1977 deaths

Louis Joseph Maria Beel (12 April 1902 – 11 February 1977) was a Dutch politician of the defunct Roman Catholic State Party (RKSP) and later co-founder of the Catholic People's Party (KVP) now the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 3 July 1946 until 7 August 1948 and from 22 December 1958 until 19 May 1959.Beel studied Law at the Radboud University Nijmegen obtaining a Master of Laws degree and worked as a civil servant in Eindhoven and for the Provincial-Executive of Overijssel from July 1929 until May 1942 and as a researcher at his alma mater before finishing his thesis and graduating as a Doctor of Law in Administrative law and during World War II worked as a lawyer in Eindhoven from May 1942 until January 1945. Shortly before the end of the War Beel was appointed as Minister of the Interior in the Cabinet Gerbrandy III, the last government-in-exile taking office on 23 February 1945. After a cabinet formation Beel retained his position in the national unity Cabinet Schermerhorn–Drees. After the election of 1946 Beel was asked to lead a new cabinet and following a successful cabinet formation with Labour Leader Willem Drees formed the Cabinet Beel I and became Prime Minister of the Netherlands and dual served as Minister of the Interior taking office on 3 July 1946.
After the election of 1948 Beel failed to achieve a new coalition following a difficult cabinet formation and was elected as a Member of the House of Representatives on 27 July 1948. Beel left office following the installation of the Cabinet Drees–Van Schaik on 7 August 1948 and continued to serve in the House of Representatives as a backbencher. In September 1948 Beel was nominated as the next High Commissioner of the Dutch East Indies serving from 29 October 1948 until 2 June 1949 and worked as a professor of Administrative law and Public administration at his alma mater and the Catholic Economic University from October 1949 until December 1951. Following a cabinet reshuffle he was again appointed as Minister of the Interior in the Cabinet Drees I taking office on 6 December 1951. After the election of 1952 Beel continued his office in the Cabinet Drees II and also became Deputy Prime Minister taking office on 2 September 1952. On 7 July 1956 Beel resigned after his appointment to lead a special commission investigating a political crisis concerning the royal family. In February 1958 Beel was nominated as a Member of the Council of State taking office on 1 April 1958. After the fall of the Cabinet Drees III Beel was asked to lead an interim cabinet until the next election and following a successful cabinet formation formed the caretaker Cabinet Beel II and again became Prime Minister of the Netherlands and dual served as Minister of Social Affairs and Health taking office on 22 December 1958.
Before the election of 1959 Beel indicated that he wouldn't serve another term as Prime Minister or not stand for the election. Beel left office a second time following the installation of the Cabinet De Quay on 19 May 1959. Beel continued to be active in politics and in July 1959 was nominated as the next Vice-President of the Council of State serving from 1 August 1959 until 1 July 1972.
Beel retired from active politics at 70 and became active in the public sector as a non-profit director and served on several state commissions and councils on behalf of the government. Beel was known for his abilities as efficient manager and effective consensus builder. Beel was granted the honorary title of Minister of State on 21 November 1956 and continued to comment on political affairs as a statesman until he was diagnosed with leukemia in August 1976 and dying six months later at the age of 74. He holds the distinction as the only Prime Minister to have served two non-consecutive terms after World War II and because of his short terms in office his premiership is therefore usually omitted both by scholars and the public in rankings but his legacy as a Minister in the 1940s and 50s and later as Vice-President of the Council of State Bank continue to this-day.

Henry Wendell Jordan (January 26, 1935 – February 21, 1977) was an American professional football player who was a defensive tackle for 13 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Cleveland Browns and Green Bay Packers. He played college football for the Virginia Cavaliers and was selected in the fifth round of the 1957 NFL draft. He played in the NFL from 1957 to 1969 and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

John Arnold Logan (January 1, 1921 – September 16, 1977) was an American professional basketball player and coach born in Richmond, Indiana. A 6'2" guard who played at Indiana University, Logan played for four seasons with the now-defunct St. Louis Bombers, and a fifth season with the Tri-Cities Blackhawks. While with the Blackhawks, he served three games as an interim player-coach.

Johannes Streich (16 April 1891 – 20 August 1977) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the 5th Light Division during the early stages of the North African Campaign. Sacked for his poor performance during the Siege of Tobruk, he later briefly commanded the 16th Motorised Infantry Division during the advance on Moscow. A veteran of World War I, he was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

Horace Edwin Jarnigan (August 23, 1909 – November 1977) was an American Negro league outfielder in the 1930s.
A native of Knoxville, Tennessee, Jarnigan played for the Homestead Grays in 1934. In five recorded games, he posted two hits in 13 plate appearances. Jarnigan died in New Kensington, Pennsylvania in 1977 at age 68.

Azucena Villaflor (7 April 1924 – 10 December 1977) was an Argentine activist and one of the founders of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, a human rights organisation which looks for the victims of enforced disappearances during Argentina's Dirty War.

Lyall Stuart Scott FRCSED, FRCSGLAS (22 September 1920 – 8 October 1977) was a Scottish consultant surgeon who specialised in urology.

Allan Masaharu Ohata (Japanese: 大畠 正春, September 13, 1918 – October 17, 1977) was a United States Army soldier. He is best known for receiving the Medal of Honor because of his actions in World War II.

Christian Schweigaard Stang (15 March 1900 – 2 July 1977) was a Norwegian linguist, Slavicist and Balticist, professor in Balto-Slavic languages at the University of Oslo from 1938 until shortly before his death. He specialized in the study of Lithuanian and was highly regarded in Lithuania.

André Perugia (b. 1893- d.1977) was a French shoe designer. Perugia was born in Nice, France in 1893 of Italian parentage. He trained in his father's workshop and at the age of 16, in 1909, he opened a shop in Paris where he sold handmade shoes. He worked with designers including Paul Poiret, I. Miller, Charles Jourdan, Jacques Fath, Callot Soeurs and Hubert de Givenchy.

He wrote a book From Eve to Rita Hayworth in which he said that the way to unveil a woman's personality was to study her feet. Always eager to experiment with new materials, shapes, and textures, Perugia continued to create shoes of startling originality throughout a 50-year association with I. Miller and then with Charles Jourdan.