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1977–The 19th Annual Grammy Awards announces its winners. Record of the Year: George Benson for This Masquerade; Album of the Year: Stevie Wonder for Songs in the Key of Life; Song of the Year: Bruce Johnston (songwriter) for I Write the Songs; Best Vocal Performance, Male: Stevie Wonder for Songs in the Key of Life; Best Vocal Performance, Female: Linda Ronstadt for Hasten Down the Wind; Best Performance by a Vocal Group: Chicago for If You Leave Me Now; Best Country & Western Performance: Emmylou Harris for Elite Hotel; Best Rhythm & Blues Performance: Natalie Cole for This Will Be; Best Instrumental Performance: George Benson for Breezin’; Best New Artist: Starland Vocal Band. The ceremonies are held at the Hollywood Palladium, Hollywood, California. The host is Andy Williams.


197–Emperor Septimius Severus defeats usurper, Clodius Albinus. in the Battle of Lugdunum, the bloodiest battle between Roman armies.

356–Emperor Constantius II issues a decree closing all pagan temples in the Roman Empire.

842–The Medieval Iconoclastic Controversy ends as a council in Constantinople formally reinstates the veneration of icons in the churches.

1445–Eleanor of Aragon, Queen of Portugal, dies in Toledo, Spain, at age 43.

1473–Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish mathematician and astronomer, is born in Torun Royal Prussia.

1594–Having already been elected to the throne of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1587, Sigismund III of the House of Vasa is crowned King of Sweden, having succeeded his father John III of Sweden in 1592.

1594–Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, is born at Stirling Castle in Scotland. He was the elder son of James VI and I, King of England and Scotland, and his wife, Anne of Denmark.

1600–The Peruvian stratovolcano, Huaynaputina, explodes in the Andes Mountains in the most violent eruption in recorded history of South America. A stratovolano is shaped like a cone, has many layers, and the lava that explodes out of it is very intense. It took over 150 years for Peru and countries near and far to recover from all the damage this volcano wrought.

1630–Indian Emperor, Chhatrapati Shivaji, is born at Shivneri Fort, near Pune, India.

1649–The Second Battle of Guararapes takes place, effectively ending Dutch colonization efforts in Brazil.

1674–England and the Netherlands sign the Treaty of Westminster, ending the Third Anglo-Dutch War. A provision of the agreement transfers the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam to England, and it is renamed New York.

1726–The Supreme Privy Council is established in Russia.

1807–Aaron Burr, former U.S. Vice President, is arrested for treason and confined to Fort Stoddart in Alabama.

1819–British explorer, William Smith, discovers the South Shetland Islands, claiming them in the name of King George III.

1846–In Austin, Texas, the newly-formed Texas State Government is officially established, following the annexation of the Republic of Texas by the United States.

1847–The Donner Party is rescued after being snowbound in the Sierra Nevadas. Almost half of the original 87 members died; some of the survivors resorted to cannibalism to stay alive. No charges were brought against them, as cannibalism is not a crime.

1852–The Phi Kappa Psi fraternity is founded at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.

1856–The tintype camera is patented by Professor Hamilton Smith in Gambier, Ohio. A tintype is a printed image on a piece of metal, rather than on paper or glass. Tintypes were often used to document the civil war because of their durability and low cost.

1859–Dan Sickles is acquitted of murder on grounds of temporary insanity. This is first time this defense is successful in the U.S.

1861–Serfdom is abolished in Russia.

1878–Thomas Alva Edison patents his phonograph at his lab in Menlo Park, New Jersey.

1880–Álvaro Obregón, President of Mexico (1920-1924), is born in Siquisiva, Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico.

1881–Kansas becomes the first U.S. state to prohibit all alcoholic beverages.

1884–Tornadoes in Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Indiana kill 800 people.

1893–Actor, Cedric (Webster) Hardwicke, is born in Lye, Stourbridge, Worcestershire, England. He appeared in the films King Soloman’s Mines, Stanley and Livingstone, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Invisible Man Returns, Suspicion, Nicholas Nickleby, I Remember Mama, Rope, Richard II, Around the World in Eighty Days, and The Ten Commandments.

1896–Author, André Breton, is born in Tinchebray, Orne, France. He is known as the founder of Surrealism. In 1924, he was instrumental in the founding of the Bureau of Surrealist Research. That same year, he published the Surrealist Manifesto, and became the editor of the magazine La Révolution surréaliste. Breton joined the French Communist Party in 1927, from which he was expelled in 1933.

1906–W.K. Kellogg and Charles D. Bolin incorporate the Toasted Corn Flake Company, in Battle Creek, Michigan.

1911–Actress, Merle Oberon, is born Estelle Merle Thompson in Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India. She concealed her Indian heritage until after her death, when it was then made public. She appeared in the films The Scarlet Pimpernel, These Three, Wuthering Heights, Stage Door Canteen, The Oscar, and Hotel.

1913–Pedro Lascuráin becomes President of Mexico for 45 minutes: this is the shortest term to date of any person as president of any country.

1913–The first prize is inserted into a Cracker Jack box.

1915–During World War I, the first naval attack on the Dardanelles begins when a strong Anglo-French task force bombards Ottoman artillery along the coast of Gallipoli.

1915–Gopal Krishna Gokhale, leader of the Indian Independence Movement, dies in Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India, at age 48. He was a senior leader of the Indian National Congress and founder of the Servants of India Society. Through the Society, as well as the Congress and other legislative bodies he served in, Gokhale promoted not only independence from the British Empire, but also social reform.

1917–Author, Carson McCullers, is born Lula Carson Smith in Columbus, Georgia. Her first novel, The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, explores the spiritual isolation of misfits and outcasts in a small Southern town in America. Her other works include Reflections in a Golden Eye, The Member of the Wedding, and Ballad of the Sad Café.

1920–The Netherlands joins the League of Nations.

1924–Actor, Lee Marvin, is born in New York, New York. Known for his gravelly voice and tall stature, he initially appeared in supporting roles, mostly villains, soldiers, and other hard-boiled characters. He appeared in the films The Wild One, The Caine Mutiny, Pete Kelly’s Blues, Bad Day at Black Rock, Raintree County, The Comancheros, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Cat Ballou, Ship of Fools, The Dirty Dozen, Point Blank, Paint Your Wagon, and Gorky Park.

1928–The II Winter Olympic Games close at St. Moritz, Switzerland.

1930–Film director, John (Michael) Frankenheimer, is born in Queens, New York. His films include The Young Stranger, The Young Savages, All Fall Down, Birdman of Alcatraz, The Manchurian Candidate, Seven Days in May, Seconds, Grand Prix, I Walk the Line, 52 Pick-Up, and Dead Bang.

1932–In Oxford, Mississippi, writer, William Faulkner, completes work on Light in August. He was working in a room in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, above the Intimate Book Shop.

1937–During a public ceremony at the Viceregal Palace (the former Imperial residence) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, two Ethiopian nationalists of Eritrean origin attempt to kill viceroy Rodolfo Graziani with a number of grenades.

1940–Singer, Smokey Robinson, is born William Robinson, Jr. in Detroit, Michigan. He formed The Miracles (then called The Matadors) in 1955, and they were Motowns first group and its first million-selling recording artists. Their hits include Shop Around, You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me, Ooo Baby Baby, I Second That Emotion, The Tears of a Clown, and The Tracks of My Tears.

1942–Nearly 250 Japanese war planes attack the northern Australian city of Darwin, killing 243 people.

1942–President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs executive order 9066, allowing the United States military to relocate Japanese Americans to internment camps.

1942–The New York Yankees announce that 5,000 uniformed soldiers will be admitted free at each of their upcoming home games.

1943–During World War II, the Battle of Kasserine Pass begins in Tunisia.

1943–Pop singer, Lou Christie, is born Lugee Alfredo Giovanni Sacco in Glenwillard, Pennsylvania. His hits include Two Faces Have I, Lightnin’ Strikes, Rhapsody in the Rain, and I’m Gonna Make You Mine.

1945–A U.S. invasion force of 30,000 Marines land at Iwo Jima, starting a month-long World War II battle against Japanese troops.

1946–Activist, Karen (Gay) Silkwood, is born in Longview, Texas. She worked at the Kerr-McGee Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site plant near Crescent, Oklahoma. Her job was making plutonium pellets for nuclear reactor fuel rods. She joined the union and became an activist on behalf of issues of health and safety at the plant. In the summer of 1974, she testified to the Atomic Energy Commission about her concerns. The 1983 film, Silkwood, is an account of Silkwood's life and the events resulting from her activism, based on an original screenplay written by Nora Ephron and Alice Arlen. Meryl Streep played the title role.

1948–The Conference of Youth and Students of Southeast Asia Fighting for Freedom and Independence convenes in Calcutta, India.

1948–Mark Andes, of Canned Heat and Spirit, is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1948–Tony Iommi, of Black Sabbath, is born Anthony Frank Iommi in Handsworth, Birmingham, England.

1949–Ezra Pound is awarded the first Bollingen Prize in poetry by the Bollingen Foundation and Yale University.

1949–Eddie Hardin, of The Spencer Davis Group, is born in London, England.

1951–Author, André Gide, dies of pneumonia in Paris, France, at age 81. His works include Marshlands (Paludes), The Immoralist (L'immoraliste), The Pastoral Symphony (La Symphonie Pastorale), and The Counterfeiters (Les faux-monnayeurs).

1952–Novelist, Amy Tan, is born in Oakland, California. Her best known work is The Joy Luck Club, which has been translated into 35 languages. In 1993, the book was adapted into a film.

1953–The State of Georgia approves the first literature censorship board in America. Newspapers are excluded from the new legislation.

1953–Comedian-actor, Bill Kirchenbauer, is born in Salzburg, Austria. He appeared on the TV shows Fernwood Tonight, America 2-Night, Mork & Mindy, and Growing Pains.

1954–The Soviet Politburo of the Soviet Union orders the transfer of the Crimean Oblast from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR.

1954–High winds across the southern half of the Great Plains, gusting to 85 mph, cause the worst dust storms since the 1930s. Graders are needed in places to clear fence high dirt drifts.

1955–Actor, Jeff Daniels, is born Jeffrey Warren Daniels in Clarke County, Georgia. He appeared in the films Ragtime, Terms of Endearment, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Marie, Something Wild, Heartburn, Radio Days, Sweet Hearts Dance, Arachnophobia, The Butcher’s Wife, Grand Tour: Disaster in Time, Gettysburg, Speed, Dumb and Dumber, Fly Away Home, 2 Days in the Valley, Pleasantville, The Hours, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Because of Winn Dixie, Good Night and Good Luck, Howl, and Steve Jobs.

1956–Actress, Kathleen Beller, is born in Westchester, New York. She appeared in the films The Betsy, Movie Movie, Promises in the Dark, Fort Apache, The Bronx, The Sword and the Sorcerer, Time Trackers, and Life After Sex. She is married to musician, Thomas Dolby.

1958–Carl Perkins, whose Blue Suede Shoes was one of the biggest hits of 1957, leaves Sun Records to become Columbia's first rockabilly artist. Two weeks later, Columbia releases Perkins' first single for his new label, Pink Pedal Pushers.

1959–The United Kingdom grants Cyprus independence.

1960–China successfully launches the T-7, its first sounding rocket.

1960–Bill Keane's “Family Circus” cartoon strip makes its debut.

1960–Prince Andrew, Duke of York, is born Andrew Albert Christian Edward at Buckingham Palace in London, England. He is the second son and third child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. In 1986, Prince Andrew married Sarah Ferguson and the couple's marriage, subsequent separation, and eventual divorce in 1996, attracted a high level of media coverage.

1962–The U.S. conducts a nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.

1962–Doctor, Georgios Papanikolaou, inventor of the Pap smear, dies in New Jersey at age 78.

1963–The Soviet Union informs President John F. Kennedy that it will withdraw "several thousand" of its troops from Cuba.

1963–The publication of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique reawakens the Feminist Movement in America, as women's organizations and consciousness raising groups spread throughout the country.

1963–The Beatles perform a night show at the Cavern Club, Liverpool. The supporting act is Lee Curtis and the All-Stars, the group for which Pete Best is drummer. This is the last time that any of The Beatles will see Pete Best in person.

1963–Singer, Seal, is born Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel in Paddington, London, England. His biggest hit was Kiss From a Rose. He was married to model, Heidi Klum.

1964–One-half ton of Beatle wigs are sent to the U.S.

1964–Actor, Peter Sellers, marries actress, Britt Ekland, in London, England.

1965–Colonel Pham Ngoc Thao of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam and a communist spy of the North Vietnamese Viet Minh, along with Generals Lam Van Phat and Tran Thien Khiem (all Catholics), attempt a coup against the military junta of the Buddhist Nguyen Khanh.

1966–Actress, Justine (Tanya) Bateman, is born in Rye, New York. She is best known for the role of Mallory Keaton on the TV sitcom Family Ties. Her brother is actor, Jason Bateman.

1967–Actor, Benicio Del Toro, is born Benicio Monserrate Rafael Del Toro Sánchez in Santurce, Puerto Rico. He appeared in the films Big Top Pee-wee, License to Kill, Fearless, Swimming with Sharks, The Usual Suspects, The Fan, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Traffic, and 21 Grams.

1967–Singer, Falco, is born Johann Hans Hölzel in Vienna, Austria. He had a big hit with Rock Me Amadeus in 1985.

1968–National Educational Television (which led to the Public Broadcasting Service in the U.S.) debuts the children's TV show Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.

1968–The Doors begin work on their third album, Waiting for the Sun, at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, California.

1970–Pop duo, Boyce and Hart, guest star on ABC-TV's sitcom Bewitched. Samantha’s cousin “Sarena” (Elizabeth Montgomery) sings the Boyce and Hart song, Blow Me a Kiss in the Wind.

1972–Paul McCartney releases Give Ireland Back to the Irish, his commentary about the Britain-Ireland conflict, and it is immediately banned by the BBC. The notoriety the song receives from the banning only increases its popularity in England, where it goes to the “Top 20.”

1972–A chart topper: Without You by Harry Nilsson.

1972–Chef-restaurateur, Richard Blais, is born in Uniondale, New York. Blais has opened three restaurants to critical acclaim, and appeared on several of the “Top Chef” franchises (winning season eight of Top Chef All-Stars), Iron Chef America, and his own reality series, Blais Off.

1974–In response to the Grammy Awards, Dick Clark comes up with his own awards show, The American Music Awards. The program is held just days before the Grammys and the winners are elected by the record buying public.

1976–Executive Order 9066, which led to the relocation of Japanese Americans to internment camps, is rescinded by President Gerald R. Ford's Proclamation 4417.

1977–France conducts a nuclear test at Muruora Island.

1977–The 19th Annual Grammy Awards announces its winners. Record of the Year: George Benson for This Masquerade; Album of the Year: Stevie Wonder for Songs in the Key of Life; Song of the Year: Bruce Johnston (songwriter) for I Write the Songs; Best Vocal Performance, Male: Stevie Wonder for Songs in the Key of Life; Best Vocal Performance, Female: Linda Ronstadt for Hasten Down the Wind; Best Performance by a Vocal Group: Chicago for If You Leave Me Now; Best Country & Western Performance: Emmylou Harris for Elite Hotel; Best Rhythm & Blues Performance: Natalie Cole for This Will Be; Best Instrumental Performance: George Benson for Breezin’; Best New Artist: Starland Vocal Band. The ceremonies are held at the Hollywood Palladium, Hollywood, California. The host is Andy Williams.

1978–Egyptian forces raid Larnaca International Airport in an attempt to intervene in a hijacking, without authorization from the Republic of Cyprus authorities. The Cypriot National Guard and Police forces kill 15 Egyptian commandos and destroy the Egyptian C-130 transport plane in open combat.

1979–Yoko Ono hires Fred Seaman as John Lennon’s personal assistant and companion. Over the next 22 months of John’s life, Seaman becomes his closest daily confidant outside the immediate family.

1980–Due to some of the worst storms in American history, emergency evacuation workers desperately try to contact former Beatle, George Harrison, in London, England, to tell him that his home in Beverly Green, off the coast of Malibu, California, is threatening to break away from its hillside and smash into the houses below.

1981–George Harrison is ordered to pay ABKCO Music $587,000 for "subconscious plagiarism" of My Sweet Lord from the song He's So Fine.

1982–The USSR conducts a nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh.

1984–The USSR conducts a nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh.

1984–The Miami Wax Museum in North Miami Beach, Florida, closes. Owner, Umberto Eco, had created an attraction with the emphasis on Florida and American history, beginning with the voyage of Columbus, told in elaborate stage settings. Upon the closing, the figures were subsequently sold at public auction, bringing in approximately $175,000.

1984–The XIV Winter Olympic Games close at Sarajevo, Yugoslavia.

1985–William J. Schroeder becomes the first recipient of an artificial heart to leave the hospital.

1985–EastEnders airs for the first time on BBC1 across the United Kingdom.

1985–Iberia Airlines Boeing 727 crashes into Mount Oiz in Spain, killing 148 people.

1986–The Sri Lankan Army massacres 80 Tamil farm workers in eastern Sri Lanka.

1987–The first anti-smoking ad airs on American TV, featuring actor Yul Brynner. He made the ad when he knew he was dying of cancer.

1987–Neo-bluesman, Taj Mahal, plays the Palomino Club in North Hollywood, California. By the end of the show, he's been joined onstage by George Harrison, Bob Dylan, John Fogerty, and Jesse Ed Davis.

1995–Actress, Pamela Anderson, marries rocker, Tommy Lee, in Cancun, Mexico.

1997–Deng Xiaoping, the last of China's major Communist revolutionaries, dies from a lung infection and Parkinson's disease in Beijing, China, at age 92.

1998–The U.S. Hockey Team trashes their rooms at Olympics Village in Japan.

1998–Country humorist, Grandpa Jones, dies from a stroke in Nashville, Tennessee, at age 84. He was a banjo player and "old time" country and gospel music singer. In March 1946, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and started performing on the Grand Ole Opry. In 1969, Jones became a cast member on the long-running TV show Hee Haw.

2001–An Oklahoma City bombing museum is dedicated at the Oklahoma City National Memorial.

2001–Film director, Stanley Kramer, dies of pneumonia in Woodland Hills, California, at age 87. As an independent producer and director, he brought attention to topical social issues that most studios avoided. His films include High Noon, The Member of the Wedding, The Wild One, Not as a Stranger, The Defiant Ones, On the Beach, Inherit the Wind, Judgment at Nuremburg, Pressure Point, Ship of Fools, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?, and Oklahoma Crude.

2002–NASA's Mars Odyssey space probe begins to map the surface of Mars, using its thermal emission imaging system.

2003–An Ilyushin Il-76 military aircraft crashes near Kerman, Iran, killing 275 people.

2003–Country singer, Johnny Paycheck, dies from emphysema and asthma in Nashville, Tennessee, at age 64. He had a big hit with the song Take This Job and Shove It.

2004–In England, Nazi-hunter, Simon Wiesenthal, is awarded an honorary Knighthood in recognition of a lifetime of service to humanity.

2006–A methane explosion in a coal mine near Nueva Rosita, Mexico, kills 65 miners.

2007–Actress, Janet Blair, dies of complications from pneumonia in Santa Monica, California, at age 85. She appeared in the films Blondie Goes to College, My Sister Eileen, Something to Shout About, The Fabulous Dorseys, I Love Trouble, The Fuller Brush Man, Boys’ Night Out, and The One and Only.

2008–Toshiba announces a recall of its HD DVD video formatting, ending its format war with Sony's Blu-Ray Disc format.

2008–An ailing Fidel Castro resigns as President of Cuba, after nearly a half-century in power.

2009–Kelly Groucutt, of Electric Light Orchestra, dies of a heart attack in Worcester, Worcestershire, England, at age 63.

2010–Actor, Lionel Jeffries, dies in a nursing home in Poole, Dorset, England, at age 83. He had suffered from vascular dementia for the last 12 years of his life. He appeared in the films Stage Fright, The Quatermass Xperiment, Lust for Life, Doctor at Large, The Vicious Circle, The Nun’s Story, Idol on Parade, Jazz Boat, Two-Way Stretch, Fanny, The Notorious Landlady, The Wrong Arm of the Law, The Truth About Spring, Camelot, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Twinky, Eyewitness, Royal Flash, and The Prisoner of Zenda.

2011–The debut exhibition of the Belitung shipwreck, containing the largest collection of Tang dynasty artifacts found in one location, begins in Singapore.

2012–Forty-four people are killed in a prison brawl in Apodaca, Nuevo León, Mexico.

2014–Astronaut, Dale Gardner, dies of a hemorrhagic stroke at his home in Colorado Springs, Colorado, at age 65. He was a NASA astronaut who flew two Space Shuttle missions during the early 1980s.

2016–Yahoo Inc. says that it has created a committee of independent directors that will explore strategic alternatives, notably the sale of its core internet business.

2016–Serbia closes its southern border with Macedonia to migrants from countries not effected by war as part of measures to prevent illegal immigration.

2016–John McAfee, creator of the anti-virus software McAfee, Inc., offers to unlock an iPhone for free for the FBI, after Apple Inc. refused to comply with a court order asking it to unlock the device. The iPhone belonged to San Bernardino terrorist, Syed Farook. McAfee says “It will take us three weeks.”

2016–The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission orders manufacturers of self-balancing scooters (hoverboards) to ensure their products meet safety standards or face recall or seizure at ports. CPSC Chairman Elliot Kaye tells NBC News no hoverboard currently on the market meets these standards.

2016–Author, Harper Lee, dies in her sleep in Monroeville, Alabama, at age 89. She is best known for the novel To Kill a Mocking Bird.

2016–Radio disc jockey, Charlie Tuna, dies in his sleep at his home in Tarzana, California, at age 71.

2017–The Rue La Rue Cafe, inspired by the TV series The Golden Girls, opens in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City. Filled with memorabilia from the show, including a 1987 Emmy Award, the cafe is owned by one of Rue McClanahan's longtime friends.

2017–A car bomb explodes in the Wadajir District of Mogadishu, Somalia, killing at least 20 people and injuring 50 others.

2017–Jazz guitarist, Larry Coryell, die of natural causes in a hotel room in New York, New York, at age 73. He was known as the "Godfather of Fusion." During the late 1960s and early 1970s, his music combined the influences of rock, jazz, and eastern music.

2018–In a Scientific Reports publication, researchers propose 1965 as the start of the Anthropocene era. In that year, human nuclear weapons testing caused a noticeable spike in radiocarbon in the heartwood of the world's remotest tree, a Sitka spruce on Campbell Island, New Zealand. The general scientific community has already been using 1950 as the year "Before Physics," when nuclear weapons began to significantly affect the reliability of radiocarbon dating of events that happen after that epoch.


PHOTOS TOP TO BOTTOM: The Peruvian stratovolcano, Huaynaputina; example of a tintype image from the Old West; Kellogg's Toasted Corn Flakes; Cracker Jack prizes; Smokey Robinson and the Miracles; Karen Silkwood; Jeff Daniels; Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique; vintage Beatle wig; Richard Blais; picture sleeve for George Harrison's My Sweet Lord; EastEnders title; Grandpa Jones; Janet Blair; and Harper Lee.
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