21 January Deaths

January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 344 days remaining until the end of the year (345 in leap years). This date is slightly more likely to fall on a Monday, Thursday or Saturday (58 in 400 years each) than on Tuesday or Wednesday (57), and slightly less likely to occur on a Friday or Sunday (56).

    420 – Yazdegerd I, king of the Sassanid Empire
    496 – Epiphanius of Pavia, Italian bishop and saint (b. 438)
    917 – Erchanger, Duke of Swabia (b. 880)
    1118 – Pope Paschal II (b. 1050)
    1527 – Juan de Grijalva, Spanish explorer (b. 1489)
    1546 – Azai Sukemasa, Japanese daimyo (b. 1491)
    1609 – Joseph Justus Scaliger, French historian and scholar (b. 1540)
    1638 – Ignazio Donati, Italian composer (b. 1570)
    1683 – Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, English politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (b. 1621)
    1670 – Claude Duval, French highwayman (b. 1643)
    1699 – Obadiah Walker, English historian and academic (b. 1616)
    1706 – Adrien Baillet, French scholar and critic (b. 1649)
    1710 – Johann Georg Gichtel, German mystic and critic (b. 1638)
    1722 – Charles Paulet, 2nd Duke of Bolton, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1661)
    1731 – Ignjat Đurđević, Croatian poet and translator (b. 1675)
    1773 – Alexis Piron, French playwright and author (b. 1689)
    1774 – Mustafa III, Ottoman sultan (b. 1717)
    1775 – Yemelyan Pugachev, Russian rebel (b. 1742)
    1789 – Baron d'Holbach, French-German philosopher and author (b. 1723)
    1793 – Louis XVI of France (b. 1754)
    1795 – Samuel Wallis, English navigator and explorer (b. 1728)
    1809 – Josiah Hornblower, American engineer and politician (b. 1729)
    1814 – Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, French botanist and author (b. 1737)
    1823 – Cayetano José Rodríguez, Argentinian cleric, journalist, and poet (b. 1761)
    1831 – Ludwig Achim von Arnim, German poet and author (b. 1781)
    1851 – Albert Lortzing, German actor and composer (b. 1801)
    1862 – Božena Němcová, Austrian-Czech author and poet (b. 1820)
    1870 – Alexander Herzen, Russian philosopher and author (b. 1812)
    1872 – Franz Grillparzer, Austrian playwright and poet (b. 1791)
    1881 – Wilhelm Matthias Naeff, Swiss lawyer and politician (b. 1802)
    1891 – Calixa Lavallée, Canadian-American lieutenant and composer (b. 1842)
    1901 – Elisha Gray, American engineer, co-founded Western Electric (b. 1835)
    1914 – Theodor Kittelsen, Norwegian painter and illustrator (b. 1857)
    1919 – Gojong of Korea (b. 1852)
    1919 – Ahmed Muhtar Pasha, Ottoman general and politician, 277th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (b. 1839)
    1924 – Vladimir Lenin, Russian lawyer and politician (b. 1870)
    1926 – Camillo Golgi, Italian physician and pathologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1843)
    1928 – George Washington Goethals, American general and engineer (b. 1858)
    1931 – Felix Blumenfeld, Russian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1863)
    1932 – Lytton Strachey, English biographer and critic (b. 1880)
    1933 – George Moore, Irish author, poet, and critic (b. 1852)
    1937 – Marie Prevost, Canadian-American actress and singer (b. 1898)
    1938 – Georges Méliès, French actor, director, and producer (b. 1861)
    1940 – Prince Christopher of Greece and Denmark (b. 1888)
    1940 – John Duha, American gymnast and triathlete (b. 1875)
    1945 – Rash Behari Bose, Indian soldier and engineer (b. 1886)
    1948 – Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Italian composer and educator (b. 1876)
    1950 – George Orwell, British novelist, essayist, and critic (b. 1903)
    1955 – Archie Hahn, German-American runner and coach (b. 1880)
    1956 – Sam Langford, Canadian-American boxer (b. 1883)
    1959 – Cecil B. DeMille, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1881)
    1960 – Matt Moore, Irish-American actor and director (b. 1888)
    1961 – Blaise Cendrars, Swiss author and poet (b. 1887)
    1963 – Acharya Shivpujan Sahay, Indian author, poet, and academic (b. 1893)
    1963 – Spiros Xenos, Greek-Swedish painter (b. 1881)
    1965 – Gwynne Evans, American swimmer and water polo player (b. 1880)
    1967 – Ann Sheridan, American actress (b. 1915)
    1968 – Will Lang, Jr., American journalist (b. 1914)
    1977 – Sandro Penna, Italian poet and journalist (b. 1906)
    1978 – Freda Utley, English scholar and author (b. 1898)
    1983 – Lamar Williams, American bass player (b. 1949)
    1984 – Giannis Skarimpas, Greek playwright and poet (b. 1893)
    1985 – James Beard, American chef and author (b. 1903)
    1985 – Eddie Graham, American wrestler and promoter (b. 1930)
    1987 – Charles Goodell, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician (b. 1926)
    1988 – Vincent Lingiari, Australian Aboriginal rights activist (b. 1919)
    1989 – Carl Furillo, American baseball player (b. 1922)
    1989 – Billy Tipton, American pianist and saxophonist (b. 1914)
    1993 – Charlie Gehringer, American baseball player and manager (b. 1903)
    1998 – Jack Lord, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1920)
    1999 – Susan Strasberg, American actress (b. 1938)
    2002 – Peggy Lee, American singer (b. 1920)
    2003 – Paul Haines, American-Canadian poet and songwriter (b. 1933)
    2003 – Paul Kuusberg, Estonian journalist and author (b. 1916)
    2004 – Yordan Radichkov, Bulgarian author and playwright (b. 1929)
    2005 – Theun de Vries, Dutch author and poet (b. 1907)
    2005 – John L. Hess, American journalist and critic (b. 1917)
    2005 – Kaljo Raid, Estonian cellist, composer, and pastor (b. 1921)
    2006 – Ibrahim Rugova, Kosovo journalist and politician, 1st President of Kosovo (b. 1944)
    2009 – Krista Kilvet, Estonian journalist, politician and diplomat (b. 1946)
    2010 – Paul Quarrington, Canadian author, playwright, guitarist, and composer (b. 1953)
    2011 – Theoni V. Aldredge, Greek-American costume designer (b. 1922)
    2011 – Dennis Oppenheim, American sculptor and photographer (b. 1938)
    2011 – E. V. V. Satyanarayana, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1958)
    2012 – Roy John Britten, American biologist and geneticist (b. 1919)
    2012 – Cliff Chambers, American baseball player (b. 1922)
    2012 – Ernie Gregory, English footballer, coach, and manager (b. 1921)
    2013 – Jean Giambrone, American journalist (b. 1921)
    2013 – Donald Hornig, American chemist and academic (b. 1920)
    2013 – Ahmet Mete Işıkara, Turkish geophysicist and academic (b. 1941)
    2013 – Jake McNiece, American sergeant (b. 1919)
    2013 – Chumpol Silpa-archa, Thai academic and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand (b. 1940)
    2013 – Michael Winner, English director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1935)
    2014 – G. Thompson Brown, American missionary, theologian, and author (b. 1921)
    2014 – Warren Lamb, English businessman and educator (b. 1923)
    2014 – Wilford Moore, American football player and coach (b. 1919)
    2014 – Dick Shrider, American basketball player and coach (b. 1923)
    2014 – George C. Wortley, American soldier and politician (b. 1926)
    2015 – Marcus Borg, American scholar, theologian, and author (b. 1942)
    2015 – Leon Brittan, English lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (b. 1939)
    2015 – Vince Camuto, American fashion designer and businessman, co-founded Nine West (b. 1936)
    2015 – Johnnie Lewis, Liberian lawyer and politician, 18th Chief Justice of Liberia (b. 1946)
    2016 – Bill Johnson, American skier (b. 1960)
    2016 – Mrinalini Sarabhai, Indian dancer and choreographer (b. 1918)

Source: Wikipedia