Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1905 – Great General Strike in Russia begins and lasts 11 days
1935 – Communist forces end their Long March at Yan’an in Shaanxi, China, bringing Mao Zedong to prominence
1973 – Mariette Hartley appears on “The Bob Newhart Show” in the episode “Have You Met Miss Dietz?”
2018 – President Trump threatens to pull the US out of an arms control agreement with Russia because Russia violated its terms
2018 – All-England Lawn Tennis Club announces tie break to be used when scores reach 12-12 in deciding set at Wimbledon

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Famous Birthdays

1882 – Bela Lugosi [Blaskó], Austrian actor (Dracula, Plan 9 From Outer Space), born in Lugos, Austro-Hungarian Empire (d. 1956)
1927 – Joyce Brothers, American pop psychologist ($64,000 Question, Naked Gun), born in New York City (d. 2013)
1931 – Jules Eskin, American cellist (Boston Symphony, 1964-2016), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2016)
1969 – Herman Moore, American NFL wide receiver (Detroit Lions), born in Danville, Virginia
1977 – Sam Witwer, American actor (Battlestar Galactica, Riverdale), born in Glenview, Illinois

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Famous Deaths

1676 – Christopher Gibbons, British composer, dies at 61
1955 – Eino Roiha, Finnish pianist, composer, and musicologist dies at 51
2003 – Jack Elam, American actor (The Dakotas, East Street, Rio Lobo), dies at 82
2007 – Max McGee, American football wide receiver, punter (NFL C’ship 1961, 62, 65, 66, 67; Super Bowl I, II; Pro Bowl 1961; Green Bay Packers), dies at 75
2013 – Lawrence Klein, American economist who created computer models to forecast economic trends (1980 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences), dies at 93

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Historical Events

1781 – Edict of Toleration issued by Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II, providing limited freedom of worship for non-Roman Catholic Christians
1888 – Moshav Gedera is attacked by Arabs
1983 – Grenadian Army General Hudson Austin forms a “revolutionary council”
1988 – Three Americans win the Nobel Prize in Physics, and three West Germans win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
2024 – MLB New York Yankees win ALCS over Cleveland Guardians on the strength of Juan Soto’s 10th-inning 3-run homer at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio; a 4-1 series win sends Yankees to World Series for the first time since 2009

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Famous Birthdays

1784 – Leigh Hunt, English poet, critic and journalist (Romantic Movement, “Jenny Kissed Me”), born in Southgate, England (d. 1859)
1918 – Charles Evans, British mountaineer and surgeon (deputy leader 1953 British Everest expedition, led 1955 British Kangchenjunga expedition), born in Liverpool, England (d. 1995)
1931 – John le Carré [pen name for David Cornwell], English novelist (The Spy Who Came in from the Cold), born in Poole, England (d. 2020)
1956 – Sunny Deol [Ajay Singh Deol], Indian actor (Ghayal), born in Sahnewal, Punjab, India
1999 – Abigail Morris, British musician and lead singer of The Last Dinner Party (2020-present), born in London

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Famous Deaths

727 – Saint Frideswide, patron saint of Oxford, England
1954 – Hugh Duffy, American Baseball HOF outfielder (Triple Crown and MLB record .440 batting average, single season 1894 Boston Beaneaters), dies from heart failure at 87
1972 – Dr. Fredrick Arthur Willius, American cardiologist and medical historian, dies from bladder cancer at 83
1993 – Dionisio Herrero, Spanish air force general, murdered
2013 – Ronald Shannon Jackson, American avant-garde jazz and funk drummer, and composer (Cecil Taylor; Last Exit; Decoding Society), dies of leukemia at 73

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Historical Events

1240 – Ukrainian city of Chernihiv surrenders, but despite this, it is still sacked and pillaged by the Mongolian army of Batu
1912 – The Treaty of Lausanne ends the Italo-Turkish War; Italy annexes Libya
1921 – Charles Strite is granted US patent #1,394,450 for his invention, the automatic pop-up toaster
1931 – Gangster Al Capone is convicted on five of the 23 counts of tax evasion against him, later fined $50,000 and sentenced to 11 years in prison
1979 – USSR performs a nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeastern Kazakhstan

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Famous Birthdays

1844 – Harvey W. Wiley, American chemist known for leadership in the passage of the landmark Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, born in Kent, Indiana (d. 1930)
1870 – D. T. Suzuki, Japanese-American Zen Buddhist scholar, born in Kanazawa, Japan (d. 1966)
1947 – (John) “JJ” Johnson, American NBA basketball player, 1970-82 (Cleveland Cavaliers, Seattle SuperSonics, and 2 other teams), born in Carthage, Mississippi (d. 2016)
1948 – Isabel Elaine Allen, American biostatistician known for her work on distance education, born in the United States
1960 – Jean-Claude Van Damme, Belgian actor (Double Impact, Kickboxer, No Retreat), born in Brussels, Belgium

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Famous Deaths

1570 – Manoel da Nóbrega, Portuguese missionary, founder of the Jesuit mission in Brazil, dies at 53
1788 – Jean-Guillain Cardon, French harpist, composer, and teacher, dies at 56
1845 – Jean-Dominique, comte de Cassini, French astronomer, dies at 97
1997 – Bill Rotsler, cartoonist/writer, dies of cancer at 62
2000 – Julie London, American singer (“Cry Me A River”) and actress (Emergency – “Nurse McCall”), dies at 74

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Historical Events

1888 – Thomas Edison writes a letter to the US Patent Office describing his idea for “a device that would do for the eye what the phonograph does for the ear”
1968 – Soviet athlete Viktor Saneev sets a world record of 17.39m to win the triple jump at the Mexico City Olympics; the world record is improved five times by three different athletes during the competition
1970 – Anwar Sadat is sworn in as the third President of Egypt
2008 – Sachin Tendulkar becomes the highest run-scorer ever in Test cricket, surpassing Brian Lara’s record and passing 12,000 runs against Australia in Mohali
2015 – Amy Schumer’s comedy special “Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo” premieres on HBO

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Famous Birthdays

1878 – Henri Mulet, French organist, cellist, and composer (Carillon-Sortie; Esquisses Byzantines), born in Paris, France (d. 1967)
1886 – Spring Byington, American actress (December Bride), born in Colorado Springs (d. 1971)
1926 – Julie Adams [Betty May Adams], American actress (Creature from the Black Lagoon; Code Red), born in Waterloo, Iowa (d. 2019)
1957 – Steve McMichael, American College-Pro Football HOF defensive tackle (University of Texas; Super Bowl XX; First-team All-Pro 1985, 87; Pro Bowl 1986, 87; Chicago Bears), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2025)
1957 – (Giuseppe) “Pino” Palladino, Italian-Welsh session and touring rock bassist (Paul Young; The Who; John Mayer Trio), born in Cardiff, Wales

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Famous Deaths

1985 – Joseph Rosenstock, American conductor (NY City Opera), dies at 90
1999 – Ralph Grey, Baron Grey of Naunton, Governor of Northern Ireland (1968-73), dies at 89
2001 – Micheline Ostermeyer, French athlete (Olympic gold shot put, discus; bronze high jump 1948), dies at 78
2009 – Vic Mizzy, American composer (“Green Acres” and “The Addams Family” themes), and bandleader, dies at 93
2017 – Ingvar Lidholm, Swedish composer (Toccata e Canto), dies at 95

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Historical Events

1710 – British troops occupy Port Royal, Nova Scotia
1964 – New York Yankees fire manager Yogi Berra, one day after losing the World Series
1973 – The Gulf Six (Iran, Iraq, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar) unilaterally raise the posted price of Saudi Light marker crude oil by 17 percent
1994 – “Addams Family” actor Raul Julia suffers a stroke
2017 – Storm formed from Hurricane Ophelia lashes Ireland, killing three people

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Famous Birthdays

1714 – Giovanni Arduino, Italian geologist who established 1st system of stratigraphic chronology, born in Caprino Veronese, Republic of Venice (d. 1795)
1906 – Dino Buzzati, Italian writer (The Tartar Steppe), born in San Pellegrino, Belluno, (d. 1972)
1944 – Paul Durcan, Irish poet (The Beckett at the Gate, Six Nuns Die in Convent Inferno), born in Dublin, Ireland (d. 2025)
1945 – Paul Monette, American writer and LBT activist, born in Lawrence, Massachusetts (d. 1995)
1980 – Sue Bird, American basketball guard (record 508 WNBA games, Seattle Storm; Olympic gold 2004, 08, 12, 16, 20), born in Syosset, New York

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Famous Deaths

1883 – Samuel Jameson Gholson, American jurist and Brigadier General in the Confederate Army, dies at 75
1946 – Joachim von Ribbentrop, Nazi foreign minister and war criminal, hanged at 53
1958 – Michalis Souyioul [Michail Sougioultzoglou], Greek composer and songwriter, chiefly for theater and film, dies of a stroke at 52
1981 – Moshe Dayan, Israeli military leader and politician (Minister of Defense 1967-74), dies of a heart attack at 66
1990 – Jorge Bolet, Cuban-born American pianist known for his performances of the work of Franz Liszt, dies at 75

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Historical Events

1660 – Asser Levy is granted a butcher’s license for kosher meat in New Amsterdam
1968 – American sprinter Wyomia Tyus wins her second consecutive Olympic 100 m title with a world record of 11.08 seconds, beating teammate Barbara Ferrell by 0.08 seconds for the gold medal at the Mexico City Games
1979 – The NY Knicks retire Walt Frazier’s number 10, the second number retired by the Knicks
1987 – The Great Storm of 1987 hits France and England
2000 – Larry David’s comedy show “Curb Your Enthusiasm” debuts on HBO

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Famous Birthdays

1934 – N. Ramani, Indian flutist, born in Tiruvarur, Tamil Nadu, British India (d. 2015)
1935 – Bobby Morrow, American athlete (Olympic gold 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay 1956), born in Brownsville, Texas (d. 2020)
1953 – Larry Miller, American comedian and actor (Larry-Pursuit Of Happiness), born in New York City
1968 – Didier Deschamps, French footballer and manager who won the World Cup for France both as captain (1988) and as manager (2018), born in Bayonne, France
1980 – Tom Boonen, Belgian cyclist (2005 World Road Race Champion), born in Mol, Belgium

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Famous Deaths

1891 – William Henry Fitzhugh Lee, American Major General (Confederate Army), dies at 54
1910 – Larkin Goldsmith Mead, American sculptor who worked in Florence, dies at 75
1991 – Hotze de Roos, Dutch children’s book writer (Chameleon series), dies at 81
1993 – Ken E. Jones, musician (New Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra), dies of AIDS at 34
2003 – Ben Metcalfe, Canadian environmental activist (helped found Greenpeace), dies at 83

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Historical Events

1865 – Cheyennes and Arapahos sign “peace treaty” then chased out Colorado
1911 – Largest baseball crowd ever 38,281 (Polo Grounds) see Giants beat A’s, 2-1 (gate is record $77,379)
1947 – Dutch Queen Wilhelmina gives golden award to general Eisenhower
1975 – US President Gerald Ford escapes injury when his limousine is struck broadside
2017 – Spanish government says it will impose direct rule on Catalonia after the region voted for independence in a referendum

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Famous Birthdays

1907 – Allan Jones, American actor and singer (A Day at the Races, Showboat), born in Old Forge, Pennsylvania (d. 1992)
1918 – Thelma Long, Australian tennis player (Australian C’ship singles 1952, 54; 12 x doubles; 4 x mixed doubles; French C’ship mixed doubles 1956), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2015)
1927 – Roger Moore, British actor (The Saint, James Bond), born in London (d. 2017)
1944 – Udo Kier, German actress (Warhol Dracula, Warhol Frankenstein), born in Lindenthal, Cologne, Germany
1991 – Shona McGarty, British singer and actress (Whitney Dean in “EastEnders”), born in Hertfordshire, England

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Famous Deaths

1256 – Kujō Yoritsugu, 5th Japanese shōgun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan (1244-52), dies at 16
1669 – Antonio Cesti, Italian composer, singer and musician, dies at 46
1919 – Wilhelm von Siemens, German industrial/son of Werner, dies
2006 – Maurice Grosse, British paranormal investigator known for the ‘Enfield Haunting’ case, dies at 87
2023 – Andy Bean, American golfer (PGA C’ship 1980, 89 runner-up; British Open 1983 runner-up; 11 x PGA Tour titles), dies from complications of double lung transplant surgery at 70

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Historical Events

1812 – Battle of Queenstown Heights: British forces defeat United States forces attempting to invade Canada
1903 – Victor Herbert and by Glen MacDonough’s operetta “Babes in Toyland” premieres at Majestic Theater, New York City
1993 – MLB National League Championship: Philadelphia Phillies beat Atlanta Braves, 4 games to 2
2005 – English playwright Harold Pinter is awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature
2012 – 15 people are killed by a market suicide bombing in Darra Adam Khel, Pakistan

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Famous Birthdays

1794 – Anselm Hüttenbrenner, Austrian composer, born in Graz, Austria (d. 1868)
1881 – George Bacovia [Vasiliu], Romanian poet and composer (Plumb), born in Bacău, Romania (d. 1957)
1903 – Jens Bjerre Jacobsen, Danish organist, and composer (Mosaïque musicale), born in Aarhus, Denmark (d. 1986)
1958 – Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi Arabian progressive journalist, author, and editor-in-chief of Al-Arab News Channel who was brutally murdered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, born in Medina, Saudi Arabia (d. 2018)
1960 – Peter Keisler, American lawyer and acting Attorney General of the United States (2007), born in Hempstead, New York

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Famous Deaths

1959 – Rudolf Mengelberg, Dutch composer and musicologist (Concert Amsterdam), dies at 67
1990 – Lê Ðức Thọ, Vietnamese revolutionary general, politician and negotiator in Paris (1975), dies at 78
2005 – Vivian Malone Jones, American civil rights activist (b. 1942)
2008 – Guillaume Depardieu, French actor (Damien in “Versailles”, Fred in “The Apprentices”), dies of pneumonia at 37
2011 – Barbara Kent, Canadian born – U.S. silent film actress and WAMPAS Baby Stars (b.1907)

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Historical Events

1861 – Confederate ironclad Manassas attack Union’s Richmond on Mississippi
1901 – Theodore Roosevelt renames the “Executive Mansion” as “The White House”
1970 – Rock Memorabilia Auction at Filmore East
1994 – Iranian Fokker F28 explodes between Isfahan and Tehran, killing 66
1999 – Pervez Musharraf takes power in Pakistan from Nawaz Sharif through a bloodless coup

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Famous Birthdays

1897 – Inez Courtney, American stage and screen actress (The 13th Man; Crime Ring; The Raven), born in Amsterdam, New York (d. 1975)
1928 – Al Held, American painter and sculptor (hard edge-style), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2005)
1950 – Dave Freudenthal, American economist and politician (31st Governor of Wyoming), born in Thermopolis, Wyoming
1969 – Dave Chaytors, CFL defensive tackle (British Columbia Lions), born in Calgary, Alberta
1975 – Lex Lang, American actor (Power Rangers), born in Hollywood, California

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Famous Deaths

1924 – Anatole France [Jacques Anatole Thibault], French writer (Thaïs, Wickerwork Woman, Nobel 1921), dies at 80
1996 – Trevor Illtyd williams, scientific writer, dies at 75
2001 – Quintin Hogg, British politician, Baron Hailsham of St Marylebone, dies at 94 (b. 1907)
2015 – Eugene Louw, South African minister of Internal affairs and Defense, dies at 84
2015 – Joan Leslie, American actress (High Sierra, Yankee Doodle Dandy), dies at 90

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Historical Events

1873 – Toronto Argonaut Football Club 1st game losing to U of Toronto
1943 – Baseball World Series: NY Yankees become first team to win 10 Championships; beat St. Louis Cardinals, 2-0 at Sportsman’s Park for 4 games to 1 series triumph
1958 – “Goldilocks” opens at Lunt Fontanne Theater NYC for 161 performances
1969 – American blues musician Muddy Waters involved in a car crash that kills 3
1972 – MLB National League Championship: Cincinnati Reds beat Pittsburgh Pirates, 3 games to 2

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Famous Birthdays

1902 – Jayaprakash Narayan, Indian freedom fighter and political leader, born in Sitab Diyara, British India (d. 1979)
1926 – Jean Alexander, British actress (Hilda Ogden in “Coronation Street”), born in Liverpool, England (d. 2016)
1940 – Bruce McTavish, New Zealand boxing referee (World Boxing Council Referee of the Year 2013, 15, 17), born in Auckland, New Zealand (d. 2025)
1950 – Patty Murray, American politician (U.S. Senator from Washington), born in Bothell, Washington
1968 – Claude Lapointe, Canadian NHL center (Calgary Flames), born in Lachine, Quebec, Canada

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Famous Deaths

1960 – Richard Cromwell [LeRoy Melvin Radabaugh], American actor (Jezebel, Riot Squad), dies of cancer at 50
1994 – Maja Bulgakova, Ukrainian actress (Krylja), dies in auto-accident at 62
2013 – Erich Priebke, German Nazi SS commander and war criminal responsible for the Ardeatine massacre of 335 Italians in Rome, dies in prison of natural causes at 100
2015 – Dean Chance, American baseball pitcher (MLB All-Star 1964, 67; Cy Young Award 1964; no-hitter 1967; LA / California Angels, Minnesota Twins), dies at 74
2024 – Kevin Bowring, Welsh rugby union coach (Wales 1995-98), dies from a heart attack at 70

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