- May 1 Eddie Johnson, American basketball guard/forward (NBA Sixth Man of the Year 1989; Phoenix Suns, Seattle SuperSonics), born in Chicago, Illinois
- May 1 Roger Chapman, English golfer (Senior PGA 2012, US Seniors Open 2012), born in Nakuru, Kenya
- May 3 Carlos De León, Puerto Rican boxer (WBC cruiserweight champion (1980–82, 83–85, 86–88, 89–90), born in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico (d. 2020)
- May 4 Bob Tway, American golfer (PGA C'ship 1986; US Open 1998 3rd; PGA Player of the Year 1986), born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- May 4 Rohn Stark, American football punter (First-team All-Pro 1983; 4 × Pro Bowl; Indianapolis Colts; NFL record: highest net average punting yards in a game 59.50 1992), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
- May 8 Ronnie Lott, College and Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive back (10-time NFL Pro Bowl; Super Bowl 1981, 84, 88-89; SF 49ers), born in Albuquerque, New Mexico
- May 9 Andrew Jones, New Zealand cricket batsman (39 Tests @ 44.27, 87 ODIs), born in Wellington, New Zealand
- May 9 Asantha De Mel, cricketer (pioneering Sri Lankan Test opening bowler)
- May 10 Dan Schayes, NBA center/forward (Miami Heat, Orlando Magic)
- May 11 Ion Adrian Zare, Romanian soccer defender (7 caps; FC Bihor, BFC Siófok), born in Oradea, Romania (d. 2022)
- May 12 Dave Christian, American NHL right wing, 1980-94 (Olympic gold, 1980; Washington Capitals, Winnipeg Jets, and 3 other teams), born in Warroad, Minnesota
- May 14 Mike Quick, NFL wide receiver (Philadelphia Eagles)
- May 15 Kaokor Galaxy, Thai boxer
- May 16 Bob Patterson, pitcher (Chicago Cubs), born in Jacksonville, Florida
- May 18 Graham Dilley, English cricket fast bowler (41 Tests, 138 wickets; Kent CCC, Worcestershire CCC), born in Dartford, England (d. 2011)
- May 22 Olin Browne, American golfer (US Senior Open 2011), born in Washington, D.C.
- May 23 Marcella Mesker, Netherlands, tennis star
- May 24 Pelle Lindbergh, Swedish NHL goaltender, 1981-86, Vezina Award winner (Philadelphia Flyers), born in Stockholm, Sweden (d. 1986)
About May 1959
How Old? 64 years old
Generation: Baby Boomer
Leap Year: No
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions