September 21 birthdays
1866 H.G. WELLS English author
Wells was prolific in many genres, but is best remembered for his science fiction. His most notable novels include The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau and War of the Worlds.
1912 CHUCK JONES American animator
Jones is best known for his work with Warner Brothers on the shorts Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies. He wrote, produced and directed many classic cartoon shorts featuring characters such as Bugs Bunny.
1931 LARRY HAGMAN American actor
Hagman was born in Texas and became a film and television actor, director and producer. He is perhaps best known for his roles as the oil baron J.R. Ewing in Dallas, and Major Anthony Nelson in I Dream of Jeannie.
1934 LEONARD COHEN
Canadian singer-songwriter Cohen initially pursued a career as a poet and novelist and did not begin a music career until he was 33, when he released his first album, Songs of Leonard Cohen. His most famous song, Hallelujah, was first released in 1984.
1947 STEPHEN KING American author
King has published 63 novels, which have sold more than 350 million copies worldwide. Many have been made into films. In 1973, King’s novel, Carrie, was accepted for publishing. It was his fourth novel, but the first to be published.
1953 SHINZO ABE Japanese prime minister
Abe is the longest-serving prime minister in Japanese history. He served in the role from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 until 2020. Abe resigned in August 2020 as his health was declining due to ulcerative colitis.
1957 KEVIN RUDD
Australian politician
Rudd was born in Nambour,
Queensland, and was the 26th prime minister of Australia. He swept to power in 2007 after the highly-successful “Kevin 07” campaign. He was challenged and replaced by Julia Gillard in 2010, but seized back control in 2013 with a successful challenge.