Did you know
Ursula K. Le Guin is best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the Earthsea fantasy series.
Notable Deaths on January 22
2018 — Ursula K. Le Guin
American sci-fi and fantasy novelist (born 1929)
January 22 has 113 recorded notable deaths across history, from 239 to 2026. This focused page highlights 20 people with the strongest available profile context.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Notable Deaths
113 source records
239 – 2026
Today in history
Major events on January 22
See what else happened on this day in history.
- 1917 American entry into World War I: President Woodrow Wilson of the still-neutral United States calls for "peace without victory" in Europe. Source
- 2006 Evo Morales is inaugurated as President of Bolivia, becoming the country's first indigenous president. Source
- 1992 Space Shuttle program: The space shuttle Discovery launches on STS-42 carrying Dr. Roberta Bondar, who becomes the first Canadian woman and the first neurologist in space. Source
- 1970 The Boeing 747, the world's first "jumbo jet", enters commercial service for launch customer Pan American Airways with its maiden voyage from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport to London Heathrow Airport. Source
Did you know
Hank Aaron broke the long-standing MLB record for career home runs held by Babe Ruth and remained the career leader for 33 years, until Barry Bonds surpassed his famous total of 755 in 2007.
Did you know
Wendell H. Ford was the first person to be successively elected lieutenant governor of Kentucky, governor, and United States Senate member in Kentucky history.
Did you know
Marc Blitzstein won national attention in 1937 when his pro-union musical The Cradle Will Rock, directed by Orson Welles, was shut down by the Works Progress Administration.
Did you know
Cao Rui's parentage is in dispute: his mother, Lady Zhen, was Yuan Xi's wife, but she later remarried Cao Pi, the first ruler of Wei.
More major people who died on January 22
Notable people are ranked by substantive profile depth and public notability.
2021
Hank Aaron
American baseball player (born 1934)
Henry Louis Aaron, nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976.
2015
Wendell H. Ford
American lieutenant and politician, 53rd Governor of Kentucky (born 1924)
Wendell Hampton Ford was an American politician from Kentucky.
1964
Marc Blitzstein
American pianist and composer (born 1905)
Marcus Samuel Blitzstein, was an American composer, lyricist, and librettist.
239
Cao Rui
Chinese emperor (born 205)
Cao Rui, courtesy name Yuanzhong, was the second emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period.
1978
Herbert Sutcliffe
English cricketer and soldier (born 1894)
Herbert Sutcliffe was an English professional cricketer who represented Yorkshire and England as an opening batsman. Apart from one match in 1945, his first-class career spanned the period between the two world wars.
1930
Stephen Mather
American businessman and conservationist, co-founded the Thorkildsen-Mather Borax Company (born 1867)
Stephen Tyng Mather was an American industrialist and conservationist who was the first director of the National Park Service. As president and owner of Thorkildsen-Mather Borax Company he became a millionaire.
1955
Jonni Myyrä
Finnish-American athlete (born 1892)
Joonas "Jonni" Myyrä was a Finnish athlete who competed at the 1912, 1920 and 1924 Olympics. In 1912, he finished eighth in the javelin throw.
1977
Ibrahim bin Abdullah Al Suwaiyel
Saudi Arabian diplomat (born 1916)
Sheikh Ibrahim bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Suwaiyel was a Saudi Arabian statesman, diplomat, and military officer who served as the Saudi Arabian minister of foreign affairs from 1960 to 1962.
2005
Carlo Orelli
Italian soldier (born 1894)
Carlo Orelli was, at age 110, the last surviving Italian World War I veteran who joined the army at the onset of the war.
2009
Billy Werber
American baseball player (born 1908)
William Murray Werber was an American professional baseball third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox (1933–1936), Philadelphia Athletics (1937–1938), Cincinnati Reds…
1951
Lawson Robertson
Scottish-American sprinter and high jumper (born 1883)
Lawson "Robbie" N. Robertson was considered one of the more accomplished American track coaches of the first half of the twentieth century.
1170
Wang Chongyang
Chinese Daoist and co-founder of the Quanzhen School (born 1113)
Wang Chongyang is the founder of the Quanzhen school of Taoism.
1575
James Hamilton
Duke of Châtellerault (born 1516)
James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Châtellerault, 2nd Earl of Arran, was a Scottish nobleman and Regent of Scotland during the minority of Mary, Queen of Scots, from 1543 to 1554.
2016
Cecil Parkinson
English politician (born 1931)
Cecil Edward Parkinson, Baron Parkinson, was a British Conservative Party politician and cabinet minister.
2007
Ngô Quang Trưởng
Vietnamese general (born 1929)
Ngô Quang Trưởng was an officer in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN).
2001
Tommie Agee
American baseball player (born 1942)
Tommie Lee Agee was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from 1962 through 1973, most notably as a member of the New York Mets team that became known as the…
2012
Dick Tufeld
American actor (born 1926)
Richard Norton Tufeld was an American actor, announcer, narrator, and voice actor from the late 1940s until the early 21st century.
2012
Joe Paterno
American football player and coach (born 1926)
Joseph Vincent Paterno, sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions from 1966 to 2011.
1536
John of Leiden
Anabaptist leader from the Dutch city of Leiden (born 1509)
John of Leiden was a Dutch Anabaptist leader. In 1533 he moved to Münster, capital of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster, where he became an influential prophet, turned the city into a millenarian Anabaptist theocracy, and…