Friday, January 10, 2020

January 10

Birthdays:

1981 ~ Jared Kushner (né Jared Corey Kushner), American real estate investor and son-in-law to President Donald Trump.  He became the Director of the Office of American Innovation during the Trump administration.  He was born in Livingston, New Jersey. 

1961 ~ Evan Handler, American actor.  He is best known for playing Harry Goldenblatt on Sex and the City.  He was born in New York, New York.

1953 ~ Pat Benatar (née Patricia Mae Andrzejewski), American musician.  She was born in Brooklyn, New York.

1949 ~ Linda Lovelace (née Linda Susan Boreman; d. Apr. 22, 2002), American porn actress who was best known for her role in Deep Throat.  She was killed in a car accident at age 53.

1949 ~ George Foreman (né George Edward Foreman), American boxer.  He has 12 children: five sons, all of whom are named George, and seven daughters.  He was born in Marshall, Texas.

1948 ~ Donald Fagen (né Donald Jay Fagen), American musician and member of the band, Steely Dan.  He was born in Passaic, New Jersey.

1945 ~ Spider Sabich (né Vladimir Peter Sabich, Jr., d. Mar. 31, 1976), American alpine ski racer.  He was shot and killed by Claudine Longet (b. 1942), his live-in girlfriend and former wife of Andy Williams, in what she claimed to have been an accident.  She was later convicted of misdemeanor criminal negligence in his death.  He was 31 years old at the time of his death.

1945 ~ Sir Rod Stewart (né Roderick David Stewart), Scottish singer.  He was born in London, England.

1943 ~ Jim Croce (né James Joseph Croce, d. Sept. 20, 1973), American singer and songwriter.  He was killed in a plane crash at age 30 that had taken off from Natchitoches, Louisiana.

1939 ~ Sal Mineo (né Salvatore Mineo, Jr.; d. Feb. 12, 1976), American actor.  He was murdered about a month after his 37th birthday.

1938 ~ Jim Bailey (né James William Bailey, d. May 30, 2015), American entertainer and female impersonator who became a diva.  He died of complications of pneumonia at age 77.

1936 ~ Stephen Ambrose (né Stephen Edward Ambrose; d. Oct. 13, 2002), American historian.  He was a history professor at the University of New Orleans.  He died of lung cancer at age 66.

1936 ~ Robert Woodrow Wilson, American physicist and astronomer.  He was the recipient of the 1978 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation.  He was born in Houston, Texas.

1931 ~ Marlene Sanders (d. July 14, 2015), American reporter who blazed a trail for newswomen.  She was the mother of writer Jeffrey Toobin.  She died of cancer at age 84.

1930 ~ Roy E. Disney (né Roy Edward Disney; d. Dec. 16, 2009), American businessman and nephew of Walt and Lillian Disney.  He died less than a month before his 80th birthday.

1925 ~ Billie Sol Estes (d. May 14, 2013), Texas businessman and con man who bilked the government.  He is best known for his involvement in a business fraud scheme and his connection to Lyndon Johnson.  He spend several years in prison for swindling, mail fraud and conspiracy.  He died at age 88.

1924 ~ Earl Bakken (né Earl Elmer Bakken; d. Oct. 21, 2018), American engineer and medical pioneer who kept hearts ticking.  He developed the first external, battery-operated transistorized wearable artificial pacemaker.  He died at age 94.

1920 ~ Roberto M. Levingston (d. June 17, 2015), Argentine general and President of Argentina from June 1970 to March 1971.  He was president during the Revolusión Argentine, following the military dictatorship.  He was deposed by another military junta.  He died at age 95.

1919 ~ Milton Parker (d. Jan. 30, 2009), American businessman, restaurateur and co-founder of the Carnegie Deli.  He made the Carnegie Deli famous.  He died 20 days after his 90th birthday.

1916 ~ Sune Bergström (né Karl Sune Detlof Bergström; d. Aug. 15, 2004), Swedish biochemist and recipient of the 1982 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.  He died at age 88.

1913 ~ Gustáv Husák (d. Nov. 18, 1991), 9th President of Czechoslovakia.  He served in that office from May 1975 until December 1989.  He died at age 78.

1911 ~ Norman Heatley (né Norman George Heatley; d. Jan. 5, 2004), British biologist and chemist who co-developed penicillin.  He died 5 days before his 93rd birthday.

1904 ~ Ray Bolger (né Raymond Wallace Bolger; d. Jan. 15, 1987), 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 5 days after his 83rdbirthday.

1900 ~ Violette Cordery (d. Dec. 30, 1983), British race car driver.  In the 1920s she competed in many car races.  She broke long distance records.  She died 11 days before her 84th birthday.

1898 ~ Katharine Burr Blodgett (d. Oct. 12, 1979), American physicist and chemist.  She was the first woman to earn a Ph.D. in physics from the University of Cambridge.  She died at age 81.

1891 ~ Heinrich Behmann (d. Feb. 3, 1970), German mathematician.  He died 24 days after his 79th birthday.

1883 ~ Aleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy (d. Feb. 23, 1945), Russian journalist and author.  His research in the investigation of the atrocities committed in the Stavropol region was recognized by prosecutors during the Nuremberg trials of Nazi war crimes.  He died at age 62.

1875 ~ Issai Schur (d. Jan. 10, 1941), Russian-born mathematician.  He died in Tel Aviv before the creation of the State of Israel.  He died on his 66th birthday.

1850 ~ John Wellborn Root (d. Jan. 15, 1891), American architect who helped develop the “Chicago School” style of architecture.  He designed the Rookery Building in Chicago.  He died of pneumonia 5 days after his 41st birthday.

1843 ~ Frank James (né Alexander Franklin James; d. Feb. 18, 1915), American wild west outlaw.  He also served as a Confederate soldier in the American Civil War.  He was the older brother of outlaw Jesse James.  He died at age 72.

1836 ~ Charles Ingalls (né Charles Phillip Ingalls; d. June 8, 1902), American farmer and father of Laura Ingalls Wilder, the writer of the Little House series of books.  He died at age 66.

1810 ~ Jeremiah S. Black (né Jeremiah Sullivan Black; d. Aug. 19, 1883), 24th United States Attorney General under the Buchanan administration.  He served in this position from March 1857 until December 1860.  He also served in the James Buchanan administration as the 23rd United States Secretary of State from December 1860 until March 1861.  He died at age 73.

1769 ~ Michel Ney, 1st Duc d’Elchingen (d. Dec. 7, 1815), French Marshal and commander during the Napoleonic Wars.  He was executed for treason about a month before his 47th birthday.

Events that Changed the World:

2005 ~ A mudslide on California’s U.S. Route 101, the main coastal route between San Francisco and Los Angeles, killed 10 people and injured many more.

1990 ~ Time Warner was formed by the merger of Time, Inc., and Warner Communications.

1946 ~ The first United Nations General Assembly convened in London.  Fifty-one countries were represented.

1929 ~ The Adventures of Tintin, Europe’s most popular comic books, was first published in Belgium.

1927 ~ Metropolis, directed by Fritz Lang (1890 ~ 1976), was first released.

1920 ~ The League of Nations was established.

1920 ~ The Treaty of Versailles took effect, officially ending World War I.

1901 ~ The first great Texas oil strike occurred making Beaumont, Texas the first petroleum boom town in Texas.  This was the death knoll for the town of Galveston, Texas, which, after the devastation of the 1900 hurricane, was trying to rebuild its rivalry with Houston, Texas for major port cities along the Gulf Coast.

1870 ~ The Standard Oil Company was incorporated by John D. Rockefeller (1839 ~ 1937).

1863 ~ London’s Underground, the world’s oldest subway system, opened its first passenger line, which ran between Paddington Station and Farringdon Station.

1861 ~ Florida seceded from the Union before the Civil War.  It was the 3rd State to secede.

1812 ~ The first steamboat trip, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to New Orleans, Louisiana traveling on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, was completed.

1776 ~ Common Sense, by Thomas Paine (1737 ~ 1809), was published.

236 ~ Pope Fabian (200 ~ 250) became the 20th Pope of Rome.  He was Pope until his death in 250.

9 ~ The Western Han dynasty (206 BCE ~ CE 9) ended when Wang Mang (45 BCE ~ CE 23) began his own dynasty, the Xin dynasty.

49 BCE ~ The traditional date ascribed to when Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon, signaling the start of civil war.

Good-Byes:

2017 ~ Clare Hollingworth (b. Oct. 10, 2011), British reporter who broke the news of World War II.  While traveling from Germany to Poland in 1939, she spotted and reported German forces amassing on the Polish border. Three days later she was the first to report of the German invasion of Poland, which was called the “scoop of the century.”  She died at age 105.

2016 ~ David Bowie (né David Robert Jones; b. Jan. 8, 1947), English musician.  He was the ever-changing British rocker who transcended music, art, and fashion.  He died of liver cancer 2 days after his 69th birthday.

2015 ~ Robert Stone (b. Aug. 21, 1937), American novelist who chronicled American dreams gone south.  He died at age 77.

2014 ~ Larry Speakes (né Larry Melvin Speakes; b. Sept. 13, 1939), American journalist and 16th White House Press Secretary.  He served under President Ronald Reagan.  He was technically the acting press secretary because James Brady, who had been shot during the assassination attempt on President Reagan, retained his position and title even though he was unable to perform those duties.  He died of Alzheimer’s disease at age 74.

2007 ~ Carlos Ponti, Sr. (né Carlos Fortunato Pietro Ponti; b. Dec. 11, 1912), Italian film producer and husband of Sophia Loren.  He died a month after his 94th birthday.

2005 ~ James Forman (b. Oct. 4, 1928), African-American civil rights pioneer who espoused confrontation.  He was a leader in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.  He died of colon cancer at age 76.

2004 ~ Harriet B. Braiker (b. Nov. 22, 1948), American psychologist.  She died of pneumonia at age 55.

1997 ~ Alexander R. Todd, Baron Todd (né Alexander Robertus Todd; b. Oct. 2, 1907), Scottish chemist and recipient of the 1957 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research on the structure and synthesis of nucleotides, nucleosides and nucleotide coenzymes.  He died at age 89.

1986 ~ Jaroslav Seifert (b. Sept. 23, 1901), Czech poet and journalist.  He was the recipient of the 1984 Nobel Prize in Literature.  He died at age 84.

1982 ~ Mohammed Helmy (b. July 25, 1901), Egyptian physician.  He saved several Jews from the Nazis during World War II and has been recognized as Righteous Among Nations by Yad Vashem.  He died at age 80.

1981 ~ Richard Boone (né Richard Allen Boone, b. June 18, 1917), American actor best known for his Westerns.  He died of pneumonia and throat cancer at age 63.

1980 ~ George Meany (né William George Meany; b. Aug. 16, 1894), American labor union leader.  He was the first president of the AFL-CIO.  He died at age 85.

1976 ~ Howlin’ Wolf (né Chester Arthur Burnett; b. June 10, 1910), African-American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist.  He died at age 65.

1971 ~ Coco Chanel (née Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel; b. Aug. 19, 1883), French clothing designer and founder of the House of Chanel.  She died at age 87.

1961 ~ Dashiell Hammett (né Samuel Dashiell Hammett; b. May 27, 1894), American writer of the detective novel.  He and Lillian Hillman were long-time partners.  He died of lung cancer at age 66.

1957 ~ Gabriela Mistral (née Lucila de María del Perpetuo Socorro Godoy Alcayaga; b. Apr. 7, 1889), Chilean writer, educator and diplomat.  She was the recipient of the 1945 Nobel Prize in Literature.  She was the first Latin American woman to be awarded this Prize.  She died of pancreatic cancer at age 67.

1951 ~ Sinclair Lewis (né Harry Sinclair Lewis; b. Feb. 7, 1885), American writer.  In 1930, he was the first American to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.  He his best known for his books Main Street and Arrowsmith.  He died about a month before his 66th birthday.

1941 ~ Issia Schur (b. Jan. 10, 1875), Russian-born mathematician.  He died in Tel Aviv before the creation of the State of Israel.  He died on his 66th birthday.

1917 ~ Buffalo Bill Cody (né William Frederick Cody; b. Feb. 26, 1846), American frontiersman and showman.  He died of kidney failure at age 70.

1883 ~ Dr. Samuel Mudd (né Samuel Alexander Mudd; b. Dec. 20, 1833), American physician, who was convicted of conspiring with John Wilkes Booth in the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.  He was sentenced to life imprisonment.  President Andrew Johnson, however, pardoned him after he had spent only a few years in prison.  He died of pneumonia 21 days after his 49th birthday.

1862 ~ Samuel Colt (b. July 19, 1814), American firearms inventor and founder of the Colt’s Manufacturing Company.  He invented the modern revolver that bears his name.  He was born and died in Hartford, Connecticut.  He died of gout at age 47.

1833 ~ Adrien-Marie Legendre (b. Sept. 18, 1752), French mathematician.  He died at age 80.

1778 ~ Carolus Linnæus (b. May 23, 1707), Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist.  He is credited for setting the foundation for scientific nomenclature.  He died at age 70.

1662 ~ Honoré II, Prince of Monaco (b. Dec. 24, 1597).  He was the first to be called the Prince of Monaco.  He died 16 days after his 64th birthday.  He was succeeded by his grandson, Prince Louis I.

1276 ~ Pope Gregory X (né Teobaldo Visconti, b. 1210).  He was Pope for just over 4 years, from September 1271 until his death on this date in 1276.  The exact date of his birth is unknown, but he is believed to have been about 66 at the time of his death.

681 ~ Pope Agatho.  He was Pope for about 2 ½ years from June 678 until his death on this date in 681.  The date of his birth is not known.

314 ~ Pope Miltiades.  He is believed to have been North African.  He became Pope in July 311.  The date of his birth is not known.

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