Famous birthdays by year
Famous People Born in 1896
Born in 1896? Meet the well-known people who share your birth year, from the biggest names to the ones you might not expect, month by month.
Turning 130 in 2026 · Chinese zodiac: Year of the Monkey
The 1890s
The most famous people born in 189632
1896–1940F. Scott Fitzgerald
American novelist of The Great Gatsby and Tender Is the Night who chronicled the glamour of the Jazz Age
Photo: Nickolas Muray · Public domain
1896–1974Georgy Zhukov
Soviet marshal who defended Moscow, won at Stalingrad and captured Berlin in the Second World War
Photo: Министерство обороны Российской Федерации · CC BY 4.0
1896–1980Jean Piaget
Swiss psychologist who pioneered the study of cognitive development in children
Photo: Unidentified (Ensian published by University of Michigan) · Public domain
1896–1981Eugenio Montale
Nobel Prize-winning Italian poet and writer
Photo: Kaj Hagman. · Public domain
1896–1966André Breton
French writer and poet who founded the Surrealist movement
Photo: Henri Manuel · Public domain
1896–1956Gerty Cori
Nobel Prize-winning biochemist who discovered how the body processes carbohydrates
Photo: National Library of Medicine, Images from the History of Medicine, B05353 · Public domain
1896–1963Tristan Tzara
Romanian-born poet who was a founding figure of Dadaism
Photo: original author: unknown; cropped and retouched by: Rlevente · CC BY-SA 4.0
1896–1934Lev Vygotsky
Soviet psychologist who pioneered theories on child development
Photo: Unknown author · Public domain
Born in 1896, month by month
- January
- Eugenio Montale (January 12) · Nobel Prize-winning Italian poet and writer
- John Dos Passos (January 14) · American novelist and author of the U.S.A. trilogy
- George Burns (January 20) · American entertainer whose award-winning career spanned over seventy years
- February
- Andrei Zhdanov (February 14) · Influential Soviet politician and cultural ideologue under Joseph Stalin
- André Breton (February 18) · French writer and poet who founded the Surrealist movement
- Philip Showalter Hench (February 28) · Nobel Prize-winning physician who pioneered the use of cortisone
- William A. Wellman (February 29) · Director of Wings, the first film to win an Academy Award
- April
- Nikolay Semyonov (April 3) · Soviet scientist who shared the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1956
- Tristan Tzara (April 4) · Romanian-born poet who was a founding figure of Dadaism
- May
- Howard Hawks (May 30) · Versatile American filmmaker behind classic films like Scarface and Rio Bravo
- June
- Imre Nagy (June 7) · Hungarian politician who led the 1956 uprising against Soviet control
- Robert S. Mulliken (June 7) · Nobel Prize-winning scientist who developed molecular orbital theory
- Wallis Simpson (June 19) · American socialite whose marriage to Edward VIII led to his abdication
- July
- Buenaventura Durruti (July 14) · Anarchist leader and military figure during the Spanish Civil War
- Trygve Lie (July 16) · First Secretary-General of the United Nations
- A. J. Cronin (July 19) · Scottish novelist and doctor who created the character Dr Finlay
- August
- Jean Piaget (August 9) · Swiss psychologist who pioneered the study of cognitive development in children
- Gerty Cori (August 15) · Nobel Prize-winning biochemist who discovered how the body processes carbohydrates
- September
- A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (September 1) · Founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
- Antonin Artaud (September 4) · Avant-garde French playwright who developed the Theatre of Cruelty
- Roman Jakobson (September 11) · Influential linguist and a pioneer of structuralism in language studies
- F. Scott Fitzgerald (September 24) · American novelist of The Great Gatsby and Tender Is the Night who chronicled the glamour of the Jazz Age
- Sandro Pertini (September 25) · Former President of Italy and hero of the anti-fascist resistance
- October
- Ruth Gordon (October 30) · Oscar-winning actress known for Rosemary's Baby and Harold and Maude
- November
- Nobusuke Kishi (November 13) · Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister in the late 1950s
- Mamie Eisenhower (November 14) · First Lady of the United States and wife of Dwight Eisenhower
- Oswald Mosley (November 16) · Leader of the British Union of Fascists in the 1930s
- Lev Vygotsky (November 17) · Soviet psychologist who pioneered theories on child development
- Klement Gottwald (November 23) · First communist president of Czechoslovakia
- December
- Georgy Zhukov (December 1) · Soviet marshal who defended Moscow, won at Stalingrad and captured Berlin in the Second World War
- Carl Ferdinand Cori (December 5) · Nobel Prize-winning biochemist who discovered how the body processes sugar
- Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa (December 23) · Italian author who wrote the famous historical novel The Leopard