10. March 19, 1848: Wyatt Earp. He wasn't really a hero, more an anti-hero. Indeed, there were times when he acted more like a mob boss. But he was courageous enough to be his own hitman, and when called upon to uphold the law, he did it as well as anyone in the Wild West.
9. March 19, 1946: Ruth Pointer. The Pointer Sisters were one of the top female vocal groups of the 1970s and '80s. Ruth is now the last surviving original member.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1937: Clarence "Frogman" Henry. One of the original New Orleans R&B singers, known for his vocal tricks, including the one that got him his nickname.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1953: Ricky Wilson. The original lead guitarist for The B-52's, and the brother of group member Cindy Wilson. He may have been the 1st major rocker to die from the effects of AIDS.
8. March 19, 1860: William Jennings Bryan. In 1896, the former Congressman from Nebraska spoke before the Democratic National Convention, and told the business lords of the country, "You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold." The delegates loved it so much, they nominated him for President. At 36, he was barely old enough to hold the Presidency, and he remains the youngest Presidential nominee ever.
He lost to William McKinley. He was nominated again in 1900, and lost to McKinley. He was nominated again in 1908, and lost to William Howard Taft. But his 1896 campaign was the start of the Democratic Party's move away from being America's other conservative party to becoming America's liberal party.
7. March 19, 1914: Jay Berwanger. Playing in the backfield on both sides of the ball for the University of Chicago, he was awarded the 1st Heisman Trophy in 1935. In 1936, he was the 1st player chosen in the 1st NFL Draft, by the Philadelphia Eagles. But they didn't think they couldn't meet his salary demand, so they traded his rights to the Chicago Bears. Berwanger turned the Bears down because he wanted to preserve his amateur status and compete in the decathlon at the 1936 Olympics. But he didn't make the cut, and couldn't come to an agreement with George Halas. He went to work, and later regretted not taking Halas' offer.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1922: Guy Lewis. In 1967 and 1968, with Elvin Hayes, he guided the University of Houston to the Final Four. He did it again in 1982, 1983 and 1984, with Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. But he never won a National Championship.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1924: Joe Gaetjens. Born in Haiti, but allowed to play for the United States national soccer team under the rules of the time, he scored the goal that allowed the U.S. to beat England 1-0 at the 1950 World Cup in Brazil.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1938: Joe Kapp. He is the only quarterback to play in the Rose Bowl (1959 with the University of California), the Grey Cup (1964 with the BC Lions) and the Super Bowl (1970 with the Minnesota Vikings). As California coach in 1982, he called upon his experience in the more rugby-like Canadian Football League, and used a six-lateral kickoff return to beat arch-rival Stanford in the season finale, known as simply "The Play."
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1958: Andy Reid. He coached the Philadelphia Eagles into Super Bowl XXXIX, and lost; and the Kansas City Chiefs into Super Bowl LIV, and won.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1976: Alessandro Nesta. The centreback helped Rome soccer team SS Lazio win Italy's national league and its cup, the Double, in 2000. He helped AC Milan win the league title in 2004 and 2011, and the UEFA Champions League in 2003 and 2007. And he helped Italy win the 2006 World Cup.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1981: Kolo Touré. The centreback was part of North London soccer team Arsenal's "Invincibles," going the entire 2003-04 Premier League season without losing. He also helped them win the FA Cup in 2003 and 2005. With Manchester City, alongside his brother Yaya, he won the 2012 Premier League title. He also helped Glasgow team Celtic win the 2017 Scottish league title. And he helped his homeland, the Ivory Coast, win the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1988: Clayton Kershaw. Perhaps baseball's greatest active pitcher, he enters the 2022 season with a record of 185-84, an ERA of 2.49 (if he can keep it under 2.75, it will be an all-time record), 2,670 strikeouts, 8 All-Star berths, 3 National League Cy Young Awards, the 2014 NL Most Valuable Player award, and 3 Pennants with the Los Angeles Dodgers, including the 2020 World Series win.
6. March 19, 1955: Bruce Willis. Welcome to the party, pal!
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1894: Moms Mabley. By the time white audiences knew her, she was as old as the men she claimed in her standup act to have been marrying, and cleaned that act up for their consumption. But in her prime, she was a funny and as foul-mouthed as Redd Foxx.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1928: Patrick McGoohan. He played British secret agent John Drake in Danger Man, which was rebranded as Secret Agent in America. Then he played Number Six in The Prisoner, a character who may or may not have also been Drake. He should not be confused with Patrick Macnee, who played John Steed in The Avengers.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1936: Ursula Andress. She played Honey Rider, the 1st "Bond Girl" (unless you count Eunice Gayson as Sylvia Trench) in Dr. No. After Sean Connery, the only up to go to was Elvis Presley, in Fun in Acapulco.
Dishonorable Mention: March 19, 1952: Harvey Weinstein. No one wants to her about his achievements, only his prosecution.
5. March 19, 1927: Richie Ashburn. The leadoff hitter and center fielder for the Philadelphia Phillies "Whiz Kids" team that won the 1950 National League Pennant, he later became a beloved broadcaster for the team. He lived long enough to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, and a statue of him stands on the center field concourse at Citizens Bank Park.
4. March 19, 1933: Philip Roth. The Newark native wrote about the nature of Judaism in America, and about sex, and how the intertwined.
But he may have done his most important work with the alternate-history novel The Plot Against America: Charles Lindbergh as Adolf Hitler's puppet was all too close to Donald Trump as Vladimir Putin's.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1916: Irving Wallace. In 1964, he published The Man, about the 1st black President of the United States. In 1969, he published The Seven Minutes, about the most-banned book in human history. In 1972, he published The Word, about a newly-discovered Gospel, which might be a forgery. He liked being provocative.
3. March 19, 1947: Glenn Close. One of the finest actresses of her generation, I had to put here here, because she's not going to be ignored. She's also sung the National Anthem at many games of her favorite baseball team, including in the World Series. Unfortunately, that team is the New York Mets.
2. March 19, 1734: Thomas McKean. A Signer of the Declaration of Independence, he was President of the Continental Congress from July 10 to November 4, 1781, meaning he was, in a way, the President of the United States before George Washington. He briefly served as President of Delaware, and later 9 years as Governor of Pennsylvania, meaning he was Governor of 2 different States. Only 1 other person has achieved that: Sam Houston of Tennessee and Texas.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1821: Richard Francis Burton. A hero of the Crimean War, he was also an explorer, and a translator of ancient texts, as he was said to be fluent in up to 30 languages. He appears not to have been related to Richard Burton, the 20th Century actor.
Honorable Mention: March 19, 1904: John Sirica. A federal Judge for the District of Columbia, he ruled that President Richard Nixon had to turn over the Oval Office audiotapes. In 1973, Time magazine named him its Man of the Year.
1. March 19, 1891: Earl Warren. Elected Governor of California in 1938, he was nominated for Vice President by the Republican Party in 1948. In 1953, he was appointed Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He used that post to guide the unanimous ruling that struck down segregation in public facilities.
He used the rest of his tenure to move the Court to strike down authoritarian State laws regarding race, religion and criminal justice, to the point where America's conservatives called him a Communist and put up billboards reading, "IMPEACH EARL WARREN!" It did no good, and he remains the greatest Justice in the Court's history.
Still alive as of this writing: Pointer, Henry, Kapp, Reid, Nesta, Touré, Kershaw, Willis, Andress, Weinstein, Close.