Famous People Who Died Today

John DeLorean was an American inventor and engineer. Highly regarded for his work at General Motors, John DeLorean was an influential figure in the US automobile industry. He is credited with founding the popular American automobile manufacturer, The DeLorean Motor Company. DeLorean’s life inspired a couple of documentary films, including Framing John DeLorean where he was played by Alec Baldwin.

Louis de Broglie was a French aristocrat and physicist who made important contributions to quantum theory. His de Broglie hypothesis, which suggests that all matter has wave properties, is one of the most important features in the theory of quantum mechanics. In 1929, de Broglie was honored with the Nobel Prize for Physics for his work.

Vasily Surikov was a Russian painter best remembered as an exponent of Realist history painting. Many of his paintings have been used as illustrations and that has contributed to his popularity among the general public. His life and career inspired a biographical movie named Vasily Surikov where Surikov was played by Russian-American actor Yevgeni Nikolayevich Lazarev.

Antonina Zabinska worked as a Warsaw Zoo director along with her husband, Jan. She was also a promising author. During World War II, she and her husband sheltered countless Jews in their zoo. Her story, penned in her own diary, Ludzie i zwierzęta, later inspired Diane Ackerman’s book The Zookeeper's Wife.

Bestselling Belgian author, painter, and filmmaker Hugo Claus penned a wide range of literary gems, including poems, novels, and plays, and rose to be one of his country’s finest literary figures. Known for his masterpiece The Sorrow of Belgium, the author chose to be euthanized after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease.

Clinton Hart Merriam was an American mammalogist, zoologist, ornithologist, ecologist, entomologist, geographer, ethnographer, physician, and naturalist. Referred to as the father of mammalogy, Merriam owned a private collection of mammal specimens. Clinton Hart Merriam is also credited with co-founding the National Geographic Society and the American Ornithologists' Union.

Known as the Shehenshah-e-Jazbat, or the King of Emotions, Pakistani actor Mohammad Ali was known for his versatility. Born in Rampur in British India, he migrated to the newly formed Pakistan after the Partition of India. He formed the Ali-Zaib Foundation, which assists thalassemia patients and has built hospitals.

Hamid Kahram was an Iranian veterinarian and politician. He is best remembered for representing Ahwaz as a member of the Parliament of Iran from 2000 to 2004. During the presidential election in 2017, Hamid Kahram served as the leader of Hassan Rouhani's political campaign in Khuzestan province.

One of the greatest writers of the Romantic period in Poland, Józef Ignacy Kraszewski is best remembered for his historical novel An Ancient Tale. Accused of conspiring against the Russian government and imprisoned, he devoted his life to writing after his release. He was later imprisoned by Germany, too, for spying.

Hasegawa Tōhaku, one of the significant figures of the Azuchi-Momoyama period, is remembered for pioneering the Hasegawa school of painting. His Pine Trees is a celebrated piece of art. He specialized in painting panels, folding screens, and doors, such as the landscape painted on the doors of the Daikoku Temple.

Richard Beckinsale was an English actor remembered for playing Lennie Godber in the sitcom Porridge and Alan Moore in Rising Damp. He also loved singing and playing the guitar and enjoyed playing football in charity matches. His sudden death at the age of 31 was met with great shock. His daughters—Kate and Samantha Beckinsale— went on to become actresses.

Communist Party leader E.M.S. Namboodiripad, better known as EMS, had been the chief minister of Kerala twice. Educated according to the tenets of the Namboodiri Yogakshema Sabha, he had initially been part of Mahatma Gandhi’s civil disobedience movement and an Indian National Congress supporter.

Brenda Muntemba was a Zambian diplomat who was involved in a fatal accident in 2019 when she was serving as the Zambian High Commissioner to Kenya. A multi-talented personality, she also worked as a teacher at Leopards Hill High School between 1993 and 1995. Brenda Muntemba also authored four motivational books before passing away at the age of 48.

Romanian Communist leader Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej was born into poverty and started his career as an electrician. After joining a workers’ union, he slowly turned to political activism and then rose to become the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party. He also served as Romania’s first Communist prime minister.

Anglican bishop and hymn writer Thomas Ken had also been King Charles II’s chaplain. He was one of the seven bishops who opposed King James II’s Declaration of Indulgence that was focused on promoting Roman Catholicism. He was eventually forced to retire due to his opposition to William and Mary.