Did you know
David Lynch is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, with his films often characterized by a distinctive surrealist sensibility that gave rise to the adjective "Lynchian".
Famous Birthdays on January 20
1946 — David Lynch
American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 2025)
January 20 has 206 recorded notable births across history, from 225 to 2003. This focused page highlights 20 people with the strongest available profile context.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Famous Birthdays
206 source records
225 – 2003
Aquarius
Today in history
Major events on January 20
See what else happened on this day in history.
- 1986 In the United States, Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated as a federal holiday for the first time. Source
- 1783 The Kingdom of Great Britain signs preliminary articles of peace with the Kingdom of France, setting the stage for the official end of hostilities in the American Revolutionary War later that year. Source
- 1981 Twenty minutes after Ronald Reagan is inaugurated as the 40th President of the United States of America, Iran releases 52 American hostages. Source
- 1973 Amílcar Cabral, leader of the independence movement in Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, is assassinated in Conakry, Guinea. Source
Did you know
However, his time at Manchester United was thereafter plagued with injuries and he was allowed to leave the club at the end of his contract in June 2011.
Did you know
Patricia Neal also featured as the matriarch in the television film The Homecoming: A Christmas Story (1971); her role as Olivia Walton was re-cast for the series it inspired, The Waltons.
Did you know
Richard Henry Lee was a member of the Lee family, a historically influential family in Virginia politics.
Did you know
Ahmir Khalib Thompson, known professionally as Questlove, is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor.
More major people born on January 20
Notable people are ranked by substantive profile depth and public notability.
1981
Owen Hargreaves
English footballer
Owen Lee Hargreaves is a former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played with Calgary Foothills as a youth before beginning his professional football career in Germany with Bayern Munich.
1926
Patricia Neal
American actress (died 2010)
Patricia Neal was an American actress of stage and screen. She is well known for, among other roles, playing World War II widow Helen Benson in The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), radio journalist Marcia Jeffries in A…
1732
Richard Henry Lee
American lawyer and politician, President of the Continental Congress (died 1794)
Richard Henry Lee was an American statesman and Founding Father from Virginia, best known for the June 1776 Lee Resolution, the motion in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence from Great…
1971
Questlove
American musician, record producer, and filmmaker
Ahmir Khalib Thompson, known professionally as Questlove, is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor.
2003
J. J. McCarthy
American football player
Jonathan James McCarthy is an American professional football quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL).
1965
John Michael Montgomery
American singer-songwriter and guitarist
John Michael Montgomery is an American country music singer. He has had more than 30 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts.
1945
Eric Stewart
English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
Eric Michael Stewart is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer, best known as a founding member of the rock groups the Mindbenders with whom he played from 1963 to 1968, and likewise of…
1971
Wakanohana Masaru
Japanese sumo wrestler, the 66th Yokozuna
Masaru Hanada is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler.
1950
Mahamane Ousmane
Nigerien politician, President of Niger
Mahamane Ousmane is a Nigerien politician. Elected as the fourth President of Niger at 43 years old, he is the youngest elected president in Africa.
1948
Nancy Kress
American author and academic
Nancy Anne Kress is an American science fiction writer. She began writing in 1976 but has achieved her greatest notice since the publication of her Hugo- and Nebula-winning novella Beggars in Spain (1991), which became…
1939
Chandra Wickramasinghe
Sri Lankan-English mathematician, astronomer, and biologist
Nalin Chandra Wickramasinghe is a Sri Lankan-born British mathematician and astronomer.
1883
Enoch L. Johnson
American mob boss (died 1968)
Enoch Lewis "Nucky" Johnson was an American politician from the Republican Party who served as an Atlantic City political boss, sheriff of Atlantic County, businessman, and crime boss who was the leader of the political…
1935
Dorothy Provine
American actress, singer, and dancer (died 2010)
Dorothy Michelle Provine was an American singer, dancer and actress.
1964
Ozzie Guillén
Venezuelan-American baseball player and manager
Oswaldo José Guillén Barrios is a Venezuelan former professional baseball player and current manager of the Tigres de Aragua of the Venezuelan League.
1944
José Luis Garci
Spanish director and producer
José Luis García Muñoz, known professionally as José Luis Garci, is a Spanish film director, producer, critic, TV presenter, screenwriter and author.
1955
McKeeva Bush
Caymanian politician, Premier of the Cayman Islands
William McKeeva Bush, is a Caymanian politician, former Speaker of the Parliament of the Cayman Islands and former Premier of the Cayman Islands.
1988
Jan Muršak
Slovenian ice hockey player
Jan Muršak is a Slovenian professional ice hockey player for EC KAC of the ICE Hockey League (ICEHL).
1975
David Eckstein
American baseball player
David Mark Eckstein is an American former professional baseball player. He was an infielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) for ten seasons.
1970
Skeet Ulrich
American actor
Skeet Ulrich is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in popular 1990s films, including Billy Loomis in Scream (1996), Chris Hooker in The Craft (1996), and Vincent Lopiano in As Good as It Gets (1997).