On this day in history —

• Caligula becomes emperor of Rome (37)
• Jacques de Molay, Grand Master of the Knights Templar, is burned at the stake (1314)
• The Republic of Mainz, the first republic in German history, is established (1793)
• The Tolpuddle Martyrs are convicted for trade unionism (1834)
• Wells, Fargo, and Butterfield found American Express (1850)
• The Stanley Cup is awarded for the first time (1892)
• Gandhi is jailed by the British (1922)
• The deadliest tornado in US history kills 695 and injures 2,000 more (1925)
• A natural gas leak causes an explosion in a school in New London, Texas, killing 295 students and teachers (1937)
• The Pedaliante human-powered airplane sets a world record (1937)
• The War Relocation Authority is established to oversee the forced relocation of Japanese-Americans and others during World War II (1942)
• Mount Vesuvius erupts, destroying four Italian villages and 75 USAAF bombers (1944)
• The Hawaii Admissions Act establishes Hawaii as the 50th state (1959)
• Alexey Leonov becomes the first human to walk in space (1965)
• The OPEC oil embargo against the United States ends (1974)
• The largest art theft in history removes 13 priceless paintings from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston (1990)

It’s the birthday of —

• Queen Latifah, rapper (1970)
• Bonnie Blair, skater (1964)
• Vanessa Williams, former Miss America (1963)
• Mike Rowe, Dirty Jobs host (1962)
• Irene Cara, singer (1959)
• Mike Webster, football player (1952)
• Wilson Pickett, singer (1941)
• Charley Pride, singer (1938)
• F. W. de Klerk, South African leader (1936)
• John Updike, novelist (1932)
• George Plimpton, journalist (1927)
• Peter Graves, Mission: Impossible boss (1926)
• Andy Granatelli, racer (1923)
• Richard Condon, novelist (1915)
• Smiley Burnette, Gene Autry sidekick (1911)
• Ernest Gallo, wine maker (1909)
• Wilfred Owen, poet (1893)
• Edward Everett Horton, actor and voice artist (1886)
• Edgar Cayce, psychic (1877)
• Neville Chamberlain, prime minister (1869)
• Rudolf Diesel, engine designer (1858)
• Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (Никола́й Ри́мский-Ко́рсаков), composer (1844)
• Grover Cleveland, president (1837)
• John C. Calhoun, slavery advocate (1782)

Deaths —

• William Christopher, secretary of state (2011)
• Fess Parker, actor (2010)
• Natasha Richardson, actress (2009)
• Adam Osborne, computer pioneer (2003)
• R. A. Lafferty, writer (2002)
• “Papa John” Phillips, singer (2001)
• Bernard Malamud, writer (1986)
• Erich Fromm, psychologist (1980)
• Leigh Brackett, writer (1978)
• Johnny Appleseed, nurseryman (1845)
• William C. Durant, GM founder (1947)
• Ivan the Terrible (Ива́н Васи́льевич), tsar (1584)

Holidays —

• Aniversario de la Expropiación Petrolera (Mexico)
• Flag Day (Aruba)
• Gallipoli Memorial Day (Turkey)
• Men’s and Soldier’s Day (Mongolia)