Deaths Date 2017 January | History by KabAstro

Mário Soares (1924-2017)

Jan 7 17th President of Portugal (1986-96) and Prime Minister (1976-78 and 1983-85), dies after falling into a coma at 92

Jan 7 Nat Hentoff, American columnist and novelist (Village Voice, The Cold Society), dies at 91
Jan 8 Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, 4th President of Iran (1989-97) and de facto commander-in-chief of the Iranian military during the Iran-Iraq War, dies of a heart attack at 82
Jan 8 Buddy Bregman, American orchestra leader and arranger (Eddie Fisher Show; Ella Fitzgerald's Cole Porter Songbook), dies of Alzheimer's disease complications at 86 [1]
Jan 8 Peter Sarstedt, British pop-folk singer-songwriter and guitarist ("Where Do You Go To (My Lovely?"; "I Am A Cathedral"), dies at 75
Jan 8 Roy Innis, American activist, leader of the Congress of Racial Equality, dies at 82
Jan 9 Teresa Ann Savoy, British actress in Italian films (Caligula; Salon Kitty), dies of cancer at 61
Jan 9 Warren Allen Smith, American gay rights activist and writer, dies at 95
Jan 9 Zygmunt Bauman, Polish-born sociologist (Modernity and the Holocaust), dies at 91
Jan 10 (Armando) "Buddy" Greco, American jazz and pop singer ("Ooh! Look-A There, Ain't She Pretty"; "The Lady Is A Tramp"), pianist, and television personality (Away We Go), dies at 90

Clare Hollingworth (1911-2017)

Jan 10 British war correspondent who was the first to report on the outbreak of WWII, dies at 105

Jan 10 Oliver Smithies, British biochemist (2007 Noble Prize for gene targeting), dies at 91
Jan 10 Steven McDonald, New York City Police Department patrolman who was shot and paralyzed in the line of duty, dies at 59
Jan 10 Tony Rosato, Italian-born Canadian comedian (SCTV, Saturday Night Live), dies at 63
Jan 11 François Van der Elst, Belgian soccer winger (44 caps; Anderlecht, West Ham Utd), dies from cardiac arrest at 62
Jan 11 José Vicente Asuar, Chilean electronic music composer, dies at 83

William Peter Blatty (1928-2017)

Jan 12 American scriptwriter and author of The Exorcist, dies at 89

Jan 13 Alexis Mardas, Greek electronics engineer, entrepreneur, and Beatles hanger-on also known as "Magic Alex", dies of pneumonia at 74
Jan 13 Antony Armstrong-Jones [Lord Snowdon], British photographer and ex-husband of Princess Margaret, dies at 86
Jan 13 Dick Gautier, American stage and screen actor (Get Smart - "Hymie"; Bye Bye Birdie; When Things Were Rotten), dies at 85

Zhou Youguang (1906-2017)

Jan 14 Chinese economist and linguist known as the "father of pinyin", dies at 111

Jan 15 Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka, Fijian-born American professional wrestler, dies at 73
Jan 16 Cuthbert Johnson, English musician and Benedictine abbot, dies at 70
Jan 16 Eugene Cernan, American NASA astronaut (12th person on the moon), dies at 82
Jan 17 Tibor Fátyol, Hungarian composer, dies at 81
Jan 18 Mike Kellie, British session and touring rock drummer (Spooky Tooth; The Only Ones), dies at 69
Jan 18 Rachel Heyhoe Flint, English cricket batter (22 Tests, 23 ODOs; captain 1966-78; inaugural Women's World Cup 1973), businesswoman and philanthropist, dies at 77
Jan 18 Roberta Peters [Peterman], American operatic soprano (NY Metropolitan Opera, 1950-85), dies of Parkinson's disease at 86
Jan 19 H. Boyd Woodruff, American microbiologist whose research led to antibiotics, dies at 99
Jan 19 Miguel Ferrer, American actor (Robocop, NCIS LA), dies of cancer at 61
Jan 20 Ronald Mundy, American doo-wop tenor vocalist (The Marcels -"Blue Moon"), dies of pneumonia at 73
Jan 21 Emma Tennant, English writer (Pemberley: Or, Pride and Prejudice Continued), dies at 79
Jan 21 Maggie Roche, American singer-songwriter (The Roches - "Hammond Song"), dies of cancer at 65
Jan 21 Veljo Tormis, Estonian composer, specializing in choral music (Curse Upon Iron (Raua needmine)), dies at 86
Jan 22 Jaki Liebesit, German rock drummer (Can), dies at 78
Jan 22 Pete Overend Watts, English bass guitar player (Mott the Hoople - "All Young Dudes"), dies from throat cancer at 69
Jan 22 Yordano Ventura, Dominican MLB pitcher (Kansas City Royals), dies in a car crash at 25
Jan 23 Bobby Freeman, American rock, soul and R&B singer ("Do You Want to Dance"), dies at 76
Jan 23 Gorden Kaye, British actor (Allo Allo), dies at 75
Jan 23 Lee O’Denat, American internet entrepreneur (WorldStarHipHop.com), dies of heart disease at 43
Jan 24 (Claude) "Butch" Trucks, American rock drummer (The Allman Brothers Band - "Whipping Post"), dies of a self-inflicted gunshot at 69
Jan 25 Buchi Emecheta, Nigerian-English writer and novelist (Second Class Citizen; The Bride Price), dies at 72
Jan 25 John Hurt, English actor (Elephant Man, Alien, Midnight Express), dies at 77

Mary Tyler Moore (1936-2017)

Jan 25 American Emmy Award-winning actress (The Dick Van Dyke Show - "Laura"; The Mary Tyler Moore Show; Ordinary People), dies at 80

Jan 25 Robert Garcia, American politician hit by Wedtech scandal (Rep-D-NY, 1978-83), dies at 84
Jan 26 Barbara Hale, American actress (Della Street in Perry Mason), dies at 94
Jan 26 Mike Connors [Krekor Ohanian], American actor (Mannix), dies at 91
Jan 27 Benny Barth, American session and touring jazz drummer, dies at 86
Jan 27 Emmanuelle Riva, French actress (Hiroshima Mon Amour), dies at 89
Jan 27 Robert Ellis Miller, American film director, dies at 89
Jan 28 Geoff Nicholls, British rock keyboardist (Black Sabbath, 1980-2013), dies from lung cancer at 72
Jan 30 Harold Rosen, American engineer (created geosynchronous communications satellite), dies at 90 [1]
Jan 31 Deke [Roger] Leonard, Welsh rock musician (Man), dies at 72
Jan 31 John Wetton, British rock vocalist and bassist (Asia, King Crimson), dies of cancer at 67