If today is your birthday, best wishes! If not, enjoy the offerings below the fold related to people born on this date. First, some anniversaries:
1204: The Fourth Crusade takes Constantinople, beginning a slow decline into irrelevance for the city, and carrying Venice to its zenith of power:
1861: Confederate forces fire on Fort Sumter, marking the beginning of the American Civil War:
1945: FDR dies:
1961: Yuri Gagarin become the first man in space:
On to birthdays:
Felilce Giardini:
Pietro Nardini:
Juan Manuel Olivares:
Henry Clay:
Joseph Lanner:
Jose Gautier Benitez:
Heinrich Neuhaus:
Johnny Dodds:
Lily Pons:
Felix De Weldon:
Hound Dog Taylor:
Helen Forrest:
Billy Vaughn:
Ann Miller:
Ned Miller:
Hardy Kruger:
Manuel Neri:
Dennis Banks:
Tiny Tim:
Monserrat Caballe:
Herbie Hancock:
David Letterman:
David Cassidy:
Herbert Gronemeyer:
Vince Gill:
Lisa Gerrard:
Lisa Ray:
Sarah Cracknell:
Mellow Man Ace:
Sebnem Ferah:
Eric Mongrain: