Top 10 March 1 Birthdays

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1924: Donald K. "Deke" Slayton. He was the only one of the original "Mercury 7" astronauts who didn't fly as part of Project Mercury, due to a heart condition. He was later cleared to fly, and commanded the 1st joint American-Russian mission, the Apollo-Soyuz flight of 1975.

Dishonorable Mention: March 1, 1966: Zack Snyder. Letting Zack Snyder direct a film with Superman in it is like letting Mel Gibson direct a movie about King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.

Dishonorable Mention: March 1, 1994: Justin Bieber. No Fever here.

10. March 1, 1910: David Niven. One of the most popular British actors ever, both before and after World War II.

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1945: Dirk Benedict. He played Lieutenant Starbuck on the original Battlestar Galactica, and Templeton Peck, a.k.a. "Faceman," on The A-Team.

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1947: Alan Thicke. Then married to soap opera actress Gloria Loring, they composed the theme songs for the sitcoms Diff'rent Strokes (he sang it) and The Facts of Life (she sang it).

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1947: Catherine Bach. She played Daisy Duke on The Dukes of Hazzard.

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1956: Tim Daly. He starred in the NBC sitcom Wings, but he might now be better known as the voice of Superman in the DC Animated Universe.

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1969: Javier Bardem. He's played a James Bond villain, and more recently Desi Arnaz, and is now filming as the Frankenstein monster. But his greatest role is as the real-life wife of his occasional co-star Penélope Cruz.

9. March 1, 1917: Dinah Shore. Singer, variety show host, golf tournament sponsor. Two out of three ain't bad.

8. March 1, 1926: Pete Rozelle. When he was elected Commissioner of the National Football League in 1960, it was nowhere near Major League Baseball in popularity. Within 10 years, he had made it the biggest pro sports league in the Western Hemisphere. By the time he left the job in 1989, he had set it up to challenge England's Football League (soccer) as the most popular sports league in the world.

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1914: Harry Caray. As broadcaster for the St. Louis Cardinals, he helped team owner and brewing tycoon Gussie Busch turn Budweiser into America's favorite beer. As broadcaster for the Chicago Cubs, he gave the team a national fan base, and probably saved their ballpark, Wrigley Field, for at least 2 more generations.

Honorable Mention: Three members of the Hockey Hall of Fame: March 1, 1920, Max Bentley; March 1, 1926, Allan Stanley; and March 1, 1963, Ron Francis.

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1961: Mike Rozier. The running back for the University of Nebraska won the Heisman Trophy in 1983, but his pro career, mostly with the Houston Oilers, was a disappointment.

Honorable Mention: March 1, 1973: Chris Webber. His career at the University of Michigan was stricken from the NCAA record, so we don't have to talk about the embarrassing way it ended. The forward was the 1994 NBA Rookie of the Year, and a 5-time All-Star. The closest he got to a title was getting possibly cheated out of one with the 2001 Sacramento Kings. He is in the Hall of Fame.

7. March 1, 1913: Ralph Ellison. Although he only published one novel during his lifetime, it was Invisible Man. He may have been the greatest American essayist of the 20th Century.

6. March 1, 1944: Roger Daltrey. Lead singer of The Who.

5. March 1, 1944: Ron Howard. As a boy, he played Opie Taylor on The Andy Griffith Show. As a young man, he played Richie Cunningham on Happy Days. Since then, he has become one of Hollywood's greatest directors, helming everything from historical dramas to fantasy epics.

4. March 1, 1904: Glenn Miller. The most popular of the "Big Band" leaders.

3. March 1, 1927: Harry Belafonte. Singer, actor, civil rights activist.

2. March 1, 1810: Frédéric Chopin. Before tuberculosis took him at age 39, he became one of the greatest pianists, and one of the greatest composers for the piano, who ever lived.

1. March 1, 1922: Yitzhak Rabin. Twice Prime Minister of Israel, he had previously been the leader of the Israel Defense Forces, winning the Six-Day War in 1967. Having seen enough of war, he became a peacemaker, and was assassinated for this by a fanatic.

Still alive as of this writing: Snyder, Bieber, Benedict, Bach, Daly, Bardem, Francis, Rozier, Webber, Daltrey, Howard, Belafonte. 

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