List of Famous people who died in 1981

Ronald Erle Grainer was an Australian composer who worked for most of his professional career in the United Kingdom. He is mostly remembered for his television and film score music, especially the theme music for Doctor Who, The Prisoner, Steptoe and Son and Tales of the Unexpected.

Lee Hays was an American folk-singer and songwriter, best known for singing bass with The Weavers. Throughout his life, he was concerned with overcoming racism, inequality, and violence in society. He wrote or co-wrote "Wasn't That a Time?", "If I Had a Hammer", and "Kisses Sweeter than Wine", which became Weavers' staples. He also familiarized audiences with songs of the 1930s labor movement, such as "We Shall Not Be Moved".

Armand Marquiset, French philanthropist, humanitarian and nobleman, was born on September 29, 1900, in the château of Montguichet near Paris and died on July 14, 1981, in Burtonport, Ireland.

Miroslav Krleža was a Croatian writer and a prominent figure in cultural life of both Yugoslav states, the Kingdom (1918–1941) and the Socialist Republic. A one time Vice President and General Secretary of the Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts (JAZU), he has often been proclaimed the greatest Croatian writer of the 20th century and beyond.

Giulio Onesti was an Italian sports director, that was president of the Italian National Olympic Committee for 32 years, from 1946 to 1978.

Roger Nash Baldwin was one of the founders of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). He served as executive director of the ACLU until 1950.

Rosine Luguet (1921–1981) was a French stage and film actress. She was the daughter of the actor André Luguet.

Hiram Gilmore "Harry" Bates III was an American science fiction editor and writer. His short story "Farewell to the Master" (1940) was the basis of the well-known science fiction movie The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951).