today.nukz.net: Almanac June 26

Big Bill Broonzy (June 26, 1903 – August 15, 1958) was a prolific American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s when he played country blues to mostly black audiences. Through the ‘30s and ‘40s he successfully navigated a transition in style to a more urban blues sound popular with white audiences. In the 1950s a return to his traditional folk-blues roots made him one of the leading figures of the emerging American folk music revival and an international star. His long and varied career marks him as one of the key figures in the development of blues music in the 20th century.

Events

221 – Roman Emperor Elagabalus adopts his cousin Alexander Severus as his heir and receives the title of Caesar.
363 – Roman Emperor Julian is killed during the retreat from the Sassanid Empire. General Jovian is proclaimed Emperor by the troops on the battlefield.
699 – En no Ozuno, a Japanese mystic and apothecary who will later be regarded as the founder of a folk religion Shugendo, is banished to Izu Oshima.
1409 – Western Schism: the Roman Catholic church is led into a double schism as Petros Philargos is crowned Pope Alexander V after the Council of Pisa, joining Pope Gregory XII in Rome and Pope Benedict XII in Avignon.
1541 – Francisco Pizarro is assassinated in Lima by the son of his former companion and later antagonist, Diego Almagro the younger. Almagro is later caught and executed.
1718 – Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich of Russia, Peter the Great's son, mysteriously dies after being sentenced to death by his father for plotting against him.
1723 – After a siege and bombardment by cannon, Baku surrenders to the Russians.
1740 – A combined force Spanish, free blacks and allied Indians defeat a British garrison at the Siege of Fort Mose near St. Augustine during the War of Jenkins' Ear.
1848 – End of the June Days Uprising in Paris.
1857 – The first investiture of the Victoria Cross in Hyde Park, London.
1870 – The Christian holiday of Christmas is declared a federal holiday in the United States.
1886 – Henri Moissan isolated elemental Fluorine for the first time.
1907 – The 1907 Tiflis bank robbery took place in Yerevan Square, now Freedom Square, Tbilisi.
1909 – The Science Museum in London comes into existence as an independent entity.
1917 – The first U.S. troops arrive in France to fight alongside Britain and France against Germany in World War I.
1918 – World War I, Western Front: Battle for Belleau Wood – Allied Forces under John J. Pershing and James Harbord defeat Imperial German Forces under Wilhelm, German Crown Prince.
1924 – American occupying forces leave the Dominican Republic.
1927 – The Cyclone roller coaster opens on Coney Island.
1934 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Federal Credit Union Act, which establishes credit unions.
1936 – Initial flight of the Focke-Wulf Fw 61, the first practical helicopter.
1940 – World War II: under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the Soviet Union presents an ultimatum to Romania requiring it to cede Bessarabia and the northern part of Bukovina.
1941 – World War II: Soviet planes bomb Kassa, Hungary (now Košice, Slovakia), giving Hungary the impetus to declare war the next day.
1942 – The first flight of the Grumman F6F Hellcat.
1944 – World War II: The Battle of Osuchy in Osuchy, Poland, ends with the defeat of the Polish resistance forces.
1945 – The United Nations Charter is signed in San Francisco.
1948 – The Western allies begin an airlift to Berlin after the Soviet Union blockades West Berlin.
1948 – William Shockley files the original patent for the grown junction transistor, the first bipolar junction transistor.
1948 – Shirley Jackson's short story The Lottery is published in The New Yorker magazine.
1952 – The Pan-Malayan Labour Party is founded in Malaya, as a union of statewise labour parties.
1953 – Lavrentiy Beria,head of MVD, is arrested by Nikita Khrushchev and other members of the Politburo.
1955 – The South African Congress Alliance adopts the Freedom Charter at the Congress of the People in Kliptown.
1959 – The Saint Lawrence Seaway opens, opening North America's Great Lakes to ocean-going ships.
1960 – The former British Protectorate of British Somaliland gains its independence as Somaliland.
1960 – Madagascar gains its independence from France.
1963 – U.S. President John F. Kennedy gave his "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech, underlining the support of the United States for democratic West Germany shortly after Soviet-supported East Germany erected the Berlin Wall.
1973 – At Plesetsk Cosmodrome 9 people are killed in an explosion of a Cosmos 3-M rocket.
1974 – The Universal Product Code is scanned for the first time to sell a package of Wrigley's chewing gum at the Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio
1975 – Two FBI agents and a member of the American Indian Movement are killed in a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota; Leonard Peltier is later convicted of the murders in a controversial trial.
1977 – The Yorkshire Ripper kills 16 year old shop assistant Jayne MacDonald in Leeds, changing public perception of the killer as she is the first victim who is not a prostitute.
1978 – Air Canada Flight 189 to Toronto overruns the runway and crashes into the Etobicoke Creek ravine. Two of 107 passengers on board perish.
1991 – Ten-Day War: the Yugoslav people's army begins the Ten-Day War in Slovenia.
1995 – Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani deposes his father Khalifa bin Hamad al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar, in a bloodless coup.
1996 – Irish Journalist Veronica Guerin is shot in her car while in traffic in the outskirts of Dublin
1997 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules that the Communications Decency Act violates the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.
2003 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Lawrence v. Texas that gender-based sodomy laws are unconstitutional.
2006 – Mari Alkatiri, the first Prime Minister of East Timor, resigns after weeks of political unrest.
2008 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in District of Columbia v. Heller that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects an individual right, and that the District of Columbia handgun ban is unconstitutional.

Births

1501 – Cho Shik, Korean Joseon Dynastys Neo-Confucian scholar and politicians (d. 1572)
1575 – Anne Catherine of Brandenburg, queen of Denmark and Norway (d. 1612)
1582 – Johannes Schultz, German composer (d. 1653)
1681 – Hedwig Sophia, duchess of Holstein-Gottorp, Swedish writer (d. 1708)
1685 – Antonio Bernacchi, Italian castrato, composer, and teacher of singing (d. 1756)
1689 – Edward Holyoke, American academic (d. 1769)
1694 – Georg Brandt, Swedish chemist and mineralogist (d. 1768)
1702 – Philip Doddridge, English religious leader (d. 1751)
1703 – Thomas Clap, American academic (d. 1767)
1730 – Charles Messier, French astronomer (d. 1817)
1798 – Wolfgang Menzel, German writer (d. 1873)
1817 – Branwell Bronte, British painter and poet (d. 1848)
1819 – Abner Doubleday, American Major General (d. 1893)
1821 – Bartolomé Mitre, Argentine historian and politician (d. 1906)
1824 – William Thomson, Irish-born physicist (d. 1907)
1835 – Thomas W. Knox, American author (d. 1896)
1838 – Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Indian Writer (d.1894)
1839 – Sam Watkins, American Confederate soldier and author (d. 1901)
1854 – Robert Laird Borden, Canadian politician (d. 1937)
1865 – Bernard Berenson, American art historian (d. 1959)
1866 – George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon, English financier of Egyptian excavations (d. 1923)
1869 – Martin Andersen Nexø, Danish writer (d. 1954)
1880 – Natalia, Princess Brassova (d. 1952)
1881 – Ya'akov Cohen, Israeli poet (d. 1960)
1892 – Pearl S. Buck, American writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)
1895 – George Hainsworth, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1950)
1898 – Willy Messerschmitt, German aircraft designer (d. 1978)
1898 – Chesty Puller, American military officer (d. 1971)
1899 – Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia (d. 1918)
1901 – Stuart Symington, American politician (d. 1988)
1902 – Hugues Cuénod, Swiss Tenor (d. 2010)
1903 – Big Bill Broonzy, American blues singer songwriter(d. 1958)
1904 – Frank Scott Hogg, Canadian astronomer (d. 1951)
1904 – Peter Lorre, Hungarian actor (d. 1964)
1906 – Alberto Rabagliati, Italian singer (d. 1974)
1906 – Viktor Schreckengost, American industrial designer (d. 2008)
1907 – Debs Garms, American baseball player (d. 1984)
1909 – Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley's manager (d. 1997)
1909 – Wolfgang Reitherman, American animator (d. 1985)
1911 – Babe Didrikson Zaharias, American athlete (d. 1956)
1913 – Aimé Césaire, French Martinican poet and politician (d. 2008)
1913 – Maurice Wilkes, British computer scientist (d. 2010)
1914 – Kathryn Johnston, American police shooting victim (d. 2006)
1914 – Laurie Lee, British writer (d. 1997)
1915 – Paul Castellano, American organized crime figure (d. 1985)
1915 – Charlotte Zolotow, American author
1916 – Virginia Satir, American psychotherapist and author (d. 1988)
1916 – Giuseppe Taddei, Italian opera singer (d. 2010)
1919 – Richard Neustadt, American political historian (d. 2003)
1921 – Violette Szabo, French WWII secret agent (d. 1945)
1922 – Eleanor Parker, American actress
1923 – Barbara Graham, American murderer (d. 1955)
1924 – Kostas Axelos, Greek philosopher (d. 2010)
1925 – Pavel Belyayev, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 1970)
1927 – Robert Kroetsch, Canadian author (d. 2011)
1928 – Jacob Druckman, American composer (d. 1996)
1928 – Yoshiro Nakamatsu, Japanese inventor
1929 – Milton Glaser, American designer
1931 – Colin Wilson, British writer
1933 – Claudio Abbado, Italian conductor
1933 – Gene Green, American baseball player (d. 1981)
1934 – Jeremy Wolfenden, British journalist (d. 1965)
1934 – Dave Grusin, American jazz pianist
1936 – Robert Maclennan, British politician
1936 – Jean-Claude Turcotte, Cardinal Archbishop of Montreal
1937 – Sombat Metanee, Thai film actor
1937 – Robert Coleman Richardson, American physicist, Nobel laureate
1938 – Gerald North, American climatologist
1938 – Billy Davis, Jr., American singer (The 5th Dimension)
1941 – Yves Beauchemin, Canadian novelist
1942 – Gilberto Gil, Brazilian singer and Minister of Culture
1942 – James J. Dillon, American professional wrestling manager
1943 – John Beasley, American actor
1943 – Georgie Fame, British singer
1943 – Warren Farrell, American author
1944 – Wolfgang Weber, German footballer
1945 – Malachi York, Nuwaubian leader
1951 – Pamela Bellwood, American actress
1951 – Gary Gilmour, Australian cricketer
1953 – Robert Davi, American actor
1954 – Steve Barton, American actor (d. 2001)
1955 – Mick Jones, British guitarist (The Clash, Big Audio Dynamite)
1955 – Dick Mol, Dutch paleonthologist
1955 – Gedde Watanabe, American actor
1956 – Chris Isaak, American singer
1957 – Patty Smyth, American singer (Scandal)
1957 – Philippe Couillard, Quebec neurosurgeon and politician
1959 – Mark McKinney, Canadian actor
1960 – Zachary Breaux, American jazz guitarist (d. 1997)
1961 – Greg LeMond, American cyclist
1961 – Terri Nunn, American singer (Berlin)
1962 – Jerome Kersey, American basketball player
1962 – Preston A. Whitmore II, American screenwriter and film director
1963 – Richard Garfield, American game designer
1963 – Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky, Russian businessman
1963 – Mark McClellan, American government official
1963 – Harriet Wheeler, British singer (The Sundays)
1964 – Tommi Mäkinen, Finnish rally driver
1966 – Minaguchi Yuko, Japanese voice actress
1966 – Jürgen Reil, American drummer (Kreator)
1966 – Dany Boon, French director, actor and writer
1967 – Todd Pletcher, American horse trainer
1968 – Isshin Chiba, Japanese voice actor
1968 – Paolo Maldini, Italian footballer
1968 – Shannon Sharpe, American football player
1969 – Colin Greenwood, British musician
1969 – Ingrid Lempereur, Belgian swimmer
1969 – Mike Myers, American baseball player
1970 – Paul Thomas Anderson, American filmmaker
1970 – Irv Gotti, American record producer
1970 – Sean Hayes, American actor
1970 – Takeshi Konomi, Japanese manga artist
1970 – Matt Letscher, American actor
1970 – Chris O'Donnell, American actor
1970 – Nick Offerman, American actor
1971 – Max Biaggi, Italian motorcycle racer
1972 – Garou, Canadian singer
1972 – Asako Tajimi, Japanese volleyball player
1972 – Jai Taurima, Australian long jumper
1973 – Gretchen Wilson, American singer
1973 – Rebecca Budig, American actress
1973 – Jussi Sydänmaa, Finnish musician (Lordi)
1974 – Jason Craig, American artist
1974 – Jeff Frankenstein, American musician (Newsboys)
1974 – Derek Jeter, American baseball player
1974 – Jason Kendall, American baseball player
1974 – Nicole Saba, Lebanese singer
1974 – Matt Striker, American professional wrestler
1975 – Chris Armstrong, Canadian hockey player
1975 – Jonah Sorrentino, American hip hop artist
1975 – Terry Skiverton, English football player
1976 – Ed Jovanovski, Canadian ice hockey player
1976 – Pawel Malaszynski, Polish actor
1976 – Chad Pennington, American football player
1977 – Mark Jindrak, American professional wrestler
1977 – Florian Kehrmann, German handball player
1977 – Kubo Tite, Japanese cartoonist
1977 – Quincy Lewis, American basketball player
1979 – Wálter Herrmann, Argentinian basketball player
1979 – Ryo Fukuda, Japanese racing driver
1979 – Ryan Tedder, American musician
1979 – Brandi Burkhardt, American actress and beauty pageant contestant
1980 – Jason Schwartzman, American actor
1980 – Michael Vick, American football player
1980 – Chris Shelton, American baseball player
1980 – Sinik, French singer and rapper
1980 – Hamílton, naturalized Togolese footballer
1981 – Kanako Kondo, Japanese voice actress
1981 – Damien Sargue, French singer
1981 – Takashi Toritani, Japanese baseball player
1982 – Zuzana Kucová, Slovak tennis player
1983 – Vinícius, Brazilian footballer
1983 – Toyonoshima Daiki, Japanese sumo wrestler
1983 – Felipe Melo, Brazilian footballer
1984 – Elijah Dukes, American baseball player
1984 – Raymond Felton, American basketball player
1984 – Deron Williams, American basketball player
1984 – Jose Juan Barea, American basketball player
1984 – Aubrey Plaza, American comedian, writer and actress
1984 – Gabrielle Walcott, Trinidad and Tobagoian beauty pageant contestant
1985 – Urgyen Trinley Dorje, 17th Karmapa Lama, Tibetan spiritual leader
1986 – Francisco Jiménez Tejada, Spanish footballer
1987 – Carlos Iaconelli, Brazilian racing driver
1987 – Samir Nasri, French footballer
1988 – Oliver Stang, German footballer
1988 – Rina Nakanishi, Japanese model and singer (AKB48)
1988 – Masakazu Tashiro, Japanese football player
1991 – Houssem Chemali, French footballer
1991 – Diego Falcinelli, Italian footballer
1992 – Jennette McCurdy, American actress and singer
1992 – Joel Campbell, Costa Rican footballer
1993 – Ariana Grande, American actress and singer
1995 – Reema Major, Canadian rapper
2005 – Princess Alexia of the Netherlands

Deaths

363 – Julian the Apostate, Roman Emperor (b. 331)
1541 – Francisco Pizarro, Spanish conqueror of Peru
1688 – Ralph Cudworth, English philosopher (b. 1617)
1784 – Caesar Rodney, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1728)
1793 – Gilbert White, English ornithologist (b. 1720)
1795 – Johannes Jährig, German linguist (b. 1747)
1810 – Joseph-Michel Montgolfier, French inventor (b. 1740)
1836 – Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, French composer (La Marseillaise) (b. 1760)
1856 – Max Stirner, German philosopher (b. 1806)
1878 – Mercedes of Orleans, queen of Spain (b. 1860)
1918 – Peter Rosegger, Austrian poet (b. 1843)
1922 – Albert I, Prince of Monaco (b. 1848)
1939 – Ford Madox Ford, English writer (b. 1873)
1943 – Karl Landsteiner, Austrian biologist and physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1868)
1945 – Emil Hácha, President of Czechoslovakia (b. 1872)
1946 – Yosuke Matsuoka, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan (b. 1880)
1946 – Max Kögel, SS officer (b. 1895)
1947 – Richard Bedford Bennett, eleventh Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1870)
1948 – Lilian Velez, Filipino actress (b. 1924)
1949 – Kim Gu, President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea (b. 1876)
1950 – Sahajanand Saraswati,Indian farmer leader(b.1889)
1955 – Engelbert Zaschka, German helicopter pioneer (b. 1895)
1956 – Clifford Brown, American jazz trumpeter (b. 1930)
1956 – Richie Powell, American jazz pianist (b. 1931)
1957 – Alfred Döblin, German writer (b. 1878)
1958 – George Orton, Canadian athlete (b. 1873)
1958 – Andrija Štampar, Croatian physician and United Nations diplomat (b. 1888)
1964 – Leo Dandurand, American-born Canadian sports executive (b. 1889)
1964 – Gerrit Rietveld, Dutch architect (b. 1888)
1967 – Françoise Dorléac, French actress (b. 1942)
1975 – Saint Josemaría Escrivá, Spanish Catholic priest (b. 1902)
1980 – Miriam Daly, Irish republican activist (b. 1928)
1990 – Anni Blomqvist, Finnish novelist (b. 1909)
1992 – Herman Rohde, professional wrestler (b. 1921)
1993 – William H. Riker, American political scientist (b. 1920)
1993 – Roy Campanella, American baseball player (b. 1921)
1994 – Jahanara Imam, Bangladeshi writer and activist (b. 1929)
1996 – Veronica Guerin, Irish journalist (b. 1958)
1997 – Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, Hawaiian singer (b. 1959)
2001 – Soccer (dog actor) (b. 1988)
2002 – Arnold Brown, the 11th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1913)
2002 – Jay Berwanger, American football player and first recipient of the Heisman Trophy (b. 1914)
2003 – Marc-Vivien Foé, Cameroon footballer (b. 1975)
2003 – Denver Randleman, U.S. Army Seargent (b. 1920)
2003 – Strom Thurmond, U.S. Senator (b. 1902)
2003 – Sir Denis Thatcher MBE, husband of Margaret Thatcher (b. 1915)
2004 – Yash Johar, Indian film producer (b. 1929)
2004 – Naomi Shemer, Israeli singer and song-writer (b. 1930)
2005 – Richard Whiteley, British television game show host (b. 1943)
2006 – Tommy Wonder, Dutch magician (b. 1953)
2007 – Liz Claiborne, Belgian-born American fashion designer (b. 1929)
2007 – Joey Sadler, All Black rugby player (b. 1914)
2010 – Sergio Vega, Mexican Banda singer (b.1969)
2010 – Algirdas Brazauskas, President of Lithuania (b. 1932)