List of Famous people who died in 2002

Rino Benedetti was an Italian professional road bicycle racer, who won stages in all the three Grand Tours.

Otis Blackwell was an American songwriter, singer, and pianist, whose work influenced rock and roll. His compositions include "Fever", recorded by Little Willie John; "Great Balls of Fire" and "Breathless", recorded by Jerry Lee Lewis; "Don't Be Cruel", "All Shook Up" and "Return to Sender", recorded by Elvis Presley; and "Handy Man", recorded by Jimmy Jones.

Gerald Allan "Jerry" Sohl Sr. was an American television scriptwriter and science fiction author who wrote for The Twilight Zone, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Outer Limits, Star Trek: The Original Series, and other shows. He wrote more than twenty novels as well as feature film scripts. He also wrote the nonfiction works Underhanded Chess and Underhanded Bridge in 1973.

Robert William "Bob" Straub was an American politician and businessman from the state of Oregon. A native of San Francisco, California, he settled in Eugene, Oregon, where he entered politics. A Democratic politician, he served in the Oregon State Senate, as the Oregon State Treasurer, and one term as the 31st Governor of Oregon from 1975 to 1979. Like his perennial opponent for governor, Tom McCall, he was a noted environmentalist.