Famous People Who Died Today

Best remembered for his role in the film, Rebel Without a Cause, actor James Dean was a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment. Despite having a difficult childhood, he was an exceptional student. He began acting as a young man and was quite successful. Sadly, he was killed in a car crash at the young age of 24.

Herbert Sobel was an American military man who commanded Easy Company during World War II. Although he played a key role during the war, Sobel was despised by his soldiers due to his arrogance. In the 2001 war drama miniseries Band of Brothers, Herbert Sobel was portrayed by David Schwimmer.

Although best remembered as the cheerful and friendly host of Let's Make a Deal, Molly Hall was also the co-creator and producer of this popular show. Born in Canada, he eventually moved to the USA, where he began producing and hosting number of television and radio shows, eventually being associated with a synonymous brain teaser called the Monty Hall Problem.

Simone Signoret was a German-born French actress best known for her role in the film Room at the Top, for which she won several awards, including an Academy Award. Growing up during the Nazi occupation, she started acting in the early 1940s. She was professionally active for over 40 years, until her death in 1985.

Born to rich Catholic parents, John Lilly spent his childhood treating science as a hobby. While studying medicine, he performed gruelling medical experiments on himself. He later invented isolating floatation tanks, studied bottlenose dolphins, and researched on psychedelic drug-induced near-death experiences. He also explored yoga and human consciousness.

American opera singer and recitalist Jessye Norman was born into a family of musicians and made her opera debut with Richard Wagner’s Tannhäuser in Berlin. A 5-time Grammy winner, she performed at iconic venues such as the Paris Opera and London’s Royal Opera, and also served as an ambassador to the UN.

Swiss-American physicist and engineer Bernhard Caesar Einstein was better known as the only grandchild of Albert Einstein to have survived beyond childhood. While two of his biological brothers died in infancy, his parents adopted a girl child, too. He grew up to work on night vision and laser technology.

Toma Zdravković was a Serbian pop-folk recording artist, singer, and songwriter. Best remembered for his immense contribution to Serbian folk music, Toma Zdravković is credited with writing one of the biggest Yugoslav folk hits of all time, Šta će mi život.

Starting his career with the Moscow Art Theatre in Russia, actor Michael Chekhova later moved to the US, making a successful career in Hollywood. His role of Dr. Alex in Spellbound earned him an Academy Award nomination. He also had his own drama studio, where he taught acting by mingling movement and imagination.

George Whitefield was an Anglican evangelist and cleric. He is credited with co-founding the evangelical movement and Methodism. Whitefield's teachings of a series of revivals in North America became an important component of the First Great Awakening. Thanks to his ability to captivate large audiences, George Whitefield preached to millions of listeners during his ministry.

An artistic polymath, Herbert Bayer was a graphic designer, painter, photographer, sculptor, art director, environmental and interior designer, and architect, known for advocating integration of all art forms. Born in Austria and educated at Bauhaus, he migrated to the USA after a successful stint in Europe and as ARCO's Art and Design Consultant built up the company’s vast art collection.

Roberto Eduardo Viola was an Argentine military officer best remembered for serving as the President of Argentina from March to December 1981. He was appointed as the president by a military junta before being ousted by a military coup led by Leopoldo Galtieri. In 1983, Viola was sentenced to 17 years of imprisonment for the violations committed by the junta.

Gamini Fonseka was a Sri Lankan actor, politician, and film director. He achieved popularity during the 1960s and 1970s and is often counted among the greatest actor in the history of Sinhala cinema. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including 14 Sarasaviya Awards. Also a prominent politician, Fonseka was the Governor of North Eastern Province from 1995 to 1998.

Francis Borgia, 4th Duke of Gandía was a Spanish Jesuit priest. He helped establish the Gregorian University in Rome and a dozen colleges in Spain. Despite being an inlfuential person, Francis led a simple life and was acclaimed as a saint in his own lifetime. Francis Borgia was canonized by Pope Clement X on 20 June 1670.

Marcello Malpighi was forced to take up grammatical studies by his father but later earned doctorates in philosophy and medicine. Malpighi revolutionized medical science by discovering things such as taste buds, red blood cells, and the pulmonary and capillary network connecting veins and arteries. Many physiological features bear his name.

US physicist and seismologist Charles Francis Richter is best known for co-creating the Richter magnitude scale for measuring the intensity of earthquakes, along with Beno Gutenberg. He taught at Caltech and tracked down earthquake-prone areas of the US. A naturist, he was also fond of nudist communities.

Known for pioneering the Hollywood B-film, or low-budget film productions, director Edgar G. Ulmer was the man behind movies such as The Black Cat. Initially a stage production designer for Max Reinhardt, he later mostly explored the noir, drama, and horror genres as a director.

Canadian cell biologist and immunologist Ralph M. Steinman is best remembered for his association with the Rockefeller University and for his co-discovery of the dendritic cell and its role in strengthening the immune system. Unfortunately, he died of pancreatic cancer shortly before the announcement of his Nobel Prize win.

Barry Commoner was a cellular biologist. A leading ecologist of his era, he was one of the founders of the modern environmental movement. He opposed nuclear weapons testing and helped bring about the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1963. He was a recipient of the 1970 International Humanist Award. As a political activist, he founded the Citizens Party in 1980.  

Eduard Polón was a Finnish business leader best remembered for founding the Nokia group. He was responsible for launching a rubber industry in Finland and is credited with founding the Finnish Rubber Company. Eduard Polón is also credited with designing and introducing a modern cable and timber market in the country.

Andrea Dotti was an Italian psychiatrist. He specialized in treating women with depression and was the assistant director of Rome University's psychiatric department. He was also a skier, tennis player, dancer, and art collector. He was married to famous actress Audrey Hepburn from 1969 to 1982, and the couple had one son. Dotti had several affairs during their marriage. 

Remembered for his aerial battles during the North African Campaign, Hans-Joachim Marseille was a German Luftwaffe fighter pilot and a flying ace, who claimed a total of 158 victories, out of which 151 victories were against the British Commonwealth's Desert Air Force. Nicknamed Star of Africa, he is also credited with shooting down seventeen Allied fighters in a single day.

Oscar Brand had a long career spanning over 70 years and released more than 90 albums in his lifetime. The American folk singer roamed around and worked with the likes of Pete Seeger and was also the host of the long-running radio show Oscar Brand's Folksong Festival.