List of Famous people who died in 2017

Neil Fingleton was an English actor and basketball player. He was the tallest British-born man and the tallest man in the European Union at 7 ft 7.56 in (232.6 cm) in height and among the 25 tallest men in the world.

Aleksey Vladimirovich Batalov was a Soviet and Russian actor acclaimed for his portrayal of noble and positive characters. He was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1976 and a Hero of Socialist Labour in 1989.

Richard Lawrence Hatch was an American actor, writer and producer. Hatch began his career as a stage actor, before moving on to television work in the 1970s. Hatch is best known for his role as Captain Apollo in the original Battlestar Galactica television series. He is also widely known for his role as Tom Zarek in the reimagined Battlestar Galactica.

John Francis Dunsworth was a Canadian actor best remembered for playing the alcoholic trailer park supervisor Jim Lahey on the comedy series Trailer Park Boys. He was also known for playing the mysterious reporter Dave Teagues on the supernatural drama series Haven, and for playing Officer McNabb in Shattered City: The Halifax Explosion, a CBC film about the 1917 Halifax Explosion. He had extensive experience in regional theater.

Delloreese Patricia Early, known professionally as Della Reese, was an American jazz and gospel singer, actress, and ordained minister whose career spanned seven decades. She began her long career as a singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You Know?". In the late 1960s she hosted her own talk show, Della, which ran for 197 episodes. From 1975 she also starred in films, playing opposite Redd Foxx in Harlem Nights (1989), Martin Lawrence in A Thin Line Between Love and Hate (1996) and Elliott Gould in Expecting Mary (2010). Reese achieved continued success in the religious television drama Touched by an Angel (1994–2003), in which she played the leading role of Tess.

Walter Carl Becker was an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He was best known as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist, and co-songwriter of the jazz rock band Steely Dan.

Robert Guillaume was an American actor and singer, known for his role as Benson DuBois in the television series Soap and its spin-off Benson, as well as for voicing the mandrill Rafiki in The Lion King and related media thereof. In a career that spanned more than 50 years he worked extensively on stage, television and film. For his efforts he was nominated for a Tony Award for his portrayal of Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls, and twice won an Emmy Award for his portrayal of the character Benson DuBois, once in 1979 on Soap and in 1985 on Benson. He also won a Grammy Award in 1995 for his spoken word performance of an audiobook version of The Lion King.

Robert Jonathan Demme was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of film and television who earned widespread acclaim.

Giacobbe "Jake" LaMotta was an American professional boxer, world middleweight champion, and stand-up comedian. Nicknamed "The Bronx Bull" or "Raging Bull", LaMotta was a rough fighter who was not a particularly big puncher, but he would subject his opponents to vicious beatings in the ring. With use of constant stalking, brawling and inside fighting, he developed the reputation for being a "bully"; he was what is often referred to today as a swarmer and a slugger.

Isabella Villarama Granada was a Filipino actress and singer.