Five Famous People Born on Valentine's Day

I say "controversial" because Valentine's Day is one of those commercial holidays that most people either love or hate. I have not met very many people who were lukewarm about it. 

But what if your birthday was Valentine's Day? How would you feel about the day then? Would you resent having to share your birthday with all those decorated hearts and flowers? Or would you feel honored to share your special day with the romantic symbolism and the historical figure of St. Valentine? 

This is what I began to wonder the other day, and I began to look into famous people who have this day as their birthday. This is the list of five people that I came up with who share their day with St. Valentine and the Hallmark hearts. I have no idea how they feel about it, though. Maybe someday I'll be able to ask them. 

This famous child actor is 19 this Valentine's Day. He's best known, of course, for playing Charlie in the most recent version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory . But the English actor has also appeared in such films as Finding Neverland (my personal favorite), Arthur and the Invisibles , The Golden Compass , and The Spiderwick Chronicles . This young man has had one impressive career to not even be out of his teens yet.

Yes, the Mayor of New York City was born on Valentine's Day in 1942. Not only is he the mayor of one of the nation's major cities, but he is also one of the nation's richest people. Number 10 on that list, in fact. And, no, he did not gain all this wealth just by being mayor. He is the founder and owner of the financial news service Bloomberg L.P. Now that's one successful man.

I thought it was interesting, though, that Bloomberg had been a lifelong Democrat until he was running for office. All of a sudden, he became a Republican and won. And, in 2008, he changed New York's mayoral term laws so that he could run for a third time. He ran, and he won. I just wonder if he's going to change the law again and run for a fourth term? I guess we'll find out!

One of TV's best known moms, Carol Brady (oh, sorry, I mean Florence Henderson), was born on Valentine's Day in 1934. How many of us grew up watching that show? Admittedly, I had to catch it in reruns, but the point is: I still grew up watching it.

I also remember Henderson for the Wesson commercials she did in the '80s. Those ads got my family to go out and buy that cooking oil.

And I even remember the cooking show she had on TNN. I didn't watch it a lot - just when I was over at my grandmother's house - but I still remember it.

The woman is a television icon, and she was a major presence in my formative years. So, I wanted to make sure I recognized on her V-Day b-day.

Okay, so admittedly, I am much more familiar with this guy's voice than I am his name. Rob Thomas is the lead singer for the band Matchbox Twenty (the band formerly known as Matchbox 20, or MB20).

Matchbox 20 came on the post-grunge alternative music scene when I was in college in the mid '90s. Their debut album, Yourself or Someone Like You , was released in 1996, and this is the only one of their albums that I am at all familiar with. I kind of just stopped listening to popular music when the '90s were over.

Still, this band's songs served as background music for some of the most memorable years of my life, so I thought Rob Thomas and his band deserved a mention.

If he was still alive today, the late Tennessee Titans/Baltimore Ravens quarterback Steve McNair would be 38 years old.

I am not a big football fan at all, but McNair's tragic death definitely captured my interest. He was killed by his mistress in a murder-suicide in the summer of 2009. Apparently, she suspected him of being involved in another affair and got jealous. And she probably was not all that mentally stable, anyway. I mean, come on, the guy is cheating on his wife with you, and you expect him to be faithful to you. Yeah. Not very bright.

Still, it's a sad story, and McNair was a good quarterback, and it's a shame his life had to end in such a violent way. It's just a reminder that love has its darker side, too. Ironic, in a way, since McNair was born on the day that celebrates the happy aspects of love.

I hope you've enjoyed this little look at five famous people who were born on Valentine's Day. As I said, I wrote this hub purely for my own entertainment, but knowing that I'd entertained others as well would be a nice bonus. So, if you enjoyed this hub (or even if you didn't), leave a comment below and let me know. And have a Happy Valentine's Day!