Celebrity Birthdays - August

Playing the President of the United States is impressive. Playing him so convincingly that people still wish they could vote for you years later is something else entirely. Martin Sheen has spent a lifetime portraying soldiers, leaders, revolutionaries, and ordinary men facing extraordinary circumstances, all while proving that great acting doesn't require the loudest voice—just the most believable one.

August 3, 1940, in Dayton, Ohio

Trivia

• Starred as Captain Benjamin Willard in Apocalypse Now.
• Played President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet in The West Wing.
• Won a Golden Globe Award for The West Wing.
• Received numerous Primetime Emmy Award nominations throughout his career.
• Suffered a heart attack during the filming of Apocalypse Now but returned to finish the movie.
• Is the father of actors Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen, Renée Estevez, and Ramon Estevez.
• Has been married to Janet Sheen since 1961.
• Is well known for his humanitarian and social activism.
• Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Andy Samberg has spent much of his professional life demonstrating that ridiculous ideas become considerably less ridiculous when pursued with absolute commitment. Whether he is solving crimes as Jake Peralta in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, singing about questionable activities with The Lonely Island, getting trapped in an endless wedding day in Palm Springs, or wearing a wig that appears to have its own representation, Samberg has built a career around intelligent comedy pretending not to be intelligent.

August 18, 1978, in Berkeley, California

Trivia

• Samberg graduated from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 2000.
• He spent seven seasons on Saturday Night Live, from 2005 until 2012.
• "Dick in a Box," performed with Justin Timberlake, won an Emmy for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics.
• Samberg won a Golden Globe in 2014 for playing Jake Peralta in Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
• He voiced Johnny throughout the Hotel Transylvania movie franchise.
• Samberg has been married to musician and harpist Joanna Newsom since 2013.

Jennifer Coolidge has spent decades proving that you don't need to be the leading lady to walk away with the movie. Give her three minutes, an outrageous outfit and a few lines of dialogue, and there is an excellent chance nobody remembers what the leading lady was doing anyway.

August 28, 1961, in Boston, Massachusetts

Trivia

• Studied theater at Emerson College.
• Trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.
• Was a member of The Groundlings.
• Made an early TV appearance on Seinfeld.
• Mike White wrote Tanya with Coolidge in mind.
• Her New Orleans home was used in The Beguiled.
• She has won two Primetime Emmy Awards.

Jennifer Lawrence became one of Hollywood's biggest stars by combining serious dramatic talent with the remarkable ability to behave as though being a movie star is slightly ridiculous. She has battled dystopian governments, played a shape-shifting mutant, collected an Academy Award, worked with some of Hollywood's most respected directors and tripped on the stairs while going to accept the biggest prize in acting. Most people would prefer that last part be forgotten. Lawrence turned it into another reason audiences liked her.

August 15, 1990, in Indian Hills, Kentucky

Trivia

• She did not attend drama school before beginning her professional acting career.
• She received her first Academy Award nomination at age 20 for Winter's Bone.
• Lawrence won Best Actress for Silver Linings Playbook when she was 22.
• She famously tripped on the stairs while going to accept that Oscar.
• She received four Academy Award acting nominations by the age of 25.
• Lawrence played Mystique in four X-Men films.
• She trained extensively in archery for her role as Katniss Everdeen.

Mike Colter has played lawyers, criminals, soldiers, priests and one exceptionally durable superhero who can stop bullets with his skin. At 6-foot-3 and equipped with a voice that could probably convince a parking meter to waive the fine, Colter has built a career around commanding the screen without needing to make much noise about it.

August 26, 1976, in Columbia, South Carolina

Trivia

• Mike stands just over 6-foot-3.
• A Soldier's Story inspired him to act.
• He earned an MFA from Rutgers University.
• He played Big Willie Little in Million Dollar Baby.
• Luke Cage first appeared in Jessica Jones.
• He received two Critics Choice nominations for Evil.

Life has a funny way of changing careers. One day you're memorizing courtroom dialogue for a television drama, and the next you're learning centuries-old royal traditions, attending state events, and discovering that every hat you wear will be analyzed by someone, somewhere. Meghan Markle's journey from Hollywood actress to Duchess of Sussex is one of the most talked-about life stories of the twenty-first century, proving that sometimes the most unexpected plot twists happen off-screen.

August 4, 1981, in Los Angeles, California

Trivia

• Graduated from Northwestern University.
• Studied theater and international studies.
• Interned at the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires.
• Played Rachel Zane on Suits for seven seasons.
• Former editor of the lifestyle website The Tig.
• Married Prince Harry in 2018.
• Became the Duchess of Sussex upon marriage.
• Mother of Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
• Co-founded the Archewell Foundation.
• Has worked extensively with charitable organizations.

Most kids worry about homework, chores, or whether they'll make the basketball team. Edward Furlong's first acting job involved outrunning a shape-shifting robot from the future while trying to save humanity. Talk about setting the career bar a little high. Not many actors can honestly say their very first role became one of the most famous performances in science fiction history.

August 2, 1977, in Glendale, California

Trivia

• Made his acting debut in Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
• Played the young John Connor opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger.
• Was discovered by casting director Mali Finn.
• Won an MTV Movie Award for Terminator 2.
• Received a Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor.
• Starred opposite Jeff Bridges in American Heart.
• Appeared in Little Odessa with Tim Roth.
• Played a major role in American History X.
• Starred in the comedy Detroit Rock City.
• Worked with acclaimed director John Waters on Pecker.
• Returned to the Terminator franchise in Terminator: Dark Fate.

Some actors collect awards. Mary-Louise Parker seems to collect them the way other people collect coffee mugs—except hers happen to be Emmys, Golden Globes, and Tony Awards. Then, just to keep everyone guessing, she became television's most unforgettable suburban mom by turning a quiet neighborhood into one of cable TV's most entertaining zip codes.

August 2, 1964, at Fort Jackson, South Carolina

Trivia

• Graduated from the North Carolina School of the Arts.
• Won two Tony Awards during her Broadway career.
• Starred in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Proof.
• Best known on television as Nancy Botwin in Weeds.
• Won a Golden Globe for Weeds.
• Won a Primetime Emmy Award for Weeds.
• Appeared in Fried Green Tomatoes early in her film career.
• Starred in RED and RED 2 alongside Bruce Willis.
• Appeared in The West Wing as Amy Gardner.
• Published the memoir Dear Mr. You.

Phoebe Bridgers has somehow made a remarkably successful career out of sounding as though she has just remembered something devastating while standing alone in a supermarket parking lot at 2:00 in the morning. Armed with a guitar, a wonderfully dry sense of humor, an occasional skeleton suit and lyrics capable of turning everyday disappointment into an existential crisis, Bridgers has become one of the defining singer-songwriters of her generation. And just when listeners think a song couldn't possibly become more melancholy, the orchestra arrives.

August 17, 1994, in Orange, California

Trivia

• Bridgers began playing guitar at around 12 or 13 years old and performed as a teenager around the Los Angeles area.
• Before her solo breakthrough, she played bass in the band Sloppy Jane.
• She attended the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, where she studied vocal jazz.
• Bridgers formed boygenius with Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus in 2018.
• She won four Grammy Awards in a single night in 2024—three connected to boygenius and one for her collaboration with SZA.
• Her record label, Saddest Factory Records, takes its name from a play on the word “satisfactory.”
• Her third solo album, Lost Weekend, arrived on August 14, 2026—only three days before her 32nd birthday.

Rick Springfield managed the impressive 1981 trick of becoming a rock star and a soap-opera heartthrob at practically the same time. While millions were singing along to “Jessie’s Girl,” millions more were watching him make hospital rounds as Dr. Noah Drake on General Hospital. Apparently conquering the record charts wasn't enough—he wanted daytime television too.

August 23, 1949, in Guildford, Australia

Trivia

• He was a member of Australian band Zoot.
• “Jessie's Girl” reached No. 1 in 1981.
• The song earned Springfield his Grammy Award.
• He played Dr. Noah Drake on General Hospital.
• His dog Ronnie appeared on Working Class Dog.
• He has scored 17 U.S. Top 40 hits.
• He is also a published memoirist and novelist.

Shelley Long walked into a little Boston bar called Cheers as Diane Chambers and spent five seasons proving that ordering a drink can apparently require a working knowledge of literature, psychology and several French expressions. Sophisticated, stubborn and wonderfully capable of driving Sam Malone completely around the bend, Diane helped make Long one of television’s biggest comedy stars of the 1980s—and gave millions of viewers five years to argue over whether Sam and Diane should kiss, fight or simply stay at opposite ends of the bar.

August 23, 1949, in Fort Wayne, Indiana

Trivia

• Long trained with Chicago's Second City.
• She played Diane Chambers for five seasons of Cheers.
• She won an Emmy for Cheers in 1983.
• She starred with Tom Hanks in The Money Pit.
• She played Phyllis Nefler in Troop Beverly Hills.
• Long portrayed Carol Brady in two Brady Bunch movies.
• She played DeDe Pritchett on Modern Family.

Julia Child taught Americans that French cooking did not require being French, owning a restaurant or having a nervous breakdown whenever somebody mentioned hollandaise sauce. Standing more than six feet tall, speaking in that unmistakable voice and treating the occasional kitchen mishap as something to solve rather than mourn, Child transformed television cooking. She made complicated food approachable without pretending it was effortless, and generations of home cooks discovered that dropping something, burning something or producing a sauce of questionable structural integrity did not mean dinner was ruined. It simply meant you were cooking.

August 15, 1912, in Pasadena, California

August 13, 2004, in Montecito, California

Trivia

• Mastering the Art of French Cooking took years of testing, rewriting and refinement before publication.
• Her television career developed after she demonstrated how to make an omelet during a book-promotion appearance on WGBH.
• Child reportedly enjoyed Dan Aykroyd's famously disastrous impersonation of her on Saturday Night Live.
• Her television kitchen is preserved at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
• France awarded Child the Legion of Honour in 2000.
• She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2003.

Arden Cho has dealt with werewolves, supernatural assassins, hospital emergencies and ruthless Manhattan lawyers, which makes the average working day seem rather uneventful. Best known as Kira Yukimura in Teen Wolf, Cho turned a supernatural television role into a varied career encompassing acting, music, modeling and major leading roles — apparently deciding that having just one profession would leave far too much room on the résumé.

August 16, 1985, in Amarillo, Texas

Trivia

• Cho played both Kira Yukimura and a young version of Kira's mother, Noshiko, on Teen Wolf.
• She studied piano and cello and also trained in martial arts while growing up.
• Cho released the EP My True Happy in 2013.
• Partner Track marked her first starring television role and her first time as number one on a production call sheet.
• She became an enthusiastic K-drama viewer and said her Korean improved enough that she could watch without English subtitles.
• Cho provided the speaking voice of Rumi in the 2025 animated musical fantasy KPop Demon Hunters.

If pop music had a laboratory where the rules were optional and the volume knob had long since snapped off, there's a good chance Charli XCX would have the master key. She has an uncanny talent for taking sounds that make everyone raise an eyebrow on Monday and turning them into chart-toppers by Friday. While the rest of us are still trying to remember our passwords, she's busy reinventing modern pop music one fearless song at a time.

August 2, 1992, in Cambridge, England

Trivia

• Began writing songs while still a teenager.
• Co-wrote and featured on the worldwide hit I Love It.
• Boom Clap became an international breakthrough solo hit.
• Has written songs for numerous major recording artists.
• Frequently collaborates with innovative electronic producers.
• Helped popularize the hyperpop movement.
• Released the critically acclaimed album Crash in 2022.
• Brat became one of 2024's defining pop albums.
• Known for embracing new technology and fan interaction.
• Recognized for blending mainstream pop with experimental sounds.
• Has earned multiple Grammy Award nominations.

Almost immediately upon arriving in Hollywood, Edward Norton gave audiences the impression that trusting one of his characters might be a very poor life decision. His extraordinary debut in Primal Fear was followed by American History X, Fight Club, The Illusionist, Birdman and an assortment of characters ranging from criminals and magicians to scientists and extremely committed method actors. Norton has also become a director, producer, writer, environmental advocate and entrepreneur, apparently having concluded that merely being a three-time Academy Award nominee wasn't enough to fill the week.

August 18, 1969, in Boston, Massachusetts

Trivia

• He graduated from Yale University in 1991 with a degree in history.
• Before establishing his acting career, Norton worked in Osaka, Japan, and learned some Japanese.
• His first major movie, Primal Fear, earned him both a Golden Globe and an Academy Award nomination.
• Norton has received Academy Award nominations for Primal Fear, American History X and Birdman.
• He directed his first feature film, Keeping the Faith, in 2000.
• Norton co-founded the charitable fundraising platform CrowdRise, which was later acquired by GoFundMe.
• He was appointed a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for Biodiversity in 2010.

Some people make a movie with a cast of superheroes, million-dollar special effects, and enough explosions to register on nearby seismographs. Kevin Smith made Clerks on a shoestring budget in the convenience store where he actually worked—and somehow changed independent filmmaking forever. Proof, if ever there was any, that a clever script, memorable characters, and a lot of determination can sometimes beat a truckload of fireworks.

August 2, 1970, in Red Bank, New Jersey

Trivia

• Played the character Silent Bob in many of his films.
• Clerks premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.
• Directed Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, and Red State.
• Hosts several successful podcasts focused on movies and pop culture.
• Has written comic books for both Marvel and DC Comics.
• Penned acclaimed stories featuring Daredevil and Green Arrow.
• Survived a massive heart attack in 2018.
• Became an advocate for healthier living following his recovery.

Timothy Bottoms has spent more than half a century proving that a quietly expressive actor doesn't need to chew the scenery when he can simply stand there and make the audience worry about him. Born August 30, 1951, the veteran performer went from the haunting The Last Picture Show to the academic terrors of The Paper Chase, later adding everything from television drama to the decidedly unexpected assignment of playing President George W. Bush.

August 30, 1951, in Santa Barbara, California

Trivia

• He is the eldest of four acting brothers.
• Johnny Got His Gun was his first major film.
• His brother Sam joined him in The Last Picture Show.
• He starred as James Hart in The Paper Chase.
• Returned as Sonny Crawford in Texasville.
• Played George W. Bush in That's My Bush!
• Later played Bush dramatically in DC 9/11.

Chris Pine has commanded the Enterprise, fallen for Wonder Woman, dodged assassins, robbed banks and sung his way through a Disney kingdom. With those blue eyes doing a suspicious amount of the promotional work, Pine has spent two decades proving there is considerably more to him than looking exceptionally calm while something enormous explodes behind him.

August 26, 1980, in Los Angeles, California

Trivia

• Chris's father is actor Robert Pine.
• Actress Anne Gwynne was his grandmother.
• He studied English at UC Berkeley.
• He studied abroad in Leeds, England.
• Captain Kirk made him an international star.
• Poolman was his feature directing debut.

Even at the tender age of six, JonBenét Ramsey had more crowns than most adults have houseplants. With a smile that could light up a stadium and stage presence to rival seasoned performers, she wasn’t just a beauty queen—she was the whole royal court. Whether she was twirling in a sparkly dress or charming a crowd with her poise, JonBenét somehow made it look effortless, like she was born ready for a spotlight… and a sash.

August 6, 1990, in Atlanta, Georgia

December 26, 1996, in Boulder, Colorado

Trivia

• Family Legacy: JonBenét was named after her father, John Bennett Ramsey, blending his first and middle names.
• Pageant Success: She won multiple titles by age six, quickly becoming a well-known figure in child pageant circuits across the country.
• Cultural Impact: Her case has remained in public consciousness for decades, often referenced in discussions about criminal justice reform, media ethics, and the treatment of children in the public eye.

Lucille Ball didn’t need a punchline to be funny—she was the punchline, the setup, and the whole vaudeville act rolled into one. She could get laughs with a twitch of the eyebrow, a fake cry, or by turning a simple job at a chocolate factory into a full-blown meltdown of epic, nougat-covered proportions. If comedy had a Mount Rushmore, Lucy wouldn’t just be on it—she’d be climbing it in a polka dot dress, accidentally knocking over the scaffolding, and still making us laugh 70 years later.

August 6, 1911, in Jamestown, New York

April 26, 1989, in Los Angeles, California

Trivia

• Redhead by Choice: She wasn’t a natural redhead—that signature shade came from a bottle (or more accurately, a can of henna and a dream).
• Pioneer: Ball was the first woman to head a TV studio, and Desilu’s success changed the business forever.
• Record-Breaker: At its peak, I Love Lucy was watched by more than 60% of American households—that’s more than tuned in to the moon landing.
• Lifelong Friendship: She and Carol Burnett shared a close bond, with Lucy becoming a mentor and mother figure to the younger comedian.

Lamorne Morris has built a career proving that being the funniest person in the room can occasionally lead somewhere other than detention. He went from getting into trouble at school for telling jokes to playing the wonderfully peculiar Winston Bishop on New Girl, hosting television shows, appearing in major movies and eventually winning an Emmy for playing a thoroughly serious state trooper in Fargo. Along the way he has demonstrated impressive dramatic ability, excellent comic timing and an important professional survival skill: when someone hands you a strange television character with a cat named Ferguson, lean into it.

August 14, 1983, in Chicago, Illinois

Trivia

• He originally dreamed of becoming a basketball player.
• He frequently got into trouble at school for telling jokes.
• Teachers encouraged him to put his comic abilities to better use.
• Morris studied theater at the College of DuPage.
• He received an acting scholarship while attending college.
• He trained and performed at Chicago's Second City.
• Morris worked in commercials before achieving television fame.
• He worked as an on-air personality for BET.
• He hosted the Cartoon Network game show BrainRush.