LIFE Gone Too Soon: Their Lives Were Not Long But Mattered

Yes, undeniably, there is some sadness in these pages. Why in the world was Kennedy killed? Why couldn't Marilyn have found happiness? Why did Michael leave the stage so early? But also, we revisit the dynamism of JFK, the beauty of Marilyn Monroe and the pure excitement that was Michael Jackson. In these pages, we lament the premature exits, but thrillingly celebrate the lives that were lived lived, often, to the very fullest.
This special LIFE book is brimful with the stories of people we loved. The fans of Judy Garland, Elvis Presley and John Lennon were legion, and so were those of Tim Russert and John Ritter. These are people who, when we learned they had passed, made us sit up, take notice and focus on why they mattered-deeply-to all of us. IFE always takes the long view, and so this book salutes historical figures such as Abraham Lincoln and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart as well as contemporary celebrities including Christopher Reeve and Farrah Fawcett. What might the world have been like had Lincoln not be