Famous People Who Died Today

Ella Fitzgerald was an American jazz singer. Referred to as the Queen of Jazz, First Lady of Song, and Lady Ella, Fitzgerald was renowned for her impeccable diction, purity of tone, timing, and intonation. The winner of Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Arts, Fitzgerald's legacy lives on several years after her death.

The 11th president of the United States, James K. Polk was an advocate of Jacksonian democracy. He is credited with extending the territory of the US during the Mexican–American War. During his presidency, the US annexed the Mexican Cession, the Oregon Territory, and the Republic of Texas.

Victor French was an American actor remembered for playing important roles in television series, such as Carter Country, Highway to Heaven, and Little House on the Prairie. The son of actor and stuntman Ted French, Victor followed in the footsteps of his father and started his career as a stuntman before establishing himself as a successful actor.

Born to a politician father and a brewery heiress mother, actor Hume Cronyn, initially showed promise as a boxer. He teamed up with Alfred Hitchcock for films such as Shadow of a Doubt. The film The Seventh Cross, set in Nazi Germany, earned him an Academy Award nomination.

Glenda Jackson is best known for her Academy Award-winning roles in the films Women in Love and A Touch of Class. She has also won two Emmys for playing Elizabeth I in the TV series Elizabeth R and a Tony for her role in the play Three Tall Women.

Occultist and herbalist Marie Laveau was known as the Vodoo Queen of New Orleans. Though a hairdresser, she was chiefly known for her spiritual practices which she used to heal the sick and the poor. She has inspired several books, such as Robert Tallant's The Voodoo Queen.

Franco Zeffirelli went from being a budding architect to a director after watching Laurence Olivier’s Henry V. Starting as a costume/set designer, he gradually deviated to making Shakespearean adaptations, earning an Academy Award nomination with Romeo and Juliet. The openly gay filmmaker was later accused of sexual assaulting two actors.

Considered the national poet of Romania, Mihai Eminescu was a major figure of Romanticism in Romanian literature. Starting as an editor for the paper Timpul, he later penned iconic poems such as Luceafărul, or The Evening Star, and stories such as Sărmanul Dionis and Cezara. He, unfortunately, died in a mental asylum.

One of the pioneers of Expressionism, German painter Ernst Ludwig Kirchner co-established the artists’ group Die Brücke, or The Bridge. His iconic works such as Girl under Japanese Umbrella and Street, Berlin displayed psychological and erotic themes. Declared a "degenerate" by the Nazis, he later committed suicide.

Born to an electrical engineer father and a math teacher mother, John V. Atanasoff grew up to invent the Atanasoff-Berry Computer, which was declared the world’s first electronic digital computer after a legal dispute. The physicist was also an active part of the atomic bomb tests conducted at Bikini Atoll.

Being the granddaughter of playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan, author Caroline Norton had her first experience at writing in her teens. Her beauty and charm, however, made her failed barrister husband jealous. The rift in their marriage caused her to successfully campaign for married women’s right to property and their children’s custody.

The first and the longest-serving British female secret agent, Krystyna Skarbek was born in Poland. Her contribution to the Allies during World War II won her honors such as the OBE and the Croix de Guerre. She was 37 when she was stabbed to death in a London hotel.

French pianist Alfred Cortot is remembered for his renditions of popular Romantic composers, such as Chopin and Schumann. The Paris Conservatory alumnus later established the Paris Orchestre Philharmonique and the École Normale de Musique. He also formed a trio with cellist Pablo Casals and violinist Jacques Thibaud.

German neurologist, pathologist, and anatomist Carl Wernicke is best remembered for his extensive work on the various types of aphasia, or disorders that hinder the ability to speak or write. He also distinguished between motor aphasia and sensory aphasia, or what is now known as Wernicke's aphasia.

George Nakashima was an American woodworker, furniture maker, and architect. Regarded as the father of the American craft movement, Nakashima was one of the most prominent innovators of furniture design in 20th century America. Nakashima's daughter Mira is currently working towards keeping his legacy alive by working for the family business and producing some of her father's iconic designs.

Best known as the villain Dirty Den from the BBC soap EastEnders, Leslie Grantham initially worked as a soldier with the Royal Fusiliers of the British Army. Convicted of the murder of a cab driver in Germany, he spent a decade in prison. He later attempted suicide as aftermath of a sex scandal.

Russian revolutionary Vera Figner was a major figure of the Populist (Narodnik) movement. Initially a medical student, she later left her studies midway to devote herself to politics. She also left her husband for her revolutionary cause and became associated with the Zemlya i Volya party.

Nobel Prize-winning biochemist Wendell Meredith Stanley is remembered for his pathbreaking research on viruses. He revealed the molecular structure of viruses by purifying and crystallizing them. He also penned a Pulitzer-nominated book, Chemistry: A Beautiful Thing, and was associated with the Rockefeller Institute and the University of California, Berkeley.

Regarded as the founding father of Hungary’s grand opera, pianist and conductor Ferenc Erkel also composed Hungary’s national anthem. Born into a German-origin family of musicians, Erkel was initially trained in music by his father. He was later associated with the Academy of Music in Budapest as a director and piano teacher.

Son Sen was a Cambodian soldier and Communist politician. An important member of the Communist Party of Kampuchea aka the Khmer Rouge, Sen was accountable for the massacre of over 100,000 people in Cambodia's Eastern Zone in 1978. Son Sen is also remembered for his service as the Minister of National Defense from 15 January 1976 to 7 January 1979.  

Srirangam Srinivasa Rao, popularly known as Sri Sri, was an Indian poet and lyricist known for his works in Telugu. Considered a radical poet, he wrote about contemporary issues and introduced free verse into his poetry. He was a member of the Sahitya Akademi and the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, including a Nandi Award and a Sahitya Akademi Award. 

German explorer Hermann Wissmann is remembered for his pioneering expedition to the upper Congo basin. His studies were instrumental in Germany setting up colonies in East Africa. Part of the German Army, he also served as the imperial commissioner for East Africa. The forces under his command were known as Wissmanntruppe.

Architect and civil engineer William Le Baron Jenney was a major figure of the Chicago School. His Home Insurance Company Building was the world’s first tall building or skyscraper that used steel as a basic material. Gustave Eiffel, the designer of the Eiffel Tower, was his architecture classmate.

James Hunt was a British racing driver who earned the nickname 'Hunt the Shunt' for his action-packed and often reckless exploits on the track. In 1976, he won the Formula One World Championship in his first year with McLaren, which inspired several teenagers to take up motor racing. James Hunt has inspired racers, such as Kimi Räikkönen.