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1962–President John F. Kennedy throws out the ceremonial first pitch in Washington D.C.’s new stadium, D.C. Stadium (later to be known as Robert F. Kennedy, or RFK, Stadium). In so doing, he continues a long-standing tradition which began in 1910, when President William H. Taft threw out Major League Baseball’s first opening-day pitch in Washington D.C.’s old Griffith Stadium.


BC 585–Emperor Jimmu of Japan dies at age 126. According to legend, he was the first Emperor of Japan and was a descendant of the sun goddess, Amaterasu, through her grandson Ninigi, as well as a descendant of the storm god, Susanoo.

190–Dong Zhuo has his troops evacuate the capital Luoyang in Central China, in order to burn it to the ground.

475–Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, supporting the Monophysite christological position.

491–Zeno, Byzantine Emperor, dies of dysentery in Constantinople, at age 66.

537–During the Seige of Rome, Byzantine General Belisarius receives his promised reinforcements, 1,600 cavalry, mostly of Hunnic or Slavic origin and expert bowmen. He starts, despite shortages, raids against the Gothic camps and Vitiges is forced into a stalemate.

715–Pope Constantine dies at age 51. He was one of the last popes of the Byzantine Papacy.

1024–Pope Benedict VIII dies in Rome, Papal States, Holy Roman Empire, at age 44.

1241–Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies at the Battle of Liegnitz.

1241–Duke Henry II of Poland dies in battle at Legnickie Pole in Legnica County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in southwestern Poland, at age 45.

1283–Margaret of Scotland, Queen of Norway, dies during or shortly after giving birth to Margaret, Maid of Norway, in Tonsberg, Vestfold, Norway, at age 22.

1285–Ayurbarwada Buyantu Khan, Emperor Renzong of Yuan, is born in China.

1288–Yuan forces are defeated by Tran forces in the Battle of Bach Dang in present-day northern Vietnam.

1388–Despite being outnumbered 16 to 1, forces of the Old Swiss Confederacy are victorious over the Archduchy of Austria in the Battle of Nafels.

1413–Henry V becomes King of England at age 12. He is never crowned, and disappears, presumed murdered, after incarceration in the Tower of London with his younger brother, Richard.

1440–Christopher of Bavaria is appointed King of Denmark.

1454–The Treaty of Lodi is signed, establishing a balance of power among northern Italian city-states for almost 50 years.

1483–Edward IV of England dies sfter a long illness in Westminster, London, England, at age 40.

1484–Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales, dies in Middleham, Wensleydale, England, at age 10. He was the only child of King Richard III of England and his queen consort, Anne Neville.

1492–Italian, ruler, Lorenzo de' Medici, dies in Careggi, Republic of Florence, at age 43.

1511–St. John's College, in Cambridge, England, is founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort.

1585–The expedition organized by Sir Walter Raleigh departs England for Roanoke Island (present-day North Carolina) to establish the Roanoke Colony.

1609–Philip III of Spain issues the decree of the "Expulsion of the Moriscos."

1609–Spain and the Dutch Republic sign the Treaty of Antwerp to initiate 12 years of truce.

1626–English statesman and philosopher, Francis Bacon, dies of pneumonia in Highgate, Middlesex, England, at age 65. He contracted pneumonia while studying the effects of freezing on the preservation of meat. After his death, he remained extremely influential through his works, especially as a philosophical advocate and practitioner of the scientific method during the scientific revolution. Over 30 great minds collected together their eulogies for him, which was then later published in Latin.

1667–The first public art exhibition is held at the Palais-Royale in Paris, France.

1682–Rene-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, claims the lower Mississippi River, and all lands that touch it, for France. He then named it Louisiana, in honor of King Louis XIV.

1794–Theobald Boehm, inventor of the modern flute, is born in Germany. He was a Bavarian court musician, a virtuoso flautist, and a celebrated composer for the flute.

1806–William V, Prince of Orange, dies in Brunswick, (present-day Germany), at age 58. He was the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic. He went into exile to London, England, in 1795.

1821–French poet, essayist, and art critic, Charles Baudelaire, is born in Paris, France. At 36, he published his only collection of poetry, Les Fleurs de Mal (The Flowers of Evil). His translations of Edgar Allan Poe's work will make Poe better known in France than in the United States.

1830–Photographer, Eadweard James Muybridge, is born in Kingston-on-Thames, England. Noted for his pioneering work in photographic studies of motion, he took the series of photographs of a running horse that show that when horses gallop, all four hooves leave the ground for just an instant. He took up photography after a serious head injury left him with vision problems and eccentric behaviors. He traveled the American West, photographing landscapes and architectural subjects, developing his photographs in a light carriage he had converted into a darkroom. In 1987, Muybridge's reputation became well established through his breathtaking landscapes of the Yosemite Valley wilderness.

1833–The first municipally supported public library in the U.S. opens in Peterborough, New Hampshire.

1835–Leopold II of Belgium is born in Brussels, Belgium. He reigned for exactly 44 years, the longest reign of any Belgian monarch.

1838–The National Gallery opens in Trafalgar Square, London, England.

1859–Samuel Langhorne Clemens, a 23-year-old Missouri youth, receives his steamboat pilot's license. Clemens had signed on as a pilot's apprentice in 1857, while on his way to Mississippi. He had been commissioned to write a series of comic travel letters for The Keokuk Daily Post, but after writing five, decided he'd rather be a pilot than a writer. He piloted his own boats for two years, until the Civil War halted steamboat traffic. During his time as a pilot, he picked up the term "Mark Twain": a boatman's call noting that the river was only two fathoms deep, the minimum depth for safe navigation. When Clemens returned to writing in 1861, working for The Virginia City Territorial Enterprise, he wrote a humorous travel letter signed by Mark Twain, and continued to use the pseudonym for nearly 50 years.

1860–Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville invents the phonautogram to record sound.

1865–Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders his army to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. This ends the American Civil War.

1866–The Civil Rights Bill passes over U.S. President Andrew Johnson's veto.

1867–The U.S. Senate ratifies, by one vote, the treaty with Russia that purchases the territory of Alaska.

1867–Politician, Chris Watson, is born John Christian Tanck in Valparaíso, Chile. He was the third Prime Minister of Australia.

1869–The Hudson Bay Company cedes it's territory to Canada.

1872–Samuel R. Percy patents dried milk.

1872–Politician, (André) Léon Blum, is born in Paris, France. He was identified with the moderate left, and served three times as Prime Minister of France.

1881–After a one-day trial, Billy the Kid is found guilty of murdering a Lincoln County, New Mexico, sheriff and is sentenced to hang. The shooting took place in the context of the bloody Lincoln County War, a battle between two powerful groups of ranchers and businessmen fighting for economic control of Lincoln County. When his boss, rancher John Tunstall, was murdered before his eyes in February 1878, the hotheaded young Billy swore vengeance. Unfortunately, the leader of the men who murdered Tunstall was the sheriff of Lincoln County, William Brady. When Billy and his partners murdered the sheriff several months later, they became outlaws, regardless of how corrupt Brady may have been.

1895–Blues musician, Mance Lipscomb, is born Beau De Glen Lipscombin Navasota, Texas. As a youth, he took the name of “Mance” from a friend of his oldest brother, Charlie ("Mance" being short for emancipation). Unlike many of his contemporaries, he did not record in the early blues era, but his life is well documented, thanks to his autobiography, I Say Me for a Parable: The Oral Autobiography of Mance Lipscomb.

1898–Vocalist, Paul Robeson, is born in Princeton, New Jersey. His voice graced the definitive 1928 recording of Ol' Man River; he acted in plays by Shakespeare and O'Neill; and tirelessly campaigned for civil rights.

1899–Engineer and pilot, James Smith McDonnell, is born in Denver, Colorado. He founded McDonnell Aircraft Corporation.

1903–Gregory (Goodwin) Pincus, inventor of the birth control pill, is born in Woodbine, New Jersey.

1903–Actor, Ward Bond, is born Wardell Edwin Bond in Benkelman, Nebraska. He is best known for his starring role on the TV series Wagon Train. He appeared in the films Gone with the Wind, The Grapes of Wrath, The Maltese Falcon, A Guy Named Joe, 3 Godfathers, It’s a Wonderful Life, Fort Apache, The Quiet Man, Hondo, Johnny Guitar, Mister roberts, The Searchers, and Rio Bravo.

1908–Herbert Henry Asquith becomes Prime Minister of England.

1909–The U.S. Congress passes the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act.

1914–During the Mexican Revolution, one of the world's first naval/air skirmishes takes place off the coast of western Mexico.

1914–The first color feature film, The World, the Flesh, and the Devil, opens at the Holborn Empire in London, England. The color system used was “Kinemacolor.”

1918–In World War I, the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps is crushed by the German forces during what is called the Spring Offensive on the Belgian region of Flanders.

1918–The National Council of Bessarabia proclaims union with the Kingdom of Romania.

1918–Danish architect, Jorn Oberg Utzon, is born. He is best known for his design of the Sydney Opera House in Australia, which was declared a World Heritage Site on June 28, 2007. He is only the second architect to receive such recognition during his lifetime.

1919–J. Presper Eckert, co-inventor of the first electronic computer ENIAC, is born John Adam Presper Eckert, Jr. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1920–Alex Moulton, designer of the folding bicycle, is born Alexander Eric Moulton in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. He was an engineer and inventor, specialising in suspension design.

1925–Astrologer and author, Linda Goodman, is born Mary Alice Kemery in Morgantown, West Virginia. She had a big effect on the accelerating growth of the New Age movement through the unprecedented success of her first astrology book Linda Goodman's Sun Signs (1968). This was the first astrology book ever to earn a spot on The New York Times Best Seller list. It was followed by Linda Goodman's Love Signs (1978).

1926–Playboy magazine publisher, Hugh (Marston) Hefner, is born in Chicago, Illinois. The undated first issue of Playboy, published in December 1953, featured Marilyn Monroe from her 1949 nude calendar shoot and sold over 50,000 copies. A self-made multi-millionaire, he is now worth over $43 million.

1926–Freak show performer, Zip the Pinhead (William Henry Johnson), dies in New York, New York, at age 83. His funeral was attended by the greatest side show acts of the days, including Lady Olga Roderick (the Bearded Lady) Frank Graf (the tattooed man), and many more. At the side shows, he was billed as a missing link, supposedly caught in Africa and displayed in a cage. He was a popular draw, and his success led to his management by showman, P.T. Barnum. He is partly the inspiration for Bill Griffith's comics character, "Zippy the Pinhead."

1928–Mae West makes her debut on Broadway in the production of Diamond Lil.

1928–Tom Lehrer, song parodist and Harvard mathematics professor, is born in New York, New York. He was a prolific songwriter, his many songs including The Old Dope Peddler, The Vatican Rag, We Will All Go Together When We Go, and We're Having Hanukah in Santa Monica. His first record, Songs by Tom Lehrer, was recorded in 1953 for $15.

1932–The Stanley Cup: The Toronto Maple Leafs beats the New York Rangers, in 3 games.

1932–Zoologist, Jim Fowler, is born in Albany, Georgia. He is best known as the host of the Emmy Award-winning TV show Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. Fowler was the official wildlife correspondent for NBC's The Today Show from 1988, and was also regularly seen on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, making 40 appearances, as he brought various wildlife animals on the show.

1932–Rockabilly guitarist, Carl (Lee) Perkins, is born near Tiptonville, Tennessee. He is best known for his hit Blue Suede Shoes. He wrote and recorded the song in 1956, and his version sold two million copies before Elvis’ version became a hit. Perkins was a member of what is known as “The Million Dollar Quartet,” along with his fellow artists at Sun Records, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Elvis Presley. The Beatles recorded his songs Matchbox, Honey Don't, and Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

1933–Actor, Jean-Paul (Charles) Belmondo, is born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. He appeared in the films À bout de souffle (Breathless), La Ciociara (Two Women), Cartouche, Par un beau matin d'été (Crime on a Summer Morning), Paris brûle-t-il? (Is Paris Burning?), Casino Royale, Le Magnifique, and Les Misérables.

1935–The Stanley Cup: The Montreal Maroons beats the Toronto Maple Leafs, in 3 games.

1935–Comedian, Avery (Lawrence) Schreiber, is born in Chicago, Illinois. He joined The Second City and later teamed with Jack Burns to form the comedy team of Burns and Schreiber. They recorded several comedy albums and appeared on numerous television shows in the U.S.

1936–Valerie (Jean) Solanas is born in Ventnor City, New Jersey. She was a radical feminist writer who is best known for writing the SCUM Manifesto and attempting to murder artist, Andy Warhol. On June 3, 1968, she shot at Warhol three times, with the first two shots missing and the final wounding Warhol. She also shot art critic, Mario Amaya, and attempted to shoot Warhol's manager, Fred Hughes, point blank, but the gun jammed. Solanas then turned herself in to the police. She was charged with attempted murder, assault, and illegal possession of a gun. She was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and pleaded guilty to "reckless assault with intent to harm," serving a three-year prison sentence, including treatment in a mental hospital.

1937–The “Kamikaze” arrives at Croydon Airport in London, England. It is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe.

1937–Screenwriter and producer, Marty Krofft, is born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Along with his brother, Sid Krofft, he was influential in children's television and variety show programs and they were the founders of Sid & Marty Krofft Television Productions, creating programming in America throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. Their shows include Mutt & Stuff, Land of the Lost, Pink Lady and Jeff, The Brady Bunch Hour, Donny & Marie, Far Out Space Nuts, Lidsville, and H.R. Pufnstuf.

1939–Marian Anderson sings at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C, after being denied the right to sing at the Daughters of the American Revolution's Constitution Hall.

1939–Actress, Michael Learned, is born in Washington, D.C. She is best known for the role of Olivia Walton in the long-running TV series The Waltons.

1940–Germany invades Denmark and Norway, and Vidkun Quisling seizes power in Norway.

1941–The PGA (Professional Golfers Association) establishes the Golf Hall of Fame.

1942–During World War II, United States forces surrender on the Bataan Peninsula. The Japanese Navy launches an air raid on Trincomalee in Ceylon (Sri Lanka), and Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and Royal Australian Navy Destroyer HMAS Vampire are sunk off the island's east coast.

1942–Actor, (Andre) Brandon deWilde, is born in Brooklyn, New York. He appeared in the films A Member of the Wedding, Shane, Climax!, Good-bye, My Lady, Night Passage, The Missouri Traveler, Blue Denim, All Fall Down, Hud, Those Calloways, In Harm’s Way, The Trip, and Wild in the Sky.

1943–The rank of Commodore is re-established in the U.S. Navy.

1943–Rock vocalist, Terry Knight, is born Richard Terrance Knapp in Lapeer, Michigan. His biggest hit was Seasons in the Sun with Terry Knight and the Pack.

1945–The United States Atomic Energy Commission is established.

1945–The German pocket battleship, Admiral Scheer, is sunk by the Royal Air Force.

1945–Drummer, Steve Gadd, is born Stephen Kendall Gadd in Irondequoit, New York. He is one of the most well-known and highly regarded session and studio drummers in the music industry. Gadd has worked with Frank Sinatra, Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, Steely Dan, Al Jarreau, Joe Cocker, Bob James, Chick Corea, Eric Clapton, James Taylor, Jim Croce, The Manhattan Transfer, Carly Simon, Jon Bon Jovi, Chet Baker, Paul Desmond, The Bee Gees, Michael McDonald, Kate Bush, and David Sanborn, among many others.

1945–Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German theologist and anti-fascist, dies by hanging in Flossenbürg concentration camp, Nazi Germany, at age 39. Bonhoeffer became known for his staunch resistance to the Nazi dictatorship, including vocal opposition to Hitler's euthanasia program and genocidal persecution of the Jews.

1946–The Stanley Cup: The Montreal Canadiens beats the Boston Bruins, 4 games to 1.

1947–The Journey of Reconciliation, the first interracial Freedom Ride begins through the upper South of the U.S. in violation of Jim Crow laws. The riders wanted enforcement of the U.S. Supreme Court's 1946 Irene Morgan decision that banned racial segregation in interstate travel.

1947–A tornado strikes Woodward, Oklahoma, during the late evening, killing 95 people and causing $6 million in damage. The tornado, one to two miles in width, traveling at a speed of 68 mph, kills a total of 167 people along its 221-mile path from Texas into Kansas (it injured 980 others and caused $10 million in damage).

1948–Fighters from the Irgun and Lehi Zionist paramilitary groups attack Deir Yassin near Jerusalem, killing over 100 people.

1948–Jorge Eliécer Gaitán's assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the Bogotazo), and a further 10 years of violence in Colombia.

1948–Chico Ryan, of Sha Na Na, is born in Arlington, Massachusetts.

1950–The 14th Golf Masters Championship: Jimmy Demaret wins, shooting a 283.

1950–Astronaut, Kenneth D. Cockrell, is born in Austin, Texas.

1950–Chef, Pierre Gagnaire, is born in Apinac, Loire, France. He is well known as an iconoclast at the forefront of fusion cuisine. After winning three Michelin Stars early in his career, Gagniare shocked the culinary community by introducing apparently inharmonious combinations of ingredients into his cooking style.

1952–Hugo Ballivián's government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage, and the nationalization of tin mines.

1952–A 5.5 earthquake shakes El Reno, Oklahoma.

1953–Warner Brothers, the first of the major Hollywood studios to introduce 3-D motion pictures, premieres The House of Wax at the Paramount Theatre in New York City. The stage show preceding the movie is headed by singer Eddie Fisher. The film’s stars, Vincent Price, Phyllis Kirk, and Frank Lovejoy attend the premiere.

1953–TV Guide publishes its first issue.

1954–Actor, Dennis (William) Quaid, is born in Houston, Texas. He appeared in the films I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, September 30, 1955, Breaking Away, Caveman, Stripes, The Right Stuff, Dreamscape, Enemy Mine, The Big Easy, Innerspace, Suspect, D.O.A., Everybody’s All-American, Great Balls of Fire, Wyatt Earp, The Parent Trap, Cold Creek Manor, and The Day After Tomorrow. His brother is actor, Randy Quaid. He was married to actress, Meg Ryan.

1955–The U.S. conducts a nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

1956–Rocker, Gene Vincent, records Be-Bop-a-Lula.

1956–Singer, Nat “King” Cole, is attacked and severely beaten by a group of racial segregationists, while singing onstage at the Municipal Hall in Birmingham, Alabama.

1957–The Suez Canal in Egypt is cleared and opens to shipping.

1959–NASA announces the selection of America's first seven astronauts. The news media quickly dub them the “Mercury Seven.”

1959–The 13th NBA Championship: The Boston Celtics sweep the Minneapolis Lakers in 4 games. It is the Boston Celtics 8th straight title.

1959–Architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, dies from complications during surgery in Phoenix, Arizona, at age 89. Wright was interred at the Unity Chapel, near Taliesin, Wright's home in Spring Green, Wisconsin. Following the death of his third wife more than 25 years later, Wright's remains were removed from his grave, cremated, and interred with her in a memorial garden at Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Arizona. This was against the wishes of his family, the State of Wisconsin, and Wright himself. Hr built more than 100 buildings, among them the earthquake-proof Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, Japan, and the Guggenheim Museum of Art in New York.

1960–Dr. Hendrik Verwoerd, Prime Minister of South Africa and architect of apartheid, narrowly survives an assassination attempt in Johannesburg by white farmer, David Pratt.

1960–The 14th NBA Championship: The Boston Celtics beat the St. Louis Hawks, 4 games to 3.

1961–The Pacific Electric Railway in Los Angeles, California, once the largest electric railway in the world, shuts down.

1961–Zog I of Albania dies of an undisclosed condition at the Hôpital Foch, Suresnes, Hauts-de-Seine, Paris, France, at age 69. Zog was said to have regularly consumed 200 cigarettes a day, giving him a possible claim to the dubious title of the world's heaviest smoker in 1929, but had been seriously ill for some time. He first served as Prime Minister of Albania (1922-1924), then as President (1925-1928), and finally as King (1928-1939).

1962–President John F. Kennedy throws out the ceremonial first pitch in Washington D.C.’s new stadium, D.C. Stadium (later to be known as Robert F. Kennedy, or RFK, Stadium). In so doing, he continues a long-standing tradition which began in 1910, when President William H. Taft threw out Major League Baseball’s first opening-day pitch in Washington D.C.’s old Griffith Stadium.

1962–The 34th Annual Academy Awards announces its winners. Best Picture: West Side Story; Best Actor: Maximilian Schell for Judgment at Nuremberg; Best Actress: Sophia Loren for Two Women; Best Director: Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise for West Side Story; Best Foreign Film: Through a Glass Darkly (Sweden). The ceremonies are held at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California. The host is Bob Hope. Henry Mancini wins Best Original Song for Moon River, his contribution to the film Breakfast At Tiffany's.

1962–The 26th Golf Masters Championship: Arnold Palmer wins, shooting a 280.

1963–Winston Churchill becomes the first honorary U.S. citizen.

1963–American designer and business icon, Marc Jacobs, is born in New York, New York. Jacobs was the creative director of the French design house, Louis Vuitton, from 1997 to 2013. He later established his own fashion house, Marc Jacobs (as well as Marc by Marc Jacobs), with over 200 retail stores in 80 countries.

1964–U.S. record companies Capitol and VeeJay settle their legal battle over The Beatles out-of-court. Capitol obtains exclusive rights to manufacture and distribute Beatles records, but VeeJay is permitted to continue releasing Beatles records for a short time. VeeJay essentially has only the songs from The Beatles' first album, which they had released under the title Introducing the Beatles, at their disposal, so they would end up repackaging these tracks a number of times in an attempt to milk every possible bit of profit from their limited rights.

1965–Musician, Bruce Johnston, joins The Beach Boys as a touring replacement for Brian Wilson. Brian had suffered a nervous breakdown while on the band's recent flight to Houston, Texas.

1965–The Rolling Stones make their first live appearance on British TV's Ready Steady Go!

1965–Astrodome opens in Houston, Texas, and the first indoor baseball game is played.

1965–Model, Paulina Porizkova, is born in Prostejov, Czechoslovakia. At 18 years old, she became the first woman from Central Europe to be on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue in 1984. She was married to musician, Ric Okasic.

1966–Actress, Sophia Loren, marries film director, Carlo Ponti, in Paris, France.

1967–The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) makes its maiden flight.

1967–The Doors perform at the Cheetah on the Santa Monica Pier, Venice, California.

1967–The 31st Golf Masters Championship: Gay Brewer, Jr. wins, shooting a 280.

1968–The new socialist constitution of East Germany takes effect.

1968–Groupie, Francie Schwartz, cuts her hair into a pixie cut like actress, Mia Farrow. She then receives a note from Paul McCartney, and meets him at the Apple offices, from where they embark on their first walk. These activities are the basis for Francie Schwartz's book, Body Count, about her short-lived relationship with Beatle Paul in 1970. A bit later, Linda Eastman (who will become McCartney’s first wife), will come to London, England, to take up residence with the cute Beatle.

1969–The first British-built Concorde 002 makes its maiden flight from Filton to RAF Fairford.

1969–The Chicago Eight, indicted on federal charges of conspiracy to incite a riot at the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, Illinois, plead not guilty. The trial for the eight anti-war activists had begun in Chicago on March 20th. The defendants include David Dellinger of the National Mobilization Committee (NMC); Rennie Davis and Thomas Hayden of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS); Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin, founders of the Youth International Party ("Yippies"); Bobby Seale of the Black Panthers; and two lesser known activists, Lee Weiner and John Froines. The trial, presided over by Judge Julius Hoffman, turned into a circus as the defendants and their attorneys used the court as a platform to attack Nixon, the war, racism, and oppression. Their tactics were so disruptive that at one point Judge Hoffman ordered Seale gagged and strapped to his chair. (Seale's disruptive behavior eventually caused the judge to try him separately). When the trial ended in February 1970, Judge Hoffman found the defendants and their attorneys guilty of 175 counts of contempt of court and sentenced them to terms ranging from two to four years. Although declaring the defendants not guilty of conspiracy, the jury found all but Froines and Weiner guilty of intent to riot. The others were each sentenced to five years and fined $5,000. However, none of the defendants served time, because in 1972 a Court of Appeals overturned the criminal convictions and eventually most of the contempt charges were also dropped.

1970–Paul McCartney phones John Lennon at his Tittenhurst estate (where he is undergoing Primal Scream therapy with Arthur Janov), to inform him of the release of his solo album, McCartney. However, Paul avoids telling John that he is leaving The Beatles. John hears of the split like everyone else when it hits the papers.

1972–The 36th Golf Masters Championship: Jack Nicklaus wins, shooting a 286.

1973–The 37th Golf Masters Championship: Tommy Aaron wins, shooting a 283.

1975–Eight people in South Korea, who are involved in People's Revolutionary Party Incident, are hanged.

1976–The EMD F40PH diesel locomotive enters revenue service with Amtrak.

1976–The U.S. and Russia agree on the size of nuclear tests for peaceful use.

1976–Singer-songwriter, Phil Ochs, dies of suicide by hanging in Queens, New York, at age 35. He had been suffering from manic depression. Ochs was one of the most popular folk artists of the 1960s, known for his adamantly left-wing folk songs. After years of recording protest songs in America, he moved to Europe, where he wandered the continent for years.

1977–The Swedish pop group, ABBA, makes its debut at #1 on the American pop charts with Dancing Queen.

1978–The 42nd Golf Masters Championship: Gary Player wins, shooting a 277.

1979–The 51st Annual Academy Awards announces its winners. Best Picture: The Deer Hunter; Best Actor: Jon Voight for Coming Home; Best Actress: Jane Fonda for Coming Home; Best Director: Michael Cimino for The Deer Hunter; Best Foreign Film: Get Out Your Handkerchiefs (France). The ceremonies are held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California. The host is Johnny Carson.

1979–Singer-songwriter, Albert Hammond, Jr., is born Albert Louis Hammond III in Los Angeles, California. He is the son of singer-songwriter, Albert Hammond (best known for his 1972 hit single It Never Rains in Southern California).

1979–Child actress, Keshia Knight Pulliam, is born in Newark, New Jersey. She is best known for her role on the popular TV series The Cosby Show.

1980–The Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein kills philosopher, Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr, and his sister, Bint al-Huda, after three days of torture.

1980–John Lennon, Yoko Ono, their son, Sean, and employee, Fred Seaman, travel to the Lennons' Cold Spring Harbor house in Long Island, New York, for a vacation.

1981–The U.S. Navy nuclear submarine, USS George Washington, accidentally collides with the Japanese cargo ship, Nissho Maru, sinking it.

1984–The permanent multi-media “Beatle City” exhibition center officially opens on Seel Street in Liverpool, England.

1984–The 56th Annual Academy Awards announces its winners. Best Picture: Terms of Endearment; Best Actor: Robert Duvall for Tender Mercies; Best Actress: Shirley MacLaine for Terms of Endearment; Best Director: James L. Brooks for Terms of Endearment; Best Foreign Film: Fanny and Alexander (Sweden). The ceremonies are held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California. The host is Johnny Carson.

1988–Singer, Brook Benton, dies of spinal meningitis in Queens, New York, at age 56. His hits include It's Just a Matter of Time, Endlessly, This Time of the Year, and Rainy Night in Georgia.

1988–Dave Prater, of Sam and Dave, dies in a car accident in Sycamore, Georgia, at age 50. The duo had a huge hit with Soul Man in the 1960s.

1989–Hundreds of thousands of protesters march past the White House in support of the right to abortion.

1989–Rolling Stones bassist, Bill Wyman, age 52, announces his intention to marry model, Mandy Smith, age 19. He had been dating Mandy for the past six years with her mother's permission. The marriage would last just under two years.

1989–An anti-Soviet peaceful demonstration and hunger strike in Tbilisi, demanding restoration of Georgian independence, is dispersed by the Soviet Army, resulting in 20 deaths and hundreds of injuries.

1989–The 53rd Golf Masters Championship: Nick Faldo wins, shooting a 283.

1990–Actress, Kristen (Jaymes) Stewart, is born in Los Angeles, California. She appeared in the films The Safety of Objects, Panic Room, Cold Creek Manor, Fierce People, Into the Wild, Twilight, The Runaways, Snow White and the Huntsman, and Still Alice.

1991–Georgia declares independence from the Soviet Union.

1992–John Majors is elected Prime Minister of England.

1992–The U.S. Federal Court finds former Panamanian dictator, Manuel Noriega, guilty on drug and racketeering charges. He is sentenced to 30 years in prison.

1995–The 59th Golf Masters Championship: Ben Crenshaw wins, shooting a 274.

1996–Writer, Richard Condon, dies in Dallas, Texas. He was a political novelist whose satiric works were generally presented in the form of thrillers or semi-thrillers. His works include The Manchurian Candidate, A Talent for Loving, Winter Kills, and Prizzi’s Honor.

1997–Singer-songwriter, Mae Boren Axton, dies of a heart attack at her home in Hendersonville, Tennessee, at age 82. She was known in the music industry as the “Queen Mother of Nashville.” She co-wrote, with Tommy Durden, the Elvis Presley hit single Heartbreak Hotel. During her career, she worked with Mel Tillis, Reba McEntire, Willie Nelson, Eddy Arnold, Tanya Tucker, Johnny Tillotson, and Blake Shelton.

1998–Child actress, Elle Fanning, is born in Conyers, Georgia. She appeared in the films Daddy Day Care, The Door in the Floor, Because of Winn Dixie, Reservation Road, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Astro Boy, and We Bought a Zoo. She is the younger sister of actress, Dakota Fanning.

2000–The 64th Golf Masters Championship: Vijay Singh wins, shooting a 278.

2002–More than a million people line the streets at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, at Westminster Abbey in London, England.

2003–In the Iraq War, Baghdad falls to American forces. Iraqis turn on symbols of their former leader, Saddam Hussein, pulling down a grand statue of him and tearing it to pieces.

2005–His Royal Highness Prince Charles marries Camilla Parker Bowles.

2006–The 70th Golf Masters Championship: Phil Mickelson wins, shooting a 281.

2008–A benefit concert by Elton John at Radio City Music Hall raises $2.5 million for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

2009–In Tbilisi, Georgia, up to 60,000 people protest against the government of Mikheil Saakashvili.

2011–A tornado hits Mapleton, Iowa. Officials estimate more than half the town is damaged or destroyed, but none of the 1,200 residents are killed. Thirty-one tornadoes are confirmed across Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina.

2011–Film director, Sidney Lumet, dies of lymphoma in Manhattan, New York, at age 87. His films include 12 Angry Men, That Kind of Woman, The Fugitive Kind, Long Day’s Journey into Night, The Pawnbroker, Fail-Safe, The Group, The Anderson Tapes, Serpico, Murder on the Orient Express, Dog Day Afternoon, Network, Equus, Deathtrap, The Verdict, The Morning After, Running on Empty, and Family Business.

2013–The French Senate approves a bill for same-sex marriage.

2013–At least 13 people are killed and another three are injured, after a man goes on a spree shooting in the Serbian village of Velika Ivanca.

2013–A 6.1 earthquake strikes Iran, killing 32 people and injuring over 850 others.

2013–Architect, Paolo Soleri, dies of natural causes in Paradise Valley, Arizona, at age 93. He established the educational Cosanti Foundation. The Cosanti Foundation's major project, designed by Soleri, is Arcosanti, a community planned for 5,000 people, which has been in construction since 1970. Located near Cordes Junction, Arizona (about 70 north of Phoenix and visible from Interstate I-17), the project intends to provide a model demonstrating Soleri's concept of "Arcology," architecture coherent with ecology. Since 1970, over 6,000 people have participated in Arcosanti's construction. Their international affiliation group is called the Arcosanti Alumni Network.

2014–A student stabs 20 people at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania.

2015–Illusionist, Penn Jillette, loses 105 lbs. after four months of dieting and drastically changing his eating habits. His decision to live a healthier life came after he had landed in the hospital due to high blood pressure.

2016–The U.S. Air Force deploys B-52 bombers to Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, to join operations against ISIL in Syria and Iraq. This is the first time American troops have been stationed in the Middle East since the end of the Gulf War in 1991.

2016–At least 23 people are killed and 32 others are injured after a bus plunges into a river in southeastern Peru.

2017–The United States Pacific Command deploys warships including the USS Carl Vinson to move towards Korea, following North Korea's recent tests with weapons of mass destruction and opposition to the Sharyat missile strike. North Korea is also reclassified as a state sponsor of terrorism.

2017–The 81st Golf Masters Championship: Sergio Garcia wins, shooting a 279.

2017–At least 44 people are killed and 50 others are injured in an explosion near two Coptic Christian churches packed with worshippers on Palm Sunday in the Egyptian cities of Tanta and Alexandria.

2018–Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak, deactivates his Facebook account because of the social giant's aggregation of users' data and how if profits off that information.

2018–Bill Cosby's sexual assault retrial begins and as he enters the court, a topless woman (actress Nicolle Rochelle) with the words “Women's Lives Matter” written on her body charges toward him and is arrested. Rochelle had appeared on four episodes of The Cosby Show.

2018–A school bus plunges into a gorge in the foothills of the Himalayas, in Himachal Pradesh, India, killing three adults and at least 27 children.


PHOTOS TOP TO BOTTOM: Margaret of Scotland, Queen of Norway; King Henry V of England; Theobald Boehm; Mark Twain; Billy the Kid: Ward Bond; Linda Goodman; a poster for Diamond Lil; Michael Learned; Brandon deWilde; Dietrich Bonhoeffer; Pierre Gagnaire; Gene Vincent; President John F. Kennedy throws out the ceremonial first pitch in Washington D.C.’s new stadium, D.C. Stadium; Introducing The Beatles by The Beatles; Francie Schwartz; McCartney LP; Jon Voight and Jane Fonda win Oscars for Coming Home; Brook Benton; Richard Condon; Sidney Lumet; and Penn Jillette.
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