Birthdays:
1980 ~ Lin-Manuel Miranda, American playwright and composer best known for his production of Hamilton. He was born in New York City.
1974 ~ Kate Moss (née Katherine Ann Moss), English fashion model. She was born in London, England.
1959 ~ Sade (née Helen Folasade Adu), Nigerian-born singer. She was born in Ibadan, Nigeria.
1955 ~ Mary Karr, American poet. She was born in Groves, Texas.
1952 ~ Julie Anne Peters (d. Mar. 21, 2023), American Young Adult writer who took trans teens mainstream. She wrote many novels, many aimed at young readers and introduced LGBT characters. She was born in Jamestown, New York. She died at age 71 in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.
1950 ~ Debbie Allen (née Deborah Kaye Allen), African-American choreographer. She was born in Houston, Texas.
1948 ~ Ruth Reichl, American chef, and food writer. She was born in New York, New York.
1933 ~ Susan Sontag (née Susan Rosenblatt; d. Dec. 28, 2004), New York intellectual who became a celebrity. She was an author, filmmaker and political activist. She was born and died in New York, New York. She died of blood cancer 19 days before her 72nd birthday.
1933 ~ Jack Yufe (d. Nov. 9, 2015), Trinidadian-born Jewish man who found his ex-Nazi twin brother. Soon after he and his twin brother, Oskar Stöhr, were born, his parents separated, and each was raised separately. Jack grew up with his Jewish father and was brought up Jewish, but Oskar was brought up by his German mother as a strict Catholic in Nazi Germany. Jack died at age 82 in San Diego, California.
1932 ~ Dian Fossey (d. Dec. 26, 1985), American gorilla specialist. She was murdered by poachers in Africa. The exact date of her murder is not known, but it is believed to have been on December 26, 1985. Her body was found on the morning of December 27. She was born in San Francisco, California. She died 3 weeks before her 54th birthday in Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda.
1925 ~ J. Robinson Risner (né James Robinson Risner; d. Oct. 22, 2013), American ace pilot who led the Hanoi Hilton POWs during the Vietnam War. He was a leader among American prisoners of War. He was born in Mammoth Spring, Arkansas. He died at age 88 in Bridgewater, Virginia.
1924 ~ Katy Jurado (née María Cristina Estela Marcela Jurado García; d. July 5, 2002), Mexican actress. She made 72 films during her career. She died of kidney failure and pulmonary disease at age 78.
1921 ~ Francesco Scavullo (d. Jan. 6, 2004), American fashion photographer. He was born and died in New York, New York. He died 10 days before his 83rd birthday.
1919 ~ Jerome Horwitz (né Jerome Phillip Horwitz; d. Sept. 6, 2012), American scientist who unwittingly created a treatment for AIDS. He developed the compound zidovudine, known as AZT. He died at age 93.
1911 ~ Eduardo Montalva (né Eduardo Nicanor Frei Montalva; d. Jan. 22, 1982), President of Chile. He served as President from November 1964 until November 1970. He was born and died in Santiago, Chile. He died 6 days after his 71st birthday.
1910 ~ Dizzy Dean (né Jay Hanna Dean; d. July 17, 1974), American professional baseball player. He was born in Lucas, Arkansas. He died at age 64 of a heart attack in Reno, Nevada.
1908 ~ Ethel Merman (née Ethel Agnes Zimmerman; d. Feb. 15, 1984), American actress and singer. She was born and died in New York, New York. She died of brain cancer a month after her 76th birthday.
1907 ~ Paul Nitze (né Paul Henry Nitze; d. Oct. 19, 2004), 10th United States Secretary of the Navy. He served under President Lyndon Johnson from November 1963 until June 1967. He helped shape the Cold War defense policy. He was born in Amherst, Massachusetts. He died at age 97 in Washington, D.C.
1901 ~ Fulgencio Batista (né Rubén Zaldívar; d. Aug. 6, 1973), Cuban military leader and President of Cuba he was overthrown in the Cuban Revolution in 1959. He was born in Banes, Cuba. He died of a heart attack at age 72 in Málaga, Spain.
1901 ~ Frank Zamboni (né Frank Joseph Zamboni, Jr.; d. July 27, 1988), American inventor of the ice re-surfacer that smooths the ice for hockey and skating rinks. The ice re-surfacer that clears the ice on skating rinks was named after him. He was born in Eureka, Utah. He died at age 87 in Paramount, California.
1885 ~ Michel Plancherel (d. Mar. 4, 1967), Swiss mathematician. He died at age 82 in Zurich, Switzerland.
1853 ~ André Michelin (né André Jules Michelin; d. Apr. 4, 1931), French industrialist. He co-founded, along with his brother, the Michelin Tire Company. He published the first Michelin Guide, which was designed to promote his tire company. He was born and died in Paris, France. He died at age 78.
1843 ~ Sarah Rosetta Wakeman (d. June 19, 1864), American female soldier who fought for the Union during the American Civil War. She joined the army under the name of Lyons Wakeman. She was born in Chenango County, New York. She fought at the Red River Campaign. She died at age 21 at a US Marine Hospital in New Orleans.
1836 ~ Francis II, King of the Two Sicilies (d. Dec. 27, 1894). He reigned from May 1859 until he was deposed in March 1861. He was married to Duchess Maria Sophia in Bavaria (1841 ~ 1925). They married in 1859. He was of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. He was the son of Ferdinand II, King of the Two Sicilies and Maria Christina of Savoy. He died 20 days before his 59th birthday.
1825 ~ George Pickett (né George Edward Pickett; d. July 30, 1875), General in the Confederate Army. He was born in Richmond, Virginia. He died at age 50 in Norfolk, Virginia.
1821 ~ John C. Breckinridge (né John Cabell Breckinridge; d. May 17, 1874), 14th Vice President of the United States. He served under President James Buchanan from March 1857 until March 1861. At age 36, he was the youngest Vice-President of the United States. He was from the State of Kentucky. He went on to become a general in the Confederate Army. He was then appointed to serve as the Confederate States Secretary of War. He was born and died in Lexington, Kentucky. He died at age 54 following complications of surgery.
1728 ~ Niccolò Piccinni (d. May 7, 1800), Italian composer. He died at age 72.
1409 ~ René of Anjou, King of Naples (d. July 10, 1480). He reigned as King of Naples from February 1435 until he was deposed on June 2, 1442. He was married twice. His first wife was Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine (1400 ~ 1453). They married in 1419. After her death, he married Jeanne de Laval (1433 ~ 1498). They married in 1454. He was of the House of Valois-Anjou. He was the son of Louis II, King of Naples and Yolande of Aragon. He was Roman Catholic. He died at age 71 in Aix-en-Provence, Provence, France.
1245 ~ Edmund Crouchback (d. June 5, 1296), English prince and member of the British royal family. He was married twice. His first wife was Aveline de Forz (1259 ~ 1273). They married in 1269. They married as young children. She died 5 years after the marriage at age 15. After her death, he married Blanche of Artois in 1276 (1248 ~ 1302). He was her second husband. He was of the House of Plantagenet. He was the son of Henry III, King of England and Eleanor of Provence. He died at age 51.
972 ~ Sheng Zong (d. June 25, 1031), 6th Chinese Emperor of the Khitan-led Liao Dynasty. He ruled from October 982 until his death 49 years later. He died at age 59.
Events that Changed the World:
2023 ~ Martin Luther King, Jr., Day observed.
2021 ~ Erev Tu B’Shevat.
2020 ~ The first impeachment of President Donald Trump (b. 1946) formally moved into its trial phase in the United States Senate. The Senate would move to acquit him of all charges.
2017 ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. Day observed.
2006 ~ Ellen Sirleaf (b. 1938) became the first female elected head of state in Africa when she was sworn in as the President of Liberia. She served in that office until January 2018.
2003 ~ The Space Shuttle Columbia took off on its final mission. It disintegrated upon re-entry 16 days later, on February 1.
1991 ~ The Persian Gulf War began after the United Nations deadline for the Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait expired. British and American aircraft carriers began bombing missions over Iraq.
1979 ~ Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (1919 ~ 1980), the Shah of Iran and his family fled from Iran and relocated in Egypt.
1969 ~ Czech student Jan Palach (1948 ~ 1969) committed self-immolation in Prague in protest against the Soviet’s crushing of the Prague Spring. He would die of his burns three days later.
1964 ~ Hello, Dolly!, the musical starring Carol Channing (1921 ~ 2019), opened on Broadway. It ran for over 2,800 performances.
1942 ~ TWA Flight 3 crashed shortly after take-off in Las Vegas, Nevada. All 22 individuals aboard the plane, including actress Carole Lombard (1908 ~ 1942), were killed.
1920 ~ The League of Nations held its first council meeting in Paris, France.
1919 ~ The 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, which authorized Prohibition one year after its ratification.
1909 ~ Ernest Shackleton’s expedition located the magnetic South Pole.
1883 ~ The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act, which established the United States Civil Service, was passed by Congress.
1605 ~ Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes (1547 ~ 1616) was first published.
1547 ~ Ivan IV, Grand Duke of Muscovy (1530 ~ 1584), also known as Ivan the Terrible, became 1st Tsar of Russia. Prior to this, the country was governed via the Grand Duchy of Moscow.
1412 ~ The Medici family was appointed the official banker of the Papacy.
1362 ~ The Saint Marcellus’s flood was an intense extratropical storm that swept across the British Isles, the Netherlands, Denmark, and northern Germany. It caused extensive flooding and killed at least 25,000 people. The flood had begun on January 13 but reached its peak on the 16th. It was called the Saint Marcellus’s flood because the height of the flooding occurred in Saint Marcellus’s feast day.
1120 ~ The Council of Nablus was held, which established the earliest surviving written laws of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Good-Byes:
2023 ~ Gina Lollobrigida (née Luigia Lollobrigida; b. July 4, 1927), Italian sex symbol and actress who became a photographer. She was born in Subiaco, Italy. She died at age 95 in Rome, Italy.
2022 ~ Alan B. Scott (né Alan Brown Scott; b. July 13, 1932), American physician who discovered the medical uses of Botox. He was born in Berkeley, California. He died at age 89.
2022 ~ Brigadier General Charles McGee (né Charles Edward McGee; b. Dec. 7, 1919), African-American fighter pilot who shot down racial barriers. He was one of the first African-American aviators in the United States military. He began his career in World War II flying with the Tuskegee Airmen. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He died at age 102 in Bethesda, Maryland.
2021 ~ Phil Spector (né Harvey Phillip Spector; b. Dec. 26, 1939), American musician, and visionary music producer. He revolutionized pop music with his Wall of Sound. In 2003, he sank into murderous madness and was accused of murder. In 2009, he was found guilty and sentenced to 19 years to life. He was born in The Bronx, New York. He died 21 days after his 81st birthday in French Camp, California, possibly of complications of Covid-91.
2020 ~ Christopher Tolkien (né Christopher John Reuel Tolkien; b. Nov. 21, 1924), English Tolkien heir who guarded his father’s legacy. He was the son of author J.R.R. Tolkien and editor of much of his father’s posthumously published work. He was born in Leeds, England. He died at age 95 in Draguignan, France.
2019 ~ John C. Bogle (né John Clifton Bogle; b. May 9, 1929), American investor who stood for the little guy. He was the founder and chief executive of The Vanguard Group. In 1996, at age 66, he had a heart transplant. He was born in Montclair, New Jersey. He died at age 89 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.
2017 ~ Eugene Cernan (né Eugene Andrew Cernan; b. Mar. 14, 1934), American pilot and astronaut who became the last man to walk on the moon. He was born in Chicago, Illinois. He died at age 82 in Houston, Texas.
2014 ~ Hiroo Onoda (b. Mar. 19, 1922), Japanese soldier who refused to surrender in 1945 following World War II. It was not until 1974 that his former commander personally issued orders relieving him from his duties. He died at age 91 in Tokyo, Japan.
2013 ~ André Cassagnes (b. Sept. 23, 1926), French toymaker and creator of the Etch-A-Sketch. He died at age 86.
2013 ~ Abigail Van Buren (née Pauline Esther Friedman Phillips, b. July 4, 1918), American advice columnist known to readers as Dear Abby. She counseled millions with her advice. Her identical twin sister, Ann Landers (née Esther “Eppie” Pauline Friedman Lederer; b. July 4, 1918), was also an advice columnist. The twins were born in Sioux City, Iowa. Esther Friedman (Ann Landers) died on June 22, 2012, just 12 days before her 84th birthday in Chicago, Illinois. Pauline Esther Friedman (Dear Abby) died at age 94 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
2010 ~ Glen Bell (né Glen William Bell, Jr., b. Sept. 3, 1923), American businessman and founder of Taco Bell restaurants. He was born in Lynwood, California. He died at age 86 in Rancho Santa Fe, California.
2009 ~ Andrew Wyeth (né Andrew Newell Wyeth; b. July 12, 1917), American artist who painted the American psyche. He was born in and died in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. He died at age 91 and is buried in Cushing, Maine.
2000 ~ Robert R. Wilson (né Robert Rathbun Wilson; b. Mar. 4, 1914), American physicist known for his work on the Manhattan Project. He was also instrumental in the creation of the Fermilab, the particle-smashing facility. He was born in Frontier, Wyoming. He died in Ithaca, New York at age 85.
1987 ~ Earl Wilson (né Harvey Earl Wilson; b. May 3, 1907), American journalist and gossip columnist. He is best known for his weekly column entitled It Happened Last Night. He was born in Rockford, Ohio. He died at age 79 in Yonkers, New York.
1986 ~ Herbert W. Armstrong (b. July 31, 1892), American evangelist. He was an early pioneer in radio and televangelism. He was born in Des Moines, Iowa. He died at age 93 in Pasadena, California.
1974 ~ Fred Seaton (né Frederick Andrew Seaton; b. Dec. 11, 1909), 36th United States Secretary of the Interior. He served under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He served in this office from June 1956 until January 1961. During his tenure as Secretary of the Interior, Alaska and Hawaii became states admitted into the Union. He had briefly previously served as a Republican United States Senator from Nebraska. He was born in Washington, D. C. He died just over a month after his 64th birthday in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
1967 ~ Robert J. Van de Graaff (né Robert Jamison Van de Graaff; b. Dec. 20, 1901), American physicist and inventor of the Van de Graaff generator. He was born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He died in Boston, Massachusetts 27 days after his 65th birthday.
1957 ~ Arturo Toscanini (b. Mar. 25, 1867), Italian musician and conductor. He died at age 89 in The Bronx, New York.
1942 ~ Carole Lombard (née Jane Alice Peters; b. Oct. 6, 1908), American actress who was killed when the plane in which she was a passenger crashed in Mount Potosi, Nevada. She was married to Clark Gable. She was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She was 33 at the time of her death.
1942 ~ Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn (né Arthur William Patrick Albert; b. May 1, 1850), member of the British royal family. He was the 10th Governor General of Canada. He was the only British prince to hold this Office. He married Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia (1860 ~ 1917). They married in 1879. They had three children. He was of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha until 1917 when the family became known as Windsor. He was the seventh child and third son of Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert. He died at age 91.
1935 ~ Ma Barker (née Kate Clark aka Arizona Donnie Clark, b. Oct. 8, 1873), mother of several criminals who ran the Barker gang, including her son, Fred Barker (1901 ~ 1935), who was killed along with her in a shoot-out with the FBI in Florida. She was born in Ash Grove, Missouri. She died in Ocklawaha, Florida. She was 61 at the time of her death. According to the book Public Enemies, by Bryan Burrough, she may not have been the genius behind the criminal activities of her sons.
1935 ~ Princess Alice of Bourbon-Parma (b. Dec. 27, 1849), Grand Duchess of Tuscany. She was the second wife of Ferdinand IV, Grand Duke of Tuscany. They married in 1868. She was of the House of Bourbon-Parma. She was the daughter of Charles III, Duke of Parma and Princess Louise Marie Thérèse of France. She died 20 days after her 85thbirthday.
1917 ~ George Dewey (b. Dec. 26, 1837), American naval officer who became known as the hero of Manila during the Spanish-American War in 1898. He was born in Montpelier, Vermont. He died 3 weeks after his 79th birthday in Washington, D.C.
1906 ~ Marshall Field (b. Aug. 18, 1834), American merchant and founder of Marshall Field’s and Company, a famous department store in Chicago. He was born in Conway, Massachusetts. He died at age 71 from pneumonia in New York, New York.
1834 ~ Jean Nicolas Pierre Hachette (b. May 6, 1769), French mathematician. He died at age 64 in Paris, France.
1817 ~ Alexander J. Dallas (né Alexander James Dallas; b. June 21, 1759), 6th United States Secretary of the Treasury. He served under President James Madison. He served in this Office from October 1814 through October 1816. He was born in Kingston, Jamaica. He died at age 57 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1794 ~ Edward Gibbon (b. May 8, 1737), English historian best known for his six-volume work, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. He died at age 56 in London, England.
1387 ~ Elizabeth of Bosnia (b. 1339). She was the Queen consort of Hungary and Croatia and second wife of Louis I, King of Hungary and Poland (1326 ~ 1382). They married in 1353. She was of the House of Kotromanić. She was the daughter of Stephen II, Ban of Bosnia and Elizabeth of Kuyavia. The exact date of her birth is unknown, but she is believed to have been about 47 at the time of her death. She was murdered during an uprising.
1010 ~ Bertha of Burgundy (b. 964), Queen consort of the Franks and second wife of Robert II, King of France. She was of the Elder House of Welf. She was the daughter of Conrad, King of Burgundy and Princess Matilda of France. The date of her birth is not known but she is believed to have been about 36 at the time of her death.
309 ~ Pope Marcellus I (b. Jan. 6, 255), Pope from May 308 until his death in January 309. He was born and died in Rome, Italy. He died 10 days after his 54th birthday.
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