- Jan 1 Roland Hayes, American lyric tenor, arranger, and composer, dies at 89
- Jan 3 Avraham Ofer, Israeli minister of housing, commits suicide
- Jan 3 Benno Stokvis, Dutch attorney/politician, dies at 75
- Jan 5 Onslow Stevens, American actor (This is the Life), dies at 74
- Jan 6 Hanns Lilje, German Lutheran bishop and antifascist (Church und Welt), dies at 77
- Jan 6 Niall MacGinnis, Irish character actor (Curse of the Demon, Helen of Troy), dies from cancer at 63
- Jan 9 Alexey Fedorovich Kozlovsky, Russian composer, dies at 71
- Jan 9 Hal Sawyer, TV host (Sawyer Views Hollywood), dies at 62
- Jan 10 Ruth Wakefield, American inventor who created the Toll House Cookie, the first chocolate chip cookie, dies at 73
- Jan 12 Henri-Georges Clouzot, French director (Les Diaboliques, Truth), dies at 69
- Jan 14 Anaïs Nin, French author (Henry and June), dies of cervical cancer at 73
Anthony Eden (1897-1977)
Jan 14 British Prime Minister (Conservative: 1955-57) and Foreign Secretary, dies of liver cancer at 79
Peter Finch (1916-1977)
Jan 14 British-Australian radio, stage, and BAFTA and Academy Award-winning screen actor (Network; The Nun's Story; Raid on Entebbe), dies of a heart attack at 60
- Jan 16 Leif Panduro, Danish writer ('k Have varnish on traditions), dies at 53
- Jan 17 Gary Gilmore, American murderer executed in Utah at 36, 1st US execution since 1967
- Jan 18 Carl Zuckmayer, German-Swiss-American playwright (Second Wind), dies at 80
- Jan 18 Paul Nordoff, American composer (Every Soul Is a Circus), and music therapist (Nordoff-Robbins method), dies at 67
- Jan 18 Yvonne Printemps, French singer and actress (Paris Waltz, Voyage to America), dies at 81
- Jan 21 John Vincent, American composer, dies at 74
- Jan 21 Sandro Penna, Italian poet, dies at 70
- Jan 21 Zoltan Vasarhelyi, composer, dies at 76
- Jan 22 Pascual Pérez, Argentine boxer (World flyweight champion 1954-60; Olympic gold Flyweight 1948), dies at 50
- Jan 23 Bernard "Toots" Shor, New York restaurateur (Toot's Shor's Restaurant), dies at 73
- Jan 23 Dick Burnett, American musician ("Man of Constant Sorrow"), dies at 93
- Jan 25 Donald Kerr, American actor (Devil Bat, Killer Bats), dies at 85
- Jan 26 Margaret Hayes, American actress (Blackboard Jungle, Robert Montgomery Presents), dies from cancer and hepatitis at 60
- Jan 27 Walter Baldwin, American actor (The Best Years of Our Lives, The Long, Long Trailer), dies at 88
- Jan 28 Burton "Burt" Mustin, American actor (All in the Family, The Andy Griffith Show), dies at 92
- Jan 29 Buster Nupen, South African cricket all-rounder (17 Tests, 50 wickets; one eye only), dies at 75
- Jan 29 Freddie Prinze, American comedian and actor (Chico & the Man), commits suicide by shooting himself in the head at 22
Assassination
Car Crash
Hanging
Killed in Action
Plane Crash
Poisoning