Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1798 – Russia and Britain sign Second anti-French Coalition
1932 – Arturo Alessandri wins presidential election in Chile
1941 – First ships of Admiral Chuichi Nagumo’s Pearl Harbor fleet return to Japan
1950 – National Football League Championship, Cleveland Stadium: Cleveland Browns beat LA Rams, 30-28; Cleveland has 5 interceptions, Rams 1
1990 – Expos trade Tim Raines to the White Sox for Iván Calderón and Barry Jones

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Famous Birthdays

1791 – Eugène Scribe, French dramatist (Bertrand et Raton), born in Paris, France (d. 1861)
1809 – (Christopher) “Kit” Carson, American frontiersman, Indian fighter and army officer, born in Madison County, Kentucky (d. 1868)
1955 – Anwar Khan, Pakistani cricketer (bowled four overs for Pakistan 1979), born in Karachi, Pakistan
1980 – Tomas Kalnoky, American musician (Streetlight Manifesto), born in Prague, Czechoslovakia
1984 – Jehnny Beth [Camille Berthomier], French musician, singer-songwriter (John and Jehn; Savages; To Love Is to Live), born in Poitiers, France

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Famous Deaths

1959 – Edmund Goulding, British screenwriter and film director (Grand Hotel, Dark Victory, Nightmare Alley), dies during heart surgery at 68
1963 – Raphaël Verwilghen, Belgian architect, and urban planner, dies at 78
1975 – Tilly Losch, Austrian dancer and actress (Duel in the Sun; Garden of Allah), dies at about 71 (birth date disputed)
2002 – Laci Peterson, American murder victim, dies at 27
2024 – Richard Perry, American record producer (Harry Nilsson; Ringo Starr; Carly Simon; Leo Sayer; The Pointer Sisters), dies of cardiac arrest at 82

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Historical Events

1751 – France sets plan to tax clergymen
1912 – First “Keystone Kops” silent slapstick comedy film, entitled “Hoffmeyer’s Legacy” is released
1913 – President Woodrow Wilson signs the Federal Reserve Act, establishing the modern central banking system of the United States to manage the money supply and promote financial stability
1942 – Allies air attack on Den Helder, Netherlands
1951 – National Football League Championship, LA Memorial Coliseum: Los Angeles Rams beat Cleveland Browns 24-17; first coast-to-coast televised NFL title game

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Famous Birthdays

1819 – Jan Jakob Lodewijk ten Kate, Dutch poet and clergyman, born at The Hague, Netherlands (d. 1889)
1922 – Micheline Ostermeyer, French athlete (Olympic gold shot put, discus; bronze high jump 1948), born in Rang-du-Fliers, Pas-de-Calais, France (d. 2001)
1945 – Ron Bushy, American rock drummer (Iron Butterfly – “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida”), born in Washington, D.C. (d. 2021)
1954 – Brian Teacher, American tennis player (Australian Open 1980), born in San Diego, California
1981 – Beth [Elisabeth Rodergas Cols], Spanish singer and actress, born in Súria, Catalonia

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Famous Deaths

1575 – Akiyama Nobutomo, Japanese warrior (hanged) (b. 1531)
1948 – Hideki Tojo, Japanese Prime Minister during WW II (1941-44), hanged for war crimes at 63
1970 – Bessie Abramowitz Hillman, Russian-American labor leader and founder of Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, dies at 71
2018 – (Ann) “Honey” Lantree, British rock drummer (The Honeycombs), dies at 75
2020 – James E. Gunn, American sci-fi author (The Listeners, Station in Space, Immortal), dies at 97

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Historical Events

1894 – Claude Debussy’s first orchestral masterpiece “Prélude à l’apres-midi d’un faune” premieres in Paris
1964 – Ballon d’Or: Manchester United striker Denis Law wins award for best European football player; beats Inter midfielder Luis Suárez and Real Madrid winger Amancio Amaro; first Scotsman to win the award
1978 – Thailand adopts constitution
1997 – Attendees at a prayer meeting of Roman Catholic activists for indigenous causes in the small village of Acteal in the Mexican state of Chiapas are massacred by paramilitary forces
2003 – A magnitude 6.6 earthquake hits near San Simeon, California.

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Famous Birthdays

1883 – Edgard Varèse, French-American composer (Ionisation; Poème électronique), born in Burgundy, France (d. 1965)
1889 – Minor Watson, American actor (Woman of the Year, Viva Cisco Kid), born in Marianna, Arkansas (d. 1965)
1912 – Claudia A. “Lady Bird” Taylor Johnson, American first lady (1963-1969), born in Karnack, Texas (d. 2007)
1946 – Mary McCaslin, American contemporary folk singer-songwriter, guitarist, and banjo player (“Prairie In The Sky”), born in Indianapolis, Indiana (d. 2022)
1954 – Jayaseelan Naidoo, South African worker’s union leader, born in Durban, South Africa

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Famous Deaths

1603 – Mehmed III, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (1595-1603), dies at 37
1767 – John Newberry, English publisher, dies
1809 – William Cooper, American judge and developer (founded Cooperstown, New York), dies at 55
1987 – Alice Terry [Taaffe], actress (4 Horsemen of Apocalypse), dies
2016 – Bill Price, British audio engineer (Tom Jones; Wings: Sparks; Elton John), and record producer (The Clash; Sex Pistols; Waterboys), dies of cancer at 72

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Historical Events

1948 – 1949 NFL Draft: University of Pennsylvania linebacker/center Chuck Bednarik is selected first by Philadelphia Eagles
1948 – O’Neil Place in the Bronx erroneously renamed O’Neill Place
1976 – Patricia R Harris named secretary of HUD
1983 – NCAA rules rescinded last 2-minute men’s basketball free throw rule
1991 – El Sayid Nosair acquitted of killing Meir Kahane

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Famous Birthdays

1728 – Hermann Friedrich Raupach, German composer, born in Stralsund, kingdom of Sweden (d. 1778)
1914 – Ivan Generalić, Croatian painter, born in Hlebine, Croatia (d. 1992)
1942 – Carla Thomas, American soul and RandB singer (“Gee Whiz (Look at His Eyes)”; with Otis Redding – “Tramp”), born in Memphis, Tennessee
1955 – Jane Kaczmarek, American actress (Lois in “Malcolm in the Middle”), born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1982 – Mike Gansey, American basketball player, born in Olmsted Falls, Ohio

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Famous Deaths

1504 – Bertold von Henneberg-Römhild, German archbishop and elector (b. 1442)
1755 – Caspar Ruetz, German composer, dies at 47
1873 – Francis Garnier, French explorer, dies at 34
1937 – Ted Healy [Ernest Nash], American vaudeville, stage, and screen actor, comedian (Mad Love, San Francisco, Soup to Nuts), and developer of the Three Stooges, dies from complications of alcoholism at 41
2006 – Scobie Breasley, Australian jockey (b. 1914)

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Historical Events

1192 – Richard the Lionhearted captured near Vienna by Leopold of Austria on his way home from the Third Crusade (released 1194)
1862 – -Jan 3rd] Vicksburg campaign
1865 – De Clear-Alkmaar railway opens
1956 – Military coup under colonel Simbolon in Sumatra
1979 – Garry Sherman and Peter Udell’s musical “Comin’ Uptown”, based on Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”, and starring Gregory Hines, opens at Winter Garden Theater, NYC; runs for 45 performances

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Famous Birthdays

1925 – Vlastimir Nikolovski, Macedonian composer, born in Prileb, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (now North Macedonia) (d. 2001)
1946 – Dick Wolf, American television series creator (Miami Vice, Law and Order), born in New York City
1956 – Guy Babylon, American keyboard player (Elton John) and arranger, born in New Windsor, Maryland (d. 2009|)
1957 – Billy Bragg, English folk-rock singer-songwriter (“Greetings To The New Brunette”; “Sexuality”; “California Stars”), born in Barking, Essex, England
1990 – JoJo [Joanna Levesque], American pop singer-songwriter (“Too Little Too Late”; “Baby It’s You”), born in Brattleboro, Vermont

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Famous Deaths

1723 – Augustus Quirinus Rivinus, German physician and botanist, dies at 71
1768 – Carlo Innocenzo Fragoni, Italian poet, dies at 76
1819 – Louis-Luc Loiseau de Persuis, French composer, dies at 50
1976 – Walter Fitzgerald, actor (Adv of Sadie, Fallen Idol), dies at 80
1996 – Carl Sagan, American scientist, astronomer and author (Broca’s Brain, Cosmos, Contact) known for his research on extraterrestrial life, dies of pneumonia after suffering from myelodysplasia at 62

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Historical Events

1835 – HMS Beagle with Charles Darwin aboard arrives in New Zealand
1910 – 1st US city ordinance requiring white and black residential areas in Baltimore
1920 – King Constantine I is restored as King of the Hellenes after the death of his son Alexander I of Greece and a plebiscite
1984 – Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher sign the Sino-British Joint Declaration to transfer Hong Kong back to China in 1997
1993 – Marsha Norman, Bob Merrill, and Jule Styne’s fairy tale musical “Red Shoes”, directed by Stanley Donen, closes at Gershwin Theater, NYC, after 5 performances; loses nearly $8 million

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Famous Birthdays

1853 – Charles Fitzpatrick, Canadian politician who was the 12th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec and 5th Chief Justice of Canada, born in Quebec City, Canada (d. 1942)
1902 – Leonard Hirsch, Irish violinist and orchestra leader (RAF Symphony Orchestra), born in Dublin, Ireland (d. 1995)
1906 – H. Allen Smith, American humorist and author (Low Man on Totem Pole), born in McLeansboro, Illinois (d. 1976)
1909 – W.A. Criswell, American Baptist pastor, President of the Southern Baptist Convention, born in Eldorado, Oklahoma (d. 2002)
1973 – Zulfiya Zabirova, Uzbek road cyclist Olympic gold time trial 1996; UCI World C’ship gold 2002), born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan

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Famous Deaths

1737 – James Louis Sobieski, Crown Prince of Poland, dies at 70
1996 – Marcello Mastroianni, Italian actor (8½; La Dolce Vita; Dark Eyes; The Pizza Triangle), dies of pancreatic cancer at 72
1997 – Masaru Ibuka, Japanese electronics industrialist (Sony Corp), dies at 89
2012 – Robert Bork, American lawyer, government official (US Solicitor General, 1973-77), jurist (US Court of Appeals, 1982-88), rejected Supreme Court nominee (1987), and professor (Yale), dies from heart disease at 85
2020 – Rosalind Knight, British stage and screen actress (Friday Night Dinner – “Horrible Grandma”), dies at 87

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Historical Events

1898 – First automobile speed record set of 63 kph (39 mph) by French Count Gaston de Chasseloup-Laubat of Paris
1968 – Musical-fantasy film “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”, co-written by Roald Dahl and director Ken Hughes, starring Dick Van Dyke and Sally Ann Howes, with songs by Sherman and Sherman, premieres in NYC
1969 – “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”, 6th James Bond Film starring George Lazenby and Diana Rigg, premieres in London
1979 – Stuntman Stanley Barrett unofficially breaks the land speed record and the sound barrier in his three-wheeled vehicle the Budweiser Rocket (739.666 mph or Mach 1.01). The speed was never officially recorded and the attempt remains controversial.
2018 – Nevada becomes the first US state with a female-majority legislature with new appointments taking it to 51%

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Famous Birthdays

1927 – Roméo LeBlanc, Canadian politician, 25th Governor General of Canada (1995-99), born in Memramcook, New Brunswick (d. 2009)
1939 – Sandro Lopopolo Italian lightweight boxer (Olympic-Silver-1960), born in Milan, Italy (d. 2014)
1963 – Karl Dorrell, American football coach, born in Alameda, California
1972 – Lawrence Wong, Singapore economist and politician, Prime Minister (2024-), born in Singapore
2001 – Billie Eilish, American Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter (When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?), born in Los Angeles, California

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Famous Deaths

1633 – Theodoor Galle, Flemish engraver, buried at 62
1832 – Philip Freneau, American poet of the American Revolution (The American Village), dies at 80
1990 – Paul Tortelier, French concert cellist, composer, and teacher, dies at 76
2002 – Wayne Owens, former U.S. Congressman (D-Utah) (b. 1937)
2007 – Jack Linkletter, American TV host (Haggis Baggis, Hootenanny), dies at 70

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Historical Events

283 – St. Caius begins his reign as Catholic Pope
1843 – Henry Cole, founder of London’s VandA Museum, commissions printing of the 1st Christmas card
1914 – Jews are expelled from Tel Aviv by Turkish authorities
1991 – Pittsburgh Penguins score team record 8 goals in one period in 2nd session of 10-2 win over NHL expansion San Jose Sharks
2019 – Former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf sentenced to death in absentia for high treason

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Famous Birthdays

1869 – Nikolai Ivanovich Kazanli, Russian composer, born in Tiraspol, Russian Empire (d. 1916)
1893 – Erwin Piscator, German stage director (Der Stellvertreter), born in Greifenstein-Ulm, German Empire (d. 1966)
1903 – Ray Noble, English jazz bandleader, songwriter (“The Very Thought of You”; “Goodnight, Sweetheart”), composer, and actor, born in Brighton, Sussex, England (d. 1978)
1914 – Syed Mushtaq Ali, Indian cricketer (prolific batsman of 30’s and 40’s), born in Indore, British India (d. 2005)
1923 – Jaroslav Pelikan, American historian of Christianity, born in Arkon, Ohio(d. 2006)

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Famous Deaths

1962 – Thomas Mitchell, American Academy Award-winning actor (Gone With The Wind; High Noon), dies of bone cancer at 70
1962 – Carl Diem, German sports executive (Sec Gen Organising Committee 1936 Berlin Olympics; creator Olympic torch relay), dies at 80
1982 – Big Joe Williams, American Delta blues singer-songwriter, and nine-string guitarist (“Baby, Please Don’t Go”), dies at 79
2006 – Larry Sherry, American baseball pitcher (World Series MVP 1959, LA Dodgers), dies at 71
2022 – Manuel Muñoz, Chilean soccer striker (26 caps; CSD Colo-Colo), dies at 94

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Historical Events

1877 – Anton Bruckner reluctantly steps in to conduct the premiere of his “Symphony No. 3,” dedicated to Richard Wagner; it is a critical disaster and undergoes many revisions
1923 – National Football League Championship: undefeated Canton Bulldogs (11-0-1) repeat as champions
1962 – Nepal establishes its constitution and becomes a Constitutional Hindu Monarchy
1990 – Rev. Jean-Bertrand Aristide elected President of Haiti
1993 – Jule Styne, Norman and Bob Merrill’s musical “Red Shoes”, based on the 1948 film, opens at Gershwin Theater, NYC; runs for 5 performances

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Famous Birthdays

1915 – Georgy Sviridov, Soviet Russian neo-romantic composer (The Blizzard; Time; Forward!), born in Fatezh, Kursk Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1998)
1944 – N!xau [ǂToma], Namibian farmer and actor (The Gods Must Be Crazy), born in Tsumkwe, Namibia (d. 2007)
1946 – Adriaan van Dis, Dutch author (Promised Country), born in Bergen aan Zee, Netherlands
1971 – Laurence Cottle, Welsh session rock, jazz, and jazz-fusion bass guitarist and composer (Earthworks; Alan Parsons Project; Black Sabbath), born in Swansea, Wales
1979 – Trevor Immelman, South African golfer (US Masters 2008), born in Cape Town, Western Cape

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Famous Deaths

882 – John VIII, Italian Pope (872-82), dies
1921 – Camille Saint-Saëns, French composer (Samson et Dalila; Organ Symphony), dies of a heart attack at 86
1984 – Debs Garms, American baseball utility (World Series 1944 St. Louis Cardinals; NL batting champion 1940 Pittsburgh Pirates), dies at 77
2006 – Taliep Petersen, South African singer and composer (b. 1950)
2020 – Kálmán Sóvári, Hungarian soccer defender (17 caps; Újpesti Dózsa, VM Egyetértés), dies at 79

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Historical Events

1930 – Occasional leg-spin bowler Don Bradman takes his 1st of only 2 Test cricket wickets when he traps West Indian batsman Ivan Barrow lbw for 27 in the 1st Test in Adelaide
1984 – USSR launches Vega 1 for rendezvous with Halley’s Comet
2011 – ESPN and the NCAA extend their TV rights deal through 2023-24, giving the network worldwide multi-media rights to 24 NCAA championships for various sports; deal worth $500m
2015 – 1,000 schools closed in Los Angeles after a email threat, supposedly from jihadists
2019 – Raiders play their final NFL game in Oakland conceding 17 unanswered 2nd half points to go down 20-16 to the Jacksonville Jaguars; team to play out of Las Vegas in 2020

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Famous Birthdays

130 – Lucius Verus, Roman emperor, born in Rome, Italy (d. 169)
1925 – Jack Rothstein, British concert violinist (London Czech Trio), conductor (Viennese Orchestra of London), and session player (The Beatles – “I Am the Walrus”; “Within You Without You”; Paul McCartney – “Here Today”), born in Warsaw, Poland (d. 2001)
1938 – Bob Foster, American boxer (world light-heavyweight champion 1968-74), born in Lubbock, Texas (d. 2015)
1939 – Dave Clark, British rock drummer, singer-songwriter, and producer (Dave Clark Five – “Glad All Over”), born in Tottenham, Middlesex, England
1948 – David Gwillim, English actor (Island at Top of the World), born in Plymouth, Devon, England

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Famous Deaths

1924 – T. Frank Appleby, American politician (U.S. House of Representatives – (R) New Jersey, 1921-23), dies at 60
1947 – George L. Funke, Dutch botanist (Flower Physiology), dies after an operation at 50
1994 – Hans de Jong, Dutch conductor (De Damrakkertjes; Amsterdams Vrouwenkoor), dies at 86
2001 – Russ Haas, American professional wrestler, dies of a heart attack at 27
2003 – Keith Magnuson, Canadian ice hockey defenseman (NHL All Star 1971, 72; Chicago Black Hawks), dies in a motor vehicle accident at 56

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