Celebrities born on April 29

Constantin "Tino" Rossi (29 April 1907 – 26 September 1983) was a French singer and film actor of Corsican origin. Born in Ajaccio, Corsica, Rossi was gifted with a voice well suited for opera. He became a tenor in the French cabaret style. Later, he appeared in various movies. During his career it is reported he recorded over 2000 songs and he appeared in more than 25 films, the most notable of which was the 1954 production, Si Versailles m'était conté... directed by Sacha Guitry. His romantic ballads had especially women swooning and his art songs by Jules Massenet (1842–1912), Reynaldo Hahn (1875–1947), and other composers, sold out theaters wherever he performed. Among his most famous hits, Petit Papa Noel sold over 30 million copies worldwide. Over the course of his 50-year singing career, Tino Rossi recorded over 2000 songs and sold over 200 million albums making him one of the best selling (and mostly forgotten) artists of all time. As a young man, Rossi played guitar and sang in many places of his hometown of Ajaccio, but later he went to perform in Marseille and at resort clubs along the French Riviera. In the early 1930s he went to Paris and within a few years achieved enormous success, joining a Columbia Records roster that included the biggest stars of that time such as Lucienne Boyer, Damia, Pills et Tabet, Mireille, and Jean Sablon. Rossi's success was greatly aided by songwriter Vincent Scotto (1876–1952), who wrote his first hits and collaborated with him for many years, composing and arranging many of Rossi's songs. Prior to World War II, Rossi was a major box office attraction in the French-speaking world, and expanded his audience in 1938 to the U.S. and Canada during a first visit there. Rossi began his film career with a role in Les Nuits Moscovites (1934); his first real success came with Marinella (1936). During the Occupation of France by Nazi Germany Rossi's film career reached its peak, notably with Fièvres (1942), Le Soleil a toujours raison (1943), Mon amour est près de toi (1943) and L'Île d'amour (1944). Like many celebrities, Tino Rossi was arrested on 7 October 1944 by several police officers in search of information on his close Corsican friend, Etienne Leandri, suspected of active collaborationism. Following three months' detention in the prison of Fresnes, near Paris, during which he stubbornly refused the assistance of a lawyer, he was freed from further detention by a judge, who deemed the charge leveled against him void of substance. Tino Rossi who, in October 1943, had loaned his personal car to a resistance network to transport weapons and enable several escapes (including that of a general), accepted—an extremely rare action at the time—exceptional official apologies. In 1946 he recorded his song Petit Papa Noël for a movie. The song remained classic for the family and sold several million copies after being released on CD in 1992. He is the recipient of the prestigious musical award Grand Prix du Disque. Rossi died of pancreatic cancer in 1983 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. His body was transported to Ajaccio for burial in the family grave. His wife died in 2003 aged 79. ... Source: Article "Tino Rossi" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Chantal Jolis (29 April 1947, in Grenoble, France – 27 February 2012, in Îles-de-la-Madeleine) was a radio host in Québec, Canada. She was best known for her daily broadcasts Bouchée double, L'Oreille musclée and Bachibouzouk presented on Première chaîne of Radio Canada, and for her dynamic, laid-back and accessible style. Chantal Jolis was born in Grenoble, France. Her mother was of Italian origin and her father had Spanish lineage. She became a host on France Inter Paris public radio but felt she was only "tolerated" by her superiors. While taking part in a French-language public-radio exchange program in 1980, Jolis visited Québec for two weeks at the age of 33. She felt very welcome in Montréal, where her open-minded and lively tone was appreciated. Radio-Canada offered her a contract and she made Canada her new home. Upon her arrival in 1980 in Québec, Jolis exhibited great passions: reading, cinema, music, and a love of people, of life, and humour, creating a soothing atmosphere on her programmes. Journalist Nathalie Petrowski called her "a breath of fresh air for our public radio [...] with spontaneity light years away from the psycho-rigidity Radio-Canada of the time." First in the afternoon, co-hosting Bouchées doubles with Jean-François Doré, and solo with C'est du Jolis. Then, in L'oreille musclée, broadcast weekdays from 1983 to 1986 at the end of the morning, she reinvented the morning box and set the way for those who succeeded her. In 1986 Guy Fournier created a late-night talk show for Jolis, Jolis à croquer, on Télévision Quatre-Saisons. The series did not have the expected success with an indifferent television audience that was rebuffed by Jolis' "French accent of France", her culture and style. Jolis attempted to return to radio but found Radio-Canada hesitant, unused to private sector raiding at that time. After several years, Jolis was employed to temporarily fill-in for the programmes of others. Disappointed, Jolis agreed in 1991 to co-host a noon radio programme at CKAC with Jean Cournoyer, but was released after a year. When she gained a program at Radio-Canada, it was "reduced in scope, away from prime time", with C'est du Jolis which ran from December 1999 through 2000. On Société Radio-Canada (SRC, French-language CBC television), Jolis conducted numerous sessions of film criticism with René Homier-Roy on the show À première vue, 1982–1989. She also held several memorable interviews, including with Léo Ferré, Serge Gainsbourg and (a few days before his death in the summer of 1988) Félix Leclerc. Starting in the summer of 2002, Jolis hosted and produced Les îles jolies from her home in the Magdalen Islands. This was followed by Un petit air de samedi soir (A little air on Saturday night), Bachibouzouk and Quand le chat n'est pas là (When the cat is away). She also created Espace Musique on the world music web-radio channel of Radio-Canada. At the end of 2007, at the age of 60, Jolis was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. In 2009 the symptoms of this disease forced her retirement from Espace Musique though she hoped for a cure or treatment that could allow her to return to the microphone. ... Source: Article "Chantal Jolis" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Born in Milan, Italy and hailing from the Beltrami House of Fashion that was launched in the early 1900's, Mara's family began as tailors and shoemakers and evolved into clothing designers and manufacturers in the early 1920's. To day the House of Beltrami is still active in Italy. In 2004, Mara's passion for clothes had her start the Golden Needle Awards to recognize and award emerging designers. Moving from Italy to France, From France to Australia where she graduated in Architecture and Studied Acting at "Karnak Playhouse" in Mossman, Queensland, Australia with Diane Cilento and dance with Roger Hazel, at the American Dance and Musical Theater Academy in Brisbane. Mara Appeared in many live shows and television productions during her stay in Australia. Moving to Canada to join a new Dance Group and being sidetracked into radio with her own Radio Show, she took a position with MTV (Multicultural Television) in Toronto, and during her stay in Canada, after seeing the Liberace show; she became friends with his protégée Marco Valenti who later became her brother in law. For two years she booked Marco Valenti on several national tours and got the title as "Road Manager" with the Liberace Show. She is an accomplished Painter having won several European Competitions and she had the privileged to meet Pablo Picasso with her mentor Huala Dio whom she became good friends after she was one of the judges at the Pro Loco Painting Competition. Mara and her husband are involved in producing CD's for Jazz/Blues Artist Barbara Morrison and recently promoted the "LA Blues Festival" with great success and with the great international recording star Asha Puthli. She is busy with her Internet TV show called "Boutique Discovery" and the hit TV series "Swedish Hollywood Wives" and acting roles in several major movie productions.

China Forbes (born April 29, 1970) is an American singer and songwriter who has been the lead singer of the band Pink Martini since 1995. In 2022 she was the Ella Fitzgerald award winner at the Montreal International Jazz Festival. The daughter of Peggy (née Woodford) and Donald Cameron Forbes, China Forbes was born and raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her father was of French and Scottish descent, and her mother is African-American. She attended Phillips Exeter Academy ('88), then studied visual arts at Harvard University, where she met Thomas Lauderdale, a classically trained pianist. They became friends and met regularly to play music together. At Harvard, she won the Jonathan Levy Prize for acting. After graduating in 1992, Forbes worked as an actress for several years, performing Off-Broadway in New York City. She then became a musician, forming a band and recording a solo album. She sang the song "Ordinary Girl" for the television series Clueless and "Que Sera Sera" over the credits for the movie In the Cut. While living in Portland, Oregon, Lauderdale asked her to sing with Pink Martini, a band he had assembled to play at political fundraisers. After three years commuting from New York, she moved to Portland in 1998 to work full-time with the band. Forbes and Lauderdale co-wrote the band's hit "Sympathique (Je ne Veux Pas Travailler)" among many other band originals. Apart from her work with Pink Martini, she has released solo albums, including Love Handle (November 1995) and '78 (Heinz 2008) which includes her song "Hey Eugene" in its original version. She is featured on Michael Feinstein's album The Sinatra Project, singing a duet of "How Long Will It Last?". She recorded two songs in French with Georges Moustaki for his album Solitaire. She is a cousin of former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and indie-rock musician Ed Droste of Grizzly Bear. Her sister is Maya Forbes, a screenwriter and director. Source: Article "China Forbes" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Leonard "Lenny" Cooke is an American former professional basketball player. He is known primarily for having been ranked higher than LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony in 2001. During his junior year of high school he averaged 25 points, 10 rebounds, two steals, and two blocks per game.

Jan Růžička is a costume and stage designer. He works in the fields of theatre, film and animation.

Henry (Hank) J. Deutschendorf was born in America on April 29, 1988. He and his twin brother William were nephews of folk singer John Denver, and became actors. He is mostly remembered for his role of baby Oscar in Ghostbusters II (1989). Tragically, he struggled with mental illness. Although a loved boyfriend, son, and brother, he committed suicide on June 14, 2017 in Escondido, California at age 29.