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Famous Deaths on February 2

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  • 619 Laurence of Canterbury, 2nd Archbishop of Canterbury, c.604-19, dies at unknown age
  • 1124 Bořivoj II of Bohemia, Duke of Bohemia (1100-1107, 1117-1120)
  • 1218 Konstantin of Rostov, Prince of Novgorod (b. 1186)
  • 1250 Eric XI of Sweden (1222–29 and 1234–50), last of the house of Eric, dies at 33 or 34
  • 1294 Louis II, Duke of Bavaria, ruler of Upper Bavaria, dies at 64
  • 1435 Johanna II, Queen of Naples (1414-35), dies at 61
  • 1461 Owen Tudor, Welsh founder of the Tudor dynasty of England
  • 1491 Martin Schongauer, German painter, dies at 40
  • 1512 Hatüey, Taíno chief known as Cuba's First National Hero, is burned alive by Spanish colonialists
  • 1529 Baldassare Castiglione, Italian diplomat and author, dies at 50
  • 1540 George Schenck van Toutenburg, Dutch Stadhouder of Friesland and Groningen
  • 1563 Hans Neusiedler, Hungarian-German lutist and author, dies at about 54
  • 1580 Bessho Nagaharu, Japanese retainer (b. 1558)
  • 1594 Giovanni Perluigi da Palestrina, Italian composer, dies at 68
  • 1597 Lucas van Valckenborch, Flemish painter, buried at about 61
  • 1648 George Abbot, English writer and politician, dies at 44
  • 1660 Gaston, Duke of Orleans, brother of French King Louis XIII, dies at 51
  • 1660 Govert Flinck, Dutch painter (Isaac blesses Jacob), dies at 45
  • 1661 Lucas Holstenius, German humanist (b. 1596)
  • 1673 Kaspar Förster, German composer, dies at 56
  • 1688 Abraham Duquesne, French naval officer (b. 1610)
  • 1704 Guillaume de l'Hospital, French mathematician (wrote first Calculus textbook), dies at about 44
  • 1712 Martin Lister, English naturalist and physician to Queen Anne, dies at 72
  • 1714 John Sharp, English Archbishop of York (1691-1714), dies at 68
  • 1723 Antonio Maria Valsalva, Italian anatomist (anatomy of the ear), dies at 66
  • 1750 Johann Graf, German composer, dies at 65
  • 1768 Robert Smith, English mathematician (b. 1689)
  • 1769 Clement XIII [Carlo Rezzonico], Pope (1758-69), dies at 75
  • 1779 Georg Philipp Kress, German violinist and composer, dies at 59
  • 1789 Armand-Louis Couperin, French composer and organist (Notre Dame), dies at 63
  • 1793 William Aiton, English botanist (Kew Gardens), dies at 61
  • 1802 Welbore Ellis, 1st Baron Mendip, British statesman (b. 1713)
  • 1804 George Walton, American lawyer, soldier and politician (Governor of Georgia and youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence) dies (b. 1749-50) [1]
  • 1822 Jean-Baptiste Davaux, French classical composer, dies at 79
  • 1826 Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, French lawyer and gastronome (wrote 1st book of gastronomy - The Physiology of Taste), dies at 70 [1]
  • 1827 Johann Nepomuk Kalcher, German organist, composer, and teacher of Carl Maria von Weber, dies at 62
  • 1828 Frederik Sigismund van Bylandt, Dutch count and vice-admiral, dies at 78
  • 1852 Francis Libermann, French religious leader (Congregation of Heart), dies at 49
  • 1867 Forceythe Willson, American poet (The Old Sergeant), dies at 29
  • 1873 Edward Johnson, American Major General (Confederate Army), dies at 56
  • 1878 Josip Runjanin, Croatian Serb composer (Croatian National Anthem) and soldier, dies at 56
  • 1881 Alekey Pisemski, Russian novelist and playwright (A Bitter Lot), dies at 59 (OS 21 Jan)
  • 1882 Fabio Campana, Italian composer and opera director, dies at 63
  • 1895 Archduke Albert, Austrian general (b. 1817)
  • 1897 Infanta Luisa Fernanda, Duchess of Montpensier, dies at 65
  • 1902 Emanuil Manolov, Bulgarian composer (Siromahkinia - 1st Bulgarian opera), dies at 42
  • 1904 William C. Whitney, American financier and 31st United States Secretary of the Navy, dies at 62

Dmitri Mendeleev (1834-1907)

Russian chemist and inventor who devised the periodic table of the elements, dies at 72

Dmitri Mendeleev
  • 1909 Adolf Stoecker, German conservative politician, and reformer who founded the German Christian Social Party, dies at 73

John L. Sullivan (1858-1918)

American boxer (first heavyweight gloved champion, de facto 1882-92; last heavyweight bare-knuckle champion), dies at 59

John L. Sullivan
  • 1919 Xavier Henry Napoleon Leroux, French composer, dies at 55
  • 1921 Luigi Mancinelli, Italian conductor, cellist and composer, dies at 72
  • 1925 Antti Aarne, Finnish folklorist, dies at 57

Jaap Eden (1873-1925)

Dutch athlete (World Cycling C'ship gold 10k 1894, sprint 1895; World Speed Skating C'ship gold allround 1893, 95, 96), dies at 51

Jaap Eden
  • 1926 Vladimir Sukhomlinov, Russian general (b. 1848)
  • 1930 Sara Louisa Oberholtz, American economist and social reformer (children's school saving banks), dies at 88
  • 1931 Theodor Batthynyi, Hungarian contra-revolutionary, dies at 71
  • 1932 Agha Petros, Assyrian nationalist leader and military commander during WWI, dies at 51
  • 1934 Ernesto Nazareth, Brazilian pianist dance and classical music composer, dies at 70
  • 1936 Owen Seaman, British poet and editor (Punch), dies at 74
  • 1937 Abraham van Oosten, Dutch architect, and stained glass designer, dies of pneumonia at 39
  • 1940 Vsevolod Meyerhold [Karl Kasimir Theodor], Russian theatrical director and actor (Houligan), executed during the Great Purge at 65
  • 1941 Johannes Schlaf, German writer and translator, dies at 78
  • 1942 Daniil Kharms [Yuvatchov], Russian surrealist and absurdist writer, poet, and playwright, dies of starvation during the siege of Leningrad at 36
  • 1943 Jack Burke Sr., American golfer (US Open 1920 runner-up; Senior PGA C'ship 1941), dies at 54
  • 1945 Carl Friedrich Goerdeler, German Leipzig mayor and Nazi regime opponent (20th July plot), hanged at 60
  • 1945 Joe Hunt, American tennis player (US National C'ship 1943), dies in fighter plane crash during training at 25
  • 1948 Bevil Rudd, South African athlete (Olympic gold 400m 1920), dies at 53
  • 1948 Thomas W. Lamont, American banker; father or Corliss Lamont; great-grandfather of Ned Lamont (b. 1870)
  • 1950 Constantin Carathéodory, Greek mathematician (b. 1873)
  • 1950 George A. Birmingham, Irish clergyman and novelist, dies at 84
  • 1952 Charles de Rochefort, French silent film actor (The Ten Commandments), dies at 72
  • 1952 Johann Babtist Thaller, German composer, dies at 79
  • 1953 Gustav Strube, German-American composer and conductor (Baltimore Symphony Orchestra), dies at 85
  • 1954 Theodor Rogalski, Romanian composer, dies at 52
  • 1956 Charley Grapewin, American actor (The Wizard of Oz; Libeled Lady), dies at 86
  • 1956 Pyotr Konchalovsky, Russian painter (b. 1876)
  • 1957 Grigory Landsberg, Russian physicist (b. 1890)
  • 1957 Julia Morgan, American architect (Hearst Castle, and other Hearst properties), first female degreed by Ecole des Beaux-Arts, and first licensed in California, dies at 85 [1]
  • 1959 Frank DeCaires, West Indian cricket batsman (3 Tests, 2 x 50; British Guiana), dies at 49
  • 1960 Jeno Huszka, Hungarian composer, dies at 84
  • 1961 Adolf Vogl, German composer, dies at 87
  • 1963 Herman Bouber, Dutch actor and playwright (Sailor's Wives), dies at 77
  • 1963 William Gaxton [Arthur Gaxiola], American stage and screen actor (A Connecticut Yankee; Destry; Convoy), dies of cancer at 73
  • 1965 Richard P. Blackmur, American critic, poet and publisher (Good European), dies at 61
  • 1965 Richard Würz, German composer, and music critic, dies at 79

Boris Karloff (1887-1969)

English actor (The Mummy, Frankenstein), dies of pneumonia at 81

Boris Karloff
  • 1969 Giovanni Martinelli, Italian operatic spinto tenor singer (New York Metropolitan Opera, 1913-45), dies at 83

Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)

English mathematician and philosopher (Nobel 1950), dies at 97

Bertrand Russell
  • 1970 Dave Franklin, American composer (The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down), dies at 74
  • 1970 Jaroslav Vogel, Czech composer and conductor (Brno Philharmonic, 1959-62; Ostrava Orchestra 1919- 43), dies at 76
  • 1970 Lawrence Gray, American actor, dies at 71
  • 1972 Jessie Royce Landis [Medbury], American stage and screen actress (To Catch A Thief; North by Northwest), dies of cancer at 75
  • 1972 Natalie Clifford Barney, American writer (b. 1876)
  • 1973 Hendrik Elias, Flemish historian and Mayor of Ghent (1941-44), dies at 70
  • 1974 Jean Absil, Belgian organist and composer (Benedictions; Peau d'Ane), dies at 80
  • 1976 Erling Kjellsby, Norwegian organist, educator and composer, dies at 75
  • 1976 Harry Elliott, England cricket wicket-keeper (4 Tests, 11 dismissals; Derbyshire CCC), dies at 84
  • 1976 Johan Kaart, Dutch actor (My Fair Lady), dies at 78
  • 1976 Maurice Jacobson, British concert pianist, composer, and music publisher, dies at 80
  • 1978 Wendy Barrie, British-American TV hostess (Wendy Barrie Show), dies at 65
  • 1979 Jim Burke, Australian cricket batsman (24 Tests; record for most innings in a complete career without scoring a duck [44]) and broadcaster (ABC), dies of self inflicted gunshot wounds at 48

Sid Vicious (1957-1979)

English musician and bassist (Sex Pistols), dies of a heroin overdose at 21

Sid Vicious
  • 1980 William H. Stein, American biochemist (Nobel 1972), dies at 68
  • 1981 Jan Donner, Dutch Minister of Justice, chairman of High Council, dies at 89
  • 1981 Louise Lorraine, American actress (Adventures of Tarzan), dies at 76
  • 1982 Paul Desruisseaux, Canadian lawyer and politician (Senator for Wellington, Quebec), dies at 76
  • 1982 Stringfellow Barr, US educationalist (100 Great Books), dies at 85
  • 1983 Bryan Valentine, British cricket batsman (7 Tests, 2 x 100; Kent CCC, Cambridge University CC), dies at 75
  • 1983 Roy Horb, Suriname sergeant and putschist, commits suicide
  • 1983 Sam Chatmon, American Delta blues guitarist, banjo player, and singer (The Mississippi Sheiks), dies at 86
  • 1987 Alfred Lion, German-born American record founder (Blue Note), dies at 78
  • 1987 Alistair MacLean, Scottish novelist (The Guns of Navarone), dies at 64
  • 1987 Carlos Castilho, Brazilian soccer goalkeeper (25 caps; Fluminense FC 697 games) and manager (Santos FC, SE Palmeiras), dies by suicide at 59
  • 1987 Edna Manley, Jamaican sculptor 'Mother of Jamaican art', dies at 86
  • 1987 Patrick "Spike" Hughes, British jazz musician (Cinderella), dies at 78
  • 1988 Clive Epstein, British music artist manager, and brother of Brian Epstein, dies at 51
  • 1988 G. Mennen Williams, American lawyer, politician (Governor of Michigan, 1949-61), diplomat, and jurist (Chief Justice of Michigan Supreme Court, 1983-86), dies at 76
  • 1989 Ondrej Nepela, Slovak figure skater (Olympic gold men's singles 1972; World C'ships gold 1971, 72, 73), dies from cancer of the lymph nodes at 38
  • 1990 Joe Erskine, Welsh boxer (British heavyweight champion 1956-58), dies at 56
  • 1990 Joel Fluellen, American actor (Porgy and Bess, Burning Cross, Learning Tree), commits suicide at 82
  • 1992 Bert Parks [Jacobson], American TV host (Miss America), dies of lung cancer at 77
  • 1992 Jack [John T] Aitken, British anatomist, dies at 78
  • 1992 Maurice J. Hill, American writer (Track of Thunder), dies of pneumonia at 89
  • 1992 Maurice Kusell, American film choreographer (Puttin' On the Ritz), dies of pneumonia at 89
  • 1993 Alexander Schneider, Lithuanian violinist (Budapest String Quartet), dies at 84
  • 1994 John Littlejohn, American blues guitarist and singer, dies at 62
  • 1994 Stephen Barclay, American actor (Pride of the Plains), dies at 75
  • 1994 Willie Mae "Mother" Smith (née Ford), American gospel singer, evangelist, and folk artist, dies at 89
  • 1994 Zilner Randolph, American jazz trumpeter, arranger, and music educator, dies at 95
  • 1995 Alexis d'Anjou de Bourbon-Condé, French prince/Russian, dies at 47
  • 1995 Andre Frossard, French publicist (Defense of Pope), dies at 80
  • 1995 David Kindersley, British stone letter-carver and typeface designer, dies at 79
  • 1995 Donald Pleasence, British actor (You Only Live Twice, Escape from New York, Halloween), dies from heart failure at 75

Fred Perry (1909-1995)

English tennis player/broadcaster (8 x Grand Slam singles, 6 x Grand Slam doubles titles; Davis Cup 1933, 34, 35, 36), dies of broken ribs at 85

Fred Perry
  • 1995 Phillip Borsos, Tasmanian Canadian director (Mean Season), dies

Gene Kelly (1912-1996)

American dancer, singer, actor, choreographer and film director (An American in Paris; On The Town; Singin' in the Rain), dies of a stroke at 83

Gene Kelly
  • 1996 Minao Shibata, Japanese composer and musicologist, dies at 79
  • 1996 Ray McIntire, American chemical engineer, (invented Styrafoam at Dow) dies at 77
  • 1996 Shamus Culhane, American animator (Fleischer Studios, Disney Studios), dies at 87
  • 1997 Chico Science [Francisco Franca], Brazilian musician (manguebeat), dies in a car accident at 30
  • 1997 Erich Eliskases, Austrian chess player (grandmaster 1952), dies at 83
  • 1997 Godfrey Baseley, British radio executive, dies at 92
  • 1997 Sanford Meisner, American actor and teacher, dies at 91
  • 1998 Roger L. Stevens, American real estate magnate, Broadway theater producer (West Side Story) and fundraiser (John F. Kennedy Center), dies at 87 [1]
  • 1999 David McComb, Australian singer-songwriter, and guitarist (The Triffids, 1976-89; The Blackeyed Susans, 1989–93), dies after unsuccessful heart transplant at 38
  • 2000 Todor Popov, Bulgarian composer, dies at 79
  • 2002 Claude Brown, American writer (b. 1937)
  • 2002 Paul Baloff, American singer (Exodus) (b. 1960)
  • 2003 Lou Harrison, American composer (La Koro Sutro), dies of a heart attack at 85
  • 2004 Alan Bullock, British historian and author (Hitler: A Study in Tyranny), dies at 89
  • 2004 Bernard McEveety, American film director, dies at 79
  • 2004 Róbert Zimonyi, Hungarian rowing coxswain (Olympic gold USA men's eight 1964; bronze Hungary coxed pair 1948), dies at 85

Max Schmeling (1905-2005)

German boxer (world heavyweight champion 1930-32), dies at 99

Max Schmeling
  • 2007 Billy Henderson, American pop and R&B singer (The Spinners, 1954-2004 - "The Rubberband Man"), dies from complications of diabetes at 67
  • 2007 Eric von Schmidt, American folk/blues singer-songwriter (b. 1931)
  • 2007 Filippo Raciti, Italian police officer (b. 1967)
  • 2007 Joe Hunter, American pianist and bandleader of Motown's house band - The Funk Brothers (1959-64), dies at 79
  • 2007 Masao Takemoto, Japanese gymnast (Olympic gold team 1960; 3 x silver 1952, 56, 60; 3 x bronze 1956), dies from cholangiocarcinoma at 87
  • 2007 Vijay Arora, Indian film and television actor (b. 1944)
  • 2008 Earl Butz, 18th U.S. Secretary of Agriculture (1971-76), dies at 98
  • 2008 Herbert "Barry" Morse, British-Canadian actor (The Fugitive, Space: 1999, Winds of War), dies at 89
  • 2008 Katoucha, Guinean model and activist (b. 1960)
  • 2011 Defne Joy Foster, Turkish actress, presenter and VJ. (b. 1975)
  • 2011 Margaret John, Welsh actress (b. 1926)
  • 2012 Dorothy Gilman, American mystery writer, dies from Alzheimer's disease at 88
  • 2013 Chris Kyle, American sniper, is shot at 38
  • 2013 John Kerr, American actor (South Pacific, Peyton Place, Pit & Pendulum), dies at 81
  • 2013 Pepper Paire, American National Women's Baseball Hall of Fame catcher (1948 AAGPBL All-Star Team), dies at 88
  • 2013 Walt Sweeney, American football offensive lineman (9 × Pro Bowl; First-team All-Pro 1967, 68; San Diego Chargers), dies from pancreatic cancer at 71

Philip Seymour Hoffman (1967-2014)

American actor (Capote, Moneyball), dies of a suspected drug overdose at 46

Philip Seymour Hoffman
  • 2015 Joseph Alfidi, American classical prodigy pianist, composer and conductor, dies at 65
  • 2015 Stewart Stern, American screenwriter (Rebel Without A Cause), dies at 92
  • 2016 Bob Elliott, American comedian (Bob & Ray, Get a Life), dies at 92
  • 2016 Intizar Hussain, Pakistani and Urdu writer and columnist, dies in his early 90s
  • 2018 Dave Barrett, 26th Premier of British Columbia (1972-75), dies at 87
  • 2018 Joseph Polchinski, American leading theoretical physicist (multiverse), dies of brain cancer at 63
  • 2020 Ivan Král, Czech-American bass player, songwriter, record producer (Patti Smith; Iggy Pop; John Waite), dies of cancer at 71
  • 2021 Danny Ray, American MC, stage manager, valet and "cape man" for soul singer James Brown, dies at 85
  • 2021 Grant Jackson, American baseball pitcher (MLB All Star 1969; World Series 1979; Philadelphia Phillies; Baltimore Orioles; Pittsburgh Pirates), dies from complications of COVID-19 at 78
  • 2021 Rudolph Pariser, American physical and polymer chemist (molecular orbital computation), dies at 97
  • 2021 Tom Moore, English army captain knighted for raising £32 million for the NHS, dies with COVID-19 at 100
  • 2022 Bill Fitch, American Basketball HOF coach (NBA C'ship 1981, Boston Celtics; NBA Coach of the Year 1976, 80; NBA All-Star coach 1982; Cleveland Cavaliers; NJ Nets, Houston Rockets, LA Clippers), dies at 89
  • 2022 Hamid Zouba, Algerian soccer manager (Algerian national team x 6 separate spells), dies at 86
  • 2022 Monica Vitti [Maria Ceciarelli], Italian actress (L'Avventura; Tigers in Lipstick; Duck in Orange Sauce), dies of Dementia with Lewy bodies disease at 90
  • 2022 Mosese Taga, Fijian rugby union front rower (48 Tests; Suva RFU, Nabua RUFC), dies at 57
  • 2022 Roy Purdon, New Zealand harness-racing trainer (21 x NZ trainers premierships; 4 x NZ cup winners; 54 x Group One wins), dies at 94
  • 2023 Jean-Pierre Jabouille, French auto racer (55 x F1 GP, 2 wins; 4 x 3rd overall 24 Hours of Le Mans), dies at 80
  • 2023 Robert Orben, American comedy writer, magician, and speechwriter for US Vice President Gerald Ford, dies at 95
  • 2024 Don Murray, American actor (Bus Stop; Advise & Consent; Endless Love), dies at 94 [1]
  • 2024 Francisco Jara, Mexican soccer forward (9 caps; CD Guadalajara 1960-71), dies at 82
  • 2024 Rich Caster, American football wide receiver-tight end (Super Bowl XVII Washington Redskins; Pro Bowl 1972, 74, 75 New York Jets), dies from Parkinson's disease at 75
  • 2024 Stefan Yanev, Bulgarian soccer midfielder (Cherno More Varna 228 games) and broadcaster (BNT; 17 books on Bulgarian football), dies at 84
  • 2024 Wayne Kramer [Kambes], American guitarist (MC5 - "Kick Out The Jams"), and record producer, dies of pancreatic cancer at 75 [1]
  • 2024 Wilhelmenia Wiggins Fernandez, American operatic soprano, and actress (Diva), dies of cancer at 75 [1]
February 2 Highlights

Famous People by Cause of Death

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