Today In History - Thursday, January 1, 2026




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Welcome to Today In History for Thursday, January 1, 2026.

On this day in history ..

0001 - Origin of Christian Era
0069 - Roman garrison of Mainz uprising
0089 - Gov Lucius Antonius Saturninus of Germany becomes emperor of Rome
0313 - Start of Roman (Pontifical) Indiction
0404 - Last gladiator competition in Rome
0414 - King Ataulf of Narbonne marries emperor Honorius sister Galle Placidia
0722 - Hofmeier Charles Martel flees from bishop Willibrord
0990 - Russia adopts Julian calendar
1430 - Jews of Sicily are no longer required to attend conversionist services
1438 - Albrecht II von Habsburg becomes king of Hungary
1494 - Juw Dekama elected potentate of Frisia
1502 - Portuguese navigators discover Rio de Janeiro
1504 - King Louis XII loses last bulwark in Naples, Caeta
1515 - Fran‡ois, Duke of Angoulˆme succeeds Louis XII as Fran‡ois I of France
1515 - Jews are expelled from Laibach Austria
1573 - Geuzen sets fire to Woudrichem
1583 - 1st day of the Gregorian calendar in Holland & Flanders
1610 - German astronomer Simon Marius 1st discovers the Jupiter moons, but does not officially report it, Galileo does on July 1 1610
1622 - Papal Chancery adopts Jan 1 as beginning of the year (was Mar 25)
1651 - Charles II Stuart crowned king of Scotland
1660 - 1st entry in Samuel Pepys' diary
1660 - General Moncks army battles with the Tweed on way to London
1660 - Thomas Fairfax' New Model-army occupies York
1672 - Jean Racine's "Bajazet," premieres in Paris
1673 - Regular mail delivery begins between NY & Boston
1675 - Don Carlos de Gurrea/Arag¢n becomes Spanish land guardian of S Neth
1689 - Pro-James II-earl of Danby occupies York
1700 - Protestant West-Europe (except England) begin using Gregorian calendar
1700 - Russia replaces Byzantines with Julian calendar
1701 - Great Britain & Ireland union is in effect, creating United Kingdom
1707 - Jacob V succeeds his father Pedro II as king of Portugal
1739 - J B C Bouvet de Lozier discovers Bouvet Island, near Antarctica
1770 - Date of action in the opera "Madeleine"
1772 - 1st traveller's checks issued (London)
1776 - Gen George Washington hoists Continental Union Flag
1785 - "Daily Universal Register" (Times of London) publishes 1st issue
1788 - London's Daily Universal Registrar becomes the Times
1788 - Quakers in Pennsylvania emancipate their slaves
1797 - Albany replaces NYC as capital of NY
1798 - Russia appoints 1st Jewish censor to censor Hebrew books
1800 - Dutch East Indies Company dissolves
1801 - Ireland & Great Britain (England & Scotland) form United Kingdom
1804 - Haiti gains independence from France (National Day)
1807 - Cura‡ao is taken by English (until March, 1816)
1808 - African Benevolent Society (education) forms
1808 - Congress prohibits importation of slaves
1808 - Sierra Leone becomes a British colony
1809 - Holland Brigade under brig gen Chass‚ reaches Madrid
1814 - Field marshal Blcher's troops cross the Rhine at Kaub
1818 - Official reopening of the White House
1826 - Baron Van der Capellen resigns as governor of Dutch-Indies
1827 - Dutch Trade Company NHM gets opium monopoly on Java
1831 - William Lloyd Garrison publishes 1st issue of abolitionist journal
1833 - British government demands Falkland islands
1833 - Cura‡ao census: 2,602 whites, 6,531 free people & 5,894 slaves
1834 - German Tolunie goes into effect
1838 - 1st official horse race in South Australia-Adelaide
1840 - 1st recorded bowling match in US, Knickerbocker Alleys, NYC
1842 - 1st illustrated weekly magazine in US publishes 1st issue, NYC
1844 - 1st edition of New Rotterdam's Daily (3x per week)
1846 - Yucatan declares independence from M‚xico
1847 - Michigan is 1st state to abolish capital punishment
1847 - Neth's Haarlem's Current newspaper starts publishing
1848 - Britain takes Mosquito Coast from Nicaragua
1851 - City of Glasgow steamer inaugurates Philadelphia-Liverpool line
1852 - 1st US public bath opens, in NYC
1852 - National debt of Britain & Ireland is œ765,126,582
1852 - Netherlands begins issuing postage stamps
1853 - 1st practical fire engine (horse-drawn) in US enters service
1854 - Lincoln University, a black college, chartered (Oxford, Penn)
1858 - Canada begins using decimal currency system
1860 - Slavery ends of in Neth Indies
1861 - Porfirio Diaz conquers Mexico City
1861 - Pres Lincoln declares slavery in Confederate states unlawful
1862 - 1st US income tax (3% of incomes > $600, 5% of incomes > $10,000)
1862 - Battle of Ft McRee, FL Battle of Port Royal, SC (Port Royal Ferry)
1863 - 1st homestead under the Homestead Act claimed, near Beatrice, Nebr
1863 - Battle of Galveston, Texas-Confederates recapture the city
1863 - Battle of Helena, AK
1863 - Emancipation Proclamation (ending slavery) issued by Lincoln
1863 - Franz Schuberts "Missa Solemnis," premieres in Leipzig
1865 - -Apr 26th] Carolinas' campaign
1871 - Belgium disbands salt tax
1873 - Origin of Japanese Era
1874 - New York City annexes the Bronx
1877 - England's Queen Victoria proclaimed empress of India
1879 - John Brahms' Violin Concerto in D major premieres in Leipzig
1880 - Building of Panama Canal, begins
1881 - Dr John H Watson is introduced to Sherlock Holmes
1886 - 1st Tournament of Roses (Pasadena Calif)
1891 - French troops occupy Nioro, West-Sudan, 3000 killed
1891 - King Pakketvaart sails to Neth Indies
1892 - Ellis Island becomes reception center for new immigrants
1893 - 1st US college extension courses for credit, Univ of Chicago
1893 - Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar
1894 - Denmark adopts Mid-European time
1894 - Manchester Ship Canal in England opens to traffic
1895 - Norway adopts Mid-European time
1896 - Wilhelm R”ntgen announces his discovery of x-rays
1897 - 1st football game between black colleges-Atlanta U 10, Tuskegee 0
1897 - Brooklyn merges with NY to form present City of NY
1898 - Lightship replaces whistling buoy at mouth of SF Bay
1898 - d'Annunzio's "Sogno d'un mattino di primavera," premieres in Rome
1899 - Cuba liberated from Spain by US (Natl Day) (US occupies till 1902)
1900 - 1st date in John dos Passos' USA trilogy (The 42nd Parallel)
1900 - British protectorates of Northern & Southern Nigeria established
1900 - Compulsory education in Netherlands goes into effect
1901 - Australia declares independence from federation of UK colonies
1902 - 1st Rose Bowl game (Pasadena, California) (U of Mich-49, Sanford-0)
1902 - Nathan Stubblefield makes 1st public demonstration of radio, Penn
1904 - Neth Indies colony begins opium production
1905 - 9 hour work day for diamond miners
1906 - Dutch law makes driver's license mandatory
1907 - Pres Theodore Roosevelt shakes a record 8,513 hands in 1 day
1908 - 1st time, ball signifying new year dropped at Times Square
1908 - Jack Hobbs makes his Test debut at the MCG (83 & 28)
1909 - Robert Fowler runs then world record marathon (2:52:45.4)
1910 - Simpson-Hayward (England) takes 6-43 on debut with underarm lobs
1911 - Belgian Mining law introduces 9«-hour work day
1911 - South Australia transfers Northern Territory to federal government
1912 - 1st running of SF's famed "Bay to Breakers" race (7.63 miles/12.3 km)
1912 - Sun Yat-sen forms Chinese Republic
1913 - Post office begins parcel post deliveries
1914 - 1st scheduled airline flight, St Petersburg-Tampa (Tony Jannus pilot)
1914 - Klaas ter Laan becomes Neth's 1st socialist mayor (Zaandam)
1914 - Northern & Southern Nigeria united in British colony of Nigeria
1915 - DW Griffith shows "Clansman" at a sneak preview
1915 - Jews of Laibach Austria expelled
1916 - 1st football game in Rose Bowl (Washington State-Brown)
1916 - 1st issue of "Journal of Negro History" published
1918 - Last day of the Julian calendar in Finland
1919 - Belorussian SSR established
1922 - Vancouver, BC starts driving on the right side of road
1923 - Union of Socialist Soviet Republics established
1924 - Grossdeutsche Volksgemeinschaft/V”lkische Block replaces NSDAP
1925 - Norway's capital Christiania changes name to Oslo
1926 - Flood in Rhine strikes Cologne
1927 - Communist uprising in West Java
1927 - Dodgers announce release of future Hall of Fame Zack Wheat
1928 - 1st US air-conditioned office building opens, San Antonio
1928 - Algemeene Vereeniging Radio Omroep (AVRO) begins broadcasting (Neth)
1929 - Roy Riegels runs 60 yds the wrong way with Rose Bowl fumble recovery
1930 - Earl Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to 2nd lieutenant
1930 - Jurgens & Van den Berg merge with Lever Brothers to form Unilever
1932 - Jacob Cocey Sr chosen as mayor of Massillon Ohio
1932 - Rasse und Siedlungshauptamt publishes Himmler's wedding laws
1934 - Alcatraz officially becomes a federal prison
1934 - Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (US bank guarantor) effective
1934 - International Telecommunication Union established
1935 - 1st Sugar Bowl & 1st Orange Bowl
1935 - Associated Press inaugurates Wirephoto
1935 - Eastern Airlines hires Eddie Rickenbacker as GM
1935 - Pres Mustapha Kemal Pasha names himself "Atatrk: Father of Turkey"
1936 - 1st newspaper to microfilm its current issues, NY Herald Tribune
1937 - Anastasio Somoza becomes president of Nicaragua
1937 - Count Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to captain
1937 - US Army Air Corps physiological research laboratory completed, Ohio
1941 - Netherlands begins taxing wages
1941 - Russian general Zhukov appointed chief of general staff
1942 - Rose Bowl played in NC due to Japanese threat-Oregon 20, Duke 16
1942 - US & 25 other countries sign a united declaration against the Axis
1943 - Count Claus von Stauffenberg promoted to lt-colonel
1943 - Negro League star Josh Gibson suffers a nervous breakdown
1944 - 1st feature-length foreign movie, African Journey, shown on TV, NYC
1944 - Army defeats Navy 10-7 in football "Arab Bowl," Oran, North Africa
1944 - Gen Clark replaces Gen Patton as commander of 7th Army
1945 - France joins the UN
1945 - German air raid on allied airports at Eindhoven/Saint-Trond/Brussels
1946 - ENIAC, US 1st computer finished by Mauchly/Eckert
1946 - Emperor Hirohito of Japan announces he is not a god
1946 - National Assembly proclaims Hungary a republic
1947 - Benelux agress to work related issues
1947 - Britain nationalizes its coal industry
1947 - WTTG TV channel 5 in Washington, DC (MET) begins broadcasting
1948 - 1st color newsreel filmed (Pasadena Calif)]=
1948 - Bradman scores 132 in the 1st innings of the 3rd Test v India
1948 - Britain nationalizes its railways
1948 - General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade effective
1948 - Italy adopts constitution
1948 - Orissa province accedes to India
1949 - KPRC TV channel 2 in Houston, TX (NBC) begins broadcasting
1949 - KTTV TV channel 11 in Los Angeles, CA (MET) begins broadcasting
1949 - Tokelau (Union) Islands declared part of New Zealand
1950 - Dutch Govt raises all wages 5%, minimally Ÿ 5 per week
1950 - Ho Chi Minh begins offensive against French troops in Indo China
1951 - Massive Chinese/North Korean assault on UN-lines
1952 - Dmitri Shostakovitch completes his 5th string quartet
1953 - Ernest Blochs "Suite Hebraique," premieres
1953 - WBRE TV channel 28 in Wilkes-Barre Scranton, PA (NBC) 1st broadcast
1954 - KSLA TV channel 12 in Shreveport, LA (CBS) begins broadcasting
1954 - Rose & Cotton Bowl are 1st sport colorcasts
1954 - WWTV TV channel 9 in Cadillac-Traverse City, MI (CBS) 1st broadcast
1954 - Yugoslav parliament chairman/VP Milovan Djilas criticize communism
1955 - Bhutan issues its 1st postage stamps
1955 - WEAT (now WPEC) TV channel 12 in West Palm Beach, FL (CBS) begins
1956 - Elvis Presley records Heartbreak Hotel for RCA in Nashville
1956 - KHAS TV channel 5 in Hastings, NB (NBC) begins broadcasting
1956 - KOSA TV channel 7 in Odessa, TX (CBS) begins broadcasting
1956 - Sudan (Anglo-Egyptian Sudan) declares independence from Egypt & UK
1956 - WREC (now WREG) TV channel 3 in Memphis, TN (CBS) begins broadcasting
1957 - Benjamin Britten's ballet "Prince & the Pauper," premieres in London
1957 - France returns Saar to becomes the 10th state of German Federal Rep
1957 - International Geophysical Year begins; ends 6/30/1958 (18-mo year)
1958 - BOAC Britannia flies London to NY in a record 7h57m
1958 - European Economic Community (Common Market) starts operation
1958 - Sammy Davis Jr marries Loray White
1958 - Treaties establish European Economic Community (Common Market)
1958 - WMBD TV channel 31 in Peoria, IL (CBS) begins broadcasting
1959 - Castro leads Cuba to victory as Fulgencio Batista flees to Dom Rep
1959 - Chad becomes autonomous republic in French Community
1959 - Rohan Kanhai completes 256 v India at Calcutta
1960 - Bank of France issues new franc, worth 20›
1960 - Cameroon (French Cameroon) gains independence from France
1960 - Johnny Cash plays 1st of many free concerts behind bars
1960 - Montserrat adopts constitution
1960 - US census at 179,245,000
1961 - Briggs Stadium is renamed Tigers Stadium
1961 - Houston Oilers beat LA Chargers 24-16 in AFL championship game
1961 - Largest check issued, Natl Bank of Chicago to Sears ($960.242 billion)
1961 - Russia introduces a new ruble worth $1.11
1962 - Beatles' Decca audition is unsuccessful
1962 - Rwanda granted internal self-government by Belgium
1962 - Western Samoa gains independence from New Zealand Susuga Malietoa Tanumafili II becomes co-chief of Western Samoa
1963 - G Woods succeeds Eugene Black as president of the World Bank
1963 - WTEV (now WLNE) TV channel 6 in Providence RI begins broadcasting
1964 - Federation of Rhodesia & Nyasaland dissolved
1964 - KNMT TV channel 12 in Walker, MN (CBS) begins broadcasting
1964 - KTVS TV channel 3 in Sterling, CO (CBS) begins broadcasting
1965 - International Cooperation Year begins
1965 - Palestinian al-Fatah organization forms
1966 - 12 day transit worker strike shuts down NYC subway
1966 - Milt coup by Col Jean-B‚del Bokassa in Central African Republic
1966 - Simon & Garfunkel's "Sounds of Silence" reaches #1
1966 - All US cigarette packs have to carry "Caution Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health"
1967 - CRU becomes the CAFA & turns over the Grey Cup trophy to the CFL
1967 - Day's play in the Calcutta Test v W Indies cancelled by riots
1967 - FCC requires AM-FM sister stations to be at least 50% different
1967 - Green Bay Packers beat Dallas Cowboys 34-27 in NFL championship game
1967 - KC Chiefs beat Buffalo Bills 31-7 in AFL championship game
1967 - St Helena adopts constitution
1967 - Tonga revises constitution
1967 - WABW TV channel 14 in Pelham, GA (PBS) begins broadcasting
1968 - ABC radio splits into 4 networks (Info, Entertainment, Contemp & FM)
1968 - Evel Knievel fails in his attempt to jump C‘sar's Palace Fountain
1968 - Netherlands gets color TV
1968 - WDCO TV channel 15 in Cochran, GA (PBS) begins broadcasting
1969 - Jack Kent Cooke, owner of NHL's LA Kings, fines each player $100 for "NOT" arguing with the referee
1970 - "The Epoch" (Time 0 for UNIX systems, Midnight GMT)
1970 - Afro-American Historical Calendar Series Established
1970 - Charles "Chub" Feeney becomes president of baseball's National League
1970 - Neth Christian Workers Union (NCW) forms
1970 - Revised calendar for Western (RC) Church goes into effect
1971 - Cigarette advertisements banned on TV
1972 - "Company" closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 690 performances
1972 - "On the Town" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 65 performances
1972 - "Promises Promises" closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 1281 perfs
1972 - China PR performs nuclear test at Lop Nor PRC
1972 - International Book Year begins
1972 - KDSD TV channel 16 in Aberdeen, SD (PBS) begins broadcasting
1973 - 47th Australian Women's Tennis: Margaret Court beats Goolagong (64 75)
1973 - Britain, Ireland & Denmark become 7th-9th members of Common Market
1973 - West African Economic Community formed (Benin, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Upper Volta)
1974 - Lee MacPhail takes over as AL president, succeeding Joe Cronin
1974 - NBC radio begins on the hour news 24 hours a day (following CBS lead)
1974 - World Population Year begins
1975 - Haldeman, Ehrlichman, Mitchell & Mardian convicted of Watergate crime
1975 - International Women's Year begins
1975 - Sweden adopts constitution
1976 - "Musical Jubilee" closes at St James Theater NYC after 92 performances
1976 - Liberty Bell moves to new home behind Independence Hall
1976 - NBC replaces the peacock logo
1976 - Venezuela nationalizes oil fields
1977 - 1st woman formally ordained an Episcopal priest (Jacqueline Means)
1977 - Belgium reapportions 2,359 communities into 596
1977 - Czech intellects begin Human Rights Group Chapter 77
1977 - Tony Dorsett runs for record 202 yards in the Sugar Bowl
1978 - "Your Arm's Too Short..." closes at Lyceum NYC after 429 perfs
1978 - Air India B747 explodes near Bombay killing 213
1978 - Pres Ford signs 1st major revision of copyright law since 1909
1979 - International Year of the Child begins
1979 - Jura, 26th canton of Switzerland, established
1979 - US & China (Peoples Republic) begin diplomatic relations
1980 - 54th Australian Womens Tennis: Barbara Jordan beats S Walsh (63 63)
1980 - Alabama beats Arkansas in Sugar Bowl for college football championship
1980 - Chrysler UK renamed Talbot
1980 - International Decade of Water & Sanitation begins
1980 - Mob storms Russian embassy in Teheran
1980 - Premier Adbou Diouf becomes president of Senegal
1980 - Sweden changes order of succession to throne
1981 - Georgia beats Notre Dame in Sugar Bowl for college football title
1981 - Greece is 10th country to join European Economic Community
1981 - International Year for the Disabled begins
1981 - Palau (Trust Territory of Pacific Is) becomes self-governing
1981 - Roger Smith becomes CEO of General Motors
1982 - 30 Something stars Ken Olin & Patricia Wettig meet, later they marry
1982 - Clemson wins the Orange Bowl for college football championship
1982 - Javier P‚rez de Cuellar becomes sec-gen of UN
1982 - MTA launches a 5 year plan to upgrade the NYC subway system
1982 - Pope John Paul II prays for an end to martial law in Poland
1982 - TA launches 5 year capital program to overhaul NYC subway system
1983 - PGA inaugurates all-exempt tour
1983 - Penn State beats Georgia in Sugar Bowl for college football title
1983 - World Communications Year begins
1984 - AT&T's 22 owned Bell system companies divests into 8 companies
1984 - Brunei becomes independent of UK
1984 - NYC transit fare rises from 75› to 90›
1985 - Actress Judith Licht (Who's the Boss) gets married
1985 - International Youth Year begins
1985 - US's 1st manadatory seat belt law goes into effect (NY)
1985 - VH-1 made its broadcasting debut
1986 - Aruba becomes independent from neighbor island Cura‡ao
1986 - Barbra Striesand & Jon Peters relationship breaks up
1986 - International Peace Year begins
1986 - NYC transit fare rises from 90› to $1.00
1986 - Oklahoma wins Orange Bowl for college football championship
1986 - Spain & Portugal are 11th & 12th to join European Economic Community
1986 - Iowa's All-American running back, Ronnie Harmon, fumbles the ball 4 times in his last game-the Rose Bowl
1987 - 60 bodies recovered in Dupont Plaza Hotel fire in Puerto Rico
1987 - China's rudimentary civil code in effect
1987 - International Year of Shelter for Homeless begins
1988 - Czech born tennis star Hana Mandikova becomes an Australian Citizen
1988 - Miami beats Oklahoma for college football championship
1988 - Year of the Reader begins
1989 - Actress Kelly McGillis gets married
1989 - NYC transit fare rises from $1.00 to $1.15
1989 - Year of the Young Reader begins
1990 - David Dinkins sworn in as 1st black mayor of NYC
1990 - Mitsuko Nishiwaki beats Nakano to become Japan Women wrestling champ
1990 - NYC MTA stops token redemption at subway stations
1990 - Sports News Network begins operation on cable TV
1990 - FCC implements "SYNDEX" giving independent stations more rights over cable TV outlets for exclusive syndicated programs
1991 - 5% sales tax on consumer goods & services goes into effect in USSR
1991 - Iraq rejects peace proposal from Egyptian Pres Hosi Mubarak
1991 - Les Miserables opens at Festival Theatre, Adelaide
1992 - Bush is 1st US pres to address Australian Parliament
1992 - Cura‡ao becomes 1st in Dutch Antilles to have compulsory education
1992 - Europe breaks down trade barriers
1992 - International Space Year begins
1992 - NYC transit fare increases from $1.15 to $1.25
1993 - 12 member European Economic Community set up vast free trade zone
1993 - Blockbuster Bowl 3: Stanford beats Penn State, 24-3
1993 - Cigarette advertisements are banned in NYC's MTA
1993 - Czechoslovakia separates into Czech Republic (Bohemia) & Slovakia
1993 - Harry Connick Jr arrested at a NY airport for gun possession
1994 - "Flying Karamzov Brothers" closes at Helen Hayes NYC after 50 perfs
1994 - "Grand Night after Singing" closes at Criterion NYC after 52 perfs
1994 - Aleksandr Popov swims world record 100m free style (47.83)
1994 - Carquest Bowl 4: Boston College beats Virginia, 32-13
1994 - Howard Stern's New Year's Eve Beauty Pageant
1994 - International Year of Family
1994 - Jacobs Field opens with "Gateway's New Year's Eve Countdown to '94"
1994 - Microsoft CEO Bill Gates (38) marries Melinda French (29)
1994 - North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect
1995 - "Glass Menagerie" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 57 perfs
1995 - "Shadow Box" closes at Circle in Sq Theater NYC after 49 performances
1995 - Austria, Finland & Sweden act to join European Union
1995 - Centennial of Canadian Mounties presence in Canada's Yukon Territory
1995 - Fernando Henrique Cardoso installed as president of Brazil
1995 - International Year of Tolerance
1995 - Last "Far Side" by cartoonist Gary Larson (started 1980)
1995 - Raman Lamba & Ravi Sehgal score 464 for 1st wicket for Delhi
1995 - for"Tuna Christmas" closes at Booth Theater NYC 20 performances
1996 - After 27 years, Betty Rubble debuts as a Flintstone vitamin
1996 - Cura‡ao gains limited form of self rule (Status Aparte)
1998 - All Calif bars, clubs & card rooms must be smoke-free
1998 - Mongolia switches from a 46 hour to 40 hour work week
1998 - US Census Bureau estimates population at 268,921,733
1999 - International Year of Elderly
2304 - Mid-CALENDAR day
6000 - 1st reversible date since 11/11/1999

Famous birthdays for this day ..

0379 - Basilius, the Great, of Caesarea, holyman (Moralia)
1387 - Charles, The Angry One, king of Navarra (1349-87)
1431 - Alexander VI [Rodrigo Borgia], Spanish/Italian pope (1492-1503)
1449 - Lorenzo de'Medici, [The Magnificent] of Florence
1467 - Sigismund I, the old, king of Poland
1481 - Huldrych Zwingli, Swiss Protestant reformer
1504 - Caspar Cruciger, German church reformer
1520 - Franciscus Balduinus, [Francois Baudouin], lawyer
1618 - Bartolom‚ Esteban Murillo, Spain, Baroque artist [baptized]
1622 - Isaac Sweers, Dutch Admiral/general/Civil rights activist
1628 - Christoph Bernhard, German composer
1638 - Antoinette du Ligier de la Guard Deshoulieres, French poet/playwright
1652 - Johann Krieger, composer
1697 - Johann Pfeiffer, composer
1709 - Johann H H Btz, German/Dutch organ builder
1714 - Kristijonas Donelaitis, Lutheran pastor, Lithuanian poet (The Seas)
1723 - Christian Friedrich Gregor, composer
1729 - Edmund Burke, British author (Philosophy & Inquiry) [NS=Jan 12]
1734 - John F E Acton, cruel premier of Naples
1735 - Paul Revere, silversmith/US patriot (British are coming)
1745 - "Mad" Anthony Wayne, general
1748 - Giovanni Furno, composer
1752 - Elizabeth Griscom (Betsy) Ross, flag maker
1764 - John Kinker, Dutch linguist/philosopher/poet (Minderjarige Zangster)
1777 - Micah Hawkins, composer
1784 - William Beale, composer
1792 - Henrik A Bjerregaard, Norwegian writer/poet (Sínner af Norge)
1800 - Sydney Nelson, composer
1800 - Vaclav Horak, composer
1809 - John Pieter Heije, Dutch physician/writer/poet (Silver Fleet)
1815 - Charles Renouvier, French philosopher (neocriticism)
1817 - Martin H Klaproth, Germany, chemist
1819 - Arthur Hugh Clough, poet, friend of Matthew Arnold
1819 - George Foster Shepley, Brig General (Union volunteers), died in 1878
1823 - S ndor Pet”fi, Kikk”r”s, Hungary, poet, revolutionary (J os Vit‚z)
1827 - William Lewis "Old Tige" Cabell, Brig General (Confederate Army)
1831 - William Joseph Westbrook, composer
1838 - William Hugh Young, Brig General (Confederate Army), died in 1901
1843 - Nikolay Nikolayevich Lodizhensky, composer
1846 - Nikola Pasic, Serbian nationalist/premier (1891..1926)
1853 - Hans Koessler, composer
1854 - James Frazer, Britain, anthropologist/author (The Golden Bough)
1862 - Snitz Edwards, Hungary, actor (College, Phantom of the Opera)
1863 - Aleko Konstantinov, Bulgarian writer (To Chicago & Back)
1863 - Pierre de Coubertin, France, baron (revived Olympic games)
1864 - Alfred Stieglitz, US photographer/art dealer (Camera Work)
1865 - Giuseppe Ferrata, composer
1867 - Charles Edward Montague, English author/critic (Fiery Particles)
1867 - Lew Fields, comedian (of Weber & Fields)
1869 - Louis JM de la Vall‚e-Poussin, Belgian indologist
1873 - Mariano Azuela, Mexico, novelist (The Flies, The Bosses)
1874 - Hugo Leichtentritt, composer
1875 - Charles Rist, French economist
1875 - N F Druce, cricketer (5 Tests for England v Australia 1897-98)
1876 - Johan C Altorf, sculptor (October 3rd monument)
1878 - Edwin Franko Goldman, composer
1878 - Fran‡ois Ambrosiny, French dancer/choreograph (L'oiseau enchant‚)
1879 - Edward M Forster, England, novelist (Howards End, Passage to India)
1879 - Emile Argand, Swiss geologist (Dekbladen Theory)
1879 - Ernest Jones, British psychoanalyst (Life & Work of Sigmund Freud)
1879 - William Fox, US film pioneer (Nickelodeon)
1880 - Edie Martin, London England, actress (Titfield Thunderbolt)
1880 - Shalom Asch, Poland, yiddish writer (Motke Ganev)
1881 - Carry van Bridges, [de Haan], Dutch author (Heleen, Eva)
1882 - W C Wendelaar, mayor of Alkmaar (1919-34)/Dutch MP (VVD)
1883 - Federigo Tozzi, Italian writer/journalist (La Torre, Tre Croci)
1883 - [Hei]ko E Arnoldi, Dutch actor (3 Drops of Water)/theater director
1885 - Roland Diggle, composer
1887 - Wilhelm Canaris, German admiral/head German military intelligence
1889 - Alexander Smallens, St Petersburg, Russia, conductor
1889 - Charles Bickford, Cambridge Mass, actor (John-The Virginian)
1889 - Tadeusz Jarecki, composer
1889 - Tom Dugan, Dublin Ireland, actor (Circus Clown, Drag, Skyway)
1890 - Florence Lawrence, Hamilton Ont, silent screen actress (Confidence)
1891 - Frank Pettingell, Liverpool England, actor (Gaslight, Goose Steps Out)
1892 - Artur Rodzinski, Spalato, Dalmatia, Poland, conductor/composer
1892 - Manuel Roxas y Acuna, 1st president Philippines
1892 - Miklos Radnai, composer
1895 - J Edgar Hoover, Mr FBI
1895 - Nathaniel Shilkret, NYC, conductor
1896 - Maurice Jacobson, composer
1896 - Teinosuke Kinugasa, Japans actor/director (Jujiro, Jigoku-mon)
1896 - Yitzhak Edel, composer
1897 - Walter Greaza, St Paul Minn, actor (Martin Kane Private Eye)
1898 - George van Derton, Belgian
1898 - George van Derton, Belgian racer (won 500 race)
1898 - Viktor Ullmann, opera composer (Der Kaiser von Atlantis)
1899 - Juozas Tallat-Kelpsa, composer
1899 - Lev V Kuleshov, Russian director/theorist (Po Zakonu)
1899 - Raymond Loucheur, composer
1900 - Hubert van Doorne, Dutch auto manufacturer (DAF)
1900 - William Haines, Staunton VA, actor (Fast Life, Little Annie Rooney)
1900 - Xavier Cugat, Barcelona Spain, bandleader (married Abbe Lane, Charo)
1901 - Christine WI Wittewaall van Stoetwegen, Dutch MP (CDD)
1902 - Buster Nupen, cricketer (1-eyed South African quick, great on matting)
1902 - Dimiter Nenov, composer
1905 - Melvin Price, (Rep-D-IL, 1945- )
1906 - Frank Stack, Canada, speed skater (Olympic-bronze-1932)
1907 - Erich Schmid, composer
1908 - Kinue Hitoma, Japan, 800m runner (Oly-silver-1928)
1909 - Barry Goldwater, (Sen-R-Az, 1953-65, 69- )/Pres candidate (R) 1964)
1909 - D D Hindlekar, cricketer (Indian batsman & wicket-keeper 1936-46)
1909 - Dana Andrews, Collins Miss, actor (Battle of the Bulge, Laura)
1910 - Russ Bender, actor/writer (Amazing Colossal Man, Space Monster)
1911 - Endre Szervanszky, composer [or Dec 27]
1911 - Hank Greenberg, Hall-of-Fame 1st baseman (Detroit Tiger)
1912 - Kim Philby, British spy/Soviet mole
1912 - Victor Reuther, Wheeling WV, labor leader
1913 - Eliot Janeway, financial writer (Economics of Chaos)
1915 - Fran‡ois Bondy, writer
1915 - Lewis Bingham Keeble, town planner
1916 - Earl Wrightson, Balt Md, singer (Paul Whiteman's Goodyear Revue)
1918 - Willy den Ouden, Dutch swimmer, (WR 100m, 1:04.06)
1919 - Bernard Drukker, Dutch organist/pianist/orch leader (Devil's Wheel)
1919 - Carole Landis, Fairchild WI, actress (One Million BC, Topper Returns)
1919 - J[erome] D[avid] Salinger, NYC, novelist (Catcher in the Rye)
1920 - Elisabeth Andersen, [Anna de Bruyn], Dutch actress (Yerma, Titania)
1920 - Roger Peacock, writer
1921 - Alain Mimoun O'Kacha, Algerian/French cross country (Oly-gold-1956)
1922 - Ernest F Hollings, (Sen-D-SC, 1966- )
1923 - Chalmers Goodlin, US test pilot (XS-1)
1923 - Milton Jackson, US, vibraphonist (Milt of Bags)
1925 - George Conner, NFL tackle, linebacker (Chicago Bears)
1925 - Valentina Cortesa, Milan Italy, actress (Kidnap Syndicate)
1926 - Claire Polin [Schaff], composer flautist/musicologist
1927 - Barbara Baxley, Stockton CA, actress (Norma Rae, Countdown)
1927 - Juliusz Luciuk, composer
1927 - Maurice B‚jart, France, ballet choreographer (Rite of Spring)
1927 - Yuri Grigorovich, Leningrad, choreographer
1928 - Ernest R Tidyman, Ohio, novelist/screenwriter (French Connection)
1928 - Khan Mohammad, cricketer (Paki fast-med bowler, 54 wkts in 13 Tests)
1929 - Holling Gustav Vapor, character on Northern Exposure
1930 - Gaafar Muhammad Nimeiry, premier/president (Sudan)
1930 - Ty Hardin, NYC, actor (Riptide, Bronco) [or Jun 1]
1930 - Werner Heiden, composer
1931 - Carel Brons, composer
1931 - Siddig El Nigoumi, ceramicist
1932 - Arnfried G D P, Dutch manufacturer (breadcrumbs)/drugs dealer
1933 - Anders Bo Leif Linde, composer
1933 - James A Abrahamson, USAF/astronaut
1933 - Joe Orton, England, actor/dramatist (Prick Up Your Ears)
1935 - Harold Martina, Netherland Antilles, pianist/conductor
1935 - Valentin Nikolaevich N Benderov, Russia, cosmonaut
1936 - Eve Queler, NYC, conductor
1936 - Willye B White, US jumper (Olympics-silver-1956)
1938 - Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, Queen of Netherlands (1980- )
1938 - Bill Emerson, (Rep-R-MO, 1981- )
1940 - Frank Langella, Bayonne NJ, actor (Dracula, Diary of a Mad Housewife)
1940 - Jack Kiefer, Columbia PA, PGA golfer (1994 Ralphs Senior Classic)
1940 - Laszlo Sary, composer
1940 - Richard Henry Orton, composer
1942 - Country Joe McDonald, Calif, rock guitarist/vocalist (& the Fish)
1942 - Don Novello, [Father Guido Sarducci], Ashtabula Oh, comedian (SNL)
1942 - Gennadi Vassilyevich Sarafanov, USSR, cosmonaut (Soyuz 15)
1942 - George Couroupos, composer
1942 - Martin Frost, (Rep-D-TX, 1971- )
1943 - Jerilyn Britz, Minneapolis MN, LPGA golfer (1979 US Women's Open)
1944 - Charlie Davis, cricketer (WI batsman in 15 Tests 1968-73)
1945 - Jacques Ickx, Belgium, Le Mans auto race (6-time winner)
1946 - Manfred Stengl, Austria, 2 man lugist (Olympic-gold-1960)
1947 - Alexei Ivanovich Bobrov, Russia, cosmonaut
1947 - Gary "BB" Coleman, blues vocal/guitarist/producer
1947 - Peter Lankhorst, Dutch MP (PPR)
1947 - Vladimir Georgiyevich Titov, Rus cosmonaut (Soyuz T-8, TM-4, STS 63)
1949 - Nikolai Tikhonovich Moskalenko, Russia, cosmonaut
1949 - Peter Dormer, arts writer
1950 - Morgan Fisher, rock keyboardist (British Lions)
1950 - Svetlana Georgievna Beregovkina, Russia, cosmonaut
1950 - Yevgeni Vladimirovich Saley, cosmonaut
1951 - Frans Kellendonk, author (Ruin, The Good for Nothing)
1951 - Jaco Pastorius, rocker
1953 - Alpha Blondy, [Seydou Kone], Ivory coast, reggae singer (Jerusalem)
1953 - Kevin Hangon, composer
1953 - Rochelle S Abramson, violinist
1954 - Fr David, Paris France, rocker
1955 - Michael James Sullivan, Gary IN, PGA golfer (1980 Southern Open)
1956 - Anatoli Borisovich Polonsky, Russia, lt-colonel/cosmonaut
1956 - Sergei Vasiliyevich Avdeyev, Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-15, SK:TM-28)
1958 - Grandmaster Flash, [Joseph Saddler], NYC, rocker (Message)
1958 - Ren Woods, Portland Oregon, actress (Fanta-Roots)
1959 - Abdul Ahad Mohmand, Afghanistan, cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-6)
1960 - Michael David Morrison, actor (Caleb Snyder-As the World Turns)
1961 - Irv Eatman, NFL tackle (Houston Oilers)
1961 - Marcia Cross, actress (Melrose Place)
1962 - Ravshanbek Aliyev, Kirgiz, cosmonaut
1963 - Glenn Trimble, cricketer (son of Sam Two ODI's for Australia 1986)
1963 - Lance Smith, NFL guard (NY Giants)
1964 - DeDee Pfeiffer, actress (Cybill)
1965 - Andrew O Valmon, Brooklyn NY, 400m runner
1965 - Harry Galbreath, NFL guard (Green Bay Packers)
1965 - Mark Dewey, US baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates)
1966 - Mika Nieminen, Tampere FIN, hockey forward (Team Finland, Oly-br-1998)
1966 - Rawley Valberde, Oceanside Calif, actor (Amado-Santa Barbara)
1967 - Andy Heck, NFL tackle (Seattle Seahawk, Chicago Bears)
1967 - Derrick Thomas, NFL linebacker (KC Chiefs)
1968 - John de Visser, soccer player (SC Heerenveen)
1968 - Sandy Beasley, Richmond BC, softball outfielder (Olympics-96)
1969 - Morris Chestnut, actor (Boyz N the Hood)
1969 - Reemt Pyka, Bremerhaven GER, hockey forward (Team Germany)
1970 - Brian Morton, Wollongong Australia, canoeist (Olympics-96)
1970 - Tom Sier, soccer player (SC Heerenveen)
1970 - Vadim Glovatskiy, hockey defenseman (Team Kazakhstan Oly-1998)
1971 - Beno Bryant, WLAF running back (Amsterdam Admirals)
1971 - Bobby Holik, Jihlava Cze, NHL left wing (NJ Devils, Team Czech Rep)
1971 - Bridget Pettis, WNBA guard (Phoenix Mercury)
1971 - Kevin Lee, NFL wide receiver (NE Patriots)
1971 - Kevin Mitchell, NFL linebacker (SF 49ers)
1972 - Barron Miles, NFL def back (Pitts Steelers)/WLAF corner (Frankfurt)
1972 - Ivan Droppa, hockey defenseman (Team Slovakia 1998)
1973 - Clyde Wijnhard, soccer player (Ajax, RKC)
1973 - Fang Li, Hunan China, tennis star (1991 Futures-Bilbao-ESP)
1973 - Justin Armour, NFL wide receiver (Buffalo Bills)
1973 - Mercury Hayes, wide receiver (Atlanta Falcons)
1974 - Johnie Church, NFL defensive end (Seattle Seahawks)
1975 - Becky Kellar, ice hockey defenseman (Canada, Oly-98)
1975 - Chris Anstey, NBA center (Dallas Mavericks)

Famous deaths for this day ..

0379 - Basilius the Great, of Caesarea, saint (Moralia), dies
0404 - Telemachus, Roman monk, murdered
0898 - Odo, earl of Paris/king of France (888-98), dies at about 39
0962 - Boudouin III, count of Flanders, dies
1387 - Karel de Boze, king of Navarra (1349-87), dies
1502 - Gregorius XIII, [Ugo Buoncampagni], Italy, pope (1572-85), dies
1515 - Louis XII, "the Justified" king of France (1498-1515), dies at 52
1517 - Hermann Vischer, the Younger, German bronze merchant, dies
1557 - Jacques Cartier, French explorer (Canada), dies at 65
1559 - Christian III, king of Denmark/Norway (1534-59), dies
1560 - Guillaume du Bellay, Sieur de Langey, French soldier, dies
1617 - Hendrick Goltzius, Dutch painter/cartoonist/engraver, dies
1626 - Cornelis Pieterse Hoft, Amsterdam merchant/regent, dies at 68
1630 - Tetsugen, Zen teacher (Jodo sect converted to Obaku Zen), dies
1661 - Pieter Claesz, Dutch still life painter, dies at about 64
1701 - Pietro Sanmartini, composer, dies at 64
1716 - William Wycherley, dramatist (The Country Wife), dies at about 75
1730 - Daniel Finch, 2nd earl of Nottingham, dies at 82
1753 - Louis-Maurice de La Pierre, composer, dies at 55
1758 - Johann F von Cronegk, German playwright (Codrus), dies at 26
1766 - Frans E Jacobus III, Old Pretender, king of Gt Britain/Ireland, dies
1766 - James III Edward, Old Pretender/king of Gt Britain/Ireland, dies at 77
1768 - Jean-Laurent Krafft, composer, dies at 73
1777 - Emanuele Barbella, composer, dies at 58
1780 - Johann Ludwig Krebs, composer, dies at 66
1782 - Johann Christian Bach, German composer/Mozarts tutor, dies at 46
1783 - Jacobus Ensched‚, Haarlems printer, dies at 39
1784 - Patrice F earl de N‚ny, South Neth Secret Council chairman, dies at 67
1787 - Arthur Middleton, US farmer (signed Decl of Independence), dies at 44
1789 - Christleib Siegmund Binder, composer, dies at 65
1793 - Francesco Guardi, Italian painter, dies at 80
1800 - Louis J M Daubenton, France, zoologist, dies at 83
1816 - Fran‡ois Alexander Sallantin, composer, dies at 60
1817 - Martin H Klaproth, German chemist (uranium), dies at 73
1818 - Fedele Fenaroli, composer, dies at 87
1850 - Raphael G Kiesewetter, Austria musicologist, dies at 76
1887 - Johan Hendrik Koelman, portrait painter, dies at 66
1901 - Ignatius Donnelly, US attorney/lt-governor (Minnesota), dies at 69
1906 - Joseph Miroslav Weber, composer, dies at 51
1907 - Cyrill Kistler, composer, dies at 58
1919 - William W Campbell, Canadian poet (Ian of the Orcades), dies at 60
1920 - Paul Adam, French writer (L'enfant d'Austerlitz), dies at 57
1934 - Jakob Wassermann, writer, dies at 60
1942 - Jaroslav Jezek, composer, dies at 35
1944 - C T B Turner, cricket (17 Tests 1886-95, 101 wkt All time great), dies
1945 - Vit Nejedly, composer, dies at 33
1948 - Hermann K J Zilcher, German pianist/composer (Liebesmesse), dies at 66
1948 - Willem Louis Frederic Landre, composer, dies at 73
1949 - Malcolm Campbell, English cyclist (world speed-record), dies at 63
1953 - Hank Williams, country singer (Cold Cold Heart), dies at 29
1953 - Ludomir R¢zycki, Polish composer/conductor (Casanova), dies at 68
1957 - Ruth Draper, US elocutionist, dies at 67 or 72
1958 - David Broekman, musican (Think Fast), dies at 55
1960 - Margaret Sullavan, actress (Back Street), overdose at 48
1961 - Dashiell Hammett, author (Sam Spade, Maltese Falcon), dies at 66
1962 - Diego Mart¡nez Barrio, Spanish president (1939), dies at 76
1964 - Alf Hall, cricketer (S Afr lefty quick took 40 wkts in 7 Tests), dies
1964 - Otto Emanuel Olsson, composer, dies at 84
1964 - Rika Hopper, Dutch actress (Comedia, Anastasia), dies at about 86
1965 - Gertrude Michael, actress (Caged, Cleopatra), dies at 53
1965 - Juan Bautista Plaza-Alfonzo, composer, dies at 66
1966 - Vincent Auriol, President of France (1947-53), dies at 82
1967 - Maurice Leyland, cricketer (41 Tests for England, 2764 runs), dies
1967 - Moon Mullican, rocker, dies at 58
1969 - Barton Maclane, actor (Gen Peterson-I Dream of Jeannie), dies at 68
1969 - Ian Fleming, writer (James Bond), dies at 80
1972 - Jane Morgan, actress (Mrs Margaret Davis-Our Miss Brooks), dies at 91
1972 - Kenneth Patchen, US poet/writer (Cloth of Tempest), dies at 60
1972 - Maurice A Chevalier, French actor (Can Can, Gigi), dies at 83
1975 - Arthur Pierson, actor/director (Hat Check Girl), dies at 73
1980 - Frank Clifford Wykoff, sprinter (Olympic-gold-28, 32, 36), dies at 70
1980 - Pietro Nenni, Italian politician (Socialists), dies at 88
1982 - Paul Belmondo, French sculptor (Bathing Woman, Orl‚ans), dies at 83
1982 - Victor Buono, actor (Mr Schubert-Man from Atlantis), dies at 43
1982 - Vladimir K Zworykin, Russ/American engineer (cathode-ray tube), dies
1987 - Gustav Knuth, actor (Heidi, Rats), dies at 85
1988 - Leo Steiner, NY Carnegie Deli's owner, dies
1990 - Charles Boost, Dutch film critic, dies at 82
1990 - Gerhard Schr”der, West German minister of Defense, dies at 79
1990 - Joe Hardstaff Jr, cricketer (23 Tests for England, 1636 runs), dies
1990 - Suzuki Sochu, Zen teacher (Rinzai line)/abbot of Ryutakuji, dies
1991 - Charles B Timmer, Dutch writer (Russia Black on White), dies at 83
1991 - Yvonne Waegemans, Flemish author (Gnome Patjoepelke), dies at 81
1992 - Constantin Poustochkine, jazz critic, dies
1992 - Corky Geil, dancer, dies in Long Beach CA at 64
1992 - Ginette Leclerc, actress (Baker's Wife), dies at 79
1992 - Grace Hopper, computer scientist, dies at 85
1992 - Hette G Abma, vicar/Dutch MP (SGP), dies
1992 - Mike Frankovich, US producer (Guess Who's Coming to Dinner), dies
1993 - June Clayworth, actress (Bodyguard, Criminal Court), dies of lymphoma
1993 - Phyllis Hill, actress (Singing in the Dark), dies of lung cancer at 72
1994 - Cesar Romero, US actor (Joker-Batman), dies at 86
1994 - Werner Schwab, Austrian playwright (Female Presidents), dies at 35
1995 - Eugene Wigner, physicist (Nobel prize for physics-1963), dies at 92
1995 - Frederick West, Engl contractor/serial killer, commits suicide at 53
1995 - Jess Stacy, US jazz pianist (Great Gatsby), dies at 90
1995 - Ted Hawkins, US blues singer (Watch Your Step), dies at 58
1996 - Arleigh Albert Burke, British Admiral, dies at 94
1996 - Arthur Rudolph, rocket Engineer, dies at 89
1996 - Hamish Imlach, folk singer/comic, dies at 55
1997 - Graham Kersey, cricket wicket keeper, dies in car crash
1997 - Joan Rice, actress (Payroll, Steel Key, Curtain Up), dies at 66
1997 - John Burgess, rugby administrator, dies at 71
1997 - Townes Van Zandt, musician, dies at 52
1998 - Helen Wills Moody Roark, tennis ace (31 Grand Slams), dies at 92