Birthdays:
2004 ~ Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway, member of the Norwegian royal family. She is of the House of Glücksburg. She is the eldest child of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby. She was born in Oslo, Norway
1963 ~ Hakeem Olajuwon (né Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon), Nigerian-born American professional basketball player. He was born in Lagos, Nigeria.
1956 ~ Geena Davis (née Virginia Elizabeth Davis), American actress. She was born in Wareham, Massachusetts.
1955 ~ Jeff Koons (né Jeffrey Lynn Koons), American artist. He was born in York, Pennsylvania.
1953 ~ Paul Allen (né Paul Gardner Allen; d. Oct. 15, 2018), American tech visionary who co-founded Microsoft. He was born and died in Seattle, Washington. He died of cancer at age 65.
1951 ~ Eric Holder (né Eric Himpton Holder, Jr.), 82nd United States Attorney General. He served in the Obama administration from February 2009 until April 2015. He was born in New York, New York.
1950 ~ Gary Locke (né Gary Faye Locke), 36th United States Secretary of Commerce. He served under President Barack Obama. He served in that Office from August 2011 until March 2014. He had previously served as the Governor of the State of Washington from January 1997 until January 2005. He was born in Seattle, Washington.
1950 ~ Billy Ocean (né Leslie Sebastian Charles), Trinidadian-British musician. He was born in Fyzabad, Trinidad and Tobago.
1948 ~ Tony Blankley (né Anthony David Blankley; d. Jan. 7, 2012), the ex-Briton who became the speaker’s speaker. He was the press secretary to Newt Gingrich. He was born in London, England. He died of stomach cancer just 2 weeks before his 64th birthday in Washington, D.C.
1947 ~ Jill Eikenberry (née Jill Susan Eikenberry), American actress. She is best known for her role as Ann Kelsey on the television drama L.A. Law. She was born in New Haven, Connecticut.
1947 ~ Dorian M. Goldfeld (né Dorian Morris Goldfeld), American mathematician. His field is in analytic number theory. He was born in Marburg, Germany.
1943 ~ Michael Henry Heim (d. Sept. 29, 2012), American translator who gave his all to world literature. He was a professor of Slavic languages and translated many works of literature in Czech, Russian, Dutch, French, Italian, and Serbo-Croatian. He was born in New York, New York. He died of complications from melanoma at age 69 in Los Angeles, California.
1942 ~ Martin Sharp (né Martin Ritchie Sharp; d. Dec. 1, 2013), Australian graphic artist who set a psychedelic tone for the 1960s. He was born and died in Bellevue Hill, New South Wales, Australia. He died of emphysema at age 71.
1941 ~ Richie Havens (né Richard Pierce Havens; d. Apr. 22, 2013), African-American eclectic singer who opened Woodstock. He was born in Brooklyn, New York. He died of a heart attack at age 72 in Jersey City, New Jersey.
1941 ~ Plácido Domingo, (né José Plácido Domingo Embil) Spanish opera tenor. He was born in Madrid, Spain.
1940 ~ Jack Nicklaus (né Jack William Nicklaus), American professional golfer. He was born in Columbus, Ohio.
1938 ~ Wolfman Jack (né Robert Weston Smith; d. July 1, 1995), American radio disc jockey and personality. He was born in Brooklyn, New York. He died of a heart attack at age 57 in Belvidere, North Carolina.
1935 ~ Raye Montague (née Raye Jean Jordan; d. Oct. 10, 2018), African-American warship designed who shattered racial and gender barriers. She was a naval engineer who is credited with creating the first computer-generated drafts of United States naval ships. She was born and died in Little Rock, Arkansas. She died at age 83.
1932 ~ Emilie Beneš Brzezinski (née Emilie Anna Benešová; d. July 22, 2022), Swiss-born political wife who whittled trees into art. She was the wife of Zbigniew Brzezinski, the national security advisor to President Jimmy Carter and was the mother of journalist Mika Brzezinski. She was known in her own right for creating towering sculptures from tree trunks. She was born in Geneva, Switzerland. She died at age 90 in Jupiter, Florida.
1929 ~ Wilson Jerman (né Wilson Roosevelt Jerman; d. May 16, 2020), African-American butler. He joined the White House staff as a cleaner during the Dwight D. Eisenhower administrator. He worked on to become a butler who served all the presidents from John F. Kennedy through Barack Obama. He was one of the longest serving White House employees. He was born in Seaboard, North Carolina. He died in Woodbridge, Virginia at age 91 of Covid-19.
1928 ~ Gene Sharp (d. Jan. 28, 2018), American academic who helped inspire the Arab Spring. He was the founder of the Albert Einstein Institution, a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing non-violent action. He was born in North Baltimore, Ohio. He died in East Boston, Massachusetts 7 days after his 90th birthday.
1926 ~ Kurt Chew-Een Lee (d. Mar. 3, 2014), Chinese-American officer-hero who changed the Marines. He was the first Marine office of Chinese descent. He was born in San Francisco, California. He died at age 88 in Washington, D.C.
1924 ~ Benny Hill (né Alfred Hawthorne Hill; d. Apr. 20, 1992), British comedian. He died of heart failure at age 68.
1923 ~ Dina Gottliebová Babbitt (née Annemarie Dina Gottliebová, d. July 29, 2009), Czech-born Auschwitz prisoner who survived by painting. She had been selected to paint portraits of Romani inmates. She was born in Bruno, Czechia. She died of stomach cancer at age 86 in Felton, California.
1922 ~ Telly Savalas (né Aristotelis Savalas; d. Jan. 22, 1994), Greek American actor, best known for his role as Kojak on the television show of the same name. He was born in Garden City, New York. He died of cancer 1 day after his 72ndbirthday in Universal City, California.
1922 ~ Paul Scofield (né David Paul Scofield; d. Mar. 19, 2008), British actor. He died at age 86 of leukemia.
1919 ~ Eric Brown (né Eric Melrose Brown; d. Feb. 21, 2016), British record-breaking test pilot who helped shape aviation. He was in the Royal Airforce and test pilot who flew 487 types of aircrafts, more than anyone else in history. He died a month after his 97th birthday.
1915 ~ André Lichnerowicz (d. Dec. 11, 1998), French mathematician. He died at age 83 in Paris, France.
1912 ~ Konrad Emil Bloch (d. Oct. 15, 2000), German-born American biochemist and recipient of the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his research in the mechanism and regulation of cholesterol metabolism. He left Germany in 1934 to escape the Nazi persecutions. He died of heart failure at age 88 in Burlington, Massachusetts.
1905 ~ Christian Dior (d. Oct. 24, 1957), French fashion designer. He was born in Granville, France. He died of a heart attack at age 52 in Montecatini Terme, Tuscany, Italy.
1905 ~ Karl Wallenda (d. Mar. 22, 1978), German-born acrobat and member of the Flying Wallendas. He died when he fell from an attempted high-wire walk between two towers of a ten-story building in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He was 73 years old.
1884 ~ Roger Baldwin (né Roger Nash Baldwin; d. Aug. 26, 1981), American civil rights activist and co-founder of the American Civil Liberties Union. He was born in Wellesley, Massachusetts. He died at age 97 in Ridgewood, New Jersey.
1882 ~ Pavel Florensky (d. Dec. 8, 1937), Russian Orthodox theologian, philosopher, and mathematician. He was executed at age 55 for alleged crimes against the Stalinist government.
1874 ~ René-Louis Baire (d. July 5, 1932), French mathematician. He was born in Paris, France. He died at age 58 in Chambéry, France.
1869 ~ Grigori Rasputin (d. Dec. 30, 1916), Russian monk. He was murdered by a group led by Prince Felix Yusupov just 22 days before his 48th birthday. His frozen and trussed body was discovered in a Moscow river 3 days after his murder. He was best known for his influence over the family of Tsar Nicholas II.
1868 ~ Felix Hoffman (d. Feb. 8, 1946), German chemist credited with synthesizing aspirin. He died 18 days after his 78th birthday.
1855 ~ Princess Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (d. Aug. 23, 1874), member of the Napolitano royal family. She was the wife of Prince Henry of Bourbon-Parma (1851 ~ 1905). They married in 1873. She was of the House of Bourbon. She was the youngest daughter of Ferdinand II, King of the Two-Sicilies and Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria. She became ill on her honeymoon and died less than a year after her marriage. She was 19 years old at the time of her death.
1846 ~ Pieter Hendrick Schoute (d. Apr. 18, 1923), Dutch mathematician. He died at age 77.
1843 ~ Louis A. Wiltz (né Louis Alfred Wiltz; d. Oct. 16, 1881), 29th Governor of Louisiana. He served as Governor for only a year and 10 months ~ from January 1880 until his death October 1881. He had previously served as the 25thMayor of New Orleans from November 1872 through November 1874. He was born and died in New Orleans. He died in office at age 38 of tuberculosis.
1840 ~ Sophia Jex-Blake (née Sophia Louisa Jex-Blake; d. Jan. 7, 1912), British physician and feminist. She was the first practicing physician in Scotland. She died 14 days before her 72nd birthday.
1829 ~ Oscar II, King of Sweden and Norway (d. Dec. 8, 1907). He was king from September 1872 until his death 35 years later. He was married to Sofia of Nassau (1836 ~ 1913). They married in 1857. He was of the House of Bernadotte. He was the son of Oscar I, King of Sweden and Josephine of Leuchtenberg. He was of the Church of Sweden and the Church of Norway. He died at age 78.
1824 ~ Stonewall Jackson (né Thomas Jonathan Jackson; d. May 10, 1863), General in the Confederate Army. He was born in Clarksburg, Virginia. He had been shot by friendly fire 8 days prior to his death. He died in Guinea Station, Virginia. He was 39 years old.
1815 ~ Horace Wells (d. Jan. 24, 1848), American dentist. He was a pioneer in the use of anesthesia in dentistry, especially the use of nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas. He was born in Hartford, Vermont. He died by suicide three days after his 33rd birthday in New York, New York.
1813 ~ John C. Frémont (né John Charles Frémont; d. July 13, 1890), American general and explorer. From September 1850 to March 1851, he served as a United States Senator from California. He was born in Savannah, Georgia. He died at age 77 in New York, New York.
1808 ~ Juan Crisóstomo Torrico (d. Mar. 27, 1875), Peruvian soldier and briefly the President of Peru in 1842. He died at age 67 in Paris, France.
1738 ~ Ethan Allen (d. Feb. 12, 1789), American military leader during the American Revolutionary War. He was the leader of Vermont’s Green Mountain Boys. He was born in Litchfield, Connecticut. He died 22 days after his 51stbirthday in Burlington, Vermont.
1714 ~ Anna Manzolini (Anna Morandi; d. July 9, 1774), Italian anatomist. She was a lecturer of anatomy at the University of Bologna. Her husband was a professor of anatomy. After he died, she took over his position at the university. She was born and died in Bologna, Italy. She died at age 60.
1338 ~ Charles V, King of France (d. Sept. 16, 1380). He was known as Charles the Wise. He ruled France from April 1364 until his death in September 1380. He was married to Joanna of Bourbon. They married in 1350. He was of the House of Valois. He was the son of John II, King of France, and Princess Bonne of Bohemia. He died at age 42 from an infection cause by an abscess on his arm.
1264 ~ Alexander, Prince of Scotland (d. Jan. 28, 1284), member of the Scottish royal family. He was the heir apparent to the Scottish throne. He married Margaret of Flanders (d. 1331). Little is known of her life, other than the fact that after Alexander’s death, she remarried and had several children. Alexander was of the House of Dunkeld. He was the son of Alexander III, King of Scotland, and Princess Margaret of England. He died suddenly a week after his 20th birthday.
Events that Changed the World:
2020 ~ The first confirmed case of Covid-19 was found in the United States.
2019 ~ Martin Luther King, Jr., Day observed in the United States.
2017 ~ The Women’s March, protesting the inauguration of Donald Trump (b. 1946), took place in Washington, D.C., as well as in over 400 cities across American and in over 160 countries worldwide.
2013 ~ Because January 20 fell on a Sunday, the public inauguration of United States President Barak Obama (b. 1960) was held to begin his second term of office. He had been privately sworn in on January 20 as required by the United States Constitution.
2013 ~ Martin Luther King, Jr., Day was celebrated in the United States.
2003 ~ A 7.6 magnitude earthquake hit Colima, Mexico leaving over 10,000 people homeless.
1997 ~ Newt Gingrich (b. 1943) was disciplined for ethical misconduct while United States Speaker of the House of Representatives. He was the first Speaker of the House to be disciplined in such a manner.
1985 ~ President Ronald Reagan’s second inauguration took place. Because January 20, fell on a Sunday, the formal public inauguration was postponed for a day. It had to be moved indoors due to freezing temperatures and high winds. Reagan had been sworn in privately on January 20, as required by the United States Constitution.
1981 ~ Production of the DeLorean DMC-12 sports car began. The car was produced in Northern Ireland for tax purposes.
1977 ~ President Jimmy Carter (b. 1924) pardoned nearly all the American Vietnam War draft dodgers, many of whom had fled to Canada.
1976 ~ The SST Concorde made it first commercial flight. The Concorde is now retired, and its final flight of the Concord was in November 2003.
1954 ~ The first nuclear-powered submarine was launched in Groton, Connecticut. The submarine was the USS Nautilus.
1950 ~ Alger Hiss (1904 ~ 1996) was convicted of perjury.
1948 ~ The Flag of Quebec was formally adopted and flown for the first time over the National Assembly of Quebec. This date has become known as Québec Flag Day.
1941 ~ Following the murder of a German officer in Bucharest, Romania, members of the Iron Guard, a militant fascist movement killed over 120 Jews.
1915 ~ The Kiwanis International organization was founded in Detroit, Michigan.
1908 ~ New York City passed the Sullivan Ordinance, which made it illegal for woman to smoke in public. The City’s Mayor, George B. McClellan (1865 ~ 1940) used his veto power to strike the ordinance.
1862 ~ The Opel company was founded by Adam Opel (1837 ~ 1895) in Germany. The company initially began manufacturing sewing machines. The first automobiles were not made by the company until several years later.
1861 ~ Jefferson Davis (1808 ~ 1889) resigned from the United States Senate shortly after Mississippi ceded from the Union. He had been a United States Senator from the State of Mississippi.
1793 ~ Louis XVI, King of France (1754 ~ 1793) was executed by guillotine after having been found guilty of high treason during the French Revolution.
1720 ~ Sweden and Prussia signed the Treaty of Stockholm to end the war between Sweden and an alliance of Prussia and Hanover.
Good-Byes:
2023 ~ Linda Kasabian (née Linda Darlene Droubin; b. June 21, 1949), American Charles Manson acolyte who turned on the cult. She was born in Biddeford, Maine. She died at age 73 in Tacoma, Washington.
2022 ~ Louie Anderson (né Louis Perry Anderson; b. Mar. 24, 1953), American comedian and actor. He was born in St. Paul, Minnesota. He died of cancer in Las Vegas, Nevada at age 68.
2021 ~ Donna Britt (b. July 10, 1958), American journalist and news anchor in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She died at age 62 of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
2020 ~ Terry Jones (né Terrance Graham Parry Jones; b. Feb. 1, 1942), British comedian and actor. He was one of the co-creators of Monty Python’s Flying Circus. He was the Python who bridged slapstick and scholarship. He was born in Colwyn Bay, Wales. He died 11 days before his 78th birthday in London, England.
2019 ~ Kaye Ballard (née Catherine Gloria Balotta; b. Nov. 20, 1925), American comedian and actress. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She died at age 93 in Rancho Mirage, California.
2019 ~ Russell Baker (né Russell Wayne Baker; b. Aug. 14, 1925), American journalist and irreverent columnist who delighted readers. He was born in Loudoun County, Virginia. He died at age 93 in Leesburg, Virginia.
2016 ~ Bill Johnson (né William Dean Johnson; b. Mar. 30, 1960), American bad boy of skiing who won Olympic gold. He became the first American male to win an Olympic gold medal in alpine skiing at the 1985 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. In March 2001, he crashed during a training run and suffered a serious brain injury, from which he never actually recovered. He was born in Los Angeles, California. He died at age 55 in Gresham, Oregon.
2016 ~ Stephanie C. Rader (née Stephanie Czech Rader; b. May 15, 1915), American spy who went undercover in postwar Europe. Her parents were Polish immigrants, and she was raised with Polish as her first language. In 1942, she joined the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps. Two years later, she was recruited by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and was sent to Warsaw, Poland. She was there to collect intelligence, and her cover was that she was looking for family members after the War. She was born in Toledo, Ohio. She died at age 100 in Alexandria, Virginia.
2015 ~ Darrell Winfield (b. July 30, 1929), American rancher and cowboy who defined the Marlboro Man. He was born in Kansas, Oklahoma. He died at age 85 in Riverton, Wyoming.
2013 ~ Donald Hornig (né Donald Frederick Hornig; b. Mar. 17, 1920), American scientist who babysat the first atom bomb. He was an explosives expert and developed the firing unit that triggered the bomb’s detonation. He also served as the President of Brown University from 1970 to 1976. He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He died in Providence, Rhode Island at age 92.
2012 ~ Jonathan Idema (né Jonathan Keith Idema; b. May 30, 1956), American con man who ran a torture chamber. He was a former United States army special reserve operations non-commissioned officer. He was convicted of running a private prison in Afghanistan and tortured civilians he claimed to be terrorists. He was born in Poughkeepsie, New York. He died of AIDS at age 55 in Bacalar, Mexico.
2002 ~ Peggy Lee (née Norma Deloris Egstrom; b. May 26, 1920), American singer and actress. She was born in Jamestown, North Dakota. She died at age 81 of complications from diabetes following a heart attack in Los Angeles, California.
1998 ~ Jack Lord (né John Joseph Patrick Ryan; b. Dec. 30, 1920), American actor. He is best known for his role as Steve McGarrett in the television drama Hawaii Five-O. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, He died of heart failure 22 days after his 77th birthday in Honolulu, Hawaii.
1997 ~ Colonel Tom Parker (né Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk, b. June 26, 1909), Dutch-American talent manager who managed the singing career of Elvis Presley. He was born in the Breda, Netherlands. He died at age 87 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
1985 ~ James Beard (né James Andrew Beard; b. May 5, 1903), American chef and cookbook author. He was born in Portland, Oregon. He died at age 81 in New York, New York.
1977 ~ Lewis Strauss (né Lewis Lichtenstein Strauss; b. Jan. 31, 1896), American businessman and naval officer. He was one of the original members of the United States Atomic Energy Commission. In the 1950s, he served as the chairman of the Commission. He was a major figure in the development of nuclear weapons after World War II. He tried unsuccessfully several times to change United States policy to accept more Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany. In 1954, he was the driving force behind the secret controversial hearings to revoke Robert Oppenheimer’s security clearance. His role in these hearings cost him the confirmation as United Secretary of Commerce. He was born in Charleston, West Virginia. He died of cancer 10 days before his 78th birthday in Brandy Station, Virginia.
1959 ~ Frances Gertrude McGill (b. Nov. 18, 1882), Canadian forensic pathologist and criminalist. She was born in Minnedosa, Manitoba, Canada. She died at age 76 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
1959 ~ Cecil B. DeMille (né Cecil Blount DeMille, b. Aug. 12, 1881), American film director. He is best known for his epic The Ten Commandments. He was born in Ashfield, Massachusetts. He died of heart failure at age 77 in Hollywood, California.
1950 ~ George Orwell (né Eric Arthur Blair; b. June 25, 1903), British writer, famous for his novels Animal Farm and1984. He was born in British India. He died at age 46 after an artery burst in his lungs in London, England.
1928 ~ George Washington Goethals (b. June 29, 1858), American general and civil engineer. He was the co-designer of the Panama Canal. He served as the 1st Governor of the Panama Canal Zone. He was born in Brooklyn, New York. He died at age 69 in Manhattan, New York.
1926 ~ Camillo Golgi (b. July 7, 1843), Italian physician, anatomist and recipient of the 1906 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He is best known for his work in the central nervous system. Golgi bodies are named in his honor. He was born in Venetia, Italy. He died at age 82 in Pavia, Italy.
1924 ~ Vladimir Lenin (né Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov; b. Apr. 22, 1870), Russian communist revolutionary and Chairman of the Council of the People’s Commissars of the Soviet Union. He died at age 53.
1901 ~ Elisha Gray (d. Aug. 2, 1835), American inventor and businessman. He founded Western Electric. He is also considered to be the father of the modern music synthesizer. He was born in Barnesville, Ohio. He died of a heart attack in Newtonville, Massachusetts at age 65.
1900 ~ Francis, Duke of Teck (né Count Francis von Hohenstein; b. Aug. 28, 1837). Austrian-born nobleman who married into the British royal family. In 1886, he married Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge. They were the parents of Mary of Teck, Queen consort of the United Kingdom and grandparents of Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom. He was of the House of Teck. He was the son of Duke Alexander of Wüttemberg and Countess Claudine Rhédey von Kis-Rhéde. He died at age 62.
1892 ~ John Couch Adams (b. June 5, 1819), English mathematician and astronomer. He is best known for calculating the position of Neptune. He was 72 years old.
1836 ~ Maria Cristina of Savoy (b. Nov. 14, 1812), Queen consort of the Two Sicilies and first wife of Ferdinand II, King of the Two Sicilies. They married in 1832. She was of the House of Savoy. She was the youngest daughter of Victor Emmanuel I, King of Sardinia and Archduchess Maria Teresa of Austria-Este. She was Roman Catholic. She died of complications of childbirth at age 23.
1793 ~ Louis XVI, King of France (b. Aug. 23, 1754). Last French king before the collapse of the monarchy. He ruled from May 1774 until September 1792. He was married to Archduchess Marie Antoinette of Austria (1755 ~ 1793). They married in 1770. He was of the House of Bourbon. He was the son of Louis, Dauphin of France and Maria Josepha of Saxony. He was the grandson of Louis XV, King of France. He was Roman Catholic. He was executed by guillotine after having been found guilty of treason by the French Convention. He was 38 at the time of his execution.
1519 ~ Vasco Núñez de Balboa (b. 1475), Spanish explorer. He is best known for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama in 1513. The exact dates of his birth and death are not known, however, he is believed to have been executed sometime between January 12 and 21, 1519 in Acla, Panama for trying to usurp power.
1495 ~ Princess Magdalena of Valois (b. Dec. 1, 1443), member of the French royal family. She married Gaston of Foix, Prince of Viana (1445 ~ 1470). They married in 1461. She was of the House of Valois. She was the daughter of Charles VII, King of France and Marie of Anjou. She was Roman Catholic. She died at age 51.
1118 ~ Pope Paschal II (né Ranierius; b. 1050). He was Pope from August 1099 until his death in January 1118. The exact date of his birth is not known.
939 ~ Yang Pu (b. 900), Chinese emperor. He was the last emperor of the Five Chinese Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The exact date of his birth is not known.
304 ~ Saint Agnes (b. 291), martyred saint. The exact dates of her birth and death are not known, however, her feast day is January 21.
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