1997 deaths

Jennifer Holt (born Elizabeth Marshall Holt; November 10, 1920 – September 21, 1997) was an American actress.

Svend Wiig Hansen (20 December 1922 – 15 March 1997) was a Danish sculptor and painter.

Parke Shepherd Rouse Jr. (1915 – March 5, 1997) was an American journalist, writer and historian in Tidewater Virginia.

Bridgette Andersen (July 11, 1975 – May 18, 1997) was an American child actress and child model. She starred in 1982's Savannah Smiles, for which she received her first of four Youth in Film Award nominations.

Arthur Tien Chin (Chinese: 陳瑞鈿; pinyin: Chén Ruìdiàn, Cantonese: Chan Sui-Tin; October 23, 1913 – September 3, 1997) was a pilot from the United States who participated in the Second Sino-Japanese War. Chin was compelled to defend his father's homeland when Japan invaded China. He was part of the first group of U.S. volunteer combat aviators. Chin is recognized as the United States' first flying ace in World War II.

Wallace Bruner Jr. (March 4, 1931 – November 3, 1997) was an American journalist and television host. He covered Congress and the Lyndon Johnson administration for ABC News in the 1960s. He was the first host of the 1968–1975 syndicated version of What's My Line? and went on to host the syndicated home repair show Wally's Workshop. He was also one of the first Americans to receive a heart transplant.

Elbert Scott McCuskey (1915–1997) was a World War II US Navy fighter ace. He participated in the Battle of the Coral Sea and the Battle of Midway, for which he was awarded two Navy Crosses, one for each battle. By the end of the war, he was credited with 13+1⁄2 aerial victories.

Kurt Stöpel (12 March 1908 – 11 June 1997) was a German professional road bicycle racer. In the 1932 Tour de France, Stöpel won the second stage and was leading the general classification for one day, and finished in second place in the final general classification. He was the first German to wear the yellow jersey, and the first German to finish on the podium in Paris. He won the German National Road Race in 1934.

Ronald Eugene Andersen (May 26, 1941 – July 3, 1997) was an American bridge player. He won 11 "national"-rated events at North American Bridge Championships, thrice-annual 10-day meets organized by the American Contract Bridge League, where he became known best as a superior live commentator in the vugraph room.
Andersen was born in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and studied at the University of Iowa before beginning a professional bridge career. Eventually he owned a seat on the Chicago Board Options Exchange and he died in a Chicago hospital at age 56.Andersen finally became a favorite commentator for European Bridge League and World Bridge Federation championships, as well as major ACBL tournaments. In the month before his death, June 1997, he worked the European Championships in Italy, from which he was flown home to Chicago after suffering two strokes in consequence of kidney failure.Andersen co-wrote seven books related to the Precision Club bidding system with C. C. Wei, inventor of the system, or Kathie Wei.Andersen and Sabine Zenkel traveled the world as a partnership during 1991–1992, based in Chicago. They also wrote a book, Preempts from A to Z (1993; 2nd, 1996).

John Joseph Dwyer (January 15, 1927 – October 15, 1997) was an American football defensive back in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and the Los Angeles Rams. He played college football at Loyola Marymount University and was drafted in the fifth round of the 1951 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.