Did you know
While Hanson continued directing, he rose to prominence screenwriting critically acclaimed films such as The Silent Partner (1978), White Dog (1982), and Never Cry Wolf (1983).
Notable Deaths on September 20
103 people
855 – 2025
September 20 has seen 103 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 855 – 2025. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
2016 — Curtis Hanson
American film director and screenwriter (born 1945)
Did you know
In the 1970s, Hanson participated as a writer for the horror film The Dunwich Horror (1970) and made his directorial debut the B-Movie Sweet Kill (1973), where he lacked creative control to fulfill his vision
Did you know
Curtis Lee Hanson was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer
Did you know
Born in Reno, Nevada, Hanson grew up in Los Angeles
Did you know
After dropping out of high school, Hanson worked as photographer and editor for Cinema magazine
855
Count Palatine of Lotharingia (born 1049)
Hermann II, Count Palatine of Lotharingia 1064–1085. He was count in the Ruhrgau and the Zulpichgau, as well as a count of Brabant.
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1085
1190
German nobleman and bishop
Conrad II of Salzwedel was a German nobleman. He was a Roman Catholic priest and was bishop of Cammin as Conrad III from 1233 until his death.
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1241
Mikhail Vsevolodovich, known as Michael or Michael of Chernigov, was Grand Prince of Kiev ; he was also Prince of Pereyaslavl (1206), Novgorod-Seversk (1219–1226), Chernigov, Novgorod, and Galicia (1235–1236). He was…
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1246
1266
Syrian theologian and scholar (born 1263)
Ibn Taymiyya was a Sunni Muslim scholar, jurist, Mujtahid, traditionist, Qadiri Sufi, proto-Salafi theologian and iconoclast. Born in Harran in 1263 CE and fleeing from the Mongol invasion, he was taught by his…
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1328
1384
Elector of Brandenburg (born 1371)
Frederick was the last Burgrave of Nuremberg from 1397 to 1427, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach from 1398, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach from 1420, and Elector of Brandenburg from 1415 until his death. He became the…
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1440
Flemish composer (born 1400)
Gilles de Bins dit Binchois was a Franco-Flemish composer and singer of early Renaissance music. A central figure of the Burgundian School, Binchois is renowned a melodist and miniaturist; he generally avoided large…
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1460
Countess of Warwick (born 1426)
Anne Beauchamp, 16th Countess of Warwick was an important late medieval English noblewoman. She was the daughter of Richard Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick, and his second wife, Isabel le Despenser.
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1492
1501
1st Marquess of Dorset, stepson of Edward IV of England (born 1457)
Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset, Earl of Huntingdon, 7th Baron Ferrers of Groby, was an English nobleman, courtier and the eldest son of Elizabeth Woodville and her first husband Sir John Grey of Groby. Her second…
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1501
German sculptor (born c. 1447)
Veit Stoss was a leading German sculptor, mostly working with wood, whose career covered the transition between the late Gothic and the Northern Renaissance. His style emphasized pathos and emotion, helped by his…
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1533
medieval Serb monarch; last Serb Despot
Pavle Bakić was the last titular Despot of Serbia. He was one of the most notable military commanders among Serbian nobility in the Kingdom of Hungary, and fought against the Ottoman Empire in several battles, most…
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1537
Flemish composer and teacher (born 1515)
Cipriano de Rore was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance, active in Italy. Not only a central representative of the generation of Franco-Flemish composers after Josquin des Prez who went to live and work in…
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1565
English Catholic conspirator (born 1561)
Anthony Babington was an English gentleman convicted of plotting the assassination of Elizabeth I of England and conspiring with the imprisoned Mary, Queen of Scots, for which he was hanged, drawn and quartered. The…
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1586
English conspirator and poet (born 1558)
Chidiock Tichborne, erroneously referred to as Charles, was an English conspirator and poet.
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1586
Italian priest, composer, and scholar (born 1534)
Lodovico Agostini was an Italian composer, singer, priest, and scholar of the late Renaissance. He was a close associate of the Ferrara Estense court, and one of the most skilled representatives of the progressive…
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1590
German historian and poet (born 1555)
Heinrich Meibom, German historian and poet, was born at Barntrup in Westphalia.
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1625
Dutch scholar and critic (born 1560)
Jan Gruter or Gruytère, Latinized as Janus Gruterus, was a Flemish-born philologist, scholar, and librarian.
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1627
Dutch historian and scholar (born 1579)
Johannes Meursius was a Dutch classical scholar and antiquary.
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1639
2nd Viscount Falkland, English soldier and politician, Secretary of State for England (born 1610)
Lucius Cary, 2nd Viscount Falkland PC was an English writer and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1642. He fought on the Royalist side in the English Civil War and was killed in action at the First…
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1643
Korean scholar and politician (born 1634)
Kim Seok-ju was a Korean Neo-Confucian scholar, politician and writer of the Joseon Kingdom. His art name was Sigam, and his courtesy name was Sabaek. He was a cousin of Queen Myunseong. He was Chief State Councillor of…
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1684
English politician (born 1664)
Francis Scobell was an English politician affiliated with the Tories. He was a member of parliament (MP) for Mitchell from 1690 to 1695, Grampound from 16 January 1699 to 1708, St. Germans from 1708 to 1710,…
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1740
English lieutenant and mutineer (born 1764)
Fletcher Christian was an English sailor who led the mutiny on the Bounty in 1789, during which he seized command of the Royal Navy vessel HMS Bounty from Lieutenant William Bligh.
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1793
Irish republican (born 1780)
Robert Emmet was an Irish Republican, orator and rebel leader. Following the suppression of the United Irish uprising in 1798, he sought to organise a renewed attempt in Ireland to overthrow the British Crown and…
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1803
French geologist and scholar (born 1725)
Nicolas Desmarest was a French geologist and contributor to the Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers, in particular, the multi-volume Géographie-physique.
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1815
1st Baronet, English admiral (born 1769)
Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Masterman Hardy, 1st Baronet, GCB was a Royal Navy officer who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. He took part in the Battle of Cape St. Vincent in February 1797, the Battle…
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1839
Paraguayan lawyer and politician, Consul of Paraguay (born 1766)
José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia y Velasco, also known as Doctor Francia or to Paraguayans of his time as Karai Guasu, was a lawyer, politician, statesman and the first dictator (1814–1840) of Paraguay following its…
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1840
Russian explorer and public servant (born 1780)
Mathias or Matthias Hedenström, also known by his Russian name Matvei Matveyevich Gedenshtrom, was a Russian explorer of Northern Siberia, writer, and public servant.
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1845
American bishop and educator, founded Kenyon College (born 1775)
Philander Chase was an Episcopal Church bishop, educator, pioneer of the United States western frontier, especially in Ohio and Illinois, and founder of Kenyon College.
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1852
Honduran priest and educator (born 1797)
Father José Trinidad Reyes y Sevilla was a Honduran priest who founded the National Autonomous University of Honduras, formerly called "La Sociedad del Genio emprendedor y del buen gusto". He advocated against poverty…
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1855
German philologist and mythologist (born 1785)
Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm, also known as Ludwig Karl, was a German author, linguist, philologist, jurist, and folklorist. He formulated Grimm's law of linguistics, and was the co-author of the Deutsches Wörterbuch, the…
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1863
Austrian zoologist and author (born 1802)
Leopold Joseph Franz Johann Fitzinger was an Austrian zoologist.
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1884
German author and poet (born 1819)
Theodor Fontane was a German novelist and poet, regarded by many as the most important 19th-century German-language realist author. He published the first of his novels, for which he is best known today, only at age 58…
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1898
American politician, 13th United States Assistant Secretary of State (born 1834)
Robert Roberts Hitt was an American diplomat and Republican politician from Illinois. He served briefly as assistant secretary of state in the short-lived administration of James A. Garfield but resigned alongside…
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1906
Spanish violinist and composer (born 1844)
Pablo Martín Melitón de Sarasate y Navascués, commonly known as Pablo de Sarasate, was a Spanish virtuoso violinist, composer and conductor of the Romantic period. His best known works include Zigeunerweisen, the…
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1908
American actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1864)
George Nichols, sometimes credited in films as George O. Nicholls, was an American actor and film director. He worked at Mack Sennett's Keystone Studios.
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1927
Russian anthropologist and explorer (born 1873)
Gombojab Tsybikov was a Russian explorer of Tibet from 1899 to 1902. Tsybikov specialized in ethnography, Buddhist Studies, and after 1917 was an important educator and statesman in Siberia and Mongolia.
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1930
Mexican lawyer and politician, president 1914 (born 1870)
Francisco Sebastián Carvajal y Gual, sometimes spelled Carbajal was a Mexican lawyer and politician who served briefly as president in 1914, during the Mexican Revolution. In his role as foreign minister, he succeeded…
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1932
English theosophist and activist (born 1847)
Annie Besant was an English socialist, theosophist, freemason, women's rights and activist, educationist, involved in women's rights, Home Rule, and Indian nationalism. She supported both Irish and Indian self-rule. She…
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1933
Canadian archbishop (born 1855)
Louis Joseph Napoléon Paul Bruchési was a Canadian prelate, the second Archbishop of Montreal. In 1910 he directed the 21st International Eucharistic Congress held in Montreal.
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1939
Latvian prime minister and president (born 1877)
Kārlis Augusts Vilhelms Ulmanis was a Latvian politician and dictator. He was one of the most prominent Latvian politicians of pre-World War II Latvia during the Interwar period of independence from November 1918 to…
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1942
Brazilian politician, President of Brazil (born 1869)
General Augusto Tasso Fragoso, better known as Tasso Fragoso was a Brazilian military, judge of the Superior Military Court and writer. During the Revolution of 1930 he was president of the Provisional Government Board…
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1945
American occultist, journalist, and explorer (born 1884)
William Buehler Seabrook was an American occultist, explorer, world traveler, journalist and author, born in Westminster, Maryland. He began his career as a reporter and city editor of the Augusta Chronicle in Georgia…
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1945
German physician (born 1909)
Eduard Wirths was the chief SS doctor at the Auschwitz concentration camp from September 1942 to January 1945. Thus, Wirths had formal responsibility for everything undertaken by the nearly twenty SS doctors who worked…
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1945
American lawyer and politician, 99th Mayor of New York City (born 1882)
Fiorello Henry La Guardia was an American attorney and politician who served as the 100th mayor of New York City from 1934 to 1946. He previously represented New York in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1917 to…
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1947
Dutch biologist, geneticist, and academic (born 1871)
Jantina "Tine" Tammes was a Dutch botanist and geneticist and the first professor of genetics in the Netherlands.
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1947
Finnish pianist and composer (born 1885)
Heino Wilhelm Daniel Kaski was a Finnish composer, teacher and pianist.
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1957
Finnish violinist and composer (born 1865)
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often credited with having helped Finland develop a stronger…
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1957
Greek general and politician, 126h Prime Minister of Greece (born 1879)
Alexandros Othonaios was a distinguished Greek general, who became briefly the acting Prime Minister of Greece, heading an emergency government during an abortive coup d'état in 1933.
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1970
Greek poet and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1900)
Giorgos or George Seferis, the pen name of Georgios Seferiadis, was a Greek poet and diplomat. He was one of the most important Greek poets of the 20th century, and a Nobel laureate.
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1971
American actor (born 1913)
James A. Westerfield was an American character actor of stage, film, and television.
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1971
French historian and author (born 1903)
Pierre-Henri Simon was a French intellectual, literary historian, essayist, novelist, poet, and literary critic. He won the Prix Ève Delacroix in 1963
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1972
1973
French poet and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1887)
Alexis Leger, better known by his pseudonym Saint-John Perse, was a French poet, writer and diplomat, awarded the 1960 Nobel Prize in Literature "for the soaring flight and the evocative imagery of his poetry which in a…
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1975
Czech general and politician, 8th President of Czechoslovakia (born 1895)
Ludvík Svoboda was a Czech general and politician. He fought in both World Wars, for which he was regarded as a national hero, and he later served as the president of Czechoslovakia from 1968 to 1975.
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1979
American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1948)
Steven Benjamin Goodman was an American folk and country singer-songwriter from Chicago. He wrote the song "City of New Orleans", which was recorded by artists including Arlo Guthrie, John Denver, Willie Nelson, and…
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1984
American playwright and composer (born 1924)
Michael Stewart was an American playwright and dramatist, librettist, lyricist, screenwriter and novelist.
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1987
German soldier and pilot (born 1922)
Erich Alfred Hartmann, nicknamed Bubi, was a German fighter pilot during World War II and the most successful fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He flew 1,404 combat missions and participated in aerial combat…
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1993
Sierra Leonean physician, academic, and diplomat (born 1924)
Davidson Sylvester Hector Willoughby Nicol, also known by his pen name Abioseh Nicol, was a Sierra Leone Creole physician, diplomat, and writer. Nicol contributed significantly to diabetes research from his discoveries…
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1994
American composer (born 1905)
Jule Styne was an English-American songwriter and composer widely known for a series of Broadway musicals, including several famous frequently-revived shows that also became successful films: Gypsy, Gentlemen Prefer…
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1994
Hungarian-Polish mathematician and academic (born 1913)
Paul Erdős was a Hungarian mathematician. He was one of the most prolific mathematicians and producers of mathematical conjectures of the 20th century. Erdős pursued and proposed problems in discrete mathematics, graph…
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1996
Zambian politician, 1st Vice-President of Zambia (born 1929)
Reuben Chitandika Kamanga was a Zambian freedom fighter, politician and statesman. He was educated at Munali Secondary School.
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1996
American pianist, composer, and conductor (born 1912)
Paul Weston was an American pianist, arranger, composer, and conductor who worked in music and television from the 1930s to the 1970s, pioneering mood music and becoming known as "the Father of Mood Music". His…
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1996
Canadian businessman (born 1905)
Robert Lebel or LeBel was a Canadian ice hockey administrator, who served as president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA), and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). Lebel founded a senior ice…
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1999
Russian general, pilot, and astronaut (born 1935)
Gherman Stepanovich Titov was a Soviet and Russian cosmonaut who, on 6 August 1961, became the second human to orbit the Earth, aboard Vostok 2, preceded by Yuri Gagarin on Vostok 1. He was the fourth person in space,…
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2000
Russian actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1971)
Sergei Sergeyevich Bodrov, also known as Sergei Bodrov Jr., was a Russian actor and screenwriter who had lead roles in the films Brother, Prisoner of the Mountains, East/West and Brother 2. He was the son of the Russian…
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2002
Zimbabwean politician, 1st Vice-President of Zimbabwe (born 1922)
Simon Vengai Muzenda was a Zimbabwean politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister from 1980 to 1987 and as Vice-President of Zimbabwe from 1987 to 2003 under President Robert Mugabe.
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2003
Baron Williams of Mostyn, Welsh lawyer and politician, Lord President of the Council (born 1941)
Gareth Wyn Williams, Baron Williams of Mostyn, was a Welsh barrister and Labour politician who was Leader of the House of Lords, Lord President of the Council and a member of the Cabinet from 2001 until his sudden death…
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2003
English footballer and manager (born 1935)
Brian Howard Clough was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He won the European Cup twice with Nottingham Forest and is one of…
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2004
American soldier and historian (born 1922)
Townsend Walter Hoopes II was an American historian and government official, who reached the height of his career as Under Secretary of the Air Force from 1967 to 1969.
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2004
Austrian human rights activist, Holocaust survivor (born 1908)
Simon Wiesenthal was an Austrian Holocaust survivor, Nazi hunter, and writer. He studied architecture, and was living in Lwów at the outbreak of World War II. He survived the Janowska concentration camp, the…
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2005
Swiss conductor (born 1932)
Armin Jordan was a Swiss conductor known for his interpretations of French music, Mozart and Wagner.
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2006
Swedish director, producer, and cinematographer (born 1922)
Sven Vilhem Nykvist was a Swedish cinematographer and filmmaker, best known for his collaboration with directors Ingmar Bergman and Woody Allen.
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2006
American pilot and songwriter (born 1921)
John Willard Peterson was a songwriter who had a major influence on evangelical Christian music in the 1950s through the 1970s. He wrote over 1000 songs, and 35 cantatas.
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2006
Irish footballer (born 1928)
John Thomas Gavin was an Irish footballer who spent most of his career in England. He played for Janesboro United, Limerick, Ireland, Norwich City, Watford, Tottenham Hotspur, Crystal Palace, Cambridge City, Newmarket…
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2007
American soldier and educator (born 1933)
Forby Leonard Skinner was an American high school gym teacher, basketball coach, and businessman from Jacksonville, Florida. He is known in popular culture as the eponym of the rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd; Skinner was the…
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2010
American historian and author (born 1915)
Oscar Handlin was an American historian. As a professor of history at Harvard University for over 50 years, he directed 80 PhD dissertations and helped promote social and ethnic history, virtually inventing the field of…
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2011
Afghan academic and politician, 10th President of Afghanistan (born 1940)
Burhanuddin Rabbani was an Afghan politician and teacher who served as the sixth president of Afghanistan from 1992 to 1996, and again from November to December 2001.
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2011
Italian cardinal (born 1935)
Fortunato Baldelli was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who was appointed a cardinal in 2010 after a career in the diplomatic service of the Holy See from 1966 to 2009 that included ten years as Apostolic…
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2012
American author and academic (born 1936)
Richard Holton Cracroft was an author and emeritus professor of English at Brigham Young University (BYU) where he held the title of Nan Osmond Grass Professor in English and spent time as head of BYU's English…
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2012
French soldier and author (born 1920)
Tereska Torrès was a French writer known for the 1950 book Women's Barracks, the first "original paperback bestseller." In 2008, historians credited the republished book as the first pulp fiction book published in…
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2012
American general (born 1926)
James Benjamin Vaught was a United States Army Lieutenant General who fought in the Korean War and the Vietnam War. In South Korea he served as a company commander in the 24th Infantry Division. In 1967, in South…
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2013
Belgian journalist and critic (born 1957)
Gilles Verlant was a Belgian journalist, best known as a music critic and rock expert. He was also Serge Gainsbourg's friend and wrote his definitive biography. He died from falling down a set of stairs.
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2013
Russian colonel, pilot, and cosmonaut (born 1942)
Anatoly Nikolayevich Berezovoy was a Soviet and later Russian cosmonaut.
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2014
American actress and singer (born 1930)
Polly Bergen was an American actress, singer, television host, writer, and entrepreneur.
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2014
Japanese scholar and politician (born 1928)
Takako Doi was a Japanese politician. She was leader of the Japan Socialist Party from 1986 to 1991 and its successor party the Social Democratic Party from 1996 to 2003. In the former role, she became the first female…
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2014
French-Dutch director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1932)
George Sluizer was a French-born Dutch filmmaker whose credits included features as well as documentary films.
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2014
Italian director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1933)
Mario Caiano was an Italian film director, screenwriter, producer, art director and second unit director.
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2015
Indian businessman (born 1940)
Jagmohan Dalmiya was an Indian cricket administrator and businessman from the city of Kolkata. He was the President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India as well as the Cricket Association of Bengal. He had also…
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2015
American actor (born 1928)
Jack Edward Larson was an American actor, librettist, screenwriter and producer best known for his portrayal of photographer/cub reporter Jimmy Olsen on the television series Adventures of Superman from 1952 to 1958, a…
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2015
American bishop (born 1912)
Peter Leo Gerety was an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Newark from 1974 to 1986. He previously served as Bishop of Portland in Maine from 1969 to 1974. Gerety was the oldest living Catholic bishop…
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2016
English football player (born 1995)
Madeleine Cusack was an English footballer who played as a midfielder. She began her career with local club Nottingham Forest before moving to Aston Villa, where she made her professional debut. She joined Birmingham…
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2023
Hezbollah militant (born 1962)
Ibrahim Aqil was a Lebanese militant leader who served as commander-in-chief of Hezbollah's special operations unit, the Radwan Force. He was a member of the Jihad Council, which oversees the military operations of the…
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2024
American actress and singer (born 1933)
Olive Kathryn Crosby was an American actress and singer who performed in films, primarily under the stage name Kathryn Grant. She married Bing Crosby in 1957 and subsequently appeared on television with him and hosted a…
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2024
American politician, 16th Governor of Washington (born 1925)
Daniel Jackson "Dan" Evans Sr. was an American politician from Washington. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives representing Washington's 43rd legislative…
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2024
2024
English actress (born 1945)
Cleopatra Mary Palmer, known professionally as Cleo Sylvestre, was a British actress. She was the first black woman ever to play a leading role at the National Theatre in London, and the first woman to record with The…
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2024
American designer and author (born 1966)
Eduardo Torres Xol was an American television personality, designer, entertainer, social activist and businessman. He was most known to U.S. television audiences for his work as a designer on Extreme Makeover: Home…
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2024
English football manager (born 1978)
Matthew Beard was an English professional football coach. Active primarily in women's football, he managed Millwall, Chelsea, Liverpool, Boston Breakers, West Ham United, Bristol City, and Burnley.
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2025
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Notable deaths
Who died on September 20?
Curtis Hanson — American filmmaker (1945–2016)
FeaturedCurtis Hanson
Death year2016
Known forBorn in Reno, Nevada, Hanson grew up in Los Angeles
Deaths on this date103 (855 – 2025)
Explore September 20
Jump between the main pages for this date to compare events, people, and the daily quiz.
Also on September 20 in History
2019
Roughly four million people, mostly students, demonstrate across the world to address climate change. Sixteen-year-old Greta Thunberg from Sweden leads the demonstration in New York City. Wikipedia →
2018
At least 161 people die after a ferry capsizes close to the pier on Ukara Island in Lake Victoria, Tanzania. Wikipedia →
2017
See all events on September 20
Hurricane Maria makes landfall in Puerto Rico as a powerful Category 4 hurricane, resulting in 2,975 deaths, US$90 billion in damage, and a major humanitarian crisis. Wikipedia →
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