Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1854 – US Assay Office in NYC, New York opens
1904 – Liberty Theater opens at 234 W 42nd St NYC
1913 – Gamboa Dam in Panama blown up; Atlantic and Pacific waters mix
1935 – Coup under Gen Giorgios Kondylis in favor of Greek monarchy
1960 – WGTE TV channel 30 in Toledo, OH (PBS) begins broadcasting
1982 – Pope John Paul II canonizes Rev Maximilian Kolbe, who volunteered to die in place of another inmate at Auschwitz concentration camp, a saint

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Famous Birthdays

1862 – Arthur De Greef, Belgian composer, born in Louvain, Belgium (d. 1940)
1868 – Guillermo M. Tomás, Cuban composer, born in Cienfuegos, Cuba (d. 1933)
1900 – Helen Hayes [Brown], American actress (Caesar and Cleopatra, Happy Birthday), and 1st female EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award winner), born in Washington, D.C. (d. 1993)
1916 – Benson Fong, American character actor (Charlie Chan films; Purple Heart; Flower Drum Song), and restaurateur, born in Sacramento, California (d. 1987)
1921 – Boy Trip, Dutch minister, born in Amersfoort, Netherlands (d. 1990)
1936 – Artie Dick, New Zealand cricket wicket-keeper (NZ of 60’s), born in Middlemarch, New Zealand

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Famous Deaths

1473 – Giorgio da Sebenico, Venetian sculptor and architect (Cathedral of St James in Šibenik)
1745 – Jacobus Nozeman, Dutch composer and organist, dies at 52
1856 – Mikhail Vielgorsky, Russian composer, dies at 67
1977 – Jean Duvieusart, 36th Prime Minister of Belgium, dies at 77
1990 – Dick Jorgensen, NFL referee, dies at 56
2006 – Michael John Rogers, English ornithologist (b. 1932)

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Historical Events

1668 – Mass society storms palace of “heretics” Spanish governor Jose de Paternina
1824 – Slavery is abolished in Costa Rica
1976 – Peter Petherick takes hat-trick on cricket debut New Zealand v Pakistan Javed 1st wkt
1978 – John Kander and Fred Ebb’s musical “Ballroom” premieres in NYC
1988 – 9th Rugby League World Cup: Australia beats New Zealand 25-12
2016 – Second US Presidential debate: Hostile confrontation between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton at Washington University, St. Louis

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Famous Birthdays

1823 – Mary Ann Shadd Cary, American-Canadian publisher and anti-slavery campaigner, 1st African American newspaper publisher (‘Provincial Freeman’), born in Wilmington, Delaware (d. 1893)
1856 – Sylvain Dupuis, Belgian conductor, composer, and music educator (Le Chant de la Création), born in Liège, Belgium (d. 1931)
1939 – Pierre Mertens, French-Belgian writer (Lettres Clandestines), born in Brussels, Belgium
1954 – Scott Bakula, American actor (Quantum Leap, Gung Ho, Murphy Brown), born in St Louis, Missouri
1973 – A. J. Ofodile, American NFL tight end (Pittsburgh Steelers), born in Detroit, Michigan
1982 – António Mendonça, Angolan footballer, born in Luanda, Angola

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Famous Deaths

1960 – Howard Glenn, NY Titan, dies of injuries sustain in this day’s game
1987 – Clare Boothe Luce, American politician and U.S. ambassador to Italy, dies at 84
1997 – Arthur Tracy, American radio personality (The Street Singer), dies at 98
1998 – Ian Johnson, Australian cricket spin bowler and captain (45 Tests; 109 wickets), dies at 80
2012 – Theo Olof, German-Dutch violinist and concert master, dies at 88
2017 – Jean Rochefort, French actor (Man on the Train, The Artist and the Model), dies at 87

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Historical Events

1813 – Treaty of Ried between Bavaria and Austria
1982 – Poland bans Solidarity and all labor unions
1984 – NBC’s premiere of TV made “The Burning Bed”, based on Francine Hughes
1988 – Fire in Seattle’s Space Needle causes evacuation, $2,000 damage
1992 – Nobel Prize for literature is given to West Indies poet Derek Walcott
2018 – Major climate report by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for the UN says planet will warm 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 degrees Celsius) by 2040 with dire results

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Famous Birthdays

1838 – John Milton Hay, American politician (Union), born in Salem, Indiana (d. 1905)
1919 – Mac Anderson, New Zealand cricketer (played in 1st NZ-Aust Test 1946), born in Westport, West Coast, New Zealand (d. 1979)
1924 – Alphons Egli, Swiss politcian and member of the Swiss Federal Council, born in Lucerne, Switzerland (d. 2016)
1931 – Bill Brown, Scottish soccer goalkeeper (28 caps; Dundee, Tottenham Hotspur), born in Arbroath, Angus, Scotland (d. 2004)
1971 – Monty Williams, American basketball head coach and executive (Phoenix Suns 2019; New Orleans Hornets / Pelicans 2010-15) and NBA forward/guard (San Antonio Spurs), born in Fredericksburg, Virginia
1981 – Ruby [Rania Hussein Muhammad Tawfiq], Egyptian singer (“Do You Know Why”) and actress (The Baby Doll Night), born in Cairo, Egypt

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Famous Deaths

976 – Jelena of Zadar, Croatian queen
1094 – St Mark, the Evangelist, buried in San Marcos ministry in Venice
1974 – Harry Carney, American tenor and baritone jazz saxophonist (Duke Ellington Orchestra, 1927-74), dies at 64
2008 – George E. Palade, Romanian-American cell biologist (ribosomen, Nobel 1974), dies at 95
2008 – Eileen Herlie [Herlihy], Scottish-American actress (All My Children; The Angel with the Trumpet), dies of complications from pneumonia at 90
2011 – Antonio Iglesias Álvares, Spanish pianist, composer, educator and critic, dies at 93

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Historical Events

1916 – Georgia Tech, coached by John Heisman, defeats Cumberland, 222-0; most lopsided score in the history of US college football
1928 – Paavo Nurmi runs world record 10 miles (50:15.0)
1975 – MLB American League Championship: Boston Red Sox beat Oakland Athletics, 3 games to 0
1985 – KHQ-AM in Spokane Wash’s final transmission
1991 – Child star Adam Rich (Eight Is Enough) arrested for stealing hypodermics
1996 – Rupert Murdoch launches Fox News with Roger Ailes as CEO

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Famous Birthdays

1758 – Paul Anton Wineberger, composer
1939 – Joel Brodsky, American photographer, created over 400 album covers (The Doors; Isaac Hayes; Ohio Players), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2007)
1942 – Joy Behar [Occhiuto], American actress and comedian (The View), born in Brooklyn, New York
1967 – Mariana Perez-Roldan, Argentinan tennis star, born in Tandil, Argentina
1967 – Toni Braxton, American RandB singer-songwriter (“Un-Break My Heart”), born in Severn, Maryland
1982 – Madjid Bougherra, Algerian footballer, born in Longvic, France

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Famous Deaths

1553 – Cristóbal de Morales, Spanish composer, dies at about 53
1612 – Menso Alting, Dutch reformed vicar and theologist, dies at 70
1911 – John Hughlings Jackson, English neurologist (b. 1835)
1943 – Radclyffe Hall, British author (b. 1880)
1976 – Nikolai Lopatnikoff, Estonian-American composer (Variazioni Concertanti), dies at 73
1981 – Albert Cohen, Greek-born Swiss novelist (Belle du Seigneur), dies at 86

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Historical Events

1889 – Moulin Rogue opens in Paris
1908 – Austria annexes Bosnia and Herzegovina
1948 – Paleoanthropologist Mary Leakey finds the first partial fossil skull of Proconsul africanus, an ancestor of apes and humans on Rusinga Island, Kenya
1976 – John Hathaway completes 50,600 mile bicycle tour of every continent
1991 – Orioles’ last game at Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium (vs Det Tigers)
2019 – Tens of thousands of Hong Kong protesters march in defiance of a new ban on face masks

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Famous Birthdays

1744 – James McGill, Scottish-Canadian businessman and philanthropist, born in Glasgow, Scotland (d. 1813)
1887 – Le Corbusier [Charles Jeanneret], Swiss French architect, city planner and artist (Urbanisme), born in La Chaux-de-Fonds (d. 1965))
1920 – Lord Donaldson of Lymington, British judge (d. 2005)
1935 – Vicente Cantatore, Argentine soccer manager (Chile, Real Valladolid, Colo Colo, Real Betis, Sevilla, Sporting de Gijón), born in Rosario, Argentina (d. 2021)
1970 – Matt Vogel, American puppeteer (Sesame Street, 1996-present; Kermit the Frog, 2017-present; Big Bird, 2018-present), born in Kansas City, Kansas
1971 – Chris Hudson, NFL strong safety (Jacksonville Jaguars)

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Famous Deaths

1585 – Luca Cambiaso, Italian painter and sculptor, dies at 57
1874 – Thomas Tellefsen, Norwegian pianist and composer, dies at 50
1892 – Alfred Tennyson, writer and British Poet Laureate (The Charge of the Light Brigade), dies at 83
1976 – Gilbert Ryle, British philosopher (b. 1900)
2002 – Claus von Amsberg, husband of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands (b. 1926)
2017 – Terry Downes, British middleweight boxing champion (1961-62), dies at 81

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Historical Events

1450 – Jews are expelled from Lower Bavaria by order of Ludwig IX
1864 – Battle of Allatoona, 1/3 of Union troops die repulsing South
1957 – 11th NHL All-Star Game, Montreal Forum, Montreal, QC: All-Stars beat Montreal Canadiens, 5-3
1992 – NY senator Alphonse D’Amato filibusters for 15 hours 20 mins
1996 – Cleveland Indians strike out 23 Baltimore Orioles in 12 innings in 4-3 ALDS win at Jacobs Field; Orioles win series, 3-1
2010 – Injured Indian cricket batsman VVS Laxman is the hero with 73 not out as the home team chases down 216 to beat Australia with just 1 wicket to spare in the 1st Test at Mohali

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Famous Birthdays

1728 – Chevalier d’Éon [Charles-Geneviève-Louis-Auguste-André-Timothée d’Éon de Beaumont], French spy, diplomat, and transvestite, born in Tonnerre, France (d. 1810)
1840 – Fran Gerbič, Slovenian composer and tenor, born in Cerknica (d. 1917)
1894 – Bevil Rudd, South African athlete (Olympic gold 400m 1920), born in Kimberley, South Africa (d. 1948)
1906 – Leopold Kohr, Austrian social philosopher, born in Oberndorf, Austria (d. 1994)
1913 – Eugene B. Fluckey, American Navy submariner, born in Washington, D.C. (d. 2007)
1971 – Chad Lewis, American football tight end (Philadelphia Eagles), born in Fort Dix, New Jersey

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Famous Deaths

1813 – Tecumseh, Shawnee Chief (Battle of Thames), dies in battle at 45
1906 – Raja Ravi Varma, Indian painter, dies at 58
1933 – Nikolai Nikolayevich Yudenich, Russian WWI general, dies at 71
1993 – Karl Gordon Henize, American astronomer and NASA astronaut (STS-51-F), dies of high altitude pulmonary edema during an expedition on Mount Everest at 66
1995 – Dick Henry Jurgen, American swing bandleader, and songwriter (“Elmer’s Tune”), dies of cancer at 85
1995 – Linda Gary, American voice actress (b. 1944)

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Historical Events

1648 – Peter Stuyvesant establishes America’s 1st volunteer fire service
1916 – Market Street’s “Path of Gold” lit for 1st time
1964 – LPGA Championship Women’s Golf, Stardust CC; Mary Mills shoots final round 69 to win first of her 2 LPGA C’ships, 2 strokes ahead of defending champion Mickey Wright
1967 – St Louis Cardinals beat Boston Red Sox, 2-1 in Game 1 of Baseball World Series at Fenway Park; first Fall Classic since 1948 not to feature Yankees, Giants or Dodgers; Cards win series, 4-3
1986 – Queen Beatrice installs dam at Oosterschelde
2003 – Maxim restaurant suicide bombing in Haifa, Israel: 21 Israelis, Jews and Arabs, are killed, and 51 others wounded.

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Famous Birthdays

1276 – Margaret of Brabant, Queen of Germany (d. 1311)
1901 – [Robert] Carroll Nye, American actor (Gone With The Wind), born in Akron, Ohio (d. 1974)
1955 – John Rutherford, Scottish rugby union fly-half (42 caps; British and Irish Lions 1983), born in Selkirk, Scotland
1956 – Sherri Turner, American golfer (Women’s PGA C’ship 1988), born in Greenville, South Carolina
1967 – Ekin Cheng Yee-Kin, Hong Kong actor and Cantopop singer, born in Hong Kong
1971 – Friderika Bayer, Hungarian singer

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Famous Deaths

1862 – William Duncan Smith, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), dies at 36
1949 – Edmund Eysler, Austrian composer, mostly of operettas (Bruder Straubinger; The Golden Mistress), dies from injuries from falling off of a stage at 75
1992 – Denny Hulme, New Zealand auto racer (F1 World Drivers’ Champion 1967), dies of a heart attack driving in Bathurst 1,000 at 56
1993 – Jim Holton, Scottish soccer defender (15 caps; Manchester United, Coventry City), dies of a heart attack at 42
2002 – André Delvaux, Belgian film director and screenwriter (Benvenuta), dies at 76
2004 – Gordon Cooper, American astronaut (b. 1927)

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Historical Events

1627 – Last Emperor of the Chinese Ming dynasty, Chongzhen, comes to the throne after death of his brother Emperor Tianqi
1799 – Duke of York and Russians capture Alkmaar in Netherlands
1851 – The pasilalinic-sympathetic compass(a contraption built to test the pseudo-scientific hypothesis that snails create a permanent telepathic link when they mate) is demonstrated but proves to be a fake.
1926 – Bert Gibb kicks 9 singles as Hamilton Tigers beat Montreal AAA Winged Wheelers 12-10 in Montreal in Canadian Inter-provincial Rugby Football Union opening round
1982 – Bomb attack in Tehran, kills 60, injures 700
1990 – Chinese plane explodes, about 100 die

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Famous Birthdays

1880 – George Alexander Russell, American organist, composer and the first Frick Professor of Music for Princeton University, born in Franklin, Tennessee (d. 1953)
1945 – Don McLean, American singer and songwriter (“American Pie”; “Vincent”), born in New Rochelle, New York
1947 – (Frank) “Skip” Konte, American keyboardist, songwriter (The Blues Image – “Ride Captain Ride”), and record producer, born in Canon City, Oklahoma
1967 – Floyd “Bud” Gaugh, American ska-punk rock drummer (Sublime), born in Kihei, Hawaii
1967 – Frankie Fredericks, Namibian athlete (Olympic silver 100m, 200m 1992, 96), born in Windhoek, South West Africa
1969 – Badly Drawn Boy [Damon Gough], British singer-songwriter (Have You Fed The Fish?), born in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England

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Famous Deaths

1729 – Arnold Boonen, portrait painter, dies at 60
1842 – William Ellery Channing, cleric/writer, dies
1974 – Ina Seidel, German poet and novelist, dies at 89
1993 – Ahmed Abdul-Malik [Jonathan Tim, Jr.], American jazz double bassist and oud player (Odetta; Thelonius Monk), dies at 66
2001 – Franz Biebl, German composer, mostly of choral music, dies at 95
2005 – Bert Eriksson, Flemish neo-Nazi, dies at 74

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Historical Events

911 – During a siege in Constantinople, the Theotokos (Mary, the mother of Jesus) appeared at the church in Blachernae holding her veil over the praying faithful, among them St. Andrew of Constantinople.
1889 – Washington voters adopt state constitution in referendum
1931 – Philadelphia Athletics seek 3rd straight World Series baseball title; beat St. Louis Cardinals, 6-2 in opener at Sportsman’s Park; lose series, 4-3
1960 – KCBY TV channel 11 in Coos Bay, OR (CBS) begins broadcasting
1968 – Cult zombie film “Night of the Living Dead” directed by George A. Romero, starring Duane Jones and Judith O’Dea premieres in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
2018 – French photographer Jean-Claude Arnault, at the center of a Nobel prize sexual assault scandal, sentenced to two years in prison for rape

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Famous Birthdays

1878 – Othmar Spann, Austrian economist and sociologist (Geschichtsfilosofie), born in Vienna (d. 1950)
1947 – Mariska Veres, Dutch singer (Shocking Blue), born in The Hague, the Netherlands (d. 2006)
1947 – Dave Arneson, American game designer (Dungeons and Dragons), born in Hennepin County, Minnesota (d. 2009)
1965 – Mia Mottley, Barbadian politician, Prime Minister of Barbados (2018-), born in Barbados
1970 – Ronnie Bradford, American NFL defensive back and coach (Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos; La. Tech., USC), born in Minot, North Dakota
1974 – Christian Borle, American actor (play Peter and the Starcatcher), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

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Famous Deaths

976 – Al-Hakam II, Moors kalief of Cordoba, dies
1500 – John Alcock, English bishop and chancellor (founded Jesus College, Cambridge), dies at about 70
1927 – Wilhelm Harteveld, Swedish composer, dies at 68
1943 – Maarten van/of Gilse, resistance fighter, executed at 27
1995 – Aditya Biria, India’s 1st global industrialist, dies of cancer at 51
2000 – Robert Allen, American pianist and songwriter “(There’s No Place Like) Home for the Holidays”; “Chances Are”), dies of colon cancer at 73

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Historical Events

1846 – Anesthetic ether used for 1st time by American dentist Dr William Morton who extracts a tooth
1927 – Yankees slugger Babe Ruth smacks his MLB record 60th home run off Tom Zachary in 8th inning of New York’s 4-2 win over Washington Senators at Yankee Stadium
1935 – George Gershwin’s opera “Porgy and Bess” premieres in Boston
1962 – NY Mets lose record 120th game as Cubs turn triple play and beat NY 5-1
1997 – Microsoft releases Internet Explorer 4
1997 – Hooters agrees to pay $2 million in discrimination suits

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Famous Birthdays

1824 – Peter Milne, Scottish composer and violinist, born in Kincardine O’Neil (d. 1908)
1883 – Bernhard Rust, Nazi education minister (d. 1945)
1887 – Lil Dagover [Marta-Maria Lillits], Dutch-born German actress (Spiders), born in Madioen, Dutch East Indies (d. 1980)
1952 – Darrell Hair, Australian cricketer (Australian Test umpire since 1993-94)
1957 – Fran Drescher, American actress (Cadillac Man, The Nanny), born in Queens, New York
1965 – Kathleen Madigan, American comedian, born in Florissant, Missouri

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Famous Deaths

1819 – Nicolas Roze, French composer, dies at 74
1884 – Louis Lacombe, French pianist and composer, dies at 65
1958 – Niels Bjerrum, Danish chemist (ph-stipulation), dies at 79
1974 – Carlos Prats, Chilean Constitutionalist General, assassinated in the frame of Operation Condor
1997 – Richard Selwyn Francis Schiling, British professor of occupational health, dies at 86
2010 – Stephen J. Cannell, American TV producer (The Rockford Files, The A-Team, 21 Jump Street) and writer, dies of melanoma at 69

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