# Who is the most famous person killed by covid-19 so far? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 22, 2020, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987 "2020-03-22T00:02:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![glowacks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/glowacks/32/5548_2.png) [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2020, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/201 "2020-12-14T23:54:52Z")
> [@Monocracy](#): > > Rep. Dick Hinch, 71, GOP congressman in New Hampshire I know it’s not capitalized in this case, but “congressman” is not the right term to use for a state legislator. /nitpick ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/202 "2020-12-15T14:33:34Z")
Yes. Although many of the articles further muddied the waters by calling him the newly elected Speaker of the House. Which he was. But it’s the House of New Hampshire, not the Federal one. I suppose that’s what happens when stories written by local papers for local consumption are cut-n-pasted into national wire service / website reports with zero editing for context. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2020, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/203 "2020-12-30T04:50:24Z")
Congressman-elect Luke Letlow, 41, died from COVID. > **[Louisiana congressman-elect dies of Covid](https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/29/luke-letlow-covid-congress-452218)** > > Luke Letlow was to have been sworn in Sunday. ---
**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:** [December 30, 2020, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/204 "2020-12-30T19:47:20Z")
I just now heard, on a radio newscast, that Dawn Wells, who played Mary Ann on _Gilligan’s Island_, has died from COVID. She was 82. ---
**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:** [December 30, 2020, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/205 "2020-12-30T19:59:14Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I just now heard, on a radio newscast, that Dawn Wells, who played Mary Ann on _Gilligan’s Island_, has died from COVID. “There can be only one” ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2020, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/206 "2020-12-30T21:41:15Z")
Well, damn! kenobi\_65 is right! (Link seems fucked. Let me work on that.) > **[Dawn Wells, Mary Ann from 'Gilligan's Island,' dead at 82 from COVID-19](https://abc7chicago.com/dawn-wells-mary-ann-from-gilligans-island-dead-at-82-from-covid-19/9205418/)** > > Dawn Wells, who played Mary Ann Summers on the classic TV show "Gilligan's Island," has died from COVID-19 at the age of 82. OK, the link looks as though it goes to a generic GMA homepage. But I think it goes to the story. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2020, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/207 "2020-12-30T22:03:49Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Congressman-elect Luke Letlow, 41, died from COVID. This one really got to me today. I don’t know this man at all, and do not follow LA politics, and don’t care what party he represented. 41 years old, no health issues, young family. Dammit. The shit can kill anyone. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/208 "2020-12-31T00:17:47Z")
And now only Tina Louise (“Ginger”) remains. RIP, Mary Ann Sommers. > **[Dawn Wells, Mary Ann on 'Gilligan's Island,' dies of Covid-19 complications...](https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/30/entertainment/dawn-wells-obit/index.html)** > > Dawn Wells, who played the lovable castaway Mary Ann Summers on "Gilligan's Island," died in Los Angeles on Wednesday from Covid-19 complications, her publicist Harlan Boll confirmed to CNN. ---
**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:** [December 31, 2020, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/209 "2020-12-31T00:41:16Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > And now only Tina Louise (“Ginger”) remains. And, ironically, of the seven cast members/castaways, Louise was the one who was least happy about being identified with the role (feeling that it had ruined her career), and least interested in participating in reunions and the like. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/210 "2020-12-31T13:40:59Z")
At least now she (Tina Louise) doesn’t have to worry about any more pesky reunions. 😉 Yes, I’m a bad person. I met Dawn Wells on one occasion back about 1990. One of her cousins was a co-worker of my wife and Dawn attended my wife’s firm’s swanky Christmas party in Vegas. She was a pleasant cordial person over our brief chat about many things (but not _GI_; I’ve got _some_ social graces). I got the impression celebrity had become more a burden than a privilege many years before. She was still readily recognizable and darn good looking for someone in her early 50s while I was in my early 30s. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/211 "2020-12-31T20:00:52Z")
I know it’s the New York Post, but other sources are saying the same thing: He died from a heart attack following “a chest procedure”, which a FBF who lives in Louisiana said was done to remove a blood clot in his lung. > **[Congressman-elect Luke Letlow suffered a heart attack following operation](https://nypost.com/2020/12/30/congressman-elect-luke-letlow-suffered-a-heart-attack-during-operation/?sr_share=facebook&utm_source=FCFacebook&utm_medium=SocialFlow&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&fbclid=IwAR1wUsdTuqfFGycxZhE4iBE5z0paEq0HWa2jvWwZXdSS0uvv4dg7jW_TeWY)** > > Louisiana Rep.-elect Luke Letlow, who died while battling COVID-19, suffered a heart attack following a procedure, a hospital official said. The 41-year-old was receiving treatment in the intensive… His kids are an 11-month-old daughter, and a 3-year-old son. No matter what his politics may have been, the death of a parent is the worst thing that can happen to a child. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/212 "2020-12-31T22:39:45Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > No matter what his politics may have been, the death of a parent is the worst thing that can happen to a child. Yeah, and since he had small children, maybe he should have worn a fucking mask, and required masks for his rallies. > **[Luke Letlow who died from COVID-19 spoke in favor of ending lockdowns](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9100079/Luke-Letlow-died-COVID-spoke-favor-ending-lockdowns-held-maskless-rallies.html)** > > Luke Lutlow, 41, tragically passed away on Tuesday after suffering a heart attack while undergoing an operation related to the virusat Ochsner LSU Health in Shreveport, Louisiana. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/213 "2021-01-17T16:24:12Z")
Phil Spector, music producer and murderer, died in prison at the age of 81. The official cause of death hasn’t been released, but supposedly it was complications of Covid-19. > **[Phil Spector dead: Music producer behind the Wall Of Sound dies](https://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/1385192/phil-spector-dead-death-the-wall-of-sound-news-latest-update)** > > PHIL SPECTOR - a legendary music producer and convicted murderer of actress Lana Clarkson - has died in prison aged 81, after reportedly contracting coronavirus. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2021, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/214 "2021-01-21T04:31:05Z")
This is someone probably not well-known except to me, @74westy and maybe @Gorsnak: a well-known local sportscaster in Saskatchewan has died of covid complications, age 66. Very well-liked guy: Warren Woods. > **[Rob Vanstone: Woodsy held court in Regina sports landscape for 33 years](https://leaderpost.com/sports/local-sports/rob-vanstone-woodsy-held-court-in-regina-sports-landscape-for-33-years)** > > Warren Woods, a prominent and popular media personality since 1987, died at age 66 after being diagnosed with COVID-19 in early December. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/215 "2021-01-23T14:28:54Z")
Larry King has died. Cause of death not given, but he was reportedly in hospital with Covid earlier this month. > **[Legendary TV host Larry King dead at 87](https://beta.ctvnews.ca/national/entertainment/2021/1/23/1_5279317.html)** > > Larry King, the suspenders-sporting everyman whose broadcast interviews with world leaders, movie stars and ordinary Joes helped define American conversation for a half-century, died Saturday. He was 87. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2021, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/216 "2021-01-26T20:32:42Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Louise was the one who was least happy about being identified with the role (feeling that it had ruined her career), and least interested in participating in reunions and the like. Russell Johnson once said in an interview that he and everyone else in the cast knew the show was stupid. “But I was working, and I knew a hell of a lot of people who weren’t.” Presumedly, by “people,” he meant SAG members. ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2021, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/217 "2021-01-28T11:53:30Z")
I would say Larry King or Tom Seaver is “winning” at this point. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2021, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/218 "2021-01-31T15:13:36Z")
Wait-- Tom Seaver died-- of COVID? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2021, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/219 "2021-01-31T15:22:00Z")
Apparently it was a contributing factor: > [@](#): > > Seaver died in his sleep at the age of 75 on August 31, 2020, as a result of complications of [Lewy body dementia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewy_body_dementia)and [COVID-19](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronavirus_disease_2019).[[16]](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Seaver#cite_note-Death-17)[[59]](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Seaver#cite_note-madden_09022020-60) Personally, I wouldn’t put him on par with Larry King in the notability category. ---
**Author:** ![ThatCanadianGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@ThatCanadianGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThatCanadianGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2021, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/220 "2021-02-01T18:28:18Z")
Of course, famous is relative. Going down that list on Wiki of those who died due to Covid (there’s currently about 1600 names there), to me the most famous are: Larry King, at least I knew the name and face, would be more famous in USA I suppose. Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, former president of France. May not be a name recognized by many but it was to me. James Cross, being a Canadian and knowing some history, I recognized the name right away, although I know even most Canadians may not. He was a UK diplomat kidnapped in 1970 by terrorists. Was 99, one of oldest on the list. Herman Cain, US politician that many if not most Americans would know I suppose. If you sort by occupation, it’s really surprising how many politicians there are on that list. As a baseball fan, the following jumped at me: Steve Dalkowski, not a major leaguer and would be known only by real baseball afficionados. Tom Seaver, Hall of Famer, didn’t realize it was from Covid complications. Jay Johnstone, only because he was a broadcaster after his playing days. Not really a notorious player but one I do remember. Charley Pride, Negro leagues player and as well as minor league player but more famous as a singer. And of course, Dawn Wells. If people, especially of a certain age, didn’t know her name, they surely knew her face. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987.md?page=12)