Celebrity Birthdays, December 5: Paula Patton and Little Richard

Actress Paula Patton and musician Little Richard are celebrating their birthdays today.

Paula Patton, 39

image courtesy of Jennifer Graylock/INFphoto.com

Actress Paula Patton turns 39 today. Patton's first acting role was in 2005's Hitch alongside Will Smith and Eva Mendes. She then had a small part in the drama London and appeared alongside OutKast members Andre Benjamin and Big Boi in Idlewild. In 2006, she landed a role of in the thriller Déjà Vu and went on to star in Swing Vote, Mirrors, Just Wright, Jumping the Broom, 2 Guns, Baggage Claim and About Last Night.

In 2009, Patton played a teacher at an alternative high-school in Harlem, New York in the film Precious. In 2010, Patton landed a role in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, missing out on a recurring role in NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Patton has a son, Julian Fuego, with former husband Robin Thicke. After almost nine years of marriage, Patton and Thicke split in February 2014, and in October 2014, Patton officially filed for divorce and joint custody of their son.

In 2013, Legendary Pictures announced that Patton would be joining the cast of Warcraft film adaptation of the video game, set to be released in March 2016.

Little Richard, 82

image courtesy of INFphoto.com

Recording artist, songwriter and musician Little Richard turns 82 today. Born Richard Wayne Penniman, he has been an influential figure in popular music and culture for over six decades. Penniman started receiving great recognition the mid-1950s with his rock and roll. In 1955, his hit "Tutti Frutti" reached No. 2 on Billboard's Rhythm and Blues Best-Sellers chart, later crossing over to the pop charts, reaching No. 17 on the Billboard Top 100. His next single, "Long Tall Sally," became his first to reach No. 1 on the R&B chart and the first to reach the top ten of the pop charts in both America and Britain. He went on to deliver nine more hits in the U.S. including "Slippin' and Slidin'," "Ready Teddy," "The Girl Can't Help It" and "Lucille."

In May 1957, Penniman released his first album, Here's Little Richard, which reached No. 13 on the Billboard Top LPs chart.

In 1986, Penniman starred in the film Down and Out in Beverly Hills, winning critical acclaim for his role and the song, "Great Gosh A'Mighty," which appeared on the soundtrack and found success on the American and British charts. In 2000, the biopic Little Richard was made, telling the story of Penniman's successes, religious conversion and return to secular music.

In 1962, Penniman adopted Danny Jones, who now often serves as one of his bodyguards. Penniman was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is the recipient of Lifetime Achievement Awards from The Recording Academy and the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Penniman's hit, "Tutti Frutti," was included in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2010.