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Today November 21st 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
164 BC – Judas Maccabaeus, son of Mattathias of the Hasmonean family, restores the Temple in Jerusalem. This event is commemorated each year by the festival of Hanukkah.
1272 – Following Henry III of England s death on November 16, his son Prince Edward becomes King of England.
1620 – Plymouth Colony settlers sign the Mayflower Compact (November 11, O.S.).
1783 – In Paris, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent, Marquis d Arlandes, make the first untethered hot air balloon flight.
1789 – North Carolina ratifies the United States Constitution and is admitted as the 12th U.S. state.
1791 – Colonel Napoléon Bonaparte is promoted to full general and appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Armies of the French Republic.
1861 – American Civil War: Confederate President Jefferson Davis appoints Judah Benjamin secretary of war.
1877 – Thomas Edison announces his invention of the phonograph, a machine that can record and play sound.
1894 – Port Arthur massacre: Port Arthur, Manchuria falls to the Japanese, a decisive victory of the First Sino-Japanese War.
1905 – Albert Einstein s paper, Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon Its Energy Content?, is published in the journal Annalen der Physik. This paper reveals the relationship between energy and mass. This leads to the mass–energy equivalence formula E = mc².
1916 – World War I: A mine explodes and sinks HMHS Britannic in the Aegean Sea, killing 30 people.
1920 – Bloody Sunday during the Anglo-Irish War.
1922 – Rebecca Latimer Felton of Georgia takes the oath of office, becoming the first female United States Senator.
1927 – Columbine Mine Massacre: Striking coal miners are allegedly attacked with machine guns by a detachment of state police dressed in civilian clothes.
1942 – The completion of the Alaska Highway (also known as the Alcan Highway) is celebrated (however, the highway was not usable by general vehicles until 1943).
1953 – The British Natural History Museum announces that the Piltdown Man skull, initially believed to be one of the most important fossilized hominid skulls ever found, is a hoax.
1962 – The Chinese People s Liberation Army declares a unilateral cease-fire in the Sino-Indian War.
1964 – The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge opens to traffic (at the time it was the world s longest suspension bridge).
1964 – Second Vatican Council: The third session of the Roman Catholic Church s ecumenical council closes.
1967 – Vietnam War: American General William Westmoreland tells news reporters: I am absolutely certain that whereas in 1965 the enemy was winning, today he is certainly losing.
1969 – U.S. President Richard Nixon and Japanese Premier Eisaku Sato agree in Washington, D.C. on the return of Okinawa to Japanese control in 1972. Under the terms of the agreement, the U.S. is to retain its rights to bases on the island, but these are to be nuclear-free.
1969 – The first permanent ARPANET link is established between UCLA and SRI.
1970 – Vietnam War: Operation Ivory Coast – A joint Air Force and Army team raids the Son Tay prison camp in an attempt to free American prisoners of war thought to be held there.
1971 – Indian troops, partly aided by Mukti Bahini (Bengali guerrillas), defeat the Pakistan army in the Battle of Garibpur.
1974 – The Birmingham Pub Bombings perpetrated by the IRA kill 21 people. The Birmingham Six were sentenced to life in prison for the crime but subsequently acquitted.
1977 – Minister of Internal Affairs Allan Highet announces that the national anthems of New Zealand shall be the traditional anthem God Save the Queen and the poem God Defend New Zealand, written by Thomas Bracken, as set to music by John Joseph Woods, both being of equal status as national anthems appropriate to the occasion.
1979 – The United States Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan is attacked by a mob and set alight, killing four. (see: Foreign relations of Pakistan)
1980 – A deadly fire breaks out at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada (now Bally s Las Vegas). 87 people are killed and more than 650 are injured in the worst disaster in Nevada history.
1980 – Lake Peigneur drains into an underlying salt deposit. A misplaced Texaco oil probe had been drilled into the Diamond Crystal Salt Mine, causing water to flow down into the mine, eroding the edges of the hole. The resulting whirlpool sucked the drilling platform, several barges, houses and trees thousands of feet down to the bottom of the dissolving salt deposit.
1985 – United States Navy intelligence analyst Jonathan Pollard is arrested for spying after being caught giving Israel classified information on Arab nations. He is subsequently sentenced to life in prison.
1986 – Iran-Contra Affair: National Security Council member Oliver North and his secretary start to shred documents implicating them in the sale of weapons to Iran and channeling the proceeds to help fund the Contra rebels in Nicaragua.
1988 – Canadian federal election, 1988 – Canadians re-elect the Progressive Conservative government of Brian Mulroney after an election campaign fought mainly over the issue of the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement.
1990 – The Charter of Paris for a New Europe refocuses the efforts of the Conference for Security and Co-operation in Europeon post-Cold War issues.
1995 – The Dayton Peace Agreement is initialed at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base, near Dayton, Ohio, ending three and a half years of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The agreement was formally ratified in Paris, on December 14 that same year.
1996 – A propane explosion at the Humberto Vidal shoe store and office building in San Juan, Puerto Rico kills 33.
2002 – NATO invites Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia to become members.
2004 – The second round of the Ukrainian presidential election is held, giving rise to massive protests and controversy over the election s integrity.
2004 – The island of Dominica is hit by the most destructive earthquake in its history. The northern half of the island receives the most damage, especially the town of Portsmouth. It is also felt in neighboring Guadeloupe, where one person is killed.
2004 – The Paris Club agrees to write off 80% (up to $100 billion) of Iraq s external debt.
2006 – Anti-Syrian Lebanese Minister and MP Pierre Gemayel is assassinated in suburban Beirut.
Births
1495 – John Bale, English churchman (d. 1563)
1567 – Anne de Xainctonge, French saint (d. 1621)
1692 – Carlo Innocenzio Maria Frugoni, Italian poet (d. 1768)
1694 – Voltaire, French philosopher (d. 1778)
1729 – Josiah Bartlett, Second Signer of the Declaration of Independence (d. 1795)
1761 – Dorothy Jordan, British actress (d. 1816)
1768 – Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher, German theologian (d. 1834)
1787 – Samuel Cunard, Canadian-born shipping magnate (d. 1865)
1811 – Zeng Guofan, Chinese military leader (d. 1872)
1835 – Hetty Green, American businesswoman (d. 1916)
1840 – Victoria, Princess Royal of Great Britain and German Empress (d. 1901)
1852 – Francisco Tárrega, father of modern classical guitar (d. 1909)
1854 – Pope Benedict XV (d. 1922)
1860 – Tom Horn, American gunman (d. 1903)
1870 – Joe Darling, Australian cricketer (d. 1946)
1870 – Sigfrid Edström, Swedish sports official (d. 1964)
1878 – Gustav Radbruch, German law professor (d. 1949)
1886 – Harold Nicolson, British diplomat (d. 1968)
1897 – Mollie Steimer anarchist agitator (d. 1980)
1898 – René Magritte, Belgian painter (d. 1967)
1899 – Jobyna Ralston, American actress (d. 1967)
1902 – Foster Hewitt, Canadian radio pioneer (d. 1985)
1904 – Coleman Hawkins, American musician (d. 1969)
1908 – Elizabeth George Speare, American author (d. 1994)
1912 – Eleanor Powell, American actress and dancer (d. 1983)
1913 – Roy Boulting, British film director (d. 2001)
1916 – Sid Luckman, American football player (d. 1998)
1919 – Steve Brodie, American actor (d. 1992)
1920 – Ralph Meeker, American actor (d. 1988)
1920 – Stan Musial, American baseball player
1921 – Joonas Kokkonen, Finnish composer (d. 1996)
1922 – Maria Casares, Spanish-born actress (d. 1996)
1922 – Abe Lemons, American basketball coach (d. 2002)
1924 – Christopher Tolkien, British author
1927 – Georgia Frontiere, co-owner of the St. Louis Rams (d. 2008)
1929 – Laurier LaPierre, Canadian journalist, broadcaster and senator
1929 – Marilyn French, American feminist writer
1931 – Revaz Dogonadze, Georgian scientist (d. 1985)
1931 – Malcolm Williamson, Australian composer (d. 2003)
1933 – Joseph Campanella, American actor
1935 – Fairuz, Lebanese singer
1936 – Victor Chang, Australian physician (d. 1991)
1937 – Marlo Thomas, American actress
1939 – Budd Dwyer, American politician (d. 1987)
1940 – Dr. John, American musician
1940 – Richard Marcinko, American author
1941 – Idil Biret, Turkish pianist
1941 – Juliet Mills, British actress
1942 – Afa Anoa i, Samoan/American wrestler
1942 – Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul, German politician
1943 – Phil Bredesen, American politician
1943 – Larry Mahan, American rodeo cowboy
1943 – Viktor Sidjak, Russian fencer
1943 – Jacques Laffite, French former racing driver
1944 – Richard Durbin, American politician
1944 – Earl Monroe, American basketball player
1944 – Harold Ramis, American actor/director
1945 – Goldie Hawn, American actress
1946 – Jacky Lafon, Belgian actress
1948 – George Zimmer, American entrepreneur
1948 – Alphonse Mouzon, American jazzist
1950 – Stephen Geyer, American film & television songwriter
1950 – Alberto Juantorena, Cuban athlete
1952 – Lorna Luft, American actress and singer, daughter of Judy Garland
1954 – Thomas Rothman, American film executive
1955 – Cedric Maxwell, American basketball player
1960 – Brian McNamara, American actor
1960 – Brian Ritchie, American musician (Violent Femmes)
1962 – Steven Curtis Chapman, American musician
1962 – Sabine Busch, German athlete
1963 – Nicollette Sheridan, British actress
1964 – Olden Polynice, Haitian basketball player
1964 – Liza Tarbuck, British entertainer
1964 – Shane Douglas, American wrestler
1965 – Björk, Icelandic musician
1965 – Reggie Lewis, American basketball player (d. 1993)
1965 – Alexander Siddig, British actor
1966 – Troy Aikman, American football player
1967 – Tripp Cromer, American baseball player
1967 – Toshihiko Koga, Japanese Judoka
1968 – Alex James, English bassist (Blur)
1968 – Christopher Noxon, American journalist
1969 – Ken Griffey, Jr., American baseball player
1970 – Justin Langer, Australian cricketer
1971 – Michael Strahan, American football player
1972 – Rain Phoenix, American singer/actress
1972 – David Tua, Samoan boxer
1973 – Brook Kerr, American actress
1973 – Inés Sastre, Spanish model and actress
1975 – Cherie Johnson, American actress
1975 – Chris Moneymaker, American poker player
1976 – Michael Wilson, Australian rules footballer
1976 – Dasha, Czech adult actress
1976 – Martin Meichelbeck, German footballer
1976 – Daniel Whiston, British ice skater
1977 – Bruno Berner, Swiss footballer
1977 – Myles Heskett, Australian musician (Wolfmother)
1977 – Jonas Jennings, American football player
1977 – Tobias Sammet, German singer (Edguy)
1977 – Yolande James, Quebec politician
1978 – Daniel Bradshaw, Australian rules footballer
1978 – Lucía Jiménez, Spanish actress
1978 – Sara Tanaka, American actress
1979 – Stromile Swift, American basketball player
1979 – Alex Tanguay, Canadian hockey player
1979 – Kim Dong Wan, Korean singer (Shinhwa)
1979 – Vincenzo Iaquinta, Italian footballer
1980 – Hank Blalock, American baseball player
1980 – Alec Brownstein, American author, director
1980 – Leonardo González, Costa Rican footballer
1980 – Elaine Yiu, Hong Kong actress
1981 – Wesley Britt, American football player
1981 – Piet Rinke, Zimbabwean cricketer
1981 – Jonny Magallón, Mexican footballer
1982 – Georgios Kalogiannidis, Greek archer
1982 – Ryan Starr, American singer
1983 – Jamie Langley, English rugby player
1984 – Álvaro Bautista, Spanish motorcycle racer
1984 – Jena Malone, American actress
1985 – Jesús Navas, Spanish footballer
1986 – Ben Bishop, American ice hockey goalie, tallest goalie in NHL
1987 – Brian Douwes, Dutch kickboxer and martial artist
Deaths
496 – Pope Gelasius I
1361 – Philip I, Duke of Burgundy (plague) (b. 1346)
1555 – Georg Agricola, German scientist (b. 1490)
1566 – Annibale Caro, Italian poet (b. 1507)
1579 – Thomas Gresham, English merchant and financier
1652 – Jan Brozek, Polish mathematician, physician, and astronomer (b. 1585)
1695 – Henry Purcell, English composer
1730 – François de Troy, French portrait artist (b. 1645)
1775 – John Hill, British writer
1811 – Heinrich von Kleist, German writer (b. 1777)
1844 – Ivan Krylov, Russian fabulist (b. 1769)
1881 – Ami Boué, Austrian geologist (b. 1794)
1899 – Garret Hobart, Vice President of the United States (b. 1844)
1916 – Emperor Franz Josef I of Austria (b. 1830)
1922 – Ricardo Flores Magón, Mexican anarchist (b. 1874).
1924 – Florence Harding, American First Lady (b. 1860)
1941 – Henrietta Vinton Davis American elocutionist, dramatist, impersonator, public speaker (b. 1860)
1942 – Leopold Graf Berchtold, Austro-Hungarian foreign minister (b. 1863)
1945 – Robert Benchley, American writer and actor (b. 1889)
1945 – Al Bummy Davis, American Boxer (b. 1920)
1953 – Larry Shields, American jazz clarinetist (b. 1893)
1957 – Francis Burton Harrison, American political figure (b. 1873)
1958 – Mel Ott, American baseball player (b. 1909)
1959 – Max Baer, American boxer (b. 1909)
1963 – Robert Stroud (The Birdman of Alcatraz), American prisoner (b. 1890)
1967 – C. M. Eddy, Jr., American writer (b. 1896)
1969 – Mutesa II of Buganda, President of Uganda (b. 1924)
1970 – Newsy Lalonde, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1887)
1970 – Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, Indian physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1888)
1973 – Thomas Pelly, American politician (b. 1902)
1974 – John B. Gambling, American radio talk show host (b. 1897)
1974 – Frank Martin, Swiss composer (b. 1890)
1980 – Sara García, Mexican actress (b. 1895)
1981 – Harry Von Zell, American announcer (b. 1906)
1982 – John Hargrave, British Social Credit advocate (b. 1894)
1986 – Marcelino Sanchez, American actor (b. 1957)
1986 – Jerry Colonna, American comic (b. 1904)
1986 – Dar Robinson, American film stuntman (b. 1947)
1988 – Carl Hubbell, American baseball player (b. 1903)
1990 – Dean Hart, Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1954)
1991 – Sonny Werblin, former owner of the New York Jets (b. 1907)
1993 – Bill Bixby, American actor and director (b. 1934)
1995 – Peter Grant, British rock manager, actor (Led Zeppelin, Bad Company) (b. 1935)
1995 – Noel Jones, British diplomat (b. 1940)
1996 – Abdus Salam, Pakistani physicist and Nobel laureate (b. 1926)
1999 – Quentin Crisp, British writer, raconteur and actor (b. 1908)
2001 – Salahuddin of Malaysia, King of Malaysia (b. 1926)
2002 – Hadda Brooks, American jazz singer, pianist, and composer (b. 1916)
2005 – Alfred Anderson, last Scottish World War I (and Christmas Truce) veteran (b. 1896)
2005 – Hugh Sidey, American journalist (b. 1927)
2006 – Pierre Amine Gemayel, Lebanese Cabinet minister (assassinated) (b. 1972)
2006 – Kathryn Johnston, US victim of police shooting (b. 1914)
2006 – Robert Lockwood, Jr., American blues guitarist (b. 1915)
2007 – Fernando Fernán Gómez, Spanish actor, director, academic and playwright (b. 1921)
2007 – Tom Johnson, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1928)
2007 – Noel McGregor, New Zealand cricketer (b. 1931)
Holidays and observances
World Hello Day
World Television Day
Bangladesh – Armed Forces Day
R.C. Saints – Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
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