1844 – John Dalton, English physicist and chemist who developed the atomic theory of matter and researched colour blindness, dies at 77
1968 – Anton van Duinkerken [Willem Jan Marie Anton Asselbergs], Dutch poet and academic, dies at 65
1972 – Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi, Austrian-Japanese politician, dies at 77
1992 – Max Dupain, Australian photographer (“Sunbaker”), dies at 81
1994 – Kevin Carter, South African photojournalist and Pulitzer Prize winner (member of the Bang-Bang Club), commits suicide at 33
1997 – Isabel Dean, English actress (Five Days One Summer Virgin Island, Ransom), dies at 79
2011 – Ágota Kristóf, Hungarian writer (The Notebook), dies at 75
2012 – Tony Martin, American singer, dies from natural causes at 98
2015 – A. P. J. [Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen] Abdul Kalam, Indian scientist and politician, 11th President of India (2002-07), dies at 83
2018 – Vladimir Voinovich, Russian writer and dissident (Moscow 2042), dies of a heart attack at 85
Author: gil7
Historical Events for 27th July 2024
1918 – Socony 200, 1st concrete barge in US, launched to carry oil, NY
1927 – Mel Ott, 18, hits his 1st league home run (inside the park)
1947 – New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra starts a record 148 game errorless streak
1992 – Dimitri Lepikov, Vladimir Pychenko, Veniamin Taianovitch and Evgueni Sadovyi swim world record 4x200m freestyle (7:11.95)
1997 – Si Zerrouk massacre in Algeria; about 50 people killed.
1997 – British Senior Open Men’s Golf, Royal Portrush GC: Gary Player of South Africa wins with birdie on 2nd playoff hole against countryman John Bland
2003 – A group of 321 Filipino armed soldiers called “Magdalo” take over Oakwood Premier Ayala Center in Makati City to show Filipino people the alleged corruption of the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo administration
2005 – NASA postpones all Shuttle flights, pending an investigation into the foam-shedding problem on Discovery’s external tanks
2014 – Obama reaffirms Israel’s “right to defend itself”, but condemns civilian casualties in Gaza
2022 – 170-carat pink diamond the “Lulo Rose,” thought to be largest discovered in 300 years, announced found in Angola
Today in History for 27th July 2024
Historical Events
1918 – Socony 200, 1st concrete barge in US, launched to carry oil, NY
1932 – Paul Gorgoulov, assassin of French president Doumer, sentenced to death
1976 – Japanese ex-premier Tanaka arrested (Lockheed Affair)
1983 – 104°F (40.3°C) in Garmersdorf (German record)
1997 – “Candide” closes at Gershwin Theater NYC after 103 performances
2006 – The Federal Republic of Germany is deemed guilty in the loss of Bashkirian 2937 and DHL Flight 611, because it is illegal to outsource flight surveillance
Famous Birthdays
1612 – Murad IV, Sultan of Turkey (1623-40) who conquered Baghdad, born in Constantinople, Ottoman Empire (d. 1640)
1881 – Hans Fischer, German organic chemist (Nobel Prize for Chemistry 1930), born in Hoechst, Germany (d. 1945)
1906 – Herbert Jasper, Canadian physiologist and neurologist, born in La Grande, Oregon (d. 1999)
1906 – Leo Durocher, American Baseball HOF shortstop (MLB All Star 1936, 38, 40; World Series 1928, 34; NY Yankees, St.Louis Cardinals), manager (World Series 1954 NY Giants) and coach (World Series 1963 LA Dodgers), born in West Springfield, Massachusetts (d. 1991)
1933 – Nick Reynolds, American folk singer, tenor guitarist, and bongo player (The Kingston Trio, 1957-67 – “Tom Dooley”; “M.T.A.”), born in San Diego, California (d. 2008)
1968 – Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Italian actress (Postman), born in Messina, Italy
Famous Deaths
1227 – Otto II van Lippe, bishop of Utrecht (1216-27), dies
1924 – Ferruccio Busoni, Italian piano prodigy, composer (Fantasia Contrappuntistica; Arlecchino), conductor, and pedagogue, dies of heart failure at 58
1961 – Theodore Chanler, American composer, dies at 59
1998 – William McChesney Martin, American Chairman of Federal Reserve Bank (1951-70), dies at 91
2000 – Val Dufour, American actor (Eugenie Grandet, Another World), dies at 73
2003 – Bob Hope [Leslie Townes Hope], English-born American actor, comedian and entertainer, dies at 100
Famous Deaths for 26th July 2024
1925 – Gottlob Frege, German mathematician and logician (Begriffsschrift), dies at 76
1956 – Miguel Bernal Jiménez, Mexican organist, composer and pedagogue (Tata Vasco; Tres Cartas de México), dies of a heart attack at 46
1988 – Fazlur Rahman, Pakistani modernist scholar, dies at 68
1993 – Matthew Ridgway, American general (World War II, Korean War, NATO Supreme Commander) and Chief of Staff of the US Army (1953-55), dies of cardiac arrest at 98
1998 – (David Allan) “Chico” Ryan, American rock bassist and singer (Sha Na Na, 1973-98), dies at 50
2000 – John Tukey, American statistician (b. 1915)
2007 – Lars Forssell, Swedish writer, member of the Swedish Academy (b. 1928)
2009 – Merce Cunningham, American choreographer (Acrobat in Every Soul is a Circus), dies at 90
2016 – Miss Cleo [Youree Dell Harris], American psychic (Psychic Readers Network), dies of colon cancer at 53
2017 – June Foray, American voice actress (Rocky the Flying Squirrel; Cinderella, Cindy Lou Who), dies at 99
Historical Events for 26th July 2024
1656 – Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn declares he is insolvent after living beyond his means and spending too much on artwork and rare items. Leads to the most experimental and exuberantly creative period of his career.
1805 – Naples/Calabria struck by Earthquake; about 26,000 die
1896 – Vitascope Hall, 1st permanent for-profit movie theatre, opens in New Orleans
1958 – Army launches 4th US successful satellite, Explorer IV
1962 – Milwaukee Brave Warren Spahn sets HR record of 31 by a pitcher
1963 – US Syncom 2, 1st geosynchronous communications satellite, launched
1965 – Republic of Maldives gains independence from Britain (National Day)
1983 – Light flashes seen on Jupiter moon Io
2017 – 3 live king cobras reported found inside potato chip cans by customs officials in Los Angeles
2023 – Actor Kevin Spacey is cleared of sex assault charges at a court in London
Today in History for 26th July 2024
Historical Events
1803 – The Surrey Iron Railway, arguably the world’s first public railway, opens in south London
1926 – Philippines government asks USA for a plebiscite on independence
1928 – In only his second and final defense of his world heavyweight boxing title, Gene Tunney scores an 11-round TKO win over Tom Heeney at Yankee Stadium, NYC
1959 – Chicago White Sox Larry Doby plays final MLB game; retires in 1962 after playing for the Chunichi Dragons in Japan
1967 – Twins beat Yanks 3-2 in 18
1990 – US President George H. W. Bush signs Americans With Disabilities Act
Famous Birthdays
1891 – Jacques Pirenne, Belgian historian and honorary secretary of King Leopold III of Belgium, born in Ghent, Belgium (d. 1972)
1934 – Mauri, Spanish soccer midfielder (5 caps; Athletic Bilbao 246 games), born in Gernika, Spain (d. 2022)
1949 – Roger Taylor, English rock drummer (Queen – “Bohemian Rhapsody”), born in Norfolk, England
1950 – Nelinho, Brazilian soccer right back (21 caps; Cruzeiro EC 410 games; Atlético Mineiro), born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1953 – Robert Phillips, American classical guitarist, born in New York City
1980 – Lee Dong-gun, South Korean actor, born in Gangnam District, Seoul
Famous Deaths
1667 – Michael Franck, German composer, poet and baker, dies at 58
1723 – Robert Bertie, 1st Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, English statesman
1863 – Sam Houston, 1st President of Republic of Texas (1836-38, 1841-44) who helped bring Texas into the United States as a constituent state, dies at 70
1964 – Francis Curzon, 5th Earl Howe, British politician, naval officer and auto racer (1931 Le Mans), dies at 80
1977 – Hans-Otto Borgmann, German film score composer under the Third Reich, dies at 75
2021 – Joey Jordison, American drummer (Slipknot, 1995-2013 – “All Hope Is Gone”), dies at 46
Famous Deaths for 25th July 2024
1539 – Lorenzo Campeggi(east), archbishop of Bologna and diplomat, dies at 65
1794 – André Chenier, French poet (Avis aux Francais sur leurs), executed by guillotine during French Revolution at 31
1934 – Nestor Makhno, Ukrainian anarchist Insurrectionary leader, dies at 45
1952 – Herbert Murrill, British organist, composer (The Song of the Birds; Carillon), and educator (Royal Academy of Music, 1933-52), dies of cancer at 43
1983 – Jerome Moross, American composer (Frankie and Johnny), dies at 69
1984 – Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton, American rhythm-and-blues singer and songwriter (“Hound Dog”; “Ball and Chain”; “Stronger Than Dirt”), dies of heart and liver disorders at 57
1987 – Charles Stark “Doc” Draper, American Scientist and Engineer who headed the team that invented the Apollo Guidance Computer and inertial navigation technology for aircraft, space vehicles, and submarines, dies at 85
2008 – Jeff Fehring, Australian rules footballer (b. 1955)
2011 – Arsene Souffriau, Belgian pioneering electronic music composer, dies at 86
2018 – Judith Appelbaum, American magazine and newspaper editor and educator, dies at 78
Historical Events for 25th July 2024
1759 – British capture Fort Niagara from French (7 Years’ War)
1900 – Gloucestershire captain Gilbert Jessop hits his second century (139 in 95 minutes) before lunch in same County Cricket match (104 previous day); Yorkshire wins by 40 runs
1908 – Ajinomoto Co. is founded. Kikunae Ikeda of the Tokyo Imperial University discovers a key ingredient in Konbu soup stock is monosodium glutamate (MSG), patents a process for manufacturing it.
1914 – Serbia meets the deadlines of Austria-Hungary’s ultimatum and gives a conciliatory reply, though Serbia is mobilizing
1973 – George Harrison pays £1,000,000 tax on his Bangladesh concert and album
1978 – John Lydon forms rock group Public Ltd Image
1985 – USSR performs nuclear Test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeast Kazakhstan
1990 – Nadezhda Ryashkina of USSR sets 10K walk woman’s record (41:56.23)
2014 – Both Israel and Hamas review US Secretary of State John Kerry’s proposal for an immediate ceasefire and meetings in Cairo
2018 – Liquid lake found on Mars under its South Pole by European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter reported in “Science”
Today in History for 25th July 2024
Historical Events
864 – The Edict of Pistres of Charles the Bald orders defensive measures against the Vikings
1360 – Jews are expelled from Breslau, Silesia
1853 – Joaquin Murrieta, the famous Californian bandit known as “Robin Hood of El Dorado”, is killed by California Rangers
1866 – David Faragut appointed as 1st admiral in US Navy
1914 – Last day of club cricket for English legend W. G. Grace at age 66: makes unbeaten 69 runs for Eltham against Grove Park
1993 – Israeli offensive against terrorist bases in South Lebanon
Famous Birthdays
1908 – Bill Bowes, English cricket fast bowler (15 Tests, 68 wickets, BB 6/33; Bodyline series; Yorkshire CCC), born in Elland, England (d. 1987)
1917 – Whipper Billy Watson, Canadian professional wrestler, born in East York, Ontario, Canada (d. 1990)
1918 – Jane Frank, American artist, born in Baltimore, Maryland (d. 1986)
1920 – Rosalind Franklin, English chemist and co-discoverer of the structure of DNA, born in London (d. 1958)
1930 – Alice Parizeau, Polish-born Quebec writer and essayist, born in Łuniniec, Poland (d. 1990)
1985 – Nelson Piquet Jr., Brazilian auto racer (Formula E champion 2014-15), born in Heidelberg, West Germany
Famous Deaths
1883 – William Beall, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army, relief efforts for prisoners), dies at 58
1911 – Filippo Capocci, Italian organ virtuoso and composer, dies at 71
1981 – Ian Martin, American actor (Uncle Bill-O’Neills), dies at 69
1983 – Jerome Moross, American composer (Frankie and Johnny), dies at 69
2014 – Bel Kaufman, American author (Up the Down Staircase), dies at 103
2022 – David Trimble, Northern Irish politician (First Minister of Northern Ireland, 1998 to 2002; Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) leader, 1995 to 2005; Member of Parliament for Upper Bann, 1990-2005), dies at 77
Famous Deaths for 24th July 2024
446 – St Proclus, patriarch and archbishop of Constantinople, dies
1115 – Matilda of Tuscany, Countess of Canossa, feudal margravine dies at 68 or 69
1756 – George Vertue, English engraver, dies at about 72
1812 – Joseph Schuster, German composer, dies at 63
1954 – Mary Church Terrell, American educator and civil rights activist (co-founder and President National Association of Colored Women, dies at 90
1960 – Hans Albers, German actor (Blue Angel), dies at 68
1974 – Ernest Milton, American-British actor (Julius Caesar, Cat Girl), dies at 84
1996 – Howard Vernon, Swiss actor (Love and Death, Delicatessen), dies at 82
2001 – Georges Dor [Dore], French Canadian author, playwright, radio broadcaster, singer and songwriter, dies at 70
2011 – Dan Peek, American rock vocalist and guitarist (America), dies at 60