Public Figures & Cultural Luminaries

Arts & Music

29

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Astrud Gilberto (née Weinert)

Astrud Gilberto

Brazil

1940 – 2023 (83 years old)

Brazilian singer whose cool, unadorned, breathy vocals on The Girl from Ipanema introduced bossa nova to the world, winning the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1965 and selling millions of copies.

Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, United States

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Sports & Athletics

27

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James Ray Hines

Jim Hines

United States

1946 – 2023 (76 years old)

American sprinter who made sports history at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics by becoming the first human being to officially break the 10-second barrier in the 100 meters, winning Olympic gold with a world record time of 9.95 seconds.

Hayward, United States

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Literature & Poetry

27

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Ama Ata Aidoo

Christina Ama Aidoo

Ghana

1942 – 2023 (81 years old)

Celebrated Ghanaian novelist, playwright, poet, and feminist minister who championed African women's agency, anti-colonialism, and pan-Africanism in landmark literary works including Changes and Anowa.

Accra, Ghana

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Arts & Music

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Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock)

United States

1939 – 2023 (83 years old)

Revered worldwide as the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she overcame immense personal adversity to stage one of the greatest career comebacks in music history, selling over 100 million records and winning 12 Grammys.

Küsnacht, Switzerland

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Arts & Music

27

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George Raymond Stevenson

Ray Stevenson

Great Britain

1964 – 2023 (58 years old)

Towering Northern Irish actor renowned for imposing, charismatic performances including legionary Titus Pullo in HBO's Rome, Volstagg in Marvel's Thor films, Frank Castle in Punisher: War Zone, villain Governor Scott Buxton in RRR, and Baylan Skoll in Ahsoka.

Ibiza, Spain

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Arts & Music

28

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Andrew Michael Rourke

Andy Rourke

Great Britain

1964 – 2023 (59 years old)

Inimitable English bassist of the legendary indie rock band The Smiths whose melodic, funky, and driving basslines powered classics like "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out", "This Charming Man", and "Barbarism Begins at Home".

Manchester, United Kingdom

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Literature & Poetry

29

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Martin Louis Amis

Martin Amis

Great Britain

1949 – 2023 (73 years old)

Preeminent British novelist, essayist, and satirist whose dazzling prose style, linguistic virtuosity, and scathing social commentary defined late-20th-century British fiction in masterpieces like Money, London Fields, and The Zone of Interest.

Lake Worth Beach, United States

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Sports & Athletics

74

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Jim Brown

James Nathaniel Brown

United States

17 February 1936 – 18 May 2023 (87 years old)

James Nathaniel 'Jim' Brown is widely acclaimed as the greatest football player in NFL history, whose unstoppable combination of 6-foot-2, 230-pound power, speed, and balance dominated the league with the Cleveland Browns (1957–1965). Retiring at the peak of his career at age twenty-nine without ever missing a single game due to injury, he was also an elite lacrosse player, Hollywood actor, and civil rights leader who organized the 1967 Cleveland Summit.

Los Angeles, California, United States

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Arts & Music

25

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Rita Lee Jones de Carvalho

Rita Lee

Brazil

1947 – 2023 (75 years old)

Celebrated Brazilian singer-songwriter and feminist icon crowned the "Queen of Rock" (Rainha do Rock), who co-founded the groundbreaking psychedelic band Os Mutantes, driving the Tropicália movement, and sold over 55 million records.

São Paulo, Brazil

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Politics

3

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Marc Lalonde

Marc Lalonde

Canada

26 July 1929 – 6 May 2023 (93 years old)

Influential federal minister whose 1974 Lalonde Report transformed global public health by shifting focus from clinical treatment to lifestyle and environmental determinants.

Notre-Dame-de-l'Île-Perrot, Canada

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Arts & Music

26

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Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr.

Gordon Lightfoot

Canada

1938 – 2023 (84 years old)

Revered Canadian folk-rock troubadour and songwriter celebrated as Canada's greatest songwriter, whose lyrical masterpieces including "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", "Sundown", and "If You Could Read My Mind" helped define the folk-pop sound of the 1970s.

Orillia, Canada

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Arts & Music

27

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Gerald Norman Springer

Jerry Springer

Great Britain

1944 – 2023 (79 years old)

American broadcaster and Democratic politician who served as the 56th Mayor of Cincinnati before hosting The Jerry Springer Show for 27 seasons (1991–2018), turning chaotic, televised domestic brawls into a global pop-culture phenomenon.

Skokie, United States

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Humanitarian & Peace

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Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.

United States

1927 – 2023 (96 years old)

Charismatic singer, actor, and towering civil rights champion who popularized Caribbean calypso with Day-O. Close confidant of Martin Luther King Jr. and architect of USA for Africa's We Are the World.

New York City, United States

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Sports & Athletics

30

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Frentorish Tori Bowie

Tori Bowie

United States

1990 – 2023 (32 years old)

American track and field superstar who won three medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics (gold in 4x100m, silver in 100m, bronze in 200m) and became the 2017 World Champion in the 100 meters, hailed as the fastest woman in the world.

Sand Hill, United States

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Literature & Poetry

6

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Salma Khadra Jayyusi

سلمى الخضراء الجيوسي

Palestine

16 April 1926 – 20 April 2023 (97 years old)

Visionary Palestinian literary historian and anthologist who founded PROTA to translate major Arabic literary masterworks into English.

Amman, Jordan

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Sports & Athletics

6

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George Chuvalo

Boom Boom

Canada

12 September 1937 – 18 April 2023 (85 years old)

Legendary Canadian heavyweight champion celebrated as boxing's iron man, who fought Muhammad Ali for fifteen ferocious rounds in 1966 and was never knocked down in 93 bouts.

Toronto, Canada

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Arts & Music

27

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Frederick Russell Jones

Ahmad Jamal

United States

1930 – 2023 (92 years old)

Incomparable American jazz pianist and composer whose revolutionary use of space, dynamic restraint, and subtle touch directly transformed Miles Davis and modern jazz, and whose 1958 live album At the Pershing sold over one million copies.

Northampton, United States

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Arts & Music

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Dame Barbara Mary Quant

Mary Quant

Great Britain

1930 – 2023 (93 years old)

Iconic British fashion designer who defined the "Swinging Sixties" and the Mod youthquake movement, popularizing the miniskirt, hotpants, colored tights, and PVC rainwear, liberating women's fashion from aristocratic formality.

Farley Green, United Kingdom

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