John Millington Synge

Edmund John Millington Synge was an Irish playwright, poet, writer, collector of folklore, and a key figure in the Irish Literary Revival. His best-known play The Playboy of the Western World was poorly received, due to its bleak ending, depiction of Irish peasants, and idealisation of parricide, leading to hostile audience reactions and riots in Dublin during its opening run at the Abbey Theatre, which he had co-founded with W. B. Yeats and Lady Gregory. His other major works include In the Shadow of the Glen (1903), Riders to the Sea (1904), The Well of the Saints (1905), and The Tinker's Wedding (1909).

16 April 1871

Born on the same birth day (16 April): Allan Segal • Anestis Agritis • Caleb B. Smith • Esbjörn Svensson • Gordon Wilson (Scottish politician) • Guy Burgess • John Norton (athlete) • Julian Carroll • Jōtarō Watanabe • Kingsley Amis • Nate Diaz • Paul Waner • R. Carlos Nakai • Ralph Slatyer • Teddy Blass • Thomas Stonor, 7th Baron Camoys • Tony McQuay • Vickie Guerrero

Born in the same month (April 1871): Clarence Hudson White • Epifanio de los Santos • F. Melius Christiansen • Gyula Kellner • Ioannis Metaxas • Lorne Currie • Stanisław Grabski • Sydney Chapman (economist)