Jim Henson, the creator of the Muppets, should have been 71 today.
Jim McKay, the long-time Wide World of Sports host, is 86.
Not-so-mean-anymore Joe Greene is 61.
Nia Vardalos, the actress-screenwriter from My Big Fat Greek Wedding is 45. She received an Oscar nomination for the screenplay.
F. Scott Fitzgerald was born on September 24, 1896. The Writer’s Almanac begins an interesting brief essay on Fitzgerald with:
It’s the birthday of F. Scott Fitzgerald, … born in St. Paul (1896), who was a student at Princeton University when he fell in love with a beautiful rich girl named Ginevra King. She got engaged to somebody else because Fitzgerald didn’t have many prospects. He later said, “She was the first girl I ever loved … [and] she ended up by throwing me over with the most supreme boredom and indifference.”
John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States, but surely the most important, was born on this date in 1755.
Marshall’s impact on American constitutional law is peerless. He served for more than 34 years (a record that few others have broken), he participated in more than 1000 decisions and authored over 500 opinions. As the single most important figure on constitutional law, Marshall’s imprint can still be fathomed in the great issues of contemporary America. Other justices will surpass his single accomplishments, but no one will replace him as the Babe Ruth of the Supreme Court!
At least not without steroids.