Born 1926

Marian Turski (1926–2025), Holocaust survivor and historian

Marian Turski was a Holocaust survivor who became an historian devoted to ensuring the world’s collective memory of the genocide does not fade.

Helen Gallagher (1926–2024), award-winning star of Ryan’s Hope

Helen Gallagher was an award-winning actress, decorated with two Tony Awards for her stage work and best known for her three-time Daytime Emmy Award-winning turn as Maeve Ryan on “Ryan’s Hope.”

Clifton R. Wharton Jr. (1926–2024), former president of MSU

Clifton R. Wharton Jr. was a former Michigan State University president and deputy secretary of state who broke racial barriers when he took the MSU post in 1970.

Lou Donaldson (1926–2024), famed jazz saxophonist

Lou Donaldson was an alto saxophonist and jazz great best known for his Blue Note albums of the 1950s and prominence for the decades that followed.

Yehuda Bauer (1926–2024), Holocaust scholar

Yehuda Bauer was a historian and scholar whose work as an authority on the Holocaust is widely seen as some of the most important in the world. 

Andrew Schally (1926–2024), Nobel Prize winner

Andrew Schally was an endocrinologist whose work studying links between hormones and the brain stem resulted in him sharing a Nobel Prize with neuroscientist Roger Guillemin and physicist Rosalyn Yalow.

Peter Marshall (1926–2024), longtime Hollywood Squares host

Peter Marshall was a television entertainer and game-show star best known for his 16-year, 5,000-episode run as the host of “Hollywood Squares” from 1966 to 1981.

Tsung-Dao Lee (1926–2024), Nobel-winning physicist

Tsung-Dao Lee was a Chinese-born physicist who won the 1957 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discoveries on the nature of subatomic particles.

Yvonne Furneaux (1926–2024), star of Fellini’s La Dolce Vita

Yvonne Furneaux was an actress who starred in classic films such as “La Dolce Vita” by Federico Fellini, “The Mummy,” co-starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, and Roman Polanski’s “Repulsion.”

Roger Corman (1926–2024), “King of the B’s” filmmaker

Roger Corman was “The B-Movie King,” directing and producing hundreds of cult classics including “The Wild Angels” and “Rock n’ Roll High School.”

Carl Erskine (1926–2024), All-Star pitcher during Dodgers’ heyday

Carl Erskine was an All-Star pitcher and the last of the “Boys of Summer” Dodgers teams of the 1940s and 1950s, who hurled two no-hitters with the team during their most illustrious era.

Ralph Puckett Jr. (1926–2024), last Korean War Medal of Honor recipient 

Ralph Puckett Jr. was an Army Ranger who served with valor in the Korean War and received the Medal of Honor more than 70 years later.

Ramona Fradon (1926–2024), trailblazing comic artist

Ramona Fradon was a trailblazing comic artist who was one of just two women artists working professionally in comics when she began, and who helped co-create characters like Metamorpho and Aqualad.

Harry Connick Sr. (1926–2024), longtime New Orleans district attorney 

Harry Connick Sr. was the district attorney for Orleans Parish (New Orleans) from 1973 to 2003 and the father of musician and actor Harry Connick Jr. 

Norman Jewison (1926–2024), In the Heat of the Night director

Norman Jewison was the acclaimed director of "In the Heat of the Night," "Fiddler on the Roof," and "The Hurricane," known for confronting his audiences with racism and other social issues during a career spanning more than 50 years.

Shecky Greene (1926–2023), old school Vegas headliner 

Shecky Greene was a legendary comedian known for his headlining shows in Las Vegas.

Julius Becton Jr. (1926–2023), former FEMA head

Lt. General Julius Becton Jr. was a Korean War and Vietnam War veteran who went on to head the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) under President Ronald Reagan.

Elizabeth Hoffman (1926–2023), actress in Sisters 

Elizabeth Hoffman was an actress best known for her role as Bea in the 1990s NBC drama “Sisters.”

Marc Bohan (1926–2023), Dior signature designer

Marc Bohan was a French fashion designer whose 30 years with Christian Dior made the line an icon of simple, elegant design.

Carol Duvall (1926–2023), HGTV crafting show host 

Carol Duvall was the host of “The Carol Duvall Show,” a popular arts and crafts show that ran on HGTV and the DIY Network.

Tony Bennett (1926–2023), legendary crooner

Tony Bennett was an iconic singer who brought traditional pop standards to generations of listeners in a singing career that spanned eight decades.

Newton Minow (1926–2023), FCC chair under Kennedy

Newton Minow was a former Chair of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) under President who is best known for his “vast wasteland” speech, which aimed pointed criticism at commercial television.

Bob Richards (1926–2023), first athlete featured on Wheaties boxes

Bob Richards was an Olympic gold medalist in pole vaulting who became the first athlete featured on the front of Wheaties cereal boxes.

Paul Berg (1926–2023), Nobel-winning genetics scientist

Paul Berg was an American biochemist whose work in gene splicing helped lay the foundations for the biotech industry. 

Alan Copeland (1926–2022), last surviving member of the Modernaires

Alan Copeland was a singer with the Modernaires known for his appearances on “Your Hit Parade.”

Abigail Kawānanakoa (1926–2022), Hawaii’s “last princess”

Abigail Kinoiki Kekaulike Kawānanakoa was an descendent of Hawaii’s royal family who was called the last Hawaiian princess.

Georgia Holt (1926–2022), actress and Cher’s mother 

Georgia Holt was an actress and singer who was the mother of superstar Cher.

Jule Campbell (1926–2022), editor behind the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue

Jule Campbell was a pioneering fashion editor who was behind the annual Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.

Jiang Zemin (1926–2022), former president of China

Jiang Zemin was president of China from 1993 to 2003 and guided the country through economic reforms.

Robert Clary (1926–2022), LeBeau on “Hogan’s Heroes”

Robert Clary was an actor well known for his role as LeBeau on the classic sitcom “Hogan’s Heroes.” He was a Holocaust survivor, coming to the United States in 1949 to continue his entertainment career.

George Booth (1926–2022), cartoonist for the New Yorker

George Booth was a cartoonist for the New Yorker, who drew the magazine’s unofficial mascot of a bull terrier.

Ted White (1925–2022), stuntman and Jason Voorhees actor

Ted White was a stuntman and actor who played Jason Voorhees in “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.”

Robert Brown (1926–2022), “Here Come the Brides” star  

Robert Brown was an actor best known for playing lumberjack Jason Bolt on the TV series “Here Come the Brides.” 

Irene Papas (1926–2022), actress known for “Zorba the Greek”

Irene Papas was a Greek actress known for movies including “Zorba the Greek,” “The Guns of Navarone,” and “Z.”

Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II was Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Hanae Mori (1926–2022), influential Japanese fashion designer

Hanae Mori was a fashion designer who combined Western fashion with elements from her native Japan as she dressed international superstars.

Trudy Haynes (1926–2022), first Black TV weather reporter in the U.S.

Trudy Haynes was an Emmy Award-winning journalist who became the first Black TV weather reporter in the U.S. and the first Black TV reporter in Philadelphia.

Robert Vlasic (1926–2022), instrumental in the success of Vlasic Pickles  

Robert Vlasic helped grow his family’s Vlasic Pickles business into one of the most popular brands in the United States.  

Rae Allen (1926–2022), actress in “The Sopranos,” “Damn Yankees”

Rae Allen was an actress known for movies and TV shows including “A League of Their Own” and “The Sopranos.”

Ralph Ahn (1926–2022), actor known for “New Girl”

Ralph Ahn was an actor best known for playing the mostly silent grandfather figure Tran on “New Girl.”

Mel Mermelstein (1926–2022), Holocaust survivor who challenged deniers

Mel Mermelstein was a Holocaust survivor who successfully sued a group of Holocaust deniers and prompted a judge to declare that the many deaths were fact.

Thich Nhat Hanh (1926 - 2022), Zen Buddhist monk and mindfulness pioneer

Thich Nhat Hanh was a Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk who was a pioneer of mindfulness, helping bring the practice to the West.

Marjorie Tallchief (1926–2021), pioneering ballerina

Marjorie Tallchief was a Native American ballerina and the sister of acclaimed ballerina .

Robert Bly (1926–2021), writer and men’s movement founder

Robert Bly was a poet and writer best known for his 1990 book “Iron John: A Book About Men” and the mythopoetic men’s movement he helped launch.

Dorothy Steel (1926–2021), “Black Panther” actress

Dorothy Steel was an actress best known for playing a tribal elder in Marvel’s “Black Panther.”

Val Bisoglio (1926–2021), “Saturday Night Fever,” “Quincy, M.E.” actor

Val Bisoglio was a character actor known for roles in movies including “Saturday Night Fever” and TV shows including “Quincy, M.E.”

Betty Lynn (1926–2021), “The Andy Griffith Show” actress

Betty Lynn was an actress best known for playing Thelma Lou, Barney Fife’s girlfriend, on “The Andy Griffith Show.”

Jane Withers (1926–2021), child star and “Josephine the Plumber” in commercials

Jane Withers was an actress who was a child star in the 1930s and later became known for Comet cleanser commercials, where she played Josephine the Plumber.

Robert Ashby (1926–2021), Tuskegee Airman who was the first Black pilot for Frontier Airlines

Robert Ashby was a U.S. Air Force veteran who served as a Tuskegee Airman during World War II before becoming the first Black pilot hired by Frontier Airlines.