Celebrity deaths of 2020

1. Kenny Rogers

Soundtrack | Faster

Born in Houston, Texas on August 21, 1938, Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, actor, record producer and entrepreneur Kenneth Ray Rogers was the fourth of eight children born to a carpenter father who worked in a shipyard and a mother who was a hospital nurse's assistant. Of humble Irish and Native...

2. Stuart Whitman

Actor | The Comancheros

American leading man Stuart Maxwell Whitman was known for his rugged roles. He was born in San Francisco, California, the elder of two sons of Cecilia (Gold) and Joseph Whitman, a realtor. His mother was a Russian Jewish immigrant, while his paternal grandparents were Polish Jews. His family moved ...

3. Mark Blum

Actor | Crocodile Dundee

Mark Blum was born on May 14, 1950 in Newark, New Jersey, USA as Mark Jeffrey Blum. He was an actor and producer, known for Crocodile Dundee (1986), Desperately Seeking Susan (1985) and Shattered Glass (2003). He was married to Janet Zarish. He died on March 26, 2020 in Manhattan, New York City, ...

died of complications from COVID-19

4. Kobe Bryant

Producer | Dear Basketball

Kobe Bryant was born on August 23, 1978 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA as Kobe Bean Bryant. He was a producer and actor, known for Dear Basketball (2017), Daddy's Home (2015) and The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2018: Live Action (2018). He was married to Vanessa Laine Bryant. He died on January...

helicopter crash

5. Terrence McNally

Writer | American Playhouse

Terrence McNally was born on November 3, 1938 in St. Petersburg, Florida, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for American Playhouse (1980), Frankie and Johnny (1991) and The Ritz (1976). He was married to Thomas Kirdahy. He died on March 24, 2020 in Sarasota, Florida.

died of complications from COVID-19

6. Bill Withers

Soundtrack | The Bodyguard

Singer, songwriter and guitarist Bill Withers was born on July 4, 1938 in the small coal-mining town of Slab Fork, West Virginia and was raised in the nearby town of Beckley. He was the youngest of six children of Mattie (Galloway), a maid, and William Withers, a miner. His father died when Withers...

7. John Callahan

Actor | All My Children

John Callahan was born on December 23, 1953 in Brooklyn, New York, USA as John Kevin Callahan. He was an actor, known for All My Children (1970), eCupid (2011) and Dinocroc vs. Supergator (2010). He was married to Eva LaRue and Linda Freeman. He died on March 28, 2020 in Rancho Mirage, California, ...

8. Johnny Yune

Actor | They Call Me Bruce

Johnny Yune was born on October 22, 1936 in Eumseong County, North Chungcheong Province, South Korea as Jon Yune. He was an actor and writer, known for They Call Me Bruce (1982), They Still Call Me Bruce (1987) and The Cannonball Run (1981). He was married to Julia Yune. He died on March 8, 2020 in...

9. Jay Benedict

Actor | The Dark Knight Rises

Jay Benedict was born on April 11, 1951 in Burbank, California, USA. He is known for his work on The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Double Team (1997) and The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (2013). He was married to Phoebe Scholfield and Vanessa Pereira. He died on April 4, ...

10. Vincent Marzello

Actor | The Witches

Vincent Marzello was born on July 4, 1951 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for The Witches (1990), Superman (1978) and The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). He was married to Lorelei King. He died on March 31, 2020 in London, England.

11. Matthew Faber

Actor | Welcome to the Dollhouse

Matthew Faber was born on January 31, 1973 in Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and cinematographer, known for Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995), Palindromes (2004) and Natural Born Killers (1994). He died on March 28, 2020 in Van Nuys, California, USA.

12. Manu Dibango

Soundtrack | Ride Along

Manu Dibango was born on December 12, 1933 in Douala, Cameroon as Emmanuel Dibango N'Djocke. He died on March 24, 2020 in Melun, Seine-et-Marne, France.

complications from COVID-19

13. Apple Gabriel

Self | Holding on to Jah

Apple Gabriel was born on April 24, 1955 in Jamaica. He died on March 23, 2020 in the USA.

14. Lyle Waggoner

Actor | Wonder Woman

The television heartthrob from the 1960s and 1970s was the proverbial tall, dark and classically handsome actor. Completing the solid package was a great, muscular build, smooth charm, and an almost perfect set of teeth. Born in 1935 in Kansas City, Kansas, and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, he ...

15. Edd Byrnes

Actor | Grease

Edd Byrnes was born Edward Byrne Breitenberger on July 30, 1932 in New York City, the son of Mary (Byrne) and Augustus "Gus" Breitenberger. Edd shared an impoverished and unhappy childhood with brother Vincent and sister Jo-Ann. Their mother worked hard at various jobs to keep the family together ...

16. Lorenzo Brino

Actor | 7th Heaven

Lorenzo Brino was born on September 21, 1998 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA as Lorenzo Nathanel Brino. He was an actor, known for 7th Heaven (1996). He died on March 9, 2020 in Yucaipa, California.

17. James Otis

Actor | The Prestige

James Otis was born on March 16, 1948. He was an actor, known for The Prestige (2006), The Black Dahlia (2006) and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993). He died on March 3, 2020 in the USA.

18. Nicholas Tucci

Actor | You're Next

Nicholas Tucci was born and raised in Middletown, CT. He graduated from Middletown High School before attending Yale University, where he received a BA in Theater and was a member of the sketch comedy group Suite 13. He has acted in numerous theatrical productions across the country, including ...

19. Kevin Conway

Actor | Thirteen Days

Kevin Conway was born on May 29, 1942 in New York City, New York, USA as Kevin John Conway. He was an actor and director, known for Thirteen Days (2000), Gettysburg (1993) and Invincible (2006). He was married to Mila Burnette. He died on February 5, 2020 in Manhattan, New York City.

20. Kirk Douglas

Actor | Spartacus

Cleft-chinned, steely-eyed and virile star of international cinema who rose from being "the ragman's son" (the name of his best-selling 1988 autobiography) to become a bona fide superstar, Kirk Douglas, also known as Issur Danielovitch Demsky, was born on December 9, 1916 in Amsterdam, New York. ...

21. Paula Kelly

Actress | The Andromeda Strain

Tall, graceful, supremely accomplished American actress, singer, dancer and choreographer Paula Kelly was born in Jacksonville, Florida, one of three daughters, to Ruth and Lehman Kelly. The family moved to Harlem in New York when she was six years old. Unlike her siblings, she had strong musical ...

22. Caroline Flack

Actress | Bo' Selecta!

Caroline Flack was born on November 9, 1979 in London, England as Caroline Louise Flack. She is known for her work on Bo' Selecta! (2002), Greed (2019) and Love Advent (2011). She died on February 15, 2020 in London.

23. Honor Blackman

Actress | Goldfinger

Comparing this sultry-eyed blonde to Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich may seem a bit overzealous, but Honor Blackman's stylish allure cannot be denied.

One of four children, Blackman was born in London's East End, to Edith Eliza (Stokes), a homemaker, and Frederick Thomas Blackman, a statistician ...

24. John Prine

Soundtrack | Courage Under Fire

Exceptionally talented singer/songwriter John Prine enjoyed a 40 plus year career that encompassed such diverse music genres as folk, rock, country, and rockabilly. With his wry sense of humor, sharp, incisive songwriting, and endearingly offbeat perspective, John distinguished himself as a true ...

complications from COVID-19

25. Joseph Shabalala

Soundtrack | The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

Joseph Shabalala was born on August 28, 1941 in Ladysmith, South Africa as Bhekizizwe Joseph Siphatimandla Mxoveni Mshengu Bigboy Shabalala. He was married to Thokozile and Nellie. He died on February 11, 2020 in Pretoria, South Africa.

26. Brian Dennehy

Actor | First Blood

Imposing, barrel-chested and often silver-haired Brian Dennehy was a prolific US actor, well respected on both screen and stage over many decades. He was born in July 1938 in Bridgeport, CT, and attended Columbia University in New York City on a football scholarship. Brian majored in history, ...

27. Shirley Knight

Actress | Paul Blart: Mall Cop

Shirley Knight is an American actress who appeared in more than 180 feature films, television movies, television series, and Broadway productions in her career playing leading and character roles.

She was a member of the Actors Studio. Knight was nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best ...

28. Little Richard

Soundtrack | Predator

Richard Wayne Penniman, better known as Little Richard, the self-proclaimed "Architect of Rock 'n' Roll", traveled in his early days with the legendary vaudeville star Spencer "Snake" Anthony. One of Richard's early bands had the young, then unknown singer James Brown (the Godfather of Soul), a ...

29. Betty Wright

Soundtrack | Speed 2: Cruise Control

Soul and R&B singer Betty Wright was born December 21, 1953 in Miami, Florida. She started out as a member of her family's own gospel group The Echoes of Joy and began working as a backup vocalist for other singers at age thirteen. She recorded her 1968 debut album "My First Time Around" when she ...

30. Sai Gundewar

Actor | PK

Sai Gundewar was a Mumbai based Actor and a Model. He was born on the 22nd of February 1978, in a Hindu family in Nagpur, Maharashtra. He always had a penchant for acting and was a part of numerous plays and dance competitions during his high school and college years.

He moved to Australia in the ...

31. Andre Harrell

Producer | Honey

Andre Harrell was born on September 26, 1960 in Harlem, New York City, New York, USA as Andre O'Neal Harrell. He is known for his work on Honey (2003), New York Undercover (1994) and Strictly Business (1991). He was married to Wendy Credle. He died on May 7, 2020 in West Hollywood, California, USA.

32. Mory Kanté

Soundtrack | The Beach

Mory Kanté was born on March 29, 1950 in Albadariya, Kissidougou, Guinea. He died on May 22, 2020 in Conakry, Guinea.

33. Kelly Preston

Actress | Battlefield Earth

Kelly Preston was born on October 13, 1962 in Honolulu, Hawaii. A talented and captivating performer, she first garnered international attention with her role as "Marnie Mason" in Ivan Reitman's Twins (1988), starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito. With her diverse character portrayals in ...

34. Bonnie Pointer

Soundtrack | 54

Singer/songwriter Patricia "Bonnie" Pointer was born on July 11, 1950 in Oakland, California. She's the second youngest member of the hugely popular and successful soul/R&B group The Pointer Sisters. Bonnie began singing in the choir of her father Reverend Elton Pointer's church. In 1969 Bonnie ...

35. Ian Holm

Actor | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Sir Ian Holm was one of the world's greatest actors, a Laurence Olivier Award-winning, Tony Award-winning, BAFTA-winning and Academy Award-nominated British star of films and the stage. He was a member of the prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company and has played more than 100 roles in films and on ...

36. Mary Twala

Actress | This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection

Mary Twala was born on September 14, 1939 in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa. She is known for her work on This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection (2019), The Dark Tower (2017) and Hector and the Search for Happiness (2014). She was married to Ndaba Mhlongo. She died on July 4, 2020 in ...

37. John Lewis

Self | John Lewis: Good Trouble

John Lewis was born on February 21, 1940 in Troy, Alabama, USA as John Robert Lewis. He was married to Lillian Miles. He died on July 17, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

38. Richard Herd

Actor | All the President's Men

Utilitarian character actor Richard Herd was one of those stern familiar faces you saw countless times on film and TV but couldn't quite place the name. The stage-trained actor, who shared a striking resemblance to actor Karl Malden, never found the one role that would make him a household name, ...

39. Earl Cameron

Actor | Inception

Earl Cameron was born on August 8, 1917 in Pembroke, Bermuda. He was an actor, known for Inception (2010), Thunderball (1965) and The Interpreter (2005). He was married to Barbara Cameron and Audrey J. P. Godowski. He died on July 3, 2020 in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, England.

40. Louis Mahoney

Actor | Captain Phillips

Gambian Louis Felix Danner Mahoney was born on Septenber 8, 1938 and came to England ostensibly to train as a doctor. However, he abandoned medicine for the stage, probably his original intention. He enrolled at acting school in the 1970s. He was a tireless campaigner for racial equality in his ...

41. Naya Rivera

Actress | Glee

Naya Rivera was born on January 12, 1987 in Valencia, California, USA as Naya Marie Rivera. She was an actress, known for Glee (2009), The Royal Family (1991) and The Master of Disguise (2002). She was married to Ryan Dorsey. She died on July 8, 2020 in Ventura, California.