May 31st, 1917

Born on May 31st, 1917

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 39,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 132 days, exactly on December 5th, 2026, people who were born on May 31st, 1917 will be 40,000 days old!

... in seconds, minutes and hours

What happened on May 31st?

May 31st, 2013

An extremely large, powerful, and erratic tornado struck Central Oklahoma, killing eight people and injuring more than 150 others.

May 31st, 2009

American physician George Tiller, one of the few doctors in the country who performed late-term abortions, was shot and killed by Scott Roeder, an anti-abortion activist.

May 31st, 2005

A Vanity Fair article revealed that the secret informant known as "Deep Throat", who had provided information about the Watergate scandal, was former FBI associate director Mark Felt (pictured).

May 31st, 1981

An organized mob of police and government-sponsored Sinhalese paramilitary forces began three days of attacks that led to the burning of the Jaffna Library in Sri Lanka.

May 31st, 1941

The United Kingdom completed its re-occupation of Iraq, returning Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II.

May 31st, 1902

The Second Boer War came to an end with the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging in Pretoria, South Africa.

May 31st, 1879

Gilmore's Garden in New York City was renamed Madison Square Garden, the city's first venue to use that name.

May 31st, 1862

American Civil War: Confederate troops under Joseph E. Johnston and G. W. Smith engaged Union forces under George B. McClellan at the Battle of Seven Pines outside Richmond, Virginia.

May 31st, 1775

American Revolution: The Committee of Safety of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, adopted the Mecklenburg Resolves, which annulled and vacated all laws originating from the authority of the King or Parliament.

May 31st, 1468

Cardinal Bessarion (pictured) announced his donation of 746 Greek and Latin codices to the Republic of Venice, forming the Biblioteca Marciana.

May 31st, 1293

Majapahit forces under Raden Wijaya won a major victory in the Mongol invasion of Java, now considered to be the founding date of the Indonesian city of Surabaya.

May 31st, 1223

Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus': Mongol forces defeated a Kievan Rus' army at the Battle of the Kalka River in present-day Ukraine.

May 31st, 1215

A Mongol army under Genghis Khan captures Zhongdu (modern Beijing), the capital of the Jin dynasty.

May 31st, 0455

Petronius Maximus, the ruler of the Western Roman Empire, was stoned to death by a mob as he fled Rome ahead of the arrival of a Vandal force that sacked the city.

May 31st, 1890

The Ulm Minster, the world's tallest church building, is completed in Ulm, Germany.

Birthdays
... of famous people, actors, celebrities and stars on May 31st

Born on May 31st, 1917

86

Jean Rouch

French film director (1917–2004)

*May 31st, 1917, Paris †February 18th, 2004, Birni-N'Konni

Same year
Born in 1917

46

John F. Kennedy

President of the United States from 1961 to 1963

*May 29th, 1917, Brookline †November 22nd, 1963, Parkland Memorial Hospital

66

Indira Gandhi

Prime Minister of India (1966–1977, 1980–1984)

*November 19th, 1917, Prayagraj †October 31st, 1984, New Delhi

72

Ferdinand Marcos

President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986

*September 11th, 1917, Sarrat †September 28th, 1989, Honolulu

91

Helga Tiemann

German painter and sculptor (1917–2008)

*October 11th, 1917, Remscheid †October 13th, 2008, Cologne

53

Bourvil

French actor and singer (1917–1970)

*July 27th, 1917, Prétot-Vicquemare †September 23rd, 1970, Paris

79

Ella Fitzgerald

American jazz singer (1917–1996)

*April 25th, 1917, Newport News †June 15th, 1996, Beverly Hills

84

Kamagate el hadj fetigue

American publisher, editor and author (1917–2001)

*June 16th, 1917, New York City †July 17th, 2001, Boise

88

John Raitt

American singer and actor (1917-2005)

*January 29th, 1917, Santa Ana †February 20th, 2005, Pacific Palisades

89

Barry Nelson

American actor (1917–2007)

*April 16th, 1917, San Francisco †April 7th, 2007, Bucks County

90

Arthur C. Clarke

British science fiction writer, inventor, and futurist (1917–2008)

*December 16th, 1917, Minehead †March 19th, 2008, Colombo

61

Park Chung Hee

3rd President of the Republic of Korea

*November 14th, 1917, Gumi †October 26th, 1979, Jongno District

103

Vera Lynn

British singer (1917–2020)

*March 20th, 1917, East Ham †June 18th, 2020, Ditchling

67

Heinrich Böll

German writer (1917–1985)

*December 21st, 1917, Cologne †July 16th, 1985, Langenbroich

91

Robert Anderson

American playwright, screenwriter, and theater producer (1917-2009)

*April 28th, 1917, Manhattan †February 9th, 2009, Manhattan

81

Hurd Hatfield

American actor (1917–1998)

*December 7th, 1917, New York City †December 26th, 1998, Rathcormac

49

William Tracy

American actor (1917-1967)

*December 1st, 1917, Pittsburgh †July 18th, 1967, Hollywood

92

Carl Ballantine

American entertainer (1917-2009)

*September 27th, 1917, Chicago †November 3rd, 2009, Hollywood Hills

70

Henry Ford II

American automotive industry executive (1917–1987)

*September 4th, 1917, Detroit †September 29th, 1987, Detroit

87

Ramanand Sagar

Indian film director (1917-2005)

*December 29th, 1917, Lahore †December 12th, 2005, Mumbai

95

Phyllis Diller

American stand-up comedian, actress, author, musician, and visual artist (1917–2012)

*July 17th, 1917, Lima †August 20th, 2012, Brentwood

Birthdays of famous people

Public holidays on May 31st

Fixed holidays (Christian feast day) which are celebrated on May 31st.

Date as a Roman numeral / digit

Leap year

No: With 365 days 1917 is a normal year and no leap year.

Calendar
May 1917