This week marks the anniversaries of the births and deaths of more than a dozen remarkable
people who left behind a legacy that helped reshape the world—each in their own, unique
way. I’m Linnea Crowther with Legacy.com, the
website where you can find any obituary, or publish one for someone you care about.
Actor and comedian Jerry Lewis was born 97 years ago this week. He died of heart disease
in 2017. Lewis was one of the 20th century’s biggest names in comedy, both on his own and
as a duo with Dean Martin. Lewis is remembered for his many comedy classics,
including The Nutty Professor. But we also remember him as the longtime leader of the
Muscular Dystrophy Association, which has raised over $2.5 billion dollars to help sick
children, through the annual Jerry Lewis Telethon. Professional wrestler Mae Young would have
turned 100 this week. She died in 2014. Young was a pioneer of women’s wrestling, helping
to make the sport popular in the 1940s and ‘50s.
Young returned to the spotlight fifty years later, in the 2000s, when she paired up with
her friend, The Fabulous Moolah, to appear with the WWE. Both were in their 80s. Young
is remembered by fans as a tough and entertaining wrestler.
Actor John Cazale died of lung cancer this week in 1978. He was 42. He is best remembered
for his role as Fredo in the Godfather series of films. He also appeared in The Deer Hunter,
Dog Day Afternoon, and The Conversation. Cazale would appear in just four films during
his life, and two others posthumously. All six of those films received Academy Award
nominations for Best Picture, three of them winning.
Dr. Benjamin Spock died this week in 1998 at the age of 94. Spock is remembered for
his book, Baby and Child Care, which has sold over 50 million copies worldwide. Dr. Spock’s
views influenced the way generations of children were raised.
Actress Norma MacMillan died 22 years ago this week at the age of 79. Though she had
dozens of on-screen roles in her career, MacMillan is best known for her cartoon voice performances.
We remember her as the voice of Gumby… Casper the Friendly Ghost… and Davey on Davey and
Goliath, among many others. Another remarkable voice performer, Grace
Stafford, died 31 years ago this week at the age of 88. She is remembered for being the
voice of Woody Woodpecker from 1950 to 1992. Stafford was initially turned down for the
job because Woody is a male character. However, she submitted an anonymous audition tape and
won the role she would play for the next 42 years.
Singer Charley Pride would have turned 89 this week. Pride is remembered as one of the
most successful country singers of the ‘70s and ‘80s, scoring 30 number 1 hits on the
country music charts. He had more than 50 top 10 hits in all. Pride was inducted into
the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2000. Physicist and author Stephen Hawking died
this week in 2018. Hawking is known for works such as A Brief History of Time, which helped
make complex scientific topics understandable to the average person.
TV show host Morton Downey Jr. died 22 years ago this week of lung cancer. Downey Jr. is
remembered as a pioneer of the confrontational, often controversial style of reality TV that
swept the airwaves in the late 1980s. Roller derby legend Ann Calvello died 17 years
ago this week of liver cancer. Known as the “Demon of the Derby,” Calvello was one
of the toughest competitors in the sport. She is remembered for her wild hair colors
and fierce competitive spirit. Calvello’s career spanned seven decades. She is a member
of the Roller Derby Hall of Fame. Jazz musician Charlie Parker died this week
in 1955 at the age of 34. In his short life, he became a saxophone virtuoso and an icon
of 1940s and '50s counterculture. Nicknamed “Bird,” Parker is remembered
as the leading figure in bebop music. He leaves behind beloved jazz classics including "Billie's
Bounce" and "Yardbird Suite." Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
was born 90 years ago this week. Ginsburg was the first Jewish woman and only the second
woman to serve on the Court. Ginsburg attended Cornell and Columbia Law
School, where she graduated first in her class. She was a law professor at Columbia and Rutgers
before being appointed to the federal court system in 1980 by President Jimmy Carter.
Nicknamed “the Notorious RBG,” Ginsburg is remembered for her advocacy of women’s
rights and passionate dissents. She died in 2020 of pancreatic cancer.
Singer Tammi Terrell died of brain cancer this week in 1970. She was 24. We remember
Terrell for her string of hit singles with Marvin Gaye, including classics like "Ain't
No Mountain High Enough" and "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing."
Race car driver Lee Petty died 23 years ago this week at the age of 86. He is remembered
as one of the early pioneers of NASCAR racing, and was its first three-time champion. His
son, Richard Petty, would go on to be one of the greatest drivers of all time.
Actor Peter Graves was born this week in 1926. He also died this week in 2010 of a heart
attack. We remember Graves for his role as Jim Phelps in the Mission: Impossible television
series, and for his comedic role as Captain Clarence Oveur in the Airplane films.
Hall of Fame swimmer Florence Chadwick died this week in 1995 at the age of 76. She is
remembered for her record-setting feats of long-distance swimming: She swam the English
Channel in both directions, crossed the Catalina Channel, and swam the Straights of Gibraltar.
Actress Ann Sothern died of heart failure this week in 2001. She was 92. Southern is
remembered for her starring roles in Private Secretary and The Ann Sothern Show. She was
also the voice of My Mother the Car. In 1987, she earned an Oscar nomination at
the age of 78 for her final role, The Whales of August. Over the course of her life, she
was so funny that Lucille Ball once called her “the best comedian in the business.”
Civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer died this week in 1977 of complications from hypertension
and breast cancer. She is honored in the National Women's Hall of Fame.
Hamer is remembered for her efforts to register thousands of voters in Mississippi, even in
the face of sometimes violent discrimination. Photographer and model Linnea "Bunny" Yeager
was born this week in 1929. She has been called “the world’s greatest pinup photographer.”
Yeager is known for her photos of actress Ursula Andress, which were used to promote
the James Bond film Dr. No. We remember her for playing a major role in
popularizing the groundbreaking pinup model Bettie Page, a collaboration that led to over
1,000 photographs. Every Friday, our channel publishes a news
video paying tribute to the most recent celebrities and other public figures whose deaths have
made headlines. You can read more about the lives of the people
featured in this video on Legacy.com. At Legacy.com, ANY family can publish an obituary
in honor of a loved one’s memory, online and in local newspapers everywhere. Just visit Legacy.com
and select your local community. You can also follow Legacy.com on Facebook
and subscribe to our channel on YouTube to stay up to date on national news deaths.