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Today in History :: Saturday, 4 September 2010

Birthdays:
1241	Alexander III, King of Scotland (1249 - 86). Son of Alexander II, he ascended the throne at the age of 7. In 1251 he was married to Margaret, daughter of England's King Henry III, who sought to gain control over Scotland. In 1255 Alexander was seized by a pro-English party in Scotland, and two years later the anti-English party gained control of the government until he came of age (1262). The following year he successfully defended a Norwegian invasion, and in 1266 he acquired the Hebrides and the Isle of Man from Norway. His reign was later viewed as a golden age by Scots caught up in the long conflict with England. Born in Roxburgh, Scotland.
1866	Simon Lake, engineer. Inventor of the "Argonaut", the first submarine to operate successfully and extensively in the open sea. Born in Pleasantville, New York, USA.
1906	Max Delbrück, biochemist. A pioneer in the study of molecular genetics who shared the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1969 for work on the replication mechanism and the genetic structure of bacteriophages, a type of virus that infects bacteria, rather than ordinary cells. Born in Berlin, Germany.
1914	Stanford Moore, biochemist. Shared the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1972 for his contribution to the understanding of the connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of the active centre of the ribonuclease molecule, an enzyme. Born in Chicago, Illinois, USA.
1928	Dick York, actor (Bewitched, Inherit the Wind). Best known as the first Darrin Stephens on the television series, "Bewitched". He left the series in 1969 due to a chronic degenerative back ailment which eventually left him bed-ridden. Founder of Acting for Life, a private fund-raising organisation for the homeless. Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA.
1933	Richard Castellano, actor (The Godfather, Lovers and Other Strangers). The highest paid actor in "The Godfather", playing the part of Peter Clemenza, he was written out of the sequel for demanding too much money. Born in The Bronx, New York, USA.
1937	Dawn Fraser, swimmer. Winner of eight Olympic gold medals, including victories in the 100m freestyle at three consecutive Olympic Games (1956, 60, 64). She became the first woman to swim 100 metres in less than a minute in 1962. She retired in 1965 after the Australian Swimming Union placed her under a ten year ban, however the ban was lifted four years later. Born in Sydney, Australia.
1942	Ray Floyd, golfer. Winner of US Masters (1976), US Open (1986) and US PGA (1969, 82). Born in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, USA.
1949	Tom Watson, golfer. Winner of the British Open (1975, 77, 80, 82, 83), US Masters (1977, 81) and US Open (1962). Six times PGA Player of the Year (1977-80, 82, 84). Born in Kansas City, Missouri, USA.
Deaths:
1965	Albert Schweitzer, German medical missionary, theologian, musician, philosopher. Best known for his famous decision in 1896 that he would live for science and art until he was 30, then devote his life to serving humanity. He began studying medicine in 1905, and after qualifying in 1913, set out with his wife to set up a hospital to fight leprosy and sleeping sickness at Lambaréné, French Equatorial Africa (now Gabon), where with the help of locals, they built a hospital on the banks of the Ogooué River. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952 for his efforts on behalf of "the Brotherhood of Nations". Died in Lambaréné, French Equatorial Africa (now Gabon), aged 90.
1990	Irene Dunne, American actress (Show Boat, The Awful Truth, Love Affair). One of the most appealing, versatile, and popular stars of the 1930s. After struggling to make a career as an opera singer, she ventured into musical comedy in the early 1920s making her Broadway debut in 1922. She was appointed an alternate delegate to the United Nations by US President Eisenhower following her retirement in 1952. Died of heart failure in Los Angeles, California, aged 91.
Events on this day:
476 CE	Romulus Augustulus, the last emperor of the Western Roman empire, is deposed when Odoacer proclaims himself King of Italy.
1609	Navigator Henry Hudson discovers the island of Manhattan.
1781	The American city of Los Angeles is founded as El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora La Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula (City of the Queen of the Angels) by a group of 44 Spanish settlers.
1842	Work on Köln cathedral recommences after a 284 year hiatus.
1870	Emperor Napoleon III of France is deposed after defeat at Sedan and the Third Republic is declared.
1886	After almost 30 years of fighting, Apache leader Geronimo surrenders with his last band of warriors to General Nelson Miles at Skeleton Canyon in Arizona, USA.
1888	George Eastman patents the first roll-film camera and registers the name "Kodak".
1939	The Polish ghetto of Mir is exterminated.
1940	Hitler switches air raids away from military targets, promising to raze British cities 'to the ground'.
1948	Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands abdicates.
1949	Marie Robie sinks a 393 yard (359 m) hole-in-one, the first hole at Furnace Brook (Quincy, Massachusetts, USA).
1957	The Ford Motor Company introduces the Edsel, most famous for being a marketing disaster.
1957	The Wolfenden Report declares that homosexuality between consenting adults should no longer be a criminal offence in Great Britain.
1964	The Forth Road Bridge, near Edinburgh, Scotland, is officially opened.
1972	American swimmer Mark Spitz becomes the first athlete to win 7 olympic gold medals.
1983	Greg Lemond becomes the first American to win cycling's World Road Championship.
1988	Mike Tyson crashes his silver BMW into a tree near Catskills, New York, USA.
1997	The last Ford Thunderbird rolls off the assembly line in Lorain, Ohio, USA.