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Farina Sergio (b. 1926-09-08 / d. 2012-07-03) alias Sergio Pininfarina
He was an Italian automobile designer and Senator for life. In 1965 it was Sergio Pininfarina who personally persuaded Enzo Ferrari to adopt a "mid-engined" engine configuration for a new line of road cars, with the engine positioned behind the driver, but ahead of the rear wheels. The resulting Ferrari Dino Berlinette Speciale was presented at the Paris Motor Show in October, although it would be another two years before the cars were offered for sale. After his father's death in 1966, Pininfarina became chairman of the company. In 2006 Sergio and his son Andrea, who died in 2008 were named Honorary Chairmen of Pininfarina,
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54
Born 1969-08-19. Domain:Performing. Cause of death:alcohol, other drugs
Matthew Langford Perry was an American and Canadian actor. He starred as Chandler Bing on the NBC television sitcom Friends from 1994 to 2004, and won a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series for the role. Perry also appeared on Ally McBeal (2002) and received Primetime Emmy Award nominations for his performances in The West Wing (2003) and The Ron Clark Story (2006). He gained a leading role in the NBC series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip which aired from 2006 to 2007. Perry also became known for his leading film roles in Fools Rush In (1997), Almost Heroes (1998), Three to Tango (1999), The Whole Nine Yards (2000), Serving Sara (2002), The Whole Ten Yards (2005), and 17 Again (2009). He voiced Benny in the video game Fallout: New Vegas (2010). While Perry did not drink on the set of Friends, he did work with extreme hangovers and was sometimes sweating and shaking. Perry became addicted to Vicodin after a jet-ski accident in 1997, and completed a 28-day rehab program at the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation that year. His weight dropped as low as 128 pounds (58 kg) and he took as many as 55 Vicodin pills per day. At age 30, he suffered from alcohol-induced pancreatitis and erectile dysfunction; in May 2000, he was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. In February 2001, Perry paused productions of Friends and Serving Sara for 2 months, entering rehab for an addiction to Vicodin, methadone, amphetamines, and alcohol. Fifteen years later, he revealed that due to his addiction issues, he did not remember three years of the time he was acting on Friends, between seasons three and six. In 2018, Perry spent five months in a hospital for a gastrointestinal perforation. During the hospital stay, Perry nearly died after his colon burst from opioid abuse. He spent two weeks in a coma and used a colostomy bag for nine months. Upon being admitted to the hospital, doctors told his family that Perry had a 2% chance of survival. He was connected to an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine, which breathed for him. Two years afterwards, while attending rehab in Switzerland, Perry faked pain to get a prescription of 1,800 milligrams of Oxycontin per day and was having daily ketamine infusions. He was given propofol in conjunction with a surgery, which stopped his heart for five minutes. The resulting cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) resulted in eight broken ribs. He paid $175,000 for a private jet to take him to Los Angeles to get more drugs. When doctors there refused, Perry spent another $175,000 to take a private jet back to Switzerland. In 2022, he estimated that $9 million was spent on his addiction, including 14 stomach surgeries, 15 stays in rehab, and therapy twice a week for 30 years. He believed he had attended 6,000 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
81
Born 1939-12-26. Domain:Music. Cause of death:Age
Harvey Phillip Spector was an American record producer, musician, songwriter and convicted murderer. Spector developed the Wall of Sound, a music production formula he described as a Wagnerian approach to rock and roll. He is regarded as one of the most influential figures in pop music history and as the first auteur of the music industry for the unprecedented control he had over every phase of the recording process. After spending three decades in semi-retirement, in 2009 he was convicted for the 2003 murder of the actress Lana Clarkson and sentenced to 19 years to life in prison.
75
Born 1945-07-27. Domain:Science (Math style). Cause of death:COVID
Edmund Melson Clarke Jr. was an American computer scientist and academic noted for developing model checking, a method for formally verifying hardware and software designs. He was the FORE Systems Professor of Computer Science Emeritus at Carnegie Mellon University. Clarke, along with E. Allen Emerson and Joseph Sifakis, was a recipient of the 2007 Association for Computing Machinery A.M. Turing Award.
63
Born 1957-04-13. Domain:Performing. Cause of death:virus
Clark Tinsley Middleton was an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles in Kill Bill: Vol. 2, Sin City, Fringe, Snowpiercer, and The Blacklist. Middleton had juvenile rheumatoid arthritis from the time he was four years old. He summarized its effects in an interview: "At first it distorted my hands. Then the cortisone I had to take made my cheeks fat. At 8, I lost movement in my neck. When I was 15, my hip snapped. After an operation, I had to be on crutches and later, after I broke my leg falling over my dog, on canes". He remained at a height of 5 ft 4 in (163 cm). Middleton died of West Nile virus. West Nile virus (WNV) is a single-stranded RNA virus that causes West Nile fever. It is a member of the family Flaviviridae, specifically from the genus Flavivirus, which also contains the Zika virus, dengue virus, and yellow fever virus. West Nile virus is primarily transmitted by mosquitoes, mostly species of Culex. The primary hosts of WNV are birds, so that the virus remains within a "bird–mosquito–bird" transmission cycle. In humans, West Nile virus can cause a disease known as West Nile fever. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 80% of infected people have few or no symptoms, around 20% of people develop mild symptoms (such as fever, headache, vomiting, or a rash), and less than 1% of people develop severe symptoms (such as encephalitis or meningitis with associated neck stiffness, confusion, or seizures). The causes of West Nile Virus mediated encephalitis have been explored by Dr. Robyn Klein at Washington University in St. Louis. She has found that West Nile infection increases cytokines and chemokines in the blood, making the blood brain barrier more leaky and susceptible to infection. The risk of death among patients with nervous system symptoms is about 10%. Recovery may take weeks to months. Risks for severe disease include age over 60 and other health problems. Historically, people in areas where the virus was endemic, such as the Nile Delta, usually experienced subclinical or mild disease. Diagnosis is typically based on symptoms and blood tests. While there is no specific treatment, pain medications may be useful
30
Born 1988-09-20. Domain:Performing. Cause of death:alcohol, other drugs
Clark James Gable , also known as Clark Gable III, was an American actor, model, and television presenter. He was born in Malibu, California. Gable was a past host of the television reality show Cheaters from the 13th to the 15th seasons. His grandfather was actor Clark Gable. Gable was found dead in Dallas, Texas of an accidental fentanyl overdose, aged 30.
15
Born 2002-11-11. Domain:Society. Cause of death:Murder
Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, known as "Junior", was 15 years old at the time of his death. The killing of Guzman-Feliz was purportedly a case of mistaken identity. Initial reports indicated that the killing was related to a sex video online that involved 15 year-old Stephanie Astacio, the presumed sister of Jose Muniz; and Irving Ozuna, a curly-haired male teenager, who some thought looked like Guzman-Feliz. The police reported that the alleged killers, all members of the Trinitarios subset "Los Sures", mistakenly believed that Guzman-Feliz was a member of the rival "Sunset" gang. Bronx County District Attorney Darcel Clark said that Guzman-Feliz had no ties to any gang activity. Nearly a full year after Guzman-Feliz was brutally slain outside of the Bronx bodega, five accused suspects were convicted of his murder. In a Bronx courtroom on June 14, 2019, a jury convicted Jonaiki Martinez Estrella, Manuel Rivera, Elvin Garcia, Jose Muniz, and Antonio Rodriguez Hernandez of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, gang assault, and conspiracy. By also convicting the defendants of first-degree murder, the jury acknowledged that Guzman-Feliz was tortured before his death.
81
Born 1937-02-15. Domain:Music. Cause of death:Age
Nathan Tate Davis was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist who played the tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, and flute. He is known for his work with Eric Dolphy, Kenny Clarke, Ray Charles, Slide Hampton and Art Blakey.
81
Born 1936-04-30. Domain:Business. Cause of death:Age
Lancelot Pease Clark was an English shoemaker, businessman, and member of the Clark family, which is the majority owner of shoe retailer Clarks.
67
Born 1950-10-05. Domain:Music. Cause of death:Pneumonia
He was a British guitarist who was a member of heavy metal bands Fastway and Motörhead. Of Motörhead's classic lineup, which consisted of Lemmy, himself and Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor, he was the last surviving member.
87
Born 1929-07-15. Domain:Sport. Cause of death:Age
He was a British racing driver. Stewart was regarded by Jim Clark as a highly-strung individual who “at the wheel was as relaxed as anyone”. His only appearance in a World Championship Grand Prix came at the 1953 RAC British Grand Prix, in which - due to ignition failure - he failed to finish.
87
Born 1929-06-11. Domain:Music. Cause of death:Age
Maurice Vanderschueren, better known as Maurice Vander was a French jazz keyboardist. Vander worked in the 1950s with Don Byas, Django Reinhardt, Bobby Jaspar, Jimmy Raney, Stephane Grappelli, Chet Baker, and Kenny Clarke. He won the Prix Django Reinhardt in 1962. In the 1960s he was a session musician for Roger Guerin, Pierre Gossez, and Boulou Ferré, and played with Claude Nougaro and Ivan Jullien. He played with Baker again in the late 1970s and with Johnny Griffin; his later work included performing and recording with Clarke, Richie Cole, Art Farmer, and Benny Powell. Vander is the adoptive father of Christian Vander (musician).
61
Born 1954-09-21. Domain:Music. Cause of death:Other
Better known as "Philthy Animal", he was an English drummer for the rock band Motörhead from 1975–1984 and 1987–1992, recording eleven studio albums and four live albums. The Motörhead line-up consisting of Taylor, Lemmy, and "Fast" Eddie Clarke is generally regarded as the 'classic' line-up of the band. Phil Taylor died on 11 November 2015, in London, at the age of 61 after an illness.Liver failure was cited as a cause. Lemmy died on 28 December 2015, less than seven weeks after Taylor and on 10 January 2018 "Fast Eddie" Clarke also died, leaving none of the classic Ace of Spades-era Mötorhead lineup alive.
74
Born 1941-05-02. Domain:Music. Cause of death:Age
He was a French jazz musician. His primary instrument is the Hammond organ. As a vocalist, he was a member of Les Double Six of Paris from 1961 through 1963. He has worked with Kenny Clarke, René Thomas, and Jean-Luc Ponty. In 1971 he was a member of the Stan Getz quartet (with René Thomas and Bernard Lubat) that recorded the celebrated Getz album Dynasty. In duet, he has recorded with pianist Michel Petrucciani (1994) and accordionist Richard Galliano (2002). His more recent recordings—for example, Sentimental Feeling and Récit proche—combine jazz with rock and world music. In 1964, he was awarded the Prix Django Reinhardt.
31
Born 1982-00-00. Domain:Sport. Cause of death:Accident
The first ever death of an acrobat from "Le cirque du soleil" during a performance. During the final battle scene of Kŕ, the stage is oriented vertically and performers use harnesses attached to cables to move about. During this scene at the 9:30pm show on June 29, 2013, Guyard-Guillot was hoisted up the side of the stage to a height of at least 50 feet (15 m) (some eyewitnesses said it may have been over 100 feet (30 m)). According to an eyewitness, she "then just plummeted down." Her harness apparently slipped free from its safety wire, causing her to fall into a pit, out of the audience's view. A spokesperson confirmed that the harness itself remained on Guyard-Guillot during her fall. "Initially, a lot of people in the audience thought it was part of the choreographed fight," said an eyewitness. "But you could hear screaming, then groaning, and we could hear a female artist crying from the stage." After her fall, the show was quickly stopped and a recording asked the audience to leave and said refunds would be offered. The other performers watched helplessly as they dangled in the air, before being lowered to safety. Guyard-Guillot died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. She was pronounced dead at 11:43 pm. Guyard-Guillot's death was the first on-stage death in Cirque du Soleil's 30-year history. She is survived by her two children aged 8 and 5. She was 31 at the time of her death. On July 2, 2013, the Clark County Coroner's office said Guyard-Guillot fell around 90 feet (27 m), which is almost twice the distance reported initially. She died of blunt force trauma.
54
Born 1957-12-10. Domain:Performing. Cause of death:Heart
He was an American actor, best known for his breakout role as John Coffey in The Green Mile, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. He was also recognized for his appearances in motion pictures such as Armageddon, The Whole Nine Yards, The Scorpion King and Daredevil, as well as voice acting roles in works such as Brother Bear and Kung Fu Panda. On July 13, 2012, Duncan was taken to a hospital after suffering a heart attack. Media reports suggested that his girlfriend, Omarosa Manigault, had previously tried to save his life by performing CPR. Duncan's publicist, Joy Fehily, issued a statement on August 6 that read he was moved from the intensive-care unit but remained hospitalized following his heart attack.
18
Born 1991-02-18. Domain:Sport. Cause of death:Accident
He was a British racing driver and the son of John Surtees.
At Brands Hatch, Surtees was hit on the head by a wheel from the car of Jack Clarke after Clarke spun into the wall exiting Westfield Bend. The wheel broke its tether and bounced back across the track into the following group of cars and collided with Surtees' helmet. The car continued straight ahead into the barrier on the approach to Sheene Curve, also losing a wheel, and came to rest at the end of the curve with its remaining rear wheel still spinning. This indicated that Surtees had lost consciousness, with his foot still pressing the accelerator.
Surtees was extricated from the car and taken to the circuit's medical centre, where he was stabilised before being transferred to the Royal London Hospital. His death was attributed to severe head injuries, inflicted by colliding with the wheel rather than the following crash with the barriers.
75
Born 1933-11-08. Domain:Sport. Cause of death:Age
He marked his arrival in the Formula One World Championship in 1964 with two podium finishes. He was regarded as a strong prospect for the future and a great supporting driver for World Champion Jim Clark. In 1964, while racing in Formula 2 at Reims-Gueux, he had a spin and was hit at high speed by Richie Ginther; Arundell was thrown from the car in the impact, which resulted in him missing most of the 1965 season. Lotus boss Colin Chapman saved his place in the team for 1966, finishing third on his comeback in the non-championship South African Grand Prix at East London on 1 January 1966. He did not enjoy any great success and at the end of that year he retired from Formula One, having started only 11 races. He retired from racing altogether in 1969, and later moved to Florida, where he set up the software company Mystique, responsible for amongst other games the notorious Custer's Revenge.
23
Born 1985-01-16. Domain:Sport. Cause of death:Accident
Jones died as a result of head injuries sustained in a fall and subsequent collision during the Brands Hatch round of the 2008 Supersport World Championship season.
The fall occurred at Clark Curve, a fast right-hand turn that leads into the home straight of the Brands Hatch circuit. At the time of the fall, Jones was in second position and challenging Jonathan Rea for the lead. As Jones accelerated out of the curve the rear wheel of his Honda CBR600RR lost traction and he was thrown across the track into the path of oncoming riders. The Australian rider Andrew Pitt attempted to take evasive action, but the front wheel of his machine collided with Jones' helmet.
The race was immediately stopped by officials so that medical personnel could attend to Jones, and he was taken to the Brands Hatch medical centre where Clinica Mobile doctors resuscitated him on four occasions. He was air-lifted by the Kent Air Ambulance to the Royal London Hospital. Jones' condition was assessed as 'extremely critical' upon his arrival and he was induced into a pharmacological coma by doctors in an attempt to stabilise his condition. This intervention was unsuccessful and Jones was pronounced dead by doctors shortly after 00.30 local time on 4 August, 2008. As Jones was running second in the race at the time of the race stoppage, he moved up to fifth in the championship. Fellow racers Tommy Hill and James Toseland were at his bedside as he died.
90
Born 1917-12-16. Domain:Writing. Cause of death:Age
He was a British science fiction author, inventor, and futurist, most famous for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, and for collaborating with director Stanley Kubrick on the film of the same name.
On 26 May 2000 he was made a Knight Bachelor for his Services to Literature at a ceremony in Colombo. The investiture of the award had been delayed, at Clarke's request, since 1998 because of an accusation, by the British tabloid The Sunday Mirror, of paedophilia, was found to be baseless by Sri Lankan police and retracted by the paper soon after.
Clarke died in Sri Lanka at 1:30am local time (UTC+5:30), after suffering from breathing problems according to Rohan de Silva, one of his aides.
69
Born 1936-04-29. Domain:Performing. Cause of death:orphan disease
Smith was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease in April 2005 and died of the disease at his home in Northridge, California, in June of the same year.
He was an American actor best known for his role as Perry White in the American television series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.
40
Born 1962-04-05. Domain:Performing. Cause of death:Murder
Lana Jean Clarkson was an American actress and fashion model. During the 1980s, she rose to prominence in several sword-and-sorcery films. In 2003, record producer Phil Spector shot and killed her in his Alhambra, California home. He was charged with second-degree murder, and was convicted on April 13, 2009. On February 3, 2003, Clarkson was found dead in the mansion belonging to record producer Phil Spector. In the early hours of that morning, she met Spector while working at the House of Blues in Los Angeles. They left the House of Blues in Spector's limousine and drove to his mansion. Spector and Clarkson went inside while his driver waited outside in the car. About an hour later, the driver heard a gunshot before Spector exited his house through the back door with a gun. He was quoted as saying, according to affidavits, "I think I just shot her." Spector later said Clarkson's death was an "accidental suicide" and that she "kissed the gun". Spector was tried for the murder of Clarkson in 2007. On September 26, 2007, a mistrial was declared due to a hung jury ten to two for conviction. He was tried again for second-degree murder on October 20, 2008. On April 13, 2009, the jury found Spector guilty of murdering Clarkson. Spector was sentenced on May 29, 2009 to 19 years to life in state prison. In February 2012, Donna Clarkson, the mother of the actress, settled a civil lawsuit with Spector and his insurance company over the wrongful death of Lana Clarkson. Terms of the settlement were not released to the public.
41
Born 1961-03-10. Domain:Other. Cause of death:Accident
She was a medical doctor, United States Navy Captain, NASA astronaut and Space Shuttle mission specialist who was lost in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
87
Born 1913-01-06. Domain:Performing. Cause of death:cancer (uterus)
In 1935, Young had an affair with Clark Gable, who was married at the time, while on location for The Call of the Wild. During their relationship, Young became pregnant. Due to the moral codes placed on the film industry Young covered up her pregnancy in order to avoid damaging her career (as well as Gable's). Returning from a long "vacation" (during which she secretly gave birth to her daughter), Young announced that she had adopted the little girl. The child was raised as "Judy Lewis" after taking the name of Young's second husband, producer Tom Lewis. According to Lewis's autobiography Uncommon Knowledge, Lewis was made fun of because of the ears that she received from her father, Clark Gable. Over the years she had heard rumors and secretly knew that Loretta Young was her biological mother, but it was not until 1958 when Judy's future husband Joseph Tinney told her that "everybody" knew the rumors that she really began to suspect. It was not until a few years later when Judy was a mother herself that she finally got the nerve to ask her mother, who finally admitted that Clark Gable was Judy's father.
79
Born 1917-06-24. Domain:Science (Math style). Cause of death:Age
Joan Elisabeth Lowther Murray, MBE (née Clarke) was an English cryptanalyst and numismatist best known for her work as a code-breaker at Bletchley Park during the Second World War. Although she did not personally seek the spotlight, her role in the Enigma project that decrypted Nazi Germany's secret communications earned her awards and citations, such as appointment as a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), in 1946. Hugh Alexander, head of Hut 8 from 1943 to 1944, described her as "one of the best Banburists in the section". Alexander himself was regarded as the best of the Banburists. He and I. J. Good considered the process more an intellectual game than a job. It was "not easy enough to be trivial, but not difficult enough to cause a nervous breakdown". Banburismus was a cryptanalytic process developed by Alan Turing at Bletchley Park in Britain during the Second World War. It was used by Bletchley Park's Hut 8 to help break German Kriegsmarine (naval) messages enciphered on Enigma machines. The process used sequential conditional probability to infer information about the likely settings of the Enigma machine. It gave rise to Turing's invention of the ban as a measure of the weight of evidence in favour of a hypothesis. This concept was later applied in Turingery and all the other methods used for breaking the Lorenz cipher. Clarke and Turing had been close friends since soon after they met, and continued to be until Turing's death in 1954. They shared many hobbies and had similar personalities. They became very good friends at Bletchley Park. Turing arranged their shifts so they could work together, and they also spent much of their free time together. In early 1941, Turing proposed marriage to Clarke, and subsequently introduced her to his family. Although privately admitting his homosexuality to her—she was reportedly "unfazed" by the revelation—Turing decided that he could not go through with the marriage, and broke up with Clarke in mid-1941. Clarke later admitted that she suspected Turing's homosexuality for some time, and it was not much of a surprise when he made the admission to her.
81
Born 1906-08-05. Domain:Directing. Cause of death:Other
Emphysema.
Emphysema is a type of chronic obstructive lung disease. It is often caused by exposure to toxic chemicals or long-term exposure to tobacco smoke.
Huston directed The Misfits (1960) with an all-star cast including Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe, Montgomery Clift, and Eli Wallach. Famously, Huston spent long evenings carousing in the Nevada casinos after filming, surrounded by reporters and beautiful women, gambling, drinking, and smoking cigars. Gable remarked during this time that 'if he kept it up he would soon die of it'. Ironically, and tragically, Gable died three weeks after the end of filming from a massive heart attack while Huston went on to live for twenty-six more years.
62
Born 1913-09-04. Domain:Society. Cause of death:Cancer (stomach)
He was a gangster based in Los Angeles and part of the Jewish Mafia, and also had strong ties to the American Mafia from the 1930s through 1960s. In 1961, Cohen was convicted of tax evasion and sent to Alcatraz. His heavily armored Cadillac from this period was confiscated by Los Angeles Police Department and is now on display at the Southward Car Museum in New Zealand. During his time on "the Rock," another inmate attempted to kill Cohen with a lead pipe. In 1972, Cohen was released from the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary, where he had spoken out against prison abuse. He had been misdiagnosed with an ulcer, which turned out to be stomach cancer. After undergoing surgery, he continued touring the U.S., including television appearances, once with Ramsey Clark. Mickey Cohen died in his sleep in 1976.
41
Born 1929-03-09. Domain:TV/Radio. Cause of death:Suicide
He was program director at the French Radio Europe N°1. He discovered many people such as : Marino Marini, Dalida, Petula Clark, Christophe, Pascal Danel, Nicole Rieu, Michel Polnareff, Gilles Marchal, Hubert Wayaffe, Micberth, etc. He had married Dalida. He shot himself in the head in his house rue d'Ankara.
28
Born 1942-04-18. Domain:Sport. Cause of death:Accident
During practice for the 1970 Italian Grand Prix in Monza, near Milan, Rindt was attempting to set a competitive qualifying time against the more powerful Ferraris. At first he insisted on driving the Lotus 49 but was told by Colin Chapman that only the Lotus 72 was available. Either he drove the 72 or he didn't have to drive was the choice Chapman gave him. Rindt elected to have the critically important wings removed in an attempt to gain a higher top speed and took to the track.
As Rindt braked for the Parabolica corner, the Lotus 72 suddenly darted left and slammed hard into the guard rails. The crash had possibly been caused by one of his front brake shafts (the car had inboard brakes) failing. The barriers were placed too high for the revolutionary wedge design of his Lotus 72. He was immediately rushed to hospital, but died on the way. Rindt had only recently acquiesced to wearing a simple lap belt, and had slid underneath where the belt buckle cut his throat. He was the second Lotus team leader to be killed in two years, as Jim Clark had been killed in 1968.
Rindt is buried at the central cemetery (Zentralfriedhof) in Graz.
At the time he died Rindt had won five of that year's ten Grands Prix, which meant that he had a strong lead in the World Drivers Championship. At that stage he theoretically could have been overtaken by Ferrari driver Jacky Ickx. However Rindt's Lotus team mate, Emerson Fittipaldi, won the penultimate Grand Prix of the year at Watkins Glen, depriving Ickx of the points he needed to win the title, and so Rindt became motor racing's first posthumous World Champion. The trophy was presented to his Finnish widow Nina Rindt nee Lincoln, daughter of famous Finnish racer, Curt Lincoln. In a tragic twist of irony, it was learned that Jochen had promised Nina he would retire from F1 if he won the world championship.
31
Born 1936-12-30. Domain:Sport. Cause of death:Accident
He was a British racing driver from England. He participated in 37 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on September 8, 1963. He achieved 1 podium, and scored a total of 27 championship points. He also participated in numerous non-Championship Formula One races, as well as sports car racing. Following Jim Clark's death in early 1968, Colin Chapman invited Spence back to Lotus as part of their Indianapolis 500 race team. Spence was due to race the revolutionary Lotus 56 gas turbine car. However, during practice at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway three weeks before the race, Spence misjudged his entry to turn one and collided heavily with the concrete wall. The right-front wheel of the Lotus swivelled backwards into the cockpit and struck Spence on the helmet. Mike Spence died in the hospital, from massive head injuries, a few hours after the accident.