List of Famous people who died at 79

Genoveva Forest Tarrat was a Spanish far-left activist, writer and political prisoner. Born into an anarchist family in Barcelona, she studied medicine in Madrid. During the 1970s, she supported the Basque separatist group ETA in their resistance to the government of dictator Francisco Franco. From 1974 to 1977, she was imprisoned for alleged complicity in the Cafetería Rolando bombing (1974) which killed 13 people in Madrid. After Spain's transition to democracy, she served a term as a senator from 1992 until 1993. The wife of the Spanish writer Alfonso Sastre, she died in May 2007.

Max Rudolf Frisch was a Swiss playwright and novelist. Frisch's works focused on problems of identity, individuality, responsibility, morality, and political commitment. The use of irony is a significant feature of his post-war output. Frisch was one of the founders of Gruppe Olten. He was awarded the Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 1986.

George Victor Voinovich was an American politician who served as a United States senator from Ohio from 1999 to 2011, the 65th governor of Ohio from 1991 to 1998 and the 54th mayor of Cleveland from 1980 to 1989, the last Republican to serve in that office.

Karin Adele Gunilla von Post Miller, usually Gunilla von Post, was a Swedish aristocrat noted for a book outlining an intimate relationship with John F. Kennedy in the 1950s, titled "Love, Jack", published in 1997. In 2010, she auctioned letters written by Kennedy to her.

Naoki Sugiura was a Japanese actor. He began his career on stage, beginning his film career in 1957.

Amália da Piedade Rebordão Rodrigues GCSE, GCIH, better known as Amália Rodrigues or popularly as Amália, was a Portuguese fadista and actress.

Ronald Gordon Honeycombe, known professionally as Gordon Honeycombe, was a British newscaster, author, playwright and stage actor.

William James Joseph Lombardy was an American chess grandmaster, chess writer, teacher, and former Catholic priest. He was one of the leading American chess players during the 1950s and 1960s, and a contemporary of Bobby Fischer, whom he coached during the World Chess Championship 1972. He won the World Junior Championship in 1957, the only person to win that tournament with a perfect score. Lombardy led the U.S. Student Team to Gold in the 1960 World Student Team Championship in Leningrad.

Elmo Russell "Bud" Zumwalt Jr. was a United States Navy officer and the youngest person to serve as Chief of Naval Operations. As an admiral and later the 19th Chief of Naval Operations, Zumwalt played a major role in United States military history, especially during the Vietnam War. A decorated war veteran, Zumwalt reformed United States Navy personnel policies in an effort to improve enlisted life and ease racial tensions. After he retired from a 32-year navy career, he launched an unsuccessful campaign for the United States Senate.

Joan Staley was an American actress and model.