Today in History for 15th October 2023

[CoM Moderators]

Historical Events

1917 - Dutch exotic dancer Mata Hari is executed by firing squad for spying for Germany during WWI at Vincennes near Paris
1939 - Yeshiva of Mir closes after 124 years
1963 - Ludwig Erhard succeeds Konrad Adenauer as Chancellor of West Germany
1980 - Nobel Prize in Economics awarded to Lawrence Klein
1984 - Central Intelligence Agency Information Act passes
1986 - MLB National League Championship: New York Mets beat Houston Astros, 4 games to 2

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Famous Birthdays

1858 - John L. Sullivan, American boxer (first heavyweight gloved champion, de facto 1882-92; last heavyweight bare-knuckle champion), born in Roxbury, Massachusetts (d. 1918)
1911 - James H. Schmitz, American sci-fi author (Lion Game), born in Hamburg, Germany (d. 1981)
1943 - Penny Marshall, American actress (The Odd Couple; Laverne and Shirley), and director (Big; Awakenings; A League of Their Own), and producer (Cinderella Man), born in The Bronx, New York (d. 2018)
1957 - Mira Nair, Indian-American filmmaker (Monsoon Wedding), born in Rourkela, Odisha, India
1966 - Bill Charlap, American jazz pianist (Phil Woods; Tony Bennett; Sandy Stewart), and educator, born in New York City
1970 - Lonnie Palelei, American football offensive lineman (NY Jets), born in Nu'uuli, American Samoa

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Famous Deaths

961 - Abd al-Rahman III, Umayyad Emir (912-29) and 1st Caliph of Córdoba (929-961), dies at 70
1268 - Dirk II, mister of Valkenburg, dies
2001 - Zhang Xueliang, Chinese ruler of Manchuria, dies at 100
2005 - Matti Wuori, Finnish politician, dies of cancer at 60
2008 - Tom Tresh, American baseball utility (MLB All-Star 1962, 63; AL Rookie of Year and World Series 1962 NY Yankees), dies from a heart attack at 70
2022 - Joyce Sims, American RandB singer-songwriter ("All and All"; "Come into My Life"), dies at 63

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