 |
January
2nd |
Russian born author, Isaac Asimov, was born in Petrovichi, Russia. He was one of the most popular and successful writers of science fiction novels. |
 |
January
3rd |
The Boston Red Sox baseball team sold Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees for a sum of $125,000. In urban myth this sale put a curse on the Boston team which prevented them from winning the championship for 86 years. |
|
January
20th |
Italian film director, Federico Fellini, was born in Rimini. He is widely regarded as having been one of the most important and influential directors of all time. |
 |
January
24th |
Italian artist, Amedeo Modigliani, died at the age of 35. He is considered as one of the most original painters and sculptors of the 20th century. |
|
February
8th |
American actress, Lana Turner, was born in Idaho. She was one of the most glamorous actresses of the 1940,s and 1950's. |
 |
April
28th |
Azerbaijan became part of the Soviet Union. |
|
May
18th |
Pope John Paul II was born Karol Jozef Wojtyla in Wadowice, Poland. In his youth he was an athlete, actor and playwright and eventually came to speak over 12 languages. He was ordained a priest on 1 November 1946. He became the 264th Pope in 1978. |
|
June
4th |
The Treaty of Trianon was signed in Paris effectively ending the Austro-Hungarian empire. Hungary lost over 70% of its territory in accordance with the terms of the treaty. |
|
August
16th |
Baseball player, Ray Chapman, was hit in the head by a fastball and died early the next day. He is the only player to ever die from injuries sustained in a Major League Baseball game. |
|
August
26th |
Women in the United States were given the right to vote. |
|
September
17th |
The National Football League (NFL) was first organized in the United States. |
|
October
1st |
American actor, Walter Matthau, was born in New York City. He is best remembered for his frequent collaborations with fellow actor and comedian Jack Lemmon, the most famous of which was that of the "Odd Couple". |
|
October
15th |
American novelist, Mario Puzo, dwas born in New York City. He is most famous for his Godfather, novel. |
|
October
17th |
American actor, Montgomery Clift, was born in Omaha, Nebraska. He was one of the most prominent stars of the 1950's, whose career and life were cut short due to his alcohol and drug addictions. |
|
October
18th |
Greek actress and politician, Melina Mercouri, was born in Athens, Greece. She was one of the most successful Greek actresses and one of the few that was able to establish an international presense. |
|
October
25th |
King Alexander I of Greece died at the age of 27. He died from sepsis after he was bitten by a pet monkey. |
|
November
15th |
First assembly of the League of Nations (the predecessor of the United Nations) was held in Geneva. |
|
November
25th |
Mexican actor, Ricardo Montalban, was born in Mexico City. He is best known for his role as Mr. Roarke in the television series Fantasy Island and for his portrayal of the villain Khan in Star Trek II. |
|
December
19th |
King Constantine I of Greece was restored as King of the Hellenes after the death of his son Alexander I. |
