Aviator Charles Lindbergh became famous for making the first solo transatlantic airplane flight in 1927.
1902-1974
Laura Linney is an American actress known for performances in such films as Lorenzo's Oil and Hyde Park on Hudson, and for her starring role on the television series The Big C.
1964-
Singer Claudine Longet recorded seven albums from 1966 to 1972 and user her popularity to transition into an acting career. She murdered her boyfriend in 1976.
1942-
Audre Lorde wrote the poetry collections From a Land Where Other People Live (1973) and The Black Unicorn (1978), as well as memoirs like A Burst of Light (1988).
1934-1992
American diving champion Greg Louganis won 13 world championships and made history at the 1982 Olympics as the first diver ever awarded a perfect score.
1960-
Louis XV was king of France from 1715 to 1774. He is best known for contributing to the decline of royal authority that led to the French Revolution in 1789.
1710-1774
1874-1925
1961-
Ida Lupino was a famous mid-20th century film actress who was also a trailblazing director and producer in a male-dominated industry.
1918-1995
John Lydon, a.k.a. Johnny Rotten, was the lead singer and front man for the English punk rock band the Sex Pistols.
1956-
David Lynch is a film director and screenwriter known for his dark, offbeat films, notable Blue Velvet and Eraserhead
.
1946-
1881-1955
Douglas MacArthur was an American general best known for his command of Allied forces in the Pacific Theater during World War II.
1880-1964
Sean MacBride was an Irish politician and the former chief of staff of the IRA
1904-1988
English actor Patrick Macnee is best known for playing secret agent John Steed in the 1960s television series The Avengers.
1922-
Bill Maher is an American comedian, talk show host and political commentator.
1956-
Author Norman Mailer used a style combining fiction and journalism to write the Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Executioner's Song.
1923-2007
Lee Boyd Malvo was one of the vicious snipers who bred fear in the Washington, D.C. area for more than 20 days in 2002.
1985-
Edouard Manet was a French painter who depicted everyday scenes of people and city life. He was a leading artist in the transition from realism to impressionism.
1832-1883
American producer, director and screenwriter Joseph L. Mankiewicz was known for creating memorable characters. He worked with many major Hollywood stars.
1909-1993
Michael Mann in an Emmy Award-winning film director, producer and screenwriter best known for producing the 1980s crime series, Miami Vice.
1943-
Carlos Marcello was best known as the mob boss of New Orleans, and for the FBI's investigation of his possible involvement in JFK's assassination.
1910-1993
French-American actor and model, Gilles Marini, finished second place on the eighth season of dance-competition show Dancing with the Stars.
1976-
A co-founder of Apple Computers Inc., Mike Markkula laid the groundwork for the company's success with his management and marketing vision.
1942-
Philip Markoff answered a Craigslist ad for massage services, met a masseuse/former call girl, and killed her, becoming known as the "Craigslist killer."
1986-2010
Jamaican singer, musician and songwriter Bob Marley served as a world ambassador for reggae music and sold more than 20 million records throughout his career—making him the first international superstar to emerge from the so-called Third World.
1945-1981
A poet and a journalist, José Martí spent his short life fighting for Cuban independence. He died in 1895 during a failed attempt to win freedom for Cuba.
1853-1895
Nick Mason was a founding member and drummer of the British psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd.
1944-
1663-1728
1913-1999
1874-1965
Lois Maxwell was an actress best known for her role as Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond film series.
1927-2007
Michael McDonald is an American singer and songwriter best known as a former member of Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers.
1952-
John McEnroe is a world champion tennis player famous for his temperamental outbursts. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1999.
1959-
William McKinley is best known for being president when the United States acquired Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines.
1843-1901
Founder of female musician showcase Lilith Fair, McLachlan's emotional ballads include "I Will Remember You," "Sweet Surrender," "Adia" and "Angel".
1968-
Recording artist and fashion designer Malcolm McLaren came to fame as manager of the Sex Pistols. Later, he recorded several albums of his own material.
1946-2010
Dmitri Mendeleyev was a Russian chemist who developed the periodic classification of the elements.
1834-1907
1809-1847
Thomas Merton was a Trappist monk who was a revered pacifist and author, with works like Seven Storey Mountain and Thoughts in Solitude.
1915-1968
A high-profile trainer and life coach, Jillian Michaels starred on the reality TV show The Biggest Loser and has created her own fitness franchise.
1974-
1932-
1907-1997
1896-1927
Sara Jane Moore gained national notoriety in 1975, when she attempted to assassinate President Gerald Ford outside a San Francisco hotel.
1930-
Thomas H. Moorer was a U.S. Navy admiral and naval aviator who later served as chief of naval operations (1967-70), and then as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1970-4).
1912-2004
Thomas More is known for his 1516 book Utopia and for his untimely death in 1535, after refusing to acknowledge King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England. He was canonized by the Catholic Church as a saint in 1935.
1478-1535
1734-1806
Toni Morrison is a Nobel Prize- and Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist. Among her best known novels are The Bluest Eye, Song of Solomon and Beloved.
1931-
1915-1991
A prolific artist, Austrian composer Wolfgang Mozart created a string of operas, concertos, symphonies and sonatas that profoundly shaped classical music.
1756-1791
Photographer Nickolas Muray was famous for his portraits of Hollywood beauties, his fabulous fencing skills and his romance with artist Frida Kahlo.
1892-1965
Luis Muñoz Marín was Puerto Rico's first governor, serving four terms.
1898-1980
Sarojini Naidu was an India political leader best known as the first female President of the India National Congress.
1879-1949
Graham Nash's vocals and songwriting talents helped make Crosby, Stills and Nash one of the most popular folk-rock bands of all time.
1942-
1950-
Patricia Neil was an American film and stage actress who is best known for her performances in The Day The Earth Stood Still and Breakfast at Tiffany's.
1926-2010
Vince Neil is the lead singer of Mötley Crüe and a reality TV show veteran.
1961-
Leslie Neilsen was an actor known for his deadpan comic delivery in such films as Airplane! and The Naked Gun
.
1926-2010
R&B talent Marc Nelson co-founded Boyz II Men but quit before they hit it big. He continued on as a solo artist and songwriter for well-known performers.
1971-
1687-1753
Paul Newman came to be known as one of the finest actors of his time. He also started the Newman's Own food company, which donates all profits to charity.
1925-2008
Huey P. Newton was an African-American activist best known for founding the militant Black Panther Party in 1966, along with co-founder Bobby Seale.
1942-1989
Professional golfer Jack Nicklaus, nicknamed "the Golden Bear," won the U.S. Open four times and the Professional Golfers Association championship five times.
1940-
Organized crime figure Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti was a member of Al Capone’s Chicago gang, and the front man for Capone’s empire when Capone was imprisoned.
1886-1943
Actor Nick Nolte made it big in the 1980s with such films as 48 Hours, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, and The Prince of Tides.
1941-
Manuel Noriega was the military ruler of Panama who ran a corrupt puppet government there until the United States drove him out in 1990.
1934-
Despite his successes, Australian golfer Greg Norman earned a reputation for his inability to sustain leads in several major tournaments.
1955-
Film actress Kim Novak was a leading box-office attraction of the 1950s, perhaps the last of the ‘sex goddesses’ produced by the Hollywood star system.
1933-
1935-
1957-
Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon led the Houston Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships during the peak of his magnificent 18-year professional career.
1963-
Sportscaster and newscaster Keith Olbermann is best known for hosting ESPN's SportsCenter and his own MSNBC/Current TV nightly news program, Countdown with Keith Olbermann.
1959-
Elizabeth Olsen is best known for being the younger sister of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, and for acting in the film Martha Marcy May Marlene.
1989-
Yoko Ono is a multimedia artist who became known worldwide in the 1960s when she married Beatles front man John Lennon.
1933-
Fighter Victor Ortiz is an American boxer who won the welterweight title in 2011.
1987-
James Otis was a lawyer in colonial Massachusetts who is best remembered for the phrase, "Taxation without representation is tyranny."
1725-1783
1900-1957
Thomas Paine was an English American writer and pamphleteer whose "Common Sense" and other writings influenced the American Revolution, and helped pave the way for the Declaration of Independence.
1737-1809
Jack Palance was an American actor best known for playing villainous roles in the 1960s and for his award-winning appearance in the film City Slickers.
1919-2006
Sarah Palin, McCain's 2008 running mate, is the second woman and first Republican female to run for vice president on a U.S. major party's ticket.
1964-
1864-1944
1890-1960
Anna Pavlova was a famous Russian prima ballerina and choreographer. The company she founded in 1911 was the first to tour ballet around the world.
1881-1931
1795-1869
1962-
Steve Perry was the lead singer of pop rock band Journey from 1977 to 1986. He is known for having a wide vocal range, which can be heard on such popular hits as "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Oh Sherrie."
1949-
1931-
1943-
Alexei Petrovich was the son of Peter the Great and heir to the Russian throne. He was sentenced to death by his father.
1690-1718
Lou Diamond Phillips is an actor best known for his his work in films such as La Bamba, Stand and Deliver, and Young Guns.
1962-
1941-2006
Suzanne Pleshette was an Emmy Award-nominated actress known for roles in films like The Geisha Boy and The Birds, as well as the television series The Bob Newhart Show.
1937-2008
Fritz Pollard was the first African American to play in the Rose Bowl, the first African-American NFL coach and one of the NFL's first black players.
1894-1986
Famous 20th century artist Jackson Pollock revolutionized the world of modern art with his unique abstract painting techniques.
1912-1956
1949-
1851-1913
Rabbi and author Chaim Potok wrote The Chosen, along with several other novels featuring characters grappling with clashing secular and religious views.
1929-2002
Terence Powderly served as union leader of the Knights of Labor from 1879 to 1893. Under his leadership, the union saw both unprecedented growth and sudden decline.
1849-1924
Canadian poet E.J. Pratt is the author of several collections of verse, including The Titans (1926) and Brébeuf and His Brethren (1940).
1882-1964