Birthdays:
1979 ~ Drew Brees (né Drew Christopher Brees), American professional football player with a long career as quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. He was born in Dallas, Texas.
1958 ~ Boris Tadić, 3rd President of Serbia. He served as President from July 2004 until April 2012. He was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia.
1949 ~ Elizabeth Duff (né Elizabeth Ray; d. Feb. 13, 2021), African-American woman who, in 1974, broke through gender barriers to become the first woman to drive a bus for the city of Nashville, Tennessee. She was born and died in Nashville, Tennessee. She died of Covid-19 at age 72.
1945 ~ Vince Foster (né Vincent Walker Foster, Jr.; d. July 20, 1993), Deputy White House Counsel in the Bill Clinton Administration. He died of a gunshot wound at age 48 under some mysterious circumstances, but ultimately his death was ruled a suicide. He was born in Hope, Arkansas. He died in Fort Marcy Park, Fairfax County, Virginia.
1942 ~ Frank Polozola (né Frank Joseph Polozola; d. Feb. 24, 2013) American Federal District Court Judge in the Middle District of Louisiana. He was born and died in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He died just over a month after his 71st birthday.
1933 ~ Ernest J. Gaines (né Ernest James Gaines; d. Nov. 5, 2019), Louisiana-born African-American author. He is best known for his 1993 novel, A Lesson Before Dying. He was born and died in Oscar, Louisiana. He died at age 86 following a long illness.
1929 ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. (né Michael King, Jr., d. Apr. 4, 1968), African-American Civil Rights activist and recipient of the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize. He was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee at age 39.
1918 ~ Gamal Abdel Nasser (d. Sept. 28, 1970), second president of Egypt. He died of a heart attack at age 52 while still in office. He was born in Alexandria, Sultanate of Egypt. He died in Cairo, United Arab Republic. Anwar Sadat was named his successor.
1915 ~ Susan Ahn Cuddy (née Susan Ahn; d. June 24, 2015), American naval officer. She was the first Asian-American woman to join the United States Navy. She was also the first female gunnery officer in Navy. She was the daughter of Ahn Chang-ho and Helen Ahn, the first married Korean couple to emigrated to the United States. She retired from the Navy as a lieutenant. She was born and died in Los Angeles, California. She died at age 100.
1915 ~ Mimi Reinhard (née Carman Mimi Koppel; d. Apr. 8, 2022), Austrian Jewish secretary who typed Schindler’s list. She was born in Vienna, Austria. She was arrested by the Gestapo in 1942, but because she spoke flawless German and knew short-hand, she was put to work as a secretary at a concentration camp in Plaszow, Poland. He was later assigned to work for Oskar Schindler, who designated 1200 Jews as essential workers, thus saving them from extermination. Mimi also added her name, and that of friends to the list. She died at age 107 in Israel.
1913 ~ Lloyd Bridges (né Lloyd Vernet Bridges, Jr.; d. Mar. 10, 1998), American actor. He was born in San Leandro, California. He died at age 85 in Los Angeles, California.
1908 ~ Edward Teller (d. Sept. 9, 2003), Hungarian-born theoretical physicist. He is sometimes known as the Father of the Hydrogen Bomb. He was born in Budapest, Austria-Hungary. He died at age 95 in Stanford, Connecticut.
1903 ~ Paul A. Dever (né Paul Andrew Dever; d. Apr. 11, 1958), 58th Governor of Massachusetts. He served as Governor from January 1946 until January 1953. He was born and died in Boston. He died at age 55 of a heart attack.
1895 ~ Artturi Ilmari Virtanen (d. Nov. 11, 1973), Finnish chemist and recipient of the 1945 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research and inventions in agricultural and nutrition chemistry. He was born and died in Helsinki, Finland. He died at age 78.
1882 ~ Princess Margaret of Connaught (d. May 1, 1920), Crown Princess of Sweden. She was the first wife of Gustaf Adolf, Crown Prince of Sweden (1882 ~ 1973), who later became Gustaf IV Adolf, King of Sweden. They married in 1905. She died 30 years before her husband became king, so was never the queen consort. She was of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. She was the daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn and Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia. She was the granddaughter of Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom. She died suddenly at age 38 of blood poisoning.
1866 ~ Nathan Söderblom (né Lars Olof Jonathan Söderblom; d. July 12, 1931), Swedish archbishop and recipient of the 1930 Nobel Peace Prize. He died at age 65.
1850 ~ Sofia Kovalevskaya (d. Feb. 10, 1891), Russian mathematician. She is known for her contributions to analysis, differential equations, and mechanics. She was born in Moscow, Russian Empire. She died of influenza 26 days after her 41st birthday in Stockholm, Sweden.
1827 ~ Ivan Mikheevich Pervushin (d. June 17, 1900), Russian mathematician and clergyman. He died at age 73.
1754 ~ Richard Martin (d. Jan. 6, 1834), Irish activist and co-founder of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). He was known as Humanity Dick. He died 9 days before his 80th birthday.
1717 ~ Matthew Stewart (d. Jan. 23, 1785) Scottish mathematician and cleric. He died 8 days after his 68th birthday.
1716 ~ Philip Livingston (d. June 12, 1778), early American patriot and signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was born in Albany, New York. He died at age 62 in York, Pennsylvania.
1622 ~ Molière (né Jean-Baptiste Poquelin; d. Feb. 17, 1673), French playwright. He was born in Paris, France. The exact date of his birth is not known, but it was sometime before January 15, 1622, the date that is sometimes used as his birth date. He died of tuberculosis about a month after his 51st birthday.
1432 ~ Afonso V, King of Portugal and the Algarves (d. Aug. 28, 1481). He ruled from September 1438 until his death in August 1481. He was married twice, first to Isabel of Coimbra (1432 ~ 1455). They married in 1450. In 1475, he married Joanna la Beltraneja (1462 ~ 1530). He was of the House of Aviz. He was the son of Edward, King of Portugal and Infanta Eleanor of Aragon. He was Roman Catholic. He died at age 49.
Event that Changed the World:
2024 ~ Martin Luther King, Jr., Day observed in the United States.
2024 ~ The Iowa caucus for the 2024 presidential election took place.
2023 ~ Yeti Airlines Flight 691 crashed in central Nepal. All 72 passengers and crew were killed in the crash.
2022 ~ A massive underwater volcano near the remote island of Tonga in the Pacific Ocean that triggered a tsunami. International aid to Tonga was complicated by the island’s efforts to keep the island Covid-free.
2022 ~ A gunman entered a Congregation Beth Israel, a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, and held 4 people hostage for over 11 hours. The hostages were ultimately released. The gunman was killed by police.
2020 ~ A 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck in Indonesia. Over 100 people were killed and nearly 3,500 people were injured.
2018 ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. Day observed.
2009 ~ US Airways Flight 1549 made an emergency landing in the Hudson River shortly after take-off from LaGuardia Airport in New York City. The plane was piloted by Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger (b. 1953). There were no fatalities, and the incident became known as the Miracle on the Hudson. This event was also depicted in the 2016 movie, Sully.
2001 ~ Wikipedia became available online.
1972 ~ American Pie, by Don McLean (b. 1945) hit #1 on the pop music charts.
1971 ~ The Aswan Dam on the Nile in Egypt was dedicated. It is the world’s largest embankment dam.
1970 ~ Muammar Gadhafi (1942 ~ 2011) was proclaimed premier of Libya.
1970 ~ After nearly 3 years of war in order to gain its independence from Nigeria, Biafra, a small country-state that had seceded from Nigeria in 1967, ceased to exist and became once again incorporated into Nigeria.
1967 ~ The first Football Super Bowl was held in Los Angeles, California. The Green Bay Packers beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the game with a score of 35-10.
1962 ~ The Derveni Papyrus, the oldest surviving manuscript in Europe, was found in northern Greece. The papyrus was believed to be from approximately 340 BCE.
1949 ~ During the Chinese Civil War, the Communist forces took over Tianjin from the Nationalist Government.
1947 ~ The dismembered corpse of Elizabeth Short (1924 ~ 1947) was found in Los Angeles. She became known as the Black Dahlia due to the graphic nature of her murder. Although the Los Angeles police department invested over 150 suspects, the murder remains unsolved.
1943 ~ The Pentagon, the world’s largest office building, was dedicated in Arlington, Virginia.
1934 ~ A massive earthquake in Nepal and Bihar killed an estimated 6,000 to 10,000 people.
1919 ~ The Boston Molasses Disaster occurred when a large tank of molasses burst sending a wave of molasses throughout the streets, killing 21 people, and injuring 150 others. This event was depicted in Dennis Lehane’s novel The Given Day.
1892 ~ James Naismith (1861 ~ 1939) published the rules of basketball.
1889 ~ The Coca-Cola Company (initially known as the Pemberton Medicine Company) was incorporated in Atlanta, Georgia.
1870 ~ The donkey is first depicted as representing the United States Democratic party in a cartoon by Thomas Nast (1840 ~ 1902) that was published in Harper’s Weekly.
1844 ~ The University of Notre Dame received its charter from the State of Indiana.
1815 ~ During the War of 1812, the American frigate, the USS President, commanded by Commodore Stephen Decatur (1779 ~ 1820), was captured by the British.
1782 ~ Robert Morris (1734 ~ 1806), the United States Superintendent of Finance, recommended the establishment of a national mint to the United States Congress.
1777 ~ Vermont declared its independence from the colony of New York.
1759 ~ The British Museum opened.
1559 ~ Elizabeth I (1522 ~ 1603) was crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abby. She had become Queen and began her rule in November 1558 upon the death of her half-sister, Mary I (1516 ~ 1558). She ruled until her death in March 1603.
1541 ~ Francis I, King of France (1494 ~ 1547) granted Jean-François Roberval (1495 ~ 1560) a commission to settle the province of New France and provide for the spread of the Holy Catholic faith.
1493 ~ Christopher Columbus began his return voyage from Hispaniola, thus ending his first trip to the New World.
588 BCE ~ The traditional date given to the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon began and lasted until July 23, 586 BCE.
Good-Byes:
2021 ~ Rosalind Cartwright (née Rosalind Falk; b. Dec. 30, 1922), American neuroscientist and sleep researcher. She was known as the Queen of Dreams. She was born in New York, New York. She died in Chicago, Illinois 2 weeks after her 98th birthday.
2019 ~ Carol Channing (née Carol Elaine Channing; b. Jan. 31, 1921), American Broadway star who was the definition of Dolly. She was best known for her role as Dolly Levi in the musical Hello, Dolly!, which opened on Broadway on January 16, 1964, almost exactly 45 years before her death. She was born in Seattle, Washington. She died 16 days before her 98th birthday in Rancho Mirage, California.
2018 ~ Dolores O’Riordan (née Dolores Mary Eileen O’Riordan, b. Sept. 6, 1971), Irish Cranberries singer who battled depression. She died unexpectedly of an accidental drowning at age 46.
2016 ~ Daniel Haggerty (né Daniel Francis Haggerty; b. Nov. 19, 1942), American animal loving actor best known for playing the title role in The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams. He was born in Pound, Wisconsin. He died of spinal cancer at age 73 in Burbank, California.
2014 ~ John Dobson (né John Lowry Dobson, b. Sept. 14, 1915), American Hindu monk who looked to the stars. He was an amateur astronomer and is best known for the Dobsonian telescope. He was born in Beijing, China when his parents were working there as Christian missionaries. He died at age 98 in Burbank, California.
2012 ~ Ed Derwinski (né Edward Joseph Derwinksi; b. Sept. 15, 1926), 1st United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs. He served from 1989 to 1992 under President George H.W. Bush. He was born in Chicago, Illinois. He died at age 85 in Oak Brook, Illinois.
2011 ~ Susannah York (née Susannah Yolande Fletcher; b. Jan. 9, 1939), English actress, known as the “English Rose”, who hungered for edgy roles. She was born an died in London, England. She died of multiple myeloma 6 days after her 72nd birthday.
2011 ~ Romulus Linney (né Romulus Zachariah Linney, IV; b. Sept. 21, 1930), American playwright who drew on his Southern boyhood. His daughter is the actress Laura Linney. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He died at age 80 in Germantown, New York.
2010 ~ Marshall Warren Nirenberg (b. Apr. 10, 1927), American biochemist and recipient of the 1968 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for breaking the genetic code. He was born and died in New York, New York. He died at age 82.
2007 ~ James Hillier (b. Aug. 22, 1915), Canadian-born scientist who co-designed the electron microscope. He was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. He died at age 91 in Princeton, New Jersey.
2005 ~ Ruth Warrick (née Ruth Elizabeth Warrick; b. June 29, 1916), American singer and actress who made her screen debut in Citizen Kane. She played Emily Norton Kane, the aloof, icy first wife of the fictional publisher Charles Foster Kane in the film. She was born in Saint Joseph, Missouri. She died of pneumonia at age 88 in Manhattan, New York.
2004 ~ Olivia Goldsmith (née Randy Goldfield; d. Jan 1, 1949), American author. She is best known for her novel The First Wives Club. She was born in Dumont, New Jersey. She died following complications of cosmetic surgery just 2 weeks after her 55th birthday in New York, New York.
2002 ~ Michael Bilandic (né Michael Anthony Bilandic; b. Feb. 13, 1923), Mayor of Chicago. He served as mayor from December 1976 until April 1979. He was born and died in Chicago, Illinois. He died a month before his 79th birthday.
2000 ~ Carolyn Eisele (b. June 13, 1902), American mathematician and math historian. She was born in The Bronx, New York. She died at age 97 in Manhattan, New York.
1996 ~ Amber Hagerman (née Amber Rene Hagerman; b. Nov. 25, 1986), American kidnapped and murder victim. Her kidnapping inspired the AMBER Alert system for missing children. She was 9 years old at the time of her abduction. She was abducted on January 15, 1996; her body was discovered 2 days later, on January 17. She was born and died in Arlington, Texas.
1994 ~ Harry Nilsson (né Harry Edward Nilsson, III; b. June 15, 1941), American singer-songwriter and musician. He was born in New York, New York. He died of a heart attack at age 52 in Aroura Hills, California.
1993 ~ Sammy Cahn (né Samuel Cohen; b. June 18, 1913), American lyricist who wrote many songs for Broadway shows. He is also known for his winter song, Let it Snow! He was born in New York, New York. He died at age 79 in Los Angeles, California.
1988 ~ Seán MacBride (b. Jan. 26, 1904), Irish politician and recipient of the 1974 Nobel Peace Prize. He was born in Paris, France. He died 11 days before his 84th birthday in Dublin, Ireland.
1987 ~ Ray Bolger (né Raymond Wallace Bolger, b. Jan. 10, 1904), American actor best known for his role as the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz. He was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts. He died of cancer in Los Angeles, California just 5 days after his 83rd birthday.
1983 ~ Meyer Lansky (né Meier Suchowlański; b. July 4, 1902), Russian-born American gangster. He died of lung cancer at age 80 in Miami, Florida.
1973 ~ Ivan Petrovsky (b. Jan. 18, 1901), Russian mathematician. His work focused on partial differential equations. He was born in Sevsk, Russian Empire. He died 3 days before his 72nd birthday in Moscow, USSR.
1970 ~ William Piper, Sr. (né William Thomas Piper; b. Jan. 8, 1881), American businessman and founder of Piper Aircraft. He was born in Knapp Creek, New York. He died 7 days after his 89th birthday in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania.
1959 ~ Regina Margareten (née Hannah Rivka Horowitz; b. Dec.25, 1863), Hungarian-American businesswoman. She immigrated to the United States in 1883. She and her family opened a kosher grocery store, then soon began making matzoh. She became known as the Matzoh Queen of New York City. As a child, she was known as both Hannah and Rebush, so there is some uncertainty as to her given name. Also, her birthday is sometimes listed as being on December 20. She was born in Miskoic, Hungary. She died at age 95 in New York, New York.
1948 ~ Josephus Daniels (b. May 18, 1862), 41st Secretary of the Navy. He served under President Woodrow Wilson from March 1913 until March 1921. Although he was not a member, he was a strong supporter of the KKK. He was born in Washington, North Carolina. He died at age 85 in Raleigh, North Carolina.
1947 ~ Black Dahlia (né Elizabeth Short; b. July 29, 1924), American waitress and murder victim. She was the victim of a gruesome and highly publicized murder, which remains unsolved. She was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She was found murdered in Los Angeles, California. She was 22 years old at the time of her death.
1945 ~ Wilhelm Wirtinger (b. July 15, 1865), Austrian mathematician. He died at age 79.
1927 ~ David R. Francis (né David Rowland Francis; d. Oct. 1, 1850), 20th United States Secretary of the Interior. He served under Presidents Grover Cleveland and William McKinley from September 1896 until March 1897. He subsequently served as the United States Ambassador to Russia during the Russian Revolution. He had previously served as the 27th Governor of Missouri, from January 1889 until January 1893. He was born in Richmond, Kentucky. He died at age 76 in St. Louis, Missouri.
1919 ~ Rosa Luxemburg (né Rozalia Luksenburg; b. Mar. 5, 1871), Polish socialist revolutionary, Marxist theorist, philosopher, economist, and political activist. She was murdered by the Freikorps; a group was right-wing paramilitary group in Germany. She was killed in Berlin, German Republic. She was 47 at the time of her murder.
1915 ~ Nikolay Umov (b. Jan. 23, 1844), Russian physicist and mathematician. He was born in Ulyanovsk, Russia. He died in Moscow, Russia just 8 days before his 69th birthday.
1896 ~ Mathew Brady (b. May 18, 1822), American pioneer in photography. He is best known for his photographs of the American Civil War. He was born in Warren County, New York. He died at age 73 in New York, New York.
1891 ~ John Wellborn Root (b. Jan. 10, 1850), American architect who helped develop the “Chicago School” style of architecture. He designed the Rookery Building in Chicago. He was born in Lumpkin, Georgia. He died of pneumonia 5 days after his 41st birthday in Chicago, Illinois.
1889 ~ Sarah Bagley (née Sarah George Bagley; b. Apr. 19, 1806), American activist for woman’s rights and labor reform. She was born in Candia, New Hampshire. She died at age 81 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1876 ~ Eliza Johnson (née Eliza McCardle; b. Oct. 4, 1810), American wife of President Andrew Johnson. They married in March 1827. She became the First Lady at age 54 when President Johnson assumed the presidency. She served in that role April 1965 until March 1869. She was born in Telford, Tennessee. She died at age 65 in Greeneville, Tennessee.
1865 ~ Edward Everett (b. Apr. 11, 1794), 20th United States Secretary of State. He served in this office from November 1852 until March 1853. He served under President Millard Fillmore. Previously, he had served as the 15th Governor of Massachusetts, from January 1836 until January 1840. The town of Everett, Massachusetts was named in his honor. He was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts. He died at age 70 in Boston, Massachusetts.
1815 ~ Emma, Lady Hamilton (née Amy Lyon; b. Apr. 26, 1761), English mistress of Horatio Nelson. She died of liver failure at age 49 in Calais, France.
1790 ~ John Landen (b. Jan. 23, 1719), English mathematician. He died 8 days before his 71st birthday.
1781 ~ Infanta Mariana Victoria of Spain (b. Mar. 31, 1718), Queen consort of Spain and wife of Joseph I, King of Spain (1714 ~ 1777). They married in 1729. They were the parents of Maria I, Queen of Portugal. She was of the House of Bourbon. She was the daughter of Philip V, King of Spain and Elisabeth Farnese. She died at age 62.
1615 ~ Virginia de’Medici (b. May 29, 1568), member of the Medici family. In 1568, she married Cesare d’Este, Duke of Modena (1562 ~ 1628). She was of the House of Medici. She was the daughter of Cosimo I de’Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and Camilla Martelli. She died at age 46.
1149 ~ Berengaria of Barcelona (b. 1116), Queen consort of Castile and León and first wife of Alfonso VII, King of Castile and León (1105 ~ 1157). They married in 1128. They became the parents of Sancho III, King of Castile and Ferdinand II, King of León. She was of the House of Barcelona. She was the daughter of Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona and Douce I, Countess of Provence. She was Roman Catholic. The exact date of her birth is not known. She is believed to have been about 32 at the time of her death.
936 ~ Rudolph, King of France (b. 890). He ruled France from 923 until his death in 936. He was married to Emma of France (d. 935). He was of the House of Bivindis. He was the son of Richard, Duke of Burgundy and Adelaide of Auxerre. The exact date of his birth is not known. He is believed to have been about 45 or 46 at the time of his death.
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