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Historical Events 1715 - Swedish troops occupy Norway 1851 - Fire devastates US Library of Congress in Washington, destroys 35,000 volumes 1951 - 1st opera commissioned for television - "Amahl and the Night Visitors" by Gian Carlo Menotti premieres on NBC with the NBC Opera Theater 1996 - Ballon d'Or: Borussia Dortmund's German sweeper Matthias Sammer is named best football player in Europe ahead of PSV/Barcelona striker Ronaldo and Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer 2000 - The Texas 7 hold up a sports store in Irving, Texas. Police officer Aubrey Hawkins is shot during the robbery 2001 - "Time Magazine" names New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani 'Person of the Year', for leadership after 9/11 attacks More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1945 - Lemmy [Ian Fraser Kilmister], British heavy metal musician (Motörhead), born in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire (d. 2015) 1950 - Peter te Bos, Dutch singer (Claw Boys Claw), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands 1958 - Munetaka Higuchi, Japanese drummer, born in Nara Prefecture, Japan 1959 - Lee Daniels, American director ("Precious", "Empire"), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1978 - Yıldıray Baştürk, Turkish footballer, born in Herne, Germany 1982 - Aiba Masaki, Japanese singer and actor, born in Chiba, Japan More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1907 - Isidor Feinstein "Izzy" Stone, journalist (IF Stone's Weekly), dies 1979 - Dirk Uipko Stikker, Dutch politician, diplomat (Ambassador to Great Britain, 1952-58; Secretary General of NATO, 1961-64), and CEO (Heineken), dies at 82 1993 - Alexander Mackendrick, American-born Scottish director (Lady Killers), dies at 81 1994 - John Osborne, English playwright (Entertainer, Look Back in Anger, Luther, dies at 65 1999 - Zeke Carey, American RandB singer (The Flamingos - "Goodnight Sweetheart"; "I Only Have Eyes For You"), dies of a heart attack at 66 2011 - Cheetah [Cheeta, Cheta, Chita], chimpanzee actor (1930s Tarzan franchise), dies of kidney failure at 80 More Famous Deaths »

1926 - KEX-AM in Portland OR begins radio transmissions 1939 - South Australia score 7-821 against Queensland 1953 - Dodgers 2nd baseman Jim Gilliam wins NL Rookie of Year 1970 - French author Régis Debray freed in Bolivia 1970 - 7,511th performance of Agatha Christie's play "The Mousetrap" (record) in London's West End 1972 - "Immaculate Reception" Steelers turns around a 7-6 defeat with a last second touchdown reception against Raiders to win 13-7 1972 - New York Islanders end 15 games winless streak 1977 - British singer-songwriter Cat Stevens formally converts to Islam, taking the name Yusuf Islam 1997 - "As Good as It Gets" film released written and directed by James L. Brooks, starring Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt 2012 - The Seleka rebel coalition takes over Bambari, the third largest town in the Central African Republic More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1862 - Union General Ben "Beast" Butler is proclaimed a "felon, outlaw and common enemy of mankind" by Jefferson Davis 1939 - South Australia score 7-821 against Queensland 1941 - British troops overrun Benghazi, Libya 1948 - "Cinderella" the first full-length ballet by Frederick Ashton with music by Sergei Prokofiev is first presented by Sadler's Wells Ballet at Covent Garden, London 1953 - Dodgers 2nd baseman Jim Gilliam wins NL Rookie of Year 1990 - Slovenians vote to secede from Yugoslavia More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1699 - Joseph Gibbs, English composer and organist, born in Colchester (d. 1788) 1869 - Hugh Allen, British organist, conductor (Bach Choir; Leeds Festival), and educator (Oxford, 1918-46-; Royal College of Music, 1918-37), born in Reading, Berkshire, England (d. 1946) 1903 - Fredericka "Fredi" Washington, American actress (Black and Tan), born in Savannah, Georgia (d. 1994) 1918 - Kumar Pallana, Indian character actor and vaudevillian (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore), born in Indore, India (d. 2013) 1946 - Edita Gruberova, Slovak operatic soprano, born in Bratislava, Slovakia (d. 2021) 1970 - Shannon Bream [DePuy], American Journalist (Fox News) Miss Virginia (1991), born in Lynchburg, Virginia More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1575 - Akiyama Nobutomo, Japanese warrior (hanged) (b. 1531) 1789 - Charles-Michel de l'Épée, French philanthropist and developer of 'Signed French', dies at 77 1805 - Pehr Osbeck, Swedish explorer and naturalist (b. 1723) 1925 - A S C Wallis [Adele von Antal-Opzoomer], Dutch writer (Vorstengunst), dies at 69 1967 - Ruth Fuller Sasaki, American Zen teacher (1st Zen Institute of America), dies at 75 1973 - Gerard Kuiper, Dutch-American astronomer after whom the Kuiper belt is named, dies at 68 More Famous Deaths »

1939 - Finnish counter offensive at Petsamo 1941 - Tito establishes 1st Proletarian Brigade in Yugoslavia 1943 - Manufacturers get permission to use synthetic rubber for baseball core 1965 - Great Britain sets national maximum road speed at 70 miles per hour 1966 - WCVW TV channel 57 in Richmond, VA (PBS) begins broadcasting 1970 - Treblinka SS commander Franz Stangl sentenced to life imprisonment 1980 - MLB St. Louis Cardinals release outfielder Bobby Bonds 1989 - Republic of Chad (Africa) adopts its Constitution 1990 - Paul Coffey becomes the second NHL defenceman to record 1000 points, doing so in a record-breaking 770 games 1990 - Iraq announces it will never give up Kuwait More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1135 - Norman nobles recognize Stefanus van Blois as English king 1688 - Earl of Danby occupies York for King William III, Prince of Orange 1935 - Yaeko Iwasaki, student of D S Harada Roshi, 1st awakening in Kamakura 1967 - "The Graduate", American comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols, starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft, premieres (Best Director, 1968) 1971 - UN General Assembly ratifies former Austrian President Kurt Waldheim as Secretary-General 1977 - 36 die as grain elevator at Continental Grain Company plant explodes More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1546 - Kuroda Yoshitaka, Japanese daimyō, born in Himeji, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan (d. 1604) 1929 - Leonard "Red" Balaban, American jazz tuba and sousaphone player, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2013) 1945 - Joris J. C. Voorhoeve, Dutch Defense minister (1994-, VVD), born in the Hague, Netherlands 1948 - Steve Garvey, American baseball player (LA Dodgers, San Diego Padres), born in Tampa, Florida 1963 - Giuseppe Bergomi, Italian footballer, born in Milan, Italy 1972 - Mike Thompson, NFL defensive tackle (Jacksonville Jaguars), born in Portage, Wisconsin More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1660 - André Tacquet, Flemish mathematician (b. 1612) 1809 - William Cooper, American judge and developer (founded Cooperstown, New York), dies at 55 1986 - Celius Dougherty, American pianist and composer, dies at 84 1987 - Leonidas Zoras, Greek conductor and composer, dies at 82 2002 - Kenneth Tobey, American actor (The Thing from Another World, Innerspace, Whirlybirds), dies of natural causes at 85 2006 - Galina Ustvolskaya, Russian composer, dies at 87 More Famous Deaths »

1900 - Gerhart Hauptmann's play "Michael Kramer" premieres in Berlin 1929 - 1st group hospital insurance plan offered (Dallas Tx) 1944 - Cards' Marty Marion wins NL MVP 1949 - "Samson and Delilah", directed and produced by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Hedy Lamarr and Victor Mature, premieres in New York 1959 - Citizens of Deerfield Ill block building of interracial housing 1975 - Davis Cup Men's Tennis, Stockholm, Sweden: Home town hero Björn Borg beats Czech Jan Kodeš 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 to give Sweden unassailable 3-1 lead; ends 3-2 1975 - "Very Good Eddie" opens at Booth Theater NYC for 307 performances 1978 - Charles Strouse and Lee Adams' musical "A Broadway Musical" opens and closes at Lunt Fontanne Theater, NYC, after 1 performance 2005 - Civil Partnership Act comes into force in the UK, with singer Elton John and David Furnish one of the first couples to form a same-sex civil union 2020 - Governor of California Gavin Newson says there are now no intensive care beds left in Southern California or the San Joaquin Valley More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1933 - Newfoundland reverts to being a crown colony of Great Britain 1976 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1980 - Harold Carmichael ends NFL streak of 127 consecutive game receptions 1983 - NCAA rules rescinded last 2-minute men's basketball free throw rule 1988 - Lockerbie disaster: A terrorist bomb destroys Pan Am Flight 103 mid-air, over Scotland; kills all 259 passengers and crew on board, and 11 people on the ground 1997 - Detroit Lions linebacker Reggie Brown, knocked unconscious in game More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1928 - Thomas Rajna, British-Hungarian pianist, and composer (Amarantha; Stop All The Clocks), born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 2021) 1935 - Edward Schreyer, Canadian politician (Premier of Manitoba), born in Beausejour, Canada 1937 - Jane Fonda, American stage and screen Academy and Emmy Award-winning actress (Barbarella; Klute, 9 to 5), exercist (Jane Fonda's Workout), and political activist, born in NYC, New York 1940 - Paul [Ray Hildebrand], American singer (Paul and Paula), born in Joshua, Texas 1944 - Hwang Jang Lee, Korean martial artist and film actor, born in Aomori, Japan 1969 - Mihails Zemļinskis, Latvian footballer, born in Riga, Latvia More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1824 - James Parkinson, English physician (First description of Parkinson's disease) and political activist, dies at 69 1979 - Mac Anderson, New Zealand cricketer (Test for NZ 1946, scored five and one), dies at 60 1997 - Juzo Itami, film director/actor (Lord Jim, Yuuguremade), dies at 64 2006 - Sydney Wooderson, English athlete dubbed "The Mighty Atom" (world record 1937), dies at 92 2017 - Roswell Rudd ,American free-jazz trombonist (Archie Shepp), and avant-garde composer (New York Art Quartet), dies of prostate cancer at 82 2020 - K. T. Oslin, American country singer (80's Ladies), dies at 78 More Famous Deaths »

1823 - Play "Rosamunde, Princess of Cyprus" by Helmina von Chézy with incidental music by Franz Schubert premieres in Vienna 1862 - Confederate raid on Union supplies at Holly Springs, Mississippi 1921 - AL votes to return to best-of-7 World Series, while NL votes best-of-9; Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis casts deciding vote for best-of-7 1926 - St. Louis Cardinals trade future Baseball Hall of Fame infielder Rogers Hornsby to NY Giants for Frankie Frisch and Jimmy Ring; concerns over Hornsby's gambling 1937 - Australian cricket spin bowler Bill O'Reilly takes career best 9-41 for NSW in a Sheffield Shield match against South Australia at Adelaide Oval 1966 - Nuclear Planning Group forms in Brussels 1970 - Edward Gierek succeeds Wladyslaw Gomulka as Poland's communist party leader 1991 - NHL grants permanent membership to Tampa Lightning and Ottawa Senators 2001 - 90th Davis Cup: France beats Australia in Melbourne (3-2) 2017 - Lady Gaga signs Las Vegas residency deal for $75m at MGM Park Theatre More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1900 - Giacobini discovers a comet (will be 1st comet visited by spacecraft) 1939 - Radio Australia begins overseas shortwave service 1985 - Sportscaster Howard Cosell retires from television sports after 20 years with ABC 1992 - Northwest and KLM introduce a new joint logo "Worldwide Reliability" 1995 - Revival of Phillip Hayes Dean's drama "Paul Robeson" opens at Longacre Theater, NYC; runs for 14 performances 2019 - United States Space Force founded, an armed forces branch dedicated to space warfare More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1906 - Irving Krick, American meteorologist and inventor, born in San Francisco, California (d. 1996) 1922 - Charita Bauer, American actress (The Guiding Light, Aldrich Family), born in Newark, New Jersey (d. 1985) 1944 - Jean Fergusson, English actress, born in Wakefield, United Kingdom 1961 - Mohammad Fouad, Arab singer and actor, born in Ismailia Governorate, Egypt 1972 - Jonathan Wyatt, New Zealand 5000m runner (Olympics 1996), born in Wellington, New Zealand 1998 - Dylan Wang [Wang Hedi], Chinese actor and singer (Meteor Garden), born in Chengdu, Sichuan More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1494 - Matteo Maria Boiardo, Italian poet 1749 - Pakubuwono II, susuhunan of Mataram Java, dies 1876 - Hannah Omish, at 12 is youngest ever hanged in US 1986 - Joe DeSa, American baseball player (b. 1959) 2012 - Eagle Keys, American Canadian Football Hall of Fame linebacker and coach (Grey Cup champion 1949, 54-56, 66; Edmonton Eskimos, Saskatchewan R'riders), dies at 89 2015 - Patricia Elliott, American actress (Renee-Empire, One Life to Live), dies at 77 More Famous Deaths »

1154 - King Henry II of England crowned King of England 1562 - Battle at Dreux: Anne de Montmorency and huguenots under Condé captured 1859 - Grading started for Market Street RR in San Francisco 1862 - Skirmish at Jackson, Salem Church, Tennessee (80 casualties) 1917 - Quebec Bulldogs play their 1st professional hockey game 1919 - American Meteorological Society found 1969 - Beatle's 7th Christmas fan-club single is released 1980 - Mutual Broadcasting cancels Sears Radio Theater 2001 - Argentine economic crisis: December 2001 riots - Riots erupt in Buenos Aires after Domingo Cavallo's corralito measures restrict the withdrawal of cash from bank deposits. 2018 - First use of a drone to deliver vaccines - to island of Erromango, Vanuatu, by Unicef More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1835 - HMS Beagle with Charles Darwin aboard arrives in New Zealand 1917 - 1st NHL game played on artificial ice in Toronto 1926 - National Football League Championship: Frankford Yellow Jackets (14-1-2) win first past the post title 1976 - Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev receives his 5th Order of Lenin 1980 - Anguilla becomes a British dependency separate from St Kitts 2016 - At least 48 people die after drinking bath lotion in Irkutsk, Siberia, thinking it contained alcohol More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1819 - James Clifford Veatch, American Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Elizabeth, Indiana (d. 1895) 1837 - John Carpenter Carter, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), (d. 1864) 1861 - Italo Svevo, Italian writer (La Coscienza di Zeno), born in Trieste Austria (d. 1928) 1916 - Hal Hastings, American orchestra leader (Chevrolet on Broadway), born in NYC, New York (d. 1973) 1925 - Robert Sherman, songwriter (Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book), born in NYC, New York (d. 2012) 1957 - Doug Johnson, Canadian rock keyboardist (Loverboy - "Working For The Weekend"), born in Surrey, British Columbia More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1815 - Robert Hudson, British tenor, organist, and composer, dies at 83 1933 - George Jackson Churchward, British mechanical engineer (Chief of Great Western Railway Chief, 1902-22), truck and killed by a Paddington to Fishguard express train at 76 1951 - Barton Yarbrough, actor (Dragnet), dies at 51 1998 - Antonio Ordóñez, Spanish bullfighter (b. 1932) 2002 - Will Hoy, English auto racer (British Touring Car C'ship 1991), dies from a brain tumour at 50 2017 - Mamie "Peanut" Johnson, American professional baseball player at 1st female pitcher to play in the Negro Leagues, dies from heart complications at 82 More Famous Deaths »

1774 - Empress Maria Theresa expels Jews from Prague, Bohemia and Moravia 1902 - British parliament passes the Education Act, which will come to be regarded as the most important legislation of Arthur Balfour's government 1932 - National Football League Championship; Playoff, Chicago Stadium: Chicago Bears beat Portsmouth Spartans, 9-0 1935 - Edvard Beneš becomes President of Czechoslovakia after Tomáš Masaryk retires 1962 - Ballon d'Or: Dukler Prague midfielder Josef Masopust wins award for best European football player; beats Benfica striker Eusébio and FC Köln defender Karl-Heinz Schnellinger 1963 - "The Pink Panther" film premieres, directed by Blake Edwards and starring Peter Sellers and David Niven, with theme by Henry Mancini 1963 - Muskegon, Michigan gets 3' of snow 1970 - Polish uprising fails 1976 - Soviet dissident Viktor Bukovskiexchanged for Chile CP-leader Corvalan 1978 - USSR performs underground nuclear test More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1869 - Canada's Hamilton Football Club plays its 1st game 1962 - Ballon d'Or: Dukler Prague midfielder Josef Masopust wins award for best European football player; beats Benfica striker Eusébio and FC Köln defender Karl-Heinz Schnellinger 1969 - House of Lords votes to abolish the death penalty in England, Wales and Scotland (Northern Ireland 25 July 1973) 1989 - "I Love Lucy" Christmas episode, shown for 1st time in over 30 years 1996 - The Oakland, California school board passes a resolution officially declaring "Ebonics" a language or dialect. 2020 - US Vice President Mike Pence receives the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine live on TV More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1837 - Adolf Daens, Flemish priest, politician and founder of the Daensist movement, born in Aalst, Belgium (d. 1907) 1907 - Bill Holland, American auto racer (d. 1984) 1946 - Steven Spielberg, American director (ET, Close Encounters, Jaws), born in Cincinnati, Ohio 1966 - Mille Petrozza, German singer (Kreator) 1983 - Ady Barkan, American lawyer and activist (Medicare for all) 1995 - Barbora Krejčíková, Czech tennis player (French Open singles 2021; French Open doubles 2018, 21; Wimbledon 2018, 22; US Open and Australian Open 2022; 3 x Australian Open mixed doubles), born in Brno, Czech Republic More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1577 - Anna, Duchess of Saxony, German born 2nd wife of Prince William of Orange (divorced and imprisoned for adultery), dies at 32 1894 - Erastus Flaval Beadle, American publisher (Beadle's Dime Novels), dies at 73 1911 - Alberto Randegger, Italian composer, dies at 79 1980 - Alexei N Kosygin, Soviet PM (1964-80), suffers heart attack at 76 1994 - Peter Hebblethwaite, English editor-in-chief (The Month), dies at 64 2020 - Tim Severin, British author and explorer who replicated historic voyages, dies at 80 More Famous Deaths »

1819 - Congress of Angostura establishes Colombia's independence from Spain 1885 - France declares Madagascar a protectorate 1946 - US V-2 rocket reaches 183 km, White Sands Proving Grounds, New Mexico 1970 - Workers returning to shipyard in Gdynia, Poland are met by soldiers who shoot at the crowd, killing at least 18, wounding hundreds 1970 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR 1971 - Radio Bangladesh begins transmitting 1977 - Elvis Costello and The Attractions 1st US TV appearance on "Saturday Night Live" 1983 - In his 352nd NHL game, Wayne Gretzky scores a goal and 5 assists in 8-1 rout of Quebec Nordiques to record his 800th point and 500th assist; averages 2.27 points, 1.42 assists, 0.85 goals per game to start career 1992 - "A Christmas Carol" opens at Broadhurst Theater NYC for 22 performances 2019 - Former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf sentenced to death in absentia for high treason More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1819 - Congress of Angostura establishes Colombia's independence from Spain 1961 - India seizes Goa and 2 other Portuguese colonies 1963 - West and East Berlin sign accord about travel rules 1971 - Cease fire between India and Pakistan in Kashmir 2012 - 10 girls collecting firewood are killed by a mine blast in east Afghanistan 2013 - Angela Merkel is elected Chancellor of Germany for a third term More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1900 - Mary Cartwright, English mathematician, born in Aynho, United Kingdom (d. 1998) 1933 - Stefan Florenski, Polish soccer defender (11 caps; Górnik Zabrze), born in Gleiwitz, Poland (d. 2020) 1944 - Jack L[aurence] Chalker, American sci-fi author (Saga of Well World) 1969 - Chuck Liddell, American mixed martial artist 1971 - Antoine Rigaudeau, French basketball player 1974 - Jeffrey "Duff" Goldman, American cake designer, TV personality (Ace of Cakes) and chef, born in Detroit, Michigan More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1891 - Msiri, ruler of the Garanganze Kingdom, Congo (Katanga), dies in battle against Belgian funded expedition 1990 - Don Draper, American actor (Pepper Agent 00X), dies of AIDS at 61 1996 - Irving Caesar, American lyricist and theater composer (Tea for Two; Just A Gigilo; Sometimes I'm Happy; Animal Crackers In My Soup), dies at 101 2010 - Captain Beefheart [Don Van Vliet], American rock musician, complications from multiple sclerosis at 69 2013 - Leland Smith, American composer, bassoonist and computer coder who led music publishing into the digital age (SCORE), dies at 88 2020 - Stanley Cowell American jazz pianist (Heath Brothers), record label co-founder (Strata-East), and educator, dies from hypovolemic shock at 79 More Famous Deaths »

1900 - A National Civic Federation is formed in the US to arbitrate labor disputes 1912 - 1st US postage stamp picturing an airplane, 20 cent parcel post, issued 1960 - "Wildcat" opens at Alvin Theater NYC for 172 performances 1965 - Gemini 6 returns to Earth 1974 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1975 - Bill Veeck buys 80% of MLB Chicago White Sox from John Allyn 1979 - Dallas QB Roger Staubach throws 3 TDs and 336 yards in his last NFL regular season game with the Cowboys, a 35-34 win over Washington Redskins at Texas Stadium 1990 - Rev. Jean-Bertrand Aristide elected President of Haiti 1997 - US President Bill Clinton names his Labrador retriever "Buddy" 2020 - Nine-year-old girl who died of an asthma attack in 2013 becomes first person in the world to officially have air pollution listed as cause of death More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1826 - Benjamin W. Edwards rides into Mexican controlled Nacogdoches, Texas and declares himself ruler of the Republic of Fredonia. 1938 - State of California executes Ed Davis (38), leader of Folsom Prison escape attempt resulting in murder of warden and guard (San Quentin State Prison, Marin County) 1944 - US 2nd Infantry division occupies "Heartbreak Crossroads" Wahlerscheid 1950 - "Let's Make an Opera" closes at John Golden Theater NYC after 5 performances 1991 - UN reverses ruling that Zionism is racism by 111-25 (13 abstain) vote 2016 - US State Department increases reward for information on Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi to $25 million More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1742 - Gebhard Fürst Blücher von Wahlstatt, German Field Marshal (d. 1819) 1907 - Barbara Kent, Canadian actress (Lonesome, Flesh and the Devil), born in Gadsby, Alberta, Canada (d. 2011) 1916 - Udom Patpongsiri, Thai property developer (Father of the Thai sex industry), (d. 1996) 1945 - Bobby George, English darts player (BDO World C'ship 1980, 84 runner-up), born in Manor Park, Essex, England 1965 - Chris Jones, outfielder (NY Mets), born in Utica, New York 1988 - Anna Popplewell, English actress More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 714 - Pepin/Pippin II, of Herstal/Héristal, Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia and Duke and Prince of the Franks, dies 1670 - Dorothy, 1st English marquis of Halifax, dies 1993 - Charizma [Charles Hicks], American rapper, killed in a mugging at 20 1996 - Joe Coral [Joseph Kagarlitski], British bookmaker (Gala Coral Group), dies at 92 1997 - Richard Warwick, English actor (Johnny Dangerously, Sebastine, If), dies of AIDS complications at 52 2018 - John Ford Noonan, American playwright (A Coupla White Chicks Sitting Around Talking), dies at 77 More Famous Deaths »

1569 - Hunted by Queen Elizabeth I for treason in "The Rising of the North", Charles Neville, Earl of Westmorland, escapes to Scotland. 1840 - Napoleon Bonaparte receives a French state funeral in Paris 19 years after his death 1863 - Romania's mountain railway, from Anina to Oravita, opens 1944 - Hizbu'allah (Arm forces for Allah) forms 1965 - D Heneker and J Taylor's musical "Charlie Girl" premieres in London 1980 - Premier Queddei troops conquers Chad capital N'djamena 1986 - CIA director William J. Casey suffers a cerebral seizure 2011 - ESPN and the NCAA extend their TV rights deal through 2023-24, giving the network worldwide multi-media rights to 24 NCAA championships for various sports; deal worth $500m 2017 - Anita Hill is appointed to lead a Hollywood commission on sexual harassment, spearheaded by Kathleen Kennedy 2020 - MacKenzie Scott announces she has given away more than $4 billion to 384 nonprofit organizations across the US More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1918 - American Jewish Congress holds its 1st meeting 1953 - WJHG TV channel 7 in Panama City, FL (NBC/ABC) begins broadcasting 1961 - Adolf Eichmann is sentenced to death for war crimes in Israel 1973 - American kidnap victim John Paul Getty III freed after ransom paid by oil tycoon grandfather John Paul Getty 1983 - 3 Kansas City Royals (Willie Wilson, Willie Aikens, and Jerry Martin) suspended due to cocaine usage 2017 - Pakistani teenager Ahed Tamimi filmed slapping Israeli officers during protest, arrested 4 days later More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1860 - Niels Ryberg Finsen, Danish-Farosese physician and phototherapist (Nobel Prize for Medicine 1903 for treatment for Lupus), born in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands (d. 1904) 1888 - Artturi Leinonen, Finnish journalist and writer (Kati), born in Ylihärmä, Finland (d. 1963) 1892 - J. Paul Getty, American oil magnate and billionaire (Getty Oil), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (d. 1976) 1899 - Harold Abrahams, British athlete (Olympic gold 100m, silver 4x100m 1924; depicted in film "Chariots of Fire"), born in Bedford, England (d. 1978) 1930 - Edna O'Brien, Irish novelist and short story writer (Girl with Green Eyes, Casualties of Peace), born in Tuamgraney, County Clare, Ireland 1960 - Doug Phelps, American singer (Ky Headhunters - Davy Crockett), born in Leachville, Arkansas More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1816 - Joseph Franz Maximilian Lobkowitz, Bohemian aristocrat and composer, dies at 44 1855 - Jacques Charles François Sturm, French mathematician (b. 1803) 1896 - John GR Acquoy, Dutch theologian and church historian, dies at 67 1952 - Potti Sreeramulu, Indian revolutionary known as the Father of Andhra for conducting a 56 day hunger strike in support of a separate Telugu-speaking state, fasts to death at 51, sparking rioting and 3 days later Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to declare an intention to form Andhra Pradesh state 1953 - Ed Barrow, American Baseball HOF manager (World Series 1918 Boston Red Sox) and executive (10 x World Series NY Yankees), dies at 85 2009 - Carolyn DeZurik, American country and polka singer and yodeler (The Cackle Sisters; Prairie Ramblers; The Polka Chips), dies at 90 More Famous Deaths »

1575 - Polish Parliament selects Istvan Bathory as king of Poland 1914 - US President Woodrow Wilson signs Harrison Narcotics Tax Act, to regulate and tax production, importation, and distribution of opiates and coca products 1920 - Jack Dempsey KOs Bill Brennan in 12 for heavyweight boxing title in NYC 1954 - WOAY TV channel 4 in Oak Hill-Beckley, WV (ABC) begins broadcasting 1955 - 16 countries join the United Nations, including Austria, Finland, Italy, and Spain 1959 - The album "Time Out" by the Dave Brubeck Quartet is released, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard pop albums chart, and becomes the first jazz album to sell a million copies. 1960 - Washington Senators joins American League 1980 - Massacre at Bob's Big Boy restaurant in Los Angeles with 3 people killed and 6 injured 1991 - Ferry boat Salem Express sinks in the Red Sea, 476 killed 2019 - Miss World won by Miss Jamaica Toni-Ann Singh in London. First time all five major beauty titles held by black women. More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1793 - 1st state road authorized, Frankfort, Kentucky, to Cincinnati 1849 - 1st chamber music group in US gives their 1st concert in Boston 1920 - Jack Dempsey KOs Bill Brennan in 12 for heavyweight boxing title in NYC 1977 - Dutch war criminal Pieter Menten sentenced in Amsterdam to 15 years 1978 - China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor, PRC 1978 - "Ballroom" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 116 performances More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1881 - Katherine MacDonald, American actress and film producer (Stranger Than Fiction, The Infidel), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (d. 1956) 1917 - June Taylor, American choreographer, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2004) 1941 - Ellen Willis, American journalist and feminist, born in NYC, New York (d. 2006) 1968 - Jamie Crysdale, CFL corner (Calgary Stampeders), born in Calgary, Alberta 1984 - Chris Brunt, Northern Irish footballer, born in Belfast 1985 - Nonami Takizawa, Japanese gravure idol and actress, born in Saitama prefecture, Japan More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1077 - Agnes of Poitou, German Empress and wife of Emperor Henry III, dies at 52 1715 - Thomas Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury, dies at 79 1760 - Kacic Miosic, Croatian poet (Razgovar Ugodni Naroda Slovinskoga), dies at 56 1788 - Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer, dies at 74 1914 - Giovanni Sgambati, Italian pianist and composer, dies at 73 1989 - Andrei Sakharov, Russian nuclear physicist and an activist for disarmament, peace and human rights (Nobel 1975), dies of a heart attack at 68 More Famous Deaths »

1572 - Spanish army beats Geuzen fleet (confederacy of Calvinist Dutch nobles) under admiral Lumey 1920 - Francis G. Pease's interferometer at Mount Wilson Observatory is the first to measure the diameter of a star - the Betelgeuse 1924 - KOA-AM in Denver CO begins radio transmissions 1928 - George Gershwin's "An American In Paris" premieres at Carnegie Hall, NYC, performed by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Walter Damrosch 1936 - National Football League Championship, Polo Grounds, NYC: Green Bay Packers beat Boston Redskins, 21-6; Packers 4th title; Redskins move to Washington, D.C. for 1937 season 1961 - "The Young Ones" directed by Sidney J. Furie, starring Cliff Richard, Robert Morley and Carole Gray premieres in London 1964 - In El Paso, Texas, LBJ and Mexican President Gustavo Diaz Ordaz set off an explosion diverting Rio Grande, to reshape US-Mexico border 1966 - 1st battle for Bijlmer flats, Amsterdam 2014 - Two US soldiers killed in a Taliban bombing of a NATO convoy in Kabul 2017 - Scientists begin checking interstellar asteroid Oumuamua for signs of alien technology through radio signals (later studies conclude it a piece of sliced off planet) More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1966 - Test debut of Clive Lloyd, v India Bombay, 82 and 78 1991 - Ricky Pierce (Seattle) ends NBA free throw streak of 75 games 2012 - Japan scrambles fighter jets in response to a Chinese plane in the Senkaku Islands dispute 2012 - A car bombing in Qatana, outside Damascus, kills 16 people and injures 12 2015 - 81st Heisman Trophy Award: Derrick Henry, Alabama (RB) 2018 - US Senate passes non-binding "war powers resolution" against long-term ally Saudi Arabia More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1770 - John Clarke-Whitfeld, English organist and composer, born in Gloucester, England (d. 1836) 1797 - Heinrich Heine, German poet and lyricist (Schubert, Liszt), born in Düsseldorf, Germany (d. 1856) 1835 - Phillips Brooks, American Episcopal bishop and composer (Little Town of Bethlehem), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1893) 1897 - Drew Pearson, American newscaster (Drew Pearson), born in Evanston, Illinois (d. 1969) 1977 - Sascha Kindred, British Paralympic swimmer, born in Münster, Germany 1983 - Matt Deis, American bassist (All That Remains), born in Peterborough, New Hampshire More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1126 - Henry IX, the Black, Duke of Bavaria (1120-26), dies 1837 - Herman of Alaska, Russian Orthodox hermit (b. 1756) 1919 - Amintore Galli, Italian composer, dies at 74 1958 - Ahmed Mukhtar Baban, premier of Iraq, executed 1983 - Alexander Schmemann, Orthodox Christian priest and theologian (b. 1921) 1993 - Charles JB Jonckheere, Flemish poet/writer: Ogentroost, dies at 87 More Famous Deaths »

1903 - Roger Casement completes report about abuses in Belgian Congo 1930 - Start of the 1st Australia v West Indies Test (at Adelaide) 1939 - Russ Indigirka capsizes in blizzard off Japanese coast; 750 die 1942 - A fire in a hostel in St. John's, Newfoundland, kills 100 people 1965 - Vivian Beaumont Theater opens at 65th St and Amsterdam Ave NYC 1970 - Small Astronomy Satellite Explorer 42 launched to study X-rays 1986 - James "Bone Crusher" Smith TKO's WBA champ Tim Witherspoon in Madison Square Garden 1992 - Julia Kurotchkina, 18, of Russia, crowned 42nd Miss World 2008 - Andrei Klepach, Deputy Economic Minister of Russia, states that Russia has entered a recession, with two quarters of contraction expected, meaning Russia will fall short of reaching the 6.8% growth forecast for 2008 2018 - China built 88 out of world's 143 skyscrapers in 2018 more than any country ever (buildings over 200 meters/656 ft) More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1897 - Rudolph Dirks' 1st "The Katzenjammer Kids" cartoon strip appears in NY Journal 1900 - National Negro Anthem, "Lift Every Voice and Sing", composed 1948 - Malayan Emergency: Batang Kali Massacre - 14 members of the Scots Guards stationed in Malaysia allegedly massacre 24 unarmed civilians and set fire to the village. 1963 - Kenya (formerly British East Africa) declares independence from UK 1966 - "A Man for All Seasons" based on the play by Robert Bolt, directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Paul Scofield premieres in New York (Best Picture 1967) 1992 - 58th Heisman Trophy Award: Gino Torretta, U of Miami (QB) More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1902 - Howard Koch, American playwright and screenwriter, born in NYC, New York (d. 1995) 1913 - Hal Dickinson, American singer (Modernaires), born in Buffalo, New York (d. 1970) 1931 - Ali-Akbar Sa'idi Sirjani, Iranian writer and journalist, born in Sirjan, Kerman (d. 1994) 1937 - Philip Ledger, British organist, composer, conductor, and academic (King's College Cambridge), born in Bexhill-on-Sea, England (d. 2012) 1938 - Joel Chadabe, American electronic music composer, born in NYC, New York (d. 2021) 1968 - Chris Walsh, American NFL wide receiver (Minnesota Vikings; sues NFL over head injuries 2011), born in Cleveland, Ohio More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1889 - Robert Browning, English poet (Ring and Book), dies at 77 1914 - Watkins Lewis Africa American lynched in Shrevport, Louisiana 1992 - Jasu Patel, Indian cricket spin bowler (7 Tests, 29 wickets, BB 9-69 v Aust 1959; Gujarat), dies at 68 2002 - Jay Wesley Neill, American convicted mass murderer, dies at 37 2019 - Brian Muller, New Zealand rugby union prop (14 caps; Taranaki), dies at 77 2020 - John le Carré [pen name for David Cornwell], English novelist (The Spy Who Came in from the Cold), dies at 89 More Famous Deaths »