today.nukz.net: Almanac November 14

Patrick Jake "P. J." O'Rourke (born November 14, 1947) is an American political satirist, journalist, writer, and author. O'Rourke is the H. L. Mencken Research Fellow at the Cato Institute and is a regular correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly, The American Spectator, and The Weekly Standard, and frequent panelist on National Public Radio's game show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!. In the United Kingdom, he is known as the face of a long-running series of television advertisements for British Airways in the 1990s.

He is the author of 17 books, of which his latest, Holidays in Heck, was released November 1, 2011. This was preceded on September 21, 2010, by Don't Vote!-It Just Encourages the Bastards, and on September 1, 2009, Driving Like Crazy with a reprint edition published on May 11, 2010. According to a 60 Minutes profile, he is also the most quoted living man in The Penguin Dictionary of Modern Humorous Quotations.

Events

1533 – Conquistadors from Spain under the leadership of Francisco Pizarro arrive in Cajamarca, Inca Empire
1770 – James Bruce discovers what he believes to be the source of the Nile
1862 – American Civil War: President Abraham Lincoln approves General Ambrose Burnside's plan to capture the Confederate capital at Richmond, Virginia, leading to the Battle of Fredericksburg.
1889 – Pioneering female journalist Nellie Bly (aka Elizabeth Cochrane) begins a successful attempt to travel around the world in less than 80 days. She completes the trip in seventy-two days.
1910 – Aviator Eugene Burton Ely performs the first take off from a ship in Hampton Roads, Virginia. He took off from a makeshift deck on the USS Birmingham in a Curtiss pusher.
1916 – World War I: The Battle of the Somme ends.
1918 – Czechoslovakia becomes a republic.
1921 – The Communist Party of Spain is founded.
1922 – The BBC begins radio service in the United Kingdom.
1940 – World War II: In England, the city of Coventry is heavily bombed by German Luftwaffe bombers. Coventry Cathedral is almost completely destroyed.
1941 – World War II: The aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal sinks due to torpedo damage from the German submarine U-81 sustained on November 13.
1941 – World War II: In Slonim, German forces engaged in Operation Barbarossa murdered 9000 Jews in a single day.
1952 – The first regular UK Singles Chart published by the New Musical Express.
1957 – The Apalachin Meeting outside Binghamton, New York is raided by law enforcement, and many high level Mafia figures are arrested.
1965 – Vietnam War: The Battle of Ia Drang begins – the first major engagement between regular American and North Vietnamese forces.
1967 – The Congress of Colombia, in commemoration of the 150 years of the death of Policarpa Salavarrieta, declares this day as "Day of the Colombian Woman".
1967 – American physicist Theodore Maiman is given a patent for his ruby laser systems, the world's first laser.
1969 – Apollo program: NASA launches Apollo 12, the second crewed mission to the surface of the Moon.
1970 – Soviet Union enters ICAO, making Russian the fourth official language of organization.
1970 – Southern Airways Flight 932 crashes in the mountains near Huntington, West Virginia, killing 75, including members of the Marshall University football team.
1971 – Enthronment of Pope Shenouda III as Pope of Alexandria
1971 – Mariner 9 enters orbit around Mars
1973 – In the United Kingdom, Princess Anne marries Captain Mark Phillips, in Westminster Abbey.
1975 – Spain abandons Western Sahara.
1979 – Iran hostage crisis: US President Jimmy Carter issues Executive order 12170, freezing all Iranian assets in the United States in response to the hostage crisis.
1982 – Lech Walesa, the leader of Poland's outlawed Solidarity movement, is released after eleven months of internment near the Soviet border.
1984 – Zamboanga City mayor Cesar Climaco, a prominent critic of the government of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, is assassinated in his home city.
1990 – After German reunification, the Federal Republic of Germany and Poland sign a treaty confirming the Oder–Neisse line as the border between Germany and Poland.
1991 – American and British authorities announce indictments against two Libyan intelligence officials in connection with the downing of the Pan Am Flight 103.
1991 – Cambodian Prince Norodom Sihanouk returns to Phnom Penh after thirteen years of exile.
1991 – In Royal Oak, Michigan, a fired United States Postal Service employee goes on a shooting rampage, killing four and wounding five before committing suicide.
1995 – A budget standoff between Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Congress forces the federal government to temporarily close national parks and museums and to run most government offices with skeleton staffs.
2001 – War in Afghanistan: Afghan Northern Alliance fighters take over the capital Kabul.
2002 – Argentina defaults on an $805 million World Bank payment.
2003 – Astronomers Michael E. Brown, Chad Trujillo, and David L. Rabinowitz discover 90377 Sedna, a Trans-Neptunian object.

Births

1567 – Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange (d. 1625)
1601 – Jean Eudes, French missionary (d. 1680)
1650 – King William III of England (d. 1702)
1663 – Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow, German musician and composer of vocal and keyboard music (d. 1712)
1719 – Leopold Mozart, Austrian composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's father (d. 1787)
1740 – Johann van Beethoven, Ludwig van Beethoven's father and first teacher (d. 1792)
1746 – Giulio Gabrielli the Younger, Italian Cardinal (d. 1822)
1765 – Robert Fulton, American inventor (d. 1815)
1771 – Marie François Xavier Bichat, French anatomist and physiologist (d. 1802)
1776 – Henri Dutrochet, French physiologist (d. 1847)
1777 – Nathaniel Claiborne, U.S. politician (d. 1859)
1778 – Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Austrian pianist and composer (d. 1837)
1779 – Adam Gottlob Oehlenschläger, Danish poet (d. 1850)
1797 – Charles Lyell, British geologist (d. 1875)
1803 – Jacob Abbott, American writer (d. 1879)
1805 – Fanny Mendelssohn, German composer and pianist (d. 1847)
1812 – Aleardo Aleardi, Italian poet (d. 1878)
1812 – Maria Christina of Savoy, queen of the Two Sicilies (d. 1836)
1816 – John Curwen, British music educator (d. 1880)
1828 – James B. McPherson, American Civil War general (d. 1864)
1838 – August Senoa, Croatian writer (d. 1881)
1840 – Claude Monet, French painter (d. 1926)
1863 – Leo Hendrik Baekeland, Flemish-American chemist and inventor of the first synthetic plastic, Bakelite (d. 1944)
1875 – Gregorio del Pilar, Filipino general (d. 1899)
1875 – Jakob Schaffner, Swiss novelist (d. 1944)
1877 – John Biller, American athlete (d. 1934)
1878 – Julie Manet, French painter, daughter of Berthe Morisot (d. 1966)
1878 – Leopold Staff, Polish poet (d. 1957)
1889 – Jawaharlal Nehru, First Prime Minister of India (d. 1964)
1891 – Frederick Banting, Canadian physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1941)
1895 – Louise Huff, American actress (d. 1973)
1895 – Walter Freeman, American physician (d. 1972)
1896 – Mamie Eisenhower, First Lady of the United States (d. 1979)
1898 – Benjamin Fondane, Romanian-French writer and filmmaker (d. 1944)
1900 – Aaron Copland, American composer (d. 1990)
1904 – Harold Haley, American judge (d. 1970)
1904 – Harold Larwood, English cricketer (d. 1995)
1904 – Dick Powell, American actor (d. 1963)
1905 – John Henry Barbee, American guitarist and singer (d. 1964)
1906 – Louise Brooks, American dancer, actress, and movie historian (d. 1985)
1907 – Astrid Lindgren, Swedish writer (d. 2002)
1907 – Howard W. Hunter, American religious leader (d. 1995)
1907 – William Steig, American children's book author (d. 2003)
1908 – Joseph McCarthy, American politician (d. 1957)
1910 – Eric Malpass, English novelist (d. 1996)
1912 – Barbara Hutton, American socialite (d. 1979)
1912 – T. Y. Lin, Chinese-born civil engineer (d. 2003)
1915 – Martha Tilton, American singer (d. 2006)
1916 – Roger Apéry, Greek-French mathematician (d. 1994)
1916 – Sherwood Schwartz, American television writer and producer (d. 2011)
1917 – Park Chung-Hee, former president of South Korea (d. 1979)
1919 – Johnny Desmond, American singer (d. 1985)
1919 – Veronica Lake, American actress (d. 1973)
1919 – Lisa Otto, German soprano
1921 – Brian Keith, American actor (d. 1997)
1922 – Paul Bassim, Lebanese prelate (d. 2012)
1922 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Egyptian UN Secretary-General
1924 – Leonid Borisovitch Kogan, Russian violinist (d. 1982)
1927 – Bart Cummings, Australian race horse trainer
1927 – McLean Stevenson, American actor (d. 1996)
1927 – Narciso Yepes, Spanish classical guitarist (d. 1997)
1929 – Shirley Crabtree, aka Big Daddy, professional wrestler (d. 1997)
1929 – Jimmy Piersall, American baseball player
1930 – Charles De Sorgher, Belgian bobsledder
1930 – Edward Higgins White, American astronaut (d. 1967)
1930 – Monique Mercure, Canadian actress
1930 – Michael Robbins, British actor (d. 1992)
1932 – Gunter Sachs, German mathematician
1933 – Fred Haise, American astronaut
1934 – Kurt Hamrin, Swedish football player
1934 – Catherine McGuinness, Irish Supreme Court Justice
1935 – Michael Busselle, English photographer and writer (d. 2006)
1935 – King Hussein of Jordan (d. 1999)
1935 – Lefteris Papadopoulos, Greek lyricist and journalist
1936 – Carey Bell, American blues musician (d. 2007)
1936 – Freddie Garrity, English singer (Freddie and the Dreamers) (d. 2006)
1936 – Cornell Gunter, American singer (The Coasters) (d. 1990)
1937 – Murray Oliver, Canadian ice hockey player
1939 – Wendy Carlos, American composer
1943 – Peter Norton, American software engineer
1944 – Karen Armstrong, British author
1945 – Paul Hirsch, American film editor
1945 – Stella Obasanjo, Nigerian First Lady (d. 2005)
1947 – Bharathan, Malayalam film director (d. 1998)
1947 – P. J. O'Rourke, American writer
1947 – Buckwheat Zydeco, American zydeco musician
1948 – Charles, Prince of Wales
1949 – Raul Di Blasio Argentine pianist, composer, producer
1949 – Gary Grubbs, American actor
1949 – James Young, American guitarist (Styx)
1951 – Frankie Banali, American rock drummer
1951 – Sandahl Bergman, American actress
1951 – Stephen Bishop, American musician
1951 – Leszek Cichy, Polish mountaineer
1951 – Alec John Such, American musician (Bon Jovi)
1951 – Zhang Yimou, Chinese film director
1953 – Dominique de Villepin, former Prime Minister of France
1953 – Phil Baron, American voice actor
1954 – Bernard Hinault, French cyclist
1954 – Condoleezza Rice, American educator, diplomat and 66th United States Secretary of State
1954 – Yanni, Greek musician & composer
1954 – Anson Funderburgh, blues guitar player and band leader
1955 – Jack Sikma, American basketball player
1956 – Peter R. de Vries, Dutch crime reporter
1956 – Steve Stockman, American Congressman
1957 – Michael J Fitzgerald, American writer
1959 – Paul Attanasio, American screenwriter and producer
1959 – Paul McGann, British actor
1960 – Tom Judson, American actor and composer
1960 – Remi Moses, English footballer
1961 – Antonio Flores, Spanish singer and songwriter (d. 1995)
1961 – Elizabeth Keifer, American actress
1961 – D. B. Sweeney, American actor
1962 – Laura San Giacomo, American actress
1962 – Satomi Korogi, Japanese voice actress
1962 – Harland Williams, Canadian-born actor
1964 – Bill Hemmer, American television news reporter
1964 – Rockie Lynne, American musician
1964 – Rev Run, American rapper
1964 – Patrick Warburton, American actor
1966 – Curt Schilling, American baseball player
1966 – Petra Roßner, German cyclist
1967 – Letitia Dean, British actress
1967 – Nina Gordon, American singer
1968 – Janine Lindemulder, American porn actress
1968 – Serge Postigo, Canadian actor
1969 – Butch Walker, recording artist
1970 – Brendan Benson, American musician (The Raconteurs)
1970 – David Wesley, American basketball player
1971 – Adam Gilchrist, Australian cricketer
1971 – Vikas Khanna, Michelin Starred Indian-based chef
1971 – Marco Leonardi, Italian-Australian actor
1972 – Matthew Bloom, American professional wrestler
1972 – Josh Duhamel, American actor
1972 – Edyta Górniak, Polish singer
1972 – Martin Pike, Australian rules footballer
1972 – Aaron Taylor, American football player
1972 – Dariusz Zuraw, Polish footballer
1973 – Kareem Campbell, American skateboarder
1973 – Lawyer Milloy, American football player
1973 – Moka Only, Canadian musician
1973 – Dana Snyder, American voice actor
1974 – Matt Cedeño, Cuban-American actor
1974 – David Moscow, American actor
1975 – Travis Barker, American musician (Blink-182, +44)
1975 – Luiz Bombonato Goulart, Brazilian footballer
1975 – Nicolai Cleve Broch, Norwegian actor
1975 – Faye Tozer, British musician (Steps)
1975 – Gary Vaynerchuk, Russian/American wine expert
1977 – Obie Trice, American rapper
1978 – Bobby Allen, American ice hockey player
1978 – Michala Banas, New Zealand actress
1978 – Delphine Chanéac, French model, actress and DJ
1978 – Xavier Nady, American baseball player
1978 – Chris Shar, American musician (Stiffed, Man Man, Santigold)
1979 – Rallia Christidou, Greek singer
1979 – Mavie Hörbiger, German actress
1979 – Olga Kurylenko, Ukrainian model and actress
1979 – Moitheri Ntobo, Lesothan footballer
1979 – Miguel Sabah, Mexican footballer
1980 – Brock Pierce, American actor
1981 – Vanessa Bayer, American comedian
1981 – Tom Ferrier, British racing driver
1981 – Russell Tovey, British actor
1982 – Kyle Orton, American football player
1983 – Lil Boosie, American rapper
1983 – Guillermo Moscoso, American baseball player
1984 – Courtney Johns, Australian rules footballer
1984 – Lisa De Vanna, Australian footballer
1984 – Marija Šerifovic, Serbian singer
1985 – Thomas Vermaelen, Belgian footballer
1986 – Yuna, Malaysian indie singer
1987 – Giorgios Georgiadis, Greek footballer
1989 – Jake Livermore, English footballer
1989 – The Ready Set, American singer-songwriter
1990 – Jessie Jacobs, Australian actress and singer (d. 2008)
1991 – Taylor Hall, Canadian hockey player
1991 – Graham Patrick Martin, American actor
2002 – Ben Bowen, American brain cancer victim (d. 2005)

Deaths

565 – Justinian the Great, Byzantine Emperor (b. 483)
1226 – Frederick of Isenberg, German politician (b. 1193)
1263 – Alexander Nevsky, Russian noble (b. 1220)
1359 – Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Thessalonica (b. 1296)
1391 – Nikola Tavelic, Croatian saint (b. 1340)
1522 – Anne of France (b. 1461)
1556 – Giovanni della Casa, Italian poet (b. 1504)
1633 – William Ames, English philosopher (b. 1576)
1687 – Nell Gwynne, English mistress of Charles II of England (b. 1650)
1691 – Tosa Mitsuoki, Japanese painter (b. 1617)
1716 – Gottfried Leibniz, German philosopher and mathematician (b. 1646)
1734 – Louise de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth, French-born mistress of Charles II of England (b. 1649)
1746 – Georg Steller, German naturalist (b. 1709)
1749 – Maruyama Gondazaemon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 3rd Yokozuna (b. 1713)
1817 – Policarpa Salavarrieta, Colombian revolutionary figure (b. 1795)
1825 – Jean Paul, German writer (b. 1763)
1829 – Louis Nicolas Vauquelin, French pharmacist (b. 1763)
1831 – Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, German philosopher (b. 1770)
1831 – Ignaz Pleyel, Austrian-born French composer, music publisher and piano manufacturer (b. 1757)
1832 – Charles Carroll of Carrollton, American statesman (b. 1737)
1844 – John Abercrombie, British physician (b. 1780)
1866 – King Miguel of Portugal (b. 1802)
1872 – Pavel Kiselyov, Russian general and politician (b. 1788)
1907 – Andrew Inglis Clark, Australian politician (b. 1848)
1908 – Guangxu Emperor of China (b. 1871)
1914 – Vengayil Kunhiraman Nayanar, Malayalin journalist (b. 1861)
1915 – Booker T. Washington, American educator and activist (b. 1856)
1916 – Henry George, Jr., American politician (b. 1862)
1916 – Saki, British writer (b. 1870)
1937 – Jack O'Connor, American baseball player (b. 1869)
1944 – Carl Flesch, Hungarian violinist (b. 1873)
1944 – Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory, English RAF Officer (b. 1892)
1946 – Manuel de Falla, Spanish composer (b. 1876)
1947 – Joseph Allard, French Canadian fiddler (b. 1873)
1950 – Orhan Veli Kanik, Turkish writer and poet (b. 1914)
1960 – Robert Raymond Cook, Canadian murderer (b. 1937)
1971 – William Bendeck, Bolivian rally driver (b. 1934)
1972 – Martin Dies, Jr., American politician (b. 1900)
1974 – Johnny Mack Brown, American actor (b. 1904)
1977 – A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Indian religious leader (b. 1896)
1981 – Robert Bradford, Northern Irish footballer (b. 1941)
1984 – Cesar Climaco, Filipino politician (b. 1916)
1984 – Nikitas Platis, Greek actor (b. 1912)
1991 – Tony Richardson, English film director (b. 1928)
1992 – Ernst Happel, Austrian football coach (b. 1925)
1994 – Tom Villard, American actor (b. 1953)
1995 – Jack Finney, American author (b. 1911)
1996 – John A. Cade, American politician (b. 1929)
1997 – Eddie Arcaro, American jockey (b. 1916)
1997 – Jack Pickersgill, Canadian politician (b. 1905)
1999 – Minos Volanakis, Greek theatre director and translator
2000 – Robert Trout, American journalist (b. 1908)
2001 – Charlotte Coleman, British actress (b. 1968)
2001 – Juan Carlos Lorenzo, Argentine footballer (b. 1922)
2002 – Eddie Bracken, American film actor (b. 1915)
2002 – Elena Nikolaidi, Turkish-American opera singer (b. 1909)
2003 – Gene Anthony Ray, American actor (b. 1962)
2004 – Michel Colombier, French composer (b. 1939)
2006 – Sumner Shapiro, United States Navy Rear Admiral (b. 1926)
2010 – Wes Santee, American middle distance runner (b. 1932)
2011 – Neil Heywood, English-Chinese businessman (b. 1970)
2011 – Jackie Leven, Scottish singer-songwriter and musician (Doll by Doll) (b. 1950)