Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1775 – George Washington appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, the day after Congress establishes the force
1857 – San Francisco Water Works organized
1957 – US Open Men’s Golf, Inverness Club: Dick Mayer defeats defending champion Cary Middlecoff by 7 strokes in an 18-hole playoff to win his only major title
1974 – “All the President’s Men” by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward detailing their Watergate investigation is published by Simon and Schuster in the US
1982 – Riots occur in Argentina after the country is defeated in the Falklands Island War
1992 – Erie Sailors (Fla Marlin farm team) 1st game beat Jamestown 6-5 in 13

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Famous Birthdays

1908 – Sam Giancana, American mafioso, born in Chicago, Illinois
1917 – Michalis Genitsaris, Greek rebetiko singer and composer, born in Agia Sofia, Piraeus, Greece (d. 2005)
1949 – Dusty Baker, American baseball outfielder and manager (MLB All Star 1981-82; LA Dodgers; NL Manager of the Year 1993, 97, 2000), born in Riverside, California
1971 – Stuart Howell, Australian baseball pitcher (Olympics 1996)
1972 – Jean Francois Labbe, Sherbrooke, NHL goalie (Colorado Avalanche)
1983 – Laura Imbruglia, Australian singer-songwriter, born in Sydney, Australia

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Famous Deaths

1978 – Anton Roosjen, Dutch politician and NCRV-chairman, dies at 83
1989 – Maurice Bellemare, Canadian politician (b. 1912)
1994 – Manos Hadjidakis, Greek conductor, and Academy Award-winning composer (“Never On Sunday”), dies at 68
2011 – Bill Haast, American Herpetologist (b. 1910)
2014 – Casey Kasem, American radio personality (creator of American Top 40) and the voice of Shaggy on Scooby-Doo, dies from Lewy body dementia at 82
2015 – Jean Doré, Canadian politician (39th Mayor of Montreal), dies at 70

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Historical Events

1923 – Recording of 1st country music hit (Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane)
1968 – “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” second studio album by Iron Butterfly is released
1982 – Argentina surrenders to Great Britain, ending the 74-day Falklands Islands conflict
1989 – “You’ve Got A Friend” singer-songwriter Carole King gets a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame
2012 – The world’s first stem-cell assisted vein transplant is undertaken by Swedish doctors on a 10 year old girl
2020 – India reports surge of nearly 12,000 a day confirmed COVID-19 cases (320,922 overall), the world’s fourth-affected country, as death toll hits 9,195

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Famous Birthdays

1883 – Lucien Cerfaux, Belgian New Testament scholar, born in Presles, Belgium (d. 1968)
1929 – Alan Davidson, Australian cricket all-rounder (44 Tests, 1,328 runs @ 24.59, 186 wickets, best 7/93, 42 catches; NSW), born in Lisarow, Australia (d. 2021)
1932 – Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, American pianist, arranger, jazz and classical composer (For Bird, With Love), born in Manhattan, New York (d. 2004)
1940 – Dary John Mizelle, American composer, born in Stillwater, Oklahoma
1940 – Ben Davidson, American actor (Rhino-Ball Four, Code R) and football player, born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2012)
1969 – Eugene Chung, American NFL guard (Jacksonville Jaguars, Indianapolis Colts), born in Prince George’s County, Maryland

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Famous Deaths

1544 – Antoine, Duke of Lorraine, dies at 55
1883 – Edward FitzGerald, English poet (b. 1809)
1920 – Max Weber, German sociologist, economist and historian (Ancient Judaism), dies at 56
1962 – Anna Sleasers, first Boston Strangler victim
2007 – Ruth Graham [Bell], American Christian author and wife of evangelist Billy Graham, dies at 87
2020 – Aarón Padilla Gutiérrez, Mexican soccer striker (55 caps; Pumas, Atlante, Veracruz), dies at 77

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Historical Events

1902 – Prussian Upper house gives 350 million marks to Poland
1973 – Garvey, Lopes, Cey and Russell play together for 1st time, set record of staying together as an infield for 8½ years (LA Dodgers)
1980 – Deborah Harry and Meat Loaf film “Roadie” premieres
1991 – The National, 1st all-sports daily newspaper, ceases publication
1995 – Björk releases her 2nd art pop solo album “Post”
2017 – Otto Warmbier returns to the US in an unresponsive state after being held in Norther Korean jail for 17 months,

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Famous Birthdays

1773 – Thomas Young, British physician and physicist (light interference), born in Milverton, Somerset, England (d. 1829)
1879 – Johannes Geelkerken, Dutch theologian and vicar, born in Alkmaar, Netherlands (d. 1960)
1884 – Anton Drexler, German politician and founder of the German Worker’s Party, born in Munich (d. 1942)
1913 – Ralph Edwards, American TV host (This is Your Life), born in Merino, Colorado (d. 2005)
1941 – Tom Hallick, American actor (Search), born in Buffalo, New York
1961 – Bob Crow, English trade union leader (National Union RMT), born in Epping, Essex, England (d. 2014)

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Famous Deaths

1645 – Miyamoto Musashi, Japanese swordsman
1873 – Angelo Mariani, Italian composer, dies at 51
1995 – David Parry, British-Canadian folk musician (Friends of Fiddler’s Green), storyteller (Canadian Museum of Civilization), actor, stage director, and teacher (University of Toronto), dies of a heart attack at 53
2001 – Siegfried Naumann, Swedish conductor (Musica Nova Ensemble, 1962-77), teacher, and composer (Risposte), dies at 81
2016 – Oleg Karavaichuk, Russian pianist and composer, dies at 88
2018 – Roger Connor, American Baseball Hall of Fame 1st baseman (career HR record 138 stood for 23 years), dies of a stomach illness at 73

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Historical Events

28 – Roman General Gaius Carrinas’ triumphant procession through Rome, awarded for fighting in Gaul
1442 – King Alfonso V of Aragon occupies Naples
1830 – Beginning of the French colonization of Algeria: 34,000 French soldiers land 27 kilometers west of Algiers, at Sidi Ferruch
1939 – Baseball Hall of Fame is dedicated in Cooperstown, New York
1979 – Bryan Allen flew man-powered Gossamer Albatross over English Channel in a human-powered aircraft; flight took 2 hrs, 49 min
1991 – NBA Finals: Chicago Bulls beat LA Lakers, 108-101 in Game 5 for first of 3 straight titles; MVP: Michael Jordan in his first NBA Finals appearance

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Famous Birthdays

1913 – Jean Victor Allard, Canadian army general, born in Sainte-Monique-de-Nicolet, Quebec (d. 1996)
1916 – Ivan Tors, Hungarian TV producer (Sea Hunt, Flipper), born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 1983)
1937 – Vladimir Arnold, Russian mathematician (Kolmogorov–Arnold–Moser theorem), born in Odessa, Ukraine (d. 2010)
1972 – Patrick van Diemen, Dutch soccer player (FC Utrecht, NEC), born in Woerden, Netherlands
1979 – Dallas Clark, American football tight end (Super Bowl 2006; Pro Bowl, First-team All-Pro 2009; Indianapolis Colts), born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota
1997 – William Cuddy, Canadian actor (Amelia)

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Famous Deaths

1760 – Antoine Court, French minister and itinerant preacher in the Reformed church who restored Protestantism to France, dies at 69
1818 – Egwale Seyon, Emperor of Ethiopia
1936 – M. R. James, English scholar and author (Ghost Stories of an Antiquary), dies at 73
1978 – Guo Moruo, Chinese scholar and writer, dies at 85
1980 – Billy Butlin, South African-born British founder of Butlins holiday camps, dies at 80
1995 – Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, pianist, dies at 75

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Historical Events

1937 – Marx Brothers’ “A Day At The Races”, directed by Sam Wood, is released in the US
1958 – UN Security council sends observers to Lebanon
1980 – K-Ingleside streetcar converts to METRO service (San Francisco)
1994 – “Meet The Flintstones” by The B-52’s (stylized for this release as The B.C. 52’s) from the 1994 film The Flintstones peaks at #33
1996 – Bob Dole, (Sen-R-KS), resigns from US senate to run for president
2002 – “American Idol” created by Simon Fuller with judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson premieres on Fox

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Famous Birthdays

1704 – José António Carlos de Seixas, Portuguese composer, born in Coimbra, Portugal (d. 1742)
1861 – Sigismund Vladislavovich Zaremba, Ukrainian-Russian composer, born in Zhytomyr, Ukraine (d. 1915)
1894 – Dai Vernon [David Frederick Wingfield Verner], Canadian magician, The Professor (d. 1992)
1907 – Paul Mellon, American philanthropist (Washington National Gallery of Art), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (d. 1999)
1926 – Brother Dave Gardner, American comedian, drummer and singer, born in Jackson, Tennessee (d. 1983)
1949 – Benjamin Vasserman, Estonian graphic artist, born in Sovetsky, Kirov Oblast, Russia

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Famous Deaths

1856 – Friedrich H von der Hagen, German germanist, dies at 76
1907 – John Tyler Morgan, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), dies at 82
1927 – William Attewell, English cricket bowler (England in 10 Tests 1884-1891), dies at 65
1990 – Clyde McCoy, American jazz trumpeter (“Sugar Blues”; the wah-wah sound), bandleader and co-founder of “Down Beat” magazin, dies at 86
2003 – David Brinkley, American NBC news anchor (The Huntley-Brinkley Report), dies at 82
2008 – Miroslav Dvořák, Czechoslovak ice hockey player, dies at 56

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Historical Events

1905 – 1st forest fire lookout tower placed in operation, Greenville, Maine
1966 – The Beatles release single “Paperback Writer” / “Rain” in UK; “Rain” featured experimental studio tricks of slowed down bass and drums tracks, and backwards vocals in the fade out
1973 – LPGA Championship Women’s Golf, Pleasant Valley CC: 1964 champion Mary Mills wins by 1 stroke ahead of runner-up Betty Burfeindt
1975 – Yanks sponsor Army Day at temporary home, Shea Stadium during 21-gun salute, part of fence is blown away, and another part is set afire
1991 – David Lynch’s “Twin Peaks” final episode airs on ABC-TV
1996 – Variety talk show “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” hosted by Rosie O’Donnell premieres

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Famous Birthdays

1657 – James Cragg the Elder, British politician (d. 1721)
1869 – Gustave Vanzype, Belgian literary (La Gazette), born in Brussels (d. 1955)
1900 – Henri Bruning, Dutch poet and literary, born in Amsterdam (d. 1983)
1918 – Herbert “Barry” Morse, British-Canadian actor (The Fugitive, Space: 1999, Winds of War), born in Shoreditch, London (d. 2008)
1977 – Takako Matsu, Japanese singer and actress
1987 – Kelly Vitz, American actress (Sky High), born in Hollywood, California

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Famous Deaths

1424 – Duke Ernest of Austria (b. 1377)
1926 – Antoni Gaudí, Catalan-Spanish architect (Sagrada Família, Casa Milà, Casa Batlló), dies after being hit by a tram at 73
1942 – Jean François van Royen, Dutch Sect-Gen of Concentration Camp Amersfoort, dies at 63
1963 – Jack Root, Czech-American boxer (First world light heavyweight champion 1903), dies from a heart attack at 87
2009 – Barry Beckett, American keyboardist and record producer (David Hood, Jimmy Johnson, Roger Hawkins), dies from complications of a stroke at 66
2019 – Girish Karnad, Indian playwright and filmmaker (Tuglaq), dies at 81

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Historical Events

1742 – Battle of Bloody Marsh-Spanish assault on Simons Island, Georgia
1899 – American boxer James J. Jeffries KOs defending champion Bob Fitzsimmons of England in 11th round in Brooklyn, New York to win the lineal World Heavyweight title
1914 – Pittsburgh Pirate baseball shortstop Honus Wagner is 2nd player to get 3,000 hits
1963 – 1st Sunday night game in baseball SF Giants lose to Houston Colts 3-0
1983 – 56th National Spelling Bee: Blake Giddens wins spelling purim
2019 – General strike begins in Khartoum, Sudan, as a protest against ruling military generals by the Sudanese Professionals Association

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Famous Birthdays

1791 – John Howard Payne, American actor, playwright (Fair Warning), author and creator of the hit song “Home! Sweet Home!”, born in NYC, New York (d. 1852)
1893 – Irish Meusel, American baseball left fielder (World Series 1921, 22; NL RBI leader 1923; Philadelphia Phillies, New York Giants), born in Oakland, California (d. 1963)
1921 – Arthur Hertzberg, American Jewish scholar (d. 2006)
1928 – Geraint Gruffydd, Welsh scholar (University of Wales), born in Tal-y-bont, Wales (d. 2015)
1948 – Nathaniel Rosen, American cellist (Tchaikovsky-gold-1978), born in Altadena California
1986 – Adamo Ruggiero, Canadian actor (Degrassi: The Next Generation), born in Mississauga, Ontario

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Famous Deaths

630 – Shahrbaraz, General and King of Sasanian Persian Empire (630), killed after 40 days in power
1717 – Jeanne Guyon, French mystic, dies at 69
1912 – Ion Luca Caragiale, Romanian actor and playwright (O Noapte Furtunoasa), dies at 60
1994 – Lloyd Lindroth, American harpist known as ‘The Liberace of the Harp’, dies at 63
2014 – Bob Welch, American baseball pitcher (AL Cy Young Award 1990; Oakland A’s; World Series 1981, 89, 2001), dies from a broken neck at 57
2017 – Adam West [William West Anderson], American actor (Batman, Last Precinct) dies from leukemia at 88

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Historical Events

1929 – Venezuelan rebel Rafael Urbina overthrows Fort Amsterdam, Curacao kidnap governor Fruytier
1940 – Last British troops leave Narvik, Norway
1944 – General Montgomery lands in Normandy, sets up HQ in Chateau de Creully
1948 – “Texaco Star Theater” premieres on NBC-TV, with “Mr. Television” Milton Berle made permanent emcee in September of the same year
1996 – French Open Women’s Tennis: Defending champion Steffi Graf beats Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 6-3, 6-7, 10-8 for her 5th French singles crown
2012 – A bus bombing in Pakistan kills 18 and injures 35 people

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Famous Birthdays

1814 – Charles Reade, English novelist (Cloister and Hearth), born in Ipsden, Oxfordshire (d. 1884)
1910 – Aleksandr Tvardovsky, Russian poet and editor in chief (Novyj Mir), born in Zagorye, Russian Empire (d. 1971) [NS=June 21]
1929 – V. M. Muddiah, Indian cricket spin bowler (2 Tests, 3 wickets), born in Bangalore, Mysore (d. 2009)
1939 – Bernie Casey, American actor (Boxcar Bertha, Rent-a-Cop), born in Wyco, West Virginia (d. 2017)
1950 – Kathy Whitton Baker, American actress (Right Stuff, 16 Candles), born in Midland, Texas
1966 – Julianna Margulies, American actress (ER, The Good Wife), born in Spring Valley NY

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Famous Deaths

1376 – Edward the Black Prince, English knight and heir to King Edward III, dies of dysentery at 46
1716 – Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine (1690-1716), dies at 58
1966 – Anton Melik, Slovenian geographer (b. 1890)
1995 – Juan Carlos Ongania, President of Argentina (1966-70), dies
2013 – Paul Cellucci, American politician, 69th Governor of Massachusetts and former United States Ambassador to Canada, dies from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at 65
2018 – Anthony Bourdain, American-French celebrity chef, author, and TV personality considered one of the most influential chefs in the world (No Reservations, Parts Unknown), commits suicide by hanging at 61

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Historical Events

1909 – Cleveland Industrial Exposition opens
1929 – Vatican City becomes a sovereign state
1958 – 90th Belmont: Pete Anderson aboard Cavan wins in 2:30.2
1994 – A’s outfielder Rickey Henderson steals his 1,100th career base
2012 – A bus falls into a ravine in La Paz, Bolivia, killing 16 and injuring 32 people
2012 – 16th century archaeology remains of the Curtain Theatre, where some of Shakespeare’s plays first performed found under a pub in London

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Famous Birthdays

1778 – Beau [George Bryan] Brummel, English dandy, born in London, England (d. 1840)
1845 – Leopold von Auer, Hungarian-American violinist, born in Veszprém, Hungary (d. 1930)
1884 – Julius P. Hoste, Belgium minister and daily newspaper publisher (Last News), born in Brussels, Belgium (d. 1954)
1909 – Virginia Apgar, American physician and childbirth specialist, born in Westfield, New Jersey (d. 1974)
1928 – David Malcolm Lewis, English historian, expert in Greek Epigraphy, born in London (d. 1994)
1931 – (Nii Moi) “Speedy” Acquaye, Ghanaian drummer, percussionist and fire-eater (Tubby Hayes; Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames; Ginger Baker’s Airforce), born in Accra, Gold Coast (now Ghana) (d. 1993)

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Famous Deaths

1779 – William Warburton, English critic and Bishop of Gloucester (b. 1698)
1968 – Dan Duryea, American actor (Pride of the Yankees), dies of cancer at 60
1983 – Daniele Amfitheatrof [Amfiteatrov], Russian-Italian pianist, conductor, and composer of concert and Hollywood film score music (American Panorama; The Naked Jungle), dies at 81
1999 – Paco Stanley, Mexican TV entertainer, dies at 56
2003 – Trevor Goddard, English actor (b. 1962)
2015 – Michael Oliver, British cardiologist (linked cholesterol with coronary artery disease), dies at 89

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Historical Events

1752 – 3rd great fire in Moscow in 2 weeks; 1/3 of city destroyed
1971 – WHAE (now WGNX) TV channel 46 in Atlanta, Georgia (CBN) begins broadcasting
1972 – Gold hits record $60 an ounce in London
1976 – “The Omen” premieres in the UK
1982 – 30,000 Israeli troops invade Lebanon to drive out the PLO
1994 – Warwickshire score 4 for 810 declared against Durham

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Famous Birthdays

1606 – Pierre Corneille, French poet and dramatist (El Cid, Horace), born in Rouen, France (d. 1684)
1951 – Noritake Takahara, Japanese racing driver
1961 – Dee C. Lee [Diane Catherine Sealy], British rock musician (Wham!, Style Council), born in London, England
1963 – Jason Isaacs, English actor (Harry Potter films), born in Liverpool, England
1973 – Jon Hesse, NFL linebacker (Denver Broncos-Super Bowl 32)
1977 – David Connolly, Irish footballer

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Famous Deaths

1134 – Norbertus van Xanten, monastery founder, dies at about 51
1799 – Patrick Henry, American Revolutionary and Founding Father famous for his “Give me liberty or give me death” speech, dies at 63
1878 – Gottfried Herrmann, German musician and composer, dies at 70
1967 – Edward G Givens Jr, Major USAF/astronaut, dies in an car crash at 47
1994 – Mark McManus, actor (Ned Kelly), dies of pneumonia at 59
1999 – Eddie Stanky, American baseball 2nd baseman (MLB All Star 1947, 48, 50; Brooklyn Dodgers, Boston Braves, NY Giants) and manager (St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers), dies of a heart attack at 83

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