Author: gil7

Historical Events

558 – Dome of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople collapses, Justinian I immediately orders it rebuilt
1949 – 75th Kentucky Derby: Steve Brooks aboard Ponder wins in 2:04.2
2006 – On the final day of the Premier League season, Thierry Henry scores a hat-trick against Wigan Athletic in the last match played at Highbury
2011 – 137th Kentucky Derby: John Velazquez aboard Animal Kingdom wins in 2:02.04
2017 – MTV becomes the first major awards show to adopt gender-neutral categories, with Emma Watson winning Best Film Actor and Millie Bobby Brown winning Best TV Actor

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Famous Birthdays

1892 – Josip Broz Tito, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and leader of Yugoslavia (1943-80), born in Kumrovec, Hrvatsko Zagorje, Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia (d. 1980)
1936 – Jimmy Ruffin, American soul singer (“What Becomes of the Brokenhearted”), born in Collinsville, Mississippi (d. 2014)
1959 – Michael E. Knight, American actor (Tad Martin in “All My Children”), born in Princeton, New Jersey
1960 – Arnon Ohad, Israeli pilot and first officer of EI Al flight 1862 that crashed in Bijlmer Amsterdam, born in Israel
1964 – Leslie O’Neal, NFL defensive end and 6x Pro-Bowl selection (San Diego Chargers, St Louis Rams), born in Little Rock, Arkansas

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Famous Deaths

973 – Otto I, the Great, East Frankish king and Holy Roman Emperor (962-973), dies at 60
2018 – Mikhail German, Russian writer, dies at 85
2018 – Jeremy D. Safran, Canadian-born American clinical psychologist, is killed during a burglary
2020 – Brian Bolus, English cricket batsman (7 Tests @ 41.33; Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire), dies at 86
2021 – Martín Pando, Argentine soccer forward (11 caps; Argentinos Juniors, River Plate), dies at 86

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Historical Events

1916 – Belgian troops march into Kigali, German East Africa
1945 – General Johannes Blaskowitz surrenders German troops in Netherlands
1987 – American televangelist Jim Bakker and Rich Dortch dismissed from Assemblies of God after revelations of an alleged rape of a church secretary
1987 – Miroslav Mihailovic begins 54 hours of telling jokes
2008 – Chaiten Volcano erupts in Chile, forcing the evacuation of more than 4,500 people

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Famous Birthdays

1758 – Maximilien Robespierre, French revolutionary (President of the National Convention, Member of Committee of Public Safety), born in Arras, France (d. 1794)
1843 – Grove Karl Gilbert, American geologist (investigated Lake Bonneville, Utah), born in Rochester, New York (d. 1918)
1925 – Patrick Meaney, British businessman and CEO (Rank Organization), born in Wandsworth, London (d. 1992)
1947 – Ronald Rivest, American computer scientist (RSA cryptography), born in Schenectady, New York
1953 – Michelle Courchesne, Quebec politician and former President of the Treasury Board, born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec

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Famous Deaths

850 – Ninmyō, 54th Emperor of Japan (833-50) during the Heian period, dies at 41
1727 – Catharine I of Russia [Marta Samuilovna], wife of Peter the Great, dies at about 42
1985 – Pete Desjardins, American diver (Olympic gold 10m platform, 3m springboard 1928), dies at 78
2014 – Geoffrey Maitland Smith, British accountant (Sir Charles Clore; Paul McCartney) and businessman (CEO of Sears, 1978-95), dies at 81
2018 – Cirilo Bautista, Filipino writer and poet, dies at 76

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Historical Events

1494 – On his second voyage to the New World, Christopher Columbus sights Jamaica and lands at Discovery Bay
1864 – Battle of Wilderness, Virginia (Germanna Ford, Wilderness Tavern)
1938 – MLB Philadelphia Phillies Harold Kelleher pitcher faces 16 batters in 6th, as Cubs score 12 runs, both marks are NL records off one hurler in a single inning
1990 – 35th Eurovision Song Contest: Toto Cutugno for Italy wins singing “Insieme: 1992” in Zagreb
1991 – A riot breaks out in the Mt. Pleasant section of Washington, D.C. after Salvadoran man is shot by police

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Famous Birthdays

1883 – Charles “Chief” Bender, American Baseball HOF pitcher (only indigenous American in BHOF; World Series 1910, 11, 13; no-hitter 1910; Philadelphia A’s), born in Crow Wing County, Minnesota (d. 1954)
1915 – Richard Rovere, American political journalist (Goldwater Caper), born in Jersey City, New Jersey (d. 1979)
1924 – Leopoldo Torre Nilsson, Argentine film director (Monday’s Child), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 1978)
1950 – Googoosh [Faegheh Atashin (فائقه آتشین)], Persian singer and actress, born in Sarcheshmeh Street, Tehran, Iran
1982 – Jay Bothroyd, English footballer (striker for J1 League club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo), born in London

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Famous Deaths

1945 – Peter Van Pels, Jewish Refugee (b. 1926)
1964 – Howard Zahniser, American environmental activist (father of Wilderness Act), dies of heart failure at 58
1995 – Anthony Wagner, English Officer of Arms at the College of Arms and author on heraldry, dies at 86
2000 – Gino Bartali, Italian cyclist (Tour de France 1938, 48; Giro d’Italia 1936-7, 46), dies of a heart attack at 85
2012 – Raman Surendranath, Indian cricket fast bowler (11 Tests, 26 wickets), dies at 75

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Historical Events

1883 – John Gordon Cashman publishes the first edition of the “Vicksburg Evening Post” in Mississippi
1942 – Battle of Coral Sea begins (1st naval battle fought solely in air) between Japanese, US and Australian navies and air forces
1959 – First Grammy Awards: Perry Como and Ella Fitzgerald win major awards
1966 – The Soviet government signs an agreement with Fiat to build an automobile factory in the Soviet Union
2019 – 145th Kentucky Derby: stewards disqualify first-across-the-line Maximum Security for interference; longshot Country House declared winner; first DQ in race history for race infraction

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Famous Birthdays

1938 – Gillian Tindall, British historian and novelist (The Fields Beneath, Fly Away Home), born in London (d. 2025)
1949 – Zal Cleminson, Scottish guitarist (The Sensational Alex Harvey Band), born in Glasgow, Scotland
1956 – Barrie Masters, British pub-rock singer (Eddie and the Hot Rods), born in Rochford, Essex, England (d. 2019)
1977 – Mariano Pernía, Argentine soccer left back (11 caps Spain; Independiente, Recreativo, Getafe, Atlético Madrid), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
1984 – Manjural Islam Rana, Bangladeshi cricket all-rounder (6 Tests, 1 x 50, 5 wickets, BB 3/84; Khulna Division), born in Khulna, Bangladesh (d. 2007)

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Famous Deaths

1566 – Luca Ghini, Italian physician and botanist (b. 1490)
1855 – Camille Pleyel, Austrian pianist, piano manufacturer, and music publisher, dies at 66
1953 – T. Tertius Noble, English composer, dies at 85
1984 – Bob Clampett, American cartoonist (b. 1913)
1994 – Karl Francis Hettinger, American police officer (Onion Field survivor), dies at 59

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