Famous People Who Died Today

John F Kennedy Jr was the son of former US President John F Kennedy. He tragically died at a young age of 38 when the plane he was flying crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts in 1999. He was a lawyer and a journalist and had founded the trendy political magazine, George, which stopped publication in 2001.   

Celia Cruz was a Cuban-American singer who achieved popularity in Cuba as a singer of guarachas during the 1950s. Widely regarded as one of the 20th century's most famous Latin artists, Cruz was nicknamed the Queen of Salsa. She is also revered for popularizing Latin music in the USA. Celia Cruz also won numerous awards, including two Grammy Awards. 

Pop singer and former actress, Connie Francis, was one of the top female vocalists of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She started performing in small festivities as a child and decided to pursue a career in entertainment. She struggled for a few years as a young woman before she could establish herself as a successful singer and actress. 

Mary Todd Lincoln was the wife of Abraham Lincoln. She played an important role during the American Civil War as she worked hard to keep the morale of the country high throughout the war. Mary invariably finds a place in stories and biographies written about Abraham Lincoln as she was seated next to him when he was killed.

Legendary horror filmmaker George A. Romero is best known for his Night of the Living Dead series and for popularizing the zombie film genre. He also gained fame for his collaborations with horror novelist Stephen King, the most notable of them being the film version of King’s novel The Dark Half.

English composer, pianist, and Hammond organ player Jon Lord is remembered for his fiery performances as the keyboardist of the rock band Deep Purple. Trained in classical piano, he also received a drama school scholarship, which he ditched to focus on music. He was posthumously named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Born to a French mother and a Croatian father, Dora Maar spent her childhood in Argentina and later studied art in Paris. The renowned surrealist artist and photographer later gained fame as Pablo Picasso’s lover and muse, and was featured in his paintings such as Weeping Woman.

Johnny Clegg was a South African singer-songwriter, musician, dancer, anti-apartheid activist, and anthropologist. An important white figure in the internal resistance to apartheid and a prominent figure in South African popular music, Johnny Clegg formed the band Juluka which became the first South African group in the apartheid era to have a black man as well as a white man.

The principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for over 3 decades, Herbert von Karajan was a piano prodigy in childhood. Though a Nazi Party member, he later claimed he had not been too keen on joining the party. The three-time Grammy winner was also an avid sports lover.

Martin Kenzie was a British cinematographer and second unit director. One of the most important members of the British Society of Cinematographers, Kenzie worked in popular and critically acclaimed films like The Shining, Aliens, Return of the Jedi, and The King's Speech. Martin Kenzie died at the age of 56 due to cancer.

American abstract expressionist painter, printmaker and editor Robert Motherwell of the New York School is counted among the most articulate spokesmen of abstract expressionism and founders of the art movement. Notable works of Motherwell, who was known for exploring political, philosophical and literary themes, include the Elegy to the Spanish Republic series that consists of impressive black and white paintings.

John Henrik Clarke was an American professor and historian who helped create Pan-African and Africana studies. Clarke is credited with founding the African Heritage Studies Association, a subsidiary of the African Studies Association. He was also a founding member of many other organizations created to support work in black culture.

Charles Studd was a British missionary and professional cricket player. He is credited with establishing the Heart of Africa Mission, which is now referred to as WEC International. As a cricketer, Charles Studd is remembered for playing in the 1882 match against Australia, which paved the way for the famous Ashes Test cricket series.

Pope Innocent III served as the Pope of the Catholic Church from 1198 until his death in 1216. One of the most influential and powerful of the medieval popes, Pope Innocent exerted influence over the European Christian states, claiming supremacy over kings of Europe.

John Ostrom was an American paleontologist who helped transform the modern understanding of dinosaurs during the '60s. His work helped inspire a new generation of dinosaur films as he proved that dinosaurs were more agile and dangerous than previously thought. In 1966, Ostrom played a major role in the founding of Dinosaur State Park and Arboretum in Rocky Hill, Connecticut.

Best remembered for his still lifes, Swiss painter Albert Anker is regarded as Switzerland’s national painter. While he initially studied theology, he later deviated toward art. Sleeping Girl in Walde and Still Life: Tea Set remain 2 of his best-known works. He also became a knight of the Légion d'honneur.

Initially the commander of the Tosa troops, Itagaki Taisuke participated in the Meiji Restoration. He was the founder of the Liberal Party, which was the first Japanese political party. Itagaki was later stabbed by a right-wing militant, to whom he reacted by saying “Itagaki may die, but liberty, never.”

English poet and critic Stephen Spender mostly dealt with themes such as social issues and class struggle. He had also been an editor for Encounter and Horizon. He later taught at various institutes and also became the first non-American poetry consultant of the U.S. Library of Congress. He was knighted, too.

Edmond de Goncourt was a French writer, book publisher, art critic, and literary critic. He is credited with founding the popular French literary organization, the Goncourt Literary Society. Between 1856 and 1875, he published essays on 18th-century art, which helped revive appreciation for the Late Baroque.

Author Louis Couperus was one of the most significant figures of the Dutch literary revival in the 1880s. Born in the Dutch East Indies, he later lived in Italy, the Netherlands, and parts of Asia and Africa. He experimented with styles and themes such as French realism, the occult, and Oriental culture.