1945 births

Rita Ori Filomena Merk-Pavone, better known as Rita Pavone (Italian: [ˈriːta paˈvoːne]; born August 23, 1945) is an Italian-Swiss singer and actress, who enjoyed success through the 1960s.

Franz-Josef Kemper (born 30 September 1945) is a German athlete, Olympian, and official. He achieved his greatest success as a middle-distance runner in the 1960s and 1970s.

Claude Raffy (born 2 January 1945) is a French former swimmer. He competed in the men's 100 metre backstroke at the 1960 Summer Olympics but was eliminated in the heats.

Anne Waldman (born April 2, 1945) is an American poet.
Since the 1960s, Waldman has been an active member of the Outriders Poetry Project experimental poetry community as a writer, performer, collaborator, professor, editor, scholar, and cultural/political activist. She has also been connected to the Beat Generation poets.

Robert Bruce Verga (born September 7, 1945) is an American retired professional basketball player, who played in the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1967 to 1974. He was a 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) guard and played college basketball at Duke University. He was a two-time ABA All-Star, in 1968 and 1970.
Verga owns the Duke men's basketball record for points per game (26.7) in a single season, which he achieved in 1967.Verga was drafted by the NBA's St. Louis Hawks in the third round of the 1967 NBA draft and by the Kentucky Colonels in the 1967 ABA Draft. Verga opted to play in the ABA and averaged 23.7 points per game in his rookie season for the Dallas Chaparrals. Verga averaged 18.8 points per game in his second ABA season, with the Houston Mavericks. Verga played the next two seasons with the Carolina Cougars, averaging 27.5 points per game during the 1969–70 season and 18.8 the following season. After averaging 17.5 points per game for the Pittsburgh Condors in the 1971–72 season Verga finished his career with the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers in the 1973–74 season.

Vladimir Peter Sabich Jr. (January 10, 1945 – March 21, 1976) was an American alpine ski racer, a member of the U.S. Ski Team on the World Cup circuit in the late 1960s. He competed at the 1968 Winter Olympics and was the pro ski racing champion in 1971 and 1972. Sabich was killed by gunshot under controversial circumstances involving Claudine Longet in 1976.

Julie Heldman (born December 8, 1945) is an American tennis player who won 22 singles titles. In 1968 and 1969, she was ranked No. 2 in the U.S. She was Canadian National 18 and Under Singles Champion at age 12, U.S. Champion in Girls’ 15 Singles and Girls’ 18 Singles, Italian Open Singles Champion, Canadian Singles and Doubles Champion, and U.S. Clay Court Doubles Champion. She won three medals at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, and three gold medals at the 1969 Maccabiah Games.In 2018, Heldman published the memoir Driven, A Daughter's Odyssey. The book offers insights into the history of women's tennis in the mid-20th century, including an insider's account of the birth of the tour. Heldman reveals her struggles with the trauma of her mother's emotional abuse and with bipolar disorder.

Ronald John Cerrudo (born February 4, 1945) is an American professional golfer who currently works as a club teaching professional and formerly played on the PGA Tour.
Cerrudo was born in Palo Alto, California. He attended Chabot Community College and San Jose State University, and was a member of the golf team at both institutions. He was a two-time All-American at San Jose State and played on the Walker Cup team in 1967. He finished runner-up in the 1967 British Amateur, losing 2 & 1 to fellow American Bob Dickson.
Cerrudo turned pro and joined the PGA Tour in 1967. He played on the PGA Tour from 1967–1979. He won two events: the 1968 Cajun Classic Open Invitational and the 1970 San Antonio Open Invitational. His best finish in a major was a T-21 at the 1969 PGA Championship.Since 1979, Cerrudo has been employed as a club teaching professional at various clubs in South Carolina. From 1979–1996, he was the head teaching pro at Shipyard Golf Club on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.
From 1996–2002, he was the head teaching pro at Port Royal Golf Club also on Hilton Head. Since 2002, he has been the Director of Instruction for The Ron Cerrudo Learning Center at the Daniel Island Club in Charleston, South Carolina. He has also done some on-course commentator radio work, and has been the featured speaker at various corporate outings.

Richard Backus (born March 28, 1945) is an American actor and television writer. He has been nominated for four Daytime Emmy Awards for writing and one for acting.

Paul Petersen (born September 23, 1945) is an American actor, singer, novelist and activist.
He first rose to prominence in the 1950s playing Jeff Stone on The Donna Reed Show, and transitioned to a singing career in the 1960s. In the early 1980s, he had a recurring role as a police officer on Matt Houston, and in the late 1990s, he played the author Paul Conway in the film Mommy's Day.
In 1990, Petersen established the organization A Minor Consideration to support child stars and other child laborers through legislation, family education, and personal intervention and counseling for those in crisis.