Famous Deaths on August 31

• 651 Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne, Irish bishop and missionary
• 799 Musa al-Kazim, Shia Imam, dies of mysterious causes while a political prisoner in Baghdad at 53 [exact date approximate, sources differ]
• 1056 Theodora Porphyrogenita, Byzantine Empress (1042-56) and sole ruler from January 11, 1055, dies at about 76

• 1057 Leofric, count of Mercia, husband of Lady Godiva, dies
• 1158 Sancho III, King of Castile, dies
• 1218 Al-Malik ab-Adil/Saphadin/Saif al-Din), brother of Saladin, dies
• 1234 Go-Horikawa, 86th Emperor of Japan (1221-32), dies at 22
• 1372 Ralph Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford, English noble and soldier (Hundred Years’ War), dies at 70

• 1590 Floris Thin, Dutch politician and land advocate of Utrecht, dies
• 1604 Giovanale Ancina, Italian priest and composer, dies of purported poisoning at 58
• 1616 Gemignano Capilupi, Italian choral music composer, dies at 43
• 1631 Nicolaus Erich, German composer, dies at 43
• 1638 John Ward, British madrigal and religious music composer, dies at 67
• 1645 Francesco Bracciolini, Italian poet (b. 1566)
• 1654 Ole Worm, Danish physician, dies at 66
• 1667 Johann von Rist, German composer and poet known for his hymns, dies at 60

• 1730 Gottfried Finger, Moravian violist and Baroque composer dies at about 65 [born c. 1655-56]
• 1741 Johann Gottlieb Heineccius, German jurist, dies at 59
• 1762 Momozono [Tōhito], 116th Emperor of Japan (1747-62), dies at 21
• 1772 William Borlase, British naturalist and antiquary (The Antiquities of Cornwall, The Natural History of Cornwall), dies at 77 [1]
• 1795 François-André Danican Philidor, French composer and chess champion, dies at 68
• 1796 John McKinly, American physician. politician and 1st President of Delaware (1777), dies at 75
• 1799 Nicolas-Henri Jardin, French architect who introduced Neoclassical architecture to Denmark, dies at 79
• 1805 Joseph Abaco, Italian composer, dies at 95

• 1818 Arthur St. Clair, American soldier and politician (President of the Continental Congress, 1787), dies at 81
• 1832 Jean Nicolas Auguste Kreutzer, French violinist and composer, dies at 53
• 1862 George William Taylor, US Union brigadier general, dies from injuries suffered in Battle of Manassas Station at 53
• 1862 Ignaz Assmayer, Austrian organist and liturgical composer, dies at 72
• 1864 Ferdinand Lassalle, French socialist and political activist (Allgemeiner), dies at 39
• 1867 Charles-Pierre Baudelaire, French poet and translator (Les Fleurs du mal), dies at 46
• 1869 Mary Ward, Irish scientist, first automobile accident victim (b. 1827)
• 1873 Charles Ferdinand Pahud, Governor General of the Dutch East Indies (1856-61), dies at 70
• 1875 Oskar Peschel, German geographer (classified men into seven races in his book “The Races of Man: and their geographical distribution”), dies at 49
• 1879 William Barber, 6th US chief engraver (1844-79), dies

• 1902 Mathilde Wesendonck (née Luckemeyer), German writer, poet (Tagebuchblatter), and object of composer Richard Wagner’s infatuation, dies at 73
• 1910 Emīls Dārziņš, Latvian composer (Melanholiskais valsis – Melancholic waltz), and music critic, dies when struck by a train at 34
• 1918 Joe English, Irish-Flemish draftsman, painter, and soldier (designed WWI gravestones), dies of appendicitis at 36
• 1920 Wilhelm Wundt, German physiologist, psychologist and philosopher, dies at 88
• 1923 Gerrit Kalff, Dutch professor (history of Dutch writers), dies at 67
• 1924 Todor Aleksandrov, Bulgarian revolutionary, army officer, Macedonian freedom fighter, and teacher, assassinated at 43
• 1931 Marcel Planiol, French law scholar, dies at 77
• 1932 Moyshe Leyb Halpern, Galican-American Yiddish poet, dies of a heart attack at 46
• 1935 Abraham Isaac Kook, rabbi/author (Hokhmat Ha-kodesh), dies at 69
• 1940 George Gauthier, French Canadian Roman Catholic Bishop of Montreal and rector of the Université de Montréal, dies at 68
• 1940 Johanna “Annie” Bakker, Dutch revue-artist, singer and actress, dies at 58
• 1941 Marina Tsvetaeva, Russian poet (The Train of Life), committed suicide at 48
• 1942 Georg Von Bismarck, German major general, (Africa Corps), dies in Battle of Alam el Halfa at 51
• 1946 Harley Granville-Barker, English dramatist, producer (The Voysey Inheritance) and critic, dies at 68
• 1946 Paul August von Klenau, Danish opera composer, and conductor, dies at 63
• 1948 Andrei Zjdanov, Russian politician (against kosmopolitism), dies at 52
• 1948 Billy Laughlin, American child actor (Froggy- Our Gang), dies in a car accident at 16
• 1949 André-Louis Debierne, French chemist and physicist (discoverer of element actinium, worked with Marie Curie), dies at 75
• 1949 Paul Höffer, German composer (Olympic Arts gold, 1936), dies at 53
• 1952 Henri Bourassa, French Canadian politician and publisher who opposed conscription, dies at 83
• 1959 Charles Delaney, American actor (Air Police, Lonesome Trail), dies at 67
• 1963 Georges Braque, French cubist painter and sculptor (My bicycle) who helped develop Cubism with Pablo Picasso, dies at 81
• 1966 Kasimir Edschmid, German writer, dies at 75
• 1967 Ilya Ehrenburg, Russian Soviet war correspondent, writer (The Fall of Paris; The Thaw; People, Years, Life), editor, and poet, dies of prostate and bladder cancer at 76
• 1967 Michael Fitzmaurice, American radio actor (Superman, Reported Missing, 14 Hours), dies of lymphoma at 59
• 1968 Dennis O’Keefe, American actor (Suspicion), dies of lung cancer at 60
• 1968 George Peabody Gooch, English historian and politician, dies at 94
• 1969 Ottmar Gerster, German composer (rector of the Liszt Music Academy in Weimar), dies at 72

• 1973 Raymond Keane, American actor (Midnight Sun, Love Eagle), dies at 66
• 1973 Stan Worthington, English cricket all-rounder (9 Tests, 1 x 100, HS 128, 8 wickets, BB 2/19; Derbyshire CCC, Northumberland CCC), dies at 68
• 1974 Gianna Manzini, Italian writer (Ritratto in piedi), dies at 78
• 1974 Norman Kirk, New Zealand politician (Prime Minister of New Zealand 1971-74), dies of a pulmonary embolism at 51
• 1974 William Pershing Benedict, American World War II fighter pilot in both the RCAF and U.S. Army Air Forces, killed in a plane crash while firefighting in California at 56
• 1975 Pierre Blaise, French actor (Lacombe Lucien), dies at 24
• 1976 Kornelis Heiko Miskotte, Dutch theologist (If the Gods Keep Silent), dies at 81
• 1978 John Wrathall, President of Rhodesia (b. 1913)
• 1979 E J “Tiger” Smith, English cricket wicket-keeper (11 Tests, 20 dismissals; Warwickshire CCC) and umpire (8 Tests 1933-38), dies at 93
• 1979 Sally Rand, American burlesque dancer, vedette and actress known for her ostrich feather fan and balloon bubble dances, dies at 75
• 1981 Joseph H. Hirschhorn, American financier and art collector (Joseph H. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden), dies at 82
• 1985 Frank Macfarlane Burnet, Australian virologist (Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for tissue grafting), dies at 85
• 1986 Goffredo Parise, Italian writer (Il padrone), dies at 56
• 1986 Henry Moore, English artist and sculptor (known for Three Piece Sculpture: Vertebrae), dies at 88
• 1986 Urho Kekkonen, Finnish politician (8th President of Finland 1956-81), dies at 85
• 1990 Johnny Lindsay, South African cricket wicketkeeper (3 Tests, 5 dismissals; North Eastern Transvaal), dies at 81
• 1990 Nathaniel Clifton “Sweetwater”, American NBA player (NY Knicks), dies of a heart attack at 65
• 1991 Gerry Davis, British screenwriter known for co-creating the Cybermen in “Dr Who”, dies at 61
• 1991 Leigh Watson, American aviation pioneer and air force general, dies at 93

• 1994 Artur Balsam, Polish-American pianist, dies at 88
• 1994 Barbara Avedon, American scriptwriter (Bewitched), dies at 69
• 1994 Norman “Doc” Jones, American jazz bass player (Jo Jo Parnell Trio), dies at 68
• 1995 Beant Singh, Prime Minister of Punjab province of India, assassinated at 73
• 1995 David Farrar, English actor (Beat Girl, I Accuse, Watusi), dies at 87
• 1995 David Holloway, British literary editor of The Daily Telegraph (1968-88) and Booker of Bookers Prize judge (1994), dies at 71 [1] [2]
• 1995 Horst Janssen, German graphic artist and printmaker, dies at 65
• 1995 John Erik Jonsson, American businessman and Mayor of Dallas, dies at 93
• 1996 David Pollock, 2nd Viscount Hanworth, British barrister, engineer, and member of the House of Lords, dies at 80
• 1996 Harald Penrose, British test pilot, dies at 92
• 1996 Milt Larkin, American jazz trumpeter and bandleader, dies at 85

• 1997 Dodi Fayed, Egyptian businessman, died in a car crash in Paris with Diana, Princess of Wales,at 42
• 1999 Marguerite Chapman, American actress (The Seven Year Itch, Spy Smasher, Flight to Mars), dies at 81
• 2000 Patricia Owens, Canadian-American actress (The Fly), dies at 75
• 2002 George Porter, British chemist (Nobel Prize, 1967), dies at 81
• 2002 Lionel Hampton, American Jazz vibraphone player, pianist, drummer, and actor, dies from congestive heart failure at 94
• 2003 Jaap Geraedts, Dutch composer, dies at 79
• 2004 Carl Wayne [Colin Tooley], British rock singer (The Move), and actor, dies of esophageal cancer at 61
• 2005 John Donaldson, Baron Donaldson of Lymington, British judge, Master of the Rolls (1982-92), dies at 84
• 2005 Joseph Rotblat, Polish-British physicist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (for work to end the nuclear arms race), dies at 96
• 2005 Michael Sheard, Scottish actor (Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back; Grange Hill), dies of cancer at 67
• 2006 Derrick Wayne Frazier, American convicted murderer, executed in Texas at 29
• 2006 Mohamed Abdelwahab, Egyptian soccer left back (19 caps; African Cup of Nations 2006; Al Ahly SC, Aluminium Nag Hammâdi), dies from a heart defect at 22
• 2006 Tom Delaney, British racing driver (oldest licensed racing driver in the world), dies at 95
• 2007 Gay Brewer, American golfer (US Masters 1967), dies of lung cancer at 75
• 2007 Karloff Lagarde, Mexican professional wrestler, dies at 79
• 2007 Willie Cunningham, Irish soccer defender (30 caps Northern Ireland; St Mirren, Leicester City, Dunfermline) and manager (Dunfermline, Falkirk, St Mirren), dies at 77
• 2008 Ike Pappas, American news correspondent (CBS), dies at 75
• 2008 Jerry Reed, American country music singer (“When You’re Hot, You’re Hot”) and actor (Bat 21; Smokey and the Bandit), dies of complications from emphysema at 71
• 2009 Eraño Manalo, Filipino religious figure (b. 1925)
• 2009 Maria de Lourdes Martins, Portuguese pianist and composer, dies at 83
• 2010 Laurent Fignon, French road cyclist (Tour de France 1983, 84; Giro d’Italia 1989; FICP World #1 1989), dies of cancer at 50
• 2011 Peter Twiss, British test pilot (breaking the World Air Speed Record and being the first person to exceed 1,000 mph in flight), dies at 90
• 2011 Valery Rozhdestvensky, Soviet cosmonaut (Soyuz 23), dies at 72
• 2012 Max Bygraves [Walter William Bygraves], British actor (Charley Moon, Spare the Rod, Tom Brown’s School Days), dies from Alzheimer’s disease at 89
• 2012 Sergey Sokolov, Russian-Soviet marshal and Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union (1984-87), dies at 101

• 2015 Colin Hope, British Industrialist (Turner and Newall), dies at 83
• 2016 Jacques Leduc, Belgian composer, dies at 84
• 2017 Ann Jellicoe, British theater director and playwright (Knack), dies at 90
• 2017 Edward du Cann, British politician and Chairman of the Conservative Party (1965-67), dies at 93
• 2017 Richard Anderson, American actor (Oscar Goldman- The 6 Million Dollar Man, The Bionic Woman television series), dies at 91
• 2018 Gloria Jean [Schoonover], American actress (Never Give a Sucker an Even Break), and singer, dies at 92
• 2019 Leslie H. Gelb, American journalist and diplomat who helped compile the Pentagon Papers, dies of renal failure at 82
• 2019 Wim Statius Muller, Curaçaoa conductor, pianist, and composer, dies at 89
• 2020 Nina Bocharova, Ukrainian gymnast (Olympic gold USSR balance beam, team 1952), dies at 95
• 2020 Pranab Mukherjee, Indian politician, 13th President of India (2012-17), dies at 84

• 2021 Francesco Morini, Italian soccer defender (11 caps; Sampdoria, Juventus), dies at 77
• 2021 Michael Constantine [Ioannides], American actor (Room 222 – “Mr. Kaufman”; Don’t Drink The Water; My Big Fat Greek Wedding), dies at 94
• 2021 Sister Bernard Ncube (née Neikie Zellie Ncube), South African religious sister, anti-apartheid activist, and politician (Member of National Assembly, 1994-2002), dies at 77
• 2022 Bill Turnbull, British television and radio presenter and journalist (Radio Clyde; BBC), dies of prostate cancer at 66
• 2022 Lee Thomas, American baseball utility (MLB All Star 1962, 62²; LA Angels, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs) and executive (GM Philadelphia Phillies 1988-93), dies at 86
• 2023 Anatoly Sass, Russian rower (Olympic gold USSR double sculls 1968), dies at 87
• 2023 Bill Pinkney, American National Sailing HOF yachtsman (first African American to sail around the world solo via Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn), dies at 87
• 2023 Curtis Fowlkes, American jazz and session trombonist, singer, and band leader (The Jazz Passengers; Lounge Lizards), dies at 73
• 2023 Gayle Hunnicutt, American-British actress (Marlowe; Legend of Hell House; Dallas), dies at 80
• 2023 Gil Brandt, American Pro Football HOF executive (vice president player personnel Dallas Cowboys 1960-88; Super Bowl VI, XII), dies at 91
• 2023 John Quenby, British motorsport executive (CEO RAC Motor Sports Association 1990-2001), dies at 81
• 2024 Sol Bamba, Ivorian soccer centre-back (46 caps; Hibernian, Leicester City, Leeds United, Cardiff City), dies from cancer at 39

August 31 Highlights