2009 Year In Review
Choose a notable:
Weeks 1 - 10
Jett Travolta
Ron Asheton
Patrick McGoohan
Ricardo Montalban
Andrew Wyeth
John Updike
Millard Fuller
James Whitmore
Betty Jameson
Flight 3407 Crash Victims
Weeks 11 - 20
Paul Harvey
Horton Foote
James Purdy
Ron Silver
Natasha Richardson
Jade Goody
Dan Seals
Irving R. Levine
Marvin Webster
Nick Adenhart
Weeks 21 - 30
Harry Kalas
Mark "The Bird" Fidrych
Beatrice Arthur
Danny Gans
Jack Kemp
Dom DeLuise
Dominic DiMaggio
Chuck Daly
Wayman Tisdale
Wayne Allwine
Weeks 31 - 40
Roh Moo-hyun
Koko Taylor
David Carradine
Ed McMahon
Farrah Fawcett
Michael Jackson
Billy Mays
Karl Malden
Steve McNair
Robert S. McNamara
Weeks 41 - 50
Arturo Gatti
Walter Cronkite
Frank McCourt
Merce Cunningham
Corazon Aquino
John Hughes
Eunice Kennedy Shriver
Les Paul
Kim Dae-jung
Robert Novak
Weeks 51 - 52
Don Hewitt
Ellie Greenwich
Each year Tributes.com puts together a list of the most notable deaths that have affected our lives over the past year. While every loss is hugely impactful, these people were hugely influential in our lives.Click on a thumbnail for information about that notable person.
Week 1 X
Jett Travolta »
DIED: January 2, 2009
John Travolta's teenage son, Jett, died in the Bahamas after apparently suffering a seizure and hitting his head at his family's vacation home.
Week 2 X
DIED: January 6, 2009
The guitarist for the Stooges whose raw sound helped inspire the first generation of punk musicians.
Week 3 X
DIED: January 13, 2009
Emmy-winning actor who created and starred in the cult classic television show "The Prisoner"
Week 4 X
DIED: January 14, 2009
The Mexican-born actor who became a star in splashy MGM musicals and later as the wish-fulfilling Mr. Roarke in TV's "Fantasy Island"
Week 5 X
DIED: January 16, 2009
Artist who portrayed the hidden melancholy of the people and landscapes of Pennsylvania's Brandywine Valley and coastal Maine
Week 6 X
DIED: January 27, 2009
John Updike, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, prolific man of letters and erudite chronicler of sex, divorce and other adventures
Week 7 X
Millard Fuller »
DIED: February 3, 2009
Millionaire entrepreneur who gave it all away to help found the Christian house-building charity Habitat for Humanity.
Week 8 X
DIED: February 6, 2009
Emmy and Tony award winning character actor who delivered strong performances in movies, television and theater
Week 9 X
DIED: February 7, 2009
Betty Jameson was one of the 13 founding members of the LPGA Tour in 1950
Week 10 X
DIED: February 12, 2009
A Continental commuter plane coming in for a landing nose-dived into a house in suburban Buffalo, sparking a fiery explosion that killed all 49 people aboard and a person in the home.
Week 11 X
DIED: February 28, 2009
Paul Harvey, news commentator and talk-radio pioneer whose staccato style made him one of the nation's most familiar voices
Week 12 X
DIED: March 4, 2009
Horton Foote, playwright of "The Trip to Bountiful," "Tender Mercies" and Oscar-winning screenwriter of "To Kill a Mockingbird"
Week 13 X
DIED: March 13, 2009
Author of underground classics such as "Cabot Wright Begins"
Week 14 X
Ron Silver »
DIED: March 15, 2009
Actor Ron Silver, Tony Award winner and television actor
Week 15 X
DIED: March 18, 2009
Broadway and movie actress and heiress to acting royalty Natasha Richardson
Week 16 X
DIED: March 22, 2009
Jade Goody, a dental assistant turned reality-TV star on the television series, "Big Brother"
Week 17 X
DIED: March 25, 2009
Singer who was England Dan in the pop duo England Dan and John Ford Coley and later had a successful country career.
Week 18 X
DIED: March 26, 2009
The professorial NBC newsman who explained the fine points of economics to millions of viewers for nearly a quarter century.
Week 19 X
DIED: April 6, 2009
The fierce shot-blocking center who helped lead the Seattle SuperSonics to the 1978 NBA finals.
Week 20 X
DIED: April 9, 2009
22-year-old Los Angeles Angels rookie pitcher who was killed by a hit-and-run driver
Week 21 X
DIED: April 13, 2009
Longtime Philadelphia Phillies broadcaster who punctuated innumerable home runs with his "Outta here!"
Week 22 X
DIED: April 13, 2009
The fun-loving pitcher who baffled hitters for one All-Star season and entertained fans with his antics.
Week 23 X
Beatrice Arthur »
DIED: April 25, 2009
The tall, deep-voiced actress who starred in the hit shows "Maude" and "The Golden Girls" and musical such as "Mame."
Week 24 X
DIED: May 1, 2009
Singer-actor-impressionist who spent more than a decade as one of the most popular entertainers in Las Vegas
Week 25 X
Jack Kemp »
DIED: May 2, 2009
The former pro quarterback who turned fame on the gridiron into a career in national politics and a crusade for lower taxes
Week 26 X
DIED: May 4, 2009
The portly entertainer & chef whose affable nature made him a popular character actor for decades with movie and TV audiences.
Week 27 X
DIED: May 8, 2009
Seven-time All Star who still holds the record for the longest consecutive game hitting streak in Boston Red Sox history.
Week 28 X
DIED: May 9, 2009
Coach of the original Dream Team to the Olympic gold medal in 1992 after winning back-to-back NBA championships with the Detroit Pistons
Week 29 X
DIED: May 15, 2009
Three-time All-American at Oklahoma in the mid-1980s before playing a dozen years in the NBA and later becoming an accomplished jazz musician.
Week 30 X
DIED: May 18, 2009
The actor who voiced Mickey Mouse for more than 30 years.
Week 31 X
Roh Moo-hyun »
DIED: May 23, 2009
Former South Korean President, whose hard-won reputation as a corruption fighter was tarnished by bribery allegations.
Week 32 X
DIED: June 3, 2009
Sharecropper's daughter whose regal bearing and powerful voice earned her the sobriquet "Queen of the Blues"
Week 33 X
DIED: June 3, 2009
Star of the 1970s TV series "Kung Fu" who also had a wide-ranging career in the movies.
Week 34 X
Ed McMahon »
DIED: June 23, 2009
The loyal "Tonight Show" sidekick who bolstered boss Johnny Carson with guffaws and a resounding "H-e-e-e-e-e-ere's Johnny!" for 30 years.
Week 35 X
Farrah Fawcett »
DIED: June 25, 2009
One of TV's "Charlie's Angels" whose feathered blond hair and dazzling smile made her one of the biggest sex symbols of the 1970s.
Week 36 X
DIED: June 25, 2009
The 50-year-old musical superstar defined in equal parts as the world's greatest entertainer and perhaps its most enigmatic figure.
Week 37 X
DIED: June 28, 2009
The burly, bearded television pitchman whose boisterous hawking of products such as Orange Glo and OxiClean made him a pop-culture icon.
Week 38 X
DIED: July 1, 2009
Academy Award-winning actor whose intelligent characterizations on stage, screen and television made him a star despite his plain looks.
Week 39 X
DIED: July 4, 2009
Quarterback who led both the Titans and Ravens to playoff berths, including two AFC championship game appearances with Tennessee.
Week 40 X
DIED: July 6, 2009
The cerebral secretary of defense who was vilified for his role in escalating the Vietnam War, a role he later deeply regretted.
Week 41 X
DIED: July 11, 2009
Former boxing champion whose wife allegedly strangled him with her purse strap while he slept.
Week 42 X
DIED: July 17, 2009
The premier TV anchorman of the networks' golden age who reported a tumultuous time with reassuring authority.
Week 43 X
DIED: July 19, 2009
Author of "Angela's Ashes," an "epic of woe" about his impoverished Irish childhood.
Week 44 X
DIED: July 26, 2009
The avant-garde dancer and choreographer who revolutionized modern dance by creating works of pure movement.
Week 45 X
DIED: August 1, 2009
Former President who swept away a dictator with a "people power" revolt and then sustained democracy by fighting off seven coup attempts in six years.
Week 46 X
DIED: August 6, 2009
Director of popular movies such as "The Breakfast Club," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and "Home Alone."
Week 47 X
DIED: August 11, 2009
President John F. Kennedy's sister, who carried on the family's public service tradition by founding the Special Olympics and championing the welfare of the mentally disabled.
Week 48 X
DIED: August 13, 2009
Music icon whose solid-body electric guitar paved the way for rock 'n' roll.
Week 49 X
DIED: August 18, 2009
Former president who spent years as a dissident under military dictatorship and later won the Nobel Peace Prize for seeking reconciliation with communist North Korea.
Week 50 X
DIED: August 18, 2009
Political columnist, a diehard conservative, pugilistic debater and proud owner of the "Prince of Darkness" moniker.
Week 51 X
DIED: August 19, 2009
Newsman who invented "60 Minutes" and produced the popular newsmagazine for 36 years, died at 86.
Week 52 X
DIED: August 26, 2009
Co-writer some of pop music's most enduring songs, including "Chapel of Love," "Be My Baby" and "Leader of the Pack"
Week 53 X
DIED: August 26, 2009
Author of crime stories among the rich and famous through his magazine articles and best-selling novels.
Week 54 X
DJ AM »
DIED: August 28, 2009
Sought-after disc jockey who became a celebrity in his own right with high-profile romances and a glamorous lifestyle.
Week 55 X
DIED: August 25, 2009
Last surviving brother in an enduring political dynasty and one of the most influential senators in history.
Week 56 X
DIED: September 11, 2009
The poet and punk rocker who wrote "The Basketball Diaries" died at 60 from a heart attack.
Week 57 X
DIED: September 14, 2009
The hunky actor who danced his way into viewers' hearts with "Dirty Dancing" and then broke them with "Ghost."
Week 58 X
DIED: September 16, 2009
One-third of the hugely popular 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary.
Week 59 X
Irving Penn »
DIED: October 7, 2009
Photographer whose work revealed a taste for stark simplicity whether he was shooting celebrity portraits, fashion, still life or remote places of the world.
Week 60 X
DIED: October 14, 2009
Pro wrestling villain who reinvented himself as a pop culture celebrity
Week 61 X
Soupy Sales »
DIED: October 22, 2009
Rubber-faced comedian whose anything-for-a-chuckle career was built on 20,000 pies to the face and 5,000 live TV appearances
Week 62 X
DIED: November 5, 2009
Thirteen people killed when an Army psychiatrist allegedly opened fire on fellow soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas.
