Janet Guthrie(first woman to race in the Indy 500)β
Daniel J. Travanti(actor)β
Peter Wolf(musician)β
Franco Harris(football player)β
Bryan Cranston(actor)β
Ivan Lendl(tennis player)β
Wanda Sykes(comedienne & actress)β
Tiny Tymm(21-millionth Canadian)β
Rachel Weisz(actress)β
Jenna Fischer(actress)β
Laura Prepon(actress)β
Died
The Earl of Aberdeen(Canadian Governor General 1893 - 1898)β
Ray Arcel(boxing trainer)β
Stanley Kubrick(film director)β
Paul Winfield(actor)β
Debra Hill(producer)β
Events
Queen’s University held its first classes, Kingston, Ontarioβ
Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for his telephoneβ
Toronto Stock Exchange incorporatedβ
Dr. John Kellogg served the world’s first cornflakes to his patients at the Battle Creek (MI) Sanitariumβ
First coin-operated locker patentedβ
The world’s first jazz recording was released by the RCA Victor Companyβ
President Woodrow Wilson authorized the Distinguished Service Medal to be given for outstanding service in the U.S. Armyβ
U.S. troops captured the key Remagen Bridge across the Rhine (WW II)β
Melvin C. Garlow became the first pilot to log more than one million miles in jet airplanesβ
The Who’s βPinball Wizardβ was released in Britain. It was the first selection from the rock opera βTommyβ to be publicly airedβ
Comet Kohoutek was discovered by Czech astronomer Lubos Kohoutekβ
Phil Mahre won alpine skiing’s World Cup championship. He was the third person to ever win three consecutive titlesβ
Major U.S. recording artists combined their talents and released We Are the World. Proceeds from recording sales were to be donated to African famine reliefβ
The Violent Femmes (an alternative rock band) played at Carnegie Hallβ
At the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, Kathryn Bigelow won the Oscar for Best Director for Hurt Locker. It was the first time a woman won the award.β
Barefoot water skier, Fernando Reina Iglesias, set a new record. Towed by a helicopter off the coast of Mexico, he reached a speed of 153 mph.β
Weather
Brilliant nationwide aurora borealisβ
This day was a day Iowans won’t soon forget. A major ice storm coated much of the state with two to three inches of ice. Seventy-eight downed utility towers along one 17-mile stretch cost three electric companies $15 million. The total damage from the storm was over $50 million.β