Anthony Kennedy
For three decades, he was the Supreme Court's pivotal centrist, authoring landmark decisions that expanded both gay rights and corporate speech.
Born 1936 (age 90)·US Supreme Court justice from 1988 to 2018·Birthday: July 23·The Silent Generation
Biography
Anthony Kennedy arrived at the Supreme Court as a conservative jurist, but he refused to be anchored to any ideological camp. For a generation, he occupied the court's crucial center, becoming the deciding vote in its most contentious cases. His jurisprudence was defined by a sweeping, often poetic, belief in individual liberty and human dignity. He authored the opinion legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, a historic expansion of civil rights. Yet, he also wrote the Citizens United decision, unleashing new flows of money into politics. Kennedy saw his role as protecting the Constitution's evolving narrative of freedom, a philosophy that made him a hero to progressives on social issues and a frustration to them on matters of economic power. His retirement marked the end of an era defined by his singular, unpredictable influence.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Anthony was born in 1936, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Anthony Was Born
The biggest hits of 1936
#1 Movie
San Francisco
Best Picture
The Great Ziegfeld
Anthony's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1936Born
Jesse Owens wins four golds at the Berlin Olympics
Gas: $0.19/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"The Way You Look Tonight" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: The Great Ziegfeld
1941Started school
Pearl Harbor attack brings the US into WWII
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,060Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Chattanooga Choo Choo" — Glenn MillerBest Picture: How Green Was My Valley
1949Became a teenager
NATO founded; Mao proclaims the People's Republic of China
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Riders in the Sky" — Vaughn MonroeBest Picture: All the King's Men
1952Could drive
Queen Elizabeth II ascends the throne
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,350Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Blue Tango" — Leroy AndersonBest Picture: The Greatest Show on Earth
1954Could vote
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1957Turned 21
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1966Turned 30
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1976Turned 40
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1986Turned 50
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1996Turned 60
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2006Turned 70
Twitter launches; Pluto reclassified as dwarf planet
Gas: $2.59/galHome: $174,700Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Bad Day" — Daniel PowterBest Picture: The Departed
2016Turned 80
Donald Trump elected president; Brexit vote
Gas: $2.14/galHome: $181,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Love Yourself" — Justin BieberBest Picture: Moonlight
2026Age 90 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Authored the majority opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), which established a constitutional right to same-sex marriage.
- Wrote the majority opinion in Citizens United v. FEC (2010), which removed limits on corporate and union political spending.
- Served as the pivotal 'swing vote' on the Supreme Court for over a decade following Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's retirement.
- Authored key decisions affirming the rights of detainees at Guantanamo Bay to challenge their imprisonment.
Did You Know?
He taught constitutional law at the University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law for over 20 years before joining the Supreme Court.
Kennedy is the only current or former justice to have appointed a successor (Brett Kavanaugh) who once served as his law clerk.
He was raised in Sacramento, California, where his father was a prominent lawyer and lobbyist.
Kennedy is fluent in German and has participated in judicial exchanges in Europe.
“The Constitution promises liberty to all within its reach, a liberty that includes certain specific rights that allow persons, within a lawful realm, to define and express their identity.”
