Famous Capricorns a to z

Signed to a recording contract at the age of 12, Aaliyah became an overnight R&B sensation. At the height of her stardom, a fatal plane crash ended her life.

Charles Addams was an American cartoonist whose work was frequently featured in The New Yorker. His most famous creation was the humorously macabre Addams Family.

Alvin Ailey was an American choreographer and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York in 1958.

Akihito has been emperor of Japan since 1989 and is, according to tradition, the 125th direct descendant of Jimmu, Japan's legendary first emperor.

Samuel Alexander was an Australian-born British philosopher. He was the first Jewish fellow of an Oxford or Cambridge college.

American athlete Laila Ali, daughter of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali, has established her own reputation as a boxing champion and television personality.

Muhammad Ali is considered one of the greatest athletes in boxing history, winning both the coveted Golden Gloves title and an Olympic gold medal, among several other honors.

Jazz trumpeter Henry Allen belonged to Fletcher Henderson’s big band, was in Mills Blue Rhythm band and accompanied Louis Armstrong in Luis Russell’s band.

American television personality Steve Allen is best known as the first host of The Tonight Show. He also starred on The Benny Goodman Show, and was an accomplished musician, composer, author and actor.

Emmy Award-winning actress Kirstie Alley played Rebecca Howe on the TV series Cheers and has struggled with weight problems in the public eye. She's also competed on the dance-competition show Dancing with the Stars.

Marcus Antonius is best known as the Roman general who was a lover of Cleopatra. The two committed suicde after their defeat by Octavian.

Beauty pioneer Elizabeth Arden opened the red doors of her first spa in 1910.

Benedict Arnold was an American Revolutionary War general best known for his defection from the Continental Army to the British side of the conflict in 1780.

Dorothy Arzner was a pioneer in the film industry, becoming one of the first women directors of feature films and the first woman to join the Directors Guild of America.

Scholar Isaac Asimov was one of the 20th century's most prolific writers, writing in many genres. He was known for sci-fi works like Foundation and I, Robot.

Comic actor and writer Rowan Atkinson starred on the TV series Not the Nine O'clock News and Blackadder. He is best known for his infamous role as Mr. Bean in the television series and 1997 feature film of the same name.

Charles Babbage was known for his contributions to the first mechanical computers, which laid the groundwork for more complex future designs.

Joan Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter and activist who is best known for her distinctive voice and for her role in popularizing the music of Bob Dylan.

Social activist and pacifist Emily Greene Balch won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946 for being a lifetime advocate of the persecuted and oppressed.

S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike was the fourth prime minister of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).

British playwright and screenplay writer Peter Barnes was well known for his unique, anti-naturalistic approach to theater and film.

Guitarist Syd Barrett helped found the psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd. After a mental break forced his departure, he spent 30 years as a painter and recluse.

Sydney Biddle Barrows is famous for running a high-class escort service in the 1980s.

Clara Barton was an educator, nurse and founder of the American Red Cross.

Jean-Michel Basquiat was a Neo-Expressionist painter in the 1980s. He is best known for his primitive style and his collaboration with pop artist Andy Warhol.

A world-famous singer with a big voice and a glamorous reputation, Shirley Bassey has recorded numerous hits, including three James Bond theme songs.

Jason Bateman is an American actor known for playing Michael Bluth on the comedy series Arrested Development, and for starring in films like Juno and Hancock.

Sir Cecil Beaton was an English fashion photographer who is also known for his work as a diarist, interior designer, and Oscar-winning stage and costume designer.

Lawrence Beesley was a teacher, journalist and Titanic survivor. After the collision, he boarded lifeboat 13, which was eventually rescued by the Carpathia.

Alva Belmont was a wealthy socialite who used her fortune to advance the women's rights movement of the early 1900s.

Pat Benatar's strong vocals and rock sound, as well as hits like "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" and "Love Is A Battlefield," made her an early MTV star in the 1980s.

Ingrid Betancourt was kidnapped by Marxist guerillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) while campaigning for the presidency.

American entrepreneur Jeff Bezos is the founder and chief executive officer of Amazon.com. An e-commerce pioneer, Bezos was instrumental in creating a model for buying and selling products online.

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, president and prime minister of Pakistan in the 1970s and father to Benazir Bhutto, founded the Pakistan People’s Party and was executed.

From 1957 to 1963, actress Barbara Billingsley played the perfect apron-wearing, cookie-baking housewife June Cleaver on TV's Leave it to Beaver.

Jamaican sprinter Yohan Blake holds the world record for the 4-by-100-meter relay. In 2012, he won a silver medal in both the 100-meter and 200-meter races, losing to rival and fellow Jamaican Usain Bolt in both events.

"Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" Mary J. Blige has influenced a generation of artists with hits like "Real Love" and "Be Without You." She has also had a successful acting career, including playing Betty Shabazz in the TV movie Betty & Coretta.

American poet and activist Robert Bly is best known for writing Iron John: A Book About Men which is credited for starting the Mythopoetic men's movement.

Actor Humphrey Bogart became a legend for his roles in 1940s-era films like Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon and To Have and Have Not.

Joseph Bonaparte was the older brother of Napoleon I, who made him king of Spain. He served as Spain's king from 1808 to 1813.

Indian physicist Satyendra Nath Bose is known for working with Albert Einstein on the Bose-Einstein Condensate and as namesake of the boson, or “God particle.”

David Bowie is an English rock star known for dramatic musical transformations, including his character Ziggy Stardust. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996.

Tom Bradley was a lawyer and police officer who became the first African-American mayor of Los Angeles, serving from 1973 to 1993.

Ian Brady was a Scottish serial killer who murdered multiple children with his girlfriend, Myra Hindley.

Louis Braille was a French educator who developed the Braille system of printing and writing for the blind.

NFL quarterback Drew Brees plays for the New Orleans Saints. In 2009 he led the franchise to victory in Super Bowl XLIV, earning the game's MVP honors.

Maeve Brennan was an Irish short story writer and journalist known for her wit, charm and tragic end.

Sydney Brenner is a Nobel Prize-winning molecular biologist and a science writer.

Anne Brontë, sister of fellow writers Emily and Charlotte, penned the classic 19th century novels Agnes Grey and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.

Rhythm and blues singer Ruth Brown signed with Atlantic Records at a young age and recorded a number of hit songs throughout the 1950s.

Heiress, model, singer, and actress Carla Bruni is best known for her romances and marriage to French president Nicolas Sarkozy.

Jimmy Buffet is a well known folk country singer and songwriter. He wrote the popular songs "Margaritaville" and "Cheeseburger in Paradise."

American mezzo-soprano and soprano Grace Bumbry is considered one of the leading opera singers of her generation.

T Bone Burnett is a Grammy Award-winning musician and producer who has worked on several popular films, including The Big Lebowski and Crazy Heart.

Susan Butcher was a champion American dog musher and four-time winner of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

Dancer and choreographer Maurice Béjart founded Switzerland's Béjart Ballet Lausanne, known for his 2000 version of The Nutcracker.

Actor Nicolas Cage, star of such films as Moonstruck and The Rock, is known for his intense on- and off-screen personality, as well as his passion for method acting.

Jazz singer and dancer Cab Calloway performed in Harlem’s Cotton Club in the 1930s. He also appeared on stage and in films, such as 1979’s The Blues Brothers.

An advocate of children and families in Harlem, NY, Geoffrey Canada is president of the Harlem Children’s Zone. In 2009, President Barack Obama announced plans to replicate the educational center in 20 cities.

A child from an Italian immigrant family, Al Capone (a.k.a. 'Scarface') rose to infamy as the leader of the Chicago mafia during the Prohibition era.

A master of horror, John Carpenter created the 1978 thriller hit Halloween, which has inspired and influenced countless other filmmakers.

Venustiano Carranza was a revolutionary during Mexico's civil war and became the Mexican Republic's first president in 1917.

Tia Carrere is an American actress best known for her role as Cassandra in the film, Wayne's World.

Jim Carrey is a comedian and actor best known for comedic and dramatic film roles in movies including Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and The Truman Show.

Kit Carson was an American frontiersman, trapper, soldier and Indian agent who made an important contribution to the westward expansion of the United States.

French explorer Jacques Cartier is known chiefly for exploring the St. Lawrence River and giving Canada its name.

Charo is a singer, musician and actress best known for her Latin sassiness, sexy outfits and signature phrase during the 1970s, "Cuchi-cuchi."

As Secretary of the Treasury under Lincoln, Salmon P. Chase implemented the National Banking Act and was the sixth chief justice of the Supreme Court.

Melanie Chisholm, also known as "Sporty Spice" and "Mel C," became famous in the mid-1990s with the all-girl British pop group the Spice Girls.

Student Seung-Hui Cho shot and killed 30 people on Virginia Tech's campus in 2007. The mass murder ended when he turned the gun and shot himself in the head.

French philosopher Auguste Comte (1798–1857) greatly advanced the field of social science, giving it the name "sociology" and influenced many 19th-century social intellectuals.

Connie Mack was manager of the Milwaukee Brewers and the Philadelphia Athletics, and owner of the Athletics. He helped establish the American League.

Hip-hop artist and actor LL Cool J made it big with Def Jam Records in the late 1980s and '90s with albums like Mama Said Knock You Out.