TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS

Writer-director Robert Benton is 84. Singer Jerry Lee Lewis is 81. Actor Ian McShane is 74. Jazz musician JeanLuc Ponty is 74. Television-film composer Mike Post is 72. Actress Patricia Hodge is 70. TV personality Bryant Gumbel is 68. Country singer Alvin Crow is 66. Actor Drake Hogestyn is 63. Broadcast journalist Gwen Ifill is 61. Comedian-actor Andrew “Dice” Clay is 59. Rock singer John Payne (Asia) is 58. Actress Jill Whelan is 50. Actor Luke Goss is 48. Actress Erika Eleniak is 47. Actress Rachel Cronin is 45. Actor Alexis Cruz is 42.