Today In History
Historical Events
1979 – “Good Times” single released by Chic (Billboard Song of the Year 1979)
1996 – “Moon Over Buffalo” closes at Martin Beck Theater NYC after 308 performances
1998 – Sega Channel, cable’s 1st on-demand video game service, closes down
2006 – Cirque du Soleil’s musical-acrobatic extravaganza “The Beatles – LOVE” opens in a specially built theatre at The Mirage, Las Vegas, Nevada
2013 – US Open Women’s Golf, Sebonack GC: Inbee Park of South Korea wins her second US title, 4 strokes ahead of compatriot I.K. Kim
Famous Birthdays
1669 – Mauritius Vogt, German composer, born in Königshofen, Electorate of Bavaria, Holy Roman Empire (d. 1730)
1743 – Niels Schiørring, Danish musician and composer, born in Favrskov Municipality, Denmark (d. 1798)
1912 – Tibor de Machula, Hungarian-Dutch cellist, born in Cluj-Napoca, Romania (d. 1982)
1967 – Tom Spencer, English punk rock singer, guitarist and songwriter (The Yo-Yo’s; The Professionals), born in Chipping Barnet, England
1978 – Ben Cousins, Australian Football League player (Richmond), born in Geelong, Victoria
Famous Deaths
1839 – Johan Olof Wallin, Swedish poet and archbishop (Dead Angel), dies at 59
1953 – Göte Carlid, Swedish composer (Eine kleine Teemusik), dies at 32
1993 – Spanky McFarland, American actor (Our Gang; The Little Rascals), dies suddenly at age 64
2002 – Pete Gray [Wyshner], American baseball outfielder (First of three one-armed men to play MLB; St Louis Browns), dies at 87
2020 – Aleksandr Kabanov, Russian water polo player (Olympic gold 1972, 80; World C’ship gold 1975, 82) and coach (Russian men’s and women’s teams), dies at 72
Historical Events
1906 – US Congress passes the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act; these laws owe much to the expose journalism of the period (Upton Sinclair’s ‘The Jungle’ in particular)
1924 – England score 2-503 in day’s play v South Africa at Lord’s
1941 – Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Hyde Park, New York is dedicated
1980 – British sixpence demonetised after being in used since 1551 and 12 years after introduction of decimal currency
1992 – South African ANC President Nelson Mandela meets with UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali at Dakar
1994 – Pre-trial hearings open in LA against O.J. Simpson
2009 – Turkey records its fastest contraction of 13.8% in the first quarter of 2009 compared to 2008, leading the country into recession; this is Turkey’s biggest economic slump since 1945
2019 – US Senior Open Men’s Golf, Warren GC: Steve Stricker wins his second Champions Tour major of the year by 6 strokes from David Toms and Jerry Kelly
Famous Birthdays
1503 – John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (1532-47), born in Torgau, Electorate of Saxony, Holy Roman Empire (d. 1554)
1807 – Friedrich Theodor Vischer, German philosopher and writer (Auch einer), born in Ludwigsburg, Germany (d. 1887)
1818 – Edward John Hopkins, British chorister, organist (Temple Church, 1843-98), and composer, born in Westminster, England (d. 1901)
1901 – Willie Sutton, American bank robber, born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 1980)
1911 – Czesław Miłosz, Polish-American writer (Bells in Winter, Nobel 1980), born in Szetejnie, Kovno Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 2004)
1928 – Frank Marcus, German playwright and critic, born in Breslau, Silesia, Germany (d. 1996)
1929 – Alexander Kelly, British classical pianist, composer, and pedagogue (Royal Academy of Music, 1960-92), born in Edinburgh, Scotland (d. 1996)
1936 – Nancy Dussault, American actress (Muriel-Too Close for Comfort), born in Pensacola, Florida
1962 – Vladimir Mikolaevich Dezhurov, Russian stronaut (Mir 18, STS-71), born in Zubovo-Polyansk, Yavas, Mordovia
1971 – Monica Potter, American actress (The Last House on the Left), born in Cleveland, Ohio
Famous Deaths
1874 – James Cantey, Brigadier General of the Confederate Army, dies at 55
1889 – Eugenio Terziani, Italian composer and music director (Teatro Apollo; La Scala), dies at 64
1905 – John Hay, American politician and statesman who was a private secretary to Abraham Lincoln and US Secretary of State (1898-1905), dies at 66
1938 – Milan Rakic, Serbian poet (Nove Pesme), dies at 61
1942 – Arnoldus Johannes Hubertus Aerts, Dutch bishop of New Guinea, executed at 62
1946 – Michael Zadora, American composer and pianist, dies at 64
1948 – Karl Wolfskehl, German Jewish writer, dies at 78
2005 – Clancy Eccles, Jamaican ska and reggae singer-songwriter (The Dynamites, “Feel the Rhythm”), and record producer, dies of complications after a heart attack at 64
2011 – Barry Bremen, American sports imposter and businessman (b. 1947)
2023 – Vahidin Musemić, Bosnian soccer striker (17 caps Yugoslavia; FK Sarajevo, OGC Nice), dies at 76