Today In History
Historical Events
1936 – International communist conference members in Prague arrange create International Brigades to help the Republican Government in the Spanish Civil War
1953 – Cuban pirate radio station’s first transmission in Santiago de Cuba
1963 – US Syncom 2, the first geosynchronous communications satellite, launches
1965 – Republic of Maldives gains independence from Britain (National Day)
1978 – 11th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at El Cortez Hotel
Famous Birthdays
1829 – Auguste Beernaert, 14th Prime Minister of Belgium (1884-94) and Nobel Peace Prize laureate 1909, born in Ostend, Belgium (d. 1912)
1909 – Vivian Vance [Jones], American stage and screen actress (I Love Lucy – “Ethel Mertz”; The Lucy Show – “Viv”), born in Cherryvale, Kansas (d. 1979)
1917 – Bertil Nordahl, Swedish soccer midfielder and manager (15 caps; Atalanta; Olympic gold 1948), born in Hörnefors, Sweden (d. 1998)
1944 – Rimantas Stankevičius, Lithuanian cosmonaut, born in Marijampolė, Lithuania (d. 1990)
1969 – Jonty Rhodes, South African cricket batsman (brilliant fielder), born in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
Famous Deaths
1728 – John Friend, physician/politician, dies
1925 – Gottlob Frege, German mathematician and logician (Begriffsschrift), dies at 76
1960 – Maud Menten, Canadian biochemist known for the Michaelis–Menten equation for enzyme kinetics, dies at 81
1996 – Arthur McDonald, Royal Air Force officer and radar pioneer, dies at 93
2012 – Franz West, Austrian artist, dies at 65
Historical Events
1760 – Austrian troops occupy Fort Glatz during Third Silesian War
1858 – Baron Lionel de Rothschild becomes the first Jewish person to be elected to the British Parliament
1882 – Richard Wagner’s opera “Parsifal” premieres in Bayreuth, Germany
1917 – J. Edgar Hoover gets job in US Department of Justice
1941 – US embargo on oil export to Japan
1946 – Aloha Airlines begins service from Honolulu International Airport
1954 – WCET TV channel 48 in Cincinnati, OH (PBS) begins broadcasting
2019 – Australian cricket captain Meg Lanning records a T20 International world record individual score of 133 off 63 balls in a 93-run win against England at Chelmsford; Southern Stars clinch Women’s Ashes
Famous Birthdays
1855 – Ferdinand Tönnies, German sociologist and philosopher, born in Oldenswort, Germany (d. 1936)
1874 – Serge Koussevitzky, Russian-American conductor (Boston Symphony, 1924-49), born in Vyshny Volochyok, Russia (d. 1951)
1911 – Jerry Burke, American easy-listening pianist and organ player (Lawrence Welk Orchestra, 1934-65), born in Marshalltown, Iowa (d. 1965)
1929 – Marc Lalonde, French Canadian politician (30th Minister of Finance, 1982-84), born in Île Perrot, Quebec (d. 2023)
1950 – Rich Vogler, American auto racer (most combined wins in USAC history [171]), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1990)
1961 – Keiko Matsui (née Doi), Japanese jazz pianist and composer, born in Tokyo, Japan
1965 – Jim Lindberg, American musician (Pennywise), born in Hermosa Beach, California
1985 – Gaël Clichy, French footballer (İstanbul Başakşehir), born in Toulouse, France
1990 – Zach Serleth, American jazz, bluegrass, and klezmer bassist and banjo player, born in Baltimore, Maryland
2004 – Dilano van ‘t Hoff, Dutch racingcar driver (F4 Spanish Championship, 2021), born in Dordrecht, Netherlands (d. 2023)
Famous Deaths
1900 – Henry G. Blasdel, American politician (1st Governor of Nevada, 1864-71), and miner, dies at 75
1925 – William Jennings Bryan, American orator and statesman known as “The Great Commoner”, dies at 65
1944 – Reza Shah Pahlavi [Rezā Khan], Shah of Iran (1925-41), dies of a heart ailment at 66
1954 – Ruth Bryan Owen, American politician (first woman appointed as a U.S. ambassador, Denmark 1933-36), dies at 68
1960 – Cedric Gibbons, American art director for the film industry, dies from illness at 70
1994 – Thomas Davis, US movie editor/son of MGM-chief Frank D, dies at 26
2013 – J. J. Cale, American rock guitarist and songwriter (“After Midnight”: “Call Me The Breeze”; “Cocaine”), dies of a heart attack at 74
2013 – Shafiga Akhundova, Azerbaijani opera composer (Galin gayasi (Bride’s rock)), dies at 89
2020 – Hans-Jochen Vogel, German politician (leader of West Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD), 1987-91; Minister of Justice, 1974-84; Mayor of Munich, 1962-72), dies at 94
2023 – Martin Walser, German novelist (Marriage in Philippsburg), and dramatist, dies at 96