Excerpts from Bellany's recent book,
"Wiki-People Who Died At Age 32"

Since 2006, Bellany has scoured Wikipedia for people who died at his exact age. When he was 32, he found 117 figures - some obscure and others notable, who had died at that tender age. In addition to writing up a short biography for each 'character', Bellany created original black and white portraits using illustrations he uncovered on image searches.

"Being the same age as each person I researched (when they died), I naturally felt a strong personal connection to their stories. I compared our accomplishments, social situations, and the eras in which we lived. It was a new way of looking at both history and myself. Now that I have moved on to age 33, I find myself contemplating the strange fact that I have lived longer than Bruce Lee, King Richard III and Alexander the Great. It definitely motivates me to work harder and make a difference."

↓more

・Bruce Lee

・Buzz Sawyer

・Davey Allison

・Dick Turpin

・Eadred of England

・Elizabeth Siddal

・Galeazzo Maria Sforza

・Glen Kidston

・Hernan Gaviria

・Jedediah 'Strong' Smith

・Joseph I

・Keith Godchaux

・Lya De Putti

・Mike Lockwood

・Ota Benga

・Ottavio Bottecchia

・Proof

・Regnier De Graaf

・Steve Chiasson

・Thomas Ashe

・Vladimir of Novgorod

・William Cartwright

・Wyndham Hallswelle

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Wiki-People Who Died At Age 32

Steve Chiasson (1967-1999)
Professional hockey player Steve Chiasson displayed much skill as an "offensive defenceman" during his NHL career. Though he was offensive as a defencemen, Chiasson was by no means an offensive individual. On the contrary, his former manager, Ken Holland, stated that the friendly Canadian was "the kind of guy you wanted to go to war with." Playing for teams such as the Red WIngs, Flames, Whalers, Hurricanes and Canadian national squad, Chiasson managed to score over 100 goals even though his primary job was to defend.

Just several hours after Chiasson's Hurricanes were eliminated from the 1999 playoffs, team members gathered at the home of veteran left wing Gary Roberts to let off steam by having a few beers. Displaying his offensive defensiveness, Chiasson refused to call a taxi or accept a ride from a teammate after becoming sufficiently inebriated. On the way home to his wife and three young children, the drunken Hurricane lost control of his pickup truck and rolled it into a field. Not wearing a seatbelt, he was thrown from the vehicle and killed instantly. His blood alcohol content was 0.27 and his age was 32.

In the Ontario town where Chiasson was raised, a small statue was erected in his honor. When the Hurricanes won their first ever championship in 2006, Cory Stillman, a longtime friend and teammate of Chiasson, took the Stanley Cup trophy to this spot. "This one's for you, Steve."