Category: On This Day

Historical Events

1582 – Prince William I of Orange injured in attack at Antwerp
1933 – US Ladies’ Figure Skating championship won by Maribel Vinson
1961 – 6th Eurovision Song Contest: Jean-Claude Pascal for Luxembourg wins “Nous les amoureux” in Cannes
1963 – “Tovarich” opens at Broadway Theater NYC for 264 performances
1989 – Dino Ciccarelli sets Washington Capital record of 7 pts in a game

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Famous Birthdays

1877 – Clem Hill, Australian cricket batsman and captain (49 Tests, 7 x 100, HS 191; South Australia CA), born in Adelaide, Australia (d. 1945)
1886 – Marianne Philips, Dutch author (Between Heaven and Earth), born in Amsterdam (d. 1951)
1946 – Michael Reagan, American conservative talk show host and adopted son of Ronald Reagan and Jane Wyman, born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2026)
1950 – Frank O’Keefe, American southern rock bassist (The Outlaws, 1968-76), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1995)
1986 – Abdennour Cherif El Ouazzani, Algerian footballer

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Famous Deaths

1907 – Marcellin Berthelot, French chemist (Thomsen–Berthelot principle of thermochemistry), dies at 79
1918 – Willem Coenen, Dutch pianist and composer, dies at 81
1982 – George Lampe, Dutch painter and director (Free Academy), dies at 60
1983 – Kenneth E. Boulding, English economist (b. 1910)
1999 – Elizabeth Huckaby, American educator, dies at 93

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Historical Events

1929 – Spanish dictator Primo de Rivera closes university of Madrid
1973 – St. Patrick’s Day marchers carry 14 coffins commemorating Bloody Sunday
2008 – Governor Eliot Spitzer of New York resigns after scandal involving a high-end prostitute; David Paterson becomes acting governor
2013 – Toyo Ito wins the 2013 Pritzker Architecture Prize
2018 – China’s National People’s Congress appoints Wang Qishan as vice-president

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Famous Birthdays

1877 – Albert Hahn, Dutch political cartoonist (Het Volk), born in Groningen, Netherlands (d. 1918)
1880 – Guillermo Uribe Holguin, Colombian composer, born in Bogotá, Colombia (d. 1971)
1881 – Kristian Elster, Norwegian author (Less bror Harris), born in Trondheim, Norway (d. 1947)
1931 – Lorraine Ellison, American soul singer (“Stay with Me”; “Try (Just a Little Bit Harder)”), and songwriter, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1983)
1987 – Rob Kardashian, American television personality and only son of Robert Kardashian and Kris Jenner (Keeping Up with the Kardashians), born in Los Angeles, California

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Famous Deaths

1801 – Juan de Sesé y Balaguer, Aragonese composer, dies at 64
1910 – Joaquin Valverde Durán, Spanish composer, dies at 64
1956 – Irene Joliot-Curie, French chemist and physicist (Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1935) and daughter of Marie Curie, dies of leukemia at 58
1992 – George Lovi, American columnist (Sky and Telescope’s “Ramblings”), dies
2025 – John A. Hemingway, Irish Royal Air Force pilot who fought in the Battle of Britain during World War Ⅱ, dies at 105

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Historical Events

1322 – The Battle of Boroughbridge takes place in the First War of Scottish Independence
1802 – US Army Corps of Engineers established (2nd time)
1830 – London’s re-organised police force (Scotland Yard)
1865 – Battle of Averasboro North Carolina (1,500 casualties)
1958 – LPGA Titleholders Championship Women’s Golf, Augusta CC: Beverly Hanson wins by 5 strokes ahead of Betty Dodd

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Famous Birthdays

1581 – Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, Dutch historian, poet and playwright (Grandida; Nederduytsche Historiën / History of the Netherlands), born in Amsterdam, Dutch Republic (d. 1647)
1776 – Johan Gijsbert Verstolk van Soelen, Dutch minister of Foreign Affairs, born in Rotterdam, Netherlands (d. 1845)
1929 – Nadja Tiller, Austrian actress (Ich suche Dich, Rosemary), and beauty queen (Miss Austria, 1949), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 2023)
1964 – Gore Verbinski, American movie director (Pirates of the Caribbean films; Rango), born in Oak Ridge, Tennessee
1991 – Wolfgang Van Halen, American rock bassist son of guitarist Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli, born in Santa Monica, California

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Famous Deaths

1977 – Kamal Jumblatt, Lebanese politician and founder of the Progressive Socialist Party, assassinated by unknown gunmen at 59
2015 – Andy Fraser, English bass guitarist (Free), dies at 62
2021 – Erhan Önal, Turkish soccer central defender (12 caps; FC Bayern Munich, Standard Liège, Galatasaray), dies at 63
2022 – Bobby Weinstein, American songwriter (with Teddy Randazzo – “I’m on the Outside Looking In”, “Goin’ Out of My Head”, “It’s Gonna Take a Miracle”), and music executive, dies at 82
2025 – Doug Laughton, English rugby league lock (15 Tests GB; St. Helens, Wigan, Widnes) and coach (Widnes 504 games), dies at 80

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Historical Events

221 – Liu Bei, a Chinese warlord and member of the Han royal house, declares himself Emperor of Shu-Han, claiming legitimate succession to the Han Dynasty
1906 – Britons Henry Rolls, Charles Royce and Claude Johnson formalize their existing partnership as Rolls Royce Ltd
1913 – 1st US presidential press conference, held by Woodrow Wilson
1954 – “CBS Morning Show” premieres with Walter Cronkite and Jack Paar
2023 – Another atmospheric river creates a storm across California, bringing widespread flooding and power outages, with Monterey County issuing a 25 mile evacuation order

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Famous Birthdays

1831 – Edward Aylesworth Perry, American soldier and politician (General under Lee for Confederate Army, 14th Governor of Florida 1885-89), born in Richmond, Massachusetts (d. 1889)
1831 – Daniele Comboni, Italian Catholic missionary and Vicar Apostolic of Central Africa (1877-81), born in Limone sul Garda, Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia (d. 1881)
1838 – Alice Cunningham Fletcher, American ethnologist and anthropologist who studied native American culture (advocated for Dawes Act), born in Havana, Cuba (d. 1923)
1969 – Yutaka Take, Japanese jockey (Japan Cup x 5; JRA Grand Prize Jockey 1997-2000, 02-06; Japanese Triple Crown 2005), born in Kyoto, Japan
1974 – Vaughan Gething, Welsh first minister (2024-) Labour and Co-operative politician, born in Usaka, Zambia

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Famous Deaths

1842 – Luigi Cherubini, Italian musical prodigy, composer (Médée; Requiem in D minor), and educator (Conservatoire de Paris, 1822-42), dies at 81
1987 – W. Sterling Cole, American politician (Rep-R-NY, Director International Atomic Energy Agency), dies at 82
2015 – Mike Porcaro, American rock bassist (Toto, 1982-2007 “Stranger In Town”), dies from Lou Gehrig’s disease at 59
2018 – Robert Grossman, American illustrator, dies of heart failure at 78
2020 – Suzy Delair, French singer and actress (The Murderer Lives at Number 21; Utopia; White Paws), dies at 102

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Historical Events

1800 – Luigi Chiaramonti elected Pope Pius VII
1900 – Dutch botanist Hugo de Vries rediscovers Gregor Mendel’s laws of heredity and genetics
1972 – NBA’s Cincinnati Royals, plagued by poor home attendance, announce they are moving franchise to Kansas City
2013 – 7 people are killed after gunmen storm a bar in Cancun, Mexico
2021 – UK police officer charged with the death of Sarah Everard, who disappeared walking home in south London, and whose death sparked debate about violence against women

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Famous Birthdays

1804 – Johann Strauss the Elder, Viennese violinist and composer (Radetzky March), born in Leopoldstadt, Austria (d. 1849)
1898 – Arnold Chikobava, Georgian linguist, born in Sachikobavo, Georgia, Russian Empire (d. 1985)
1917 – Macha Rosenthal, American critic and poet (Poetry as Confession), born in Washington D.C. (d. 1996)
1938 – Eleanor Bron, British actress (Women in Love, Bedazzled), born in Stanmore, England
1945 – Michael Martin Murphey, American country singer (Wildfire), born in Dallas, Texas

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Famous Deaths

1903 – Jan Hendrik Weissenbruch, Dutch landscape painter, dies at 88
1917 – Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia, Duchess of Connaugh and Strathearn, dies of influenza at 56
1976 – Busby Berkeley [Enos], American film choreographer (42nd Street) and director (Strike Up The Band; They Made Me A Criminal), dies at 80
1991 – Howard Ashman, American playwright and lyricist (Little Shop of Horrors; The Little Mermaid), dies of AIDS-related complications at 40
2023 – Jim Ferree, American golfer (1 x PGA Tour win; 2 x Senior PGA Tour wins), dies at 91

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Historical Events

1759 – 27th recorded perihelion passage of Halley’s Comet
1913 – Kansas legislature approved censorship of motion pictures
1921 – Mongolia (formerly Outer Mongolia) declares independence from China
1930 – Clyde Tombaugh announces the discovery of Pluto at Lowell Observatory
1954 – Braves’ Bobby Thomson breaks his ankle, he is replaced by Hank Aaron

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Famous Birthdays

1372 – Louis I, Duke of Orléans, Brother of Charles VI of France, born in Paris (d. 1407)
1599 – Johannes Berchmans, Dutch Jesuit and Roman Catholic saint, born in Diest, Seventeen Provinces (d. 1621)
1700 – Michel Blavet, French composer, born in Besançon, France (d. 1768)
1910 – Karl Gustav Ahlefeldt, Danish actor (Gertrud, Hooray for the Blue Hussars), born in Copenhagen, Denmark (d. 1985)
1950 – Charles Krauthammer, American conservative political commentator and psychiatrist (The Washington Post), born in New York City (d. 2018)

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Famous Deaths

1808 – Christian VII, King of Denmark and Norway (1766-1808), dies of a stroke at 59
1965 – Fan S. Noli, Albanian bishop, poet, and politician (b. 1882)
1994 – Murt [Edward James] O’Donoghue, New Zealand snooker player (1st witnessed 147 break), dies at 93
1995 – Odette Hallowes, British classified agent in France (WWII), dies at 82
1996 – Krzysztof Kieślowski, Polish film director (The Double Life of Veronique), dies of a heart attack at 54

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Historical Events

1365 – University of Vienna is founded
1877 – Great Britain annexes Walvis Bay at Cape colony, Southern Africa.
1966 – Chicago Black Hawks Bobby Hull’s 51st goal of season, sets record
1969 – 120 cannabis joints found at George Harrison and Patti Harrison’s home in Esher, England
1991 – 5th Soul Train Music Awards: Johnny Gill, Mariah Carey win

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Famous Birthdays

1888 – Hall Johnson, American composer (Hall Johnson Choir), born in Athens, Georgia (d. 1970)
1924 – Martha Nierenberg [née Weiss de Csepel], Hungarian-American biochemist, furniture designer and co-founder of Dansk Designs, born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 2020)
1938 – Norman Hogg, British MP
1948 – James Taylor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (“Fire And Rain”; “You’ve Got A Friend”; “Shower The People”), born in Boston, Massachusetts
1949 – David Mellor, British MP who resigned due to scandal, born in Wareham, England

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Famous Deaths

1924 – Hilaire de Chardonnet, French industrialist and inventor (rayon), dies at 84
1950 – L Heinrich Mann, German/American writer (Between the Races), dies at 78
2004 – Sylvi Saimo, Finnish kayaker (Olympic gold K-1 500m 1952, 1st Finnish female summer Olympic champion), dies at 89
2010 – Lesley Duncan (Cox), British session singer (Pink Floyd; Jesus Christ Superstar), and singer-songwriter (“Love Song”; “Sing Children Sing”), dies of cerebrovascular disease at 66
2012 – Michael Hossack, American rock drummer (The Doobie Brothers), dies of cancer at 65

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Historical Events

1513 – Giovanni de’ Medici chosen Pope Leo X
1665 – NY approves new code guaranteeing Protestants religious rights
1924 – 3rd term of Belgium Theunis government begins
1982 – Failed military coup under Rambocus and Hawker in Suriname
2020 – Smallest dinosaur ever discovered – skull preserved in piece of amber smaller than a fingertip from a mine in Myanmar, reported in “Nature”

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Famous Birthdays

1819 – Marius Petipa, French ballet dancer and choreographer (Don Quiotte), born in Marseille, France (d. 1910)
1907 – Eleni Gatzoyiannis, Greek heroine (subject of “Eleni” by son Nicholas Gage about how she saved her children), born in Greece (d. 1948)
1915 – Vijay Hazare, Indian cricket batsman and captain (30 Tests, 7 x 100, HS 164no; Maharashtra, Central India, Baroda, Holkar), born in Sangli, India (d. 2004)
1945 – Dock Ellis, American baseball pitcher (MLB All-Star and World Series 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates; pitched no-hitter 1971), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2008)
1961 – Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, ruler and President of the UAE (2022-), born in Al Ain, Trucial States

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Famous Deaths

1915 – Thomas Alexander Browne, Australian writer (Robbery Under Arms), dies at 88
1989 – John Jay McCloy, American lawyer and banker (Secretary of War 1941-45, Chairman Chase Manhattan Bank, President of World Bank 1947-49), dies at 93
1997 – Hugo Weisgall, American composer (4 Impressions), dies at 84
2000 – Alfred Schwarzmann, German gymnast (Olympic gold individual, team, horse vault, 2 x bronze 1936; silver 1952), dies at 87
2019 – Hal Blaine [Harold Belsky], American pop and rock session drummer (The Wrecking Crew), dies at 90

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Historical Events

1791 – Pope condemns France’s Civil Constitution of the clergy
1874 – Purdue University (Indiana) admits its 1st student
1962 – Gala preview dinner held atop the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington, prior to opening of the Century 21 Exposition (World’s Fair)
1964 – Simon and Garfunkel record the first version of “The Sound of Silence” at Columbia Studios in New York City
1996 – 37th SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament: Mississippi State beats Kentucky, 84-73

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Famous Birthdays

1769 – Joseph Williamson, English philanthropist and tunnel builder (Williamson tunnels in Liverpool), born in West Riding, England (d. 1840)
1887 – Toshitsugu Takamatsu, Japanese martial artist and Bujinkan teacher, born in Akashi, Japan (d. 1972)
1916 – Pamela Mason [Ostrer], British actress, author and talk-show host (Lady Possessed), born in Rochford, England (d. 1996)
1933 – Ralph Emery, American country music DJ and television host (Nashville Now), born in McEwen, Tennessee (d. 2022)
1970 – Matt Barlow, American heavy metal vocalist (Ashes of Ares; Iced Earth; Pyramaze), born in Biloxi, Mississippi

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Famous Deaths

1897 – Teodulo Mabellini, Italian composer, dies at 79
1967 – Yiorgos Batis, Greek composer and rebetiko musician, dies at about 82
1994 – Robert Shea, American author (Illuminatus!), dies of cancer at 61
1999 – Oswaldo Guayasamín, Ecuadorian master painter and sculptor, dies at 79
2024 – Karl Wallinger, Welsh rocker and songwriter (The Waterboys, 1983-85; World Party – “Give It All Away”; “Ship Of Fools”), dies of a stroke at 66

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Historical Events

1776 – Adam Smith publishes the influential economics book “The Wealth of Nations”
1809 – A group of conspirators break into Gripsholm Castle and imprison King Gustav IV Adolf and appoint Charles XIII in his place as Regent of Sweden
1922 – Eugene O’Neill’s “Hairy Ape” premieres in NYC
1984 – The Competitive Enterprise Institute is founded in Washington, D.C.
2020 – National one-day women’s strike held in Mexico to protest high rates of femicide (more than 10 women murdered every day)

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Famous Birthdays

1891 – José P. Laurel, 3rd President of the Philippines (1942-44), born in Tanauan, Batangas (d. 1959)
1892 – Frank Puglia, Italian actor (Black Orchid, Jungle Book), born in Sicily, Italy (d. 1975)
1930 – Thomas Schippers, American conductor (Amahl and Night Visitors), born in Kalamazoo, Michigan (d. 1977)
1937 – Grahame Chevalier, South African cricketer (one Test for South Africa 1970, 0 and 0*, 5-100), born in Cape Town, South Africa (d. 2017)
1981 – Clay Rapada, American baseball player, born in Chesapeake, Virginia

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Famous Deaths

1688 – Claude Mellan, French engraver, cartoonist and painter, dies at 89
1980 – Olga Chekova, actress (Moulin Rouge, Pawns of Possession), dies at 82
2010 – Doris Haddock, American political activist (b. 1910)
2011 – Inge Sørensen, Danish swimmer (youngest female Olympic Games medalist in an individual event [12] bronze 200m breaststroke 1936), dies at 86
2012 – Peter Bergman, American comedian, dies from leukemia at 72

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