Famous Birthdays: April 2

Notable People Born Today includes:

• 742 – Charlemagne (Charles the Great) – King of the Franks and Lombards, later Holy Roman Emperor.

• 1416 – Sigismund Kęstutaitis – Grand Duke of Lithuania.

• 1565 – Cornelis de Houtman – Dutch explorer who led the first Dutch expedition to the East Indies.

• 1586 – Pietro della Valle – Italian traveler and composer.

• 1618 – Francesco Maria Grimaldi – Italian physicist and mathematician who studied the diffraction of light.

• 1723 – Giacomo Casanova – Italian adventurer and author.

• 1725 – Giacomo Casanova – Italian adventurer and author known for his memoirs.

• 1805 – Hans Christian Andersen – Danish author of fairy tales like The Little Mermaid and The Ugly Duckling.

• 1840 – Émile Zola – French novelist and key figure in the literary school of naturalism.

• 1862 – Nicholas Murray Butler – American philosopher and diplomat, Nobel Peace Prize winner (1931).

• 1875 – Walter Chrysler – American automotive industry executive, founder of Chrysler Corporation.

• 1891 – Max Ernst – German painter and sculptor, a pioneer of the Dada and Surrealist movements.

• 1902 – Jan Tschichold – German typographer and book designer.

• 1908 – Buddy Ebsen – American actor and dancer, known for The Beverly Hillbillies.

• 1914 – Alec Guinness – English actor, known for Star Wars and Bridge on the River Kwai.

• 1920 – Jack Webb – American actor, director, and producer, known for Dragnet.

• 1925 – George MacDonald Fraser – British author, known for the Flashman series.

• 1927 – Ferenc Puskás – Hungarian footballer, one of the greatest players of all time.

• 1934 – Paul Joseph Cohen – American mathematician, Fields Medal winner (1966).

• 1939 – Marvin Gaye – American singer-songwriter, known for hits like What’s Going On.

• 1942 – Roshan Seth – Indian actor, known for Gandhi and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

• 1947 – Emmylou Harris – American singer-songwriter and musician.

• 1959 – Juha Kankkunen – Finnish rally driver, four-time World Rally Champion.

• 1960 – Linford Christie – British sprinter, Olympic gold medalist.

• 1961 – Christopher Meloni – American actor, known for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

• 1966 – Teddy Sheringham – English footballer and former Manchester United player.

• 1971 – Todd Woodbridge – Australian tennis player, multiple Grand Slam doubles champion.

• 1975 – Pedro Pascal – Chilean-American actor, known for The Mandalorian and Game of Thrones.

• 1977 – Michael Fassbender – German-Irish actor, known for X-Men and 12 Years a Slave.

• 1982 – Marco Amelia – Italian footballer and goalkeeper.

• 1986 – Ibrahim Afellay – Dutch footballer and former Barcelona player.

• 1990 – Daisy Ridley – English actress, known for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

• 1992 – Christopher Briney – American actor, known for The Summer I Turned Pretty.