February 16 — On This Day
284 entries
Events
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116
Emperor Trajan sends laureatae to the Roman Senate at Rome on account of his victories and being conqueror of Parthia.
Trajan · Laureate · Roman Senate · Ancient Rome · Parthia
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1249
Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khagan of the Mongol Empire.
André de Longjumeau · Louis IX of France · Ambassador · Khagan · Mongol Empire
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1270
Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeats the Livonian Order in the Battle of Karuse.
Grand Duchy of Lithuania · Livonian Order · Battle of Karuse
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1630
Dutch forces led by Hendrick Lonck capture Olinda in what was to become part of Dutch Brazil.
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1646
Battle of Torrington, Devon: The last major battle of the first English Civil War.
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1699
First Leopoldine Diploma is issued by the Holy Roman Emperor, recognizing the Greek Catholic clergy enjoyed the same privileges as Roman Catholic priests in the Principality of Transylvania.
Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor · Holy Roman Emperor · Greek Catholic · Roman Catholic · Principality of Transylvania (1570-1711)
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1742
Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington, becomes British Prime Minister.
Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington · Earl of Wilmington · Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
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1804
First Barbary War: Stephen Decatur leads a raid to burn the pirate-held frigate USS Philadelphia.
First Barbary War · Stephen Decatur · Pirate · USS Philadelphia (1799)
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1852
Studebaker Brothers wagon company, precursor of the automobile manufacturer, is established.
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1862
American Civil War: General Ulysses S. Grant captures Fort Donelson, Tennessee.
American Civil War · Ulysses S. Grant · Battle of Fort Donelson · Fort Donelson · Tennessee
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1866
Spencer Compton Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington becomes British Secretary of State for War.
Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire · Secretary of State for War
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1874
Silver Dollar becomes legal US tender.
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1881
The Canadian Pacific Railway is incorporated by Act of Parliament at Ottawa (44th Vic., c.1).
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1899
Iceland's first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, is founded.
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1918
The Council of Lithuania unanimously adopts the Act of Independence, declaring Lithuania an independent state.
Council of Lithuania · Act of Independence of Lithuania · Lithuania
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1923
Howard Carter unseals the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.
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1930
The Romanian Football Federation joins FIFA.
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1933
The Blaine Act ends Prohibition in the United States.
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1934
The Austrian Civil War ends with the defeat of the Social Democrats and the Republikanischer Schutzbund.
Austrian Civil War · Social Democratic Party of Austria · Republikanischer Schutzbund
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1936
Elections bring the Popular Front to power in Spain.
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1937
Wallace H. Carothers receives a United States patent for nylon.
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1940
World War II: Altmark Incident: The German tanker Altmark is boarded by sailors from the British destroyer HMS Cossack. 299 British prisoners are freed.
World War II · Altmark Incident · German tanker Altmark · Destroyer · HMS Cossack
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1943
World War II: In the early phases of the Third Battle of Kharkov, Red Army troops re-enter the city.
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1945
World War II: American forces land on Corregidor Island in the Philippines.
Battle of Corregidor (1945) · Corregidor Island · Philippines
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1959
Fidel Castro becomes Premier of Cuba after dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown on January 1.
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1960
The U.S. Navy submarine USS Triton begins Operation Sandblast, setting sail from New London, Connecticut, to begin the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe.
USS Triton (SSRN-586) · Operation Sandblast · New London, Connecticut
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1961
Explorer program: Explorer 9 (S-56a) is launched.
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1962
Flooding in the coastal areas of West Germany kills 315 and destroys the homes of about 60,000 people.
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1968
In Haleyville, Alabama, the first 9-1-1 emergency telephone system goes into service.
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1978
The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago).
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1983
The Ash Wednesday bushfires in Victoria and South Australia kill 75.
Ash Wednesday bushfires · Victoria (Australia) · South Australia
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1985
Hezbollah is founded.
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1986
The Soviet liner MS Mikhail Lermontov runs aground in the Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand.
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1987
The trial of John Demjanjuk, accused of being a Nazi guard dubbed "Ivan the Terrible" in Treblinka extermination camp, starts in Jerusalem.
John Demjanjuk · Nazism · Treblinka extermination camp · Jerusalem
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1991
Nicaraguan Contras leader Enrique Bermúdez is assassinated in Managua.
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1996
A Chicago-bound Amtrak train, the Capitol Limited, collides with a MARC commuter train bound for Washington, D.C., killing 11 people.
Amtrak · Capitol Limited (Amtrak train) · 1996 Maryland train collision · MARC Train
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1998
China Airlines Flight 676 crashes into a road and residential area near Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan, killing all 196 aboard and seven more on the ground.
China Airlines Flight 676 · Chiang Kai-shek International Airport · Taiwan
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2005
The Kyoto Protocol comes into force, following its ratification by Russia.
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2005
The National Hockey League cancels the entire 2004-05 regular season and playoffs.
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2006
The last Mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army.
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2013
A bomb blast at a market in Hazara Town, Quetta, Pakistan kills more than 80 people and injures 190 others.
Famous Births
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1032
Emperor Yingzong of Song (d. 1067)
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1222
Nichiren, founder of Nichiren Buddhism (d. 1282)
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1304
Jayaatu Khan Tugh Temür, Chinese emperor (d. 1332)
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1331
Coluccio Salutati, Florentine political leader (d. 1406)
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1419
John I, Duke of Cleves (d. 1481)
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1470
Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Prince of Calenberg (1491-1540) (d. 1540)
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1497
Philip Melanchthon, German astronomer, theologian, and academic (d. 1560)
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1514
Georg Joachim Rheticus, Austrian cartographer and instrument maker (d. 1574)
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1519
Gaspard II de Coligny, French admiral (d. 1572)
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1543
Kanō Eitoku, Japanese painter and educator (d. 1590)
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1620
Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg (d. 1688)
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1643
John Sharp, English archbishop (d. 1714)
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1698
Pierre Bouguer, French mathematician, geophysicist, and astronomer (d. 1758)
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1727
Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin, Austrian botanist, chemist, and mycologist (d. 1817)
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1740
Giambattista Bodoni, Italian publisher and engraver (d. 1813)
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1761
Jean-Charles Pichegru, French general (d. 1804)
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1774
Pierre Rode, French violinist and composer (d. 1830)
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1786
Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (d. 1859)
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1802
Phineas Quimby, American mystic and philosopher (d. 1866)
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1804
Karl Theodor Ernst von Siebold, German physiologist and zoologist (d. 1885)
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1812
Henry Wilson, American colonel and politician, 18th Vice President of the United States (d. 1875)
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1821
Heinrich Barth, German explorer and scholar (d. 1865)
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1822
Francis Galton, English biologist and statistician (d. 1911)
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1824
Peter Kosler, Slovenian lawyer, geographer, and cartographer (d. 1879)
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1826
Joseph Victor von Scheffel, German poet and author (d. 1886)
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1831
Nikolai Leskov, Russian author, playwright, and journalist (d. 1895)
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1834
Ernst Haeckel, German biologist, physician, and philosopher (d. 1919)
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1838
Henry Adams, American journalist, historian, and author (d. 1918)
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1843
Henry M. Leland, American engineer and businessman, founded Cadillac and Lincoln (d. 1932)
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1845
George Kennan, American journalist and explorer (d. 1924)
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1848
Hugo de Vries, Dutch botanist, geneticist, and academic (d. 1935)
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1848
Octave Mirbeau, French journalist, novelist, and playwright (d. 1917)
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1856
Ossian Everett Mills, American academic, founded Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia (d. 1920)
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1866
Billy Hamilton, American baseball player and manager (d. 1940)
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1873
Radoje Domanović, Serbian journalist and author (d. 1908)
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1868
Edward S. Curtis, American ethnologist and photographer (d. 1952)
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1876
G. M. Trevelyan, English historian and academic (d. 1962)
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1878
Pamela Colman Smith, English occultist and illustrator (d. 1951)
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1878
James Colosimo, Italian-American mob boss (d. 1920)
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1884
Robert J. Flaherty, German-Irish American director and producer (d. 1951)
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1887
Kathleen Clifford, American actress (d. 1962)
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1891
Hans F. K. Günther, German eugenicist and academic (d. 1967)
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1896
Eugénie Blanchard, French super-centenarian (d. 2010)
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1898
Katharine Cornell, American actress and producer (d. 1974)
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1901
Wayne King, American singer-songwriter and conductor (d. 1985)
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1901
Chester Morris, American actor (d. 1970)
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1902
Cyril Vincent, South African cricketer (d. 1968)
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1903
Edgar Bergen, Swedish-American ventriloquist and actor (d. 1978)
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1904
James Baskett, African-American actor and singer (d. 1948)
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1904
George F. Kennan, Scotch-Irish American historian and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the Soviet Union (d. 2005)
George F. Kennan · Scotch-Irish Americans · United States Ambassador to the Soviet Union
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1906
Vera Menchik, Russian-English chess player (d. 1944)
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1909
Hugh Beaumont, American actor and director (d. 1982)
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1909
Jeffrey Lynn, American actor (d. 1995)
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1909
Richard McDonald, Irish-American businessman, co-founded McDonald's (d. 1998)
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1914
Jimmy Wakely, American country music singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1982)
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1916
Bill Doggett, African-American pianist and composer (d. 1996)
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1919
Georges Ulmer, Danish-French actor and composer (d. 1989)
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1920
Anna Mae Hays, American general
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1921
Vera-Ellen, German-American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 1981)
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1921
Jean Behra, French race car driver (d. 1959)
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1921
John Galbraith Graham, English priest and academic (d. 2013)
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1922
Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer, German soldier and pilot (d. 1950)
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1923
Samuel Willenberg, Polish-Israeli sculptor and painter (d. 2016)
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1926
Margot Frank, German-Dutch holocaust victim (d. 1945)
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1926
John Schlesinger, English actor and director (d. 2003)
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1927
June Brown, English actress
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1929
Gerhard Hanappi, Austrian footballer and architect (d. 1980)
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1929
Peter Porter, Australian-English poet and educator (d. 2010)
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1931
Otis Blackwell, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 2002)
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1931
Ken Takakura, Japanese actor and singer (d. 2014)
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1932
Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, Sierra Leonean economist, lawyer, and politician, 3rd President of Sierra Leone (d. 2014)
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1932
Gretchen Wyler, American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 2007)
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1934
August Coppola, American author and academic (d. 2009)
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1934
Marlene Hagge, American golfer
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1935
Brian Bedford, English-American actor and director (d. 2016)
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1935
Sonny Bono, American actor, singer, and politician (d. 1998)
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1935
Stephen Gaskin, American activist, co-founded The Farm (d. 2014)
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1935
Bradford Parkinson, American colonel and engineer
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1935
Kenneth Price, American painter and sculptor (d. 2012)
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1937
Paul Bailey, British novelist, critic, and biographer
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1937
Yuri Manin, Russian-German mathematician and academic
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1938
John Corigliano, American composer and academic
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1939
Adolfo Azcuna, Filipino lawyer and judge
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1940
Hannelore Schmatz, German mountaineer (d. 1979)
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1941
Kim Jong-il, North Korean commander and politician, 2nd Supreme Leader of North Korea (d. 2011)
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1942
Richard Williams, American tennis player and coach
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1944
Glyn Davies, Welsh farmer and politician
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1944
Richard Ford, American novelist and short story writer
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1944
António Mascarenhas Monteiro, Cape Verdean politician, 2nd President of Cape Verde (d. 2016)
António Mascarenhas Monteiro · List of heads of state of Cape Verde
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1948
Kaiketsu Masateru, Japanese sumo wrestler and coach (d. 2014)
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1949
Bob O'Reilly, Australian rugby league player
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1950
Peter Hain, Kenyan-Welsh politician, Secretary of State for Wales
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1951
Barry Foote, American baseball player and coach
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1952
William Katt, American actor, director, and screenwriter
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1952
James Ingram, American singer-songwriter and producer
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1953
John Bradbury, English drummer, songwriter, and producer (d. 2015)
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1953
Lanny McDonald, Canadian ice hockey player and manager
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1953
Roberta Williams, American video game designer, co-founded Sierra Entertainment
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1954
Iain Banks, Scottish author and playwright (d. 2013)
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1954
Margaux Hemingway, American model and actress (d. 1996)
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1954
Michael Holding, Jamaican cricketer and sportscaster
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1956
Vincent Ward, New Zealand director and screenwriter
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1957
LeVar Burton, German-American actor, director, and producer
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1958
Natalie Angier, American author
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1958
Ice-T, American rapper and actor
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1958
Oscar Schmidt, Brazilian basketball player
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1958
Herb Williams, American basketball player and coach
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1959
John McEnroe, German-American tennis player and sportscaster
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1959
Kelly Tripucka, American basketball player and sportscaster
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1960
Pete Willis, English guitarist and songwriter
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1961
Des Hasler, Australian rugby league player and coach
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1961
Liu Kang, Chinese footballer and manager (d. 2013)
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1961
Andy Taylor, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
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1962
John Balance, English singer-songwriter (d. 2004)
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1964
Bebeto, Brazilian footballer and manager
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1964
Christopher Eccleston, English actor
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1965
Dave Lombardo, Cuban American drummer
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1967
Keith Gretzky, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
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1968
Warren Ellis, English author and screenwriter
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1971
Craig Laundy, Australian politician
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1972
Jerome Bettis, American football player and sportscaster
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1972
Zoran Čampara, Bosnian football player
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1972
Sarah Clarke, American actress
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1972
Naomi Nishida, Japanese actress
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1972
Darrell Trindall, Australian rugby league player
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1973
Cathy Freeman, Australian sprinter
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1974
Mahershala Ali, actor
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1976
Eric Byrnes, American baseball player and sportscaster
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1976
Kyo, Japanese singer-songwriter and producer
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1977
Ian Clarke, Irish-American computer scientist, founded Freenet
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1977
Ahman Green, American football player
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1978
Tia Hellebaut, Belgian high jumper and chemist
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1978
Wasim Jaffer, Indian cricketer
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1978
John Tartaglia, American actor, singer, and puppeteer
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1979
Eric Mun, American-South Korean singer and actor
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1979
Valentino Rossi, Italian motorcycle racer
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1980
Longineu W. Parsons III, French-American drummer
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1981
Jay Howard, English race car driver
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1981
Jerry Owens, American baseball player
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1981
Qyntel Woods, American basketball player
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1982
Aleksandr Dmitrijev, Estonian footballer
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1982
Rickie Lambert, English footballer
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1982
Lupe Fiasco, American rapper
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1983
Agyness Deyn, English model, actress, and singer
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1984
Sofia Arvidsson, Swedish tennis player
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1984
Oussama Mellouli, Tunisian swimmer
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1985
Simon Francis, English footballer
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1985
Stacy Lewis, American golfer
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1985
Ron Vlaar, Dutch footballer
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1987
Luc Bourdon, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2008)
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1987
Theresa Goh, Singaporean swimmer
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1987
Hasheem Thabeet, Tanzanian basketball player
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1988
Diego Capel, Spanish footballer
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1988
Zhang Jike, Chinese table tennis player
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1988
Denílson Pereira Neves, Brazilian footballer
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1988
Andrea Ranocchia, Italian footballer
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1988
Kim Soo-hyun, South Korean actor and singer
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1989
Elizabeth Olsen, American actress
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1990
Dunamis Lui, Australian-Samoan rugby league player
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1990
The Weeknd, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
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1991
Sergio Canales, Spanish footballer
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1992
Nicolai Boilesen, Danish footballer
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1992
Zsófia Susányi, Hungarian tennis player
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1994
Annika Beck, German tennis player
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1994
Federico Bernardeschi, Italian footballer
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1995
Katy Dunne, English tennis player
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1995
Carina Witthöft, German tennis player
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1997
Pardeep Narwal, Indian Kabaddi athlete
Famous Deaths
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549
Zhu Yi, Chinese general (b. 483)
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902
Mary the Younger, Byzantine saint (b. 875)
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1184
Richard of Dover, Archbishop of Canterbury
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1247
Henry Raspe, Landgrave of Thuringia (b. 1204)
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1279
Afonso III of Portugal (b. 1210)
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1281
Gertrude of Hohenburg, queen consort of Germany (b. c.1225)
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1390
Rupert I, Elector Palatine (b. 1309)
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1391
John V Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1332)
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1531
Johannes Stöffler, German mathematician and astronomer (b. 1452)
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1560
Jean du Bellay, French cardinal and diplomat (b. 1493)
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1579
Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, Spanish explorer (b. 1509)
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1645
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, Spanish general and politician, 24th Governor of the Duchy of Milan (b. 1585)
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba (1585-1645) · Governor of the Duchy of Milan
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1710
Esprit Fléchier, French bishop and author (b. 1632)
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1721
James Craggs the Younger, English politician, Secretary of State for the Southern Department (b. 1686)
James Craggs the Younger · Secretary of State for the Southern Department
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1754
Richard Mead, English physician (b. 1673)
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1820
Georg Carl von Döbeln, Swedish general (b. 1758)
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1862
William Pennington American lawyer and politician, 13th Governor of New Jersey, 23rd Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1796)
William Pennington · Governor of New Jersey · Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
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1898
Thomas Bracken, Irish-New Zealand journalist, poet, and politician (b. 1843)
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1899
Félix Faure, French merchant and politician, 7th President of France (b. 1841)
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1907
Giosuè Carducci, Italian poet and educator, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1835)
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1912
Nicholas of Japan, Russian-Japanese monk and saint (b. 1836)
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1917
Octave Mirbeau, French journalist, novelist, and playwright ( (b. 1848)
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1919
Vera Kholodnaya, Ukrainian actress (b. 1893)
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1928
Eddie Foy, Sr., American actor and dancer (b. 1856)
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1932
Ferdinand Buisson, French academic and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1841)
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1932
Edgar Speyer, American-English financier and philanthropist (b. 1862)
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1944
Dadasaheb Phalke, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1870)
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1957
Josef Hofmann, Polish-American pianist and composer (b. 1876)
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1961
Dazzy Vance, American baseball player (b. 1891)
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1967
Smiley Burnette, American singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1911)
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1974
John Garand, Canadian-American engineer, designed the M1 Garand Rifle(b. 1888)
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1975
Morgan Taylor, American hurdler and coach (b. 1903)
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1977
Janani Luwum, bishop, Church of Uganda, martyr (b. c.1922)
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1977
Rózsa Péter, Hungarian mathematician (b. 1905)
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1980
Erich Hückel, German physicist and chemist (b. 1895)
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1984
M. A. G. Osmani, Bangladeshi general (b. 1918)
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1990
Keith Haring, American painter and activist (b. 1958)
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1991
Enrique Bermúdez, Nicaraguan lieutenant and engineer (b. 1932)
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1992
Angela Carter, English novelist, short story writer (b. 1940)
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1992
Jânio Quadros, Brazilian politician, 22nd President of Brazil (b. 1917)
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1992
Herman Wold, Norwegian-Swedish economist and statistician (b. 1908)
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1996
Roberto Aizenberg, Argentinian painter and sculptor (b. 1922)
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1996
Roger Bowen, American actor and author (b. 1932)
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1996
Pat Brown, American lawyer and politician, 32nd Governor of California (b. 1905)
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1996
Brownie McGhee, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1915)
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1997
Chien-Shiung Wu, Chinese-American physicist and academic (b. 1912)
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1998
Mary Amdur, American toxicologist and public health researcher (b. 1908)
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2000
Marceline Day, American actress (b. 1908)
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2000
Lila Kedrova, Russian-French actress and singer
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2000
Karsten Solheim, Norwegian-American businessman, founded PING (b. 1911)
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2001
Howard W. Koch, American director and producer (b. 1916)
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2001
William Masters, American gynecologist and sexologist (b. 1915)
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2002
Walter Winterbottom, English footballer and manager (b. 1913)
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2003
Rusty Magee, American actor and composer (b. 1955)
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2004
Doris Troy, American singer-songwriter (b. 1937)
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2006
Johnny Grunge, American wrestler (b. 1966)
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2006
Ernie Stautner, German-American football player and coach (b. 1925)
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2009
Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, South Korean cardinal (b. 1921)
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2011
Len Lesser, American actor (b. 1922)
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2011
Justinas Marcinkevičius, Lithuanian poet and playwright (b. 1930)
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2012
Gary Carter, American baseball player and coach (b. 1954)
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2012
Elyse Knox, American model, actress, and fashion designer (b. 1917)
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2012
John Macionis, American swimmer and lieutenant (b. 1916)
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2012
Anthony Shadid, American journalist (b. 1968)
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2013
Colin Edwards, Guyanese footballer (b. 1991)
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2013
Grigory Pomerants, Russian philosopher and author (b. 1918)
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2013
Tony Sheridan, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1940)
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2014
Ken Farragut, American football player (b. 1928)
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2014
Gert Krawinkel, German guitarist (b. 1947)
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2014
Michael Shea, American author (b. 1946)
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2015
Lasse Braun, Algerian-Italian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1936)
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2015
Lesley Gore, American singer-songwriter (b. 1946)
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2015
R. R. Patil, Indian lawyer and politician, Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra (b. 1957)
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2015
Lorena Rojas, Mexican actress and singer (b. 1971)
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2016
Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Egyptian politician and diplomat, 6th Secretary-General of the United Nations (b. 1922)
Boutros Boutros-Ghali · Secretary-General of the United Nations