Today CCXXXI

Birthdays:

• Bernardo Pasquini, composer of opera and church music, December 7, 1637 - November 22, 1710


• Theodor Schwann, physiologist, histologist, and cytologist, among whose accomplishments in biology were the development of cell theory, the discovery of Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system, the discovery and study of pepsin, the discovery of the organic nature of yeast, and the invention of the term metabolism, December 7, 1810 - January 11, 1882


• Josef Hyrtl, anatomist, December 7, 1810 – July 17, 1894


• Leopold Kronecker, mathematician and logician, December 7, 1823 – December 29, 1891


• Pietro Mascagni, opera composer, December 7, 1863 – August 2, 1945


• Richard Warren Sears, manager, businessman, and the founder of Sears, Roebuck and Company with his partner Alvah C. Roebuck, December 7, 1863 – September 28, 1914


• Rudolf Friml, pianist and composer of operettas, musicals, and songs, December 7, 1879 - November 12, 1972


• Ernst Toch, composer of classical music and film scores, December 7, 1887 - October 1, 1964


• Danilo Blanuša, mathematician, physicist, engineer, and professor at the University of Zagreb, who became famous for discovering the second and third known snarks in 1946, triggering a new area of graph theory, December 7, 1903 - August 8, 1987


• Gerrit Pieter Kuiper, aka Gerard Peter Kuiper, astronomer, Dec 7, 1905 – Dec 23, 1973


• Louis Prima, entertainer, singer, actor, trumpeter, and voice actor, started with a seven-piece New Orleans style jazz band in the 1920s, then led a Swing combo in the 1930s, a Big Band in the 1940s, a hot Vegas lounge act in the 1950s, and a pop-Rock go-go band in the 1960s; his hoarse voice and scat singing showed many of the same influences as his fellow New Orleans musician, Louis Armstrong; appeared in several Hollywood movies; his act with his fourth wife, Keely Smith, was possibly the model for Sonny and Cher; in 1967, was the voice of the orangutan King Louie in the Disney film The Jungle Book, and made two albums with Phil Harris: The Jungle Book and More Jungle Book, December 7, 1910 – August 24, 1978


• Daniel Jones OBE, composer of classical music, December 7, 1912 – April 23, 1993


• Eli Herschel Wallach, film, TV, and stage actor, who made his Broadway debut in 1945, and won a Tony Award in 1951 for his performance in The Rose Tattoo; he appeared in such films as The Misfits, The Magnificent Seven, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, 1915


• Jean Carignan, fiddler, December 7, 1916 – February 16, 1988


• Bent Fabricius-Bjerre, aka Bent Fabric, jazz and pop pianist and composer, 1924


• Helen Watts CBE, contralto opera singer, 1927


• Harold Wayne HAL Smith, former MLB utility player, from 1955 to 1964, 1930


• Edna Rae Gillooly , aka Ellen Burstyn , actress, who debuted on Broadway in 1957 and, in 1975, won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her performance in Same Time, Next Year; in 1990, she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre; she won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1974 for her performance in the movie Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, 1932


• Harry Chapin, singer, songwriter, and humanitarian, who originally intended to be a documentary film-maker, and directed Legendary Champions in 1968, which was nominated for a documentary Academy Award; in 1971, he decided to focus on music, December 7, 1942 – July 16, 1981


• Alexander ALEX Johnson, former MLB outfielder and designated hitter over parts of 13 seasons, 1964 to 1976; he won the 1970 American League Batting Championship, 1942


• Daniel Walter Chorzempa, organist, and composer of electronic music, 1944


• Marion Rung, pop singer, 1945


• John Lee Bench, former MLB catcher, elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989, 1947


• Charles Anthony TONY Thomas , TV and film producer, who produced such TV series as Nurses, Blossom, Empty Nest, Benson, Beauty and the Beast, and The Golden Girls, as well as Dead Poets Society; he is the son of Danny Thomas, and the younger brother of Marlo Thomas, 1947


• Mads Vinding, jazz bassist, 1948


• Thomas Alan Waits, singer-songwriter, composer, and actor, 1949


• Priscilla Barnes, actress, who replaced Suzanne Somers on Three's Company, 1955


• Christopher Thomas [C. Thomas] Howell, actor, 1966


• Constantino TINO Martinez, retired MLB first baseman, 1967


• Vladimir Akopian, chess Grandmaster, who won the World Under-16 Championship at the age of 14, and the World Under-18 Championship at 16, 1971


• Tiffany Anne Jones, aka Chasey Lain, actress, 1971


• Shiri Freda Appleby, actress, known for her role as Liz Parker on Roswell, 1978

R.I.P.:

• Adrian Willaert, composer of the Renaissance, and founder of the Venetian School, c. 1490 – December 7, 1562


• Vice-Admiral William Bligh, FRS, RN, officer of the British Royal Navy and colonial administrator, best known for the famous mutiny that occurred against his command, September 9, 1754 – December 7, 1817


• Élie Ducommun, journalist and peace activist, who shared the 1902 Nobel Peace Prize with Charles Albert Gobat, February 19, 1833 – December 7, 1906


• Nicholas Murray Butler, philosopher, diplomat, and educator, who shared the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize with Jane Addams, April 2, 1862 – December 7, 1947


• Clara Haskil, classical pianist, January 7, 1895 - December 7, 1960


• Francis Joseph LEFTY O'Doul, MLB player a successful manager in the minor leagues, and a major figure in the establishment of professional baseball in Japan; eginning his career as a left-handed pitcher before converting to a left fielder, he won the National League Batting Championship in 1929 and 1932, March 4, 1897 - December 7, 1969


• Reuben Garret L. RUBE Goldberg, cartoonist, cofounder and president of the American National Cartoonists Society, July 4, 1883 - December 7, 1970


• Thornton Wilder, playwright and novelist; in 1927, The Bridge of San Luis Rey brought him commercial success, and his first Pulitzer Prize in 1928; in 1938 and 1943, he won the Pulitzer Prize for drama for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975


• Peter Carl Goldmark, engineer who, during his time with Columbia Records, was instrumental in developing the 33-1/3 rpm LP vinyl record, December 2, 1906 – December 7, 1977


• William Dee "Haystack" [or "Haystacks"] Calhoun, professional wrestler, August 3, 1934 – December 7, 1989


• Joan Geraldine Bennett, film actress, who achieved further success later in life as a television actress, February 27, 1910 – December 7, 1990


• Jean-Claude [J.C.] Tremblay, NHL defenceman, January 22, 1939 - December 7, 1994


• Frederick Fennell, conductor, a leading figure in promoting the wind ensemble as a performing group, July 2, 1914 – December 7, 2004


• Jerry Scoggins, country singer and guitarist, who performed in radio, movies, and television from the 1930's onward; he was known for singing The Ballad of Jed Clampett, the theme song of The Beverly Hillbillies sitcom; Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs played guitar and banjo, and he sang the lyrics, 1913 - December 7, 2004