Famous People Born in 1949

Meryl Streep

American actress famed for her range and accents, with a record 21 Oscar nominations and three wins, including for The Iron Lady

Actor with a record 21 Academy Award nominations, widely regarded as one of the greatest of her generation.

Photo: Ministry of culture, sports and Tourism- Lee Jeong-woo · CC BY-SA 4.0

Benjamin Netanyahu

Israeli politician and the country's longest-serving prime minister, leader of the right-wing Likud party for decades

Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician and diplomat who has served as Prime Minister of Israel since 2022. Having previously held office from 1996 to 1999 and from 2009 to 2021, Netanyahu is Israel's longest-serving prime minister.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Avi Ohayon · CC BY-SA 3.0

António Guterres

Portuguese former prime minister and UN refugee chief who became Secretary-General of the United Nations in 2017

António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (born 30 April 1949) is a Portuguese politician and diplomat who, since 2017, has served as the ninth secretary-general of the United Nations. A member of the Portuguese Socialist Party, Guterres served as the prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: U.S. Department of State from United States · Public domain

Haruki Murakami

Japanese novelist of Norwegian Wood, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and Kafka on the Shore, known for dreamlike, surreal fiction

Haruki Murakami (村上 春樹, Murakami Haruki; born January 12, 1949) is a Japanese writer. His novels, essays, and short stories have been best-sellers in Japan and internationally, with his work translated into 50 languages and having sold millions of copies outside Japan.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Ministerio Cultura y Patrimonio from Quito, Ecuador · Public domain

Valery Leontiev

Russian pop singer famed since the Soviet era for flamboyant costumes and energetic shows, a People's Artist of Russia

Valery Yakovlevich Leontiev (Russian: Валерий Яковлевич Леонтьев; born 19 March 1949) is a Russian singer, songwriter and actor, whose popularity peaked in the 1980s and 1990s. He was titled a People's Artist of Russia in 1996.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Okras · CC BY-SA 4.0

Sigourney Weaver

American actress who played Ellen Ripley in the Alien films and starred in Ghostbusters and Avatar

Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver ( sig-OR-nee; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. Prolific in film since the late 1970s, she is known for her pioneering portrayals of action heroines in blockbusters and for her various roles in independent films.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Desmond Herzfelder · CC BY 4.0

Lech Kaczyński

Polish president and former Solidarity activist who died with 95 others in the 2010 Smolensk air crash

Lech Aleksander Kaczyński (18 June 1949 – 10 April 2010) was a Polish politician who served as the 4th president of Poland from 2005 to 2010, when he died in the Smolensk air disaster. Earlier, he served as the city mayor of Warsaw from 2002 to 2005.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland · GFDL 1.2

Pablo Escobar

Colombian drug lord who led the Medellín Cartel, once one of the richest criminals in history, and was killed in 1993

Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria ( ESK-ə-bar, Spanish:; 1 December 1949 – 2 December 1993) was a Colombian drug lord, narcoterrorist, and politician who was the founder and leader of the Medellín Cartel.

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Colombian National Police · Public domain