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On This Day April 20
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1881 – Classical composer Béla Bartók (d. 1945)
1928 – Retired NASA astronaut (Apollo 8/Apollo 13) Jim Lovell
1934 – Feminist crusader and Ms. magazine founder-publisher Gloria Steinem
1942 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and undisputed “Queen of Soul,” Aretha Franklin (d. 2018)
1947 – Grammy, Oscar, Tony and Golden Globe-winning pop superstar Elton John, born Reginald Dwight
1967 – “Happy Together,” by The Turtles, begins a three-week run as the hottest single in the U.S.
1978 – The Bee Gees continue their reign over the Billboard Hot 100 with “Night Fever.”
1995 – Madonna is midway through a seven-week domination of the singles chart with “Take a Bow.”
2006 – Ne-Yo begins his second and final week on top of the pop chart with “So Sick.”
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1818 – Former slave-turned-civil rights activist Frederick Douglass (d. 1895)
1894 – Legendary comedian Jack Benny, born Benjamin Kubelsky (d. 1974)
1921 – Retired Emmy-winning TV anchor-host Hugh Downs (“Today” show, “20/20”)
1942 – Businessman and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
1960 – Golden Globe-winning actress Meg Tilly (“The Big Chill,” “Agnes of God”)
1972 – Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and Matchbox Twenty frontman Rob Thomas
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1912 – Lady Bird Johnson, former U.S. First Lady and wife of 36th President Lyndon Johnson (d. 2007)
1917 – Longtime “Match Game” host Gene Rayburn, born Eugene Jelyevich (d. 1999)
1945 – Emmy-winning TV journalist and former ABC News anchor Diane Sawyer
1949 – Singer-songwriter and Bee Gees band member Robin Gibb (d. 2012)
1949 – Singer-songwriter and Bee Gees band member Maurice Gibb (d. 2003)
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1934 – Game show host Wink Martindale (“Tic Tac Dough,” “Gambit,” “Dedt”)
1964 – Oscar-winning actress Marisa Tomei (“My Cousin Vinny,” “In the Bedroom,” “The Wrestler”)
1966 – Comedian Fred Armisen (“Saturday Night Live,” “Portlandia”)
1969 – Grammy-winning rapper-record producer Jay Z, born Shawn Corey Carter
1954 – The Chordettes settle in at No. 1 on the singles chart for seven weeks with “Mr. Sandman.”
1965 – The Byrds kick off three weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Turn! Turn! Turn!”
1993 – Cancer claims the life of rock composer-guitarist Frank Zappa at the age of 52.
2004 – The Usher-Alicia Keys duet, “My Boo,” enters its sixth and final week as a No. 1 single.
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1879 – American cowboy-vaudeville performer-actor Will Rogers (d. 1935)
1925 – Emmy-winning actress Doris Roberts (“Everybody Loves Raymond”) (d. 2016)
1946 – Former First Lady Laura Bush
1960 – Emmy and Grammy-winning comedian Kathy Griffin
1961 – Actor Ralph Macchio (“Eight is Enough,” “The Karate Kid,” “My Cousin Vinny”)
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1927 – Grammy-winning jazz vocalist and actress Cleo Laine
1944 – Actor Dennis Franz (“Die Hard 2,” “NYPD Blue,” “City of Angels”)
1949 – U.S. Olympic decathlon gold medalist and reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner, born Bruce Jenner
1952 – Actress Annie Potts (“Ghostbusters,” “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” “Toy Story,” “Toy Story 2”)
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1925 – NBC “The Tonight Show” host Johnny Carson (d. 2005)
1940 – Brazilian soccer legend Pelé, born Edson Arantes do Nascimento (d. 2022)
1956 – Grammy-winning country music singer-songwriter and actor Dwight Yoakam
1959 – The Grammy-winning master of the musical parody, “Weird Al” Yankovic
1962 – Former NFL and Canadian Football League star quarterback Doug Flutie