Puneet Varma (Editor)

Deaths in December 2012

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The following is a list of notable deaths in December 2012.

Contents

Entries for each day are listed alphabetically by surname. A typical entry lists information in the following sequence:

  • Name, age, country of citizenship and reason for notability, established cause of death, reference.

    • 1

  • Jovan Belcher, 25, American football player (Kansas City Chiefs), suicide by gunshot.
  • José Bénazéraf, 90, French film director and producer.
  • Arthur Chaskalson, 81, South African judge, Chief Justice (2001–2005), leukaemia.
  • Mitchell Cole, 27, English footballer (Southend United, Stevenage Borough), complications of a heart defect.
  • John Crigler, 76, American basketball player (University of Kentucky).
  • Steve Fox, 54, English footballer, cancer.
  • Dee Harvey, 47, American R&B singer.
  • Rick Majerus, 64, American college basketball coach (University of Utah, Saint Louis University), heart failure.
  • Ezroy Millwood, 70, Jamaican transport businessman.
  • Gerard Parker, 76, American Cherokee tribal leader, Principal Chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (1995).
  • Ed Price, 94, American politician, member of the Florida Senate (1958–1966).
  • Ray Rosso, 96, Italian-born American football coach, natural causes.
  • Marcia Russell, New Zealand journalist and news presenter.
  • Edouard Saouma, 86, Lebanese civil servant, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (1976–1993).
  • Bhim Bahadur Tamang, 78, Nepali politician, stroke.
  • Phil Taylor, 95, English footballer and coach (Liverpool).
  • Vidal Vega, 48, Paraguayan peasant leader, shooting.
  • Yoshinori Watanabe, 71, Japanese yakuza, fifth godfather of the Yamaguchi-gumi.
  • Reinhold Weege, 62, American television writer and producer (Barney Miller, Night Court), natural causes.
  • James R. Whelan, 79, American publisher (The Washington Times), multiple organ failure.
  • Karl-Heinz Wiebe, 96, German U-boat chief engineer during World War II.

    • 2

  • Michael Crawford, 92, English cricket player.
  • Preeti Ganguly, 59, Indian actress.
  • Michael A. Gorman, 62, American politician, member of the North Carolina House of Representatives (2003–2005), POEMS syndrome.
  • Tom Hendry, 83, Canadian playwright, founder of Manitoba Theatre Centre.
  • Hiroshi Kato, 77, Japanese aikido master.
  • Israel Keyes, 34, American alleged serial killer, suicide by hanging and lacerations.
  • Ehsan Naraghi, 86, Iranian sociologist and writer, Director of UNESCO's Youth Division (1980–1996), long illness.
  • Sylvester Odhiambo, Kenyan football coach (Muhoroni Youth F.C.).
  • Décio Pignatari, 85, Brazilian poet, essayist and translator, respiratory failure.
  • Azumir Veríssimo, 77, Brazilian footballer.

    • 3

  • Jules Mikhael Al-Jamil, 74, Iraqi-born Lebanese Syrian Catholic hierarch, Archbishop-Procurator in Rome (since 1986).
  • Leo Rajendram Antony, 85, Sri Lankan Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Trincomalee-Batticaloa (1974–1983).
  • Tommy Berggren, 62, Swedish footballer.
  • Kuntal Chandra, 28, Bangladeshi cricketer, strangulation.
  • Christopher Erhardt, 53, American video game producer and academic.
  • Peter Johnson, Sr., 91, American trial lawyer and political power broker, pulmonary fibrosis.
  • Fyodor Khitruk, 95, Russian animator and animation director (The Story of a Crime).
  • M. Mahroof, 62, Sri Lankan politician, MP for Colombo (2000–2010).
  • Diego Mendieta, 32, Paraguayan footballer, viral infection.
  • Eileen Moran, 60, American visual effects producer (The Lord of the Rings, Avatar, King Kong), cancer.
  • Sir Geoffrey Shakerley, 80, British photographer.
  • Janet Shaw, 46, Australian Paralympic bronze medal-winning (2004) cyclist and author, cancer.
  • Jeroen Willems, 50, Dutch actor and singer, cardiac arrest.

    • 4

  • Alfredo Abon Lee, 85, Cuban military officer.
  • Grady Allen, 66, American football player (Atlanta Falcons), cardiac arrest.
  • José Alves da Costa, 73, Brazilian Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Corumbá (1991–1999).
  • Vasily Belov, 80, Russian writer, poet and dramatist.
  • Philippe Bena, 60, French Olympic fencer.
  • Jack Brooks, 89, American politician, member of US House of Representatives (1953–1995) and Texas House of Representatives (1949–1953).
  • Miguel Calero, 41, Colombian footballer, cerebral thrombosis.
  • Besse Cooper, 116, American supercentenarian, world's oldest person.
  • Anthony Deane-Drummond, 95, British army general.
  • Massimo Giustetti, 86, Italian Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Pinerolo (1974–1975), Mondovi (1975–1986) and Biella (1986–2001).
  • Jonathan Harvey, 73, English composer, motor neurone disease.
  • Eamon Kelly, 65, Irish criminal, shot.
  • Peter Kiesewetter, 67, German modern classical composer.
  • Miroslav Kluc, 90, Czech Olympic ice hockey (1956) forward and coach, member of Czech Ice Hockey Hall of Fame, stroke.
  • Carroll E. Lanier, 86, American politician.
  • Larry Lawrence, 63, American football player (Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Edmonton Eskimos), edema.
  • Paul Marcotte, 84, American politician, member of the Kentucky House of Representatives (2005–2007).
  • Branislav Milinković, 52, Serbian diplomat, ambassador to NATO and Austria, suicide by jumping.
  • Hilmar Moore, 92, American politician, longest serving mayor in the United States, complications of a fall.
  • Tony Sweeney, 81, Irish sports writer and historian, heart attack.
  • Michael Till, 77, British Anglican priest, Dean of Winchester (1996–2005).
  • Ken Trickey, 79, American basketball coach (Oral Roberts University).
  • Gerrit van Dijk, 73, Dutch animator, long illness.
  • John Ward, 64, American football player (Minnesota Vikings), cancer.

    • 5

  • Sammy Arena, 81, American singer, multiple organ failure.
  • Petrine Archer-Straw, 55, British art historian.
  • Dave Brubeck, 91, American jazz pianist ("Take Five") and composer ("Blue Rondo à la Turk"), heart failure.
  • Chen Wencong, 42, Singaporean actor, writer and producer, pneumonia.
  • Geoffrey Clatworthy, 73, New Zealand community activist.
  • Eduardo J. Corso, 92, Uruguayan journalist and lawyer.
  • Wilhelmus Demarteau, 95, Dutch-born Indonesian Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Banjarmasin (1954–1983).
  • Kazbek Gekkiyev, 28, Russian journalist, shooting.
  • Frigyes Hollósi, 71, Hungarian actor.
  • Ignatius IV of Antioch, 92, Syrian Orthodox patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch (since 1979), stroke.
  • Nakamura Kanzaburō XVIII, 57, Japanese kabuki star, acute respiratory distress syndrome.
  • Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, 103, Australian philanthropist, widow of Sir Keith Murdoch, mother of Rupert Murdoch.
  • Yves Niaré, 35, French Olympic (2008) shot putter, traffic collision.
  • Oscar Niemeyer, 104, Brazilian architect, respiratory infection.
  • Eileen Pollock, 86, American television writer and producer (Dynasty, The Colbys).
  • Kaisa Sere, 58, Finnish computer scientist.
  • Doug Smith, 75, Scottish footballer and administrator (Dundee United).

    • 6

  • Miguel Abia Biteo Boricó, 51, Equatorial Guinean politician, Prime Minister (2004–2006), heart attack.
  • Mike Boyette, 71, American professional wrestler, heart disease.
  • Jan Carew, 92, Guyanese writer and academic.
  • Ed Cassidy, 89, American musician (Spirit), cancer.
  • Eta Cohen, 96, English violin teacher and author.
  • Bim Diederich, 90, Luxembourgian road bicycle racer.
  • David Favrholdt, 81, Danish philosopher.
  • Keitani Graham, 32, Micronesian Olympic (2012) Greco-Roman wrestler.
  • Alice Harden, 64, American politician, Mississippi State Senator (since 1988).
  • Karine Kazinian, 57, Armenian diplomat, Ambassador to the United Kingdom (since 2011), complications during surgery.
  • Jeffrey Koo Sr., 79, Taiwanese businessman and billionaire, Chairman for Chinatrust Financial Holding Company.
  • Huw Lloyd-Langton, 61, British guitarist (Hawkwind, Widowmaker), throat cancer.
  • Reginald Norby, 78, Norwegian diplomat, Ambassador to France (1994–1998).
  • Pulpit, 18, American Thoroughbred racehorse, winner of the 1997 Fountain of Youth Stakes and Blue Grass Stakes.
  • Giovanni Sostero, 48, Italian astronomer, heart attack.
  • Pedro Vaz, 49, Uruguayan diplomat and lawyer, Minister of Foreign Affairs (2009–2010), Ambassador to Chile (since 2010), heart attack.
  • Felix Weinberg, 84, Czech-born British physicist.

    • 7

  • Abu-Zaid al Kuwaiti, 46, Kuwaiti al-Qaeda leader, drone strike.
  • Duggan Anderson, 88, Australian football player (Swan Districts Football Club).
  • P. J. Carey, 59, American baseball coach (Colorado Rockies).
  • Chen Wen-Yu, 88, Taiwanese horticulturist.
  • Thomas Cornell, 75, American artist and professor, cancer.
  • Gilbert Durand, 91, French academic.
  • Ammar El Sherei, 64, Egyptian musical composer and performer, heart ailment.
  • Denis Houf, 80, Belgian footballer (Standard Liège).
  • William F. House, 89, American physician, developer of the cochlear implant, cancer.
  • Irene Hughes, 92, American psychic.
  • Nikola Ilić, 27, Serbian basketball player, cancer.
  • Roelof Kruisinga, 90, Dutch politician, Minister of Defence (1977–1978).
  • Art Larsen, 87, American tennis player.
  • Jeni Le Gon, 96, American dancer and actress (Amos 'n' Andy).
  • Rusty Mills, 49, American animator (Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain, The Replacements), colon cancer.
  • Ralph Parr, 88, American fighter pilot, Korean War flying ace.
  • Marty Reisman, 82, American table tennis player, complications of heart and lung ailments.
  • Saul Steinberg, 73, American businessman and corporate raider.
  • George Suppiah, 83, Singaporean football referee, diabetes.
  • Shyam Lal Tabdar, 70, Nepali diplomat, Ambassador to Egypt (since 2010), heart attack.
  • Joseph R. Weisberger, 92, American judge, Chief Justice of Rhode Island Supreme Court (1993–2001).

    • 8

  • Jerry Brown, 25, American football player (Dallas Cowboys), traffic collision.
  • Mary Griggs Burke, 96, American art collector, largest private collector of Japanese art outside Japan.
  • Arnold Dean, 82, American radio sports host and personality.
  • John Gowans, 78, British religious leader and musician, General of The Salvation Army (1999–2002).
  • Jagannathan, 74, Indian actor.
  • Yvonne Kennedy, 67, American politician, member of the Alabama House of Representatives (since 1979).
  • Johnny Lira, 61, American lightweight boxer, liver disease.
  • Ambrose Madtha, 57, Indian Roman Catholic prelate, Titular Archbishop of Naissus, Apostolic Nuncio to Côte d'Ivoire (since 2008), traffic collision.
  • Charles Martin, 81, American politician, member of the Alabama House of Representatives and Alabama Senate.
  • Khan Sarwar Murshid, 88, Bangladeshi educationist and intellectual, complications from stroke.
  • Walter Newman, 91, American civic leader and army veteran.
  • Bill Prest, 86, Australian politician, Queensland MLA for Port Curtis (1976–1992).
  • Hal Schaefer, 87, American jazz musician and vocal coach (Marilyn Monroe) involved in the Wrong-Door Raid.
  • Isaiah Shavitt, 87, Polish–born American theoretical chemist.
  • Mark Strizic, 84, Australian photographer.

    • 9

  • Barbara Alby, 66, American politician, member of the California State Assembly (1993–1998).
  • Mathews Mar Barnabas, 88, Indian Metropolitan of Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church.
  • Michael Bürsch, 70, German politician.
  • Hiromori Kawashima, 90, Japanese sports administrator.
  • Ivan Ljavinec, 89, Ukrainian-born Czech Byzantine Catholic hierarch, Apostolic Exarch in the Czech Republic (1996–2003).
  • Sir Patrick Moore, 89, British astronomer and broadcaster (The Sky at Night), infection.
  • Alex Moulton, 92, British engineer and inventor (Moulton Bicycle).
  • Béla Nagy Abodi, 94, Hungarian painter.
  • André Nelis, 77, Belgian Olympic silver (1956) and bronze (1960) medal-winning sailor, cancer.
  • Ataa Oko, c. 93, Ghanaian fantasy coffin artist.
  • Jenni Rivera, 43, American-born Mexican banda and norteño singer, plane crash.
  • Charles Rosen, 85, American pianist and author, cancer.
  • Riccardo Schicchi, 59, Italian pornographer, renal insufficiency.
  • Mike Triay, 48, American radio personality and record producer ("Macarena"), heart attack.
  • Norman Joseph Woodland, 91, American inventor, co-creator of the bar code.

    • 10

  • Iajuddin Ahmed, 81, Bangladeshi politician, President (2002–2009), heart and kidney disease.
  • Vladimir Bakulin, 73, Kazakhstani Olympic silver medal-winning (1968) wrestler.
  • Cliff Brown, 60, American football player (Notre Dame).
  • Antonio Cubillo, 82, Spanish politician, founder of Canary Islands Independence Movement.
  • Lisa Della Casa, 93, Swiss soprano.
  • Marla English, 77, American actress.
  • Ralph Frese, 86, American canoe maker and conservationist.
  • Ed Grady, 89, American actor (The Notebook, Dawson's Creek).
  • Albert Otto Hirschman, 97, German-born American economist.
  • Harry Iauko, Vanuatuan politician, MP for Tanna (2008–2012), complications of pneumonia.
  • Jacques Jullien, 83, French Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Beauvais (1978–1984), and Archbishop of Rennes (1985–1998).
  • Patricia Kennedy, 96, Australian stage, film, and television actress (My Brilliant Career, Return to Eden).
  • Ciarán Maher, 50, Irish Gaelic football player.
  • Roy Miles, 77, British art dealer.
  • Bob Munden, 70, American entertainer, heart failure.
  • Shoichi Ozawa, 83, Japanese actor and folk art researcher.
  • Paul Rauch, 82, American television producer (Another World, One Life to Live, Santa Barbara), complications of blood clots.
  • Tommy Roberts, 70, British fashion designer.
  • John Small, 66, American football player (Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions).
  • Felix Stehling, 87, American restaurateur, co-founder of Taco Cabana, dementia.
  • Erwin Tomash, 91, American businessman (Dataproducts), Alzheimer's disease.
  • Birdsall S. Viault, 80, American academic.
  • Reginald James Wallace, 93, British civil servant, last Governor of the Gilbert Islands (1978–1979).

    • 11

  • Toni Blankenheim, 90, German opera singer.
  • Antonie Hegerlíková, 89, Czech actress, Thalia Award winner (2004).
  • William B. Hopkins, 90, American politician, member of Virginia Senate (1960–1980), majority leader (1976–1980).
  • Pedro Reginaldo Lira, 97, Argentinian Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of San Francisco in Argentina (1961–1965), and Auxiliary Bishop of Salta (1967–1978).
  • B. B. Nimbalkar, 92, Indian cricketer.
  • Dindi Gowa Nyasulu, 68, Malawian politician, leader of AFORD, brain tumor.
  • Alois Schnaubelt, 91, German Nazi soldier, awarded Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (1944).
  • Ravi Shankar, 92, Indian musician, complications from heart surgery.
  • Walter Francis Sullivan, 84, American Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Richmond (1974–2003), liver cancer.
  • Galina Vishnevskaya, 86, Russian soprano opera singer and recitalist.
  • Colleen Walker, 56, American golfer, won du Maurier Classic (1997), breast cancer.
  • Mendel Weinbach, 79, Polish-born Israeli rabbi.

    • 12

  • Joe Allbritton, 87, American businessman, broadcaster and publisher.
  • W. Rex Black, 92, American politician, member of the Utah Senate (1973–1997).
  • Ray Briem, 82, American radio host (KABC), cancer.
  • Eddie "Guitar" Burns, 84, American Detroit blues musician, heart failure.
  • Manas Chakraborty, 70, Indian singer.
  • Ron Cooper, 80, British bicycle frame maker.
  • Richard Eyre, 83, British Anglican priest, Dean of Exeter (1981–1996).
  • Else Marie Jakobsen, 85, Norwegian textile artist.
  • Walt Kirk, 88, American basketball player (Fort Wayne Pistons, Milwaukee Hawks).
  • Don Medford, 95, American television director (Baretta, Dynasty, The F.B.I., The Fugitive).
  • N.M. Mohan, 63, Indian comic book writer and editor, heart attack.
  • Uri Possen, 70, American economist.
  • Manju Bharat Ram, 66, Indian educationalist, cancer.
  • Augustin Sagna, 92, Senegalese Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Ziguinchor (1966–1995).
  • Nityanand Swami, 85, Indian politician, Chief Minister of Uttarakhand (2000–2001).
  • David Tait, 25, English rugby player, suspected suicide by fall from a building.

    • 13

  • Willie Ackerman, 73, American drummer (Willie Nelson, Loretta Lynn, Louis Armstrong).
  • Donnie Andrews, 58, American criminal, inspiration for Omar Little on The Wire, complications of heart surgery.
  • Ian Black, 88, Scottish footballer.
  • Jan Blaha, 74, Czech Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop (1967–2012).
  • Gil Friesen, 75, American music and film executive, President of A&M Records (1965–1990), leukemia.
  • Jack Hanlon, 96, American child actor (Our Gang, The Shakedown, The General).
  • Maurice Herzog, 93, French climber and politician, Minister of Youth and Sport (1958–1963).
  • Natalya Kustinskaya, 74, Russian actress (Three Plus Two, Ivan Vasilievich Changes Profession), complication from pneumonia.
  • Moshe Lazar, 84, American academic.
  • Newton Edward Miller, 93, American politician, member of the New Jersey House of Representatives (1981–1989).
  • Midori Miura, 64, Japanese translator of Russian, cancer.
  • T. Shanmugham, 92, Indian footballer and coach, respiratory ailment.
  • Rob Talbot, 89, New Zealand politician, MP for Ashburton (1966–1969, 1978–1987) and South Canterbury (1969–1978).
  • Abdesslam Yassine, 84, Moroccan political figure, complications of influenza.

    • 14

  • J. Abiodun Adetiloye, 82, Nigerian Anglican prelate, Primate of the Church of Nigeria (1986–1999).
  • Alida Chelli, 69, Italian actress, cancer.
  • John Graham, 89, British army general.
  • Edward Jones, 62, American politician, North Carolina State Senator (since 2007), pancreatic cancer.
  • Kenneth Kendall, 88, British television broadcaster (BBC News, Treasure Hunt), complications of a stroke.
  • Klaus Köste, 69, German Olympic champion (1972) gymnast, heart failure.
  • Hazel McIsaac, 79, Canadian politician, Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly member for St. George's (1975–1982), Alzheimer's disease.
  • Victoria Leigh Soto, 27, American elementary school teacher, shooting.
  • Marion Stokes, 83, American television producer and civil rights activist.
  • Shōmei Tōmatsu, 82, Japanese photographer.

    • 15

  • Owoye Andrew Azazi, 60, Nigerian general, National Security Adviser (2010–2012), helicopter crash.
  • Dick Hafer, 85, American jazz saxophonist.
  • Bob Johnston, 83, Australian rules footballer (Melbourne).
  • C. Louis Kincannon, 72, American bureaucrat, Director of the U.S. Census Bureau (2002–2008), cancer.
  • Vincent Lafko, 67, Slovak Olympic handball player.
  • Bob Odell, 90, American football player, kidney disease.
  • Páidí Ó Sé, 57, Irish Gaelic football player and manager, suspected heart attack.
  • Bobby Jack Oliver, 76, American football player.
  • Ralph Pampena, 78, American police officer, Pittsburgh Police Chief (1987–1990), cancer.
  • Jeffrey Potter, 94, American author.
  • John Anderson Strong, 97, Scottish physician and academic.
  • Takeshi Urata, 65, Japanese astronomer.
  • Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, 64, Nigerian politician, Governor of Kaduna State (since 2010), helicopter crash.
  • Olga Zubarry, 83, Argentine film actress.

    • 16

  • Axel Anderson, 83, German-born Puerto Rican actor.
  • Robert W. Bazley, 87, American four-star general.
  • James Walker Benét, 98, American journalist, veteran of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, son of William Rose Benét.
  • John Chen Shi-zhong, 94, Chinese Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Suifu (since 1985).
  • Peter Clarke, 77, British cartoonist.
  • Doyle Conner, 83, American politician, member of Florida House (1950–1960), Speaker (1958–1960), Florida Commissioner of Agriculture (1961–1991).
  • Febo Conti, 85, Italian television and radio presenter.
  • Robert Derleth, 90, American football player, complications of a stroke.
  • Andrzej Dłużniewski, 73, Polish sculptor.
  • George Duggan, 100, New Zealand Marist priest and writer.
  • Elwood V. Jensen, 92, American medical researcher, pneumonia.
  • Laurier LaPierre, 83, Canadian broadcaster and politician, Senator from Ontario (2001–2004).
  • Iñaki Lejarreta, 29, Spanish Olympic (2008) mountain biker, traffic collision.
  • Sheila McKinley, 71, Scottish singer, cancer.
  • Adam Ndlovu, 42, Zimbabwean footballer, traffic collision.
  • Enrique Oltuski, 82, Cuban politician and revolutionary, respiratory failure.
  • Nikolai Parshin, 83, Russian football player and manager.
  • Jim Patterson, 84, Scottish footballer.
  • Brian Sampson, 71, Australian rules football player.
  • Fan Vavřincová, 95, Czech author and screenwriter (Eva tropí hlouposti, Taková normální rodinka).
  • Josh Weston, 39, American gay porn actor, AIDS-related causes.
  • Jake Adam York, 40, American poet, stroke.

    • 17

  • Charlie Adam, 50, Scottish footballer.
  • Richard Adams, 65, Filipino-born American gay rights activist, short illness.
  • Tony Charlton, 83, Australian sports broadcaster, bowel cancer.
  • Chinwe Chukwuogo-Roy, 60, Nigerian-born British artist, cancer.
  • James Gower, 90, American Catholic priest and peace activist, co-founder of the College of the Atlantic.
  • Jesse Hill Jr., 86, American civil rights leader and businessman.
  • Daniel Inouye, 88, American politician, Senator from Hawaii (since 1963), President pro tempore (since 2010), Medal of Honor recipient, respiratory failure.
  • Peter Kenen, 80, American academic, emphysema.
  • Dina Manfredini, 115, Italian-born American supercentenarian, oldest verified living person.
  • Arnaldo Mesa, 45, Cuban Olympic silver medal-winning (1996) boxer, stroke.
  • Frank Pastore, 55, American baseball player (Cincinnati Reds), injuries from a traffic collision.
  • Midge Richardson, 82, American magazine editor (Seventeen), natural causes.
  • Sir Colin Spedding, 87, British biologist and agricultural scientist.
  • Carroll S. Walsh, Jr., 91, American judge, New York Supreme Court (1978–1990), heart failure.

    • 18

  • Skippy Baxter, 93, American figure skater.
  • Leman Çıdamlı, 80, Turkish actress, lung cancer.
  • Joseph T. Doyle, 81, American judge and politician, cancer.
  • Sigmund Eisner, 92, American academic.
  • Albert Elias, 41, American sports agent.
  • Georgi Kaloyanchev, 87, Bulgarian actor (The Tied Up Balloon, Where Are You Going?).
  • Koko, 7, Australian canine actor (Red Dog), heart disease.
  • Ben Luján, 77, American politician, member of the New Mexico House of Representatives (since 1975), Speaker (since 2001), lung cancer.
  • Frank Macchiarola, 71, American educator, New York City Schools Chancellor (1978–1983), liver cancer.
  • Bessie Moody-Lawrence, 71, American politician, member of the South Carolina House of Representatives (1993–2007), brain cancer.
  • Mustafa Ould Salek, 76, Mauritanian army officer and politician, Chairman of the Military Committee for National Recovery (1978–1979).
  • Camil Samson, 77, Canadian politician, MNA for Rouyn-Noranda (1970–1981).
  • George Showell, 78, English footballer, ruptured stomach aortic artery.
  • Danny Steinmann, 70, American film director (Friday the 13th: A New Beginning).
  • Jim Whalen, 69, American football player (New England Patriots).
  • Kevin Williams, 42, American football player.
  • Sir Marcus Worsley, 87, English politician, MP for Keighley (1959–1964) and Chelsea (1966–1974).
  • Muriel T. Yacavone, 92, American politician, member of the Connecticut House of Representatives (1970–1982).
  • Anatoliy Zayaev, 81, Ukrainian football player and coach, traffic collision.

    • 19

  • Bud Alper, 82, American sound engineer (Blade Runner, Rocky, The Crow).
  • Inez Andrews, 83, American gospel singer (The Caravans), cancer.
  • Sir Lawrie Barratt, 85, English businessman (Barratt Developments).
  • Robert Bork, 85, American legal scholar, jurist, and 1987 Supreme Court nominee, heart disease.
  • Paul Crauchet, 92, French actor.
  • Garniss Curtis, 93, American geophysicist.
  • Colin Davis, 79, British racing driver, winner of 1964 Targa Florio.
  • Pecker Dunne, 79, Irish musician.
  • Georges Jobé, 51, Belgian motocross rider, five-time FIM World Motocross Champion, leukemia.
  • Douglas Leiterman, 85, Canadian producer and journalist (This Hour Has Seven Days).
  • Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, 68, Israeli general, Chief of Staff (1995–1998) and politician, Minister of Transportation and Tourism, cancer.
  • Larry Morris, 79, American football player (Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams), after long illness.
  • Keiji Nakazawa, 73, Japanese Manga artist and writer (Barefoot Gen), lung cancer.
  • George O'Donnell, 83, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates).
  • Virginia Starcher, American politician, member of the West Virginia House of Delegates (1986–1990)
  • Peter Struck, 69, German politician, member of the Bundestag (1980–2009), Minister of Defence (2002–2005), heart attack.
  • Piet de Visser, 81, Dutch politician.

    • 20

  • Bill Bell, 100, British army officer and lawyer.
  • Stan Charlton, 83, English footballer (Leyton Orient, Arsenal).
  • Leslie Claudius, 85, Indian Olympic champion (1948, 1952, 1956, 1960) field hockey player, cirrhosis.
  • Alan Cowey, 77, British biochemist.
  • Richard Crandall, 64, American scientist, leukemia.
  • Niall FitzGerald, 81, Irish football player.
  • Robert Juniper, 83, Australian artist.
  • Eagle Keys, 89, American-born Canadian CFL football player (Montreal Alouettes, Edmonton Eskimos) and coach (Saskatchewan Roughriders).
  • Larry L. King, 83, American writer and playwright (Best Little Whorehouse in Texas), emphysema.
  • Jimmy McCracklin, 91, American blues musician, diabetes and hypertension.
  • Victor Merzhanov, 93, Russian classical pianist.
  • Erich Peters, 92, Swedish Olympic gymnast.
  • Albert Renaud, 92, Canadian ice hockey player.
  • Thelma Reston, 75, Brazilian actress (Entranced Earth), breast cancer.
  • Kamil Sönmez, 65, Turkish singer and actor, State Artist, cerebral hemorrhage.
  • Dennis Stevens, 79, English footballer (Bolton Wanderers, Everton).
  • Jerome Whitehead, 56, American basketball player, gastrointestinal hemorrhage.

    • 21

  • Vivian Anderson, 91, American baseball player (Milwaukee Chicks).
  • Boyd Bartley, 92, American baseball player (Brooklyn Dodgers).
  • Jarl Borssén, 75, Swedish actor and comedian.
  • Thomas Bryant, 79, South African cricketer. [1]
  • Curtis Crider, 82, American racing driver.
  • Jishu Dasgupta, 53, Indian film and television producer, cardiac arrest.
  • Lee Dorman, 70, American bass guitarist (Iron Butterfly, Captain Beyond), natural causes.
  • David Lomon, 94, British military veteran, member of the International Brigade.
  • Shane McEntee, 56, Irish politician, TD for Meath (2005–2007) & Meath East (since 2007); Minister of State for Food, Horticulture and Food Safety (since 2011), suicide.
  • Thomas W. McGee, 88, American politician, member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (1963–1991) and Speaker (1975–1984).
  • Lotoala Metia, Tuvaluan politician, Minister for Finance, after long illness.
  • Seiso Moyo, 56, Zimbabwean politician, MP for Nketa, heart attack.
  • Daphne Oxenford, 93, English television and radio actress (Listen with Mother, Coronation Street).
  • Basil Robinson, 93, English-born Canadian cricketer.

    • 22

  • Peter Anker, 85, Norwegian art historian and critic.
  • Mariam Amash, 124 (claimed), Ottoman-born Arab-Israeli supercentenarian, claimant to title of oldest living person.
  • Bashir Ahmad Bilour, 69, Pakistani politician, bombing.
  • Paul Borowski, 75, German Olympic sailor.
  • Chuck Cherundolo, 96, American football player (Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers), heart failure.
  • Wattie Dick, 85, Scottish footballer (Accrington Stanley).
  • Ryan Freel, 36, American baseball player (Cincinnati Reds), suicide by gunshot.
  • Emidio Greco, 74, Italian film director and screenwriter.
  • Willy Blok Hanson, 98, Javanese-born Canadian dancer.
  • Rip Hawk, 82, American professional wrestler.
  • George Hazlett, 89, Scottish footballer.
  • Gary Johnson, 74, American baseball player and manager.
  • Květa Legátová, 93, Czech writer, novel filmed as Želary.
  • Barbara Lett-Simmons, 85, American politician.
  • Lim Keng Yaik, 73, Malaysian politician.
  • Bill McBride, 67, American politician, Democratic Party nominee for Governor of Florida (2002), heart attack.
  • Gerald Melling, 69, British-born New Zealand architect and writer.
  • Cliff Osmond, 75, American actor (Irma la Douce, The Fortune Cookie, Kiss Me, Stupid), pancreatic cancer.
  • Robert Pew, 89, American businessman and philanthropist, CEO and Chairman of Steelcase.
  • Bolesław Proch, 60, Polish speedway rider, heart attack.
  • Arthur Quinlan, 92, Irish journalist (The Irish Times).
  • Robert Stevenson, 96, American musicologist.
  • Arkady Vorobyov, 88, Soviet weightlifter, Olympic champion under-90 kg (1956, 1960).
  • Marva Whitney, 68, American singer.

    • 23

  • Anand Abhyankar, 48, Indian actor, traffic collision.
  • Eduardo Arnosi, 88, Argentine music critic and writer.
  • Abe Deutschendorf, 77, American politician, member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives (1994–2006).
  • Dennis Greenland, 75, British soil scientist.
  • Jean Harris, 89, American convicted murderer, killer of Scarsdale Diet doctor Herman Tarnower.
  • Sylvia Hyman, 95, American ceramic artist.
  • Eduardo Maiorino, 33, Brazilian MMA fighter, heart attack.
  • Judy Nerat, 64, American politician, member of the Michigan House of Representatives (2009–2011), cancer.
  • Mike Scaccia, 47, American heavy metal guitarist (Ministry, Rigor Mortis, Revolting Cocks), heart attack.
  • Pedro Toledo, 69, Puerto Rican public official, Superintendent of the Puerto Rico Police Department (1993–2001, 2005–2009), cardiac arrest.
  • Cristian Tudor, 30, Romanian footballer, cirrhosis.
  • Klemens von Klemperer, 96, German-born American historian.
  • Evelyn Ward, 89, American television actress, mother of David Cassidy, Alzheimer's disease.

    • 24

  • Richard Rodney Bennett, 76, English composer (Nicholas and Alexandra, Murder on the Orient Express).
  • Frank Christian, 60, American singer-songwriter.
  • Ray Collins, 76, American singer (The Mothers of Invention), cardiac arrest.
  • Brad Corbett, 75, American baseball owner (Texas Rangers, 1974–1980).
  • Guy Dodson, 75, New Zealand biochemist.
  • Charles Durning, 89, American actor (Evening Shade, Rescue Me, The Sting), natural causes.
  • Carolina Griño-Aquino, 89, Filipino judge, Supreme Court (1988–1993) and Court of Appeals.
  • Douglas Hamilton, 65, British journalist.
  • Lee Hartman, 82, American animator (The Mickey Mouse Club, Sleeping Beauty), dementia.
  • Jack Klugman, 90, American actor (Quincy, M.E., The Odd Couple, 12 Angry Men), prostate cancer.
  • Alexander Leaf, 92, American physician and research scientist.
  • Xavier Mabille, 79, Belgian historian and political scientist.
  • Dennis O'Driscoll, 58, Irish poet.
  • Elwyn Richardson, 87, New Zealand educator.

    • 25

  • Sita bint Fahd Al Damir, 90, Saudi royal.
  • Erico Aumentado, 72, Filipino politician, member of the House of Representatives for Bohol (since 2010), pneumonia.
  • Jerzy Bereś, 82, Polish artist.
  • Sir Neville Bosworth, 94, British politician, Lord Mayor of Birmingham (1969–1970).
  • Augusto Bracca, 94, Venezuelan songwriter, respiratory arrest.
  • Frank Calabrese, Sr., 75, American mafia hitman (Family Secrets), suspected heart disease.
  • Rachel Douglas-Home, 27th Baroness Dacre, 83, British aristocrat.
  • Jane Dixon, 75, American Episcopal prelate, Suffragan Bishop of Washington (1992–2002).
  • Peter Ebert, 94, German opera director.
  • Halfdan Hegtun, 94, Norwegian radio personality and politician.
  • Edward Hughes, 92, American Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Metuchen (1987–1997), cancer.
  • John Josephs, 88, English cricketer (Leicestershire).
  • Henry Ford Kamel, 51, Ghanaian politician, MP for Buem (since 2004).
  • Joe Krivak, 77, American football coach (University of Maryland), leukemia.
  • Rudolf Müller, 81, German Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Görlitz (1994–2006).
  • Othmar Schneider, 84, Austrian Olympic champion (1952) Alpine skier and marksman.
  • Turki bin Sultan, 53, Saudi royal, Deputy Minister of Culture and Information (since 2011), heart attack.
  • Lynn Watters, 96, Canadian Olympic sailor.

    • 26

  • Abdul Ghafoor Ahmed, 85, Pakistani politician and educator.
  • Gerry Anderson, 83, British producer, writer and director (Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons), Alzheimer's disease.
  • Fontella Bass, 72, American singer ("Rescue Me"), complications from a heart attack.
  • Paul T. Bateman, 93, American number theorist.
  • Elizabeth Brewster, 90, Canadian poet and academic.
  • Anton Geiser, 88, Yugoslav-born Nazi concentration camp guard.
  • E. Porter Hatcher Jr., 76, American politician, member of the Kentucky House of Representatives (1987–1999).
  • Gerald McDermott, 71, American filmmaker and author.
  • Jean Perrot, 92, French archaeologist.
  • Irving Saraf, 80, Polish producer, editor and director (In the Shadow of the Stars, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
  • Henri Strzelecki, 87, Polish-born British fashion designer, co-founder of Henri Lloyd.
  • Ibrahim Tannous, 83, Lebanese military commander.
  • Rebecca Tarbotton, 39, Canadian-born American environmental activist, director of Rainforest Action Network, drowning.

    • 27

  • Peter Anderson, 62, New Zealand cricketer. [2]
  • Valentin Boreyko, 79, Russian Olympic champion (1960) rower.
  • Harry Carey, Jr., 91, American actor (Gremlins, Tombstone, The Searchers), natural causes.
  • Lloyd Charmers, 74, Jamaican singer and record producer, heart attack.
  • Beatriz da Costa, 38, German artist, cancer.
  • Maurice Paul Delorme, 93, French Roman Catholic prelate, Auxiliary Bishop of Lyon (1975–1994).
  • Beth Finch, 91, American politician, first female Mayor of Fayetteville, North Carolina (1975–1981).
  • Hamid Ghodse, 74, Iranian-born British academic, expert in substance abuse and dependence, lung cancer.
  • Sohrab Hossain, 90, Bangladeshi singer, exponent of Nazrul Sangeet.
  • Ken Jones, 68, English footballer (Bradford Park Avenue, Southampton).
  • Paul Khoarai, 79, Mosotho Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Leribe (1970–2009).
  • Jorma Kortelainen, 80, Finnish Olympic medalist (1956) cross-country skier and rower, sepsis.
  • Tingye Li, 81, Chinese-born American physicist.
  • Edgar May, 83, Swiss-born American politician and Pulitzer prize-winning (1961) journalist, member of Vermont House (1973–1983) and Senate (1983–1991), stroke.
  • Benny McLaughlin, 84, American footballer.
  • Jesco von Puttkamer, 79, German-born American aerospace engineer and NASA manager.
  • John Quimby, 77, American politician, member of the California State Assembly (1962–1974), complications of pneumonia.
  • Albert Riederer, 67, American judge and civic leader, Missouri Court of Appeals (1997–1999), cancer.
  • Archie Roy, 88, Scottish astronomer and paranormal expert, pneumonia.
  • Jim Sandoval, 54, American baseball historian.
  • Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., 78, American general, Commander-in-Chief of United States Central Command (1988–1991), complications from pneumonia.
  • Noriko Sengoku, 90, Japanese actress (Seven Samurai).
  • Takashi Taniguchi, 65, Japanese voice actor.
  • Mlađa Veselinović, 97, Serbian actor.
  • Salt Walther, 65, American racecar driver.
  • Ivar Ytreland, 86, Norwegian politician.

    • 28

  • Nicolas Ambraseys, 83, Greek engineering seismologist.
  • Bogdan Baltazar, 73, Romanian banker, press secretary for Prime Minister Petre Roman, cancer.
  • Martin G. Barnes, 64, American politician, first African American mayor of Paterson, New Jersey (1997–2002).
  • Richard Lee Beasley, 82, American politician, member of the South Carolina House of Representatives (1960–1966), father of David M. Beasley.
  • Steve Bryles, 55, American politician, member of the Arkansas Senate (2001–2011), cancer.
  • John Carol Case, 89, British baritone.
  • Emilio Charles, Jr., 56, Mexican professional wrestler, kidney failure.
  • Jayne Cortez, 76, American poet and performance artist.
  • Mark Crispin, 56, American computer programmer.
  • Václav Drobný, 32, Czech footballer (Aston Villa, national team), bobsleigh collision.
  • Barrie Edgar, 93, English producer (Come Dancing, Gardeners' World), pneumonia.
  • Jon Finch, 70, English actor (Frenzy, Kingdom of Heaven).
  • Arnór Hannibalsson, 78, Icelandic philosopher and professor.
  • Frank Henderson, 84, American politician and judge, member of the South Dakota Senate (1965–1966, 1969–1970) and Supreme Court of South Dakota (1979–1994).
  • Tommy Keane, 44, Irish association football player.
  • Leif Krantz, 80, Swedish television producer and film director.
  • Dan Kraus, 89, American basketball player and FBI special agent, cancer.
  • Claude-Anne Lopez, 92, American author and scholar, Alzheimer's disease.
  • Lord Avie, 34, American thoroughbred racehorse, oldest living Eclipse Award winner (1980).
  • Arman Manukyan, 81, Turkish economist and writer, heart disease.
  • George Patterson, 92, Scottish missionary.
  • Fred Rehm, 91, American basketball player.
  • Emmanuel Scheffer, 88, German-born Israeli football coach, coached national team to only World Cup (1970).
  • Burdette Solum, 85, American politician, member of the South Dakota House of Representatives (1991–1992, 1998–2004).
  • Frankie Walsh, 76, Irish hurler (Waterford GAA).

    • 29

  • Bob Astles, 88, British-born Ugandan government adviser.
  • Mike Auldridge, 73, American bluegrass musician (The Seldom Scene), cancer.
  • Henri Bortoft, 74, British philosopher.
  • Tony Greig, 66, South African cricketer, England captain (1975–1977) and Australian Nine Network television commentator, heart attack.
  • Roland Griffiths-Marsh, 89, Australian soldier.
  • Patience Latting, 94, American politician, first female Mayor of Oklahoma City (1971–1983).
  • Edward Meneeley, 85, American artist.
  • Ian Norton, 75, English cricketer. [3]
  • Ben Overton, 86, American judge, Supreme Court of Florida (1974–1999), complications following heart surgery.
  • William Rees-Mogg, Baron Rees-Mogg, 84, British journalist and life peer, Editor of The Times (1967–1981), oesophageal cancer.
  • Salvador Reyes Monteón, 76, Mexican footballer (C.D. Guadalajara).
  • Paulo Rocha, 77, Portuguese film director.
  • Bruce Stark, 79, American cartoonist (New York Daily News), emphysema.
  • Ruth Ann Steinhagen, 83, American stalker, shot Eddie Waitkus, inspiration for The Natural, fall.
  • Ignacy Tokarczuk, 94, Polish Roman Catholic prelate, Archbishop of Przemyśl (1965–1993).
  • Jean Topart, 90, French actor (Fantastic Planet).

    • 30

  • Catarina Castor, 32, Guatemalan politician, first Ixil woman elected to Congress, plane crash.
  • Philip Coppens, 41, American author, cancer.
  • Dennis Ferguson, 64, Australian convicted paedophile.
  • Beate Sirota Gordon, 89, Austrian-born American performing arts producer and women's rights advocate, drafted the Constitution of Japan.
  • Mike Hopkins, 53, New Zealand sound editor (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Transformers), drowning.
  • Arend Langenberg, 63, Dutch voice-over and radio presenter, rectal cancer.
  • Rita Levi-Montalcini, 103, Italian neurologist and senator for life, Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine (1986), natural causes.
  • Göran Nilsson, 66, Swedish cinematographer.
  • Gloria Pall, 85, American actress, heart failure.
  • Sir Irvine Patnick, 83, British politician, MP for Sheffield Hallam (1987–1997), heart disease.
  • Sonam Topgyal, 71, Tibetan politician, Kalön Tripa (Prime Minister) of the Central Tibetan Administration (1997–2001), stomach cancer.
  • Andreu Vivo, 34, Spanish artistic gymnast, competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics, heart attack while mountain climbing.
  • Carl Woese, 84, American biologist, winner of Leeuwenhoek Medal (1992), National Medal of Science (2000), complications from pancreatic cancer.

    • 31

  • Larry Bowie, 73, American football player (Minnesota Vikings).
  • Béla Csécsei, 60, Hungarian politician, Mayor of Józsefváros (1993–2009).
  • Susana Dalmás, 64, Uruguayan politician, Senator (2010–2012), heart attack.
  • Jim Davenport, 54, American journalist (Associated Press), cancer.
  • Walter Hekster, 75, Dutch composer, clarinetist and conductor.
  • Konstantin Kobets, 73, Russian Soviet-era military commander.
  • Alasdair Liddell, 63, British health executive.
  • Velta Līne, 89, Latvian actress, Stalin Prize (1948, 1951), People's Artist (1973).
  • Annapurna Maharana, 95, Indian revolutionary figure and women's right activist.
  • Jovette Marchessault, 74, Canadian writer and artist.
  • Tarak Mekki, 54, Tunisian politician, heart attack.
  • Alan Reece, 85, British engineer and businessman.
  • James B. Reuter, 96, American-born Filipino Roman Catholic priest and mass media advocate, complications from a stroke.
  • Jean-Henri Roger, 62/63, French film director.
  • Günter Rössler, 86, German photographer.
  • Yang Teng-kuei, 74, Taiwanese film producer (Fong Sai-yuk, A City of Sadness), stroke.

    • References

    Deaths in December 2012 Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA