List of Famous people who died in 2002

Xi Zhongxun was a Chinese communist revolutionary and a subsequent political official in the People's Republic of China. He is considered to be among the first generation of Chinese leadership. The contributions he made to the Chinese communist revolution and the development of the People's Republic, from the founding of Communist guerrilla bases in northwestern China in the 1930s to initiation of economic liberalization in southern China in the 1980s, are numerous and broad. He was known for political moderation and for the setbacks he endured in his career. He was imprisoned and purged several times. Xi was also the father of Xi Jinping, the current paramount leader of China and General Secretary of the Communist Party.

María Cristina Estela Marcela Jurado García, better known as Katy Jurado, was a Mexican actress of film, television, and theater. Jurado began her acting career in Mexico. She achieved some renown in her country's cinema during the period known as the Golden Age of Mexican cinema (1940s–1950s). In 1951, she was discovered by American filmmakers in Mexico and began her Hollywood career. She acted in notable Western films of the 1950s and 1960s. An exotic beauty, Jurado specialized in interpretations of complex, stereotyped and sexualized women. Her talent for playing a variety of characters helped pave the way for Mexican actresses in American cinema. She was the first Latin American actress nominated for an Oscar, as Best Supporting Actress for her work in Broken Lance (1954), and was the first to win a Golden Globe Award, for her performance in High Noon (1952).

Robert Michael Urich was an American film, television, and stage actor, and television producer. Over the course of his 30-year career, he starred in a record 15 television series.

Esther Afua Ocloo was a Ghanaian entrepreneur and pioneer of microlending, a program of making small loans in order to stimulate businesses.

Milton Berle was an American comedian and actor. Berle's career as an entertainer spanned over 80 years, first in silent films and on stage as a child actor, then in radio, movies and television. As the host of NBC's Texaco Star Theatre (1948–1955), he was the first major American television star and was known to millions of viewers as "Uncle Miltie" and "Mr. Television" during the first Golden Age of Television. He was honored with two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in both radio and TV.

Waylon Arnold Jennings was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known as one of the founding pioneers of the Outlaw Movement.

Erma Vernice Franklin was an American gospel and soul singer. Franklin was the elder sister of American singer/musician Aretha Franklin. Franklin's best known recording was the original version of "Piece of My Heart", written and produced by Bert Berns, and recorded in 1967, for which she was nominated for a Grammy Award. A cover version of the same song was recorded the following year by Big Brother and the Holding Company, with the lead vocal by Janis Joplin.

Chandra Ann Levy was an intern at the Federal Bureau of Prisons in Washington, D.C., who disappeared in May 2001. She was presumed murdered after her skeletal remains were found in Rock Creek Park in May 2002. The case attracted attention from the American news media for several years.

Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani, popularly known as Dhirubhai Ambani was a successful Indian business tycoon who founded Reliance Industries. Ambani took Reliance public in 1977 and was worth $25.6 billion upon his death. In 2016, he was honoured posthumously with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian honour for his contributions to trade and industry.

Geneviève de Gaulle-Anthonioz was a member of the French Resistance and served as president of ATD Quart Monde. Her uncle was General Charles de Gaulle.