History of Today 16 September: Important Events, Births and Deaths

Welcome to History of Today 16 September. On this page, you can read important historical events, famous births, notable deaths and general knowledge facts related to 16 September. This information is useful for UPSC, SSC, Banking, Railway, State PSC and other competitive exams.

Last updated on 16 September 2026, 01:00 AM

Important Events on 16 September in History

16 Sep 2022: During the Let Yet Kone massacre, the Burmese military kills 13 villagers, including eight children, after attacking a school in Sagaing Region, Myanmar. Read more
16 Sep 2022: The death of Mahsa Amini occurred in Tehran, Iran, sparking worldwide protests. Read more
16 Sep 2021: A 6.0 Mw earthquake strikes Lu County, Sichuan, China, killing three and injuring more than 88. Read more
16 Sep 2021: Inspiration4, the first private orbital crewed spaceflight, is launched from the Kennedy Space Center. Read more
16 Sep 2015: A 8.3 Mw earthquake strikes the Chilean city of Illapel, killing 15 people, injuring at least 34, leaving at least six missing, and causing extensive damage. One person also dies in Argentina. Read more
16 Sep 2014: The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant launches its Kobani offensive against Syrian–Kurdish forces. Read more
16 Sep 2013: A gunman kills twelve people at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. Read more
16 Sep 2007: One-Two-Go Airlines Flight 269 carrying 130 crew and passengers crashes in Thailand, killing 90 people. Read more
16 Sep 2007: Security guards working for Blackwater Worldwide shoot and kill 17 Iraqis in Nisour Square, Baghdad. Read more
16 Sep 2005: The Camorra organized crime boss Paolo Di Lauro is arrested in Naples, Italy. Read more
16 Sep 2004: Hurricane Ivan makes landfall in Gulf Shores, Alabama as a Category 3 hurricane. Read more
16 Sep 1996: Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched on STS-79 to dock with the Russian space station Mir. Read more
16 Sep 1994: The British government lifts the broadcasting ban imposed against members of Sinn Féin and Irish paramilitary groups in 1988. Read more
16 Sep 1992: The trial of the deposed Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega ends in the United States with a 40-year sentence for drug trafficking and money laundering. Read more
16 Sep 1992: Black Wednesday: The British pound is forced out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism by currency speculators and is forced to devalue against the German mark. Read more
16 Sep 1990: The railroad between the People's Republic of China and Kazakhstan is completed at Dostyk, adding a sizable link to the concept of the Eurasian Land Bridge. Read more
16 Sep 1987: The Montreal Protocol is signed to protect the ozone layer from depletion. Read more
16 Sep 1982: Lebanon War: The Sabra and Shatila massacre in Lebanon takes place. Read more
16 Sep 1979: Eight people escape from East Germany to the west in a homemade hot air balloon. Read more
16 Sep 1979: The Sugarhill Gang released their first single, Rapper's Delight. Read more
16 Sep 1978: The 7.4 Mw Tabas earthquake affects the city of Tabas, Iran with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). At least 15,000 people are killed. Read more
16 Sep 1976: Armenian champion swimmer Shavarsh Karapetyan saves 20 people from a trolleybus that had fallen into a Yerevan reservoir. Read more
16 Sep 1976: Night of the Pencils: In the city of La Plata, Argentina, a group of high-school students were kidnapped and later tortured, raped and murdered during the Argentinian military dictatorship Read more
16 Sep 1975: Papua New Guinea gains independence from Australia. Read more
16 Sep 1975: Cape Verde, Mozambique, and São Tomé and Príncipe join the United Nations. Read more
16 Sep 1975: The first prototype of the Mikoyan MiG-31 interceptor makes its maiden flight. Read more
16 Sep 1970: King Hussein of Jordan declares war against the Palestine Liberation Organization, the conflict came to be known as Black September. Read more
16 Sep 1966: The Metropolitan Opera House opens at Lincoln Center in New York City with the world premiere of Samuel Barber's opera Antony and Cleopatra. Read more
16 Sep 1963: Malaysia is formed from the Federation of Malaya, Singapore, North Borneo (Sabah) and Sarawak. However, Singapore is soon expelled from this new country. Read more
16 Sep 1961: The United States National Hurricane Research Project drops eight cylinders of silver iodide into the eyewall of Hurricane Esther. Wind speed reduces by 10%, giving rise to Project Stormfury. Read more
16 Sep 1961: Typhoon Nancy, with possibly the strongest winds ever measured in a tropical cyclone, makes landfall in Osaka, Japan, killing 173 people. Read more
16 Sep 1961: Pakistan establishes its Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission with Abdus Salam as its head. Read more
16 Sep 1959: The first successful photocopier, the Xerox 914, is introduced in a demonstration on live television from New York City. Read more
16 Sep 1956: TCN-9 Sydney is the first Australian television station to commence regular broadcasts. Read more
16 Sep 1955: The military coup to unseat President Juan Perón of Argentina is launched at midnight. Read more
16 Sep 1955: A Soviet Zulu-class submarine becomes the first to launch a ballistic missile. Read more
16 Sep 1953: American Airlines Flight 723 crashes in Colonie, New York, killing 28 people. Read more
16 Sep 1945: World War II: The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong comes to an end. Read more
16 Sep 1943: World War II: The German Tenth Army reports that it can no longer contain the Allied bridgehead around Salerno. Read more
16 Sep 1940: World War II: Italian troops conquer Sidi Barrani. Read more
16 Sep 1920: The Wall Street bombing: A bomb in a horse wagon explodes in front of the J. P. Morgan building in New York City killing 38 and injuring 400. Read more
16 Sep 1914: World War I: The Siege of Przemyśl (present-day Poland) begins. Read more
16 Sep 1908: The General Motors Corporation is founded. Read more
16 Sep 1893: Settlers make a land run for prime land in the Cherokee Strip in Oklahoma. Read more
16 Sep 1880: The Cornell Daily Sun prints its first issue in Ithaca, New York. Read more
16 Sep 1863: Robert College, in Istanbul, the first American educational institution outside the United States, is founded by Christopher Robert, an American philanthropist. Read more
16 Sep 1822: French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel, in a "note" read to the Academy of Sciences, reports a direct refraction experiment verifying David Brewster's hypothesis that photoelasticity (as it is now known) is stress-induced birefringence. Read more
16 Sep 1810: With the Grito de Dolores, Father Miguel Hidalgo begins Mexico's fight for independence from Spain. Read more

Famous Births on 16 September

16 Sep 2003: Toby Couchman, Australian rugby league player Toby Couchman is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a prop for the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the National Rugby League (NRL). Read more
16 Sep 2001: Avishag Semberg, Israeli Olympic taekwondo bronze medalist Avishag Semberg is an Israeli Olympic taekwondo athlete. She is an Olympic bronze medalist for Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in the women's 49 kg competition. She won Israel's all-time tenth Olympic medal, and is the youngest Israeli to receive an Olympic medal, at the age of 19. Semberg represented Israel at the 2024 Paris Olympics in the women's taekwondo -49 kg category. Saudi athlete Dunya Abutaleb defeated Semberg in the first round. Read more
16 Sep 2000: Sam Howell, American football player Samuel Duke Howell is an American professional football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the North Carolina Tar Heels, setting school records for most touchdown passes in a single season (38) as well as career passing yards (10,283) and touchdown passes (92). Read more
16 Sep 2000: Oliver Skipp, English footballer Oliver William Skipp is an English professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for EFL Championship club Charlton Athletic on loan from EFL League One club Leicester City. Read more
16 Sep 1999: Brady Tkachuk, American ice hockey player Braeden Tkachuk is an American professional ice hockey player who is a left winger for the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Tkachuk was chosen by the Ottawa Senators as the fourth overall pick in the 2018 NHL entry draft, and played his first eight seasons with the Senators, serving as captain from 2021 to 2026. Prior to turning professional, Tkachuk played one season for the Boston University Terriers, earning All-Hockey East Rookie Team honors. He is the brother of Panthers teammate Matthew Tkachuk and the son of Keith Tkachuk, who played in the NHL for 18 years. Read more
16 Sep 1997: Clint Ratkovich, American football player Clint Ratkovich is an American professional football fullback. He played college football at Western Illinois and Northern Illinois. He has been a member of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) and the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Read more
16 Sep 1997: Anairis Quiñones, American voice actress Anairis Quiñones is an American voice actress. After watching several anime dubs as a child, Quiñones was inspired to pursue a career in voice acting, which she began in 2009. Some of her noteworthy roles include Mirko in My Hero Academia, Miyuki Shiba in The Irregular at Magic High School, Echidna in Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World, Rika Kawai in Wonder Egg Priority, Rei Togetsu in D4DJ First Mix, Nessa in Pokémon: Twilight Wings, and Kimberly in Street Fighter 6. Read more
16 Sep 1997: Jackie Young, American basketball player Jacquelyn Young is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for the Laces of Unrivaled. She is the daughter of Linda Young and David Wayne Edwards Sr. She was drafted first overall by the Las Vegas Aces in the 2019 WNBA draft. A graduate of Princeton Community High School, she played college basketball for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, reaching two NCAA finals and winning one in 2018. She won a gold medal in Women's 3×3 basketball at the 2020 Summer Olympics. In 2024, she won the gold medal in 5×5 basketball at the 2024 Summer Olympics. She has won three WNBA championships as a member of the Las Vegas Aces, and is a four-time WNBA All-Star. Read more
16 Sep 1995: Aaron Gordon, American basketball player Aaron Addison Gordon is an American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born in San Jose, California, Gordon attended Archbishop Mitty High School where he led his team to two state championships and was named California Mr. Basketball in his junior and senior years. Gordon then played one year of college basketball with the Arizona Wildcats, during which they won the Pac-12 regular season title and reached the Elite Eight of the 2014 NCAA tournament. Read more
16 Sep 1994: Anthony Mantha, Canadian ice hockey player Anthony Mantha is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a winger for the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League (NHL). Mantha was drafted 20th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2013 NHL entry draft. Read more
16 Sep 1994: Aleksandar Mitrović, Serbian footballer Aleksandar Mitrović is a Serbian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Qatar Stars League club Al Rayyan and captains the Serbia national team. Read more
16 Sep 1994: Mitchell Moses, Australian rugby league player Mitchell Moses is a professional rugby league footballer who captains and plays as a halfback for the Parramatta Eels in the National Rugby League, New South Wales in the State of Origin series and has played for Australia and captained Lebanon at international level. Read more
16 Sep 1993: Metro Boomin, American record producer and songwriter Leland Tyler Wayne, known professionally as Metro Boomin, is an American record producer. Widely acclaimed for his dark and cinematic production style, he is regarded as one of the most influential producers in contemporary hip-hop and trap music. He has most notably worked with a string of artists including Future, 21 Savage, Migos, Gucci Mane, Kanye West, the Weeknd, Young Thug, Drake, and Travis Scott. Read more
16 Sep 1993: Sam Byram, English footballer Samuel Mark Byram is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL Championship club Middlesbrough. Read more
16 Sep 1993: Bryson DeChambeau, American golfer Bryson James Aldrich DeChambeau is an American professional golfer who plays on the LIV Golf League. He formerly played on the PGA Tour, and has won two major championships, the 2020 and 2024 U.S. Open. Read more
16 Sep 1993: Joji, Japanese-Australian singer-songwriter George Kusunoki Miller , known professionally as Joji, is a Japanese-Australian singer, songwriter, rapper, comedian, and internet personality. His music has been described as a mix between R&B, lo-fi, and trip-hop. Miller also created The Filthy Frank Show on YouTube in 2011, a comedy web-series while he was still living in Japan, playing the oddball characters Filthy Frank and Pink Guy. Read more
16 Sep 1992: Vytenis Čižauskas, Lithuanian basketball player Vytenis Čižauskas is a Lithuanian professional basketball player. He plays the point guard position. Read more
16 Sep 1992: Nick Jonas, American singer-songwriter and guitarist Nicholas Jerry Jonas is an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He rose to fame as a member of the pop rock band Jonas Brothers, alongside his brothers Joe and Kevin. The group released multiple albums together, and became prominent figures on Disney Channel starring in the successful musical television film Camp Rock (2008) and its sequel Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (2010), before appearing in their own series, Jonas Brothers: Living the Dream (2008–2010) and Jonas (2009–2010). Read more
16 Sep 1992: Jake Roche, English singer-songwriter and actor Jake Peter Roche is an English singer and actor. He is known as the lead vocalist of the band Rixton, charting at number 1 on the UK singles chart with "Me and My Broken Heart". In 2010, he appeared in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale, playing Isaac Nuttall. Read more
16 Sep 1992: Chase Stokes, American actor James Alexander Chase Stokes is an American actor and director known for his role as John B. in the Netflix series Outer Banks (2020–2026). Read more
16 Sep 1991: Alexandra Paul, Canadian figure skater (died 2023) Alexandra Jane Paul was a Canadian competitive ice dancer. With her skating partner and eventual husband, Mitchell Islam, she won the silver medal at the 2010 World Junior Championships. In their senior career, Paul and Islam were the 2013 Nebelhorn Trophy bronze medalists, three-time Canadian national bronze medalists, and represented their country at the 2014 Winter Olympics. Read more
16 Sep 1989: Robbie Grossman, American baseball player Robert Edward Grossman is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Detroit Tigers, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers, Chicago White Sox, and Kansas City Royals. After attending high school in Texas, Grossman was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the sixth round in 2008. He made his MLB debut with the Astros in 2013. He won the 2023 World Series with the Rangers. Read more
16 Sep 1989: Braden Holtby, Canadian ice hockey player Braden Holtby is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He previously played for the Washington Capitals, Vancouver Canucks and Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected in the fourth round, 93rd overall, of the 2008 NHL entry draft by the Capitals, with whom he spent the first ten seasons of his career. Read more
16 Sep 1989: Salomón Rondón, Venezuelan footballer José Salomón Rondón Giménez is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Liga MX club Pachuca and captains the Venezuela national team. Read more
16 Sep 1989: Dustin Tokarski, Canadian ice hockey player Dustin Michael Tokarski is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender for Olimpija Ljubljana of the ICE Hockey League (ICEHL). He was born in Humboldt, Saskatchewan, but grew up in neighbouring Watson, which he considers his hometown. Read more
16 Sep 1988: Teddy Geiger, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress Teddy Geiger is an American singer-songwriter and record producer who first gained teen idol status with the song "For You I Will (Confidence)" in 2006. Geiger acted in the television series Love Monkey (2006) and the film The Rocker (2008). Read more
16 Sep 1987: Merve Boluğur, Turkish actress Merve Boluğur is a Turkish actress and model. She is well known for her roles in the fantasy series Acemi Cadı, Küçük Sırlar, Kuzey Güney and the historical series Muhteşem Yüzyıl. Read more
16 Sep 1987: Kyle Lafferty, Northern Irish footballer Kyle Joseph George Lafferty is a Northern Irish professional footballer who plays as a striker for Lowland League West side Johnstone Burgh. Read more
16 Sep 1987: Louis Ngwat-Mahop, Cameroonian footballer Louis Clément Ngwat-Mahop is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays for the junior team of Austrian side SCR Altach, combining his playing duties with being responsible for the integration of foreign and young players into the first team of the club. He plays as a forward or a right winger. Read more
16 Sep 1987: Anthony Padilla, American internet personality and filmmaker Daniel Anthony Padilla is an American YouTuber. With Ian Hecox, he co-founded the YouTube-based video production company Smosh. Padilla and Hecox wrote, directed, and starred in sketch comedy videos from 2005 to 2017; after a six-year departure, Padilla returned to the company in 2023. Read more
16 Sep 1987: Burry Stander, South African cyclist (died 2013) Burry Willie Stander was a South African mountain biker, the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup under-23 men's cross-country 2009 world champion. Read more
16 Sep 1987: Travis Wall, American dancer and choreographer Travis Michael Wall is an American dancer, instructor, and choreographer specializing in contemporary and jazz dance styles. He rose to international attention in 2006 as a competitor on the second season of the Fox television show So You Think You Can Dance. Wall received ten Primetime Emmy Award nominations for choreography between 2011 and 2020, winning in 2015 and 2017 for his work on So You Think You Can Dance. In 2012, he starred in the Oxygen reality show All the Right Moves, where he, Teddy Forance, Nick Lazzarini and Kyle Robinson launched their own dance company called Shaping Sound. Read more
16 Sep 1986: Gordon Beckham, American baseball player James Gordon Beckham III is an American former professional baseball infielder who serves as a fill-in sportscaster for the Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for the White Sox, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Braves, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, and Detroit Tigers. Read more
16 Sep 1986: Ian Harding, American actor Ian Michael Harding is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Ezra Fitz in the Freeform mystery drama series Pretty Little Liars (2010–2017). Read more
16 Sep 1986: Kyla Pratt, American actress and singer Kyla Alissa Pratt is an American actress. She is best known for providing the voice of Penny Proud in the first Disney Channel animated series, The Proud Family, its 2005 film adaptation and its revival The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, and for portraying Breanna Latrice Barnes in UPN's One on One. She is also known for playing Maya Dolittle in the Dr. Dolittle franchise reboot from 1998 to 2009. From 2012 to 2014, she appeared in the series Let's Stay Together. She was formerly a part of VH1's Black Ink Crew: Compton and the cast of Call Me Kat on Fox. Read more
16 Sep 1985: Matt Harrison, American baseball player Matthew Reid Harrison is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers from 2008 through 2015. He was an MLB All-Star in 2012. Read more
16 Sep 1985: Max Minghella, English actor Max Giorgio Choa Minghella is a British actor and director. He is known for his roles in the films Syriana (2005), The Social Network (2010), The Ides of March (2011), Spiral (2021) and Babylon (2022) as well as his role as Nick Blaine in the television series The Handmaid's Tale (2017–2025), which earned him a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. Read more
16 Sep 1985: Madeline Zima, American actress Madeline Zima is an American actress. She portrayed Grace Sheffield on the CBS sitcom The Nanny (1993–1999), Mia Lewis on the Showtime comedy drama series Californication (2007–2011), and Gretchen Berg on the NBC series Heroes (2006–2010). Read more
16 Sep 1984: Sabrina Bryan, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress Reba Sabrina Hinojosa, known professionally as Sabrina Bryan, is an American singer and actress. She is best known as a member of the girl group the Cheetah Girls, starring in the Disney Channel Original Movie The Cheetah Girls and its sequels, The Cheetah Girls 2 and The Cheetah Girls: One World. Before she appeared on television, Bryan was a dancer, and trained at Hart Academy of Dance, located in La Habra, California. Read more
16 Sep 1984: Katie Melua, Georgian-English singer-songwriter and guitarist Ketevan "Katie" Melua is a British singer. She was born in Kutaisi, Georgia and raised in Belfast and London. Under the management of composer Mike Batt, she was signed to the small Dramatico record label. She made her musical debut in 2003 and within three years, she was the United Kingdom's best-selling female artist as well as Europe's highest-selling female artist. Read more
16 Sep 1983: John Afoa, New Zealand rugby player Ioane Fitu "John" Afoa is a former professional rugby union player from New Zealand. He played prop for Auckland, the Blues, Ulster, Gloucester, Bristol Bears, Vannes, the Crusaders and Bay of Plenty, and won 38 caps for the All-Blacks. Read more
16 Sep 1983: Katerine Avgoustakis, Belgian singer and pianist Katerine Avgoustakis is a Greek-Belgian singer. She was the winner of the 2005 Star Academy show. Read more
16 Sep 1983: Jennifer Blake, Canadian wrestler Jennifer Ykema is a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by her ring name Jennifer Blake, and is often referred to by her nickname "Girl Dynamite". She is best known for her work in Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide in Mexico and Shimmer Women Athletes in the United States. Read more
16 Sep 1983: Kirsty Coventry, Zimbabwean swimmer and 10th President of the International Olympic Committee Kirsty Leigh Coventry Seward is a Zimbabwean politician, sports administrator, and former competitive swimmer who is the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). She has served as the president of the IOC since 23 June 2025, and is the first woman, first Zimbabwean, and the first African to hold the office, while also only the second non-European president of the IOC, following Avery Brundage who left office in 1972. Read more
16 Sep 1983: Brandon Moss, American baseball player Brandon Douglas Moss is an American former professional baseball outfielder and first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia Phillies, Oakland Athletics, Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Cardinals, and Kansas City Royals. Read more
16 Sep 1982: Leon Knight, English footballer Leon Leroy Knight is an English former footballer who plays as a striker. A journeyman player, he has played for fifteen different clubs spanning five countries; England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Greece. Read more
16 Sep 1982: Michele Rizzo, Italian rugby player Michele Rizzo is a retired Italian former rugby union player. His preferred position was prop but he can also play as a hooker. Rizzo last played for Petrarca, the club where he spent most of his career and where he made his debut in Serie A1 halfway through the 2000–01 season in a match against Viadana. He spent four years between 2014–2018 in England playing 38 times for Leicester Tigers. Read more
16 Sep 1981: Fan Bingbing, Chinese actress, singer, and producer Fan Bingbing is a Chinese actress. After gaining recognition for the costume drama My Fair Princess (1998–1999), Fan's breakthrough came with Feng Xiaogang's film Cell Phone (2003), which won her the Hundred Flowers Award for Best Actress. She followed with television series such as The Proud Twins (2004), Eight Heroes (2006), and The Empress of China (2014) while collaborating with Li Yu on art-house films such as Lost in Beijing (2007), Buddha Mountain (2011), Double Xposure (2012), and Ever Since We Love (2015). She reunited with Feng in I Am Not Madame Bovary (2016), which won her the Silver Shell for Best Actress and the Golden Rooster Award for Best Actress. Fan's international credits include My Way (2011), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), The 355 (2022), Ice Road: Vengeance (2025), and Mother Bhumi (2025), for which she won the Golden Horse Award for Best Leading Actress. Read more
16 Sep 1981: Alexis Bledel, American actress Kimberly Alexis Bledel is an American actress and model. She is best known for her roles as Rory Gilmore on the television series Gilmore Girls and Emily Malek in The Handmaid's Tale. Bledel had a recurring role in Mad Men and reprised her role as Rory Gilmore in the 2016 Netflix revival Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. Read more
16 Sep 1981: LaVerne Jones-Ferrette, Virgin Islander sprinter LaVerne Janet Jones-Ferrette is a sprinter from the United States Virgin Islands who specializes in the 100 and 200 meters. She represented her country at the Summer Olympics in 2004, 2008 and 2012. She won the silver medal over 60 meters at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships in a time of 6.97 seconds; a subsequent drug test revealed a banned substance in her system and she was stripped of her medal. Read more
16 Sep 1980: Kenny van Weeghel, Dutch wheelchair racer Kenny van Weeghel is a Paralympic athlete from the Netherlands competing in the 100, 200 and 400 m T54 class wheelchair racing. He participated in the Paralympic games six times already and he has won 6 Paralympic medals among which two golden ones. Read more
16 Sep 1979: Bobby Korecky, American baseball player Robert John Korecky is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Toronto Blue Jays. Read more
16 Sep 1979: Flo Rida, American rapper, singer, and songwriter Tramar Lacel Dillard, known professionally as Flo Rida, is an American rapper and singer. His 2007 debut and breakout single "Low" was number 1 for ten weeks in the United States and broke the record for digital download sales at the time of its release. Read more
16 Sep 1978: Dan Dickau, American basketball player and coach Daniel David Dickau is an American former professional basketball player who currently works as an on-air broadcaster for ESPN, the Pac-12 Network, CBS Sports Network, Fox Sports and Westwood One. He is also a co-host of the Dickau and Slim Show on Spokane's 700 ESPN with Sean "Slim" Widmer. Read more
16 Sep 1978: Claudia Marx, German runner Claudia Marx is a German athlete. She runs in the 400 metres and the 400 metres hurdles. She also competes in the German team in the 4 × 400 metres relay. She won the 400 metres at the German Athletics Championships in 2003 and 2004 and in the National Indoor Championships in 2005. She is 1.72 metres tall and weighs 59 kg. She currently studies sport sciences at the Humboldt University of Berlin. she came 4th in 400 m hurdles. Read more
16 Sep 1978: Sensei, Mexican wrestler Sensei is a Mexican professional wrestler, best known for working for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). He previously worked for International Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG) as Fantasy where he won several titles. Sensei's real name is not a matter of public record, as is often the case with masked wrestlers in Mexico where their private lives are kept a secret from the professional wrestling fans. Read more
16 Sep 1978: Brian Sims, American lawyer, politician, and LGBT activist Brian Kendall Sims is an American politician, activist and attorney. A Democrat, he was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 182nd district from 2013 until 2022. Sims is also a lawyer and advocate for LGBT civil rights. Sims became the first openly gay elected state legislator in Pennsylvania history. He won re-election on November 6, 2018. He was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania in 2022, finishing in second place behind Austin Davis with 25% of the vote. Since leaving public office in 2022, Sims served as the managing director of Government Affairs and Public Policy at Out Leadership, on the Board of Trustees of the Tyler Clementi Foundation, and as CEO of Agenda PAC. Read more
16 Sep 1977: Gregory Ball, American captain and politician Gregory R. Ball is a former American politician from 2006 to 2014, former active duty U.S. Air Force officer, and member of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. Read more
16 Sep 1977: Musiq Soulchild, American singer-songwriter Taalib Hassan Johnson, better known by his stage name Musiq Soulchild is an American singer-songwriter. His music blends R&B, funk, blues, jazz, and gospel influences fused with hip hop. Read more
16 Sep 1976: Elīna Garanča, Latvian soprano Elīna Garanča is a Latvian mezzo-soprano. She began to study singing in her hometown of Riga in 1996 and continued her studies in Vienna and in the United States. By 1999 she had won first place in the Mirjam Helin Singing Competition in Helsinki and had begun a career in Europe. Worldwide engagements followed her 2003 Salzburg Festival appearances. Read more
16 Sep 1976: Tina Barrett, English singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress Tina Ann Barrett is an English singer and actress. Her major breakthrough came in 1999 when she became a member of the pop group S Club. She has been a member of spin-off group S Club Allstars since 2014. She is also a former member of the girl group Mis-Teeq, but never appeared on any of their recordings. Read more
16 Sep 1976: Greg Buckner, American basketball player and coach Gregory Derayle Buckner is an American former professional basketball player who is an assistant coach for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He had previously served as an assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies and Cleveland Cavaliers. Read more
16 Sep 1975: Jason Leffler, American race car driver (died 2013) Jason Charles Leffler, nicknamed "LEFturn", was an American professional open-wheel and stock car racing driver. Leffler began racing in the open-wheel ranks, competing in the 2000 Indianapolis 500 before moving to primarily NASCAR competition. He died from injuries sustained in a 410 sprint car race at Bridgeport Speedway in Bridgeport, New Jersey. Read more
16 Sep 1975: Shannon Noll, Australian singer-songwriter Shannon Neil Noll is an Australian singer-songwriter who first came to prominence as runner-up of the first season of Australian Idol in 2003, which led to him being signed to Sony BMG. He has released five top-ten albums, including two number-one multi-platinum sellers. Noll's first ten singles all peaked inside the ARIA top ten, including three that reached number one. He is the only Australian male artist in Australian chart history to have ten consecutive top-ten singles. Noll's debut single, "What About Me?", was certified 4× platinum and became the highest-selling single of 2004 in Australia. Read more
16 Sep 1975: Toks Olagundoye, Nigerian actress Olatokunbo Susan Olasobunmi Abeke "Toks" Olagundoye is a Nigerian actress known for playing Jackie Joyner-Kersee on The Neighbors, Hayley Shipton on Castle and Olivia Finch on Frasier. She also voices Nanefua Pizza on Steven Universe, Mrs. Beakley on DuckTales, Countess Cleo on Carmen Sandiego, Zamfir on Castlevania and Mel Medarda on Arcane. Read more
16 Sep 1974: Loona, Dutch singer-songwriter and dancer Loona is a Dutch pop singer and dancer. Read more
16 Sep 1974: Monique Brumby, Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer Monique Brumby is an Australian indie pop/rock singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. Her debut single, "Fool for You", peaked into the top 40 in the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) ARIA Singles Charts, and provided an ARIA Award for Best New Talent at the ARIA Music Awards of 1996. Her single, "Mary", won an ARIA Music Awards of 1997 for ARIA Award for Best Female Artist. Read more
16 Sep 1974: Joaquin Castro, American lawyer and politician Joaquin Castro is an American lawyer and Democratic politician who has represented Texas's 20th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2013. The district includes just over half of his native San Antonio. He currently serves on the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Read more
16 Sep 1974: Julian Castro, American lawyer and politician, 16th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julián Castro is an American lawyer and politician from San Antonio, Texas. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the youngest member of President Obama's cabinet, serving as the 16th United States secretary of housing and urban development from 2014 to 2017. Castro served as the mayor of his native San Antonio, Texas from 2009 until he joined Barack Obama's cabinet in 2014. Read more
16 Sep 1973: George Corrie, English footballer George Corrie is an English footballer, born in Workington, who played for ten years as a midfielder for American USL Second Division side Wilmington Hammerheads, of which he was the captain. He joined the Hammerheads in 1999 after six seasons with Conference North team Workington A.F.C. Read more
16 Sep 1973: Camiel Eurlings, Dutch businessman and member of the International Olympic Committee Camiel Martinus Petrus Stephanus Eurlings is a Dutch politician and businessman. A member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), he served as Minister of Transport, Public Works and Water Management from 2007 to 2010. Read more
16 Sep 1973: Justin Haythe, American author and screenwriter Justin Haythe is an American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. He is best known for his book The Honeymoon, and the screenplay for Revolutionary Road, directed by Sam Mendes. Read more
16 Sep 1973: Alexander Vinokourov, Kazakh cyclist and manager Alexander Nikolayevich Vinokourov is a Kazakhstani former professional road bicycle racer and the current general manager of UCI WorldTeam XDS Astana Team. As a competitor, his achievements include two bronze medals at the World Championships, four stage wins in the Tour de France, four in the Vuelta a España plus the overall title in 2006, two Liège–Bastogne–Liège monuments, one Amstel Gold Race, and the gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics Men's Road Race. Vinokourov is a past national champion of Kazakhstan, and a dual-medalist at the Summer Olympics. In 2007, he received a two-year ban from cycling for blood doping. In 2019, he was accused of race fixing by prosecutors in Liège but was later cleared of the charges. Read more
16 Sep 1972: Mark Bruener, American football player Mark Frederick Bruener is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Washington Huskies, earning All-American honors in 1993. He was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 1995 NFL draft with the 27th overall pick. Read more
16 Sep 1972: Mike Doyle, American actor and producer Michael Doyle is an American actor. He is mainly known for his role on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Ryan O'Halloran, Adam Guenzel on Oz, and from 2018 to 2023 on New Amsterdam as Martin McIntyre. Read more
16 Sep 1972: Alessandro Nunziati, Italian singer-songwriter and producer Alessandro Nunziati, better known by his stage name Lord Vampyr, is an Italian musician, record producer and writer, famous for being the former vocalist of the gothic metal band Theatres des Vampires, as well as one of its founding members. He has many musical projects under his belt, in addition to Lord Vampyr, a gothic metal band, Malamorte, with a black metal sound, The Tomb, a completely death metal band, Perversa with a Satanic Black Metal sound, and Alex Nunziati project, a Horror heavy metal band. Read more
16 Sep 1971: Joel Heyman, American actor, producer, and screenwriter Joel Pearce Heyman is an American actor, best known for voicing Michael J. Caboose in the Rooster Teeth web series Red vs. Blue from 2003 until 2020. He co-founded Rooster Teeth with Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Geoff Ramsey and Gus Sorola and has appeared in their other projects, including The Strangerhood, The Gauntlet (2012) and RWBY (2013–2020). Read more
16 Sep 1971: Charlie Jacobs, American businessman Charles Marvin Jacobs is the co-Chief Executive Officer of Delaware North, a role he shares with his brothers, Jerry and Lou. Jacobs oversees Delaware North's interests in Boston, and is Chief Executive Officer and Alternate Governor for the Boston Bruins. He is the Founder and Chairman of the Boston Bruins Foundation, having raised more than $62 million for charitable organizations throughout New England since 2003. Read more
16 Sep 1971: Amy Poehler, American actress, comedian, and producer Amy Meredith Poehler is an American actress, comedian, and podcaster. Known for her roles in sketch comedy, sitcoms and comedy films, she has earned acclaim and several accolades including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Golden Globe Awards as well as nominations for a Peabody Award and a Grammy Award. Poehler was included on Time's list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2011 and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to comedy in 2015. Read more
16 Sep 1971: Richard Slinger, American wrestler Richard Aslinger is a retired American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Richard Slinger. Slinger was a long-time mainstay of All Japan Pro Wrestling and later Pro Wrestling Noah, where he was one of two gaijin heels to compete in the promotion. He is also one of several Noah wrestlers to be featured in the Japanese video game King of Colosseum II. Read more
16 Sep 1971: Shawntel Smith, American beauty pageant contestant Shawntel Smith Wuerch is an American beauty pageant contestant, who was Miss America in 1996. She was born in Muldrow, Oklahoma. She attended Oklahoma City University. Read more
16 Sep 1970: Mark Schultz, American singer-songwriter Mark Mitchell Schultz is an American contemporary Christian music artist. He has been nominated for numerous Dove Awards, winning his first at the 2006 Dove Awards when the CD/DVD Mark Schultz Live: A Night of Stories & Songs was named Long Form Music Video of the Year. Read more
16 Sep 1969: Justine Frischmann, English singer-songwriter and guitarist Justine Elinor Frischmann is an English artist and retired musician. After forming Suede, she co-founded the Britpop band Elastica before retiring from the music industry and pursuing a career as an artist. Read more
16 Sep 1969: Janno Gibbs, Filipino singer-songwriter and actor Janno Ronaldo Ilagan Gibbs is a Filipino singer, songwriter, comedian and actor. He was a regular host of GMA Network television shows SOP Rules, Nuts Entertainment, Eat Bulaga!, Kakasa Ka Ba Sa Grade 5?, Power of 10, Party Pilipinas and Sunday All Stars. Read more
16 Sep 1968: Marc Anthony, American singer-songwriter, actor, and producer Marco Antonio Muñiz, known by the stage name Marc Anthony, is an American singer and actor. He is the top selling salsa artist of all time. A four-time Grammy Award, eight-time Latin Grammy Award and twenty-nine-time Lo Nuestro Awards winner. As of 2014, he had sold more than 12 million albums worldwide. Read more
16 Sep 1968: Walt Becker, American director, producer, and screenwriter Walter William Becker is an American filmmaker and novelist, whose directorial credits include the films Van Wilder (2002), Wild Hogs (2007), and Old Dogs (2009). Read more
16 Sep 1968: Tommy Keane, Irish footballer (died 2012) Tommy Keane was an Irish professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Read more
16 Sep 1967: Hiroya Oku, Japanese author and illustrator Hiroya Oku is a Japanese manga artist, known for his works Hen, Gantz, Inuyashiki, and Gigant, the first two of which have been serialized in Weekly Young Jump. Originally influenced by Katsuhiro Otomo and Ryoichi Ikegami, his manga often contain explicit violence, sexual depictions, and matters that are considered taboo by the public, and he is known as a pioneer in the use of digital processing for manga backgrounds. Read more
16 Sep 1967: Damon Thayer, Kentucky State Senate Majority Leader Damon Daniel Thayer is an American politician who served as a member of the Kentucky Senate from 2003 to 2025, and as Senate majority leader from 2013 to 2025. A member of the Republican Party, Thayer represented Kentucky's 17th Senate district, which included Grant and Scott counties as well as parts of Fayette and Kenton counties. Read more
16 Sep 1966: John Bel Edwards, American attorney and politician John Bel Edwards is an American politician and attorney who served as the 56th governor of Louisiana from 2016 to 2024. A Southern Democrat, he previously served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 2008 to 2015. Edwards represented parts of the Florida Parishes and served as minority leader from 2012 to 2015. Read more
16 Sep 1966: Wil McCarthy, American author and playwright Wil McCarthy is an American science fiction novelist, president and co-founder of RavenBrick, and the science columnist for Syfy. He currently resides in Colorado. Rich Man's Sky won the 2022 Prometheus Award. Beggar's Sky is a finalist for the 2025 Prometheus Award. Read more
16 Sep 1966: Kevin Young, American hurdler Kevin C. Young is an American former athlete. He was the winner of the 400 metres hurdles at the 1992 Summer Olympics. In the final of this event he set a world record and Olympic record of 46.78 seconds, the first time the 47-second barrier was broken, and a world record that stood for nearly 29 years until it was broken by Karsten Warholm on July 1, 2021. Read more
16 Sep 1965: Katy Kurtzman, American actress and producer Katy Kurtzman is an American actress and modelist. Read more
16 Sep 1965: Karl-Heinz Riedle, German footballer and manager Karl-Heinz Riedle is a German former professional footballer who played as a striker. Read more
16 Sep 1965: Stephen Shareaux, American singer-songwriter Stephen Shareaux is an American singer best known as lead vocalist for the hard rock band Kik Tracee. He is also a solo artist as well as lead vocalist and co-founder of alternative rock band Zen from Mars which includes members of Bang Tango, Enuff Z'Nuff, Flipp, and Fear Factory. Read more
16 Sep 1964: Mary Coustas, Australian actress and screenwriter Mary Coustas is an Australian actress, comedian and television personality and writer. Originally from Melbourne, Coustas often performs as the character "Effie", a stereotypical second-generation Greek Australian prone to malapropisms. She completed a Bachelor of Arts at Deakin University in Melbourne, majoring in performing arts and sub-majoring in journalism. Read more
16 Sep 1964: Rossy de Palma, Spanish-French model and actress Rosa Elena García Echave, known professionally as Rossy de Palma, is a Spanish actress and model. She is well known for her roles in films by Pedro Almodóvar such as Law of Desire, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Kika, The Flower of My Secret, Julieta, and Parallel Mothers. Read more
16 Sep 1964: Dave Sabo, American guitarist and songwriter David Michael Sabo, nicknamed Snake, is an American musician best known as one of the guitarists of heavy metal band Skid Row. Read more
16 Sep 1964: Molly Shannon, American actress, comedian and producer Molly Shannon is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 1995 to 2001. In 2017, she won the Film Independent Spirit Award for playing Joanne Mulcahey in the Chris Kelly autobiographical film Other People. Read more
16 Sep 1963: Richard Marx, American singer-songwriter and producer Richard Noel Marx is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold over 30 million albums worldwide. Read more
16 Sep 1962: Seth, Canadian author and illustrator Gregory Gallant, better known by his pen name Seth, is a Canadian cartoonist. He is best known for his series Palookaville and his mock-autobiographical graphic novel It's a Good Life, If You Don't Weaken (1996). Read more
16 Sep 1961: Bilinda Butcher, English singer-songwriter and guitarist Bilinda Jayne Butcher is an English musician who achieved international fame as a guitarist, vocalist and lyricist of the alternative rock band My Bloody Valentine. Their studio albums Isn't Anything (1988) and Loveless (1991) established Butcher as a pioneering figure in the shoegaze genre. Read more
16 Sep 1961: Philip Lafon, Canadian wrestler Philippe Lafon is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation as Phil Lafon and with All Japan Pro Wrestling and Extreme Championship Wrestling under the ring name Dan Kroffat. Read more
16 Sep 1961: Annamária Szalai, Hungarian journalist, economist, and politician (died 2013) Annamária Szalai was a Hungarian journalist, politician, Member of Parliament (MP) for Zala County, Fidesz (1998–2004). She became a member of the National Radio and Television Commission (ORTT) in 2004, and as a result resigned from her parliamentary seat. Szalai served as President of the National Media and Infocommunications Authority (NMHH) from 2010 until her death. Read more
16 Sep 1960: Jayne Brook, American actress Jayne Brook is an American actress, best known for her roles as Dr. Diane Grad on the medical drama Chicago Hope, as a series regular for five of the show's six seasons, and Mary Ann Mitchell on The District from 2000 to 2002. Between 2017 and 2019, Brook had a recurring role as Starfleet Vice Admiral Katrina Cornwell in the series Star Trek: Discovery. Read more
16 Sep 1960: Graham Haynes, American trumpet player and composer Graham Haynes is an American jazz trumpeter, cornetist, and composer. The son of jazz drummer Roy Haynes, Graham is known for his work in nu jazz, fusing jazz with elements of hip-hop and electronic music. Read more
16 Sep 1960: Mike Mignola, American author and illustrator Michael Mignola is an American comic book writer and artist best known for creating Hellboy for Dark Horse Comics, part of a shared universe of titles including B.P.R.D., Abe Sapien, Lobster Johnson, and various spin-offs. He has also created other supernatural and paranormal themed titles for Dark Horse including Baltimore, Joe Golem, and The Amazing Screw-On Head. Read more
16 Sep 1959: Peter Keleghan, Canadian actor and screenwriter Peter Keleghan is a Canadian actor and writer, known for portraying Ben Bellow in the comedy series 18 to Life, Clark Claxton Sr. in the comedy series Billable Hours and Ranger Gord in The Red Green Show. Since 2008, he has a recurring role on Murdoch Mysteries as government agent/spy Terrence Meyers. Read more
16 Sep 1959: Tim Raines, American baseball player, coach, and manager Timothy Raines Sr., nicknamed "Rock", is an American professional baseball coach and former player. He played as a left fielder in Major League Baseball for six teams from 1979 to 2002 and was best known for his 13 seasons with the Montreal Expos. A seven-time All-Star, four-time stolen base champion, and National League batting champion, Raines is regarded as one of the best leadoff hitters and baserunners in baseball history. In 2013, Raines began working in the Toronto Blue Jays organization as a roving outfield and baserunning instructor. In 2017, Raines was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Read more
16 Sep 1959: Dave Richardson, South African cricketer, manager, and lawyer David John Richardson is a South African former cricketer and the former CEO of the International Cricket Council. Read more
16 Sep 1959: Victory Tischler-Blue, American bass player, director, and producer Victory Tischler-Blue is an American film producer, director, writer, musician and photographer. She was born and raised in Newport Beach, California. Tischler-Blue began working in the entertainment industry at age 17, using the name Vicki Blue as the bassist in the American all-girl teenage rock band the Runaways. After the demise of the band, she was cast as Cindy by director Rob Reiner in the 1984 film This Is Spinal Tap. Her film Edgeplay (2004) was based on her tenure in the Runaways. Read more
16 Sep 1958: Orel Hershiser, American baseball player and coach Orel Leonard Hershiser IV is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a broadcast color analyst for the Dodgers. He is also a professional poker player. Read more
16 Sep 1958: Neville Southall, Welsh footballer and manager Neville Southall is a Welsh football manager and former international footballer. He has been described as one of the best goalkeepers of his generation. He won the FWA Footballer of the Year award in 1985 and was nominated for the Ballon d'Or in 1985 and 1987. In addition, he is one of the few players to have made over 1,000 career appearances. Read more
16 Sep 1958: Jennifer Tilly, American actress and poker player Jennifer Tilly is an American-Canadian actress and professional poker player. Known for her distinctive breathy voice and comedic timing, she began her career with small parts in film and television throughout the mid-late 1980s. Tilly achieved a career breakthrough with her portrayal of Olive Neal in Bullets Over Broadway (1994), for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Read more
16 Sep 1957: D. C. Drake, American wrestler Don Clyde Drake is an American addictions counselor, retired professional wrestler and former promoter. He is best known for his appearances on the northeastern independent circuit under the ring name D. C. Drake. Read more
16 Sep 1957: Clara Furse, English businesswoman Dame Clara Hedwig Frances Furse DBE was the Chief Executive of the London Stock Exchange between January 2001 and May 2009, and was the first woman to occupy the position. In 2005, she was ranked 19th in Fortune magazine's most powerful women in business list. In 2007, Furse was listed among Time's 100 most influential people in the world. Read more
16 Sep 1957: Norman Lamb, English lawyer and politician Sir Norman Peter Lamb is a British politician and solicitor. He was the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament (MP) for North Norfolk from 2001 to 2019, and was the chair of the Science and Technology Select Committee from 2017 to 2019. Read more
16 Sep 1957: David McCreery, Northern Irish footballer and manager David McCreery is a Northern Irish former professional footballer who played for Manchester United, Newcastle United and many other clubs during his long career. Read more
16 Sep 1957: Anca Parghel, Romanian singer and pianist (died 2008) Anca Parghel was a Romanian jazz singer, composer, arranger, pianist, choir conductor, and music teacher. As a jazz vocalist, she excelled in scat, vocal percussion, and improvisation. Her voice had a four octave range, this being one of the reasons she was compared to Yma Sumac in the Romanian music press. She had an exceptional ability to interpret songs in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese. Read more
16 Sep 1956: Maggie Atkinson, English educator and civil servant Margaret Elizabeth Atkinson is an English educator and the former Children's Commissioner for England. After a career in teaching, she moved into public service administration, initially in education, but later in Children Services. Her appointment and tenure as Children's Commissioner was notable for a series of controversies. Read more
16 Sep 1956: David Copperfield, American magician and actor David Seth Kotkin, known professionally as David Copperfield, is an American stage magician and illusionist described by Forbes as the most commercially successful magician in history. Read more
16 Sep 1956: Ross Greenberg, American journalist and antivirus pioneer (died 2017) Ross Matthew Greenberg was an American software developer, noted for creating one of the first antivirus software products. He also worked in journalism, and was a founding member of the Internet Press Guild. Read more
16 Sep 1956: Dave Schulthise, American bass player (died 2004) David Schulthise, also known as Dave Blood, was an American musician best known as the original bass guitarist for the punk band The Dead Milkmen. Schulthise was born in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania. He helped form the band in 1983 along with fellow pseudonymous musicians Joe Jack Talcum, Dean Clean, and Rodney Anonymous. Prior to this he was a Ph.D. candidate in economics at Purdue University. Read more
16 Sep 1956: Kazuharu Sonoda, Japanese wrestler (died 1987) Kazuharu Sonoda also known under the ring names Haru Sonoda and Magic Dragon , was a Japanese professional wrestler. He was a former NWA Western States Tag Team Champion, NWA/WWC North American Tag Team Champion with Mitsu Ishikawa and the WCCW All Asia Tag Team Championship with the Great Kabuki in 1982. Read more
16 Sep 1955: Ron Brewer, American basketball player Ronald Charles Brewer is an American former professional basketball player. A 6-foot-4-inch (1.93 m) guard from the University of Arkansas, he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the 1978 NBA draft. Read more
16 Sep 1955: Robin Yount, American baseball player and coach Robin R. Yount, nicknamed "the Kid" and "Rockin' Robin", is an American former professional baseball player. He spent his entire 20-year career in Major League Baseball as a shortstop and center fielder for the Milwaukee Brewers (1974–93). Read more
16 Sep 1954: Sanjoy Bandopadhyay, Indian sitar player and composer Sanjoy Bandopadhyay is a Bengali Hindustani classical sitar player. He is primarily a disciple of Radhika Mohan Maitra and Bimalendu Mukherjee. His performance is a unique synthesis of Senia-Shahjehanpur, Rampur-Senia and Etawah gharana. Read more
16 Sep 1954: William McKeen, American author and academic William McKeen is an American author and educator. He is professor and former chairman of the Department of Journalism at Boston University. Read more
16 Sep 1954: Colin Newman, English singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer Colin John Newman is an English musician, record producer and record label owner. He is best known as the primary vocalist and songwriter for the post-punk band Wire. Read more
16 Sep 1954: Frank Reed, American singer-songwriter (died 2014) Frank Kevin "Tchallah" Reed was an American singer-songwriter. Reed was best known as the first replacement lead singer for the American vocal group The Chi-Lites. He replaced original lead singer and songwriter Eugene Record in 1988 after The Chi-Lites heyday. Read more
16 Sep 1954: Roger Woolley, Australian cricketer Roger Douglas Woolley is a former Australian cricketer who played in two Test matches and four One Day Internationals (ODIs) between 1983 and 1984. He was a middle-order batsman, and later a wicket-keeper. He was a member of the Tasmanian team that won their first domestic title in the 1978/79 Gillette Cup. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Kurt Fuller, American character actor Kurt Fuller is an American character actor. He has appeared in a number of television, film, and stage projects. He is known for his roles in the films No Holds Barred and Ghostbusters II, Wayne's World (1992), and Scary Movie (2000), as well as for his television roles playing Coroner Woody Strode in the USA Network television series Psych (2009–2014) and Zachariah in Supernatural (2009–2019). Read more
16 Sep 1953: Alan Barton, English singer and guitarist (died 1995) Alan Leslie Barton was a British singer and member of the hit-making duo Black Lace. Their hits include "Agadoo", "Superman" and their United Kingdom Eurovision Song Contest 1979 seventh-place finisher "Mary Ann" in Jerusalem. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Nancy Huston, Canadian-American author and translator Nancy Louise Huston is a Canadian novelist and essayist, a longtime resident of France, who writes primarily in French and translates her own works into English. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Earl Klugh, American musician Earl Klugh is an American acoustic guitarist and composer. Klugh has won one Grammy Award and received 13 nominations. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Mark Malloch Brown, Baron Malloch-Brown, English journalist and politician, 2nd Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations George Mark Malloch Brown, Baron Malloch-Brown, is a British diplomat, communications consultant, journalist and former politician. He served as president of the Open Society Foundations from 2021 to 2024. Malloch Brown previously served as Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations under Kofi Annan from April to December 2006. A former member of the Labour Party, he served as Minister of State for Africa and the United Nations in the Brown government from 2007 to 2009. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Jerry Pate, American golfer and sportscaster Jerome Kendrick Pate is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour Champions, formerly on the PGA Tour. As a 22-year-old rookie, he won the U.S. Open in 1976. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Manuel Pellegrini, Chilean footballer and manager Manuel Luis Pellegrini Ripamonti is a Chilean professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of La Liga club Real Betis. He has managed clubs in Spain, England, Argentina, Chile, China, and Ecuador, winning league titles in four different countries. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Christopher Rich, American actor Christopher Rich Wilson is an American actor, best known for his roles on Murphy Brown, Reba, and Boston Legal. Read more
16 Sep 1953: Eric Vail, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster Eric Vail is a Canadian former ice hockey player who played nine seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Atlanta Flames, Calgary Flames and Detroit Red Wings. He helped Calgary reach the 1981 NHL playoff semifinals for the first time in club history. Read more
16 Sep 1952: Tony Cunningham, English educator and politician Sir Thomas Anthony Cunningham is a British politician who served as member of parliament (MP) for Workington from 2001 to 2015. A member of the Labour Party, he was Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Cumbria and Lancashire North from 1994 to 1999. Read more
16 Sep 1952: Česlovas Laurinavičius, Lithuanian historian Česlovas Laurinavičius is a Lithuanian historian and political scientist, In 2003, he was the recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Order for Merits to Lithuania. Since 2001, he has served as the head of the Department of the 20th Century History at the Lithuanian Institute of History. Read more
16 Sep 1952: Karen Muir, South African swimmer and physician (died 2013) Karen Muir was a South African competitive swimmer. Born and raised in Kimberley, she attended the Diamantveld High School, where she matriculated in 1970. Read more
16 Sep 1952: Mickey Rourke, American boxer and actor Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr. is an American actor and former professional boxer who has appeared primarily as a leading man in drama, action, and thriller films. In a film career spanning more than forty years, films in which he has appeared have grossed over $1.9 billion worldwide. Read more
16 Sep 1951: Vince Bell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist Vince Bell is a Texas singer-songwriter who has appeared on the PBS television program Austin City Limits along with NPR broadcasts such as Mountain Stage, World Cafe and Morning Edition. His songs have been performed and recorded by Little Feat, Lyle Lovett and Nanci Griffith. Read more
16 Sep 1951: Andy Irvine, Scottish rugby player and coach Andrew Robertson Irvine is a former president of the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU), and a former Scottish international rugby player. He earned fifty one Scotland caps, captaining the team on fifteen occasions, and scored 250 points for Scotland. He went on three British Lions tours. Read more
16 Sep 1951: Cornelius Sim, Bruneian cardinal (died 2021) Cornelius Sim DD was a Bruneian prelate of the Catholic Church who served as Vicar Apostolic of Brunei from 2004 until his death. He had previously served as the apostolic prefect of Brunei from 1997 to 2004. Read more
16 Sep 1950: David Bellamy, American singer-songwriter and guitarist The Bellamy Brothers are an American country music duo from Darby, Florida. The duo consists of brothers David Milton Bellamy and Homer Howard Bellamy. The duo had considerable musical success in the 1970s and 1980s, starting with the release of their crossover hit "Let Your Love Flow" in 1976, a number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100. Read more
16 Sep 1950: Henry Louis Gates Jr., American historian, scholar, and journalist Henry Louis Gates Jr., popularly known by his childhood nickname "Skip", is an American literary critic, professor, historian, and filmmaker who serves as the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and the director of the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University. He is a trustee of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. He rediscovered the earliest known African-American novels and has published extensively on the recognition of African-American literature as part of the Western canon. Read more
16 Sep 1950: Loyd Grossman, American-English singer, guitarist, and television host Sir Loyd Daniel Gilman Grossman is an American-British author, broadcaster, musician, businessman and cultural campaigner who has mainly worked in the United Kingdom. He presented the BBC programme MasterChef from 1990 to 2000 and was a co-presenter, with David Frost, of the BBC and ITV panel show Through the Keyhole from 1987 until 2003. Read more
16 Sep 1949: Ed Begley Jr., American actor and environmental activist Edward James Begley Jr. is an American actor and environmentalist who has appeared in hundreds of films, series, and plays. Read more
16 Sep 1948: Ron Blair, American bass player Ronald Edward Blair is an American musician notable for being the bassist for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. He was originally the band's bassist from 1976 to 1981. In 2002, he returned to the group after a 20-year hiatus, replacing his own replacement, the late Howie Epstein. Read more
16 Sep 1948: Rosemary Casals, American tennis player and sportscaster Rosemary Casals is an American former professional tennis player. During a tennis career that spanned more than two decades, she won more than 90 titles and was crucial to many of the changes in women's tennis during the 1960s and 1970s. Casals was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1996. Read more
16 Sep 1948: Julia Donaldson, English author and playwright Dame Julia Catherine Donaldson is a British writer and playwright, and the 2011–2013 Children's Laureate. She is best known for her popular rhyming stories for children, especially those illustrated by Axel Scheffler, which include The Gruffalo, Room on the Broom, Stick Man, and Superworm. She originally wrote songs for children's television but has concentrated on writing books since the words of one of her songs, "A Squash and a Squeeze", were made into a children's book in 1993. Of her 184 published works, 64 are widely available in bookshops. The remaining 120 are intended for school use and include her Songbirds phonic reading scheme, which is part of the Oxford University Press's Oxford Reading Tree. In January 2025, Donaldson became Britain's best-selling author, surpassing J.K. Rowling by some 600,000 sales. Read more
16 Sep 1948: Kenney Jones, English drummer Kenneth Thomas Jones is an English drummer best known for his work in the groups Small Faces, Faces and the Who. Jones was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 as a member of Small Faces/Faces. Read more
16 Sep 1948: Susan Ruttan, American actress Susan Diane Ruttan is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Roxanne Melman on L.A. Law (1986–1993), for which she was nominated four times for a Primetime Emmy Award, twice for a Golden Globe Award, and four times for a Viewers for Quality Television Award, winning once in 1989. Read more
16 Sep 1947: Dusty Hughes, English director and playwright Dusty Hughes is an English playwright, director and television screenwriter. In the early 1970s he was Theatre Editor of Time Out and helped to establish that magazine's theatre coverage as an alternative voice. He then joined the Bush Theatre as artistic director and helped develop it as a venue for new writing and directed new plays by Snoo Wilson, Kurt Vonnegut, Howard Barker, Ron Hutchinson and Ken Campbell. Read more
16 Sep 1946: Sonny LeMaire, American country music singer-songwriter and bass player Alfred William "Sonny" LeMaire is an American country music artist. LeMaire is best known as being the bass guitarist of the band Exile, a role that he first held in 1977. After lead singer J. P. Pennington quit the band in 1989, LeMaire alternated with Paul Martin on lead vocals, including the singles "Nobody's Talking" and "Yet". Following Exile's initial 1993 disbanding, LeMaire played bass for Burnin' Daylight in the mid-nineties, reuniting permanently with his "Kiss You All Over" bandmates in 2008. Read more
16 Sep 1946: Mike Reynolds, Australian lawyer and politician Michael Francis Reynolds is an Australian politician. He was a Labor member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland from 1998 to 2009, representing the district of Townsville. He served as Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland from 2006 to 2009. Read more
16 Sep 1946: Camilo Sesto, Spanish singer-songwriter and producer (died 2019) Camilo Blanes Cortés, known professionally as Camilo Sesto, was a Spanish singer, songwriter and producer. Read more
16 Sep 1944: Linda Kaye Henning, American actress Linda Kaye Henning is an American actress and singer most notable for starring in the 1960s sitcom Petticoat Junction. Read more
16 Sep 1944: Betty Kelly, American soul/R&B singer Betty Kelly, also known as Betty Kelley, is an American singer most noted as being a member of the popular Motown singing group Martha and the Vandellas. Read more
16 Sep 1943: Wang Houjun, Chinese footballer and manager (died 2012) Wang Houjun was a Chinese international football player and coach. Read more
16 Sep 1943: James Alan McPherson, American short story writer and essayist (died 2016) James Alan McPherson was an American essayist and short-story writer. He was the first African-American writer to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and was included among the first group of artists who received a MacArthur Fellowship. At the time of his death, McPherson was a professor emeritus of fiction at the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Read more
16 Sep 1942: Bernie Calvert, English bass player and keyboard player Bernard Bamford Calvert is an English former musician who played bass guitar with The Hollies from 1966 until 1981. Read more
16 Sep 1942: Susan L. Graham, American computer scientist and academic Susan Lois Graham is an American computer scientist. Graham is the Pehong Chen Distinguished Professor Emerita in the Computer Science Division of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley. Read more
16 Sep 1941: Joe Butler, American singer, autoharp player, and drummer Joseph Campbell Butler is an American drummer, singer and actor. He is best known as a member of folk-rock band The Lovin' Spoonful, where he was drummer and later lead vocalist; the group had seven top 10 hits between 1965 and 1966. Outside of his work in music, he is a theater and television actor best known for the musicals Soon and Hair. Read more
16 Sep 1941: Richard Perle, American political scientist and politician Richard Norman Perle is an American political advisor who served as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs under President Ronald Reagan. He began his political career as a senior staff member to Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson on the Senate Armed Services Committee in the 1970s. He served on the Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee from 1987 to 2004 where he served as chairman from 2001 to 2003 under the Bush administration before resigning due to conflict of interests. Read more
16 Sep 1940: Hamiet Bluiett, American jazz saxophonist and composer (died 2018) Hamiet Bluiett was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. His primary instrument was the baritone saxophone, and he was considered one of the finest players of this instrument. A member of the World Saxophone Quartet, he also played the bass saxophone, E-flat alto clarinet, E-flat contra-alto clarinet, and wooden flute. Read more
16 Sep 1940: Butch Buchholz, American tennis player Earl Henry "Butch" Buchholz, Jr. is a former professional tennis player from the United States who was one of the game's top players in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Read more
16 Sep 1940: Paul White, Baron Hanningfield, British life peer (died 2024) Paul Edward Winston White, Baron Hanningfield, was a British politician and farmer. As a member of the Conservative Party, he served in various leadership roles in local government in Essex and was influential in establishing the Local Government Association. He was a member of Essex County Council from 1970 and 2011, and served in frontbench roles in the House of Lords after being nominated for a life peerage in 1998. Read more
16 Sep 1939: Breyten Breytenbach, South African-French poet and painter (died 2024) Breyten Breytenbach was a South African writer, poet, and painter. He became internationally well-known as a dissident poet and vocal critic of South Africa under apartheid, and as a political prisoner of the National Party–led South African Government. He was also known as a founding member of the Sestigers, a dissident literary movement, and was one of the most important poets in Afrikaans literature. Read more
16 Sep 1939: Bill McGill, American basketball player (died 2014) Bill "the Hill" McGill was an American basketball player best known for inventing the jump hook. McGill was the No. 1 overall pick of the 1962 NBA draft out of the University of Utah, with whom he led the NCAA in scoring with 38.8 points per game in the 1961–1962 season. Read more
16 Sep 1937: Aleksandr Medved, Russian wrestler (died 2024) Aleksandr Vasilyevich Medved was a Ukrainian-born Soviet Belarusian freestyle wrestler who competed for the Soviet Union and was named "one of the greatest wrestlers in history" by FILA, the sport's governing body. Between 1962 and 1972 he won three Olympic gold medals, seven world and three European titles. He served as the Olympic flag bearer for the Soviet Union in 1972, for Belarus in 2004 and recited the Judge's Oath at the Opening Ceremony of the 1980 Olympics. Read more
16 Sep 1937: Vince Naimoli, American businessman and philanthropist (died 2019) Vincent Joseph Naimoli was an American businessman, and the first owner of the Major League Baseball team the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Read more
16 Sep 1935: Carl Andre, American sculptor (died 2024) Carl Andre was an American minimalist artist recognized for his ordered linear and grid format sculptures. His stark minimal art sculptures range from large public artworks, to large interior works exhibited on the floor, to small intimate works. Read more
16 Sep 1935: Billy Boy Arnold, American singer-songwriter and guitarist William "Billy Boy" Arnold is an American blues harmonica player, singer, and songwriter. Arnold is a self-taught harmonica player and has worked with blues musicians such as Bo Diddley, Johnny Shines, Otis Rush, Earl Hooker, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters and others. Read more
16 Sep 1935: Jules Bass, American director, producer, composer, and author (died 2022) Julius Caesar Bass was an American director, producer, lyricist, composer and author. Until 1960, he worked at a New York advertising agency, and then co-founded the film production company Videocraft International, later named Rankin/Bass Productions, with his friend, Arthur Rankin Jr. He joined ASCAP in 1963 and collaborated with Edward Thomas and James Polack at their music firm and as a songwriting team primarily with Maury Laws at Rankin/Bass. Read more
16 Sep 1935: Lilia Cuntapay, Filipino actress (died 2016) Lilia B. Cuntapay was a Filipina actress and former teacher. She is popularly recognized as the "Queen of Philippine Horror Movies" for her appearances in horror movies and subsequent contributions to the Philippine film industry. Read more
16 Sep 1935: Bob Kiley, American-English businessman (died 2016) Robert R. Kiley was an American public transit planner and supervisor known for his ability to rehabilitate transit systems experiencing serious problems. From 2001 to 2006 he was the first commissioner of Transport for London, the public organisation that runs and maintains London's public transport network. Read more
16 Sep 1935: Esther Vilar, Argentinian-German author and playwright Esther Margareta Vilar is an Argentine-German writer. She trained and practised as a medical doctor before establishing herself as an author. She is best known for her 1971 book The Manipulated Man and its various follow-ups, which argue that, contrary to common feminist and women's rights rhetoric, women in industrialized cultures are not oppressed, but rather exploit a well-established system of manipulating men. Read more
16 Sep 1935: Helen Williams, American fashion model (died 2023) Helen Marie Williams Jackson was an American fashion model, and one of the first African American models to be featured in mainstream publications of her time. Read more
16 Sep 1934: Elgin Baylor, American basketball player and coach (died 2021) Elgin Gay Baylor was an American professional basketball player, coach, and executive. He played 14 seasons as a forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers. Baylor was a gifted shooter, a strong rebounder, and an accomplished passer, who was best known for his trademark hanging jump shot. The No. 1 draft pick in 1958, NBA Rookie of the Year in 1959, 11-time NBA All-Star, and a 10-time member of the All-NBA first team, Baylor is regarded as one of the game's greatest ever players. In 1977, Baylor was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In 1996, Baylor was named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Baylor was again honored as one of the league's greatest players of all time by being named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team. Baylor is the leader for most career rebounds in Lakers franchise history with 11,463. Read more
16 Sep 1934: Ronnie Drew, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2008) Joseph Ronald Drew was an Irish singer, folk musician and actor who had a fifty-year career recording with The Dubliners. Read more
16 Sep 1933: Steve Shirley, German-English businesswoman and philanthropist, founded Xansa (died 2025) Dame Vera Stephanie Shirley was a German-born British information technology pioneer, businesswoman and philanthropist. Read more
16 Sep 1932: George Chakiris, American actor George Chakiris is an American actor and dancer. He is best known for his appearance in the 1961 film version of West Side Story as Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks gang, for which he won both the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture. Read more
16 Sep 1932: Micky Stewart, English cricketer and coach Michael James Stewart is an English former cricketer, coach and administrator. A right-handed batsman, Stewart's international career was hampered by illness that curtailed his first overseas tour – serving as vice-captain in India in 1963–64 – and he made only eight Test appearances in all, scoring two half-centuries. His domestic career for Surrey spanned eighteen years, in which he scored over 26,000 first-class runs with forty-nine centuries. He made a century on debut for his county, against Pakistan, and went on to break the then-world record number of catches in a match in 1957 with his strong fielding. He captained Surrey between 1963 and 1972, winning the County Championship in 1971. After retiring, he became a manager at the club and later for England until 1992. He then worked for the ECB until 1997. He was the coach of the English squad which finished as runners-up at the 1987 Cricket World Cup. Read more
16 Sep 1931: K. D. Arulpragasam, Sri Lankan zoologist and academic (died 2003) Professor Kandiah David Arulpragasam was a Sri Lankan Tamil academic. He was the first vice-chancellor of Eastern University, Sri Lanka. Read more
16 Sep 1931: Little Willie Littlefield, American-Dutch singer-songwriter and pianist (died 2013) Willie Littlefield, Jr., billed as Little Willie Littlefield, was an American R&B and boogie-woogie pianist and singer whose early recordings "formed a vital link between boogie-woogie and rock and roll". Littlefield was regarded as a teenage wonder and overnight sensation when in 1949, at the age of 18, he popularized the triplet piano style on his Modern Records debut single, "It's Midnight". He also recorded the first version of the song "Kansas City", in 1952. Read more
16 Sep 1930: Anne Francis, American actress (died 2011) Anne Lloyd Francis was an American actress known for her pioneering roles in the science fiction film Forbidden Planet (1956) and the television action-drama series Honey West (1965–1966). Forbidden Planet marked a first in in-color, big-budget, science fiction-themed motion pictures. Nine years later, Francis challenged female stereotypes in Honey West, in which she played a perky blonde private investigator who was as quick with body slams as with witty one-liners. She earned a Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award nomination for her performance. Read more
16 Sep 1929: Jamshid bin Abdullah of Zanzibar, last sultan of Zanzibar (died 2024) Jamshid bin Abdullah Al Busaidi, was a Zanzibari royal who was the last reigning Sultan of Zanzibar. He was deposed in the Zanzibar Revolution, after the United Kingdom gave up its protectorate. Read more
16 Sep 1929: Stan Stephens, Canadian-American politician, 20th Governor of Montana (died 2021) Stanley Graham Stephens was a Canadian-American politician, journalist, and broadcaster who served as the 20th governor of Montana from 1989 until 1993 as a member of the Republican Party. Read more
16 Sep 1928: Rex Trailer, American television host, actor, and singer (died 2013) Rex Trailer was an American regional television personality, broadcast pioneer, cowboy and Country and Western recording artist. He is best known as the host of the children's television show Boomtown which initially ran from 1956 through 1974. Read more
16 Sep 1928: Lady Gwen Thompson, English author and educator (died 1986) Lady Gwen Thompson was the pseudonym of Phyllis Thompson, author and teacher of traditionalist initiatory witchcraft through her own organisation, the New England Covens of Traditionalist Witches. Read more
16 Sep 1928: Patricia Wald, American judge (died 2019) Patricia Ann McGowan Wald was an American lawyer and jurist who served as the chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1986 until 1991. She was the Court's first female chief judge and its first woman to be elevated, having been appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1979. From 1999 to 2001, Wald was a Justice of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Read more
16 Sep 1927: Peter Falk, American actor (died 2011) Peter Michael Falk was an American actor. He played the title character Lieutenant Columbo on the NBC/ABC series Columbo, for which he won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award (1973). In 1996, TV Guide ranked Falk No. 21 on its 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time list. He received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013. Read more
16 Sep 1927: Jack Kelly, American actor and politician (died 1992) John Augustus Kelly Jr. was an American film and television actor most noted for the role of Bart Maverick in the television series Maverick, which ran on ABC from 1957 to 1962. Read more
16 Sep 1927: Sadako Ogata, Japanese academic and diplomat, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (died 2019) Sadako Ogata, née Nakamura , was a Japanese academic, diplomat, author, administrator, and professor emerita at the Roman Catholic Sophia University. She was widely known as the head of the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) from 1991 to 2000, as well as in her capacities as Chair of the UNICEF Executive Board from 1978 to 1979 and as President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) from 2003 to 2012. She also served as Advisor of the Executive Committee of the Japan Model United Nations (JMUN). Read more
16 Sep 1926: Eric Gross, Austrian-Australian pianist and composer (died 2011) Eric Gross AM was an Austrian–Australian pianist, composer and teacher. Read more
16 Sep 1926: John Knowles, American novelist (died 2001) John Knowles was an American novelist best known for A Separate Peace (1959). Read more
16 Sep 1926: Roger McKee, American baseball player (died 2014) Roger Hornsby McKee was an American Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1943–44 for the Philadelphia Phillies while still a teenager. Read more
16 Sep 1926: Robert H. Schuller, American pastor and author (died 2015) Robert Harold Schuller was an American Christian televangelist, pastor, motivational speaker, and author. Over five decades, Schuller pastored his church in Garden Grove, California starting in 1955. The weekly broadcast of Hour of Power television program followed began in 1970, and he led until his retirement in 2006. His grandson, Bobby Schuller, carries on the Hour of Power, which has aired for over fifty years. During his time as a minister, Schuller oversaw the construction of two churches in Garden Grove, California. The first church built under his tenure was the Garden Grove Community Church chapel which seated 500, and the second was the much larger Crystal Cathedral, which has a capacity of 2,200. Read more
16 Sep 1925: Charlie Byrd, American singer and guitarist (died 1999) Charlie Lee Byrd was an American jazz guitarist who played fingerstyle on a classical guitar. Byrd was best known for his association with Brazilian music, especially bossa nova. In 1962, he collaborated with Stan Getz on the album Jazz Samba, a recording which brought bossa nova into the mainstream of North American music. Read more
16 Sep 1925: Charles Haughey, Irish accountant, lawyer, and politician, 7th Taoiseach of Ireland (died 2006) Charles James Haughey was an Irish politician who served as Taoiseach three times between 1979 and 1992, when he was leader of Fianna Fáil. Over a forty-year career, Haughey was the most complex and divisive figure in late 20th-century Ireland. After his retirement, the disclosure of millions of pounds in secret payments from businessmen damaged his reputation. Read more
16 Sep 1925: B.B. King, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (died 2015) Riley B. King, known professionally as B. B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shimmering vibrato, and staccato picking that influenced many later electric guitar blues players. AllMusic recognized King as "the single most important electric guitarist of the last half of the 20th century". Read more
16 Sep 1924: Lauren Bacall, American actress (died 2014) Betty Joan Perske, known professionally as Lauren Bacall, was an American actress. She was named the 20th-greatest female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the American Film Institute and was one of the last surviving major stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema. She received an Academy Honorary Award in 2009 in recognition of her contribution to the Golden Age of motion pictures. Read more
16 Sep 1924: Raoul Coutard, French cinematographer and director (died 2016) Raoul Coutard was a French cinematographer. He is best known for his connection with the French New Wave period and particularly for his work with director Jean-Luc Godard, which includes Breathless (1960), A Woman Is a Woman (1961), Vivre sa vie (1962), Bande à part (1964), Alphaville, Pierrot le Fou, and Weekend (1967). Coutard also shot films for New Wave director François Truffaut—including Shoot the Piano Player (1960) and Jules and Jim (1962)—as well as Jacques Demy, another contemporary associated with the movement. Read more
16 Sep 1923: Lee Kuan Yew, Singaporean lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Singapore (died 2015) Lee Kuan Yew, also known as LKY, was a Singaporean politician, barrister and statesman who served as the first prime minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. A member of the People's Action Party (PAP), his authoritarian governance oversaw the transformation of post-independence Singapore into a highly developed country and one of the four Asian Tigers. He is regarded as the founding father of modern Singapore. Read more
16 Sep 1922: Guy Hamilton, French-English director and screenwriter (died 2016) Mervyn Ian Guy Hamilton was an English film director. He directed 22 films from the 1950s to the 1980s, including four James Bond films. Read more
16 Sep 1922: Janis Paige, American actress and singer (died 2024) Janis Paige was an American actress and singer. With a career spanning nearly 60 years, she was one of the last surviving stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Read more
16 Sep 1921: Ursula Franklin, German-Canadian metallurgist (died 2016) Ursula Martius Franklin was a Canadian metallurgist, activist, research physicist, author, and educator who taught at the University of Toronto for more than 40 years. Franklin is best known for her writings on the political and social effects of technology. She was the author of The Real World of Technology, which is based on her 1989 Massey Lectures; The Ursula Franklin Reader: Pacifism as a Map, a collection of her papers, interviews, and talks; and Ursula Franklin Speaks: Thoughts and Afterthoughts, containing 22 of her speeches and five interviews between 1986 and 2012. Franklin was a practising Quaker and actively worked on behalf of pacifist and feminist causes. She wrote and spoke extensively about the futility of war and the connection between peace and social justice. Franklin received numerous honours and awards, including the Governor General's Award in Commemoration of the Persons Case for promoting the equality of girls and women in Canada and the Pearson Medal of Peace for her work in advancing human rights. In 2012, she was inducted into the Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame. A Toronto high school, Ursula Franklin Academy, as well as Ursula Franklin Street on the University of Toronto's St. George campus, have been named in her honor. Read more
16 Sep 1921: Jon Hendricks, American singer-songwriter (died 2017) John Carl Hendricks, known professionally as Jon Hendricks, was an American jazz lyricist and singer. He is one of the originators of vocalese, which adds lyrics to existing instrumental songs and replaces many instruments with vocalists, such as the big-band arrangements of Duke Ellington and Count Basie. He is considered one of the best practitioners of scat singing, which involves vocal jazz soloing. Jazz critic and historian Leonard Feather called him the "Poet Laureate of Jazz", while Time dubbed him the "James Joyce of Jive". Al Jarreau called him "pound-for-pound the best jazz singer on the planet—maybe that's ever been". Read more
16 Sep 1921: Korla Pandit, American pianist and composer (died 1998) Korla Pandit, was an American exotica musician, composer, pianist, and organist. Redd was an African-American man from Missouri who moved to California in the 1940s. After getting involved in show business, Redd became known as "Korla Pandit" and claimed to be a French-Indian musician from New Delhi, India. A pathbreaking musical performer in the early days of television, Redd is known for Korla Pandit's Adventures In Music; the show was the first all-music program on television. He also performed live and on radio and made various film appearances, becoming known as the "Godfather of Exotica". Both publicly and privately, Redd maintained the Korla Pandit persona and continued to pass as a native of India until the end of his life. Read more
16 Sep 1920: Staryl C. Austin, American air force general (died 2015) Staryl Chester Austin, Jr. was a brigadier general in the United States Air Force. He was a P-47 pilot during World War II. He later joined the Oregon Air National Guard. Austin commanded the 142nd Fighter Group and was Assistant Adjutant General of Oregon. After leaving military service, he served as the director of the Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs. He is a member of the Oregon Aviation Hall of Honor. Read more
16 Sep 1920: Sheila Quinn, English nurse and educator (died 2016) Dame Sheila Margaret Imelda Quinn, DBE, FRCN, RGN, RM, RNT, was a British nurse and fellow of the Royal College of Nursing. She was president of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) from 1982 to 1986. She was awarded an RCN Fellowship (FRCN) in 1978. Read more
16 Sep 1920: Art Sansom, American cartoonist (died 1991) Arthur Baldwin Sansom Jr., better known as Art Sansom, was an American comic strip cartoonist who created the long-running comic strip The Born Loser. Read more
16 Sep 1919: Bill Daley, American football player and sportscaster (died 2015) William Edward Daley was an All-American fullback who played for the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers from 1940 to 1942 and for the University of Michigan Wolverines in 1943. The Gophers were national champions in his freshman and sophomore years. Read more
16 Sep 1919: Laurence J. Peter, Canadian-American hierarchiologist and educator (died 1990) Laurence Johnston Peter was a Canadian educator and "hierarchiologist" who is best known to the general public for the formulation of the Peter principle. Read more
16 Sep 1919: Andy Russell, American singer and actor (died 1992) Andy Russell was an American popular singer, actor, and entertainer. He specialized in traditional pop and Latin music. He sold 8 million records in the 1940s wherein he sang bilingually in English and Spanish. His most successful songs included "Bésame Mucho", "Amor", and "What a Diff'rence a Day Made". He made appearances and performed on radio programs, most notably Your Hit Parade, in several movies, and on television. Read more
16 Sep 1918: Władysław Kędra, Polish pianist (died 1968) Władysław Kędra was a Polish pianist. Read more
16 Sep 1916: Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw, Caribbean politician, 1st Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis (died 1978) Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw was the first Premier of Saint Kitts and Nevis, and previously served as Chief Minister, legislator, and labour activist. Read more
16 Sep 1916: Frank Farrell, Australian rugby league player and policeman (died 1985) Francis Michael "Bumper" Farrell was an Australian premiership winning and international representative rugby league footballer. A prop forward, his long club career with the Newtown Bluebags was from 1938 to 1951 with four Test appearances for the Australian national side between 1946 and 1948. Read more
16 Sep 1916: M. S. Subbulakshmi, Indian Carnatic vocalist (died 2004) Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi was an Indian Carnatic singer. She was the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour, and also the first Indian musician to receive the Ramon Magsaysay award in 1974. She was the first Indian to perform at the United Nations General Assembly in 1966. Read more
16 Sep 1916: Frank Leslie Walcott, Barbadian cricketer, umpire, and politician (died 1999) Sir Frank Leslie Walcott, KA, OBE was a Barbadian trade unionist, politician, ambassador and one of the eleven National Heroes of Barbados. He played a key role in organizing the Barbados labour movement and was a major figure in stimulating participation in the nation's political process. Read more
16 Sep 1916: Marie Vieux-Chauvet, Haitian writer (died 1973) Marie Vieux-Chauvet was a Haitian novelist, playwright, and short story writer. Her novels are considered by translator Myriam J. A. Chancy to be "by far the best-known works by a Haitian woman novelist". Born in Port-au-Prince, Chauvet grew up during the United States occupation of Haiti. She began writing at the age of 10 and attended the Annex of the Upper School for Teachers, receiving her certificate in 1933. During the late 1940s, she wrote several plays, and during the 1950s, she wrote her first three novels. She became involved with the literary collective Haïti Littéraire during the early 1960s. Read more
16 Sep 1916: Raosaheb Gogte, Indian industrialist (died 2000) Balkrishna Mahadev Gogte, known colloquially as Raosaheb Gogte, was an Indian lawyer, industrialist, philanthropist and educationist. Read more
16 Sep 1915: Cy Walter, American pianist (died 1968) Cyril Frank Walter was an American café society pianist based in New York City for four decades. Dubbed the "Art Tatum of Park Avenue," he was praised for his extensive repertoire and improvisatory skill. His long radio and recording career included both solo and duo performances, and stints as accompanist for such elegant vocal stylists as Greta Keller, Mabel Mercer, and Lee Wiley. Read more
16 Sep 1914: Allen Funt, American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1999) Allen Albert Funt was an American television producer, director, writer and television personality, best known as the creator and host of Candid Camera from the 1940s to 1980s, as either a regular television show or a television series of specials. Its most notable run was from 1960 to 1967 on CBS. Read more
16 Sep 1911: Wilfred Burchett, Australian journalist and author (died 1983) Wilfred Graham Burchett was an Australian journalist known for being the first western journalist to report from Hiroshima after the dropping of the atomic bomb, and for his reporting from "the other side" during the Korean and Vietnam Wars. Read more
16 Sep 1911: Paul Henning, American screenwriter and producer (died 2005) Paul William Henning was an American TV producer and screenwriter. Most famous for creating the television sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies, he was also crucial in developing the "rural" comedies Petticoat Junction (1963–1970) and Green Acres (1965–1971) for CBS. Read more
16 Sep 1910: Erich Kempka, German colonel and chauffeur (died 1975) Erich Kempka was a member of the SS in Nazi Germany who served as Adolf Hitler's primary chauffeur from 1936 to April 1945. He was present in the area of the Reich Chancellery on 30 April 1945, when Hitler shot himself in the Führerbunker. Kempka delivered petrol to the garden behind the Chancellery, where the remains of Hitler and Eva Braun were burned. After Kempka's capture by United States forces, he served as a witness as to Hitler's demise, while admitting to his unreliability. Read more
16 Sep 1910: Karl Kling, German race car driver and manager (died 2003) Karl Kling was a German racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One at 11 Grands Prix from 1954 to 1955. Read more
16 Sep 1906: Jack Churchill, Sri Lankan-British colonel (died 1996) John Malcolm Thorpe Fleming Churchill, was a British Army officer. Nicknamed "Fighting Jack Churchill" and "Mad Jack", he fought in the Second World War with a broadsword, longbow, and a set of bagpipes. Read more
16 Sep 1905: Vladimír Holan, Czech poet and author (died 1980) Vladimír Holan was a Czech poet. He was known for employing obscure language, dark topics and pessimistic views in his poems. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in the late 1960s. Read more
16 Sep 1901: Josef Schächter, Austrian rabbi and philosopher from the Vienna Circle (died 1994) Josef Schächter was an Austrian rabbi, philosopher and member of the Vienna Circle from 1925 to 1936. Read more
16 Sep 1899: Hans Swarowsky, Hungarian-Austrian conductor and educator (died 1975) Hans Swarowsky was an Austrian conductor of Hungarian birth. Read more
16 Sep 1898: H. A. Rey, American author and illustrator, co-created Curious George (died 1977) H. A. Rey was a German-born American illustrator and author, known best for the series of children's picture books that he and his wife Margret Rey created about Curious George. Read more
16 Sep 1897: Milt Franklyn, American composer (died 1962) Milton J. Franklyn was an American musical composer and arranger who worked on the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes animated cartoons, working alongside and later succeeding Carl Stalling. Read more
16 Sep 1895: Zainal Abidin Ahmad, Malaysian author and scholar (died 1973) Tan Sri Zainal Abidin bin Ahmad or better known by the moniker Za'aba, was a Malaysian writer and linguist. He modernised the Malay language with the publication of a series of grammar books entitled Pelita Bahasa in 1936 at the Sultan Idris Training College. The book contained guidelines in modernising the structure of classical Malay, transforming it into the language that is in use today: the most significant change was the switch from the conventional passive to the modern active form of syntax. Read more
16 Sep 1893: Alexander Korda, Hungarian-English director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1956) Sir Alexander Korda was a Hungarian-born British film director, producer, and screenwriter, who founded his own film production studios and film distribution company. Read more
16 Sep 1893: Albert Szent-Györgyi, Hungarian-American physiologist and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1986) Albert Imre Szent-Györgyi de Nagyrápolt was a Hungarian biochemist who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1937. He is credited with first isolating vitamin C and discovering many of the components and reactions of the citric acid cycle and the molecular basis of muscle contraction. Read more
16 Sep 1891: Karl Dönitz, German admiral and politician, President of Germany (died 1980) Karl Dönitz was a German naval officer and politician who briefly succeeded Adolf Hitler as the head of state of Nazi Germany after the latter's suicide during the Second World War in April 1945. He held this position until the dissolution of the Flensburg Government, about two weeks after Germany's unconditional surrender to the Allies. As Supreme Commander of the Navy beginning in 1943, he played a major role in the naval history of the war. Read more
16 Sep 1891: Stephanie von Hohenlohe, Austrian-German spy (died 1972) Stephanie Julianne von Hohenlohe was an Austrian princess by her marriage to the diplomat Prince Friedrich Franz von Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfürst, a member of the noble Hohenlohe family. She was born a commoner, allegedly of Jewish family background. Read more
16 Sep 1890: Avigdor Hameiri, Israeli author (died 1970) Avigdor Hameiri was a Hungarian-Israeli author. Read more
16 Sep 1888: W. O. Bentley, English race car driver and engineer, founded Bentley Motors Limited (died 1971) Walter Owen Bentley, was an English engineer who founded Bentley in London. He was a motorcycle and car racer as a young man. After making a name for himself as a designer of aircraft and automobile engines, Bentley established his own firm in 1919. He built the firm into one of the world's premier luxury and performance auto manufacturers, and led the marque to multiple victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. After selling his namesake company to Rolls-Royce in 1931, he was employed as a designer for Lagonda, Aston Martin and Armstrong Siddeley. Read more
16 Sep 1888: Frans Eemil Sillanpää, Finnish author, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1964) Frans Eemil Sillanpää was a Finnish writer. In 1939, he became the first Finnish writer to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature "for his deep understanding of his country's peasantry and the exquisite art with which he has portrayed their way of life and their relationship with Nature". Read more
16 Sep 1887: Nadia Boulanger, French composer and educator (died 1979) Juliette Nadia Boulanger was a French music teacher, conductor and composer. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the twentieth century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. Read more
16 Sep 1886: Jean Arp, Alsatian sculptor and painter (died 1966) Hans Peter Wilhelm Arp, better known as Jean Arp in English, was a German-French sculptor, painter and poet. He was known as a Dadaist and an abstract artist. Read more
16 Sep 1883: T. E. Hulme, English poet and critic (died 1917) Thomas Ernest Hulme was an English critic and poet who, through his writings on art, literature and politics, had a notable influence upon modernism. He was an aesthetic philosopher and the father of imagism. Read more
16 Sep 1881: Clive Bell, English philosopher and critic (died 1964) Arthur Clive Heward Bell was an English art critic, associated with formalism and the Bloomsbury Group. He developed the art theory known as significant form. Read more
16 Sep 1880: Clara Ayres, American nurse (died 1917) Clara Ayres was an American nurse who joined the United States Army during the First World War. Ayres and Helen Burnett Wood were the first two women to be killed while serving in the United States military, following an explosion on USS Mongolia on May 17, 1917. Read more
16 Sep 1880: Alfred Noyes, English author, poet, and playwright (died 1958) Alfred Noyes CBE was an English poet, short-story writer and playwright. Read more
16 Sep 1878: Karl Albiker, German sculptor, lithographer, and educator (died 1961) Karl Albiker was a German sculptor, lithographer and teacher of fine arts. Albiker studied with Auguste Rodin in Paris. From 1919 to 1945 he was a professor at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts. His monumental statues, like those of Georg Kolbe, reflected National Socialist heroic realism. Albiker created the relay racers for Berlin's Reich Sports Field and various war monuments, including those in Karlsruhe, Freiburg im Breisgau, and Greiz. Read more
16 Sep 1877: Jacob Schick, American-Canadian inventor and businessman, founded Schick Razors (died 1937) Jacob Schick was an American military officer, inventor, and entrepreneur who patented an early electric razor and started the Schick Dry Shaver, Inc., razor company. Read more
16 Sep 1876: Marvin Hart, American boxer (died 1931) Marvin Hart was the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion from July 3, 1905, to February 23, 1906. Read more
16 Sep 1875: James Cash Penney, American businessman and philanthropist, founded J. C. Penney (died 1971) James Cash Penney Jr. was an American businessman and entrepreneur who founded the JCPenney stores in 1902. Read more
16 Sep 1870: John Pius Boland, Irish tennis player and politician (died 1958) John Mary Pius Boland was an Irish Nationalist politician and Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and a member of the Irish Parliamentary Party for South Kerry from 1900 to 1918. He was also noteworthy as a gold medallist tennis player at the first modern Olympics. Read more
16 Sep 1866: Georg Voigt, German lawyer and politician, Mayor of Marburg (died 1927) Georg Philipp Wilhelm Voigt was a German politician. Voigt was the mayor of Rixdorf, Barmen, Frankfurt, and Marburg. Read more
16 Sep 1861: Miriam Benjamin, African-American educator and inventor (died 1947) Miriam Elizabeth Benjamin was an American schoolteacher and inventor. In 1888, she obtained a patent for the Gong and Signal Chair for Hotels, becoming the second African-American woman to receive a patent. Read more
16 Sep 1859: Yuan Shikai, Chinese general and politician, President of the Republic of China (died 1916) Yuan Shikai was a Chinese general and statesman. As leader of the Beiyang Army, he played a decisive role in securing the abdication of the Qing court. He served as the second provisional president and the first formal president of the Republic of China, with his administration known as the Beiyang government. He declared himself Emperor of the Chinese Empire in December 1915 but was forced to abdicate in March 1916. Read more
16 Sep 1858: Edward Marshall Hall, English lawyer and politician (died 1927) Sir Edward Marshall Hall, was an English barrister and politician who had a formidable reputation as an orator. He successfully defended many people accused of murder and became known as "The Great Defender". Read more
16 Sep 1858: Bonar Law, Canadian-Scottish banker and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (died 1923) Andrew Bonar Law was a British Conservative politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1922 to 1923. He was the first prime minister born outside of Britain and the shortest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century. Read more
16 Sep 1853: Albrecht Kossel, German physician and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1927) Ludwig Karl Martin Leonhard Albrecht Kossel was a German biochemist and pioneer in the study of genetics. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1910 for his work in determining the chemical composition of nucleic acids, the genetic substance of biological cells. Read more
16 Sep 1846: Anna Kingsford, English author, poet, and activist (died 1888) Anna Kingsford was an English anti-vivisectionist, Theosophist, a proponent of vegetarianism and a women's rights campaigner. Read more
16 Sep 1844: Paul Taffanel, French flute player and conductor (died 1908) Claude-Paul Taffanel was a French flautist, conductor and instructor, regarded as the founder of the French Flute School that dominated much of flute composition and performance during the mid-20th century. Read more
16 Sep 1838: James J. Hill, Canadian-American railroad executive (died 1916) James Jerome Hill was an American railway entrepreneur. He was the chief executive officer of a family of lines headed by the Great Northern Railway, which served a substantial area of the Upper Midwest, the northern Great Plains and the Pacific Northwest. Because of the size of this region of the United States and the economic dominance exerted by the Hill lines, Hill became known during his lifetime as "The Empire Builder", and died in 1916 with a fortune of about $63 million, or about $1.3 to 1.7 billion today. His former home, James J. Hill House, is now a museum in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Read more
16 Sep 1837: Pedro V of Portugal (died 1861) Dom Pedro V, nicknamed "the Hopeful", was King of Portugal from 1853 until his death in 1861. Read more
16 Sep 1830: Patrick Francis Moran, Irish-Australian cardinal (died 1911) Patrick Francis Moran was a prelate of the Catholic Church and the third Archbishop of Sydney and the first cardinal appointed from Australia. Read more
16 Sep 1828: Per Pålsson, Swedish murderer (died 1914) Per Pålsson, also called Kitte-Pelle, was a Swedish murderer convicted for the murder of Hanna Pålsdotter. Per Pålsson was in the end pardoned and instead of having to face the death penalty was sentenced to life imprisonment. He served time at Örkelljunga prison, Varberg Fortress and finally Malmö central prison. He was finally pardoned fully and released on 31 May 1868. Read more
16 Sep 1827: Jean Albert Gaudry, French geologist and paleontologist (died 1908) Jean Albert Gaudry was a French geologist and palaeontologist. He was born at St Germain-en-Laye, and was educated at the Catholic Collège Stanislas de Paris. He was a notable proponent of theistic evolution. Read more
16 Sep 1823: Francis Parkman, American historian and author (died 1893) Francis Parkman Jr. was an American historian, best known as author of The Oregon Trail: Sketches of Prairie and Rocky-Mountain Life and his monumental seven-volume France and England in North America. These works are still valued as historical sources and as literature. He was also a leading horticulturist, briefly a professor of horticulture at Harvard University and author of several books on the topic. Parkman wrote essays opposed to legal voting for women that continued to circulate long after his death. Parkman was a trustee of the Boston Athenæum from 1858 until his death in 1893. Read more
16 Sep 1823: Ludwik Teichmann, Polish anatomist (died 1895) Ludwik Karol Teichmann-Stawiarski (September 16, 1823 – November 24, 1895) was a Polish anatomist and discoverer of a new way of research in forensic medicine, after whom Teichmann crystals are called. Read more
16 Sep 1822: Charles Crocker, American businessman (died 1888) Charles Crocker was an American railroad executive and founding patriarch of the Crocker business dynasty. He was a member of the "Big Four" who famously oversaw construction of the Central Pacific Railroad and purchased control of the Southern Pacific Railroad. Read more
16 Sep 1812: Anna Louisa Geertruida Bosboom-Toussaint, Dutch novelist (died 1886) Anna Louisa Geertruida Bosboom-Toussaint was a Dutch novelist. Read more

Notable Deaths on 16 September

16 Sep 2025: Robert Redford, American actor, producer and director (born 1936) Charles Robert Redford Jr. was an American actor, director, and producer, celebrated for his magnetic presence as a leading man during the American New Wave. Across a career spanning more than six decades, Redford earned widespread recognition and numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award and five Golden Globe Awards, including a Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1994. He also earned various other honors, including the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 1996, the Academy Honorary Award in 2002, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2005, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016, and the Honorary César in 2019. Read more
16 Sep 2024: Song Binbin, Chinese revolutionary (born 1947) Song Binbin, also known as Song Yaowu, was a Chinese woman who, as a 19-year old, began engaging in violence that led to her role as a senior leader in the Chinese Red Guards during Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution. Although Song denied involvement, she was presumed present when a 50-year-old teacher, Bian Zhongyun, was beaten to death by the female students of her school, reportedly the Cultural Revolution's first killing. Read more
16 Sep 2021: Jane Powell, American actress (born 1929) Jane Powell was an American actress, singer, and dancer who appeared in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals in the 1940s and 50s. With her soprano voice and girl-next-door image, Powell appeared in films, television and on the stage, performing in the musicals A Date with Judy (1948), Royal Wedding (1951), Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954), and Hit the Deck (1955). Read more
16 Sep 2021: Clive Sinclair, English entrepreneur and inventor (born 1940) Sir Clive Marles Sinclair was an English entrepreneur and inventor, best known for being a pioneer in the computing industry and also as the founder of several companies that developed consumer electronics in the 1970s and early 1980s. Read more
16 Sep 2020: Maxim Martsinkevich, Russian social activist and media personality (born 1984) Maxim Sergeyevich Martsinkevich, better known as Tesak, was a Russian neo-Nazi activist, media personality, vlogger, and the leader and co-founder of the Restruct movement which manifested in post-Soviet countries. Read more
16 Sep 2019: H. S. Dillon, Indonesian politician and human rights defender (born 1945) Harbrinderjit Singh Dillon was an Indonesian Sikh who occupied a variety of positions in Indonesian political life, including assistant to the Minister of Agriculture, and Commissioner of the National Commission on Human Rights). His positions included executive director of Partnership Governance Reform in Indonesia. He was an outspoken critic of corruption in Indonesia. Read more
16 Sep 2018: James Burdette Thayer, American brigadier general (born 1920) James Burdette Thayer was an American brigadier general who served on active duty during World War II. On May 4, 1945, Thayer and his platoon discovered and liberated 15,000 people held at a concentration camp near Wels, Austria. Following the war, he continued his service in the United States Army Reserve. In his civilian life, Thayer founded a successful business supply company in Beaverton, Oregon. He was later appointed Oregon's civilian aide to the Secretary of the Army and then re-activated as commander of the Oregon State Defense Force. The Oregon Military Museum at Camp Withycombe is named in his honor. Read more
16 Sep 2017: Marcelo Rezende, Brazilian journalist (born 1951) Marcelo Luiz Rezende Fernandes was a Brazilian journalist and television presenter. Read more
16 Sep 2017: Arjan Singh, Marshal of the Indian Air Force (born 1919) Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh, was a senior air officer of the Indian Air Force. He served as the 3rd Chief of the Air Staff from 1964 to 1969, leading the Air Force through the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. He was the first and only officer of the Indian Air Force (IAF) to be promoted to five-star rank as Marshal of the Indian Air Force, equal to the army rank of Field Marshal. Read more
16 Sep 2016: Tarık Akan, Turkish actor, director and activist (born 1949) Tarık Akan was a Turkish film actor and producer, who started his activity in 1965. Read more
16 Sep 2016: Edward Albee, American director and playwright (born 1928) Edward Franklin Albee III was an American playwright known for works such as The Zoo Story (1958), The Sandbox (1959), Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1962), A Delicate Balance (1966), and Three Tall Women (1994). Some critics have argued that some of his work constitutes an American variant of what Martin Esslin identified as and named the Theater of the Absurd. Three of his plays won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and two of his other works won the Tony Award for Best Play. Read more
16 Sep 2016: Gabriele Amorth, Italian priest and exorcist (born 1925) Gabriele Amorth was an Italian Catholic priest of the Paulines and an exorcist for the Diocese of Rome. Amorth, along with five other priests, founded the International Association of Exorcists. Read more
16 Sep 2016: Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, Italian economist and politician, 10th President of Italy and 49th Prime Minister of Italy (born 1920) Carlo Azeglio Ciampi was an Italian politician, statesman and banker who was the president of Italy from 1999 to 2006 and prime minister of Italy from 1993 to 1994. Read more
16 Sep 2016: W. P. Kinsella, Canadian novelist (born 1935) William Patrick Kinsella was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, known for his novel Shoeless Joe (1982), which was adapted into the movie Field of Dreams in 1989. His work often concerned baseball, First Nations people, and Canadian culture. Read more
16 Sep 2016: Gérard Louis-Dreyfus, French-born American businessman (born 1932) Gérard C. Louis-Dreyfus, also known as William Louis-Dreyfus, was a French-American businessman. His net worth was estimated at $3.4 billion by Forbes in 2006. He was the chairman of Louis Dreyfus Energy Services and the great-grandson of Léopold Louis-Dreyfus, founder of Louis Dreyfus Group. He was the father of actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Read more
16 Sep 2016: António Mascarenhas Monteiro, Cabo Verdean politician, 2nd President of Cape Verde (born 1944) António Manuel Mascarenhas Gomes Monteiro was the first democratically elected President of Cape Verde from 22 March 1991 to 22 March 2001. Read more
16 Sep 2015: Guy Béart, Egyptian-French singer-songwriter (born 1930) Guy Béhart-Hasson, known as Guy Béart, was a French singer and songwriter. Read more
16 Sep 2015: Julio Brady, Virgin Islander lawyer, judge, and politician, 5th Lieutenant Governor of the United States Virgin Islands (born 1942) Julio A. Brady was an American Virgin Islander judge, politician and attorney. Brady served as the fifth lieutenant governor of the United States Virgin Islands from 1983 to 1987 during the second term of former Governor Juan Francisco Luis. Prior to his death, Brady served as a U.S. Virgin Islands Superior Court judge since 2006. Read more
16 Sep 2015: Kurt Oppelt, Austrian figure skater and coach (born 1932) Kurt Oppelt was an Austrian figure skater who is best known for his career in pair skating. With Sissy Schwarz, he is the 1956 Olympic champion, the 1956 World champion, the 1956 European champion, and a five-time Austrian national champion (1952–56). Read more
16 Sep 2015: Allan Wright, English captain and pilot (born 1920) Group Captain Allan Richard Wright, was a Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter pilot and flying ace of the Second World War. He was credited with having destroyed at least fourteen German aircraft. Read more
16 Sep 2013: Scott Adams, American football player (born 1966) Scott Alexander Adams was an American professional football player who played guard for a six-season career, in-which he played for the Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Atlanta Falcons. Read more
16 Sep 2013: Ratiba El-Hefny, Egyptian soprano and director (born 1931) Ratiba Hefny was an Egyptian international Opera singer (soprano) who performed in more than 500 opera performances. She was the dean of the Higher Institute of Arabic Music in Cairo, and became the director of the Cairo Opera House in 1988. Read more
16 Sep 2013: Patsy Swayze, American dancer and choreographer (born 1927) Yvonne Helen "Patsy" Swayze was an American film choreographer, dancer, and dance instructor, and the mother of actors Patrick Swayze and Don Swayze. Her credits include choreography for Urban Cowboy, Liar's Moon and Hope Floats. Read more
16 Sep 2012: Roman Kroitor, Canadian director and producer, co-founded IMAX (born 1926) Roman Kroitor was a Canadian filmmaker who was known as a pioneer of Cinéma vérité, as the co-founder of IMAX, and as the creator of the Sandde hand-drawn stereoscopic 3D animation system. He was also the original inspiration for The Force. His prodigious output garnered numerous awards, including two BAFTA Awards, three Cannes Film Festival awards, and two Oscar nominations. Read more
16 Sep 2012: Julien J. LeBourgeois, American admiral (born 1923) Julien Johnson LeBourgeois was a vice admiral of the United States Navy. His career included service in World War II, the Cold War, and the Vietnam War, duty aboard and command of cruisers and destroyers, various planning and staff assignments, and a tour as President of the Naval War College. Read more
16 Sep 2012: Friedrich Zimmermann, German lawyer and politician, German Federal Minister of the Interior (born 1925) Friedrich Zimmermann was a German politician and a member of the Christian Social Union (CSU). From 1982 to 1989, he was the federal minister of interior. From 1989 to 1991 he held the position of federal minister for transport. Read more
16 Sep 2011: Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, American singer-songwriter, harmonica player, and drummer (born 1936) Willie Lee "Big Eyes" Smith was an American electric blues vocalist, harmonica player, and drummer. He was best known for several stints with the Muddy Waters band beginning in the early 1960s. Read more
16 Sep 2011: Enamul Haque Chowdhury, Bangladeshi politician (born 1948) Enamul Haque Chowdhury (1948–2011) was a politician in Sylhet District of Bangladesh who was a Jatiya party leader and Member of Parliament from Sylhet-2. Read more
16 Sep 2010: George N. Parks, American educator and bandleader (born 1953) George N. Parks was the director of the University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band at University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1977 until 2010. He also led the George N. Parks Drum Major Academy, a summer workshop program for high school drum majors that he founded in 1978. Read more
16 Sep 2010: Jim Towers, English footballer (born 1933) Edwin James Towers was an English professional footballer, best remembered for his time as a centre forward in the Football League with Brentford. He is the club's all-time leading goalscorer and in 2013 was voted the club's greatest ever player. Read more
16 Sep 2009: Myles Brand, American philosopher and academic (born 1942) Myles Neal Brand (May 17, 1942 – September 16, 2009) was a philosopher and university administrator who served as the 14th president of the University of Oregon, the 16th president of Indiana University, and the fourth president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) of the United States. Read more
16 Sep 2009: Ernst Märzendorfer, Austrian conductor (born 1921) Ernst Märzendorfer was an Austrian conductor. Read more
16 Sep 2009: Mary Travers, American singer-songwriter (born 1936) Mary Allin Travers was an American singer who found fame as a member of the 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary, along with Peter Yarrow and Paul Stookey. Travers grew up amid the burgeoning folk scene in New York City's Greenwich Village, and she released five solo albums. She was a contralto. Read more
16 Sep 2008: Norman Whitfield, American songwriter and producer (born 1940) Norman Jesse Whitfield was an American songwriter, composer, and producer, who worked with Berry Gordy's Motown labels during the 1960s. He has been credited as one of the creators of the Motown Sound and of the late-1960s subgenre of psychedelic soul. Read more
16 Sep 2007: Robert Jordan, American engineer and author (born 1948) James Oliver Rigney Jr., known by his pen name Robert Jordan, was an American author of epic fantasy. His The Wheel of Time series, which comprises 14 books and a prequel novel is among the highest-selling book series of all time, with 90 million copies sold. Read more
16 Sep 2006: Floyd Curry, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (born 1925) Floyd James "Busher" Curry was a Canadian ice hockey right winger. Read more
16 Sep 2006: Zsuzsa Körmöczy, Hungarian tennis player and coach (born 1924) Zsuzsa Körmöczy was a Hungarian tennis player. She reached a career high of World No. 2 in women's tennis, and won the 1958 French Open at the age of 33. Read more
16 Sep 2005: Harry Freedman, Canadian horn player, composer, and educator (born 1922) Harry Freedman, was a Canadian composer, English hornist and teacher. Read more
16 Sep 2005: Gordon Gould, American physicist and academic, invented the laser (born 1920) Richard Gordon Gould was an American physicist who is sometimes credited with the invention of the laser and the optical amplifier.. Gould is best known for his thirty-year fight with the United States Patent and Trademark Office to obtain patents for the laser and related technologies. He also fought with laser manufacturers in court battles to enforce the patents he subsequently did obtain. Read more
16 Sep 2004: Michael Donaghy, American-English poet and author (born 1954) Michael Donaghy was a New York City poet and musician, who lived in London from 1985. Read more
16 Sep 2003: Sheb Wooley, American singer-songwriter (born 1921) Shelby Fredrick Wooley was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He recorded a series of novelty songs, including the 1958 hit rock-and-roll comedy single "The Purple People Eater", and under the name Ben Colder, the country hit "Almost Persuaded No. 2". As an actor, he portrayed Cletus Summers, the principal of Hickory High School and assistant coach in the 1986 film Hoosiers; Ben Miller, brother of Frank Miller in the film High Noon; Travis Cobb in The Outlaw Josey Wales; and scout Pete Nolan in the television series Rawhide. Wooley is also believed to be the voice actor who provided the Wilhelm scream and all of the other stock sound effects for Thomas J. Valentino's Major record label during the 1940s. Read more
16 Sep 2002: James Gregory, American actor (born 1911) James Gregory was an American character actor who played roles such as Schaffer in Al Capone (1959), the McCarthy-like Sen. John Iselin in The Manchurian Candidate (1962), General Ursus in Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970), and Inspector Frank Luger in the television sitcom Barney Miller (1975–1982). Read more
16 Sep 2001: Samuel Z. Arkoff, American producer (born 1918) Samuel Zachary Arkoff was an American film producer, known as the co-founder of American International Pictures. Read more
16 Sep 1996: McGeorge Bundy, American intelligence officer and diplomat, 6th United States National Security Advisor (born 1919) McGeorge "Mac" Bundy was an American academic who served as the U.S. National Security Advisor to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson from 1961 through 1966. He is primarily remembered as one of the chief architects of the United States' escalation of the Vietnam War. He was president of the Ford Foundation from 1966 through 1979. Read more
16 Sep 1996: Gene Nelson, American actor, dancer, and director (born 1920) Gene Nelson was an American actor, dancer, screenwriter, and director. Read more
16 Sep 1993: František Jílek, Czech conductor (born 1913) František Jílek was a Czech conductor, known especially for his interpretation of Leoš Janáček's works. Read more
16 Sep 1993: Oodgeroo Noonuccal, Australian poet and activist (born 1920) Oodgeroo Noonuccal, earlier known as Kath Walker, was an Aboriginal Australian political activist, artist and educator, who campaigned for Aboriginal rights. Noonuccal was best known for her poetry, and was the first Aboriginal Australian to publish a book of verse. Read more
16 Sep 1992: Millicent Fenwick, American journalist and politician (born 1910) Millicent Vernon Fenwick was an American fashion model, Vogue magazine editor, socialite, Republican Party politician, and diplomat who represented New Jersey in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 1983. She also served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1970 to 1972 and as the first United States Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture from 1983 to 1987. She was famous for her energy and colorful enthusiasm and regarded as a political moderate or progressive within her party. She was outspoken in favor of civil rights and the women's movement. Read more
16 Sep 1991: Olga Spessivtseva, Russian-American ballerina (born 1895) Olga Alexandrovna Spessivtseva was a Russian ballerina whose stage career spanned from 1913 to 1939. Read more
16 Sep 1987: Christopher Soames, English soldier and politician, Governor of Southern Rhodesia (born 1920) Arthur Christopher John Soames, Baron Soames, was a British Conservative politician who served as a European Commissioner and the last Governor of Southern Rhodesia. He was previously Member of Parliament (MP) for Bedford from 1950 to 1966. He held several government posts and attained Cabinet rank. Read more
16 Sep 1984: Louis Réard, French engineer and fashion designer, created the bikini (born 1897) Louis Réard was a French automobile engineer and fashion designer who introduced the modern two-piece bikini in July 1946. He ran a swimsuit store in Paris where he sold bikinis for 40 years. Read more
16 Sep 1984: Richard Brautigan, American novelist, poet, and short story writer (born 1935) Richard Gary Brautigan was an American novelist, poet, and short story writer. He wrote throughout his life and published ten novels, two collections of short stories, and ten books of poetry. Brautigan's work has been published both in the United States and internationally throughout Europe, Japan, and China. He is best known for his novels Trout Fishing in America (1967), In Watermelon Sugar (1968), and The Abortion: An Historical Romance 1966 (1971). Read more
16 Sep 1980: Jean Piaget, Swiss psychologist and philosopher (born 1896) Jean William Fritz Piaget was a Swiss psychologist known for his work on child development. Piaget's theory of cognitive development and epistemological view are together called genetic epistemology. Read more
16 Sep 1977: Marc Bolan, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1947) Marc Bolan was an English guitarist, singer-songwriter and poet. He was a pioneer of the glam rock movement in the early 1970s with his band T. Rex. Bolan is an influence on artists in the genres of glam rock, punk, post-punk, new wave, indie rock, Britpop and alternative rock. He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020 as a member of T. Rex. Read more
16 Sep 1977: Maria Callas, Greek operatic soprano (born 1923) Maria Callas was an American and Greek soprano, and one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Critics praised her bel canto technique, wide-ranging voice, and dramatic interpretations. Her repertoire ranged from classical opera seria to the bel canto operas of Donizetti, Bellini, and Rossini, and further to the works of Verdi and Puccini, and in her early career to the music dramas of Wagner. Her musical and dramatic talents led to her being hailed as La Divina. Read more
16 Sep 1976: Bertha Lutz, Brazilian feminist and scientist (born 1894) Bertha Maria Júlia Lutz was a Brazilian zoologist, politician, and diplomat. Lutz became a leading figure in both the Pan American feminist movement and human rights movement. She was instrumental in gaining women's suffrage in Brazil and represented her country at the United Nations Conference on International Organization, signing her name to the United Nations Charter and championing the inclusion of Article 8 in the Charter. In addition to her political work, she was a naturalist at the National Museum of Brazil, specializing in poison dart frogs. She has four frog species and two lizard species named after her. Read more
16 Sep 1973: Víctor Jara, Chilean singer-songwriter, teacher and theatre director (born 1932) Víctor Lidio Jara Martínez was a Chilean teacher, theater director, poet, singer-songwriter and Communist political activist. He developed Chilean theater by directing a broad array of works, ranging from locally produced plays to world classics, as well as the experimental work of playwrights such as Ann Jellicoe. He also played a pivotal role among neo-folkloric musicians who established the Nueva canción chilena movement. This led to an uprising of new sounds in popular music during the administration of President Salvador Allende. Read more
16 Sep 1965: Ahn Eak-tai, North Korean composer and conductor (born 1906) Ahn Eak-tai was a Korean classical composer and conductor. He conducted numerous major orchestras across Europe, including the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Rome Philharmonic Orchestra. Ahn composed "Aegukga", a song best known as the national anthem of South Korea, Korean Dance, Nongae, and the Symphonic Fantasy Korea. His unpublished works, some of which have been discovered recently, include Poema Synfonic 'Mallorca, Lo Pi Formentor, and The Death of Emperor Gojong. Read more
16 Sep 1965: Fred Quimby, American animator and producer (born 1886) Frederick Clinton Quimby was an American animation producer best known for producing the Tom and Jerry cartoon series, for which he won seven Academy Awards for Best Animated Short Films. He was the executive in charge of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio, which included, among others and at various times, animators and directors Hugh Harman, Rudolf Ising, Tex Avery, Michael Lah, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, the creators of Tom and Jerry. MGM's cartoon characters included Droopy, Butch Dog, Barney Bear, and others, and they also released multiple one-shot cartoons. Read more
16 Sep 1961: Hasan Polatkan, Turkish politician, 15th Turkish Minister of Finance (born 1915) Hasan Polatkan was a Turkish politician and Minister of Labor and Finance, who was executed by hanging after the 1960 Turkish coup d'état along with two other cabinet members. Read more
16 Sep 1961: Fatin Rüştü Zorlu, Turkish diplomat and politician, 21st Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey (born 1910) Fatin Rüştü Zorlu was a Turkish diplomat and politician. He was executed by hanging after the coup d'état in 1960 along with two other politicians. Read more
16 Sep 1955: Leo Amery, Indian-English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for the Colonies (born 1873) Leopold Charles Maurice Stennett Amery, also known as L. S. Amery, was a British Conservative Party politician and journalist. During his career, he was known for his interest in military preparedness, British India and the British Empire and for his opposition to appeasement. He was Secretary of State for the Colonies (1924–29), opposed the National Government of the 1930s and served as Secretary of State for India during the Second World War (1940–45). He was also a prolific writer whose output included a multi-volume history of the Second Boer War and several volumes of memoirs and diaries. Read more
16 Sep 1950: Pedro de Cordoba, American actor (born 1881) Pedro de Cordoba was an American actor. Read more
16 Sep 1946: James Hopwood Jeans, English physicist, astronomer, and mathematician (born 1877) Sir James Hopwood Jeans was an English physicist, mathematician and an astronomer. He served as a secretary of the Royal Society from 1919 to 1929, and was the president of the Royal Astronomical Society from 1925 to 1927, and won its Gold Medal. Read more
16 Sep 1945: John McCormack, Irish tenor and actor (born 1884) Count John Francis McCormack, was an Irish lyric tenor celebrated for his performances of the operatic and popular song repertoires, and renowned for his diction and breath control. He was also a Papal Count. McCormack became a naturalised American citizen before returning to live in Ireland. Read more
16 Sep 1944: Gustav Bauer, German journalist and politician, 11th Chancellor of Germany (born 1870) Gustav Adolf Bauer was a German Social Democratic Party leader and the chancellor of Germany from June 1919 to March 1920. Prior to that, he was minister of labour in the last cabinet of the German Empire and during most of the German Revolution that preceded the formal establishment of the Weimar Republic. Read more
16 Sep 1940: Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington, English-Scottish politician, 8th Governor of Queensland (born 1860) Charles Wallace Alexander Napier Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington,, was a British politician and colonial administrator who served as Governor of Queensland from 1896 to 1901, and Governor of Bombay from 1903 to 1907. Read more
16 Sep 1936: Jean-Baptiste Charcot, French physician and explorer (born 1867) Jean-Baptiste Étienne Auguste Charcot, better known in France as Commandant Charcot, was a French scientist, medical doctor and polar scientist. His father was the neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot (1825–1893).
As a sportsman, he was French rugby XV champion in 1896 and also won a double silver medal in sailing at the 1900 Summer Olympics. Read more
16 Sep 1933: George Gore, American baseball player and manager (born 1857) George F. Gore, nicknamed "Piano Legs", was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball who played for 14 seasons, eight for the Chicago White Stockings, five for the New York Giants, one for the St. Louis Browns (1892) of the National League (NL), and the New York Giants of the Players' League (1890). Read more
16 Sep 1932: Millicent Lilian "Peg" Entwistle, British stage and screen actress (born 1908) Millicent Lilian "Peg" Entwistle was a British stage and screen actress. She began her stage career in 1925, appearing in several Broadway productions. She appeared in only one film, Thirteen Women (1932), which was released posthumously. Entwistle gained notoriety after she jumped to her death from atop the 'H' on the Hollywoodland Sign in September 1932, at the age of 24. Read more
16 Sep 1932: Ronald Ross, Indian-English physician and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1857) Sir Ronald Ross was a British medical doctor. He received the 1902 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine "for his work on malaria, by which he has shown how it enters the organism and thereby has laid the foundation for successful research on this disease and methods of combating it". His discovery of the malarial parasite in the gastrointestinal tract of a mosquito in 1897 proved that malaria was transmitted by mosquitoes, and laid the foundation for the method of combating the disease. Read more
16 Sep 1931: Omar Mukhtar, Libyan theorist and educator (born 1862) ʿUmar al-Mukhtār Muḥammad bin Farḥāt al-Manifī, called The Lion of the Desert, known among the colonial Italians as Matari of the Mnifa, was a Libyan revolutionary and Imam who led the native resistance in Cyrenaica under the Senussids, against the Italian colonization of Libya. A teacher-turned-general, Omar was a prominent figure of the Senussi movement and is considered the national hero of Libya and a symbol of resistance in the Arab and Islamic worlds. Beginning in 1911, he organised and led the Libyan resistance movement against the Italian colonial empire during the First and Second Italo-Senussi Wars. Externally, he also participated in armed opposition against the French in Chad and the British in Egypt. After many attempts, the Italian Armed Forces managed to capture Al-Mukhtar near Slonta when he was wounded in battle by Libyan colonial troops, and hanged him in 1931 after he refused to surrender. Read more
16 Sep 1925: Leo Fall, Czech-Austrian composer (born 1873) Leopold Fall was an Austrian Kapellmeister and composer of operettas. Read more
16 Sep 1925: Alexander Friedmann, Russian physicist and mathematician (born 1888) Alexander Alexandrovich Friedmann was a Russian and Soviet physicist and mathematician. He originated the pioneering theory that the universe is expanding, governed by a set of equations he developed known as the Friedmann equations. Read more
16 Sep 1919: Maria Nikiforova, Ukrainian anarchist partisan leader (born 1885) Maria Hryhorivna Nikiforova was a Ukrainian anarchist partisan leader who led the Black Guards during the Ukrainian War of Independence, becoming widely renowned as an atamansha. A self-described terrorist from the age of 16, she was imprisoned for her activities in Russia before managing to escape to western Europe. With the outbreak of World War I, she took up the defencist line and joined the French Foreign Legion on the Macedonian front before returning to Ukraine with the outbreak of the 1917 Revolution. Read more
16 Sep 1914: C. X. Larrabee, American businessman (born 1843) Charles Xavier Larrabee was an American businessman and a co-founder of the town of Fairhaven, Washington. Later in life, Larrabee and his wife Frances donated much land for civic purposes, including schools and parks, and were considered stewards of the city of Bellingham. Read more
16 Sep 1911: Edward Whymper, English-French mountaineer, explorer, and author (born 1840) Edward Whymper FRSE was an English mountaineer, explorer, illustrator, and author best known for the first ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865. Four members of his climbing party were killed during the descent. Whymper also made important first ascents on the Mont Blanc massif and in the Pennine Alps, Chimborazo in South America, and the Canadian Rockies. His exploration of Greenland contributed an important advance to Arctic exploration. Whymper wrote several books on mountaineering, including Scrambles Amongst the Alps. Read more
16 Sep 1898: Ramón Emeterio Betances, Puerto Rican surgeon and politician (born 1827) Ramón Emeterio Betances y Alacán was a Puerto Rican independence leader, abolitionist and medical doctor. He led the nation's independence movement and was the primary instigator of the Grito de Lares revolt and designer of the Lares flag. Betances is considered to be the father of the Puerto Rican revolutionary movement and El Padre de la Patria . His charitable deeds for people in need, earned him the moniker of El Médico de los Pobres . Read more
16 Sep 1896: Antônio Carlos Gomes, Brazilian composer (born 1836) Antônio Carlos Gomes was a Brazilian composer notable for being the first New World composer whose work was accepted by Europe. He was the only non-European who was successful as an opera composer in Italy, during the "golden age of opera" contemporary to Verdi and Puccini, and the first composer of non-European lineage to be accepted into the classic tradition of music. Read more
16 Sep 1896: Pavlos Kalligas, Greek jurist and politician, Foreign Minister of Greece (born 1814) Pavlos Kalligas was a Greek jurist, writer and politician. He served as a professor at the University of Athens; as Member and Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament; as cabinet minister for Foreign Affairs, Education, Finance and Justice; and chairman of the National Bank of Greece. Read more
16 Sep 1887: Sakaigawa Namiemon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 14th Yokozuna (born 1841) Sakaigawa Namiemon was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Katsushika District, Shimōsa Province. He was the sport's 14th yokozuna. Nicknamed "Tanikaze of the Meiji era", he's the only officially recognized yokozuna of the "yokozuna abuse era" following the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate. Read more
16 Sep 1865: Christian de Meza, Danish general (born 1792) Christian Julius de Meza was the commander of the Danish Army during the 1864 Second Schleswig War. De Meza was responsible for the withdrawal of the Danish army from the Danevirke, an event which shocked the Danish public and resulted in the loss of his command. Read more
16 Sep 1845: Thomas Davis, Irish poet and publisher (born 1814) Thomas Osborne Davis was an Irish writer; with Charles Gavan Duffy and John Blake Dillon, a founding editor of The Nation, the weekly organ of what came to be known as the Young Ireland movement. While embracing the common cause of a representative, national government for Ireland, Davis took issue with the nationalist leader Daniel O'Connell by arguing for the common ("mixed") education of Catholics and Protestants and by advocating for Irish as the national language Read more
16 Sep 1843: Ezekiel Hart, Canadian businessman and politician (born 1770) Ezekiel Hart was an entrepreneur and politician in British North America. He is often said to be the first Jew to be elected to public office in the British Empire. Read more
16 Sep 1824: Louis XVIII of France (born 1755) Louis XVIII, known as the Desired, was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 years in exile from France beginning in 1791, during the French Revolution and the First French Empire. Read more
16 Sep 1819: John Jeffries, American physician and surgeon (born 1744) John Jeffries was an American medical doctor, scientist, and military surgeon with the British Army in Nova Scotia and New York during the American Revolution. He is best known for accompanying French inventor Jean-Pierre Blanchard on his 1785 balloon flight across the English Channel. Read more
16 Sep 1803: Nicolas Baudin, French explorer, hydrographer, and cartographer (born 1754) Nicolas Thomas Baudin was a French explorer, cartographer, naturalist and hydrographer best known for his explorations of Australia and the southern Pacific Ocean. He carried a few corms of Gros Michel banana from Southeast Asia, depositing them at a botanical garden on the French colony of Martinique. Read more

Why is 16 September Important in History?

16 September is important because many political, cultural, scientific, educational and social events took place on this date. These facts are useful for students, exam aspirants and readers interested in daily history and general knowledge.

History of Today 16 September for Competitive Exams

Questions based on today in history, famous personalities, historical events and important dates are often asked in UPSC, SSC, Banking, Railway, Defence and State PSC examinations.

👉 View complete History of Today archive

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on 16 September in history?

On 16 September, many important historical events, famous births and notable deaths occurred across the world.

Why is History of Today important for exams?

History of Today helps students remember important dates, events and personalities for competitive exams like UPSC, SSC, Banking, Railway and PSC.

Where can I read daily history facts?

You can read daily history facts on this History of Today section, updated regularly with important events, births and deaths.