Category: On This Day

Historical Events

768 – Charlemagne and his brother Carloman I are crowned Kings of The Franks
1740 – Dutch governor general Adriaen Valckenier allows murder of 8,000 Chinese inhabitants of Batavia
1924 – Municipal Grant Park Stadium, in Chicago Illinois (now known as Soldier Field) is officially dedicated
1981 – United States Auto Club appeals panel restores disputed Indianapolis 500 victory to disqualified first-across-the-line Bobby Unser
1990 – Saddam Hussein threatens to hit Israel with a new missile
2015 – Selena Gomez releases her studio album “Revival”, goes to #1 on Billboard 200

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Famous Birthdays

1766 – Bedrich Divis Weber, Bohemian composer and musicologist, born in Velichov, Czech Republic (d. 1842)
1933 – Peter Mansfield, British Physician whose discoveries led to MRI (2003 Nobel Prize), born in London (d. 2017)
1935 – Paul Barton, New Zealand cricket batsman (7 Tests, 1 x 100; Wellington), born in Wellington, New Zealand
1944 – Nona Hendryx, American RandB singer-songwriter (Patti LaBelle and Blue Belles; LaBelle – “Lady Marmalade”), born in Trenton, New Jersey
1950 – Mick Malone, Australian cricketer (WA seamer, Test 1977, made 46 took 5-63, 1-14), born in Scarborough, Australia
1955 – Linwood Boomer, Canadian-American actor (Adam-Little House on the Prairie), born in Vancouver, British Columbia

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Famous Deaths

1709 – Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, English mistress of Charles II of England, dies at 68
1967 – Andre Maurois [Emile Herzog], French writer (Balzac), dies at 82
1973 – Sister Rosetta Tharpe [Nubin], American gospel and RandB singer, songwriter, and electric guitarist (“This Train”; “Down By The Riverside”), dies of a stroke at 58
2001 – Herbert Ross, American film director and producer (Footloose, Steel Magnolias, dies at 74
2011 – Pavel Karelin, Russian ski jumper (b. 1989)
2013 – Mark “Chopper” Read, Australian criminal and crime author (Chopper: From the Inside), dies from liver cancer at 58

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Historical Events

1625 – English Admiral George Villiers’ fleet sails from Plymouth to Cadiz, Spain
1934 – Bruno Hauptmann is indicted for the murder of Charles Lindbergh’s son
1972 – International music revue “From Israel with Love” closes limited run at Palace Theater, NYC, after 8 performances
1980 – USSR and Syria sign peace treaty
1986 – Mike Scott ties playoff record of 14 strikeouts, beats Mets 1-0
2016 – 140 people are killed in an air strike during a wake in Sanaa, Yemen

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Famous Birthdays

1834 – Walter Kittredge, American musician during American Civil War, born in Merrimack, New Hampshire (d. 1905)
1959 – Carlos I. Noriega, Peruvian-American astronaut (STS 84, sk 97), born in Lima, Peru
1961 – Ted Kooshian, American jazz pianist (Hubub!; Standard Orbit Quartet; Clowns Will Be Arriving), born in San Jose, California
1965 – Martin Mayhew, American NFL cornerback (Tampa Bay Bucs), born in Daytona Beach, California
1970 – Anne-Marie Duff, English actress (Shameless), born in London, England
1977 – Erna Siikavirta, Finnish heavy metal keyboardist (Deathlike Silence, 2006-08; Lordi, 1997-2005), born in Espoo, Finland

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Famous Deaths

1772 – Jean-Joseph Cassenea de Mondonville, French composer and violinist, dies at 60
1925 – Abraham Pieter Cornelis van Karnebeek, Dutch Foreign Minister (Liberal, 1918-27), dies at 89
1987 – Konstantinos Tsatsos, Greek politician and 2nd President of Greece (1975-1980), dies at 88
1990 – B.J. Wilson, British session and touring rock drummer (Procol Harum, 1967-77; Joe Cocker), dies of a drug overdose complications and pneumonia at 43
1995 – Terry Hawkins, theatre administrator, dies at 45
2008 – Eileen Herlie [Herlihy], Scottish-American actress (All My Children; The Angel with the Trumpet), dies of complications from pneumonia at 90

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Historical Events

1763 – George III of Great Britain issues Proclamation of 1763, closing lands in North America north and west of Alleghenies to white settlement
1919 – KLM, Royal Dutch Airlines, established (oldest existing airline)
1943 – Weill, Perelman and Nash’ musical “One Touch of Venus” premieres in NYC
2010 – Peruvian author Mario Vargas Llosa is awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature “for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual’s resistance, revolt, and defeat”
2018 – Romanian referendum to ban same sex marriage fails with only 20.4% voting
2019 – Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology awarded to Peter Ratcliffe, William Kaelin and Gregg Semenza for discovering how cells sense oxygen

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Famous Birthdays

1881 – Mikhail Drozdovsky, Russian general (d. 1918)
1916 – Walt Rostow, American economist and political theorist (The Stages of Economic Growth: A Non-Communist Manifesto), born in NYC, New York (d. 2003)
1951 – John Mellencamp, American rock singer-songwriter (“Jack and Diane”; “Small Town”; “Pink Houses”), co-founder of Farm Aid, and actor (Falling From Grace), born in Seymour, Indiana
1955 – Yo-Yo Ma, Chinese-American cellist (2001 National Medal of Arts, 2011 Presidential Medal of Freedom), born in Paris, France
1973 – Dida, Brazilian footballer, born in Bahia, Brazil
1982 – Madjid Bougherra, Algerian footballer, born in Longvic, France

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Famous Deaths

1555 – Louis of Praet, Habsburg diplomat (b. 1488)
1925 – Hubert Main, American hymn composer, dies at 86
1999 – Deryck Guyler, British actor (Please Sir!; Sykes), dies at 85
2005 – Doug Young, American national and world powerlifting champion, dies of a heart attack at 61
2008 – Leslie Hardman, Jewish Orthodox rabbi (b. 1913)
2016 – Johnny Gleeson, Australian cricket spin bowler (29 Tests, 93 wickets, BB 5/61; NSW CA), dies at 78

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Historical Events

1866 – 1st train robbery in US (Reno Brothers take $13,000)
1908 – Tigers beat White Sox, 7-0 to win AL pennant
1962 – US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Johnston Island
1966 – LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is first declared illegal in state of California, other states follow
1995 – BPAA US Women’s Open won by Cheryl Daniels
2018 – Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed and sworn onto the US Supreme Court amid protests and after an FBI investigation

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Famous Birthdays

1820 – Jenny Lind, Swedish soprano known as the ‘Swedish Nightingale’, born in Stockholm, Sweden (d. 1887)
1927 – Alice Bauer, American golfer (co-founder LPGA), born in Eureka, South Dakota (d. 2002)
1946 – Tony Greig, English cricket captain, all-rounder (1972-77) and commentator, born in Queenstown, South Africa (d. 2012)
1962 – Rich Yett, baseball player
1970 – Amy Jo Johnson, American actress and singer
1982 – MC Lars [Andrew Nielsen], American hip-hop artist (iGeneration)

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Famous Deaths

1017 – Wang Dan, Chinese politician in the Song dynasty and grand councilor (1006-17), dies at 59 or 60
1874 – Thomas Tellefsen, Norwegian pianist and composer, dies at 50
1893 – Ford Madox Brown, British painter, dies at 72
1973 – Dennis Price, English actor (Kind Hearts and Coronets, Separate Tables), dies at 58 (b. 1915)
2001 – Arne Harris, American television sports director, dies at 67
2022 – Judy Tenuta, American stand-up comedienne and accordion player, dies of ovarian cancer at 72

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Historical Events

1946 – Newcastle United equals English Football League record for biggest winning margin in a 13-0 thrashing of Newport in a Division 2 match at St. James’ Park; Len Shackleton scores 6, Charlie Wayman 4 for the Toon
1950 – “Pardon Our French” opens at Broadway Theater NYC for 100 performances
1960 – KEYC TV channel 12 in Mankato, MN (CBS) begins broadcasting
1976 – MLB expansion draft: Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays pick 30 unprotected AL players; Ruppert Jones OF (Seattle) and Bob Bailor OF (Toronto) are first picks
1990 – Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Kevin Stevens has 2 goals and 4 assists in 7-4 opening-night win against the Washington Capitals at Capital Centre to set NHL record for most points in a season opener (6)
2017 – “The New York Times” publishes investigation into sexual harassment behaviour by Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein

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Famous Birthdays

1795 – Alexander Keith, Scottish-Canadian politician (4th Mayor of Halifax) and brewer (founder of the Alexander Keith’s Nova Scotia Brewery), born in Halkirk, Caithness, Highland, Scotland (d. 1873)
1875 – Cyril Rootham, English organist, composer, and educator born in Redland, Bristol (d. 1938)
1930 – George “Skip” Homeier, American actor (Boys Ranch, Beachhead, Dan Raven, Interns), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2017)
1958 – Brent W. Jett Jr, American naval officer and NASA astronaut (STS 72, sk:81), born in Pontiac, Michigan
1970 – Audie Pitre, American bass guitarist (Acid Bath), born in Lousiana (d. 1997)
1972 – Thomas Roberts, American news anchor, born in Towson, Maryland

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Famous Deaths

1934 – Jean Vigo, French actor and director (Zero For Conduct, L’Atlante), dies of complications from tuberculosis at 29
1972 – Ivan Yefremov, Russian paleontologist (originator of the concept of taphonomy) and author (Andromeda Nebula), dies at 64
2003 – Denis Quilley, British actor (Anything Goes, The Lady’s Not For Burning, Masada), dies from liver cancer at 75
2011 – Charles Napier, American actor (Night Stalker, Rambo), dies at 75
2015 – Grace Lee Boggs (née Grace Chin Lee), American philosopher, author (The Next American Revolution), civil rights activist and feminist, dies at 100
2019 – Marcello Giordani, Italian tenor (Metropolitan Opera, 1993-2008), dies of a heart attack at 56

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Historical Events

1777 – Battle of Germantown: Gen George Washington’s troops attack and are defeated by the British at Germantown, Pennsylvania
1938 – Baseball World Series: NY Yankees win third straight championship; beat Chicago Cubs, 8-3 at Yankee Stadium for 4-0 sweep
1944 – British troops land on Greek mainland
1964 – 3 cars of a commuter train derails in South Africa killing 81
1991 – The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty is opened for signature.
2022 – NY Yankees slugger Aaron Judge breaks Roger Maris’s AL single season HR record when he slams his 62nd homer in a 3-2 loss against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas

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Famous Birthdays

1888 – Oscar Mathisen, Norwegian speed skater (5-time World Champion all-round), born in Kristiania, Norway (d. 1954)
1892 – Engelbert Dollfuss, Austrian right-wing politician (Chancellor, 1932-34), killed by Nazis, born in Texingtal, Austria (d. 1934)
1911 – Mary Two-Axe Earley, Mohawk elder and human rights advocate (fought against women’s status under the Indian Act), born on the Kahnawà:ke reserve, Quebec (d. 1996)
1932 – Milan Chvostek, Canadian television director
1957 – Kyra Schon, American actress (Night Of The Living Dead), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
1959 – Chris Lowe, English rock keyboardist (One Under The Eight, Pet Shop Boys), born in Blackpool, Lancashire, England

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Famous Deaths

1904 – Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, French sculptor (designed the Statue of Liberty), dies of tuberculosis at 70
1935 – Barbados Joe Walcott, Barbadian boxer (World Welterweight champion 1901-06; first Black to hold that title), dies in a car accident at 62
1971 – Edit Angold, German actress (Suspense, Molly, Blue Angel), dies at 76
1990 – Avis Bunnage, British actress (Rising Damp, Coronation Street), dies at 67
1996 – Tim N Gidal Gidalewitsch, photojournalist, dies at 87
2021 – Alan Kalter, American television announcer (Late Show with David Letterman, 1995-2015), dies at 78

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Historical Events

1143 – Cardinal Guido elected Pope Coelestinus II
1569 – Battle of Montcontour: Duke of Anjou beats Huguenots
1918 – Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria abdicates the throne in favour of his eldest son Tsar Boris III
1940 – France Vichy government proclaims end to Jewish status
1990 – Kansas City 3rd baseman George Brett becomes first in MLB history to win a batting title in 3 different decades; goes 1 for 1 in Royals, 5-2 loss v Cleveland to win AL batting title with .329 average; AL batting champion 1976, 80
2018 – Most expensive whisky ever sold at auction for $1.1 million, the Macallan Valerio Adami 1926, in Edinburgh, Scotland

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Famous Birthdays

1867 – Pierre Bonnard, French painter and illustrator, born in Fontenay-aux-Roses, Hauts-de-Seine, France (d. 1947)
1888 – Claud Allister, British actor (Kiss Me Kate, Quartet, Bulldog Drummond), born in London, England (d. 1970)
1934 – Harold Henning, South African golfer (2 PGA Tour titles; 3 senior PGA titles; World Cup 1965), born in Johannesburg, South Africa (d. 2004)
1946 – Tristan Keuris, Dutch composer (Sinfonia), born in Amersfoort, Utrecht, Netherlands (d. 1996)
1978 – Gerald Asamoah, German soccer forward (43 caps; Schalke 04 279 games, 44 goals), born in Mampong, Ghana
1996 – Adair Tishler, American child actress

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Famous Deaths

1777 – Jeremias van Riemsdijk, Dutch administrator (Governor-General of Dutch East Indies 1775-77), dies at 64
1903 – Benedetto Junck, Italian composer, dies at 51
1907 – Alfred Reisenauer, German pianist and composer, dies at 43
1967 – Pinto Colvig, American animation voice actor (Goofy, Pluto), dies at 75
2008 – Zulfiqar Ahmed, Pakistani cricket pace bowler (9 Tests, 20 wickets; Punjab, Bahawalpur), dies at 81
2017 – Michel Jouvet, French neuroscientist and medical researcher who discovered the region of the brain that controls rapid eye movement (REM sleep), dies at 91

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Historical Events

1939 – Prototype for the Ilyushin Il-2, world’s most-produced military airplane designed by Sergey Ilyushin, takes it first flight. Over 36,000 made for Soviet airforce in WWII.
1950 – 1st strip of Charlie Brown, “Li’l Folks”, later “Peanuts”, by Charles M. Schulz published in seven nationwide papers
1960 – Mickey Wright becomes first player in LPGA Tour history to average fewer than 74 strokes per round to win the Vare Trophy after a season average of 73.25; first of 5 consecutive Vare Trophies for Wright
1967 – All Grateful Dead members arrested by narcotic agents for possession of marijuana in San Francisco, California
2016 – Ryder Cup Golf, Hazeltine National GC: US regains Cup; beats Europe, 17-11; Americans Brooks Koepka, Brandt Snedeker and Patrick Reed each win 3 matches
2019 – Two politicians in Peru claim to be the country’s leader for a day until Mercedes Aráoz resigns so the constitutional court can rule on the matter

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Famous Birthdays

1833 – William Corby, American Catholic priest and President of the University of Notre Dame, born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 1897)
1928 – Anthony Tippet, British Royal Navy officer and Chief of Fleet Support (d. 2006)
1936 – Dick Barnett, American basketball guard (NBA All Star 1968; NBA C’ship 1970, 73 NY Knicks), born in Gary, Indiana
1946 – Jo-El Sonnier, American country singer (Louisiana), born in Rayne, Louisiana
1951 – Sting [Gordon Sumner], British singer-songwriter and bassist (The Police – “Every Breath You Take”; solo – “Fragile”) and actor (Dune), born in Wallsend, Northumberland
1981 – Toro [Alvan Guo Yi Jun], Taiwanese pop singer (Energy)

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Famous Deaths

1944 – Rudolf Schmundt, German gen/Hitlers army adjunct, dies from injuries
1971 – Bola de Nieve [Ignacio Jacinto Villa Fernández], Cuban singer, pianist and songwriter, dies at 60
1988 – Alec Issigonis, Greek-British automotive designer who designed the Mini, dies at 81
1989 – Liesbeth Ribbius Peletier, Neth’s 1st female advisor of State, dies
1996 – Robert Bourassa, Prime Minister of Quebec province (1970-76, 85-93), dies at 63
2007 – Tex Coulter, American NFL defensive lineman (All Pro 1948, 51-52; Pro Bowl 1951-52; NY Giants), dies at 82

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Historical Events

1942 – Bell P-59 Airacomet fighter, 1st US jet, makes maiden flight
1944 – Newspaper editor Alejandro Córdova assassinated in Guatemala
1951 – 1st treaty signed by woman ambassador-Eugenie Anderson (US ambassador to Denmark)
1953 – KYTV TV channel 3 in Springfield, MO (NBC) begins broadcasting
1999 – In a blockbuster NBA trade, the Houston Rockets move All Star forward Scottie Pippen to Portland Trail Blazers for Kelvin Cato, Stacey Augmon, Walt Williams, Carlos Rogers, Ed Gray and Brian Shaw
2000 – United States wins the most medals (97), and the most gold medals (40) in Summer Olympics held in Sydney, Australia

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Famous Birthdays

1577 – Fidelis of Sigmaringen, Swiss friar, martyr, and saint, born in Sigmaringen, Germany (d. 1622)
1934 – Neil Castles, American auto racer (NASCAR Grand National East Series Champion 1972; NASCAR Cup Series 51 x top 5, 178 x top 10 finishes), born in Charlotte, North Carolina (d. 2022)
1950 – Mihai Romilă, Romanian soccer midfielder (19 caps; Politehnica Iași 367 games), born in Huși, Romania (d. 2020)
1957 – Stelios Mainas, Greek actor
1967 – Geraldine Heaney, Canadian ice hockey defense (Olympics gold 1998), born in Lurgan, Northern Ireland
1967 – Scott Young, US Hockey Hall of Fame right wing (1,181 NHL games; Pittsburgh Penguins, Colorado Avalanche), born in Clinton, Massachusetts

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Famous Deaths

1770 – Louis-Gabriel Guillemain, French composer and violinist, dies at 64
1878 – Mindon, King of Burma (1853-1878) penultimate ruler of the Konbaung dynasty and founder of Mandalay, dies at 70
1943 – Johan van Mierlo, resistance fighter, executed at 35
1975 – Al Jackson Jr., American session drummer, known as “The Human Time Keeper” (Stax; Booker T. and MGs – “McLemore Avenue”), murdered by an intruder in his home at 39
1990 – Curtis LeMay, American air force general (WWII) and VP candidate, dies at 83
2007 – Ronnie Hazlehurst, English conductor and TV theme song composer (Are You Being Served?), dies at 79

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Historical Events

1659 – Robinson Crusoe is shipwrecked (according to Daniel Defoe’s famous novel)
1943 – Pope Pius XII encyclical on Divine spirit
1946 – Twenty-two Nazi leaders, including Joachim von Ribbentrop and Hermann Goering, are found guilty of war crimes and sentenced to death or prison at the Nuremberg war trials
1949 – Pirates Ralph Kiner hits his 54th HR and NL record 16th in September
1968 – The Supremes release single “Love Child”
1992 – 26th Country Music Association Award: Garth Brooks wins

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Famous Birthdays

1700 – Stanisław Konarski, Polish political writer and Catholic priest who influenced education reform in Poland, born in Żarczyce Duże, Poland (d. 1773)
1732 – Jacques Necker, French finance minister of Louis XVI whose decisions contributed to the outbreak of the French Revolution, born in Geneva, Switzerland (d. 1804)
1898 – Princess Charlotte of Monaco, illegitimate daughter of Louis II and mother of Prince Rainier III born in Constantine, French Algeria (d. 1977)
1917 – Chung Hee Park, Korean general and President of South Korea (1961-79), assassinated in office, born in Gumi, Japanese Korea (d. 1979)
1932 – Shintaro Ishihara, Japanese author and politician (Governor of Tokyo), born in Suma-ku, Kobe, Japan (d. 2022)
1959 – Ettore Messina, Italian basketball coach (Olimpia Milano), born in Catalania, Italy

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Famous Deaths

1581 – Hubert Languet, French diplomat and reformer (b. 1518)
1803 – Charles Broche, French composer, dies at 51
1910 – Maurice Lévy, French engineer (b. 1838)
1961 – Onésime Gagnon, Canadian politician, 20th Lieutenant Governor of Québec, dies at 72
1990 – Alice Parizeau, Polish-born Quebec writer and journalist, dies at 60
2012 – Turhan Bey [Sahultavy], Austrian-born actor dubbed “The Turkish Delight” (Arabian Nights, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves), dies from Parkinson’s disease at 90

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