Ken Fussichen's History Of The Day For
January 1st

Home Click on * for the link to the relevant chronology. New Date
-5777*-BC- Origin of Solar CycleRef: 5
-4714*-BC- Origin of Julian Period (Year 0).Ref: 4
-4713*-BC- Julian Year 1 begins, at Greenwich mean noon.Ref: 5
-45*-BC- Origin of Julian Era; Julian calendar begins.Ref: 74
-42*-BC- Julius Caesar is officially divinized. Ref 
-38*-BC- Origin of Era of Spain (Cesars).Ref: 5
-30*-BC- Origin of Actian Era.Ref: 5
-1*-BC- Origin of Era of Pisa.Ref: 5
1*Origin of Christian Era.Ref: 5
69 Roman garrison of Mainz uprising.Ref: 5
89*Gov Lucius Antonius Saturninus of Germany becomes emperor of Rome.Ref: 5
313*Start of Roman (Pontifical) Indiction.Ref: 5
414*King Ataulf of Narbonne marries emperor Honorius sister Galle Placidia.Ref: 5
722 Hofmeier Charles Martel flees from bishop Willibrord.Ref: 5
990*Russia adopts Julian calendar.Ref: 5
1198*First annual Festival of Fools in Paris ridiculing nuns and priests.Ref: 62
1348*(approximately) The Black Plague arrives in Marseilles. 
1430*Jews of Sicily are no longer required to attend conversionist services.Ref: 5
1438*Albrecht II von Habsburg becomes king of Hungary.Ref: 5
1494*Juw Dekama elected potentate of Frisia.Ref: 5
1502*Portuguese navigators discover Rio de Janeiro.Ref: 5
1515*Jews are expelled from Laibach Austria.Ref: 5
1515*François, Duke of Angoulême succeeds Louis XII as François I of France.Ref: 5
1519*Ulrich Swingli, Swiss religious reformer, is ordained.Ref: 17
1540*Henry VIII of England and Anne of Cleves meet for the first time. 
1573 Geuzen sets fire to Woudrichem.Ref: 5
1582*Gregorian calendar now in effect and today is New Year's Day in Holland, Flanders, France, Italy, Portugal & Spain.Ref: 10
1622*Papal Chancery adopts Jan 1 as beginning of the year (was Mar 25).Ref: 5
1651*Charles II Stuart crowned king of Scotland.Ref: 5
1673*Mounted mail service inaugurated between New York and Boston on the Boston Post Road.Ref: 5
1675 Don Carlos de Gurrea/Aragón becomes Spanish land guardian of South Netherlands.Ref: 5
1688*(Salem Witch Trials) (date speculative) Following an argument with laundress Goody Glover, Martha Goodwin, 13, begins exhibiting bizarre behavior. Days later her younger brother and two sisters exhibit similar behavior. Glover is arrested and tried for bewitching the Goodwin children. Reverend Cotton Mather meets twice with Glover following her arrest in an attempt to persuade her to repent her witchcraft. Glover is hanged. Mather takes Martha Goodwin into his house. Her bizarre behavior continues and worsens. Also during this time Mather publishes Memorable Providences, Relating to Witchcrafts and Possessions. 
1698*The Abenaki Indians and Massachusetts colonists sign a treaty halting hostilities between the two.Ref: 2
1700*Protestant West-Europe (except England) begin using Gregorian calendar.Ref: 5
1700*Russia replaces Byzantines with Julian calendar.Ref: 5
1701*Great Britain & Ireland union is in effect, creating United Kingdom.Ref: 5
1702*(Salem Witch Trials) (date unknown) The General Court declares the 1692 trials unlawful 
1706*(Salem Witch Trials) (date unknown) Ann Putnam Jr., one of the leading accusers, publicly apologizes for her actions in 1692. 
1707*Jacob V succeeds his father Pedro II as king of Portugal.Ref: 5
1711*(Salem Witch Trials) (date unknown) The colony passes a legislative bill restoring the rights and good names of those accused of witchcraft and grants 600 pounds in restitution to their heirs. 
1752*(Salem Witch Trials) (date unknown) Salem Village is renamed Danvers. 
1752*Today is finally New Year's Day in England almost 170 years after France, Italy, etc.Ref: 10
1772*First traveler's checks issued (London).Ref: 5
1788*London's oldest running newspaper, The Daily Universal Register changes its name to The Times.Ref: 5
1788*Quakers in Pennsylvania emancipate their slaves.Ref: 5
1797*Albany became the capital of New York state, replacing New York City.Ref: 70
1798*Russia appoints first Jewish censor to censor Hebrew books.Ref: 5
1800 Dutch East Indies Company dissolves.Ref: 5
1801*Effective today, the United Kingdom now includes England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.Ref: 17
1802*Thomas Jefferson, in a letter written to the Danbury [CT] Baptist Association, coined the metaphor, "a wall of separation between Church and State." From 1947, the "wall of separation" concept gained acceptance as a constitutional guideline.Ref: 5
1804*Jean Jacques Dessalines proclaims independence of Haiti from France.Ref: 5
1808*A U.S. law banning the import of slaves comes into effect, but is widely ignored.Ref: 2
1808*African Benevolent Society (education) forms.Ref: 5
1808*Sierra Leone becomes a British colony.Ref: 5
1818*Official reopening of the White House.Ref: 5
1820*Greene County population is 10509. 
1826*Baron Van der Capellen resigns as Governor of Dutch-Indies.Ref: 5
1827*Dutch Trade Company NHM gets opium monopoly on Java.Ref: 5
1830*The population of Xenia OH is 919, the population of Greene County 15122. (Ref: From a typewritten document in the Greene County Room, Xenia Branch of the Greene County Public Library) 
1830*William Lloyd Garrison publishes the first edition of a journal entitled The Liberator, calling for the complete and immediate emancipation of all slaves in the United States. The most stinging indictment of slavery.Ref:77
1831*John Dodd advertises the opening of his "House of Public Entertainment", a first-class hotel later known as The Xenia [OH] Hotel. (XDG, p 6A, 12/17/2003)Ref: 83
1832*In Lexington, KY, 12,000 followers of Alexander Campbell, (called "Campbellites") merged with 10,000 followers of Barton W. Stone (known as "Christians") to form the Disciples of Christ (Christian) Church.Ref: 5
1833 Curaçao census 2,602 whites, 6,531 free people & 5,894 slaves.Ref: 5
1833*Great Britain gains sovereignity over the Falkland Islands.Ref: 17
1834 German Tolunie goes into effect.Ref: 5
1840*The population of Xenia OH is 1406, the population of Greene County is 17753. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1841*John "Red" Kelly, aged twenty-one, later to be the father of Australian bushranger and folk hero Edward "Ned" Kelly, was found guilty by a jury of stealing two pigs valued at 10 shillings each and is sentenced to seven years' transportation to Australia. Ref 
1846*Yucatan declares independence from México.Ref: 5
1847*Michigan is first state to abolish capital punishment.Ref: 5
1849*Joshia Hurty is chosen as the first superintendent of the Xenia (Ohio) public schools. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1850*The population of Xenia OH is 3021. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1850*First Australian postage stamp issued in New South Wales.Ref: 10
1850*The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad begin passenger service through Bath Township (OH).Ref: 56
1851 City of Glasgow steamer inaugurates Philadelphia-Liverpool line.Ref: 5
1852*First US public bath opens in New York City NY.Ref: 5
1852*Netherlands begins issuing postage stamps.Ref: 5
1853*First practical fire engine (horse-drawn) in US enters service.Ref: 5
1854*Lincoln University, a black college, chartered (Oxford PA).Ref: 5
1858*Canada begins using decimal currency system.Ref: 5
1860*Slavery ends of in Netherlands Indies.Ref: 5
1862*First US income tax (3% of incomes > $600, 5% of incomes > $10,000).Ref: 5
1863*President Lincoln issues the final Emancipation Proclamation freeing all slaves in territories held by Confederates and emphasizes the enlisting of black soldiers in the Union Army. The war to preserve the Union now becomes a revolutionary struggle for the abolition of slavery.Ref: 70
1863*First homestead under the Homestead Act claimed, near Beatrice NE.Ref: 5
1868*Daniel Sickles is mustered out of the Army.  
1870*The population of Xenia OH is 6377. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1871 Belgium disbands salt tax.Ref: 5
1871*The Church of Ireland was formally disestablished. Aligned with Anglicanism from 1537, the Irish Church represented the faith of only 12% of the populace by the mid-19th century.Ref: 5
1873*Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar; Origin of Japanese Era.Ref: 17
1874*New York City annexes the Bronx.Ref: 5
1876*London patent office opens for business.Ref: 10
1876*Egypt adopts the Gregorian calendar.Ref: 17
1877*England's Queen Victoria proclaimed Empress of Egypt and India.Ref: 17
1880 Building of Panama Canal, begins.Ref: 5
1886*Tournament of Roses parade started in Pasadena by Valley Hunt Club followed by amateur athletics. ("Who Was Who in America, 1607-1896") 
1889*The French Government bestows the Legion of Honor on Hermann Jaeger for his dominant role in recreating French wines from American Missouri vineyards after French grape crops were destroyed by lice that had eaten the roots. (History Channel Magazine, p 42, May/June 2003) 
1889*New York State introduces the electric chair for capital punishment.Ref: 17
1890*The first electric lights are installed in Xenia OH. (Ref: a typewritten document in the Greene County Room of the GC Public Library). 
1890*The population of Xenia OH is 7301. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1890 Italian possessions on the Red Sea in Eritrea are united as a colony.Ref: 17
1891*Facilities opened on Ellis Island, New York, to cope with the vast flood of immigrants coming into the United States.Ref: 2
1891 King Pakketvaart sails to Netherlands Indies.Ref: 5
1892*Ellis Island opens for business. A fifteen-year old Irish girl named Annie Moore became the first of the more than 12 million immigrants would pass through during the next 62 years.Ref: 4
1893*First US college extension courses for credit, University of Chicago.Ref: 5
1893*Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar.Ref: 5
1894*Denmark adopts Mid-European time.Ref: 5
1894*Manchester Ship Canal in England opens to traffic.Ref: 5
1895*Norway adopts Mid-European time.Ref: 5
1898*The five boroughs of NY became the city of NY this day. It was called ‘the consolidation’ as the five boroughs were fused into a single, powerful city.Ref: 4
1898*Lightship replaces whistling buoy at mouth of San Francisco BayRef: 5
1899*Cuba liberated from Spain by US (National Day) (US occupies till 1902).Ref: 5
1900*The population of Xenia OH is 8696. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1900*British protectorates of Lagos, Northern & Southern Nigeria established.Ref: 5
1900*Compulsory education in Netherlands goes into effect.Ref: 5
1901*Australia declares independence from federation of UK colonies.Ref: 5
1903*English King Edward VII is proclaimed emperor of India.Ref: 17
1904 Netherlands Indies colony begins opium production.Ref: 5
1904*The Elks Lodge moves into new quarters on East Main Street [in Xenia OH]. (XDG, p 6A, 12/31/2003)Ref: 83
1905*9 hour work day for diamond miners (South Africa?).Ref: 5
1906*(Haywood Trial) Thomas Hogan, also known as Harry Orchard, is arrested while having a drink at the Saratoga Bar and is charged with the first degree murder of Steunenberg.Ref: 87
1906*Dutch law makes driver's license mandatory.Ref: 5
1907*The Pure Food and Drug Act becomes law in the United States.Ref: 2
1907*President Theodore Roosevelt shakes a record 8,513 hands in 1 day.Ref: 5
1908 First time, ball signifying new year dropped at Times Square.Ref: 5
1910*The population of Xenia OH is 8706. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1911 South Australia transfers Northern Territory to federal government.Ref: 5
1911*Belgian Mining law introduces 9½-hour work day.Ref: 5
1912*Sun Yat-sen forms Chinese Republic.Ref: 5
1913*Post office begins parcel post deliveries.Ref: 5
1914*The St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line is born -- the world's first scheduled airline using winged aircraft. Pilot Tony Jannus flies A.C. Pheil across Tampa Bay, Fl. at 15 feet.Ref: 5
1914*Northern & Southern Nigeria united in British colony of Nigeria.Ref: 5
1914*Klaas ter Laan becomes Netherlands' first socialist mayor (Zaandam).Ref: 5
1915*Jews of Laibach Austria expelled.Ref: 5
1917*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) The Espionage Act that the Rosenbergs are convicted of violating is enacted.Ref: 87
1918*Xenia's city government changes to the commissioner-manager system. (XDG, p 2B, 9/30/2003)Ref: 83
1918*The first gasoline pipeline begins operation. It runs approximately 40 miles from Salt Creek to Casper, Wyoming in 3-inch pipe.Ref: 2
1918*Last day of the Julian calendar in Finland.Ref: 5
1919*The western boundary of the Eastern Time Zone is adjusted westward to include nearly half of Ohio.Ref: 56
1919*Belorussian SSR established.Ref: 5
1920*The population of Xenia OH is 9110. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1920*The eight-hour workday becomes law in Sweden.Ref: 17
1921*Mauritania becomes a separate French colony.Ref: 17
1921*A new Elementary Education Act goes into effect in the Netherlands.Ref: 17
1922*Vancouver BC starts driving on the right side of road.Ref: 5
1922 French and Flemish are declared the official languages in Belgium.Ref: 17
1923*Union of Socialist Soviet Republics established.Ref: 5
1924 Grossdeutsche Völksgemeinschaft/Völkische Block replaces NSDAP.Ref: 5
1925 Norway's capital Christiania changes its name to Oslo.Ref: 5
1925*The population of Xenia OH is 11,762. (XDG, p 9A, 8/05/2003)Ref: 83
1925*Damascus and Aleppo are united to form the state of Syria by decree of the French government.Ref: 17
1926*Flood in Rhine strikes Cologne.Ref: 5
1926 Nationalist government established in China.Ref: 10
1927 Communist uprising in West Java.Ref: 5
1927*The metric system of weights and measures is adopted by the USSR.Ref: 17
1928*First US air-conditioned office building opens, San Antonio.Ref: 5
1928*The BOI instituted a theoretical and practical training course for new Special Agents. During a two-month assignment to the Washington Field Office, New Agents were instructed in Bureau rules and procedures, provided with practical exercises in crime investigation, and evaluated by experienced Agents as to their qualities and potential.Ref: 14
1929*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) Communist Party of the United States is founded.Ref: 87
1930*The population of Xenia OH is 10,507. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1930*Earl Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to 2nd lieutenant.Ref: 5
1930*Jurgens & Van den Berg merge with Lever Brothers to form Unilever.Ref: 5
1930*The Indian National Congress votes for complete independence.Ref: 17
1931*Royal Traffic Act in Britain abolishes 20 mph speed limit and brings in driving tests.Ref: 10
1932 Jacob Cocey Sr chosen as mayor of Massillon OH.Ref: 5
1932*Rasse und Siedlungshauptamt publishes Himmler's wedding laws.Ref: 5
1934*Alcatraz officially becomes a Federal PrisonRef: 5
1934*Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (US bank guarantor) effective.Ref: 5
1934*International Telecommunication Union established.Ref: 5
1934*Fiorello LaGuardia is inaugurated as mayor of New York.Ref: 17
1935*Eastern Airlines hires Eddie Rickenbacker as GM.Ref: 5
1935*President Mustapha Kemal Pasha names himself "Atatürk Father of Turkey".Ref: 5
1937*At a party at the Hormel Mansion in Minnesota, a guest wins $100 for naming a new canned meat--Spam.Ref: 2
1937*US Army Air Corps physiological research laboratory completed, Ohio.Ref: 5
1937*Anastasio Somoza becomes President of Nicaragua.Ref: 5
1937*Count Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to captain.Ref: 5
1940*The population of Xenia OH is 10,633. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1941 Netherlands begins taxing wages.Ref: 5
1941*The FBI seal, as currently depicted, came into limited use at this time. The prior seal had been the DOJ seal with an extra band for the FBI and its motto.Ref: 14
1942*The name "United Nations" is devised by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was first used in the "Declaration by United Nations" when representatives of 26 nations pledged their Governments to continue fighting together against the Axis Powers.Ref: 44
1942*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) Julius Rosenberg becomes member of U. S. Signal Corps.Ref: 87
1943*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) The Rosenbergs cease open activities with Communist Party; Daily Worker subscription stops.Ref: 87
1945*(Rosenberg) (day unspecified) David Greenglass provides his own notes and a sketch of a high-explosive lens from the Manhattan ProjectRef: 87
1945*France was admitted to the United Nations.Ref: 70
1946*Emperor Hirohito of Japan announces he is not a god.Ref: 5
1946 National Assembly proclaims Hungary a republic.Ref: 5
1946*ENIAC, US first computer finished by Mauchly/Eckert.Ref: 5
1947*Churchill delivers "Iron Curtain" speechRef: 62
1947*Britain nationalizes its coal and communications industries.Ref: 5
1947*Benelux agress to work related issues.Ref: 5
1948*Britain nationalizes its railways.Ref: 5
1948 Orissa province accedes to India.Ref: 5
1948 Italy adopts constitution.Ref: 5
1948 General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade effective.Ref: 5
1949*The village of Wright View (in Greene County, Ohio) is dissolved. (XDG, p 8A, 1/30/2003)Ref: 83
1949 Tokelau (Union) Islands declared part of New Zealand.Ref: 5
1950*The new city of Fairborn (in Greene County, Ohio) receives its charter from the governor of Ohio at a special ceremony. Through the merger of Fairborn and Osborn, Fairborn became the largest city in the county at the time. (XDG, p 8A, 1/30/2003)Ref: 83
1950*The US Navy commissions its first woman doctor, Mary Sproul.Ref: 17
1953*The Saar becomes independent from France but retains its economic union.Ref: 17
1954 Yugoslav parliament chairman/Vice President Milovan Djilas criticizes communism.Ref: 5
1955*Bhutan issues its first postage stamps.Ref: 5
1956*Sudan (Anglo-Egyptian Sudan) gains independence from Britain & Egypt (National Day).Ref: 5
1957*(Salem Witch Trials) (month and day unknown) Massachusetts formally apologizes for the events of 1692. 
1957 France returns Saar to becomes the 10th state of German Federal Republic.Ref: 5
1957*International Geophysical Year begins; ends 6/30/1958 (18-month year).Ref: 5
1958*BOAC Britannia flies London to New York in a record 7hours 57minutes.Ref: 5
1958*European Economic Community (Common Market) starts operation.Ref: 5
1959*Fidel Castro led Cuban revolutionaries to victory over Fulgencio Batista.Ref: 70
1959*Chad becomes autonomous republic in French Community.Ref: 5
1960*The population of Xenia OH is 20,445. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1960*Bank of France issues new franc, worth 20¢.Ref: 5
1960*Cameroon (French Cameroon) gains independence from France.Ref: 5
1960*Montserrat adopts constitution.Ref: 5
1960*US census at 179,245,000.Ref: 5
1960*A new firehouse is built on East Main St in Xenia OH. (XDG, p 5B, 9/30/2003)Ref: 83
1961*Largest check issued, National Bank of Chicago to Sears ($960.242 billion).Ref: 5
1961*Russia introduces a new ruble worth $1.11.Ref: 5
1961*The farthing ceases to be legal tender.Ref: 10
1961*American Lutheran Church formed by merger of three Lutheran churches.Ref: 10
1962*Rwanda granted internal self-government by Belgium.Ref: 5
1962*Western Samoa gains independence from New Zealand; Susuga Malietoa Tanumafili II becomes co-chief of Western Samoa.Ref: 5
1963*G Woods succeeds Eugene Black as president of the World Bank.Ref: 5
1964 Federation of Rhodesia & Nyasaland dissolved.Ref: 5
1965 Intermall, an international steel trust made up of the USSR and five Eastern European nations, begins operations in Budapest, Hungary.Ref: 17
1965*International Cooperation Year begins.Ref: 5
1965 Palestinian al-Fatah organization forms.Ref: 5
1966*12 day transit worker strike shuts down New York City NY subway.Ref: 5
1966*All US cigarette packs have to carry "Caution Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health".Ref: 5
1966 Military coup by Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa in Central African Republic.Ref: 5
1967 In his annual New Year’s column of predictions, the great Criswell wrote that there would be a one-week war with Egypt and Russia against Israel. War broke out in the Mideast that June: The Arab-Israeli 6-Day War. His column also stated that actress Jayne Mansfield would die in that year. She did.Ref: 4
1967 St Helena adopts constitution.Ref: 5
1967 Tonga revises constitution.Ref: 5
1967*The FBI's National Crime Information Center (NCIC) became operational. Law enforcement officials from across the country could tap this electronic database of criminal histories and other information to identify suspects and learn more about persons arrested.Ref: 14
1968*Criswell was at it again, predicting that a black civil rights leader would be assassinated before October. Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot in April.Ref: 4
1969*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) Martin Sobell is released from prison.Ref: 87
1970*Revised calendar for Western (RC) Church goes into effect.Ref: 5
1970*Neth Christian Workers Union (NCW) forms.Ref: 5
1970*Great Britain lowes the age for voting, making contracts and holding property to 18.Ref: 17
1970*Afro-American Historical Calendar Series Established.Ref: 5
1971*Tobacco ads representing $20 million dollars in advertising are banned from broadcast in the US.Ref: 4
1972*Kurt Waldheim of Austria formally takes office as the fourth Secretary General of the United Nations. (Ref 
1972*International Book Year begins.Ref: 5
1972*People's Republic of China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor People's Rebulic of China.Ref: 5
1973*Britain, Ireland & Denmark become 7th-9th members of Common Market.Ref: 5
1973*West African Economic Community formed (Benin, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Upper Volta).Ref: 5
1974*World Population Year begins.Ref: 5
1975*The MITS (Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems) Altair 8800 appears on the cover of Popular Electronics. The article inspires Paul Allen and Bill Gates to develop a BASIC Interpreter for the Altair. 
1975*Ex-Atty. Gen. Mitchell, H.R. Halderman and John Ehrlichman are convicted on cover-up charges relating to Watergate break-inRef: 5
1975*International Women's Year begins.Ref: 5
1975 Sweden adopts constitution.Ref: 5
1976*Liberty Bell moves to new home behind Independence Hall.Ref: 5
1976*Venezuela nationalizes oil fields.Ref: 5
1976*From today, an author, artist or composer owns copyrights on his material for 50 years after death.Ref: 10
1977 Czech & Chinese intellectualus begin Human Rights Group Chapter 77.Ref: 5
1977 Belgium reapportions 2,359 communities into 596.Ref: 5
1977*Jacqueline Means, wife of an Indiana truck driver and mother of four, became the first woman in the U.S. to be ordained a priest in the Protestant Episcopal Church.Ref: 5
1978*President Ford signs first major revision of copyright law since 1909.Ref: 5
1979*Microsoft moves its offices to Bellevue, Washington from Albuquerque, New Mexico. 
1979*International Year of the Child begins.Ref: 5
1979 Jura, 26th canton of Switzerland, established.Ref: 5
1979*The United States and China held celebrations in Washington and Beijing to mark the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.Ref: 70
1980*The population of Xenia OH is 24,653. (XDG, 3/2/1984)Ref: 83
1980*Chrysler UK renamed Talbot.Ref: 5
1980*International Decade of Water & Sanitation begins.Ref: 5
1980 Sweden changes order of succession to throne.Ref: 5
1980*Mob storms Russian embassy in Teheran.Ref: 5
1980 Premier Adbou Diouf becomes President of Senegal.Ref: 5
1980*Premier Adbou Diouf becomes President of Senegal.Ref: 5
1981*International Year for the Disabled begins.Ref: 5
1981*Palau (Trust Territory of Pacific Is) becomes self-governing.Ref: 5
1981*Roger Smith becomes CEO of General Motors.Ref: 5
1981*Greece is 10th country to join European Economic Community.Ref: 5
1981*Premier Abdou Diouf is named President of Senegal.Ref: 17
1982*Javier Perez de Cuellar of Peru formally takes office as the fifth Secretary General of the United Nations. (Ref 
1982 Pope John Paul II prays for an end to martial law in Poland.Ref: 5
1982*MTA launches 5 year capital program to overhaul New York City NY subway system.Ref: 5
1983*World Communications Year begins.Ref: 5
1984*The last trade barriers for industrial goods between member nations of the European Community and the European Free Trade Association are officially removed. The elimination of quotas and tariffs on finished products creates a 17-country free trade area.Ref: 17
1984*France receives its first allotment of natural gas as part of a 25-year contract with the Soviet Union.Ref: 17
1984*Major General Mohammed Buhari stages a bloodless coup in Nigeria.Ref: 17
1984*New York City NY transit fare rises from 75¢ to 90¢.Ref: 5
1984*Brunei becomes independent of UK.Ref: 5
1984*AT&T was divested of its 22 Bell System companies under terms of an antitrust agreement.Ref: 70
1985*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) Barr and Sarant flee to Soviet Union.Ref: 87
1985*International Youth Year begins.Ref: 5
1985*US's first manadatory seat belt law goes into effect (NY).Ref: 5
1986 As the United States builds its strength in the Mediterranean, Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi threatens to retaliate if attacked.Ref: 2
1986*Aruba becomes independent from neighbor island Curaçao (part of Kingdom of the Netherlands).Ref: 5
1986*International Peace Year begins.Ref: 5
1986*New York City NY transit fare rises from 90¢ to $1.00.Ref: 5
1986*Spain & Portugal become 11th & 12th members of Common Market (European Economic Community).Ref: 5
1987 The Dishonor List of Banished Words and Phrases was issued. The Doublespeak Award went to Lake Superior State College for the phrase, “The patient did not fulfill his wellness potential.” Or, in other words... he died.Ref: 4
1987*International Year of Shelter for Homeless begins.Ref: 5
1987*Year of the Reader begins.Ref: 5
1987 China's rudimentary civil code in effect.Ref: 5
1987*Bolivia issues its new currency, the boliviano, which equals one million old pesos.Ref: 17
1989*New York City NY transit fare rises from $1.00 to $1.15.Ref: 5
1989*Year of the Young Reader begins.Ref: 5
1990*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) Khrushchev memoirs are published, suggesting that Rosenbergs helped Soviets acquire the A-bomb.Ref: 87
1990*New York City NY MTA stops token redemption at subway stations.Ref: 5
1990*David Dinkins was sworn in as New York City's first black mayor.Ref: 70
1991*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) Soviet spymaster Feklisov admits in interviews that he met with Julius Rosenberg between 1943 and 1946.Ref: 87
1991*5% sales tax on consumer goods & services goes into effect in USSR.Ref: 5
1991*Iraq rejects peace proposal from Egyptian President Hosi Mubarak.Ref: 5
1992*(Salem Witch Trials) (month and day unknown) On the 300th anniversary of the trials, a witchcraft memorial designed by James Cutler is dedicated in Salem. 
1992*Boutros Boutros-Ghaliformally takes office as the sixth Secretary General of the United Nations. (Ref 
1992*Europe breaks down trade barriers.Ref: 5
1992*International Space Year begins.Ref: 5
1992*New York City NY transit fare increases from $1.15 to $1.25.Ref: 5
1992*Bush is first US President to address Australian Parliament.Ref: 5
1992*Curaçao becomes first in Dutch Antilles to have compulsory education.Ref: 5
1993*U.S. President Bill Clinton recognized the new Czech and Slovak Republics (formerly Czechoslovakia) and offered to establish full diplomatic relations. In an exchange of letters, Czech Prime Minister Klaus and Slovak Prime Minister Meciar accepted the U.S. offer of full diplomatic relations. Both leaders provided assurances that the new states would fulfill the obligations and commitments of the former Czechoslovakia and abide by the principles and provisions of the U.N. Charter, the Charter of Paris, the Helsinki Final Act and subsequent CSCE documents.Ref: 4
1993*12 member European Economic Community set up vast free trade zone.Ref: 5
1993*Cigarette advertisements are banned in New York City NY's MTA.Ref: 5
1993*Czechoslovakia peacefully split into two new countries, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.Ref: 70
1994*Bill Gates, Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft, lost his title of most eligible bachelor in America as he wed Marilyn French. The wedding was held on the island of Lanai in Hawaii.Ref: 4
1994*International Year of Family.Ref: 5
1994*North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect.Ref: 5
1995*Austria, Finland & Sweden act to join European Union.Ref: 5
1995*Centennial of Canadian Mounties presence in Canada's Yukon Territory.Ref: 5
1995*Fernando Henrique Cardoso installed as President of Brazil.Ref: 5
1995*International Year of Tolerance.Ref: 5
1996*After 27 years, Betty Rubble debuts as a Flintstone vitamin.Ref: 5
1996*Curaçao gains limited form of self rule (Status Aparte).Ref: 5
1997*The DPMA officially becomes the "Association of Information Technology Professionals" 
1997*New Criminal Code replaces 1960 Soviet codeRef: 89
1997*Kofi Annan assumed the post of United Nations secretary-general.Ref: 70
1998*Mongolia switches from a 46 hour to 40 hour work week.Ref: 5
1998*US Census Bureau estimates population at 268,921,733.Ref: 5
1998*A new anti-smoking law went into effect in California, prohibiting people from lighting up in bars.Ref: 70
1999*Eleven of the countries in the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) gave up their own currencies and adopted the new Euro (EUR) currency: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. (Greece followed suit on January 1, 2001.)Ref: 4
1999*International Year of Elderly.Ref: 5
2000 The Panama Canal reverts to Panama. 
2000*People the world over changed their calendars to 2000 with very few of the ‘Y2K’ computer glitches that had been predicted.Ref: 4
2000*(My Lai) Calley manages a jewelry store in Georgia. (He married the owner's daughter.)Ref: 87
2001*A 7.5 earthquake hits Mindanao, Philippines.Ref: 85
2001*(Rosenberg) (month, day unspecified) David Greenglass admits that the trial testimony of the Greenglasses concerning Ethel Rosenberg's role in the conspiracy was perjured.Ref: 87
2002 Eduardo Duhalde is named Argentina's fifth president in two weeks. (XDG, p 4A, 1/01/2003)Ref: 83
2002*Twelve European nations adopted the euro in the most ambitious currency changeover in history.Ref: 70
2002*Michael Bloomberg succeeded Rudolph Giuliani as New York City's mayor.Ref: 70
2002*Euro coins and notes introduced.Ref: 10
2003*Brazil's first elected leftist president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, takes office. (XDG, p 4A, 1/01/2004)Ref: 83
2003*More than two dozen surgeons stopped working in West Virginia to protest the high cost of malpractice insurance. (XDG, p 4A, 1/01/2004)Ref: 83
2004*Charles O. Prince assumes the roll of CEO of Citicorp. (WSJ, p C1, 7/17/2003)Ref: 33
2004*Chicago announces a sharp drop in the number of homicides for 2003 at 599 (down from 648). However, Chicago topped New York (596) and Los Angeles (estimated at less than 500), to make Chicago the ranking city in this category. (XDG, p 1, 1/02/2004)Ref: 83
2004*US population: 292,287,454, and increase of 1% in the past year, according to the Census Bureau. (USA Today, p 1D, 12/31/2003)Ref: 13
1531*Rio de Janeiro (River of January), Brazil, is discovered by Portuguese navigators.Ref: 17
1596*The first Dutch colonists arrive on Sumatra, Indonesia, an ancient trade center.Ref: 17
1610*German astronomer Simon Marius first discovers the Jupiter moons, but does not officially report it, Galileo does on July 1 1610.Ref: 5
1739*J B C Bouvet de Lozier discovers Bouvet Island, near Antarctica.Ref: 5
1801*First asteroid (Ceres) discovered by Giuseppi Piazzi.Ref: 10
1806*Lewis & Clark: In his journal entry, Lewis exhibits the homesickness that seems to afflict everyone during the rainy winter, during which there are only 12 days in which it doesn't rain. "Nothing worthy of notice" soon replaces "we proceeded on" as the most common phrase used by the diarists.Ref: 65
1896*Wilhelm Röntgen announces his discovery of x-rays.Ref: 5
1902*Nathan Stubblefield makes first public demonstration of radio, Pennsylvania.Ref: 5
1923*Sadi Lecointe sets a new aviation speed record flying an average of 208 mph at Istres.Ref: 2
1924*Frank B. Cooney of Minneapolis, Minnesota was made very proud this day, when he received a patent for ink paste.Ref: 4
1945*The contract to develop the EDVAC began.Ref: 62
1970*The Epoch (Time 0 for UNIX systems, Midnight GMT)Ref: 5
1983*TCP/IP becomes the communication protocol standard… enabling computer networks to communicate with each other. This standard is what allowed the Internet to grow into what it is. 
1504 King Louis XII loses last bulwark in Naples, Caeta.Ref: 5
1586*Sir Francis Drake launches a surprise attack on the heavily fortified city of Santo Domingo in Hipanola.Ref: 2
1660*General Moncks army battles with the Tweed on way to London.Ref: 5
1660*Thomas Fairfax' New Model-army occupies York.Ref: 5
1673 The Dutch capture St Helena Island, in the South Atlantic, from the British.Ref: 17
1689*Pro-James II-Earl of Danby occupies York.Ref: 5
1776*British ships lying off Norfolk open fire on the occupying American forces. 
1776*Washington raises a Continental flag with thirteen stripes before his quarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts.Ref: 5
1807*Curaçao is taken by English (until March, 1816).Ref: 5
1809 Holland Brigade under Brigadier General Chassé reaches Madrid.Ref: 5
1814 Field marshal Blücher's troops cross the Rhine at Kaub.Ref: 5
1848*Britain takes Mosquito Coast from Nicaragua.Ref: 5
1861 Porfirio Diaz conquers Mexico City.Ref: 5
1862*Battle of Fort McRee FL, Battle of Port Royal SC (Port Royal Ferry).Ref: 5
1863*Confederate General Braxton Bragg and Union General William Rosecrans readjust their troops as the Battle of Murfreesboro continues.Ref: 2
1863*Battle of Galveston, TX Confederates recapture the city.Ref: 5
1863*Battle of Helena AK.Ref: 5
1865*(through April 26th) Carolinas' campaign.Ref: 5
1886*Upper Burma is annexed by Great Britain.Ref: 17
1891*French troops occupy Nioro, West-Sudan, 3000 killed.Ref: 5
1915*The German submarine U-24 sinks the British battleship Formidable off the coast of Plymouth Massachusetts.Ref: 2
1917*Turkey declares its independence of suzerainty of European powers. Ivernia, Cunard liner, is sunk in Mediterranean.Ref: 38
1941*German bombers drop bombs on Ireland, in four counties and the capital, Dublin. 
1941*Russian General Zhukov appointed chief of General staff.Ref: 5
1942*The Atlantic Charter is officially proclaimed. The US & 25 other countries sign a united declaration against the Axis.Ref: 17
1942*The Allied nations begin their East Indies Campaign.Ref: 17
1943*Alaska Command reaches 94,000 soldiers.Ref: 82
1943*Count Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel.Ref: 5
1944*General Clark replaces General Patton as commander of 7th Army.Ref: 5
1945*In Operation Bodenplatte, German planes attack American forward air bases in Europe. This is the last major offensive of the Luftwaffe.Ref: 2
1945*The British 14th Army offensive in Burma begins.Ref: 17
1950*Ho Chi Minh begins offensive against French troops in Indo-China.Ref: 5
1951*Massive Chinese/North Korean assault on UN-lines.Ref: 5
1994 In Mexico, the Zapatista National Liberation Army launches a rebellion to press for better living conditions for peasants in Chiapas. (XDG, p 4A, 1/01/2004)Ref: 83
0*Cuba's Cienfuegos Jim Bell becomes the first player to hit three HRs in a professional game in Cuba. The third baseman accomplished the feat in 15-11 victory over Havana at Alda Park.Ref: 1
404 Last gladiator competition in Rome.Ref: 5
1838*First official horse race in South Australia-Adelaide.Ref: 5
1840 First recorded 10-pin bowling match in US, Knickerbocker Alleys, New York City NY.Ref: 5
1897*First football game between black colleges-Atlanta University 10, Tuskegee 0.Ref: 5
1902*The very first Tournament of Roses collegiate football game is played in Pasadena, California. Michigan trounced the Stanford Cardinal 49-0. It would be 14 years before another Rose Bowl game was held.Ref: 4
1909*Robert Fowler runs then world record marathon (2 52 45.4).Ref: 5
1912*First running of San Francisco's famed "Bay to Breakers" race (7.63 miles/12.3 km).Ref: 5
1916*First football game in Rose Bowl (Washington State-Brown).Ref: 5
1923*Postseason football game renamed "Rose Bowl" in Pasadena, CA.Ref: 10
1925*The Four Horsemen of the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame played together for the last time as the Irish downed Stanford (which apparently enjoyed losing in the Rose Bowl) 27-10. The Four Horsemen were Jim Crowley, Elmer Layden, Don Miller and Harry Stuhldreher.Ref: 4
1926*The Rose Bowl was carried coast to coast on network radio for the first time. Graham McNamee provided play-by-play on NBC Radio.Ref: 4
1927*Charles Ebbets informs the press that future Hall of Fame outfielder Zack Wheat, after 18 consecutive seasons with the Robins, has been released. The Brooklyn outfielder led the NL in hitting in 1918 with a .335 batting average.Ref: 1
1929*Roy Riegels runs 60 yards the wrong way with Rose Bowl fumble recovery.Ref: 5
1935 First Sugar Bowl & 1st Orange Bowl.Ref: 5
1937*The First Cotton Bowl football game was played in Dallas, TX. Texas Christian (T.C.U.) beat Marquette 16-6.Ref: 4
1942*Rose Bowl played in North Carolina due to Japanese threat-Oregon 20, Duke 16.Ref: 5
1943*Josh Gibson suffers a mental breakdown and is hospitalized. The black 'Babe Ruth' will be released in time for spring training in Hot Springs, Arkansas.Ref: 1
1944*Army defeats Navy 10-7 in football "Arab Bowl", Oran, North Africa.Ref: 5
1961*Briggs Stadium officially becomes Tiger Stadium.Ref: 1
1961*Houston Oilers beat Los Angeles Chargers 24-16 in AFL championship game.Ref: 5
1967*Green Bay Packers beat Dallas Cowboys 34-27 in NFL championship game.Ref: 5
1967*Kansas City Chiefs beat Buffalo Bills 31-7 in AFL championship game.Ref: 5
1967*CRU becomes the CAFA & turns over the Grey Cup trophy to the CFL.Ref: 5
1968 Evel Knievel, stunt performing daredevil, lost control of his motorcycle midway during a jump of 141 feet (ouch!); and right over the ornamental fountains in front of Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. He was banged up real good. Odds were 3-1 that he wouldn’t make it.Ref: 4
1969*Jack Kent Cooke, owner of NHL's Los Angeles Kings, fines each player $100 for "NOT" arguing with the referee.Ref: 5
1970*Chub Feeney begins his 16-year presidency of the NL taking over for Warren Giles, who held the position for 18 years.Ref: 1
1973*47th Australian Women's Tennis Margaret Court beats Goolagong (64 75).Ref: 5
1974*Succeeding the retiring Joe Cronin, Lee MacPhail takes over as American League president and will serve in this role until 1984. MacPhail will join his dad, Larry, as a member of the Hall of Fame in 1998.Ref: 1
1975*(day unspecified) Garry Kasparov loses the USSR junior championship against Yemolinksy in the final round.Ref:78
1976*(day unspecified) Garry Kasparov wins the USSR junior (Under 18) championship held in Tbilisi, Georgia. He was the youngest competitor.Ref:78
1977*(day unspecified) Garry Kasparov successfully defends his USSR Junior title by winning the USSR junior championship held in Riga with the highest score (8.5/9) in the history of the championship.Ref:78
1977*Tony Dorsett runs for record 202 yards in the Sugar Bowl.Ref: 5
1978*(day unspecified) Garry Kasparov wins the Sokolsky Memorial Tournament held in Minsk. He came ahead of fourteen internationally-rated players. He only needed 9.5 points to reach the master category and scored 13 points exceeding the requirement by 3.5 points. Kasparov beat his first grandmaster in this tournament- Lutikov, a major landmark in his career, and earned the USSR title of Master of Sport.Ref:78
1980*(day unspecified) Garry Kasparov places first in the European Team Championship.Ref:78
1980*Alabama beats Arkansas in Sugar Bowl for college football championship.Ref: 5
1980*54th Australian Womens Tennis Barbara Jordan beats S Walsh (63 63).Ref: 5
1981*Georgia beats Notre Dame in Sugar Bowl for college football title.Ref: 5
1982*Washington’s Huskies beat the IA Hawkeyes 28-0 in the Rose Bowl. It had been 29 years since the last Rose Bowl shutout.Ref: 4
1982*Clemson wins the Orange Bowl for college football championship.Ref: 5
1983*Penn State beats Georgia in Sugar Bowl for college football title.Ref: 5
1983*PGA inaugurates all-exempt tour.Ref: 5
1986*Iowa's All-American running back, Ronnie Harmon, fumbles the ball 4 times in his last game-the Rose Bowl.Ref: 5
1986*Oklahoma wins Orange Bowl for college football championship.Ref: 5
1988*Miami beats Oklahoma for college football championship.Ref: 5
1988*Czech born tennis star Hana Mandikova becomes an Australian Citizen.Ref: 5
1990 Mitsuko Nishiwaki beats Nakano to become Japan's Women wrestling champ.Ref: 5
1993*Blockbuster Bowl 3 Stanford beats Penn State, 24-3.Ref: 5
1994 Aleksandr Popov swims world record 100m free style (47.83).Ref: 5
1994*Carquest Bowl 4 Boston College beats Virginia, 32-13.Ref: 5
1995*(day unspecified) Kasparov heads the FIDE rating list with FIDE 2805. Karpov 2nd position with FIDE 2765.Ref:78
2002*Number 2 Oregon defeats Number 3 Colorado in the Fiesta Bowl. (XDG, p 4A, 1/01/2003)Ref: 83
1547*Michelangelo is appointed chief architect of St Peter's by Pope Paul III.Ref: 17
1660*Samuel Pepys starts his diary: "This morning...I rose, put on my suit with great skirts...”Ref: 5
1672 Jean Racine's "Bajazet" premieres in Paris.Ref: 5
1764*Eight-year old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart plays for the Royal Family at Versailles in France.Ref: 4
1770*Fiction: Date of action in the opera "Madeleine".Ref: 5
1785*"Daily Universal Register" (Times of London) publishes first issue.Ref: 5
1824 The Camp Street Theatre opens as the first English-language playhouse in New Orleans.Ref: 2
1842 First illustrated weekly magazine in US publishes 1st issue, New York City NY.Ref: 5
1844 First edition of New Rotterdam's Daily (3x per week).Ref: 5
1847 Netherlands Haarlem's Current newspaper starts publishing.Ref: 5
1863 Franz Schuberts "Missa Solemnis" premieres in Leipzig.Ref: 5
1879*John Brahms' Violin Concerto in D major premieres in Leipzig.Ref: 5
1881*Fiction: Dr John H Watson is introduced to Sherlock Holmes.Ref: 5
1898 D'Annunzio's "Sogno d'un mattino di primavera" premieres in Rome.Ref: 5
1900*Fiction: First date in John dos Passos' USA trilogy (The 42nd Parallel).Ref: 5
1902 Hidden for 300 years, El Greco paintings finally shown at Prado museum in Madrid.Ref: 10
1908*Austrian composer Gustav Mahler makes U.S. conducting debut in "Tristan und Isolde" at Met. Opera.Ref: 17
1915 DW Griffith shows "Clansman" at a sneak preview.Ref: 5
1916*First issue of "Journal of Negro History" published.Ref: 5
1923*The very first radio broadcast of the Rose Bowl was beamed in Los Angeles over KHJ radio -- some 42 years before 93/KHJ became Boss Radio.Ref: 4
1925*Lucrezia Bori and John McCormack of the famous Metropolitan Opera in New York City made their singing debuts on radio this day. The broadcast over what was WEAF Radio (now WABC) encouraged others to sing on radio. People like: Hootie and the Blowfish, Fat Head Todd and Toad the Wet Sprocket, to name a few. Oh, and Barry Manilow.Ref: 4
1927*The very first coast-to-coast network radio broadcast of the Rose Bowl was made. Graham McNamee provided the play-by-play on NBC Radio.Ref: 4
1928 Algemeene Vereeniging Radio Omroep (AVRO) begins broadcasting (Netherlands).Ref: 5
1929*Fiction: Holling Gustav Vapor character on Northern Exposure, is born.Ref: 5
1930 One of radio’s first comedy programs, The Cuckoo Hour, was heard for the first time on the NBC Blue network, which later became ABC Radio.Ref: 4
1935 Associated Press inaugurates Wirephoto.Ref: 5
1936 First newspaper to microfilm its current issues, New York Herald Tribune.Ref: 5
1944 First feature-length foreign movie, African Journey, shown on TV, New York City NY.Ref: 5
1948 World's first color newsreel filmed at Tournament of Roses, Pasadena.Ref: 5
1952*Dmitri Shostakovich completes his 5th string quartet.Ref: 5
1953 Ernest Blochs "Suite Hebraique" premieres.Ref: 5
1954*Rose & Cotton Bowl are first sport colorcasts.Ref: 5
1956*Elvis Presley records Heartbreak Hotel for RCA in Nashville.Ref: 5
1957*Benjamin Britten's ballet "Prince & the Pauper" premieres in London.Ref: 5
1958*Sammy Davis Jr marries Loray White.Ref: 5
1960*Johnny Cash plays first of many free concerts behind bars.Ref: 5
1962*Beatles' Decca audition is unsuccessful.Ref: 5
1966*Simon & Garfunkel's "Sounds of Silence" reaches #1.Ref: 5
1967 FCC requires AM-FM sister stations to be at least 50% different.Ref: 5
1968*A group known as The Blue Velvets decided to change its name this day and it’s a good thing they did. The new name soon became a national pop music favorite as Creedence Clearwater Revival climbed to stardom.Ref: 4
1968 ABC radio splits into 4 networks (Info, Entertainment, Contemp & FM).Ref: 5
1968*Netherlands gets color TV.Ref: 5
1968*C(ecil) Day Lewis is named Poet Laureate of Great Britain, succeeding John Masefield.Ref: 17
1969 A new Czechoslovakian federal government is inaugurated, marking the beginning of a massive Communist Party reorganization in that country.Ref: 17
1972*"Company" closes at Alvin Theater New York City NY after 690 performances.Ref: 5
1972*"On the Town" closes at Imperial Theater New York City NY after 65 performances.Ref: 5
1972*"Promises Promises" closes at Shubert Theater New York City NY after 1281 performances.Ref: 5
1974 NBC radio begins on the hour news 24 hours a day (following CBS lead).Ref: 5
1976*Talk about ‘N’o Brainers: NBC Television, decided it had nothing better to do, so they debuted a new abstract capital ‘N’ -- a corporate symbol that replaced the familiar peacock logo after 20 years. The cost of the new NBC logo was estimated to be between $750,000 and $1 million. After much ridicule, it took two more years before they got the really bad news. Nebraska Public Television went after NBC for copying its logo; which it had broadcast for several years. The cost... $35 dollars. NBC paid the costs and the ‘N’ stayed around for a short time before being replaced by... the peacock. NBC shipped the abstract goofiness to Nebraska Public TV and told them to put it to good use.Ref: 4
1976*"Musical Jubilee" closes at St James Theater New York City NY after 92 performances.Ref: 5
1978*"Your Arm's Too Short..." closes at Lyceum New York City NY after 429 performances.Ref: 5
1980*‘The Far Side,' cartoons by Gary Larson, debuts in the San Francisco Chronicle.Ref: 10
1982*30 Something stars Ken Olin & Patricia Wettig meet, later they marry.Ref: 5
1985*Actress Judith Light (Who's the Boss) marries Robert Desiderio (Knots Landing).Ref: 5
1985*VH-1 made its broadcasting debut.Ref: 5
1986*Barbra Streisand & Jon Peters relationship breaks up.Ref: 5
1988*Actress Kelly McGillis marries Fred Tillman.Ref: 5
1990*FCC implements "SYNDEX" giving independent stations more rights over cable TV outlets for exclusive syndicated programs.Ref: 5
1990*Sports News Network begins operation on cable TV.Ref: 5
1991 Les Miserables opens at Festival Theatre, Adelaide.Ref: 5
1993*Harry Connick Jr arrested at a New York airport for gun possession.Ref: 5
1994*"Flying Karamzov Brothers" closes at Helen Hayes New York City NY after 50 performances.Ref: 5
1994*"Grand Night after Singing" closes at Criterion New York City NY after 52 performances.Ref: 5
1994*Howard Stern's New Year's Eve Beauty Pageant.Ref: 5
1994 Jacobs Field opens with "Gateway's New Year's Eve Countdown to '94".Ref: 5
1995*"Glass Menagerie" closes at Criterion Theater New York City NY after 57 performances.Ref: 5
1995*"Shadow Box" closes at Circle in Square Theater New York City NY after 49 performances.Ref: 5
1995*"Tuna Christmas" closes at Booth Theater New York City NY 20 performances.Ref: 5
1995*Last "Far Side" by cartoonist Gary Larson (started 1980).Ref: 5
1387*Charles The Angry One, king of Navarra (1349-87), is born.Ref: 5
1431*Rodrigo Borgia, later Pope Alexander IV (the worst pope, elected by a corrupt conclave and father of Cesare and Lucretia Borgia) is born at Xativa, near Valencia, in Spain.Ref: 69
1449 Lorenzo de' Medici [The Magnificent] of Florence, is born.Ref: 5
1467*Sigismund I the old, king of Poland, is born.Ref: 5
1484*Huldrych (Ulrich) Zwingli, Swiss Protestant reformer, is born.Ref: 17
1502*Ugo Buoncompagni (later Pope Gregory XIII) is born.Ref: 69
1504*Caspar Cruciger German church reformer, is born.Ref: 5
1511*Prince Henry (of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon) is born. He dies 52 days later. 
1520 Franciscus Balduinus [François Baudouin], lawyer, is born.Ref: 5
1618*Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Spanish artist: Immaculate Conception, Moses Striking the Rock, St. Elizabeth of Hungary Tending the Sick, St. Peter Released from Prison; is born.Ref: 4
1622*Isaac Sweers Dutch Admiral/General/Civil rights activist, is born.Ref: 5
1628*Christoph Bernhard German composer, is born.Ref: 5
1638*Antoinette du Ligier de la Guard Deshoulieres French poet/playwright, is born.Ref: 5
1652*Johann Krieger composer, is born.Ref: 5
1697*Joseph Dupleix, Governor-General of French possessions in India (1742-54), is born.Ref: 17
1697*Johann Pfeiffer composer, is born.Ref: 5
1709*Johann H H Bütz German/Dutch organ builder, is born.Ref: 5
1714*Kristijonas Donelaitis Lutheran pastor, Lithuanian poet (The Seas), is born.Ref: 5
1723*Christian Friedrich Gregor composer, is born.Ref: 5
1729*Edmund Burke British author/famous Whig (Philosophy & Inquiry, Reflections on the Revolution), is born.Ref: 5
1734*John F E Acton cruel premier of Naples, is born.Ref: 5
1735*Paul Revere silversmith/US patriot (British are coming), is born.Ref: 5
1745*"Mad" Anthony Wayne, American Revolutionary general, is born.Ref: 70
1748*Giovanni Furno composer, is born.Ref: 5
1750*Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg, US statesman, Lutheran clergyman, first president of Muhlenberg College, PA, is born.Ref: 17
1752*Betsy Ross (Elizabeth Griscom), legendary folklore says she sewed the first American flag, is born.Ref: 4
1754*(date speculative) Marmaduke Van Swearingen (later Shawnee Chief Blue Jacket) is born.Ref: 57
1764*John Kinker Dutch linguist/philosopher/poet (Minderjarige Zangster), is born.Ref: 5
1777*Micah Hawkins composer, is born.Ref: 5
1784*William Beale composer, is born.Ref: 5
1792*Henrik A Bjerregaard Norwegian writer/poet (Sønner af Norge), is born.Ref: 5
1800*Sydney Nelson composer, is born.Ref: 5
1800*Vaclav Horak composer, is born.Ref: 5
1809*John Pieter Heije Dutch physician/writer/poet (Silver Fleet), is born.Ref: 5
1815*Charles Renouvier French philosopher (neocriticism), is born.Ref: 5
1819*Arthur Hugh Clough poet, friend of Matthew Arnold, is born.Ref: 5
1819*George Foster Shepley Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1878, is born.Ref: 5
1823*Sándor Petöfi Kikkörös, Hungary, poet, revolutionary (Jáos Vitéz), is born.Ref: 5
1827*William Lewis "Old Tige" Cabell Brigadier General (Confederate Army), is born.Ref: 5
1831*William Joseph Westbrook composer, is born.Ref: 5
1834*Ludovic Halévy, Paris France, French dramatist, is born.Ref: 17
1838*William Hugh Young Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1901, is born.Ref: 5
1839*Maria Louise Ramé "Ouida" Bury St. Edmunds Suffolk England, screenwriter (A Dog of Flanders, The Little Dutch Girl), is born.Ref: 5
1843*Nikolay Nikolayevich Lodizhensky composer, is born.Ref: 5
1846*Nikola Pasic Serbian nationalist/premier (1891-1926), is born.Ref: 5
1853*Hans Koessler composer, is born.Ref: 5
1854*Sir James Frazer Britain, anthropologist/author (The Golden Bough), is born.Ref: 5
1859*Michael J Owens, US inventor of the automatic bottle-making machine, founder of Libbey-Owens Sheet Glass Go, is born.Ref: 17
1861*Isaac Murphy thoroughbred jockey, 628 wins on 1,412 mounts (44.5%), is born.Ref: 5
1861*William Morris Boston MA, actor (Brothers, The Roadhouse Murder), is born.Ref: 5
1862*Snitz Edwards Hungary, actor (College, Phantom of the Opera), is born.Ref: 5
1862*Baron Pierre de Coubertin, revivor of Olympics, is born.Ref: 68
1863*Aleko Konstantinov Bulgarian writer (To Chicago & Back), is born.Ref: 5
1863*Pierre Coubertin, French sportsman, revivor of the modern Olympics, is born.Ref: 17
1864*Alfred Stieglitz US photographer-father of modern photography/art dealer (Camera Work), is born.Ref: 5
1865*Giuseppe Ferrata composer, is born.Ref: 5
1866*[Lars] Peter Elfelt [Petersen] Denmark, director (Henrettelsen), is born.Ref: 5
1867*Lew Fields New York NY, comedian/actor (of Weber & Fields, 23-Skidoo), is born.Ref: 5
1867*Charles Edward Montague English author/critic (Fiery Particles), is born.Ref: 5
1869 Louis de la Vallée-Poussin Belgian indologist, is born.Ref: 5
1873*Mariano Azuela Mexico, novelist (The Flies, The Bosses), is born.Ref: 5
1873*Willis Robards Texas, actor/director (Mothers of Men, Every Woman's Problem), is born.Ref: 5
1874*Hugo Leichtentritt composer, is born.Ref: 5
1875*Charles Rist French economist, is born.Ref: 5
1876*Johan C Altorf sculptor (October 3rd monument), is born.Ref: 5
1878*Edwin Franko Goldman composer, is born.Ref: 5
1878*François Ambrosiny French dancer/choreograph (L'oiseau enchanté), is born.Ref: 5
1879*E.M. (Edward Morgan) Forster author: Where Angels Fear to Tread, The Longest Journey, A Room with a View, Howard’s End, A Passage to India, Maurice; is born.Ref: 4
1879*Edward Dillon New York NY, actor/director (Young Ironsides, The Golden West), is born.Ref: 5
1879*Emile Argand Swiss geologist (Dekbladen Theory), is born.Ref: 5
1879*Ernest Jones British psychoanalyst (Life & Work of Sigmund Freud), is born.Ref: 5
1879*Paul Porcasi Palermo Sicily Itlay, actor (Say It Again, I'll Remember April), is born.Ref: 5
1879*William Fox, Tulchva Hungary, US film pioneer (Nickelodeon), is born.Ref: 5
1880*Edie Martin London England, actress (Titfield Thunderbolt), is born.Ref: 5
1880*Shalom Asch Poland, yiddish writer (Motke Ganev), is born.Ref: 5
1881*Carry van Bridges [de Haan], Dutch author (Heleen, Eva), is born.Ref: 5
1881*Richard Kean England, actor (Story of Will Rogers, Ten Commandments), is born.Ref: 5
1882*W C Wendelaar mayor of Alkmaar (1919-34)/Dutch MP (VVD), is born.Ref: 5
1883*Federigo Tozzi Italian writer/journalist (La Torre, Tre Croci), is born.Ref: 5
1883*Heiko E Arnoldi Dutch actor (3 Drops of Water)/theater director, is born.Ref: 5
1883*William J Donovan, American Director of the O.S.S. in WW2, is born.Ref: 70
1883*Roy Wilson Howard, US newspaperman, founder of Scripps-Howard newspaper chain, is born.Ref: 17
1884*George W Meyer Boston MA, composer/lyricist (Bells of St. Mary's, Broadway Babies), is born.Ref: 5
1885*Lawrence Alfred Bowes Newark CA, actor (Big Town Ideas), is born.Ref: 5
1885*Roland Diggle composer, is born.Ref: 5
1885*Winifred Greenwood Geneseo New York, actress (Don't Call Me Little Girl, Love Never Dies), is born.Ref: 5
1886*Willard Robertson Runnels TX, actor (Deep Valley, Fury at Furnace Creek), is born.Ref: 5
1886*William Edmunds Italy, actor (Lost Moment, Big Sombrero), is born.Ref: 5
1887*Wilhelm Canaris, German admiral/head German military intelligence, anti-Hitler conspirator, is born.Ref: 5
1888*Chesley Bonestell San Francisco CA, special effects/actor/writer (Swiss Family Robinson, War of the Worlds), is born.Ref: 5
1888*Joseph Marievsky Russia, actor (Three Godfathers), is born.Ref: 5
1888*Ludwig Rex Berlin Germany, actor (Der Mensch am Wege), is born.Ref: 5
1889*Alexander Smallens St Petersburg, Russia, conductor, is born.Ref: 5
1889*Tadeusz Jarecki composer, is born.Ref: 5
1889*Tom Dugan Dublin Ireland, actor (Circus Clown, Drag, Skyway), is born.Ref: 5
1890*Florence Lawrence Hamilton Ontario, silent screen actress (Confidence), is born.Ref: 5
1890*Lawford Davidson London England, actor (Love Doctor, Vagabond King), is born.Ref: 5
1890*Wanda Capodaglio Asti Italy, actress (La Donna Nuda, Gelosia), is born.Ref: 5
1891*Alessandro De Stefani Cividale del Friuli Italy, writer (La Signorina, Africa sotto i mari), is born.Ref: 5
1891*Charles Bickford Cambridge MA, actor (John-The Virginian, Days of Wine and Roses), is born.Ref: 5
1891*Frank Pettingell Liverpool England, actor (Gaslight, Goose Steps Out), is born.Ref: 5
1892*Manuel Roxas y Acuna first President of Philippines, is born.Ref: 5
1892*Artur Rodzinski Spalato Dalmatia Poland, conductor/composer, is born.Ref: 5
1892*Lillian Lorraine San Francisco CA, actress (Lonesome Corners, Should a Wife Forgive?), is born.Ref: 5
1892*Miklos Radnai composer, is born.Ref: 5
1892*Martin Niemöller, open opponent of Hitler in the 1930s, German submarine captain/anti-Nazi minister, is born.Ref: 17
1893*Frank Badgley Ottowa Canada, actor (Man From Glengarry), is born.Ref: 5
1893*Jay Rescher Bayonne NJ, cinematographer (Girl of the Sea, Straight To Heaven), is born.Ref: 5
1894*Iván Petrovich Novi Sad Serbia, actor (Magician, Garden of Allah), is born.Ref: 5
1895*J. Edgar Hoover, founding director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) from 1924-1972, is born.Ref: 2
1895*Alice Tissot Paris France, actress (Tambour battant, Jamais deux sans trois), is born.Ref: 5
1895*Nathaniel Shilkret New York City NY, conductor, is born.Ref: 5
1895*Rafael Martínez Zaragoza Spain, composer (Nuestra Natacha, Ana María), is born.Ref: 5
1895*Red Allen, US Dixie-land trumpet player, is born.Ref: 17
1896*Maurice Jacobson composer, is born.Ref: 5
1896*Teinosuke KinugasaMie Ken Japan, writer/director (Jujiro, Jigoku-mon), is born.Ref: 5
1896*Yitzhak Edel composer, is born.Ref: 5
1897*Al Martin screenwriter (Blondie Knows Best), is born.Ref: 5
1897*Walter Greaza St Paul MN, actor (Martin Kane Private Eye, Edge of Night), is born.Ref: 5
1897*Catherine Bowen, American writer, is born.Ref: 70
1898*George van Derton Belgian racer (won 500 race), is born.Ref: 5
1898*Viktor Ullmann opera composer (Der Kaiser von Atlantis), is born.Ref: 5
1899*Juozas Tallat-Kelpsa composer, is born.Ref: 5
1899*Lev V Kuleshov Tambov Russia, director/theorist (Po Zakonu), is born.Ref: 5
1899*Raymond Loucheur composer, is born.Ref: 5
1900*Xavier Cugat (Francisco de Asís Javier Cugat Mingall de Brue y Deulofeo) violinist, composer, band leader: The Lady in Red, Perfidia, Brazil, Begin the Beguine; married to Abbe Lane, Charo; is born.Ref: 4
1900*Erwin S. Gelsey New York NY, screenwriter (Cover Girl, Touchdown Army), is born.Ref: 5
1900*Hubert van Doorne Dutch auto manufacturer (DAF), is born.Ref: 5
1900*Lillian Rich Herne Hill London England, actress (One Wonderful Night, Never Say Die), is born.Ref: 5
1900*Paola Borboni Parma Italy, actress (La Cage aux folles II, Cicciabomba), is born.Ref: 5
1900*William Haines Staunton VA, actor (Fast Life, Little Annie Rooney), is born.Ref: 5
1901*Christine Wittewaall van Stoetwegen Dutch MP (CDD), is born.Ref: 5
1902*Aldo Graziati Scorze Italy, cinematographer (Othello, Indiscretion, The Wayward Wife), is born.Ref: 5
1902*Dimiter Nenov composer, is born.Ref: 5
1905*Melvin Price (Representative-D-IL, 1945- ), is born.Ref: 5
1906*Frank Stack Canada, speed skater (Olympics-bronze-1932), is born.Ref: 5
1907*Erich Schmid composer, is born.Ref: 5
1908*Kinue Hitoma Japan, 800m runner (Olympics-silver-1928), is born.Ref: 5
1909*(Carver) Dana Andrews actor: State Fair, The Best Years of Our Lives, A Walk in the Sun, Battle of the Bulge, Airport ’75, Prince Jack; is born in Collins MS.Ref: 4
1909*Barry Goldwater (Senator-R-AZ, 1953-65, 69- )/Presidential candidate (R) 1964), is born.Ref: 5
1910*Russ Bender actor/writer (Amazing Colossal Man, Space Monster), is born.Ref: 5
1911*Hammerin' Hank Greenberg Hall-of-Fame first baseman (Detroit Tiger), is born.Ref: 5
1911*Endre Szervanszky composer, is born.Ref: 5
1911*Pierre Samuel DuPont, US business executive, is born.Ref: 17
1912*Victor Reuther Wheeling WV, labor leader, is born.Ref: 5
1912*Kim Philby, British, Soviet double agent, is born.Ref: 70
1913*Eliot Janeway, financial writer (Economics of Chaos), is born.Ref: 5
1915*François Bondy writer, is born.Ref: 5
1915*Lewis Bingham Keeble town planner, is born.Ref: 5
1916*Earl Wrightson Baltimore MD, singer (Paul Whiteman's Goodyear Revue), is born.Ref: 5
1918*Willy den Ouden Dutch swimmer, (WR 100m, 1 04.06), is born.Ref: 5
1919*Author of "Catcher in the Rye" J.D. (Jerome David) Salinger is born in New York City.Ref: 4
1919*Bernard Drukker Dutch organist/pianist/orchestra leader (Devil's Wheel), is born.Ref: 5
1919*Carole Landis Fairchild WI, actress (One Million BC, Topper Returns), is born.Ref: 5
1920*Elisabeth Andersen [Anna de Bruyn], Dutch actress (Yerma, Titania), is born.Ref: 5
1920*Roger Peacock writer, is born.Ref: 5
1921*Alain Mimoun O'Kacha Algerian/French world cross-country champion (Olympics-gold-1956), is born.Ref: 5
1922*Ernest F Hollings (Senator-D-SC, 1966- ), is born.Ref: 5
1923*Milt Jackson musician: ‘Bags’: vibes: group: The Modern Jazz Quartet: LP: Opus de Funk, Ballads and Blues, Plenty, Plenty Soul, Bags and Flutes, Soul Brothers [w/Ray Charles], Bean Bags, Bags and Trane [w/John Coltrane], Ballad Artistry of Milt Jackson [w/Quincy Jones’ string arrangement], Bags Meets Wes [w/Wes Montgomery]; is born.Ref: 4
1923*Chalmers Goodlin US test pilot (XS-1), is born.Ref: 5
1924*At five seconds past midnight, while the shouts of Happy New Year were still ringing out, Robert N. Cronk entered the world in Savannah, Georgia. Cronk was the first person to be born in the United States that year. He spent his adult years, at least 36 of them in government service and as a private pilot. Cronk added to his 15 minutes of fame by composing music, penning stories and poems, and entertaining country music fans for nine years as a disc jockey by the name of Bob Norwood (primarily on WQIK in Jacksonville, Florida.) Think about this – when Bob was born, there weren’t any radio deejays.Ref: 4
1925*George Conner NFL tackle, linebacker (Chicago Bears), is born.Ref: 5
1925*Idi Amin Dada, Ugandan leader of ill-repute, is born.Ref: 68
1925*Valentina Cortese actress: The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, When Time Ran Out, Widow’s Nest, Brother Sun Sister Moon, Assassination of Trotsky, Forest Love, Juliet of the Spirits, The Barefoot Contessa, Les Miserables, Malaya, is born in Milan Italy.Ref: 4
1926*Claire Polin [Schaff] composer flautist/musicologist, is born.Ref: 5
1927*(Heisman Trophy 1948) Ewell Doak Walker Pro Football Hall of Famer: S.M.U. [Heisman Trophy: 1948]; Detroit Lions; is born.Ref: 4
1927*Barbara Baxley Stockton CA, actress (Norma Rae, Countdown), is born.Ref: 5
1927*Juliusz Luciuk composer, is born.Ref: 5
1927*Maurice Béjart France, ballet choreographer (Rite of Spring), is born.Ref: 68
1927*Yuri Grigorovich Leningrad Russia, choreographer, is born.Ref: 5
1928*Ernest R Tidyman Ohio, novelist/screenwriter (French Connection), is born.Ref: 5
1930*Gaafar Muhammad Nimeiry Premier/President (Sudan), is born.Ref: 5
1930*Werner Heiden composer, is born.Ref: 5
1931*Carel Brons composer, is born.Ref: 5
1931*Siddig El Nigoumi ceramicist, is born.Ref: 5
1932*Giuseppe Patane Naples Italy, conductor, is born.Ref: 5
1932*Arnfried G D P Dutch manufacturer (breadcrumbs)/drugs dealer, is born.Ref: 5
1932*Terry Moore (Helen Koford), US actress, wife of Howard Hughes, is born.Ref: 17
1933*Joe Orton England, actor/dramatist (Prick Up Your Ears), is born.Ref: 5
1933*Anders Bo Leif Linde composer, is born.Ref: 5
1933*James A Abrahamson USAF/astronaut, is born.Ref: 5
1935*Bernard Kliban cartoonist: cats; cartoon books: Cats, Never Eat Anything Bigger Than Your Head and Other Drawings, Whack Your Porcupine; died in 1990, is born.Ref: 4
1935*Harold Martina Netherlands Antilles, pianist/conductor, is born.Ref: 5
1935*Valentin Nikolaevich N Benderov Russia, cosmonaut, is born.Ref: 5
1936*Eve Queler New York City NY, conductor, is born.Ref: 5
1936*Willye B White US long jumper (Olympics-silver-1956), is born.Ref: 5
1936*Richard Vincent Allen, US government official, National Security Advisor (1981-2), is born.Ref: 17
1938*Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard Queen of Netherlands (1980- ), is born.Ref: 5
1938*Bill Emerson (Representative-R-MO, 1981- ), is born.Ref: 5
1940*Frank Langella Bayonne NJ, actor (Dracula, Diary of a Mad Housewife, 12 Chairs), is born.Ref: 5
1940*Jack Kiefer Columbia PA, PGA golfer (1994 Ralphs Senior Classic), is born.Ref: 5
1940*Laszlo Sary composer, is born.Ref: 5
1940*Richard Henry Orton composer, is born.Ref: 5
1942*Billy Lothridge football: Georgia Tech, runner-up to Roger Staubach for 1963 Heisman Trophy; Miami Dolphins; is born.Ref: 4
1942*Country Joe McDonald singer: group: Country Joe & the Fish: The F-I-S-H Cheer from Woodstock, is born.Ref: 4
1942*Gennadi Vassilyevich Sarafanov USSR, cosmonaut (Soyuz 15), is born.Ref: 5
1942*George Couroupos composer, is born.Ref: 5
1942*Martin Frost (Representative-D-TX, 1971- ), is born.Ref: 5
1943*Don Novello [Father Guido Sarducci], Ashtabula OH, comedian (SNL), is born.Ref: 5
1943*Jerilyn Britz Minneapolis MN, LPGA golfer (1979 US Women's Open), is born.Ref: 5
1945*Jacques Ickx Belgium, Le Mans auto race (6-time winner), is born.Ref: 5
1946*Manfred Stengl Austria, 2 man lugist (Olympics-gold-1960), is born.Ref: 5
1946*Rick Hurst Houston TX, actor (Dukes of Hazzard), is born.Ref: 5
1947*Leonard Thompson golf: #77 all-time Senior PGA Tour money leader: $1,312,559, is born.Ref: 4
1947*Alexei Ivanovich Bobrov Russia, cosmonaut, is born.Ref: 5
1947*Gary "BB" Coleman blues vocal/guitarist/producer, is born.Ref: 5
1947*Peter Lankhorst Dutch MP (PPR), is born.Ref: 5
1947*Vladimir Georgiyevich Titov Russia, cosmonaut (Soyuz T-8, TM-4, STS 63), is born.Ref: 5
1949*Nikolai Tikhonovich Moskalenko Russia, cosmonaut, is born.Ref: 5
1949*Peter Dormer arts writer, is born.Ref: 5
1950*Morgan Fisher rock keyboardist (British Lions), is born.Ref: 5
1950*Svetlana Georgievna Beregovkina Russia, cosmonaut, is born.Ref: 5
1950*Yevgeni Vladimirovich Saley cosmonaut, is born.Ref: 5
1951*Frans Kellendonk author (Ruin, The Good for Nothing), is born.Ref: 5
1951*Jaco Pastorius rocker, is born.Ref: 5
1953*Alpha Blondy [Seydou Kone], Ivory coast, reggae singer (Jerusalem), is born.Ref: 5
1953*Kevin Hangon composer, is born.Ref: 5
1953*Rochelle S Abramson violinist, is born.Ref: 5
1954*Fr David Paris France, rocker, is born.Ref: 5
1955*(Dewey) La Marr Hoyt baseball: pitcher: Chicago White Sox [Cy Young Award: 1983]; San Diego Padres, is born.Ref: 4
1955*Michael James Sullivan Gary IN, PGA golfer (1980 Southern Open), is born.Ref: 5
1956*Anatoli Borisovich Polonsky Russia, Lieutenant-Colonel/cosmonaut, is born.Ref: 5
1956*Sergei Vasiliyevich Avdeyev Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-15, SK TM-28), is born.Ref: 5
1957*Nancy Lopez, US golfer, Rookie of the Year (1978), is born.Ref: 17
1958*Ren Woods Portland Oregon, actress (Fanta-Roots), is born.Ref: 5
1958*Grandmaster Flash [Joseph Saddler], New York City, NY, rocker (Message), is born.Ref: 5
1959*Abdul Ahad Mohmand Afghanistan, cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-6), is born.Ref: 5
1960*Michael David Morrison actor (Caleb Snyder-As the World Turns), is born.Ref: 5
1961*Irv Eatman NFL tackle (Houston Oilers), is born.Ref: 5
1961*Marcia Cross actress (Melrose Place), is born.Ref: 5
1962*Ravshanbek Aliyev Kirgiz, cosmonaut, is born.Ref: 5
1963*Lance Smith NFL guard (New York Giants), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Andrew O Valmon Brooklyn NY, 400m runner, is born.Ref: 5
1965*DeDee Pfeiffer actress (Cybill), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Harry Galbreath NFL guard (Green Bay Packers), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Mark Dewey US baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Harry Galbreath NFL guard (Green Bay Packers), is born.Ref: 5
1966*Michael Imperioli actor: The Sopranos, Lean on Me, Goodfellas, Clockers, Last Man Standing, Witness to the Mob, Hamlet, The End of Love, is born.Ref: 4
1966*Embeth Davidtz actress: Citizen Baines, Schindler’s List, Murder in the First, Bicentennial Man, Bridget Jones’s Diary, is born.Ref: 4
1966*Rawley Valberde Oceanside CA, actor (Amado-Santa Barbara), is born.Ref: 5
1966*Mika Nieminen Tampere Finland, hockey forward (Team Finland, Olympics-bronze-1998), is born.Ref: 5
1967*Andy Heck NFL tackle (Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears), is born.Ref: 5
1967*Derrick Thomas NFL linebacker (Kansas City Chiefs), is born.Ref: 5
1968*John de Visser soccer player (SC Heerenveen), is born.Ref: 5
1968*Sandy Beasley Richmond BC, softball outfielder (Olympics-96), is born.Ref: 5
1969*Verne Troyer actor: Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, Pinocchio’s Revenge, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Mighty Joe Young, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Bubble Boy, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, is born.Ref: 4
1969*Morris Chestnut actor (Boyz N the Hood), is born.Ref: 5
1969*Reemt Pyka Bremerhaven Germany, hockey forward (Team Germany), is born.Ref: 5
1970*Brian Morton Wollongong Australia, canoeist (Olympics-96), is born.Ref: 5
1970*Tom Sier soccer player (SC Heerenveen), is born.Ref: 5
1970*Vadim Glovatskiy hockey defenseman (Team Kazakhstan Olympics-1998), is born.Ref: 5
1971*Beno Bryant WLAF running back (Amsterdam Admirals), is born.Ref: 5
1971*Bobby Holik Jihlava Czechoslavakia, NHL left wing (New Jersey Devils, Team Czech Rep), is born.Ref: 5
1971*Bridget Pettis WNBA guard (Phoenix Mercury), is born.Ref: 5
1971*Kevin Lee NFL wide receiver (New England Patriots), is born.Ref: 5
1971*Kevin Mitchell NFL linebacker (San Francisco 49ers), is born.Ref: 5
1972*Catherine McCormack actress: Shadow of the Vampire, Braveheart, Love in the 21st Century, A Rumor of Angels, The Tailor of Panama, Armadillo, Spy Game, is born.Ref: 4
1972*Barron Miles NFL defensive back (Pittsburgh Steelers)/WLAF corner (Frankfurt), is born.Ref: 5
1972*Ivan Droppa hockey defenseman (Team Slovakia 1998), is born.Ref: 5
1973*Clyde Wijnhard soccer player (Ajax, RKC), is born.Ref: 5
1973*Fang Li Hunan China, tennis star (1991 Futures-Bilbao-ESP), is born.Ref: 5
1973*Justin Armour NFL wide receiver (Buffalo Bills), is born.Ref: 5
1973*Mercury Hayes wide receiver (Atlanta Falcons), is born.Ref: 5
1974*Johnie Church NFL defensive end (Seattle Seahawks), is born.Ref: 5
1975*Becky Kellar ice hockey defenseman (Canada, Olympics-98), is born.Ref: 5
1975*Chris Anstey NBA center (Dallas Mavericks), is born.Ref: 5
1986*Alexa Ray Joel daughter of Billy Joel & Christie Brinkley, is born.Ref: 5
379*Basilius the Great of Caesarea, saint (Moralia), dies.Ref: 5
404*Telemachus Roman monk, murdered.Ref: 5
898*Odo Earl of Paris/king of France (888-98), dies at about 39.Ref: 5
962*Boudouin III count of Flanders, dies.Ref: 5
1387*Karel de Boze king of Navarra (1349-87), dies.Ref: 5
1515*Louis XII Father of People, "the Justified" King of France (1498-1515), dies at 52.Ref: 5
1517 Hermann Vischer the Younger, German bronze merchant, dies.Ref: 5
1557*Jacques Cartier French explorer (Canada), dies at 65.Ref: 5
1559*Christian III king of Denmark/Norway (1534-59), dies.Ref: 5
1560*Guillaume du Bellay Sieur de Langey, French soldier, dies.Ref: 5
1617*Hendrick Goltzius Dutch painter/cartoonist/engraver, dies.Ref: 5
1626*Cornelis Pieterse Hoft Amsterdam merchant/regent, dies at 68.Ref: 5
1630*Tetsugen Zen teacher (Jodo sect converted to Obaku Zen), dies.Ref: 5
1655*Innocent X [Giambattista Pamfili] 236th Roman Catholic pope (1644-55), dies at age 80.Ref: 69
1661*Pieter Claesz Dutch still life painter, dies at about 64.Ref: 5
1701*Pietro Sanmartini composer, dies at 64.Ref: 5
1716*William Wycherley dramatist (The Country Wife), dies at about 75.Ref: 5
1730*Daniel Finch 2nd Earl of Nottingham, dies at 82.Ref: 5
1753*Louis-Maurice de La Pierre composer, dies at 55.Ref: 5
1758*Johann F von Cronegk German playwright (Codrus), dies at 26.Ref: 5
1766*James III Edward Old Pretender/king of Great Britain/Ireland, dies at 77.Ref: 5
1768*Jean-Laurent Krafft composer, dies at 73.Ref: 5
1769*Edward Holyoke, American educator; president of Harvard University (1737-69), dies at age 79.Ref: 70
1777*Emanuele Barbella composer, dies at 58.Ref: 5
1780*-Johann Ludwig Krebs composer, dies at 66.Ref: 5
1782*Johann Christian Bach, German composer/Mozart's tutor, son of Johann Sebastian Bach, dies at age 46.Ref: 5
1783 Jacobus Enschedé Haarlems printer, dies at 39.Ref: 5
1784*Patrice F Earl de Nény South Netherlands Secret Council chairman, dies at 67.Ref: 5
1787*(Declaration of Independence) Arthur Middleton, farmer, signer of the Declaration of Independence, dies at age 44.Ref: 5
1789*Christleib Siegmund Binder composer, dies at 65.Ref: 5
1793*Francesco Guardi Italian painter, dies at 80.Ref: 5
1800*Louis J M Daubenton France, zoologist, dies at 83.Ref: 5
1816*François Alexander Sallantin composer, dies at 60.Ref: 5
1817*Martin Heinfich Klaproth, German chemist and discoverer of uranium, dies at age 73.Ref: 70
1818*Fedele Fenaroli composer, dies at 87.Ref: 5
1850*Raphael G Kiesewetter Austria musicologist, dies at 76.Ref: 5
1887*Johan Hendrik Koelman portrait painter, dies at 66.Ref: 5
1901*Ignatius Donnelly US attorney/Lieutenant-Governor (Minnesota), dies at 69.Ref: 5
1904*Frederick Pabst, brewer, dies in Milwaukee, WI.Ref: 68
1906*Joseph Miroslav Weber composer, dies at 51.Ref: 5
1907*Cyrill Kistler composer, dies at 58.Ref: 5
1917*Rasputin's body is taken from the Neva River in St Petersburg, Russia after his assassination by Russian noblemen.Ref: 17
1919*William W Campbell Canadian poet (Ian of the Orcades), dies at 60.Ref: 5
1920*Paul Adam French writer (L'enfant d'Austerlitz), dies at 57.Ref: 5
1923*Willie (William Henry) Keeler ‘Wee Willie’: National Baseball Hall of Famer: NY Giants, Brooklyn Bridegrooms, Baltimore Orioles [record for singles hit in single season: 206: 1898], Brooklyn Superbas, NY Highlanders; dies.Ref: 4
1934*Jakob Wassermann writer, dies at 60.Ref: 5
1942*Jaroslav Jezek composer, dies at 35.Ref: 5
1945*Vit Nejedly composer, dies at 33.Ref: 5
1948*Hermann K J Zilcher German pianist/composer (Liebesmesse), dies at 66.Ref: 5
1948*Willem Louis Frederic Landre composer, dies at 73.Ref: 5
1949*Malcolm Campbell English cyclist (world speed-record), dies at 63.Ref: 5
1953*Country singer Hank (Hiram) Williams Senior, 29, died of a drug and alcohol overdose while en route to a concert date in Canton, Ohio.Ref: 70
1953*Ludomir Rózycki Polish composer/conductor (Casanova), dies at 68.Ref: 5
1956*A.A. (Alan Alexander) Milne author: Winnie the Pooh, When We Were Very Young, Now We Are Six, The House at Pooh Corner; died Jan 31, 1956Ref: 4
1957*Ruth Draper US elocutionist, dies at 67.Ref: 5
1958*David Broekman musician (Think Fast), dies at 55.Ref: 5
1958*Edward Weston, American photographer, dies at age 71.Ref: 70
1960*Margaret Sullavan actress (Back Street), dies of an overdose at age 48.Ref: 68
1962*Diego Martínez Barrio Spanish president (1939), dies at 76.Ref: 5
1964*Otto Emanuel Olsson composer, dies at 84.Ref: 5
1964*Rika Hopper Dutch actress (Comedia, Anastasia), dies at about 86.Ref: 5
1965*Gertrude Michael actress (Caged, Cleopatra), dies at 53.Ref: 5
1965*Juan Bautista Plaza-Alfonzo composer, dies at 66.Ref: 5
1966*Vincent Auriol President of France (1947-53), dies at 82.Ref: 5
1967*Moon Mullican rocker, dies at 58.Ref: 5
1969*Barton Maclane actor (General Peterson-I Dream of Jeannie), dies at 68.Ref: 5
1972*Maurice (Auguste) Chevalier actor, singer: Gigi, Fanny, Can-Can; dies at age 83.Ref: 4
1972*Jane Morgan actress (Mrs Margaret Davis-Our Miss Brooks), dies at 91.Ref: 5
1972*Kenneth Patchen US poet/writer (Cloth of Tempest), dies at 60.Ref: 5
1975*Arthur Pierson actor/director (Hat Check Girl), dies at 73.Ref: 5
1977*Danny (Vincent) ‘Bear’ Frisella baseball: pitcher: NY Mets, Atlanta Braves, SD Padres, Milwaukee Brewers, SL Cardinals; dies,Ref: 5
1977*Ellis Wilson artist: Guggenheim Fellowship winner [1944]; The Open Market of Charleston, Haitian Funeral Procession; dies.Ref: 4
1978*Air India B747 explodes near Bombay killing 213.Ref: 5
1980*Frank Clifford Wykoff sprinter (Olympics-gold-28, 32, 36), dies at 70.Ref: 5
1980*Pietro Nenni Italian politician (Socialists), dies at 88.Ref: 5
1982*Paul Belmondo French sculptor (Bathing Woman, Orléans), dies at 83.Ref: 5
1982*Vladimir K Zworykin Russ/American engineer (cathode-ray tube), dies.Ref: 5
1982*Victor Buono actor: Beneath the Planet of the Apes, The Strangler, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, The Man from Atlantis; dies at age 43.Ref: 4
1982*(Green River Killer) (date given as between January 1, 1982 and March 21, 1984) Jane Doe B-10, is last seen. She is listed as the 45th of 48 women Gary Ridgway admits killing. (USA Today, p 3A, 11/06/2003)Ref: 13
1984*Alexis Korner musician: guitar, singer: Whole Lotta Love; dies.Ref: 4
1987*Gustav Knuth actor (Heidi, Rats), dies at 85.Ref: 5
1987*60 bodies recovered in Dupont Plaza Hotel fire in Puerto Rico.Ref: 5
1987*(Green River Killer) (date given as 1987) Roberta Joseph Hayes, 21, is last seen. She is the 42nd of 48 women Gary Ridgway admits killing. (USA Today, p 3A, 11/06/2003)Ref: 13
1988*Leo Steiner New York Carnegie Deli's owner, dies.Ref: 5
1990*Charles Boost Dutch film critic, dies at 82.Ref: 5
1990 Gerhard Schröder West German minister of Defense, dies at 79.Ref: 5
1990*Suzuki Sochu Zen teacher (Rinzai line)/abbot of Ryutakuji, dies.Ref: 5
1990*(Green River Killer) (date given as 1990) Marta Reeves, 37, is last seen. She is the 43rd of 48 women Gary Ridgway admits killing. (USA Today, p 3A, 11/06/2003)Ref: 13
1991*Charles B Timmer Dutch writer (Russia Black on White), dies at 83.Ref: 5
1991*Yvonne Waegemans Flemish author (Gnome Patjoepelke), dies at 81.Ref: 5
1992*Grace Hopper computer developer: COBOL; U.S. Naval officer: Rear Admiral, oldest naval officer on active duty [retired at age 79]; dies at age 85.Ref: 5
1992*Constantin Poustochkine jazz critic, dies.Ref: 5
1992*Corky Geil dancer, dies in Long Beach CA at 64.Ref: 5
1992*Ginette Leclerc actress (Baker's Wife), dies at 79.Ref: 5
1992 Hette G Abma vicar/Dutch MP (SGP), dies.Ref: 5
1992*Mike Frankovich US producer (Guess Who's Coming to Dinner), dies.Ref: 5
1993*June Clayworth actress (Bodyguard, Criminal Court), dies of lymphoma.Ref: 5
1993*Phyllis Hill actress (Singing in the Dark), dies of lung cancer at 72.Ref: 5
1994*Cesar Romero US actor (Joker-Batman), dies at 86.Ref: 68
1994*Werner Schwab Austrian playwright (Female Presidents), dies at 35.Ref: 5
1995*Eugene Wigner physicist (Nobel prize for physics-1963), dies at 92.Ref: 5
1995*Frederick West English contractor/serial killer, commits suicide at 53.Ref: 5
1995*Jess Stacy US jazz pianist (Great Gatsby), dies at 90.Ref: 5
1995*Ted Hawkins US blues singer (Watch Your Step), dies at 58.Ref: 5
1996*Arleigh Albert Burke British Admiral, dies at 94.Ref: 5
1996*Arthur Rudolph rocket Engineer, dies at 89.Ref: 5
1996*Hamish Imlach folk singer/comic, dies at 55.Ref: 5
1997*Joan Rice actress (Payroll, Steel Key, Curtain Up), dies at 66.Ref: 5
1997*Townes Van Zandt musician, dies at 52.Ref: 5
1997*John Burgess rugby administrator, dies at 71.Ref: 5
1998*Helen Wills Moody International Tennis Hall of Famer: French Open [1928, 1929, 1930, 1932], Wimbledon [1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1932, 1933, 1935, 1938], U.S. Open [1923, 1924, 1925, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931]; dies.Ref: 4
1998*(Green River Killer) (date given as 1998) Patricia Yellow Robe, 38, is last seen. She is the 44th of 48 women Gary Ridgway admits killing. (USA Today, p 3A, 11/06/2003)Ref: 13
2001*Ray Walston, Emmy Award-winning actor: Picket Fences [1995-96]; My Favorite Martian, dies.Ref: 4
2003*Joe Foss, WWII ace with 26 kills, Medal of Honor winner, 2-term governor of SD, dies at age 87. (Dayton Daily News, p B1, 1/03/2003) 

Last Update: October 27th, 2005
© 2000-2005   Kenneth Fussichen