Today in History for 17th January 2022:
Historical Events
1945 – Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, credited with saving tens of thousands of Jews from the Nazis, arrested by Soviet secret police in Hungary
1947 – Ammunition factory explodes in Muiden, Netherlands, 16 die
1974 – Asylum Records releases “Court and Spark”, Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell’s 6th studio album; features the songs “Help Me” and “Free Man In Paris”, it becomes her biggest seller
1988 – NFC Championship, RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.: Washington Redskins beat Minnesota Vikings, 17-10
2003 – 8th Critics’ Choice Movie Awards: Chicago Best Picture
2010 – A dragon boat from Chung Ling High School capsizes and collides with a tugboat amid strong currents in Penang, Malaysia, killing 6 people and injuring 12
Famous Birthdays
1706 – Benjamin Franklin, US Founding Father, inventor, ambassador and writer (Poor Richards Almanac), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1790)
1905 – Franz Schmid, German ascended northside of Matterhorn (1931)
1920 – George Handy [Hendleman], American bebop jazz arranger, pianist and composer (Handyland, U.S.A.), born in New York City (d. 1997)
1959 – Susanna Hoffs, American actress and musician (Bangles-Walk Like an Egyptian), born in Los Angeles, California
1975 – Tom Jenkinson, English musician (Squarepusher), born in Chelmsford, United Kingdom
1980 – Zooey Deschanel, American actress (Almost Famous; Elf; New Girl), and singer (She and Him), born in Los Angeles, California
Famous Deaths
1863 – Horace Vernet, French painter of battles and Orientalist subjects, dies at 73
1874 – Chang and Eng Bunker, Chinese/Thai Siamese twins, die at 62
1917 – Hendrik Goeman Borgesius, Dutch politician, dies at 70
1994 – Grady “Fats” Jackson, tenor Sax Player, dies at 66
1995 – Urias Nooteboom, Dutch journalist/critic (The Time), dies at 54
2012 – Marty Springstead, American Major League baseball umpire and umpire supervisor, dies of heart attack at 74