- May 3 Samuel Gonard, Swiss lawyer and chairman (International Red Cross), dies at 78
Moe Howard (1897-1975)
May 4 American actor and comedian (The 3 Stooges), dies at 77
- May 6 József Mindszenty [József Pehm], Hungarian cardinal who opposed fascism and communism in Hungary, dies at 83
- May 8 Avery Brundage, American businessman (5th President International Olympic Committee 1952-72), dies at 87
- May 9 Philip Dorn, Dutch actor (Enemy Agent; I Remember Mama), dies of a heart attack at 73
- May 11 Walter Kinsella, American actor (Martin Kane Private Eye), dies at 74
- May 12 Joe Mooney, American jazz and pop accordionist, organist, and vocalist, dies at 64
- May 13 Bob Wills, American musician, known as the 'King of Western Swing' ("Steel Guitar Rag"), dies from bronchial pneumonia at 69
- May 13 Vladislav Zolotaryov, Soviet Russian bayanist (button accordion player), and composer (Six Children's Suites), takes his own life at 53
- May 14 Ernst Alexanderson, Swedish-American television pioneer (Alexanderson alternator), dies at 97 [1]
- May 16 Michael X, (Abdul Malik), hanged in Trinidad, for murder
- May 17 Arthur Trappier, American jazz drummer (Blanche Calloway: Fats Waller), dies at 64
Kazimierz Fajans (1887-1975)
May 18 Polish-American physical chemist (Fajans' rules), dies at 84
- May 18 Leroy Anderson, American composer (Syncopated Clock), dies at 66
- May 20 Barbara Hepworth, English abstract artist, sculptor and child actress (Rescued by Rover), dies in an accidental fire at her Trewyn studios at 72
- May 20 Jacques Stehman, Belgian pianist and composer (Symphonie de poche), dies at 62
- May 21 Boris Klyuzner, Russian Soviet composer, dies at 65
- May 22 Robert "Lefty" Grove, American Baseball HOF pitcher (6 × MLB All-Star; World Series 1929, 30; AL MVP 1931; Triple Crown 1930, 31; Philadelphia A's, Boston Red Sox), dies from a heart attack at 75
- May 22 Torben Myer, Danish actor (Girl Who Came Back; Judgment at Nuremberg; Sullivan's Travels), dies at 90
- May 23 Jackie Moms Mabley, American comedian and actress (Amazing Grace), dies at 81
Ezzard Charles (1921-1975)
May 27 American world heavyweight boxing champion (1949-51), dies of ALS at 53
- May 28 Eric Emerson, entertainer, dies
- May 28 Roy Roberts, American actor (Petticoat Junction, Lucy Show), dies from a heart attack at 69
- May 30 Michel Simon, Swiss actor (Panic, Plague, Two of Us), dies at 80
- May 30 Steve Prefontaine, American long-distance runner (Olympics, 1972), dies on a single-vehicle car crash at 24
- May 30 Tatsuo Shimabuku, Japanese martial artist and founder of Isshinryu Karate, dies at 66
Assassination
Car Crash
Hanging
Killed in Action
Plane Crash
Poisoning