Today in history...
May 4 1854
Joseph Tussaud returns to London with the well-used blade of the guillotine he purchased from Clement Sanson, the last in a line of Sansons who held the office of Executioner of Paris for over 150 years. The blade is now part of Tussaud's Wax Museum collection.
May 4 1970
28 Ohio National Guardsmen kill four students and wound nine others at Kent State University. The Guardsmen had read them the riot act, but the students refused to disperse. So they shot them.
May 4 1991
Bing Crosby's son Dennis Crosby puts a shotgun to his head, ending his life in a boarding house in California. A younger brother, Lindsay, had also killed himself with a shotgun two years earlier.
May 4 1999
At the Sigma Chi fraternity at the University of Wisconsin, Chad Alvarez nukes a fraternal brother's Quaker parrot, Iago, in the house microwave. The animal explodes. For this he is sentenced to ten days in jail, and fined $1000. Alvarez is the son of the university's football coach.
May 4 1999
A newly-delivered baby falls through a train toilet as it is born near the city of Guangzhou, China. After the fall, a second train speeds over the newborn. Although the baby survives unharmed, radio announcers are later reprimanded for laughing hysterically as they report the story.
May 4 2000
The "I Love You" computer worm rampages through Internet email systems, inflicting damages somewhere in the $2-to-$15 billion range. The worm spreads by exploiting design flaws in the Microsoft Outlook mail client and also the gullibility of your typical computer user. A variety of Filipino suspects is ultimately narrowed down to an AMA Computer College student from Manila.
May 4 2001
After dinner at Vitello's in Studio City, film and television actor Robert Blake remembers that he left something at the restaurant. When he returns to the car, he discovers his wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley, slumped over in the passenger seat. She had been shot in the head by person or persons unknown. Bakley later dies of her injury. One year later, Blake is charged with the murder.
Birthdays today...
* 1008 – Khajeh Abdollah Ansari, The Persian Sufi (d. 1088)
* 1008 – King Henry I of France (d. 1060)
* 1649 – Maharaja Chhatrasal (d. 1731)
* 1654 – Kangxi Emperor of China (d. 1722)
* 1655 – Bartolomeo Cristofori, Italian maker of musical instruments (d. 1731)
* 1715 – Richard Graves, English writer (d. 1804)
* 1733 – Jean-Charles de Borda, French mathematician, physicist, political scientist, and sailor (d. 1799)
* 1752 – John Brooks, 11th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1825)
* 1767 – Tyagaraja, Composer of Indian classical Carnatic music (d. 1847)
* 1772 – Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus, German publisher (d. 1823)
* 1781 – Karl Christian Friedrich Krause, German philosopher (d. 1832)
* 1796 – Horace Mann, American educator (d. 1859)
* 1796 – William H. Prescott, American historian (d. 1859)
* 1820 – Julia Tyler, First Lady of the United States (d. 1889)
* 1822 – Charles Boucher de Boucherville, Quebec politician (d. 1915)
* 1825 – Thomas Henry Huxley, English scientist (d. 1895)
* 1825 – Augustus Le Plongeon, French antiquitarian (d. 1908)
* 1826 – Frederic Edwin Church, American painter (d. 1900)
* 1827 – John Hanning Speke, British explorer (d. 1864)
* 1852 – Alice Pleasance Liddell, English schoolgirl model for Alice in Wonderland (d. 1934)
* 1864 – Marie Booth, the third daughter of William and Catherine Booth (d. 1937)
* 1870 – Alexandre Benois, Russian artist (d. 1960)
* 1873 – Joe De Grasse, Canadian film director (d. 1940)
* 1889 – Francis Cardinal Spellman, American religious leader (d. 1967)
* 1903 – Luther Adler, American stage actor (d. 1984)
* 1904 – Umm Kulthum, Egyptian singer (official Date of Birth) (d. 1975)
* 1907 – Lincoln Kirstein, American impresario (d. 1996)
* 1913 – Lady Katherine Brandram, née Princess of Greece and Denmark (d. 2007)
* 1916 – Jane Jacobs, American-Canadian author and activist (d. 2006)
* 1918 – Tanaka Kakuei, Japanese political leader (d. 1993)
* 1918 – Thomas Mead, Australian politician and journalist (d. 2004)
* 1919 – Dory Funk, Professional wrestler (d. 1973)
* 1921 – Edo Murtić, Croatian painter (d. 2005)
* 1923 – Ed Cassidy, American musician (Spirit)
* 1923 – Stanley Biber, American physician, pioneer of transgender surgery (d. 2006)
* 1923 – Eric Sykes, British actor and comedian
* 1923 – Godfrey Quigley, British actor (d. 1994)
* 1923 – Assi Rahbani, Lebanese composer and author
* 1925 – Maurice R. Greenberg, American businessman
* 1928 – Maynard Ferguson, Canadian musician (d. 2006)
* 1928 – Hosni Mubarak, President of Egypt
* 1928 – Wolfgang von Trips, German racing driver (d. 1961)
* 1929 – Audrey Hepburn, Anglo-Dutch actress (d. 1993)
* 1929 – Sidney Lamb, American linguist
* 1930 – Roberta Peters, American soprano
* 1930 – Katherine Jackson, mother of the Jackson musical family
* 1931 – Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Russian conductor
* 1931 – Thomas Stuttaford, British doctor and writer
* 1933 – J. Fred Duckett, Texan sports announcer and teacher
* 1936 – El Cordobés, Spanish matador
* 1937 – Ron Carter, American jazz bassist
* 1937 – Dick Dale, American guitarist
* 1937 – Mr. Fuji, Former professional wrestler
* 1938 – Tyrone Davis, American soul singer (d. 2005)
* 1938 – Carlos Monsiváis, Mexican writer
* 1939 – Paul Gleason, American actor (d. 2006)
* 1939 – Amos Oz, Israeli writer, novelist, and journalist
* 1939 – Léon Rochefort, Quebec ice hockey player
* 1940 – Robin Cook, American novelist
* 1941 – George Will, American writer
* 1942 – Nickolas Ashford, American record producer, songwriter, and musician (Ashford and Simpson)
* 1943 – Mikhail Chemiakin, Russian painter
* 1943 – Georgi Asparuhov, Bulgarian footballer
* 1944 – Roger Rees, British-born actor
* 1945 – Narasimhan Ram, Indian journalist
* 1946 – John Watson, Northern Irish racecar driver
* 1946 – Gary Bauer conservative American politician, former presidential candidate
* 1947 – Richard Jenkins, American actor
* 1948 – Hurley Haywood, American race car driver, and three-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans
* 1949 – John Force, American race car driver
* 1949 – Stella Parton, American country music singer
* 1949 – Graham Swift, British author
* 1950 – Darryl Hunt, English musician (The Pogues)
* 1951 – Colin Bass, British bassist (Camel)
* 1951 – Jackie Jackson, American singer and musician (The Jackson 5)
* 1951 – Gérard Jugnot, French actor, film director, screenwriter and producer
* 1951 – Mick Mars, American guitarist (Mötley Crüe)
* 1951 – Tirso Cruz III, Filipino actor and singer.
* 1952 – Michael Barrymore, English comedian, actor, quiz master and entertainer
* 1953 – Salman Hashimikov, Soviet heavyweight wrestler
* 1954 – Pia Zadora, American actress
* 1955 – Robert Ellis Orrall, American singer
* 1955 – Avram Grant, Israeli football manager
* 1956 – David Guterson, American author
* 1956 – Ulrike Meyfarth, German athlete
* 1956 – Ken Oberkfell, American baseball player
* 1958 – Delbert Fowler, American football player
* 1958 – Keith Haring, American graphical artist (d. 1990)
* 1959 – Scott Armstrong, American professional wrestling referee
* 1959 – Inger Nilsson, Swedish actress
* 1959 – Randy Travis, American musician
* 1960 – Andrew Denton, Australian television presenter and comedian
* 1960 – Werner Faymann, Chancellor of Austria
* 1961 – Luis Herrera, Colombian cyclist
* 1961 – Jay Aston, British singer, star of Bucks Fizz
* 1961 – Ishita Bhaduri, Indian (Bengali) Poet
* 1962 – Oleta Adams, American singer
* 1964 – Mónica Bardem, Spanish actress
* 1964 – Gary Hold, American guitarist (Exodus)
* 1964 – Zsuzsa Mathe, Hungarian painter and visual artist, founder of transrealism
* 1964 – Rocco Siffredi, Italian porn actor
* 1966 – Jane McGrath, co-founder of the McGrath Foundation for breast cancer (d. 2008)
* 1967 – Ana Gasteyer, American actress
* 1967 – Kate Garraway, English GMTV Presenter
* 1968 – Julian Barratt, English comedian and musician, one half of The Mighty Boosh
* 1969 – Micah Aivazoff, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1969 – Ryan Shamrock, American wrestling valet
* 1970 – Gregg Alexander, American musician (New Radicals)
* 1970 – Paul Wiseman, New Zealand cricketer
* 1970 – Will Arnett, Canadian actor
* 1971 – Joe Borowski, American baseball player
* 1971 – Luiz Garcia, Jr., Brazilian racing driver
* 1972 – Manny Aybar, Dominican baseball player
* 1972 – Mike Dirnt, American musician (Green Day)
* 1972 – Chris Tomlin, American musician
* 1973 – Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Argentine footballer
* 1973 – John Madden, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1974 – Miguel Cairo, Venezuelan baseball player
* 1975 – Laci Peterson, American murder victim (d. 2002)
* 1976 – Ben Grieve, American baseball player
* 1976 – Jason Michaels, American baseball player
* 1977 – Emily Perkins, Canadian actress
* 1977 – Mariano Pernía, Argentine-Spanish footballer
* 1978 – Shaenon K. Garrity, American webcomics writer and artist
* 1978 – Brett Burton, Australian football player
* 1978 – Erin Andrews, ESPN sideline reporter
* 1979 – Lance Bass, American singer (*NSYNC)
* 1979 – Wes Butters, British broadcaster
* 1979 – Lesley Vainikolo, Tongan born rugby union and rugby league player
* 1980 – Andrew Raycroft, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1981 – Eric Djemba-Djemba, Cameroon footballer
* 1982 – Kleopas Giannou, Greek footballer
* 1982 – Hector King, Mexican singer-songwriter
* 1982 – Markus Rogan, Austrian swimmer
* 1982 – Rasheeda,American hiphop singer
* 1983 – Trisha Krishnan, Indian actress
* 1983 – Derek Roy, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1984 – Manjural Islam, Bangladeshi test cricket player (d. 2007)
* 1984 – Kevin Slowey, American baseball player
* 1984 – Montell Owens, American football player
* 1985 – Anthony Fedorov, American singer
* 1985 – Ravinder Bopara, English cricketer
* 1986 – George Hill, American Basketball player
* 1987 – Cesc Fabregas, Spanish footballer
* 1987 – Jorge Lorenzo, Spanish motorcycle racer
* 1987 – Anjeza Shahini, Albanian singer
* 1988 – Robert Lacy, American writer
* 1989 – Rory McIlroy, Northern Irish golfer
* 1992 – Courtney Jines, American actress
* 1994 – Pauline Ducruet, daughter of HSH Princess Stéphanie of Monaco
* 1994 – Alexander Gould, American actor
Famous deaths...
* 1436 – Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson, Swedish statesman
* 1471 – Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales (killed in battle) (b. 1453)
* 1471 – Edmund Beaufort, 4th Duke of Somerset, English military commander (executed)
* 1506 – Husayn Bayqarah, ruler of Herat (b. 1438)
* 1519 – Lorenzo II de' Medici, Duke of Urbino (b. 1492)
* 1566 – Luca Ghini, Italian physician and botanist (b. 1490)
* 1615 – Adriaan van Roomen, Flemish mathematician (b. 1561)
* 1626 – Arthur Lake, Bishop of Bath and Wells, English bishop and Bible translator (b. 1569)
* 1677 – Isaac Barrow, English mathematician (b. 1630)
* 1684 – John Nevison, English highwayman (b. 1639)
* 1729 – Louis-Antoine, Cardinal de Noailles, French cardinal (b. 1651)
* 1734 – James Thornhill, English painter
* 1737 – Eustace Budgell, English writer (b. 1686)
* 1774 – Anthony Ulrich II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (b. 1714)
* 1776 – Jacques Saly, French sculptor (b. 1717)
* 1790 – Matthew Tilghman, American delegate to the Continental Congress (b. 1718)
* 1799 – Tipu Sultan, Indian military leader (b. 1750)
* 1811 – Nikolay Kamensky, Russian general (b. 1776)
* 1824 – Joseph Joubert, French essayist and moralist (b. 1754)
* 1849 – Hokusai, Japanese artist (b. 1760)
* 1858 – Aimé Bonpland, French explorer and botanist (b. 1773)
* 1859 – Joseph Diaz Gergonne, French mathematician (b. 1771)
* 1880 – Edward Clark, Governor of Texas (b. 1815)
* 1901 – John Jones Ross, Canadian politician (b. 1831)
* 1903 – Goce Delchev, a revolutionary from the Balkans – leader of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (b. 1872)
* 1916 – Joseph Mary Plunkett, Irish revolutionary (b. 1887)
* 1919 – Milan Rastislav Štefánik, Slovak politician, French general and astronomer (b. 1880)
* 1922 – Viktor Kingissepp, Estonian Bolshevik politician (b. 1888)
* 1937 – Noel Rosa, Brazilian songwriter (b. 1910)
* 1938 – Carl von Ossietzky, German pacifist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1889)
* 1945 – Fedor von Bock, German field marshal (b. 1880)
* 1955 – George Enescu, Romanian composer (b. 1881)
* 1961 – Anita Stewart, American film actress (b. 1895)
* 1969 – Osbert Sitwell, English writer (b. 1892)
* 1970 – Allison Krause, Kent State victim (b. 1951)
* 1970 – Jeffrey Miller, Kent State victim (b. 1950)
* 1970 – Sandra Scheuer, Kent State victim (b. 1949)
* 1970 – William Schroeder, Kent State victim (b. 1950)
* 1971 – Seamus Elliott, Irish cyclist (b. 1934)
* 1972 – Edward Calvin Kendall, American chemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1886)
* 1973 – Jane Bowles, American writer and playwright (b. 1917)
* 1975 – Moe Howard, American actor and comedian (b. 1897)
* 1980 – Josip Broz Tito, President of Yugoslavia (b. 1892)
* 1984 – Bob Clampett, American cartoonist (b. 1913)
* 1984 – Diana Dors, British actress (b. 1931)
* 1985 – Clarence Wiseman, the 10th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1907)
* 1987 – Paul Butterfield, American blues harmonica player (b. 1942)
* 1990 – Emily Remler American Jazz Guitarist (b.1957)
* 1992 – Gregor Mackenzie, Labour Party (UK) politician (b. 1927)
* 2001 – Bonnie Lee Bakley, American murder victim (b. 1956)
* 2005 – David Hackworth, U.S. Army officer and military journalist (b. 1930)
Holidays and observances...
* International Firefighters' Day
* Labour Day in many nations
* Star Wars Day
* Afghanistan: Remembrance Day for Martyrs and Disabled
* Bhutan: Death of Shabdrung Day
* Japan: Greenery Day
* Latvia: Day of adoption of the Declaration of independence
* Namibia: Cassinga Day
* Netherlands: Remembrance of the Dead.
* People's Republic of China – Youth Day (青年节, commemorating May Fourth Movement).
* Republic of China – Literary Day (文藝節, commemorating May Fourth Movement).
* Rhode Island: Independence Day
* United States – Bird Day
Have a great Monday.
~Brian
