Notable Deaths on January 16

Q: Who died on January 16?

Notable people who died on January 16 include: Gao Jifu, Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ali al-Madhara'i, Polyeuctus of Constantinople, Shinran Shonin, Buqa.

Q: What is Charles Pelham Villiers known for?

Charles Pelham Villiers, English lawyer and politician (born 1802)

1898 — Charles Pelham Villiers

English lawyer and politician (born 1802)

January 16 has seen 119 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 654 – 2025. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.

By thisDay.info Editorial Team · January 16 — Wikipedia

Notable Deaths 119 people 654 – 2025

Did you know

He progressed numerous other reforms, most notably the Metropolitan Poor Act 1867

Did you know

He also holds the distinction of the oldest candidate to win a parliamentary seat, at 93

Did you know

He sat in the House of Commons for 63 years, from 1835 to 1898, making him the longest-serving Member of Parliament (MP)

Did you know

He was a radical and reformer who often collaborated with John Bright and had a noteworthy effect in the leadership of the Anti-Corn Law League, until the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846

Did you know

Lord Palmerston appointed him to the cabinet as president of the Poor-Law Board in 1859

Gao Jifu

Chinese politician and chancellor (born 596)

Gao Feng, better known by his courtesy name Gao Jifu and also posthumously known as Duke Xian of Tiao, was a Chinese official who served as a chancellor during the reigns of the emperors Taizong and Gaozong in the Tang…

654

Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ali al-Madhara'i

Tulunid vizier (born 871)

Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ali al-Madhara'i (871–957) was the last important representative of the bureaucratic al-Madhara'i dynasty of fiscal officials. He served as director of finances of Egypt and Syria under the Tulunid…

957

Polyeuctus of Constantinople

Byzantine patriarch (born 956)

Polyeuctus of Constantinople was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople (956–970). His orthodox feast is on 5 February.

970

Shinran Shonin

Japanese founder of the Jodo Shinshu branch of Pure Land Buddhism (born 1173)

Shinran was a key Japanese Buddhist figure of the Kamakura Period who is regarded as the founder of the Jōdo Shinshū school of Japanese Buddhism. A pupil of Hōnen, the founder of the Japanese Pure Land movement,…

1263

Buqa

Mongol minister

Buqa was a Mongol lord and chancellor who was instrumental in sweeping Arghun to power as the fourth Il-Khan of Iran in 1284 and became his chief minister (vizier) and advisor, succeeding Shams ad-Din Juvayni whom…

1289

Nikephoros Choumnos

Byzantine monk, scholar, and politician (born 1250)

Nikephoros Choumnos was a Byzantine scholar and official of the early Palaiologan period, one of the most important figures in the flowering of arts and letters of the so-called "Palaiologan Renaissance". He is notable…

1327

Joanna of Châtillon

duchess of Athens (born c.1285)

Joanna of Châtillon or Joan, French: Jeanne; was the wife of Walter V of Brienne (1305). She was Duchess of Athens by marriage (1308–1311). She was the daughter of Gaucher V de Châtillon, Constable of France and…

1354

Humphrey de Bohun

7th Earl of Hereford (born 1342)

Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford, 6th Earl of Essex, 2nd Earl of Northampton was the son of William de Bohun, 1st Earl of Northampton, and Elizabeth de Badlesmere, and grandson of Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of…

1373

Muhammed V of Granada

Nasrid emir (born 1338)

Abu Abdallah Muhammad V, known by the regnal name al-Ghani bi'llah, was the eighth Nasrid ruler of the Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus on the Iberian Peninsula.

1391

John Holland

1st Duke of Exeter, English politician, Lord Great Chamberlain (born 1352)

John Holland, 1st Duke of Exeter, 1st Earl of Huntingdon of Dartington Hall in Devon, was a half-brother of King Richard II (1377–1399), to whom he remained strongly loyal. He is primarily remembered for being suspected…

1400

Erasmo of Narni

Italian mercenary (born 1370)

Erasmo Stefano of Narni, better known by his nickname of Gattamelata, was an Italian condottiero of the Renaissance. He was born in Narni, and served a number of Italian city-states: he began with Braccio da Montone,…

1443

George Spalatin

German priest and reformer (born 1484)

Georg(e) Spalatin was the pseudonym taken by Georg Burkhardt, a German humanist, theologian, reformer, secretary of the Saxon Elector Frederick the Wise, as well as an important figure in the history of the Reformation.

1545

Johannes Schöner

German astronomer and cartographer (born 1477)

Johannes Schöner was a German polymath. It is best to refer to him using the usual 16th-century Latin term "mathematicus", as the areas of study to which he devoted his life were very different from those now considered…

1547

Christiern Pedersen

Danish publisher and scholar (born 1480)

Christiern Pedersen was a Danish canon, humanist scholar, writer, printer and publisher.

1554

Edward Clinton

1st Earl of Lincoln, English admiral and politician (born 1512)

Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln, KG was an English landowner, peer, and Lord High Admiral. He rendered valuable service to four of the Tudor monarchs.

1585

Murad III

Ottoman sultan (born 1546)

Murad III was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1574 until his death in 1595.

1595

Mariana de Jesús Torres

Spanish nun and mystic (born 1563)

Mariana Francisca de Jesús Torres y Berriochoa OIC,, was an abbess of the Conceptionist Monastery of Quito from 1594 to 1635.

1635

Charles Annibal Fabrot

French lawyer (born 1580)

Charles Annibal Fabrot was a French jurisconsult.

1659

Higashiyama

Japanese emperor (born 1675)

Asahito , posthumously honored as Emperor Higashiyama , was the 113th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Higashiyama's reign spanned the years from 1687 through to his abdication in 1709…

1710

Joseph Vaz

Indian-Sri Lankan priest and saint (born 1651)

Joseph Vaz CO was a Oratorian priest and missionary in Dutch Ceylon. Originally from Sancoale in Portuguese Goa, Vaz arrived in Ceylon during the Dutch occupation, a time when the Dutch had banned Catholicism in Ceylon…

1711

Barthold Heinrich Brockes

German poet and playwright (born 1680)

Barthold Heinrich Brockes was a German poet.

1747

Arnold Drakenborch

Dutch lawyer and scholar (born 1684)

Arnold Drakenborch was a Dutch classical scholar.

1748

Ivan Trubetskoy

Russian field marshal and politician (born 1667)

Prince Ivan Yurievich Trubetskoy was a Russian field marshal, promoted in 1728. The son of Yuriy Trubetskoy, as a member of the House of Trubetskoy, he was a member of the inner circle of Tsar Peter I of Russia of the…

1750

Francis Blomefield

English historian and author (born 1705)

Rev. Francis Blomefield, FSA, Rector of Fersfield in Norfolk, was an English antiquarian who wrote a county history of Norfolk: An Essay Towards a Topographical History of the County of Norfolk. It includes detailed…

1752

Edward Gibbon

English historian and politician (born 1737)

Edward Gibbon was a British essayist, historian and minor politician. His most important and influential work, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, was published in six volumes between 1776 and 1789,…

1794

John Moore

Scottish general and politician (born 1761)

Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore was a British Army officer and Whig politician who represented Lanark Burghs in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1784 to 1790. He is known for his military training reforms…

1809

Alexander J. Dallas

Jamaican-American lawyer and politician, sixth United States Secretary of the Treasury (born 1759)

Alexander James Dallas was an American statesman who served as the 6th United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1814 to 1816 under President James Madison. He was also a lawyer who worked as the United States…

1817

Jean Nicolas Pierre Hachette

French mathematician and academic (born 1769)

Jean Nicolas Pierre Hachette, French mathematician, was born at Mézières, where his father was a bookseller.

1834

Thaddeus William Harris

American entomologist and botanist (born 1795)

Thaddeus William Harris was an American entomologist and librarian. His focus on insect life cycles and interactions with plants was influential in broadening American entomological studies beyond a narrow taxonomic…

1856

Anton Schindler

Austrian secretary and author (born 1795)

Anton Felix Schindler was an Austrian law clerk and associate, secretary, and early biographer of Ludwig van Beethoven.

1864

Edmond François Valentin About

French journalist and author (born 1828)

Edmond François Valentin About was a French novelist, publicist and journalist.

1865

Octave Crémazie

Canadian-French poet and bookseller (born 1827)

Octave Crémazie was a French Canadian poet and bookseller born in Quebec City. Recognized both during and after his lifetime for his patriotic verse and his significant role in the cultural development of Quebec,…

1879

Amilcare Ponchielli

Italian composer and academic (born 1834)

Amilcare Ponchielli was an Italian opera composer, best known for his opera La Gioconda. He was married to the soprano Teresina Brambilla.

1886

Léo Delibes

French pianist and composer (born 1836)

Clément Philibert Léo Delibes was a French Romantic composer, best known for his ballets and operas. His works include the ballets Coppélia (1870) and Sylvia (1876) and the opera Lakmé (1883), which includes the…

1891

Jules Barbier

French poet and playwright (born 1825)

Paul Jules Barbier was a French poet, writer and opera librettist who often wrote in collaboration with Michel Carré.

1901

Arnold Böcklin

Swiss painter and academic (born 1827)

Arnold Böcklin was a Swiss Symbolist painter. His five versions of the Isle of the Dead inspired works by several late Romantic composers.

1901

Hiram Rhodes Revels

American soldier, minister, and politician (born 1822)

Hiram Rhodes Revels was an American politician, minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and college administrator. Born free in North Carolina, he later lived and worked in Ohio, where he voted before the…

1901

Mahadev Govind Ranade

Indian scholar, social reformer, judge and author (born 1842)

Rao Bahadur Mahadev Govind Ranade, popularly referred to as Nyayamurti Ranade, was an Indian scholar, social reformer, judge and author. He was one of the founders of the Indian National Congress party and held several…

1901

Marshall Field

American businessman and philanthropist, founded Marshall Field's (born 1834)

Marshall Field was an American entrepreneur and the founder of Marshall Field and Company, the Chicago-based department stores.

1906

George Dewey

American admiral (born 1837)

George Dewey was Admiral of the Navy, the only person in United States history to have attained that rank. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish–American War, without a single…

1917

Rodrigues Alves

Brazilian lawyer and politician, fifth President of Brazil (born 1848)

Francisco de Paula Rodrigues Alves was a Brazilian politician and statesman who served as the fifth president of Brazil, from 1902 to 1906. Alves was elected in 1902, becoming the third consecutive São Paulo native to…

1919

Bekir Sami Kunduh

Turkish politician (born 1867)

Bekir Sami Bey was a Turkish politician of Ossetian origin. He served as the first Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey during 1920–1921.

1933

Albert Fish

American serial killer, rapist and cannibal (born 1870)

Hamilton Howard "Albert" Fish was an American serial killer, rapist, child molester and cannibal who committed at least three child murders between July 1924 and June 1928. He was also known as the Gray Man, the…

1936

Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Indian author and playwright (born 1876)

Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay was a Bengali novelist and short story writer of the early 20th century. He generally wrote about the lives of Bengali family and society in cities and villages. However, his keen powers of…

1938

Prince Arthur

Duke of Connaught and Strathearn (born 1850)

Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, was the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He served as Governor General of Canada, the tenth…

1942

Villem Grünthal-Ridala

Estonian poet and linguist (born 1885)

Villem Grünthal-Ridala, born Wilhelm Grünthal was an Estonian poet, translator, linguist and folklorist.

1942

Carole Lombard

American actress and comedian (born 1908)

Carole Lombard was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard 23rd on its list of the greatest female stars…

1942

Ernst Scheller

German lawyer and politician, Mayor of Marburg (born 1899)

Ernst Scheller was a German Nazi Hauptmann and politician.

1942

Alexander Cambridge

1st Earl of Athlone, English general and politician, 16th Governor General of Canada (born 1874)

Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone was a member of the extended British royal family, as a great-grandson of King George III, the youngest brother of Queen Mary, an uncle of Kings Edward VIII and George VI, and…

1957

Arturo Toscanini

Italian cellist and conductor (born 1867)

Arturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the late 19th and early 20th century, Toscanini was renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orchestral…

1957

Phan Khôi

Vietnamese journalist and author (born 1887)

Phan Khôi was an intellectual leader who inspired a North Vietnamese variety of the Chinese Hundred Flowers Campaign, in which scholars were permitted to criticize the government, but for which he himself was ultimately…

1959

Max Schöne

German swimmer (born 1880)

Max Schöne was a German swimmer who competed in the 1900 Summer Olympics. He was born in Berlin. As a member of the German swimming team he won the gold medal at the Paris 1900 edition.

1961

Frank Hurley

Australian photographer, director, producer, and cinematographer (born 1885)

James Francis "Frank" Hurley was an Australian photographer, cinematographer of documentary films, and director of drama feature films. He participated in a number of expeditions to Antarctica and served as an official…

1962

Ivan Meštrović

Croatian sculptor and architect, designed the Monument to the Unknown Hero (born 1883)

Ivan Meštrović was a Croatian sculptor, architect, and writer. He was the most prominent modern Croatian sculptor and a leading artistic personality in contemporary Zagreb. He studied at Pavao Bilinić's Stone Workshop…

1962

Robert J. Van de Graaff

American physicist and academic (born 1901)

Robert Jemison Van de Graaff was an American applied physicist and inventor. He is best known for developing the Van de Graaff generator, a high-voltage electrostatic machine that became a fundamental tool in nuclear…

1967

Bob Jones Sr.

American evangelist, founded Bob Jones University (born 1883)

Robert Reynolds Jones Sr. was an American evangelist, pioneer religious broadcaster, and the founder and first president of Bob Jones University.

1968

Panagiotis Poulitsas

Greek archaeologist and judge (born 1881)

Panagiotis Poulitsas was a Greek judge and archeologist who briefly served as interim Prime Minister of Greece from 4 April 1946 to 18 April 1946. He was born in Geraki, Laconia on 9 September 1881.

1968

Vernon Duke

Russian-American composer and songwriter (born 1903)

Vernon Duke was a Russian-born American composer and songwriter who also wrote under his birth name, Vladimir Dukelsky. He is best known for "Taking a Chance on Love," with lyrics by Ted Fetter and John Latouche (1940);…

1969

Philippe Thys

Belgian cyclist (born 1890)

Philippe Thys was a Belgian cyclist and three times winner of the Tour de France.

1971

Teller Ammons

American soldier and politician, 28th Governor of Colorado (born 1895)

Teller Ammons was an American attorney and politician who served as the 28th Governor of Colorado from 1937 to 1939. He was the first Colorado governor to be born in the state.

1972

Ross Bagdasarian

Sr., American singer-songwriter, pianist, producer, and actor, created Alvin and the Chipmunks (born 1919)

Ross S. Bagdasarian, also known by his stage name David Seville, was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor best known for creating the cartoon band Alvin and the Chipmunks. Initially a stage and…

1972

Edgar Sampson

American musician and composer (born 1907)

Edgar Melvin Sampson, nicknamed "The Lamb", was an American jazz composer, arranger, saxophonist, and violinist. Born in New York City, he began playing violin aged six and picked up the saxophone in high school. He…

1973

Israel Abramofsky

Russian-American painter (born 1888)

Israel Abramofsky, was a Russian-born artist, who trained in Paris and settled in the United States, known for his landscape works, and works depicting Jewish life in Eastern Europe.

1975

A. V. Kulasingham

Sri Lankan journalist, lawyer, and politician (born 1890)

Aiyathurai Varnakulasingham Kulasingham was a Ceylon Tamil lawyer, politician, journalist and editor of the Ceylon Daily News and Hindu Organ.

1978

Bernard Lee

English actor (born 1908)

John Bernard Lee was an English actor, best known for his role as M in the first 11 Eon-produced James Bond films. His film career spanned the years 1934 to 1979, though he had appeared on stage from the age of six.

1981

Virginia Mauret

American musician and dancer

Virginia Mauret, sometimes seen as Virginie Mauret, was an American musician and dancer. In 1962 she became the founder and director of the Young Artists Opera of New York City.

1983

Herbert W. Armstrong

American evangelist, author, and publisher (born 1892)

Herbert W. Armstrong was an American evangelist who founded the Worldwide Church of God (WCG). An early pioneer of radio and television evangelism, Armstrong preached what he claimed was the comprehensive combination of…

1986

Bertram Wainer

Australian physician and activist (born 1928)

Bertram Barney Wainer was an Australian doctor who successfully campaigned for legal access to abortion for women in the state of Victoria. In the process he received multiple death threats from Victoria Police and…

1987

Andrija Artuković

Croatian politician, war criminal, and Porajmos perpetrator, first Minister of Interior of the Independent State of Croatia (born 1899)

Andrija Artuković was a Croatian lawyer, politician, and senior member of the fascist Ustaše movement, who served as the Minister of Internal Affairs and Minister of Justice in the Government of the Independent State of…

1988

Lady Eve Balfour

British farmer, educator, and founding figure in the organic movement (born 1898)

Lady Evelyn Barbara Balfour, was a British farmer, educator, organic farming pioneer, and a founding figure in the organic movement. She was one of the first women to study agriculture at an English university,…

1990

Eric Mottram

English poet and critic (born 1924)

Eric Mottram was a British teacher, critic, editor and poet who was one of the central figures in the British Poetry Revival.

1995

Marcia Davenport

American author and critic (born 1903)

Marcia Davenport was an American writer and music critic. She is best known for her 1932 biography of composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the first American published biography of Mozart. Davenport also is known for her…

1996

Kaye Webb

English journalist and publisher (born 1914)

Kathleen ("Kaye") Webb, was a British editor and publisher. She has been called an "enormously influential children's editor" and "brilliant as an innovator of highly successful marketing strategies". She was awarded…

1996

Jim McClelland

Australian lawyer, jurist, and politician, 12th Minister for Industry and Science (born 1915)

James Robert McClelland was an Australian lawyer, politician, and judge. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and served as a Senator for New South Wales from 1971 to 1978. He briefly held ministerial…

1999

Robert R. Wilson

American physicist and academic (born 1914)

Robert Rathbun Wilson was an American physicist known for his work on the Manhattan Project during World War II, as a sculptor, and as an architect of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), where he was…

2000

Auberon Waugh

English author and journalist (born 1939)

Auberon Alexander Waugh was a British journalist and novelist, and eldest son of the novelist Evelyn Waugh. He was widely known by his nickname "Bron".

2001

Robert Hanbury Brown

English astronomer and physicist (born 1916)

Robert Hanbury Brown, AC FRS was a British astronomer and physicist born in Aruvankadu, India. He made notable contributions to the development of radar and later conducted pioneering work in the field of radio…

2002

Richard Wainwright

English politician (born 1918)

Richard Scurrah Wainwright was a British politician of the Liberal Party. He was the MP for Colne Valley from 1966 to 1970, and again from 1974 to 1987.

2003

Kalevi Sorsa

Finnish politician 34th Prime Minister of Finland (born 1930)

Taisto Kalevi Sorsa was a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland three times: 1972–1975, 1977–1979 and 1982–1987. At the time of his death he still held the record for most days of incumbency as…

2004

Marjorie Williams

American journalist and author (born 1958)

Marjorie Williams was an American writer, reporter, and columnist for Vanity Fair and The Washington Post, writing about American society and profiling the American "political elite."

2005

Stanley Biber

American soldier and physician (born 1923)

Stanley H. Biber was an American physician who was a pioneer in sex reassignment surgery, performing thousands of procedures during his long career.

2006

Joe Erskine

American boxer and runner (born 1930)

Joseph Harold "Joey" Erskine was an American athlete who was active as a welterweight boxer in 1953 and 1954, and as a long distance runner from 1975 to 1980.

2009

John Mortimer

English lawyer and author (born 1923)

Sir John Clifford Mortimer was a British barrister, dramatist, screenwriter and author. He is best known for short stories about a barrister named Horace Rumpole, adapted from episodes of the TV series Rumpole of the…

2009

Andrew Wyeth

American painter (born 1917)

Andrew Newell Wyeth was an American visual artist and one of the best-known American artists of the middle 20th century. Though he considered himself to be an "abstractionist," Wyeth was primarily a realist painter who…

2009

Glen Bell

American businessman, founded Taco Bell (born 1923)

Glen William Bell Jr. was an American restaurateur who was the founder and namesake of Taco Bell.

2010

Takumi Shibano

Japanese author and translator (born 1926)

Takumi Shibano was a Japanese science-fiction translator and author. He was a major figure in fandom in Japan and contributed to establishing the Japanese science fiction genre.

2010

Joe Bygraves

Jamaican-English boxer (born 1931)

Joe Bygraves was a British heavyweight boxer. Bygraves turned professional in 1953, and after an impressive early career he successfully challenged Kitione Lave for the vacant Commonwealth Heavyweight belt in 1956.…

2012

Jimmy Castor

American singer-songwriter and saxophonist (born 1940)

James Walter Castor was an American funk, R&B and soul musician. He is credited with vocals, saxophone and composition. He is best known for songs such as "It's Just Begun", "The Bertha Butt Boogie", and his biggest hit…

2012

Sigursteinn Gíslason

Icelandic footballer and manager (born 1968)

Sigursteinn Davíð Gíslason was an Icelandic football player and manager. A left-sided defender who could also play in midfield, he spent the majority of his playing career in his home country; he started his career with…

2012

Lorna Kesterson

American journalist and politician (born 1925)

Lorna J. Kesterson was an American journalist, newspaper editor and politician. She served as the first female mayor of the city of Henderson, Nevada, for two consecutive four-year terms from 1985 to 1993. She was the…

2012

Gustav Leonhardt

Dutch pianist, conductor, and musicologist (born 1928)

Gustav Maria Leonhardt was a Dutch keyboardist, conductor, musicologist, teacher and editor. He was a leading figure in the historically informed performance movement to perform music on period instruments.

2012

Wayne D. Anderson

American baseball player and coach (born 1930)

Wayne Delbert Anderson was an American college basketball coach, the head coach for eight seasons at the University of Idaho, his alma mater. He was also the head baseball coach at Idaho for nine seasons, and the…

2013

André Cassagnes

French technician and toy maker, created the Etch A Sketch (born 1926)

André Cassagnes was a French inventor, electrical technician, toymaker, and kite designer. Cassagnes is best known as the inventor of the Etch A Sketch, a popular mechanical drawing toy manufactured since 2016 by Spin…

2013

Gussie Moran

American tennis player and sportscaster (born 1923)

Gertrude Augusta "Gussie" Moran was an American tennis player who was active in the late 1940s and 1950s. Her highest US national tennis ranking was 4th. She was born in Santa Monica, California and died in Los Angeles,…

2013

Pauline Phillips

American journalist and radio host, created Dear Abby (born 1918)

Pauline Esther Phillips, also known as Abigail Van Buren, was an American advice columnist and radio show host who began the well-known Dear Abby newspaper column in 1956. It became the most widely syndicated newspaper…

2013

Glen P. Robinson

American businessman, founded Scientific Atlanta (born 1923)

Glen Parmelee Robinson, Jr., called the "father of high-tech industry in Georgia", was an American businessman and founder of Scientific Atlanta, formerly a subsidiary of Cisco Systems. Robinson was the first employee…

2013

Gary Arlington

American author and illustrator (born 1938)

Gary Edson Arlington was an American retailer, artist, editor, and publisher, who became a key figure in the underground comix movement of the 1960s and 1970s. As owner of one of America's first comic book stores, the…

2014

Ruth Duccini

American actress (born 1918)

Ruth Leone Duccini was an American actress.

2014

Dave Madden

Canadian-American actor (born 1931)

David Joseph Madden was a Canadian-born American actor. His most famous role came on the 1970s sitcom The Partridge Family, in which he played the group's manager, Reuben Kincaid, opposite Shirley Jones's character.…

2014

Hiroo Onoda

Japanese lieutenant (born 1922)

Hiroo Onoda 19 March 1922 – 16 January 2014) was a Japanese soldier who served as a second lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. One of the last Japanese holdouts, Onoda continued fighting for…

2014

Miriam Akavia

Polish-Israeli author and translator (born 1927)

Miriam Akavia also Matylda Weinfeld was a Polish-born Israeli writer and translator, a Holocaust survivor, and the president of the Platform for Jewish-Polish Dialogue.

2015

Yao Beina

Chinese singer (born 1981)

Yao Beina, also known as Bella Yao, was a Chinese singer and songwriter. She debuted as a professional singer with her portrayal of the diva of the musical Jin Sha (金沙) in 2005. After graduating from China Conservatory…

2015

Joannis Avramidis

Greek sculptor (born 1922)

Joannis Avramidis was a contemporary Greek-Austrian painter and sculptor. He was born in Batumi, on the Black Sea, in the Adjarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, an Autonomous Republic of the former Soviet Union,…

2016

Ted Marchibroda

American football player and coach (born 1931)

Theodore Joseph Marchibroda was an American professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played four years in the NFL as a quarterback with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago…

2016

Eugene Cernan

American captain, pilot, and astronaut (born 1934)

Eugene Andrew Cernan was an American astronaut, naval aviator, electrical engineer, aeronautical engineer, and fighter pilot.

2017

Ed Doolan

British radio presenter (born 1941)

Edwin Myer Doolan MBE was an Australian born naturalised British radio presenter who was a veteran of Birmingham's first commercial radio station BRMB, and subsequently the BBC. At the BBC he presented a weekly show…

2018

Oliver Ivanović

Kosovo Serb politician (born 1953)

Oliver Ivanović was a Kosovo Serb politician.

2018

John C. Bogle

American businessman, investor, and philanthropist (born 1929)

John Clifton "Jack" Bogle was an American investor, business magnate and philanthropist who was the founder of The Vanguard Group and is credited with popularizing the index fund. An avid investor and money manager…

2019

Lorna Doom

American musician (born 1958)

Lorna Doom was an American musician best known as the bass guitarist for the punk rock band the Germs from 1976 to 1980, and again after they got back together from 2005 to 2009.

2019

Chris Wilson

Australian musician (born 1956)

Christopher John Wilson was an Australian blues musician who sang and played harmonica, saxophone and guitar. He performed as part of the Sole Twisters, Harem Scarem and Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls, and fronted…

2019

Christopher Tolkien

British academic and editor (born 1924)

Christopher John Reuel Tolkien was an English academic editor and writer. The son of the author and academic J. R. R. Tolkien, he edited 24 volumes based on his father's posthumously published work, including The…

2020

Pedro Trebbau

German-born Venezuelan zoologist (born 1929)

Pedro Trebbau was a German-born Venezuelan zoologist. His career was characterized by the promotion and preservation of Venezuelan wildlife and nature. His research and collaboration with the herpetologist Peter…

2021

Chris Cramer

British journalist (born 1948)

Christopher Ranville Cramer was a British news journalist and executive. During his career, he was head of news gathering for the BBC, an executive at CNN International, and a consultant for The Wall Street Journal.…

2021

Phil Spector

American record producer, songwriter (born 1939)

Harvey Phillip Spector was an American record producer and songwriter. Considered the first music producer auteur, he developed the Wall of Sound production style. He was the most successful American producer of the…

2021

Ibrahim Boubacar Keita

Former Malian President (born 1945)

Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, often known by his initials IBK, was a Malian politician who served as the president of Mali from September 2013 to August 2020, when he was forced to resign in the 2020 Malian coup d'état. He…

2022

David Lynch

American filmmaker and actor (born 1946)

David Keith Lynch was an American filmmaker, producer, actor, painter, and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, with his films often…

2025

Dame Joan Plowright

English actress (born 1929)

Joan Ann Olivier, Baroness Olivier, commonly known as Dame Joan Plowright, was an English actress whose career spanned over six decades. She received several accolades including two Golden Globe Awards, an Olivier…

2025

Bob Uecker

American professional baseball catcher and sportscaster (born 1934)

Robert George Uecker was an American professional baseball catcher and sportscaster who served as the play-by-play announcer for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball (MLB) for 54 seasons. He was also an…

2025

Notable deaths

Who died on January 16?

Charles Pelham Villiers — British lawyer and politician (1802–1898)

FeaturedCharles Pelham Villiers

Death year1898

Known forHe sat in the House of Commons for 63 years, from 1835 to 1898, making him the longest-serving Member of Parliament (MP)

Deaths on this date119 (654 – 2025)

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2020

The first impeachment of Donald Trump formally moves into its trial phase in the United States Senate. Wikipedia →

2020

The United States Senate ratifies the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement as a replacement for NAFTA. Wikipedia →

2018

Myanmar police open fire on a group of ethnic Rakhine protesters, killing seven and wounding twelve. Wikipedia →

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Notable Deaths on January 16

1898 — Charles Pelham Villiers

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