Other people with the best birthdate ever

It's that time again. Today's my birthday.

My birthdays come around enough on this blog that I've pretty much covered every major leaguer who shares my birthday. There aren't a lot of them, particularly of name players.

To recap, the most famous player also born on July 16 is Shoeless Joe:

After that, there is quite a drop. The most notable player after Joe Jackson born today is Terry Pendleton:

Pendleton never played for teams I liked, but he did win an MVP award and I've always given him a pass because of what is on the back of his 1987 Topps card:

A childhood rooting for the Dodgers is a happy childhood.

Beyond that, the most remembered players born today are New York Giants pitcher Larry Jansen, volatile Cubs manager Lee Elia, well-traveled relief pitcher Eddie Fisher, and Dodgers catcher and Koufax-whisperer Norm Sherry.

But I've covered all of that before, and I have cards of most of the players born on my birthday (but not all, which I'll correct some day). But what about other famous people born on my birthday? I wondered whether there are cards of those other people.

There are. For quite a few of them.

I started with the other sports, and the one sport with a number of notable people born on July 16th -- football.

The most famous football player born on July 16th has plenty of cards. I somehow have managed to go without owning a single one. I should take care of that right away because he has plenty of cheap cards.

No, not that one. (It goes for $450). Barry Sanders' rookie cards exist deep in the heart of the overproduction era, so picking one up inexpensively will be no problem at all.

Another famed NFLer also coached when cards were plentiful. I'm not crazy about actually making an attempt to find one of his cards because he was an enemy for so many years. Probably my least favorite July 16er.

Ugh.

Guess I need to bite the bullet and pay the 99 cents.

Other NFL notables born today include legendary Green Bay Packers split end Max McGee, Jets/Texans/Cowboys cornerback Aaron Glenn, Bengals punter Kevin Huber, Broncos running back Knowshon Moreno, Eagles tackle Jerry Sisemore, and Rams and Vikings lineman Ron Yary, who you may not recall, but this card ...

... comes directly from my childhood (he looked like he was spitting). I definitely need this card.

For some reason, either through chance or the fact that NFL teams hire a bajillion kickers in the life of a franchise, there are several kickers born today. The most famous one is Gary Anderson, the longtime Steelers and Vikings booter who is remembered around here because he attended Syracuse University.

Also, I was happy to learn that the kicker on my fantasy team a long time ago was also born today.

I suppose if I knew that he shared my birthday I would have had an easier time explaining why I drafted Chip Lohmiller as my kicker. At least I already own a card of his. (The back of this card states weirdly that his birthday is March 8, 1970. Wrong, Collector's Choice! So, so wrong).

One more NFL guy before I move on to other sports. Roscoe Parrish, a receiver and kick returner for Buffalo between 2005-12, is the most notable Bills player born today. Happy birthday, Roscoe, fellow July 16er!

The NBA and NHL don't have has many players born today as the NFL, but each does have a player born on the exact same day and year I was born.

Jerk-face Claude Lemieux and Mormon defenseman Kevan Guy each were born the same day I was.

Other NHL players born on July 16 include Blackhawks veteran Duncan Keith and Finnish defenseman Jyrki Lumme. NBA players born today include Zach Randolph, Chris Mihm, Timofey Mozgov, Mike Scott and the other guy born on the exact same day and year as me:

Charles Smith. That might be the most Knicks card ever. I must have it.

However, I do not own a card of the most accomplished sports figure ever born on my birthday.

Margaret Smith Court still holds many women's tennis records, and before Billie Jean King and Venus Williams came along, she held all of them. I have no need to own a relic card of Court, but finding a card of hers is definitely necessary.

As is finding a card of Anna Smashnova. The women's tennis player with the best name in women's tennis history was born the same day as me! Smashing!

On another sports front, I've known ever since he started winning Tour de Frances that Miguel Indurain shared my birthday. Indurain, who won five straight tours, also competed in the Olympics, as did this July 16er:

Yup, U.S. soccer champion Carli Lloyd was born today. I have a card of her. I don't have a card of Indurain. I don't know if they make cards of cyclists.

Outside of sports, there are several notables born today. Orville Redenbacher, for example. What I wouldn't do for a card of Orville Redenbacher! Also, Dr. Frank Jobe shares my birthday, and it's a crime that the man who performed the first Tommy John surgery has not appeared in Allen & Ginter yet.

Performer Desmond Dekker, known for creating one of the first ska hits in the United States, with "The Israelites" in 1968, was born today. Also born today was one-third of The Police.

Stewart Copeland, the drummer for the Police (on the right there) was born on July 16. He's the guy who used to argue all the time with Sting.

The entertainment world is filled with July 16ers, several of whom have cards. Let's start with one that I own.

Will Ferrell is likely the most famous July 16er right now. And fortunately, Archives created cards of him last year! I'm very happy to have this card now.

I'm also very happy to have this card. Gremlins is not the movie that I associate with Phoebe Cates (it's Fast Times at Ridgemont High, of course). But Gremlins was a card set, so you've got to adjust. At least I saw that movie, too.

Speaking as someone who went to high school in the early '80s, when Cates was every high school boy's fantasy, I always knew I had a special "in" with Phoebe because we have the same birthday.

This is not an actual card. It was created by Johngy's Beat of the lovely Annalynne McCord, who appeared on Nip/Tuck and other shows and is celebrating a birthday today. There definitely needs to be a card of her.

These, however, actually are cards. And they're all pretty affordable. In order, they are Barbara Stanwyck, Bess Myerson and Ginger Rogers. The cards are 1930s tobacco issues for Stanwyck and Rogers and a 1953 Bowman radio & TV stars card for Myerson. All of them would be cool additions to the July 16 collection.

 

Other famed people born today include singer/actor Ruben Blades (no card that I know of), actor Corey Feldman (he has a Donruss Americana card), actress Faye Grant (who I know from way back on Greatest American Hero), Lord of the Dance Michael Flatley (please, no card, please no card), Head Of The Class actress Rain Pryor (I'd love a card of her dad), porn crossover actress Jesse Jane (that would be an interesting card), and former U.S. Secretary General Dick Thornburgh (zzzzz).

I don't expect this to be a serious collection. I'll grab a card here and a card there whenever I feel like it. Maybe I'll make acquiring a card a July 16th tradition. Yeah, I like that idea.

Yesterday, my wife came in from outside on a beautiful day and said, "it's the height of summer out there, the thick of summer."

I turned to her and said, "Yup. That's why I like my birthday."

All July 16ers know what I mean.