People Late and Great: 2009

Actress Farrah Fawcett poses for photographers on the red carpet before Comedy Central's "Roast of William Shatner" in Los Angeles on Aug. 13, 2006. Fawcett died on Thursday, June 25, 2009, at a hospital in Los Angeles. She was 62.

Natasha Richardson

Actress Natasha Richardson is shown at her opening night performance in the Roundabout Theatre Company's Broadway production of "A Streetcar Named Desire" Studio 54 in New York on April 26, 2005. Richardson, 45, died Wednesday, March 18, 2009, in New York after suffering an apparent head injury from a skiing accident in Canada.

Dom DeLuise

In this 1987 file photo, actor and comedian Dom DeLuise is shown. DeLuise died in Southern California on Monday, May 4, 2009, according to his son, Michael DeLuise. He was 75.

Karl Malden

Actor Karl Malden, who portrayed Gen. Omar Bradley in the film "Patton," salutes as he poses with the Oscar he accepted on behalf of Franklin J. Shaffner for best director at the annual Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles on April 16, 1971. Malden died on July 1, 2009, at the age of 97.

David Carradine

Actor David Carradine strikes a martial arts pose at his home in the Tarzana section of Los Angeles on March 10, 2004. Carradine, star of the 1970s TV series "Kung Fu" whose career roared back to life when he played the assassin-turned-victim in Quentin Tarentino's "Kill Bill," was found dead Thursday, June 4, 2009, in Thailand.

Bea Arthur

This 1975 file photo shows actress Bea Arthur at an unknown location. Family spokesman Dan Watt says the 86-year-old Arthur died at home early Saturday, April 25, 2009. She was 86.

Patrick Swayze

In this undated file photo released by A&E, Patrick Swayze is shown in a promotional photo for the A&E series, "The Beast." Swayze's publicist Annett Wolf says the 57-year-old "Dirty Dancing" actor died Monday, Sept. 14, 2009, after a nearly two-year battle with pancreatic cancer.

James Whitmore

Actor James Whitmore holds an Emmy for "Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series," at the Creative Arts Presentation ceremony, in Pasadena, Calif., Aug. 26, 2000. Whitmore died on February 6, 2009, at the age of 87.

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson announces several concerts at the London O2 Arena in July, at a press conference at the London O2 Arena on March 5, 2009. Jackson, the sensationally gifted "King of Pop" who emerged from childhood superstardom to become the entertainment world's most influential singer and dancer before his life and career deteriorated in a freakish series of scandals, died Thursday, June 25, 2009.

Ricardo Montalban

In this 1969 file image originally released by Universal Pictures, actor Ricardo Montalban is shown. The Mexican-born actor, who became a star in splashy MGM musicals and later the wish-fulfilling Mr. Roarke in TV's "Fantasy Island," died Jan. 14, 2009, at his home in Los Angeles. He was 88.

Robert McNamara

Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara holds a news conference at the Pentagon on Nov. 17, 1961. McNamara died Monday, July 6, 2009, according to his wife. He was 93.

Ed McMahon

Ed McMahon arrives at the premiere of "The Simpsons Movie" premiere in Los Angeles, July 24, 2007. McMahon, the loyal "Tonight Show" sidekick who bolstered boss Johnny Carson with guffaws and a resounding "H-e-e-e-e-e-ere's Johnny!" for 30 years, died Tuesday, June 23, 2009, at a Los Angeles hospital. He was 86.

William Safire

In this Dec. 1968 file photo, William Safire, newly-appointed special assistant to President-elect Nixon, is seen. Pulitzer Prize-winning conservative columnist, language expert and former White House speechwriter William Safire has died. He was 79. His assistant Rosemary Shields says Safire died Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009, at a Maryland hospice. She says he had been diagnosed with cancer.

Edward Kennedy

Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., gestures as he answers a question following his speech at the National Press Club in Washington on Jan. 9, 2007. Kennedy, the liberal lion of the Senate, has died after battling a brain tumor, his family announced in a statement released Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009.

Kim Dae-jung

Former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung attends a funeral of former President Roh Moo-hyun in Seoul, South Korea, on May 29, 2009. South Korea's Yonhap news agency says Kim died at a hospital in Seoul Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009. He was 85.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver

Eunice Kennedy Shriver, founder and Honorary Chairperson of the Special Olympics, speaks during a forum honoring her at JFK Library in Boston on Nov. 16, 2007. Shriver, JFK's sister and Special Olympics founder, died Tuesday Aug. 11, 2009, at age 88.

Jack Kemp

Republican vice presidential hopeful Jack Kemp looks out over a crowd gathered for a rally in Russell, Kan., as Republican presidential hopeful Bob Dole introduces him as his running mate on Aug. 10, 1996. On Saturday, May 2, 2009, a spokesperson said Kemp, a former quarterback, congressman and one-time vice-presidential nominee, had died.

Frank McCourt

Irish-American and Pulitzer-Prize-winning author Frank McCourt, author of "Angela's Ashes," listens as he is introduced at Bronx Community College of the City University of New York, in New York on March 13, 1998. McCourt died Sunday, July 19, 2009, at a Manhattan hospice in New York City at age 78.

Robert Novak

Associated Press staff reporter Robert Novak is shown at work as he talks on the telephone in the Senate Press Gallery on Capitol Hill in Washington, Aug. 15, 1958. Novak, who was a central figure in the Valerie Plame CIA leak case, has died.

Dominick Dunne

Sourcebooks

Author Dominick Dunne, who told stories of shocking crimes among the rich and famous through his magazine articles and best-selling novels such as "The Two Mrs. Grenvilles," died Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009, at his home in Manhattan. He was 83.