Famous Birthdays for April 17th

Pre-1600[edit]

• 1277 – Michael IX Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (d. 1320)
• 1455 – Andrea Gritti, Doge of Venice (d. 1538)^[6]
• 1497 – Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish conquistador, conquered northern Chile (d. 1553)
• 1573 – Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria (d. 1651)
• 1586 – John Ford, English poet and playwright (d. 1639)
• 1598 – Giovanni Battista Riccioli, Italian priest and astronomer (d. 1671)

1601–1900[edit]

• 1620 – Marguerite Bourgeoys, French-Canadian nun and saint, founded the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal (d. 1700)
• 1635 – Edward Stillingfleet, British theologian and scholar (d. 1699)
• 1676 – Frederick I of Sweden (d. 1751)
• 1683 – Johann David Heinichen, German composer and theorist (d. 1729)
• 1710 – Henry Erskine, 10th Earl of Buchan, Scottish politician (d. 1767)
• 1734 – Taksin, King of Thailand (d. 1782)
• 1741 – Samuel Chase, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1811)
• 1750 – François de Neufchâteau, French academic and politician, French Minister of the Interior (d. 1828)
• 1756 – Dheeran Chinnamalai, Indian commander (d. 1805)
• 1766 – Collin McKinney, American surveyor, merchant, and politician (d. 1861)
• 1794 – Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius, German botanist and explorer (d. 1868)
• 1798 – Étienne Bobillier, French mathematician and academic (d. 1840)
• 1799 – Eliza Acton, English food writer and poet (d. 1859)^[7]
• 1814 – Josif Pančić, Serbian botanist and academic (d. 1888)
• 1816 – Thomas Hazlehurst, English architect and philanthropist (d. 1876)
• 1820 – Alexander Cartwright, American firefighter and inventor of baseball (d. 1892)
• 1833 – Jean-Baptiste Accolay, Belgian violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 1900)
• 1837 – J. P. Morgan, American banker and financier, founded J.P. Morgan & Co. (d. 1913)
• 1842 – Maurice Rouvier, French businessman and politician, 53rd Prime Minister of France (d. 1911)
• 1849 – William R. Day, American jurist and politician, 36th United States Secretary of State (d. 1923)
• 1852 – Cap Anson, American baseball player and manager (d. 1922)
• 1863 – Augustus Edward Hough Love, English mathematician and theorist (d. 1940)
• 1865 – Ursula Ledóchowska, Polish-Austrian nun and saint, founded the Congregation of the Ursulines of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus (d. 1939)^[8]
• 1866 – Ernest Starling, English physiologist and academic (d. 1927)
• 1875 – Aleksander Tõnisson, Estonian general and politician, 5th Estonian Minister of War (d. 1941)
• 1877 – Matsudaira Tsuneo, Japanese diplomat (d. 1949)
• 1878 – Emil Fuchs, German-American lawyer and businessman (d. 1961)
• 1878 – Demetrios Petrokokkinos, Greek tennis player (d. 1942)
• 1879 – Henri Tauzin, French hurdler (d. 1918)
• 1882 – Artur Schnabel, Polish pianist and composer (d. 1951)
• 1888 – Herms Niel, German soldier, trombonist, and composer (d. 1954)
• 1891 – George Adamski, Polish-American ufologist and author (d. 1965)
• 1895 – Robert Dean Frisbie, American soldier and author (d. 1948)
• 1896 – Señor Wences, Spanish-American ventriloquist (d. 1999)
• 1897 – Nisargadatta Maharaj, Indian philosopher and educator (d. 1981)
• 1897 – Thornton Wilder, American novelist and playwright (d. 1975)
• 1897 – Edouard Wyss-Dunant, Swiss physician and mountaineer (d. 1983)
• 1899 – Aleksander Klumberg, Estonian decathlete and coach (d. 1958)

1901–present[edit]

• 1903 – Nicolas Nabokov, Russian-American composer and educator (d. 1978)
• 1903 – Gregor Piatigorsky, Ukrainian-American cellist and educator (d. 1976)
• 1903 – Morgan Taylor, American hurdler and coach (d. 1975)
• 1905 – Louis Jean Heydt, American journalist and actor (d. 1960)
• 1905 – Arthur Lake, American actor (d. 1987)
• 1906 – Sidney Garfield, American physician, co-founded Kaiser Permanente (d. 1984)
• 1909 – Alain Poher, French politician, President of France (d. 1996)
• 1910 – Evangelos Averoff, Greek historian and politician, Greek Minister of Defence (d. 1990)
• 1910 – Ivan Goff, Australian screenwriter and producer (d. 1999)
• 1910 – Helenio Herrera, French footballer and manager (d. 1997)
• 1911 – Hervé Bazin, French author and poet (d. 1996)
• 1911 – Lester Rodney, American soldier and journalist (d. 2009)
• 1912 – Marta Eggerth, Hungarian-American actress and singer (d. 2013)
• 1914 – George Davis, American art director (d. 1984)
• 1914 – Mac Raboy, American illustrator (d. 1967)
• 1915 – Martin Clemens, Scottish soldier (d. 2009)
• 1915 – Joe Foss, American general and politician, 20th Governor of South Dakota (d. 2003)
• 1915 – Regina Ghazaryan, Armenian painter (d. 1999)
• 1916 – Win Maung, 3rd President of Union of Myanmar (d. 1989)
• 1916 – A. Thiagarajah, Sri Lankan educator and politician (d. 1981)
• 1916 – Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, world's first female prime minister (d. 2000)
• 1918 – William Holden, American actor (d. 1981)
• 1919 – Gilles Lamontagne, Canadian lieutenant and politician, 24th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (d. 2016)
• 1919 – Chavela Vargas, Costa Rican-Mexican singer-songwriter and actress (d. 2012)
• 1920 – Edmonde Charles-Roux, French journalist and author (d. 2016)
• 1923 – Lindsay Anderson, English actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1994)
• 1923 – Solly Hemus, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 2017)
• 1923 – Neville McNamara, Australian air marshal (d. 2014)
• 1923 – Gianni Raimondi, Italian lyric tenor (d. 2008)
• 1923 – Harry Reasoner, American soldier and journalist (d. 1991)
• 1924 – Kenneth Norman Jones, Australian public servant (d. 2022)
• 1924 – Donald Richie, American-Japanese author and critic (d. 2013)
• 1925 – René Moawad, Lebanese lawyer and politician, 13th President of Lebanon (d. 1989)
• 1926 – Joan Lorring, British actress (d. 2014)
• 1926 – Gerry McNeil, Canadian ice hockey player and manager (d. 2004)
• 1927 – Margot Honecker, East German politician and First Lady (d. 2016)
• 1928 – Victor Lownes, American businessman (d. 2017)
• 1928 – Cynthia Ozick, American short story writer, novelist, and essayist
• 1928 – Heinz Putzl, Austrian fencer
• 1928 – Fabien Roy, Canadian accountant and politician
• 1929 – James Last, German-American bassist, composer, and bandleader (d. 2015)
• 1930 – Chris Barber, English trombonist and bandleader (d. 2021)
• 1931 – John Barrett, English tennis player and sportscaster
• 1931 – Malcolm Browne, American journalist and photographer (d. 2012)
• 1931 – Bill Ramsey, German-American singer and actor.^[9] (d. 2021)
• 1934 – Don Kirshner, American songwriter and producer (d. 2011)
• 1934 – Peter Morris, Australian-English surgeon and academic
• 1935 – Bud Paxson, American broadcaster, founded Home Shopping Network and Pax TV (d. 2015)
• 1936 – Urs Wild, Swiss chemist^[10]
• 1937 – Ronald Hamowy, Canadian historian and academic (d. 2012)
• 1937 – Ferdinand Piëch, Austrian-German engineer and businessman (d. 2019)
• 1938 – Ben Barnes, American businessman and politician, 36th Lieutenant Governor of Texas
• 1938 – Doug Lewis, Canadian lawyer and politician, 41st Canadian Minister of Justice
• 1938 – Ronald H. Miller, American theologian, author, and academic (d. 2011)
• 1938 – Kerry Wendell Thornley, American theorist and author (d. 1988)
• 1939 – Robert Miller, American art dealer (d. 2011)
• 1940 – Eric Dancer, English businessman and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Devon
• 1940 – Billy Fury, English singer-songwriter (d. 1983)
• 1940 – John McCririck, English journalist (d. 2019)
• 1940 – Chuck Menville, American animator and screenwriter (d. 1992)
• 1940 – Anja Silja, German soprano and actress
• 1940 – Agostino Vallini, Italian cardinal and vicar general of Rome
• 1941 – Lagle Parek, Estonian architect and politician, Estonian Minister of the Interior
• 1942 – Buster Williams, American jazz bassist
• 1942 – Dnyaneshwar Agashe, Indian businessman and cricketer (d. 2009)^[11]
• 1943 – Richard Allen Epstein, American lawyer, author, and academic
• 1946 – Clare Francis, English sailor and author
• 1947 – Nigel Emslie, Lord Emslie, Scottish lawyer and judge
• 1947 – Richard Field, English lawyer and judge
• 1947 – Sherrie Levine, American photographer
• 1947 – Tsutomu Wakamatsu, Japanese baseball player, coach, and manager
• 1948 – Jan Hammer, Czech pianist, composer, and producer
• 1948 – Alice Harden, American educator and politician (d. 2012)
• 1948 – Pekka Vasala, Finnish runner
• 1950 – L. Scott Caldwell, American actress^[12]
• 1951 – Olivia Hussey, Argentinian-English actress
• 1951 – Börje Salming, Swedish ice hockey player and businessman (d. 2022)
• 1952 – Joe Alaskey, American voice actor (d. 2016)
• 1952 – Pierre Guité, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1952 – John McColl, English general and politician, Lieutenant Governor of Jersey
• 1952 – Željko Ražnatović, Serbian commander "Arkan" (d. 2000)
• 1952 – John Robertson, Scottish businessman and politician
• 1954 – Riccardo Patrese, Italian race car driver
• 1954 – Roddy Piper, Canadian professional wrestler and actor (d. 2015)
• 1954 – Michael Sembello, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1955 – Todd Lickliter, American basketball player and coach
• 1955 – Pete Shelley, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2018)
• 1955 – Mike Stroud, English physician and explorer
• 1956 – Colin Tyre, Lord Tyre, Scottish lawyer and judge
• 1957 – Teri Austin, Canadian actress
• 1957 – Afrika Bambaataa, American disc jockey
• 1957 – Nick Hornby, English novelist, essayist, lyricist, and screenwriter
• 1957 – Julia Macur, English lawyer and judge
• 1957 – Frank McDonough, British historian
• 1958 – Laslo Babits, Canadian javelin thrower (d. 2013)
• 1959 – Sean Bean, English actor
• 1959 – Jimmy Mann, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1959 – Li Meisu, Chinese shot putter
• 1960 – Vladimir Polyakov, Russian pole vaulter
• 1961 – Frank J. Christensen, American labor union leader
• 1961 – Norman Cowans, Jamaican-English cricketer
• 1961 – Boomer Esiason, American football player and sportscaster
• 1961 – Bella Freud, English fashion designer
• 1962 – Paul Nicholls, English jockey and trainer
• 1964 – Ken Daneyko, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
• 1964 – Maynard James Keenan, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1964 – Rachel Notley, Canadian politician
• 1964 – Lela Rochon, American actress
• 1966 – Vikram, Indian actor and singer
• 1967 – Kimberly Elise, American actress
• 1967 – Marquis Grissom, American baseball player and coach
• 1967 – Ian Jones, New Zealand rugby player
• 1967 – Barnaby Joyce, Australian politician, 17th Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
• 1967 – Liz Phair, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1968 – Julie Fagerholt, Danish fashion designer
• 1968 – Phil Henderson, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
• 1968 – Eric Lamaze, Canadian jockey
• 1968 – Roger Twose, New Zealand cricketer
• 1968 – Richie Woodhall, English boxer and trainer
• 1970 – Redman, American rapper, producer, and actor
• 1971 – Claire Sweeney, English actress
• 1972 – Gary Bennett, American baseball player
• 1972 – Tony Boselli, American football player and sportscaster
• 1972 – Jennifer Garner, American actress
• 1972 – Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lankan cricketer
• 1972 – Yuichi Nishimura, Japanese footballer and referee
• 1972 – Terran Sandwith, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1973 – Katrin Koov, Estonian architect
• 1973 – Brett Maher, Australian basketball player and sportscaster
• 1973 – Theo Ratliff, American basketball player
• 1974 – Mikael Åkerfeldt, Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
• 1974 – Victoria Beckham, English singer and fashion designer^[13]
• 1975 – Heidi Alexander, English politician
• 1975 – Travis Roy, American ice hockey player (d. 2020)
• 1976 – Maurice Wignall, Jamaican hurdler and long jumper
• 1977 – Chad Hedrick, American speed skater
• 1977 – Frederik Magle, Danish composer, organist, and pianist
• 1978 – Monika Bergmann-Schmuderer, German skier
• 1978 – Lindsay Hartley, American actress
• 1978 – Jason White, Scottish rugby player
• 1979 – Eric Brewer, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1979 – Marija Šestak, Serbian-Slovenian triple jumper
• 1980 – Fabián Vargas, Colombian footballer
• 1980 – Curtis Woodhouse, English footballer, boxer, and manager
• 1981 – Jenny Meadows, English runner
• 1981 – Hanna Pakarinen, Finnish singer-songwriter
• 1981 – Ryan Raburn, American baseball player
• 1981 – Chris Thompson, English runner
• 1981 – Zhang Yaokun, Chinese footballer
• 1982 – Brad Boyes, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1982 – Chuck Kobasew, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1983 – Stanislav Chistov, Russian ice hockey player
• 1983 – Roberto Jiménez, Peruvian footballer
• 1983 – Andrea Marcato, Italian rugby player
• 1984 – Pablo Sebastián Álvarez, Argentinian footballer
• 1984 – Jed Lowrie, American baseball player
• 1984 – Raffaele Palladino, Italian footballer
• 1985 – Rooney Mara, American actress
• 1985 – Luke Mitchell, Australian actor and model
• 1985 – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, French tennis player
• 1986 – Romain Grosjean, French race car driver
• 1988 – Takahiro Moriuchi, Japanese singer-songwriter
• 1989 – Paraskevi Papachristou, Greek triple jumper
• 1989 – Avi Kaplan, singer and songwriter
• 1990 – Jonathan Brown, Welsh footballer
• 1992 – Lachlan Maranta, Australian rugby league footballer
• 1994 – Alanna Goldie, Canadian fencer^[14]
• 1996 – Lorna Fitzgerald, British actress
• 1996 – Caitlin Parker, Australian boxer^[15]
• 1998 – Suppapong Udomkaewkanjana, Thai actor and singer^[16]