Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1216 – Pope Honorius III delegates decree “Religiosam vitam eligentibus”
1923 – Bill Ponsford and Edgar Mayne make 456 opening stand for Vict
1939 – Finnish counter offensive at Petsamo
1947 – Italian constituent assembly adopts new constitution
1974 – Provisional Irish Republican Army bomb home of former UK Prime Minister, Edward Heath, just before announcing Christmas ceasefire
1983 – Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak meets with PLO leader Yasser Arafat

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Famous Birthdays

1819 – Franz Abt, German composer and choir conductor, born in Eilenburg, Germany (d. 1885)
1881 – Enver Pasa, Turkish politician, born in Istanbul, Turkey (d. 1922)
1903 – Haldan Keffer Hartline, American biophysicist (Nobel 1967), born in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania (d. 1983)
1905 – Pierre Brasseur [Espinasse], French actor (Eyes Without a Face, Children of Paradise), born in Paris, France (d. 1972)
1942 – Dick Parry, English session and touring rock saxophonist (Pink Floyd – “Money”), born in Kentford, Suffolk
1961 – Yuri Ivanovich Malinchenko, Russian cosmonaut (1st person to marry in space), born in Khrushchev, Ukrainian SSR, USSR

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Famous Deaths

1788 – Percivall Pott, English physician and surgeon (b. 1714)
1828 – William Hyde Wollaston, English chemist and physicist (famous for discovering the chemical elements palladium and rhodium), dies at 62
1969 – Josef von Sternberg, Austrian-American director (Shanghai Express), dies at 75
1996 – Hetta Empson, South African-British artist, dies at 81
1997 – Juzo Itami, Japanese director, commits suicide at 64
2006 – Dennis Linde, American songwriter (b. 1943)

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Historical Events

1929 – Coco the Clown first appears for Bertram Mills Circus in Manchester, England
1937 – The first full-length animated feature film and the earliest in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theatre
1970 – Oregon v. Mitchell Supreme Court case was decided, lowering the minimum voting age in U.S. federal elections to 18. The voting age for state and local elections was left to states discretion
1972 – Soviet Union signs a separate peace with East Germany
1985 – Heart’s “Heart” album goes #1
2016 – Carl Icahn is announced as Special Advisor to the President on Regulatory Reform, under President Donald Trump

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Famous Birthdays

1872 – Sidney Ainsworth, British silent film actor (Not in the News, The Rajah’s Tunic), born in Manchester, England (d. 1922)
1892 – Amy Key Clarke, English mystical poet and writer, born in England, United Kingdom (d. 1980)
1909 – Seichō Matsumoto, Japanese mystery writer and journalist, born in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan (d. 1992)
1914 – Ivan Generalić, Croatian painter, born in Hlebine, Croatia (d. 1992)
1933 – Huib Eversdijk, Dutch 2nd chamber member (CDA), born in Kapelle, Netherlands (d. 2012)
1977 – Emmanuel Macron, French politician, President of France (2017-), born in Amiens, France

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Famous Deaths

1859 – Nicolaas Christiaan Kist, Dutch Reformed theologian and church historian, dies at 66
1890 – Niels Wilhelm Gade, Danish violinist, organist, composer, and conductor, dies at 73
1985 – Kamatari Fujiwara, Japanese film actor (Seven Samurai, The Hidden Fortress, Yojimbo), dies of a heart attack at 80
1996 – Margaret E Rey, author of children’s books, dies at 90
2006 – Sydney Wooderson, English athlete dubbed “The Mighty Atom” (world record 1937), dies at 92
2014 – Billie Whitelaw, British actress (Omen, Adding Machine), dies at 82

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Historical Events

1862 – -Dec 20th] Battle of Kelly’s Ford, VA
1917 – Cheka formed – Soviet state security force and forerunner to the KGB, under Felix Dzerzhinsky after decree by Lenin
1941 – Free France under adm Muselier occupies St-Pierre et Miquelon
1949 – Maurice Ravel and John Cranko’s ballet “Beauty and the Beast” premieres
1963 – “Contempt” film directed by Jean-Luc Godard, starring Brigitte Bardot and Jack Palance, is released
1966 – Nuclear Planning Group forms in Brussels

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Famous Birthdays

1729 – Franz Xaver Thomas Pokorny, Czech composer, born in Městec Králové (d. 1794)
1894 – Robert Menzies, 12th Prime Minister of Australia (United Australia Party: 1939-41, Liberal: 1949-66) and its longest-serving, born in Jeparit, Victoria (d. 1978)
1902 – George Edward Alexander Windsor, Duke of Kent, born in York Cottage, United Kingdom (d. 1942)
1925 – Benito Lorenzi, Italian footballer, born in Buggiano, Italy (d. 2007)
1963 – Pam Casale, American tennis player (Marco Island finals 1985), born in Camden, New Jersey
1983 – Adrián Varela, Mexican singer, born in Culiacán, Mexico

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Famous Deaths

1812 – Sacagawea, Shoshone interpreter for the Lewis and Clark expedition, dies at 24
1936 – Baron De Borchgrave, Belgian ambassador, murdered in Madrid
1962 – Erik William Gustav Leidzen, Swedish American composer, dies at 68
1994 – J C “Jody” Bateman, fiddler, dies at 75
2015 – Patricia Elliott, American actress (Renee-Empire, One Life to Live), dies at 77
2017 – Bernard Francis Law, Disgraced American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church (1982-2002), dies at 86

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Historical Events

1777 – Washington settles his troops at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania for the winter
1842 – US recognizes independence of Hawaii
1862 – Skirmish at Jackson, Salem Church, Tennessee (80 casualties)
1931 – Joseph A Lyons (C) becomes premier of Australia
1948 – Cleveland Browns beats Buffalo Bills 49-7 in AAFC championship game
1993 – “Red Shoes” closes at Gershwin Theater NYC after 5 performances

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Famous Birthdays

1817 – James Jay Archer, Brigadier General (Confederate Army) (d. 1864)
1905 – (Charles) Robert Medley, English abstract and figurative style painter, born in London (d. 1994)
1925 – Robert Sherman, songwriter (Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book), born in NYC, New York (d. 2012)
1934 – Rudi Carrell [Rudolf W Kesselman], Dutch showmaster
1957 – Kevin McHale, American NBA forward (Boston Celtics), born in Hibbing, Minnesota
1960 – Mike Lookinland, American actor (Bobby-Brady Bunch), born in Mt Pleasant, Utah

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Famous Deaths

1911 – John Bigelow, American statesman and author, dies at 94
1967 – Alfred Courtens, Belgian sculptor, dies at 78
1982 – Jean-Jacques Grunenwald, French organist/composer, dies at 71
1982 – Dwight Macdonald, American social critic (b. 1906)
1990 – Massimo Amfiteatrof [Maksim Amfiteatrov], Russian-Italian classical musician, known as ‘the Cellists’ Caruso’, dies at 83
1995 – Harold Watkinson, British politician/businessman, dies at 85

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Historical Events

1813 – British take Fort Niagara in War of 1812
1917 – The Soviet government issues a decree recognizing Finland’s newly-declared independence [N.S. December 31]
1956 – Israeli flag hoisted on Mount Sinai
1963 – “The Pink Panther” film premieres directed by Blake Edwards and starring Peter Sellers and David Niven with theme by Henry Mancini
1969 – House of Lords votes to abolish the death penalty in England, Wales and Scotland (Northern Ireland 25 July 1973)
2018 – Manchester United sacks high profile Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho; United in 6th place in EPL, 19 points behind league leaders Liverpool; Ole Gunnar Solskjaer new caretaker manager

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Famous Birthdays

1734 – Jean-Baptiste Rey, French conductor (Paris Opera) and composer, born in Lauzerte, France (d. 1810)
1920 – Willis Conover, American broadcaster (Voice of America), born in Buffalo, New York (d. 1996)
1934 – Colin Baker, Welsh soccer wing half (7 caps; Cardiff City 298 games), born in Cardiff, Wales (d. 2021)
1966 – Mille Petrozza, German singer (Kreator)
1970 – Lucious Harris, NBA guard (NJ Nets, Dallas Mavericks)
1971 – Frank Pimiskern, CFL safety (BC Lions)

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Famous Deaths

1651 – Francisco the Melo, Portuguese-Spanish earl of Assumar, dies at 54
1894 – Erastus Flaval Beadle, American publisher (Beadle’s Dime Novels), dies at 73
1971 – Aleksandr Tvardovsky, Russian poet and editor in chief (Novyj Mir), dies at 61
2002 – Wayne Owens, former U.S. Congressman (D-Utah) (b. 1937)
2004 – John W. Downey, American composer, dies at 77
2007 – Jack Linkletter, American TV host (Haggis Baggis, Hootenanny), dies at 70

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Historical Events

1920 – AL votes to let spitball pitchers to continue using it
1932 – Cards trade Jim Bottomley to Reds for Estel Crabtree and Ownie Carroll
1970 – USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1986 – Edmonton’s Wayne Gretzky scores 4 goals, including a natural hat trick in the 1st period and also records an assist as the Oilers win 5-3 over the visiting Quebec Nordiques; his 41st NHL career hat trick
2014 – 103-year-old Gus Andreone records the 8th ace of his career on the 113-yard, 14th hole of the Lakes Course, Palm Aire, Sarasota, FL; oldest golfer to record a hole-in-one
2019 – Young girl’s 5,700 year old DNA extracted from birch tar used as chewing gum, from Lolland Island, southern Denmark

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Famous Birthdays

1734 – Georg Peter Weimar, German cantor and composer, born in Stotternheim (d. 1800)
1908 – William Brocklesby Wordsworth, composer
1930 – Julia Meade [Kunz], American actress and TV hostess (Spotlight Playhouse), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 2016)
1939 – Novella Nelson, American actress (Antwone Fisher, Purlie, Chiefs), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2017)
1943 – Dave Dee, British musician (Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich), born in Salisbury, Wiltshire (d. 2009)
1967 – Pauline Maurice, Welland Ontario, softball outfielder (Olympics 1996)

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Famous Deaths

1833 – Kaspar Hauser, German son of grand duke Karel of Bathe (who claimed to have grown up in the total isolation of a darkened cell), murdered at 21
1909 – Leopold II, King of Belgium (1865-1909), dies at 74
1917 – Frank Gotch, American professional wrestler, dies at 40
1948 – Edgar Istel, German composer, dies at 68
1961 – Marion Perkins, sculptor (Man of Sorrow), dies at 53
2006 – Timmie Rogers, American comedian (The Jackie Gleason Show), actor and singer-songwriter (Back to School Again; I Love Ya, I Love Ya, I Love Ya), dies at 91

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Historical Events

1538 – King Francois I orders renewed pursuit of Protestants
1631 – Mount Vesuvius in Italy erupts, burying many villages under lava flows and killing around 3,000 people
1968 – Official revocation of the Edict of Expulsion of Jews from Spain at Second Vatican Council
1970 – US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1997 – US President Bill Clinton names his Labrador retriever “Buddy”
2019 – Drew Brees breaks Peyton Manning’s NFL record (539) for career touchdown passes as New Orleans Saints rout Indianapolis Colts, 34-7; Brees 29 of 30 for 307 yards and 4 TDs for record 96.7% pass completion

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Famous Birthdays

1742 – Gebhard Fürst Blücher von Wahlstatt, German Field Marshal (d. 1819)
1775 – Jane Austen, English novelist (Pride and Prejudice), born in Steventon, England (d. 1817)
1904 – Edward Morris Bernstein, economist
1918 – Pierre Delanoë [Leroyer], French songwriter and lyricist, born in Paris (d. 2006)
1938 – Jimmie Lee Jackson, American civil rights protester and church deacon, shot and killed by an Alabama State Trooper in 1965, born in Marion, Alabama (d. 1965)
1988 – Anna Popplewell, English actress

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Famous Deaths

1774 – Francois Quesnay, French personal physician of Louis XIV, dies at 80
1920 – Ma Yuanzhang, Chinese Muslim rebel and Sufi master, crushed to death during the 1920 Haiyuan earthquake at an unknown age
1928 – Elinor Wylie, American poet and writer (b. 1885)
1993 – Ratu Penaia Ganilau, president of Fiji (1987-93), dies at 75
2007 – Dan Fogelberg, American rocker (Same Old Lang Syne), dies at 56
2012 – Laurier LaPierre, Canadian journalist, broadcaster and senator, dies at 83

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Historical Events

1680 – Tax revolt on Terschelling due to tax on cereal
1791 – 1st US law school established at University of Pennsylvania
1936 – KVL-AM in Seattle Washington changes call letters to KEEN (now KING)
1967 – The Silver Bridge collapses over the Ohio River in the US, killing 46 people
2008 – 74th Heisman Trophy Award: Sam Bradford, Oklahoma (QB)
2018 – Egyptian Archaeologists announce discovery of 4,400 year old tomb of Fifth Dynasty priest in Saqqara pyramid complex near Cairo

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Famous Birthdays

1842 – Henry Gadsby, English musician and composer, born in Hackney, England (d. 1907)
1853 – Jean Baptiste August Kessler, Dutch entrepreneur and director of oil on Dutch Indies, born in Batavia, Dutch East Indies (d. 1900)
1899 – Frank Vosper, British actor (The Man Who Knew Too Much, Rome Express), born in London, England (d. 1937)
1937 – John Sladek, American sci-fi author (Tik-Tok, Bugs), born in Waverly, Iowa (d. 2000)
1948 – Cassandra Harris, Australian actress (For Your Eyes Only), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 1991)
1950 – Stjepko Gut, Serbian jazz trumpeter, flügelhorn player, and teacher, born in Ruma, Yugoslavia (now Serbia)

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Famous Deaths

1817 – Maria Walewska [Leszczinska], Polish lover of Emperor Napoleon I, dies at 31
1855 – Jacques Charles François Sturm, French mathematician (b. 1803)
1953 – Kishio Hirao, Japanese composer, dies at 46
1971 – Paul Pierre Lévy, French mathematician (b. 1886)
2005 – Stan Leonard, Canadian golfer (3 PGA Tour titles), dies of heart failure at 90
2014 – Ray Steadman-Allen, British choral and brass band composer, dies at 92

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Historical Events

1575 – Polish Parliament selects Istvan Bathory as king of Poland
1918 – Sinn Féin candidates win 73 of 105 Irish seats in UK general election, though all will refuse to take seats in Westminster, instead meeting at a Dail Eireann in Dublin
1969 – Jackson Five make their 1st appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show”
1971 – U.S. premiere of “Nicholas and Alexandra”, film adaptation of Robert K. Massie’s best selling novel
2012 – 28 people, including 20 children, are shot to death at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut
2020 – US Electoral College votes 306-232 to officially affirm Joe Biden’s presidential election victory

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Famous Birthdays

1915 – Ruth Railton, British musical director (National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, 1948-65), born in Kent, England (d. 2001)
1919 – Felix the Cat, anthropomorphic cartoon character created in the silent film era by Pat Sullivan and Otto Messmer
1950 – Vicki Michelle, English actress (Virgin Witch, Allo Allo), born in Chigwell, England
1964 – C. J. Snare, American vocalist (Firehouse-Love of a Lifetime), born in Washington, D.C.
1973 – Thuy Trang, Vietnamese-American actress (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers), born in Saigon, Vietnam (d. 2001)
1977 – Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Colombian-Austrian conductor (Houston Symphony, 2014-22; Frankfurt Radio Symphony, 2005-2021), born in Medellín, Colombia

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Famous Deaths

1799 – George Washington, American Founding Father, military leader who commanded Continental Army during War for Independence, first President of the United States (1789-97), dies at 66
1823 – Vincenzo Cuoco, Italian historian (Naples Revolution 1799), dies at 53
1906 – Jean Abraham Chrétien Oudemans, Dutch geographer and astronomer, dies at 78
1956 – Juho Kusti Paasikivi, Finnish politician (7th President of Finland 1946-56), dies at 86
1966 – Verna Felton, American actress (Hilda-December Bride), dies at 76
2015 – Lillian Vernon, American founder and CEO of the Lillian Vernon Corporation (first company listed on US stock exchange started by a woman), dies at 88

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Historical Events

1823 – Gioachino Rossini arrives in London
1983 – Islander’s Butch Goring scorings 4 goals against Oilers
1989 – “Driving Miss Daisy” directed by Bruce Beresford and starring Morgan Freeman and Jessica Tandy is released (Best Picture 1990)
2010 – 76th Heisman Trophy Award: Cam Newton, Auburn (QB)
2018 – US Senate passes non-binding “war powers resolution” against long-term ally Saudi Arabia
2018 – Passenger train collides with maintenance locomotive in Ankara, Turkey, killing at least 9 and injuring 47

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Famous Birthdays

1835 – Phillips Brooks, American Episcopal bishop and composer (Little Town of Bethlehem), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1893)
1928 – Jack Tramiel, American Businessman (Amiga, Commodore 64), born in Łódź, Poland (d. 2012)
1938 – Alvin Curran, American composer, born in Providence, Rhode Island
1949 – Robert Lindsey, English actor (My Family, Citizen Smith), born in Ilkeston, England
1975 – Tom DeLonge, American guitarist (blink-182, Angels and Airwaves), born in Poway, California
2005 – Prince Nicolas of Belgium, twin and second child of Prince Laurent and Princess Claire of Belgium, born in St-Luc University Hospital, Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, Belgium

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Famous Deaths

1716 – Charles de La Fosse, French painter (b. 1640)
1883 – Victor de Laprade, French poet and critic (b. 1812)
1919 – Amintore Galli, Italian composer, dies at 74
1966 – Charles Watts, actor (Lone Ranger and Lost City of Gold), dies of cancer
1981 – Pigmeat [Dewey] Markham, American comedian (Here Comes da Judge-Laugh In), dies at 75
1986 – Heather Angel, British-American actress (Night in Montmartre; The Informer; The Last of the Mohicans; Lifeboat), dies of cancer at 77

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