Today In History
Historical Events
1882 – MLB Louisville Eclipse pitcher Tony Mullane is first to pitch right-handed and then left-handed
1944 – Hideki Tojo resigns the position of Prime Minister of Imperial Japan, after losing the support of Emperor Hirohito
1972 – 200,000 attend Mt Pocono rock festival in Penns
2018 – Kawhi Leonard is traded to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Pöltl, and a protected 2019 first-round draft pick
2023 – City of Phoenix, Arizona breaks a five decade heat record recording 19 consecutive days of temperature at or above 110°F (43.3°C); overnight low of 97°F (36.1°C) highest since 1989
Famous Birthdays
1850 – Rose Hartwick Thorpe, American poet (Curfew Must Not Ring) and writer, born in Mishawaka, Indiana, Kansas (d. 1939)
1884 – Alberto di Jorio, Italian Cardinal and former head of the Vatican Bank, born in Rome (d. 1979)
1903 – Victor Gruen [Viktor Grünbaum], Austrian-American architect known for his pioneering work designing shopping centers (Northland Shopping Center in Michigan), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1980)
1912 – Harry Levin, American literary scholar, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (d. 1994)
1946 – Leo Madder, Belgian actor (Spoed), born in Lier, Flanders, Belgium
Famous Deaths
1817 – Jane Austen, English novelist (Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Sense and Sensibility), dies at 41
1948 – Herman Gummerus, Finnish historian and politician (b. 1877)
1992 – Jan Pelleboer, Dutch meteorologist, and first television weatherman in the Netherlands, dies at 64
2009 – Henry Allingham, oldest male British supercentenarian (born 1896) and World War I veteran, dies at 113 years, 42 days
2018 – Wolfgang Hufschmidt, German church musician, academic, and composer, dies at 84
Historical Events
1743 – First half-page newspaper ad is published, in the NY Weekly Journal
1915 – WWI: Second Battle of Isonzo begins with Kingdom of Italy offensive against Austria-Hungary, ends 2-1/2 weeks later with over 91,000 combined casualties
1935 – Amsterdam city council accept city growth plan through the year 2000
1965 – Zond 3 launches to fly by the Moon and enters solar orbit
1970 – WJCL TV channel 22 in Savannah, GA (ABC) begins broadcasting
1995 – “Dreams from My Father,” a memoir by Barack Obama, is published by Times Books
2014 – The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) call 18,000 additional reserves soldiers in campaign against Gaza
2018 – Lava from Kilauea volcano eruption has now destroyed 700 homes and added 700 acres to Big Island confirms Hawaii National Guard
Famous Birthdays
1766 – Friedrich Fleischmann, German composer, born in Marktheidenfeld, Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg, Holy Roman Empire (d. 1798)
1890 – Charles Erwin Wilson, American engineer (President and CEO of General Motors) and politician (United States Secretary of Defense 1953-57), born in Minerva, Ohio (d. 1961)
1909 – Lupe Vélez [María Guadalupe Villalobos Vélez], Mexican-American actress (Joe Palooka), born in San Luis Potosí, Mexico (d. 1944)
1914 – Jo [Jozef Maria Laurens Theo] Cals, Prime Minister of Netherlands (1965-66) and Minister of Education, Arts and Sciences, born in Roermond, Netherlands (d. 1971)
1950 – Glenn Hughes, American disco singer (Village People), born in New York City (d. 2001)
1950 – Jack Layton, Canadian politician, born in Montreal, Quebec (d. 2011)
1950 – Kostas Eleftherakis, Greek footballer (Panathinaikos), born in Greece
1955 – Bernd Fasching, Austrian painter and sculptor, born in Vienna, Austria
1962 – Jack Irons, American drummer (Red Hot Chili Peppers, 1982-83 and 1986-88; Pearl Jam, 1994-98), born in Los Angeles, California
1994 – Taylor Russell, Canadian actress (Bones and All), born in Vancouver, British Columbia
Famous Deaths
1944 – George A Hartland, British politician (MP, Norwich, 1931-35), dies at 60
1968 – Corneille Heymans, Belgian physiologist (Nobel 1938), dies at 76
1970 – Lucien d’Azambuja, French astronomer (studied the solar chromosphere), dies at 86
1990 – Georges Dargaud, French publisher (Astérix, Tintin), dies at 79
1990 – Yoon Boseon, President of South Korea (b. 1897)
1991 – André Cools, Belgian Minister of Budget, murdered at 63
1994 – Gottfried Reinhardt [Goldmann], German/American director, dies at 83
2002 – Louis Laberge, Quebec labour union leader, dies at 78
2020 – [James] Keith Sonnier, American performance artist and sculptor (Palm Saw Tooth Blatt; Ba-O-Ba), dies at 78
2024 – Lou Dobbs, American broadcast journalist and conservative political pundit (CNN, 1980-99 and 2001-09; Fox Business, 2011-21), dies at 78