Notable Deaths on February 15

Jo Raquel Welch was an American actress. Welch first gained attention for her role in Fantastic Voyage (1966), after which she signed a long-term contract with 20th Century Fox. They lent her contract to the British studio Hammer Film Productions, for whom she made One Million Years B.C. (1966). Although Welch had only three lines of dialogue in the film, images of her in a doe-skin bikini became bestselling posters that turned her into an international sex symbol. She later starred in Bedazzled (1967), Bandolero! (1968), 100 Rifles (1969), Myra Breckinridge (1970), Hannie Caulder (1971), Kansas City Bomber (1972), The Last of Sheila (1973), The Three Musketeers (1973), The Wild Party (1975), and Mother, Jugs & Speed (1976). She made several television variety specials.

Richard Phillips Feynman was an American theoretical physicist. He shared the 1965 Nobel Prize in Physics with Julian Schwinger and Shin'ichirō Tomonaga "for their fundamental work in quantum electrodynamics (QED), with deep-ploughing consequences for the physics of elementary particles". He is also known for his work in the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics, the theory of the physics of the superfluidity of supercooled liquid helium, and the parton model. Feynman developed a pictorial representation scheme for the mathematical expressions describing the behavior of subatomic particles, which later became known as Feynman diagrams and remains widely used.

Caroline Louise Flack was an English television presenter. Flack grew up in Norfolk and took an interest in dancing and theatre while at school. She began her professional career as an actress, starring in the comedy sketch show Bo' Selecta! (2002), and went on to present various ITV2 shows including I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW! (2009–2010) and The Xtra Factor (2011–2013).

Nathaniel Adams Coles, known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's career as a jazz and pop vocalist started in the late 1930s and spanned almost three decades, during which he found success and recorded over 100 songs that became hits on the pop charts.

Princess Caroline Lee Radziwill, previously known as Lee Canfield and Lee Ross, was an American socialite, public relations executive, and interior designer. She was the younger sister of former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy and sister-in-law of President John F. Kennedy.

Denise Katherine Matthews, known professionally as Vanity, was a Canadian singer, songwriter, dancer, model, and actress. Known for her image as a sex symbol in the 1980s, in the 1990s she renounced her career as Vanity and became an evangelist.

Ethel Merman was an American singer and actress. Known for her distinctive, powerful voice, and her leading roles in musical theater, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage." Variety claimed that she probably starred in more hit musicals than any other performer on Broadway – having starred in Girl Crazy, Du Barry Was a Lady, Panama Hattie, Anything Goes, Annie Get Your Gun, Call Me Madam and Gypsy. They also called her "one of the tiny handful of Broadway stars who had the talent, vitality, personality and drive to carry a show to critical and boxoffice success on her own." Among many accolades, she received the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance in Call Me Madam, a Grammy Award for the Gypsy original Broadway cast album, and a Drama Desk Award for Hello, Dolly!

Edgar McLean Stevenson Jr. was an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake in the television series M*A*S*H, which earned him a Golden Globe Award in 1974. Stevenson also appeared on a number of television series, notably The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, The Doris Day Show and Match Game.

Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, was a British statesman, Liberal politician and barrister who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 until his resignation in 1916. Having served as Leader of the Opposition from 1920 to 1922, Asquith was the last member of the Liberal Party to do so, and the last prime minister from the Party to command a majority government, which he had inherited from Henry Campbell-Bannerman.

Wallace Maynard Cox was an American actor. He began his career as a stand-up comedian and played the title character of the early American television series Mister Peepers from 1952 to 1955. He also appeared as a character actor in over 20 films and dozens of television episodes. Cox was the voice of the animated canine superhero Underdog in the Underdog TV series.

Ferdinand II was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, Hungary, and Croatia from 1619 until his death in 1637. He was the son of Archduke Charles II of Inner Austria and Maria of Bavaria, who were devout Catholics. In 1590, it was when Ferdinand was 11 years old, they sent him to study at the Jesuits' college in Ingolstadt because they wanted to isolate him from the Lutheran nobles. A few months later, his father died, and he inherited Inner Austria–Styria, Carinthia, Carniola and smaller provinces. His cousin, Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor, who was the head of the Habsburg family, appointed regents to administer these lands.

Martha Ellis Gellhorn was an American journalist, novelist, and travel writer who is considered one of the great war correspondents of the 20th century. She reported on virtually every major world conflict that took place during her 60-year career.

Bappi Lahiri, also known as Bappi Da, was an Indian singer, composer and record producer. He popularised the use of synthesised disco music in Indian music industry and sang some of his own compositions. He was popular in the 1980s and 1990s with filmi soundtracks. He delivered major box office successes primarily in Hindi, Telugu, and Bengali films. His music was well received into the 21st century.

Michael Bernard Bloomfield was an American blues guitarist and composer. Born in Chicago, he became one of the first popular music stars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrumental prowess, as he rarely sang before 1969. Respected for his guitar playing, Bloomfield knew and played with many of Chicago's blues musicians before achieving his own fame and was instrumental in popularizing blues music in the mid-1960s. In 1965, he played on Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited, including the single "Like a Rolling Stone", and performed with Dylan at that year's Newport Folk Festival.

Mirza Asadullah Beg Khan, commonly known as Mirza Ghalib, was an Indian poet and letter writer of the Mughal Empire. Writing in Persian and Urdu during the final years of the Mughal Empire and the rise of British colonial rule, his poetry often addressed themes of love, loss, philosophy, the human condition, and socio-political disturbances with a depth and complexity that influenced the literary traditions of his time. His ghazals, noted for their intricate imagery and layered meanings, form a significant part of Urdu literature. He spent most of his life in poverty.

George Gaynes was a Dutch-American singer, actor, and voice artist. Born to a Dutch father and a Russian mother in the Grand Duchy of Finland of the Russian Empire, he served in the Royal Netherlands Navy during World War II, and subsequently emigrated to the United States, where he became a citizen and began his acting career on Broadway.

Lewis Wallace was an American lawyer, Union general in the American Civil War, governor of New Mexico Territory, politician, diplomat, artist, inventor, and author from Indiana. Among his novels and biographies, Wallace is best known for his historical adventure story, Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1880), a bestselling novel that has been called "the most influential Christian book of the nineteenth century."

Kevin Tod Smith was a New Zealand actor and musician, best known for starring as the Greek god of war, Ares, in the TV series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and in its two spin-offs – Xena: Warrior Princess and Young Hercules.

Air Chief Marshal Hugh Caswall Tremenheere Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding was a senior officer in the Royal Air Force. He was Air Officer Commanding RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain and is generally credited with playing a crucial role in Britain's defence, and hence, the defeat of Operation Sea Lion, Adolf Hitler's plan to invade Britain.

Patrick Jake O'Rourke was an American author, journalist, and political satirist who wrote twenty-two books on subjects as diverse as politics, cars, etiquette, and economics. His books Parliament of Whores and Give War a Chance both reached No. 1 on The New York Times bestseller list.

Gotthold Ephraim Lessing was a German philosopher, dramatist, publicist and art critic. He was a representative of the Enlightenment. His plays and theoretical writings substantially influenced the development of German literature. He is widely considered by theatre historians to be the first dramaturg in his role at Abel Seyler's Hamburg National Theatre. The word "dramaturgy" first appears in his work Hamburg Dramaturgy.

Muhsin Hendricks was a South African imam, Islamic scholar and LGBTQ activist. He was involved in various LGBTQ Muslim advocacy groups and was an advocate for greater acceptance of LGBTQ people within Islam. He has been described as the world's first openly gay imam, having come out in 1996. Hendricks died from gunfire wounds in an attack in February 2025 in Bethelsdorp, South Africa. In an obituary, The Economist wrote that Hendricks "fought homophobia with the Quran", and that his ministry provided "meeting places, a mosque, constant reassurance and two human-rights foundations to defend Muslims torn between their faith and their sexuality".

Samuel Todd Francis was an American writer and academic. He was a columnist and editor for the conservative Washington Times until he was dismissed in 1995 after making racist remarks at the American Renaissance conference a year earlier. Francis would later become a "dominant force" on the Council of Conservative Citizens, a white supremacist organization identified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). Francis was the chief editor of the council's newsletter, Citizens Informer, until his death in 2005. The white supremacist Jared Taylor called Francis "the premier philosopher of white racial consciousness of our time".

Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognition within his own country and is often regarded as the fountainhead of Russian classical music. His compositions were an important influence on other Russian composers, notably the members of The Five, who produced a distinctive Russian style of music.

Andrew Stuart McLean, was a Canadian radio broadcaster, humorist, monologist, and author, best known as the host of the CBC Radio program The Vinyl Cafe. Often described as a "story-telling comic" although his stories addressed both humorous and serious themes, he was known for fiction and non-fiction work which celebrated the decency and dignity of ordinary people, through stories which often highlighted the ability of their subjects, whether real or fictional, to persevere with grace and humour through embarrassing or challenging situations.

Tiberius III, born Apsimar, was Eastern Roman emperor from 698 to 705. Little is known about his early life, other than that he was a droungarios, a mid-level commander, who served in the Cibyrrhaeot Theme. In 696, Tiberius was part of an army sent by Byzantine Emperor Leontius to retake the North African city of Carthage, which had been captured by the Arab Umayyads. After seizing the city, this army was pushed back by Umayyad reinforcements and retreated to the island of Crete. As they feared the wrath of Leontius, some officers killed their commander, John the Patrician, and declared Tiberius the emperor. Tiberius swiftly gathered a fleet and sailed for Constantinople, where he then deposed Leontius. Tiberius did not attempt to retake Byzantine Africa from the Umayyads, but campaigned against them along the eastern border with some success. In 705, former emperor Justinian II, who had been deposed by Leontius, led an army of Slavs and Bulgars from the First Bulgarian Empire to Constantinople, and after entering the city secretly, deposed Tiberius. Tiberius fled to Bithynia, but was captured a few months later and beheaded by Justinian between August 705 and February 706. His body was initially thrown into the sea, but was later recovered and buried in a church on the island of Prote.

Conrad III of the Hohenstaufen dynasty was from 1116 to 1120 Duke of Franconia, from 1127 to 1135 anti-king of his predecessor Lothair III, and from 1138 until his death in 1152 King of the Romans in the Holy Roman Empire. He was the son of Duke Frederick I of Swabia and Agnes, a daughter of Emperor Henry IV.

Christopher Malcolm was a British-Canadian actor, director, and producer. He first achieved notoriety for his role as Brad Majors in the original stage production of The Rocky Horror Show.

Jorge Camilo Torres Restrepo, also known by his nom de guerre Argemiro, was a Colombian Catholic political leader, revolutionary, guerilla, priest, author and a leader of the National Liberation Army (ELN). During his life, he sought to reconcile revolutionary socialism and Catholicism, an ideology which became known as Camilism. This ideology would significantly influence the later liberation theology movement, as well as being adopted by the Montoneros.

Leontius was Byzantine emperor under the regnal name Leo from 695 to 698. Little is known of his early life, other than that he was born in Isauria in Asia Minor. He was given the title of patrikios, and made strategos of the Anatolic Theme under Emperor Constantine IV. He led forces against the Umayyads during the early years of Justinian II's reign, securing victory and forcing the Umayyad caliph, Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, to sue for peace.

Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth was a British Tory statesman who served as prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1804 and as Speaker of the House of Commons from 1789 to 1801.

Antonio Garrido Monteagudo, better known as Antonio Moreno or Tony Moreno, was a Spanish-born American actor and film director of the silent film era and through the 1950s.

Michael Praetorius was a German composer, organist, and music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of musical forms based on Protestant hymns.

Henry "Orator" Hunt was an English radical speaker and agitator remembered as a pioneer of working-class radicalism and an important influence on the later Chartist movement. He advocated parliamentary reform and the repeal of the Corn Laws. He was the first member of parliament to advocate for women's suffrage; in 1832 he presented a petition to parliament from a woman asking for the right to vote. He was the leading figure in the events leading to the Peterloo massacre.

Howard Kingsbury Smith was an American journalist, radio reporter, television anchorman, political commentator, and film actor. He was one of the original members of the team of war correspondents known as the Murrow Boys.

Laurence Rochon "Laurie" Owen was an American figure skater. She was the 1961 U.S. National Champion and represented the United States at the 1960 Winter Olympics, where she placed sixth. She was the daughter of Maribel Vinson and Guy Owen and the sister of Maribel Owen. Owen died, along with her mother, sister and the entire United States Figure Skating team, in the crash of Sabena Flight 548 en route to the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships. In 2011, on the 50th anniversary of the crash, Owen and the entire team was inducted into the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame.

Steven Richard "The Matador" Montador was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played 571 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres and Chicago Blackhawks before ending his career in 2014 as a member of Medveščak Zagreb of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).

George Brendan Armitage was an American filmmaker and writer best known for directing the films Miami Blues (1990) and Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), as well as for frequent collaborations with Roger Corman.

Jorge Nuno de Lima Pinto da Costa was a Portuguese sports executive, who was president of Portuguese sports club Porto from 1982 until 2024. He was the president with most titles won (69) in the history of football and most days in charge as a president of association football club.

Thelma Estrin was an American computer scientist and engineer who did pioneering work in the fields of expert systems and biomedical engineering. Estrin was one of the first to apply computer technology to healthcare and medical research. In 1954, Estrin helped to design the Weizmann Automatic Computer, or WEIZAC, the first computer in Israel and the Middle East, a moment marked as an IEEE Milestone in Electrical and Computer Engineering. She was professor emerita in the Department of Computer Science, University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

Minnie Maddern Fiske, but often billed simply as Mrs. Fiske, was one of the leading American actresses of the late 19th and early 20th century. She also spearheaded the fight against the Theatrical Syndicate for the sake of artistic freedom. She was widely considered the most important actress on the American stage in the first quarter of the 20th century. Her performances in several Henrik Ibsen plays helped introduce American audiences to the Norwegian playwright. She was also an influential campaigner for improving animal welfare.

Kuzma Sergeyevich Petrov-Vodkin was a Russian and Soviet painter. His early iconographic work used special creative effects based on the curve of the globe, but its images were considered blasphemous by the Russian Orthodox Church. However he went on to become the first president of the Leningrad Union of Soviet Artists. His autobiographical writings attracted much praise, and have enjoyed a later revival. He was one of the members of the art association ‘The Four Arts’, which existed in Moscow and Leningrad in 1924-1931.

Gisela of Swabia, was queen of Germany from 1024 to 1039 and empress of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 to 1039 by her third marriage with Emperor Conrad II. She was the mother of Emperor Henry III. She was regent of Swabia for her minor son Duke Ernest II of Swabia in 1015, although it seems at that time her husband Conrad was the one who held the reins of government, leading to the enmity between stepfather and stepson.

Pope Lucius II, born Gherardo Caccianemici dal Orso, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1144 to his death in 1145. His pontificate was notable for the unrest in Rome associated with the Commune of Rome and its attempts to wrest control of the city from the papacy. He supported Empress Matilda's claim to the Kingdom of England in the Anarchy, and had a tense relationship with King Roger II of Sicily.

Arnaud Charles Paul Marie Philippe de Borchgrave was a Belgian–American journalist who specialized in international politics. Following a long career with the news magazine Newsweek, covering 17 wars in 30 years as a foreign correspondent, he held key editorial and executive positions with The Washington Times and United Press International. Borchgrave was also a founding member of Newsmax Media.

Henry Way Kendall was an American particle physicist who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1990 jointly with Jerome Isaac Friedman and Richard E. Taylor "for their pioneering investigations concerning deep inelastic scattering of electrons on protons and bound neutrons, which have been of essential importance for the development of the quark model in particle physics."

Raymond Bernard Evans was an American songwriter best known for being a half of a composing-songwriting duo with Jay Livingston, specializing himself in writing lyrics for film songs. On music Livingston composed, Evans wrote the lyrics.

José de Acosta, SJ was a sixteenth-century Spanish Jesuit missionary and naturalist in Latin America. His deductions regarding the ill effects of crossing over the Andes in 1570 related to the atmosphere being too thin for human needs led to the modern understanding of a variety of altitude sickness, now referred to as Acosta's disease.

William Ufford, 2nd Earl of Suffolk was an English nobleman in the reigns of Edward III and Richard II. He was the son of Robert Ufford, who was created Earl of Suffolk by Edward III in 1337. William had three older brothers who all predeceased him, and in 1369 he succeeded his father.

Richard de Vere, 11th Earl of Oxford KG was the son and heir of Aubrey de Vere, 10th Earl of Oxford. He took part in the trial of Richard, Earl of Cambridge, and Lord Scrope for their part in the Southampton Plot, and was one of the commanders at Agincourt in 1415.

Giovanni II Bentivoglio was an Italian nobleman who was the de-facto ruler of Bologna from 1463 until 1506. He had no formal position, but held power as the city's "first citizen." The Bentivoglio family ruled over Bologna from 1443, and repeatedly attempted to consolidate their hold of the Signoria of the city.

Major General Jeanne Marjorie Holm was the first female one-star general of the United States Air Force and the first female two-star general in any service branch of the United States. Holm was a driving force behind the expansion of women's roles in the Air Force.

Leopold Hermann Ludwig von Boyen was a Prussian army officer who helped to reform the Prussian Army in the early 19th century. He also served as minister of war of Prussia in the period 1810–1813 and again from 1 March 1841 – 6 October 1847.

Sir Edward William Stafford served as the third premier of New Zealand on three occasions in the mid 19th century. His total time in office is the longest of any leader without a political party. He is described as pragmatic, logical, and clear-sighted.

Kurt Magnus Atterberg was a Swedish composer and civil engineer. Along with Ture Rangström, he was one the foremost Swedish composers of the generation succeeding Wilhelm Peterson-Berger, Wilhelm Stenhammar and Hugo Alfvén. Atterberg is best known for his symphonies, operas, and ballets.

Mohammad Haron Amin was the Afghan ambassador to Japan from 2004–2009. He is also known for his role as spokesman for the Northern Alliance during the U.S.-led invasion of his country after the events of September 11, 2001.

Rayko Ivanov (Yoanov) Zhinzifov or Rajko Ivanov (Jovanov) Žinzifov,, born Ksenofont Dzindzifi, was a Bulgarian National Revival poet and translator from Veles in today's North Macedonia, who spent most of his life in the Russian Empire.

Jens Ingebret Evensen was a Norwegian lawyer, judge, politician, trade minister, international offshore rights expert, member of the International Law Commission and judge at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

Pierre François Verhulst was a Belgian mathematician and a doctor in number theory from the University of Ghent in 1825. He is best known for the logistic growth model.

Lionel John Alexander Monckton was an English composer of musical theatre. He became Britain's most popular composer of Edwardian musical comedy in the early years of the 20th century.

Sir Owen Willans Richardson was a British physicist who received the 1928 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on thermionic emission and for the discovery of Richardson's law.

Theodor Escherich was a German-Austrian pediatrician and a professor at the University of Graz and the University of Vienna. He discovered and described the bacterium Escherichia coli.

Sanan Kachornprasart was a Thai politician and military officer. He was deputy prime minister in the cabinet of Abhisit Vejjajiva, and was chief advisor of Chartthaipattana Party.

Matthias Bernard Braun was a sculptor and carver active in the Kingdom of Bohemia, one of the most prominent late baroque style sculptors in the area.

Archibald Menzies was a Scottish surgeon, botanist and naturalist. He spent many years at sea, serving with the Royal Navy, private merchants, and the Vancouver Expedition.

François-Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier, also known under shorter names such as François-Marie-Thomas de Lorimier, Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier or Chevalier de Lorimier, was a notary who fought as a Patriote and Frère chasseur for the independence of Lower Canada in the Lower Canada Rebellion. For these actions, he was incarcerated at the Montreal Pied-du-Courant Prison and was hanged at the site by the British authorities.

Leopold Damrosch was a German-American orchestral conductor, composer, violinist, and teacher. He was the patriarch of the Damrosch family, which includes Frank and Walter Damrosch.

Mitromaras was a Greek rebel and pirate who took part in the Orlov Revolt (1770).

Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen was a Prussian general.

Germinal Pierre Dandelin was a French mathematician, soldier, and professor of engineering.

Gregor von Helmersen or Grigory Petrovich Helmersen was a Baltic German geologist.

Dimitrie Ghica or Ghika was a Romanian politician. A prominent member of the Conservative Party, he served as Prime Minister between 1868 and 1870.

Patrick Peter O'Sullivan was an Australian-American cartoonist, pioneer animator and film producer, best known for producing the first Felix the Cat silent cartoons.

Vincent de Moro-Giafferi was a French criminal attorney.

Gerard Ciołek was a Polish architect, as well as a leading historian of parks and gardens.

Karl Richter was a German conductor, choirmaster, organist, and harpsichordist.

William Howard Schuman was an American composer and arts administrator.

John Angus MacLean was a politician and farmer in Prince Edward Island, Canada.

Pierre Bachelet was a French singer-songwriter and film score composer.

Walker Robert Edmiston was an American actor and puppeteer.

Kenneth Eugene Weaver was an American professional wrestler and wrestling commentator in the National Wrestling Alliance, better known by his ring name, Johnny Weaver.