Historical Events
1896 – Last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II, crowned
1919 – The Supreme Council of Allies, meeting at Versailles, decides to recognize two White Russian leaders, Admiral Kolchak and General Denikin, and support them against the Bolsheviks
1923 – Inaugural 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race for cars starts through public roads around Le Mans, France; inaugural winners: André Lagache and René Léonard (France) for Chenard and Walcker
1942 – Tank battle at Bir Hakeim: Afrika Korps vs British army
1946 – Patent filed in US for H-Bomb
2013 – The Mumbai Indians defeat the Chennai Super Kings to win the Indian 20/20 Premier League
Famous Birthdays
1886 – Al Jolson [Asa Yoelson], American-Lithuanian jazz singer and silent actor (Mamie, Swanee), born in Seredžius, Kovno Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1950)
1898 – Gérard Bertouille, Belgian composer, born in Tournai, Belgium (d. 1981)
1915 – Antonia Forest [Patricia Giulia Caulfield Kate Rubinstein], British children’s author (The Marlows), born in Hampstead, London (d. 2003)
1926 – Miles Davis, American jazz musician, trumpeter and composer, born in Alton, Illinois (d. 1991)
1937 – Yehuda Yannay, Romanian composer, born in Timișoara, Romania
1970 – Nobuhiro Watsuki, Japanese manga artist (Rurouni Kenshin), born in Tokyo, Japan
Famous Deaths
1055 – Margrave Adalbert of Austria
1907 – Ida McKinley, US First Lady (1897-1901) and wife of the 25th US President William McKinley, dies at 59
1944 – Cyril Francois, South African cricket all-rounder (5 Tests, 252 runs, 6 wickets), dies in a motor accident at 46
1951 – Lincoln Ellsworth, Arctic explorer, dies at 71
2003 – Kathleen Winsor, American writer (b. 1919)
2018 – Ted [Samuel Frederick] Dabney, American electrical engineer and founder of Atari (Pong), dies at 81