For one reason or another, we as human beings seem to be fascinated by celebrity deaths. Every year we mourn the loss of famous people who pass away, and 2008 was no exception. The world saw the passing of one of comedy's finest, Mr. George Carlin. There was also the tragedy surrounding Heath Ledger, after he was found dead from a drug overdose. Here's our list of the most notable people to die in 2008, ordered by how well-known they were.
All walks of famous people are on this list, including actors, athletes, musicians, politicians and more.Although the rich and famous are just like the rest of us, it's alarming how many of them have their lives cut short because of drug overdoses or other accidents. Still others live out many long years only to succumb to diseases like cancer late in life. Which celebrities died in 2008? Scroll down and see for yourself....more
- George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an American stand-up comedian,... more on Wikipedia
George Carlin
Heart failure, Cardiovascular disease - Heath Andrew Ledger (4 April 1979 – 22 January 2008) was an Australian actor and music video... more on Wikipedia
Heath Ledger
Drug overdose, Combined drug intoxication - Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film... more on Wikipedia
Paul Newman
Lung cancer - Bernard Jeffrey McCullough (October 5, 1957 – August 9, 2008), better known by his stage name... more on Wikipedia
Bernie Mac
Complications from pneumonia, Sarcoidosis - Betty Mae Page (April 22, 1923 – December 11, 2008), known professionally as Bettie Page, was... more on Wikipedia
Bettie Page
Myocardial infarction - Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923 – April 5, 2008) was an American... more on Wikipedia
Charlton Heston
Complications from pneumonia - Eartha Kitt (born Eartha Mae Keith, January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American... more on Wikipedia
Eartha Kitt
Colorectal cancer - John Michael Crichton (; October 23, 1942 – November 4, 2008) was an American author,... more on Wikipedia
Michael Crichton
Cancer, Cancer of the larynx - Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent (French: [iv sɛ̃ lɔʁɑ̃]; 1 August 1936 – 1 June 2008),... more on Wikipedia
Yves Saint Laurent
Cancer - Tula Ellice Charisse (née Finklea; March 8, 1922 – June 17, 2008), known professionally as Cyd... more on Wikipedia
Cyd Charisse
Myocardial infarction - Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, songwriter,... more on Wikipedia
Isaac Hayes
Stroke - Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (16 December 1917 – 19 March 2008) was a British science fiction... more on Wikipedia
Arthur C. Clarke
Respiratory failure James Robert Stewart (6 March 1931 – 3 January 2008) was a British racing driver from Scotland... more on Wikipedia- Harvey Herschel Korman (February 15, 1927 – May 29, 2008) was an American actor and comedian,... more on Wikipedia
Harvey Korman
Abdominal aortic aneurysm - Ellas McDaniel (born Ellas Otha Bates, December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known as Bo Diddley,... more on Wikipedia
Bo Diddley
Myocardial infarction - Arthur John Shawcross (June 6, 1945 – November 10, 2008), also known as the Genesee River... more on Wikipedia
Arthur Shawcross
Cardiac arrest - Katoucha Niane (23 October 1960 – 2 February 2008) was a Guinean model. Nicknamed "The Peul... more on Wikipedia
Katoucha Niane
Drowning - Melchior Gastón Ferrer (August 25, 1917 – June 2, 2008) was an American actor and director of... more on Wikipedia
Mel Ferrer
Heart failure - Suharto (, Indonesian pronunciation ; 8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian... more on Wikipedia
Suharto
Heart failure, Cardiovascular disease - Brad Barron Renfro (July 25, 1982 – January 15, 2008) was an American actor. He made his film... more on Wikipedia
Brad Renfro
Drug overdose, Heroin overdose - Julie Ege (Norwegian pronunciation: [jʉːliə ˈeːɡə]; 12 November 1943 – 29 April 2008) was a... more on Wikipedia
Julie Ege
Breast cancer - Christopher Hyatt, born Alan Ronald Miller, was an American occultist, author, and founder of... more on Wikipedia
Christopher Hyatt
Cancer - Estelle Getty (née Scher; also known as Estelle Gettleman; July 25, 1923 – July 22, 2008) was... more on Wikipedia
Estelle Getty
Dementia with Lewy bodies - Georgia Frontiere (born Violet Frances Irwin; November 21, 1927 – January 18, 2008) was an... more on Wikipedia
Georgia Frontiere
Breast cancer - Robert James Fischer (March 9, 1943 – January 17, 2008) was an American chess grandmaster and... more on Wikipedia
Bobby Fischer
Renal failure