Obituaries People Premature Famous Reported Published Alive Result

In some "instances" (cases; occasions), the obituaries of famous people have been published "prematurely" (too soon; before something is supposed to happen). In other words, obituaries have been published while the "subject of the obituary" (the person who died) was still alive.

Sometimes a premature obituary is the result of an accident, as when a news station or newspaper writes obituaries prematurely to be prepared when famous people die, but accidentally publishes them too soon. A business newsmagazine accidentally published an obituary for Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple, three years before he died. Similarly, NBC mistakenly reported that Joe DiMaggio, a famous baseball player, had died in January 1999, because the news studio had prepared for his death when it was reported that he was sick. But he did not actually die until March of that year.

Other premature obituaries are the result of people who have disappeared or appear to have died, but then reappear. Mark Twain, a famous American author, was reported to have been "lost at sea" (to have died while in a boat, usually during a storm) when people "lost track of" (were no longer able to determine the location of) his boat. However, the boat was actually only delayed by "fog" (thick, low clouds that make it difficult to see).

Still other premature obituaries are caused by name confusion. For example, in 1993, actor Sean Connery was reported to have died, even though he was still alive. The former governor of Texas, John Connally, had "passed away" (died), and some people confused his name with the actor's name.