Today In History
Historical Events
1874 – Dion Boucicault’s stage drama “The Shaughraun” opens at Wallack’s Theatre, NYC
1881 – Leon Gambetta forms French government
1986 – FCC issues Notice Of Apparent Liability to WYSP Philadelphia
1993 – Don Shula becomes the coach with the most wins in NFL history
2008 – Italy plunges into recession, its first since the start of 2005, after GDP contracts a steeper-than-expected 0.5% in the third quarter
Famous Birthdays
1774 – Gaspare Spontini, Italian opera composer and conductor (La Vestale), born in Maiolati, Papal State (d. 1851)
1904 – Aleksey Semyonovich Zhivotov, Russian composer, born in Kazan, Russia (d. 1964)
1916 – George Fierstone, British jazz and session drummer (The Skyrockets), born in London, England (d. 1984)
1916 – Sherwood Schwartz, American television screenwriter and producer (The Brady Bunch, Gilligan’s Island), born in Passaic, New Jersey (d. 2011)
1970 – Dana Stubblefield, American football defensive tackle (Super Bowl XXIX; NFL Defensive Player of the Year and First-team All-Pro 1997 SF 49ers), born in Cleves, Ohio
Famous Deaths
1633 – William Ames, English philosopher (b. 1576)
1909 – Joshua Slocum, Canadian-American seaman and adventurer (first man to sail around the world alone), departs from Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts, sailing south for the winter, and is lost at sea, at 65
1962 – Manuel Gálvez, Argentine novelist (La maestra normal), dies at 80
2021 – Susan Rosenblatt [née Goldman], American lawyer known for taking on Big Tobacco (Engle v. Liggett Group), dies of cancer at 70
2022 – Mitchell Rosenthal, American psychiatrist and founder of Phoenix House, dies of complications of pneumonia at 87
Historical Events
1885 – Serbia invades Bulgaria, beginning the two-week Serbo-Bulgarian War; the Serbs are later defeated decisively [O.S. November 2]
1923 – Kentaro Suzuki completes his ascent of Mount Iizuna, Japan
1938 – Dutch DC3 crashes at Schiphol, 6 die
1964 – Detroit Red Wings Gordie Howe sets NHL record 627th career goal
1977 – Egyptian President Anwar Sadat repeats willingness to visit Israel to Walter Cronkite
1981 – In the first world championship fight between 2 Puerto Ricans in boxing history, WBC Super Welterweight champion Wilfred Benitez beats Carlos Santos in a 15-round unanimous decision at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas
1989 – Padres reliever Mark Davis wins NL Cy Young Award
2009 – The National Statistical Service of Greece states that the country has been in recession since the beginning of the year
Famous Birthdays
1805 – Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel, German composer, and pianist, born in Hamburg, Holy Roman Empire (d. 1847)
1885 – Sonia Delaunay, Russian-born French artist (Orphism), born in Hradyzk, Russian Empire (d. 1979)
1905 – Sanoesi Pane, Indonesian author and journalist (founded news agency Antara), born in Muara Sipongi, Tapanuli, Dutch East Indies (d. 1968)
1907 – Pedro Arrupe, Spanish Jesuit priest (1st responder after the bombing of Hiroshima), born in Bilbao, Spain (d. 1991)
1918 – John Bromwich, Australian tennis player (Australian C’ship 1939, 46 / 13 Grand Slam doubles titles), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 1999)
1922 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Egyptian politician and 6th Secretary-General of the United Nations (1992- 96), born in Cairo, Egypt (d. 2016)
1937 – Jim Brewer, American baseball relief pitcher (World Series 1965; MLB All Star 1973; LA Dodgers), born in Merced, California (d. 1987)
1954 – Willie Hernández, Puerto Rican baseball relief pitcher (World Series, AL MVP, AL Cy Young Award 1984 Detroit Tigers; MLB All-Star 1984, 85, 86), born in Aguada, Puerto Rico (d. 2023)
1970 – Dana Stubblefield, American football defensive tackle (Super Bowl XXIX; NFL Defensive Player of the Year and First-team All-Pro 1997 SF 49ers), born in Cleves, Ohio
1977 – Obie Trice, American rapper (“Got Some Teeth”), born in Detroit, Michigan
Famous Deaths
1625 – Giulio C Procaccini, Italian sculptor/painter, dies
1902 – Paulus T van der Maesen the Sombreff, foreign minister, dies
1965 – George Bissett, South African cricketer (25 wickets in 4 Tests for South Africa), dies at 60
1992 – Clem Beauchamp, American film actor, stuntman, and production manager (Tarzan; Dick Tracy; The Adventures of Superman), dies at 94
1994 – John F Hampe, pathologist (Fabric and Stoflongen), dies at 83
1997 – Stefan Lorant, Hungarian-American writer, photojournalist and filmmaker, dies at 96
1997 – Reena Virk, Canadian-Indian murder victim that inspired the true crime series “Under the Bridge”, murdered by group of teenage girls at 14
2018 – Katherine “Scottie” MacGregor, American actress (Little House On The Prairie – “Harriet Oleson”), dies at 93
2020 – M. A. Foster, American sci-fi author, (Gameplayers of Zan), dies at 81
2021 – Pierre Reid, Canadian politician and teacher, dies at 73