Who are the most famous only children of all time? This is a comprehensive list of notable people with no siblings, including actors, athletes, singers, and world leaders. You might also be interested in celebrities from huge families and celebs from families of actors. Are you an only child? If so, you're in good company. Some of history's most admirable and powerful people have also had single child stature. United States Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Gerald Ford were both only children. Creative geniuses Leonardo da Vinci, John Lennon, and Robin Williams all grew up without siblings. Oscar-winners Charlize Theron and Natalie Portman are only children, too.
Only children are a group surrounded by myth and stigma, most of which are entirely false. The stereotype of a socially stunted, spoiled brat stems from a 19th century psychologist named G. Stanley Hall who - among other absurd declarations about children - said, "Being an only child is a disease in itself." Like most psychologists of the time, his research practices were anything but credible and tended to reflect his own prejudices more than anything else.
Who are the best celebrity only children in history? Modern studies show that once past their initial introduction to kindergarten, only children are just as social those with siblings, with personalities that vary just as much. Scholastically, the number of siblings within a family has also proven to be largely irrelevant. With the average family size shrinking, and only children becoming more common, society is moving beyond outdated stereotypes to recognize that all people can become successful.Ada Lovelace
Dec. at 37 (1815-1852)Birthplace: London, United Kingdom
Gender: Female
Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (née Byron; 10 December 1815 – 27 November 1852) was an English mathematician and writer, chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical... moreAl Pacino
Age: 80Birthplace: East Harlem, New York City, New York, United States of America
Gender: Male
Alfredo James Pacino (born April 25, 1940), known professionally as Al Pacino, is an American actor and filmmaker who has had a career spanning more than five decades. He has received numerous... moreAlan Greenspan
Age: 94Birthplace: Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States of America
Gender: Male
Alan Greenspan (; born March 6, 1926) is an American economist who served as Chair of the Federal Reserve of the United States from 1987 to 2006. He currently works as a private adviser and provides... moreAlicia Keys
Age: 39Birthplace: Manhattan, New York, USA
Gender: Female
Alternative Name: Alicia Keyes, Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. A classically-trained pianist, Keys was composing songs by age 12... moreAnsel Adams
Dec. at 82 (1902-1984)Birthplace: Western Addition, California
Gender: Male
Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was a landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his black-and-white images of the American West. He helped found Group f/64, an... moreAnthony Hopkins
Age: 82Birthplace: Margam, United Kingdom
Gender: Male
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor, director, and producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1992, and was nominated three additional times. Hopkins has... moreBetty White
Age: 98Birthplace: Oak Park, Illinois, USA
Gender: Female
Betty Marion White Ludden (born January 17, 1922) is an American actress and comedian, with the longest television career of any entertainer, spanning 80 years. Regarded as a pioneer of television,... moreBeverley Mitchell
Age: 39Birthplace: Arcadia, California, USA
Gender: Female
Alternative Name: Beverley Mitchell
Beverley Ann Mitchell (born January 22, 1981) is an American actress and country music singer. She is best known for her role as Lucy Camden-Kinkirk on the television series 7th Heaven.... moreBill Bradley
Age: 77Birthplace: Crystal City, Missouri, United States of America
Gender: Male
William Warren Bradley (born July 28, 1943) is an American politician and former professional basketball player. He served three terms as a Democratic U.S. Senator from New Jersey. He ran... moreBrooke Shields
Age: 55Birthplace: Manhattan, New York, USA
Gender: Female
Alternative Name: Brooke Shields
Brooke Christa Shields (born May 31, 1965) is an American actress and model. She was initially a child model and gained critical acclaim at age 12 for her leading role in Louis Malle's film Pretty... moreBurt Bacharach
Age: 92Birthplace: Kansas City, Missouri, United States of America
Gender: Male
Burt Freeman Bacharach (born May 12, 1928) is an American composer, songwriter, record producer, pianist, and singer who has composed hundreds of pop songs from the late 1950s through the 1980s, many... moreCandice Bergen
Age: 74Birthplace: Beverly Hills, California, USA
Gender: Female
Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an American actress and former fashion model. She won five Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for her eleven seasons as the title character on the... moreCarol Burnett
Age: 87Birthplace: San Antonio, Texas, USA
Gender: Female
Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933) is an American actress, comedian, singer and writer, whose career spans seven decades of television. She is best known for her groundbreaking comedy... moreCary Grant
Dec. at 82 (1904-1986)Birthplace: Horfield, United Kingdom
Gender: Male
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904 – November 29, 1986) was an English-born American actor, known as one of classic Hollywood's definitive leading men. He began a career in... moreCatherine Hicks
Age: 69Birthplace: New York, New York, USA
Gender: Female
Catherine Mary Hicks (born August 6, 1951) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Annie Camden on the long-running television series 7th Heaven. Other notable roles include Dr.... moreCharles Lindbergh
Dec. at 72 (1902-1974)Birthplace: Detroit, Michigan, United States of America
Gender: Male
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, explorer, and environmental activist, and a spokesperson for the American... moreCharlize Theron
Age: 45Birthplace: Benoni, Gauteng, South Africa
Gender: Female
Charlize Theron ( shar-LEEZ THERR-ən; Afrikaans: [ʃarˈlis trɔn]; born 7 August 1975) is a South African and American actress and producer. She is the recipient of several accolades, including an... moreChaz Bono
Age: 51Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA
Gender: Male
Alternative Name: Chaz Bono
Chaz Salvatore Bono (born Chastity Sun Bono; March 4, 1969) is an American writer, musician and actor. His parents are entertainers Sonny Bono and Cher.Bono is a transgender man. In 1995, while then... moreChelsea Clinton
Age: 40Birthplace: Little Rock, Arkansas, USA
Gender: Female
Chelsea Victoria Clinton (born February 27, 1980) is an American author and global health advocate. She is the only child of former U.S. President Bill Clinton and former U.S. Secretary of State and... moreChina Kantner
Age: 49Birthplace: San Francisco, California, USA
Gender: Female
China Wing Kantner (born January 25, 1971) is an American actress of television, theatre and cinema. She is also a former MTV VJ, sometimes credited on-screen as China Slick Kantner.... moreChristina Applegate
Age: 48Birthplace: Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
Gender: Female
Christina Applegate (born November 25, 1971) is an American actress and dancer. As an adolescent actress, she started playing the role of Kelly Bundy on the Fox sitcom Married... with Children... moreCole Porter
Dec. at 73 (1891-1964)Birthplace: Peru, Indiana, United States of America
Gender: Male
Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found... moreCondoleezza Rice
Age: 65Birthplace: Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America
Gender: Female
Condoleezza Rice (; born November 14, 1954) is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, the second person to hold that office in the... moreDaniel Radcliffe
Age: 31Birthplace: Fulham, London, England
Gender: Male
Alternative Name: Daniel Radcliffe, Dan Radcliffe
Daniel Jacob Radcliffe (born 23 July 1989) is an English actor and producer. He is known for playing the titular protagonist in the Harry Potter film series, based on the novels by J. K.... moreDanielle Steel
Age: 73Birthplace: New York City, New York, United States of America
Gender: Female
Danielle Fernandes Dominique Schuelein-Steel (born August 14, 1947) is an American writer, best known for her romance novels. She is the bestselling author alive and the fourth bestselling fiction... more
