Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1854 – French and British forces bombard Sevastopol for the first time during the Crimean War
1862 – Battle of Leetown and Thoroughfare Gap, VA
1945 – Loyalty Day in Argentina, mass demonstrations held to release Juan Perón
1979 – Pittsburgh Pirates beat Balt Orioles, 4 games to 3 in 76th World Series
1994 – Kapil Dev’s final one-day international (v West Indies)
2012 – Lance Armstrong loses a host of endorsements in the wake of his doping scandal

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1875 – Alfred Polgar, Austrian writer (Yes and No!)
1893 – Jean Binet, Swiss composer, born in Geneva (d. 1960)
1955 – Sam Bottoms, actor (Prime Risk, Savages), born in Santa Barbara, California
1971 – Byron Chamberlain, NFL/WLAF tight end Denver Broncos, Rhein Fire)
1983 – Daniel Booko, American actor
1984 – Chris Lowell, American actor

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1174 – Queen Petronila of Aragon (b. 1135)
1776 – Pierre François le Courayer, French theologian (b. 1681)
1910 – William V Moody, US poet (Sabine Woman, Great Divide), dies
1994 – Augustus John “Gus” Risman, rugby League Player, dies at 83
2000 – Leo Nomellini, wrestler (b. 1924)
2001 – Rehavam Zeevi, Israeli politician (b. 1926)

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1939 – George Kaufman and Moss Hart’s “The Man Who Came to Dinner” premieres in NYC, running until 1941 for 739 performances
1967 – WETK TV channel 33 in Burlington, VT (PBS) begins broadcasting
1969 – 100-1 shot NY Mets beat Orioles 5-3 and win 66th World Series in 5
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
2002 – Bibliotheca Alexandrina in the Egyptian city of Alexandria, a commemoration of the Library of Alexandria that was lost in antiquity, is officially inaugurated.
2014 – MLB National League Championship: San Francisco Giants beat St. Louis Cardinals, 4 games to 1

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1729 – Pierre van Maldere, composer
1762 – Paul Hamilton, Governor of South Carolina (1804-06) and U.S. Secretary of Navy (1809-12) (d. 1816)
1897 – Louis de Cazenave, France’s oldest living man
1918 – Bill Nichols, (Rep-D-AL, 1967- )
1938 – Carl Gunter Jr, Louisiana State Representative (d. 1999)
1943 – C Fred Turner, rock bassist/vocalist (Bachman-Turner Overdrive)

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

775 – Mansur, kalief of Abbasiden, dies
1726 – Giovanni Maria Capelli, composer, dies at 77
1968 – Ellis Kinder, American baseball player, dies at 54
1982 – Hans Selye, Austrian-Canadian endocrinologist, dies at 75
1984 – Peggy Ann Garner, actress (Ford Theater), dies at 53 of cancer
1992 – Shirley Booth, actress (Hazel), dies of natural causes at 94

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1959 – “Untouchables” premieres
1971 – The start of the 2,500-year celebration of Iran, celebrating the birth of Persia
1976 – 1st debate of major-ticket VP nominees Mondale (D) vs Dole (R)
1986 – MLB National League Championship: New York Mets beat Houston Astros, 4 games to 2
1997 – Britain’s Andy Green sets jet-powered car record (763.035 mph)
2011 – Global protests break out in 951 cities in 82 countries

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1686 – Allan Ramsay, Scottish poet (d. 1758)
1844 – Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher and philologist (Beyond Good and Evil), born in Röcken, Saxony, Prussia (d. 1900)
1879 – Sara Allgood, Irish actress (Blackmail, Storm in a Teacup), born in Dublin, Ireland (d. 1950)
1919 – Malcolm Ross, American balloonist and atmospheric physicist (d. 1985)
1932 – Riekus Waskowsky, poet
1951 – Hani Al-Mulki, Prime Minister of Jordan (2016-present), born in Amman, Jordan

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1539 – Reynier Brunt, procureur-general of Court of Holland, dies
1674 – Robert Herrick, English poet (‘Gather ye rosebuds while ye may’), dies at 83
1819 – Sergey Vyazmitinov, Russian general and statesman (b. 1744)
1917 – Mata Hari [Margaretha Geertruida Zelle], Dutch dancer, courtesan and convicted German WWI spy, executed by firing squad at 41
1934 – Raymond Poincaré, French president and Prime Minister (1912), dies at 74
1960 – Maude Eburne, actress (Ladies They Talk About, Guardsman), dies at 84

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1946 – Netherland and Indonesia sign cease fire
1949 – Ezzard Charles TKOs Pat Valentino in 8 for heavyweight boxing title
1958 – Malagasy Republic becomes autonomous republic in French Community
1978 – NY Yank Reggie Jackson causes World Series controversy by getting in the way of a throw to 1st and deflects the ball away
1990 – Cathy Gerring wins LPGA Trophee Urban World Golf Championship
2012 – 20 people are gunned down in a mosque in Dogo Dawa, Nigeria

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1907 – Barend Barendse, Dutch sports reporter and actor (Zeskamp, Oebele), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1981)
1947 – Lukas Resetarits, Austrian cabaret artist, born in Stinatz, Austria
1967 – Dave Hajek, infielder (Houston Astros), born in Roseville, California
1973 – DeJuan Wheat, NBA guard (Minn Timberwolves)
1981 – Boof Bonser, American baseball player
1996 – Lourdes Marie Ciccone Leon, daughter of singer Madonna

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1552 – Oswald Myconius, Swiss Protestant reformer (b. 1488)
1943 – Jackie Matthews, cricketer (8 Tests 1911-12, 16 wickets), dies
1984 – Martin Ryle, English radio astronomer, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics (b. 1918)
1996 – William John Raff Hooper, British cartoonist (Percy Prune), dies at 80
2005 – Jody Dobrowski, English murder victim (b. 1981)
2012 – Kyle Bennett, American BMX racer, dies in a traffic collision at 33

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1501 – Maximilian of Austria and Louis XII sign Treaty of Trente
1963 – “Beatlemania” is coined after Beatles appear at Palladium
1972 – Uruguay to Chile plane crashes in Andes Mountains, (passengers eat crash victims to survive, 16 of 45 rescued 2 months later)
1998 – MLB American League Championship: New York Yankees beat Cleveland Indians, 4 games to 2
2008 – HM Treasury infused £37 billion ($64 billion, 47 billion euros) of new capital-bailout into Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Lloyds TSB and HBOS Plc, to avert a financial sector collapse.
2013 – 109 people are killed in a stampede on a bridge in Datia district, Madhya Pradesh, India

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1566 – Richard Boyle, Irish politician, 1st Earl of Cork, born in Canterbury, Kent, England (d. 1643)
1768 – Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin, French explorer, born in Honfleur, Calvados, France (d. 1839)
1903 – Jens Bjerre, Danish composer, born in Aarhus (d. 1986)
1911 – Ticker Freeman, American pianist (Dinah Shore Show), born in Paterson, New Jersey (d. 1986)
1938 – Jim McMullan, American actor (Dr McDaniel-Ben Casey), born in Long Island, New York
1950 – Ellen Brusse [Elizabeth Wenmakers], Dutch TV hostess, born in Rotterdam, Netherlands

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1508 – Edmund de Ros, 11th Baron de Ros, English politician (b. 1446)
1643 – Sweder van Haersolte, mister of Swaluwenborch/diplomat, dies at 61
1882 – Arthur de Gobineau, French philosopher (b. 1816)
1917 – Florence La Badie, American actress
1995 – Golfredo Corradetti, conductor, dies at 79
2010 – Vernon Biever, American photographer (b. 1923)

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

638 – Honorius I ends his reign as Catholic Pope; Pope Severinus elected
1963 – San Francisco’s Oakland Bay Bridge converted to 1-way on each deck
1976 – MLB National League Championship: Cincinnati Reds beat Philadelphia Phillies, 3 games to 0
1993 – “Mixed Emotions” opens at John Golden Theater NYC for 48 performances
1997 – Juli Inkster wins LPGA Samsung World Championship
2016 – James Charles (17) becomes the 1st male face of make-up label CoverGirl

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1576 – Thomas Dudley, British colonial governor of Massachusetts, born in Northamptonshire, England (d. 1653)
1963 – Michael Zordich, American NFL strong safety (Philadelphia Eagles), born in Youngstown, Ohio
1968 – Hugh Jackman, Australian actor and singer (X-men, The Greatest Showman), born in Sydney, Australia
1969 – Nancy Kerrigan, American figure skater (Olympic silver 1994), born in Stoneham, Massachusetts
1986 – Marcus T. Paulk, American actor (Moesha), born in Los Angeles, California
1986 – Sergio Peter, German footballer (SpVgg Neckarelz), born in Ludwigshafen, West Germany

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1864 – Roger Taney, 5th Supreme Court Chief Justice (1836-64), dies at 87
1934 – Gertrude Käsebier, American photographer dies aged 82
1958 – Ed Hinton, actor (Henderson-I Lived 3 Lives), dies at 30
1985 – Johnny Olson, American radio personality and television announcer (The Price is Right), dies at 75
2002 – Audrey Mestre, French diver (b. 1974)
2011 – Heinz Bennent, German actor (Possession, The Serpent’s Egg), dies at 90

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1540 – Emperor Karel names his son Philip, Duke of Milan
1931 – 100,000 extreme-right Germans form “Harzburger Front”
1945 – JPL WAC Corporal Launch (1st Man-Made Object to escape Atmosphere)
1972 – World Hockey Association officially makes it’s debut as the Alberta Oilers defeat the Ottawa Nationals, 7-4 at the Ottawa Civic Centre
1980 – Cosmonauts Popov and Ryumin set space endurance record of 184 days
1984 – NASA launches space vehicle S-208

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1768 – Adriaan van den Ende, Dutch vicar and educationalist, born in Delft, Netherlands (d. 1846)
1841 – Friedrich Hegar, Swiss composer, born in Basel, Switzerland (d. 1927)
1897 – George Preston Marshall, American businessman and NFL team owner (Washington Redskins), born in Grafton, West Virginia (d. 1969)
1939 – Maria Bueno, Brazilian tennis player (7 Grand Slam singles titles), born in São Paulo, Brazil (d. 2018)
1967 – Tony Chimel, American professional wrestling announcer, born in Cherry Hill, New Jersey
1973 – Mike Smith, American guitarist (Snot, Limp Bizkit), born in Middle River, Maryland

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1666 – Henry de Fleury dee Coulan, mister of Buat/ritmeester, dies
1779 – Casimir Pułaski, Polish born fighter for American independence (b. 1745) dies in Battle of Savannah
1917 – Harry Trott, cricketer (Aust capt played 24 Tests 1888-1898), dies
1989 – M. King Hubbert, American geologist and geophysicist, dies at 86
1996 – Arthur Walter Lucas, first Chief Restorer of the National Gallery, London, dies at 80
1998 – Richard Denning [Louis Denninger Jr.], American actor (An Affair to Remember, The Black Scorpion), dies from cardiac arrest at 84

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1924 – Washington Senators win their 1st World Series beat Giants in 7
1935 – Coup under Gen Giorgios Kondylis in favor of Greek monarchy
1959 – Pan Am begins regular flights around the world
1968 – George Harrison forms Singsong Ltd
1996 – Cornerstone dedication for Holocaust Museum in NYC
2005 – Negotiations between the CDU/CSU and SPD in Germany conclude with the two parties agreeing to form a grand coalition with Angela Merkel as chancellor after both parties lost seats in the 2005 German federal election

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1903 – Charles Théodore Henri Antoine Meinrad de Belgique, Count of Flanders, born in Brussels, Belgium (d. 1983)
1906 – R.K. Narayan, Indian novelist (Malguidi Days), born in Madras (d. 2001)
1926 – Richard Jaeckel, American actor (3:10 to Yuma, Sands of Iwo Jima, Sometimes a Great Notion), born in Long Beach, New York (d. 1997)
1935 – Paolo Renosto, Italian composer, born in Florence, Italy (d. 1988)
1959 – Kirsty MacColl, English singer and songwriter, born in Croydon, Surrey, England (d. 2000)
1966 – Darren Carrington, American NFL safety (Jacksonville Jaguars), born in Bronx, New York

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1727 – Alphonse d’Ève, Flemish Baroque composer, dies at 61
1843 – Karl Theodor Toeschi, composer, dies at 75
1867 – Ignacy Feliks Dobrzynski, composer, dies at 60
1978 – Ralph Marterie, American big band leader (b. 1914)
1990 – Tom Murton, American penologist (b. 1928)
2012 – Alex Karras, American NFL player, dies from kidney failure at 77

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1947 – Julie Styne and Sam Cohn’s musical “High Button Shoes” premieres in NYC for 727 performances
1961 – Yank Whitey Ford breaks Ruth record of 29 2/3 consecutive inning
1961 – Volcanic eruptions on Tristan de Cunha (South Atlantic)
1976 – Peter Petherick takes hat-trick on cricket debut New Zealand v Pakistan Javed 1st wkt
1983 – Buffalo Bill QB Joe Ferguson passes 419 yards with 5 TDs
2017 – Producer Harvey Weinstein is fired from The Weinstein Company after allegations of sexual abuse

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1757 – Charles X, King of France (1824-30), born in Palace of Versailles, France (d. 1836)
1944 – John Entwistle, English rock guitarist and vocalist (The Who-Baba O’Riley), born in London, England (d. 2002)
1967 – Gheorghe Popescu, Romanian soccer player (Barcelona), born in Calafat, Dolj County, Romania
1972 – Roman Oben, American football tackle (NY Giants), born in Cameroon
1980 – Ibrahim Fazeel, Maldivian footballer (Victory Sports Club), born in Malé, Maldives
1983 – Andreas Zuber, Austrian racing driver, born in Judenburg, Austria

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1688 – Claude Perrault, French Architect and Physician, dies at 75
1747 – David Brainerd, American missionary to the Native Americans, dies at 29
1831 – Ioannis Kapodistrias, President (1829-31) and founding father of modern Greece.
1868 – Howell Cobb, American politician (U.S. Secretary of Treasury), dies at 53
2008 – Gidget Gein, American musician (Marilyn Manson band), dies at 39
2017 – Hervé Leroux, French fashion designer and founder of Hervé Léger fashion house, dies from a ruptured aneurysm at 60

More Famous Deaths »

Historical Events

1927 – NY Yankees sweep Pirates in 24th World Series
1952 – Chinese offensive in Korea
1971 – John Lennon releases his megahit “Imagine”
1981 – US President Ronald Reagan greets predecessors Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford and Richard Nixon before sending them to Egypt for Anwar Sadat’s funeral
1982 – Poland bans Solidarity and all labor unions
2012 – Mustafa A.G. Abushagur, the first elected Libyan Prime Minister, is voted out of office by the Libyan parliament

More Historical Events »

Famous Birthdays

1747 – Johann Wilhelm Stadler, German composer (d. 1819)
1890 – Eddie Rickenbacker, American aviator “Ace of Aces” (WWI), born in Columbus, Ohio (d. 1973)
1952 – Jan Marijnissen, Dutch politician (Leader of the Socialist Party), born in Oss, Netherlands
1954 – Ben Amonette, Radford VA, free pistol (Olympics 1992, 96)
1965 – Ross Flemer, rower (Olympics 1996), born in Newport Beach, California
1974 – Rashaan Salaam, NFL running back (Chicago Bears, born in San Diego, California (d. 2016)

More Famous Birthdays »

Famous Deaths

1286 – John I of Dreux, Duke of Brittany (b. 1217)
1659 – Jean de Quen, French Jesuit missionary
1865 – Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst, composer, dies at 51
1953 – Kathleen Ferrier, English alto singer, dies at 41
1954 – Morten Korch, Danish author, dies at 78
1958 – Ran Bosilek, Bulgarian author (b. 1886)

More Famous Deaths »