Famous people born on December 31 — and what else happened that day
If your birthday is December 31, you share it with Henri Matisse, Anthony Hopkins, Gabby Douglas — and you were born under Capricorn, the sign of the ambitious, disciplined, and built for the long game.
Birthday basics for December 31
Capricorn ♑
Zodiac sign
Turquoise
Birthstone
Narcissus
Birth flower
365th
Day of the year
December 31 is the 365th day of the year (366th in leap years), with 0 days still to come.
Famous people born on December 31
Henri Matisse — French painter celebrated as a master of color and modern art (born 1869).
Anthony Hopkins — Welsh actor and two-time Academy Award winner (born 1937).
Gabby Douglas — American gymnast and first Black woman to win Olympic all-around gold (born 1995).
Also sharing the day:
George C. Marshall (b. 1880) — general and statesman whose Marshall Plan rebuilt postwar Europe.
John Denver (b. 1943) — singer-songwriter of "Take Me Home, Country Roads."
Psy (b. 1977) — South Korean performer whose "Gangnam Style" became a global sensation.
December 31 in history
1879 — Thomas Edison gave the first public demonstration of his incandescent light bulb in Menlo Park, New Jersey.
1907 — The first New Year's Eve ball drop was held in New York's Times Square.
1999 — The United States formally handed control of the Panama Canal over to Panama.
1600 — Queen Elizabeth I granted a royal charter to the East India Company.
1904 — Times Square hosted its first New Year's Eve celebration, drawing some 200,000 revelers.
1938 — Indianapolis police debuted the "Drunkometer," the first practical breath test for drivers.
December 31 birthday questions
What zodiac sign is December 31?
Anyone born on December 31 is a Capricorn — ambitious, disciplined, and built for the long game.
What is the birthstone for December 31?
The birthstone for a December 31 birthday is Turquoise, and the birth flower is the Narcissus.
Who is the most famous person born on December 31?
Henri Matisse is among the best known — French painter celebrated as a master of color and modern art (born 1869).
What happened on December 31?
In 1879, Thomas Edison gave the first public demonstration of his incandescent light bulb in Menlo Park, New Jersey.
What day of the year is December 31?
December 31 is the 365th day of the year (366th in leap years), with 0 days still to come.
Make their day unforgettable
Know someone born on December 31? See the full story of their exact birthday — the headlines, the #1 song, what things cost — and turn it into a personalized front-page newspaper they can keep.