Warning: Zend OPcache API is restricted by "restrict_api" configuration directive in /srv/users/serverpilot/apps/historylookup/public/wp-content/plugins/tubepress/vendor/tedivm/stash/src/Stash/Driver/FileSystem.php on line 253
Today July 23rd 2009 this day in history Read more below to view events, deaths, births, Holidays observances and video clips. Last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
1632 – Three hundred colonists bound for New France depart from Dieppe, France.
1793 – The Prussians conquer Mayence.
1829 – In the United States, William Austin Burt patents the Typographer, a precursor to the typewriter.
1833 – Cornerstones are laid for the construction of the Kirtland Temple in Kirtland, Ohio.
1840 – The Province of Canada is created by the Act of Union.
1862 – American Civil War: Henry W. Halleck takes command of the Union Army.
1874 – Aires de Ornelas e Vasconcelos is appointed the Archbishop of the Portuguese colonial enclave of Goa.
1881 – The Federation Internationale de Gymnastique, the world s oldest international sport federation, is founded.
1903 – The Ford Motor Company sells its first car.
1914 – Austria-Hungary issues an ultimatum to Serbia demanding Serbia to allow the Austrians to determine who assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Serbia rejects those demands and Austria declares war on July 28.
1926 – Fox Film buys the patents of the Movietone sound system for recording sound onto film.
1929 – The Fascist government in Italy bans the use of foreign words.
1936 – In Catalonia, Spain, the Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia is founded through the merger of socialist and communist parties.
1940 – United States Under Secretary of State Sumner Welles s declaration on the U.S. non-recognition policy of the Soviet annexation and incorporation of three Baltic States – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
1942 – The Holocaust: The Treblinka extermination camp is opened.
1942 – World War II: Operation Edelweiss begins.
1945 – The post war legal processes against Philippe Pétain begin.
1952 – Establishment of the European Coal and Steel community.
1952 – General Muhammad Naguib leads the Free Officers Movement (formed by Gamal Abdel Nasser – the real power behind the coup) in the overthrow of King Farouk of Egypt.
1956 – The Loi Cadre is passed by the French Republic in order to order French overseas territory affairs.
1961 – The Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) is founded in Nicaragua.
1962 – Telstar relays the first live trans-Atlantic television signal.
1962 – The International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos is signed.
1967 – 12th Street Riot: In Detroit, Michigan, one of the worst riots in United States history begins on 12th Street in the predominantly African American inner city (43 killed, 342 injured and 1,400 buildings burned).
1968 – Glenville Shootout: In Cleveland, Ohio, a violent shootout between a Black Militant organization led by Ahmed Evans and the Cleveland Police Department occurs. During the shootout, a riot begins that lasted for five days.
1968 – The only successful hijacking of an El Al aircraft takes place when a 707 carrying 10 crew and 38 passengers is taken over by three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The aircraft was en route from Rome, Italy, to Lod, Israel.
1970 – Qaboos ibn Sa’id becomes Sultan of Oman after overthrowing his father, Sa’id ibn Taimur.
1972 – The United States launches Landsat 1, the first Earth-resources satellite.
1982 – The International Whaling Commission decides to end commercial whaling by 1985-86.
1983 – The Sri Lankan Civil War begins with the killing of 13 Sri Lanka Army soldiers by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. In the subsequent government-organised pogrom of Black July, about 1,000 Tamils are slaughtered, some 400,000 Tamils flee to neighbouring Tamil Nadu, India and many find refuge in Europe and Canada.
1983 – Gimli Glider: Air Canada Flight 143 runs out of fuel and makes a deadstick landing at Gimli, Manitoba.
1984 – Vanessa Williams becomes the first Miss America to resign when she surrenders her crown after nude photos of her appeared in Penthouse magazine.
1986 – In London, Prince Andrew, Duke of York marries Sarah Ferguson at Westminster Abbey.
1988 – General Ne Win, effective ruler of Burma since 1962, resigns after pro-democracy protests.
1992 – A Vatican commission, led by Joseph Ratzinger, establishes that it is necessary to limit rights of homosexual people and non-married couples.
1992 – Abkhazia declares independence from Georgia.
1995 – Comet Hale-Bopp is discovered and becomes visible to the naked eye nearly a year later.
1997 – Digital Equipment Company files antitrust charges against chipmaker Intel.
1999 – Crown Prince Mohammed Ben Al-Hassan is crowned King Mohammed VI of Morocco on the death of his father.
1999 – ANA Flight 61 is hijacked in Tokyo, Japan.
2005 – Three bombs explode in the Naama Bay area of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, killing 88 people.
2008 – Cape Verde joins the World Trade Organization, becoming its 153rd member.
Births
645 – Yazid I, Sixth caliph of Islam (d. 683)
1301 – Duke Otto of Austria (d. 1339)
1339 – King Louis I of Naples (d. 1384)
1503 – Anna Jagello, Queen of the Romans (d. 1547)
1649 – Pope Clement XI (d. 1721)
1705 – Francis Blomefield, English topographer (d. 1752)
1775 – Etienne-Louis Malus, French physicist and mathematician (d. 1812)
1777 – Philipp Otto Runge, German painter (d. 1810)
1796 – Franz Berwald, Swedish composer (d. 1868)
1823 – Alexandre-Antonin Taché, Canadian Catholic priest and archbishop (d. 1894)
1838 – Edouard Judas Colonne, French violinist (d. 1910)
1851 – Charles Bannerman, Australian cricketer (d. 1930)
1856 – Lokmanya Tilak, Indian freedom fighter (d. 1920)
1864 – Apolinario Mabini, Filipino political theoretician and Prime Minister (d. 1903)
1865 – Max Heindel, Danish Christian occultist, astrologer, and mystic (d. 1919)
1884 – Emil Jannings, Swiss actor (d. 1950)
1885 – Georges V. Matchabelli, Perfumer (d. 1935)
1886 – Salvador de Madariaga, Spanish League of Nations official (d. 1978)
1886 – Walter H. Schottky, German physicist (d. 1976)
1888 – Raymond Chandler, American-born author (d. 1959)
1892 – Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia (d. 1975)
1894 – Arthur Treacher, English character actor (d. 1975)
1895 – Aileen Pringle, American actress (d. 1989)
1898 – Jacob Marschak, American economist (d. 1977)
1898 – Red Dutton, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1987)
1899 – Gustav Heinemann, 3rd President of the Federal Republic of Germany (d. 1976)
1901 – Hank Worden, American actor and rodeo cowboy (d. 1992)
1906 – Vladimir Prelog, Croatian chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1998)
1906 – Chandrasekhar Azad, Indian revolutionary (d. 1931)
1912 – Michael Wilding, English actor (d. 1979)
1913 – Michael Foot, English politician
1914 – Virgil Finlay, American horror illustrator (d. 1971)
1918 – Bueno de Mesquita Dutch comedian and actor (d. 2005)
1918 – Pee Wee Reese, American baseball player (d. 1999)
1920 – Amalia Rodrigues, Portuguese fado singer (d. 1999)
1921 – Calvert DeForest, American actor (d. 2007)
1923 – Luis Aloma, Cuban baseball player (d. 1997)
1923 – Cyril M. Kornbluth, American writer (d. 1958)
1923 – Amalia Mendoza, Mexican singer (d. 2001)
1924 – Gavin Lambert, British-born screenwriter (d. 2005)
1927 – Gérard Brach, French film director and screenwriter (d. 2006)
1928 – Hubert Selby Jr., American author (d. 2004)
1931 – Te Atairangi Kaahu, Maori Queen (d. 2006)
1931 – Guy Fournier, French Canadian author and screenwriter
1931 – Claude Fournier, French Canadian film director and screenwriter
1933 – Bert Convy, American game show host and performer (d. 1991)
1935 – Jim Hall, American race car driver and constructor (Chaparral Cars)
1935 – Hein Heinsen, Danish artist
1936 – Don Drysdale, American baseball player (d. 1993)
1936 – Anthony Kennedy, U.S. Supreme Court Justice
1937 – Dave Webster, Led his football team to a National Championship in 1958
1938 – Juliet Anderson, American pornographic actress
1938 – Ronny Cox, American actor
1938 – Götz George, German actor
1938 – Charles Harrelson, American convicted murderer; father of Woody Harrelson (d. 2007)
1938 – Bert Newton, Australian actor and television show host
1940 – Don Imus, American talk radio host
1941 – Richie Evans, 9 time NASCAR Modified Champion (died at Martinsville in 1985)
1942 – Myra Hindley, English murderer (d. 2002)
1942 – Sallyanne Atkinson, Australian politician
1943 – Dr. Randall Forsberg, American nuclear freeze advocate (d. 2007)
1943 – Tony Joe White, American singer and songwriter
1947 – Gardner Dozois, American author
1947 – David Essex, English singer
1947 – Torsten Palm, Swedish racing driver
1948 – John Cushnahan, Northern Irish politician
1948 – John Hall, American politician and former rock musician
1949 – Clive Rice, former South African cricketer
1950 – Alex Kozinski, Romanian-born American judge
1950 – Blair Thornton, Canadian guitarist (Bachman-Turner Overdrive)
1950 – Alan Turner, Australian cricketer
1951 – Edie McClurg, American actress
1952 – Bill Nyrop, American ice hockey player (d. 1995)
1952 – Paul Hibbert, Australian cricketer
1953 – Graham Gooch, English cricketer
1957 – Theo van Gogh, Dutch film director (d. 2004)
1957 – Nick Galis, Greek basketball player
1959 – Nancy Savoca, American filmmaker
1960 – Al Perez, American professional wrestler
1961 – Martin Lee Gore, English musician and songwriter (Depeche Mode)
1961 – Woody Harrelson, American actor
1961 – André Ducharme, Canadian (Québécois) humorist (Rock et Belles Oreilles) and author
1961 – Michael Durant, American Helicopter pilot, shot down and held captive in Mogadishu, Somalia
1962 – Eriq La Salle, American actor
1964 – Ed Forchion, American marijuana activist
1965 – Rob Dickinson, English musician
1965 – Slash, American guitarist (Guns N Roses)
1966 – Samantha Beckinsale, English actress
1967 – Philip Seymour Hoffman, American actor
1968 – Nick Menza, American musician, drummer
1968 – Gary Payton, American basketball player
1968 – Stephanie Seymour, American supermodel
1970 – Charisma Carpenter, American actress
1970 – Thea Dorn, German writer
1971 – Dalvin DeGrate, American singer
1971 – Alison Krauss, American singer and fiddler
1971 – Chris Michalek, American musician
1971 – Christopher Lee, Singaporean actor and model
1972 – Marlon Wayans, American actor
1972 – Floyd Reifer, West Indian cricketer
1973 – Nomar Garciaparra, American baseball player
1973 – Omar Epps, American actor
1973 – Francis Healy, Scottish rock musician (Travis)
1973 – Monica Lewinsky, American White House intern
1973 – Himesh Reshammiya, Indian Bollywood composer, singer and actor.
1974 – Terry Glenn, American football player
1974 – Maurice Greene, American athlete
1974 – Stephanie March, American actress
1974 – Sonny Siaki, Samoan-born professional wrestler
1974 – Rik Verbrugghe, Belgian cyclist
1974 – Kathryn Hahn, American actress
1975 – Seong Hyeon-ah, South Korean actress
1975 – Surya Sivakumar, Tamil actor
1976 – Judit Polgár, Hungarian chess player
1976 – Jonathan Gallant, Canadian musician (Billy Talent)
1977 – Neicer Reasco, Ecuadorian footballer
1977 – Scott Clemmensen, American ice hockey player
1978 – Stuart Elliott, Northern Irish footballer
1978 – Stefanie Sun, Singaporean singer
1979 – Perro Aguayo, Jr., Mexican professional wrestler
1979 – Ricardo Sperafico, Brazilian racing driver
1979 – Richard Sims, Zimbabwean cricketer
1980 – Michelle Williams, American singer (Destiny s Child)
1981 – Steve Jocz, Canadian drummer (Sum 41)
1981 – Jarkko Nieminen, Finnish tennis player
1982 – Gerald Wallace, American basketball player
1983 – Andrew Eiden, American actor
1983 – Bec Hewitt, Australian actress
1983 – Aaron Peirsol, American swimmer
1983 – David Strettle, English rugby player (Harlequins)
1984 – Brandon Roy, American professional basketball player
1984 – Matthew Murphy, English musician (The Wombats)
1985 – Luis Ángel Landín, Mexican footballer
1986 – Ayaka Komatsu, Japanese model and actress
1986 – Nelson Philippe, French racing driver
1986 – Reece Ritchie, English actor
1988 – Pippa Bennett-Warner, English actress
1989 – Daniel Radcliffe, English actor
1996 – Rachel G. Fox, American actress
Deaths
1227 – Qiu Chuji, Chinese Taoist (b. 1148)
1373 – Saint Birgitta, Swedish saint (b. 1303)
1403 – Thomas Percy, 1st Earl of Worcester, English rebel (executed) (b. 1343)
1531 – Louis de Brézé, seigneur d Anet, Marshal of Normandy and husband of Diane de Poitiers
1584 – John Day, English printer (b. 1522)
1692 – Gilles Ménage, French scholar (b. 1613)
1727 – Simon Harcourt, 1st Viscount Harcourt, Lord Chancellor of Great Britain
1757 – Domenico Scarlatti, Italian composer (b. 1685)
1764 – Gilbert Tennent, Irish-born religious leader (b. 1703)
1773 – George Edwards, English naturalist (b. 1693)
1781 – John Joachim Zubly, Swiss-born Continental Congressman (b. 1724)
1793 – Roger Sherman, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1721)
1833 – Anselmo de la Cruz, Chilean political figure (b. 1777)
1853 – Andries Pretorius, Boer leader (b. 1798)
1875 – Isaac Singer, American inventor and entrepreneur (b. 1811)
1878 – Carl Freiherr von Rokitansky, Bohemian physician (b. 1804)
1885 – Ulysses S. Grant, 18th President of the United States (b. 1822)
1916 – Sir William Ramsay, Scottish chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1852)
1920 – Conrad Kohrs, German-born rancher (b. 1835)
1923 – Pancho Villa, Mexican revolutionary (b. 1878)
1924 – Frank Frost Abbott, American classical scholar (b. 1850)
1930 – Glenn Curtiss, American aviation pioneer (b. 1878)
1932 – Tenby Davies, Welsh half-mile world champion runner (b. 1884)
1942 – Adam Czerniakow, Polish engineer (suicide) (b. 1880)
1942 – Andy Ducat, Former England cricketer and footballer (b. 1886)
1948 – D. W. Griffith, American film director (b. 1875)
1951 – Henri Philippe Pétain, leader of Vichy France (b. 1856)
1951 – Robert J. Flaherty, American filmmaker (b. 1884)
1955 – Cordell Hull, 47th United States Secretary of State, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1871)
1966 – Montgomery Clift, American actor (b. 1920)
1968 – Henry Hallett Dale, English scientist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1875)
1971 – Van Heflin, American actor (b. 1910)
1979 – Joseph Kessel, French journalist and novelist (b. 1898)
1980 – Mollie Steimer, anarchist agitator and American political prisoner (b. 1897)
1980 – Sarto Fournier, Mayor of Montreal (b. 1908)
1980 – Keith Godchaux, American pianist (Grateful Dead) (b. 1948)
1982 – Vic Morrow, American actor (b. 1929)
1983 – Georges Auric, French composer (b. 1899)
1985 – Johnny Wardle, English cricketer (b. 1923)
1989 – Donald Barthelme, American author (b. 1931)
1990 – Kenjiro Takayanagi, Japanese development of television (b. 1899)
1993 – James R. Jordan, Sr., father of Michael Jordan (b. 1936)
1996 – Aliki Vougiouklaki, Greek actress (b. 1934)
1997 – Chuhei Nambu, Japanese athlete (b. 1904)
1999 – King Hassan II of Morocco (b. 1929)
2001 – Eudora Welty, American author (b. 1909)
2002 – Leo McKern, Australian actor (b. 1920)
2002 – William Luther Pierce, American author and activist (b. 1933)
2002 – Chaim Potok, American novelist and rabbi (b. 1929)
2003 – James E. Davis, New York City councilman (murdered) (b. 1962)
2004 – Mehmood, Indian actor (b. 1932)
2004 – Carlos Paredes, Portuguese musician and composer (b. 1925)
2004 – Piero Piccioni, Italian musician, conductor and composer (b. 1921)
2004 – Serge Reggiani, French singer and actor (b. 1922)
2005 – Ted Greene, American jazz guitarist and teacher (b. 1946)
2006 – Jean-Paul Desbiens, Quebec writer and journalist (b. 1927)
2007 – Tor Kamata, American/Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1937)
2007 – Ron Miller, American songwriter and record producer (b. 1933)
2007 – Mohammed Zahir Shah, King of Afghanistan (b. 1914)
2008 – Kurt Furgler, member of the Swiss Federal Council (b. 1924)
Holidays and observances
Egypt – Revolution Day (1952)
Roman Empire – Neptunalia held in honor of Neptune
Rastafari movement – Celebration of the birthday of Haile Selassie
YouTube responded with an error: The request cannot be completed because you have exceeded your <a href="/youtube/v3/getting-started#quota">quota</a>.