Public Figures & Cultural Luminaries

1

Mohamed Ajaout (Mohamed Demsiri)

محمد الدمسيري

Morocco

1940 – 1989 (49 years old)

Foremost Amazigh Rrais poet and protest singer of the 20th century whose courageous Tamazight songs defended free expression, human rights, and social justice, despite repeated state censorship.

Casablanca, Morocco

1 Full Record →

17

Mustapha Kateb

مصطفى كاتب

Algeria

1920 – 1989 (69 years old)

Pioneering theatrical director and actor who directed the historic FLN Theatrical Troupe during the War of Independence and founded the Algerian National Theatre (TNA) after independence.

Algiers, Algeria

17 Full Record →

15

Ahmed El Bidaoui

أحمد البيضاوي

Morocco

1918 – 1989 (71 years old)

Pioneering Moroccan composer, singer, and oud maestro celebrated as the 'Moroccan Abdel Wahab', who led the National Radio Orchestra and modernized classical Arabic art music.

Rabat, Morocco

15 Full Record →

13

Chafia Rochdi

شافية رشدي

Tunisia

November 7, 1910 – July 21, 1989 (78 years old)

Groundbreaking Tunisian singer, actress, and theater troupe director who was one of the earliest Muslim women to take the stage in North Africa, establishing a permanent legacy in musical drama.

Tunis, Tunisia

13 Full Record →

14

Inji Aflatoon

إنجي أفلاطون

Egypt

April 16, 1924 – April 17, 1989 (65 years old)

Revolutionary Egyptian visual artist and Marxist feminist pioneer whose expressive, vibrant canvases portrayed the dignity of working-class laborers, peasants, and her own five-year incarceration as a political prisoner.

Cairo, Egypt

14 Full Record →

29

Roy Eldridge

David Roy Eldridge

United States

1911 – 1989 (78 years old)

American jazz trumpet virtuoso known as 'Little Jazz', whose blistering upper-register fireworks and harmonic daring served as the vital bridge between Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie.

Valley Stream, United States

29 Full Record →

Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, 1st Marquess of Dalí de Púbol

44

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Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, 1st Marquess of Dalí de Púbol

Salvador Dalí

Spain

11 May 1904 – 23 January 1989 (84 years old)

Legendary Spanish surrealist painter whose flamboyant theatricality, flawless technical draftsmanship, and hallucinatory dreamscapes—like The Persistence of Memory and melting watches—made him one of the 20th century's most indelible icons.

Figueres (Catalonia), Spain

44 Full Record →

Mohamed Abdelwahab Agoumi

محمد عبد الوهاب أكومي

Morocco

1918 – 1989 (71 years old)

Pioneering academic composer who studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, father of modern Moroccan symphonic orchestration, and long-time Inspector-General of National Music Education.

Rabat, Morocco

0 Full Record →

Moulay Ahmed Loukili

مولاي أحمد الوكيلي

Morocco

1909 – 1988 (79 years old)

The supreme patriarch of Moroccan-Andalusian classical music (Al-Ala) in the 20th century, long-time director of the National Andalusian Orchestra of Radio Télévision Marocaine (RTM).

Rabat, Morocco

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Pierre Boucherle

بيير بوشارل

Tunisia

1894 – 1988 (94 years old)

The visionary founder of the Tunis School of Painting in 1949, who united Muslim, Jewish, and European artists in a shared quest for an authentic, pluralistic Tunisian modern art identity.

Tunis, Tunisia

0 Full Record →

30

Luis Barragan

Luis Ramiro Barragán Morfín

Mexico

1902 – 1988 (86 years old)

Mexican architect who won the 1980 Pritzker Architecture Prize, world-famous for his poetic emotional architecture utilizing vivid color walls, tranquil water features, and dramatic sunlight.

Mexico City, Mexico

30 Full Record →

1,780

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Jean-Michel Basquiat

United States

1960 – 1988 (27 years old)

Groundbreaking American Neo-Expressionist painter who rose from graffiti pioneer to international art icon.

Brooklyn, New York, United States

1,780 Full Record →

1

Mohammed Temmam

محمد تمام

Algeria

1915 – 1988 (73 years old)

Virtuoso master of Algerian illumination and miniature painting, designer of the first banknotes and postage stamps of independent Algeria, and museum conservator.

Algiers, Algeria

1 Full Record →

3,442

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Chet Baker

Chesney Henry Baker Jr.

United States

1929 – 1988 (58 years old)

American jazz trumpeter and vocalist whose delicate lyricism, whispery vocals, and cool jazz aesthetic made him an international icon.

Inglewood, California, United States

3,442 Full Record →

29

André Masson

André-Aimé-René Masson

France

1896 – 1987 (91 years old)

French painter and graphic artist who pioneered automatic drawing in Surrealism and whose sand paintings and expressive gestures directly inspired American Abstract Expressionism.

Paris, France

29 Full Record →

17

Hassan El-Hassani

حسن الحسني (حسن بن الشيخ)

Algeria

1916 – 1987 (71 years old)

Beloved comedic actor and satirical genius whose folk character 'Boubaghla' and appearances in films like 'Chronicle of the Years of Fire' made him the quintessential voice of rural Algerian wisdom.

Médéa, Algeria

17 Full Record →