1867 – Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, French painter (Valpincon Bather), dies at 86
1937 – Jaishankar Prasad, Hindi poet, dramatist and novelist, dies at 47
1961 – Ernest Thesiger, English actor (Brass Monkey, Ghoul), dies at 81
1978 – Robert Heger, German conductor and composer, dies at 91
1984 – Ray Kroc, American fast food entrepreneur (McDonald’s) and owner of baseball’s San Diego Padres, dies of heart failure at 81
1996 – Jacques LeBrun, French yachtsman (Olympic gold – Snowbird class, 1932), dies at 85
1999 – Aldo van Eyck, Dutch architect (City Hall), dies at 80
2008 – Judah Folkman, American pediatric surgeon and cancer researcher (angiogenesis), dies of a heart attack at 74
2016 – Alan Rickman, English actor (Robin Hood Prince of Thieves, Die Hard, Harry Potter), dies of cancer at 69
2024 – Christophe Boesch, French-Swiss primatologist (studied and championed chimpanzees), dies at 72
Author: gil7
Historical Events for 14th January 2026
1944 – Soviet army begins offensive at Oranienbaum/Wolchow
1956 – Jordan government refuses to join Pact of Baghdad
1967 – Earthquake in Sicily kills 231
1971 – Cricketer John Snow takes 7-40 for England to beat Australia by 299 runs
1990 – 11th ACE Cable Awards: CNN wins the Golden CableACE for the coverage of the events in Beijing, China
1995 – Mexico pledges profits from state-owned Pemex’s $7-billion-per-year oil revenues in an effort to secure US congressional approval of loan guarantees; President Clinton approves a $20-billion U.S. aid package for Mexico
2020 – US game show Jeopardy “greatest of all time” tournament won by Ken Jennings
2021 – Pope Francis, 84, and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI receive their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine
Today in History for 14th January 2026
Historical Events
1932 – 1st totalisator (to record racetrack bets) in US is installed Hialeah Park Race Track in Hialeah, Florida
1940 – MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis gives free agency to 91 Detroit Tigers minor league players
1945 – In Greece, Communists and the British agree to a cease-fire in the struggle to control Athens (and with it Greece)
1972 – WMAU TV channel 17 in Bude, Mississippi (PBS) begins broadcasting
2019 – Spinning disk of ice 300m wide, resembling the moon, forms in the Presumpscot river, Westbrook, Maine
Famous Birthdays
1861 – Wilhelm von Polenz, German writer (Der Pfarrer von Breitendorf), born in Cunewalde, Germany (d. 1903)
1910 – Renier van der Velden, Belgian composer, born in Borgerhout, Belgium (d. 1993)
1911 – Djuanda Kartawidjaja, Indonesian teacher, engineer, and politician (11th and final Prime Minister of Indonesia, 1957-59), born in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Dutch East Indies (d. 1963)
1914 – Harold Russell, Canadian actor (Best Years of Our Life, Dogtown), born in North Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada (d. 2002)
1935 – Lucille Wheeler, Canadian alpine skier, born in Mont-Tremblant, Canada
Famous Deaths
1822 – Franz Innocenz Joseph Kobell, German landscape painter, dies at 72
1959 – G. D. H. Cole, English political theorist and socialist, dies at 69
1978 – Robert Heger, German conductor and composer, dies at 91
2006 – Henri Colpi, French New Wave film editor and director, dies at 84
2024 – Norm Snead, American football quarterback (Pro Bowl 1962, 63, 65, 72; NFL completion % leader 1972 NY Giants; Philadelphia Eagles), dies at 84
Famous Deaths for 13th January 2026
1001 – Fujiwara no Teishi, Japanese Empress who appears in “The Pillow Book”, dies as the result of childbirth at 23 or 24
1488 – Hermann Vischer, “the Old”, German brass sculptor, buried
1914 – Valentin Zubiaurre Spanish composer (Ferdinand Set), and educator, dies at 76
1943 – Sophie Taeuber-Arp, Swiss artist and dancer, dies of accidental carbon monoxide poisoning at 53
1995 – Arnold Smith, painter (Vigelius Prize 1935), dies at 89
1998 – Andrew Rutherford, Scottish scholar and Vice-Chancellor of the University of London (1994-97), dies at 68
2005 – Earl Cameron, Canadian broadcaster (b. 1915)
2008 – Johnny Podres, American baseball pitcher (World Series 1955 MVP, 59, 63, 65; 4 x MLB All Star; Brooklyn/LA Dodgers), dies at 75
2009 – Mansour Rahbani, Lebanese composer, lyricist, and poet, dies of pneumonia at 83
2023 – Klas Lestander, Swedish biathlete (Olympic gold 20k 1960), dies at 91
Historical Events for 13th January 2026
1733 – British officer James Oglethorpe and 130 English colonists arrive at Charleston, South Carolina
1882 – Richard Wagner completes his final opera “Parsifal”
1919 – Dutch Soccer team OSV forms
1924 – Nationalist Wafd-party wins Egyptian parliament elections
1942 – Allied Conference on war trials at St. James’s Palace, London
1963 – 13th NFL Pro Bowl, LA Memorial Coliseum: Eastern Conference beats Western Conference, 30-20; MVPs: Jim Brown, Cleveland Browns, RB; Eugene Lipscomb, Pittsburgh Steelers, DT
1968 – Minnesota North Stars NHL player Bill Masterson, suffers head injuries during a game and dies two days later, becoming the 1st player to die as result of a game
2017 – Cricket all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan scores Bangladesh’s top Test score ever (217) during the 1st Test v New Zealand in Wellington
Today in History for 13th January 2026
Historical Events
1404 – The Act of Multipliers is passed by the English Parliament forbidding alchemists to use their knowledge to create precious metals (it was feared that if any alchemist should succeed it would bring ruin upon the state)
1874 – US troops land in Honolulu to protect the king
1911 – South Africa cricket team’s 1st win over Australia, at Adelaide
1979 – YMCA files libel suit against Village People’s “Y.M.C.A.” song
1991 – President Mário Soares of Portugal re-elected
Famous Birthdays
1720 – Richard Hurd, English bishop and writer, born in Congreve, England (d. 1808)
1859 – Karl Bleibtreu, German author (Revolution of Literature), born in Berlin (d. 1928)
1901 – Mieczysław Żywczyński, Polish historian and priest, born in Warsaw, Poland (d. 1978)
1955 – Paul Kelly, Australian singer-songwriter (The Messengers), born in Adelaide, South Australia
1965 – Bill Bailey, British comedian (Black Books, QI), born in bath, England
Famous Deaths
1049 – Derrick IV, Count of Holland (1039-49), dies in battle
1956 – Lyonel Feininger, German-American cartoonist and painter, dies at 84
1979 – Donny Hathaway, American gospel and soul singer-songwriter, and keyboardist (“The Ghetto”; “Where is the Love?”), commits suicide at 33
1995 – Maxwell Henley Harris, Australian poet and publisher (Critics), dies at 73
2009 – Hortense Calisher, American novelist (President of the American Academy of Arts and Letters), dies at 97
Famous Deaths for 12th January 2026
1807 – Jean Luzac, Dutch journalist, newspaper editor (Gazette de Leyde), and Patriot, dies in a gunpowder barge explosion at 60
1960 – Nevil Shute [Norway], English-Australian novelist (On the Beach, Town like Alice), dies at 60
1992 – Harry van Doorn, Dutch politician (KVP/KRO-chairman/PPR/CRM), dies at 76
1994 – Robert Horen, American stage and screen actor, dies of cancer at 68
2003 – Paul Pender, American boxer (World Middleweight Champion 1960–61; The Ring Middleweight Champion 1962–63 Retired; Lineal Middleweight Champion 1962–63 Retired), dies at 72
2007 – Alice Coltrane [née McLeod], American jazz harp, piano, and organ player (Journey in Satchidananda), dies of respiratory failure at 69
2019 – Bonnie Guitar [Buckingham], American guitarist, singer and record executive (Dark Moon), dies at 95
2022 – Everett Lee, American violinist, and theater and classical conductor (Cosmopolitan Little Symphony, 1947-55; Norrkoping Symphony, 1962-72), dies at 105
2024 – Bev Dovey, English rugby union prop (2 Tests; Bristol RFC 184 games; Western Counties, Gloucestershire), dies at 85
2025 – Robert Machray, American stage and screen character actor, dies of complications from dementia at 79
Historical Events for 12th January 2026
1866 – The Royal Aeronautical Society is formed in London
1912 – -47°F (-44°C), Washta, Iowa (state record)
1957 – Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC) founded with Martin Luther King Jr. as leader at Ebenezer Church in Atlanta
1968 – Beatles Film Production Ltd changes name to Apple Film Production Ltd
1971 – 21st NBA All-Star Game, San Diego Sports Arena: West beats East, 108-107; MVP: Lenny Wilkens, Seattle SuperSonics, PG; oldest MVP in All-Star history (33); scores 21 points
1992 – A new constitution, providing for freedom to form political parties, is approved by a referendum in Mali.
2007 – Comet McNaught reaches perihelion becoming the brightest comet in more than 40 years.
2021 – India’s Supreme Court puts on hold three controversial new farm laws that ignited weeks of protests by farmers in Delhi
Today in History for 12th January 2026
Historical Events
475 – Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople
1945 – US Task Force 38 destroys 41 Japanese ships in Battle of South China Sea
2006 – A stampede during the Stoning the Devil ritual on the last day at the Hajj in Mina, Saudi Arabia, kills at least 362 Muslim pilgrims
2017 – US President Barack Obama in surprise presentation awards Vice President Joe Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom
2019 – Missy Elliott is the first female rapper to be inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame
Famous Birthdays
1902 – Ray Teal, American actor (Judgment at Nuremberg, Bonanza), born in Grand Rapids, Michigan (d. 1976)
1908 – José Limón, Mexican-American dancer and choreographer (The Moor’s Pavane; I, Odysseus), born in Culiacán, Mexico (d. 1972)
1934 – Mick Sullivan, English rugby league footballer, born in Pudsey, England (d. 2016)
1962 – Joe Quesada, American comic book writer, born in New York City
1992 – Mao Kobayashi, Japanese gravure idol, born in Niigata Prefecture, Japan (d. 2017)
Famous Deaths
1959 – Edvard Eriksen, Danish-Icelandic sculptor, dies at 82
1992 – Harry van Doorn, Dutch politician (KVP/KRO-chairman/PPR/CRM), dies at 76
2007 – Alice Coltrane [née McLeod], American jazz harp, piano, and organ player (Journey in Satchidananda), dies of respiratory failure at 69
2010 – Hasib Sabbagh, Palestinian businessman and philanthropist, co-founder of Consolidated Contractors Company (b. 1920)
2025 – Claude Jarman Jr, American actor (The Yearling; Rio Grande; Inside Straight), dies at 90
Famous Deaths for 11th January 2026
1856 – Nikolai I Nadezjdin, Russian archaeologist, dies [NS=Jan 23]
1891 – Georges-Eugene, Baron Haussmann, French administrator and architect, dies at 81
1901 – Vasily Kalinnikov, composer influenced by folksong, dies of tuberculosis at 34
1966 – Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indian politician and Prime Minister of India (1964-66), dies under suspicious circumstances at 61
1983 – Erik Løchen, Norwegian jazz musician and film director (The Chasers, Remonstrance), dies at 58
1994 – Roger “Ram” Ramirez, American jazz piano player and composer, dies at 80
1999 – Brian Moore, Irish novelist (Catholics, Doctor’s Wife), dies at 77
2013 – Robert Kee, British journalist, historian and broadcaster (Panorama; Ireland: A Television History), dies at 93
2016 – Kenneth Corfield, English industrialist (CEO Standard Telephones and Cables), dies at 91
2022 – Rosa Lee Hawkins, American pop singer (The Dixie Cups – “Chapel Of Love”; “Iko Iko”), dies from surgery complications at 76