# One celebrity death overshadowing another on the same day **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 24, 2015, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374 "2015-09-24T03:48:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/1 "2015-09-24T03:48:25Z")
Often there are two celebrity deaths occurring on the same day. When this happens, it’s not unusual for one death to totally overshadow the other. The first that comes to mind is Michael Jackson’s death on June 25, 2009. Farrah Fawcett also died on that day, but her death was a virtual footnote, compared to Jackson’s. Any others? ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/2 "2015-09-24T03:52:56Z")
C.S. Lewis died November 22, 1963 ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/3 "2015-09-24T03:53:12Z")
JFK vs Aldous Huxley. I think. ETA: Yep. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/4 "2015-09-24T04:00:11Z")
Sammy Davis, Jr. and Jim Henson both died on May 16, 1990. Jim Henson’s name seems to get mentioned more often than Sammy Davis’ these days, particularly with the premiere of the new Muppet show. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/5 "2015-09-24T04:01:57Z")
Johnny Cash’s death was somewhat overshadowed by John Ritter, who had unexpectedly died the previous day. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/6 "2015-09-24T04:08:00Z")
John Adams died five hours after Thomas Jefferson on July 4th, 1826; all the papers led with Jefferson’s death. Just kidding about that last bit, but the rest is true – ironically, Adams’ last words were “Thomas Jefferson survives”, which turned out to be incorrect. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/7 "2015-09-24T04:08:41Z")
Ray Charles (d. 6/10/2004) vs. Ronald Reagan (d. 6/5/2004) Mother Teresa died the same week as Diana, Princess of Wales. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/8 "2015-09-24T05:01:04Z")
Orville Wright died the same day that Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated. While Wright seems like a figure from an earlier era than Gandhi, Gandhi was actually two years older than Wright. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/9 "2015-09-24T05:06:48Z")
Louis-Ferdinand Celine died the same day as Ernest Hemingway ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/10 "2015-09-24T05:06:50Z")
Groucho Marx’s death was overshadowed by Elvis Presley’s death three days earlier. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/11 "2015-09-24T11:18:29Z")
Punk rocker **Darby Crash** of The Germs purposely overdosed, but did it the day before \*\*John Lennon \*\*was murdered. Crash’s suicide has been portrayed as a bid for enduring fame after the band went nowhere, which was overshadowed by Lennon’s death. ---
**Author:** ![Nema98](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d2c977/32.png) [@Nema98](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nema98)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/12 "2015-09-24T17:55:16Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Often there are two celebrity deaths occurring on the same day. When this happens, it’s not unusual for one death to totally overshadow the other. The first that comes to mind is Michael Jackson’s death on June 25, 2009. Farrah Fawcett also died on that day, but her death was a virtual footnote, compared to Jackson’s. > > Any others? Yeah weird day it was, Michael Jackson, Farah Fawcett, Ed McMahon and Billy Mays from that “call now and get this for $19.99” commercials. Each one overshadowing the next one. Mays died a day later. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/13 "2015-09-24T22:56:28Z")
The death of Roger Bowen, who played Henry Blake in **M_A_S\*H** , was overshadowed by the death the day before of Maclean Stevenson, who played Henry Blake on **M_A_S\*H**. ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/14 "2015-09-24T23:08:42Z")
Robert Mitchum died on July 1, 1997. July 2, 1997: Jimmy Stewart died. Ironically, Stewart’s last words were “Robert Mitchum survives,” which turned out to be incorrect. Stewart was always the bigger star, but Mitchum’s death probably would’ve gotten more attention. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/15 "2015-09-25T00:52:35Z")
How did I not know that Ed McMahon was dead or that Gandhi was assassinated? I thought I was slightly more in touch than I am, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/16 "2015-09-25T01:45:04Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The death of Roger Bowen, who played Henry Blake in **M_A_S\*H** , was overshadowed by the death the day before of Maclean Stevenson, who played Henry Blake on **M_A_S\*H**. And the fact that Stevenson was way more famous. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/17 "2015-09-25T02:03:01Z")
Existential philosopher, world renown psychotherapist and holocaust survivor [Victor Frankl](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Frankl) died the same week that Princess Diana and Mother Theresa died. Lauren Bacall died the day after Robin Williams commit suicide. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/18 "2015-09-25T03:22:27Z")
Groucho Marx died three days after Elvis Presley. Danny Gatton died about 6 months after Kurt Cobain. ---
**Author:** ![movingfinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@movingfinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/movingfinger)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/19 "2015-09-25T06:37:05Z")
Not what most of the posters here are thinking of by"celebrities", but the day before race driver Ayrton Senna was killed, another driver, virtually unknown Roland Ratzenburger was killed testing or qualifying for the race in which Senna was killed. Formula One has had an excellent safety record over the last twenty years or more. Two driver deaths on the same weekend is just about unknown in modern racing history, and yet there will always be some who point out the two deaths at the same track within 24 hours as proof of how scandalously bad racing’s safety record is. Okay; soapbox available for anyone who wants it. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374/20 "2015-09-25T08:03:21Z")
Joseph Stalin and Sergei Prokofiev both died on 5th March, 1953. Prokofiev didn’t get the headlines in Pravda that he deserved. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-celebrity-death-overshadowing-another-on-the-same-day/732374.md?page=2)