Born on Thursday, 22nd January – Famous Birthdays
On this day, 214 notable people were born on 22nd January — spanning from 1263 to 2025. From world leaders to artists and scientists, discover who shares this birthday.
Twenty-second January marks the birthday of notable figures across sport, entertainment and public life. Among those born on this date is Étienne Bacrot, the French chess player who emerged as a significant talent in international competition, reaching the elite ranks of grandmasters. In more recent times, the date has seen the arrival of athletes who would shape their respective disciplines. Laia Codina, the Spanish footballer, was born on this day in 2000 and developed into a key player for club and country. The births recorded for this date span centuries, from early historical figures through to contemporary professionals in diverse fields including athletics, music, academia and public administration.
The range of accomplished individuals born on twenty-second January reflects the date’s significance across multiple domains. Frank Leboeuf, born in 1968, became a decorated French footballer and later expanded his career into media and acting. More recent additions to the list include modern athletes and entertainers who have gained prominence through their respective fields. The diversity of professions and nationalities represented demonstrates how this particular date has consistently produced individuals of note throughout recorded history.
On Thursday, twenty-second January 2026, the weather conditions will be overcast with temperatures reaching four degrees Celsius, whilst winds from the north-west are expected to bring a fresh feel to the day. The waning gibbous moon will illuminate the evening sky, whilst those born on this date will fall under the zodiac sign of Aquarius. DayAtlas provides comprehensive information about weather conditions, notable events, famous births and deaths for any date and location worldwide.
Discover who was born today 7th April.
22/01/2025
Athena Mapelli Mozzi, daughter of Princess Beatrice, born 11th in line of succession to the British throne
Princess Beatrice, Mrs Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, is a member of the British royal family. She is the elder daughter of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, and a niece of King Charles III. Born fifth in the line of succession to the British throne, she is ninth as of 2026.
22/01/2007
Pau Cubarsí, Spanish footballer
Pau Cubarsí Paredes is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team. In July 2025, Sports Illustrated and ESPN ranked Cubarsí as the sixth-best centre-back in world football.
22/01/2002
Caitlin Clark, American basketball player
Caitlin Elizabeth Clark is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Regarded as one of the greatest female collegiate players, Clark was twice named national college basketball player of the year while playing for the Iowa Hawkeyes; she remains the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer. Known for her shooting range, playmaking, and flair, she has helped popularize women's basketball, a phenomenon dubbed the "Caitlin Clark effect".
22/01/2000
Laia Codina, Spanish footballer
Laia Codina Panedas is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Women’s Super League club Arsenal and the Spain national team. Prior to her move to the English side, she played for Spanish team Barcelona and had a loan spell with AC Milan. She has represented Spain in multiple youth national teams.
22/01/1999
Andrew Thomas, American football player
Andrew Ken Thomas is an American professional football offensive tackle for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs and was selected by the Giants fourth overall in the 2020 NFL draft.
22/01/1998
Silento, American rapper, singer and songwriter
Richard Lamar Hawk, known professionally as Silentó, is an American former rapper. Raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Hawk is best known for his 2015 debut single "Watch Me ", which peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 when he was 17 years old.
Walid Cheddira, Moroccan footballer
Walid Cheddira is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Lecce on loan from Napoli. Born in Italy, he plays for the Morocco national team.
22/01/1997
Fan Zhendong, Chinese table tennis player
Fan Zhendong is a Chinese professional table tennis player. After joining the Chinese national table tennis team in 2012 as the youngest member, he went on to become the youngest ITTF World Tour Champion and the youngest World Table Tennis Champion. From December 2013 to December 2024, Fan was ranked top five in the world according to the ITTF -- this eleven year streak is the longest in men's singles history. In 2025, Fan Zhendong won the Big Ben Award.
22/01/1996
Dillon Brooks, Canadian basketball player
Dillon Brooks is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks, where he was named a consensus second-team All-American and earned conference player of the year honors in the Pac-12 in 2017. Brooks was selected in the second round of the 2017 NBA draft. He began his career with the Memphis Grizzlies, earning NBA All-Defensive Second Team honors in 2023. He was traded to the Houston Rockets in July 2023 and was later dealt to the Suns after two seasons with Houston.
Sami Gayle, American actress
Samantha Gail Klitzman is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Nicky Reagan in the CBS series Blue Bloods.
Joshua Ho-Sang, Canadian ice hockey player
Joshua Navarro Ho-Sang is a Canadian rapper and professional ice hockey forward who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He was selected by the New York Islanders in the first round, 28th overall, in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.
Kumi Sasaki, Japanese singer and model
Kumi Sasaki is a Japanese television personality, radio personality, and model. She is a former founding member and captain of Japanese girl group Hinatazaka46.
22/01/1994
Tyrone Taylor, American baseball player
Tyrone Anthony Taylor is an American professional baseball outfielder for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Milwaukee Brewers, with whom he made his MLB debut in 2019.
22/01/1992
Vincent Aboubakar, Cameroonian footballer
Vincent Paté Aboubakar is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays as striker for Azerbaijani Premier League club Neftçi and captains the Cameroon national team.
22/01/1991
Stefan Kolb, German footballer
Stefan Kolb is a German football striker who plays for TSV Neudrossenfeld.
22/01/1990
Alizé Cornet, French tennis player
Alizé Cornet is a French former professional tennis player. She has won six singles and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as three singles and three doubles titles on the ITF Circuit. On 16 February 2009, she reached her highest WTA singles ranking of world No. 11. Cornet has also made the second week at each of the four Grand Slam events, having reached the quarterfinals at the 2022 Australian Open, and the fourth round at the 2014 Wimbledon Championships, the 2015 and 2017 French Opens, and the 2020 US Open. She holds the record for the most consecutive Grand Slam appearances with 69 and also in third place for overall appearances with 72.
Mike Hauschild, American baseball player
Michael Hauschild is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers.
Logic, American rapper
Sir Robert Bryson Hall II, known professionally as Logic, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer from Gaithersburg, Maryland. He released his debut mixtape, Psychological: The Mixtape in December 2009 under the name Psychological, which he later shortened to Logic. He gained popularity following his Young Sinatra (2011) mixtape series; its third installment, Young Sinatra: Welcome to Forever (2013) received critical acclaim and led him to secure a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings. Logic's first two studio albums—Under Pressure (2014) and The Incredible True Story (2015)—both peaked within the top five of the U.S. Billboard 200 and received platinum certifications by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
22/01/1989
Oscar Möller, Swedish ice hockey player
Oscar Möller is a Swedish former professional ice hockey right winger who last played for Skellefteå AIK of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
Theo Robinson, English footballer
Theo Larayan Ronaldo Shadiki Robinson is a footballer who plays as a striker for Southern League Premier Division Central club Bromsgrove Sporting.
22/01/1988
Greg Oden, American basketball player
Gregory Wayne Oden Jr. is an American former professional basketball player. Oden, a 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) center, played college basketball for the Ohio State Buckeyes for one season, during which the team was the Big Ten Conference regular season champion and Big Ten Conference men's basketball tournament champion with Oden as the tournament MOP. Additionally, the Buckeyes were the tournament runner-up in the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship.
Marcel Schmelzer, German footballer
Marcel Schmelzer is a German former professional footballer who played mainly as a left-back.
22/01/1987
Astrid Jacobsen, Norwegian skier
Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen is a Norwegian former cross-country skier and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). She skied with the IL Heming club in Oslo, near Holmenkollen. Her greatest achievement is winning the gold medal in sprint at the 2007 World Championships. On 22 April 2020, she announced her retirement from cross-country skiing in favour of medical studies.
Shane Long, Irish footballer
Shane Patrick Long is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Angel Olsen, American singer-songwriter
Angel Olsen is an American singer-songwriter from St. Louis, Missouri who lives in Asheville, North Carolina.
Ray Rice, American football player
Raynell Mourice Rice is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons with the Baltimore Ravens. He played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, earning first-team All-American honors in 2007, and was selected by the Ravens in the second round of the 2008 NFL draft. During his career, Rice was named to three Pro Bowls and was a member of the team that won Super Bowl XLVII. He is second in franchise rushing yards, rushing attempts, and rushing touchdowns, and he is third in the franchise in combined touchdowns.
22/01/1986
Maher Magri, Tunisian footballer
Maher Magri is a Tunisian footballer.
Matt Simon, Australian footballer
Matthew Blake Simon is a retired Australian international football (soccer) player who played as a striker. Simon attended St Edward's College, East Gosford, where he was influenced to play soccer.
22/01/1985
Nicklas Grossmann, Swedish ice hockey player
Nicklas Grossmann is a Swedish former professional ice hockey defenceman.
Fotios Papoulis, Greek footballer
Fotis Papoulis is a retired professional footballer who last played for Omonia in the Cypriot First Division. Born in Greece, he played for the Cyprus national team.
Yan Xu, Singaporean table tennis player
Xu Yan is a Singaporean table tennis player.
22/01/1984
Ben Eager, Canadian ice hockey player
Benjamin Arthur Eager is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010.
Ubaldo Jiménez, Dominican baseball player
Ubaldo Jiménez García is a Dominican-American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Cleveland Indians and Baltimore Orioles. Jiménez started the 2010 MLB All-Star Game. That year, he pitched the first no-hitter in Rockies' franchise history.
Maceo Rigters, Dutch footballer
Maceo Rigters is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a striker for SC Heerenveen, Dordrecht, NAC Breda and Willem II in the Netherlands, for Blackburn Rovers, Norwich City and Barnsley in England, and for Gold Coast United in Australia. He is also a former player for the Netherlands Under-21 team.
22/01/1983
Étienne Bacrot, French chess player
Étienne Bacrot is a French chess grandmaster, and as a child, a chess prodigy.
22/01/1982
Fabricio Coloccini, Argentine footballer
Fabricio Tomás Coloccini is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is the current assistant coach of Fernando Gago for Universidad de Chile.
Jason Peters, American football player
Jason Raynard Peters is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle for 21 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks and was signed as an offensive tackle by the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent after the 2004 NFL draft. He was later traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009 and spent the next twelve seasons playing for them. He would later be a member of the Chicago Bears in 2021, the Dallas Cowboys in 2022, and the Seattle Seahawks in 2023. Peters was a nine-time Pro Bowler, a six-time All-Pro, and was named to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team.
22/01/1981
Willa Ford, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
Amanda Lee Williford, known by her stage name Willa Ford, is an American interior decorator, singer, songwriter, television personality, film actress, dancer, and model. She released her debut album, Willa Was Here, in 2001. Ford also has appeared in movies such as Friday the 13th (2009), hosted several reality television shows, posed for Playboy and competed on ABC's Dancing with the Stars.
Beverley Mitchell, American actress
Beverley Ann Mitchell is an American actress and singer. She began her career with multiple guest roles on television programs, as well as portraying a young Nancy Sinatra in the CBS biographical miniseries Sinatra (1992). Mitchell received mainstream recognition for her main role as Lucy Camden-Kinkirk on the WB and CW drama television series 7th Heaven (1996–2007).
Ben Moody, American musician, songwriter, and producer
Benjamin Moody is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He co-founded rock band Evanescence, which he departed in 2003 after the release of their debut album Fallen (2003). After leaving Evanescence, Moody co-wrote and co-produced songs for Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne, Anastacia, Lindsay Lohan, Bo Bice, Daughtry, and Celine Dion.
Ibrahima Sonko, French footballer
Ibrahima Sonko is a Senegalese former professional footballer who played as a centre back.
22/01/1980
Christopher Masterson, American actor
Christopher Kennedy Masterson is an American actor and disc jockey known best for his role as Francis on the Fox sitcom Malcolm in the Middle. He is the younger brother of actor Danny Masterson, and the older half-brother of Alanna Masterson and Jordan Masterson, who are also actors.
Jonathan Woodgate, English footballer
Jonathan Simon Woodgate is an English football manager and former player who is a first-team coach at Premier League club Manchester United.
Lizz Wright, American singer-songwriter
Elizabeth LaCharla Wright professionally known as Lizz Wright, is an American jazz and gospel singer.
22/01/1979
Carlos Ruiz, Panamanian baseball player
Carlos Joaquín Ruiz, nicknamed "Chooch", is a Panamanian former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Seattle Mariners. Ruiz stands 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) tall, and weighs 215 pounds (98 kg). He bats and throws right-handed.
22/01/1978
Robert Esche, American ice hockey player and sports executive
Robert L. Esche is an American former professional ice hockey goaltender who is the current president of the Utica Comets of the American Hockey League (AHL) and the Utica City FC of the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). He previously played eight seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Phoenix Coyotes and Philadelphia Flyers.
Chone Figgins, American baseball player
Desmond DeChone Figgins, nicknamed "Figgy", is an American former professional baseball utilty player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Seattle Mariners, and Los Angeles Dodgers.
22/01/1977
Mario Domm, Mexican singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer
Mario Alberto Domínguez Zarzar, known as Mario Domm, is a Mexican singer, songwriter and record producer. A founding member of the pop rock band Camila, he has won four Latin Grammy Awards; four Billboard Awards; 11 Premios Lo Nuestro; 14 SACM awards; five Juventud Awards, five Telehit awards, four MTV Awards, eight ASCAP Awards, three Gaviotas de Plata Awards and three Gaviotas de Oro Awards, seven Monitor Latino Awards, two Los 40 Principales Awards, one Orgullosamente Latino Award, and a recognition as a musical genius by Telehit.
Hidetoshi Nakata, Japanese footballer
Hidetoshi Nakata, OSSI is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Considered one of the best talents to come from an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) country in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Nakata became the first ever AFC player to be nominated for the Ballon d'Or.
22/01/1975
Balthazar Getty, American actor and musician
Paul Balthazar Getty is an American actor, musician, and DJ, and a member of the Getty family. His acting debut was in Lord of the Flies (1990) as Ralph. He went on to appear in Lost Highway (1997) and had a recurring role as Richard Montana in Charmed (2003–04), Thomas Grace on the American action drama Alias (2005–06), and Tommy Walker on the American drama Brothers & Sisters (2006–11).
David Výborný, Czech ice hockey player
David Výborný is a Czech former professional ice hockey player who last played for BK Mladá Boleslav of the Czech Extraliga. He played for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Internationally, he played for the Czech Republic men's national team and won five World Championships, and a bronze medal in ice hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics. He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2025.
22/01/1974
Cameron McConville, Australian racing driver and sportscaster
Cameron Eric "Conkers" McConville is an Australian racing driver and motorsport celebrity. While retired from full-time competition, McConville still races occasionally and is an in-demand endurance event co-driver. McConville spent 14 years as a professional driver, ten of those in the largest Australian domestic category, Supercars Championship. McConville has also written for several magazines and presented several television programs and up until the end of the 2009 season was the colour commentator for Network Ten's Australian coverage of Formula One. McConville announced his retirement from full-time racing for the end of the 2009 season. He is also rumoured to be The Stig in Top Gear Australia.
Joseph Muscat, Maltese journalist and politician, 13th Prime Minister of Malta
Joseph Muscat is a Maltese politician who served as the 13th prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020 and leader of the Labour Party from 2008 to 2020.
22/01/1973
Rogério Ceni, Brazilian footballer
Rogério Mücke Ceni is a Brazilian professional football coach and former player who is in charge of Bahia. He is considered one of the all-time greatest Brazilian goalkeepers and is recognised by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics as the goalkeeper to have scored the most goals in the history of football. During the height of his career (2005–2008), he was also recognized as one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
22/01/1972
Terry Hill, Australian rugby league player (died 2024)
Terence Christopher Hill was an Australian professional rugby league footballer who played as a centre in the 1990s and 2000s. He played in the NRL for the South Sydney Rabbitohs, Eastern Suburbs, Western Suburbs Magpies, Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles and the Wests Tigers as well as representative football for New South Wales and Australia. He was also well known for his promotional television work with Lowes Menswear.
Gabriel Macht, American actor
Gabriel Swann Macht is an American actor, known for his role as Harvey Specter in the USA Network series Suits (2011–2019).
22/01/1971
Stan Collymore, English footballer and sportscaster
Stanley Victor Collymore is an English football pundit, sport strategist, and former player who played as a striker from 1990 to 2001, most notably for Nottingham Forest and later Liverpool, who he joined from the former for an English transfer record of £8.5 million in 1995. In addition, he was Aston Villa's record signing He is currently senior football strategist at Southend United.
Katie Finneran, American actress
Katie Finneran is an American actress best known for her Tony Award–winning performances in the Broadway play Noises Off in 2002, and the musical Promises, Promises in 2010.
22/01/1970
Abraham Olano, Spanish cyclist
Abraham Olano Manzano is a Spanish retired professional road racing cyclist, who raced as a professional from 1992 to 2002. He won the World Road Championship in 1995, and the World Time Trial Championship in 1998, becoming the first male cyclist to win both.
22/01/1969
Olivia d'Abo, English-American singer-songwriter and actress
Olivia Jane d'Abo is a British actress and singer. She is known for her roles as Karen Arnold, Kevin Arnold's rebellious teenage hippie sister in the ABC comedy-drama series The Wonder Years (1988–1993), as female serial killer Nicole Wallace in Law & Order: Criminal Intent, as Marie Blake on The Single Guy (1995–1997), and Jane Porter in The Legend of Tarzan (2001–2003). Her film appearances include roles in Conan the Destroyer (1984) and Bank Robber (1993).
22/01/1968
Guy Fieri, American chef, author, and television host
Guy Ramsay Fieri is an American restaurateur, author, and television presenter. He co-owned three now-defunct restaurants in California. He licenses his name to restaurants in cities all over the world, and is known for hosting various television series on the Food Network. In 2010, The New York Times reported that Fieri had become the "face of the network", bringing an "element of rowdy, mass-market culture to American food television" and that his "prime-time shows attract more male viewers than any others on the network".
Heath, Japanese singer-songwriter and bass player (died 2023)
Hiroshi Morie , known exclusively by his stage name Heath, was a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter. He was best known as bass guitarist of the rock band X Japan from 1992 to 1997, and again from 2007 until his death in 2023. In 2018, readers and professional musicians voted Heath the seventh best bassist in the history of hard rock and heavy metal in We Rock magazine's "Metal General Election".
Frank Leboeuf, French footballer, sportscaster, and actor
Franck Alain James Leboeuf, commonly known as Frank Leboeuf, is a French actor, sports commentator and former footballer who played as a centre-back. With the France national team, Leboeuf won the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000 as well as a number of domestic trophies, most famously during his five years at Chelsea. Since the conclusion of his playing career, Leboeuf has transitioned to acting, appearing in stage, film productions and is a regular contributor at ESPN FC.
Mauricio Serna, Colombian footballer
Mauricio Alberto "Chicho" Serna Valencia is a Colombian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
22/01/1967
Manabu Nakanishi (中西 学), Japanese wrestler
Manabu Nakanishi is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler, who was primarily associated with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is a one-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, one-time G1 Climax winner and three-time IWGP Tag Team Champion.
22/01/1966
Craig Salvatori, Australian rugby league player
Craig Salvatori is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. He spent most of his career at the Eastern Suburbs club. His position of choice was in the front row. Salvatori also played for the South Sydney Rabbitohs as well as representing Australia and New South Wales.
22/01/1965
Steven Adler, American rock drummer
Steven Adler is an American musician. He was the drummer and co-songwriter of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s.
DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ and producer
Jeffrey Allen Townes, better known by his stage name DJ Jazzy Jeff, is an American DJ, music producer and actor. He was one half of the hip-hop duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, along with Will Smith. He is credited, along with DJ Spinbad and DJ Cash Money, with popularizing the transformer scratch.
Diane Lane, American actress
Diane Lane is an American actress. She has starred in numerous leading lady and supporting roles in a huge variety of films ranging from independent film features to major film studio blockbuster productions. Her accolades include nominations for an Academy Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, several Screen Actors Guild Awards, several Satellite Awards, and an ICON Award.
22/01/1964
Nigel Benn, English-Australian boxer
Nigel Gregory Benn is a British former professional boxer now based in Australia who competed from 1987 until 1996. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the WBO middleweight title in 1990 and reigned as the WBC super-middleweight champion from 1992 to 1996. He held the regional Commonwealth middleweight title from 1988 to 1989. Benn was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2026.
Stojko Vranković, Croatian basketball player
Stojan "Stojko" Vranković is a Croatian professional basketball executive and former player. He served as the president of the Croatian Basketball Federation from 2016 to 2022.
22/01/1962
Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu, Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia
Al-Wathiqu Billah Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin ibni Almarhum Sultan Mahmud Al-Muktafi Billah Shah is the Sultan of Terengganu, reigning since 1998. He previously reigned as the King of Malaysia, from 2006 to 2011.
22/01/1961
Quintin Dailey, American basketball player (died 2010)
Quintin "Q" Dailey was an American professional basketball player. A 6'3" guard who played collegiately at the University of San Francisco, he later went on to a career in the NBA, playing for the Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Clippers, and Seattle SuperSonics over the course of his 10-year tenure in the league.
22/01/1960
Michael Hutchence, Australian singer-songwriter (died 1997)
Michael Kelland John Hutchence was an Australian singer and songwriter. He was the co-founder, lead singer and lyricist of the rock band INXS from 1977 until his death in 1997. The band sold over 50 million records worldwide, making them one of Australia's highest-selling music acts of all time. They were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2001.
22/01/1959
Linda Blair, American actress
Linda Denise Blair is an American actress and activist. Her breakthrough role came with playing Regan MacNeil in the horror film The Exorcist (1973), which established her both as a scream queen and in popular culture. The role earned her a Golden Globe and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She reprised the role in two sequels: Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) and The Exorcist: Believer (2023).
22/01/1958
Nikos Anastopoulos, Greek footballer and manager
Nikos Anastopoulos is a Greek former footballer and manager, who is currently the manager of Super League 2 club Chania. He was one the most prolific strikers in the Greek league during the 1980s and is widely regarded as one of the best players in the history of Greek football.
Filiz Koçali, Turkish journalist and politician
Filiz Koçali is a female Turkish politician and a feminist activist and journalist. She was a founder member of the Freedom and Solidarity Party (ÖDP) in 1996 and of the break-away Socialist Democracy Party (SDP) in 2002, and was secretary general of the SDP from 2004 to 2009. She is now a member of the Peace and Democracy Party.
Charles White, American football player (died 2023)
Charles Raymond White was an American professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons from 1980 to 1988. He played college football for the USC Trojans, where he was a twice unanimous All-American and the winner of the Heisman Trophy. He was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 1980 NFL draft. He also played for the Los Angeles Rams.
22/01/1957
Mike Bossy, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster (died 2022)
Michael Dean Bossy was a Canadian professional ice hockey player with the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League. He spent his entire NHL career, which lasted from 1977 to 1987, with the Islanders, and was a crucial part of their four consecutive Stanley Cup championships in the early 1980s.
Rita Chatterton, American professional wrestling referee
Rita Chatterton is a retired professional wrestling referee.
Godfrey Thoma, Nauruan politician
Godfrey Awaire Thoma is a Nauruan politician and police officer.
22/01/1956
Steve Riley, American drummer (died 2023)
Steve Riley was an American rock drummer, best known for his work with Keel, W.A.S.P., and L.A. Guns.
22/01/1955
Lester Hayes, American football player
Lester Craig Hayes is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback for the Oakland / Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League (NFL).
Thomas David Jones, American captain, pilot, and astronaut
Thomas David Jones is a former United States astronaut. He was selected to the astronaut corps in 1990 and completed four Space Shuttle flights before retiring in 2001. He flew on STS-59 and STS-68 in 1994, STS-80 in 1996, and STS-98 in 2001. His total mission time was 53 days 48 minutes. He works as a planetary scientist, space operations consultant, astronaut speaker, and author.
John Wesley Shipp, American actor
John Wesley Shipp is an American actor known for his various television roles. He played the lead Barry Allen on CBS's superhero series The Flash from 1990 to 1991, and Mitch Leery, the title character's father, on the drama series Dawson's Creek from 1998 to 2001. Shipp has also played several roles in daytime soap operas including Kelly Nelson on Guiding Light from 1980 to 1984, and Douglas Cummings on As the World Turns from 1985 to 1986. He portrayed Barry Allen's father Henry, Earth-3 Flash Jay Garrick, and Earth-90's Barry Allen on the CW's The Flash series.
22/01/1954
Tully Blanchard, Canadian-American wrestler
Tully Arthur Blanchard is an American-Canadian professional wrestler and manager. He is best known for his appearances with Jim Crockett Promotions and the World Wrestling Federation in the mid-to-late 1980s as a member of The Four Horsemen and the Brain Busters. Championships held by Blanchard over his career include the NWA Television Championship, NWA World Tag Team Championship, WWF World Tag Team Championship, and NWA United States Heavyweight Championship. He was inducted into the NWA Hall of Fame in 2009 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2012.
22/01/1953
Winfried Berkemeier, German footballer and manager
Winfried Berkemeier is a former German footballer.
Myung-whun Chung, South Korean pianist and conductor
Myung-whun Chung is a South Korean conductor and pianist.
Jim Jarmusch, American director and screenwriter
James Robert Jarmusch is an American filmmaker and musician.
22/01/1951
Ondrej Nepela, Slovak figure skater and coach (died 1989)
Ondrej Nepela was a Slovak figure skater who represented Czechoslovakia. He was the 1972 Olympic champion, a three-time World champion (1971–1973), and a five-time European champion (1969–1973). Later in his career, he performed professionally and became a coach.
22/01/1950
Paul Bew, Northern Irish historian and academic
Paul Anthony Elliott Bew, Baron Bew, is a British historian from Northern Ireland and a life peer. He has worked at Queen's University Belfast since 1979, and is currently Professor of Irish Politics, a position he has held since 1991.
Frank Schade, American basketball player and coach
Frank Schade is an American former professional basketball player and coach.
22/01/1949
Steve Perry, American singer-songwriter and producer
Stephen Ray Perry is an American singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer and frontman of the rock band Journey during their most successful years from 1977 to 1987, and again from 1995 to 1998. He wrote/co-wrote several Journey hit songs, including "Any Way You Want It", "Don't Stop Believin'", "Open Arms", "Who's Crying Now" and "Separate Ways ". Perry had a successful solo career between the mid-1980s and mid-1990s, made sporadic appearances in the 2000s, and returned to music full-time in 2018.
22/01/1947
Vladimir Oravsky, Czech-Swedish author and director
Vladimir Oravsky is a Swedish author and film director.
22/01/1946
Malcolm McLaren, English singer-songwriter and manager (died 2010)
Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English fashion designer, entrepreneur and music manager. He was a promoter and a manager for punk rock and new wave bands such as New York Dolls, Sex Pistols, Adam and the Ants, and Bow Wow Wow, and was an early influencer of the punk subculture.
Serge Savard, Canadian ice hockey player and manager
Serge Aubrey Savard is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman, most famously with the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). He also served as the Canadiens' Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations and as their general manager. He is a businessman in Montreal, and is nicknamed "The Senator." In 2017 Savard was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history.
22/01/1945
Christoph Schönborn, Austrian cardinal
Christoph Maria Michael Hugo Damian Peter Adalbert Schönborn, OP is a Bohemian-born Austrian Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Vienna from 1995 until 2025. He was chairman of the Austrian Bishops' Conference from 1998 to 2020 and was made a cardinal in 1998. He is a member of the Dominican Order.
22/01/1944
Khosrow Golsorkhi, Iranian journalist, poet, and activist (died 1974)
Khosrow Golsorkhi was an Iranian journalist, poet, and Marxist activist. Golsorkhi was the chief editor of the art section for Kayhan newspaper in 1969, where he gained popularity for his leftist and revolutionary poetry.
22/01/1942
Mimis Domazos, Greek footballer (died 2025)
Dimitris "Mimis" Domazos was a Greek professional football player who played as an attacking midfielder. His nickname was "The General" (Greek: "Ο Στρατηγός").
22/01/1941
Jaan Kaplinski, Estonian poet, philosopher, and critic (died 2021)
Jaan Kaplinski was an Estonian poet, philosopher, politician, and culture critic, known for his focus on global issues and support for left-wing/liberal thinking. He was influenced by Eastern philosophical schools.
22/01/1940
John Hurt, English actor (died 2017)
Sir John Vincent Hurt was an English actor. Regarded as one of the finest actors of his generation and described as having the "most distinctive voice in Britain", he was referred to by David Lynch as "simply the greatest actor in the world". In a career spanning more than five decades, he received numerous accolades, including four BAFTAs and a Golden Globe in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards. He was knighted in 2015 for his services to drama.
Gillian Shephard, English educator and politician, Secretary of State for Education
Gillian Patricia Shephard, Baroness Shephard of Northwold,, is a British Conservative politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South West Norfolk from 1987 to 2005. Shephard served as a Cabinet Minister, and is now Chairman of the Association of Conservative Peers.
22/01/1939
Jørgen Garde, Danish admiral (died 1996)
Hans Jørgen Garde was a Danish admiral.
Alfredo Palacio, Ecuadoran physician and politician, President of Ecuador (died 2025)
Luis Alfredo Palacio González was an Ecuadorian cardiologist and politician who was the 44th president of Ecuador from 2005 to 2007. He had been the 44th vice president under President Lucio Gutiérrez, until he was appointed to the presidency when the Ecuadorian Congress removed Gutiérrez from power following a week of growing unrest with his government. He previously served as Minister of Health between 1994 and 1996.
Luigi Simoni, Italian footballer and manager (died 2020)
Luigi "Gigi" Simoni was an Italian football official, player and manager. A skilled tactician, as a coach Simoni enjoyed notable success in earning promotion from Serie B to Serie A with the teams he managed, a feat he achieved seven times with five different clubs.
J. C. Tremblay, Canadian ice hockey player and scout (died 1994)
Joseph Henri Jean-Claude Tremblay was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Quebec Nordiques of the World Hockey Association (WHA), notable for playmaking and defensive skills.
22/01/1938
Peter Beard, Australian photographer and author (died 2020)
Peter Hill Beard was an American artist, photographer, diarist, and writer. He lived and worked in New York City, Montauk, Long Island and Kenya. His photographs of Africa, African animals and the journals that often integrated his photographs, have been widely shown and published since the 1960s.
Altair Gomes de Figueiredo, Brazilian footballer (died 2019)
Altair Gomes de Figueiredo, usually referred to as Altair, was a football defender and a World Champion for Brazil in the 1962 World Cup.
22/01/1937
Alma Delia Fuentes, Mexican actress (died 2017)
Alma Delia Susana Fuentes González was a Mexican actress of film, television, and theatre.
Edén Pastora, Nicaraguan politician (died 2020)
Edén Atanacio Pastora Gómez was a Nicaraguan politician and guerrilla who ran for president as the candidate of the Alternative for Change (AC) party in the 2006 general elections. In the years prior to the fall of the Somoza regime, Pastora was the leader of the Southern Front, the largest militia in southern Nicaragua, second only to the FSLN in the north. Pastora was nicknamed Comandante Cero.
Joseph Wambaugh, American author (died 2025)
Joseph Aloysius Wambaugh Jr. was an American writer known for his fictional and nonfictional accounts of police work in the United States. Many of his novels are set in Los Angeles and its surroundings and feature Los Angeles police officers as protagonists. He won three Edgar Awards, and was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America.
22/01/1936
Ong Teng Cheong, Singaporean architect and politician, 5th President of Singapore (died 2002)
Ong Teng Cheong was a Singaporean architect and politician who served as the fifth president of Singapore between 1993 and 1999 after winning the 1993 presidential election.
Alan J. Heeger, American physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
Alan Jay Heeger is an American physicist, academic and Nobel Prize laureate in chemistry.
22/01/1934
Vijay Anand, Indian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (died 2004)
Vijay Anand, also known as Goldie Anand, was an Indian filmmaker, producer, screenwriter, editor and actor, who is known for acclaimed films such as Guide (1965), Teesri Manzil (1966), Jewel Thief (1967) and Johny Mera Naam (1970). He made most of his films for the in-house banner Navketan Films and was part of the Anand family.
Bill Bixby, American actor and director (died 1993)
Wilfred Bailey Everett Bixby III was an American actor and television director. His career spanned more than three decades, including appearances on stage, in films, and on television series. He is known for his roles in the CBS sitcom My Favorite Martian as Tim O'Hara, in the ABC sitcom The Courtship of Eddie's Father as Tom Corbett, in the NBC crime drama series The Magician as stage illusionist Anthony Blake, in the ABC miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man as Willie Abbott, and the CBS science-fiction drama series The Incredible Hulk as Dr. David Bruce Banner.
22/01/1933
Yuri Chesnokov, Russian volleyball player and coach (died 2010)
Yuri Borisovich Chesnokov was a Russian volleyball player who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1964 Summer Olympics. He was born in Moscow.
22/01/1932
Berthold Grünfeld, Norwegian psychiatrist and academic (died 2007)
Berthold Grünfeld was a Norwegian psychiatrist, sexologist, and professor of social medicine at the University of Oslo. He was also a recognized expert in forensic psychiatry, often employed by Norwegian courts to examine insanity defense pleas.
Piper Laurie, American actress (died 2023)
Piper Laurie was an American actress. She is known for her roles in the films The Hustler (1961), Carrie (1976), and Children of a Lesser God (1986), and the miniseries The Thorn Birds (1983). She played Kirsten Arnesen in the original TV production of Days of Wine and Roses, and Catherine Martell in the television series Twin Peaks.
Tom Railsback, American politician (died 2020)
Thomas Fisher Railsback was an American politician and lawyer who served eight terms in the United States House of Representatives from 1967 to 1983 for Illinois's 19th congressional district. A member of the Republican Party, he sat on the House Judiciary Committee, which in 1974, voted to refer articles of impeachment against President Richard Nixon to the full House.
22/01/1931
Sam Cooke, American singer-songwriter (died 1964)
Samuel Cooke was an American soul singer and songwriter. Considered one of the most influential artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred to as the "King of Soul" for his distinctive vocals, pioneering contributions to the genre, and significance in popular music. During his eight-year career, Cooke released 29 singles that charted in the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as well as 20 singles in the Top 10 of Billboard's Black Singles chart. In 1964, he was shot and killed by the manager of a motel in Los Angeles. After an inquest and investigation, the courts ruled Cooke's death to be a justifiable homicide. His family has since questioned the circumstances of his death. His legacy inspired the likes of Tina Turner, Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, James Brown, Wilson Pickett, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Steve Perry. In 2015, Cooke was ranked number 28 in Billboard magazine's list of the "35 Greatest R&B Artists of All Time".
Galina Zybina, Russian shot putter and javelin thrower (died 2024)
Galina Ivanovna Zybina was a Soviet and Russian athlete and coach. She competed in the shot put at the 1952, 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics and finished in first, second, seventh and third place, respectively; in 1952, she also finished fourth in the javelin throw. Between 1952 and 1956, she set eight consecutive world records and 14 national records in the shot put. In 1953, she became the first woman to throw over 16 meters when she threw 16.20 m.
22/01/1930
Mariví Bilbao, Spanish actress (died 2013)
María Victoria Bilbao-Goyoaga Álvarez better known by her stage name Mariví Bilbao was a Spanish actress, especially famous for her roles as Marisa Benito in Aquí no hay quien viva and Izaskun Sagastume in La que se avecina TV series.
Daniel Camargo Barbosa, Colombian serial killer (died 1994)
Daniel Camargo Barbosa was a Colombian serial killer and rapist. He is one of the most prolific serial killers in history and is believed to have raped and murdered at least 72 young girls in Colombia and Ecuador during the 1970s and 1980s.
Éamon de Buitléar, Irish accordion player and director (died 2013)
Éamon de Buitléar was an Irish wildlife filmmaker, naturalist, writer and musician. He was managing director of Éamon de Buitléar Ltd., a company which specialised in wildlife filming and television documentaries.
22/01/1929
Petr Eben, Czech composer, organist and choirmaster (died 2007)
Petr Eben was a Czech composer of modern and contemporary classical music, and an organist and choirmaster.
22/01/1928
Yoshihiko Amino, Japanese historian, author, and academic (died 2004)
Yoshihiko Amino was a Japanese Marxist historian and public intellectual, perhaps most singularly known for his novel examination of medieval Japanese history.
22/01/1927
Lou Creekmur, American football player and sportscaster (died 2009)
Louis Creekmur was an American professional football offensive tackle who played for 10 years from 1950 to 1959 with the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
Joe Perry, American football player (died 2011)
Fletcher Joseph Perry was an American professional football fullback who played in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League (NFL). He played for the San Francisco 49ers from 1948 to 1960, the Baltimore Colts from 1961 to 1962, and returned to the 49ers in 1963 for his final year in football. He was exceptionally fast, a trait uncommon for a fullback and one which earned him the nickname, "the Jet". The first African-American to be named the NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP), he became one of American football's first black stars.
22/01/1924
J. J. Johnson, American trombonist and composer (died 2001)
J. J. Johnson, born James Louis Johnson and also known as Jay Jay Johnson, was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger.
Ján Chryzostom Korec, Slovak cardinal (died 2015)
Ján Chryzostom Korec, SJ was a Slovak Jesuit priest and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was ordained as a priest in 1950 and consecrated as a bishop in 1951.
Charles Lisanby, American production designer and art director (died 2013)
Charles Alvin Lisanby Jr. was an American production designer who had a formative role for scenic design in early color television. During his career, Lisanby was nominated for sixteen Emmys and won three. In January 2010, he was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame at the nineteenth annual ceremony alongside Don Pardo, the Smothers Brothers, Bob Stewart, and Gene Roddenberry. Aside from his success in the entertainment industry, Lisanby was known for his friendship with the artist Andy Warhol.
22/01/1923
Diana Douglas, British-American actress (died 2015)
Diana Love Webster, known professionally as Diana Douglas, was a Bermudian-American actress who was married to actor Kirk Douglas from 1943 until their divorce in 1951. She was the mother of Michael and Joel Douglas.
22/01/1922
Howard Moss, American poet, playwright and critic (died 1987)
Howard Moss was an American poet, dramatist and critic. He was poetry editor of The New Yorker magazine from 1948 until his death and he won the National Book Award in 1972 for Selected Poems.
22/01/1920
Irving Kristol, American journalist, author, and academic, founded The National Interest (died 2009)
Irving William Kristol was an American journalist and writer. As a founder, editor, and contributor to various magazines, he played an influential role in the intellectual and political culture of the latter half of the twentieth century. He was dubbed the "godfather of neoconservatism". After his death, he was described by The Daily Telegraph as being "perhaps the most consequential public intellectual of the latter half of the century". He is the father of political writer Bill Kristol.
Alf Ramsey, English footballer and coach (died 1999)
Sir Alfred Ernest Ramsey was an English football player and manager. As a player, he represented the England national team and captained the side, but he is best known for his time as England manager from 1963 to 1974, which included guiding them to victory in the 1966 FIFA World Cup. Knighted in 1967 in recognition of the World Cup win, Ramsey also managed his country to third place in the 1968 European Championship and the quarter-finals of the 1970 World Cup and the 1972 European Championship. As a player, Ramsey was a defender and a member of England's 1950 World Cup squad.
22/01/1919
Diomedes Olivo, Dominican baseball player and scout (died 1977)
Diomedes Antonio Olivo Maldonado, nicknamed "Guayubin" for his hometown, was a Dominican professional baseball player, manager, and scout. The left-handed pitcher appeared in 85 Major League Baseball games over all or part of three seasons between 1960 and 1963 for the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals. He was the brother of fellow major leaguer Chi-Chi Olivo, and the father of major league pitcher Gilberto Rondón.
22/01/1918
Elmer Lach, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (died 2015)
Elmer James Lach was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played 14 seasons for the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League (NHL). A centre, he was a member of the Punch line, along with Maurice Richard and Toe Blake. Lach led the NHL in scoring twice and was awarded the Hart Trophy in 1945 as the league's most valuable player.
22/01/1917
Bruce Shand, British Army officer, and father of Queen Camilla (died 2006)
Bruce Middleton Hope Shand was a British Army officer who served in France as part of the British Expeditionary Force during the Second World War. He was the father of Queen Camilla.
22/01/1916
Bill Durnan, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (died 1972)
William Ronald Durnan was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played with the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League (NHL) between 1943 and 1950. He was one of the best goaltenders in his time, winning the Vezina Trophy for fewest goals allowed six times, being named First All-Star team as best goaltender six times, and helping the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup twice. Durnan retired in 1950, citing the stress of playing professional hockey. However, in his final season he suffered a severe laceration of the scalp, but was only sidelined 12 days and returned heroically for the playoffs. When the series was all but lost, he stepped away from the game. He served as the captain of the Canadiens in 1948, the last goaltender to be allowed to do so. In 1964 Durnan was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and in 2017 he was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.
Henri Dutilleux, French pianist, composer, and educator (died 2013)
Henri Paul Julien Dutilleux was a French composer of late 20th-century classical music. Among the leading French composers of his time, his work was rooted in the Impressionistic style of Debussy and Ravel, but in an idiosyncratic, individual style. Among his best-known works are his early Flute Sonatine and Piano Sonata; concertos for cello, Tout un monde lointain... and violin, L'arbre des songes ; a string quartet known as Ainsi la nuit ; and two symphonies: No. 1 (1951) and No. 2 Le Double (1959).
Harilal Upadhyay, Indian author, poet, and astrologist (died 1994)
Harilal Upadhyay was a Gujarati novelist and poet. He wrote more than 100 books.
22/01/1915
Heinrich Albertz, German theologian and politician, Mayor of Berlin (died 1993)
Heinrich Albertz was a German Protestant theologian, priest and politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). He served as Governing Mayor of Berlin from 1966 to 1967.
22/01/1914
Dimitris Dragatakis, Greek violinist and composer (died 2001)
Dimitris Dragatakis was a Greek composer of classical music and Greek art music.
22/01/1913
Henry Bauchau, Belgian psychoanalyst and author (died 2012)
Henry Bauchau was a Belgian political activist and psychoanalyst who is best known as an author of poetry, novels, and plays in French language.
William Conway, Irish cardinal (died 1977)
William John Conway was an Irish cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland from 1963 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1965. He was head of the Catholic Church in Ireland during the reforms of the Second Vatican Council.
Carl F. H. Henry, American theologian and publisher (died 2003)
Carl Ferdinand Howard Henry was an American evangelical Christian theologian who provided intellectual and institutional leadership to the neo-evangelical movement in the mid-to-late 20th century. He was ordained in 1942 after graduating from Northern Baptist Theological Seminary and went on to teach and lecture at various schools and publish and edit many works surrounding the neo-evangelical movement. His early book, The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Fundamentalism (1947), was influential in calling evangelicals to differentiate themselves from separatist fundamentalism and claim a role in influencing the wider American culture. He was involved in the creation of numerous major evangelical organizations that contributed to his influence in Neo-evangelicalism and lasting legacy, including the National Association of Evangelicals, Fuller Theological Seminary, Evangelical Theological Society, Christianity Today magazine, and the Institute for Advanced Christian Studies. The Carl F. H. Henry Institute for Evangelical Engagement at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity International University seek to carry on his legacy. His ideas about Neo-evangelism are still debated to this day and his legacy continues to inspire change in American social and political culture.
22/01/1911
Bruno Kreisky, Austrian lawyer and politician, 22nd Chancellor of Austria (died 1990)
Bruno Kreisky was an Austrian social democratic politician who served as foreign minister from 1959 to 1966 and as chancellor from 1970 to 1983. Aged 72, he was the oldest chancellor after World War II.
22/01/1909
Martha Norelius, Swedish-born American swimmer (died 1955)
Martha Maria Norelius was a Swedish-born American competition swimmer, Olympic gold medalist, and former world record-holder in five different freestyle swimming events.
Porfirio Rubirosa, Dominican racing driver, polo player, and diplomat (died 1965)
Porfirio Rubirosa Ariza was a Dominican diplomat, race car driver, soldier and polo player. He was a supporter of dictator Rafael Trujillo, and was rumored to be a political assassin under his regime. Rubirosa made his mark as an international playboy for his jetsetting lifestyle and his legendary sexual prowess with women. His five spouses included two of the richest women in the world.
Ann Sothern, American actress and singer (died 2001)
Ann Sothern was an American actress who worked on stage, radio, film, and television, in a career that spanned nearly six decades. Sothern began her career in the late 1920s in bit parts in films. In 1930, she made her Broadway stage debut and soon worked her way up to starring roles. In 1939, MGM cast her as Maisie Ravier, a brash yet lovable Brooklyn showgirl. The character proved to be popular and spawned a successful film series and a network radio series.
U Thant, Burmese educator and diplomat, 3rd United Nations Secretary-General (died 1974)
Thant, known honorifically as U Thant, was a Burmese diplomat and the third secretary-general of the United Nations from 1961 to 1971, the first non-Scandinavian as well as Asian to hold the position. He held the office for a record 10 years and one month.
22/01/1908
Lev Landau, Azerbaijani-Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1968)
Lev Davidovich Landau was a Soviet physicist who made fundamental contributions to many areas of theoretical physics. He was considered as one of the last scientists who were universally well-versed and made seminal contributions to all branches of physics. He is credited with laying the foundations of twentieth century condensed matter physics, and is also considered arguably the greatest Soviet theoretical physicist.
22/01/1907
Douglas Corrigan, American pilot and engineer, famous "wrong way" early solo flyer of the Atlantic (died 1995)
Douglas Corrigan was an American aviator, nicknamed "Wrong Way" in 1938. After a transcontinental flight in July from Long Beach, California, to New York City, he then flew from Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn to Ireland, although his flight plan was filed to return to Long Beach.
Dixie Dean, English footballer (died 1980)
William Ralph "Dixie" Dean was an English footballer who played as a centre forward. Dean holds the record for the most goals scored in a single season in top-flight English football, with 60. He is regarded as one of the greatest centre forwards of his time and was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002.
22/01/1906
Robert E. Howard, American author and poet (died 1936)
Robert Ervin Howard was an American writer who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. He created the character Conan the Barbarian and is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre.
22/01/1905
Willy Hartner, German physicist, historian, and academic (died 1981)
Willy Hartner was a German scientist and polymath. He studied at Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main, where he obtained his PhD in physics in 1928 and where he later served as professor from 1940, as ordinary professor [German academic terminology] from 1946.
22/01/1904
George Balanchine, Georgian-American dancer, choreographer, and director, co-founded the New York City Ballet (died 1983)
George Balanchine was a Georgian-American ballet choreographer, recognized as one of the most influential choreographers of the 20th century. Styled as the father of American ballet, he co-founded the New York City Ballet and remained its artistic director for more than 35 years. His choreography is characterized by plotless ballets with minimal costume and décor, performed to classical and neoclassical music.
Arkady Gaidar, Russian journalist and author (died 1941)
Arkady Petrovich Gaidar was a Russian Soviet writer, whose stories were very popular among Soviet children, and a Red Army commander.
22/01/1903
Fritz Houtermans, Polish-German physicist and academic (died 1966)
Friedrich Georg "Fritz" Houtermans was a Dutch-Austrian-German atomic and nuclear physicist and Communist born in Zoppot near Danzig, West Prussia to a Dutch father, who was a wealthy banker. He was brought up in Vienna, where he was educated, and moved to Göttingen when he was 18 to study. It was in Göttingen where he obtained his Ph.D. under James Franck. With Robert d'Escourt Atkinson, he made the first estimates of the rate of stellar nuclear fusion.
22/01/1902
Daniel Kinsey, American hurdler, coach, and academic (died 1970)
Daniel Chapin Kinsey was an American hurdler and scholar in physical education.
22/01/1900
Ernst Busch, German actor and singer (died 1980)
Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst Busch was a German singer and actor. He is best known for singing German socialist songs and was active during the Civil War in Spain and World War II.
James Hamilton Doggart, English ophthalmic surgeon (died 1989)
James Hamilton Doggart was a leading ophthalmologist, lecturer, writer, cricketer, and a member of the Cambridge Apostles and the Bloomsbury Group.
22/01/1899
Martti Haavio, Finnish poet and mythologist (died 1973)
Martti Henrikki Haavio was a Finnish poet, folklorist and mythologist, writing poetry under the pen name P. Mustapää. He was born on 22 January 1899 in Temmes, and died on 4 February 1973 in Helsinki. He was also a professor of folklore and an influential researcher of Finnish mythology. In 1960, Haavio married Aale Tynni, after his first wife Elsa Enäjärvi-Haavio died in 1951 of cancer. His daughter, Elina Haavio-Mannila, was a social scientist. During Haavio's early career, he was a member of the Tulenkantajat literature club.
22/01/1898
Ross Barnett, American lawyer and politician, 52nd Governor of Mississippi (died 1987)
Ross Robert Barnett was an American politician who served as the 53rd governor of Mississippi from 1960 to 1964. He was a Southern Democrat who supported racial segregation.
Sergei Eisenstein, Russian director and screenwriter (died 1948)
Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein was a Soviet film director, screenwriter, film editor and film theorist. Considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, he was a pioneer in the theory and practice of montage. He is noted in particular for his silent films Strike (1925), Battleship Potemkin (1925) and October (1928), as well as the historical epics Alexander Nevsky (1938) and Ivan the Terrible (1945/1958). In its decennial poll, the magazine Sight and Sound named his Battleship Potemkin the 54th-greatest film of all time.
Denise Legeay, French actress (died 1968)
Denise Augusta Marguerite Legeay was a French film actress whose popularity peaked during the silent film era of the 1920s.
22/01/1897
Rosa Ponselle, American operatic soprano (died 1981)
Rosa Ponzillo, known as Rosa Ponselle was an American operatic dramatic soprano.
Dilipkumar Roy, a Bengali Indian musician, musicologist, novelist, poet and essayist. (died 1980)
Dilip Kumar Roy, also spelt Dilipkumar Roy, was an Indian musician, singer, musicologist, novelist, poet, essayist and yogi. He was the son of Dwijendralal Ray. In 1965, the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama, awarded him its highest honour for lifetime achievement, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship.
22/01/1893
Conrad Veidt, German-American actor, director, and producer (died 1943)
Hans Walter Conrad Veidt was a German and British character actor. He attracted early attention for his roles in the films Different from the Others (1919), The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), and The Man Who Laughs (1928). After a successful career in German silent films, where he was one of the best-paid stars of UFA, Veidt and his new Jewish wife Ilona Prager left Germany in 1933 after the Nazis came to power. The couple settled in Britain, where he took citizenship in 1939. Veidt subsequently appeared in many British films, including The Thief of Bagdad (1940). After emigrating to the United States around 1941, he was cast as Major Strasser in Casablanca (1942), his last film role to be released during his lifetime.
22/01/1892
Marcel Dassault, French businessman, founded Dassault Aviation (died 1986)
Marcel Dassault was a French engineer and industrialist who spent his career in aircraft manufacturing. He was also involved in politics, serving intermittently over more than three decades in both houses of the French Parliament from 1951 until his death in 1986.
22/01/1891
Antonio Gramsci, Italian philosopher and politician (died 1937)
Antonio Francesco Gramsci was an Italian Marxist philosopher, linguist and politician. He was a founding member and one-time leader of the Italian Communist Party. A vocal critic of Benito Mussolini and fascism, he was imprisoned in 1926, and remained in prison until shortly before his death in 1937.
22/01/1890
Fred M. Vinson, American judge and politician, 13th Chief Justice of the United States (died 1953)
Frederick Moore Vinson was an American attorney and politician who served as the 13th chief justice of the United States from 1946 until his death in 1953. Vinson was one of the few Americans to have served in all three branches of the U.S. government. Before becoming chief justice, Vinson served as a U.S. Representative from Kentucky from 1924 to 1928 and 1930 to 1938, as a federal appellate judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1938 to 1943, and as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from 1945 to 1946.
22/01/1889
Henri Pélissier, French cyclist (died 1935)
Henri Pélissier was a French racing cyclist from Paris and champion of the 1923 Tour de France. In addition to his 29 career victories, he was known for his long-standing feud with Tour founder Henri Desgrange and for protesting against the conditions endured by riders in the early years of the Tour. He was killed by his lover with the gun that his wife had used to commit suicide.
Amos Strunk, American baseball player and manager (died 1979)
Amos Aaron Strunk was a center fielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1908 through 1924. A member of four World Series champion teams, Strunk batted and threw left-handed. He was born in Philadelphia.
22/01/1887
Helen Hoyt, American poet and author (died 1972)
Helen Lyman , commonly known as Helen Hoyt or Helen Hoyt Lyman, was an American poet.
22/01/1886
John J. Becker, American pianist, composer, and conductor (died 1961)
John Joseph Becker was an American composer of contemporary classical music, a pianist, a conductor, a writer on music, and a music administrator. In the early 1930s he was especially active as a conductor, giving midwestern premieres of works by his close friend Charles Ives, as well as music by fellow American composers Carl Ruggles and Wallingford Riegger.
22/01/1881
Ira Thomas, American baseball player and manager (died 1958)
Ira Felix Thomas was an American professional baseball player. He played all or part of ten seasons of Major League Baseball, all in the American League, with the New York Highlanders (1906–07), Detroit Tigers (1908), and Philadelphia Athletics (1909–15), primarily as a catcher.
22/01/1880
Bill O'Neill, Canadian-American baseball player (died 1920)
William John O'Neill was a Canadian outfielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Boston Americans (1904), Washington Senators (1904) and Chicago White Sox (1906). O'Neill was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed. He was born in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada.
Frigyes Riesz, Hungarian mathematician and academic (died 1956)
Frigyes Riesz was a Hungarian mathematician who made fundamental contributions to functional analysis, as did his younger brother Marcel Riesz.
22/01/1879
Francis Picabia, French painter and poet (died 1953)
Francis Picabia was a French avant-garde painter, writer, filmmaker, magazine publisher, poet, and typographist closely associated with Dada.
22/01/1877
Tom Jones, American baseball player and manager (died 1923)
Thomas Jones was an American baseball player. He played professional baseball, principally as a first baseman, from 1902 to 1915, including eight years in Major League Baseball with the Baltimore Orioles (1902), St. Louis Browns (1904–1909), and Detroit Tigers (1909–1910). He compiled a .251 career batting average in 813 major league games.
22/01/1875
D. W. Griffith, American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1948)
David Wark Griffith was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the narrative film.
22/01/1874
Edward Harkness, American philanthropist (died 1940)
Edward Stephen Harkness was an American philanthropist. Given privately and through his family's Commonwealth Fund, Harkness' gifts to private hospitals, art museums, and educational institutions in the Northeastern United States were among the largest of the early twentieth century. He was a major benefactor to Columbia University, Yale University, Harvard University, Phillips Exeter Academy, St. Paul's School, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the University of St Andrews in Scotland. He was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 1934.
Jay Hughes, American baseball player and coach (died 1924)
James H. "Jay" Hughes was an American Major League Baseball pitcher who played four seasons from 1898 to 1902.
22/01/1869
José Vicente de Freitas, Portuguese colonel and politician, 97th Prime Minister of Portugal (died 1952)
José Vicente de Freitas, 2nd Baron of Freitas GCTE ComA GCA was a Portuguese military officer and politician.
22/01/1867
Gisela Januszewska, Jewish-Austrian physician (died 1943)
Gisela Januszewska was an Austrian physician. Having earned her degree in Switzerland, she briefly worked in Germany before becoming the first female physician in the ethnically Serbian town of Banja Luka in Bosnia Herzegovina within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. She received the highest decorations for her service during the First World War and social activism in Austria afterwards, but was deported to a Nazi concentration camp, where she died, during the Second World War.
22/01/1865
Wilbur Scoville, American chemist and pharmacist (died 1942)
Wilbur Lincoln Scoville was an American pharmacist best known for his creation of the "Scoville Organoleptic Test", standardized as the Scoville scale. He devised the test and scale in 1912 while working at the Parke-Davis pharmaceutical company to measure pungency, "spiciness" or "capsaicin concentration" of various chili peppers.
22/01/1861
George Fuller, Australian politician, 22nd Premier of New South Wales (died 1940)
Sir George Warburton Fuller was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd Premier of New South Wales, in office from 1922 to 1925 and for one day in December 1921. He previously served in the federal House of Representatives from 1901 to 1913, representing the Division of Illawarra, and was Minister for Home Affairs under Alfred Deakin from 1909 to 1910.
22/01/1858
Beatrice Webb, English sociologist and economist (died 1943)
Martha Beatrice Webb, Baroness Passfield, was an English sociologist, economist, feminist and social reformer. She was among the founders of the London School of Economics and played a crucial role in forming the Fabian Society. Additionally, she authored several popular books, with her most notable being The Co-operative Movement in Great Britain and Industrial Democracy, co-authored by her husband Sidney Webb, 1st Baron Passfield, where she coined the term "collective bargaining" as a way to discuss the negotiation process between an employer and a labor union. As a feminist and social reformer, she criticised the exclusion of women from various occupations as well as campaigning for the unionisation of female workers, pushing for legislation that allowed for better hours and conditions.
22/01/1849
August Strindberg, Swedish novelist, poet, and playwright (died 1912)
Johan August Strindberg was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist, and painter. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than 60 plays and more than 30 works of fiction, autobiography, history, cultural analysis, and politics during his career, which spanned four decades. A bold experimenter and iconoclast throughout his life, he explored a wide range of dramatic methods and purposes, from naturalistic tragedy, monodrama, and historical plays to his anticipations of expressionist and surrealist dramatic techniques. From his earliest work, Strindberg developed innovative forms of dramatic action, language, and visual composition. He is considered the "father" of modern Swedish literature and his The Red Room (1879) has frequently been described as the first modern Swedish novel. In Sweden, Strindberg is known as an essayist, painter, poet, and especially novelist and playwright, but in other countries he is known mostly as a playwright.
22/01/1840
Ernest Wilberforce, English bishop (died 1907)
Ernest Roland Wilberforce was an Anglican clergyman and bishop. From 1882 to 1896 he was the first Anglican Bishop of Newcastle upon the diocese's creation, and from 1896 to 1907 he was Bishop of Chichester.
22/01/1831
Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein (died 1917)
Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein was a German prince who became a member of the British royal family through his marriage to Princess Helena of the United Kingdom, the fifth child and third daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.
22/01/1828
Dayrolles Eveleigh-de-Moleyns, 4th Baron Ventry, Irish hereditary peer (died 1914)
Dayrolles Blakeney Eveleigh-de-Moleyns, 4th Baron Ventry, DL, JP, was an Irish hereditary peer, elected as an Irish representative peer in 1871.
22/01/1802
Richard Upjohn, English-American architect (died 1878)
Richard Upjohn was a British-American architect who immigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to popularity in the United States. Upjohn also did extensive work in and helped to popularize the Italianate style. He was a founder and the first president of the American Institute of Architects. His son, Richard Michell Upjohn, (1828-1903), was also a well-known architect and served as a partner in his continued architectural firm in New York.
22/01/1799
Ludger Duvernay, Canadian journalist, publisher, and politician (died 1852)
Ludger Duvernay, born in Verchères, Quebec, was a printer by profession and published a number of newspapers including the Gazette des Trois-Rivières, the first newspaper in Lower Canada outside of Quebec City and Montreal, and also La Minerve, which supported the Parti patriote and Louis-Joseph Papineau in the years leading up to the Lower Canada Rebellion.
22/01/1797
Maria Leopoldina of Austria (died 1826)
Dona Maria Leopoldina of Austria was the first Empress of Brazil as the wife of Emperor Dom Pedro I from 12 October 1822 until her death. She was also Queen of Portugal during her husband's brief reign as King Dom Pedro IV from 10 March to 2 May 1826.
22/01/1796
Karl Ernst Claus, Estonian-Russian chemist, botanist, and academic (died 1864)
Karl Ernst Claus, also known as Karl Klaus or Carl Claus, was a Russian chemist and naturalist. Claus was a professor at Kazan University and a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. He was primarily known as a chemist and discoverer of the chemical element ruthenium, which he named after his homeland of Russia, but also as one of the first scientists who applied quantitative methods in botany.
22/01/1792
Lady Lucy Whitmore, English noblewoman, hymn writer (died 1840)
Lady Lucy Whitmore was an English noblewoman and a hymn writer from Shropshire. She was the author of Family prayers for every day in the week (1824), which included fourteen original hymns and went into a second edition in 1827; one of these, "Father, again in Jesus' name we meet", was widely reprinted in hymn collections. Whitmore also published works of religious instruction, including Sunday reading for very little boys and girls (1832) and Morning and evening prayers (1869). She spent much of her life at Dudmaston Hall and was connected through family and friendship to prominent figures of her time.
22/01/1788
Lord Byron, English poet and playwright (died 1824)
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, was a British poet. He was one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest British poets. Among his best-known works are the lengthy narratives Don Juan and Childe Harold's Pilgrimage; many of his shorter lyrics in Hebrew Melodies also became popular.
22/01/1781
François Habeneck, French violinist and conductor (died 1849)
François Antoine Habeneck was a French classical violinist and conductor.
22/01/1740
Noah Phelps, American soldier, lawyer, and judge (died 1809)
Major General Noah Phelps served with the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and afterward was selected as a major general. He also served as justice of the peace and judge of probate in his home state of Connecticut for twenty years. He was chosen as a delegate to the 1788 state convention that ratified the Constitution of the United States.
22/01/1733
Philip Carteret, English admiral and explorer (died 1796)
Rear-Admiral Philip Carteret, Seigneur of Trinity was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who participated in two of the British navy's circumnavigation expeditions in 1764–66 and 1766–69.
22/01/1729
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German philosopher and author (died 1781)
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing was a German philosopher, dramatist, publicist and art critic, and a representative of the Enlightenment era. His plays and theoretical writings substantially influenced the development of German literature. He is widely considered by theatre historians to be the first dramaturg in his role at Abel Seyler's Hamburg National Theatre.
22/01/1690
Nicolas Lancret, French painter (died 1743)
Nicolas Lancret was a French painter. Born in Paris, he was a brilliant depicter of light comedy which reflected the tastes and manners of French society during the regency of the Duke of Orleans and, later, early reign of King Louis XV.
22/01/1654
Richard Blackmore, English physician and poet (died 1729)
Sir Richard Blackmore, English poet and physician, is remembered primarily as the object of satire and as an epic poet, but he was also a respected medical doctor and theologian.
22/01/1645
William Kidd, Scottish sailor and pirate hunter (probable); (died 1701)
William Kidd, also known as Captain William Kidd or simply Captain Kidd, was a Scottish privateer. Conflicting accounts exist regarding his early life, but he was likely born in Dundee and later settled in New York City. By 1690, Kidd had become a highly successful privateer, commissioned to protect English interests in the Thirteen Colonies in North America and the West Indies.
22/01/1592
Pierre Gassendi, French mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher (died 1655)
Pierre Gassendi was a French philosopher, Catholic priest, astronomer, and mathematician. While he held a church position in south-east France, he also spent much time in Paris, where he was a leader of a group of free-thinking intellectuals. He was also an active observational scientist, publishing the first data on the transit of Mercury in 1631. The lunar crater Gassendi is named after him.
22/01/1573
John Donne, English poet and cleric in the Church of England, wrote the Holy Sonnets (died 1631)
John Donne was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a cleric in the Church of England. Under royal patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's Cathedral in London (1621–1631). He is considered the preeminent representative of the metaphysical poets. His poetical works are noted for their metaphorical and sensual style and include sonnets, love poems, religious poems, Latin translations, epigrams, elegies, songs and satires. He is also known for his sermons.
22/01/1570
Sir Robert Cotton, 1st Baronet, of Connington, English historian and politician, founded the Cotton library (died 1631)
Sir Robert Bruce Cotton, 1st Baronet of Conington Hall in the parish of Conington in Huntingdonshire, England, was a Member of Parliament and an antiquarian who founded the Cotton library.
22/01/1561
Francis Bacon, English philosopher and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales (died 1626)
Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England under King James I. Bacon argued for the importance of natural philosophy, guided by the scientific method, and his works remained influential throughout the Scientific Revolution.
22/01/1552
Walter Raleigh, English poet, soldier, courtier, and explorer (died 1618)
Sir Walter Raleigh was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebellion in Ireland, helped defend England against the Spanish Armada and held political positions under Elizabeth I.
22/01/1522
Charles II de Valois, Duke of Orléans, (died 1545)
Charles II of Orléans was the third son of Francis I and Claude of France. In the autumn of 1545, Charles was on his way to Boulogne, which was under siege. On 6 September, he came across a cluster of houses that had been emptied and sealed off "from the plague", probably a form of influenza. In the belief that the sons of the King of France were immune to plagues, Charles and one of his brothers entered some of the infected houses. After supposedly lying down on one of the infected beds and rolling around on the bedding, he took ill on the evening of the same day. Charles died on 9 September. During his funeral, the future King Henry II wept for Charles even though his friend, François de Scépeaux, argued that Charles "never loved or esteemed you."
22/01/1440
Ivan III of Russia (died 1505)
Ivan III Vasilyevich, also known as Ivan the Great, was Grand Prince of Moscow and all Russia from 1462 until his death in 1505. Ivan served as the co-ruler and regent for his blind father Vasily II before he officially ascended the throne.
22/01/1263
Ibn Taymiyyah, Syrian scholar and theologian (died 1328)
Ibn Taymiyya was a Sunni Muslim scholar, jurist, Mujtahid, traditionist, Qadiri Sufi, proto-Salafi theologian and iconoclast. Born in Harran in 1263 CE and fleeing from the Mongol invasion, he was taught by his grandfather and father in the principles of Islamic Jurisprudence at Damascus. Ibn Taymiyya proved to be a controversial figure among both his contemporaries and in later centuries. Clerics and state authorities accused Ibn Taymiyya and his disciples of anthropomorphism, which eventually led to the censoring of his works and subsequent incarceration.