The list of interesting people who died in 2016 seemed to be never ending. It is no doubt one of the top news stories of the year. Here is just a partial list. Some are celebrities, others are politicians and people who you may know for one reason or another. Some aren’t even people but are interesting none the less. Most have a quick explanation next to their name, others you should already know.
Rest in Peace:
01/02/2016 Dr Frances Cress Welsing (Author, Isis Papers)
01/02/2016 Brad Fuller (Creator of Tetris game)
01/05/2016 Nicholas Caldwell (The Whispers)
01/10/2016 David Bowie
01/14/2016 Alan Rickman (Actor, Hans Gruber in “Die Hard”)
01/18/2016 Glenn Frey (Founder The Eagles)
01/26/2016 Abe Vigoda (Actor, Tessio in “The Godfather”)
02/03/2016 Keith Carter AKA Big Kap (Hip Hop DJ)
02/04/2016 Maurice White (Founder Earth,Wind and Fire)
02/13/2016 Antonin Scalia (U.S. Supreme Court Justice)
02/15/2016 Denise Mathews AKA Vanity (Singer, Actress and Evangelist )
02/18/2016 Angela Raiola AKA Big Ang (“Mob Wives”)
02/20/2016 Peter Mondavi (Winemaker put Napa Valley on wine industry map)
02/25/2016 Tony Burton (Boxer and Actor in “Rocky” movies)
02/29/2016 Gil Hill (Detroit Politician and Actor in “Beverly Hills Cop” movies)
03/03/2016 Tony Dyson (Builder R2-D2 robot for “Star Wars”)
03/04/2016 Trentavious White AKA Bankroll Fresh (Rapper)
03/06/2016 Nancy Reagan (First Lady 1981-1989)
03/15/2016 Daryl Coley (Gospel Singer)
03/16/2016 Frank Sinatra, Jr. (Singer, son of Frank Sinatra)
03/17/2016 Ralph David Abernathy, III (Politician, son of Rev Ralph David Abernathy, Sr)
03/18/2016 Tray Walker (NFL Player Baltimore Ravens)
03/22/2016 Robert “Rob” Ford (Mayor, Toronto Canada)
03/22/2016 Malik Taylor AKA Phife Dawg (A Tribe Called Quest)
03/22/2016 David Smyrl (Actor, Mr Handford on “Sesame Street”)
03/23/2016 Joe Garagiola, Sr (Baseball Catcher)
03/23/2016 Ken Howard (Actor, “The White Shadow”)
03/24/2016 Gary Shandling (Comedian and Actor)
03/29/2016 Patty Duke (Actress, “Patty Duke Show”)
04/02/2016 Gato Barbieri (Jazz Musician)
04/05/2016 Leon Haywood (Singer, Songwriter)
04/06/2016 Merle Haggard (Country Singer)
04/08/2016 Scooter (Oldest Living Cat 30)
04/09/2016 Will Smith (NFL Player New Orleans Saints)
04/11/2016 Doug Banks (Syndicated Radio Host)
04/12/2016 David Gest (Producer, husband of Liza Minelli)
04/17/2016 Doris Roberts (Actress, Mother on “Everybody Loves Raymond”)
04/20/2016 Joanie Laurer AKA Chyna (Wrestler WWF)
04/21/2016 Prince Rogers Nelson
04/24/2016 Paul Williams AKA Billy Paul (Singer, Me and Mrs Jones)
05/02/2016 Afeni Shakur (Activist, Mother of Tupac Shakur)
05/12/2016 Susannah Mushatt Jones (Oldest Living Person 116)
05/19/2016 Morley Safer (Journalist, CBS News (“60 Minutes”)
05/21/2016 Homeboykris (Race Horse died after 1st Race during the Preakness)
05/21/2016 Pramedya (Race Horse died after 4th Race during the Preakness)
05/28/2016 Bryce Dejean-Jones (NBA Player New Orleans Pelicans)
06/03/2016 Muhammad Ali
06/10/2016 Christina Grimmie (Contestant on “The Voice”)
06/12/2016 Michu Meszaros (Actor played “Alf”)
06/24/2016 Bernie Worrell (Founder Parliament-Funkadelic)
06/28/2016 James “Buddy” Ryan (NFL and AFL Coach)
06/28/2016 Pat Summitt (Women’s Basketball Coach University of Tennessee)
07/09/2016 Vaughn Harper (Radio Host WBLS)
07/16/2016 Nate Thurmond (NBA Hall Of Famer)
07/19/2016 Garry Marshall (Director, Producer, Writer)
07/21/2016 Dennis Green (NFL Coach)
07/25/2016 Allan Barnes (Jazz Trumpeter The Blackbyrds)
07/25/2016 Tim LaHaye (Author “Left Behind” series)
07/26/2016 Youree Dell Harris AKA Miss Cleo (Psychic)
08/04/2016 Ricci Dean (Singer, son of Dean Martin)
08/06/2016 Alfredo Bowman AKA Dr Sebi (healer, herbalist)
08/10/2016 John Saunders (ESPN Sportscaster)
08/13/2016 Kenny Baker (Actor played R2-D2 in “Star Wars”)
08/15/2016 Bobby Hutcherson (Jazz Musician)
08/20/2016 George Curry (Journalist, Dean of Black Press)
08/23/2016 Steven Hill (Actor, Law and Order)
08/27/2016 Cookie (World’s Oldest Living Cockatoo 83)
08/28/2016 Harry Fugiwara AKA Mr Fuji (Professional Wrestler WWF)
08/28/2016 Gene Wilder
09/06/2016 Darren Seals (Activist in St. Louis, MS)
09/08/2016 Benjamin (Brenda) Knox AKA Lady Chablis (Actress, in “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil”)
09/11/2016 Robert (Alexis) Arquette (Actor, sibling of Patricia Arquette)
09/13/2016 Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor (Writer, Actor, Griot, NPR, official Gee Chee)
09/16/2016 Trisco Pearson (Singer, Force MD’s)
09/21/2016 Carlos Rico Walker AKA Shawty Lo (Hip Hop Artist D4 Records)
09/21/2016 George Odom (Actor, “Law and Order”)
09/24/2016 Bill Nunn (Actor, Radio Raheem in “Do The Right Thing”)
09/25/2016 Kashif (Saleem) (Musician, Producer B.T. Express)
09/25/2016 Jose Fernandez (MLB Pitcher Miami Marlins)
09/25/2016 Arnold Palmer (Golf Great)
09/28/2016 Gloria Naylor (Author, The Women of Brewster Place)
09/28/2016 Shimon Peres (President of Israel)
09/30/2016 Rod Temperton (Writer, Producer for Heatwave)
10/05/2016 Josh Samman (Mixed Martial Arts Fighter UFC)
10/09/2016 Aaron Pryor (Boxer)
10/12/2016 Tommy Ford (Actor, Philanthropist Tommy on “Martin”)
10/20/2016 Stanley Silverstein (Designer of the Ballerina Flat)
11/07/2016 Leonard Cohen (Singer, Song Writer Hallelujah)
11/07/2016 Janet Reno (U.S. Attorney General 1993-2001)
11/11/2016 Robert Vaughn (Actor, Napoleon Solo on “Man From U.N.C.L.E.”)
11/13/2016 Leon Russell (Singer, Song Writer)
11/14/2016 Gwen Ifill (Journalist PBS)
11/18/2016 Sharon Jones (Singer, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings)
11/24/2016 Florence Henderson (Actress, played mother on “Brady Bunch”)
11/24/2016 Colonel Abrams (Singer, Trapped)
11/25/2016 Fidel Castro
11/25/2016 Ron Glass (Actor, “Barney Miller”)
12/08/2016 John Glenn (Astronaut)
12/11/2016 Joe Ligon (Gospel Singer, Mighty Clouds of Joy)
12/13/2016 Alan Thicke (Actor, father of Robin Thicke)
12/15/2016 Craig Sager (Sportscaster, known for eclectic attire)
12/17/2016 Henry Heimlich (Inventor of the Heimlich Maneuver)
12/18/2016 Zsa Zsa Gabor (Actress, Socialite)
12/21/2016 Robert Hulseman (Inventor of Red Solo Cup)
12/25/2016 George Michael
12/25/2016 Oliver Prinz von Anhalt (adopted son of Zsa Zsa Gabor)
12/25/2016 Alphonse Mouzon (Jazz Drummer)
12/26/2016 Ricky Harris (Comedian, Actor on “Everybody Hates Chris”)
12/26/2016 George S. Irving (Actor, Broadway)
12/27/2016 Carrie Fisher (Actress, Princess Leia in “Star Wars”)
12/28/2016 Debbie Reynolds (Actress, mother of Carrie Fisher)
12/28/2016 Pan Pan (Oldest Giant Panda in Captivity 130 descendents)
12/29/2016 Keion Carpenter (NFL Player Atlanta Falcons and Buffalo Bills)
12/29/2016 Cyril deGrasse Tyson (Founder of 100 Black Men and Father of Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson)
Other important stories of the year include:
The election of Donald Trump for President of the United States.
HILTON HOTEL, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES – 2016/11/09: Donald Trump elected 45th President of USA speaks on stage during victory party at Hilton hotel New York. (Photo by Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
It is being called one of the strangest elections in history. Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton to win more than the 270 Electoral College votes needed to secure the nod to be the 45th President of the United States. Here is coverage of the story from CBS News. Donald Trump will be inaugurated on January 20th 2017. The stands for viewing the parade on Inauguration Day were already in the process of being built in front of the White House in mid December.
Photo by Jean Ross CBS Radio
Booking photo of Justin Ross Harris. (credit: Cobb County Sheriff’s Office)
The Ross Harris guilty verdict. A jury in Brunswick Georgia found Ross Harris guilty of all counts in his hot car death trial. Harris was accused of intentionally leaving his 22 month old son Cooper inside a hot SUV in a Cobb County parking lot in June of 2014. He was found guilty of 1 count of malice murder, 2 counts of felony murder, 2 counts of cruelty to children, 1 count of attempted sexual exploitation of children, and 2 counts of disseminating hazardous materials to children. Harris was sentenced to Life Without Parole plus 32 years in the hot car death of his toddler son Cooper.
The Orlando Mass shooting. 50 people were killed in the worst mass shooting in U.S. history when gunman Omar Mateen opened fire at Pulse nightclub on June 12, 2016. Here is more coverage of the story from CBS News. Mateen died in a gun battle with police.
ORLANDO, FL – JUNE 12: Orlando police officers seen outside of Pulse nightclub after a fatal shooting and hostage situation on June 12, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. The suspect was shot and killed by police after 20 people died and 42 were injured. (Photo by Gerardo Mora/Getty Images)
2016 was also the year that saw many police officers killed on the job. By the end of the year according to a report from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund the number of police officers killed by gunfire increased 56 percent from 2015. A total of 64 police officers were killed on the job in firearm related incidents in Georgia, Texas, Louisiana, New York and other states.
DALLAS, TX – JULY 13: A mourner hugs a police officer in front of the Dallas Police department headquarters on July 13, 2016 in Dallas, Texas. Funerals have begun for 5 Dallas police officers who were shot and killed by a sniper during a Black Lives Matter march in Dallas. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
The rash of police killings around the country happened during a time when more unarmed African American men were also killed during encounters with police. Maria Boynton covered one of many protests held in Atlanta and other cities to protest police shootings.
CHARLOTTE, NC – SEPTEMBER 21: With blood covering her hand and arm, a woman points at a police officer on September 21, 2016 in Charlotte, NC. The North Carolina governor has declared a state of emergency in the city of Charlotte after clashes during protests in the city in response to the fatal shooting by police officers of 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott at an apartment complex near UNC Charlotte. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
Alton Sterling, Philando Castile and Keith Scott were just a few of the between 957 and 1,096 people who were killed by police in 2016 according to various sources.
Haiti was in the news again in 2016. In October Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti leaving in its path more destruction in an already decimated area still recovering from a massive earthquake in 2010. More than 500 were killed, more than 175 thousand were left homeless and more than a million people were in need of clean water, food and other medicine.
Fabienne, age 20, builds her shelter at a informal camp for people who lost their houses during the passage of the Hurricane Matthew, in the neighborhood of Gebeaux, in the commune of Jeremie, southwestern Haiti, on November 5, 2016.
One month ago, on October 4, Haiti was hit by Hurricane Matthew where at least 546 people were killed, packing winds of 145 miles (230 kilometers) per hour. / AFP / HECTOR RETAMAL (Photo credit should read HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP/Getty Images)
What were your top stories of 2016?