Historical Events
- 1184 BC Trojan War: Troy is sacked and burned, according to calculations by Eratosthenes
- 631 Emperor Taizong of Tang of China, sends envoys to the Xueyantuo bearing gold and silk for the release of Chinese prisoners captured during transition from Sui to Tang from northern frontier; succeeds in freeing 80,000
- 1776 Continental Congress creates committee to draft a Declaration of Independence with Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston as members
- 1963 US President JFK says segregation is morally wrong and that it is "time to act"
- 1987 Margaret Thatcher is the first British Prime Minister in 160 years to win a third consecutive term
- 2009 The World Health Organization declares H1N1 swine flu to be a global pandemic, the first such incident in over forty years
- 2014 Islamic State of Iraq forces seize control of government offices and other important buildings in the northern city of Mosul
- Historical Events Today Events in 2024
Today in Film & TV
- 1993 "Jurassic Park", directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Sam Neill and Jeff Goldblum opens, sets box office weekend record of $502 million
- 2002 "American Idol" created by Simon Fuller with judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson premieres on Fox-TV
Today in Music
- 2019 "The New York Times" reveals an estimated 500,000 song titles, including masters of Chuck Berry, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald, lost in 2008 warehouse fire on Universal backlot in Los Angeles
Today in Sport
- 2017 French Open Men's Tennis: Spaniard Rafael Nadal beats Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland 6–2, 6–3, 6–1; becomes first man to win French title 10 times
Did You Know?
Brothers John and Clarence Anglin and fellow inmate Frank Morris escape from Alcatraz Island prison, the only ones to do so
Famous Birthdays
Ben Jonson
1572 - 1637
Richard Strauss
1864 - 1949
Jeannette Rankin
1880 - 1973
Jacques Cousteau
1910 - 1997
Vince Lombardi
1913 - 1970
Henry Hill
1943 - 2012
Celebrity Birthdays
Gene Wilder
1933 - 2016
Joe Montana
68th Birthday
Hugh Laurie
65th Birthday
Peter Dinklage
55th Birthday
Diana Taurasi
42nd Birthday
Shia LaBeouf
38th Birthday
Fun Fact About Today
George Dennett, aided by Gilbert Jessop, dismisses Northamptonshire for 12 runs, the lowest total in first-class cricket
Famous Weddings
- 1509 King Henry VIII (17) of England marries first wife Catherine of Aragon (23), widow of his brother Arthur
- 1935 American "The Good Earth" novelist Pearl S. Buck (42) weds her American publisher Robert Walsh (52), in Reno, Nevada; until his death in 1960
- 1949 American Actress Hattie McDaniel (54) weds interior decorator Larry Williams in Yuma, Arizona; divorce in 1950
Famous Divorces
- 1935 American "The Good Earth" novelist Pearl S. Buck (42) divorces American agricultural economist John Lossing Buck (44), in Reno, Nevada after 18 years of marriage
- 1952 Actress Agnes Moorehead (51) divorces actor Jack G. Lee (50) after 22 years of marriage
George I
Klemens von Metternich
Clarence DeMar
John Wayne
Timothy McVeigh
David Brinkley
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