1821 Fyodor Dostoevsky, legendary Russian author of Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov fame. So many movies inspired by his work. But he's not the legendary Russian author that'll be getting all the press this next couple of months. That'd be Leo Tolstoy, soon to be chattered about when The Last Station emerges as an Oscar contender.1887 Roland Young, popular 30s and 40s character actor (Topper, The Philadelphia Story, Ruggles of Red Gap)
1898 René Clair, (pictured left), wonderful French writer/director. If you've never seen Le Million I urge you to rent it maintenant. His Oscar nominated films include The Gates of Paris (1957) and À nous la liberté (1931)
1899 Pat O'Brien --Ewwww, not that one people -- the actor! whose film career stretches alllllll the way from the 1931 classic The Front Page to 1981's Ragtime.
1901 Sam Spiegel, powerful producer. Boy was he on fire in the 50s bringing us On The Waterfront, Suddenly Last Summer and The Bridge on the River Kwai.
1922 Kurt Vonnegut author of Slaughterhouse Five
1944 Kemal Sunal popular Turkish actor
1960 Stanley Tucci enduring actor of stage, television and screen and current Oscar hopeful (Julie & Julia, The Lovely Bones). Looked very good in his birthday suit opposite Edie Falco in hers in the Broadway revival of Frankie & Johnny some years back, now. I love that play, don't you?1960 Jackie Hoffman comedienne. Recently she made me howl with laughter in Broadway's Xanadu as an 'eee-eeevil woman'
1964 Calista Flockhart actress, Ally McBeal, Harrison Ford's girl, Kitty Walker McAllister. True story: I once went to The Vagina Monologues and Calista was in the middle of that horrific rape monologue and this guy two rows in front of me started to snore extremely loudly. I thought the audience was going to kill him. I wanted to. Flockhart never lost emotional focus and she was quite moving.
1972 Leslie Mann fine actress and Apatow player/wife
1974 Leonardo DiCaprio superstar
Finally, when celebrating birthdays, and especially birthday suits, you really do have to salute Demi Moore, turning 47 today, who has never ever shied away from celebrating hers. Not even in her mid-40s. Thumbs up.
Demi in the altogether in 1992, 2009 and 1996If Demi were a musically gifted blond Scandinavian instead of a raven haired chick from New Mexico it'd be easy to imagine her as the truest reali life cinematic embodiment of Ulla ..."If You Got It, Flaunt It". I love immodest beauties and I love Demi. I only wish she hadn't made that short film Streak which was all preachy about loving your cellulite. Like she's ever had any.
...I have this sudden urge to watch her beat up Viggo as GI Jane.
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