Today CLXXVII

Birthdays:

• Robert Simson, mathematician and professor of mathematics, whose contributions to mathematical knowledge took the form of critical editions and commentaries on the works of the ancient geometers, October 14, 1687 – October 1, 1768


• Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau, physicist, graduated as a doctor of physical and mathematical sciences; in 1836, he invented an early stroboscopic device, the phenakistiscope, consisting of two disks, one with small equidistant radial windows, through which the viewer could look, and another containing a sequence of images - when the two disks rotated at the correct speed, the synchronization of the windows and the images created an animated effect - the projection of stroboscopic photographs, creating the illusion of motion, eventually led to the development of movies, October 14, 1801 - September 15, 1883


• Joseph JOE Start, one of the biggest stars of baseball's earliest era, the top first baseman of his time, October 14, 1842 - March 27, 1927


• Elwood Haynes, inventor; in the early 1890's, he began working on an idea for a new method of travel — a horseless carriage powered by an internal combustion engine; he also invented the thermostat that is used in homes, the muffler, and stainless, October 14, 1857 - 1925


• Dwight David Eisenhower, aka Ike, 34th president of the United States, October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969


• Lillian Diana de Guiche, aka Lillian Gish, actress, October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993


• Edward Estlin [E. E.] Cummings, poet, painter, essayist, and playwright, best known for his poems and their unorthodox usage of capitalization, layout, punctuation, and syntax;
  received numerous awards in recognition of his work; his paintings were placed in a number of shows during his lifetime, October 14, 1894 – September 3, 1962


• Allan Jones, actor and singer, the romantic straight man to the Marx Brothers in A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races, father of singer Jack Jones, October 14, 1907 – January 27, 1992


• Phan Dinh Khai, aka Le Duc Tho, revolutionary, general, diplomat, and politician; he and Henry Kissinger were jointly awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize, but Le refused to accept the prize, on the stated grounds that his country was not yet at peace, October 14, 1911 – October 13, 1990


• Raymond Davis, Jr., Ph.D., chemist and physicist, shared the 2002 Nobel Prize in Physics with Masatoshi Koshiba and Riccardo Giacconi for pioneering contributions to astrophysics, October 14, 1914 – May 31, 2006


• Harry David Brecheen, MLB left-handed pitcher, who played his entire career for St. Louis teams; he was a two-time All-Star; following his playing career, he remained with the St. Louis Browns when they became the Baltimore Orioles, and was their pitching coach from 1954 to 1967, October 14, 1914 - January 17, 2004


• Charles Everett [C. Everett] Koop, M.D., physician, who served as the Surgeon General of the United States from 1982 to 1989, 1916


• William E. BILL Justis, Jr., pioneer Rock and Roll musician, composer, record producer, and musical arranger, best known for his 1957 song Raunchy, the first Rock and Roll instrumental hit, October 14, 1926 – July 15, 1982


• Sir Roger George Moore, KBE, actor, best known for portraying Simon Templar, on The Saint TV series, and the title role in James Bond films from 1973 to 1985 - I never liked him as James Bond, 1927


• Yvon Durelle, professional boxer, forme Canadian Middleweight and Light-heavyweight Champion, amd British Empire Champion, 1929


• La Monte Young, composer, 1935


• Pierre PERRIE Mans, retired [left-handed] professional snooker player, who first won the South African professional championship in 1965, winning it a total of 19, 1940


• Harry Rodger Webb, aka Sir Cliff Richard OBE, singer and pop star, 1940


• Christopher Timothy, actor, best known for his portrayal of veterinarian James Herriot in the television series All Creatures Great and Small, 1940


• David JUSTIN Hayward, musician, best known as singer, guitarist, and composer for The Moody Blues, 1946


• Albert Oliver, Jr., former MLB left-handed outfielder, who played for 18 years; he was a seven-time All-Star, in 1972, 1975, 1976, and 1980 to 1983; he was the NL Batting Champion in 1982; he won a Silver Slugger Award for three straight years [1980 to 1982] at three different positions, 1946


• Harry Anderson, actor and magician, known for the role of Judge Harold T. Stone on the TV series Night Court; he had a recurring guest role as con man Harry the Hat on Cheers, 1952


• Katy Manning, actress, played Jo Grant on Doctor Who from 1971 to 1973, 1949


• Thomas Morgan Robertson, aka Thomas Dolby, musician, music producer, inventor, and entrepreneur, whose company created the polyphonic ringtone software used in cellphones, 1958


• Jaan Ehlvest, chess player, became a Grandmaster in 1987, 1962


• Joseph Elliot JOE Girardi, former MLB catcher, the former manager of the Florida Marlins, 1964


• Patrick Franklin PAT Kelly, former MLB infielder,who played for nine seasons, 1967


• David Gordon Strickland, Jr., actor, October 14, 1969 – March 22, 1999


• Natalie Louise Maines, country music singer and songwriter, who joined The Dixie Chicks in 1995; she is the lead singer, and plays acoustic guitar, electric guitar, electric bass, and omnichord, 1974


• Jessica Drake, actress, 1976


• Henry Antonio Mateo, outfielder for the Washington Nationals, currently playing for their minor league affiliate New Orleans Zephyrs, 1976


• Paul Alan Hunter, professional snooker player, October 14, 1978 – October 9, 2006


• Ryan Church, MLB outfielder, who currently plays for the Washington Nationals, 1978


• Stacy Ann-Marie Keibler, actress and former professional wrestling personality, 1979


• Vanessa Lane, actress and exotic dancer, 1983

RIP:

• Jacques [or Jacob] Arcadelt, composer of the middle to late Renaissance, published 24 motets, 3 books of masses, 126 French chansons, and over 200 madrigals, 1504 or 1505 – October 14, 1568


• Antonio Cesti, composer, tenor, and organist, baptised August 5, 1623 – October 14, 1669


• Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn, film actor, famous for his romantic swashbuckler roles and flamboyant lifestyle, June 20, 1909 – October 14, 1959


• Dame Edith Mary Evans DBE, actress, February 8, 1888 – October 14, 1976


• Harry Lillis BING Crosby, singer and actor, May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977


• Sir Martin Ryle, radio astronomer who developed revolutionary radio telescope systems, and used them for accurate location and imaging of weak radio sources; he shared the 1974 Nobel Prize for Physics with Antony Hewish, September 27, 1918 – October 14, 1984


• Emil Grigoryevich Gilels, classical pianist, October 19, 1916 – October 14, 1985


• Francis Xavier Aloysius James Jeremiah KEENAN Wynn, character actor, July 27, 1916 – October 14, 1986


• Leonard Bernstein, composer, pianist, conductor, and educator, known for his conducting of the New York Philharmonic, including the acclaimed Young People's Concerts series, and his multiple compositions, including West Side Story, Candide, and On The Town; wrote three symphonies, two operas, five musicals, and numerous other pieces; on November 13, 1943, having recently been appointed assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, he made his conducting debut when Bruno Walter fell ill; Music Director of the New York Philharmonic from 1958 until 1969; in the late 1950's, became well-known figure for his series of fifty-three televised Young People's Concerts; in 1970, began conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, with which he recorded many pieces, including sets of the complete symphonies of Beethoven, Mahler, Brahms, and Schumann; on PBS in the 1980's , he was the conductor and commentator for a special series on Beethoven's music, which featured the Vienna Philharmonic playing all nine Beethoven symphonies, several of his overtures, and the Missa Solemni; won multiple Grammy and Tony Awards, August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990


• Francis Kane, adopted as Harold Rubin, aka Harold Robbins, author, May 21, 1916 – October 14, 1997


• Cleveland Amory, author, TV critic, and animal rights activist, co-founded the Humane Society of the United States, September 2, 1917 - October 14, 1998


• Frankie Yankovic, polka musician, accordionist known as America's Polka King, July 15, 1915 - October 14, 1998


• Patrick Dalzel-Job, Naval Intelligence Officer, World War II commando, linguist, author, mariner, navigator, parachutist, diver, and skier, thought to be one of the main inspirations for Ian Fleming's character James Bond, June 1, 1913 - October 14, 2003