Did you know
Aaron Copland is best known for the works he wrote in the 1930s and 1940s in a deliberately accessible style often referred to as "populist" and which he called his "vernacular" style.
Notable Deaths on December 2
1990 — Aaron Copland
American composer and conductor (born 1900)
December 2 has 115 recorded notable deaths across history, from 537 to 2024. This focused page highlights 20 people with the strongest available profile context.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Notable Deaths
115 source records
537 – 2024
Today in history
Major events on December 2
See what else happened on this day in history.
- 1766 Swedish parliament approves the Swedish Freedom of the Press Act and implements it as a ground law, thus being first in the world with freedom of speech. Source
- 1865 Alabama ratifies the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, followed by North Carolina, then Georgia; U.S. slaves were legally free within two weeks. Source
- 1804 At Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Napoleon Bonaparte crowns himself Emperor of the French. Source
- 1962 Vietnam War: After a trip to Vietnam at the request of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield becomes the first American official to comment adversely on the war's progress. Source
Did you know
Robert Cummings received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations, and won the Primetime Emmy Award for Best Actor in a Single Performance in 1955.
Did you know
Philip Larkin's first book of poetry, The North Ship, was published in 1945, followed by two novels, Jill (1946) and A Girl in Winter (1947).
Did you know
Born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Béliveau first played professionally in the Quebec Major Hockey League (QMHL).
Did you know
Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset, KG, PC,, known by the epithet "The Proud Duke", was an English aristocrat and courtier.
More major people who died on December 2
Notable people are ranked by substantive profile depth and public notability.
1990
Robert Cummings
American actor, director, and producer (born 1908)
Charles Clarence Robert Orville Cummings was an American film and television actor who appeared in roles in comedy films such as The Devil and Miss Jones (1941) and Princess O'Rourke (1943), and in dramatic films,…
1985
Philip Larkin
English poet, author, and librarian (born 1922)
Philip Arthur Larkin was an English poet, novelist, and librarian. His first book of poetry, The North Ship, was published in 1945, followed by two novels, Jill (1946) and A Girl in Winter (1947).
2014
Jean Béliveau
Canadian ice hockey player (born 1931)
Joseph Arthur Jean Béliveau was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played parts of 20 seasons with the National Hockey League's (NHL) Montreal Canadiens from 1950 to 1971.
1748
Charles Seymour
6th Duke of Somerset, English politician, Lord President of the Council (born 1662)
Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset, KG, PC,, known by the epithet "The Proud Duke", was an English aristocrat and courtier.
1953
Reginald Baker
Australian rugby player (born 1884)
Reginald Leslie "Snowy" Baker was an Australian athlete, sports promoter, and actor.
1888
Namık Kemal
Turkish journalist, poet, and playwright (born 1840)
Namık Kemal was an Ottoman writer, poet, democrat, intellectual, reformer, journalist, playwright, and political activist who was influential in the formation of the Young Ottomans and their struggle for governmental…
1381
John of Ruusbroec
Flemish priest and mystic (born 1293)
John of Ruusbroec or Jan van Ruusbroec, sometimes modernized Ruysbroeck, was an Augustinian canon and one of the most important of the medieval mystics of the Low Countries.
1987
Luis Federico Leloir
French-Argentinian physician and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1906)
Luis Federico Leloir was an Argentine physician and biochemist who received the 1970 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of the metabolic pathways by which carbohydrates are synthesized and converted into energy…
1255
Muhammad III of Alamut
Nizari Ismaili Imam
ʿAlāʾ al-Dīn Muḥammad III, more commonly known as ʿAlāʾ al-Dīn, son of Jalāl al-Dīn Ḥasan III, was the 26th Nizāri Isma'ilism Imām. He ruled the Nizari Ismaili state from 1221 to 1255.
2004
Alicia Markova
English ballerina and choreographer (born 1910)
Dame Alicia Markova DBE was a British ballerina and a choreographer, director and teacher of classical ballet.
2005
William P. Lawrence
American admiral and pilot (born 1930)
William Porter "Bill" Lawrence was a decorated United States Navy vice admiral and Naval Aviator who served as Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy from 1978 to 1981.
2024
Debbie Mathers
Mother of Eminem (born 1955)
Marshall Bruce Mathers III, known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and record executive.
2000
Gail Fisher
American actress (born 1935)
Gail Fisher was an American actress who was one of the first Black women to play substantive roles in American television.
2002
Ivan Illich
Austrian priest and philosopher (born 1926)
Ivan Dominic Illich was an Austrian Catholic priest, theologian, philosopher, and social critic.
1936
John Ringling
American businessman, co-founded Ringling Brothers Circus (born 1866)
John Nicholas Ringling was an American entrepreneur who is the best known of the seven Ringling brothers, five of whom merged the Barnum & Bailey Circus with their own Ringling Bros.
1953
Trần Trọng Kim
Vietnamese historian, scholar, and politician, Prime Minister of Vietnam (born 1883)
Trần Trọng Kim (Vietnamese: [t͡ɕən˨˩ t͡ɕawŋ͡m˧˨ʔ kim˧˧]; chữ Hán: 陳仲金, Kanji pronunciation: Chin Jūkin; Japanese: チャン・チョン・キム, romanized: Chan Chon Kimu; 1883 – December 2, 1953; courtesy name Lệ Thần was a Vietnamese…
1859
John Brown
American abolitionist (born 1800)
John Brown was an American abolitionist in the decades preceding the American Civil War. An evangelical Christian of strong religious convictions, Brown was profoundly influenced by the Puritan faith of his upbringing.
1969
José María Arguedas
Peruvian anthropologist, author, and poet (born 1911)
José María Arguedas Altamirano was a Peruvian novelist, poet, and anthropologist. Arguedas was an author of mestizo descent who was fluent in the Quechua language.
1463
Albert VI
Archduke of Austria (born 1418)
Albert VI, a member of the House of Habsburg, was Duke of Austria from 1424, elevated to Archduke in 1453.