Historical Events
1534 – French navigator Jacques Cartier reaches Newfoundland
1933 – Deutsche Arbeitsfront (DAF) forms
1945 – Soviet troops occupied Prague
1992 – Revival of William Shakespeare’s stage drama “Hamlet” closes at the Criterion Theater, NYC, after 45 performances
1994 – Nelson Mandela is sworn in as South Africa’s first Black president
Famous Birthdays
1830 – François-Marie Raoult, French physicist and chemist (law of Raoult), born in Fournes, France (d. 1901)
1877 – Roderich Mojsisovics-Mojsvar, Austrian music educator and composer, born in Graz, Austria (d. 1954)
1920 – Basil Kelly, Irish barrister, politician and judge (Lord Chief Justice), born in County Monaghan, Ireland (d. 2008)
1928 – Arnold Rüütel, Estonian agronomist and politician (President of Estonia, 2001-06), born in Pahavalla, Estonia (d. 2024)
1970 – Perry Blake, Irish singer-songwriter (The Hunchback of San Francisco), born in Sligo, Ireland
Famous Deaths
1954 – George Hirst, English cricketer (36,323 1st-class runs, 2739 wickets), dies at 82
1968 – Scotty Beckett, American actor (Our Gang, Listen Darling, Battleground), dies from either an overdose, or as a result from a beating at 38
1972 – Rhys Gemmell, Australian tennis player (Australasian C’ships singles and doubles 1921), dies at 76
2001 – Deborah Walley, American actress (b. 1943)
2022 – Bob Lanier, American Basketball HOF center (8 x NBA All-Star; NBA All-Star Game MVP 1974; Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks), dies at 73