Famous October Birthdays a to z

James Herriot was a British veterinarian and author best known for his books detailing life as a country vet. Two films and a TV series were based on his book All Creatures Great and Small.

Charlton Heston was an American film actor best known for his roles in Antony and Cleopatra, The Ten Commandments, Ben Hur and Planet of the Apes (1968).

Norwegian adventurer Thor Heyerdahl made a celebrated journey aboard a raft called Kon-Tiki in 1947, and later wrote an international best-seller about his amazing expedition.

Taylor Hicks is an American singer-songwriter who rose to fame after his win on the fifth season of American Idol.

Heinrich Himmler was commander of Hitler's Schutzstaffel, and later of the Gestapo in Nazi Germany. After World War II, he committed suicide to escape capture.

Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway disappeared during a trip to Aruba in 2005.

Boxer Evander Holyfield fought in the Olympics and reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1990 to 1992, and again from 1993 to 1994. In an infamous bout in 1996, Holyfield's ear was bitten by Mike Tyson.

Maxine Hong Kingston is a Chinese American author of memoirs and fiction. Her best known work is The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood among the Ghosts.

Roy Horn is half of the headlining Las Vegas magical duo Siegfried & Roy who survived severe injuries after an onstage tiger attack.

Adam Horovitz, also known as "Ad-Rock," was a co-founder and member of the Beastie Boys, the popular rap-rock group.

E. Howard Hunt was a CIA agent and PR consultant before he teamed up with G. Gordon Liddy to organize the Watergate break-in.

Josh Hutcherson is an American actor best known for his role in The Hunger Games. He’s worked with luminaries such as Robin Williams, Annette Bening and Tom Hanks.

Australian actor and producer Hugh Jackman is best known for playing Wolverine in the X-Men series. He's also known for parts in the films The Prestige, Australia and Les Miserables.

Jesse Jackson is an American civil rights leader, Baptist minister and politician who twice ran for U.S. president.

20th century recording artist Mahalia Jackson, known as the Queen of Gospel, is revered as one of the greatest musical figures in U.S. history.

New Zealand native Peter Jackson is best known as a director for his adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy, which has won 11 Oscars.

Singer and musician Randy Jackson came to fame as a member of the Jacksons, a hit R&B and pop group of the 1970s and '80s.

Musician Tito Jackson was lead guitarist for The Jackson 5 and later the Jacksons. He has since reinvented himself as blues musician.

Singer Wanda Jackson's hit songs climbed both the country and rock charts in the 1950s and 1960s, earning her the "Queen of Rockabilly" title.

Janet Jagan co-founded the People's Progressive Party. She was the first woman to become prime minister of Guyana and was also Guyana’s first female president.

Wyclef Jean is a Haitian musician whose band, the Fugees, hit it big in the mid-1990s with The Score.

Martha Jefferson was married to Thomas Jefferson for 10 years and bore six of his children, but died in 1781, at age 33.

Doctor Mae C. Jemison is the first African-American woman ever to be a U.S. astronaut. In 1992, she flew into space aboard the Endeavour.

One of the most beloved athletes of the 1970s, track athlete Bruce Jenner won a gold medal and set a world record in the decathlon at the 1976 Summer Olympics. Since then, he's appeared on the popular reality show Keeping Up with the Kardashians.

Lonnie G. Johnson is an engineer and inventor who worked on the Cassini mission to Jupiter and invented the Super Soaker.

Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is the world's first elected black female president and Africa's first elected female head of state.

Musician Jo Jones, considered one of the most influential of all jazz drummers, noted for his swing and finesse, played with Count Basie’s Kansas City band.

Spike Jonze is best known for his films Being John Malkovich, Adaptation and Where the Wild Things Are. He produced MTV's Jackass.

Luc Jouret was a homeopathic doctor who founded the New Age cult Solar Templar in the 1980s.

Judith Sheindlin, or Judge Judy as she is known, is a no-nonsense courtroom presence on the TV show Judge Judy.

Paul Kagame is a Rwandan military leader and politician who is best known for defeating Hutu extremist forces to end the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam is an Indian scientist and politician who served his country as president from 2002 to 2007.

American fashion designer Donna Karan is one of the most influential designers in the world today.

Kim Kardashian is a model, actress, entrepreneur, socialite and star of the reality show Keeping Up with the Kardashians.

Comedian and director Buster Keaton was popular for his pioneering silent comedies in the 1920s.

English Romantic lyric poet John Keats was dedicated to the perfection of poetry marked by vivid imagery that expressed a philosophy through classical legend.

A part of the famed American political dynasty, Joseph P. Kennedy became the latest member of his family to win public office in 2012. He won a seat to the U.S. House of Representatives, taking over for the retiring Barney Frank.

Actor Klaus Kinski made his mark in such films as Aguirre (1972), Nosferatu (1979) and Fitzcarraldo (1982).

Kevin Kline is an American actor known for his versatility, from roles in Shakespearean plays to parts in dramatic films, including Sophie's Choice and A Fish Called Wanda.

Film, TV and theater actress Jane Krakowski is known for having played Elaine on Ally McBeal and Jenna on 30 Rock. She also starred in the London production of Guys and Dolls.

Modernist abstract painter and collage artist Lee Krasner, wife of Jackson Pollock, created the Little Image painting series and the multimedia collage "Milkweed."

Ray Kroc was an American entrepreneur best known for expanding McDonald’s from a local chain to the world’s most profitable restaurant franchise operation.

Musician and activist Fela Kuti pioneered Afrobeat music and was repeatedly arrested and beaten for writing lyrics that questioned the Nigerian government.

Emeril Lagasse is a celebrity chef best known as the host of the television show Emeril Live, his lines of products and restaurants, and his catchphrases.

Dame Cleo Laine was a Grammy Award-winning British jazz vocalist as well as a stage actress. She was known as the "Queen of Jazz" in her singing prime.

Leonard Lake was a serial killer who partnered with another man to rape and kill several people in the 1980s.

Cyclist Floyd Landis won the 2006 Tour de France. Urine tests later revealed that he was using performance-enhancing drugs, and he was banned from the sport for two years.

Michael Landon was an American actor, writer, director and producer known for his roles in I Was a Teenage Werewolf, Bonanza and Little House on the Prairie.

Actress Angela Lansbury has entertained audiences in a variety of ways, including her 12-year stint as Jessica Fletcher on the 1984 series Murder, She Wrote.

Ralph Lauren is an American clothing designer best known for his sportswear line, Polo Ralph Lauren, which is the centerpiece of his fashion empire.

Simon Le Bon was lead singer of the 1980s pop group Duran Duran, known for recording the hit song “Hungry Like the Wolf.” He left the group before they later reunited in 2001.

Author John Le Carré’s first published novel, Call for the Dead, introduced his ‘anti-hero’ George Smiley, who appears in most of his stories.

Timothy Leary was an American psychologist and author who was a leading advocate for the use of LSD and other psychoactive drugs.

Ang Lee is an Academy Award-winning director, producer and screenwriter whose films include Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Brokeback Mountain.

Tommy Lee is the drummer and co-founder of heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. He has two children with actress Pamela Anderson.

Annie Leibovitz, considered one of America's best portrait photographers, developed her trademark use of bold colors and poses while at Rolling Stone.

John Lennon, pop star, composer, songwriter and recording artist, founded the Beatles, a band that impacted the music scene like no other before or since.

Marc Lepine went on a shooting spree in 1989 that became known as the Montreal Massacre, which killed 14 people.

American gymnast Danell Leyva is best known for being the first Cuban-American and Miami resident to make it to the United States Olympic men's gymnastics team, and for winning a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

Roy Lichtenstein was an American pop artist best known for his boldly-colored parodies of comic strips and advertisements.

Opera singer, teacher and philanthropist Jenny Lind, a.k.a. the "Swedish Nightingale,” was the prima donna at the Royal Opera in Stockholm during the 1800s.

Franz Liszt was a Hungarian pianist and composer of enormous influence and originality. He was renowned in Europe during the Romantic movement.

Equally versed in comedy and drama, John Lithgow has won raves for his work in World According to Garp, 3rd Rock from the Sun, and Dexter.

Anastasia Valeryevna Liukin, better known as Nastia Liukin, is a world-renowned gymnast and Olympian who was named the Olympic individual all-around Champion in 2008.

Christopher Lloyd is an American actor best known for his role as the eccentric "Doc" Brown in the successful Back to the Future films.

Activist and lawyer Belva Lockwood was the first woman to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Tampa Bay serial killer Bobby Joe Long confessed to killing 10 women, and raping more than 50, in the 1980s.

Mario Lopez is a television host and actor who has appeared chiefly on various television series, such as Saved by the Bell, Extra and America's Best Dance Crew.

Juliette Gordon Low is the founder of the Girl Scouts of the United States of America.

Chris Lowe is a British musician best known as half of the electronic dance music duo the Pet Shop Boys.