Notable Deaths - August 14
Here are the notable deaths on August 14 throughout the years:
William Randolph Hearst I (April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) - An American newspaper magnate and leading newspaper publisher. The son of self-made millionaire George Hearst, he became aware that his father received a northern California newspaper, The San Francisco Examiner, as payment of a gambling debt. Still a student at Harvard, he asked his father to give him the newspaper to run. In 1887, he became the paper’s publisher and devoted long hours and much money to making it a success. Crusading for civic improvement and exposing municipal corruption, he greatly increased the paper’s circulation. Moving to New York City, he acquired The New York Journal and got into a rivalry circulation war with Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World which led to the creation of “yellow journalism”…sensationalized stories of questionable accuracy. Acquiring more newspapers, Hearst created a chain that numbered nearly 30 papers in major American cities at its peak. He later expanded to magazines, creating the largest newspaper and magazine business in the world. He was elected two times to the U.S. House of Representatives, but was defeated in 1906 in a race for governor of New York. Nonetheless, through his newspapers and magazines, he exercised enormous political influence, most notably in creating public frenzy which pushed the U.S. into war with Spain in 1898. His life story was a source of inspiration for the lead character in Orson Welles’ classic 1941 film, Citizen Kane. He died of heart attack in 1951, aged 88, at Beverly Hills, California, and is buried at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California.
John Joseph “Johnny” Burnette (March 25, 1934–August 14, 1964) - A Rockabilly pioneer. Along with his older brother Dorsey Burnette and a friend named Paul Burlison, Johnny was a founding member of The Rock and Roll Trio. He was the father of 1980s rockabilly singer Rocky Burnette (best known for his 1980 hit single “Tired of Toein’ the Line.”) Johnny’s best-known songs include “You’re Sixteen” and “Train Kept A-Rollin’.” After dark on August 14, 1964, his tiny unlit fishing boat was struck by an unaware cabin cruiser on Clearlake, California. The impact threw him off the boat and he drowned.
Dorothy Stratten (February 28, 1960 – August 14, 1980) - A Canadian model and actress who found fame as the Playboy Playmate of the Month for August 1979 and subsequently Playmate of the Year for 1980. She is most famous, however, for the circumstances of her murder at age 20 by her estranged husband, a Vancouver-area promoter and pimp named Paul Snider…an act that was the basis of two motion pictures. Jamie Lee Curtis portrayed Stratten in the 1981 NBC television film “Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story.” Stratten’s story was portrayed in Bob Fosse’s 1983 film Star 80 starring Mariel Hemingway (Stratten) and Eric Roberts (Snider.) The movie was filmed in the very same house where the actual murder/suicide occurred.
Enzo Anselmo “the Commendatore” Ferrari (February 20, 1898 - August 14, 1988) - An Italian car driver and entrepreneur, the founder of the Scuderia Ferrari Grand Prix motor racing team, and subsequently of the Ferrari car manufacturer. He died in Modena at the age of 90. His death wasn’t made public until two days later, as by Enzo’s request, to compensate late registration of his birth.
Harold Henry “Pee Wee” Reese (July 23, 1918 - August 14, 1999) - An American professional baseball player who played for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. He was a ten-time All Star shortstop who contributed to seven league championships for Brooklyn. However, Reese is most famous for his devoted support for his teammate Jackie Robinson, the first modern African American player in the major leagues, especially in Robinson’s difficult first years. Following his retirement as a player, he found success as a play-by-play announcer on network television. He called games for CBS from 1960-1965 (with Dizzy Dean) and for NBC from 1966-1968 (with Curt Gowdy.) He also broadcast several World Series for NBC radio. He battled prostate and lung cancer during the final years of his life, finally succumbing to the diseases at his Louisville home.
Bruno Kirby (April 28, 1949 – August 14, 2006) - An American film and television actor. He was perhaps best known for his roles in the Hollywood films City Slickers (1991) and When Harry Met Sally… (1989.) He died at age 57 in Los Angeles from complications related to leukemia. According to the Associated Press and other news reports, his widow, actress Lynn Sellers, stated that he had only recently been diagnosed with the disease. Here is a great scene of him from City Slickers: