Famous Deaths on December 10

1805 Friedrich Franz Hůrka, Bohemian operatic tenor, conductor, and composer, dies at 43
1808 James Sullivan, 7th Governor of Massachusetts (1807-08), dies at 64
1826 Benedikt Schack, Bohemian-born composer and singer and friend of Mozart, dies at 68
1831 Thomas Johann Seebeck, German physicist (Seebeck effect), dies at 61
1833 Dieudonne-Pascal Pieltain, Belgian composer, dies at 79
1842 Rowland Hill, 1st Viscount Hill, British general (fought with Wellington at Waterloo, Commander-in-Chief British army 1828), dies at 70
1850 François Sulpice Beudant, French mineralogist and geologist, dies at 63

Henry Schoolcraft (1793-1864)

American geographer, geologist and ethnologist who found the source of the Mississippi River, dies at 71

1865 Leopold I, King of Belgium (1831-65), dies at 74
1867 Sakamoto Ryōma, Japanese samurai and anti-shogunate revolutionary, assassinated at 31
1875 Otogaki Rengetsu, zen nun/benefactress of Tessai, dies at about 84
1877 Federico Ricci, Italian composer, dies at 68
1877 Jared Kirtland, American physician, naturalist and reformed penitentiaries, dies at 84
1878 Henry Wells, American businessman and founder (American Express Co & Wells Fargo & Co), dies at 72
1888 Marià Obiols, Catalan composer, dies at 79
1889 Ludwig Anzengruber, Austrian playwright, dies at 50
1890 Ludolph Anne Jan Wilt Sloet van de Beele, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (1861-66), dies at 84

Alfred Nobel (1833-1896)

Swedish chemist who invented dynamite and founded the Nobel Prize ceremony on this date, dies at 63

1906 Nikolai Garin-Michailovski], Russian railroad engineer (Trans-Siberian railway) and author (Tjoma Kartashov), dies at 54
1909 Red Cloud, Sioux indian chief, dies
1910 Pablo Hernandez Salces, Spanish composer, dies at 76
1911 Joseph Dalton Hooker, British botanist and director of the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, dies at 94

Mackenzie Bowell (1823-1917)

5th Prime Minister of Canada (1894-96), dies of pneumonia at 93

1920 Horace Elgin Dodge, American automobile manufacturing pioneer (co-founder of Dodge Brothers Company), dies at 52
1921 George Ashlin, Irish architect noted for his work on churches and cathedrals, dies at 84
1921 Viktor Jacobi, Hungarian operetta composer (Szibill), dies at 38
1924 August Belmont Jr., American financier (construction of New York subway, NY Jockey Club), dies at 71
1926 Nikola Pašić, Serbian nationalist and premier (over many periods from 1891 to 1926), dies at 80
1928 Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Scottish architect, designer, and illustrator, dies at 60
1931 Max Elskamp, Belgian author and poet (Six Chansons), dies at 69
1936 Bobby Abel, English cricket batsman (13 Tests, 2 x 100, HS 132no; Surrey CCC), dies at 79
1936 Luigi Pirandello, Italian writer (Six Characters in Search of An Author-Nobel 1934), dies at 69
1938 Mario Pilati, Italian composer, dies at 35
1939 Wilhelm Grosz, Austrian pianist, conductor, classical composer (Afrika Songs), and popular songwriter ("Red Sails in the Sunset"; "Isle of Capri"), dies at 45 [1]
1941 Colin Kelly, American B-17 Flying Fortress pilot and 1st US air hero during WW II, killed in action at 26 after ordering his crew to bail out shortly before his bomber exploded
1944 John Brunt, English soldier and Victoria Cross holder, dies at 22
1944 Johnny Marvin, American jazz, pop, and country ukulele player, singer, and vaudevillian, dies of dengue fever at 47
1944 Paul Otlet, Belgian author, lawyer and peace activist (created the Universal Decimal Classification scheme), dies at 76
1945 Theodor Dannecker, SS officer and an associate of Adolf Eichmann, dies at 32

Damon Runyon (1880-1946)

American journalist and writer (Guys & Dolls-based on his work), dies at 66

Walter Johnson (1887-1946)

American Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher (3 x Triple Crown of Pitching; World Series 1924; AL MVP 1913, 24; Washington Senators), dies from a brain tumour at 59

1949 Duncan Stewart, 2nd British Governor of Sarawak (1949), dies at 45 after being fatally stabbed in the streets of Sibu by pro-Indonesian Malay student Rosli Dhoby
1951 Algernon Blackwood, English novelist (The Willows), dies at 82
1953 Abdullah Yusuf Ali, British-Indian Islamic scholar and translator (translated Qu'ran into English), dies at 81

Maurice McLoughlin (1890-1957)

American tennis player (US Nat C'ship 1912-13), dies at 67

1958 Adolfo Camarillo, American horse breeder (b.1864)
1958 Juliane Gabriels, Flemish physician (Artus Quellin), dies at 72
1959 Charles Jones, West Indian cricket batsman (4 Tests), dies at 57
1959 Henri Vidal, French actor (Fabiola), dies of a heart attack at 40
1960 Ernie Quigley, Canadian Basketball HOF official (St. Mary's College, Kansas Uni), basketball umpire (1936 Olympics), MLB umpire (6xWorld Series) & football referee, dies at 80
1965 Henry Dixon Cowell, American pianist and composer (Aeolian Harp), dies at 68
1966 Boris Koutzen, Russian violinist, composer & educator, dies at 65
1967 Brasílio Itiberê da Cunha Luz, Brazilian composer, dies at 71
1967 Carl Cunningham, American drummer (The Bar-kays - "Soul Finger"), killed in Otis Redding plane crash in Lake Monona, Wisconsin crash at 19
1967 Jimmy King, American guitarist (The Bar-kays - "Soul Finger"), dies in Otis Redding plane crash in Lake Monona, Wisconsin crash at 18

Otis Redding (1941-1967)

American soul singer-songwriter ("(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"; "Respect"), dies in a plane crash in Lake Monona, Wisconsin at 26

1967 Phalin Jones, American soul and R&B saxophonist (The Bar-kays - "Soul Finger"), dies in Otis Redding plane crash in Lake Monona, Wisconsin at 19
1967 Ron Caldwell, American soul and R&B keyboardist (The Bar-kays - "Soul Finger"), dies in Otis Redding plane crash in Lake Monona, Wisconsin at 18
1968 George Forrest, Northern Irish politician, dies at 47
1968 Karl Barth, Swiss Protestant theologian ("The Epistle to the Romans"; "Barmen Declaration"; "Church Dogmatics"), dies at 82
1968 Patsy Moran, actress (Children of the Wild), dies at 65

Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

French-American Catholic writer and Trappist monk (7 Story Mountain), accidentally electrocuted by an electric fan at 53

1969 Franco Capuana, Itlalian opera conductor, dies of a heart attack on the podium while leading a performance of Gioachino Rossini's "Mosè in Egitto" in Naples, at 75
1969 Leigh Harline, American composer and conductor, dies at 62
1971 Jo [Jozef Maria Laurens Theo] Cals, Prime Minister of Netherlands (1965-66) and Minister of Education, Arts and Sciences, dies at 57
1972 Mark van Doren, American poet and author (Happy Critic, Transients), dies at 78
1973 Earle Foxe, American actor (Dance Fools Dance), dies at 81
1974 Paul Richards, American actor (Dr Thompson-Breaking Point), dies of cancer at 50
1977 Adolph Rupp, American Basketball HOF coach (NCAA Div I Tournament 1948, 49, 51, 58; Uni of Kentucky; 5 × National Coach of the Year), dies of spinal cancer at 76
1978 Ed Wood, American filmmaker and director (Plan 9 from Outer Space), dies of heart failure at 54
1978 Miura Isshu, Zen teacher, Hakuin Rinzai line, dies at 75
1979 Ann Dvorak [McKim], American actress (G Men, Life of Her Own, Scarface), dies at 67
1981 John Kieran, American columnist and author (Natural History of NYC), dies at 89
1982 Freeman Gosden, American radio and television writer and actor (The Amos 'n' Andy Show; Calvin and the Colonel), dies at 83
1982 Roy Webb, American film score composer (films of Val Lewton), dies at 94
1983 Dorothy Cummings, actress (Dancing Mothers), dies at 84
1983 Patrick O'Moore, actor (Jungle Gents), dies at 74
1986 Kate Wolf [Allen], American folk singer-songwriter ("Love Still Remains"; "Across the Great Divide"), dies of leukemia at 44
1986 Susan Cabot, American actress (Sorority Girl, Carnival Rock), is killed by her son following a psychotic episode at 59
1987 (Leroy) "Slam" Stewart, American jazz double bass player, dies of congestive heart failure at 73
1987 Jascha Heifetz, Russian violinist, dies at 86
1988 Dick Clair, American comedian (Clair & McMahon, Facts of Life), dies of AIDS
1988 Richard Castellano, American actor (The Godfather, Lovers & Other Stranger), dies at 55
1990 Armand Hammer, American industrialist (Occidental Petroleum), dies at 92
1991 Berenice Abbott, American photographer (The World of Atget), dies at 93
1991 Greta Kempton, American artist (b. 1901)
1991 Headman Tshabalala, South African singer (Ladysmith Black Mambazo), shot and killed at 44
1992 Bernard Reichel, Swiss composer, dies at 91
1992 Carlomagno Andrade, Equadorian general, dies
1992 Dan Maskell, English tennis commentator (b. 1908)
1993 Alice Tully, American singer and patroness (Carnegie Hall), dies at 91
1993 Maroun Bagdadi, Lebanese film director (Little Wars, Veiled Man), dies in an accident at 43
1994 Alexander Wilson, Canadian athlete (b. 1905)
1994 George van Renesse, Dutch concert pianist and music director, dies at 85
1994 Keith Joseph, British MP (C), dies
1994 Robert Blum, Swiss composer, dies at 94
1994 Ruth Evelyn Mansfield, English anaesthetist, dies at 92
1995 Darren Robinson [Human Beatbox], American rapper and actor (Fat Boys-Jail House Rock), dies of a heart attack at 28
1995 Gillian Rose, philosopher/writer, dies at 48
1995 Mary Madge Lascelles, literary critic/poet, dies at 95
1995 Phillip Piratin, British communist MP, dies at 88
1996 Faron Young, American country and honky-tonk singer ("Hello Walls"; "It's Four in the Morning"), and actor (Hidden Guns; Daniel Boone, Trailblazer), commits suicide at 64
1996 John Duffey, bluegrass guitarist, dobro, and mandolin player (Country Gentlemen), dies of a heart attack at 62
1997 Gershon Kingsley [Götz Ksinski], German-American composer, electronic music pioneer, and Moog synthesizer player (Popcorn), dies at 97
1997 Jake Carey, American actor (Rock Rock Rock!, Go, Johnny, Go!), dies at 71

Franjo Tuđman (1922-1999)

Croatian politician and President of Croatia (1990-1999), dies of stomach cancer at 77

1999 Lex Goudsmit, Dutch actor (Fiddler on the Roof, Thomas en Senior op het spoor van Brute Berend), dies at 86
1999 Rick Danko, Canadian rock bassist and singer (The Band - "Stagefright"), dies of heart failure at 55
1999 Shirley Hemphill, American actress (b. 1947)
2000 Marie Windsor [Emily Marie Bertelson], American actress (The Bounty Hunter, Double Deal), dies of congestive heart failure at 80
2001 Ashok Kumar [Dadamoni, Kumudlal Kunjilal Ganguly], Indian actor (Mahal, Afsana), dies from chronic asthma at 90
2002 Andres Küng, Swedish-Estonian politician and journalist, dies at 57
2003 John Watts, British army and Chief of Defense (Omani Armed Forces), dies at 73
2003 Sean McClory, Irish actor (The Californians, My Chauffeur), dies at 79

Eugene McCarthy (1916-2005)

American politician (Sen-D-Minn) and presidential candidate, dies of parkinsons at 89

Richard Pryor (1940-2005)

American Emmy and 5X Grammy Award-winning comedian (Live on the Sunset Strip), actor (Silver Streak; Stir Crazy), and screenwriter (Blazing Saddles), dies of a heart attack at 65

Augusto Pinochet (1915-2006)

Chilean general and dictator of Chile (1973-90), dies of congestive heart failure and pulmonary edema at 91

2006 Jack Williamson, American sci-fi author (Cometeers), dies at 98
2007 Aqsa Parvez, Canadian victim of an honor crime (b. 1991)
2007 Robert Moevs, American composer, dies at 87
2008 Didith Reyes [Maria Avenila], Filipino pop singer, dies of a heart attack at 59
2008 Dorothy Porter, Australian poet (The Monkey's Mask), librettist, (The Eternity Man), and lyricist (The Fiery Maze), dies of breast cancer at 54
2008 Henning Christiansen, Danish experimental composer, dies at 76
2010 J. Michael Hagopian, Turkish-born American documentarian (b. 1913)
2010 Jacques Swaters, Belgian racing driver, dies at 84
2010 John Bennett Fenn, American chemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1917)
2010 MacKenzie Miller, American horse trainer and breeder (b. 1921)
2012 Iajuddin Ahmed, Bangladeshi President, dies from heart surgery complications at 81
2013 Jim Hall, American jazz guitarist and composer, dies at 83
2013 Rossana Podestà, Italian actress, dies at 79
2014 Catherine Hughes [Pestell], British principal (Somerville College Oxford), dies at 81
2014 Ziad Abu Ein, Palestinian government minister, killed in confrontation with Israeli troops at protest on West Bank

Dolph Schayes (1928-2015)

American basketball Hall of Famer (Syracuse Nationals/Philadelphia 76ers, 1948-63) and coach (76ers, 1963-66; Buffalo Braves, 1970-72) and coach, dies of cancer at 87

2016 A. A. [Adrian Anthony] Gill, British critic (The Sunday Times), dies of cancer at 62
2017 Zarley Zalapski, Canadian NHL defenseman, 1987-2000 (Pittsburgh Penguins; Calgary Flames, and 3 other teams), dies of a viral infection at 49
2019 Jean Pagé, Canadian sports journalist (host: 'La Soirée du hockey' and '110%'), dies from prostate cancer at 73
2019 Jim Smith, English soccer midfielder and manager (Birmingham City, QPR, Portsmouth, Derby County), dies at 79
2020 Barbara Windsor, British actress and Dame (Carry On films, EastEnders). dies at 83
2021 Michael Nesmith, American rock guitarist (The Monkees), and singer-songwriter ("Different Drum"), dies of heart failure at 78 [1]
2022 Beryl Grey [Groom], English prima ballerina (Sadler’s Wells/Royal Ballet, 1941-57), artistic director, and dance teacher, dies at 95 [1]
2022 Grant Wahl, American sports journalist (CBS Sports, Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports), dies from a heart attack covering FIFA World Cup at 48
2022 Paul Silas, American College Basketball HOF forward (NBA C'ship 1974, 76 Boston Celtics, 1979 Seattle SuperSonics; 2 x NBA All-Star) and coach (Charlotte/NO Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Bobcats), dies from a heart attack at 79