List of Famous people who died in 1939

Henri Claude Bénard was a French physicist, best known for his research on convection in liquids that now carries his name, Bénard convection. In addition, the historical surveys of both Tokaty and von Kármán both acknowledge that Bénard studied the vortex shedding phenomenon later named the Kármán vortex street, prior to von Karman's own contributions. Bénard specialized in experimental fluid dynamics, and the use of optical methods to study it. He was a faculty member at the universities at Lyon, Bordeaux, and finally the Sorbonne in Paris.

Claude Benton Gillingwater was an American stage and screen actor. He first appeared on the stage then in 92 films between 1918 and 1939, including the Academy Award-nominated A Tale of Two Cities (1935) and Conquest (1937). He appeared in several films starring Shirley Temple, beginning with Poor Little Rich Girl (1936).

Susuga Malietoa Tanumafili I was the Malietoa in Samoa from 1898 until his death in 1939.

Isaac Carasso was a member of the prominent Sephardic Jewish Carasso family (Karasu) of Ottoman Salonica. After emigrating to Barcelona, he started a yogurt factory which later became Groupe Danone.

Etienne Girardot was a diminutive stage and film actor of Anglo-French parentage born in London, England.

Prince Abdol-Hossein Farman Farma was one of the most prominent Qajar princes, and one of the most influential politicians of his time in Persia. He was born in Tehran to Prince Nosrat Dowleh Firouz in 1857, and died in November 1939 at the age of 82. He was the 16th grandson of the Qajar crown prince Abbas Mirza. He fathered 26 sons and 13 daughters by 8 wives. He lived to see four sons of his first wife die within his lifetime.

Frank E. Woods was an American screenwriter of the silent era. He wrote for 90 films between 1908 till 1925. He first became a writer with the Biograph Company. Woods was also a pioneering film reviewer. As a writer, his contributions to film criticism are discussed in the 2009 documentary, For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism. He was also known for his screenplay collaborations with D. W. Griffith, including the co-scripting of The Birth of a Nation. He is interred in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, CA.

George Nicholls Jr., also known as George Nichols Jr., was an American director and editor during the 1930s. Born to show business parents, and son of prolific actor and director George Nichols, he entered the film industry at the tail end of the silent film era, working as an editor for the Paramount Famous Lasky Corporation. After moving to RKO Pictures in 1933, Nicholls shortly began directing films by the end of the year. His career was cut short when he died in a car accident while driving to the location of his final film.