Who Was Alive in 1940

Nikola TeslaAge 84

1856–1943 · Science & Invention

AC electricity, visionary inventor

Max PlanckAge 82

1858–1947 · Science & Invention

Father of quantum theory

Rabindranath TagoreAge 79

1861–1941 · Literature

First non-European Nobel laureate in Literature

Henry FordAge 77

1863–1947 · Business & Industry

Assembly line, Model T automobile

Edvard MunchAge 77

1863–1944 · Art

The Scream

H.G. WellsAge 74

1866–1946 · Literature

The War of the Worlds, science fiction pioneer

Mahatma GandhiAge 71

1869–1948 · Politics & Leadership

Nonviolent independence leader of India

Orville WrightAge 69

1871–1948 · Science & Invention

Co-inventor of the airplane

Winston ChurchillAge 66

1874–1965 · Politics & Leadership

British PM who led WWII effort

Carl JungAge 65

1875–1961 · Philosophy & Thought

Analytical psychology, archetypes

Lise MeitnerAge 62

1878–1968 · Science & Invention

Discovered nuclear fission, overlooked for Nobel

Albert EinsteinAge 61

1879–1955 · Science & Invention

Theory of relativity, E=mc²

Pablo PicassoAge 59

1881–1973 · Art

Cubism, Guernica, most prolific artist

Alexander FlemingAge 59

1881–1955 · Science & Invention

Discovered penicillin

Virginia WoolfAge 58

1882–1941 · Literature

Mrs Dalloway, modernist pioneer

James JoyceAge 58

1882–1941 · Literature

Ulysses, literary revolutionary

Igor StravinskyAge 58

1882–1971 · Music

The Rite of Spring, modern classical

Franklin D. RooseveltAge 58

1882–1945 · Politics & Leadership

32nd US President, New Deal, WWII leader

Coco ChanelAge 57

1883–1971 · Business & Industry

Fashion icon, Chanel No. 5

Niels BohrAge 55

1885–1962 · Science & Invention

Atomic model, quantum mechanics pioneer

Diego RiveraAge 54

1886–1957 · Art

Mexican muralist, political artist

Erwin SchrödingerAge 53

1887–1961 · Science & Invention

Schrödinger's cat, wave equation

Georgia O'KeeffeAge 53

1887–1986 · Art

Mother of American modernism

Charlie ChaplinAge 51

1889–1977 · Film & Entertainment

The Tramp, silent film legend

Ho Chi MinhAge 50

1890–1969 · Politics & Leadership

Revolutionary leader of Vietnam

Agatha ChristieAge 50

1890–1976 · Literature

Best-selling mystery novelist ever

Dwight D. EisenhowerAge 50

1890–1969 · Politics & Leadership

WWII Supreme Commander, 34th US President

Charles de GaulleAge 50

1890–1970 · Politics & Leadership

Leader of Free France, French President

Haile SelassieAge 48

1892–1975 · Politics & Leadership

Emperor of Ethiopia, Rastafari symbol

J.R.R. TolkienAge 48

1892–1973 · Literature

The Lord of the Rings, Middle-earth

Mao ZedongAge 47

1893–1976 · Politics & Leadership

Founder of the People's Republic of China

Babe RuthAge 45

1895–1948 · Sports

Baseball's Sultan of Swat

Buster KeatonAge 45

1895–1966 · Film & Entertainment

Silent film comedian, The General

F. Scott FitzgeraldAge 44

1896–1940 · Literature

The Great Gatsby

Golda MeirAge 42

1898–1978 · Politics & Leadership

Fourth Prime Minister of Israel

Duke EllingtonAge 41

1899–1974 · Music

Jazz legend, big band pioneer

Ernest HemingwayAge 41

1899–1961 · Literature

The Old Man and the Sea, Nobel laureate

Jorge Luis BorgesAge 41

1899–1986 · Literature

Labyrinths, master of magical realism

Alfred HitchcockAge 41

1899–1980 · Film & Entertainment

Master of Suspense — Psycho, Vertigo

Humphrey BogartAge 41

1899–1957 · Film & Entertainment

Casablanca, Hollywood icon

Werner HeisenbergAge 39

1901–1976 · Science & Invention

Uncertainty principle, quantum mechanics pioneer

Louis ArmstrongAge 39

1901–1971 · Music

What a Wonderful World, jazz trumpet

Walt DisneyAge 39

1901–1966 · Film & Entertainment

Created Mickey Mouse, Disney empire

Enrico FermiAge 39

1901–1954 · Science & Invention

Father of the nuclear age, first nuclear reactor

HirohitoAge 39

1901–1989 · Politics & Leadership

Emperor of Japan during WWII

George OrwellAge 37

1903–1950 · Literature

1984, Animal Farm

Bob HopeAge 37

1903–2003 · Film & Entertainment

Comedian, entertainer for 80+ years

Robert OppenheimerAge 36

1904–1967 · Science & Invention

Father of the atomic bomb

Salvador DalíAge 36

1904–1989 · Art

The Persistence of Memory, surrealist

Jean-Paul SartreAge 35

1905–1980 · Philosophy & Thought

Existentialism, declined the Nobel Prize

Hannah ArendtAge 34

1906–1975 · Philosophy & Thought

The Banality of Evil, political theorist

Frida KahloAge 33

1907–1954 · Art

Self-portraits, Mexican cultural icon

Rachel CarsonAge 33

1907–1964 · Activism & Social Change

Silent Spring, environmental movement

Simone de BeauvoirAge 32

1908–1986 · Philosophy & Thought

The Second Sex, feminist existentialist

Kwame NkrumahAge 31

1909–1972 · Politics & Leadership

First President of Ghana

Dorothy HodgkinAge 30

1910–1994 · Science & Invention

Nobel Prize for X-ray crystallography of biochemical substances

Mother TeresaAge 30

1910–1997 · Activism & Social Change

Missionary of Charity in Calcutta

Akira KurosawaAge 30

1910–1998 · Film & Entertainment

Seven Samurai, master filmmaker

Jacques CousteauAge 30

1910–1997 · Exploration

Ocean explorer, pioneered scuba diving

Alan TuringAge 28

1912–1954 · Science & Invention

Father of computer science, codebreaker

Jackson PollockAge 28

1912–1956 · Art

Action painting, abstract expressionism

Rosa ParksAge 27

1913–2005 · Activism & Social Change

Mother of the civil rights movement

Jesse OwensAge 27

1913–1980 · Sports

4 gold medals at 1936 Berlin Olympics

Hedy LamarrAge 26

1914–2000 · Science & Invention

Hollywood star who co-invented frequency hopping

Orson WellesAge 25

1915–1985 · Film & Entertainment

Citizen Kane, War of the Worlds broadcast

Frank SinatraAge 25

1915–1998 · Music

My Way, Ol' Blue Eyes

Billie HolidayAge 25

1915–1959 · Music

Strange Fruit, jazz vocal legend

Roald DahlAge 24

1916–1990 · Literature

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

John F. KennedyAge 23

1917–1963 · Politics & Leadership

35th US President, Space Race

Ella FitzgeraldAge 23

1917–1996 · Music

First Lady of Song, jazz icon

Indira GandhiAge 23

1917–1984 · Politics & Leadership

First female Prime Minister of India

Ingmar BergmanAge 22

1918–2007 · Film & Entertainment

The Seventh Seal, master of art cinema

Nelson MandelaAge 22

1918–2013 · Politics & Leadership

Anti-apartheid hero, South African President

Richard FeynmanAge 22

1918–1988 · Science & Invention

Quantum electrodynamics, bongo-playing physicist

Eva PerónAge 21

1919–1952 · Politics & Leadership

Argentina's beloved Evita

Edmund HillaryAge 21

1919–2008 · Exploration

First to summit Mount Everest

Jackie RobinsonAge 21

1919–1972 · Sports

Broke baseball's color barrier

Rosalind FranklinAge 20

1920–1958 · Science & Invention

Key to discovering DNA's structure

Stan LeeAge 18

1922–2018 · Film & Entertainment

Co-created Spider-Man, X-Men, Marvel

Marlon BrandoAge 16

1924–2004 · Film & Entertainment

The Godfather, method acting pioneer

James BaldwinAge 16

1924–1987 · Literature

Go Tell It on the Mountain, civil rights essayist

Patrice LumumbaAge 15

1925–1961 · Politics & Leadership

First Prime Minister of independent Congo

Margaret ThatcherAge 15

1925–2013 · Politics & Leadership

The Iron Lady, British Prime Minister

B.B. KingAge 15

1925–2015 · Music

King of the Blues

Marilyn MonroeAge 14

1926–1962 · Film & Entertainment

Hollywood icon, cultural legend

Fidel CastroAge 14

1926–2016 · Politics & Leadership

Cuban revolutionary leader

Gabriel García MárquezAge 13

1927–2014 · Literature

One Hundred Years of Solitude

James WatsonAge 12

1928–present · Science & Invention

Co-discovered the structure of DNA

Andy WarholAge 12

1928–1987 · Art

Pop art icon, Campbell's Soup Cans

Stanley KubrickAge 12

1928–1999 · Film & Entertainment

2001: A Space Odyssey, perfectionist auteur

Maya AngelouAge 12

1928–2014 · Literature

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Che GuevaraAge 12

1928–1967 · Politics & Leadership

Argentine revolutionary icon

Vera RubinAge 12

1928–2016 · Science & Invention

Discovered evidence for dark matter

Noam ChomskyAge 12

1928–present · Philosophy & Thought

Father of modern linguistics, political activist

Anne FrankAge 11

1929–1945 · Activism & Social Change

Diary of a Young Girl, Holocaust victim

Martin Luther King Jr.Age 11

1929–1968 · Activism & Social Change

"I Have a Dream," civil rights leader

Audrey HepburnAge 11

1929–1993 · Film & Entertainment

Breakfast at Tiffany's, humanitarian

Grace KellyAge 11

1929–1982 · Film & Entertainment

Hollywood star turned Princess of Monaco

Chinua AchebeAge 10

1930–2013 · Literature

Things Fall Apart, father of modern African literature

Neil ArmstrongAge 10

1930–2012 · Exploration

First human to walk on the Moon

Ray CharlesAge 10

1930–2004 · Music

The Genius of Soul, Georgia On My Mind

Tu YouyouAge 10

1930–present · Science & Invention

Discovered artemisinin, Nobel Prize in Medicine

James DeanAge 9

1931–1955 · Film & Entertainment

Rebel Without a Cause, died at 24

Desmond TutuAge 9

1931–2021 · Activism & Social Change

Anti-apartheid cleric, Nobel Peace Prize

Toni MorrisonAge 9

1931–2019 · Literature

Beloved, Nobel Prize in Literature

Johnny CashAge 8

1932–2003 · Music

The Man in Black, country music legend

Elizabeth TaylorAge 8

1932–2011 · Film & Entertainment

Cleopatra, golden age Hollywood star

Sylvia PlathAge 8

1932–1963 · Literature

The Bell Jar, confessional poetry

Yoko OnoAge 7

1933–present · Art

Avant-garde artist, peace activist

Wole SoyinkaAge 6

1934–present · Literature

First African Nobel laureate in Literature

Yuri GagarinAge 6

1934–1968 · Exploration

First human in space

Carl SaganAge 6

1934–1996 · Science & Invention

Cosmos, pale blue dot, science communicator

Jane GoodallAge 6

1934–present · Science & Invention

World's foremost expert on chimpanzees

Dalai LamaAge 5

1935–present · Philosophy & Thought

Tibetan spiritual leader, Nobel Peace Prize

Elvis PresleyAge 5

1935–1977 · Music

The King of Rock and Roll

Woody AllenAge 5

1935–present · Film & Entertainment

Annie Hall, prolific filmmaker

Pope FrancisAge 4

1936–2025 · Philosophy & Thought

First pope from the Americas

Francis Ford CoppolaAge 1

1939–present · Film & Entertainment

The Godfather trilogy, Apocalypse Now

PeléAge 0

1940–2022 · Sports

The King of Football, 3 World Cups

Bruce LeeAge 0

1940–1973 · Film & Entertainment

Martial arts legend, Enter the Dragon

John LennonAge 0

1940–1980 · Music

The Beatles, Imagine

Wangari MaathaiAge 0

1940–2011 · Activism & Social Change

Kenyan environmentalist, first African woman Nobel laureate