Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1863 – City of Dublin leases part of Cattle Market for 100,000 years
1890 – 1st issue of “Propria Cures”, Amsterdam student-weekly newspaper
1944 – 649 British bombers attack Magdeburg
1958 – Phillies agree to televise 78 games into NYC (doesn’t happen)
1990 – 41st NHL All-Star Game, Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, PA: Wales beats Campbell, 12-7; MVP: Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins, C
2015 – Italian fashion label Gucci names Alessandro Michele as its new creative director

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Famous Birthdays

1885 – Umberto Nobile, Italian general
1920 – Torsten Nilsson, Swedish organist, choral director, and composer (Out of the Night of the Earth), born in Höör, Sweden (d. 1999)
1926 – Raf Reymen, Flemish actor (Huisvuil, Het glas water), born in Gent, Flanders, Belgium (d. 1990)
1952 – Marco Camenisch, Swiss environmental activist
1961 – Sherry Ramsay, American actress (Trish Mason-As the World Turns), born in Stauton, Virginia
1982 – Dean Whitehead, English footballer

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Famous Deaths

1683 – Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st earl of Shaftesbury, dies at 61
1766 – James Quin, British actor (Covent Garden Theatre), dies at 72
1881 – Wilhelm Matthias Naeff, Swiss Federal Councilor (b. 1802)
1964 – Joseph Schildkraut, Austrian actor (Cleopatra, Joseph Schildkraut Presents, Diary of Anne Frank), dies from a heart attack at 68
1995 – Flavio “Negao” Pires da Conceicao, drug Trafficker, dies at 25
2002 – Peggy Lee [Norma Delores Egstrom], American singer (“Fever”; “Is That All There Is?”), songwriter (“Mañana”), and actress (Pete Kelly’s Blues; Lady and the Tramp), dies of a heart attack at 81

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Historical Events

1045 – Giovanni di Sabina elected Pope Sylvester III
1866 – Prim’s Insurrection in Spain ends
1941 – Chinese Communist leaders re-organize the New Fourth Army in defiance of Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek’s order for it to be disbanded
1989 – Wayne Holdsworth takes a wicket 1st ball in 1st-class cricket
2006 – TV movie “High School Musical” released starring Zac Efron and Vanessa Hugdens, becomes Disney Channel’s most successful TV movie
2021 – Joe Biden is inaugurated as the 46th President of the United States of America and Kamala Harris as the 49th Vice President, the first female, black or south Asian Vice President. Amanda Gorman recites “The Hill We Climb”.

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Famous Birthdays

1831 – Piet Joubert, South African general and vice-president, born in Prince Albert, British Cape Colony (d. 1900)
1923 – (Ottis) “Slim” Whitman, American country singer (Rose Marie), born in Tampa, Florida (d. 2013)
1931 – Earl Grant, American musician and singer (Ebb Tide, Winter Wonderland), born in Idabel, Oklahoma (d. 1970)
1939 – Murle Breer, American golfer (US Women’s Open 1962), born in St. Petersburg, Florida
1959 – Joel Rifkin, American serial killer believed to have killed up to 17 victims between 1989 and 1993 in NYC and Long Island, born in New York
1966 – Tracii Guns [Tracy Ulrich], American rock guitarist and songwriter (L.A. Guns – “It’s Over Now”), born in Los Angeles, California

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Famous Deaths

1691 – Christiaan de Placker, Flemish poet and composer, dies at 77
1819 – Carlos IV [English: Charles], King of Spain (1788-1808), dies at 70
1936 – George V, King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India (1910-36), dies at 70 after being euthanized by his doctor
1965 – Alan Freed, American disc jockey who accepted payola and introduced term “rock-n-roll”, dies at 42
1996 – Ellis Hillman, British Labour party politician, lecturer, and writer (London Under London), dies during heart surgery at 68
2005 – Per Borten, 18th Prime Minister of Norway (1965-71), dies at 91

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Historical Events

1910 – Germany and Bolivia end commerce and friendship treaty
1938 – General Motors begins mass production of diesel engines
1970 – Eight Bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in the Netherlands say there should be room in the church for both married priests and celibate priests
1974 – Belgium government of Leburton falls
1977 – World’s largest crowd gathering – the Hindu Kumbh Mela in India attracts a then record 15 million people
1977 – Snow falls in Miami, Florida. This is the only time in the history of the city that snowfall has occurred. It also fell in the Bahamas.

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Famous Birthdays

1808 – Lysander Spooner, American philosopher, born in Athol, Massachusetts (d. 1887)
1863 – Werner Sombart, German fascist (Juden und das Wirtschaftsleben)
1963 – Michael Adams, American NBA guard (Charlotte Hornets), born in Hartford, Connecticut
1964 – Janine Antoni, Bahamian artist, born in Freeport, Bahamas
1980 – Kotoko, Japanese singer, born in Hokkaido, Japan
1992 – Mac Miller [Malcolm McCormick], American rapper and music producer (“Best Day Ever”), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (d. 2018)

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Famous Deaths

1576 – Hans Sachs, German composer, dies at 81
1983 – Don Costa, American composer (Hello, Dolly!), arranger, and record producer (Sinatra and Strings; My Way), dies at 57
1997 – George Armin Goyder, businessman/social philosopher, dies at 88
2006 – Anthony “Tony” Franciosa [Papaleo], American actor (Career, Ben-Hur, Jeff-Name of the Game), dies at 77
2013 – Stan Musial, American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (24 × MLB All-Star; World Series 1942, 44, 46; NL MVP 1943, 46, 48; 7 × NL batting champion; St Louis Cardinals), dies from Alzheimer’s disease at 92
2020 – Robert Parker, American saxophonist and soul singer (“Barefootin'”), dies at 89

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Historical Events

1884 – Dr. William Price attempts to cremate the body of his infant son, Iesu Grist (Welsh for Jesus Christ) Price, setting a legal precedent for cremation in the United Kingdom
1902 – Despite reports that favor the US building a route through Nicaragua for a canal, a ‘supplementary report’ recommends the route through Panama
1980 – Gold reaches $1,000 an ounce
1987 – 3rd Soap Opera Digest Awards – Days of Our Lives wins
1991 – US acknowledges CIA and US Army paid Manuel Noriega $320,000 over his career
1996 – Baseball owners unanimously approve interleague play in 1997

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Famous Birthdays

1829 – Louis van Haecke, Flemish chaplain and author (Blood to Bridge)
1904 – Henri-Georges Adam, French engraver and sculptor (Grand Nude), born in Paris, France (d. 1967)
1912 – Wilhelm Herz, German motorcycle racer (first to 200mph), born in Lampertheim, Germany (d. 1998)
1935 – Jon Stallworthy, English poet, born in London, United Kingdom (d. 2014)
1953 – Brett Hudson, American comedian (Bonkers, Hudson Brothers Show), born in Portland, Oregon
1970 – Leo Araguz, American football punter (Oakland Raiders, Rhein Fire), born in Pharr, Texas

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Famous Deaths

1659 – Benedikt Lechler, German composer, dies at 64
1940 – Kazimierz P. Tetmajer, Polish writer and poet (Young Poland), dies at 74
1993 – Eleanor Hibbert, British author (b. 1906)
2015 – Piet van der Sanden, Dutch journalist and politician (CDA), dies at 90
2019 – Glen Wood, American auto racer, team owner (Wood Bros Racing), dies at 93
2020 – Peter Mathebula, South African boxer (WBA flyweight title 1980-81), dies at 67

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Historical Events

1945 – Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, credited with saving tens of thousands of Jews from the Nazis, arrested by Soviet secret police in Hungary
1947 – Ammunition factory explodes in Muiden, Netherlands, 16 die
1974 – Asylum Records releases “Court and Spark”, Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell’s 6th studio album; features the songs “Help Me” and “Free Man In Paris”, it becomes her biggest seller
1988 – NFC Championship, RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.: Washington Redskins beat Minnesota Vikings, 17-10
2003 – 8th Critics’ Choice Movie Awards: Chicago Best Picture
2010 – A dragon boat from Chung Ling High School capsizes and collides with a tugboat amid strong currents in Penang, Malaysia, killing 6 people and injuring 12

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Famous Birthdays

1706 – Benjamin Franklin, US Founding Father, inventor, ambassador and writer (Poor Richards Almanac), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1790)
1905 – Franz Schmid, German ascended northside of Matterhorn (1931)
1920 – George Handy [Hendleman], American bebop jazz arranger, pianist and composer (Handyland, U.S.A.), born in New York City (d. 1997)
1959 – Susanna Hoffs, American actress and musician (Bangles-Walk Like an Egyptian), born in Los Angeles, California
1975 – Tom Jenkinson, English musician (Squarepusher), born in Chelmsford, United Kingdom
1980 – Zooey Deschanel, American actress (Almost Famous; Elf; New Girl), and singer (She and Him), born in Los Angeles, California

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Famous Deaths

1863 – Horace Vernet, French painter of battles and Orientalist subjects, dies at 73
1874 – Chang and Eng Bunker, Chinese/Thai Siamese twins, die at 62
1917 – Hendrik Goeman Borgesius, Dutch politician, dies at 70
1994 – Grady “Fats” Jackson, tenor Sax Player, dies at 66
1995 – Urias Nooteboom, Dutch journalist/critic (The Time), dies at 54
2012 – Marty Springstead, American Major League baseball umpire and umpire supervisor, dies of heart attack at 74

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Historical Events

1556 – Holy Roman Emperor Charles V appoints his son Philip II, King of Spain
1921 – Eleftherios Venizelos becomes Prime Minister of Greece (4th time)
1970 – Curt Flood files a civil lawsuit challenging baseball’s reserve clause
1974 – L A Landslide kills 9 in Canyonville, Oregon
1984 – Paul and Linda McCartney arrested in Barbados-possession of cannabis
2006 – 63rd Golden Globes: Brokeback Mountain, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Felicity Huffman win

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Famous Birthdays

1675 – Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon, French writer (Mémoires), born in Paris (d. 1755)
1728 – Niccolo Piccinni, Italian composer (Buona Figliuola)
1870 – Wilhelm Normann, German chemist (hardening of oils)
1911 – Roger Lapébie, French cyclist (d. 1996)
1952 – Roberta Baskin, American correspondent (48 Hours), born in New York, United States
1969 – Roy Jones Jr., American boxer (4 x weight divisions world champion), born in Pensacola, Florida

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Famous Deaths

1919 – Jaroslav Jeremiáš, Czech pianist and composer, dies at 19
1967 – Robert J Van De Graaff, US nuclear physicist, dies at 65
1978 – Virginia Pope, American fashion editor (New York Times), dies at 92
1981 – Bernard Lee, British actor (M in James Bond movies, Fallen Idol, Dr No), dies at 73
1993 – Glenn Corbett, American actor (Shenandoah, Chisum, Midway), dies at 63
1993 – Freddie Cochrane, American boxer (World Welterweight champion 1941-1946), dies at 77

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Historical Events

1785 – Mozart’s string quartet opus 10 premieres
1910 – Constructions ends on the Buffalo Bill Dam in Wyoming
1962 – 50th Australian Championships Women’s Tennis: Margaret Smith beats Jan Lehane O’Neill in the final for 3rd straight year 6-0, 6-2
1974 – TV sitcom “Happy Days” begins an 11 year run on ABC, starring Ron Howard, Henry Winkler, Marion Ross and Ton Bosley
1975 – Space Mountain opens at Disneyland
2005 – An intense solar flare blasts X-rays across the solar system

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Famous Birthdays

1795 – Alexandr Griboyedov, Russian playwright, born in Moscow, Russia (d. 1829)
1877 – Lewis Terman, American psychologist (developed Stanford-Binet IQ test), born in Johnson County, Indiana (d. 1956)
1929 – Eva Badura-Skoda, German-Austrian composer, born in Munich, Germany
1966 – Betsy Mitchell, American 100m backstroke swimmer, born in Cincinnati, Ohio
1975 – Edith Bowman, Scottish television and radio presenter, born in Anstruther, United Kingdom
1979 – Ken Chu, Taiwanese singer-actor and taichi champ, born in Taiwan

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Famous Deaths

1804 – Dru Drury, English entomologist (b. 1725)
1909 – Ernest Reyer, composer, dies at 85
1967 – Albert Szirmai, Hungarian operetta composer, dies at 86
2000 – Arkan [Željko Ražnatović], Serbian paramilitary leader, dies at 47
2005 – Ruth Warrick, American actress and singer (Citizen Kane, All My Children), dies of complications from pneumonia at 88
2020 – Rocky Johnson, Canadian pro wrestler (father of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson; with Tony Atlas first black champions in WWE history), dies of a pulmonary embolism at 75

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Historical Events

1940 – 2nd NFL All Star Game, Gilmore Stadium, LA, CA: Green Bay Packers beat NFL All-Stars, 16-7
1953 – Yugoslavia elects its 1st president (Marshal Tito)
1985 – British pound sinks to record low $US1.11
1993 – Utah Jazz center Mark Eaton blocks 2 shots in a 96-89 win over Seattle SuperSonics; becomes only 2nd player in NBA history (along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) to record 3,000 career blocks
1998 – Researchers in Dallas, Texas present findings about an enzyme that slows aging and cell death (apoptosis)
2020 – Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora is fired amid Major League Baseball’s investigation into sign-stealing by the Houston Astros; Cora was previously the Astros’ bench coach before moving to Boston

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Famous Birthdays

1818 – Zacharias Topelius, Finnish historical novelist (Surgeon’s Stories), born in Nykarleby, Finland (d. 1898)
1902 – Alfred Tarski, Polish-American logician and mathematician, born in Warsaw, Poland (d. 1983)
1904 – Cecil Beaton, English photographer, born in Hampstead, United Kingdom (d. 1980)
1937 – Shoban Babu, Indian actor, born in Nandigama, India (d. 2008)
1971 – Lasse Kjus, Norwegian skier, born in Oslo, Norway
1978 – Shawn Crawford, American sprinter, born in Van Wyck, South Carolina

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Famous Deaths

1802 – Marie Allard, French ballerina (Auguste Vestris), dies at 59
1967 – Renato Lunelli, Italian composer and musicologist, dies at 71
1971 – Ethel Glenn Hier, American composer, dies at 82
1981 – John O’Grady, Australian writer (Nino Culotta) (b. 1907)
2006 – Shelley Winters [Schrift], American actress (Lolita, A Place in the Sun, A Patch of Blue and Poseidon Adventure), dies of heart failure at 85
2018 – Hugh Wilson, American director, writer and actor (Blast from the Past, Frank’s Place), dies at 74

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Historical Events

1869 – Colored National Labor Union, 1st Black labor convention meets in Washington, D.C.
1873 – P B S Pinchback relinquishes office of Louisiana Governor
1893 – U.S. Marines land in Honolulu from the U.S.S. Boston to prevent the queen from abrogating the Bayonet Constitution.
1939 – Belgian premier signs Burgos Treaty for trade relations with Franco’s Spain
1980 – Togo’s constitution becomes effective
2015 – TV comedy “Schitt’s Creek” created by and starring Eugene Levy and Dan Levy premieres on CBC in Canada

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Famous Birthdays

1505 – Joachim II Hector, Elector of Brandenburg (1535-71), born in Cölln (d. 1571)
1610 – Maria Anna of Austria, Electress of Bavaria (d. 1665)
1901 – Mieczysław Żywczyński, Polish historian and priest (d. 1978)
1906 – Zhou Youguang [Zhou Yaoping], Chinese language scholar (father of pinyin), born in Changzhou (d. 2017)
1915 – Edward Frederick Weston Goodman, property developer
1969 – John Flannery, guard/corner (Dallas Cowboys)

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Famous Deaths

858 – Aethelwolf, king of Wessex (Battle at Aclea), dies
1795 – Francois-Joseph Krafft, composer, dies at 73
1929 – H. B. Higgins, Australian politician and judge (b. 1851)
1982 – Marcel Camus, French film director (Orfeu Negro), dies at 69
1988 – Chiang Ching-huo, president of Taiwan (1978-88), dies at 69
2016 – Brian Bedford, English actor (Anthony-Coronet Blue), dies at 80

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Historical Events

1807 – Gunpowder-ship explodes in Leiden, Netherlands, 150 die
1954 – Austria’s worst avalanche-kills 200; 9hrs later 2nd one-kills 115
1959 – Rediscovery of the Caves of Nerja in Spain
1966 – “Batman”, starring Adam West as Batman, Burt Ward as Robin, and Cesar Romero as The Joker, debuts on ABC
1971 – Congressional Black Caucus organizes
2017 – Justin Thomas (23) becomes the youngest player to shoot a sub-60 round of 59 in the opening round of the Sony Open at Waialae CC in Hawaii; he also wins the tournament

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Famous Birthdays

1797 – Gideon Brecher, Austrian physician (d. 1873)
1944 – Viktoria Postnikova, Russian pianist, born in Moscow, Russia
1946 – Cynthia Robinson, American musician (Sly and Family Stone – “Everyday People”), born in Sacramento, California (d. 2015)
1968 – Mauro Silva, Brazilian footballer, born in São Paulo, Brazil
1985 – Artem Milevskiy, Ukrainian footballer, born in Minsk, Belarus
1993 – Zayn Malik, English pop singer (One Direction), born in Bradford, England

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Famous Deaths

1856 – Ľudovít Štúr, Slovak politician and author of Slovak language, dies at 40
1950 – Koos van de Griend, Dutch composer, dies at 44
1956 – Norman Kerry, American actor (Air Eagles, Phantom of the Opera), dies at 61
1991 – Keye Luke, Chinese-American actor (Across the Pacific, Charlie Chan’s No 1 Son), dies after a stroke at 86
1996 – Joachim Nitsche, German mathematician (b. 1926)
2018 – Keith Jackson, American sportscaster (ABC Monday Night Football, college football), dies at 89

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