Did you know
Claire Forlani became known in the mid-1990s for her leading role in the film Mallrats, and in the Jean-Michel Basquiat 1996 biopic Basquiat.
Famous Birthdays on December 17
1971 — Claire Forlani
English actress
December 17 has 248 recorded notable births across history, from 1239 to 2002. This focused page highlights 20 people with the strongest available profile context.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Famous Birthdays
248 source records
1239 – 2002
Sagittarius
Today in history
Major events on December 17
See what else happened on this day in history.
- 1989 Fernando Collor de Mello defeats Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the second round of the Brazilian presidential election, becoming the first democratically elected President in almost 30 years. Source
- 1951 The American Civil Rights Congress delivers "We Charge Genocide" to the United Nations. Source
- 2002 Second Congo War: The Congolese parties of the Inter Congolese Dialogue sign a peace accord which makes provision for transitional governance and legislative and presidential elections within two years. Source
- 1892 First issue of Vogue is published. Source
Did you know
Known as "The Iceman", Liddell achieved a 16–7 MMA record in the UFC, and an overall MMA record of 21–9, with 13 of his wins coming by way of knockout.
Did you know
John Kennedy Toole was an American novelist from New Orleans, Louisiana, whose posthumously published novel, A Confederacy of Dunces, won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1981.
Did you know
Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and an early form of arc lamp.
Did you know
Sébastien Ogier has won 9 World Rally Drivers' Championship including 6 consecutive titles from 2013 to 2018, in addition to 2020, 2021 and 2025, and is the joint most successful WRC driver together with Sébastien Loeb.
More major people born on December 17
Notable people are ranked by substantive profile depth and public notability.
1969
Chuck Liddell
American mixed martial artist and kick-boxer
Charles David Liddell is an American former professional mixed martial artist.
1937
John Kennedy Toole
American novelist (died 1969)
John Kennedy Toole was an American novelist from New Orleans, Louisiana, whose posthumously published novel, A Confederacy of Dunces, won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1981.
1778
Humphry Davy
English chemist and physicist (died 1829)
Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and an early form of arc lamp.
1983
Sébastien Ogier
French race car driver
Sébastien Eugène Emile Ogier is a French rally driver, competing for the Toyota Gazoo Racing Team in the World Rally Championship (WRC). He is currently teamed with co-driver Vincent Landais.
1966
Tracy Byrd
American singer-songwriter and guitarist
Tracy Lynn Byrd is an American country music artist. Signed to MCA Nashville Records in 1992, Byrd broke through on the country music scene that year with his 1993 single "Holdin' Heaven", which reached Number One on…
1992
Quinton de Kock
South African cricketer
Quinton de Kock is a South African international cricketer and former captain of the South Africa national team in all three formats.
1965
Craig Berube
Canadian ice hockey player and coach
Craig Berube is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who was most recently the head coach for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL).
1975
Susanthika Jayasinghe
Sri Lankan sprinter
Deshabandu Kameradin Susanthika Jayasinghe is a Sri Lankan retired sprinter, who specialised in the 100 and 200 metres.
1616
Roger L'Estrange
English pamphleteer and author (died 1704)
Sir Roger L'Estrange was an English pamphleteer, author, courtier and press censor.
1951
Ken Hitchcock
Canadian ice hockey player and coach
Kenneth S. Hitchcock is a Canadian former professional ice hockey coach. Hitchcock coached the Dallas Stars, Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets, St.
1980
Suzy Batkovic
Australian basketball player
Suzy Batkovic is an Australian professional basketball player and politician. Suzy played her junior basketball with the Port Hunter Basketball Club in Newcastle.
1968
Paul Tracy
Canadian race car driver and sportscaster
Paul Anthony Tracy is a Canadian-American professional auto racing driver who participated in Champ Car World Series, the IndyCar Series, and the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART).
1887
Josef Lada
Czech painter and illustrator (died 1957)
Josef Lada was a Czech painter, illustrator, cartoonist and writer. He was pioneer of the Czech comicbook tradition and founder of the "Czech modern fairytale" genre.
1914
Mushtaq Ali
Indian cricketer (died 2005)
Syed Mushtaq Ali was an Indian cricketer, a right-handed opening batsman who holds the distinction of scoring the first overseas Test century by an Indian player when he scored 112 against England at Old Trafford in…
1996
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva
Russian figure skater
Elizaveta Sergeyevna Tuktamysheva is a Russian retired figure skater. She is the 2015 World champion, the 2021 World silver medalist, the 2015 European champion and the 2013 European bronze medalist.
1961
Sara Dallin
English singer
Sara Elizabeth Dallin is an English singer/songwriter and a founding member of the pop group Bananarama. The group has achieved 28 UK top-50 and 11 US top-100 singles, including a US number one with "Venus" (1986).
1930
Bob Guccione
American photographer and publisher, founded Penthouse (died 2010)
Robert Charles Joseph Edward Sabatini Guccione was an American visual artist, photographer and publisher. He founded the adult magazine Penthouse in 1965.
1932
John Bond
English footballer and manager (died 2012)
John Frederick Bond was an English professional football player and manager. He played from 1950 until 1966 for West Ham United, making 444 appearances in all competitions and scoring 37 goals.
1973
Rian Johnson
American director, producer, and screenwriter
Rian Craig Johnson is an American filmmaker. He made his directorial debut with the neo-noir mystery film Brick (2005), which received positive reviews and grossed nearly $4 million on a $450,000 budget.