Born January 1

Lizzy Musi (1991–2024), star of Street Outlaws: No Prep Kings

Lizzy Musi was a professional race car driver and star of the reality series “Street Outlaws: No Prep Kings.” 

Charles T. Munger (1924–2023), Warren Buffett’s right-hand man

Charles T. Munger was a businessman and investor who served as vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and business magnate Warren Buffett’s right hand.

Gerry Hart (1948–2023), NHL player for Islanders, Red Wings

Gerry Hart was a Canadian hockey defenseman with NHL teams including the Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders. 

Mona Hammond (1931–2022), British actress in “EastEnders”

Mona Hammond was a Jamaican-British actress with a longtime stage career who starred on “EastEnders” in the 1990s.

Bobbie Nelson (1931–2022), Willie Nelson’s sister and pianist

Bobbie Nelson was a pianist who played with her younger brother, Willie Nelson, for more than 50 years.

James Hormel (1933–2021), first openly gay U.S. ambassador

James Hormel was a philanthropist and the heir to the Hormel Food fortune who became the first openly gay ambassador representing the U.S.

Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya (2000–2020), Olympic figure skater

Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya was a figure skater who left her native Russia to compete for Australia in the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.

Valentina Cortese (1923–2019), Italian cinema legend

Oscar nominated for her role in Truffaut’s “Day for Night.”

Mona Lee Brock (1932–2019), counseled farmers in crisis

Mona Lee Brock counseled tens of thousands of farmers through crises as a prominent volunteer at the National Farm Center Crisis Hotline.

Rita Henley Jensen (1947–2017), pioneer of women’s journalism founded Women’s eNews

Rita Henley Jensen, founder of Women’s eNews and the Jane Crow Project, died Oct. 18 of breast cancer, according to her daughter, Ariel Jensen-Vargas. She was 70.

Haruo Nakajima (1929 - 2017), actor who played Godzilla

Japanese actor played legendary monster Godzilla in the original and 11 sequels.

Garrett Gomez (1972–2016), Hall of Fame jockey

Former Jockey won 13 Breeders’ Cup races during his career.

New J.D. Salinger Book? Maybe Next Year

When J.D. Salinger died, some readers believed we’d see a flood of posthumous releases. A year after his death, can we still hope for them?