Deaths in the 1980s
21,000+ memorials
Jean-Michel Basquiat
1960–1988 (age 28)
Green-Wood Cemetery
Neo-expressionist painter who rose to fame in the 1980s New York art scene.
Colonel Harland Sanders
1890–1980 (age 90)
Cave Hill Cemetery
Founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), one of the most recognizable figures in American business.
Harold Arlen
1905–1986 (age 81)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American composer known for writing music for Broadway and Hollywood films.
James Baldwin
1924–1987 (age 63)
Ferncliff Cemetery
African-American novelist and essayist known for his powerful works on race and identity.
Ray Bloch
1902–1982 (age 80)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American composer and arranger known for his work in television and music.
Adolph Caesar
1933–1986 (age 53)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American actor known for his work in film and television.
Lemuel L. Foster
1891–1981 (age 90)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American civil servant and community leader.
Annette Hanshaw
1901–1985 (age 84)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American jazz and popular singer known for her recordings in the 1920s-1930s.
Alberta Hunter
1895–1984 (age 89)
Ferncliff Cemetery
African-American jazz singer and songwriter known for her blues performances.
Wellington Koo
1888–1985 (age 97)
Ferncliff Cemetery
Chinese diplomat and statesman who served as Ambassador of the Republic of China.
Alan Jay Lerner
1918–1986 (age 68)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American composer and playwright known for his Broadway musicals.
Avon Long
1910–1984 (age 74)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American actor, singer, and dancer known for his work in theater and film.
Hugh Marlowe
1911–1982 (age 71)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American actor known for his work in film and television.
Thelonious Monk
1917–1982 (age 65)
Ferncliff Cemetery
American jazz pianist and composer known for his innovative compositions.
Alvin Ailey
1931–1989 (age 58)
Rose Hills Memorial Park
Pioneering American modern dancer and choreographer who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
Lamar Allen
1914–1989 (age 75)
Rose Hills Memorial Park
American professional baseball player.
Dominic Brooklier
1914–1984 (age 70)
Rose Hills Memorial Park
American organized crime figure and boss of the Los Angeles crime family.
Charley Cowan
1938–1988 (age 50)
Rose Hills Memorial Park
American professional football player.
Guan Linzheng
1905–1980 (age 75)
Rose Hills Memorial Park
Chinese military general.
Mickey Thompson
1928–1988 (age 60)
Rose Hills Memorial Park
American racing driver and land speed record holder.
Peter Folger
1905–1980 (age 75)
Mountain View Cemetery
American coffee heir and socialite.
Lem Billings
1916–1981 (age 65)
Allegheny Cemetery
Friend and campaigner for President John F. Kennedy.
Matthew Beard
1925–1981 (age 56)
Evergreen Cemetery
Child actor known as Stymie in the Our Gang series.
Ben H. Brown Jr.
1914–1989 (age 75)
Rock Creek Cemetery
Former United States ambassador to Liberia.
Roscoe Drummond
1902–1983 (age 81)
Rock Creek Cemetery
Journalist and editor known for political commentary.
Patricia Roberts Harris
1924–1985 (age 61)
Rock Creek Cemetery
Ambassador and first African-American woman to serve in a presidential cabinet.
Jenny Maxwell
1941–1981 (age 40)
Los Angeles
Jenny Maxwell was an American actress known for her roles in 1960s television and film.
Jim Fixx
1932–1984 (age 52)
United States
Jim Fixx was an American running enthusiast and author who popularized jogging in the United States.
Piotr Adamski
1891–1982 (age 91)
United States
Piotr Adamski was a Polish-American immigrant and community figure.
Isaiah L. Kenen
1905–1988 (age 83)
Washington, D.C.
Isaiah L. Kenen was a Canadian-American lobbyist and founder of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
Klaus Nomi
1944–1983 (age 39)
New York City
Klaus Nomi was a German countertenor and performance artist known for his avant-garde operatic style.
Paul Castellano
1915–1985 (age 70)
New York City
Paul Castellano was an American crime boss who led the Gambino crime family.
Jean Moscopol
1903–1980 (age 77)
New York City
Jean Moscopol was a Romanian-American businessman and community leader.
Bill Veeck
1914–1986 (age 72)
Lake Michigan
Bill Veeck was an American baseball executive and owner known for his innovative promotional tactics.
Pannonica de Koenigswarter
1913–1988 (age 75)
Hudson River
Pannonica de Koenigswarter was a British jazz patron and baroness who supported numerous jazz musicians.
James Bond
1900–1989 (age 89)
Philadelphia
James Bond was an American ornithologist whose name inspired Ian Fleming's famous fictional spy character.
Henry DeWolf Smyth
1898–1986 (age 88)
Philadelphia
Henry DeWolf Smyth was an American physicist and diplomat who worked on the Manhattan Project.
Jam Handy
1886–1983 (age 97)
Philadelphia
Jam Handy was an American filmmaker and advertising pioneer known for industrial and educational films.
Julien Levy
1906–1981 (age 75)
Philadelphia
Julien Levy was an American art dealer and curator who championed surrealism in the United States.
Carl Hensler
1898–1984 (age 86)
Pittsburgh
Carl Hensler was an American industrialist and businessman from the Pittsburgh area.
Ira Arthur Hirschmann
1901–1989 (age 88)
Baltimore
Ira Arthur Hirschmann was an American music executive and humanitarian known for his cultural advocacy.
Osyp Boichuk
1907–1981 (age 74)
Detroit
Osyp Boichuk was a Ukrainian-born artist and painter who lived from 1907 to 1981.
Charles Coleman Sellers
1903–1980 (age 77)
Philadelphia
Charles Coleman Sellers was an American historian and curator specializing in early American history.
Eric F. Goldman
1916–1989 (age 73)
Philadelphia
Eric F. Goldman was a prominent American historian and professor known for his work on American intellectual history.
Fred Archer
1910–1981 (age 71)
Philadelphia
Fred Archer was an American musician and composer active in the early-to-mid 20th century.
Red Smith
1905–1982 (age 77)
Philadelphia
Red Smith was a legendary American sportswriter and journalist who covered major sporting events for decades.
Richard B. Morris
1904–1989 (age 85)
Philadelphia
Richard B. Morris was a distinguished American historian specializing in early American and constitutional history.
Nathan Cohn
1907–1989 (age 82)
Philadelphia
Nathan Cohn was an American businessman and community leader in Hartford, Connecticut.
Ivan Lebedovych
1890–1981 (age 91)
Philadelphia
Ivan Lebedovych was a Ukrainian immigrant who lived from 1890 to 1981.
Ted Bundy
1946–1989 (age 43)
Cascade Range
Ted Bundy was an American serial killer who murdered numerous young women across the United States during the 1970s befo...