… of William “Smokey” Robinson, born in Detroit on this date in 1940.
Some Smokey Robinson trivia:
- The nickname Smokey was given him as a child by an uncle.
- The Robinsons were neighbors of the Franklins; Smokey is two years older than Aretha.
- They both attended Detroit’s Northern Senior High School (as did NewMexiKen’s mom).
- Smokey wrote both “My Guy” and “My Girl.”
- Bob Dylan called Smokey “America’s greatest living poet.”
- Smokey has written more than 4,000 songs.
… of author Amy Tan, 55 today.
… of Jeff Daniels, 52. Daniels has been nominated for several acting awards, most recently for The Squid and the Whale.
… of “Family Ties” actress Justine Bateman. Mallory Keaton is 41.
… of Benicio Del Toro. The supporting actor Oscar winner, for Traffic, is 40. Del Toro was nominated for the supporting actor Oscar again for 21 Grams.
Author Carson McCullers was born on in Columbus, Georgia, on this date in 1917.
Her most famous novel, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, published in 1940, delves into the “lonely hearts” of four individuals—an adolescent girl, an embittered radical, a black physician, and a widower who owns a cafe—struggling to find their way in a Southern mill town during the Great Depression. (Library of Congress)