Famous People Who Died on March 20

Discover the most famous people who died on March 20. The list includes people like Isaac Newton, David Rockefeller, Henry IV of England, Muhammad bin Tughluq, Ferdinand Foch. Famous personalities featured on this list, include emperors & kings, physicists, journalists and political leaders and from other domains of life. This list includes people from United States, United Kingdom, Germany & France and many more countries.

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 1 

Kenny Rogers

(Best-Selling Country Music Artists of All Time)

Birthdate: August 21, 1938

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Houston, Texas, United States

Died: 2020

Kenny Rogers was an American singer-songwriter. He is among the best-selling musicians of all-time list, having sold over 100 million records. His songs and albums remain influential among country music lovers. A multi-talented personality, Rogers was also successful as an actor and entrepreneur; he was the co-founder of the Kenny Rogers Roasters chain of restaurants.

 2 

Lev Yashin

(One of the Greatest Goalkeeper in the History of Football)

Birthdate: October 22, 1929

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Moscow, Russia

Died: 1990

Legendary Soviet goalkeeper Lev Yashin was nicknamed the Black Spider or the Black Panther for his signature all-black attire. He played in four World Cups and later also served as the deputy chairman of the Football Federation of his country. He became the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'Or.

Birthdate: April 15, 1367

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Bolingbroke Castle

Died: 1413

Henry IV of England reigned over England from 1399 until his death in 1413. Apart from spending much of his reign fighting against rebellions, Henry IV of England also established foreign relations; during his reign, Manuel II Palaiologos visited England, becoming the only Byzantine emperor to do so.

Birthdate: December 31, 1930

Sun Sign: Capricorn

Birthplace: La Paz, Bolivia

Died: 2010

Jaime Escalante  was a Bolivian-American educator. He is best remembered for teaching calculus to students at Garfield High School in East Los Angeles from 1974 to 1991. He had an illustrious career and was a much-respected figure in teaching.  The film Stand and Deliver is based on his life. He received Presidential Medal for Excellence in Education in 1988. 

Birthdate: February 19, 1948

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Butler, Pennsylvania, United States

Died: 1995

Height: 6'10" (208 cm)

Birthdate: April 30, 1909

Sun Sign: Taurus

Birthplace: The Hague, Netherlands

Died: 2004

Juliana of the Netherlands was the Queen of the Netherlands from 1948 to 1980, during which she remained a popular member of the Dutch royal family. Her reign witnessed the decolonization and independence of Suriname and the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia). Several important places, including the Princess Juliana International Airport, are named after her.

 7 

Gerry Bertier

(American football player)

Birthdate: August 20, 1953

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Alexandria, Virginia, United States

Died: 1981

 8 

Marilyn Maxwell

(Actress)

Birthdate: August 3, 1921

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Clarinda, Iowa, United States

Died: 1972

Birthdate: February 2, 1915

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Hadali, British India (now in Khushab District, Punjab, Pakistan)

Died: 1999

Known for his bestselling book Train to Pakistan, Khushwant Singh was a reputed lawyer, politician, and journalist. He was also known for his widely popular column With Malice towards One and All, which was featured in many Indian newspapers. His post-colonial writings mirrored his wit and sarcasm.

Birthdate: 1290 AD

Birthplace: Multan, Pakistan

Died: 1351

 11 

Alfred Douglas

(British Poet, Journalist and Lover of Irish Poet Oscar Wilde)

Birthdate: October 22, 1870

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Powick, Worcestershire, England

Died: 1945

Alfred Douglas was an English journalist and poet best remembered as one of the lovers of famous Irish poet Oscar Wilde. Douglas played an important role in Wilde's imprisonment for homosexuality. Alfred Douglas' father John Sholto Douglas abhorred his son's relationship with the Irish poet and publicly accused the latter of homosexuality, which was illegal at that time.

 12 

Saint Cuthbert

(Saint)

Birthdate: 0634 AD

Birthplace: Dunbar, United Kingdom

Died: 0687

Birthdate: April 23, 1966

Sun Sign: Taurus

Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland

Died: 2012

Irish footballer Jim Stynes was initially skilled in Gaelic football but later deviated to Australian rules football. While his memoir, My Journey, detailed his battle with cancer, he had also written self-help books with Dr. Jon Carnegie. He had also co-founded The Reach Foundation, a non-profit for young people.

Birthdate: July 4, 1924

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Saharsa, Bihar, British Raj (present-day India)

Died: 2010

Girija Prasad Koirala was a Nepalese politician who served as the prime minister of the country on four occasions. Although he was accused of institutionalizing corruption in Nepal, Koirala remains one of the most popular politicians in the history of Nepal. In 2015, he was posthumously honored with Nepal's highest honor, Nepal Ratna Man Padavi.

 15 

Lincoln Hall

(Mountain climber)

Birthdate: December 19, 1955

Sun Sign: Sagittarius

Birthplace: Canberra, Australia

Died: 2012

 16 

Lajos Kossuth

(Governor-President of the Kingdom of Hungary (April 1849 - August 1849))

Birthdate: September 19, 1802

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: Monok, Hungary

Died: 1894

Born into a noble family, Lajos Kossuth grew up to be one of his country’s greatest political reformers. He initially followed in his father’s footsteps to become a lawyer and later entered national politics to become the governor-president of Hungary. He is remembered for his role in the Hungarian Revolution.

 17 

Lewis Grizzard

(Journalist)

Birthdate: October 20, 1946

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Fort Benning

Died: 1994

 18 

Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor

Birthdate: February 24, 1557

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Vienna

Died: 1619

Apart from serving as the Holy Roman Emperor, Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor also served as the Archduke of Austria, King of Croatia and Hungary, and King of Bohemia between 1612 and 1619. His reign resulted in the Bohemian Revolt, which was the initial theatre of the famous Thirty Years War.

 19 

Louise of Sweden

(Queen of Denmark)

Birthdate: October 31, 1851

Sun Sign: Scorpio

Birthplace: Stockholm Palace, Stockholm, Sweden

Died: 1926

 20 

Carl Theodor Dreyer

(Danish Screenwriter and Film Director)

Birthdate: February 3, 1889

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Copenhagen, Denmark

Died: 1968

 21 

Malcolm Fraser

(22nd Prime Minister of Australia)

Birthdate: May 21, 1930

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Died: 2015

 22 

John of Nepomuk

(Saint of Bohemia Who is Considered as the First Martyr of the 'Seal of the Confessional')

Birthdate: 1345 AD

Birthplace: Nepomuk, Czechia

Died: 1393

John of Nepomuk was the saint of Bohemia (present-day Czech Republic) who is usually depicted with a halo of five stars, symbolizing the stars that hovered over the Vltava River at the time of his murder. John of Nepomuk, who was drowned at the behest of Wenceslaus of Luxembourg, was beatified and canonized in 1721 and 1729 respectively. 

 23 

Ilya Ivanovich Ivanov

(Biologist)

Birthdate: August 1, 1870

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Shchigry

Died: 1932

 24 

Tony Zale

(Boxer)

Birthdate: May 29, 1913

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: Gary, Indiana, United States

Died: 1997

Height: 5'8" (173 cm)

 25 

Ivan Shishkin

(Painter)

Birthdate: January 25, 1832

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Yelabuga, Russia

Died: 1898

Ivan Shishkin was a Russian painter best remembered for his associaton with the Peredvizhniki movement. He achieved popularity for his forest landscapes, such as Morning in a Pine Forest and Rain in an Oak Forest. He was also an excellent printmaker and a draftsman. Shishkin also worked as a professor of painting in several prestigious institutions like the Imperial Academy.

 26 

Risë Stevens

(American Actress and Singer)

Birthdate: June 11, 1913

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: New York City, New York, United States

Died: 2013

Risë Stevens was an American actress and singer. She is best remembered for playing the titular role in Carmen. She is also remembered for her association with the Metropolitan Opera National Company, where she worked as director from 1963 to 1968. Stevens' life and career inspired two biographies, namely Subway to the Met and Risë Stevens: A Life in Music.

 27 

Georges Delerue

(Composer, Film score composer)

Birthdate: March 12, 1925

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Roubaix

Died: 1992

Birthdate: September 7, 1837

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: Illinois

Died: 1903

Olive Oatman was an American woman who was abducted by a group of Native American tribe when she was 14 years old. She was enslaved by the tribe and later traded to the Mohave people. After her release at the age of 19, Oatman became the subject of several novels, movies, plays, and poetry.

 29 

Stewart Lee Udall

(Politician)

Birthdate: January 31, 1920

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: St. Johns, Arizona, U.S.

Died: 2010

 30 

Lina Bo Bardi

(Architect)

Birthdate: December 5, 1914

Sun Sign: Sagittarius

Birthplace: Rome, Italy

Died: 1992

 31 

Nadar

(Photographer)

Birthdate: April 6, 1820

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Paris

Died: 1910

Nadar was a French caricaturist, photographer, novelist, journalist, and balloonist who championed heavier-than-air flight. Nadar became the first photographer to take aerial photographs in 1858. His photographic portraits are preserved by several museums and institutions.

 32 

Harry Vardon

(Golfer)

Birthdate: May 9, 1870

Sun Sign: Taurus

Birthplace: Grouville, Jersey, Channel Islands

Died: 1937

 33 

Julius von Mayer

(Physicist, Physician)

Birthdate: November 25, 1814

Sun Sign: Sagittarius

Birthplace: Heilbronn

Died: 1878

Apart from being a qualified doctor, Julius von Mayer was also a skilled chemist and physicist. His theory that heat and work can be transformed into one another paved the path for what is now known as the first law of thermodynamics, which states “energy can be neither created nor destroyed.”

 34 

Alexander Pushkin

(Ballet Dancer)

Birthdate: September 7, 1907

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: Staritsky Uyezd, Russia

Died: 1970

Remembered as a legendary ballet master, Alexander Pushkin was also great ballet dancer, depicting numerous leading roles with the internationally renowned Kirov Ballet Company from 1925 to 1953. Sometime in 1940s, he also took up teaching, guiding nearly all the leading male dancers of the Kirov Ballet through the 1960s, most well-known among them being Rudolf Nureyev and Mikhail Baryshnikov.

 35 

Borislav Stanković

(Basketball coach, Basketball player)

Birthdate: July 9, 1925

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Bihać, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Died: 2020

 36 

Sailor Art Thomas

(American Professional Wrestler)

Birthdate: January 30, 1924

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Gurdon, Arkansas, United States

Died: 2003

Height: 6'6" (198 cm)

 37 

Ramon Mitra

(Politician)

Birthdate: February 4, 1928

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Palawan, Philippines

Died: 2000

 38 

David Rockefeller

(Investment Banker, Chairman and Chief Executive of ‘Chase Manhattan Corporation’)

Birthdate: June 12, 1915

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: New York, New York, United States

Died: 2017

David Rockefeller, son of John D. Rockefeller Jr., was a banker who had also been the chairman and CEO of Chase Manhattan Corporation. He was the world’s oldest billionaire when he died in 2017 at age 101. He was criticized for his role in the Iran hostage crisis.

 39 

Amir Hamzah

(Indonesian Poet Who Contributed to the Development of the National Language)

Birthdate: February 28, 1911

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Tanjung Pura, Langkat Regency Langkat, Dutch East Indies

Died: 1946

Indonesian poet Amir Hamzah is best known for his works such as Buah Rindu and Nyanyi Sunyi. Apart from his poetry, he was also appreciated for his contribution to the development of Indonesia’s national language. He was named a National Hero of Indonesia. His works merged Islamic mysticism with Malay literary tradition.

 40 

Charles Kay Ogden

(English Linguist, Author, and Philosopher Who Developed English as a Mode of International Communication)

Birthdate: June 1, 1889

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: Fleetwood, England

Died: 1957

 41 

Zillur Rahman

(14th President of Bangladesh)

Birthdate: March 9, 1929

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Kishoreganj District, Bangladesh

Died: 2013

Zillur Rahman was a Bangladeshi politician best remembered for his service as the President of Bangladesh from 12 February 2009 to 20 March 2013. He played an important role in the Bengali language movement and Bangladesh Liberation War before establishing himself as an influential politician. In 2013, Zillur Rahman became the third Bangladeshi president to die in office.

 42 

Jean Howard

(Actress)

Birthdate: October 13, 1910

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Longview, Texas, United States

Died: 2000

 43 

A. E. Douglass

(American Astronomer Known for Establishing a Wood Ring-Dating Methodology Called Dendrochronology)

Birthdate: July 5, 1867

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Windsor, Vermont, United States

Died: 1962

Best known as the pioneer of dendrochronology, or the process of dating of events by analyzing tree rings, A. E. Douglass had also been the director of the University of Arizona’s Steward Observatory. He also worked extensively on Mars and was the first to photograph the zodiacal light.

 44 

Beverley Cross

(Screenwriter, Librettist)

Birthdate: April 13, 1931

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Greater London

Died: 1998

 45 

William Wentworth

(Australian Explorer, Pastoralist, Newspaper Editor, Politician, Lawyer, and Author)

Birthdate: August 13, 1790

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Norfolk Island, Australia

Died: 1872

William Wentworth was an Australian explorer, pastoralist, newspaper editor, politician, lawyer, and author. He was one of the most powerful and wealthiest figures of New South Wales. William Wentworth is credited with founding the Australian Patriotic Association, which is regarded as the first political party in Australia. 

Birthdate: January 26, 1911

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Blankenburg, District of Blankenburg, Duchy of Brunswick, German Empire

Died: 1993

 47 

V.S. Pritchett

(Writer)

Birthdate: December 16, 1900

Sun Sign: Sagittarius

Birthplace: Ipswich, England

Died: 1997

Birthdate: October 2, 1851

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Tarbes, France

Died: 1929

Ferdinand Foch was a French military theorist and general who played a key role during the First World War where he served as the Supreme Allied Commander. Ferdinand Foch played a crucial role in stopping a renewed German advance in the Second Battle of the Marne. Foch was promoted to Marshal of France for his role inWorld War I.

 49 

Parveen Sultana Diti

(Actress)

Birthdate: March 31, 1965

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Sonargaon, Bangladesh

Died: 2016

Known simply as Diti, Parveen Sultana Diti was a Bangladeshi film and television actress, who had more than two hundred works to her credit. Also a good singer, she appeared in various programs for Bangladesh television before debuting in acting with the television drama, Laili Majnu. A famed silber-screen idol, her untimely death from cancer was mourned by the entire nation.  

 50 

Victor Goldschmidt

(Norwegian Mineralogist, Regarded as the Founder of Modern Geochemistry and Crystal Chemistry)

Birthdate: January 27, 1888

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Zürich, Switzerland

Died: 1947

Victor Moritz Goldschmidt was a Norwegian mineralogist. He is credited with co-founding crystal chemistry and modern geochemistry along with Vladimir Vernadsky. He is also credited with developing the Goldschmidt Classification of elements. The Geochemical Society has established the V. M. Goldschmidt Medal in his honor, which is awarded annually.