Wikipedia - Benutzerbeiträge [de]

Diabolical Masquerade

2007-05-23T03:23:30Z

Dexter prog:

'''Diabolical Masquerade''' was a [[Sweden|Swedish]] one-man [[music]]al project. All music is written and played by [[Katatonia]] guitarist ''[[Anders Nyström|Blakkheim]]'' (Anders Nyström) who wanted to have a [[band (music)|band]] where he could [[composer|compose]] more extreme music whilst Katatonia were exploring more mellow moods. The music leans heavily on [[avant-garde metal|avant-garde]] [[melodic black metal|melodic]] [[black metal]] with some [[death metal]] and [[thrash metal]] influences. Blakkheim wanted to experiment more with [[song]] structure, theme and composition. This is most notably seen on his last project as Diabolical Masquerade called "Death's Design". This [[album]] is conceived as the soundtrack to a nonexistent Swedish horror movie, with 61 tracks broken up into 20 movements, each with a unique feel and theme. While Death's Design is a more extreme album than any released by Katatonia in recent years, it also includes many passages featuring various genres and styles, experimenting with [[progressive rock]], [[progressive metal]], [[ambient music|ambient]], [[european classical music|classical music]], and [[rhythm]]ic, [[percussion]] based passages . It is for the most part an album which expresses a [[Plot (narrative)|plot]] through the feel of the music itself, much like the [[orchestra]]l [[soundtrack]] to a [[Film|movie]] might, and by doing this Nyström proves the [[creativity]] that extreme music can reach in the hands of a skilled practitioner of his trade.

Blakkheim worked together on the project however, with [[Dan Swanö]]. In early [[September 2004]], it was announced that Blakkheim had put the project to sleep after not having found the necessary inspiration while working on a fifth album.

==Discography==
===Studio releases===
*1996 ''[[Ravendusk in my Heart]]'' ([[Adipocere]])
*1997 ''[[The Phantom Lodge]]'' ([[Adipocere]])
*1999 ''[[Nightwork (album)|Nightwork]]'' ([[Avantgarde Music]])
*2001 ''[[Death's Design]]'' ([[Avantgarde Music]])

==Band members==
* [[Blakkheim]] - All instruments
* [[Dan Swanö]] - Producer, drums (on ''[[Nightwork]]''), contributed various guitar solos

==External links==
*[http://www.diabolicalmasquerade.com/ Diabolical Masquerade's Official Homepage]
*[http://www.swano.com/ Dan Swanö's Official Site]
*[http://www.avantgardemusic.com Avantgarde Music Official Homepage]

[[Category:Black metal musical groups]]
[[Category:Symphonic metal musical groups]]
[[Category:Avant-garde metal]]
[[Category:Swedish musical groups]]

[[nl:Diabolical Masquerade]]
[[pl:Diabolical Masquerade]]

Liste ungewöhnlicher Todesfälle

2007-02-22T22:34:32Z

Dexter prog: Revert to revision 110160140 dated 2007-02-22 21:36:53 by 201.253.16.140 using popups

This is a '''list of unusual deaths''' – unique causes or extremely rare circumstances – recorded throughout history. The list also includes less rare, but still unusual, deaths of prominent persons.

To be included on this list, an unusual death has to receive mention in the Wikipedia article of a person, or the death itself has to be the focus of a Wikipedia article.

== Antiquity ==
''Note: Many of these stories are likely to be [[apocryphal]] (uncertain authenticity)''

* [[458 BC]]: The Greek playwright [[Aeschylus]] was killed when an eagle dropped a live tortoise on him, mistaking his bald head for a stone.
* [[270 BC]]: The poet and grammarian [[Philetas of Cos]] reportedly wasted away and died of [[insomnia]] while brooding about the [[Liar paradox]].<ref>Donaldson, John William and Müller, Karl Otfried. ''A History of the Literature of Ancient Greece'', p. 262. London: John W. Parker and Son, 1858.</ref>
*[[212 BC]]: [[Archimedes]], a [[ greeks | Greek ]] [[mathematician]], was said to have been doing a math problem in the sand of his town, [[Syracuse, Sicily]], when an army invaded. A soldier interrupted Archimedes who just replied, "Do not disturb my circles". The soldier then killed him.
*[[207 BC]]: [[Chrysippus]], a Greek [[stoic]] [[philosopher]], is believed to have [[Fatal hilarity|died of laughter]] after watching his drunken donkey attempt to eat figs.<ref>''ibid.'', p. 27.</ref>
*[[260]]: According to some accounts, [[Roman]] emperor [[Valerian (emperor)|Valerian]], after being defeated in battle and captured by the [[Sassanid dynasty|Persians]], was used as a footstool by their king [[Shapur I of Persia|Shapur I]]. After a long period of mistreatment and humiliation, he offered Shapur a huge ransom for his release. In reply, Shapur had molten [[gold]] poured down Valerian's throat. He then had the unfortunate emperor skinned and his skin stuffed with straw or dung and preserved as a trophy in the main [[Persian]] temple. Only after Persia's defeat in their last war with Rome three and a half centuries later was his skin given a cremation and burial.<ref>[[Lactantius]], ''De Mortibus Persecutorum'', v; Wickert, L., "Licinius (Egnatius) 84" in ''[[Pauly-Wissowa|Pauly-Wissowa, Realencyclopädie]]'' 13.1 (1926), 488-495; Parker, H., ''A History of the Roman World A.D. 138 to 337'' (London, 1958), 170. From [http://www.roman-emperors.org/gallval.htm].</ref>

*[[415]]: The ancient philosopher [[Hypatia of Alexandria]] was murdered by a mob of Christians by having her skin ripped off with sharp oyster-shells and what remained of her quivering limbs being burned.

== Middle Ages ==
*[[1016]]: [[Edmund II of England]] was rumoured to have been stabbed in the gut or bowels while he was performing his [[ablution]]s.<ref>[[Henry of Huntingdon]] (tr. Thomas Forester). ''The Chronicle of Henry of Huntingdon'', p. 196. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1853.</ref>
*[[1277]]: [[Pope John XXI]] was killed in the collapse of his scientific [[laboratory]].<ref>Darras, Joseph Epiphane and White, Charles Ignatius. ''A General History of the Catholic Church: From the Commencement of the Christian Era to the Twentieth Century'', pp. 406-7. New York: P. J. Kennedy, 1898.</ref>
*[[1327]]: [[Edward II of England]], after being deposed and imprisoned by his [[Queen consort]] [[Isabella of France|Isabella]] and her lover [[Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March|Roger Mortimer]], was rumored to have been murdered by having a red-hot iron inserted into his anus.<ref>{{cite book |last=Schama |first=Simon |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=A History of Great Britain: 3000BC-AD1603|year=2000 |publisher=BBC Worldwide |location= London|id= }} p.220</ref>
*[[1478]]: [[George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence|George Plantagenet]], [[Duke of Clarence]] reportedly was executed by drowning in a barrel of [[Malvasia|Malmsey wine]]. <ref>Thompson, C. J. S. ''Mysteries of History with Accounts of Some Remarkable Characters and Charlatans'', pp. 31 ''ff.'' Kila, MT: Kessinger Publishing, 2004.</ref>

== Early Modern Times ==
*[[1514]]: [[György Dózsa]], leader of a peasants' revolt in the [[Kingdom of Hungary]], was roasted alive on a white hot iron chair. His captured companions were forced to eat his flesh.<ref>[http://www.loyno.edu/~rspipes/chicken/king.htm Loyola University of New Orleans]</ref>
*[[1559]]: [[Henry II of France|King Henry II]] of France was killed during a stunt knight's [[jousting]] match, when his helmet's soft golden grille gave way to a broken lancetip which pierced his eye and entered his brain.
*[[1601]]: [[Tycho Brahe]], according to legend, died of complications resulting from a strained bladder at a banquet. It would have been extremely bad etiquette to leave the table before the meal was finished, so he stayed until he became fatally ill. This version of events has since been brought into question as other causes of death (murder by [[Johannes Kepler]] or perhaps [[suicide]]) have come to the fore.<ref>[http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Brahe.html]</ref>
*[[1671]]: [[François Vatel]], chef to [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]], committed suicide because his seafood order was late and he couldn't stand the shame of a postponed meal. His body was discovered by an aide, sent to tell him of the arrival of the fish.<ref>[http://www.bartleby.com/65/va/Vatel-Fr.html Bartelby], but it states the authenticity is doubtful.</ref>
*[[1687]]: [[Jean-Baptiste Lully]], [[composer]], died of a [[gangrene|gangrenous]] [[abscess]] after piercing his foot with a staff while he was vigorously conducting a ''[[Te Deum]]''. The performance was to celebrate the king's recovery from an illness.<ref>[http://www.vanderbilt.edu/htdocs/Blair/Courses/MUSL243/lullbio.htm Biography at Vanderbilt University]</ref>
*[[1716]]: [[Banda Bahadur]], a [[Sikh]] military leader, was tortured and executed by gouging his eyes out, followed by slashing his limbs off. The executioner went on to tear his flesh off with red-hot pincers.
*[[1753]]: Professor [[Georg Wilhelm Richmann]], of [[Saint Petersburg]], [[Russian Empire|Russia]], was struck and killed by a globe of [[ball lightning]] while observing a storm.<ref>[http://www.physicstoday.org/vol-59/iss-1/p42.html]</ref>
*[[1771]]: King of [[Sweden]], [[Adolf Frederick of Sweden|Adolf Frederick]], died of digestion problems on February 12, 1771 after having consumed a meal consisting of lobster, caviar, sour cabbage, smoked herring and champagne, which was topped off with 14 servings of his favourite dessert: semla served in a bowl of hot milk. He is thus remembered by Swedish schoolchildren as "the king who ate himself to death."
*[[1799]]: [[Constantine Hangerli]], [[List of rulers of Wallachia|Prince]] of [[Wallachia]], was arrested by a ''[[kapucu]]'' and a [[Moors|Moor]], and immediately executed by being strangled, shot, stabbed, and decapitated in quick succession.<ref>[[Neagu Djuvara]], ''Între Orient şi Occident. Ţările române la începutul epocii moderne'' ("Between Orient and Occident. The Romanian Lands at the beginning of the modern era"), Humanitas, Bucharest, 1995, p.19; [[Constantin C. Giurescu]], ''Istoria Bucureştilor. Din cele mai vechi timpuri pînă în zilele noastre'' ("History of Bucharest. From the earliest times until our day"), Ed. Pentru Literatură, Bucharest, 1966, p.107</ref>

== Modern Age ==
===19th century===
*[[1834]]: [[David Douglas (botanist)|David Douglas]], [[Scottish people|Scottish]] [[botanist]], fell into a pit trap accompanied by a bull. He was mauled and possibly crushed.<ref>[http://www.life.umd.edu/emeritus/reveal/PBIO/LnC/douglas.html University of Maryland]: The source is uncertain if the bull fell in before or after him.</ref>
*[[1884]]: [[Allan Pinkerton]], [[detective]], died of [[gangrene]] resulting from having bitten his [[tongue]] after stumbling on the [[sidewalk]].<ref>[http://heritage.scotsman.com/greatscots.cfm?id=441632005 Scotsman.com]</ref>
*[[1899]]: French president [[Félix Faure]] died of a stroke while being fellated in his office.

===20th century===
*[[1911]]: [[Jack Daniel]], founder of the [[Tennessee whiskey]] distillery, died of [[blood poisoning]] six years after receiving a [[toe]] injury when he kicked his safe in anger at being unable to remember its combination code.<ref>Haig, Matt. ''Brand Royalty: how the world's top 100 brands thrive and survive'', p. 197. London: Kogan Page, 2004.</ref>
*[[1916]]: [[Grigori Rasputin]], [[Russia]]n [[mysticism|mystic]], died of [[drowning]] while trapped under ice. Although the details of his murder are disputed, he was allegedly placed in the water through a hole in the winter ice after having been poisoned, bludgeoned, castrated, and shot multiple times in the head, lung, and liver.
*[[1920]]: Baseball player [[Ray Chapman]] was killed when he was hit in the head by a pitch. He remains the only Major League Baseball player to date to have been killed in a game.
*[[1923]]: [[Frank Hayes (jockey)|Frank Hayes]], [[jockey]], suffered a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]] during a [[Horse-racing|horse race]]. The horse, ''[[Sweet Kiss (horse)|Sweet Kiss]]'', went on to finish first, making Hayes the only deceased jockey to win a race.
*[[1925]]: [[Zishe Breitbart|Zishe (Siegmund) Breitbart]], a circus strongman and Jewish folklore hero died during a demonstration in which he drove a spike through five one-inch thick oak boards using only his bare hands when his knee was accidentally pierced. The spike was rusted and caused an infection which led to fatal blood poisoning. He was the subject of the [[Werner Herzog]] film, ''[[Invincible (2001 film)|Invincible]]''.
*[[1927]]: [[J.G. Parry-Thomas]], a British racing driver, was decapitated by his car's drive chain which, under stress, snapped and whipped into the cockpit. He was attempting to break his own [[Land speed record]] which he had set the previous year. Despite being killed in the attempt, he succeeded in setting a new record of 171 mph.<ref>Reynolds, Barbara. ''Dorothy L. Sayers: her life and soul'', p. 162. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1997.</ref>
*[[1927]]: [[Isadora Duncan]], [[dancer]], died of accidental [[strangulation]] and [[cervical fracture|broken neck]] when her [[scarf]] caught on the wheel of a [[automobile|car]] in which she was a passenger.<ref>[http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=6970 UCLA newsroom]</ref>
*[[1928]]: [[Alexander Bogdanov]], a Russian physician, died following one of his experiments, in which the blood of a student suffering from [[malaria]] and [[tuberculosis]], L. I. Koldomasov, was given to him in a transfusion.<ref>Bogdanov, Alexander (tr. & ed. Douglas W. Huestis). ''The Struggle for Viability: Collectivism Through Blood Exchange'', p. 7. Tinicum, PA: Xlibris Corporation, 2002.</ref>
*[[1933]]: [[Michael Malloy]], a homeless man, was murdered by gassing after surviving multiple poisonings, intentional exposure and being struck by a car. Malloy was murdered by five men in a plot to collect on [[life insurance]] policies they had purchased.<ref>{{cite book |last=Read |first=Simon |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=The Bizarre Killing of Michael Malloy |year=2005 |publisher=Penguin Book Group |location= |id= }}</ref>
*[[1935]]: Baseball player [[Len Koenecke]] was bludgeoned to death with a fire extinguisher by the crew of an aircraft he had chartered, after provoking a fight with the pilot while the plane was in the air.
*[[1941]]: [[Sherwood Anderson]], [[writer]], swallowed a [[toothpick]] at a party and then died of [[peritonitis]].<ref>[http://athena.english.vt.edu/~appalach/writersA/anderson.html Virginia Tech article]</ref>
*[[1943]]: [[Lady be Good (aircraft)|Lady be Good]], a [[United States Army Air Forces|USAAF]] B-24 bomber lost its way and crash landed in the [[Libyan Desert]]. [[Mummified]] remains of its crew, who struggled for a week without water, were not found until [[1960]].
*[[1943]]: Critic [[Alexander Woollcott]] suffered a fatal heart attack during a on-air discussion about [[Adolf Hitler]].<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/A662230 BBC]</ref>
*[[1944]]: Inventor and chemist [[Thomas Midgley, Jr.]], accidentally strangled himself with the cord of a [[pulley]]-operated mechanical bed of his own design.
*[[1947]]: The [[Collyer brothers]], extreme cases of [[Compulsive hoarding|compulsive hoarders]] were found dead in their home in New York. The younger brother, Langley, died by falling victim to a booby trap he had set up, causing a mountain of objects, books, and newspapers to fall on him crushing him to death. His blind brother, Homer, who had depended on Langley for care, died of starvation some days later. Their bodies were recovered after massive efforts in removing many tons of debris from their home.
*[[1958]]: [[Gareth Jones (actor)|Gareth Jones]], actor, collapsed and died while in make-up between scenes of a [[live television]] play, ''Underground'', at the studios of [[Associated British Corporation]] in [[Manchester]]. Director [[Ted Kotcheff]] continued the play to its conclusion, improvising around Jones's absence.
*[[1960]]: [[Baritone]] [[Leonard Warren]] collapsed on the stage of the [[New York Metropolitan Opera]] of a major stroke during a performance of ''[[La forza del destino]]''. The last line he sang was "Morir? Tremenda cosa." ("To die? A tremendous thing.")
*[[1960]]: In the [[Nedelin disaster]], over 100 Soviet [[rocket|missile]] technicians and officials died when a switch was turned on unintentionally igniting the rocket, including Red Army Marshal Nedelin who was seated in a deck chair just 40 meters away overseeing launch preparations. The events were filmed by automatic cameras.
*[[1967]]: A flash fire began in the pure oxygen atmosphere inside the unlaunched [[Apollo 1]] spacecraft, killing its crew during a training exercise.
*[[1967]] [[Vladimir Komarov]] became the first person to die during a space mission after the parachute of his capsule failed to deploy.
*[[1967]]: [[Harold Holt]], the serving [[Prime Minister of Australia]], vanished while swimming off a beach at Portsea near [[Melbourne]]. His body was never found.
*[[1971]]: [[Jerome Irving Rodale]], an [[United States|American]] pioneer of [[organic farming]], died of a heart attack while being interviewed on ''[[The Dick Cavett Show]]''. When he appeared to fall asleep, Cavett quipped "Are we boring you, Mr. Rodale?".<ref>http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm</ref> The show was never broadcast.
*[[1972]]: [[Leslie Harvey]], guitarist of [[Stone the Crows]] was electrocuted on stage by a live microphone.
*[[1974]]: [[Christine Chubbuck]], an [[United States|American]] television [[news reporter]] committed [[suicide]] during a live broadcast on [[July 15]]. At 9:38 AM, 8 minutes into her talk show, on WXLT-TV in [[Sarasota]], [[Florida]], she drew out a [[revolver]] and shot herself in the head.
*[[1975]]: On 24 March 1975 [[Alex Mitchell]], a 50-year-old bricklayer from [[King's Lynn]] literally died laughing whilst watching an episode of ''[[The Goodies]]''. According to his wife, who was a witness, Mitchell was unable to stop laughing whilst watching a sketch in the episode "[[Kung Fu Kapers]]" in which [[Tim Brooke-Taylor]], dressed as a kilted Scotsman, used a set of [[bagpipes]] to defend himself from a psychopathic [[black pudding]] in a demonstration of the Scottish martial art of "Hoots-Toot-ochaye." After twenty-five minutes of continuous laughter Mitchell finally slumped on the sofa and expired from heart failure.
*[[1976]]: [[Keith Relf]], former singer for British [[rhythm and blues]] band [[The Yardbirds]], died while practicing his electric guitar, electrocuted because the guitar was not properly grounded <ref>http://www.elvispelvis.com/electrocuted.htm</ref>.
*[[1977]]: [[Tom Pryce]], a [[Formula One]] driver, and a 19-year-old track marshal [[Jansen Van Vuuren]] both died at the [[1977 South African Grand Prix]] after Van Vuuren ran across the track beyond a blind brow to attend to another car which had caught fire and was struck by Pryce's car at approximately 170[[miles per hour|mph]]. Pryce was hit in the face by the marshal's [[fire extinguisher]] and was killed instantly.<ref name="Tom Pryce death">{{cite book |last=Tremayne |first= David|authorlink=David Tremayne |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=The Lost Generation |origdate= |origyear= 2006 |origmonth=August|url= |format= |accessdate=2007-01-05 |accessyear= |accessmonth= |edition= |date= |year= |month= |publisher= Haynes Publishing|location= |language=English |isbn=1-84425-205-1 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages= |chapter=Chapter 19 - A Moment Of Desperate Sadness|chapterurl= |quote=}}</ref>
*[[1978]]: [[Georgi Markov]], a [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] dissident, was assassinated by poisoning in [[London]] by an unknown assailant who jabbed him in the calf with a specially modified [[umbrella]] that fired a metal pellet with a small cavity full of [[ricin]] poison.
*[[1978]]: [[Janet Parker]], a British medical photographer, died of [[smallpox]] in 1978, ten months after the disease was eradicated in the wild, when a researcher at the laboratory Parker worked at accidentally released some virus into the air of the building. She is believed to be the last smallpox fatality in history.
*[[1981]]: A 25-year-old Dutch woman studying in [[Paris]], Renée Hartevelt, was killed and [[cannibalism|eaten]] by a classmate, [[Issei Sagawa]], when he invited her to dinner for a literary conversation. The killer was declared unfit to stand trial and extradited back to [[Japan]], where he was released from custody within fifteen months.
*[[1981]]: [[Boris Sagal]], a motion picture-director, died while shooting the TV miniseries ''[[World War III (TV miniseries)|World War III]]'' when he walked into the tail-rotor blade of a helicopter and was mortally injured.
*[[1982]]: [[Vic Morrow]], [[actor]], was [[decapitation|decapitated]] by a [[helicopter]] blade during filming of ''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]'', along with two child actors, [[Myca Dinh Le]] and [[Renee Shin-Yi Chen]].
*[[1982]]: [[Vladimir Smirnov (fencer)|Vladimir Smirnov]], an [[1980 Summer Olympics|Olympic champion]] [[Fencing (sport)|fencer]], died of [[brain damage]] nine days after his opponent's [[Foil (sword)|foil]] snapped during a match, pierced his eyeball and entered his [[brain]].
*[[1983]]: [[Tennessee Williams]], American playwright, died choking on a bottle cap. He was in a hotel but was too drunk to leave his room or make sufficient noise to attract attention.
*[[1983]]: [[Sergei Chalibashvili]], a professional [[Diving|diver]], died after a diving accident during [[World University Games]]. When he attempted a three-and-a-half reverse [[somersault]] in the tuck position, he smashed his head on the board and was knocked unconscious. He died after being in a [[coma]] for a week.
*[[1984]]: [[Jon-Erik Hexum]], an American television actor, died after he shot himself in the head with a prop gun during a break in filming. Whether he committed suicide or was simply unaware of the potentially deadly effects of the [[Blank (cartridge)|blank]] round was not determined.
*[[1987]]: [[R. Budd Dwyer]], a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[politician]], committed [[suicide]] during a televised [[press conference]]. Facing a potential 55-year jail sentence for alleged involvement in a [[Conspiracy (crime)|conspiracy]], Dwyer shot himself in the mouth with a [[revolver]].
*[[1990]]: [[Joseph W. Burrus]], aged 32, an aspiring magician, decided to perform the "[[buried alive]]" illusion in a plastic box covered with cement. The cement crushed the box and he died of asphyxia. <ref>[http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm Snopes.com], on a list of those who "died on stage."</ref>
*[[1990]]: [[George Allen (football)|George Allen]], an American football coach, died a month after some of his players dumped a [[Gatorade]] bucket on him following a victory (as it is tradition in American Football), resulting in [[pneumonia]].
*[[1993]]: [[Brandon Lee]], son of Bruce Lee, was shot and killed by a prop [[.44 Magnum]] gun while filming the movie ''[[The Crow (film)|The Crow]]''. The scene involved the firing of a full-powder blank (full charge of gunpowder, but no bullet) at Brandon's character. Unknown to the film crew/firearms technician, a bullet was already lodged in the barrel.
*[[1996]]: [[Sharon Lopatka]], an internet entrepernuer from Maryland who alledegly solicited a man via the Internet to torture and kill her for the purpose of sexual gratification. Her killer, Robert Fredrick Glass, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter for the homicide.
*[[1998]]: [[Tom and Eileen Lonergan]] were stranded while [[scuba diving]] with a group of divers off [[Australia]]'s [[Great Barrier Reef]]. The group's boat accidentally abandoned them due to an incorrect head count taken by the dive boat crew. The couple was left to fend for themselves in [[shark]]-infested waters. Their bodies were never recovered. The incident is described in the film ''[[Open Water]]''.

===21st century===
*[[2001]]: Bernd-Jürgen Brandes was stabbed repeatedly in the neck and then eaten by [[Armin Meiwes]]. Before the killing, both men dined on Brandes' severed penis. Brandes had answered an internet advertisement by Meiwes looking for someone for this purpose. Brandes explicitly stated in his will that he wished to be killed and eaten. This is referred to in the song "Mein Teil" by German heavy-metal band [[Rammstein]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4752797.stm "German cannbibal guilty of murder"], ''BBC News'', May 9, 2006</ref>
*[[2003]]: [[Brian Wells]], a [[pizza delivery]] man, was killed by a [[time bomb]] which was fastened around his neck. He was apprehended by the [[police]] after robbing a [[bank]], and claimed he had been forced to do it by three people who had put the bomb around his neck and would kill him if he refused. The bomb then exploded, killing him.
*[[2003]]: [[Brandon Vedas]] died of a [[drug overdose]] while engaged in an [[Internet chat]], as shown on his [[webcam]].
*[[2003]]: [[Timothy Treadwell]], an [[United States|American]] [[environmentalist]] who had lived in the wilderness among bears for thirteen summers in a remote region in [[Alaska]], was killed and partially consumed by bears, along with his girlfriend Amie Huguenard. The incident is described in [[Werner Herzog]]'s [[documentary film]] ''[[Grizzly Man]]''.<ref>Medred, Craig.''[http://www.adn.com/front/story/4110831p-4127072c.html Wildlife author killed, eaten by bears he loved]''. ''[[Anchorage Daily News]]''. October 8, 2003. Retrieved September 4, 2006.</ref>
*[[2005]]: [[Kenneth Pinyan]] of [[Seattle]] died of acute [[peritonitis]] after submitting to anal intercourse with a stallion in the town of [[Enumclaw, Washington]]. Pinyan had done this before, and he delayed his visit to the hospital for several hours out of reluctance for official cognizance. The case led to the criminalization of [[zoophilia|bestiality]] in [[Washington]].<ref>http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002569751_horsesex19m.html</ref>
*[[2005]]: 28-year-old [[South Korea|Korean]] video game addict [[Lee Seung Seop]] collapsed in an Internet cafe after playing [[Starcraft]] and [[World of Warcraft]] for almost 50 consecutive hours.<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1729573,00.html "Korean drops dead after 50-hour gaming marathon"], ''Times Online'', August 10, 2005</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Steve Irwin]], a television personality and naturalist known as [[The Crocodile Hunter]], died when his heart was impaled by a [[short-tail stingray]] barb while filming in [[Queensland]]'s [[Great Barrier Reef]]. <ref>http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20355064-30417,00.html</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Alexander Litvinenko]], a former [[FSB]] operative and Russian expatriate who had been investigating the murder of Russian journalist [[Anna Politkovskaya]], was [[radiation poisoning|poisoned]] by [[polonium|polonium-210]], an extremely rare radioactive [[metalloid]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6178890.stm Russian ex-spy dies in hospital]</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Mariesa Weber]], a 5'3" Florida woman, fell behind a 6' tall bookcase in her family's home and suffocated. She was not discovered for 11 days; her family thought she had been kidnapped. <ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6185854.stm]</ref>
*[[2007]]: [[Jennifer Strange]], a 28-year-old woman from [[Sacramento]], died of [[water intoxication]] while trying to win a [[Nintendo]] [[Wii]] in a [[KDND]] 107.9 "The End" radio station's "Hold Your Wee for a Wii" contest, which involved drinking large quantities of water without urinating. <ref>[http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-water14jan14,1,1368543.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california "Woman dies after being in water-drinking contest"], ''The Los Angeles Times'', January 14, 2007</ref>

==References==
<div class="references-small"><references/></div>

== See also ==
* [[Toilet-related injury]]
* [[List of inventors killed by their own inventions]]
* [[Darwin Awards]]

[[Category:Lists of people by cause of death|Unusual]]
[[Category:Death-related lists|Unusual]]

[[nl:Lijst van personen die op ongebruikelijke manier zijn overleden]]

Liste ungewöhnlicher Todesfälle

2007-02-21T23:28:50Z

Dexter prog: /* 20th century */

Liste ungewöhnlicher Todesfälle

2007-02-21T23:06:16Z

Dexter prog: /* Early Modern Times */

This is a '''list of unusual deaths''' – unique causes or extremely rare circumstances – recorded throughout history. The list also includes less rare, but still unusual, deaths of prominent persons.

To be included on this list, an unusual death has to receive mention in the Wikipedia article of a person, or the death itself has to be the focus of a Wikipedia article.

== Antiquity ==
''Note: Many of these stories are likely to be [[apocryphal]] (uncertain authenticity)''

* [[458 BC]]: The Greek playwright [[Aeschylus]] was killed when an eagle dropped a live tortoise on him, mistaking his bald head for a stone.
* [[270 BC]]: The poet and grammarian [[Philetas of Cos]] reportedly wasted away and died of [[insomnia]] while brooding about the [[Liar paradox]].<ref>Donaldson, John William and Müller, Karl Otfried. ''A History of the Literature of Ancient Greece'', p. 262. London: John W. Parker and Son, 1858.</ref>
*[[212 BC]]: [[Archimedes]], a [[ greeks | Greek ]] [[mathematician]], was said to have been doing a math problem in the sand of his town, [[Syracuse, Sicily]], when an army invaded. A soldier interrupted Archimedes who just replied, "Do not disturb my circles". The soldier then killed him.
*[[207 BC]]: [[Chrysippus]], a Greek [[stoic]] [[philosopher]], is believed to have [[Fatal hilarity|died of laughter]] after watching his drunken donkey attempt to eat figs.<ref>''ibid.'', p. 27.</ref>
*[[260]]: According to some accounts, [[Roman]] emperor [[Valerian (emperor)|Valerian]], after being defeated in battle and captured by the [[Sassanid dynasty|Persians]], was used as a footstool by their king [[Shapur I of Persia|Shapur I]]. After a long period of mistreatment and humiliation, he offered Shapur a huge ransom for his release. In reply, Shapur had molten [[gold]] poured down Valerian's throat. He then had the unfortunate emperor skinned and his skin stuffed with straw or dung and preserved as a trophy in the main [[Persian]] temple. Only after Persia's defeat in their last war with Rome three and a half centuries later was his skin given a cremation and burial.<ref>[[Lactantius]], ''De Mortibus Persecutorum'', v; Wickert, L., "Licinius (Egnatius) 84" in ''[[Pauly-Wissowa|Pauly-Wissowa, Realencyclopädie]]'' 13.1 (1926), 488-495; Parker, H., ''A History of the Roman World A.D. 138 to 337'' (London, 1958), 170. From [http://www.roman-emperors.org/gallval.htm].</ref>

*[[415]]: The ancient philosopher [[Hypatia of Alexandria]] was murdered by a mob of Christians by having her skin ripped off with sharp oyster-shells and what remained of her quivering limbs being burned.

== Middle Ages ==
*[[1016]]: [[Edmund II of England]] was rumoured to have been stabbed in the gut or bowels while he was performing his [[ablution]]s.<ref>[[Henry of Huntingdon]] (tr. Thomas Forester). ''The Chronicle of Henry of Huntingdon'', p. 196. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1853.</ref>
*[[1277]]: [[Pope John XXI]] was killed in the collapse of his scientific [[laboratory]].<ref>Darras, Joseph Epiphane and White, Charles Ignatius. ''A General History of the Catholic Church: From the Commencement of the Christian Era to the Twentieth Century'', pp. 406-7. New York: P. J. Kennedy, 1898.</ref>
*[[1327]]: [[Edward II of England]], after being deposed and imprisoned by his [[Queen consort]] [[Isabella of France|Isabella]] and her lover [[Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March|Roger Mortimer]], was rumored to have been murdered by having a red-hot iron inserted into his anus.<ref>{{cite book |last=Schama |first=Simon |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=A History of Great Britain: 3000BC-AD1603|year=2000 |publisher=BBC Worldwide |location= London|id= }} p.220</ref>
*[[1478]]: [[George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence|George Plantagenet]], [[Duke of Clarence]] reportedly was executed by drowning in a barrel of [[Malvasia|Malmsey wine]]. <ref>Thompson, C. J. S. ''Mysteries of History with Accounts of Some Remarkable Characters and Charlatans'', pp. 31 ''ff.'' Kila, MT: Kessinger Publishing, 2004.</ref>

== Early Modern Times ==
*[[1514]]: [[György Dózsa]], leader of a peasants' revolt in the [[Kingdom of Hungary]], was roasted alive on a white hot iron chair. His captured companions were forced to eat his flesh.<ref>[http://www.loyno.edu/~rspipes/chicken/king.htm Loyola University of New Orleans]</ref>
*[[1559]]: [[Henry II of France|King Henry II]] of France was killed during a stunt knight's [[jousting]] match, when his helmet's soft golden grille gave way to a broken lancetip which pierced his eye and entered his brain.
*[[1601]]: [[Tycho Brahe]], according to legend, died of complications resulting from a strained bladder at a banquet. It would have been extremely bad etiquette to leave the table before the meal was finished, so he stayed until he became fatally ill. This version of events has since been brought into question as other causes of death (murder by [[Johannes Kepler]] or perhaps [[suicide]]) have come to the fore.<ref>[http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Brahe.html]</ref>
*[[1671]]: [[François Vatel]], chef to [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]], committed suicide because his seafood order was late and he couldn't stand the shame of a postponed meal. His body was discovered by an aide, sent to tell him of the arrival of the fish.<ref>[http://www.bartleby.com/65/va/Vatel-Fr.html Bartelby], but it states the authenticity is doubtful.</ref>
*[[1687]]: [[Jean-Baptiste Lully]], [[composer]], died of a [[gangrene|gangrenous]] [[abscess]] after piercing his foot with a staff while he was vigorously conducting a ''[[Te Deum]]''. The performance was to celebrate the king's recovery from an illness.<ref>[http://www.vanderbilt.edu/htdocs/Blair/Courses/MUSL243/lullbio.htm Biography at Vanderbilt University]</ref>
*[[1716]]: [[Banda Bahadur]], a [[Sikh]] military leader, was tortured and executed by gouging his eyes out, followed by slashing his limbs off. The executioner went on to tear his flesh off with red-hot pincers.
*[[1753]]: Professor [[Georg Wilhelm Richmann]], of [[Saint Petersburg]], [[Russian Empire|Russia]], was struck and killed by a globe of [[ball lightning]] while observing a storm.<ref>[http://www.physicstoday.org/vol-59/iss-1/p42.html]</ref>
*[[1771]]: King of [[Sweden]], [[Adolf Frederick of Sweden|Adolf Frederick]], died of digestion problems on February 12, 1771 after having consumed a meal consisting of lobster, caviar, sour cabbage, smoked herring and champagne, which was topped off with 14 servings of his favourite dessert: semla served in a bowl of hot milk. He is thus remembered by Swedish schoolchildren as "the king who ate himself to death."
*[[1799]]: [[Constantine Hangerli]], [[List of rulers of Wallachia|Prince]] of [[Wallachia]], was arrested by a ''[[kapucu]]'' and a [[Moors|Moor]], and immediately executed by being strangled, shot, stabbed, and decapitated in quick succession.<ref>[[Neagu Djuvara]], ''Între Orient şi Occident. Ţările române la începutul epocii moderne'' ("Between Orient and Occident. The Romanian Lands at the beginning of the modern era"), Humanitas, Bucharest, 1995, p.19; [[Constantin C. Giurescu]], ''Istoria Bucureştilor. Din cele mai vechi timpuri pînă în zilele noastre'' ("History of Bucharest. From the earliest times until our day"), Ed. Pentru Literatură, Bucharest, 1966, p.107</ref>

== Modern Age ==
===19th century===
*[[1834]]: [[David Douglas (botanist)|David Douglas]], [[Scottish people|Scottish]] [[botanist]], fell into a pit trap accompanied by a bull. He was mauled and possibly crushed.<ref>[http://www.life.umd.edu/emeritus/reveal/PBIO/LnC/douglas.html University of Maryland]: The source is uncertain if the bull fell in before or after him.</ref>
*[[1884]]: [[Allan Pinkerton]], [[detective]], died of [[gangrene]] resulting from having bitten his [[tongue]] after stumbling on the [[sidewalk]].<ref>[http://heritage.scotsman.com/greatscots.cfm?id=441632005 Scotsman.com]</ref>
*[[1899]]: French president [[Félix Faure]] died of a stroke while being fellated in his office.

===20th century===
*[[1911]]: [[Jack Daniel]], founder of the [[Tennessee whiskey]] distillery, died of [[blood poisoning]] six years after receiving a [[toe]] injury when he kicked his safe in anger at being unable to remember its combination code.<ref>Haig, Matt. ''Brand Royalty: how the world's top 100 brands thrive and survive'', p. 197. London: Kogan Page, 2004.</ref>
*[[1916]]: [[Grigori Rasputin]], [[Russia]]n [[mysticism|mystic]], died of [[drowning]] while trapped under ice. Although the details of his murder are disputed, he was allegedly placed in the water through a hole in the winter ice after having been poisoned, bludgeoned, castrated, and shot multiple times in the head, lung, and liver.
*[[1920]]: Baseball player [[Ray Chapman]] was killed when he was hit in the head by a pitch. He remains the only Major League Baseball player to date to have been killed in a game.
*[[1923]]: [[Frank Hayes (jockey)|Frank Hayes]], [[jockey]], suffered a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]] during a [[Horse-racing|horse race]]. The horse, ''[[Sweet Kiss (horse)|Sweet Kiss]]'', went on to finish first, making Hayes the only deceased jockey to win a race.
*[[1925]]: [[Zishe Breitbart|Zishe (Siegmund) Breitbart]], a circus strongman and Jewish folklore hero died during a demonstration in which he drove a spike through five one-inch thick oak boards using only his bare hands when his knee was accidentally pierced. The spike was rusted and caused an infection which led to fatal blood poisoning. He was the subject of the [[Werner Herzog]] film, ''[[Invincible (2001 film)|Invincible]]''.
*[[1927]]: [[J.G. Parry-Thomas]], a British racing driver, was decapitated by his car's drive chain which, under stress, snapped and whipped into the cockpit. He was attempting to break his own [[Land speed record]] which he had set the previous year. Despite being killed in the attempt, he succeeded in setting a new record of 171 mph.<ref>Reynolds, Barbara. ''Dorothy L. Sayers: her life and soul'', p. 162. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1997.</ref>
*[[1927]]: [[Isadora Duncan]], [[dancer]], died of accidental [[strangulation]] and [[cervical fracture|broken neck]] when her [[scarf]] caught on the wheel of a [[automobile|car]] in which she was a passenger.<ref>[http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=6970 UCLA newsroom]</ref>
*[[1928]]: [[Alexander Bogdanov]], a Russian physician, died following one of his experiments, in which the blood of a student suffering from [[malaria]] and [[tuberculosis]], L. I. Koldomasov, was given to him in a transfusion.<ref>Bogdanov, Alexander (tr. & ed. Douglas W. Huestis). ''The Struggle for Viability: Collectivism Through Blood Exchange'', p. 7. Tinicum, PA: Xlibris Corporation, 2002.</ref>
*[[1933]]: [[Michael Malloy]], a homeless man, was murdered by gassing after surviving multiple poisonings, intentional exposure, and being struck by a car. Malloy was murdered by five men in a plot to collect on [[life insurance]] policies they'd purchased.<ref>{{cite book |last=Read |first=Simon |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=The Bizarre Killing of Michael Malloy |year=2005 |publisher=Penguin Book Group |location= |id= }}</ref>
*[[1935]]: Baseball player [[Len Koenecke]] was bludgeoned to death with a fire extinguisher by the crew of an aircraft he had chartered, after provoking a fight with the pilot while the plane was in the air.
*[[1941]]: [[Sherwood Anderson]], [[writer]], swallowed a [[toothpick]] at a party and then died of [[peritonitis]].<ref>[http://athena.english.vt.edu/~appalach/writersA/anderson.html Virginia Tech article]</ref>
*[[1943]]: [[Lady be Good (aircraft)|Lady be Good]], a [[United States Army Air Forces|USAAF]] B-24 bomber lost its way and crash landed in the [[Libyan Desert]]. [[Mummified]] remains of its crew, who struggled for a week without water, were not found until [[1960]].
*[[1943]]: Critic [[Alexander Woollcott]] suffered a fatal heart attack during a on-air discussion about [[Adolf Hitler]].<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/A662230 BBC]</ref>
*[[1944]]: Inventor and chemist [[Thomas Midgley, Jr.]], accidentally strangled himself with the cord of a [[pulley]]-operated mechanical bed of his own design.
*[[1947]]: The [[Collyer brothers]], extreme cases of [[Compulsive hoarding|compulsive hoarders]] were found dead in their home in New York. The younger brother, Langley, died by falling victim to a booby trap he had set up, causing a mountain of objects, books, and newspapers to fall on him crushing him to death. His blind brother, Homer, who had depended on Langley for care, died of starvation some days later. Their bodies were recovered after massive efforts in removing many tons of debris from their home.
*[[1958]]: [[Gareth Jones (actor)|Gareth Jones]], actor, collapsed and died while in make-up between scenes of a [[live television]] play, ''Underground'', at the studios of [[Associated British Corporation]] in [[Manchester]]. Director [[Ted Kotcheff]] continued the play to its conclusion, improvising around Jones's absence.
*[[1960]]: [[Baritone]] [[Leonard Warren]] collapsed on the stage of the [[New York Metropolitan Opera]] of a major stroke during a performance of ''[[La forza del destino]]''. The last line he sang was "Morir? Tremenda cosa." ("To die? A tremendous thing.")
*[[1960]]: In the [[Nedelin disaster]], over 100 Soviet [[rocket|missile]] technicians and officials died when a switch was turned on unintentionally igniting the rocket, including Red Army Marshal Nedelin who was seated in a deck chair just 40 meters away overseeing launch preparations. The events were filmed by automatic cameras.
*[[1967]]: A flash fire began in the pure oxygen atmosphere inside the unlaunched [[Apollo 1]] spacecraft, killing its crew during a training exercise.
*[[1967]] [[Vladimir Komarov]] became the first person to die during a space mission after the parachute of his capsule failed to deploy.
*[[1967]]: [[Harold Holt]], the serving [[Prime Minister of Australia]], vanished while swimming off a beach at Portsea near [[Melbourne]]. His body was never found.
*[[1971]]: [[Jerome Irving Rodale]], an [[United States|American]] pioneer of [[organic farming]], died of a heart attack while being interviewed on ''[[The Dick Cavett Show]]''. When he appeared to fall asleep, Cavett quipped "Are we boring you, Mr. Rodale?".<ref>http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm</ref> The show was never broadcast.
*[[1972]]: [[Leslie Harvey]], guitarist of [[Stone the Crows]] was electrocuted on stage by a live microphone.
*[[1974]]: [[Christine Chubbuck]], an [[United States|American]] television [[news reporter]] committed [[suicide]] during a live broadcast on [[July 15]]. At 9:38 AM, 8 minutes into her talk show, on WXLT-TV in [[Sarasota]], [[Florida]], she drew out a [[revolver]] and shot herself in the head.
*[[1975]]: On 24 March 1975 [[Alex Mitchell]], a 50-year-old bricklayer from [[King's Lynn]] literally died laughing whilst watching an episode of ''[[The Goodies]]''. According to his wife, who was a witness, Mitchell was unable to stop laughing whilst watching a sketch in the episode "[[Kung Fu Kapers]]" in which [[Tim Brooke-Taylor]], dressed as a kilted Scotsman, used a set of [[bagpipes]] to defend himself from a psychopathic [[black pudding]] in a demonstration of the Scottish martial art of "Hoots-Toot-ochaye." After twenty-five minutes of continuous laughter Mitchell finally slumped on the sofa and expired from heart failure.
*[[1976]]: [[Keith Relf]], former singer for British [[rhythm and blues]] band [[The Yardbirds]], died while practicing his electric guitar, electrocuted because the guitar was not properly grounded <ref>http://www.elvispelvis.com/electrocuted.htm</ref>.
*[[1977]]: [[Tom Pryce]], a [[Formula One]] driver, and a 19-year-old track marshal [[Jansen Van Vuuren]] both died at the [[1977 South African Grand Prix]] after Van Vuuren ran across the track beyond a blind brow to attend to another car which had caught fire and was struck by Pryce's car at approximately 170[[miles per hour|mph]]. Pryce was hit in the face by the marshal's [[fire extinguisher]] and was killed instantly.<ref name="Tom Pryce death">{{cite book |last=Tremayne |first= David|authorlink=David Tremayne |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=The Lost Generation |origdate= |origyear= 2006 |origmonth=August|url= |format= |accessdate=2007-01-05 |accessyear= |accessmonth= |edition= |date= |year= |month= |publisher= Haynes Publishing|location= |language=English |isbn=1-84425-205-1 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages= |chapter=Chapter 19 - A Moment Of Desperate Sadness|chapterurl= |quote=}}</ref>
*[[1978]]: [[Georgi Markov]], a [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] dissident, was assassinated by poisoning in [[London]] by an unknown assailant who jabbed him in the calf with a specially modified [[umbrella]] that fired a metal pellet with a small cavity full of [[ricin]] poison.
*[[1978]]: [[Janet Parker]], a British medical photographer, died of [[smallpox]] in 1978, ten months after the disease was eradicated in the wild, when a researcher at the laboratory Parker worked at accidentally released some virus into the air of the building. She is believed to be the last smallpox fatality in history.
*[[1981]]: A 25-year-old Dutch woman studying in [[Paris]], Renée Hartevelt, was killed and [[cannibalism|eaten]] by a classmate, [[Issei Sagawa]], when he invited her to dinner for a literary conversation. The killer was declared unfit to stand trial and extradited back to [[Japan]], where he was released from custody within fifteen months.
*[[1981]]: [[Boris Sagal]], a motion picture-director, died while shooting the TV miniseries ''[[World War III (TV miniseries)|World War III]]'' when he walked into the tail-rotor blade of a helicopter and was mortally injured.
*[[1982]]: [[Vic Morrow]], [[actor]], was [[decapitation|decapitated]] by a [[helicopter]] blade during filming of ''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]'', along with two child actors, [[Myca Dinh Le]] and [[Renee Shin-Yi Chen]].
*[[1982]]: [[Vladimir Smirnov (fencer)|Vladimir Smirnov]], an [[1980 Summer Olympics|Olympic champion]] [[Fencing (sport)|fencer]], died of [[brain damage]] nine days after his opponent's [[Foil (sword)|foil]] snapped during a match, pierced his eyeball and entered his [[brain]].
*[[1983]]: [[Tennessee Williams]], American playwright, died choking on a bottle cap. He was in a hotel but was too drunk to leave his room or make sufficient noise to attract attention.
*[[1983]]: [[Sergei Chalibashvili]], a professional [[Diving|diver]], died after a diving accident during [[World University Games]]. When he attempted a three-and-a-half reverse [[somersault]] in the tuck position, he smashed his head on the board and was knocked unconscious. He died after being in a [[coma]] for a week.
*[[1984]]: [[Jon-Erik Hexum]], an American television actor, died after he shot himself in the head with a prop gun during a break in filming. Whether he committed suicide or was simply unaware of the potentially deadly effects of the [[Blank (cartridge)|blank]] round was not determined.
*[[1987]]: [[R. Budd Dwyer]], a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[politician]], committed [[suicide]] during a televised [[press conference]]. Facing a potential 55-year jail sentence for alleged involvement in a [[Conspiracy (crime)|conspiracy]], Dwyer shot himself in the mouth with a [[revolver]].
*[[1990]]: [[Joseph W. Burrus]], aged 32, an aspiring magician, decided to perform the "[[buried alive]]" illusion in a plastic box covered with cement. The cement crushed the box and he died of asphyxia. <ref>[http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm Snopes.com], on a list of those who "died on stage."</ref>
*[[1990]]: [[George Allen (football)|George Allen]], an American football coach, died a month after some of his players dumped a [[Gatorade]] bucket on him following a victory (as it is tradition in American Football), resulting in [[pneumonia]].
*[[1993]]: [[Brandon Lee]], son of Bruce Lee, was shot and killed by a prop [[.44 Magnum]] gun while filming the movie ''[[The Crow (film)|The Crow]]''. The scene involved the firing of a full-powder blank (full charge of gunpowder, but no bullet) at Brandon's character. Unknown to the film crew/firearms technician, a bullet was already lodged in the barrel.
*[[1996]]: [[Sharon Lopatka]], an internet entrepernuer from Maryland who alledegly solicited a man via the Internet to torture and kill her for the purpose of sexual gratification. Her killer, Robert Fredrick Glass, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter for the homicide.
*[[1998]]: [[Tom and Eileen Lonergan]] were stranded while [[scuba diving]] with a group of divers off [[Australia]]'s [[Great Barrier Reef]]. The group's boat accidentally abandoned them due to an incorrect head count taken by the dive boat crew. The couple was left to fend for themselves in [[shark]]-infested waters. Their bodies were never recovered. The incident is described in the film ''[[Open Water]]''.

===21st century===
*[[2001]]: Bernd-Jürgen Brandes was stabbed repeatedly in the neck and then eaten by [[Armin Meiwes]]. Before the killing, both men dined on Brandes' severed penis. Brandes had answered an internet advertisement by Meiwes looking for someone for this purpose. Brandes explicitly stated in his will that he wished to be killed and eaten. This is referred to in the song "Mein Teil" by German heavy-metal band [[Rammstein]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4752797.stm "German cannbibal guilty of murder"], ''BBC News'', May 9, 2006</ref>
*[[2003]]: [[Brian Wells]], a [[pizza delivery]] man, was killed by a [[time bomb]] which was fastened around his neck. He was apprehended by the [[police]] after robbing a [[bank]], and claimed he had been forced to do it by three people who had put the bomb around his neck and would kill him if he refused. The bomb then exploded, killing him.
*[[2003]]: [[Brandon Vedas]] died of a [[drug overdose]] while engaged in an [[Internet chat]], as shown on his [[webcam]].
*[[2003]]: [[Timothy Treadwell]], an [[United States|American]] [[environmentalist]] who had lived in the wilderness among bears for thirteen summers in a remote region in [[Alaska]], was killed and partially consumed by bears, along with his girlfriend Amie Huguenard. The incident is described in [[Werner Herzog]]'s [[documentary film]] ''[[Grizzly Man]]''.<ref>Medred, Craig.''[http://www.adn.com/front/story/4110831p-4127072c.html Wildlife author killed, eaten by bears he loved]''. ''[[Anchorage Daily News]]''. October 8, 2003. Retrieved September 4, 2006.</ref>
*[[2005]]: [[Kenneth Pinyan]] of [[Seattle]] died of acute [[peritonitis]] after submitting to anal intercourse with a stallion in the town of [[Enumclaw, Washington]]. Pinyan had done this before, and he delayed his visit to the hospital for several hours out of reluctance for official cognizance. The case led to the criminalization of [[zoophilia|bestiality]] in [[Washington]].<ref>http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002569751_horsesex19m.html</ref>
*[[2005]]: 28-year-old [[South Korea|Korean]] video game addict [[Lee Seung Seop]] collapsed in an Internet cafe after playing [[Starcraft]] and [[World of Warcraft]] for almost 50 consecutive hours.<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1729573,00.html "Korean drops dead after 50-hour gaming marathon"], ''Times Online'', August 10, 2005</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Steve Irwin]], a television personality and naturalist known as [[The Crocodile Hunter]], died when his heart was impaled by a [[short-tail stingray]] barb while filming in [[Queensland]]'s [[Great Barrier Reef]]. <ref>http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20355064-30417,00.html</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Alexander Litvinenko]], a former [[FSB]] operative and Russian expatriate who had been investigating the murder of Russian journalist [[Anna Politkovskaya]], was [[radiation poisoning|poisoned]] by [[polonium|polonium-210]], an extremely rare radioactive [[metalloid]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6178890.stm Russian ex-spy dies in hospital]</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Mariesa Weber]], a 5'3" Florida woman, fell behind a 6' tall bookcase in her family's home and suffocated. She was not discovered for 11 days; her family thought she had been kidnapped. <ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6185854.stm]</ref>
*[[2007]]: [[Jennifer Strange]], a 28-year-old woman from [[Sacramento]], died of [[water intoxication]] while trying to win a [[Nintendo]] [[Wii]] in a [[KDND]] 107.9 "The End" radio station's "Hold Your Wee for a Wii" contest, which involved drinking large quantities of water without urinating. <ref>[http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-water14jan14,1,1368543.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california "Woman dies after being in water-drinking contest"], ''The Los Angeles Times'', January 14, 2007</ref>

==References==
<div class="references-small"><references/></div>

== See also ==
* [[Toilet-related injury]]
* [[List of inventors killed by their own inventions]]
* [[Darwin Awards]]

[[Category:Lists of people by cause of death|Unusual]]
[[Category:Death-related lists|Unusual]]

[[nl:Lijst van personen die op ongebruikelijke manier zijn overleden]]

Liste ungewöhnlicher Todesfälle

2007-02-21T22:53:40Z

Dexter prog: /* Early Modern Times */ This was just a torture method, he was quartered.

This is a '''list of unusual deaths''' – unique causes or extremely rare circumstances – recorded throughout history. The list also includes less rare, but still unusual, deaths of prominent persons.

To be included on this list, an unusual death has to receive mention in the Wikipedia article of a person, or the death itself has to be the focus of a Wikipedia article.

== Antiquity ==
''Note: Many of these stories are likely to be [[apocryphal]] (uncertain authenticity)''

* [[458 BC]]: The Greek playwright [[Aeschylus]] was killed when an eagle dropped a live tortoise on him, mistaking his bald head for a stone.
* [[270 BC]]: The poet and grammarian [[Philetas of Cos]] reportedly wasted away and died of [[insomnia]] while brooding about the [[Liar paradox]].<ref>Donaldson, John William and Müller, Karl Otfried. ''A History of the Literature of Ancient Greece'', p. 262. London: John W. Parker and Son, 1858.</ref>
*[[212 BC]]: [[Archimedes]], a [[ greeks | Greek ]] [[mathematician]], was said to have been doing a math problem in the sand of his town, [[Syracuse, Sicily]], when an army invaded. A soldier interrupted Archimedes who just replied, "Do not disturb my circles". The soldier then killed him.
*[[207 BC]]: [[Chrysippus]], a Greek [[stoic]] [[philosopher]], is believed to have [[Fatal hilarity|died of laughter]] after watching his drunken donkey attempt to eat figs.<ref>''ibid.'', p. 27.</ref>
*[[260]]: According to some accounts, [[Roman]] emperor [[Valerian (emperor)|Valerian]], after being defeated in battle and captured by the [[Sassanid dynasty|Persians]], was used as a footstool by their king [[Shapur I of Persia|Shapur I]]. After a long period of mistreatment and humiliation, he offered Shapur a huge ransom for his release. In reply, Shapur had molten [[gold]] poured down Valerian's throat. He then had the unfortunate emperor skinned and his skin stuffed with straw or dung and preserved as a trophy in the main [[Persian]] temple. Only after Persia's defeat in their last war with Rome three and a half centuries later was his skin given a cremation and burial.<ref>[[Lactantius]], ''De Mortibus Persecutorum'', v; Wickert, L., "Licinius (Egnatius) 84" in ''[[Pauly-Wissowa|Pauly-Wissowa, Realencyclopädie]]'' 13.1 (1926), 488-495; Parker, H., ''A History of the Roman World A.D. 138 to 337'' (London, 1958), 170. From [http://www.roman-emperors.org/gallval.htm].</ref>

*[[415]]: The ancient philosopher [[Hypatia of Alexandria]] was murdered by a mob of Christians by having her skin ripped off with sharp oyster-shells and what remained of her quivering limbs being burned.

== Middle Ages ==
*[[1016]]: [[Edmund II of England]] was rumoured to have been stabbed in the gut or bowels while he was performing his [[ablution]]s.<ref>[[Henry of Huntingdon]] (tr. Thomas Forester). ''The Chronicle of Henry of Huntingdon'', p. 196. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1853.</ref>
*[[1277]]: [[Pope John XXI]] was killed in the collapse of his scientific [[laboratory]].<ref>Darras, Joseph Epiphane and White, Charles Ignatius. ''A General History of the Catholic Church: From the Commencement of the Christian Era to the Twentieth Century'', pp. 406-7. New York: P. J. Kennedy, 1898.</ref>
*[[1327]]: [[Edward II of England]], after being deposed and imprisoned by his [[Queen consort]] [[Isabella of France|Isabella]] and her lover [[Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March|Roger Mortimer]], was rumored to have been murdered by having a red-hot iron inserted into his anus.<ref>{{cite book |last=Schama |first=Simon |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=A History of Great Britain: 3000BC-AD1603|year=2000 |publisher=BBC Worldwide |location= London|id= }} p.220</ref>
*[[1478]]: [[George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence|George Plantagenet]], [[Duke of Clarence]] reportedly was executed by drowning in a barrel of [[Malvasia|Malmsey wine]]. <ref>Thompson, C. J. S. ''Mysteries of History with Accounts of Some Remarkable Characters and Charlatans'', pp. 31 ''ff.'' Kila, MT: Kessinger Publishing, 2004.</ref>

== Early Modern Times ==
*[[1514]]: [[György Dózsa]], leader of a peasants' revolt in the [[Kingdom of Hungary]], was roasted alive on a white hot iron chair. His captured companions were forced to eat his flesh.<ref>[http://www.loyno.edu/~rspipes/chicken/king.htm Loyola University of New Orleans]</ref>
*[[1559]]: [[Henry II of France|King Henry II]] of France was killed during a stunt knight's [[jousting]] match, when his helmet's soft golden grille gave way to a broken lancetip which pierced his eye and entered his brain.
*[[1601]]: [[Tycho Brahe]], according to legend, died of complications resulting from a strained bladder at a banquet. It would have been extremely bad etiquette to leave the table before the meal was finished, so he stayed until he became fatally ill. This version of events has since been brought into question as other causes of death (murder by [[Johannes Kepler]] or perhaps [[suicide]]) have come to the fore.<ref>[http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Brahe.html]</ref>
*[[1671]]: [[François Vatel]], chef to [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]], committed suicide because his seafood order was late and he couldn't stand the shame of a postponed meal. His body was discovered by an aide, sent to tell him of the arrival of the fish.<ref>[http://www.bartleby.com/65/va/Vatel-Fr.html Bartelby], but it states the authenticity is doubtful.</ref>
*[[1687]]: [[Jean-Baptiste Lully]], [[composer]], died of a [[gangrene|gangrenous]] [[abscess]] after piercing his foot with a staff while he was vigorously conducting a ''[[Te Deum]]''. The performance was to celebrate the king's recovery from an illness.<ref>[http://www.vanderbilt.edu/htdocs/Blair/Courses/MUSL243/lullbio.htm Biography at Vanderbilt University]</ref>
*[[1716]]: [[Banda Bahadur]], a [[Sikh]] military leader, was tortured and executed by gouging his eyes out, followed by slashing his limbs off. The executioner went on to tear his flesh off with red-hot pincers.
*[[1753]]: Professor [[Georg Wilhelm Richmann]], of [[Saint Petersburg]], [[Russian Empire|Russia]], was struck and killed by a globe of [[ball lightning]] while observing a storm.<ref>[http://www.physicstoday.org/vol-59/iss-1/p42.html]</ref>
*[[1771]]: [[Adolf Frederick of Sweden]], The king died of digestion problems on February 12, 1771 after having consumed a meal consisting of lobster, caviar, sour cabbage, smoked herring and champagne, which was topped off with 14 servings of his favourite dessert: semla served in a bowl of hot milk. He is thus remembered by Swedish schoolchildren as "the king who ate himself to death."
*[[1799]]: [[Constantine Hangerli]], [[List of rulers of Wallachia|Prince]] of [[Wallachia]], was arrested by a ''[[kapucu]]'' and a [[Moors|Moor]], and immediately executed by being strangled, shot, stabbed, and decapitated in quick succession.<ref>[[Neagu Djuvara]], ''Între Orient şi Occident. Ţările române la începutul epocii moderne'' ("Between Orient and Occident. The Romanian Lands at the beginning of the modern era"), Humanitas, Bucharest, 1995, p.19; [[Constantin C. Giurescu]], ''Istoria Bucureştilor. Din cele mai vechi timpuri pînă în zilele noastre'' ("History of Bucharest. From the earliest times until our day"), Ed. Pentru Literatură, Bucharest, 1966, p.107</ref>

== Modern Age ==
===19th century===
*[[1834]]: [[David Douglas (botanist)|David Douglas]], [[Scottish people|Scottish]] [[botanist]], fell into a pit trap accompanied by a bull. He was mauled and possibly crushed.<ref>[http://www.life.umd.edu/emeritus/reveal/PBIO/LnC/douglas.html University of Maryland]: The source is uncertain if the bull fell in before or after him.</ref>
*[[1884]]: [[Allan Pinkerton]], [[detective]], died of [[gangrene]] resulting from having bitten his [[tongue]] after stumbling on the [[sidewalk]].<ref>[http://heritage.scotsman.com/greatscots.cfm?id=441632005 Scotsman.com]</ref>
*[[1899]]: French president [[Félix Faure]] died of a stroke while being fellated in his office.

===20th century===
*[[1911]]: [[Jack Daniel]], founder of the [[Tennessee whiskey]] distillery, died of [[blood poisoning]] six years after receiving a [[toe]] injury when he kicked his safe in anger at being unable to remember its combination code.<ref>Haig, Matt. ''Brand Royalty: how the world's top 100 brands thrive and survive'', p. 197. London: Kogan Page, 2004.</ref>
*[[1916]]: [[Grigori Rasputin]], [[Russia]]n [[mysticism|mystic]], died of [[drowning]] while trapped under ice. Although the details of his murder are disputed, he was allegedly placed in the water through a hole in the winter ice after having been poisoned, bludgeoned, castrated, and shot multiple times in the head, lung, and liver.
*[[1920]]: Baseball player [[Ray Chapman]] was killed when he was hit in the head by a pitch. He remains the only Major League Baseball player to date to have been killed in a game.
*[[1923]]: [[Frank Hayes (jockey)|Frank Hayes]], [[jockey]], suffered a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]] during a [[Horse-racing|horse race]]. The horse, ''[[Sweet Kiss (horse)|Sweet Kiss]]'', went on to finish first, making Hayes the only deceased jockey to win a race.
*[[1925]]: [[Zishe Breitbart|Zishe (Siegmund) Breitbart]], a circus strongman and Jewish folklore hero died during a demonstration in which he drove a spike through five one-inch thick oak boards using only his bare hands when his knee was accidentally pierced. The spike was rusted and caused an infection which led to fatal blood poisoning. He was the subject of the [[Werner Herzog]] film, ''[[Invincible (2001 film)|Invincible]]''.
*[[1927]]: [[J.G. Parry-Thomas]], a British racing driver, was decapitated by his car's drive chain which, under stress, snapped and whipped into the cockpit. He was attempting to break his own [[Land speed record]] which he had set the previous year. Despite being killed in the attempt, he succeeded in setting a new record of 171 mph.<ref>Reynolds, Barbara. ''Dorothy L. Sayers: her life and soul'', p. 162. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1997.</ref>
*[[1927]]: [[Isadora Duncan]], [[dancer]], died of accidental [[strangulation]] and [[cervical fracture|broken neck]] when her [[scarf]] caught on the wheel of a [[automobile|car]] in which she was a passenger.<ref>[http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=6970 UCLA newsroom]</ref>
*[[1928]]: [[Alexander Bogdanov]], a Russian physician, died following one of his experiments, in which the blood of a student suffering from [[malaria]] and [[tuberculosis]], L. I. Koldomasov, was given to him in a transfusion.<ref>Bogdanov, Alexander (tr. & ed. Douglas W. Huestis). ''The Struggle for Viability: Collectivism Through Blood Exchange'', p. 7. Tinicum, PA: Xlibris Corporation, 2002.</ref>
*[[1933]]: [[Michael Malloy]], a homeless man, was murdered by gassing after surviving multiple poisonings, intentional exposure, and being struck by a car. Malloy was murdered by five men in a plot to collect on [[life insurance]] policies they'd purchased.<ref>{{cite book |last=Read |first=Simon |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=The Bizarre Killing of Michael Malloy |year=2005 |publisher=Penguin Book Group |location= |id= }}</ref>
*[[1935]]: Baseball player [[Len Koenecke]] was bludgeoned to death with a fire extinguisher by the crew of an aircraft he had chartered, after provoking a fight with the pilot while the plane was in the air.
*[[1941]]: [[Sherwood Anderson]], [[writer]], swallowed a [[toothpick]] at a party and then died of [[peritonitis]].<ref>[http://athena.english.vt.edu/~appalach/writersA/anderson.html Virginia Tech article]</ref>
*[[1943]]: [[Lady be Good (aircraft)|Lady be Good]], a [[United States Army Air Forces|USAAF]] B-24 bomber lost its way and crash landed in the [[Libyan Desert]]. [[Mummified]] remains of its crew, who struggled for a week without water, were not found until [[1960]].
*[[1943]]: Critic [[Alexander Woollcott]] suffered a fatal heart attack during a on-air discussion about [[Adolf Hitler]].<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/A662230 BBC]</ref>
*[[1944]]: Inventor and chemist [[Thomas Midgley, Jr.]], accidentally strangled himself with the cord of a [[pulley]]-operated mechanical bed of his own design.
*[[1947]]: The [[Collyer brothers]], extreme cases of [[Compulsive hoarding|compulsive hoarders]] were found dead in their home in New York. The younger brother, Langley, died by falling victim to a booby trap he had set up, causing a mountain of objects, books, and newspapers to fall on him crushing him to death. His blind brother, Homer, who had depended on Langley for care, died of starvation some days later. Their bodies were recovered after massive efforts in removing many tons of debris from their home.
*[[1958]]: [[Gareth Jones (actor)|Gareth Jones]], actor, collapsed and died while in make-up between scenes of a [[live television]] play, ''Underground'', at the studios of [[Associated British Corporation]] in [[Manchester]]. Director [[Ted Kotcheff]] continued the play to its conclusion, improvising around Jones's absence.
*[[1960]]: [[Baritone]] [[Leonard Warren]] collapsed on the stage of the [[New York Metropolitan Opera]] of a major stroke during a performance of ''[[La forza del destino]]''. The last line he sang was "Morir? Tremenda cosa." ("To die? A tremendous thing.")
*[[1960]]: In the [[Nedelin disaster]], over 100 Soviet [[rocket|missile]] technicians and officials died when a switch was turned on unintentionally igniting the rocket, including Red Army Marshal Nedelin who was seated in a deck chair just 40 meters away overseeing launch preparations. The events were filmed by automatic cameras.
*[[1967]]: A flash fire began in the pure oxygen atmosphere inside the unlaunched [[Apollo 1]] spacecraft, killing its crew during a training exercise.
*[[1967]] [[Vladimir Komarov]] became the first person to die during a space mission after the parachute of his capsule failed to deploy.
*[[1967]]: [[Harold Holt]], the serving [[Prime Minister of Australia]], vanished while swimming off a beach at Portsea near [[Melbourne]]. His body was never found.
*[[1971]]: [[Jerome Irving Rodale]], an [[United States|American]] pioneer of [[organic farming]], died of a heart attack while being interviewed on ''[[The Dick Cavett Show]]''. When he appeared to fall asleep, Cavett quipped "Are we boring you, Mr. Rodale?".<ref>http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm</ref> The show was never broadcast.
*[[1972]]: [[Leslie Harvey]], guitarist of [[Stone the Crows]] was electrocuted on stage by a live microphone.
*[[1974]]: [[Christine Chubbuck]], an [[United States|American]] television [[news reporter]] committed [[suicide]] during a live broadcast on [[July 15]]. At 9:38 AM, 8 minutes into her talk show, on WXLT-TV in [[Sarasota]], [[Florida]], she drew out a [[revolver]] and shot herself in the head.
*[[1975]]: On 24 March 1975 [[Alex Mitchell]], a 50-year-old bricklayer from [[King's Lynn]] literally died laughing whilst watching an episode of ''[[The Goodies]]''. According to his wife, who was a witness, Mitchell was unable to stop laughing whilst watching a sketch in the episode "[[Kung Fu Kapers]]" in which [[Tim Brooke-Taylor]], dressed as a kilted Scotsman, used a set of [[bagpipes]] to defend himself from a psychopathic [[black pudding]] in a demonstration of the Scottish martial art of "Hoots-Toot-ochaye." After twenty-five minutes of continuous laughter Mitchell finally slumped on the sofa and expired from heart failure.
*[[1976]]: [[Keith Relf]], former singer for British [[rhythm and blues]] band [[The Yardbirds]], died while practicing his electric guitar, electrocuted because the guitar was not properly grounded <ref>http://www.elvispelvis.com/electrocuted.htm</ref>.
*[[1977]]: [[Tom Pryce]], a [[Formula One]] driver, and a 19-year-old track marshal [[Jansen Van Vuuren]] both died at the [[1977 South African Grand Prix]] after Van Vuuren ran across the track beyond a blind brow to attend to another car which had caught fire and was struck by Pryce's car at approximately 170[[miles per hour|mph]]. Pryce was hit in the face by the marshal's [[fire extinguisher]] and was killed instantly.<ref name="Tom Pryce death">{{cite book |last=Tremayne |first= David|authorlink=David Tremayne |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=The Lost Generation |origdate= |origyear= 2006 |origmonth=August|url= |format= |accessdate=2007-01-05 |accessyear= |accessmonth= |edition= |date= |year= |month= |publisher= Haynes Publishing|location= |language=English |isbn=1-84425-205-1 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages= |chapter=Chapter 19 - A Moment Of Desperate Sadness|chapterurl= |quote=}}</ref>
*[[1978]]: [[Georgi Markov]], a [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] dissident, was assassinated by poisoning in [[London]] by an unknown assailant who jabbed him in the calf with a specially modified [[umbrella]] that fired a metal pellet with a small cavity full of [[ricin]] poison.
*[[1978]]: [[Janet Parker]], a British medical photographer, died of [[smallpox]] in 1978, ten months after the disease was eradicated in the wild, when a researcher at the laboratory Parker worked at accidentally released some virus into the air of the building. She is believed to be the last smallpox fatality in history.
*[[1981]]: A 25-year-old Dutch woman studying in [[Paris]], Renée Hartevelt, was killed and [[cannibalism|eaten]] by a classmate, [[Issei Sagawa]], when he invited her to dinner for a literary conversation. The killer was declared unfit to stand trial and extradited back to [[Japan]], where he was released from custody within fifteen months.
*[[1981]]: [[Boris Sagal]], a motion picture-director, died while shooting the TV miniseries ''[[World War III (TV miniseries)|World War III]]'' when he walked into the tail-rotor blade of a helicopter and was mortally injured.
*[[1982]]: [[Vic Morrow]], [[actor]], was [[decapitation|decapitated]] by a [[helicopter]] blade during filming of ''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]'', along with two child actors, [[Myca Dinh Le]] and [[Renee Shin-Yi Chen]].
*[[1982]]: [[Vladimir Smirnov (fencer)|Vladimir Smirnov]], an [[1980 Summer Olympics|Olympic champion]] [[Fencing (sport)|fencer]], died of [[brain damage]] nine days after his opponent's [[Foil (sword)|foil]] snapped during a match, pierced his eyeball and entered his [[brain]].
*[[1983]]: [[Tennessee Williams]], American playwright, died choking on a bottle cap. He was in a hotel but was too drunk to leave his room or make sufficient noise to attract attention.
*[[1983]]: [[Sergei Chalibashvili]], a professional [[Diving|diver]], died after a diving accident during [[World University Games]]. When he attempted a three-and-a-half reverse [[somersault]] in the tuck position, he smashed his head on the board and was knocked unconscious. He died after being in a [[coma]] for a week.
*[[1984]]: [[Jon-Erik Hexum]], an American television actor, died after he shot himself in the head with a prop gun during a break in filming. Whether he committed suicide or was simply unaware of the potentially deadly effects of the [[Blank (cartridge)|blank]] round was not determined.
*[[1987]]: [[R. Budd Dwyer]], a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[politician]], committed [[suicide]] during a televised [[press conference]]. Facing a potential 55-year jail sentence for alleged involvement in a [[Conspiracy (crime)|conspiracy]], Dwyer shot himself in the mouth with a [[revolver]].
*[[1990]]: [[Joseph W. Burrus]], aged 32, an aspiring magician, decided to perform the "[[buried alive]]" illusion in a plastic box covered with cement. The cement crushed the box and he died of asphyxia. <ref>[http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm Snopes.com], on a list of those who "died on stage."</ref>
*[[1990]]: [[George Allen (football)|George Allen]], an American football coach, died a month after some of his players dumped a [[Gatorade]] bucket on him following a victory (as it is tradition in American Football), resulting in [[pneumonia]].
*[[1993]]: [[Brandon Lee]], son of Bruce Lee, was shot and killed by a prop [[.44 Magnum]] gun while filming the movie ''[[The Crow (film)|The Crow]]''. The scene involved the firing of a full-powder blank (full charge of gunpowder, but no bullet) at Brandon's character. Unknown to the film crew/firearms technician, a bullet was already lodged in the barrel.
*[[1996]]: [[Sharon Lopatka]], an internet entrepernuer from Maryland who alledegly solicited a man via the Internet to torture and kill her for the purpose of sexual gratification. Her killer, Robert Fredrick Glass, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter for the homicide.
*[[1998]]: [[Tom and Eileen Lonergan]] were stranded while [[scuba diving]] with a group of divers off [[Australia]]'s [[Great Barrier Reef]]. The group's boat accidentally abandoned them due to an incorrect head count taken by the dive boat crew. The couple was left to fend for themselves in [[shark]]-infested waters. Their bodies were never recovered. The incident is described in the film ''[[Open Water]]''.

===21st century===
*[[2001]]: Bernd-Jürgen Brandes was stabbed repeatedly in the neck and then eaten by [[Armin Meiwes]]. Before the killing, both men dined on Brandes' severed penis. Brandes had answered an internet advertisement by Meiwes looking for someone for this purpose. Brandes explicitly stated in his will that he wished to be killed and eaten. This is referred to in the song "Mein Teil" by German heavy-metal band [[Rammstein]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4752797.stm "German cannbibal guilty of murder"], ''BBC News'', May 9, 2006</ref>
*[[2003]]: [[Brian Wells]], a [[pizza delivery]] man, was killed by a [[time bomb]] which was fastened around his neck. He was apprehended by the [[police]] after robbing a [[bank]], and claimed he had been forced to do it by three people who had put the bomb around his neck and would kill him if he refused. The bomb then exploded, killing him.
*[[2003]]: [[Brandon Vedas]] died of a [[drug overdose]] while engaged in an [[Internet chat]], as shown on his [[webcam]].
*[[2003]]: [[Timothy Treadwell]], an [[United States|American]] [[environmentalist]] who had lived in the wilderness among bears for thirteen summers in a remote region in [[Alaska]], was killed and partially consumed by bears, along with his girlfriend Amie Huguenard. The incident is described in [[Werner Herzog]]'s [[documentary film]] ''[[Grizzly Man]]''.<ref>Medred, Craig.''[http://www.adn.com/front/story/4110831p-4127072c.html Wildlife author killed, eaten by bears he loved]''. ''[[Anchorage Daily News]]''. October 8, 2003. Retrieved September 4, 2006.</ref>
*[[2005]]: [[Kenneth Pinyan]] of [[Seattle]] died of acute [[peritonitis]] after submitting to anal intercourse with a stallion in the town of [[Enumclaw, Washington]]. Pinyan had done this before, and he delayed his visit to the hospital for several hours out of reluctance for official cognizance. The case led to the criminalization of [[zoophilia|bestiality]] in [[Washington]].<ref>http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002569751_horsesex19m.html</ref>
*[[2005]]: 28-year-old [[South Korea|Korean]] video game addict [[Lee Seung Seop]] collapsed in an Internet cafe after playing [[Starcraft]] and [[World of Warcraft]] for almost 50 consecutive hours.<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1729573,00.html "Korean drops dead after 50-hour gaming marathon"], ''Times Online'', August 10, 2005</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Steve Irwin]], a television personality and naturalist known as [[The Crocodile Hunter]], died when his heart was impaled by a [[short-tail stingray]] barb while filming in [[Queensland]]'s [[Great Barrier Reef]]. <ref>http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20355064-30417,00.html</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Alexander Litvinenko]], a former [[FSB]] operative and Russian expatriate who had been investigating the murder of Russian journalist [[Anna Politkovskaya]], was [[radiation poisoning|poisoned]] by [[polonium|polonium-210]], an extremely rare radioactive [[metalloid]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6178890.stm Russian ex-spy dies in hospital]</ref>
*[[2006]]: [[Mariesa Weber]], a 5'3" Florida woman, fell behind a 6' tall bookcase in her family's home and suffocated. She was not discovered for 11 days; her family thought she had been kidnapped. <ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6185854.stm]</ref>
*[[2007]]: [[Jennifer Strange]], a 28-year-old woman from [[Sacramento]], died of [[water intoxication]] while trying to win a [[Nintendo]] [[Wii]] in a [[KDND]] 107.9 "The End" radio station's "Hold Your Wee for a Wii" contest, which involved drinking large quantities of water without urinating. <ref>[http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-water14jan14,1,1368543.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california "Woman dies after being in water-drinking contest"], ''The Los Angeles Times'', January 14, 2007</ref>

==References==
<div class="references-small"><references/></div>

== See also ==
* [[Toilet-related injury]]
* [[List of inventors killed by their own inventions]]
* [[Darwin Awards]]

[[Category:Lists of people by cause of death|Unusual]]
[[Category:Death-related lists|Unusual]]

[[nl:Lijst van personen die op ongebruikelijke manier zijn overleden]]