Today In History
Historical Events
1933 – 37th Boston Marathon won by Leslie Pawson in 2:31:01.6
1939 – 43rd Boston Marathon won by Ellison Brown in 2:28:51.8; his second victory in the event
1981 – New York Islander Dennis Potvin’s 3 playoff power-play goals vs Edmonton Oilers tie NHL record
1995 – 99th Boston Marathon: Cosmas Ndeti of Kenya claims 3rd straight title in 2:09:22; Uta Pippig of Germany wins 2nd consecutive women’s event in 2:25:11
1997 – NJ Devil Martin Brodeur is 2nd NHL goalie to score in a playoff game
Famous Birthdays
1863 – Johannes Petrus Boskaljon, Curacaoian composer and conductor, born in Willemstad (d. 1936)
1885 – Isak Dinesen [Karen Blixen-Finecke], Danish baroness and writer (Out of Africa), born in Rungsted, Zealand, Denmark (d. 1962)
1956 – Elizabeth Lindsey, American explorer, filmmaker (Then There Were None), and actress (China Beach; The Byrds of Paradise), born in Oahu, Territory of Hawaii
1962 – Nancy Hogshead, American swimmer (Olympic gold 1984), born in Iowa City
1980 – Lee Hyun-il, South Korean badminton player, born in Seoul
Famous Deaths
1967 – Giorgio Cesana, Italian coxswain (Olympic gold 1906), dies at 75
1987 – Dick Shawn [Richard Schulefand], American character actor and comedian (The Producers – “L.S.D.”; Maid to Order), suffers a fatal heart attack on stage in San Diego on stage at 57
2008 – Danny Federici, American rock organist, accordionist, and glockenspieler (E Street Band), dies of melanoma at 58
2011 – Everard Goodman, English real estate developer (Tops Estates), dies at 79
2024 – Raman Subba Row, English cricket batsman (13 Tests, 3 x 100, HS 137; Surrey CCC, Northamptonshire CCC), dies at 92
Historical Events
1930 – Abkhazian ASSR forms in Georgian SSR
1950 – 54th Boston Marathon won by Kee Yong Ham of South Korea in 2:32:39
1956 – Willie Mosconi sinks 150 consecutive balls in a billiard tournament
1961 – 1,400 Cuban exiles land in the Bay of Pigs in a doomed attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro
1964 – 1st game at Shea Stadium, NY Mets lose to Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-3
1987 – USSR performs nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeast Kazakhstan
1993 – Two Los Angeles police officers convicted in federal court of violating Rodney King’s civil rights and sentenced to prison, while two others are acquitted,
2006 – 110th Boston Marathon: Kenyan double; Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot wins 2nd men’s title in 2:07:14; Rita Jeptoo takes women’s title in 2:23:38
Famous Birthdays
1586 – John Ford, English dramatist (‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore), born in Ilsington, Devon, England (d. 1639)
1833 – Jean-Baptiste Accolay, Belgian composer, born in Brussels, Belgium (d. 1900)
1912 – Isador Caplan, British lawyer and Aldeburgh Festival pioneer, born in Blackpool, England (d. 1995)
1916 – Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka (1960-65, 1970-77 and 1994-2000) and 1st female head of state, born in Ratnapura, British Ceylon (d. 2000)
1931 – Ruth Etchells, English poet and educator (Principal of St John’s College Durham, 1979-88), born in Liverpool, England (d. 2012)
1952 – Arkan [Željko Ražnatović], Serbian paramilitary leader, born in Brežice, Slovenia (d. 2000)
1958 – Marina Yee, Belgian fashion designer and member of the Antwerp Six, born in Temse, Belgium (d. 2025)
1968 – Adam McKay, American director (The Big Short, Vice), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1982 – Brad Boyes, Canadian hockey player, 2003-16 (St. Louis Blues, and 6 other teams), born in Mississauga, Ontario
1989 – (Avriel) “Avi” Kaplan, American pop bass vocalist (Pentatonix, 2011-2017; Avriel and the Sequoias), born in Visalia, California
Famous Deaths
485 – Proclus, Greek mathematician, dies in Athens [or Apr 14]
1835 – William Henry Ireland, English forger (Shakespearean manuscripts), dies
1896 – Sophus Tromholt, Danish astrophysicist and photographer (portraits of the Kven and Sami people), dies at 44
1941 – Al Bowlly, South African-British dance band vocalist (“Midnight, The Stars, And You”), and bandleader, dies in a German bombing raid of London at 43
1975 – Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Indian philosopher and leader, Second President of India (1962-67), dies at 86
1983 – Felix Pappalardi, American rock music producer, songwriter, vocalist, and bassist (Mountain – “Mississippi Queen”), shot and killed by his wife, Gail, at 43
1992 – Arthur “Skeets” Herfurt, American jazz and session saxophonist and clarinetist (Dorsey Brothers; Benny Goodman; Lawrence Wlek), dies at 80
2004 – [Andrew] Bruce Boa, Canadian actor (The Empire Strikes Back), dies of cancer at 73
2008 – Danny Federici, American rock organist, accordionist, and glockenspieler (E Street Band), dies of melanoma at 58
2018 – Tom McBride, Irish traditional and country music singer-songwriter, and band leader (Big Tom and the Mainliners), dies at 81