- Dec 1 Elisabeth Carron, American soprano ("The Saint of Bleecker Street"; New York City Opera, 1958-73), dies at 94
- Dec 1 Ousmane Sow, Senegalese sculptor, dies at 81
- Dec 2 Paul de Wispelaere, Flemish writer and critic, dies at 88
- Dec 2 Sammy Lee, American diver (Olympic Gold 10m platform 1948, 52), dies from pneumonia at 96
- Dec 3 Antonio Membrado, Spanish-French classical guitarist and composer, dies at 81
- Dec 3 Gigliola Frazzoni, Italian operatic soprano, dies at 93
- Dec 3 S. Newman Darby, American inventor of the sailboard, dies at 88
- Dec 4 Julia Gomelskaya, Ukrainian composer, dies in a car crash at 52
- Dec 4 Margaret Whitton, American actress (Good & Evil, Major League), dies of cancer at 67
- Dec 4 Radim Hladík, Czech guitarist (The Blue Effect), dies from lung illness at 69
- Dec 5 E. R. Braithwaite, Guyanese diplomat and writer (To Sir with Love), dies at 104
- Dec 5 Jayaram Jayalalitha, Indian actress and politician, chief minister of Tamil Nadu, dies of a heart attack at 68
- Dec 5 Mogens Camre, Danish politician (Folketing (Danish Parliament), 1968-1987, 3 days in 2007; European Parliament, 1999-2009, dies at 80
- Dec 5 Rashaan Salaam, American College Football Hall of Fame running back (Heisman Trophy 1994, U of Colorado; NFL: Chicago Bears), dies at 42
- Dec 5 Robert Sumner, American evangelist and author, dies at 94
- Dec 5 Shirley Hazzard, Australian-born author (Transit of Venus), dies at 85
- Dec 6 Peter Vaughan, British actor (Porridge, Game of Thrones), dies at 93
- Dec 7 Greg Lake, British rock vocalist and bassist (King Crimson, 1968-70 - "I Talk To The Wind"; Emerson, Lake & Palmer - "Lucky Man"), dies of cancer at 69
- Dec 7 Hildegard Hamm-Brücher, German politician, dies at 95
- Dec 7 Junaid Jamshed, Pakistani singer (Vital Signs 1), dies in a plane crash at 52
- Dec 7 Paul Elvstrøm, Danish yachtsman (4 Olympic gold, Finn class 1948, 52, 56, 60), dies at 88
- Dec 8 Florence Finch, Filipino-American war hero who fought against the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II, dies at 101 [1]
John Glenn (1921-2016)
Dec 8 American astronaut who was the 1st American to orbit the earth and politician (Senator D-Ohio), dies at 95
- Dec 8 Joseph Mascolo, American actor (Days of Our Lives), dies at 87
- Dec 8 Sheila Quinn, British nurse and adviser (British Red Cross), dies at 96
- Dec 10 A. A. [Adrian Anthony] Gill, British critic (The Sunday Times), dies of cancer at 62
- Dec 11 Sid O'Linn, South African cricketer (soccer for South Africa 1947, cricket 1960), dies at 89
- Dec 12 Jim Lowe, American DJ (WNEW) "King of Trivia", dies at 93
- Dec 12 Walter Swinburn, English jockey (Epsom Derby 1981, 86, 95; Irish Derby 1983, 86; Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe 1983), dies after falling from a window at 55
- Dec 13 Alan Thicke, Canadian actor (Growing Pains), host (Thicke of the Night), and theme song composer (Diff'rent Strokes; The Facts of Life), dies of an aortic dissection at 69
- Dec 13 Thomas Schelling, American economist, (Nobel Prize 2005 - game-theory analysis), dies at 95
- Dec 14 Garrett K. Gomez, American jockey (US Champion Jockey by earnings 2006-09; Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey 2007-08), dies of a drug overdose at 44
- Dec 14 Karel Husa, Czech-American Pulitzer prize winning composer (Trojan Women), dies at 95
- Dec 17 Henry Heimlich, American surgeon and inventor of the Heimlich maneuver, dies at 96
- Dec 18 China Machado, Chinese-born model, 1st non-Caucasian super model, dies at 86
Zsa Zsa Gabor (1917-2016)
Dec 18 Hungarian-born American actress (Queen of Outer Space), dies at 99
- Dec 20 Michèle Morgan, French actress (Passage to Marseille), dies at 96
- Dec 21 Weston Noble, American music educator and conductor (Luther College, 1948-2005), dies at 94
- Dec 22 Bill Price, British audio engineer (Tom Jones; Wings: Sparks; Elton John), and record producer (The Clash; Sex Pistols; Waterboys), dies of cancer at 72
- Dec 22 Margaret Pereira, English forensic scientist (Nicholls and Pereira method), dies at 88
- Dec 22 Miruts Yifter 'Yifter the Shifter', Ethiopian runner (Olympic golds 1980), dies at 72
- Dec 23 Heinrich Schiff, Austrian cellist and conductor, dies at 65
- Dec 23 Piers J Sellers, English astronaut and climate scientist, dies of cancer at 61
- Dec 24 Jack Philip Cannon, British composer, dies at 87
- Dec 24 Liz Smith [Betty Gleadle] British BAFTA Award-winning character actress (A Private Function; 2point4 Children -"Belle" and "Bette"), dies at 95
- Dec 24 Richard Adams, English author (Watership Down), dies at 96
- Dec 24 Rick Parfitt, British pop guitarist and singer (Status Quo - "Wanderer"; "Pictures of Matchstick Men"), dies at 68
- Dec 24 Vera Rubin, American astronomer who discovered dark matter, dies at 88
- Dec 25 Alphonse Mouzon, American jazz musician (Weather Report, Tenacious Records), dies from cancer at 68
George Michael (1963-2016)
Dec 25 English singer-songwriter and pop superstar (Wham! - "Careless Whisper"; "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go"; solo - " I Want Your Sex"; "Faith"), dies of suspected heart failure at 53
- Dec 25 Valery Khalilov, Russian military conductor and composer, dies in a plane crash in the Black Sea, near Sochi, at 64
- Dec 26 George S. Irving [Shelasky], American broadway singer and actor (Dumplings), dies at 94
Carrie Fisher (1956-2016)
Dec 27 American actress (Princess Leia in Star Wars, When Harry Met Sally...) and writer (Postcards from the Edge), dies at 60 four days after suffering a heart attack on a flight from London to Los Angeles
Debbie Reynolds (1932-2016)
Dec 28 American actress and singer (Singin' In The Rain -"Kathy Selden"; The Unsinkable Molly Brown), dies of a stroke at 84 one day after her daughter Carrie Fisher passed away
Gregorio Álvarez (1925-2016)
Dec 28 Uruguayan dictator and President of Uruguay (1981-85), dies in prison at 91 [1]
- Dec 29 Chris Cannizzaro, American baseball player, dies at 78
- Dec 29 Ferdi Kübler, Swiss cyclist (Tour de France 1950, Points classification 1954; World C'ship gold Elite Men's Road Race 1951), dies at 97
- Dec 31 William Christopher, American comedian and actor (M*A*S*H & AfterMASH - "Father Mulcahy"), dies at 84
Assassination
Drug Overdose
Gunshot Wound
Murder
Plane Crash
Suicide