Let's make this birthday one to remember.

87 years old (Born on December 17, 1937)

Happy birthday, John Kennedy Toole! Wherever you are—probably causing delightful chaos among literary angels—we hope you're celebrating with Ignatius J. Reilly-style gusto: hot dogs in hand and a scathing critique of modern society at the ready.

Your timeless masterpiece, "A Confederacy of Dunces," continues to charm readers decades later, proving that genius often arrives fashionably late (and sometimes posthumously). Winning the Pulitzer Prize after your departure was perhaps literature's most ironic punchline—but rest assured, your wit remains unmatched. Here's hoping heaven has plenty of Big Chief tablets for scribbling down new absurdities; we eagerly await them!