April 8th in History

Michael Dobson | April 8
Venus de Milo, discovered April 8, 1920

Today in History

  • The Venus de Milo is discovered (1820)
  • The Harvard Business School is established (1908)
  • The 17th Amendment to the US Constitution, requiring direct election of senators, becomes law (1913)
  • Sharia courts are abolished in Turkey (1924)
  • FDR imposes wage and price freezes to combat inflation (1943)
  • Gemini 1 is launched (1964)
  • Hank Aaron surpasses Babe Ruth’s home run record (1974)

Birthdays

  • Elizabeth Bacon Custer, author, wife of George Armstrong Custer (1842)
  • Mary Pickford, actress (1892)
  • Yip Harburg, composer (1896)
  • Sonja Henie, figure skater (1912)
  • Betty Ford, first lady (1918)
  • Carmen McRae, singer-songwriter (1920)
  • Edward Mulhare, actor (1923)
  • Shecky Greene, comedian (1926)
  • Shirley Mills, actress (1926)
  • Jacques Brel, singer-songwriter (1929)
  • Seymour Hersh, journalist (1937)
  • Kofi Annan, UN secretary-general (1938)
  • John Havlicek, basketball player (1940)
  • Vivienne Westwood, fashion designer (1941)
  • Douglas Trumbull, special effects artist (1942)
  • Jack O’Halloran, boxer and actor (1943)
  • Catfish Hunter, baseball player (1946)
  • Tom DeLay, politician (1947)
  • Gary Carter, baseball player (1954)
  • Barbara Kingsolver, author (1955)
  • John Schneider, actor (1960)
  • Julian Lennon, singer-songwriter (1963)
  • Biz Markie, rapper (1964)
  • Robin Wright, actress (1966)
  • Patricia Arquette, actress (1968)
  • Emma Caulfield, actress (1973)
  • Anouk, singer (1975)
  • Taran Noah Smith, actor (1984)

Deaths

  • Caracalla, Roman emperor (217)
  • 세종 장헌 영문 예무 인성 명효 대왕; 世宗 莊憲 英文 睿武 仁聖 明孝 大王 (Sejong the Great), Korean monarch (1450)
  • Elisha Otis, elevator manufacturer (1861)
  • Ва́цлав Нижи́нский (Vaslav Nijinsky), dancer (1950)
  • Juan Belmonte, matador (1962)
  • Pablo Picasso, painter and sculptor (1973)
  • Omar Bradley, general (1981)
  • Ryan White, AIDS victim and activist (1990)
  • Marian Anderson, singer (1993)
  • Laura Nyro, singer-songwriter (1997)
  • Claire Trevor, actress (2000)
  • Annette Funicello, actress and singer (2013)
  • Margaret Thatcher, prime minister (2013)

Holidays and Celebrations

  • Buddha’s Birthday (Hana Matsuri) (US Buddhists)
  • DABDay (Draw a Bird Day) (International)
  • International Romani Day (Worldwide)
  • National Empanada Day (US food holidays)
Informal and made-up holidays include All is Ours Day, Ponce de Leon Day, and Zoo Lovers Day.
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April 8 is the 98th day of the year (99th in leap years). There are 267 days remaining until the end of the year.