeant-at-Arms at the National Assembly of Quebec (b. 1921)
1996 Roman Cieślewicz, Polish French artist and graphic designer, dies at 66
1996 Sam Green, industrialist/inventor, dies at 88
1997 Colonel Tom Parker [Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk], Dutch-born talent manager (Elvis Presley), dies after suffering a stroke at 87
1997 Dennis Main-Wilson, British TV and radio producer (Marty, Till Death Us Do Part), dies of lung cancer at 72
1997 Michael Duane, British progressive educationalist and author, dies at 81
1998 Jack Lord, American actor (Hawaii FIVE-O), dies at 77
1998 Larry Gilbert, American golfer (Senior Players Championship 1997), dies of lung cancer at 55
1999 Charles Brown, American blues singer and pianist ("Merry Christmas Baby"), dies at 76
1999 Jacques Chailley, French musicologist and composer, dies at 88
1999 Leslie French, British actor and singer (Death in Venice, More than a Miracle), dies at 94
1999 Susan Strasberg, American stage and screen actress (The Diary of Anne Frank; In Praise of Older Women;, Manitou), and memoirist, dies of breast cancer at 60

American white supremacist, dies at 80

2003 Paul Haines, American-born Canadian poet (b. 1933)
2004 Yordan Radichkov, Bulgarian writer and playwright (The Tied Up Balloon), dies at 74
2005 John L. Hess, American journalist (b. 1917)
2005 Parveen Babi, Indian actress (b. 1955)
2005 Theun de Vries, Dutch writer (The Girl with the Red Hair), dies at 97
2006 Bedanand Jha, Nepalese politician
2006 Ibrahim Rugova, Kosovar nationalist writer and President of Kosovo (1992-2006), dies at 61
2007 Maria Cioncan, Romanian athlete (b. 1977)
2007 U;Nee [Lee Hye-ryeon], Korean pop artist, commits suicide at 25
2008 Marie Smith Jones, last native speaker of the Eyak language (b. 1918)
2008 Pam Barrett, Canadian politician (b. 1953)
2009 Pat Crawford, Australian cricketer (Australian pace bowler 1956), dies at 75
2010 Paul Quarrington, Canadian novelist, playwright, screenwriter, filmmaker, musician and educator (b. 1953)
2011 Dennis Oppenheim, American conceptual artist (b.1938)
2011 E. V. V. Satyanarayana, Indian Telugu Film Director, screenwriter and producer, dies at 54
2012 Jonathan Idema, American torturer, kidnapper and con-artist, dies from Aids complications at 55
2012 Roy John Britten, American molecular biologist (repeated DNA sequences in eukaryotic genomes), dies of pancreatic cancer at 92
2013 Alden Winship Clausen, American banker (President of World Bank), dies at 89
2013 Michael Adamis, Greek electro-acoustic music composer, dies at 83
2013 Michael Winner, English film director and producer (Death Wish), dies at 77
2015 Leon Brittan, British politician, Home Secretary and member of the European Commission, dies at 75
2015 Martin Honeysett, British cartoonist (Punch, Private Eye), dies at 71
2015 Pauline Yates, British actress (The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin), dies at 85
2015 Waldemar Kmentt, Austrian operatic tenor (Vienna State Opera, 1951-2005), dies at 85
2016 Bill Johnson, alpine skier (first American to win alpine Olympic gold - 1984), dies at 55
2017 Emma Tennant, English writer (Pemberley: Or, Pride and Prejudice Continued), dies at 79
2017 Maggie Roche, American singer-songwriter (The Roches - "Hammond Song"), dies of cancer at 65
2017 Veljo Tormis, Estonian composer, specializing in choral music (Curse Upon Iron (Raua needmine)), dies at 86
2018 Chartchai Chionoi, Thai boxer (WBC/WBA flyweight champion), dies of Parkinson's disease at 75
2018 Connie Sawyer [Rosie Cohen], American actress known as "The Clown Princess of Comedy" (Pineapple Express, Dumb and Dumber), dies at 105
2018 David Pithey, Rhodesian cricket all-rounder (8 Tests for South Africa), dies from Alzheimer's disease at 81
2019 Harris Wofford, American politician (Sen-D-Pennsylvania 1991-94), head of AmeriCorps, dies at 92
2019 Kaye Ballard, American stage and screen actress, comedienne, and singer (Mothers-in-Law - "Kaye"), dies at 93
2019 Maxine Brown, American country music singer (Browns), dies at 87
2019 Russell Baker, American columnist, author and humorist (NY Times), dies at 93
2020 Morgan Wootten, American Basketball Hall of Fame coach (46 seasons DeMatha Catholic HS, Hyattsville, Maryland; National C'ships 1962, 65, 68, 78, 84), dies at 88
2020 Terry Jones, Welsh comedian (Monty Python), dies from complications of dementia at 77
2021 David Bolton, English rugby league five eighth (23 caps Great Britain; Wigan, Balmain) and coach (Parramatta), dies at 83
2022 Clark Gillies, Canadian Hockey HOF left wing (Stanley Cup 1980, 81, 82, 83 New York Islanders; Buffalo Sabres), dies of cancer at 67
2022 Louie Anderson, American comedian, Emmy Award-winning actor (Baskets; Life With Louie; Coming To America), TV game show Host (Family Feud, 1999-2002), and writer, dies of cancer at 68
2023 Bill Schonely, American sports broadcaster (Portland Trail Blazers 1970-98), dies at 93

January 21 Highlights

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