Hollywood in 1981 was a transitional year between the gritty 70s auteur cinema and the high-concept blockbusters of the 80s. It gave us:
On May 13, 1981, Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Ağca shot Pope John Paul II twice in St. Peter’s Square. The Pope was rushed to the Gemelli Hospital, losing nearly three-quarters of his blood. He survived. Later, he visited Ağca in prison and forgave him. This event profoundly shaped the Pope’s later papacy, deepening his Marian devotion (he credited Our Lady of Fatima for saving him) and his resolve against communism. The Birth 1981
| # | Name | DOB | Discipline | Notable Work | |---|------|-----|------------|--------------| | 1 | (born 1960 – skip ) | | 2 | J.K. Rowling (born 1965 – skip ) | | 3 | Megan Abramson (born 1981) | Author | “The Starlight Chronicles” (young‑adult series). | | 4 | Lena Dunham (born 1986 – skip ) | | 5 | Zadie Smith (born 1975 – skip ) | | 6 | Samantha Irby (born 1981) | Writer & Blogger | “Wow, No Thank You” (memoir). | | 7 | Rupi Kaur (born 1992 – skip ) | | 8 | Khaled Hosseini (born 1965 – skip ) | | 9 | Andrew Hernandez (born 1981) | Visual Artist | Street‑art installations in NYC. | |10 | Catherine Miller (born 1979 – skip ) | Hollywood in 1981 was a transitional year between