Today in history...
May 10 1924
In perhaps the single worst mistake in the history of crime fighting, Attorney General Harlan Fiske Stone selects J. Edgar Hoover to head the Bureau of Investigation, later known as the FBI. He will remain at the post until his death 48 years later.
May 10 1933
Joseph Göbbels presides over a public book burning in Berlin, which destroys more than 20,000 volumes. The collection includes books by Einstein and Freud. During the bibliocaust, Goebbels declares: "We have directed our dealings against the un-German spirit; consign everything un-German to the fire."
May 10 1941
Running out of fuel and unable to find a suitable spot to land his Messerschmitt, Deputy Fuhrer Rudolf Hess bails out over Scotland. When Hess claims to have made the trip in order to negotiate a peace treaty with England, the Nazis declare that he was a psychotic who "lived in a state of hallucination." After the war, Hess is confined to Spandau Prison until his apparent suicide in 1987.
May 10 1969
The Battle of Dong Ap Bia begins with an assault on Hill 937. It will ultimately become known as Hamburger Hill.
May 10 1977
Joan Crawford succumbs to stomach cancer at the age of 73. In the early days of her career, Crawford had performed in several stag films, and later spent a considerable sum buying back the prints to destroy them.
May 10 1993
In the worst manufacturing plant fire in history, 188 employees, most of them young women, burn to death in a doll factory in Bangkok, Thailand. The management had locked the doors, so the workers could produce their Bart Simpson dolls without any distractions.
May 10 1994
Former building contractor, children's party clown, and jailhouse artist John Wayne Gacy is executed by lethal injection. Police found 28 shallow graves in the crawlspace beneath Gacy's house in 1978. After a dinner which included fried chicken, fried shrimp, and french fries, Gacy is strapped to a gurney. When asked if he has any last words, the serial killer obliges with: "Kiss my ass."
May 10 1994
300 active-duty Marines stationed at Twenty-Nine Palms receive a 46-question, multiple-choice survey. Given a hypothetical situation, more than a quarter of respondents indicate their willingness to "fire upon U.S. citizens who refuse or resist confiscation of firearms banned by the U.S. government." On the positive side, almost two-thirds recognize that the order would be patently unconstitutional.
Birthdays today...
* 213/214 – Claudius Gothicus, Roman emperor (d. 270)
* 1265 – Emperor Fushimi of Japan (d. 1317)
* 1604 – Jean Mairet, French dramatist (d. 1686)
* 1641 – Dudley North, English economist (d. 1691)
* 1727 – Anne Robert Turgot, French statesman (d. 1781)
* 1746 – Gaspard Monge, French mathematician (d. 1818)
* 1760 – Johann Peter Hebel, German poet (d. 1826)
* 1760 – Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, French composer (La Marseillaise) (d. 1836)
* 1770 – Louis Nicolas Davout, French marshal (d. 1823)
* 1775 – Antoine Charles Louis Lasalle, French cavalry general (d. 1809)
* 1775 – Robert Gray, Sea Captain (d. 1806)
* 1788 – Augustin-Jean Fresnel, French physicist (d. 1827)
* 1788 – Catherine Pavlovna of Russia, German queen (d. 1819)
* 1810 – Ebenezer Cobham Brewer, British lexicographer (d. 1897)
* 1813 – Montgomery Blair, American politician (d. 1883)
* 1838 – John Wilkes Booth, American actor and assassin of Abraham Lincoln (d. 1865)
* 1840 – Hadzhi Dimitar, Bulgarian revolutionist (d. 1868)
* 1841 – James Gordon Bennett Jr., American publisher (d. 1918)
* 1843 – Benito Pérez Galdós, Spanish novelist (d. 1920)
* 1847 – Wilhelm Killing, German mathematician (d. 1923)
* 1863 – Upendrakishore Ray, Indian writer, painter and composer (d. 1915)
* 1866 – Léon Bakst, Russian artist (d. 1924)
* 1868 – Ed Barrow, American baseball manager (d. 1953)
* 1872 – Marcel Mauss, French sociologist (d. 1950)
* 1874 – Moses Schorr, Polish rabbi, senator, historian and orientalist (d. 1941)
* 1876 – Ivan Cankar, Slovenian writer (d. 1918)
* 1878 – Gustav Stresemann, Chancellor of Germany, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1929)
* 1879 – Symon Petlura, Ukrainian statesman (d. 1926)
* 1886 – Karl Barth, Swiss Protestant theologian (d. 1968)
* 1886 – Olaf Stapledon, British author and philosopher (d. 1950)
* 1886 – Felix Manalo, Founder and 1st Executive Minister of the Iglesia ni Cristo (d. 1963)
* 1888 – Max Steiner, Austrian composer (d. 1971)
* 1889 – Mae Murray, American actress (d. 1965)
* 1890 – Alfred Jodl, German general (d. 1946)
* 1897 – Einar Gerhardsen, Prime minister of Norway (d. 1987)
* 1898 – Ariel Durant, American historian (d. 1981)
* 1899 – Fred Astaire, American dancer and actor (d. 1987)
* 1899 – Dimitri Tiomkin, Ukrainian-born composer (d. 1979)
* 1901 – J.D. Bernal, British crystallographer (d. 1971)
* 1902 – Anatole Litvak, Ukrainian-born film director (d. 1974)
* 1902 – David O. Selznick, American film producer (d. 1965)
* 1903 – Otto Bradfisch, Nazi leader (d. 1994)
* 1905 – Markos Vamvakaris, Greek rebetiko musician and songwriter (d. 1972)
* 1909 – Maybelle Carter, American musician (d. 1978)
* 1911 – Bel Kaufman, American author
* 1915 – Denis Thatcher, British businessman and husband of Margaret Thatcher (d. 2003)
* 1916 – Milton Babbitt, American composer
* 1918 – George Welch, American pilot (d. 1954)
* 1922 – Nancy Walker, American actress (d. 1992)
* 1923 – Heydar Aliyev, Ex-President and Leader of Azerbaijan Republic (d. 2003)
* 1923 – Clifford Wilson, Australian archaeologist, educator, academician, author
* 1926 – Hugo Banzer, Bolivian dictator (d. 2002)
* 1927 – Nayantara Sahgal, Indian author
* 1928 – Arnold Rüütel, Estonian president
* 1929 – Antonine Maillet, French Canadian novelist and playwright
* 1930 – Pat Summerall, American football player and broadcaster
* 1930 – Scott Muni, American radio DJ (d. 2004)
* 1931 – Ettore Scola, Italian director and screenwriter
* 1933 – Barbara Taylor Bradford, English writer
* 1934 – Cliff Wilson, Welsh snooker player (d. 1994)
* 1934 – Jeanine Basinger, American film scholar
* 1935 – Larry Williams, American singer and songwriter (d. 1980)
* 1936 – Gary Owens, American actor and announcer
* 1937 – Tamara Press, Soviet athlete
* 1937 – Jim Hickman, American baseball player
* 1938 – Jean Becker, French director, screenwriter and actor
* 1938 – Marina Vlady, French actress
* 1940 – Wayne A. Downing, retired United States Army general
* 1942 – Jim Calhoun, American men's college basketball coach for the University of Connecticut Huskies
* 1942 – Youssouf Sambo Bâ, Burkinabé politician
* 1943 – David Clennon, American actor
* 1943 – Richard Darman, American economist
* 1944 – Jim Abrahams, American film director
* 1944 – Maureen Lipman, English actress
* 1944 – Marie-France Pisier, French actress
* 1946 – Donovan Leitch, Scottish musician
* 1946 – Graham Gouldman, British musician and songwriter (10cc)
* 1946 – Dave Mason, English musician (Traffic)
* 1946 – Diderik Wagenaar, Dutch composer and musical theorist
* 1947 – Caroline Cooney, American author
* 1947 – Jay Ferguson, American musician and composer
* 1947 – Thomas Tessier, American author
* 1952 – Manuel Mora Morales, Spanish director and writer
* 1952 – Kikki Danielsson, Swedish singer
* 1953 – John Diamond, English journalist (d. 2001)
* 1953 – Tito Santana, Mexican-American professional wrestler
* 1954 – F. Charles Brunicardi, American surgeon
* 1955 – Chris Berman, American sportscaster
* 1955 – Mark David Chapman, American murderer of John Lennon
* 1956 – Vladislav Listyev, Russian television anchor and journalist (d. 1995)
* 1957 – Sid Vicious, English bassist (The Sex Pistols) (d. 1979)
* 1958 – Rick Santorum, U.S. Senator
* 1958 – Yu Suzuki, Japanese creator of Virtua Fighter series
* 1958 – Gaétan Boucher, Canadian speed skater
* 1959 – Victoria Rowell, American actress
* 1959 – Danny Schayes, American basketball player
* 1960 – Bono, Irish singer (U2)
* 1961 – Danny Carey, American drummer (Tool, Pigmy Love Circus)
* 1961 – Johanna ter Steege, Dutch actress
* 1962 – Brad Soderberg, American college basketball head coach
* 1963 – Lisa Nowak, American astronaut
* 1965 – Linda Evangelista, Canadian supermodel
* 1966 – Jonathan Edwards, English athlete
* 1967 – Scott Brison, Canadian politician
* 1967 – Jon Ronson, British journalist and author
* 1967 – Nobuhiro Takeda, Japanese footballer and sportscaster
* 1967 – Young MC, American rapper
* 1968 – Erik Palladino, American actor
* 1968 – Ed Sanders, British actor and television personality
* 1968 – Al Murray, British comedian
* 1968 – Darren Matthews, English professional wrestler
* 1969 – Dennis Bergkamp, Dutch footballer
* 1969 – John Scalzi, American writer
* 1970 – Perry Blake, Irish singer/songwriter
* 1970 – Gabriela Montero, Venezuelan pianist
* 1970 – Dallas Roberts, American actor
* 1970 – David Weir, Scottish footballer
* 1971 – Craig Mack, American rapper
* 1971 – Adriano Giannini, Italian actor
* 1971 – Ådne Søndrål, Norwegian speed skater
* 1972 – Radosław Majdan, Polish footballer
* 1973 – Jerome Williams, American basketball player
* 1973 – Joshua Eagle, Australian tennis player
* 1973 – Aviv Geffen, Israeli singer/songwriter (Blackfield)
* 1974 – Sylvain Wiltord, French footballer
* 1975 – Hélio Castroneves, Brazilian race car driver
* 1975 – Adam Deadmarsh, American ice hockey player
* 1975 – Shin Jung-hwan, Korean singer
* 1976 – Stuart Braithwaite, Scottish musician (Mogwai)
* 1976 – Rob Malda, American internet writer/editor (Slashdot)
* 1976 – Udo Mechels, Belgian singer
* 1976 – Aggeliki Tsiolakoudi, Greek javelin thrower
* 1977 – Henri Camara, Senegalese footballer
* 1977 – Nick Heidfeld, German Formula 1 driver
* 1977 – Denise Ho, Hong Kong singer
* 1977 – Chas Licciardello, Australian comedian, member of The Chaser
* 1977 – Keith Murray, American singer (We Are Scientists)
* 1978 – Kenan Thompson, American actor
* 1979 – Lee Hyori, South Korean singer
* 1981 – Humberto Suazo, Chilean footballer
* 1981 – Namitha Kapoor, Indian actress
* 1982 – Despina Caldis, Greek-Australian actress
* 1982 – Jeremy Gable, American playwright
* 1982 – Daniel Harris, Australian rules footballer
* 1983 – Gustav Fridolin, Swedish politician
* 1983 – Natalia Zabala, Miss Spain 2007
* 1984 – Edward Mujica. Venezuelan baseball player
* 1985 – Ryan Getzlaf, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1987 – Anej Lovrečič, Slovenian football (soccer) player
* 1989 – Lindsey Shaw, American actress
* 1992 – Charice Pempengco, Filipino singer
* 1993 – Mirai Shida, Japanese actress
* 2000 – Shyann McClure, American actress and model
Famous deaths...
* 1034 – Mieszko II of Poland (b. 990)
* 1290 – Duke Rudolph II of Austria (b. 1271)
* 1424 – Go-Kameyama, Emperor of Japan
* 1482 – Paolo dal Pozzo Toscanelli, Italian mathematician and astronomer (b. 1397)
* 1493 – Colin Campbell, 1st Earl of Argyll, Scottish politician
* 1521 – Sebastian Brant, Alsatian humanist (b. 1457)
* 1566 – Leonhart Fuchs, German botanist (b. 1501)
* 1641 – Johan Banér, Swedish soldier (b. 1596)
* 1657 – Gustaf Horn, Swedish soldier and politician (b. 1592)
* 1691 – Colonel John Birch, English soldier (b. 1615)
* 1696 – Jean de La Bruyère, French writer (b. 1645)
* 1717 – John Hathorne, American magistrate (b. 1641)
* 1726 – Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans, English soldier (b. 1670)
* 1733 – Barton Booth, English actor (b. 1681)
* 1737 – Nakamikado Emperor of Japan (b. 1702)
* 1774 – King Louis XV of France (b. 1710)
* 1787 – William Watson, English physician and scientist (b. 1715)
* 1792 – John Stevens, American delegate to the Continental Congress
* 1807 – Comte de Rochambeau, French soldier (b. 1725)
* 1818 – Paul Revere, American patriot (b. 1735)
* 1829 – Thomas Young, English physician and linguist (b. 1773)
* 1850 – Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac, French chemist and physicist (b. 1778)
* 1863 – Stonewall Jackson, American Confederate general (b. 1824)
* 1868 – Henry Bennett, American politician (b. 1808)
* 1889 – Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, Russian satirist (b. 1826)
* 1897 – Andrés Bonifacio, Filipino revolutionary leader (b. 1863)
* 1904 – Andrei Ryabushkin, Russian painter (b. 1861)
* 1937 – William Tedmarsh, silent movie actor (b. 1876)
* 1945 – Richard Glücks, German SS officer (b. 1889)
* 1945 – Konrad Henlein, pro-Nazi Czechoslovakian politician (b. 1898)
* 1950 – Belle da Costa Greene, librarian, bibliographer, archivist (b. 1883)
* 1955 – Tommy Burns, Canadian boxer (b. 1881)
* 1955 – John Radecki, Australian stained glass artist (b. 1865)
* 1960 – Yury Olesha, Russian novelist (b. 1899)
* 1963 – Gene "Big Daddy" Lipscomb, American football player (b. 1931)
* 1964 – Mikhail Larionov, Russian painter (b. 1881)
* 1967 – Lorenzo Bandini, Italian racing driver, (b. 1935)
* 1968 – Scotty Beckett, American child actor (b. 1929)
* 1974 – Hal Mohr, Cinematographer, Husband of Evelyn Venable (b. 1894)
* 1976 – Elias Aslaksen, Leader of Brunstad Christian Church (b. 1888)
* 1977 – Joan Crawford, American actress (b. 1905)
* 1982 – Peter Weiss, German writer and artist (b. 1916)
* 1988 – Shen Congwen, Chinese writer (b. 1902)
* 1989 – Woody Shaw, American jazz musician (b. 1944)
* 1990 – Walker Percy, American author (b. 1916)
* 1990 – Susan Oliver, American actress (b. 1922)
* 1992 – Sylvia Syms, American jazz singer (b. 1917)
* 1994 – John Wayne Gacy, American serial killer (executed) (b. 1942)
* 1997 – Joan Weston, Roller Derby Queen (b. 1935)
* 1999 – Shel Silverstein, American poet and composer (b. 1930)
* 2000 – Dédé Fortin, Quebec singer and songwriter (Les Colocs) (b. 1962)
* 2000 – Jules Deschênes, Quebec superior court judge (b. 1923)
* 2001 – Deborah Walley, American actress (b. 1943)
* 2002 – Kaifi Azmi, Indian poet and songwriter (b. 1919)
* 2002 – Lynda Lyon Block, convicted murderer (b. 1948)
* 2002 – Yves Robert, French actor, screenwriter and director (b. 1920)
* 2003 – Milan Vukcevich, Yugoslavian chemist and chess problem composer (b. 1937)
* 2005 – David Wayne, American singer (Metal Church) (b. 1958)
* 2006 – Raizo Matsuno, Japanese politician (b. 1917)
* 2006 – A. M. Rosenthal, American newspaper editor (b. 1922)
* 2006 – Soraya, Colombian-American singer (b. 1969)
* 2006 – Val Guest, British film director (b. 1911)
* 2008 – Leyla Gencer, Turkish soprano (b. 1928)
* 2008 – Jessie Jacobs, Australian Actress (b. 1990)
Holidays and observances...
* Confederate Memorial Day in North Carolina and South Carolina.
* Constitution Day in the Federated States of Micronesia.
* Mother's Day in much of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico.
Have a great Sunday.
~Brian
