List of Famous people who died in 2001

Erik Barnouw was a U.S. historian of radio and television broadcasting.

Tatyana Borisovna Averina was a Soviet Russian speed skater. After getting married, her name also appeared as Tatyana Barabash.

June Marie Salter AM was an Australian actress and author prominent in theatre and television, best known for her character roles.

Pedro Laín Entralgo was a Spanish physician, historian, author and philosopher. He worked, fundamentally, on medical history and anthropology.

Sherwin Rosen was an American labor economist. He had ties with many American universities and academic institutions including the University of Chicago, the University of Rochester, Stanford University and its Hoover Institution. At the time of his death, Rosen was Edwin A. and Betty L. Bergman Distinguished Service Professor in Economics at the University of Chicago and president of the American Economic Association.

Ralph Jose P. Burns was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger.

Rufus C. Thomas, Jr. was an American rhythm-and-blues, funk, soul and blues singer, songwriter, dancer, DJ and comic entertainer from Memphis, Tennessee. He recorded for several labels, including Chess Records and Sun Records in the 1950s, before becoming established in the 1960s and 1970s at Stax Records. He is best known for his novelty dance records, including "Walking the Dog" (1963), "Do the Funky Chicken" (1969) and "(Do the) Push and Pull" (1970). According to the Mississippi Blues Commission, "Rufus Thomas embodied the spirit of Memphis music perhaps more than any other artist, and from the early 1940s until his death . . . occupied many important roles in the local scene."