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world news Diasabra 12 December 2020

Final goodbye: Recalling influential people who died in 2020

In a year defined by a dev- de Havilland, Kirk Douglas, 1970 palace coup and pulled 2.
astating pandemic, the Irrfan Khan, Max von Sydow, his Arabian sultanate into George Steiner, 90. He be- Zoe Caldwell, 86. A four-
world lost iconic defend- Diana Rigg, Ian Holm, Rishi modernity while carefully came one of the world's time Tony Award winner who
ers of civil rights, great Kapoor and Franca Valeri; balancing diplomatic ties be- leading public intellectuals brought humanity to larger-
athletes and entertainers musicians Ellis Marsalis Jr., tween adversaries Iran and through his uncommon eru- than-life characters, whether
who helped define their John Prine, Bonnie Pointer, the U.S. Jan. 11. dition, multilingual perspec- it be the dotty schoolteacher
genres. Kenny Rogers, Juliette Greco tive and the provocative les- Miss Jean Brodie, an aging
and Toots Hibbert; filmmak- Jimmy Heath, 93. A Gram- sons he drew from his Jew- opera star Maria Callas or the
Many of their names hold a ers Nobuhiko Obayashi, Joel my-nominated jazz saxo- ish roots and escape from the betrayed, murderous Medea.
prominent place in the col- Schumacher and Ivan Passer; phonist and composer who Holocaust. Feb. 3. Feb. 16.
lective consciousness — authors Mary Higgins Clark performed with such greats
RBG, Kobe, Maradona, Ed- and Clive Cussler; TV hosts as Miles Davis and John Daniel arap Moi, 95. A for- Charles Portis, 86. The novel-
die Van Halen, Little Richard, Regis Philbin and Jim Leh- Coltrane before forming the mer schoolteacher who be- ist was a favorite among crit-
Sean Connery, Alex Trebek, rer; magician Roy Horn; popular family group the came Kenya's longest-serving ics and writers for such shag-
Christo — but pandemic and fashion designer Kenzo Heath Brothers in middle president and presided over gy dog stories as "Norwood"
restrictions often limited Takada. age. Jan. 19. years of repression and eco- and "Gringos" and a bounty
the public's ability to mourn Here is a roll call of some in- nomic turmoil fueled by run- for Hollywood whose droll,
their loss in a year that saw fluential figures who died in Thomas Railsback, 87. An Il- away corruption. Feb. 4. bloody Western "True Grit"
more than a million people 2020 (cause of death cited for linois Republican congress- Kirk Douglas, 103. The in- was a bestseller twice adapted
die from the coronavirus. younger people, if available) man who helped draw up ar- tense, muscular actor with into Oscar-nominated films.
ticles of impeachment against the dimpled chin who starred Feb. 17.
U.S. Supreme Court Jus- David Stern, 77. The basket- President Richard Nixon in in "Spartacus," "Lust for Life"
tice Ruth Bader Ginsburg ball-loving lawyer who took 1974. Jan. 20. and dozens of other films, Mickey Wright, 85. The golf
— known as the Notorious the NBA around the world Terry Jones, 77. A found- helped fatally weaken the great with a magnificent
RBG to her many admir- during 30 years as its longest- ing member of the anarchic blacklist against suspected swing who won 13 majors
ers — was one of the many serving commissioner and Monty Python troupe who communists and reigned for among her 82 victories and
noteworthy figures who died oversaw its growth into a was hailed by colleagues as decades as a Hollywood mav- gave the fledgling LPGA a
in 2020. global powerhouse. Jan. 1. "the complete Renaissance erick and patriarch. Feb. 5. crucial lift. Feb. 17.
In a court known for solemn Nick Gordon, 30. He was comedian" and "a man of Beverly Pepper, 97. A fixture
legal proceedings, Ginsburg found liable in the death of endless enthusiasms." Jan. 21. of the Roman "Dolce Vita" Sy Sperling, 78. The Hair
became a cultural and so- his ex-partner, Bobbi Kristina Jim Lehrer, 85. The long- and renowned American Club for Men founder who
cial media icon whose fierce Brown, the daughter of sing- time host of the nightly PBS sculptor who made Italy her was famous for the TV
defense of women's rights ers Whitney Houston and "NewsHour" whose serious, home and backdrop to many commercials where he pro-
earned her a devoted follow- Bobby Brown. Jan. 1. Heroin sober demeanor made him of her monumental steel cre- claimed "I'm not only the
ing. She died in September overdose. the choice to moderate 11 ations. Feb. 5. Hair Club president but I'm
after 27 years on the coun- presidential debates between Roger Kahn, 92. The writer also a client." Feb. 19.
try's highest court. Making Don Larsen, 90. The jour- 1988 and 2012. Jan. 23. who wove memoir and base- Barbara "B." Smith, 70. She
few concessions to age and neyman pitcher who reached Kobe Bryant, 41. The 18- ball and touched millions of was one of the nation's top
health problems, she showed the heights of baseball glory time NBA All-Star who won readers through his roman- Black models who went on
a steely resilience and became when he threw a perfect five championships and be- tic account of the Brooklyn to open restaurants, launch
the leader of liberal justices game in 1956 with the New came one of the greatest bas- Dodgers in "The Boys of a successful home products
on the court. York Yankees for the only no- ketball players of his genera- Summer." Feb. 6. line and write cookbooks.
The world also said goodbye hitter in World Series history. tion during a 20-year career Orson Bean, 91. The witty Feb. 22.
to U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a Jan. 1. Esophageal cancer. spent entirely with the Los actor and comedian who en-
lion of the civil rights move- Angeles Lakers. Jan. 26. He- livened the game show "To Thich Quang Do, 91. A Bud-
ment who died in July. Neil Peart, 67. The renowned licopter crash. Tell the Truth" and played a dhist monk who became the
drummer and lyricist from crotchety merchant on "Dr. public face of religious dis-
Other former political fig- the influential Canadian John Andretti, 56. Carved Quinn, Medicine Woman." sent in Vietnam while the
ures who died this year in- band Rush. Jan. 7. out his own niche in one of Feb. 7. Hit by a car. Communist government
clude Egyptian leader Hosni Elizabeth Wurtzel, 52. Her the world's most successful Robert Conrad, 84. The rug- kept him in prison or under
Mubarak, New York Mayor blunt and painful confessions racing families and became ged, contentious actor who house arrest for more than 20
David Dinkins, Arizona Gov. of her struggles with addic- the first driver to attempt the starred in the hugely popular years. Feb. 22.
Jane Hull, Taiwanese Presi- tion and depression in the Memorial Day double. Jan. 1960s television series "Ha-
dent Lee Teng-hui, U.S. Sen. bestselling "Prozac Nation" 30. waiian Eye" and "The Wild Katherine Johnson, 101. A
Tom Coburn, Palestinian ne- made her a voice and a target Mary Higgins Clark, 92. She Wild West." Feb. 8. mathematician who calcu-
gotiator Saeb Erekat, U.N. for an anxious generation. was the tireless and long- lated rocket trajectories and
Secretary-General Javier Jan. 7. Cancer. reigning "Queen of Sus- Mirella Freni, 84. An Ital- Earth orbits for NASA's early
Pérez de Cuéllar and FBI Di- pense" whose tales of women ian soprano whose uncom- space missions and was later
rector William S. Sessions. beating the odds made her mon elegance and intensity portrayed in the 2016 hit film
Buck Henry, 89. "The one of the world's most pop- combined with a sumptuous "Hidden Figures," about pio-
Some of the year's deaths Graduate" co-writer who as ular writers. Jan. 31. voice and intelligence to en- neering Black female aero-
struck down relatively young screenwriter, character ac- Anne Cox Chambers, 100. thrall audiences for a half- space workers. Feb. 24.
people, leaving mourners tor, "Saturday Night Live" A newspaper heiress, diplo- century. Feb. 9.
with the heartbreak of a life host and cherished talk-show mat and philanthropist who Joseph Shabalala, 78. The Clive Cussler, 88. The mil-
gone too soon. Basketball and party guest became an was one of America's richest founder of the South African lion-selling adventure writer
great Kobe Bryant died along all-around cultural superstar women. Jan. 31. multi-Grammy-Award-win- and real-life thrill-seeker
with several others in a Janu- of the 1960s and 70s. Jan. ning music group Ladysmith who wove personal details
ary helicopter crash at age 41. 8. Ivan Passer, 86. A leading Andy Gill, 64. The guitarist Black Mambazo. Feb. 11. and spectacular fantasies
And in a shock to fans, actor filmmaker of the Czech New who supplied the scratching, into his page-turning novels
Chadwick Boseman, who Wave who with Milos For- seething sound that fueled Charles "Chuckie" O'Brien, about underwater explorer
inspired audiences with his man fled Soviet-controlled the highly influential Brit- 86. A longtime associate of Dirk Pitt. Feb. 24.
portrayal of comic book su- Prague and forged a celebrat- ish punk band Gang of Four. Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa Hosni Mubarak, 91. The
perhero Black Panther, died ed career in Hollywood. Jan. Feb. 1. who became a leading sus- Egyptian leader who was
of cancer in August at age 43. 9. Bernard Ebbers, 78. The for- pect in the labor leader's dis- the autocratic face of stabil-
Sultan Qaboos bin Said, 79. mer chief of WorldCom who appearance and later was por- ity in the Middle East for
Others in the world of arts He was the Mideast's lon- was convicted in one of the trayed in the Martin Scorsese nearly 30 years before being
and entertainment who died gest-ruling monarch who largest corporate accounting film, "The Irishman." Feb. forced from power in an Arab
in 2020 include actors Olivia seized power in Oman in a scandals in U.S. history. Feb. 13. Spring uprising. Feb. 25.