History of Today in India – 02 March

Explore the history of today 02 March in India, including important events, famous personalities, and milestones for UPSC SSC,Banking & PSC exams.

Last updated on 02 March 2026, 04:20 AM

📜 Important Events on 02 March in World History

• 02 Mar 2022: Russian forces capture the city of Kherson during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which subsequently began the start of the Russian occupation and military-civilian administration in Kherson. Kherson is the only regional capital in Ukraine that Russia captured. Read more
• 02 Mar 2017: The elements Moscovium, Tennessine, and Oganesson are officially added to the periodic table at a conference in Moscow, Russia. Read more
• 02 Mar 2014: The Oscar Selfie, regarded as one of the most influential and important images of all time, is taken at the 86th Academy Awards. Read more
• 02 Mar 2012: A tornado outbreak occurs over a large section of the Southern United States and into the Ohio Valley region, resulting in 40 tornado-related fatalities. Read more
• 02 Mar 2006: In Monterrey, Mexico, a man identified as Diego Santoy Riveroll commits a double murder against two children, followed by an attempted murder of his ex-partner, Erika. The incident is popularly known as the Cumbres case. Read more
• 02 Mar 2004: War in Iraq: Al-Qaeda carries out the Ashoura Massacre in Iraq, killing 170 and wounding over 500. Read more
• 02 Mar 2002: U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: Operation Anaconda begins, (ending on March 19 after killing 500 Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, with 11 Western troop fatalities). Read more
• 02 Mar 1998: Data sent from the Galileo spacecraft indicates that Jupiter's moon Europa has a liquid ocean under a thick crust of ice. Read more
• 02 Mar 1995: Researchers at Fermilab announce the discovery of the top quark. Read more
• 02 Mar 1995: Space Shuttle Endeavour launches from the Kennedy Space Center on STS-67, carrying the ASTRO-2 spacelab observatory. Read more
• 02 Mar 1992: Start of the war in Transnistria. Read more
• 02 Mar 1992: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, San Marino, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, all of which (except San Marino) were former Soviet republics, join the United Nations. Read more
• 02 Mar 1991: Establishment of Kuwait Democratic Forum, center-left political organization in Kuwait. Read more
• 02 Mar 1991: Battle at Rumaila oil field brings an end to the 1991 Gulf War. Read more
• 02 Mar 1990: Nelson Mandela is elected deputy president of the African National Congress. Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: Twelve European Community nations agree to ban the production of all chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) by the end of the century. Read more
• 02 Mar 1986: Aeroflot Flight F-77 crashes near Bugulma Airport, killing all 38 people aboard. Read more
• 02 Mar 1983: Compact discs and players are released for the first time in the United States and other markets. They had previously been available only in Japan. Read more
• 02 Mar 1978: Czech Vladimír Remek becomes the first non-Russian or non-American to go into space, when he is launched aboard Soyuz 28. Read more
• 02 Mar 1978: The late iconic actor Charlie Chaplin's coffin is stolen from his grave in Switzerland. Read more
• 02 Mar 1977: Libya becomes the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya as the General People's Congress adopts the "Declaration on the Establishment of the Authority of the People". Read more
• 02 Mar 1972: The Pioneer 10 space probe is launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida with a mission to explore the outer planets. Read more
• 02 Mar 1970: Rhodesia declares itself a republic, breaking its last links with the British crown. Read more
• 02 Mar 1969: In Toulouse, France, the first test flight of the Anglo-French Concorde is conducted. Read more
• 02 Mar 1968: Baggeridge Colliery closes, marking the end of over 300 years of coal mining in the Black Country. Read more
• 02 Mar 1965: The US and Republic of Vietnam Air Force begin Operation Rolling Thunder, a sustained bombing campaign against North Vietnam. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: In Burma, the army led by General Ne Win seizes power in a coup d'état. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Wilt Chamberlain sets the single-game scoring record in the National Basketball Association by scoring 100 points. Read more
• 02 Mar 1955: Norodom Sihanouk, king of Cambodia, abdicates the throne in favor of his father, Norodom Suramarit. Read more
• 02 Mar 1949: Captain James Gallagher lands his B-50 Superfortress Lucky Lady II in Fort Worth, Texas, after completing the first non-stop around-the-world airplane flight in 94 hours and one minute. Read more
• 02 Mar 1943: World War II: During the Battle of the Bismarck Sea Allied aircraft defeat a Japanese attempt to ship troops to New Guinea. Read more
• 02 Mar 1941: World War II: First German military units enter Bulgaria after it joins the Axis Pact. Read more
• 02 Mar 1939: Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli is elected Pope and takes the name Pius XII. Read more
• 02 Mar 1937: The Steel Workers Organizing Committee signs a collective bargaining agreement with U.S. Steel, leading to unionization of the United States steel industry. Read more
• 02 Mar 1933: The film King Kong premieres in Radio City Music Hall and RKO Roxy in New York City. Read more
• 02 Mar 1932: Finnish president P. E. Svinhufvud gives a radio speech, which four days later finally ends the Mäntsälä Rebellion and the far-right Lapua Movement that started it. Read more
• 02 Mar 1919: The first Communist International meets in Moscow. Read more
• 02 Mar 1917: The enactment of the Jones–Shafroth Act grants Puerto Ricans United States citizenship. Read more
• 02 Mar 1903: In New York City the Martha Washington Hotel opens, becoming the first hotel exclusively for women. Read more
• 02 Mar 1901: United States Steel Corporation is founded as a result of a merger between Carnegie Steel Company and Federal Steel Company which became the first corporation in the world with a market capital over $1 billion. Read more
• 02 Mar 1901: The U.S. Congress passes the Platt Amendment limiting the autonomy of Cuba, as a condition of the withdrawal of American troops. Read more
• 02 Mar 1882: Queen Victoria narrowly escapes an assassination attempt by Roderick Maclean in Windsor. Read more
• 02 Mar 1877: Just two days before inauguration, the U.S. Congress declares Rutherford B. Hayes the winner of the 1876 U.S. presidential election even though Samuel J. Tilden had won the popular vote. Read more
• 02 Mar 1867: The U.S. Congress passes the first Reconstruction Act. Read more
• 02 Mar 1865: East Cape War: The Völkner Incident in New Zealand. Read more
• 02 Mar 1859: The two-day Great Slave Auction, once thought to be the largest such auction in United States history, begins. Read more
• 02 Mar 1855: Alexander II becomes Tsar of Russia. Read more
• 02 Mar 1836: Texas Revolution: The Declaration of independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico is adopted. Read more
• 02 Mar 1815: Signing of the Kandyan Convention treaty by British invaders and the leaders of the Kingdom of Kandy. Read more
• 02 Mar 1811: Argentine War of Independence: A royalist fleet defeats a small flotilla of revolutionary ships in the Battle of San Nicolás on the River Plate. Read more
• 02 Mar 1807: The U.S. Congress passes the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves, disallowing the importation of new slaves into the country. Read more

🎂 Important Births on 02 March in World History

• 02 Mar 2016: Prince Oscar, Duke of Skåne Prince Oscar of Sweden, Duke of Skåne is the younger child and only son of Crown Princess Victoria and her husband, Prince Daniel. He is a grandson of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia and is third in the line of succession to the Swedish throne, after his mother and his sister, Princess Estelle. Read more
• 02 Mar 2006: Windy Zhan, Hong Kong singer and actress Windy Zhan Tian-wen is a Hong Kong female Cantopop singer and actress, and a member of the Hong Kong girl group After Class. She is a contestant of the season 1 of TVB's 2021 reality singing talent competition Stars Academy. Zhan made her solo debut on 31 March 2023 with the single Reminiscence: Distance (沒有你的新學期). Read more
• 02 Mar 1999: Isiah Pacheco, American football player Isiah Pacheco, nicknamed "Pop" is an American professional football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Pacheco was selected by the Chiefs in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL draft. In his first two seasons with the Chiefs, he won Super Bowl LVII and Super Bowl LVIII. Read more
• 02 Mar 1998: Tua Tagovailoa, American football player Tuanigamanuolepola Donny Tagovailoa is an American professional football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide and was named the Offensive MVP of the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship during his freshman season. As a sophomore, Tagovailoa won the Maxwell and Walter Camp awards en route to an appearance in the 2019 National Championship. Read more
• 02 Mar 1997: Becky G, American singer and actress Rebbeca Marie Gomez, known professionally as Becky G, is an American singer, songwriter, actress and activist. Born and raised in Inglewood, California, she first gained recognition in 2011 for her cover versions of popular songs, which she uploaded to YouTube. One of her videos caught the attention of record producer Dr. Luke, who signed her to a recording contract with his label Kemosabe Records, an imprint of RCA Records. Shortly afterward, Gomez worked with singers will.i.am, Cody Simpson and Cher Lloyd. Her 2013 debut single, "Becky from the Block", preceded her debut extended play (EP), Play It Again (2013) – both releases failed to chart. Gomez achieved mainstream success with the release of her 2014 single "Shower," which peaked within the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and received double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Her 2016 single, "Sola," was her first full Spanish-language song and debut into the Latin market. Read more
• 02 Mar 1997: Arike Ogunbowale, American basketball player Arike Ogunbowale is an American professional basketball player for the Dallas Wings of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for the Mist of Unrivaled. She played college basketball for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, before being drafted by the Wings with the fifth overall pick of the 2019 WNBA draft. She was the Most Outstanding Player of Notre Dame's 2018 national title run, hitting game-winning baskets in both the semi-final and championship game. Arike Ogunbowale was named WNBA All Star MVP in 2021 and 2024. Read more
• 02 Mar 1996: Jin Longguo, Chinese singer based in South Korea Jin Longguo is a Chinese singer based in South Korea. He is best known for being a member of the South Korean project boy band JBJ, and for finishing 21st in the survival show Produce 101 Season 2. Read more
• 02 Mar 1995: Miguel Andújar, Dominican baseball player Miguel Enrique Andújar is a Dominican professional baseball left fielder and third baseman for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, Oakland Athletics / Athletics, and Cincinnati Reds. Read more
• 02 Mar 1995: Max Domi, Canadian ice hockey player Maxwell Johannes Domi is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a forward for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected in the first round, 12th overall, by the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2013 NHL entry draft. Domi has also previously played for the Montreal Canadiens, Columbus Blue Jackets, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, and Dallas Stars. Read more
• 02 Mar 1995: Ange-Freddy Plumain, French footballer Ange-Freddy Plumain is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for Cypriot First Division club Nea Salamina. Born in mainland France, he plays for the Guadeloupe national team. Read more
• 02 Mar 1993: Nicolás Brussino, Argentine-Italian basketball player Nicolás "Nico" Brussino is an Argentine-Italian professional basketball player for Gran Canaria of the Spanish Liga ACB. He also represents the senior Argentine national team in international competition. Standing at 2.01 m, he plays at the small forward position. Read more
• 02 Mar 1993: Adolis García, Cuban baseball player José Adolis García Arrieta, nicknamed "El Bombi", is a Cuban-born professional baseball outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers, in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yomiuri Giants, and in the Cuban National Series for Tigres de Ciego de Ávila. García was an MLB All-Star in 2021 and 2023. García won the 2023 World Series with the Rangers, winning ALCS MVP and setting the single post-season record by recording 22 RBI throughout their championship run. Read more
• 02 Mar 1992: Charlie Coyle, American ice hockey player Charles Robert Coyle is an American professional ice hockey player who is a forward for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has also played for the Minnesota Wild, Boston Bruins, and the Colorado Avalanche. Read more
• 02 Mar 1991: Nick Franklin, American baseball player Nicholas Edward Franklin is an American former professional baseball second baseman and outfielder. He was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the first round, 27th pick overall, of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft. He attended Lake Brantley High School where he won numerous awards, including being named the player of the year by the Orlando Sentinel in 2009. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Milwaukee Brewers, and Los Angeles Angels. Read more
• 02 Mar 1990: Rauno Alliku, Estonian footballer Rauno Alliku is an Estonian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Meistriliiga club Flora. Read more
• 02 Mar 1990: Malcolm Butler, American football player Malcolm Terel Butler is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). A two-time Super Bowl champion and 2015 Pro Bowl selection during his tenure with the New England Patriots, Butler is best known for his goal-line interception in the final seconds of Super Bowl XLIX, which prevented a go-ahead touchdown by the Seattle Seahawks and effectively ensured the Patriots' victory. It is regarded as one of the greatest plays in NFL history. Read more
• 02 Mar 1990: Luke Combs, American singer-songwriter Luke Albert Combs is an American country singer. He was born in North Carolina and grew up there, performing as a child. After leaving college to pursue a career in music, he moved to Nashville and released his debut EP, The Way She Rides, in 2014. Read more
• 02 Mar 1990: Tiger Shroff, Indian actor Jai Hemant "Tiger" Shroff is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. Born to actors Jackie Shroff and Ayesha Dutt, he made his acting debut with the action romance Heropanti (2014), for which he won the IIFA Award for Star Debut of the Year – Male. Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: Toby Alderweireld, Belgian footballer Tobias Albertine Maurits Alderweireld is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: Alemão, Brazilian footballer José Carlos Tofolo Júnior, commonly known as Alemão, is a Brazilian football coach and former player who played as a forward. He is the current head coach of Monte Azul. Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: Nathalie Emmanuel, English actress Nathalie Joanne Emmanuel is a British actress. Emmanuel began her acting career appearing in theatre in the late 1990s, acquiring roles in various West End productions such as the musical The Lion King. In 2006, she began her on-screen career by starring as Sasha Valentine in soap opera Hollyoaks, after which she appeared in various British television series until her debut film appearance in Twenty8k (2012). Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: Marcel Hirscher, Austrian skier Marcel Hirscher is an Austrian-Dutch World Cup alpine ski racer. Hirscher made his World Cup debut in March 2007. He competed primarily in slalom and giant slalom, as well as combined and occasionally in super G. Winner of a record eight consecutive World Cup titles, Hirscher has also won 11 medals at the Alpine Skiing World Championships, seven of them gold, a silver medal in slalom at the 2014 Winter Olympics, and two gold medals in the combined and giant slalom at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Due to his record number of overall titles and many years of extreme dominance of both slalom and giant slalom, he is considered by many, including his former rivals Henrik Kristoffersen, Kjetil Jansrud and Alexis Pinturault, to be the best alpine skier in history. He won a total of 67 World Cup races, ranking second on the male all-time list. Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: André Bernardes Santos, Portuguese footballer André Filipe Bernardes Santos is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Liga 3 club Varzim. Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: Shane Vereen, American football player Shane Patrick-Henry Vereen is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears and was selected by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2011 NFL draft. Read more
• 02 Mar 1989: Chris Woakes, English cricketer Christopher Roger Woakes is an English cricketer, a right-handed all-rounder who bowls fast-medium. He plays domestic cricket for Warwickshire and has represented the England national team since making his ODI and T20I debuts in 2011 and his Test debut in 2013 until his international retirement in September 2025. Woakes was part of the England squads that won the 2019 Cricket World Cup and the 2022 T20 World Cup. Read more
• 02 Mar 1988: Édgar Andrade, Mexican footballer Edgar Bismarck Andrade Rentería is a Mexican former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He made his debut in Cruz Azul on January 28, 2006, in a game against Atlas which resulted in a draw. He was on the Mexico national football under-17 team that won the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship. While playing for Cruz Azul he broke his ankle while attempting to recover a ball for his team, in a 2007 match against Estudiantes Tecos UAG. After many months of recovery, he returned to the field in 2007. Read more
• 02 Mar 1988: James Arthur, English singer-songwriter James Andrew Arthur is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame after winning the ninth series of The X Factor in 2012. His debut single, a cover of Shontelle's "Impossible", was released by Syco Music after the final, and debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart. Since then, it has gone on to sell over 2.5 million copies worldwide, making it the most successful winner's single in the show's history. Read more
• 02 Mar 1988: Laura Kaeppeler, American beauty queen, Miss America 2012 Laura Marie Kaeppeler is an American beauty pageant titleholder crowned Miss America 2012 on January 14, 2012, representing the state of Wisconsin. Kaeppeler was the first woman representing Wisconsin to win Miss America since Terry Meeuwsen won Miss America 1973. She was briefly on the board of directors for the Miss America Organization. Read more
• 02 Mar 1988: Matthew Mitcham, Australian diver Matthew John Mitcham OAM is an Australian retired diver and trampolinist. As a diver, he was the 2008 Olympic champion in the 10m platform, and he is the 2nd highest single-dive score in Olympic history. This made him the first openly gay man to win an Olympic gold medal. He is also the first Australian male to win an Olympic gold medal in diving since Dick Eve at the 1924 Summer Olympics. Read more
• 02 Mar 1988: Dexter Pittman, American basketball player Dexter Jerome Pittman is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Texas Longhorns. Read more
• 02 Mar 1988: Geert Arend Roorda, Dutch footballer Geert Arend Roorda is a Dutch professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of Tweede Divisie club Excelsior Maassluis. Read more
• 02 Mar 1987: Jonas Jerebko, Swedish basketball player Jonas Jerebko is a Swedish professional basketball player who last played for the Santeros de Aguada of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He was selected as the 39th overall pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons, becoming the second Swedish-born basketball player to be selected in the NBA draft. Jerebko played a total of 10 seasons in the NBA with four different teams, the Detroit Pistons, Boston Celtics, Utah Jazz and Golden State Warriors. Read more
• 02 Mar 1986: Jonathan D'Aversa, Canadian ice hockey player Jonathan D'Aversa is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the American Hockey League (AHL) with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins before spending the majority of his professional career in Europe. Read more
• 02 Mar 1986: Jason Smith, American basketball player Jason Victor Smith is an American former professional basketball player who played twelve seasons in the National Basketball Association. He played college basketball for the Colorado State Rams before being selected with the 20th overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Miami Heat. Read more
• 02 Mar 1985: Reggie Bush, American football player Reginald Alfred Bush II is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans, earning consensus All-American honors twice and winning the 2005 Heisman Trophy. Bush is widely regarded as one of the greatest college football players of all time. Read more
• 02 Mar 1985: Robert Iler, American actor Robert Michael Iler is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of A.J. Soprano on The Sopranos. His film roles include Tadpole (2002) and Daredevil (2003). Read more
• 02 Mar 1985: Suso Santana, Spanish footballer Jesús Manuel 'Suso' Santana Abreu is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a right winger. Read more
• 02 Mar 1984: Jonathan Ericsson, Swedish ice hockey player Jonathan Ericsson is a Swedish former professional ice hockey player. A defenceman, he was drafted in the ninth round, 291st overall, of the 2002 NHL entry draft and was the final pick of the draft. He has played his entire National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Red Wings organization. Read more
• 02 Mar 1983: Deuce, American singer-songwriter and producer Aron Erlichman, better known by his stage name Deuce, is an American rapper, music producer and guitarist. Brought to fame as a member of the rap rock band Hollywood Undead, Deuce departed from Hollywood Undead in 2010 and has since moved on to solo work through the label "Five Seven Music", a branch of Eleven Seven Music. He was formerly involved in a movement with fellow rapper Truth called "Nine Lives". Deuce released his debut album of the same name on April 24, 2012, which sold 11,425 copies in its first week. Deuce has also collaborated with artists NXTREADY, Ronnie Radke, Brokencyde and Blood on the Dance Floor. Read more
• 02 Mar 1983: Lisandro López, Argentine footballer Lisandro López, sometimes known as simply Lisandro, is an Argentine former professional footballer. Primarily a striker, he was also capable of playing on the wings. Read more
• 02 Mar 1983: Jay McClement, Canadian ice hockey player Jay McClement is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. He was originally selected by the St. Louis Blues in the second round, 57th overall, in 2001, playing for the team before later joining the Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes in his NHL career. Currently, he is a pro scout for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Read more
• 02 Mar 1983: Glen Perkins, American baseball player Glen Weston Perkins is an American former professional baseball pitcher and a television analyst. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins. Read more
• 02 Mar 1983: Ryan Shannon, American ice hockey player Ryan Patrick Shannon is an American former professional ice hockey player, who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). He is currently serving as the head coach of the boys varsity ice hockey team at the Taft School. Read more
• 02 Mar 1982: Kevin Kurányi, German footballer Kevin Dennis Kurányi Rodríguez is a former professional footballer who played as a striker. Born in Brazil, he played for the Germany national team. Read more
• 02 Mar 1982: Henrik Lundqvist, Swedish ice hockey player Henrik Lundqvist is a Swedish former professional ice hockey player. He played as a goaltender for 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the New York Rangers. Before winning the Vezina Trophy in 2012, he was nominated in each of his first three seasons, and is the only goaltender in NHL history to record eleven 30-win seasons in his first twelve seasons. He holds the record for most wins by a European-born goaltender in the NHL. His dominating play during his rookie season resulted in the New York media and Rangers fans giving him the nickname "King Henrik". Read more
• 02 Mar 1982: Joel Lundqvist, Swedish ice hockey player Joel Per Lundqvist is a Swedish former professional ice hockey player. He played as a centre, spending the majority of his career with Frölunda HC of Swedish Hockey League (SHL) and also played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Dallas Stars from 2006 to 2009. He holds the record for most appearances in the SHL. His identical twin brother is former NHL goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. Read more
• 02 Mar 1982: Ben Roethlisberger, American football player Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger Sr., nicknamed "Big Ben", is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college football for the Miami RedHawks, and was selected by the Steelers in the first round of the 2004 NFL draft. Read more
• 02 Mar 1982: Corey Webster, American football player Corey Jonas Webster is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for 9 seasons, all with the New York Giants. He played college football for the LSU Tigers. Webster was selected by the Giants in the second round of the 2005 NFL draft and later won two Super Bowls with the team, both over the New England Patriots. Read more
• 02 Mar 1981: Lance Cade, American wrestler (died 2010) Lance Kurtis McNaught was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) where he performed under the ring names Garrison Cade and Lance Cade. Read more
• 02 Mar 1981: Bryce Dallas Howard, American actress Bryce Dallas Howard is an American actress and director. The eldest child of filmmaker Ron Howard, she studied acting at the New York University Tisch School of the Arts. While portraying Rosalind in a 2003 production of As You Like It, Howard caught the attention of director M. Night Shyamalan, who cast her as a blind woman in the thriller film The Village (2004) and a naiad in the fantasy film Lady in the Water (2006). Read more
• 02 Mar 1980: Chris Barker, English footballer and manager (died 2020) Christopher Andrew Barker was an English professional footballer who played as a defender. He represented Alfreton Town, Barnsley, Cardiff City, Stoke City, Colchester United, Queens Park Rangers, Plymouth Argyle, Southend United, Hereford FC and Weston Super Mare and he was player-manager of Aldershot Town for three months in 2015. His brother, Richie, is also a professional footballer. Read more
• 02 Mar 1980: Rebel Wilson, Australian actress and screenwriter Rebel Melanie Elizabeth Wilson is an Australian actress, comedian and producer. After graduating from the Australian Theatre for Young People in 2003, Wilson began appearing in the SBS comedy series Pizza (2003–2007) and later appeared in the sketch comedy show The Wedge (2006–2007). She wrote, produced and starred in the musical comedy series Bogan Pride (2008). Shortly after moving to the United States, Wilson appeared in the comedy films Bridesmaids and A Few Best Men, both in 2011. Read more
• 02 Mar 1979: Damien Duff, Irish footballer Damien Anthony Duff is an Irish former professional football manager and former player, who most recently managed League of Ireland club Shelbourne. Read more
• 02 Mar 1979: Jim Troughton, English cricketer Jamie Oliver Troughton is an English cricket coach and former cricketer. He is currently assistant coach at Surrey, and as a player was mainly an attack-minded left-handed batsman and an occasional slow left-arm orthodox bowler. He played for Warwickshire. He also played for the England One Day International team. Read more
• 02 Mar 1979: Nicky Weaver, English footballer Nicholas James Weaver is an English football coach and former professional footballer. Read more
• 02 Mar 1978: Jim Chalmers, Australian politician James Edward Chalmers is an Australian politician who has served as the treasurer of Australia since 2022. A member of the Labor Party, he has been the member of parliament (MP) for the Queensland division of Rankin since 2013. Read more
• 02 Mar 1978: Gabby Eigenmann, Filipino actor and singer Gabriel John Celebre Eigenmann is a Filipino actor, singer, host and model. He is currently working as an exclusive talent of GMA Network. Read more
• 02 Mar 1978: Lee Hodges, English footballer and manager Lee Hodges is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for Herongate Athletic. He made three appearances in the Premier League for West Ham United and made 184 appearances in the Football League for Exeter City, Leyton Orient, Plymouth Argyle, Ipswich Town, Southend United, Scunthorpe United, Rochdale and Bristol Rovers. Read more
• 02 Mar 1978: Sebastian Janikowski, Polish gridiron football player Sebastian Paweł Janikowski is a Polish former professional football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with the Oakland Raiders. He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles and was selected 17th overall in the 2000 NFL draft by the Raiders. During his final season, Janikowski played for the Seattle Seahawks. Read more
• 02 Mar 1978: Tomáš Kaberle, Czech ice hockey player Tomáš Kaberle is a Czech former professional ice hockey defenceman. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL), most notably for the Toronto Maple Leafs, as well as for the Boston Bruins, with whom he won the Stanley Cup, Carolina Hurricanes and the Montreal Canadiens. Kaberle also played in the Czech Extraliga for HC Kladno and HC Kometa Brno. Read more
• 02 Mar 1977: Dominique Canty, American basketball player and coach Dominique Danyell Canty is an American professional women's basketball player, most recently with the Washington Mystics in the WNBA. Read more
• 02 Mar 1977: Chris Martin, English singer-songwriter (Coldplay) Christopher Anthony John Martin is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer. He is best known as the vocalist, pianist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Read more
• 02 Mar 1977: Heather McComb, American actress Heather McComb is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Maggie on Party of Five (1998–1999) and Frances Malone in Profiler (1997–1998). Read more
• 02 Mar 1977: Stephen Parry, English swimmer and sportscaster Stephen Benjamin Parry is an English former competitive swimmer who represented Great Britain in the Olympics, FINA world championships and European championships, and England in the Commonwealth Games. He competed internationally in 100-metre and 200-metre butterfly events. Read more
• 02 Mar 1977: Andrew Strauss, South African-English cricketer Sir Andrew John Strauss is an English cricket administrator and former player, formerly the Director of Cricket for the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). He played county cricket for Middlesex, and captained the England national team in all formats of the game. A fluent left-handed opening batsman, Strauss favoured scoring off the back foot, mostly playing cut and pull shots. He was also known for his fielding strength at slip or in the covers. He is currently the managing director of Mindflick, a performance psychometric organisation. Read more
• 02 Mar 1975: Daryl Gibson, New Zealand rugby player Daryl Peter Earl Gibson is the Chief High Performance Officer for New Zealand Cricket (NZC). He was previously an international rugby coach and former New Zealand rugby union footballer. He played for the Crusaders in the Super Rugby and represented his country with the All Blacks. After success as assistant coach with the Waratahs side when they won the 2014 Super Rugby Championship, Gibson replaced Michael Cheika as head Coach of the team in 2015. Read more
• 02 Mar 1974: Hayley Lewis, Australian swimmer and television host Hayley Jane Lewis, OAM, is an Australian former competitive swimmer best known for winning five gold medals and one bronze medal at the 1990 Commonwealth Games as a 15-year-old. Read more
• 02 Mar 1973: Dejan Bodiroga, Serbian basketball player Dejan Bodiroga is a Serbian basketball executive and former professional player, who is currently the president of EuroLeague Basketball. In 1998 and 2002, he received the Golden Badge award for the best athlete of Yugoslavia, and the Yugoslav Olympic Committee also declared him the Sportsman of the Year. He was named to the FIBA All-Time EuroStars Team in 2007. In 2018, he was named one of the 101 Greats of European Basketball. HoopsHype named Bodiroga one of the 75 Greatest International Players Ever in 2021. He was inducted into the Greek Basket League Hall of Fame in 2022. Read more
• 02 Mar 1973: Trevor Sinclair, English footballer and manager Trevor Lloyd Sinclair is an English football coach, former professional footballer and pundit. Read more
• 02 Mar 1972: Mauricio Pochettino, Argentinian footballer and manager Mauricio Roberto Pochettino Trossero is an Argentine professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of the United States men's national team. Read more
• 02 Mar 1971: Roman Čechmánek, Czech ice hockey player (died 2023) Roman Čechmánek was a Czech professional ice hockey goaltender. He played professionally in the United States, the Czech Republic, and Germany, including in the National Hockey League with the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings from 2000 to 2004. Čechmánek also played for the Czech national team at multiple international tournaments, including seven World Championships. Read more
• 02 Mar 1971: Dave Gorman, English comedian, author and television presenter David James Gorman is an English comedian, presenter, and writer. Read more
• 02 Mar 1971: Method Man, American rapper, record producer and actor Clifford Smith Jr., known professionally as Method Man, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. He is a member of the East Coast hip-hop collective Wu-Tang Clan, and is half of the hip-hop duo Method Man & Redman. His debut solo album, Tical (1994), peaked at number four on the Billboard 200 and spawned the single "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By", which won Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards. The song also peaked within the top five of the Billboard Hot 100; he and Blige later starred in Power Book II: Ghost, a spin-off of Power. Read more
• 02 Mar 1970: James Purnell, English politician, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions James Mark Dakin Purnell is a British former Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde from 2001 to 2010 and also as a Cabinet minister from 2007 to 2009. After leaving parliament, Purnell was chair of Institute for Public Policy Research from 2010 to 2012 before joining the BBC as Director of Strategy from 2013 to 2016 and Director of Radio and Education from 2016 to 2020. In 2020 he was appointed vice-chancellor of University of the Arts London before leaving in 2024 to become CEO of Flint, a British international advisory business. Read more
• 02 Mar 1970: Ciriaco Sforza, Swiss footballer and manager Ciriaco Sforza is a Swiss football manager and former professional player who last managed Swiss Challenge League club FC Schaffhausen. Read more
• 02 Mar 1970: Wibi Soerjadi, Dutch pianist and composer Wibi Soerjadi is a Dutch concert pianist and composer. Read more
• 02 Mar 1968: Daniel Craig, English actor and producer Daniel Wroughton Craig is an English actor. He gained international fame by playing the fictional secret agent James Bond in the films Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008), Skyfall (2012), Spectre (2015), and No Time to Die (2021). Read more
• 02 Mar 1966: Ann Leckie, American author Ann Leckie is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. Her 2013 debut novel Ancillary Justice, which features artificial consciousness and gender-blindness, won the 2014 Hugo Award for Best Novel, as well as the Nebula Award, the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and the BSFA Award. The sequels, Ancillary Sword and Ancillary Mercy, each won the Locus Award and were both nominated for the Nebula Award. Provenance, published in 2017, and Translation State, published in 2023, are also set in the Imperial Radch universe. Read more
• 02 Mar 1966: Simon Reevell, English lawyer and politician Simon Justin Reevell is a British barrister and Conservative Party politician. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Dewsbury in West Yorkshire during one parliament, losing his seat at the 2015 election. Read more
• 02 Mar 1965: Ron Gant, American baseball player and journalist Ronald Edwin Gant is an American television news anchor and former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1987 and 2003 for eight different teams, primarily the Atlanta Braves (1987–1993), St. Louis Cardinals (1996–1998), and Philadelphia Phillies (1999–2000). He joined the 30–30 club—recording at least 30 stolen bases and 30 home runs in the same season—in 1990 and 1991, while with the Braves. He batted and threw right-handed. He is currently a co-host on WAGA-TV's morning news program Good Day Atlanta. Read more
• 02 Mar 1965: Lembit Öpik, Northern Irish politician Lembit Öpik is a British former politician. A former member of the Liberal Democrats, he served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Montgomeryshire in Wales from 1997 until he lost his seat at the 2010 general election. He was the leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats from 2001 to 2007. Read more
• 02 Mar 1964: Laird Hamilton, American surfer and actor Laird John Hamilton is an American big-wave surfer, co-inventor of tow-in surfing, and an occasional fashion and action-sports model and actor. He is married to Gabrielle Reece, a former professional volleyball player, television personality, and model. Read more
• 02 Mar 1964: Mike Von Erich, American wrestler (died 1987) Michael Brett Adkisson was an American professional wrestler under the ring name Mike Von Erich. His four brothers, David, Kerry, Kevin, and Chris, also wrestled. He was the son of longtime Texas wrestler and wrestling promoter Fritz Von Erich and a member of the Von Erich family. Read more
• 02 Mar 1963: Anthony Albanese, Australian politician, 31st Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Norman Albanese is an Australian politician who has served as the 31st prime minister of Australia since 2022. He has been the leader of the Labor Party since 2019 and the member of parliament (MP) for the New South Wales division of Grayndler since 1996. Read more
• 02 Mar 1963: Alvin Youngblood Hart, American singer and guitarist Alvin Youngblood Hart is an American musician. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Jon Bon Jovi, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor John Francis Bongiovi Jr., known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was formed in 1983. He has released 16 studio albums with his band as well as two solo albums. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Paul Farrelly, English journalist and politician Christopher Paul Farrelly is a British Labour Party politician, banker and journalist, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Newcastle-under-Lyme from 2001 to 2019. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Tom Nordlie, Norwegian footballer and coach Tom Nordlie is a Norwegian football coach. He has managed several top Norwegian football teams. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Brendan O'Connor, Australian politician, Australian Minister for Employment Brendan Patrick O'Connor is an Australian politician who served as Minister for Skills and Training from 2022 to 2024 in the Albanese ministry after having served in the same portfolio in 2013 in the Second Rudd ministry. He is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and served in the House of Representatives from 2001 to 2025. He held ministerial office in the governments of Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard from 2007 to 2013, including as a member of cabinet from 2012 to 2013. He was a member of the shadow cabinet from 2013 to 2022. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Raimo Summanen, Finnish ice hockey player and coach Raimo Olavi Summanen is a former professional ice hockey forward and the former head coach of HIFK of the Finnish SM-liiga. He is also a former coach of the Finnish national team. He was selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the sixth round of the 1982 NHL Entry Draft, 125th overall, and spent his NHL career, which lasted from 1984 to 1987 with Edmonton and the Vancouver Canucks. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1979 to 1995, was mainly spent in the SM-liiga. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Gabriele Tarquini, Italian race car driver Gabriele Tarquini is an Italian former racing driver and motorsport executive who competed in Formula One between 1987 and 1995, and World Touring Car from 2005 to 2021. In touring car racing, Tarquini won the World Touring Car Championship in 2009 with SEAT; he also won the British Touring Car Championship in 1994, the European Touring Car Championship in 2003, and the World Touring Car Cup in 2018. Read more
• 02 Mar 1961: Simone Young, Australian conductor, director, and composer Simone Margaret Young AM is an Australian conductor and academic teacher. She is currently chief conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Read more
• 02 Mar 1959: Larry Stewart, American singer-songwriter and guitarist Larry Stewart is an American country music singer and songwriter. He is best known for his role as lead singer of the country pop band Restless Heart, a role which he held on and off between 1984 and the band's breakup in 2021. Additionally, he has released multiple solo projects between 1993 and 2018, a year after his joining the Frontmen. Stewart's solo career includes two albums for RCA Records, one for Columbia Records, and one for Windham Hill Records. His solo albums include multiple charted singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including the top-five hit "Alright Already" in 1993. Read more
• 02 Mar 1958: Kevin Curren, South African-American tennis player Kevin Melvyn Curren is a South African former professional tennis player. He played in two Grand Slam singles finals and won four Grand Slam doubles titles, reaching a career-high singles ranking of world No. 5 in July 1985. During his career he won 5 singles and 16 doubles titles. Read more
• 02 Mar 1958: Ian Woosnam, English-Welsh golfer Ian Harold Woosnam is a Welsh professional golfer. Nicknamed "Woosie", Woosnam was one of the "Big Five" generation of European golfers, all born within 12 months of one another, all of whom have won majors, and made Europe competitive in the Ryder Cup. His peers in this group were Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, Bernhard Langer, and Sandy Lyle. Woosnam's major championship win was at the 1991 Masters Tournament. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2017. Read more
• 02 Mar 1957: Mark Dean, American inventor and computer engineer Mark Edward Dean is an American inventor and computer engineer. He developed the ISA bus with his partner Dennis Moeller, and he led a design team for making a one-gigahertz computer processor chip. He holds three of nine PC patents for being the co-creator of the IBM personal computer released in 1981. In 1995, Dean was named the first ever African-American IBM Fellow. Read more
• 02 Mar 1957: Hossein Dehghan, Iranian general and politician, Iranian Minister of Defense Hossein Dehghani Poudeh, commonly known as Hossein Dehghan, is an Iranian politician and former military officer. He currently serves as the head of the Mostazafan Foundation since 2023. Read more
• 02 Mar 1957: Dito Tsintsadze, Georgian film director and screenwriter Dito Tsintsadze is a Georgian film director and screenwriter. He has directed thirteen films since 1988. His film Lost Killers was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. In 2007 he was a member of the jury at the 29th Moscow International Film Festival. Starting from the year 1996 he lives and works in Berlin. Read more
• 02 Mar 1956: John Cowsill, American musician, songwriter, and producer John Patrick Cowsill is an American musician, best known for his work as a singer and drummer with his siblings' band the Cowsills. He has been a drummer and vocalist for the Beach Boys touring band, which featured original Beach Boy Mike Love and long time member Bruce Johnston. Cowsill has played keyboards for the Beach Boys touring band performing Al Jardine's and the late Carl Wilson's vocal parts. He has performed and recorded with Jan and Dean and is currently a guest lead singer for The Smithereens. Read more
• 02 Mar 1956: Mark Evans, Australian rock bass player Mark Whitmore Evans is an Australian musician, the current bass guitarist for rock band Rose Tattoo, and also a member of hard rock band AC/DC from March 1975 to June 1977. His playing featured on their albums T.N.T, High Voltage, Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap and Let There Be Rock. Evans has played for numerous other groups, sometimes on lead guitar, including Finch, Cheetah, Swanee, Heaven and The Party Boys. Evans' autobiography, Dirty Deeds: My Life Inside/Outside of AC/DC was released in December 2011. Read more
• 02 Mar 1955: Dale Bozzio, American pop-rock singer-songwriter Dale Frances Bozzio is an American rock and pop vocalist. She is best known as co-founder and lead singer of the 1980s new wave band Missing Persons and for her work with Frank Zappa. While with Zappa, she performed significant roles in two of his major works, Joe's Garage (1979) and Thing-Fish (1984). Bozzio has released four solo albums and one EP. Read more
• 02 Mar 1955: Jay Osmond, American singer, drummer, actor, and TV/film producer Jay Wesley Osmond is an American musician. He is a member of the Osmond family of performers. He wrote the story to the 2022 musical The Osmonds, a musical based on the life and music of the family. The musical was shown around the United Kingdom and Ireland in 2022, after being previously postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more
• 02 Mar 1955: Ken Salazar, American lawyer and politician, 50th United States Secretary of the Interior Kenneth Lee Salazar is an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat who served as United States ambassador to Mexico from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 50th United States secretary of the interior in the administration of President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013 and as a United States senator from Colorado from 2005 to 2009. Read more
• 02 Mar 1955: Steve Small, Australian cricketer Stephen Mark Small is an Australian former cricketer. He played first-class cricket for New South Wales and Tasmania. Read more
• 02 Mar 1954: Ed Johnstone, Canadian ice hockey player and coach Edward Lavern "Eddie" Johnstone is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played for the Michigan Stags/Baltimore Blades in the World Hockey Association (WHA), followed by parts of ten seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings. He featured in the 1979 Stanley Cup Finals with the Rangers. Read more
• 02 Mar 1953: Russ Feingold, American lawyer and politician Russell Dana Feingold is an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States senator from Wisconsin from 1993 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he was its nominee in the 2016 election for the same U.S. Senate seat he had previously occupied. From 1983 to 1993, he was a Wisconsin state senator representing the 27th district. Read more
• 02 Mar 1953: Kazuo Kitagawa, Japanese politician Kazuo Kitagawa is a retired Japanese politician who served as the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in the cabinet of Junichiro Koizumi. Read more
• 02 Mar 1952: Mark Evanier, American author and screenwriter Mark Stephen Evanier is an American comic book and television writer, known for his work on the animated TV series Garfield and Friends and wordplay for the comic book Groo the Wanderer. He is also known for his columns and blog News from ME, and for his work as a historian and biographer of the comics industry, such as his award-winning Jack Kirby biography, Kirby: King of Comics. Read more
• 02 Mar 1952: Laraine Newman, American actress and comedian Laraine Newman is an American actress, comedian, and writer. Newman was part of the original cast of NBC's sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from its inception in 1975 until her departure in 1980. Read more
• 02 Mar 1950: Karen Carpenter, American singer (died 1983) Karen Anne Carpenter was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and drummer of the highly successful duo the Carpenters, formed with her older brother Richard. With a distinctive three-octave contralto range, she was praised by her peers for her vocal skills. Carpenter appeared on Rolling Stone's 2010 list of the 100 greatest singers of all time. Read more
• 02 Mar 1948: Larry Carlton, American guitarist and songwriter Larry Eugene Carlton is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts including Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. One of the most sought-after guitarists of his era, Carlton has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorded on hundreds of albums in many genres including more than 100 gold records, in addition to music for television and movies. He has been a member of the jazz fusion group the Crusaders and the smooth jazz band Fourplay maintaining a long solo career. Read more
• 02 Mar 1948: Rory Gallagher, Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (died 1995) William Rory Gallagher was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as "Ireland's first rock star", he is known for his virtuosic style of guitar playing and live performances. He has sometimes been referred to as "the greatest guitarist you've never heard of". Read more
• 02 Mar 1948: Jeff Kennett, Australian journalist and politician, 43rd Premier of Victoria Jeffrey Gibb Kennett is an Australian former politician who served as the 43rd Premier of Victoria between 1992 and 1999, Leader of the Victorian Liberal Party from 1982 to 1989 and from 1991 to 1999, and the Member for Burwood from 1976 to 1999. He is currently a media commentator. Read more
• 02 Mar 1948: Carmen Lawrence, Australian politician, 25th Premier of Western Australia Carmen Mary Lawrence is an Australian academic and former politician who was the premier of Western Australia from 1990 to 1993, the first woman to become the premier of an Australian state. To date she is the only female premier of Western Australia. A member of the Labor Party, she later entered federal politics as a member of the House of Representatives from 1994 to 2007, and served as a minister in the Keating government. Read more
• 02 Mar 1947: John Dawkins, Australian politician John Sydney "Joe" Dawkins AO is an Australian former politician who was Treasurer in the Keating Labor government from December 1991 to December 1993. He is notable for his reforms of tertiary education as Minister for Employment, Education and Training, his period as Treasurer when he attempted to increase taxes in order to balance the budget and his abrupt exit from politics. Read more
• 02 Mar 1947: Nelson Ned, Brazilian singer-songwriter (died 2014) Nelson Ned d'Ávila Pinto was a Brazilian singer-songwriter. He built a career as a singer and composer of sentimental, suffering songs, rising to popularity in Brazil and Latin America in 1969 and becoming known internationally, especially in Portugal, France and Spain. In 1971 he released his first Spanish album, Canción Popular, and performed in the US, Latin America, Europe, and Africa. Read more
• 02 Mar 1947: Harry Redknapp, English footballer and manager Henry James Redknapp is an English former football manager and player. He has previously managed AFC Bournemouth, West Ham United, Portsmouth, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, Queens Park Rangers and Birmingham City. In his second spell at Portsmouth, he managed the side that won the 2008 FA Cup. At the conclusion of the 2009–10 season, he guided Tottenham into the UEFA Champions League. Redknapp announced his retirement from football management in 2017. Read more
• 02 Mar 1945: Derek Watkins, English trumpet player and composer (died 2013) Derek Roy Watkins was an English jazz, pop, and classical trumpeter. Best known for his lead trumpet work on the soundtracks of James Bond films, Watkins recorded with British jazz bandleaders as well as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra, and The Beatles. Dizzy Gillespie called him "Mr. Lead". Read more
• 02 Mar 1944: Leif Segerstam, Finnish conductor and composer (died 2024) Leif Selim Segerstam was a Finnish music composer, conductor, violinist, violist, and pianist. He is especially best known for writing over 300 symphonies, along with other works. He held many important positions in Finnish music industry both in Finland and around the world. Read more
• 02 Mar 1943: George Layton, English actor, director, and screenwriter George Layton is a British actor, director, and television comedy writer best known for three television roles – junior doctor Paul Collier in the comedy series Doctor in the House and its sequels Doctor at Large, Doctor in Charge and Doctor at the Top, Bombardier 'Solly' Solomons in the first two series of It Ain't Half Hot Mum, and Des the mechanic in early episodes of Minder. His TV writing credits include episodes of several of the "Doctor" series as well as episodes of Robin's Nest, and Executive Stress. Read more
• 02 Mar 1943: Peter Straub, American author and poet (died 2022) Peter Francis Straub was an American novelist and poet. He had success with several horror and supernatural fiction novels, among them Julia (1975), Ghost Story (1979) and The Talisman (1984), the latter co-written with Stephen King. He explored the mystery genre with the Blue Rose trilogy, consisting of Koko (1988), Mystery (1990) and The Throat (1993). He fused the supernatural with crime fiction in Lost Boy, Lost Girl (2003) and the related In the Night Room (2004). For the Library of America, he edited the volume H. P. Lovecraft: Tales and the anthology American Fantastic Tales. Straub received such literary honors as the Bram Stoker Award, World Fantasy Award, and International Horror Guild Award. Read more
• 02 Mar 1943: Robert Williams, American painter and cartoonist Robert L. Williams, often styled Robt. Williams, is an American painter, cartoonist, and founder of Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine. Williams was one of the group of artists who produced Zap Comix, along with other underground cartoonists, such as Robert Crumb, Rick Griffin, S. Clay Wilson, and Gilbert Shelton. His mix of California car culture, cinematic apocalypticism, and film noir helped to create a new genre of psychedelic imagery. Read more
• 02 Mar 1942: John Irving, American novelist and screenwriter John Winslow Irving is an American and Canadian novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. Read more
• 02 Mar 1942: Claude Larose, Canadian ice hockey player and coach Claude David Larose is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 943 career NHL games for the Montreal Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars and St. Louis Blues. He also served as an assistant coach for the Hartford Whalers after his retirement. He won 6 Stanley Cups during his career 1965, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1973, 2006 with Carolina. Read more
• 02 Mar 1942: Mir-Hossein Mousavi, Iranian architect and politician, 79th Prime Minister of Iran Mir-Hossein Mousavi Khameneh is an Iranian politician, artist, architect, and opposition figure who served as the 45th and last Prime Minister of Iran from 1981 to 1989. He was a reformist candidate for the 2009 presidential election and eventually the leader of the opposition in the post-election unrest. Mousavi served as the president of the Iranian Academy of Arts until 2009, when Iranian authorities removed him. Although Mousavi had always considered himself a reformist and believed in promoting change within the 1979 constitution, on 3 February 2023, in the violent suppression of Iranians by Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, he announced his opposition to the Islamic Republic and asked for a widespread referendum to fully change the constitution and make a fundamental change in Iran's political system. Read more
• 02 Mar 1942: Lou Reed, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (died 2013) Lewis Allan Reed was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Although not commercially successful during its existence, the Velvet Underground came to be regarded as one of the most influential bands in the history of underground and alternative rock music. Reed's distinctive deadpan voice, poetic and transgressive lyrics, and experimental guitar playing were trademarks throughout his long career. Read more
• 02 Mar 1942: Derek Woodley, English footballer (died 2002) Derek George Woodley was an English footballer who played for West Ham United, Southend United, Charlton Athletic and Gillingham during a 12-year professional career. Read more
• 02 Mar 1941: John Cornell, Australian actor, director, and producer (died 2021) John Cornell was an Australian actor, director, producer, writer, and businessman. He was best known for his role as "Strop" on The Paul Hogan Show, and he was instrumental in the introduction of World Series Cricket in 1977. Read more
• 02 Mar 1941: David Satcher, American admiral and physician, 16th Surgeon General of the United States David Satcher is an American physician, and public health administrator. He was a four-star admiral in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and served as the 11th Assistant Secretary for Health, and the 16th Surgeon General of the United States. Read more
• 02 Mar 1940: Billy McNeill, Scottish footballer (died 2019) William McNeill was a Scottish football player and manager. He had a long association with Celtic, spanning more than sixty years as a player, manager and club ambassador. McNeill captained Celtic's 'Lisbon Lions' to their European Cup victory in 1967 and later spent two spells as the club's manager. As a player and manager, he won 31 major trophies with Celtic. Read more
• 02 Mar 1939: Jan Howard Finder, American author and academic (died 2013) Jan Howard Finder was an American academic administrator, career counselor, science fiction writer, filker, hostelling tour guide, cosplayer, and fan. He was a guest of honor at the 1993 Worldcon, ConFrancisco. As a personal affectation, he often spelled his name in all lower case letters, jan howard finder. Read more
• 02 Mar 1938: Clark Gesner, American author and composer (died 2002) Clark Gesner was an American composer, songwriter, author, and actor. He is best known for composing the musical You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, based on the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. Read more
• 02 Mar 1938: Ricardo Lagos, Chilean economist, lawyer, and politician, 33rd President of Chile Ricardo Froilán Lagos Escobar is a Chilean lawyer, economist and social-democratic politician who served as president of Chile from 2000 to 2006. During the 1980s he was a well-known opponent of the Chilean military dictatorship and astounded contemporaries in 1988 by openly denouncing dictator Augusto Pinochet on live television. He served as Minister of Education from 1990 to 1992 and Minister of Public Works from 1994 to 1998 under President Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle before narrowly winning the 1999–2000 presidential election in a runoff against Independent Democrat Union (UDI) candidate Joaquín Lavín. Lagos was the third president from the centre-left Coalition of Parties for Democracy to have governed Chile since 1990. He was succeeded on 11 March 2006 by Socialist Michelle Bachelet, from the same coalition. From 2007 to 2010 he served as a Special Envoy on Climate Change for the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Lagos made an unsuccessful bid to run for president in the 2017 Chilean general election. Read more
• 02 Mar 1938: Lawrence Payton, American singer-songwriter and producer (died 1997) Lawrence Albert Payton Sr. was an American tenor, songwriter, vocal arranger, musician, and record producer for the popular Motown quartet, the Four Tops. Read more
• 02 Mar 1937: Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Algerian soldier and politician, 5th President of Algeria (died 2021) Abdelaziz Bouteflika was an Algerian politician and diplomat who served as the seventh president of Algeria from 1999 to his resignation in 2019. Read more
• 02 Mar 1936: Haroon Ahmed, Pakistani-English engineer and academic Haroon Ahmed, FREng, was a British-Pakistani scientist who specialised in the fields of microelectronics and electrical engineering. He was Emeritus Professor of Microelectronics at the Cavendish Laboratory, the Physics Department of the University of Cambridge, Honorary Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering. Read more
• 02 Mar 1936: John Tusa, Czech-English journalist and academic Sir John Tusa is a British arts administrator, and radio and television journalist. He is co-chairman of the European Union Youth Orchestra from 2014. chairman, British Architecture Trust Board, RIBA, from 2014. From 1980 to 1986, he was a main presenter of BBC2's Newsnight. From 1986 to 1993, he was managing director of the BBC World Service. From 1995 to 2007, he was managing director of the City of London's Barbican Arts Centre. Read more
• 02 Mar 1935: Gene Stallings, American football player and coach Eugene Clifton Stallings Jr. is an American former football player and coach. He played college football at Texas A&M University (1954–1956), where he was one of the "Junction Boys", and later served as the head coach at his alma mater from 1965 to 1971. Stallings was also the head coach of the St. Louis/Phoenix Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL) (1986–1989) and at the University of Alabama (1990–1996). Stallings' 1992 Alabama team completed a 13–0 season with a win in the Sugar Bowl over Miami and was named the consensus national champion. Stallings was also a member of the Board of Regents of the Texas A&M University System. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach on July 16, 2011. Read more
• 02 Mar 1934: Howard Cassady, American football player (died 2019) Howard Albert "Hopalong" Cassady was an American professional football halfback and split end who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, where he won the Heisman Trophy in 1955. Cassady played in the NFL for eight seasons, seven of them for the Detroit Lions, with whom he won the 1957 NFL Championship Game. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979. Read more
• 02 Mar 1934: Dottie Rambo, American singer-songwriter (died 2008) Dottie Rambo was an American gospel singer and songwriter. She was a Grammy winning solo artist and multiple Dove Award-winning artist. Along with ex-husband Buck and daughter Reba, she formed the award-winning southern Gospel group, The Rambos. She wrote more than 2,500 songs, including her most notable, "The Holy Hills of Heaven Call Me", "He Looked Beyond My Fault and Saw My Need", "We Shall Behold Him", and "I Go To the Rock". Read more
• 02 Mar 1933: Leo Dillon, American illustrator (died 2012) Leo Dillon and Diane Dillon were American illustrators of children's books and adult paperback book and magazine covers. One obituary of Leo called the work of the husband-and-wife team "a seamless amalgam of both their hands". In more than 50 years, they created more than 100 speculative fiction book and magazine covers together as well as much interior artwork. Essentially all of their work in that field was joint. Read more
• 02 Mar 1932: Gun Hägglund, Swedish journalist and translator (died 2011) Karin Gunvor Sjöblom Hägglund, better known as Gun Hägglund, was a Swedish television host and translator. Hägglund was the first female television news anchor in Sweden, hosting the Swedish national evening news show Aktuellt in 1958. She is sometimes credited as the first female television news reader in the world, but that claim is inaccurate as British ITN Midday News included female bulletin presenter Barbara Mandell in 1955 and BBC Regional news bulletin included Armine Sandford in 1957. Read more
• 02 Mar 1931: Mikhail Gorbachev, Russian lawyer and politician, the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2022) Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev was a Soviet and Russian politician who was the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 until the country's dissolution in 1991. He served as General Secretary of the Communist Party from 1985, and additionally as head of state from 1988. Ideologically, he initially adhered to Marxism–Leninism, but moved towards social democracy by the early 1990s. Read more
• 02 Mar 1930: John Cullum, American actor and singer John Cullum is an American actor and singer. He has appeared in many stage musicals and dramas, including Shenandoah (1975) and On the Twentieth Century (1978), winning the Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for each. In 1966 he gained his first Tony nomination as the lead in On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, in which he introduced the title song, and more recently received Tony nominations for Urinetown The Musical (2002) and as Best Featured Actor in the revival of 110 in the Shade (2007). Read more
• 02 Mar 1930: Emma Penella, Spanish actress (died 2007) Manuela Ruiz Penella, better known as Emma Penella, was a Spanish film and television actress. Read more
• 02 Mar 1930: Tom Wolfe, American journalist and author (died 2018) Thomas Kennerly Wolfe Jr. was an American author and journalist widely known for his association with New Journalism, a style of news writing and journalism developed in the 1960s and 1970s that incorporated literary techniques. Much of Wolfe's work is satirical and centers on the counterculture of the 1960s and issues related to class, social status, and the lifestyles of the economic and intellectual elites of New York City. Read more
• 02 Mar 1927: Roger Walkowiak, French cyclist and economist (died 2017) Roger Walkowiak was a French road bicycle racer who won the 1956 Tour de France. He was a professional rider from 1950 until 1960. He died on 6 February 2017 at the age of 89. Read more
• 02 Mar 1926: Bernard Agré, Ivorian cardinal (died 2014) Bernard Agré was an Ivorian Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Abidjan from 1994 to 2006. He was made a cardinal in 2001. Read more
• 02 Mar 1926: Murray Rothbard, American economist and historian (died 1995) Murray Newton Rothbard was an American economist of the Austrian School, economic historian, political theorist, and activist. Rothbard was a central figure in the 20th-century American libertarian movement, particularly its right-wing strands, and was a founder and leading theoretician of anarcho-capitalism. He wrote over twenty books on political theory, history, economics, and other subjects. Read more
• 02 Mar 1924: Cal Abrams, American baseball player (died 1997) Calvin Ross Abrams, nicknamed "Abie", was an American professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1949 and 1956 for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles, and Chicago White Sox. Read more
• 02 Mar 1924: Renos Apostolidis, Greek philologist, author, and critic (died 2004) Renos Apostolidis was a Greek writer, philologist and literary critic. Read more
• 02 Mar 1923: Basil Hume, English cardinal (died 1999) George Basil Hume was an English Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1976 until his death in 1999. A member of the Benedictines, he was made a cardinal in 1977. Read more
• 02 Mar 1923: Robert H. Michel, American soldier and politician (died 2017) Robert Henry Michel was an American Republican Party politician who was a member of the United States House of Representatives for 38 years. He represented central Illinois's 18th congressional district and was the GOP leader in the House, serving as House Minority Leader during his last 14 years in Congress, 1981 to 1995. Read more
• 02 Mar 1923: Dave Strack, American basketball player and coach (died 2014) David Hessong Strack was an American athletic director for the University of Arizona and head basketball coach at the University of Michigan. He was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Read more
• 02 Mar 1922: Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, American saxophonist (died 1986) Edward F. Davis, known professionally as Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
  It is unclear how he acquired the moniker "Lockjaw" : it is either said that it came from the title of a tune or from his way of biting hard on the saxophone mouthpiece. Other theories have been put forward. Read more
• 02 Mar 1922: Bill Quackenbush, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (died 1999) Hubert George Quackenbush, known as Bill Quackenbush, was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played for the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings in the National Hockey League. During his 14-year career, he was the first defenceman to win the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy. He won the award after playing the entire 1948–49 season without recording a penalty. The penalty-less season was part of a total of 131 consecutive games he played without being assessed a penalty. Quackenbush, considered to be an elite offensive defenceman during his career, was named to the NHL All-Star team five times, played in eight NHL All-Star games and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1976. Read more
• 02 Mar 1922: Frances Spence, American computer programmer (died 2012) Frances V. Spence was an American physicist and computer scientist. She was one of the original programmers for the ENIAC. She is considered one of the first computer programmers in history. Read more
• 02 Mar 1921: Kazimierz Górski, Polish footballer and coach (died 2006) Kazimierz Klaudiusz Górski was a Polish professional football manager. He was also a football player, capped once for Poland. Read more
• 02 Mar 1921: Ernst Haas, Austrian-American photographer and journalist (died 1986) Ernst Haas was an Austrian-American photojournalist and color photographer. During his 40-year career Haas trod the line between photojournalism and art photography. In addition to his coverage of events around the globe after World War II Haas was an early innovator in color photography. His images were carried by magazines like Life and Vogue and, in 1962, were the subject of the first single-artist exhibition of color photography at New York's Museum of Modern Art. He served as president of the cooperative Magnum Photos. His book of volcano photographs, The Creation (1971), remains one of the most successful photography books ever published, selling more than 350,000 copies. Read more
• 02 Mar 1919: Jennifer Jones, American actress (died 2009) Jennifer Jones, also known as Jennifer Jones Simon, was an American actress and mental-health advocate. Over the course of her career that spanned more than five decades, she was nominated for an Academy Award five times, including one win for Best Actress, and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama. Read more
• 02 Mar 1919: Eddie Lawrence, American actor, singer, and playwright (died 2014) Eddie Lawrence was an American monologist, actor, singer, lyricist, playwright, artist, director and television personality, whose comic creation, "The Old Philosopher", gained him a cult following for over five decades. Read more
• 02 Mar 1919: Tamara Toumanova, Russian-American ballerina and actress (died 1996) Tamara Toumanova was a Russian-born Georgian-American prima ballerina and actress. A child of exiles in Paris after the Russian Revolution of 1917, she made her debut at the age of 10 at the children's ballet of the Paris Opera. Read more
• 02 Mar 1917: Desi Arnaz, Cuban-American actor, singer, and producer (died 1986) Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III, known as Desi Arnaz, was a Cuban-American actor, musician, producer, and bandleader. He played Ricky Ricardo on the American television sitcom I Love Lucy, in which he co-starred with his wife Lucille Ball. Arnaz and Ball are credited as the innovators of the syndicated rerun, which they pioneered with the I Love Lucy series. Read more
• 02 Mar 1917: David Goodis, American author and screenwriter (died 1967) David Loeb Goodis was an American writer of crime fiction noted for his output of short stories and novels in the noir fiction genre. Born in Philadelphia, Goodis alternately resided there and in New York City and Hollywood during his professional years. According to critic Dennis Drabelle, "Despite his [university] education, a combination of ethnicity (Jewish) and temperament allowed him to empathize with outsiders: the working poor, the unjustly accused, fugitives, criminals." Read more
• 02 Mar 1917: Jim Konstanty, American baseball player and coach (died 1976) Casimir James Konstanty was an American professional baseball relief pitcher in Major League Baseball and National League Most Valuable Player of 1950. He played for the Cincinnati Reds (1944), Boston Braves (1946), Philadelphia Phillies (1948–1954), New York Yankees (1954–1956) and St. Louis Cardinals (1956). Konstanty batted and threw right-handed, stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 202 pounds (92 kg). Read more
• 02 Mar 1915: John Burton, Australian public servant and diplomat, Australian High Commissioner to Ceylon (died 2010) John Wear Burton was an Australian public servant, high commissioner and academic. Read more
• 02 Mar 1914: Martin Ritt, American actor and film director (died 1990) Martin Ritt was an American director, producer, and actor, active in film, theatre, and television. He was known mainly as an auteur of socially-conscious dramas and literary adaptations, described by Stanley Kauffmann as "one of the most underrated American directors, superbly competent and quietly imaginative." Read more
• 02 Mar 1913: Godfried Bomans, Dutch television host and author (died 1971) Godfried Jan Arnold Bomans was a Dutch author and television personality. Much of his work remains untranslated into English. Read more
• 02 Mar 1913: Mort Cooper, American baseball player (died 1958) Morton Cecil Cooper was an American baseball pitcher who played eleven seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played from 1938 to 1949 for the St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Braves, New York Giants, and Chicago Cubs. He batted and threw right-handed and was listed at 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) and 210 pounds (95 kg). He was the National League Most Valuable Player in 1942. His younger brother, Walker Cooper, also played in the major leagues. Read more
• 02 Mar 1912: Henry Katzman, American pianist, composer, and painter (died 2001) Henry Manners Katzman was an American musician, composer, painter, and one of the founders of Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI). Read more
• 02 Mar 1909: Mel Ott, American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster (died 1958) Melvin Thomas Ott, nicknamed "Master Melvin", was an American professional baseball right fielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Giants, from 1926 through 1947. Read more
• 02 Mar 1908: Walter Bruch, German engineer (died 1990) Walter Bruch was a German electrical engineer and pioneer of German television. He was the inventor of closed-circuit television. He invented the PAL colour television system at Telefunken in the early 1960s. In addition to his research activities Walter Bruch was an honorary lecturer at Technische Hochschule Hannover. He was awarded the Werner von Siemens Ring in 1975. Read more
• 02 Mar 1905: Marc Blitzstein, American composer and songwriter (died 1964) Marcus Samuel Blitzstein, was an American composer, lyricist, and librettist. He won national attention in 1937 when his pro-union musical The Cradle Will Rock, directed by Orson Welles, was shut down by the Works Progress Administration. He is known for The Cradle Will Rock and for his off-Broadway translation and adaptation of The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill. His works also include the opera Regina, an adaptation of Lillian Hellman's play The Little Foxes; the Broadway musical Juno, based on Seán O'Casey's play Juno and the Paycock; and No for an Answer. He completed translations and adaptations of Brecht's and Weill's musical play Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny and of Brecht's play Mother Courage and Her Children with music by Paul Dessau. Blitzstein also composed music for films, such as Surf and Seaweed (1931) and The Spanish Earth (1937), and he contributed two songs to the original 1960 production of Hellman's play Toys in the Attic. Read more
• 02 Mar 1905: Geoffrey Grigson, English poet and critic (died 1985) Geoffrey Edward Harvey Grigson was a British poet, writer, editor, critic, exhibition curator, anthologist and naturalist. In the 1930s, he was editor of the influential magazine New Verse, and went on to produce 13 collections of his own poetry, as well as compiling numerous anthologies, among many published works on subjects including art, travel and the countryside. Grigson was in 1946 a co-founder of the Institute of Contemporary Arts. His autobiography The Crest on the Silver was published in 1950. At various times, Grigson was involved in teaching, journalism and broadcasting. Fiercely combative, he made many literary enemies. Read more
• 02 Mar 1904: Dr. Seuss, American children's book writer, poet, and illustrator (died 1991) Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American children's author, illustrator, animator, and cartoonist. He is known for his work writing and illustrating more than 60 books under the pen name Dr. Seuss. His work includes many of the most popular children's books of all time, selling over 600 million copies and being translated into more than 20 languages by the time of his death. Read more
• 02 Mar 1902: Moe Berg, American baseball player and spy (died 1972) Morris Berg was an American professional baseball catcher and coach in Major League Baseball who later served as a spy for the Office of Strategic Services during World War II. He played 15 seasons in the major leagues, almost entirely for four American League teams, though he was never more than an average player and was better known for being "the brainiest guy in baseball." Casey Stengel once described Berg as "the strangest man ever to play baseball." Read more
• 02 Mar 1902: Edward Condon, American physicist and academic (died 1974) Edward Uhler Condon was an American nuclear physicist, a pioneer in quantum mechanics, and a participant during World War II in the development of radar and, very briefly, of nuclear weapons as part of the Manhattan Project. The Franck–Condon principle and the Slater–Condon rules are co-named after him. Read more
• 02 Mar 1901: Grete Hermann, German mathematician and philosopher (died 1984) Grete Hermann was a German mathematician, philosopher, theoretical physicist, writer, and educator. She is known for her foundational work in quantum mechanics and computer algebra; her writings on political philosophy; and her work with the Internationaler Sozialistischer Kampfbund (ISK) in opposition to Nazism. Read more
• 02 Mar 1900: Kurt Weill, German-American pianist and composer (died 1950) Kurt Julian Weill was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht. With Brecht, he wrote his best-known work, The Threepenny Opera, which includes the ballad "Mack the Knife". Weill held the ideal of writing music that served a socially useful purpose, Gebrauchsmusik. He also wrote several works for the concert hall and a number of works on Jewish themes. He fled Nazi Germany in 1933, arriving in the United States two years later. Settling in New York, he made a substantial contribution to American musical theater through works such as Lady in the Dark and Street Scene. Read more
• 02 Mar 1886: Willis H. O'Brien, American animator and director (died 1962) Willis Harold O'Brien, known as Obie O'Brien, was an American motion picture special effects and stop-motion animation pioneer, who according to ASIFA-Hollywood "was responsible for some of the best-known images in cinema history," and is best remembered for his work on The Lost World (1925), King Kong (1933), The Last Days of Pompeii (1935) and Mighty Joe Young (1949), for which he won the 1950 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. Read more
• 02 Mar 1886: Kurt Grelling, German logician and philosopher (died 1942) Kurt Grelling was a German logician and philosopher, member of the Berlin Circle. Read more
• 02 Mar 1880: René Vallon, French aviator (died 1911) René Vallon was an early French aviator. Born in Paris, he travelled to Shanghai, China, in 1911 with a group of aviation enthusiasts to promote aircraft sales. He achieved the first aeroplane flight in China on 21 February 1911 at Jiangwan Racecourse, with this and subsequent flights drawing large crowds. He died in an aviation accident less than three months later, resulting in the cancellation of a planned purchase by the Chinese government. Vallon was commemorated with a road and a memorial in the Shanghai French Concession. Read more
• 02 Mar 1876: James A. Gilmore, American businessman and baseball executive (died 1947) James Alexander Gilmore was an American businessman who served as president of baseball's Federal League when it attempted to become a third major league, alongside the American League and National League, in 1914 and 1915. Read more
• 02 Mar 1876: Pope Pius XII (died 1958) Pope Pius XII was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. Read more
• 02 Mar 1869: Julien Félix, French military officer and aviator (died 1914) Major Julien-Alexandre Félix was the director of manoeuvres in the French Military Aviation School, École militaire de Pau. He set the altitude record on August 5, 1911 in Étampes in France by climbing to 11,330 feet in 63 minutes, breaking the record of Georges Legagneux. Read more
• 02 Mar 1866: Margaret Sibella Brown, Canadian bryologist (died 1961) Margaret Sibella Brown was a Canadian amateur bryologist specializing in mosses and liverworts native to Nova Scotia. Early in her career she was involved with gathering supplies of sphagnum moss to be used as surgical dressings during World War I, when cotton was in short supply. After the war, she researched mosses from around the world, collecting specimens in Europe, the Caribbean, and the United States, as well as her native Canada. She published several papers in academic journals, some on materials she had collected herself and some cataloging samples collected by other investigators. Samples she collected are now housed at several major herbaria in North America and Europe. Read more
• 02 Mar 1862: John Jay Chapman, American lawyer, author, and poet (died 1933) John Jay Chapman was an American writer. Read more
• 02 Mar 1860: Susanna M. Salter, American activist and politician (died 1961) Susanna Madora Salter was an American politician and activist. From 1887 to 1888, she was mayor of Argonia, Kansas, becoming the first woman to serve in that role in the United States and one of the earliest in any U.S. political office. Read more
• 02 Mar 1859: Sholem Aleichem, Ukrainian-American author and playwright (died 1916) Solomon Naumovich Rabinovich, better known under his pen name Sholem Aleichem, was a Yiddish author and playwright who lived in the Russian Empire and in the United States. The 1964 musical Fiddler on the Roof, based on Aleichem's stories about Tevye the Dairyman, was the first commercially successful English-language stage production about Jewish life in Eastern Europe. Read more
• 02 Mar 1849: Robert Means Thompson, American commander, lawyer, and businessman (died 1930) Robert Means Thompson was a United States Navy officer, business magnate, philanthropist and a president of the American Olympic Association. He is the namesake of the destroyer USS Thompson (DD-627). Read more
• 02 Mar 1846: Marie Roze, French soprano (died 1926) Marie Roze, was a French operatic soprano. Read more
• 02 Mar 1842: Carl Jacobsen, Danish brewer, art collector, and philanthropist (died 1914) Carl Christian Hillman Jacobsen was a Danish brewer, art collector and philanthropist. Though often preoccupied with his cultural interests, Jacobsen was a shrewd and visionary businessman and initiated the transition of the brewery Carlsberg from a local Copenhagen brewery to the multinational conglomerate that it is today. Read more
• 02 Mar 1836: Henry Billings Brown, American lawyer and judge (died 1913) Henry Billings Brown was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1891 to 1906. Read more
• 02 Mar 1829: Carl Schurz, German-American general, lawyer, and politician, 13th United States Secretary of the Interior (died 1906) Carl Christian Schurz was a German-American revolutionary and an American statesman, journalist, and reformer. He migrated to the United States after the German revolutions of 1848–1849 and became a prominent member of the new Republican Party. After serving as a Union general in the American Civil War, he helped found the short-lived Liberal Republican Party and became a prominent advocate of civil service reform. Schurz represented Missouri in the United States Senate and was the 13th United States Secretary of the Interior. Read more
• 02 Mar 1824: Bedřich Smetana, Czech pianist and composer (died 1884) Bedřich Smetana was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style that became closely identified with his people's aspirations to a cultural and political "revival". He has been regarded in his homeland as the father of Czech music. Internationally he is best known for his 1866 opera The Bartered Bride and for the symphonic cycle Má vlast, which portrays the history, legends and landscape of the composer's native Bohemia. It contains the famous symphonic poem "Vltava", also popularly known by its German name "Die Moldau". Read more
• 02 Mar 1820: Multatuli, Dutch writer (died 1887) Eduard Douwes Dekker, better known by his pen name Multatuli, was a Dutch writer best known for his satirical novel Max Havelaar (1860), which denounced the abuses of colonialism in the Dutch East Indies. He is considered one of the Netherlands' greatest authors. Read more
• 02 Mar 1817: János Arany, Hungarian journalist and poet (died 1882) János Arany was a Hungarian poet, writer, translator and journalist. He is often said to be the "Shakespeare of ballads" – he wrote more than 102 ballads that have been translated into over 50 languages, as well as the Toldi trilogy. Read more
• 02 Mar 1816: Alexander Bullock, American lawyer and politician, 26th Governor of Massachusetts (died 1882) Alexander Hamilton Bullock was an American lawyer, politician, and businessman from Massachusetts. First a Whig and then a Republican, he served three terms (1866–69) as the 26th Governor of Massachusetts. He was actively opposed to the expansion of slavery before the American Civil War, playing a major role in the New England Emigrant Aid Society, founded in 1855 to settle the Kansas Territory with abolitionists. He was for many years involved in the insurance industry in Worcester, where he also served one term as mayor. Read more
• 02 Mar 1810: Pope Leo XIII (died 1903) Pope Leo XIII was head of the Catholic Church from 1878 until his death in 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of St. Peter, Pius IX, and John Paul II. Read more
• 02 Mar 1800: Yevgeny Baratynsky, Russian-Italian poet and philosopher (died 1844) Yevgeny Abramovich Baratynsky was lauded by Alexander Pushkin as the finest Russian elegiac poet. After a long period when his reputation was on the wane, Baratynsky was rediscovered by Russian Symbolism poets as a supreme poet of thought. Read more

🕊️ Important Deaths on 02 March in World History

• 02 Mar 2024: Janice Burgess, American television executive, screenwriter, and producer (born 1952) Janice Burgess was an American television executive, screenwriter and producer for Nickelodeon. She created the Nick Jr. series The Backyardigans and worked as a writer and story editor for Nickelodeon's revival of Winx Club. Both shows were produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio. Burgess joined Nickelodeon in 1995 as executive-in-charge of production. Read more
• 02 Mar 2024: Jaclyn Jose, Filipino actress (born 1963) Jaclyn Jose was a Filipino actress. Known for her penetrating eyes and antagonistic roles in film and soap operas, she was a recipient of various accolades, including five Gawad Urians, two Luna Awards, and a FAMAS Award, in addition to an Asian Film Awards nomination. She is the only Filipino to win the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress for the movie Ma' Rosa (2016). She was also described as the "Queen of Underacting" for her ability to deliver restrained and subtle performances. Read more
• 02 Mar 2019: Mike Oliver, British sociologist, disability rights activist (born 1945) Michael James Hoiles Oliver was an English sociologist, author, and disability rights activist. He was the first Professor of Disability Studies in the world, and key advocate of the social model of disability. Read more
• 02 Mar 2018: Billy Herrington, American actor (born 1969) William Glen Harold Herrington, was an American model, body builder and pornographic film actor. In the late 2000s, his appearances in various gay pornography movies led him to become a popular Internet meme on video-sharing websites such as Japan's Nico Nico Douga, where he was referred to by the sobriquet "Aniki" . Since then, at least 15,000 short mash-up parodies of his clips—known as "Gachimuchi Pants Wrestling" —have been produced by users. Read more
• 02 Mar 2018: Lin Hu, Chinese lieutenant general (born 1927) Lin Hu was a Chinese fighter pilot and lieutenant general of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). Born to a Russian mother and a Chinese father, he was orphaned at a young age. Lin joined the Eighth Route Army to fight in the Second Sino-Japanese War before he turned 11. After the Second World War, he was trained as a fighter pilot and fought in the Korean War and the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. He served as deputy commander of the PLA Air Force from 1985 to 1994 and attained the rank of lieutenant general in 1988. Read more
• 02 Mar 2016: Benoît Lacroix, Canadian priest, historian, and philosopher (born 1915) Benoît Lacroix was a Quebec theologian, philosopher, Dominican priest, professor in medieval studies and historian of the Medieval period, and author of almost 50 works and a great number of articles. Read more
• 02 Mar 2016: Aubrey McClendon, American businessman (born 1959) Aubrey Kerr McClendon was an American businessman primarily engaged in natural gas exploration. He was the co-founder, CEO and chairman of Chesapeake Energy, and, after being forced from the company due to a possible conflict of interest, he was the founder and chief executive officer of American Energy Partners, LP. He was an outspoken advocate for natural gas as an alternative to oil and coal fuels, and a pioneer in employing hydraulic fracturing. Read more
• 02 Mar 2015: Dean Hess, American minister and colonel (born 1917) Dean Elmer Hess was an American minister and United States Air Force Lieutenant Colonel who was involved in the so-called "Kiddy Car Airlift," the documented rescue of 950 orphans and 80 orphanage staff from the path of the Chinese advance during the Korean War on December 20, 1950. He is the subject of the autobiography Battle Hymn, published in 1956, which later served the basis for the 1957 film of the same name, where he was played by Rock Hudson. Read more
• 02 Mar 2015: Dave Mackay, Scottish-English footballer and manager (born 1934) David Craig Mackay was a Scottish football player and manager. Mackay was best known for a highly successful playing career with Heart of Midlothian, the double-winning Tottenham Hotspur side of 1961 and winning the league with Derby County as a manager. He also represented Scotland 22 times and was selected for their 1958 FIFA World Cup squad. Mackay tied with Tony Book of Manchester City for the Footballer of the Year award in 1969 and was later listed by the Football League in their "100 Legends", as well as being an inaugural inductee to both the English and Scottish Football Halls of Fame. He was described by Spurs as one of their greatest players and was known as 'the heartbeat' of their most successful ever team. Read more
• 02 Mar 2015: Mal Peet, English author and illustrator (born 1947) Malcolm Charles Peet was an English writer and illustrator best known for young adult fiction. He has won several honours including the Brandford Boase, the Carnegie Medal and the Guardian Prize, British children's literature awards that recognise "year's best" books. Three of his novels feature football and the fictional South American sports journalist Paul Faustino. The Murdstone Trilogy (2014) and "Mr Godley's Phantom" were his first works aimed at adult readers. Read more
• 02 Mar 2014: Ryhor Baradulin, Belarusian poet and translator (born 1935) Ryhor Janavič Baradulin was a Belarusian poet, essayist and translator. Read more
• 02 Mar 2013: Peter Harvey, Australian journalist (born 1944) Peter Michael St Clair Harvey was an Australian journalist and broadcaster. Harvey was a long-serving correspondent and contributor with the Nine Network from 1975 to 2013. Read more
• 02 Mar 2013: Giorgos Kolokithas, Greek basketball player (born 1945) Giorgos Kolokithas was a Greek professional basketball player. He is considered to have been one of the best scorers and players in Greek basketball history, and as a player, he had the nickname of "Basket Machine". He was a member of the FIBA European Selection team in 1970. Kolokithas was named one of FIBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1991. Read more
• 02 Mar 2013: Shabnam Shakeel, Pakistani poet and author (born 1942) Shabnam Shakeel was a Pakistani poet, writer, and academician. Shabnam spent her early life in Lahore, Pakistan, and received a master's degree in Urdu literature. During her career, she worked as a lecturer at several colleges in Pakistan. Her first book Tanqeedi Mazameen, was published in 1965. She won numerous awards, honours and titles for her contributions to Urdu literature including the prestigious presidents' Pride of Performance award in 2005. Read more
• 02 Mar 2012: Lawrence Anthony, South African environmentalist, explorer, and author (born 1950) Lawrence Anthony was a South African conservationist, environmentalist, explorer and author. He was the long-standing head of conservation at the Thula Thula animal reserve in Zululand, South Africa, and the Founder of The Earth Organization, a privately registered, independent, international conservation and environmental group. He was an international member of the Explorers Club of New York and a member of the National Council of the Southern Africa Association for the Advancement of Science. Read more
• 02 Mar 2012: Van T. Barfoot, American colonel, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1919) Van Thomas Barfoot was a United States Army officer and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in World War II. Read more
• 02 Mar 2012: Norman St John-Stevas, English academic and politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (born 1929) Norman Antony Francis St John-Stevas, Baron St John of Fawsley, was a British Conservative politician, author and barrister. He served as Leader of the House of Commons in the government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher from 1979 to 1981. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Chelmsford from 1964 to 1987 and was made a life peer in 1987. His surname was created by compounding those of his father (Stevas) and mother. Read more
• 02 Mar 2012: James Q. Wilson, American political scientist and academic (born 1931) James Quinn Wilson was an American political scientist and an authority on public administration. Most of his career was spent as a professor at UCLA and Harvard University. He was the chairman of the Council of Academic Advisors of the American Enterprise Institute, member of the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (1985–1990), and the President's Council on Bioethics. He was Director of Joint Center for Urban Studies at Harvard-MIT. Read more
• 02 Mar 2010: Winston Churchill, English journalist and politician (born 1940) Winston Spencer Churchill, generally known as Winston Churchill, was an English Conservative politician and a grandson of the British prime minister of the same name. During the period of his prominence as a public figure, he was normally referred to as Winston Churchill MP, in order to distinguish him from his grandfather. His father Randolph Churchill was also an MP and his mother Pamela Harriman was the United States Ambassador to France. Read more
• 02 Mar 2009: João Bernardo Vieira, Bissau-Guinean politician, President of Guinea-Bissau (born 1939) João Bernardo "Nino" Vieira was a Bissau-Guinean politician and military officer who served as President of Guinea-Bissau from 1980 to 1999, except for a three-day period in May 1984, and from 2005 until his assassination in 2009. Read more
• 02 Mar 2008: Jeff Healey, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1966) Norman Jeffrey Healey was a Canadian blues, rock and jazz guitarist, singer and songwriter who attained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. He reached No. 5 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart with "Angel Eyes" and reached the Top 10 in Canada with the songs "I Think I Love You Too Much" and "How Long Can a Man Be Strong". Read more
• 02 Mar 2007: Thomas S. Kleppe, American soldier and politician, 41st United States Secretary of the Interior (born 1919) Thomas Savig Kleppe was an American politician who served as the representative from North Dakota. He was also the administrator of the Small Business Administration and the U.S. secretary of the interior. Read more
• 02 Mar 2007: Clem Labine, American baseball player (born 1926) Clement Walter Labine was an American right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) best known for his years with the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1950 to 1960. Read more
• 02 Mar 2007: Ivan Safronov, Russian colonel and journalist (born 1956) Ivan Ivanovich Safronov was a Russian journalist and columnist who covered military affairs for the daily newspaper Kommersant. He died after falling from the fifth floor of his Moscow apartment building. His apartment was on the third floor. There are speculations that he may have been killed for his critical reporting: the Taganka District prosecutor's office in Moscow initiated a criminal investigation into Safronov's death, and in September 2007, officially ruled his death a suicide. Read more
• 02 Mar 2007: Henri Troyat, Russian-French historian and author (born 1911) Henri Troyat was a Russian-French writer, biographer, historian, and novelist. Read more
• 02 Mar 2005: Martin Denny, American pianist and composer (born 1911) Martin Denny was an American pianist, composer, and arranger. Known as the "father of exotica", he was a multi-instrumentalist and could play a number of percussion instruments. In a long career that saw him performing up to 3 weeks prior to his death, he toured the world popularizing his brand of lounge music which included exotic percussion, imaginative rearrangements of popular songs, and original songs that celebrated Tiki culture. Read more
• 02 Mar 2004: Cormac McAnallen, Irish footballer (born 1980) Cormac McAnallen was an Irish Gaelic footballer who played for the Eglish St Patrick's club and the Tyrone county team. Read more
• 02 Mar 2004: Mercedes McCambridge, American actress (born 1916) Carlotta Mercedes Agnes McCambridge was an American actress of radio, stage, film, and television. Orson Welles called her "the world's greatest living radio actress". She won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her screen debut in All the King's Men (1949) and was nominated in the same category for Giant (1956). She voiced the majority of dialogue for demon Pazuzu in The Exorcist (1973). Read more
• 02 Mar 2004: Marge Schott, American businesswoman (born 1928) Margaret Carolyn Schott was an American baseball executive. Serving as managing general partner, president and CEO of Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds franchise from 1984 to 1999, she was the second woman to own a North American major-league team without inheriting it, after New York Mets founder Joan Whitney Payson. Read more
• 02 Mar 2003: Hank Ballard, American singer-songwriter (born 1927) Hank Ballard was an American singer and songwriter, the lead vocalist of the Midnighters and one of the first rock and roll artists to emerge in the early 1950s. John Henry played an integral part in the development of the genre, releasing the hit singles "Work with Me, Annie" and answer songs "Annie Had a Baby" and "Annie's Aunt Fannie" with his Midnighters. He later wrote and originally recorded "The Twist" which was covered a year later by Chubby Checker, this second version spreading the popularity of the dance. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. Read more
• 02 Mar 2003: Malcolm Williamson, Australian pianist and composer (born 1931) Malcolm Benjamin Graham Christopher Williamson, was an Australian composer. He was the Master of the Queen's Music from 1975 until his death. According to Grove Music Online, although Williamson's earlier compositions aligned with Serialist techniques, "he later modified his approach to composition in the search of a more inclusive musical language that was fundamentally tonal and, above all, lyrical. In the 1960s, he was commonly referred to as the most often commissioned composer in Britain, and over his lifetime he produced more than 250 works in a wide variety of genres." Read more
• 02 Mar 2000: Sandra Schmirler, Canadian curler (born 1963) Sandra Marie Schmirler was a Canadian curler who captured three Canadian Curling Championships and three World Curling Championships. Schmirler also skipped (captained) her Canadian team to a gold medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics, the first year women's curling was a medal sport. At tournaments where she was not competing, Schmirler sometimes worked as a commentator for CBC Sports, which popularized her nickname "Schmirler the Curler" and claimed she was the only person who had a name that rhymed with the sport she played. She died in 2000 at 36 of cancer, leaving a legacy that extended outside of curling. Schmirler was honoured posthumously with an induction into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame and was awarded the World Curling Freytag Award, which later led to her induction into the World Curling Federation Hall of Fame. Read more
• 02 Mar 1999: Dusty Springfield, English singer (born 1939) Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien, better known by her stage name Dusty Springfield, was an English singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano voice, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, pop, and dramatic ballads, with French chanson, country, and jazz also in her repertoire. During her 1960s peak, she ranked among the most successful British performers on both sides of the Atlantic. Her image – marked by a peroxide blonde bouffant/beehive hairstyle, heavy makeup and evening gowns, as well as stylised, gestural performances – made her an icon of the Swinging Sixties. Read more
• 02 Mar 1994: Anita Morris, American actress, singer, and dancer (born 1943) Anita Rose Morris was an American actress, singer and dancer. She began her career performing in Broadway musicals, including Jesus Christ Superstar, Seesaw and Nine, for which she received a Tony Award nomination. Read more
• 02 Mar 1992: Sandy Dennis, American actress (born 1937) Sandra Dale Dennis was an American actress. She made her film debut in the drama Splendor in the Grass (1961). For her performance in the comedy-drama film Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), she received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Read more
• 02 Mar 1991: Serge Gainsbourg, French singer-songwriter, actor, and director (born 1928) Serge Gainsbourg was a French singer-songwriter, actor, composer, and director. Regarded as one of the most important figures in French pop, he was renowned for often provocative releases which caused uproar in France, dividing public opinion. His artistic output ranged from his early work in jazz, chanson, and yé-yé to later efforts in rock, zouk, funk, reggae, and electronica. Gainsbourg's varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorise, although his legacy has been firmly established and he is often regarded as one of the world's most influential popular musicians. Read more
• 02 Mar 1987: Randolph Scott, American actor and director (born 1898) George Randolph Scott was an American film actor, whose Hollywood career spanned from 1928 to 1962. As a leading man for all but the first three years of his cinematic career, Scott appeared in dramas, comedies, musicals, adventures, war, horror and fantasy films, and Westerns. Out of his more than 100 film appearances, more than 60 of them were Westerns. Read more
• 02 Mar 1987: Lolo Soetoro, Indonesian geographer and academic (born 1935) Lolo Soetoro, also known as Lolo Soetoro Mangunharjo or Mangundikardjo, was an Indonesian geographer who was the ex-stepfather of Barack Obama, a former President of the United States. Read more
• 02 Mar 1982: Philip K. Dick, American philosopher and author (born 1928) Philip Kindred Dick was an American science fiction short story writer and novelist. He wrote 45 novels and about 121 short stories, most of which appeared in science fiction magazines. His fiction explored varied philosophical and social questions such as the nature of reality, perception, human nature, and identity, and commonly featured characters struggling against alternate realities, illusory environments, monopolistic corporations, drug abuse, authoritarian governments, and altered states of consciousness. He is considered one of the most important figures in 20th-century science fiction. Read more
• 02 Mar 1979: Christy Ring, Irish hurler (born 1920) Christopher Nicholas Michael Ring was an Irish hurler whose league and championship career at senior level with the Cork county team spanned twenty-four years from 1939 to 1963. He established many championship records, including career appearances (65), scoring tally (33–208) and number of All-Ireland medals won (8); however, these records were subsequently bested by a number of players. Ring is widely regarded as one of the greatest hurlers in the history of the game, with many former players, commentators and fans rating him as the number one player of all time. Read more
• 02 Mar 1977: Eugénie Brazier, French chef (born 1895) Eugénie Brazier, known as "la Mère Brazier", was a French chef who, in 1933, became the first person awarded six Michelin stars, three each at two restaurants: La Mère Brazier in the rue Royale, one of the main streets of Lyon, and a second, also called La Mère Brazier, outside the city. This achievement was unmatched until Alain Ducasse was awarded six stars with the publication of the 1998 Michelin Guide. Read more
• 02 Mar 1972: Léo-Ernest Ouimet, Canadian director and producer (born 1877) Léo-Ernest Ouimet was a Canadian film pioneer. He was a theater operator, filmmaker, producer, and distributor. Read more
• 02 Mar 1967: José Martínez Ruiz, Spanish author and critic (born 1873) José Augusto Trinidad Martínez Ruiz, better known by his pseudonym Azorín, was a Spanish novelist, essayist and literary critic. Read more
• 02 Mar 1962: Charles Jean de la Vallée-Poussin, Belgian mathematician and academic (born 1866) Charles-Jean Étienne Gustave Nicolas, baron de la Vallée Poussin was a Belgian mathematician. He is best known for proving the prime number theorem. Read more
• 02 Mar 1958: Fred Merkle, American baseball player and manager (born 1888) Carl Frederick Rudolf Merkle, nicknamed "Bonehead", was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball from 1907 to 1926. Although he had a lengthy career, he is best remembered for a controversial base-running mistake he made as a rookie while still a teenager. Read more
• 02 Mar 1957: Selim Sırrı Tarcan, Turkish educator and politician (born 1874) Selim Sırrı Tarcan was a Turkish educator, sports official and politician. He is best remembered for his contribution to the establishment of the National Olympic Committee of Turkey and the introduction of the sport of volleyball in Turkey. Read more
• 02 Mar 1953: James Lightbody, American runner (born 1882) James Davies Lightbody was an American middle distance runner, winner of six Olympic medals in the early 20th century. Read more
• 02 Mar 1949: Sarojini Naidu, Indian poet and activist (born 1879) Sarojini Naidu was an Indian political activist and poet who served as the first Governor of United Provinces, after India's independence. She played an important role in the Indian independence movement against the British Raj. She was the first Indian woman to be president of the Indian National Congress and appointed governor of a state. Read more
• 02 Mar 1947: Frans Johan Louwrens Ghijsels, Dutch architect and urban planner (born 1882) Frans Johan Louwrens Ghijsels was a Dutch architect and urban planner who worked in the Netherlands and the Dutch Indies. Ghijsels was the founder of AIA, the biggest architecture consultant in the Dutch Indies. He was one of the instrumental architects in developing a modern style characteristic of the Dutch Indies. Read more
• 02 Mar 1946: Fidél Pálffy, Hungarian politician, Hungarian Minister of Agriculture (born 1895) Count Fidél Pálffy ab Erdőd was a Hungarian nobleman who emerged as a leading supporter of Nazism in Hungary. Read more
• 02 Mar 1946: George E. Stewart, American colonel, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1872) George Evans Stewart was an officer in the United States Army and a Medal of Honor recipient for his actions in the Philippine–American War. He later commanded the 339th Infantry Regiment and the American Expeditionary Force in northern Russia. Read more
• 02 Mar 1945: Emily Carr, Canadian painter and author (born 1871) Emily Carr was a Canadian artist who was inspired by the monumental art and villages of the First Nations and the landscapes of British Columbia. She also was a vivid writer and chronicler of life in her surroundings, praised for her "complete candour" and "strong prose". Klee Wyck, her first book, published in 1941, won the Governor General's Literary Award for non-fiction and this book and others written by her or compiled from her writings later are still much in demand today. Read more
• 02 Mar 1944: Ida Maclean, British biochemist, the first woman admitted to the London Chemical Society (born 1877) Ida Maclean was an English biochemist and the first woman admitted to the London Chemical Society. Read more
• 02 Mar 1943: Gisela Januszewska, Austrian physician (born1867) Gisela Januszewska was an Austrian physician. Having earned her degree in Switzerland, she briefly worked in Germany before becoming the first female physician in the ethnically Serbian town of Banja Luka in Bosnia Herzegovina within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. She received the highest decorations for her service during the First World War and social activism in Austria afterwards, but was deported to a Nazi concentration camp, where she died, during the Second World War. Read more
• 02 Mar 1939: Howard Carter, English archaeologist and historian (born 1874) Howard Carter was a British archaeologist and Egyptologist who became known for discovering the intact tomb of the 18th Dynasty Pharaoh Tutankhamun in November 1922, the best-preserved pharaonic tomb ever found in the Valley of the Kings. Read more
• 02 Mar 1938: Ben Harney, American pianist and composer (born 1871) Benjamin Robertson Harney was an American songwriter, entertainer, and pioneer of ragtime music. His 1895 composition "You've Been a Good Old Wagon but You Done Broke Down" is known as the second ragtime composition to be published and the first ragtime hit to reach the mainstream. The first Ragtime composition published was La Pas Ma La written by Ernest Hogan in 1895. The copyright for "You've Been a Good Old Wagon but You Done Broke Down" was registered in January 1895 source, a few months prior to La Pas Ma La source, suggesting it was in fact the first of the two. During the early years of Harney's career, he falsely promoted himself as being the inventor of ragtime and never acknowledged the genre's black origin. Many contemporary musicians criticized him for it. Although ragtime is now probably more associated with Scott Joplin, in 1924 The New York Times wrote that Ben Harney "Probably did more to popularize ragtime than any other person." Time magazine called him "Ragtime's Father" in 1938. Read more
• 02 Mar 1930: D. H. Lawrence, English novelist, poet, playwright, and critic (born 1885) David Herbert Lawrence was an English novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, literary critic, travel writer, essayist, and painter. His modernist works reflect on modernity, social alienation and industrialisation, while championing sexuality, vitality and instinct. Four of his most famous novels – Sons and Lovers
  (1913), The Rainbow (1915), Women in Love (1920), and Lady Chatterley's Lover (1928) – were the subject of censorship trials for their radical portrayals of romance, sexuality and use of explicit language. Read more
• 02 Mar 1921: Champ Clark, American lawyer and politician, 41st Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (born 1850) James Beauchamp Clark was an American politician and attorney who served as the 36th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1911 to 1919. He was the only Democrat to serve as speaker during the Progressive Era when Republicans dominated the House, Senate, and presidency. Clark represented Missouri's 9th district between 1893 and 1921. Read more
• 02 Mar 1896: Jubal Early, American general (born 1816) Jubal Anderson Early was an American lawyer, politician and military officer who served in the Confederate States Army during the Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, Early resigned his United States Army commission after the Second Seminole War and his Virginia military commission after the Mexican–American War, in both cases to practice law and participate in politics. Accepting a Virginia and later Confederate military commission as the American Civil War began, Early fought in the Eastern Theater throughout the conflict. He commanded a division under Generals Stonewall Jackson and Richard S. Ewell, and later commanded a corps. Read more
• 02 Mar 1895: Berthe Morisot, French painter (born 1841) Berthe Marie Pauline Morisot was a French painter, printmaker and a member of the circle of painters in Paris who became known as the Impressionists. Read more
• 02 Mar 1895: Isma'il Pasha, Egyptian politician (born 1830) Isma'il Pasha, also known as Ismail the Magnificent, was the Khedive of Egypt and ruler of Sudan from 1863 to 1879, when he was removed at the behest of Great Britain and France. Sharing the ambitious outlook of his grandfather, Muhammad Ali Pasha, he greatly modernized Egypt and Sudan during his reign, investing heavily in industrial and economic development, urbanization, and the expansion of the country's boundaries in Africa. Read more
• 02 Mar 1880: John Benjamin Macneill, Irish engineer (born 1790) Sir John Benjamin Macneill FRS was an Irish civil engineer of the 19th century, closely associated with Thomas Telford. His most notable projects were railway schemes in Ireland. Read more
• 02 Mar 1865: Carl Sylvius Völkner, German-New Zealand priest and missionary (born 1819) Carl Sylvius Völkner was a German-born Protestant missionary active in the North Island of New Zealand during the mid-nineteenth century. He is famous for being tried and executed for espionage by members of the Pai Mārire faith at his church in Ōpōtiki, in the Bay of Plenty. This later became known as the Völkner incident, an important event in the New Zealand Wars. Read more
• 02 Mar 1864: Ulric Dahlgren, American colonel (born 1842) Ulric Dahlgren was an American military officer who served as colonel in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was the son of Union Navy Rear Admiral John A. Dahlgren and nephew to Confederate Brigadier General Charles G. Dahlgren. Read more
• 02 Mar 1855: Nicholas I, Russian emperor (born 1796) Nicholas I was Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1825 to 1855. He was the third son of Paul I and younger brother of his predecessor, Alexander I. Nicholas's twenty nine-year reign began with the failed Decembrist revolt. He is mainly remembered as a reactionary whose controversial reign was marked by geographical expansion, centralisation of administrative policies, and repression of dissent both in Russia and among its neighbors. Nicholas had a happy marriage that produced a large family, with all of their seven children surviving childhood. Read more
• 02 Mar 1840: Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers, German physician and astronomer (born 1758) Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers was a German astronomer. He found a convenient method of calculating the orbit of comets, and in 1802 and 1807, discovered the second and the fourth asteroids Pallas and Vesta. Read more
• 02 Mar 1835: Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor (born 1768) Francis II and I was the last Holy Roman Emperor as Francis II from 1792 to 1806, and the first Emperor of Austria as Francis I from 1804 to 1835. He was also King of Germany, Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia, and served as the first president of the German Confederation following its establishment in 1815. Read more
• 02 Mar 1830: Samuel Thomas von Sömmerring, German physician, anatomist, and anthropologist (born 1755) Samuel Thomas von Sömmerring was a German physician, anatomist, anthropologist, paleontologist and inventor. Sömmerring discovered the macula in the retina of the human eye. His investigations on the brain and the nervous system, on the sensory organs, on the embryo and its malformations, on the structure of the lungs, etc., made him one of the most important German anatomists. Read more
• 02 Mar 1829: Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez, Mexican revolutionary (born ca. 1773) María Josefa Crescencia Ortiz Téllez–Girón, popularly known as Doña Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez or La Corregidora was an insurgent and supporter of the Mexican War of Independence, which fought for independence against Spain, in the early 19th century. She was married to Miguel Domínguez, corregidor of the city of Querétaro, hence her nickname. Read more

Why is 02 March Important in World History?

Several significant political, cultural, educational, and sporting events took place on 02 March, making it an important topic for general knowledge and competitive examinations.

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What happened on 02 March in World history?

On 02 March, several important historical events, notable births, and major milestones occurred in World history.

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