Today In History
Historical Events
1534 – French explorer Jacques Cartier is the 1st European to sail into mouth of St Lawrence River
1572 – William of Orange leads his army into Gelderland and occupies the province during the Dutch Revolt, expanding rebel control in the Low Countries
1970 – Harry Blackmun is sworn in as a US Supreme Court Justice
1985 – French Open Men’s Tennis: Sweden’s Mats Wilander wins 4th career Grand Slam title; beats Czech star Ivan Lendl 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2
2007 – French Open Women’s Tennis: Justine Henin wins her 3rd consecutive French singles crown; beats Ana Ivanović of Serbia 6-1, 6-2
Famous Birthdays
1916 – Robert McNamara, American United States Secretary of Defense (1961-68), played major role in US escalation in Vietnam, born in San Francisco, California (d. 2009)
1922 – Peter Beazley, British politician (C) (European Parliament), born in Chale, Isle of Wight (d. 2004)
1922 – John Gillespie Magee Jr., Anglo-American Royal Canadian Air Force fighter pilot and war poet, born in Shanghai, Republic of China (d. 1941)
1938 – Charles Wuorinen, American contemporary classical pianist, conductor, and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer (Time’s Encomium; Marimba Variations; Brokeback Mountain), born in New York City (d. 2020)
1939 – Ileana Cotrubaş, Romanian soprano, born in Galați, Romania
Famous Deaths
1716 – Banda Bahadur, Sikh military commander, executed in Delhi by Mughal forces at 45
1870 – Erik Drake, Swedish composer (Royal Swedish Academy of Music), dies at 82
1954 – Alain LeRoy Locke, African-American writer and philosopher “Father of the Harlem Renaissance”, dies at 68
1973 – Erich von Manstein, German Nazi-military commander convicted of war crimes, dies from stroke at 85
2022 – Julee Cruise, American singer (Falling) and stage actress, takes her own life at 65
Historical Events
1720 – Sweden and Denmark signs 3rd Treaty of Stockholm
1784 – John Carroll appointed supervisor of US Catholic Missions
1868 – First meeting of the Board of Regents of the University of California
1898 – British Open Men’s Golf, Prestwick GC: Harry Vardon of Jersey wins 2nd title by 1 stroke from dual champion Willie Park Jr
1943 – US President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Current Tax Payment Act into law, requiring taxes to be withheld from workers’ wages and paid directly to the federal government
1945 – Warner Bros. cartoon “A Gruesome Twosome” starring Tweety premieres in the US
1986 – 20th Music City News Country Awards: Statler Brothers and Loretta Lynn win
2024 – French Open Men’s Tennis: Carlos Alcaraz becomes the youngest man to win grand slams on all three surfaces, coming back to beat Alexander Zverev 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 in a final lasting 4 hours 15 minutes
Famous Birthdays
1812 – Johann Gottfried Galle, German astronomer (discovered Neptune), born in Radis, Kingdom of Saxony (d. 1910)
1888 – Hugo Kauder, Austrian composer, born in Tovačov (d. 1972)
1898 – Curzio Malaparte [Kurt E. Suckert], Italian author (Kaputt), born in Prato, Italy (d. 1957)
1914 – Barbara Mullen, American actress (Thunder Rock; Innocent Sinners), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1979)
1930 – Marvin Kalb, American broadcast journalist (CBS; NBC – Meet the Press), educator (Harvard), and writer (The Year I was Peter the Great; Enemy of the People: Trump’s War on the Press), born in New York City
1944 – Christine Goitschel, French alpine skier (Olympic gold 1964), born in Sallanches, France
1954 – Woodrow Lowe, American College Football HOF linebacker (NCAA C’ship 1973 University of Alabama; San Diego Chargers), born in Columbus, Georgia (d. 2025)
1954 – Gregory Maguire, American fantasy writer (Wicked), born in Albany, New York
1964 – Hiroko Yakushimaru, Japanese actress (Sailor Suit and Machine Gun), and singer, born in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan
1974 – Tim Shaw, British radio host, TV presenter, and engineer (National Geographic), born in England
Famous Deaths
1877 – Hugh W. Mercer, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), dies at 68
1954 – Alain LeRoy Locke, African-American writer and philosopher “Father of the Harlem Renaissance”, dies at 68
1974 – Phillips Tead, American character actor (The Front Page; Lightnin’; Fighting Blade; The Adventures of Superman – “Professor Pepperwinkle), dies at 80
1982 – Hank Ladd, TV host (Arrow Show, Waiting for the Break), dies at 74
1991 – Charles Loloma, painter/sculptor, dies
2004 – Brian Williamson, Jamaican Gay Activist (b. 1945)
2004 – “Rosey” Roosevelt Brown, American football player, dies at 71
2006 – Drafi Deutscher, German Schlager singer, dies of heart failure at 60
2007 – Frankie Abernathy, American reality TV personality (The Real World: San Diego), dies of cystic fibrosis at 25
2024 – Frank Carroll, American figure skating coach (Linda Fratianne, Michelle Kwan, Evan Lysacek; World Figure Skating HOF), dies of cancer at 85