Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1282 – Llywelyn ab Gruffydd/Llywelyn the Last, last native Prince of Wales is killed at Cilmeri, near Builth Wells, south Wales. Reigned from 1259.
1981 – El Mozote massacre: Salvadoran armed forces kill an estimated 900 civilians in an anti-guerrilla campaign during the country’s civil war.
1985 – Dow Jones closes above 1,500 for 1st time (1,511.70)
1986 – A Bartlett Giamatti becomes president of baseball’s National League
2017 – Rahul Gandhi, son of former Prime Minister Rajiv Ghandi, is elected leader of the Indian National Congress
2018 – Time Magazine Person of the Year 2018 is “the Guardians” journalists targeted for their work, including Jamal Khashoggi

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1863 – Annie Jump Cannon, American stellar spectroscopist (Harvard-classification), born in Dover, Delaware (d. 1941)
1915 – Anna van Beers [Graeve], Dutch actress (A Woman like Eve, Diary of a Hooker), born in Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands (d. 2011)
1952 – Susan Seidelman, American film director (Desperately Seeking Susan), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1967 – Chris Shepherd, English film director, born in Anfield, Liverpool, England
1970 – Doug Nussmeier, American NFL quarterback (New Orleans Saints), born in Portland, Oregon
1981 – Hamish Blake, Australian comedian, born in Melbourne, Australia

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1524 – Henry Van Zutphen, Dutch protestant martyr, burned at stake
1747 – Edmund Curll, English bookseller (b. ca. 1675)
1972 – Semjon I. Kirsanov, Ukrainian poet (Zolushka), dies at 66
1987 – G. A. Kulkarni, Indian (Marathi) writer (RamalKhuna), dies at 1987
1993 – Ales Gartner, Slavic ski trainer of Norway, dies at 45
2004 – José Luis Cuciuffo, Argentinian footballer (b. 1962)

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1896 – Alfred Jarry’s “Ubu Roi” premieres in Paris
1939 – KNVB celebrates 50th anniversary
1954 – Philadelphia Phillies purchase Connie Mack Stadium
1972 – USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1979 – Piet Dankert appointed as chairman of European Parliament
1981 – -13] El Salvador army kills 900

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1880 – Fred Immler, German actor (Zapata’s Gang, Madame DuBarry), born in Germany (d. 1965)
1889 – Ray Collins, American actor (Homecoming, Good Sam, Rose Marie), born in Sacramento, California (d. 1965)
1943 – Jessica Cleaves, American singer and songwriter (The Friends of Distinction), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2014)
1952 – Susan Dey, American actress (1st Love, Partridge Family, LA Law), born in Pekin, Illinois
1974 – Meg White, American drummer (The White Stripes), born in Grosse Point Farms, Michigan
1987 – Gonzalo Higuaín, French-born Argentine footballer

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1508 – René II, Duke of Lorraine, dies at 57
1749 – Gabrielle Chôtelet [La belle Emilie], French writer (Voltaire), dies at 42
1805 – Friedrich Franz Hurka, composer, dies at 43
1833 – Dieudonne-Pascal Pieltain, composer, dies at 79
1953 – Abdullah Yusuf Ali, British-Indian Islamic scholar and translator (translated Qu’ran into English), dies at 81
2006 – Jack Williamson, American sci-fi author (Cometeers), dies at 98

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1425 – Pope Martinus V forms University of Leuven
1824 – Battle of Ayacucho (Candorcangui), Peru defeats Spain
1900 – President Paul Kruger of South Africa’s Transvaal and Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands have a triumphant procession
1939 – CFL Grey Cup, Landsdowne Park, Ottawa: Winnipeg Blue Bombers claim 2nd title; defeat Ottawa Rough Riders, 8-7
1949 – NFL merges Cleveland Browns, SF ’49ers and Balt Colts from AAFC
2002 – “Star Trek: Nemesis” film directed by Stuart Baird and starring Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes premieres

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1883 – Nikolai Luzin, Russian mathematician, born in Irkutsk, Russian Empire (d. 1950)
1887 – Tim Moore, American actor and vaudevillian, born in Rock Island, Illinois (d. 1958)
1920 – Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, Italian President (1999-2006) and Prime Minister (1993-94), born in Livorno (d. 2016)
1932 – Jessie “Ooh Poo Pah Doo” Hill, jazz musician
1932 – Donald Byrd, American jazz trumpeter (Black Byrd), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2013)
1963 – Barry Wilburn, NFL full safety (Philadelphia Eagles)

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1964 – Edith Sitwell, English poet and author (Wheels), dies at 77
1992 – Vincent Gardenia, Italian-American actor (Bang the Drum Slowly, Moonstruck, Little Shop of Horrors), dies of a heart attack at 71
2006 – Freddie Marsden, English rock drummer (Gerry and the Pacemakers), dies at 66
2010 – Dov Shilansky, Israeli politician (b. 1924)
2012 – Norman Joseph Woodland, American inventor (barcode), dies at 91
2018 – Riccardo Giacconi, Italian American astrophysicist, Nobel Prize for Physics 2002 for X-ray astronomy, dies at 87

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1864 – James Clerk Maxwell’s paper “A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field” is 1st read by the Royal Society in London (published by the Royal Society 1865)
1936 – Anastasio Somoza García elected President of Nicaragua
1955 – 21st Heisman Trophy Award: Howard Cassady, Ohio State (HB)
1956 – Guy Mitchell’s “Singing the Blues” single goes #1 for 10 weeks
1961 – South Africa v NZ, Durban debuts for Eddie Barlow and Peter Pollock
1984 – Europe and 64 developing countries sign Lome III treaty

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1699 – Maria Josepha of Austria, Queen consort of Poland (1734-57), born in Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria (d. 1757)
1887 – Vicente Emilio Sojo, Venezuelan composer, born in Guatire, Miranda state, Venezuela (d. 1974)
1903 – Irene Eisinger, German-British singer, born in Cosel, German Empire (d. 1994)
1905 – Ernst Hermann Meyer, German composer, born in Berlin (d. 1988)
1940 – Brant Alyea, American baseball player
1947 – Thomas R. Cech, American chemist, Nobel laureate

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1625 – Christina of Holstein-Gottorp, Queen consort of Sweden as the wife of King Charles IX, dies at 52
1744 – Marie-Anne de Mailly-Nesle, duchess de Châteauroux, French mistress of King Louis XV of France, dies at 28
1957 – Reginald Sheffield, British actor (Suspicion, Of Human Bondage, Second Chance), dies at 56
1990 – Martin Ritt, American actor and director (The Spy Who Came In from the Cold, Slugger’s Wife, End of the Game), dies at 76
2004 – “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott, American heavy metal guitarist (Pantera) is shot and killed by crazed fan Nathan Gamble while performing on stage at 38
2013 – Don Mitchell, American actor, dies at 70

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1911 – Leslie J Stuart’s musical “Betsy” premieres in NYC
1940 – North Africa: British counter offensive under general O’Connor
1956 – American diver Pat McCormick wraps up the women’s double when she wins the 10m platform gold medal at the Melbourne Olympics with 84.85 points; also won the 3m springboard gold
1956 – Helen O’Connell joins Today Show panel
1988 – Mikhail Gorbachev cheered by Wall St crowds upon arrival in NYC
1988 – NY Islanders fire Simpson, Arbour new coach

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

967 – Abū-Sa’īd Abul-Khayr, Persian mystic and poet, born in Mihne, Greater Khorasan (d. 1049)
1598 – Gian Lorenzo [Giovanni] Bernini, Italian baroque sculptor (St Teresa in Ecstasy), painter and architect, born in Naples, Italy (d. 1680)
1958 – “Ravishing” Rick Rude, American professional wrestler, born in St. Peter, Minnesota (d. 1999)
1976 – Alan Faneca, American football player (Pittsburgh Steelers), born in New Orleans, Louisiana
1976 – Georges Laraque, Canadian ice hockey player (Edmonton Oilers), born in Montreal, Quebec
1979 – Derek Ramsay, British-Filipino actor and model, born in Enfield, England

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1723 – Jan Santini Aichel, Bohemian architect (b. 1677)
1860 – Konstantin Sergeyevich Aksakov, Russian historian and poet, dies at 43
1941 – Mervyn S. Bennion, United States Navy Captain, Medal of Honor recipient, killed in Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor (b. 1887)
1985 – Potter Stewart, 94th Supreme Court Justice (1958-81), dies in NH at 70
1990 – Peter Mieg, Swiss composer, dies at 84
2008 – Dennis Yost, American vocalist, dies at 65

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1534 – Quito, Ecuador, founded by Spanish
1648 – Pride’s Purge: Thomas Pride prevents 96 presbyterians from sitting in English parliament
1896 – D T Suzuki found the awakening at Engakuji temple, in Kamakura
1940 – Pietro Badoglio resigns as viceroy of Ethiopia
2017 – Skirball wildfire near Los Angeles closes the Interstate 405 as thousands forced to evacuate
2018 – Luxembourg is the first country to make all public transport free

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1285 – Ferdinand IV, King of Castile and León (1295-1312), born in Seville, Spain (d. 1312)
1776 – Paul Friedrich Struck, composer, born in Stralsund, Holy Roman Empire (d. 1820)
1890 – Dion Fortune, British occultist, born in Llandudno, Wales (d. 1946)
1920 – George Porter, British chemist (Nobel 1967), born in Stainforth, South Yorkshire, England (d. 2002)
1972 – Gary Bandy, American NFL defensive end (Atlanta Falcons), born in Kansas City, Missouri
1980 – Ehren Wassermann, American baseball player, born in Sylacauga, Alabama

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1746 – Lady Grizel Baillie, Scottish songwriter (b. 1665)
1889 – Jozef Neuhuys [Joseph Hendrikus Neuhuys], Dutch painter, dies at 48
1955 – Honus Wagner, American Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop (8-time NL batting champion), dies at 81
1973 – Justus Hermann Wetzel, composer, dies at 94
1995 – Claire Polin, American composer, dies at 69
2015 – Holly Woodlawn, transgender Puerto Rican actress (Warhol films), dies at 69

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1590 – Niccolo Sfondrati chosen as Pope Gregory XIV
1892 – Sir John Thompson becomes the fourth Prime Minister of Canada.
1948 – NY Giant Charley Conerly sets NFL record of 36 pass completions
1964 – Captain Roger Donlon is awarded the first Medal of Honor of the Vietnam War for successfully repelling a large Viet Cong attack
1974 – 1st Wash Cap penalty shot, Tom Williams unsuccessful vs Buff Sabres
1988 – Boris Becker beats defending champion Ivan Lendl 5–7, 7–6, 3–6, 6–2, 7–6 in a classic final to win his first of 3 ATP Masters Grand Prix tennis titles at Madison Square Garden, NYC

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1901 – Walt [Walter Elias] Disney, American animator, (Mickey Mouse), producer and co-founder of Walt Disney Co., born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1966)
1905 – Gus Mancuso, American baseball player (St. Louis Cardinals), born in Galveston, Texas (d. 1984)
1938 – J. J. Cale, American rock guitarist (After Midnight), born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (d. 2013)
1949 – Lanny Wadkins, American golfer (PGA C’ship 1977), born in Richmond, Virginia
1962 – José Cura, Argentine tenor, born in Rosario, Argentina
1963 – Carrie Hamilton, American actress (Fame), born in NYC, New York (d. 2002)

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1886 – Peter Hofstede de Groot, Dutch reformed theologist, dies at 84
1941 – Amrita Sher-Gil, Hungarian-Indian painter described as the “Indian Frida Kahlo” and “one of the greatest avant-garde women artists of the early 20th century,” dies of complications from a failed abortion at 28
1989 – John M Pritchard, British conductor, dies at 68
1995 – Robert Charles Evans, mountaineer/doctor, dies at 77
2002 – Ne Win, Burmese leader (b. 1911)
2010 – Don Meredith, American football player and broadcaster (b. 1938)

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1674 – Father Marquette builds first dwelling in what is now Chicago
1933 – Jack Kirkland’s play “Tobacco Road” premieres in NYC, became the longest-running play of its time
1944 – Germans destroy Rhine dikes, Betuwe flooded
1961 – Smallest NY Knick, 49th St Madison Square Garden crowd-1,300 (snowstorm)
1971 – The UN Security Council calls an emergency session to consider the deteriorating situation between India and Pakistan
1989 – NBC’s premiere of “Howard Beach: Making A Case for Murder”, based on December 1986 murders of black youths by white youths in New York City

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1791 – Johann Gottlob Topfer, German composer, born in Niederroßla (d. 1870)
1866 – Wassily Kandinsky, Russian-French abstract painter (Dreamy Inspiration), born in Moscow (d. 1944)
1868 – Richard Nicolaas Roland Holst, Dutch artist and painter, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1938)
1935 – Robert Vesco, American financier and fugitive, born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2007)
1941 – Humberto Solás, Cuban film director and writer (Lucia), born in Havana, Cuba (d. 2008)
1950 – Jan Rietman, Dutch radio and TV host, born in Doetinchem, Netherlands

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

765 – Jafar al-Sadiq, Muslim scholar and scientist, dies at 63
1334 – Pope John XXII (1316-1334) (b. 1249)
1893 – John Tyndall, Irish physicist who demonstrated why the sky is blue and proved that the Earth’s atmosphere has a greenhouse effect, dies at 73
1935 – Johan Halvorsen, composer, dies at 71
1983 – Estelle Omens, actress (Effect of Gamma Rays), dies at 55
2017 – Shashi Kapoor [Balbir Raj Kapoor], prominent Indian Bollywood actor (Deewar, The Deceivers, Shalimar, Heat and Dust), dies from a chest infection at 79

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

741 – St Zachary begins his reign as Catholic Pope succeeding Gregory III
1953 – “In the Jailhouse Now” single recorded by Webb Pierce (Billboard Song of the Year 1955)
1982 – After losing his world welterweight boxing titles to Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns wins WBC Super Welterweight crown in a majority points decision over Wilfred Benitez at Superdome, New Orleans
1984 – “Do They Know It’s Christmas” single written by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure and sung by Band Aid is released in the UK
1991 – Muslim Shi’ites release US hostage Alan Steen
2005 – 10th Big 12 Championship Game: #2 Texas beats Colorado, 70-3

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1750 – Johann Franz Xaver Sterkel, German composer, born in Würzburg, Germany (d. 1817)
1838 – Octavia Hill, British reformer, leader of open-space movement, born in London, England (d. 1912)
1880 – Fedor von Bock, German field marshal (d. 1945)
1925 – Ken Funston, South African cricket batsman (18 Tests, top score 92), born in Pretoria, Transvaal, South Africa (d. 2005)
1952 – Benny Hinn, American televangelist
1974 – Charl Willoughby, South African cricket fast bowler (2 Tests; 3 ODIs; Somerset), born in Cape Town, South Africa

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1154 – Anastasius IV, Pope (1153-54), dies
1890 – Billy Midwinter, English-Australian cricket all-rounder (8 Tests Australia, 4 England), dies of insanity at 39
1894 – Robert Louis Stevenson, Scottish novelist (Treasure Island), dies at 45
1937 – Prosper Poullet, Belgian mayor, dies
1992 – Harry Ellerbe, actor (House of Usher, Magnetic Monster), dies at 91
1994 – Elizabeth Meyer, wife of Paul Michael Glaser, dies of AIDS at 47

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1916 – National Baseball Commission orders that injured players get full pay for duration of their contracts; injury clause previously let clubs suspend players after 15 days’ pay
1954 – “Hit the Trail” opens at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC for 4 performances
1970 – Michael Tippett’s opera “The Knot Garden” premieres in London
1978 – Anti-Shah protest in Tehran,protesters chant “Allah is great”
1987 – Chicago City Council elects Eugene Sawyer acting mayor
1988 – ESPN airs its 10,000th edition of ‘Sports Center’, making it the most televised cable program in history

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1897 – Rewi Alley, New Zealand writer (Americans in China)
1929 – Jaap Boersma, Dutch minister for Social Affairs (ARP)
1941 – Tom McGuiness, rocker (McGuiness-Flint)
1958 – George Saunders, American writer (Lincoln in the Bardo), born in Amarillo, Texas
1988 – Edward EMG baron Downpatrick, grandson of English prince Edward
1989 – Matteo Darmian, Italian soccer full-back (36 caps; Torino, Manchester United), born in Legnano, Milan, Italy

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1515 – Gonzalo de Cordoba, Spanish general/strategist/viceroy of Naples, dies
1665 – Catherine de Vivonne, marquise de Rambouillet, French socialite (b. 1588)
1985 – Alex Courtney, actor (Sword of Justice), dies
1993 – Cal Tinney, American comedian and actor (The Missouri Traveler, Stop Me If You Heard This One), dies at 85
2005 – Kenneth Lee Boyd, American convicted murderer (executed) (b. 1948)
2009 – Foge Fazio, American college football coach (University of Pittsburgh), dies of leukemia at 71

More Famous Deaths »