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1960–Princess Margaret marries commoner, Antony Armstrong-Jones, whom the Queen ennobled as Lord Snowden. More than 20 million viewers watch the first televised Royal Wedding service which takes place at Westminster Abbey in London, England. They would later divorce, but he remained a friend of the family and acted as the Royal Photographer.


850–Emperor Ninmyo of Japan dies in Heian Kyo (Kyoto), at age 41.

932–Chinese warlord and king, Qian Liu, dies in Wuyue, China, at age 80. He founded the Wuyue kingdom.

973–Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor, is born in Abbach, Bavaria, Germany, Holy Roman Empire.

1187–Ruben III, Prince of Armenia, dies at Drazark Monastery in Adana province of (present-day) Turkey, at age 42.

1329–Maria of Calabria, Empress of Constantinople, is born. She was the fifth and posthumous child of Charles, Duke of Calabria (eldest son of King Robert the Wise of Naples), and Marie of Valois (sister of King Philip VI of France).

1397–Sejong the Great of Joseon, Ruler of Korea, is born in Hansung, Joseon. Sejong reinforced Confucian policies and executed major legal amendments. He also created the Korean alphabet Hangul, encouraged advancements of scientific technology, and instituted many other efforts to stabilize and improve prosperity.

1444–Bernardino of Siena, Italian-Spanish missionary and Saint, dies in Aquila, Italy, at age 63. According to tradition, his grave continued to leak blood until two factions of the city achieved reconciliation.

1483–Queen Jeonghui dies in the Kingdom of Joseon, at age 65.

1501–Pope Marcellus II, is born Marcello Cervini degli Spannochi in Montefano, Marche, Papal States.

1506–Italian explorer, Christopher Columbus, dies of Reiter's syndrome in Valladolid, Crown of Castile, Spain, at age 54. A citizen of the Republic of Genoa, under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean. Those voyages and his efforts to establish permanent settlements on the island of Hispaniola initiated the European colonization of the New World. He is attributed with the discovery of America.

1527–Spanish and German troops sack Rome, Italy, and Charles III, Duke of Bourbon, is killed. Some consider this the end of the Renaissance.

1536–King Henry VIII orders that translated Bibles be placed in every church.

1536–The Siege of Cuzco commences, in which Incan forces attempt to retake the city of Cuzco from the Spanish.

1542–Francis Xavier reaches Old Goa, the capital of Portuguese India.

1574–Pope Innocent X is born Giovanni Battista Pamphilj or Pamphili in Rome, Papal States.

1622–Ottoman sultan, Osman II, dies of strangulation in Yedikule Fortress, Istanbul, Ottoman Empire, at age 17. He had ascended the throne at the early age of 14, as the result of a coup d'état against his uncle, Mustafa.

1659–A faction of the British Army removes Richard Cromwell as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth and reinstalls the Rump Parliament.

1682–Louis XIV of France, moves his court to Versailles.

1757–A Prussian army fights an Austrian army in Prague, during the Seven Years' War.

1757–The Konbaung-Hanthawaddy War and the Burmese Civil War end.

1757–English poet, Christopher Smart, is admitted into St Luke's Hospital for Lunatics in London, England, beginning his six-year confinement to mental asylums.

1769–Ferdinand III, Grand Duke of Tuscany, is born Peter Leopold Joseph Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard in Florence, Italy.

1782–At the command of King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke, construction begins on the Grand Palace in Bangkok, the royal residence of the King of Siam.

1801–Captain Thomas Cochrane in the 14-gun HMS Speedy captures the 32-gun Spanish frigate El Gamo.

1833–John Deere makes the first steel plow.

1835–The first edition of The New York Herald is published. The price is 1¢.

1840–The first adhesive postage stamps, the Penny Black and the Twopenny Blue, go on sale in Great Britain.

1843–Geologist, Grove Karl Gilbert, is born in Rochester, New York. He investigated Lake Bonneville, in Utah.

1844–The Glaciarium, the world's first mechanically frozen ice rink, opens in London, England.

1851–Dr. John Gorrie patents a “refrigeration machine.”

1851–Linus Yale patents the Yale lock.

1856–Sigmund Freud, father of psycho-analysis, is born Sigismund Schlomo Freud in Freiberg, Moravia (present-day Czech Republic). He was a hardworking clinical neurologist in Vienna, Austria, and wrote important books on aphasia and cerebral paralysis in children. He then wrote his masterpiece The Interpretation of Dreams. He was the first to recognize the influence of unconscious drives, especially the sexuality of young children, in shaping behavior. Freud's redefinition of sexuality to include its infantile forms led him to formulate the Oedipus complex as the central tenet of psychoanalytical theory. His analysis of dreams as wish-fulfillments provided him with models for the clinical analysis of symptom formation and the underlying mechanisms of repression. On this basis, Freud elaborated his theory of the unconscious and went on to develop a model of psychic structure comprising id, ego, and super-ego. Freud postulated the existence of libido, an energy with which mental processes and structures are invested and which generates erotic attachments, and a death drive, the source of compulsive repetition, hate, aggression, and neurotic guilt.

1856–Arctic explorer, Robert Edwin Peary, is born in Cresson, Pennsylvania. He claimed to have reached the geographic North Pole with his expedition on April 6, 1909. Peary's claim was widely credited for most of the 20th century, rather than the competing claim by Frederick Cook, who said he got there a year earlier. Both claims were widely debated in newspapers until 1913.

1856–Metaphysicist, William Hamilton, dies in Edinburgh, Scotland, at age 68. In 1829, his career of authorship began with the appearance of the well-known essay on the "Philosophy of the Unconditioned," the first of a series of articles contributed by him to The Edinburgh Review.

1857–The British East India Company disbands the 34th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry.

1861–Arkansas and Tennessee become the ninth and tenth states to secede from the Union.

1861–Jefferson Davis approves a bill declaring war between the U.S. and the Confederacy.

1861–Indian freedom fighter, Motilal Nehru, is born in Agra, British India. He was the founder patriarch of the Nehru-Gandhi family.

1862–Writer, Henry David Thoreau, dies of bronchitis in Concord, Massachusetts, at age 44. Aware he was dying, Thoreau's last words were, "Now comes good sailing"; followed by two lone words, "moose" and "Indian." A leading transcendentalist, Thoreau is best known for his book, Walden (a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings), and his essay “Resistance to Civil Government” (also known as “Civil Disobedience”), an argument for disobedience to an unjust state.

1870–Amedos Peter Giannini, founder of Bank of America, is born in San Jose, California.

1873–José Antonio Páez, President of Venezuela, dies while living in exile in New York, New York, at age 82.

1877–Chief Crazy Horse, of the Oglala Sioux, surrenders to U.S. troops in Nebraska.

1880–William Joseph Simmons, Ku Klux Klan leader, is born in Harpersville, Alabama. He was actually the founder of the second Ku Klux Klan. As the nucleus of his revived Klan, Simmons organized a group of friends, in addition to two elderly men who had been members of the original Klan. On Thanksgiving night 1915, they climbed Stone Mountain to burn a cross and inaugurate the new Klan, with 15 charter members. The imagery of the burning cross, which had not been used by the original Klan, had been introduced by D.W. Griffith in the film The Birth of a Nation.

1882–The U.S. Congress ceases Chinese immigration.

1882–Thomas Henry Burke and Lord Frederick Cavendish are stabbed and killed during the Phoenix Park Murders in Dublin, Ireland.

1882–Wilhelm, German Crown Prince, is born Friedrich Wilhelm Victor August Ernst in Marmorpalais, Potsdam, Germany. He was the last Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Prussia and the German Empire.

1889–The Eiffel Tower, one of the most famous tourist attractions in the world, is inaugurated at the opening of the Universal Exhibition in Paris, France.

1890–The Mormon Church renounces polygamy.

1895–The 21st Kentucky Derby: Soup Perkins, riding Halma, wins in 2:37.

1895–Actor, Rudolph Valentino, is born Rodolfo Alfonso Raffaello Pierre Filibert Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguella in Castellaneta, Apulia, Italy. An early pop icon and a sex symbol of the 1920s, he was known as the "Latin Lover" or simply as "Valentino." He appeared in the silent films The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle, and The Son of the Sheik.

1896–The 22nd Kentucky Derby: Willie Simms, riding Ben Brush, wins in 2:07.

1898–Daniel Gerber, creator of Gerber baby food, is born in Freemont, Michigan.

1902–Macario Sakay establishes the Tagalog Republic with himself as President.

1903–Businessman, Alan Odell, who originated the famous Burma Shave road sign jingles, is born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He wrote them all for the first three years, then began taking submissions from the public.

1903–Raconteur-restaurateur, Toots Shor, is born Bernard Shor in New York. He ran three different establishments under the name Toots Shor’s Restaurant, but his first (and most renowned) was located at 51 West 51st Street. He was known as a saloonkeeper, friend, and confidant to some of New York's biggest celebrities during the 1930s and 1940s.

1906–The Russian Constitution is adopted.

1907–The 33rd Kentucky Derby: Andy Minder, riding Pink Star, wins in 2:12.

1910–King Edward VII dies of bronchitis at Buckingham Palace in London, England, at age 68. King George V ascends to the British throne.

1913–Pianist, Carmen Cavallaro, is born in New York, New York. He was known as one of the most accomplished and admired light music pianists of his generation.

1913–Actor, Stewart Granger, is born James Lablache Stewart in Kensington, London, England. He appeared in the films Caesar and Cleopatra, Caravan, King Solomon's Mines, Soldiers Three, The Prisoner of Zenda, North to Alaska, Sodom and Gomorrah, and The Hound of the Baskervilles. He was married to actress, Jean Simmons.

1915–Babe Ruth, a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, hits his first Major League home run.

1915–Actor and film director, (George) Orson Welles, is born in Kenosha, Wisconsin. A child prodigy, he made his stage debut at the Gate Theater in Dublin, Ireland, at the age of 16. Three years later, he was acting on Broadway. He directed a version of H.G. Wells's The War of the Worlds for radio in 1938, which was so realistic it caused a nationwide panic. Welles' first motion picture was Citizen Kane, made in 1941, when he was 25 years old. His other films include The Magnificent Ambersons, The Stranger, The Lady from Shanghai, Macbeth, Othello, Mr. Arkadin, Touch of Evil, The Trial, Chimes at Midnight, and The Immortal Story. He was married to actress, Rita Hayworth.

1916–Twenty-one Lebanese nationalists are executed by Djemal Pasha in Martyrs' Square in Beirut.

1916–Vietnamese Emperor Duy Tan is captured while attempting to call upon the people to rise up against the French, and is later deposed and exiled to Réunion Island.

1919–L. Frank Baum, author of The Wizard of Oz, dies from a stroke in Hollywood, California, at age 62. His last words were to his wife: "Now we can cross the Shifting Sands."

1923–Actress, Elizabeth Sellars, is born in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. She appeared in the films Floodtide, Guilt is My Shadow, Cloudburst, The Long Memory, Hunted, Forbidden Cargo, The Barefoot Contessa, Three Cases of Murder, The Day They Robbed the Bank of England, Never Let Go, The Chalk Garden, and The Mummy’s Shroud.

1924–Socialite, Patricia Kennedy Lawford, is born Patricia Helen Kennedy in Brookline, Massachusetts. She was the sixth of nine children of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. She was a sister of President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and Senator Ted Kennedy. Sher was married to actor, Peter Lawford.

1926–Film producer, Ross Hunter, is born Martin Terry Fuss in Cleveland, Ohio. While "Russ Hunter movies" were a hit with audiences, his work was largely dismissed by critics. Hunter later said, "I gave the public what they wanted: a chance to dream, to live vicariously, to see beautiful women, jewels, gorgeous clothes, melodrama." His films include All I Desire, Magnificent Obsession, One Desire, All That Heaven Allows, Tammy and the Bachelor, Interlude, My Man Godfrey, Imitation of Life, Pillow Talk, Portrait in Black, Midnight Lace, Tammy Tell Me True, Back Street, Flower Drum Song, If a Man Answers, Tammy and the Doctor, The Thrill of It All, The Chalk Garden, I’d Rather Be Rich, and Madame X.

1929–John Polk Allen, CEO of Biosphere 2, is born in Carnegie, Oklahoma.

1930–A 7.1 earthquake shakes northwestern Iran and southeastern Turkey. Up to 3,000 people are killed.

1931–Willie Mays, Hall of Fame baseball centerfielder, is born Willie Howard Mays, Jr. in Westfield, Alabama. He played for the New York Giants, the New York Mets, had 660 homeruns, and was named National League MVP in 1954.

1933–The Deutsche Studentenschaft attack Magnus Hirschfeld's Institut für Sexualwissenschaft, later burning many of its books.

1933–The 59th Kentucky Derby: Don Meade, riding Brokers Tip, wins in 2:06.

1935–The Works Progress Administration begins operation. During its existence, the WPA employed 8.5 million Americans.

1935–The Pulitzer Prizes are awarded. Reporting: William Taylor, of The New York Herald Tribune, for the series of articles on the international yacht races; Fiction: Now in November by Josephine Winslow Johnson (Simon & Schuster); Drama: The Old Maid by Zoe Akins (Appleton); History: The Colonial Period of American History by Charles McLean Andrews (Yale University Press); Biography or Autobiography: Biography of Robert E. Lee by Douglas S. Freeman (Scribner); Poetry: Bright Ambush by Audrey Wurdemann (John Day).

1936–Sylvia Robinson, of Mickey & Sylvia, is born Sylvia Vanderpool in New York, New York. The duo had a big hit in the 1950s with Love Is Strange. She was also known for her work as founder/CEO of the hip hop label Sugar Hill Records.

1937–The Hindenburg airship crashes in Lakehurst, New Jersey, killing 36 people. A photograph of the disaster is later used as the cover art for the first album of the heavy metal rock group, Led Zeppelin.

1937–Boxer, Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, is born in Clifton, New Jersey. His murder convictions for a wrongfully convicted triple homicide were overturned after 19 years in prison. Denzel Washington portrayed Carter in the 1999 film The Hurricane.

1939–The 65th Kentucky Derby: James Stout, riding Johnstown, wins in 2:03.

1940–The Pulitzer Prizes are awarded. Reporting: S. Burton Heath, of The New York World-Telegram, for his expose of the frauds perpetrated by Federal judge Martin T. Manton, who resigned and was tried and imprisoned; Fiction: The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (Viking); Drama: The Time of Your Life by William Saroyan (Harcourt); History: Abraham Lincoln–The War Years by Carl Sandburg (Harcourt); Biography or Autobiography: Woodrow Wilson, Life and Letters Vols. VII and VIII by Ray Stannard Baker (Doubleday); Poetry: Collected Poems by Mark Van Doren (Holt).

1941–Joseph Stalin becomes the Premier of Russia.

1941–The first flight of the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt takes place.

1941–Entertainer, Bob Hope, performs his first USO show at California's March Field.

1942–Captain Milton Miles arrives in Chungking, China, to begin building the intelligence and guerilla training organization, Naval Group China.

1942–On Corregidor, the last American forces in the Philippines surrender to the Japanese.

1944–The 70th Kentucky Derby: Conn McCreary, riding Pensive, wins in 2:04.

1945–During World War II, Axis Sally delivers her last propaganda broadcast to Allied troops.

1945–The Prague Offensive, the last major battle of the Eastern Front during World War II, begins.

1945–Rocker, Bob Seger, is born Robert Clark Seger in Dearborn, Michigan. In 1976, he achieved a national breakout with the studio album Night Moves. His many hits include Turn the Page, Still the Same, We've Got Tonight, Against the Wind, Like a Rock, and Shakedown. Seger also co-wrote the Eagles' number-one hit, Heartache Tonight, and his iconic recording of Old Time Rock and Roll was named one of the Songs of the Century in 2001.

1946–The Pulitzer Prizes are awarded. Reporting: William L. Laurence, of The New York Times, for his eye-witness account of the atom-bombing of Nagasaki and his subsequent ten articles on the development, production, and significance of the atomic bomb; Fiction: No award given; Drama: State of the Union by Russel Crouse and Howard Lindsay (Random); History: The Age of Jackson by Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. (Little); Biography or Autobiography: Son of the Wilderness by Linnie Marsh Wolfe (Knopf); Poetry: No award given; Photography: No award given; Music: Canticle of the Sun by Leo Sowerby (H.W. Gray).

1947–Dennis Cowan, bass player for The Bonzo Dog Band, is born in London, England.

1949–EDSAC, the first practical electronic digital stored-program computer, runs its first operation.

1949–Astronaut, David Cornell Leestma, is born in Muskegon, Michigan. A former U.S. Navy Captain, he was selected by NASA to become an astronaut in 1980.

1950–The 76th Kentucky Derby: William Boland, riding Middleground, wins in 2:01.

1950–Actress, Elizabeth Taylor, marries her first husband, hotel heir, Conrad "Nicky" Hilton.

1950–Robbie McIntosh, drummer for The Average White Band, is born Robert Broderick James McIntosh in Dundee, Scotland.

1952–Maria Montessori, Italian physician and educator, dies of a cerebral hemorrhage in Noordwijk, South Holland, Netherlands, at age 81. She is best known for the philosophy of education that bears her name, and her writing on scientific pedagogy. Her educational method is in use today in public and private schools throughout the world.

1953–Tony Blair, British Prime Minister (1997-2007), is born Anthony Charles Lynton Blair in Edinburgh, Scotland.

1953–Actress, Lynn Whitfield, is born Lynn Butler-Smith in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She appeared in the films Doctor Detroit, The Slugger's Wife, Silverado, A Thin Line Between Love and Hate, Stepmom, and Madea's Family Reunion.

1954–Roger Bannister becomes the first person to run the mile in under four minutes.

1955–West Germany joins NATO.

1955–Astronaut, Donald A. Thomas, is born in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1988, he joined NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center as a Materials Engineer. His work involved lifetime projections of advanced composite materials for use on Space Station Freedom.

1957–Chuck Berry records Rock and Roll Music.

1957–The last episode of I Love Lucy is broadcast on CBS-TV.

1957–The Pulitzer Prizes are awarded. Reporting: Russell Jones, of United Press International, for his excellent and sustained coverage of the Hungarian revolt against Communist domination; Fiction: No award given; Drama: Long Day's Journey Into Night by Eugene O'Neill (Yale University Press); History: Russia Leaves the War–Soviet-American Relations 1917-1920 by George F. Kennan (Princeton University Press); Biography or Autobiography: Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy (Harper); Poetry: Things of This World by Richard Wilbur (Harcourt); Photography: Harry A. Trask, of The Boston Traveler, for his dramatic and outstanding photographic sequence of the sinking of the liner SS Andrea Doria; Music: Meditations on Ecclesiastes by Norman Dello Joio (C. Fischer).

1958–A chart topper: All I Have To Do Is Dream by The Everly Brothers.

1959–The 11th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards announces its winners. Best Dramatic Series: Alcoa-Goodyear Theatre; Best Dramatic Anthology Series: Playhouse 90; Best Comedy Series: The Jack Benny Show; Best Musical or Variety Series: The Dinah Shore Chevy Show; Best Western Series: Maverick; Best Panel, Quiz or Audience Participation Series: What’s My Line?; Best Public Service Program: Omnibus; Best New Series: The Seven Lively Arts; Best Actor: Raymond Burr; Best Actress: Loretta Young; Best Comedy Actor: Jack Benny; Best Comedy Actress: Jane Wyatt. The ceremonies are held at the Moulin Rouge Nightclub in Hollywood, California. The host is Raymond Burr. For the first time in Emmy history, all major categories were spilt into genre-specific fields, this would become standard for later ceremonies.

1960–Princess Margaret marries commoner, Antony Armstrong-Jones, whom the Queen ennobled as Lord Snowden. More than 20 million viewers watch the first televised Royal Wedding service which takes place at Westminster Abbey in London, England. They would later divorce, but he remained a friend of the family and acted as the Royal Photographer.

1960–President Eisenhower signs the Civil Rights Act of 1960.

1960–Actress, Roma Downey, is born in Derry, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. She is best known for her starring role in the TV series Touched by an Angel. She is married to film and television producer, Mark Burnett.

1961–The 87th Kentucky Derby: John Sellers, riding Carry Back, wins in 2:04.

1961–Actor, George (Timothy) Clooney, is born in Lexington, Kentucky. He appeared in the films From Dusk till Dawn, One Fine Day, Batman & Robin, The Perfect Storm, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Ocean's Eleven, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Solaris, The Jacket, Rumor Has It..., Michael Clayton, The Men Who Stare at Goats, Argo, Gravity, The Monuments Men, Tomorrowland, and Money Monster. His father was radio personality, Nick Clooney, and his aunt was singer, Rosemary Clooney.

1962–Antonio Segni is elected President of Italy.

1962–Martín de Porres is canonized by Pope John XXIII.

1962–The U.S. conducts a nuclear test at the Pacific Ocean.

1962–The first Beatles Fan Club is formed in Liverpool, England.

1963–The Pulitzer Prizes are awarded. Reporting: Hal Hendrix, of The Miami News, for his persistent reporting which revealed at an early stage that the Soviet Union was installing missile launching pads in Cuba and sending in large numbers of MIG-21 aircraft; Fiction: The Reivers by William Faulkner (Random); Drama: No award given; Non-fiction: The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman (Macmillan); History: Washington, Village and Capital 1800-1878 by Constance McLaughlin Green (Princeton University Press); Biography or Autobiography: Henry James by Leon Edel (Lippincott); Poetry: Pictures from Brueghel by William Carlos Williams (New Directions); Photography: Hector Rondon, of the Venezuelan newspaper, La Republica, for his remarkable picture of a priest holding a wounded soldier in the 1962 El Porteñazo insurrection in Venezuela “Aid From The Padre”; Music: Piano Concerto No. 1 by Samuel Barber (Schirmer).

1963–Actor, Monty Wooley, dies from complications of kidney and heart ailments in Albany, New York,at age 74. He appeared in the films The Girl of the Golden West, Young Dr. Kildare, Midnight, Never Say Die, The Man Who Came to Dinner, The Pied Piper, Since You Went Away, Irish Eyes Are Smiling, Molly and Me, Night and Day, The Bishop's Wife, and Kismet.

1964–Actress, Dana Hill, is born Dana Lynne Goetz in Encino, California. She appeared in the films Fallen Angel, Shoot the Moon, A Member of the Wedding, Cross Creek, and National Lampoon’s European Vacation.

1965–Singer, Marianne Faithfull, marries her second husband, artist, John Dunbar, at the registry office in Cambridge, England. Within six months she will be living with Rolling Stone, Mick Jagger, who had written her hit song As Tears Go By.

1966–Myra Hindley and Ian Brady are sentenced to life imprisonment for the Moors Murders in England.

1967–Zakir Hussain is elected the first Muslim President of India.

1967–The 93rd Kentucky Derby: Bobby Ussery, riding Proud Clarion, wins in 2:00.

1968–The worst street fighting in Paris, France, since the city's liberation at the end of World War II, shakes the Left Bank, as students and police fight for control of the fashionable Boulevard St. Germain.

1971–Chris Shiflett, guitarist for The Foo Fighters, is born Christopher Aubrey Shiflett in Santa Barbara, California.

1972–The 98th Kentucky Derby: Ron Turcotte, riding Riva Ridge, wins in 2:01.

1975–During a lull in fighting, 100,000 Armenians gather in Beirut to commemorate 60th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

1975–A massive tornado hits Omaha, Nebraska, killing three people, injuring 133 others, and causing $150 million damage. The tornado strikes during the late afternoon, moving through the industrial and residential areas of west central Omaha, and lifting over the northern section of the city.

1976–An earthquake strikes Friuli, causing 989 deaths and the destruction of entire villages.

1977–The Beatles’ LP The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl is released in the U.S. (Capitol) and the UK (Parlophone). For over a decade these recordings had languished in the Capitol Records vaults, having been determined by all concerned at the time that they were useless. When Capitol contacted George Martin about the tapes, and he realized that he could clean them up, he contacted all former Beatles and got their approval to go ahead with the project.

1978–The 104th Kentucky Derby: Steve Cauthen, riding Affirmed, wins in 2:01.

1979–The USSR conducts a nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh.

1981–Yale architecture student, Maya Ying Lin, is named winner of a competition to design the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

1983–The Hitler Diaries are revealed as a hoax after examination by experts.

1984–Pope John Paul II canonizes 103 Korean Martyrs in Seoul, Korea.

1985–People magazine features an article about John Lennon's half-sister Julia Dykins Baird. Mention is made about two other half-sisters of Lennon's: Jacqueline Gertrude Dykins and Victoria Elizabeth Lennon (whose father is unidentified). Victoria was given up for adoption shortly after her birth.

1986–France conducts a nuclear test at Muruora Island.

1987–The USSR conducts a nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh.

1987–William J. Casey, Director of the CIA (1981-1987), dies at age 73.

1989–Cedar Point opens Magnum XL-200, the first roller coaster to break the 200 foot height barrier, spawning what is known as the "coaster wars."

1989–The 115th Kentucky Derby: Pat Valenzuela, riding Sunday Silence, wins in 2:05.

1989–Actor, Guy Williams, dies at age 65. He starred in two TV series: Zorro and Lost in Space.

1991–Actor, Wilfrid Hyde-White, dies of natural causes at the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills, California, at age 87. He appeared in the films Bulldog Drummond at Bay, Murder in the Family, The Winslow Boy, Quartet, The Passionate Friends, The Third Man, The Browning Version, The Vicious Circle, Libel, Two-Way Stretch, Let's Make Love, Ada, My Fair Lady, Ten Little Indians, and The Magic Christian.

1992–Actress, Marlene Dietrich, dies of renal failure in Paris, France, at age 90. She spent the final 11 years of her life mostly bedridden, allowing only a select few, including family and employees, to enter her apartment. She appeared in the films The Blue Angel, Morocco, Destry Rides Again, The Lady is Willing, Kismet, Follow the Boys, A Foreign Affair, Stage Fright, Rancho Notorious, Witness for the Prosecution, Touch of Evil, Judgment at Nuremberg, and Paris When It Sizzles.

1994–The Channel Tunnel opens, linking Britain and France for the first time since the Ice Age. Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and French President François Mitterrand officiate at the opening.

1994–Former Arkansas state worker, Paula Jones, files suit against President Bill Clinton, alleging he had sexually harassed her in 1991.

1994–Comedian, Bobcat Goldthwait, sets fire to the couch on The Tonight Show.

1994–Lennox Lewis defeats Phil Jackson in Round 8 for the Heavyweight Boxing Championship.

1994–Blues singer and guitarist, Haskell “Cool Papa” Sadler, dies in Berkeley, California, at age 59.

1995–The 121st Kentucky Derby: Gary Stevens, riding Thunder Gulch, wins in 2:01.

1996–The body of former CIA Director, William Colby, is found washed up on a riverbank in southern Maryland, eight days after he disappeared.

1997–The Bank of England is given independence from political control. This is the most significant change in the bank's 300-year history.

1997–The 12th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony is held. This year’s inductees are: (Performers) Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Joni Mitchell, The (Young) Rascals, The Bee Gees, The Jackson 5, and Parliament-Funkadelic; (Non-Performer) Syd Nathan; and (Early Influence) Bill Monroe and Mahalia Jackson. For the first time the ceremony takes place at The Rock and Roll Hall and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio.

1998–George Harrison testifies in an English court in another attempt by The Beatles to prevent a new release of the “Star-Club Tapes.” Harrison calls the recording the "crummiest" ever in the group's career, referring to the performance as "a lot of teen-agers getting drunk and playing rock and roll." The man who made the recording of The Beatles on December 31, 1962, Ed “King-Size” Taylor, had previously testified that John Lennon had given him permission to make the recording. In rebuttal, Harrison remarks: "One drunken person recording another bunch of drunks does not constitute business deals. The only person who allegedly heard anything about it is dead, who can't actually come here and say it's a load of rubbish." When asked what he remembered about the Star-Club, he says: “It was a really rough place and the waiters used to let off tear-gas to get rid of the sailors if a fight started. I kept well out of it. But there were also some quite nice people who went to the club. They weren’t all gangsters and transvestites... there were teenagers and art students. But by 2:00 a.m. on Saturday night, it was hell!”

1999–The first elections to the devolved Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly are held.

2000–The 126th Kentucky Derby: Kent Desormeaux, riding Fusaichi Pegasus, wins in 2:01.

2001–During a trip to Syria, Pope John Paul II becomes the first pope to enter a mosque.

2002–Dutch politician, Pim Fortuyn, is assassinated following a radio interview at the Mediapark in Hilversum.

2002–Singer-songwriter, Otis Blackwell, dies of a heart attack in Nashville, Tennessee, at age 71. Throughout his lifetime, Blackwell composed more than 1,000 songs, with worldwide sales of close to 200 million records.

2004–The finale of the TV sitcom Friends is aired on NBC-TV. The broadcast attracts 52.46 million viewers, making it the sixth most watched television series finale in U.S. history.

2006–The 132nd Kentucky Derby: Edgar Prado riding Barbaro, wins in 2:01.

2006–Lillian Asplund, the last American RMS Titanic survivor, dies in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, at age 99. Lillian's mother (who also survived) refused to discuss the disaster with anyone, saying that it was simply wrong to do so. Lillian agreed and throughout the rest of her life hardly ever spoke of the dramatic event.

2008–The Chaiten Volcano erupts in Chile, forcing the evacuation of more than 4,500 people.

2008–Cher returns to the stage in the first of 200 planned shows at the Las Vegas Coliseum, marking her final three-year retirement tour.

2010–In just 36 minutes, the U.S. stock market plunged nearly a 1,000 points in what is known as the 2010 Flash Crash. Stock indexes, such as the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq Composite, collapsed and rebounded very rapidly.

2012–Francois Hollande is elected President of France.

2012–Actor, George Lindsey, dies in Nashville, Tennessee, at age 83. He is best known for the role of Goober Pyle on the TV series The Andy Griffith Show.

2013–After a wave of attacks across Iraq, 10 people are killed and 26 people are injured.

2013–Three women missing for more than a decade are found alive in Cleveland, Ohio. Their captor, Ariel Castro, is taken into custody.

2014–Naturalist and author, Farley Mowat, dies in Cobourg, Ontario, Canada, at age 92. He wrote more than 30 books, many of them about the environment, including The People of the Deer and Never Cry Wolf.

2015–Musician, Adam Levin, of Maroon 5, is “sugar-bombed” (hit with a bag of powdered sugar) as he enters the studio to appear on the talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live. The alleged perpetrator is arrested on suspicion of battery.

2016–The Workers' Party of Korea, the ruling party of North Korea, holds its first party congress in nearly 40 years. The meeting comes as the country is facing tougher sanctions for its recent missile launches.

2016–Voters in London, England, elect Sadiq Khan to succeed Boris Johnson as Mayor of London. He is the first Muslim to be elected to such an authoritative position.

2017–In-N-Out Burger heiress, Lynsi Snyder, becomes a billionaire on her 35th birthday: she is now one of the wealthiest women in the United States. Her grandparents, Harry and Esther Snyder, founded the drive-through hamburger chain in 1948.

2017–The 143rd Kentucky Derby: John Velazquez riding Always Dreaming, wins in 2:03.59.

2017–American comedian and Late Show host, Stephen Colbert, is investigated by the Federal Communications Commission over a sexually explicit joke about President Donald Trump.

2018–In what is called A Day of Freedom, thousands of people rally in support of freedom of speech in London, England, amid a recent crackdown on social media. Guest speakers include former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson, Vice magazine co-founder Gavin McInnes, and U.K. Independence Party (UKIP) leader Gerard Batten.

2018–Flash floods in Ankara, Turkey, cause transportation issues and damage buildings.


PHOTOS TOP TO BOTTOM: King Sejong; Christopher Columbus; Britain's Penny Black postage stamp; William Hamilton; Chief Crazy Horse; an early Gerber baby food ad; Orson Welles; Willie Mays; the Hindenberg exploding; Bob Hope arrives for his first USO show at California's March Field; Lynn Whitfield; All I Have To Do Is Dream by The Everly Brothers; George Clooney; Monty Woolley; Zakir Hussain; The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl LP; Julia Baird; Marlene Dietrich; the Bank of England; Otis Blackwell; and George Lindsey.
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