1827 – Pierre-Joseph Candeille, French composer, dies at 82
1875 – Jose Maria de la Purificacion Ventura, composer, dies at 58
1891 – Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, Prussian general and fieldmarshal, dies at 90
1947 – Willa Cather, American writer (My Ántonia), dies at 73
1974 – Bud Abbott, American comedian (Abbott and Costello), dies at 78
1996 – Donald Cammell, film director, dies at 62
2000 – John Beck, New Zealand cricketer (lefty bat in 8 Tests for NZ 1953-56), dies at 65
2017 – Robert M. Pirsig, American author (Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance), dies at 88
2017 – Agustín Edwards, Chilean media tycoon (El Mercurio), dies at 89
2019 – Dick Rivers [Hervé Forneri], French rock and roll singer and actor, dies at 74
Author: gil7
Historical Events for 24th April 2020
1914 – A shipment of 35,000 rifles and 5 million rounds of ammunition are landed at Larne for the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF, an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland
1954 – 1st American, civilian pilot, P.R. Holden, wounded in Indochina
1963 – 17th NBA Championship: Boston Celtics beat LA Lakers, 4 games to 2
1965 – Military coup under Donald Reid Cabral in Dominican Republic
1978 – Angels Nolan Ryan strikes out 15 Mariners, 20th time he has 15 in game
1979 – Rhodesian bishop Muzorewa wins general election
1982 – Firestone World Bowling Tournament of Champions won by Mike Durbin
1992 – George Steinbrenner drops his suits against baseball
1997 – “Steel Peer” opens at Richard Rodgers Theater NYC for 76 performances
2015 – Armenia commemorates the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide by the Ottoman Empire
Today in History for 24th April 2020
Historical Events
1596 – Pacificatie of Ireland drawn
1908 – Mr and Mrs Jacob Murdock become 1st to travel across US by car, they leave LA in a Packard and arrive in NYC in 32d-5h-25m
1965 – “Comedy in Music-Opus 2” closes at John Golden NYC after 192 performances
1990 – US 66th manned space mission STS 31 (Discovery 10) launches into orbit
1992 – Vinson Pike fined £1000 for distributing obscene computer pictures
1997 – “Steel Peer” opens at Richard Rodgers Theater NYC for 76 performances
Famous Birthdays
1845 – Carl Spitteler, Swiss poet (Prometheus and Epimetheus; Nobel 1919), born in Liestal, Switzerland (d. 1924)
1909 – Irven Spence, American animator, born in Lincoln, Nebraska (d. 1995)
1958 – Brian Paddick, British former deputy assistant commissioner and most senior openly gay police officer, born in London
1961 – Roger Mayweather, American boxer, (WBA and lineal super featherweight titles 1983-84, WBC light welterweight 1987-89; IBO light welterweight; IBO welterweight 1994-95), born in Grand Rapids, Michigan (d. 2020)
1971 – Ken Klee, NHL defenseman (Washington Capitals), born in Indianapolis, Indiana
1977 – Carlos Beltrán, Puerto Rican baseball player, born in Manatí, Puerto Rico
Famous Deaths
1935 – Paul Klengel, composer, dies at 80
1936 – Finley Peter Dunne, American journalist and humorist (Mr Dooley), dies at 68
1943 – Gerardus H de Hare, socialist vicar, dies at 63
1983 – Rolf Stommelen, German race car driver (b. 1943)
1993 – Oliver Tambo, South African lawyer, anti-apartheid politician and co-founder (African National Congress), dies of a stroke at 75
1997 – Pat Paulsen, American comedian (Smothers Brothers Show) and presidential candidate , dies at 69
Famous Deaths for 23rd April 2020
1728 – Tomas de Torrejon y Velasco, composer, dies at 83
1786 – Alexander Cozens, English water colors painter, dies at about 68
1792 – Karl Friedrich Bahrdt, German theologian and adventurer, dies at 50
1905 – Karel Komzák II, Viennese composer, dies at 54
1915 – Rupert Brooke, British WW I poet (Lithuania, The Soldier), dies at 27
1960 – Cornelis Jan Bakkerr, Dutch/US nuclear physicist, dies
1979 – Blair Peach, New Zealand-born anti-fascist (b. 1946)
1986 – Harold Arlen [Hyman Arluck], American composer (Over the Rainbow), murdered at 81
2015 – Sawyer Sweeten, American actor (Everyone Loves Raymond), commits suicide at 19
2016 – Banharn Silpa-archa, Prime Minister of Thailand (1995-96), dies at 83
Historical Events for 23rd April 2020
1516 – Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria endorses “The German Beer Purity Law” (Reinheitsgebot) and adds to it standards for the sale of beer
1597 – William Shakespeare’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor” is first performed, with Queen Elizabeth I of England in attendance
1705 – Richard Steele’s “Tender Husband” premieres in London
1838 – English steamship “Great Western” crossing Atlantic docks in NYC
1861 – Robert E. Lee named commander of Virginia Confederate forces (US Civil War)
1891 – Jews are expelled from Moscow, Russia
1949 – Chinese Red army conquers Nanjing
1964 – James Baldwin’s play “Blues for Mr Charlie” premieres in NYC
1965 – Launch of 1st Soviet communications satellite
1991 – USSR grants republics right to secede under certain conditions
Today in History for 23rd April 2020
Historical Events
1849 – Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky and members of the Petrashevsky Circle are arrested in St. Petersburg
1860 – Democratic convention in Charleston, South Carolina divided over slavery
1953 – General Charles P Cabell, USAF, becomes deputy director of CIA
1955 – “Kismet” closes at Ziegfeld Theater NYC after 583 performances
2009 – Gamma ray burst (GRB) 090423 is observed for 10 seconds, the most distant object of any kind and also the oldest known object in the universe
2013 – West Indian cricketer, Chris Gayle, smashes the fastest century in history (30 balls)
Famous Birthdays
1708 – Friedrich von Hagedorn, German poet (Versuch einiger Poem), born in Hamburg, Germany (d. 1754)
1715 – Johann Friedrich Doles, German composer, pupil of J. S. Bach, born in Steinbach-Hallenberg, Germany (d. 1797)
1838 – Alfred Verwee, Flemish painter, born in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Belgium (d. 1895)
1904 – Leslie French, British actor and singer (Death in Venice, More than a Miracle), born in Bromley, Kent, England (d. 1999)
1957 – Kenji Kawai, Japanese film score composer, born in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan
1970 – Sadao Abe, Japanese actor (Team Medical Dragon), born in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, Japan
Famous Deaths
725 – Wihtred, King of Kent (c. 692-725)
990 – Ekkehart II, [Palatinus], monk to St-Gallen/poet, dies
1812 – Franz Sebastian Haindl, composer, dies at 85
1986 – Otto Preminger, Austrian director and producer (Advise and Consent, Anatomy of Murder), dies at 79
1996 – Jean Victor Allard, Canadian army general, dies at 82
2003 – Fernand Fonssagrives, French photographer, dies at 92
Famous Deaths for 22nd April 2020
1930 – Jeppe Aakjær, Danish poet and novelist (Bondens Søn), dies at 63
1962 – Solomon Pimsleur, French composer, dies at 61
1978 – Will Geer [William Aughe Ghere], American actor (Salt of the Earth, The Waltons), dies at 76
1995 – Don Pullen, pianist/composer, dies at 53
1996 – Erma Bombeck, American humorist (The Grass is Greener over the Septic Tank), dies at 69
1999 – Apostolos Nikolaidis, Greek singer (first Greek artist to record or re-record the authentic, “prohibited” rebetika songs in the early 1970s with their original lyrics), dies at 60
2000 – Alexander H. Cohen, Broadway producer (Beyond the Fringe), dies at 79
2004 – Pat Tillman, American football player and U.S. Army Ranger killed in action at 27
2011 – Moin Akhter, Pakistani actor (b. 1950)
2019 – Dave Samuels, American vibraphonist (Spyro Gyra-Morning Dance), dies at 70
Historical Events for 22nd April 2020
1145 – 19th recorded perihelion passage of Halley’s Comet
1793 – President Washington attends opening of Rickett’s, 1st circus in US
1876 – First official National League baseball game is played; Boston Red Stockings beat Philadelphia Athletics, 6-5 at the Jefferson Street Grounds, Philadelphia
1966 – USSR performs underground nuclear test
1967 – Martial Law goes into effect in Greece
1969 – 1st human eye transplant performed
1970 – NY Met Jerry Grote sets record of 20 put outs by a catcher
1993 – Seattle Mariner Chris Basio no-hits Boston Red Sox
1993 – “Who’s Tommy” opens at St James Theater NYC for 899 performances
2018 – Liverpool’s Egyptian soccer forward Mohamed Salah is named Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year
Today in History for 22nd April 2020
Historical Events
1955 – KC Athletic’s 1st game, beat Tigers 6-2
1969 – Joe Frazier KOs Dave Zyglewick in 1 for heavyweight boxing title
1981 – 10,000 copper workers in Chile strike
1982 – Launch of STS-3-Lousma and Fullerton [03/23]
1983 – Great Britain performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
2012 – TV political comedy “Veep” created by Armando Iannucci, starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Anna Chlumsky premieres on HBO
Famous Birthdays
1927 – Pascal Bentoiu, Romanian composer, born in Bucharest, Romania (d. 2016)
1931 – Simon “Siem” Vroom, Dutch actor (The Lift, Bridge Too Far, Mysteries), born in Beemster, Noord-Holland (d. 1985)
1931 – Bruce Dickson, Canadian ice hockey player (Olympic gold 1952), born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
1963 – Sean Lock, British comedian and actor (British Comedy Award, 2000), born in Chertsey, Surrey
1967 – Sherri Shepherd, American comedian and actress
1971 – Milos Holan, Bilovec Cze, NHL defenseman (Anaheim Mighty Ducks)
Famous Deaths
1941 – Arthur Briscoe, cricketer (South African batsman in 2 Tests), dies
1967 – Tom Conway, Russian actor (Mark Saber, Betty Hutton Show), dies at 62
1983 – Earl “Fatha” Hines, American jazz pianist and bandleader (Deep Forest), dies at 79
1985 – Paul H. Emmett, American chemical engineer (b. 1900)
2003 – Martha Griffiths, U.S. Congresswoman (b. 1912)
2013 – Richie Havens, American singer-songwriter and guitarist, dies from a heart attack at 72
Famous Deaths for 21st April 2020
1821 – Thursday October Christian, son of Fletcher Christian (leader of the historical mutiny on the Bounty), dies at 40
1878 – Temistocle Solera, composer, dies at 62
1948 – Carlos Lopez Buchardo, Argentine composer, dies at 66
1968 – Toby Halicki, car-crash film producer 48, killed shooting stunt
1982 – Joe Sawyer, actor (Biff O’Hara-Adventures of Rin Tin Tin), dies at 80
1987 – Edith S Green, (Rep-D-Ore), dies at 77
1992 – Robert Harris, American criminal and murderer, executed in a gas chamber at 39 in San Quentin State Prison, California
1996 – Zora Arkus-Duntov, engineer, dies at 86
2000 – Neal Matthews, Jr., American singer (The Jordanaires), dies at 70
2007 – Parry O’Brien, American shot putter (Olympic golds 1952, 1956, silver 1960), dies at 75