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| Nichelle Nichols, best known as Star Trek's communications officer Lieutenant Uhura, died in July. Some of her remains were later launched into deep space.
Comedian and actor Leslie Jordan died in October after a car crash. The Will and Grace actor was a social media rising star as he put smiles on faces with warm-hearted jokes and updates over the course of the pandemic.
Beloved children's show Sesame Street saw several losses this year. Bob McGrath, who died this month, was one of the show's first human cast members, playing friendly neighbor Bob Johnson. The work of composer Steven Lawrence was behind hundreds of songs on the show; he died in January. And generations of viewers mourned Emilio Delgado in March. He played fix-it shop owner Luis Rodriguez and was the driving force behind the Sesame Workshop's Bilingual Talk Force.
The comic book world was rocked by the passing of Kevin Conroy in November. For many, he simply was Batman, as he voiced the Caped Crusader on Batman: The Animated Series from 1992 to 1996, as well as in 15 films, 15 animated series and two dozen video games.
Angela Lansbury was beloved on screen and stage. Her career extended over a stunning seven decades — just like Queen Elizabeth's — as she sought out nontraditional roles.
Actor, comedian and director Bob Saget died in his sleep after hitting his head in January. Saget was a prominent presence on American television screens throughout the 1990s as the father, Danny Tanner, on Full House and the host of America's Funniest Home Videos.
Sidney Poitier was an icon for generations of moviegoers. He the first Black actor to win a best actor Oscar, for 1963's Lilies of the Field, and died in January at 94.
Jean-Luc Godard, the "enfant terrible" of the French New Wave who revolutionized popular cinema in 1960 with his debut feature Breathless, stood for years as one of the most vital and provocative directors.
Robbie Coltrane's career began long before the first Harry Potter movie premiered in 2001, but for the generation that grew up with the films and the books, it's hard to separate him from his larger-than-life portrayal of Hagrid. |
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1980s pop goddess Olivia Newton-John died in August at 73. She was never just the prim prude from the start of Grease, nor the strutting vamp from its finale. Her superpower, for over 50 years, was embodying both at once.
Rock 'n' roll's first great wild man, Jerry Lee Lewis, died in October. He was the last living member of the "Million-Dollar Quartet," and his meteoric rise collapsed almost as quickly as it ascended, thanks to scandal.
Country music icon Loretta Lynn also died in October. She brought unparalleled candor about the domestic realities of working-class women to country songwriting over the course of her 60-year career.
Meat Loaf, born Marvin Lee Aday, was best known for the 1977 album Bat Out Of Hell, one of the best-selling albums of all time. He won a 1994 Grammy Award for the song "I'd Do Anything For Love."
Keyboardist, sometimes lead vocalist and frequent principal songwriter for Fleetwood Mac Christine McVie died in November at 79. For a band famous for its interpersonal drama, McVie extolled the virtues of true love.
Irene Cara, the singer-actress best known for starring in and belting the title tracks from the 1980s movies Fame and Flashdance, was 63 when she died in November.
One-third of Atlanta rap group Migos was taken too soon. Takeoff was shot after an altercation at a bowling alley in Houston in November. He was only 28.
Aaron Carter was only 34 when he died this fall. The singer had his first hit when he was just 9 years old, and his first album sold 3 million copies and produced hit singles including "I Want Candy." |
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NPR mourned losses of our own this year.
In October, Ken Barcus, longtime Midwest bureau chief for NPR's National Desk and a revered mentor to public radio journalists, died of complications from throat cancer. In the three decades he spent at NPR, Ken brought in countless stories and trained dozens of reporters and editors across the Midwest, from Ohio to the Dakotas.
Audio engineer Renee Pringle also died in October after experiencing health complications. She helped shape and safeguard the sound of NPR for more than four decades.
Longtime foreign correspondent Anne Garrels died in September of lung cancer. She was a warm and generous friend and a passionate reporter willing to go anywhere in the world at a moment's notice if the story required it. |
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