Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1509 – Storm surge causes the second Cosmas and Damian flood in East Friesland and the Netherlands, destroying dykes and devastating coastal towns
1963 – First edition of the New York Review of Books
1974 – Apple Records releases John Lennon’s fifth studio album, “Walls and Bridges,” in the US, featuring the No. 1 single “Whatever Gets You Through the Night” (with Elton John) and “#9 Dream”
2019 – WHO announces 800,000 children in DR Congo will be vaccinated in nine days in the world’s largest measles epidemic that has taken over 3,500 lives
2024 – Poverty in Argentina rises to more than half (52.9%), up from 41.7% in six months, for its population of 46 million, with inflation at 230%, according to new figures

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Famous Birthdays

1750 – Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood, British admiral, born in Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England (d. 1810)
1823 – Ivan Aksakov, Russian journalist (Denj, Moskvitsh), born in Nadezhdino, Belebey Uyezd, Orenburg Governorate (d. 1889)
1925 – Shirley Wilson, American football coach (Elon University 1967-76; Duke University 1979-82; 88–61–3), born in Madison, North Carolina (d. 2021)
1967 – Craig Janney, American NHL center (Winnipeg Jets), born in Hartford, Connecticut
1968 – Anthony Shadid, New York Times foreign correspondent and two time Pulitzer winner, born in Oklahoma City (d. 2012)

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Famous Deaths

1944 – Ernst Isler, Swiss organist and critic, dies at 64
1945 – Béla Bartók, Hungarian pianist, composer (Concerto for Orchestra), and ethnomusicologist, dies of leukemia at 64
1961 – Juanita Hansen, actress (Fast Company), dies of heart ailment at 67
1989 – Pavlos Bakoyannis, Greek parliament leader, murdered in Rome
2019 – William Joseph Levada, American Catholic prelate, theologian, and educator (Archbishop of San Francisco, 1995-2005; Archbishop of Portland, 1985-95), dies at 83

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Historical Events

1780 – American army officer Benedict Arnold defects to the British
1911 – French battleship Liberté explodes at Toulon Harbor, killing 285
1955 – Detroit outfielder Al Kaline, 20, is the youngest batting champion
1988 – Romanian gymnast Daniela Silivaș wins three gold medals in one day at the Seoul Olympics in the balance beam, floor exercise, and uneven bars events, recording a record-equalling seven perfect scores of 10
2003 – Magnitude 8.0 earthquake strikes just offshore of Hokkaidō, Japan

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Famous Birthdays

1906 – Phyllis Pearsall, British painter and writer (A to Z Map Company), born in London (d. 1996)
1939 – Feroz Khan, Indian actor, producer and director (known as Clint Eastwood of Bollywood), born in Bangalore, Kingdom of Mysore, British India (d. 2009)
1942 – Billy Mundi [also Tony Schnasse, born Antonio Salas], American session musician and drummer (The Mothers of Invention, Rhinoceros), born in San Francisco, California (d. 2014)
1943 – (Jules) Gary Alexander, American rock vocalist and guitarist (The Association – “Cherish”), born in Chattanooga, Tennessee
1975 – Mariusz Duda, Polish rock bassist and singer (Riverside), born in Wegorzewo, Poland

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Famous Deaths

1630 – Ambrogio Spinola, Spanish marquis of Balbases, dies at about 61
1924 – (Charlotte) “Lotta” Crabtree, American stage actress, comedian (Little Nell and the Marchioness), and philanthropist, dies at 76
1976 – Red Faber, American Baseball HOF pitcher (World Series 1917; AL ERA leader 1921, 22; Chicago White Sox 1914-33), dies from heart disease at 88
1991 – Viviane Romance [Pauline Ronacher Ortmanns], French actress (Panic, Queen’s Necklace), dies at 79
2016 – Rod Temperton, British pop musician and songwriter (“Boogie Nights”; “Thriller”; “Give Me the Night”; “Yah Mo B There”), dies of cancer at 66

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Historical Events

1929 – James Doolittle completes the first completely “blind” flight, taking off, flying a set course, and landing solely by instruments aboard a Consolidated NY-2 biplane at Mitchel Field in New York
1954 – Yankees tie a record as three of their pinch hitters strike out in one inning
1994 – Parliamentary elections in Ukraine
2015 – Stampede of people during the Hajj kills 717 during the symbolic stoning of the devil at Mina, near Mecca, Saudi Arabia
2021 – Notorious Indian gangster Jitender Maan Gogi is shot dead in a court in Delhi by men posing as lawyers

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Famous Birthdays

1705 – Leopold Joseph Graf Daun, Austrian field marshal, born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1766)
1884 – İsmet İnönü, Turkish politician (2nd President of Turkey 1938-50), born in Smyrna, Ottoman Empire (d. 1973)
1899 – Eduardo Hernández Moncada, Mexican composer and pianist, born in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico (d. 1995)
1929 – Edward M. Lawson, Canadian trade unionist and politician, born in Gerald, Saskatchewan, Canada (d. 2016)
1929 – Erik Lotichius, Dutch composer (Anaitalrax), born in Helden, Netherlands (d. 2015)

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Famous Deaths

1120 – Welf II, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1072)
1997 – Larry Hall, American rocker (Sandy), dies at 57
2002 – Mike Webster, American NFL football center, 1974-90, 9X Pro Bowl, 4X Super Bowl champ (Pittsburgh Steelers), dies of a heart attack at 50; 1st former NFL-er diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE)player noted to suffer from
2017 – Joseph M. McDade, American politician (Rep-R-Pennsylvania, 1963-1999), dies at 85
2020 – Keith Hufnagel, American skateboarder (founded skate/clothing company HUF), dies of brain cancer at 46

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Historical Events

1962 – Martin Walser’s play “Esche und Angora” premieres in Berlin
1968 – WKMR TV channel 38 in Morehead, KY (PBS) begins broadcasting
1990 – PBS begins an 11-hour miniseries on the Civil War
2017 – Women are allowed in King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh for the first time during Saudi Arabia’s 87th National Day celebrations
2022 – Russia holds sham referendums in four partly occupied Ukrainian regions, with some Ukrainian citizens forced to vote at gunpoint

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Famous Birthdays

1865 – Emmuska Orczy, Hungarian-born British Baroness and writer (The Scarlet Pimpernel), born in Tarnaörs Hungary (d. 1947)
1867 – Draga Mašin, Queen of Serbia and wife of King Alexander I, born in Gornji Milanovac, Serbia (d. 1903)
1871 – Frantisek Kupka, Czech pioneering abstract artist, born in Opočno, Austria-Hungary (d. 1957)
1925 – Barry Linehan, English actor (Bullseye, Dark Places, Witchcraft), born in Romford, England (d. 1996)
1946 – Franz Fischler, Austrian politician and EU’s Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries (1995–2004), born in Absam, Austria

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Famous Deaths

1764 – Robert Dodsley, English writer (b. 1703)
1797 – Johann Georg Roser, Austrian composer and kapellmeister, dies at 57
1994 – John van Damme, businessman, hanged in Singapore at 59
2004 – Billy Reay, Canadian ice hockey player and coach, dies at 86
2023 – Terry Kirkman, American rock vocalist, songwriter, and keyboardist (The Association – “Windy”; “Cherish”), and later substance abuse counselor, dies at 83

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Historical Events

1896 – Queen Victoria surpasses her grandfather King George III as the longest reigning monarch in British history
1959 – Chicago White Sox clinch AL pennant
1989 – MLB St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Leon Durham is suspended for 60 days due to drugs
2002 – Solheim Cup Women’s Golf, Interlachen CC: US regains Cup 15½-12½; Rosie Jones gains winning point in her 3 and 2 victory over Karine Icher
2015 – Pope Francis is greeted by President Obama and Vice President Biden as he arrives at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, for his six-day tour of the US

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Famous Birthdays

1523 – Charles de Bourbon, French cardinal, born in La Ferté-sous-Jouarre, France (d. 1590)
1741 – Peter Simon Pallas, German geologist and zoologist (scientific expeditions through Russia and Siberia), born in Berlin (d. 1811)
1892 – Hans Albers, German silent and sound screen actor (Blue Angel; Bombs on Monte Carlo), born in Hamburg, German Empire (d. 1960)
1965 – Andy Cairns, Irish rock singer-songwriter and guitarist (Therapy?), born in Ballyclare, Northern Ireland
1988 – Bethany Dillon, American Christian musician, born in Bellefontaine, Ohio

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Famous Deaths

1703 – Vincenzo Viviani, Italian mathematician (Viviani’s theorem), dies at 81
1996 – Ludmilla Chiraeff, Latvian-Canadian ballet dancer, choeographer, and troupe director, dies at 72
2007 – Bodinho, Brazilian footballer (b. 1928)
2008 – Connie Haines [Yvonne Jasme], American pop and big-band singer (Harry James; Abbott and Costello Show; Tommy Dorsey), dies of myasthenia gravis at 87
2010 – Eddie Fisher, American pop singer (“Oh My Papa”: I’m Walking Behind You”), dies from complications from hip surgery at 82

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Historical Events

1538 – Shrine of Saint Swithun in Winchester smashed up in the middle of the night as part of the English Reformation
1589 – Battle at Arques: French King Henry IV beats Catholic League
1911 – Canadian Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier loses the election to Robert Borden of the Conservative Party
2003 – 55th Emmy Awards: The West Wing, Everybody Loves Raymond, James Gandolfini and Edie Falco wins
2023 – Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch at 92 announces he is retiring from the boards of Fox and News Corporation, leaving his son Lachlan in charge

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Famous Birthdays

1907 – Lloyd Gough, American actor (Sunset Boulevard, The Front, The Green Hornet), born in New York City (d. 1984)
1967 – Faith Hill (McGraw) [neé Audrey Faith Perry], American country pop singer (“Breathe”; “Cry”), and actress (1883), born in Ridgeland, Mississippi
1973 – Virginia Ruano-Pascual, tennis star, born in Madrid, Spain
1974 – Taral Hicks, American actress (A Bronx Tale) and RandB singer (“Silly”), born in The Bronx, New York City
1989 – Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins, American skateboarder (Summer X Games gold Vert 2004, 07, 09), born in San Diego, California

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Famous Deaths

1796 – François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, French general (b. 1769)
1937 – Henri Capitant, French lawyer (Loi Falcidie), dies at 72
1964 – Otto Grotewohl, German politician (Prime Minister of East Germany, 1949-64), dies of a cerebral hemorrhage at 70
1988 – Henry Koster, German-born Hollywood director, discovered Abbott and Costello, dies at 83
1994 – “Ossie” O. S. Nock, English railway writer, dies at 69

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Historical Events

1833 – Charles Darwin arrives in Buenos Aires after traveling through the Argentine interior with guachos
1964 – Günter Grass’s play “Die Plebejer proben den Aufstand (The Plebeians Rehearse the Uprising)” premieres in Berlin
1978 – Yamada Mumon Roshi visits the Benedictine Abbey of Maria Laach, Germany
1979 – Lee Iacocca is elected president of the Chrysler Corporation
2019 – Rare Egyptian political protests take place against corruption in President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s government in Tahrir Square, Cairo, and elsewhere

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Famous Birthdays

1897 – Kermit Maynard, American cowboy actor (Valley of Terror, Saturday Roundup), born in Vevay, Indiana (d. 1971)
1922 – Franco Ventriglia, American opera singer, born in Fairfield, Connecticut (d. 2012)
1938 – Jane Manning, British concert and operatic soprano, eductor, and promoter of contemporary classical music, born in Norwich, England (d. 2021)
1951 – Javier Marías, Spanish translator and novelist (Corazón Tan Blanco – A Heart So White), born in Madrid, Spain (d. 2022)
1976 – Reuben Singh, British entrepreneur, CEO of alldayPA, born in Poynton, England

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Famous Deaths

1625 – Heinrich Meibom, German historian and poet, dies at 69
1863 – Benjamin Hardin Helm, American attorney and Confederate brigadier general and Abraham Lincoln’s brother-in-law, dies at the Battle of Chickamauga at 33
2001 – Marcos Pérez Jiménez, President of Venezuela (1953-58), dies at 87
2006 – Armin Jordan, Swiss conductor, dies at 74
2007 – Johnny Gavin, Irish soccer winger (7 caps Rep. Ireland; Norwich City 312 games), dies at 79

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Historical Events

1941 – German army conquers Kiev
1953 – “Hazel Flagg” closes at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC after 190 performances
1957 – First underground nuclear explosion in Las Vegas, Nevada
1973 – Frank Robinson, Angels OF, homers in record 32nd major league ballpark – Arlington Stadium (Arlington, Texas), against the Rangers
1994 – Swedish government of Bildt resigns

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Famous Birthdays

1377 – Albert IV, Duke of Austria, born in Vienna (d. 1404)
1769 – Joseph Kam, Dutch Christian missionary in the Maluku Islands of Indonesia, born in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands (d. 1833)
1824 – Carl Ignaz Franz Umlauf, Austrian zither player and composer, born in Baden, Austria (d. 1902)
1910 – Margaret Lindsay, American actress (Take a Guess), born in Dubuque, Iowa (d. 1981)
1931 – Brook Benton [Benjamin Franklin Peay], American soul vocalist (“It’s Just a Matter of Time”; “Rainy Night in Georgia”), born in Lugoff, South Carolina (d. 1988)

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Famous Deaths

1836 – Carl Friedrich Ebers, German composer and conductor, dies at 66
1954 – Tibor Harsányi, Hungarian pianist, composer, and conductor who settled in Paris, France, dies at 56
1997 – Malcolm Hughes, English constructive artist, dies at 77
2017 – Brian Barder, British diplomat, British Ambassador to Ethiopia who assisted during 1984-85 famine, dies at 83
2021 – Max Wiltshire, Welsh rugby union lock (4 Tests; Aberavon RFC), dies at 83

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Historical Events

1882 – Pacific Stock Exchange opens as Local Security Board
1905 – Electric tramline opens in Rotterdam
1971 – Ryder Cup Golf, Old Warson CC: US beats Europe, 18½-13½; after leading by 1 match, GB loses all Friday morning 4-ball matches to lose momentum
2004 – Farm Aid 17 held in Auburn, Washington; performers include Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, Dave Matthews, Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Marc Broussard
2006 – Right-wing protesters riot at the building of Hungarian Television in Budapest, Hungary, one day after an audio tape is made public in which Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány admits he and his party lied during the 2006 general election

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Famous Birthdays

1916 – Rossano Brazzi, Italian actor (Final Justice, South Pacific, The Barefoot Contessa), born in Bolognia, Italy (d. 1994)
1931 – Anthony Bowles, British music director (Jesus Christ Superstar; Evita), born in England (d. 1993)
1933 – Scotty Bowman, Canadian NHL player and coach (Montreal Canadians/Detroit Red Wings), born in Montreal, Quebec
1956 – Tim McInnerny, British stage, screen, and radio actor (Blackadder; Notting Hill), born in Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire, England
1977 – Li Tie, Chinese footballer and coach (Everton), born in Shenyang, China

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Famous Deaths

1137 – Erik II Eimune [Onvergetelijke], King of Denmark (1134-37), murdered
1611 – Membertou [Mabretou], Micmac chief (1st chief of a First Nations community to be converted by Catholic missionaries), dies
1945 – “Blind” Willie Johnson, American gospel blues singer and guitarist (“Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground”), dies of malarial fever, syphilis at 48
2002 – Ernest Sidey, British air marshal (General of RAF Medical Services, Honorary Surgeon to the Queen), dies at 89
2013 – Ken Norton, American boxer (WBC heavyweight champion 1978; famous Muhammad Ali trilogy; International Boxing HOF), dies at 70

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Historical Events

1176 – At the Battle of Myriokephalon, the Byzantines fail to recover Anatolia from Turkish rule
1737 – Georg-August University opens in Göttingen
1943 – Load of “ammunition in transit” explodes at Norfolk Naval Air Station
1991 – The first version of the Linux kernel (0.01) is released to the Internet
2018 – Flooding in Nigeria kills over 100 people as Benue and Niger Rivers overflow

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Famous Birthdays

1859 – Richard Henry Warren, American organist and composer, born in Albany, New York (d. 1933)
1883 – William Carlos Williams, American physician and poet, born in Rutherford, New Jersey (d. 1963)
1944 – Reinhold Messner, Italian mountain climber (Mount Everest), born in Brixen (Bressanone), Italy
1959 – Will Gregory, British keyboardist, sax player, producer (Goldfrapp), and composer (Piccard in Space), born in Bristol, England
1963 – Rami Saari, Israeli poet and translator, born in Petah Tikva, Israel

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Famous Deaths

1422 – Constantine II, last Tsar of Bulgaria (1397-1422), dies in exile at 52 or 53
1961 – Adnan Menderes, Turkish politician, Prime Minister of Turkey (1950-60), executed by the junta at 62
1991 – John Thomas, American co-inventor of fiberglass, dies at 83
2017 – Laudir de Oliveira, Brazilian percussionist (Sérgio Mendes; Chicago, 1973-81), dies on stage in Rio de Janeiro, of a heart attack at 77
2022 – Joseph P. Hoar, American US Marine Corps general (Commander in Chief of US Central Command, 1991-94), dies at 87

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