Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1920 – Time Square Theater opens at 217 W 42nd St NYC
1940 – 47 German aircraft shot down above England
1980 – Ethernet specifications published by Xerox working with Intel and Digital Equipment Corporation.
1981 – Last game at Minn’s Metropolitan Stadium, lose to KC 5-2
1981 – International Olympic Committee votes to award Seoul, South Korea as host of the 1988 Summer Olympic Games
2012 – Car bomb blasts kill at least 32 people across Iraq

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Famous Birthdays

1857 – Hermann Sudermann, German writer (Honor, That Ehre, Frau Sorge), born in Matziken, East Prussia (d. 1928)
1870 – Thomas W. Lamont, American banker; father of Corliss Lamont; great-grandfather of Ned Lamont (d. 1948)
1898 – Felix Kersten, Baltic-German Finnish masseuse (masseuse to Heinrich Himmler who helped save people from Nazi persecution), born in Tartu, Imperial Russia (d. 1960)
1950 – Renato Zero [Fiacchini], Italian pop, rock and soul singer (Madame), born in Rome
1962 – Shaan [Shantanu Mukherjee], Indian singer, born in Khandwa
1981 – Brandon Watson, American baseball

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Famous Deaths

739 – P’u-chi Ho-shang Tao-chao, Northern Ch’an Line Zen teacher, dies
1955 – Arnold Struycken, Dutch lawyer, dies at 55
1993 – Tony Brafa, actor (Enrico Pallazzo-Naked Gun), dies at 72
2004 – Michael Relph, British film producer and director (b. 1915)
2012 – Turhan Bey [Sahultavy], Austrian-born actor dubbed “The Turkish Delight” (Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves), dies from Parkinson’s disease at 90
2019 – Jessye Norman, American opera singer (sang at two presidential inaugurations), dies at 74

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Historical Events

1608 – Captain Newport arrives from England with supplies for colonists
1954 – “Masquerade Party” TV game show moves from CBS to ABC for two seasons
1967 – Mickey Hart joins the Grateful Dead and plays the Straightater
1968 – Chuck Latourette, sets NFL record 47.7 yd punt return avg (3 punts)
1979 – John Huston’s “Wine Blood” premieres at NY Film Festival
1989 – Zsa Zsa Gabor convicted of slapping a police officer in Beverly Hills

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Famous Birthdays

1636 – Thomas Tenison, English Archbishop of Canterbury (1694-1715), born in Cottenham, England (d. 1715)
1831 – John McAlister Schofield, American Major General (Union Army), born in Gerry, New York (d. 1906)
1915 – Vincent DeDomenico, American entrepreneur (Rice-A-Roni), born in San Francisco, California (d. 2007)
1934 – Lance Gibbs, West Indian cricketer (prolific West Indian off-spinner, 309 wickets), born in Georgetown, British Guiana
1941 – Kermit Zarley, American golfer, author (Canadian Open 1970), born in Seattle, Washington
1968 – Matt Goss, English singer-songwriter (Bros. – “I Owe You Nothing”), born in London, England

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Famous Deaths

1908 – Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, Brazilian writer (Epitaph of a small winner), dies at 69
1994 – Don Watson, Australian race car driver, dies in an accident at a practice for the Bathurst 1000 at 43
1995 – George Chesterman Phillips, British naval officer, dies at 90
1997 – Milner Gray, British graphic designer, dies at 97
2005 – Austin Leslie, American chef, the “Godfather of Fried Chicken” (b. 1934)
2009 – Pavel Popovich, Ukrainian cosmonaut (Vostok IV, Soyuz 14), dies at 78

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Historical Events

1920 – 8 White Sox indicted, threw 1919 World Series (Black Sox scandal)
1953 – “Juvenile Jury” TV Children’s last airs on NBC, moved to CBS
1958 – US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1961 – “Doctor Kildare” debuts on NBC-TV
1962 – The last airing of “The Tonight Show” prior to Johnny Carson becoming host airs on NBC-TV
1997 – St Louis Cardinals Mark McGwire hits his 58th HR of 1997 (34 with Oak A’s)

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Famous Birthdays

1605 – Ismaël Bullialdus, French astronomer (Astronomia Philolaica) and mathematician, born in Loudun, Vienne, France (d. 1694)
1855 – Thomas Frederick Tout, British historian (Manchester school of historiography), born in London, England (d. 1929)
1924 – Marcello Mastroianni, Italian actor (8½, La Dolce Vita; Dark Eyes, The Pizza Triangle), born in Fontana Liri, Lazio, Kingdom of Italy (d. 1996)
1945 – Conny Van Dyke, Nassawadox Va, actress (Framed, Hell’s Angels ’69)
1947 – Gillian Rose, philosopher/writer
1975 – Karan Ashley Jackson, Odessa Tx, actress (Aisha-Mighty Power Rangers)

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Famous Deaths

1618 – Gilles van Ledenberg, sec of Utrecht States (1588-1618), suicide at 68
1702 – Robert Spencer 2nd earl of Sunderland, Engl PM (1687-88), dies at 61
1815 – Nicolas Desmarest, French geologist and geographer (Volcanos), dies at 90
1959 – Vincent Richards, American tennis player (US Pro C’ships 1927-28, 30, 33), dies of a heart attack at 56
1994 – Warwick Hutton, artist, dies at 55
2017 – Vann Molyvann, Cambodian architect (New Khmer architecture), dies at 90

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Historical Events

1953 – Typhoon destroys one third of Nagoya, Japan
1959 – Braves and Dodgers finish in a tie (86-68)
1982 – Cards clinching NL East title
1987 – Ryder Cup Golf, Muirfield Village GC: Europe beats US, 15-13; after 13-0 unbeaten record spanning 60 years, US loses for first time on home soil
1996 – Baltimore Oriole Roberto Alomar spits in face of umpire John Hirschbeck
2001 – At its two-day meeting in Vienna, OPEC decides to keep its production quotas unchanged at 23.2 million barrels per day, despite crude oil being at its lowest price levels since 1999

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Famous Birthdays

1911 – Peter Doig, British Labour Party politician, born in Lochgelly, Fife, Scotland (d. 1996)
1919 – Jayne Meadows, American actress (Dark Delusion, David and Bathsheba) and wife of Steve Allen, born in Wuchang, Hubei, China (d. 2015)
1940 – Josephine Barstow, British opera soprano singer, born in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England
1953 – Benjamin Gene Brown, 4X400 runner (Olympic gold 1976), born in San Francisco, California
1957 – Richard Vagg, Australian baseball infielder (Olympics 1996)
1991 – Simona Halep, Romanian tennis player (French Open 2018, Wimbledon 2019), born in Constanța, Romania

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Famous Deaths

1831 – Joannis Capodistrias, Greek governor of Troezen, murdered at 55
1944 – Aristide Maillol, French painter and sculptor (Seated Woman), dies in car crash at 82
1948 – Frank Cellier, British actor (Quiet Wedding, Big Blockade), dies from ill health at 64
1972 – S. R. Ranganathan, Indian mathematician (b. 1892)
1977 – Jock Hutchison, Scottish golfer (PGA C’ship 1920, British Open 1921), dies at 93
1993 – Andrei Solovyiov, Russian photographer, dies in battle at 38

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Historical Events

1953 – Polish government fires/imprisons Cardinal Wyszynski
1960 – Cuban leader Fidel Castro delivers a 4 hour and 29 minute long speech at the United Nations
1962 – TV comedy series “Beverly Hillbillies” premieres on CBS
1963 – Lee Harvey Oswald travels on Continental Trailways bus to Mexico
1978 – NY District Court Judge Constance Baker Motley rules that women sportswriters cannot be banned from locker rooms
2019 – US Income inequality widest for over 50 years, worst in California, Connecticut, Florida, Louisiana and New York, according to new census figures

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Famous Birthdays

1832 – Pyotr Petrovich Sokal’sky, Russian composer, born in Kharkiv, Ukraine (d. 1887)
1907 – Ralph Michael, British actor (Quest, Doctor in the House), born in London (d. 1994)
1907 – Anthony Blunt, British art historian and spy for USSR, born in Bournemouth, Hampshire, England (d. 1983)
1932 – Manmohan Singh, Indian politician, 13th Prime Minister of India (2004-14), born in Gah, British India
1948 – Vladimír Remek, Czech politician and cosmonaut (Soyuz 28), born in České Budějovice, Czechoslovakia
1973 – Marty Casey, American singer (Lovehammers), born in Chicago, Illinois

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Famous Deaths

1023 – Godfried I, duke of Neth-Lutherans, dies
1937 – Bessie Smith, American blues singer known as the “Empress of the Blues” (recorded over 200 songs), dies of injuries sustained in car crash at 43
1964 – Calvin Thomas, actor (Judge Hunter-One Man’s Family), dies at 79
1997 – Dorothy Kingsley, American screenwriter (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers), dies at 87
2000 – Richard Mulligan, American actor (Soap, Empty’s Nest, Big Bus), dies at 67
2006 – Byron Nelson, American golfer (winner 5 major titles; record 19 tournaments 1945), dies of a blood disorder at 94

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Historical Events

1555 – Freedom of Religion in Augsburg
1861 – Secretary of US Navy authorizes enlistment of slaves
1866 – (Leonard W) Jerome Park opens in Bronx for horse racing
1924 – Malcolm Campbell sets world auto speed record at 146.16 miles per hour
1967 – WGBX TV channel 44 in Boston, MA (PBS) begins broadcasting
1975 – Jackie Wilson suffers heart attack and lapse into a 9 yr terminal coma

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Famous Birthdays

1807 – Alfred Vail, American inventor and early telegraph pioneer, born in Morristown, New Jersey (d. 1859)
1862 – Leon Boellmann, French organist and composer (Variations Symphoniques), born in Ensisheim, France (d. 1897)
1926 – Aldo Ray [Da Re], American actor (God’s Little Acre, Green Beret), born in Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania (d. 1991)
1932 – Andrew Gardner, British newscaster (News at Ten), born in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire (d. 1999)
1932 – Terry Medwin, Welsh footballer (Tottenham Hotspur), born in Swansea, Glamorgan, Wales
1946 – Gil Morgan, American golfer (7 PGA Tour titles, 3 Champions Tour majors), born in Wewoka, Oklahoma

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Famous Deaths

1066 – Tostig Godwinson, Earl of Northumbria, killed at the Battle of Stamford Bridge
1396 – Philip of Bar, French knight/crusader, dies in battle
1916 – Julius Fučík, Czech composer, dies at 44
1987 – Emlyn Williams, actor and director (I Accuse, Ivanhoe, Scarf), dies at 81
1987 – George Emlyn Williams, Welsh actor and playwright (David Copperfield), dies from cancer at 81
1999 – Marion Zimmer Bradley, American writer, dies at 69

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Historical Events

1920 – Future Baseball Hall of Fame slugger Babe Ruth becomes first to hit 50 home runs in a MLB season with a 1st inning blast off Jose Acosta in a 2-1 loss to the Washington Senators
1922 – Nuremberg fusion congress USDP-SPD; picks Karl Kautsky
1940 – Jimmy Foxx hits his 500th career HR
1979 – Pete Rose reaches 200 hits in a season for 10th time
1982 – US, Italian and French peacekeeping troops begin arriving in Lebanon
1991 – After 3 year reign as AL champs, A’s are eliminated from AL West

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Famous Birthdays

1802 – Adolphe d’Archiac, French paleontologist and geologist, born in Reims, France (d. 1868)
1902 – Ayatollah Khomeini [Ruhollah Khomeini], Supreme leader of Iran (1979-89), religious figure and political leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution, born in Khomeyn, Persia (d. 1989)
1923 – Mervyn Brown, British diplomat and historian of Madagascar
1924 – Jean-Pierre Warner, British high court judge (d. 2005)
1932 – Terry Davies MBE, Welsh rugby union full back (21 Tests Wales, 2 British and Irish Lions; Swansea, Llanelli), born in Llwynhendy, Wales (d. 2021)
1945 – David Drake, American sci-fi author, veteran and lawyer (Cross the Stars, Rolling Hot), born in the United States

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Famous Deaths

1742 – Johann Matthias Hase, German scientist (b. 1684)
1815 – John Sevier, American soldier, Governor of Tennessee (1796-1801, 1803-09), dies at 70
1934 – Edwin H. Lemare, British organist and composer (Andantino in D-flat, also known as “Moonlight and Roses”), dies at 69
1960 – Mátyás Seiber, Hungarian-British classical and jazz composer (Scherzando), dies at 55
1982 – Sarah Churchill, British actress (Matinee Theatre, All Over Town, Royal Wedding), dies at 67
1997 – Larry Hall, American rocker (Sandy), dies at 57

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Historical Events

1863 – Confederate siege of Chattanooga begins
1920 – Alexander Millerand elected president of France
1922 – Berthold Brecht’s “Drum in the Night” premieres in Germany
1933 – Yanks commit 7 errors in 1 game but beat Boston 16-12
1979 – Jane Fonda and 200,000 attend anti-nuke rally in Battery Park, NYC
2019 – US police officer fired after arresting two six-year-olds at a school on charges of misdemeanour battery in Florida

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Famous Birthdays

1771 – Emperor Kokaku of Japan (d. 1840)
1930 – Pyotr Ivanovich Kolodin, cosmonaut (Soyuyz 7, 10, 11 backup)
1948 – “Dangerous” Dan Toler, American rock guitarist (Dickey Betts; Allman Brothers), born in Connersville, Indiana (d. 2013)
1956 – June Forester, American country singer (Forester Sister – “Mama’s Never Seen Those Eyes”; “Men”), born in Lookout Mountain, Georgia
1957 – Tunch Ilkin, American football offensive tackle (Pro Bowl 1988, 89; Pittsburgh Steelers) and broadcaster (Pittsburgh Steelers TV and radio 1998-2020), born in Istanbul, Turkey )d. 2021)
1985 – Hasan Minhaj, American stand-up comedian (Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj), born in Davis, California

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Famous Deaths

965 – Aboe a-Taia-H al-Moetanabbi, Arabic royal poet (Diwan), murdered
1988 – Arwel Hughes, Welsh composer, dies at 79
1994 – Alec Dickson, founder of VSO, dies at 80
1996 – Stuart Piggott, British archaeologist best known for his work on prehistoric Wessex, dies at 86
2005 – Filiberto Ojeda Ríos, Puerto Rican activist (Founder of FALN), dies at 72
2020 – Ray Batten, English rugby league back-rower (Great Britain 3, England 3 Tests; Leeds 434 games) and coach (Wakefield Trinity), dies at 75

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Historical Events

1784 – Russian trappers establish a colony on Kodiak Island, Alaska
1864 – Sheridan sets up camp in Harrisonburg, Virginia
1925 – New York left fielder Ben Paschal hits 2 inside-the-park-home runs as the Yankees score an 11-6 home victory over Chicago White Sox
1935 – Boston Braves lose NL record 110th game of year en route to 115
1986 – LA Dodger Fernando Valenzuela is 1st Mexican to win 20 games
1993 – STS-51 (Discovery) lands

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Famous Birthdays

1935 – Harriet King, American Olympic fencer, born in New York City
1939 – Mike Sullivan, American politician (Gov-Wyoming 1987-95), born in Omaha, Nebraska
1962 – Rob Stone, American actor (Kevin-Mr Belvedere), born in Chicago, Illinois
1981 – Ashley Eckstein, American actress (voice of Ahsoka Tan in Star Wars), born in Louisville, Kentucky
1984 – Ross Jarman, English drummer (The Cribs), born in Wakefield, England
1984 – Misha Green, American screen writer, director and producer (Lovecraft Country), born in Sacramento, California

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Famous Deaths

1852 – William Tierney Clark, English civil engineer, dies at 69
1873 – Friedrich Frey-Herosé, Swiss politician, dies at 62
1927 – Giannotto Bastianelli, Italian musician and composer, dies at 44
1960 – Melanie Klein, Austrian-British author and child psychoanalyst (object relations theory), dies at 78
1996 – Mohammed Ben Amhed Abdelghani, Prime Minister of Algeria (1979-84), dies
2004 – Edward Larrabee Barnes, American architect (Walker Art Center), dies at 89

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Historical Events

1904 – The general strike called by the Socialist Party that spread throughout Italy ends
1913 – Turkey and Bulgaria sign peace treaty in Constantinople
1930 – Johann Ostermeyer patents flashbulb
1970 – New York Times starts first modern op-ed page
1990 – Pirate Bobby Bond is 2nd to hit 30 HRs and steal 50 bases in a season (so he can play in 6 decades) because it is a publicity stunt
1993 – Melissa Etheridge releases her break-through second album “Yes I Am”, featuring the single “I’m the Only One”

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Famous Birthdays

1328 – Hongwu, 1st Emperor of Ming Dynasty of China (1368-98), born in Haozhou, Henan Jiangbei, Yuan Empire (d. 1398)
1902 – Howie Morenz, Canadian Hockey Hall of Fame center (Montreal Canadiens, 3-time Stanley Cup winner), born in Mitchell, Ontario (d. 1937)
1947 – Stephen King, American sci-fi and horror author (Carrie; The Shining; Kujo; Misery), born in Portland, Maine
1948 – Michael Finneran, diver (1st perfect 10 on 10m platform)
1980 – Robert Hoffman, American actor
1998 – Tadej Pogačar, Slovenian cyclist (Tour de France 2020, 21), born in Komenda, Slovenia

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Famous Deaths

1520 – Selam I Jawuz, the Barse, poet/cruel sultan of Turkey, dies
1796 – François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, French general (b. 1769)
1911 – Arab Pasha, “al-Misri” [Pasha Ahmad Arab), Egyptian minister, dies
1953 – Roger Quilter, British composer, dies at 75
1954 – Kokichi Mikimoto, Japanese inventor (b. 1858)
1955 – Jacqueline Reyneke van Stuwe, Dutch author, dies at 84

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