Famous People Who Have Died in Car Crashes
A brief look at some Famous names who came to an untimely end as a result of Car Crashes, many through no fault of their own.
Randy Savage
10. Randy Savage - One of the first true global icons of American wrestling, Savage (real name Randy Poffo) was known for his outrageous flamboyance in the ring and raspy “Oooh yeah” catchphrase out of it. Died from injuries aged 58 in 2011 after his Jeep Wrangler veered into oncoming traffic and hit a tree head-on in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. It was later revealed he had suffered a heart-attack at the wheel.
Carlos Monzon
9. Carlos Monzon - Regarded by many as the greatest middleweight boxing champion of all-time, Argentinian superstar Monzon was one of the great heroes of Latin America in his 1970′s heyday despite a notorious reputation outside of the ring which saw him accused many times of domestic violence by his two wives and plethora of mistresses. Eventually convicted of homicide in 1989 after throwing his wife off a second floor balcony, he died aged 52 in 1995 after losing control of a vehicle whilst on a days ‘leave’ from prison for good behaviour. Even in Argentina, reaction to his death was mixed!
Lisa "Left Eye" Lopez
8. Lisa ‘left-eye’ Lopes - American rapper, singer-songwriter, dancer and actress who is probably best known for her time in successful R&B girl group TLC. Lopes – who was known for her turbulent personal life which involved alcohol abuse and a violent relationship with American football star Andre Rison – died of neck injuries in 2002 when a Mitsubishi Montero Sport she was driving careered off a windy dust road in Honduras. She was just 30.
Marc Bolan
7. Marc Bolan – T-Rex frontman Bolan became one of the most recognisable figures in British rock during the 1970′s due to his extraordinary stage presence and original music which saw him become one of the great pioneers of the short-lived glam rock era. Though his heyday had passed, his death sent shockwaves through the music industry after he died two weeks before his 30th birthday in 1977. He was killed instantly when a Mini 1275GT driven by his girlfriend Gloria Jones crashed into a sycamore tree in southwest London.
Eddie Cochrane
6. Eddie Cochrane – One of the great early heroes of Rock and Roll, Cochrane’s time in the spotlight was relatively brief, but his legacy enormous due to his pioneering guitar-playing and songwriting ability which saw him pen such enduring classics as “C’mon Everbody”, “Something Else” and “Summertime Blues”. When on a British tour in 1960, Cochrane died of serious head injuries sustained after a speeding taxi he was travelling in blew a tyre and smashed into a lamppost in the sleepy Wiltshire town of Chippenham. Fellow songwriter Gene Vincent survived the crash but sustained lasting injuries which would shorten his career.
Jack Johnson
5. Jack Johnson – The “Galveston Giant” was the most famous black person on earth when reigning supreme as the World Heavyweight Boxing champion for seven years either side of the First World War, but was largely despised by ‘white America’ for his perceived audacity in breaking the long-standing taboo of dating (and indeed marrying) white women. Known for his love of fast cars throughout his life, Johnson was killed at the age of 68 in 1946 after an accident just outside of Charlotte, North Carolina. Witnesses said he had driven away in a ‘rage’ from a restaurant which refused to serve him on grounds of colour.
Jayne Mansfield
4. Jayne Mansfield – With her astonishing good looks, vibrant personality and torrid love life, Jayne Mansfield seriously rivalled Marilyn Monroe in the Hollywood sex siren Stakes for much of the 50′s and early 60′s only to meet a truly horrific end at the age of just 34 following a tragic accident in 1967. Riding in the front seat of a Buick Electra on her way to a television interview in New Orleans, Mansfield, along with two travelling companions, was killed instantly when their vehicle slid under the back end of a tractor trailer. Widespread reports at the time suggested she had been completely decapitated!
Princess Grace Kelly
3. Princess Grace Kelly – One of the most beautiful actresses of all-time, Kelly was one of the hottest Hollywood stars around when retiring from acting aged just 26 to marry Prince Rainier III of Monaco. There was to be no happy ending to this fairytale, however, as Kelly died at the age of 52 in 1982 after suffering a stroke whilst at the wheel of her Rover P6, causing the vehicle to slide down a mountain side on the outskirts of Monaco. Though pulled out alive from the wreckage, Kelly died from her injuries the next day, unlike her daughter Princess Stephanie who survived.
James Dean
2. James Dean – Though he only had three movie titles to his name, James Dean was widely-regarded as one of Hollywood’s hottest stars before his untimely death in 1955 aged just 24 years old. Road-racing enthusiast Dean was pronounced dead on arrival at hospital having sustained a broken neck from a head-on collision in his Porsche 550 Spyder whilst on his way to take part in a sports car race at Salinas California. His early death helped elevate him to cult status, thus forever preserving his iconic image.
Princess Diana
1. Princess Diana – Lady Diana Spencer entered the royal spotlight when marring Prince Charles in 1981 and – though not without personal flaws – earned wider appreciation for an intense devotion to her children William and Harry as well as tireless ambassadorial work in the face of intense media scrutiny. But it was her controversial death at the premature age of 36 – not long after her divorce – which captured the attention of the world in 1997. Diana, boyfriend Dodi al-Fayed and chauffeur Henri Paul all died from their injuries when their Mercedes-Benz W140 crashed in a Paris road tunnel whilst attempting to flee chasing paparazzi.
Author: Paul Wilkinson.
