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A.A. Milne
(Writer)
18 January 1882 – 31 January 1956 (Aged 74)
Milne was a British writer world-renowned for his children’s books about Winnie-the-Pooh.
He based the central character of Christopher Robin on his son, who shared the same name.
The central characters were based on the stuffed toys that his son had, giving rise to the birth of Winnie, Eeyore, Tigger, Piglet, and many more.
The real-life toys are now displayed in the New York Public Library.
Outside of his literary career, Milne served in both world wars.
He was injured in the Battle of the Somme during World War I and was a Captain of the British Home Guard in World War II.
Milne died at the age of 74, having suffered a stroke and undergone brain surgery in his final years.
Bertolt Brecht
(Playwright)
10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956 (Aged 58)
Brecht was a renowned German playwright, best known for his plays Mother Courage and her Children, and The Life of Galileo.
Due to Brecht’s left-leaning political views, he left Germany in 1933 as Hitler came to power.
He spent the majority of his time exiled in Scandinavia and the United States.
Following the war, Brecht left America after being blacklisted as a writer in Hollywood.
In 1949, Brecht returned to Germany, and started his own theatrical company in Berlin, along with his wife, Helene Weigel.
Brecht died of a heart attack in 1956.
Babe Didrikson Zaharias
(Athlete)
26 June 1911 – 27 September 1956 (Aged 45)
Didrikson Zaharias was one of America’s greatest ever athletes, achieving success across a variety of disciplines.
In the 1932 Olympics, Didrikson won the gold medal in the 80-meter hurdles & the javelin, while winning a silver medal in the high jump.
After her exploits in the Olympics, she became a professional golfer in 1935, going on to win 48 times as a professional, including winning 10 LPGA major championships.
Didrikson Zaharias died from colon cancer at the young age of 45.
She was voted the 9th greatest athlete of the 20th century by the Associated Press, while Sports Illustrated named her the second greatest female athlete of all time in the year 2000.
Jackson Pollock
(Painter)
28 January 1912 – 11 August 1956 (Aged 44)
Pollock was a famous American painter, who became one of the most influential artists of the 20th century with his abstract style of drip painting.
During his life, Pollock battled alcoholism, which led to an increasingly turbulent marriage, and infidelity.
He died at the young age of 44 after a drink-driving accident in New York City in which he crashed into a tree.
His mistress at the time, Ruth Kligman, survived the crash, but a fellow passenger, Edith Metzger, was also killed.
C.B. Fry
(British Sportsman)
25 April 1872 – 7 September 1956 (Aged 84)
Fry was a gifted British sportsperson who excelled at Football, Rugby Union, and athletics, even holding the world record for the long jump in the late 19th century.
However, Fry was best known for his exploits as a cricketer, accumulating over 30,000 runs over his career.
He is regarded as one of the most talented all-rounders of his time.
After his sporting career, Fry ran as a liberal in multiple British elections, where he narrowly lost out on each occasion.
