702 – K’inich Kan B’alam II, king of the Maya state of Palenque (b. 635)
1810 – Johann Friedrich Kranz, German composer, dies at 57
1892 – Hermann Kopp, German chemist (Law of Kopp), dies at 74
1959 – Ray McDonald, American stage and screen tap dancer, dies choking on food at 38
1970 – Albert Louis Wolff, French conductor and composer, dies at 86
1984 – Giuseppe Colombo, Italian mathematician and engineer who studied Mercury, known as ‘the grandfather of the flyby’, dies at 63
1992 – Eugene R. Black, American President of World Bank (1953-62), dies at 93
2005 – Tom Willmore, English geometer, dies at 85
2008 – Emily Perry, English Actress (b. 1907)
2022 – Leo Bersani, American literary critic and scholar known for his writings on the AIDS crisis (Homos), dies at 90
Category: Famous Deaths
Famous Deaths for 19th February 2026
1716 – Dorthe Engelbrechtsdatter, Norway’s first recognised female poet, dies at 82
1963 – Bartolomé “Beny” Moré, Cuban guaracha and mambo singer, guitarist, songwriter, and bandleader, dies of liver cirrhosis at 43
1975 – Luigi Dallapiccola, Italian 12-tone composer (Il prigioniero; Ulisse), dies of Pulmonary edema at 71
1994 – Gordon Sparling, Canadian pioneering filmmaker (Canadian Cameo series – Canada’s first major films with sound), dies at 93
1994 – Fausto Bara, Mexican-American actor (The Renegades – “Gaucho”), dies of AIDS at 42
1994 – Renske Vellinga, Dutch speed-skater, dies in auto-accident at 19
1996 – Charles “Charlie O” Finley, American sports entrepreneur (MLB’s Kansas City/Oakland A’s: NHL’s California Golden Seals), dies at 77
2009 – Kelly Groucutt, British rock bass guitarist and vocalist (Electric Light Orchestra; ELO II; The Orchestra), dies of a heart attack at 63
2019 – Don Newcombe, American baseball pitcher (4 x MLB All Star; World Series 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers; NL MVP and Cy Young Award 1956), dies at 92
2022 – Nigel Butterley, Australian pianist, composer (The True Samaritan), educator, and radio broadcaster, dies at 86
Famous Deaths for 18th February 2026
999 – Gregory V [Bruno], 1st German Pope, dies
1799 – Maurus Haberhauer, Czech composer, dies at 52
1829 – Jan Křtitel Kuchař, Czech organist, harpsichordist, mandolin player, composer, and opera conductor, dies at 77
1833 – Georg Johann Schinn, German composer, dies at 64
1899 – Marius Sophus Lie, Norwegian mathematician (continuous symmetry), dies at 56
1938 – Alida Tartaud-Klein, Dutch actress and performance artist (Rotterdam Stage), dies at 64
1964 – Joseph-Armand Bombardier, French Canadian businessman and inventor of the Bombardier snowmobile, dies of cancer at 56
1973 – Frank Costello, Italian-American gangster (The Prime Minister of the Underworld), dies of a heart attack at 82
2013 – Elspet Gray, Lady Rix, Scottish actress (4 Weddings and a Funeral, Solo, Tokyo), dies at 83
2023 – Petar Zhekov, Bulgarian soccer forward (44 caps; Beroe Stara Zagora, CSKA Sofia), dies at 78
Famous Deaths for 17th February 2026
1768 – Arthur Onslow, English politician (Speaker of the House of Commons 1728-61), dies at 76
1854 – John Martin, English painter and engraver, dies at 64
1954 – Evert Gorter, Dutch children’s pioneering paediatrician founder of Dutch medical child care), dies at 72
1976 – Jean Servais, Belgian actor (Le Plaisir, Every Man is My Enemy), dies from heart failure at 65
2007 – Jurga Ivanauskaitė, Lithuanian writer (b. 1961)
2017 – Alan Aldridge, British artist, graphic designer and illustrator whose artwork was used in record covers for The Beatles and The Who, dies at 78
2020 – Ja’net Dubois, American actress (Willona in “Good Times”), dies from cardiac arrest at 87
2021 – Doug Grisby, American soul music bassist, composer and producer (Patti LaBelle; Teena Marie), dies after suffering a stroke at 57
2021 – Murray Weideman, Australian rules football CHF (Collingwood VFL premiers 1953, 58 [c]; BandF 1957, 61, 62; Victoria 1956-60) and coach (Collingwood 1975-76), dies at 85
2023 – (Harry Gilbert) Gil Trythall, American pianist, contemporary classical and electronic music composer (The Pastimes of Lord Chaitanya), and educator, dies at 92
Famous Deaths for 16th February 2026
1279 – Afonso III, King of Portugal (1248-79), dies at 68
1834 – Lionel Lukin, British life boat pioneer, dies at 91
1899 – Félix Faure, 6th President of the French Third Republic (1895-99), dies at 57
1928 – Eddie Foy Sr. [Edwin Fitzgerald], Irish-American actor, singer and dancer (A Favorite Fool), dies at 71
1992 – Janio Quadros, president of Brazil (1961), dies
1996 – Edmund Gerald “Pat” Brown, American politician and Governor of California (D: 1959-67), dies at 90
1999 – Michael Larson, American “Press Your Luck” scandal big-winning contestant, dies of cancer at 49
1999 – Betty Roché [Mary Elizabeth Roach], American jazz singer (Duke Ellington – “Take The ‘A’ Train”), dies at 81
2002 – Walter Winterbottom, England soccer manager (first manager England national football team 1946–62; FA Director of Coaching), dies at 88
2025 – Luis Estaba, Venezuelan boxer (WBC light flyweight champion 1975-78), dies at 86
Famous Deaths for 15th February 2026
1835 – Henry Hunt, British politician, radical reformer (universal suffrage), dies at 61
1841 – Sibrandus Stratingh, Dutch phyisican and chemist (electrical car), dies at 53
1865 – Nicholas Wiseman, 1st Archbishop of Westminster (1850-65), dies at 62
1885 – Leopold Damrosch, German-American composer, and conductor (New York Oratorio Society. 1873-85; New York Symphony, 1878-85), dies at 52
1896 – E. J. Nicholson [Eliza Jane], American publisher (New Orleans’ “Daily Picayune”), dies at 47
1967 – William C Bullitt, 1st US ambassador in USSR, dies at 76
1996 – Oscar Abrams, Guyanese-born British architect and community organizer (Keskidee Centre – UK’s 1st Black arts center), dies at 58
2004 – Jan Miner, American actress (Crime Photographer), dies at 86
2012 – Lina Romay, Spanish actress (Conan the Barbarian), dies at 57
2025 – Gran Hamada [Hiroaki Hamada], Japanese professional wrestler (New Japan Pro-Wrestling), dies at 74
Famous Deaths for 14th February 2026
1820 – Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry, son of French King Charles X, assassinated by a Bonapartist at 42
1846 – Cornelis Felix van Maanen, Dutch Minister of Justice (1807-42), dies at 76
1955 – Charles Cuvillier, French composer of operetta (The Naughty Princess), dies at 77
1974 – Stewie Dempster, New Zealand cricket batsman (10 Tests, 2 x 100s; Wellington CA, Leicestershire CCC, Warwickshire CCC), dies at 70
1975 – P. G. Wodehouse, English-American writer (Bertie Wooster novels), dies at 93
1984 – Elmer Keith, American firearms enthusiast and author (Guns and Ammo), dies at 84
1988 – Gerard Holt, Dutch architect (municipal theatres Tilburg and Nijmegen, St. Joseph’s Church), dies at 83
1996 – Ivan William Hannaford, British sociologist and author (Race: The History of an Idea in the West), dies at 64
1996 – Lady Caroline Blackwood, British journalist and writer (The Last of the Duchess), dies at 64
2001 – Alan Ross, British poet and editor (London Magazine), dies at 78
Famous Deaths for 13th February 2026
1837 – Mariano José de Larra, Spanish journalist and romantic writer, commits suicide by gunshot at 27
1937 – Carl Albrecht Bernoulli, Swiss writer, dies at 69
1952 – Josephine Tey, English author (The Daughter of Time), dies of cancer at 55
1965 – Jerry Burke, American easy-listening pianist and organ player (Lawrence Welk Orchestra, 1934-65), dies of cancer at 53
1968 – Portia White, Canadian contralto, and educator, dies of cancer at 56
1982 – Gluyas Williams, American cartoonist (Fellows Citizen), dies at 93
1997 – Antonius “Ton” Lensink, Dutch actor (Rituelen), dies at 74
2010 – Dale Hawkins, American rock singer and songwriter (Susie Q), dies at 73
2012 – Russell Arms, American actor and vocalist (Your Hit Parade; “Cinco Robles”), dies at 92
2018 – Tito Francona, American baseball utility (MLB All Star 1961), dies at 84
Famous Deaths for 12th February 2026
1128 – Toghtekin, Turkoman atabek and military leader of Damascus (fought during First Crusade), founded Burid Dynasty, dies
1590 – François Hotman/Hotomanus, French lawyer and diplomat (Anti-Tribonien), dies at 65
1907 – Muriel Robb, British tennis player (Wimbledon 1902), dies of lymphadenoma at 28
1933 – Henri Duparc, French composer (L’invitation au voyage), and visual artist, dies at 85
1957 – Eric Alfred Knudsen, American Hawaiian folklorist, dies at 84
1986 – Guy Warrack, Scottish composer, dies at 86
1991 – Edward A. Blatt, Polish-born American director (Between 2 Worlds), dies at 88
1994 – Donald Judd, American minimalist sculptor and artist, dies of cancer at 65
2025 – Holmes Rolston III, American environmental philosopher and Templeton Prize laureate (2003), dies at 92
2025 – Tommy Hunt, American soul singer (Flamingos, 1956-60 – “I Only Have Eyes For You”; “Lovers Never Say Goodbye”), dies at 91
Famous Deaths for 11th February 2026
1685 – David Teniers III, Flemish painter, dies at 46
1927 – Joel Engel, Russian musicologist (Jewish Folksongs), composer (“Numi, Numi”), and music publisher, dies at 58
1943 – Bess Houdini, American-German stage assistant and wife of Harry Houdini, dies from heart attack at 67
1950 – Kiki Cuyler, American Baseball HOF right fielder (World Series 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates; 4 × NL stolen base leader; MLB All Star 1934 Chicago Cubs), dies at 51
1954 – Adolph M. Christianson, justice of the North Dakota Supreme Court, dies at 76
1971 – Whitney Young Jr, National Urban League director, drowns in Nigeria
1972 – Jan Wils, Dutch architect (Olympian Stadium, Amsterdam), dies at 80
1985 – Ben Abruzzo, American businessman and balloonist (b. 1930)
1997 – Don Porter, American actor (Gidget), dies at 84
2005 – Jack L. Chalker, American sci-fi author (Saga of Well World), dies at 60