Today in History for 31st December 2017:
Historical Events
1502 – Cesare Borgia (son of pope Alexander VI) occupies Urbino
1901 – In the first election under their new constitution, Cuba elects a Congress and their first president, Tomas Estrada Palma
1920 – Roy Park makes 1st-ball duck in only Test Cricket inn, v Eng at MCG
1924 – Italian Fascist Mussolini orders the suppression of opposition newspapers
1929 – Pope Pius XI publishes encyclical Divini illius magistri
1953 – 42nd Davis Cup: Australia beats USA in Melbourne (3-2)
Famous Birthdays
1830 – Ismail Pasha, kedive of Egypt (1863-79)
1881 – Max Pechstein, German “entartet” painter/graphic artist (The Bridge)
1908 – Simon Wiesenthal, Polish/Austrian nazi hunter (Wiesenthal Center)
1908 – Marko Rothmuller, composer
1910 – Richard “Dick” Kollmar, American actor (Broadway Spotlight, Guess What), born in Rigewood, New Jersey (d. 1971)
1938 – Henricus G Wijmans, Dutch graphic artist
Famous Deaths
1742 – Karl III Philip, Elector Palatine (b. 1661)
1936 – William FA Ellison, Irish clergyman/astronomer, dies at 72
1950 – Charles Koechlin, French composer (Jungle Book), dies at 83
1977 – Nora Marlowe, actress (Sara-Gov and JJ), dies at 62
1981 – Frantisek Chaun, composer, dies at 60
1994 – Leo Fuchs, Polish-born Jewish American actor (The Six Million Dollar Man, Avalon), dies at 83