1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (dominical letter F), the 1974th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 974th year of the 2nd millennium, the 74th year of the 20th century, and the 5th year of the 1970s decade.
Events
January
- January 20 â" The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon makes its first flight at Edwards Air Force Base, California.
- January 26 â" Bülent Ecevit, of CHP forms the new government of Turkey (37th government, partner MSP).
February
- February 1
- February 8 â" After a record 84 days in orbit, the crew of Skylab 4 returns to Earth.
- February 17 â" A soccer stampede occurs in Cairo, killing 49.
March
- March 3 â" Turkish Airlines Flight 981 travelling from Paris to London crashes in a wood near Paris, killing all 346 aboard.
- March 4
- Following a hung parliament in the United Kingdom general election, Conservative prime minister Edward Heath resigns and is succeeded by Labour's Harold Wilson, who previously led the country from 1964 to 1970.
- People magazine's first issue released in the U.S. Mia Farrow is on the cover.
- March 8 â" Charles de Gaulle Airport opens in Paris, France.
- March 10 â" Japanese holdout: A Japanese World War II soldier, Second Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda, surrenders in the Philippines.
- March 18 â" End of 1973 oil crisis: Most OPEC nations end a 5-month oil embargo against the United States, Europe and Japan.
- March 29 â" The Terracotta Army of Qin Shi Huang is discovered at Xi'an, China.
April
April â" The world population reaches 4 billion people estimated by the United States Census Bureau.
- April 2 â" French president Georges Pompidou, dies of cancer at 63. Alain Poher succeeds him immediately; Valéry Giscard d'Estaing wins the presidential contest in May 1974.
- April 3â"4 â" An enormous tornado outbreak strikes the central parts of the United States, killing around 319 people. Known as the "Super Outbreak", the event is the largest and deadliest of its kind until the April 25â"28, 2011 tornado outbreak.
- April 4 â" Hank Aaron ties Babe Ruth for the all-time home run record with his 714th at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.
- April 5 â" Stephen King publishes Carrie, his first novel.
- April 6
- Swedish pop group ABBA win the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with Waterloo.
- California Jam is held at the Ontario Motor Speedway in Ontario, California, attracting 250,000 fans.
- April 8 â" Hank Aaron became the all-time MLB home run leader with his 715th at Atlanta in front of a national television audience.
- April 11 â" The Kiryat Shmona massacre takes place in Israel.
- April 15 â" As "Tania", Patty Hearst is photographed wielding an M1 carbine while robbing the Sunset District branch of the Hibernia Bank in San Francisco.
- April 25 â" Carnation Revolution: A left-wing military coup in Portugal restores democracy, ending 48 years of Estado Novo and Ditadura Nacional dictatorship in the country. Portuguese Prime Minister Marcelo Caetano flees to Brazil and is granted political asylum by Brazilian military president Ernesto Geisel.
May
- May 4
- An all-female Japanese team summits Manaslu in Nepal, becoming the first women to climb an 8,000 metre peak.
- The Expo '74 world's fair opens in Spokane, Washington.
- May 17 â" Dublin and Monaghan bombings: The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), explode four car bombs in Dublin and Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland. The attacks kill 33 civilians and wound almost 300, the highest number of casualties in any single day during "The Troubles".
- May 18
- Nuclear test: Under Project Smiling Buddha, India successfully detonates its first nuclear weapon, becoming the 6th nation to do so.
- The Warsaw radio mast is completed, the second tallest structure ever built (it collapses on August 8, 1991).
- May 19 â" The Philadelphia Flyers defeat the Boston Bruins to become the first team from the 1967 NHL expansion class to win the Stanley Cup in the North American National Hockey League.
- May 30 â" NASA's ATS-6 satellite is launched.
June
- June 13 â" The 1974 FIFA World Cup begins in West Germany.
- June 26 â" The Universal Product Code is scanned for the first time, to sell a package of Wrigley's chewing gum at the Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio.
- June 29
- Isabel Perón is sworn in as the first female President of Argentina, replacing her sick husband Juan Perón, who dies 2 days later.
- America Sings attraction opens to the public for the first time at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.
July
- July 7 â" West Germany beats the Netherlands 2â"1 to win the 1974 FIFA World Cup. The West German football team are awarded the new FIFA World Cup Trophy.
- July 8 â" Two weeks after the attraction's opening, an 18 year old employee is crushed to her death while working on America Sings at Disneyland. This is the first casualty to occur to an employee at a Disney Park.
- July 15 â" News anchor Christine Chubbuck commits suicide during a live broadcast on WXLT-TV in Sarasota, Florida.
- July 19 - Railcar explosion in Decatur, Illinois. A tanker car collides with a Norfolk & Western boxcar. Seven people are killed, 349 are injured and $18 million in property damage.
- July 20 â" The Turkish invasion of Cyprus occurs.
- July 23 â" The Greek military junta is replaced by a civilian government in Greece concluding the seven-year military rule.
August
- August 4 â" A bomb explodes in a train between Italy and West Germany, killing 12 and wounding 48. Italian neo-fascists take responsibility.
- August 8 â" Watergate scandal: U.S. President Richard Nixon announces his resignation (effective August 9).
- August 9 â" Vice President Gerald Ford succeeds Richard Nixon as the 38th President of the United States of America.
- August 14 â" Turkey invades Cyprus for the second time, occupying 37% of the island's territory.
- August 30 â" An express train bound for Germany from Belgrade derails in Zagreb, Yugoslavia (now Croatia), killing more than 150 passengers.
September
- September 8 â" TWA Flight 841 crashes into the Ionian Sea 18 minutes after take off from Athens, after a bomb explodes in the cargo hold, and kills 88 people.
- September 10 â" The Portuguese military junta grants independence to Guinea-Bissau.
- September 12 â" Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia is deposed by the Derg, bringing an end to the Solomonic dynasty's rule since 1270. The Ethiopian Civil War begins.
- September 13 â" Japanese Red Army members seize the French Embassy in The Hague, Netherlands.
- September 20 â" The Kootenai War is declared, and 10-cent tolls are charged on U.S. Highway 95.
- September 23 â" Ceefax (one of the first public service information systems) is started by the BBC.
October
- October 11 â" The UK Labour government of Harold Wilson wins the second general election of the year, forming a three-seat majority. Wilson, who has led the party for a total of 11 years, has now won four of the five general elections he has contested.
- October 30 â" The Rumble in the Jungle takes place in Kinshasa, Zaire, where Muhammad Ali knocks out George Foreman in 8 rounds to regain the Heavyweight title, which had been stripped from him 7 years earlier.
November
- November 1
- The World Tourism Organization (WTO or WToO) is established.
- The German electronic band Kraftwerk releases their studio album Autobahn.
- November 13 â" Ronald DeFeo, Jr., murders his entire family in their home in Amityville on Long Island, an event that inspires the story of The Amityville Horror.
- November 16 â" Arecibo message: The radio telescope at the Arecibo Observatory on Puerto Rico sends an interstellar radio message towards Messier 13, the Great Globular Cluster in Hercules. The message will reach its destination around the year 27,000.
- November 21 â" Birmingham pub bombings: In Birmingham, England, two pubs are bombed, killing 21 people in an attack widely believed at the time to be linked to the Provisional Irish Republican Army. The Birmingham Six are later sentenced to life in prison for this, but their convictions are quashed after a lengthy campaign.
- November 18 â" The International Energy Agency is founded.
- November 22 â" The United Nations General Assembly grants the Palestine Liberation Organization observer status.
- November 24 â" A skeleton from the hominid species Australopithecus afarensis is discovered and named Lucy.
- November 26 â" Anneline Kriel is crowned as Miss World 1974, the second South African to hold the title after Penny Coelen in 1958, when Helen Morgan resigns four days after winning the 24th Miss World pageant.
- November 28 â" In a rare public performance, former Beatle John Lennon joins Elton John on stage at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
December
- December 1 â" A Boeing 727 carrying TWA Flight 514 crashes 25 miles (40Â km) northwest of Dulles International Airport during bad weather, killing all 92 people on board.
- December 9 â" The Paris summit, reuniting the European Communities' heads of state and government, commences.
- December 13 â" Malta becomes a republic.
- December 17 â" The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) becomes a specialized agency of the United Nations.
- December 24â"25 â" Darwin, Australia is almost completely destroyed by Cyclone Tracy.
- December 30 â" Japanese holdout: The last Japanese World War II soldier, Taiwan-born Private Teruo Nakamura, surrenders on the Indonesian island of Morota, 34 years after beginning service in the Imperial Japanese Army.
Date unknown
- Rubik's Cube puzzle is invented by Hungarian architecture professor ErnÅ' Rubik.
- Dungeons & Dragons fantasy tabletop role-playing game, designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, is first released, in the United States.
- PepsiCo becomes the first American company to sell products in the Soviet Union.
Births
January
- January 1 â" Reem Maged, Egyptian jouranalist
- January 3 â" Alessandro Petacchi, Italian professional road cyclist
- January 10 â" Hrithik Roshan, Bollywood actor
- January 12
- Melanie Chisholm, English singer-songwriter (Spice Girls)
- Tor Arne Hetland, Norwegian cross-country skier
- January 16 â" Kate Moss, English model
- January 17 â" Danny Bhoy, Scottish stand-up comedian
- January 18 â" Maulik Pancholy, American actor
- January 18 â" Gustavo Kupinski, Argentine guitarist (d. 2011)
- January 19 â" Ãva Novodomszky, Hungarian journalist and presenter
- January 20 â" Rae Carruth, former NFL wide receiver
- January 22 â" Joseph Muscat, 13th Prime Minister of Malta
- January 23 â" Tiffani Thiessen, American actress
- January 24 â" Ed Helms, American actor and stand-up comedian
- January 27 â" Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Norwegian biathlete
- January 28 â" Kari Traa, Norwegian freestyle skier
- January 29 â" Michael Andersen, Danish basketball player
- January 30
- Christian Bale, English actor
- Olivia Colman, English actress
February
- February 4 â" Urmila Matondkar, Indian actress
- February 7
- Cheryl Cosim, Filipina journalist, news anchor, TV host
- J Dilla, also known as Jay-Dee, African-American hip-hop producer (d. 2006)
- Steve Nash, Canadian basketball player
- Jun Seba, also known as Nujabes, Japanese hip-hop producer (d. 2010)
- February 8
- Seth Green, American actor
- Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, French musician and record producer (Daft Punk)
- February 10
- Elizabeth Banks, American actress
- Ivri Lider, Israeli singer
- February 13 â" Robbie Williams, English rock singer
- February 14 â" Philippe Léonard, Belgian footballer
- February 15
- Miranda July, American author, director, actor, musician and spoken-word artist
- Mr Lordi, Finnish rock singer (Lordi)
- Alexander Wurz, Austrian racing driver
- February 17 â" Jerry O'Connell, American actor
- February 22 â" James Blunt, English singer
- February 24
- Chad Hugo, American rock musician and producer
- Bonnie Somerville, American actress
- February 26 â" Sébastien Loeb, French rally driver
- February 27 â" Hiroyasu Shimizu, Japanese speed skater
March
- March 1 â" Mark-Paul Gosselaar, American actor
- March 3 â" David Faustino, American actor
- March 4
- Karol KuÄera, Slovakian tennis player
- Ariel Ortega, Argentine football player
- March 5
- Jens Jeremies, German footballer
- Matt Lucas, British comedian
- Eva Mendes, American actress
- Hiten Tejwani, Indian model and actor
- March 6 â" Anthony Carelli, Canadian professional wrestler
- March 7
- Jenna Fischer, American actress
- Antonio de la Rúa, Argentine lawyer
- March 12 â" Hekiru Shiina, Japanese voice actress and J-pop singer
- March 14 â" Grace Park, American born Canadian actress
- March 15 â" Percy Montgomery, South African rugby union player
- March 20 â" Carsten Ramelow, German footballer
- March 22
- Marcus Camby, American basketball player
- Kidada Jones, American actress
- Bassem Youssef, Egyptian journalist
- March 24 â" Alyson Hannigan, American actress
- March 25 â" Lark Voorhies, American actress and singer
- March 28
- Daisuke Kishio, Japanese voice actor
- Scott Mills, British radio DJ, television presenter and occasional actor
- March 29 â" Miguel Gómez, Colombian photographer
- March 30 â" Miho Komatsu, Japanese pop singer and songwriter
April
- April 1 â" Marcos Balter, Brazilian composer
- April 2 â" HÃ¥kan Hellström, Swedish musician
- April 9 â" Jenna Jameson, American pornographic actress
- April 8 â" Chris Kyle, most lethal sniper in American military history (d. 2013)
- April 11
- Tricia Helfer, Canadian actress and model
- Alexander Kuoppala, Finnish guitarist (ex-Children of Bodom)
- April 12 â" Marley Shelton, American actress
- April 13 â" Marta Jandová, Czech musician and actress
- April 15
- Danny Pino, Cuban American actor
- Tim Thomas, American ice hockey goaltender
- April 16 â" Xu Jinglei, Chinese actress and director
- April 17
- Mikael à kerfeldt, Swedish musician (Opeth)
- Victoria Beckham, English singer (Spice Girls)
- April 18 â" Edgar Wright, English film director
- April 20 â" Tina Cousins, English singer
- April 21 â" Faust, Norwegian drummer
- April 22 â" Shavo Odadjian, Armenian-born rock bassist (System of a Down)
- April 23 â" Barry Watson, American actor
- April 28 â" Penélope Cruz, Spanish actress
- April 29 â" Anggun, Indonesian-French singer-songwriter
May
- May 7 â" Breckin Meyer, American actor
- May 16
- Laura Pausini, Italian singer
- Adam Richman, American actor and television personality
- May 17 â" Andrea Corr, Irish singer
- May 23 â" Jewel, American singer
- May 26 â" Lars Frölander, Swedish swimmer
- May 28 â" Mikael Stanne, Swedish singer
- May 30 â" Big L, American rapper (d. 1999)
- May 28 â" Kenan DoÄulu, Turkish pop musician
June
- June 1 â" Alanis Morissette, Canadian singer
- June 2 â" Gata Kamsky, American chess player
- June 7
- Mahesh Bhupathi, Indian tennis player
- Bear Grylls, British survivalist
- June 9 â" Samoth, Norwegian musician
- June 13
- Katharina Bellowitsch, Austrian radio and TV presenter.
- Selma, Icelandic singer, Eurovision Song Contest 1999 runner-up
- Steve-O, American actor
- Takahiro Sakurai, Japanese voice actor
- June 22 â" Donald Faison, American actor
- June 23 â" Joel Edgerton, Australian actor
- June 25 â" Karisma Kapoor, Indian actress
- June 26
- Jason Craig, American artist
- Derek Jeter, American baseball player
- Nicole Saba, Lebanese singer and actress
- June 27 â" Christopher O'Neill, British-American businessman; husband of Princess Madeleine of Sweden
- June 28 â" Rob Dyrdek, American skateboarder
July
- July 1 â" Jefferson Pérez, Ecuadorean race walker
- July 2 â" Rocky Gray, American musician
- July 8 â" Dragoslav JevriÄ, Montenegrin footballer
- July 12
- Sharon den Adel, Dutch singer
- Gregory Helms, American professional wrestler
- July 14 â" David Mitchell, British comedian and actor
- July 16 â" Jeremy Enigk, American singer/songwriter
- July 21 â" Terry Coldwell, English singer (East 17)
- July 22 â" Franka Potente, German actress
- July 23
- Kathryn Hahn, American actress
- Maurice Greene, American athlete
- Stephanie March, American actress
- Rik Verbrugghe, Belgian professional road racing cyclist
- July 25 â" Lauren Faust, American cartoonist
- July 26 â" Daniel Negreanu, Canadian poker player
- July 29 â" Josh Radnor, American actor
- July 30 â" Hilary Swank, American actress
- July 31 â" Emilia Fox, English actress
August
- August 5 â" Kajol, a Bollywood actress
- August 8 â" Brian Harvey, English singer (East 17)
- August 9 â" Derek Fisher, American basketball player
- August 12 â" Karl Stefanovic, Australian TV host
- August 13 â" Niklas Sundin, Swedish musician
- August 14 â" Christopher Gorham, American actor
- August 15 â" Natasha Henstridge, Canadian actress and model
- August 16
- Didier Cuche, Swiss alpine skier
- Krisztina Egerszegi, Hungarian Olympic champion swimmer
- August 20
- Amy Adams, American actress
- Misha Collins, American actor
- Maxim Vengerov, Russian violinist
- August 22
- Jenna Leigh Green, American actress and singer
- Lee Sheppard, Australian cartoonist
- August 23 â" Ray Park, Scottish actor, martial artist
- Ovi, Romanian-Norwegian singer-songwriter, producer and musician
- Ray Park, Scottish actor, martial artist
- August 24 â" Jennifer Lien, American actress
- August 28 â" Carsten Jancker, German soccer player
September
- September 4 â" Carmit Bachar, American singer
- September 6
- Tim Henman, English tennis player
- Nina Persson, Swedish singer
- September 7 â" Glenn Ljungström, Swedish guitarist
- September 10
- Mirko FilipoviÄ, Croatian kickboxer; mixed martial arts fighter
- Kerry Harvick, American singer
- Ryan Phillippe, American actor
- Ben Wallace, American basketball player
- September 12 â" Jennifer Nettles, American country music artist (Sugarland)
- September 14 â" Hicham El Guerrouj, Moroccan athlete
- September 17 â" Rasheed Wallace, American basketball player
- September 18
- Sol Campbell, English footballer
- Xzibit, American rapper
- September 19
- Jimmy Fallon, American actor, comedian, television host and presenter
- Victoria Silvstedt, Swedish model
- September 23 â" Matt Hardy, American professional wrestler
- September 24
- Niels Brinck, Danish singer and songwriter
- Kati Wolf, Hungarian singer and former airline purser
- September 26 â" Gary Hall, Jr., American swimmer
- September 30 â" Yul Bürkle, Venezuelan actor and model
October
- October 1 â" Keith Duffy, Irish singer (Boyzone)
- October 3 â" Marianne Timmer, Dutch speed skater
- October 7 â" Charlotte Perrelli, Swedish singer and occasional television host, Eurovision Song Contest 1999 winner
- October 8 â" Koji Murofushi, Japanese hammer thrower
- October 10
- Dale Earnhardt, Jr., American race car driver
- Chris Pronger, Canadian hockey player
- October 11 â" Jason Arnott, Canadian hockey player
- October 15 â" Shumon Basar, British writer and editor
- October 16
- Aurela Gaçe, Award-winning Albanian singer
- Paul Kariya, Canadian hockey player
- October 18
- Jeremy Scahill, writer and documentary film maker
- Zhou Xun, Chinese actress and singer
- October 20 â" Bashar Rahal, American actor
- October 21 â" Lera Auerbach, Russian composer & pianist
- October 23
- Aravind Adiga, Indian-Australian author
- Sander Westerveld, Dutch soccer player
- October 28
- Nelly Ciobanu, Moldovan singer
- Joaquin Phoenix, American actor
- October 29
- Akashdeep Saigal, Indian television actor and model
- Yenny Wahid, a political activist and Islamic Indonesia
- October 31 â" Natasja Saad, Afro Danish rapper & reggae singer (d. 2007)
November
- November 2 â" Nelly, American rapper
- November 4
- Cedric Bixler-Zavala, Mexican-American singer/lyricist
- Louise Nurding, English singer
- November 5
- Ryan Adams, American singer and songwriter
- Jerry Stackhouse, American basketball player
- November 8
- Penelope Heyns, South African swimmer
- Masashi Kishimoto, Japanese manga author
- Matthew Rhys, Welsh actor
- November 9
- Alessandro Del Piero, Italian football player
- Manav Gohil, Indian television actor
- November 11 â" Leonardo DiCaprio, American actor
- November 15 â" Chad Kroeger, Canadian singer
- November 16 â" Paul Scholes, English football player
- November 18 â" Petter Solberg, Norwegian rally driver
- November 24 â" Stephen Merchant, English writer, director, comedian and actor
- November 27 â" Zsófia Polgár, Hungarian-born chess player
- November 29 â" Ferenc Merkli, Hungarian Slovene priest, writer, translator
- November 30 â" Wallace Chung, Hong Kong actor and singer
December
- December 1 â" Costinha, Portuguese footballer
- December 4 â" Tadahito Iguchi, Japanese baseball player
- December 7 â" Nicole Appleton, Canadian singer (All Saints)
- December 10 â" Meg White, American rock drummer
- December 11
- Rey Mysterio, American wrestler
- Gete Wami, Ethiopian long-distance runner
- December 12 â" Michelle Saram, Chindian Singaporean singer and actress
- December 13 â" Nicholas McCarthy, English guitarist
- December 17 â" Giovanni Ribisi, American actor (Gone in 60 Seconds)
- December 18 â" Kari Byron, American artist and television personality
- December 19 â" Eduard Ivakdalam, Indonesian footballer.
- December 24
- Marcelo Salas, Chilean footballer
- Ryan Seacrest, American television personality
- December 27 â" Fumiko Orikasa, Japanese voice actress and singer
- December 29 â" Mekhi Phifer, American actor
Date unknown
- James Singer, American writer
- Kathrine lee
Deaths
January
- January 15 â" Harold D. Cooley, U.S. House of Representatives (b. 1897)
- January 22 â" Oskar Herman, Croatian Jewish painter (b. 1886)
- January 27 â" Georgios Grivas, Greek-Cypriot colonel (b. 1898)
- January 31
- Samuel Goldwyn, Polish-born American film studio executive (b. 1879)
- Einar Texas Ljungberg, Swedish Socialist politician. (b. 1880)
- Glenn Morris, American Olympic decathlete and actor (b. 1912)
February
- February 2 â" Imre Lakatos, Hungarian philosopher (b. 1922)
- February 4 â" Satyendra Nath Bose, Indian mathematician and physicist (b. 1894)
- February 7 â" Edward Beck (British Army officer), British Army (b. 1880)
- February 15
- Kurt Atterberg, Swedish composer (b. 1887)
- George W. Snedecor, American mathematician and statistician (b. 1881)
- February 16 â" Horace Kallen, American philosopher.(b. 1882)
- February 22 â" Samuel Byck, American airplane hijacker and murderer (b. 1930)
- February 23
- William F. Knowland, American politician and newspaper owner (b. 1908)
- George Van Biesbroeck, Belgian-American astronomer. (b. 1880)
- February 28 â" Carole Lesley, British actress (b. 1935)
March
- March 4 â" Adolph Gottlieb, American abstract expressionist painter (b. 1903)
- March 7
- Moriji Mochida, last person ever awarded the 10th dan rank in kendo. (b. 1885)
- Hans Sachs, Holocaust survivor and poster collector (b. 1881)
- March 8 â" Martha Wentworth, American actress (b. 1889)
- March 9 â" Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr., American physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1915)
- March 17 â" Louis Kahn, Estonian architect (b. 1901)
- March 20 â" Chet Huntley, American television reportor (b. 1911)
- March 21 â" Candy Darling, American actress (b. 1944)
- March 22 â" Peter Revson, American race car driver (b. 1939)
- March 29 â" Joe Stecher, professional wrestler (b. 1893)
April
- April 2 â" Georges Pompidou, President of France (b. 1911)
- April 5 â" A. Y. Jackson, Canadian painter and a founding member of the Group of Seven (b. 1882)
- April 11 â" Edward Alexander Bott, psychologist at the University of Toronto. (b. 1887)
- April 14 â" Howard Pease, American adventure novelist (b. 1894)
- April 18
- Betty Compson, American actress (b. 1897)
- Marcel Pagnol, French novelist (b. 1895)
- April 19 â" Ayub Khan (President of Pakistan) (b. 1907)
- April 24
- Bud Abbott, American comedian (b. 1895)
- Franz Jonas, Austrian president (b. 1899)
- April 30 â" Agnes Moorehead, American actress (b. 1900)
May
- May 2 â" James O. Richardson, American admiral (b. 1878)
- May 4 â" Ludwig Karl Koch, German-born broadcaster and sound recordist in the United Kingdom (b. 1881)
- May 14 â" Jacob L. Moreno, Austrian-American leading psychiatrist and psychosociologist (b. 1889)
- May 18 â" Harry Ricardo, broadcaster and sound recordist. (b. 1881)
- May 24 â" Duke Ellington, American jazz pianist and bandleader (b. 1899)
- May 25
- Donald Crisp, English-American actor (b. 1882)
- Arturo Jauretche, Argentine writer, politician, and philosopher (b. 1901)
June
- June 9 â" Miguel Ãngel Asturias, Guatemalan writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1890)
- June 10 â" Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, Governor-General of Australia (b. 1900)
- June 11 â" Julius Evola, Italian philosopher (b. 1898)
- June 17 â" Austin Gunsel, 3rd commissioner of the National Football League (b. 1909)
- June 18 â" Georgy Zhukov, Soviet general (World War II) (b. 1896)
- June 22 â" Darius Milhaud, French composer (b. 1892)
- June 28
- Vannevar Bush, American engineer, inventor and science administrator (b. 1890)
- Frank Sutton, American actor (b. 1923)
July
- July 1 â" Juan Domingo Perón, President of Argentina (b. 1895)
- July 4 â" Georgette Heyer, British writer (b. 1902)
- July 9 â" Earl Warren, Governor of California and Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court (b. 1891)
- July 11 â" Pär Lagerkvist, Swedish writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1891)
- July 13 â" Patrick Blackett, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1897)
- July 14 â" Dame Sibyl Hathaway, Seigneur of Sark (b. 1884)
- July 15
- William Albrecht, Chairman of the Department of Soils at the University of Missouri (b. 1888)
- Christine Chubbuck, American TV personality (b. 1944)
- Victor Negus, British surgeon (b. 1887)
- July 17 â" Dizzy Dean, American baseball player (St. Louis Cardinals) and a member of the MLB Hall of Fame (b. 1910)
- July 19 â" Joe Flynn, American actor (b. 1924)
- July 24 â" Sir James Chadwick, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1891)
- July 29
- "Mama Cass" Elliot, American vocalist (b. 1941)
- Erich Kästner, German author (b. 1899)
August
- August 8 â" Baldur von Schirach, Nazi German Hitler Youth leader (b. 1907)
- August 17 â" Aldo Palazzeschi, Italian novelist, poet, journalist and essayist. (b. 1885)
- August 18 â" J. C. Winslow, English Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (b. 1882)
- August 20 â" Magda Sonja, Austrian actress. (b. 1886)
- August 23 â" Roberto Assagioli, Italian psychiatrist and pioneer (b. 1888)
- August 26 â" Charles Lindbergh, American aviator (Spirit of St. Louis) (b. 1902)
- August 27 â" Otto Strasser, Nazi German politician (b. 1897)
September
- September 1 â" Mary Broadfoot Walker, British physician (b. 1888)
- September 3 â" Harry Partch, American composer (b. 1901)
- September 4
- Creighton Williams Abrams, American general (b. 1914)
- Marcel Achard, French playwright and scriptwriter (b. 1899)
- September 16 â" Phog Allen, American basketball and baseball player (b. 1885)
- September 20 â" Fray José de Guadalupe Mojica, Mexican Franciscan friar; former tenor and film actor (b. 1896)
- September 21 â" Walter Brennan, American actor (b. 1894)
October
- October 1 â" Stephen Latchford, American diplomat and aviation expert (b. 1883)
- October 4
- Robert Lee Moore, American mathematician (b. 1882)
- Anne Sexton, American poet and writer (b. 1928)
- October 7 â" Henry J. Cadbury, American biblical scholar and Quaker (b. 1883)
- October 8 â" Harry Carney, American jazz musician (b. 1910)
- October 9 â" Oskar Schindler, Sudetgerman businessman (b. 1908)
- October 13
- Sam Rice, American baseball player (Washington Senators) and a member of the MLB Hall of Fame (b. 1890)
- Ed Sullivan, American television host (b. 1901)
- October 23 â" Melchior Lengyel, Hungarian writer, dramatist, and film screenwriter. (b. 1880)
- October 24 â" David Oistrakh, Ukrainian violinist (b. 1908)
- October 25 â" Fahrettin Altay, Ottoman military officer (b. 1880)
- October 30 â" Begum Akhtar, Indian singer (b. 1914)
November
- November 7 â" Eric Linklater, British author (b. 1899)
- November 9 â" Egon Wellesz, British composer, teacher and musicologist, (b. 1885)
- November 13 â" Vittorio De Sica, Italian actor and film director (b. 1901)
- November 17 â" Erskine Hamilton Childers, 4th President of Ireland (b. 1905)
- November 21 â" Frank Martin, Swiss composer (b. 1890)
- November 23
- Manuel dos Reis Machado, Brazilian martial arts Master (b. 1899)
- Cornelius Ryan, Irish-American writer (b. 1920)
- Massacre of the Sixty in Ethiopia of government and military officials.
- Abiye Abebe, politician and army officer (b. 1918)
- Aklilu Habte-Wold, politician and Prime Minister of Ethiopia (b. 1912)
- Aman Andom, army officer and Chairman of the Derg (b. 1924)
- Asrate Medhin Kassa, aristocrat and army officer (b. 1922)
- Endelkachew Makonnen, politician and Prime Minister of Ethiopia (b. 1927)
- November 25
- Nick Drake, British musician (b. 1948)
- U Thant, Burmese diplomat and Secretary-General of the United Nations (b. 1909)
- November 28 â" Konstantin Melnikov, Soviet architect (b. 1890)
- November 29
- James J. Braddock, American boxer (b. 1905)
- Peng Dehuai, Chinese leader (b. 1898)
December
- December 2 â" Max Weber, Swiss Federal Councilor (b. 1897)
- December 4 â" Lee Kinsolving, American actor (b. 1938)
- December 5 â" Pietro Germi, Italian film director (b. 1914)
- December 6
- Frederik Jacobus Johannes Buytendijk, Dutch anthropologist, biologist and psychologist. (b. 1887)
- Nikolay Gerasimovich Kuznetsov, Soviet admiral (b. 1904)
- Luigi Salvatorelli, Italian historian and publicist (b. 1886)
- December 14 â" Walter Lippmann, American writer and journalist (b. 1889)
- December 15 â" Anatole Litvak, Ukrainian-born film director (b. 1902)
- December 17 â" Bing Slamet, Indonesian singer, songwriter, comedian and actor (b. 1927)
- December 18 â" Harry Hooper, American baseball player (Boston Red Sox) and a member of the MLB Hall of Fame (b. 1887)
- December 20 â" André Jolivet, French composer (b. 1905)
- December 21 â" Richard Long, American actor (b. 1927)
- December 24 â" SentarÅ Åmori, Japanese admiral (b. 1892)
- December 26 â" Jack Benny, American comedian (b. 1894)
- December 27
- Vladimir Fock, Soviet physicist (b. 1898)
- Ned Maddrell, last surviving native speaker of the Manx language (b. 1877)
- December 28 â" Zachary Cope, English physician and surgeon (b. 1881)
Nobel Prizes
- Physics â" Sir Martin Ryle, Antony Hewish
- Chemistry â" Paul J. Flory
- Medicine â" Albert Claude, Christian de Duve, George E. Palade
- Literature â" Eyvind Johnson, Harry Martinson
- Peace â" Seán MacBride, Eisaku SatÅ
- Economics â" Gunnar Myrdal, Friedrich Hayek