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Monarchs

By Seppuku

Unknown before death

The following is a list of people who were not famous while alive, but who became notable subsequent to their suicide

Possible suicides

The following is a list of people whose cause of death is disputed, or whose intention to commit suicide is doubtful.

A

B

  • Andreas Baader (1977), leader of the German revolutionary organization RAF. His suicide by gunshot to the head whilst in prison is questionable.
  • Gaetano Bresci (1901), Italian anarchist, assassin of King Umberto I (officially suicide, but he was found strangled)

D

  • Guru Dutt (1964), Indian actor and director. Accidental or intentional overdose of sleeping pills.

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H

  • Michael Hutchence (1997), Australian lead singer of rock group INXS, hanged himself in a hotel room; officially ruled as suicide, but widely believed to be a case of autoerotic asphyxiation gone wrong
  • Bohumil Hrabal (1997), Czechoslovakia writer, fell from a fifth floor hospital where he was allegedly trying to feed pigeons

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  • Frida Kahlo, (1954), Mexican painter. Supposedly died of a pulmonary embolism, but no autopsy was performed, and many are convinced that she committed suicide.
  • Weldon Kees, (1955), American poet, artist and musician. Vanished in 1955; his car was found beside the Golden Gate Bridge, from which he may have leaped to his death. He had spoken to his friends of suicide beforehand, but had also spoken of departing for Mexico; either may have happened.
  • Douglas Kenney (1980), writer, producer, actor of National Lampoon Magazine and Animal House. Jumped, fell or was pushed off cliff in Hawaii. Composed note "These are the best days I've chosen to ignore" in hotel room.

M

  • Jan Masaryk (1948), Czech statesman, found dead in the courtyard of the Foreign Ministry below his bathroom window. Though the initial 'investigation' stated that he committed suicide by jumping out of the window, it is now commonly believed that he was defenestrated by Communists.
  • Marilyn Monroe (1962), US Actress, found dead and naked in her bed at her California home from an overdose of sleeping pills.

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  • Romy Schneider (1982), Austrian actress. Schneider began drinking alcohol in excess after the sudden death, in July 1981, of her 14-year-old son, who was found impaled on a fence at the home of his stepfather's parents. When she was found dead in her apartment in Paris in May 1982, it was suggested that she had committed suicide by taking a lethal cocktail of alcohol and sleeping pills. However, no post-mortem examination was carried out, and she was declared to have died from cardiac arrest.
  • Elizabeth Shin (2000), MIT student, died from burns inflicted by a fire in her dormitory room after sending emails to faculty members saying that she was depressed and wanted to kill herself.

T

  • Saigō Takamori (1876), Japanese samurai, injured in battle, might have committed suicide, or been killed by comrades rather than being killed or captured by the enemy.
  • Pyotr Tchaikovsky (1893), Russian composer. Generally assumed to have died of cholera; one account claims that he committed suicide by taking arsenic following an attempt to blackmail him over his homosexuality. Some believe that he wrote his Sixth Symphony as his own Requiem.

W

  • Kenneth Williams (1988), English actor, barbiturate overdose. Williams was taking medication for back pain and stomach trouble, which he referred to in the last sentence in his diary, concluding "oh — what's the bloody point?". The coroner recorded an open verdict.

 

The information on this page was obtained from the Wikipedia page"List of Suicides" at this address  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_famous_suicides