Famous People Who Died in 2006

Deaths 1 - 200 of 783

Jan 8 Otis Clay, American gospel, soul, and R&B-singer ("That's How It Is (When You're In Love)"), dies at 73
Jan 8 Tony Banks, British politician (Labour), dies after a stroke at 63
Jan 9 Andy Caldecott, Australian motorcycle racer (b. 1964)
Jan 9 Mikk Mikiver, Estonian actor (Friends, Comrades) and director, dies at 68
Jan 11 Markus Löffel (Mark Spoon), German DJ (b. 1966)
Jan 11 Nixzmary Brown, American child abuse victim, dies from extreme abuse
Jan 13 Frank Fixaris, American sportscaster (b. 1934)
Jan 13 Marc Potvin, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1967)
Jan 14 Henri Colpi, French New Wave film editor and director, dies at 84
Jan 14 Jim Gary, American sculptor known for whimsical monumental art and sculptors of large, colorful dinosaurs made from discarded automobile parts, dies of complications from a cerebral hemorrhage at 66
Jan 14 Mark Philo, English footballer, dies in a car crash at 21

Shelley Winters (1920-2006)

Jan 14 American Oscar and Emmy Award-winning actress (Lolita; A Place in the Sun; A Patch of Blue; The Poseidon Adventure), dies of heart failure at 85

Jan 15 Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait, dies at 79
Jan 16 Stanley Biber, American physician, pioneer of transgender surgery, (b. 1923)
Jan 17 Clarence Ray Allen, American murderer (b. 1930)
Jan 17 Pierre Grondin, French Canadian cardiac surgeon (b. 1925)
Jan 18 Jan Twardowski, Polish poet (b. 1915)
Jan 18 Vera Van [Webster], American radio and dance band singer, dies at 97
Jan 19 Anthony "Tony" Franciosa [Papaleo], American actor (Career, Ben-Hur, Jeff-Name of the Game), dies at 77
Jan 19 Aoun Al-Sharif Qasim, Sudanese writer and Islamic scholar (b. 1933)
Jan 19 Geoff Rabone, New Zealand cricket all-rounder, captain (NZ 12 Tests @ 31.22, 16 wickets), dies at 84
Jan 19 Thomas Christian David, Austrian flutist, conductor, choral director, and composer, dies at 80

Wilson Pickett (1941-2006)

Jan 19 American R&B singer ("In The Midnight Hour"; "Funky Broadway"), dies of a heart attack at 64

Jan 21 Bedanand Jha, Nepalese politician
Jan 21 Ibrahim Rugova, Kosovar nationalist writer and President of Kosovo (1992-2006), dies at 61
Jan 22 Rick van der Linden, Dutch keyboardist (Ekseption), and composer, dies from complications of a stroke at 59
Jan 23 Chris McKinstry, Canadian scientist (b. 1967)
Jan 23 Virginia D. Smith, American politician (Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Nebraska), dies at 94
Jan 24 Chris Penn, American actor (The Wild Life), dies at 40
Jan 24 Fayard Nicholas, American tap dancer, one-half of The Nicholas Brothers and actor (The Five Heartbeats), dies of pneumonia and complications from a stroke at 91
Jan 24 Schafik Handal, Salvadoran politician
Jan 26 Carol Lambrino, son of Carol II of Romania and Zizi Lambrino (b. 1920)
Jan 26 Khan Abdul Wali Khan, Pakistani opposition leader and Pashtun nationalist (b. 1917)
Jan 26 Len Carlson, Canadian actor (b. 1937)
Jan 27 Gene McFadden, American R&B singer-songwriter and producer (McFadden & Whitehead - "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"), dies of lung cancer at 56 [1]
Jan 27 Jan Frank Fischer, Czech composer, dies at 84
Jan 27 Jean-Christophe Lafaille, French mountaineer best known for his solo self-rescue on Annapurna with a broken arm, presumed dead at 40
Jan 27 Johannes Rau, 8th President of Germany (b. 1931)
Jan 27 Roger Durham Hannay, American composer and teacher, dies at 75
Jan 28 Henry McGee, British actor and comedian (No, That's Me Over Here!, The Benny Hill Show), dies at 77
Jan 28 Yitzchak Kaduri, rabbi (b. around 1900)
Jan 29 Nam June Paik, Korean avant-garde composer, and video artist (Medium is the Medium; hommage à john cage), dies at 73
Jan 30 Coretta Scott King, American activist and wife of Martin Luther King Jr., dies of ovarian cancer at 78
Jan 30 Wendy Wasserstein, American playwright (The Heidi Chronicles), dies of cancer at 55
Jan 31 Moira Shearer, Scottish actress (The Red Shoes) and ballerina, dies at 80
Feb 1 Bryce Harland, New Zealand diplomat, dies at 74
Feb 1 Dick Bass, American NFL running back (Pro Bowl 1962, 63, 66; LA Rams), dies at 68
Feb 3 Al Lewis [Alexander Meister], American actor (The Munsters, Used Cars), dies at 82
Feb 3 Lou Jones, American athlete (Olympic gold 4x400m relay 1956), dies at 74
Feb 3 Romano Mussolini, Italian jazz pianist, and bandleader, dies of heart failure at 78

Betty Friedan (1921-2006)

Feb 4 American writer and feminist (The Feminine Mystique), dies of congestive heart failure at 85

Feb 4 Myron Waldman, American animator (Fleischer Studio), dies at 97
Feb 5 Franklin Cover, American actor (Tom-The Jeffersons), dies at 77
Feb 5 Norma Candal, Puerto Rican actress and comedian (La criada malcriada), dies at 78
Feb 6 Pedro Gonzales-Gonzalez, American actor (Rio Bravo), dies at 80
Feb 7 Jack Montrose, American "cool jazz" tenor saxophonist and arranger, dies at 78
Feb 7 Princess Hadice Hayriye Ayshe Dürrühsehvar (b. 1914)
Feb 7 Shujauddin Butt, Pakistani cricket all-rounder (19 Tests, 20 wickets; Combined Services, Bahawalpur), dies at 75
Feb 8 Akira Ifukube, Japanese composer, best known for his film scores in the Godzilla films, dies at 91
Feb 8 Elton Dean, English jazz and progressive rock saxophonist (Soft Machine), dies of heart and liver ailments at 60 (b. 1945)
Feb 9 Freddie Laker, British airline entrepreneur (b. 1922)
Feb 9 Nadira, Indian actress (b. 1932)
Feb 9 Ron Greenwood, English soccer defender (Brentford) and manager (West Ham Utd 1961-74; FA Cup 1964, European Cup Winners' Cup 1965; England 1977-82), dies from Alzheimer's disease at 84
Feb 10 Dick Harmon, American golf instructor (Fred Couples, Jay Haas, Craig Stadler, Lanny Wadkins, Steve Elkington), dies from pneumonia at 58
Feb 10 J. Dilla [James Dewitt Yancey], American rapper and producer (Donuts), dies of a heart attack at 32
Feb 10 Norman E. Shumway, American pioneer cardiac transplant surgeon (1st US adult human to human heart transplantation), dies at 83
Feb 11 Jackie Pallo, English professional wrestler, dies at 79
Feb 11 Jockey Shabalala, South African singer (Ladysmith Black Mambazo), dies at 62

Peter Benchley (1940-2006)

Feb 11 American novelist (Jaws, The Deep), dies at 65

Feb 13 Andreas Katsulas, Greek-American actor (b. 1946)
Feb 13 Edna Lewis 'the Mother of Soul Food', American chef and author (elevated Southern cooking), dies at 89 [1]
Feb 13 Peter Strawson, British philosopher (Oxford University), dies at 86
Feb 13 Wang Xuan, Chinese computer scientist, dies at 66
Feb 14 Darry Cowl, French musician and actor, dies at 80
Feb 14 Hans Olof “Putte” Wickman, Swedish jazz clarinetist, dies at 81
Feb 14 Lynden David Hall, British singer (b. 1974)
Feb 14 Shoshana Damari, Israeli singer and actress (b. 1923)
Feb 15 Andrey Petrov, Soviet-Russian classical and film score composer (Creation of the World), dies at 75
Feb 16 Ernie Stautner, American Pro Football HOF defensive end (Super Bowl 1971, 77; 4 × All-Pro First Team; 9 × Pro Bowl; Pittsburgh Steelers), dies from Alzheimer's disease at 80
Feb 16 Johnny Grunge, American pro wrestler (4 x ECW World Tag Team C'ship, WCW World Tag Team C'ship [with Rocco Rock], dies of sleep apnea complications at 39
Feb 17 Bill Cowsill, American singer & musician (The Cowsills - "Hair"; "The Rain, The Park, And Other Thing"), dies of emphysema at 58
Feb 17 Ray Barretto, American percussionist and Latin jazz bandleader (Charanga Moderna - "El Watusi"), dies at 76
Feb 18 Charles Leonard, American pentathlete (Olympic silver medal 1936), dies at 92
Feb 18 Richard Bright, American actor (Al Neri-Godfather), dies at 68
Feb 20 Curt Gowdy, American sportscaster and author (Ford C. Frick Award; Pete Rozelle Award; lifetime achievement Emmy, 1992), dies of leukemia at 86
Feb 20 Lucjan Wolanowski, Polish journalist, writer and traveller (b. 1920)
Feb 21 Angelica Rozeanu, Romanian table tennis player (World Champ 1950-55), dies at 84
Feb 22 Anthony Burger, American musician and singer (b. 1961)
Feb 22 Hilde Domin [Hilde Palm], German writer and poet, dies at 96
Feb 23 Benno Besson, Swiss actor and director (Der Arzt wider Willen), dies at 83
Feb 23 Telmo Zarraonaindía, Spanish footballer (b. 1921)
Feb 24 Denis Twitchett, Cambridge scholar, and Chinese historian (b. 1925)
Feb 24 Dennis Weaver, American actor (Chester-Gunsmoke, Duel, Battered), dies at 81
Feb 24 Don Knotts, American actor (Andy Griffth Show, 3's Company), died of lung cancer at 81
Feb 24 Irakli Charkviani, Georgian alt-rock and electronic musician, poet and prose writer, dies of heart failure at 44
Feb 24 John Martin, Canadian broadcaster (b. 1947)
Feb 24 Octavia E. Butler, American sci-fi author (Hugo, Wild Seed), dies at 58
Feb 24 Thomas Koppel, Danish pianist and classical and avant-garde composer (Savage Rose), dies at 61
Feb 25 Charlie Wayman, English footballer (b. 1922)
Feb 25 Darren McGavin [Richardson], American actor (Murphy Brown, The Night Stalker, A Christmas Story), dies of cardiovascular disease at 83
Feb 26 Florian ZaBach, American violinist ("The Hot Canary") and TV personality, dies at 87
Feb 27 Linda Smith, British comedian (b. 1958)
Feb 27 Milton Katims, American violist and conductor (Seattle Symphony, 1954–76), dies at 96
Feb 27 Otis Chandler, American newspaper publisher (b. 1927)
Feb 27 Robert Lee Scott, Jr., American General and Air Force pilot, dies at 97
Feb 28 Irv Kluger, American big band jazz and session drummer (Artie Shaw; Gramercy Five), dies at 84

Owen Chamberlain (1920-2006)

Feb 28 American physicist (antiproton, Nobel-1959), dies at 85

Mar 1 Harry Browne, American politician and author, dies at 72
Mar 1 Jack Wild, British actor (Oliver!, H.R. Pufnstuf), dies of tongue and throat cancer at 53
Mar 1 Johnny Jackson, American drummer (The Jackson 5), dies at 54
Mar 1 Peter Osgood, English soccer striker (4 caps; Chelsea, Southampton), dies from a heart attack at 59
Mar 3 Ivor Cutler, Scottish poet (b. 1923)
Mar 3 William Herskovic, Holocaust hero and philanthropist (b. 1914)
Mar 4 Dave Rose, American artist (b. 1910)
Mar 4 Edgar Valter, Estonian illustrator/cartoonist (b. 1929)
Mar 4 Jan Felderhof, Dutch violinist and composer, dies at 98
Mar 4 John Reynolds Gardiner, American engineer (b. 1944)
Mar 4 Roman Ogaza, Polish footballer (b. 1952)

Richard Kuklinski (1935-2006)

Mar 5 American mafia hit man, dies at 70

Mar 6 Anne Braden, American civil rights activist, journalist, and educator, dies at 81
Mar 6 Dana Reeve, American actress, wife of Christopher Reeve and activist (Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation), dies of lung cancer at 44
Mar 6 King Floyd, American soul singer-songwriter ("Groove Me"), dies of complications of a stroke and diabetes at 61

Kirby Puckett (1960-2006)

Mar 6 American Baseball HOF centerfielder (10 × MLB All-Star; World Series 1987, 91; ALCS MVP 1991; 6 × Gold Glove Award; Minnesota Twins), dies of a stroke at 45

Mar 7 Ali Farka Touré, Malian musician, dies at 66
Mar 7 Ansen [Nancy Ann] Dibble, Dutch sci-fi author (Summerfair), dies at 63
Mar 7 Gordon Parks, American pioneering black film director (The Learning Tree), photographer and author, dies at 93
Mar 7 John Junkin, British actor and scriptwriter (A Hard Day's Night), dies at 76
Mar 8 Brian Barratt-Boyes, New Zealand heart surgeon (b. 1924)
Mar 9 Dennis Brookes, English cricketer (one Test England v WI 1948, scored 10 & 7), dies at 90
Mar 9 Geir Ivarsøy, Norwegian programmer, co-founder of Opera Software ASA (b. 1957)
Mar 9 John Profumo, British cabinet minister (Profumo scandal), dies at 91
Mar 10 Anna Moffo, American soprano (Adventurers), dies at 73
Mar 11 Anthony Farrar-Hockley, English army officer (NATO Commander) and military historian, dies at 81
Mar 11 Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1931)

Slobodan Milošević (1941-2006)

Mar 11 President of Serbia (1991-97) and Yugoslavia (1997-2000), dies at 64

Mar 12 Victor Sokolov, Russian dissident journalist and priest, dies at 59
Mar 13 Arne Dørumsgaard, Norwegian composer, dies at 84
Mar 13 Jimmy Johnstone, Scottish soccer forward (23 caps; Celtic FC), dies from motor neuron disease at 61
Mar 13 Maureen Stapleton, American actress (Lonelyhearts, Airport, Coccoon, Plaza Suite), dies at 80
Mar 13 Peter Tomarken, American game show host (Press Your Luck) (b. 1942)
Mar 13 Robert C. Baker, Inventor of the chicken nugget (b. 1921)
Mar 14 Ann Calvello, American roller derby queen, dies at 76
Mar 14 Lennart Meri, Estonian politician, writer and director (President of Estonia 1992-2001), dies at 76
Mar 15 George Rallis, Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1918)
Mar 15 Red Storey, Canadian football player and hockey referee (b. 1918)
Mar 16 David Feintuch, American sci-fi author (b. 1944)
Mar 17 Bob Blue, American singer/songwriter (b. 1948)
Mar 17 Bob Papenbrook, American voice actor, dies at 50
Mar 17 Oleg Cassini, American fashion designer (for Jackie Kennedy), dies at 92
Mar 17 Ray Meyer, American basketball coach (b. 1913)
Mar 18 Bill Beutel, American journalist (b. 1930)
Mar 18 Dan Gibson, musician (b. 1922)
Mar 18 Michael Attwell, British actor (b. 1943)
Mar 22 Kurt von Trojan, Australian sci-fi author (b. 1937)
Mar 22 Pierre Clostermann, French World War II pilot (b. 1921)
Mar 23 Cindy Walker, American songwriter ("Dream Baby"; "You Don't Know Me") and country singer, dies at 87
Mar 23 David B. Bleak, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1932)

Desmond Doss (1919-2006)

Mar 23 American soldier and 1st conscientious objector to receive the Medal of Honor who was the subject of the film Hacksaw Ridge. dies at 87

Mar 23 Sarah Caldwell, American conductor/opera director (Flagstaff), dies at 82
Mar 24 Lynne Perrie, English actress (b. 1931)
Mar 25 (Alvis) "Buck" Owens, American "Bakersfield Sound" country singer-songwriter ("Under Your Spell Again"), bandleader (The Buckaroos - "Act Naturally"), and TV personality (Hee Haw), dies of an apparent heart attack at 76
Mar 25 Richard Fleischer, American film director (Doctor Dolittle), dies at 89
Mar 25 Rocío Dúrcal, Spanish singer and actress (b. 1944)
Mar 26 Anil Biswas, Indian politician (b. 1944)
Mar 26 Nikki Sudden, British singer-songwriter (b. 1956)
Mar 26 Paul Dana, American race car driver (b. 1975)
Mar 27 Dan Curtis, American television producer and director (b. 1928)
Mar 27 Ian Hamilton Finlay, Scottish poet, writer, artist and gardener, dies at 80
Mar 27 Lyn Nofziger, American journalist and political advisor to Ronald Reagan, dies of cancer at 81
Mar 27 Ruari McLean, British typographer (b. 1917)
Mar 27 Stanisław Lem, Polish writer (b. 1921)
Mar 28 Caspar Weinberger, American politician and businessman (US Secretary of Defense under Reagan 1981-87), dies at 88
Mar 28 Charles Schepens, American ophthalmologist (b. 1912)
Mar 28 Kevin Pro Hart, Australian artist (b. 1928)
Mar 28 Proinsias Ó Maonaigh, Irish musician (b. 1922)
Mar 29 Salvador Elizondo, Mexican writer (b. 1932)
Mar 29 Werner Wolf Glaser, German-Swedish composer, dies at 95
Mar 30 Red Hickey, American football coach (HC SF 49ers 1959-63; devised shotgun formation), dies at 89
Mar 31 Jackie McLean, American jazz saxophonist (b. 1931 or 1932)
Apr 1 In Tam, Cambodian politician (b. 1916)
Apr 2 Nina Schenk von Stauffenberg, German wife of Claus Schenk von Stauffenberg (b. 1913)
Apr 3 Marshall Goldberg, American College Football HOF back (Uni of Pittsburgh; All Pro, Pro Bowl 1941; Chicago Cardinals), dies at 88
Apr 4 Philip Attenborough, English publisher (Hodder & Stoughton), dies at 69
Apr 5 Gene Pitney, American vocalist and songwriter ("Town Without Pity"; "Hello Mary Lou"; "He's A Rebel"), dies of a heart attack at 66