Famous Deaths on October 7

• 290 [Christian] Sergius, Roman soldier and martyred saint, decapitated
• 336 Pope Saint Mark, bishop of Rome (336), dies of natural causes
• 858 Montoku, 55th Emperor of Japan (850-8), dies at 32

• 929 Charles III, “The Simple”, King of West Francia (893-923), granted Vikings the Duchy of Normandy, dies dethroned and in prison at 50
• 1242 Juntoku, 84th Emperor of Japan (1210-21) during the Kamakura period, dies in exile at 44
• 1368 Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, son of Edward III of England, dies at 29
• 1488 Andrea del Verrochio, sculptor/painter/goldsmith, dies at about 52
• 1553 Cristóbal de Morales, Spanish composer, dies at about 53
• 1555 Louis of Praet, Habsburg diplomat (b. 1488)
• 1571 Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg, Queen of Denmark and Norway, dies at 60
• 1571 Müezzinzade Ali Pasha, Turkish fleet commander, dies in the Battle of Lepanto
• 1577 George Gascoigne, English poet
• 1612 Giovanni Battista Guarini, Italian writer (Faithfull Shepherd), dies at 73
• 1612 Menso Alting, Dutch reformed vicar and theologist, dies at 70
• 1620 Stanisław Żółkiewski, Polish military leader (b. 1547)
• 1637 Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy (1630-37), dies at 50

• 1639 Johannes Isacius Pontanus, Dutch teacher and historian (1st history of Amsterdam), dies at 68
• 1651 Jacques Sirmond, French scholar and Jesuit, dies at 92
• 1653 Fausto Poli, Italian Catholic priest (b. 1581)
• 1660 Paul Scarron, French writer (Virgile Travesti), dies at 50
• 1681 Nicolaas Heinsius, Dutch philological, classical scholar and diplomat, dies at 61
• 1708 Guru Gobind Singh, Tenth Guru of Sikhism, founder and General of Khalsa Army, social reformist and poet, dies following an assassination attempt at 41
• 1766 André Chéron, French composer, organist, and harpsichordist, dies at 71
• 1772 John Woolman, American Quaker preacher and abolitionist, dies of smallpox at 51
• 1777 Simon Fraser, English general (fought during American War of Independence), dies during the Battle of Bemis Heights at 48
• 1780 Patrick Ferguson, Scottish army officer and rifle inventor (Ferguson flintlock rifle), dies in battle at 36
• 1787 Henry Muhlenberg, German-born founder of the U.S. Lutheran Church, dies at 76

• 1793 Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire, British politician, dies at 75
• 1795 Johann Georg von Zimmermann, Swiss philosophical author and physician, dies at 66
• 1796 Thomas Reid, Scottish philosopher and founder of Scottish School of Common Sense, dies at 86
• 1800 Gabriel, slave revolt leader (Virginia), hanged
• 1811 August van Heeckeren, Lord of Suideras, Dutch Orangist and politician (Burgemeester of Zutphen, 1781-92), dies at 68
• 1847 Alexandre Brongniart, French geologist and mineralogist (arranged geologic formations of the Tertiary Period), dies at 77

• 1864 Alexander Gardiner, US Union brigadier general, dies in battle
• 1864 John Gregg, American judge/Confederate brigadier general, dies in battle at 36
• 1876 Georg Heinrich Pertz, German historian, dies at 81
• 1887 George James Webb, English-American composer, dies at 84
• 1890 John Hill Hewitt, American songwriter (A Minstrel’s Return from the War), dies at 89
• 1894 Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., American physician and author (Old Ironsides), dies at 85
• 1903 Rudolf Lipschitz, German mathematician known for his work on the Lipschitz condition, dies at 71
• 1906 Honoré Beaugrand, French Canadian journalist, newspaper publisher (La Patrie), and politician (Mayor of Montreal, 1885-87), dies at 58
• 1911 John Hughlings Jackson, English neurologist and epilepsy researcher, dies at 76
• 1915 Samuel Prowse Warren, Canadian composer and organist, dies at 74
• 1918 Hubert Parry, English musicologist and composer (Jerusalem), dies at 70

• 1922 Marie Lloyd [Mathilda Wood], English music-hall performer (“Oh Mr Porter What Shall I Do”), dies of heart and kidney failure at 52
• 1924 Clemens Baeumker, German historian (Patristischen Philosophie), dies at 71

• 1925 Hubert Main, American hymn composer, dies at 86

• 1931 Charles Ricketts, British artist and illustrator, dies at 65
• 1931 Daniel Chester French, American sculptor (Minute Man), dies at 81
• 1939 Harvey Cushing, American neurosurgeon (blood pressure studies), dies at 70
• 1943 Eugeniusz Bodo [Bohdan Eugène Junod], Polish film director, producer and comedic actor, dies in the Gulag at 43
• 1943 Marguerite “John” Radclyffe-Hall, English poet and author (The Well of Loneliness), dies of cancer at 63
• 1944 Helmut Lent, German night-fighter ace in World War II, dies at 26

• 1951 Anton Philips, Co-Founder of Royal Philips Electronics N.V., dies at 77

• 1959 Mario Lanza [Alfredo Arnold Cocozza], Italian-American actor and singer (Great Caruso, Toast of New Orleans), dies of a heart attack at 38
• 1962 Maurits Dekker, Dutch novelist and playwright (Merkteken; Boots In Jail), dies at 66
• 1963 Grace Darmond, silent screen actress (Below the Surface), dies at 69
• 1963 Gustaf Gründgens, German actor and director (M, Faust, A Glass of Water), dies from an internal hemorrhage at 63
• 1964 Eugen Varga, Hungarian-Russian economist and politician, dies at 84
• 1966 Johnny Kidd [Frederick Heath], British rock singer-songwriter (Johnny Kidd & Pirates – “Shakin’ All Over”), dies in a car crash at 30
• 1966 Smiley Lewis [Overton Amos Lemons], American R&B singer, and guitarist (“The Bells Are Ringing”; “One Night (Of Sin)”; “I Hear You Knocking”), dies of stomach cancer at 46
• 1967 Norman Angell, British lecturer, journalist, author (The Great Illusion), politician and 1933 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, dies at 94
• 1969 Léon Scieur, Belgian cyclist and winner of Tour de France (1921), dies at 81 [1]
• 1973 Habib Rajab, South African trader and collector of oriental art who fought against a takeover of the Grey Street complex by White traders, dies at 58
• 1976 Nikolai Lopatnikoff, Estonian-American composer (Variazioni Concertanti), dies at 73
• 1980 Jan Cox, Belgian-American Expressionist painter, dies at 61
• 1981 Albert Cohen, Greek-born Swiss novelist (Belle du Seigneur), dies at 86
• 1981 Wouter Paap, Dutch composer, dies at 73
• 1982 Salvador Araneta, Filipino lawyer, educator, businessman, and philanthropist, dies at 80
• 1984 Hermann Schroeder, German composer, dies at 80
• 1985 Cemal Reşit Rey, Turkish composer, dies at 81
• 1986 Cheryl Crawford, American actress and producer (Touch of Venus, Brigadoon), dies at 84
• 1988 Billy Daniels, African-American jazz singer (“That Old Black Magic”) and television pioneer (The Billy Daniels Show), dies of cancer at 73
• 1990 Cat Thompson, American Basketball HOF forward (All-American 1927–30 Montana State Uni), dies at 84
• 1990 J Teengs Gerritsen, resistance fighter, dies
• 1990 Juan Jose Arevalo, President of Guatemala (1945-51), dies

• 1992 Allan Bloom, American philosopher and author (Closing of the American Mind), dies at 62
• 1992 Ed Blackwell, American jazz drummer (Ornette Colman Quartet), dies at 62
• 1992 Tevfik Esenç, Turkish farmer and last known speaker of the Ubykh language, dies at 88
• 1993 Agnes de Mille, American Tony and Emmy Award-winning dancer and choreographer (Rodeo; Oklahoma!), dies at 88
• 1993 Andrey Nikolayevich Tychonoff, Russian mathematician, dies at 86
• 1993 Cyril Cusack, South African actor (The Day of the Jackal; Fahrenheit 451), dies of neuron disease at 82
• 1993 Kenneth Nelson, American actor (Henry Aldrich-Aldrich Family), dies at 63
• 1994 James Hill, director, dies at 75
• 1994 Niels Kaj Jerne, Danish immunologist (Nobel prize 1984), dies at 82
• 1994 Paul Swift, American actor (Egg Man in Pink Flamingo), dies of AIDS at 60
• 1995 Ariston Muguranayanga Chambati, Zimbabwean politician and businessman, Minister of Finance (1995), dies of meningitis at 59
• 1995 Gérard de Vaucouleurs, French astronomer, dies at 77
• 1995 Louis Meyer, Indie 500 racer (3 wins), dies at 91
• 1996 Charles Wegg Solicitor-Prosser, dies at 86
• 1997 Friedrich Zipp, German composer (Kirchensuite), organist, and pedagouge, dies at 83
• 1998 Arnold Jacobs, American symphonic tuba player (Chicago Symphony, 1944-83), and pedagogue, dies at 83
• 1999 David A. Huffman, American computer scientist, creator of Huffman coding, dies at 74
• 1999 Deryck Guyler, British actor (Please Sir!; Sykes), dies at 85
• 1999 Rev. Bruce Ritter, American Catholic priest and controversial founder of charity New York City based Covenant House, dies of cancer at 72
• 2001 Alf Gover, English cricket fast bowler (4 Tests; Surrey CCC) and coach (Frank Tyson, Viv Richards, Andy Roberts, Ian Bishop; Surrey), dies at 93
• 2001 Chris Adams, British judoka and professional wrestler credited with revitalizing the superkick, killed at 46
• 2001 Herblock [Herbert Lawrence Block], American cartoonist, dies at 91
• 2001 Jimmie Lloydd [Logdon], American country and rockabilly singer, dies at 79
• 2001 Polly Rowles, American actress (Sweet Liberty, Jamie), dies at 87
• 2001 Roger Gaudry, French Canadian chemist, businessman and corporate director (b. 1913)
• 2003 Arthur Berger, American composer (Ideas of Order), music critic, and educator (Brandeis, 1953-80; New England Conservatory of Music, 1980-99), dies at 91
• 2003 Henry Herbert, 17th Earl of Pembroke, British peer and director (Emily, Forbidden Passion), dies at 64
• 2003 Izzy Asper, Canadian lawyer and broadcaster (CanWest Global Communications Corp) and politician, dies at 71
• 2003 Wally George, American conservative TV commentator, dies at 71
• 2004 Hildy Parks, American stage and screen actress, and Emmy Award-winning producer and writer (Tony Award presentations), dies of complications from a stroke at 78
• 2004 Ken Bigley, British civil engineer, kidnapped and murdered in Iraq (b. 1942)
• 2005 Charles Rocket, American actor and comedian (Saturday Night Live), dies at 56
• 2005 Doug Young, American national and world powerlifting champion, dies of a heart attack at 61
• 2006 Anna Politkovskaya, Russian journalist and human rights activist, dies at 48
• 2007 George E. Sangmeister, American politician (Rep-D-Illinois 1989-95), dies at 76
• 2007 Norifumi Abe, Japanese motorcycle road racer, dies in road accident at 32
• 2008 Leslie Hardman, Jewish Orthodox rabbi (b. 1913)
• 2008 Peter Copley, British actor (Victim, Kingdom of Heaven, King & Country), dies at 93
• 2009 Irving Penn, American fashion and fine art photographer. dies at 92
• 2009 Shelby Singleton, American record label owner and producer (Smash Records, Mercury Records), dies of brain cancer at 77
• 2010 (Terry) “T” Lavitz, American jazz-fusion keyboardist (Dixie Dregs; Jazz Is Dead), dies at 54
• 2010 Antonie Kamerling, Dutch actor (b. 1966)
• 2010 Milka Planinc, Prime Minister of Yugoslavia (1982-86), dies at 85
• 2011 George Baker, Bulgarian-born British actor (I, Claudius, Goodbye Mr Chips, Curse of the Fly), dies at 80
• 2011 John Alderson, English police officer, introduced community policing (Chief Constable Devon & Cornwall), dies at 89
• 2011 Ramiz Alia, Communist leader and first President of Albania (1982-92), dies at 85
• 2012 John Tchicai, Danish jazz saxophonist and composer (New York Art Quartet), dies at 76
• 2012 Mervyn Dymally, Trinidadian-born American politician (Rep-D-CA, 1981-93), dies at 86
• 2013 Patrice Chéreau, French opera director and actor (Danton), dies from lung cancer at 68
• 2014 Siegfried Lenz, German writer (Das Feuerschiff – The Lightship; Ein Kriegsende), dramatist, and interpreter for British military (WWII), dies at 88
• 2014 Zilpha Keatly Snyder, American Newbury Award-winning children’s literature author (Headless Cupid; The Egypt Game), dies from complications of a stroke at 87
• 2015 Gail Zappa (née Sloatman), American business secretary and wife of musician and composer Frank Zappa, dies of lung cancer at 70
• 2016 Johnny Gleeson, Australian cricket spin bowler (29 Tests, 93 wickets, BB 5/61; NSW CA), dies at 78
• 2017 Jim Landis, American MLB outfielder, 1957-67, 5X Gold Glove, 2X All-Star(Chicago White Sox, and 5 other teams), dies of lung cancer at 83
• 2020 Mario Molina, Mexican scientist, 1995 Nobel Prize for Chemistry (CFC’s effect on the ozone layer), dies at 77 [1]
• 2020 Tom Kennedy [James Narz], American television game show host (You Don’t Say; Name That Tune; Split Second), dies at 93
• 2021 (Frederick) “Rick” Jones, Canadian-British children’s television presenter (Play School; Fingerbobs), and folk musician (Meal Ticket – “Better Believe It Babe”), dies of esophageal cancer at 84
• 2022 Ann Flood, American actress (The Edge of Night, 1962-84 – “Nancy”), dies at 89
• 2022 Art Laboe [Egnoian], American radio disc jockey (“Oldies but Goodies”), songwriter, record producer, and radio station owner, dies at 97 [1]
• 2022 Bill Nieder, American athlete (Olympic gold shot put 1960, silver 1956), dies at 89
• 2022 Ronnie Cuber, American jazz and session saxophonist (Eddie Palmieri; Mingus Big Band; J. Geils Band – “Freeze Frame”; SNL Band), dies of complications following a fall at 80
• 2022 Toshi Ichiyanagi, Japanese avant-garde composer, pianist, and first husband of Yoko Ono, dies at 89
• 2023 Eric Griffin, American boxer (World C’ship gold Light Flyweight 1989, 1991), dies at 55
• 2023 Park Jong-hwan, South Korean soccer manager (South Korea 1983-84, 86-88, 90, 95-96; Seoul FC), dies at 85
• 2023 Phyllis “Pippa” Latour, British secret agent in France during WWII (MBE, French Legion of Honour), dies at 102
• 2024 Brian Hastings, New Zealand cricket batsman (31 Tests, 4 x 100, HS 117no; Canterbury), dies at 84
• 2024 Emily “Cissy” Houston (née Drinkard), American Grammy Award-winning soul and gospel singer, and Whitney’s mother, dies of complications of Alzheimer’s disease at 91 [1]
• 2024 Nicholas Pryor [Probst], American character actor (Beverly Hills 90210; The Gumball Rally), dies of cancer at 89

October 7 Highlights