Today in the Past
Events
473 - The future Zeno I is named associate emperor by Emperor Leo I.
1183 - Battle of Mizushima.
1278 - 680 Jews arrested (293 hanged) in England for counterfeiting coins
1292 - (O.S.) John Balliol becomes King of Scotland.
1558 - Elizabeth I ascends English throne upon death of her half sister Mary “Bloody Mary”, Queen of England (1553-58), aged 42
1603 - English explorer, writer and courtier Sir Walter Raleigh goes on trial for treason.
1734 - John Zenger, arrested for libel against NY col gov; later acquitted
1796 - Battle of Arcole-Napoleon I’s French forces beat Austrians in Italy
1798 - -21) Snow storms in New England, 100s die
1800 - Congress held 1st session in Wash DC in incompleted Capitol building
1812 - Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Krasnoi.
1827 - The Delta Phi fraternity, America’s oldest continuous social fraternity, was founded at Union College in Schenectady, New York.
1855 - David Livingstone becomes the first European to see Victoria Falls in what is now present-day Zambia-Zimbabwe.
1856 - On the Sonoita River in present-day southern Arizona, the United States Army establishes Fort Buchanan in order to help control new land acquired in the Gadsden Purchase.
1862 - Confederate Sec of War George B Randolph resigns
1863 - -Dec 4th) Battle of Knoxville, TN
1869 - Englishman James Moore wins 1st bicycle race (13K Paris-Rouen)
1869 - Suez Canal (Egypt) opens, links Mediterranean & Red seas
1874 - Emigrant ship Cospatrick catches fire & sinks off Auckland, NZ
1884 - Cops arrest John L Sullivan in 2nd round for being “cruel”
1894 - Daily Racing Form founded
1914 - US declares Panama Canal Zone neutral
1917 - Lenin defended “temporary” removal of freedom of the press
1927 - Tornado hits Washington DC
1928 - Boston Garden officially opens
1928 - Notre Dame finally lost a football game after nearly 25 years
1929 - Stalin throws Nicolai Bucharin out of Politburo
1936 - Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy become overnight success on radio
1937 - Britains Lord Halifax visits Germany, beginning of appeasement
1939 - German U-boat torpedoes passenger ship
1945 - New world air speed record 606 mph (975 kph) set by HJ Wilson of RAF
1947 - The U.S. Screen Actors Guild implements an anti-Communist loyalty oath.
1948 - Britain’s House of Commons votes to nationalize steel industry
1953 - The remaining human inhabitants of the Blasket Islands, Kerry, Ireland are evacuated to the mainland.
1956 - Syracuse fullback Jim Brown, scores NCAA record of 43 pts (vs Colgate)
1959 - De Beers firm of South Africa announces synthetic diamond
1959 - Giants slugger Willie McCovey wins NL Rookie of Year
1962 - Pres Kennedy dedicates Dulles Intl Airport outside Wash DC
1966 - Leonids meteor shower peaks (150,000+ per hour)
1967 - Surveyor 6 becomes 1st man-made object to lift off Moon
1968 - Alexandros Panagoulis is condemned to death for attempting to assassinate Greek dictator George Papadopoulos.
1969 - SALT-discussions open in Helsinki Finland
1970 - British newspaper Sun puts 1st pinup girl on pg 3 (Stephanie Rahn)
1970 - Russia lands Lunokhod 1 unmanned remote-controlled vehicle on Moon
1970 - Douglas Engelbart receives the patent for the first computer mouse.
1972 - Juan Peron returns to Argentina
1973 - Greek regime attacks students with tanks, 100s killed
1973 - Teri Garr plays role of a stripper on “The Nurse”
1973 - Pres Nixon tells AP “…people have got to know whether or not their pres is a crook. Well, I’m not a crook”
1977 - Egyptian Pres Sadat formally accepts invitation to visit Israel
1979 - Khomeini frees most black & female US hostages
1983 - Harm Wiersma retains checkers world championship
1989 - Bret Saberhagen signs record $2,966,667 per year KC Royal contract
1992 - Dateline NBC airs a demonstration show General Motors trucks, blowing up on impact, later revealed NBC rigged test
1993 - US House of Representatives approve Nafta
1997 - In Luxor, Egypt, 62 people are killed by 6 Islamic militants outside the Temple of Hatshepsut, known as Luxor massacre (The police then kill the assailants).
2004 - Kmart Corp. announces it is buying Sears, Roebuck and Co. for $11 billion USD and naming the newly merged company Sears Holdings Corporation.
Births
9 - Vespasian, Falacrina, Italy, Roman Emperor (AD 69-79), (d. AD 79)
331 - Flavius Claudius Julianus, [Julian the Apostate], Emperor
1502 - Atahualpa, last emperor of the Inca (d. 1533)
1503 - Il Bronzino, Florentine painter (Eleanor de Toledo & her Son)
1594 - Johan van Beverwijck, Dutch physician/writer (Treasure of Health)
1612 - Dorgon, Manchu prince (d. 1650)
1685 - Pierre Gaultier, French-Canadian trader and explorer (d. 1749)
1755 - Louis XVIII, 1st post-revolutionary king of France (1814-24)
1790 - August Ferdinand Möbius, German mathematician (d. 1868)
1794 - John Barrien Montgomery, Commander (Union Navy), died in 1873
1799 - Titian Ramsey Peale, US, artist/naturalist (American Ornithology)
1814 - Joseph Finegan, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1885
1826 - John McArthur, Bvt Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1906
1834 - Stephen Hinsdale Weed, Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1863
1865 - John S Plaskett, Canadian astronomer (Plaskett’s twins)
1866 - Voltairine de Cleyre, American anarchist (d. 1912)
1887 - Bernard L Montgomery, British field marshal (WW II-African campaign)
1890 - Jack Cusack, pro football pioneer (Canton Bulldogs)
1897 - Ed Baker, Davis WV, actor (Keystone Kops)
1899 - Douglas Shearer, Canadian film sound engineer (d. 1971)
1902 - Eugene Paul Wigner, mathematician/physicist (A Bomb, Nobel 1963)
1902 - Lee Strasberg, Austria, acting coach/actor (And Justice for All)
1905 - Astrid Bernadotte, Princess of Sweden
1906 - Betty Bronson, Trenton NJ, actress (Evel Knievel, One Stolen Night)
1906 - Soichiro Honda, Japan, founder/CEO (Honda Motor Co)
1911 - Charles Walters, US, actor/choreographer/director (Easter parade)
1911 - Nobutaka Shikanai, Japans media CEO (Fujisankei Com Group)
1914 - Archie Campbell, Bullsgap Tenn, comedian (Hee Haw)
1917 - Jack Lescoulie, Sacramento California, TV host (Jackie Gleason Show)
1919 - Hershy Kay, Philadelphia Penn, composer/arranger (Olympic Hymn)
1925 - Colin Campbell Mitchell, soldier
1925 - Rock Hudson, Winnetka, Ill, actor (Pillow Talk, A Farewell to Arms)
1929 - Edgar White, US, yachtsman (Olympic-gold-1952)
1929 - Sumner White, US, yachtsman (Olympic-gold-1952)
1930 - Bob Mathias, Tulare California, decathelete (Olympic-gold-1948, 52)
1933 - Orlando Peña, Cuban baseball player
1935 - Anton Sailer, Austria, skier (Olympic-3 golds-1956)
1937 - Peter Edward Cook, Torquay England, actor/comedian (Bedazzled)
1938 - Gordon Lightfoot, Ontario Canada, folksinger (Sundown)
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
1940 - Luke Kelly, Irish folk music singer and banjo player
1941 - Gene Clark, LA California, rock vocalist/guitarist (Byrds)
1942 - Bob Gaudio, Bronx NY, rocker (Four Seasons-Sherry)
1942 - Martin Scorsese, Queens, New York, director (Raging Bull, The Departed)
1943 - Lauren Hutton, [Mary], Charleston SC, model/actress (American Gigolo)
1944 - Danny DeVito, Neptune NJ, actor (Taxi, Ruthless People, Twins)
1944 - Eugene Clarke, Tipton Missouri, rock guitarist
1944 - Lorne Michaels, [Lipowitz], Toronto Ontario, comedian (SNL)
1944 - Tom Seaver, pitcher (NY Met, 300 game winner, Cy Young ’69 ’73 ’75)
1945 - Elvin Hayes, NBA star (San Diego, Houston, Baltimore)
1945 - Roland Joffe, director (City of Joy, Mission, Killing Fields)
1946 - Martin Barre, British pop guitarist (Jethro Tull)
1948 - Jaime Huelamo, Spain, cyclist (Olympic-bronze-1972) drug disqualified
1948 - Howard Dean, American politician
1949 - John Boehner, (Rep-R-Ohio)
1949 - Thomas Lionel Hill, New Orleans, 110m hurdler (Olympic-bronze-1972)
1950 - Roland Matthes, German DR, 100m/200m backstroke (Oly-gold-1968, 72)
1950 - Tom Walkinshaw, Scottish race car driver and race team owner
1951 - Dean Paul Martin, Santa Monica California, actor (Billy-Misfits of Science)
1953 - Jilly Johnson, England, vocalist (Blonde on Blonde)
1958 - Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Oak Park Ill, actress (Color of Money)
1960 - RuPaul, drag queen/model/actor (RuPaul Show)
1961 - Merete Van Kemp, Denmark, actress (Grace-Dallas, Princess Daisy)
1961 - Robert Stethem, U.S. Navy Seabee diver murdered by terrorists on TWA Flight 847 (d. 1985)
1964 - Marina Tcherkasova, US, pairs figure skater (Olympic-silver-1980)
1964 - Michelle Knox-Zaloom, Annapolis MD, rower (Olympics-96)
1965 - Grant Connell, Regina Saskatchawan, tennis player (Olympics-96)
1965 - Rob Koll, Bellefonte PA, 163 lbs/74 kg freestyle wrestler (Olymp-96)
1965 - Winthrop Graham, Jamaica, 4x400m runner (Olympic-silver-1988)
1965 - Amanda Brown, Australian musician (The Go-Betweens) and composer
1966 - Daisy Fuentes, model/MTV veejay (America’s Funniest Videos)
1966 - Sophie Marceau, Paris France, actress (Braveheart, L’Amour Braque)
1969 - Takako Inque, Toride Japan, wrestler (Japan)
1970 - Paul Allender, British guitarist (Cradle of Filth)
1972 - Kimya Dawson, American singer
1973 - Scott Rehberg, tackle (New England Patriots)
1974 - Leslie Bibb, American actress
1974 - Berto Romero, Spanish humorist
1977 - Ryk Neethling, South African swimmer
1978 - Zoë Bell, New Zealand actress
1980 - Isaac Hanson, vocalist (Hansons-Do Wah)
1980 - [Clarke] Isaac Hanson, Tulsa OK, singer (Hansons-MMMMbop)
1981 - Sarah Harding, English singer (Girls Aloud)
1983 - Christopher Paolini, American novelist
Deaths
375 - Valentinian I “The Great“, Roman Co-Emperor and Ruler of Western Roman Empire (363-75), dies at 54
474 - Leo II, Byzantine Emperor (474), dies
594 - St Gregory of Tours, Frankish bishop of Tours, dies at 55
641 - Emperor Jomei of Japan (b. 593)
1093 - Margaret, widow of Scottish king Malcolm III, dies
1231 - Elisabeth of Hungary, daughter of Andrew II of Hungary (b. 1207)
1494 - Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, Italian philosopher (b. 1463)
1512 - Kempo Roeper, Frisian rebel, quartered
1600 - Kuki Yoshitaka, Japanese naval commander (b. 1542)
1608 - Adolf, count of Nassau-Siegen, dies in battle at 22
1632 - Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim, Bavarian field marshal (b. 1594)
1690 - Charles de Sainte-Maure, duc de Montausier, French soldier (b. 1610)
1713 - Abraham van Riebeeck, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (b. 1653)
1720 - Calico Jack, English pirate (b. 1682)
1776 - James Ferguson, British astronomer (b. 1710)
1780 - Bernardo Bellotto, Italian painter (b. 1720)
1794 - Jacques François Dugommier, French general (b. 1738)
1796 - Catherine the Great [Catherine II], Empress of Russia (1762-96), dies of a stroke at 67
1858 - Robert Owen, British father of the cooperative movement (b. 1771)
1875 - Hilario Ascasubi, Argentina author (pampa, gauchos & indians), dies
1917 - Auguste Rodin, French sculptor (Baiser, Thinker), dies at 77
1927 - Adolf A Joffe, Russian author/diplomat, commits suicide at 44
1928 - Lala Lajpat Rai, Indian author, politician, & freedom fighter (b. 1865)
1929 - Herman Hollerith, German/US statistician (punch card), dies at 69
1940 - Eric Gill, British sculptor (b. 1882)
1940 - Raymond Pearl, American biologist (b. 1879)
1941 - Earnest Udet, German general/head air pioneer, commits suicide
1942 - Ben Reitman, American anarchist, physician (b. 1879)
1947 - Victor Serge, Russian anarchist, novelist, and historian (b. 1890)
1962 - Arthur Vining Davis, CEO (Alcoa-1910-57), dies at 95 in Miami
1971 - Gladys Cooper, actress (Margaret-The Rogues), dies at 83
1971 - Jackie Cooper, actor (People’s Choice), dies at 49
1973 - The Mother, Sri Aurobindo Ashram (b. 1878)
1974 - Clive Brook, actor/director (On Approval), dies at 87
1978 - James J “Gene” Tunney, heavyweight boxing champ (1926-8), dies at 80
1979 - John Glassock, bass (Jethro Tull), dies at 27 following heart surgery
1981 - Bob Eberly, singer (Jimmy Dorsey Band), dies at 65
1982 - Bill Baldwin, announcer (Mayor of Hollywood), dies at 69
1982 - Duk Koo Kim, S Korean boxer, legally declared dead
1986 - Alan Hewitt, actor (Det Brennan-My Favorite Martian), dies at 71
1986 - Georges Besse, French president-director of Renault, murdered
1989 - Gus Farace, American gangster (b. 1960)
1990 - Robert Hofstadter, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1915)
1991 - Kelly Jean Van Dyke-Nance, (Jerry Van Dyke’s daughter), suicide at 33
1995 - Edward LeBone Molotlegi, chief of the Bafokeng, dies at 66
1998 - Esther Rolle, American actress (b. 1920)
2000 - Louis Eugène Félix Néel, French physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904)
2001 - Michael Karoli, German guitarist (b. 1948)
2002 - Abba Eban, Israeli diplomat (b. 1915)
2003 - Arthur Conley, American singer (b. 1946)
2006 - Ruth Brown, American blues singer (b. 1928)
Mama He Treats Your Daughter Mean
Ain’t Nobody’s Business with BB King
2008 - George Stephen Morrison, American admiral and father of The Doors’ lead singer Jim Morrison
2011 - Olin Branstetter, American businessman and politician (b. 1929)
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[...] 538 - St Gregory of Tours, Auvergne, Gaul, chronicler/bishop (Historia Francorum), (d. 594)(see UE 11/17 Deaths) [...]
[...] 1894 - Ferdinand de Lesseps, French engineer/diplomat/earl, dies at 89(see UE 11/17 Events , Suez Canal) [...]