1711 – Louis François, duc de Boufflers, French marshal (b. 1644)
1807 – Maria, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh, dies at 71
1879 – Friedrich August Kummer, German cellist, composer, and pedagogue, dies at 82
1942 – Henry Eichheim, American violinist, composer, organologist, and ethnomusicologist dies at 72
1942 – Mikhail Fokine, Russian ballet dancer and choreographer, dies at 62
1990 – Thomas W. McKnew, American Vice President, Chairman, and Chairman Emeritus of the National Geographic Society (1954-90), dies of pneumonia at 94
2009 – Elmer Kelton, American Western novelist (b. 1926)
2011 – Jack Layton, Canadian politician, dies at 61
2014 – John Akers, American business executive (head of IBM, 1983-93), dies of a stroke at 79
2019 – Bobby Dillon, American NFL defensive back (second to record 50 interceptions), dies of dementia at 89
Category: Famous Deaths
Famous Deaths for 21st August 2025
1614 – Elizabeth Báthory, Hungarian countess and the world’s most prolific female serial killer, dies at 54
1813 – Sophia Magdalena of Denmark, Queen consort of Sweden, dies at 67
1814 – Benjamin Thompson, American physicist and inventor (Royal Institution of Great Britain), dies at 61
1867 – Juan Álvarez, Mexican revolutionary leader (President of Mexico 1855), dies at 77
1870 – Ma Xinyi Viceroy of Liangjiang of the late Qing Dynasty in China (b. 1821)
1898 – Niccolò van Westerhout, Italian composer, dies at 40
1919 – Laurence Doherty, British tennis player (Wimbledon 1902-06, US Nationals 1903), dies of toxemia at 43
1943 – Henrik Pontoppidan, Danish writer (Peter Gelukkige, Nobel 1917), dies at 86
1995 – James Truitte, American ballet dancer (Lester Horton; Alvin Ailley), dies at 72
2015 – Anna Kashfi [Joan O’Callaghan], Welsh actress and 1st wife of Marlon Barando, dies at 80
Famous Deaths for 20th August 2025
1153 – Bernard of Clairvaux, French monk and saint (founded Clairvaux abbey, preached famous sermon advocating for the Second Crusade), dies (b. 1090)
1936 – Edward Weston, English-born American electrical engineer who invented the portable voltmeter, dies at 86
1968 – Earl Sande, American HOF jockey (Triple Crown 1930 Gallant Fox; 3 x Kentucky Derby; 5 x Belmont Stakes; 1 x Preakness Stakes; 3 x US Champion Jockey by earnings; US Champion Trainer by earnings 1938), dies at 69
1974 – Ilona Massey [Hajmássy], Hungarian-American film, stage, and radio actress and singer (Ilona Massey Show), dies of cancer at 64
1989 – George Adamson [Baba ya Simba – “Father of Lions”], British conservationist (Born Free), murdered in Kenya at 82
1991 – Lenore Strunsky Gershwin, widow of Ira Gershwin, dies at 90
2002 – Harry Wich, Dutch painter and set designer, dies at 76
2008 – Gene Upshaw, American NFL guard (Oakland Radiers) and NFLPA leader, dies at 63
2016 – Brian Rix [Lord Rix], British actor and activist (Mencap), dies at 92
2024 – Al Attles, American Basketball HOF coach (NBA C’ship 1975 GS Warriors; NBA All-Star Game HC 1975, 76) and point guard (GS Warriors), dies at 87
Famous Deaths for 19th August 2025
1601 – Michael the Brave, Prince of Wallachia and Moldovia (Romanian national hero), assassinated at 42 or 43
1851 – Gioseffo Catrufo, Italian composer, dies at 80
1945 – Tomas Burgos, Chilean philanthropist (founder of Villa Lo Burgos), dies at 69
1974 – Rodger Davies, United States ambassador to Cyprus, murdered at 53 by Greek Cypriot gunmen during a demonstration outside the U.S. Embassy in Nicosia
1981 – Jessie Matthews, English actress (Gangway, First a Girl), dies at 74
1983 – Aleksandar Ranković, Yugoslavic partisan and 1st Vice President of Yugoslavia (1963-66), dies at 73
1986 – Jaap [Jacobus Albertus Wilhelmus] Burger, Dutch politician and chairman (PvdA), dies at 81
1992 – Norvel Lee, American boxer (Olympic gold 1952), dies at 67
2010 – Michael Been, American rock singer, guitarist, and songwriter (The Call – “Let the Day Begin”), dies of a heart attack at 60
2021 – Bill Freehan, American baseball catcher (11 x All Star; World Series 1968; 5 x Gold Glove; Detroit Tigers), dies from dementia at 79
Famous Deaths for 18th August 2025
1803 – James Beattie, Scottish poet and philosopher (Essay on Truth), dies at 67
1916 – Edward D Pain, English journalist (NY World), dies in battle at 36
1952 – Alberto Hurtado Cruchaga, Chilean Jesuit saint (b. 1901)
1968 – Arthur Marshall, American ragtime piano player and composer (“Swipesy Cakewalk” with Scott Joplin; “The Peach”), dies at 86
1980 – Norman Cazden, American composer, educator, and music theorist, dies at 65
1996 – Hugo Gabriel Gryn, British Reform rabbi, dies at 66
2007 – Michael Deaver, Reagan Administration Deputy White House Chief of Staff, dies at 69
2017 – Zoe Laskari, Greek actress, dies at 72
2023 – Garry Adey, English rugby union number 8 (2 Tests; Leicester Tigers 381 games) and businessman (Executive Chairman The Adey Group), dies at 78
2024 – Phil Donahue, American Emmy Award-winning daytime TV talk show host (The Phil Donahue Show), dies at 88
Famous Deaths for 17th August 2025
1676 – Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen, German writer (Simplicius Simplicissimus), dies
1865 – Johann Nepomuk Poissl, Bavarian composer, dies at 82
1896 – Bridget Driscoll, 1st person in Great Britain to die in an auto-accident
1966 – Michael Garrison, American TV producer (Crowded Sky), dies after a fall at 43
1971 – Wilhelm List, German field marshal during World War II who was convicted of war crimes, dies at 91
1990 – Pearl Bailey, American Tony and Emmy Award-winning stage and screen actress, singer and dancer (Hello, Dolly!), dies of a heart attack at 72
1995 – “Wild Bill” Davis, American jazz pianist, organist, and arranger, dies at 76
1998 – Tadeusz Slusarski, Polish track and field athlete (b. 1950)
2008 – Franco Sensi, Italian oil tycoon and president of A.S. Roma, dies at 82
2020 – Boyd Grant, American college basketball coach (PCAA Coach of the Year 1978, 81, 82; Fresno State, Colorado State), dies from a stroke at 87
Famous Deaths for 16th August 2025
1661 – Thomas Fuller, British scholar, preacher and historian (History of the Worthies of Britain), dies of typhus fever at 53
1956 – Bela Lugosi [Blaskó], Austrian actor (Dracula, Plan 9 From Outer Space), dies of a heart attack at 73
1960 – Errol Holmes, English cricket batsman (5 Tests, 1 x 50, HS 85no; Oxford University CC, Surrey CCC), dies of a heart attack at 54
1968 – (Robert) “Cutty” Cutshall, American jazz trombonist (Benny Goodman Orchestra; Eddie Condon), dies at 66
1977 – Elvis Presley, American King of Rock and Roll (“Hound Dog”; “Love Me Tender”; “Heartbreak Hotel”; “Suspicious Minds”), and actor (Jailhouse Rock; King Creole), dies at Graceland at 42, with the official cause of death being cardiac arrhythmia
1993 – Joseph Towers, US pilot, dies
2004 – Ivan Hlinka, Czech ice hockey coach (b. 1950)
2010 – Bobby Thomson, Scottish-American baseball player, dies at 86
2016 – João Havelange, Brazilian industrialist and FIFA President 1974-98, dies at 100
2025 – Bob Simpson, Australian cricket batsman, captain and coach (62 Tests, 10 x 100s, HS 311, 71 wickets; Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1965; NSWCA), dies at 89
Famous Deaths for 15th August 2025
1369 – Philippa of Hainault, Queen consort of Edward III of England, dies at about 56 [year of birth disputed]
1972 – Alf Hurum, Norwegian composer (Lilja), and painter, dies at 89
1988 – Mohammed Zia ul-Haq, Pakistani general and politician (President of Pakistan 1978-88), killed in plane crash at 64
1992 – Giorgio Perlasca, Italian anti-fascist (who saved 5,200 Jews from deportation in Hungary), dies at 82
2007 – Dave Hassinger, American recording engineer and record producer, dies at 80
2008 – Leroy Sievers, American journalist (CBS News, Nightline), dies of cancer at 53
2008 – James Orthwein, American businessman (owner of the New England Patriots), dies at 84
2011 – Eric Dempster, New Zealand cricket spin bowler (5 Tests, TS 47, 2 wickets; Wellington CA), dies at 86
2017 – Vernon “Vern” Ehlers, American politician (Michigan House of Representatives), dies of complications from Alzheimers disease at 83
2018 – Ajit Wadekar, Indian cricket batsman and captain (37 Tests; top score 143; Bombay), dies at 77
Famous Deaths for 14th August 2025
1852 – Margaret Taylor, wife of Zachary Taylor and 1st lady of the United States (1849-50), dies at 63
1856 – William Buckland, dean (Westminster)/geologist, dies
1891 – Johnny Mullagh, Australian cricket all-rounder (Aboriginal tour of England 1868), dies at 50
1969 – Leonard Woolf, English author and husband of Virginia Woolf, dies at 88
1980 – Dorothy Stratten [Hoogstraten], Canadian playmate (August, 1979), model and actress (Galixina), murdered by estranged husband and manager Paul Snider at 20
1984 – J. B. Priestly, English novelist and scriptwriter (The Good Companions, An Inspector Calls), dies at 89
1985 – (Edith) “Gale” Sondergaard, American Academy Award-winning stage and screen actress (Anthony Adverse; The Letter), dies of cerebral thrombosis at 86
1996 – Sergiu Celibidache, Romanian conductor (Berlin Philharmonic, 1945-57; Munich Philharmonic, 1979-96), and educator, dies at 84
2000 – John Milford, American actor (Command and Conquer: Red Alert, Homefront), dies at 72
2002 – Dave Williams, American rock singer (Drowning Pool), dies of heart failure due to undiagnosed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy at 30
Famous Deaths for 13th August 2025
1382 – Eleanor of Aragon, wife of John I of Castile, dies giving birth to her third child at 24
1787 – Isaac de Pinto, Dutch merchant (Dutch East India Company), and scholar, dies at 70
1910 – Florence Nightingale, British nurse who revolutionized nursing during the Crimean War, dies at 90
1916 – Fritz Steinbach, German conductor and composer, dies at 61
1927 – James Oliver Curwood, American journalist and writer (Valley of Silent Men), dies at 49
1995 – Per-Jakez Helias, French Breton writer (Le Cheval d’orgueil) and actor, dies at 81
2001 – Otto Stuppacher, Austrian racing driver, dies at 54
2016 – Pramukh Swami Maharaj, Indian Hindu spiritual leader (BAPS), dies at 94
2021 – Nanci Griffith, American singer (“From A Distance”), and songwriter (“Once in a Very Blue Moon”; “Love at the Five and Dime”), dies at 68
2021 – Charlie Johnson, American football defensive tackle (Pro Bowl 1979-81; All Pro 1980; Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings), dies at 69