Famous Deaths on August 18

Genghis Khan (c. 1162-1227)

Mongolian warlord who founded the Mongol Empire, dies at around 65

1236 Theodorus Van Celles, monastery founder (Kruisheren), dies
1258 Theodore II Lascaris, Emperor of the Empire of Nicaea
1276 Adrian V [Ottobono Fieschi], Italian Pope (7/11-8/18/1276), dies
1318 Clare of Montefalco, Italian Abbess and religious leader (born c. 1268)
1430 Thomas de Ros, 8th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, English soldier and politician, drowned at 23
1503 Alexander VI [Rodrigo de Borja], Spanish Pope controversial for acknowledging his children (1492-1503), dies at 72

Paul IV (1476-1559)

Pope (1555-59), dies at 83

1563 Étienne de La Boétie, French judge and writer, dies at 32
1613 Giovanni Artusi, Italian composer
1620 Wanli, Emperor of Ming Dynasty, dies at 56
1634 Urbain Grandier, French priest (b. 1590)
1642 Guido Reni, Italian Baroque painter, dies at 66
1645 Eudoxia Streshneva, Tsarina of Mikhail I of Russia (b. 1608)
1652 Benjamin G Cuyp, historical painter, dies at about 40
1683 Charles Hart, British Shakespearean actor, dies
1707 William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Devonshire, English statesman and Whig politician (1661-84), dies at 67
1712 Richard Savage, 4th Earl Rivers, English soldier
1761 François Gaspard Adam, French sculptor (garden sculptures), dies at 51
1765 Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor (1745-65), dies at 56
1797 Josiah Spode, English potter and founder of Spode pottery works, dies at 64
1803 James Beattie, Scottish poet and philosopher (Essay on Truth), dies at 67
1809 Matthew Boulton, English manufacturer and engineer (b. 1728)
1811 Johann Heinrich Zang, German composer and organist, dies at 78
1815 Chauncey Goodrich, American politician (b. 1759)
1840 Antony Christiaan Winand Staring, Dutch lawyer and poet (Jaromir), dies at 73
1842 Louis de Freycinet, French explorer and navigator (published the first map to show a full outline of the coastline of Australia in 1811), dies at 62
1850 Honoré de Balzac, French novelist (La Comédie Humaine), dies at 51
1853 Peter Lichtenthal, Austrian composer, musicologist, and physician, dies at 73
1858 William Austin Burt, American scientist, surveyor and inventor who patented America's first typographer (typewriter) and the equatorial sextant, dies at 66
1863 Thomas Welsh, US Union brigadier general (Antietam), dies at 39
1870 Felix Salm-Salm, Prussian/US prince/brigadier general, dies in battle
1887 Orson Squire Fowler, American phrenologist and lecturer, dies at 77
1889 Jacques Damala [Aristides Damalas], Greek military officer and actor, dies from an overdose at 34
1894 William Charles Levey, Irish conductor and composer, dies at 57
1896 Frederick Nichols Crouch, composer, dies at 88
1896 Richard Avenarius, German philosopher (founded the epistemological theory of knowledge known as empirical criticism), dies at 52
1901 Richard Kleinmichel, composer, dies at 54
1907 John Kerr, Scottish physicist and pioneer in the field of electro-optics (electro-visually Kerr-effect), dies at 82
1916 Edward D Pain, English journalist (NY World), dies in battle at 36
1919 Joseph E. Seagram, Canadian distillery founder (Seagram Distilleries), dies at 78
1934 Delilah Beasley, American author and the 1st Black female newspaper columnist (Oakland Tribune, The Negro Trial-Blazers of California), dies of heart disease at 61

Walter Chrysler (1875-1940)

American automotive pioneer (Chrysler Corporation) and thoroughbred breeder, dies at 65

1942 Erwin Schulhoff, Czech-Russian composer and pianist (Ogelala), dies of tuberculosis at 48 in a German concentration camp in Wülzburg, Bavaria
1943 Ali-Agha Shikhlinski, Russian-Azerbaijani general, dies at 78
1943 Hans Jeschonnek, German air force general/chief-staff, commits suicide
1944 Ernst "Teddy" Thalmann, leader of German KPD, dies
1944 Jacques Roumain, Haitian writer (Gouverneurs de la Rosée), dies at 37
1945 Subhas Chandra Bose, Indian revolutionary and nationalist, dies of injuries from a plane crash at 48
1946 Georg Åberg, Swedish athlete (Olympic silver triple jump; bronze long jump 1912), dies at 53
1949 Paul J Mares, US jazz trumpetist/composer (Tin Roof Blues), dies at 49
1950 Julien Lahaut, chairman Belgian Communist Party, murdered
1952 Alberto Hurtado Cruchaga, Chilean Jesuit saint (b. 1901)
1952 Ralph Byrd, American actor (Dick Tracy TV Show, SOS Coast Guard), dies from a heart attack at 43
1957 Wawrzyniec Żuławski, Polish composer, dies during an alpine rescue mission on Mont Blanc, in the Alps, at 41
1961 Learned Hand, American Chief Judge of US Court of Appeals, dies at 89
1961 Leonhard Frank, writer, dies at 78
1962 Cleo Ridgely, silent screen actress (I Remember Mama), dies at 68
1966 Isaac Keesing, Dutch publisher and founder (System Keesing), dies at 80
1966 Watze Cuperus, Frisian author (Struggle & Blessing), dies at 75
1968 Arthur Marshall, American ragtime piano player and composer ("Swipesy Cakewalk" with Scott Joplin; "The Peach"), dies at 86
1968 Cy Walter, American jazz pianist (Three's Company), dies of cancer at 52
1969 Laci Boldemann, Swedish composer, dies at 48
1969 Mildred Davis, actress (Haunted Spooks), dies of coronary at 68
1969 Otto Stern, German-American physicist (Stern-Gerlach-experiment, Nobel 1943), dies at 81
1980 Norman Cazden, American composer, educator, and music theorist, dies at 65
1981 Anita Loos, American screenwriter, novelist (Gentlemen Prefer Blondes) and playwright, dies at 88
1982 Beverly Bayne, actress (Romeo & Juliet, Passionate Youth), dies at 87
1983 Nikolaus Pevsner, German-born art historian (b. 1902)
1988 Alexandr V Shchukin, Russian cosmonaut, dies in SU-26 crash at 42

Frederick Ashton (1904-1988)

British choreographer (Cinderella), dies at 83

1989 Bert Oosterbosch, Dutch cyclist, dies at 32
1989 Imry Németh, Hungarian athlete (Olympic gold hammer throw 1948, bronze 1952; WR 1959 59.88m), dies at 72
1989 Luis Carlos Galan, Colombian presidential candidate, murdered
1990 B F Skinner, American psychologist (Skinner Box), dies of Leukemia at 86
1990 Grethe Ingmann, Danish singer (b. 1938)
1990 Raf Reymen, Flemish actor (Huisvuil, Het glas water), dies at 64
1991 Clarence Hutchenrider, American jazz clarinetist (Casa Loma Orchestra), dies at 83
1991 Rick Griffin, American artist and a leading designer of psychedelic posters in the 1960s (Grateful Dead), dies in a motorcycle accident on his Harley at 47
1991 Vaughn Shoemaker, US cartoonist (John Q Public, Pulitzer), dies
1992 Christopher McCandless, subject of the book Into the Wild (b. 1968)
1992 Gerard Sonder, Dutch radio host (AVRO), dies
1992 John Sturges, American film director (Gunfight at the OK Corral), dies of emphysema at 82
1993 Alf Bold, German festival programmer, dies of AIDS at 47
1994 Gottlob Frick, German opera singer, dies at 88
1994 Judy Ann Scott-Fox, literary agent, dies at 56
1994 Richard Laurence Millington Synge, British biochemist (Nobel 1952), dies at 79
1995 Andrew Wilkinson, British pediatrician and the first Professor of Paediatric Surgery in the UK, dies at 81
1995 James Maxwell, American actor and director (The Portrait of a Lady, The Shadow of the Tower, The Evil of Frankenstein), dies at 66
1996 Geoffrey Dearmer, British poet, dies at 103
1996 Hugo Gabriel Gryn, British Reform rabbi, dies at 66
1998 Persis Khambatta, Indian actress (Star Trek, Megaforce), dies of a heart attack at 49
2000 Maurice Evans, English soccer wing half (Reading, 407 games) and manager (Shrewsbury Town, Reading, Oxford United), dies from a heart attack at 63
2001 David Peakall, British scientist (b. 1931)
2002 Dean Riesner, American film and television screenwriter (Bill and Coo), dies at 83
2003 Tony Jackson, British bass player (The Searchers, 1962-64 - "Sugar And Spice"), dies from a combination of diabetes, heart disease, and cirrhosis of the liver at 65
2004 Elmer Bernstein, American film music composer (The Magnificent Seven; To Kill A Mockingbird; The Age Of Innocence; Thoroughly Modern Millie), dies at 82
2004 Hiram Fong, American businessman and politician (U.S. Senator from Hawaii), dies at 97
2004 Joe Dodge, American jazz drummer (Dave Brubeck Quartet, 1953-56), dies at 82
2005 Christopher Bauman, American wrestler (b. 1982)
2005 Gao Xiumin, Chinese comedy actress (b. 1959)
2006 Fernand Gignac, Canadian singer and actor (b. 1934)
2006 Jamie Astaphan, Caribbean-born physician (b. 1946)
2007 Lucien Jarraud, Canadian radio host, dies at 84
2007 Michael Deaver, Reagan Administration Deputy White House Chief of Staff, dies at 69
2008 Pervis Jackson, American pop and R&B singer (The Spinners, 1954-2008 - "Games People Play"), dies of brain and liver cancer at 70

Kim Dae-jung (1924-2009)

8th President of South Korea (1998-2003) and 2000 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, dies at 85

2009 Robert Novak, American journalist and commentator (b. 1931)
2010 Benjamin Kaplan, American copyright scholar, dies at 99
2010 Hal Connolly, American Athlete and hammer thrower (b.1931)
2010 Kenneth "Kenny" Edwards, American musician and singer-songwriter (The Stone Poneys, Bryndle), dies of cancer and a blood disorder at 64
2010 Scott Davis, American Announcer of Track and Field (b.1943)
2012 Scott McKenzie, American singer, dies at 73
2013 Dezső Gyarmati, Hungarian water polo player, dies at 85
2014 Don Pardo, TV announcer (Jeopardy, Saturday Night Live), dies at 96
2014 Jim Jeffords, American politician (Senator-R+I-Vermont 1989-2007, Rep-R-VT, 1975-89), dies at 80
2015 (Alan) "Bud" Yorkin, American film and television producer and director (Divorce American Style; All in the Family; Sanford And Son), dies at 89
2015 Louis Stokes, American politician (Rep-D-OH, 1969-99), dies at 90
2015 Roger Smalley, British-Australian pianist, conductor, and composer (Gloria Tibi Trinitas), dies at 72
2017 Brian Aldiss, British sci-fi author (Super-Toys Last All Summer Long, Helliconia trilogy), dies at 92
2017 Bruce Forsyth, British entertainer and presenter (The Generation Game), dies at 89
2017 Zoe Laskari, Greek actress, dies at 72

Kofi Annan (1938-2018)

Ghanaian diplomat and 7th Secretary-General of the United Nations (1997-2006), dies at 80

2018 Peter Tapsell, British Conservative Party politician (Member of Parliament, 1959-64 and 1966-2015), dies at 88
2019 Jack Whitaker, American sportscaster (ABC, CBS), dies of natural causes at 95
2019 Kathleen Blanco, American politician, 1st female Governor of Louisiana (2004-08), dies from cancer at 76
2020 Ben Cross, English actor (Chariots of Fire, Star Trek), dies at 72
2020 Dale Hawerchuk, Canadian Hockey Hall of Fame center (#1 pick NHL Draft 1981; Calder Trophy 1982; Canada Cup 1987, 91; Winnipeg Jets, Buffalo Sabres), dies from stomach cancer at 57
2020 Glenn Bassett, American tennis coach (UCLA 1967-93; 7 x NCAA C'ships), dies at 93
2020 Hal Singer, American jazz and R&B saxophonist ("Corn Bread"), dies at 100 [1]
2021 Robert Smith, American baseball administrator (President International Baseball Federation 1981-93; IOC Olympic Order), dies at 85
2022 Hadraawi [Mohamed Ibrahim Warsame], Somali poet who helped preserve the Somali language, dies at 79 [1]