- Oct 1 John Schuerholz Jr., American Baseball HOF executive (GM Kansas City Royals, World Series 1985; GM Atlanta Braves World Series 1995), born in Baltimore, Maryland
- Oct 3 Jean Ratelle, Canadian Hockey HOF center (NY Rangers, Boston Bruins; named in "100 Greatest NHL Players"), born in Lac Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada
- Oct 3 Mike Troy, American swimmer (Olympics 2 x gold 200m butterfly, 4×200m freestyle relay 1960), born in Indianapolis, Indiana (d. 2019)
- Oct 4 Silvio Marzolini, Argentine soccer defender (28 caps; Boca Juniors), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 2020)
- Oct 4 Vic Hadfield, Canadian ice hockey left wing (1,004 NHL games; NY Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins), born in Oakville, Ontario
- Oct 5 Bob Cowper, Australian cricket batsman (27 Tests, 5 x 100s, TS 307 v England 1966; Victoria CA, WA CA), born in Melbourne Australia
Joe Pepitone (1940-2023)
Oct 9 American baseball utility (3 x MLB All-Star; 3 x Gold Glove; World Series 1962 New York Yankees), born in Brooklyn, New York
- Oct 10 Jimmy Gabriel, Scottish soccer midfielder (2 caps; Everton, Southampton) and coach (Seattle Sounders; SJ Earthquakes, Seattle Storm, Everton), born in Dundee, Scotland (d. 2021)
- Oct 12 Glenn Beckert, American baseball second baseman (MLB All-Star 1969-72; Gold Glove Award 1968; Chicago Cubs), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (d. 2020)
- Oct 14 J. C. Snead, American golfer (8 PGA Tour titles; Masters 1973 runner-up), born in Hot Springs, Virginia
- Oct 16 Célio Taveira, Brazilian soccer striker (3 caps; Vasco da Gama, Nacional, Corinthians), born in Santos, Brazil (d. 2020)
Dave DeBusschere (1940-2003)
Oct 16 American NBA forward (NY Knicks) and last ABA commissioner (1975-76), born in Detroit, Michigan
- Oct 17 Jim Smith, English soccer midfielder and manager (Birmingham City, QPR, Portsmouth, Derby County), born in Sheffield, South Yorkshire (d. 2019)
- Oct 18 H.B. "Toby" Halicki, American filmmaker, stunt driver, and actor (Gone In 60 Seconds), born in Dunkirk, New York (d. 1989)
- Oct 19 Jerzy Kulej, Polish light welterweight boxer (Olympic gold 1964, 68), born in Częstochowa, Poland (d. 2012)
- Oct 21 Geoffrey Boycott, cricketer (stoic England opener 1964-82)
- Oct 21 Osamu Watanabe, Japan, featherweight (Olympic gold 1964)
Pele (1940-2022)
Oct 23 Brazilian soccer attacking midfielder (92 caps; Player of the Century; 1,281 goals in 1,363 games; Santos, NY Cosmos), born in Três Corações, Brazil [1] [2]
- Oct 25 Bob Knight, American College-Basketball HOF coach (Indiana University, 1971-2000 - NCAA Division I C'ship 1976, 81, 87; Olympic gold 1984; Army; Texas Tech), born in Massillon, Ohio (d. 2023)
- Oct 25 Perrie Mans, South African snooker player (Benson & Hedges Masters 1979; World C'ship 1978 runner-up; South African Pro C'ship x 20), born in Lichtenburg, South Africa (d. 2023)
About October 1940
How Old? 83 years old
Generation: Silent Generation
Leap Year: Yes
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions