Date of Death between 1997-01-01 and 1997-12-31 (Sorted by Popularity Ascending)
1. Robert Mitchum
Actor | Out of the Past
Robert Mitchum was an underrated American leading man of enormous ability, who sublimated his talents beneath an air of disinterest. He was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to Ann Harriet (Gunderson), a Norwegian immigrant, and James Thomas Mitchum, a shipyard/railroad worker. His father died in a ...
2. James Stewart
Actor | Anatomy of a Murder
James Maitland Stewart was born on May 20, 1908, in Indiana, Pennsylvania, to Elizabeth Ruth (Johnson) and Alexander Maitland Stewart, who owned a hardware store. He was of Scottish, Ulster-Scots, and some English descent. Stewart was educated at a local prep school, Mercersburg Academy, where he ...
3. Richard Jaeckel
Actor | Starman
Stocky tough-guy character actor Richard Jaeckel was one of Hollywood's most prolific supporting stars. Born in Long Island, New York, on October 10, 1926, Jaeckel's family moved to Los Angeles when he was still in his teens. After graduation from Hollywood High School, Jaeckel was discovered by a ...
4. Chris Farley
Actor | Tommy Boy
Christopher Crosby Farley was born on February 15, 1964, in Madison, Wisconsin, to Mary Anne (Crosby) and Thomas Farley, who owned an oil company. Among his siblings are actors Kevin P. Farley and John Farley. He was of Irish heritage. Farley studied theatre and communications on Marquette ...
5. Joanna Moore
Actress | Touch of Evil
Armed with an entrancing whiskey-like voice that complemented her stunning, creamy blonde looks, Southern-bred beauty Joanna Moore had so much going for her when her film and TV career first took off in the late 50s. Sadly, what began as an exciting Hollywood carnival ride would all too soon careen...
6. Burgess Meredith
Actor | Clash of the Titans
One of the truly great and gifted performers of the century, who often suffered lesser roles, Burgess Meredith was born in 1907 in Cleveland, Ohio. He was educated in Amherst College in Massachusetts, before joining Eva Le Gallienne's Student Repertory stage company in 1929. By 1934 he was a star ...
7. Brian Keith
Actor | The Parent Trap
Son of character actor Robert Keith and stage actress Helena Shipman. He grew up on the road with his parents while they toured in plays. First appeared at age 3 in film Pied Piper Malone (1924) with his father. Began acting in radio programs and on stage before World War II. Joined the Marines and ...
8. Toshirô Mifune
Actor | Yôjinbô
Toshiro Mifune achieved more worldwide fame than any other Japanese actor of his century. He was born in Tsingtao, China, to Japanese parents and grew up in Dalian. He did not set foot in Japan until he was 21. His father was an importer and a commercial photographer, and young Toshiro worked in ...
9. Denver Pyle
Actor | The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
A rather wanderlust fellow before he latched onto acting, Denver Pyle--who made a career of playing drawling, somewhat slow Southern types--was actually born in Colorado in 1920, to a farming family. He attended a university for a time but dropped out to become a drummer. When that didn't pan out ...
10. Catherine Scorsese
Actress | GoodFellas
Catherine Scorsese was an American actress of Italian descent, often typecast as the typical Italian mother in films. Her best-known role was that of Mrs. DeVito in "Goodfellas" (1990).
Scorsese was born under the name "Catherine Cappa" in 1912. She was a native of Little Italy, Manhattan, New York ...
11. Audra Lindley
Actress | Three's Company
Audra Marie Lindley was born in Los Angeles, California, to a show-business family -- her father, Bert Lindley, was a stage and film actor. She got her early start in Hollywood as a stand-in, which eventually progressed to stunt work. After a while, however, she found stunt work not to her liking ...
12. Bridgette Andersen
Actress | Savannah Smiles
Bridgette Andersen was born on July 11, 1975 to Frank Glass and Teresa Andersen in Inglewood, California and grew up in Malibu. She always considered it good luck to have her birthday read as 7-11 rather than as July 11th. She would always kiss the first two fingers on her right hand and then touch...
13. William Hickey
Actor | National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Son of Edward & Nora Hickey. Best known as the ancient Mafia don in Prizzi's Honor (1985), Hickey had a long, distinguished career in film, television, and the stage. Began career as a child actor on the variety stage. Made Broadway debut as walk-on in George Bernard Shaw's "Saint Joan" (1951 ...
14. Samuel Fuller
Writer | Shock Corridor
At age 17, Samuel Fuller was the youngest reporter ever to be in charge of the events section of the New York Journal. After having participated in the European battle theater in World War II, he directed some minor action productions for which he mostly wrote the scripts himself and which he also ...
15. Sheldon Leonard
Producer | Make Room for Daddy
Sheldon Leonard was born in New York City's lower Manhattan, the son of Jewish parents. He studied acting at Syracuse University and, after graduating, landed a job on Wall Street. Following the Wall Street crash of 1929, he found himself unemployed and resolved to become a professional actor on ...
16. Charles Hallahan
Actor | The Thing
Beefy, Philadelphia-born Charles Hallahan was often cast as cops, both good and bad, mainly because the map of Ireland was written all over his face. A graduate of Rutgers University, he earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from Temple University in his hometown. After spending some time in regional...
17. John Beal
Actor | The Firm
John Beal was born James Andrew Bliedung on August 13, 1909, in Joplin, Missouri. The son of a department store owner and concert pianist, he began acting in school and church plays and decided to pursue it as a career following his B.S. degree in economics from the University of Pennsylvania. The ...
18. Edward Mulhare
Actor | Von Ryan's Express
Suave Irish-born actor with resonant voice and a commanding presence, who made his theatrical debut in 'The First of Mrs.Fraser' (1942) at the age of 19 at the Cork Opera House. Nine years later, after spells with the Gate Theatre in Dublin and the Liverpool Repertory Company, Mulhare appeared in a ...
19. Diana Lewis
Actress | It's a Gift
Diana Lewis was born on September 18, 1919 in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Her parents were vaudeville performers. The family moved to Hollywood and Diana, her sister Maxine, and her brother J.C. all went into show business. Diana made her film debut in the comedy It's a Gift (1934). At the age of ...
20. Jesse White
Actor | It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
Lovable, laid-back Jesse White made acting seem fun and easy. He was born Jesse Marc Weidenfeld in Buffalo, New York, and was raised in Akron, Ohio. He made his first amateur appearance on the local stage at age 15. Before breaking into professional theater in the 1940s, he held many different jobs...
21. Robert Ridgely
Actor | Boogie Nights
Superbly talented vocal artist and character actor supreme Robert Ridgely was born on December 24, 1931 under the name of Robert Ritterbush in New Jersey. Ridgely started out as a cabaret entertainer. In the late 1950s, he recorded 45 RPM singles for Decca Records under the name of Bob Ritterbush ...
22. Elisabeth Brooks
Actress | The Howling
Elisabeth Brooks Luyties was born on July 2, 1951 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Elisabeth Brooks began acting at age five with her career encompassing both stage and screen. She started appearing in television roles in the mid-1970s and managed to pursue her acting career as a single mother while ...
23. Alvy Moore
Actor | Green Acres
Comic light actor in U.S. films and TV. Born in Vincennes and raised in Terre Haute, IN, Moore studied drama at Indiana State Teachers College before serving in the Marines in WWII. He had a tough time breaking into movies, although he performed in local and regional live theatre. He finally found ...
24. David Doyle
Actor | Capricorn One
David Fitzgerald Doyle was born in Lincoln, Nebraska December 1, 1929. He was the son of Mary Ruth Fitzgerald and Lewis Raymond (Lum) Doyle, a prominent Lincoln attorney. His maternal grandfather was John Fitzgerald, a prominent banker and railroad builder in Nebraska. His paternal grandfather was ...
25. John Denver
Soundtrack | Armageddon
His birth occurred on Friday, December 31st, 1943, as the son of an Air Force officer, Denver was constantly moved from state to state and country to country. It was in Tucson, Arizona, that his grandmother gave him his first acoustic guitar, a gift that would prove an icebreaker when meeting other...
26. Jack Purvis
Actor | Time Bandits
Jack Purvis was born on July 13, 1937 in London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Time Bandits (1981), Brazil (1985) and Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977). He was previously married to Marjie Purvis. He died on November 11, 1997 in Bushey, Hertfordshire, England, UK.
27. Princess Diana
Self | The Sun James Bond 'For Your Eyes Only' Television Commercial
Princess Diana was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, and the mother of Prince William and Prince Harry. Diana's activism and glamour made her an international icon and earned her an enduring popularity.
Diana was born into the British nobility ...
28. Linda Stirling
Actress | Manhunt of Mystery Island
American leading woman, a popular action star of serials in the 1940s. She studied music, dance, and drama as a child and received a scholarship to a Hollywood acting school. But she arrived in Hollywood to discover the school had closed, and she took a job as a showgirl at the Earl Carroll Theatre...
29. Marjorie Reynolds
Actress | The Time of Their Lives
Bright, vivacious Marjorie Reynolds (née Marjorie Goodspeed) was born in Idaho on August 12, 1917 to a doctor and homemaker, and raised in Los Angeles.
Making her film debut at age 6, she "retired" after only a few years in favor of a normal education. She returned in the mid-30s, as a teenager this...
30. Dodi Fayed
Producer | Chariots of Fire
Dodi Fayed was born on April 15, 1955 in Alexandria, Egypt. He was a producer, known for Chariots of Fire (1981), Hook (1991) and F/X (1986). He was previously married to Susanne Gregard. He died on August 31, 1997 in Paris, France.
31. Brian Glover
Actor | An American Werewolf in London
Brian Glover was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire and used to be a professional wrestler going by the name of "Leon Arras the Man From Paris". He also provides one of the voices for the animated "Tetley Tea" TV adverts. His stage work included seasons with the Royal Shakespeare Company and Royal ...
32. Fred Zinnemann
Director | A Man for All Seasons
Initially grew up wanting to be a violinist, but while at the University of Vienna decided to study law. While doing so, he became increasingly interested in American film and decided that was what he wanted to do. He became involved in European filmaking for a short time before going to America to...
33. Gail Davis
Actress | Six Gun Mesa
Hailed by Gene Autry as the 'perfect western actress', diminutive, pig-tailed Betty Jeanne Grayson had all the genre's prerequisite attributes. The daughter of a prominent Arkansas physician (who went on to became State Health Officer), she had been trained in drama and dance at the University of ...
34. Red Skelton
Writer | The Red Skelton Show
The son of a former circus clown turned grocer and a cleaning woman, Red Skelton was introduced to show business at the age of seven by Ed Wynn, at a vaudeville show in Vincennes. At age 10, he left home to travel with a medicine show through the Midwest, and joined the vaudeville circuit at age 15....
35. Arch Johnson
Actor | The Sting
Arch Johnson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1922. A stage actor as well as a prolific television character actor, he was in the original production of "West Side Story" on Broadway and the revival of that show in the 1980s on Broadway as well. He was the only actor from the original stage ...
36. Olga Georges-Picot
Actress | The Day of the Jackal
Olga Georges-Picot was born on January 6, 1940 in Shanghai, China. She was an actress, known for The Day of the Jackal (1973), Love and Death (1975) and I Love You, I Love You (1968). She was previously married to Jean Sobieski. She died on June 19, 1997 in Paris, France.
37. Wende Wagner
Actress | Rosemary's Baby
Beautiful, vibrant-looking 60s actress Wende Wagner (her real name) was born in Connecticut in 1941. Of French, German and Native American heritage, her exotic looks would later serve her well on TV and in motion pictures. She inherited her athletic genes from her parents; her father was a former ...
38. Cathleen Cordell
Actress | The Return of the Living Dead
Cathleen Cordell was born on May 21, 1915 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for The Return of the Living Dead (1985), Gaslight (1940) and Producers' Showcase (1954). She died on August 19, 1997 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
39. Brenda Denaut
Actress | Too Young, Too Immoral
Brenda Denaut was born on August 21, 1939 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She was an actress, known for Too Young, Too Immoral (1962), All of Me (1963) and Olga's House of Shame (1964). She was previously married to Steve DeNaut and Lewis Arquette. She died on August 6, 1997 in Los Angeles, California,...
40. Andrew Keir
Actor | Cleopatra
The character actor Andrew Keir (originally Andrew Buggy) was born in 1926 in the coal-mining town of Shotts in Lanarkshire, Scotland, of Irish Catholic extraction, and raised there with his five brothers John, Tom, Michael, Patrick, and Hugh, and a sister, Maggie. The son of a coal miner, Keir ...
41. Jeep Swenson
Actor | Batman & Robin
Jeep Swenson was born on January 5, 1957 in San Antonio, Texas, USA. He was an actor, known for Batman & Robin (1997), Bulletproof (1996) and Walker, Texas Ranger (1993). He was previously married to Erin Hillsman. He died on August 18, 1997 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
42. Walter Gotell
Actor | Moonraker
Walter Gotell was born on March 15, 1924 in Bonn, Germany. He was an actor, known for Moonraker (1979), A View to a Kill (1985) and The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). He was previously married to Celeste F. Mitchell and Yvonne Hills. He died on May 5, 1997 in London, England, UK.
43. Sally Blane
Actress | Forbidden Company
Although this lovely, light brown-haired leading lady would wind up better known as one of Loretta Young's two elder acting sisters, Sally Blane nevertheless enjoyed a lively albeit modest "B" film career during the late 1920s and 1930s. The resemblance to her "A"-level sister was very strong -- ...
44. Carey Loftin
Stunts | The Dead Zone
Arguably Hollywood's greatest stunt driver ever, Carey Loftin's amazing driving and stunt skills were utilized in dozens of Hollywood productions over a period of nearly half a century.
Loftin was born on January 31st, 1914 in Blountstown, Florida and broke into movie stunt work in the late 1930s. ...
45. George Fenneman
Actor | How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
Fenneman's most enduring role was as announcer and sidekick for Groucho Marx on over 200 episodes of the popular game show, You Bet Your Life, which ran throughout the 1950s until 1961. Fenneman was the foil and straight man for Groucho's comedy and wisecracking while at the same time managing the ...
46. Adriana Caselotti
Soundtrack | Documentary Now!
Adriana was born into an operatic family. Her father Guido, an immigrant from Italy, taught music in New York City. Her mother Maria, originally from Naples, sang at the Royal Opera. Her sister Louise was a noted opera singer & voice teacher. At 18, she was chosen by Walt Disney to voice Snow White...
47. Barry Evans
Actor | Mind Your Language
Barry Evans was born on June 18, 1943 in Guildford, Surrey, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Mind Your Language (1977), Journey to Murder (1971) and Journey to the Unknown (1968). He died on February 11, 1997 in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, England, UK.
48. John Ashley
Producer | The A-Team
Oklahoma-bred John Ashley got his start in the movie business while on a vacation in California. A friend from Oklahoma State University got him onto the set of the John Wayne movie The Conqueror (1956), and Wayne in turn steered him toward a job in television in the William Castle series Men of ...
49. Bill Zuckert
Actor | Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
Bill Zuckert was born on December 18, 1915 in The Bronx, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994) and Star Trek: The Original Series (1966). He was previously married to Gladys Holland and Margaret Lottie Wallace. He died...
50. The Notorious B.I.G.
Soundtrack | Bad Boys
Christopher Wallace, a.k.a. Biggie Smalls, was born on May 21, 1972 in Brooklyn, New York. He was the son of Jamaican parents, Voletta Wallace, a pre-school teacher, and Selwyn George Latore, a welder and small-time politician. He was raised in the poor Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant. ...