today.nukz.net: Almanac September 21 :: H.G. Wells & Leonard Cohen

Herbert George "H. G." Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946)[1] was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing textbooks and rules for war games. Together with Jules Verne and Hugo Gernsback, Wells has been referred to as "The Father of Science Fiction".[2] His most notable science fiction works include The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, The Invisible Man and The Island of Doctor Moreau.

Leonard Norman Cohen, CC GOQ (born 21 September 1934) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet, and novelist. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality, and interpersonal relationships. Cohen has been inducted into the American Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and both the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is also a Companion of the Order of Canada, the nation's highest civilian honour. While giving the speech at Cohen's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 10, 2008, Lou Reed described Cohen as belonging to the "highest and most influential echelon of songwriters."

Events

455 – Emperor Avitus enters Rome with a Gallic army and consolidates his power.
1217 – Livonian Crusade: The Estonian tribal leader Lembitu and Livonian leader Kaupo are killed in Battle of St. Matthew's Day.
1338 – Hundred Years' War : The Battle of Arnemuiden was the first naval battle in history involving artillery.
1435 – An agreement between Charles VII of France and Philip the Good ends the partnership between the English and Burgundy in Hundred Years' War.
1745 – Battle of Prestonpans: A Hanoverian army under the command of Sir John Cope is defeated, in ten minutes, by the Jacobite forces of Prince Charles Edward Stuart
1776 – Part of New York City is burned shortly after being occupied by British forces.
1780 – American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold gives the British the plans to West Point.
1792 – The National Convention declares France a republic and abolishes the monarchy.
1823 – Joseph Smith is reportedly visited by the angel Moroni, who told him the location of gold plates, which Smith obtained four years later and partially translated into The Book of Mormon.
1860 – In the Second Opium War, an Anglo-French force defeats Chinese troops at the Battle of Palikao.
1896 – British force under Horatio Kitchener takes Dongola in the Sudan.
1897 – The "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" editorial is published in the New York Sun.
1898 – Empress Dowager Cixi seizes power and ends the Hundred Days' Reform in China.
1921 – A storage silo in Oppau, Germany, explodes, killing 500-600 people.
1933 – Salvador Lutteroth ran the first ever EMLL (now CMLL) show in Mexico, marking the birth of Lucha Libre
1934 – A large typhoon hits western Honshu, Japan, killing 3,036 people.
1937 – J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit is published.
1938 – The Great Hurricane of 1938 makes landfall on Long Island in New York. The death toll is estimated at 500-700 people.
1939 – Romanian Prime Minister Armand Calinescu is assassinated by ultranationalist members of the Iron Guard.
1942 – On the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, Nazis send over 1,000 Jews of Pidhaytsi (west Ukraine) to Belzec extermination camp.
1942 – In Poland, at the end of Yom Kippur, Germans order Jews to permanently evacuate Konstantynów and move to the Ghetto in Biala Podlaska, established to assemble Jews from seven nearby towns, including Janów Podlaski, Rossosz and Terespol.
1942 – In Dunaivtsi, Ukraine, Nazis murder 2,588 Jews.
1942 – The B-29 Superfortress makes its maiden flight.
1953 – LT No Kum-Sok a North Korean pilot defected to South Korea and is associated with Operation Moolah.
1961 – Maiden flight of the CH-47 Chinook transportation helicopter.
1964 – Malta becomes independent from the United Kingdom.
1964 – The North American XB-70 Valkyrie, the world's first Mach 3 bomber, makes its maiden flight from Palmdale, California.
1965 – Gambia, Maldives and Singapore are admitted as members of the United Nations.
1971 – Bahrain, Bhutan and Qatar join the United Nations.
1972 – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos signs Proclamation ? 1081, placing the entire country under martial law.
1976 – Orlando Letelier is assassinated in Washington, D.C. He is a member of the Chilean socialist government of Salvador Allende, overthrown in 1973 by Augusto Pinochet.
1976 – Seychelles joins the United Nations.
1981 – Belize is granted full independence from the United Kingdom.
1981 – Sandra Day O'Connor is unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate as the first female Supreme Court justice.
1984 – Brunei joins the United Nations.
1991 – Armenia is granted independence from Soviet Union.
1993 – Russian President Boris Yeltsin suspends parliament and scraps the then-functioning constitution, thus triggering the Russian constitutional crisis of 1993.
1999 – Chi-Chi earthquake occurs in central Taiwan, leaving about 2,400 people dead.
2001 – Deep Space 1 flies within 2,200 km of Comet Borrelly.
2001 – America: A Tribute to Heroes is broadcast by over 35 network and cable channels, raising over $200 million for the September 11 attack victims.
2003 – Galileo mission is terminated by sending the probe into Jupiter's atmosphere, where it is crushed by the pressure at the lower altitudes.

Births

1051 – Bertha of Savoy, German queen and Holy Roman Empire Empress (d. 1087)
1328 – Hongwu Emperor of China (d. 1398)
1411 – Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, claimant to the English throne (d. 1460)
1415 – Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1493)
1428 – Jingtai Emperor of China (d. 1457)
1452 – Girolamo Savonarola, Dominican priest and ruler of Florence (d. 1498)
1559 – Cigoli, Florentine painter, architect, and sculptor (d. 1613)
1629 – Philip Howard, English Catholic cardinal (d. 1694)
1645 – Louis Joliet, Canadian explorer (d. 1700)
1706 – Polyxena of Hesse-Rotenburg, queen of Sardinia (d. 1735)
1756 – John MacAdam, Scottish engineer and road-builder (d. 1836)
1758 – Christopher Gore, 8th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1827)
1760 – Ivan Dmitriev, Russian statesman (d. 1837)
1819 – Princess Louise Marie Thérèse of France (d. 1864)
1840 – Murad V, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1904)
1842 – Abdul Hamid II, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1918)
1846 – Mihály Kolossa, Hungarian Slovene writer (d. 1906)
1849 – Maurice Barrymore, Indian-born patriarch of the Barrymore family (d. 1905)
1853 – Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, Dutch physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1926)
1859 – Francesc Macià i Llussà, Catalan politician (d. 1933)
1860 – Wilson Kettle, Canadian centenarian (d. 1963)
1862 – James E. Talmage, American religious figure and author (d. 1933)
1863 – John Bunny, American film comedian (d. 1915)
1866 – H. G. Wells, English writer (d. 1946)
1866 – Charles Nicolle, French bacteriologist, received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1936)
1872 – Henry Tingle Wilde, English Chief Officer on the RMS Titanic (d. 1912)
1873 – Papa Jack Laine, American musician (d. 1966)
1874 – Gustav Holst, English composer (d. 1934)
1882 – Geevarghese Mar Ivanios, Indian Syrian Catholic bishop (d. 1953)
1890 – Max Immelmann, German WWI fighter pilot (d. 1916)
1890 – Charles William Train, English recipient of the Victoria Cross (d. 1965)
1895 – Sergei Yesenin, Russian poet (d. 1925)
1896 – Walter Breuning, American supercentenarian (d. 2011)
1899 – Frederick Coutts, the 8th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1986)
1902 – Luis Cernuda, Spanish poet (d. 1963)
1902 – Sir Allen Lane, British book publisher (d. 1970)
1903 – Preston Tucker, American automobile designer (d. 1956)
1905 – Robert Lebel, French Canadian ice hockey executive (d. 1999)
1906 – Henry Beachell, American plant breeder (d. 2006)
1909 – Kwame Nkrumah, Ghanaian statesman (d. 1972)
1912 – Chuck Jones, American animator (d. 2002)
1912 – György Sándor, Hungarian pianist (d. 2005)
1914 – Slam Stewart, African American jazz bass player (d. 1987)
1916 – Françoise Giroud, French journalist and politician (d. 2003)
1917 – Phyllis Nicolson, British mathematician (d. 1968)
1918 – John Gofman, American Manhattan Project scientist and advocate (d. 2007)
1918 – Karl Slover, German-born American actor
1919 – Mario Bunge, Argentine philosopher and physicist
1919 – Fazlur Rahman Malik, Pakistani scholar (d. 1988)
1919 – Herman Fowlkes, Jr., American jazz musician and educator (d. 1993)
1921 – John McHale, American baseball player and executive (d. 2008)
1921 – Chico Hamilton, American jazz drummer and bandleader
1924 – Hermann Buhl, Austrian mountaineer (d. 1957)
1926 – Donald A. Glaser, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
1926 – Noor Jehan, Pakistani singer and actress (d. 2000)
1926 – Fereydoon Moshiri, Iranian contemporary poet (d. 2000)
1927 – Ward Swingle, American vocalist and jazz musician
1929 – Sándor Kocsis, Hungarian footballer (d. 1979)
1929 – Bernard Williams, English philosopher (d. 2003)
1929 – Shafi Hadi, American jazz tenor and alto saxophonist
1930 – John Morgan, Welsh-born Canadian comedian (d. 2004)
1930 – Bob Stokoe, English football and manager (d. 2004)
1931 – Larry Hagman, American actor
1933 – Allan Jeans, Australian football player and coach (d. 2011)
1933 – Dick Simon, American racing driver
1934 – Leonard Cohen, Canadian singer and songwriter
1935 – Jimmy Armfield, English footballer and manager
1935 – Henry Gibson, American actor (d. 2009)
1936 – Dickey Lee, American singer and songwriter
1936 – Yuriy Luzhkov, Russian politician, mayor of Moscow
1936 – Diane Rehm, American radio talk show host
1936 – Sunny Murray, American free jazz drumming pioneer
1937 – John D'Amico, Canadian ice hockey official (d. 2005)
1938 – Doug Moe, American basketball player and coach
1939 – Agnivesh, Indian social activist
1939 – Rory Storm, English musician (d. 1972)
1940 – Hermann Knoflacher, Austrian civil engineer
1940 – Bill Kurtis, American television journalist
1941 – Jack Brisco, American professional wrestler
1941 – R. James Woolsey, Jr., American Central Intelligence Agency director
1942 – U-Roy, Jamaican musician, toasting pioneer
1944 – Fannie Flagg, American actress and novelist
1944 – Hamilton Jordan, American chief of staff for Jimmy Carter (d. 2008)
1944 – Steve Beshear, American politician
1944 – Bobby Tench, British vocalist and guitarist
1945 – Jerry Bruckheimer, American film and television producer
1945 – Richard Childress, American NASCAR team owner
1945 – G.C. Cameron, American soul and R&B singer
1945 – Shaw Clifton, the 18th General of The Salvation Army
1946 – Moritz Leuenberger, Swiss jurist
1947 – Stephen King, American author
1947 – Marsha Norman, American playwright
1947 – Don Felder, American guitarist (Eagles)
1949 – Artis Gilmore, American basketball player
1949 – Henry Butler, American jazz pianist
1950 – Charles Clarke, British politician
1950 – Bill Murray, American comedian and actor
1951 – Bruce Arena, American soccer coach
1951 – Aslan Maskhadov, Chechen rebel leader (d. 2005)
1952 – Dave Gregory, English guitar and keyboard player (XTC)
1952 – Anneliese Michel, German exorcism victim (d. 1976)
1953 – Arie Luyendyk, Dutch race car driver
1954 – Shinzo Abe, Japanese politician
1954 – Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor, British musician (Motörhead)
1955 – François Cluzet, French actor
1955 – Gulshan Grover, Indian actor
1955 – Richard Hieb, American astronaut
1955 – Mika Kaurismäki, Finnish director
1956 – Jack Givens, American basketball player
1956 – Marta Kauffman, American television producer
1956 – Ricky Morton, American professional wrestler
1957 – Ethan Coen, American film director
1957 – Mark Levin, American attorney, radio talk show host and author
1957 – Sidney Moncrief, American basketball player
1957 – Kevin Rudd, 26th Prime Minister of Australia
1957 – Penny Smith, English television presenter
1958 – Bruno Fitoussi, French poker player
1958 – Rick Mahorn, American basketball player
1959 – Dave Coulier, American actor
1959 – Danny Cox, American baseball player
1959 – Corinne Drewery, British singer (Swing Out Sister)
1959 – André Hennicke, German actor
1960 – David James Elliott, Canadian actor
1961 – Nancy Travis, American actress
1961 – Billy Collins, Irish-American professional boxer (d. 1984)
1962 – Rob Morrow, American actor
1963 – Curtly Ambrose, Antiguan cricketer
1963 – Cecil Fielder, American baseball player
1963 – Angus Macfadyen, Scottish actor
1964 – Jorge Drexler, Uruguayan singer and composer
1964 – Lester Quitzau, Canadian folk and blues guitarist
1965 – Frédéric Beigbeder, French writer and critic
1965 – Cheryl Hines, American actress
1965 – David Wenham, Australian actor
1965 – Johanna Vuoksenmaa, Finnish film director
1966 – Ronna Reeves, country music singer
1967 – Glen Benton, American musician (Deicide)
1967 – Faith Hill, American singer
1967 – Tyler Stewart, Canadian drummer (Barenaked Ladies)
1968 – David Jude Jolicoeur, American Rapper and Producer
1968 – Ricki Lake, American actress and talk show hostess
1969 – Jason Christiansen, American baseball player
1969 – Curtis Leschyshyn, Canadian ice hockey player
1970 – John Cudia, American actor
1970 – Melissa Ferrick, American singer-songwriter
1971 – John Crawley, English cricketer
1971 – Alfonso Ribeiro, American actor
1971 – David Vetter, The Boy in the Bubble (d. 1984)
1971 – Luke Wilson, American actor
1972 – Olivia Bonamy, French actress
1972 – Liam Gallagher, English singer (Oasis and Beady Eye)
1972 – Jon Kitna, American football player
1972 – David Silveria, American drummer (Ko?n)
1972 – Scott Spiezio, American baseball player
1973 – Heather Brewer, American author.
1973 – Vanessa Grigoriadis, American journalist
1973 – Oswaldo Sanchez, Mexican footballer
1974 – Bryce Drew, American basketball player
1974 – Taral Hicks, American musician
1974 – Jana Kandarr, German tennis player
1974 – Andy Todd, English footballer
1975 – Doug Davis, American baseball player
1976 – Jonas Bjerre, Danish singer and guitarist (Mew)
1976 – Poul Hübertz, Danish footballer
1977 – Brian Tallet, American baseball player
1978 – Luke Godden, Australian rules footballer
1978 – Doug Howlett, New Zealand rugby union footballer
1978 – Mario Miranda, Brazilian mixed martial artist
1979 – James Allan, Scottish singer (Glasvegas)
1979 – Bradford Anderson, American actor
1979 – Richard Dunne, Irish footballer
1979 – Chris Gayle, Jamaican cricketer
1979 – Julian Gray, English footballer
1979 – Monika Merl, German athlete
1979 – Jaymee Ong, Australian model
1980 – Stacy Clark, American singer-songwriter
1980 – Robert Hoffman, American actor
1980 – Kareena Kapoor, Indian actress
1980 – Nyree Lewis, British Paralympic swimmer
1980 – Aleksa Palladino, American actress
1980 – Autumn Reeser, American actress
1980 – Tomas Scheckter, South African racing driver
1981 – Nicole Richie, American socialite
1981 – Rimi Sen, Indian actress
1982 – Eduardo Azevedo, Brazilian racing driver
1982 – Marat Izmailov, Russian footballer
1982 – Danny Kass, American snowboarder
1982 – Parvati Shallow, American reality show contestant
1982 – Christos Tapoutos, Greek basketball player
1982 – Rowan Vine, English footballer
1983 – Fernando Cavenaghi, Argentinian footballer
1983 – Maggie Grace, American actress
1983 – Joseph Mazzello, American actor
1983 – Anna Meares, Australian cyclist
1984 – Benjamin Wildman-Tobriner, American swimmer
1985 – Justin Durant, American football player
1985 – Maryam Hassouni, Dutch actress
1986 – Faris Badwan, English singer
1986 – Lindsey Stirling, American violinist, composer
1987 – Jimmy Clausen, American football player
1987 – Marcelo Estigarribia, Paraguayan footballer
1987 – Ashley Paris, American basketball player
1987 – Courtney Paris, American basketball player
1988 – Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Pakistani politician
1989 – Jason Derulo, American pop singer
1990 – Al-Farouq Aminu, American basketball player
1990 – Allison Scagliotti, American actress
1990 – Christian Serratos, American actress, model and singer

Deaths

454 – Aëtius, Roman general (b. c.396)
687 – Conon, Pope 686-687 (b. 630)
1217 – Caupo of Turaida, Livonian military leader
1217 – Lembitu of Lehola, Estonian military leader
1327 – King Edward II of England (b. 1284)
1397 – Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel, English military leader (executed) (b. 1346
1576 – Gerolamo Cardano, Italian mathematician (b. 1501)
1586 – Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle, French church leader (b. 1517)
1626 – François de Bonne, duc de Lesdiguières, Constable of France (b. 1543)
1719 – Johann Heinrich Acker, German writer (b. 1647)
1743 – Jai Singh II, King of Amber-Juiper (b. 1688)
1748 – John Balguy, English philosopher (b. 1686)
1796 – François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, French general (b. 1769)
1798 – George Read, American lawyer and signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1733)
1832 – Sir Walter Scott, Scottish writer (b. 1771)
1860 – Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher (b. 1788)
1874 – Jean-Baptiste Élie de Beaumont, French geologist (b. 1794)
1880 – Manuel Montt, Chilean politician and scholar, 6th President of Chile (b. 1809)
1897 – Wilhelm Wattenbach, German historian (b. 1819)
1904 – Chief Joseph, Nez Perce leader (b. 1840)
1906 – Samuel Arnold, Lincoln conspirator (b. 1838)
1926 – Leon Charles Thevenin, French telegraph engineer (b. 1857)
1938 – Ivana Brlic-Mazuranic, Croatian writer (b. 1874)
1939 – Armand Calinescu, Romanian prime-minister (assassinated) (b. 1893)
1942 – John Symes, English cricket player (b. 1879)
1944 – Artur Phleps, German Waffen-SS officer (b. 1881)
1946 – Olga Engl, Austrian actress (b. 1871)
1954 – Kokichi Mikimoto, Japanese inventor (b. 1858)
1956 – Bill Struth, 2nd manager of Rangers FC (b. 1875)
1957 – King Haakon VII of Norway (b. 1872)
1962 – Bo Carter, American blues musician (b. 1892)
1963 – Paulino Masip, Spanish playwright (b. 1899)
1966 – Paul Reynaud, French politician (b. 1878)
1971 – Bernardo Houssay, Argentine physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1887)
1972 – Henry de Montherlant, French writer (b. 1896)
1974 – Walter Brennan, American actor (b. 1894)
1974 – Jacqueline Susann, American novelist (b. 1918)
1976 – Orlando Letelier, Chilean diplomat (b. 1932)
1982 – Hovhannes Bagramyan, Soviet general (b. 1897)
1985 – Gu Long, Taiwanese writer of wuxia novels (b. 1937)
1987 – Jaco Pastorius, American bassist (b. 1951)
1988 – Glenn Robert Davis, member of United States Congress (b. 1914)
1990 – Takis Kanellopoulos, Greek film director and screenwriter (b. 1933)
1992 – Tarachand Barjatya, Indian Film Producer and founder of Rajshri Productions (b. 1914)
1995 – Rudy Perpich, American politician (b. 1928)
1997 – Jennifer Holt, American actress (b. 1920)
1998 – Florence Griffith Joyner, American athlete (b. 1959)
2000 – Jacques Flynn, Canadian politician and senator (b. 1915)
2000 – Leonid Rogozov, Russian general practitioner and surgeon (b. 1934)
2002 – Robert L. Forward, American physicist and writer (b. 1932)
2002 – Rocco Rock, American wrestler (b. 1953)
2004 – Bob Mason, British actor (b. 1952)
2006 – Tasos Athanasiadis, Greek writer (b. 1913)
2006 – Boz Burrell, English rock musician (b. 1946)
2007 – Hallgeir Brenden, Norwegian Olympic gold medalist (b. 1929)
2007 – Alice Ghostley, American actress (b. 1926)
2007 – Rex Humbard, American television evangelist (b. 1919)
2011 – Pamela Ann Rymer, American federal appellate judge (b. 1941)
2011 – Troy Anthony Davis, American high-profile death row inmate (executed) (b. 1968)
2011 – Jun Henmi, Japanese writer and poet (b. 1939)