Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1857 – Patent for reducing zinc ore granted to Samuel Wetherill, Penn
1900 – Maurice Ravel’s “Albaradode Gracioso” premieres in Paris
1931 – Thomas Edison submits his last patent application
1972 – US male Figure Skating championship won by Kenneth Shelley
1985 – NFC Championship, Candlestick Park, SF: San Francisco 49ers beat Chicago Bears, 23-0
2019 – Record $3.1 million (333.6 million yen) price for giant bluefin tuna at Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market bought by sushi restaurant owner Kiyoshi Kimura

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Famous Birthdays

1585 – Claude Favre de Vaugelas, Savoyard grammarian, born in Meximieux, Duchy of Savoy (d. 1650)
1913 – Loretta Young, American actress (Farmer’s Daughter, Stranger), born in Salt Lake City, Utah (d. 2000)
1931 – Graeme Hole, Australian cricketer (Australian batsman of the fifties), born in Concord West, Australia (d. 1990)
1931 – E. L. Doctorow, American author (Ragtime, Billy Bathgate), born in The Bronx, New York (d. 2015)
1954 – Norbert Hahn, 2 man luge (Olympic gold 1976, 80), born in Elbingerode, Germany
1966 – Donnell Woolford, NFL cornerback (Pittsburgh Steelers, Chicago Bears), born in Baltimore, Maryland

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Famous Deaths

1852 – Louis Braille, French educator and inventor of a system of reading and writing for the blind, dies of tuberculosis at 43
1936 – Charles Stoneham, American owner of the NY Giants), dies at 59
1939 – Albert Ward, cricketer (England batsman in 7 Tests 1893-95), dies
1977 – Niall MacGinnis, Irish character actor (Curse of the Demon, Helen of Troy), dies from cancer at 63
1987 – Domingo Santa Cruz Wilson, Chilean composer, dies at 87
1995 – James Clay, American jazz tenor saxophonist, dies at 59

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Historical Events

1937 – Australian cricket batsmen Jack Fingleton (136) and Don Bradman (out 270 the following day) make then record stand of 346 for 6th wicket in 3rd Test vs England in Melbourne
1952 – Flying Enterprise sinks
1953 – Samuel Beckett’s “En Attendant Godot” premieres in Paris
1972 – NYC transit fare rises from 30 cents to 35 cents
1997 – “Juan Darien-Carnival Mass” closes at Vivian Beaumont NYC
2010 – Mike Shanahan is formally introduced as head coach of the Washington Redskins

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Famous Birthdays

1779 – Stephen Decatur, American naval hero (War of 1812), born in Sinepuxent, Maryland (d. 1820)
1835 – Hendrik van Rijgersma, Dutch naturalist and physician, born in Lemmer, Netherlands (d. 1877)
1861 – Heinrich Gottlieb Noren, Austrian violinist and composer (Kaleidoscope), born in Graz (d. 1928)
1889 – Albert van Dalsum, Dutch actor and director (Wilton’s Zoo; Little Rascal), born in Nieuwer-Amstel, Noord-Holland, Netherlands (d. 1971)
1902 – Pierre Palla, Dutch pianist and organist, born in Venlo, Netherlands (d. 1968)
1975 – Kylie Bax, New Zealand model, born in Thames, New Zealand

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Famous Deaths

1603 – Pieter Adriaansz van der Werff, mayor of Lead, dies at 73
1948 – Mary Dimmick Harrison, 1st lady (1889-1893) as second wife of the 23rd United States president Benjamin Harrison, dies at 89
1951 – Andrei P Platonov, Russian author (Prok, Kotlovan), dies at 51
1965 – Paul Arntzenius, Dutch painter, graphic artist and etcher, dies at 81
1970 – Joseph A Yablonski, candidate for United Mine Workers pres, murdered
1991 – John Eckhardt, actor born without legs (Freaks), dies at 82

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Historical Events

1920 – Amsterdam actors decide to strike for retirement benefits
1965 – LBJ’s “Great Society” State of the Union Address
1975 – New Orleans Jazz set a then NBA record (with 24-second shot clock) by scoring only 20 points in the first half of a 111-89 loss in Seattle; unwanted record stands for nearly 25 years
1998 – “Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” closes at St James NYC after 715 perform
1999 – Gunmen open fire on Shiite Muslims worshipping in an Islamabad mosque, killing 16 people and injuring 25.
2014 – Hopman Cup Tennis, Perth: France wins first title; Alizé Cornet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat Poland’s Agnieszka Radwańska and Grzegorz Panfil 6-0, 6-2 to clinch 2-1 victory

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Famous Birthdays

1925 – Veikko Hakulinen, Finnish cross country skier (Olympic gold 1952, 56, 60), born in Kurkijoki, Finland (d. 2003)
1929 – Bobby Tulloch, ornithologist
1943 – Doris Kearns Goodwin, American historian and writer (Team of Rivals, No Ordinary Time), born in Brooklyn, New York
1947 – John King, American rock drummer (Steve Miller Band, 1972-74), born in Kingsport, Tennessee (d. 2010)
1960 – Michael Stipe, American rock vocalist and songwriter (R.E.M. – “Losing My Religion”; “Stand”; “Everybody Hurts”), born in Decatur, Georgia
1967 – Michael “Mike” Peterson, American rower (Olympics 1996), born in Washington, D.C.

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Famous Deaths

1612 – Henry L Spieghel, Dutch merchant/writer, dies at 62
1825 – Ferdinand I, King of Sicily/Naples (Ferdinand IV), dies at 73
1886 – Ernest Panckoucke, French publisher (Horace), dies at 77
1942 – Leon Jessel, German composer (The Parade of the Tin Soldiers), dies at 70
1968 – Joseph Pholien, Belgian PM (1950-52) communist fighter, dies at 83
2020 – Walter Ormeño, Peruvian soccer goalkeeper (Peru 1949-57; Boca Juniors, Rosario Central), dies at 93

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Historical Events

1496 – Leonardo da Vinci unsuccessfully tests a flying machine
1967 – Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys is indicted for draft evasion
1977 – Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs incorporate Apple Computer, Inc
1992 – 32 Cubans defect to the US via helicopter
1993 – In Moscow, the Start II arms reduction treaty is signed by George H. W. Bush (USA) and Boris Yeltsin (Russia)
2012 – 78th Sugar Bowl: #13 Michigan beats #11 Virginia Tech, 23-20

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Famous Birthdays

1861 – Ernest Renshaw, British tennis player (Wimbledon 1888), born in Leamington, England (d. 1899)
1887 – Helen Parkhurst, US educator (Education on the Dalton plan)
1901 – Ngô Đình Diệm, President and authoritarian leader of South Vietnam (1954-63), born in Quảng Bình, French Indochina (d. 1963)
1973 – Dan Harmon, American voice actor, producer and writer (Rick and Morty, Community), born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1977 – Mayumi Iizuka, Japanese voice actress (seiyū)
1986 – Lloyd Polite, American RandB singer

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Famous Deaths

1761 – Willem de Fesch, Dutch violinist and composer (Joseph), dies at 73
1900 – Edwin George Monk, English church organist and composer, dies at 80
1980 – Lucien Buysse, Belgian cyclist (Tour de France 1926), dies at 87
1980 – Joy Adamson [Friederike Viktoria Gessner], Austrian naturalist and author (Born Free), murdered at 69 by her servant
1981 – Princess Alice of Albany (b. 1883)
2007 – William Verity Jr., United States Secretary of Commerce 1987-1989 (b. 1917)

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Historical Events

1921 – DeYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park opens
1923 – Ku Klux Klan surprise attack on black residential area Rosewood Florida, 8 killed (compensation awarded in 1995)
1972 – “Rothschilds” closes at Lunt-Fontanne Theater NYC after 505 performances
1986 – Islanders right wing Mike Bossy scores his 499th and 500th career goals in the final 2:22 to lift the New York to a 7-5 victory over the Boston Bruins; 11th player in NHL history to score 500 goals
1994 – Battles between army and rebellious indians in South Mexico, kill 57
1995 – Most distant galaxy yet discovered found by scientists using Keck telescope in Hawaii (est 15 billion light years away)

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Famous Birthdays

1822 – Rudolph J E Clausius, German physicist (thermodynamics)
1920 – Peter Harrison Swan, bomber pilot/stockbroker
1920 – Isaac Asimov, Russian scientist and sci-fi writer (I Robot, Foundation Trilogy), born in Petrovichi, Russia (d. 1992)
1928 – Harry Hyams, English immovable goods owner (Center Point)
1967 – Tia Carrere [Althea Janairo], American actress (Wayne’s World, True Lies), born in Honolulu, Hawaii
1976 – Paz Vega, Spanish actress

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Famous Deaths

1790 – Joseph Anton Feuchtmayer, German rococo sculptor, dies at 73
1937 – Ross Alexander, American stage and film actor (Captain Blood, Boulder Dam), commits suicide by gunshot at 29
1988 – E.B. Ford, British ecological geneticist, dies at 86
2008 – Gerry Staley, American baseball pitcher (MLB All Star 1952-53, 60; St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago White Sox), dies of natural causes at 87
2009 – Maria de Jesus, Portuguese supercentenarian, dies at 115
2013 – Margaret A. Brewer, American soldier and first female general officer in US Marine Corps, dies at 82

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Historical Events

1758 – The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature establish the “starting point” for standardized species names across the animal kingdom, based on the binomial nomenclature by Carolus Linnaeus 10th edition of Systema Naturae
1937 – US Army Air Corps physiological research laboratory completed, Ohio
1958 – 24th Sugar Bowl: #7 Mississippi beats #11 Texas, 39-7
1964 – 50th Rose Bowl: #3 Illinois beats Washington, 17-7
1971 – Cigarette advertisements banned on TV
1996 – 62nd Orange Bowl: #6 Florida State beats #8 Notre Dame, 31-26

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Famous Birthdays

1784 – William Beale, English composer and baritone, born in Lankrake, Cornwall (d. 1854)
1833 – Robert Lawson, New Zealand architect (d. 1902)
1863 – Pierre de Coubertin, French educator and historian (founder International Olympic Committee; President IOC 1896–1925), born in Paris, France (d. 1937)
1873 – Mariano Azuela, Mexican novelist (The Flies, The Bosses)
1875 – Frank Druce, English cricket batsman (5 Tests; Surrey), born in London, England (d. 1954)
1921 – Ismail al-Faruqi, Palestinian philosopher, born in Jaffa, British-mandate Palestine (d. 1986)

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Famous Deaths

1742 – Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, English statesman, dies at 55
1758 – Johann Friedrich von Cronegk, German playwright (Codrus), dies at 26
1923 – Willie Keeler, American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (highest career AB-per-strikeout ratio in MLB history), dies of tuberculosis at 50
1932 – C. P. Scott, British journalist, publisher and politician, dies at 85
1980 – Pietro Nenni, Italian politician (Socialists), dies at 88
1988 – Leo Steiner, American restaurateur (Carnegie Deli), dies at 48

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Historical Events

1906 – French, British and Italian treaty concerning rights on Abyssinia
1953 – WFBC (now WYFF) TV channel 4 in G’ville-Spartanburg, SC (NBC) begins
1964 – Indonesia proclaims expelled from the UN
1966 – Toboggan Chutes begin operation in Cleveland Metroparks
1977 – Cambodia drops diplomatic relations with Vietnam
1991 – CPN, Communist Party of Netherland, last day of existence

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Famous Birthdays

1869 – Henri Matisse, French impressionist painter (Odalisque), born in Le Cateau-Cambresis, France (d. 1954)
1916 – Suzy Delair, French actress and singer (The Murderer Lives at Number 21, Utopia, White Paws), born in Paris, France (d. 2020)
1941 – Sir Alex Ferguson, Scottish football manager, born in Glasgow, United Kingdom
1948 – Viktor Mikhailovich Afanasieyv, Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-11, TM-18)
1962 – Heather McCartney, American-British potter and artist, born in Tucson, Arizona
1978 – Tom Hamilton Jr., American songwriter, guitarist, producer, and singer (Brothers Past; American Babies; Billy and the Kids), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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Famous Deaths

1896 – Leland Hone, Irish cricketer (scored 7 and 6 in only England Test 1879), dies
1947 – Franz X Ritter von Epp, German General (SW Africa), dies at 79
1966 – Pieter Geyl, Dutch historian (History of the Dutch Race), dies at 79
1993 – Thomas J. Watson Jr., American businessman and politician (President of IBM, 1952-1971, US Ambassador to the Soviet Union, 1979-1981), dies of a stroke at 79
2004 – Gérard Debreu, French-American economist (Nobel 1983), dies at 83
2007 – Bill Idelson, American actor (b. 1919)

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Historical Events

1610 – Hungarian aristocrat Elizabeth Báthory arrested at Csejte Castle on suspicion of killing and torturing hundreds of young girls and women
1836 – Lehman Theater in St Petersburg catches fire; 100s die
1853 – Dinner party held inside life-sized model of an Iguanodon (ornithopod dinosaur), created by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins and Sir Richard Owen in South London
1888 – Belgium: king Leopold II installs Order of African Star
1968 – -48°F (-44°C), Mazama and Winthrop, Washington (state record)
1968 – Frank Sinatra first records “My Way” with lyrics were written by Paul Anka and based on the French song “Comme d’habitude”

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Famous Birthdays

1784 – Dorothea von Benckendorff, Baltic monarch of Lieven
1887 – Henry George Ley, British organist, composer, and teacher (Eton, 1926-45), born in Chagford, England (d. 1962)
1934 – Joseph P. Hoar, former US Central Command commander
1937 – Tsisana Tatishvili, Georgian lyric-dramatic soprano, born in Tbilisi, Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (d. 2017)
1949 – Bruce Fairbairn, Canadian musician and record producer (Loverboy; Bon Jovi; Aerosmith), born in Vancouver, British Columbia (d. 1999)
1964 – Kris Tschetter, American golfer (US Open runner-up 1996), born in Detroit, Michigan

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Famous Deaths

1912 – Alfred von Kiderlen-Wächter, German foreign minister, dies at 60
1971 – Melba Rae, American actress (Search for Tomorrow) (b. 1922)
1986 – Jiri Jaroch, Czech composer, dies at 66
1988 – Yuli Daniel, Russian writer (b. 1925)
1995 – Heiner Muller, dramatist, dies at 66
2004 – Artie Shaw [Arthur Arshawsky], American bandleader, jazz clarinetist and actor (“Begin the Beguine”), dies at 94

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Historical Events

1708 – Great Alliance occupies Gent
1934 – Federico Garcia Lorca’s “Yerma” premieres in Madrid
1977 – Ronald Ribman’s “Cold Storage” premieres in NYC
1978 – Spain constitution goes into effect
1994 – Shane Warne takes a hat-trick v England at cricket MCG
1997 – Cricket Women’s World Cup: Australia defeats New Zealand by 5 wickets

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Famous Birthdays

1880 – Jean-Fernand Vaubourgoin, French composer (Ophellia), born in Bordeaux, France (d. 1952)
1919 – Roman Vlad, Romanian-born Italian composer, born in Cernauti, Romania (d. 2013)
1921 – Robert C. Baker, American inventor and professor (invented the chicken nugget), born in Newark, New York (d. 2006)
1958 – Nancy J. Currie-Gregg, U.S. Army officer and astronaut (STS 57, 70, sk: 88), born in Wilmington, Delaware
1979 – Diego Luna, Mexican actor, born in Toluca, Mexico
1994 – Princess Kako of Akishino of Japan, born in Tokyo, Japan

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Famous Deaths

1822 – Albert Christoph Dies, German painter, engraver and biographer, dies at 67
1910 – Reginald “R.F.” Doherty, British tennis player (Wimbledon 1897-1900), dies of neurasthenia at 38
1915 – Tom Shevlin, American College Football Hall of Fame end (Yale – Consensus All-American 1902, 04, 05; National C’ship 1902, 05), dies of pneumonia at 32
1929 – Wilhelm Maybach, German automobile designer (b. 1846)
1984 – Sidney Garfield, American physician and pioneer of health maintenance organizations (Kaiser Permanente), dies at 78
1994 – Frank Thring, Australian actor (El Cid, Ben-Hur), dies at 68

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Historical Events

1612 – First observation of Neptune – Galileo observes and records a “fixed star” without realising it is a planet
1926 – Ponsford scores 352 and Ryder 295 against NSW
1927 – George Kaufman and Moss Hart’s “Royal Family” premieres in NYC
1973 – Akron Ohio’s Chamber of Commerce terminates itself from Soap Box Derby
1985 – US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1993 – John Maclean passes Kirk Muller as all-time NJ Devils scorer (521 pts)

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Famous Birthdays

1665 – George FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Northumberland, British general (d. 1716)
1866 – Szymon Askenazy, Polish historian and diplomat (d. 1935)
1888 – Gabriel von Wayditch, composer
1940 – Lonnie Liston Smith, American jazz piano and keyboard player (Cosmic Echoes, Magic Lady), born in Richmond, Virginia,
1969 – James Trapp, US sprinter and NFL player (Oakland Raiders), born in Greenville, South Carolina
1981 – Sienna Miller, British actress, born in NYC, New York

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Famous Deaths

1671 – Johann Friedrich Gronovius, German classical scholar, dies at 60
1830 – Adrien-Joseph van Helmont, Flemish composer, dies at 83
1947 – Victor Emmanuel III, King of Italy (1900-46), dies of pulmonary edema at 78
1991 – Cassandra Harris, Australian actress (For Your Eyes Only), dies of cancer at 39
1997 – James Lees-Milne, English writer and architectural historian, dies at 89
2016 – (Mary Frances) “Debbie” Reynolds, American actress and singer (Singin’ In The Rain -“Kathy Selden”; The Unsinkable Molly Brown), dies of a stroke at 84 one day after her daughter Carrie Fisher passed away

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