• 1607 - Pietro Sforza, Italian theologist: Istoria del Concilio di Trento
• 1628 - John Bunyan, England, cleric/author (Pilgrim's Progress)
• 1632 - Jean-Baptiste Lully, Florence Italy, composer (Bell‚rophen)
• 1650 - John Palfijn, Flemish physician/inventor (forceps) [or Nov 25]
• 1704 - Jacob Mossel, governor-general (Dutch East Indies)
• 1757 - William Blake, English poet/painter (Songs of Innocence & Experience)
• 1763 - Matthaus Fischer, composer
• 1770 - F Louise W, daughter of viceroy Willem V & Wilhelmina of Prussia
• 1777 - Georg A Kestner, German art collector/diplomat
• 1784 - Ferdinand Reis, composer
• 1785 - Achille-Charles, duc de Broglie, French PM (1835-36)
• 1792 - Victor Cousin, French philosopher/minister of Education
• 1793 - Carl Jonas Love Almquist, Swedish composer (T”rnrosens Buck)
• 1795 - Adolf Bernhard Marx, composer
• 1805 - John Stephens, US archaeologist; founded study of Central America
• 1810 - William Froude, England, engineer/naval architect
• 1811 - Maximilian II Jozef, king of Bayern (1848-64)
• 1812 - Ludwig Mathias Lindeman, composer
• 1820 - Friedrich Engels, Germany, social philosopher; Marx's collaborator
• 1820 - Lawrence O'Bryan Branch, Brig General (Confederate Army), died in 1862
• 1821 - Nikolai Nekrasov, Russ, poet/journalist (Who Can be Happy in Russia?)
• 1829 - Anton Rubinstein, Vykhvatinetz Podolia, composer (Omitri Doskoy) [NS]
• 1837 - John Wesley Hyatt, inventor (celluloid)
• 1841 - E M Grace, cricketer (brother of W G)
• 1843 - Manuel Gregorio Tavarez, composer
• 1849 - Albert J-BJ Th˜s, Belgian colonial pioneer (Congo)
• 1854 - Gottlieb J Haberlandt, Hungarians/German botanist
• 1856 - Alexandr Dmitriyevich Kastal'sky, composer
• 1857 - Alfonso XII, king of Spain (1874-85)
• 1864 - Carel A Lion Cachet, lithographer/wood carver
• 1866 - Arthur Frederick Augustus "Dick" Lilley, cricket keeper (England)
• 1866 - Henry Bacon, architect (Lincoln Memorial)
• 1866 - Johannes F "Johan" Bakker Sr, Dutch actor/husband of Truus Soete
• 1868 - Frantisek Alois Drdla, composer
• 1876 - Bert Vogler, cricketer (early South African googly bowler)
• 1878 - Jozef van Mierlo, Belgian Jesuit/literary (Hadewych)
• 1880 - Alexander A Block, Russian poet (Dvenatsat) [OS=11/16]
• 1880 - Marinus van Meel, 1st Dutch aviator
• 1881 - Stefan Zweig, Vienna Austria, poet/essayist/dramatist (Beware of Pity)
• 1883 - Paul Hastings Allen, composer
• 1887 - Bobby Watson, [Knucher], Springfield IL, comedian
• 1887 - Ernst R”hm, German staff member/Bolivian leader/SA
• 1887 - Jacobo Palm, Cura‡aos pianist/organist
• 1892 - Thomas Wood, composer
• 1894 - Brooks Atkinson, drama critic (Broadway theater namesake)
• 1895 - Jos‚ Iturbi, Valencia Spain, pianist (Peque¤a danza Espa¤ola)
• 1896 - Lilia Skala, Vienna, actress (House of Games, Flashdance, Charly)
• 1897 - Uno Choyo, writer
• 1898 - Yuri N Libedinski, Ukrainian writer (Birth of Hero) [OS]
• 1900 - Lester Vail, actor (Dance Fools Dance, Consolation Marriage)
• 1902 - Victor Jory, Dawson City Canada, actor (Kings Row, Manhunt)
• 1904 - James O Eastland, (Sen-D-Miss)
• 1904 - Nancy Mitford, English author (Love in a cold climate)
• 1907 - Alberto Moravia, [Pincherle], Italian author (Indifferent Ones)
• 1908 - Arturo Frondizi, president Argentina (1958-62)
• 1908 - Claude L‚vi-Strauss, Belgium, social anthropologist (Structure Anthro)
• 1908 - Roberto Lupi, composer
• 1909 - Aleksandar Rankovic, Yugoslavic partisan/vice-premier
• 1912 - Heinz Galinski, President (Central council for Jews in Germany)
• 1912 - Morris Louis, US painter (post abstract)
• 1913 - Hugo Pos, Suriname/Neth WW II prosecutor of minor war crimes Tokyo
• 1915 - Pamela Harrison, composer
• 1916 - Guy Lap‚bie, France, 100K cyclist (Olympic-silver-1936)
• 1916 - Lilian Baels, English 2nd wife of Belgian king Leopold III
• 1917 - Kees Schilperoort, Dutch radio/TV host
• 1919 - Keith Miller, cricketer (one of Australia's best ever all-rounders)
• 1920 - Cecilia Colledge, England, figure skater (Olympic-silver-1936)
• 1922 - Helen Kinney Copley, newspaper publisher
• 1923 - Helen Delich Bentley, (Rep-R-MD, 1985- )
• 1923 - Phyllis Jenkins, literary & theatrical agent community activist
• 1923 - Ted Stevens, (Sen-R-AK, 1968- )
• 1924 - Kees [Gerrit C] Otten, Dutch flutist
• 1925 - Aurelio de la Vega, composer
• 1925 - Gloria Grahame, LA Calif, actress (Sue-Rich Man Poor Man)
• 1925 - Virginia Hewitt, Shreveport La, actress (Carol-Space Patrol)
• 1928 - Edward LeBone Molotlegi, chief of the Bafokeng
• 1929 - Berry Gordy Jr, Detroit, record company owner (Motown)
• 1931 - Dervla Murphy, travel author (Full Tilt, In Ethiopia with a Mule)
• 1931 - Hope Lange, Redding Ridge Ct, actress (Ghost & Mrs Muir)
• 1931 - Ian Skipper, English businessman/multi-millionaire (Heritage Projects)
• 1931 - Rinus Ferdinandusse, editor/author (Nude on Fence)
• 1931 - Thomas Enders, diplomat
• 1932 - Ben[jamin William] Bova, US, sci-fi author (Exiled from Earth)
• 1932 - Ethel L Ennis, US orchestra leader/jazz singer (Once Again)
• 1932 - Terence Frisby, poet/screenwriter (There's a Girl in My Soup)
• 1933 - Joe Knollenberg, (Rep-R-Michigan)
• 1934 - Carlos Farinas, composer
• 1934 - Dick Rhyan, Columbus OH, PGA golfer (1994 GTE-5th)
• 1935 - Randolph Stow, author/poet (Suburbs of Hell)
• 1936 - Gary Hart, (Sen-D-Co, 1975-86)
• 1939 - Gary Troxel, rocker
• 1940 - Bruce Channel, rocker
• 1940 - Clem Curtis, rocker
• 1941 - Laura Antonelli, Pola Yugoslavia, actress (Wifemistress, Divine Nymph)
• 1942 - Paul Warfield, NFL/WFL wide receiver (Cleveland, Miami, Memphis)
• 1943 - Randy Newman, New Orleans, vocalist (Short People, Love LA, Raindrops)
• 1944 - Rita Mae Brown, actress (Long Hot Summer, Slumber Party Massacre)
• 1946 - Joe Dante, director (Matinee, Twilight Zone, Police Squad, Gremlins)
• 1946 - Susan Spencer, NY, correspondent (48 Hours) [1946 approx]
• 1948 - Agnieszka Holland, Warsaw Poland, actress/director (Europa Europa)
• 1948 - Beeb Birtles, [Gerard Birtlekamp], rock guitarist (Little River Band)
• 1949 - Alexander Godunov, Russia, composer/dancer (Bolshoi) defected 1979
• 1949 - Hugh McKenna, rocker (Alex Harvey Band)
• 1949 - Paul Shaffer, Thunder Bay Ont, orch leader (SNL, David Letterman)
• 1949 - Victor Ostrovsky, Canadian/Israel, Mossad agent (By Way of Deception)
• 1950 - Ed Harris, Tenafly NJ, actor (Right Stuff, Swing Shift, Walker, Coma)
• 1952 - Jeff Fahey, actor (Darkman III, Crossover, Serpent's Lair)
• 1952 - S Epatha Merkerson, Saginaw MI, actress (Jacob's Ladder, Terminator 2)
• 1953 - Nadezhda Olizarenko, USSR, 800m/1500m runner (Olympic-gold-1980)
• 1953 - Sixto Lezcano, baseball player
• 1956 - Kristine Arnold, Torrance, singer (Sweethearts of Rodeo-Midnight Girl)
• 1956 - Lucy Gutteridge, actress (Top Secret, Trouble With Spies)
• 1958 - Dave Righetti, baseball pitcher (Yankees, Giants)
• 1958 - David Van Day, rocker (Dollar-Loves Gotta Hold on Me)
• 1958 - Kriss Akabusi, Great Britain, 4X400 runner (Olympic-silver-1984)
• 1958 - Tim Mullens, Dutch singer/guitarist (Ivy green)
• 1959 - Judd Nelson, Portland ME, actor (Breakfast Club, Jack-Suddenly Susan)
• 1959 - R Glynn Holt, Plainveiw Texas, PhD/astronaut (STS 73 alt)
• 1959 - Stephen Roche, bicylist
• 1960 - Deneice Lewis, Lynchburg Va, model
• 1960 - Ken Howell, baseball player
• 1961 - Jane Sibbett, actress (Teddy Z, Heddy Newman-Herman's Head)
• 1961 - Patty Zomer, Dutch singer (Dolly Dots)
• 1962 - Karen Marsden, Perth Australia, field hockey goalie (Olympics-96)
• 1962 - Matt Cameron, musician (Soundgarden)
• 1963 - Johnny Newman, NBA guard/foward (Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks)
• 1963 - Walt Weiss, Tuxedo NY, shortstop (Oakland A's, Colorado Rockies)
• 1964 - Cornelia Guest, debutante (Debutante's Guide to Life)
• 1964 - John Burkett, New Brighton PA, pitcher (Florida Marlins)
• 1965 - David Ecob, Sydney NSW, Australasia golfer
• 1965 - Matt Williams, infielder (SF Giants)
• 1967 - Anna Nicole "Vickie" Smith, Houston Tex, playmate (May 1992)
• 1968 - Jonathan Brown, NYC, rower (Olympics-5th-1996)
• 1969 - Dale Carter, NFL cornerback (KC Chiefs)
• 1969 - Doug Petersen, CFL defensive end (Montreal Alouettes)
• 1969 - Marc Spindler, NFL defensive tackle/end (NY Jets, Detroit Lions)
• 1969 - Nick Knight, cricketer (England opening batsman 1995- )
• 1969 - Pedro Astacio, Hato Mayor Dom Rep, pitcher (LA Dodgers)
• 1969 - Pio Sagapolutele, NFL defensive tackle (NO Saints, Cleve Browns)
• 1969 - Robb Nen, San Pedro CA, pitcher (Florida Marlins)
• 1969 - Sonia O'Sullivan, Ireland, 5k runner (Olympics-4th-92, 96)
• 1970 - Arshad Laiq, cricket all-rounder (United Arab Emirates World Cup 1996)
• 1970 - Evan Droop, Yarrawonga VIC, Australasia golfer
• 1970 - Jason Day, Australian rower (Olympics-96)
• 1970 - Todd Perry, NFL guard (Chic Bears)
• 1971 - Karin Taylor, Kingston Jamacia, playmate (June, 1996)
• 1971 - William Simas Jr, Hanford CA, pitcher (Chic White Sox)
• 1974 - Jason Ferguson, defensive tackle (NY Jets)
• 1974 - Joerg Heckenbach, WLAF receiver (Frankfurt Galaxy)

Famous deaths for this day ..

• 0741 - Gregory III, Syrian Pope, dies
• 1058 - Kazimierz I Restaurator, duke of Poland (1034-58), dies
• 1262 - Shinran, founder of Japan's True Pure Land Buddhist sect, dies
• 1499 - Edward Plantagenet, 18th Count of Warwick, beheaded
• 1514 - Hartmann Skull, German physician/historian (Skull's Liederbuch), dies
• 1545 - Jacob van Liesveld, printer/"heretic" (Refeyen), beheaded
• 1559 - Erasmus Sarcerius, German luthers theologist, dies at about 58
• 1590 - Pierre de Loyseleur de Villiers, S Neth theologist, dies at about 60
• 1641 - Robert Dowland, English luitist/son of John Dowland, dies at about 50
• 1680 - Giovanni L Bernini, Italian sculptor/painter, dies
• 1695 - Giovanni Paulo Colonna, composer, dies at 58
• 1785 - William Whipple, merchant/judge/signer (Decl of Independ), dies at 55
• 1788 - Charles C of Nassau-Weilburg, governor of Maastricht, dies at about 53
• 1794 - Friedrich WLGA von Steuben, Prussian/US inspector-general of Washingtons army, dies at 64
• 1815 - Johann Peter Salomon, composer, dies at 70
• 1827 - Dov Baer Schneersohn, Lubavitch leader/author (Imirei Binah), dies
• 1859 - Washington Irving, US author (Geoffrey Crayon, gent), dies
• 1860 - Heinrich FL Rellstab, German music theorist, dies
• 1861 - Robert Fuhrer, composer, dies at 54
• 1876 - Karl Earnest Ritter von Baer, Estonian/German embryologist, dies at 84
• 1878 - Marco Aurelio Zani de Ferranti, composer, dies at 78
• 1898 - C F Meyer, writer, dies at 73
• 1899 - Adrian the la Rey, son of South African general, dies in battle at 19
• 1907 - Ricardo Castro Herrera, composer, dies at 43
• 1912 - Heinz Galinski, chairman (Central Council for Jews in Germany), dies
• 1915 - Luigi Capuana, Sicilian author/critic (C'era una Volta), dies at 76
• 1916 - Marthinus T Steyn, pres of Orange-Free state (1896-1902), dies at 59
• 1918 - Alexis Contant, composer, dies at 60
• 1927 - Arthur Wichmann, German/Dutch geologist (New-Guinea), dies
• 1939 - James A Naismith, creator of basketball, dies at 78
• 1940 - Nicolae Iorga, author/president of Romania, murdered by fascist
• 1944 - Bijnen, Dutch opposition leader (LKP), shot to death in Apeldoorn
• 1944 - Camille Looten, Belgian priest/literature historian, dies
• 1944 - Joop Brouwer de Koning, youngest Dutch radio operator, executed at 25
• 1944 - Lode Zielens, Flemish author/journalist, dies at 43
• 1945 - Dwight Davis, donator of tennis' Davis cup, dies
• 1947 - Jacques-Philippe Leclerc, WW II hero (liberator of Paris), dies at 44
• 1954 - Enrico Fermi, Italian/US physicist (Nobel 1938), dies at 53
• 1959 - Lester Vail, actor (Dance Fools Dance), dies on 59th birthday
• 1960 - Richard N Wright, US author (Native son), dies at 52 in Paris France
• 1962 - Wilhelmina HPM, queen of the Netherlands (1898-1948), dies at 82
• 1963 - Fred Uttal, TV host (QED), dies at 55
• 1963 - Karyn Kupcinet, actress (Carol-Gertrude Berg Show), murdered at 23
• 1964 - Charles Meredith, actor (Court of Last Resort), dies at 70
• 1964 - Jan Fabricius, Dutch/English playwright (Dolle Hans), dies at 93
• 1966 - Vittorio Giannini, composer, dies at 63
• 1967 - Le¢n Mba, 1st president of Gabon (1960-67), dies
• 1968 - Enid Mary Blyton, author (Before I Go To Sleep), dies at 70
• 1969 - Roy Barcroft, actor (Eyes of Texas, Son of Zorro), dies at 67
• 1970 - Fritz v Unruh, writer, dies at 85
• 1970 - Jan Drda, Czech author (Nema Barikada), dies at 55
• 1971 - Wasfi Tal, Jordan's PM, assassinated by Black Sept in Cairo
• 1972 - Gustave Frederic Soderlund, composer, dies at 91
• 1972 - Havergal Brian, composer, dies at 96
• 1976 - Robert Fleming, composer, dies at 55
• 1976 - Rosalind Russell, actress (Mame), dies of cancer at 68
• 1977 - Trevor Bardette, actor (Clanton-Legend of Wyatt Earp), dies at 75
• 1978 - Andre Morell, actor (Hound of the Baskervilles), dies at 69
• 1983 - Christopher George, actor (Chisum, Heist), dies of heart attack at 54
• 1984 - Hans Speidel, German gen/NATO-supreme commander (1957-64), dies at 87
• 1985 - Fernand Braudel, French historian, dies at 83
• 1986 - Herb Vigran, actor (Ernest-Ed Wynn Show), dies at 76
• 1986 - Louis van Lint, Belgian painter, dies at 76
• 1987 - Choh Hao Li, bio-chemist prof (isolated growth hormones), dies at 74
• 1987 - Paul Arma, composer, dies at 83
• 1989 - Jo[hanne M Bos-]Vincent, Dutch soprano (Songs for Life), dies at 91
• 1990 - Tamara De Treaux, actress (ET), dies at 31
• 1992 - Bill Kearns, US actor (Playtime), dies of lung cancer at 69
• 1992 - June Joyce Lewis Fraser, entertainer, dies at 75
• 1992 - Ronald Smeenk, Dutch cabaret performer, dies
• 1993 - Abu Rish, Palestinian PLO-leader, dies at 23
• 1993 - Garry Moore, TV host (I've Got A Secret), dies of emphysema at 78
• 1993 - Kenneth Connor, English comic/actor (Carry on Sergeant), dies at 75
• 1993 - Khaled Moustapha Zir, Palestinian Hamas leader, shot to death at 25
• 1994 - Al Levitt, US/French jazz drummer, dies at 63
• 1994 - Franfo Fortini, poet, dies at 77
• 1994 - Jeffrey Dahmer, [Butcher of Milwaukee], killer, killed in prison at 34
• 1994 - Jerry Rubin, US anti-war activist (Youth Party), dies at 56
• 1994 - Ronald "Buster" Edwards, Great Train Robber, commits suicide at 62
• 1994 - Vicente Enrique y Tarancon, Spanish cardinal, dies at 87
• 1996 - Anna Pollak, mezzo-soprano, dies at 84
• 1997 - Georges Marchal, actor (Dirty Game, Blondine), dies at 77