Famous People Who Died Today

The former professional basketball player, Kobe Bryant, was drafted into NBA immediately after his school and went on to become one of the most successful basketball players of his generation. During his career of two decades, the Los Angeles Lakers player created numerous new records. He authored a book and one of his poems even inspired an animated short film.

Abe Vigoda was an American actor, best known for playing Salvatore Tessio in the 1972 crime film The Godfather. He also played important roles in TV series, such as Barney Miller. Apart from acting, Abe Vigoda also enjoyed playing handball, which he played often in his youth.

Barbara Hale was an American actress best remembered for playing Della Street in the popular legal drama TV series, Perry Mason, for which she received an Emmy Award in 1959. In 2001, Hale was honored with a Golden Boot Award for her contributions to Western cinema.

José Ferrer was a Puerto Rican actor and director who established himself in the American theatre and film industry. He received an Academy Award for his performance in Cyrano de Bergerac, becoming the first Hispanic actor and the first Puerto Rican-born actor to win the award. In 1985, he became the first actor to receive the National Medal of Arts.

Edward G. Robinson was an American actor who achieved popularity during the Hollywood's Golden Age. The quintessential tough guy of classical Hollywood cinema, Robinson has been featured in AFI's 25 greatest male stars of Hollywood list. Edward G. Robinson was posthumously awarded an Academy Honorary Award for his contribution to the film industry.

Bear Bryant was an American football player who represented the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama. Bryant is remembered for his illustrious career as a coach. He served as the head coach of the Crimson Tide for 25 years, during which he helped his team win six national championships. He is regarded as the greatest college football coach ever.

Edward Jenner was an English scientist and physician. Referred to as the father of immunology, Jenner is credited with pioneering the concept of vaccines. Jenner's work laid the foundation for subsequent discoveries in the field of immunology; his work is believed to have saved more lives than any other work. In 2002, Jenner was included in BBC’s Greatest Britons list.

Alva Belmont was an American socialite who played a major role in the women's suffrage movement in the United States of America. Remembered for her intelligence, energy, and strong opinions, Belmont is credited with founding the Political Equality League which aimed at promoting suffrage-supporting politicians. Alva Belmont is also credited with co-founding the National Woman's Party in 1916.

Charles George Gordon was a British administrator and Army officer. He is best remembered for his work as the commander of the Ever Victorious Army in China, which played a key role in suppressing the Taiping Rebellion. The force, under Gordon's command, was also able to defeat much larger forces, earning him the nickname Chinese Gordon.

A. E. van Vogt was a Canadian author whose bizarre narrative style had a major impact on many future science fiction writers like Philip K. Dick. One of the most influential and popular science fiction writers of the mid-twentieth century, van Vogt was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1996.

American opera singer Grace Moore, also known as the Tennessee Nightingale, initially sang in New York nightclubs and then moved on to Broadway. She is remembered for her Academy Award-nominated role in the romantic musical One Night of Love. She died in a plane crash in Copenhagen after a performance.

Mamoru Shigemitsu had been the foreign minister and the deputy prime minister of Japan and an ambassador to several countries. He ratified Japan’s surrender to the Allies after World War II, following which he was convicted of war crimes. Hereceived a 7-year sentence but was paroled after 4 years.

Michel Legrand was a French musician, conductor, composer, arranger, and jazz pianist. A prolific composer, Legrand wrote more than 200 television and film scores, apart from several songs. Over the course of his illustrious career, which spanned more than seven decades, Michel Legrand won several prestigious awards including three Academy Awards, five Grammy Awards, and a Golden Globe Award.

Russian geneticist Nikolai Vavilov not just taught at the University of Saratov but also served as the director of the Bureau of Applied Botany in Petrograd. He made expeditions worldwide, but invited criticism from Soviet agronomist T.D. Lysenko, who was close to Stalin. Vavilov was eventually imprisoned and died in captivity.

Julia Margaret Cameron was a British photographer best remembered for her close-up portraits of popular Victorian men. Widely regarded as one of the 19th century's most important portraitists, Cameron is credited with capturing the beauty and innocence of children, women, and men. Julia Margaret Cameron is also credited with popularizing the close-ups in photography.

Lewis Mumford was an American sociologist, historian, literary critic, and philosopher of technology. He made significant contributions to American literary and cultural history, social philosophy, and the history of technology. His works also influenced a number of thinkers and authors like Jacques Ellul and Amory Lovins. Lewis Mumford also had a strong influence on American cellular biologist Barry Commoner.

While German mathematician Felix Hausdorff initially wished to become a musician, parental pressure led him to choose math. Considered one of the pioneers of modern topology, he made major contributions to set theory and functional analysis. He died of suicide, along with his wife and sister-in-law, instead of moving to a Nazi camp.

A man whom Time named the Boy Wonder of American Business when he became the president of Pepsodent at 30, Charles Luckman later also led Lever Brothers and Pereira & Luckman. He co-designed projects such as the CBS Television City and gained fame for building the Lever House in Midtown Manhattan.

One of Mexico’s finest poets from the 20th century, José Emilio Pacheco was a Cervantes Prize winner. Initially an editor for publications such as La Cultura en Mexico, he later taught literature at the University of Essex. He had also translated the works of literary icons such as Samuel Beckett and Albert Einstein.

Reba Z. Whittle was an American nurse who served in the US Army Nurse Corps during the Second World War. In 1944, she was part of the European Theater when her aircraft was shot down. She was injured during the crash and was honored with the Purple Heart in 1945. Reba Z. Whittle was also honored with the Air Medal.

Peter Marshall was a Scottish-American preacher who served as the pastor of the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. His life and career inspired a biography titled A Man Called Peter. Written by his widow, the book achieved popularity and was later made into a film of the same name. 

English astrophysicist Geoffrey Burbidge is remembered for his pioneering work on the elements in stars and was one of the authors of the B2FH paper. Initially aspiring to study history, he switched to physics later. A Fellow of The Royal Society, he also won many awards with his wife, fellow astrophysicist Margaret Burbidge.