1145 – Bernardo elected Pope Eugene III
1861 – Fort Point, in San Francisco, California, completed and garrisoned (but has never fired cannon in anger)
1958 – Ice Dance Championship at Paris won by June Markham/Courtney Jones GRB
1967 – 1st anti-bootleg recording laws enacted
1979 – Paul Shirley (21) of Australia, sucked a lifesaver for 4 hrs 40 mins
1987 – ABC-TV begins broadcasting “Amerika” mini-series
1996 – American boxer Tommy Morrison announces he has contracted HIV
1999 – Abdullah Öcalan, leader of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party, widely recognized as terrorist organization), was arrested in Kenya.
2005 – YouTube, Internet site on which videos may be shared and viewed by others, is launched in the United States
2013 – Chelyabinsk meteor breaks up over Chelyabinsk, Russia, injuring over 1,200 people, with 26 to 33 times energy of Hiroshima bomb
Author: gil7
Today in History for 15th February 2023
Historical Events
1799 – 1st US printed ballots authorized, Pennsylvania
1895 – 23 cm (9 inches) of snow falls on New Orleans
1986 – National Assembly of the Philippines proclaims Ferdinand Marcos President for six more years after rigged elections against Corazon Aquino, supercharging the EDSA people power revolution
1987 – 29th Daytona 500: Bill Elliott leads for 104 of 200 laps including the last 3; had won pole with record speed of 210.364 mph
1995 – Burundi premier Anatole Kanyenkiko resigns
2009 – 58th NBA All-Star Game, US Airways Center, Phoenix, AZ: West beats East, 146-119; MVPs: Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers, F; Shaquille O’Neal, LA Lakers, C
Famous Birthdays
1885 – Richard Würz, German composer, and music critic, born in Munich, Germany (d. 1965)
1921 – Radha Krishna Choudhary, Indian historian and writer (d. 1985)
1923 – Justice Drake, British justice
1937 – Terry Everett, American politician (Rep-R-Alabama 1993-2009), born in Dothan, Alabama
1947 – John Adams, American composer (Nixon In China), born in Worcester, Massachusetts
1979 – Kaj-Erik Eriksen, Canadian actor (Quarantine), born in Vancouver, British Columbia
Famous Deaths
1503 – Henry Deane, Archbishop of Canterbury (1501-03), dies
1891 – Claudius W. Sears, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), dies at 74
1994 – Maria Britneva, Russian actress (A Room with a View, Maurice), dies of heart failure 72
2005 – Samuel Francis, American journalist (b. 1947)
2010 – Art Van Damme, American jazz accordionist (Chicago Jazz), dies at 89
2022 – P. J. O’Rourke, American journalist and satirist (Parliament of Whores; National Lampoon), dies of lung cancer at 74
Famous Deaths for 14th February 2023
1831 – Vicente Guerrero, Mexican revolutionary hero, general and 2nd President of Mexico (1829, executed by firing squad at 48
1961 – Wallis Clark, British-American stage and screen actor (Penny Serenade; Great Guy; Postal Inspector; Easy Money), dies at 78
1969 – Wolfe Barzell, actor (Blue Angel), dies of a heart attack at 72
1988 – Frederick Loewe [Friedrich Löwe], Austrian-born American composer (My Fair Lady, Camelot), dies at 86
1989 – James Bond, American ornithologist (b. 1900)
1991 – Arno Breker, German architect and sculptor (Third Reich), dies at 90
2003 – Johnny Longden, Canadian hall of fame jockey and trainer (1943 Triple Crown on Count Fleet), dies of a stroke at 96
2006 – Shoshana Damari, Israeli singer and actress (b. 1923)
2007 – Gareth Morris, British flautist (b. 1920)
2015 – Pamela Cundell, British stage and screen character actress (Dad’s Army – “Mrs. Fox”), dies at 95
Historical Events for 14th February 2023
1831 – Ras Marye of Yejju marches into Tigray and defeats and kills Dejazmach Sabagadis in the Battle of Debre Abbay
1945 – World War II: Mostar is liberated by Yugoslav partisans.
1952 – VI Winter Olympic Games open at Oslo, Norway
1971 – Movie “Ben Hur” 1st shown on television
1972 – Luna 20 (Russia) launched to orbit and soft landing on Moon
1989 – World’s 1st satellite Skyphone opens
1989 – The first of 24 satellites of the Global Positioning System are placed into orbit.
2010 – 52nd Daytona 500: Jamie McMurray, driving for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing wins; Mark Martin, oldest polesitter in Daytona 500 history at 51 years, 27 days
2018 – Ex-student Nikolas Cruz shoots and kills 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Florida, before being captured
2018 – Dutch speed skater Jorien ter Mors wins her 3rd career Olympic gold medal in the 1,000m at Pyeongchang; 1,500m and team pursuit champion in Sochi (2014)
Today in History for 14th February 2023
Historical Events
1912 – Arizona was admitted to the Union as the 48th state
1921 – Little Review faces obscenity charges for publishing “Ulysses,” in New York
1936 – Karl Schäfer of Austria wins his 2nd consecutive men’s figure skating Olympic gold medal at the Garmisch-Partenkirchen Winter Games in Germany
2005 – Seven people are killed and 151 wounded in a series of bombings by suspected Al-Qaeda-linked militants that hit the Philippines’ Makati financial district in Metro Manila, Davao City, and General Santos City.
2010 – America’s Cup: Team USA defeats Alinghi 2-0 to win in Spain
2014 – Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta resigns after less than a year in office
Famous Birthdays
1572 – Hans Christoph Haiden, German composer, organist and poet (d. 1617)
1858 – Joseph Thomson, Scottish geologist and early African explorer (Thomson’s Gazelle), born in Penpont, Dumfries, Scotland (d. 1895)
1903 – Fritz Büchtger, German composer, educator, and modern music proponent (Association for Contemporary Music; Studio for New Music), born in Munich, Germany (d. 1978)
1926 – Alfred Körner, Austrian soccer striker (47 caps; Rapid Wien), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 2020)
1945 – Gregory Hines, American actor and dancer (White Nights, Taps), born in NYC, New York (d. 2003)
1977 – Elmer Symons, South African motorcycle racer, born in Ladysmith, South Africa (d. 2007)
Famous Deaths
1760 – François Colin de Blamont, French composer, dies at 69
1922 – Heikki Ritavuori, Finnish lawyer and politician (Minister of the Interior), assassinated at 41
1929 – Tom Burke, American athlete (Olympic gold 100m, 400m 1896), dies at 53
1990 – Jean Wallace [Walasek], actress (Big Combo), dies of hemorrhage at 66
1998 – Claude Prey, French composer, dies at 72
2003 – Dolly the sheep, first mammal to be cloned from an adult cell, dies young from a progressive lung disease aged 6
Famous Deaths for 13th February 2023
1237 – Jordanus of Saxon, 2nd general of Dominicans, drowns
1332 – Andronicus II Paleologus, Byzantine emperor (1282-1328)/monk, dies
1873 – Petrus Abraham Samuel van Limburg Brouwer, Dutch politician and critic (Akbar), dies at 43
1958 – Georges Rouault, French expressionist painter (Miserere et Guerre), dies at 86
1970 – Herbert Strudwick, English cricketer (28 Tests for England as wicket-keeper), dies at 90
1976 – Murtala Mohammed, Nigerian military ruler, is assassinated at 37
1980 – Marian Rejewski, Polish mathematician and cryptologist (1st to break German Enigma code), dies at 74
1998 – Jo Clayton, author, Cancer Died, Drums of Chaos, dies at 58
2003 – Walt Rostow, U.S. government official (b. 1916)
2005 – Lúcia Santos, Portuguese Carmelite nun and Fatima visionary, dies at 97
Historical Events for 13th February 2023
1633 – Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei arrived in Rome for trial before Inquisition for professing belief that earth revolves around the Sun
1786 – Abraham Baldwin selected president of University of Georgia
1858 – Sir Richard Burton and John Speake explore Lake Tanganyika, Africa
1866 – Jesse James holds up his first bank, stealing $15,000 from the Clay County Savings Association in Liberty, Missouri
1927 – Uprising against Portuguese regime of Gen Carmona defeated
1946 – “The Duchess Misbehaves” opens at Adelphi Theater NYC for 5 performances
1948 – Men’s Figure Skating Championship in Davos won by Richard Button USA
1993 – Merlene Ottey runs world record 200m indoor (21.87 sec)
1994 – Johann Olav Koss skates world record 5000m 6:34,96
1995 – Howard Stern radio show premieres in San Diego CA on XTRA-FM
Today in History for 13th February 2023
Historical Events
1706 – Battle at Fraustadt: Swedish army beats Russia and Saxon forces, one of Swedish’s Greatest victories in the Great Northern War
1864 – Miridian Campaign fighting at Chunky Creek and Wyatt, Mississippi
1915 – The French try to drive the Germans forces back into the Champagne region
1948 – Wright Flyer, 1st plane to fly, returns to US from England
1970 – 16th National Film Awards (India): “Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne” wins the Golden Lotus
1970 – Man-eating tiger is reported to have killed 48, 80 km from New Delhi
Famous Birthdays
1879 – Sarojini Naidu, Indian freedom fighter and poet, born in Hyperbad, India (d. 1949)
1895 – Fred Essler, Austrian actor (Unsinkable Molly Brown, Saratoga Trunk), born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary (d. 1973)
1944 – Sal Bando, American baseball third baseman (4 x MLB All-Star; World Series 1972, 73, 74 Oakland A’s) and executive (GM Milwaukee Brewers 1991-99), born in Cleveland, Ohio (d. 2023)
1953 – Suleiman Nyambui, Tanzanian runner (world record 5k indoor), born in Tanzania
1956 – Princess Alia bint Al Hussein, Jordanian Royal Family member, born in Amman, Jordan
1974 – Jeff Duran, US radio personality, born in Arcadia, California
Famous Deaths
1787 – Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes, French statesman and diplomat, dies at 67
1959 – William Axt, American film scores composer (The Prisoner of Zenda), dies at 70
1980 – David Janssen, American actor (The Fugitive, Harry O), dies at 49
1992 – Dorothy Tree [Triebitz], American actress (Abe Lincoln in Illinois; Confessions Of A Nazi Spy; The Asphalt Jungle), dies of heart failure at 85
1995 – Azeddine Medjoubi, head Algerian nationally theater, murdered at 49
2006 – Peter Strawson, British philosopher (Oxford University), dies at 86
Famous Deaths for 12th February 2023
1128 – Toghtekin, slave/atabek of Damascus, dies
1789 – Ethan Allen, American Revolutionary War patriot (lead the Green Mountain Boys), dies of an apoplectic fit at 51
1834 – Friedrich Schleiermacher, German theologist and philosopher, dies at 65
1942 – Grant Wood, American painter (American Gothic), dies at 50
1947 – Sidney Toler, American actor, director and playwright (Madame X, Meeting at Midnight), dies at 72
1984 – Julio Cortázar, Argentine writer (Blow-Up, Underground Game), dies at 69
1996 – Bob Shaw, Northern Irish novelist (b. 1931)
1997 – Nora Beloff, journalist, dies at 78
2004 – Robert A. Bruce, American cardiologist and pioneer (exercise cardiology), dies at 87
2012 – Zina Bethune, American actress, dies from hit and run at 66
Historical Events for 12th February 2023
1130 – Pope Innocent II elected
1577 – Spanish land guardian Don Juan of Habsburg signs “Eternal Edict”
1908 – Anna Jeanes bequeaths $1,000,000 to Swarthmore to become all female
1912 – China adopts the Gregorian calendar
1941 – First injection of penicillin into a patient by British physician Charles Fletcher at Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford, England
1947 – Daytime fireball and meteorite fall seen in eastern Siberia
1959 – The Lincoln Memorial design on the U.S. penny goes into circulation. It replaces the “sheaves of wheat” design
1994 – Model Anna Nicole Smith hospitalized for drug overdose
2001 – “Ain’t Nothing ’bout You” single released by Brooks and Dunn
2017 – North Korea conducts a solid fuel ballistic missile test from Banghyon air base