April 28th in History

Michael Dobson | April 28

Mutiny on the Bounty, by Robert Dodd (1790)

Today in History

  • 法華系仏教 (Nichiren Buddhism) is founded by the monk of the same name when he chants the お題目 (o-daimoku) mantra, 南無妙法蓮華経 (Nam(u) Myōhō Renge Kyō) for the first time (1253)
  • Master’s mate Fletcher Christian leads a mutiny against Lieutenant William Bligh, captain of HMS Bounty (1789)
  • The first long-distance airplane race in England is won by Louis Paulhan (1910)
  • A vaccine against yellow fever is announced (1932)
  • Thor Heyerdahl and crew set out on the raft Kon-Tiki (1947)
  • The US occupation of Japan ends (1952)
  • Richard Nixon authorizes US troops to attack communist sanctuaries in Cambodia (1970)
  • The top of the first class cabin of Aloha Airlines 243 rips off during flight, killing a flight attendant and injuring 65 others (1988)

Birthdays

  • Edward IV, English monarch (1442)
  • James Monroe, US president (1758)
  • Lionel Barrymore, actor (1878)
  • Jan Oort, astronomer (1900)
  • Kurt Gödel, mathematician (1906)
  • Oskar Schindler, businessman and Holocaust hero (1908)
  • Lee Falk, creator of The Phantom and Mandrake the Magician (1911)
  • Ferrucio Lamborghini, car manufacturer (1916)
  • Harper Lee, wrote To Kill a Mockingbird (1926)
  • James Baker, politician (1930)
  • Carolyn Jones, actress (1930)
  • صدام حسين عبد المجيد التكريتي  (Saddam Hussein), Iraqi president (1937)
  • Ann-Margret, singer, dancer, actress (1941)
  • Terry Pratchett, fantasy author (1948)
  • Jay Leno, talk show host (1950)
  • Elena Kagan, supreme jurist (1960)

Deaths

  • Михаи́л Куту́зов (Mikhail Kutuzov), Russian field marshal (1813 — O.S. 16 April)
  • Samuel Cunard, shipping magnate (1865)
  • Benito Mussolini, fascist leader (1945)
  • Clara Petacci, Mussolini’s mistress (1945)
  • Ed Begley, actor (1970)
  • Iceberg Slim, pimp and author (1992)
  • Jerome Bixby, author (1998)
  • Rory Calhoun, actor (1999)
  • Percy Heath, bassist (2005)
  • Tommy Newsom, Tonight Show saxophonist (2007)

Holidays and Celebrations

  • Feast of Jamál (Bahá’í)
  • Floralia begins (ancient Rome)
  • International Astronomy Day (worldwide)
  • National Day (Sardinia)
  • National Day of Mourning (Canada)
  • National Heroes Day (Barbados)
  • Workers Memorial Day (international)
  • World Day for Safety and Health at Work (international)
Informal and made-up holidays include Biological Clock Day, Great Poetry Reading Day, Kiss Your Mate Day, and National Blueberry Pie Day.
• • •
April 28 is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years). There are 247 days remaining until the end of the year.