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.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Scott Adkins is an English actor, producer, and screenwriter. He is a trained gymnast and martial artist and is best known for his action films. He played Casey Bowman in the film Ninja and its sequel Ninja: Shadow of a Tear. He considers Jean-Claude Van Damme to be his idol and has appeared in four films with him.  

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.

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.

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. 

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.

Ken Livingstone is an English politician who served as the mayor of London from the creation of the office in 2000 until 2008. He is a former member of the Labor Party and ideologically identified himself as a democratic socialist. During his tenure as the mayor, he introduced the congestion charge, articulated buses, and Oyster card. 

Mohamed ElBaradei is an Egyptian diplomat and law scholar. From 14 July 2013 to 14 August 2013, he served as the vice president of Egypt on an interlude basis. In 2005, he was honored with the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize for his work as the director general of an intergovernmental organization called the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).