February Birthdays

Since it's February, time to say Happy Birthday

George Russell

-Birth name: George William Russell

-DOB: 2/15/1998

-Where: King's Lynn, England

-He began in competitive go kart racing at age 7

Pierre Gasly

-Birth name: Pierre Jean-Jacques Gasly

-DOB: 2/7/1996

-Where: Rouen, France

-Like most Formula 1 drivers, he started out in competitive go kart racing at age 10

Tony Iommi

-Birth name: Anthony Frank Iommi

-DOB: 2/19/1948

-Where: Birmingham, England

-Spent a year playing guitar for Jethro Tull

Paul Wight

-Birth name: Paul Donald Wight

-DOB: 2/8/1972

-Where: Aiken, South Carolina

-He got his wrestling name "The Giant" from his massive height

Rod Smallwood

-Birth name: Roderick Charles Smallwood

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England

-His father was a police officer

Adrian Smith

-Birth name: Adrian Frederick Smith

-DOB: 2/27/1957

-Where: Hackney, London, England

-He left Iron Maiden after they announced that they wanted to return to a more basic style of music, like what they started out doing, after their Seventh Son of a Seventh Son album. Adrian wanted to go bigger and felt this return to basic approach was a step backwards

Alice Cooper

-Birth name: Vincent Damon Furnier

-DOB: 2/4/1948

-Where: Detroit, Michigan

-He once suffered from severe alcoholism. In order to keep himself from falling back into alcoholism, he plays golf

Alan Rickman

-Birth name: Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman

-DOB: 2/21/1946

-Where: London, England

-DOD: 1/14/2016

-Where: London, England

-The 2016 film Alice Through the Looking Glass was dedicated to him

Steve Irwin

-Birth name: Stephen Robert Irwin

-DOB: 2/22/1962

-Where: Upper Ferntree Gully, Australia

-DOD: 9/4/2006

-Where: Batt Reef, Australia

-He was known for his strong love of animals of all types

Matt Groening

-Birth name: Matthew Abram Groening

-DOB: 2/15/1954

-Where: Portland, Oregon

-He based The Simpsons character Comic Book Guy on himself

George Harrison

-DOB: 2/25/1943

-Where: Liverpool, England

-DOD: 11/29/2001

-Where: Beverly Hills, California

-The location where he passed away was falsified on his death certificate out of fear fans would turn it into a Beatles shrine

Rachel Bolan

-Birth name: James Richard Southworth

-DOB: 2/9/1964

-Where: Point Pleasant, New Jersey

-He took the name "Rachel Bolan" from a combination of his brother Richard's name and his grandfather's name, Manuel. The "Bolan" part came from his idol, T. Rex front man Marc Bolan

Henry Rollins

-Birth name: Henry Lawrence Garfield

-DOB: 2/13/1961

-Where: Washington, D.C.

-Was bullied as a child. He started working out and in tenth grade, while defending himself, he put a senior in the hospital

Rickey Medlocke

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-Prior to joining Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, he sang lead vocals and played lead guitar for fellow Southern rockers Blackfoot

Billie Joe Armstrong

-DOB: 2/17/1972

-Where: Oakland, California

-Wrote "Wake Me Up When September Ends" about his father passing away

Johnny Van Zant

-Birth name: John Roy Van Zant

-DOB: 2/27/1960

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-Was in a band before Lynyrd Skynyrd called the Austin Nickels Band, who changed their name to the Johnny Van Zant Band

February Birthdays

Since it's February, time to say Happy Birthday

George Russell

-Birth name: George William Russell

-DOB: 2/15/1998

-Where: King's Lynn, Norfolk, England

-Has a brother named Benjy

Pierre Gasly

-Birth name: Pierre Jean-Jean Gasly

-DOB: 2/7/1996

-Where: Rouen, France

-Like many Formula 1 drivers, as a child he was involved with go karting

Tony Iommi

-Birth name: Anthony Frank Iommi

-DOB: 2/19/1948

-Where: Aston, Birmingham, England

-He is one of the founding members of Black Sabbath

Paul Wight

-Birth name: Paul Donald Wight II

-DOB: 2/8/1972

-Where: Aiken, South Carolina

-Wrestled under the moniker "The Giant" because of his massive size

Rod Smallwood

-Birth name: Roderick Charles Smallwood

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England

-Like Andy Taylor, Rod's father was a policeman

Adrian Smith

-Birth name: Adrian Frederick Smith

-DOB: 2/27/1957

-Where: Hackney, London, England

-He was initially considered by close friend Phil Collen as a future member of Def Leppard when the band first formed, but at the time, Smith had joined Iron Maiden

Alice Cooper

-Birth name: Vincent Damon Furnier

-DOB: 2/4/1948

-Where: Detroit, Michigan

-His father is a preacher

Alan Rickman

-Birth name: Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman

-DOB: 2/21/1946

-Where: London, England

-DOD: 1/14/2016

-Where: London, England

-He was J.K. Rowling's initial choice to play the role of Professor Severus Snape. In fact, she envisioned him while writing this character. And he got the role in Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone only because Tim Roth, who was originally considered for the role, backed out to star in 2001's Planet of the Apes

Steve Irwin

-Birth name: Stephen Robert Irwin

-DOB: 2/22/1962

-Where: Upper Ferntree Gully, Australia

-DOD: 9/4/2006

-Where: Batt Reef, Australia

-He was known for his strong love of animals

George Harrison

-DOB: 2/25/1943

-Where: Liverpool, England

-DOD: 11/29/2001

-Where: Los Angeles, California

-The place of death on his death certificate was falsified to keep his home from becoming a Beatles shrine

Henry Rollins

-Birth name: Henry Lawrence Garfield

-DOB: 2/13/1961

-Where: Washington, D.C.

-He started working out at the Bullis School in tenth grade at the suggestion of a Vietnam vet who was also a history teacher

Rickey Medlocke

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-During his first run with Lynyrd Skynyrd, from 1971-1972, he played drums

Billie Joe Armstrong

-DOB: 2/17/1972

-Where: Oakland, California

-Wrote "Wake Me Up When September Ends" about losing his father

Johnny Van Zandt

-Birth name: John Roy Van Zant

-DOB: 2/27/1960

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-His older brothers are former Lynyrd Skynyrd vocalist and founding member Ronnie Van Zant and .38 Special vocalist Donnie Van Zant

February Birthdays

Since it's February, time to say Happy Birthday

Vince Neil

-Birth name: Vincent Neil Wharton

-DOB: 2/8/1961

-Where: Los Angeles, California

-He's a strong supporter of childhood cancer research because his daughter Skylar died of stomach cancer

Tony Iommi

-Birth name: Anthony Frank Iommi

-DOB: 2/14/1948

-Where: Aston, Birmingham, England

-After a brief stint in Jethro Tull, he decided Black Sabbath should be more disciplined like them. So he took on the task of making sure Black Sabbath did things on time and such

Paul Wight

-Birth name: Paul Randall Wight Jr.

-DOB: 2/8/1972

-Where: Aiken, South Carolina

-Initially, when he joined WCW, he was promoted as the long lost son of Andre the Giant

Rod Smallwood

-Birth name: Roderick Charles Smallwood

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England

-He managed a band called Cockney Rebel, then Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel before giving up music management all together and sitting for exams to become a lawyer. When someone handed him a cassette of a fledgling band called Iron Maiden, he strongly reconsidered music management

Adrian Smith

-Birth name: Adrian Frederick Smith

-DOB: 2/27/1957

-Where: Hackney, London, England

-He quit the band at one point to form a solo career, but returned in 2000 with former vocalist Bruce Dickinson

Matt Groening

-Birth name: Matthew Abram Groening

-DOB: 2/15/1954

-Where: Portland, Oregon

-Matt considers himself to be most like Comic Book Guy, a sarcastic, slightly heavyset sarcastic owner of a comic book shop called the Android's Dungeon on The Simpsons

Alice Cooper

-Birth name: Vincent Damon Furnier

-DOB: 2/4/1948

-Where: Detroit, Michigan

-He is considered the pioneer of wild or macabre items on stage in rock concerts

Alan Rickman

-Birth name: Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman

-DOB: 2/21/1946

-Where: Hammersmith, London, England

-DOD: 1/14/2016

-Where: London, England (pancreatic cancer)

-He and Rima Horton were in a relationship since 1965, but married in 2012 in a private ceremony in New York

Steve Irwin

-Birth name: Stephen Robert Irwin

-DOB: 2/22/1962

-Where: Essendon, Victoria, Australia

-DOD: 9/4/2006

-Where: Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia

-In January 2004, he was almost charged with child endangerment when he was doing a crocodile demonstration at the Queensland Zoo while holding his son Robert and feeding a 13 foot crocodile. Both Terri and Steve made it well known that their children were going to be "croc savvy" before long

George Harrison

-DOB: 2/25/1943

-Where: Liverpool, England

-DOD: 11/29/2001

-Where: Los Angeles, California

-The address listed on his death certificate was falsified so his place of death wouldn't become a Beatles shrine by fans

Rachel Bolan

-Birth name: James Richard Southworth

-DOB: 2/9/1994

-Where: Toms River, New Jersey

-He was a member of various punk bands before joining Skid Row

Henry Rollins

-Birth name: Henry Lawrence Garfield

-DOB: 2/131/1961

-Where: Washington, D.C.

-He is strongly against most if not all electronic-based music such as Moby and Nine Inch Nails

Rickey Medlocke

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-He has Lakota Sioux and Cherokee Indian heritage and as a result, was inducted into the Native American Music Hall of Fame in 2008

Billie Joe Armstrong

-DOB: 2/17/1972

-Where: Oakland, California

-Green Day's most popular song, "Wake Me Up When September Ends", which usually ends up as a mean meme on the internet, was written as a tribute to Billie's father, who died on Sept. 10, 1982 of esophageal cancer

Johnny Van Zandt

-Birth name: John Roy Van Zandt

-DOB: 2/27/1959

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-He's been the front man for Lynyrd Skynyrd since 1987

February Birthdays

Since it's February, time to say Happy Birthday!

Rod Smallwood

-Birth name: Roderick Charles Smallwood

-DOB: 2/17/1956

-Where: Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England

-He ran such a tight management with Iron Maiden that the band soon dubbed him Rod Smallwallet because he wouldn't let the band spend ANY money unless it was put back towards pushing the band forward

Tony Iommi

-Birth name: Anthony Frank Iommi

-DOB: 2/19/1948

-Where: Aston, Birmingham, England

-He wrote "Paranoid" in under three minutes because their producer said they needed something to fill the last bit of time on their 1970 album Paranoid

Duff McKagan

-Birth name: Michael Andrew McKagan

-DOB: 2/5/1964

-Where: Seattle, Washington

-He invested in Amazon and Starbucks before they got big because they were local, Seattle-based companies

Adrian Smith

-Birth name: Adrian Frederick Smith

-DOB: 2/27/1957

-Where: Hackey, London, England

-Formed a band called Urchin prior to joining Iron Maiden. His good friend, current Maiden guitarist Dave Murray, played in the band for a bit

Andy Taylor

-DOB: 2/11/1956

-Where: Newcastle, England

-He and fellow Trinity student Rod Smallwood founded Sanctuary Records in 1979

Alice Cooper

-Birth name: Vincent Damon Furnier

-DOB: 2/4/1948

-Where: Detroit, Michigan

-His father was a preacher

Alan Rickman

-Birth name: Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman

-DOB: 2/21/1946

-Where: London, England

-DOD: 1/14/2016

-Where: London, England (pancreatic cancer)

-He was not the original choice to play Professor Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films. The original choice was Tim Roth, who had chosen to star in the 2001 film Planet of the Apes.

Steve Irwin

-Birth name: Stephen Robert Irwin

-DOB: 2/22/1962

-Where: Essendon, Victoria, Australia

-DOD: 9/4/2006

-Where: Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia (sting ray attack)

-He was known for his extraordinary love of animals and wildlife

Matt Groening

-Birth name: Matthew Abram Groening

-DOB: 2/15/1954

-Where: Portland, Oregon

-Best known as the creator of animated series The Simpsons

George Harrison

-DOB: 2/25/1943

-Where: Liverpool, England

-DOD: 11/29/2001

-Where: Los Angeles, California (throat cancer)

-He got the reputation of "the quiet one" because when The Beatles went to America, he was sick and had laryngitis and couldn't talk

Vince Neil

-Birth name: Vince Neil Wharton

-DOB: 2/8/1961

-Where: Los Angeles, California

-He and Hanoi Rocks drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley were in a car crash in 1984. Neil was going to the liquor store and was driving drunk when they got into a crash. The wreck killed Razzle

Rachel Bolan

-Birth name: James Richard Southworth

-DOB: 1/9/1966

-Where: Point Pleasant, New Jersey

-Two of his favorite bands are The Ramones and The Sex Pistols

Henry Rollins

-Birth name: Henry Lawrence Garfield

-DOB: 2/13/1961

-Where: Washington, D.C.

-His best friend, Joe Cole, was murdered during a robbery attempt. His murder remains unsolved to this day

Ricky Medlocke

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-He was the former vocalist/guitarist for fellow Southern rockers Blackfoot

Billie Joe Armstrong

-DOB: 2/17/1972

-Where: Piedmont, California

-The song "Wake Me Up When September Ends" is about the death of his father and how he manages to deal with the grief

Johnny Van Zandt

-Birth name: John Roy Van Zandt

-DOB: 2/27/1960

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-His brother Ronnie was the former frontman Lynyrd Skynyrd and his other brother Donnie is the current front man for .38 Special

Paul Wight aka "Big Show"

-Birth name: Paul Randall Wight Jr.

-DOB: 2/8/1972

-Where: Aiken, South Carolina

-He shares a birthday with Jim Neidhart (The Hart Foundation) and "Classie" Freddie Blassie