Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1500 – Pedro Álvares Cabral is the first european to discover Brazil, landing near Monte Pascoal, claims it for Portugal
1898 – 1st Spanish–American War action sees the USS Nashville capture a Spanish ship
1903 – American Power Boat Association forms
1916 – Karl Spindler scuttles the Aud near Daunt’s Rock, to prevent its cargo of 20,000 rifles destined for Irish republicans falling into enemy hands
1993 – Seattle Mariner Chris Basio no-hits Boston Red Sox
2018 – Monte Carlo Tennis Masters: Rafael Nadal beats Kei Nishikori 6-3, 6-2 to extend his Open-era record for most wins at the same event (11)

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Famous Birthdays

1729 – Michael Hillegas, American merchant and first Treasurer of the United States (1775-89), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1804)
1909 – Rita Levi-Montalcini, Italian neurologist (Nobel 1986), born in Turin, Italy (d. 2012)
1943 – Mel Carter, American pop singer (“Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me”), born in Cincinnati, Ohio
1948 – Carol Drinkwater, Anglo-Irish actress (Father, All Creatures Great and Small) and author (The Haunted School, Provence), born in London
1967 – Sherri Shepherd, American comedian and actress
1980 – Courtney Friel, presenter of World Poker Tour

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Famous Deaths

1782 – Anne Bonny, Irish pirate, dies in prison at 85
1821 – John Crome [Old Crome], English landscape painter and etcher, dies at 52
1893 – Chaim Aronson, Lithuanian inventor and academic, dies at 67
1982 – Melville Bell Grosvenor, American photographer and president of National Geographic Society, dies at 80
2006 – Alida Valli [Baroness Alida von Marckenstein-Frauenberg], Italian actress (The Paradine Case, The Third Man), dies at 84
2013 – Richie Havens, American singer-songwriter, and guitarist who opened the Woodstock Festival (“Freedom”; “Here Comes The Sun”), dies from a heart attack at 72

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Historical Events

1878 – NY installs 1st firehouse pole
1925 – No baseball games played in NL due to Charles Ebbets’ funeral
1945 – US 7th Army reaches Nuremberg
1970 – Reds clout 7 HRs by 6 batters, Braves counter with 3 HRs, 6 for one team and 9 different batters for two teams, all tie or set records
1974 – 28th Tony Awards: River Niger and Raisin win
2017 – Taliban attack army base at Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan, killing more than 100

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Famous Birthdays

1822 – Hannibal Goodwin, Episcopal priest who patented a method for making film used in Thomas Edison’s Kinetoscope, born in Taughannock, New York (d. 1900)
1853 – Charles Malherbe, French violinist and composer, born in Paris (d. 1911)
1881 – Jules-Marie Canneel, Flemish painter and caricaturist (Rocks of Oran), born in Brussels, Belgium (d. 1953)
1924 – Daniel Melnick, American producer, Get Smart), born in NYC, New York
1951 – Michael Hartley Freedman, American mathematician
1958 – Andie MacDowell [Rosalie Anderson], American actress (Sex, Lies and Videotape, Green Card), born in Gaffney, South Carolina

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Famous Deaths

1946 – John Maynard Keynes, English economist whose ideas changed the theory and practice of modern macroeconomics, dies of a heart attack at 62
1973 – Merian C. Cooper, American film director and producer (King Kong) and aviator (Kościuszko Squadron, Director-Pan American Airways), dies of cancer at 79
1985 – Foster Hewitt, Canadian radio broadcaster (Hockey Night in Canada), dies at 82
2000 – Neal Matthews, Jr., American singer (The Jordanaires), dies at 70
2007 – William “Parry” O’Brien, American shot putter (Olympic golds 1952, 1956, and silver 1960), dies of a heart attack during a swimming competition at 75
2013 – Shakuntala Devi, Indian writer and mental calculator known as the “Human Computer”, stops calculating at 83 due to complications from severe respiratory problems

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Historical Events

1958 – Stanley Cup Final, Boston Garden, Boston, MA: Montreal Canadiens’ 3-peat; beat Boston Bruins, 5-3 for a 4-2 for series win
1965 – People’s Republic China offers North Vietnam military aid
1981 – 85th Boston Marathon: Toshihiko Seko of Japan wins men’s race in 2:09:26; Allison Roe of New Zealand takes women’s title in 2:26:46
1986 – Vladimir Horowitz performs in Moscow, Russia, his first appearance in his Russian homeland since 1925
1988 – Baltimore Orioles set worst record to start a season 0-14 (will go 0-21)
2007 – Johnson Space Center Shooting: A man with a handgun barricades himself in NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas before killing a male hostage and himself.

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Famous Birthdays

702 – Jafar al-Sadiq, Muslim scholar and scientist, born in Medina, Umayyad Empire (d. 765)
1650 – William Bedloe, English fraudster and Popish Plot informer, born in Chepstow, Monmouthshire (d. 1680)
1884 – Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, born in Eastwell Park, Kent, England (d. 1966)
1908 – Lionel Hampton, American jazz vibraphone player, pianist, drummer, and actor, born in Louisville, Kentucky (d. 2002)
1970 – Shemar Moore, American actor (Malcolm-Young and Restless), born in Oakland, California
1984 – Tyson Griffin, American professional mixed martial artist, born in Sacramento, California

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Famous Deaths

1769 – Pontiac, Ottawa Indian leader, murdered by a Peoria warrior at 48 or 49
1906 – Australian wombat; oldest known marsupial, dies in London Zoo at 26 (London, England)
1977 – Len Johnson, cricketer (one Test for Australia, 3-66 and 3-8), dies
1991 – Steve Marriott, British rock guitarist, singer and songwriter (Small Faces, 1965-68, 75-78); Humble Pie, 1969-75, 79-83 – Eat It), dies in a house fire at 44
1992 – Marjorie Gestring, American springboard diver (Olympic gold 1936), dies at 69
2018 – Avicii [Tim Bergling], Swedish musician, DJ, remixer and record producer (“Levels”; “Wake Me Up”; “Sunshine”), commits suicide at 28

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Historical Events

1900 – Highest scoring opening game, Phils beat Braves 19-17 in 10
1919 – Leslie Irvin of US makes first premeditated free-fall parachute jump
1936 – First day of the Great Uprising in Palestine, anti-Jewish riots break out
1963 – Johnny Cash releases single “Ring Of Fire” written by his future wife June Carter and Merle Kilgore
1971 – USSR Salyut 1 launched; 1st manned lab in orbit
1971 – After smashing 124 in the 1st innings, Indian cricket opener Sunil Gavaskar makes 220 in 2nd innings in the drawn 5th Test against the West Indies in Port of Spain, Trinidad

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Famous Birthdays

1830 – Karl Josef Rudolph Cornely, German Jesuit biblical scholar, born in Breyell, Germany (d. 1908)
1873 – Sydney Barnes, English cricket fast bowler (27 Tests, 189 wickets, BB 9/103); Warwickshire CCC, Lancashire CCC, Staffordshire CCC), born in Smethwick, England (d. 1967)
1942 – David Fanshawe, British composer and ethno-musicologist (African Sanctus,; Pacific Odessey), born in Paignton, England (d. 2010)
1949 – Paloma Picasso, French-Spanish businesswoman and jewelry designer (Tiffany and Co.), born in Vallauris, France
1979 – Kate Hudson, American actress (Almost Famous, You, Me and Dupree), born in Los Angeles, California
1990 – Kim Chiu, Filipino Chinese actress (Sana Maulit Muli), born in Tacloban, Leyte, Philippines

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Famous Deaths

1739 – Nicholas Saunderson, mathematician, dies
1791 – Richard Price, nonconformist minister/writer (Alabi’s World), dies
1831 – Johann Gottlieb Friedrich von Bohnenberger, German mathematician, dies at 65
1980 – Tony Beckley, actor (Assault, When a Stranger Calls), dies at 51
1996 – Peg Ridge, peace campaigner, dies at 72
2004 – John Maynard Smith, English biologist (b. 1920)

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Historical Events

1934 – Adolf Hitler names Joachim von Ribbentrop ambassador for disarmament
1958 – A United States federal court rules that poet Ezra Pound is to be released from an insane asylum.
1977 – Musical revue “Side by Side by Sondheim” opens at Music Box, NYC for 390 performances
1984 – Joan Benoit runs world record female marathon (2:22:43)
1990 – Birmingham Fire issued an original franchise in WLAF
1994 – “Beauty and the Beast” opens at Palace Theater NYC

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Famous Birthdays

1813 – James McCune Smith, African-American doctor and abolitionist, born in Manhattan, New York (d. 1865)
1925 – Bob Hastings, American actor (McHale’s Navy, All in the Family), born in Brooklyn, New York, (d. 2014)
1946 – Harvey Kagan, American muscian (Sir Douglas Quintet)
1950 – Bill Sudderth III, American trumpeteer (Atlantic Star-Touch 4 Leaf Clover)
1950 – Kenny Ortega, American film and TV producer (High School Musical trilogy), born in Palo Alto, California
1959 – Jim Eisenreich, American MLB outfielder (Tourette syndrome, Florida Marlins WS 1997), born in St. Cloud, Minnesota

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Famous Deaths

1556 – Luigi Alamanni, Italian poet (Flora, Antigone), dies at 61
1567 – Wilhelm von Grumbach, German adventurer, dies at 63
1947 – Benny Leonard, Jewish-American lightweight boxing champ (1917-25), dies at 51
1984 – John Lee Mahin, American screenwriter, dies of emphysema at 81
1984 – Francis De Wolff, British character actor (A Christmas Carol, From Russia With Love), dies at 71
2013 – Cordell “Boogie” Mosson, American musician (Parliament-Funkadelic collective), dies of liver failure at 60

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Historical Events

1945 – 8th Air Force bombs Dresden
1987 – USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1991 – Railroad workers go on strike in US
2013 – 5 people are killed in Wana, Pakistan, by a United States drone attack
2017 – 1st living giant shipworm at 3 ft found in the Philippines, really a type of clam
2021 – Funeral of Prince Philip, consort to Queen Elizabeth II, held under COVID-19 restrictions at Windsor Palace, England

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Famous Birthdays

1904 – Naoomal Jeoomal, Indian cricketer (pioneer Indian Test opening batsman), born in Karachi, British India (d. 1980)
1912 – Isador Caplan, British lawyer and Aldeburgh Festival pioneer, born in Blackpool, England (d. 1995)
1926 – Arthur Hockaday, Director-General (Commonwealth War Graves Commission), born in Plymouth
1940 – Claire Bretécher, French cartoonist (Les Frustrés), born in Nantes, France (d. 2020)
1956 – Kaye Young, American WBL forward (NY Stars, NJ Stars), born in Bunn, North Carolina
1983 – Stanislav Chistov, Russian ice hockey player, born in Chelyabinsk, Russia

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Famous Deaths

1799 – Richard Jupp, English architect (East India House) (b. 1728)
1976 – Henrik Dam, Danish biochemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1895)
1997 – Chaim Herzog, 6th President of Israel (1983-93), dies at 78
2004 – Soundarya, Indian actress (b. 1971)
2004 – [Andrew] Bruce Boa, Canadian actor (The Empire Strikes Back), dies of cancer at 73
2018 – Barbara Bush, First Lady of the US (1989-93) and wife of George H. W. Bush, dies following long illness at 92

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Historical Events

1787 – 1st American comedy, “The Contrast,” makes its debut in NYC
1946 – Dutch Special Court of Justice sentences Frederik Müller, Socialist mayor of Rotterdam, to 10 years in jail for his wartime support of Germany
1949 – Stanley Cup Final, Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, ON: 3-peat for Toronto Maple Leafs as they beat Detroit Red Wings, 3-1 for a 4 game series sweep
1990 – Maximum NY State unemployment benefits raised to $260 per week
1991 – St Louis Blues becomes 8th NHL team in Play-off to come back from a 3-1 deficit as they beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 in game 7
1992 – 1st concrete is poured at new ballpark at Gateway (Jacobs Field)

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Famous Birthdays

1868 – Joel Angel, Russian musicologist and composer (d. 1917)
1881 – Edward Frederick Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax and British ambassador to US (1940-46), born in Powderham Castle, Devon, England (d. 1959)
1924 – Geoffrey Johnson Smith, Scottish Conservative politician (1959-2001), born in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland (d. 2010)
1938 – Gordon Wilson, Scottish politician (Leader of the Scottish National Party), born in Govan, Glasgow (d. 2017)
1948 – Lynne Franks, British public relations consultant, born in London
1963 – Garry Galley, Canadian NHL defenseman (Buffalo Sabres), born in Montreal, Quebec

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Famous Deaths

744 – al-Walid II, Umayyad caliph (743-744), killed at 35
1689 – Aphra Behn, English dramatist and novelist, dies at 48
1870 – Anatoli O Demidov, Russian ruler of Donato/traveller, dies
1991 – David Lean, film director (Doctor Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia), dies of pneumonia at 83
1994 – Ralph Waldo Ellison, American writer (Invisible Man), dies at 80
2020 – Kenneth Gilbert, Canadian harpsichordist, organist, musicologist, and educator, dies at 88

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Historical Events

1205 – Battle at Adrianople: Bulgaria beats Emp Boudouin of Constantinople
1715 – Pocotaligo Massacre triggers the start of the Yamasee War in colonial South Carolina.
1915 – Manuel de Falla’s ballet “El Amor Brujo” premieres in Madrid
1931 – 1st backwards walk across American begins
1945 – FDR buried in grounds of Hyde Park home
2013 – 117th Boston Marathon: Lelisa Desisa Benti of Ethiopia men’s winner in 2:10:22; Rita Jeptoo of Kenya wins women’s section in 2:26:25

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Famous Birthdays

1710 – Marie-Anne de Cupis de Camargo, French dancer, born in Brussels, Spanish Netherlands (d. 1770)
1821 – Joseph E. Brown, American attorney and politician (42nd Governor of Georgia), born in Pickens, South Carolina (d. 1894)
1921 – Georgy Beregovoy, Soviet cosmonaut (Soyuz 3), born in Fedorivka, Poltava Oblast, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (d. 1995)
1942 – Kenneth Lay, American CEO and Chairman of Enron, born in Tyrone, Missouri (d. 2006)
1943 – Hugh Thompson Jr., American Vietnam War veteran who played a major role in ending the 1968 My Lai massacre, born in Atlanta, Georgia (d. 2006)
1984 – Rodney Carney, NBA athlete

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Famous Deaths

1765 – Mikhail Lomonosov, Russian scholar and poet, dies at 53
1911 – Georg Knorr, German engineer (brake system trains), dies at 51
1948 – Manuel Roxas, 5th President of the Philippines (1946-48), dies of heart attack at 56
1983 – Gyula Illyés, Hungarian author and poet (Az Ismertlen Illyes), dies at 80
1994 – Walter Clegg, British politician, dies at 73
2020 – Brian Dennehy, American actor (Cocoon, Death of a Salesman), dies at 81

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Historical Events

1928 – Maddus Airlines starts 1st regular passenger flights between SF and LA
1943 – James Gow and A d’Usseau’s “Tomorrow the World” premieres in NYC
1944 – Freighter “Fort Stikene” explodes in Bombay India, killing 1,376
1980 – 52nd Academy Awards: Best Picture “Kramer vs Kramer”, Dustin Hoffman and Sally Field win
1986 – Desmond Tutu elected Anglican Archbishop of Capetown, South Africa
1988 – “Mail” opens at Music Box Theater NYC for 36 performances

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Famous Birthdays

1668 – Magnus Julius De la Gardie, Swedish General and statesman, born in Stockholm, Sweden (d. 1741)
1907 – Phyllis Konstam, British actress (Murder, Skin Game), born in London, England (d. 1976)
1912 – Piet van Egmond, Dutch organist and conductor (Netherlands Chamber Orchestra), born in Amsterdam (d. 1982)
1925 – Rod Steiger, American actor (Illustrated Man, Pawnbroker), born in Westhampton, New York (d. 2002)
1946 – Tom Monteleone, American writer (Dark Star and Illumination)
1962 – John Bell, American rock singer and guitarist (Widespread Panic – “Hope in a Hopeless World”), born in Cleveland, Ohio

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Famous Deaths

711 – Childebert III, king of the Franks, dies (b. 678/9)
1552 – Laurentius Andreae [Lars Andersson], Swedish church reformer, dies
1964 – Herb McGirr, New Zealand cricket all-rounder (played in NZ’s 1st Test series; 2 Tests, 1 x 50; Wellington), dies at 72
1983 – Elisabeth Lutyens, English composer, dies at 76
1990 – Peter Dunn, American actor (Invaders from Mars) dies
2013 – John S Ragin, American actor (Dr Astin-Quincy ME), dies at 83

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Historical Events

1840 – William Henry Lane (“Juda”) perfects tap dance
1883 – US prospector Alfred Packer convicted of manslaughter though accused of cannibalism
1926 – Cyclists without bicycle-tax-stamp rounded up in Amsterdam
1961 – UN General Assembly condemns South-Africa’s apartheid
1994 – Presidential guard at Kigali, Rwanda, chops 1,200 church members to death
2009 – US record producer Phil Spector is found guilty of second-degree murder of actress Lana Clarkson in 2003

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Famous Birthdays

1762 – Charles Frederick Horn, English musician and composer, born in Nordhausen, Germany (d. 1830)
1872 – Alexander Roda Roda, Austrian writer, born in Drnowitz, Moravia (d. 1945)
1920 – Liam Cosgrave, Irish politician (Fine Gael Party), born in Castleknock, Dublin (d. 2017)
1924 – Stanley Donen, American film director and producer (Singin’ in the Rain, Bedazzled, Damn Yankees), born in Columbia, South Carolina (d. 2019)
1938 – Frederic Rzewski, American concert pianist and composer (Spacecraft), born in Westfield, Massachusetts (d. 2021)
1964 – Page Hannah, American actress (Fame – “Kate Riley”), born in Chicago, Illinois

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Famous Deaths

1635 – Fakhr-al-Din II, Druze Prince of Lebanon, dies at 62
1944 – Paul Hazard, French critic and literature historian, dies at 65
1984 – Richard Hurndall, British actor (Doctor Who, The Inheritors, It’s Murder But Is It Art), dies from a heart attack at 73
2001 – Jimmy Logan, British comedian (Mad Death), dies at 73
2005 – Johnny Loughrey, Irish singer, dies at 59
2007 – Don Selwyn, Māori actor and film director, dies at 71

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