Famous People Who Died Today

Spanish pianist Manuel de Falla, known for his musical nationalism, was one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. Born in Cádiz, Falla initially learned playing the piano from his mother, and later went to Madrid for further training. His work also took him to France and Argentina.

Hans Christian Gram was a Danish bacteriologist best remembered for developing a technique called Gram stain, which is still used today to classify bacteria. He achieved international recognition after developing the Gram stain technique. Hans Christian Gram also served as a professor at the University of Copenhagen.

Joshua Slocum was a seaman who became the first person to sail single-handedly around the world. He was also a noted writer and wrote a book about his journey, Sailing Alone Around the World; the book became an international bestseller. He disappeared in November 1909, during one of his sailing adventures. He was declared legally dead after a few years. 

Part of the Scottish royal Bruce family, Thomas Bruce, became the 7th Earl of Elgin at age 5. He later joined the army and became a Lieutenant General. A classical art lover, he later became famous for his collection of Greek marble sculptures, mainly acquired from the Parthenon in Athens.

Austrian football-player and manager Ernst Happel is counted among greatest managers of all-time. He achieved several feats as a manager including winning European Cup with Feyenoord (1970) and Hamburger SV (1983) and becoming first of the five managers who won the cup with two clubs. He won league as-well-as domestic cup titles in Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands, and West Germany.

Theodor Leschetizky was a Polish composer, pianist, and professor. A child prodigy, Leschetizky performed a Czerny piano concerto, at age 11, with Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart conducting. He had his own students at age 15 and by the time he was 18, Theodor Leschetizky had become a well-known virtuoso. He composed over a 100 characteristic piano pieces during his career.

Rudolf Kjellén was a Swedish politician, geographer, and political scientist. Apart from coining the term geopolitics, Kjellén is also credited with laying the foundations for the German Geopolitik. Rudolf Kjellén also served as a professor of political sciences and statistics at the University of Gothenburg. 

DuMont Television Network founder Allen B. DuMont is remembered for his development of the first commercial cathode-ray tube, later used as a receiver for the modern-day TV. He had first developed an interest in electronics while reading books on the subject while bedridden due to polio as a child.

Adrian Kantrowitz was an American cardiac surgeon who attempted the world’s first pediatric heart transplant.  Although his initial interest was in neurosurgery, he later switched to cardiac surgery. He also invented the intra-aortic balloon pump, an easy-to-use device which helped to save millions of lives.

Olympic gold medalist Canadian athlete Fanny Bobbie Rosenfeld earned the nickname Bobbie for the bob cut she sported. Named the Female Athlete of the First Half-Century by Canada, she also excelled in hockey, apart from track and field. Post-retirement, she worked as a sports columnist and coach.