List of Famous people who died in 2017
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson Berry was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. Nicknamed the "Father of Rock and Roll", Berry refined and developed rhythm and blues into the major elements that made rock and roll distinctive with songs such as "Maybellene" (1955), "Roll Over Beethoven" (1956), "Rock and Roll Music" (1957) and "Johnny B. Goode" (1958). Writing lyrics that focused on teen life and consumerism, and developing a music style that included guitar solos and showmanship, Berry was a major influence on subsequent rock music.
Kim Jong-hyun
Kim Jong-hyun, better known mononymously as Jonghyun, was a South Korean singer-songwriter, record producer, radio host, and author under the SM Entertainment label. He was the main vocalist of the South Korean boy band Shinee for nine years, releasing twelve albums with the group in both Korean and Japanese. He also participated in SM Entertainment's project group, SM the Ballad, for the release of two EP albums.
David Rockefeller
David Rockefeller was an American banker who served as chairman and chief executive of Chase Manhattan Corporation. He was the oldest living member of the third generation of the Rockefeller family, and family patriarch from August 2004 until his death in March 2017. Rockefeller was the youngest child of John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, and a grandson of John D. Rockefeller and Laura Spelman Rockefeller.
Don Ohlmeyer
Donald Winfred Ohlmeyer Jr. was an American television producer and president of the NBC network's west coast division. Ohlmeyer also directed the Olympics and other sporting events and worked for ABC and ESPN.
Vinod Khanna
Vinod Khanna was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who is best known for his work in Hindi films. He was the recipient of two Filmfare awards. He was the MP from the Gurdaspur constituency between 1998–2009 and 2014–2017. In July 2002, Khanna became the minister for Culture and Tourism in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet. Six months later, he became the Minister of State for External Affairs. Widely regarded as one of the most handsome and greatest actors of Indian Cinema, Khanna was one of the highest-paid stars of his times, along with Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan.
Glen Campbell
Glen Travis Campbell was an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, television host, and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour on CBS television from 1969 until 1972. He released 64 albums in a career that spanned five decades, selling over 45 million records worldwide, including twelve gold albums, four platinum albums, and one double-platinum album.
Jean d'Ormesson
Jean Bruno Wladimir François de Paule Le Fèvre d'Ormesson was a French novelist. He was the author of forty books, the director of Le Figaro from 1974 to 1979, and the Dean of the Académie française.
Fab Melo
Fabricio Paulino de Melo was a Brazilian professional basketball player. He played one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Boston Celtics before returning to his home country and playing for Liga Sorocabana and Brasília of the Brazilian Novo Basquete Brasil (NBB). Prior to entering the NBA in 2012, he played two years of college basketball for Syracuse, where he was named the Big East Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore.
Shashi Kapoor
Shashi Kapoor was an Indian actor and film producer who is best known for his work in Hindi films. Recipient of several accolades, including four National Film Awards and two Filmfare Awards, he also featured in a number of English-language international films, particularly films produced by Merchant Ivory. The Government of India honoured him with the prestigious Padma Bhushan in 2011, and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, in 2014, for his contribution to cinema.
John Hurt
Sir John Vincent Hurt was an English actor whose career spanned more than 50 years.