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The following is a sampling of errors
contained in various editions of
Who's Who in America, or Who's Who of American Women.
Both of these reference books are published
by Marquis Who's Who.
Additional information on each error
correction can be found by clicking on
the link at the beginning and/or end
of each entry below.
Eddie Albert (actor) -
Some editions mistakenly report he was born in "1908."
Correction: Because he was born out of wedlock,
his mother altered his birth certificate
to read "1908." His son, Edward Albert (also
an actor), confirmed this, and the fact that
Eddie Albert was actually born in 1906 in
Rock Island, Illinois. Consult Eddie Albert's profile for more information.
Jack Benny (comedian) - Some editions mistakenly claim
he was born in "Waukegan, Ill."
Correction: He was born February 14th, 1894,
at 4:04 a.m., at Mercy Hospital, in Chicago, Illinois.
Visit our profile of Jack Benny for additional
information.
Barbara Bush (Former First Lady) -
Some editions erroneously state she was born in "Rye, N.Y."
Correction: She was born at Booth Memorial Hospital,
in New York City, New York, not Rye, New York,
where she was raised. Mrs. Bush specifically addresses
this issue in her autobiography and confirms her
New York City birth. Additional biographical data can
be found in our profile of Barbara Bush.
W.C. Fields (comedian) - Some editions erroneously
report "Feb. 10, 1879" as his date of birth.
Correction: He was born January 29th,
1880, at Arlington House on the corner of Main
and Mill Streets, Darby, near Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. For many years, most reference books
erroneously reported his date of birth. Most reference
works have now corrected their information. The
above birth date has been verified by members of
his family on several occasions, and confirmed
by various government records. Consult W.C. Fields'
profile for more information.
Senator Barry Goldwater (U.S. Senator) -
Some editions erroneously report "Jan. 1" as
his date of birth.
Correction: This is one error that is
perfectly understandable. Not only did nearly
every reference source on the planet report the
same erroneous date of birth, but Barry Goldwater
himself reported January 1st as his date
of birth in his various autobiographies and other
books because he truly believed that it was his
actual date of birth. Late in life, Senator Goldwater
learned he was actually born at 3 a.m., on January 2nd,
1909. Additional biographical data can be found
in our profile of Senator Goldwater.
Richard Harris (actor/singer) -
Some editions mistakenly claim he was born in "1933."
Correction: He was born October 1st, 1930, at
11:20 a.m. GDT (10:20 GMT), in Limerick, Ireland.
This is the date and time of birth Richard himself
reported as his precise time of birth, and has
subsequently been verified by many researchers.
For additional biographical data, visit our profile
of Richard Harris.
Katharine Hepburn (actress) - Some editions
erroneously report "Nov. 8, 1909," as her date of birth.
Correction: Ms. Hepburn was born May 12th, 1907,
at 5:47 p.m., at 22 Hudson Street, in Hartford,
Connecticut. Visit our biography of Katharine Hepburn
for additional in-depth information.
Al Jolson - (actor/singer) -
Some early editions of Who's Who in America erroneously
report Jolson was born in "Washington, D.C."
Correction: Jolson was born in Serednik (now Seredzius), Lithuania,
and later raised in Washington, D.C.
For additional in-depth biographical data, visit our
biography of Al Jolson.
Dorothy Lamour (actress/singer) -
Some editions erroneously state her last name at
birth was "Kaumeyer."
Correction: Dorothy Lamour was actually born
Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton. Additional
biographical data can be found in our profile
of Dorothy Lamour.
Ethel Merman (actress/singer) -
Some editions erroneously report "1909" as her
year of birth.
Correction: She was actually born January 16th, 1908,
at 359 4th Avenue, in Astoria, Queens, New York.
For additional in-depth biographical data, visit our
biography of Ethel Merman.
Lew Wasserman (Motion Picture Executive/Movie Mogul) -
Some editions erroneously report "Mar. 15, 1913" as
his date of birth.
Correction: Lew Wasserman (Louis Robert Wasserman)
was actually born March 22, 1913, at 6:42 a.m., on Woodland
Avenue, in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A. The majority of reference
books and most of his obituaries, erroneously report "March 15,
1913" as his date of birth. This is one instance where sloppy
data entry, or poor research is not to blame. Lew Wasserman
himself reported the 15th as his birthday, but this
simply is not true. During his high school days, Wasserman
puzzled classmates by changing the spelling of his first
name from Louis to Lewis, and changed his date of birth from
the actual date of March 22nd, to the fabricated date of
"March 15" which he continued to give for the rest of his
life. Some of his classmates have speculated that the 15th
carried more historical mystique for him. Visit our profile
of Lew Wasserman for additional information.
It is not our intent to denigrate this fine
publication, but merely to point out the above
inaccuracies to prevent further dissemination of
the erroneous data.
Visit our list of errors contained in other reference books.
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