Richard Leigh (64) writer of alternative history who unsuccessfully sued for plagiarism over themes in Dan Brown's blockbuster novel The Da Vinci Code. Leigh was coauthor of Holy Blood, Holy Grail, a work of speculative nonfiction that claimed Jesus Christ fathered a child with Mary Magdalene and that the bloodline continues to this day. A best-seller on its release in 1982, the book gained new readership after Brown's thriller, which explores similar themes and has sold more than 40 million copies, was published in 2003. Leigh died from a heart condition in London, England on November 21, 2007.

Ralph W. Rader (77) professor emeritus of English at the University of California at Berkeley whose theories on the development of the novel explored the concept of an "autobiographical core" in fiction, exemplified by Charles Dickens' use of his own childhood workhouse experiences in his novels. Rader suffered from diabetes and liver and kidney disease but died of congestive heart failure in Berkeley, California on November 23, 2007.

Herbert Saffir (90) engineer who created the five-category system used to describe hurricane strength and warn millions of an approaching storm's danger. A structural engineer, Saffir created his scale in 1969—laying out for the first time what kind of damage could be expected from an approaching hurricane. It has since become the definitive way to describe the intensity of storms that form in the Atlantic and parts of the Pacific. Saffir died of complications from surgery, in Miami, Florida on November 21, 2007.

David H. Shepard (84) inventor of one of the first machines that could read, an optical-character-recognition device used for interpreting credit card receipts, who also designed the near-rectilinear font still used for the cards' numbers. Shepard died of bronchiectasis, a disease of the bronchial tubes, in San Diego, California on November 24, 2007.

Hollis Alpert (91) film critic and author who cofounded the National Society of Film Critics in 1966 in the living room of his New York apartment. Alpert—then a critic for the weekly Saturday Review magazine—and other magazine-based reviewers had been denied membership in the New York Film Critics Circle, which then favored critics who worked for newspapers. He died of pneumonia and respiratory failure in Naples, Florida on November 18, 2007.

Maurice Bejart (80) French choreographer who moved in 1987 from Brussels to Switzerland, where he founded the troupe Bejart Ballet Lausanne in the lakeside city of Lausanne. Bejart sought to bring ballet to younger audiences with his provocative choreography, stunning critics with his avant-garde dances. He had been in and out of the hospital in recent months, suffering from exhaustion and kidney and heart problems. He died in Lausanne, Switzerland on November 22, 2007.

Casey Calvert (26) guitarist with the Dayton, Ohio posthard-core band Hawthorne Heights. The band had recently reached No. 3 on the Billboard charts with their album, If Only You Were Lonely. Calvert apparently died in his sleep in Washington, DC on November 24, 2007.

Fernando Fernan-Gomez (86) one of Spain's most famous actors and directors. Fernan-Gomez made over 200 appearances on Spanish TV series and in films, including Spain's 1992 Oscar-winning film La Belle Epoque, which also starred a young Penelope Cruz. He directed more than 20 films and wrote novels, plays, and poetry. He died of cancer in Madrid, Spain on November 21, 2007.

Andrew Foldi (81) opera singer who sang in more than 20 roles at Chicago's Lyric Opera (1954-93). Foldi began his career in the '50s singing bass and bass-baritone roles. He later became a celebrated interpreter of comic roles in Mozart and Rossini's operas. He died of a stroke in Federal Way, Washington on November 21, 2007.

Frank Guarrera (83) lyric baritone who sang at the Metropolitan Opera for nearly 30 years. With his slender but firm voice and winning stage presence, Guarrera was a fixture at the Met in several roles: Escamillo in Carmen (his debut role in 1948), Marcello in La Bohe¸me, and Valentin in Faust. He retired in 1976. He died of diabetes in Bellmawr, New Jersey on November 23, 2007.

John Hughey (73) steel guitar player who toured for years with country legend Conway Twitty and recorded with Elvis Presley and many other stars. Hughey was credited with developing a unique style of playing that focused on the instrument's high tones, resulting in a distinctive "crying sound." He later recorded songs with Presley, Loretta Lynn, Marty Stuart, Willie Nelson, Dickey Betts of the Allman Brothers, and others. Hughey died of heart complications in Hendersonville, Tennessee on November 18, 2007.

Frances L. Murphy (85) publisher of the longest-running black family-owned newspaper in the US. Murphy followed in the footsteps of her grandfather, John H. Murphy Sr., a former slave and Civil War veteran who founded the Afro-American in Baltimore in 1892. Her father, Carl Turley Murphy, was publisher from 1922 until his death in '67. Frances Murphy became publisher and chief executive of Afro-American Newspapers in 1971. She died of cancer in Baltimore, Maryland on November 21, 2007.

Ernest ("Doc") Paulin (100) New Orleans' oldest traditional jazz musician, a trumpeter. Doc Paulin's Brass Band, in which at least six of his 10 sons performed, was one of the city's more popular jazz bands for years. The band was featured in Always for Pleasure, an award-winning film about New Orleans culture. Paulin died in suburban Marrero, Louisiana on November 20, 2007.

Konrad Thurano (98) German man widely thought to be the world's oldest active trapeze artist. Thurano was born in Duesseldorf in 1909 and began his entertainment career with the city's Roncalli Apollo Variety in '24. In his 83-year-career he performed around the world, rubbing elbows with celebrities including Charlie Chaplin. Each April for his birthday Thurano would return to Duesseldorf to perform at the Roncalli Apollo Variety, and this year was no exception. He died in Denmark on November 20, 2007.

Marshall Tome (85) Native American journalist who helped to develop a TV news report and a radio station on the Navajo reservation. Tome was an assistant city desk editor at the San Francisco Chronicle in the late '50s when he was asked to return to the Navajo Nation to help develop what is now called the Navajo Times—one of the few independent American Indian newspapers in the country. He had been battling lung disease and pneumonia. He was hospitalized in an intensive care unit for about a week before he died in Fort Defiance, Arizona on November 23, 2007.

Henrietta Valor (72) singer and actress who performed on Broadway in the musicals Jacques Brel Is Alive & Well & Living in Paris, Half a Sixpence, Applause, and Annie. Valor died of Alzheimer's disease in Studio City, California on November 23, 2007.

Dick Wilson (91) character actor and pitchman who for 21 years played an uptight grocer begging customers, "Please, don't squeeze the Charmin." Wilson made more than 500 commercials as George Whipple, a man consumed with keeping bubbly housewives from fondling toilet paper. The punch line of most spots was that Whipple himself was a closeted squeezer. The first commercial aired in 1964 and by the time the campaign ended in '85, the tag line and Wilson, a former Canadian airman and vaudeville veteran, were pop culture legends. He also performed on the dinner theater circuit, shot occasional standup comedy shows, and worked on dozens of TV sitcoms. He died in Woodland Hills, California on November 19, 2007.

Col. Jefferson deBlanc Sr. (86) retired Marine colonel, an ace fighter pilot who won the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military honor for bravery, for his actions during a bombing raid against the Japanese in the Solomon Islands on Jan. 31, 1943. A lieutenant barely in his 20s, DeBlanc was in charge of six planes providing air cover. In an F4F Grumman Wildcat, he downed two Japanese float planes and one fighter before heading back to the Naval base at Henderson Field. But he spotted two more Japanese planes coming up behind the bombers. Because all six fighters were low on fuel, Henderson ordered the rest of DeBlanc's flight group back to base. DeBlanc shot down the two enemy aircraft alone, although it was unlikely he would have enough fuel to make it back safely. His plane was hit, and he parachuted into the ocean and swam all night to reach Kolombarangara Island, where he was captured by tribesmen and bartered to a friendly tribe for a sack of rice. He was eventually picked up by a Navy float plane and reunited with his squadron. He died of pneumonia in Lafayette, Louisiana on November 22, 2007.

Jane Maury Denton (81) wife of former Vietnam prisoner of war and ex-US Sen. Jeremiah Denton Jr. Jane Denton helped to organize the National League of Families of American Prisoners & Missing in Southeast Asia in the '60s, after her Navy pilot husband was shot down and captured in 1965. Jeremiah Denton was held for nearly eight years in a North Vietnamese prison. Jane Denton's advocacy work was credited for the group's efforts in obtaining humane treatment and the ultimate release of American prisoners. She died of a heart attack in Norfolk, Virginia on November 22, 2007.

Vladimir Kryuchkov (83) former KGB chief who spearheaded a failed coup against Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. In 1988, Gorbachev appointed Kryuchkov KGB chief. In August 1991, Kryuchkov joined other hard-line members of the Communist Party leadership who ousted Gorbachev and declared a nationwide state of emergency in an attempt to roll back liberal reforms. The coup collapsed after three days and helped to precipitate the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991. Kryuchkov died in Moscow, Russia on November 23, 2007.

Dennis M. Lynch (74) former mayor of Pawtucket, Rhode Island who also served in state government posts under five governors. Lynch served five terms as mayor of his hometown of Pawtucket (1973-81). He later became director of Rhode Island's Division of Purchases under Gov. J. Joseph Garrahy in 1981 and held several other state posts before retiring in 2003. Among his six children are Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch and state Democrat Party Chairman William Lynch. Dennis Lynch died in Providence, Rhode Island on November 18, 2007.

Joseph G. Minish (91) strong supporter of organized labor and a Democrat Party loyalist who held a New Jersey congressional seat for 22 years. Minish was a labor leader in north New Jersey for many years before being elected to the House of Representatives in 1962. He lost his seat to Republican Dean Gallo in 1984 after redistricting. He died in Livingston, New Jersey on November 24, 2007.

Richard Nolte (86) Middle East expert whose tenure as American ambassador to Egypt lasted only three weeks in 1967 because of the turmoil of the Six-Day War and despite the fact that he sympathized with the Arab cause. Nolte later became chairman of the American Geographical Society, the oldest cartography society in the US. He died of a stroke in Hanover, New Hampshire on November 22, 2007.

William Atchison O'Neill (77) son of a small-town tavern owner who rose through Connecticut politics to serve as governor for 10 years. O'Neill was a two-term Democrat governor who frustrated allies and opponents with a willingness to buck public opinion. He was lieutenant governor when Gov. Ella T. Grasso resigned in ill health in 1980 and was elected to full terms in '82 and '86—the last Democrat to hold Connecticut's highest office. He died of emphysema in East Hampton, Connecticut on November 24, 2007.

Milo Radulovich (81) US Air Force Reserve lieutenant championed by CBS-TV newsman Edward R. Murrow when the military threatened to decommission him during a Cold War anti-Communist crackdown. In 1953, the Air Force threatened to decommission Radulovich on grounds that he maintained a "close and continuing relationship" with his father and sister, both of whom were suspected of being members of the Communist Party because of the father's subscription to a Serbian newspaper and the sister's political activities. Murrow's See It Now aired a segment, "The Case Against Lt. Milo Radulovich," in October 1953; in November, the Air Force reversed its declaration that Radulovich was a security risk. He died of a stroke in Vallejo, California on November 19, 2007.

Ian Smith (88) Rhodesia's last white prime minister whose attempts to resist black rule dragged the country now known as Zimbabwe into isolation and civil war. Smith unilaterally declared independence from Britain on Nov. 11, 1965. Then he was prime minister of Rhodesia (1965-79) during white minority rule. The country failed to gain international recognition, and the United Nations imposed economic sanctions. Smith finally bowed to international pressure, and Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party won elections in 1980. Smith, who recently suffered a stroke, died near Cape Town, South Africa on November 20, 2007.

Duane Harms (69) former driver of a school bus involved in one of the worst traffic accidents in Colorado history, when his bus collided with a high-speed passenger train, killing 20 children and injuring 16 others, in the Auburn farming community in 1961. Harms was later the subject of a 33-part newspaper series about the tragic accident over the past several years. He died of a brain tumor in Haxtun, California on November 18, 2007.

Roy Jennings (83) former newsman and spokesman for the Southern Baptist Convention. After working as a reporter and editor for the Memphis Commercial Appeal, Jennings spent 20 years with the Baptist Convention, today the nation's largest Protestant denomination with more than 16 million members. Jennings died in Memphis, Tennessee on November 22, 2007.

Antonio Lamer (74) former chief justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, instrumental in denying Quebec the legal right to unilaterally declare independence. Renowned as an authority on criminal law, Lamer put in nearly 20 years on the high court and spent 10 years as chief of the nine-member bench. He built a reputation as a man who could see through the legal maze to the human issues at stake in the courtroom. He retired in 1999. He had been in and out of the hospital several times in recent years, suffering from recurring heart problems. He died in Ottawa, Canada on November 23, 2007.

John Straffen (77) British child killer initially declared "mentally defective" and sent to an asylum in 1952 after strangling two young girls to death. Less than a year later, Straffen escaped and, after being declared sane, was tried for the murder of a third young girl during the four hours he was at large. His death sentence was reduced to life imprisonment, and he had remained in a maximum security prison for the last 55 years, becoming the longest-serving prisoner in British legal history. He died in Frankland Prison, County Durham, England on November 19, 2007.

Leona Tuttle (111) supercentenarian and the 14th verified oldest person in the US. Tuttle was born a twin, but her sister died at age 46. Alive in three centuries, Leona Tuttle saw two World Wars, the Depression, and several revolutionary inventions. She died in Naples, Florida on November 23, 2007.

Robert L. Vesco (72) fugitive financier who spent most of his life evading American justice. Sentenced to a long prison term in Cuba in 1996 and wanted in the US for crimes ranging from securities fraud and drug trafficking to political bribery, Vesco might have managed to die on the sly. On May 2, 2008, friends reported that Vesco died of lung cancer in Havana, Cuba on November 23, 2007.

Adam Wayman (29) suspected drunk driver whose pickup truck was on the wrong side of the road at an intersection on US Highway 84 when it struck the van driven by former University of Alabama football standout Siran Stacy (39), who is listed in stable condition. The accident also took the lives of Stacy's wife, Ellen (36), and four of his children, Lequisa (18), Bronson (10), Sidney (8), and Ellie (2). Stacy's 4-year-old daughter, Shelly, was also listed in serious condition. Wayman died of injuries from the road accident in Dothan, Alabama on November 20, 2007.

Eleanor Brennan (21) British equestrian who, at age 17, was the youngest advanced level event rider in the US. Brennan had won the Area 2 (East Coast) Advanced Champion during her debut year at the level. She died of head and chest injuries in a horseback-riding accident at the cross-country stage of Florida International in Ocala, Florida on November 19, 2007.

Tom Johnson (79) Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman and coach who led the Boston Bruins to their last Stanley Cup title, in 1972. Johnson was a defenseman with Montreal and Boston before becoming a coach and executive with the Bruins for more than 30 years. He died in Falmouth, Massachusetts on November 21, 2007.

Joe Kennedy (28) journeyman left-hander who pitched for three major league teams in the 2007 season. Kennedy spent seven years in the majors, playing last season with Oakland, Arizona, and Toronto. He had a 43-61 career record with a 4.79 ERA in 222 appearances. He made his major league debut in June 2001 and his last appearance in relief on Sept. 29 in a 5-3 win over Tampa Bay. He died of a possible brain aneurysm in Tampa, Florida on November 23, 2007.

Ellen Mueller-Preis (95) Austrian winner of Olympic gold in fencing at the 1932 Los Angeles Games. Mueller-Preis won bronze medals at the 1936 Berlin Games and at the '48 London Olympics. She also won three fencing world titles (1947, '49-50). After retiring from competition, she had a long career as a consultant to Vienna's prestigious Burgtheater, where she helped to ensure that fencing performed in plays was properly done. She died of kidney failure in Vienna, Austria on November 18, 2007.

Reg Park (79) three-time winner of the Mr. Universe body-building title and a mentor to California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, himself a five-time winner of the title. Park became a strong influence on Schwarzenegger when the future politician trained with him in South Africa in the '60s. A native of Yorkshire, England, Park won the Mr. Britain title in 1949 and was runner-up to American Steve Reeves for the Mr. Universe title in '50. He rebounded to capture the title (1951, '58, '65) and starred in five Italian "sword-and-sandal" movies in the '60s. He died of advanced skin cancer in Johannesburg, South Africa on November 22, 2007.

Jim Ringo (75) Hall of Fame center who played 15 seasons for the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles. The Packers drafted Ringo out of Syracuse in the seventh round in 1953, and he became one of the league's best centers despite being undersized at just over 200 pounds. He played for Green Bay through 1963, but a contract dispute led him and coach Vince Lombardi to part ways: according to Packers folklore, Ringo had the audacity to bring an agent with him to negotiate a new contract—and Lombardi traded him to Philadelphia on the spot. Ringo suffered from Alzheimer's disease but died of pneumonia in Virginia Beach, Virginia on November 19, 2007.

Lequisa Stacy (18) daughter of former University of Alabama football star Siran Stacy. Lequisa Stacy was a member of the Lurleen B. Wallace Community College softball team, where she had been involved in the team's fall preparations for the upcoming 2008 season. She was killed in a car accident along with three other family members when the van she was riding in collided with suspected drunk driver Adam Wayman (20) at an intersection in Dothan, Alabama on November 19, 2007.

Margaret Lindsley Warden (103) first winner of the Tennessee Horse Council's Horseperson of the Year award in 1990 (now named after her), who wrote a column about horses for 55 years for The Tennessean. Warden's weekly "Horse Sense" column ran (1939-94) until she retired. She oversaw the Tennessean Horse Trials for 25 years (1953-78). She died in Nashville, Tennessee on November 24, 2007.