2002 deaths

Eldon Dean Rudd (July 15, 1920 – February 8, 2002) was a U.S. Republican politician.

Orville Couch (February 21, 1935 – May 26, 2002) was an American country music singer. He recorded one studio album for Vee Jay Records in 1963, in addition to appearing on radio shows. The album produced two singles on the Billboard country music charts: "Hello Trouble" at No. 5 and "Did I Miss You?" at No. 25. Couch died in 2002 of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Hans Falk (1918–2002) was a Swiss painter, who lived in New York City, Ireland, England, Switzerland and Stromboli, Italy. Hans Falk was one of the most important modern Swiss painters.
Hans Falk was born in Zurich in 1918 and went on to study at the Kunstgewerbeschule Zürich and the art schools in Lucerne. His first commissioned works were posters and graphic designs, which won him numerous awards. Amongst his most important competition wins were a series of seven posters he designed for the 1964 Swiss National Exhibition. He went on to travel extensively, living abroad for extended periods in England, New York and Ireland. In his later years he divided his home between Switzerland and the Sicilian island of Stromboli. He died in 2002, after a fruitful career that produced a large body of paintings, posters and sought-after graphic designs, and made him one of the most important contemporary Swiss artists.

Fernando Pessa, ComIH, GOM, OBE (April 15, 1902 – April 29, 2002) was a Portuguese journalist and reporter. Early in 2002, Pessa was hailed as the world's oldest journalist.

George Alec Effinger (January 10, 1947 – April 27, 2002) was an American science fiction author, born in Cleveland, Ohio.

Stephen Stepanovich Rachunok (a.k.a. "The Mad Russian") (December 5, 1916 – May 11, 2002), was a professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
A native of Rittman, Ohio, Rachunok appeared in two games during the 1940 season, one as a starter, where he pitched a complete game. His Major League Baseball (MLB) debut came on September 17, 1940, where he pitched the top of the ninth inning, surrendering 1 walk while striking out 1 as the Dodgers were defeated 5–0 by the visiting St. Louis Cardinals at Ebbets Field. His only other MLB appearance came 9 days later in the second game of a doubleheader at Ebbets Field when facing the Boston Bees surrendering 5 runs (all earned), striking out 9, while walking 4, en route to a 5–4 loss.Rachunok died on May 11, 2002, in Corona, California.

James Marion McKee (February 1, 1947 – September 14, 2002) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the 1972 and 1973 Pittsburgh Pirates.
An alumnus of Otterbein College, McKee was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 4th round of the 1969 amateur draft. He pitched in a total of 17 games for the Pirates, and continued to pitch in their Minor League system until 1974. McKee died as a result of a car accident in 2002 at the age of 55.

Alberto Bertuccelli (Italian pronunciation: [alˈbɛrto bertutˈtʃɛlli]; 14 January 1924 – 15 August 2002) was an Italian professional footballer who played as a defender.

Umberto Bindi (12 May 1932 – 23 May 2002) was an Italian singer-songwriter. He is especially known for the popular song he co-wrote with Gino Paoli, Il Mio Mondo ("You're My World"), which he recorded in Italian in 1963, and ''La musica è finita'' ("Our Song", recorded by Robert Plant on 45 rpm and then on album Sixty Six to Timbuktu) It was later performed by singers in English and other languages.

Bernard Fresson (27 May 1931 – 20 October 2002) was a French actor who primarily worked in film.
Born in Reims, France, to a French baker, Fresson attended the Lycée privé Sainte-Geneviève, majoring in law. He studied in Tania Balachova's drama class in Paris and later became part of Jean Vilar's Théâtre National Populaire at the Palais de Chaillot.He made his on-screen debut in the Alain Renais film Hiroshima mon amour as a German soldier. His notable film roles include: Gilbert in La Prisonnière (1968), Inspector Barthelmy in John Frankenheimer's French Connection II (1975), Scope in Roman Polanski's The Tenant (1976), Francis in Garçon! (1983), Morin in Street of No Return (1989) and Vincent Malivert in Place Vendôme (1998). He also appeared in the 1969 Costa-Gavras film Z.
For his roles in Garçon! and Place Vendôme, Fresson received a César nomination for Best Supporting Actor.