Notable Deaths on June 23

Maureen Paula O'Sullivan was an Irish and American actress. She played Jane in the Tarzan series of films during the era of Johnny Weissmuller. She also starred in dozens of feature films across a span of more than half a century and performed with such stars as Laurence Olivier, Greta Garbo, Fredric March, William Powell, Myrna Loy, Marie Dressler, Wallace Beery, Lionel Barrymore, the Marx Brothers and Woody Allen. In 2020, she was listed at number eight on The Irish Times list of Ireland's greatest film actors.

Robert Calvin Bland, known professionally as Bobby "Blue" Bland, was an American blues singer. Bland developed a sound that mixed gospel with the blues and R&B. He was described as "among the great storytellers of blues and soul music... [who] created tempestuous arias of love, betrayal and resignation, set against roiling, dramatic orchestrations, and left the listener drained but awed." The inspiration behind his unique style was a Detroit Preacher, CL Franklin, because Bland studied his sermons. He was sometimes referred to as the "Lion of the Blues" and as the "Sinatra of the Blues". His music was influenced by Nat King Cole.

Dragut was an Ottoman corsair, naval commander, governor, and noble. Under his command, the Ottoman Empire's maritime power was extended across North Africa. Recognized for his military genius, and as being among "the most dangerous" of corsairs, Dragut has been referred to as "the greatest pirate warrior of all time", "undoubtedly the most able of all the Turkish leaders", and "the uncrowned king of the Mediterranean". He was nicknamed "the Drawn Sword of Islam". He was described by a French admiral as "a living chart of the Mediterranean, skillful enough on land to be compared to the finest generals of the time" and that "no one was more worthy than he to bear the name of king". Hayreddin Barbarossa, who was his mentor, stated that Dragut was ahead of him "both in fishing and bravery".

Harriet was a Galápagos tortoise who had an estimated age of 175 years at the time of her death in Australia. At the time of her death, she lived at the Australia Zoo which was owned by Steve and Terri Irwin. Harriet is one of the longest-lived known tortoises, behind Tu'i Malila, who died in 1966 at the age of 188 or 189; Jonathan, who is currently still alive at an estimated 194 years old, and possibly Adwaita, who died in 2006 at an estimated age of between 250 and 255 years.

Aymer de Valence, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, was an Anglo-French nobleman. Though primarily active in England, he also had strong connections with the French royal house. One of the wealthiest and most powerful men of his age, he was a central player in the conflicts between Edward II of England and his nobility, particularly Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster. Pembroke was one of the Lords Ordainers appointed to restrict the power of Edward II and his favourite Piers Gaveston. His position changed with the great insult he suffered when Gaveston, as a prisoner in his custody whom he had sworn to protect, was removed and beheaded at the instigation of Lancaster. This led Pembroke into close and lifelong cooperation with the king. Later in life, however, political circumstances combined with financial difficulties would cause him problems, driving him away from the centre of power.

Clyfford Still was an American painter, and one of the leading figures in the first generation of abstract expressionists, who developed a new, powerful approach to painting in the years immediately following World War II, and is credited as one of the movement’s pioneers. His shift from representational to abstract painting occurred between 1938 and 1942, earlier than his colleagues like Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko, who continued to paint in figurative-surrealist styles well into the 1940s.

Albert Gleizes was a French artist, theoretician, philosopher, a self-proclaimed founder of Cubism and an influence on the School of Paris. Albert Gleizes and Jean Metzinger wrote the first major treatise on Cubism, Du "Cubisme", 1912. Gleizes was a founding member of the Section d'Or group of artists. He was also a member of Der Sturm, and his many theoretical writings were originally most appreciated in Germany, where especially at the Bauhaus his ideas were given thoughtful consideration. Gleizes spent four crucial years in New York, and played an important role in making America aware of modern art. He was a member of the Society of Independent Artists, founder of the Ernest-Renan Association, and both a founder and participant in the Abbaye de Créteil. Gleizes exhibited regularly at Léonce Rosenberg's Galerie de l’Effort Moderne in Paris; he was also a founder, organizer and director of Abstraction-Création. From the mid-1920s to the late 1930s much of his energy went into writing, e.g., La Peinture et ses lois, Vers une conscience plastique: La Forme et l’histoire and Homocentrisme.

Miguel Facussé Barjum was a Honduran businessman and landowner. He was Executive President of Corporación Dinant, a consumer products manufacturing company he founded in Honduras in 1960. Dinant sells its products throughout Central America and the Dominican Republic, and also exports to global markets. A 2006 study by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation named Facussé one of the three "most powerful men in Honduras". Facussé was the chief economic advisor to President Roberto Suazo Córdova during his term in office from 1982 to 1986 and vice-president of APROH, a "right-wing grouping of business interests and members of the armed forces" from the early 1980s to at least 2001. Facussé was married and had nine children. His nephew, Carlos Roberto Flores, was President of Honduras from 1998 to 2002. His son-in-law, Fredy Nasser, is a prominent Honduran businessman. In May 2009, Facussé was awarded the Orden Mérito a la Democracia en el Grado de Gran Caballero by the Senate of Colombia. In August 2014, he was awarded the CEAL Founders' Award for his pioneering role in promoting business between Latin American nations.

Frederick Steiner was an American composer, conductor, orchestrator, film historian and arranger for television, radio and film. Steiner wrote the theme music for The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show and Perry Mason. While Alexander Courage composed the theme music for the original Star Trek TV series (TOS), Steiner's significant contributions to the franchise included composing more of the incidental music for TOS than any other composer, as well as scoring or conducting the music for 29 of the show's 79 episodes. Steiner also composed and orchestrated additional music for Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), was part of the team of composers for the 1985 film The Color Purple, which received an Oscar nomination, and was an uncredited composer for Return of the Jedi.

Nicolau Tolentino de Almeida, from Lisbon, was the foremost Portuguese satirical poet of the 18th century. Beginning at age 20, Tolentino studied law for three years at the University of Coimbra; he then ended those studies to teach rhetoric. He was sent to Lisbon in 1776 to fill a post, and was named professor of rhetoric a year later. His interests soon shifted once again, from teaching, to public office. He wrote against the Marquis of Pombal, and therefore gained the favor of Pombal's successor. He was awarded with a sinecure office in the royal administration. In 1790, he was honored with the title of knight of the royal family.

Walter Joseph Zable was an American businessman, entrepreneur, semi-professional football player and college athlete. He was the founder, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Cubic Corporation, a public corporation providing military defense equipment and automated fare collection equipment. At the time of Zable's death, he was the world's oldest public company CEO and Cubic was worth 1.28 billion dollars. Earlier in his life he had played semi-professional football for the Richmond Arrows in the Dixie League. Some sources also mention him as having played for the National Football League's New York Giants, although no official Giants records exist of his having played for the team.

Anatoly Vladimirovich Tarasov was a Russian ice hockey player and coach. Tarasov is considered "the father of Russian ice hockey" and established the Soviet Union national team as "the dominant force in international competition". He was one of the first Russians to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, having been inducted in 1974 in the builders category. He was inducted into the inaugural class of the IIHF Hall of Fame in 1997.

Samuel Newitt Wood was an American attorney, newspaper editor, and member of the Kansas House of Representatives. He was also a Free State advocate in Kansas and an early supporter of Women's Suffrage. Wood was a speaker at the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Convention in 1856 that established the Republican party. He was assassinated in 1891 in a bitter fight over the naming of a new county seat in the state's southwestern corner.

Shimizu Muneharu , also known as Shimizu Chōzaemon , was a military commander during the Sengoku period. He served the Mōri clan as a retainer to Kobayakawa Takakage and took part in the expedition to unify the Chūgoku region. He was lord of Shimizu castle at Bitchu Province, and became the lord of the Bitchu Takamatsu Castle after he captured it in 1565. His father was Shimizu Munenori.

Bhaktivinoda Thakur, born Kedarnath Datta, was an Indian Hindu philosopher, guru and spiritual reformer of Gaudiya Vaishnavism who effected its resurgence in India in late 19th and early 20th century and was called by contemporary scholars as a Gaudiya Vaishnava leader of his time. He, along with his son Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, is also credited with initiating the propagation of Gaudiya Vaishnavism in the West and its global spread.

Harindranath Chattopadhyay was an Indian English poet, dramatist, actor, musician, and a member of the 1st Lok Sabha from Vijayawada constituency. He was the younger brother of Sarojini Naidu, the second woman President of the Indian National Congress and first Indian woman to hold the position, and Virendranath Chattopadhyay, an international communist revolutionary. The Government of India awarded him the civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan in 1973.

Edward Leo Peter McMahon Jr. was an American announcer, game show host, comedian, actor, singer, and combat aviator. McMahon and Johnny Carson began their association in their first TV series, the ABC game show Who Do You Trust?, appearing from 1958 to 1962. McMahon then made his famous thirty-year mark as Carson's sidekick and announcer on NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson from 1962 to 1992.

Sir William Fox was a New Zealand politician who was the second premier of New Zealand in 1856, from 1861 to 1862, from 1869 to 1872, and in 1873. Serving while New Zealand was still a British colony, he was known for his confiscation of Māori land rights, his contributions to the education system, and his work to increase New Zealand's autonomy from Britain.

Peter Michael Falk was an American actor. He played the title character Lieutenant Columbo on the NBC/ABC series Columbo, for which he won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award (1973). In 1996, TV Guide ranked Falk No. 21 on its 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time list. He received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013.