Famous April Birthdays a to z

Scottish actor John Hannah played a supporting role opposite Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell in Four Weddings and a Funeral and was also in Sliding Doors.

Mass murderer Eric Harris and his friend Dylan Klebold killed themselves, 13 people and wounded more than 20 others at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999.

In 1982, Jean Harris shot and killed author and cardiologist Herman Tarnower, who wrote the international best-seller The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet.

American actress Melissa Joan Hart starred on the television shows Clarissa Explains It All and Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and began performing on the TV series Melissa & Joey in 2010.

Seamus Henry is a renowned Irish poet and professor who won the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.

William Randolph Hearst is best known for publishing the largest chain of American newspapers in the late 19th century, and particularly for sensational "yellow journalism."

Hugh Hefner created the adult entertainment magazine Playboy. Today, the Playboy brand includes an extensive publishing, TV and internet empire.

Sonja Henie was a Norwegian figure skater who won three Olympic gold medals. After retiring from skating, she acted in Hollywood films like The Thin Ice.

English poet George Herbert was an ordained priest. His book, The Temple: Sacred Poems and Private Ejaculations, was published posthumously.

Adolf Hitler appointed Rudolf Hess deputy of the Nazi party in 1939. Following World War II, Hess was convicted at the Nuremberg Trials and sentenced to life in prison.

Hirohito is best known for being Japan's longest-reigning emperor. His reign lasted from 1926 until his death in 1989. He was a controversial leader who led Japan's military to surrender to the Allied Forces in 1945.

Christopher Hitchens was a controversial, thought-provoking British-American writer who covered a range of serious topics, including art and atheism.

Adolf Hitler was the leader of Nazi Germany from 1934 to 1945. He initiated World War II and oversaw fascist policies that resulted in millions of deaths.

Thomas Hobbes, an English philosopher in the 17th century, was best known for his book Leviathan (1651) and his political views on society.

William Holden was an actor who perfected the role of the cynic who acts heroically in spite of his scorn or pessimism.

Billie Holiday was one of the most influential jazz singers of all time. She had a thriving career for many years before she lost her battle with addiction.

Academy Award-winning actress Celeste Holm is known for her roles in the 1943 Broadway musical Oklahoma! and the film Gentleman's Agreement.

Bernardo Alberto Houssay was an Argentinian doctor whose research on the role of pituitary hormones regulating blood sugar won him a Nobel Prize.

Kate Hudson is an actress and the daughter of actress-producer Goldie Hawn and Bill Hudson, a television comedian. She played Penny in the film Almost Famous.

Dolores Huerta is an activist and labor leader who co-founded what would become the United Farm Workers.

During his career, jurist Charles Hughes became the governor of New York, U.S. secretary of state and the 11th Supreme Court justice.

Linda Hunt is a diminutive actress best known for her role as Billy Kwan in The Year of Living Dangerously.

Sam Huntington is an American actor who got his big break in 2006, playing Clark Kent’s sweet and innocent sidekick, Jimmy Olsen, in Superman Returns.

Samuel P. Huntington was a political scientist who wrote the influential book The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order.

A in-demand fashion model, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley has appeared in top magazines, countless ad campaigns and 2011's Transformers: Dark of the Moon movie.

As dictator of Iraq, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, leading to the Persian Gulf War in 1992. His downfall was a direct effect of the Iraq War, initiated by the U.S. in 2003. Hussein was executed in 2006.

Kim Il-sung was the leader of North Korea from 1948 until his death in 1994, heading a communist and highly militaristic administration.

Cuban born writer Guillermo Infante was a success for many works, including Tres tristes tigres, winning the Miguel Cervantes literary prize in 1997.

Washington Irving was a popular 19th century American author, best known for the stories Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

J.J. Jackson was disc jockey, television personality and one of the first VJs (video jockeys) on MTV.

Paris Michael Katherine Jackson is the second child and only daughter of pop legend Michael Jackson.

An American novelist and naturalized Englishman, Henry James was an important figure in transatlantic literary culture of the day.

Jesse James was CEO of West Coast Choppers before it closed in 2010, and was in a heavily publicized relationship with actress Sandra Bullock.

Comedian and actor Kevin James is best known for his nine-season turn as Doug Heffernan on the CBS sitcom, The King of Queens.

Porn star Jenna Jameson escaped a bad childhood by making dozens of X-rated movies. She parlayed that success into an adult media empire.

Thomas Jefferson was a draftsman of the Declaration of Independence and the third U.S. president (1801-09). He was also responsible for the Louisiana Purchase.

Actor Richard Jeni was best known as a popular stand-up comedian, appearing often on television comedy shows, including a few of his own HBO comedy specials.

Haley Joe Osment is an American actor best known for his role in The Sixth Sense with Bruce Willis.

Robert L. Johnson is an American entrepreneur best known as the founder of the BET channel and as the country’s first African-American billionaire.

William Joyce is best known for his involvement in the British Fascist Party during World War II and immigrating to Nazi Germany.

Actress Ashley Judd starred in films Kiss the Girls and Double Jeopardy. She is also the daughter and sister of country music duo The Judds.

Augustus D. Juilliard was a successful businessman whose 1919 bequest for music education led to the creation of the acclaimed Juilliard School.

African-American chemist Percy Julian was a pioneer in the chemical synthesis of medicinal drugs such as cortisone, steroids and birth control pills.

First female politician,attorney to serve as solicitor general of the United States of America.

Professional soccer player Kaká helped São Paulo take home the World Cup title in 2002. He later lead Milan to Champions League and Club World Cup titles.

Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher during the Enlightenment era of the late 18th century. His best known work is the Critique of Pure Reason.

Kourtney Kardashian, sister of Kim Kardashian, has starred in the reality TV show Keeping Up with the Kardashians and its spin-offs with boyfriend Scott Disick.

Raden Adjeng Kartini is a Javanese noblewoman and is best known as a pioneer in the area of women's rights for native Indonesians.

W.K. Kellogg founded the Kellogg Company, which makes cereal products that have become popular around the world.

Ethel Kennedy is best known as the widow of Robert F. Kennedy, the former U.S. Attorney General and New York Senator who was assassinated in 1968.

Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev publicized Stalin's crimes, initiated the Cuban Missile Crisis and established a more open form of Communism in the USSR.

Coretta Scott King was an American civil rights activist and the wife of 1960s civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

When a mostly white jury acquitted the police officers who were caught on video beating Rodney King, it set off the L.A. riots of 1992.

American novelist and social activist Barbara Kingsolver wrote the best-selling novel The Poisonwood Bible. She was awarded the National Humanities Medal.

Jack Klugman is an American actor best known for his role as Oscar Madison in the Broadway play The Odd Couple and the TV series of the same name.

Actress Keisha Knight Pulliam is best known for her portrayal of Rudy Huxtable on The Cosby Show.

Helmut Kohl served as chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1988, during which time he oversaw the reunification of East and West Germany.

Tim LaHaye is an evangelical Christian minister who helped found the Moral Majority and co-wrote the best-selling Left Behind series.

American Football Hall of Famer Curly Lambeau founded the Green Bay Packers and coached the team to six NFL championships.

Jessica Lange is an award-winning American actress best known for her roles in King Kong, Tootsie and Grey Gardens.

Adam Lanza shot and killed 20 first-graders and six adults at Sandy Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14, 2012, before shooting himself.

Comedian Martin Lawrence got hist start hosting HBO's Def Comedy Jam before appearing in movies like Bad Boys and Big Momma's House.

Best known as Enron business executive who was convicted of conspiracy and fraud. 20,000 Enron employees lost their jobs and life savings.

American actress Cloris Leachman has had a long, successful career in television and film, playing a range of dramatic and comedic roles.

Michael Learned is an Emmy Award-winning American actress best known for her role on the long-running television drama The Waltons.

Heath Ledger was an Academy Award-winning, Australian actor best known for his roles in Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight. He died of an accidental prescription drug overdose in 2008.

Harper Lee is best known for writing the Pulitzer Prize-winning best-seller To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)—her one and only published novel.

British-American actress Jane Leeves played Daphne on the Emmy Award-winning NBC sitcom Frasier, and began playing Joy on TV Land's Hot in Cleveland in 2010.

Vladimir Lenin was founder of the Russian Communist Party, leader of the Bolshevik Revolution and architect and first head of the Soviet state.

Musician Julian Lennon is the child of John Lennon, a founding member of The Beatles, and his first wife. One of his better know songs is Too Late For Goodbyes.

Jay Leno is the late-night talk show host of The Tonight Show. Fallon announced plans to exit the long-running series in April 2013.

Comedian and late-night talk show host David Letterman is known for his irreverent sense of humor and cynical, mocking style.

Rita Levi-Montalcini shared the 1986 Nobel Prize for physiology or medicine for her part in the discovery of a protein that stimulates nerve cell growth.

Al Lewis was an entertainer who was best known for his role as Grandpa, the elderly vampire in a family of monsters, in the 1964 sitcom The Munsters.

Jet Li is an actor and martial artist who has starred in a number of Chinese and English-language action films.

British surgeon and medical scientist Joseph Lister is regarded as the founder of antiseptic medicine, which he implemented with amputee patients.

Viola Gregg Liuzzo was an activist in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. She was murdered by members of the Ku Klux Klan for her efforts.

Comedian Harold Lloyd was a star of silent film era, appearing in notable movies Just Nuts, Girl Shy and The Freshman.

Louis I succeeded his father, Charlemagne, as emperor, serving as ruler of the Franks for 26 years.

Henry R. Luce was a journalist and publishing mogul who started the magazines Time, Life, Fortune and Sports Illustrated.

American actor Derek Luke has starred in films including Antwone Fisher (2002) and Friday Night Lights (2004).

Former Army soldier Jessica Lynch was held captive by Iraqi soldiers at Saddam Hospital in Nasiriya then rescued by U.S. troops. A media firestorm followed.

Loretta Lynn is a singer-songwriter known for "Coal Miner's Daughter," among many other country songs. A film about her by the same name was a critical hit.

Wangari Maathai was a Kenyan political and environmental activist and her country's assistant minister of environment, natural resources and wildlife.

Andie MacDowell is an American actress and model notable for her roles in Sex, Lies and Videotape, Short Cuts, Four Weddings and a Funeral and Groundhog Day.