19 million people are celebrating their birthdays today, including me.
Actually, the exact number is 19,178,082. According to some mathematical whiz who took the time to figure it out, 859,178 of those people live in the United States. On a grander scale, 3.7 million Chinese celebrate their birthday the same day I do.
When I read all those figures I started wondering who they are, and I learned that some really cool people were born on my birth date.
Roy Rogers was everyone's image of what a cowboy should be, from his white Stetson hat to his hand-tooled boots. His face was strong and handsome with eyes that squinted yet still showed a twinkle. His smile was warm and reassuring. He was the picture of honesty and integrity. And was there ever a more exciting sight than watching Roy and Trigger riding majestically across the television screen? I think not! One Christmas, I got a stick horse, a cowboy hat and a toy gun. I was ready to assist Roy any way I could. Roy Rogers was born exactly 100 years ago on Nov. 5, 1911.
Would you believe I share the same birthday as Natalie Schaeffer? You know her best as Lovey Howell from Gilligan's Island, which totally rocks because that was my favorite TV show when I was a child.
Who else shares my birthday? Why, none other than the Happy Norwegian! That's right, Myron Floren - the accordionist on The Lawrence Welk Show between 1950 and 1982 - was born on this date in 1919!
Speaking of 1919, Earle "Greasy" Neale hit .357 for the Cincinnati Reds in the 1919 World Series. He later coached the Philadelphia Eagles to NFL titles in 1948 and 1949. He was born on this date in 1891.
Other well-known people who share my birthday include Ike Turner, aka Mr. Tina Turner, Art Garfunkel, Peter Noone, who was Herman of Herman's Hermits, and Bryan Adams, who is the same age as I am.
So, Happy Birthday to the 19,178,082 people having a birthday today.
:)