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Auchincloss told Ron Martinetti of American Legends website: "I have first editions of Edith Wharton around me as I write
Notable Deaths on January 26
89 people
738 – 2025
January 26 has seen 89 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 738 – 2025. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
2010 — Louis Auchincloss
American novelist and essayist (born 1917)
Did you know
Louis Stanton Auchincloss was an American lawyer, novelist, historian, and essayist
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His dry, ironic works of fiction continue the tradition of Henry James and Edith Wharton, both of whom he much admired
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I gave a hundred of her letters that I collected over the years to Yale
Did you know
[James] is the great American writer of all time." He wrote his novels initially under the name Andrew Lee, the name of an ancestor who cursed any descendant who drank or smoked.
Syrian monk and saint (born 660)
Saint John of Dailam, was a 7th-century East Syriac Christian saint and monk, who founded several monasteries in Mesopotamia and Persia.
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738
1390
English courtier and diplomat (born 1497)
Nicholas Wotton was an English diplomat, cleric and courtier. He served as Dean of York and Royal Envoy to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.
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1567
ruler of Mewar (born 1559)
Maharana Amar Singh I the Sisodia-Rajput ruler of the Mewar Kingdom, was the eldest son and successor of Maharana Pratap I. He was the 14th Rana of Mewar, ruling from 19 January 1597 until his death on 26 January 1620.
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1620
English mathematician and astronomer (born 1556)
Henry Briggs was an English mathematician notable for changing the original logarithms invented by John Napier into common logarithms, which are sometimes known as Briggsian logarithms in his honor. The specific…
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1630
English lawyer (born 1562)
Sir Lawrence Hyde II was an English lawyer who was Attorney-general to the consort of King James I, Anne of Denmark. He sat in the House of Commons at various times between the years 1584 and 1611.
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1641
Danish mathematician and theorist (born 1640)
Jørgen Mohr was a Danish mathematician, known for being the first to prove the Mohr–Mascheroni theorem, which states that any geometric construction which can be done with compass and straightedge can also be done with…
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1697
Austrian field marshal (born 1683)
Ludwig Andreas von Khevenhüller, Graf von Frankenburg-Aichleberg was a prominent Austrian field marshal.
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1744
1750
German harpsichord player and composer (born 1732)
Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach was a German composer and harpsichordist, the fifth son of Johann Sebastian Bach, sometimes referred to as the "Bückeburg Bach".
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1795
Scottish general (born 1722)
Gabriel Christie was a British Army General from Scotland, who settled in Montreal after the Seven Years' War. Following the British Conquest of New France, he invested in land and became one of the largest landowners…
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1799
Portuguese prelate and antiquarian (born 1724)
Dom Frei Manuel do Cenáculo, T.O.R. was a Portuguese Franciscan prelate, who served as the first Bishop of Beja (1770–1802) and as Archbishop of Évora (1802–1814).
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1814
English physician and immunologist, creator of the smallpox vaccine (born 1749)
Edward Jenner was an English physician and scientist who pioneered the concept of vaccines and created the smallpox vaccine, the world's first vaccine. The terms vaccine and vaccination are derived from Variolae…
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1823
French painter and lithographer (born 1791)
Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault was a French painter and lithographer. His best-known painting is The Raft of the Medusa. Despite his short life, he was one of the pioneers of the Romantic movement.
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1824
Maltese politician (born 1765)
Filippo Castagna was a Maltese politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
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1830
English poet, playwright, and physician (born 1803)
Thomas Lovell Beddoes was an English poet, dramatist and physician.
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1849
French poet and translator (born 1808)
Gérard de Nerval, was the pen name of Gérard Labrunie, a French travel writer, essayist, poet, and translator. He was a major figure during the era of French romanticism, and best known for his novellas and poems,…
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1855
opera singer (born 1804)
Wilhelmine Schröder-Devrient, was a German operatic soprano. As a singer, she combined a rare quality of tone with dramatic intensity of expression, which was as remarkable on the concert platform as in opera.
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1860
English soldier; Victoria Cross recipient (born 1846)
Duncan Gordon Boyes VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. The award was…
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1869
English-Australian physician and engineer (born 1806)
Edward Davy was an English physician, scientist, and inventor who played a prominent role in the development of telegraphy, and invented an electric relay.
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1885
English general and politician (born 1833)
Major-General Charles George Gordon CB, also known as Chinese Gordon, Gordon Pasha, Gordon of Khartoum and General Gordon, was a British Army officer and administrator. He saw action in the Crimean War as an officer in…
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1885
American general and politician (born 1807)
David Rice Atchison was a mid-19th-century Democratic United States Senator from Missouri. He served as president pro tempore of the United States Senate for six years. Atchison served as a major general in the Missouri…
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1886
one of the first female Indian physicians (born 1865)
Anandibai Gopalrao Joshi was the first Indian female doctor of western medicine along with Kadambini Ganguly.
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1887
German engineer, invented the internal combustion engine (born 1833)
Nicolaus August Otto was a German engineer who successfully developed the compressed charge internal combustion engine which ran on petroleum gas and led to the modern internal combustion engine. The Association of…
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1891
American general (born 1819)
Abner Doubleday was a career United States Army officer and Union major general in the American Civil War. He fired the first shot in defense of Fort Sumter, the opening battle of the war, and had a pivotal role in the…
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1893
English mathematician and academic (born 1825)
Arthur Cayley was an English mathematician who worked mostly on algebra. He helped found the modern British school of pure mathematics, and was a professor at Trinity College, Cambridge for 35 years.
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1895
American educator, school administrator, newspaper editor, poet, and essayist (born 1867)
James Edwin Campbell was an American educator, school administrator, newspaper editor, poet, and essayist. Campbell was the first principal of the West Virginia Colored Institute from 1892 until 1894, and is considered…
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1896
English businessman (born 1846)
James Whitaker Wright was a company promoter and swindler, who committed suicide at the Royal Courts of Justice in London immediately following his conviction for fraud.
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1904
French painter and author (born 1898)
Jeanne Hébuterne was a French painter and art model best known as the frequent subject and common-law wife of the artist Amedeo Modigliani. She died by suicide two days after Modigliani's death, and is now buried beside…
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1920
American businessman, founded the Wrigley Company (born 1861)
William Mills Wrigley Jr. was an American chewing gum industrialist. He founded the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company in 1891.
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1932
American sociologist and eugenicist (born 1880)
Harry Hamilton Laughlin was an American educator and eugenicist. He served as the superintendent of the Eugenics Record Office from its inception in 1910 to its closure in 1939, and was among the most active individuals…
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1943
Russian botanist and geneticist (born 1887)
Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov was a Russian and Soviet agronomist, botanist and geneticist who identified the centers of origin of cultivated plants. His research focused on improvement of wheat, maize and other cereal…
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1943
Dutch-American astronomer and academic (born 1884)
Adriaan van Maanen was a Dutch-American astronomer. Born in Friesland, he studied astronomy at the University of Utrecht, earning his Ph.D. in 1911, and worked briefly at the University of Groningen. In 1911, he came to…
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1946
American soprano and actress (born 1898)
Mary Willie Grace Moore was an American operatic lyric soprano and actress in musical theatre and film. She was nicknamed the "Tennessee Nightingale." Her films helped to popularize opera by bringing it to a larger…
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1947
American biochemist and endocrinologist (born 1876)
Frederick Conrad Koch was an American biochemist and endocrinologist. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Koch graduated from the University of Illinois in 1899. He was affiliated with the University of Chicago from 1912 to…
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1948
Canadian lawyer and politician (born 1882)
Louis-Athanase David was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and businessman. He was a cabinet minister in the Provincial Parliament of Quebec, representing the riding of Terrebonne and serving as Provincial Secretary. In…
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1953
Italian-American mob boss (born 1897)
Charles "Lucky" Luciano was an Italian gangster who operated mainly in the United States. He started his criminal career in the Five Points Gang and was instrumental in the development of the National Crime Syndicate.…
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1962
American publisher (born 1883)
Merrill Church Meigs was the publisher of the Chicago Herald and Examiner in the 1920s. Inspired to become a pilot by Charles Lindbergh's solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean, he became a booster of Chicago as a world…
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1968
Romanian-American actor (born 1893)
Edward Goldenberg Robinson was an American actor who was popular during Hollywood's Golden Age. After making his stage debut in 1913, he rose to stardom with his performance as the title character in Little Caesar…
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1973
Portuguese bullfighter (born 1901)
João Alves Branco Núncio was a Portuguese bullfighter. He was born in Alcácer do Sal, in a whitewashed house next to that of his uncle, the Viscount of Alcácer do Sal. Today it belongs to the Viscount's Philharmonic…
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1976
German Catholic philosopher and author (born 1889)
Dietrich Richard Alfred von Hildebrand was a German Catholic philosopher and religious writer.
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1977
American businessman and politician, 41st Vice President of the United States (born 1908)
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st vice president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford. A member of the Republican Party and the wealthy Rockefeller family, he was the 49th…
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1979
American football player and coach (born 1913)
Paul William "Bear" Bryant was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of the University…
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1983
American jazz drummer and bandleader (born 1914)
Kenneth Clarke Spearman, known professionally as Kenny Clarke and nicknamed Klook, was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. A major innovator of the bebop style of drumming, he pioneered the use of the ride cymbal…
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1985
Finnish linguist and professor (born 1905)
Ruben Erik Nirvi was a Finnish linguist. He was the deputy of Finnish philology at the University of Helsinki from 1955 to 1957 and the personal additional professor of the Finnish language from 1957 to 1972. He was a…
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1986
American sociologist and historian (born 1895)
Lewis Mumford was an American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic. Particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture, he had a broad career as a writer. He made…
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1990
Puerto Rican-American actor (born 1912)
José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón was a Puerto Rican actor and director of stage, film and television. He was one of the most celebrated and esteemed Hispanic American actors during his lifetime and after, with a…
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1992
1993
Canadian journalist and politician, Governor General of Canada (born 1922)
Jeanne Mathilde Sauvé was a Canadian politician, journalist and stateswoman who served as the 23rd governor general of Canada from 1984 to 1990 and as the 29th speaker of the House of Commons from 1980 to 1984. She was…
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1993
American author and academic (born 1930)
Harold Brodkey, born Aaron Roy Weintraub, was an American short-story writer and novelist.
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1996
American football player and coach (born 1909)
Frank J. Howard was an American college football player and coach. He played college football for Alabama. After a career-ending injury, Howard joined the staff at Clemson College and became head coach in 1940. Howard…
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1996
American bassist and conductor (born 1932)
Henry Jay Lewis was an American double-bassist and orchestral conductor whose career extended over four decades. A child prodigy, he joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic at age 16, becoming the first African-American…
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1996
American astrologer and psychic (born 1904)
Jeane Dixon was one of the best-known American psychics and astrologers of the 20th century, owing to her prediction of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, her syndicated newspaper astrology column, some…
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1997
2000
English author and illustrator (born 1898)
Kathleen Hale OBE was a British artist, illustrator, and children's author. She is best remembered for her series of books about Orlando the Marmalade Cat.
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2000
Canadian-American author (born 1912)
Alfred Elton van Vogt was a Canadian-born American science fiction writer. His fragmented, bizarre narrative style influenced later science fiction writers, including Philip K. Dick. He was one of the most popular and…
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2000
American basketball player and coach (born 1928)
Alfred James McGuire was an American college basketball coach and broadcaster, the head coach at Marquette University from 1964 to 1977. He won a national championship in his final season at Marquette, and was inducted…
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2001
Russian high jumper (born 1942)
Valeriy Nikolayevich Brumel was a Soviet-Russian high jumper. The 1964 Olympic champion and multiple world record holder, he is regarded as one of the greatest athletes ever to compete in the high jump. His…
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2003
English historian and academic (born 1917)
Hugh Redwald Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton was an English historian. He was Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford.
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2003
4th Viscount Younger of Leckie, Scottish banker and politician, Secretary of State for Scotland (born 1931)
George Kenneth Hotson Younger, 4th Viscount Younger of Leckie, Baron Younger of Prestwick,, was a British Conservative Party politician and banker. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ayr from 1964 to 1992. During…
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2003
2004
Pakistani politician (born 1917)
Khan Abdul Wali Khan was a Pakistani politician who served as president of the National Awami Party from 1967 till its dissolution in 1986, and then of the Awami National Party, a left wing Pashtun nationalist…
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2006
Canadian ice hockey player (born 1929)
Lorne John "Gump" Worsley was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, 'Gump' was given his nickname because friends thought he looked like a comic-strip character Andy Gump.
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2007
American sculptor and designer (born 1906)
Viktor Schreckengost was an American industrial designer as well as a teacher, sculptor, and artist. His wide-ranging work included noted pottery designs, industrial design, bicycle design and seminal research on radar…
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2008
Palestinian politician, founder of the PFLP (born 1926)
George Habash was a Palestinian politician and physician who was the founder and first general-secretary of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) from 1967 to 2000.
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2008
Ugandan teacher and LGBT rights activist, considered a father of Uganda's gay rights movement (born 1964)
David Kato Kisule was a Ugandan teacher and LGBT rights activist, considered a father of Uganda's gay rights movement and described as "Uganda's first openly gay man". He served as advocacy officer for Sexual Minorities…
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2011
American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1927)
Charles Elzer Loudermilk, known professionally as Charlie Louvin, was an American country music singer and songwriter. He is best known as one of the Louvin Brothers, and was a member of the Grand Ole Opry since 1955.
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2011
Argentinian race car driver (born 1924)
Roberto Casimiro Mieres Dasso was a racing driver from Mar del Plata, Argentina. He participated in 17 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 7 June 1953. He scored a total of 13 championship points.
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2012
American educator and politician (born 1929)
Christine M. Jones was an American politician who represented District 26 in the Maryland House of Delegates.
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2013
Polish-Swiss engineer, inventor of the Nagra (born 1929)
Stefan Kudelski was a Polish audio engineer known for creating the Nagra series of professional audio recorders.
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2013
Indian physicist and academic (born 1950)
Padma Kant Shukla was a distinguished Professor and first International Chair of the Physics and Astronomy Department of Ruhr-University Bochum in Germany. He was also the director of the International Centre for…
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2013
2013
American basketball player, coach, and politician (born 1933)
Thomas Joseph Gola was an American basketball player and politician. He is widely considered one of the greatest NCAA basketball players of all time. Gola was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame…
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2014
Slovenian-Australian poet and translator (born 1921)
Paula Gruden or Pavla Gruden was an Australian poet, translator, and editor of Slovene descent.
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2014
Mexican poet and author (born 1939)
José Emilio Pacheco Berny was a Mexican poet, essayist, novelist and short story writer. He is regarded as one of the major Mexican poets of the second half of the 20th century. The Berlin International Literature…
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2014
American art director and cartoonist (born 1932)
Cleven "Goodie" Goudeau was an art director and cartoonist, credited as originator of the first line of African American contemporary greeting cards. He held the record at one time for the longest card, and produced the…
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2015
2015
Pakistani military leader, foreign minister, and diplomat (born 1920)
Sahabzada Mohammad Yaqub Ali Khan SPk was a Pakistani politician, diplomat, military figure, linguist, and a retired 3-Star Officer in the Pakistani Army. "He was Pakistan's public face in international affairs for…
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2016
American actor (born 1921)
Abraham Vigoda was an American actor, known for his portrayals of Salvatore Tessio in The Godfather (1972) and Phil Fish in both Barney Miller and Fish (1977–1978). His career as an actor began in 1947 performing with…
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2016
American actor (born 1925)
Krekor Ohanian, known professionally as Mike Connors, was an American actor and film producer. He was best known for playing private detective Joe Mannix on the CBS television series Mannix from 1967 to 1975. This role…
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2017
Scottish politician (born 1932)
Sir Thomas Dalyell, 11th Baronet, known as Tam Dalyell, was a Scottish politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Linlithgow from 1962 to 2005. A member of the Labour Party, he was best known for formulating…
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2017
Jamaican footballer and sports journalist (born 1927)
Lloyd Lindbergh "Lindy" Delapenha was a Jamaican footballer and sports journalist. He was the first Jamaican to play professional football in England. Between 1948 and 1960, he played league football for Portsmouth,…
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2017
American actress (born 1922)
Barbara Hale was an American actress who portrayed legal secretary Della Street in the dramatic television series Perry Mason (1957–1966), earning her a 1959 Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama…
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2017
Canadian sprinter and educator (born 1920)
Barbara Howard was a Canadian sprinter and educator. Growing up in Vancouver, British Columbia, Howard gained national media attention as a sprinter in high school when she completed a time trial that broke the standing…
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2017
American college baseball coach (born 1963)
John Edward Altobelli was an American college baseball coach who worked for 27 seasons at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, California. During his career, he led the Pirates to four California state junior college…
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2020
American student-athlete (born 2006)
Gianna Maria-Onore Bryant, also known as Gigi Bryant and Mambacita, was an American student-athlete and the daughter of professional basketball player Kobe Bryant. Along with her father and seven others, Bryant died in…
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2020
American basketball player (born 1978)
Kobe Bean Bryant was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely regarded as one of…
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2020
American historian (born 1931)
Suzanne Liselotte Marguerite Massie was an American scholar of Russian history who played an important role in the relations between Ronald Reagan and the Soviet Union in the final years of the Cold War. On December 30,…
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2025
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Notable deaths
Who died on January 26?
Louis Auchincloss — American lawyer, novelist and historian (1917–2010)
FeaturedLouis Auchincloss
Death year2010
Known forHe is best known as a novelist who parlayed his experiences into books exploring the experiences and psychology of American polite society and old money
Deaths on this date89 (738 – 2025)
Explore January 26
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Also on January 26 in History
2021
Protesters and farmers storm the Red Fort near Delhi, clashing with police. One protester is killed and more than 80 police officers are injured. Wikipedia →
2020
A Sikorsky S-76B flying from John Wayne Airport to Camarillo Airport crashes in Calabasas, 30 miles west of Los Angeles, killing all nine people on board, including five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant. Wikipedia →
2015
See all events on January 26
An aircraft crashes at Los Llanos Air Base in Albacete, Spain, killing 11 people and injuring 21 others. Wikipedia →
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