History of Today 03 October: Important Events, Births and Deaths

Welcome to History of Today 03 October. On this page, you can read important historical events, famous births, notable deaths and general knowledge facts related to 03 October. This information is useful for UPSC, SSC, Banking, Railway, State PSC and other competitive exams.

Last updated on 03 October 2026, 01:01 AM

Important Events on 03 October in History

03 Oct 2024: Bengali, Assamese, Marathi, Pali and Prakrit are accorded the Classical language status by the Government of India Read more
03 Oct 2023: Wab Kinew is elected to be the first First Nations Premier of a Canadian province in the 2023 Manitoba general election Read more
03 Oct 2022: Svante Pääbo is awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Read more
03 Oct 2021: Eight people are killed in an airplane crash near Milan, Italy. Read more
03 Oct 2015: Forty-two people are killed and 33 go missing in the Kunduz hospital airstrike in Afghanistan. Read more
03 Oct 2013: At least 360 migrants are killed when their boat sinks near the Italian island of Lampedusa. Read more
03 Oct 2009: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkey join in the Turkic Council. Read more
03 Oct 2008: The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 for the U.S. financial system is signed by President George W. Bush. Read more
03 Oct 1995: O. J. Simpson murder case: O. J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. Read more
03 Oct 1993: An American attack against a warlord in Mogadishu fails; eighteen US soldiers and over 350 Somalis die. Read more
03 Oct 1991: Nadine Gordimer is announced as the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature. Read more
03 Oct 1990: The German Democratic Republic is abolished and becomes part of the Federal Republic of Germany; the event is afterwards celebrated as German Unity Day. Read more
03 Oct 1989: A coup in Panama City is suppressed and 11 participants are executed. Read more
03 Oct 1986: TASCC, a superconducting cyclotron at the Chalk River Laboratories in Canada, is officially opened. Read more
03 Oct 1985: The Space Shuttle Atlantis makes its maiden flight, carrying two DSCS-III Satellites on STS-51-J. Read more
03 Oct 1981: The hunger strike at the Maze Prison in Northern Ireland ends after seven months and ten deaths. Read more
03 Oct 1963: A violent coup in Honduras begins two decades of military rule. Read more
03 Oct 1962: Project Mercury: US astronaut Wally Schirra, in Sigma 7, is launched from Cape Canaveral for a six-orbit flight. Read more
03 Oct 1957: The California State Superior Court rules that the book Howl and Other Poems is not obscene. Read more
03 Oct 1952: The United Kingdom successfully tests a nuclear weapon in the Montebello Islands, Western Australia, to become the world's third nuclear power. Read more
03 Oct 1951: Korean War: The First Battle of Maryang San pits Commonwealth troops against communist Chinese troops. Read more
03 Oct 1949: WERD, the first black-owned radio station in the United States, opens in Atlanta. Read more
03 Oct 1946: An American Overseas Airlines Douglas DC-4 crashes near Ernest Harmon Air Force Base in Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, killing 39. Read more
03 Oct 1943: World War II: German forces murder 92 civilians in Lingiades, Greece. Read more
03 Oct 1942: A German V-2 rocket reaches a record 85 km (46 nm) in altitude. Read more
03 Oct 1935: Second Italo-Abyssinian War: Italy invades Ethiopia. Read more
03 Oct 1932: The Kingdom of Iraq gains independence from the United Kingdom. Read more
03 Oct 1929: The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes is renamed to Yugoslavia by King Alexander I. Read more
03 Oct 1919: Cincinnati Reds pitcher Adolfo Luque becomes the first Latin American player to appear in a World Series. Read more
03 Oct 1918: Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria accedes to the throne. Read more
03 Oct 1912: U.S. forces defeat Nicaraguan rebels at the Battle of Coyotepe Hill. Read more
03 Oct 1873: Chief Kintpuash and companions are hanged for their part in the Modoc War of northern California. Read more
03 Oct 1863: The last Thursday in November is declared as Thanksgiving Day by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln. Read more
03 Oct 1862: American Civil War: The two-day Second Battle of Corinth begins as Confederate forces under General Earl Van Dorn attack Union defenses led by General William Rosecrans around Corinth, Mississippi. Read more

Famous Births on 03 October

03 Oct 2004: Noah Schnapp, American actor Noah Cameron Schnapp is an American actor. He made his acting debut in 2015 with his portrayal of Charlie Brown in the animated film The Peanuts Movie and his supporting role in Steven Spielberg's Bridge of Spies. Schnapp gained international recognition for his role as Will Byers in the Netflix science fiction horror series Stranger Things (2016–2025), for which he received various accolades. Read more
03 Oct 2001: Anton Lundell, Finnish ice hockey player Anton Lundell is a Finnish professional ice hockey player who is a centre for the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Lundell was considered a top prospect for the 2020 NHL entry draft, where he was selected 12th overall by the Panthers. Lundell won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Panthers in 2024 and 2025. Read more
03 Oct 2001: Max Plath, Australian rugby league player Max Plath is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a hooker, lock or second-row forward for the Dolphins in the National Rugby League (NRL). Read more
03 Oct 2001: C. J. Stroud, American football player Coleridge Bernard "C. J." Stroud IV is an American professional football quarterback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). Stroud played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, where he holds several school records, including most passing yards in a single game with 573, as well as being the first player to throw for six touchdowns three times. He was a Heisman Trophy finalist in 2021 and 2022, and was subsequently selected by the Houston Texans second overall in the 2023 NFL draft. In his rookie season, he led the Texans to a division title and playoff victory en route to winning the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Read more
03 Oct 2000: CJ Abrams, American baseball player Paul Christopher Abrams Jr. is an American professional baseball shortstop for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022 with the San Diego Padres. Abrams was named an All-Star in 2024 and 2026. Read more
03 Oct 1997: Jin Boyang, Chinese figure skater Jin Boyang is a Chinese figure skater. He is a two-time World bronze medalist (2016–2017), the 2018 Four Continents champion, a two-time Four Continents silver medalist, the 2017 Asian Winter Games silver medalist, a six-time Chinese national champion and a two-time Chinese national winter games champion. On the junior level, he is the 2015 World Junior silver medalist and the 2013 JGP Final champion. He is the first Chinese skater to medal in the men's singles event at a World Championships. Read more
03 Oct 1997: Jonathan Isaac, American basketball player Jonathan Judah Isaac is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season for the Florida State Seminoles. Isaac was selected with the sixth overall pick by the Magic in the 2017 NBA draft. Read more
03 Oct 1997: Bang Chan, Australian singer and record producer based in South Korea Christopher Chahn Bahng, known professionally as Bang Chan (Korean: 방찬), is an Australian singer, rapper, songwriter, and record producer based in South Korea. Signed to JYP Entertainment, he is the leader of the South Korean boy band Stray Kids and a member of 3Racha, an in-house production team and sub-unit of Stray Kids. Read more
03 Oct 1995: Ayo Edebiri, American actress Funmilayo "Ayo" Edebiri is an American actress, comedian, television writer, and director. She played chef Sydney Adamu in the drama series The Bear (2022–2026), for which she won a Golden Globe Award, two Actor Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award, as well as nominations for a Directors Guild of America Award for directing the episode "Napkins" and Writers Guild of America Award for co-writing "Worms." Read more
03 Oct 1995: Mike Gesicki, American football player Michael William Gesicki is an American professional football tight end for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions. He was selected in the second round of the 2018 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins. Read more
03 Oct 1995: Artem Zub, Russian ice hockey player Artyom Valerievich Zub is a Russian professional ice hockey player who is a defenceman for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). Read more
03 Oct 1994: Victoria Bosio, Argentinian tennis player Victoria Bosio is an Argentine tennis player. On 18 May 2026, she reached her best singles ranking of world No. 305. On 7 March 2022, she peaked at No. 284 in the WTA doubles rankings. Read more
03 Oct 1994: Seth Jones, American ice hockey player Jared Seth Jones is an American professional ice hockey player who is a defenseman for the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected fourth overall by the Nashville Predators in the 2013 NHL entry draft. After two seasons playing for the United States National Team Development Program, Jones joined the Western Hockey League's (WHL) Portland Winterhawks. He has also played in the NHL for the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Chicago Blackhawks. Read more
03 Oct 1993: Raffaele Di Gennaro, Italian footballer Raffaele Di Gennaro is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Serie A club Inter Milan. Read more
03 Oct 1991: Jenny McLoughlin, English sprinter Jenny McLoughlin is a British Paralympian track and field athlete competing mainly in T37 sprint events. She has represented Great Britain in the 2008 Summer Paralympics and in the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London. After moving to Wales at the age of 14, she became eligible to join the Wales team for the Commonwealth Games, winning silver in the T37 sprint in India. Read more
03 Oct 1991: Aki Takajo, Japanese singer Aki Takajō , is a Japanese tarento who is a former member of the idol groups AKB48 and JKT48. She auditioned for AKB48's sixth generation and was promoted to member of Team A. Her talent agency is Horipro and was one of the charter members to support JKT48. She is also a former member of the sub-unit French Kiss. Read more
03 Oct 1990: Johan Le Bon, French cyclist Johan Le Bon is a French road bicycle racer, who currently rides for French amateur team Dinan Sport Cycling. Read more
03 Oct 1989: Nate Montana, American football player Nathaniel Joseph Montana is an American former college football quarterback. After walking-on at Notre Dame as a freshman in 2008, he transferred to Pasadena City College in 2009, went back to Notre Dame in 2010, transferred to Montana in 2011, and finally transferred to West Virginia Wesleyan in 2012. Montana is the son of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana. Read more
03 Oct 1989: Alex Trimble, Irish singer Two Door Cinema Club are a Northern Irish rock band formed in Bangor, County Down, in 2007. The band consists of Alex Trimble, Sam Halliday, and Kevin Baird. Read more
03 Oct 1988: Dustin Gazley, American ice hockey player Dustin James Gazley is an Italian–American professional ice hockey player who is a winger for HC Bolzano of the ICE Hockey League (ICEHL). Read more
03 Oct 1988: ASAP Rocky, American rapper and songwriter Rakim Athelston Mayers, known professionally as ASAP Rocky, is an American rapper, record producer, actor, fashion designer, and model. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a member of the hip hop collective ASAP Mob, from which he adopted his stage name. In August 2011, Mayers's single "Peso" was leaked online and began receiving radio airplay within weeks, propelling cloud rap into mainstream attention. He signed with Polo Grounds Music, an imprint of RCA Records, that October and released his debut mixtape, Live. Love. A$AP to widespread critical acclaim. Read more
03 Oct 1988: Alicia Vikander, Swedish actress Alicia Amanda Vikander is a Swedish actress. Her accolades include an Academy Award and an Actor Award, in addition to nominations for three BAFTAs and two Golden Globe Awards. Read more
03 Oct 1987: Starley, Australian pop singer Starley Hope, known mononymously as Starley, is an Australian singer and songwriter. She is best known for her debut single "Call on Me", released in 2016, which was remixed into a club song by Ryan Riback the following year. Read more
03 Oct 1986: Lewis Brown, New Zealand rugby league player Lewis Brown, also known by the nickname of "Sharky", is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s, who played for the New Zealand Warriors, Penrith Panthers and Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League. He primarily played at second-row, but could also fill in at centre or hooker. Read more
03 Oct 1986: Jackson Martínez, Colombian footballer Jackson Arley Martínez Valencia is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Colombian Primera A team Independiente Medellín. Read more
03 Oct 1985: Courtney Lee, American basketball player Courtney Lee is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. Read more
03 Oct 1984: Yoon Eun-hye, South Korean singer and actress Yoon Eun-hye is a South Korean singer and actress. She debuted as a member of South Korean girl group Baby Vox, staying with the group from 1999 to 2005, as well as WSG Wannabe, a female project group in 2022. Yoon has since moved on to acting and is best known for starring in the television dramas Princess Hours (2006), The Vineyard Man (2006), Coffee Prince (2007), My Fair Lady (2009), Lie to Me (2011), and Missing You (2012). Read more
03 Oct 1984: Bruno Gervais, Canadian ice hockey player Bruno Gervais is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. He played with the New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning and the Philadelphia Flyers in the National Hockey League (NHL). Read more
03 Oct 1984: Jessica Parker Kennedy, Canadian actress Jessica Parker Kennedy is a Canadian actress known as Melissa Glaser in The Secret Circle, Max on Black Sails, and Nora West-Allen / XS in The Flash. She also had guest roles on Smallville, Undercovers, Kaya and Colony. Read more
03 Oct 1984: Anthony Le Tallec, French footballer Anthony Le Tallec is a French former professional footballer who played as a forward or an attacking midfielder for Liverpool, Sochaux, and Annecy. Read more
03 Oct 1984: Chris Marquette, American actor Christopher Marquette, also credited as Christopher Rodriguez-Marquette, is an American actor. He began his career with a main role as Adam Brody on the ABC sitcom Aliens in the Family (1996) before his breakout with a main role as Marc Delgado on the Lifetime medical drama series Strong Medicine (2000–2005). Read more
03 Oct 1984: Gary Neal, American basketball player and coach Gary Neal is an American former basketball professional player and coach. He played college basketball for the La Salle Explorers and Towson Tigers. Neal began his professional career abroad with teams in Turkey, Spain and Italy before signing with the San Antonio Spurs in 2010. He mostly played the shooting guard position. Read more
03 Oct 1984: Ashlee Simpson, American singer-songwriter and actress Ashley Nicolle Ross-Næss, also known as Ashlee Simpson, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. The younger sister of singer and actress Jessica Simpson, Simpson began her career as a backup dancer for her sister and appeared in television commercials at the age of 15. She later pursued acting, landing a main role on the family drama 7th Heaven. She also appeared on the MTV reality series Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica, which aired from 2003 to 2005 and followed Jessica and her then-husband, Nick Lachey. While recording her debut studio album, Simpson starred in her own spin-off reality series, The Ashlee Simpson Show, which aired on MTV from 2004 to 2005 and brought her increased media attention. Read more
03 Oct 1983: Thiago Alves, Brazilian mixed martial artist Thiago Alves is a Brazilian former bare-knuckle fighter and former mixed martial artist. A 27-fight veteran of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, he competed in the promotion from 2005 until 2019. Aside from being a professional fighter, Alves has been a striking coach at the American Top Team since 2017. Read more
03 Oct 1983: Fred, Brazilian footballer Frederico Chaves Guedes, known as Fred, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a striker. Read more
03 Oct 1983: Mark Giordano, Canadian ice hockey player Mark Giordano is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who is an advisor for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). In the NHL, he played as a defenceman for the Calgary Flames for 15 seasons, where he was the team captain for his final eight seasons, and the Seattle Kraken, where he served as captain during the first six months of their inaugural season. An undrafted player, Giordano signed with the Flames as a free agent in 2004 after playing two seasons of major junior ice hockey with Owen Sound Attack of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Read more
03 Oct 1983: Andreas Papathanasiou, Cypriot footballer Andreas Papathanasiou is a Cypriot footballer who plays as a forward. Read more
03 Oct 1983: Tessa Thompson, American actress Tessa Lynne Thompson is an American actress. Known for her roles in both blockbusters and independent dramas, her accolades include nominations for two BAFTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Read more
03 Oct 1981: Danny Coid, English footballer Daniel John Coid is an English former professional footballer. Read more
03 Oct 1981: Zlatan Ibrahimović, Swedish footballer Zlatan Ibrahimović is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is known for his acrobatic strikes and volleys, technique, ball control, and physical dominance. Ibrahimović is regarded as one of the greatest strikers of all time and is one of the most decorated footballers in the world, having won 34 trophies in his career. He scored over 570 career goals, including more than 500 club goals, and scored in four consecutive decades between the 1990s and the 2020s. Read more
03 Oct 1981: Andreas Isaksson, Swedish footballer Jan Andreas Isaksson is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Read more
03 Oct 1981: Jonna Lee, Swedish singer and musician Jonna Emily Lee is a Swedish singer, songwriter, record producer and visual director. Lee is the creator and artist of audiovisual online project iamamiwhoami who since 2009 have released their audiovisual series online. Since her first solo album, she has collaborated with music producer and artist Claes Björklund who is also a member of iamamiwhoami. In 2017, Lee started using the moniker ionnalee for her new solo project. In February 2018 she released her debut solo album, Everyone Afraid to Be Forgotten. With the album she also created her own world tour co funded by her fans via Kickstarter.
ionnalee remixed Moby's "The Ceremony of Innocence" which was released in December 2018, and in February, her sophomore solo album Remember the Future was announced with the release date 31 May 2019. Read more
03 Oct 1981: Ronald Rauhe, German kayaker Ronald Rauhe is a German sprint canoeist who has competed since 1997. Competing in six Summer Olympics, he won a complete set of medals in the K-2 500 m event. Rauhe has won 16 world championship gold medals, the most by a male kayaker; now with 26 World medals, in 2011 he exceeded the 20 of his compatriot, Torsten Gutsche. Read more
03 Oct 1981: Matt Sparrow, English footballer Matthew Ronald Sparrow is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder Read more
03 Oct 1980: Anquan Boldin, American football player Anquan Kenmile Boldin is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles and was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the second round of the 2003 NFL draft. He also played for the Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers and Detroit Lions. Read more
03 Oct 1980: Sheldon Brookbank, Canadian ice hockey player Sheldon W. Brookbank is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was the assistant coach of the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL) under Jeremy Colliton. Read more
03 Oct 1980: Lindsey Kelk, English journalist and author Lindsey Kelk is an English author, journalist and former children's book editor. She initially signed a up-to three-book deal with HarperCollins following the submission of a manuscript for her first novel. To date, she has published 22 adult books and is also the author of the children's series Cinders and Sparks. Read more
03 Oct 1980: Danny O'Donoghue, Irish singer-songwriter and producer Daniel John Mark Luke O'Donoghue is an Irish singer-songwriter and frontman of the Irish rock band the Script. He also appeared as a coach on the first two series of the television singing talent show The Voice UK. He was earlier a member of the Irish boy band Mytown. Read more
03 Oct 1980: Héctor Reynoso, Mexican footballer Héctor Reynoso López is a Mexican former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Read more
03 Oct 1980: Ivan Turina, Croatian footballer (died 2013) Ivan Turina was a Croatian professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He made one appearance for the Croatia national team. Read more
03 Oct 1979: Josh Klinghoffer, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer Josh Adam Klinghoffer is an American musician best known for being the guitarist for the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers from 2007 to 2019, with whom he recorded two studio albums, I'm with You (2011) and The Getaway (2016), and the B-sides compilation I'm Beside You (2013). Klinghoffer took the place of his friend and frequent collaborator John Frusciante in 2009, after a period as the band's touring rhythm guitarist. At age 32, Klinghoffer was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Red Hot Chili Peppers in 2012, making him the youngest inductee at the time. Read more
03 Oct 1979: John Morrison, American wrestler and actor John Randall Hennigan, better known by his ring name John Morrison, is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs under the ring name Johnny TV and is a member of MxM TV. He also performs for their sister promotion Ring of Honor (ROH) and Mexican partner promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). Hennigan is best known for his tenures in WWE from 2002 to 2011 and again from 2019 to 2021, as well as for appearing in promotions such as Impact Wrestling, Lucha Underground and Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide. He is now PWR world champion an India's newest wrestling promotion. He also performs on the independent circuit under various ring names. Read more
03 Oct 1978: Gerald Asamoah, Ghanaian-German footballer Gerald Asamoah is a German football executive and former professional player who works as the first-team manager of Schalke 04. Read more
03 Oct 1978: Neil Clement, English footballer Neil Clement is an English former professional footballer who spent the majority of his career playing for West Bromwich Albion. Read more
03 Oct 1978: Claudio Pizarro, Peruvian footballer Claudio Miguel Pizarro Bosio is a Peruvian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is currently serving as club ambassador for Bayern Munich. He was captain of Peru's national football team, and was its fifth-highest scorer. He is the highest scorer and most successful Latin American football player in the history of German football. He is the all-time top scorer of SV Werder Bremen, the ninth top scorer in the history of Bayern Munich, and the sixth top scorer in the history of the Bundesliga, where he scored 197 goals in 490 appearances. He is also the oldest player to score a goal in the Bundesliga, at over 40 years old. Read more
03 Oct 1978: Jake Shears, American singer-songwriter Jason F. Sellards, known professionally by the stage name Jake Shears, is an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He is best known as the co-lead vocalist of New York City pop-rock band Scissor Sisters, who achieved considerable chart success in the 2000s before their indefinite hiatus in 2012. Since 2017, Shears has pursued a solo career; he released his debut solo studio album, Jake Shears, in August 2018 and his second album Last Man Dancing on June 2, 2023. In addition to his solo career, Shears has collaborated with several artists and made his Broadway debut in Kinky Boots in 2018. Read more
03 Oct 1978: Shannyn Sossamon, American actress Shannon Marie Kahololani "Shannyn" Sossamon is an American actress and musician. She has appeared in the films A Knight's Tale (2001), 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002), The Rules of Attraction (2002), The Order (2003), Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005), The Holiday (2006), Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006), Road to Nowhere (2009), The End of Love (2012), and Sinister 2 (2015). Read more
03 Oct 1977: Daniel Hollie, American wrestler Daniel Richard Hollie is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) between 2003 and 2007 under the ring name Danny Basham and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Damaja in 2007. Read more
03 Oct 1977: Eric Munson, American baseball player and coach Eric Walter Munson is an American former professional baseball catcher and current coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2000 to 2009 for the Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Houston Astros, and Oakland Athletics. He was the third overall pick in the 1999 MLB draft by the Tigers, behind Josh Hamilton and Josh Beckett. Read more
03 Oct 1977: Luca Tognozzi, Italian footballer Luca Tognozzi is a former Italian footballer who played as a midfielder. Read more
03 Oct 1976: Herman Li, Hong Kong-English guitarist and producer Herman Hong-man Li is a Hong Kong-born British guitarist. He is one of the lead guitarists, producers and songwriters for the power metal band DragonForce. Read more
03 Oct 1976: Seann William Scott, American actor and producer Seann William Scott is an American actor. In film, Scott is best known for his breakout role as Steve Stifler in the American Pie film series (1999–2012). He also starred in a lead role as Doug Glatt in Goon (2011) and its sequel, Goon: Last of the Enforcers (2017). His other notable lead film credits include Dude, Where's My Car? (2000), Road Trip (2000), Final Destination (2000), Evolution (2001), The Rundown (2003), The Dukes of Hazzard (2005), Mr. Woodcock (2007), Role Models (2008), and The Wrath of Becky (2023). Scott had a supporting voice role as Crash in the Ice Age film series (2006–2016). Read more
03 Oct 1975: India Arie, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress India Arie Simpson is an American singer-songwriter, and record producer. She rose to prominence with her debut album, Acoustic Soul (2001), which was a commercial and critical success. She has since released the albums Voyage to India (2002), Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship (2006), Songversation (2013) and Worthy (2019). Her music blends elements of R&B, soul, and neo-soul, often incorporating themes of self-empowerment, spirituality, and social consciousness. Read more
03 Oct 1975: Phil Greening, English rugby player and coach Phil Greening is an English former rugby union footballer who played as a hooker. Greening finished his rugby career with London Wasps in 2005. During his career he earned 24 caps for England, as well as going to Australia with the British and Irish Lions in 2001. Read more
03 Oct 1975: Satoko Ishimine, Japanese singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer Satoko Ishimine is a Japanese female singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in 1992 when she won the grand prix of the 16th annual Nagasaki Singing Festival at the age of 16, which resulted in her receiving a recording contract with Toshiba EMI. Read more
03 Oct 1975: Talib Kweli, American rapper Talib Kweli Greene is an American rapper. He is one half of the hip-hop duo Black Star, which he formed in 1997 with fellow Brooklyn rapper Yasiin Bey. Their 1998 single, "Definition", entered the Billboard Hot 100 and preceded their eponymous debut album (1998), which entered the Billboard 200. The duo then began pursuing solo careers, although one further Black Star album — No Fear of Time (2022) — was released thereafter. Read more
03 Oct 1975: Alanna Ubach, American actress Alanna González Ubach is an American actress. She is known for her roles in films such as Legally Blonde (2001), Meet the Fockers (2004), and Waiting… (2005), and in television series such as Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce (2015-2018), Euphoria (2019–2026), Ted (2024–2026), and The Last of Us (2025). She has also performed voices in numerous animated series such as El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera, The Spectacular Spider-Man, and Pound Puppies and films such as Rango (2011) and Coco (2017). Read more
03 Oct 1974: John Dwyer, American multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter, visual artist, and record label owner John Dwyer is an American multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter, visual artist, and record label owner. He is best known as the founding member and primary songwriter of the garage rock band Osees, with whom he has released 30 studio albums. In addition to his work with Osees, Dwyer records solo material under the name Damaged Bug. Read more
03 Oct 1974: Mike Johnson, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster Michael Paul Johnson is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning, Phoenix Coyotes, Montreal Canadiens and the St. Louis Blues. Read more
03 Oct 1974: Antti Laaksonen, Finnish ice hockey player Antti Akseli Laaksonen is a Finnish former professional ice hockey left winger who last played for the Lukko of the SM-Liiga. Antti had a seven-year NHL career, mostly as a third line wing and penalty killer for the Boston Bruins, Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche. Read more
03 Oct 1974: Marianne Timmer, Dutch speed skater Maria Aaltje "Marianne" Timmer is a Dutch former speed skater specializing in the middle distances. At the 1998 Winter Olympics she won a gold medal in both these events. Read more
03 Oct 1973: Keiko Agena, American actress Christine Keiko Agena is an American actress. She is mostly known for playing Lane Kim in Gilmore Girls and NYPD medical examiner Dr. Edrisa Tanaka on FOX's crime drama Prodigal Son (2019–2021). Read more
03 Oct 1973: Neve Campbell, Canadian actress Neve Adrianne Campbell is a Canadian actress. Having amassed several credits and accolades over three decades, she emerged as a scream queen in the late 1990s for starring in horror films. She has also appeared in Canadian and American television, blockbusters and independent features. Read more
03 Oct 1973: Angélica Gavaldón, American-Mexican tennis player and coach Angélica Gavaldón Loaiza is a Mexican retired tennis player. Read more
03 Oct 1973: Lena Headey, British actress Lena Kathren Headey is a British actress. She gained international recognition and acclaim for her portrayal of Cersei Lannister on the HBO fantasy drama series Game of Thrones (2011–2019), for which she received five Emmy Award nominations and a Golden Globe Award nomination. She was also nominated for a Saturn Award for her portrayal of Gorgo, Queen of Sparta, in 300 (2006) and a BAFTA Award for directing the short film The Trap (2019). Read more
03 Oct 1973: Eirik Hegdal, Norwegian saxophonist and composer Eirik Hegdal is a Norwegian Jazz musician (saxophone), composer, arranger and music teacher, known from the band Dingobats (1995-2005) and as leader of Trondheim Jazz Orchestra. Read more
03 Oct 1972: Komla Dumor, Ghanaian-English journalist (died 2014) Komla Afeke Dumor was a Ghanaian journalist who worked for BBC World News and was the main presenter of its programme Focus on Africa. Read more
03 Oct 1972: G. Love, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and harmonica player Garrett Dutton, better known as G. Love, is an American singer, rapper and musician best known as the frontman for the band G. Love & Special Sauce. Read more
03 Oct 1972: Michael Nylander, Swedish ice hockey player and coach Michael Gunnar Nylander is a Swedish former professional ice hockey centre and coach. He played for fifteen seasons in the NHL, and represented the Swedish national team in multiple Olympics and World Championships. Read more
03 Oct 1972: Guy Oseary, Israeli-American talent manager and businessman Guy Harley Oseary is an American talent manager, investor and writer. His clients include Madonna and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He founded the investment companies A-Grade Investments and Sound Ventures. Read more
03 Oct 1971: Wil Cordero, Puerto Rican-American baseball player and coach Wilfredo Cordero Nieva is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a left fielder, shortstop, and first baseman during 1992–2005 for seven different teams: the Montreal Expos, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates, Florida Marlins, and Washington Nationals. Read more
03 Oct 1971: Kevin Richardson, American singer-songwriter and actor Kevin Scott Richardson is an American pop singer, best known as a member of the vocal group the Backstreet Boys. Richardson was inducted into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame with his cousin and bandmate Brian Littrell in 2015. Read more
03 Oct 1970: Elmar Liitmaa, Estonian guitarist and songwriter Terminaator is an Estonian rock group formed in 1987 by Arno Veimer and Jaagup Kreem in Tallinn 10. High School. Kreem was in the 7th grade then. The first public performance was in Tallinn 47. High School in the schoolbands' festival. The first time in the studio was in 1989. First songs "Charleen" and "Meeletu maailm" were recorded in 1991. They found wider fame in 1992, when they won the festival of young bands Rock In. They have also performed in Latvia, Lithuania and Finland, although they have not had much success outside of Estonia. On the Estonian television show "7 vaprat", Terminaator have appeared playing their songs "Ainult sina võid mu maailma muuta", "Juulikuu lumi", "See ei ole saladus", and "Portselanist tüdruk". Read more
03 Oct 1970: Jimmy Ray, English singer-songwriter and guitarist James "Jimmy" Ray is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Read more
03 Oct 1969: Garry Herbert, English rower and sportscaster Garry Gerard Paul Herbert is an Olympic gold medal-winning cox. He steered the British coxed pair to victory in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and the 1993 World Rowing Championships. Read more
03 Oct 1969: Janel Moloney, American actress Janel Moloney is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Donna Moss on the television series The West Wing, a role for which she received two nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, in 2002 and 2004. From 2014 to 2017, she starred in the television series The Leftovers. Read more
03 Oct 1969: Gwen Stefani, American singer-songwriter, actress, and fashion designer Gwen Renée Stefani Shelton is an American singer, songwriter and fashion designer. She rose to fame as the lead vocalist of the band No Doubt, whose hit singles include "Just a Girl", "Spiderwebs", and "Don't Speak" from their third album Tragic Kingdom (1995), as well as "Hey Baby" and "It's My Life" from later albums. Read more
03 Oct 1969: Tetsuya, Japanese singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer Tetsuya , formerly known as Tetsu, is a Japanese musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer, best known as bassist and bandleader of the rock band L'Arc-en-Ciel. Formed in 1991, they have sold over 40 million records, making them one of the best-selling music artists in Japan. Read more
03 Oct 1968: Paul Crichton, English footballer and manager Paul Andrew Crichton is an English football coach and former footballer. He is the goalkeeper coach of National Women's Soccer League club Orlando Pride. Read more
03 Oct 1968: Greg Foster, American basketball player and coach Gregory Clinton Foster is an American professional basketball coach and former player who last served as assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Read more
03 Oct 1968: Marko Rajamäki, Finnish footballer and manager Marko Rajamäki is a Swedish-born Finnish former footballer. He managed Turun Palloseura (TPS) between 2010 and 2014. Previously he managed the club's under-18 team and was also the assistant manager of the senior team in 2009. Rajamäki is himself a former Finnish international footballer. Read more
03 Oct 1968: Donald Sild, Estonian javelin thrower Donald-Aik Sild is a retired male javelin thrower from Estonia. Read more
03 Oct 1967: Rob Liefeld, American author and illustrator Robert Liefeld is an American comic book creator. He co-created the character Cable with writer Louise Simonson and the character Deadpool with writer Fabian Nicieza. In the early 1990s, Liefeld gained popularity due to his work on Marvel Comics' The New Mutants and later X-Force. In 1992, he and several other popular Marvel illustrators left the company to found Image Comics, which started a wave of comic books owned by their creators rather than by publishers. The first book published by Image Comics was Liefeld's Youngblood #1. Read more
03 Oct 1967: Chris Collingwood, English-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer Chris Collingwood is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the lead vocalist and founding member of the power pop band Fountains of Wayne. Read more
03 Oct 1966: Darrin Fletcher, American baseball player and sportscaster Darrin Glen Fletcher is an American former professional baseball catcher and sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1989 to 2002 for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Montreal Expos, and Toronto Blue Jays. Read more
03 Oct 1965: Annemarie Verstappen, Dutch swimmer Anna Maria Theodora Petra "Annemarie" Verstappen is a female former freestyle swimmer from the Netherlands. Read more
03 Oct 1965: Jan-Ove Waldner, Swedish table tennis player Jan-Ove Waldner, in Sweden commonly J-O Waldner or simply mononymously as J-O, is a Swedish former professional table tennis player. He is often referred to as "the Mozart of table tennis." A sporting legend in his native Sweden as well as in China, he is known in China as 老瓦 Lǎo Wǎ 'Old Wa' or 常青树 Cháng Qīng Shù 'Evergreen Tree', because of his extraordinary longevity and competitiveness. Read more
03 Oct 1964: Clive Owen, English actor Clive Owen is an English actor. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for playing the lead role in the ITV series Chancer from 1990 to 1991. He received critical acclaim for his work in the film Close My Eyes (1991) before earning international attention for his performance as a struggling writer in Croupier (1998). In 2005, he won a Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award and was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in the drama Closer (2004). Read more
03 Oct 1963: Benny Anders, American basketball player Benny Michael Anders is an American former basketball player. Anders was a forward on the Guy Lewis-coached Houston Cougars teams during the early 1980s. The team featured a set of players called the Phi Slama Jama basketball fraternity that included Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, Michael Young, Alvin Franklin, Reid Gettys, Larry Micheaux and Anders. Read more
03 Oct 1963: Dan Goldie, American tennis player Daniel C. Goldie is a former tennis player from the United States who won 2 singles and 2 doubles titles. The right-hander reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 1989 where he defeated Kelly Evernden, Jimmy Connors, Wally Masur and Slobodan Živojinović before losing to Ivan Lendl. He achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of World No. 27 in April 1989. Before turning pro, Goldie played tennis for Stanford University, where he won the 1986 National Singles Championship before graduating with a degree in Economics. Read more
03 Oct 1962: Tommy Lee, Greek-American singer-songwriter, drummer, and producer Thomas Lee is an American musician, best known as the co-founder and drummer of heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. He also founded rap metal band Methods of Mayhem and has pursued solo musical projects. Read more
03 Oct 1962: Simon Scarrow, Nigerian-English novelist Simon Scarrow is a British writer. Scarrow completed a master's degree at the University of East Anglia after working at the Inland Revenue, and then went into teaching as a lecturer, firstly at East Norfolk Sixth Form College, then at City College Norwich. Read more
03 Oct 1961: Rebecca Stephens, English journalist and mountaineer Rebecca Stephens is a British author and journalist, known for being the first British woman to climb the Seven Summits, and the first British woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Read more
03 Oct 1961: Ludger Stühlmeyer, German cantor, composer, and musicologist Ludger Stühlmeyer is a German cantor, organist, composer, docent and musicologist. Read more
03 Oct 1959: Craig Bellamy, Australian rugby league player and coach Craig Bellamy is an Australian professional rugby league football coach who is the head coach of the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League (NRL), and a former professional rugby league footballer. Read more
03 Oct 1959: Fred Couples, American golfer Frederick Steven Couples is an American professional golfer who has competed on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions. A former World No. 1, he has won 64 professional tournaments, most notably the Masters Tournament in 1992, and the Players Championship in 1984 and 1996. Couples became the oldest person to make the cut in the Masters Tournament history during the 2023 Tournament at 63 years, six months, and five days. Read more
03 Oct 1959: Greg Proops, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter Gregory Everett Proops is an American actor, stand-up comedian and television host. He is widely known for his work on the British and American versions of Whose Line Is It Anyway?. He has also voiced the titular character on the American version of Bob the Builder: Project: Build It in series 10 to 14. Read more
03 Oct 1959: Frank Stephenson, Italian automotive designer and blogger Frank Stephenson is a Moroccan-born Spanish-American automobile designer who has worked for Ford, BMW, Mini, Ferrari, Maserati, Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, and McLaren. He is best known for redesigning the Mini as the Mini Hatch. Read more
03 Oct 1959: Jack Wagner, American actor and singer Peter John Wagner II is an American actor, singer, and golfer. He is best known for his roles on soap operas such as General Hospital, Santa Barbara, The Bold and the Beautiful, and Melrose Place. His 1985 single "All I Need" peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Read more
03 Oct 1958: Chen Yanyin, Chinese sculptor Chen Yanyin is a Chinese sculptor whose work was featured in the Chinese Fine Arts Chronicle, 2008. Her work was also part of "Between Ego and Society: An Exhibition of Contemporary Female Artists in China" at the Chicago Cultural Center. Read more
03 Oct 1958: Louise Lecavalier, Canadian dancer and choreographer Louise Lecavalier OC is a Canadian dancer known as one of the icons of Canadian contemporary dance. Read more
03 Oct 1957: Roberto Azevêdo, Brazilian engineer and diplomat, 6th Director-General of the World Trade Organization Roberto Carvalho de Azevêdo is a Brazilian career diplomat who served as Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) from 2013 until 2020. Since 2020, he has been Executive Vice President and Director of Corporate Affairs at PepsiCo. Read more
03 Oct 1957: Tim Westwood, English radio and television host Timothy Westwood, often known professionally simply as Westwood, is a British DJ and presenter. He was described by The Guardian in 2022 as "a veteran of the hip-hop scene whose opinions have been able to make or break upcoming artists for more than 30 years". He hosted the Radio 1 rap show and presented the MTV UK show Pimp My Ride UK. In 2013, he left Radio 1 and 1Xtra after nearly twenty years and returned to Capital Radio. Read more
03 Oct 1956: Hart Bochner, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter Hart Matthew Bochner is a Canadian TV, film and voice actor, film director, screenwriter and producer. He has appeared in films such as Breaking Away (1979), Terror Train (1980), Rich and Famous (1981), The Wild Life (1984), Making Mr. Right (1987), Die Hard (1988), Apartment Zero (1988), Mr. Destiny (1990), Mad at the Moon (1992), Break Up (1998), Liberty Stands Still (2002) and Spread (2009). On television, he has starred in War and Remembrance (1988–89), Children of the Dust (1995), Baby for Sale (2004), The Starter Wife (2008) and Scandal (2015). Read more
03 Oct 1955: Moshe Kam, American engineering educator Dr Moshe Kam is an Israeli and American electrical engineer. He is an engineering educator currently serving as Distinguished Professor and Interim Provost at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), where he previously served as Dean of the Newark College of Engineering (2014-2026). Until August 2014 he served as the Robert G. Quinn Professor and department head of electrical and computer engineering at Drexel University. In 2011, he served concurrently as the 49th president and CEO of IEEE. Earlier he was IEEE's vice president for educational activities (2005–2007) and IEEE's representative director to the accreditation body ABET. Kam is known for his studies of decision fusion and distributed detection, which focus on computationally feasible fusion rules for multi-sensor systems. Read more
03 Oct 1955: John S. Lesmeister, American educator and politician, 30th North Dakota State Treasurer (died 2006) John Steven Lesmeister was a North Dakota politician who served as the 30th North Dakota State Treasurer from 1981 to 1984. Read more
03 Oct 1955: Allen Woody, American bass player and songwriter (died 2000) Douglas Allen Woody was an American bass guitarist best known for his eight-year tenure in the Allman Brothers Band and as a co-founder of Gov't Mule. Read more
03 Oct 1955: Buket Uzuner, Turkish author Buket Uzuner is a Turkish writer, author of novels, short stories, and travelogues. She studied biology and environmental science and has conducted research and presented lectures at universities in Turkey, Norway, the United States, and Finland. Her works have been translated into eight languages: Spanish, English, Italian, Greek, Romanian, Hebrew, Korean, and Bulgarian. Read more
03 Oct 1954: Eddie DeGarmo, American singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer Eddie DeGarmo is an American contemporary Christian music recording artist, keyboardist, producer and singer. He became best friends with guitarist/lead vocalist Dana Key in first grade, and co-founded the Christian rock group DeGarmo and Key with him in 1978. DeGarmo played keyboards and provided vocals for the band. Read more
03 Oct 1954: Dennis Eckersley, American baseball player and sportscaster Dennis Lee Eckersley, nicknamed "Eck", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and color commentator. Between 1975 and 1998, he pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Oakland Athletics, and St. Louis Cardinals. Eckersley had success as a starter, but gained his greatest fame as a closer, becoming the first of two pitchers in major league history to have both a 20-win season and a 50-save season in a career. Read more
03 Oct 1954: Al Sharpton, American minister, talk show host, and political activist Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. is an American civil rights and social justice activist, Baptist minister, radio talk show host, and TV personality, who is also the founder of the National Action Network civil rights organization. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. presidential election. He hosts a weekday radio talk show, Keepin' It Real, which is nationally syndicated by Urban One, and he is a political analyst and weekend host for MS NOW, hosting PoliticsNation. Read more
03 Oct 1954: Stevie Ray Vaughan, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (died 1990) Stephen Ray Vaughan, also known abbreviated as SRV, was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and frontman of the blues rock trio Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble. Although his mainstream career spanned only seven years, he is considered one of the most influential musicians in the history of blues music, and one of the greatest guitarists of all time. He was the younger brother of guitarist Jimmie Vaughan. Read more
03 Oct 1952: Bruce Arians, American football coach Bruce Charles Arians is an American football executive and former coach in the National Football League (NFL). Since 2022, he has been a senior football consultant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Arians was previously the head coach of the Temple Owls from 1983 to 1987, the Arizona Cardinals from 2013 to 2017 and the Buccaneers from 2019 to 2021. He was also the interim head coach of the Indianapolis Colts during the 2012 season. Arians is known as a "quarterback whisperer" with a "no risk-it, no biscuit" slogan, which encourages aggressive playcalling. Under Arians's coaching, several high-profile quarterbacks were named to the All-Pro team or Pro Bowl, including Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Andrew Luck, Carson Palmer, and Tom Brady. Read more
03 Oct 1952: Gary Troup, New Zealand cricketer Gary Bertram Troup is a New Zealand former cricketer and local politician who played 15 Test matches and 22 One Day Internationals for New Zealand. Read more
03 Oct 1951: Keb' Mo', American blues musician and songwriter Kevin Roosevelt Moore, known as Keb' Mo', is an American blues musician. He is a singer, guitarist and songwriter, living in Nashville, Tennessee. He has been described as "a living link to the seminal Delta blues that travelled up the Mississippi River and across the expanse of America." His post-modern blues style is influenced by many eras and genres, including folk, rock, jazz, pop and country. The moniker "Keb Mo" was coined by his original drummer, Quentin Dennard, and picked up by his record label as a "street talk" abbreviation of his given name. Read more
03 Oct 1951: Kathryn D. Sullivan, American geologist and astronaut Kathryn Dwyer Sullivan is an American geologist, oceanographer, and former NASA astronaut and US Navy officer. She was a crew member on three Space Shuttle missions. Read more
03 Oct 1951: Dave Winfield, American baseball player and sportscaster David Mark Winfield is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) right fielder. He is the special assistant to the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association. Over his 22-year career, he played for six teams: the San Diego Padres, New York Yankees, California Angels, Toronto Blue Jays, Minnesota Twins, and Cleveland Indians. He had the winning hit in the 1992 World Series with the Blue Jays over the Atlanta Braves. Read more
03 Oct 1950: Ronnie Laws, American jazz, R&B, and funk saxophone player Ronald Wayne Laws is an American jazz and smooth jazz saxophonist, and singer. He is the younger brother of jazz flutist Hubert Laws and jazz vocalist Eloise Laws, and the older brother of Debra Laws. Read more
03 Oct 1949: Lindsey Buckingham, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer Lindsey Adams Buckingham is an American musician, record producer, and the lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with Fleetwood Mac, Buckingham has released seven solo studio albums and three live albums. As a member of Fleetwood Mac, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Buckingham was ranked 100th in Rolling Stone's 2011 list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time". Buckingham is known for his fingerpicking guitar style. Read more
03 Oct 1949: J. P. Dutta, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter Jyoti Prakash Dutta is an Indian film director, writer and producer who works in Hindi cinema. He is best known for Ghulami (1985), Yateem (1988), Batwara (1989), Kshatriya (1993) and Border (1997). Read more
03 Oct 1949: Aleksandr Rogozhkin, Russian director and screenwriter (died 2021) Aleksandr Vladimirovich Rogozhkin was a Russian film director and writer. Read more
03 Oct 1949: Laurie Simmons, American photographer and director Laurie Simmons is an American photographer and filmmaker. Art historians consider her a key figure of The Pictures Generation and a group of late-1970s women artists that emerged as a counterpoint to the male-dominated and formalist fields of painting and sculpture. The group introduced new approaches to photography, such as staged setups, narrative, and appropriations of pop culture and everyday objects that pushed the medium toward the center of contemporary art. Simmons's elaborately constructed images employ psychologically charged human proxies—dolls, ventriloquist dummies, mannequins, props, miniatures and interiors—and also depict people as dolls. Often noted for its humor and pathos, her art explores boundaries such as between artifice and truth or private and public, while raising questions about the construction of identity, tropes of prosperity, consumerism and domesticity, and practices of self-presentation and image-making. In a review of Simmons's 2019 retrospective at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, critic Steve Johnson wrote, "Collectively—and with a sly but barbed sense of humor—[her works] challenge you to think about what, if anything, is real: in our gender roles, and our cultural assumptions, and our perceptions of others." Read more
03 Oct 1947: John Perry Barlow, American poet, songwriter, blogger, and activist (died 2018) John Perry Barlow was an American poet, essayist, cattle rancher, and cyberlibertarian political activist. He was also a lyricist for the Grateful Dead, a founding member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Freedom of the Press Foundation, and an early fellow at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society. Read more
03 Oct 1947: Ben Cauley, American trumpet player and songwriter (died 2015) Ben Cauley Jr. was an American trumpet player, vocalist, songwriter, and founding member of the Stax recording group the Bar-Kays. He was the only survivor of the 1967 plane crash that killed soul singer Otis Redding and four members of the Bar-Kays. Read more
03 Oct 1947: Fred DeLuca, American businessman (died 2015) Frederick Adrian DeLuca was an American businessman, who was the co-founder and president of the Subway franchise of fast food restaurants with Peter Buck. During his tenure, Subway grew into the largest franchise in the world. Read more
03 Oct 1947: Anne Dorte of Rosenborg (died 2014) Countess Anne Dorte of Rosenborg was a Danish countess. She was the wife of Count Christian of Rosenborg, the grandson of King Christian X of Denmark. Prince Christian had to give up his princely rank in order to marry her because she was a commoner. The couple married in Kongens Lyngby Kirke, Kongens Lyngby, on 7 February 1971, earning her the title Her Excellency Countess Anne Dorte of Rosenborg. She was daughter of Villy Edgaard VIlhelm Nielsen, Procurator, and wife Bodil Marie Elisabeth Maltoft. Read more
03 Oct 1947: Takis Michalos, Greek water polo player and coach (died 2010) Panagiotis "Takis" Michalos was a Greek water polo player and coach. He was born in Ampelokipoi, Athens. Read more
03 Oct 1946: P. P. Arnold, American soul singer Patricia Ann Cole, known professionally as P. P. Arnold, is an American-born soul singer. She rose to prominence in the 1960s after performing as an Ikette with the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, before launching a successful solo career in the United Kingdom. Read more
03 Oct 1945: Tony Brown, English footballer and sportscaster Anthony Brown is an English former footballer who played as a wing half and an inside forward. He was often referred to by his nickname Bomber or Bomber Brown and was known for his spectacular goals. He joined West Bromwich Albion as a youth in 1961 and turned professional in 1963. In the late 1960s and early 1970s Brown was part of an Albion team that built a reputation as a successful cup side, winning the 1966 Football League Cup Final and the 1968 FA Cup Final and finishing as runners-up in the League Cup in 1967 and 1970. He was the top scorer in Division One in 1970–71 and received his only England cap at the end of that season. Read more
03 Oct 1945: Christopher Bruce, English dancer and choreographer Christopher Bruce is a British choreographer and performer. He was the Artistic Director of the Rambert Dance Company until 2002. Read more
03 Oct 1945: Jo Ritzen, Dutch economist and politician, Dutch Minister of Education Jozef Marie Mathias "Jo" Ritzen is a retired Dutch politician of the Labour Party (PvdA) and economist. Read more
03 Oct 1944: Pierre Deligne, Belgian mathematician and academic Pierre René, Viscount Deligne is a Belgian mathematician. He is best known for work on the Weil conjectures, leading to a complete proof in 1973. He is the winner of the 1978 Fields Medal, 1988 Crafoord Prize, 2008 Wolf Prize and 2013 Abel Prize. Read more
03 Oct 1944: Bob Riley, American politician, 52nd Governor of Alabama Robert Renfroe Riley is an American retired politician and businessman who served as the 52nd governor of Alabama from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U.S. representative for Alabama's 3rd congressional district from 1997 to 2003. Read more
03 Oct 1943: Jeff Bingaman, American soldier and politician, 25th Attorney General of New Mexico Jesse Francis "Jeff" Bingaman Jr. is an American retired politician who served as a United States senator from New Mexico from 1983 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 25th Attorney General of New Mexico from 1979 to 1983. During his time in the Senate, Bingaman served as Chairman of Committee Outreach for the Senate Democratic Caucus and was the longtime chair of the Senate Energy Committee. Read more
03 Oct 1943: Baki İlkin, Turkish civil servant and diplomat Baki İlkin was a Turkish diplomat and ambassador who served as the Permanent Representative of Turkey to the United Nations. Read more
03 Oct 1942: Alan Rachins, American actor (died 2024) Alan L. Rachins was an American actor and comedian, known for his role as Douglas Brackman in L.A. Law which earned him both Golden Globe and Emmy nominations, and his portrayal of Larry on the television series Dharma & Greg. Read more
03 Oct 1941: Chubby Checker, American singer-songwriter Chubby Checker is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is known for popularizing many dance styles, including the Twist, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnighters' R&B song "The Twist", and the Pony, with his 1961 cover of the song "Pony Time". His biggest UK hit, "Let's Twist Again", was released one year later. That same year, Checker also popularized the song "Limbo Rock", a previous-year instrumental hit by the Champs to which he added lyrics and its trademark Limbo dance. He also introduced other dance styles, such as the Fly. In September 2008, "The Twist" topped Billboard's list of the most popular singles to have appeared in the Hot 100 since its debut in 1960, an honor it maintained in an August 2013 update of the list. In 2014, Checker was inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame, and he was selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2025. Read more
03 Oct 1941: Andrea de Adamich, Italian racing driver and sportscaster (died 2025) Andrea Lodovico de Adamich was an Italian racing driver. He participated in 34 World Championship Formula One Grands Prix, making his championship debut at the 1968 South African Grand Prix with Scuderia Ferrari. Driving for multiple other teams in the early 1970s, de Adamich scored a total of six points throughout his Formula One career. He also competed in endurance racing, and went on to become a TV pundit and commentator after his retirement from motorsport. Read more
03 Oct 1941: John Elliott, Australian businessman (died 2021) John Dorman Elliott was an Australian businessman and state and federal president of the Liberal Party. He had also been president of the Carlton Football Club. He frequently provoked controversy due to his political affiliations, his brushes with the law, and his abrasive personal style. Read more
03 Oct 1941: Nicolae Șerban Tanașoca, Romanian historian and philologist (died 2017) Nicolae Șerban Tanașoca was a Romanian historian and philologist. An ethnic Aromanian, he specialized in the study of classical philology, Byzantine and Ottoman studies and cultures of the Balkans, including the Aromanians. Read more
03 Oct 1940: Alan O'Day, American singer-songwriter (died 2013) Alan Earle O'Day was an American singer-songwriter, best known for writing and singing "Undercover Angel", a million-selling Gold-certified American No. 1 hit in 1977. He also wrote songs for many other notable performers, such as 1974's Helen Reddy No. 1 hit "Angie Baby" and "Rock and Roll Heaven". In the 1980s he moved from pop music to television, co-writing nearly 100 songs for the Saturday morning Muppet Babies series, and in the 1990s he wrote and performed music on the National Geographic series Really Wild Animals. O'Day also collaborated with Tatsuro Yamashita on a series of popular songs in Japan, including "Your Eyes", "Magic Ways", "Christmas Eve" and "Fragile". Read more
03 Oct 1940: Jean Ratelle, Canadian ice hockey player and coach Joseph Gilbert Yvon Jean Ratelle is a Canadian former ice hockey player who played for the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins. He featured in three Stanley Cup Finals. In twenty-one seasons he averaged almost a point a game and won the Lady Byng Trophy twice in recognition of his great sportsmanship. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1985. Read more
03 Oct 1940: Mike Troy, American swimmer (died 2019) Michael Francis Troy was an American competitive swimmer, a two-time Olympic champion, and world record-holder in three events. Read more
03 Oct 1939: Bob Armstrong, American wrestler and trainer (died 2020) Joseph Melton James was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Bullet" Bob Armstrong. In the course of his career, which spanned five decades, Armstrong held numerous championships throughout the Southeastern United States. His four sons, Joseph Scott, Robert Bradley, Steve and Brian Girard, all became wrestlers. Read more
03 Oct 1938: Eddie Cochran, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (died 1960) Edward Ray Cochran was an American rock and roll musician. His songs, such as "Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", "C'mon Everybody" and "Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desire in the mid-1950s and early 1960s. He experimented with multitrack recording, distortion techniques and overdubbing, even on his earliest singles. Cochran played the guitar, piano, bass, and drums. His image as a sharply dressed and attractive young man with a rebellious attitude epitomized the stance of the 1950s rocker, and in death, he achieved iconic status. Read more
03 Oct 1938: David Hart Dyke, English captain Captain David Hart Dyke, is a retired Royal Navy officer, former aide-de-camp to Queen Elizabeth II, and former commanding officer of HMS Coventry, which was sunk during the Falklands War. Read more
03 Oct 1938: Jack Hodgins, Canadian author and academic Jack Hodgins is a Canadian novelist and short story writer. Critically acclaimed, among his best received works is Broken Ground (1998), a historical novel set after the First World War, for which he received the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and many other accolades. Read more
03 Oct 1938: Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, Peruvian entrepreneur and politician, 66th President of Peru Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Godard, also known simply as PPK, is a Peruvian economist, public administrator, and former politician who served as the president of Peru from 2016 to 2018. He served as prime minister of Peru and as minister of economy and finance during the presidency of Alejandro Toledo. Kuczynski resigned from the presidency on 23 March 2018, following a successful impeachment vote and days before a probable conviction vote. Since 10 April 2019 he has been in pretrial detention, due to an ongoing investigation on corruption, money laundering, and connections to Odebrecht, a public works company accused of paying bribes. Read more
03 Oct 1936: Steve Reich, American composer Stephen Michael Reich is an American composer best known as a pioneer of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, and canons. Reich describes this concept in his essay "Music as a Gradual Process" by stating, "I am interested in perceptible processes. I want to be able to hear the process happening throughout the sounding music." For example, his early works experiment with phase shifting, in which one or more repeated phrases plays slower or faster than the others, causing it to go "out of phase." This creates new musical patterns in a perceptible flow. Read more
03 Oct 1935: Charles Duke, American general, pilot, and astronaut Charles Moss Duke Jr. is an American former astronaut, United States Air Force (USAF) officer and test pilot who, as Lunar Module pilot of Apollo 16 in 1972, became the 10th and youngest person to walk on the Moon, at age 36 years and 201 days. Duke is one of four surviving Moon walkers, along with David Scott, Buzz Aldrin and Harrison Schmitt. Read more
03 Oct 1935: Armen Dzhigarkhanyan, Soviet Russian-Armenian actor (died 2020) Armen Borisovich Dzhigarkhanyan was a Soviet, Armenian, and Russian actor. Read more
03 Oct 1934: Benjamin Boretz, American composer and theorist Benjamin Aaron Boretz is an American composer and music theorist. Read more
03 Oct 1934: Miguel-Ángel Cárdenas, Colombian-Dutch painter and illustrator (died 2015) Miguel-Ángel Cárdenas, also known as Michel Cardena, was a Colombian-Dutch Nouveau réalisme and pop art painter and a pioneer of video art in the Netherlands. His works cover a variety of artistic media, including painting, drawing, video, photography, object assemblages and digital art. Read more
03 Oct 1934: Harold Henning, South African golfer (died 2004) Harold Henning was a South African professional golfer. He played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour. He won professional tournaments on the highest level in Africa, Australia, Asia, North America and Europe. Read more
03 Oct 1934: Simon Nicholson, English sculptor and painter (died 1990) Simon Hepworth Nicholson was a British painter and sculptor. He was the son of sculptor Barbara Hepworth and her second husband, artist Ben Nicholson. Read more
03 Oct 1933: Neale Fraser, Australian tennis player (died 2024) Neale Andrew Fraser, was an Australian champion tennis player. Fraser is the most recent man to have completed the triple crown, which he did in 1959 and 1960 at the U.S. National Championships. He won the 1960 Wimbledon championships. Fraser was ranked world No. 1 amateur tennis player in 1959 and 1960 by Lance Tingay and Ned Potter. Read more
03 Oct 1931: Glenn Hall, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (died 2026) Glenn Henry Hall was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. During his National Hockey League career, which lasted from 1952 to 1971 with the Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Black Hawks, and St. Louis Blues, Hall set a record with 502 consecutive games played as a goaltender. He won the Vezina Trophy three times, was voted the first team All-Star goaltender seven times, and was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as best rookie in 1956. He also won the Stanley Cup with the Black Hawks in 1961. Nicknamed "Mr. Goalie", he was the first goaltender to use the butterfly style. In 2017, Hall was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history. Read more
03 Oct 1931: Bob Skinner, American baseball player (died 2026) Robert Ralph Skinner was an American professional baseball left fielder, first baseman, manager, coach and scout. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, and St. Louis Cardinals from 1954 to 1966, and managed for the Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres. In all, Skinner spent over 50 years in the game. He won three World Series and was an All-Star in two seasons for the Pirates. Read more
03 Oct 1928: Erik Bruhn, Danish dancer and choreographer (died 1986) Erik Belton Evers Bruhn was a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, artistic director, actor, and author. Read more
03 Oct 1928: Shridath Ramphal, Guyanese academic and politician, 2nd Commonwealth Secretary-General (died 2024) Sir Shridath Surendranath Ramphal OM, often known as Sir Sonny Ramphal, was a Guyanese politician who was the second Commonwealth Secretary-General, holding the position from 1975 to 1990. He was also the foreign minister of Guyana from 1972 to 1975, and assistant attorney general of the West Indies Federation from 1958 to 1962. Read more
03 Oct 1926: Gerardo P. Cabochan, Filipino politician (died 2014) Gerardo "Gerry" Paulino Cabochan was a Filipino lawyer, soldier, storyteller, and politician who served in the House of Representatives of the Philippines from 1987 to 1992 representing the 2nd district of Caloocan. Read more
03 Oct 1925: Simone Segouin (also known as Nicole Minet), French Resistance fighter and partisan (died 2023) Simone Segouin, also known by her nom de guerre Nicole Minet, was a French Resistance fighter who served in the Francs-tireurs et partisans group during World War II. Among her first acts of resistance was stealing a bicycle from a German patrol, which she then used to help carry messages. She went on to take part in large-scale or otherwise dangerous missions, such as capturing German troops, derailing trains, and acts of sabotage. Read more
03 Oct 1925: Gore Vidal, American novelist, screenwriter, and critic (died 2012) Eugene Luther Gore Vidal was an American writer and public intellectual known for his cynical epigrammatic wit. His novels and essays criticized the social and sexual norms he perceived as driving American life. Vidal was heavily involved in politics, and unsuccessfully sought office twice as a Democratic Party candidate, first in 1960 to the United States House of Representatives, and later in 1982 to the United States Senate. Read more
03 Oct 1925: George Wein, American pianist and producer, co-founded the Newport Folk Festival (died 2021) George Wein was an American jazz promoter, pianist, and producer. He was the founder of the Newport Jazz Festival, which is held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. He also co-founded the Newport Folk Festival with Pete Seeger and Theodore Bikel and was instrumental in the founding of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Read more
03 Oct 1924: Harvey Kurtzman, American cartoonist (died 1993) Harvey Kurtzman was an American cartoonist and editor. His best-known work includes writing and editing the parodic comic book Mad from 1952 until 1956, and writing the Little Annie Fanny strips in Playboy from 1962 until 1988. His work is noted for its satire and parody of popular culture, social critique, and attention to detail. Kurtzman's working method has been likened to that of an auteur, and he expected those who illustrated his stories to follow his layouts strictly. Read more
03 Oct 1924: Arkady Vorobyov, Russian weightlifter and coach (died 2012) Arkady Nikitich Vorobyov was a Soviet and Russian weightlifter, weightlifting coach, scientist and writer. He competed at the 1952, 1956 and 1960 Olympics and won one bronze and two gold medals. Between 1950 and 1960 he set 16 official world records. Later for many years he led the national team and the Soviet weightlifting program. In 1995 he was inducted into the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of Fame. Read more
03 Oct 1923: Edward Oliver LeBlanc, Dominican lawyer and politician, 1st Premier of Dominica (died 2004) Edward Oliver LeBlanc was a Dominican politician who served as the chief minister from January 1961 to 1 March 1967 and as the first premier from 1 March 1967 to 27 July 1974. Born in Vieille Case, a village in the north of the island, LeBlanc attended the local school and studied agriculture at the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture in Trinidad. He worked in the civil service and became a member of the Dominica Trade Union. An early member of the Dominica Labour Party (DLP), he served as a representative in the country's Legislative Council representing the constituency of Portsmouth between 1957 and 1958, and as a representative of Dominica in the Federal Parliament of the West Indies Federation upon its foundation in 1958. LeBlanc left the federation in 1960 to run for election to the national legislature. Read more
03 Oct 1921: Ray Lindwall, Australian cricketer and soldier (died 1996) Raymond Russell Lindwall was an Australian cricketer who played 61 Test matches for Australia between 1946 and 1960. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers in cricket history. In addition to his cricket career, he played top-flight rugby league for St. George, appearing in two grand finals for the club. Read more
03 Oct 1919: James M. Buchanan, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2013) James McGill Buchanan Jr. was an American economist known for his work on public choice theory originally outlined in his most famous work, The Calculus of Consent, co-authored with Gordon Tullock in 1962. He continued to develop the theory, eventually receiving the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1986. Read more
03 Oct 1916: James Herriot, English veterinarian and author (died 1995) James Alfred Wight, better known by his pen name James Herriot, was a British veterinary surgeon and author. Read more
03 Oct 1915: Ray Stark, American film producer (died 2004) Raymond Otto Stark was an American film producer and talent agent. Stark's background as a literary and theatrical agent prepared him to produce some of the most profitable films of the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, such as The World of Suzie Wong (1960), West Side Story (1961), The Misfits (1961), Lolita (1962), The Night of the Iguana (1964), Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967), Funny Girl (1968), The Owl and the Pussycat (1970), The Goodbye Girl (1977), The Toy (1982), Annie (1982), and Steel Magnolias (1989). Read more
03 Oct 1912: Charles Wood, 2nd Earl of Halifax, British peer, Conservative politician (died 1980) Charles Ingram Courtenay Wood, 2nd Earl of Halifax, styled Hon. Charles Wood from 1925 until 1944 and Lord Irwin from 1944 until 1959, was a British peer, Conservative politician, Lord Lieutenant of Humberside and High Steward of York Minster. Read more
03 Oct 1911: Michael Hordern, English actor (died 1995) Sir Michael Murray Hordern was an English actor. He is best known for his Shakespearean roles, especially King Lear. He often appeared in film, rising from a bit part actor to leading roles; by the time of his death he had appeared in nearly 140 films. His later work was predominantly in television and radio. Read more
03 Oct 1908: Johnny Burke, American songwriter (died 1964) John Francis Burke was an American lyricist, successful and prolific between the 1920s and 1950s. His work is considered part of the Great American Songbook. Read more
03 Oct 1906: Natalie Savage Carlson, American author (died 1997) Natalie Savage Carlson was an American writer of children's books. For her lifetime contribution as a children's writer, she was United States nominee for the biennial, international Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1966. Read more
03 Oct 1905: Tekin Arıburun, Turkish soldier and politician, President of Turkey (died 1993) Mehmet Tekin Arıburun was a Turkish military officer and statesman. He was born in Ishtib, Kosovo Vilayet, Ottoman Empire. He was the last acting president to be born outside the territory of present-day Turkey. Read more
03 Oct 1904: Ernst-Günther Schenck, German colonel and physician (died 1998) Ernst-Günther Schenck was a German medical doctor and member of the SS in Nazi Germany. Because of a chance encounter with Adolf Hitler during the closing days of World War II, his memoirs proved historically valuable. His accounts of this period are prominent in the works of Joachim Fest and James P. O'Donnell regarding the end of Hitler's life, and were included in the film Downfall (2004). Schenck was not allowed to continue his medical career in post-war Germany. Read more
03 Oct 1901: Jean Grémillon, French director, composer, and screenwriter (died 1959) Jean Grémillon was a French film director. Read more
03 Oct 1900: Thomas Wolfe, American novelist (died 1938) Thomas Clayton Wolfe was an American novelist and short story writer. He is known largely for his first novel, Look Homeward, Angel (1929), and for the short fiction that appeared during the last years of his life. He was one of the pioneers of autobiographical fiction, and along with William Faulkner, he is considered one of the most important authors of the Southern Renaissance within the American literary canon. He has been dubbed "North Carolina's most famous writer." Read more
03 Oct 1899: Gertrude Berg, American actress, screenwriter and producer (died 1966) Gertrude Berg was an American actress, screenwriter, and producer. A pioneer of classic radio, she was one of the first women to create, write, produce, and star in a long-running hit when she premiered her serial comedy-drama The Rise of the Goldbergs (1929), later known as The Goldbergs. Her career achievements included winning a Tony Award and an Emmy Award, both for Best Lead Actress. Read more
03 Oct 1898: Leo McCarey, American director and screenwriter (died 1969) Thomas Leo McCarey was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was involved in nearly 200 films, including the critically acclaimed Duck Soup, Make Way for Tomorrow, The Awful Truth, Going My Way, The Bells of St. Mary's, My Son John, and An Affair to Remember. Nine of his films were selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant." Read more
03 Oct 1898: Adolf Reichwein, German economist and educator (died 1944) Adolf Reichwein was a German educator, economist, and cultural policymaker for the SPD, who resisted the policies of Nazi Germany. Read more
03 Oct 1897: Louis Aragon, French author and poet (died 1982) Louis Aragon was a French poet who was one of the leading voices of the surrealist movement in France. He co-founded with André Breton and Philippe Soupault the surrealist review Littérature. He was also a novelist and editor, a long-time member of the Communist Party and a member of the Académie Goncourt. After 1959, he was a frequent nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Read more
03 Oct 1896: Auvergne Doherty, Australian businesswoman (died 1961) Auvergne Mary Doherty was an Australian businesswoman, working in her family's cattle business. She was one of the first nine women called to the bar in England; Doherty was the first Western Australian woman called to the English Bar; she did not go on to practise law in England or Western Australia. Instead, Doherty took over her father's business when he died in 1935. Read more
03 Oct 1896: Gerardo Diego, Spanish poet and critic (died 1987) Gerardo Diego Cendoya was a Spanish poet, a member of the Generation of '27. Read more
03 Oct 1895: Giovanni Comisso, Italian author and poet (died 1969) Giovanni Comisso was an important Italian writer of the twentieth century, appreciated by Eugenio Montale, Umberto Saba, Gianfranco Contini and many others. Read more
03 Oct 1895: Sergei Yesenin, Russian poet (died 1925) Sergei Aleksandrovich Yesenin was a Russian lyric poet. He is one of the most popular and well-known Russian poets of the 20th century. One of his narratives was "lyrical evocations of and nostalgia for the village life of his childhood – no idyll, presented in all its rawness, with an implied curse on urbanisation and industrialisation". Read more
03 Oct 1894: Elmer Robinson, American lawyer and politician, 33rd Mayor of San Francisco (died 1982) Elmer Edwin Robinson was the 33rd mayor of San Francisco, California. A Republican, he served as San Francisco's mayor from January 1948 until January 1956. Read more
03 Oct 1894: Walter Warlimont, German general (died 1976) Walter Warlimont was a German Army staff officer and general during World War II. He served as deputy chief of the Operations Staff, one of the departments in the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW), the Armed Forces High Command. Following the war, Warlimont was convicted in the High Command Trial and sentenced to life imprisonment as a war criminal. He was released in 1954. Read more
03 Oct 1890: Emilio Portes Gil, Mexican politician, President of Mexico (died 1978) Emilio Cándido Portes Gil was a Mexican politician, lawyer and diplomat who served as the 48th President of Mexico from 1928 to 1930, one of three to serve out the six-year term of president-elect General Álvaro Obregón, who had been assassinated in 1928. Since the 1917 Constitution forbade re-election of a serving president, incumbent President Plutarco Elías Calles could not formally retain the presidency. Portes Gil replaced him, but Calles, the "Jefe Máximo", retained effective political power during what is known as the Maximato. Read more
03 Oct 1889: Carl von Ossietzky, German journalist and activist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1938) Carl von Ossietzky was a German journalist and pacifist. He was the recipient of the 1935 Nobel Peace Prize for his work in exposing the clandestine German rearmament. Read more
03 Oct 1888: Wade Boteler, American actor and screenwriter (died 1943) Wade Boteler was an American film actor and writer. He appeared in more than 430 films between 1919 and 1943. Read more
03 Oct 1886: Alain-Fournier, French soldier, author, and critic (died 1914) Henri-Alban Fournier, known by the pseudonym Alain-Fournier, was a French author and soldier. He was the author of a novel, Le Grand Meaulnes (1913), which has been filmed twice and is considered a classic of French literature. The book is based partly on his childhood. Read more
03 Oct 1885: Sophie Treadwell, American playwright and journalist (died 1970) Sophie Anita Treadwell was an American playwright and journalist of the first half of the 20th century. She is best known for her play Machinal which is often included in drama anthologies as an example of an expressionist or modernist play. Treadwell wrote dozens of plays, several novels, as well as serial stories and countless articles that appeared in newspapers. In addition to writing plays for the theatre, Treadwell also produced, directed and acted in some of her productions. The styles and subjects of Treadwell's writings are vast, but many present women's issues of her time, subjects of current media coverage, or aspects of Treadwell's Mexican heritage. Read more
03 Oct 1882: A. Y. Jackson, Canadian painter and academic (died 1974) Alexander Young Jackson LL. D. was a Canadian painter and a founding member of the Group of Seven. Jackson made a significant contribution to the development of art in Canada, and was instrumental in bringing together the artists of Montreal and Toronto. In addition to his work with the Group of Seven, his long career included serving as a war artist during World War I (1917–1919) and teaching at the Banff School of Fine Arts, from 1943 to 1949. In his later years he was artist-in-residence at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg, Ontario. Read more
03 Oct 1880: Nora Bayes, American singer, entertainer, and actress (died 1928) Nora Bayes was an American singer and vaudeville performer who was popular internationally between the 1900s and 1920s. She is credited with co-writing the song "Shine On, Harvest Moon" and performed many successful songs during the First World War, including "Over There". She was also noted for her independent views and unconventional private life, becoming an early media celebrity. She made over 160 recordings. Read more
03 Oct 1879: Warner Oland, Swedish-American actor and singer (died 1938) Warner Oland was a Swedish-American actor. His career included time on Broadway and numerous film appearances. He is most remembered for playing several Chinese and Chinese-American characters: Dr. Fu Manchu, Henry Chang in Shanghai Express, and, most notably, Honolulu Police detective Lieutenant Charlie Chan in 16 films. Read more
03 Oct 1875: Dr. Atl, Mexican painter (died 1964) Gerardo Murillo Coronado, also known by his signature "Dr. Atl", was a Mexican painter, writer and intellectual. He is most famous for his works inspired by the Mexican landscape, particularly volcanoes, and for being one of the early figures of modern Mexican art. Read more
03 Oct 1869: Alfred Flatow, German gymnast (died 1942) Alfred Flatow was a Jewish German gymnast. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. He was murdered in the Holocaust. Read more
03 Oct 1867: Joseph Beech, American Methodist missionary and educator (died 1954) Joseph Beech, or Joe Beech as he was more commonly known, was an American Methodist missionary and educator, member of Psi Upsilon and Phi Beta Kappa, and founding president of the West China Union University. He was a recipient of the Order of Brilliant Jade. Read more
03 Oct 1867: Pierre Bonnard, French painter (died 1947) Pierre Bonnard was a French painter, illustrator and printmaker, known especially for the stylized decorative qualities of his paintings and his bold use of color. A founding member of the Post-Impressionist group of avant-garde painters Les Nabis, his early work was strongly influenced by the work of Paul Gauguin, as well as the prints of Hokusai and other Japanese artists. Bonnard was a leading figure in the transition from Impressionism to Modernism. He painted landscapes, urban scenes, portraits and intimate domestic scenes, where the backgrounds, colors and painting style usually took precedence over the subject. Read more
03 Oct 1866: Josephine Sabel, American singer and comedian (died 1945) Josephine Domingue Sabel was an American singer and comedian, billed as "The Queen of Song" in vaudeville. Read more
03 Oct 1865: Gustave Loiseau, French painter (died 1935) Gustave Loiseau was a French Post-Impressionist painter, remembered above all for his landscapes and scenes of Paris streets. Read more
03 Oct 1863: Pyotr Kozlov, Russian archaeologist and explorer (died 1935) Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov was a Russian and Soviet traveller and explorer who continued the studies of Nikolai Przhevalsky in Mongolia and Tibet. Read more
03 Oct 1862: Alice B. Woodward, British illustrator for children and scientists (died 1931) Alice Bolingbroke Woodward (1862–1951) was an English artist and illustrator. She was one of the most prolific illustrators at the turn of the 20th century and is known mainly for her work in children's literature, and secondarily for her scientific illustrations. Read more
03 Oct 1862: Johnny Briggs, English cricketer and rugby player (died 1902) Johnny Briggs was an English left arm spin bowler who played for Lancashire County Cricket Club between 1879 and 1900 and remains the second-highest wicket-taker in the county's history after Brian Statham. In the early days of Test cricket, Briggs‘ batting was considered careless, although still very useful. He was the first bowler in Test cricket to take 100 wickets, and held the record of most wickets in Test cricket on two occasions, the first in 1895 and again from 1898 until 1904, when he was succeeded by Hugh Trumble. He toured Australia a record six times, a feat only equalled by Colin Cowdrey. Read more
03 Oct 1858: Eleonora Duse, Italian actress (died 1924) Eleonora Giulia Amalia Duse, often known simply as Duse, was an Italian actress, rated by many as the greatest of her time. She performed in many countries, notably in the plays of Gabriele D'Annunzio and Henrik Ibsen. Duse achieved a unique power of conviction and verity on the stage through intense absorption in the character, "eliminating the self" as she put it, and letting the qualities emerge from within, not imposed through artifice. Read more
03 Oct 1848: Henry Lerolle, French painter and art collector (died 1929) Henry Lerolle was a French painter, art collector and patron, born in Paris. He studied at Académie Suisse and in the studio of Louis Lamothe. Read more
03 Oct 1846: James Jackson Putnam, American neurologist and academic (died 1918) James Jackson Putnam was an American neurologist. Read more
03 Oct 1837: Nicolás Avellaneda, Argentinian journalist and politician, 8th President of Argentina (died 1885) Nicolás Remigio Aurelio Avellaneda Silva was an Argentine politician and journalist, and President of Argentina from 1874 to 1880. Avellaneda's main projects while in office were banking and education reform, leading to Argentina's economic growth. The most important events of his government were the Conquest of the Desert and the transformation of the Buenos Aires into a federal district. Read more
03 Oct 1828: Woldemar Bargiel, German composer and educator (died 1897) Woldemar Bargiel was a German composer and conductor of the Romantic period. Read more
03 Oct 1804: Townsend Harris, American merchant, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Japan (died 1878) Townsend Harris was an American merchant and politician who served as the first United States Consul General to Japan. He negotiated the Harris Treaty between the US and Japan and is credited as the diplomat who first opened Shogunate Japan to foreign trade and culture in the Edo period. Read more
03 Oct 1804: Allan Kardec, French author, translator, educator and founder of modern Spiritism (died 1869) Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail, known by the pen name of Allan Kardec, was a French educator, translator, and writer. He is the author of the five books known as the Spiritist Codification, and the founder of Spiritism. Read more
03 Oct 1800: George Bancroft, American historian and politician, 17th United States Secretary of the Navy (died 1891) George Bancroft was an American historian, statesman and Democratic politician who was prominent in promoting secondary education both in his home state of Massachusetts and at the national and international levels. Read more

Notable Deaths on 03 October

03 Oct 2025: Patricia Routledge, English actress and singer (born 1929) Dame Katherine Patricia Routledge was an English actress and singer. She was best known for her role as Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC One comedy series Keeping Up Appearances (1990–1995), for which she was twice nominated for the BAFTA TV Award for Best Light Entertainment Performance. Read more
03 Oct 2024: Michel Blanc, French actor, writer and director (born 1952) Michel Blanc was a French actor, writer and director. He is noted for his roles of losers and hypochondriacs. He is frequently associated with Le Splendid, which he co-founded, along with Thierry Lhermitte, Josiane Balasko, Christian Clavier, Marie-Anne Chazel and Gérard Jugnot. He also appeared in more serious roles, such as the title role in the Patrice Leconte film Monsieur Hire. Read more
03 Oct 2024: Pierre Christin, French comics creator and writer (born 1938) Pierre Christin was a French comics writer. Read more
03 Oct 2024: Cid Moreira, Brazilian journalist and television anchor (born 1927) Cid Moreira was a Brazilian journalist and television anchor who was active from 1947 onwards. He was born in Taubaté, São Paulo, and was mostly recognized for his work as the main anchor on Rede Globo's primetime news program Jornal Nacional between 1969 and 1996. He became widely known by his grave, resonating voice. Moreira was also a narrator, having recorded several audiobook versions of Biblical works. He died in Petrópolis on 3 October 2024, at the age of 97 due to a multiple organ failure after a nearly one-month hospital stay, initially due to chronic kidney failure. Moreira was a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Read more
03 Oct 2024: Mary O'Rourke, Irish politician (born 1937) Mary O'Rourke was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Leader of the Seanad and Leader of Fianna Fáil in the Seanad from 2002 to 2007, Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2002, Minister for Public Enterprise from 1997 to 2002, Minister for Health from 1991 to 1992 and Minister for Education from 1987 to 1991. She also served as a Minister of State from 1992 to 1994. She served as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1982 to 2002 and 2007 to 2011. She served as a Senator for the Cultural and Educational Panel from 1981 to 1982 and from 2002 to 2007, after being nominated by the Taoiseach. Read more
03 Oct 2023: Thomas Gambino, American mobster, Gambino crime family (born 1929) Thomas Francis Gambino was an Italian-American New York City mobster and a longtime caporegime of the Gambino crime family who successfully controlled lucrative trucking rackets in the New York City Garment District. He was the son of Carlo Gambino, second cousin of Paul Castellano and son-in-law of Tommy Lucchese. Read more
03 Oct 2021: Todd Akin, American politician (born 1947) William Todd Akin was an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Missouri's 2nd congressional district from 2001 to 2013. He was a member of the Republican Party. Born in New York City, Akin grew up in the Greater St. Louis area. After receiving his bachelor's degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts, Akin served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and worked in the computer and steel industries. In 1988, he was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives. He served in the state house until 2000, when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, in which he served until 2013. Read more
03 Oct 2021: Dan Petrescu, Romanian businessman and billionaire (born 1953) Dan Petrescu was a Romanian businessman and billionaire, among the richest people in Romania. Born in 1953 in Bucharest, Petrescu studied at the Politehnica University of Bucharest. After graduating, Petrescu married his wife Regina Dorotea Petrescu Balzat, with whom he had a son, Dan Ștefan Petrescu, and emigrated to West Germany. There, he met who would be his economic partner for years, Ion Țiriac, another Romanian businessman. They were involved in several businesses together and returned to Romania following the Romanian Revolution. Read more
03 Oct 2015: Denis Healey, English soldier and politician, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer (born 1917) Denis Winston Healey, Baron Healey was a British Labour Party politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979 and as Secretary of State for Defence from 1964 to 1970; he remains the longest-serving Defence Secretary to date. He was a Member of Parliament from 1952 to 1992, and was Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1980 to 1983. To the public at large, Healey became well known for his bushy eyebrows, his avuncular manner and his creative turns of phrase. Read more
03 Oct 2015: Muhammad Nawaz Khan, Pakistani historian and author (born 1943) Major (Retd.) Muhammad Nawaz Khan, was a Pakistani writer, historian, columnist, and poet of the English, Pashto and Urdu languages. His work had mostly been focused on history of the Pashtuns, the Gandhara civilization and the British legacy in Pakistan. Read more
03 Oct 2015: Javed Iqbal, Pakistani philosopher and judge (born 1925) Javid Iqbal was a Pakistani writer, philosopher and senior justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He was internationally known for his acclaimed publications on the philosophy of law and modern Islamic philosophy in international and national journals. Read more
03 Oct 2014: Ewen Gilmour, New Zealand comedian and television host (born 1963) David Ewen Gilmour, commonly known as Ewen Gilmour, was a New Zealand comedian and television presenter. Usually sporting long brown hair with a goatee and wearing a jacket and jeans, he was a self-described Westie. Read more
03 Oct 2014: Benedict Groeschel, American priest, psychologist, and talk show host (born 1933) Benedict Joseph Groeschel, C.F.R. was an American Franciscan friar, Catholic priest, retreat master, author, psychologist, activist, and television host. He hosted the television talk program Sunday Night Prime on the Eternal Word Television Network, as well as several serial religious specials. Read more
03 Oct 2014: Jean-Jacques Marcel, French footballer (born 1931) Jean-Jacques Lucien Élie Antoine Marcel was a French footballer who played defender. He was an integral part of the French national teams of the 1950s. Read more
03 Oct 2014: Kevin Metheny, American businessman (born 1954) Kevin Metheny was an American radio and cable network executive who began his career as on-air talent and went on to direct programming and audience research at many radio stations and in a number of broadcast conglomerates. During the 1980s, Metheny helped develop cable entertainment networks MTV and VH1 as vice-president in charge of Music Programming and Production; he later served as vice-president of VH1 before returning to broadcast radio. Metheny received fame for his reputation as the nemesis of Howard Stern, earning him the nickname "Pig Virus." Read more
03 Oct 2014: Ward Ruyslinck, Belgian author (born 1929) Raymond De Belser, pseudonym Ward Ruyslinck, was a Belgian writer. He is the son of Leo De Belser and Germaine Nauwelaers. His father was a librarian at an oil company, and Ward Ruyslinck grew up in a Roman Catholic family. During the Second World War, the family moved to Mortsel. Read more
03 Oct 2013: Sari Abacha, Nigerian footballer (born 1978) Sanni Sari Abacha was a Nigerian footballer who played as a sweeper. He died in 2013. Read more
03 Oct 2013: Sergei Belov, Russian basketball player and coach (born 1944) Sergei Alexandrovich Belov was a Russian professional basketball player, most noted for playing for CSKA Moscow and the senior Soviet Union national basketball team. He is considered to be one of the best European basketball players of all time, and was given the honour of lighting the Olympic Cauldron with the Olympic flame during the 1980 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, in Moscow. Read more
03 Oct 2013: Joan Thirsk, English cryptologist, historian, and academic (born 1922) Irene Joan Thirsk was a British economic and social historian, specialising in the history of agriculture, and cryptanalyst. She was the leading British early modern agrarian historian of her era, as well as an important social and economic historian. Her work highlighted the regional differences in agricultural practices in England. She also had an interest in food history and local English history, in particular of Hadlow, Kent. Read more
03 Oct 2012: Abdul Haq Ansari, Indian theologian and scholar (born 1931) Muhammad Abdul Haq Ansari was an Islamic scholar from India. He was the Amir (president) of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) from 2003 to 2007. He was the member of Central Advisory Council of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. He was also the Chancellor of Al Jamia Al Islamia, Shantapuram, Kerala. His book Sufism and Shariah is a synthesis of Sufi and Shariah thought, especially a Tatbiq of Shaikh Ahmed Sir Hindi and Shah Waliullah's thought. It grew out of his in-depth engagement with kalam, tasawwuf and fiqh in Islamic history. His other major contributions are a book on Mishkawah's philosophy and an English translation of Ibn Taymiyyah's fatwas with an introduction. He also wrote 'Learning the Language of Quran' it is one of the best English guides for the beginners learning to read the Qur'an. In New Delhi he established the Islami Academy, aimed at training graduates from secular educational background in Islamic Sciences based on the madrasa curriculum. Read more
03 Oct 2012: Robert F. Christy, American physicist and astrophysicist (born 1916) Robert Frederick Christy was a Canadian-American theoretical physicist and later astrophysicist who was one of the last surviving people to have worked on the Manhattan Project during World War II. He briefly served as acting president of California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Read more
03 Oct 2012: Albie Roles, English footballer (born 1921) Albert James "Albie" Roles was an English footballer who played as a full back for Southampton. His career was interrupted by the Second World War and, as a result, he only made one Football League and four FA Cup appearances. Read more
03 Oct 2010: Ben Mondor, Canadian-American businessman (born 1925) Bernard Georges "Ben" Mondor was an American business executive and baseball executive, best known as the owner of the Pawtucket Red Sox from 1977 until his death. Read more
03 Oct 2010: Abraham Sarmiento, Filipino lawyer and jurist (born 1921) Abraham Florendo Sarmiento Sr. was a Filipino jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines from 1987 to 1991. An active figure in the political opposition against the martial law government of President Ferdinand Marcos, he was appointed to the Court by Marcos' successor, President Corazon Aquino. Read more
03 Oct 2009: Vladimir Beekman, Estonian poet and translator (born 1929) Vladimir Beekman was an Estonian writer, poet and translator. Read more
03 Oct 2007: M. N. Vijayan, Indian journalist, author, and academic (born 1930) Moolayil Narayana Vijayan, popularly known as Vijayan Maash was an Indian academic, orator, columnist and writer of Malayalam literature. Known for his leftist ideals and oratorical skills, Vijayan was the president of the Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham and served as the editor of Deshabhimani. He published a number of books of which Chithayile Velicham received the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Literary Criticism in 1982. Read more
03 Oct 2006: Lucilla Andrews, Egyptian-Scottish nurse and author (born 1919) Lucilla Matthew Andrews Crichton was a British writer of 33 romance novels from 1954 to 1996. As Lucilla Andrews she specialised in hospital romances, and under the pen names Diana Gordon and Joanna Marcus wrote mystery romances. Read more
03 Oct 2006: John Crank, English mathematician and physicist (born 1916) John Crank was a mathematical physicist, best known for his work on the numerical solution of partial differential equations. Read more
03 Oct 2006: Peter Norman, Australian runner (born 1942) Peter George Norman was an Australian track athlete. He won the silver medal in the 200 metres at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, with a time of 20.06 seconds, which remained the Oceania 200 m record for more than 56 years. He was a five-time national 200-metre champion. Read more
03 Oct 2006: Alberto Ramento, Filipino bishop (born 1937) Alberto Baldovino Ramento was the ninth supreme bishop and a former chairperson of the Supreme Council of Bishops of the Philippine Independent Church or Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI). He was known by the moniker, "The Bishop of the Poor Peasants and Workers". A known vocal critic against human rights abuses in the Philippines, he was murdered by unknown assailants in 2006, with his case currently remains unsolved. Read more
03 Oct 2005: Ronnie Barker, English actor and screenwriter (born 1929) Ronald William George Barker was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as The Frost Report, The Two Ronnies, Porridge, and Open All Hours. Read more
03 Oct 2005: Nurettin Ersin, Turkish general (born 1918) Nurettin Ersin was a Turkish general. Read more
03 Oct 2004: John Cerutti, American baseball player and sportscaster (born 1960) John Joseph Cerutti was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Toronto Blue Jays and Detroit Tigers between 1985 and 1991, and was later a broadcaster for the Blue Jays. Read more
03 Oct 2004: Janet Leigh, American actress (born 1927) Jeanette Helen Morrison, known professionally as Janet Leigh, was an American actress, businesswoman and author. Leigh was established as one of the earliest scream queens for starring in horror films, and is also known for starring in dramatic productions for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). She amassed several screen and stage credits over five decades, and received accolades such as a Golden Globe Award, a Laurel Award, and a nomination for an Academy Award. Read more
03 Oct 2003: Florence Stanley, American actress (born 1924) Florence Stanley was an American actress of stage, film, and television. She is best known for her roles in Barney Miller (1975–1977) and its spinoff Fish (1977–1978), My Two Dads (1987–1990), and Nurses (1991–1994), and the voice of Wilhelmina Bertha Packard in the franchise of Atlantis: The Lost Empire. Read more
03 Oct 2003: William Steig, American sculptor, author, and illustrator (born 1907) William Steig was an American cartoonist, illustrator, and children's book author best known for his picture book Shrek, which inspired the film series of the same name. Steig was a prolific contributor of both cartoons and cover illustrations for The New Yorker magazine, and he developed a style of less humorous line drawings that became common on greeting cards as well as in his several published collections. Read more
03 Oct 2002: Bruce Paltrow, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1943) Bruce Weigert Paltrow was an American television and film director and producer. He was the husband of actress Blythe Danner, and the father of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and screenwriter/director Jake Paltrow. Read more
03 Oct 2001: Costas Hajihristos, Greek actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1921) Kostas Hatzichristos or Costas Hajihristos was a Greek actor. Read more
03 Oct 2000: Benjamin Orr, American singer-songwriter and bass player (born 1947) Benjamin Orr was an American musician. He was best known as the bassist, co-lead vocalist, and co-founder of the band the Cars. He sang lead vocals on several of their hits, including "Just What I Needed", "Let's Go", "Moving in Stereo", and "Drive". He also had the solo hit "Stay the Night". Read more
03 Oct 1999: Akio Morita, Japanese businessman, co-founded Sony (born 1921) Akio Morita was a Japanese entrepreneur and co-founder of Sony along with Masaru Ibuka. Read more
03 Oct 1998: Roddy McDowall, English-American actor (born 1928) Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall was a British-born American actor, whose career spanned over 270 screen and stage roles across more than 60 years. Read more
03 Oct 1997: Michael Adekunle Ajasin, Nigerian politician, 3rd Governor of Ondo State (born 1908) Michael Adekunle Ajasin was a Nigerian politician who served as governor of Ondo State from 1979 to 1983 on the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) platform during the Nigerian Second Republic. Read more
03 Oct 1995: Ma. Po. Si., Indian author and politician (born 1906) Mylai Ponnuswamy Sivagnanam, popularly known as Ma.Po.Si., was an Indian politician, freedom fighter, and the founder of the political party Tamil Arasu Kazhagam. He wrote more than 100 books. Read more
03 Oct 1994: John C. Champion, American producer and screenwriter (born 1923) John C. Champion was an American producer and screenwriter. Read more
03 Oct 1994: Dub Taylor, American actor (born 1907) Walter Clarence "Dub" Taylor Jr. was an American character actor who from the 1940s into the 1990s worked extensively in films and on television, often in Westerns but also in comedies. He is the father of actor and painter Buck Taylor. Read more
03 Oct 1993: Katerina Gogou, Greek actress, poet, and author (born 1940) Katerina Gogou was a Greek poet, author and actress. Read more
03 Oct 1993: Gary Gordon, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1960) Gary Ivan Gordon was a master sergeant in the United States Army and a recipient of the Medal of Honor. At the time of his death in the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993, he was a non-commissioned officer in the United States Army's premier special operations unit, the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (1SFOD-D), or "Delta Force". Together with his fellow soldier Sergeant First Class Randy Shughart, Gordon was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the battle. Read more
03 Oct 1993: Randy Shughart, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1958) Randall David Shughart was a United States Army Delta Force operator who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Mogadishu, during Operation Gothic Serpent in October 1993. Read more
03 Oct 1990: Stefano Casiraghi, Italian-Monegasque businessman (born 1960) Stefano Casiraghi was an Italian offshore powerboat racer, socialite, and businessman. He was the second husband of Princess Caroline of Monaco; he died during a racing accident defending his 1990 Class 1 World Powerboat Championship title. Read more
03 Oct 1990: Eleanor Steber, American soprano and educator (born 1914) Eleanor Steber was an American soprano and voice teacher. She was particularly celebrated for her performances in the operas of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Richard Strauss. A native of West Virginia, she was educated at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston where she began her performance career in the 1930s. She made her opera debut in 1936 at the Boston Opera House as Senta in Richard Wagner's The Flying Dutchman. Read more
03 Oct 1988: Franz Josef Strauss, Bavarian lieutenant and politician, Minister President of Bavaria (born 1915) Franz Josef Strauss was a German politician. He was the long-time chairman of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) from 1961 until 1988, member of the federal cabinet in different positions between 1953 and 1969 and minister-president of Bavaria from 1978 until 1988. Strauss is also credited as a co-founder of European aerospace conglomerate Airbus. Read more
03 Oct 1987: Jean Anouilh, French playwright and screenwriter (born 1910) Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh was a French dramatist and screenwriter whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 production of Sophocles's Antigone, which, though performed without objection by censors, was nevertheless seen as an attack on Marshal Pétain's Vichy government. His plays are less experimental than those of his contemporaries, having clearly organized plot and eloquent dialogue. One of France's most prolific writers after World War II, much of Anouilh's work deals with themes of maintaining integrity in a world of moral compromise. Read more
03 Oct 1987: Kalervo Palsa, Finnish painter (born 1947) Huugo Kalervo Palsa, known as Kalle, was a Finnish artist whose style has been described as fantastic expressionism, often influenced by depictions of sexuality. Read more
03 Oct 1986: Vince DiMaggio, American baseball player and manager (born 1912) Vincent Paul DiMaggio was an American Major League Baseball center fielder. During a 10-year baseball career, he played for the Boston Bees (1937–1938), Cincinnati Reds (1939–1940), Pittsburgh Pirates (1940–1945), Philadelphia Phillies (1945–1946), and New York Giants (1946). DiMaggio was the older brother of Joe and Dom DiMaggio. Read more
03 Oct 1981: Anna Hedvig Büll, Estonian-German missionary (born 1887) Anna Hedvig Büll was a missionary from Estonia who helped to save the lives of several thousand Armenian orphans during the Armenian genocide. Read more
03 Oct 1980: Friedrich Karm, Estonian footballer (born 1907) Friedrich Karm was an Estonian international footballer who played as a forward and scored 9 goals in 13 games for the Estonia national team. He was also a bandy player. Read more
03 Oct 1979: Nicos Poulantzas, Greek-French sociologist and philosopher (born 1936) Nicos Poulantzas was a Greek-French Marxist political philosopher and sociologist. In the 1970s, he became a leading figure in the structuralist Marxist school of thought. He is best known for his theoretical work on the state, social class, fascism, and authoritarianism. His work was influential in critiquing traditional communist views and developing a sophisticated Marxist theory of the capitalist state. Read more
03 Oct 1969: Skip James, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1902) Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter. AllMusic stated: "Coupling an oddball guitar tuning set against eerie, falsetto vocals, James' early recordings could make the hair stand up on the back of your neck." Read more
03 Oct 1967: Woody Guthrie, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1912) Woodrow Wilson Guthrie was an American singer, songwriter, and composer widely considered one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism and has inspired many generations politically and musically with songs such as "This Land Is Your Land" and "Tear the Fascists Down". Read more
03 Oct 1967: Malcolm Sargent, English organist, composer, and conductor (born 1895) Sir Harold Malcolm Watts Sargent was an English conductor, organist and composer widely regarded as Britain's leading conductor of choral works. The musical ensembles with which he was associated included the Ballets Russes, the Huddersfield Choral Society, the Royal Choral Society, the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, and the London Philharmonic, Hallé, Liverpool Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and Royal Philharmonic orchestras. Sargent was held in high esteem by choirs and instrumental soloists, but because of his high standards and a statement that he made in a 1936 interview disputing musicians' rights to tenure, his relationship with orchestral players was often uneasy. Despite this, he was co-founder of the London Philharmonic, was the first conductor of the Liverpool Philharmonic as a full-time ensemble, and played an important part in saving the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from disbandment in the 1960s. Read more
03 Oct 1966: Rolf Maximilian Sievert, Swedish physicist and academic (born 1896) Rolf Maximilian Sievert was a Swedish medical physicist whose major contribution was in the study of the biological effects of ionizing radiation. Read more
03 Oct 1965: Zachary Scott, American actor (born 1914) Zachary Scott was an American actor who was known for his roles as villains and "mystery men". Read more
03 Oct 1963: Refet Bele, Turkish general (born 1877) Ibrahim Refet Bele, also known as Refet Bey or Refet Pasha was a Turkish military commander. He served in the Ottoman Army and the Turkish Army, where he retired as a general. Read more
03 Oct 1959: Tochigiyama Moriya, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 27th Yokozuna (born 1892) Tochigiyama Moriya was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler. He was the sport's 27th yokozuna from 1918 until 1925. Generally he is considered one of the pioneers of modern sumo. He remains the lightest yokozuna in the history of the sport with a weight of 104 kg. Read more
03 Oct 1953: Arnold Bax, English composer and poet (born 1883) Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax was an English composer, poet, and author. His prolific output includes songs, choral music, chamber pieces, and solo piano works, but he is best known for his orchestral music. In addition to a series of symphonic poems, he wrote seven symphonies and was for a time widely regarded as the leading British symphonist. Read more
03 Oct 1936: John Heisman, American football player and coach (born 1869) John William Heisman was an American sportsman, writer, and actor. He was a player and coach of American football, baseball, and basketball, and served as the head football coach at Oberlin College, Buchtel College, Auburn University, Clemson University, Georgia Tech, the University of Pennsylvania, Washington & Jefferson College, and Rice University, compiling a career college football record of 186–70–18. Read more
03 Oct 1931: Carl Nielsen, Danish violinist, composer, and conductor (born 1865) Carl August Nielsen was a Danish composer, conductor, and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Read more
03 Oct 1929: Jeanne Eagels, American actress (born 1894) Jeanne Eagels was an American stage and film actress. Eagels appeared in many Broadway productions, and in the emerging medium of sound films. She was posthumously nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her 1929 role in The Letter after dying suddenly that year at the age of 39. Read more
03 Oct 1929: Gustav Stresemann, German politician, Chancellor of Germany, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1878) Gustav Ernst Stresemann was a German statesman during the Weimar Republic who served as chancellor of Germany from August to November 1923 and as foreign minister from 1923 to 1929. His most notable achievement was the reconciliation between Germany and France, for which he and French Prime Minister Aristide Briand received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1926. During a period of political instability and fragile, short-lived governments, Stresemann was seen at his death as "the person who maintained the precarious balance of the political system." Read more
03 Oct 1917: Eduardo Di Capua, Neapolitan composer, singer and songwriter (born 1865) Eduardo di Capua was an Italian composer, singer and songwriter. Read more
03 Oct 1911: Rosetta Jane Birks, Australian suffragist (born 1856) Rosetta Jane "Rose" Birks (1856–1911) was a social reformer and philanthropist who played a key role in South Australian women's suffrage. Read more
03 Oct 1910: Lucy Hobbs Taylor, American dentist (born 1833) Lucy Hobbs Taylor was an American dentist, known for being the first woman to graduate from dental school. Read more
03 Oct 1907: Jacob Nash Victor, American engineer (born 1835) Jacob Nash Victor, son of Henry Clay Victor and Gertrude Nash, was a civil engineer who worked as General Manager of the California Southern Railroad, a subsidiary of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. Victor oversaw the construction in the early 1880s of the California Southern between Colton and Barstow, California, including the section that is now one of the busiest rail freight routes in the United States, Cajon Pass. Read more
03 Oct 1896: William Morris, English author and poet (born 1834) William Morris was an English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditional British textile arts and methods of production. His literary contributions helped to establish the modern fantasy genre, while he campaigned for socialism in fin de siècle Great Britain. Read more
03 Oct 1891: Édouard Lucas, French mathematician and theorist (born 1842) François Édouard Anatole Lucas was a French mathematician. Lucas is known for his study of the Fibonacci sequence and the Tower of Hanoi. The related Lucas sequences and Lucas numbers are named after him. Read more
03 Oct 1890: Joseph Hergenröther, German historian and cardinal (born 1824) Joseph Hergenröther was a German Church historian and canonist, and the first Cardinal-Prefect of the Vatican Archive. Read more
03 Oct 1881: Orson Pratt, American mathematician and religious leader (born 1811) Orson Pratt Sr. was an American religious leader and mathematician who was an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Christ. After the succession crisis Pratt continued in the Quorum of the Twelve of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was a leading Mormon theologian and writer until his death. Read more
03 Oct 1877: James Roosevelt Bayley, American archbishop (born 1814) James Roosevelt Bayley was an American Catholic prelate who served as the first Bishop of Newark from 1853 to 1872 and as Archbishop of Baltimore from 1872 to 1877. Read more
03 Oct 1877: Rómulo Díaz de la Vega, Mexican general and president (1855) (born 1800) José María Rómulo Díaz de la Vega Fuentes was a Mexican military officer and politician. As commander of the garrison in Mexico City, he was the de facto president of Mexico in 1855, after the resignation of President Martín Carrera during the revolutionary Plan of Ayutla left a power vacuum. Read more
03 Oct 1873: Kintpuash, American tribal leader (born 1837) Kintpuash, also known as Kientpoos, Keintpoos, or by his English name Captain Jack, was a Modoc leader from present-day northern California and southern Oregon. His name in the Modoc language translates to "strikes the water brashly." Kintpuash is best known for leading his people in resisting forced relocation during the Modoc War of 1872–1873. Using the rugged terrain of the Lava Beds in California, his small band of warriors held off vastly superior US Army forces for several months. He remains the only Native American leader to be charged with war crimes. Kintpuash was executed by hanging, along with three others, for their role in the deaths of General Edward Canby and Reverend Eleazar Thomas during peace negotiations. Read more
03 Oct 1867: Hedda Hjortsberg, Swedish ballerina (born 1777) Hedvig "Hedda" Katarina Hjortsberg also known as Hedda Koersner was a Swedish ballerina who starred for the Royal Swedish Ballet. She was the sister of the Swedish actor Lars Hjortsberg. Read more
03 Oct 1867: Elias Howe, American engineer, invented the sewing machine (born 1819) Elias Howe Jr. was an American inventor best known for his creation of the modern lockstitch sewing machine. Read more
03 Oct 1867: Thora Thersner, Swedish artist (born 1818) Thora Johanna Ulrika Thersner was a Swedish graphic artist and illustrator who was known for contributing half of the illustrations of the Fordna och närvarande Sverige topographical volumes, which her father began. Read more
03 Oct 1860: Rembrandt Peale, American painter and curator (born 1778) Rembrandt Peale was an American artist and museum keeper. A prolific portrait painter, he was especially acclaimed for his likenesses of presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Peale's style was influenced by French neoclassicism after a stay in Paris in his early thirties. Read more
03 Oct 1838: Black Hawk, American tribal leader (born 1767) Mahkatêwe-meshi-kêhkêhkwa, known in English as Black Hawk, was a Sauk leader and warrior who lived in what is now the Midwestern United States. Although he had inherited an important historic sacred bundle from his father, he was not a hereditary civil chief. Black Hawk earned his status as a war chief or captain by his actions: leading raiding and war parties as a young man and then a band of Sauk warriors during the Black Hawk War of 1832. Read more
03 Oct 1833: François, marquis de Chasseloup-Laubat, French general and engineer (born 1754) François Charles Louis, marquis de Chasseloup-Laubat was a French general and military engineer during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Read more
03 Oct 1801: Philippe Henri, marquis de Ségur, French general and politician, French Minister of Defence (born 1724) Philippe Henri, Marquis de Ségur was a French military officer who was Marshal of France and Secretary of State for War under King Louis XV and later King Louis XVI. He was a grandson of Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, Read more

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