Famous People Who Died At 37

Vincent van Gogh was a Dutch post-impressionist painter and is said to be one of the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. However, he was not commercially successful in his lifetime and died by suicide at 37 after years of mental health issues and poverty. He gained recognition and respect in the 20th century.

Italian painter and architect Raphael, along with Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, formed the great trio who ushered in the High Renaissance. He is mostly known for his frescoes of the Vatican Palace and The School of Athens. He also designed the Chigi Chapel, among other structures in Rome.

Lou Gehrig was an American baseball player. Nicknamed The Iron Horse for his durability and prowess as a hitter, Lou Gehrig played for the New York Yankees of the Major League Baseball (MLB). His life and career inspired the 1942 film The Pride of the Yankees in which he was portrayed by actor Gary Cooper.

Michael Hutchence, co-founder of the Australian rock band INXS, was known for his wild lifestyle, his affairs with celebrities, and his history of drug abuse. He was named to News.com’s list of the 15 greatest Australian singers of all time but unfortunately died by suicide in a Sydney hotel room.

French poet Arthur Rimbaud is remembered for his influence on Dadaism, surrealism, and symbolism. Known for works such as Le Soleil Etait Encore Chaud and Voyelles, he later got involved in a relationship with poet Paul Verlaine. He also traveled as a merchant and explorer, before dying of cancer.

Christa McAuliffe was an American astronaut and teacher who died while serving as a payload specialist on board Space Shuttle Challenger, which exploded during STS-51-L. McAuliffe was all set to become the first teacher in space as she was part of the NASA Teacher in Space Project. In 2004, she was posthumously honored with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.

Lev Vygotsky was a Soviet psychologist best remembered for his groundbreaking work on developmental psychology in children. He is also remembered for his work on the relationship between thought and language, which remains influential to this day. A man with various interests, Vygotsky's work covered topics like the philosophy of science and the psychology of art.

Rocketry pioneer Jack Parsons is best remembered as one of the founders of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He also co-established the Aerojet Engineering Corporation and developed the first rocket engine that used a propellant. He was also known for his multiple sexual affairs and sex cult rituals.

Malik-Shah I was sultan of the Seljuk Empire from 1072 to 1092. He was the son of Alp Arslan and spent much of his youth in campaigns under his father. He was crowned after the death of his father but had to fight off other contenders before he could claim the throne. He waged a major war against the Karakhanids.    

Remembered for inventing the inkblot test to uncover the hidden traits of a subject’s personality, known as the Rorschach test, Swiss psychiatrist Hermann Rorschach was born to an art teacher in Zürich and had thus wished to be an artist initially. His Rorschach test was later criticized for its subjectivity.

Anglo-Australian bush poet and military officer Breaker Morant was one of the first war criminals who was court-martialled, convicted and executed in British military history for murder during the Second Anglo-Boer War. A folk hero in modern Australia, Morant became subject of several books, a play and an award-winning film.

Cave explorer Floyd Collins is remembered for an ill-fated solo cave exploration in Kentucky, when he lost his balance and got stuck in a tight tunnel. His rescue attempt was widely covered by the media, but the tunnel collapsed and he died eventually. His body was recovered after 2 months.

Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden reigned as the King of Sweden from 30 October 1611 until his death on 6 November 1632, at the age of 37. He is credited with transforming Sweden into a great European power. Considered one of the greatest modern military commanders, Gustavus Adolphus turned Sweden into one of Europe's primary military forces during the Thirty Years' War.

Indian-American neurosurgeon and author Paul Kalanithi was a brilliant student, who initially studied both English literature and human biology at Stanford and later studied medicine at Yale. He died of metastatic lung cancer but not before penning the memoir When Breath Becomes Air, a New York Times bestseller, released posthumously.

Henry III of France was the King of France from 1574 to 1589. He also served as the Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland from 1573 to 1575. Henry was known for his alleged sexual relationships with men. Although certain reports have claimed that the allegations were false, he is sometimes depicted in popular culture as being effeminate.

Margo Dydek was a Polish basketball player best remembered for her towering height of 7 ft 2 in, which made her the world's tallest professional female basketballer. She played for several teams in the WNBA and was honored with the Polish Gold Cross of Merit in 1999. In 2019, Dydek was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.

Known as the African Mahler for his bi-racial ethnicity, British composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor ruled the music scene of the early 20th century. Throughout his illustrious career, he taught music, judged contests, and created many choral and orchestral works. He was best known for the Longfellow trilogy, based on The Song of Hiawatha.

Gholamreza Takhti was an Iranian wrestler best remembered for winning the gold medal in the 87 kg category at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne. A two-time world champion, Takhti had also won a gold medal at the 1958 Asian Games. Thanks to his sportsmanship and chivalrous behavior, Gholamreza Takhti was the most famous Iranian athlete of the 20th century.

Koxinga was a Ming loyalist who opposed and resisted the Manchu invasion of China. In 1661, he established the House of Koxinga after defeating the Dutch military camp in Taiwan. He then ruled the Kingdom of Tungning from 1661 to 1662. Today, Koxinga is considered a deity in coastal China and is worshiped in places like Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

Rainer Werner Fassbinder was a German actor, filmmaker, and playwright. He grew up in the aftermath of World War II and had a tough childhood. He sought solace by watching films and took acting lessons. He began his career in theater and eventually entered films as well. He is considered a prominent figure of the New German Cinema movement. 

Jesuit missionary explorer Jacques Marquette is best remembered for his journey to the Mississippi River with Louis Jolliet, which led to the first accurate documentation of the course. While attempting a communication with the Illinois Indians, he died at the mouth of Père Marquette at age 37.

Sixteenth-century Japanese swordsman Sasaki Kojirō was known as the Demon of the Western Provinces because of his skill with the nodachi, a sword that demons used. Known for his signature move, Tsubame Gaeshi, he died fighting Miyamoto Musashi, his arch rival, at what is now known as Ganryu island.

Guangxu Emperor reigned over the Qing dynasty from 1875 to 1908. He was also the ninth Qing emperor to reign over the Eighteen Provinces or China proper. He is best remembered for initiating the Hundred Days' Reform, which was brought to an end by Empress Dowager Cixi in 1898. Subsequently, Guangxu Emperor lost power and was killed in 1908.

Justin Wilson was a British open-wheel racing driver who took part in the IndyCar Series as well as the Formula One. He won many races, including the International Formula 3000 Championship title and the 2012 24 Hours of Daytona. In 2006 and 2007, Justin Wilson was honored with the prestigious Greg Moore Legacy Award.