Anton Chekhov, Russian playwright and short story writer (died 1904)

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics. Along with Henrik Ibsen and August Strindberg, Chekhov is often referred to as one of the three seminal figures in the birth of early modernism in the theatre. Chekhov was a physician by profession. "Medicine is my lawful wife," he once said, "and literature is my mistress."

January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 336 days remain until the end of the year.