Famous People Who Died Today

Anton Chekhov was a Russian short-story writer and playwright. Widely regarded as one of the greatest writers of short fiction, Chekhov's works have influenced the progression of the modern short story. As a playwright, Anton Chekhov is credited with influencing the rise of modernism in theatre, along with August Strindberg and Henrik Ibsen.

John J. Pershing was a senior United States Army officer who served as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in World War I. In his later years, he mentored generals who led the United States Army during World War II.  He was promoted to General of the Armies rank, the highest possible rank in the United States Army. 

Bert Convy was an American actor, game show host, and singer. He is best remembered for hosting popular game shows, such as Win, Lose or Draw, Tattletales, and Super Password. After establishing himself as a TV personality, Bert Convy tried his hand at acting and played important roles in films like A Bucket of Blood, Gunman's Walk, and Susan Slade.

Irish revolutionary political leader and suffragist Constance Markievicz scripted history by becoming the first woman to be elected as a cabinet minister in Europe and also the first female to be elected to the British Parliament. Sentenced to death for her role in the Easter Rising, she was later granted amnesty.

A vagabond who roamed around countries such as Chile, Mexico, and France, author Roberto Bolaño eventually settled in Spain, where he spent his days working odd jobs, such as garbage collection and dishwashing, and wrote at night. He is remembered for his Rómulo Gallegos Prize-winning novel The Savage Detectives.

Carl Czerny was an Austrian composer, pianist, and teacher of Czech origin.  Born into a musical family, he started playing the piano as a toddler and began composing at the age of seven. He was prolific in his music production and composed over a thousand works, with his music spanning the late Classical and early Romantic eras.  

Born to a Jewish family in Geneva, Ernest Bloch had learned to play the violin by age 9. Best known for works such as Avodath Hakodesh, Bloch composed music that carried a significant neoclassical trend. He also taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and was a skilled photographer, too.

Born to a tailor, Annibale Carracci set up a painters’ studio named Accademia degli Incamminati with his brother and cousin, thus establishing the famous Carracci family of painters. A significant figure of the Baroque movement, he is remembered for his iconic works such as Domine, Quo Vadis?

Mary White Ovington was an American journalist and suffragist. She is best remembered as one of the founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Throughout her life, Mary White Ovington remained active in the fight for women's suffrage in the United States of America. She also wrote several articles and books including an autobiography. 

Legendary Hungarian-American violinist and composer Leopold Auer was born into a family of painters but chose to learn the violin instead. He initially played for the music-loving bling king of Hanover and later taught violin at Russia’s Saint Petersburg Conservatory. His students include Mischa Elman and Jascha Heifetz.

Hermann Emil Fischer was a German chemist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1902. He is credited with discovering the Fischer esterification, which is named in his honor. He is also credited with developing the Fischer projection, which was originally used for the depiction of carbohydrates. Several chemical reactions and concepts like Fischer glycosidation are named after him.

Jacqueline Piatigorsky was a French-American sculptor, chess player, philanthropist, author, and arts patron. As a chess player, Piatigorsky represented the USA in the first Women's Chess Olympiad, in 1957, where she won a bronze medal. An important patron of the arts, Jacqueline Piatigorsky helped raise money for the New England Conservatory of Music to create an award for deserving artists. 

Elisabeth Welch was an American actress, singer, and entertainer who came up with popular songs like Far Away in Shanty Town, Love for Sale, and Stormy Weather during an illustrious career spanning more than 70 years. In February 2012, she was posthumously honored by Bonnie Greer who unveiled a blue plaque at Ovington Court where Welch lived during the mid-30s.

Nuri al-Said was an Iraqi politician who served as the prime minister of Iraq on eight occasions between 1930 and 1958. He also held various prominent cabinet positions during his long political career. Nuri al-Said is also credited with shaping the modern Iraqi state by making some of the most important policy decisions.

Juana de Ibarbourou was a Uruguayan poet whose literary work earned her four nominations for the prestigious Nobel Prize in Literature. An early Latin American feminist, Ibarbourou is also regarded as one of the most famous poets of Spanish America. Throughout her life, Juana de Ibarbourou was honored with prestigious awards including the National Academy of Letters.

Architectural photographer Julius Shulman is remembered for his detailed photos of Mid-century modern architecture. His best-known works were Richard Neutra’s Kaufmann House, Palm Springs and Pierre Koenig’s Case Study House No. 22. His photographs, amounting to over 70,000, are stored in Los Angeles’s J. Paul Getty Museum.

Abu al-Wafa' Buzjani was a Persian astronomer and mathematician best remembered for his significant contribution to spherical trigonometry. He is credited with using negative numbers, which were unheard of at that time, in one of his arithmetic works. Abu al-Wafa' Buzjani is also credited with introducing the secant and cosecant functions in trigonometry.

Aleksander Fredro was a Polish poet, author, and playwright. Although his works were harshly criticized by his contemporaries, Fredro's works, especially his plays, were published extensively and popularized after his death. Many of his works have been translated into several languages including English, German, French, Russian, Hungarian, and Czech.

Muhammad Ali Bogra was a diplomat, politician, and statesman. He served as the prime minister of Pakistan from 1953 to 1955, during which he worked towards strengthening the bilateral relations between the United States and Pakistan. He also aimed at achieving peace with India by strengthening the military. Later in his career, he served as the foreign minister of Pakistan.

Lawrence Tibbett was an American singer, recording artist, radio personality, and film actor. A baritone, Tibbett is best remembered for his association with the Metropolitan Opera, where he performed leading roles over 600 times between 1923 and 1950. Lawrence Tibbett's immense contributions to the music industry earned him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

John Ball was a 14th-century English priest famous for taking a prominent part in the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. He disagreed with many Christian tenets of his time and preached 'articles contrary to the faith of the church.' He supported the doctrines of John Wycliffe and advocated for social equality. He was imprisoned on several occasions for defying authorities.

Christine Chubbuck was an American TV news reporter. She was working for WXLT-TV when she shot herself with a revolver, becoming the first person to take one's own life on a live television broadcast. Her suicide was attributed to depression and loneliness. In 2016, Rebecca Hall portrayed Chubbuck in the biographical drama film Christine, which was directed by Antonio Campos.

Known for his lyrical poetry and plays, Austrian author Hugo von Hofmannsthal had initially studied law and philology but later devoted his life to writing. His collaborative works with composer Richard Strauss included libretti for many of his operas, such as The Cavalier of the Rose and Arabella.