February 2 / Ground Hog Day

Ground Hog Day

Birthdays:

1954 ~ Christie Brinkley, American model.

1948 ~ Ina Garten, American chef and author.  She is known as the Barefoot Contessa.

1947 ~ Farrah Fawcett (d. June 25, 2009), American actress.  She died of cancer at age 62.

1939 ~ Dale T. Mortensen (d. Jan. 9, 2014), American economist and recipient of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Economic Science.  He died less than a month before his 75^th birthday.

1937 ~ Tom Smothers, American comedian.

1931 ~ Judith Viorst, American author.

1927 ~ Stan Getz (d. June 6, 1991), American saxophonist.  He died of liver cancer at age 64.

1926 ~ Sylvia Woods (d. July 19, 2012), the African-American cook who brought soul food to Harlem

1926 ~ Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, French president.  He served as President from May 1974 until May 1981.

1925 ~ Elaine Stritch (d. July 17, 2014), American Broadway actress who brought sass to the stage.  She died at age 89.

1923 ~ Liz Smith (née Mary Elizabeth Smith, d. Nov. 12, 2017), American gossip columnist who befriended the stars.  She died at age 94.

1915 ~ Abba Eban (d. Nov. 17, 2002), Israeli diplomat.  He was born in Cape Town, South Africa.  He died at age 87.

1912 ~ Elizabeth Gladys Millvina Dean (d. May 31, 2009), English secretary who was the last survivor of the sinking of the HMS Titanic.  She was 2 months old when she, along with her parents and sibling, set sail on the Titanic.  She died at age 97.

1905 ~ Ayn Rand (née Alisa Zinov’yevna Rosenbaum, d. Mar. 6, 1982), Russian-born American author, best known for her novels, Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead.  She died at age 77.

1897 ~ Howard Deering Johnson (d. June 20, 1972), American businessman and founder of the Howard Johnson restaurant chain.  He died at age 75.

1896 ~ Kazimierz Kuratowski (d. June 18, 1980), Polish mathematician.  He died at age 84.

1893 ~ Cornelius Lanczos (d. June 25, 1974), Hungarian mathematician and physicist.  He died at age 81.

1882 ~ James Joyce (d. Jan. 13, 1941), Irish writer.  He died at 20 days before his 59^th birthday.

1861 ~ Solomon R. Guggenheim (d. Nov. 3, 1949), American art collector and founder of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City.  He died at age 88.

1860 ~ Curtis Guild, Jr. (d. Apr. 6, 1915), 43^rd Governor of Massachusetts.  He was Governor from January 1906 until January 1909.  He was born and died in boston.  He died at age 55.

1859 ~ Havelock Ellis (né Henry Havelock Ellis, d. July 8, 1939), English psychologist and author.  He died at age 80.

1842 ~ Yulian Vasilivich Sokhotsku (d. Dec. 14, 1927), Russian mathematician.  He died at age 85.

1786 ~ Jacques Philippe Marie Binet (d. May 12, 1856), French mathematician.  He died at age 70.

1650 ~ Nell Gwynne (née Eleanor Gwyn, d. Nov. 14, 1687), mistress of King Charles II of England.  She died at age 37.

1649 ~ Pope Benedict XIII (né Pietro Francesco Orsini, d. Feb. 21, 1730).  He ruled as Pope from May 29, 1724 until his death on February 21, 1730.  He died three weeks after his 81^st birthday.

1522 ~ Lodovico Ferrari (d. 1565), Italian mathematician.

1455 ~ King John of Denmark (d. Feb. 20, 1513).  He died 18 days after his 58^th birthday.

1208 ~ King James I of Aragon (d. July 27, 1276).  He was known as James the Conqueror.  He was King of Aragon from September 1213 until his death in 1276.  He died at age 68.

450 ~ Justin I (d. Aug. 1, 572), Byzantine Emperor.  He is believed to have been about 77 at the time of his death.

Events that Changed the World:

1971 ~ Idi Amin (d. 2003) became leader and dictator of Uganda.

1925 ~ Dog sleds reached Nome, Alaska with diphtheria serum.  This inspired the Iditarod races.

1922 ~ James Joyce published his novel, Ulysses.

1914 ~ The film Making a Living premiered.  This was Charlie Chaplin’s first film.

1913 ~ Grand Central Terminal was opened in New York City.

1901 ~ The funeral for Queen Victoria was held.

1899 ~ The Australian Premiers’ Conference, which was held in Melbourne, decided to locate Australia’s capital city to Canberra.

1887 ~ The first Groundhog Day was observed in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

1876 ~ The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs of the Major League Baseball was formed.

1848 ~ The first wave of Chinese immigrants arrived in San Francisco, California to assisted with the California Gold Rush.

1709 ~ Alexander Selkirk (1676 ~ 1721), a Scottish sailor, was rescued after being a castaway from a ship wreck for four years on a desert island.  He was the inspiration for Daniel Defoe’s novel, Robinson Crusoe.

1653 ~ The city of New Amsterdam, later renamed New York City, was incorporated.

1536 ~ The city of Buenos Aries, Argentina was founded by Pedro de Mendoza (1487 ~ 1537).

1141 ~ During the Battle of Lincoln, King Stephen (1092 ~ 1154) of England was defeated and captured by the allies of Empress Matilda (1102 ~ 1167).

1032 ~ Conrad II (990 ~ 1039), Holy Roman Emperor became King of Burgundy.

962 ~ Otto I (912 ~ 973) was crown Holy Roman Emperor by Pope John XII (930 ~ 964).

Good-byes:

2016 ~ Bob Elliot (né Robert Brackett Elliot, b. Mar. 26, 1923), American comedian and actor.  He was half of the comedy duo of Bob and Ray.  His son is comedian Chris Elliot.  He died of throat cancer at age 92 in Cundy Harbor, Maine.

2014 ~ Philip Seymour Hoffman (b. July 23, 1967), American Oscar-winning actor who found depth in every character.  He died of a drug overdose at age 46.

2012 ~ Dorothy Gilman (b. June 25, 1923), American mystery writer, best known for her Mrs. Pollifax mysteries.  She died at age 88.

2008 ~ Joshua Lederberg (b. May 23, 1925), American molecular biologist and recipient of the 1958 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.  He died at age 82 of pneumonia.

2008 ~ Earl Butz (b. July 3, 1909), 18^th Secretary of Agriculture.  He served under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford from December 1971 until October 1976.  He was forced to resign over a racist joke.  He died at age 98.

2005 ~ Max Schmeling (b. Sept. 28, 1905), German boxer.  He died at age 99.

1996 ~ Gene Kelly (né Eugene Curran Kelly, b. Aug. 23, 1912), American dancer and actor.  He died at age 83.

1992 ~ Bert Parks (né Bertram Jacobson, b. Dec. 30, 1914), American television host, best known as being the emcee for the Miss America beauty contests.  He died at age 77.

1980 ~ William Howard Stein (b. June 25, 1911), American biochemist and recipient of the 1972 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.  He died at age 68.

1979 ~ Sid Vicious (né John Simon Ritchie, b. May 10, 1957), English musician and singer in The Sex Pistols.  He murdered his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen.  He died at age 21 from a drug overdose that was possibly a suicide.

1974 ~ Imre Lakatos (b. Nov. 9, 1922), Hungarian mathematician.  He fled to England during World War II.  He died of a heart attack at age 51.

1970 ~ Bertrand Russell, 3^rd Earl Russell (b. May 18, 1872), British philosopher and mathematician.  He was also the recipient of the 1950 Nobel Prize in Literature.  He died at age 97.

1969 ~ Boris Karloff (né William Henry Pratt, b. Nov. 23, 1887), British actor best known for his role in horror films.  He died of pneumonia and emphysema at age 81.

1950 ~ Constantin Carathéodory (b. Sept. 13, 1873), Greek mathematician.  He died at age 76.

1942 ~ Ado Birk (b. Nov. 14, 1883), Prime Minister of Estonia from for 3 days, from July 28 to July 30, 1920.  He died at age 58.

1918 ~ John L. Sullivan (b. Oct. 15, 1858), American boxer.  He was born and died in Massachusetts.  He died at age 59.

1905 ~ Henri Germain (b. Feb. 19, 1824), French banker and founder of Le Crédit Lyonnais.  He died 17 days before his 81^st birthday.

1904 ~ William Collins Whitney (b. July 5, 1841), 31^st Secretary of the Navy.  He served under President Grover Cleveland from March 1885 until March 1889.  He was born in Conway, Massachusetts.  He died at age 62.

1769 ~ Pope Clement XIII (né Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, b. Mar. 7, 1693).  He was Pope from July 1758 until his death in February 1769.  He died just over a month before his 76^th birthday.

1768 ~ Robert Smith (b. Oct. 16, 1689) English mathematician and musical theorist.  He is believed to have been born in October 1689.  He died at age 78.

1704 ~ Guillaume François Antoine, Marquis de l’Hôpital (b. 1661), French mathematician.  The exact date of his birth is not know, but he is believed to have been 42 at the time of his death.

1612 ~ Christopher Clavius (b. Mar. 25, 1539), German mathematician.  He died at age 73.

1461 ~ Sir Owen Tudor, (b. 1392), Welsh soldier and founder of the Tudor dynasty of England.  The exact date of his birth is not know, but he is believed to have been 68 or 69 at the time of his death.

1250 ~ King Erick XI of Sweden (b. 1216).  The exact date of his birth is not known, but he is believed to have been 33 at the time of his death.