Famous People Who Died Today

A. A. Milne was an English author best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh. He joined the British Army as a young man and served in both World War I and World War II. In his career as a writer, he wrote several novels, non-fiction pieces, articles, poems, screenplays, and children’s stories.

Charles Spurgeon was an English Particular Baptist preacher who was a powerful figure in the Reformed Baptist tradition. Hailed as the "Prince of Preachers", he was well respected by Christians of various denominations. He was pastor of the congregation of the New Park Street Chapel for almost four decades. He was the author of several books, sermons, and commentaries. 

Irish radio and TV broadcaster, Terry Wogan, is remembered for his long career with BBC. For over 15 years, his weekday breakfast program, Wake Up to Wogan, drew in millions of listeners. At the peak of his career, he was probably the most listened-to radio broadcaster in Europe.  He was inducted into the Radio Academy Hall of Fame in 2009.

Moira Shearer was a Scottish actress and ballet dancer. She is best remembered for playing an important role in the movie The Red Shoes. Although Moira Shearer went on to work as a dancer and actress for many decades after making her acting debut in The Red Shoes, she is still primarily known for her portrayal of Vicky in the 1948 film.

Remembered for her surrealist paintings, sculptor and painter Dorothea Margaret Tanning seemed to have recreated her visions and dreams through her art. Most of her works showcase unreal situations, with motifs such as gigantic flowers and doors. Her iconic installation Hôtel du Pavot, Chambre 202 showcases her sculpting skills.

Jacob Roggeveen was a Dutch explorer who is credited with discovering Easter Island, Samoa, Maupiti, and Bora Bora. Interestingly, he found Easter Island by accident as he was initially sent to find Terra Australis. He is also remembered for publishing his work De val van 's werelds afgod.

The founder of the Salesian Order, John Bosco, also known as Don Bosco, started his life as a priest in Turin. He began teaching young boys who came to Turin for jobs and later branched out to form a similar institution for girls too, with St. Mary Mazzarello.

Eleanor Holm was an American competitive swimmer best remembered for winning a gold medal at the 1932  Olympics in Los Angeles. After being expelled by Avery Brundage from the 1936 Olympics team under controversial circumstances, Holm went on to establish herself as an interior designer and socialite. Eleanor Holm also appeared in the 1938 adventure film Tarzan's Revenge.

Jane Avril was a French dancer who specialized in can-can, a popular music-hall dance of the 1840s. Avril was made famous by popular French painter Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec who often depicted Jane Avril in his paintings. In the 1952 British drama film Moulin Rouge, Jane Avril was played by Hungarian-American actress Zsa Zsa Gabor.

Blamed for undermining the British Imperial prestige by surrendering to the Japanese Army during the Battle of Singapore, Arthur Percival was actually a distinguished military officer, known for his successful campaigns in interwar period.  Plagued with underequipped garrison from the beginning, he was forced to surrender in order to save the lives of his 100,000 men and became the scapegoat.

German-American abstract animator, filmmaker, and painter Oskar Fischinger is most-noted for creating abstract musical animation decades before development of computer graphics. Among the 50 short films he made, the short animated film Motion Painting No. 1 is listed on the United States National Film Registry. He also created special effects for the German sci-fi silent film Woman in the Moon.

Nobel Peace Prize-winning Methodist evangelist John Mott was a leading member of the YMCA and the WSCF. He also co-organized the World Missionary Conference, which heralded the ecumenical movement. He had declined an invitation to travel on the doomed luxury liner Titanic, which sank in the Atlantic Ocean.

Part of the famous Rothschild banking family from Frankfurt, Alfred de Rothschild started his career with his family’s N.M. Rothschild Bank in London. He later had a 20-year stint as the director of the Bank of England. A passionate art collector, he later also served as a trustee of the National Gallery.

American chemical engineer George Koval was one of the most significant Soviet spies of the 20th century. Born to Belarusian immigrants in Iowa, Koval later moved to Russia with his family. Codenamed Delmar, he later worked in the U.S. atomic laboratories and supplied classified information to Russia.

One of the bestselling Finnish music artists of all time, pop-rock sensation Kirka was born into a family of musicians and began learning the accordion at age 5. The 2-time Finnish Emma Award winner had also represented his country at the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest.

After earning a law degree, Miklos Jancso fought in World War II and eventually studied film direction. He gained international fame with his films The Round-Up and The Red and the White. His signature style of films were named political musical. He also repeated the characters Pepe and Kapa in his films.

German botanist and plant-physiologist Wilhelm Pfeffer, considered a pioneer of modern plant-physiology, is noted for his work on osmotic pressure. He developed a semi-porous membrane to study osmosis phenomena while researching on plant-metabolism and invented Pfeffer Zelle (Pfeffer Cell Apparatus) to determine osmotic pressure of a solution. He held teaching positions at the Universities of Basel, Bonn, Tübingen and Leipzig.

Recaizade Mahmud Ekrem was an Ottoman writer, civil servant, intellectual, and literary critic. Counted among the most influential writers of his time, Ekrem dealt in detail with European literary theories and mainly wrote dramas, poems, and novels. Recaizade Mahmud Ekrem is also credited with founding a popular magazine named Servet-i Fünûn.

French painter and illustrator Ernest Meissonier, part of the Academic art movement, is best remembered for his paintings of Napoleonic battles and other historical events. Though expected to join his family dye business, he left home to become an artist. His works showcase a prominent influence of 17th-century Dutch painters.