Today in History for 21st November 2025

Historical Events

1818 – Russia’s Tsar Alexander I has his delegation submit a petition to the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle calling for greater civil rights for Jews in Europe, an effort driven by English activist Lewis Way
1953 – WKJG TV channel 33 in Ft Wayne, IN (NBC) begins broadcasting
1967 – Vietnam War: American General William Westmoreland tells news reporters: “I am absolutely certain that whereas in 1965 the enemy was winning, today he is certainly losing.”
2002 – NATO invites Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia to become members.
2013 – “Happy” single is released by Pharrell Williams (Billboard Song of the Year 2014, Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance 2015)

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Famous Birthdays

1870 – Joe Darling, Australian cricket batsman and captain (34 Tests, 21 as captain; 3 x 100s, TS 178; South Australia CA), born in Glen Osmond, Australia (d. 1946)
1934 – Fairuz [Nouhad Haddad], Lebanese singer (“Habbaytak Bissayf”; “Bektob Ismak Ya Habibi”), born in Zuqaq al-Blat, Beirut, State of Greater Lebanon
1941 – David Porter, American producer, arranger and songwriter (“Soul Man”; “Hold On, I’m Coming”), born in Memphis, Tennessee
1942 – Tweety [Pie], Warner Bros. cartoon character created by Bob Clampett and Friz Freleng (Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series), first debuts in “A Tale of Two Kitties”
2000 – Isabel May, American actress (Katie Cooper-Alexa and Katie; Veronica Duncan-Young Sheldon), born in Santa Monica, California

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Famous Deaths

1963 – Pierre Blanchar, Algerian actor and director (Magnificent Sinner; Wooden Crosses; Pastoral Symphony), dies from a brain tumor at 71
1969 – Norman Lindsay, Australian artist and novelist (The Magic Pudding), dies at 90
2000 – Manfred Langer, Austrian-Dutch owner of the Amsterdam discotheque iT, dies of cancer at 42
2010 – Margaret Taylor-Burroughs, American visual artist and co-founder of DuSable Museum of African American History, dies at 95
2017 – Rodney Bewes, English actor (The Likely Lads), dies at 79

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Famous Deaths for 20th November 2025

869 – King Edmund of East Anglia
1758 – Johan Helmich Roman, Swedish violinist, conductor (Swedish Royal Orchestra), and composer (“Drottningholm Music”), known as the “Swedish Handel”, dies at 64
1851 – Wenzel Sedlak, Bohemian clarinetist and composer, dies at 75
1984 – Alexander Moyzes, Slovak composer, dies at 78
2000 – Mike Muuss, American computer programmer (Ping), dies in a car accident at 42
2008 – Sven Inge, Swedish painter and modern artist (b. 1935)
2015 – Jim Perry, American and Canadian tv host ($ale of the Century), dies at 82
2019 – Wataru Misaka, American basketball point guard (first non-white player, first player of Asian descent in BAA [later known NBA]; NY Knicks), dies at 95
2020 – Ernesto Canto, Mexican race walker (Olympic gold 20k 1984; World C’ship gold 20k 1983), dies from pancreatic and liver cancer at 61
2022 – Hebe de Bonafini, Argentine human rights activist (co-founded Mothers of Plaza de Mayo), dies at 93

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Historical Events for 20th November 2025

1616 – Bishop Richelieu becomes French minister of Foreign affairs and War
1941 – German “auxiliary cruiser” (armed merchant raider) Kormoran sinks near Australia
1981 – Charles Fuller’s stage drama “A Soldier’s Play”, featuring Denzel Washington and Samuel L. Jackson, opens at Theater Four, NYC; runs for 468 performances, wins Pulitzer Prize
1990 – Saddam Hussein announces plans to release German hostages
1995 – Diana, Princess of Wales, admits she cheated on Prince Charles in a TV interview
2004 – 69th Iron Bowl: Auburn beats Alabama 21-13 in Tuscaloosa
2005 – 57th NASCAR Sprint Cup: Tony Stewart wins
2013 – Retired Washington Post journalist and editor Ben Bradlee is presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama at a White House ceremony

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Today in History for 20th November 2025

Historical Events

1941 – Adm Nomura and Kurusu hands over Japanese last diplomatic note
1961 – WPLG TV channel 10 in Miami, FL (ABC) begins broadcasting
1990 – British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher fails to defeat Michael Heseltine’s bid for leadership of the Conservative Party
1993 – 5th College Football Holy War: Boston College beats Notre Dame 41-39 in South Bend (Boston College’s first win in the series)
1995 – Diana, Princess of Wales, admits she cheated on Prince Charles in a TV interview

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Famous Birthdays

1916 – John Elwyn, British painter, born in Adpar, Wales (d. 1997)
1934 – Valentine J. Peter, American priest (Boy’s Town), born in Omaha, Nebraska (d. 2020)
1948 – Kenjiro Shinozuka, Japanese rally driver who won the Dakar Rally 1997, born in Tokyo (d. 2024)
1978 – Nadine Velazquez, American model and actress (My Name is Earl, Flight), born in Chicago, Illinois
1983 – Future [Nayvadius Wilburn], American rapper and singer-songwriter (High Off Life), born in Atlanta, Georgia

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Famous Deaths

1927 – (Carl) Wilhelm Stenhammar, Swedish composer considered the finest Swedish pianist of his time, dies of a stroke at 56
1992 – John Foreman, producer (Prizzi’s Honor), dies at 67 of heart attack
1996 – Bert Geoffrey Achong, Trinidadian pathologist and inventor (electron microscopist), dies at 67
2003 – Kerem Yilmazer, Turkish actor (b. 1945)
2006 – Andre Waters, American football player (b. 1962)

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Famous Deaths for 19th November 2025

1478 – Emperor Baeda Maryam of Ethiopia (b. 1448)
1915 – Joe Hill [Joel Hägglund], Swedish-American labor activist and protest songwriter (“The Preacher and the Slave”; “There Is Power in a Union”), executed at Sugar House Prison in Salt Lake City, Utah for murder at 36
1942 – Bruno Schulz, Polish writer (The Street of Crocodiles), shot and killed by German Nazi at 50
1985 – Stepin Fetchit [Lincoln Perry], American actor (Miracle in Harlem) 1st African American film star, dies of pneumonia 83
1991 – Reggie Nalder, Austrian actor (Mark of Devil), dies of bone cancer at 80
1992 – Dorothy Walker Bush, American mother of President George H. W. Bush, dies at 91
1996 – Denis Jenkinson, British motor racing journalist, dies at 74
1997 – Durlyn Eddmonds, American murderer, executed at 45
2023 – Hannes Strydom, South African rugby union lock (21 Tests; Eastern Province, Northern Transvaal, Transvaal, Super Rugby Cats), dies in a car accident at 58
2024 – Roy Christian, New Zealand rugby league centre (32 Tests; Auckland RL, Otahuhu RLFC), dies at 81

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Historical Events for 19th November 2025

1905 – The steamer “Hilda” sinks in the English Channel (100 people drown)
1919 – US Senate rejects the Treaty of Versailles by a vote of 55 to 39; Congress two years later approves resolution ending hostilities with Germany and Austria-Hungary
1942 – Joseph Goebbels visits “German Theatre in the Netherlands”
1969 – Apollo 12’s Charles Conrad and Alan Bean become the 3rd and 4th humans on the Moon
1977 – Egyptian President Anwar Sadat arrives in Israel
1983 – Robert Whitney (79) conducts his final concert, leading the Louisville Orchestra at the opening of the Whitney Concert Hall at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts in Louisville, Kentucky
1994 – Aishwarya Rai, 21, of India, crowned 44th Miss World
2023 – Brazil records its highest-ever temperature – 44.8C (112.6F) in Araçuaí, Minas Gerais state

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Today in History for 19th November 2025

Historical Events

1816 – Warsaw University is established
1879 – National Association of Trotting Horse Breeders determines what “is” a trotter
1976 – George Harrison releases his single “This Song” on the album “Thirty Three and 1/3” as a direct and humorous response to the “My Sweet Lord”copyright lawsuit
1989 – US beats Trinidad, 1-0 qualifing for 1990 world soccer cup finals it was US’ 1st qualification since 1950
1991 – Baltimore Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken wins his second American League MVP

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Famous Birthdays

1722 – Benjamin Chew, Chief Justice of colonial Pennsylvania, born in Anne Arundel County, Maryland (d. 1810)
1946 – Joe Correro, American rock drummer (Paul Revere and The Raiders, 1967-71), born in Greenwood, Mississippi
1971 – Andy Sheets, American MLB infielder (Seattle Mariners), born in Baton Rouge, Louisana
1976 – Stylianos Venetidis, Greek soccer player, born in Orestiada, Greece
1977 – Davina Windsor [Lady], English daughter of Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and member of the Royal family, born in London, England

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Famous Deaths

1951 – Pete Hill, American Baseball HOF outfielder (NgL lifetime batting average: .326) and manager (Detroit Stars, Baltimore Black Sox), dies at 69
1983 – Reinout Willem van Bemmelen, Dutch geologist, dies at 79
2001 – Marcelle Ferron, Canadian painter, stained glass artist, and major figure in the Quebec contemporary art scene, dies at 77
2012 – Warren Rudman, American politician (Sen-R-NH, 1980-93), dies at 82
2023 – Joss Ackland, British actor (To Kill a Priest, White Mischief), dies at 95

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Famous Deaths for 18th November 2025

1154 – Adélaide de Maurienne, wife of Louis VI of France (b. 1092)
1559 – Cuthbert Tunstall, English churchman (b. 1474)
1785 – Louis Philip I, Duke of Orléans, French soldier and writer (b. 1725)
1814 – Aleijadinho ‘the Cripple’ [Antônio Francisco Lisboa], Brazilian architect and sculptor (São Francisco de Assis), dies at 76
1887 – Eduard Marxsen, German pianist and composer, dies at 81
1904 – Justus van Maurik, Dutch author and cigar manufacturer, dies at 58
1946 – Johnny Lush, American MLB baseball pitcher, 1904-10 (Philadelphia Phillies, St . Louis Cardinals 2 no-hitters – 1 official, 1 rain-shortened), dies at 61
1986 – Lajos Bárdos, Hungarian conductor, composer, musicologist and professor, dies at 87
1996 – Douglas Guest, British organist, choir master (Westminster Abbey, 1963-81), conductor, and composer (For the Fallen), dies at 80
2024 – Karl Kohn, Austrian-American pianist, composer, and educator (Pomona College), dies at 98

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Historical Events for 18th November 2025

1105 – Maginulf is elected Antipope Sylvester IV
1494 – French King Charles VIII occupies Florence
1750 – The original Westminster Bridge across the River Thames in London is opened in a midnight ceremony
1958 – 1st true reservoir in Jerusalem opens
1959 – “Ben-Hur” directed by William Wyler and starring Charlton Heston premieres in New York City (Academy Awards Best Picture 1960)
1970 – Russia lands self propelled rover on Moon
1997 – FBI says no evidence of foul play in 1996 TWA 800 crash
2012 – Brad Keselowski driving for Penske Racing finishes 5th in the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead Miami Speedway to clinch the Nascar Sprint Cup

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Today in History for 18th November 2025

Historical Events

1958 – 1st true reservoir in Jerusalem opens
1966 – US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1971 – China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor, PRC
1984 – CFL Grey Cup, Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton: Winnipeg Blue Bombers beat Hamilton Tiger-Cats, 47-17; Winnipeg scores final 44 points of the game
2006 – 71st Iron Bowl: Auburn beats Alabama 22-15 in Tuscaloosa

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Famous Birthdays

1736 – Carl Friedrich Christian Fasch, German composer, born in Zerbst, Anhalt-Zerbst, Holy Roman Empire (d. 1800)
1909 – Johnny Mercer, American singer, Academy Award-winning lyricist (“Moon River”; “That Old Black Magic”; “And the Angels Sing”: Come Rain Or Come Shine”), and record label executive (Capitol Records), born in Savannah, Georgia (d. 1976)
1923 – Ted Stevens, American politician (U.S. Senator from Alaska, 1968-2009), born in Indianapolis, Indiana (d. 2010)
1945 – Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sri Lankan politician, Prime Minister (2018-22) and President (2005-15), born in Weeraketiya, British Ceylon
1953 – Kevin Nealon, American actor (SNL, Hot Shot, Coneheads), born in Bridgeport, Connecticut

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Famous Deaths

1904 – Justus van Maurik, Dutch author and cigar manufacturer, dies at 58
1969 – Léon Jongen, Belgian organist, composer, and academic, dies at 85
1972 – Danny Whitten, American rock guitarist and songwriter (Crazy Horse; Rod Stewart – “I Don’t Want To Talk About It”), dies of a methaqualone overdose at 29
1986 – Gia Carangi, American model (AIDS) (b. 1960)
1990 – Peter Schilperoort, saxophonist/clarinetist, dies

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