Today's Birthdays in History
- 1479 Vasili III of Russia, Great Prince of Moscow (1505-33), son of Ivan III (d. 1533)
- 1516 Conrad Gessner, Swiss physician and naturalist, born in Zürich, Switzerland (d. 1565)
- 1554 Charles, Duke of Mayenne, French military leader, born in Alençon, France (d. 1611)
- 1577 Elisabeth of Nassau, Daughter of Willem I & Charlotte of Bourbon, born in Middelburg, Netherlands (d. 1642)
- 1698 Václav Prokop Diviš, Czech theologian and natural scientist, born in Helvíkovice, Bohemia (d. 1765)
- 1749 William Blount, American statesman and signer of the United States Constitution, born in Windsor, North Carolina (d. 1800)
- 1753 Benjamin Thompson, American physicist and inventor (Royal Institution of Great Britain), born in Woburn, Massachusetts (d. 1814)
- 1773 Nathaniel Bowditch, American mathematician, astronomer and author (Marine Sextant), born in Salem, Province of Massachusetts Bay (d. 1838)
- 1794 Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, German painter and designer who figured importantly in the German Nazarene movement, born in Leipzig, Saxony (d. 1872)
- 1813 Thomas West Sherman, American Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Newport, Rhode Island (d. 1879)
- 1817 Herman Haupt, American civil engineer and Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1905)
- 1819 Louise Otto-Peters, German suffragist, women's rights movement activist and author (The Wandering Star), born in Meissen, Germany (d. 1895)
- 1821 Ernst Engel, German statistician and economist (Law of Engel), born in Dresden, Germany (d. 1896)
- 1830 Eliza Laurillard, Dutch vicar, poet and writer, born in Rotterdam, Netherlands (d. 1908)
- 1833 Betsy Perk [Christina Elizabeth], Dutch journalist, writer and pioneer of the Dutch women's movement, born in Delft, Netherlands (d. 1906)
- 1840 George Smith, English archaeologist and assyriologist (cuneiform script), born in London (d. 1876)
- 1850 Edward Bellamy, American author (Looking Backward) and socialist, born in Chicopee, Massachusetts (d. 1898)
- 1856 David Alfred Thomas, 1st Viscount Rhondda, Welsh coal-mining entrepreneur, born in Ysgyborwen, Wales (d. 1918)
- 1859 A. E. Housman, English poet (A Shropshire Lad), born in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, England (d. 1936)
- 1859 Adolf Hurwitz, German mathematician (Riemann–Hurwitz formula), born in Hildesheim, Germany (d. 1919)
- 1868 Fuʾād I [Aḥmad Fuʾād Pasha], King of Egypt (1922-36), born in Cairo, Egypt (d. 1936)
- 1871 Jonah Kūhiō Kalaniana'ole, Prince of the Kingdom of Hawaii, born in Kukui‘ula, Kōloa, Kauaʻi, Kingdom of Hawaii (d. 1922)
Robert Frost (1874-1963)
American poet (Mending Wall, Road Not Taken), born in San Francisco, California
Syngman Rhee (1875-1965)
1st President of South Korea (1948-60), born in Haeju, North Korea
- 1876 Prince William of Wied, Prince of Albania (1914-25), born in Neuwied, German Empire (d. 1945)
- 1879 Othmar Ammann, Swiss-American bridge engineer (George Washington Bridge; Walt Whitman Bridge; Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge), born in Schaffhausen, Switzerland (d. 1965)
- 1880 Duncan Hines, American restaurant guide writer (Out of Kentucky Kitchens), born in Bowling Green, Kentucky (d. 1959)
- 1881 Guccio Gucci, Italian founder of Gucci fashion house, born in Florence, Italy (d. 1953)
- 1882 Hermann Obrecht, Swiss jurist, member of the Swiss Federal Council, born in Grenchen, Switzerland (d. 1940)
- 1885 Robert Blackburn, British aviation pioneer and the founder of Blackburn Aircraft, born in Kirkstall, Leeds (d. 1955)
- 1886 Hugh Mulzac, America military officer (d. 1971)
- 1888 Elsa Brändström, Swedish nurse who helped POWs in Siberia, born in Saint Petersburg, Russia. (d. 1948)
- 1890 Jozef Arras, Flemish writer, born in Lier (d. 1919)
- 1893 James B. Conant, American chemist and President of Harvard University, born in Dorchester, Massachusetts (d. 1978)
Palmiro Togliatti (1893-1964)
Italian politician and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Italy (1926-34, 1938-64), born in Genoa, Italy
- 1899 James B. Connant, American chemist, President of Harvard and diplomat, born in Dorchester, Massachusetts (d. 1978)
- 1902 Leslie Melville, Australian economist and public servant who helped develop the country's central banking system, born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2002)
- 1904 Emilio Fernandez, Mexican director (La Choca, Flor Silvestre), born in El Seco Mexico (d. 1986)
- 1904 Joseph Campbell, American professor of comparative mythology (Mythic Image), born in White Plains, New York (d. 1987)
- 1904 Xenophon Zolotas, Greek economist, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 2004)
- 1905 Viktor Frankl, Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist (Man's Search for Meaning) and founder of logotherapy, born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary (d. 1997)
- 1906 Rafael Mendez, Mexican trumpetist (d. 1981)
- 1907 Mahadevi Varma, Indian poet and freedom fighter, born in Farrukhabad, British India (d. 1987)
- 1908 Betty MacDonald [nee Bard], American humor writer (The Egg and I), in Boulder, Colorado (d. 1958)
- 1908 Kenneth Mellanby, English entomologist (scabies) (d. 1993)
- 1911 Bernard Katz, German-born Australian biophysicist (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1970), born in Leipzig, German Empire (d. 2003)
Tennessee Williams (1911-1983)
American playwright (A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof), born in Columbus, Mississippi
- 1913 Paul Erdős, Hungarian mathematician, born in Budapest, Austria-Hungary (d. 1996)
- 1914 Ian McGeoch, Scottish Vice-Admiral with Royal Navy (submarine HMS Splendid WWII), born in Helensburgh, Scotland (d. 2007)
- 1914 Toru Kumon, Japanese mathematics educator (Kumon Institute of Education,), born in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan (d. 1995)
William Westmoreland (1914-2005)
American general and commander of American forces in the Vietnam War between 1964-68, born in Saxon, South Carolina
- 1916 Christian B. Anfinsen, American chemist (cell physiology, Nobel 1972), born in Monessen, Pennsylvania (d. 1995)
- 1916 Mort Abrahams, American producer (Dr Doolittle, Planet Of Apes), born in New York (d. 2009)
- 1920 George Brown Jr, American politician (Rep-D-CA, 1963-71, 73-99), born in Holtsville, California (d. 1999)
- 1921 George Jefferson, British CEO (British Telecom)
- 1922 Oscar Sala, Italian-born Brazilian nuclear physicist, born in Milan, Italy (d. 2010)
- 1922 William Milliken, American politician, longest serving Governor of Michigan (1969-83), born in Traverse City, Michigan
- 1923 Elizabeth Jane Howard, British novelist (After Julius), (d. 2014)
- 1923 Gert Bastian, German politician (d. 1992)
- 1925 Baron Hooson [Hugh Emlyn], British politician and peer (MP for Montgomeryshire 1962-79), (d. 2012)
- 1925 Ted Graham, Lord Graham of Edmonton, English politician, House of Lords (chief opposition whip), born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England (d. 2020)
- 1928 G. Harry Stine, American science fiction writer (d. 1997)
- 1930 Gregory Corso, American beat poet (Happy Birthday of Death, Long Live Man), born in New York City (d. 2001)
Sandra Day O'Connor (93rd Birthday)
1930 American 1st woman Supreme Court Justice (1981- 2006), born in El Paso, Texas
Mahmoud Abbas (88th Birthday)
1935 2nd President of the Palestine National Authority (2005-present), born in Safed, Mandatory Palestine
- 1938 Anthony James Leggett, English physicist, (Nobel Prize for Physics 2013 for superfluidity), born in London, England
- 1939 Colin Webb, British fleet street editor and journalist (Press Association) (d. 2013)
- 1939 Jonathan Tod, British Vice-Admiral (Royal Navy)
- 1939 Stuart Sutherland, British psychologist, educator (Sussex University), and writer (Breakdown) (d. 1998)
Nancy Pelosi (83rd Birthday)
1940 American politician (Rep-D-California 1987-), 1st female Speaker of the House (2007-11, 2019-), born in Baltimore, Maryland
Bob Woodward (80th Birthday)
1943 American author and investigative reporter (Watergate, CIA crimes), born in Geneva Illinois
- 1947 Dar Robinson, American stuntman, born in Los Angeles, California (d. 1986)
- 1949 Baroness Hayman [Helene Hayman], British politician (Lord Speaker of the House of Lords, 2006-11), born in Wolverhampton, West Midlands
- 1952 David Amess, British politician (C), born in London
- 1953 Elaine Chao, American politician (U.S. Secretary of Transportaion, 2017-21; U.S. Secretary of Labor, 2001-2009), born in Taipei, Taiwan
- 1953 Lincoln Chafee, American politician (Governor of Rhode Island, 2011-15; US Senator (R) - Rhode Island, 1999-2007), born in Providence, Rhode Island
- 1953 Youssouf Togoïmi, Chadian rebel (d. 2002)
- 1954 Piers Gardner, British human rights lawyer (British Institute of Intl & Comparative Law)
- 1961 Leigh Bowery, Australian performance artist and designer, born in Sunshine, Australia (d. 1996)
- 1961 William Hague, English politician, Secretary of State, Leader of the Opposition, born in Rotherham, England
- 1962 Yuri Pavlovich Gidzenko, Ukrainian-Russian Air Force pilot and officer, and cosmonaut Mir; International Space Station), born in Elanets, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
- 1963 Natsuhiko Kyogoku, Japanese writer (Mōryō no Hako), born in Hokkaido, Japan
- 1971 Behzad Ghorbani, Iranian zoologist and sociobiologist
Larry Page (50th Birthday)
1973 American computer scientist and businessman (co-founded Google with Sergey Brin), born in East Lansing, Michigan
Admirals
Aviators
Gangsters
Generals
Industrialists
Suffragists