Did you know
In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts honored him with the NEA Jazz Masters Award
Notable Deaths on May 16
99 people
290 – 2025
May 16 has seen 99 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 290 – 2025. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
2010 — Hank Jones
American pianist, composer, and bandleader (born 1918)
Did you know
He was also honored in 2003 with the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) Jazz Living Legend Award
Did you know
In 2008, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts
Did you know
On April 13, 2009, the University of Hartford presented Jones with an honorary Doctorate of Music for his musical accomplishments.
Did you know
was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer
Chinese emperor (born 236)
Emperor Wu of Jin, personal name Sima Yan, courtesy name Anshi (安世), was a grandson of Sima Yi, nephew of Sima Shi and son of Sima Zhao. He became the first emperor of the Jin dynasty after forcing Cao Huan, last…
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290
895
eunuch official of Later Tang
Meng Hanqiong, was a eunuch of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period state Later Tang. He became powerful late in the reign of its second emperor Li Siyuan, in association with Li Siyuan's favorite…
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934
Japanese nobleman (born 953)
Fujiwara no Michitaka , the first son of Kaneie, was a Kugyō of the Heian period. He served as regent (Sesshō) for the Emperor Ichijō, and later as Kampaku. Ichijō married Michitaka's daughter Teishi (Sadako), thus…
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995
Flemish bishop
Lambert of Guînes was the bishop of Arras (1094–1115). He was a major regional player and an active proponent of the Cluniac reform movement.
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1115
Byzantine general (born 1132)
John Komnenos Vatatzes, or simply John Komnenos or John Vatatzes in the sources, was a major military and political figure in the Byzantine Empire during the reigns of Manuel I Komnenos and Alexios II Komnenos. He was…
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1182
English-French saint (born 1165)
Simon Stock, OCarm was an English Catholic priest and saint who lived in the 13th century and was an early prior of the Carmelite Order. The Blessed Virgin Mary is traditionally said to have appeared to him and given…
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1265
Chinese military strategist, officer, statesman and poet (born 1311)
Liu Ji, courtesy name Bowen, better known as Liu Bowen, was a Chinese military strategist, philosopher, and politician who lived in the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties. He was born in Qingtian County. He served as a…
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1375
Duke of Milan (born 1388)
Gian Maria Visconti was the second Visconti Duke of Milan, the son of Gian Galeazzo Visconti and Caterina Visconti. He was known to be cruel and was eventually assassinated. He had no children.
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1412
Polish noble and statesman (born 1488)
Jan Amor Tarnowski was a Polish nobleman, knight, military commander, military theoretician, and statesman of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. He was Grand Crown Hetman from 1527, and was the founder of the city of…
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1561
English sailor and navigator (born 1564)
William Adams, better known in Japan as Miura Anjin , was an English navigator who, in 1600, became the first Englishman to reach Japan. He was later granted samurai status, and was recognised as one of the most…
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1620
Polish missionary and martyr (born 1591)
Andrew Bobola, SJ was a Polish missionary and martyr of the Society of Jesus, known as the "Apostle of Lithuania" and the "hunter of souls". He was beaten and tortured to death during the Khmelnytsky Uprising. He was…
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1657
4th Earl of Southampton, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (born 1607)
Thomas Wriothesley, 4th Earl of Southampton, KG, styled Lord Wriothesley before 1624, was an English statesman, a staunch supporter of King Charles II who after the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660 rose to the…
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1667
Italian painter and architect, designed the Santi Luca e Martina (born 1596)
Pietro da Cortona was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman Baroque…
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1669
German-American politician, 8th Colonial Governor of New York (born 1640)
Jacob Leisler was a German-born politician and colonial administrator in the Province of New York. He gained wealth in New Amsterdam in the North American fur trade and tobacco business. In what became known as…
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1691
Queen consort of Spain (born 1634)
Mariana of Austria was Queen of Spain from 1649 until her husband Philip IV of Spain died in 1665. Appointed Regent for their infant son Charles II, she remained an influential figure until her own death in 1696.
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1696
French author and academic (born 1628)
Charles Perrault was a French author and member of the Académie Française. He laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from earlier folk tales, published in his 1697 book…
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1703
4th Earl of Holderness, English politician, Secretary of State for the Southern Department (born 1718)
Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness,, known before 1721 as Lord Darcy and Conyers, was a British diplomat and politician who served as Secretary of State for the Northern Department from 1754 to 1761.
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1778
2nd Earl of Hardwicke, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire (born 1720)
Philip Yorke, 2nd Earl of Hardwicke, PC, FRS, styled Viscount Royston between 1754 and 1764, was a British politician and writer.
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1790
English author and playwright (born 1775)
Matthew Gregory Lewis was an English novelist and dramatist, whose writings are often classified as "Gothic horror". He was frequently referred to as "Monk" Lewis, because of the success of his 1796 Gothic novel The…
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1818
Scottish courtesan and spy (born c. 1754)
Grace Dalrymple Elliott was a Scottish courtesan, writer and spy resident in Paris during the French Revolution. She was an eyewitness to events detailed in her memoirs, Journal of my life during the French Revolution …
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1823
French mathematician and physicist (born 1768)
Jean-Baptiste Joseph Fourier was a French mathematician and physicist born in Auxerre, Burgundy and best known for initiating the investigation of Fourier series, which eventually developed into Fourier analysis and…
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1830
British priest, geologist and doctoral advisor to Charles Darwin (born 1796)
John Stevens Henslow was an English Anglican priest, botanist and geologist. He is best remembered as friend and mentor to Charles Darwin.
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1861
English politician (born 1796)
Edward Gibbon Wakefield was an English politician in colonial Canada and New Zealand. He is considered a key figure in the establishment in the 1830s, 1840s and 1850s of British colonies in Australia and New Zealand. He…
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1862
American lawyer and politician, 13th Governor of Alabama (born 1799)
Reuben Chapman was an American lawyer and politician. He served six terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1835 to 1847, and as the 13th governor of Alabama from 1847 to 1849.
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1882
Estonian poet, linguist and theologist (born 1843)
Mihkel Veske was an Estonian poet and linguist.
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1890
Romanian politician, 14th Prime Minister of Romania (born 1821)
Ion Constantin Brătianu was one of the major political figures of 19th-century Romania. He was the son of Dincă Brătianu and the younger brother of Dumitru Brătianu, as well as the father of Ion I. C. Brătianu, Dinu…
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1891
French Neo-Impressionist painter (born 1856)
Henri-Edmond Cross, born Henri-Edmond-Joseph Delacroix, was a French painter and printmaker. He is most acclaimed as a master of Neo-Impressionism and he played an important role in shaping the second phase of that…
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1910
Swiss architect and politician (born 1849)
Frédéric-François-Louis Perrier was a Swiss architect and politician who was a Federal Councillor from 1912 until his death in 1913. As of 2009, he is the member with the shortest time in office.
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1913
American politician, 22nd United States Vice President (born 1824)
Levi Parsons Morton was the 22nd vice president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He also served as United States ambassador to France, as a U.S. representative from New York, and as the 31st governor of New York.
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1920
1926
Greek general and politician (born 1860)
Leonidas Paraskevopoulos was a Greek military officer and politician. He played a major role in Greece's war effort during the First World War, and was the commander-in-chief of the Army of Asia Minor during the…
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1936
American engineer, co designed The Golden Gate Bridge (born 1870)
Joseph Baermann Strauss was an American structural engineer who revolutionized the design of bascule bridges. He was the chief engineer of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California.
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1938
German psychiatrist and academic (born 1865)
Alfred Erich Hoche was a German psychiatrist known for his writings about eugenics and euthanasia and his later recanting thereof.
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1943
black labrador retriever belonging to Wing Commander Guy Gibson of the Royal Air Force, and the mascot of No. 617 Squadron.
Nigger was a male black labrador retriever belonging to Wing Commander Guy Gibson of the Royal Air Force, and the mascot of No. 617 Squadron. Gibson owned the dog when he was previously a member of 106 Squadron. Nigger…
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1943
American journalist, author, and playwright (born 1866)
George Ade was an American writer, syndicated newspaper columnist, librettist, and playwright who gained national notoriety at the turn of the 20th century with his "Stories of the Streets and of the Town", a column…
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1944
Aromanian activist, physician and politician (born 1873)
Filip Mișea was an Aromanian activist, physician and politician. Mișea became an Ottoman deputy, with him and Nicolae Constantin Batzaria being the only Aromanians to ever enter the Ottoman parliament. He would later…
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1944
German chemist and businessman (born 1890)
Bruno Emil Tesch was a German chemist and entrepreneur. Together with Gerhard Peters and Walter Heerdt, he invented the insecticide Zyklon B. He was the owner of Tesch & Stabenow, a pest control company he co-founded in…
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1946
English biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1861)
Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins was an English biochemist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1929, with Christiaan Eijkman, for the discovery of vitamins. He also discovered the amino acid…
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1947
Finnish politician (born 1880)
Kalle Juhonpoika Hakala was a Finnish newspaper editor, politician and member of the Parliament of Finland, the national legislature of Finland. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), he represented Mikkeli…
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1947
Chinese general (born 1903)
Zhang Lingfu was a high-ranking general of the Chinese National Revolutionary Army. He successfully fought against the Communists and the Imperial Japanese Army. In 1947, his unit was surrounded by Chinese communist…
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1947
Belgian guitarist and composer (born 1910)
Jean Reinhardt, known by his Romani nickname Django, was a Belgian-born Romani jazz guitarist and composer who lived most of his life in France. He was one of the first major jazz talents to emerge in Europe and has…
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1953
Austrian conductor and manager (born 1893)
Clemens Heinrich Krauss was an Austrian conductor and opera impresario, particularly associated with the music of Richard Strauss, Johann Strauss and Richard Wagner. He founded the New Year's Concert of the Vienna…
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1954
American novelist, screenwriter, and critic(born 1909)
James Rufus Agee was an American novelist, journalist, poet, screenwriter and film critic. In the 1940s, writing for Time, he was one of the most influential film critics in the United States. His autobiographical…
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1955
American race car driver (born 1921)
Manuel Leaonedas Ayulo was an American racecar driver. His efforts, along with those of friend and teammate Jack McGrath, helped establish track roadsters as viable race cars. Ayulo was killed in practice for the 1955…
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1955
American candy-maker and businessman, created Reese's Peanut Butter Cups (born 1876)
Harry Burnett Reese was an American inventor and businessman known for creating Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and founding the H. B. Reese Candy Company. In 2009, he was posthumously inducted into the Candy Hall of Fame.
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1956
American federal agent (born 1903)
Eliot Ness was an American Prohibition agent known for his efforts to bring down Al Capone while enforcing Prohibition in Chicago. He was leader of a team of law enforcement agents nicknamed The Untouchables, handpicked…
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1957
American lawyer and jurist (born 1881)
George Arthur Malcolm was an American lawyer who emerged as an influential figure in the development of the practice of law in the Philippines in the 20th century. Constitutional scholar and academic Joaquin Bernas…
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1961
Malian politician, 1st President of Mali (born 1915)
Modibo Keïta was a Malian politician who served as the first President of Mali from 1960 to 1968. He espoused a form of African socialism. He was deposed in a coup d'état in 1968 by Moussa Traoré.
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1977
American union leader and activist (born 1889)
Asa Philip Randolph was an American railwayman, trade unionist and civil rights activist. In 1925, he organized and led the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first successful African-American-led labor union. In…
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1979
American pianist, composer, and bandleader (born 1922)
Ernest Aaron Freeman was an American pianist, organist, bandleader, and arranger. He was responsible for arranging many successful rhythm and blues and pop records from the 1950s to the 1970s.
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1981
German physician and academic (born 1905)
Willy Hartner was a German scientist and polymath.
He studied at Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main, where he obtained his PhD in physics in 1928 and where he later served as professor from 1940, as ordinary professor…
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1981
American actor, comedian, and screenwriter (born 1949)
Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman was an American entertainer and performance artist. He has sometimes been called an "anti-comedian". He disdained telling jokes and engaging in comedy as it was traditionally understood, once…
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1984
American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and short story writer (born 1913)
Irwin Shaw was an American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and short-story author whose written works have sold more than 14 million copies. He is best known for two of his novels: The Young Lions (1948), about the…
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1984
American actress (born 1902)
Margaret Brainard Hamilton was an American character actress, vaudevillian and educator, whose fifty-year career in entertainment spanned theater, film, radio and television. She often played villains and is best known…
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1985
Iranian poet and songwriter (born 1939)
Leila Kasra also known as Hedieh, was a prominent Iranian contemporary poet and lyricist who has written lyrics for notable artists including Ebi, Dariush, Sattar, Vigen, Moein, Mahasti, Andy, Homeyra, Morteza, Hassan…
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1989
American singer, dancer, and actor (born 1925)
Samuel George Davis Jr. was an American singer, actor, comedian, dancer, and musician.
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1990
American puppeteer, director, producer, and screenwriter, creator of The Muppets (born 1936)
James Maury Henson was an American puppeteer, actor, animator, creative producer, and director who achieved worldwide notability as the creator of the Muppets. Henson was also well known for creating Fraggle Rock…
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1990
American singer-songwriter and pianist (born 1938)
Marvin Earl Johnson was an American R&B singer, songwriter and pianist. He was influential in the development of the Motown style of music, primarily for the song "Come to Me," which was the first record issued by Tamla…
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1993
French actor (born 1908)
René Xavier Marie Alain Cuny was a French actor of stage and screen. He was closely linked with the works of Paul Claudel and Antonin Artaud, and for his performances for the Théâtre national populaire and Odéon-Théâtre…
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1994
American admiral (born 1939)
Jeremy Michael Boorda was a United States Navy admiral who served as the 25th Chief of Naval Operations. Boorda is notable as the first person to have risen from the enlisted ranks to become Chief of Naval Operations,…
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1996
American diplomat (born 1903)
Elbridge Durbrow was a Foreign Service officer and diplomat who served as the Counselor of Embassy and Deputy Chief of Mission in Moscow in the late 1940s and then as the US ambassador to South Vietnam from March 14,…
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1997
Australian soldier (born 1899)
Alexander William Campbell was the final surviving Australian participant of the Gallipoli campaign during the First World War. Campbell joined the Australian Army at the age of 16 in 1915, and served as a stores…
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2002
American lawyer and sports agent, founded IMG (born 1930)
Mark Hume McCormack was an American lawyer, sports agent and writer. He was the founder and chairman of International Management Group, now IMG, an international management organization serving sports figures and…
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2003
American general (born 1915)
Andrew Jackson Goodpaster was a United States Army general who served as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR), from 1 July 1969, and Commander in Chief of the United States European Command (CINCEUR) from 5…
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2005
American winemaker, co-founded the Opus One Winery (born 1913)
Robert Gerald Mondavi was an American winemaker. His technical and marketing strategies brought worldwide recognition for the wines of the Napa Valley in California. From an early period, Mondavi promoted labeling wines…
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2008
American singer-songwriter and producer (born 1942)
Ronald James Padavona, known professionally as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal singer. He fronted numerous bands throughout his career, including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and Heaven & Hell.
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2010
English author (born 1917)
Ralph Hammond Cecil Barker was an English non-fiction author with over twenty-five books to his credit. He wrote mainly about the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and Royal Air Force (RAF) operations in the First and Second…
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2011
2011
English actor (born 1932)
Edward Cedric Hardwicke was an English actor who had a career on the stage and on-screen. He was best known for playing Captain Pat Grant in Colditz (1972–73), and Dr. Watson in Granada Television's Sherlock Holmes…
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2011
Japanese actor (born 1934)
Kiyoshi Kodama was a Japanese TV personality and actor. He hosted the Asahi Broadcasting Corporation quiz show Panel Quiz Attack 25 continuously for thirty-six years from its start in April 1975 until he was forced to…
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2011
American author and academic (born 1952)
Patricia "Patty" Aakhus, also known by her maiden name and pseudonym Patricia McDowell, was an American novelist and director of International Studies at the University of Southern Indiana. She specialized in Irish…
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2012
American soldier and politician (born 1923)
Ellis James Abdnor was an American politician who served as a member of the United States Senate from South Dakota. He was also the 15th administrator of the Small Business Administration under presidents Ronald Reagan…
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2012
American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (born 1936)
Charles Louis Brown was an American guitarist, bandleader, and singer known as "The Godfather of Go-Go". Go-go is a subgenre of funk music developed around the Washington, D.C., area in the mid-1970s. While its musical…
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2012
Filipino-American illustrator (born 1940)
Ernesto Chan, born and sometimes credited as Ernie Chua, was a Filipino-American comics artist, known for work published by Marvel Comics and DC Comics, including many Marvel issues of series featuring Conan the…
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2012
American baseball player (born 1956)
Kevin John Hickey was an American left-handed pitcher who spent six seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Chicago White Sox (1981–1983) and Baltimore Orioles (1989–1991). It was with the White Sox that he was…
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2012
American politician (born 1928)
Angelo Joseph Errichetti was an American Democratic Party politician who served as Mayor of Camden, New Jersey, and in the New Jersey Senate before being indicted during Abscam.
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2013
Canadian football player (born 1957)
Bryan Illerbrun was a professional Canadian football offensive lineman who played fourteen seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for three teams. He was a part of the BC Lions' Grey Cup victory in 1985 and the…
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2013
Puerto Rican-American baseball player (born 1948)
Francisco Librán Rosas was a Puerto Rican athlete who distinguished himself for performing professionally on all three major sports in the island. Most notably, Librán played as an infielder in Major League Baseball…
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2013
Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1933)
Heinrich Rohrer was a Swiss physicist who shared half of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physics with Gerd Binnig for the design of the scanning tunneling microscope (STM). The other half of the Prize was awarded to Ernst…
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2013
British actor and comedian (born 1940)
George Frederick Speight, was a British actor and comedian. He was known for his television work, in particular for playing Ted Bovis in the 1980s BBC sitcom Hi-de-Hi!.
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2013
American race car driver (born 1941)
Richard Leroy Trickle was an American race car driver. He raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All Pro, IMCA,…
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2013
American author and illustrator (born 1921)
Bernard Waber was an American children's author most famous for the books The House on East 88th Street (1962), Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (1965) and the subsequent books in the Lyle series.
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2013
Zimbabwean-South African cricketer (born 1933)
Christopher Anthony Russell Duckworth was a Rhodesian cricketer who played in two Tests for South Africa in 1957.
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2014
Italian cyclist (born 1932)
Vito Favero was an Italian road racing cyclist. He was professional from 1956 to 1962. In the 1958 Tour de France, he finished second. Stage 14 of the 1958 Tour was won by Federico Bahamontes but Favero took over the…
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2014
American baseball player and manager (born 1943)
Buddy Ryan "Bud" Hollowell was an American professional baseball player and minor league manager. After his athletic career, he became an educator and author.
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2014
American anthropologist and author (born 1928)
Clyde Snow was an American forensic anthropologist. Some of his skeletal confirmations include John F. Kennedy, victims of John Wayne Gacy, King Tutankhamun, victims of the Oklahoma City bombing, and Nazi doctor Josef…
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2014
American director and producer (born 1973)
Prashant Bhargava was an Indian-American filmmaker and designer.
He died of a heart attack from a history of heart trouble. Bhargava's short film Sangam, described by Greg Tate of the Village Voice as "an elegant and…
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2015
Israeli rabbi and author (born 1935)
Moshe Levinger was an Israeli Religious Zionist activist and an Orthodox Rabbi who, since 1967, had been a leading figure in the movement to settle Jews in the territories occupied by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War.…
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2015
Scottish Gaelic singer (born 1928)
Flora MacNeil, MBE was a traditional singer of Scottish Gaelic folk music. MacNeil gained prominence after meeting Alan Lomax and Hamish Henderson during the early 1950s, and continued to perform into her later years.
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2015
Dutch politician (born 1937)
Pieter Marinus "Piet" Blauw was a Dutch politician for the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). He was born in Alkmaar, North Holland and was a farmer by profession. Blauw was elected to the House of…
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2019
Australian politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Australia (born 1929)
Robert James Lee Hawke was an Australian politician and trade unionist who served as the 23rd prime minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991. He held office as the leader of the Labor Party (ALP), having previously…
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2019
2019
Brazilian lawyer, politician (born 1980)
Bruno Covas Lopes was a Brazilian lawyer, economist, and politician who was a member of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) and served as the mayor of São Paulo from 2018 until his death in 2021.
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2021
American long-distance runner (born 1932)
Dr. Norman (Norm) Green was an American long-distance runner. He set numerous American and World records over his career. He still holds the current M55 American record for the 10,000 metres. In 1996 he was elected into…
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2023
American actor (born 1932)
Dabney Wharton Coleman was an American actor. He was recognized for his roles portraying egomaniacal and unlikeable characters in comedic performances. Throughout his career, he appeared in over 175 films and television…
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2024
American public speaker and businessman (born 1958)
William Edgar Gossage was an American motorsports executive and promoter. He was best known as the president of the Texas Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) banked racetrack in Fort Worth, Texas, which ran stock car…
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2024
East Timorese Catholic priest and activist (born 1952)
Domingos da Silva Soares, popularly known as Padre Maubere or Amu Du, was an East Timorese Roman Catholic priest, activist, and independence leader. Born in Letefoho in what was then Portuguese Timor, he attended…
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2025
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Notable deaths
Who died on May 16?
Hank Jones — American jazz pianist and bandleader (1918–2010)
FeaturedHank Jones
Death year2010
Known forwas an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer
Deaths on this date99 (290 – 2025)
Explore May 16
Jump between the main pages for this date to compare events, people, and the daily quiz.
Also on May 16 in History
2025
A devastating EF4 tornado kills nineteen people in Southeast Kentucky, hitting the towns of Somerset and London. Wikipedia →
2014
Twelve people are killed in two explosions in the Gikomba market area of Nairobi, Kenya. Wikipedia →
2011
See all events on May 16
STS-134 (ISS assembly flight ULF6), launched from the Kennedy Space Center on the 25th and final flight for Space Shuttle Endeavour. Wikipedia →
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