Iconic Farewells That Still Echo

The second half of this collection continues with final scenes that reshaped public memory. Diane Keaton, 79, was found unresponsive at her California home on October 11, 2025; she was later pronounced dead at the hospital. Her final months included simple, personal snapshots—a beloved pet, a return to Los Angeles after wildfire damage—traces of a life lived on her own terms.

Some endings were long foreshadowed by illness. Freddie Mercury confirmed his AIDS diagnosis one day before dying in London on November 24, 1991; even as his health waned, he recorded with Queen until shortly before his death. Michael Jackson, 50, died on June 25, 2009, of propofol intoxication administered by his personal physician; he was on the cusp of his “This Is It” comeback concerts. Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington, 41, died by suicide on July 20, 2017; a photo taken days earlier shows a familiar smile that now reads like a farewell.

Tragedy on the track and at sea reminds us how peril can shadow spectacle. Formula One champion Ayrton Senna, 34, died in a crash during the San Marino Grand Prix on May 1, 1994; images from that very weekend marked the sport’s darkest hours. Conservationist Steve Irwin, 44, posed aboard a boat with a marine biologist before a stingray strike during filming on September 4, 2006, ended a life dedicated to wildlife.

For the world’s most visible spiritual leader, simplicity defined the final chapter. Pope Francis died at the Vatican at 7:35 a.m. on April 21, 2025, of stroke and heart failure. He had requested a modest burial—a coda consistent with his approach to public life.

Icons of screen and youth, James Dean’s last road stop with his Porsche 550 Spyder preceded a fatal collision near Cholame, California, on September 30, 1955. The Challenger crew’s walkout to Pad 39B on January 28, 1986—smiles, waves, routine steps—came just 73 seconds before disaster. Their images, like all in this series, capture people not as headlines but as humans: focused, hopeful, unaware that a moment would stand for everything.

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), text “help” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741, or go to suicidepreventionlifeline.org.