Coco Chanel
As 1971 began, Chanel was 87 years old, tired, and ailing. She carried out her usual routine of preparing the spring catalogue. She had gone for a long drive the afternoon of Saturday, 9 January. Soon after, feeling ill, she went to bed early. She died on Sunday, 10 January 1971, at the Hotel Ritz, where she had resided for more than 30 years.
Her funeral was held at the Église de la Madeleine; her fashion models occupied the first seats during the ceremony and her coffin was covered with white flowers—camellias, gardenias, orchids, azaleas and a few red roses. She died in her infamous style, announcing: "You see, this is how you die."
Gabriela Samper
Diagnosed with cancer Samper died on 16 May 1974 in Bogotá. She is seen as one of the pioneering women in Colombian film production, as her ethnographic works inspired Marta Rodríguez, Jorge Silva and Gloria Triana to make films on marginalized populations in Colombia and document cultural traditions. Posthumously, a collection of her short stories, "La Guandoca", which relates her experiences as a political prisoner was published. In 2009, the Aurelio Arturo Auditorium of the National Library hosted a cinematographic exhibition of the works of Gabriela and her daughter Mady, also a filmmaker. In 2014, Albeiro Pérez directed a performance at the Pequeño Teatro of Gilberto Martínez's adaptation of "La Guandoca" for the stage.