Birthdays
1813 - Søren Aabye Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher, theologian, poet, social critic and religious author who is widely considered to be the first existentialist philosopher. He wrote critical texts on organized religion, Christendom, morality, ethics, psychology, and the philosophy of religion displaying a fondness for metaphor, irony, and parables. Much of his philosophical work deals with the issues of how one lives as a "single individual", giving priority to concrete human reality over abstract thinking and highlighting the importance of personal choice and commitment. His theological work focuses on Christian ethics, Christian love, the institution of the Church, the differences between purely objective proofs of Christianity, the infinite qualitative distinction between man and God, and the individual's subjective relationship to the God-Man Jesus the Christ, which came through faith. His psychological work explored the emotions and feelings of individuals when faced with life choices. (Philosophy - S. Kierkegaard, uploaded by The School of Life. Accessed May 5, 2017.)
1818 - Karl Heinrich Marx, German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist and socialist revolutionary. Due to his political publications, Marx became stateless and lived in exile with his wife and children in London for decades, where he continued to develop his thought in collaboration with German thinker Friedrich Engels and publish his writings, researching in the reading room of the British Museum. His best-known titles are the 1848 pamphlet The Communist Manifesto and the three-volume Das Kapital. Marx's political and philosophical thought had enormous influence on subsequent intellectual, economic and political history. His name has been used, collectively understood as Marxism, hold that human societies develop through class conflict. In the capitalist mode of production, this manifests itself in the conflict between the ruling classes (bourgeoisie) that control the means of production and the working classes (proletariat) that enable these means by selling their labour-power in return for wages.
1908 - Rex Harrison, English actor of stage and screen who began his career on the stage in 1924. He won his first Tony Award for his performance as Henry VIII in the play Anne of the Thousand Days in 1949. He is famous for his role as Henry Higgins in the movie musical "My Fair Lady" with Audrey Hepburn.
1914 - Tyrone Edmund Power III, American actor. He appeared in dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads. His better-known films include The Mark of Zorro, Marie Antoinette, Blood and Sand, The Black Swan, Prince of Foxes, Witness for the Prosecution, The Black Rose, and Captain from Castile. Power's own favorite film among those that he starred in was Nightmare Alley. Though largely a matinee idol in his time, known for his striking looks, Power starred in films in a number of genres, from drama to light comedy. In the 1950s he began placing limits on the number of films he would make in order to devote more time for theater productions. He received his biggest accolades as a stage actor in John Brown's Body and Mister Roberts.
Lefties:
None known
More birthdays and historical events today, May 5 - On This Day.
Historical Events
1726 - George Frideric Handel's opera Alessandro premieres at London's King's Theatre.
1891 - Carnegie Hall, then Music Hall, has its opening night in New York. Piotr Tchaikovsky is guest conductor.
