Famous Deaths on February 27

1862 Gabriele dell' Addolorata, [Francesco Possenti], Italian priest, saint and mystic, (patron of Italian Catholic youth), dies at 23
1874 Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Cuban revolutionary hero, dies at 54
1881 George Colley, British governor of Natal/general, dies in battle at 46
1887 Alexander Borodin, Russian composer and scientist (Robert LeDiable), dies at 53
1892 Anne Clough, English suffragette, promoted higher education for women, first principal of New College, dies at 72

Louis Vuitton (1821-1892)

French founder of the Louis Vuitton brand of leather goods now owned by LVMH, dies at 70

1906 Samuel Pierpont Langley, American astronomer and pioneer aviator, dies at 71
1913 Adam Sedgwick, English zoologist (Peripatus), dies at 58
1920 Alexandru Dimitrie Xenopol, Romanian historian, dies at 72
1921 Schofield Haigh, English cricket fast bowler (11 Tests, 24 wickets, BB 6/11; Yorkshire CCC), dies from a stroke at 49
1923 Charles Francis Abdy Williams, composer, dies at 67
1929 Manuel Manrique de Lara, Spanish composer (The Oresteia), dies at 65
1931 Chandra Sekhar Azad, Indian revolutionary (Hindustan Socialist Republican Army), dies at 24
1932 William Southam, Canadian newspaper publisher, dies at 88

Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936)

Russian physiologist and pioneer in psychology (Nobel Prize 1904), dies at 86

1936 Joshua W. Alexander, U.S. Secretary of Commerce under Woodrow Wilson (b. 1852)
1939 Nadezhda Krupskaya, Russian revolutionary (Central Committee member, Soviet Minister for Education, wife of Vladimir Lenin), dies at 70
1940 Peter Behrens, German architect, dies at 71
1941 William D. Byron, U.S. Congressman (b. 1895)
1942 Karel Doorman, Dutch rear-admiral (Java Sea), KIA at 52
1942 Martha McChesney Berry, American educator who founded Berry School for Children, dies at 75
1943 Kostis Palamas, Greek poet, twice nominated for the Nobel prize (b. 1859)
1945 HJ Lochtman, Dutch chaplain/resistance fighter, dies in Bergen-Belsen
1946 James Cecil Parke, Irish tennis player (Australasian C'ship singles & doubles, Davis Cup 1912; Wimbledon doubles 1914) and rugby union centre (20 caps; Leinster Rugby), dies at 64
1947 Francis MacKinnon, English cricket batsman (1 Test; Kent CCC) and 35th Chief of MacKinnon clan, dies at 98
1950 Ivan Goll, French-German writer (the Landless John), dies at 58
1951 Henry Louis Smith, American physicist who made the first X-ray photograph, dies at 91
1952 Theodoros Pangalos, Greek general and dictator (1926), dies at 74
1955 Tom Howard, Irish-American vaudeville and radio comedian (It Pays To Be Ignorant), dies of heart disease at 66
1956 Frank Dailey, American orchestra leader (Music at Meadowbrook), dies at 54
1956 Gunther Ramin, German organist and composer, dies at 57
1958 Harry Cohn, CEO (Columbia Pictures), dies of a heart attack
1960 Adriano Olivetti, Italian engineer and manufacturer (typewriter), dies at 58
1961 Platt Adams, American field athlete (Olympic gold standing high jump 1912), dies at 75
1962 Willie Best, actor (Charlie-My Little Margie), dies at 45
1963 William Auchterlonie, Scottish golfer (British Open 1893), dies at 90
1964 Orry-Kelly, Australian costume designer (b. 1897)
1968 Frankie Lymon, American pop singer (The Teenagers - "Why Do Fools Fall In Love"), dies of a heroin overdose at 25
1968 Johannes Tralow, German writer (Ottoman tetralogy), dies at 85
1968 Ludvik Podest, Czech composer, music journalist, and conductor dies at 46
1969 John Boles, American singer and actor (Stella Dallas, Curly Top), dies at 73
1969 Marius Barbeau, French Canadian folklorist (b. 1883)
1970 Marie Dionne, one of the French Canadian Dionne quintuplets (b. 1934)
1970 Robert Bruce Lockhart, diplomat/writer, dies
1972 Pat Brady [Robert Ellsworth O'Brady], American actor (The Roy Rogers Show, Man from Music Mountain), dies at 57
1973 Lucijan Marija Skerjanc, Yugoslav conductor and composer, dies at 72
1975 Neville Cardus, English writer and cricketer, dies at 86
1977 Allison Hayes, American model and actress (Attack of the 50 Foot Woman), dies of leukemia or lead poisoning at 47
1977 John Dickson Carr, American mystery writer, dies of lung cancer at 70
1978 Vadim Salmanov, Soviet Russian composer, dies at 65
1980 George Tobias, American actor (Bewitched), dies at 78
1981 Jacob H Gilbert, American politician (US Representative 1960-1971), dies at 60
1982 Malika Sabirova, Soviet Tajik ballet dancer, dies at 39
1985 David Huffman, American actor (FIST, Jane Doe, Firefox, Onion Field), murdered at 39
1985 Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., American politician (Sen-R) and ambassador (West Germany, Vietnam & UN), dies at 82
1985 J Pat O'Malley, Irish-British actor (101 Dalmatians, The Jungle Book), dies at 80
1985 Ray Ellington [Henry Pitts Brown], British jazz drummer, singer and bandleader (The Goon Show), dies of cancer at 68

Jacques Plante (1929-1986)

Canadian Ice Hockey goalie who was the first to wear a goaltender mask, dies of stomach cancer at 57

1987 Joan Greenwood, British actress and director (Kind Hearts and Coronets, Amorous Mr Prawn), dies of a heart attack at 65
1989 Conrad Lorenz, Austria zoologist (Nobel 1973), dies
1989 Joseph "Joe" Silver, American actor (Lenny, Mr I Magination), dies of liver cancer at 66
1989 Konrad Lorenz, Austrian zoologist and ethologist (Man & His Ideas, Nobel Prize 1973), dies at 85
1989 Paul Oswald Ahnert, German astronomer, dies at 91
1990 Les Ames, English cricket wicket-keeper/batsman (47 Tests, 97 dismissals, 2,434 runs @ 40.56), dies at 84
1990 Nahum Norbert Glatzer, Jewish-American scholar (b. 1903)
1991 Hein van Royen, Dutch director of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (1974-91), dies at 52
1991 Robert-Jan Akkerman, Dutch diplomat (to Tunis), murdered
1992 S. I. Hayakawa, Canadian-American academic, politician (U.S. Senator from California, 1977–83) and writer (Language in Action), dies of a stroke at 85
1993 Jose Duval, actor (Juan Valdez), dies at 72
1993 Lillian Gish, American silent film/stage actress (Birth of a Nation), dies at 99
1993 Marģeris Zariņš, Latvian composer and writer, dies at 82
1993 Marlena Davis, American pop singer (The Orlons - "Don't Hang Up"; "South Street"), dies of lung cancer at 48
1994 "Hans" Leopold Kohr, Austrian social philosopher and economist, dies at 84
1994 Harold Acton, English-Italian historian and art collector, dies at 84
1994 Karl I Pelgrom, Dutch sculptor, dies at 66
1994 Laurence Craigie, American aviator (1st US jet pilot), dies at 92
1994 Roosevelt Holts, American blues singer and guitarist, dies at 89
1995 Bernard Cornfield, financier, dies at 67
1995 Philip Sherrington, opus Dei Priest, dies at 51
1996 Francois Chaumette, French actor (Le Bossu, They Never Slept, Christine), dies at 72
1996 George Ian Murray, 10th Duke of Atholl, dies at 64
1996 Pat Smythe, English equestrian rider (Olympic bronze team jumps 1956; author children's books), dies from heart disease at 67
1996 Sarah Palfrey Cooke, American tennis player (US Nat C'ship 1941, 45), dies of lung cancer at 83
1996 Sylvia Williams, museum director/curator, dies at 60
1996 Vic Janowicz, American College Football Hall of Fame halfback (Heisman Trophy 1950, Ohio State; NFL: Washington Redskins), dies of cancer at 66
1997 Kingsley Davis, American sociologist and demographer (coined the term "population explosion"), dies at 88
1998 George H. Hitchings, American scientist (Nobel laureate 1988), dies at 92
1998 J. T. Walsh, American actor (Good Morning, Vietnam, Pleasantville), dies of a heart attack at 54
1999 Horace Tapscott, American jazz pianist and composer (Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, 1961-98), dies at 64

Spike Milligan (1918-2002)

Irish-British actor and comedian (The Goon Show, 3 Musketeers), dies of kidney failure at 83

Fred Rogers (1928-2003)

American children's TV host (Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood), Presbyterian minister, dies of stomach cancer at age 74

2003 John Lanchbery, British-Australian composer and conductor (Royal Ballet, 1959-72; Australian Ballet, 1972-77; American Ballet Theatre, 1978-80), dies at 79
2004 Paul Sweezy, American Marxist economist and editor (Monthly Review), dies at 93
2004 Yoshihiko Amino, Japanese historians (b. 1928)
2005 Allan Rae, Jamaican cricketer (prolific WI opening batsman 1948-53), dies at 82
2006 Linda Smith, British comedian (b. 1958)
2006 Milton Katims, American violist and conductor (Seattle Symphony, 1954–76), dies at 96
2006 Otis Chandler, American newspaper publisher (b. 1927)
2006 Robert Lee Scott, Jr., American General and Air Force pilot, dies at 97
2007 Bernd von Freytag-Loringhoven, German soldier (b. 1914)
2007 Bobby Rosengarden, American jazz drummer and bandleader, dies of Alzheimer's disease at 82
2008 Anthony Blond, British publisher (The Publishing Game, Book Book), dies at 79
2008 Boyd Coddington, American automobile designer (b. 1944)
2008 Myron Cope, American sports broadcaster (b. 1929)
2008 William F. Buckley Jr, American conservative author and commentator (National Review, Firing Line), dies of a heart attack at 82
2010 Madeleine Ferron, French Canadian writer, dies at 87
2011 Duke Snider, American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (8 x MLB All Star; World Series 1955, 59; Brooklyn / LA Dodgers), dies at 84
2011 Eddie Kirkland, Jamaican-American blues guitarist, singer and harmonica player (Have Mercy On Me), dies in a car accident at 87
2011 Frank Buckles, last surviving American World War I veteran (b. 1901)
2012 Tina Strobos, Dutch physician and resistor to Nazi occupation, dies from cancer at 91
2013 Dale Robertson, American actor (Death Valley Days, Tales of Wells Fargo, The Iron Horse), dies at 89
2013 Richard Street, American R&B musician (The Temptations), dies at 70
2013 Stephane Hessel, German-born French diplomat, dies at 95
2013 Van Cliburn, American pianist (Tchaikovsky Competition winner, 1958), dies at 78
2015 Boris Nemtsov, Russian politician, dies at 55, after being shot four times in Moscow

Leonard Nimoy (1931-2015)

American actor (Star Trek - "Spock"'; Mission Impossible, 1969-71), and director (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock; Three Men and a Baby), dies of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at 83

2015 Malcolm Boyd, American Episcopal Priest, author and civil rights activist, dies at 91
2015 Tod Dockstader, American electronic and musique concrète composer, dies at 82
2016 George Kennedy, American actor (Cool Hand Luke, Naked Gun films), dies at 91
2017 Jórunn Viðar, Icelandic pianist and composer, dies at 98
2018 Luciano Benjamín Menéndez, Argentine general, Commander of the Third Army Corps (1975-79), and convicted human rights violator and murderer, dies of cardiogenic shock at 90
2019 Bill Playle, New Zealand cricket batsman (8 Tests), dies at 80
2019 Doug Sandom, British drummer (The Who, 1962-64), dies at 89
2019 France-Albert René, 2nd President of Seychelles (1977-2004), dies at 83
2019 Nathaniel Taylor, American actor (Rollo-Sanford & Sons), dies at 80
2022 Hanna Havrylets, Ukrainian composer (David's Psalms; Ėlegiya), and educator, dies of an aneurysm at 63
2022 Sonny Ramadhin, West Indian cricket spin bowler (43 Tests, 158 wickets, BB 7/49), dies at 92