Today In History
Historical Events
1908 – The Republican Party convenes in Chicago where President Theodore Roosevelt picks William Howard Taft as his successor
1922 – Irish republicans are beaten in a national election; the vote is in favor of the Treaty of London, which leaves the Irish Free State as a dominion within the British Commonwealth
1989 – “Ghostbusters II”, American supernatural comedy film sequel, directed by Ivan Reitman, starring Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd premieres
1997 – The Dairat Labguer massacre in Algeria; 50 people are killed
2013 – 20 people are killed by a series of car bombings across Iraq
Famous Birthdays
1754 – Salawat Yulayev, Bashkir poet and national hero who led the Pugachev’s Rebellion, born in Tekeyevo, Russian Empire (d. 1800)
1953 – Valerie Mahaffey, American Emmy Award-winning character actress (Eve on “Northern Exposure”; The Doctors; Desperate Housewives), born in Sumatra, Indonesia (d. 2025)
1965 – Mike Lynch, English tech entrepreneur (Autonomy Corporation), Director of the BBC, born in London (d. 2024)
1966 – Jan Železný, Czech athlete (Olympic gold men’s javelin 1992, 96, 2000; World C’ship gold 1993, 95, 2001), born in Mladá Boleslav, Czechoslovakia
1982 – May Andersen, Danish model (Victoria’s Secret), born in Copenhagen, Denmark
Famous Deaths
1885 – Wilhelm Camphausen, German painter (b. 1818)
1981 – John S Knight, American journalist and publisher (Knight Newspapers), dies at 86
2017 – John G. Avildsen, American film director (Rocky, The Karate Kid), dies of cancer at 81
2021 – Janet Malcolm [Jana Klara Wienerová], American journalist (The New Yorker, 1963-2021) and writer (The Journalist and the Murderer), dies of cancer at 86
2023 – Daniel Ellsberg, American military analyst, whistleblower (The Pentagon Papers), and anti-war advocate, dies of pancreatic cancer at 92
Historical Events
1823 – Dutch King William I opens the Fijenoord shipyard at Rotterdam
1913 – South African Government pass the segregationist Native Land Act, which restricts purchase or lease of land by native Africans
1922 – Irish republicans are beaten in a national election; the vote is in favor of the Treaty of London, which leaves the Irish Free State as a dominion within the British Commonwealth
1929 – Otto E. Funk, 62, ends marathon walk (NY to SF, 4165 miles in 183 days)
1985 – US Open Men’s Golf, Oakland Hills CC: 1978 champion Andy North wins by 1 stroke ahead of runners-up Dave Barr, T C Chen and Denis Watson
2000 – Israel complies with UN Security Council Resolution 425 after 22 years, which calls on Israel to completely withdraw from Lebanon. Israel withdraws from all of Lebanon, except the disputed Shebaa Farms.
2013 – “Despicable Me 2” directed by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud with voices by Steve Carell and Kristen Wiig premieres at the Champs-Elysées Film Festival
2019 – India imposes retaliatory tariffs on 28 US goods
Famous Birthdays
1903 – Huldreich Georg Früh, Swiss composer (Mein Traum), born in Ganterschwil, Switzerland (d. 1945)
1909 – Willi Boskovsky, Austrian violinist and conductor (Vienna New Year’s Concert, 1955-79), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1991)
1920 – José López Portillo, President of Mexico (1976-82), born in Mexico City (d. 2004)
1923 – Henryk Czyz, Polish composer and musician, born in Grudziądz (d. 2003)
1934 – Lucia Dlugoszewski, Polish-American composer (Fire Fragile Flight), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2000)
1945 – Lucienne Robillard, Canadian politician, born in Montreal, Quebec
1957 – Ian Buchanan, Scottish actor (General Hospital, Gary Shandling Show), born in Hamilton, Scotland
1978 – Jasmine “Fish” Leong, Chinese Malaysian singer (Courage), born in Bahau, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
1980 – Joey Yung, Hong Kong singer and Cantopop diva, born in Tsuen Wan, British Hong Kong
1984 – Rick Nash, Canadian ice hockey left wing (#1 pick NHL Draft 2002; 6 x NHL All Star; Olympic gold 2010, 14; World C’ship gold 2007; Columbus BJs, NY Rangers), born in Brampton, Ontario
Famous Deaths
1671 – Stenka Razin, Cossack rebel leader, tortured and executed in Moscow
1707 – Marie d’Orleans-Longueville, Duchess de Nemours, sovereign princess of Neuchâtel and writer (b. 1625)
1752 – Joseph Butler, English philosopher, dies at 60
1928 – Mark Keppel, Superintendent of Los Angeles County Schools from 1902-1928, dies at 61
1929 – Vernon Louis Parrington, American author (Romantic Revolution, Pulitzer 1928), dies at 57
1939 – Chick Webb, American jazz drummer and big band bandleader (introduced Ella Fitzgerald), dies of Pott’s disease (tuberculosis of the spine), at 34
1946 – Ludwig Winder, Austrian-Czech writer and journalist, dies of heart disease at 57
1970 – Heino Eller, Estonian composer (Koit (Dawn); Videvik (Twilight)), pedagogue (Tallinn Conservatory, 1940 -70), and teacher of Arvo Pärt, dies at 83
1981 – John S Knight, American journalist and publisher (Knight Newspapers), dies at 86
1996 – David Mourão-Ferreira, Portuguese poet (Cancioneiro de Natal) and film maker, dies at 69