Historical Events 1944 - World War II: About 38 men‚ women‚ and children die in the Koniuchy massacre in Poland 1959 - Smog pollution with readings higher than the 1952 'Great Smog of London' hits London‚ with many suffering chest and lung-related illnesses 1984 - 34th NBA All-Star Game‚ Denver: East beats West‚ 154-145 (OT); MVP: Isiah Thomas‚ Detroit Pistons‚ G; first All-Star Saturday; Legends Classic‚ West wins‚ 64-63; first Slam-Dunk winner‚ Larry Nance 1985 - Oxford University refuses to award Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher an honorary degree 1986 - Yoweri Museveni sworn in as President of Uganda 1988 - United Airlines Boeing 747SP‚ circles world in 36h54m15s More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1689 - Hubert K. Poot‚ Dutch poet (d. 1733) 1866 - Romain Rolland‚ French writer (Jean-Christophe‚ Nobel Prize for Literature 1915)‚ born in Clamecy‚ France (d. 1944) 1898 - Karl Bjarnhof‚ Danish blind journalist and writer (The Stars Grow Pale)‚ born in Vejle‚ Denmark (d. 1980) 1906 - Frans Hin‚ Dutch yachtsman (Olympic gold 12' Dinghy 1920; aged 14 years 163 days)‚ born in Haarlem‚ Netherlands (d. 1968) 1930 - John Junkin‚ British actor and scriptwriter (A Hard Day's Night)‚ born in Ealing‚ Middlesex (d. 2006) 1949 - Tommy Ramone [Tamás Erdélyi]‚ Hungarian-American rock drummer and bassist (Ramones)‚ born in Budapest‚ Hungary (d. 2014) More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1763 - Louis Racine‚ French poet (La Religion)‚ dies at 70 1888 - Edward Lear‚ English poet and author (famous for his nonsense poems - The Owl and the Pussycat)‚ dies at 75 1942 - Bion J. Arnold‚ American electrical engineer and inventor (railroad electrification)‚ dies at 80 1965 - Jack Hylton‚ English orchestra leader and impresario (Crazy Passage Show)‚ dies at 72 2012 - François Migault‚ French auto racer (24 Hours of Le Mans 1976 runner-up; 16 F1 GP)‚ dies from cancer at 67 2023 - Barrett Strong‚ American RandB vocalist ("Money (That's What I Want)")‚ piano player‚ and songwriter ("I Heard It Through the Grapevine"; "Just My Imagination";"Papa Was A Rollin' Stone"; "War")‚ dies at 81 More Famous Deaths »