Today In History
Historical Events
1870 – Siege of Paris by Prussian forces begins (lasts until January 28, 1871)
1893 – New Zealand becomes the first country to grant all women the right to vote
1912 – Pius X encyclical Singular quadam, against interconfess unions
1981 – Simon and Garfunkel reunite for a concert in Central Park, NYC,
2022 – Banks in Lebanon close for three days after a series of hold-ups by people trying to obtain their own money, frozen amid the country’s economic crisis
Famous Birthdays
1770 – Johann Georg Repsold, German scientific instrument maker, astronomer, and fireman, born in Wremen, Duchy of Bremen, Holy Roman Empire (now Germany) (d. 1830)
1910 – Arthur Mullard, English actor, comedian and singer (Romany Jones), born in London (d. 1995)
1913 – Helen Ward [Wiltschek], American jazz singer (Benny Goodman Orchestra, 1934-36; Bob Crosby; Harry James), born in New York City (d. 1998)
1959 – Marshall Jefferson, American musician ‘father of house music’ (Move your Body), born in Chicago, Illinois
1998 – Trae Young, American NBA player (Atlanta Hawks), born in Lubbock, Texas
Famous Deaths
1736 – Feofan Prokopovich, Russian Orthodox theologian and Archbishop of Novgorod, dies at 55
1930 – Hendrik Zwaardemaker, Dutch physiologist (invented the olfactometer), dies at 73
1952 – Giuseppe Zoppi, Swiss writer (Presento il mio Ticino), dies at 56
1986 – Vivian Duncan, American vaudevillian (Duncan Sisters), actress (Topsy and Eva), dies of complications from Alzheimer’s disease at 89
2023 – Buddy Teevens, American college football coach (Dartmouth College 1987-91, 2005-23; Uni of Maine, Tulane Uni, Stanford University), dies from injuries sustained in road accident at 66
Historical Events
634 – Muslim forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid capture Damascus, 1st major city of Eastern Roman Empire taken by the Rashidun Caliphate
1559 – Five Spanish ships sink in storm off Tampa, about 600 die
1854 – Henry Meyer patents sleeping rail car
1870 – Siege of Paris by Prussian forces begins (lasts until January 28, 1871)
1893 – New Zealand becomes the first country to grant all women the right to vote
1945 – Lord Haw Haw (William Joyce) is sentenced to death in London
1995 – The Washington Post and The New York Times publish the Unabomber’s manifesto
1997 – Guelb El-Kebir massacre in Algeria leaves 53 people dead
Famous Birthdays
1803 – Maria Anna of Savoy, Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary and Bohemia, born in Palazzo Colonna, Rome, Papal States (d. 1884)
1902 – Jimmy Van Alen, American tennis official (created Simplified Scoring System), born in Newport, Rhode Island (d. 1991)
1907 – Lewis F. Powell Jr., American Supreme Court justice (1972-87), born in Suffolk, Virginia (d. 1998)
1924 – Jacques Lusseyran, French author and resistance leader who was blind from age 7, born in Paris, France (d. 1971)
1931 – Brook Benton [Benjamin Franklin Peay], American soul vocalist (“It’s Just a Matter of Time”; “Rainy Night in Georgia”), born in Lugoff, South Carolina (d. 1988)
1934 – Brian Epstein, English music entrepreneur and manager (Beatles), born in Liverpool, England (d. 1967)
1937 – Abner Haynes, American football running back (AFL MVP 1960; First-team All-AFL 1960, 61, 62; Kansas City Chiefs), born in Denton, Texas (d. 2024)
1971 – Jeremy Nunley, American NFL defensive tackle and defensive end (Houston Oilers), born in Winchester, Tennessee (d. 2018)
1974 – Victoria Silvstedt, Swedish model and TV personality (Playboy playmate Dec 96, Playmate of the Year 1997), born in Skelleftehamn, Sweden
1998 – Trae Young, American NBA player (Atlanta Hawks), born in Lubbock, Texas
Famous Deaths
1719 – Joachim Tielke, German violin maker, dies at 77
1902 – Masaoka Shiki, Japanese haiku and tanka poet and diarist (Salt Water Ballads), dies at 34
1935 – Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Russian pioneer in rocket and space research, dies at 78
1962 – Nikolai Pogodin, Soviet playwright, dies at 61
1971 – William F. Albright, American old testament scholar and archaeologist, dies at 80
2000 – Gloria Talbott, American film and television actress, sometimes known as “the Scream Queen” for her work in B-movies, dies of kidney failure at 69
2004 – Árpád Bogsch, Hungarian-born American civil servant (b. 1919)
2018 – Arthur Mitchell, African-American ballet dancer (New York City Ballet, 1955-66), choreographer, and founder of Dance Theater of Harlem (1968), dies of renal failure at 84
2022 – Maury Wills, American baseball shortstop (7 x MLB All-Star; NL MVP 1962, World Series 1959, 63, 65; LA Dodgers), dies at 89
2023 – Buddy Teevens, American college football coach (Dartmouth College 1987-91, 2005-23; Uni of Maine, Tulane Uni, Stanford University), dies from injuries sustained in road accident at 66