Today in history...
May 6 1527
Mercenaries sack the city of Rome, an event considered by many to mark the end of the Renaissance.
May 6 1626
Manhattan purchased by Dutch governor Peter Minuet for the equivalent of $24 in goods, which compounded at 6% annually is approximately $78 billion. But some scholars feel the actual value of the goods transferred to be in excess of $500, which translates to $1.6 trillion for the island when compounded.
May 6 1853
Ignoring signals, a train travels through an open drawbridge and into the Norwalk river in Connecticut, killing 46 passengers. The engineer and crew jumped clear, not warning the others of their fate.
May 6 1862
Henry David Thoreau, author of Walden and the essay Civil Disobedience, dead at age 44. His last words were "Moose.. Indian".
May 6 1937
Zeppelin Hindenberg explodes at Lakehurst NJ, leaving 36 dead and others seriously burned. Official cause of the explosion is listed as "St. Elmo's Fire," although it probably also involved the flammable silver paint the Germans used to coat the thing.
May 6 1983
West German authorities announce that the recently discovered " (Broken link for Hitler Diaries)" are counterfeits, made from paper not available until at least 1955. Parties unknown managed to swindle the German magazine Stern out of an undisclosed sum, and esteemed historian Hugh Trevor-Roper was so convinced of their authenticity that he proclaimed "I'm staking my reputation on it."
May 6 1987
Disgraced televangelist Jim Bakker is formally defrocked by the Assemblies of GERD.
May 6 1993
Disgruntled postal worker Mark Richard Hilburn (recently fired) enters the Dana Point, CA post office and shoots two former coworkers, killing one.
May 6 1993
Disgruntled 27-year veteran Lawrence Jasion enters the garage area of the Dearborn, Michigan post office and whips out a .38 revolver. He proceeds to kill mechanic Gary Montes and wound two other coworkers. Before anyone can react, Jasion then blows his brains out. The Dearborn office was infamous for its authoritarian policies.
May 6 2002
Dutch right-wing politician Pim Fortuyn is shot six times in the head as he leaves a recording studio in Hilversum, near Amsterdam. His party platform was based on repeal of the discrimination clause of the constitution, an odd position considering that Fortuyn was homosexual. It is not clear what assassin Volkert van der Graaf's motive was, speculations ranging from Fortuyn's public statements regarding fur farming (van der Graaf is a founder of that country's Animal Liberation Front) to his sympathies towards Dutch Muslims.
Birthdays today...
* 1397 – Sejong the Great of Joseon, ruler of Korea (d. 1450)
* 1501 – Pope Marcellus II (d. 1555)
* 1574 – Pope Innocent X (d. 1655)
* 1638 – Henry Capell, 1st Baron Capell, First Lord of the British Admiralty (d. 1696)
* 1713 – Charles Batteux, French philosopher (d. 1780)
* 1758 – André Masséna, French marshal (d. 1817)
* 1758 – Maximilien Robespierre, French Revolutionary (d. 1794)
* 1769 – Ferdinand III, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1824)
* 1769 – Jean Nicolas Pierre Hachette, French mathematician (d. 1834)
* 1797 – Joseph Brackett, American religious leader and composer (d. 1882)
* 1800 – Roman Sanguszko, Polish aristocrat and general (d. 1881)
* 1856 – Sigmund Freud, Austrian psychiatrist (d. 1939)
* 1856 – Robert Peary, American explorer (d. 1920)
* 1861 – Motilal Nehru, Indian freedom fighter (d. 1931)
* 1868 – Gaston Leroux, French writer (d. 1927)
* 1871 – Victor Grignard, French chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1935)
* 1871 – Christian Morgenstern, German author (d. 1914)
* 1872 – Willem de Sitter, Dutch scientist (d. 1934)
* 1879 – Bedrich Hrozny, Czech orientalist (d. 1952)
* 1880 – Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, German painter (d. 1938)
* 1882 – Crown Prince Wilhelm of Germany (d. 1951)
* 1895 – Fidél Pálffy, Hungarian Nazi (d. 1946)
* 1895 – Júlio César de Mello e Souza, Brazilian writer (d. 1974)
* 1895 – Rudolph Valentino, Italian actor (d. 1926)
* 1897 – Paul Alverdes, German writer (d. 1979)
* 1898 – Konrad Henlein, pro-Nazi Czechoslovakian politician (d. 1945)
* 1899 – Billy Cotton, British entertainer (d. 1969)
* 1902 – Harry Golden, American journalist (d. 1981)
* 1902 – Max Ophüls, German-born director (d. 1957)
* 1903 – Toots Shor, New York restaurateur (d. 1977)
* 1904 – Raymond Bailey, American actor (d. 1980)
* 1904 – Moshe Feldenkrais, Ukrainian-born founder of the Feldenkrais method (d. 1984)
* 1904 – Harry Martinson, Swedish author and poet Nobel laureate (d. 1978)
* 1906 – Enrique Laguerre, Puerto Rican writer (d. 2005)
* 1909 – Loyd Sigmon, American amateur ("ham") radio broadcastor (d. 2004)
* 1913 – Carmen Cavallaro, American pianist (d. 1989)
* 1913 – Stewart Granger, English film actor (d. 1993)
* 1915 – Orson Welles, American director (d. 1985)
* 1915 – Theodore White, American writer (d. 1986)
* 1916 – Robert H. Dicke, American physicist (d. 1997)
* 1917 – Kal Mann, American lyricist (d. 2001)
* 1920 – Ross Hunter, American film producer (d. 1996)
* 1920 – Kamisese Mara, 1st Prime Minister of Fiji and President of Fiji (d. 2004)
* 1920 – Martha Beck, American convicted murderer (d. 1951)
* 1921 – Erich Fried, German author (d. 1988)
* 1922 – Camille Laurin, Quebec psychiatrist and politician (d. 1999)
* 1922 – Otmar Suitner, Austrian conductor
* 1923 – Vladimir Etush, Russian actor
* 1924 – Denny Wright, British guitarist (d. 1992)
* 1924 – Patricia Kennedy Lawford, American socialite (d. 2006)
* 1926 – Gilles Grégoire, Quebec politician (d. 2006)
* 1928 – Robert Poujade, French politician
* 1929 – Paul Lauterbur, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 2007)
* 1931 – Willie Mays, American baseball player
* 1934 – Richard Shelby, American politician
* 1936 – Bernard Lemaire, French Canadian businessman
* 1937 – Rubin Carter, American boxer
* 1938 – Jean Garon, Quebec economist and politician
* 1938 – Larry Gogan, Irish radio personality
* 1942 – Rin Kaiho, professional Go player
* 1943 – Andreas Baader, member of the Red Army Fraction (d. 1977)
* 1944 – Anton Furst, American production designer (d. 1991)
* 1944 – Masanori Murakami, First Japanese baseball player in major leagues
* 1945 – Jimmie Dale Gilmore, American musician
* 1945 – Bob Seger, American singer/songwriter
* 1947 – Martha Nussbaum, American philosopher
* 1947 – Alan Dale, New Zealand actor
* 1948 – Mary MacGregor, American singer
* 1951 – Samuel Doe, Liberian politician (d. 1990)
* 1952 – Christian Clavier, French actor
* 1952 – Gregg Henry, American actor and country musician
* 1952 – Michael O'Hare, American actor
* 1953 – Tony Blair, former British prime minister
* 1953 – Lynn Whitfield, American actress
* 1953 – Michelle Courchesne, Quebec politician
* 1953 – Graeme Souness, Scottish footballer/manager
* 1954 – Dora Bakoyannis, Greek politician
* 1955 – Tom Bergeron, American game show host
* 1956 – Lakis Lazopoulos, Greek comedian and script writer
* 1958 – Lolita Flores, Spanish singer and actress
* 1960 – Roma Downey, Northern Irish actress
* 1960 – John Flansburgh, American musician (They Might Be Giants)
* 1960 – Anne Parillaud, French actress
* 1960 – Phyllis Treigle, American soprano
* 1961 – George Clooney, American actor
* 1962 – Adam Yellin, American record producer
* 1964 – Dana Hill, American actress (d. 1996)
* 1965 – Leslie Hope, Canadian actress
* 1968 – Lætitia Sadier, French singer (Stereolab)
* 1968 – Dave Levine, "Sextoy Dave", American millionaire
* 1969 – Jim Magilton, Northern Irish footballer
* 1970 – Kavan Smith, Canadian actor
* 1970 – Roland Kun, Nauruan politician
* 1971 – Chris Shiflett, Guitarist for Foo Fighters
* 1972 – Martin Brodeur, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1972 – Naoko Takahashi, Japanese long-distance runner
* 1977 – Christophe Brandt, Belgian cyclist
* 1977 – Marc Chouinard, French Canadian ice hockey player
* 1977 – Mark Eaton, American ice hockey player
* 1978 – John Abraham, American football player
* 1978 – Fredrick Federley, Swedish politician
* 1978 – Alexander Fedorov, Russian bodybuilder
* 1979 – Kerry Ellis, West End actress
* 1979 – Nikki Hayes, Irish radio personality
* 1979 – Gerd Kanter, Estonian discus thrower
* 1980 – Scott Colton, American professional wrestler
* 1980 – Ricardo Oliveira, Brazilian footballer
* 1980 – Taebin, Korean singer (1TYM)
* 1980 – Kelly van der Veer, Dutch reality TV star
* 1981 – Mark O'Connell, American drummer (Taking Back Sunday)
* 1981 – Matthew Leone and Nathan Leone, American musicians
* 1981 – Nicholas Setta, American Canadian football player
* 1981 – Edyta Sliwinska, Polish dancer
* 1983 – Dani Alves, Brazillian footballer
* 1983 – Adrianne Palicki, American actress
* 1984 – Anton Babchuk, Ukrainian ice hockey player
* 1985 – Chris Paul, American basketball player
* 1986 – Cindy Daniel, Quebec singer
* 1986 – Tyler Hynes, Canadian actor
* 1987 – Moon Geun-young, South Korean actress
* 1989 – Dominika Cibulkova, Slovakian tennis player
* 1996 – Dominic Scott Kay, American actor
Famous deaths...
* 680 – Muawiyah I, caliph (b. 602)
* 1502 – James Tyrrell, alleged murderer of the Princes in the Tower (executed)
* 1596 – Giaches de Wert, Flemish composer (b. 1535)
* 1620 – Hayyim ben Joseph Vital, Palestinian-born Kabbalist (b. 1543)
* 1631 – Robert Bruce Cotton, English politician
* 1638 – Cornelius Jansen, French bishop and religious reformer (b. 1585)
* 1708 – François de Laval, first bishop of New France (b. 1623)
* 1757 – Maximilian Ulysses Count Browne, Austrian field marshal (b. 1705)
* 1757 – Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton, British politician (b. 1683)
* 1757 – Kurt Christoph Graf von Schwerin, Prussian field marshal (b. 1684)
* 1840 – Francisco de Paula Santander, Colombian president and independence leader (b. 1792)
* 1859 – Alexander von Humboldt, German naturalist and explorer (b. 1769)
* 1862 – Henry David Thoreau, American author and philosopher (b. 1817)
* 1877 – Johan Ludvig Runeberg, Finnish poet (b. 1804)
* 1882 – Thomas Henry Burke, civil servant (b. 1829)
* 1882 – Lord Frederick Cavendish, British politician (b. 1836)
* 1902 – Bret Harte, American author (b. 1836)
* 1910 – King Edward VII of the United Kingdom (b. 1841)
* 1919 – L. Frank Baum, American writer (b. 1856)
* 1939 – Konstantin Somov, Russian writer (b. 1869)
* 1949 – Maurice Maeterlinck, Belgian writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1862)
* 1951 – Élie Cartan, French mathematician (b. 1869)
* 1952 – Maria Montessori, Italian educator (b. 1870)
* 1961 – Lucian Blaga, Romanian poet, playwright, and philosopher (b. 1895)
* 1963 – Theodore von Kármán, Hungarian-born physicist (b. 1881)
* 1963 – Monty Woolley, American actor (b. 1888)
* 1967 – Zhou Zuoren, Chinese writer (b. 1885)
* 1970 – Aleksandr Rodzyanko, Russian general (b. 1879)
* 1972 – Deniz Gezmiş, Turkish Left-wing Political Activist (b. 1947)
* 1973 – Ernest MacMillan, Canadian orchestra conductor and composer (b. 1893)
* 1975 – József Mindszenty, Hungarian Catholic Cardinal (b. 1892)
* 1983 – Kai Winding, American trombonist and jazz composer (b. 1922)
* 1984 – Bonner Pink, Conservative Party politician
* 1984 – Mary Cain, Mississippi newspaper editor and politician (b. 1904)
* 1985 – Julie Vega, Filipino child actress and singer (b. 1968)
* 1987 – William Casey, American Central Intelligence Agency director (b. 1913)
* 1989 – Earl Blaik, Former American football coach (b. 1897)
* 1990 – Charles Farrell, American actor (b. 1901)
* 1991 – Wilfrid Hyde-White, English actor (b. 1903)
* 1992 – Marlene Dietrich, German actress (b. 1901)
* 1992 – Gaston Reiff, Belgian athlete (b. 1921)
* 1992 – Jilly Rizzo, restaurateur (b. 1917)
* 1993 – Ann Todd, English actress (b. 1909)
* 1995 – Noel Brotherston, Northern Irish footballer (b. 1956)
* 1995 – Hilda Toledano, self-styled Duchess of Braganza (b. 1907)
* 2002 – Otis Blackwell, American pianist, singer and songwriter (b. 1932)
* 2002 – Pim Fortuyn, Dutch politician (b. 1948)
* 2003 – Art Houtteman, baseball player (b. 1927)
* 2004 – Philip Kapleau, American Zen teacher (b. 1912)
* 2004 – Barney Kessel, American jazz guitarist (b. 1923)
* 2006 – Lillian Asplund, last American RMS Titanic survivor (b. 1906)
* 2006 – Shigeru Kayano, Japanese Ainu activist (b. 1926)
* 2006 – Grant McLennan, co-founder of Australian band The Go-Betweens (b. 1958)
* 2006 – Lorne Saxberg, Canadian television journalist (b. 1958)
* 2007 – Enéas Carneiro, Brazilian politician (b. 1938)
* 2007 – Curtis Harrington, American film director (b. 1926)
* 2007 – Đorđe Novković, Croatian songwriter (b. 1943)
Holidays and observances...
* International No Diet Day
* Bulgaria: Army Day
* Lebanon, Syria: Martyrs' Day
* Gorani, Roma: Đurđevdan
* Turkey: Hıdırellez
Have a great Wednesday...
~Brian
