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1985–The famed Brown Derby restaurant in Hollywood, California, closes after 57 years. All of the furnishings are kept, including famous Booth #5, where Clark Gable proposed to Carole Lombard. Robert Cobb, owner of the restaurant, created the Cobb Salad for the menu in 1936.


BC 503–According to the Fasti Triumphales, Roman consul, Publius Postumius Tubertus, celebrates an ovation for a military victory over the Sabines.

BC 33–Christ is crucified (according to astronomers Humphreys and Waddington).

686–Maya King Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk' assumes the crown of Calakmul, Mexico.

801–King Louis the Pious captures Barcelona from the Moors after a siege of several months.

963–William III, Duke of Aquitaine, dies in Saint-Maixent-l'École, France, at age 47.

1016–Emperor Xingzong of Liao is born Yelu Zongzhen. He was the seventh emperor of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty.

1043–Edward the Confessor is crowned King of England.

1151–Prince Igor Svyatoslavich the Brave of Russia is born.

1171–Philip of Milly, 7th Grand Master of the Knights Templar, dies at age 51.

1203–Arthur I, Duke of Brittany, dies while incarcerated at Rouen Castle in Normandy (present-day France), at age 16. Mystery surrounds his actual death.

1245–King Philip III of France is born in Poissy, France.

1287–Pope Honorius IV dies in Rome, Papal States, at age 77.

1461–Anne of France is born Anne de Beaujeu at Chateau of Genappe in the Duchy of Brabant, Holy Roman Empire.

1559–The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis treaty is signed, ending the Italian Wars.

1643–Charles V, Duke of Lorraine, is born Charles Léopold Nicolas Sixte de Lorraine in Vienna, Austria.

1680–Indian Emperor, Chhatrapati Shivaji, dies at Raigad Fort, Pune, India, at age 50.

1776–Harvard College confers the first honorary Doctor of Laws degree to George Washington.

1781–Religious leader, Swaminarayan, is born Ghanshyam Pande in Chhapaiya (present-day Uttar Pradesh, India). Swaminarayan developed a good relationship with the British Colonial Government. He had followers not only from Hindu denominations, but also from Islam and Zoroastrianism. He built six temples in his lifetime and appointed 500 paramhansas to spread his philosophy. In 1826, Swaminarayan wrote the Shikshapatri, a book of social principles. Swaminarayan had an estimated 1.8 million followers when he died in 1830. By 2007, he had an estimated of 20 million followers.

1783–Author, Washington Irving, is born in New York. He was the youngest of 11 children. He will become the first American author to gain international recognition as a man of letters. His collection of short stories, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, included “Rip Van Winkle,” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” based on legends of the early Dutch settlers in the Hudson River Valley. He published his first book when he was 26, Diedrich Knickerbocker's History of New York, a satire on manners and politics in the United States. His final work was a five-volume biography of George Washington, completed just before his death in 1859.

1814–Lorenzo Snow, 5th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is born in Mantua, Ohio. He was the last president of the LDS Church in the 19th century, and the first in the 20th century.

1829–James Carrington, of Connecticut, patents a coffee mill.

1834–The generals in the Greek War of Independence stand trial for treason.

1860–The first Pony Express carrying U.S. mail leaves both St. Joseph, Missouri and Sacramento, California, simultaneously. The western-bound post arrives a day and a half before the eastern bound. Each rider had a 75- to 100-mile run before a switch was made with another rider: the switch was made at one of 190 way stations along the route, with each way station being about 10 to 15 miles apart. The Pony Express riders delivered the mail within 10 days (quite similar to our current snail-mail) for postage of $5 per ounce. This style of mail service became antiquated within a short two years, being put out to pasture by the advent of the overland telegraph.

1862–Arctic explorer, James Clark Ross, dies in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England, at age 61. He was a British naval officer and explorer, best known for his exploration of the Arctic with his uncle, Sir John Ross, and Sir William Parry and, in particular, his own expedition to Antarctica.

1865–In the American Civil War, Union forces capture Richmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederate States of America.

1882–Old West outlaw, Jesse James, dies in St. Joseph, Missouri, at age 34. He was killed by Robert Ford, a member of his own gang, who received a $5,000 reward. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary figure of the Wild West after his death.

1885–Gottlieb Daimler is granted a German patent for his engine design.

1888–The first of 11 unsolved brutal murders of women committed in or near the impoverished Whitechapel district in the East End of London, England, occurs.

1893–Actor, Leslie Howard (Steiner), is born in Forest Hill, London, England. He is best known for the role of Ashley Wilkes in Gone with the Wind. He also appeared in the films Smilin’ Through, The Animal Kingdom, Berkeley Square, The Lady is Willing, Of Human Bondage, The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Petrified Forest, Pygmalion, and Intermezzo.

1895–The trial in the libel case brought by Oscar Wilde begins, eventually resulting in his imprisonment on charges of homosexuality.

1897–German composer and pianist, Johannes Brahms, dies of cancer in Vienna, Austria, at age 63. Brahms composed for piano, chamber ensembles, symphony orchestra, and for voice and chorus. A virtuoso pianist, he premiered many of his own works. He is most well-known for his lullabies.

1898–During the Klondike gold rush, an avalanche kills 88 men at Chilkoot Pass, in the Yukon.

1898–Entertainer, George (Albert) Jessel, is born in the Bronx, New York. He was famous in his lifetime as a multi-talented comedic Vaudeville entertainer, achieving a level of recognition that surpassed his limited roles in movies. He was widely known by his nickname, "Toastmaster General of the United States," for his frequent role as the master of ceremonies at political and entertainment gatherings. He was married to actress, Norma Talmadge.

1898–Chinese-American publisher, Henry (Robinson) Luce, is born in Tengchow, China. He co-founded Time magazine and its first issue was published on March 3, 1923. His other publications include Fortune, Life, and Sports Illustrated. He was married to playwright and politician, Claire Booth Luce.

1899–Super-centenarian, Maria (Angela) Redaelli, is born in Inzago, Milan, Italy. She will live to the age of 113 (and 364 days). Upon her death in 2013, she was just one day shy of her 114th birthday.

1900–Politician, Camille (Nimr) Chamoun, is born in Deir el Qamar, Ottoman Empire. He was the seventh President of Lebanon.

1904–Fan dancer, Sally Rand, is born Helen Gould Beck in Hickory County, Missouri. She was a burlesque dancer and actress, most noted for her ostrich feather fan dance and balloon bubble dance.

1904–Industrial designer, Russel Wright, is born in Lebanon, Ohio. Beginning in the late 1920s through the 1960s, Russel Wright created a series of artistically distinctive and commercially successful items that helped bring modern design to the general public. Wright is best known for his colorful “American Modern,” the most widely sold American ceramic dinnerware in history, manufactured between 1939 and 1959, by Steubenville Pottery in Steubenville, Ohio. He designed top selling wooden furniture, spun aluminum dining accessories, and textiles. Wright also designed several popular lines of Melmac dinnerware for the home and restaurant use.

1907–Actor, Iron Eyes Cody, is born Espera Oscar de Corti in Kaplan, Louisiana. He portrayed Native Americans in Hollywood films, but he was actually Italian. He is best known as the Indian shedding a tear about litter in one of the country's most well-known TV commercials in the 1970s, "Keep America Beautiful." He appeared in the films Sitting Bull, Gun Fever, The Great Sioux Massacre, Nevada Smith, El Condor, and A Man Called Horse.

1912–Physician, Richard Asher, is born Richard Alan John Asher in Brighton, Sussex, England. He was an eminent British endocrinologist and haematologist. His daughter is actress, Jane Asher, and his son is musician, Peter Asher.

1916–San Francisco Chronicle columnist, Herb Caen, is born in Sacramento, California. Caen’s first column appeared July 5, 1938. Caen had considerable influence on popular culture, particularly its language. He coined the term “beatnik” in 1958, and popularized “hippie” during San Francisco's 1967 Summer of Love. In April 1996, Caen received a special Pulitzer Prize for "extraordinary and continuing contribution as a voice and conscience of his city."

1917–Vladimir Lenin arrives in Russia from exile, marking the beginning of Bolshevik leadership in the Russian Revolution.

1920–F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda Sayre are married at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York. Honeymooning at the Biltmore Hotel, they behave so boisterously the management asks them to leave.

1921–Actress, Jan Sterling, is born Jane Sterling Adriance in New York, New York. She appeared in the films Johnny Belinda, Caged, Mystery Street, Union Station, Ace in the Hole, Flesh and Fury, The High and the Mighty, Female on the Beach, 1984, High School Confidential, Love in a Goldfish Bowl, and The Incident. She was married to actor, Paul Douglas.

1922–Joseph Stalin is appointed the first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

1922–Singer-actress, Doris Day, is born Doris Mary Ann Von Kappelhoff in Cincinnati, Ohio. It wasn't until her later years that she knew she was born in 1922 and not 1924. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939. Her popularity began to rise after her first hit recording, Sentimental Journey, in 1945. After leaving Les Brown & His Band of Renown to embark on a solo career, Day started her long-lasting partnership with Columbia Records, which remained her only recording label. The contract lasted from 1947 to 1967, and included more than 650 recordings, making Day one of the most popular and acclaimed singers of the 20th century. She appeared in the films Romance on the High Seas, Young Man with a Horn, Tea for Two, On Moonlight Bay, I’ll See You in My Dreams, Calamity Jane, Young at Heart, Love Me or Leave me, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Julie, Teacher’s Pet, It Happened to Jane, Pillow Talk, Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, Midnight Lace, That Touch of Mink, The Thrill of It All, Mover Over, Darling, Caprice, and With Six You Get Eggroll. She was married to film producer, Martin Melcher. Her son is record producer, Terry Melcher.

1924–Actor, Marlon Brando, is born Marlon Brando, Jr. in Omaha, Nebraska. A cultural icon, he is hailed for bringing a gripping realism to film acting, and is frequently cited as the greatest and most influential film actor of all time. He appeared in the films A Streetcar Named Desire, Viva Zapata!, Julius Caesar, The Wild One, On the Waterfront, Guys and Dolls, Sayonara, The Young Lions, The Fugitive Kind, One-Eye Jacks, Mutiny on the Bounty, The Ugly American, Bedtime Story, The Godfather, Last Tango in Paris, The Missouri Breaks, Apocalypse Now, A Dry White Season, and The Island of Dr. Moreau. He was married to actresses, Anna Kashfi and Tarita Teriipaia.

1926–Astronaut, Gus Grissom, is born Virgil Ivan Grisson in Mitchell, Indiana. He was one of the original NASA Project Mercury astronauts, test pilot, mechanical engineer, and a U.S. Air Force pilot. He was the second American to fly in space. Grissom was killed along with fellow astronauts, Ed White and Roger Chaffee, during a pre-launch test for the Apollo 1 mission at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

1928–Country singer, Don Gibson, is born Donald Eugene Gibson in Shelby, North Carolina. Gibson wrote the country standards, Sweet Dreams and I Can't Stop Loving You, and enjoyed a string of country hits from 1957 into the early 1970s.

1929–The RMS Queen Mary is ordered from John Brown & Company Shipbuilding and Engineering by Cunard Line.

1929–Fazlur Rahman Khan is born in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He was one of the foremost architects, structural engineers, and designers of 20th century architecture. He is known as the "Father of Tubular Design." As a partner in the Chicago firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Khan was instrumental in revolutionizing structural systems for skyscrapers, creating a resurgence in skyscraper construction in the latter half of the 20th Century. The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat named their lifetime achievement medal after him.

1930–The 2nd Annual Academy Awards announces its winners. Best Picture: The Broadway Melody; Best Actor: Warner Baxter for In Old Arizona; Best Actress: Mary Pickford for Coquette; Best Director: Frank Lloyd for The Divine Lady. The ceremonies are held at the Cocoanut Grove, in the Ambassador Hotel, in Los Angeles, California. The host is William C. DeMille.

1930–The Stanley Cup: The Montreal Canadiens beats the Boston Bruins, 2 games to 0.

1930–Former German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, is born Helmut Josef Michael Kohl in Ludwigshafen, Germany, at age 87. Kohl's 16-year tenure was the longest of any German Chancellor since Otto von Bismarck. He oversaw the end of the Cold War and is widely regarded as the mastermind of German reunification. Together with French President François Mitterrand, Kohl is considered to be the architect of the Maastricht Treaty, which established the European Union (EU) and the euro currency.

1933–First flight over Mount Everest is made. It is a British expedition, led by the Marquis of Clydesdale, and funded by Lucy, Lady Houston.

1933–First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt informs newspaper reporters that beer will be served at the White House. This followed the March 22nd legislation legalizing 3.2 beer.

1934–Ethologist, primatologist, and anthropologist, Jane Goodall, is born Valarie Jane Morris-Goodall in London, England. Considered to be the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees, Goodall is best known for her 55-year study of social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania.

1936–Bruno Richard Hauptmann is executed for the kidnapping and death of Charles Augustus Lindbergh II, the infant son of world-famous pilot, Charles Lindbergh.

1936–Keyboardist, Jimmy McGriff, is born James Harrell McGriff in Germantown, Pennsylvania. He was best known for his distinctive style of playing the Hammond B-3 organ.

1941–(William) Jan Berry, of the pop duo Jan and Dean, is born in Los Angeles, California. The duo’s hits include The Little Old Lady from Pasadena, Dead Man’s Curve, and Surf City.

1941–French tire manufacturer, Andre Michelin, dies at age 88.

1942–Japanese forces begin an assault on the United States and Filipino troops on the Bataan Peninsula.

1942–Actress, Marsha Mason, is born in St. Louis, Missouri. She appeared in the films Blume in Love, Cinderella Liberty, Audrey Rose, The Goodbye Girl, Chapter Two, Only When I Laugh, Max Dugan Returns, Heartbreak Ridge, Stella, and I Love Trouble. She was married to playwright and screenwriter, Neil Simon.

1942–Singer and performer, (Carson) Wayne Newton, is born in Norfolk, Virginia. He will become well known for his hits Danke Shoen, Red Roses for a Blue Lady, and Daddy Don’t You Walk So Fast, as well as being a staple on the Las Vegas entertainment scene into the 21st century. He appeared in the films 80 Steps to Jonah, North and South, License to Kill, Night of the Running Man, Vegas Vacation, and Elvis Has Left the Building.

1942–Singer, Billy Joe Royal, is born in Valdosta, Georgia. His biggest hit was Down in the Boondocks.

1943–Richard Manuel, keyboardist for The Band, is born in Stratford, Ontario. Canada.

1943–Mouseketeer, Doreen Tracey, is born in London, England.

1944–Singer, Tony Orlando, is born Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis in New York, New York. He is best known as the lead singer of the group Tony Orlando and Dawn in the early 1970s. They had several songs which were major hits, including Candida, Knock Three Times, and Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree. As a solo artist, he had a hit with Halfway to Paradise.

1946–Japanese Lt. General, Masaharu Homma, is executed in the Philippines for leading the Bataan Death March.

1946–Dee Murray, of the Elton John Band, is born David Murray Oates in Gillingham, Kent, England. Before joining Elton John as his touring sidemen, Murray and drummer, Nigel Olsson, were members of the Spencer Davis Group in 1969.

1948–President Harry Truman signs the Marshall Plan, providing $5 billion in aid to 16 European countries.

1948–In Jeju Province, South Korea, a civil-war-like period of violence and human rights abuses begins, known as the Jeju Massacre.

1949–Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis debut on radio in an NBC program that will run until 1952.

1950–German composer, Kurt Weil, dies of a heart attack in New York, New York, at age 50. He is best known for his Threepenny Opera, and for his collaboration with his wife, actress and singer, Lotte Lenya.

1951–Mel Schacher, bass player for Grand Funk Railroad, is born in Owosso, Michigan. The band’s biggest hit was We’re an American Band.

1953–TV Guide begins publication.

1955–The American Civil Liberties Union announces it will defend Allen Ginsberg's book, Howl, against obscenity charges.

1956–The western half of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan is struck by a deadly F5 tornado.

1956–Elvis Presley makes the first of two appearances on The Milton Berle Show. He sings Heartbreak Hotel, Money Honey, and Blue Suede Shoes, earning $5,000. It's estimated one out of every four Americans sees his performance.

1956–Ray Combs, TV host of Family Feud, is born Raymond Neil Combs, Jr. in Hamilton, Ohio.

1957–The USSR conducts an atmospheric nuclear test.

1958–Actor, Alec Baldwin, is born Alexander Rae Baldwin III in Amityville, New York. He appeared in the films She’s Having a Baby, Beetlejuice, Married to the Mob, Working Girl, Great Balls of Fire!, The Hunt for Red October, Miami Blues, The Marrying Man, Prelude to a Kiss, Glengarry Glen Ross, Malice, The Juror, Notting Hill, The Cooler, and The Departed. His brothers are actors, Stephen, Daniel, and William Baldwin. He was married to actress, Kim Basinger.

1959–The BBC bans The Coasters song, Charlie Brown, because of the word “spitball.”

1959–Actor, David Hyde Pierce, is born in Saratoga Springs, New York. He is best known for his co-starring role on the TV sitcom Frasier. He appeared in the films Bright Lights Big City, Crossing Delancey, Rocket Gibraltar, Little Man Tate, The Fisher King, Sleepless in Seattle, Wolf, Nixon, and Down with Love.

1960–The Everly Brothers make their British concert debut, kicking off their first U.K. tour.

1960–Elvis Presley goes into the studio for the first time since leaving the U.S. Army.

1961–The Leadbeater's possum is rediscovered in Australia after 72 years.

1961–Actor-comedian, Eddie Murphy, is born Edward Regan Murphy in Brooklyn, New York. He was a regular cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1980 to 1984. He appeared in the films 48 Hrs., Trading Places, Beverly Hills Cop, Coming to America, Harlem Nights, The Nutty Professor, Dr. Dolittle, I Spy, Daddy Day Care, Dreamgirls, and A Thousand Words.

1964–Chef, Bobby Chinn, is born Robert Chinn in Auckland, New Zealand. Chin is also a restaurateur, author, and TV cooking show host, and owns several restaurants in Vietnam. His shows on the Discovery Network include World Café Asia and Bobby Chinn Cooks Asia.

1964–Politician, broadcaster, and political analyst, Nigel (Paul) Farage, is born in Downe, Kent, England. He was the leader of the U.K. Independence Party (UKIP) from 2006 to 2009, and again from 2010 to 2016. In 2017, Farage began contributing to the American television network Fox News.

1966–Folksinger, Peter Tork, performs at the Troubadour in Santa Monica, California. By September, he will have become a member of TV’s “pre-fab” pop group, The Monkees.

1967–Chef, Cat Cora, is born Catherine Ann Cora in Jackson, Mississippi. She comes from a family of Greek restaurateurs. Best known as an "Iron Chef" on TV’s Iron Chef America, she also co-hosted Around the World in 80 Plates. Cora attended the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. She is the Executive Chef for Bon Appétit magazine, and is active in fundraising for emergency and humanitarian aid as a co-founder of Chefs For Humanity.

1968–Less than 24 hours before he will be assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, civil rights leader, Martin Luther King, Jr., delivers his famous “mountaintop” speech to a rally of striking sanitation workers.

1968–North Vietnam agrees to meet with U.S. representatives to set up preliminary peace talks.

1968–The film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, premieres. It was written by Arthur C. Clarke.

1968–Actress, Charlotte (Ninon) Coleman, is born in Islington, London, England. She appeared in the films Map of the Human Heart, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Different for Girls, If Only..., and Beautiful People.

1969–Rocker, Jim Morrison, turns himself in to the Los Angeles branch of the FBI, accompanied by Max Fink. He was arrested on the federal warrant charging him with interstate flight to avoid prosecution for six charges of lewd behavior and public exposure. Morrison appeared before a U.S. commissioner and was released on a $5,000 corporate bond.

1969–U.S. Secretary of Defense, Melvin Laird, announces that the United States will start to "Vietnamize" the war effort.

1971–Detective writer, Manfred Bonnington Lee, dies at age 65. With his cousin, Frederic Dannay, he created the fictional character of Ellery Queen: the two also wrote under the pen name of Ellery Queen. During the 1930s and much of the 1940s, Ellery Queen was possibly the best known American fictional detective. Movies, radio shows, and television shows were based on Dannay and Lee's works.

1972–Actress, Jennie Garth, is born Jennifer Eve Garth in Urbana, Illinois. She is known for her roles on Beverly Hills, 90210 and the sitcom What I Like About You.

1973–Martin Cooper, of Motorola, makes the first handheld mobile phone call to Joel S. Engel of Bell Labs. It will take 10 years for the DynaTAC 8000X to become the first such phone to be commercially released.

1974–Gold hits a record $197 an ounce.

1974–A "Super Outbreak" of tornadoes ravages the Midwest and eastern U.S. Severe thunderstorms spawn 148 tornadoes from Alabama to Michigan, most occurring between 1:00 p.m. (CST) on April 3rd and 1:00 a.m. on April 4th. The tornadoes kill 315 people, injure 5,300 others, and cause $600 million in damage. Alabama, Kentucky, and Ohio are especially hard hit. One tornado destroys half of the town of Xenia, Ohio, killing 34 people. Another tornado, near the town of Stamping Ground, Kentucky, produces a path of destruction five miles wide. A tornado races through Guin, Alabama, at a speed of 75 mph, while two other powerful tornadoes roar across northern Alabama during the early evening hours, killing 50 people and injuring 500 others.

1975–Bobby Fischer refuses to play in a chess match against Anatoly Karpov, giving Karpov the title of World Champion by default.

1976–France conducts a nuclear test at Muruora Island.

1978–Blues guitarist, B.B. King, joins famed defense lawyer, F. Lee Bailey, at a rap session and concert for inmates at Norfolk Prison in Boston, Massachusetts. This is a part of their ongoing duties as co-chairmen of FAIRR (Foundation for the Advancement of Inmate Rehabilitation and Recreation).

1978–The 50th Annual Academy Awards announces its winners. Best Picture: Annie Hall; Best Actor: Richard Dreyfuss for The Goodbye Girl; Best Actress: Diane Keaton for Annie Hall; Best Director: Woody Allen for Annie Hall; Best Foreign Film: Madame Rosa (France). The ceremonies are held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California. The host is Bob Hope. The epic Star Wars is nominated in 10 categories including Best Picture.

1980–The U.S. conducts a nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

1980–France conducts a nuclear test.

1981–The Osborne 1, the first successful portable computer, is unveiled at the West Coast Computer Faire in San Francisco, California.

1981–Businessman, Juan Trippe, dies from a stroke in New York, New York, at age 81. He founded Pan American World Airways.

1982–Actor, Warren Oates, dies of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California, at age 53. He appeared in the films Up Periscope, Yellowstone Kelly, Ride the High Country, The Rounders, Major Dundee, Welcome to Hard Times, In the Heat of the Night, The Wild Bunch, Two-Lane Blacktop, The Hired Hand, Dillinger, Badlands, Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia, Rancho Deluxe, Race with the Devil, The Brink’s Job, Stripes, and Blue Thunder.

1983–Danny Rapp, of Danny and the Juniors, dies of suicide by a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Quartzsite, Arizona, at age 41. The doo-wop group had hits with At the Hop and Rock and Roll is Here to Stay.

1984–Liverpool's first statue of The Beatles is unveiled above the doorway of The Beatles Shop on Mathew Street. The creator of the statue is David Hughes, a student of the Liverpool College of Art, the same art school that John Lennon attended.

1985–The famed Brown Derby restaurant in Hollywood, California, closes after 57 years. All of the furnishings are kept, including famous Booth #5, where Clark Gable proposed to Carole Lombard. Robert Cobb, owner of the restaurant, created the Cobb Salad for the menu in 1936.

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

1988–The USSR conducts a nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan.

1989–Thunderstorms spawn 20 tornadoes, including one that causes $8 million damage at Fort Branch, Indiana.

1990–Jazz singer, Sarah Vaughn, dies of lung cancer in Hidden Hills, California, at age 66. She made her debut at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, singing Body and Soul for an amateur contest, and won. As a professional, she sang with Earl “Fatha” Hines, Billy Eckstine, and picked up the nickname “The Divine One.”

1991–Author, Graham Greene, dies of leukemia in Vevey, Switzerland, at age 86. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. His works include Brighton Rock, The Confidential Agent, The Power and the Glory, The Third Man, The End of the Affair, The Quiet American, Our Man in Havana, Travels with My Aunt, and The Human Factor.

1993–Kiddie show host, Pinky Lee, dies of a heart attack in Mission Viejo, California, at age 85. He was comic of the "baggy pants" variety on stage, becoming an expert at the slapstick, comic dancing, and rapid-fire jokes of the Burlesque style. The Pinky Lee Show first aired on TV in 1954, and was followed each day by The Howdy Doody Show.

1996–A United States Air Force airplane carrying U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Ron Brown, crashes in Croatia, killing all 35 people on board.

1996–Suspected “Unabomber,” Theodore Kaczynski, is arrested at his Montana cabin.

1997–The Thalit massacre begins in Algeria and all but one of the 53 inhabitants of Thalit are killed by guerrillas.

1998–Paris Jackson is born Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson in Beverly Hills, California. She is the second child and only daughter of Michael Jackson and Debbie Rowe. She grew up at Neverland ranch and during her childhood, she and her siblings often wore masks during outings with their father to hide their faces from the public.

1999–Beatle Paul McCartney becomes a grandfather, when his eldest daughter, Mary, gives birth to a baby boy.

2000–Microsoft is ruled to have violated United States antitrust law by keeping "an oppressive thumb" on its competitors.

2000–Writer and philosopher, Terence McKenna, dies of brain cancer in San Rafael, California, at age 53. He spoke and wrote about a variety of subjects, including psychedelic drugs, plant-based entheogens, shamanism, metaphysics, alchemy, language, culture, technology, and the theoretical origins of human consciousness. He was called the "Timothy Leary of the 1990s," and the "intellectual voice of rave culture."

2004–Islamic terrorists involved in the 2004 train bombings in Madrid, Spain, are trapped by the police in their apartment. They commit suicide.

2007–A French TGV train on the LGV Est high speed line sets an official new world speed record.

2008–ATA Airlines, once one of the 10 largest U.S. passenger airlines and largest charter airline, files for bankruptcy for the second time in five years and ceases all operations.

2008–Texas law enforcement cordons off the FLDS's YFZ Ranch. Eventually 533 women and children will be removed and taken into state custody.

2009–Australia formally adopts the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

2009–Jiverly Antares Wong opens fire at an American Civic Association immigration center in Binghamton, New York, killing 13 people and wounding four others, before committing suicide.

2010–Apple Inc. releases the first generation iPad, a tablet computer.

2013–More than 50 people die in floods resulting from record-breaking rainfall in La Plata and Buenos Aires, Argentina.

2013–Screenwriter, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, dies after a long illness in New York, New York, at age 85. Jhabvala wrote more than 20 screenplays for Merchant Ivory film productions. She won Oscars for adapting the E.M. Forster novels, Howards End and A Room with a View, and was nominated for her adaptation of The Remains of the Day.

2015–France passes a law that will ban excessively thin fashion models and expose modeling agents and the fashion houses that hire them to possible fines and even jail. The measure is part of a wider crackdown on anorexia backed by President Francois Hollande's government. Lawmakers also approved a separate measure making it illegal to condone anorexia, a move targeting Internet sites that encourage dangerous weight loss. France now joins Italy, Spain, and Israel, which all adopted laws against too-thin models on catwalks or in advertising campaigns in early 2013.

2015–Locals from Lucille Ball's hometown, Celoron, New York, are not happy with a public statue that was erected to honor the actress, saying that it is "frightening" and looks nothing like her. The 400-pound, life-size bronze statue was erected in 2009, after being privately commissioned. But replacing the statue has not been easy. Over the past couple of years, the mayor of Celoron has reached out to the artist, Dave Poulin, about him redoing the statue: he said he wanted $8,000 to $10,000 to replace it.

2015–Gun control activist, Sarah Brady, dies of complications from pneumonia in Baltimore, Maryland, at age 73. She was the wife of White House Press Secretary, James Brady, who was severely injured by a shot to the head during the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan in 1981.

2015–Musician, Bob Burns, of Lynyrd Skynyrd, dies in an automobile accident near Cartersville, Georgia, at age 64.

2016–The Panama Papers, a leak of legal documents, reveals information on 214,488 offshore companies.

2016–Two people are killed and 35 others are injured when an Amtrak passenger train on the Palmetto route traveling from New York City to Savannah, Georgia, strike a backhoe that is on the track. The train derails in Chester, Pennsylvania, with 341 passengers and seven crew members on board.

2016–At least 18 people are injured following a collision between two trains at Plymouth Railway Station in Plymouth, Devon, England. The crash causes significant disruption to rail services in South West England.

2016–France's national railway company president, Guillaume Pepy, announces armed train marshals in civilian dress will be patroling some passenger trains.

2016–Tribal elder, Joe Medicine Crow, dies in Billings, Montana, at age 102. He was the last surviving war chief of Montana's Crow Tribe. His Crow name was "High Bird," and he recalled listening as a child to stories about the Battle of Little Bighorn from those who were there, including his grandmother's brother, White Man Runs Him, a scout for Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer. He served for decades as a Crow historian, cataloging his people's nomadic history by collecting firsthand accounts of pre-reservation life from fellow tribal members.

2017–Actress, Doris Day, finds out that she is actually turning 95 years old on this year’s birthday, instead of 93.

2017–An Egyptian excavation team south of Cairo, discover the remains of a pyramid dating back 3,700 years to the 13th Dynasty of Egypt.

2017–Somali pirates hijack an Indian cargo ship off the coast of Puntland.

2017–A bomb explodes in the metro system in Saint Petersburg, Russia, killing 11 people and injuring 50 others. Another bomb, found at the nearby Vosstaniya Square station, is disarmed.

2018–The United States designates the Milli Muslim League and Tehreek-e-Azadi-e-Kashmir, both Pakistani groups, as terrorist organizations.

2018–President Trump announces that the U.S. military will be used to secure the U.S./Mexican border until his proposed wall can be funded and built.


PHOTOS TOP TO BOTTOM: Stone tribute to Maya King Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk'; Charles V, Duke of Lorraine; Washington Irving; Johannes Brahms; Russel Wright's "American Modern" dinnerware; Iron Eyes Cody; Doris Day; the RMS Queen Mary; Mount Everest; Marsha Mason; Martin & Lewis (Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis); Elvis Presley on The Milton Berle Show; Peter Tork; a poster for 2001: A Space Odyssey; Jennie Garth; the Osborne 1 computer; Graham Greene; Terence McKenna; the first generation iPad; a controversial statue of Lucille Ball in her hometown, Celoron, New York; and Joe Medicine Crow.
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