Author: gil7

Historical Events

1899 – The Irish Literary Theatre in Dublin opens
1902 – Mount Pelée on the French overseas island of Martinique erupts, wiping out the city of Saint-Pierre, killing 30,000 and leaving only two survivors
1926 – A. Philip Randolph organizes Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
1949 – West German constitution approved
1996 – Paris Saint-Germain of France win 36th European Cup Winner’s Cup against Rapid Wien of Austria 1-0 in Brussels
1996 – South Africa’s Constitutional Assembly adopts permanent post-apartheid constitution

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Famous Birthdays

1460 – Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (1486-1536), born in Ansbach, Bavaria, Germany (d. 1536)
1919 – Mordecai Anielewicz, Jewish commander of the Warsaw ghetto uprising, born in Wyszków, Second Polish Republic (d. 1943)
1930 – Doug Atkins, American College/Pro Football HOF defensive end (Uni of Tennessee; NFL C’ship 1954, 63; First-team All-Pro 1963; 8×Pro Bowl; Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears, NO Saints), born in Humbolt Tennessee (d. 2015)
1934 – Leonard Hoffmann, South African-British high court judge, born in Cape Town, South Africa
1937 – Dennis DeConcini, American politician (Sen-D-AZ, 1977-95), born in Tucson, Arizona
1967 – James Hurt, American jazz pianist, and composer (Dark Grooves – Mystical Rhythms), born in Memphis, Tennessee

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Famous Deaths

1672 – Jean-Armand du Peyrer, Comte de Tréville and French Officer (b. 1598)
1976 – Fred McLeod, Scottish golfer (US Open 1908), dies at 94
1979 – Talcott Parsons, American sociologist, dies at 76
1988 – Robert A. Heinlein, American sci-fi writer (Friday), dies of heart failure at 80
2000 – Karl-Rudi Griesbach, German composer, dies at 83
2018 – James Scott, American boxer and felon, dies at 71

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Historical Events

1867 – Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel patents dynamite in England, the first of three patents he would receive for the explosive material
1907 – Central American Court of Justice inaugurated in San Jose, Costa Rica – first standing tribunal for International Law in the world
1913 – Plot by English suffragettes to blow up part of St Paul’s cathedral thwarted when the bomb is discovered
1954 – French surrender to Vietminh after 55-day siege at Dien Bien Phu
1955 – USSR signs peace treaty with France and Great Britain
1995 – Twins beat Indians 10-9 in 17 innings, 6 hours and 36 minutes

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Famous Birthdays

1855 – Willie Fernie, Scottish golfer (British Open 1883), born in St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland (d. 1924)
1890 – Billy House, American actor (Imitation of Life; Bedlam: The Egg and I), born in Mankato, Minnesota (d. 1961)
1909 – Edwin Land, American inventor of instant photography and co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation, born in Bridgeport, Connecticut (d. 1991)
1931 – Gene Wolfe, American sci-fi author (Soldier of Arete), born in New York City
1933 – Nexhmije Pagarusha, Albanian singer ‘the Nightingale of Kosovo’ and actress, born near Malishevë, Kosovo (d. 2020)
1971 – Dave Karpa, Canadian NHL defenseman (Anaheim Mighty Ducks), born in Regina, Saskatchewan

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Famous Deaths

973 – Otto I the Great, Holy Roman Emperor (962-973), dies at 60
1667 – Johann Jakob Froberger, German organist, singer, and composer, dies at 50
1998 – Allan McLeod Cormack, South African physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1924)
2018 – Mikhail German, Russian writer, dies at 85
2020 – John Macurdy, American operatic bass (Met Opera), dies at 91
2021 – Yegor Ligachev, Soviet politician (ally then challenger to Gorbachev), dies at 100

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Historical Events

878 – Battle of Edington: Alfred the Great and his West Saxon army defeat Viking army of Guthrum the Old [earliest possible date]
1541 – King Henry VIII orders a bible in English be placed in every church in England
1907 – 33rd Kentucky Derby: In muddy conditions and against a reduced field Andy Minder aboard Pink Star wins in a slow 2:12.6
1935 – British King George V and Queen Mary celebrate silver jubilee
1967 – 400 students seize administration building at Cheyney State College, Pennsylvania
1975 – Bundy victim Lynette Culver disappears from Pocatello, Idaho

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Famous Birthdays

1638 – Henry Capell, 1st Baron Capell, English politician and First Lord of the British Admiralty, born in Hadham Parva, Hertfordshire (d. 1696)
1926 – Johnny Bragg, American doo-wop singer-songwriter (The Prisonaires – “Just Walkin’ in the Rain”), born in Nashville, Tennessee (d. 2004)
1951 – Samuel Doe, President of Liberia (d. 1990)
1956 – Tim Simpson, American golfer (4 PGA Tour titles, born in Atlanta, Georgia
1970 – Emerson Martin, NFL guard (Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers, Packers)
1977 – Christophe Brandt, Belgian cyclist

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Famous Deaths

1836 – Christian Ignatius Latrobe, English clergyman and composer (Selection of Sacred Music), dies at 78
1840 – Francisco de Paula Santander, Colombian president and independence leader (b. 1792)
1890 – Hubert Léonard, Belgian violinist, and pedagogue (Brussels Conservatoire, 1848-67), dies at 71
1995 – Hilda Toledano [Maria Pia de Braganca], Portuguese journalist and writer who claimed to be the bastard daughter of King Carlos I of Portugal, dies at 88
2004 – Philip Kapleau, American Zen teacher and founder (Rochester Zen Center in New Haven), dies at 91
2013 – Giulio Andreotti, Italian Prime Minister, dies at 94

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Historical Events

1854 – British Commodore James Plumridge attacks Finnish settlements in Gulf of Bothnia, killing civilans and destroying British-owned goods.
1864 – Battle of Wilderness, Virginia (Germanna Ford, Wilderness Tavern)
1955 – West Germany is granted full sovereignty by its three occupying powers
1979 – Masterpiece Radio Theater begins broadcasting
2002 – Jacques Chirac wins the French Presidential election for a second term defeating Jean-Marie Le Pen leader of the far-right National Front
2015 – “Traveller” debut album by Chris Stapleton is released (Grammy Award Best Country Album, 2016; Billboard Album of the Year, 2016)

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Famous Birthdays

1749 – Jean-Frédéric Edelmann, French composer, born in Strasbourg, France (d. 1794)
1854 – Antonio Smareglia, Italian composer, born in Pola, Austrian Empire (now Pula, Croatia) (d. 1929)
1911 – Norman Oldfield, English cricketer (Engl batsman one Test v WI 1939, 80 and 19), born in Dukinfield, Cheshire, England (d. 1996)
1938 – Michael Murphy, American actor (McCabe and Mrs Miller, Unmarried Woman), born in Los Angeles, California
1972 – Ronald Snook, Australian rower (Olympics bronze 1996), born in Dalwallinu, Western Australia
1977 – Choi Kang-hee, South Korean actress (Sweet Buns), born in Seoul, South Korea

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Famous Deaths

1582 – Charlotte de Bourbon, Princess of Orange, dies
1947 – Ty LaForest, Canadian baseball player, dies at 30
1957 – Mikhail Gnesin, Russian composer (Vrubel; The Youth Of Abraham), dies at 74
1992 – Dick Yarmy, American character actor (Get Smart; Kentucky Fried Movie; Mork and Mindy), dies of lung cancer at 58
2011 – Arthur Laurents, American playwright (West Side Story: Gypsy), and screenwriter (Rope; Anastasia), dies at 93
2023 – Terry Lewis, Australian disgraced police officer (Commissioner of the Queensland Police Service, 1976-87), and convict (corruption, forgery), dies at 95

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