History of Today 02 July: Important Events, Births and Deaths

Welcome to History of Today 02 July. On this page, you can read important historical events, famous births, notable deaths and general knowledge facts related to 02 July. This information is useful for UPSC, SSC, Banking, Railway, State PSC and other competitive exams.

Last updated on 02 July 2026, 01:00 AM

Important Events on 02 July in History

02 Jul 2024: A stampede during a religious event in Uttar Pradesh, India, leaves at least 121 people dead and 150 others injured. Read more
02 Jul 2013: A magnitude 6.1 earthquake strikes Aceh, Indonesia, killing at least 42 people and injuring 420 others. Read more
02 Jul 2005: The Live 8 benefit concerts takes place in the G8 states and in South Africa. More than 1,000 musicians perform and are broadcast on 182 television networks and 2,000 radio networks. Read more
02 Jul 2000: Vicente Fox Quesada is elected the first President of México from an opposition party, the Partido Acción Nacional, after more than 70 years of continuous rule by the Partido Revolucionario Institucional, in the 2000 Mexican general election. Read more
02 Jul 1997: The Bank of Thailand floats the baht, triggering the Asian financial crisis. Read more
02 Jul 1994: USAir Flight 1016 crashes near Charlotte Douglas International Airport, killing 37 of the 57 people on board. Read more
02 Jul 1993: A mob sets fire to the Hotel Madımak in Sivas, Turkey, where a Alevi cultural festival was taking place, killing 37 people. Read more
02 Jul 1990: In the 1990 Mecca tunnel tragedy, 1,400 Muslim pilgrims are suffocated to death and trampled upon in a pedestrian tunnel leading to the holy city of Mecca. Read more
02 Jul 1986: Rodrigo Rojas and Carmen Gloria Quintana are burnt alive during a street demonstration against the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet in Chile in the Quemados case. Read more
02 Jul 1986: Aeroflot Flight 2306 crashes while attempting an emergency landing at Syktyvkar Airport in Syktyvkar, in present-day Komi Republic, Russia, killing 54 people. Read more
02 Jul 1976: End of South Vietnam; Communist North Vietnam annexes the former South Vietnam to form the unified Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Read more
02 Jul 1966: France conducts its first nuclear weapon test in the Pacific, on Moruroa Atoll. Read more
02 Jul 1964: Civil rights movement: U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964 meant to prohibit segregation in public places. Read more
02 Jul 1937: Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan are last heard from over the Pacific Ocean and disappear while attempting to make the first equatorial round-the-world flight. Read more
02 Jul 1934: The Night of the Long Knives ends after three days of killings. Read more
02 Jul 1921: World War I: U.S. President Warren G. Harding signs the Knox–Porter Resolution formally ending the war between the United States and Germany. Read more
02 Jul 1917: In the leadup to the Battle of Aqaba, T.E.Lawrence and his Arab forces defeat a battalion of Ottomans at Abu al-Lissan. Read more
02 Jul 1890: The U.S. Congress passes the Sherman Antitrust Act. Read more
02 Jul 1881: Charles J. Guiteau shoots and fatally wounds U.S. President James A. Garfield (who will die of complications from his wounds on September 19). Read more
02 Jul 1863: American Civil War: On the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg – the Battle of Little Round Top takes place and results in a Union victory after the Confederate troops unsuccessfully try to assault the Union left flank. Read more
02 Jul 1840: A Ms 7.4 earthquake strikes present-day Turkey and Armenia; combined with the effects of an eruption on Mount Ararat, kills 10,000 people. Read more
02 Jul 1823: Bahia Independence Day: The Siege of Salvador ends Portuguese rule in Brazil, with the final defeat of the Portuguese crown loyalists in the province of Bahia. Read more

Famous Births on 02 July

02 Jul 1996: Julia Grabher, Austrian tennis player Julia Grabher is an Austrian professional tennis player. On 26 June 2023, she reached her best singles ranking of world No. 54. On 29 August 2016, she peaked at No. 387 in the doubles rankings. Read more
02 Jul 1995: Ryan Murphy, American swimmer Ryan Fitzgerald Murphy is an American competitive swimmer specializing in backstroke. He is a five-time Olympic gold medalist and the former world-record holder in the men's 100-meter backstroke. Read more
02 Jul 1994: Henrik Kristoffersen, Norwegian skier Henrik Kristoffersen is a Norwegian World Cup alpine ski racer, World Champion, and Olympic medalist. He specializes in the technical events of slalom and giant slalom. Read more
02 Jul 1994: Derrick White, American basketball player Derrick Richard White is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Buffalo" or "the Swiss Army Knife" by his Celtics teammate Neemias Queta, he played three years of college basketball in Division II for the Colorado–Colorado Springs Mountain Lions before transferring to Division I's Colorado Buffaloes for his final year. Read more
02 Jul 1993: Vince Staples, American rapper and actor Vincent Jamal Staples is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. He first became known for his appearances on the projects from Odd Future members and affiliates, including Earl Sweatshirt's Earl (2010) and Doris (2013), Mike G.’s Ali (2010) and The Jet Age of Tomorrow's Journey to the 5th Echelon (2010). He signed with Talib Kweli's Blacksmith Records prior to the release of his collaborative mixtape with Mac Miller, Stolen Youth (2013). The following year, he signed with No I.D.'s ARTium Recordings, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings, to release his debut extended play, Hell Can Wait (2014), which received critical acclaim and marked his first entry on the Billboard 200. Read more
02 Jul 1993: Saweetie, American rapper Diamonté Quiava Valentin Harper, known professionally as Saweetie, is an American rapper, singer and actress. Her 2017 debut single, "Icy Grl", received double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and led her to sign with Warner Records in a joint venture with her then-manager Max Gousse's record label, Artistry Worldwide. Read more
02 Jul 1992: Madison Chock, American ice dancer Madison Laʻakea Te-Lan Hall Chock is an American ice dancer. Together with her husband and skating partner, Evan Bates, she is a two-time Olympic gold medalist in the team event, the 2026 Winter Olympics silver medalist, a three-time World champion, three-time Grand Prix Final champion, three-time Four Continents champion ; twenty-two-time ISU Grand Prix medalist ; ten-time ISU Challenger Series medalist ; and seven-time U.S. national champion. She is also a four-time Olympian, having represented the United States at the 2014, 2018, 2022, and 2026 Winter Olympics. Read more
02 Jul 1992: Jānis Timma, Latvian basketball player Jānis Timma was a Latvian professional basketball player. Standing at 2.01 m, he mainly played at the small forward position. He also represented the senior Latvia national team. Read more
02 Jul 1990: Kayla Harrison, American judoka Kayla Jean Harrison is an American professional mixed martial artist and former judoka. She currently competes in the women's Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where she is the current UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion. She is the first female fighter to win an Olympic gold medal and a UFC championship. She is also a former two-time Professional Fighters League lightweight champion. As of November 18, 2025, she is #2 in the UFC women's pound-for-pound rankings. Read more
02 Jul 1990: Merritt Mathias, American soccer player Merritt Elizabeth Mathias is an American former professional soccer player who most recently played as a right back for Angel City FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She has won three NWSL Shields and three NWSL Championships during her twelve seasons in the NWSL: one Championship with FC Kansas City, one Shield with Seattle Reign FC, and two doubles with the North Carolina Courage. She played extensively with the youth national team and earned one cap with the United States senior team in 2018. Read more
02 Jul 1990: Morag McLellan, Scottish field hockey player Morag McLellan is a Scottish female field hockey player who plays for the Scotland women's national field hockey team. She has represented Scotland in few international competitions including the 2013 Women's EuroHockey Nations Championship, 2010 Commonwealth Games, and 2014 Commonwealth Games. Read more
02 Jul 1990: Margot Robbie, Australian actress and producer Margot Elise Robbie is an Australian actress and producer. The world's highest-paid actress in 2023, she is known for her performances in both blockbuster and independent films. Robbie has been nominated for three Academy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and six British Academy Film Awards. Read more
02 Jul 1990: Danny Rose, English footballer Daniel Lee Rose is an English former professional footballer who played as a left-back. He was known for his tendency to play attacking football, with particular focus placed on his speed, decision-making, and defensive abilities, all of which often had him likened to Tottenham Hotspur legend Cyril Knowles. Read more
02 Jul 1990: Bill Tupou, New Zealand rugby league player Bill Tupou is a former Tonga international rugby league footballer who last played as a centre or on the wing for Wakefield Trinity in the Super League. Read more
02 Jul 1989: Nadezhda Grishaeva, Russian basketball player Nadezhda Sergeyevna Grishayeva is a Russian professional basketball player. She plays for Russia women's national basketball team. She competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics. She is 1.95 m tall. Read more
02 Jul 1989: Alex Morgan, American soccer player Alexandra Morgan Carrasco is an American former professional soccer player. She played in four editions of the FIFA Women's World Cup with the United States national team, winning in 2015 and 2019, and finishing second in 2011. She co-captained the national team with Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe from 2018 to 2020, and with Lindsey Horan in 2023. In 2012, Morgan and the U.S. team won the gold medal at the Summer Olympics, and Morgan registered 28 goals and 21 assists, becoming the second American woman after Mia Hamm to register 20 goals and 20 assists in a calendar year. She was named U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year for 2012 and was a FIFA World Player of the Year finalist. Morgan was ranked by Time as the top-paid American female soccer player in 2015, largely due to her numerous endorsement deals. Read more
02 Jul 1988: Lee Chung-yong, South Korean footballer Lee Chung-yong is a South Korean footballer who plays as a winger for K League 1 club Incheon United and is a South Korean international. He is nicknamed Blue Dragon, which is a literal translation of his given name "Chung-yong". Read more
02 Jul 1987: Esteban Granero, Spanish footballer Esteban Félix Granero Molina is a Spanish former professional footballer. Known as El Pirata, he could play as a central or an attacking midfielder. Read more
02 Jul 1986: Brett Cecil, American baseball player Brett Aarion Cecil is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals. Cecil was drafted as the 38th overall pick in the 2007 MLB draft by the Blue Jays. He pitched for DeMatha Catholic High School and the Maryland Terrapins of the University of Maryland, College Park. In the summer of 2005, he pitched for the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts in the Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League and threw the first and only no-hitter by a single pitcher in league history. Read more
02 Jul 1986: Lindsay Lohan, American actress and singer Lindsay Dee Lohan is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She was signed to Ford Models at the age of three, and gained early recognition as a child actress on the soap operas Guiding Light (1993) and Another World (1996–1997). Her breakthrough role came with the dual role of reunited identical twins in the Walt Disney comedy The Parent Trap (1998); its success led to subsequent roles in Life-Size (2000), Get a Clue (2002), Freaky Friday (2003) and Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (2004). Her portrayal of Cady Heron in the teen comedy Mean Girls (2004) affirmed her status as a teen idol and established her as a prominent leading lady; The New Yorker later ranked it as the eleventh-best film performance of the 21st century. Read more
02 Jul 1985: Chad Henne, American football player Chad Steven Henne is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines, where he is the all-time leader in passing yards and touchdowns, with 9,715 yards and 87 touchdowns. He was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the second round of the 2008 NFL draft, and started multiple seasons over his NFL career, for both the Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars. He also won two Super Bowls with the Kansas City Chiefs, serving as the backup quarterback. Read more
02 Jul 1985: Ashley Tisdale, American actress, singer, and producer Ashley Michelle Tisdale-French is an American actress and singer. During her childhood, she was featured in over 100 advertisements and had minor roles on-screen and in theatre. She achieved mainstream success as Maddie Fitzpatrick in the Disney Channel teen sitcom The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005–2008). This success was heightened when she starred as Sharpay Evans in the High School Musical film series (2006–2011). The success of the films led to Tisdale's signing with Warner Bros. Records and subsequently releasing her debut studio album, Headstrong (2007), which was a commercial success, earning a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Tisdale also provides the voice of Candace Flynn in the Disney Channel animated series Phineas and Ferb. Read more
02 Jul 1984: Thomas Kortegaard, Danish footballer Thomas Kortegaard is a Danish former footballer who played as a midfielder. Read more
02 Jul 1984: Elise Stefanik, American politician Elise Marie Stefanik is an American politician who has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 21st congressional district since 2015. From 2021 to 2025, she served as chair of the House Republican Conference. Read more
02 Jul 1984: Johnny Weir, American figure skater John Garvin Weir is an American television commentator and retired figure skater. He is a two-time Olympian, the 2008 World bronze medalist, a two-time Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, the 2001 World Junior Champion, and a three-time U.S. National champion (2004–2006). He was the youngest U.S. National champion since 1991, in 2006 the first skater to win U.S. Nationals three times in a row since Brian Boitano in the late 1980s, and the first American to win Cup of Russia in 2007. Read more
02 Jul 1983: Michelle Branch, American singer-songwriter and guitarist Michelle Jacquet Branch is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. She won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals with Santana for their 2002 single, "The Game of Love". Read more
02 Jul 1983: Kyle Hogg, English cricketer Kyle William Hogg is an English former cricketer. He was a left-handed batsman and a right-arm fast-medium bowler who played for Lancashire from 2001 to 2014. Between 2000–01 and 2002 Hogg represented the England under-19s in six youth Tests and 11 One Day Internationals (ODIs). In the 2006–07 season he travelled to New Zealand where he represented Otago as an overseas player. Hogg spent time on loan with Nottinghamshire and Worcestershire, both in 2007. Read more
02 Jul 1981: Nathan Ellington, English footballer Nathan Levi Fontaine Ellington is an English retired professional footballer who played as a striker. Read more
02 Jul 1981: Carlos Rogers, American football player Carlos Cornelius Rogers is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Auburn Tigers, earning consensus All-American honors. Rogers was selected by the Washington Redskins with the ninth overall pick in the 2005 NFL draft. He also played for the San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders. Read more
02 Jul 1980: Nyjer Morgan, American baseball player Nyjer Jamid Morgan is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Washington Nationals, Milwaukee Brewers, and Cleveland Indians, in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars, and in the KBO League for the Hanwha Eagles. Morgan mainly played center field during his MLB career. Read more
02 Jul 1979: Walter Davis, American triple jumper Walter L. Davis is an American athlete competing in the triple jump and occasionally in the long jump. He was born in Lafayette, Louisiana. Read more
02 Jul 1979: Ahmed al-Ghamdi, Saudi Arabian terrorist, hijacker of United Airlines Flight 175 (died 2001) Ahmed Salih Said al-Kurshi al-Ghamdi was a Saudi terrorist hijacker. He was one of five hijackers of United Airlines Flight 175 as part of the September 11 attacks. Read more
02 Jul 1979: Sam Hornish Jr., American race car driver Samuel Jon Hornish Jr. is an American semi-retired professional auto racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 22 Ford Mustang for Team Penske in 2017. Read more
02 Jul 1979: Joe Thornton, Canadian ice hockey player Joseph Eric Thornton is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. He played for the Boston Bruins, San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected first overall by the Bruins in the 1997 NHL entry draft and went on to play seven seasons with the club, three as its captain. During the 2005–06 season, he was traded to the Sharks. Splitting the campaign between the two teams, he received the Art Ross and Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's leading point-scorer and most valuable player, respectively, becoming the only player in NHL history to win either award in a season played for multiple teams. Thornton went on to play another 14 seasons with the Sharks, including four seasons as team captain and a run to the 2016 Stanley Cup Finals. Thornton was the last active NHL player and the last big 4 North American sports player to have played in the 1990s. Read more
02 Jul 1978: Jüri Ratas, Estonian politician, 42nd Mayor of Tallinn Jüri Ratas is an Estonian politician who served as the prime minister of Estonia from 2016 to 2021 and as the leader of the Centre Party from 2016 to 2023, and the mayor of Tallinn from 2005 to 2007. Ratas was a member of the Centre Party until switching to Isamaa in 2024. Read more
02 Jul 1977: Deniz Barış, Turkish footballer Deniz Barış is a Turkish former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder or centre-back. Read more
02 Jul 1976: Krisztián Lisztes, Hungarian footballer Krisztián Lisztes is a Hungarian former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. He is most commonly known for his stints at VfB Stuttgart and Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga, and for Ferencváros in his home country. Read more
02 Jul 1976: Tomáš Vokoun, Czech-American ice hockey player Tomáš Vokoun is a Czech former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1997 to 2013, mainly with the Nashville Predators. He was selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the ninth round, 226th overall, in the 1994 NHL entry draft, and played one game for the team, as well as playing with the Florida Panthers, Washington Capitals, and Pittsburgh Penguins. Internationally, Vokoun played for the Czech national team at several tournaments, including the 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics, winning a bronze medal in 2006, as well as gold medals at the 2005 and 2010 World Championships. Read more
02 Jul 1976: Ľudovít Ódor, Prime minister of Slovakia Ľudovít Ódor is a Slovak economist and politician who served as Prime Minister of Slovakia from May to October 2023, heading a technocratic cabinet. From July to October 2023, he also served as Minister of the Interior. Prior to his appointment as prime minister, Ódor served as Deputy Governor of the National Bank of Slovakia, from 2018 to 2023. He was the first Slovak prime-minister from the ethnic Hungarian minority in Slovakia. Read more
02 Jul 1975: Éric Dazé, Canadian ice hockey player Éric Dazé is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger who played for the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League for eleven seasons from 1995 to 2005. Read more
02 Jul 1975: Kristen Michal, Estonian lawyer and politician Kristen Michal is the prime minister of Estonia, having taken office on 23 July 2024. He previously served as minister of justice from 2011 to 2012, minister of economic affairs and infrastructure from 2015 to 2016, and minister of climate from 2023 to 2024. Read more
02 Jul 1975: Elizabeth Reaser, American actress Elizabeth Ann Reaser is an American film, television, and stage actress. Her work includes the films Stay, The Family Stone, Sweet Land, Against the Current, The Twilight Saga, Young Adult, and Ouija: Origin of Evil, and the TV series Saved, Grey's Anatomy, The Ex-List, The Good Wife, True Detective, Mad Men, The Handmaid's Tale, and The Haunting of Hill House. Read more
02 Jul 1975: Stefan Terblanche, South African rugby player Carl Stefan Terblanche is a South African former rugby union player. He played wing, centre and fullback. Read more
02 Jul 1974: Sean Casey, American baseball player and sportscaster Sean Thomas Casey, nicknamed "the Mayor", is an American former professional baseball first baseman, coach and media personality. During his Major League Baseball (MLB) career, Casey played for the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, Detroit Tigers, and Boston Red Sox. Casey was selected to the MLB All-Star Game three times during his career. He was the hitting coach for the New York Yankees in 2023. After retiring from professional baseball, Casey transitioned into broadcasting and has been a prominent broadcaster and commentator for MLB Network since 2009, a role he still holds today. In addition to his broadcasting work, Casey is the host of the popular “The Mayor’s Office with Sean Casey” podcast, where he shares engaging conversations with athletes, entertainers, and industry leaders. Read more
02 Jul 1972: Darren Shan, Irish author Darren O'Shaughnessy is an Irish writer and novelist. He is best known for his young adult fiction series The Saga of Darren Shan, The Demonata, and Zom-B, published under the pseudonym Darren Shan. The former was adapted into a manga series from 2006 to 2009 as well as a live-action film in 2009, with a prequel series, The Saga of Larten Crepsley, being released from 2010 to 2012. Read more
02 Jul 1971: Troy Brown, American football player and actor Troy Fitzgerald Brown is an American professional football coach and former player who serves as an offensive assistant for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played as a wide receiver and return specialist for 15 seasons in the NFL, spending his entire career with the Patriots. Brown played college football for the Marshall Thundering Herd and was selected by the Patriots in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL draft. During his New England tenure, he was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2001 and was a member of the franchise's first three Super Bowl-winning teams. In 2020, Brown rejoined the Patriots as an offensive assistant. He was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010. Brown also was inducted to the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2012. Read more
02 Jul 1971: Evelyn Lau, Canadian poet and author Evelyn Lau is a Canadian novelist, poet, and short story writer. Read more
02 Jul 1971: Bryan Redpath, Scottish rugby player and coach Bryan William Redpath is a Scottish former rugby union player and coach. He is the Director of Rugby at London Scottish. Read more
02 Jul 1970: Derrick Adkins, American hurdler Derrick Ralph Adkins is an American former track and field athlete who specialized in the 400-meter hurdles. He was an Olympic gold medalist in that event at the 1996 Summer Olympics and World Champion at the 1995 World Championships in Athletics. He was the fastest man in the world in the 1994 and 1996 seasons, and holds a personal record of 47.54 seconds. Adkins was a two-time national champion at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Read more
02 Jul 1970: Steve Morrow, Northern Irish footballer and manager Stephen Joseph Morrow is a Northern Irish former professional footballer and manager. He was The Football Association's head of player selection and talent strategy until 2023. Read more
02 Jul 1969: Tim Rodber, English rugby player Timothy Andrew Keith Rodber is an English former rugby union footballer who played at number eight, flanker or lock for Northampton Saints, England, and the British Lions. Read more
02 Jul 1965: Norbert Röttgen, German lawyer and politician Norbert Alois Röttgen is a German lawyer and politician who served as Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety in the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2009 to 2012. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), he placed third in the January 2021 CDU leadership election, then second in the December 2021 leadership election. From 2014 to 2021, he chaired the Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee. Read more
02 Jul 1964: Jose Canseco, Cuban-American baseball player and mixed martial artist José Canseco Capas Jr. is a Cuban-American former professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). During his time with the Oakland Athletics, he established himself as one of the premier power hitters in the game. He won the Rookie of the Year (1986), and Most Valuable Player award (1988), and was a six-time All-Star. Canseco is a two-time World Series champion with the Oakland Athletics (1989) and the New York Yankees (2000). Read more
02 Jul 1964: Ozzie Canseco, Cuban-American baseball player, coach, and manager Osvaldo "Ozzie" Canseco Capas is a Cuban-American former professional baseball player. He is the identical twin brother of former Major League Baseball player José Canseco. Read more
02 Jul 1964: Joe Magrane, American baseball player and sportscaster Joseph David Magrane is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher who played for the St. Louis Cardinals, California Angels, and Chicago White Sox between 1987 and 1996, and is currently a color commentary broadcaster for the MLB Network. Read more
02 Jul 1962: Neil Williams, English cricketer (died 2006) Neil Fitzgerald Williams was an England cricketer, who played first-class cricket for both Middlesex and Essex. In a first-class career spanning over seventeen years, he took 675 wickets and scored 4,457 runs. Read more
02 Jul 1961: Clark Kellogg, American basketball player and sportscaster Clark Clifton Kellogg Jr. is an American former professional basketball player who is the lead college basketball analyst for CBS Sports. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Indiana Pacers. Read more
02 Jul 1959: Erwin Olaf, Dutch photographer (died 2023) Erwin Olaf Springveld, professionally known as Erwin Olaf, was a Dutch photographer from Hilversum. Time magazine described his work as straddling "the worlds of commercial, art and fashion photography at once". Read more
02 Jul 1958: Pavan Malhotra, Indian actor Pavan Malhotra is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films and television alongside Punjabi and few Telugu films.
He has received several awards including a Filmfare OTT Award and a Filmfare Award South. Read more
02 Jul 1957: Bret Hart, Canadian wrestler Bret Sergeant Hart is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling background at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College. A major international draw within professional wrestling, he is credited with changing the perception of mainstream North American professional wrestling in the early 1990s by bringing technical wrestling to the fore. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time; Sky Sports noted that his legacy is that of "one of, if not the greatest, to have ever graced the squared circle". For the majority of his career, he used the nickname "the Hitman". Read more
02 Jul 1957: Jüri Raidla, Estonian lawyer and politician, Estonian Minister of Justice Jüri Raidla is an Estonian lawyer, founder and senior partner of law firm Ellex Raidla. He served as the first Estonian Minister of Justice from 1990 to 1992. Read more
02 Jul 1957: Purvis Short, American basketball player Purvis Short is an American former professional basketball player who played with the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1978 to 1990. A 6'7" small forward, Short averaged 17.3 points per game over his twelve-season career in the NBA. He is currently the Warriors ninth all-time leading scorer. Read more
02 Jul 1956: Jerry Hall, American model and actress Jerry Faye Hall is an American model and actress. She began modeling in the 1970s and became one of the most sought-after models in the world. She transitioned into acting, appearing in the 1989 film Batman. Hall was the long-term partner of Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger, with whom she has four children. She was the fourth wife of Rupert Murdoch until they divorced in 2022. Read more
02 Jul 1955: Kim Carr, Australian educator and politician, 31st Australian Minister for Human Services Kim John Carr is an Australian former politician who served as a Senator for Victoria between 1993 and 2022. Representing the Labor Party, he was a minister in the Rudd and Gillard governments. Read more
02 Jul 1954: Chris Huhne, English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Christopher Murray Paul Huhne is a British energy and climate change consultant, and former journalist, business economist and politician who was the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Eastleigh from 2005 to 2013 and the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change from 2010 to 2012. He is currently chair of the UK green gas association – the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association – and senior adviser to the World Biogas Association. He also advises companies on his particular interest in renewable technologies that can provide back up for intermittent energy sources like wind and solar. Read more
02 Jul 1954: Wendy Schaal, American actress Wendy Schaal is an American actress known for her work in Joe Dante films, such as Innerspace, The 'Burbs, and Small Soldiers. Her other film credits include starring in Where the Boys Are '84, Creature, Going Under, and Munchies. She had many roles on television series in the 1980s, most notably as Vicki Allen on It's a Living and Marilyn Kelsy on Airwolf. Since 2005, she has primarily worked in voice acting, most notably voicing Francine Smith on the animated comedy television series American Dad! Read more
02 Jul 1953: Brian Clarke, British artist known for his work with stained glass (died 2025) Sir Brian Clarke was a British painter, architectural artist, designer and printmaker, known for his large-scale stained glass and mosaic projects, symbolist paintings, set designs, and collaborations with major figures in modern and contemporary architecture. Read more
02 Jul 1952: Sylvia Rivera, American transgender rights activist (died 2002) Sylvia Rivera was an American gay liberation and transgender rights activist who was also a noted community worker in New York. Rivera, who identified as a drag queen for most of her life and later as a transgender person, participated in demonstrations with the Gay Liberation Front. Read more
02 Jul 1952: Anatoliy Solomin, Ukrainian race walker and coach Anatoliy Vasilyevich Solomin is a former Soviet Ukrainian race walker. Solomin competed in men's 20 km walk at the 1980 Summer Olympics and contended for the gold medal, but was disqualified from the lead shortly before the finish. He was European indoor champion in men's 5000 m walk in 1983 and briefly held the 20 km world best. He was born in Komarovka in Penza Oblast. Read more
02 Jul 1950: Lynne Brindley, English librarian and academic Dame Lynne Janie Brindley is the former Master of Pembroke College, Oxford, a post she held until June 2020. Prior to this appointment she was a professional librarian, and served as the first female chief executive of the British Library, the United Kingdom's national library, from 2000 to 2012. Read more
02 Jul 1950: Jon Trickett, English politician Jon Hedley Trickett is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Normanton and Hemsworth, previously Hemsworth, since 1996. He was Shadow Lord President of the Council from 2016 to 2020 and served as Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office from 2011 to 2013 and 2017 to 2020. He was the Labour Party National Campaign Coordinator under Jeremy Corbyn from 2015 to 2017. Read more
02 Jul 1949: Greg Brown, American musician Gregory Dane Brown is an American folk singer-songwriter and guitarist from Iowa. Read more
02 Jul 1949: Roy Bittan, American rock piano and accordion player (E Street Band) Roy J. Bittan is an American musician who is a long-time member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Nicknamed "The Professor", Bittan joined the E Street Band in 1974. He plays the piano, organ, accordion and synthesizers. Bittan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014 as a member of the E Street Band. Read more
02 Jul 1949: Robert Paquette, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist Robert Paquette is a Canadian folk singer-songwriter. Read more
02 Jul 1948: Mutula Kilonzo, Kenyan lawyer and politician (died 2013) Mutula Kilonzo was a Kenyan politician and Senior Counsel, who served as Minister of Education after having previously served as Minister for Nairobi Metropolitan and justice and constitutional affairs He belonged to the Orange Democratic Movement-Kenya and was elected to represent Makueni County as Senator in the 2013 general elections. Read more
02 Jul 1947: Larry David, American actor, comedian, producer, and screenwriter Lawrence Gene David is an American comedian, writer, actor, and television producer. He is known for his dry wit, portrayals of awkward social situations, and observations on everyday life. He has received various accolades, including two Primetime Emmy Awards, three Producers Guild of America Awards, and four Writers Guild of America Awards, in addition to nominations for six Actor Awards and three Golden Globes. Read more
02 Jul 1947: Ann Taylor, Baroness Taylor of Bolton, English politician, Minister for International Security Strategy Winifred Ann Taylor, Baroness Taylor of Bolton, is a British politician and life peer who served in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2001. A member of the Labour Party, she was Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolton West from 1974 to 1983, and Dewsbury from 1987 to 2005. Read more
02 Jul 1946: Richard Axel, American neuroscientist and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate Richard Axel is an American molecular biologist and university professor in the Department of Neuroscience at Columbia University and investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. His work on the olfactory system won him and Linda Buck, a former postdoctoral research scientist in his group, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2004. Read more
02 Jul 1946: Ron Silver, American actor, director, and political activist (died 2009) Ronald Arthur Silver was an American actor, director, producer, radio host, and activist. As an actor, he portrayed Henry Kissinger, Alan Dershowitz and Angelo Dundee. He was awarded the 1988 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for Speed-the-Plow, a satirical dissection of the American movie business, and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for his recurring role as political strategist Bruno Gianelli in The West Wing. Read more
02 Jul 1943: Larry Lake, American-Canadian trumpet player and composer (died 2013) Larry Ellsworth Lake was an American-born Canadian composer, trumpeter, freelance writer on music, radio broadcaster, and record producer. As a composer, he was primarily known for his electronic music. His musical compositions are characterized by their integration of acoustic instruments with electronic ones in live performance. From 1985 until his death he served as artistic director of the Canadian Electronic Ensemble, a group of which he was a founding member. For nearly 30 years he hosted and served as music consultant for the CBC Radio program Two New Hours. An associate of the Canadian Music Centre (CMC), he was the chair of the CMC's Ontario Region Council and was an executive member of the CMC's national board. He was a member of both the Canadian Electroacoustic Community and the Canadian League of Composers. His compositions received multiple awards from the CMC and from the Major Armstrong Foundation. He received three Juno Award nominations for his work as a record producer. Read more
02 Jul 1942: John Eekelaar, South African-English lawyer and scholar John Eekelaar FBA is a South African-born legal scholar who specialised in family law during his academic career at the University of Oxford. A Rhodes Scholar and recipient of the Vinerian Scholarship, he served as a Tutorial Fellow at Pembroke College from 1965 and as Reader in Law from 1991 until his retirement from teaching in 2005. Elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 2001, he has served as editor of the International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family and the Oxford Journal of Legal Studies. After his retirement, he served as the academic director of Pembroke College (2005–2009) and became co-director of the Oxford Centre for Family Law and Policy (OXFLAP). Read more
02 Jul 1942: Vicente Fox, Mexican businessman and politician, 35th President of Mexico Vicente Fox Quesada is a Mexican businessman and politician who served as the 62nd president of Mexico from 2000 to 2006. After campaigning as a right-wing populist, Fox was elected president on the National Action Party (PAN) ticket in the 2000 election. He became the first president not from the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) since 1929, and the first elected from an opposition party since Francisco I. Madero in 1911. Fox won the election with 43 percent of the vote. Considered a social-welfare promoter, along with Julio Frenk Mora, he formulated, signed and implemented the Seguro Popular which helped circa 55 million independent workers. Read more
02 Jul 1941: William Guest, American singer-songwriter and producer (died 2015) William Franklin Guest was an American R&B/soul singer best known as a member of Gladys Knight & the Pips along with his cousins Gladys Knight, Merald "Bubba" Knight and Edward Patten. Guest was a member of the group for its entire history, from 1952 to 1989. He is a multiple Grammy Award winner and was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Gladys Knight & the Pips in 1996. Read more
02 Jul 1941: Wendell Mottley, Trinidadian sprinter, economist, and politician Wendell Adrian Mottley ORTT is a Trinidad and Tobago economist, politician and athlete. Mottley served as Senator and member of the House of Representatives with the Trinidad and Tobago Parliament and was Minister of Finance from 1991 to 1995. He was an Ivy League sprinter, winning two Olympic medals in 1964. Read more
02 Jul 1940: Kenneth Clarke, English politician, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain Kenneth Harry Clarke, Baron Clarke of Nottingham is a British politician who served as Home Secretary from 1992 to 1993 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Rushcliffe from 1970 to 2019, serving as Father of the House of Commons between 2017 and 2019. Clarke served in the Cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster from 1987 to 1988, Health Secretary from 1988 to 1990, and Education Secretary from 1990 to 1992. He held two of the Great Offices of State as Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer. Read more
02 Jul 1940: Georgi Ivanov, Bulgarian military officer, cosmonaut and politician Major general Georgi Ivanov Kakalov is a Bulgarian former military officer who was the first Bulgarian cosmonaut. He was a member of the National Assembly of Bulgaria in 1990. Read more
02 Jul 1939: Mike Castle, American politician, 69th Governor of Delaware (died 2025) Michael Newbold Castle was an American politician and lawyer who served as the U.S. representative for Delaware's at-large congressional district from 1993 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 69th governor of Delaware from 1985 to 1992, lieutenant governor from 1981 to 1985, and as a member of the Delaware General Assembly from 1967 to 1977. As of 2025, Castle is the most recent Republican to represent Delaware in the U.S. Congress and to have been elected governor of the state. Read more
02 Jul 1939: Alexandros Panagoulis, Greek poet and politician (died 1976) Alexandros Panagoulis was a Greek politician and poet. He took an active role in the fight against the Regime of the Colonels (1967–1974) in Greece. He became famous for his attempt to assassinate dictator Georgios Papadopoulos on 13 August 1968, but also for the torture to which he was subjected during his detention. After the restoration of democracy, he was elected to the Greek parliament as a member of the Centre Union (E.K.). Read more
02 Jul 1939: John H. Sununu, American engineer and politician, 14th White House Chief of Staff John Henry Sununu is a Cuban-born American politician who served as the 75th governor of New Hampshire from 1983 to 1989 and as the 14th White House chief of staff under President George H. W. Bush from 1989 to 1991. Read more
02 Jul 1939: Paul Williams, American singer and choreographer (died 1973) Paul Williams was an American baritone singer. He was noted for being one of the founding members and the original lead singer of the Motown group the Temptations. Personal problems and failing health forced Williams to retire in 1971 and, aged 34, he was found dead two years later as the result of an apparent suicide. Read more
02 Jul 1938: David Owen, English physician and politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs David Anthony Llewellyn Owen, Baron Owen, is a British politician and physician. He served as Foreign Secretary in the Labour government of James Callaghan from 1977 to 1979, becoming the youngest person appointed to the position since 1935, and later led the Social Democratic Party (SDP). He was a Member of Parliament for 26 years, from 1966 to 1992. Read more
02 Jul 1937: Polly Holliday, American actress (died 2025) Polly Dean Holliday was an American actress of stage and screen. Holliday was best known for her portrayal of sassy waitress Florence Jean "Flo" Castleberry on the 1970s sitcom Alice, winning two Golden Globe Awards for Best Supporting Actress on the series. Her character's catchphrase "Kiss my grits!" enjoyed widespread popularity, and she reprised the role on Flo, a short-lived spin-off. Holliday won the 1984 Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress portraying Ruby Deagle in Gremlins. Read more
02 Jul 1937: Richard Petty, American race car driver and sportscaster Richard Lee Petty, nicknamed "the King", is an American former stock car racing driver who competed from 1958 to 1992 in the former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series, most notably driving the No. 43 Plymouth/Pontiac for Petty Enterprises. He is one of the members of the Petty racing family. He was the first driver to win the Cup Series championship seven times, while also winning a record 200 races during his career. This included winning the Daytona 500 a record seven times and winning a record 27 races in one season (1967). Petty is widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history. Read more
02 Jul 1936: Omar Suleiman, Egyptian general and politician, 16th Vice President of Egypt (died 2012) Omar Mahmoud Suleiman was an Egyptian army general, politician, diplomat, and intelligence officer. A leading figure in Egypt's intelligence system beginning in 1986, Suleiman was appointed to the long-vacant vice presidency by President Hosni Mubarak on 29 January 2011. On 11 February 2011, Suleiman announced Mubarak's resignation and ceased being vice president; governing power was transferred to the Armed Forces Supreme Council, of which Suleiman was not a member in 2011. A new head of intelligence services was appointed by the ruling Supreme Council. Suleiman withdrew from the political scene and did not appear in public after announcing Mubarak's resignation. Read more
02 Jul 1935: Gilbert Kalish, American pianist and educator Gilbert Kalish is an American pianist. He is best known for championing the music of Charles Ives and other modernist composers. He is also noted for his partnerships with other artists, particularly his thirty-year collaboration with mezzo-soprano Jan DeGaetani, but also including cellists Timothy Eddy and Joel Krosnick, and soprano Dawn Upshaw. Read more
02 Jul 1934: Tom Springfield, English musician (died 2022) Tom Springfield was a British musician, songwriter, and record producer who was prominent in the 1960s folk and pop music scene. He was the older brother of singer Dusty Springfield, with whom he performed in the Springfields. He wrote several hit songs for the Springfields and later for the Seekers, whose records he also produced. Read more
02 Jul 1933: Peter Desbarats, Canadian journalist, author, and playwright (died 2014) Peter Hullett Desbarats, OC was a Canadian author, playwright and journalist. He was also the dean of journalism at the University of Western Ontario (1981–1997), a former commissioner in the Somalia Inquiry and a former Maclean-Hunter chair of Communications Ethics at Ryerson University in Toronto, Ontario. Read more
02 Jul 1933: Kenny Wharram, Canadian ice hockey player (died 2017) Kenneth Malcolm Wharram was a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League, all with the Chicago Black Hawks, wearing number 17. He won a Stanley Cup in 1961. Read more
02 Jul 1932: Dave Thomas, American businessman and philanthropist, founded Wendy's (died 2002) Rex David Thomas was an American businessman, philanthropist, and fast-food tycoon who was the founder and chief executive officer of Wendy's, a fast-food restaurant chain specializing in hamburgers. In this role, Thomas appeared in more than 800 commercial advertisements for the chain from 1989 to 2002, more than any other company founder in television history. Read more
02 Jul 1930: Ahmad Jamal, American jazz musician (died 2023) Ahmad Jamal was an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader, and educator. For six decades, he was one of the most successful small-group leaders in jazz. He was a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Jazz Master and won a Lifetime Achievement Grammy for his contributions to music history. Read more
02 Jul 1930: Carlos Menem, Argentinian lawyer and politician, 50th President of Argentina (died 2021) Carlos Saúl Menem was an Argentine politician who served as the president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years, and his political approach became known as Menemism. Read more
02 Jul 1929: Imelda Marcos, Filipino politician; 10th First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Romualdez Marcos is a Filipino politician who was First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power after her husband Ferdinand Marcos placed the country under martial law in September 1972. She is the mother of current president Bongbong Marcos. Read more
02 Jul 1927: Lee Allen, American saxophone player (died 1994) Lee Francis Allen was an American tenor saxophone player. Phil Alvin, Allen's bandmate in The Blasters, called him one of the most important instrumentalists in rock'n'roll. Allen's distinctive tone has been hailed as "one of the defining sounds of rock'n'roll" and "one of the DNA strands of rock." Read more
02 Jul 1927: James Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern, Scottish lawyer and politician, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain James Peter Hymers Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern is a British lawyer. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, Lord Advocate, and Lord Chancellor (1987–1997). He was formerly an active member of the House of Lords, where he sat as a Conservative; he retired from the House on 22 July 2022. Read more
02 Jul 1927: Brock Peters, American actor (died 2005) Brock Peters was an American actor, best known for playing the villainous "Crown" in the 1959 film version of Porgy and Bess, and Tom Robinson in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird. He made his Broadway debut in the 1965 Norman Rosten play Mister Johnson. He was nominated for a Tony Award and won a Drama Desk Award and an Outer Critics Circle Award for his lead role as Rev. Stephen Kumalo in the 1972 Broadway revival of the musical Lost in the Stars. He received the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 1991 and a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1992. Read more
02 Jul 1926: Octavian Paler, Romanian journalist and politician (died 2007) Octavian Paler was a Romanian writer, journalist, politician in Communist Romania, and civil society activist in post-1989 Romania. Read more
02 Jul 1925: Medgar Evers, American soldier and civil rights movement activist (died 1963) Medgar Wiley Evers was an American civil rights activist who was the NAACP's first field secretary in Mississippi. A United States Army veteran who served in World War II, he was engaged in efforts to overturn racial segregation at the University of Mississippi, end the segregation of public facilities, and expand opportunities for African Americans, including the enforcement of voting rights prior to his assassination. Read more
02 Jul 1925: Patrice Lumumba, Congolese politician, 1st Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (died 1961) Patrice Émery Lumumba was a Congolese politician, independence leader and revolutionary who served as the first prime minister of the First Congolese Republic from June until September 1960, following the May 1960 election. Lumumba was the leader of the Congolese National Movement (MNC) from 1958 until his assassination in 1961. Ideologically an African nationalist and pan-Africanist, he played a significant role in the transformation of the Congo from a colony of Belgium into an independent republic. Read more
02 Jul 1925: Marvin Rainwater, American singer-songwriter (died 2013) Marvin Karlton Rainwater was an American country and rockabilly singer and songwriter who had several hits during the late 1950s, including the self-penned "Gonna Find Me a Bluebird" and "Whole Lotta Woman," which hit No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart. He was known for wearing Native American fashion-themed outfits on stage and claimed to have quarter-blood Cherokee ancestry. Read more
02 Jul 1924: Chia-ying Yeh, Chinese-born Canadian poet and sinologist (died 2024) Florence Chia-ying Yeh, also known as Ye Jiaying, Jialing (迦陵), and by her married name Chia-ying Yeh Chao, was a Chinese-born Taiwanese-Canadian poet and sinologist. She was a scholar of classical Chinese poetry. Yeh taught for 20 years at the University of British Columbia (UBC), and was a professor emerita from her retirement in 1989. She was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. After retiring from UBC, she taught at Nankai University in Tianjin, where she was the founding Director of the Institute of Chinese Classical Culture. Read more
02 Jul 1923: Cyril M. Kornbluth, American soldier and author (died 1958) Cyril M. Kornbluth was an American science fiction author and a member of the Futurians. He used a variety of pen-names, including Cecil Corwin, S. D. Gottesman, Edward J. Bellin, Kenneth Falconer, Walter C. Davies, Simon Eisner, Jordan Park, Arthur Cooke, Paul Dennis Lavond, and Scott Mariner. Read more
02 Jul 1923: Wisława Szymborska, Polish poet and translator, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2012) Maria Wisława Anna Szymborska was a Polish poet, essayist, translator, and recipient of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Literature. Born in Prowent, she resided in Kraków until the end of her life. In Poland, Szymborska's books have reached sales rivaling prominent prose authors, though she wrote in a poem, "Some Like Poetry", that "perhaps" two in a thousand people like poetry. Read more
02 Jul 1922: Pierre Cardin, Italian-French fashion designer (died 2020) Pietro Costante Cardin, known as Pierre Cardin, was an Italian-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometric shapes and motifs, often ignoring the female form. He advanced into unisex fashions, sometimes experimental, and not always practical. He founded his fashion house in 1950 and introduced the "bubble dress" in 1954. Read more
02 Jul 1922: Paula Valenska, Czech actress (died 1994) Paula Valenska was a Czech actress noted for her roles in 1940s films. After appearing in several films in her native Czechoslovakia she went to Britain to star in two films produced by Anatole de Grunwald. Read more
02 Jul 1920: John Kneubuhl, Samoan-American historian, screenwriter, and playwright (died 1992) John Alexander Kneubuhl was an American Samoan screenwriter, playwright and Polynesian historian. He wrote for American television series such as The Fugitive, Gunsmoke, The Wild Wild West, Star Trek, The Invaders and Hawaii Five-O. The son of a Samoan mother and an American father, Kneubuhl's multicultural heritage produced a distinctive artistic vision that formed the basis of his most powerful dramatic work. Read more
02 Jul 1919: Jean Craighead George, American author (died 2012) Jean Carolyn Craighead George was an American writer of more than one hundred books for children and young adults, including the Newbery Medal-winning Julie of the Wolves and Newbery Honor My Side of the Mountain. Common themes in George's works are the environment and the natural world. Beside children's fiction, she wrote at least two guides to cooking with wild foods and one autobiography published 30 years before her death, Journey Inward. Read more
02 Jul 1918: Athos Bulcão, Brazilian painter and sculptor (died 2008) Athos Bulcão was a Brazilian painter and sculptor. He was born in Rio de Janeiro. Read more
02 Jul 1917: Leonard J. Arrington, American author and academic, founded the Mormon History Association (died 1999) Leonard James Arrington was an American author, academic and the founder of the Mormon History Association (MHA). He is known as the "Dean of Mormon History" and "the Father of Mormon History" because of his contributions to the field. From 1972 to 1982, he was Church Historian for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the first non-general authority to fill the assignment since it began in 1842. He was director of the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Church History from 1982 until 1986. Read more
02 Jul 1916: Ken Curtis, American actor and singer (died 1991) Ken Curtis was an American actor and singer best known for his role as Festus Haggen on the Western television series Gunsmoke. Read more
02 Jul 1916: Hans-Ulrich Rudel, German colonel and pilot (died 1982) Hans-Ulrich Rudel was a German ground-attack pilot during World War II and a post-war neo-Nazi activist. Read more
02 Jul 1916: Reino Kangasmäki, Finnish wrestler (died 2010) Reino Kalervo Kangasmäki was a journalist and a Greco-Roman wrestler from Finland. He won a bronze medal in the flyweight class at the 1948 Summer Olympics, his only major international tournament. At national championships Kangasmäki placed third in 1943 and second in 1947. Read more
02 Jul 1916: Zélia Gattai, Brazilian author and photographer (died 2008) Zélia Gattai Amado de Faria was a Brazilian photographer, memoirist, novelist and author of children's literature, as well as a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters. Gattai wrote 14 literary works, including children's books, and her own personal memoirs have been widely published. Read more
02 Jul 1915: Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington, British peer, politician and soldier (died 2014) Brigadier Arthur Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington, styled Marquess of Douro between 1943 and 1972, was a British peer and army officer. His main residence was Stratfield Saye House in Hampshire. Read more
02 Jul 1914: Frederick Fennell, American conductor and educator (died 2004) Frederick Fennell was an American conductor and one of the primary figures who promoted the Eastman Wind Ensemble as a performing group. He was also influential as a band pedagogue, and greatly affected the field of music education in the US and abroad. In Fennell's New York Times obituary, colleague Jerry F. Junkin was quoted as saying "He was arguably the most famous band conductor since John Philip Sousa." Read more
02 Jul 1914: Mário Schenberg, Brazilian physicist and engineer (died 1990) Mário Schenberg was a Brazilian electrical engineer, physicist, art critic and writer. Read more
02 Jul 1914: Erich Topp, German admiral (died 2005) Erich Topp was a German U-boat commander of World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords of Nazi Germany. He sank 35 ships for a total of 197,460 gross register tons (GRT). After the war, he served with the Federal German Navy, in which he reached the rank of Konteradmiral. He later served in NATO. Read more
02 Jul 1913: Max Beloff, Baron Beloff, English historian and academic (died 1999) Max Beloff, Baron Beloff, was a British historian and Conservative peer. From 1974 to 1979 he was principal of the University College of Buckingham, now the University of Buckingham. Read more
02 Jul 1911: Reg Parnell, English race car driver and manager (died 1964) Reginald Parnell was a racing driver and team manager from Derby, England. He participated in seven Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, achieving one podium, and scoring a total of nine championship points. Read more
02 Jul 1908: Thurgood Marshall, American lawyer and civil rights activist, 32nd Solicitor General of the United States, and former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (died 1993) Thoroughgood "Thurgood" Marshall was an American lawyer who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 until 1991. He was the Supreme Court's first African-American justice. Before his judicial service, he was an attorney who fought for civil rights, leading the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. Marshall was a prominent figure in the movement to end racial segregation in American public schools. He won 29 of the 32 civil rights cases he argued before the Supreme Court, culminating in the Court's landmark 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which rejected the separate but equal doctrine and held segregation in public education to be unconstitutional. President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed Marshall to the Supreme Court in 1967. A staunch liberal, he frequently dissented as the Court became increasingly conservative. Read more
02 Jul 1906: Hans Bethe, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2005) Hans Albrecht Eduard Bethe was a German-American physicist who made major contributions to nuclear physics, astrophysics, quantum electrodynamics and solid-state physics, and received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1967 for his work on the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis. For most of his career, Bethe was a professor at Cornell University. Read more
02 Jul 1906: Károly Kárpáti, Hungarian Jewish wrestler (died 1996) Károly Kárpáti was a Hungarian Olympic wrestling champion of Jewish heritage. Read more
02 Jul 1906: Séra Martin, French middle-distance runner (died 1993) Séraphin "Séra" Martin was a French middle-distance runner who set world records in the 800 metres and 1000 metres. He competed at the 1928 and 1932 Olympics and placed sixth and eighth in the 800 metres, respectively. Read more
02 Jul 1904: René Lacoste, French tennis player and businessman, created the polo shirt (died 1996) Jean René Lacoste was a French tennis player and businessman. He was nicknamed "the Crocodile" because of how he dealt with his opponents; he is also known worldwide as the creator of the Lacoste tennis shirt, which he introduced in 1929, and eventually founded the brand and its logo in 1933. Read more
02 Jul 1903: Alec Douglas-Home, English cricketer and politician, 66th Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (died 1995) Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel, known as Lord Dunglass from 1918 to 1951 and the Earl of Home from 1951 to 1963, was a British statesman and Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1963 to 1964. He was the last prime minister to hold office while being a member of the House of Lords, before renouncing his peerage and taking up a seat in the House of Commons for the remainder of his premiership. His reputation, however, rests more on his seven years over two stints as Foreign Secretary than on his brief premiership. Read more
02 Jul 1903: Olav V, Norwegian king, 1957–1991 (died 1991) Olav V was King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Read more
02 Jul 1902: K. Kanapathypillai, Sri Lankan author and academic (died 1968) Professor Kandasamypillai Kanapathypillai was a leading Ceylon Tamil academic, author and head of the Department of Tamil at the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya for 18 years. Read more
02 Jul 1900: Tyrone Guthrie, English actor and director (died 1971) Sir William Tyrone Guthrie was an English theatrical director instrumental in the founding of the Stratford Festival of Canada, the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Tyrone Guthrie Centre at his family's ancestral home, Annaghmakerrig, near Newbliss in County Monaghan, Ireland. He is famous for his original approach to Shakespearean and modern drama. Read more
02 Jul 1893: Ralph Hancock, Welsh gardener and author (died 1950) Ralph Hancock was a Welsh landscape gardener, architect and author. Hancock built gardens in the United Kingdom in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s and in the United States in the 1930s. He is known for the roof gardens at Derry and Toms in London and the Rockefeller Center in New York City, the garden at Twyn-yr-Hydd House in Margam, and the rock and water garden he built for Princess Victoria at Coppins, Iver, England. Read more
02 Jul 1884: Alfons Maria Jakob, German neurologist and author (died 1931) Alfons Maria Jakob was a German neurologist who worked in the field of neuropathology. Read more
02 Jul 1881: Royal Hurlburt Weller, American lawyer and politician (died 1929) Royal Hurlburt Weller was an American politician and attorney who was a United States representative from New York from 1923 to 1929. He was assistant district attorney of New York County from 1911 to 1917. Read more
02 Jul 1877: Hermann Hesse, German-born Swiss poet, novelist, and painter, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1962) Hermann Karl Hesse was a German-Swiss poet and novelist, and winner of the 1946 Nobel Prize in Literature. His interest in Eastern religious, spiritual, and philosophical traditions, combined with his involvement with Jungian analysis, helped shape his literary work. His best-known novels include Demian, Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, Narcissus and Goldmund, and The Glass Bead Game, each of which explores an individual's search for authenticity, self-knowledge, and spirituality. Read more
02 Jul 1877: Rinaldo Cuneo, American artist ("the painter of San Francisco") (died 1939) Rinaldo Cuneo, was an American artist known for his landscape paintings and murals. He was dubbed "the Painter of San Francisco". Read more
02 Jul 1876: Harriet Brooks, Canadian physicist and academic (died 1933) Harriet Brooks was a Canadian nuclear physicist. She is most famous for her research in radioactivity. She discovered atomic recoil, and transmutation of elements in radioactive decay. Ernest Rutherford, who guided her graduate work, regarded her as comparable to Marie Curie in the calibre of her aptitude. She was among the first persons to discover radon and to try to determine its atomic mass. Read more
02 Jul 1876: Wilhelm Cuno, German businessman and politician, Chancellor of Germany (died 1933) Wilhelm Carl Josef Cuno was a German businessman and politician who was the chancellor of Germany from 1922 to 1923 for a total of 264 days. His tenure included the beginning of the occupation of the Ruhr by French and Belgian troops and the period in which inflation in Germany accelerated towards hyperinflation. Read more
02 Jul 1869: Liane de Pougy, French-Swiss dancer and author (died 1950) Liane de Pougy was a French dancer, courtesan and novelist. She was a Folies Bergère vedette, and was known as one of the most beautiful and notorious courtesans in Paris. Later in life, she became a Dominican tertiary. Read more
02 Jul 1865: Lily Braun, German author and publicist (died 1916) Lily Braun, born Amalie von Kretschmann, was a German feminist writer and politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). She developed the idea of the single-kitchen home. Read more
02 Jul 1862: William Henry Bragg, English physicist, chemist, and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1942) Sir William Henry Bragg was a British X-ray crystallographer who uniquely shared a Nobel Prize with his son Lawrence Bragg – the 1915 Nobel Prize in Physics "for their services in the analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays," an important step in the development of X-ray crystallography. Read more
02 Jul 1849: Maria Theresa of Austria-Este (died 1919) Maria Theresa Henriette Dorothea of Austria-Este was the last Queen of Bavaria. She was the only child of Archduke Ferdinand Karl Viktor of Austria-Este and Archduchess Elisabeth Franziska of Austria. Read more
02 Jul 1834: Hendrick Peter Godfried Quack, Dutch economist and historian (died 1917) Hendrick Peter Godfried Quack was a Dutch legal scholar, economist and historian, who is best known for his work De socialisten: Personen en stelsels. Read more
02 Jul 1825: Émile Ollivier, French statesman (died 1913) Olivier Émile Ollivier was a French statesman. Starting as an avid republican opposed to Emperor Napoleon III, he pushed the Emperor toward liberal reforms and in turn came increasingly into Napoleon's grip. He entered the cabinet and was the prime minister when Napoleon fell. Read more
02 Jul 1821: Charles Tupper, Canadian physician and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Canada (died 1915) Sir Charles Tupper, 1st Baronet, was a Canadian Father of Confederation who served as the sixth prime minister of Canada from May 1 to July 8, 1896. As the premier of Nova Scotia from 1864 to 1867, he led Nova Scotia into Confederation. He briefly served as the Canadian prime minister, from seven days after parliament had been dissolved, until he was dismissed by the Governor General on July 8, 1896, following his party's loss in the 1896 Canadian federal election. He is the only medical doctor to have ever held the office of prime minister of Canada, and his 69-day tenure as prime minister is the shortest in Canadian history. Read more
02 Jul 1820: George Law Curry, American publisher and politician, 5th governor of the Oregon Territory (died 1878) George Law Curry was a predominant American political figure and newspaper publisher in the region that eventually became the state of Oregon. A native of Pennsylvania, he published a newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri, before traveling the Oregon Trail to the unorganized Oregon Country. A Democrat, Curry served in the new Oregon Territory's government as a representative to the legislature and as Territorial Secretary before appointment as the last Governor of the Oregon Territory. Curry County in Southern Oregon is named in his honor. Read more
02 Jul 1820: Juan N. Méndez, Mexican general and interim president, 1876-1877 (died 1894) Juan Nepomuceno Laureano Méndez Sánchez was a Mexican general, a Liberal politician and confidant of Porfirio Díaz, and interim president of the Republic for a few months during the Porfiriato. He served from 6 December 1876 until 17 February 1877. Read more
02 Jul 1819: Charles-Louis Hanon, French pianist and composer (died 1900) Charles-Louis Hanon was a French piano pedagogue and composer. He is best known for his work The Virtuoso Pianist in 60 Exercises, which is still used today for modern piano teaching, but over the years the method has also faced criticisms. Read more

Notable Deaths on 02 July

02 Jul 2025: Sophia Hutchins, American socialite (born 1996) Sophia Hutchins was an American socialite, media personality, businesswoman, charity executive and model. She was best known as the manager of Caitlyn Jenner, the chief executive officer and director of the Caitlyn Jenner Foundation, and the founder CEO of the sunscreen company LUMASOL. Read more
02 Jul 2025: Julian McMahon, Australian-American actor (born 1968) Julian Dana William McMahon was an Australian-American actor. He was the only son of William McMahon, a former Prime Minister of Australia. He was best known for his roles as Ben Lucini in Home and Away, Detective John Grant in Profiler, Cole Turner in Charmed, Dr. Christian Troy in Nip/Tuck, Doctor Doom in the Fantastic Four duology, Jonah in Runaways and Jess LaCroix in FBI: Most Wanted. His other films include Premonition, Red, and The Surfer. For his performance in Nip/Tuck, McMahon was nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Drama Series. Read more
02 Jul 2020: Ángela Jeria, Chilean archaeologist and human rights activist (born 1926) Ángela Margarita Jeria Gómez was a Chilean archaeologist. Mother of the former President of Chile Michelle Bachelet, she was the wife of the Chilean Air Force Brigadier General Alberto Bachelet, who died after being tortured during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Jeria served informally in the role of first lady during the first Bachelet government, accompanying her daughter to several official functions. Her official protocolary role was "Director of the Sociocultural Area of the Presidency". Read more
02 Jul 2020: Byron Bernstein, American Twitch streamer (born 1989) Byron Daniel Bernstein, better known as Reckful, was an American-Israeli Twitch streamer and professional esports player. He was best known in the gaming community for his achievements in World of Warcraft and Asheron's Call. Read more
02 Jul 2019: Lee Iacocca, American automotive executive (born 1924) Lido Anthony "Lee" Iacocca was an American author, engineer, and executive who developed the Ford Mustang, Continental Mark III, and Ford Pinto cars while at the Ford Motor Company in the 1960s, and then revived the Chrysler Corporation as its CEO during the 1980s. He was president of Chrysler from 1978 to 1991 and chairman and CEO from 1979 until his retirement at the end of 1992. He was one of the few executives to preside over the operations of two of the United States' Big Three automakers. Read more
02 Jul 2018: Alan Longmuir, Scottish musician (born 1948) Alan Longmuir was a Scottish musician and a founding member of the pop group the Bay City Rollers. He played the bass guitar, whilst his younger brother Derek Longmuir was drummer. Read more
02 Jul 2017: Vladislav Rastorotsky, a Russian (and former Soviet) artistic gymnastics coach, (born 1933) Vladislav Stepanovich Rastorotsky was a Soviet and Russian female artistic gymnastics coach, Honoured Trainer of the USSR, who worked at the Dynamo sports society. Sportswomen trained by him earned more than 50 titles at the Soviet national championships, European championships, World Championships and Olympic Games. Rastorotsky trained Soviet gymnasts for five Olympic cycles, starting in the mid-1960s. His most famous pupils were Ludmilla Tourischeva, Natalia Shaposhnikova and Natalia Yurchenko. Read more
02 Jul 2017: Smith Hart, American-born Canadian professional wrestler (born 1948) Smith Stewart Hart was an American-Canadian professional wrestler and a member of the Hart wrestling family. His parents were Stu and Helen Hart. Smith was the first of their twelve children, being one of their eight sons, Bruce, Keith, Wayne, Dean, Bret, Ross and Owen followed him. Hart is also the father of two professional wrestlers, Mike and Matt Hart. Hart wrestled for the majority of his career in Canada but also worked briefly in other countries and is best known for his time in Stampede Wrestling and for his appearances for WWE. He died in 2017 due to prostate cancer. Read more
02 Jul 2016: Caroline Aherne, English actress and comedian (born 1963) Caroline Mary Aherne was an English actress, comedian, writer and director. Read more
02 Jul 2016: Michael Cimino, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1939) Michael Antonio Cimino was an American film director, screenwriter, producer and author. Notorious for his obsessive attention to detail and determination for perfection, Cimino achieved widespread fame with The Deer Hunter (1978), which won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. Read more
02 Jul 2016: Patrick Manning, 4th & 6th Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (born 1946) Patrick Augustus Mervyn Manning was a Trinidadian politician who served as the fourth prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago twice from 1991 to 1995, and again from 2001 to 2010. A geologist by training, Manning served as Member of Parliament for the San Fernando East constituency from 1971 until 2015 when he was replaced by Randall Mitchell, but with the seat in 2020 being won by his son Brian Manning. Patrick Manning was the longest-serving member of the House of Representatives. He was the Leader of the Opposition from 1986 to 1990 and again from 1995 to 2001. Read more
02 Jul 2016: Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor, activist, and author (born 1928) Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel was a Romanian-born American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He authored 57 books, written mostly in French and English, including Night, which is based on his experiences as a Jewish prisoner at Auschwitz and Buchenwald during the Holocaust. Read more
02 Jul 2015: Ronald Davison, New Zealand lawyer and judge, 10th Chief Justice of New Zealand (born 1920) Sir Ronald Keith Davison was a New Zealand lawyer and jurist. He served as the tenth Chief Justice of New Zealand from 1978 to 1989, Read more
02 Jul 2015: Charlie Sanders, American football player and sportscaster (born 1946) Charles Alvin Sanders was an American professional football player who was a tight end for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) from 1968 to 1977. Sanders was chosen for the NFL's 1970s All-Decade Team and voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007. Read more
02 Jul 2015: Jim Weaver, American football player and coach (born 1945) James C. Weaver was an American college football player, coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Villanova University for the first eight games of the 1974 season, finishing with a record of 3–5. Weaver also served as the athletic director at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) from 1991 to 1994, Western Michigan University from 1996 to 1997, and Virginia Tech from 1997 to 2014. Read more
02 Jul 2015: Jacobo Zabludovsky, Mexican journalist (born 1928) Jacobo Zabludovsky Kraveski was a Mexican journalist. He was the first anchorman in Mexican television and his TV news program, 24 Horas was for decades regarded as the most important in the country. Read more
02 Jul 2014: Emilio Álvarez Montalván, Nicaraguan ophthalmologist and politician (born 1919) Emilio Álvarez Montalván was a Nicaraguan ophthalmologist and a Foreign Minister of the Republic of Nicaragua. Read more
02 Jul 2014: Manuel Cardona, Spanish physicist and academic (born 1934) Manuel Cardona Castro was a Spanish condensed matter physicist. According to the ISI Citations web database, Cardona was one of the eight most cited physicists since 1970. He specialized in solid state physics. Cardona's main interests were in the fields of: Raman scattering as applied to semiconductor microstructures, materials with tailor-made isotopic compositions, and high Tc superconductors, particularly investigations of electronic and vibronic excitations in the normal and superconducting state. Read more
02 Jul 2014: Mary Innes-Ker, Duchess of Roxburghe (born 1915) Mary Evelyn Hungerford Innes-Ker, Duchess of Roxburghe, born Lady Mary Crewe-Milnes, was a British aristocrat. She was a daughter of Robert Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of Crewe, by his marriage to Lady Peggy Primrose, one of the first seven women appointed as magistrates in 1919 following the passing of the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919. Her maternal grandparents were Hannah de Rothschild and Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery. Read more
02 Jul 2014: Harold W. Kuhn, American mathematician and academic (born 1925) Harold William Kuhn was an American mathematician who studied game theory. He won the 1980 John von Neumann Theory Prize jointly with David Gale and Albert W. Tucker. A former professor emeritus of mathematics at Princeton University, he is known for the Karush–Kuhn–Tucker conditions, for Kuhn's theorem, and for developing Kuhn poker. He described the Hungarian method for the assignment problem, but later a paper by Carl Gustav Jacobi was discovered that had described the Hungarian method a century before Kuhn, published posthumously in 1890 in Latin. Read more
02 Jul 2014: Louis Zamperini, American runner and World War II US Army Air Forces captain (born 1917) Louis Silvie Zamperini was an American World War II veteran, Olympic distance runner, and Christian evangelist. He began running in high school and qualified for the United States in the 5,000 m event at the 1936 Summer Olympics, where he finished eighth and set a new lap record. Read more
02 Jul 2013: Anthony G. Bosco, American bishop (born 1927) Anthony Gerard Bosco was an American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the third bishop of the Diocese of Greensburg in Pennsylvania from 1987 to 2004. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania from 1970 to 1987. Read more
02 Jul 2013: Douglas Engelbart, American computer scientist, invented the computer mouse (born 1925) Douglas Carl Engelbart was an American engineer, inventor, and a pioneer in many aspects of computer science. He is best known for his work on founding the field of human–computer interaction, particularly while at his Augmentation Research Center Lab in SRI International, which resulted in creation of the computer mouse, and the development of hypertext, networked computers, and precursors to graphical user interfaces. These were demonstrated at The Mother of All Demos in 1968. Engelbart's law, the observation that the intrinsic rate of human performance is exponential, is named after him. Read more
02 Jul 2013: Armand Gaudreault, Canadian ice hockey player (born 1921) Armand Gérard Gaudreault was a Canadian ice hockey player. He played 44 games in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins during the 1944–45 season. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1940 to 1952, was spent in the Quebec Senior Hockey League and the American Hockey League. Gaudreault was born in Lac Saint-Jean, Quebec. Read more
02 Jul 2013: Anthony Llewellyn, Welsh-American chemist, academic, and astronaut (born 1933) John Anthony Llewellyn was a Welsh chemist and a NOAA aquanaut. In August 1967, Llewellyn was one of only two non-American astronaut candidates selected by NASA as part of NASA Astronaut Group 6. Read more
02 Jul 2012: Maurice Chevit, French actor and screenwriter (born 1923) Maurice Chevit was a French actor. Read more
02 Jul 2012: Julian Goodman, American journalist (born 1922) Julian Byrn Goodman was an American broadcasting executive and journalist. Read more
02 Jul 2012: Angelo Mangiarotti, Italian architect and academic (born 1921) Angelo Mangiarotti was an Italian architect and industrial designer. His designs were mostly for industrial buildings and railway stations. In 1994, he received the Compasso d'Oro award of the Associazione per il Disegno Industriale for his lifetime of achievement. Read more
02 Jul 2012: Betty Meggers, American archaeologist and academic (born 1921) Betty Jane Meggers was an American archaeologist best known for her work in South America. She was considered influential at the Smithsonian Institution, where she was long associated in research, and she wrote extensively about environment as a shaper of human cultures. Read more
02 Jul 2012: Ed Stroud, American baseball player (born 1939) Edwin Marvin Stroud was an American professional baseball player. An outfielder, he played in the Major Leagues from 1966–1971 for the Chicago White Sox and Washington Senators. He was signed by the Chicago White Sox as an undrafted free agent in 1963. Read more
02 Jul 2011: Itamar Franco, Brazilian engineer and politician, 33rd President of Brazil (born 1930) Itamar Augusto Cautiero Franco was a Brazilian politician who served as the 33rd president of Brazil from 29 December 1992 to 1 January 1995. Previously, he was the 21st vice president of Brazil from 1990 until the resignation of President Fernando Collor de Mello. During his long political career Franco also served as Senator, Mayor, Ambassador and Governor. At the time of his death he was a senator from Minas Gerais, having won the seat in the 2010 election. Read more
02 Jul 2010: Beryl Bainbridge, English screenwriter and author (born 1932) Dame Beryl Margaret Bainbridge was an English writer. She was primarily known for her works of psychological fiction, often macabre tales set among the English working class. She won the Whitbread Awards prize for best novel in 1977 and 1996, and was nominated five times for the Booker Prize. She was described in 2007 as a national treasure. In 2008, The Times named Bainbridge on their list of the "50 greatest British writers since 1945". Read more
02 Jul 2008: Natasha Shneider, Russian-American singer, keyboard player, and actress (born 1956) Natalia Mikhailovna Schneiderman, known as Natasha Shneider, was a Latvian-born Soviet-American musician and actress. She was most notably the keyboardist and vocalist in the band Eleven, along with her partner, bandmate Alain Johannes. Shneider contributed to tracks for Chris Cornell and Queens of the Stone Age, and together with Johannes toured with Cornell on his Euphoria Morning tour in 1999 and with Queens in 2005 on their Lullabies to Paralyze tour. She died of cancer in 2008. Read more
02 Jul 2008: Elizabeth Spriggs, English actress and screenwriter (born 1929) Elizabeth Jean Spriggs was an English actress. Read more
02 Jul 2007: Beverly Sills, American operatic soprano and television personality (born 1929) Beverly Sills was an American operatic soprano whose career peak was between the 1950s and 1970s. Read more
02 Jul 2006: Jan Murray, American comedian, actor, and game show host (born 1916) Jan Murray was an American stand-up comedian, actor, and game-show host who originally made his name on the Borscht Belt and later was known for his frequent television appearances over several decades. Read more
02 Jul 2005: Ernest Lehman, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1915) Ernest Paul Lehman was an American screenwriter and film producer. He was nominated six times for Academy Awards for his screenplays during his career, but did not win. At the 73rd Academy Awards in 2001, he received an Honorary Academy Award in recognition of his achievements and his influential works for the screen. He was the first screenwriter to receive that honor. Read more
02 Jul 2005: Norm Prescott, American actor, composer, and producer, co-founded Filmation Studios (born 1927) Norman Zachary Prescott was co-founder and executive producer at Filmation Associates, an animation studio he created with veteran animator Lou Scheimer. Read more
02 Jul 2004: Mochtar Lubis, Indonesian journalist and author (born 1922) Mochtar Lubis was an Indonesian journalist and novelist who co-founded Indonesia Raya and monthly literary magazine Horison. His novel Senja di Jakarta was the first Indonesian novel to be translated into English. He was a critic of Sukarno and was imprisoned by him, as well as by Suharto on several later occasions. He held strong anti-leftist views and was seen by critics as aligned with Indonesian National Armed Forces and pro-U.S forces that were opposed to Sukarno’s non-aligned policies, a charge that he himself denied. Read more
02 Jul 2003: Briggs Cunningham, American race car driver and businessman (born 1907) Briggs Swift Cunningham II was an American entrepreneur and sportsman. He is best known for skippering the yacht Columbia to victory in the 1958 America's Cup race, and for his efforts as a driver, team owner, and constructor in sports car racing, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Read more
02 Jul 2002: Ray Brown, American jazz musician and composer (born 1926) Raymond Matthews Brown was an American jazz double bassist, known for his extensive work with Oscar Peterson and Ella Fitzgerald. He was also a founding member of the group that would later develop into the Modern Jazz Quartet. Read more
02 Jul 2000: Joey Dunlop, Northern Irish motorcycle racer (born 1952) William Joseph Dunlop was a Northern Irish roadracing motorcyclist from Ballymoney, County Antrim. In 2015, he was voted Northern Ireland's greatest-ever sports star. Read more
02 Jul 1999: Mario Puzo, American author and screenwriter (born 1920) Mario Francis Puzo was an American author and screenwriter. He wrote crime novels about the Italian-American Mafia and Sicilian Mafia, most notably The Godfather (1969), which he later co-adapted into a film trilogy directed by Francis Ford Coppola. He received the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for the first film in 1972 and for Part II in 1974. Puzo also wrote the original screenplay for the 1978 Superman film and its 1980 sequel. His final novel, The Family, was released posthumously in 2001. Read more
02 Jul 1997: James Stewart, American actor (born 1908) James Maitland Stewart was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart appeared in 80 films from 1935 to 1991. His films are considered among the greatest of all time. In 1999, the American Film Institute (AFI) ranked him third on its list of the greatest American male actors; he received numerous honors including the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1980, the Kennedy Center Honor in 1983, as well as the Academy Honorary Award and Presidential Medal of Freedom, both in 1985. Read more
02 Jul 1995: Lloyd MacPhail, Canadian businessman and politician, 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island (born 1920) Robert Lloyd George MacPhail, was a Canadian politician and the 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island. Read more
02 Jul 1994: Andrés Escobar, Colombian footballer (born 1967) Andrés Escobar Saldarriaga was a Colombian professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He played for Atlético Nacional, BSC Young Boys, and the Colombia national team. Nicknamed The Gentleman, he was known for his clean style of play and calmness on the pitch. Read more
02 Jul 1993: Fred Gwynne, American actor (born 1926) Frederick Hubbard Gwynne was an American actor, artist, and author, who is widely known for his roles in the 1960s television sitcoms Car 54, Where Are You? and The Munsters, as well as his later film roles in The Cotton Club (1984), Pet Sematary (1989), and My Cousin Vinny (1992). Read more
02 Jul 1991: Lee Remick, American actress (born 1935) Lee Ann Remick was an American actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for the film Days of Wine and Roses (1962) and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her role in Wait Until Dark (1966) in addition to earning seven Emmy Award nominations. Read more
02 Jul 1990: Snooky Lanson, American singer (born 1914) Roy Landman, better known as Snooky Lanson, was an American singer known for co-starring on the NBC TV show, Your Hit Parade. Read more
02 Jul 1989: Andrei Gromyko, Soviet economist and politician, Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs (born 1909) Andrei Andreyevich Gromyko was a Soviet politician and diplomat during the Cold War. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs (1957–1985) and as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet (1985–1988). Gromyko was responsible for many top decisions on Soviet foreign policy until he retired in 1988. In the 1940s, Western pundits called him Mr. Nyet, or Grim Grom, because of his frequent use of the Soviet veto in the United Nations Security Council. Read more
02 Jul 1988: Allie Vibert Douglas, Canadian astronomer and astrophysicist (born 1894) Alice Vibert Douglas, who usually went by her middle name, was a Canadian astronomer and astrophysicist. Read more
02 Jul 1986: Peanuts Lowrey, American baseball player and manager (born 1917) Harry Lee "Peanuts" Lowrey was an American outfielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds (1949–50), St. Louis Cardinals (1950–54) and Philadelphia Phillies (1955). Read more
02 Jul 1980: Tom Barry, leader of the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War (born 1897) Thomas Bernardine Barry was an Irish republican. He was a prominent guerrilla leader in the Irish Republican Army (IRA) during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. Barry is often known for orchestrating the Kilmichael ambush, in which he and his flying column attacked an 18-man patrol of Auxiliaries, killing sixteen men. Read more
02 Jul 1978: Aris Alexandrou, Greek author and poet (born 1922) Aris Alexandrou was a Greek novelist, poet and translator. Always on the Left and always unconventional, he is the author of a single novel which is widely considered to be among the classic modern Greek works in the second half of the 20th century. Read more
02 Jul 1977: Vladimir Nabokov, Russian-born novelist and critic (born 1899) Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov, also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin, was a Russian and American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Read more
02 Jul 1975: James Robertson Justice, English actor (born 1907) James Robertson Justice was a British actor. He often portrayed pompous authority figures in comedies, including each of the seven films in the Doctor series. He also co-starred with Gregory Peck in several adventure movies, notably The Guns of Navarone. Born in south-east London to a Scottish father, he became prominent in Scottish public life, helping to launch Scottish Television (STV) and serving as Rector of the University of Edinburgh. Read more
02 Jul 1973: Betty Grable, American actress, singer, and dancer (born 1916) Elizabeth Ruth Grable was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million, and for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she placed among the Quigley Poll's top 10 box office stars. The U.S. Treasury Department listed her as the highest-salaried American woman in 1946 and 1947, and she earned more than $3 million during her career. Read more
02 Jul 1973: George McBride, American baseball player and manager (born 1880) George Florian "Pinch" McBride was an American professional baseball shortstop for the Milwaukee Brewers, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, and Washington Senators from 1901 to 1920. He started off with the short-lived Milwaukee Brewers, but he only had 12 at-bats in three games. After stints in semi-pro ball, he joined the Pirates in 1905 but was traded mid-season to the Cardinals. He did not become a regular starter until the 1908 season, when he joined the Senators and became their everyday shortstop. He never hit for a high average, but was very talented with the glove, leading the American League in fielding for four straight seasons. He was given the nickname "Pinch" for his ability to hit in the clutch. Read more
02 Jul 1973: Ferdinand Schörner, German field marshal and convicted war criminal (born 1892) Ferdinand Schörner was a German military commander and convicted war criminal, who held the rank of Generalfeldmarschall in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was the only German soldier to rise to this rank from his initial status of Einjährig-Freiwilliger. He commanded several army groups and was the final Commander-in-chief of the German Army and the last man promoted to the rank of Field Marshal in the Wehrmacht. Read more
02 Jul 1972: Joseph Fielding Smith, American religious leader, 10th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (born 1876) Joseph Fielding Smith Jr. was an American religious leader and writer who served as the tenth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1970 until his death in 1972. He was the son of former church president Joseph F. Smith and the great-nephew of church founder Joseph Smith. Read more
02 Jul 1970: Jessie Street, Australian suffragette and feminist (born 1889) Jessie Mary Grey Street was an Australian diplomat, suffragette, and a campaigner for Indigenous Australian rights. She was referred to as "Red Jessie" by the Australian media, due to her support for the Soviet Union through World War II and the Cold War, as she organised the "Sheepskins for Russia" campaign during World War II, and she was notably one of two Australians to attend Stalin's funeral. Read more
02 Jul 1966: Jan Brzechwa, Polish poet, author, and lawyer (born 1900) Jan Wiktor Brzechwa was a Polish poet, author and lawyer, known mostly for his contribution to children's literature. Read more
02 Jul 1964: Fireball Roberts, American race car driver (born 1929) Edward Glenn "Fireball" Roberts Jr. was an American stock car racer. Read more
02 Jul 1963: Alicia Patterson, American publisher, co-founded Newsday (born 1906) Alicia Patterson was an American journalist, and cofounder and editor of New York daily newspaper Newsday. She created the Deathless Deer comic strip with Neysa McMein in 1943. Read more
02 Jul 1961: Ernest Hemingway, American novelist, short story writer, and journalist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1899) Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. Known for an economical, understated style that influenced later 20th-century writers, he has been romanticized for his adventurous lifestyle and outspoken, blunt public image. Some of his seven novels, six short-story collections and two non-fiction works have become classics of American literature, and he was awarded the 1954 Nobel Prize in Literature. Read more
02 Jul 1955: Edward Lawson, English soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (born 1873) Edward Lawson VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Read more
02 Jul 1932: Manuel II of Portugal (born 1889) Dom Manuel II, sometimes known as the Unfortunate or the Patriot, was the last king of Portugal, reigning from 1908 until 1910. Read more
02 Jul 1929: Gladys Brockwell, American actress (born 1894) Gladys Brockwell was an American actress whose career began during the silent film era. Read more
02 Jul 1926: Émile Coué, French psychologist and pharmacist (born 1857) Émile Coué de la Châtaigneraie was a French psychologist, pharmacist, and hypnotist who introduced a popular method of psychotherapy and self-improvement based on optimistic autosuggestion.It was in no small measure [Coué's] wholehearted devotion to a self-imposed task that enabled him, in less than a quarter of a century, to rise from obscurity to the position of the world’s most famous psychological exponent. Indeed, one might truly say that Coué sidetracked inefficient hypnotism [mistakenly based upon supposed operator dominance over a subject], and paved the way for the efficient, and truly scientific. Read more
02 Jul 1920: William Louis Marshall, American general and engineer (born 1846) William Louis Marshall was an influential figure in the US Corps of Engineers. Read more
02 Jul 1915: Porfirio Díaz, Mexican general and politician, 29th President of Mexico (born 1830) José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori, commonly known as Porfirio Díaz, was a Mexican army general and politician who was the dictator of Mexico from 1876 until his overthrow in 1911. Seizing power in a military coup, he served as president of Mexico on three occasions, a total of over thirty years, the longest of any Mexican ruler. This period is known as the Porfiriato and has been called a de facto dictatorship. Read more
02 Jul 1914: Joseph Chamberlain, English businessman and politician, Secretary of State for the Colonies (born 1836) Joseph Chamberlain was a British statesman who was first a radical Liberal, then a Liberal Unionist after opposing home rule for Ireland, and eventually was a leading imperialist in coalition with the Conservatives. He split both major British parties in the course of his career. He was the father, by different marriages, of Nobel Peace Prize winner Austen Chamberlain and of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. Read more
02 Jul 1912: Tom Richardson, English cricketer (born 1870) Tom Richardson was an English cricketer. A fast bowler, Richardson relied to a great extent on the break-back, a relatively long run-up and high arm which allowed him to gain sharp lift on fast pitches even from the full, straight length he always bowled. He played 358 first-class cricket matches including 14 Tests, taking a total of 2,104 wickets. In the four consecutive seasons from 1894 to 1897 he took 1,005 wickets, a figure surpassed over such a period only by the slow bowler Tich Freeman. He took 290 wickets in 1895, again a figure only exceeded by Freeman (twice). In 1963 Neville Cardus selected him as one of his "Six Giants of the Wisden Century". Read more
02 Jul 1903: Ed Delahanty, American baseball player (born 1867) Edward James Delahanty, nicknamed "Big Ed", was an American professional baseball player, who spent his Major League Baseball (MLB) playing career with the Philadelphia Quakers, Cleveland Infants, Philadelphia Phillies, and Washington Senators. He was renowned as one of the game's early power hitters, and while primarily a left fielder, also spent time as an infielder. Delahanty won two batting titles, batted over .400 three times, and has the seventh-highest career batting average in MLB history. In 1945, Delahanty was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Delahanty died as a result of falling into the Niagara River or being swept over Niagara Falls (undetermined), after being removed from a train for being drunk and disorderly. Read more
02 Jul 1857: Carlo Pisacane, Italian soldier and philosopher (born 1818) Carlo Pisacane, Duke of San Giovanni was an Italian patriot and one of the first Italian socialist thinkers. He was an early advocate of propaganda by deed, arguing that violence was necessary not only to draw attention to, or generate publicity for, a cause, but also to inform, educate, and ultimately rally the masses behind the revolution. Read more
02 Jul 1850: Robert Peel, English lieutenant and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (born 1788) Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, was a British Conservative statesman who twice was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and simultaneously was Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–1835). He previously was Home Secretary twice. He is regarded as the father of modern British policing, owing to his founding of the Metropolitan Police while he was Home Secretary. Peel was one of the founders of the modern Conservative Party. Read more
02 Jul 1843: Samuel Hahnemann, German physician and academic (born 1755) Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann was a German medical doctor, best known for creating the pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine called homeopathy. Read more
02 Jul 1833: Gervasio Antonio de Posadas, Argentinian lawyer and politician, 1st Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (born 1757) Gervasio Antonio de Posadas y Dávila was an Argentine lawyer and statesman who served as the first Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata from 31 January 1814 to 9 January 1815, after having been a member of the Second Triumvirate in 1813–1814. Read more

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