Whenever a celebrity dies, it takes over the media. Celebrity deaths can hit people very close to home, even if they never met the celeb, because of how we form memories and associations around celebrities. And it's especially crazy when celebrities die on the same day as each other.
Category
đ ïž
LifestyleTranscript
00:00Few things make headlines like the death of a celebrity.
00:03Even if you've never met them, the passing of a famous person can come as quite a shock,
00:07especially if they happened to die on the same day as another important figure.
00:11Here's a look at some celebrities who freakishly died on the same day.
00:14Farrah Fawcett
00:15Farrah Fawcett rose to fame during her run as one-third of Charlie's Angels, and just
00:19so happens to be the subject of the best-selling pinup poster of all time.
00:23Unfortunately, at age 62, Fawcett succumbed to a rare form of cancer in a Santa Monica
00:27hospital on June 25, 2009.
00:30However, news of her passing was quickly overshadowed in the media by Michael Jackson, who died
00:35later that same day due to an overdose of medications administered by his own doctor.
00:40The King of Pop rose to fame with his brothers in The Jackson 5 before moonwalking his way
00:44to global stardom as a solo artist and creating unforgettable hits such as Thriller and Billie
00:49Jean.
00:50Jackson's doctor, Conrad Murray, was charged with involuntary manslaughter in February
00:542010 and served two years in prison for his role in the star's untimely death.
00:59Federico Fellini
01:00Italian film director Federico Fellini was famous for pushing the boundaries of what
01:03film could say and do.
01:05Described by Time magazine as brilliant and mad, Fellini's films are well-known for their
01:10imaginative, sometimes shocking, content.
01:12The director was 73 when he passed away from cardiac arrest on Halloween in 1993.
01:17Though internationally renowned, Fellini's death was overshadowed in the States by the
01:21untimely passing of River Phoenix, who died of a drug overdose the same day.
01:25A teen idol in the 80s and early 90s, Phoenix made his name in films like Stand By Me and
01:30Running on Empty.
01:31Contrary to his clean image, however, Phoenix was living a secret, drug-fueled life.
01:35On Halloween night 1993, Phoenix began having seizures outside the Viper Room in L.A., ultimately
01:41dying due to a lethal mixture of morphine and cocaine.
01:45Freddie Mercury
01:46Few frontmen have made an impact as significant as Freddie Mercury.
01:49From his incredible stage presence to his remarkable vocal range, Mercury and his bandmates
01:53in Queen are recognized as some of the greatest performers in rock and roll history.
01:58While he was a powerhouse on stage, Mercury was a famously private individual, so when
02:02rumors began circulating in the 1980s about his declining health, Mercury chose not to
02:07address them.
02:08It wasn't until November of 1991 that the famous frontman released a statement acknowledging
02:13he had been diagnosed as HIV positive and had developed AIDS.
02:17Only a day later, on November 24th, Mercury passed away at his home.
02:21Across the ocean, KISS drummer Eric Carr had fallen ill in early 1991.
02:25He was diagnosed with heart cancer, according to the L.A. Times, and despite undergoing
02:30both surgery and chemotherapy, passed away on November 24th, 1991.
02:34Carr had replaced drummer Peter Criss in 1980 and stayed with KISS for 11 years, recording
02:39eight albums.
02:40He was only 41 when he passed.
02:42Orville Wright
02:43While Drummer Gandhi and Orville Wright had almost nothing in common, both men left a
02:47lasting influence throughout the world.
02:49Along with his brother Wilbur, Orville Wright is credited with essentially creating modern
02:53aviation.
02:54The Wright brothers' historic 1903 flight was the first instance of a controlled, sustained
02:59flight in a powered, heavier-than-air vehicle, a breakthrough that paved the way for air
03:03travel as we know it today.
03:04However, Orville Wright never experienced the joys of flying first class, as the 79-year-old
03:09passed away on January 30th, 1948.
03:12Gandhi, meanwhile, inspired civil rights around the world through his peaceful acts of civil
03:16disobedience.
03:18Known for his passive resistance approach to political dissent, Gandhi spent his life
03:22fighting against oppression, seeking India's independence from Britain, and promoting peace
03:26between Muslims and Hindus.
03:28Unfortunately, on January 30th, 1948, the 78-year-old leader was assassinated while
03:33on his way to a prayer meeting.
03:35Margaret Thatcher
03:36Margaret Thatcher was the longest-serving prime minister of England in the 20th century,
03:40with a tenure surpassing 11 years.
03:42That's a decent run at any job, let alone running an entire country.
03:46Thatcher is widely considered Britain's most important politician in the post-war era,
03:51though her legacy is internationally known.
03:53In 2011, Meryl Streep won an Oscar for her portrayal of Thatcher in the 2011 film based
03:59on her life, The Iron Lady.
04:00Thatcher, who had dementia, never saw the film before suffering a stroke and passing
04:04away on April 8th, 2013.
04:07The former prime minister was 87 years old.
04:10Across the ocean, American actress Annette Funicello passed away the same day as Thatcher
04:14due to multiple sclerosis-related complications.
04:17Funicello had been a staple of American pop culture since appearing in The Mickey Mouse
04:21Club as a teenager, but the actress was perhaps best known for starring in the Beach Party
04:25film series of the 1960s.
04:27Funicello was 70 at the time of her death.
04:29John Adams
04:30While John Adams and Thomas Jefferson are known in American history for their work on
04:34the Declaration of Independence, not many people know of the more eerie connection these
04:38founding fathers share.
04:39The second and third presidents, respectively, Adams and Jefferson's friendship decayed into
04:43a bitter rivalry for a time due to opposing political viewpoints.
04:47However, the two were able to rekindle their friendship once neither was in charge of the
04:51country, and remained close until dying within hours of one another on July 4th, 1826, exactly
04:5750 years after signing the Declaration of Independence.
05:01Talk about a freaky coincidence.
05:02Legend has it that the last sentence the 90-year-old Adams muttered before he died was,
05:07Thomas Jefferson still survives.
05:09While there's little proof of that, Adams would have been wrong anyway.
05:12Jefferson died five hours prior to Adams' death.