Famous People Born in 1956

Birthdays 1 - 200 of 818

• Jan 1 Abdalla Hamdok, Sudanese politician (Prime Minister of Sudan 2021-22), born in Al Dibaibat, Sudan
• Jan 1 Anatoli Borisovich Polonsky, Russian lt-colonel/cosmonaut
• Jan 1 Andy Gill, British guitarist and record producer (Gang of Four - "Damaged Goods"), born in Manchester, England (d. 2020)

• Jan 1 John O'Donohue, Irish poet (Anam Cara; Benedictus), philosopher, theologian, and one-time priest, born in Connemara, Ireland (d. 2008)
• Jan 1 Kôji Yakusho [Hashimoto], Japanese actor (Shall We Dance?), born in Isahaya, Nagasaki, Japan
• Jan 1 Mark R. Hughes, American entrepreneur (founder and CEO of Herbalife International), born in La Mirada, California Ltd, d. 2000)
• Jan 1 Martin Plaza [Murphy], Australian new wave singer-songwriter (Mental As Anything - "Live It Up"; solo - "Concrete and Clay"), born in Sydney, Australia
• Jan 1 Mike Mitchell, American basketball small forward (NBA All-Star 1981; Italian League top scorer 1998), born in Atlanta, Georgia (d. 2011)
• Jan 1 Sergei Vasiliyevich Avdeyev, Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-15, SK:TM-28)
• Jan 1 Sergio Victor Palma, Argentine boxer (WBA Super Bantamweight champion 1980-82), born in La Tigra, Argentina (d. 2021)
• Jan 2 Lynda Barry, American cartoonist

• Jan 3 Willy T. Ribbs, American auto racer (first African-American to drive in Indianapolis 500), born in San Jose, California
• Jan 4 Ann Magnuson, actress (Anything But Love, Hunger), born in Charleston, West Virginia
• Jan 4 Bernard Sumner [Albrecht], English rock guitarist, vocalist (Joy Division and New Order), born in Salford, England
• Jan 4 Nels Cline, American guitarist and composer (Wilco), born in Los Angeles, California
• Jan 5 Chen Kenichi [Ken'ichi Azuma], Japanese celebrity chef, "The Szechuan Sage" (Iron Chef Chinese), born in Tokyo, Japan
• Jan 5 Frank-Walter Steinmeier, German politician (President of Germany 2017-), born in Detmold, West Germany
• Jan 6 Elizabeth Strout, American novelist ("Olive Kitteridge" - Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2009), born in Portland, Maine [1]
• Jan 7 David Caruso, American actor (NYPD Blue, Michael Hayes), born in Forest Hills, New York
• Jan 7 Rosalyn Bryant, American 4x400m runner (Olympic silver 1976), born in Chicago, Illinois
• Jan 8 Archie Roach, Aboriginal Australian blues singer-songwriter (Took The Children Away), born in the Framlingham Aboriginal Reserve, Australia (d. 2022)
• Jan 9 David Smith, English cricketer (England lefty batsman in 2 Tests v WI 1986), born in Balham, London
• Jan 9 Imelda Staunton, British actress (Finding Your Feet, Maleficent), born in Archway, London
• Jan 9 Kimberly Beck Hilton, American actress (Kim-Peyton Place), born in Glendale, California
• Jan 9 Mike Walczewski, American public address announcer
• Jan 10 Antonio Muñoz Molina, Spanish writer (Royal Spanish Academy), born in Úbeda, Jaén, Spain
• Jan 10 Don Letts, British film director and musician (Big Audio Dynamite), born in London, England
• Jan 10 Shawn Colvin, American country folk singer-songwriter ("Sunny Came Home"), born in Vermillion, South Dakota
• Jan 11 Big Bank Hank [Henry Lee Jackson] American rapper (The Sugarhill Gang - "Rapper's Delight"), born in The Bronx, New York (d. 2014)
• Jan 11 Robert Earl Keen, American singer-songwriter ("What I Really Mean"), born in Houston, Texas
• Jan 13 Janet Hubert-Whitten, actress (Vivian Banks-Fresh Prince of Bel Air)
• Jan 13 Malcolm Foster, British rock bassist (Pretenders, 1984-89; Simple Minds, 1989-95), born in Hereford, England
• Jan 14 Ben Heppner, Canadian tenor, and broadcaster, born in Murrayville, British Columbia
• Jan 14 Étienne Daho, French singer-songwriter, born in Oran, Algeria
• Jan 15 Mayawati, Indian politician, born in New Delhi, India
• Jan 15 Paul Parker, English cricketer (one Test England v Australia 1981), born in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
• Jan 15 Vera Sosulya, Soviet tobogganist (Olympic gold 1980)
• Jan 16 Ivan Safronov, Russian journalist, born in Moscow, Russia (d. 2007)
• Jan 16 Jennifer Dale, Canadian actress, born in Toronto, Canada
• Jan 16 Martin Jol, Dutch football manager, born in The Hague, Netherlands
• Jan 16 Saadeddine Othmani, Moroccan politician and Prime Minister of Morocco (2017-present), born in Inezgane, Morocco
• Jan 16 Wayne Daniel, West Indies cricketer (WI fast bowler 1976-84), born in Saint Philip, Barbados
• Jan 17 Cristina [Monet Zilkha], American dance-pop singer songwriter ("Sleep It Off"), born in New York City (d. 2020)
• Jan 17 Faouzi Mansouri, Algerian soccer defender (13 caps; Montpellier, FC Mulhouse), born in Djerba, Tunisia (d. 2022)
• Jan 17 Mitch Vogel, American actor (Jamie-Bonanza), born in Alhambra, California
• Jan 17 Paul Young, British rock and blue-eyed soul vocalist ("Every Time You Go Away"; Band-Aid - "Do They Know It's Christmas?"), born in Luton, England
• Jan 18 George Mark Collie, American country singer ("Another Old Soldier"), born in Waynesboro Tennessee
• Jan 19 Carman Licciardello, American Christian music singer-songwriter ("The Champion"; "Radically Saved"), born in Trenton, New Jersey (d. 2021)
• Jan 19 Parthenon Huxley [Richard Miller], American rock guitarist, singer- songwriter and producer (ELO II; The Orchestra; P. Hux), born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
• Jan 20 Adrian Vernon Fish, British classical composer, and Irish radio host (Fish on Fridays), born in Bristol, England

• Jan 20 John Naber, American swimmer (Olympic gold 100m/200m backstroke, 4×200m freestyle relay, 4×100m medley; silver 200m freestyle 1976), born in Evanston, Illinois
• Jan 20 Maria Larsson, Swedish politician, born in Långasjö, Sweden
• Jan 21 Bob Brill, American drummer (Berlin - "You Take My Breath Away"), born in New York City
• Jan 21 Forrest Gander, American poet (Be With - 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry), born in Barstow, California
• Jan 21 Geena Davis, American actress (Beetlejuice, Fly), born in Wareham, Massachusetts
• Jan 21 Robby Benson, American actor (One on One, Running Brave, Chosen), born in Dallas, Texas
• Jan 22 Steve Riley, American rock drummer (L.A. Guns; W.A.S.P.), born in Revere, Massachusetts
• Jan 23 Larysa Kuzmenko, Canadian concert pianist, and composer, of Ukrainian heritage (Memoriam for the Victims of Chornobyl; Golden Harvest), born in Toronto, Ontario
• Jan 23 Lazar Ristovski, Serbian keyboardist (Smak and Bijelo Dugme), born in Novi Pazar, Yugoslavia (d. 2007)
• Jan 24 Hanne Krogh, Norwegian singer (Bobbysocks), born in Oslo, Norway
• Jan 24 Lounès Matoub, Kabylian singer-songwriter, guitar and mandole player, and Berber rights activist, born in of Taourirt Moussa, Algeria (d. 1998)
• Jan 25 Andy Cox, British guitarist (Fine Young Cannibals - "She Drives Me Crazy"), born in Birmingham, England
• Jan 25 Bill Turnbull, British television and radio presenter and journalist (Radio Clyde; BBC), born in Guildford, Surrey, England (d. 2022)
• Jan 26 Lisa Boray [Schulte Nordholt], Dutch jazz singer ("Lovers Until the End"), born in Breda, Netherlands
• Jan 27 Mimi Rogers [Miriam Spickler], American actress (The Rapture; Paper Dolls; Weapons of Mass Distraction), and producer, born in Coral Gables, Florida
• Jan 28 [Pierre] "Peter" Schilling, German synthpop musician ("Major Tom (Coming Home)"), born in Stuttgart, Germany
• Jan 30 Jeremy Gittins, English actor, born in Manchester, United Kingdom
• Jan 30 Keiichi Tsuchiya, Japanese racing driver, born in Tomi, Japan

• Jan 31 Trevor Manuel, South African politician, born in Cape Town, South Africa
• Feb 1 (Christine) "Exene" Cervenka, American punk rock singer and poet (X), born in Chicago, Illinois
• Feb 1 Brahmanandam, Indian film actor and comedian, born in Sattenapalle, India
• Feb 1 Mike Kitchen, Canadian ice hockey defenceman (NJ Devils) and coach (St. Louis Blues 2003-07), born in Newmarket, Canada
• Feb 3 John Jefferson, American football wide receiver (First-team All-Pro 1979, 80 SD Chargers; 4 × Pro Bowl; NFL receiving yards leader 1980; NFL receiving TD leader 1978, 80; GB Packers), born in Dallas, Texas
• Feb 3 Lee Ranaldo, American rock guitarist, and singer-songwriter (Sonic Youth - "100%"), born in Glen Cove, Long Island, New York

• Feb 3 Pamela Cossey, England, model/sister of transsexual Tula
• Feb 5 Betty Ong, flight attendant that died on September 11, 2001, on American Airlines Flight 11
• Feb 5 Hector Rebaque, Mexican racing driver, born in Mexico City
• Feb 5 Vincent "Vinnie" Colaiuta, American touring and session rock and jazz drummer (Frank Zappa, 1979-83; Joni Mitchell, 1982-91; Sting, 1993-2003), born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania
• Feb 6 Jon Walmsley, British actor (Jason in The Waltons), born in Lancashire, England
• Feb 6 Linda Grovenor, American actress (Die Laughing, Wheels of Fire), born in Baltimore, Maryland
• Feb 7 Emo Philips, American comedian
• Feb 7 Mark St. John [Norton], American rock guitarist (KISS, April- November, 1984), born in Hollywood, California (d. 2007)
• Feb 8 Dave Meros, American progressive rock bassist (Spock's Beard), born in Salinas, California
• Feb 9 Philip Jackson Ford Jr, NC, basketball player (Olympic gold 1976)
• Feb 10 Kenny Leon, American stage director, producer and actor (A Raisin in the Sun - Tony Award for Best Direction), born in Tallahassee, Florida
• Feb 11 Catherine Hickland, American actress (One Life to Live), born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
• Feb 11 David Uosikkinen, American drummer (The Hooters - "All You Zombies"; "And We Danced"), born in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania
• Feb 11 Didier Lockwood, French violinist, born in Calais, France (d. 2018)
• Feb 11 H.R. [Paul D. Hudson], British-American singer (Bad Brains), born in London, England
• Feb 11 Raoul Björkenheim, American avant-garde jazz guitarist, born in Los Angeles, California
• Feb 12 Ad P. Melkert, Dutch minister of Social Affairs, born in Gouda, Netherlands

• Feb 12 Brian Robertson, Scottish rock guitarist (Thin Lizzy), born in Clarkston, Scotland
• Feb 13 Liam Brady, Irish footballer, born in Dublin, Ireland
• Feb 13 Peter Hook, English rock bassist (New Order - "Round & Round"; "Run"), born in Salford, United Kingdom
• Feb 13 Princess Alia bint Al Hussein, Jordanian Royal Family member, born in Amman, Jordan
• Feb 13 Richard Eden, Canadian actor (Brick-Santa Barbara, Solar Crisis, Robocop), born in Toronto, Ontario
• Feb 13 Yiannis Kouros, Greek-Australian runner, born in Tripoli, Greece
• Feb 14 Howard Davis Jr., American boxer (Olympic gold lightweight 1976), born in Glen Cove, New York (d. 2015)
• Feb 15 Desmond Haynes, West Indian cricket batsman and administrator (116 Tests; 7,487 runs @ 42.29; 238 ODIs; Director WI Cricket Board), born in Saint James, Barbados
• Feb 15 Hilda Beatriz "Hildita" Guevara, Cuba, daughter of "Che" Guevara
• Feb 15 Hitoshi Ogawa, Japanese racing driver (d. 1992)
• Feb 17 Jeffrey Foskett, American session and touring singer and guitarist (The Beach Boys; Brian Wilson; Wondermints), born in San Jose, California (d. 2023)
• Feb 17 Richard Karn [Wilson], American actor (Home Improvement) and TV game show host (Family Feud), born in Seattle, Washington
• Feb 18 Ted Gärdestad, Swedish singer, born in Sollentuna Municipality, Sweden (d. 1997)
• Feb 19 Dave Wakeling, British Rock singer-songwriter and guitarist (The English Beat; General Public), born in Birmingham, England
• Feb 19 George David Low, American astronaut (STS 32, STS 43), born in Cleveland, Ohio

• Feb 19 Kathleen Beller, American actress (Promises in the Dark, Dynasty, The Betsy), born in Westchester, New York
• Feb 19 Peter Holsapple, American rock-pop singer-songwriter (The dB's; Continental Drifters), born in Greenwich, Connecticut
• Feb 19 Roderick MacKinnon, American biologist (2003 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for work on ion channels), born in Burlington, Massachusetts
• Feb 19 Steve Randell, Tasmanian cricket Test umpire (international panel)
• Feb 20 Charles Cummins, 3rd of 5 siblings born on 2/20, born in Clintwood, Virginia
• Feb 20 Charlie Adler, American voice actor (Tiny Toon Adventures), born in Paterson, New Jersey
• Feb 21 Woody Brown, American actor (Cliff-Facts of Life), born in Dayton, Ohio

• Feb 24 Judith Butler, American philosopher, and gender theorist, born in Cleveland, Ohio
• Feb 24 Paula Zahn, American journalist and news anchor (ABC; CBS This Morning; Fox; CNN; PBS), born in Omaha, Nebraska
• Feb 25 Davie Cooper, Scottish soccer winger (22 caps; Clydebank, Rangers 376 games, Motherwell), born in Hamilton, Scotland (d. 1995)
• Feb 26 Keisuke Kuwata, Japanese pop singer,songwriter and film score composer, born in Chigasaki, Japan
• Feb 28 Jimmy Nicholl, Irish soccer defender (73 caps Northern Ireland; Manchester United 197 games) and manager (Millwall, Raith Rovers, Cowdenbeath), born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
• Feb 28 Mike Tenay, American wrestling commentator
• Feb 29 (Jonathan) "Jono" Coleman, British-Australian television and radio, writer, and comedian, born in Hackney, England (d. 2021)
• Feb 29 Aileen Wuornos, American serial killer whose life portrayed in film "Monsters", born in Troy, Michigan (d. 2002)
• Feb 29 J. Randy Taraborrelli, American celebrity journalist
• Feb 29 Jonathan Coleman, Anglo-Australian entertainer
• Mar 1 Jan Van der Roost, Belgian composer (Chemical Suite for Trombone Quartet), born in Duffel, Belgium
• Mar 1 Mark Todd, New Zealand equestrian rider (Olympic gold individual eventing 1984, 88), born in Cambridge, New Zealand
• Mar 1 Timothy Daly, American actor (Joe-Wings, Diner, Made in Heaven), born in Sufferin, New York
• Mar 2 Eusebio Pedroza, Panamanian boxer (WBA featherweight champion 1978-85), born in Panama City, Panama (d. 2019)
• Mar 2 Gary Pearce, English rugby union prop (36 caps; Northampton Saints), born in Dinton, England
• Mar 2 John Cowsill, American rock drummer (The Cowsills - "We Can Fly"; Beach Boys, 2000-present), born in Newport, Rhode Island
• Mar 2 Mark Evans, Australian rock bassist (AC/DC), born in Melbourne, Victoria
• Mar 3 John F Reid, New Zealand cricket batsman (19 Tests, 1296 runs @ 46.28, 6 x 100s), born in Auckland, New Zealand (d. 2020)
• Mar 3 Stephanie McCallum, Australian concert pianist and educator, born in Sydney, Australia
• Mar 3 Zbigniew Boniek, Polish footballer
• Mar 4 Kermit Driscoll, American jazz bassist (Bill Frissell), born in Kearney, Nebraska
• Mar 5 Adriana Barraza, Mexican actress
• Mar 5 Mark Handley, writer (Nell)
• Mar 5 Teena Marie [Mary Christine Brockert], American R&B and soul singer-songwriter ("Square Biz"; "Lovergirl"), born in Santa Monica, California (d. 2010)
• Mar 6 Peter Roebuck, English cricketer and journalist, born in Oddington, Oxfordshire, England (d. 2011)

• Mar 8 David Malpass, American economist (President of the World Bank 2019-), born in Petoskey, Michigan
• Mar 8 John Kapelos, Canadian actor
• Mar 8 Laurie Cunningham, English soccer left winger (6 caps; Orient, West Bromwich Albion, Real Madrid, Marseille, Rayo Vallecano), born in London, England (d. 1989)
• Mar 9 David Willetts, English Conservative Party politician, born in Birmingham, England
• Mar 9 Mark Dantonio, American football coach for Michigan State University, born in El Paso, Texas
• Mar 9 Shashi Tharoor, Indian politician and diplomat (United Nations Under-Secretary General), born in London
• Mar 10 Janet Alex-Anderson, American golfer (US Open 1982), born in West Sunbury, Pennsylvania
• Mar 10 Mitchell Lichtenstein, American actor; son of Roy Lichtenstein
• Mar 11 Curtis L Brown Jr, NC, astronaut (STS 47, STS 66, 77, 85, sk:95)
• Mar 11 D. J. MacHale, American author and television writer
• Mar 11 Rob Paulsen, American voice actor (Pinky and The Brain), born in Detroit, Michigan

• Mar 12 Lesley Manville, British stage and screen actress (Mum; Phantom Thread; The Crown; Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris), born in Brighton, England
• Mar 12 Steve Harris, English hard rock bassist (Iron Maiden - "Gypsy's Kiss"), born in London, England
• Mar 13 Dana Delany, American actress (Colleen McMurphy-China Beach, Exit to Eden), born in New York City

• Mar 13 Motoharu Sano, Japanese rock singer-songwriter ("Someday"), born in Taitō, Japan
• Mar 14 Alexey Pajitnov, Russian video game designer and computer engineer (Tetris), born in Moscow, Soviet Union
• Mar 14 Colin Ayre, British football player (Newcastle United), born in Ashington, Northumberland
• Mar 14 Natalya Kuleshova, Russian cosmonaut, born in Moscow, Soviet Union
• Mar 14 Patrick Leonard, American songwriter, film composer and music producer (Madonna), born in Crystal Falls, Michigan
• Mar 14 Tessa Sanderson, British javelin thrower (Olympic gold. 1984), born in Kingston, Jamaica
• Mar 15 Clay Matthews, NFL linebacker (Atlanta Falcons)
• Mar 16 Ozzie Newsome, American NFL tight end (Cleveland Browns) and football executive, born in Muscle Shoals, Alabama
• Mar 16 Rosanna Flamer-Caldera, Sri Lankan LGBT activist, founder of Equal Ground, born in Sri Lanka [1]
• Mar 16 Vladimír Godár, Slovak contemporary classical music and film music composer, born in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia
• Mar 17 Frank McGarvey, Scottish soccer forward (7 caps; Celtic, St Mirren) and manager (Queen of the South FC), born in Glasgow, Scotland (d. 2023)
• Mar 17 Luca Francesconi, Italian classical and electronic music composer (Wanderer; Unexpected End of Formula), born in Milan, Italy
• Mar 17 Patrick McDonnell, American cartoonist (Mutts), born in Elizabeth, New Jersey
• Mar 17 Rory McGrath, British comedian, television personality, and writer (Who Dares Wins, They Think It's All Over), born in Redruth, Cornwall
• Mar 17 Will Rigby, American rock drummer and percussionist (The dB's; Matthew Sweet), born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
• Mar 18 "The Model" Rick Martel [Richard Vignault], wrestler (WWF/AWA)
• Mar 18 Deborah Jeane Palfrey, American escort owner, born in Charleroi, Pennsylvania (d. 2008)
• Mar 18 Ingemar Stenmark, Swedish alpine skier (2 Olympic gold 1980), born in Joesjö, Sweden
• Mar 18 Juan Meza, Mexican boxer (WBC Super Bantamweight champion 1984-85), born in Mexicali, Mexico (d. 2023)
• Mar 19 Alina Castro, Havanna Cuba, daughter of Fidel
• Mar 19 Yegor Gaidar, Russian politician and economist.
• Mar 20 Alphonso Martin, British reggae percussionist and vocalist (Steel Pulse, 1977-91 - "Prodigal Son"), born in Birmingham, England
• Mar 21 André Malherbe, Belgian motocross racer (FIM 500cc Motocross World Champion 1980, 81, 84), born in Huy, Belgium (d. 2022)

• Mar 21 László Tihanyi, Hungarian composer (Silence of the Winds; Two Imaginary Dialogues), and conductor (Ensemble Intermodulation), born in Budapest, Hungary
• Mar 22 Generosa Ammon, American widow of murdered multimillionaire Ted Ammon, suspect in his death, born in Laguna Beach, California (d. 2003)
• Mar 22 Lena Olin, Swedish actress (Enemies A Love Story), born in Stockholm, Sweden
• Mar 23 José Manuel Barroso, Portuguese politician, president of the European Commission
• Mar 23 Laura Thorne, chef (named one of 10 best American chefs)
• Mar 24 Ijaz Faqih, cricketer (Pakistan off-spin all-rounder in 5 Tests 80-88)

• Mar 25 Matthew Garber, English child actor (Mary Poppins), born in London, England (d. 1977)
• Mar 25 Sonia M Lannaman, England, 4X100m relayer (Olympic bronze 1980)
• Mar 26 Charly McClain, American country singer (Radio Heart), born in Jackson, Tennessee
• Mar 26 Tatyana Kochergina, Ukrainian handball player who won Olympic gold 1976, 80 USSR, born in Ovidiopol, Ukraine
• Mar 27 (Paul) "Wix" Wickens, British session and touring keyboard player (Paul McCartney; Nik Kershaw; Kevin Coyne), born in Brentwood, Essex, England

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