Today LXI

Birthdays:

• Blaise Pascal, mathematician, physicist, and religious philosopher, whose earliest work was in the natural and applied sciences, where he made important contributions to the construction of mechanical calculators and the study of fluids, and clarified the concepts of pressure and vacuum; also writing in defense of the scientific method, June 19, 1623 – August 19, 1662


• Jan Václav Stamic, aka Johann Wenzel Anton Stamitz, composer and violinist, father of composers Carl and Anton Stamitz, June 19, 1717 – March 27, 1757


• Cornelius Krieghoff, painter, most famous for his paintings of Canadian landscapes and Canadian life outdoors, particularly in the winter, June 19, 1815 – March 8, 1872


• Mary Louise Whitty, aka Dame May Whitty DBE, Oscar-nominated theatre and cinema actress, June 19, 1865 – May 29, 1948


• Charles Douville Coburn, Academy Award-winning film and theater actor, grandfather of James Coburn; in the 1940's, served as vice-president of the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideas, a right-wing group opposed to the presence of Communists in Hollywood; his virulent leadership of the blacklist of anyone with any connection to Fascism led to many talented actors, writers and directors driven from Hollywood and deprived of their livelihood, June 19, 1877 – August 30, 1961


• Harry Moses Horwitz, aka Moe Howard, comedian, actor, and leader of The Three Stooges, June 19, 1897 – May 4, 1975


• Gaetano Alberto GUY Lombardo, bandleader and violinist; with his three brothers and other musicians from his hometown of London, Ontario, he formed the big band The Royal Canadians in 1924, June 19, 1902 – November 5, 1977


• Henry Louis LOU Gehrig, MLB first baseman who played his entire career for the New York Yankees; between 1925 and 1939, he played in 2,130 consecutive games; he was known as the "Iron Horse" for his durability, June 19, 1903 — June 2, 1941


• Sir Ernst Boris Chain, biochemist, co-recipient of the 1945 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for his work on penicillin, June 19, 1906 – August 12, 1979


• Julius JULIE Schwartz, comic book and pulp magazine editor, science fiction agent, and fan, June 19, 1915 – February 8, 2004


• Pauline Kael, film critic, June 19, 1919 – September 3, 2001


• Louis Gendre, aka Louis Jourdan, actor, 1919


• Nancy Marchand, actress, June 19, 1928 – June 18, 2000


• Tommy DeVito, musician and singer, best-known as the lead guitarist of The Four Seasons, 1928


• Virginia Cathryn GENA Rowlands, actress, 1930


• Anna Maria Pierangeli, aka Pier Angeli, actress, June 19, 1932 – September 10, 1971


• Marisa Pierangeli, aka Marisa Pavan, actress, twin sister of Pier Angeli,
  1932


• Aung San Suu Kyi, nonviolent pro-democracy activist and leader of the National League for Democracy in Myanmar (Burma); won the Rafto Prize and the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 1990 and the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize for her peaceful and non-violent struggle under a repressive military dictatorship, 1945


• Ahmed SALMAN Rushdie, essayist and author of fiction, most of which is set on the Indian subcontinent; after death threats and a fatwa by Ruhollah Khomeini, calling for his assassination, he spent years underground, appearing in public only sporadically, 1947


• Phylicia Ayers-Allen Rashad, actress and activist, known for her role as Claire Huxtable on The Cosby Show, 1948


• Ann Dustin Wilson, lead singer and flute player for Heart, 1950


• Mary KATHLEEN Turner, actress, 1954

RIP:

• Sir James Matthew 'J. M.' Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM, novelist and dramatist, creator of Peter Pan, May 9, 1860 – June 19, 1937


• Ethel Greenglass Rosenberg, September 28, 1915 – June 19, 1953, and Julius Rosenberg, May 12, 1918 – June 19, 1953, American citizens and Communist Party members who were tried, convicted, and executed for spying for the Soviet Union; the couple was charged with conspiracy to commit espionage and of passing nuclear weapons secrets to Russian agents; the accuracy of these charges remains controversial


• Thomas John Watson, Sr., founder of IBM, February 17, 1874 – June 19, 1956


• Isaiah Edwin Leopold, aka Ed Wynn, comedian and entertainer, also wrote, directed, and produced many shows, November 9, 1886 - June 19, 1966


• Sir William Gerald Golding, novelist, poet, and winner of the 1983 Nobel Prize for Literature, best known for his Lord of the Flies, September 19, 1911 – June 19, 1993