Famous Deaths on October 31

• 1147 Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester, English politician and illegitimate son of King Henry I, dies at about 57
• 1214 Eleanor of England, Queen consort of Castile and Toledo (1170-1214), daughter of Henry II, King of England, and Eleanor of Aquitaine, dies at 53
• 1448 Johannes VIII Palaeologus, Emperor of Byzantine, dies

• 1517 Fra Bartolommeo, Italian artist, dies at 45
• 1556 John Sleidanus, German humanist and historian (Commentary), dies at 50
• 1634 Erasmus Widmann, German composer, dies at 62
• 1641 Cornelis Jol, Dutch admiral and privateer, dies at about 41
• 1654 Francisco Correa de Arauxo, Spanish organ composer, dies at about 70
• 1659 John Bradshaw, English judge (b. 1602)
• 1661 Köprülü Mehmed Pasha, Albanian born Ottoman great vizier (established Köprülü dynasty of statesmen), dies at 85 or 86
• 1664 William Frederick of Nassau-Dietz, Dutch Stadtholder of Friesland, dies as the result of an accident with a pistol at 51
• 1723 Cosimo III de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, monarch of Florence (1670-1723), dies at 81

• 1733 Eberhard Ludwig, Duke of Württemberg, dies at 57
• 1744 Leonardo Ortensio Salvatore de Leo, Italian opera composer, dies at 50
• 1765 Duke of Cumberland, English politician/uncle of George III, dies
• 1768 Francesco Maria Veracini, Italian opera composer, dies at 78
• 1786 Princess Amelia Sophia of Great Britain, second daughter of King George II of Great Britain and Caroline of Ansbach, dies at 75
• 1793 Pierre-Victurnien Vergniaud, French politician and police leader, guillotined at 40
• 1806 Sophie Mereau, German writer, dies at 36
• 1806 Utamaro Kitagawa, Japanese painter and printmaker of the ukiyo-e movement, dies at about 53
• 1815 Daniel Belknap, American composer, dies at 44
• 1834 Éleuthère Irénée du Pont, French-American chemist and industrialist (E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company), dies at 63
• 1851 Peter II, prince-bishop of Montenegro (1830-51) and poet (The Ray of The Microcosm), dies at 37
• 1860 Johannes Nathan, Dutch murderer, the last ordinary execution in the Netherlands, hanged for killing his mother-in-law
• 1860 Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, British admiral, dies at 84
• 1863 Louis Ludwig Blenker, German/US brigadier general (Union), dies at 51
• 1865 William Parson, 3rd Earl of Rosse & maker of large telescopes, dies
• 1870 Mihály Mosonyi [Michael Brand], Hungarian composer, dies at 55
• 1879 Big Snake, brother of Ponca chief Standing Bear, dies
• 1879 Jacob Abbott, American teacher and writer of children’s books (the Rollo series), dies at 75
• 1879 Joseph Hooker, American General (b. 1814)
• 1881 George Washington De Long, American Arctic Explorer whose disastrous expedition provided evidence to support the theory of trans-Arctic oceanic drift, dies during his disastrous expedition to the North Pole at 37
• 1883 Swami Dayananda Saraswati, founder of Arya Samaj
• 1884 Marie Bashkirtseff, Russian diarist and painter, dies at 25
• 1887 George Alexander Macfarren, British composer and musicologist, dies at 74
• 1895 Franz Hedrich, Austria writer, dies at about 62
• 1902 Jean-Baptist Colyns, Belgian violinist and composer, dies at 67
• 1913 William Evans-Gordon, British politician (b. 1857)

• 1917 Tibby Cotter, Australian cricket fast bowler and soldier (21 Tests, 49 wickets), dies in world’s last successful cavalry charge, 4th Light Horse Brigade at Beersheba at 33
• 1918 Egon Schiele, Austrian painter and graphic artist, dies at 28
• 1918 [Stephen] István Tisza, Hungarian PM (1903-05, 1913-17), assassinated by soldiers at 57
• 1920 Alphonse Desjardins, Canadian founder of the Caisses populaires Desjardins, dies at 65

• 1927 Elizabeth Harrison, American educator (National Congress of Parents & Teachers), dies at 78
• 1928 José Méndez, Cuban Baseball HOF pitcher (NgL World Series 1924;
  3 × NgL NL pennants; Kansas City Monarchs), dies at 43
• 1929 António José de Almeida, Portuguese politician and 6th President of Portugal (b. 1866)
• 1938 Robert Woolsey, American vaudevillian (Wheeler & Woolsey), and comic actor (The Nitwits; Hold ’em Jail; High Flyers; Rainmakers), dies of cerebral malaria and kidney failure at 50
• 1939 Otto Rank [Rosenfeld], Austria psychoanalyst (Trauma of Geburt), dies
• 1941 Herwarth Walden, German art writer and critic, dies in a Soviet prison at 63
• 1943 Max Reinhardt [Goldmann], Austrian-American theatrical and film director (Oedipus Rex; A Midsummer’s Night Dream), and founder of the Salzburg Festival, dies of a stroke at 70
• 1945 Henry Ainley, English actor (As You Like It), dies at 66
• 1945 Wincenty Witoz, Polish politician (Prime Minister of Poland 1920-21, 1923, 1926), dies at 71
• 1948 Cissy van Marxfield [Setske Beek-de Han], Dutch children’s writer, dies at 58
• 1949 Edward Stettinius Jr. 48th US Secretary of State (1944-45) and diplomat, dies at 49
• 1950 Carel T Scharten, Dutch poet and writer (Lost Paradise), dies at 72
• 1950 Jozef C Bittremieux, Belgian theologist (Virgin & Mother of God), dies at 72
• 1952 U Chit Hlaing, Burmese politician (b. 1879)
• 1955 Alban Collignon, Belgian sport journalist, dies at 74
• 1955 William Woodward Jr., American businessman and horse breeder (Hanover National Bank), is shot by his wife after being mistaken for an intruder at 35
• 1959 Jean Cabannes, French physicist who worked on optics, discovered Cabannes-Daure effect, dies at 75
• 1960 H L Davis, American writer, won a Pulitzer Prize for “Honey in the Horn”, dies at 64
• 1961 Augustus John, British painter (Moses and the Brazen Serpent, portrait of Dylan Thomas), dies at 83 [1]
• 1963 Henry Daniell, British actor (The Great Dictator, Camille, Philadelphia Story, Body Snatchers), dies at 69
• 1964 Theodore Freeman, American aeronautical engineer. US Air Force officer, and NASA astronaut, dies in a T-38 jet crash, NASA’s 1st flight related fatality, at 34
• 1965 Rita Johnson, American actress (Honolulu, All Mine to Give), dies from a brain hemorrhage at 53
• 1967 Jan Mens, Dutch writer (Honor to God Alone), dies at 70
• 1968 Malcolm Hale, American musician (Spanky and Our Gang), dies of monoxide poisoning at 27
• 1969 Hugo Pfister, Swiss classical and stage composer, dies at 55
• 1971 Gerhard von Rad, German old testament expert (Deuteronomium), dies at 70
• 1972 Bill Durnan, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1916)
• 1973 Lucha Reyes ‘Morena de Oro’, Peruvian singer (Siempre criolla), dies of a heart attack at 37 [1]
• 1975 Joseph Calleia, Maltese-American stage, screen, and radio actor (The Book; Gilda; Touch of Evil), dies at 78
• 1975 SD Burman, Indian singer and film music composer (Zindagi Zindagi), dies at 69
• 1976 Linda Watkins, American actress (From Hell it Came, Harpy), dies at 68
• 1977 Joan Tetzel, American actress (Hell Below Zero, Joy in the Morning), dies of cancer at 56

• 1984 Eduardo De Filippo, Italian playwright, director, actor and poet (7 Deadly Sins, Shoot Loud), dies at 84

• 1985 Anton Christoforidis, Greek boxer (NBA light heavyweight title 1941), dies of a heart attack at 68
• 1985 Nikos Engonopoulos, Greek surrealist painter and poet (Do Not Distract the Driver), dies of a heart attack at 78
• 1985 Poul Reichhardt, Danish actor (Soldaten og Jenny, Det gælder os alle), dies at 72
• 1986 Robert S. Mulliken, American chemist and physicist (Nobel 1966), dies at 90
• 1987 Joseph Campbell, American professor of comparative mythology (Mythic Image), dies at 83
• 1988 Alfred Pellan, French Canadian modernist painter (A Corner of Old Quebec, Blossoming), dies of leukemia at 82 [1]
• 1988 John Houseman, Romanian actor (The Paper Chase, Rollerball, The Fog), dies of spinal cancer at 86
• 1989 Conrad Beck, Swiss composer, dies at 88
• 1990 Graig Russel, Canadian travel expert/transvestite, dies
• 1990 Hugh McPhillips, dies at 70
• 1991 Bert Bertram, Australian actor (How to Steal a Million, Shamus), dies of cancer at 97
• 1991 Gene Anderson, American professional wrestler (b. 1933)
• 1991 Johan Schmitz, actor (Gysbregt van Aemstel/Soldat van Orange), dies
• 1991 Joseph Papp, American stage producer and director (Pirates of Penzance; A Chorus Line), dies of cancer at 70
• 1991 Willem Pelemans, Flemish composer, and music critic, dies at 90
• 1993 Adriaan Venema, Dutch journalist, author and art dealer (The Plough; Writers, Publishers and their Collaboration), died by suicide at 52 [1]
• 1993 Edwin A Walker, US Maj-Gen, dies of lung cancer at 84

• 1994 John Wyndham Pope-Hennessy, English art historian and director of British Museum (1974-76), dies at 80
• 1994 Jole Silvani [Niobe Quaiatti], Italian actress (La citta’ Delle), dies
• 1994 Lester Sill, American pioneer music publisher (Leiber and Stoller; Lee Hazlewood), and record label executive (Philles Records; Colpix; Colgems), dies at 76
• 1994 William John Readings, literary theorist, dies at 34
• 1995 Alan Bush, British composer pianist and teacher, dies at 94
• 1995 Derek Anthony Enright, British Labour politician, dies at 60
• 1995 Dr. Hepcat [Lavad Durst], American blues piano player and singer-songwriter, radio DJ and baseball broadcaster, dies at 82
• 1995 Henry Percy, 11th Duke of Northumberland, British peer, and godchild of Elizabeth II dies from heart failure after drug overdose at 42
• 1995 Leonard Ernest John Chant, social worker, dies at 57
• 1995 Lloyd Lambert, American bassist (Guitar Slim), dies at 67
• 1995 Lou Levy, American ‘Tin Pan Alley’ music publisher (Leeds Music Corp – Sammy Cahn, Adler & Ross, Bob Dylan), dies at 84
• 1995 Rosalind Cash, American actress (Emma-Go Tell It on the Mountain), dies of cancer at 56
• 1995 Wallace Edward Rowling, Prime Minister of NZ (1974-1975), dies at 68
• 1996 Andrew Hutchings, British trade union leader, dies at 88
• 1996 Arthur Peterson, American actor (Soap, Mission: Impossible, Crisis), dies from Alzheimer’s disease at 83
• 1996 John Gorman, printer and socialist historian, dies at 66
• 1996 Peter Doig, British Labour Party politician, dies at 85
• 1997 Wilfrid Oulton, British Royal Air Force officer, dies at 86
• 1998 Bernard J. Dwyer, American politician (Rep-D-NJ 1981-93), dies at 77
• 1998 Elmer Vasko, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1935)
• 1998 Kenneth Darling, British Army Commander-in-chief Allied Forces, dies at 89
• 1998 Vassar Miller, American poet (Wage War on Silence, Onions and Roses), dies at 74
• 1999 Greg Moore, Canadian race car driver (Forsythe Racing), dies from blunt force trauma due to racing accident at 24
• 1999 Howard Ferguson, British-Irish pianist, composer, teacher and musicologist, dies at 91
• 2000 Ring Lardner Jr., American journalist and screenwriter (Woman of the Year, M A S H), dies at 75
• 2000 Watanabe Kazuki Japanese progressive rock guitarist and songwriter (Raphael), dies of an accidental sedative overdose at 19
• 2001 Art Wall Jr, American golfer (Masters 1959), dies of respiratory failure at 77
• 2001 Régine Cavagnoud, French skier (b. 1970)
• 2001 Solange Chaput-Rolland, French politician, senator, journalist and author (Disunited Country), dies at 82 [1]
• 2002 Lionel Poilâne, French baker and entrepreneur, dies at 57
• 2002 Michail Stasinopoulos, Greek lawyer, educator, writer, and politician (President of Greece, 1974-75), dies at 99
• 2002 Raf Vallone, Italian actor (A View From the Bridge), dies at 86
• 2003 Gordon Weir, New Zealand cricket batsman (11 Tests, 3 x 50; Auckland CA), dies at 93
• 2003 Richard Neustadt, American political historian (b. 1919)
• 2003 Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, Indian Carnatic vocalist, dies at 95
• 2005 Hal Anger, American biophysicist and electrical engineer who invented the gamma camera, dies at 85
• 2005 John “Beatz” Holohan, American drummer (Bayside), dies in an auto accident at 31
• 2005 Mary Wimbush, British actress (Oh! What a Lovely War, The Archers), dies at 81

• 2007 Edgar Ngoyi, South African anti-apartheid activist and ANC leader who spent 17 years in Robben Island Prison, dies at 81
• 2007 Ray Gravell, Welsh rugby union footballer (Wales and the British Lions), dies of a heart attack at 56
• 2008 Studs Terkel, American writer, historian and radio host (Stud’s Place, Working), dies at 96
• 2009 Qian Xuesen, Chinese scientist who worked on the Manhattan Project and who pioneered engineering cybernetics, dies at 97
• 2009 Ron Gowans, Australian jazz saxophonist, dies of cancer at 83
• 2009 Tom Wheatcroft, English businessman and car collector (Donington Grand Prix Collection), dies at 87
• 2010 Maurice Lucas, American basketball player, dies at 58
• 2010 Theodore Sorenson, American presidential advisor to JFK and author (Kennedy), dies at 82
• 2011 Flórián Albert, Hungarian footballer (European Footballer of the Year 1967), dies at 70
• 2011 Liz Anderson, American country music singer-songwriter (Mama Spank, The Game of Triangles), dies of heart and lung disease at 81
• 2011 Manfred Mayrhofer, Austrian Indo-European philologist (Indo-Iranian languages), dies at 85
• 2012 Brian Cobby, British actor (Evita, The Nudist Story) and the first male voice of the British speaking clock, dies from health complications at 83
• 2012 Konstantin Vyrupayev, Soviet wrestler (Greco-Roman Bantamweight Olympic Gold 1956), dies at 82
• 2014 Henry Harris, British cell biologist (identified genes capable of suppressing cancers), dies at 89 [1]
• 2014 Käbi Laretei, Estonian-Swedish concert pianist, dies at 92
• 2015 Gregg Palmer [Palmer Edvind Lee], American actor (Scream, To Hell & Back), dies at 88
• 2015 Gus Savage, American politician (Rep-D-IL, 1981- 93), dies at 90
• 2016 James Galanos, American fashion designer (Coty Hall of Fame 1959), dies at 92
• 2016 Natalie Babbitt, American children’s writer (Tuck Everlasting), dies of lung cancer at 84
• 2016 Tammy Grimes, American Tony Award-winning actress and singer (The Unsinkable Molly Brown), dies at 82
• 2018 Lord Skelmersdale [Roger Bootle-Wilbraham], British politician and horticulturalist who created Britain’s first toad tunnel, dies of a stroke at 73

• 2019 (Elizabeth) Ann Crumb, American stage and screen actress and singer, dies of ovarian cancer at 69
• 2020 Marius Žaliūkas, Lithuanian soccer centre back (25 caps; Hearts, Leeds, Rangers), dies from motor neurone disease at 36
• 2020 MF Doom [Daniel Dumile], American rapper and hip hop artist, dies at 49 [1]
• 2020 Rance Allen, American gospel singer and musician (Rance Allen Group – Miracle Worker), dies at 71

• 2021 Dorothy Manley, British 100m sprinter (Olympic silver, 1948), dies at 94
• 2021 Joan Carlyle, Welsh operatic soprano (Covent Garden, 1955-76), dies at 90
• 2021 Peter Philpott, Australian cricket spin bowler (8 Tests, 26 wickets, best 5/90; NSW CA), dies due to complications from a fall at 86
• 2022 Alan “Froggy” Thomson, Australian cricket fast bowler (4 Tests, 12 wickets; Victoria CA), dies at 76
• 2022 John McVay, American football coach (NY Giants 1976-78) and executive (AD Uni of Dayton 1972, 73; GM SF 49ers 1998-99), dies at 91
• 2023 Donald Longmore, British cardiac surgeon (part of first UK heart transplant team), dies at 95
• 2023 José Luis Dolgetta, Venezuelan soccer forward (20 caps; Carabobo FC), dies of a heart attack at 53
• 2023 Ken Mattingly, American USN naval officer, and NASA astronaut (Apollo 16; STS-4, -51-C), dies at 87 [1]
• 2023 Oleg Protopopov, Russian figure skater (Olympic gold USSR pairs 1964, 68; World C’ship gold pairs 1965, 66, 67, 68 [Ludmila Belousova]), dies at 91
• 2023 Ronnie Rees, Welsh soccer winger (39 caps; Coventry City, WBA, Nottingham Forest), dies at 79

October 31 Highlights