Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1676 – Bacon’s Rebellion begins, frontiersmen vs Virginia government
1905 – 31st Kentucky Derby: Jack Martin aboard Agile wins in 2:100.75
1915 – Canadian physician Cluny Macpherson first presents his gas mask invention to the British War Office
1993 – Bill Walton is inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
1994 – Barbra Streisand’s begins 1st concert tour in 30 years, at the Capitol Centre in Landover, Maryland (after “warm-up” shows in Las Vegas and London)
2003 – The May 2003 tornado outbreak sequence takes place.

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Famous Birthdays

1705 – Gallus Zeiler, German composer, born in Kempten (d. 1755)
1760 – Johann Peter Hebel, German writer (Allemannische Gedichte), born in Basel (d. 1826)
1951 – Steve Gunderson, American politician (Rep-R-WI, 1981-97), born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin
1969 – Dennis Bergkamp, Dutch football player (Ajax; Netherlands), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands
1970 – Perry Blake, Irish singer-songwriter (The Hunchback of San Francisco), born in Sligo, Ireland
1981 – Katori Hall, American playwright and actress (The Hot Wing King), born in Memphis, Tennessee

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Famous Deaths

1691 – Colonel John Birch, English soldier (b. 1615)
1891 – Karl Wilhelm von Nägeli, Swiss botanist (famous for his work on plant cells), dies at 74
1995 – Jimmy Raney, American jazz guitarist, dies at 67
2010 – Frank Frazetta [Frazzetta], American fantasy illustrator of comic book, paperback, album cover art, dies of a stroke at 82
2020 – John Teerlinck, American NFL defensive end (SD Chargers) and coach (annual award for NFL best defensive line coach named after him), dies at 69
2021 – Néstor Montelongo, Uruguayan soccer utility (36 caps; Montevideo Wanderers, Peñarol, Nacional, Racing), dies at 66

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Historical Events

1967 – 1st flight of Fokker F-28 Fellowship
1980 – 35 motorists die when roadway collapses after Liberian freighter ‘Summit Venture’ rams Sunshine Skyway Bridge, during a squall (Tampa Bay, Florida)
1988 – Belgium: 8th government of Martens forms
1993 – Paraguay holds its first presidential and parliamentary elections in 50 years
1997 – San Diego Padres retire #35 worn by pitcher Randy Jones
2016 – Rodrigo Duterte wins Philippine presidential election, promising war on drug trade and killing of criminals

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Famous Birthdays

1796 – August Pauly, German writer (Real Encyclopedia), born in Benningen am Neckar, Baden-Württemberg, Germany (d. 1845)
1850 – Edward Weston, English-born American electrical engineer who invented the portable voltmeter, born in Wolverhampton, England (d. 1936)
1888 – Rolf de Maré, Swedish art collector and museum director, born in Stockholm (d. 1964)
1922 – Sheila Burrell, British actress (Black Orchid, Paranoiac, Laughter in Dark), born in Blackheath, London (d. 2011)
1975 – Tamia [Washington], Canadian RandB, hiphop, and pop singer, born in Windsor, Ontario
1980 – Tony Schmidt, German racing driver

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Famous Deaths

1791 – Francis Hopkinson, American judge, signer of the Declaration of Independence, author, flag designer (first American flag), and composer (The Battle of the Kegs), dies from an apoplectic seizure at 53
1958 – Bill Goodwin, American television announcer (Jolson Story, Burns and Allen), dies at 47
1968 – Harold Gray, American comic strip artist (Little Orphan Annie), dies at 74
1970 – Percy Brier, Australian composer, dies at 84
1986 – Dirk de Vroome, Dutch campaigner and Limbourg activist, dies at 60
2011 – Wouter Weylandt, Belgian cyclist, dies at 26

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Historical Events

1899 – The Irish Literary Theatre in Dublin opens
1902 – Mount Pelée on the French overseas island of Martinique erupts, wiping out the city of Saint-Pierre, killing 30,000 and leaving only two survivors
1926 – A. Philip Randolph organizes Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
1949 – West German constitution approved
1996 – Paris Saint-Germain of France win 36th European Cup Winner’s Cup against Rapid Wien of Austria 1-0 in Brussels
1996 – South Africa’s Constitutional Assembly adopts permanent post-apartheid constitution

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Famous Birthdays

1460 – Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (1486-1536), born in Ansbach, Bavaria, Germany (d. 1536)
1919 – Mordecai Anielewicz, Jewish commander of the Warsaw ghetto uprising, born in Wyszków, Second Polish Republic (d. 1943)
1930 – Doug Atkins, American College/Pro Football HOF defensive end (Uni of Tennessee; NFL C’ship 1954, 63; First-team All-Pro 1963; 8×Pro Bowl; Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears, NO Saints), born in Humbolt Tennessee (d. 2015)
1934 – Leonard Hoffmann, South African-British high court judge, born in Cape Town, South Africa
1937 – Dennis DeConcini, American politician (Sen-D-AZ, 1977-95), born in Tucson, Arizona
1967 – James Hurt, American jazz pianist, and composer (Dark Grooves – Mystical Rhythms), born in Memphis, Tennessee

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Famous Deaths

1672 – Jean-Armand du Peyrer, Comte de Tréville and French Officer (b. 1598)
1976 – Fred McLeod, Scottish golfer (US Open 1908), dies at 94
1979 – Talcott Parsons, American sociologist, dies at 76
1988 – Robert A. Heinlein, American sci-fi writer (Friday), dies of heart failure at 80
2000 – Karl-Rudi Griesbach, German composer, dies at 83
2018 – James Scott, American boxer and felon, dies at 71

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Historical Events

1867 – Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel patents dynamite in England, the first of three patents he would receive for the explosive material
1907 – Central American Court of Justice inaugurated in San Jose, Costa Rica – first standing tribunal for International Law in the world
1913 – Plot by English suffragettes to blow up part of St Paul’s cathedral thwarted when the bomb is discovered
1954 – French surrender to Vietminh after 55-day siege at Dien Bien Phu
1955 – USSR signs peace treaty with France and Great Britain
1995 – Twins beat Indians 10-9 in 17 innings, 6 hours and 36 minutes

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Famous Birthdays

1855 – Willie Fernie, Scottish golfer (British Open 1883), born in St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland (d. 1924)
1890 – Billy House, American actor (Imitation of Life; Bedlam: The Egg and I), born in Mankato, Minnesota (d. 1961)
1909 – Edwin Land, American inventor of instant photography and co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation, born in Bridgeport, Connecticut (d. 1991)
1931 – Gene Wolfe, American sci-fi author (Soldier of Arete), born in New York City
1933 – Nexhmije Pagarusha, Albanian singer ‘the Nightingale of Kosovo’ and actress, born near Malishevë, Kosovo (d. 2020)
1971 – Dave Karpa, Canadian NHL defenseman (Anaheim Mighty Ducks), born in Regina, Saskatchewan

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Famous Deaths

973 – Otto I the Great, Holy Roman Emperor (962-973), dies at 60
1667 – Johann Jakob Froberger, German organist, singer, and composer, dies at 50
1998 – Allan McLeod Cormack, South African physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1924)
2018 – Mikhail German, Russian writer, dies at 85
2020 – John Macurdy, American operatic bass (Met Opera), dies at 91
2021 – Yegor Ligachev, Soviet politician (ally then challenger to Gorbachev), dies at 100

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Historical Events

878 – Battle of Edington: Alfred the Great and his West Saxon army defeat Viking army of Guthrum the Old [earliest possible date]
1541 – King Henry VIII orders a bible in English be placed in every church in England
1907 – 33rd Kentucky Derby: In muddy conditions and against a reduced field Andy Minder aboard Pink Star wins in a slow 2:12.6
1935 – British King George V and Queen Mary celebrate silver jubilee
1967 – 400 students seize administration building at Cheyney State College, Pennsylvania
1975 – Bundy victim Lynette Culver disappears from Pocatello, Idaho

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Famous Birthdays

1638 – Henry Capell, 1st Baron Capell, English politician and First Lord of the British Admiralty, born in Hadham Parva, Hertfordshire (d. 1696)
1926 – Johnny Bragg, American doo-wop singer-songwriter (The Prisonaires – “Just Walkin’ in the Rain”), born in Nashville, Tennessee (d. 2004)
1951 – Samuel Doe, President of Liberia (d. 1990)
1956 – Tim Simpson, American golfer (4 PGA Tour titles, born in Atlanta, Georgia
1970 – Emerson Martin, NFL guard (Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers, Packers)
1977 – Christophe Brandt, Belgian cyclist

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Famous Deaths

1836 – Christian Ignatius Latrobe, English clergyman and composer (Selection of Sacred Music), dies at 78
1840 – Francisco de Paula Santander, Colombian president and independence leader (b. 1792)
1890 – Hubert Léonard, Belgian violinist, and pedagogue (Brussels Conservatoire, 1848-67), dies at 71
1995 – Hilda Toledano [Maria Pia de Braganca], Portuguese journalist and writer who claimed to be the bastard daughter of King Carlos I of Portugal, dies at 88
2004 – Philip Kapleau, American Zen teacher and founder (Rochester Zen Center in New Haven), dies at 91
2013 – Giulio Andreotti, Italian Prime Minister, dies at 94

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Historical Events

1854 – British Commodore James Plumridge attacks Finnish settlements in Gulf of Bothnia, killing civilans and destroying British-owned goods.
1864 – Battle of Wilderness, Virginia (Germanna Ford, Wilderness Tavern)
1955 – West Germany is granted full sovereignty by its three occupying powers
1979 – Masterpiece Radio Theater begins broadcasting
2002 – Jacques Chirac wins the French Presidential election for a second term defeating Jean-Marie Le Pen leader of the far-right National Front
2015 – “Traveller” debut album by Chris Stapleton is released (Grammy Award Best Country Album, 2016; Billboard Album of the Year, 2016)

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Famous Birthdays

1749 – Jean-Frédéric Edelmann, French composer, born in Strasbourg, France (d. 1794)
1854 – Antonio Smareglia, Italian composer, born in Pola, Austrian Empire (now Pula, Croatia) (d. 1929)
1911 – Norman Oldfield, English cricketer (Engl batsman one Test v WI 1939, 80 and 19), born in Dukinfield, Cheshire, England (d. 1996)
1938 – Michael Murphy, American actor (McCabe and Mrs Miller, Unmarried Woman), born in Los Angeles, California
1972 – Ronald Snook, Australian rower (Olympics bronze 1996), born in Dalwallinu, Western Australia
1977 – Choi Kang-hee, South Korean actress (Sweet Buns), born in Seoul, South Korea

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Famous Deaths

1582 – Charlotte de Bourbon, Princess of Orange, dies
1947 – Ty LaForest, Canadian baseball player, dies at 30
1957 – Mikhail Gnesin, Russian composer (Vrubel; The Youth Of Abraham), dies at 74
1992 – Dick Yarmy, American character actor (Get Smart; Kentucky Fried Movie; Mork and Mindy), dies of lung cancer at 58
2011 – Arthur Laurents, American playwright (West Side Story: Gypsy), and screenwriter (Rope; Anastasia), dies at 93
2023 – Terry Lewis, Australian disgraced police officer (Commissioner of the Queensland Police Service, 1976-87), and convict (corruption, forgery), dies at 95

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Historical Events

1471 – Battle of Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, final battle between the Houses of Lancaster and York: Prince of Wales, Edward of Westminster killed and King Edward IV returns to his throne, restoring political stability to England until his death in 1483
1776 – Rhode Island declares independence from Great Britain
1859 – The Cornwall Railway opens across the Royal Albert Bridge linking the counties of Devon and Cornwall in England.
1866 – Woodward’s Gardens opens to the public in San Francisco
1917 – A flotilla of US destroyer ships arrive in Queenstown, Ireland, to aid in convoying ships to England
1970 – National Guard kills 4 student anti-war protesters at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio

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Famous Birthdays

1822 – Charles Boucher de Boucherville, Premier of Quebec, born in Montreal, Quebec (d. 1915)
1923 – Eric Sykes, British radio, stage and television comedy writer, actor and director (Goon Show; Sykes and A…), born in Oldham, Lancahsire, England (d. 2012)
1926 – Gerlind Reinshagen, German writer, born in Konigsberg, Germany
1949 – John Force, American drag racer (16 NHRA Championships), born in Bell Gardens, California
1954 – Julie Budd, American singer (“Child of Plenty”), born in Brooklyn, New York
1992 – Courtney Jines, American actress (Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over), born in Fairfax, Virginia

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Famous Deaths

1937 – Noel Rosa, Brazilian guitrist, mandolin player, and songwriter, dies of tuberculosis at 26
1961 – Anita Stewart, American silent film actress (South of Hell Mountain), producer, and mystery novelist, dies of a heart attack at 66
1980 – Kay Hammond, British actress (Blithe Spirit, 5 Golden Hours), dies at 71
2009 – Jane Randolph, American actress (Cat People, Railroaded!), dies of complications after hip surgery at 93
2018 – Edwin G. Burrows, American historian and professor, dies at 74
2022 – Gerhard Mans, Namibian rugby union utility back (27 Tests; Orange Free State RFU, South West Africa RFU), dies at 60

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Historical Events

738 – Maya ruler 18 Rabbit of Copán is captured and beheaded by ruler Cauac Sky from the rival city of Quiriguá
1910 – Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States is renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
1921 – West Virginia imposes 1st state sales tax
1926 – US Marines land in Nicaragua (9 months after leaving), stay until 1933
1928 – Japanese atrocities in Jinan, China
1997 – 123rd Kentucky Derby: Gary Stevens aboard Silver Charm wins in 2:02.3

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Famous Birthdays

1662 – Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann, German architect, born in Herford, Germany (d. 1736)
1924 – Tom O’Horgan, American musical theater director (Hair; Jesus Christ Superstar), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2009)
1944 – Pete Staples, British rock bassist (Troggs – “Wild Thing”; “Love Is All Around”), born in Andover, Hampshire, England
1970 – Ted Crowley, American hockey defenseman (Olympics 1994), born in Concord, Massachusetts
1977 – Mashima Hiro, Japanese Mangaka of Rave Master and Fairy Tail, born in Nagano, Japan
1977 – Ryan Dempster, Canadian baseball player, born in Gibsons, British Columbia, Canada

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Famous Deaths

1841 – Cornelis T Elout, Dutch minister of Finance the Navy and Colonies, dies at 74
1955 – Rudolf Schlichter, German artist and writer, dies at 64
1976 – Ernie Nevers, American College, Pro Football Hall of Fame fullback, coach (Stanford, Chicago Cardinals), dies of heart and kidney ailments at 72
1991 – Mohammed Abdel Wahab, Egyptian singer and composer (b. 1907)
2018 – Alfonso Dhlakama, Mozambican politician and opposition leader (RENAMO), dies of a heart attack at 65
2023 – Linda Lewis [Fredericks], British pop-rock-soul singer-songwriter, and guitarist (“Rock-a-Doodle-Doo”), dies at 72

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Historical Events

1936 – Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie and family flee Abyssinia
1960 – Harry Belafonte’s 2nd Carnegie Hall performance (New York City)
1984 – New York Yankees Don Mattingly’s single breaks up Chicago White Sox pitcher Lamarr Hoyt’s perfect game bid, at Comiskey Park
1987 – 113th Kentucky Derby: Chris McCarron aboard Alysheba wins in 2:03.4
1992 – Allen Toussaint’s musical revue “High Rollers Social and Pleasure Club” closes at the Helen Hayes Theater, NYC, after 13 performances
1995 – Serbian missiles exploded in the heart of Zagreb, killing six

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Famous Birthdays

1901 – Willi Bredel, German writer, born in Hamburg (d. 1964)
1902 – Erin O’Brien-Moore, American actress (Peyton Place, Our Little Girl), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 1979)
1929 – Luc Ferrari, French composer, born in Paris (d. 2005)
1929 – Edward Levy, American composer, born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2002)
1945 – Bianca Jagger [Blanca Pérez-Mora Macías], Nicaraguan model and socialite who married Mike Jagger, born in Managua, Nicaragua
1950 – Randy Colley (Moondog Rex), American pro wrestler (WWF Tag Team champion 1981), born in Alexander City, Alabama (d. 2019)

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Famous Deaths

1250 – Toeransa, sultan of Egypt, murdered
1985 – Milton S Eisenhower, US diplomat, dies at 85
1991 – Leib Lensky, dies at 82
2009 – Marilyn French, American author (The Women’s Room), dies at 79
2018 – Bill Torrey, Canadian ice hockey executive (New York Islanders, Florida Panthers), dies at 83
2018 – Wang Danfeng, Chinese actress, dies at 93

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Historical Events

1919 – “L’Ordine Nuovo” Italian socialist weekly newspaper established in Turin by Antonio Gramsci, Angelo Tasca and Palmiro Togliatti
1928 – Drunken fascist Erich Wichman attacks VARA-radio transmitter
1954 – The Hudson Motor Car Company merges with the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation to form the American Motors Corporation
1963 – Indonesia takes control of Irian Jaya (west New Guinea) from the Netherlands
1996 – “Ideal Husband” opens at Barrymore Theater NYC for 308 performances
2000 – Barry Bonds is first MLB player to hit a homer into San Francisco Bay as Giants beat Mets, 10-3; hits 35 there during his SF career

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Famous Birthdays

1924 – Terry Southern, American writer and screenwriter (Dr. Strangelove, Easy Rider), born in Alvarado, Texas (d. 1995)
1954 – Ray Parker Jr, American rock guitarist and vocalist (Ghostbusters), born in Detroit, Michigan
1966 – Johnny Colt [Charles Brandt], American rock bassist (Black Crowes), born in Cherry Point, North Carolina
1966 – Armando Reynoso, Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher (Atlanta Braves, Colorado Rockies, New York Mets, Arizona Diamondbacks), born in San Luis Potosi, Mexico
1967 – Yael Arad, Israeli middleweight judoka (first Israeli to win an Olympic medal – silver 1996), born in Tel Aviv, Israel
1984 – David Backes, American ice hockey center (NHL All Star 2011; Olympic silver 2010; St. Louis Blues, Boston Bruins), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota

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Famous Deaths

1971 – Glenda Farrell, American actress (Golddiggers of 1935: Grand Slam; Exposed), dies of lung cancer at 66
1982 – Gene Sheldon, actor (Bernardo-Zorro), dies at 72
1986 – Hugo Peretti, American songwriter and record producer, dies at 69
1989 – Antonio Janigro, Italian cellist (Zagreb Soloists), dies at 71
1996 – Ivo Rudolph Jarosy, German-British film scholar and exhibitor, dies at 74
2017 – Janet Pilgrim, American early playmate model for Playboy (July 1955, Dec 1955, Oct 1956), dies at 82

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