• 1593 - Matthew Merian, the Elder, engraver/bookseller
• 1612 - Mark Zuesius Boxhorn, Dutch historian
• 1627 - Jacques-B‚nigne Bossuet, theologist
• 1644 - Olaus Rímer, Denmark, 1st to accurately measured speed of light
• 1657 - Imre Th”k”ly, Hungary, patriot, opposed Habsburg rule
• 1683 - Jean-Philippe Rameau, Dijon France, composer (Traite) (baptized)
• 1714 - Jean-Benoit Leclair, composer
• 1718 - Louis E of Brunswick-Wolfenb�ttel, [Thick Duke], Austrian duke
• 1725 - Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot, designed & built 1st automobile
• 1729 - Christian G Heyne, German archaeologist
• 1734 - Louis RE prince de Rohan-Gu‚men‚, French archbishop of Straatsburg
• 1741 - Vaclav Pichl, composer
• 1744 - Frederik Willem II, king of Prussia (1786-97)
• 1752 - Carl Stenborg, composer
• 1766 - Armand-Emmanuel, duc de Richelieu, French PM (1815-18, 1820-21)
• 1785 - George Frederic Pinto, composer
• 1793 - Felicia Dorothea Hermans, poet
• 1798 - Henri Scheffer, painter
• 1798 - JBAL L‚once Elie de Beaumont, French mine engineer/geologist
• 1805 - Henry P Scholte, Dutch/US vicar/founder (Pella colony in Iowa)
• 1822 - Adolph Wilhelm August Friedrich von Steinwehr, Brig Gen (Union vol)
• 1823 - Thomas John Wood, Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1906
• 1829 - William Michael Rossetti, civil servant
• 1830 - Karl Klindworth, pianist/conductor
• 1832 - William Le Baron Jenney, US, architect/"father of skyscraper"
• 1839 - Karl A von Zittel, German geologist/paleontologist (Libya)
• 1839 - [Wilhel]Mina JPR Kruseman, writer/feminist
• 1846 - Vladimir K”ppen, Russ/German meteorologist
• 1852 - Cornelis J Snijders, supreme commander of Dutch Navy (1910-18)
• 1852 - Gestur P lsson, Iceland writer (Verdandi, Ritsafn)
• 1852 - Hans Vaihinger, German philosopher (Nietzsche Philosophy)
• 1858 - Emmeline Pankhurst-Goulden, English feminist
• 1862 - L‚on Bo‰llmann, French organist/composer (Variations Symphoniques)
• 1866 - Thomas Hunt Morgan, US, biologist (Nobel-1933)
• 1872 - Charles Blake Cochran, impresario
• 1877 - Plutarco El¡as Calles, Mexican revolutionary, president (1924-28)
• 1879 - Luis da Costa, composer
• 1884 - Cornelis "Kees" Boeke, Dutch educationalist
• 1886 - Jesus Guridi, composer
• 1886 - John Howard Lawson, scriptwriter/playwright
• 1887 - May Sutton Bundy, US, 1st US woman to win Wimbledon (US 1904)
• 1889 - George Douglas Howard Cole, socialist/novelist
• 1896 - Elsa Triolet, writer
• 1896 - Roberto Gerhard, composer
• 1896 - Sandro Pertini, president Italy
• 1897 - Otto AP F�rst von Bismarck-Sch”nhausen, German diplomat/politician
• 1897 - Teddy Hart, NYC, actor (3 Men on a Horse)
• 1897 - William Faulkner, Mississippi, author (Sound & Fury-Nobel 1949)
• 1902 - Ernst von Salomon, German writer (Kette Der Tausend Kraniche)
• 1902 - Jeno Takacs, composer
• 1903 - John Everett Allen, US businessman
• 1903 - Mark Rothko, [Marcus Rothkovich], US, painter (Green on Blue)
• 1905 - Nahman Avigad, Israeli archaeologist (Discovering Jerusalem)
• 1905 - Red Smith, Green Bay Wisc, sportscaster/columnist (Fight Talk)
• 1906 - Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, St Petersburg Russia, composer [NS]
• 1906 - Jaroslav Jezek, composer
• 1906 - Madeleine Bourdouxhe, writer
• 1906 - Phyllis Pearsall, painter/writer
• 1907 - Jan Felderhof, composer
• 1907 - Phyllis Pearsall-Gross, British Geographer (A to Z Map Company)
• 1907 - Robert Bresson, France, director (Pickpocket, Mouchette)
• 1908 - Eugen Suchon, composer
• 1909 - Florizel A Glasspole, governor-gen of Jamaica (1973-91)
• 1911 - Lionel Henry Nowak, composer
• 1913 - David Hunt, British diplomat/quiz winner
• 1914 - Frederick William Sternfield, musicologist
• 1916 - Tolia Nikiprowetzsy, composer
• 1918 - Phil Rizzuto, Bkln NY, sportscaster/shortstop (NY Yankees-MVP 1950)
• 1920 - Sergey Bondarchuk, Belozerka Ukraine, director (War & Peace)
• 1921 - Remy C, de Kerckhove, Flemish poet
• 1921 - Robert Muldoon, premier NZ (1975-84)/chairman (IMF)
• 1922 - John Farr, British MP
• 1924 - Norman Ayrton, opera director (Royal Shakespearean Acad - UK)
• 1925 - Silvana Pampanini, Rome Italy, actress (Day in Court, Island Sinner)
• 1925 - William Edgar Mitchell, physicist
• 1926 - Aldo Ray, Pen Argyl PA, actor (God's Little Acre, Green Beret)
• 1926 - John Ericson, Dusseldorf Germany, actor (Sam Bolt-Honey West)
• 1926 - Sergei Filatov, USSR, equestrian dressage (Olympic-gold-1960)
• 1927 - Carl Braun, basketball player (NY Knicks)
• 1927 - Colin Rex Davis, Weybridge England, conductor (NY Met 1967-71)
• 1928 - Hendrika G "Tine" de Vries, actress (Seaman's Wife)
• 1929 - John Rutherford, cricketer (one Test for Australia 1956)
• 1929 - Ronnie Barker, British comedian (2 Ronnies)
• 1930 - H Heckmann, writer
• 1931 - Barbara Walters, Boston Mass, newscaster (Today, 20/20, ABC-TV)
• 1931 - Patrick WIlliam Walker, British astrologer
• 1932 - Andrew Gardner, British broadcaster
• 1932 - Daphne Swallow, commandant/director (WRNS)
• 1932 - Glenn Herbert Gould, Toronto Canada, pianist (sued Steinway Piano)
• 1933 - Adolfo Suarez Gonzalez, premier of Spain (1976-81)
• 1933 - Erik Darling, Baltimore MD, rocker (Rooftop Singers)
• 1933 - Ian Tyson, rocker
• 1934 - John S Bull, Memphis Tennessee, astronaut
• 1934 - Struther Arnott, professor (St Andrew University)
• 1936 - Edward Jones, UK military rep to NATO
• 1936 - Juliet Prowse, Bombay India, actress/dancer (Who Killed Teddy Bear)
• 1936 - Roosevelt "Booba" Barnes, bluesman
• 1937 - Michael Gibbs, jazz composer
• 1937 - Thomas Kessler, composer
• 1939 - David Mann, (Rep-D-Ohio)
• 1939 - Joseph "Jesse" Russell, US singer (Slip Sliding Away)
• 1939 - Leon Britain, vice president (Commission of European Communities)
• 1940 - Timothy Severin, author/explorer
• 1941 - Vivian Stern, director (Nacros)
• 1942 - John Taylor, jazz pianist
• 1942 - Michael Stephen, MP
• 1942 - Peter Petherick, cricketer (NZ slow lefty 1976-77, hat-trick on debut)
• 1943 - Gary Alexander, TN, rock vocalist/guitarist (Association)
• 1943 - John Locke, LA Clif, rock keyboardist (Spirit-I Got A Line on You)
• 1943 - Robert Walden, NYC, actor (Joe Rossi-Lou Grant, New Doctors)
• 1944 - Eugenia Zukerman, Cambridge Ms, flutist/novelist (Deceptive Cadence)
• 1944 - Grayson Shillingford, cricket bowler (WI 1969-71, 7 Tests 15 wickets)
• 1944 - Michael Douglas, NJ, actor (Coma, Wall St, Jewel of the Nile)
• 1945 - Kathleen Brown, state treasurer (D-Calif, 1991- )
• 1945 - Owen "Onnie" McIntyre, Scotland, guitarist (Average White Band)
• 1945 - Reynold Henry Weidenaar, composer
• 1946 - Bishan Bedi, cricketer (mighty Indian slow left-armer 1966-79)
• 1946 - Felicity Kendal, Indies/British actress (Shakespeare Wallah)
• 1946 - Gilmer Bryan Morgan, Wewoka OK, PGA golfer (1977 BC Open)
• 1947 - Cheryl Tiegs, Minnesota, model (Sports Illustrated)
• 1947 - John Fiddler, England, rock vocalist/guitarist (British Lions)
• 1949 - Anson Williams, LA Calif, actor (Potsie-Happy Days)
• 1949 - Inshan Ali, cricketer (big-spinning WI chinaman bowler 1971-77)
• 1949 - Jerry F Costello, (Rep-D-Illinois)
• 1949 - Mimi Kennedy, Rochester NY, actress (Spencer, 3 girls 3, Under 1 Roof)
• 1951 - Bob McAdoo, NBA forward/center (Buffalo Braves, LA Lakers)
• 1951 - Burleigh Drummond, rocker (Ambrosia)
• 1951 - Mark Hamill, Oakland Calif, actor (Luke Skywalker-Star Wars)
• 1951 - Pedro Almodovar, Spain, director/screenwriter (Kika, Matador)
• 1952 - Christopher Reeve, NYC, actor (Superman, Somewhere in Time)
• 1952 - Tommy Norden, NYC, actor (Flipper)
• 1955 - Adelmo "Zucchero" Fornaciari, Italian R&B-singer (Senza una Donna)
• 1955 - Steven Severin, British pop bassist (Siouxsie & Banshees-Wild Thing)
• 1957 - Rupert Haselden, journalist/Screenwriter
• 1958 - Michael Madsen, Chicago, actor (Reservoir Dogs, Straight Talk)
• 1959 - Andy Waller, cricketer (big-hitting Zimbabwe batsman-1992 World Cup)
• 1960 - John Hills, horse trainer
• 1961 - Heather Locklear, LA Ca, actress (Stacy-T J Hooker, Sammy Jo-Dynasty)
• 1961 - Tim Zoehrer, cricketer (Aussie keeper, & occasional WA leggie)
• 1962 - Rajiv Kulkarni, cricketer (Indian Test pace bowler 1986-87)
• 1963 - Keely Shaye Smith, correspondent (Unsolved Mysteries)
• 1964 - Bryan Tooley, Eugene Ore, kayak (alt-Olympics-96)
• 1965 - Fresh Prince, [Will Smith], rapper (Parents Just Don't Understand)
• 1965 - Scottie Pippen, Hamburg Ak, basket forward (Bulls, Oly-2 gold-92, 96)
• 1965 - Scottie Pippen, NBA forward (Chicago Bulls)
• 1966 - Elizabeth "Liz" Tchou, Medford NJ, field hockey defender (Olympics-96)
• 1966 - Todd Philcox, NFL quarterback (Tampa Bay Bucs)
• 1967 - Lezlie Lund, Tolna ND, Miss ND-America (1991)
• 1968 - Johan Friso, prince of Orange-Nassau, Netherlands
• 1968 - Reggie Jefferson, Tallahassee FL, 1st baseman (Cin, Cleve, Sea, Bos)
• 1968 - Will Smith, actor/rapper (Men In Black, Indepedence Day, Fresh Prince)
• 1969 - Catherine Zeta Jones, Swansea Wales, actress (Christopher Columbus)
• 1969 - David Weathers, Lawrencburg TN, pitcher (Florida Marlins, NY Yankees)
• 1969 - Hansie Cronje, cricket capt (solid South African batsman)
• 1969 - Michae Wright, WLAF cornerback (Barcelona Dragons)
• 1970 - Curtis Buckley, NFL safety (Tampa Bay Bucs)
• 1970 - Damon Pieri, NFL safety (Carolina Panthers)
• 1970 - Doug Pelfrey, NFL kicker (Cin Bengals)
• 1970 - Kerri Kendall, San Diego Ca, playmate (Sep, 1990)
• 1970 - Shannon Jones, WLAF linebacker (Scottish Claymores)
• 1971 - John Lynch, NFL safety (Tampa Bay Bucs)
• 1971 - Tony Harrison, WLAF receiver (Frankfurt Galaxy)
• 1972 - Kevin Mason, CFL quarterback (Saskatchewan Roughriders)
• 1972 - Nikole Viola, Miss USA-Louisiana (1997)
• 1973 - Bridgette LeAnn Wilson, Gold Beach Oregon, Miss Teen USA (1990)
• 1973 - Melonie McGarrah, Rogers Arkansas, Miss America-Arkansas (1997)
• 1973 - Tijani Babangida, soccer player (Roda JC)
• 1974 - Brigette Wilson, actress (Mortal Kombat, Billy Madison, Save by Bell)
• 1976 - Chauncey Billups, NBA guard (Boston Celtics)
• 1978 - Laura Nicholls, Kitchener Ontario, 50m swimmer (Olympics-96)

Famous deaths for this day ..

• 0813 - al-Amin, Arabic kalief of Islam (809-813), murdered
• 1066 - Harald III Hardrada, king of Norway (1047-66), dies in battle at 51
• 1392 - Sergius van Radonesj, Russian saint, dies at 78
• 1396 - Jean de Vienne, French admiral/crusader, dies in battle
• 1396 - Odard de Chasseron, French knight/crusader, dies in battle
• 1396 - Philip of Bar, French knight/crusader, dies in battle
• 1501 - Dzore Drzic, Croatish poet, dies
• 1506 - Felipe I, the handsome, King of Castili‰ (Spain) (1504-06), dies
• 1525 - Johannes Pistorius, [Bakker], RC pastor/church reformer, burned at 26
• 1534 - Clement VII, [Giulio de' Medici], Italian Pope (1523-34), dies at 56
• 1619 - Francesco Soto de Langa, composer, dies
• 1630 - Ambrogio Sp¡nola, Spanish marquis of Balbases, dies at about 61
• 1680 - Samuel Butler, poet/satirist, dies
• 1716 - Johann Christoph Pez, composer, dies at 52
• 1727 - Jacques Abbadie, French theologist, dies at about 73
• 1733 - Georg Motz, composer, dies at 79
• 1777 - Johann Heinrich Lambert, mathematician, dies at 49
• 1808 - Richard Porson, scholar, dies
• 1813 - Braz Francisco de Lima, composer, dies at 61
• 1840 - Jacques-Etienne-Joseph-Alexandre Macdonald, Duc de Tarente, soldier
• 1849 - Johann Baptist Strauss, elder, composer (Radetzky-Marsch), dies at 45
• 1860 - Carl Friedrich Zollner, composer, dies at 60
• 1871 - Arvir A Afzelius, Swedish story teller, dies
• 1876 - A Glabbrenner, writer, dies at 66
• 1914 - A Lichtenstein, writer, dies at 25
• 1914 - Jan B Stobbaerts, Flemish painter, dies at 76
• 1916 - Julius Fucik, composer, dies at 44
• 1918 - John Ireland, Irish/US archbishop of St Paul, dies at 80
• 1920 - William F Sudds, composer, dies at 77
• 1928 - Karl Schneider, cricketer (South Aust bat), dies of leukaemia at 23
• 1929 - Miller Huggins, manager (NY Yankees), dies from blood poisoning at 49
• 1933 - Paul Ehrenfest, Austria/Neth physicist, dies at 53
• 1944 - Jakob Schaffner, Swiss writer (Irrfahrten), dies at 68
• 1944 - Leo Justinus Kauffmann, composer, dies at 43
• 1945 - Bela Bartok, composer, dies at 64
• 1945 - Charles A Ellwood, US sociologist/psychologist, dies at 72
• 1946 - Heinrich George, German actor (Jud S�ss), commits suicide at 52
• 1953 - Dimitur Poljanov, [Popov], Bulgaria poet (Iron Verses), dies
• 1954 - Eugenio d' Ors y Rovira, Spanish essayist/philosopher, dies at 71
• 1958 - John B Watson, US psychologist/behaviorist, dies
• 1959 - Ennio Porrino, composer, dies at 49
• 1959 - Helen Broderick, comedienne/actress (Swing Time, Top Hat), dies
• 1959 - S W R D Bandaranaike, Ceylon's PM, assassinated by a Buddhist monk
• 1960 - Emily Post, etiquette expert, dies at 86
• 1961 - Frank Fay, actor (God's Gift to Women), dies in Santa Monica CA
• 1970 - Efim Golishev, composer, dies at 73
• 1970 - Erich M Remarque, German writer (Im West Nichts Neues), dies at 72
• 1971 - TC Jones, female impersonator, dies of cancer at 50
• 1974 - Coco the Clown, [Nikolai Poliakov], dies
• 1974 - William Sloane, publisher/writer ("Edge of Running Water"), dies
• 1975 - Bob Considine, newscaster (Tonight! America After Dark), dies at 68
• 1977 - Sidney van den Bergh, Dutch businessman/politician, dies at 78
• 1978 - Claire Adams, actress (Legally Dead, End of the Road), dies at 80
• 1980 - John Bonham, English pop drummer (Led Zeppelin), overdoses at 32
• 1983 - Leopold III, king of Belgium (1934-51), dies
• 1984 - Walter Pidgeon, actor (Forbidden Planet, Mrs Miniver), dies at 87
• 1985 - Albert Moeschinger, composer, dies at 88
• 1986 - Ben Sajet, physician/politician, dies at 99
• 1987 - Emlyn Williams, actor/director (I Accuse, Ivanhoe, Scarf), dies at 81
• 1987 - Mary Astor, actress (Cynthia, Meet Me in St Louis, Fiesta), dies at 81
• 1988 - Billy Carter, Pres Carter's brother Billy, dies of cancer at 51
• 1991 - Klaus Barbie, Gestapo chief of Lyon, dies of cancer at 77
• 1991 - Max Koot, royal photographer, dies
• 1994 - John Richard Ravensdale, historian, dies at 73
• 1994 - Kitty Masters, actress, dies at 92
• 1994 - Ludwig Ferdinand von Hohenzollern, Germ prince of Prussia, dies at 86
• 1994 - Mark Alexander Abrams, market Researcher, dies at 88
• 1995 - Bessie Annie Elizabeth Delany, dentist writer, dies at 104
• 1995 - Dave Bowen, footballer, dies at 67
• 1995 - Dorothy Dickson, actress/dancer (Paying the Piper), dies at 102
• 1996 - Betty Phyllis Gathergood, curator, dies at 80
• 1996 - Nicu Ceausescu, playboy, dies at 45
• 1997 - Sayed Mutawli ad Imam scholar/broadcaster-Darsh, dies at 66