Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1790 – Congress declares the city of Washington in the District of Columbia, the permanent capital of the United States
1883 – Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: William Renshaw wins third straight Wimbledon title; beats twin brother Ernest Renshaw 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3
1921 – Encouraged by the British, King Constantine of Greece launches a drive to take Asia Minor from nationalists under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
1972 – Smokey Robinson and Miracles final live performance
1982 – Sun Myung Moon sentenced to 18 months for tax fraud
1988 – Florence Joyner runs 100m in women’s world record 10.49 seconds

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Famous Birthdays

1870 – Lambert McKenna, Irish editor and lexicographer, born in Clontarf, County Dublin, Ireland (d. 1956)
1913 – Peter Van Eyck [Götz von Eick], German actor (The Longest Day, The Wages of Fear), born in Steinwehr, Pomerania, Germany (d. 1969)
1932 – Oleg Protopopov, Russian olympic pairs skater (Gold 1964, 68), born in Saint Petersburg, Russia
1946 – John Hollins, British retired footballer, born in Guildford, Surrey
1952 – Phil Carrick, English cricketer (Yorkshire County Cricket Club), born in Armley, Yorkshire, England (d. 2000)
1969 – Rain Pryor, American actress (Head of the Class) and daughter of Richard Pryor, born in Los Angeles, California

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Famous Deaths

1831 – Louis Alexandre Andrault de Langeron, Russian general (b. 1763)
1917 – Ludwig Philipp Scharwenka, German composer (Album Polonaise), dies at 70
1939 – Beatrice Erskine Lane Suzuki, Zen student, dies
1972 – Max Zehnder, Swiss composer, dies at 70
1996 – John Panozzo, drummer, dies at 48
2014 – Johnny Winter, American Hall of Fame blues musician, dies at 70

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Historical Events

1307 – Duke Henrik of Corinthia chosen as King of Bohemia
1500 – Baglione family massacre at the “Blood Wedding” of Astorre Baglione and Lavinia Colonna in Perugia
1538 – Peace talks between Charles I and King Francois I
1915 – The head of German propaganda in the US, Dr Heinrich Albert, loses his briefcase on a subway in New York City; an examination of its content reveals an extensive network of German espionage and subversion across the US
1991 – France performs nuclear Test at Mururoa atoll
2002 – Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan hands down the death sentence to British born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and life terms to three others suspected of murdering Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl

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Famous Birthdays

1898 – Norman Demuth, composer
1917 – Robert Conquest, English historian and poet (The Great Terror), born in Great Malvern, Worcestershire (d. 2015)
1932 – Ed Litzenberger, Canadian NHL right wing (Stanley Cup 1961-4), born in Neudorf, Saskatchewan (d. 2010)
1939 – Patrick Wayne, actor (Rounder, Shirley, Beyond Atlantis), born in Los Angeles, California
1952 – Johnny Thunders, American musician (d. 1991)
1973 – Brian Austin Green, American actor (David-Beverly Hills 90210), born in Van Nuys, California

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Famous Deaths

1411 – Johannes Parvus, [Jean Petit], French theologist, dies
1751 – John Wilson, botanist, dies
1937 – Walter Gay, artist, dies
1980 – Henri Martelli, French composer, dies at 85
1990 – Troy Dixon, rapper (Trouble T-Roy of Heavy D), dies at 22 of a fall
2003 – Tex Schramm, American football team president and general manager (b. 1920)

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Historical Events

1877 – General strike brings US railroad to a stand still
1985 – US Open Women’s Golf, Baltusrol GC: Kathy Baker (later Guadagnino) wins her first LPGA Tour event and only major title, 3 strokes ahead of runner-up Judy Clark (later Dickinson)
1988 – 200,000 demonstrate in Soviet Armenia for incorporation of Nagorno-Karabak
1996 – “How To Succeed in Business…” closes at R Rodgers NYC after 548 performances
1998 – Violence erupts in Richmond, South Africa, reflecting underlying political tensions between supporters of the ANC and Inkatha Freedom Party
2014 – The Egyptian government propose a cease fire in the Israel–Gaza conflict

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Famous Birthdays

1804 – Ludwig A Benedek, Austrian general
1930 – Eric Norman Stokes, composer
1951 – Judi Brown, American 400m hurdler (Olympic silver 1984), born in East Lansing, Michigan
1966 – Brian Selznick, American author and illustrator
1974 – Erick Dampier, NBA center (SF Warriors)
1995 – Kim Hyo-joo, South Korean golfer (Evian C’ship 2014), born in Seoul, South Korea

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Famous Deaths

1298 – Jacob de Voragine, Italian bishop/writer (Golden Legend), dies
1876 – Thomas Hazlehurst, English Methodist chapel builder, dies at 60
1908 – William Mason, composer, dies at 79
1918 – Quentin Roosevelt, youngest son of United States President Theodore Roosevelt, killed in aerial combat over France on Bastille Day at 20
1942 – Neel [Cornelia H] Doff, Neth/French/Belgian painter’s model, dies
1975 – Madan Mohan, Hindi Film’s Melodious Music director (b. 1924)

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Historical Events

1881 – Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: William Renshaw beats defending champion John Hartley 6-0, 6-1, 6-1 for first of his 7 Wimbledon singles titles
1900 – Phillies beat Pittsburgh 23-8
1930 – 1st-ever football World Cup competition begins in Uruguay
1953 – Battle of the Kumsong River begins – last major battle of the Korean war
2013 – #BlackLivesMatter created in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman on trial for the murder of Trayvon Martin
2019 – After Atlantic League-MLB partnership rule changes, Southern Maryland Blue Crabs’ outfielder Tony Thomas becomes first player in professional baseball history to steal first base in 7-2 win v Lancaster Barnstormers

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Famous Birthdays

1895 – Sidney Blackmer, American actor (played Ted Roosevelt in 7 movies, Rosemary’s Baby), born in Salisbury, North Carolina (d. 1973)
1901 – Tillie Ehrlich Lewin, leading industrialist (tomato queen)
1906 – Harry Sosnik, American orchestra leader (Jack Carter Show, Your Hit Parade), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1996)
1948 – Linda Ann Simon, airline capt
1967 – Dean Barnett, American Conservative blogger
1982 – Christopher Bauman, American professional wrestler (d. 2005)

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Famous Deaths

1755 – Edward Braddock, British general, dies in battle at Pittsburgh
1859 – Rufus Choate, American lawyer (Hall of Fame), dies at 59
1946 – Alfred Stieglitz, American photographer/art dealer (Camera Work), dies at 82
1982 – Michael Blankfort, American writer, producer and director, dies at 74
1992 – Carla van Neste, Belgian violinist, dies at 78
2002 – Yousuf Karsh, Turkish-born Armenian photographer (b. 1908)

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Historical Events

1912 – 1st foreign feature film exhibited in US – “Queen Elizabeth” in NYC
1934 – Willy de Supervise swims world record 400m (5:16.0)
1952 – East German SED decides to form German DR army
1979 – “Disco Demolition Night” at Comiskey Park: fans go wild destroying disco records and cause the White Sox to forfeit second game of a doubleheader to the Detroit Tigers
1988 – USSR launches Phobos II for Martian orbit
1993 – Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical “Sunset Promenade” opens in London

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Famous Birthdays

1813 – Claude Bernard, French physiologist involved in the founding of modern physiology (blind experiments), born in Saint-Julien, Rhône (d. 1878)
1935 – Barrie Wilson, British religious scholar (How Jesus Became Christian) (d. 1995)
1941 – Joseph Whipp, American actor (Escape from Alcatraz), born in San Francisco, California
1943 – Paul Silas, American basketball player and coach (Boston Celtic, Seattle SuperSonic), born in Prescott, Arkansas
1977 – Francesca Lubiani, Italian tennis star (Futures-Amadora-POR), born in Bologna, Italy
1980 – Tina Tharp, rhythmic gymnast (Olympics 1996), born in Jacksonville, Florida

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Famous Deaths

1633 – Simon Besler, German composer, dies at 49
1845 – Henrik Wergeland, Norwegian poet (Creation, Humanity, and Messiah) and author, dies at 37
1953 – Joseph Jongen, Belgian composer, dies at 79
1983 – Chris Wood, rocker (Traffic), dies at 39
1993 – Gusti Huber, Mother of Bibi Besch, dies of heart failure at 78
2002 – Edward Lee Howard, CIA Case Officer and alleged Soviet spy, dies at 50 after breaking his neck during a fall

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Historical Events

1740 – Jews are expelled from Little Russia by order of Tsarina Anne
1906 – The Gillette-Brown murder inspires Theodore Dreiser’s “An American Tragedy”
1930 – Bradman scores 309 in a day vs England at Leeds, goes on to 334
1974 – World Football League plays 1st games
1984 – All star MVP: Gary Carter (Mont Expos) awarded for 2nd time
2001 – Iraq resumes oil exports, ending a 5-week halt in protest of a US and British-sponsored UN Security Council resolution

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Famous Birthdays

1914 – Ahti Sonninen, Finnish composer (Pessi and Illusia, Rauhaa, vain rauhaa), born in Kuopio, Finland (d. 1984)
1939 – Larry Laoretti, American golfer (US Senior Open 1992), born in Mahopac, New Jersey
1953 – Peter Bergman, Guantanamo Bay Cuba, actor (Eat or Be Eaten)
1965 – Ernesto Hoost, Dutch kickboxer
1970 – Pubudu Dissanayake, Sri Lanka cricket wicket-keeper (1993)
1973 – Konstantinos Kenteris, Greek athlete

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Famous Deaths

1686 – Michel Anguier, French sculptor, dies at 75
1774 – Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet, Irish-born New York pioneer
1929 – Billy Mosforth, English footballer (b. 1857)
1959 – Charlie Parker, English cricketer (legend Gloucs SLA, but 2-32 in only Test), dies at 76
1993 – Deng Yingchao, high ranking communist China official, dies at 88
2015 – Satoru Iwata, Japanese CEO of Nintendo (Nintendo DS and Wii), dies of cancer at 55

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Historical Events

1645 – Battle at Langport, Somerset: Oliver Cromwell’s New Model Army beats Royalists
1936 – 112°F (44°C) at Martinsburg, West Virginia (state record)
1942 – Himmler orders sterilization of all Jewish woman in Ravensbruck Camp
1974 – USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1979 – Chuck Berry sentenced to 4 months for $200,000 in tax evasion
1990 – Final day of Test Cricket for Richard Hadlee as New Zealand go down by 114 runs in 3rd Test v England at Edgbaston

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Famous Birthdays

1883 – Johann Blaskowitz, German general (surrendered at Wageningen), born in Peterswalde, Germany (d. 1948)
1917 – Don Herbert, American scientist and TV host (Watch Mr Wizard), born in Waconia, Minnesota (d. 2007)
1933 – Chuan-Kwang Yang, Taiwanese decathlete (Olympic silver 1960), born in Taitung, Taiwan (d. 2007)
1936 – Jan Wincenty Hawel, Polish composer, born in Pszów, Poland
1941 – Jake Eberts, film producer (Chariots of Fire, Dances with Wolves), born in Montreal, Quebec (d. 2012)
1949 – Sunil Gavaskar, Indian cricket batsman and captain (125 Tests, 10,122 runs @ 51.12; 34 Test centuries), born in Bombay, India

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Famous Deaths

1690 – Jan van Brakel, Dutch vice admiral (Chatham), dies in battle at 48
1806 – George Stubbs, British animal painter (Horse Frightened by Lion), dies at 81
1884 – Paul Charles Morphy, US lawyer/chess wizard, dies at 47
1943 – Arthur Nevin, American composer, dies at 72
1989 – Mel Blanc, American voice actor, comedian best known for his Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons (Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd and Porky Pig), dies at 81
2008 – Mike Souchak, American golfer (15 PGA Tour titles; Ryder Cup 1959, 61), dies of a heart attack at 81

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Historical Events

1900 – The Commonwealth of Australia is established by the British House of Commons
1950 – 13.15″ (33.40 cm) of rainfall, York, Nebraska (state 24-hour record)
1968 – Wilt Chamberlain becomes the first reigning NBA MVP to be traded the next season when he moves from Philadelphia 76’ers to LA Lakers
2000 – Police fired tear gas at fans during a World Cup qualifying soccer game between Zimbabwe and South Africa, setting off a stampede that killed twelve people in Harare, Zimbabwe
2015 – Chuck Blazer receives a lifetime ban from FIFA and all football related activity due to corruption
2019 – Northern Ireland MPs vote to extend same-sex marriage and make abortion legal to bring it in line with rest of UK

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Famous Birthdays

1925 – Peter Ludwig, German businessman and art collector, born in Koblenz, Germany (d. 1996)
1929 – Jesse McReynolds, American singer and mandolinist (Grand Ole Opry), born in Coeburn, Virginia
1930 – Roy McLean, South African cricketer (prolific South African batsman played 40 Tests), born in Pietermaritzberg, Natal, South Africa
1942 – Hermann Burger, Swiss poet and writer, born in Menziken, Switzerland (d. 1989)
1974 – Nikola Sarcevic, Swedish bassist and singer (Millencolin)
1977 – Ben McAdoo, American football coach (New York Giants, 2016-7), born in Homer City, Pennsylvania

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Famous Deaths

1828 – Gilbert Stuart, American portrait painter (unfinished portrait of George Washington), dies at 72
1856 – Amedeo Avogadro, Italian scientist who contributed to molecular theory, including what is known as Avogadro’s law (6.022 x 10 ^ 23), dies at 79
1909 – Kasimir Felix Badeni, Premier of Polish/Austria (1895-97), dies at 62
2004 – Paul Klebnikov, American journalist (b. 1963)
2005 – Kevin Hagen, American actor (Little House on the Prairie), dies at 77
2018 – Hans Günter Winkler, German equestrian (5 x Olympic gold 1956 [2], 60, 64, 72), dies at 91

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Historical Events

1862 – Theodore R. Timby is granted a US patent for discharging guns in a revolving turret, using electricity
1947 – Reports are broadcast that a UFO has crash landed in Roswell, New Mexico
1950 – General Douglas MacArthur named commander-in-chief of UN forces in Korea
1963 – US bans all monetary transactions with Cuba
1990 – Brewers beat Angels 20-7, including 13 in 5th inning
1994 – St Maarten “Godfather” Claude Wathey sentenced to 1½ years

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Famous Birthdays

1819 – Vatroslav Lisinski, composer
1898 – Melville Ruick, American actor (Sun Valley Serenade, City Hospital), born in Boise, Idaho (d. 1972)
1919 – Walter Scheel, German politician, West German Foreign Minister and President, born in Solingen (d. 2016)
1969 – Sugizo [Yasuhiro Sugihara], Japanese guitarist and singer, born in Hadano, Kanagawa
1970 – Lisa Powell, Australian field hockey forward (Olympics 1996), born in Sydney, New South Wales
1983 – Jaroslav Janiš, Czech racing car driver

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Famous Deaths

1496 – Benedetto Bonfiglio, Italian painter, dies
1870 – John D Zocher Jr, architect (Soestdijk Palace), dies at 79
1941 – Philippe Gaubert, French musician and composer, dies at 62
1971 – Charlie Shavers, American jazz trumpet player, dies at 50
1979 – Robert B. Woodward, American organic chemist (Nobel 1965), dies at 62
2016 – William H. McNeill, Canadian-born historian (Rise of the West), dies at 98

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Historical Events

1668 – Isaac Newton receives MA from Trinity College, Cambridge
1799 – Ranjit Singh’s men take up their positions outside Lahore
1838 – Central American federation is dissolved
1939 – Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Bobby Riggs beats fellow American Elwood Cooke 2-6, 8-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 for Wimbledon sweep, also won doubles and mixed doubles titles
1987 – Kiwanis Clubs end men-only tradition, vote to admit women
2016 – Deadlock in battle for Aleppo broken when Russian air strikes cut rebel access to the city, 250,000 people put under siege

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Famous Birthdays

1900 – Earle E. Partridge, United States Air Force general (d. 1990)
1919 – William Moses Kunstler, defense attorney (Chicago 8)
1945 – Matti Salminen, Turku Finland, bass player (King Philipp-Don Carlos)
1957 – Jonathan Dayton, American film director, born in Alameda County, California
1963 – Vonda Shepard, American singer, born in New York
1982 – George Owu, Ghanaian footballer, born in Accra, Ghana

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Famous Deaths

1861 – John Willis Ellis, US governor of NC (1858-61), dies
1889 – Giovanni Bottesini, Italian Romantic composer, conductor and a double bass virtuoso, dies at 67
1901 – Johanna Spyri, Swiss children’s book author (Heidi), dies at 74
1945 – Salomėja Nėris [Salomėja Bačinskaitė-Bučienė], Lithuanian poet, dies of cancer at 40
1965 – Moshe Sharett, 2nd Prime Minister of Israel (1954-55), dies at 70
1975 – Ruffian, American thoroughbred racehorse (b. 1972)

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