Famous Deaths on August 21

• 672 Kōbun, 39th Emperor of Japan for seven months (672), dies at 23 or 24 (b. 648)
• 784 Alberic, Benedictine monk and Bishop of Utrecht, dies (age inknown)
• 1131 Baldwin II of Bourcq, French crusade leader, Count of Edessa and King of Jerusalem (1118-1131), dies

• 1157 King Alfonso VII of Castile (b. 1104/1105)
• 1190 Godfried III, Duke of Brabant (Grimbergse war), dies
• 1245 Alexander of Hales, English Scholastic philosopher at Paris, founder of the Franciscan theological school, dies
• 1271 Alphonse of Toulouse, son of Louis VIII of France, dies at 50
• 1516 John III of Egmont [Jan van Egmond], Stadtholder of Holland, dies at 78
• 1581 Sakuma Nobumori, Japanese retainer and samurai (b. 1527)

• 1627 Jacques Mauduit, French composer, dies at 69
• 1629 Camillo Procaccini, Italian painter/etcher, dies
• 1673 Isaac Sweers, Dutch fleet admiral, dies at 51
• 1673 John de Love I, vice-admiral, dies in sea battle at about 54
• 1689 William Cleland, Scottish poet and soldier
• 1723 Dimitrie Cantemir, Romanian historian and Monarch of Moldova (1710-11), dies at 49
• 1724 Noel Alexandre, French controversial theologian and historian, dies at 85
• 1762 Mary Wortley Montagu, English poet and writer (wrote about life in Istanbul, advocated for smallpox inoculation), dies at 73
• 1763 Charles Wyndham, 2nd Earl of Egremont, British statesman (b. 1710)
• 1772 Alessandro Felici, Italian composer, dies at 29
• 1772 Johann Andreas Joseph Giulini, German composer (Canticum Zacharia), and priest dies at 48
• 1785 Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, French sculptor (Child with Cage, Mercury Fastening his Sandals), dies at 71
• 1798 Corneille-François de Nélis, Flemish scholar and bishop of Antwerp, dies at 62
• 1812 Silverius Muller, Austrian composer, priest, and educator, dies at 67
• 1813 Sophia Magdalena of Denmark, Queen consort of Sweden, dies at 67
• 1814 Benjamin Thompson, American physicist and inventor (Royal Institution of Great Britain), dies at 61
• 1824 John Taylor, American philosopher (Jeffersonian Democracy), dies at 70
• 1824 Santiago Ferrer, Spanish composer, dies at 62
• 1836 Claude-Louis Navier, French engineer and physicist who specialized in mechanics (Navier–Stokes equations), dies at 51
• 1838 Adelbert von Chamisso, French writer (Peter Schlemihl), dies at 57
• 1856 Peter Josef von Lindpaintner, German composer, dies at 64
• 1864 John Calhoun Sanders, Confederate brigadier general, dies in battle at 24
• 1867 Juan Álvarez, Mexican revolutionary leader (President of Mexico 1855), dies at 77
• 1870 Ma Xinyi Viceroy of Liangjiang of the late Qing Dynasty in China (b. 1821)
• 1876 Harry T. Hays, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), dies at 56
• 1888 Simon Vissering, Dutch economist (Minister of Finance 1879-81), dies at 70
• 1897 Jules Bernard Luys, French neurologist, made advances in neuroanatomy and neuropsychiatry (subthalamic nucleus), dies at 69
• 1898 Niccolò van Westerhout, Italian composer, dies at 40
• 1902 Franz Sigel, German-American teacher, newspaperman, politician, and Major General (Union Army), dies at 77
• 1905 Jules Oppert, French-German Assyriologist (decodes characters), dies at 80
• 1905 Mary Mapes Dodge, American children’s author (St. Nicholas Magazine), editor and writer (Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates), dies at 74
• 1911 W. R. Wister, American cricketer (Father of American cricket, USA v Canada 1859), dies at 83

• 1921 Ernest Daudet, French journalist and writer (White Terror), dies at 84
• 1932 Frederick Corder, British composer (The Nabob’s Pickle), dies at 80
• 1935 John Hartley, English tennis player (Wimbledon 1879-80), dies at 86
• 1935 Josef Cyril Sychra, Czech composer, dies at 76
• 1937 George Wright, American Baseball HOF shortstop (NA pennant 1872-75 Boston Red Stockings; NL pennant 1877-78 Boston Red Caps, 1879 Providence Grays), dies at 90
• 1940 Ernest Thayer, American poet who wrote the famous baseball poem “Casey”, dies at 77
• 1940 Hermann Obrecht, Swiss jurist, member of the Swiss Federal Council, dies at 58

• 1940 Paul Juon, Russian-Swiss violinist and composer, dies at 68
• 1942 Kiyoano Ichiki, Japanese colonel (WWII), dies during Battle of Tenaru at 49
• 1943 (Abraham) A. Merritt, American magazine editor and sci-fi author (The Moon Pool; Burn, Witch, Burn!), dies from a heart attack at 59
• 1943 Henrik Pontoppidan, Danish writer (Peter Gelukkige, Nobel 1917), dies at 86

• 1949 Gerhard von Keussler, German composer, dies at 75
• 1951 (Leonard) Constant Lambert, British composer (The Rio Grande; Horoscope; Summer’s Last Will and Testament), and music director (Vic-Wells/Royal Ballet, 1931-47), dies of pneumonia and complications of diabetes and alcoholism at 45
• 1952 Isaac Sadeh, Polish-born leader of Jewish commando force (Palmach), dies at 62
• 1957 Harald Ulrik Sverdrup, Norwegian meteorologist and oceanographer, dies at 68
• 1957 Nels Stewart, Canadian Hockey HOF center (Stanley Cup 1925 Montreal Maroons; Hart Memorial Trophy 1926, 30), dies at 57
• 1958 Stevan Hristić, Serbian composer (Legend of Ohrid; Opeleo), conductor (Belgrade Philharmonic, 1923-34; Belgrade Opera, 1925-35), and pedagogue (Belgrade Music Academy, 1937-50), dies at 73
• 1958 Walter Schumann, American choral director (Ford Show) and film and television composer (Night Of The Hunter; Dragnet theme), dies at 44
• 1960 David Barnard Steinman, American civil engineer and bridge designer (Hudson, Triborough), dies at 74
• 1963 John Gunn, English cricket medium pace bowler (6 Tests, 18 wickets, BB 5/76; Nottinghamshire CCC), dies at 87
• 1964 J. L. Wilkinson, American Baseball HOF executive (founder All Nations Baseball club 1912 & NgL Kansas City Monarchs 1920), dies at 86

• 1968 Vladimir Boudnik, Czech sculptor, commits suicide at about 45
• 1970 Timothy Mather Spelman, American composer, dies at 79
• 1971 George Jackson, American criminal, author, and Black Guerrilla Family gang founder, shot to death during attempted San Quentin, California prison escape at 29
• 1974 Buford Pusser, American sheriff of McNairy County, Tennessee, dies in a single vehicle car crash at 36
• 1976 Ken James, New Zealand cricket wicket-keeper (11 Tests, 16 dismissals; Wellington, Northamptonshire CCC), dies at 72
• 1977 Danny Lockin, American actor and dancer (Hello Dolly), dies after being stabbed at 34
• 1977 Octave van Aerschot, Dutch actor (Scandal in Paris), dies at 87
• 1978 Charles Eames, American designer and architect, dies at 71
• 1978 Vinoo Mankad, Indian cricket all-rounder (44 Tests, 5 x 100, HS 231, 162 wickets, BB 8/52; Nawanagar, Hindus, Gujarat, Bombay, Rajasthan), dies at 61
• 1979 Giuseppe Meazza, Italian footballer, dies at 68
• 1980 Jack Cheetham, South African cricket batsman and captain (24 Tests; Western Province), dies at 60
• 1981 Eddie Byrne, British actor (Star Wars, Island of Terror), dies from a stroke at 70
• 1981 Hermann Schey, German-Dutch classical bass-baritone singer, and teacher, dies at 85
• 1982 Sobhuza II, Paramount Chief and Ngwenyama of Swaziland (1899-1982) who holds the record for the longest reign of any monarch in recorded history, dies at 83
• 1983 Benigno S Aquino Jr, Philippines opposition leader, killed at 50
• 1987 Karl Bruck, Austrian-American actor (Star Trek), dies at 81
• 1988 H. G. Adler, Czech-English writer (The Journey; Theresienstadt 1941-1945), Holocaust survivor. and poet, dies at 78
• 1988 Ray Eames, American designer and filmmaker, dies at 75
• 1989 Raul Seixas, Brazilian rock singer-songwriter (“Mosca na Sopa” – “Fly In The Soup”), dies of pancreatitis at 44
• 1991 Oswald von Nell-Breuning, German theologist and philosopher, dies at 101
• 1991 Richard Wilson, American producer, writer and actor (worked with Orson Welles), dies at 75
• 1991 Wolfgang Hildesheimer, German-Swiss architect and writer (Mozart biographer), dies at 74
• 1992 Dai Vernon [David Frederick Wingfield Verner], Canadian magician, The Professor, dies at 98
• 1992 Lucille Brown, American actress (Our Gang – “Farina”(the 1st one)), dies after illness at 74
• 1992 Theo van Tijn, Dutch Marxist social historian, dies at 65
• 1992 Theodor Berger, Austrian composer. (Sinfonia Parabolica), dies at 87
• 1993 Tatiana Troyanos, American mezzo-soprano (Octavian-Der Rosenleavalier), dies of cancer at 54
• 1994 Anita Lizana, Chilean tennis player (US Nat C’ships 1937; first Latin American major winner), dies at 78
• 1994 Danitra Vance, American comedienne (SNL, 1985), and actress (Jumpin’ At The Boneyard), dies of breast cancer at 40
• 1994 Hein Fentener van Vlissingen, Dutch eccentric millionaire, dies at 73
• 1995 Anatole Fistoulari, Ukrainian conductor, dies at 88
• 1995 Hilda Beatritz Guevara, Mexican-born daughter of Che Guevara, dies of cancer at 39
• 1995 James Truitte, American ballet dancer (Lester Horton; Alvin Ailley), dies at 72
• 1995 Ken Rickards, West Indies cricketer (104 runs at 34 66 for WI 1948-52), dies at 71
• 1995 Len Martin, Australian sports broadcaster (BBC Grandstand), dies at 76
• 1995 Manfred Donike, German cyclist and chemist drug test pioneer, dies at 61
• 1995 Nanni Loy, Italian film director (The Four Days of Naples), dies at 69
• 1995 Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, Indian physicist (Nobel Prize 1983 for work on structure and evolution of the stars), dies at 84
• 1996 Joyce Plesters, British conservation scientist, dies at 69
• 1996 Mary Two-Axe Earley, Mohawk elder and human rights advocate (fought against women’s status under the Indian Act), dies at 84 [1]
• 1997 Misael Pastrana Borrero, President of Colombia (1970-74), dies at 73
• 1997 Yuri Nikulin, Russian clown and actor, dies at 75
• 1999 Juan Carlos Zorzi, Argentinian composer, and conductor, dies of esophageal cancer at 63
• 1999 Leo Castelli, Italian-American art dealer, dies at 91
• 2000 Daniel Lisulo, Prime Minister of Zambia (1978-81), dies at 69
• 2001 Calum MacKay, Canadian NHL ice hockey player, 1947-55 (Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens), dies at 74
• 2003 Kathy Wilkes, English philosopher and aid worker (underground universities behind the Iron curtain), dies at 57
• 2003 Wesley Willis, American underground singer-songwriter, and visual artist, dies of leukemia at 40
• 2004 Arthur Hockaday, British civil servant (Defence Ministry; Director-General of Commonwealth War Graves Commission. 1982-89), dies after a fall at 78
• 2004 Isaäc Arend Diepenhorst, Dutch lawyer and Minister of Education, dies at 88
• 2005 Dahlia Ravikovitch, Israeli poet and translator, dies at 68
• 2005 David Ironside, South African cricketer (South African swing bowler in 3 Tests v NZ 1953-54), dies at 80
• 2005 Marcus Schmuck, Austrian mountaineer (b. 1925)
• 2005 Martin Dillon, American opera singer, dies of cardiac arrest at 48
• 2005 Polly Hill, British economic anthropologist (studied Cocoa-Farmers of Southern Ghana), dies at 91
• 2005 Robert Moog, American engineer (Moog synthesizer, Moog Music), dies of a brain tumor at 71
• 2006 Bismillah Khan [Qamaruddin Khan], Hindustani classical musician and shehnai (a reeded woodwind instrument) virtuoso, dies of a heart attack at 90
• 2006 Paul Fentener van Vlissingen, Dutch businessman, philanthropist, and conservationist, dies of pancreatic cancer at 65
• 2007 Caroline Aigle, French first woman fighter pilot in the French Air Force aged 25, dies of cancer at 32
• 2007 Elizabeth P. Hoisington, American Brigadier General (one of the first two women to attain the rank of brigadier general), dies at 88
• 2007 Siobhan Dowd, British-Irish writer known for “Bog Child”, dies of cancer at 47
• 2008 “Huckle” Jerry Finn, American sound engineer and record producer (Blink-182), dies of a cerebral hemorrhage and heart attack at 39
• 2008 Buddy Harman, American country music drummer (Grand Ole Opry, Elvis Presley), dies at 79
• 2009 Dean Turner, Australian rock musician (Magic Dirt), dies of cancer at 37
• 2009 Johnny Carter, American doo-wop singer (The Flamingos; The Dells), dies at 75
• 2009 Rex Shelley, Singaporean author (b. 1930)
• 2010 Conny Stuart [Cornelia van Meygard], Dutch cabaret performer, and actress, dies at 96
• 2010 Nancy Dolman, Canadian actress and comedienne (b. 1950)
• 2010 Rodolfo Enrique Fogwill, Argentinean writer (b. 1941)
• 2012 Georg Leber, German politician (SPD), dies at 91
• 2012 William Thurston, American mathematician, dies from melanoma at 65
• 2013 C. Gordon Fullerton, American USMC Colonel, and NASA astronaut (STS-3; STS-51-F), dies at 76
• 2013 Sid Bernstein, American music producer/promoter, dies at 95
• 2014 Jean Redpath, Scottish folk singer-songwriter, dies of cancer at 77
• 2014 Robert Hansen, American serial killer who killed at least 17 women in Alaska, dies in prison at 75
• 2015 Anna Kashfi [Joan O’Callaghan], Welsh actress and 1st wife of Marlon Barando, dies at 80
• 2015 Bob Hepple, South African-born academic and Nelson Mandela’s lawyer, dies at 81
• 2015 Jimmy Evert, American tennis coach (father of Chris Evert), dies at 91
• 2017 Abdur Razzak, Bangladeshi actor and director (Ki Je Kori, Chandranath), dies at 75
• 2017 Réjean Ducharme, Québécois novelist and playwright known for “L’Avalée des avalés”, dies at 76
• 2017 Thomas Meehan, American writer (Annie, The Producers, Hairspray), dies at 88
• 2018 Barbara Harris, American Tony Award-winning actress (Plaza Suite; Family Plot), dies at 83
• 2018 George Andrie, American football defensive end (Super Bowl 1971; First Team All Pro 1969; 5 x Pro Bowl; Dallas Cowboys), dies from dementia at 78
• 2018 Stefán Karl Stefánsson, Icelandic actor (Lazytown), dies of cancer at 43
• 2019 Miklós Kocsár, Hungarian choral, concert, and film score composer, and educator, dies at 85
• 2019 Norma Croker, Australian sprinter (1st Olympic Gold from Queensland), dies at 84
• 2020 Mohamed Ben Rehaiem, Tunisian soccer midfielder (35 caps; CS Sfaxien), dies at 69
• 2020 Pedro Nájera, Mexican soccer midfielder (27 caps; Club América), dies at 91
• 2021 (Isaac) Don Everly, American rock and roll singer-guitarist (The Everly Brothers – “Bye, Bye Love”; “Wake Up Little Susie”; “When WIll I Be Loved”), dies at 84
• 2021 Floyd Reese, American football administrator (GM Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans 1994-2006) and analyst (ESPN’s NFL Live, ESPN.com), dies from cancer at 73
• 2021 Nicoletta Orsomando, Italian TV presenter, dies at 92
• 2022 David Armstrong, English soccer midfielder (3 caps; Middlesbrough 359 games, Southampton 222 games), dies at 67
• 2022 Monnette Sudler, American jazz guitarist (Sounds of Liberation), dies at 70
• 2024 John Amos, American actor (Good Times; Roots; Coming to America; The West Wing), dies cof ongestive heart failure at 84 [1]
• 2024 Ken Miller, American football coach (CFL: Saskatchewan Roughriders 2008-11), dies at 82
• 2024 Nick Mileti, American sports entrepreneur & franchise owner (Cleveland: Indians, Cavaliers, Crusaders; Cleveland Arena, Coliseum at Richfield; radio station WWWE AM/1100), dies at 93
• 2024 Paquito, Spanish soccer manager (Villarreal CF, Valencia CF, Rayo Vallecano SAD) and midfielder (9 caps; Valencia 212 games), dies at 86
• 2024 William Smith, South African teacher who hosted TV program “The Learning Channel”, dies at 85 [1]

August 21 Highlights