Famous People Born On July 19th

Benedict Cumberbatch is one of the most popular English actors of the current generation. Apart from his acting skills, he is also known for his charity work. In 2014, he was named in Time magazine's list of 100 most influential people in the world. In 2015, he was appointed a CBE for services to charity and performing arts.

Queen guitarist and singer-songwriter Brian May is also a PhD in astrophysics. One of Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time and Guitar World’s second-greatest guitarist, he received a CBE. He was a Chancellor of Liverpool at John Moores University, has worked with NASA, and fights for animal rights.

Retired Ukrainian boxer Vitali Klitschko, who is now a politician and the current mayor of Kyiv, is also known for his 6’7” frame. He was once the World Boxing Council world heavyweight title winner and earned the nickname Dr. Ironfist. He also holds a PhD from the physical science department of Kyiv University.

A social media celebrity, Shane Dawson was the King of You Tube for a decade beginning 2008 and garnered billions of views on his videos. However, recently, his past videos with racist content and other offensive jokes have attracted severe criticism and resulted in his popularity witnessing a massive drop.

French Impressionist artist Edgar Degas is best remembered for his oil paintings and pastel drawings and for his signature use of dancers and bathing women as themes in his works such as Fin d'Arabesque and Woman in a Tub. He had also experimented with bronze sculptures and called himself a realist.

Campbell Scott is known to audiences for his roles as George Tunner in The Sheltering Sky and Richard Parker in The Amazing Spider-Man and its sequel. He has also played significant roles in series such as Royal Pains and House of Cards, and delivered critically acclaimed direction in Big Night.

Dutch model Romee Strijd has been a Victoria's Secret Angel since 2015. She has also worked for brands like Alexander McQueen (brand), Michael Kors, and H&M. She began modeling as a teenager and has appeared in magazines, such as Vogue, Elle, and Maxim. She has also walked numerous runway shows for prominent designers. She is married with one child.

Florence Foster Jenkins was an American socialite who was often ridiculed and mocked for her poor singing ability, which in turn made her popular. Known as the world's worst opera singer, Jenkins became a musical cult-figure in New York City due to her technical incompetence as an amateur soprano. Her life inspired several plays and films, including Florence Foster Jenkins.

Best known for her work on BBC productions like Blue Pete, English television presenter Helen Skelton is also a trained lap dance teacher and an adventurer, who kayaked the entire length of River Amazon to raise fund for Sports Relief 2020. Author of Amy Wild: Amazon Summer, she is also the first person to reach South Pole using a bicycle.

Rachel Robinson is an American retired professor and registered nurse. She is best known as the widow of the popular baseball player, Jackie Robinson. She is credited with founding the Jackie Robinson Foundation, which provides leadership and educational opportunities for minority students. Rachel Robinson has been portrayed in a couple of films.

Chef Marcela Valladolid was the host of the Food Network television series Mexican Made Easy. A graduate of the Los Angeles Culinary Institute, she is also a classically trained pastry chef. She started her own catering company and soon began hosting cookery shows on TV. She has also authored several cookbooks.

Vladimir Mayakovsky was a Russian and Soviet playwright, poet, artist, and actor. He was a prominent figure of the Russian Futurist movement in the pre-Revolution period leading to 1917. He produced a large and diverse body of work during his career. He admired Vladimir Lenin and supported the ideology of the Bolsheviks. He was popular outside Russia as well. 

The proponent of the Frankfurt School of critical theory, Herbert Marcuse largely influenced the leftist student revolts of the 1960s. Equipped with a PhD in German literature, he wrote Hegel’s Ontology and the Theory of Historicity, with Martin Heidegger. His Eros and Civilization spoke at length about capitalism.

Lizzie Borden was an American woman who gained national recognition after being tried and acquitted of the 1892 axe murders, which took place on August 4, victimizing Borden's father and stepmother. The murders and trial remain a topic in popular culture and have been the subject of several literary works, theatrical productions, folk rhymes, and films.

George II of Greece was the King of Greece for two terms, from 1922 to 1924 and from 1935 to 1947. He was the eldest son of King Constantine I and his wife, Sophia of Prussia. He reigned during a tumultuous time in Greek history.  Upon his death, he was succeeded by his younger brother, Paul.

Once number 1 in singles, Romanian tennis player Ilie Năstase created became the first European to cross $1 million in career prize money. A 3-time Davis Cup finalist, he won major titles such as the French Open, the US Open, and Wimbledon. He has also penned 2 French novels and a memoir.

American soccer player and Chelsea defender Matt Miazga has previously also represented the New York Red Bulls. Born to Polish immigrant parents in the U.S., Miazga is a staunch Christian and often expresses his religious views on social media. He was part of the American Olympic campaign in 2016.

Kgalema Motlanthe is a South African politician who played an important role during the struggle against apartheid; he was part of the Umkhonto we Sizwe, an armed wing of the ANC. Between 2008 and 2009, Motlanthe served as the third president of South Africa. He is often seen as an important figure behind the political success of Jacob Zuma.