Author: gil7

Historical Events

1690 – English astronomer John Flamsteed observes Uranus without realizing it’s undiscovered
1907 – 1st all-steel passengar railroad coach completed, Altoona, Pennsylvania
1921 – Gangster Carlo Gambino enters the United States as an illegal immigrant on the SS Vincenzo Florio
1933 – Dutch communist Marinus van der Lubbe sentenced to death for setting the German Reichstag on fire
1946 – Highest ridership in NYC subway history (8.8 million passengers)
1970 – NYC World Trade Center reaches highest point (411 m)

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Famous Birthdays

1897 – Julien Carette, French actor (Sylvia and the Phantom), born in Paris, France (d. 1966)
1935 – Paul Hornung, American College Football Hall of Fame halfback (Heisman Trophy 1956, Notre Dame; Pro Bowl 1959, 60, Green Bay Packers), born in Louisville, Kentucky
1936 – Claude Albert Coppens, Belgian pianist, born in Schaerbeek, Belgium
1951 – Anthony Phillips, English guitarist (Genesis, 1967-70), born in London, England
1962 – Jerry Reynolds, NBA guard/forward (Milwaukee Bucks), born in French Lick, Indiana
1979 – Kenny Miller, Scottish football player, born in Edinburgh, United Kingdom

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Famous Deaths

1652 – John Cotton, Puritan clergyman in Massachusetts Bay colony, dies at 68
1962 – George Saiko, Austrian writer, dies at 70
1997 – Keith Bentley, English international racing cyclist, dies at 72
2010 – Fred Hargesheimer, American World War II pilot (b. 1916)
2015 – Alfred G. Gilman, American scientist (1994 Nobel Prize for G-protein discoveries), dies at 74
2022 – Txetxu Rojo, Spanish soccer forward (18 caps; Athletic Bilbao 413 games) and manager (Athletic Bilbao, Celta Vigo, Osasuna, Real Zaragoza), dies at 75

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Historical Events

1894 – French officer Alfred Dreyfus court-martialed for treason, triggers worldwide charges of anti-Semitism (Dreyfus later vindicated)
1905 – Arrest of St Petersburg Soviet members leads to an uprising of Moscow workers and fighting in the street
1956 – Colo is born, the first gorilla to be bred in captivity at Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Columbus, Ohio
1984 – Test Cricket debut of Craig McDermott, v WI at the MCG
1994 – Italian government of Silvio Berlusconi resigns
1996 – St Louis Blues’ right wing Brett Hull scores his 26th NHL career hat trick to reach 500 career goals in a 7-4 win over the LA Kings; with father Bobby Hull, first father/son combo to each record 500 goals

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Famous Birthdays

1546 – Kuroda Yoshitaka, Japanese daimyō, born in Himeji, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan (d. 1604)
1887 – Srinivasa Ramanujan, Indian mathematician (number theory), born in Erode, British India (d. 1920)
1903 – Marc Lavry [Levin], Latvian-Israeli composer (Emek; Independence Symphony; Song of Songs], and conductor, born in Riga, Latvia (d. 1967)
1930 – Bill Jenkins, American engine builder and drag racer (Motorsports Hall of Fame of America), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2012)
1944 – Steve Carlton, American Baseball HOF pitcher (NL Cy Young Award 1972, 77, 80, 82; Triple Crown 1972; 10 x MLB All Star; St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies), born in Miami, Florida
1957 – Susan Powter, Australian-born American motivational speaker, nutritionist, personal trainer, and author (The Susan Powter Show), born in Sydney, Australia

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Famous Deaths

1893 – Johann Czerski, German chaplain, dies at 80
1951 – Powell Weaver, American composer, dies at 61
1966 – Lucy Burns, American suffragist (National Woman’s Party) and women’s rights advocate, dies at 87
1985 – D. Boon, American singer and guitarist (The Minutemen) (b. 1958)
2003 – Dave Dudley, American country singer (Six Days on the Road), dies at 75
2007 – Adrian Cristobal, Filipino writer (b. 1932)

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Historical Events

1919 – J. Edgar Hoover persuades US to deport 250 alien radicals, including anarchist and feminist Emma Goldman and her husband to Russia
1936 – Master batsman Don Bradman has a rare embarrassment – a 2nd consecutive Test duck (0), as England dismisses Australia for 80 in the 2nd Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground
1939 – Adolf Hitler names Adolf Eichmann leader of “Referat IV B”, responsible for evictions and Jewish immigration
1976 – Patricia R Harris named secretary of HUD
1988 – Lockerbie disaster: A terrorist bomb destroys Pan Am Flight 103 mid-air, over Scotland; killing all 259 passengers and crew on board, and 11 people on the ground
1989 – New Zealand is the first country to set a formal inflation target (0-2%) for how much prices should rise each year. Similar targets are subsequently adopted by most developed countries.

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Famous Birthdays

1923 – Wataru Misaka, American basketball point guard (first non-white player, first player of Asian descent in BAA [later known NBA]; NY Knicks), born in Ogden, Utah (d. 2019)
1943 – André Arthur, Canadian radio host and politician, born in Quebec City, Canada
1957 – John Geddert, American gymnastics coach (US head coach London Olympic Team 2012), born in Mt. Clemens, Michigan (d. 2021)
1964 – Joey Kocur, NHL right wing (Vancouver Canucks), born in Calgary, Alberta
1971 – Matthieu Chedid, French musician, born in Boulogne-Billancourt, France
1989 – Mark Ingram Jr., American football running back (Heisman Trophy 2009, U of Alabama; NFL Pro Bowl 2014, 17, 19; New Orleans Saints, Baltimore Ravens), born in Hackensack, New Jersey

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Famous Deaths

1900 – Roger Wolcott, American political figure, 39th Governor of Massachusetts (b. 1847)
1998 – Ernst Gunther Schenck, German doctor who joined the Sturmabteilung in 1933 {b. 1904)
2010 – David Hennessy [Lord Windlesham], British politician (C) (Leader of the House of Lords 1973-4) and TV executive, dies at 78
2010 – Enzo Bearzot, Italian football player and manager (b. 1927)
2016 – Weston Noble, American music educator and conductor (Luther College, 1948-2005), dies at 94
2021 – (Wilbert) Billy Davis, American tennis player (11 x American Tennis Association Titles), dies of congestive heart failure at 91

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Historical Events

1780 – Britain declares war on Holland
1850 – Hawaiian post office established
1862 – Confederate raid on Union supplies at Holly Springs, Mississippi
1946 – Darius Milhaud’s 2nd Symphony, premieres with the Boston Symphony conducted by the composer; the work was commissioned as a memorial to the wife of group’s music director Serge Koussevitzky
1955 – Cardiff is proclaimed the capital city of Wales
1985 – Position of American Poet Laureate established (Robert Warren is 1st)

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Famous Birthdays

1819 – John Geary, American lawyer and politician (1st SF postmaster; 1st mayor), born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania (d. 1873)
1909 – Vakkom Majeed, Indian freedom fighter and politician, born in the Kingdom of Travancore (d. 2000)
1946 – Lesley Judd, British child actress, dancer, television presenter (Blue Peter, 1972-79), and radio host (BBC’s Woman’s Hour, 1982-88), born in London, England
1956 – Guy Babylon, American keyboard player (Elton John) and arranger, born in New Windsor, Maryland (d. 2009|)
1976 – Adam Powell, Welsh computer programmer and game designer (Neopets), born in Newport, Wales
1996 – Hannah Green, Australian golfer (Women’s PGA C’ship 2019), born in Perth, Western Australia

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Famous Deaths

1679 – Johan Maurits, Dutch nobleman, Prince of Nassau-Siegen (1964-79), Governor of Dutch Brazil (1637-43), and military leader (Eighty Years War; Dutch-Portuguese War), dies at 75
1986 – Joe DeSa, American baseball player (b. 1959)
1991 – Helene Heigh, American actress (Undercover Woman; Teen Age Thunder; 9 to 5), dies at 86
1995 – Adone Zecchi, Italian composer and conductor (Corale Euridice; Orchestra Bolognese de Camera), dies at 91
1996 – Carl Sagan, American scientist, astronomer and author (Broca’s Brain, Cosmos, Contact) known for his research on extraterrestrial life, dies of pneumonia after suffering from myelodysplasia at 62
2015 – Patricia Elliott, American actress (Renee-Empire, One Life to Live), dies at 77

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