1495 – Alfonso II, King of Naples (1494-95), dies
1931 – Frederic Cliffe, English composer, dies at 74
1973 – Cyril Allcott, New Zealand cricket all-rounder (6 Tests, 113 runs @ 22.6, 6 wickets; Auckland), dies at 77
1983 – Reinout Willem van Bemmelen, Dutch geologist, dies at 79
1990 – Georgy Flyorov, Soviet-Russian physicist (spontaneous fission, Soviet atomic bomb project), dies at 77
1995 – Gwen Swire, British social worker, dies at 61
1996 – Denis Jenkinson, British motor racing journalist, dies at 74
2003 – Ian Geoghegan, Australian racing driver (b. 1940)
2004 – Helmut Griem, German actor (b. 1932)
2012 – Warren Rudman, American politician (Sen-R-NH, 1980-93), dies at 82
Author: gil7
Historical Events for 19th November 2023
1523 – Florentine Giulio de’ Medici chosen as Pope Clement VII – rules until 1534
1794 – Jakobin Club forms in Paris
1794 – Jay Treaty, first US extradition treaty, signed with Great Britain
1881 – A meteorite lands near the village of Großliebenthal, southwest of Odessa, Ukraine
1940 – Belgian King Leopold III visits Adolf Hitler
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
1995 – “Sacrilege” closes at Belasco Theater NYC after 21 performances
1996 – Space Shuttle STS 80 (Columbia 21), launches into space
2000 – Swiss tennis star Martina Hingis wins WTA Tour Championship at Madison Square Garden, NYC; beats Monica Seles, 6–7, 6–4, 6–4
2010 – “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1” the 7th film based on the books by J. K. Rowling is released worldwide
Today in History for 19th November 2023
Historical Events
1644 – First protestant ministry society in New England
1911 – NY receives first Marconi wireless transmission from Italy
1969 – WENY TV channel 36 in Elmira, NY (ABC) begins broadcasting
1973 – New York stock market takes sharpest drop in 19 years
2017 – Bulgarian tennis star Gregor Dimitrov breaks through for a first season-ending ATP World Tour Finals title with a 7–5, 4–6, 6–3 win in London over David Goffin of Belgium
2020 – Inquiry find “credible evidence” elite Australian troops unlawfully killed 39 Afghan civilians
Famous Birthdays
1886 – Fernand Crommelynck, Belgian playwright (Le Cocu Magnificent), born in Paris (d. 1970)
1887 – James B. Sumner, American chemist (Nobel 1946 – discovered that enzymes can be crystallized), born in Canton, Massachusetts (d. 1955)
1924 – William Russell, British actor (Doctor Who, The Great Escape, Superman), born in Sunderland, England
1936 – Michel Decoust, French contemporary classical and electro-acoustic composer and conductor (Symétrie; Interphone), born in Paris, France
1971 – Michelle Andrews, Australian field hockey midfielder (Olympic gold 1996; World Cup gold 1994; Champions Trophy gold 1993, 95, 97, 99), born in Newcastle, Australia
1973 – Ryukishi07 [real name unknown), Japanese mystery writer (When They Cry series), born in Chiba Prefecture, Japan
Famous Deaths
1692 – Georg Friedrich of Waldeck, Dutch-German prince and Field Marshall (commanded Dutch States Army and German forces), dies at 72
1692 – Thomas Shadwell, English poet and playwright (2nd Poet Laureate 1689-92), dies at about 50
1942 – Édouard Combe, Swiss composer, dies at 76
1950 – Thomas Wood, English composer, dies at 57
1961 – Dorothy Heyward (née Kuhns), American playwright (Porgy), and novelist, dies at 71
2012 – Boris Strugatsky, Soviet-Russian science fiction author (Tale of Troika), dies at 79
Famous Deaths for 18th November 2023
1822 – Anton Teyber, Austrian composer, dies at 66
1950 – Gerardus van de Lion, Dutch minister of Education, dies at 60
1986 – Gia Carangi, American model (AIDS) (b. 1960)
1993 – Fritz Feld, German actor (Jack Benny Show, At the Circus, Errand Boy, Promises Promises), dies at 93
1999 – Doug Sahm, American roots-rock and Tex-Mex musician (Sir Douglas Quintet – “Mendocino”; Texas Tornadoes – “Adios Mexico”), dies of a heart attack at 58
2003 – Ken Brett, American baseball player, dies at 55
2005 – Harold J Stone, American actor (Spartacus, The Wrong Man), dies at 92
2015 – Jonah Lomu, New Zealand rugby union winger (youngest ever All Black, 63 internationals), dies of a heart attack linked to kidney disease at 40
2015 – Mal Whitfield, American track athlete (Olympic 3 gold, silver and bronze 1948, 52), dies at 91
2021 – Slide Hampton [Locksley Wellington Hampton], American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger, dies at 89
Historical Events for 18th November 2023
1105 – Maginulf elected anti-Pope Silvester I
1307 – William Tell reputedly shoots apple off his son’s head
1497 – Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama reaches the Cape of Good Hope
1667 – Treaty of Bongaja: King Hassan-Udin of Makasar and VOC
1755 – Worst quake in Massachusetts Bay area strikes Boston; no deaths reported
1912 – Cholera breaks out in Constantinople, in the Ottoman Empire
1943 – 444 British bombers attack Berlin
1959 – Wash Senator Bob Allison wins AL Rookie of Year
1976 – Spain’s parliament establishes democracy after 37 yrs of dictatorship
1989 – Pennsylvania is first to restrict abortions after US Supreme Court gave states the right to do so
Today in History for 18th November 2023
Historical Events
1833 – Netherlands and Belgium sign Treaty of Zonhoven
1904 – General Esteban Huertas steps down after the government of Panama fears he wants to stage a coup
1960 – Charlie Finley makes a bid to purchase expansion LA Angels
1990 – Yugoslavian tennis star Monica Seles beats Gabriela Sabatini of Argentina 6–4, 5–7, 3–6, 6–4, 6–2 to win her first of 3 straight WTA Tour Championships in NYC; first 5-set women’s final since 1901
2005 – 20th Century Fox releases “Walk the Line”, starring Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash and Reese Witherspoon as June Carter, and directed by James Mangold; Witherspoon wins an Academy Award
2012 – 40th American Music Awards: Katy Perry and Justin Bieber win
Famous Birthdays
1832 – Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld, Finnish-Swedish explorer and mineralogist (Vega Expedition), born in Helsinki, Finland (d. 1901)
1845 – John Mellaerts, Flemish social worker (1st Belgian farm gilde) (d. 1925)
1882 – Amelita Galli-Curci, Italian-American operatic soprano (Cave of the Winds), born in Milan, Italy (d. 1963)
1903 – Lillian Fuchs, American violist and composer, born in New York (d. 1995)
1918 – Tasker Watkins, Welsh World War II hero, born in Nelson, Wales (d. 2007)
1951 – Heinrich Schiff, Austrian cellist and conductor, born in Gmunden, Austria (d. 2016)
Famous Deaths
1678 – Giovanni Maria Bononcini, composer, dies at 36
1887 – Gustav Fechner, German psychologist and physicist (Weber–Fechner law), dies at 86
1917 – Henry Spiekman, Dutch journalist and politician (co-founder Social Democratic Workers’ Party), dies of leukemia at 43
1968 – Walter Wanger [Feuchtwanger], American film producer (Cleopatra), dies at 74
2009 – Jeanne-Claude [Denat de Guillebon], French artist who worked with Christo (Running Fence, Wrapped Reichstag), dies at 74
2014 – Dave Appell, American musician, arranger, musical director (Ernie Kovacs), record producer (Charlie Gracie; The Orlons; Tony Orlando and Dawn), and songwriter, dies at 92
Famous Deaths for 17th November 2023
1494 – Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, Italian scholar and Renaissance philosopher (Oration on the Dignity of Man), dies under mysterious circumstances, possibly poisoned, at 31
1512 – Kempo Roeper, Frisian rebel, quartered
1600 – Kuki Yoshitaka, Japanese naval commander, commits seppuku (ritual suicide) after defeat at Battle of Sekigahara (b. 1542)
1826 – Louise Reichardt, German composer, dies at 47
1848 – Joseph Bernard Cannaert “Olim”, Flemish lawyer, dies at 80
1862 – Alexey Verstovsky, Russian composer, dies at 63
1905 – Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders and son of Leopold I, dies at 68
1985 – Jimmy Ritz [Samuel Joachim], American vaudevillian, actor and comedian (Ritz Brothers – The Gorilla;, Hi’ya, Chum; Straight, Place and Show), dies of heart failure at 81
1989 – Gus Farace, American gangster (b. 1960)
1991 – John Blatnik, (Rep-Minn, 1947-75), dies at 80
Historical Events for 17th November 2023
1774 – First City Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry formed at Carpenter’s Hall, Philadelphia, one of the oldest US military units still in service
1929 – Nikolai Bukharin is expelled from the Soviet Politburo amidst a power struggle with Joseph Stalin
1959 – William Shea shows proposed NYC stadium with transparent roof
1973 – Greek regime attacks students with tanks, 100s killed
1980 – WHHM Television in Washington, D.C., becomes the first African-American public-broadcasting television station
1993 – General Sani Abacha leads a military coup against Ernest Shonekan’s transitional administration and returns the Nigerian government to military control
1996 – Time White and T. Assebework discover the first fossils of 2.5 million year old Australopithecus garhi, an ancestor on the human family tree, in Bouri, Middle Awash, Ethiopia
1997 – In Luxor, Egypt, 62 people are killed by 6 Islamic militants outside the Temple of Hatshepsut, known as Luxor massacre (The police then kill the assailants).
2008 – “Twilight”, based on the book by Stephenie Meyer, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, premieres in Los Angeles
2018 – Protests across France against rising fuel prices leave 400 injured
Today in History for 17th November 2023
Historical Events
1858 – Origin of Modified Julian Period
1876 – Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s patriotic Slavonic March makes its premiere in Moscow to a warm reception
1965 – William Eckert is unanimously elected commissioner of baseball
2002 – Australian Leyton Hewitt scores back-to-back season-ending Tennis Masters Cup titles with a classic 7–5, 7–5, 2–6, 2–6, 6–4 victory over Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero in Shanghai, China
2006 – Official naming of element 111, Roentgenium (Rg).
2021 – British Columbia declares a state of emergency after an “atmospheric river” storm causes widespread rain and flooding
Famous Birthdays
1729 – Maria Antonietta of Spain, queen of Sardinia (d. 1785)
1911 – William Tannen, American actor (Jailhouse Rock, Sitting Bull), born in NYC, New York (d. 1976)
1936 – Dahlia Ravikovitch, Israeli poet (d. 2005)
1945 – Roland Joffe, director (City of Joy, Mission, Killing Fields)
1953 – Jilly Johnson, British model and pop vocalist (Blonde on Blonde), born in England
1965 – Paul Sorrento, Somerville MA, infielder (Seattle Mariners)
Famous Deaths
1600 – Kuki Yoshitaka, Japanese naval commander, commits seppuku (ritual suicide) after defeat at Battle of Sekigahara (b. 1542)
1940 – Raymond Pearl, American biologist (b. 1879)
1940 – Eric Gill, British sculptor, engraver and typographer (Perpetua, Gill Sans), dies of cancer at 58
1942 – Ben Reitman, American anarchist, physician (b. 1879)
1995 – Marguerite Young, writer, dies at 87
2019 – Adnan Pachachi, Iraqi and Emirati politician and diplomat (Iraq Minister of Foreign Affairs during Six-Day War), dies at 96
Famous Deaths for 16th November 2023
1603 – Pierre Charron, French philosopher/theologian, dies
1706 – Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest, Dutch admiral and buccaneer, dies at 64
1935 – Kurt Schindler, composer, dies at 53
1964 – Albert Hay Malotte, composer, dies at 69
1986 – Siobhán McKenna [Cionnaith], Irish stage actress (Saint Joan, The Chalk Garden), dies of lung cancer at 63
1989 – Ignacio Ellacuría, Spanish-Salvadoran Jesuit priest, philosopher and human rights activist, assassinated during the Salvadoran Civil War at 59
1993 – Achille Zavatta, French clown (b. 1915)
1996 – John Reginald Bevins, British Conservative politician, dies at 88
2004 – Margaret Hassan, Irish aid worker in Iraq, abducted at 59 (presumed dead)
2007 – Harold Alfond, American businessman and founder of Dexter Shoe Company, dies at 93