Andy Kaufman, American actor and comedian (d. 1984) was born on January 17, 1949.

Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman was an American actor, singer, amateur wrestler and performance artist. While often called a comedian, Kaufman preferred to describe himself instead as a "song and dance man". He has sometimes been called an "anti-comedian". He disdained telling jokes and engaging in comedy as it was traditionally understood, once saying in an interview, "I am not a comic, I have never told a joke. The comedian's promise is that he will go out there and make you laugh with him. My only promise is that I will try to entertain you as best I can."