My India — Festivals

Celebrity Leap Day Birthdays

February 29 called a Leap Day occurs once every four years called a Leap Year. A leap year contains one extra day in order to keep the calendar year synchronized with the solar year.

In a leap year, February has 29 days instead of the usual 28. There are 366 days in a leap year because it takes slightly longer, an extra 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds, to complete an orbit around the sun.

The year 2016 is a leap year, and February 29 is leap day.

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Happy Leap Day 2016

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A person born on February 29 may be called a leapling or a leaper. People born on this day usually celebrate their birthdays on February 28 or March 1.

Leap Day on February 29 has been a day of traditions, folklorism and old wives’ tale ever since Roman general Julius Caesar introduced the first leap years over 2000 years ago.

According to old Irish legend, on a leap day, women are permitted to propose to men.

Even though February 29 comes only once every four years, over the centuries, leap days have seen their share of famous events, births and deaths. Here are some celebrity leap day birthdays:

Celebrity Leap Day Birthdays

• 1468 — Pope Paul III last Renaissance pope.
• 1736 — Ann Lee, founder of the Shaker Movement in America, is born in Manchester, UK.
• 1792 — Gioacchino Rossini, Italian composer.
• 1896 — Morarji Desai, former Indian prime minister.
• 1904 — Rukmini Devi Arundale, Indian theosophist, dancer and choreographer.
• 1968 — Wendi Louise Peters, English television and theater character actress.
• 1916 — Dinah Shore, American singer.
• 1924 — Al Rosen, American baseball player.
• 1924 — Carlos Humberto Romero, former president of El Salvador.
• 1960 — Anthony (Tony) Robbins, American motivational speaker.
• 1964 — Lyndon Byers, Canadian hockey player.
• 1972 — Saul Stacey Williams, American singer, musician, poet, writer, and actor.
• 1972 — Antonio Sabàto Jr, Italian-born actor.
• 1976 — Ja Rule (real name Jeffrey Atkins), American rapper and actor.
• 1980 — Chris Conley, American musician and songwriter/composer.