Today In History
Historical Events
1690 – English demand the surrender of Quebec, and French Governor Louis de Buade de Frontenac replies, “I have no reply to make to your general other than from the mouths of my cannon and muskets”
1775 – Portland, Maine, is burned by the British
1875 – First Quebec vs. Ontario football game; Ontario wins
1882 – The Nickel Plate Railroad opens for business
1968 – Americans Tommie Smith (gold, 19.83, WR) and John Carlos (bronze) famously give the Black Power salute on the 200 m medal podium during the Mexico City Olympics to protest racism and injustice against African Americans
Famous Birthdays
1890 – Michael Collins, Irish revolutionary leader and leading figure in the struggle for Irish independence in the early 20th century, born in Clonakilty, Ireland (d. 1922)
1897 – Harrison Kerr, American composer, born in Cleveland, Ohio (d. 1978)
1913 – Cesar Bresgen, Austrian organist and composer, born in Florence, Italy (d. 1988)
1938 – Yevgeny Petrov, Russian sports shooter (Olympic gold Skeet 1968; silver 1972), born in Moscow, Russia (d. 2025)
1975 – Kellie Martin, American actress (Life Goes On, Cristy), born in Riverside, California
Famous Deaths
1750 – Silvius Leopold Weiss, German composer and lutenist, dies at 64
1755 – Saint Gerard Majella, Catholic saint, dies at 29
1814 – Juan Jose Landaeta, Venezuelan composer, killed at 34
1992 – Shirley Booth, American Tony Award-winning stage and screen actress (Come Back, Little Sheba; Hazel), dies of natural causes at 94
2000 – Mel Carnahan, American politician, 51st Governor of Missouri (1993-2000), dies in an airplane crash at 66
Historical Events
1551 – English Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset and former Lord Protector, is rearrested for treason and executed three months later
1852 – Dutch government recognizes Catholics’ right to organize
1913 – George Bernard Shaw’s play “Pygmalion” premieres at the Hofburg Theatre in Vienna, Austria
1967 – 13th General Conference on Weights and Measures in Paris ends after redefining the second using a cesium-beam atomic clock
1969 – New York Mets’ Cleon Jones is awarded first base when shoe polish on the ball proves he is hit by a pitch; he then scores on a home run in the World Series
1972 – Two members of the Official Irish Republican Army are shot dead by the British Army in County Tyrone
1995 – Allan Donald takes 8-71 as South Africa defeats Zimbabwe
2021 – NASA probe Lucy launches on a mission to fly by eight Trojan asteroids circling the Sun
Famous Birthdays
1430 – King James II of Scotland (1437-60), born in Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh (d. 1460)
1622 – Pierre Paul Puget, French artist, born in Marseille, France (d. 1694)
1855 – Camille Looten, French=Flemish priest and literature historian (Flemish committee of France), born in Noordpeene, Belgium (d. 1944)
1861 – J. B. Bury, Irish historian, born in County Monaghan, Ireland (d. 1927)
1908 – Enver Hoxha, Albanian post-war communist leader and dictator of Albania (1944-85), born in Gjirokastër, Albania (d. 1985)
1923 – Bert Kaempfert, German orchestra leader, songwriter (“Strangers in the Night”; “Danke Schoen”), and record producer (The Beatles first recordings), born in Hamburg (d. 1980)
1953 – Tony Carey, American rock keyboardist, and singer-songwriter (Rainbow; Planet P Project), born in Watsonville, California
1960 – Bob Mould, American rock guitarist, songwriter and vocalist (Hüsker Dü; Sugar), born in Malone, New York
1977 – John Mayer, American guitarist and singer-songwriter (“Your Body Is A Wonderland”; “Waiting For The World To Change’; Dead and Company), born in Bridgeport, Connecticut
1982 – Frédéric Michalak, French rugby union fly-half (77 Tests; Toulouse, RC Toulon, LOU, Sharks Rugby), born in Toulouse, France
Famous Deaths
1793 – John Hunter, Scottish surgeon and founder of pathological anatomy in England, dies at 65
1817 – Manuel C Piar, Curacaos/Venezulian freedom writer, dies
1946 – Joachim von Ribbentrop, Nazi foreign minister and war criminal, hanged at 53
1948 – Henry Foley, New Zealand cricket batsman (1 Test; NZ’s first Test match; Wellington CA), dies at 42
1966 – George O’Hara, American silent era screenwriter and actor (The Sea Beast, The Grapes of Wrath), dies at 67
1972 – Leo G. Carroll, British actor (Topper; Strangers On A Train; The Man From U.N.C.L.E.), dies at 85
1983 – Kelso, American racehorse (b. 1957)
2006 – Tommy Johnson, American orchestral and session tuba player (theme to “Jaws”), dies from cancer and kidney failure at 71
2013 – Ed Lauter, American actor (The Artist, The Number 23), dies from mesothelioma at 74
2015 – Mikhail Burtsev, Soviet sabre fencer (Olympic gold 1976, 1980), dies at 59