1418 – Jan III Chalon, prince of Orange/gov of Burgundy, dies
1862 – Thornton F Brodhead, US lawyer/politician/brigadier general, dies at 40
1934 – James Allan, New Zealand rugby union player All Black, dies at 73
1942 – Tom Williams, Irish republican (b. 1924)
1944 – Bella Rosenfeld, Jewish Belarrusian writer, subject of Marc Chagall’s paintings and his 1st wife, dies at 48
1977 – Stephen “Steve” Dunne, American actor (Professional Father, Shock), dies at 59
1997 – Viktor Frankl, Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist (Man’s Search for Meaning) and founder of logotherapy, dies at 92
2008 – Denis Rooke, British engineer and CEO (British Gas), dies at 84
2009 – Guy Babylon, American keyboard player (Elton John) and arranger dies at 52
2013 – Paul Scoon, Grenadian politician (2nd Governor-General of Grenada (1978-92)), dies at 78
Author: gil7
Historical Events for 2nd September 2020
1859 – Gas lighting introduced to Hawaii
1952 – Dr Floyd J Lewis 1st uses deep freeze technique in heart surgery
1954 – WTVD TV channel 11 in Raleigh-Durham, NC (ABC) begins broadcasting
1954 – Hurricane Edna batters NE US, killing 20
1958 – KAYS TV channel 7 in Hays, KS (CBS) begins broadcasting
1962 – St. Louis 1st baseman Stan Musial’s records his 3,516th hit in Cards’ 4-3 loss v NY Mets; jumps him over Tris Speaker into 2nd place behind Ty Cobb on the MLB all-time list
1972 – East German swimmer Roland Matthes wraps up the Olympic backstroke double with a world record 2:02.82 in the 200m in Munich, having already won the 100m in Olympic record time
1973 – Netherlands win their first men’s hockey World Cup, 4-2 on penalties over India in Amstelveen, Netherlands
1995 – Southern California begins using new area code 562
2008 – 54th National Film Awards (India): “Pulijanmam” wins the Golden Lotus
Today in History for 2nd September 2020
Historical Events
1798 – First bank robbery in the US: Bank of Pennsylvania robbed of $162,821 at Carpenter’s Hall, Philadelphia
1937 – US Housing Authority created by National Housing Act
1940 – Great Smoky Mountains National Park dedicated
1971 – Teenage debutants Chris Evert and Jimmy Connors win their first matches at the US Open Tennis Championships at Forest Hills
1990 – “Grapes of Wrath” closes at Cort Theater NYC after 188 performances
1996 – Jerry Lewis’ 31st Muscular Dystrophy telethon raises $49,200,000
Famous Birthdays
1837 – James Harrison Wilson, American topographic engineer and Major General (Union Army), born in Shawneetown, Illinois (d. 1925)
1901 – Adolph Rupp, American college basketball coach (d. 1977)
1925 – Ronnie Stevens, actor (Rodney-Dick and Duchess), born in London, England
1927 – Tzvi Avni, Israeli composer, born in Saarbrücken, Germany
1953 – John Zorn, American musician
1980 – Dany Sabourin, French Canadian Goaltender in the National Hockey League
Famous Deaths
1937 – Esther de Farmer-of Rich, actress (Kniertje-On hope of blessing), dies
1967 – Francis Ouimet, American golfer (US Open 1913, US Amateur 1914, 31), dies at 74
1968 – Ernest Claes, Belgian author (The White), dies at 82
1981 – Tadeusz Baird, Polish composer (Giocosa), dies at 53
1985 – Jay Youngblood, American professional wrestler
2012 – Mark Abrahamian, guitarist (Starship), dies of a heart attack at 46
Famous Deaths for 1st September 2020
1215 – Otto van Gelre, son of Otto I/earl-elect of Utrecht
1777 – Johann Ernst Bach, composer, dies at 55
1862 – Isaac Ingalls Stevens, US Union general-major, dies in battle at 44
1957 – Dennis Brain, English musician (b. 1921)
1979 – Doris Kenyon, American silent screen actress (Alexander Hamilton), dies at 81
1982 – Haskell Curry, American mathematician (b. 1900)
1989 – Tadeusz Sendzimir, American inventor (b. 1894)
2003 – Rand Brooks [Arlington Rand Brooks Jr.], American actor (Gone with the Wind, Rin Tin Tin), dies of cancer at 84
2012 – Sat Mahajan, Indian politician (Rural Development Minister), dies at 85
2013 – Tommy Morrison, American boxer (WBO heavyweight title 1993) and actor (Rocky V), dies from AIDS at 44
Historical Events for 1st September 2020
1598 – Spanish King Philip II receives sacraments
1821 – 1st colonies along Santa Fe Trail
1859 – 1st Pullman sleeping car in service
1873 – Cetshwayo ascends to the throne as king of the Zulu nation following the death of his father Mpande.
1946 – 1st US Open Women’s Golf, Spokane CC: Patty Berg wins inaugural Open and only one played in match play format; takes 36-hole final 5 and 4 over Betty Jameson
1950 – 13 North Korean divisions open assault on UN lines
1972 – Egypt and Libya form federation
1981 – Fiona Brothers sets women’s propeller boat speed record (116.279 MPH)
1991 – Richard J Kerr, serves as acting director of CIA
1995 – New York reinstates the death penalty
Today in History for 1st September 2020
Historical Events
1914 – The last passenger pigeon, a female named Martha, dies in captivity in the Cincinnati Zoo
1971 – Australian John Newcombe becomes 1st male top-seed to lose in US Open 1st round when beaten by eventual finalist Jan Kodeš 6-2, 6-7, 6-7, 3,-6
1975 – All political parties forbidden in Bangladesh
2006 – The United States men’s basketball team is upset at the World Basketball Championships in Saitama, Japan, as the hot-shooting Greece pulls off a 101-95 semi final victory
2007 – Tyson Gay helps US win the men’s 4 x 100m relay at the world track and field championships in Osaka, Japan to join Carl Lewis and Maurice Greene as the only men to win 3 gold medals at one world meet
2019 – Co-founder and CEO of Twitter Jack Dorsey has his Twitter account hacked
Famous Birthdays
1888 – Andrija Štampar, Croatian physician (d. 1958)
1945 – Mustafa Balel, Turkish writer
1958 – Armi Aavikko, Finnish singer (d. 2002)
1971 – Ricardo Antonio Chavira, American actor
1977 – David Albelda, Spanish footballer
1986 – Gaël Monfils, French tennis player
Famous Deaths
1671 – Hugues de Lionne, Marquess de Berny, French ambassador to Rome, dies at 59
1912 – Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, African-British composer (Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast), dies at 37
1979 – Doris Kenyon, American silent screen actress (Alexander Hamilton), dies at 81
1983 – Henry “Scoop” Jackson, (Sen-D-Wash), dies at 71
2006 – Bob O’Connor, American politician (58th Mayor of Pittsburgh), dies at 61
2019 – Tom Collins, Canadian ice skating promoter (Champions on Ice), dies from stroke complications at 88
Famous Deaths for 31st August 2020
1923 – Gerrit Kalff, Dutch professor (history of Dutch writers), dies at 67
1952 – Henri Bourassa, French Canadian political leader (b. 1868)
1981 – Joseph H Hirschhorn, US art collector/founder H Museum, dies at 82
1994 – Barbara Avedon, American scriptwriter (Bewitched), dies at 69
1995 – John Erik Jonsson, American businessman and Mayor of Dallas, dies at 93
2005 – Joseph Rotblat, Polish-British physicist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1908)
2006 – Derrick Wayne Frazier, American convicted murderer (b. 1977)
2009 – Maria de Lourdes Martins, Portuguese pianist and composer, dies at 83
2011 – Valery Rozhdestvensky, Soviet cosmonaut (Soyuz 23), dies at 72
2017 – Edward du Cann, British politician and Chairman of the Conservative Party (1965-67), dies at 93
Historical Events for 31st August 2020
1903 – New York Giants future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Joe McGinnity wins his 3rd doubleheader of month, beating the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-1 and 9-2 at the Polo Grounds
1911 – The “Sullivan Act” requiring New Yorkers to possess licences for firearms small enough to be concealed comes into effect
1915 – Brazil becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.
1920 – Belgium starts paying old age pensions
1942 – Battle at Alam Halfa: German and Italians assault
1944 – Allied offensive at “Gothen-linie” Italy
1955 – 1st sun-powered automobile demonstrated (Chicago, Illinois)
1970 – 59th Davis Cup: USA beats Germany in Cleveland (5-0)
1972 – Lasse Viren runs Olympic/world record 10,000m (27:38.4)
1994 – Last Russian soldiers leave Estonia and Latvia
Today in History for 31st August 2020
Historical Events
1944 – Soviet and Romanian troops march into Bucharest
1954 – Cincinnati 1st baseman Ted Kluszewski hits 2 HRs in a 9-3 loss v Phillies; 1st Redleg to ever hit 40 MLB HRs, en route to season total 49
1968 – 68th US Golf Amateur Championship won by Bruce Fleisher
1972 – Australian swimmer Gail Neall with a world record 5:02.97 wins the 400m individual medley gold medal at the Munich Olympics
1992 – 44th Emmy Awards: Northern Exposure (best drama and drama writing),Christopher Lloyd (Road To Avalonlea) and Dana Delany (China Beach) win
1997 – Diana, Princess of Wales, dies in a car crash in a road tunnel in Paris
Famous Birthdays
1828 – George Leonard Andrews, American professor, civil engineer, and Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Bridgewater, Massachusetts (d. 1899)
1931 – Noble Willingham, American actor (Walker, Texas Ranger, The Corndog Man), born in Mineola, Texas (d. 2004)
1941 – Emanuel Nunes, composer
1961 – David Chastain, heavy metal rocker (Chastain-Rule of Wasteland)
1970 – Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan, born in Kuwait City
1986 – Feng Tianwei, Singaporean table tennis player
Famous Deaths
1590 – Floris Thin, politician/land advocate of Utrecht, dies
1741 – Johann Gottlieb Heineccius, German jurist, dies at 59
1862 – George William Taylor, US Union brigadier general, dies in battle
1979 – Sally Rand, American burlesque dancer, vedette and actress known for her ostrich feather fan and balloon bubble dances, dies at 75
1995 – David Richard Holloway, literary Editor, dies at 71
2007 – Karloff Lagarde, Mexican professional wrestler, dies at 79
Famous Deaths for 30th August 2020
1745 – Jean-Baptiste-Maurice Quinault, French composer, dies at 57
1826 – Theodor Zwetler, Austrian composer, dies at 67
1903 – Vicente Fidel López, Argentine historian (Historia the Chile), dies at 87
1914 – Adrian H Stewart, British lieutenant, dies in battle in Cameroon at 26
1952 – Arky Vaughn, American Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop (MLB All-Star 1934–42; NL batting champion 1935; NL stolen base leader 1943), drowns whilst fishing at 40
1970 – Del Moore, American comedian and actor (Cal-Bachelor Father), dies at 53
1985 – Taylor Caldwell [Janet Miriam Holland Taylor Caldwell], Anglo-American novelist (Dynasty of Death, Dear and Glorious Physician), dies at 84
2001 – Ivor Spencer-Thomas, English farmer, entrepreneur and inventor, dies at 94
2007 – Charles Vanik, American politician (b. 1918)
2019 – Franco Columbu, Italian bodybuilder, powerlifter, actor and author (Mr. Olympia 1976, 81), dies at 78