Category: On This Day

Historical Events

514 – St Hormisdas elected as Pope succeeding Pope Sympowerus
1942 – Barbados dismiss Trinidad for 16 in 69 minutes, Derek Sealy taking 8-8; West Indian cricket domestic first class record
1961 – Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley’s musical “Stop The World – I Want To Get Off” premieres at Queen’s Theater in London’s West End
1963 – US Open Women’s Golf, Kenwood CC: Mary Mills wins her first of 3 major titles by 3 strokes ahead of runners-up Louise Suggs and Sandra Haynie
2015 – British Open Men’s Golf, St. Andrews: American Zach Johnson wins in a 4-hole play-off with Australian Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa

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Famous Birthdays

1513 – Gaspar Schetz, Dutch nobleman and financier (royal treasurer general of the Habsburg Netherlands), born in Antwerp, Duchy of Brabant, Holy Roman Empire (now Belgium) (d. 1580)
1663 – Pierre Drevet, French engraver, born in Loire-sur-Rhône, Lyon (d. 1738)
1945 – John Lodge, British bassist, vocalist, and songwriter (The Moody Blues – “I’m Just A Singer”; “Gemini Dream”), born in Birmingham, England
1973 – Peter Forsberg, Swedish NHL center (Colorado Avalanche), born in Ornskoldsvik, Sweden
1976 – Andrew Stockdale, Australian rock musician (Wolfmother), born in Brisbane, Australia

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Famous Deaths

1964 – Anna Vyrubova, Russian lady-in-waiting, the best friend and confidante of Tsaritsa Alexandra Fyodorovna, dies at 80
1984 – Gail Kubik, American composer (Gerald McBoing Boing), dies at 69
1999 – Sandra Gould, American actress (b. 1916)
2015 – Elio Fiorucci, Italian fashion designer, dies at 80
2022 – Douglas Mitchell, Canadian Football Hall of Fame executive (CFL Commissioner 1984-88), dies at 83

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Historical Events

1936 – Spanish premier Casares Quiroga succeeded by Jose Giral
1982 – David S Dodge becomes 1st American hostage in Lebanon
2013 – 20 people are killed by a suicide bombing in Diyala, Iraq
2018 – Largest intact sarcophagus of its kind ever found (2000 years old) opened in Alexandria, contains 3 skeletons, not a curse as feared
2023 – Scientists discover metals can self-heal after observing metals cracking and fusing back together, paving the way for future self-healing structures and vehicles

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Famous Birthdays

1822 – Princess Augusta of Cambridge, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and granddaughter of George III, born in Palace of Montbrillant, Hanover (d. 1916)
1823 – George Henry Gordon, American lawyer and Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Charlestown, Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1886)
1894 – Percy Spencer, American physicist and inventor of the microwave, born in Howland, Maine (d. 1970)
1974 – Vincent Spadea, American tennis player, born in Chicago, Illinois
1981 – Didz Hammond, British bassist and backing vocalist (Dirty Pretty Things; The Cooper Temple Clause), born in Reading, England

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Famous Deaths

1054 – Bernold[us] Benno/Bernulphus, bishop of Utrecht (1027-54)/saint, dies
1913 – Clímaco Calderón, President of Colombia for one day in 1882, dies at 60
1969 – Pavel I Apostolov, Russian military bandmaster, dies
1974 – Ernő Schwarz, Hungarian-American soccer forward (2 caps Hungary; Ferencváros, NY Giants, NY Americans) and coach (United States [men] 1953-56), dies at 69
2013 – Poncie Ponce, American actor (Kazuo Kim-Hawaiian Eye), dies from heart failure at 80

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Historical Events

1768 – Boston Gazette publishes “Liberty Song,” America’s first patriotic song
1925 – Adolf Hitler publishes Mein Kampf, original title was the catchy “Four and a Half Years (of Struggle) Against Lies, Stupidity and Cowardice”
1960 – 1st UN troops reach Congo
1968 – Intel Corporation is founded in Santa Clara, California
1976 – Stockhausens “Sirius” premieres in NYC

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Famous Birthdays

1823 – Leonard Fulton Ross, American lawyer, probate judge, and Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Lewistown, Illinois (d. 1901)
1848 – W. G. Grace, English cricket batsman and captain (22 Tests; 2 x 100, HS 170; 54,896 runs over record 44 FC seasons; Gloucestershire CCC), born in Bristol, England (d. 1915)
1888 – Sydney Horler, English detective writer (Checkmate), born in Leytonstone, Essex (d. 1954)
1927 – Carlo Franci, Italian composer and conductor, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 2019)
1969 – Elizabeth Gilbert, American author (Eat Pray, Love), born in Waterbury, Connecticut

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Famous Deaths

1695 – Johannes Camphuys, Governor-General of Dutch-Indies (1684-91), dies at 61
1902 – John White, American organist and composer based in Germany, dies at 47
2009 – Henry Allingham, oldest male British supercentenarian (born 1896) and World War I veteran, dies at 113 years, 42 days
2021 – Tom O’Connor, British comedian and TV game show host, dies from complications of Parkinson’s disease at 81
2022 – Claes Oldenburg, Swedish-American pop artist (Clothespin; Alphabet; Good Humor), dies at 93

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Historical Events

1948 – Israeli army captures Nazareth
1956 – MGM releases film “High Society”, a musical re-working of “The Philadelphia Story” set in Newport, Rhode Island; starring Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, and Frank Sinatra, with songs by Cole Porter
1964 – Don Campbell sets a record for a turbine vehicle at 690.91 kph (429.31 mph)
1987 – Iran and France break diplomatic relations
1988 – Florence Griffith Joyner of the USA sets 100 m woman’s record (10.49)

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Famous Birthdays

1878 – Henri Zagwijn, Dutch composer and musicologist, born in Nieuwer-Amstel, Netherlands (d. 1954)
1883 – Mauritz Stiller [Moshe Stiller], Swedish actor and director (The Saga of Gösta Berling, Erotikon), born in Helsinki, Finland (d. 1928)
1941 – Morimichi Takagi, Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame second baseman (NPB All-Star 1966–67, 73, 79; Chunichi Dragons), born in Gifu, Japan (d. 2020)
1947 – Abraham Laboriel, Sr, Mexican-American session and jazz bassist, born in Mexico City
1949 – Charlie Steiner, American sports broadcaster, born in Malverne, New York

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Famous Deaths

1709 – Robert Bolling, English settler in Virginia and politician, dies at 62
1928 – Giovanni Giolitti, 5x Prime Minister of Italy (1892-93, 1903-05, 1906-09, 1911-14, 1920-21), dies at 85
1943 – Sir Patrick Duncan, Governor-general of the Union of South Africa (1937 to 1943), dies at 72
1995 – Carlos Sánchez Málaga, Peruvian composer, dies at 91
2020 – Derek Ho, American surfer (World C’ship 1993; Hawaiian Triple Crown 1984, 86, 88, 90), dies from a heart attack at 55

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Historical Events

1790 – Congress declares the city of Washington in the District of Columbia, the permanent capital of the United States
1924 – NY Giants George Kelly is 1st to hit HRs in 6 cons games
1942 – French police arrest 13,152 Jews in Paris
1995 – Red Buttons’ one-man show “Buttons on Broadway” closes at Ambassador Theater, NYC, after 33 performances
2017 – Kawhi Leonard re-signs with the San Antonio Spurs to a five-year, $90 million contract

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Famous Birthdays

1925 – Cal Tjader, American Latin jazz vibraphonist, born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 1982)
1948 – Rubén Blades, Panamanian singer and actor, born in Panama City, Panama
1949 – Ray Majors, British rock guitarist (Mott the Hoople, 1975-76; British Lions, 1977-78), born in the UK (d. 2022)
1966 – Mike Horn, South African explorer, 1st to reach North Pole without dog or motorized transport, born in Johannesburg, South Africa
1980 – Adam Scott, Australian golfer (US Masters 2013), born in Adelaide, South Australia

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Famous Deaths

1736 – Thomas Yalden, poet/fable writer, dies
1879 – Edward Deas Thomson, British-Australian politician, chancellor of the University of Sydney, and member of the Legislative Council of NSW, dies at 79
1979 – James F Mcintyre, archbishop of Los Angeles, dies at 93
1991 – Dwight Weist, Radio actor and film narrator (Radio Days), dies at 81
2019 – John Paul Stevens, American lawyer and 103rd Supreme Court Justice (1975-2010), dies from complications of a stroke at 99

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Historical Events

1815 – Napoleon surrenders to Captain Frederick Maitland of HMS Bellerophon at Rochefort after his earlier defeat at the Battle of Waterloo
1946 – British North Borneo Company transfers its rights to modern day Sabah to the British Crown
1954 – 110°F (43°C) at Balcony Falls, Virginia (state record)
1968 – NJ Americans moved to Comack and become NY Nets (ABA)
1982 – Senate confirms George P. Shultz as US 60th Secretary of State by vote of 97-0

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Famous Birthdays

1914 – Akhtar Hameed Khan, Pakistani pioneer of Microcredit in developing countries, born in Agra, British India (d. 1999)
1924 – Jeremiah Denton, American politician (Senator-R-Alabama, 1981-86), born in Mobile, Alabama (d. 2014)
1949 – WiIlliam Faure, South African film producer (Shaka Zulu), born in South Africa (d. 1994)
1956 – Kathy Kreiner, Canadian alpine skier (Olympic gold giant slalom 1976), born in Timmins, Ontario
1961 – Forest Whitaker, American actor and director (“The Last King of Scotland”; “Platoon”), born in Longview, Texas

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Famous Deaths

1871 – Tad Lincoln, youngest son of US President Abraham Lincoln, dies at 18
1919 – [Hermann] Emil Fischer, German chemist, discovered Fischer esterification (Nobel Prize 1902), commits suicide at 66
1931 – Ladislaus Bortkiewicz, Russian mathematician (Poisson distribution) and economist, dies at 62
1939 – Percy Scott Worthington, architect, dies
1961 – John E. Brownlee, Canadian politician (b. 1884)

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Historical Events

1966 – 53rd Tour de France won by Lucien Aimar of France
1985 – Last USFL game-Baltimore Stars defeats Oakland Invaders, 28-24
1990 – Sara Martin, of Illinois, crowned America’s Junior Miss
1996 – NY Yankees sweep complete season series in Baltimore for first time
2013 – US Senior Open Men’s Golf, Omaha CC: Kenny Perry wins by 5 strokes ahead of runner-up Fred Funk

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Famous Birthdays

1921 – Geoffrey Wilkinson, English chemist (1973 Nobel Prize – organometallic compounds), born in Todmorden, England (d. 1996)
1928 – Nancy Olson, American actress (Sunset Boulevard; The Absent-Minded Professor; Pollyanna), born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1952 – Jerry Houser, American actor (Slapshot, Summer of ’42, Class of ’44), born in Los Angeles, California
1959 – Susana Martinez, American politician (Governor of New Mexico) 1st female Hispanic US governor, born in El Paso, Texas
1966 – Matthew Fox, American actor (Party of 5, Lost), born in Abington, Pennsylvania

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Famous Deaths

1614 – Camillus de Lellis, Italian Roman Catholic saint (founder of the Ministers of the Sick), dies at 64
1744 – Immanuel J. Pyra, German poet (Temple of True Poetry), dies at 28
1789 – Jacques de Flesselles, French provost, shot and killed in the early days of the French Revolution at 58
1816 – Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela freedom fighter, dies at 66
1984 – Ernest Tidyman, American author and screenwriter (Shaft; The French Connection), dies at 56

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Historical Events

1911 – Great Britain and Japan renew their alliance of 1902 for another four years; the reason Japan joins WWI on the Allies side
1967 – Race riots break out in Newark, New Jersey; 27 die
2012 – Financially troubled Scottish football club, Rangers, is voted into the third division
2018 – Outline of 5,000-year-old henge is discovered at Newgrange, Ireland, through drought and drone footage
2022 – Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa flees to the Maldives just before leaving office amid nationwide protests and economic unrest

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Famous Birthdays

1895 – Sidney Blackmer, American actor (played Ted Roosevelt in 7 movies, Rosemary’s Baby), born in Salisbury, North Carolina (d. 1973)
1913 – Dave Garroway, American TV host (Today Show, 1951-61), born in Schnectady, New York (d. 1982)
1924 – Carlo Bergonzi, Italian operatic tenor, born in Vidalenzo, Italy (d. 2014)
1941 – Lut Tomsin, Belgian actress and director (Knock on the Door), born in Tongeren, Belgium
1974 – Jarno Trulli, Italian auto racer (Monaco F1 GP 2004; German Formula 3 Series 1996), born in Pescara, Italy

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Famous Deaths

1762 – James Bradley, English astronomer, 3rd Royal, discovered Earth’s nutation motion, dies at 69
1965 – Photis Kontoglou, Greek writer, painter and iconographer, dies at 69
1997 – Alexandra Danilova, Russian-American ballerina (The Turning Point), dies at 92
2012 – Richard Darryl Zanuck, American Academy Award-winning film producer, dies from a heart attack at 77
2020 – Chuck Hulse, American auto racer (USAC Champ Car Series, 26 x top 10 finishes), dies at 92

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Historical Events

1927 – Yankees slugger Babe Ruth, half way to his MLB record of 60 home runs, smacks #30 off Joe Shautes in 9th inning in New York’s 7-0 win over Cleveland Indians at Dunn Field in Cleveland
1943 – National Committee Freies Deutschland forms
1951 – NY Yankees pitcher Allie Reynolds throws no-hitter in Cleveland against the Indians, his former team, in a 1-0 win
1975 – Sao Tomé e Príncipe gains independence from Portugal (National Day)
1996 – Start of 1st “Super 8’s” tournament in Kuala Lumpur

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Famous Birthdays

1852 – Hipólito Yrigoyen, President of Argentina (1916-22, 1928-30), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 1933)
1870 – Louis II [Louis Honoré Charles Antoine Grimaldi], Prince of Monaco, born in Baden-Baden, Germany (d. 1949)
1912 – Will Bradley [Wilbur Schwichtenberg], American session, jazz, and boogie-woogie trombonist and bandleader (“Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar”), born in Newton, New Jersey (d. 1989)
1935 – Hans Tilkowski, German soccer goalkeeper (39 caps, West Germany; Westfalia Herne, Borussia Dortmund, Eintracht Frankfurt), born in Husen, Germany (d. 2020)
1946 – Sian Barbara Allen, American actress (Scream Pretty Peggy), born in Reading, Pennsylvania (d. 2025)

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Famous Deaths

1934 – Ole Evinrude, Norwegian-American industrialist and inventor (outboard marine engine), dies at 57
1990 – Richard R Briggs, dies after short illness at 71
1995 – Ernie Furtado, American jazz double-bassist, dies at 72
1996 – John Boon, English publisher (MiIls and Boon), dies at 79
2004 – Betty Oliphant, co-founder of National Ballet of Canada (b. 1918)

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Historical Events

1616 – Samuel de Champlain returns to Quebec
1859 – Big Ben’s second and current bell first chimes inside the Clock Tower
1864 – Confederate forces led by General Jubal Early begin invasion of Washington, D.C. with the Battle of Fort Stevens
1915 – German cruiser Königsberg sinks off Dar-es-Salam
1995 – Shaggy releases his third studio album “Bombastic” (Grammy Award Best Reggae Album)

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Famous Birthdays

1826 – Alexander Afanasyev, Russian ethnographer and folklorist, born in Boguchar, Voronezh Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1871)
1909 – Greta Schoon, German poet, and kindergarten teacher, born in Spetzerfehn, Germany (d. 1991)
1924 – Claus Bremer, German dramatist, born in Hamburg (d. 1996)
1929 – David Kelly, Irish actor (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – “Grandpa Joe”;, Fawlty Towers), born in Dublin, Ireland (d. 2012)
1990 – Caroline Wozniacki, Danish tennis player (Australian Open 2018), born in Odense, Denmark

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Famous Deaths

1302 – Robert II, Count of Artois and French soldier, dies in the Battle of the Golden Spurs at 51
1593 – Giuseppe Arcimboldo, 1st surrealist painter, dies (birth date unkn)
1874 – Xavier de Mérode, Belgium minister to the Pope in Rome, dies at 54
1998 – Lilí Álvarez, Spanish tennis player (Wimbledon runner-up 1926-28), dies at 93
2022 – Víctor Benítez, Peruvian soccer centre-back / defensive midfielder (11 caps; AC Milan, Roma, Inter Milan, Boca Juniors), dies at 86

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