Famous People Born On June 17th

Kendrick Lamar is regarded as one of the greatest lyricists and rappers of all time. He is also considered one of the most influential celebrities of his generation; such has been his impact on the music industry. In 2016, he was named in Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world list.

Regarded as one of the greatest women's tennis players of all time, Venus Williams is credited with introducing never seen before power and athleticism to women's tennis along with her sister Serena. She is also credited with changing the long-standing practice of paying male tennis players more than their female counterparts as she won the fight for equal prize money.

KJ Apa is a New Zealand actor, musician, and singer. He is known for his portrayal of Archie Andrews in the popular American teen drama TV series Riverdale, which earned him the Breakthrough Performance award at the 2017 Saturn Awards. His performance in the series also earned him nominations at the Teen Choice Awards and MTV Movie & TV Awards.

Four-time Grammy-winning Russian composer and pianist Igor Stravinsky is regarded as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. He is remembered for his ballets The Firebird, Petrushka, and The Rite of Spring. He broke the traditional flow of music and incorporated his own style.

Ralph Bellamy is best remembered for his Academy Award-nominated role in The Awful Truth and his Tony Award-winning role in Sunrise at Campobello. He also portrayed the titular character in the Ellery Queen detective films of the 1940s. He was part of the Hollywood A-listers’ group called the Irish Mafia.

Jason Patric is an American actor known for contributing across all the three major acting mediums: films, television and theatre. The son of Jason Miller, Patric followed in the footsteps of his father to establish himself in the showbiz. After breaking up with Danielle Schreiber, who had given birth to a son through IVF, Patric pursued the California legislature to grant parental rights to sperm donors.

English actor Jodie Whittaker made waves with her debut film Venus, which earned her a Satellite Award nomination. She made headlines when she became the first female to play the doctor in Doctor Who. She is also known for her roles in Black Mirror and Broadchurch.

Eddy Merckx is a Belgian former road and track bicycle racer. Widely regarded as the most successful rider in competitive cycling history, Merckx achieved several important victories, such as 11 Grand Tours, three World Championships, and all five Monuments. He is also considered the greatest cyclist of all time. After retiring, he coached his national cycling team for 11 years.

Gregg Rolie is a singer and keyboardist. He gained international popularity as the frontman of the bands Santana and Journey. He was a co-founder of both as well. He currently performs with his Gregg Rolie Band and also collaborates with Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band. Rolie has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. 

Leander Paes is an Indian tennis player who has the most doubles wins in the history of Davis Cup. With 10 mixed doubles and eight doubles Grand Slam titles under his belt, Paes is one of the most successful Indian tennis players of all time. Paes is the recipient of India's highest sporting honor, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award.

Henry Lawson was an Australian bush poet and writer. Often referred to as Australia's greatest short story writer, Lawson is one of the best-known Australian fiction writers and poets of the colonial period. Also a nationalist, Henry Lawson contributed immensely to a popular Australian magazine named The Bulletin. In 1949, he was featured in an Australian postage stamp.

John Gallagher Jr. is an American musician and actor known for his contribution across all three major acting mediums. He is best known for playing Moritz Stiefel in a rock musical titled Spring Awakening, for which he was honored with a Tony Award. He has also played important roles in popular TV series, such as The Newsroom and Westworld.

Olga Khokhlova was a Ukrainian ballet dancer. She also served as one of Pablo Picasso's early artistic muses before marrying him in 1918. Olga met Picasso at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris where the latter had designed the set and costumes for a ballet titled Parade, in which Olga performed. She left her ballet group after meeting Pablo Picasso.

Lee Tamahori is a New Zealand filmmaker who achieved international recognition in 2002 when he directed the 20th film in the popular James Bond series, Die Another Day. Lee Tamahori is also known for directing successful and popular movies like Once Were Warriors, Along Came a Spider, and Mahana.

Charles Gounod was a French composer. Prolific in his career, he wrote 12 operas and a large number of songs and church music pieces including his Ave Maria and Funeral March of a Marionette.  During the Franco-Prussian War, he fled to England, disrupting his career. He later returned to France and regained his position as a respected musical figure.

Born in Moscow, Elena Rybakina initially played for Russia, but began representing Kazakhstan when she found herself at no. 175 in the global rankings. Now WTA no. 17, she is known for her powerful serve and her towering 6-foot frame. She also excelled in ice skating and gymnastics as a child.

Kazunari Ninomiya is a Japanese singer, radio host, songwriter, voice actor, and actor. He is best known for his association with the popular boy band, Arashi. Over the course of his successful career, Kazunari Ninomiya has won several prestigious awards, such as Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix, Japan Broadcast Film Arts Award, Hochi Film Award, Hashida Award, and Galaxy Award.

Dianne Durham was an artistic gymnast who won the all-around senior title at the women's US National Championships in 1983, becoming the first African American athlete to do so. She suffered from injuries that put a premature end to her brilliant career, and she had to retire in 1985. Later on, she ran the Skyline Gymnastics school in Chicago. 

William Crookes was a British chemist and physicist remembered as a pioneer of vacuum tubes. He was the inventor of what became known as the Crookes tube. He is also credited with the discovery of the element thallium. He was the first person to describe the spectrum of terrestrial helium. He was interested in spiritualism and occultism as well. 

Tigran Petrosian was a Soviet-Armenian chess player who achieved the grandmaster title in 1952. Nicknamed Iron Tigran, Petrosian was the World Chess Champion between 1963 and 1969. Regarded as one of the best chess players in Armenia during his generation, Tigran Petrosian is credited with popularizing the game in Armenia. He also won the USSR Chess Championship on four occasions.