# 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:** 12
**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:** [February 1, 2021, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/221 "2021-02-01T18:54:46Z")
> [@ThatCanadianGuy](#): > > Dawn Wells. You don’t even have to be “of a certain age,” though. I am not old enough to have seen _Gilligan’s Island_ in its first run. But it was on at 6:30am when I was in the 6th grade. I got up before everybody else, and watched it over breakfast, then took a shower while everyone else was still crawling out of bed. I could tell the show was bad, but it was the definition of camp-- stupid, but fun, because it looks like the people doing it are having fun. Sometimes something is so over the top stupid, it’s as though this time, we’re going to see if we can top the stupid of last time. That’s the only reason I can think for the show’s cult status. There was a Gilligan’s Island pinball machine made in the 1990s. So the show was still popular enough then for the machine to find an audience. When I worked in a high school with kids the class of 97-02, they were watching it still. And I know it’s on now. It’s on MeTV, or one of the other “oldies” channels, but it’s probably finding new audiences. I haven’t watched it to see whether the commercials are for reverse mortgages and med-alert systems, Geico insurance and moisturizers, or cell phones and fast food, so I don’t know who the target audience is, but I’m sure the show still draws a little from all over. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2021, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/222 "2021-02-02T12:03:30Z")
> [@ThatCanadianGuy](#): > > 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. Politicians meet a lot of people from all over. And in some cases, they’ve found it a political necessity not to be too cautious. I don’t think it’s “political” to say that the Republican and Democratic parties have supported different approaches to public health, especially gatherings and masking. It feels like that’s made a dramatic difference in infection rates between the two groups of politicians - It will be interesting to see what the data shows when all this is over and we can step back and take a look. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2021, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/223 "2021-02-02T16:47:28Z")
[Captain Sir Tom Moore](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-55881753) 😢 ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2021, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/224 "2021-02-02T20:01:57Z")
Captain Sir Tom Moore would be my nomination for the most famous. Mr. Cain a close second. ---
**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:** [February 2, 2021, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/225 "2021-02-02T20:14:28Z")
Never heard of the guy until this thread. ---
**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:** [February 2, 2021, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/226 "2021-02-02T20:20:45Z")
I’d heard of him – there was quite a bit of news coverage when he did his fundraising walks last spring, and when he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth last July. Then again, the BBC is one of my primary news sources, so I may well have been more aware of him than most Americans. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/227 "2021-02-02T20:55:35Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > Captain Sir Tom Moore would be my nomination for the most famous. Mr. Cain a close second. And you don’t think that Darth Vader beats them, fame-wise? ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2021, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/228 "2021-02-02T21:22:21Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > And you don’t think that Darth Vader beats them, fame-wise? Yes, I certainly do think the Dark One beats them fame wise and other ways wise. I bow to your superior sensibilities. ---
**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:** [February 2, 2021, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/229 "2021-02-02T21:28:44Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > Yes, I certainly do think the Dark One beats them fame wise and other ways wise. Just shoot me a PM about the actor so I can refresh my memory of who that is. As you note, that’s the thing – Darth Vader, the character, is very widely known. David Prowse, the actor behind the mask, who died from COVID-19, never appeared unmasked in a Star Wars film – Vader’s voice was provided by James Earl Jones, and when he appeared unmasked, or as Anakin Skywalker, he was played by other actors. Unless you’re a serious Star Wars fan, you probably have no idea that the guy in the suit was named David Prowse. And, unless you’re that big of a SW fan, or knew about Prowse from his other roles in the U.K., particularly that of the Green Cross Man in public service ads, you very likely wouldn’t have recognized him by his face. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2021, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/230 "2021-02-02T21:33:15Z")
I can’t find any reference to cause of death being Covid. My Google fu is often weak though. ---
**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:** [February 2, 2021, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/231 "2021-02-02T21:35:23Z")
Looking back at articles around his death, it came out a day or two after his passing was originally announced that he had died from COVID-19. > [@](#): > > Actor [David Prowse](https://deadline.com/tag/david-prowse/), who played [Darth Vader](https://deadline.com/tag/darth-vader/) in the first _[Star Wars](https://deadline.com/tag/star-wars/)_ trilogy, died of complications from [Covid-19](https://deadline.com/tag/covid-19/), his daughter has told UK newspapers. Prowse died Saturday at the age of 85, though a cause of death was not specified by his manager at that time. > > In an interview with UK’s The Sun, Prowse daughter Rachel confirmed that her father, who suffered from Alzheimer’s, had been hospitalized for the last two weeks with Covid. Confirming the cause of death, Rachel Prowse said, “It’s horrible that Covid restrictions meant we did not get to see him and say goodbye. But when we went to collect his stuff from the hospital the nurse said what a cool guy he was. He was such a larger-than-life character. He would have loved to see himself trending on Twitter.” > **[‘Star Wars’ Actor David Prowse Died From Covid-19, Daughter Says – Report](https://deadline.com/2020/11/david-prowse-darth-vader-covid-coronavirus-cause-of-death-star-wars-1234623134/)** > > Actor David Prowse, who played Darth Vader in the first Star Wars trilogy, died of complications from Covid-19, his daughter has told UK newspapers. Prowse died Saturday at the age of 85, though a … ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2021, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/232 "2021-02-02T21:47:25Z")
Thank you. My Google fu thanks you for the inspiration. 🖖🏼 (I know, mixing mediums, or, in this case, larges) ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2021, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/233 "2021-02-03T01:47:30Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Unless you’re a serious Star Wars fan, you probably have no idea that the guy in the suit was named David Prowse. And, unless you’re that big of a SW fan, or knew about Prowse from his other roles in the U.K., particularly that of the Green Cross Man in public service ads, you very likely wouldn’t have recognized him by his face. I had no idea he’d played Darth Vader. And I don’t know what the Green Cross Man is. But, oddly, I did remember him from _A Clockwork Orange_. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2021, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/234 "2021-02-03T01:58:32Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > Captain Sir Tom Moore would be my nomination for the most famous. Mr. Cain a close second. Never heard of either of them. Going down the [Wiki list](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_deaths_due_to_COVID-19), I recognise the following: Joe Diffie John Prine Annie Glenn (fame by association) Trini Lopez Ben Bova Valery Giscard d’Estaing Charley Pride K T Oslin Dawn Wells Phil Spector I would expect Spector to be the most well-known of them, With Pride perhaps in second place. I’ve heard of Siegfried and Roy, of course, and the Yorkshire Ripper, but their individual names meant nothing to me. ---
**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:** [February 3, 2021, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/235 "2021-02-03T02:59:27Z")
> [@Saintly\_Loser](#): > > And I don’t know what the Green Cross Man is. There was a long-running series of public-service ads for the Green Cross Code, a program to promote pedestrian safety in the U.K. In the ads, Prowse played the Green Cross Man, a superhero who taught kids about being safe while crossing streets and such. [![](https://i1.wp.com/skywalkingthroughneverland.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/IMG_5096-510x407.jpg?resize=510%2C407&ssl=1) ](https://i1.wp.com/skywalkingthroughneverland.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/IMG_5096-510x407.jpg?resize=510%2C407&ssl=1) > **[Green Cross Code | Green Cross Man](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Cross_Code#Green_Cross_Man)** > > The Green Cross Man is a costumed superhero character created in England in mid-1970 as an aid to teaching children and young people the Green Cross Code, and for promoting general road safety via television adverts. British weight-lifting champion David Prowse (1935–2020), who went on to portray Darth Vader in the film Star Wars (1977), played the character in a series of Public Information Films sponsored by the British Government's Central Office of Information for the Department of the Enviro... ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2021, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/236 "2021-02-03T09:31:25Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > There was a long-running series of public-service ads for the Green Cross Code, a program to promote pedestrian safety in the U.K. In the ads, Prowse played the Green Cross Man, a superhero who taught kids about being safe while crossing streets and such. That’s how I remember him best - he was everywhere on British TV in the 70s. He taught us all how to cross the road! It was a ‘woah’ moment for 70s kids when we learned he was Darth Vadar. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/237 "2021-02-08T17:08:00Z")
> **[GOP Rep. Ron Wright dies following Covid diagnosis | CNN Politics](https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/08/politics/ron-wright-congressman-dies/index.html)** > > Republican Rep. Ron Wright of Texas has died, his congressional office announced in a statement Monday, saying that he had been admitted to the hospital after contracting Covid-19. Is he the first member of the House or Senate to die from Covid? ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/238 "2021-02-08T17:28:09Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Is he the first member of the House or Senate to die from Covid? Yes, but there was a congressperson-elect who died of COVID in December. ---
**Author:** ![2\_More\_Bits](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2_more_bits/32/4148_2.png) [@2\_More\_Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2_More_Bits)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/239 "2021-03-21T20:55:18Z")
“Kent Taylor, the founder and chief executive of the Texas Roadhouse restaurant chain, died by suicide on Thursday after suffering from post-Covid-19 symptoms, the company and his family said in a statement. He was 65.” From today’s NYT.[[paywalled link]](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/21/business/kent-taylor-dead.html?action=click&module=Latest&pgtype=Homepage) ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2021, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987/240 "2021-08-19T18:43:44Z")
Sonny Chiba. > **[RIP Sonny Chiba, Martial Arts Superstar](https://gizmodo.com/rip-sonny-chiba-martial-arts-superstar-1847516511)** > > The prolific Japanese actor, star of Kill Bill and the cult-classic Street Fighter series, has died at 82. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-killed-by-covid-19-so-far/849987.md?page=13)