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.
1979-2001
Bud Abbott was a comedian best known for playing the "straight man" of the Abbott and Costello comedy duo.
1895-1974
1939-
Ben Affleck is known for co-writing and acting in Good Will Hunting, starring in Armageddon, and directing, co-producing and acting in Argo.
1972-
Casey Affleck is best known as an actor in films including Gone Baby Gone, and as the brother of actor Ben Affleck.
1975-
Freema Agyeman is a British film and TV actress known for her starring roles on the series Law & Order: UK and Doctor Who.
1979-
Anouk Aimée is an acclaimed French actress known for her roles in works like The Lovers of Verona, 8½, La Dolce Vita and A Man and a Woman.
1932-
1981-
Lou Albano was a professional wrestler-turned-wrestling personality in the hugely popular World Wrestling Federation of the 1980s.
1933-2009
Beginning with his first film in 1911 and in the years leading up to World War II, Hans Albers was one of Germany's most beloved movie stars.
1891-1960
Actress Jane Alexander won Emmy Awards for her roles in Playing for Time and Warm Springs. In 1992, she became chairwoman of the National Endowment for the Arts.
1939-
Film, theater and television actor Jason Alexander played George Costanza opposite Jerry Seinfeld on the popular television sitcom Seinfeld.
1959-
1950-
One of America's best-loved comediennes, Gracie Allen developed the Burns and Allen weekly radio program with husband George Burns.
1905-1964
Actress Joan Allen is a founding member of Chicago's famed Steppenwolf Theatre Company. She has also made several critically acclaimed film appearances.
1956-
Tim Allen was a sporting goods salesman, drug dealer, and stand-up comedian before Home Improvement made him a sitcom star (and the voice of Buzz Lightyear).
1953-
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.
1951-
Don Ameche was an actor know mostly for films in the 1930s and 1940s, radio and TV in the 1950s-1970s, and later the film Trading Places.
1908-1993
Actress Gillian Anderson is famous for her portrayal of FBI Special Agent Dana Scully on the 1990s television series The X-Files.
1968-
Loni Anderson is a TV actress notable for her sexy role as Jennifer Marlowe on the series WKRP in Cincinnati.
1946-
Pamela Anderson first gained fame in the pages of Playboy and rose to international fame with her role on Baywatch. She garnered more fame in 2010, when she competed on Dancing with the Stars.
1967-
1946-1993
Julie Andrews is an Oscar and Tony Award-winning actress and singer famous for her roles in The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins.
1935-
One of the biggest classic pop performers, Canadian singer-songwriter Paul Anka moved from teen heartthrob to adult artist with a slew of hits.
1941-
Actor and director Alan Arkin is a three-time Academy Award nominee, whose notable films include Catch-22 and Wait Until Dark.
1934-
Desi Arnaz was a Cuban-born actor and musician who is remembered for his marriage to Lucille Ball and their TV show, I Love Lucy.
1917-1986
Will Arnett is a comedic actor known for his wacky role as G.O.B. on TV's Arrested Development and his voice-over work in film.
1970-
Tichina Arnold is best known for portraying Pam James, opposite Martin Lawrence, on the sitcom Martin and Rochelle on the show Everybody Hates Chris.
1971-
Actor Tom Arnold was married to actress Roseanne Barr for four years and wrote for the sitcom Roseanne. He starred in the film True Lies (1994) and hosted The Best Damn Sports Show Period.
1959-
David Arquette is an actor known for paying quirky roles primarily in films, from Scream to Eight-Legged Freaks to Never Been Kissed.
1971-
American actress Patricia Arquette has had a long career in film and television, continually showing her great range as a performer across genres.
1968-
Rosanna Arquette is an American actress best known for her role opposite Madonna in the 1985 hit film Desperately Seeking Susan.
1959-
Jean Arthur was an American actress best known for her roles in films such as Mr. Smith Goes To Washington and The More The Merrier.
1900-1991
1907-1991
1906-1987
William Atherton is an American actor known for playing heavies in films like Ghostbusters and Die Hard.
1947-
Steve Austin, also known as “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, is best known as a Championship-winning professional wrestler in the WWF. After retirement, Austin pursued acting with roles on TV and film.
1964-
1907-1998
Teen idol Frankie Avalon is known for singing the hit "Venus" and for starring in the popular Beach Party film series with Annette Funicello.
1939-
Dan Aykroyd is a Canadian actor and comedian known for his performances on Saturday Night Live, and in the hit films The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters.
1952-
Lauren Bacall is an Academy Award-nominated actress known for roles in films like The Big Sleep, How to Marry a Millionaire, The Fan and The Mirror Has Two Faces.
1924-
Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan is known for his roles in action movies like Zanjeer, and for hosting the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.
1942-
Jim Backus was a film and TV actor known for his roles in Rebel Without a Cause and Gilligan’s Island, as well as being the voice of Mr. Magoo.
1913-1989
Kevin Bacon is known for numerous movies (especially Footloose), his marriage to Kyra Sedgwick and the game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.
1958-
American film, television and theater actor Alec Baldwin stars on the sitcom 30 Rock, for which he received Golden Globes and an Emmy Award.
1958-
Billy Baldwin is one of the four Baldwin brothers, all actors. He starred as a firefighter in the hit film Backdraft and is a recurring character on television's Gossip Girl.
1963-
Stephen Baldwin, youngest brother of actor Alec Baldwin, is known for his television and film career, and for his conservative political and religious beliefs.
1966-
Christian Bale is an award winning actor who as a child starred in Steven Spielberg's Empire of the Sun, and is also know for his roles in Batman movies.
1974-
Anne Bancroft was an Oscar Tony and Emmy Award-winning actress famous for her roles in The Miracle Worker and The Graduate. She was married to comedian and film director Mel Brooks.
1931-2005
Spanish actor Antonio Banderas starred in several of Pedro Almodóvar’s films. In America, he has played Zorro, and Puss in Boots in the Shrek film series.
1960-
Stage and screen actress Tallulah Bankhead starred in the plays They Knew What They Wanted and The Little Foxes. She was also in Hitchcock’s Lifeboat.
1902-1968
Javier Bardem is a Spanish actor, and the first Spaniard to be nominated for an Oscar. He played lead roles in Vicky Cristina Barcelona and Eat, Pray, Love.
1969-
Brigitte Bardot is a French dancer, model and actress who became an international icon in the 1950s and '60s with films like And God Created Women and Contempt.
1934-
Jean-Louis Barrault was a French actor director, and mime. He is best known for his role in the film The Children of Paradise (1945).
1910-1994
Actress Adriana Barraza played Amelia in the award-winning film Babel. Her performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
1956-
Actress Drew Barrymore gained early fame as a child star. She later struggled with substance abuse and notoriety, before re-emerging as a talented actress and producer.
1975-
1879-1959
1882-1942
Film actress Kim Basinger won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in L.A. Confidential. She married actor Alec Baldwin in 1993.
1953-
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.
1969-
Award-winning actress Kathy Bates starred as a deranged fan opposite James Caan in Misery, and as a comically emancipated housewife in Fried Green Tomatoes.
1948-
Actor Sean Bean played the villains in Patriot Games and GoldenEye. More recently, he played Boromir in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Odysseus in Troy.
1959-
Warren Beatty is an Oscar-winning director and actor known for such films as Bonnie and Clyde, Reds and Heaven Can Wait.
1937-
Film actor. Kate Beckinsale is an actress whose starring role in the Underworld films catapulted her to international stardom.
1973-
Jean-Paul Belmondo is a French actor best known for starring in Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless.
1933-
Robert Benchley was an American humorist, drama critic and film actor who is best known for his small roles in over 40 films, including How To Sleep.
1889-1945
Roberto Benigni is an Italian actor, director and producer best known for his 1997 Oscar winning film La Vita e Bella (Life is Beautiful).
1952-
Annette Bening is an Oscar-nominated actress known for films like The Grifters, Bugsy, American Beauty and The Kids Are All Right.
1958-
For more than 50 years, comedian Jack Benny was a star of radio, the stage and screen. His radio show, The Jack Benny Program, was a forerunner of the sitcom genre.
1894-1974
American actor Tom Berenger is best known for playing the hard-drinking TV star in the The Big Chill, the sexy killer in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and violent Hatfield clan member Jim Vance in the TV miniseries Hatfields & McCoys.
1949-
1946-
Milton Berle was a Jewish-American comedian who started in vaudeville acts, and was a success in the early days of TV, becoming known as "Uncle Miltie."
1908-2002
Mexican actor and director Gael García Bernal starred as Che Guevera in The Motorcycle Diaries (2004) and as Stéphane Miroux in The Science of Sleep (2006).
1978-
Perhaps the most famous actress of all time, Sarah Bernhardt is regarded as one of the finest actors of the 19th century, appearing on the stage and in some of the earliest films ever produced.
1844-1923
Halle Berry is an American actress, former fashion model and former beauty queen. One of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood, she is also a Revlon spokeswoman.
1966-
Valerie Bertinelli is an actress and spokesperson known for her roles in the TV sitcom One Day at a Time and Hot in Cleveland.
1960-
American actress Mayim Bialik is best known for her roles in the film Beaches and on the hit television shows Blossom and The Big Bang Theory.
1975-
Jessica Biel is a Hollywood sex symbol and actress, known for her work in the series 7th Heaven and films like The Illusionist and Total Recall.
1982-
French actress Juliette Binoche is widely regarded as one of film's most respected actresses for the intelligence she has brought to her complex roles.
1964-
Actress Thora Birch earned her first starring film role in Monkey Trouble and got her big break in American Beauty. In 2001 she starred in Ghost World.
1982-
Entertainer Joey Bishop starred in his own TV sitcom, and hosted his own late-night talk show. He was a member of the Rat Pack, along with Frank Sinatra.
1918-2007
1934-1993
Film and TV actor Jack Black appeared in the popular comedy films Shallow Hal, High Fidelity and Tropic Thunder, and is the voice of Kung Fu Panda.
1969-
Linda Blair is an Academy Award-nominated actress and animal activist known for her role as a demonically possessed girl in The Exorcist.
1959-
Robert Blake is an Emmy-winning actor known for his film roles and as the star of the '70s cop drama Baretta. He's also known for the murder trial of his second wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley.
1933-
Mel Blanc was a voice actor and entertainer who provided voices for Bugs Bunny and over 400 other cartoon characters.
1908-1989
1969-
Claire Bloom English is a dramatic actress noted for her moving portrayals of Shakespearean heroines. She also played on stage, television, and in films.
1931-
1977-
One of Great Britain's leading male actors in the 1950s, Dirk Bogarde is known for his complex roles in the dark films Death in Venice (1912), Victim (1961) and The Night Porter (1974).
1921-1999
Actor Humphrey Bogart became a legend for his roles in 1940s-era films like Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon and To Have and Have Not.
1899-1957
1939-
Tony, Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actress Shirley Booth was in both the play and film versions of Come Back, Little Sheba, and the television show Hazel.
1898-1992
Actor Ernest Borgnine’s role in the film Marty transformed him from a stereotyped character actor to a leading man, earning him an Academy Award as Best Actor.
1917-2012
Tom Bosley was an award-winning American actor best known for playing Howard Cunningham in the 1970s hit TV sitcom Happy Days.
1927-2010
1983-
American motion-picture actress Clare Bow personified the flapper of the 1920s. From 1927 to 1930 she was one of the top five Hollywood box-office attractions.
1905-1965
Charles Boyer was an Oscar-nominated French actor of stage, film and television with a career that spanned almost six decades.
1899-1978
1954-
Zach Braff is an American actor known chiefly for his role on TV's Scrubs and in the big-screen film Oz the Great and Powerful.
1975-