List of Famous people who died at 80
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is one of the most influential and extensively studied filmmakers in the history of cinema. Known as the "Master of Suspense", he directed over 50 feature films in a career spanning six decades, becoming as well known as any of his actors thanks to his many interviews, his cameo roles in most of his films, and his hosting and producing of the television anthology Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955–65). His films garnered 46 Academy Award nominations including six wins, although he never won for Best Director despite having had five nominations.
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1997 to December 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder and chairman of the Kofi Annan Foundation, as well as chairman of The Elders, an international organization founded by Nelson Mandela.
Joseph Kobzon
Iosif (Joseph) Davydovich Kobzon was a Soviet and Russian singer, known for his crooner style.
Udo Jürgens
Udo Jürgens was an Austrian composer and singer of popular music whose career spanned over 50 years. He won the Eurovision Song Contest 1966 for Austria, composed close to 1,000 songs, and sold over 100 million records. In 2007, he additionally obtained Swiss citizenship.
Valerie Harper
Valerie Kathryn Harper was an American actress. She began her career as a dancer on Broadway, making her debut in the musical Take Me Along in 1959. She is best remembered for her role as Rhoda Morgenstern on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970–1977) and its spin-off Rhoda (1974–1978). For her work on Mary Tyler Moore, she thrice received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, and later received the award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Rhoda. She was the first host of the PBS series Nova during the show's first season in 1974. From 1986 to 1987, she appeared as Valerie Hogan on the sitcom Valerie. Her film appearances include roles in Freebie and the Bean (1974) and Chapter Two (1979), both of which garnered her Golden Globe Award nominations. She returned to stage work in her later career, appearing in several Broadway productions. In 2010, she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her performance as Tallulah Bankhead in the play Looped.
Marie Laforêt
Marie Laforêt was a French singer and actress, particularly well known for her work during the 1960s and 1970s. In 1978, she moved to Geneva, and acquired Swiss citizenship.
Ginger Baker
Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker was an English drummer and a co-founder of the rock band Cream. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and African rhythms and pioneered both jazz fusion and world music.
Anthony Salerno
Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno was an American mobster who served as underboss and front boss of the Genovese crime family in New York City from 1981 until his conviction in 1986.
David Fox
Charles James "David" Fox was a Canadian actor.
Klaus Reinhardt
Klaus Reinhardt was a German Army general. He was the commander of the German Army Forces Command, the NATO Joint Headquarters Center, and KFOR in Kosovo. Reinhardt died on 30 November 2021, at the age of 80. He was the son of Nazi bureaucrat Fritz Reinhardt.