What do Conrad Hilton, Helena Rubinstein, Louis Chevrolet, Clara Barton, and Humphrey Bogart have in common? Well, they have many shared attributes, some more obvious than others. To begin with, they were all wealthy and successful. Furthermore, they all made unprecedented contributions to their particular field. They were all either American by birth or are best remembered for their connection with America. They were all born in the 19th century. However, they have something slightly less obvious in common. More specifically, and perhaps more interestingly, they all had the fortune, or misfortune, of being born on Christmas Day.
A Birthday at Christmas: Facts and Figures
What must it be like to celebrate a birthday on Christmas Day? A birthdate of December 25th could be seen either as a blessing, depending on which way the person chose to look at it. On the one hand, a Christmas birthday could signal disappointment. A party would be unlikely to be held on the actual date, for too many potential guests would be busy celebrating Christmas with family. It might feel strange to mark the same milestone, year after year, at a time when everyone else in the world is thinking about something completely unrelated. To some children, the phenomenon of a Christmas-Birthday may appear to split two special occasions in half. One celebration may begin overshadowing the other. It may be considered that these two events might better have been enjoyed separately, or even give friends and family an excuse to buy one gift instead of two.
On the other hand, a Christmas-Birthday could mean a double celebration, which for some people may result in twice the presents, twice the festivity, and therefore twice the pleasure and excitement. And, for Christians around the world, who better to share a birthday with than Jesus Christ himself?
Although it may appear that there is just as much chance of being born on Christmas Day as any other day of the year, this is actually not the case. Christmas Day is one of the least common birthdates amongst the population of many countries, including the UK and the US. This is mainly due to the fact that hardly any c-section births, which account for a large percentage of births in the UK and America, are scheduled to take place on Christmas Day. Generally speaking, labor is not often induced by doctors on Christmas Day, when hospitals are short-staffed and only emergency procedures are taking place. So, if you were born on Christmas Day, you can count yourself amongst a few special people who were born on the least popular day of the year. Statistically speaking, you are in the minority.
Other, more uncommon days on which an American citizen could be born include Boxing Day (December 26), New Year’s Day (January 1), Thanksgiving Day (on whichever date it may have fallen on in the relevant year), and Independence Day (July 4). It seems that, for the most part, only births that occur completely naturally are recorded on these special occasions.
However, if you are one of the many who celebrate their birthday on Christmas Day, you are in good company.
1. Conrad Hilton (December 25, 1887)
On Christmas Day, 1887, Conrad Nicholson Hilton was born in San Antonio, New Mexico. His parents were named Augustus Halvorsen Hilton and Mary Genevieve Laufersweiler. Little did they know that their son would one day become an incredibly successful and wealthy individual through his work as a great hotelier.
Over 130 years after his birth, Conrad Hilton is still recognized as a household name. He is best remembered as the man who established the world’s first international hotel chain. Each of the hotels that form this chain is known simply as The Hilton, and combined, they are worth around 60 billion dollars in present-day currency. In the way of entrepreneurship, Hilton’s widespread and enduring success cannot be disputed. Over 7,000 properties bear his name, and this equates to just over one million hotel rooms spread across 118 countries and territories.
However, it is not just hotels that Hilton was concerned with, for he excelled in many different areas of life. Hilton is also remembered for his capitalization on the oil boom, his extensive charity and philanthropy, the founding of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, and even for being a Member of the New Mexico House of Representatives. Finally, last but not least, Conrad Hilton is renowned for being the second of Zsa Zsa Gabor’s nine husbands, and the great-grandfather of the socialite and heiress, Paris Hilton.
Conrad Hilton died on January 3, 1979, just nine days after his 91st birthday. He was interred at Calvary Hill, a Catholic cemetery in Dallas in Texas. Throughout his life, his Catholic faith had influenced his behavior and actions, particularly with regard to the generous sharing of his large fortune.
2. Humphrey Bogart (December 25, 1899)
Casablanca. The Big Sleep. To Have and Have Not. Angels With Dirty Faces. The Maltese Falcon. These are just a handful of the most famous films featuring the American cultural icon, Humphrey Bogart. Bogart is associated with Christmas not just because he was born on Christmas Day, but also because his films, and Casablanca in particular, have over the years become staples for Christmas and New Year viewing.
Humphrey Bogart famously came into the world during the festive season. But did you know that the suspected date of his birth was not agreed upon by everyone? Strangely, the exact date was once a subject of great dispute. Whether they be film fanatics or cultural historians, there are many people who once claimed that Bogart was not born on Christmas Day or anywhere near Christmas at all.
The alternative date offered as his birthday is January 23, which was selected many years earlier by the publicity department of Warner Bros. They claimed that he was born not in December of 1899 but in January of 1900. The reason for this seemingly random alteration was “to foster the view that a man born on Christmas Day couldn’t be as villainous as he appeared to be on screen.” Apparently, Christmas Day was not considered an appropriate date for an actor such as Bogart to have been born on. To this day, the amended albeit incorrect date appears in some authoritative public sources.
Despite these discrepancies, it can be confirmed that Humphrey Bogart is truly eligible to be included in this list. The fact that he was born on Christmas Day is confirmed by a variety of official documents, including his birth records, federal census reports, and his marriage license.
And who should know the date of his birthday better than his spouse? His fourth and final wife, Lauren Bacall, shared with the public a few details of their holiday festivities, explicitly explaining that he was, in fact, born on Christmas Day. In her autobiography, she wrote that Humphrey Bogart always celebrated his birthday on December 25, and even revealed that he joked about being “cheated out of a present” each year.
Humphrey Bogart died on January 14, 1957, just over three weeks after his 57th birthday. He left behind a legacy of over 70 films. The Encyclopaedia Britannica describes him as “a cult hero of American cinema,” and he was named the greatest male star of classic American cinema by the American Film Institute in 1999. Famously, the screenwriter and novelist Raymond Chandler said of Bogart, “all he has to do to dominate a scene is to enter it.”
3. Helena Rubenstein (December 25, 1872)
Helena Rubinstein was born on Christmas Day in the year 1872. Her parents were Polish Jews named Naftoli Hertz Rubinstein and Augusta Shaindel Silberfeld. Helena was the eldest of the eight Rubinstein sisters. Her original home was Krakow in Poland, but she relocated to the United States during the outbreak of World War I in Europe, later gained American citizenship, and is now described as being Polish-American.
Helena Rubenstein is best remembered for being a cosmetician and businesswoman. She founded her own company, named Helena Rubinstein Inc., which became a leading manufacturer and seller of cosmetics. Her success made her one of the richest women in the world during her era.
The Encyclopaedia Britannica tells us that through her business, Rubinstein acquired a personal fortune of around 100 million dollars, and that she was “prominent in international society and maintained homes in cities around the world.” Just like Conrad Hilton, Helena Rubinstein is remembered for her philanthropic tendencies. She was most notably a patron of the arts and gave charitable contributions to museums, colleges, art institutions, and even to individual women and children in need.
On the other hand, she was also known for her blunt quotes and savvy business dealings and sales techniques. She notably declared that “there are no ugly women, only lazy ones.” The implication within this quote is that all women, even those considered conventionally unattractive, could appear quite beautiful with the help of Helena’s products, if only they would purchase and apply them.
Ruth Brandon, the British journalist and historian, wrote of Helena Rubinstein’s attitude toward her profession and her contribution to the world of beauty and cosmetics. Ruth claimed that Helena “pioneered the use of pseudo-science in marketing, donning a lab coat in many advertisements, despite the fact that her only training had been a two-month tour of European skin-care facilities.” Brandon also wrote that “she knew how to manipulate consumers’ status anxiety, as well: if a product faltered initially, she would hike the price to raise the perceived value.”
Helena Rubinstein died on April 1, 1965. She was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in the borough of Queens in New York City. Nearly 20 years after her death, Helena’s company was acquired by L’Oreal. The takeover was surrounded by scandal and controversy due to the fact that its founder, Eugene Schueller, had become famous for his support of ex-Nazis in the aftermath of World War II.
4. Clara Barton (December 25, 1821)
Of all of the figures included in this list, it was Clara Barton who was born the earliest. She entered the world on Christmas Day in 1821, and her first home was a small farming community in North Oxford in Massachusetts. Her parents were Captain Stephen Barton and his wife, Sarah Stone. They gave their daughter the name Clarissa, after the title character of Samuel Richardson’s most famous novel. Clarissa Harlowe Barton later became better known as Clara Barton, and is now best remembered for being the founder of the American Red Cross.
It was on May 21, 1881, that Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross. She had been influenced by her time spent nursing soldiers throughout the American Civil War, for which she very deservedly acquired the nickname “the angel of the battlefield.” This period undoubtedly defined her life, shaped the bold and unceasingly caring woman she would become, and motivated her to continue and further her work. She served as president of the Red Cross for 23 years and did not retire until 1904.
Of her charity, Clara Barton notably wrote that “The Red Cross is a part of us—it has come to stay—and like the sturdy oak, its spreading branches shall yet encompass and shelter the relief of the nation.” She described her motivation with the stirring words, “you must never think of anything except the need, and how to meet it.”
Over 100 years after the death of its founder, the American Red Cross continues to operate successfully all over the world. The charity responds to approximately 70,000 disasters per year, and provides relief to victims of fires, hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes. They also continue to provide support for veterans and their families, which amounts to around 150,000 people annually.
5. Louis Chevrolet (December 25, 1878)
“Together, Let’s Drive.” “Find New Roads.” “The Great American Value.” “We’ll Be There.” “America’s Best Seller,” “America’s Best Buy.” “Eye It, Try It, Buy It.” Do any of these statements sound familiar to you? If so, you have almost certainly, at some point during your life, viewed an advertisement for a car manufactured by Chevrolet. All these catchy and memorable jingles have been used as the manufacturer’s official advertising slogan.
If you have ever had the pleasure of driving a Chevrolet, as millions of people around the world have, there is one man you have to thank. His name was Louis Chevrolet, and he was a racing driver, mechanic, and entrepreneur, now best remembered for co-founding the Chevrolet Motor Company. He was born in northwestern Switzerland on Christmas Day of 1878. He became a naturalized American citizen in 1915 and therefore meets all the criteria for an appearance on this list.
Together with his brother, Arthur Chevrolet, and businessman William Durant, Louis Chevrolet founded the Chevrolet Motor Company on November 3, 1911. Initially, their main competition came from Henry Ford, but the Chevrolet International overtook the Model T Ford as the best-selling car in the United States in 1929.
Even 100 years after its founding, in 2011, surveys showed that a Chevrolet car was most likely to be purchased in the United States, followed by Brazil, China, Russia, and Mexico. The headquarters of the Chevrolet Motor Company remains in Detroit, Michigan, its original home.
Louis Chevrolet suffered a heart attack and died on June 6, 1941. Although he died in Detroit, he was buried in the Holy Cross and Saint Joseph Cemetery in Indianapolis in Indiana.
Five Christmas Day Icons
In this article, we have very briefly reviewed the lives and works of five 19th-century Americans who were born on Christmas Day. They were Conrad Hilton (1887-1979), Humphrey Bogart (1899-1957), Helena Rubinstein (1872-1965), Clara Barton (1821-1912), and Louis Chevrolet (1878-1941).
However, it is important to remember that many other notable figures could just as easily have been included in this list. Just a handful of relevant names include the agriculturalist Otto Frederick Hunziker (1873-1959), the film producer Joseph M. Schenck (1878-1961), the model and actress Evelyn Nesbit (1884-1967), and the co-founder of Reader’s Digest, Lila Bell Wallace (1889-1984)
