Famous People Who Died in 1962

Discover the most famous people died who died in the year 1962. This list includes people like Marilyn Monroe, Adolf Eichmann, Lucky Luciano, Eleanor Roosevelt, William Faulkner and many more. This list of celebrities is loosely sorted by popularity. People featured on this list, include political leaders, poets, composers and artists who died in 1962. This list includes people from United States, Germany, France & United Kingdom and many more countries.

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Marilyn Monroe

(American Actress Who Became One of the Most Popular Sex Symbols of the 1950s and Early 1960s)

Birthdate: June 1, 1926

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, United States

Died: August 4

A legendary American actress, model, comedienne and singer, Marilyn Monroe emerged as a major sex symbol in Hollywood in the 1950s and early 1960s. Amongst the most successful actresses of her time, she also won critical acclaim for her acting in movies like Some Like It Hot. Her personal and professional life, though from the beginning, were marked by hardships, struggles and controversies.

Birthdate: October 11, 1884

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: New York City, New York, United States

Died: November 7

Feminist and civil rights icon Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, was the longest-serving U.S First Lady. She was a prominent human rights activist, wrote columns, and hosted a radio show. She was named to Gallup's List of Most Widely Admired People of the 20th Century in 1999.

Niels Bohr

(Danish Physicist Who Made Foundational Contributions to Understanding Atomic Structure and Quantum Theory)

Birthdate: October 7, 1885

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Copenhagen, Denmark

Died: November 18

Nobel Prize-winning Danish physicist Niels Bohr is remembered for his work on the atomic structure and quantum theory. He laid down the Bohr model of the atom and established the Niels Bohr Institute. The element Bohrium has been named after him. He was also part of the British nuclear project.

William Faulkner

(Regarded as One of the Most Significant American Writers of All Time)

Birthdate: September 25, 1897

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: New Albany, Mississippi, United States

Died: July 6

Nobel Prize-winning Southern author William Faulkner is remembered for works The Sound and the Fury, A Rose for Emily, and As I Lay Dying. He immortalized Mississippi as the fictional "Yoknapatawpha County" in his works. He also won two Pulitzers, one each for A Fable and The Reivers.

Birthdate: March 21, 1921

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Moscow, Russia

Died: March 19

Vasily Stalin was the son of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin and his second wife. Vasily joined the Air Force during Nazi Germany’s Operation Barbarossa. He was the youngest major-general of the Red Army. Following his father’s death, he sank into alcoholism and was also imprisoned for a while.

Birthdate: July 1, 1899

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England

Died: December 15

Charles Laughton is best known for his Academy Award-winning performance in The Private Life of Henry VIII and his Academy Award-nominated roles in Mutiny on the Bounty and Witness for the Prosecution. He played Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He was also a skilled Shakespearean theater actor.

Hermann Hesse

(Poet, Novelist & Painter Who Won the 1946 Nobel Prize in Literature)

Birthdate: July 2, 1877

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Calw, Germany

Died: August 9

German-born Swiss poet, novelist, and painter Hermann Hesse received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1946. He explored individuals’ search for authenticity, self-knowledge, and spirituality in his works. An intense and headstrong person from childhood, he developed an early interest in reading. He started writing as a young man and became an influential author in the German-speaking world.

Birthdate: October 14, 1894

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

Died: September 3

Stuart Sutcliffe

(Scottish Musician Best Remembered for His Association with the Popular Rock Band 'The Beatles')

Birthdate: June 23, 1940

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland

Died: April 10

Stuart Sutcliffe was a Scottish musician and painter. He is best remembered for his association with the popular rock band the Beatles, where he was the original bass guitarist. Before achieving popularity as a guitarist, Sutcliffe left the Beatles to pursue painting. Along with John Lennon, Stuart Sutcliffe is credited with coining the name Beetles, which later became the Beatles.

Karen Blixen

(Danish Writer Best Known for Her Works: 'Out of Africa' and 'Seven Gothic Tales')

Birthdate: April 17, 1885

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Rungsted, Denmark

Died: September 7

Danish author Karen Blixen is best known for her memoir Out of Africa, in which she shared her experiences of living in Kenya for a few years. She was popular across Europe and wrote under several pen names. She was awarded the Danish Holberg Medal in 1949. She was shortlisted several times for the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Birthdate: September 15, 1860

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: Muddenahalli, Chikballapur, Kingdom of Mysore (now in Karnataka)

Died: April 14

Sir M. Visvesvaraya is remembered for his role in revolutionizing the flood-protection system in Hyderabad and worked as the chief engineer of the Krishna Raja Sagara dam near Mysore. He received the knighthood and the Bharat Ratna. His birthday is celebrated as Engineers' Day in India, Tanzania, and Sri Lanka.

Birthdate: January 23, 1919

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Trenton, New Jersey, United States

Died: January 13

Height: 6'2" (188 cm)

Birthdate: August 31, 1880

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: The Hague, Netherlands

Died: November 28

Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, the only child of the King William III and his second wife, Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont, became queen at age 10. While she remained neutral during World War I, she went into exile to England during World War II. Her autobiography revealed her religious devotion.

Birthdate: September 10, 1897

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: Billom, France

Died: July 9

Georges Bataille was a French intellectual and philosopher best remembered for his work in various fields, such as philosophy, sociology, history of art, anthropology, literature, and consumerism. His work would later have a huge impact on subsequent schools of social theory and philosophy. Also a prolific writer, Georges Bataille wrote on subjects like mysticism, erotism, transgression, and surrealism.

Georgios Papanikolaou

(Physician, Oncologist)

Birthdate: May 13, 1883

Sun Sign: Taurus

Birthplace: Kymi

Died: February 19

Georgios Papanikolaou was a Greek physician who was a pioneer in early cancer detection. He reported that uterine cancer cells could be detected in vaginal smears as early as 1928, but his work did not receive much attention until the 1940s. He invented the Papanicolaou test, commonly known as the Pap smear or Pap test for cervical screening.

Birthdate: December 24, 1886

Sun Sign: Capricorn

Birthplace: Budapest, Hungary

Died: April 10

Fritz Kreisler

(One of the Greatest Violinists of All Time - Known for His Sweet Tone and Expressive Phrasing)

Birthdate: February 2, 1875

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Vienna, Austria

Died: January 29

Born to a doctor in Austria, Fritz Kreisler was a music prodigy. However, after being rejected by the Vienna Philharmonic, he had started studying medicine. He had also studied art and been part of the Austrian army, though he is chiefly remembered for his violin pieces such as Viennese Caprice.

Benny Paret

(Cuban Welterweight Boxer)

Birthdate: March 14, 1937

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Santa Clara, Cuba

Died: April 3

Birthdate: September 10, 1892

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: Wooster, Ohio, USA

Died: March 15

American physicist Arthur Compton is best-known for introducing Compton wavelength, discovering Compton scattering, first identifying the Compton–Getting effect in the intensity of cosmic rays along with Ivan A. Getting, and for the Compton generator. He received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1927 for discovering Compton effect. He also remained a prominent figure during the Manhattan Project.

Tod Browning

(American Film Director, Actor and Screenwriter)

Birthdate: July 12, 1880

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States

Died: October 6

Tod Browning was an American actor, director, screenwriter, and vaudeville performer. Browning is best remembered for directing films like Dracula and Freaks. He had an illustrious career that spanned from 1913 to 1939. Although he was famous during his lifetime, Browning's work received greater critical appreciation after his death. He is sometimes referred to as the Edgar Allan Poe of cinema.

Birthdate: July 1, 1882

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Bankipore

Died: July 1

Bidhan Chandra Roy was an Indian educationist, physician, statesman, philanthropist, and freedom fighter. Widely regarded as the chief designer of modern West Bengal, Roy founded several institutions and four cities in the state. He also served as West Bengal's chief minister from 1948 to 1962. In 1961, Bidhan Chandra Roy was honored with India's highest civilian award, The Bharat Ratna.

Solomon Linda

(South African Musician, Singer and Composer)

Birthdate: 1909 AD

Birthplace: Pomeroy, South Africa

Died: September 8

Solomon Linda is best remembered for writing the hit Mbube, later known as Wimoweh and The Lion Sleeps Tonight. Part of the Evening Birds, he never got his due and died poor. His family couldn’t afford to build a headstone for his grave until 18 years after his death.

Gianna Beretta Molla

(Italian Roman Catholic Pediatrician)

Birthdate: October 4, 1922

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Magenta, Italy

Died: April 28

Gianna Beretta Molla was a Roman Catholic pediatrician, canonized as a saint for saving her unborn child’s life at the expense of her own. Although she knew that the removal of only the fibroma would endanger her life, she refused have an abortion, thus upholding the Roman Catholic doctrine that even an unborn child has a fundamental right to life.

Birthdate: April 18, 1858

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Ratnagiri

Died: November 9

Dhondo Keshav Karve was an Indian social reformer who worked for women's welfare in India. A pioneer in supporting widows' education, Karve also promoted widow remarriage. He also walked the talk by marrying a widow. Karve is credited with founding SNDT Women's University, India's first women's university. In 1958, he was honored with India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.

Princess Marie Bonaparte

(Author)

Birthdate: July 2, 1882

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Saint-Cloud, French Third Republic

Died: September 21

Menen Asfaw

(Empress consort of Ethiopia (1930 - 1962))

Birthdate: April 3, 1891

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Wollo, Ethiopian Empire

Died: February 15

Menen Asfaw ruled as an empress consort of Ethiopia, as the wife of Emperor Haile Selassie. Born into the noble family of Asfaw, Jantirar of Ambassel, she apparently had 3 marriages before she got married to Haile Selassie. She proved to be a trusted advisor to Selassie till her death.

Birthdate: August 15, 1883

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Vrpolje

Died: January 15

Ivan Meštrović was a Croatian architect, sculptor, and writer. Counted among the most important Croatian sculptors of the modern era, Ivan Meštrović is sometimes credited with taking Croatian arts to the world stage. He also had a strong artistic influence on Serbia where many streets are named in his honor.

Michael Dillon

(British Physician and the First Trans Man to Undergo Phalloplasty)

Birthdate: May 1, 1915

Sun Sign: Taurus

Birthplace: England

Died: May 15

Born Laura Dillon, a girl, in Britain, Michael Dillon later became the first trans man to undergo a female-to-male sex-change operation by phalloplasty. A qualified doctor, he also served as a naval surgeon, penned books such as Self: A Study in Ethics and Endocrinology, and later deviated to Buddhism.

Franz Kline

(Abstract Expressionist Artist)

Birthdate: May 23, 1910

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, United States

Died: May 13

Franz Kline of the New York School is counted among the most significant artists of the Abstract Expressionist movement. Labelled as an action painter, Kline’s etched a niche with his seemingly spontaneous and intense style that focused more on actual brushstrokes and use of canvas instead on figures or imagery as exemplified in his masterpiece, Number 2 (1954).

Birthdate: February 17, 1890

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: East Finchley, London, England

Died: July 29

Ronald Fisher was a British polymath, statistician, geneticist, mathematician, and academic. He is credited to have single-handedly created the foundations for modern statistical science. He made important contributions to the field of genetics and is known as one of the three principal founders of population genetics. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1929.

Alfred Cortot

(French Pianist and Conductor Known for His Piano Trio with Violinist 'Jacques Thibaud' and Cellist 'Pablo Casals')

Birthdate: September 26, 1877

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Nyon, Switzerland

Died: June 15

French pianist Alfred Cortot is remembered for his renditions of popular Romantic composers, such as Chopin and Schumann. The Paris Conservatory alumnus later established the Paris Orchestre Philharmonique and the École Normale de Musique. He also formed a trio with cellist Pablo Casals and violinist Jacques Thibaud.

Mary Gilmore

(Journalist, Poet, Writer)

Birthdate: August 16, 1865

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Goulburn

Died: December 3

Mary Gilmore was an Australian writer and journalist. She wrote both prose and poetry and is recognized for her tremendous contribution to Australian literature. As a young woman, she became a school teacher and held utopian socialist views. She eventually started writing and gained fame as an author and poet later in life.

Natalya Goncharova

(Russian artist)

Birthdate: June 3, 1881

Sun Sign: Gemini

Birthplace: Nagayevo, Russia

Died: October 17

Natalya Goncharova was a Russian avant-garde painter, writer, illustrator, costume designer, and set designer. A member of avant-garde groups like Jack of Diamonds and Donkey's Tail, Goncharova influenced several unconventional artists in Russia and Paris. Goncharova also had a successful career as a costume designer; she designed costumes for the Ballets Russes.

Gabriele Münter

(German Expressionist Painter)

Birthdate: February 19, 1877

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Berlin, Germany

Died: May 19

Gabriele Munter was a German expressionist painter who led the Munich avant-garde movement in the early 20th century. She began to draw as a child and was supported in her ambitions by her parents. She went on to have a successful career and became a founding member of the expressionist group Der Blaue Reiter. She lived with painter Wassily Kandinsky.

Birthdate: April 23, 1894

Sun Sign: Taurus

Birthplace: Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.

Died: June 19

Roscoe Ates

(Actor, Singer)

Birthdate: January 20, 1895

Sun Sign: Aquarius

Birthplace: Grange, Mississippi, United States

Died: March 1

Height: 5'7" (170 cm)

Mickey Cochrane

(Baseball player)

Birthdate: April 6, 1903

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Bridgewater, Massachusetts, United States

Died: June 28

Alan L. Hart

(Physician)

Birthdate: October 4, 1890

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Coffey County, Kansas, United States

Died: July 1

Shaitan Singh

Birthdate: December 1, 1924

Sun Sign: Sagittarius

Birthplace: Jodhpur

Died: November 18

Sylvia Beach

(Bookseller)

Birthdate: March 14, 1887

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Died: October 5

Patrick Hamilton

(Writer)

Birthdate: March 17, 1904

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Hasocks, England

Died: September 23

Juan Belmonte

(Bullfighter)

Birthdate: April 14, 1892

Sun Sign: Aries

Birthplace: Seville, Spain

Died: April 8

Mabel Dodge Luhan

(Biographer)

Birthdate: February 26, 1879

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Buffalo, New York

Died: August 13

Eiji Yoshikawa

(Japanese Novelist)

Birthdate: August 11, 1892

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan

Died: September 7

Well-known Japanese historical fiction novelist, Eiji Yoshikawa created best-selling revisions of older classics. He was mainly influenced by classics like Tale of Genji, Outlaws of the Marsh, and The Tale of the Heike. In 1960, he was awarded the Cultural Order of Merit and was also honoured with the Order of the Sacred Treasure and the Mainichi Art Award.

Augusta Savage

(Sculptor)

Birthdate: February 29, 1892

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Green Cove Springs

Died: March 26

Augusta Savage was an American sculptor best remembered for her association with the Harlem Renaissance. Savage also worked as a teacher and her studio served as an important tool to the development of the careers of several artists who went on to achieve national prominence. In 2008, Augusta Savage was inducted into the Florida Artist Hall of Fame.

Robert S. Woodworth

(Psychologist)

Birthdate: October 17, 1869

Sun Sign: Libra

Birthplace: Belchertown, Massachusetts, United States

Died: July 4

William Beebe

(US Explorer and Ornithologist Who Co-Discovered the Bathysphere)

Birthdate: July 29, 1877

Sun Sign: Leo

Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York, United States

Died: June 4

American marine biologist, ornithologist, and entomologist William Beebe is remembered for his exploratory expeditions conducted for the New York Zoological Society. He also co-discovered the Bathysphere, penned many books, was a renowned lecturer, worked with the New York Zoological Gardens, and led tropical research at the New York Zoological Society.

Emil Artin

(Austrian Mathematician Best Known for His Work on Algebraic Number Theory)

Birthdate: March 3, 1898

Sun Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Vienna, Austria

Died: December 20

Considered a pioneer in the field of abstract algebra, Austro-German mathematician Emil Artin reached great heights in academics in spite of losing his father to syphilis at age 8. He's best remembered for his contribution to the class field theory and his theorems and concepts such as the Artin rings.

H. Richard Niebuhr

(Theologian)

Birthdate: September 3, 1894

Sun Sign: Virgo

Birthplace: Wright City, Missouri, United States

Died: July 5

Kirsten Flagstad

(Opera Singer)

Birthdate: July 12, 1895

Sun Sign: Cancer

Birthplace: Hamar, Norway

Died: December 7