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What happened in history on this day: April 2?
On April 2 in ...
- 742 - Birth of Charlemagne, to Frankish king Pepin the Short and Bertrada of Laon, in Liege or Aachen; first Holy Roman emperor (800-14) (dies 814).
- 999 - Gerbert of Aurillac elected as first French Pope.
- 1118 - Boudouin I of Bologne/Edessa, first crusader/king of Jerusalem, dies.
- 1416 - Alfonso V succeeds his father as king of Aragón.
- 1416 - Ferdinand I the Justified, king of Aragon/Sicily, dies at age 52.
- 1453 - Mahmed II begins the seige of Constantinople.
- 1502 - Arthur English crown prince/husband of Catharina of Aragón, dies.
- 1513 - Explorer Juan Ponce de León claims Florida for Spain.
- 1550 - Jews are expelled from Genoa Italy.
- 1590 - States-General appoints earl Mauritius, viceroy of Utrecht.
- 1595 - Cornelis de Houtman's ships depart to Asia through Cape of Good Hope.
- 1602 - Birth of Maria de Jesus de Agreda [Maria Coronel] Spanish franciscan.
- 1618 - Birth of Francesco M Grimaldi mathematician/physicist (light defraction).
- 1628 - Birth of Constantin Christian Dedekind composer.
- 1632 - Birth of Georg Caspar Weckler composer.
- 1640 - Death of Paul Fleming in Hamburg; poets of the German Baroque period of literature.
- 1640 - Matthias C Sarbiewski [Sarbievius], Polish jesuit/poet, dies at age 45.
- 1645 - Robert Devereux resigns as parliament supreme commander.
- 1657 - Ferdinand III King of Hungarian/Bohemia/German Emperor, dies at age 48.
- 1711 - Birth of Jan Punt Dutch engraver/illustrator/actor (Gideonschool).
- 1713 - Birth of Onno Zwier van Haren Frisian poet (Fatherland).
- 1740 - Birth of Armand-Gaston Camus French CEO (Council of 500).
- 1745 - Austria and Bavaria sign peace.
- 1762 - In Bangladesh, a very destructive earthquake occurs. Sixty square miles are said to have been permanently submerged.
- 1792 - US President George Washington signs the Coinage Act, establishing the US Mint, and authorizes $10 Eagle, $5 half-Eagle and $2.50 quarter-Eagle gold (24.75 grains) coins and dollar, half dollar, quarter dollar, dime and half-dime silver (371.25 grains) coins. Coins of gold and silver are legal tender, but copper metal coins are not.
- 1805 - Birth of Hans Christian Andersen in Denmark; author of 150 fairy tales.
- 1806 - Birth of Giacomo Antonelli; Italian cardinal/Assistant Secretary of State for Pius IX.
- 1814 - Birth of Henry Lewis "Old Rock" Benning; Brigadier General (Confederate Army).
- 1819 - First successful agricultural journal (The American Farmer) begins.
- 1826 - Birth of Philip Dale Roddey; Brigadier General (Confederate Army) (dies 1897).
- 1827 - Birth of William Holdman Hunt; English painter (Light of the World).
- 1831 - Charles Felix, blind King of Sardina (1821-31), dies at age 74.
- 1833 - Birth of Thomas Howard Ruger; US Brevet Major General (Union volunteers).
- 1834 - Birth of Frédéric-Auguste Bertholdi in France; sculptor (Statue of Liberty).
- 1840 - Birth of Émile Zola in France; novelist (Nana, J'Accuse) (dies 1902).
- 1845 - H L Fizeau and J Leon Foucault take first photo of Sun.
- 1847 - Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (9th time) as President of Mexico.
- 1860 - First Italian Parliament meets at Turin.
- 1862 - Birth of Nicholas Murray Butler; Columbia University president/pacifist (Nobel Prize 1931).
- 1863 - Birth of Henry C Van de Velde; Flemish painter/architect (Art Nouveau).
- 1863 - Bread revolt in Richmond, Virginia.
- 1865 - Ambrose Powell Hill, Confederate General, killed in action at age 39.
- 1865 - Richard Cobden, founder of Anti-Corn-Law League, dies at age 60.
- 1865 - Battle of Petersburg, Virginia (Fort Gregg, Sutherland's Station).
- 1865 - CSA President Jefferson Davis flees Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia.
- 1865 - General A P Hill is killed by a Federal Picket.
- 1866 - US President Andrew Johnson ends war in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.
- 1868 - Birth of Eduard Jacobs; singer/pianist (Dutch cabaret).
- 1868 - In Ka'u District, Island of Hawaii, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake occurs. This earthquake causes 77 deaths (tsunami, 46; landslide, 31).
- 1872 - George B Brayton patents gasoline-powered engine.
- 1872 - Death of Samuel Finley Breese Morse in New York City, New York, USA at age 80; painter, founder and president of the National Academy of Design, inventor of the telegraph.
- 1875 - Birth of Walter Percy Chrysler in Witchita, Kansas, USA; founder of Chrysler Corp (1925).
- 1877 - At West's Amphitheatre in London, England, Zazel performs the first human-cannonball circus act. The Cannon is powered by elastic springs.
- 1877 - Birth of Arnold Schering; German musicologist (Humor, Heldentum, Tragik).
- 1883 - Battle at Bamako: French assault on Fabous arm forces attack.
- 1884 - London prison for debtors closes.
- 1891 - Birth of Max Ernst in Germany; painter/sculptor (founded surrealism).
- 1892 - Willem J d'Ablaing van Giessenburg, Dutch baron/genealogist, dies at age 79.
- 1894 - Birth of Walter Mittelholzer; Swiss aviation pioneer (Swiss Air).
- 1900 - First edition of The Volk ("The People") is published (Amsterdam, Netherlands).
- 1902 - First motion picture theater opens (Los Angeles, California, USA).
- 1905 - Birth of Serge Lifar in Kiev, Ukraine; dancer, choreographer (Paris Opéra Ballet).
- 1905 - Cairo, Egypt, to Capetown, South Africa, railway opens.
- 1907 - Birth of Irene Mayer Selznick; producer (A Street Car Named Desire).
- 1908 - Birth of Buddy Ebsen AKA Christian Rudolph Ebsen in Belleville, Illinois, USA; dancer (with Shirley Temple, 1930s films), actor (Jed Clampett - Northwest Passage TV show, Beverly Hillbillies, Barnaby Jones).
- 1908 - Mills Committee declares baseball was invented by Abner Doubleday.
- 1910 - Birth of Arnie Herber; NFL quarterback (Green Bay Packers, New York Giants).
- 1910 - Boyd Alexander, English explorer (Niger to the Nile), is murdered at age 37.
- 1911 - Birth of Charles "Honi" Coles; tap dancer (Tap).
- 1912 - Birth of Herbert Mills in Piqua, Ohio, USA; singer (Mills Brothers - "Paper Doll", "You Always Hurt the One You Love", "Glow-Worm", "Cab Driver").
- 1912 - Sun Yat Sen forms Guomindang-Party in China.
- 1914 - Birth of Alec Guinness de Cuffe AKA Alex Guiness in London, England; actor (Colonel Nicholson - The Bridge on the River Kwai, Obi-Wan Kenobi - Star Wars, George Smiley - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy).
- 1916 - German troops overtake Bois de Caillette.
- 1917 - Birth of Dabbs Greer in Fairview, Missouri, USA; actor (Gunsmoke, Little House on the Prairie).
- 1917 - Birth of Lou Monte in Lyndhurst, New Jersey, USA; singer ("Peppino the Italian Mouse").
- 1917 - US President Woodrow Wilson asks Congress to declare war against Germany.
- 1919 - Birth of Antoon J Hubben; Dutch mayor (Maasbree)/trade union leader.
- 1920 - Birth of Jack Webb in Santa Monica, California, USA; actor (Pat Novak for Hire radio show, Johnny Madero Pier 23, Joe Friday - Dragnet radio and TV show, Pete Kelly's Blues radio and TV show), producer (Emergency TV show (1972-77)).
- 1920 - Birth of Lambertus van Straaten; geologist (Waddenzee, Rhône-delta).
- 1921 - Professor Albert Einstein lectures in New York City on his new theory of relativity.
- 1922 - Birth of Nikolaj G Bassov in Russia; atomic physicist (laser, Nobel Prize 1964).
- 1923 - Birth of Jacob "Jaap" Firet; Dutch theologist (Agogisch Moment).
- 1924 - Birth of Denis Rooke; CEO (British Gas).
- 1925 - Birth of Elena Verdugo; actress (Meet Millie, Marcus Welby MD).
- 1925 - Birth of George MacDonald Fraser; poet/author (Flashman at the Charge).
- 1926 - Birth of Elena Verdugo in Hollywood, California, USA; actress (Consuelo - Marcus Welby M.D.).
- 1926 - Riots between Muslims and Hindus in Calcutta, India.
- 1927 - Birth of Billy Pierce; pitcher (Chicago White Sox) seven-time all-star.
- 1928 - Birth of Rita Gam in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; actress (Distortions, Hannibal, Sierra Baron, Mohawk, Edge of Night, Love of Life, Hidden Faces).
- 1928 - Birth of Serge Gainsbourg [Ginsburg]; Russian/French singer ("Ford Mustang").
- 1928 - Theodore Richards, US chemist (atomic weight, Nobel Prize 1914), dies.
- 1929 - Birth of Catherine Gaskin; romantic novelist (Fiona, Coporation Wife).
- 1929 - Birth of Frans HJJ Andriessen; Dutch Member of Parliament (KVP/CDA).
- 1930 - First New York-Bermuda airplane flight lands in Bermuda.
- 1930 - Birth of W Hambleden Smith; English newspaper magnate (WH Smith bookstores).
- 1931 - Teenage girl strikes out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in an exhibition game in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
- 1932 - Birth of Mahmood Hussain; Pakistani cricket swing bowler (68 wickets in 27 Tests).
- 1932 - Charles Lindbergh turns over $50,000 as ransom for kidnapped son.
- 1933 - K S Ranjitsinhji, cricket player (989 Test runs, first-class average 56), dies.
- 1934 - Birth of Brian Glover; actor (McGuffin).
- 1934 - Birth of Christopher France; British permanent secretary (Department of Health).
- 1934 - Birth of Diane Cilento in Rabaul; actress (Hombre, Tom Jones, Wicker Man).
- 1934 - Birth of Peter Middleton; British permanent secretary (Treasury).
- 1935 - Birth of Sharon Acker in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; actress (Della Street - Perry Mason (1973), The Young and the Restless, Street Legal, Days of Our Lives).
- 1935 - Sir Watson-Watt patents RADAR.
- 1936 - Birth of Jack Brabham in Australia; race car driver (world champion 1966).
- 1936 - In Yurtuk, USSR, a building is struck by a falling meteorite.
- 1937 - Birth of Paul E Kanjorski; American politician (Representative-Democrat-Pennsylvania, 1985-).
- 1937 - Nathan Birnbaum, Austria philosopher (Zionism), dies at about age 72.
- 1939 - 6th Golf Masters Championship: Ralph Guldahl wins, shooting a 279.
- 1939 - Birth of Marvin P Gaye Junior in Washington, DC, USA; singer ("Sexual Healing", "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" (1969)).
- 1940 - Birth of Penelope Keith; British actress (Norman Conquests, Priest of Love).
- 1940 - Birth of Peter Haining; writer/editor (Anatomy of Witchcraft).
- 1940 - Walt Disney Productions first offers shares in the company to the public. 155,000 shares of preferred stock are offered at US$25 per share, and 600,000 of common stock for US$5 per share. US$3.5 million is raised from the stock offering.
- 1941 - Birth of Leon Russell in Lawton, Kansas, USA; pianist/singer ("Carny").
- 1941 - German occupiers of Holland disallows Dutch scouting association.
- 1941 - Aircraft carrier USS Hornet with Jimmy Doolittle's B-25 planes departs from San Francisco, California, for surprise raid on Japan.
- 1941 - Hungarian Prime Minister Count Teleki kills himself, rather than agree to Adolf Hitler's demand to allow passage of German troops to Yugoslavia. However, the Hungarian Chief of General Staff accedes to the demand.
- 1942 - Birth of Graham Bright; private secretary to British Prime Minister.
- 1943 - Birth of Glen Dale [Richard Garforth]; rock vocalist (Fortunes Deal).
- 1943 - Birth of Larry Coryell in Galveston, Texas, USA; jazz guitarist (11th House).
- 1944 - CPI-leader Palmiro Togliatti returns to Italy.
- 1944 - Soviet Army marches into pro-German Romania.
- 1945 - First US units reach east coast of Okinawa, Japan.
- 1945 - Birth of Don Sutton; baseball pitcher (Los Angeles Dodgers).
- 1945 - Birth of Linda Hunt in Morristown, New Jersey, USA; actress (Bostonians, Eleni, Silverado, The Practice, Carnivale).
- 1945 - Birth of Lord Skelmersdale; British minister (Conservative).
- 1945 - A special train carries rockets and 500 technicians and engineers, escorted by 100 SS troopers, to an Alpine redoubt in Bavaria, under orders of chief of SS secret weapon empire Hans Kammler, to bargain with Allies.
- 1946 - Birth of Kurt Winter; rocker (The Guess Who - "American Woman").
- 1946 - Birth of Richard Collinge; cricket player (New Zealand record wicket-taker (116) before Hadlee).
- 1947 - Birth of Camille Paglia in Endicott, New York, USA; actress (Female Misbehavior, It's Pat).
- 1947 - Birth of Emmylou Harris in Birmingham, Alabama, USA; country singer (Together Again).
- 1947 - Joseph Hardstaff, cricket player (311 runs in five Tests for England 1907-08), dies.
- 1948 - Birth of Joan [Carol] D[ennison] Vinge; American sci-fi author (two Hugo awards, Dune, Tangled Up In Blue, The Snow Queen, Catspaw).
- 1948 - Birth of Kerry Minnear; rocker (Gentle Giant).
- 1949 - Birth of Pamela Reed in Tacoma, Washington, USA; actress (Grand, Kindergarten Cop, Home Court, Jericho, Family Album).
- 1951 - Birth of Ayako Okamoto in Hiroshima, Japan; LPGA golfer (1990 Sara Lee).
- 1951 - Simon Barere, pianist, dies while perfoming at Carnegie Hall.
- 1952 - Bernard F Lyot, French astronomer (chronograph, Lyot-filter), dies at age 55.
- 1952 - Birth of Dan Halldorson in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; Canadian Tour golfer (1985 World Cup).
- 1952 - Birth of Joseph Kent Massey in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; soling yachter (Olympics-bronze-1996).
- 1952 - Birth of Leon Wilkerson; rocker (Lynard Skynard).
- 1953 - Birth of David Robinson; drummer (The Cars - "Drive").
- 1953 - Birth of Debralee Scott in Elizabeth, New Jersey, USA; actress (Angie, Welcome Home Kotter, Sons and Daughters, Cathy - Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman).
- 1953 - Jean Epstein, French director (Vive la Vie), dies at age 56.
- 1953 - Raab forms his first government in Austria.
- 1954 - Birth of Ron Palillo in Cheshire, Connecticut, USA; actor (Arnold Horshack - Welcome Back Kotter).
- 1954 - Disney and ABC hold a joint press conference, announcing their agreement for the Disney TV show (Disneyland).
- 1955 - Pancho Gonzales retains tennis title by winning a tournament playing under table tennis rules.
- 1955 - US female Figure Skating championship won by Tenley Albright.
- 1955 - US male Figure Skating championship won by Hayes A Jenkins.
- 1956 - Albert de Bassompierre, Belgian ambassador to Tokyo, Japan, dies at age 82.
- 1956 - Birth of Farrukh Zaman; lefty cricket spinner (bowled ten overs, Pakistan versus New Zealand 1976).
- 1956 - Chester Clute, actor (Niagara Falls), dies at age 65.
- 1956 - CBS debuts the daytime drama The Edge of Night.
- 1956 - CBS debuts the daytime drama As the World Turns.
- 1958 - Birth of Amelia Marshall; actress (Guiding Light, All My Children).
- 1958 - Antillean Brewery (Amstel beer) opens.
- 1958 - American National Advisory Council on Aeronautics renamed NASA.
- 1958 - Wind speed reaches 450 kph in tornado in Wichita Falls, Texas, USA (record).
- 1959 - Benjamin Christensen, Danish actor (Barnet, Mockery), dies at age 79.
- 1959 - Birth of Adrian Meagher; Australian baseball pitching coach (Olympics-1996).
- 1959 - Birth of Brian Goodell; American 400 metre/1500 metre freestyle swimmer (Olympics-2 gold-1976).
- 1959 - Birth of Carmen Ayala-Troncoso in New York City, New York, USA; 5000m runner.
- 1959 - Birth of Dean Townson in Saint Petersburg, Florida, USA; singer (Pirates of the Mississippi - "Fred Jake").
- 1959 - Birth of Gelindo Bordin; Italian marathon runner (Olympics-gold-1988).
- 1959 - Birth of Ken Macleay; cricket player (at Bedford-on-Avon Australian ODI medium pacer).
- 1959 - Birth of Chris Steffler; drummer (Platinum Blonde).
- 1960 - Birth of Linford Christie in Saint Andrews, Jamaica; 4x100 metre runner (Olympics-gold 1992).
- 1961 - Birth of Cindy Mackey in Athens, Georgia, USA; LPGA golfer (1986 MasterCard International Pro-Am).
- 1961 - Birth of Gijs Steinmann; Dutch soccer player (Go Ahead Eagles).
- 1961 - Birth of Keren Jane Woodward in Bristol, England; rock vocalist (Bananarama - "Venus").
- 1961 - Wallingford Riegger, US composer (Bacchangle), dies at age 75.
- 1961 - Birth of Buddy Jewell; country singer (Nashville Star).
- 1961 - Birth of Chris Meloni; actor (Law and Order: Special Victims Unit).
- 1962 - Birth of Clark Gregg; actor (The New Adventures of Old Christine).
- 1962 - Birth of Alex Tripolski in Israel; Men's Shooting 50 metre air pistol (Olympics-16th-1996).
- 1962 - Birth of Billy Dean in Quincy, Florida, USA; country singer (Billy the Kid).
- 1962 - Birth of Bruce Kozerski; NFL tackle/guard (Cincinnati Bengals).
- 1963 - Birth of Dermot Reeve in England; cricket player (in Hong Kong England all-rounder 1992).
- 1963 - Explorer 17 attains Earth orbit (254/914 km).
- 1963 - USSR launches Luna 4; misses Moon by 8,500 km.
- 1964 - Birth of Jana Marie Hupp in Spokane, Washington, USA; actress (Ed, Brooklyn South).
- 1964 - Birth of Pete Incaviglia in Pebble Beach, California, USA; outfielder (Philadelphia Phillies).
- 1964 - Josef Klaus succeeds Alfons Gorbach as chancellor of Austria.
- 1964 - Military coup in Brazil by General Castello Branco, President Goulart ousted.
- 1964 - USSR launches Zond 1 to Venus; no data returned.
- 1966 - Birth of Andrei Kovalev; NHL forward (Belarus, Olympics-1998).
- 1966 - Birth of Bill Romanowski; NFL linebacker (Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos-Superbowl 32).
- 1966 - Birth of Willie Green; NFL wide receiver (Denver Broncos-Superbowl 32).
- 1966 - Cecil Scott Forester, English author (Horatio Hornblower), dies at age 66.
- 1966 - Soviet Union's Luna 10 becomes first spacecraft to orbit Moon.
- 1967 - Birth of Greg Camp; guitarist (Smash Mouth - "All Star", "I'm a Believer").
- 1967 - Susie Maxwell wins LPGA Louise Suggs Golf Invitational.
- 1968 - The Beatles form Python Music Ltd.
- 1968 - Chad creates Union of Central African States.
- 1968 - Senator Eugene McCarthy wins Democratic primary in Wisconsin.
- 1969 - Birth of Tony Fredianelli; guitarist (Third Eye Blind).
- 1969 - Birth of Yj Nagata [Yuji]; wrestler (NJPW).
- 1969 - Fortunio Bonanova, actor (My Best Gal, Havana Rose), dies at age 74.
- 1969 - Milwaukee Bucks sign Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lew Alcindor).
- 1970 - The 52nd Annual New York Automobile Show is held in New York, USA. Chevrolet unveils the experimental transverse mid-engined XP-882 Corvette prototype. Ford shows its Pantera, and American Motors shows its AMX/3, both mid-engine prototypes.
- 1970 - Two men begin ascent of south face of Annapurna I, the highest final stage in a wall climb in the world.
- 1970 - Birth of Jerry Reynolds; NFL guard/tackle (New York Giants).
- 1970 - Birth of Jon Lieber in Council Bluffs, Iowa, USA; pitcher (Pittsburgh Pirates).
- 1970 - Birth of Marcus Christensen in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; figure skater (1995 Canadian-second).
- 1970 - Birth of Tammi Reiss; WNBA guard (Utah Starzz).
- 1970 - Meghalaya becomes autonomous state within India's Assam state.
- 1970 - Qatar gains independence from Britain.
- 1971 - Birth of James Ransom in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; epee fencer (Olympics-1996).
- 1971 - Birth of Jenny Craig; Miss Georgia-USA (1996).
- 1971 - Birth of Todd Woodbridge in Sydney, Australia; tennis star (1995 doubles Wimbledon).
- 1971 - ABC TV airs the last episode of the sci-fi soap opera Dark Shadows after an almost five-year run.
- 1972 - 44th Academy Awards - French Connection, Gene Hackman and Jane Fonda win.
- 1972 - Birth of Graham Hood in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; 1.5k runner (Olympics-1992, 1996).
- 1972 - Gil Hodges, manager (New York Mets), dies of heart attack at age 57.
- 1972 - Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin visits Cairo, Egypt.
- 1973 - Birth of Roselyn Sanchez; actress (Without a Trace, Kojak 2005).
- 1973 - CBS radio begins on-hour news 24 hours a day.
- 1973 - International Telephone And Telegraph pleads guilty to asking US Central Intelligence Agency to affect Chilean presidential election.
- 1974 - 46th Academy Awards - The Sting, Glenda Jackson and Jack Lemmon win.
- 1974 - Arganat Committee publishes report concerning Yom Kippur War.
- 1974 - Douglass Dumbrille, actor (Mr Deed Goes to Town), dies at age 84.
- 1974 - Georges Pompidou, French President, dies in Paris at age 62. Alain Poher is made Provisional President of France.
- 1974 - Tony Greig takes 8-86 versus West Indies Port-of-Spain (later 5-70 in second inning).
- 1975 - Birth of Deedee Magno; rocker (Party - "Rodeo", "That's Why").
- 1975 - Birth of Adam Rodriguez; actor (CSI: Miami).
- 1976 - Birth of Jeremy Garrett; actor (Jack and Jill, Legacy).
- 1976 - Oakland Athletics trade prospective free agents Reggie Jackson and Ken Holtzman to Baltimore Orioles for Don Baylor, Mike Torrez and Paul Mitchell.
- 1976 - Cambodia's Khieu Sampan succeeds prince Sihanouk as premier.
- 1976 - Portuguese constitution assumed.
- 1976 - Death of Ray Teal at age 74; versatile character actor (Sheriff Roy Coffee - Bonanza, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Maverick, Cheyenne, Wide Country, Disneyland).
- 1977 - Montreal Canadiens set NHL record of 34 straight home games without a loss.
- 1978 - 7th Colgate Dinah Shore Golf Championship won by Sandra Post.
- 1978 - Basil Williams scores 100 on Test Cricket debut, versus Australia Georgetown.
- 1978 - Velcro is first put on the market.
- 1979 - Birth of Jesse Carmichael; keyboardist (Maroon 5).
- 1979 - Carroll D Rosenbloom, Los Angeles Rams' president, dies at age 72.
- 1979 - Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin visits Cairo, Egypt; meets President Anwar Sadat.
- 1979 - Ivan Barrow, cricket player (11 Tests for West Indies 1930-39), dies.
- 1979 - A Soviet biowarfare laboratory at Sverdlovsk accidentally releases airborne anthrax spores, killing 66 people plus an unknown amount of livestock.
- 1980 - The St. Pauls riot breaks out in Bristol, England.
- 1980 - Dick Howorth, cricket player (England slow lefty all-rounder late 1940s), dies.
- 1980 - Wayne Gretzky becomes first teenager to score 50 goals in an NHL season.
- 1981 - Birth of Bethany Joy Lenz; actress (One Tree Hill).
- 1981 - Belgium's fourth government of Martens resigns.
- 1981 - Heavy battle between Christian militia and Syrian army in East Lebanon.
- 1982 - In exhibition game Oakland Athletics' pitcher Steve McCatty comes to bat using a 15-inch toy bat (under Billy Martin's orders), protesting disallowing of designated hitter.
- 1982 - Several thousand Argentine troops seize the disputed Falkland (Malvinas) Islands.
- 1982 - Argentinian forces occupy South Georgia.
- 1984 - 46th NCAA Mens Basketball Championship: Georgetown beats Houston 84-75.
- 1984 - Soyuz T-11 carries three cosmonauts (one Indian-Rakesh Sharma) to Salyut 7.
- 1985 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.
- 1986 - Four US passengers killed by bomb at Trans World Airlines counter in Athens Airport, Greece.
- 1986 - George Corley Wallace (Governor-Democrat-Alabama) announces retirement plans.
- 1986 - NCAA adopts 3-point basketball rule (19 feet 9 inch distance).
- 1987 - Death of Buddy Rich at age 69 of a heart attack after surgery for a brain tumor; jazz drummer (with Bunny Berrigan, Artie Shaw, Tommy Dorsey, solo in 1945, solo again 1966 - "Away We Go").
- 1987 - IBM announces its new Personal System/2 computers, with VGA 256-color graphics, Micro Channel Architecture, Operating System/2, and 1.44 MB 3.5-inch floppy disk drive.
- 1988 - Birth of Jesse Plemons; actor (Friday Night Lights).
- 1988 - Simply Majestic sets horse racing's 1-1/8 mile record at 1:45.
- 1988 - Test Cricket debut of Curtly Ambrose, West Indies versus Pakistan, Georgetown.
- 1989 - 18th Nabisco Dinah Shore Golf Championship won by Juli Inkster.
- 1989 - 8th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Tennessee beats Auburn 76-60.
- 1989 - In WrestleMania V at Trump Plaza, Hulk Hogan defeats Randy "Macho Man" Savage to become the WWF Champion.
- 1989 - New York Yankees beat New York Mets 4-0, sweeping 1989 mayor's trophy series in two games.
- 1990 - 52nd NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Nevada-Las Vegas beats Duke 103-73.
- 1990 - Aldo Fabrizi, actor (Postman Goes to War, Open City), dies at age 85.
- 1992 - Edith Cresson, France's first female premier, resigns.
- 1992 - In New York, Mafia boss John Gotti is convicted of the murder of mob boss Paul Castellano and racketeering, and is later sentenced to life in prison.
- 1992 - Death of Paula Kelly at age 72; singer (The Modernaires, Glenn Miller Orchestra - "Chatanooga Choo Choo", "Kalamazoo", "I Know Why", "Elmer's Tune"), actress.
- 1992 - Space Shuttle STS-45 (Atlantis 11) lands.
- 1993 - First test flight of Fokker 70 (Amsterdam).
- 1993 - Eugenie Leontovitch, actress (Four Sons, Homicidal), dies at age 93.
- 1993 - Venezuelan DC-10 crashes at Margarita, killing 10.
- 1993 - Philip Morris announces it would slash price of Marlboro cigarettes by 20 percent to better compete with bargain brands. Stock prices of companies of household brands drop dramatically. Many consider all brand names are dead. Marketers call this "Marlboro Friday".
- 1994 - First exhibition game played at Jacobs Field, Pittsburgh Pirates beat Cleveland Indians, 6-4.
- 1994 - Richard Davies, actor (Private Buckaroo), dies of heart attack at age 79.
- 1994 - Death of Betty Furness at age 78 of stomach cancer; American actress, author, news consumer reporter (WNBC), TV spokesperson (Westinghouse) (born 1916).
- 1995 - 14th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: University of Connecticut Huskies beats Tennessee 70-64.
- 1995 - 7th Seniors Golf Tradition: Jack Nicklaus.
- 1995 - An explosion in Gaza kills eight, including a Hamas leader.
- 1995 - Hannes Alfven, Swedish physicist (Nobel Prize), dies at age 86 (born 1908).
- 1995 - Harvey Penick, American premier golf instructor/author, dies at age 90 (born 1904).
- 1995 - New York Police Department and New York Transit Police merge into one organization.
- 1995 - Major League Baseball owners accept baseball players' return-to-work proposal, agree to delay start of season until April 26.
- 1995 - Wrestlemania XI in Connecticut: Lawrence Taylor defeats Bam Bam Bigelow.
- 1996 - Sri Lanka 9-349 in 50 overs beat Pakistan 315 all out, Singapore; Jayasuriya hits ton in 48 balls, world ODI record at Singapore.
- 1996 - Detroit Tigers' slugger Cecil Fielder steals first base in 1,097th career game.
- 1996 - U.S. Mafioso John Gotti is found guilty of murdering Paul Castellano.
- 1997 - Chicago White Sox agree to pay Albert Belle US$10 million for the season.
- 1997 - Tomoyuki Tanaka, producer (Godzilla), dies of a stroke at age 86.
- 1997 - The WB Network premieres the Disney TV show Smart Guy.
- 1997 - The mayor of New York City, the governor of New York state, and Michael Eisner unveil the restored New Amsterdam theater in New York City.
- 1998 - World Mens Figure Skating Championship in Minneapolis, Minnesota; Russian Alexei Yagudin wins.
- 2002 - Israeli forces besiege the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, when militants take shelter there.
- 2002 - Death of Jack Kruschen at age 80; actor (Gunsmoke radio show, Dragnet, Broadway is My Beat, Pete Kelly's Blues).
- 2003 - Todd Zeile becomes the only major league player to hit a home run for ten different teams: New York Yankees, Detroit Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, Texas Rangers, New York Mets, and Colorado Rockies.
- 2003 - The World Health Organization issues its first ever travel alert, due to the SARS outbreak, advising travellers to avoid Hong Kong and Guangdong province of China.
- 2003 - A US B-52 bomber drops two new CBU-105 bombs over Iraq, which each release 10 submunitions, each ejecting four discs, which then use laser and heat-detecting infrared sensors to locate Iraqi armored vehicles. Slugs of copper the size of a tangerine then strike and destroy about 30 vehicles in a column of about 100.
- 2003 - Death of Edwin Starr at age 61 after a heart attack; soul singer ("War" (1970)).
- 2004 - Microsoft and Sun Microsystems settle long-standing hostilities in signing a ten-year technology sharing agreement. Microsoft pays Sun close to $2 billion to settle past issues and for royalty payments.
- 2005 - Pope John Paul II dies at his home in the Vatican, following complications from the flu.
- 2007 - New Century, a large American mortgage lender, files for bankruptcy protection.
- 2007 - The Solomon Islands is shaken by a magnitude 8.1 earthquake, and hit by a subsequent tsunami.
- 2007 - Smoke ban in enclosed places in Wales.
- 2008 - Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahein announces his resignation, effective May 6.
- 2008 - At the Intel Developer Forum in Shanghai, China, Intel introduces the low-power Atom microprocessor, in speeds up to 1.86 GHz.
- 2008 - Liam Tancock of Exeter, England, sets new world record 50m backstroke of 24.47 seconds, at Pond's Forge, Sheffield, England.
- 2009 - In his closing news conference of the G20 summit in London, England, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announces the member nations will inject US$1 trillion into the world economy in an effort to curb the global financial crisis.
- 2009 - The U.S. House of Representatives passes a federal budget for fiscal 2010 starting October 1, voting 233-196 to pass the US$3.45 trillion budget.
- 2009 - Cunard opens worldwide sales of the October 2010 Maiden Voyage for new ocean liner Queen Elizabeth, and sells out in a record 29 minutes.
- 2013 - The United Nations General Assembly adopts the Arms Trade Treaty to regulate the international trade of conventional weapons.
- 2015 - 148 people are killed, the majority students, in a mass shooting at the Garissa University College in Kenya, perpetrated by the militant terrorist organization Al-Shabaab.
- 2016 - Clashes between Armenian and Azerbaijani military in Nagorno-Karabakh kill at least 193 people, which becomes the heaviest breach of the 1994 ceasefire.
- 2019 - Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigns as President of Algeria amid widespread protests, after nearly two decades in office.
- 2020 - The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 1 million worldwide.
- 2021 - Russia warns NATO against sending any troops to aid Ukraine, amid reports of a large Russian military build-up on its borders.
- 2022 - First cease-fire since 2016 between Houthi rebels in Yemen and Saudi Arabia coalition.
- 2022 - Death of Estelle Harris at age 93 in Palm Desert, California, USA; actor (Estelle Costanza - Seinfeld TV show, Mrs. Potato Head - Toy Story film, Night Court TV show, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody TV show).
- 2023 - Election in Montenegro, won by Jakov Milatovic over Milo Djukanovic.
- 2023 - Death of Seymour Stein at age 80 of cancer in Los Angeles, California, USA; record producer (Sire label, Madonna, the Ramones, Talking Heads).
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