July 28

Birthdays:

1954 ~ Hugo Rafael Frías Chávez (d. Mar. 5, 2013), President of Venezuela from 1999 to 2013.  He died of cancer at age 58.

1954 ~ Gerd Faltings, German mathematician.

1948 ~ Georgia Engel, American actress.

1947 ~ Sally Struthers, American actress best known for her role as Gloria on All in the Family.

1945 ~ Jim Davis, American cartoonist and creator of the Garfield comic.

1938 ~ Robert Hughes (d. Aug. 6, 2012), Australian critic and writer and pugnacious popularize of fine art.  He died a week after his 74^th birthday.

1938 ~ Alberto Fujimori, 90^th President of Peru.  He was President from July 1990 until November 2000.  In 2009, he was convicted of human rights violations and sentenced to 25 years in prison.

1937 ~ John A. Walker, Jr. (d. Aug. 28, 2014), American Navy officer who lead a family spy ring.  He was convicted of spying for the Soviet Union from 1968 until 1985.  He died in prison a month after his 77^th birthday.

1932 ~ Norma Holloway Johnson (née Normalie Loyce Johnson, d. Sept. 18, 2011), African-American judge who oversaw the Monica Lewinsky probe.  She was from Lake Charles, Louisiana.  She died at age 79.

1929 ~ Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (d. May 19, 1994), 37^th First Lady and wife of President John F. Kennedy.  She died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma at age 64.

1929 ~ Shirley Ann Grau, American novelist.  She was born in New Orleans.

1925 ~ Baruch Samuel Blumberg (d. Apr. 5, 2011), American physician and recipient of the 1976 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work on the study of kuru.  He died at age 85.

1916 ~ David Brown (d. Feb. 1, 2010), American movie producer who made Jaws and The Sting.  He was married to Helen Gurley Brown, the editor of Cosmopolitan.  He died of renal failure at age 93.

1915 ~ Charles Townes (d. Jan. 27, 2015), American physicist and recipient of the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physics.  He was 99 years old at the time of his death.

1909 ~ Malcolm Lowry (né Clarence Malcolm Lowry, d. June 26, 1957), British novelist.  He is best known for his novel Under the Volcano.  He died about a month before his 48^th birthday.

1907 ~ Earl Tupper (d. Oct. 5, 1983), American inventor of Tupperware.  He was born in Berlin, New Hampshire.  He died at age 76.

1901 ~ Rudy Vallée (né Hubert Prior Vallée, d. July 3, 1986), American singer.  He was born in Vermont.  He is known for his rendition of The Maine Stein Song, the theme song of the University of Maine.  He died 25 days before his 85^th birthday.

1887 ~ Marcel Duchamp (d. Oct. 2, 1968), French painter and artist.  He died at age 81.

1866 ~ Beatrix Potter (née Helen Beatrix Potter, d. Dec. 22, 1943), English author and creator of the Peter Rabbit stories.  She died at age 77.

1635 ~ Robert Hooke (d. Mar. 3, 1703), English scientist.  He is best known for his investigations with the microscope.  He died at age 67.

Events that Changed the World:

2002 ~ Nine coal miners trapped in the flooded Quecreek Mine in Pdnnsylvania were rescued.  They had been trapped for over 75 hours.

1996 ~ The remains of a prehistoric man, now known as the Kennewick Man, were discovered near Kennewick, Washington State.

1984 ~ The 1984 Summer Olympics opened in Los Angeles, California.

1976 ~ A massive earthquake struck Tangshan in China.  Approximately 250,000 people were believed to have been killed in the disaster, with another 150,000 individuals injured.

1945 ~ A US Army B-25 bomber crashed into the Empire State Building.  Fourteen people were killed and 26 were injured.

1914 ~ Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia after Serbia rejected the conditions of an ultimatum sent by Austria following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

1896 ~ The city of Miami, Florida was incorporated.

1868 ~ The 14^th Amendment to the United States was certified.  The principles of the 14^th Amendment (1) defines citizenship regardless of race; (2) provides that no state shall abridge the privileges and immunities of citizens; (3) provides that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law; and (4) no person could be denied equal protection of the laws.

1866 ~ Lavinia “Vinnie” Ream (1847 ~ 1914) became the first and youngest woman artist to receive a commission from the United States government for a statue.  She was 18 years old when she was commissioned to sculpt the statue of Abraham Lincoln, which is in the Rotunda of the United States Capitol Building.

1821 ~ José de San Martín (1778 ~ 1850) declared Peru to be independent from Spanish rule and became the Protector of Peru.

1540 ~ King Henry VIII (1491 ~ 1547) of England married his fifth wife, Catherine Howard (1523 ~ 1542) after he had Thomas Cromwell (1485 ~ 1540) executed for treason.

Good-Byes:

2014 ~ Theodore Van Kirk (b. Feb. 27, 1921), American navigator who guided the Enola Gay, the B-29 bomber that dropped the H-bomb on Hiroshima.  He died at age 93.

2013 ~ Eileen Brennan (née Verla Eileen Brennan, b. Sept. 3, 1932), American actress.  She died of cancer at age 80.

2013 ~ William Scranton (b. July 19, 1917), 13^th United States Ambassador to the United Nations.  He served in that office from March 1976 until January 1977 during the Gerald Ford administration.  He died 9 days after his 96^th birthday.

2009 ~ The Reverend Ike (b. né Frederick J. Eikerenkoetter, II, b. June 1, 1935), American minister who preached the gospel of wealth.  He died at age 74.

2004 ~ Francis Crick (b. June 8, 1916), English molecular biologist and recipient of the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.  He, along with James Watson, discovered the molecular structure of DNA.  They failed, however, to give due credit to Roselyn Franklin, who also provided valuable insight into the DNA structure.  He died at age 88.

2002 ~ Archer John Porter Martin (b. Mar. 1, 1910), British chemist and recipient of the 1952 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.  He died at age 92.

1999 ~ Trygve Haavelmo (b. Dec. 13, 1911), Norwegian economist and recipient of the 1989 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences.  He died at age 87.

1968 ~ Otto Hahn (b. Mar. 8, 1879), German chemist and recipient of the 1944 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.  He opposed the actions of the Nazis.  He died at age 89.

1957 ~ Isaac Heinemann (b. June 5, 1876), German-Israeli rabbinical scholar and educator.  He died at age 81.

1939 ~ William James Mayo (b. June 29, 1861), American physician and one of the seven founders of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.  He died a month after his 78^th birthday.

1930 ~ Allvar Gullstrand (b. June 5, 1862), Swedish ophthalmologist and recipient of the 1911 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.  He died at age 68.

1836 ~ Nathan Mayer Rothschild (b. Sept. 16, 1777), German banker and financier.  He died at age 58.

1818 ~ Gaspart Monge (b. May 9, 1746), French mathematician.  He died at age 72.

1794 ~ Maximilien de Robespierre (b. May 6, 1758), French revolutionary leader who was executed by guillotine in Paris during the French Revolution.  He was 36 years old.

1750 ~ Johann Sebastian Bach (b. Mar. 31, 1685), German composer.  He died at age 65.

1741 ~ Antonia Vivaldi (b. Mar. 4, 1678), Italian composer.  He died at age 63.

1655 ~ Cyrano de Bergerac (b. Mar. 6, 1619), French soldier and poet.  He died at age 36.

1540 ~ Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex (b. 1485), English attorney and politician.  He was beheaded by order of King Henry VII on charges of treason on the same day that Henry VIII married Catherine Howard.  He was condemned to death without a trial.  The exact date of his birth is unknown, but he is believed to have been about 54 or 55 at the time of his death.

1057 ~ Pope Victor II (né Gebhard, Count of Calw, Tollenstein, and Hirschberg, b. 1018).  He was Pope from April 1055 until his death 2 years later.  The exact date of his birth is unknown.

July 21

Birthdays:

1978 ~ Josh Harnett, American actor.

1973 ~ Ali Landry, American model and Miss USA 1996.  She is from Breaux Bridge, Louisiana.

1968 ~ Brandi Chastain, American soccer player.

1966 ~ Sarah Waters, British novelist.

1957 ~ Jon Lovitz, American comedian.

1955 ~ Dannel Malloy, 88^th Governor of Connecticut.  He assumed Office in January 2011.

1951 ~ Robin Williams (d. Aug. 11, 2014), American comedian.  He committed suicide 21 days after his 63^rd birthday.

1948 ~ Garry Trudeau, American cartoonist.

1946 ~ Kenneth Starr, 39^th Solicitor General of the United States.  He served in the George W.H. Bush administration.  He is best known for his tenure as independent counsel in the Bill Clinton impeachment proceedings.

1943 ~ Edward Herrmann (d. Dec. 31, 2014), American actor.  He died of brain cancer at age 71.

1939 ~ John Negroponte, 1^st Director of National Intelligence.  He served in the George W. Bush administration.

1938 ~ Les Aspin (né Leslie Aspin, Jr., d. May 21, 1995), 18^th Secretary of Defense.  He served under President Bill Clinton from January 1993 until May 1995.  He died of a stroke at age 56.

1938 ~ Janet Reno (d. Nov. 7, 2016), 79^th United States Attorney General and first female to hold this post.  She served in the Clinton administration from March 1993 until January 2001.  She died at age 78.

1926 ~ Norman Jewison, Canadian director and producer.

1924 ~ Don Knotts (né Jesse Donald Knotts, d. Feb. 24, 2006), American actor best known for his role as Barney Fife on the Andy Griffith Show.  He died of lung cancer at age 81.

1923 ~ Rudolph Marcus, Canadian chemist and recipient of the 1992 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

1920 ~ Isaac Stern (d. Sept. 22, 2001), Ukrainian-born violinist.  He died at age 81.

1899 ~ Hart Crane (né Harold Hart Crane, d. Apr. 27, 1932), American writer.  He is believed to have intentionally committed suicide at age 32 by throwing himself off a steamship.

1899 ~ Ernest Hemingway (d. July 2, 1961), American novelist and recipient of the 1954 Nobel Prize in Literature.  He committed suicide three weeks before his 62^nd birthday.

1893 ~ Hans Fallada (né Rudolf Wilhelm Friedrich Ditzen, d. Feb. 5, 1947), German novelist best known for his novel, Every Man Dies Alone.  He died at age 53.

1824 ~ Thomas Stanley Matthews (d. Mar. 22, 1889), Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.  He was appointed to the High Court by President James Garfield.  He served on the Court from May 1881 until his death 8 years later.  He died at age 64.

1816 ~ Paul Reuter (né Israel Beer Josaphat, d. Feb. 25, 1899), German-born British journalist and founder of Reuters news service.  He died at age 82.

1693 ~ Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1^st Duke of Newcastle (d. Nov. 17, 1768), Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.  He was Prime Minister from March 1754 until November 1756 during the reign of King George II, and again during the reigns of King George II and King George III, from March 1757 until May 1762.  He died at age 75.

1653 ~ Sarah Good (d. July 29, 1692), American woman accused of witchcraft during the Salem witch trials.  She was convicted of witchcraft.  She was executed 8 days after her 39^th birthday.

1620 ~ Jean Picard (d. July 12, 1682), French astronomer.  He died at less than 2 weeks before his 62^ndbirthday.

1414 ~ Pope Sixtus IV (né Francesco della Rovere, d. Aug. 12, 1481).  He is best known for having had the Sistine Chapel build.  He was Pope from August 9, 1471 until his death 13 years later.  He died 22 days after his 70^th birthday.

Events that Changed the World:

1970 ~ The Aswan High Dam on the Nile in Egypt was completed after 11 years of construction.

1969 ~ Neil Armstrong (1930 ~ 2012) and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin (b. 1930) became the first humans to walk on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission.  They had landed on the moon the day before.

1961 ~ Gus Grissom (1926 ~ 1967) became the second American go to into space.  His was a suborbital mission in the Mercury program.

1925 ~ John T. Scopes (1900 ~ 1970) was convicting of violating the Tennessee state laws for teaching Darwin's theory of evolution in the so-called “Monkey Trial.”  He was fined $100.

1902 ~ Willis Carrier (1876 ~ 1950) invented the first successful air conditioner.

1873 ~ Jesse James (1847 ~ 1882) and the James-Younger Gang pulled off the first successful train robbery in the American West.  The train was robbed in Adair, Iowa.

1865 ~ Wild Bill Hickok (1837 ~ 1876) shot and killed Davis Tutt (1836 ~ 1865) in a duel in what is now regarded as the first western showdown.

1861 ~ The First Battle of Bull Run at Manassas Junction, Virginia, was the first major battle in the American Civil War.  It was a victory for the Confederate Army.

1831 ~ King Leopold I (1790 ~ 1865) of Belgium was inaugurated as the first king of the Belgians.

365 ~ A tsunami resulting from an estimated 8.0 magnitude earthquake in Crete, devastated the city of Alexandria, Egypt.  It is estimated that over 50,000 people died from the effects of the tsunami.

230 ~ Pope Pontian (d. 235) became the 18^th Catholic Pope.

356 BCE ~ The traditional date that the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, was destroyed by arson.

Good-Byes:

2015 ~ E.L. Doctorow (né Edgar Lawrence Doctorow, b. Jan. 6, 1931), American author who turned history into gold.  He is best known for his novel Ragtime.  He was 84 years old.

2015 ~ Theodore Bikel (b. May 2, 1924), Austrian singer and actor.  He was named after Theodor Herzl, who was also born on this date.  He died at age 91.

2008 ~ Eugene Foster (b. 1927), American pathologist who linked President Thomas Jefferson to his slave, Sally Hemmings.  He died of renal failure at age 81.

2004 ~ Edward B. Lewis (d. May 20, 1918), American geneticist and recipient of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.  He died at age 86.

1998 ~ Alan Shepard (b. Nov. 18, 1923), American astronaut.  He was the first American and second person to travel into space, although is initial flight was suborbital.  He died at age 74.

1982 ~ Dave Garroway (né David Cunningham Garroway, b. July 13, 1913), American journalist.  He committed suicide a week after his 69^th birthday.

1967 ~ Albert Lutuli (b. 1898), South African politician and recipient of the 1960 Nobel Peace Prize.  The exact date of his birth is not known.

1967 ~ Basil Rathbone (né Philip St. John Basil Rathborne, b. June 13, 1892), South African-born English actor.  He died at age 75.

1966 ~ Philipp Frank (b. Mar. 20, 1884), Austrian-American physicist and mathematician.  He died at age 82.

1948 ~ Arshile Gorky (né Vostanik Manoug Adoian, b. Apr. 15, 1904), Armenian painter.  He committed suicide at age 44.

1892 ~ Henry Gardner (b. June 14, 1819), Governor of Massachusetts.  He served as Governor from January 1855 until January 1858.  He died at age 73.

1796 ~ Robert Burns (b. Jan. 25, 1759), Scottish poet.  He died at age 37.