Today in History for 3rd February 2026

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Historical Events

1913 - Paul A. Rubens and Arthur Wimperis' musical "The Sunshine Girl", with additional songs by and John Golden and Joseph Cawthorne, opens at the Knickerbocker Theatre, NYC, runs for 181 performances
1928 - Paleoanthropologist Davidson Black reports his findings on the ancient human fossils found at Zhoukoudian, China, in the journal Nature and declares them to be a new species he names 'Sinanthropus pekinensis' (now known as 'Homo erectus')
1942 - Baseball owners agree to permit each club up to 14 night games in 1942
1947 - -81°F (-63°C), Snag Yukon (North American record)
1972 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

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Famous Birthdays

1817 - Samuel Ryan Curtis, American politician and Major General (Union Army), born in Champlain, New York (d. 1866)
1899 - Lao She, Chinese writer and playwright (Rickshaw Boy, Teahouse), born in Beijing, China (d. 1966)
1940 - Jim Hartz, American journalist and newscaster (NBC-TV Today, 1974-77; PBS - Innovations), born in Tulsa, Oklahoma (d. 2022)
1941 - Gary Bartlett, New Zealand cricket fast bowler (10 Tests, 24 wickets, BB 6/38; Central Districts, Canterbury, Marlborough), born in Blenheim, New Zealand
1977 - Daddy Yankee [Ramón Rodríguez], Puerto Rican reggaeton singer and rapper ("Despacito"; "Gasolina"), born in San Juan, Puerto Rico

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Famous Deaths

1558 - Alfonsus de Castro, Spanish theologist (Council of Trent), dies
1959 - Buddy Holly [Charles Holley], American rock and roll musician and songwriter ("Peggy Sue"; "That'll Be the Day"; "Words Of Love"), dies in a plane crash at 22
1989 - Lionel Newman, American film music composer (Hello Dolly!, Star Wars, Cleopatra), dies from cardiac arrest at 73
1996 - Wild Jimmy Spruill, American blues guitarist, dies at 61
1998 - Karla Faye Tucker, American murderer, executed at 38

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