Deaths in January 2016

The following is a list of notable deaths in January 2016. For notable deaths before the current month, please see "Previous months".  Names under each date are reported in alphabetical order by last name or pseudonym. Deaths of non-humans are reported here also if notable.

 Each listing of a death must have a source. If no reference is included, the death notice will be removed. The following are the requirements of adding a name to the list in its order: name, age, nationality, what the person is known for, cause of death (if known) and most importantly a source.


January

1
 Fazu Aliyeva, 83, Russian poet and journalist, heart failure.
 Lennie Bluett, 96, American actor (Gone with the Wind, Mighty Joe Young, A Star Is Born).
 Dale Bumpers, 90, American politician, Governor of Arkansas (1971–1975), Senator from Arkansas (1975–1999), complications from a fall.
 Antonio Carrizo, 89, Argentine broadcaster.
 Brian Johns, 79, Australian company director, managing director of the ABC (1995–2000), cancer.
 Gilbert Kaplan, 74, American conductor and businessman, cancer.
 Mark B, 45, British hip-hop record producer, heart failure.
 Mike Oxley, 71, American politician, member of the U.S. House of Representatives from  (1981–2007), lung cancer.
 Ian Pieris, 82, Sri Lankan cricketer.
 Jim Ross, 89, Canadian ice hockey player (New York Rangers).
 Vilmos Zsigmond, 85, Hungarian-American cinematographer (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Deer Hunter, The Black Dahlia), Oscar winner (1978).

2
 Marcel Barbeau, 90, Canadian painter and sculptor.
 Ardhendu Bhushan Bardhan, 91, Indian politician, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (1996–2012), complications from a stroke.
 Michel Delpech, 69, French singer-songwriter and actor, throat cancer.
 Tim Francis, 87, New Zealand diplomat, Ambassador to the United States (1988–1991), cancer.
 Maria Garbowska-Kierczyńska, 93, Polish actress.
 Matt Hobden, 22, English cricketer (Sussex), accidental fall.
 Gisela Mota Ocampo, 33, Mexican politician, Mayor of Temixco (2016), shot.
 Nimr al-Nimr, 56, Saudi Shia religious leader, executed by beheading.
 Shigeji Kaneko, 84, Japanese boxer, progressive supranuclear palsy.
 Frances Cress Welsing, 80, American psychiatrist and author (The Isis Papers), complications from a stroke.
 Sabri Yirmibeşoğlu, 87, Turkish military officer, Secretary-General of the National Security Council (1988–1990), kidney failure.

3
 Paul Bley, 83, Canadian jazz pianist.
 Stephen W. Bosworth, 76, American diplomat, Ambassador to South Korea (1997–2001), prostate cancer.
 Amby Fogarty, 82, Irish footballer (Sunderland, Hartlepool).
 C. B. Forgotston, 70, American political blogger, suicide by gunshot.
 Demmus Hentze, 92, Faroese politician, Finance Minister (1975–1981).
 Peter Powell, 83, English kite maker, stroke.
 Bill Plager, 70, Canadian ice hockey player (St. Louis Blues).
 Peter Naur, 87, Danish computer science pioneer, Turing award winner.
 Georg Nees, 89, German academic and artist, heart failure.
 Tommy Sale, 97, English rugby league player (Leigh, Widnes).
 Igor Sergun, 58, Russian military officer, Director of the GRU (since 2011).

4
 Tom Allin, 28, English cricketer (Warwickshire), suicide by jumping.
 Fernando Barrachina, 68, Spanish footballer (Valencia CF).
 Rūsiņš Mārtiņš Freivalds, 73, Latvian computer scientist and mathematician, heart attack.
 Michel Galabru, 93, French actor (Subway, Belle Époque, Asterix & Obelix Take On Caesar).
 S. H. Kapadia, 68, Indian judge, Chief Justice (2010–2012).
 Jorge Lepra, 73, Uruguayan diplomat and politician, heart failure.
 Achim Mentzel, 69, German musician and television presenter.
 Marjorie Pizer, 95, Australian poet.
 John Roberts, 69, Welsh footballer (Arsenal, Birmingham, Wrexham).
 Andres Rodríguez, 31, Venezuelan equestrian competitor, car accident.
 Leo Rucka, 84, American football player (San Francisco 49ers).
 Robert Stigwood, 81, Australian music impresario and movie producer (Grease, Saturday Night Fever). (death announced on this date)

5
 María Lorenza Barreneche, 89, Argentine socialite, First Lady (1983–1989).
 Sian Blake, 42–43, British actress (EastEnders), head and neck injuries. (body discovered on this date)
 Pierre Boulez, 90, French composer.
 Percy Freeman, 70, English footballer (Lincoln City, West Bromwich Albion, Reading).
 Rudolf Haag, 93, German theoretical physicist and educator.
 Lev Nikolayevich Korolyov, 89, Russian computer scientist.
 Jean-Paul L'Allier, 77, Canadian politician, Mayor of Quebec City (1989–2005).
 Antônio Pompêo, 62, Brazilian actor.
 Michael Purcell, 70, Australian rugby union player.

6
 Alfredo "Chocolate" Armenteros, 87, Cuban trumpeter, prostate cancer.
 Pat Harrington, Jr., 86, American actor (One Day at a Time, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels), complications from a fall and Alzheimer's disease.
 Florence King, 80, American writer.
 Christy O'Connor Jnr, 67, Irish golfer, nephew of Christy O'Connor Snr.
 Silvana Pampanini, 90, Italian actress (The Road a Year Long, The City Stands Trial, Roman Tales).
 Ioannis Petridis, 84, Greek politician, MP for Pieria (1985–1989).
 Sol Polansky, 89, American diplomat, Ambassador to Bulgaria (1987–1990). (death announced on this date)
 Nivaria Tejera, 86, Cuban poet and novelist, pancreatic cancer.
 Yves Vincent, 94, French actor.

7
 Klaas Bakker, 89, Dutch footballer (Ajax).
 Robert M. Cundick, 89, American organist and composer. 
 Kitty Kallen, 94, American singer ("Little Things Mean a Lot").
 Judith Kaye, 77, American lawyer, Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals (1993–2008), cancer.
 Richard Libertini, 82, American actor (Fletch, All of Me, The In-Laws), cancer.
 Ashraf Pahlavi, 96, Iranian princess.
 Mohammad Sayeed, 79, Indian politician, Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir (2002–2005, since 2015), Minister of Home Affairs (1989–1990), multiple organ failure.
 Troy Shondell, 76, American singer, complications from Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.
 Sergey Shustikov, 45, Russian football player (Torpedo Moscow) and manager (Solyaris Moscow).
 Anton Srholec, 86, Slovak writer and priest, lung cancer.
 Valerio Zanone, 79, Italian politician, Secretary of Italian Liberal Party (1976–1985) and Mayor of Turin (1990–1991).

8
 Otis Clay, 73, American R&B and soul singer ("Tryin' to Live My Life Without You", "The Only Way Is Up"), heart attack.
 Oscar Fritschi, 76, Swiss politician.
 German Moreno, 82, Philippine television host (Walang Tulugan with the Master Showman) and actor, cardiac arrest.
 Royal Parker, 86, American television personality, congestive heart failure.
 Red Simpson, 81, American country singer-songwriter ("I'm a Truck"), complications from a heart attack.
 Piet Steenkamp, 90, Dutch politician, President of the Senate (1983–1991).

9
 Merab Chigoev, 65, South Ossetian politician, Prime Minister (1998–2001), traffic collision.
 Lawrence H. Cohn, 78, American surgeon, stroke.
 Hamada Emam, 68, Egyptian footballer (Zamalek SC).
 Maria Teresa de Filippis, 89, Italian racing driver, first woman to race in Formula One.
 Peter Gavin Hall, 64, Australian mathematician and statistician, leukemia.
 John Harvard, 77, Canadian politician, Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba (2004–2009).
 Umberto Raho, 93, Italian actor (The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The Last Man on Earth, Superfantagenio), complications from Alzheimer's disease.
 José María Rivas, 57, Salvadoran footballer, leukemia.
 Angus Scrimm, 89, American actor (Phantasm, Alias, John Dies at the End).
 Ed Stewart, 74, British broadcasting personality (Top of the Pops, Crackerjack), stroke.
 Zelimkhan Yaqub, 65, Azerbaijani poet.

10
 Abbas Bahri, 61, Tunisian mathematician.
 Wim Bleijenberg, 85, Dutch footballer (Ajax, national team).
 David Bowie, 69, British singer-songwriter ("Space Oddity", Ziggy Stardust, Rebel Rebel), record producer and actor (Labyrinth, The Prestige, Arthur and the Invisibles), liver cancer.
 Ann Z. Caracristi, 94, American cryptographer, Deputy Director of the NSA (1980–1982), complications from dementia.
 Jeanne Cordova, 67, American LGBT activist, brain cancer.
 Teofil Codreanu, 74, Romanian footballer (Rapid București).
 Kalevi Lehtovirta, 87, Finnish footballer.
 Hernán Gamboa, 69, Venezuelan musician (Serenata Guayanesa), cancer.
 Ulrich Hahnen, 63, German politician (SPD), Deputy of the Landtag of North Rhine-Westphalia (since 2010), cancer.
 Ralph Hauenstein, 103, American philathropist and businessman.
 George Jonas, 80, Canadian writer, Parkinson's disease.
 Bob Oatley, 87, Australian yachtsman (Wild Oats XI) and winemaker (Rosemount).
 Arthur S. Obermayer, 84, American entrepreneur and philanthropist, cancer.
 Cornelis Zitman, 89, Dutch sculptor.
 Yusuf Zuayyin, 84, Syrian politician, Prime Minister (1965, 1966–1968).

11
 Reginaldo Araújo, 38, Brazilian footballer, heart attack.
 William Del Monte, 109, American centenarian, last known survivor of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.
 Berge Furre, 78, Norwegian politician and historian.
 Alexander Hickman, 90, Canadian judge and politician. (death announced on this date)
 Monte Irvin, 96, American Hall of Fame baseball player (Newark Eagles, New York Giants, Chicago Cubs).
 Brian Johnson, 59, Australian rugby league player and coach (Warrington), Alzheimer's disease. 
 David Margulies, 78, American actor (Ghostbusters, The Sopranos, Conversations with My Father).
 János Radványi, 93, American political scientist and diplomat, Ambassador to the United States (1962–1967).
 Gunnel Vallquist, 97, Swedish writer and translator.

12
 Robert Black, 68, Scottish serial killer and kidnapper.
 Ivan Bukavshin, 20, Russian chess player, stroke.
 Rose Chibambo, 87, Malawian politician, Deputy Minister for Hospitals, Prisons and Social Welfare (1963–1964), heart attack.
 Andrew Smith, 25, American basketball player (Butler Bulldogs), non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
 Gastón Guzmán, 83, Mexican mycologist and anthropologist, heart attack.
Meg Mundy, 101, American actress (Fatal Attraction, All My Children, Ordinary People).
 William Needles, 97, Canadian theater actor.
 Dave Sime, 79, American sprinter and ophthalmologist, cancer.
 Carolyn D. Wright, 67, American poet, cancer.

13
 Brian Bedford, 80, British actor and voice actor (Robin Hood, Nixon, Much Ado About Nothing), cancer.
 William Craig, 97, American philosopher and educator.
 Giorgio Gomelsky, 81, Georgian filmmaker, impresario, music manager, songwriter and record producer.
 Bern Herbolsheimer, 67, American composer, cancer.
 J. F. R. Jacob, 92, Indian military officer, pneumonia.
 Conrad Phillips, 90, British television and movie actor (The Adventures of William Tell).
 Lawrence Phillips, 40, American football player (University of Nebraska, St. Louis Rams) and convicted felon, apparent suicide.
 Jim Simpson, 88, American sportscaster (NBC Sports).
 Zaharije Trnavčević, 90, Serbian politician, Acting President of the National Assembly (2012).
 Ellen Meiksins Wood, 73, American historian, cancer.
 Tera Wray, 33, American pornographic actress, suicide.

14
 René Angélil, 73, Canadian entertainment manager (Céline Dion), heart attack complicated by throat cancer.
 George Carroll, 94, American lawyer and politician, Mayor of Richmond (1964–1965), respiratory failure.
 Franco Citti, 80, Italian actor (Accattone, The Godfather, The Godfather Part III).
 Alan Rickman, 69, English actor (Harry Potter, Die Hard, Love Actually), pancreatic cancer.
 Shaolin, 44, Brazilian humorist, heart attack.
 Rajesh Vivek, 66, Indian actor (Lagaan), heart attack.
 Leonid Zhabotinsky, 77, Soviet weightlifter, Olympic champion (1964, 1968).

15
 Francisco X. Alarcón, 61, American poet, cancer.
 Noreen Corcoran, 72, American actress (The Girls on the Beach, Gidget Goes to Rome, Bachelor Father), cardiopulmonary disease.
 Dan Haggerty, 74, American actor (Easy Rider, The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, Big Stan), spinal cancer.
 Ken Judge, 58, Australian football player and coach (Hawthorn), cancer.
 P. J. Mara, 73, Irish public affairs consultant, Senator (1977–1981, 1982–1983).
 Oleksandr Shevchenko, 78, Ukrainian scientist, jurist and politician, member of the Verkhovna Rada (2012–2014).
 Manuel Velázquez, 72, Spanish footballer (Real Madrid).

16 
 Carina Jaarnek, 53, Swedish singer and Dansband artist, brain haemorrhage.
 Ted Marchibroda, 84, American football player (Pittsburgh Steelers, Chicago Cardinals) and coach (Baltimore Colts, Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens).
 Rudy Migay, 87, Canadian ice hockey player (Toronto Maple Leafs).
 Jean-Noël Rey, 66, Swiss politician, CEO of Swiss Post, shot.
 Aristide von Bienefeldt, 56, Dutch writer. 
 Gary Loizzo, 70, American guitarist, singer, recording engineer, and record producer. He is best known for being the lead singer with The American Breed.

17
 Blowfly, 76, American musician and producer, liver cancer.
 Bob Harkey, 85, American racecar driver.
 Gottfried Honegger, 98, Swiss artist and graphic designer.
 Sudhindra Thirtha, 89, Indian Hindu religious leader, renal failure.

18
 Johnny Bach, 91, American basketball player (Boston Celtics) and coach (Fordham University, Penn State).
 Glenn Frey, 67, American guitarist (Eagles), songwriter ("Take It Easy", "Hotel California") and actor (Wiseguy, Jerry Maguire), complications following intestinal surgery.
 Michel Tournier, 91, French writer ("Friday, or, The Other Island", "The Erl-King").

19
 Robert M. Carter, 73, British-born Australian marine geologist and climate skeptic, complications from a heart attack.
 M. K. A. D. S. Gunawardana, 68, Sri Lankan politician, Minister of Land (since 2015), cancer.
 Yasutaro Koide, 112, Japanese supercentenarian, world's oldest man, heart failure and pneumonia.
 Richard Levins, 85, American mathematical ecologist and population geneticist, heart failure.
 Ettore Scola, 84, Italian movie director (A Special Day, What Time Is It?, The Dinner) and screenwriter (We All Loved Each Other So Much), pneumonia.
 Sheila Sim, Lady Attenborough, 93, English actress (Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, A Canterbury Tale, West of Zanzibar), dementia.
 William Y. Smith, 90, American air force general, congestive heart failure.
 Frank Sullivan, 85, American baseball player (Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, Minnesota Twins), pneumonia.

20
 Edmonde Charles-Roux, 95, French writer.
 Ronald Greenwald, 82, American rabbi and activist, suspected heart attack.
 David G. Hartwell, 74, American editor, publisher and critic, injuries from a fall.

21
 Bogusław Kaczyński, 73, Polish classical music journalist, stroke.
 Derrick Todd Lee, 47, American convicted serial killer.
 Mrinalini Sarabhai, 97, Indian classical dancer, choreographer and instructor, respiratory failure.
 Robert Sassone, 37, French road racing cyclist, suicide.

22
 Homayoun Behzadi, 73, Iranian football player (Shahin F.C., Paykan F.C., national team) and coach (Persepolis F.C.).
 Kamer Genç, 75, Turkish politician, cancer.
 Cecil Parkinson, 84, British politician, cabinet minister, cancer.
 Miloslav Ransdorf, 62, Czech politician (KSČM), Member of the European Parliament (since 2004), stroke.
 Rik Wilson, 53, American ice hockey player (St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, Chicago Blackhawks). (death announced on this date)

23
 Barry Brickell, 80, New Zealand ceramic artist.
 Josip Friščić, 66, Croatian politician.
 A. C. Jose, 78, Indian politician, Speaker of Kerala Legislature (1982), member of Parliament (1996–1997, 1998–2004).
 Elisabeta Polihroniade, 80, Romanian chess Woman Grandmaster (1982) and International Arbiter.
 Dmitry Shirkov, 88, Russian theoretical physicist, heart attack.

24
 Jimmy Bain, 68, Scottish bassist (Rainbow, Dio), lung cancer.
 Fredrik Barth, 87, Norwegian social anthropologist. 
 Marvin Minsky, 88, American cognitive scientist and pioneer in artificial intelligence, cerebral hemorrhage.
 Henry Worsley, 55, British adventurer, multiple organ failure.
 Forouzan, 78, Iranian actress.

25
 Kalpana, 49, Indian actress (Thanichalla Njan), heart attack.
 Concepcion Picciotto, 80, Spanish-born American peace activist, complications from a fall.
 Paul Terasaki, 86, American scientist and philanthropist.

26
 Black, 53, British singer-songwriter ("Wonderful Life"), head injuries sustained in a traffic collision.
 Tommy Kelly, 90, American actor (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Peck's Bad Boy with the Circus), congestive heart failure.
 Sahabzada Yaqub Khan, 95, Pakistani politician and diplomat, Minister of Foreign Affairs (1982–1991, 1996–1997).
 Abe Vigoda, 94, American actor (The Godfather, Barney Miller, Joe Versus the Volcano), complications from an illness.

27
 Augusto Giomo, 75, Italian basketball player (1970 FIBA World Championship), cancer.
 Carlos Loyzaga, 85, Filipino Olympic basketball player (1952, 1956), complications from a stroke.

28
 Signe Toly Anderson, 74, American singer (Jefferson Airplane), complications from COPD.   
 Yisroel Belsky, 77, American rabbi. 
 Buddy Cianci, 74, American politician and radio host, Mayor of Providence, Rhode Island (1975–1984, 1991–2002), colon cancer.
 Aleš Debeljak, 54, Slovenian writer, car crash.
 Paul Kantner, 74, American musician (Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, KBC Band), multiple organ failure.

29
 Jean-Marie Doré, 77, Guinean politician, Prime Minister (2010). 
 Gordon Goody, 86, British criminal (Great Train Robbery) and businessman, heart attack.
 Cayetano Paderanga, Jr., 67, Filipino economist, Director-General of NEDA (2010–2012), complications after heart surgery.
 Jacques Rivette, 87, French movie director (Celine and Julie Go Boating, Out 1) and movie critic, complications from Alzheimer's disease.
 John Roper, Baron Roper, 80, British politician.

30
 Frank Finlay, 89, British actor (Othello, The Shoes of the Fisherman, The Three Musketeers), heart failure.
 Francisco Flores Pérez, 56, Salvadorian politician, President (1999–2004), cerebral hemorrhage.
 T. N. Gopakumar, 58, Indian journalist, cancer. 
 Georgia Davis Powers, 92, American civil rights activist and politician, member of the Kentucky Senate (1968-1989), congestive heart failure.
 Mohammad Salimi, 78, Iranian general, Commander-in-Chief of the Army (2000–2005).

31
 Mere Broughton, 79, New Zealand Māori language activist and unionist, heart failure.
 Sir Terry Wogan, 77, British-Irish broadcaster (BBC), cancer.
 Benoît Violier, 44, French-born Swiss chef, suicide by gunshot.

Months
 February
 March
 April
 May
 June
 July
 August

Related pages
 Deaths in 2014
 Deaths in 2015

References

Other websites
 The Guardian, UK obituaries
 Obituaries, Los Angeles Times
 Obituaries, Chicago Tribune
 The New York Times, US obituaries
 The Sydney Morning Herald, Australian obituaries
 The Telegraph obituaries

01
January 2016 events