[edit]

• 49 BC – Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signaling the start of civil war.
• 9 – The Western Han dynasty ends when Wang Mang claims that the divine Mandate of Heaven called for the end of the dynasty and the beginning of his own, the Xin dynasty.
• 69 – Lucius Calpurnius Piso Licinianus is appointed by Galba as deputy Roman Emperor.
• 236 – Pope Fabian succeeds Anterus to become the twentieth pope of Rome.
• 1072 – Robert Guiscard conquers Palermo.
• 1475 – Stephen III of Moldavia defeats the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Vaslui.
• 1645 – Archbishop William Laud is beheaded at the Tower of London.
• 1776 – Thomas Paine publishes his pamphlet Common Sense.
• 1791 – The Siege of Dunlap's Station begins near Cincinnati during the Northwest Indian War.
• 1806 – Dutch settlers in Cape Town surrender to the British.
• 1810 – Napoleon Bonaparte divorces his first wife Joséphine.
• 1861 – American Civil War: Florida secedes from the Union.
• 1863 – The London Underground, the world's oldest underground railway, opens between London Paddington station and Farringdon station.
• 1870 – John D. Rockefeller incorporates Standard Oil.
• 1901 – The first great Texas oil gusher is discovered at Spindletop in Beaumont, Texas.
• 1916 – World War I: In the Erzurum Offensive, Russia defeats the Ottoman Empire.
• 1920 – The Treaty of Versailles takes effect, officially ending World War I.
• 1922 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of the Dáil Éireann.
• 1923 – Lithuania seizes and annexes Memel.
• 1927 – Fritz Lang's futuristic film Metropolis is released in Germany.
• 1929 – The Adventures of Tintin, one of the most popular European comic books, is first published in Belgium.
• 1941 – World War II: The Greek army captures Kleisoura.
• 1946 – The first General Assembly of the United Nations opens in London. Fifty-one nations are represented.
• 1946 – The United States Army Signal Corps successfully conducts Project Diana, bouncing radio waves off the Moon and receiving the reflected signals.
• 1954 – BOAC Flight 781, a de Havilland DH.106 Comet 1, explodes and falls into the Tyrrhenian Sea killing 35 people.
• 1962 – Apollo program: NASA announces plans to build the C-5 rocket launch vehicle. It became better known as the Saturn V Moon rocket, which launched every Apollo Moon mission.
• 1971 – A by-poll is held in the Lebanese Chouf District.
• 1972 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman returns to the newly independent Bangladesh as president after spending over nine months in prison in Pakistan.
• 1981 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensive, gaining control of most of Morazán and Chalatenango departments
• 1984 – Holy See–United States relations: The United States and Holy See (Vatican City) re-establish full diplomatic relations after almost 117 years, overturning the United States Congress's 1867 ban on public funding for such a diplomatic envoy.
• 1985 – Sir Clive Sinclair launches the Sinclair C5 personal electric vehicle, which became a notorious commercial failure and later a cult collector's item.
• 1985 – Sandinista Daniel Ortega becomes president of Nicaragua and vows to continue the transformation to socialism and alliance with the Soviet Union and Cuba; American policy continues to support the Contras in their revolt against the Nicaraguan government.
• 1990 – Time Warner is formed by the merger of Time Inc. and Warner Communications.
• 1999 – Sanjeev Nanda kills three policemen in New Delhi, India with his car, an act for which he was later acquitted, resulting in a sharp drop in public confidence in the Indian legal system.
• 2005 – In California, the 2005 La Conchita landslide killed 10 people, injured many more, and closed U.S. Route 101, the main coastal corridor between Los Angeles and San Francisco for 10 days.
• 2007 – A general strike begins in Guinea in an eventually successful attempt to get President Lansana Conté to resign.
• 2011 – Queensland floods: Torrential rain in the Lockyer Valley region of South East Queensland, Australia, causes severe flash flooding, killing nine people.
• 2012 – A bombing in Khyber Agency, Pakistan, kills at least 30 people and 78 others injured.
• 2013 – More than 100 people are killed and 270 injured in several bomb blasts in Pakistan.
• 2015 – A mass poisoning at a funeral in Mozambique involves beer that was deliberately contaminated with crocodile bile leaving at least 56 dead and nearly 200 hospitalized.
• 2015 – A traffic accident between an oil tanker truck and passenger coach en route to Shikarpur from Karachi on the Pakistan National Highway Link Road near Gulshan-e-Hadeed, Karachi, kills at least 62 people.

Births[edit]

• 1480 – Margaret of Austria, Duchess of Savoy (d. 1530)
• 1538 – Louis of Nassau (d. 1574)
• 1607 – Isaac Jogues, French priest and missionary (d. 1646)
• 1628 – George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire (d. 1687)
• 1644 – Louis François, duc de Boufflers, French general (d. 1711)
• 1654 – Joshua Barnes, English historian and scholar (d. 1712)
• 1702 – Johannes Zick, German painter (d. 1762)
• 1715 – Christian August Crusius, German philosopher and theologian (d. 1775)
• 1729 – Lazzaro Spallanzani, Italian priest, biologist, and physiologist (d. 1799)
• 1741 – Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain (d. 1759)
• 1745 – Isaac Titsingh, Dutch surgeon, scholar, and diplomat (d. 1812)
• 1750 – Thomas Erskine, 1st Baron Erskine, Scottish-English lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of Great Britain (d. 1823)
• 1760 – Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg, German composer and conductor (d. 1802)
• 1769 – Michel Ney, French general (d. 1815)
• 1776 – George Birkbeck, English physician and academic, founded Birkbeck, University of London (d. 1841)
• 1780 – Martin Lichtenstein, German physician and explorer (d. 1857)
• 1797 – Eugenio Kincaid, American missionary (d. 1883)
• 1802 – Carl Ritter von Ghega, Italian-Austrian engineer, designed the Semmering railway (d. 1860)
• 1810 – Ferdinand Barbedienne, French engineer (d. 1892)
• 1810 – Jeremiah S. Black, American jurist and politician, 23rd United States Secretary of State (d. 1883)
• 1812 – Georg Hermann Nicolai, German architect and academic (d. 1881)
• 1828 – Herman Koeckemann, German bishop and missionary (d. 1892)
• 1834 – John Dalberg-Acton, 1st Baron Acton, Italian-English historian and politician (d. 1902)
• 1836 – Charles Ingalls, American farmer and carpenter (d. 1902)
• 1840 – Louis-Nazaire Bégin, Canadian cardinal (d. 1925)
• 1842 – Luigi Pigorini, Italian palaeontologist, archaeologist, and ethnographer (d. 1925)
• 1843 – Frank James, American soldier and outlaw (d. 1915)
• 1848 – Reinhold Sadler, American merchant and politician, 9th Governor of Nevada (d. 1906)
• 1849 – Robert Crosbie, Canadian theosophist, founded the United Lodge of Theosophists (d. 1919)
• 1850 – John Wellborn Root, American architect, designed the Rookery Building and Monadnock Building (d. 1891)
• 1853 – Jessie Bond, English singer and actress (d. 1942)
• 1854 – Ramón Corral, Mexican vice president under Porfirio Díaz, (d. 1912)
• 1858 – Heinrich Zille, German illustrator and photographer (d. 1929)
• 1859 – Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia, Spanish philosopher and academic (d. 1909)
• 1860 – Charles G. D. Roberts, Canadian poet and author (d. 1943)
• 1864 – Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich of Russia (d. 1931)
• 1865 – Mary Ingalls, American sister of Laura Ingalls Wilder (d. 1928)
• 1873 – Algernon Maudslay, English sailor (d. 1948)
• 1873 – Jack O'Neill, Irish-American baseball player (d. 1935)
• 1873 – George Orton, Canadian runner and hurdler (d. 1958)
• 1875 – Issai Schur, German mathematician and academic (d. 1941)
• 1878 – John McLean, American hurdler, football player, and coach (d. 1955)
• 1880 – Manuel Azaña, Spanish jurist and politician, 7th President of Spain (d. 1940)
• 1881 – Leslie Rainey, Australian cricketer and footballer (d. 1962)
• 1883 – Francis X. Bushman, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1966)
• 1883 – Oscar Goerke, American cyclist (d. 1934)
• 1883 – Alfred Saalwächter, German admiral (d. 1945)
• 1883 – Aleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy, Russian journalist, author, and poet (d. 1945)
• 1887 – Robinson Jeffers, American poet and philosopher (d. 1962)
• 1890 – Pina Menichelli, Italian actress (d. 1984)
• 1891 – Heinrich Behmann, German mathematician and academic (d. 1970)
• 1891 – Ann Shoemaker, American actress (d. 1978)
• 1892 – Dumas Malone, American historian and author (d. 1986)
• 1892 – Melchior Wańkowicz, Polish soldier, journalist, and author (d. 1974)
• 1893 – Albert Jacka, Australian captain, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1932)
• 1894 – Pingali Lakshmikantam, Indian poet and author (d. 1972)
• 1898 – Katharine Burr Blodgett, American physicist and engineer (d. 1979)
• 1900 – Violette Cordery, English racing driver (d. 1983)
• 1902 – Dobriša Cesarić, Croatian poet and translator (d. 1980)
• 1903 – Barbara Hepworth, English sculptor (d. 1975)
• 1903 – Pud Thurlow, Australian cricketer (d. 1975)
• 1903 – Voldemar Väli, Estonian-Swedish Greco-Roman wrestler (d. 1997)
• 1903 – Violet Wilkey, American actress (d. 1976)
• 1904 – Ray Bolger, American actor and dancer (d. 1987)
• 1905 – Albert Arlen, Australian pianist, composer, actor, and playwright (d. 1993)
• 1908 – Paul Henreid, Italian-American actor and director (d. 1992)
• 1908 – Bernard Lee, English actor (d. 1981)
• 1910 – Jean Martinon, French conductor and composer (d. 1976)
• 1911 – Binod Bihari Chowdhury, Bangladeshi activist (d. 2013)
• 1911 – Norman Heatley, English biologist and chemist (d. 2004)
• 1912 – Maria Mandl, Austrian SS guard (d. 1948)
• 1913 – Franco Bordoni, Italian aviator and racing driver (d. 1975)
• 1913 – Gustáv Husák, Slovak politician, 9th President of Czechoslovakia (d. 1991)
• 1913 – Mehmet Shehu, Albanian politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Albania (d. 1981)
• 1914 – Pierre Cogan, French cyclist (d. 2013)
• 1914 – Yu Kuo-hwa, Chinese politician, 23rd Premier of the Republic of China (d. 2000)
• 1915 – Dean Dixon, American-Swiss conductor (d. 1976)
• 1915 – Cynthia Freeman, American author (d. 1988)
• 1916 – Sune Bergström, Swedish biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2004)
• 1916 – Eldzier Cortor, American painter (d. 2015)
• 1916 – Don Metz, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2007)
• 1917 – Hilde Krahl, Croatian-Austrian actress (d. 1999)
• 1917 – Jerry Wexler, American journalist and producer (d. 2008)
• 1918 – Les Bennett, English footballer and manager (d. 1999)
• 1918 – Arthur Chung, Guyanese lawyer and politician, 1st President of Guyana (d. 2008)
• 1918 – Harry Merkel, German racing driver (d. 1995)
• 1919 – Terukuni Manzō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 38th Yokozuna (d. 1977)
• 1919 – Rex Marshall, American actor and radio host (d. 1983)
• 1919 – Milton Parker, American businessman, co-founded the Carnegie Deli (d. 2009)
• 1919 – Billy Varga, American professional wrestler and actor (d. 2013)
• 1920 – Georges Marchal, French actor (d. 1997)
• 1920 – Max Patkin, American baseball player and clown (d. 1999)
• 1921 – Tasso Kavadia, Greek actress (d. 2010)
• 1921 – Rodger Ward, American race car driver (d. 2004)
• 1922 – Billy Liddell, Scottish-English footballer (d. 2001)
• 1922 – Ester Mägi, Estonian composer
• 1922 – Hannelore Schroth, German actress (d. 1987)
• 1924 – Ludmilla Chiriaeff, Canadian ballerina, choreographer, and director (d. 1996)
• 1924 – Max Roach, American drummer and composer (M'Boom) (d. 2007)
• 1925 – Billie Sol Estes, American businessman (d. 2013)
• 1925 – Günther Knödler, German fencer (d. 1996)
• 1926 – Musallam Bseiso, Palestinian journalist and politician
• 1927 – Gisele MacKenzie, Canadian-American singer and actress (d. 2003)
• 1927 – Lee Philips, American actor and director (d. 1999)
• 1927 – Johnnie Ray, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1990)
• 1927 – Otto Stich, Swiss politician; 140th President of the Swiss Confederation (d. 2012)
• 1928 – Philip Levine, American poet and academic (d. 2015)
• 1928 – Peter Mathias, English historian and academic
• 1929 – Derek Hammond-Stroud, English actor and singer (d. 2012)
• 1929 – Tony Soper, English ornithologist and author
• 1930 – Elaine Devry, American actress
• 1930 – Roy E. Disney, American businessman (d. 2009)
• 1931 – Peter Barnes, English playwright and screenwriter (d. 2004)
• 1931 – Rosalind Howells, Baroness Howells of St Davids, Grenadian-English academic and politician
• 1931 – Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, Malaysian cleric and politician, 12th Menteri Besar of Kelantan (d. 2015)
• 1931 – Massimo Vignelli, Italian-American graphic designer (d. 2014)
• 1931 – John Zizioulas, Greek metropolitan
• 1933 – Anton Rodgers, English actor and director (d. 2007)
• 1934 – Leonid Kravchuk, Ukrainian politician, 1st President of Ukraine
• 1935 – Ronnie Hawkins, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1935 – Georg Katzer, German composer and academic
• 1935 – Sherrill Milnes, American opera singer and educator
• 1936 – Stephen E. Ambrose, American historian and author (d. 2002)
• 1936 – Walter Bodmer, German-English geneticist and academic
• 1936 – Burnum Burnum, Australian actor and author (d. 1997)
• 1936 – Al Goldstein, American publisher and pornographer (d. 2013)
• 1936 – Robert Woodrow Wilson, American physicist and astronomer, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1937 – Daniel Walker Howe, American historian and academic
• 1937 – Thomas Penfield Jackson, American soldier, lawyer, and judge (d. 2013)
• 1938 – Jim Bailey, American actor and singer (d. 2015)
• 1938 – Donald Knuth, American computer scientist and author
• 1938 – Frank Mahovlich, Canadian ice hockey player and politician
• 1938 – Willie McCovey, American baseball player
• 1939 – Jared Carter, American poet and author
• 1939 – Sonosuke Fujimaki, Japanese fencer
• 1939 – David Horowitz, American activist and author, founded the David Horowitz Freedom Center
• 1939 – William Levy, American-Dutch journalist, author, and poet
• 1939 – Scott McKenzie, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2012)
• 1939 – Sal Mineo, American actor and singer (d. 1976)
• 1939 – Bill Toomey, American decathlete and coach
• 1940 – Harry Gant, American race car driver
• 1940 – Godfrey Hewitt, English geneticist and academic (d. 2013)
• 1940 – Walter Hill, American director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1940 – Ntare VI of Ankole (d. 2011)
• 1940 – K. J. Yesudas, Indian singer-songwriter and actor
• 1941 – Tom Clarke, Scottish politician; Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland
• 1942 – Graeme Gahan, Australian rules footballer and coach
• 1943 – Jim Croce, American singer-songwriter (d. 1973)
• 1943 – Jantzen Derrick, English footballer
• 1943 – Kristiina Elstelä, Finnish actress and singer
• 1944 – Rory Byrne, South African engineer
• 1944 – Bernard Derome, German-Canadian journalist
• 1944 – Frank Sinatra, Jr., American singer-songwriter and actor
• 1944 – Jeffrey Catherine Jones, American artist (d. 2011)
• 1945 – Colonel DeBeers, American wrestler
• 1945 – Jerome Drayton, Canadian runner
• 1945 – John Fahey, New Zealand-Australian lawyer and politician; 38th Premier of New South Wales
• 1945 – Jennifer Moss, English actress and singer (d. 2006)
• 1945 – Spider Sabich, American skier (d. 1976)
• 1945 – Rod Stewart, English singer-songwriter (The Jeff Beck Group, Faces, Shotgun Express, and The Steampacket)
• 1945 – Gunther von Hagens, German anatomist, invented plastination
• 1946 – Aynsley Dunbar, English drummer and songwriter (The Jeff Beck Group, Journey, Jefferson Starship, UFO, The Mojos, and John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers)
• 1946 – Robert Gadocha, Polish footballer
• 1946 – Earl McCullouch, American hurdler and football player
• 1947 – George Alec Effinger, American author (d. 2002)
• 1947 – James Morris, American bass-baritone opera singer
• 1947 – Matthew Oakeshott, Baron Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay, English banker and politician
• 1947 – Peer Steinbrück, German politician, German Minister of Finance
• 1947 – Tiit Vähi, Estonian engineer and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Estonia
• 1948 – Donald Fagen, American singer-songwriter and pianist (Steely Dan)
• 1948 – Teresa Graves, American actress and singer (d. 2002)
• 1948 – Mischa Maisky, Latvian-Israeli cellist
• 1948 – David Neuberger, Baron Neuberger of Abbotsbury, English lawyer and judge
• 1948 – Bernard Thévenet, French cyclist and sportscaster
• 1949 – Allu Aravind, Indian actor and producer
• 1949 – Fred Bronson, American journalist and author
• 1949 – Kemal Derviş, Turkish economist and politician
• 1949 – George Foreman, American boxer, actor, and businessman
• 1949 – James Lapine, American director and playwright
• 1949 – Linda Lovelace, American porn actress and activist (d. 2002)
• 1950 – Roy Blunt, American academic and politician
• 1950 – Ernie Wasson, American gardener and author
• 1951 – Rockwell Blake, American operatic tenor
• 1951 – Paul DiMaggio, American sociologist and academic
• 1951 – Nicolas Philibert, French actor and director
• 1951 – Pez Whatley, American wrestler (d. 2005)
• 1952 – Scott Thurston, American guitarist and songwriter (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and The Stooges)
• 1953 – Pat Benatar, American singer-songwriter
• 1953 – Guido Kratschmer, German decathlete
• 1953 – Bobby Rahal, American race car driver
• 1954 – John Gidman, English footballer and manager
• 1954 – Greg Towns, Australian footballer
• 1955 – Michael Schenker, German guitarist (UFO, Scorpions, Contraband, and McAuley Schenker Group)
• 1955 – Franco Tancredi, Italian footballer and manager
• 1956 – Shawn Colvin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1956 – Antonio Muñoz Molina, Spanish author
• 1957 – Paula Smith, American tennis player
• 1957 – Greg Walden, American politician
• 1958 – Eddie Cheever, American race car driver
• 1958 – Caroline Langrishe, English actress
• 1958 – Anatoly Pisarenko, Ukrainian weightlifter
• 1959 – Chandra Cheeseborough, American sprinter and coach
• 1959 – Bernhard Hoff, German sprinter
• 1959 – Chris Van Hollen, American lawyer and politician
• 1959 – Mark Morrisroe, American artist (d. 1989)
• 1959 – Fran Walsh, New Zealand screenwriter and producer
• 1960 – Gurinder Chadha, Kenyan-English director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1960 – Brian Cowen, Irish lawyer and politician, 12th Taoiseach of Ireland
• 1960 – Claudia Losch, German shot putter
• 1960 – John Mann, English politician
• 1960 – Benoît Pelletier, Canadian lawyer and politician
• 1960 – Samira Said, Moroccan singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
• 1961 – Evan Handler, American actor
• 1961 – Janet Jones, American actress
• 1961 – Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Italian-American violinist, author, and educator
• 1962 – Michael Fortier, Canadian lawyer and politician
• 1962 – Kathryn S. McKinley, American computer scientist and academic
• 1963 – Malcolm Dunford, New Zealand-Australian soccer player
• 1963 – Kira Ivanova, Russian figure skater (d. 2001)
• 1963 – David Dewayne Johnson, American murderer (d. 2000)
• 1963 – Francesco Panetta, Italian runner
• 1963 – Mark Pryor, American lawyer and politician, 53rd Arkansas Attorney General
• 1963 – Scott Perry, American filmmaker, businessman, author and engineer
• 1964 – Chitti Babu, Indian actor (d. 2013)
• 1964 – Tony Gardner, English actor, screenwriter, and physician
• 1964 – Brad Roberts, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Crash Test Dummies)
• 1964 – Akifumi Tada, Japanese composer
• 1965 – Wally Bell, American baseball umpire (d. 2013)
• 1965 – Butch Hartman, American animator, voice actor, and singer
• 1965 – Yuji Tanaka, Japanese comedian
• 1966 – Robert Jürjendal, Estonian guitarist and composer
• 1966 – Steve Kramer, American engineer and politician
• 1966 – Murali Nair, Indian director and screenwriter
• 1966 – Jeremy Sims, Australian actor and director
• 1966 – Naomi Zaizen, Japanese actress
• 1967 – Jeremy Cumpston, Australian actor
• 1967 – Johan Laats, Belgian martial artist
• 1967 – Maciej Śliwowski, Polish footballer
• 1969 – Janko Kastelic, Canadian-Slovene conductor
• 1969 – Andreas Reinke, German footballer and manager
• 1970 – Buff Bagwell, American wrestler and actor
• 1970 – Scott Ludlam, New Zealand-Australian graphic designer and politician
• 1970 – Alisa Marić, Serbian chess player and politician, Serbian Minister of Youth and Sports
• 1972 – Thomas Alsgaard, Norwegian skier and sportscaster
• 1972 – Mohammed Benzakour, Moroccan-Dutch journalist, poet, and author
• 1972 – Brian Christopher, American professional wrestler
• 1973 – Jakob Cedergren, Swedish-Danish actor
• 1973 – Ryan Drummond, American actor and singer
• 1973 – Glenn Robinson, American basketball player
• 1973 – Tanya Streeter, British-Caymanian-American world champion freediver
• 1973 – Félix Trinidad, Puerto Rican boxer
• 1974 – Jemaine Clement, New Zealand actor, singer, and guitarist (Flight of the Conchords)
• 1974 – Davide Dionigi, Italian footballer and manager
• 1974 – Akari Kaida, Japanese pianist and composer
• 1974 – Andrey Korneyev, Russian swimmer (d. 2014)
• 1974 – Steve Marlet, French footballer and coach
• 1974 – Clinton O'Brien, Australian rugby league footballer
• 1974 – Bob Peeters, Belgian footballer and manager
• 1974 – Hrithik Roshan, Indian actor and singer
• 1974 – Ryōka Yuzuki, Japanese voice actress
• 1975 – Jake Delhomme, American football player
• 1976 – Adam Kennedy, American baseball player
• 1976 – Ian Poulter, English golfer
• 1976 – Alec Shelbrooke, English engineer and politician
• 1977 – Greg Centauro, French pornographic actor and director (d. 2011)
• 1978 – Brent Smith, American singer-songwriter (Shinedown)
• 1978 – Tamina Snuka, American wrestler and actress
• 1978 – Tanel Tein, Estonian basketball player
• 1978 – Johan van der Wath, South African cricketer
• 1979 – Simone Cavalli, Italian footballer
• 1979 – Obea Moore, American sprinter
• 1979 – Bodo Sieber, German rugby player and coach
• 1980 – Nelson Cuevas, Paraguayan footballer
• 1980 – Petri Lindroos, Finnish singer and guitarist (Ensiferum and Norther)
• 1980 – Tatjana Mannima, Estonian skier
• 1980 – Bernat Martínez, Spanish motorcycle racer (d. 2015)
• 1980 – Aleksandr Pogorelov, Russian decathlete
• 1980 – Sarah Shahi, American actress
• 1981 – Nasri, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer (Magic!)
• 1981 – James Coppinger, English footballer
• 1981 – Inga Jankauskaitė, Lithuanian actress, singer, and pianist
• 1981 – Brian Joo, American-South Korean singer-songwriter, producer, and actor (Fly to the Sky)
• 1981 – Tamta, Georgian-Greek singer
• 1982 – Julien Brellier, French footballer
• 1982 – Tomasz Brzyski, Polish footballer
• 1982 – Josh Ryan Evans, American actor (d. 2002)
• 1982 – Misato Fukuen, Japanese voice actress
• 1983 – Danilo Dirani, Brazilian race car driver
• 1983 – Li Nina, Chinese skier
• 1984 – Marouane Chamakh, Moroccan footballer
• 1984 – Trent Cutler, Australian rugby league footballer
• 1984 – Ariane Friedrich, German high jumper
• 1984 – Nando Rafael, Angolan-German footballer
• 1985 – Abdulkader Dakka, Syrian footballer
• 1985 – Jaroslav Kolbas, Slovak footballer
• 1985 – Craig Lewis, American cyclist
• 1985 – Alex Meraz, American actor, dancer, and martial artist
• 1985 – Sofia Yfantidou, Greek heptathlete
• 1986 – Chen Jin, Chinese badminton player
• 1986 – Abbey Clancy, English model and television host
• 1986 – Kirsten Flipkens, Belgian tennis player
• 1986 – Hideaki Ikematsu, Japanese footballer
• 1986 – Saleisha Stowers, American model
• 1986 – Kenneth Vermeer, Dutch footballer
• 1986 – Erika Padilla, Filipino actress and host
• 1987 – César Cielo, Brazilian swimmer
• 1987 – Chiaki Ito, Japanese singer, actress, dancer, and model (AAA)
• 1988 – Leonard Patrick Komon, Kenyan runner
• 1988 – Marvin Martin, French footballer
• 1988 – Vladimir Zharkov, Russian ice hockey player
• 1989 – Emily Meade, American actress
• 1989 – Kyle Reimers, Australian rules footballer
• 1989 – Solji, South Korean singer (EXID)
• 1990 – Mirko Bortolotti, Italian race car driver
• 1990 – Wilhelm Ingves, Finnish footballer
• 1990 – Tao Li, Singaporean swimmer
• 1990 – Stefano Lilipaly, Dutch-Indonesian footballer
• 1990 – César Ruiz, Peruvian footballer
• 1991 – Romain Wattel, French golfer
• 1992 – Emmanuel Frimpong, Ghanaian footballer
• 1994 – Mohammed Aman, Ethiopian runner
• 1996 – Sakurako Ohara, Japanese actress and singer
• 1996 – María Paulina Pérez, Colombian tennis player
• 1996 – Paula Andrea Pérez, Colombian tennis player
• 1997 – Ayuri Konno, Japanese actress
• 1998 – Xu Shilin, Chinese tennis player
• 2000 – Sota Yamamoto, Japanese figure skater
• 2004 – Kaitlyn Maher, American child singer and actress
• 2006 – Angelina Jordan, Norwegian child singer

Deaths[edit]

• 314 – Pope Miltiades
• 681 – Pope Agatho
• 976 – John I Tzimiskes, Byzantine emperor (b. 925)
• 1094 – Al-Mustansir Billah, Egyptian caliph (b. 1029)
• 1276 – Pope Gregory X (b. 1210)
• 1645 – William Laud, English archbishop and academic (b. 1573)
• 1654 – Nicholas Culpeper, English botanist, physician, and astrologer (b. 1616)
• 1662 – Honoré II, Prince of Monaco (b. 1597)
• 1698 – Louis-Sébastien Le Nain de Tillemont, French priest and historian (b. 1637)
• 1754 – Edward Cave, English publisher; founded The Gentleman's Magazine (b. 1691)
• 1761 – Edward Boscawen, English admiral and politician (b. 1711)
• 1777 – Spranger Barry, Irish actor (b. 1719)
• 1778 – Carl Linnaeus, Swedish botanist and physician (b. 1707)
• 1794 – Georg Forster, German-Polish ethnologist and journalist (b. 1754)
• 1811 – Joseph Chénier, French poet, playwright, and politician (b. 1764)
• 1824 – Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia (b. 1759)
• 1828 – François de Neufchâteau, French poet, academic, and politician; French Minister of the Interior (b. 1750)
• 1829 – Gregorio Funes, Argentinian clergyman, historian, and educator (b. 1749)
• 1833 – Adrien-Marie Legendre, French mathematician and theorist (b. 1752)
• 1851 – Karl Freiherr von Müffling, Prussian field marshal (b. 1775)
• 1855 – Mary Russell Mitford, English author and playwright (b. 1787)
• 1862 – Samuel Colt, American businessman; founded Colt's Manufacturing Company (b. 1814)
• 1863 – Lyman Beecher, American minister, co-founded the American Temperance Society (b. 1775)
• 1866 – Pyotr Pletnyov, Russian poet and critic (b. 1792)
• 1883 – Samuel Mudd, American physician (b. 1833)
• 1895 – Eli Whitney Blake, Jr., American chemist, physicist, and academic (b. 1836)
• 1895 – Benjamin Godard, French violinist and composer (b. 1849)
• 1901 – James Robert Dickson, Australian politician; 1st Australian Minister for Defence (b. 1832)
• 1904 – Jean-Léon Gérôme, French painter and sculptor (b. 1824)
• 1905 – Kārlis Baumanis, Latvian composer (b. 1835)
• 1917 – Buffalo Bill, American soldier and hunter (b. 1846)
• 1917 – Feliks Leparsky, Russian fencer and captain (b. 1875)
• 1920 – Sali Nivica, Albanian journalist and politician (b. 1890)
• 1921 – Raymond Thorne, American swimmer (b. 1887)
• 1922 – Frank Tudor, Australian politician; 6th Australian Minister for Trade and Investment (b. 1866)
• 1926 – Eino Leino, Finnish poet and journalist (b. 1878)
• 1934 – Marinus van der Lubbe, Dutch anarchist (b. 1909)
• 1935 – Edwin Flack, Australian tennis player and runner (b. 1873)
• 1935 – Charlie McGahey, English cricketer (b. 1871)
• 1941 – Frank Bridge, English viola player and composer (b. 1879)
• 1941 – John Lavery, Irish painter (b. 1856)
• 1941 – Joe Penner, Hungarian-American actor, singer, and screenwriter (b. 1904)
• 1941 – Issai Schur, Belarusian-German mathematician and academic (b. 1875)
• 1945 – Osman Cemal Kaygili, Turkish journalist, author, and playwright (b. 1890)
• 1949 – Erich von Drygalski, German geographer and geophysicist (b. 1865)
• 1951 – Sinclair Lewis, American novelist, short-story writer, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1885)
• 1951 – Yoshio Nishina, Japanese physicist and academic (b. 1890)
• 1954 – Oscar Brockmeyer, American soccer player (b. 1883)
• 1954 – Chester Wilmot, American journalist and historian (b. 1911)
• 1957 – Gabriela Mistral, Chilean poet and academic; Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1889)
• 1959 – Şükrü Kaya, Turkish jurist and politician, Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1883)
• 1960 – Jack Laviolette, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (b. 1879)
• 1961 – Dashiell Hammett, American detective novelist and screenwriter (b. 1894)
• 1965 – Frederick Fleet, English sailor (b. 1887)
• 1967 – Charles E. Burchfield, American painter (b. 1893)
• 1968 – Basil Sydney, English actor (b. 1894)
• 1968 – Ali Fuat Cebesoy, Turkish general and politician; 6th Speaker of the Parliament of Turkey (b. 1882)
• 1969 – Sampurnanand, Indian educator and politician; 2nd Governor of Rajasthan (b. 1891)
• 1969 – John Brownlee, Australian opera singer (b. 1900)
• 1970 – Pavel Belyayev, Russian pilot and astronaut (b. 1925)
• 1971 – Coco Chanel, French fashion designer (b. 1883)
• 1971 – Ignazio Giunti, Italian race car driver (b. 1941)
• 1972 – Aksel Larsen, Danish politician (b. 1897)
• 1976 – Howlin' Wolf, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1910)
• 1978 – Pedro Joaquín Chamorro Cardenal, Nicaraguan journalist and author (b. 1924)
• 1978 – Don Gillis, American composer and conductor (b. 1912)
• 1980 – Hughie Critz, American baseball player and scout (b. 1900)
• 1980 – George Meany, American plumber and union leader (b. 1894)
• 1980 – Bo Rein, American football player and coach (b. 1945)
• 1981 – Katharine Alexander, American actress and singer (b. 1898)
• 1981 – Richard Boone, American actor, singer, and director (b. 1917)
• 1981 – Fawn M. Brodie, American historian and author (b. 1915)
• 1982 – Paul Lynde, American actor and singer (b. 1926)
• 1984 – Souvanna Phouma, Laotian politician; 8th Prime Minister of Laos (b. 1901)
• 1985 – Anton Karas, Austrian zither player and composer (b. 1906)
• 1986 – Jaroslav Seifert, Czech journalist and poet; Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1901)
• 1987 – Marion Hutton, American singer and actress (b. 1919)
• 1987 – David Robinson, English businessman and philanthropist (b. 1904)
• 1989 – Herbert Morrison, American journalist and producer (b. 1905)
• 1989 – Colin Winchester, Australian police officer (b. 1933)
• 1990 – Tochinishiki Kiyotaka, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 44th Yokozuna (b. 1925)
• 1991 – Richard Kuremaa, Estonian footballer (b. 1912)
• 1992 – Roberto Bonomi, Argentinian race car driver (b. 1919)
• 1994 – Michael Aldridge, English actor (b. 1920)
• 1995 – Kathleen Tynan, Canadian-English journalist, author, and screenwriter (b. 1937)
• 1997 – Elspeth Huxley, Kenyan-English journalist and author (b. 1907)
• 1997 – Sheldon Leonard, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1907)
• 1997 – Alexander R. Todd, Baron Todd, Scottish-English biochemist and academic; Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1907)
• 1999 – Edward Williams, Australian lieutenant, pilot, and judge (b. 1921)
• 2000 – Sam Jaffe, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1901)
• 2001 – Necati Cumalı, Turkish author and poet (b. 1921)
• 2002 – W. A. Criswell, American pastor and author (b. 1909)
• 2004 – Spalding Gray, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1941)
• 2004 – Alexandra Ripley, American author (b. 1934)
• 2005 – Wasyly, Ukrainian-Canadian bishop (b. 1909)
• 2005 – Gene Baylos, American comedian and actor (b. 1906)
• 2005 – Margherita Carosio, Italian soprano (b. 1908)
• 2005 – James Forman, American academic and activist (b. 1928)
• 2005 – Kalevi Hämäläinen, Finnish skier (b. 1932)
• 2005 – Erwin Hillier, German-English cinematographer (b. 1911)
• 2005 – Jack Horner, American journalist (b. 1912)
• 2005 – Princess Joséphine Charlotte of Belgium (b. 1927)
• 2007 – Carlo Ponti, Italian film producer (b. 1912)
• 2007 – Bradford Washburn, American explorer, photographer, and cartographer (b. 1910)
• 2008 – Christopher Bowman, American figure skater (b. 1967)
• 2008 – Mikhail Minin, Russian soldier (b. 1922)
• 2008 – Maila Nurmi, Finnish-American actress, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
• 2009 – Bill Stone, English sailor (b. 1900)
• 2011 – John Dye, American actor (b. 1963)
• 2011 – Vivek Shauq, Indian actor and singer (b. 1963)
• 2011 – Margaret Whiting, American singer (b. 1924)
• 2012 – Vince Gibson, American football player and coach (b. 1933)
• 2012 – Lila Kaye, English actress (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Jean Pigott, Canadian businesswoman and politician (b. 1924)
• 2012 – Cliff Portwood, English footballer and singer (b. 1937)
• 2012 – Mary Raftery, Irish journalist (b. 1957)
• 2012 – Gevork Vartanian, Russian intelligence agent (b. 1924)
• 2013 – Antonino Calderone, Italian mobster (b. 1935)
• 2013 – Evan S. Connell, American novelist, poet, and short story writer (b. 1924)
• 2013 – George Gruntz, Swiss pianist and composer (b. 1932)
• 2013 – Franz Lehrndorfer, German organist and composer (b. 1928)
• 2013 – Claude Nobs, Swiss businessman; founded the Montreux Jazz Festival (b. 1936)
• 2013 – Lucien Poirier, French general (b. 1918)
• 2014 – Sam Berns, American progeria victim (b. 1996)
• 2014 – Petr Hlaváček, Czech shoemaker and academic (b. 1950)
• 2014 – Zbigniew Messner, Polish economist and politician, 9th Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland (b. 1929)
• 2014 – Ian Redford, Scottish footballer and manager (b. 1960)
• 2014 – Larry Speakes, American journalist; 16th White House Press Secretary (b. 1939)
• 2015 – Robert Berner, American geologist and academic (b. 1935)
• 2015 – Harry V. Jaffa, American historian, philosopher, and academic (b. 1918)
• 2015 – Junior Malanda, Belgian footballer (b. 1994)
• 2015 – Taylor Negron, American actor (b. 1957)
• 2015 – Francesco Rosi, Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1922)
• 2015 – Robert Stone, American novelist (b. 1937)

η ιπτάμενη θαλαμηγός των κροίσων

Skyacht One, είναι το όνομα του δημιουργήματος της εταιρίας SottoStudios με έδρα το Λος Αντζελες, το οποίο έρχεται να συνδυάσει τις δύο μεγαλύτερες «εμμονές» των δισεκατομμυριούχων. Το ιδιωτικό τζετ και τη θαλαμηγό.

Για την δημιουργία του, η εταιρία χρειάστηκε ένα ιδιωτικό Embraer Lineage 1000E, το οποίο μετασκευάστηκε εσωτερικά για να μοιάζει με πολυτελή θαλαμηγό.

Η κατασκευή του κόστισε 83 εκατομμύρια δολάρια και έχει αυτονομία πτήσης 4.500 ναυτικών μιλίων.

Τα χρώματα και τα σχέδια στο εξωτερικό μέρος του αεροσκάφους προδιαθέτουν για την διακόσμηση με μαόνι που θα αντικρίσει ο επιβάτης μπαίνοντας στο Skyacht One.

Το «μεγάλο χωλ» είναι το πρώτο δωμάτιο που βλέπει ο επιβάτης. Τα πάντα μοιάζουν με ένα κλασικό γιωτ του 1939 με το ακριβό γούστο εκείνης της εποχής.

Το επόμενο δωμάτιο είναι μια τετραθέσια αίθουσα συσκέψεων.

Στην κύρια καμπίνα κυριαρχεί το μαόνι και ο μπρούτζος.

Ενας καναπές Chesterfield βρίσκεται απέναντι από το μπαράκι πάνω στο οποίο βρίσκεται μια τηλεόραση.

Δερμάτινα κουρτινάκια κόβουν τις ακτίνες του ήλιου στα φινιστρίνια.

Στο υπνοδωμάτιο το χαλί έχει παραστάσεις εμπνευσμένες από τους χάρτες του 14ου αιώνα με τις θέσεις των άστρων, που χρησιμοποιούσαν οι ναυτικοί.

Η μπαταρία στο μπάνιο μοιάζει με τον μηχανισμό στροφών ενός πλοίου.

Φυσάει βοριάς, φυσάει θρακιάς
τ'είν'το κακό που εγίνη
Στα Γιάννινα στη λίμνη!
Δείτε κυράδες, θάλασσες,
Τ'είν'το κακό που εγίνη!
Επνίξανε τις δεκαεφτά με την κυρά Φροσύνη
Αχ! , χαλασμός που εγίνη!…

Πέθανε ο Ντέιβιντ Μπάουι στα 69 του χρόνια από καρκίνο

«Έφυγε» ο Ντέιβιντ Μπάουι στα 69 του χρόνια από καρκίνο.

Με μια σύντομη ανακοίνωση απο την οικογένεια του στον επίσημο λογαριασμό του, 

ενημερώθηκαν οι χιλιάδες φίλοι του ανά τον κόσμο.

«Ο David Bowie πέθανε ειρηνικά σήμερα, με την οικογένειά του γύρω του, μετά από

 μια θαρραλέα μάχη 18 μηνών με τον καρκίνο. Πολλοί θρηνείτε μαζί μας την απώλεια, 

σας ζητούμε να σεβαστείτε την ιδιωτικότητα των στιγμών κατά τη διάρκεια του

 πένθους». 

Το πραγματικό του όνομα ήταν Ντέιβιντ Ρόμπερτ Τζόουνς και είχε γεννηθεί στις

 8 Ιανουαρίου 1947. 

Μία μεγάλη μορφή της ροκ, σημαντικός εκπρόσωπος της μουσικής του 20ού αιώνα,

κυρίως χάρις στη δουλειά του τη δεκαετία του 1970. 

Έγινε αρχικά γνωστός το 1969, όταν το τραγούδι του Space Oddity έφτασε στο 

βρετανικό top-5. Εμφανίστηκε ξανά το 1972 με το τραγούδι Starman και το ανδρόγυνο

 alter ego Ziggy Stardust. 

Το 1975 έγινε διάσημος στην Αμερική με το τραγούδι του "Fame"που έφτασε στο

 νούμερο 1, από το άλμπουμ Young Americans. 

Το καλύτερο άλμπουμ του το κυκλοφόρησε πριν από λίγες ημέρες. 

Άκουσε τυχαία ένα συγκρότημα, του άρεσε, τους πήρε μαζί του και μας άφησε

 παρακαταθήκη το «Blackstar», 25ο του. 

Ένας πραγματικός χαμαιλέοντας τόσο στην προσωπική του ζωή, όσο και στη μουσική του. 

Μεγαλοφυής ένα φαινόμενο των καιρών που ποτέ δεν σταμάτησε να διαβάζει, να

 εξελίσσεται, να ενημερώνεται για όσα συμβαίνουν γύρω του, να μελετά κάθε

 μορφή σύγχρονης τέχνης και να προσαρμόζεται στις απαιτήσεις των καιρών, όχι 

συμβιβαζόμενος με τα κλισέ τους, αλλά μέσα από την ανατροπή όλων των στερεοτύπων.

Ο γύρος της Ευρώπης με τρένο! Το National Geographic  παρουσιάζει τα καλύτερα ταξίδια... 

Τα ταξίδια με τρένο στην  Ευρώπη, μπορούν να αποτελέσουν και μια ανεπανάληπτη εμπειρία: Μπορείτε να θαυμάσετε αλπικά τοπία και παγετώνες, λίμνες, παρδοσιακές πόλεις και ατέλειωτες φυσικές ομορφιές, απολαμβάνοντας γκουρμέ κουζίνα σε έναν αναπαλαιωμένο συρμό του τελευταίου αιώνα, ανάλογα βέβαια με τη διαδρομή που θα επιλέξετε.

Ένα μεγάλο μέρος των ευρωπαϊκών ταξιδιών με τρένο, έχει να κάνει με την αποτελεσματικότητα και την άνεση στις μετακινήσεις, καθώς αποτελούν έναν γρήγορο και ευχάριστο τρόπο για να φτάσει κανείς με ασφάλεια στην προορισμό του.

Αλλά τα ταξίδια με τρένο στην  Ευρώπη, μπορούν να αποτελέσουν και μια ανεπανάληπτη εμπειρία: Μπορείτε να θαυμάσετε αλπικά τοπία και παγετώνες, λίμνες και ατέλειωτες φυσικές ομορφιές, απολαμβάνοντας γκουρμέ κουζίνα σε έναν αναπαλαιωμένο συρμό του τελευταίου αιώνα.

Δείτε 10 αγαπημένα ταξίδια με τρένο στην  Ευρώπη, όπως τα προτείνει το National Geographic, που υπόσχονται να μείνουν αξέχαστα στον ταξιδιώτη.

Γλυκιά  Ελβετία: Το Τρένο Σοκολάτα

Διαδρομή: Από Montreux, μέχρι Broc,  Ελβετία

Διάρκεια: 9 ώρες και 45 λεπτά, με επιστροφή

Φωτογραφία: http://www.raileurope.com/european-trains/chocolate-train/index.html

Αυτό το όμορφο τρένο ταξιδεύει το καλοκαίρι και το φθινόπωρο από το Montreux που «βλέπει» στη λίμνη της Γενεύης, μέχρι τη μεσαιωνική πόλη Gruyères, που είναι γνωστή για το τυρί της, με το ίδιο όνομα. Περιηγηθείτε στο τυροκομείο και το τοπικό κάστρο, γευματίστε και ξανανεβείτε στο τρένο, μέχρι το Broc. Από εκεί, θα πάτε με λεωφορείο στο εργοστάσιο σοκολάτας Cailler-Nestle, ανάμεσα στη λίμνη Gruyères και τις βουνοκορφές, για δωρεάν... γλύκα, λίγο πριν το ταξίδι της επιστροφής.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.myswitzerland.com/en/swiss-chocolate-train.html .

Σήραγγες και πάλι σήραγγες: Bernina Express

Διαδρομή: Από Chur,  Ελβετία, μέχρι Tirano, Ιταλία

Διάρκεια: 4 ώρες και 14 λεπτά

Φωτογραφία: http://www.rhb.ch

Αυτό το στενό τρένο, ταξιδεύει με αρκετή κλίση σε ορισμένα σημεία, κάνει πολλές στροφές και περνά από 55 σήραγγες και 196 γέφυρες, φτάνοντας στα 2253 μέτρα υψόμετρο και στη συνέχεια κατεβαίνοντας στα 1800, πριν κάνει στάση. Η λέξη «εξπρές», αναφέρεται στη διαθεσιμότητα θέσεων ακόμη και την τελευταία στιγμή και όχι στην ταχύτητα του τρένου, καθώς αυτό περνά από τις Άλπεις, νότια της πιο παλιάς πόλης της  Ελβετίας και μέχρι την όμορφη ιταλική πόλη Tirano. Μέρος της διαδρομής, συγκαταλέγεται στα μνημεία Παγκόσμιας Πολιτιστικής Κληρονομιάς της UNESCO.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.rhb.ch/index.php?id=33?&L=4 .

Ένα... ξενοδοχείο σε ράγες: Francisco de Goya

Διαδρομή: Παρίσι μέχρι  Μαδρίτη

Διάρκεια: 13 ώρες και 30 λεπτά

Φωτογραφία: http://www.spain.info

Αναχωρήστε από το  Παρίσι το βράδυ, απολαύσετε ένα δείπνο τριών πιάτων θαυμάζοντας το τοπίο της υπαίθρου, κοιμηθείτε στο χαλαρωτικό ρυθμό των σιδηροτροχιών και... ξυπνήστε την επόμενη μέρα στη Μαδρίτη, ξεκούραστοι και έτοιμοι να περιπλανηθείτε στην τρίτη πιο πυκνοκατοικημένη πόλη στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.elipsos.com .

Αναβιώνοντας την εποχή των ιπποτών στα κάστρα της Βρετανίας

Διαδρομή: Από Inverness,  Σκωτία, μέχρι Gwynedd, Ουαλία

Διάρκεια: 15 ημέρες

Φωτογραφία: http://www.britrail.com

Ανακαλύψτε τα ιστορικά κάστρα του Ηνωμένου Βασιλείου με αυτό το δρομολόγιο που συνδυάζει δύο εβδομάδες με το BritRail pass και με το Great British Heritage pass. Σε αυτό το ταξίδι θα έχετε την ευκαιρία να θαυμάσετε 580 αξιοθέατα, καθώς θα σταματάτε σε διάφορα σημεία της διαδρομής. Το ταξίδι ξεκινά από το Inverness της  Σκωτίας, κοντά στο Λοχ Νες, με ξενάγηση στο κάστρο Urquhart. Συνεχίζει νότια προς τη γέφυρα Stirling Bridge, όπου ο William Wallace θριάμβευσε έναντι των Άγγλων το 1297 και προς το κάστρο του Εδιμβούργου. Άλλα αξιοθέατα είναι το κάστρο Dover, με τις πολεμικές του σήραγγες και το κάστρο Caernarfon στο Gwynedd της Ουαλίας, ένα μνημείο Παγκόσμιας Πολιτιστικής Κληρονομιάς ( http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/374 ).

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: http://www.hudsons.co.uk .

Το επικό ταξίδι: Υπερσιβηρικός Σιδηρόδρομος

Διαδρομή: Από τη  Μόσχα μέχρι το Βλαδιβοστόκ, Ρωσία

Διάρκεια: 19 ημέρες

Φωτογραφία: http://en.wikipedia.org

Αυτή η «μυθική» διαδρομή, που αντιπροσωπεύει τη ρωσική κουλτούρα, διασχίζει οκτώ χρονικές για να συνδέσει τη ρωσική πρωτεύουσα, με το λιμάνι του Ειρηνικού Ωκεανού. Το τρένο περνά από την πανέμορφη λίμνη Βαϊκάλη, η οποία μοιάζει να εμφανίζεται από το πουθενά στη μέση της σιβηρικής τάιγκα. Θα συνταξιδέψετε με πολλά διαφορετικά άτομα, αλλά τα κοινωνικά εμπόδια εξαφανίζονται στους επιβάτες, οι οποίοι μοιράζονται μια μοναδική ταξιδιωτική εμπειρία και τη γιορτάζουν με σφηνάκια βότκας! Μπορείτε επίσης να συνδυάσετε αυτό το ταξίδι με εκδρομές και περιηγήσεις σε πόλεις, κατά τη διάρκεια των στάσεων.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.transsiberianexpress.net .

Ένας κόσμος νερού: The Flam Railway

Διαδρομή: Από Flam, μέχρι Myrdal, Νορβηγία

Διάρκεια: 1 ώρα

Φωτογραφία: http://www.visitflam.com

Πρόκειται για ένα ταξίδι «must» στη χώρα των φιόρδ, που περνά από ένα χωριό στις ακτές του φιορδ Aurlandsfjord και συνεχίζει με μια απότομη ανάβαση. Σε μόλις 19 χλμ., το τρένο ανεβαίνει πάνω από τα 865 μέτρα για να φτάσει στο οροπέδιο Myrdal σε λιγότερο από μία ώρα. Θαυμάστε τον καταρράκτη Rjoandefossen που φτάνει τα 140 μέτρα και τον καταρράκτη Kjosfossen, στα 92 μέτρα, όπου το τρένο κάνει στάση για φωτογραφίες, κατά τη διάρκεια του καλοκαιριού.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.visitflam.com .

Βαυαρέζικη εκδρομή: InterCity-Express (ICE)

Διαδρομή: Από το  Μόναχο, μέχρι τη  Νυρεμβέργη, Γερμανία

Διάρκεια: 1 ώρα

Φωτογραφία: http://en.wikipedia.org

Θέλετε να ταξιδέψετε γρήγορα; Αυτό το τρένο υψηλής ταχύτητας, θα σας μεταφέρει ανάμεσα σε δύο ιστορικές πόλεις της Βαυαρίας με ταχύτητες μέχρι 320 χλμ. την ώρα. Είναι εντυπωσιακό να παρακολουθείτε την αλλαγή του τοπίου τόσο γρήγορα και το τρένο είναι τόσο ήρεμο. Τον Δεκέμβριο, μια καλή ιδέα είναι να επισκεφθείτε διάφορες πόλεις της Γερμανίας μέσω του σιδηροδρομικού δικτύου ICE και να κάνετε στάσεις στις παραδοσιακές αγορές των Χριστουγέννων για δώρα και gluhwein.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.bahn.de .

Η κομψότητα του παρελθόντος:  Venice Simplon-Orient-Express

Διαδρομή: Λονδίνο προς Βενετία

Διάρκεια: Δύο ημέρες, μια νύχτα

Φωτογραφία: http://www.orient-express.com

Αυτό το τρένο θα σας γυρίσει πίσω στη δεκαετία του 1920 και του '30, τη χρυσή εποχή των σιδηροδρόμων στην ηπειρωτική  Ευρώπη. Η εταιρεία ξόδεψε 16 εκατομμύρια δολάρια για την αποκατάσταση των 35 συρμών στην αρχική art deco κατάστασή τους και οι επιβάτες αναμένεται να ντύνονται κομψά για το δείπνο: τουλάχιστον κοστούμι και γραβάτα για τους άνδρες και το αντίστοιχο για τις γυναίκες. Ξυπνήστε απολαμβάνοντας τη θέα των Άλπεων και μάθετε την ιστορία πίσω από την αποκατάσταση καθενός από τα βαγόνια.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.orient-express.com .

Με χαλαρή διάθεση: Balkan FlexiPass

Διαδρομή: Από το  Βελιγράδι,  Σερβία, στο Bar, Μαυροβούνιο

Διάρκεια: 10 ώρες

Φωτογραφία: http://en.wikipedia.org

Εξερευνήστε την καρδιά της πρώην Γιουγκοσλαβίας, με το Balkan Flexipass (που προσφέρει επιλογές ταξιδιών για πέντε, δέκα, ή 15 ημέρες, μέσω της Βουλγαρίας, της Ελλάδας, της πΓΔΜ, του Μαυροβουνίου, της Ρουμανίας, της  Σερβίας και της Τουρκίας). Ξεκινήστε από το  Βελιγράδι, με την πλούσια νυχτερινή ζωή και σταματήστε στα μέρη που θέλετε εσείς, για ψώνια ή διασκέδαση. Το Bar είναι μια αρχαία πόλη που έχει επηρεαστεί από διάφορους πολιτισμούς της Αδριατικής. Τα τρένα πάντως, μόνο πολυτελή δεν είναι, αλλά οι ντόπιοι που θα γνωρίσετε στις στάσεις σας, είναι ιδιαίτερα συμπαθητικοί και χαρακτηριστικοί του κάθε τόπου.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο: www.raileurope.com/rail-tickets-passes/balkan-flexipass/index.html .

Πολυτέλεια στις ράγες: The Transylvanian Odyssey

Διαδρομή: Από τη  Βουδαπέστη, μέχρι την  Κωνσταντινούπολη

Διάρκεια: 4 ημέρες

Στα κορυφαία τρένα στην  Ευρώπη, συγκαταλέγεται και το Danube Express, ένα ιδιωτικό τρένο με κλασική κομψότητα, σύγχρονες ανέσεις και εξαιρετική κουζίνα. Σε αυτή τη διαδρομή, η οποία αρχίζει από τη Βουδαπέστη, θα διαπεράσετε την «καρδιά» της Τρανσυλβανίας και θα απολαύσετε μια περιήγηση με τα πόδια στη μεσαιωνική πόλη Sighişoara, τη γενέτειρα του Δράκουλα (Βλαντ Ντράκουλα). Στην πανέμορφη Κωνσταντινούπολη, κατά μήκος του Βοσπόρου, το παλάτι Τοπ Καπί, σηματοδοτεί τον ορίζοντα.

Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο:www.danube-express.com .

[edit]

• 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodromeescalates into violence.
• 1055 – Theodora is crowned Empress of the Byzantine Empire.
• 1158 – Vladislav II becomes King of Bohemia.
• 1569 – First recorded lottery in England.
• 1571 – Austrian nobility is granted freedom of religion.
• 1693 – A powerful earthquake destroys parts of Sicily and Malta.
• 1759 – In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the first American life insurance company is incorporated.
• 1779 – Ching-Thang Khomba is crowned King of Manipur.
• 1787 – William Herschel discovers Titania and Oberon, two moons of Uranus.
• 1805 – The Michigan Territory is created.
• 1861 – Alabama secedes from the United States.
• 1863 – American Civil War: Battle of Arkansas Post: General John McClernand and Admiral David Dixon Porter capture the Arkansas River for the Union.
• 1863 – American Civil War: CSS Alabama encounters and sinks the USS Hatteras off Galveston Lighthouse in Texas.
• 1866 – SS London, an English steamship sinks in the Bay of Biscay
• 1879 – The Anglo-Zulu War begins.
• 1908 – Grand Canyon National Monument is created.
• 1912 – Immigrant textile works in Lawrence, Massachusetts, go on strike when wages are reduced in response to a mandated shortening of the work week.
• 1917 – The Kingsland munitions factory explosion occurs as a result of sabotage.
• 1919 – Romania reincorporates Transylvania.
• 1922 – First use of insulin to treat diabetes in a human patient.
• 1923 – Occupation of the Ruhr: Troops from France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr area to force Germany to make its World War I reparation payments.
• 1927 – Louis B. Mayer, head of film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), announces the creation of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, at a banquet in Los Angeles, California.
• 1935 – Amelia Earhart becomes the first person to fly solo from Hawaii to California.
• 1942 – World War II: The Japanese capture Kuala Lumpur.
• 1943 – World War II: The United States and United Kingdom give up territorial rights in China.
• 1943 – Italian-American anarchist Carlo Tresca is assassinated in New York City.
• 1945 – Greek Civil War: Last day of the Dekemvriana clashes in Athens, Greece.
• 1946 – Enver Hoxha, Secretary General of the Communist Party of Albania, declares the People's Republic of Albania with himself as head of state.
• 1949 – The first "networked" television broadcasts take place as KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania goes on the air connecting the east coast and mid-west programming.
• 1949 – A three-day snowfall begins in Los Angeles, California. Accumulations range from a trace near the coast to almost a foot in the San Fernando Valley.
• 1957 – The African Convention is founded in Dakar, Senegal.
• 1960 – Henry Lee Lucas, once listed as America's most prolific serial killer, commits his first known murder.
• 1962 – Cold War: While tied to its pier in Polyarny, the Soviet submarine B-37 is destroyed when fire breaks out in its torpedo compartment.
• 1962 – An avalanche on Huascarán in Peru causes 4,000 deaths.
• 1964 – Surgeon General of the United States Dr. Luther Terry, M.D., publishes the landmark report Smoking and Health: Report of the Advisory Committee to the Surgeon General of the United States saying that smoking may be hazardous to health, sparking national and worldwide anti-smoking efforts.
• 1972 – East Pakistan renames itself Bangladesh.
• 1973 – Major League Baseball owners vote in approval of the American League adopting the designated hitter position.
• 1986 – The Gateway Bridge, Brisbane in Queensland, Australia is officially opened.
• 1986 – First winter ascent of Kangchenjunga by Krzysztof Wielicki and Jerzy Kukuczka from Poland.
• 1994 – The Irish Government announces the end of a 15-year broadcasting ban on the IRA and its political arm Sinn Féin.
• 1996 – Space Shuttle program: STS-72 launches from the Kennedy Space Center marking the start of the 74th Space Shuttle mission and the 10th flight of Endeavour.
• 1998 – Over 100 people are killed in the Sidi-Hamed massacre in Algeria.
• 2003 – Illinois Governor George Ryan commutes the death sentences of 167 prisoners on Illinois' death row based on the Jon Burge scandal.
• 2013 – One French soldier and 17 militants are killed in a failed attempt to free a French hostage in Bulo Marer, Somalia.

Births[edit]

• 347 – Theodosius I, Roman emperor (d. 395)
• 889 – Abd-ar-Rahman III, Spanish ruler, 8th Emir of Córdoba (d. 961)
• 1322 – Emperor Kōmyō of Japan (d. 1380)
• 1359 – Emperor Go-En'yū of Japan (d. 1393)
• 1395 – Michelle of Valois (d. 1422)
• 1503 – Parmigianino, Italian painter (d. 1540)
• 1591 – Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire (d. 1646)
• 1630 – John Rogers, English-American minister, physician, and academic (d. 1684)
• 1638 – Nicolas Steno, Danish bishop and anatomist (d. 1686)
• 1642 – Johann Friedrich Alberti, German organist and composer (d. 1710)
• 1671 – François-Marie, 1st duc de Broglie, French general and diplomat (d. 1745)
• 1755 – Alexander Hamilton, Nevisian-American general, economist and politician; 1st United States Secretary of the Treasury (d. 1804)
• 1757 – Samuel Bentham, English engineer and architect (d. 1831)
• 1786 – Joseph Jackson Lister, English opticist and physicist (d. 1869)
• 1788 – William Thomas Brande, English chemist and academic (d. 1866)
• 1800 – Ányos Jedlik, Hungarian physicist and engineer (d. 1895)
• 1807 – Ezra Cornell, American businessman and philanthropist, founded Western Union and Cornell University (d. 1874)
• 1814 – James Paget, English surgeon and pathologist (d. 1899)
• 1815 – John A. Macdonald, Canadian lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Canada (d. 1891)
• 1825 – Bayard Taylor, American poet, author, and critic (d. 1878)
• 1839 – Eugenio María de Hostos, Puerto Rican lawyer, philosopher, and sociologist (d. 1903)
• 1842 – William James, American psychologist and philosopher (d. 1910)
• 1843 – C. Y. O'Connor, Irish-Australian engineer (d. 1902)
• 1845 – Albert Victor Bäcklund, Swedish mathematician and physicist (d. 1912)
• 1850 – Joseph Charles Arthur, American pathologist and mycologist (d. 1942)
• 1852 – Constantin Fehrenbach, German lawyer and politician; 4th Chancellor of Weimar Germany (d. 1926)
• 1853 – Georgios Jakobides, Greek painter and sculptor (d. 1926)
• 1856 – Christian Sinding, Norwegian pianist and composer (d. 1932)
• 1857 – Fred Archer, English jockey (d. 1886)
• 1858 – Harry Gordon Selfridge, American-English businessman, founded Selfridges (d. 1947)
• 1859 – George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, English politician; 35th Governor-General of India (d. 1925)
• 1864 – Thomas Dixon, Jr., American minister, lawyer, and politician (d. 1946)
• 1867 – Edward B. Titchener, English psychologist and academic (d. 1927)
• 1868 – Cai Yuanpei, Chinese philosopher, academic, and politician (d. 1940)
• 1870 – Alexander Stirling Calder, American sculptor and educator (d. 1945)
• 1872 – G. W. Pierce, American physicist and academic (d. 1956)
• 1873 – John Callan O'Laughlin, American soldier and journalist (d. 1949)
• 1875 – Reinhold Glière, Russian composer and academic (d. 1956)
• 1875 – Fritz Manteuffel, German gymnast (d. 1941)
• 1876 – Elmer Flick, American baseball player (d. 1971)
• 1876 – Thomas Hicks, American runner (d. 1952)
• 1878 – Theodoros Pangalos, Greek general and politician; President of Greece (d. 1952)
• 1879 – John Symes, English cricketer (d. 1942)
• 1885 – Jack Hoxie, American actor and rodeo performer (d. 1965)
• 1885 – Alice Paul, American activist (d. 1977)
• 1886 – Chester Conklin, American actor (d. 1971)
• 1887 – Aldo Leopold, American ecologist and author (d. 1948)
• 1888 – Joseph B. Keenan, American jurist and politician (d. 1954)
• 1889 – Calvin Bridges, American geneticist and academic (d. 1938)
• 1890 – Harold Bride, English wireless officer on the RMS Titanic (d. 1956)
• 1890 – Max Carey, American baseball player and manager (d. 1976)
• 1890 – Oswald de Andrade, Brazilian poet and critic (d. 1954)
• 1891 – Andrew Sockalexis, American runner (d. 1919)
• 1893 – Charles Fraser, Australian rugby league player (d. 1981)
• 1893 – Anthony M. Rud, American journalist and author (d. 1942)
• 1895 – Laurens Hammond, American engineer and businessman; founded the Hammond Clock Company (d. 1973)
• 1897 – Bernard DeVoto, American historian and author (d. 1955)
• 1897 – August Heissmeyer, German SS officer (d. 1979)
• 1899 – Eva Le Gallienne, British-American actress, director, and producer (d. 1991)
• 1901 – Kwon Ki-ok, North Korean pilot (d. 1988)
• 1902 – Maurice Duruflé, French organist and composer (d. 1986)
• 1903 – Alan Paton, South African author and activist (d. 1988)
• 1905 – Clyde Kluckhohn, American anthropologist and theorist (d. 1960)
• 1906 – Albert Hofmann, Swiss chemist and academic, discoverer of LSD (d. 2008)
• 1907 – Pierre Mendès France, French lawyer and politician, 142nd Prime Minister of France (d. 1982)
• 1907 – Abraham Joshua Heschel, Polish-American rabbi, theologian, and philosopher (d. 1972)
• 1908 – Lionel Stander, American actor (d. 1994)
• 1910 – Nikos Kavvadias, Greek poet and author (d. 1975)
• 1910 – Shane Paltridge, Australian soldier and politician (d. 1966)
• 1910 – Izler Solomon, American conductor (d. 1987)
• 1911 – Nora Heysen, Australian painter (d. 2003)
• 1911 – Zenkō Suzuki, Japanese politician, 70th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 2004)
• 1912 – Don "Red" Barry, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1980)
• 1913 – Karl Stegger, Danish actor and singer (d. 1980)
• 1915 – Luise Krüger, German javelin thrower (d. 2001)
• 1915 – Paddy Mayne, Irish colonel and lawyer (d. 1955)
• 1916 – Bernard Blier, Argentinian-French actor (d. 1989)
• 1917 – John Robarts, Canadian lawyer and politician, 17th Premier of Ontario (d. 1982)
• 1918 – Robert C. O'Brien, American author and journalist (d. 1973)
• 1920 – Mick McManus, English wrestler (d. 2013)
• 1921 – Gory Guerrero, American wrestler and trainer (d. 1990)
• 1921 – Juanita M. Kreps, American economist and politician, 24th United States Secretary of Commerce (d. 2010)
• 1921 – Benedict Zilliacus, Finnish journalist, author, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
• 1922 – Ernle Bradford, English historian and author (d. 1986)
• 1923 – Jerome Bixby, American author and screenwriter (d. 1998)
• 1923 – Ernst Nolte, German historian and philosopher
• 1923 – Carroll Shelby, American race car driver, engineer, and businessman, founded Carroll Shelby International (d. 2012)
• 1923 – Eli Woods, English comedian and actor (d. 2014)
• 1924 – Don Cherry, American singer and golfer
• 1924 – Roger Guillemin, French-American physician and endocrinologist, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1924 – Sam B. Hall, Jr., American lawyer, judge, and politician (d. 1994)
• 1924 – Slim Harpo, American singer and harmonica player (d. 1970)
• 1925 – Grant Tinker, American television producer, co-founded MTM Enterprises
• 1926 – Lev Dyomin, Russian colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1998)
• 1928 – Alan Bowness, English historian and curator
• 1928 – Mitchell Ryan, American actor
• 1928 – David L. Wolper, American director and producer (d. 2010)
• 1929 – Dmitri Bruns, Estonian architect and theorist
• 1930 – Ron Mulock, Australian lawyer and politician, 10th Deputy Premier of New South Wales (d. 2014)
• 1930 – Rod Taylor, Australian-American actor and screenwriter (d. 2015)
• 1931 – Betty Churcher, Australian painter, historian, and curator (d. 2015)
• 1931 – Mary Rodgers, American composer and author (d. 2014)
• 1932 – Alfonso Arau, Mexican actor and director
• 1934 – Jean Chrétien, Canadian lawyer and politician, 20th Prime Minister of Canada
• 1934 – Tony Hoare, Sri Lankan-English computer scientist and engineer
• 1935 – Melvyn Hayes, English actor and singer
• 1935 – Ghita Nørby, Danish actress
• 1936 – Eva Hesse, German-American sculptor (d. 1970)
• 1936 – Jody Payne, American singer and guitarist (d. 2013)
• 1936 – Chilla Porter, Australian high jumper
• 1937 – Felix Silla, Italian-American actor and stuntman
• 1938 – Fischer Black, American economist and academic (d. 1995)
• 1938 – Vladimir Krpan, Croatian pianist
• 1938 – Gavin Millar, Scottish director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1938 – Alastair Morton, English businessman (d. 2004)
• 1938 – Frankie Randall, American singer-songwriter, actor, and dancer (d. 2014)
• 1938 – Arthur Scargill, English miner and politician
• 1938 – John August Swanson, American painter and illustrator
• 1939 – Anne Heggtveit, Canadian skier
• 1940 – Andres Tarand, Estonian geographer and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Estonia
• 1941 – Gérson, Brazilian footballer
• 1941 – Abdullah the Butcher, Canadian-American wrestler
• 1942 – Bud Acton, American basketball player
• 1942 – Clarence Clemons, American saxophonist and actor (d. 2011)
• 1942 – Leo Cullum, American soldier, pilot, and cartoonist (d. 2010)
• 1942 – George Mira, American football player
• 1943 – Henry Cecil, Scottish-English horse trainer (d. 2013)
• 1943 – Jill Churchill, American author
• 1943 – Jim Hightower, American journalist and politician
• 1944 – Mohammed Abed Elhai, Sudanese poet and academic (d. 1989)
• 1944 – Shibu Soren, Indian politician, 3rd Chief Minister of Jharkhand
• 1945 – Christine Kaufmann, Austrian-German actress
• 1946 – Naomi Judd, American singer-songwriter and actress (The Judds)
• 1946 – Tony Kaye, English keyboard player
• 1946 – John Piper, American theologian and author
• 1947 – Anna Calder-Marshall, English actress
• 1948 – Fritz Bohla, German footballer and manager
• 1948 – Joe Harper, Scottish footballer and manager
• 1948 – Wajima Hiroshi, Japanese sumo wrestler, 54th Yokozuna
• 1948 – Madeline Manning, American runner
• 1948 – Terry Williams, Welsh drummer
• 1949 – Daryl Braithwaite, Australian singer-songwriter
• 1949 – Chris Ford, American basketball player and coach
• 1949 – Frederick "Dennis" Greene, American singer and actor (Sha Na Na) (d. 2015)
• 1949 – Mohammad Reza Rahimi, Iranian lawyer and politician, 2nd Vice President of Iran
• 1951 – Willie Maddren, English footballer and manager (d. 2000)
• 1951 – Philip Tartaglia, Scottish archbishop
• 1952 – Bille Brown, Australian actor and playwright (d. 2013)
• 1952 – Ben Crenshaw, American golfer
• 1952 – Michael Forshaw, Australian lawyer and politician
• 1952 – Diana Gabaldon, American author
• 1952 – Lee Ritenour, American guitarist, composer, and producer
• 1953 – Graham Allen, English politician, Vice-Chamberlain of the Household
• 1953 – John Sessions, Scottish actor and screenwriter
• 1953 – Kostas Skandalidis, Greek engineer and politician
• 1954 – Jaak Aaviksoo, Estonian physicist and politician, 26th Estonian Minister of Defence
• 1954 – Kailash Satyarthi, Indian engineer, academic, and activist, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1956 – Big Bank Hank, American rapper (The Sugarhill Gang) (d. 2014)
• 1956 – Robert Earl Keen, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1956 – Kuniaki Kobayashi, Japanese wrestler
• 1956 – Phyllis Logan, Scottish actress
• 1956 – Paul McKeever, German-English police officer (d. 2013)
• 1957 – Darryl Dawkins, American basketball player and coach (d. 2015)
• 1957 – Peter Moore, Australian footballer
• 1957 – Bryan Robson, English footballer and manager
• 1958 – Diego León Montoya Sánchez, Colombian drug lord
• 1958 – Vicki Peterson, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
• 1959 – Rob Ramage, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1961 – Jasper Fforde, English author
• 1961 – Karl von Habsburg, German-Austrian son of Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen
• 1961 – Eva O, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Christian Death, Shadow Project and Super Heroines)
• 1961 – Lars-Erik Torph, Swedish race car driver (d. 1989)
• 1962 – Chris Bryant, Welsh politician, Minister of State for Europe
• 1962 – Kim Coles, American actress
• 1962 – Steve Hislop, Scottish motorcycle racer (d. 2003)
• 1962 – Susan Lindauer, American journalist and activist
• 1963 – Tracy Caulkins, American-Australian swimmer
• 1963 – Jason Connery, English actor, director, and producer
• 1963 – Dean Reynolds, English snooker player
• 1964 – Ralph Recto, Filipino politician
• 1965 – Mascarita Sagrada, Mexican wrestler
• 1965 – Roland Scholten, Dutch darts Player
• 1965 – Aleksey Zhukov, Russian footballer and coach
• 1966 – Marc Acito, American author and screenwriter
• 1966 – Kelley Law, Canadian curler
• 1966 – Tao Wei, Chinese footballer and sportscaster (d. 2012)
• 1967 – Derek Riddell, Scottish actor
• 1968 – Anders Borg, Swedish economist and politician, Swedish Minister for Finance
• 1968 – Saša Ćirić, Macedonian footballer
• 1968 – Tom Dumont, American guitarist and producer
• 1969 – Manny Acta, Dominican-American baseball player, coach. manager, and sportscaster
• 1969 – James Merendino, American director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1969 – Kyle Richards, American actress
• 1970 – Manfredi Beninati, Italian painter and sculptor
• 1970 – Chris Jent, American basketball player and coach
• 1970 – Malcolm D. Lee, American actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1970 – Joy Nilo, Filipino pianist and composer
• 1970 – Mustafa Sandal, Turkish singer-songwriter, producer, actor, and dancer
• 1971 – Mary J. Blige, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
• 1971 – Tom Ward, Welsh actor
• 1971 – Chris Willsher, English singer-songwriter, drummer, and actor
• 1972 – Marc Blucas, American actor
• 1972 – Christian Jacobs, American actor, singer-songwriter and producer
• 1972 – Anthony Lledo, Danish composer
• 1972 – Luis Miguel Martín, Spanish runner
• 1972 – Amanda Peet, American actress and playwright
• 1973 – Joanna Brodzik, Polish actress
• 1973 – Rahul Dravid, Indian cricketer
• 1973 – Rockmond Dunbar, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1973 – Eri Fukatsu, Japanese actress
• 1974 – Roman Görtz, German footballer
• 1974 – Cody McKay, Canadian baseball player
• 1974 – Jens Nowotny, German footballer
• 1975 – Rory Fitzpatrick, American ice hockey player
• 1975 – Kevin Koe, Canadian curler
• 1975 – Dan Luger, English rugby player and coach
• 1975 – Matteo Renzi, Italian politician; 56th Prime Minister of Italy
• 1976 – Efthimios Rentzias, Greek basketball player
• 1976 – Kaire Vilgats, Estonian singer and actress
• 1977 – Shamari Buchanan, American football player
• 1977 – Anni Friesinger-Postma, German speed skater
• 1977 – Olexiy Lukashevych, Ukrainian long jumper
• 1977 – Devin Ratray, American actor and singer
• 1977 – Nadia Turner, American singer-songwriter and actress
• 1978 – Vallo Allingu, Estonian basketball player
• 1978 – Holly Brisley, Australian actress
• 1978 – Michael Duff, Irish footballer
• 1978 – Emile Heskey, English footballer
• 1978 – Stijn Schaars, Dutch footballer
• 1979 – Darren Lynn Bousman, American director and screenwriter
• 1979 – Joana Cortez, Brazilian tennis player
• 1979 – Michael Lorenz, German footballer
• 1979 – Siti Nurhaliza, Malaysian singer-songwriter and producer
• 1979 – Henry Shefflin, Irish hurler
• 1980 – Josh Hannay, Australian rugby league player
• 1980 – Lovieanne Jung, American softball player
• 1980 – Gökdeniz Karadeniz, Turkish footballer
• 1980 – Mike Williams, American football player
• 1980 – Deanna Wright, American model and actress
• 1981 – Jamelia, English singer-songwriter and actress
• 1981 – Bafo Biyela, South African footballer
• 1981 – Tom Meighan, English singer-songwriter (Kasabian)
• 1981 – Jaime Valdés, Chilean footballer
• 1981 – Ali Zitouni, Tunisian footballer
• 1982 – Tony Allen, American basketball player
• 1982 – Ashley Taylor Dawson, English actor and singer
• 1982 – Son Ye-jin, South Korean actress
• 1983 – Turner Battle, American basketball player
• 1983 – Matthew Palleschi, Canadian soccer player
• 1983 – Ted Richards, Australian footballer
• 1983 – Adrian Sutil, German race car driver
• 1984 – Kevin Boss, American football player
• 1984 – Dario Krešić, Croatian footballer
• 1984 – Matt Mullenweg, American web developer and businessman, co-created WordPress
• 1985 – Newton Faulkner, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1985 – Rie fu, Japanese singer-songwriter
• 1985 – Aja Naomi King, American actress
• 1985 – Lucy Knisley, American author and illustrator
• 1985 – Kazuki Nakajima, Japanese race car driver
• 1985 – Aaron Porter, English union leader
• 1986 – Rachel Riley, English television host
• 1987 – Scotty Cranmer, American motocross racer
• 1987 – Daniel Semenzato, Italian footballer
• 1987 – Jamie Vardy, English footballer
• 1988 – Junjun, Chinese-Japanese singer
• 1988 – Daniel Dzufer, Australian footballer
• 1988 – Rodrigo José Pereira, Brazilian footballer
• 1988 – Epiphanny Prince, American-Russian basketball player
• 1989 – Sonmi, Japanese model
• 1989 – Darko Bodul, Croatian footballer
• 1989 – Sammy Carlson, American skier
• 1990 – Ryan Griffin, American football player
• 1991 – Andrea Bertolacci, Italian footballer
• 1991 – Hyolyn, South Korean singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress
• 1992 – Dani Carvajal, Spanish footballer
• 1992 – Lee Seung-hoon, South Korean rapper and dancer (Winner)
• 1993 – Flora Cross, French-American actress
• 1993 – Michael Keane, English footballer
• 1993 – Will Keane, English footballer
• 1994 – Mathieu Marquet, Mauritian swimmer
• 1995 – Klaartje Liebens, Belgian tennis player
• 1997 – Cody Simpson, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1998 – Louisa Johnson, English singer and The X Factor winner

Deaths[edit]

• 705 – Pope John VI (b. 655)
• 782 – Emperor Kōnin of Japan (b. 709)
• 802 – Paulinus II of Aquileia, Italian priest, theologian, and saint (b. 726)
• 812 – Staurakios, Byzantine emperor
• 844 – Michael I Rangabe, Byzantine emperor (b. 770)
• 1055 – Constantine IX Monomachos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1000)
• 1083 – Otto of Nordheim (b. 1020)
• 1494 – Domenico Ghirlandaio, Italian painter (b. 1449)
• 1495 – Pedro González de Mendoza, Spanish cardinal (b. 1428)
• 1547 – Pietro Bembo, Italian poet, scholar, and theorist (b. 1470)
• 1641 – Juan Martínez de Jáuregui y Aguilar, Spanish poet and painter (b. 1583)
• 1696 – Charles Albanel, French priest, missionary, and explorer (b. 1616)
• 1703 – Johann Georg Graevius, German scholar and critic (b. 1632)
• 1713 – Pierre Jurieu, French priest and theologian (b. 1637)
• 1735 – Metropolitan Danilo I Petrović-Njegoš, Serbian metropolitan (b. 1670)
• 1753 – Hans Sloane, Irish-English physician and academic (b. 1660)
• 1762 – Louis-François Roubiliac, French-English sculptor (b. 1695)
• 1763 – Caspar Abel, German poet, historian, and theologian (b. 1676)
• 1771 – Jean-Baptiste de Boyer, Marquis d'Argens, French philosopher and author (b. 1704)
• 1788 – François Joseph Paul de Grasse, French admiral (b. 1722)
• 1791 – William Williams Pantycelyn, Welsh composer and poet (b. 1717)
• 1798 – Erekle II of Kartli (b. 1720)
• 1801 – Domenico Cimarosa, Italian composer (b. 1749)
• 1836 – John Molson, Canadian businessman, founded the Molson Brewing Company (b. 1763)
• 1843 – Francis Scott Key, American lawyer, author, and songwriter (b. 1779)
• 1866 – Gustavus Vaughan Brooke, Irish actor (b. 1818)
• 1866 – John Woolley, English academic and clergyman, the first principal of the University of Sydney, Australia (b. 1816)
• 1867 – Stuart Donaldson, English-Australian politician; 1st Premier of New South Wales (b. 1812)
• 1882 – Theodor Schwann, German physiologist and biologist (b. 1810)
• 1891 – Georges-Eugène Haussmann, French urban planner (b. 1809)
• 1901 – Vasily Kalinnikov, Russian bassoon player and composer (b. 1866)
• 1902 – Johnny Briggs, English cricketer (b. 1862)
• 1904 – William Sawyer, Canadian merchant and politician (b. 1815)
• 1914 – Carl Jacobsen, Danish brewer and philanthropist (b. 1842)
• 1920 – Steinar Schjøtt, Norwegian philologist and lexicographer (b. 1844)
• 1923 – Constantine I of Greece (b. 1868)
• 1928 – Thomas Hardy, English author and poet (b. 1840)
• 1931 – James Milton Carroll, American pastor, historian, and author (b. 1852)
• 1937 – Nuri Conker, Turkish colonel and politician (b. 1882)
• 1938 – Johan Salonen, Finnish wrestler (b. 1884)
• 1941 – Emanuel Lasker, German mathematician, philosopher, and chess player (b. 1868)
• 1944 – Galeazzo Ciano, Italian politician; Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1903)
• 1947 – Eva Tanguay, Canadian-American singer and actress (b. 1879)
• 1952 – Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, French general (b. 1889)
• 1952 – Aureliano Pertile, Italian tenor and educator (b. 1885)
• 1953 – Noe Zhordania, Georgian journalist and politician, Prime Minister of Georgia (b. 1868)
• 1954 – Oscar Straus, Austrian composer (b. 1870)
• 1957 – Robert Garran, Australian lawyer and politician (b. 1867)
• 1957 – Rose Sutro, American pianist (b. 1870)
• 1958 – Edna Purviance, American actress (b. 1895)
• 1961 – Elena Gerhardt, German soprano (b. 1883)
• 1963 – Arthur Nock, English classicist, theologian, and Harvard University professor (b. 1902)
• 1966 – Alberto Giacometti, Swiss sculptor and painter (b. 1901)
• 1966 – Hannes Kolehmainen, Finnish runner (b. 1889)
• 1966 – Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indian academic and politician; 2nd Prime Minister of India (b. 1904)
• 1968 – Moshe Zvi Segal, Israeli linguist and scholar (b. 1876)
• 1969 – Richmal Crompton, English author and educator (b. 1890)
• 1972 – Padraic Colum, Irish poet, author, and playwright (b. 1881)
• 1975 – Max Lorenz, German tenor and actor (b. 1901)
• 1978 – Michael Bates, Indian-born English actor (b. 1920)
• 1978 – Ibn-e-Insha, Pakistani-English poet and journalist (b. 1927)
• 1979 – Jack Soo, American actor and singer (b. 1917)
• 1980 – Barbara Pym, English novelist (b. 1913)
• 1981 – Beulah Bondi, American actress (b. 1888)
• 1985 – Edward Buzzell, American director (b. 1895)
• 1985 – William McKell, Australian politician, 12th Governor-General of Australia (b. 1891)
• 1986 – Sid Chaplin, English author and screenwriter (b. 1916)
• 1986 – Andrzej Czok, Polish mountaineer (b. 1948)
• 1987 – Albert Ferber, Swiss-English pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1911)
• 1988 – Pappy Boyington, American colonel and pilot; Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1912)
• 1988 – Isidor Isaac Rabi, Polish-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1898)
• 1991 – Carl David Anderson, American physicist and academic; Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1905)
• 1994 – Helmut Poppendick, German physician (b. 1902)
• 1995 – Josef Gingold, Belarusian-American violinist and educator (b. 1909)
• 1995 – Onat Kutlar, Turkish author and poet (b. 1936)
• 1995 – Lewis Nixon, United States Army officer (b. 1918)
• 1995 – Theodor Wisch, German general (b. 1907)
• 1996 – Roger Crozier, Canadian-American ice hockey player, coach, and manager (b. 1942)
• 1998 – Klaus Tennstedt, German conductor (b. 1926)
• 1999 – Fabrizio De André, Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1940)
• 1999 – Naomi Mitchison, Scottish author and poet (b. 1897)
• 1999 – Brian Moore, Irish-American author and screenwriter (b. 1921)
• 1999 – Öztürk Serengil, Turkish actor and producer (b. 1930)
• 2000 – Bob Lemon, American baseball player and manager (b. 1920)
• 2001 – Louis Krages, German-American race car driver (b. 1949)
• 2001 – Denys Lasdun, English architect; co-designed the Royal National Theatre (b. 1914)
• 2001 – Michael Williams, English actor (b. 1935)
• 2002 – Henri Verneuil, Turkish-French director and playwright (b. 1920)
• 2003 – Maurice Pialat, French actor and director (b. 1925)
• 2003 – Jože Pučnik, Slovenian public intellectual, sociologist and politician (b. 1932)
• 2003 – Richard Simmons, American actor (b. 1913)
• 2005 – Fabrizio Meoni, Italian motorcycle racer (b. 1957)
• 2006 – Markus Löffel, German DJ and producer (b. 1966)
• 2007 – Puchi Balseiro, Puerto Rican singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1926)
• 2007 – Solveig Dommartin, French-German actress (b. 1961)
• 2007 – Robert Anton Wilson, American psychologist, author, poet, and playwright (b. 1932)
• 2008 – Edmund Hillary, New Zealand mountaineer and explorer (b. 1919)
• 2010 – Miep Gies, Austrian-Dutch humanitarian, helped hide Anne Frank and her family (b. 1909)
• 2010 – Harry Männil, Estonian-Costa Rican art collector and businessman (b. 1920)
• 2010 – Éric Rohmer, French director, screenwriter, and critic (b. 1920)
• 2010 – Joe Rollino, American strongman and weightlifter (b. 1905)
• 2011 – David Nelson, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1936)
• 2012 – Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan, Iranian physicist and academic (b. 1980)
• 2012 – Gilles Jacquier, French journalist and photographer (b. 1968)
• 2013 – Guido Forti, Italian businessman, founded the Forti Racing Team (b. 1940)
• 2013 – Nguyễn Khánh, Vietnamese general and politician; 3rd President of South Vietnam (b. 1927)
• 2013 – Mariangela Melato, Italian actress and singer (b. 1941)
• 2013 – Alemayehu Shumye, Ethiopian runner (b. 1988)
• 2013 – Aaron Swartz, American computer programmer and activist (b. 1986)
• 2014 – Keiko Awaji, Japanese actress (b. 1933)
• 2014 – Arnoldo Foà, Italian actor and director (b. 1916)
• 2014 – Vugar Gashimov, Azerbaijani chess player (b. 1986)
• 2014 – Muhammad Habibur Rahman, Indian-Bangladeshi jurist and politician; Prime Minister of Bangladesh (b. 1928)
• 2014 – Chai Trong-rong, Taiwanese educator and politician (b. 1935)
• 2014 – Ariel Sharon, Israeli general and politician; 11th Prime Minister of Israel (b. 1928)
• 2015 – Doriemus, New Zealand race horse (b. 1990)
• 2015 – Jenő Buzánszky, Hungarian footballer and coach (b. 1925)
• 2015 – Anita Ekberg, Swedish-Italian model and actress (b. 1931)
• 2015 – Chashi Nazrul Islam, Bangladeshi director and producer (b. 1941)
• 2015 – Vernon Benjamin Mountcastle, American neuroscientist and academic (b. 1918)
• 2016 – David Bowie, English singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, arranger, painter, and actor (b. 1947)

Obituary: David Bowie

Image copyrightGetty Images

David Bowie was one of the most influential musicians of his time, constantly re-inventing his persona and sound, from the 1960s hippy of Space Oddity, through Ziggy Stardust and the Thin White Duke to his later incarnation as a soulful rocker.

Where before, artists and groups either evolved their musical style and appearance or remained unchanging, David Bowie seemed to be in permanent revolution.

He defied any label. Music, fashion, sexuality: all were Bowie's playthings. He was truly an artistic chameleon.

Bowie was born David Jones in January 1947 but reinvented himself as David Bowie, in 1966, in order to avoid confusion with the Monkees' Davy Jones. 

Image copyrightGetty Images

He went on to study Buddhism and mime, and released his first album, the World of David Bowie, in 1967.

But it was the title track of his second album, Space Oddity, which aroused more than passing interest.

The atmospheric tale of an abandoned astronaut, Major Tom, orbiting the Earth, Space Oddity became a hit in 1969, the year of the first Moon landing. 

Initially a hit throughout Europe, it took four years to "break" the United States.

Ziggy Stardust

Bowie followed up this initial success with The Man Who Sold the World, a complex album, whose title track has been covered by artists as diverse as Lulu and Nirvana.

His second album of 1971, Hunky Dory, was arguably Bowie's first great work. Its 11 songs, including the haunting Life on Mars? and Oh, You Pretty Things, redefined serious rock for the 1970s generation.

And a line from Hunky Dory's final track, The Bewlay Brothers, seemed to perfectly sum up David Bowie, "chameleon, comedian, Corinthian and caricature".

Image copyrightPA

The following year saw the release of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, a superbly-executed concept album which included hits like Starman, Suffragette City and Rock 'n' Roll Suicide.

The album's huge popularity and the accompanying tour, featuring Bowie as the sexually ambiguous Ziggy, brought him worldwide stardom. 

By now married to the former Angie Barnett (divorced in 1980) and with a young son, Zowie (now Joe), Bowie was a hedonist of breathtaking scale, living a rock and roll lifestyle fuelled by drink, drugs and vigorous bisexuality.

Having killed off Ziggy, 1973 brought Aladdin Sane, which cemented Bowie's reputation in the United States. 

Songs like Cracked Actor explored the dark, seedy, side of fame, while Jean Genie was an old-fashioned rocker.

As well as writing and performing, Bowie now branched out, producing Lou Reed's Transformer album and writing and producing Mott the Hoople's hit single, All the Young Dudes.

Berlin sojourn

While he was touring with his next album, the apocalyptic Diamond Dogs, David Bowie recorded the Young Americans album in Philadelphia. 

This dalliance with "plastic soul" continued on the album Station to Station and brought Bowie hits including Golden Years, Knock on Wood and his first US number one single, Fame, co-written with John Lennon and Carlos Alomar.

Image copyrightGetty Images

But, once more, David Bowie changed direction, moving to Berlin and working on a triptych of albums, Low, Heroes and Lodger.

Produced in collaboration with Brian Eno, these dense works were perhaps the most experimental of Bowie's career, mixing electronic sounds and avant-garde lyrics to produce a radical, and influential, song cycle.

The late 1970s saw Bowie concentrating on acting, starring in Nicolas Roeg's The Man Who Fell to Earth and opposite Marlene Dietrich in the lamentable Just a Gigolo.

The critically acclaimed Lodger album was followed by Scary Monsters, notable for its groundbreaking video accompaniment and the single Ashes to Ashes, which updated the story of Major Tom.

Actor and web pioneer

But 1983 saw a new, driven, David Bowie return to form with the Let's Dance album. 

Hits like China Girl and Modern Love, coupled with the spectacular Serious Moonlight world tour, introduced Bowie to a whole new generation.

And his 1985 duet with Mick Jagger, a cover version of Martha and the Vandellas' Dancin' in the Street, was a major factor in the success of the Band Aid project and its accompanying Live Aid concert.

Image copyrightGetty Images

Bowie returned to acting, playing the lead in The Elephant Man on Broadway as well as typically exotic characters in the films Cat People and The Hunger.

The late 1980s were dominated by Bowie's involvement with his new band, a postmodernist heavy metal outfit, Tin Machine.

This project, which was designed to allow Bowie to re-examine his rock 'n' roll roots, produced two albums of questionable quality and was panned by the listening public and critics alike.

The 1990s saw David Bowie flirting with drum-and-bass on the Earthling album, setting up his own highly popular website and debuting on Wall Street with the Bowie Bond, sales of which netted him $55m.

The 2002 album Heathen saw a long-awaited return to form for the indefinable master of rock style, and the man who, throughout his long and varied career, influenced everyone from Iggy Pop to Boy George. 

After a decade without a studio album he released The Next Day in 2013, surprising fans who thought he had retired. It became his first UK number one for 20 years.

His latest album, the critically acclaimed Blackstar, was released on his 69th birthday, just days before his death.

«50 χρόνια Γιώργος Κατσαρός» στο Μέγαρο Μουσικής 

Μαζί του θα εμφανιστούν οι Πάριος, Μαρινέλλα, Λιδάκης, Μπάσης,

 Ασλανίδου, Κλωναρίδης. Θα παρουσιάζει ο Σπύρος Παπαδόπουλος. 

Πάνω από 50 χρόνια λαμπερής καλλιτεχνικής πορείας μετράει ο Γιώργος Κατσαρός και

 πάνω από 1500 συνθέσεις και αμέτρητες επιτυχίες. Μόνο μέρος από τα τραγούδια 

αυτά, θα έχουμε την ευκαιρία να ακούσουμε σε δύο παραστάσεις 8 και 9 Φεβρουαρίου

 στο Μέγαρο Μουσικής, με τη συμβολή σπουδαίων ερμηνευτών. Ο Γιώργος Κατσαρός 

ασχολήθηκε εμπνευσμένα με τα περισσότερα είδη μουσικής, οργανική, λαϊκή, 

συμφωνική, μοντέρνα και παραδοσιακή, αφήνοντας το δικό του ισχυρό στίγμα σε όλα

 όσα καταπιάστηκε. 

Δεξιοτέχνης στο σαξόφωνο, μαέστρος, ενορχηστρωτής και δάσκαλος, επιλέγει και

 παρουσιάζει τραγούδια του ερμηνευμένα από φίλους του, Μανώλη Λιδάκη, Δημήτρη

 Μπάση, Μελίνα Ασλανίδου, τον Ηλία Κλωναρίδη και την τιμητική συμμετοχή των

 Μαρινέλλας και Γιάννη Πάριου.

Κατα τη βραδιά θα πραγματοποιηθεί και ένας «μουσικός διάλογος» ανάμεσα στον 

Γιώργο Κατσαρό και στους σπουδαίους συνθέτες Μίμη Πλέσσα, Κώστα Χατζή και

 Νίκο Ιγνατιάδη, που θα παραστούν και θα αυτοσχεδιάσουν στο πιάνο και την

 κιθάρα συνοδεύοντας το σαξόφωνο του.

Σε αυτές τις συναυλίες συμπράττουν με τη Συμφωνική Ορχήστρα και τη Χορωδία του

 Δήμου Αθηναίων.
Τη Συμφωνική Ορχήστρα θα διευθύνει ο ίδιος ο συνθέτης, ενώ τη Χορωδία ο

 Σταύρος Μπερής.

Την καλλιτεχνική επιμέλεια του προγράμματος έχει ο μουσικός, παραγωγός και 

συνεργάτης Φίλιππος Παπαθεοδώρου, τον οποίο συνδέει μακροχρόνια φιλία και άκρως

 επιτυχημένη επαγγελματική συνεργασία με τον συνθέτη, καθώς συνεργάστηκαν στην

 παραγωγή των σπουδαίων δίσκων "Δρόμος για τα Κύθηρα"και "Αλβανία", αλλά και σε

 μία σειρά απολύτως επιτυχημένων ορχηστρικών δίσκων που κυκλοφορούσαν σε

 ετήσια βάση, με το σαξόφωνο του Γιώργου Κατσαρού σε πρωταγωνιστικό ρόλο.

Τις συναυλίες παρουσιάζει ο δημοφιλής ηθοποιός και παρουσιαστής Σπύρος

 Παπαδόπουλος.
Μέρος των εσόδων θα διατεθούν προς ενίσχυση της αγοράς ηλεκτροεγκεφαλογράφου 

του νοσοκομείου Παίδων Αγία Σοφία. 

«50 χρόνια Γιώργος Κατσαρός»
Μέγαρο Μουσικής Αθηνών 
8,9 Φεβρουαρίου
Βασ. Σοφίας και  Κόκκαλη (20:30)
από 25 μέχρι και 75 ευρώ τα εισιτήρια