Actors, jocks, politicians: a list of people we said goodbye to in 2018

LIVES LIVED

Here is a roll call of some of the people who died in 2018. (Cause of death cited for younger people, if available.)

JANUARY:

Thomas S. Monson, 90. He was considered a prophet by nearly 16 million Mormons worldwide and spent nearly a decade as church president. Jan. 2.

JohnYoung, 87.The legendary astronaut who walked on the moon and later commanded the first space shuttle flight. Jan. 5.

Doreen Tracey, 74. A former child star who played one of the original cute-as-a-button

Sergio Pitol, 85. A celebrated Mexican author, essayist and translator and winner of the most prestigious award for literature in the Spanish-speaking world. April 12.

Milos Forman, 86. A Czech filmmaker whose American movies “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and “Amadeus” won a deluge of Academy Awards, including best director Oscars. April 14.

R. Lee Ermey, 74. A former Marine who made a career in Hollywood playing hard-nosed military men like Gunnery Sgt. Hartman in Stanley Kubrick’s “Full Metal Jacket.” April 15. death and the camp’s liberation a month later. June 7.

Anthony Bourdain, 61.The celebrity chef and citizen of the world who inspired millions to share his delight in food and the bonds it created. June 8. Suicide.

Maria Bueno, 78. A Brazilian tennis great who won three Wimbledon singles titles and four at the U.S. Open in the 1950s and 1960s, and helped usher in modern women’s tennis. June

8.

D.J. Fontana, 87. A rock ‘n’ roll pioneer who rose from strip joints in his native Shreveport, Louisiana, to the heights of musical history as Elvis Presley’s first and longtime drummer. June

13.

Kim Jong-pil, 92. He was the founder of South Korea’s spy agency whose political skills helped him also serve twice as prime minister, first under his dictator boss and later under a man his agency kidnapped. June 23.

Joseph Jackson, 89. The fearsome stage dad of Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson and their talented siblings, who took his family from poverty and launched a musical dynasty. June

27.

Harlan Ellison, 84. The prolific, pugnacious author of “A Boy and His Dog,” and countless other stories that blasted society with their nightmarish, sometimes darkly humorous scenarios. June 27.

Steve Ditko, 90. The Marvel Comics artist who gave the world the woven webs and soaring red-and-blue shape of Spider-Man and the other-worldly shimmer of Doctor Strange. June

29.

Irena Szewinska, 72. A Polish sprinter who dominated women’s athletics for two decades, winning seven Olympic medals, and who later became a member of the International Olympic Committee. June 29.

JULY:

Claude Lanzmann, 92. His 9 1/2-hour masterpiece “Shoah” bore unflinching witness to the Holocaust through the testimonies of Jewish victims, German executioners and Polish bystanders. July 5.

Robert D. Ray, 89. A former longtime Iowa governor who helped thousands of Vietnam War refugees relocate to the state and defined Iowa’s Republican politics for years. July 8.

Tab Hunter, 86. The blond actor and singer who was a heartthrob for millions of teenagers in the 1950s with such films as “Battle Cry” and “Damn Yankees!” and received new attention decades later when he revealed he was gay. July 8.

Nancy Sinatra Sr., 101. She was the childhood sweetheart of Frank Sinatra who became the first of his four wives and the mother of his three children. July 13.

Adrian Cronauer, 79. The man whose military radio antics inspired a character played by Robin Williams in the film “Good Morning, Vietnam.” July 18.

Alene Duerk, 98. She was the Navy’s first female admiral, who became a trailblazer as the Navy opened up more opportunities for women. July 21.

Elbert “Big Man” Howard, 80. He was a cofounder of the Black Panther Party who served as newspaper editor, information officer and logistics genius behind the group’s popular social programs. July 23.

AUGUST:

Charlotte Rae, 92. She played a wise and patient housemother to a brood of teenage girls on the long-running sitcom “The Facts of Life” during a career that encompassed many other TV roles as well as stage and film. Aug. 5.

Joel Robuchon, 73. A master chef who shook up the stuffy world of French haute cuisine by wowing palates with the delights of the simple mashed potato and giving diners a peek at the kitchen. Aug. 6. Cancer.

Margaret Heckler, 87. An eight-term Republican congresswoman from Massachusetts. Aug. 6.

Stan Mikita, 78. The hockey great who helped the Chicago Blackhawks to the 1961 Stanley Cup title while becoming one of the franchise’s most revered figures. Aug. 7.

Aretha Franklin, 76. The undisputed “Queen of Soul” who sang with matchless style on such classics as “Think,” “I Say a Little Prayer,” “Freeway of Love” and her signature song, “Respect,” and stood as a cultural icon around the globe. Aug. 16. Pancreatic cancer.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee, 93. The former Indian prime minister was a Hindu nationalist who set off a nuclear arms race with rival Pakistan but later reached across the border to begin a groundbreaking peace process. Aug. 16.

Barbara Harris, 83. The Tony Award-winning actress whose comic-neurotic charms lit up the Broadway stage and helped her steal films including “Nashville,” “Freaky Friday,” “A Thousand Clowns” and Alfred Hitchcock’s final film, “Family Plot.” Aug. 21.

Ed King, 68. A former guitarist for Lynyrd Skynyrd who helped write several of their hits including “Sweet Home Alabama.” Aug. 22. Cancer.

Robin Leach, 76. His voice crystallized the opulent 1980s on TV’s “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.” Aug. 24.

John McCain, 81. He faced down his captors in a Vietnam prisoner of war camp with defiance and later turned his rebellious streak into a 35-year political career that took him to Congress and the Republican presidential nomination. Aug. 25.

Neil Simon, 91. A playwright who was a master of comedy whose laugh-filled hits such as “The Odd Couple,” “Barefoot in the Park” and his “Brighton Beach” trilogy dominated Broadway for decades. Aug. 26.

SEPTEMBER:

Bill Daily, 91. The comic sidekick to leading men on the sitcoms “I Dream of Jeannie” and “The Bob Newhart Show.” Sept. 4.

Burt Reynolds, 82. The handsome film star known for his acclaimed performances in “Deliverance” and “Boogie Nights,” commercial hits such as “Smokey and the Bandit” and for an active off-screen love life. Sept. 6.

Richard DeVos, 92. A billionaire and cofounder of direct-selling giant Amway, owner of the Orlando Magic and father-in-law of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. Sept. 6.

Mac Miller, 26. The platinum hip-hop star whose rhymes vacillated from party raps to lyrics about depression and drug use, and earned kudos from the likes of Jay-Z and Chance the Rapper. Sept. 7. Accidental overdose.

Tran Dai Quang, 61. The Vietnamese president was the country’s No. 2 after the ruling Communist Party’s leader. Sept. 21.

Ion Ficior, 90. He was incarcerated for the deaths of 103 political inmates while in charge of a communist-era labour camp in Romania. Sept. 26.

Marty Balin, 76. A patron of the 1960s “San Francisco Sound” both as founder and lead singer of the Jefferson Airplane and co-owner of the club where the Airplane and other bands performed. Sept. 27.

Otis Rush, 84. A legendary Chicago blues guitarist whose passionate, jazz-tinged music influenced artists from Carlos Santana and Eric Clapton to the rock band Led Zeppelin. Sept. 29.

Sonia Orbuch, 93. She survived the Holocaust as a teenager in eastern Europe by joining a resistance group that was sabotaging the Nazis. Sept. 30.

OCTOBER:

Do Muoi, 101. A former general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam who worked against the French colonial government and became a committed communist. Oct. 1.

Juan Romero, 68. The hotel busboy who came to Robert F. Kennedy’s aid when the New York senator was fatally shot in Los Angeles. Oct. 1.

Leon Lederman, 96. An experimental physicist who won a Nobel Prize in physics for his work on subatomic particles and coined the phrase “God particle.” Oct. 3.

Will Vinton, 70. An Oscar-winning animator who invented Claymation, a style of stop-motion animation, and brought the California Raisins to TV. Oct. 4.

George Taliaferro, 91. The star Indiana running back who in 1949 became the first black player drafted in the NFL when George Halas and the Chicago Bears took him in the 13th round. Oct. 8.

Roelof “Pik” Botha, 86. He was the last foreign minister of South Africa’s apartheid era and a contradictory figure who staunchly defended white minority rule but recognized that change was inevitable. Oct. 12.

Paul G. Allen, 65. He co-founded Microsoft with his childhood friend Bill Gates before becoming a billionaire philanthropist who invested in conservation, space travel, arts and culture and professional sports. Oct. 15. Complications of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Dorcas Reilly, 92. The woman who created the green bean casserole, a Thanksgiving staple enjoyed by millions. Oct. 15. Alzheimer’s.

Dennis Hof, 72. A legal pimp who gained notoriety for an HBO series about his business and who fashioned himself as a Donald Trumpstyle Republican candidate for the state Legislature in a race he won even after he’d already died. Oct. 16.

Earl Bakken, 94. An electronics repairman who created the first wearable external pacemaker and co-founded one of the world’s largest medical device companies, Medtronic. Oct. 21.

Joachim Roenneberg, 99. A World War II saboteur who headed a five-man team that daringly blew up a plant producing heavy water, depriving Nazi Germany of a key ingredient it could have used to make nuclear weapons. Oct. 21.

Tony Joe White, 75. The country bluesman and hit songwriter behind such successes as “Polk Salad Annie” and “Rainy Night in Georgia.” Oct. 24.

Ruth Gates, 56. A pioneering coral reef scientist who dedicated much of her career to saving the world’s fragile and deteriorating underwater reef ecosystems. Oct. 25.

James “Whitey” Bulger, 89. The murderous Boston gangster who benefited from a corrupt relationship with the FBI before spending 16 years as one of America’s most wanted men. Oct. 30. Killed in prison.

Teodoro Petkoff, 86. A giant of Venezuela’s politics who led a band of communist guerrillas in his youth before winning the praise of Wall Street in a top government post and then launching a newspaper that fearlessly railed against socialist President Hugo Chavez. Oct. 31.

NOVEMBER:

Raymond Chow, 91. A legendary Hong Kong film producer who introduced the world to Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan and even brought the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to the big screen. Nov. 2.

MariHulmanGeorge,83.The“quietpioneer” of auto racing who was instrumental in the expansion of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and became known to millions of fans over the years as the one who ordered countless drivers to start their engines before races. Nov. 3.

Ramona Ripston, 91. A longtime activist who built up the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California into a major organization. Nov. 3.

Evelyn Y. Davis, 89. The brash shareholder activist who owned stock in more than 80 public companies and rarely failed to make her presence known at corporate-investor meetings. Nov. 4.

Douglas Rain, 90. A Canadian actor who played some of Shakespeare’s most intriguing characters onstage but perhaps is best known for supplying the creepily calm voice of the rogue computer HAL in Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Nov. 11.

Stan Lee, 95. The creative dynamo who revolutionized comics and helped make billions for Hollywood by introducing human frailties in superheroes such as Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk. Nov. 12.

Katherine MacGregor, 93. She played petty, gossiping mother Harriet Oleson on TV’s “Little House on the Prairie.” Nov. 13.

Roy Clark, 85. The country star, guitar virtuoso who headlined the cornpone TV show “Hee Haw” for nearly a quarter century and was known for such hits as “Yesterday When I was Young” and “Honeymoon Feeling.” Nov. 15. Complications from pneumonia.

William Goldman, 87. The Oscar-winning screenwriter and Hollywood wise man who won Academy Awards for “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “All the President’s Men” and summed up the mystery of making a box office hit by declaring “Nobody knows anything.” Nov. 16.

Ali Rodriguez, 81. An icon of Venezuela’s socialist revolution who went on to serve as a diplomat in top government posts. Nov. 19.

Robert “Bob” McNair, 81. The founder and owner of the Houston Texans was one of the NFL’s most influential owners. Nov. 23.

Betty Bumpers, 93. A former Arkansas first lady who advocated for childhood immunizations nationwide and pushed for limiting nuclear arms proliferation. Nov. 23.

Bernardo Bertolucci, 77. An Italian filmmaker who won an Academy Award for Best Director with “The Last Emperor” and whose erotic drama “Last Tango in Paris” enthralled and shocked the world. Nov. 26.

Stephen Hillenburg, 57. He created SpongeBob SquarePants and the absurd undersea world he inhabited. Nov. 26. Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Jean Barker, 96. Socialite, codebreaker, British government minister and bon vivant better known by her title, Baroness Trumpington. Nov. 26.

George H.W. Bush, 94. His presidency soared with the coalition victory over Iraq in Kuwait, but then plummeted in the throes of a weak economy that led voters to turn him out of office after a single term. Nov. 30.

DECEMBER:

Pete Shelley, 63. He was a singer-songwriter and co-founder of the punk band the Buzzcocks. Dec. 6.

Belisario Betancur, 95. A former Colombian president whose efforts to reach a peace deal with leftist rebels in the 1980s were undone by drug-fueled bloodletting and an explosion of violence backed by state security forces. Dec. 7.

Lyudmila Alexeyeva, 91. A human rights pioneer and dissident who challenged the Soviet and Russian regimes for decades, demanding that they free political prisoners and establish democratic rights. Dec. 8.

Nancy Wilson, 81. The Grammy-winning "song stylist" and torch singer whose polished pop-jazz vocals made her a platinum artist and top concert performer. Dec. 13.Penny Marshall, 75. The only cast member of “Laverne & Shirley” to appear in all 178 episodes, she left acting to pursue a film in directing. “Big was the first film directed by a woman to make $100 million and “Awakenings” only the second film directed by a woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best pIcture. Marshall was the first guest voice star on “The Simpsons,” in the controversial role of The Babysitter Bandit. Dec. 17, complications from diabetes.