1766 – Giuseppe Castiglione, Italian Jesuit brother and missionary to China, dies at 77
1826 – Joseph Graetz, German organist, composer, and music educator, dies at 65
1918 – Anna Demidova, Russian lady in waiting of Tsarina Alexandra, executed at 40
1928 – Alvaro Obregon, President of Mexico is assassinated
1959 – Billie Holiday [Eleanora Fagan], American jazz singer (“I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm”; “Strange Fruit”), and songwriter (“God Bless The Child”; “Lady Sings the Blues”), dies of cirrhosis of the liver at 44
1961 – Ty Cobb, American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (AL MVP 1911; Triple Crown 1909; 12 × AL batting champion; Detroit Tigers) and manager (Detroit Tigers 1921-26), dies of cancer at 74
1967 – John Coltrane, American jazz saxophonist and composer (“Blue Train”; “My Favorite Things”; “A Love Supreme”), dies of liver cancer at 40
1987 – Howard McGhee, American be-bop bebop jazz trumpeter, dies at 69
2005 – Edward Heath, British Prime Minister (Conservative: 1970-74), dies of cancer at 89
2005 – (Lorenzo) “Laurel” Aitken, Cuban-Jamaican singer and one of the pioneers of Caribbean pop and ska music, dies of a heart attack at 78
Category: Famous Deaths
Famous Deaths for 16th July 2023
1764 – Ivan VI, Emperor of Russia (1740-41), murdered at 23
1868 – Louis François Dauprat, French composer and horn player, dies at 87
1931 – Alice Pike Barney, American painter, dies at 74
1962 – Jan Romein, Dutch historian (Breaking of Two Ages), dies at 68
1982 – Patrick Dewaere, actor (Catherine and Co), shoots self at 35
1985 – Wayne King, American saxophonist and bandleader, known as the Waltz King (“The Waltz You Saved for Me”), dies at 84
1991 – Frank Rizzo, American politician (Mayor-D-Philadelphia, 1972-80), dies of a heart attack at 70
1995 – Travis Kemp, British ballet dancer and teacher, dies at 91
2013 – Torbjorn Falkanger, Norwegian ski jumper who took the Olympic oath in 1952, dies at 85
2013 – Barun De, Indian historian, dies at 80
Famous Deaths for 15th July 2023
1828 – Jean Antoine Houdon, French sculptor (b. 1741)
1854 – Grant Cuthbert, Metis leader (led conflict with Red River settlement, settled Grant Town), dies after a fall from a horse at about 61
1856 – Margaretha Jacoba de Neufville, Dutch author (The Kidnap), dies at 81
1857 – Carl Czerny, Czech-Austrian pianist, composer (Schule der Virtuosen), student of Ludwig van Beethoven, and teacher of Franz Liszt, dies at 66
1933 – Freddie Keppard, American jazz cornetist (Original Creole Orchestra), dies of tuberculosis at 44
1983 – Eddie Foy Jr [Edwin Fitzgerald Jr], American actor (The Pajama Game, Fair Exchange), dies of cancer at 78
1987 – Alfie Bass [Abraham Basalinsky], British actor (Moonraker, Are You Being Served), dies at 71
2010 – James E. Akins, American diplomat and advisor to Richard Nixon (b. 1926)
2015 – Alan Curtis, American harpsichordist, musicologist and conductor, dies at 80
2021 – Dennis Murphy, American sports entrepreneur (co-founder American Basketball Ass’n, World Hockey Ass’n, original World Team Tennis, Roller Hockey International), dies at 94
Famous Deaths for 14th July 2023
1827 – Augustin-Jean Fresnel, French physicist and optics pioneer (proved wave theory of light correct, invented catadioptric Fresnel lens), dies of tuberculosis at 39
1834 – Edmond Charles Genêt, French ambassador to the United States during the French Revolution (b. 1763)
1950 – Āpirana Ngata, Māori New Zealand politician and lawyer known for promoting and protecting Māori culture and language, dies at 76
1953 – Richard von Mises, Austrian scientist and mathematician (probability theory), dies at 70
1982 – George Tremblay, Canadian-American composer, dies at 71
1993 – Robert Strong, American actor, dies at 87
2002 – Carlos Fariñas, Cuban avant-garde composer, dies at 67
2005 – Cicely Saunders, English Nurse, physician and writer who founded the first modern hospice, dies of cancer at 87
2014 – Alice Coachman, American athlete (Olympic gold high jump 1948), dies of cardiac arrest at 90
2022 – William Hart, American soul singer and songwriter (4 Gents; Delfonics – “Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)”; “La-La Means I Love You”), dies of surgery complications at 77
Famous Deaths for 13th July 2023
1890 – John C. Frémont, American army officer, explorer of the American West and presidential candidate, dies at 77
1951 – Arnold Schoenberg, Austrian-American composer (Verklärte Nacht – Transfigured Night; 2nd Quartet), and painter associated with the expressionist movement, dies at 76
1954 – Grantland Rice, American sportswriter (New York Herald Tribune 1914-30, Colliers 1925-37), dies from a stroke at 73
1969 – Madiba Thembekile, Nelson Mandela’s son, dies in a car accident at 24
1976 – Frederick Hawksworth, GWR Chief mechanical engineer. (b. 1884)
1988 – Huub Bals, Dutch film promotor, dies at 51
1994 – Bob Payton, American pizza magnate (The Chicago Pizza Pie Factory), dies at 50
1995 – Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, Danish toy manufacturer (Lego Group), dies at 75
1996 – Pandro S. Berman, American film producer, dies at 91
2020 – Grant Imahara, American TV Mythbuster, dies of a brain aneurysm at 49
Famous Deaths for 12th July 2023
1749 – Charles de la Boische, Marquis de Beauharnois, Governor of New France
1835 – David Douglas, Scottish botanist (Douglas fir), dies from falling in to a pit trap while surveying Mauna Kea in Hawaiʻi at 35
1945 – Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen, German field marshal (German Air Force-WW II), dies at 49
1989 – Sidney Hook, American philosopher (The Paradoxes of Freedom), dies at 86
2004 – Jean Ruth Adams, American entomologist (insect pathogens and viruses), dies at 75 or 76
2007 – Stan Zemanek, Australian radio personality (b.1947)
2007 – Mr. Butch, Iconic Boston street figure (b. 1951)
2010 – Buff Cobb [Patrizia Cobb Chapman], American actress and TV personality (Masquerade Party), dies at 82
2013 – Alan Whicker, British journalist and TV broadcaster (Whicker’s World), dies at 91
2020 – Rod Bernard, American “swamp pop” singer (“Allons Danser Colinda”), dies at 79
Famous Deaths for 11th July 2023
1775 – Simon Boerum, American Continental Congressman (b. 1724)
1889 – Gyula Reviczky, Hungarian author and poet, dies at 34
1987 – Thomas F Waddell, founder (Gay Olympics), dies of AIDS at 50
1989 – Laurence Olivier, English stage and screen acting great (Hamlet, Rebecca), dies at 82
1991 – James McCallion, Scottish actor (Coogan’s Bluff, Vera Cruz), dies of a heart attack at 72
1993 – Henri van Soede, sub commandant (WWII), dies at about 83
2007 – Alfonso López Michelsen, 24th President of Colombia (1974-78), dies at 94
2007 – Lady Bird Johnson, First Lady of the United States (b. 1912)
2009 – Ji Xianlin, Chinese linguist and paleographer (b.1911)
2022 – Gary Moeller, American football coach (University of Michigan 1990-94; Uni of Illinois 1977-79; Detroit Lions), dies at 81
Famous Deaths for 10th July 2023
1290 – King Ladislaus IV (“the Cuman”), Árpád dynasty King of Hungary and Croatia (1272-90), dies at 27
1590 – Archduke Charles II of Austria (b. 1540)
1935 – Paul Hines, American MLB outfielder (Triple Crown 1878, Providence Grays), dies at 80
1978 – John D. Rockefeller III, American oil billionaire and philanthropist, dies in a car crash at 71
1992 – Albert Pierrepoint, last and longest serving British executioner (est. 433-608 executed), dies at 87
1993 – Ruth Krauss, author (Carrot Seed), dies at 91
2005 – Roland Bengtsson, Swedish guitarist, lute player and double bassist, dies at 88
2008 – Hiroaki Aoki, founder of Benihana (b. 1938)
2011 – Roland Petit, French choreographer and dancer (b. 1924)
2020 – Lara van Ruijven, Dutch short track speed skater (World C’ship gold 500m 2019; Olympic bronze 3000m relay 2018), dies from an autoimmune disease at 27
Famous Deaths for 9th July 2023
1677 – Angelus Silesius [Johann Scheffer], German mystic, poet and court physician, dies at 52
1696 – Waclaw Potocki, Polish poet (Wojna Chocimska), dies
1843 – Washington Allston, American painter (pioneer of America’s Romantic movement of landscape painting) and author, dies at 63
1963 – Frank Mayo, American silent screen actor (Burning Gold, Hell’s Headquarters), dies of a heart attack at 77
1968 – Allyn Edwards, host (One Minute Please, Mr Citizen), dies at 53
1974 – Georges Ribemont-Dessaignes, French Dadaist artist and writer, dies at 90
1977 – Loren Eiseley, American anthropologist and natural science writer (The Unexpected Universe), dies at 69
2013 – Andrea Veneracion, Filipina singer, choral conductor (Philippine Madrigal Singers), composer, arranger, and educator, dies from stroke complications at 84
2022 – Tommy Jacobs, American golfer (US Open 1964 runner-up; US Masters 1966 runner-up), dies at 87
2022 – John Gwynne, English sports commentator and reporter (PDC darts tournaments Sky Sports), dies from cancer at 77
Famous Deaths for 8th July 2023
1895 – Johann Josef Loschmidt, Austrian scientist (b. 1821)
1913 – Louis Hémon, French novelist (Maria Chapdelaine), dies at 32
1930 – Joseph Ward, 17th Prime Minister of New Zealand (1906-12), dies at 74
1967 – Vivien Leigh, English actress (Gone With The Wind; A Streetcar Named Desire), dies of tuberculosis at 53
1986 – Skeeter Webb, American baseball player (b. 1909)
1987 – Gerardo Diego, Spanish poet (Versos humanos), dies at 90
1987 – Lionel Chevrier, Canadian politician (Canadian Member of Parliament), dies at 84
1995 – Elizabeth Adams, American Beverly Hills madame and mentor to Heidi Fleiss, dies at 65
2001 – Ernst Baier, German figure skater (Olympic gold 1936), dies at 95
2007 – Chandra Shekhar, Indian politician, 8th Prime Minister of India (1990-91), dies at 80