Roy Orbison

Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's music is mostly in the rock genre and his most successful periods were in the early 1960s and the late 1980s. His music was described by critics as operatic, earning him the nicknames "The Caruso of Rock" and "The Big O". Many of Orbison's songs conveyed vulnerability at a time when most male rock-and-roll performers projected machismo. He performed with minimal motion and in black clothes, matching his dyed black hair and dark sunglasses.

23 April 1936

Born on the same birth day (23 April): Annie Easley • Barry Hawkins • Carlton Sherwood • Daniela Hantuchová • Folke Jansson • Félix Vicq-d'Azyr • Gianandrea Noseda • James Buchanan • Léo Jaime • Michael Lynne • Michel Fokine • Song Kang • Tony Esposito • Tony Lupien • Yiannis Moralis

Born in the same month (April 1936): Arlene Martel • Brian Noble (bishop) • Charles Napier (actor) • Glen Campbell • James Dobson • Lisa Davis (actress) • Pierre Rosenberg • Ronnie Bucknum • Shaul Ladany • Vadim Kuzmin (physicist) • Vladimir Hütt • Zubin Mehta