Roger Baldwin was an American civil rights activist who co-founded the American Civil Liberties Union.
1884-1981
1902-1981
1893-1981
Christy Brown was a writer with cerebral palsy who penned the autobiography My Left Foot, which was adapted into a film starring Daniel Day-Lewis.
1932-1981
Hoagy Carmichael was an American songwriter who wrote the standards "Rockin' Chair," "Lazy River," "Stardust" and "Georgia on my Mind."
1899-1981
Folk singer-songwriter Harry Chapin, famous in the 1970s for hits like "Cat's in the Cradle," was also a philanthropist dedicated to fighting world hunger.
1942-1981
Broadway playwright Pddy Chayefsky picked up two Academy Awards for his films The Hospital and Network.
1923-1981
1915-1981
Anwar el-Sadat was the one-time president of Egypt (1970-1981) who shared the 1978 Nobel Peace Prize for establishing peace agreements with Israel.
1918-1981
1925-1981
1897-1981
William Holden was an actor who perfected the role of the cynic who acts heroically in spite of his scorn or pessimism.
1918-1981
The world heavyweight boxing champion from June 22, 1937, until March 1, 1949, Joe Louis held the title longer than anyone else in history.
1914-1981
Jamaican singer, musician and songwriter Bob Marley served as a world ambassador for reggae music and sold more than 20 million records throughout his career—making him the first international superstar to emerge from the so-called Third World.
1945-1981
1888-1981
Bobby Sands was an Irish nationalist who led a hunger strike in prison in 1981. He was elected Member of Parliament during the strike and died May 5, 1981.
1954-1981
1892-1981
1929-1981
DeWitt Wallace was an American publisher and, with his wife, founder of Reader's Digest magazine. The couple supported numerous philanthropic causes.
1889-1981
Roy Wilkins was best known as the executive director of the NAACP and a leader of the African-American civil rights movement.
1901-1981
Eric Williams formed the People's National Movement for an independent Trinidad and Tobago, and served as that country's first prime minister.
1911-1981
1910-1981
Actress Natalie Wood starred in the films Rebel Without a Cause with James Dean and in West Side Story as Maria. She drowned during a boating trip in 1981.
1938-1981
1902-1981
1915-1981