1786 – Jacobus Bellamy, [Zelandus], Dutch poet, dies at 28
1908 – Peter Milne, Scottish composer, dies at 83
1957 – Richard E. Byrd, American aviator and polar explorer (1st to reach both the North Pole and South Pole by air – disputed), dies at 68
1958 – Ole Kirk Christiansen, Danish inventor (founded LEGO), dies of a heart attack at 66
1969 – John Wyndham, American sci-fi author (Chrysalids), dies at 65
1970 – Erle Stanley Gardner, American writer (Perry Mason), dies at 80
1971 – Philo Farnsworth, American inventor (created electronic television, video camera tube), dies of pneumonia at 64
1975 – Sammy Spear, orchestra leader (Dom Deluise Show), dies at 65
1989 – John J. McCloy, United States Secretary of War (b. 1895)
2007 – Betty Hutton [Elizabeth June Thornburg], American actress, dancer, singer and comedian (Greatest Show on Earth), dies of colon cancer a 86