Famous people born in 1959
The best-known people born in 1959, ranked by how many languages Wikipedia covers them in.
Best known
Mike PenceVice President of the United States from 2017 to 2021
June 7
Photo: D. Myles Cullen, Public domain
Stephen Harper22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015
April 30
Photo: World Economic Forum / Remy Steinegger, CC BY-SA 2.0
Jens StoltenbergNorwegian politician (born 1959)
March 16
Photo: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from Washington D.C, United States, CC BY 2.0
Rigoberta MenchúGuatemalan human rights activist
January 9
Photo: Gobierno de Guatemala, Public domain
"Weird Al" YankovicAmerican comedy musician (born 1959)
October 23
Photo: Super Festivals from Ft. Lauderdale, USA, CC BY 2.0
Donna StricklandCanadian physicist, Nobel laurate
May 27
Photo: Bengt Nyman from Vaxholm, Sweden, CC BY 2.0
Ahmet DavutoğluTurkish statesperson and writer (born 1959)
February 26
Photo: U.S. Department of State, Public domain
Klaus IohannisPresident of Romania from 2014 to 2025
June 13
Photo: European Union, European Parliament
Boris NemtsovRussian scientist, statesman and liberal politician (1959–2015)
October 9 · d. 2015
Photo: Dhārmikatva, CC BY-SA 3.0
Magic JohnsonAmerican basketball player and entrepreneur (born 1959)
August 14
Photo: Daniel Benavides from Austin, TX, CC BY 2.0
Hugh LaurieEnglish actor, comedian, director, musician and writer (born 1959)
June 11
Photo: jmb1977, CC BY-SA 2.0
Mauricio Macripresident of Argentina from 2015 to 2019
February 8
Photo: Casa Rosada (Argentina Presidency of the Nation), CC BY 2.5 ar
Alberto Fernándezpresident of Argentina from 2019 to 2023
April 2
Photo: Esteban Collazo, CC BY 2.5 ar
Ali Bongo OndimbaPresident of Gabon (2009–2023)
February 9
Photo: United States Department of State Africa U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit: Photos and Videos, Public domain
Jon FosseNorwegian writer, playwright, and translator (born 1959)
September 29
Photo: Tom A. Kolstad/Det norske samlaget., CC BY-SA 4.0
Saul PerlmutterAmerican astrophysicist and Nobel laureate
September 22
Photo: Holger Motzkau, CC BY-SA 3.0
Laura Chinchilla46th President of Costa Rica
March 28
Photo: Unknown author Unknown author, CC BY-SA 4.0
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January
- January 10 · Maurizio Sarri, Italian association football manager (born 1959)
- January 13 · Gilmar Rinaldi, Brazilian association football player
- January 16 · Sade Adu, British singer
- January 17 · Jaime Rodríguez Jiménez, Salvadoran footballer
- January 22 · Linda Blair, American actress
- January 28 · Frank Darabont, American film director, screenwriter and producer
February
- February 3 · Chan Santokhi, President of Suriname from 2020 to 2025
- February 5 · Jennifer Granholm, 16th United States Secretary of Energy
- February 9 · Filipe Nyusi, President of Mozambique, 2015-2025
- February 14 · Tsitsi Dangarembga, Zimbabwean author and filmmaker
- February 22 · Kyle MacLachlan, American actor
- February 25 · Aleksei Balabanov, Russian film director and screenwriter (1959-2013)
March
- March 7 · Luciano Spalletti, Italian association football player and manager
- March 12 · Milorad Dodik, politician
- March 15 · Ben Okri, Nigerian-born British poet and novelist (1959-)
- March 17 · Andrei Belousov, Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation
- March 18 · Irene Cara, American singer and actress (1959–2022)
- March 26 · Catherine Keener, American actress
April
- April 6 · Pietro Vierchowod, Italian association football player
- April 10 · Babyface, American singer, songwriter, and record producer
- April 17 · Majid Majidi, Iranian film director, film producer, film actor and screenwriter
- April 21 · Robert Smith, English singer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter
- April 22 · Vahagn Khachatryan, President of Armenia since 2022
- April 27 · Andrew Fire, American biologist
May
- May 1 · Yasmina Reza, French actor and writer
- May 12 · Ving Rhames, American actor
- May 20 · Israel Kamakawiwoʻole, Hawaiian singer (1959–1997)
- May 21 · Abdulla Yameen, President of the Maldives from 2013 to 2018
- May 22 · Morrissey, British singer and songwriter
- May 29 · Rupert Everett, British actor
June
- June 1 · Hassan Diab, Lebanese engineer, academic and minister of higher education
- June 4 · Anil Ambani, Indian businessman (1959-present)
- June 9 · Benny Gantz, Israeli military officer and politician (born 1959)
- June 19 · Anne Hidalgo, Spanish–French politician
- June 29 · Atsushi Uchiyama, Japanese association football player and manager
- June 30 · Vincent D'Onofrio, American actor and filmmaker (born 1959)
July
- July 4 · Victoria Abril, Spanish actress
- July 5 · Veronica Guerin, Irish crime reporter (1958-1996)
- July 11 · Suzanne Vega, American singer-songwriter
- July 12 · Tupou VI of Tonga, King of Tonga
- July 23 · Li Qiang, Premier of the People's Republic of China since 2023
- July 29 · Sanjay Dutt, Indian actor and politician
August
- August 3 · Koichi Tanaka, Japanese chemist
- August 10 · Rosanna Arquette, American actress
- August 14 · Marcia Gay Harden, American actress
- August 17 · Jonathan Franzen, American writer
- August 18 · Nirmala Sitharaman, Indian politician
- August 29 · Ramón Díaz, Argentine association football player and coach
September
- September 7 · Drew Weissman, American physician-scientist (born 1959)
- September 10 · Jim Meskimen, American actor
- September 12 · Sigmar Gabriel, German politician (SPD)
- September 13 · Chris Hansen, American television journalist (born 1959)
- September 23 · Jason Alexander, American actor, comedian, director and television host
- September 30 · Xiomara Castro, Honduran politician and businesswoman (born 1959)
October
- October 1 · Youssou N’Dour, Senegalese singer, composer and politician (born 1959)
- October 6 · Lai Ching-te, President of Taiwan (ROC) since 2024
- October 15 · Sarah Ferguson, British writer, charity patron, public speaker, film producer and television personality, and former Duchess of York
- October 17 · Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, scientist and president of Mauritius
- October 23 · Sam Raimi, American filmmaker (born 1959)
- October 29 · John Magufuli, 5th President of Tanzania from 2015 to 2021
November
- November 1 · Susanna Clarke, British author (1959-)
- November 9 · Guy Parmelin, Swiss politician
- November 19 · Allison Janney, American actress (born 1959)
- November 20 · Sean Young, American actress
- November 26 · Satoshi Miyauchi, Japanese association football player and manager
- November 29 · Rahm Emanuel, American politician (born 1959)
December
- December 6 · Satoru Iwata, Japanese video game programmer and businessman (1959–2015)
- December 8 · Jim Yong Kim, South Korean-American physician and anthropologist, 12th President of the World Bank
- December 21 · Florence Griffith Joyner, American track and field athlete (1959-1998)
- December 22 · Bernd Schuster, German association football manager and former player
- December 24 · Anil Kapoor, Indian actor
- December 29 · Patricia Clarkson, American actress
People from Wikidata (CC0), photos from Wikimedia Commons; each photo shows its author and licence.