Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1941 – German troops conquer Roslavl in Russia
1946 – Belgian government of Huysmans forms
1956 – American sprinter Willie Williams sets a 100 m world record at 10.1 in Berlin, Germany
1963 – Warner Bros. Records releases the single of Allan Sherman’s novelty song “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (A Letter from Camp),” set to the music of Amilcare Ponchielli’s “Dance of the Hours” from his 1876 opera “La Gioconda”
2024 – American swimmer Katie Ledecky ties Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina as the most decorated female Olympian of all time when she wins her fourth consecutive 800m in Paris, her ninth individual gold medal

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Famous Birthdays

1878 – Constantino Gaito, Argentinian composer, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 1945)
1885 – Siegfried Salomon, Danish composer, born in Copenhagen, Denmark (d. 1962)
1924 – (Elizabeth) “Connie” Converse, American folk singer-songwriter, born in Laconia, New Hampshire (disappeared 1974)
1937 – Duncan Sharpe, Pakistani cricketer (3 Tests for Pakistan 1959-60), born in Rawalpindi, Punjab, British India
1964 – Nate McMillan, American basketball head coach (Seattle SuperSonics 2000-05, Portland Trail Blazers 2005-12, Indiana Pacers 2016-19, Atlanta Hawks 2021-23), born in Raleigh, North Carolina

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Famous Deaths

1779 – Henry Kobell, Dutch painter and cartoonist, dies at 27
1910 – Nicolas Kinet, Belgian pilot, dies
1954 – Colette [Sidonie-Gabrielle], French author, novelist (Gigi, La Vagabonde) and actress, dies at 81
1978 – Ezzedin Kalak, Palestinian PLO representative in Paris, assassinated at about 42
2013 – Farman Fatehpuri [Syed Dildar Ali], Urdu scholar, linguist, critic and author, dies of natural causes at 87

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Historical Events

1931 – Referendum in favor of autonomous status for Spanish Catalonia garners 99.5% of the vote; about 75% of eligible voters participate
1943 – Sunderland seaplanes sink U-706 and U-106
1959 – Future Hall of Fame 1st baseman Willie McCovey hits 1st of his 521 MLB home runs in SF Giants 5-3 win v Pittsburgh Pirates
2012 – American swimmer Michael Phelps wins an unprecedented third consecutive gold medal in the 200m individual medley in 1:54.27 at the London Olympics
2018 – Apple becomes the first American publicly listed company to reach $1 trillion in value

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Famous Birthdays

1925 – John McCormack, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada (d. 2017)
1928 – Malcolm Hilton, English cricket slow left-arm (4 Tests), born in Chadderton, Lancashire (d. 1990)
1948 – Andy Fairweather Low, Welsh session and touring guitarist (Amen Corner; Roger Waters; Eric Clapton; George Harrison), born in Ystrad Mynach, Wales
1949 – James Fallows, American writer and journalist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1972 – Jimmy Pop [James Franks], American rock singer and musician (The Bloodhound Gang – “The Bad Touch”), born in Trappe, Pennsylvania

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Famous Deaths

1823 – Lazare Carnot, French politician, engineer and mathematician known as the Organizer of Victory in the French Revolutionary Wars, dies at 70
1922 – Mina Kruseman, Dutch author and feminist, dies at 82
1992 – Michel Berger [Hamburger], French singer-songwriter, and record producer. dies of a heart attack at 44
2003 – Mike Levey, American TV infomercials host, dies of cancer at 55
2020 – Leon Fleisher, American pianist and conductor (Annapolis Symphony 1970-82), dies of cancer at 92

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Historical Events

1664 – Battle of St. Gotthard, West Hungary: Imperial Army led by Count Raimondo Montecuccoli defeats Ottoman forces under Köprülü Fazıl Ahmed Pasha
1924 – MLB Brooklyn Robins pitcher Dazzy Vance strikes out an MLB record 7 consecutive batters and 14 overall in a 4-0 win over the visiting Chicago Cubs at Ebbets Field
1968 – Coronation of Hassanal Bolkiah, the 29th Sultan of Brunei
1992 – American sprinter Gail Devers wins an incredibly close blanket finish in the women’s 100m at the Barcelona Olympics, with 5 athletes within 0.06 seconds of Devers (10.82)
2022 – First grain ship leaves Ukrainian port of Odesa in a UN-brokered deal, breaking a months-long Russian blockade to help alleviate the global shortage

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Famous Birthdays

1642 – Ahmed II, 21st Sultan of Turkey (1691-95), born in Istanbul, Ottoman Empire (d. 1695) [or born Feb 25, 1643]
1933 – Ko Un, South Korean poet, born in Gunsan, North Jeolla Province
1948 – Bob Spink, British politician (MP for Castle Point in Essex), born in Haworth, Worth Valley, Yorkshire
1956 – Tom Leykis, American radio personality (The Tom Leykis Show), born in The Bronx, New York
1964 – Adam Duritz, American rock singer-songwriter, and keyboardist (Counting Crows – “Mr. Jones”; “Accidentally in Love”), born in Baltimore, Maryland

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Famous Deaths

1252 – Giovanni da Pian del Carpine [John of Plano Carpini], Italian friar, explorer and diplomat (1st European traveller to give account of the Mongol Empire), dies (b. c. 1185)
1980 – Patrick Depailler, French Formula 1 driver (b. 1944)
1988 – John Dearden, American cardinal (1969-88) and archbishop of Detroit, dies at 80
1990 – Lotta Hitschmanova, Canadian humanitarian (founder of the Unitarian Service Committee of Canada), dies at 80
2024 – Craig Shakespeare, English soccer coach (WBA, Leicester CIty) and midfielder (Walsall 284 games), dies from cancer at 60

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Historical Events

1925 – Last allied occupying troops leave German Ruhr region
1972 – Claudy bombing: Nine civilians are killed when three car bombs explode in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland; no group has since claimed responsibility
1983 – Dutch July average temperature is 20.1°C (68.18°F), making it the warmest July since 1854
1997 – First baseman Mark McGwire becomes MLB’s top home run hitter to be traded in the middle of a season when he moves from Oakland to the St. Louis Cardinals with 34 home runs and 81 RBIs
2011 – British Open Women’s Golf, Carnoustie GL: Yani Tseng of Taiwan becomes the first to successfully defend the Open as a major championship, four strokes ahead of Brittany Lang

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Famous Birthdays

1941 – Heather McKay, Australian squash player (British Open 1962-77, inaugural women’s World Open 1976), born in Queanbeyan, Australia
1941 – Amarsinh Chaudhary, Indian politician, born in Surat, India (d. 2004)
1965 – Scott Brooks, American basketball guard, coach (NBA Coach of the Year 2010, OKC Thunder; Washington Wizards 2016-19), born in French Camp, California
1980 – Harry Potter, fictional character portrayed by Daniel Radcliffe, born in Godric’s Hollow, England
1988 – A. J. Green [Adriel Jeremiah Green], American NFL player (Cincinnati Bengals), born in Summerville, South Carolina

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Famous Deaths

1985 – Eugene Carson Blake, US Secretary-General of World Council of Churches (1966-72), dies at 78
2002 – Gerrit A. Kooy, Dutch sociologist (Apartheid and work in South Africa), dies at 76
2004 – Laura Betti, Italian actress (b. 1927)
2009 – Harry Alan Towers, English film producer and screenwriter (b. 1920)
2018 – Tony Bullimore, British yachtsman (1997 solo around-the-world yacht race, dramatic rescue), dies of cancer at 79

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Historical Events

1988 – Jordanian King Hussein renounces sovereignty over West Bank to the PLO hours after dissolving Jordan’s House of Representatives
1991 – Red Sox player Carlos Quintana becomes the 11th player to achieve six RBIs in an inning (3rd)
1992 – Yael Arad becomes Israel’s first Olympic medalist when she wins silver in the women’s 61 kg judo in Barcelona; 20th anniversary of the Munich massacre and 500th anniversary of the Alhambra Decree
2000 – British Senior Open Men’s Golf, Royal County Down: Irishman Christy O’Connor Jr. successfully defends his title by 2 shots from John Bland of South Africa
2017 – Russian President Vladimir Putin announces American diplomats in Russia cut by 755 in response to American sanctions

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Famous Birthdays

1859 – Henry Louis Smith, American physicist who made the first X-ray photograph, born in Greensboro, North Carolina (d. 1951)
1916 – Robert van Spaendonck, Dutch resistance fighter, born in Tilburg, Netherlands (d. 1944)
1927 – Victor Wong [Yee Keung Victor Wong], American actor (Big Trouble in Little China), born in San Francisco, California (d. 2001)
1936 – (George) “Buddy” Guy, American blues guitarist (Stone Crazy), born in Lettsworth, Louisiana
1947 – William Atherton, American actor (Real Genius, Ghostbusters, Class of 44), born in Orange, Connecticut

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Famous Deaths

578 – Jacob Baradaeus, Bishop of Edessa and saint, established Syriac Orthodox Church, dies of an illness at 77 or 78
1985 – Peter Knight, English musical arranger, conductor, and composer, dies at 68
2005 – John Garang, Sudanese vice-president and revolutionary, led the Sudan People’s Liberation Army, dies in a helicopter crash at 60
2008 – Anne Armstrong U.S. ambassador to Britain and first female counsel to the President, dies at 80
2022 – [Grace] Nichelle Nichols, American actress (Star Trek – “Lt. Uhura”) and singer (Down To Earth; “Fly Me To The Moon”), dies at 89

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Historical Events

1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Macon, Georgia (Stoneman’s Raid)
1913 – Independence of the Principality of Albania recognized by the Conference of London
1961 – Bob Dylan is not seriously injured in car accident in New York City
1989 – Philadelphia Phillies retire #32 in honor of pitcher Steve Carlton
2021 – Following Simone Biles’ withdrawal, teammate Sunisa Lee becomes first Hmong-American Olympic champion in any sport, winning women’s artistic individual all-around gymnastics gold in Tokyo

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Famous Birthdays

1870 – George Dixon, Canadian boxer (World Bantamweight title, 1892; World Featherweight champion, 1891-97 and 1898-1901; 1st Black athlete to win a World C’ship in any sport), born in Halifax, Nova Scotia (d. 1908)
1938 – Don Wert, American baseball third baseman (MLB All Star and World Series 1968 Detroit Tigers), born in Strasburg, Pennsylvania (d. 2024)
1956 – Ronnie Musgrove, American politician (Governor of Mississippi 2000-04), born in Tocowa, Mississippi
1971 – Monica Calhoun, American actress (The Best Man), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1990 – Shin Se-kyung, South Korean actress (Deep Rooted Tree), born in Yangcheon, South Korea

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Famous Deaths

1886 – Solomon Gazfried, Ukrainian rabbi and author (Kitzur Shulchan Aruch), dies (b. 1804)
1900 – Umberto I of Italy, King of Italy (1878-1900), shot four times and assassinated by Italian-American anarchist Gaetano Bresci at 56
1976 – Mickey Cohen, American gangster (Cohen crime family), dies at 62
1982 – Cor Kieboom, Dutch president of Feyenoord football club, dies at 81
1996 – Aruna Asaf Ali, Indian independence activist and politician (first Mayor of Delhi), dies at 88

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Historical Events

1849 – Memnon is the first clipper to reach San Francisco from New York during the Gold Rush, arriving after a voyage of 120 days
1864 – Second day of the Battle of Deep Bottom Run, Virginia
1898 – Spanish American War: U.S. Army occupies Ponce and declares victory in Puerto Rico over Spanish forces
1917 – Silent Parade organized by James Weldon Johnson, 10,000 African Americans march on Fifth Avenue in NYC to protest against lynching
2019 – Evian Championship Women’s Golf, Evian Resort GC: South Korean Ko Jin-young wins her second major title of the season by two strokes from Shanshan Feng, Jennifer Kupcho and Kim Hyo-joo

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Famous Birthdays

1165 – Ibn al-‘Arabi, Muslim mystic and philosopher (The Meccan Revelations), born in Murcia, Spain (d. 1240)
1930 – David “Junior” Kimbrough, American bluesman, born in Hudsonville, Mississippi (d. 1998)
1939 – Barry Ashbee, Canadian NHL ice hockey defenseman, 1965, 1969-74 (Stanley Cup – Philadelphia Flyers), and coach, 1974-77 (Flyers), born in Weston. Ontario
1974 – Hannah Waddingham, British actress (Ted Lasso; Game of Thrones, 2015-16), and musical theater singer, born in London, England
1990 – Soulja Boy [DeAndre Cortez Way], American rapper (Crank That (Soulja Boy)), born in Chicago, Illinois

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Famous Deaths

1837 – John Ross, British composer and organist, dies at 73
1863 – James Deshler, American Confederate general, dies after ammunition explodes at 30
1869 – Jan Evangelista Purkyně, Czech anatomist (b. 1787)
1965 – Minor Watson, American actor (Woman of the Year, Viva Cisco Kid), dies at 75
2015 – Clive Rice, South African cricket all-rounder (WSC 1978-79, ODI 1991; Nottinghamshire), dies from a brain tumour at 66

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Historical Events

1909 – Orville Wright successfully tests the Wright Military Flyer, the world’s first military airplane, with a record flight of 1 hour, 12 minutes, and 40 seconds, flying approximately 64 km (40 mi)
1945 – Cubs purchase pitcher Hank Borowy from NY Yankees
1973 – Walter Blum becomes the sixth jockey to ride 4,000 winners
1984 – Montreal Expos first baseman Pete Rose collects his record 3,503rd career single, passing Ty Cobb with a hit off former Phillies teammate Steve Carlton at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia
2024 – Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus retains her 400 m freestyle crown at the Paris Olympics in 3:57.49, defeating Canada’s Summer McIntosh and Katie Ledecky of the US

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Famous Birthdays

1880 – Joe Tinker, American Baseball HOF shortstop (World Series 1907, 08 Chicago Orphans/Cubs) and manager (Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs), born in Muscotah, Kansas (d. 1948)
1921 – Émile Genest, French Canadian actor (The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Les Plouffe), born in Quebec City, Canada (d. 2003)
1931 – Jerry Van Dyke, American actor (My Mother the Car, Coach), born in Danville, Illinois (d. 2018)
1935 – Billy McCullough, Northern Irish footballer, born in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland
1970 – Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Danish actor (Game of Thrones), born in Rudkøbing, Denmark

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Famous Deaths

1864 – John Putnam Chapin, American politician and 10th Mayor of Chicago (1846-47), dies at 54
1952 – W de Basil [US Voskresenski], Russian ballet dancer, dies
1958 – Claire Chennault, American aviator and military leader (Flying Tigers), dies at 64
2008 – Isaac Saba Raffoul, Mexican Businessman (b. 1923)
2024 – Carlos Alvarado, Costa Rican soccer goalkeeper (25 caps; LD Alajuelense), dies at 96

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Historical Events

1971 – Apollo 15 launches (Scott and Irwin) for the fourth manned landing on the Moon
1972 – Rockwell receives NASA contract to construct Space Shuttle
1981 – New York Mayor Ed Koch is given the Heimlich maneuver in a Chinese restaurant
1994 – Turkish Air Force bombs Kurds in Iraq, killing 70
2017 – Great Britain announces it will ban gasoline and diesel cars by 2040

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Famous Birthdays

1906 – Irena Iłłakowicz, Polish agent of Intelligence, born in Berlin, Germany (d. 1943)
1911 – Jerry Burke, American easy-listening pianist and organ player (Lawrence Welk Orchestra, 1934-65), born in Marshalltown, Iowa (d. 1965)
1928 – Stanley Kubrick, American director (2001 A Space Odyssey, Dr Strangelove, Lolita), born in The Bronx NY (d. 1999)
1928 – Elliott Erwitt [Elio Romano], French-American photographer (Gimme Shelter), and documentarian, born in Paris, France (d. 2023)
1942 – Vladimír Mečiar, 1st and 3rd Prime Minister of Slovakia, born in Zvolen, Slovakia

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Famous Deaths

1973 – Hans Albert Einstein, Swiss-American professor and engineer, dies of a heart attack at 69
1987 – Jim Bishop, American journalist and author (The Day Lincoln was Shot), dies at 79
1988 – Fazlur Rahman, Pakistani modernist scholar, dies at 68
2009 – Merce Cunningham, American choreographer (Acrobat in Every Soul is a Circus), dies at 90
2021 – Ally Dawson, Scottish soccer defender (5 caps; Glasgow Rangers) and manager (Hamilton Academical), dies at 63

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Historical Events

1956 – 46 die in a collision between the SS Andrea Doria and the MS Stockholm off the coast of Nantucket
1990 – Roseanne Barr sings the National Anthem at Cincinnati Reds-San Diego Padres MLB game
1992 – 25th Olympic Games open in Barcelona, Spain
1994 – Jordan and Israel end 46-year state of war (Washington, D.C.)
2016 – England fast bowler Jimmy Anderson becomes the first quick to take 50 wickets against all other seven major Test cricket-playing nations during the second Test against Pakistan in Manchester

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Famous Birthdays

1639 – Thomas Tompion, English clockmaker (cylinder tunnel), born in Northill, Bedfordshire, England (d. 1713)
1945 – Jim Price, America session and touring horn player, and arranger (Rolling Stones; Bonnie and Delaney; Joe Cocker), born in Fort Worth, Texas
1948 – Brian Stableford, British sci-fi author (Day of Wrath), born in Shipley, Yorkshire, England
1949 – Denman Maroney, American jazz pianist and composer (Hyperpiano), born in New Jersey
1955 – Bantubonke Holomisa, South African Minister of Defense of Transkei, born in Mqanduli, Eastern Cape

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Famous Deaths

1987 – Alex Sadkin, American audio engineer, and record producer (Grace Jones; Thompson Twins), dies in a car crash in The Bahamas at 38
1998 – Tiny Rowland [Roland Fuhrop], German-British businessman and corporate raider (owned The Observer, tried to take over Harrods), dies of cancer at 80
2008 – Tracy Hall, American inventor (b. 1919)
2017 – Barbara Sinatra, American model and philanthropist, dies at 90
2024 – Pascal Danel [Jean-Jacques Pascal], French pop singer-songwriter (“Kilimandjaro”), dies at 80

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