Celebrity Birthdays December 31st

Donna Summer The Queen of Disco, Donna Summer dominated the dance scene in the 1970s with three consecutive chart-topping double albums. The 62-year-old has won five Grammys and sold over 130 million records.

Bebe Neuwirth

Bebe Neuwirth is widely recognized for her work as Dr. Lilith Sternin, the wife/ex-wife of Dr. Frasier Crane on the NBC sitcom Cheers and its spinoff Frasier. But the 52-year-old performer also boasts impressive credits in stage work: She originated the role of Velma Kelly in the 1996 Broadway revival of Chicago, and in 2010 starred as Morticia Addams in the Broadway Addams Family musical production.

Anthony Hopkins

Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins holds a formidable place in cinematic history. Hailed for his performances as the serial killer Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and its accompanying prequel and sequel, the Welshman first won several awards for his turn in the 1975 Broadway debut of Equus, and he's electrified audiences in a slew of acclaimed Hollywood productions. Age 72 today, he will star as Odin in the upcoming superhero film Thor.

Ben Kingsley

British actor Sir Ben Kingsley has racked up a long list of prestigious film roles, including his portrayal of Mohandas Gandhi in Richard Attenboroughs 1982 biopic Gandhi, which earned him an Academy Award and spurred him towards international superstardom. He went on to play a wide range of historical characters, including Dmitri Shostakovich in Testimony (1987), and mobster Meyer Lansky in Bugsy (1991). Today is his 67th birthday.

Val Kilmer

With his reputation as a difficult leading man compensated by his undeniably impressive body of work, Val Kilmer achieved prominence in the mid-1990s when he starred as Jim Morrison in The Doors (1991), Doc Holliday in Tombstone (1993), and Batman in Batman Forever (1995). The 51-year-old is set to star in the new Francis Ford Coppola film Twixt Now and Sunrise.