Obituaries
Matt Snell Dies at 84; Carried Jets to Stunning Upset in Super Bowl III
His pounding runs for the underdog New York team against the Baltimore Colts secured a pivotal win for the American Football League.
Monti Rock III, Gleefully Untalented ‘Tonight Show’ Favorite, Dies at 86
He couldn’t sing, dance or tell funny stories. But Johnny Carson loved him and his persona: a D-list star clinging to celebrity.
Karen Petrou, Influential Fiscal Policy Analyst and Critic, Dies at 72
Her insights on financial regulations and monetary policy guided big banks and Washington policymakers.
Alexander Butterfield, Who Revealed Nixon Tapes in Watergate Scandal, Dies at 99
“There is tape in the Oval Office,” said Mr. Butterfield, a former White House aide, in testimony that rocked the Watergate hearings and led to the president’s resignation.
Bo Gritz, Vietnam Veteran Called a Real-Life Rambo, Dies at 87
He served in the Special Forces, led a postwar raid to find P.O.W.s and became a voice of the right-wing anti-government fringe.
Bernard Lafayette Jr., 85, Dies; Civil Rights Leader Helped Plan Selma March
A close associate of Martin Luther King Jr. and John Lewis, he was involved in many of the key moments of the Black freedom struggle in the 1960s.
John Caldwell, Father of Cross-Country Skiing in U.S., Dies at 97
A former Olympian himself, he wrote the sport’s bible, coached the American team at five Winter Games and helped make Vermont a hub of Nordic sports.
Colman McCarthy, 87, Journalist Who Waged Peace in the Classroom, Dies
For decades, he wrote a syndicated column in The Washington Post promoting nonviolence. That became the subject of a course he taught for nearly 40 years.
100 Years of Women Who Changed History
Revisiting the obituaries of a century of notable women to show how they were remembered — and what history may have left unsaid.
Country Joe McDonald, Whose Antiwar Song Became an Anthem, Dies at 84
One of the starring acts at Woodstock, he and his band, the Fish, came out of the Bay Area’s psychedelic rock scene. He went on to a long career as a solo artist.
Tatjana Wood, Award-Winning Comic Book Colorist, Dies at 99
She was part of the acclaimed creative teams on comic book series for DC Comics, including Swamp Thing, which she called “Shvampy” in her German accent.
Thaddeus Mosley, Sculptor Who Found Fame in His Last Decade, Dies at 99
A self-taught artist, he turned reclaimed wood into striking abstract works influenced by Brancusi, Noguchi and African art.
Alan Trustman, Lawyer Who Wrote ‘Thomas Crown Affair,’ Dies at 95
In a wide-ranging career, he was a member of a Boston white-shoe firm, a Swiss currency trader and a Hollywood screenwriter (“Bullitt” was another of his scripts).
Jeremy Larner, 88, Dies; Wrote ‘The Candidate,’ a Political Film Classic
His Oscar-winning 1972 screenplay starred Robert Redford as an idealistic public interest lawyer making a run for the Senate.
From 1999: Charlotte Perriand, Designer, Is Dead at 96
Le Corbusier famously told her, “We don’t embroider cushions here,” when she sought a job at his studio. Then he recognized her talent for design.
From 2001: Aaliyah, 22, Singer Who First Hit the Charts at 14
She was seen as a hip-hop temptress when she was still a teenager, and her albums “Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number” and “One in a Million” sold millions of copies.
From 1978: Golda Meir, 80, Dies in Jerusalem; Israelis Acclaim ‘Stalwart Lioness’
Once a teacher in Milwaukee, she climbed the ranks of the Labor Party to become Israel’s first female prime minister.
From 2014: Maya Angelou, Lyrical Witness of the Jim Crow South, Dies at 86
Her landmark book “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” was among the first 20th-century autobiographies of a Black woman to reach a wide readership.
From 2002: Sylvia Rivera, Figure in Birth of the Gay Liberation Movement, Dies at 50
When patrons at the Stonewall Inn faced down a police raid, she shouted to her lover, “I’m not missing a minute of this — it’s the revolution!”
From 1968: Lise Meitner, Physicist, Is Dead at 89; Paved Way for Splitting of Atom
She laid much of the theoretical groundwork for the atomic bomb, although she did not participate directly in its production.
From 2001: Beate Uhse, 81, Entrepreneur in the Business of Erotic Goods
She developed Europe’s biggest emporium of erotic goods and opened a three-story sex museum in Germany.
From 2011: Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Dies at 71
A Kenyan environmentalist, she began by paying women a few shillings to plant trees and went on to become the first African woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize.
Christine Keeler, Central Figure in British ‘Scandal of the Century,’ Is Dead at 75
News of her affair with the government minister John Profumo and other revelations set England abuzz in the early 1960s.
From 2010: Victoria Manalo Draves, Olympic Champion Diver, Dies at 85
She overcame prejudice early in her career to become the first woman to win a gold medal in both the springboard and the platform, at the 1948 Olympic Games in London.
From 2014: Alice Coachman, 90, Dies; First Black Woman to Win Olympic Gold
After capturing the high jump for the United States at the 1948 London Games, she returned home to a segregated South.
From 2004: Fanny Blankers-Koen, Star of ’48 Olympics, Dies at 85
A Dutch housewife, she emulated her hero, Jesse Owens, by setting an Olympic record in track and field.
From 1998: Florence Griffith Joyner, 38, Champion Sprinter, Is Dead
She revolutionized women’s sprinting with her speed and flamboyant fashion sense, and was a three-time gold medalist at the 1988 Summer Olympics.
From 1996: Toni Stone, 75, First Woman to Play Big-League Baseball
She was hired as a novelty by the Negro League’s Indianapolis Clowns, but went on to win recognition for her historic career.
From 1956: Babe Zaharias Dies; Athlete Had Cancer
From the time she made the headlines during the 1932 Olympic Games at Los Angeles, she reigned as the world’s top all-around female athlete.
From 1994: Wilma Rudolph, Star of the 1960 Olympics, Dies at 54
She won three gold medals as a sprinter in the Games, an achievement that seemed unlikely given her poor health as a child.
From 2003: Althea Gibson, First Black Wimbledon Champion, Dies at 76
She grew up far from the genteel world of tennis, but became a pre-eminent figure in the women’s sport, reigning as queen of the lawns at Wimbledon and Forest Hills.
From 1983: Karen Carpenter, 32, Is Dead; Singer Teamed With Brother
The Carpenters sold more than 30 million records with the irresistible combination of her soft-rock contralto and her brother’s lush arrangements.
From 2007: Anna Nicole Smith Dies at 39
A former Playboy centerfold, actress and TV personality, she was also known for being rich (sporadically) and litigious (chronically).
From 1995: Grammy-Winning Singer Selena Killed in Shooting at Texas Motel
Known as the queen of Tejano music, she was beloved as an idol and a heartthrob on both sides of the Mexican border.
