August 17th, 1961

Born on August 17th, 1961

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 23,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 282 days, exactly on May 3rd, 2027, people who were born on August 17th, 1961 will be 24,000 days old!

... in seconds, minutes and hours

What happened on August 17th?

August 17th, 2009

A hydroelectric turbine at the Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam in Russia catastrophically failed, flooding the turbine hall, killing 75 people and causing widespread power outages.

August 17th, 2008

Michael Phelps won his eighth gold medal of the Summer Olympics in Beijing, setting the record for the most gold medals won by an athlete at a single games.

August 17th, 1969

Hurricane Camille struck the Mississippi coast of the United States, killing 259 people and causing $1.42 billion in damage..

August 17th, 1959

American musician Miles Davis released Kind of Blue, which became one of the best-selling and most critically acclaimed jazz recordings of all time.

August 17th, 1950

Korean War: Forty-two American prisoners of war were massacred by the Korean People's Army on a hill above Waegwan, South Korea.

August 17th, 1945

Animal Farm, George Orwell's satirical allegory of Soviet totalitarianism, was first published.

August 17th, 1943

World War II: The Royal Air Force began a strategic bombing campaign against Nazi Germany's V-weapon programme by attacking the Peenemünde Army Research Center.

August 17th, 1916

World War I: Romania signed a secret treaty with the Entente Powers, agreeing to enter the war in return for promised territory in Austria-Hungary.

August 17th, 1915

A category 4 hurricane made landfall in Galveston, Texas, leaving at least 275 people dead and causing $50 million in damage.

August 17th, 1914

World War I: Ignoring orders to retreat, Hermann von François led a successful counterattack defending East Prussia at the Battle of Stallupönen and scored the first German victory in the Eastern Front.

August 17th, 1907

Pike Place Market (pictured), one of the oldest continuously operated public farmers' markets in the U.S. and a popular tourist attraction, opened in Seattle, Washington.

August 17th, 1676

Scanian War: Swedish forces defeated Danish troops at the Battle of Halmstad.

August 17th, 1424

Hundred Years' War: Allied English and Burgundian forces gained a strategically important victory at the bloody Battle of Verneuil in Normandy, France.

August 17th, 0986

Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: The Bulgarians defeated Byzantine forces at the battle of the Gates of Trajan near present-day Ihtiman, with Emperor Basil II barely escaping.

August 17th, 1876

The premiere of Götterdämmerung by Richard Wagner (pictured) closed the first Bayreuth Festival.

Birthdays
... of famous people, actors, celebrities and stars on August 17th

Born on August 17th, 1961

64

Alexandr Vondra

Czech diplomat and politician

*August 17th, 1961, Prague

64

Clemens Pickel

Roman Catholic bishop

*August 17th, 1961, Colditz

64

Lydia Mutsch

Luxembourgian politician

*August 17th, 1961, Dudelange

64

Christopher Geidt

Private Secretary to Queen Elizabeth II (born 1961)

*August 17th, 1961, Marylebone

64

Jamie Macoun

Canadian ice hockey defenceman

*August 17th, 1961, Hamilton

64

Ranko Krivokapić

Montenegrin politician

*August 17th, 1961, Kotor

64

Anamika

Indian writer, poet and literary critic

*August 17th, 1961, Muzaffarpur

64

Gyula Molnár

Hungarian politician

*August 17th, 1961, Budapest

64

Emílio Surita

Brazilian television presenter

*August 17th, 1961, São Manuel

Same year
Born in 1961

64

Barack Obama

President of the United States from 2009 to 2017

*August 4th, 1961, Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children

65

Erna Solberg

Prime Minister of Norway from 2013 to 2021

*February 24th, 1961, Bergen

65

Lothar Matthäus

German association football player, manager, and pundit (born 1961)

*March 21st, 1961, Erlangen

64

Joe Lando

American actor

*December 9th, 1961, Prairie View

65

Steven Weber

American actor (1961-)

*March 4th, 1961, Briarwood

64

Olaug Bollestad

Norwegian politician

*November 4th, 1961, Strand Municipality

64

Kristin Krohn Devold

Norwegian politician

*August 12th, 1961, Ålesund Municipality

65

Knut Nærum

Norwegian comedian and author

*March 3rd, 1961, Arendal

65

Hermann Gröhe

German politician

*February 25th, 1961, Uedem

64

Thomas von Heesen

German association football player and manager

*October 1st, 1961, Höxter

65

Ingrid Arndt-Brauer

German politician

*March 20th, 1961, Marburg

65

Michael Meister

German politician

*June 9th, 1961, Lorsch

65

Hans-Georg von der Marwitz

German politician

*April 8th, 1961, Heidelberg

64

Julia Gillard

Prime Minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013

*September 29th, 1961, Barry

65

Joko Widodo

Indonesia's President (2014–2024)

*June 21st, 1961, Surakarta

36

Diana, Princess of Wales

Member of the British royal family and Princess of Wales (1961–1997)

*July 1st, 1961, Sandringham †August 31st, 1997, Paris

65

Eddie Murphy

American actor

*April 3rd, 1961, Brooklyn

64

Arundhati Roy

Indian novelist, essayist, and activist

*November 24th, 1961, Shillong

65

Dirk Heidenblut

German politician

*April 21st, 1961, Essen

64

Nadia Comăneci

Romanian gymnast and five-time Olympic gold medalist

*November 12th, 1961, Onești

Birthdays of famous people

Public holidays on August 17th

Fixed holidays (Christian feast day) which are celebrated on August 17th.

Date as a Roman numeral / digit

Born on August 17th, 1961
Future birthdays

Leap year

No: With 365 days 1961 is a normal year and no leap year.

Calendar
August 1961