Author: gil7

Historical Events

611 – Forces from Maya city Calakmul invade and conquer the neighbouring city of Palenque, holding it as a vassal state for five years
1865 – Battle of Farmville, Virginia
1979 – Houston Astro Ken Forsch no-hits Atlanta Braves, 6-0, becoming with his brother Bob Forsch the only MLB siblings to accomplish the feat
1983 – WIBC Championship Tournament in Las Vegas, attracts 75,480 women bowlers for 83-day event
2022 – Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi transfers power to an eight-member council to negotiate with the Houthis in attempt to end country’s seven-year civil war

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Famous Birthdays

1727 – Michel Adanson, French botanist known for his work on plant classifications, born in Aix-en Provence, France (d. 1806)
1873 – John McGraw, American Baseball Hall of Fame infielder/manager (manager NY Giants World Series champions 1905, 21-22), born in Truxton, New York (d. 1934)
1882 – Bert Ironmonger, Australian cricket spin bowler (14 Tests; 74 wickets @ 17.97; Queensland, Victoria), born in Pine Mountain, Australia (d. 1971)
1889 – Gabriela Mistral [Lucila Godoy Alcayaga], Chilean poet (Nobel Prize for Literature, 1945), educator and diplomat, born in Vicuña, Chile (d. 1957)
1909 – Robert Charroux, French writer (Legacy of the Gods, The Mysterious Past), born in Payroux, France (d. 1978)

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Famous Deaths

1880 – Diederich Krug, German pianist and composer (Le petit Chevalier), dies at 60
1986 – Leonid Kantorovich, Russian Soviet economist (Father of linear programming, Nobel Prize for Economics 1975), dies at 74
1997 – Luis Aloma, Cuban baseball player, dies at 73
2020 – Herb Stempel, American game show contestant and television industry whistleblower (Twenty-One), dies at 93
2023 – Ian Bairnson, Scottish session and touring guitarist (Alan Parsons Project; Kate Bush), dies at 69

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Historical Events

1924 – Italy fascists receives 65% of vote of parliament
1976 – 1st quadrophonic movie track: “Ladies and Gentlemen the Rolling Stones”
1977 – Judge rules Beatles 1962 Hamburg album can be released
1987 – Middleweight World Boxing Championship bout: Sugar Ray Leonard upsets Marvelous Marvin Hagler at Caesars Palace in Paradise, Nevada
1997 – The Tradition Senior Men’s Golf, GC at Desert Mountain: Gil Morgan wins first of 3 Champions Tour majors by 6 strokes from Isao Aoki

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Famous Birthdays

1917 – Leonora Carrington, British-Mexican Surrealist artist, born in Clayton-le-Woods, England (d. 2011)
1928 – James Watson, American molecular biologist who co-discovered DNA’s structure, with Francis Crick (Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine, 1962), geneticist and zoologist, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2025)
1929 – Art Taylor, American jazz drummer (Bud Powell, Red Garland, John Coltrane, Donald Byrd), bandleader (Taylor’s Wailers), and writer (Notes and Tones), born in New York City (d. 1995)
1968 – Vanessa Lann, American composer (Dancing to an Orange Drummer), born in Brooklyn, New York
1996 – Myha’la [Herrold], American actress (Industry, Leave the World Behind), born in San Jose, California

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Famous Deaths

1348 – Laure de Noves, “Petrarch’s Laura”, Italian muse of poet Petrarch, wife of Count Hugues II de Sade, dies of the plague at about 38 (b. 1310)
1998 – Tammy Wynette [Virginia Pugh], American country singer (“Stand By Your Man”), dies at 55
2004 – Niki Sullivan, American guitarist (The Crickets), dies of a heart attack at 66
2019 – Ernest “Fritz” Hollings, American Democratic Senator from South Carolina (1966-2005) and Governor of South Carolina (1959-63), dies at 97
2020 – James Drury, American actor (The Virginian), dies of natural causes at 85

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Historical Events

1881 – Transvaal regains independence under British suzerainty
1946 – 100th Grand National: Capt. Robert Petre wins aboard 25/1 shot Lovely Cottage; first true GN since 1940 due to World War II; last on a Friday
2012 – Severe storms in Argentina kill 14 people
2012 – International internet group Anonymous hack several Chinese bureaus in opposition to censorship
2016 – 35th NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship: Connecticut defeats Syracuse, 82–51; Huskies’ power forward Breanna Stewart, 24 points

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Famous Birthdays

1830 – Alexander Muir, Scottish-Canadian composer (The Maple Leaf Forever), born in Lesmahagow, Scotland (d. 1906)
1920 – Rafiq Zakaria, Indian politician and Islamic religious cleric, born in Nala Sopara, British India (d. 2005)
1943 – Max Gail, American Emmy Award winning actor (Barney Miller – “Wojo”; D.C. Cab: General Hospital; 42), born in Detroit, Michigan
1950 – Paul Oscher, American blues musician (Muddy Waters Blues Band), born in Brooklyn, New York
1973 – Spencer Folau, Tongan, American football offensive lineman (Baltimore Ravens), born in Nukuʻalofa, Tonga

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Famous Deaths

1723 – Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, Austrian Baroque architect under the Habsburgs (Schönbrunn Palace), dies at 66
1735 – William Derham, English clergyman, natural theologian and scientist, dies at 77
1935 – Emil Młynarski, Polish conductor and composer, dies at 64
2023 – Ian McIntosh, Zimbabwean rugby union coach (South Africa 1993-94; Natal), dies at 84
2025 – Heikki Hasu, Finnish Nordic skier (Olympic gold individual 1948, 4×10k relay 1952; silver individual 1952), dies at 99

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Historical Events

1655 – Battle of Porto Farina: English fleet defeats Barbary corsairs in Tunis
1974 – Hank Aaron ties Babe Ruth’s home run record by hitting his 714th in Cincinnati against Jack Billingham
1983 – 45th NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: North Carolina State beats Houston, 54-52; Wolfpack win with buzzer-beating dunk by Lorenzo Charles off a desperation 30 foot shot from Dereck Whittenburg
2022 – Economist Rodrigo Chaves elected President of Costa Rica defeating current president José María Figueres
2022 – Ukrainian government begins a war crimes investigation after 410 civilians found killed after the withdrawal of Russian forces from around Kyiv

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Famous Birthdays

1802 – Dorothea Dix, American pioneering nurse and social activist who created the first American mental asylums, born in Hampden, Maine (d. 1887)
1933 – Frits Bolkestein, Dutch politician (People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy), born in Amsterdam
1953 – Susan Alcorn, American pedal steel guitarist and avant garde composer, born in Allentown, Pennsylvania (d. 2025)
1977 – Omarr Smith, American football defensive back, born in Chicago, Illinois
1983 – Angelle Tymon, American journalist and TV game show host (PlayMania Block), born in Lutcher, Louisiana

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Famous Deaths

1994 – Olga Lowina, Dutch yodeler (Edelweisskapel), dies at 69
1999 – Early Wynn, Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher (Cy Young Award 1959 Chicago WS; MLB wins leader 1954, 59; 9 x MLB All Star; Cleveland Indians), dies of a stroke at 79
2015 – Elmer Lach, Canadian Hockey HOF center (Stanley Cup 1944, 46, 53 Montreal Canadiens; Hart Trophy 1945; Art Ross Trophy 1948; 5 x NHL All Star), dies of a stroke at 97
2018 – Gertrude Jeannette, African American taxi driver, playwright and film and stage actress (Shaft, Cotton Comes to Harlem), dies at 103
2023 – Craig Breedlove, American auto racer (5 x world land speed record holder; first to reach 500mph (800km/h) and 600mph (970km/h), dies of cancer at 86

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