1517 – Tuman bay II, last Mamelukken sultan of Egypt, dies at 40
1635 – Fakhr-al-Din II, Druze Prince of Lebanon, dies at 62
1722 – Charles Leslie, Irish Anglican priest, dies at 71
1918 – Lavr Georgevich Kornilov, Russian military officer, dies at 47
1967 – Luis Somoza Debayle, President of Nicaragua (1956-63), dies at 44
1996 – George Mackay Brown, Scottish poet and playwright, dies at 74
2005 – Philippe Volter, Belgian actor, dies at 46
2009 – Bruce Snyder, American college football coach (Utah State, California, Arizona State), dies from melanoma at 69
2015 – Günter Grass, German writer, playwright (The Tin Drum) and Nobel Prize laureate (1999), dies at 87
2022 – Gloria Parker [Rosenthal], American marimbist, glasspiel player, songwriter (Clap Your Hands and Shake Your Blues Away), and bandleader, dies at 100
Category: Famous Deaths
Famous Deaths for 12th April 2024
1550 – Claude of Lorraine, duke of Guise, dies at 53
1814 – Charles Burney, English music historian, dies at 88
1922 – František Ondříček, Czech violinist and composer, dies at 64
1961 – Nils-Eric Fougstedt, Finnish composer (Angoscia, Trittico sinfonico), dies at 50
1983 – Carl Morton, American baseball pitcher (NL Rookie of the Year 1970; Montreal Expos, Atlanta Braves), dies of a heart attack at 39
1993 – Isaac Rojas, vp of Argentina (1955-58), dies
1997 – George Wald, American physiologist and biologist (Nobel Prize 1967, vitamin A in retina), dies at 90
2010 – Michel Chartrand, French Canadian union activist, dies at 93
2012 – George Mesterhazy, Hungarian-American jazz pianist, and arranger, dies at 56
2013 – Marv Harshman, American College/Basketball HOF coach (Pacific Lutheran, Washington State Uni, Uni of Washington; Pac-10 Coach of the Year 1982, 84), dies at 95
Famous Deaths for 11th April 2024
1554 – Thomas Wyatt the younger, English rebel (b. 1521)
1938 – Cristóbal Torriente, Cuban Baseball HOF outfielder (NgL NL batting champion 1920; NgL NL pennant 1920–22; Chicago American Giants; career batting average: .352), dies from alcoholism and tuberculosis at 44
1973 – (Edward) “Ted” de Corsia, American actor (The Naked City; 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea), dies at 69
1985 – Bunny Ahearne, British ice hockey promoter, dies at 84
1989 – Henk van Galen Last, Dutch journalist, dies at 68
1994 – John Nicolaas Block, Dutch aviation pioneer (Martinair, Transavia), dies at 64
2000 – Lucia Dlugoszewski, Polish-American composer (Fire Fragile Flight), dies at 74
2017 – Toby Smith [Grafftey-Smith], British keyboardist and songwriter, dies of cancer at 46
2018 – Mitzi Shore [Lillian Saidel], American owner of The Comedy Store and founder of The Comedy Channel, dies at 87
2019 – Monkey Punch [Kazuhiko Kato], Japanese manga cartoonist (Lupin III), dies of pneumonia at 81
Famous Deaths for 10th April 2024
1640 – Agostino Agazzari, Italian composer, dies at 61
1806 – Horatio Gates, British-American soldier (general of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War), dies at 78
1920 – Moritz B. Cantor, German historian of mathematics, dies at 90
1931 – Khalil Gibran, Lebanese-American poet (The Prophet; Broken Wings; Sand and Foam), painter, and philosopher, dies of cirrhosis of the liver, with incipient tuberculosis, at 48
1938 – Joseph “King” Oliver, American jazz cornet player, composer, bandleader, and mentor to Louis Armstrong, dies of arteriosclerosis at 56
1962 – Stuart Sutcliffe, Scottish visual artist and rock bassist (The Beatles, 1960-61), dies of a brain hemorrhage at 21
1968 – Gustavs Celmins, Latvian politician (b. 1899)
2012 – Ritchie Teeter, American drummer (The Dictators, 1976-79; Twisted Sister, 1980-81), dies of esophageal cancer at 61
2012 – Raymond Aubrac, French Resistance Leader, dies at 97
2016 – Howard Marks, British drug dealer and author (Mr Nice), dies at 70
Famous Deaths for 9th April 2024
491 – Zeno, Eastern Roman Emperor (474-75, 476-91), dies at 66
1024 – Benedict VIII [Theophylactus van Tusculum], Pope (1012-24), dies
1557 – Michael Agricola, Finnish theologist/church reformer/bishop, dies
1768 – Sarah Fielding, English writer (The Adventures of David Simple), dies at 58
1851 – Antoine-Charles Glachant, French violinist, composer, and artillery commander, dies at 79
1876 – Charles Goodyear, American politician (D-NY), dies at 71
1994 – Keith Watson, British comic strip artist (Dan Dare), dies at 59
2010 – Zoltán Varga, Hungarian Footballer (b. 1945)
2014 – Bertha Tickey, American softball pitcher (Hall of Fame 1973), dies at 91
2021 – Ekkehard Fasser, Swiss bobsledder (Olympic gold, four-man 1988; World C’ship gold 1983; World Cup champion 1985-86), dies at 68
Famous Deaths for 8th April 2024
1143 – John II Komnenos, Emperor of the Byzantine Empire (1118-43), dies in an accident at 55
1778 – Pieter Teyler van der Hulst, Dutch silk merchant (founded Teyler Museum), dies at 76
1851 – John Parry [Bardd Alaw], Welsh composer and harpist, dies at 75
1894 – Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Indian novelist (Mrinalini, Anandamath), dies at 55
1902 – Dmitry Sipyagain, Russian Minister of Interior/headed Secret Service, assassinated by a Socialist-Revolutionary at 49
1906 – Auguste Deter, German woman notable for being the 1st person diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, dies of sepsis caused by an infected bedsore at 55
1938 – Harold Baumgartner, South African cricketer (took 2-99 lefty in test for South Africa), dies at 54
1996 – Fried Walter [Schmidt], German light music and operetta composer, dies at 86
2001 – Frank Annunzio, American politician (Rep-D-IL, 1965-93), dies of Parkinson’s disease at 86
2009 – Herbie Lovelle, America drummer, studio musician (Hot Lips Page) and actor (Law and Order), dies at 85
Famous Deaths for 7th April 2024
924 – Berengar of Friuli, King of Italy, Holy Roman Emperor (915-924) (b c. 845)
1661 – William Brereton, 1st Baronet, English soldier and politician, dies at 56
1668 – William Davenant, English poet (b. 1606)
1871 – Wilhelm Freiherr von Tegetthoff, Austrian admiral (Helgoland/Lissa), dies of pneumonia at 43
1950 – Walter Huston, Canadian actor (Maltese Falcon, Treasure of Sierra Madre), dies from an aneurysm at 67
1982 – Harald Ertl, Austrian racing driver (b. 1948)
1988 – Cesar Bresgen, Austrian organist and composer, dies at 74
1994 – Ken Carson, American western singer (Garry Moore Show), dies at 79
1994 – Albert Guðmundsson, Icelandic footballer and politician (Minister of Finance), dies at 70
2020 – Harv Schmidt, American college basketball coach (University of Illinois 1967-74), dies at 83
Famous Deaths for 6th April 2024
1918 – John Q. A. Brackett, American politician, 36th Governor of Massachusetts (1890-91), dies at 75
1945 – Benjamin Marius Telders, Dutch lawyer who resisted German occupation in WWII, dies of typhus in Bergen-Belsen concentration camp at 42
1976 – Ruth Plumly Thomson, American children’s writer (Oz series), dies at 84
1986 – Raimundo Orsi, Argentine-born Italian soccer winger (13 caps Argentina, 35 Italy; Independiente, Juventus), dies at 84
1992 – Isaac Asimov, Russian scientist and sci-fi writer (I Robot, Foundation Trilogy), dies from kidney failure at 72
1996 – Gordon Clough, English journalist (BBC Radio 4), dies at 61
2009 – Shawn Mackay, Brumbies rugby player (b. 1982)
2012 – Bingu wa Mutharika, President of Malawi, dies from heart attack at 78
2017 – Don Rickles, American comedian (Don Rickles Show, CPO Sharkey), dies at 90
2021 – Alcee Hastings, American politician (U.S. House of Representative- Florida), dies at 84
Famous Deaths for 5th April 2024
1617 – Alonso Lobo, Spanish composer (Versa est in luctum), dies at 62
1695 – George Savile, 1st marquis of Halifax and author (Character of a Trimmer), dies at 61
1735 – Samuel Wesley, English poet (b. 1662)
1934 – Salvatore Di Giacomo, Italian poet and songwriter during “Golden Age of Neapolitan Song”, dies at 74
1951 – Edward Rigby, British actor (Star Look Down, Young and Innocent), dies at 72
2004 – Heiner Zieschang, German mathematician (b. 1936)
2005 – Dale Messick [Dalia Messick], American comic strip artist (Brenda Starr, Reporter), dies at 98
2012 – Jim Marshall, British businessman and electric guitar amplifier pioneer known as “The Father of Loud”, dies at 88
2014 – John Pinette, American comedian and actor (The Punisher, Junior), dies from an pulmonary embolism at 50
2021 – Paul Ritter [Simon Paul Adams], British actor (Friday Night Dinner; Chernobyl; Quantum of Solace), dies of a brain tumor at 54
Famous Deaths for 4th April 2024
1662 – Davis Mell, British violinist, composer, and clockmaker, dies at 57
1766 – John Taylor, English classical scholar (b. 1704)
1806 – Friedrich Gottlob Fleischer, composer, dies at 84
1831 – Isaiah Thomas, American journalist, editor and historian (Massachusetts Spy), dies at 82
1967 – Héctor Scarone, Uruguayan soccer forward (51 caps; Nacional, FC Barcelona, FC Inter Milan, Palermo FC), dies at 68
1983 – Jacqueline Logan, American actress and silent film leading lady (WAMPAS Baby Star), dies at 78
1992 – Arthur Russell, American experimental classical-pop fusion cellist, and composer, dies of AIDS at 40
2010 – Clifford M. Hardin, American politician (17th U.S. Secretary of Agriculture), dies at 94
2020 – Forrest Compton, American actor (Gomer Pyle USMC, Edge of Night), dies at 94
2023 – Craig Breedlove, American auto racer (5 x world land speed record holder; first to reach 500mph (800km/h) and 600mph (970km/h), dies of cancer at 86