Famous People Born On May 21st

The Notorious B.I.G. was a rapper and songwriter and is considered one of the best ever. His debut album Ready to Die in 1994 was critically acclaimed. He was murdered in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles in September 1996. His album Life After Death was released two weeks after his death. 

Plato was one of the most important Ancient Greek philosophers, who contributed greatly to the fields of mathematics, metaphysics, politics, art, and poetry. Along with his famous student Aristotle and equally famous teacher Socrates, Plato is considered one of the founders of spirituality and Western religion. Platonism remains one of his important contributions.

Actress and musician Fairuza Balk is best known for her performance in the film Gas Food Lodging. Being the daughter of a musician and dancer, she was introduced to the performing arts early on. She started working as a teenager and became a successful actress. As a musician, she is involved with the band Armed Love Militia.

Nicholas Cassavetes, son of actor Gena Rowlands and actor-director John Cassavetes, had initially tried his luck in basketball, but his sports career ended due to an injury. He later appeared in films such as Face/Off and The Astronaut's Wife. He also directed films such as The Notebook.

Albrecht Durer was a German painter, theorist, and printmaker of the German Renaissance. During his 20s, Durer established his reputation as a popular printmaker across Europe, thanks to his high-quality woodcut prints. His popularity enabled him to work with major Italian artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Giovanni Bellini, and Raphael. Albrecht Durer also influenced generations of artists, especially in printmaking.

Often regarded as one of the best wrestlers of all time, Chris Benoit was known for putting his body on the line to create a greater impact than most of his fellow wrestlers. One of his popular moves, a diving headbutt, was cited as one of the reasons for his deteriorating mental health that eventually resulted in his suicide.

Well-known for his use of black comedy and surreal humor, Noel Fielding is an English comedian, musician, writer, and actor. He co-created a television program called The Mighty Boosh, which has gained a cult fan following. Also an artist, Noel Fielding has exhibited many of his paintings in London.

Mario Mandžukić is a Croatian former footballer who played as a striker for the Croatia national team from 2007 to 2018. In 2018, he helped his team win the silver medal at the World Cup. As a player, he became renowned for his aerial prowess and aggressiveness. In 2012 and 2013, Mario Mandžukić was adjudged Croatian Footballer of the Year.                

Alexander Pope was a satirist and poet whose works produced during the Augustan period made him one of the greatest artistic exponents of that period. Widely regarded as one of the most important English poets of the 18th century, Alexander Pope is best remembered for writing discursive poetry and heroic couplets.

Known for his popular catchphrase “It's time!," Bruce Buffer, the well-known MMA ring announcer, initially worked in the telemarketing industry. He and his half-brother, announcer Michael Buffer, whom Bruce had no clue about till he was an adult, now run The Buffer Partnership, a company to grow their brand value.

Robert Montgomery was an American actor, producer, and director. Renowned for his versatility, Montgomery received two nominations for the prestigious Academy Award under the Best Actor category. Robert Montgomery was awarded a couple of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the film and TV industries.

Al Franken served as the U.S. senator from Minnesota, from 2009 to 2018. He has also gained fame as a Saturday Night Live writer, has authored several bestsellers, has hosted The Al Franken Show on radio, and has starred in screen projects such as Stuart Saves His Family.

Anthony Mundine is an Australian former rugby league footballer and former professional boxer. He competed from 2000 to 2021 as a boxer and held championship titles, such as the WBA super-middleweight title, the IBO middleweight title, and the WBA interim super-welterweight title. Before becoming a boxer, Mundine was a popular figure in the National Rugby League (NRL). 

Olivia Olson is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She made her film debut at the age of 10, playing Joanna Anderson in the film, Love Actually, in which she was seen singing All I Want for Christmas Is You; her skills as a singer was praised and Olson landed several voice roles in TV series, such as Phineas and Ferb.

Andrei Sakharov was a Russian dissident and nuclear physicist best remembered for designing RDS-37, Soviet Union's first two-stage hydrogen bomb. Also an activist for peace and human rights, Andrei Sakharov was honored with the Nobel Peace Prize in 1975. The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, which is awarded by the European Parliament, is named in his honor.

Lázaro Cárdenas had a difficult childhood and supported his family doing odd jobs after his father’s death. He rose to be the president of Mexico and was known for his efforts to implement the objectives of the Mexican Revolution, such as nationalization of industries and making loans available to farmers.

Anjulie Persaud is a Canadian songwriter and singer best known for her collaboration with popular artists like Nicki Minaj, Diplo, Kelly Clarkson, Benny Benassi, and Zedd among others. Anjulie's music has been featured on popular networks, such as HBO, MTV, and NBC. In 2013, she received the Juno Award for Dance Recording of the Year.

Romain Gary was a French novelist, diplomat, and film director of Jewish origin. He also served as an aviator during World War II. One of France’s most popular and prolific writers, he is the only author to have won the Prix Goncourt twice. He had a troubled personal life and died of suicide in 1980.

Leon Schuster is a South African filmmaker, actor, comedian, singer, and presenter. Over the years, Schuster's films have been targeted for issues related to racism. In 2020, more than six of his movies were removed from the South African streaming service Showmax for being racially insensitive as he had used blackface in his movies for comedic effect.

A seasoned lawyer and a Harvard and Trinity College alumna, politician Mary Robinson has also taught law at Trinity. The Labour Party member later rose to be Ireland’s first female president. She was also a founding member of the global group of peacekeepers and leaders The Elders.

Elizabeth Fry was an English social reformer, prison reformer, Quaker, and philanthropist. Nicknamed the Angel of Prisons, Fry played a major role in the Gaol Act, which necessitated sex-segregation of prisons. The act also mandated the appointment of female warders for female inmates.

Before he revolutionized 19th-century erotica as Paul Avril, Édouard-Henri Avril was a soldier. An injury sustained in the Franco-Prussian War cut short his military life, and he was pushed into Paris sex salons to study art. His most notable works, such as the illustrations for Fanny Hill, were largely banned.