December 24 -

3 BC - Galba, Roman Emperor (d. 69)
1166 - King John of England (d. 1216)
1389 - John VI, Duke of Brittany (d. 1442)
1475 - Thomas Murner, German writer (d.c. 1537)
1491 - Ignatius of Loyola, Spanish founder of the Jesuit order (d. 1556)
1508 - Pietro Carnesecchi, Italian humanist (d. 1567)
1588 - Constance of Austria, queen of Poland (d. 1631)
1609 - Philip Warwick, English writer and politician (d. 1683)
1635 - Mariana of Austria, second wife of king Philip IV of Spain (d. 1696)
1698 - William Warburton, English Bishop of Gloucester (d. 1779)
1724 - Johann Conrad Ammann, Swiss physician and naturalist (d. 1811)
1745 - Benjamin Rush, doctor and Founding Father of the United States (d. 1813)
1754 - George Crabbe, British poet and naturalist (d. 1832)
1761 - Jean-Louis Pons, French astronomer (d. 1831)
1784 - Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna of Russia (d. 1803)
1798 - Adam Mickiewicz, Polish poet (d. 1855)
1809 - Kit Carson, American frontiersman (d. 1868)
1812 - Karl Eduard Zachariae, German jurist (d. 1894)
1818 - James Prescott Joule, British physicist (d. 1889)
1822 - Matthew Arnold, British poet (d. 1888)
1837 - Elisabeth of Bavaria a.k.a Sissi, Empress of Austria (d. 1898)
1843 - Lydia Koidula, Estonian poet (d. 1886)
1845 - King George I of Greece (d. 1913)
1867 - Kantaro Suzuki, 42nd Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1948)
1868 - Emanuel Lasker, German chess player (d. 1941)
1879 - Queen Alexandrine of Denmark, Queen Consort to Christian X (d. 1952)
1879 - Émile Nelligan, Quebec poet (d. 1941)
1880 - Johnny Gruelle, American cartoonist, children's book writer and creator of Raggedy Ann (d. 1939)
1881 - Juan Ramón Jiménez, Spanish writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
1886 - Michael Curtiz, Hungarian-born director (d. 1962)
1887 - Louis Jouvet, French actor and producer (d. 1951)
1893 - Harry Warren, American composer and lyricist (Chattanooga Choo Choo - I Only Have Eyes for You) (d. 1981)
1894 - Georges Guynemer, French aviator (d. 1917)
1895 - E. Roland Harriman, American financier (d. 1978)
1898 - Héctor Scarone, Uruguayan footballer (d. 1967)
1898 - Baby Dodds, American jazz drummer (d. 1959)
1900 - Joey Smallwood, Canadian politician, Premier of Newfoundland (d. 1991)
1904 - Joseph Moses Juran, American industrial engineer and philanthropist.
1905 - Howard Hughes, American film producer and inventor (d. 1976)
1906 - Franz Waxman, German film composer (d. 1967)
1907 - I. F. Stone, American journalist (d. 1989)
1910 - Fritz Leiber, American writer (d. 1992)
1914 - Ralph Marterie, American trumpet player and big band leader (d. 1978)
1914 - Herbert Reinecker, German writer
1917 - Kim Jong-suk, Wife of Kim Il-sung, mother of Kim Jung-Il, "The Heroine of the Anti-Japanese Revolution" (d. 1949)
1920 - Evgeniya Rudneva, Russian World War II heroine (d. 1944)
1922 - Ava Gardner, American actress (d. 1990)
1923 - George Patton IV, American general (d. 2004)
1923 - Michael DiBiase, American wrestler (d. 1969)
1924 - Lee Dorsey, American singer (d. 1986)
1924 - Grigory Kriss, Russian Olympic champion fencer
1925 - Mohd. Rafi, Indian actor and playback singer (d. 1980)
1926 - Paul Buissonneau, French-born Quebec theatre director
1929 - Mary Higgins Clark, American author
1931 - Mauricio Kagel, Argentine composer
1931 - Ray Bryant, American jazz pianist and composer
1932 - On Kawara, Japanese conceptual artist
1937 - Félix Miéli Venerando, Brazilian football player
1938 - Bobby Henrich, American baseball player
1938 - Valentim Loureiro, Portuguese politician, and former football chairman of Boavista F.C. and Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional
1941 - John Levene, British actor
1943 - Tarja Halonen, President of Finland
1944 - Daniel Johnson, Jr., Quebec politician, Premier of Quebec
1944 - Mike Curb, American musician, record company executive and politician
1944 - Oswald Gracias, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Bombay
1944 - Barry Chuckle, British comedian
1945 - Lemmy, British singer, bassist (Motörhead)
1945 - Nicholas Meyer, American author
1945 - Steve Smith, Canadian Comedian, The New Red Green Show, Duct Tape Forever
1946 - Brenda Howard, American bisexual activist (d. 2005)
1946 - Jeff Sessions, American politician
1947 - Kevin Sheedy, coach of Australian Football League club Essendon FC
1948 - Frank Oliver, New Zealand rugby player
1949 - Randy Neugebauer, American politician
1949 - Warwick Brown, Australian racing driver
1950 - Dana Gioia, American poet
1951 - John D'Acquisto, baseball player
1953 - François Loos, French politician
1954 - José María Figueres, Costa Rican politician
1955 - Grand L. Bush, American actor
1955 - Clarence Gilyard, American actor
1957 - Hamid Karzai, President of Afghanistan
1957 - Diane Tell, Quebec singer
1958 - Munetaka Higuchi, Japanese drummer
1959 - Keith Deller, British darts player
1959 - Anil Kapoor, Indian actor
1960 - Glenn McQueen, American animator (d. 2002)
1960 - Carol Vorderman, British television presenter
1961 - Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan Republic
1961 - Jay Wright, American basketball coach
1963 - Mary Ramsey, American singer (10,000 Maniacs)
1963 - Caroline Aherne, British comedienne, writer and actress
1964 - Mark Valley, American actor
1966 - Diedrich Bader, American actor
1967 - Mikhail Shchennikov, Russian race walker
1968 - Doyle Bramhall II, American guitarist
1969 - Mark Millar, Scottish comic book writer
1970 - Amaury Nolasco, American actor
1970 - Will Oldham, American singer and songwriter
1971 - Christopher Daniels, American professional wrestler
1971 - Ricky Martin, Puerto Rican singer
1971 - Giorgos Alkaios, Greek singer
1972 - Alvaro Mesen, Costa Rican footballer
1973 - Eddie Pope, American soccer player
1973 - Stephenie Meyer, Author
1974 - Marcelo Salas, Chilean footballer
1974 - Ryan Seacrest, American television host
1978 - Yıldıray Baştürk, Turkish footballer
1979 - Chris Hero, American professional wrestler
1980 - Tomas Kalnoky, American musician (Streetlight Manifesto)
1981 - Dima Bilan, Karachay-Russian pop artist
1982 - Aiba Masaki, Japanese singer and actor
1985 - David Ragan, American race car driver
1986 - Edward Southall, British composer
1986 - Riyo Mori, Miss Universe 2007 from Japan

__________________
If all else fails...PIITB

* 1374 - Saint Jadwiga of Poland, queen of Poland (d. 1399)
* 1486 - Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Bengali saint, bhakti yoga developer
* 1516 - Queen Mary I of England (d. 1558)
* 1530 - Uesugi Kenshin, Japanese samurai and warlord (d. 1578)
* 1543 - Charles III, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1608)
* 1559 - Isaac Casaubon, French classical scholar (d. 1614)
* 1602 - Per Brahe (the younger), Swedish soldier (d. 1680)
* 1609 - Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon, English historian (d. 1674)
* 1635 - Johan Göransson Gyllenstierna, Swedish statesman (d. 1680)
* 1642 - Marie Champmeslé, French actress (d. 1698)
* 1658 - Charles-Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre, French writer (d. 1743)
* 1745 - Alessandro Volta, Italian physicist (d. 1827)
* 1814 - Samuel Fenton Cary, U. S. Congressman (d. 1900)
* 1836 - Sri Ramakrishna, Bengali saint, guru of Swami Vivekananda (d. 1886)
* 1838 - Ernst Mach, Austrian physicist (d. 1916)
* 1846 - Wilson Barrett, English playwright (d. 1904)
* 1848 - Louis Comfort Tiffany, American glass artist (d. 1933)
* 1849 - Alexander Kielland, Norwegian author (d. 1906)
* 1859 - Sholom Aleichem, Russian Yiddish humorist (d. 1916)
* 1870 - William Laurel Harris, American mural painter, writer (d. 1924)
* 1871 - Harry Brearley, English inventor (d. 1948)
* 1883 - Nikos Kazantzakis, Greek author (d. 1957)
* 1884 - Andrew Watson Myles, Canadian politician (d. 1970)
* 1888 - George Papandreou, Greek politician, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1968)
* 1890 - Edward Arnold, American actor (d. 1956)
* 1890 - Adolphe Menjou, American actor (d. 1963)
* 1892 - Wendell Willkie, American politician (d. 1944)
* 1896 - Andre Breton, French writer (d. 1966)
* 1897 - Charles Kuentz, WW1 veteran, changed nationality 4 times (d.2005)
* 1898 - Enzo Ferrari, Italian race car driver (d. 1988)
* 1898 - Luis Muñoz Marín, Puerto Rican poet (d. 1980)
* 1901 - Reginald Sheffield, British actor (d. 1957)
* 1902 - Walter Herbert, German-born conductor and impresario (d. 1975)
* 1903 - Nikolai Podgorny, President of the Soviet Union (d. 1983)
* 1906 - Hans Asperger, Austrian pediatrician (d. 1980)
* 1907 - Oscar Brodney, American screenwriter (d. 2008)
* 1909 - Wallace Stegner, American writer (d. 1993)
* 1914 - Pee Wee King, American country musician and songwriter (d. 2000)
* 1915 - Phyllis Calvert, British actress (d. 2002)
* 1916 - Jean Drapeau, Quebec politician, mayor of Montreal (d. 1999)
* 1918 - Jane Loevinger, American psychologist (d. 2008).
* 1919 - Jack Palance, American actor (d. 2006)
* 1920 - Bill Cullen, American game show host (d. 1990)
* 1920 - Eric Gairy, Grenadan politician (d. 1997)
* 1922 - Helen Gurley Brown, American editor
* 1922 - Allan Melvin, American actor (d. 2008)
* 1922 - Juhan Smuul, Estonian author (d. 1971)
* 1924 - Humberto Fernández Morán, Venezuelan scientist (d. 1999)
* 1924 - Louis Laberge, Quebec labour union leader (d. 2002)
* 1925 - George Kennedy, American actor
* 1925 - Marcel Barbeau, Quebec artist
* 1927 - John Warner, American politician
* 1927 - Luis Arroyo, Puerto Rican baseball player
* 1928 - Tom Johnson, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1929 - Len Deighton, British author
* 1929 - André Mathieu, Quebec composer (d. 1968)
* 1930 - Gahan Wilson, American cartoonist
* 1931 - Johnny Hart, American cartoonist (d. 2007)
* 1931 - Toni Morrison, American writer, Nobel laureate
* 1931 - Bob St. Clair, American football player
* 1932 - Miloš Forman, Czech film director
* 1933 - Yoko Ono, Japanese-born singer
* 1933 - Sir Bobby Robson, English football manager
* 1933 - Mary Ure, Scottish actress (d. 1975)
* 1935 - Michel Aoun, Lebanese prime minister
* 1936 - Jean Auel, American writer
* 1936 - Dick Duff, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1938 - István Szabó, Hungarian film director
* 1938 - Manny Mota, Dominican baseball player
* 1939 - Dal Maxvill, American baseball player
* 1939 - Marek Janowski, Polish-born conductor
* 1939 - Claude Ake, Nigerian political scientist
* 1941 - Irma Thomas, American singer
* 1943 - Graeme Garden, Scottish writer
* 1944 - Pat Bowlen, owner of the Denver Broncos
* 1945 - Judy Rankin, American golfer
* 1946 - Michael Buerk, British newsreader
* 1946 - Jean-Claude Dreyfus, French actor
* 1947 - Dennis DeYoung, American musician (STYX)
* 1947 - Princess Christina of the Netherlands
* 1947 - Carlos Lopes, Portuguese athlete
* 1947 - Eliot Lance Engel, American politician
* 1948 - Sinéad Cusack, Irish actress
* 1948 - Keith Knudsen, American drummer and songwriter (The Doobie Brothers) (d. 2005)
* 1949 - Gary Ridgway, American serial killer
* 1950 - John Hughes, American director
* 1950 - Cybill Shepherd, American actress
* 1950 - Michel Gauthier, Quebec politician
* 1951 - Isabel Preysler, Philippines-born Spanish socialite
* 1952 - Maurice Lucas, American basketball player
* 1952 - Juice Newton, American singer
* 1953 - Robbie Bachman, Canadian drummer (Bachman-Turner Overdrive)
* 1954 - John Travolta, American actor
* 1955 - Miles Tredinnick, English playwright
* 1955 - Raymond Rougeau, Canadian professional wrestler
* 1956 - Ted Gärdestad, Swedish singer (d. 1997)
* 1957 - Marita Koch, German athlete
* 1957 - Vanna White, American game show presenter
* 1958 - Giovanni Lavaggi, Italian racing driver
* 1958 - Gar Samuelson, American drummer (d. 1999)
* 1960 - Carol McGiffin, British TV and radio presenter
* 1960 - Greta Scacchi, Australian actress
* 1960 - Andy Moog, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1962 - Julie Strain, American actress
* 1963 - Martin Treanor, Irish Writer
* 1963 - Henry Winter, English football journalist
* 1964 - Matt Dillon, American actor
* 1964 - Paul Hanley, British musician (The Fall, Tom Hingley and the Lovers)
* 1965 - Dr. Dre, American rapper
* 1965 - Gregory Scott Johnson, American murderer (d. 2005)
* 1966 - Guy Ferland, American television director
* 1967 - Roberto Baggio, Italian footballer
* 1967 - Tracey Edmonds, American film and television producer
* 1968 - Molly Ringwald, American actress
* 1968 - Tommy Scott, British musician (Space)
* 1969 - Alexander Mogilny, Russian ice hockey player
* 1969 - Jason Sutter, American drummer (Smash Mouth, American Hi-Fi)
* 1970 - Raine Maida, Canadian musician (Our Lady Peace)
* 1970 - Susan Egan, American actress
* 1971 - Constantin Popa, Romanian-Israeli basketball player
* 1973 - Claude Makélélé, French footballer
* 1974 - Jamey Carroll, American baseball player
* 1974 - Ruby Dhalla, Canadian politician
* 1974 - Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Russian tennis player
* 1975 - Sarah Brown, American actress
* 1975 - Keith Gillespie, Irish footballer
* 1975 - Gary Neville, English footballer
* 1976 - Leilani Munter, American race car driver
* 1977 - Kátia, Brazilian footballer
* 1977 - Sean Watkins, American guitarist and songwriter
* 1977 - Chrissie Wellington, British triathlete
* 1978 - Josip Simunic, Croatian footballer
* 1980 - Regina Spektor, Russian-born singer and songwriter
* 1980 - Nikolai Antropov, Kazakh ice hockey player
* 1981 - Andrei Kirilenko, Russian basketball player
* 1981 - Ivan Sproule, Irish footballer
* 1981 - Kim Jae Won, South Korean actor
* 1981 - Alex Rios, American baseball player
* 1983 - Juelz Santana, American rapper
* 1983 - Jermaine Jenas, English footballer
* 1983 - Jason Maxiell, American basketball player
* 1984 - Buddy Nielsen, American singer (Senses Fail)
* 1985 - Lee Boyd Malvo, American serial killer
* 1985 - Anton Ferdinand, English footballer
* 1986 - Marc Torrejón, Spanish footballer
* 1988 - Maiara Walsh, American actress

1980 Vaness Carlton (singer)
1972 Emily Robison (singer - dixie chicks)
1960 Timothy Hutton (actor)
1958 Angela Bassett (actress)
1958 Madonna (Ciccone) (singer, actress)
1954 James Cameron (director, screenwriter)
1953 James J T Taylor (singer)
1953 Kathie Lee (Epstein) Gifford (talk show host, singer)
1946 Lesley Ann Warren (actress)
1936 Anita Gillette (Luebben) (actress)
1935 Julie Newmar (Newmeyer) (actress)
1931 Eydie Gorme (singer)
1930 Robert Culp (actor)
1930 Frank Gifford (Football player, sports broadcaster)
1929 Lois Nettleton (actress)
1928 Ann Blyth (actress)
1927 Fess Parker (actor, singer)
1920 Charles Bukowski (author)
1913 Menachem Begin (Israeli Prime Minister)
1910 Mae Clarke (actress)
1868 Bernard McFadden (publisher)
And Elvis died on my birthday. :-(

1355 - Philippa Plantagenet, Countess of Ulster
1378 - Hongxi Emperor of China (d. 1425)
1401 - Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut, dauphine of France (d. 1436)
1557 - Agostino Carracci, Italian artist (d. 1602)
1573 - Anna of Austria, queen of Poland (d. 1598)
1596 - Frederick V, Elector Palatine (d. 1632)
1637 - Emilie Juliane of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, German countess and poet (d. 1706)
1645 - Jean de La Bruyère, French writer (d. 1696)
1650 - Vincenzo Coronelli, Italian cartographer and encylopedist (d. 1718)
1682 - Louis, duc de Bourgogne, heir-apparent to the French throne (d. 1712)
1761 - Yevstigney Fomin, Russian composer (d. 1800)
1815 - John Bosco, Italian priest and educator (d. 1888)
1820 - Andrew Rainsford Wetmore, Canadian politician (d. 1892)
1831 - John Jones Ross, Quebec politician (d. 1901)
1832 - Wilhelm Wundt, German psychologist (d. 1920)
1842 - Jakob Rosanes, German mathematician (d. 1922)
1845 - Gabriel Lippmann, French physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1921)
1858 - Arthur Achleitner, German writer (d. 1927)
1860 - Jules Laforgue, French poet (d. 1887)
1862 - Amos Alonzo Stagg, American coach (d. 1965)
1868 - Bernarr McFadden, American publisher (d. 1955)
1876 - Ivan Bilibin, Russian illustrator (d. 1942)
1884 - Hugo Gernsback, Luxembourg-born editor and publisher (d. 1967)
1884 - Walther von Reichenau, German field marshal (d. 1942)
1888 - T. E. Lawrence, English writer and soldier (d. 1935)
1888 - Armand J. Piron, American musician (d. 1943)
1892 - Otto Messmer, American cartoonist (d. 1983)
1894 - George Meany, American labor union leader (d. 1980)
1895 - Albert Cohen, Swiss novelist (d. 1981)
1895 - Liane Haid, Austrian actress (d. 2000)
1902 - Georgette Heyer, English novelist (d. 1974)
1904 - Wendell Meredith Stanley, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1971)
1908 - William Maxwell, American novelist and editor (d. 2000)
1911 - E. F. Schumacher, German economist and statistician (d. 1977)
1912 - Ted Drake, English footballer (d. 1995)
1913 - Menachem Begin, 6th Prime Minister of Israel, Nobel laureate (d. 1992)
1915 - Al Hibbler, American singer (d. 2001)
1916 - Iggy Katona, American race car driver (d. 2003)
1920 - Charles Bukowski, American poet (d. 1994)
1922 - Ernie Freeman, American pianist and arranger (d. 2001)
1923 - Millôr Fernandes, Brazilian playwright
1924 - Fess Parker, American actor
1925 - Willie Jones, American baseball player (d. 1983)
1928 - Ann Blyth, American actress
1929 - Bill Evans, American jazz pianist (d. 1980)
1929 - Helmut Rahn, German footballer (d. 2003)
1929 - Fritz Von Erich, American professional wrestler (d. 1997)
1930 - Robert Culp, American actor
1930 - Frank Gifford, American football player and announcer
1930 - Tony Trabert, American former tennis player
1931 - Eydie Gormé, American singer
1933 - Julie Newmar, American actress
1933 - Stuart Roosa, American astronaut (d. 1994)
1934 - Diana Wynne Jones, British author
1934 - Ketty Lester, American singer
1934 - Pierre Richard, French actor
1935 - Andreas Stamatiadis, Greek footballer and coach
1935 - Cliff Fletcher, Canadian National Hockey League executive
1937 - David Anderson, Canadian politician
1939 - Sir Trevor Mcdonald, Trinidadian-born British television newsreader
1940 - Bruce Beresford, Australian film director
1942 - Barbara George, American singer and songwriter (d. 2006)
1945 - Suzanne Farrell, ballet dancer
1946 - Massoud Barzani, Iraqi Kurdish politician
1946 - Lesley Ann Warren, American actress
1946 - Dick Murdoch, American professional wrestler (d. 1996)
1947 - Carol Moseley Braun, American politician and lawyer
1947 - Katharine Hamnett, English fashion designer
1947 - Marc Messier, Canadian actor
1948 - Mike Jorgensen, American baseball player
1948 - Pierre Reid, Canadian politician and teacher
1949 - Scott Asheton, American musician (The Stooges)
1950 - Hasely Crawford, Trinidadian athlete
1950 - Marshall Manesh, Iranian-born American actor
1950 - Stockwell Day, Canadian politician
1950 - Jeff Thomson, Australian cricketer
1951 - Richard Hunt, American puppeteer (d. 1992)
1952 - Reginald VelJohnson, American actor
1953 - Kathie Lee Gifford, American singer and actress
1953 - James "J.T." Taylor, American singer (Kool & The Gang)
1954 - James Cameron, Canadian film director
1957 - Tim Farriss, Australian musician (INXS)
1958 - Angela Bassett, American actress
1958 - Madonna, American singer and actress
1958 - José Luis Clerc, Argentine tennis player
1960 - Timothy Hutton, American actor
1961 - Christian Okoye, former American football player
1962 - Steve Carell, American actor and comedian
1964 - Jimmy Arias, American tennis player
1966 - Barry Lather, American choreographer, musician and actor
1967 - Ulrika Jonsson, Swedish television personality
1967 - Pamela Smart, American convicted murderess
1968 - Mateja Svet, Slovenian alpine skier
1970 - Bonnie Bernstein, American sportscaster
1970 - Fabio Casartelli, Italian cyclist (d. 1995)
1970 - Saif Ali Khan, Indian actor
1971 - Stefan Klos, German footballer
1972 - Stan Lazaridis, Australian soccer player
1972 - Emily Robison, American country singer, instrumentalist and songwriter (Dixie Chicks)
1973 - Damian Jackson, American baseball player
1974 - Roger Cedeño, Venezuelan baseball player
1974 - Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Guyanese cricketer
1974 - Krisztina Egerszegi, Hungarian swimmer
1974 - Iván Hurtado, Ecuadorian footballer
1975 - Didier Agathe, French footballer
1975 - George Stults, American actor
1976 - Jonatan Johansson, Finnish footballer
1976 - Dave Ockun, American concert producer
1978 - Eddie Gill, American basketball player
1978 - Fu Mingxia, Chinese female diver
1979 - Michael Stahlman, American rower and coach
1980 - Vanessa Carlton, American singer/songwriter
1980 - Robert Hardy, English bassist (Franz Ferdinand)
1981 - Roque Santa Cruz, Paraguayan footballer
1981 - Taylor Rain, American pornographic actress
1982 - Joleon Lescott, English footballer
1983 - Colin Griffiths, English TV presenter and DJ
1983 - Nikos Zisis, Greek basketball player
1983 - Colt Brennan, University of Hawai'i Quarterback
1985 - Agnes Bruckner, American actress
1986 - Shawn Pyfrom, American actor
1987 - Kyal Marsh, Australian actor
1988 - Kevin Schmidt, American actor
1988 - Rumer Willis, American actress
1988 - Amandah Wilkinson, Australian musician
1991 - Evanna Lynch, Irish actress
1991 - Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse, Canadian actress