Famous people and celebrities born in 1938

We celebrate the remarkable individuals born in 1938. This year gave rise to a new generation of talent, including actors, musicians, athletes, politicians and more who have significantly impacted our world. Dive into the stories of these famous personalities, explore their journeys, and see how they've shaped culture and society since their birth year. Join us as we take a nostalgic trip back to 1938 and honor the stars who continue to shine brightly today.

• Jan. 1 Frank Langella

  American actor and legitimate theater producer. he is best known for his 1970s performances as "diary of a mad housewife", and "dracula." however, he has enjoyed a distinguished theatre career with demanding roles in over 70 plays and a classically-trained acting career. his film roles include "lolita", "alegria," and "the father" on broadway in 1996. he's produced works such as …

• Jan. 6 Adriano Celentano

  Italian singer-songwriter, actor, and director

• Jan. 25 Etta James

  Etta james was a legendary american blues singer known for her powerful voice and hits like 'at last' and 'i'd rather go blind'.

• Feb. 1 Sherman Hemsley

  Sherman hemsley was an american actor best known for his role as george jefferson on the tv sitcoms all in the family and the jeffersons.

• Feb. 12 Judy Blume

  American author of juvenile fiction. when she was just a child, her father died leaving her without a home. she attended an all-girls high school and continued her studies in ballet and modern dance until her senior year at college in 1959. she married a professional man and had two children with him. she was a bored suburbanite and began …

• Feb. 13 Oliver Reed

  British actor. he is a tall, powerful leading man who is often cast in sultry roles. his films include "the curse of the werewolf", 1962, "the jokers," 1996, and "the three musketeers," 1972. his 53 films include parts in ken russell films "women in love", "the devils", and "tommy".

• March 4 Paula Prentiss

  American actress. she is a leading lady in hollywood films and is adept at comedy roles. she was a sensitive performer and had several films to her credit. however, she suffered a heart attack while filming "what's new pussycat?" in 1965, she was admitted to hospital for nine months.

• March 17 Rudolf Nureyev

  Russian-french choreographer and dancer (d. 1993).

• April 1 Ali MacGraw

  Ali macgraw is an american actress and model, best known for her role in the film 'love story'.

• April 15 Claudia Cardinale

  Internationally recognized italian actress. in 1957, she began her career as an extra. she then went to rome to complete the picture. she stayed in showbusiness, changing her name to "cardina" in 1966. cardinale was a star in more than 100 movies and made for television productions over a forty-year career. the films include "il bell'antonio", 1965, "the leopard", and …

• May 10 Marina Vlady

  French actress and blond international star. she was a charming and captivating leading lady who won the cannes award for best actress for "the conjugal bed", an italian film. after completing ballet training, she made her film debut in the age of 10.

• June 16 Joyce Carol Oates

  New york, united states -- novelist. (garden of earthly delights).

• June 21 Ron Ely

  American actor best known for his role as tarzan on tv from 1966-1969. he was 6' 5" tall and a strong performer. he would do all of his stunts himself, including swinging on vines, riding zebra-back, and wrestling tigers. he was known for his daredevil acts and was once considered the television's most hurt actor. he suffered burns, animal bites, …

• July 9 Sanjeev Kumar

  Sanjeev kumar was an acclaimed indian actor known for his versatile performances in hindi cinema, including roles in classic films like sholay and angoor.

• July 9 Brian Dennehy

  American producer and director of actor

• July 18 Paul Verhoeven

  Director (robocop 4th man, total recall), is killed at 73

• July 20 Natalie Wood

  American actress. one of few child stars who could make the transition between child and teenage roles. natasha nikolaevna gurdin was the daughter of russian immigrants. she was petite, beautiful, and dark. when she was four years old, her first role was a small part in "happy land", in 1943. in the hopes of their daughter becoming an actor, her …

• July 22 Terence Stamp

  British actor. he was a handsome, brooding lead and later a supporting actor in british and international movies. in 1962, he made his film debut with "billy budd" and in 1965 won the best actor award at cannes for playing a psychotic character in "the collector." his later films include "the adventures of priscilla, queen of the desert", (1994), and …

• July 29 Peter Jennings

  Canadian-american journalist, reporter, and respected anchorman for abc's world news tonight, jennings co-authored aeuroethe centuryaeur (1998) as well as aeuroein search of americaaeur (2002). he hosted a 25-hour telecast on december 31, 1999 that featured millennium celebrations from around the globe. this earned abc news a peabody award. he was awarded the edward r. murrow award for his documentary about …

• Aug. 21 Kenny Rogers

  American entertainer. the whiskered, whiskey-voiced king in country-western pop music. he earns up to $300,000.00 per concert, and as high as $2 million per monthly. he was a poor child from houston's housing project and he sang his own way to a personal fortune that is one of the biggest in country-western. his album "share your love", which sold more …

• Aug. 29 Elliott Gould

  American actor, born at the age of 18 and trained as a song-and dance man. he modeled for tv spots and was a regular on broadway before moving into film in 1968 with "the nigh they raided minsky's", 1968. his popularity is evident in his adorable-puppy-dog appeal. he stands tall, but is plump and mournful.

• Sept. 2 Giuliano Gemma

  Giuliano gemma was an italian actor known for his roles in spaghetti western films such as a pistol for ringo and day of anger.

• Sept. 23 Romy Schneider

  Internationally known german actress. she made her screen debut at age 14. her grandmother was an actress in viennese theatre and her mother, magda, was a star on the screen and stage.

• Oct. 17 Evel Knievel

  American daredevil and modern-day gladiator, who performs daring motorcycle stunts which have nearly killed him several times. in 1972, he made a movie about his life. he attempted to ride his motorcycle across a tank of sharks in 1977. they were calmed and made harmless attempts.

• Oct. 22 Christopher Lloyd

  Christopher Lloyd is an American actor best known for his roles as Doc Brown in the 'Back to the Future' trilogy and as Reverend Jim Ignatowski in the TV series 'Taxi'.

• Oct. 22 Derek Jacobi

  British actor who has been successful in film, classical theater and television series. jacobi was invited to join the national theatre company, where he has established himself as one of the best english-speaking actors. jacobi is an actor who keeps a low profile on-stage and can project convincing characters with great naturalism. jacobi was a star in england during the …

• Nov. 13 Jean Seberg

  American actress whose career was launched by her 1957 portrayal as jean d'arc, in otto preminger's saint joan. she appeared in "bonjour tristesse" a year later and won the hearts of audiences in jean-luc godard’s "breathless" in 1960. she was a talented actress and won praise for her roles later. she was reported to have been discredited by the fbi …

• Dec. 12 Connie Francis

  Country singer

• Dec. 16 Liv Ullmann

  Born in tokyo, norway, she became a leading dramatic actress of swedish and foreign films. she won a new york film critics award (crime and whispers) 1972 and added hollywood films after 1973. she toured for three years with a successful theatre company as an apprentice.

• Dec. 29 Jon Voight

  American actor, who received oscar nominations for movies such as 1969's "deliverance", and "midnight cowboy" in addition to a few minor images. he won the academy award in 1978 for "coming home." he won the cannes best actor award for the same movie five years later. voight, along with robert deniro and al pacino, appeared in "heat" 1995 after a …