Recalling influential people who died in 2019

A lauded writer who brought to light stories overshadowed by prejudice. An actress and singer who helped embody the manufactured innocence of the 1950s. A selfmade billionaire who rose from a childhood of Depressionera poverty and twice ran for president.

This year saw the deaths of people who shifted culture through prose, pragmatism and persistence. It also witnessed tragedy, in talent struck down in its prime.

In 2019, the political world lost a giant in U.S. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings. He was born the son of a sharecropper, became a lawyer, then an influential congressman and champion of civil rights.

Cummings, who died in October, was chairman of one of the U.S. House committees that led an impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump and was a formidable advocate for the poor in his Maryland district.

Another influential political figure, U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, died in July. Stevens was appointed to the high court as a Republican but became the leader of its liberal wing and a proponent of abortion rights and consumer protections.

Wealth, fame and a confident prescription for the nation’s economic ills propelled H. Ross Perot ‘s 1992 campaign against President George H.W. Bush and Democratic challenger Bill Clinton. He recorded the highest percentage for an independent or thirdparty candidate since 1912. He died in July.

The death of Toni Morrison in August left a chasm in the publishing world, where she was a “literary mother” to countless writers. She helped elevate multiculturalism to the world stage and unearthed the lives of the unknown and unwanted. She became the first black woman to receive the Nobel literature prize for “Beloved” and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.

Among those in the scientific world who died in 2019 was Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, the first person to walk in space. Leonov died in October. Others include scientist Wallace Smith Broecker, who died in February and popularized the term “global warming” as he raised early alarms about climate change.

In April, Hollywood lost director John Singleton, whose 1991 film “Boyz N the Hood“was praised as a realistic and compassionate take on race, class, peer pressure and family. He became the first black director to receive an Oscar nomination and the youngest at 24.

Doris Day, a top boxoffice draw and recording artist who died in May, stood for the 1950s ideal of innocence and Grated love, a parallel world to her contemporary Marilyn Monroe. She received a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2004.

The year also saw the untimely deaths of two young rappers, leaving a feeling of accomplishments unfulfilled. Grammynominated Nipsey Hussle was killed in a shooting in Los Angeles in March. Juice WRLD, who launched his career on SoundCloud before becoming a streaming juggernaut, died in December after being treated for opioid use during a police search.

Here is a roll call of some influential figures who died in 2019 (cause of death cited for younger people, if available):

January

Daryl Dragon, 76. The capwearing “Captain“of Captain & Tennille who teamed with thenwife Toni Tennille on such easy listening hits as “Love Will Keep Us

Together“and “Muskrat Love.“Jan. 2.

Carol Channing, 97. The ebullient musical comedy star who delighted American audiences in almost 5,000 performances as the scheming Dolly Levi in “Hello, Dolly!“on Broadway and beyond. Jan. 15.

Russell Baker, 93. The genial but sharpwitted writer who won Pulitzer Prizes for his humorous columns in The New York Times and a moving autobiography of his impoverished Baltimore childhood. He later hosted television’s “Masterpiece Theatre“on PBS. Jan 21. Complications after a fall.

February

Kristoff St. John, 52. An actor best known for playing Neil Winters on the CBS soap opera “The Young and the Restless.” Feb. 4. Heart disease.

Albert Finney, 82. The British actor was the Academy Awardnominated star of films from “Tom Jones“to “Skyfall.“Feb. 8.

JanMichael Vincent, 73. The “Airwolf“television star whose sleek good looks belied a troubled personal life. Feb. 10.

Karl Lagerfeld, 85. Chanel’s iconic couturier whose accomplished designs and trademark white ponytail, high starched collars and dark enigmatic glasses dominated high fashion for the past 50 years. Feb. 19.

David Horowitz, 81. His “Fight Back!“syndicated program made him perhaps the bestknown consumer reporter in the U.S. Feb. 21.

Peter Tork, 77. A talented singersongwriter and instrumentalist whose musical skills were often overshadowed by his role as the goofy, lovable bass guitarist in the madefortelevision rock band The Monkees. Feb. 21.

Katherine Helmond, 89. An Emmynominated and Golden Globewinning actress who played two very different matriarchs on the ABC sitcoms “Who’s the Boss?“and “Soap.“Feb. 23.

March

Keith Flint, 49. The fiery frontman of British danceelectronic band The Prodigy. March 4. Found dead by hanging in his home.

Luke Perry, 52. He gained instant heartthrob status as wealthy rebel Dylan McKay on “Beverly Hills, 90210.“March 4. Stroke.

Billy Adams, 79. A Rockabilly Hall of Famer who wrote and recorded the rockabilly staple “Rock, Pretty Mama.“March 30.

Nipsey Hussle, 33. A Grammynominated rapper. March 31. Killed in a shooting.

April

Georgia Engel, 70. She played the charmingly innocent, smallvoiced Georgette on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show“and amassed a string of other TV and stage credits. April 12.

Lorraine Warren, 92. A worldwide paranormal investigator and author whose decades of ghosthunting cases with her late husband inspired such frightening films as “The Conjuring“series and “The Amityville Horror.“April 18.

Mark Medoff, 79. A provocative playwright whose “Children of a Lesser God“won Tony and Olivier awards and whose screen adaptation of his play earned an Oscar nomination. April 23.

John Singleton, 51. A director who made one of Hollywood’s most memorable debuts with the Oscarnominated “Boyz N the Hood“and continued over the following decades to probe the lives of black communities in his native Los Angeles and beyond. April 29. Taken off life support after a stroke.

Peter Mayhew, 74. The towering actor who donned a huge, furry costume to give life to the ruggedandbeloved character of Chewbacca in the original “Star Wars“trilogy and two other films. April 30.

May

Peggy Lipton, 72. A star of the groundbreaking late 1960s TV show “The Mod Squad“and the 1990s show “Twin Peaks.“May 11. Cancer.

Leonard Bailey, 76. The doctor who in 1984 transplanted a baboon heart into a tiny newborn dubbed “Baby Fae“in a pioneering operation that sparked both worldwide acclaim and condemnation. May

12.

Doris Day, 97. The sunny blond actress and singer whose frothy comedic roles opposite the likes of Rock Hudson and Cary Grant made her one of Hollywood’s biggest stars in the 1950s and ‘60s and a symbol of wholesome American womanhood. May 13.

Tim Conway, 85. The impish second banana to Carol Burnett who won four Emmy Awards on her TV variety show, starred in “McHale’s Navy“and later voiced the role of Barnacle Boy for “Spongebob Squarepants.“May

14.

I.M. Pei, 102. The versatile, globetrotting architect who revived the Louvre with a giant glass pyramid and captured the spirit of rebellion at the multishaped Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. May 16.

Claus von Bulow, 92. A Danishborn socialite who was convicted but later acquitted of trying to kill his wealthy wife in two trials that drew intense international attention in the 1980s. May 25.

Bill Buckner, 69. A star hitter who made one of the biggest blunders in baseball history when he let Mookie Wilson’s trickler roll through his legs in the 1986 World Series. May 27.

Frank Lucas, 88. The former Harlem drug kingpin whose life and lore inspired the 2007 film “American Gangster.“May 30.

June

Leah Chase, 96. A New Orleans chef and civil rights icon who created the city’s first whitetablecloth restaurant for black patrons, broke the city’s segregation laws by seating white and black customers, and introduced countless tourists to Southern Louisiana Creole cooking. June 1.

Gloria Vanderbilt, 95. The intrepid heiress, artist and romantic who began her extraordinary life as the “poor little rich girl“of the Great Depression, survived family tragedy and multiple marriages and reigned during the 1970s and ‘80s as a designer jeans pioneer. June 17.

Judith Krantz, 91. A writer whose millionselling novels such as “Scruples“and “Princess Daisy“engrossed readers worldwide with their steamy tales of the rich and beautiful. June 22.

Beth Chapman, 51. The wife and costar of “Dog the Bounty Hunter“reality TV star Duane “Dog“Chapman. June 26.

July

Tyler Skaggs, 27. The lefthanded pitcher who was a regular in the Los Angeles Angels’ starting rotation since late 2016 and struggled with injuries repeatedly in that time. July 1. Choked on his own vomit and had a toxic mix of alcohol and painkillers fentanyl and oxycodone in his system.

Lee Iacocca, 94. The auto executive and master pitchman who put the Mustang in Ford’s lineup in the 1960s and became a corporate folk hero when he resurrected Chrysler 20 years later. July 2.

H. Ross Perot, 89. The colorful, selfmade Texas billionaire who rose from delivering newspapers as a boy to building his own information technology company and twice mounted outsider campaigns for president. July 9. Leukemia.

Rip Torn, 88. The freespirited Texan who overcame his quirky name to become a distinguished actor in television, theater and movies, such as “Men in Black,“and win an Emmy in his 60s for “The Larry Sanders Show.“July 9.

Jim Bouton, 80. The former New York Yankees pitcher who shocked and angered the conservative baseball world with the tellall book “Ball Four.“July 10.

John Paul Stevens, 99. The bowtied, independentthinking, Republicannominated justice who unexpectedly emerged as the Supreme Court’s leading liberal. July 16.

Elijah “Pumpsie“Green, 85. The former Boston Red Sox infielder was the first black player on the last major league team to field one. July 17.

Paul Krassner, 87. The publisher, author and radical political activist on the front lines of 1960s counterculture who helped tie together his looseknit prankster group by naming them the Yippies. July 21.

Li Peng, 90. A former hardline Chinese premier best known for announcing martial law during the 1989 Tiananmen Square prodemocracy protests that ended with a bloody crackdown by troops. July 22.

Art Neville, 81. A member of one of New Orleans’ storied musical families, the Neville Brothers, and a founding member of the groundbreaking funk band The Meters. July 22.

August

Henri Belolo, 82. He cofounded the Village People and cowrote their classic hits “YMCA,““Macho Man“and “In the Navy.“Aug. 3.

Peter Fonda, 79. The actor was the son of a Hollywood legend who became a movie star in his own right after both writing and starring in the counterculture classic “Easy Rider.“Aug. 16.

David H. Koch, 79. A billionaire industrialist who, with his older brother Charles, was both celebrated and demonized for transforming American politics by pouring their riches into conservative causes. Aug. 23.

Valerie Harper, 80. She scored guffaws, stole hearts and busted TV taboos as the brash, selfdeprecating Rhoda Morgenstern on backtoback hit sitcoms in the 1970s. Aug. 30.

September

Robert Frank, 94. A giant of 20thcentury photography whose seminal book “The Americans“captured singular, candid moments of the 1950s and helped free picturetaking from the boundaries of clean lighting and linear composition. Sept. 9.

Eddie Money, 70. The rock star known for such hits as “Two Tickets to Paradise“and “Take Me Home Tonight.“Sept. 13. Esophageal cancer.

Phyllis Newman, 86. A Tony Awardwinning Broadway veteran who became the first woman to host “The Tonight Show“before turning her attention to fight for women’s health. Sept. 15.

Ric Ocasek, 75. The Cars frontman whose deadpan vocal delivery and lanky, sunglassed look defined a rock era with charttopping hits like “Just What I Needed.“Sept. 15.

Cokie Roberts, 75. The daughter of politicians and a pioneering journalist who chronicled Washington from Jimmy Carter to Donald Trump for NPR and ABC News. Sept. 17. Complications from breast cancer.

Barron Hilton, 91. A hotel magnate who expanded his father’s chain and became a founding owner in the American Football

League. Sept. 19.

Howard “Hopalong“Cassady,

85. The 1955 Heisman Trophy winner at Ohio State and running back for the Detroit Lions. Sept.

20.

Jacques Chirac, 86. A twoterm French president who was the first leader to acknowledge France’s role in the Holocaust and defiantly opposed the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. Sept. 26.

October

Diahann Carroll, 84. The Oscarnominated actress and singer who won critical acclaim as the first black woman to star in a nonservant role in a TV series as “Julia.“Oct. 4. Cancer.

Rip Taylor, 88. The madcap, mustached comedian with a fondness for confettithrowing who became a television game show mainstay in the 1970s. Oct. 6.

Elijah E. Cummings, 68. A sharecropper’s son who rose to become a civil rights champion and the chairman of one of the U.S. House committees leading an impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. Oct. 17. Complications from longstanding health problems.

Bill Macy, 97. The character actor whose hangdog expression was a perfect match for his role as the longsuffering foil to Bea Arthur’s unyielding feminist on the daring 1970s sitcom “Maude.“Oct. 17.

John Conyers, 90. The former congressman was one of the longestserving members of Congress whose resolutely liberal stance on civil rights made him a political institution in Washington and back home in Detroit despite several scandals. Oct. 27.

November

John Simon, 94. A theater and film critic known for his lacerating reviews and often withering assessment of performers’ physical appearance. Nov. 24.

Irving Burgie, 95. A composer who helped popularize Caribbean music and cowrote the enduring Harry Belafonte hit “DayO (The Banana Boat Song).” Nov. 29.

December

Juice WRLD, 21. A rapper who launched his career on SoundCloud before becoming a streaming juggernaut and rose to the top of the charts with the Stingsampled hit “Lucid Dreams.” Dec. 8. Died after being treated for opioid use during a police search.

Rene Auberjonois, 79. A prolific actor best known for his roles on the television shows “Benson” and “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” and his part in the 1970 film “M.A.S.H.” playing Father Mulcahy. Dec. 8.

Caroll Spinney, 85. He gave Big Bird his warmth and Oscar the Grouch his growl for nearly 50 years on “Sesame Street.” Dec. 8.

Paul Volcker, 92. The former Federal Reserve chairman who in the early 1980s raised interest rates to historic highs and triggered a recession as the price of quashing doubledigit inflation. Dec. 8.

Pete Frates, 34. A former college baseball player whose battle with Lou Gehrig’s disease helped inspire the ALS ice bucket challenge that has raised more than $200 million worldwide. Dec. 9.

Danny Aiello, 86. The bluecollar character actor whose long career playing tough guys included roles in “Fort Apache, the Bronx,” “Moonstruck“and “Once Upon a Time in America” and his Oscarnominated performance as a pizza man in Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing.” Dec. 12.

Jerry Herman, 88. The Tony Awardwinning composer who wrote the cheerful, goodnatured music and lyrics for such classic shows as “Mame,““Hello, Dolly!“and “La Cage aux Folles.“Dec. 26.