Famous people and celebrities who died on February 21

Welcome to Takemeback.to's page dedicated to remembering the celebrities and famous people who passed away on February 21. On this day, we honor the lives and legacies of notable figures from various fields who left an indelible mark on the world. Explore our list to learn about their remarkable contributions and celebrate their enduring impact.

• 1920 Jacinta Marto

  Catholic visionary and one of the three children who reported Marian apparitions in Fatima, Portugal in 1917. She was beatified by the Catholic Church and is considered a significant religious figure.

• 1926 Heike Kamerlingh Onnes

  Nobel Prize laureate for his investigations on the properties of matter at low temperatures which led, inter alia, to the production of liquid helium

• 1938 George Ellery Hale

  Hale is known for his contributions to the field of astronomy, including the development of the spectroheliograph and his work on the study of sunspots.

• 1941 Frederick Grant Banting

  Nobel Prize laureate for the discovery of insulin

• 1945 Eric Liddell

  Scottish Olympic gold medalist and missionary who became famous for refusing to run on Sunday during the 1924 Paris Olympics, later serving as a missionary in China and dying in a Japanese internment camp during World War II.

• 1965 Malcolm X

  Malcolm X was a pivotal civil rights leader who transformed from a convicted criminal to a powerful advocate for African American rights. He was a key figure in the Nation of Islam before founding the Organization of Afro-American Unity. His life was marked by radical transformation and commitment to social justice.

• 1968 Howard Florey

  Howard Florey was an Australian pharmacologist who co-discovered penicillin and shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1945.

• 1974 Tim Horton

  Canadian ice hockey player and entrepreneur who co-founded the iconic Tim Hortons coffee and donut chain.

• 1980 Alfred Andersch

  Prominent German-Swiss writer, publisher, and intellectual who was a significant figure in post-World War II German literature, known for his novels and essays critiquing fascism.

• 1982 Gershom Scholem

  German-born israeli jewish historian and philosopher, born in germany. he is widely considered to be the founder of modern academic kabbalah study and was the first professor of jewish mysticism in the hebrew university of jerusalem.

• 1984 Mikhail Sholokhov

  Renowned Soviet novelist and Nobel Prize in Literature winner, best known for his epic novel 'And Quiet Flows the Don', which depicts life in the Don Cossack region during the Russian Revolution and World War I.

• 1985 Ina Claire

  Stage and film actress who appeared in 'The Awful Truth' and 'Ninotchka.'

• 1991 Margot Fonteyn

  Margot Fonteyn was a legendary British ballerina who revolutionized dance through her iconic partnership with Rudolf Nureyev. She was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1956 and was renowned for her exceptional technical skill and artistic expression. Her marriage to Panamanian ambassador Roberto Arias added to her fascinating life story.

• 1994 Johannes Steinhoff

  Prominent German fighter pilot and NATO commander who played a significant role during and after World War II.

• 1995 Robert Bolt

  Renowned British playwright and screenwriter famous for works like 'A Man for All Seasons' and 'Doctor Zhivago'. He was a significant figure in 20th-century British theatre and cinema.

• 1999 Gertrude Elion

  Gertrude Elion was a pioneering Nobel Prize-winning biochemist who revolutionized drug development. She developed crucial treatments for leukemia, malaria, and herpes, significantly advancing medical science. Her groundbreaking work earned her the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1988.

• 1999 Ilmari Juutilainen

  Renowned Finnish fighter pilot during World War II, credited with the most aerial victories in the Winter War and Continuation War against the Soviet Union.

• 2002 John Thaw

  Renowned British actor famous for his iconic role as Inspector Morse in the popular detective television series. He was a highly respected performer in British television and film.

• 2005 Guillermo Cabrera Infante

  Renowned Cuban novelist and essayist who was a key figure in Latin American literature, known for his experimental writing and cultural criticism.

• 2015 Clark Terry

  Renowned jazz trumpeter, composer, and music educator who significantly influenced jazz improvisation and mentored many famous musicians like Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock.

• 2017 Kenneth Arrow

  Influential economist and Nobel Prize winner who made groundbreaking contributions to social choice theory and welfare economics. His work on general equilibrium theory and social welfare functions fundamentally transformed economic and political science understanding.

• 2019 Peter Tork

  Peter Tork was an iconic American musician and actor, best known as a member of the groundbreaking 1960s pop group The Monkees, who significantly influenced pop culture and music.

• 2019 Stanley Donen

  Legendary Hollywood film director renowned for revolutionizing musical cinema with iconic films like 'Singin' in the Rain' and 'Funny Face'. He was a pivotal figure in transforming the musical genre during Hollywood's golden age.