CoM Moderators

1793 - Washington's 2nd inauguration as US President, shortest speech (133 words) 1881 - California becomes 1st state to pass plant quarantine legislation 1894 - Great fire in Shanghai; over 1,000 buildings destroyed 1901 - Term of George H. White, last of post-Reconstruction US congressmen, ends 1910 - Avalanche at Bear Creek in Rogers Pass, British Columbia, kills 58 railway line workers - Canada's worst avalanche disaster 1925 - US President Coolidge's inauguration broadcast live on 21 radio stations 1931 - West Indies beat Australia for the 1st time, by 30 runs at SCG 1933 - Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss dissolves Austrian parliament 1947 - WWJ (now WDIV) TV channel 4 in Detroit, MI (NBC) begins broadcasting 1995 - Michael Johnson runs world record 400m indoor (44.63 sec) More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1804 - The Battle of Vinegar Hill, colony of New South Wales (Australia), when Irish convicts (some of whom had been involved in Ireland's Battle of Vinegar Hill in 1798) led the colony's only significant convict uprising. 1868 - 30th Grand National: George Ede victorious aboard Irish 9/1 shot The Lamb; horse wins second GN in 1871 1881 - California becomes 1st state to pass plant quarantine legislation 1970 - Jacksonville is 1st college basketball team to avg 100+ pts per game 1977 - 1st CRAY 1 supercomputer shipped, to Los Alamos Laboratories, New Mexico 2020 - "Once in a century" winter in Moscow the hottest in 140 years, with 7.5° C (13.5° F) above average temperatures and virtually no snow More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1754 - Benjamin Waterhouse, American physician co-founder of Harvard Medical School, and smallpox vaccine pioneer, born in Newport, Rhode Island (d. 1846) 1765 - Charles Dibdin, British composer, author (Sea Songs), and actor, baptized in Hampshire, England (d. 1814) 1877 - Garrett Morgan, American inventor (gas mask and traffic signal), born in Claysville, Kentucky (d. 1963) 1917 - Clyde McCullough, American baseball player (d. 1982) 1932 - Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, American custom hot rod car designer, born in Beverly Hills, California (d. 2001) 1947 - Jan Garbarek, Norwegian jazz saxophonist, born in Mysen, Norway More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1733 - Claude de Forbin, French naval commander, dies at 76 1858 - Matthew C. Perry, Commodore of the United States Navy who opened Japan to Western influence and trade, dies of rheumatism at 63 1866 - Alexander Campbell, Irish-American clergyman and Founder of Disciples of Christ, dies at 77 1989 - James A. Parsons, American metallurgist and inventor (stainless steel), dies at 88 2007 - Sunil Kumar Mahato, Indian parliamentarian, assassinated by Communist rebels at 41 2012 - Runako Morton, West Indian cricketer, dies in a traffic collision at 33 More Famous Deaths »

1845 - Florida becomes 27th state of the Union 1893 - US Congress authorizes 1st federal road agency, in Department of Agriculture 1931 - "The Star-Spangled Banner" officially becomes US national anthem by congressional resolution; lyrics by Francis Scott Key in 1814, set to John Stafford Smith's 18th century tune "The Anacreontic Song" 1943 - Bethnal Green Tube disaster: 173 die in a stampede sheltering in an air raid, UK's greatest loss of civilian life in WWII (details censored till January 20 1945) 1943 - Battle of the Bismarck Sea: Australian and American air forces devastate Japanese navy convoy 1950 - National-American Football League reverts to calling itself the NFL after 3 months 1959 - British government arrests Hastings Banda of Nyasaland, ends emergency crisis 1978 - 1st day of Test cricket for Desmond Haynes (WI v Australia) 1980 - Pierre Trudeau sworn in, for the second time, as the 17th Prime Minister of Canada 2004 - Belgian brewer Interbrew and Brazilian rival AmBev agreed to merge in a $11.2 billion deal forming InBev, the world's largest brewer More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1905 - US Forest Service forms 1917 - First major strike of the Russian "February Revolution" starts at the giant Putilov factory in Petrograd [OS=Feb 18] 1942 - 1st combat flight for Canadian British-built Avro Lancaster bomber 1981 - NY Islanders and Edmonton Oilers play to an 8-8 tie 1992 - Charges are filed in Florida against NY Mets Darryl Boston, Vince Coleman and Dwight Gooden of rape (dropped in April) 2021 - Great apes at San Diego Zoo reported given experimental COVID-19 vaccine designed for animals after earlier outbreak among the gorillas (San Diego, California) More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1814 - Charles Kensington Salaman, British pianist and synagogue music composer, born in London, England (d. 1901) 1880 - Florence Auer, American actress (Eradicating Aunty), born in Albany, New York (d. 1962) 1893 - Beatrice Wood, American artist, ceramist and editor (The Blind Man, inspiration for Titanic film character Rose), born in San Francisco, California (d. 1998) 1913 - Roger Caillois, French writer and scholar (Les Jeux et les Hommes), born in Reims, France (d. 1978) 1920 - Julius Boros, American golfer (PGA C'ship 1968, US Open 1952, 63), born in Fairfield, Connecticut (d. 1994) 1945 - Farooq Hamid, cricketer (1-107 in Test, Pakistan v Australia 1964) More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1459 - Ausiàs March, Catalan poet of Valencian literature, dies at 59 1927 - J.G. Parry-Thomas, Welsh motor-racing driver (b. 1884) 1973 - Vera Panova, Russian author and journalist (Sputniki), dies at 67 1996 - Ludwig Freiherr von Hammerstein-Equord, German journalist, dies at 76 2000 - Toni Ortelli, Italian composer ("La Montanara" (The Song of the Mountains), conductor, and alpinist, dies at 95 2004 - Cecily Adams, American actress and casting director (b. 1958) More Famous Deaths »

1865 - Freedman's Bureau founded for Black Education, 1865 1888 - The Convention of Constantinople signed, guaranteeing free maritime passage through the Suez Canal during war and peace 1934 - Union Pacific tests light-weight high-speed passenger train, Omaha 1939 - Massachusetts Legislature votes to ratify the US Bill of Rights - 147 years late 1986 - Edmonton's Finnish right wing Jari Kurri scores 2 goals, including the overtime winner, to lead Oilers to a 2-1 win over Philadelphia; Kurri, 100 points for the 4th straight NHL season 1991 - "La Bete" closes at Eugene O'Neill Theater NYC after 24 performances 1996 - Despite Sachin Tendulkar's masterful 137 in India's 3 for 272, Sri Lanka wins Cricket World Cup match in Delhi by 6 wickets; Sanath Jayasuriya 79, Hashan Tillakaratne 70no 2000 - Former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet heads home after being told the UK would not extradite him on torture charges 2021 - Six books by Dr. Seuss will cease publication because of racist and insensitive imagery according to Dr. Seuss Enterprises 2023 - UN confirms it will ignore statements made by an Indian guru and now fugitive from the fictional country of the United States of Kailasa, made attending official UN events in Geneva More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1861 - Government Printing Office purchases 1st printing plant, Washington 1925 - Japan's House of Representatives recognizes male suffrage 1965 - Montcalm Community College founded in Sidney, Mich 1989 - GreenLeft (GroenLinks) political party forms from merger of four left-wing parties: the Communist Party, the Pacifist Socialist Party, the Political Party of Radicals, and the Evangelical People's Party in the Netherlands 2002 - U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: US conventional forces first deployed as part of Operation Anaconda 2014 - President Vladimir Putin receives unanimous approval from Russia's parliament to send troops to Ukraine More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1769 - DeWitt Clinton, American politician (Senator, Governor and Mayor of New York, had Erie Canal constructed), born in Little Britain, New York (d. 1828) 1779 - Joel Roberts Poinsett, American statesman and botanist (d. 1851) 1916 - Bernard George Stevens, British composer, born in London, England (d. 1983) 1947 - Harry Redknapp, English soccer winger (West Ham United; AFC Bournemouth) and manager (Bournemouth, West Ham, Tottenham, Portsmouth, QPR, Southampton), born in London, England 1952 - Mark Evanier, American writer 1954 - Pete Johnson, American football running back (Pro Bowl, 2nd Team All Pro 1981; Cincinnati Bengals; Ohio State University), born in Fort Valley, Georgia More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1127 - Charles, the Good, Count of Flanders, murdered 1943 - Alexandre Yersin, Swiss French bacteriologist (discovered bubonic plague bacillus), dies at 79 1985 - John Kelly Jr, American rower (Olympic bronze single sculls 1956; president US Olympic Committee 1985) and brother of Grace Kelly, dies at 57 1994 - Charles Brink, German-born British classical scholar (Horace), dies at 86 2015 - Mal Peet, British children's author, dies at 67 2017 - Simon Hobday, South African golfer (US Senior Open 1994), dies of cancer at 76 More Famous Deaths »

1872 - Yellowstone becomes the world's 1st national park 1913 - 1First state law requiring bonding of officers and state employees, ND 1941 - Former University of Notre Dame star fullback Elmer Layden is named first Commissioner of the NFL 1953 - After an all-night movie and dinner session with his top advisers, Joseph Stalin suffers a stroke and collapses. He dies four days later. 1966 - Venera 3 becomes 1st man-made object to impact on a planet (Venus) 1991 - 37 year-old Pat Day becomes the 6th jockey in history whose mounts earned $100 million when he rides Wild Sierra to 2nd-place in the 1st race at Oaklawn Park, Arkansas 1992 - "Visit" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 45 performances 1993 - New expansion NHL team, owned in Anaheim, CA by Disney, receives its name, inspired by the 1992 Disney movie 'The Mighty Ducks' 2003 - Legendary Mount St. Mary's basketball head coach Jim Phelan wins final game of 49 year career as Mountaineers win 60-56 over Central Connecticut State; Phelan: 830 wins in NCAA record 1,354 games 2004 - Mohammed Bahr al-Uloum becomes President of Iraq. More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1847 - Michigan becomes 1st English-speaking jurisdiction to abolish the death penalty (except for treason against the state) 1946 - Panama accepts its new constitution 1970 - End of US commercial whale hunting 1984 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR #3931 Batten, #4529 Webern, #4530 Smoluchowski, #4818 Elgar, #5502 Brashear and #5943 Lovi 1991 - US Embassy in Kuwait officially reopens 2023 - At least 1000 Iranian school girls exposed to toxic gas attacks, since November, amid accusations they are an attempt to close schools after girls participated in recent anti-government protests More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1432 - Isabel of Coimbra, Queen of Portugal (d. 1455) 1734 - Pieter Valck, Dutch artist and sculptor (d. 1783) 1822 - Albin Francisco Schoepf, Polish-American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Podgórze, Kraków, Poland (d. 1886) 1837 - William Dean Howells, American novelist, critic and editor (Atlantic), born in Martinsville, Ohio (d. 1920) 1920 - Howard Nemerov, American poet, two-time US Poet Laureate and novelist (Blue Swallows), born in New York City (d. 1991) 1956 - Timothy Daly, American actor (Joe-Wings, Diner, Made in Heaven), born in Sufferin, New York More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1510 - Francisco de Almeida, Portuguese soldier, explorer and 1st Viceroy of India dies at Table Bay, Africa at about 59 1826 - Friedrich Weinbrenner, German architect, dies at 59 1906 - Moritz Heyne, German germanist (Beowulf), dies at 68 1928 - Jacob Adolf Hägg, Swedish composer, dies at 77 1980 - Dixie Dean, English soccer striker (16 caps; Everton), dies from a heart attack at 73 1991 - Scott Huston, American composer, dies at 74 More Famous Deaths »

1868 - 1st British government of Benjamin Disraeli forms 1892 - St. Petersburg, Florida is incorporated 1952 - Ice Dance Championship at Paris France won by Westwood and Demmy of Great Britain 1952 - Ice Pairs Championship at Paris won by Ria Falk and Paul Falk of West Germany 1956 - MLB's Cleveland Indians franchise is sold for nearly $4m; former player and the team’s general manager Hank Greenberg is part of the new ownership group 1968 - Howard Hanson's 6th Symphony, premieres 1968 - Beatles' "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" wins Grammy Award for Album of the Year, the first rock LP to do so 1984 - Swedish center Patrik Sundström scores a goal and adds 6 assists as Vancouver Canucks beat the Penguins 9-5 in Pittsburgh; just the 3rd player in NHL history to record 6 assists in a road game 1988 - New Zealand cricket batsman Mark Greatbatch scores an unbeaten 107 on debut to rescue a draw in 2nd Test v England at Eden Park, Auckland 2004 - 76th Academy Awards: "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," Sean Penn and Charlize Theron win More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1720 - Queen Ulrica Eleonora of Sweden resigns 1768 - Polish nobleman Casimir Pulaski joins the Bar Confederation to defend the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth against Russian influence 1948 - Stern-group bomb on Cairo-Haifa train kills 27 British soldiers 1968 - US end regular flights with nuclear bombs 1980 - Future Hockey Hall of Fame right wing Gordie Howe scores in the 3rd period to become first NHL player to score 800 career goals as Hartford Whalers beat St. Louis Blues, 3-0 at Springfield Civic Center 1980 - Michael Bracey ends 59 h 55 m trapped in an elevator, England More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1860 - Herman Hollerith, American inventor (1st electric tabulating machine), born in Buffalo, New York (d. 1929) 1924 - David Beattie, New Zealand judge, Governor-General of NZ (1980-85), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2001) 1944 - Ene Ergma, Estonian politician 1952 - Raúl González, Mexican racewalker (Olympic gold 50k 1984; WR 1978 3:45:52 and 3:41:20), born in China, Nuevo León, Mexico 1956 - (Jonathan) "Jono" Coleman, British-Australian television and radio, writer, and comedian, born in Hackney, England (d. 2021) 1980 - Clinton Toopi, New Zealand rugby league centre (22 Tests; Auckland Warriors, Leeds Rhinos), born in Stratford, New Zealand More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1592 - Alessandro Striggio, Italian composer (b. 1540) 1744 - John Theophilus Desaguliers, French-British natural philosopher and freemason, dies at 60 1968 - Lena Blackburne, American baseball infielder, manager, coach (Chicago White Sox; discovered rubbing clay to take the shine off baseballs), dies at 81 2012 - Davy Jones, British singer and actor (The Monkees - "Daydream Believer"), dies from heart attack at 66 2020 - Éva Székely, Hungarian swimmer (Olympic gold 200m breaststroke 1952; silver 1956; first WR 400m individual medley 1953), dies at 92 2020 - Bill Roe, American sports executive (President USA Track and Field 2000-2008), dies at 69 More Famous Deaths »

1700 - Today is followed by March 1 in Sweden, thus creating the Swedish calendar 1759 - Pope Clement XIII allows Bible to be translated into various languages 1942 - World War II: German submarine U-578 torpedoes US Navy destroyer USS Jacob Jones (DD130) off Cape May, New Jersey, killing all but 11 of 113 man crew 1951 - French government of Pleven dissolves 1951 - Senate committee reports of at least 2 major US crime syndicates 1973 - Iraq and Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC) reach an agreement on compensation for nationalization 1993 - Iolanda Chen triple jumps world indoor record hop step (14.46m) 1994 - Brady Law, imposing a wait-period to buy a hand gun in the USA, comes into effect 2004 - 24th Golden Raspberry Awards: "Gigli" wins 2013 - The brains of two rats successfully connected so that they share information More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1787 - The charter establishing the institution now known as the University of Pittsburgh is granted 1844 - 6th Grand National: John Crickmere wins aboard 5/1 co-favourite Discount 1944 - Arrests of the ten-Boom family in Nazi occupied Netherlands (Haarlem) through a Dutch collaborator on charges of hiding Jews 1967 - A West German court rules that impostor Anna Anderson failed to prove that she was missing Russian duchess Anastasia Romanov, ending a legal case that lasted almost 30 years 1988 - British television programme "That's Life!" surprises guest Nicholas Winton with an audience full of grown-up children that he saved from German-occupied Czechoslovakia, bringing them to safety in the UK 1995 - Denver International Airport opens More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1261 - Margaret of Scotland, queen of Norway (d. 1283) 1915 - Peter Medawar, British biologist (1960 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for discovery of acquired immunological tolerance"), born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (d. 1987) 1933 - Miro Steržaj, Slovenian 9-pin bowler 1951 - Karsan Ghavri, cricketer (Indian lefty medium pacer early 80s) 1954 - Brian Billick, American football coach 1974 - Michael Manasseri, actor (License to Drive) More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1525 - Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec Emperor (1520-21), tortured and killed by Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés 1964 - Gus Lesnevich, American light heavyweight boxing champ (1947 fighter of year), dies at 49 1979 - Paul Alverdes, German writer (Pfeiferstube), dies at 81 1994 - Pu Yi, brother of last Chinese emperor, Pu Yi, dies at 87 2015 - Ezra Laderman, American composer (Jacob and the Indians), dies at 90 2017 - Leoncjusz Ciuciura, Polish classical composer (Spirals), dies at 86 More Famous Deaths »

1925 - Adolf Hitler resurrects NSDAP political party in Munich 1933 - Jean Genet's play "Intermezzo" premieres in Paris 1940 - Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discover carbon-14 (radiocarbon dating) at the University of California Radiation Laboratory in Berkeley, California 1942 - Battle of Java Sea began: 13 US warships sunk and 2 Japanese 1965 - Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray's musical "High Spirits", based on Noel Coward's "Blithe Spirit", closes at Alvin Theater, NYC, after 375 performances 1973 - White Sox slugger Dick Allen signs 3 year $750,000 contract 2002 - Godhra train burning, a Muslim mob kills 59 Hindu pilgrims returning from Ayodhya 2019 - Doctors announce world's second known case of semi-identical twins, a boy and girl from Brisbane, Australia 2019 - Actor Luke Perry (52) suffers a stroke in Los Angeles 2019 - First gun control legislation for 25 years passed by US House of Representatives, with new federal background checks More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1827 - 1st Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans 1943 - The Rosenstrasse protest starts in Berlin 1974 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1981 - Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder record the single "Ebony and Ivory" 1992 - Larry Smith named 9th Commissioner of the CFL 2005 - 77th Academy Awards: "Million Dollar Baby", Jamie Foxx, and Hilary Swank win More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 272 - Constantine the Great, Emperor of Rome (306-37) who adopted Christianity, born in Naissus (d. 337) 1899 - Charles Best, American-Canadian medical scientist and co-discoverer of insulin, born in West Pembroke, Maine (d. 1978) 1901 - Horatio Luro, American horse trainer (43 x stakes winners; Decidedly, Northern Dancer), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 1991) 1933 - Geoffrey Maitland Smith, CEO (Sears) 1933 - Edward Lucie-Smith, British poet and poetry critic, born in Kingston, Jamaica 1942 - Michel Forget, French Canadian actor, born in Montreal, Quebec More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1844 - Nicholas Biddle, US lawyer/diplomat/statesman/financier, dies at 85 1921 - Schofield Haigh, English cricket fast bowler (11 Tests, 24 wickets, BB 6/11; Yorkshire CCC), dies from a stroke at 49 1958 - Harry Cohn, CEO (Columbia Pictures), dies of a heart attack 1994 - Harold Acton, English-Italian historian and art collector, dies at 84 2008 - Myron Cope, American sports broadcaster (b. 1929) 2023 - Ricou Browning, American film stuntman (Creature from the Black Lagoon), stunt co-ordinator (Thunderball), director, and producer (Flipper), dies at 93 More Famous Deaths »

364 - Valentinian I is proclaimed Roman Emperor 1851 - 13th Grand National: Terry Abbott wins aboard Irish stallion Abd-El-Kader at 7/1; first dual winner and first to win back-to-back 1870 - Beach Pneumatic Transit - 1st attempt to demonstrate a subway in New York opens (pneumatic powered) 1881 - PandO's SS Ceylon begins world's 1st round-the-world pleasure cruise from Liverpool 1893 - Norwegian Einar Halvorsen skates world record 500m (48 sec) 1941 - Utrecht and Zaandam strike against raid on Jews 1965 - West Germany ceases military aid to Tanzania 1972 - Ireland-Wales Five Nations Rugby match scheduled for Lansdowne Road, Dublin is cancelled because of escalating political situation; Championship not completed for first time since World War II 1982 - Test Cricket debut of batsman Martin Crowe, playing for New Zealand v Australia in Wellington, run out for 9 1989 - California court throws out most of Margo Adams's $12 million breach-of-contract suit against Red Sox third baseman Wade Boggs More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1773 - State of Pennsylvania approves construction of Walnut Street Jail in Philadelphia; it will become the first experiment with the practice of solitary confinement in the United States 1935 - RADAR (Radio Detection and Ranging) first demonstrated by Robert Watson-Watt 1971 - Two Royal Ulster Constabulary officers shot and killed by the Irish Republican Army while on mobile patrol in the Ardoyne area of Belfast, North Ireland 2012 - 61st NBA All-Star Game, Amway Centre, Orlando, FL: West beats East, 152-149; MVP: Kevin Durant, OKC Thunder, F 2018 - Global Seed Vault in Svalbard, Norway, receives its 1 millionth seed on its 10 year anniversary 2023 - Dilbert comic strip creator Scott Adams faces widespread condemnation for his comments about African Americans in a YouTube show, prompting his strip and up-coming book to be cancelled More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1717 - John Randall, British organist and hymn composer, born in Cambridge, England (d. 1799) 1861 - Ferdinand I, 1st tsar of modern Bulgaria (1908-18), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1948) 1887 - Benegal Narsing Rau, Indian lawyer and civil servant, President of UN Security Council (1950), helped draft India's constitution, born in Mangalore, India (d. 1953) 1958 - Greg Germann, American actor, born in Houston, Texas 1981 - Johnathan Wendel, American professional video gamer, born in Kansas City, Kansas 1984 - Natalia Lafourcade, Mexican singer, born in Mexico City More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1538 - Worp van Thabor, Frisian abbott of Thabor (Chronicon Frisiae), dies 1906 - Manuel Fernandez Caballero, Spanish composer, dies at 70 1941 - Jan Keizer, Zaanse February striker, shot to death 1972 - Tom Manders, Dutch cabaret artist (Dorus), dies at 50 1973 - Doc Hayes, American basketball coach (Southern Methodist University 1947-67), dies in an auto accident at 67 2008 - John Yates, Anglican bishop (Bishop of Lambeth), dies at 82 More Famous Deaths »

1907 - US proclaims protectorate over Dominican Republic 1944 - Alexander Gretchaninov's "Missa Oecumenica" (Ecumenical Mass) premieres in Boston with Serge Koussevitzky conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra; the composer wrote the work in memory of the conductor's wife Natalie (1880-1942) 1956 - Nikita Khrushchev denounces Joseph Stalin at the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union 1971 - Northern Ireland Prime Minister James Chichester-Clark holds a meeting with Catholic Cardinal of Ireland William Conway, the first such meeting between men holding these offices since 1921 1980 - Coup ousts PM Henck Arron of Suriname 1981 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1981 - NY Islanders give up their most goals (11) vs Calgary Flames 1988 - Bruce Springsteen's "Tunnel of Love" Tour begins in Worcester, Massachusetts 1990 - On a BBC taped interview, rock star Stevie Nicks breaks down, saying that she will never have children and no man can stand her for long 1996 - "Father" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 52 performances More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1623 - Duke Maximilian I of Bavaria becomes monarch of Palts 1921 - The Living Buddha, Hutuktu, is crowned King of Mongolia as the country declares independence from China 1964 - Muhammad Ali [Cassius Clay] wins his first world heavyweight boxing title when Sonny Liston fails to come out for round 7 at the Convention Center, Miami Beach 1996 - "Father" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 52 performances 1998 - Pamela Lee has husband Tommy Lee arrested on battery charges 2017 - Tom Perez is elected Chair of the Democratic National Committee More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1398 - Xuande, 5th Ming Emperor of China (1425-35) (d. 1435) 1940 - George Paul, CEO (Norwich Union Insurance Group) 1954 - Steve Rixon, Australian cricket wicket-keeper (1977-85) 1957 - Stuart "Woody" Wood, Scottish pop guitarist (Bay City Rollers - "Saturday Night"), born in Edinburgh, Scotland 1962 - Birgit Fischer, German kayaker (Olympic 4 x gold GDR 1988; 5 x gold FRG 1992, 96, 2000, 04; World C'ship gold x 17 GDR, 10 x FRG), born in Brandenburg an der Havel, Germany 1970 - Dave Brown, NFL quarterback (NY Giants) More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1850 - Daoguang, 7th Emperor of Qing Dynasty, dies at 67 1964 - Alexander Archipenko, Ukrainian-American sculptor and water colors painter, dies at 76 1992 - John E Allen Jr, actor (1 2 3), dies 1998 - Luigi Veronesi, Italian abstract artist (Campo Grafico), dies at 90 2005 - Peter Benenson, Britsh founder of Amnesty International, dies at 83 2018 - Penny Vincenzi [Hannaford], British novelist (An Absolute Scandal, Spoils of Time trilogy), dies at 78 More Famous Deaths »

1797 - Colonel William Tate and his force of 1,000-1,500 soldiers surrender after the Last Invasion of Britain (according to legend, to Welsh women in tall black hats, mistaken for elite guards regiment) 1949 - Israel and Egypt sign an armistice agreement 1968 - Gary Unger begins NHL consecutive game record of 914 games 1970 - 29 Swiss Army officers die in avalanche (Reckingen, Switzerland) 1982 - Boston Celtics begin an 18 NBA game winning streak 1991 - English-Yiddish musical revue "Those Were The Days" closes at Edison Theater, NYC, after 126 performances 2013 - 55th Daytona 500: Jimmie Johnson wins 2nd Great American Race; Danica Patrick first female to start from pole position; also best-ever finish by a woman at Daytona (8th) 2018 - Japanese speed skater Nana Takagi wins her 2nd gold medal of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in the women's mass start event; also member Japan's successful pursuit team 2019 - 91st Academy Awards: Best Picture "Green Book", Best Director Alfonso Cuarón, Best Actor Rami Malek, Best Actress Olivia Colman 2020 - Scientists identify the first animal that doesn't need oxygen to breathe - a tiny parasite living in salmon tissue, reported in journal PNAS More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1855 - US Court of Claims forms for cases against government 1857 - 1st perforated US postage stamps delivered to government 1920 - NSDAP begins at Hofbrauhaus Munich 1938 - Du Pont begins commercial production of nylon toothbrush bristles 1968 - Gary Unger begins NHL consecutive game record of 914 games 1980 - US ice hockey team clinches gold medal with 4-2 win over Finland at the Lake Placid Winter Olympics; comes after 4-3 "Miracle on Ice" victory against hot favorite Soviet Union More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1885 - Bert Lytell, American actor (One Man's Family), born in New York City (d. 1954) 1939 - George Bain, principal (London Business School) 1951 - Derek Randall, English cricket batsman (47 Tests, 7 x 100, HS 174; Nottinghamshire CCC, Suffolk CCC), born in Retford, England 1968 - John Velddman, soccer player (Sparta) 1970 - Jonathan Ward, American actor (Doug-Charles in Charge; Beans Baxter), born in Baltimore, Maryland 1973 - Chris Fehn, American heavy metal percussionist (Slipknot, 1998-2019), born in Des Moines, Iowa More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1975 - Nikolai A Bulganin, Soviet-Russian marshal and 6th Premier of the Soviet Union (1955-58), dies at 79 1986 - Rukmini Devi Arundale (née Sastri), Indian dancer, educator (co-founder of Kalakshetra Academy), politician (Member or Parliament, 1952-62), and animal rights activist, dies at 81 1997 - Isabelle Harriet Lucas, Canadian-born British actress and singer (Outland, Comics), dies at 69 2006 - Octavia E. Butler, American sci-fi author (Hugo, Wild Seed), dies at 58 2020 - Ben Cooper, American western actor (The Rose Tattoo; Outcast; Arizona Raiders), dies at 86 2021 - Peter Ostroushko, American fiddler, mandolin player, and composer (A Prairie Home Companion), dies of heart failure at 67 More Famous Deaths »

1660 - Charles XI becomes king of Sweden 1934 - Coronation of King Leopold III of Belgium 1947 - US General Eisenhower opens drive to raise $170M in aid for European Jews 1967 - Noam Chomsky's anti-Vietnam war essay "The Responsibility of Intellectuals" is published by the New York Review of Books 1969 - 11th Daytona 500: LeeRoy Yarbrough driving for Junior Johnson, catches Charlie Glotzbach on final lap to win; first Daytona 500 won on a last lap pass 1980 - Olympic giant slalom champion Hanni Wenzel of Liechtenstein wins the women's slalom, her second gold medal of the Lake Placid Winter Games 1986 - Despite losing, Boston Red Sox Wade Boggs gets largest arbitration in MLB history, $1.35M 2001 - 32nd NAACP Image Awards: "Remember the Titans" wins Outstanding Motion Picture 2012 - A series of bomb attacks across 12 Iraqi cities kills 60 and injures 200 2013 - 51 people are killed and 62 are injured in conflict between rival tribes in Darfur, Sudan More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1792 - Joseph Haydn's 94th Symphony in G premieres 1943 - German troops pull back through Kasserine-pass Tunisia 1945 - US Marines raise American flag on top of Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima. Pulitzer Prize winning photo of which by Joe Rosenthall later became iconic, inspiring the Marine Corps War Memorial sculpture 1975 - In response to the energy crisis, daylight saving time commences nearly two months early in the United States. 1986 - Despite losing, Boston Red Sox Wade Boggs gets largest arbitration in MLB history, $1.35M 1992 - The Socialist Labour Party is founded in Georgia More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1417 - Pope Paul II [Pietro Barbo], Italian Pope (1464-71), born in Venice, Republic of Venice (d. 1471) 1700 - Wilhelmus Schortinghuis, Dutch theologist (Profound Christianity), born in Winschoten (d. 1750) 1904 - William L. Shirer, American journalist and historian (Rise and Fall of 3rd Reich), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1993) 1914 - Mike Tresh, American baseball catcher (MLB All Star 1945; Chicago White Sox), born in Hazleton, Pennsylvania (d. 1966) 1922 - Bill Chappell Jr., American politician (Rep-D-FL, 1969-89), born in Kendrick, Florida (d. 1989) 1983 - Emily Blunt, English-American actress (The Girl on the Train, The Quiet Place), born in London More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1011 - Willigis, Archbishop of Mainz 1464 - Zhu Qizhen, Chinese Emperor Yingzong of Ming (1435-49 and 1457-64), dies at 36 but not before giving an order to end the practice of burying alive concubines and palace maids so that they could follow emperors to the next world 1669 - Lieuwe van Aitzema, Dutch historian (Matters of State and War), dies at 68 1976 - L. S. Lowry, British painter of industrial scenes, dies at 88 1996 - Freddie Stocks, cricket (cent on debut and wkt on 1st ball, Notts), dies 1998 - Philip Abbott, American character actor (The FBI, Sweet Bird of Youth), dies at 73 More Famous Deaths »

1415 - English King Henry V lays the foundation stone for Syon Abbey for nuns of the Bridgettine Order. Became one of the wealthiest abbeys in England. 1633 - St. Peter's Baldachin, the cathedral's sculptural centerpiece, by Gian Lorenzo Bernini is inaugurated by Pope Urban VIII in Rome 1922 - London issues a unilateral declaration of Egyptian independence 1935 - Airplanes are no longer permitted to fly over the White House 1941 - German assault on El Agheila Libya 1945 - British troops take Ramree Island, Burma 1956 - 1st English soccer match at Kunstlicht: Portsmouth vs Newcastle United 1989 - UK physicist Stephen Hawking calls the proposed missile defense system known as Star Wars a "deliberate fraud" 1998 - Petr Svoboda scores the winner as the Czech Republic claims its first ever Olympic ice hockey gold medal with a 1-0 victory over Russia in Nagano, Japan 2014 - Snowboard Olympic parallel special slalom event debuts and is run for the only time at the Sochi Winter Games; Russian Vic Wild and Julia Dujmovits of Canada win unique gold medals More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1882 - The Serbian kingdom is refounded. 1906 - Black evangelist William J Seymour arrives in Los Angeles, California 1922 - London issues a unilateral declaration of Egyptian independence 1979 - Billy Martin named manager of Oakland A's 2003 - Pakistani pace bowler Shoaib Akhtar bowls the fastest ball recorded in cricket history at 100.2 mph (161.3 km/h) 2014 - Viktor Yanukovych is ousted as President of Ukraine by the parliament following the Euromaidan revolution More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1881 - Joseph B. Ely, American politician (d. 1956) 1920 - Del Wood [Adelaide Hazelwood], American country musician, born in Nashville, Tennessee (d. 1989) 1929 - Rebecca Schull [Wattenberg], American actress (Wings, United 93), born in New York City 1949 - Olga Morozova, Russian tennis player, born in Moscow, Soviet Union 1962 - Lenda Murray, American body builder (4X Ms Olympia), born in Detroit, Michigan 1962 - Mark Arm [McLaughlin], American grunge rock singer-songwriter, (Green River; Mudhoney), born at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1213 - Wibert of Gembloers, benediction/writer/abbot of Gembloers, dies 1849 - Alexander Fesca, German pianist and composer, dies at 28 1960 - Paul-Émile Borduas, Canadian abstract painter, dies at 54 1983 - Christina E "Christine" Auwen, singer and wife of John Kelly, dies at 75 1993 - Pieter A H Bos, Dutch lawyer/procureur-general (Aruba), dies at 63 2009 - Günter Kochan, German composer, dies at 78 More Famous Deaths »

1797 - Trinidad, West Indies, a Spanish colony, surrenders to the British 1821 - Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire begins 1828 - 1st American Indian newspaper in US, "Cherokee Phoenix", published 1916 - World War I: Battle of Verdun begins with a German offensive, leads to an estimated 1 million casualties and becomes the longest battle of the entire war (9 months) 1921 - Constituent Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Georgia adopts the country's first constitution 1927 - Franz Lehár's opera "Der Zarewitsch" premieres 1958 - Egypt-Syria as United Arab Republic elect Nasser president (99.9% vote) 1969 - Ted Williams signs 5-year contract to manage Washington Senators 1978 - Electrical workers accidentally discover the Aztec Templo Mayor, or High Temple, two blocks from Mexico City's central square, the Zócalo 2015 - 35th Golden Raspberry Awards: "Saving Christmas" wins worst film More Historical Events »