Famous People Born In 1940

An iconic actor and martial artist, Bruce Lee, in his short life, gained international fame and developed his own form of martial arts, Jeet Kune Do. In films, he debuted as a child actor and became a huge Hollywood star after the release of his last film Enter the Dragon.

Brazilian football legend Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known as Pele, was named the Football Player of the Century by the IFFHS. He called football “The Beautiful Game” and was one of the world’s highest-paid athlete for a while. His 1279 goals in 1363 games is a Guinness World Record.

Considered one of the greatest actors, Al Pacino gained wide acclaim and recognition for his portrayal of Michael Corleone in the movie, The Godfather in 1972. He’s been a part of many successful and iconic films and won an Oscar for playing a blind military veteran in the movie Scent of a Woman. Pacino has three children, but has never been married.

A black belt in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu jitsu and Judo, Chuck Norris is an American martial artist, screenwriter and a popular action film star. He has won many martial arts championships. He later founded his own discipline, Chun Kuk Do. He has also written books on martial arts, philosophy, politics, Christianity, plus Western novels and biography.

Eminent British actor, Patrick Stewart, is best known for his work in television series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and four films associated with it. Another project that brought him immense recognition was the X-Men film series. A passionate stage artist, he has devoted considerable time to stage and delivered strong performances in Anthony and Cleopatra and A Christmas Carol. 

English musician, singer, and songwriter, Ringo Starr, gained international fame as the drummer for the rock band, the Beatles. Raised by a single mother, he had a difficult childhood. He sought solace in music and it became his vocation. After finding success with the Beatles, he embarked on a solo career as well.

Considered one of the greatest stand-up comedians of all time, Richard Pryor entertained his audience and influenced generations of stand-up comedians with his pointed observations and skilful art of storytelling. He began by performing at clubs and gained immense fame with his third comedy album, That Nigger’s Crazy. He also became an acclaimed actor and an award winning writer.

An eminent television personality, Alex Trebek is best known for hosting the popular game show Jeopardy since it was revived in 1984. He has also hosted many other game shows, both in America and Canada. In February 1991, he became the first person to host three American game shows at the same time. He is currently undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer.

Best known for playing the iconic character of Sonny Corleone in the movie, The Godfather, James Caan is a practising martial artist, apart from being an actor and director. He has trained under Japanese-American master of karate, Takayuki Kubota, for almost 30 years. For his contributions to arts, he was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Tom Jones is a Welsh singer who has sold more than 100 million records worldwide. His life and work inspired the 2016 musical, Tom: A Story of Tom Jones. In 2005, for his services to music, Tom Jones was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

Ricky Nelson was an American pop pioneer, rock & roll star, and singer-songwriter. After establishing himself as a top teen idol during the 1950s, Ricky Nelson went on to release several chartbusting songs. He achieved great popularity and was ranked 91st on Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time list.

Frank Zappa was an American composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and bandleader. Widely regarded as one of the most stylistically diverse and innovative rock musicians of his generation, Zappa was named in Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time list in 2004. Zappa's works have influenced other musicians like Alice Cooper, Jimi Hendrix, Simon Phillips, Steve Vai, and Warren DeMartini.

Singer, songwriter, and record producer, Smokey Robinson, first gained fame as the founder and frontman of the vocal group, The Miracles, in the 1950s. He embarked on an equally successful solo career after leaving the group. He is the recipient of many awards, including the prestigious Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.

John Lennon was part of the hugely successful and popular music band, Beatles. It became the first British band to break out big in the US. However, they eventually broke up. Subsequently, Lennon went solo, with 1971 album, Imagine, being his most successful and acclaimed post-Beatles efforts. Sadly he was shot dead by a deranged fan in New York.

Jack Nicklaus, also known as “The Golden Bear,” has 18 major golf championships to his credit. He has been part of 164 major golf tournaments and has won 117. He now designs golf courses through his company, Nicklaus Design. He has also authored many golf-related books, including an autobiography.

One of the most celebrated actors of Hollywood, Martin Sheen has won multiple Emmys and Golden Globes. Best known to fans as Captain Benjamin Willard from Apocalypse Now, he has also been involved in countless protests against nuclear power and strongly opposes abortion, capital punishment, and euthanasia.

Dionne Warwick is an American singer, TV host, actress, and former FAO Goodwill Ambassador. Warwick was one of the most successful singers between 1955 and 1999, ranking among the 40 biggest hitmakers according to the Billboard Hot 100. 80 of her singles have been featured on Billboard's music charts, making Warwick one of the most-charted female singers in history. 

Actor Michael Gambon is best known for playing Albus Dumbledore in the popular Harry Potter movie series. Not surprisingly, Gambon is one of the most recognized faces in the world and a favorite actor among Harry Potter fans. Ranked 28th in Ireland's greatest film actors list published by The Irish Times, Gambon was knighted for hisservices to drama, in 1998.

Sam Waterston is an American actor, director, and producer. He is popular for his contribution across all three major acting mediums. An active humanitarian, Sam Waterston works closely with organizations, such as Meals on Wheels, Refugees International, Oceana, and The United Way. In 2012, he was honored with the Goodermote Humanitarian Award for his support of refugees.

Katharine Ross is an American actress who became a prominent Hollywood personality in the late-1960s and early-1970s. She is known for her performance in popular films, such as The Graduate and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Much of her acting career was overshadowed by her highly publicized personal life and five marriages to popular personalities.

James Cromwell established himself as a leading character actor in American movies in the 1980s. Best known for his Academy Award-nominated role in Babe and his Emmy-winning role in American Horror Story: Asylum, he is also an animal rights activist and supported the Black Panther Party in the past.

The oldest daughter of Frank Sinatra, Nancy Sinatra established herself as a popular singer and actress during the 1960s and 1970s. At the age of 54, she posed for Playboy magazine, becoming one of the oldest women to do so. In 2006, she was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Jill St. John is an American actress best known for portraying the first American Bond girl Tiffany Case in the 1971 film Diamonds Are Forever. Jill St. John is also credited with founding the Aunts Club, a group of women who provide financial support for children.

Peter Fonda, son of Henry Fonda and brother of Jane Fonda, was an icon of the anti-establishment 1960s’ counterculture. He is best known for his Academy Award-nominated screenplay of Easy Rider and his Golden Globe-winning performances in the TV film The Passion of Ayn Rand and the film Ulee's Gold.

René Auberjonois is best remembered as Odo from the series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He also delivered a Tony-winning performance in the play Coco. He had voiced many video-game characters, such as Karl Schafer in the Uncharted video games. He had also narrated many books, including several Pendergast novels

 Italian-born American former racing driver, Mario Andrett,i is the only driver ever to win the Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500, and the Formula One World Championship. He is considered one of the most successful Americans in the history of the sport.  Over the course of his long career, he has is the only person to be named United States Driver of the Year in three decades (1967, 1978, and 1984). 

Sprinter Wilma Rudolph made history by becoming the first American female athlete to win three track and field gold medals in a single Olympic game. As a child, she needed orthopedic shoes to help her walk. The sports icon lost her life to cancer but was immortalized through books and movies.

Best known for his rough character roles and his Academy Award-nominated portrayal of Paulie Pennino in the Rocky film franchise, actor Burt Young had been a boxer during his time in the Marine Corps. He has also contributed to book covers as an illustrator and penned screenplays and the novel Endings.

British actress Julie Christie, considered one of the icons of the Swinging Sixties, has performed in several notable films of which six found place in the list of BFI Top 100 British films of 20th century. Recipient of BAFTA Fellowship, Christie gained international fame performing in films like Doctor Zhivago and Darling, of which the latter won her an Oscar. 

Legendary horror filmmaker George A. Romero is best known for his Night of the Living Dead series and for popularizing the zombie film genre. He also gained fame for his collaborations with horror novelist Stephen King, the most notable of them being the film version of King’s novel The Dark Half.

H. R. Giger was a Swiss artist remembered for his airbrushed images of machines and humans intertwined in cold biomechanical relationships. He is also remembered for his work as part of the special effects team that worked in Ridley Scott's 1979 science fiction horror film Alien, for which the team won an Academy Award. 

Italian composer and record producer Giovanni Moroder, also known as the Father of Disco, produced Take My Breath Away, the Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning track by Berlin, which was part of the Top Gun soundtrack. His scores for Flashdance and Midnight Express, too, won Academy Awards.