Famous People Who Died Today

Jane Russell was an American actress and singer. Renowned for her beauty, Russell was considered one of the leading sex symbols of Hollywood in the 1940s and 1950s. In 2009, Glamour magazine named her in its list of 40 Most Iconic Movie Goddesses. Her contribution to the entertainment industry was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

George Kennedy was an American actor who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Dragline in the 1967 prison drama film, Cool Hand Luke. A multi-talented person, George Kennedy was also an aviator and writer; he owned a Beechcraft Bonanza as well as a Cessna 210 and wrote three books, including his autobiography titled Trust Me.

Henry James was an author, regarded as one of the greatest novelists ever to write in the English language. One of his novellas titled The Turn of the Screw has been the most analyzed ghost story in the history of English language literature. While his works have been adapted into films, he has been the subject of several other stories.

Ruby Keeler was an American actress, singer, and dancer. She is best remembered for appearing alongside Dick Powell in a series of successful musicals at Warner Bros. Ruby Keeler has a star dedicated to her on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Freeman Dyson was a British-American theoretical and mathematical physicist, mathematician, and statistician. He made major contributions in the fields of quantum field theory, astrophysics, random matrices, quantum mechanics, and nuclear physics. He originated the concept that went on to be known as Dyson's transform. He received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 1986. 

French painter Camille Corot is remembered for his landscape paintings that paved the path for the Impressionist movement. Born into a milliner’s family, Corot was a poor student and shunned his family business to learn painting at 25. His works, however, were easy to replicate and led to many forgeries.

French poet and historian Alphonse de Lamartine is best remembered for his collection of poems Méditations poétiques. He was a chief force behind the formation of the Second Republic of France. The allowances he gave his sisters depleted his finances, and he died struggling and in oblivion.

Apart from being a socialite, Emily Warren Roebling was also a skilled engineer. She took over the reins of designing the Brooklyn Bridge when her husband, the chief engineer of the project, Washington Augustus Roebling, was rendered bedridden. She went against the grain and earned a law certificate, too.

Ishirō Honda was a Japanese filmmaker with an extensive career spanning 59 years. Beginning his career as a third assistant director, he went on to make his directorial debut with the short documentary film Ise-Shima. With 44 films to his credit, he is counted amongst the most internationally successful Japanese filmmakers of the 20th century. 

Friedrich Ebert was a German politician who served as the president of Germany from 1919 to 1925. He played an important role during the German Revolution of 1918–19, which helped replace the federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary republic, which came to be known as the Weimar Republic. Friedrich Ebert also worked towards restoring peace in Germany.

Martin Bucer was a German Protestant reformer in the Reformed tradition who was active in the 16th century. He is credited to have deeply influenced Lutheran, Calvinist, and Anglican doctrines and practices. His work resulted in his excommunication from the Roman Catholic Church, and he was exiled to England. He is considered an early pioneer of ecumenism.

Anny Ondra was a Czech film actress who appeared in Czech, Austrian, French, German, and English films. Apart from her popular acting career, Ondra was also known for her much publicized wedding and marriage life with boxing champion Max Schmeling. Anny Ondra was played by Peta Wilson in the 2002 American-German boxing film Joe and Max.

Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and University of Chicago professor Daniel J. Boorstin is best known for his three-volume history of American civilization, The Americans. Born to a lawyer father, Daniel J. Boorstin studied law at Harvard and had also been a communist in his youth. He also held 20 honorary degrees.

Premio Nadal-winning Spanish author Carmen Laforet is remembered for developing Spanish Existentialist literature. Best known for her first and most popular novel, Nada, she used the tremendismo narrative in her works. Suffering from Alzheimer's disease in later years, she eventually lost the ability to speak.

Hugo Kołłątaj was a Polish educationalist and constitutional reformer who played a major role during the Polish Enlightenment. An influential social and political activist, Kołłątaj was one of the authors of the Constitution of 3 May 1791, which aimed at implementing a constitutional monarchy. Hugo Kołłątaj's work also influenced many subsequent reformers.

French geographer Jean Gottmann is best remembered for introducing the concept of megalopolis. Starting his career as a research assistant at the Sorbonne, he later taught at Johns Hopkins University, the University of Paris, and Oxford. He was a specialist in urban, regional, and historical geography.

Charles Forte, Baron Forte was a Scottish hotelier best remembered for establishing the hospitality company that eventually became the Forte Group. He is also credited with opening the first catering service at Heathrow Airport in London in the 1950s. In 1970, Charles Forte was knighted by Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon for his achievements and contributions.