Original theatrical release poster for Walt Disney’s Pinocchio

Today in History

• The Bonfire of the Vanities: Supporters of Girolamo Savonarola burn cosmetics, art, and books in Florence (1497)
• The third and strongest of the New Madrid earthquakes occurs in Missouri (1812)
• Dreyfus Affair: Émile Zola is tried for libel for publishing J’accuse (1898)
• Pinocchio, the second full-length animated Disney film, premiers (1940)
• The Maastricht Treaty, creating the structure for the European Union, is signed (1992)
• NeXT merges with Apple Computer, returning Steve Jobs to leadership (1997)
• Mississippi officially certifies the Thirteenth Amendment outlawing slavery (2013)

Birthdays

• Sir Thomas More, saint and Lord Chancellor of England (1478)
• John Deere, founded Deere & Company (1804)
• Charles Dickens, novelist (1812)
• Laura Ingalls Wilder, author (1867)
• Alfred Adler, psychologist (1870)
• Sinclair Lewis, novelist and playwright (1885)
• Eubie Blake, pianist and composer (1887)
• Puyi, last emperor of China (1906)
• Buster Crabbe, swimmer and actor (1908)
• Jock Mahoney, actor (1919)
• An Wang, engineer, founded Wang Laboratories (1920)
• Gay Tales, journalist (1932)
• Miguel Ferrer, actor (1955)
• James Spader, actor (1960)
• Garth Brooks, country musician (1962)
• Eddie Izzard, comedian (1962)
• Chris Rock, comedian (1965)
• Ashton Kutcher, actor (1978)

Deaths

• Nikko, founder of Nichiren Shoshu Buddhism (1333)
• Henry E. Steinway, piano manufacturer (1871)
• Harvey Firestone, tire manufacturer (1938)
• Nick Adams, actor (1968)
• Josef Mengele, SS officer and concentration camp physician (1979)
• Hussein, Jordanian monarch (1999)
• Doug Henning, magician (2000)
• Anne Morrow Lindbergh, author and pilot (2001)

Holidays and Celebrations

• Ballet Day
• e Day (2/7, mathematicians)
• Independence Day (Granada)
• National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (US)
• National Periodic Table Day (US)

February 7 is the 38th day of the year. There are 327 days (328 in leap years) remaining until the end of the year.