Famous People Who Died on January 28
Discover the most famous people who died on January 28. The list includes people like Henry VIII of England, Charlemagne, Zora Neale Hurston, Klaus Fuchs, Joseph Brodsky. Famous personalities featured on this list, include astronauts, poets, novelists and playwrights and from other domains of life. This list includes people from United States, Germany, United Kingdom & France and many more countries.
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Birthdate: April 2, 0747
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Aachen, Germany
Died: 0814
Also known as Charles the Great, Charlemagne ruled as the king of the Franks, king of the Lombards, and emperor of the Romans at different time periods. Not surprisingly, he had a major impact during the Early Middle Ages as he went about uniting the majority of central and western Europe, for which he is called the Father of Europe.
Birthdate: June 28, 1491
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Kent, England
Died: 1547
Henry VIII, the second monarch of the Tudor dynasty, ruled England from 1509 to 1547. He married six times, leading to differences with the Roman Catholic Church, which prohibited divorce, thus forming the Anglican Church. The "father of the Royal Navy," he was known for his tyranny and extravagance.
3
Cicely Tyson(Actress and Model Best Known for Her Films: 'Sounder' and ‘The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman’)
Birthdate: December 18, 1924
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: New York City, New York, United States
Died: 2021
Cicely Tyson is best known for her Academy Award-nominated role of Rebecca Morgan in Sounder and her Emmy-winning performance in The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman. She is also a Tony- and Drama Desk-winning theater actor. Fans also loved her as Ophelia Harkness in How to Get Away with Murder.
4
W B Yeats(One of the Greatest English-Language Poets of the 20th Century and 1923 Nobel Prize for Literature Winner)
Birthdate: June 13, 1865
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Sandymount, Ireland
Died: 1939
Nobel Prize-winning Irish poet, playwright, and prose writer W. B. Yeats is remembered as one of the most significant literary figures of the 20th century. Known for works such as The Tower, he also helped establish the Abbey Theatre. An occult enthusiast, he was also part of The Ghost Club.
5
Christa McAuliffe(American Astronaut Who was Killed on the Space Shuttle 'Challenger' on Mission STS-51-L)
Birthdate: September 2, 1948
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Died: 1986
Christa McAuliffe was an American astronaut and teacher who died while serving as a payload specialist on board Space Shuttle Challenger, which exploded during STS-51-L. McAuliffe was all set to become the first teacher in space as she was part of the NASA Teacher in Space Project. In 2004, she was posthumously honored with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
6
Francis Drake(Best Known for His Circumnavigation of the World in a Single Expedition)
Birthdate: 1540 AD
Birthplace: Tavistock, Devon, England
Died: 1596
Francis Drake was an English explorer and naval officer. He is remembered for his Raiding Expedition, a prominent historical maritime event which unfolded between 1577 and 1580. Although Drake is considered a hero in the United Kingdom, his privateering led the Spanish to refer to him as a pirate. His expedition has also had a major cultural impact in Britain.
Birthdate: January 7, 1891
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Notasulga
Died: 1960
Zora Neale Hurston was an author, anthropologist, and filmmaker. As an African American woman, she often depicted racial issues in the films she made. Her works also reflected her struggles as a black woman. In her early career, she conducted anthropological and ethnographic research and focused more on writing and film-making in her later years.
8
Jimmy Durante(One of America's Most Popular Personalities of the 1920s through the 1970s)
Birthdate: February 10, 1893
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Manhattan, New York, United States
Died: 1980
Jimmy Durante was an American comedian, actor, singer, and pianist. Widely regarded as one of America's most popular and familiar personalities of all time, Durante was often characterized by his Lower East Side accent, gravelly speech, and a prominent nose. Also known for his charitable work, Durante worked closely with Fraternal Order of Eagles, which raises money for abused children.
9
John Banner(Best Known for His Role as ‘Sergeant Schultz’ in Sitcom the ‘Hogan's Heroes’)
Birthdate: January 28, 1910
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine
Died: 1973
Austrian-born actor John Banner is best remembered as Sergeant Schultz from the World War II-themed sitcom Hogan's Heroes. He was known for his popular catchphrase “I see nothing! I hear nothing! I know nothing!" He has also appeared on Broadway and in films such as Once Upon a Honeymoon.
Birthdate: February 16, 1958
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands, U.S.
Died: 2023
11
Astrid Lindgren(Swedish Writer Known for Her Children's Books: ‘Pippi Longstocking’ and ‘The Six Bullerby Children’)
Birthdate: November 14, 1907
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Vimmerby, Sweden
Died: 2002
Astrid Lindgren was a Swedish writer remembered for authoring children's book series and children's fantasy novels. In 1967, the Astrid Lindgren Prize was established in her honor. Lindgren was honored with the Right Livelihood Award in 1994 for her work as a children's writer. In 2017, it was revealed that Lindgren is the 18th most translated author in the world.
12
Hal Smith(Actor)
Birthdate: August 24, 1916
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Petoskey, Michigan, United States
Died: 1994
13
Ronald McNair(American NASA Astronaut and Physicist)
Birthdate: October 21, 1950
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Lake City, South Carolina, United States
Died: 1986
A doctorate in physics from MIT Cambridge, Ronald McNair worked on chemical lasers before joining NASA and in 1984 flew as a mission specialist on STS-41-B aboard Challenger, becoming the second African-American to do so. In January 1986, he was selected to fly on STS-51-L, but was killed along with rest of the crews when Challenger disintegrated soon after liftoff.
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Judith Resnik(Engineer)
Birthdate: April 5, 1949
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Akron, Ohio, United States
Died: 1986
Judith Resnik was an American software engineer, electrical engineer, pilot, biomedical engineer, and NASA astronaut. She was the fourth woman and the first Jewish woman in space, logging 145 hours in orbit. Resnik, who died during the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986, received several posthumous honors. Judith Resnik’s life and career inspired the 1990 TV movie Challenger.
Birthdate: December 29, 1911
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Rüsselsheim, German Empire
Died: 1988
German theoretical physicist Klaus Fuchs worked on many significant theoretical calculations relating to the first nuclear weapons. He was also an atomic spy who provided information about nuclear weapons production to the Soviet Union during World War II. He was convicted and jailed for nine years, following which he resumed his career as a physicist.
16
Dick Scobee(Officer, Astronaut)
Birthdate: May 19, 1939
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Cle Elum
Died: 1986
17
Jerry Siegel(Co-Creator of the DC Comics Superhero 'Superman')
Birthdate: October 17, 1914
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Died: 1996
Legendary American comic book writer Jerry Siegel whose best-known creation was the iconic comic superhero Superman, which he co-created with comic artist Joe Shuster. Known for his stint with DC Comics, he also created other characters such as Doctor Occult, Superboy, and The Spectre. He also worked for Marvel and Charlton Comics.
Birthdate: April 3, 1924
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Edma, Ustyansky District, Russia
Died: 1945
Roza Shanina walked 8 miles to her school and back every day and ran away from home when her parents refused to allow her to study any further. The Red Army sniper, known as unseen terror of East Prussia for her 59 killings, documented her combat experience in a diary.
19
Paul Kantner(Rock musician)
Birthdate: March 17, 1941
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: San Francisco, California, USA
Died: 2016
20
Red Grange(American football halfback)
Birthdate: June 13, 1903
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Forksville, Pennsylvania, United States
Died: 1991
Height: 6'0" (183 cm)
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Michael J. Smith
Birthdate: April 30, 1945
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Beaufort
Died: 1986
22
Lucien Carr(Journalist)
Birthdate: March 1, 1925
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: New York, New York, United States
Died: 2005
For many years a key member of the Beat Generation, Lucien Carr is probably better remembered for murdering a man who had been stalking him since his adolescence. Sentenced to one to twenty years in prison, he came out after two years and started his career first as a copy boy and eventually became an editor of the United Press International.
23
Jim Capaldi(Drummer)
Birthdate: August 2, 1944
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Evesham, Worcestershire, England
Died: 2005
24
Ellison Onizuka(Astronaut, engineer, and USAF test pilot from Kealakekua, Hawaii, who successfully flew into space with the Space Shuttle Discovery on STS-51-C)
Birthdate: June 24, 1946
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Kealakekua, Hawaii, United States
Died: 1986
25
Gregory Jarvis(Engineer, Astronaut, Officer)
Birthdate: August 24, 1944
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Detroit
Died: 1986
26
Karen Lancaume(Adult film actor)
Birthdate: January 19, 1973
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Lyon, France
Died: 2005
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
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Nicholas Parsons(English Actor Known for His Radio Show ‘Just a Minute’ and Game Show ‘Sale of the Century’)
Birthdate: October 10, 1923
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Grantham, Lincolnshire, England
Died: 2020
28
Yue Fei(Military General Whose Expertise in Martial Arts Made Him a National Folk Hero in China)
Birthdate: March 24, 1103
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Anyang, China
Died: 1142
Yue Fei was a Chinese military general best remembered for leading the Southern Song forces during the Jin–Song Wars in the 12th century. Fei is depicted in Jin Guliang's famous book Wu Shuang Pu and is widely regarded as a national folk hero in China.
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Joseph Brodsky(Poet, Essayist and Winner of 1987 Nobel Prize in Literature)
Birthdate: May 24, 1940
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Saint Petersburg, Russia
Died: 1996
Nobel Prize-winning Russian-American poet Joseph Brodsky is remembered for his elegiac and lyric poems. While he had started writing poems soon after leaving school, he was sentenced to hard labor by the Soviets for his irregular work record. He later moved to the U.S., where he taught at various universities.
30
Joe Viterelli(Actor)
Birthdate: March 10, 1937
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: New York City, U.S.
Died: 2004
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
31
John McCrae(Poet and Soldier Best Known as the Author of War Memorial Poem 'In Flanders Fields')
Birthdate: November 30, 1872
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Died: 1918
Best known for his iconic war poems such as In Flanders Fields, Canadian poet John McCrae was also an army physician. He was the first Canadian to serve as a consulting surgeon for the British Army and had earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Canadian Army.
Birthdate: 0600 AD
Birthplace: Kaaba, Mecca, Saudi Arabia
Died: 0661
Ali ibn Abi Talib was the son-in-law and a cousin of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He played a key role in establishing the Muslim community by participating in almost all the battles that the nascent community fought. He ruled as the fourth caliph and is revered by Shia Muslims even today.
33
Elroy Hirsch(Football Player)
Birthdate: June 17, 1923
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Wausau, Wisconsin, United States
Died: 2004
Height: 6'2" (188 cm)
34
Auguste Piccard(Chemist)
Birthdate: January 28, 1884
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Basel, Switzerland
Died: 1963
Swiss-born Belgian physicist Auguste Piccard is best remembered for his research on the Earth’s upper stratosphere. He designed his own ships to explore the depth of the seas and also built balloons to study cosmic rays. His bathyscaphe remains one of his best-known inventions. He also co-discovered the magnetocaloric effect.
35
Chris Doleman(American football player)
Birthdate: October 16, 1961
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Indianapolis
Died: 2020
36
Derek Bentley(Epileptic British Man Convicted and Hanged for the Murder of a Policeman, at the Age of 19)
Birthdate: June 30, 1933
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Southwark, London, England
Died: 1953
Derek Bentley was 19 when he was hanged for murdering a policeman during a burglary attempt. An illiterate, he had the mental age of 11 and also suffered from epilepsy. The controversial case led to a 45-long battle for a posthumous pardon, which was granted, and then a reversal of the murder charge.
37
Lloyd M. Bucher(Military officer)
Birthdate: September 1, 1927
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Pocatello, Idaho, United States
Died: 2004
38
Yoskar Sarante(Singer)
Birthdate: January 2, 1970
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Died: 2019
39
Jim Gray(Computer scientist)
Birthdate: January 12, 1944
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: San Francisco, California, United States
Died: 2012
40
Johannes Hevelius(Astronomer, Entrepreneur, Cartographer)
Birthdate: January 28, 1611
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Gdańsk
Died: 1687
Johannes Hevelius was an astronomer who is credited with describing 10 new constellations; seven of ten constellations described by him are used by astronomers today. He is also referred to as the founder of lunar topography for making a compilation of an atlas of the moon. He is also credited with making a comprehensive catalog of 1,564 stars.
41
Jim Morris(American Bodybuilder)
Birthdate: August 31, 1935
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York, United States
Died: 2016
42
Billy Powell(Musician)
Birthdate: June 3, 1952
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Corpus Christi, Texas, USA
Died: 2009
43
Beatrice Hsu(Actor, Television actor)
Birthdate: November 13, 1978
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Taipei
Died: 2007
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
44
George Woodcock(Writer, Literary critic, Poet, Historian, Biographer, Anarchist)
Birthdate: May 8, 1912
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Winnipeg
Died: 1995
George Woodcock was a Canadian writer, philosopher, literary critic, essayist, and thinker. As the founding editor of Canadian Literature, the first academic journal dedicated to Canadian writing, Woodcock played a major role in the success of the journal. The recipient of many awards like the Molson Prize, Woodcock's life and career inspired the documentary, George Woodcock: Anarchist of Cherry Street.
45
Vicente Blasco Ibáñez(Bestselling Spanish Novelist Known for His Novel ‘Blood and Sand')
Birthdate: January 29, 1867
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Valencia, Spain
Died: 1928
Best known for his war novels, such as The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Vicente Blasco Ibáñez was a prominent member of the Spanish Generation of ’98 movement. Though he had been elected to the parliament, he later went into self-exile. Many of his novels were later adapted into films.
46
Paul J. Crutzen(Dutch Meteorologist, Atmospheric Chemist and Winner of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry)
Birthdate: December 3, 1933
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Died: 2021
Nobel Prize-winning Dutch atmospheric chemist Paul J. Crutzen had initially been a civil engineer and a computer programmer. He is remembered for his contribution to research on the ozone layer. In 2000, he used the term Anthropocene to describe the current era where human action has been changing the planet.
47
Isabella of Aragon, Queen of France(Queen of France)
Birthdate: 1248 AD
Birthplace: Aragon, Spain
Died: 1271
48
Ferdinand Verbiest(Dutch Jesuit Missionary Who Was Influential in China during the Qing Dynasty)
Birthdate: October 9, 1623
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Pittem, Belgium
Died: 1688
Dutch Jesuit missionary and astronomer Ferdinand Verbiest had a huge influence in China during the reign of the Qing dynasty. Also known as Nan Huairen, he advised the Chinese emperor in significant matters and also worked as a translator and a cartographer. He penned several books and knew many languages.
49
Carrie Buck(Plaintiff)
Birthdate: July 3, 1906
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.
Died: 1983
50
Helen Sawyer Hogg(Astronomer)
Birthdate: August 1, 1905
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Lowell, Massachusetts, United States
Died: 1993
Initially interested in chemistry, Helen Sawyer Hogg later switched to astronomy. Hogg moved from the U.S. to Canada with her astronomer husband and became the founding president of the Canadian Astronomical Society. One of the first major female astronomers, she was a globular cluster expert and also wrote astronomy columns regularly.
