Holly, Buddy
Music
Age 22
September 7, 1936 - February 3, 1959
City of Lubbock Cemetery / Lubbock / Texas / USA / North America
Buddy Holly was an American singer-songwriter who was a key figure and pioneer of mid-1950s rock and roll music. Some of his best hits include "That'll Be The Day", "Peggy Sue", "Everyday", and "It's So Easy". He is often regarded...
Ardolino, Emile
Show Business
Age 50
May 9, 1943 - November 20, 1993
St. John Cemetery / Middle Village / New York / USA / North America
Emile Ardolino was an American film director, choreographer, and producer, best known for his films Dirty Dancing (1987) and Sister Act (1992).
Bloomfield, Michael
Music
Age 37
July 28, 1943 - February 15, 1981
Hillside Memorial Park / Culver City / California / USA / North America
Michael Bloomfield was an American guitarist and composer who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrumental prowess, as he rarely sang before 1969. Respect...
Gehrig, Lou
Sports
Age 37
June 19, 1903 - June 2, 1941
Kensico Cemetery / Valhalla / New York / USA / North America
Voted the greatest first baseman of all time, Lou Gehrig was a member of the NY Yankees baseball team and nicked named the Iron Horse for 2,170 consecutive games played over a 17 year career. Fans and teammates were stunned when w...
Bradham, Caleb
Business and Finance
Age
May 27, 1867 - February 19, 1934
Cedar Grove Cemetery / New Bern / North Carolina / USA / North America
Caleb Bradham was an American pharmacist who is best known as the inventor of soft drink Pepsi. Around 1890, he dropped out of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, owing to his father's business going bankrupt. After ret...
Thomas, Dave
Business and Finance
Age 69
July 2, 1932 - January 8, 2002
Union Cemetery / Columbus / Ohio / USA / North America
Dave Thomas was a successful businessman, philanthropist, fast-food tycoon and the founder and chief executive officer of Wendy's, a fast-food restaurant chain. In 1979 sales exceeded $1 billion dollars and at the time of his deat...
Montgomery, Wes
Music
Age 45
March 6, 1923 - June 15, 1968
New Crown Cemetery / Indianapolis / Indiana / USA / North America
Guitar historians can easily trace a line through all the major influential artists from Lonnie Anderson to Eddie Lang, Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt. Often that line of brillance ends at Wes Montgomery. Noted for his inc...
Berkeley, Busby
Show Business
Age 80
November 29, 1895 - March 14, 1976
Desert Memorial Park / Cathedral City / California / USA / North America
Busby Berkeley was an American film director and musical choreographer best known for his elaborate musical production numbers that often involved complex geometric patterns and showgirls - lots and lots of showgirls. Flamboyant, ...
Lemmon, Jack
Show Business
Age 76
February 8, 1925 - June 27, 2001
Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park / Los Angeles / California / USA / North America
Born the only child of a wealthy Boston family (his father was president of a baking company) Jack Lemmon was an American actor and musician who, after naval service and graduation from Harvard, headed for New York and fame - with...
Jones, Brian
Music
Age 27
February 28, 1942 - July 3, 1969
Cheltenham, Gloucestershire / Cheltenham Cemetery and Crematorium / Europe
Long-time Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman said of Brian Jones, "He formed the band. He chose the members. He named the band. He chose the music we played. He got us gigs. ... he was very influential, very important, and then slo...
Dunne, Dominique
Show Business
Age 22
November 23, 1959 - November 4, 1982
Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park & Mortuary / Los Angeles / California / USA / North America
Dominique Dunne was an American actress who first appeared in the 1979 television film Diary of a Teenage Hitchhiker which she parlayed into supporting roles in popular 1980s television series such as Lou Grant, Hart to Hart and...
Dugan, Joe
Sports
Age 85
May 12, 1897 - July 7, 1982
Mount Calvary Cemetery / Roslindale / Massachusetts / USA / North America
After a slow start with Connie Mack's Philadelphia Athletics baseball team, Jumping Joe Dugan eventually made his way to the fabled New York Yankees where he developed into one of the greatest defensive third baseman and played in...
DeMille, Cecil B.
Show Business
Age 77
August 12, 1881 - January 21, 1959
Hollywood Forever Cemetery / Los Angeles / California / USA / North America
Considered the founding father of the American cinema and the most commercially successful producer-director in film history he was also one of the founders of Paramount Pictures. As a director, producer, writer and actor. Cecil B...
Chopin, Frédéric
Music
Age 39
March 1, 1810 - October 17, 1849
Cimetière du Père Lachaise / Paris / France / Europe
Frederic Chopin was a Polish-born pianist and composer of matchless genius in the realm of keyboard music. As a pianist, his talents were beyond emulation and had an impact on other musicians entirely out of proportion to the numb...