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1972–Singer, Ronnie Spector (of the Ronettes), escapes the infamous Alhambra, California, mansion of record producer, Phil Spector, after being held there since their marriage in 1968. Barefoot, and assisted by her mother, she crashes through the glass door at the back of the “castle,” causing deep cuts on her feet. She would file for divorce several days later.


796–Hisham I of Cordoba dies in Cordoba, at age 39.

816–Pope Leo III (795-816) dies in Rome, Italy, at age 66.

910–During the Battle of Augsburg, the Hungarians defeat the East Frankish army, under King Louis the Child, using the famous feigned retreat tactic of the nomadic warriors.

950–Emperor Reizei of Japan is born Norihira-shinno in Heian Kyo (Kyoto).

1107–Emperor Gaozong of Song is born in China.

1240–At the instigation of Louis IX of France, an inter-faith debate, known as the Disputation of Paris, starts between a Christian monk and four rabbis.

1381–During the Peasants' Revolt, rebels arrive at Blackheath, England.

1418–Parisians slaughter Bernard VII, Count of Armagnac, and his suspected sympathizers, along with all prisoners, foreign bankers, and students and faculty of the College of Navarre.

1429–Joan of Arc leads the French army in their capture of the city and the English commander, William de la Pole, in the second day of the Battle of Jargeau.

1478–Ludovico III Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua, dies of the plague in Goito (present-day Province of Mantua, Lombardy, Italy), at age 66.

1550–The city of Helsinki, Finland (belonging to Sweden) is founded by King Gustav I of Sweden.

1561–Anna of Württemberg is born in Stuttgart, Germany.

1665–England installs a municipal government in New York City (the former Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam).

1758–In the French and Indian War, James Wolfe's attack at Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, commences.

1758–Augustus William, Prince of Prussia, dies of a brain tumor in Oranienburg, Prussia, at age 36.

1772–French explorer, Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne, and 25 of his men are killed by Maori in New Zealand.

1775–British General, Thomas Gage, declares martial law in Massachusetts. The British offer a pardon to all colonists who lay down their arms. There would be only two exceptions to the amnesty: Samuel Adams and John Hancock, if captured, were to be hanged.

1776–The Virginia Declaration of Rights is adopted.

1778–Businessman and politician, Philip Livingston, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, dies of dropsy in York, Pennsylvania, at age 62.

1787–A law passes providing that a U.S. Senator must be at least 30 years old.

1792–Captain George Vancouver discovers Vancouver, British Columbia.

1806–Civil engineer, John (Augustus) Roebling, is born in Mühlhausen, Kingdom of Prussia. He is known for his wire rope suspension bridge designs, in particular, the design of the Brooklyn Bridge.

1812–Napoleon Bonaparte invades Russia.

1838–The Territory of Iowa is established.

1849–The gas mask is patented by Lewis Haslett of Louisville, Kentucky.

1860–The State Bank of the Russian Empire is established.

1889–Eighty people are killed in a rail disaster near Armagh, in what is present-day Northern Ireland.

1892–American novelist, Djuna Barnes, is born in Storm King Mountain, New York. Best known for her novel, Nightwood, which is a masterpiece of high modernism, Barnes was also a journalist, dramatist, poet, writer of short fiction, and visual artist.

1897–Carl Elsener patents the Swiss Army Knife.

1897–An 8.7 earthquake devastates over 9,000 square miles in Assam, India, killing 1,500 people.

1898–The Philippines declares independence from Spain.

1903–Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, is incorporated as a city.

1905–The Servants of India Society is established in Pune, India, by Gopal Krishna Gokhale.

1913–The first modern animation film is created. It depicts an artist’s drawing of a dachshund that is eating frankfurters until he explodes.

1915–Banker and philanthropist, David Rockefeller, is born in New York, New York. He served as Chairman and Chief Executive of Chase Manhattan Corporation. As of September 2013, his net worth was estimated to be $2.8 billion, ranking him among the 200 richest people in the world. He is the youngest of six children born to financier, John Davison Rockefeller, Jr. and socialite, Abigail Greene Aldrich. David's five elder siblings were Abby (1903-1976), John III (1906-1978), Nelson (1908-1979), Laurance (1910-2004), and Winthrop (1912-1973).

1916–Irwin Allen is born in New York, New York. He was a television, documentary, and film director and producer who became known as the “Master of Disaster.” His work includes the TV series Land of the Giants and the first disaster movie The Poseidon Adventure, followed by The Towering Inferno.

1916–Televison and film producer, Ivan Tors, is born Iván Torzs in Budapest, Austria-Hungary. Among his TV programs are Sea Hunt, Flipper, Ripcord, Gentle Ben, and Daktari. His films include The Magnetic Monster, The Glass Wall, Riders to the Stars, Gog, Around the World Under the Sea, Birds Do It, Island of the Lost, and Hello Down There. He was married to actress, Constance Dowling.

1917–The Secret Service extends protection of the U.S. President to his family.

1918–Film producer, Samuel Z. Arkoff, is born Samuel Zachary Arkoff in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Along with business partner James H. Nicholson and producer-director Roger Corman, he produced 18 films. In the 1950s, Nicholson founded the American Releasing Corporation, which later became known as American International Pictures, and made Arkoff the vice-president. AIP films were mostly low-budget, with production completed in a few days, though nearly all of them became profitable. His films include It Conquered the World, The She-Creature, Dragstrip Girl, Invasion of the Saucer Men, The Amazing Colossal Man, High School Hellcats, Circus of Horrors, Pit and the Pendulum, Panic in Year Zero!, Beach Party, The Last Man on Earth, Muscle Beach Party, Bikini Beach, Pajama Party, Beach Blanket Bingo, Ski Party, How to Stuff a Wild Bikini, The Wild Angels, Wild in the Streets, Chastity, The Dunwich Horror, Boxcar Bertha, Dillinger, Return to Macon County, Futureworld, and The Amityville Horror.

1919–Actress, Uta (Thyra) Hagen, is born in Göttingen, Germany. Along with performing, Hagan was an acting teacher: among her students were Matthew Broderick, Christine Lahti, Jason Robards, Sigourney Weaver, Liza Minnelli, Whoopi Goldberg, Jack Lemmon, Charles Nelson Reilly, Debbie Allen, and Al Pacino. Her stage work includes Othello, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Country Girl, and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? She was married to actor, Jose Ferrer.

1922–At Windsor Castle in London, England, King George V receives the colours of the six Irish regiments that are to be disbanded: the Royal Irish Regiment, the Connaught Rangers, the South Irish Horse, the Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment, the Royal Munster Fusiliers, and the Royal Dublin Fusiliers.

1923–Magician, Harry Houdini, frees himself from a straitjacket while suspended upside down, 40 feet above the ground in New York City.

1923–Make-up artist, Monty Westmore, is born Montague George Westmore, Jr., in Los Angeles, California. He was part of the third generation of the Westmore family of American make-up artists in film and television, who worked on over 75 films and TV series since 1950. His brother was make-up artist, Michael Westmore. Monty Westmore spent seven seasons as make-up artist on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. He was Joan Crawford's personal make-up artist on the films What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? and Strait-Jacket. He later served as Paul Newman's personal make-up artist on 17 of the actor's films over the course of nearly three decades.

1924–George H.W. Bush, U.S. Vice President (1981-1989) and 41st U.S. President (1989-1993), is born in Milton, Massachusetts.

1928–Singer, Vic Damone, is born Vito Rocco Farinola in Brooklyn, New York. His hits include My Heart Cries for You, On the Street Where You Live, and An Affair to Remember. He appeared in the films The Strip, Hit the Deck, and Kismet. He was married to actresses Pier Angeli and Diahann Carroll.

1929–Anne Frank is born in Frankfurt, Weimar Germany. As a young girl, she fled to Holland with her family as Adolf Hitler came into power in 1933. They settled in Amsterdam, but after the Nazis stormed Holland, and began deporting Dutch Jews to the concentration camps in July of 1942, Anne and her family went into hiding in an annex behind the offices on Prinsengracht Canal, where her father had a warehouse. They stayed there for two years, and nearly every day Anne wrote in the diary that her parents had given her on her 13th birthday. Her last entry was August 1, 1944, and three days later the annex was raided, and Anne and her family were sent to the Bergen Belsen camp near Hannover, Germany. The diary was published in Dutch in 1947 as The House Behind, and in English in 1953 as The Diary of a Young Girl.

1930–Actor, Jim Nabors, is born James Thurston Nabors in Sylacauga, Alabama. He is best known for the role of Gomer Pyle on The Andy Griffith Show and its spinoff, Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C.

1931–Gangster, Al Capone, is indicted on 5,000 counts of prohibition and perjury.

1931–Writer, Rona Jaffe, is born in Brooklyn, New York. Her novels include The Best of Everything, The Fame Game, Family Secrets, and Mazes and Monsters.

1932–Actor, Jim Nabors, is born James Thurston Nabors in Sylacauga, Alabama. He is best known for the role of Gomer Pyle on the TV shows The Andy Griffith Show and Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. He appeared in the films Take Her, She’s Mine, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Stoker Ace, and Cannonball Run II.

1935–A ceasefire is negotiated between Bolivia and Paraguay, ending the Chaco War.

1939–The Baseball Hall of Fame opens in Cooperstown, New York.

1939–Shooting begins on Paramount Pictures' Doctor Cyclops, the first horror film photographed in three-strip Technicolor.

1940–In World War II, 13,000 British and French troops surrender to Major General Erwin Rommel at Saint-Valery-en-Caux, France.

1941–Sportscaster, Marv Albert, is born Marvin Philip Aufrichtig in Brooklyn, New York.

1941–Jazz pianist, Chick Corea, is born Armando Anthony Corea in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Many of his compositions are considered jazz standards. As a member of Miles Davis' band in the 1960s, he participated in the birth of the electric jazz fusion movement. In the 1970s, he formed Return to Forever.

1941–Reg Presley, of The Troggs, is born Reginald Maurice Ball in Andover, Hampshire, England. His stage name was given to him by New Musical Express journalist and publicist, Keith Altham, in 1965. The group’s hits included Wild Thing, With a Girl Like You, and Love Is All Around.

1942–Adolf Hitler orders the enslavement of Slavic peoples.

1942–Anne Frank receives a diary for her 13th birthday.

1942–Singer, Len Barry, is born Leonard Borisoff in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was the lead singer of The Dovells, who had the hits Bristol Stomp, Hully Gully Baby, and You Can't Sit Down. He had solo hits with 1-2-3 and Like a Baby.

1943–Germany liquidates the Jewish Ghetto in Brzezany, Poland (present-day Berezhany, Ukraine). Around 1,180 Jews are led to the city's old Jewish graveyard and shot.

1944–American paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division secure the town of Carentan, Normandy.

1949–John (Kenneth) Wetton, of the progressive rock groups King Crimson and Asia, is born in Willington, Derbyshire, England.

1951–Bun E. Carlos, of Cheap Trick, is born Brad Carlson in Rockford, Illinois.

1952–Pete Farndon, of The Pretenders, is born Peter Granville Farndon in Hereford, England.

1954–Pope Pius XII canonises Dominic Savio as a saint. He was 14 years old at the time of his death, making him the youngest unmartyred saint in the Roman Catholic Church.

1957–Actor, Timothy Busfield, is born in Lansing, Michigan. He co-starred in the TV series thirtysomething. He also had a recurring role on The West Wing. He appeared in the films Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise, Field of Dreams, Sneakers, Striking Distance, Little Big League, and Quiz Show. He is married to actress, Melissa Gilbert.

1957–Bandleader, Jimmy Dorsey, dies of throat cancer in New York, New York, at age 53. He was considered one of the most important and influential alto saxophone players of the Big Band and Swing era. His hits include Maria Elena, Blue Champagne, Tangerine, Besame Mucho, and Pennies from Heaven. Dorsey was awarded a gold record for So Rare, which was recorded on November 11, 1956.

1960–The 12th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards announces its winners. Best Dramatic Series: Playhouse 90; Best Comedy Series: The Art Carney Special; Best Musical or Variety Series: The Fabulous Fifties; Best Children’s Program: The Huckleberry Hound Show; Best Actor: Robert Stack; Best Actress: Jane Wyatt. The ceremonies are held at the NBC Studios in Burbank, California. The host is Fred Astaire.

1963–Civil rights leader, Medgar Evers, is shot dead in front of his home in Jackson, Mississippi, at age 37. His assassin is Ku Klux Klan member, Byron De La Beckwith. Mourned nationally, Evers was buried on June 19th in Arlington National Cemetery, where he received full military honors before a crowd of more than 3,000.

1963–The movie, Cleopatra, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, has its premiere. With a running time of over four hours, the film cost $40 million, making it the most expensive film ever made.

1964–Anti-apartheid activist and ANC leader, Nelson Mandela, is sentenced to life in prison for sabotage in South Africa.

1963–Actor, Tim DeKay, is born Timothy Robert DeKay in Lansing, Michigan. He co-starred in the TV shows Party of Five, Carnivàle, Tell Me You Love Me, and White Collar.

1965–British newspapers announce that The Beatles have been selected to receive the honor of MBE (Membership of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) from the Queen. The list of recipients was drawn up by the Prime Minister, and the Queen had approved it. A number of previous recipients of the honor were outraged that such a prestigious award should go to a rock and roll group, and several of them returned their MBE medals in protest. John Lennon would later return his MBE medal to Buckingham Palace in November 1969.

1967–The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ends laws against interracial marriage.

1967–Venera 4 is launched and it will become the first space probe to enter another planet's atmosphere and successfully return data.

1968–Bobby Sheehan, of Blues Traveler, is born Robert Vaughan Sheehan in Summit, New Jersey.

1970–Rocker, Mick Fleetwood, marries model, Jenny Boyd. She is the sister of model, Pattie Boyd.

1972–The fast food restaurant chain, Popeyes, is founded in Arabi, Louisiana.

1972–Singer, Ronnie Spector (of the Ronettes), escapes the infamous Alhambra, California, mansion of record producer, Phil Spector, after being held there since their marriage in 1968. Barefoot, and assisted by her mother, she crashes through the glass door at the back of the “castle,” causing deep cuts on her feet. She would file for divorce several days later.

1972–Radical writer, Saul David Alinsky, dies of a massive heart attack on a street corner in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, at age 63. He wrote the book Rules for Radicals.

1979–Bryan Allen wins the second Kremer prize for a man-powered flight across the English Channel in the Gossamer Albatross.

1978–David Berkowitz, the “Son of Sam” killer in New York City, is sentenced to 365 years in prison for six murders.

1980–Actor, Milburn Stone, dies of a heart attack in La Jolla, California, at age 75. He is best known for the role of Doc on the long-running TV Western Gunsmoke. He appeared in the films Made for Each Other, Young Mr. Lincoln, Johnny Apollo, The Great Train Robbery, No Man of Her Own, Flying Leathernecks, The Atomic City, Invaders from Mars, Pickup on South Street, and The Long Gray Line.

1981–Larry Holmes defeats Leon Spinks in Round 3 for the Heavyweight Boxing Championship.

1982–Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, and Gary U.S. Bonds are in the 750,000-strong crowd at the Rally for Nuclear Disarmament in New York's Central Park. The demonstration becomes the biggest political rally in U.S. history.

1983–Actress, Norma Shearer, dies of bronchial pneumonia at the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills, California, at age 80. Her early films cast her as the girl-next-door, but for most of the Pre-Code film era (beginning with the 1930 film The Divorcee) she played sexually liberated women in sophisticated contemporary comedies.

1985–Software developer, Blake (Aaron) Ross, is born in Miami, Florida. He co-created the Mozilla Firefox browser for the Internet.

1987–President Ronald Reagan challenges Mikhail Gorbachev to "tear down" the Berlin Wall.

1987–The Central African Republic's former Emperor Jean-Bédel Bokassa is sentenced to death for crimes he had committed during his 13-year rule.

1990–The Parliament of the Russian Federation formally declares its sovereignty.

1991–Boris Yelstin is elected President of the Russian Federation.

1991–The Sri Lankan Army massacres 152 minority Tamil civilians in the village of Kokkadichcholai, near the eastern province town of Batticaloa.

1991–The 45th NBA Championship: The Chicago Bulls beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 4 games to 1.

1993–An election takes place in Nigeria that is later annulled by the military Government led by Ibrahim Babangida.

1994–The Boeing 777, the world's largest twinjet, makes its first flight.

1994–Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman are murdered outside her home in Los Angeles, California. O.J. Simpson is later acquitted of the killings, but is held liable in a civil suit.

1996–In Philadelphia, Pensylvania, a panel of federal judges blocks a law against indecency on the Internet.

1997–Queen Elizabeth II reopens the Globe Theatre in London, England.

1997–Rapper, Snoop Dogg, marries Shante Taylor at The Ritz Carlton Hotel in Marina Del Rey, California.

1998–Psychologist, Leo Buscaglia, dies of a heart attack in Glenbrook, Nevada, at age 74. His books include Love, Living Loving Learning, and Personhood.

1999–Operation Joint Guardian begins when a NATO-led United Nations peacekeeping force (KFor) enters the province of Kosovo, in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

1999–Actor, David Arquette, marries actress, Courteney Cox, at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, California.

2002–The 56th NBA Championship: The Los Angeles Lakers beat the New Jersey Nets, 4 games to 0.

2002–Fashion designer, Bill Blass, dies of throat cancer in New Preston, Connecticut, at age 79. He had just finished writing his memoir, Bare Blass, six days earlier.

2003–The Songwriters' Hall of Fame inducts new members Little Richard, Van Morrison, Queen, and Phil Collins.

2003–Actor, Gregory Peck, dies in his sleep from broncho-pneumonia in Los Angeles, California, at age 87. He appeared in the films Spellbound, The Yearling, Duel in the Sun, Gentleman’s Agreement, Twelve O’Clock High, The Gunfighter, Roman Holiday, The Purple Plain, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, Moby Dick, Designing Woman, The Big Countey, Pork Chop Hill, Beloved Infidel, On the Beach, the Guns of Navarone, Cape Fear, How the West Was Won, To Kill a Mockingbird, Captain Newman, M.D., Arabasque, Mackenna’s Gold, Marooned, I Walk the Line, Billy Two Hats, The Omen, The Boys from Brazil, Amazing Grace and Chuck, and Old Gringo.

2005–The Vale of Glamorgan Line reopenes to passengers after being closed for 41 years. It is a Commuter rail in the United Kingdom, running through the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales, from Cardiff to Bridgend via Barry, Rhoose, and Llantwit Major.

2009–All television broadcasts in the United States switch from analog NTSC to digital ATSC transmission.

2009–A disputed presidential election in Iran leads to wide-ranging local and international protests.

2011–The 65th NBA Championship: The Dallas Mavericks beat the Miami Heat, 4 games to 2.

2011–Carl Gardner, of The Coasters, dies in Port St. Lucie, Florida, at age 83. His first major career success came with The Robins, a rhythm and blues group that had a big hit in 1955 with Smokey Joe's Cafe. The Coasters’ hits include Youngblood, Searchin’, Yakety Yak, Charlie Brown, and Poison Ivy.

2012–Mobster, Henry Hill, Jr., dies of heart disease in Los Angeles, California, at age 69. Between 1955 and 1980, Hill was associated with the Lucchese crime family. In 1980, Hill became an FBI informant and his testimony helped secure 50 convictions, including that of mob capo (captain) Paul Vario and James Burke on multiple charges. Hill's life story was documented in the book Wiseguy: Life in a Mafia Family by Nicholas Pileggi. Wiseguy was subsequently adapted by Martin Scorsese into the critically acclaimed film, Goodfellas, in which Hill was portrayed by Ray Liotta.

2013–Super-centenarian, Jiroemon Kimura, dies of natural causes in Kyotango, Japan, at age 116 (and 54 days). Four of Kimura's siblings lived past the age of 90, and his youngest brother died at the age of 100. Being born in the year 30 of the Meiji period, he lived in the reigns of four emperors, and during the premierships of 61 Japanese Prime Ministers, from Matsukata Masayoshi to Shinzo Abe. He had seven children, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren, and 15 great-great-grandchildren.

2015–Actor, John Stamos, is arrested and issued a citation for driving while intoxicated in Santa Monica, California.

2015–Singer-actress, Monica Lewis, dies of natural causes in Woodland Hills, California, at age 93. In the 1940s, Lewis was dubbed "America’s Singing Sweetheart.” Her songs include Put the Blame on Mame, I Wish You Love, and Autumn Leaves. She appeared in the films The Strip, Excuse My Dust, Affair with a Stranger, Charley Varrick, Earthquake, Airport ‘77, Rollercoaster, Zero to Sixty, Stick, and Dead Heat.

2016–IUPAC proposes the final names of four new chemical elements: nihonium, moscovium, tennessine, and oganesson.

2016–Tribune Media's 42 owned or operated TV stations and the WGN America cable network go dark on pay TV giant Dish Network amid a carriage dispute. About five million Dish subscribers in 33 markets across 34 states and the District of Columbia lose access to their local Tribune stations, while roughly seven million Dish subscribers nationwide lose the ability to watch WGN America.

2016–Around 10,000 people attend a street party in front of Buckingham Palace in London, England, to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's 90th birthday.

2016–Musician, Eric Clapton, reveals that he is suffering incurable damage to his nervous system that has left him struggling to play his guitar.

2016–A car bomb targeting a police bus kills at least 11 people in Istanbul, Turkey.

2016–Forty-nine people are killed and 53 others are injured in a terrorist attack on a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. The gunman, Omar Mateen, is shot by authorties. ISIS claims responsibility for the attack.

2017–Panama severs diplomatic ties with Taiwan and establishes formal relations with China.

2017–In a unanimous decision (8-0), the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down a gender distinction in U.S. immigration law that treats mothers and fathers differently.

2018–President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un (of North Korea) hold the first-ever summit meeting between leaders of their two countries in Singapore, with the hope of ending seven decades of hostility and the threat of a nuclear confrontation.

2018–The United States unveils a new 16-acre complex in Taipei, for the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto U.S. Embassy.

2018–A U.S. federal judge approves AT&T's $85 billion merger with Time Warner.


PHOTOS TOP TO BOTTOM: Pope Leo III; John Roebling; a swiss army knife; a poster for The Poseidon Adventure; Samuel Z. Arkoff; Monty Westmore; Anne Frank; a poster for Doctor Cyclops; 1-2-3 by Len Barry; Timothy Busfield; a poster for Cleopatra; a sample of food from Popeyes fast food restaurant; the Berlin Wall; the Globe Theatre in London, England; Gregory Peck; and Monica Lewis.
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