Let's make this birthday one to remember.

81 years old (Born on September 05, 1943)

Happy Birthday, Bruce Cumings! Another year wiser and still making history—literally. Your groundbreaking insights into East Asian affairs have earned you the prestigious John K. Fairbank Prize; clearly, your brilliance ages better than fine wine (and certainly better than most historical theories).

From enlightening classrooms at the University of Chicago to authoring books that redefine our understanding of Korea's past—you've truly mastered time travel without a DeLorean or flux capacitor. May this birthday be filled with laughter, joy—and perhaps fewer footnotes—but knowing historians like yourself, that's probably wishful thinking.

Cheers to another timeless chapter ahead!