Joey Ramone

popular name: Franz Schubert

date_of_death: November 19, 1828

age: 31

cause_of_death: Bacterial typhoid infection brought on by tertiary syphilis

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Franz Schubert was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a vast oeuvre, including more than 600 secular vocal works (mainly lieder), seven complete symphonies, sacred music, operas, incidental music, and a large body of piano and chamber music. His major works include "Erlkönig" (D. 328), the Piano Quintet in A major, D. 667 (Trout Quintet), the Symphony No. 8 in B minor, D. 759 (Unfinished Symphony), the "Great" Symphony No. 9 in C major, D. 944, the String Quintet (D. 956), the three last piano sonatas (D. 958–960), the opera Fierrabras (D. 796), the incidental music to the play Rosamunde (D. 797), and the song cycles Die schöne Müllerin (D. 795) and Winterreise (D. 911). He gave a concert of his works to critical acclaim in March 1828, the only time he did so in his career. He died eight months later at the age of 31, the cause officially attributed to typhoid fever caused by a long-standing infection of tertiary syphilis. Appreciation of Schubert's music while he was alive was limited to a relatively small circle of admirers in Vienna, but interest in his work increased greatly in the decades following his death. Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, Franz Liszt, Johannes Brahms and other 19th-century composers discovered and championed his works. Today, Schubert is ranked among the greatest composers in the history of Western classical music.

popular name: Karen Carpenter

date_of_death: February 4, 1983

age: 32

cause_of_death: Heart failure due to anorexia nervosa

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Karen Carpenter was an American singer and drummer, who formed half of the sibling duo the Carpenters alongside her older brother Richard. With a distinctive three-octave contralto range, she was praised by her peers for her vocal skills and was named Rolling Stone's Top 100 Vocalists. Carpenter's struggle with and eventual death of heart failure related to her years-long struggle with anorexia would later raise awareness of eating disorders and body dysmorphia and their possible causes. On February 1, 1983, Carpenter saw her brother for the last time and discussed new plans for the Carpenters and for resumed touring. Three days later, on February 4, Carpenter was scheduled to sign final papers making her divorce official. Shortly after waking up on that day, she collapsed at her parents' home in Downey. Paramedics found her heart beating once every 10 seconds (6 bpm). Carpenter was pronounced dead at Downey Community Hospital at 9:51 a.m. The vocalist and drummer behind three number-one singles, five number-two singles on the Billboard Hot 100, 15 number-one hits on the Adult Contemporary chart and 12 top-10 singles was only 32 years old.

popular name: Rory Gallagher

date_of_death: June 14, 1995

age: 47

cause_of_death: Staphylococcal infection (MRSA) following a liver transplant

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: One of Europe's great guitar players, Rory Gallagher's single-minded dedication to the blues and refusal to change his style for radio success forever relegated him to small clubs and the college tour circuit. Born in Ballyshannon, Ireland Gallagher formed his first band, Taste, in 1968. A blend of heavy metal power chords and American blues, Taste recorded several well-received on the ATCO record label. With so few Irish rock bands apart from Van Morrison and Them, Taste began to garner critical and popular acclaim touring with Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, Yes, Cream and Blind Faith before disbanding under a cloud of financial mismanagement. Gallagher continued as a solo act, touring the U.S. no less than 25 times. Voted Musician of the Year by Melody Maker magazine in 1972, Gallagher's popularity dropped considerably over the next decade. In 1994, during a small tour of Europe clubs and college gigs, Gallagher fell seriously ill in very short order and underwent a liver transplant in 1995. He died of a massive infection while still recuperating in the hospital. Upon his death, he was laid to rest in St. Oliver's Cemetery, Cork Ireland.