Influenza: Obama and Other VIP’s
The possibility that President Obama was exposed to swine-flu in Mexico reminds us that even famous people are at risk of potentially fatal infectious diseases. In fact, Influenza has been implicated in the deaths of 43 well known people to date. The list includes two American Presidents – Martin Van Buren (died 1862) and Benjamin Harrison (1901). At least eight other world leaders may have died of the disease:
World Leaders Who Have Died from Influenza
| Year | Name | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1862 | Martin Van Buren | United States |
| 1901 | Benjamin Harrison | United States |
| 1925 | Takaaki Kato | Japan |
| 1932 | Paolo Boselli | Italy |
| 1936 | Archduke Frederick Hapsburg | Hungary |
| 1951 | Antonio Carmona | Portugal |
| 1953 | Francesco Nitti | Italy |
| 1965 | Adolf Scharf | Austria |
| 1974 | Juan Peron | Argentina |
| 1999 | Amintore Fanfani | Italy |
Other cases of fatal Influenza
| Year | Name | Profession |
|---|---|---|
| 1768 | Lawrence Sterne | Author |
| 1835 | William Cobbett | Publisher |
| 1891 | Helena Blavatsky | Theosophist |
| 1895 | Thomas Henry Huxley | Paleontologist |
| 1896 | John Haydon | Described Downs syndrome |
| 1898 | Lewis Carroll | Author |
| 1900 | John Ruskin | Philosopher |
| 1907 | Dmitri Mendeleyev | Physicist |
| 1918 | Amadeo de Sousa-Cardoso | Painter |
| 1919 | William Allen Sturge | Physician |
| 1925 | Elwood Haynes | Automobile inventor |
| 1926 | Krao Farini | Barnum - Missing Link |
| 1926 | Charles Griffes | Classical composer |
| 1928 | Floyd Bennett | Aviator |
| 1928 | Edward J. Connelly | Actor |
| 1928 | Theodore Roberts | Actor |
| 1929 | Roscoe Jackson | Founder of Hudson Motors |
| 1929 | Lillie Langtree | Actress |
| 1936 | Billy Mitchell | American military |
| 1937 | Jean Harlow | Actress |
| 1948 | Hack Wilson | Baseball player |
| 1957 | Shoghi Effendi | Bahai leader |
| 1962 | Jacques Ibert | Composer |
| 1966 | Estelita Rodriguez | Actress |
| 1967 | Ali Osman Khan | Indian Ruler - World's richest man |
| 1968 | Tallulah Bankhead | Actress |
| 1976 | Angela Baddeley | Actress |
| 1976 | Luchino Visconti | Movie Director |
| 1981 | Sir Claude Auchinleck | English military |
| 1988 | Trevor Howard | Actor |
| 2005 | John Paul II | Pope |
| 2008 | Jules Dassin | Movie Producer |
In some cases, the diagnosis of “Influenza” was speculative, or one of multiple diseases given as the cause of death.
These lists are from www.VIPatients.com , an interactive website that follows the diseases and deaths of all famous persons. Lists include famous animals, singers, politicians, sports heroes, movie stars, serial killers … over 13,000 to date. Users can access the medical history of a single person; or generate a list based on disease, profession, year of death – or any combination.