Today’s Important Historical Events
1453 Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire falls to the Turks under Mehmed II; ends the Byzantine Empire
1592 Battle of Sacheon: Korean navy led by Admiral Yi Sun Shin repels a Japanese fleet – first use of Korean Turtle ship
1660 On his 30th birthday Charles II returns to London from exile in the Netherlands to claim the English throne after the Puritan Commonwealth comes to an end
1851 Sojourner Truth addresses 1st Black Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio
1953 Edmund Hillary (NZ) and Tenzing Norgay (Nepal) are first to reach the summit of Mount Everest as part of a British Expedition
Today’s Historical Events
363 Roman Emperor Julian defeats the Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Sassanid capital, but is unable to take the city
757 St Paul I begins his reign as Catholic Pope
1138 Anti-Pope Victor IV (Gregorio) submits himself to Pope Innocentius II
1167 Battle of Monte Porzio: Holy Roman army supporting Pope Alexander III is defeated by Christian of Buch and Rainald of Dassel
1176 Battle at Legnano: Lombard League beats Frederick Barbarossa and the Holy Roman Empire
1233 Chinese city of Kaifeng, capital of the Jurchen Jin dynasty, surrenders to the Mongols under General Subedei after a siege of more than a year
1328 French King Philip VI of Valois crowned at the Cathedral in Reims, France
1415 Pope John XXIII [Baldassare Cossa] formally deposed as Pope at the Conference of Constance, Germany, after he had fled the town in disguise
Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV
1942 Bing Crosby records Irving Berlin’s song “White Christmas”, world’s best-selling single (estimated 100 million copies sold)
1942 “Yankee Doodle Dandy”, based on life of George M. Cohan, directed by Michael Curtiz, starring James Cagney and Joan Lesley, premieres in NYC (Academy Awards Best Actor 1943)
1949 Candid Camera, TV comedy show, moves to NBC
1949 1st British Film and Television Awards (BAFTAs): “The Best Years of Our Lives” Best Film
1949 2nd British Film and Television Awards (BAFTAs): “Hamlet” Best Film
1950 3rd British Film and Television Awards (BAFTAs): “Bicycle Thieves” Best Film
1956 WESH TV channel 2 in Daytona Beach-Orlando, FL (NBC) 1st broadcast
1961 “A Raisin in the Sun”, film adaptation of Lorraine Hansberry’s stage play, starring the Broadway cast including Sidney Poitier, Ruby Dee, John Fiedler, and Ivan Dixon premieres
Today’s Historical Events in Music
1753 Joseph Haydn’s first opera “Krumme Teufel” (The Limping Devil) premieres in Vienna
1901 Ignacy Jan Paderewski‘s opera “Manru” has its world premiere in Dresden, Germany
1913 Igor Stravinsky‘s avant-garde ballet score “Le Sacre du Printemps” (The Rite of Spring) for the Ballets Russes premieres at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, provoking a riot
1950 The Carter family debut on the Grand Ole Opry with Chet Atkins
1956 Arnold Schoenberg‘s “Modern Psalm” premieres
1960 Everly Brothers single “Cathy’s Clown” hits #1
1962 4th Grammy Awards: Moon River, Peter Nero win
1971 “Court Room” by Clarence Carter hits #61
Today’s Historical Events in Sports
1897 31st Belmont: Joe Scherrer aboard Scottish Chieftain wins in 2:23.25
1900 25th Preakness: H Spencer aboard Hindus wins in 1:48.4
1916 NY Giants win 17th consecutive road game
1922 US Supreme Court rules organized baseball is a sport and not a business and thus not subject to antitrust laws
1940 Adolf Kiefer swims world record 100 yards backstroke (58.8 sec)
1948 French Championships Men’s Tennis: Frank Parker wins 1st of 2 straight French titles; beats Jaroslav Drobný 6-4, 7-5, 5-7, 8-6
1948 French Championships Women’s Tennis: Belgium-born but representing France, Nelly Landry beats American Shirley Fry 6-2, 0-6, 6-0 for her lone major title
1954 French Championships Men’s Tennis: Tony Trabert beats Art Larsen 6-4, 7-5, 6-1 for first of 2 straight French singles titles
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