List of Famous people who died at 72

Peter Wehle (1914–1986) was an Austrian actor, writer, composer and cabaret performer.

Demetris Christofias, also spelled Dimitris Christofias, was a Cypriot politician who served as the sixth President of Cyprus from 2008 to 2013. Christofias was the General Secretary of AKEL and was the European Union's and Cyprus' first — and so far only — communist head of state. He won the 2008 Cypriot presidential elections in the second round of voting. Throughout the election campaign, he pledged to restart talks with Turkish Cypriots in order to find a solution to the Cyprus dispute and reunify the island. He also supported the closure of the British military bases on Cyprus.

John Herman Merivale, also known as Jack Merivale, was a British theatre actor, and occasional supporting player in British films.

Émilienne Moreau-Evrard was a French heroine of World War I, a high-profile female member of the "Brutus" Resistance network during World War II and later, a member of the Provisional Consultative Assembly. Moreover, she is one of only six women recipients of the Ordre de la Libération.

Paul Kirchhoff was a German-Mexican anthropologist, most noted for his seminal work in defining and elaborating the culture area of Mesoamerica, a term he coined.

Volodymyr Mykolayovych Troshkin was a Soviet footballer and a Ukrainian coach. He was considered by many to be the best right back in 1970s in Ukraine. He was born in Yenakiieve.

Leandro Despouy, who was born in San Luis, Argentina was an Argentine human rights lawyer. He was the United Nations Commission on Human Rights Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers from August 2003 until end of July 2009 .. He was also Special Rapporteur of the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities

Doreen Barbara Massey FRSA FBA FAcSS was a British social scientist and geographer.

José Manuel Donoso Yáñez, known as José Donoso, was a Chilean writer, journalist and professor. He lived most of his life in Chile, although he spent many years in self-imposed exile in Mexico, the United States and Spain. Although he had left his country in the sixties for personal reasons, after 1973 he said his exile was also a form of protest against the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. He returned to Chile in 1981 and lived there until his death.

Lloyd "Tiny" Grimes was an American jazz and R&B guitarist. He was a member of the Art Tatum Trio from 1943 to 1944, was a backing musician on recording sessions, and later led his own bands, including a recording session with Charlie Parker. He is notable for playing the electric tenor guitar, a four-stringed instrument.