Thursday, 2nd April 2026 in Lisbon

2nd April in the Stars – Star Sign Aries

Today, the zodiac sign Aries celebrates its birthday.

Personality Profile

Personality People born on April 2nd embody classic Aries courage and directness. They are natural visionaries who act quickly and inspire others. Numerology 6 adds an unexpected layer of harmony and caring beneath their warrior spirit.

Strengths & Weaknesses Their strength lies in boldness, initiative, and infectious optimism. They execute plans rapidly and embrace challenges fearlessly. Weaknesses include impatience, tactless communication, and acting impulsively without reflection.

Love Those born on April 2nd love with passion and immediacy. They need partners who respect their independence and energy. Numerology 6 grants them deeper bonding capacity and genuine need for emotional reciprocation.

Caree & Finance These individuals excel in leadership and entrepreneurship. They seek autonomy and dislike routine work. Financially, they tend toward impulse; strategic patience and careful planning would unlock greater prosperity.

Health People born on this day require physical outlets to maintain balance. They accumulate stress in the head and neck region. Regular exercise and mindful rest protect their physical and mental wellbeing.

That night, the moon was in its waning crescent phase.

Chinese year of the Horse (Fire).

Fun Facts About 2nd April

Name Days in Your Language: Ebba, Eboni, Ebony, Gardenia, Gardner, Garnet, Garnett

Someone born on this day would be just 63 days old today — roughly 1,516 hours, 91,015 minutes, or 5,460,904 seconds spent on Earth so far.

It's the 92. day of the year. In 2026, 2nd April falls on a Thursday.

There are 273 days still to come.

We’re currently in Week 14 — the year marches on.

Famous Birthdays on 2nd April

On this day, 222 notable people were born on 2nd April — spanning from 181 to 2007. From world leaders to artists and scientists, discover who shares this birthday.

02/04/2007

Brenda Fruhvirtová, Czech tennis player

Brenda Fruhvirtová is a Czech professional tennis player. She has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 87, achieved on 29 July 2024. She reached a career-high ITF junior ranking of world No. 4, achieved on 13 December 2021.

02/04/2005

Adrián Liso, Spanish footballer

Adrián Liso Lahoz is a Spanish footballer who plays as a left winger for La Liga club Getafe, on loan from Zaragoza.

02/04/2004

Diana Shnaider, Russian tennis player

Diana Maximovna Shnaider is a Russian professional tennis player. She has a career-high WTA singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on 5 May 2025 and a best doubles ranking of No. 8, reached on 16 June 2025.

02/04/2002

Emma Myers, American actress

Emma Elizabeth Myers is an American actress. She is best known for her breakthrough role as Enid Sinclair in the Netflix series Wednesday (2022–present). She has since appeared in the television series A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (2024–present), and in films such as Family Switch (2023) and A Minecraft Movie (2025), with the latter earning her a Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award. She was featured in the 2026 class of the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.

02/04/2000

Rodrigo Riquelme, Spanish footballer

Rodrigo Riquelme Reche, also known as Roro, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Betis and the Spain national team.

Josip Stanišić, Croatian footballer

Josip Stanišić is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for Bundesliga club Bayern Munich. Born in Germany, he plays for the Croatia national team. Stanišić has featured most often as a right-back but also as a centre-back, left-back and wing-back at senior level.

02/04/1997

Dillon Bassett, American race car driver

Dillon W. Bassett is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro for his team, Bassett Racing. He and his family team also previously competed full-time in what is now the ARCA Menards Series East. He is the brother of Ronnie Bassett Jr., who also drives for and co-owns Bassett Racing.

Abdelhak Nouri, Dutch footballer

Abdelhak "Appie" Nouri is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He operated primarily as an attacking midfielder, but could also be deployed as a winger.

Austin Riley, American baseball player

Michael Austin Riley is an American professional baseball third baseman for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Braves selected him in the first round, 41st overall, of the 2015 MLB draft.

02/04/1996

Zach Bryan, American singer-songwriter

Zachary Lane Bryan is an American country singer-songwriter from Oologah, Oklahoma. After two self-produced studio albums, DeAnn (2019) and Elisabeth (2020), he signed with Warner Records to release his third album and major label debut American Heartbreak (2022), which peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 and was led by the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single "Something in the Orange". His self-titled fourth album (2023) debuted atop the Billboard 200, while its lead single, "I Remember Everything", peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100, Hot Country Songs, and Hot Rock & Alternative Songs charts simultaneously, also earning him a Grammy Award for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. His fifth studio album, The Great American Bar Scene (2024), peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 and spawned the Billboard Hot 100 top-ten single "Pink Skies".

André Onana, Cameroonian footballer

André Onana Onana is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Süper Lig club Trabzonspor, on loan from Premier League club Manchester United, and the Cameroon national team.

02/04/1995

Zack Steffen, American soccer player

Zackary Thomas Steffen is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Colorado Rapids and the United States national team.

02/04/1994

Pascal Siakam, Cameroonian basketball player

Pascal Siakam is a Cameroonian professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A four-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA selection, he won an NBA championship with the Toronto Raptors in 2019. Nicknamed "Spicy P", Siakam played college basketball for the New Mexico State Aggies and was named the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 2016. He was selected by Toronto with the 27th overall pick in the first round of the 2016 NBA draft.

02/04/1993

Keshorn Walcott, Trinidadian javelin thrower

Keshorn "Keshie" Walcott, ORTT is a Trinidadian track and field athlete who competes in the javelin throw. He is the 2012 Olympic champion and the 2025 World champion. He is the first Caribbean male athlete, as well as the first of African descent, to win the gold medal in a throwing event in the history of the Olympics. He is also the holder of the North, Central American and Caribbean junior record.

Bruno Zuculini, Argentine footballer

Bruno Zuculini is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Racing Club.

02/04/1991

Quavo, American rapper

Quavious Keyate Marshall, better known by his stage name Quavo, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the frontman of the hip-hop duo Migos. Formed with Takeoff and their mutual friend Offset in 2008, the group released four commercially successful studio albums before disbanding in 2023 and reuniting in 2026.

02/04/1990

Yevgeniya Kanayeva, Russian gymnast

Evgeniya Olegovna Kanaeva OMF is a retired Russian individual rhythmic gymnast. She is the only individual rhythmic gymnast in history to win two Olympic all-around gold medals, winning at the 2008 Summer Olympics, where she finished with 3.75 points ahead of silver medalist Inna Zhukova, and at the 2012 Summer Olympics, where she also became the oldest gymnast to win the Olympic gold. On 4 July 2013, Kanaeva received the International Fair Play Award for "Sport and Life".

Miralem Pjanić, Bosnian footballer

Miralem Pjanić is a Bosnian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation, he is considered to be one of the greatest free-kick takers of all time.

Amr El Solia, Egyptian footballer

Amr Mohamed Eid El Solia is an Egyptian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Egyptian Premier League club Ceramica Cleopatra and the Egypt national team. He featured in the 2021 AFCON final match against Senegal.

02/04/1988

Ellen Adarna, Filipino actress, model and public figure

Ellen Meriam Go Adarna-Ramsay is a Filipino former actress, model, and former internet celebrity. Her family owns various hotels, condominiums and Queensland and Madonna, a chain of motels in Cebu, Manila and Davao. They also own a temple in honor of her late grandmother. A Gravure model, Adarna has appeared in various magazine covers in the Philippines, such as Candy, FHM, Esquire, UNO, Preview, Speed and Women's Health.

Renée Good, American writer, poet and shooting victim (died 2026)

Renée Nicole Macklin Good, a 37-year-old American woman, was fatally shot in Minneapolis, Minnesota, by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent Jonathan Ross, on January 7, 2026. Good was in her car, stopped sideways in the street, which led Ross to circle her vehicle on foot. Other agents approached, and one ordered her to get out of the car while reaching through her open window. Good briefly reversed, then began moving forward and to the right, into the direction of traffic. At this point, Ross was standing at the front-left of the vehicle and fired three shots, killing her, as her vehicle passed him, turning away from him. The killing sparked national protests and multiple investigations.

Jesse Plemons, American actor

Jesse Plemons is an American actor. Known for his work with auteurs and portrayal of eccentric characters, his accolades include a Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor and nominations for an Academy Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, and an Actor Award.

02/04/1987

Pablo Aguilar, Paraguayan footballer

Pablo César Aguilar Benítez is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as a centre-back who plays for Sportivo Luqueño.

Shane Lowry, Irish Professional Golfer, winner of the 2019 Open Championship and European Team Member for the 2021 and 2023 Ryder Cups

Shane Lowry is an Irish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour and the PGA Tour. His notable victories include the Irish Open in 2009 as an amateur and the 2019 Open Championship.

02/04/1986

Ibrahim Afellay, Dutch footballer

Ibrahim Afellay is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or winger. He currently works for Dutch broadcaster NOS as a football pundit.

Andris Biedriņš, Latvian basketball player

Andris Biedriņš is a Latvian former professional basketball player. He was drafted by the Golden State Warriors with the 11th overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft.

Drew Van Acker, American actor, model and producer

Drew Van Acker is an American actor, model and producer. He is known for playing Jason DiLaurentis, the older brother of Alison DiLaurentis, on Freeform's Pretty Little Liars (2010–2017) and Ian Archer in Cartoon Network's Tower Prep (2010). He has also starred as Remi Delatour on Lifetime's Devious Maids (2013–2015), and as Detective Tommy Campbell on the 2017 CBS police drama Training Day. Van Acker also starred in Addison Rae's music video for "Diet Pepsi".

02/04/1985

Thom Evans, Zimbabwean-Scottish rugby player

Thom Evans is a Scottish former international rugby union player and model. He last played on the wing for Glasgow Warriors in the Celtic League. Evans's rugby career ended aged 24 on his tenth appearance for Scotland when he suffered a serious neck injury.

Stéphane Lambiel, Swiss figure skater

Stéphane Lambiel is a Swiss former competitive figure skater who now works as a coach and choreographer. He is a two-time (2005–2006) World champion, the 2006 Olympic silver medalist, a two-time Grand Prix Final champion, and a nine-time Swiss national champion. Lambiel is known for his spins and is credited with popularizing some spin positions.

02/04/1984

Engin Atsür, Turkish basketball player

Engin Atsür is a Turkish professional basketball player for Orlandina Basket of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). Standing at 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m), he plays the point guard position. Atsür played college basketball at the North Carolina State University from 2003 to 2007.

Nóra Barta, Hungarian diver

Nóra Barta is a Hungarian diver. She won the bronze medal in 3m Springboard event at the 2006 European Aquatics Championships and the silver in 1 m springboard event at the 2008 European Championships in Aquatics.

Jérémy Morel, French footballer

Jérémy Morel is a former professional footballer who plays as a centre-back. Born in France, he played for the Madagascar national team.

Miguel Ángel Moyá, Spanish footballer

Miguel Ángel Moyá Rumbo is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

02/04/1983

Arthur Boka, Ivorian footballer

Etienne Arthur Boka is an Ivorian former professional footballer who played as a left back for the Ivory Coast national team. At club level, he last played for Atlético de Marbella in the seventh-tier Primera Andaluza.

Maksym Mazuryk, Ukrainian pole vaulter

Maksym Mazuryk is a Ukrainian pole vaulter. He was born in Donetsk. He is sporter of Fenerbahçe S.K. from Turkey.

02/04/1982

Marco Amelia, Italian footballer

Marco Amelia is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper, and last coached Serie D amateurs Sondrio.

David Ferrer, Spanish tennis player

David Ferrer Ern is a Spanish former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 3 in men's singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) in July 2013. Ferrer won 27 ATP Tour singles titles, including a Masters 1000 event at the 2012 Paris Masters. He was also the runner-up at the 2013 French Open, the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup, and six Masters events. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain, Ferrer has the thirteenth-highest career prize money earnings among male tennis players. With 734 career match wins, he holds the distinction of winning the most matches on the ATP Tour without having won a major; he is widely considered one of the best players not to have won a major.

02/04/1981

Michael Clarke, Australian cricketer

Michael John Clarke is an Australian former cricketer. He was captain of the Australian cricket team in both Test and One Day International (ODI) between 2011 and 2015, leading Australia to victory in the 2015 Cricket World Cup. He also served as captain of the Twenty20 International (T20I) team between 2007 and 2010. With his time representing Australia, Clarke won multiple ICC titles with the team: the 2007 Cricket World Cup, the 2015 Cricket World Cup which he was the winning captain, and the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy.

Kapil Sharma, Indian stand-up comedian, television presenter and actor

Kapil Sharma is an Indian stand-up comedian, television host, actor, dubbing artist, producer, and singer who primarily works in Hindi cinema. He is best known for hosting popular stand-up comedy and talk shows such as The Great Indian Kapil Show and The Kapil Sharma Show, and has received five Indian Television Academy Awards.

02/04/1980

Avi Benedi, Israeli singer and songwriter

Avi Benedi is an Israeli singer and songwriter. He has released three albums: Avi Benedi & Diamond Band in 2001, We Met Late in 2012. and Loco in 2017.

Adam Fleming, Scottish journalist

Robert Adam Fleming is a Scottish journalist and presenter for BBC News. He was formerly its Chief Political correspondent, Brussels correspondent, and has previously worked for Daily Politics and Newsround. He co-presented the podcast and television programme Brexitcast, before becoming lead presenter of its successor, Newscast.

Gavin Heffernan, Canadian director and screenwriter

Gavin Heffernan is a Canadian filmmaker, photographer, and producer. He co-wrote the psychological horror film The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014) and Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension (2015) with writing partner Adam Robitel. Also known for directing experimental visual works, primarily timelapse, featured in the Rolling Stones' 2015 Zip Code Tour as well as their 2016 Desert Trip shows. Heffernan also contributed visuals to Pink Floyd's Roger Waters' 2016 concerts, Paul Simon's 2018 Homeward Bound Farewell Tour, and John Mayer's 2022 Sob Rock tour.

Ricky Hendrick, American race car driver (died 2004)

Joseph Riddick "Ricky" Hendrick IV was an American stock car racing driver and partial owner at Hendrick Motorsports, a NASCAR team that his father Rick Hendrick founded. He was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, on April 2, 1980, and began racing in Go Karts at a young age, then the Legends Series at fifteen. He competed in both the Busch Series and Craftsman Truck Series before his death from an airplane accident on October 24, 2004. He was killed with nine other family members and friends during the accident.

Wairangi Koopu, New Zealand rugby league player

Dane Wairangi Manuera Koopu is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer who played for the New Zealand Warriors and the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League. Koopu primarily played in the second-row, and as a centre. He is fluent in Te Reo Maori and often appeared on Māori Television.

Carlos Salcido, Mexican international footballer

Carlos Arnoldo Salcido Flores is a Mexican former professional footballer. He started his career as a centre-back and played most of it as left-back, then converted to defensive midfielder and ended it as centre-back. He won the 2012 Olympic gold medal.

02/04/1977

Per Elofsson, Swedish skier

Per Eilert Elofsson is a Swedish former cross-country skier who competed from 1997 to 2004. He won a bronze medal in the 10 km + 10 km combined pursuit at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, being upgraded from fourth place in 2004, after Spain's Johann Mühlegg got stripped of his gold medal due to the use of darboepotine.

Michael Fassbender, German-Irish actor and producer

Michael Fassbender is a German-Irish actor, racing driver and producer. His accolades include a win for one Volpi Cup and nominations for two Academy Awards, four British Academy Film Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. In 2020, he was listed at number nine on The Irish Times list of Ireland's greatest film actors.

Hanno Pevkur, Estonian lawyer and politician, Estonian Minister of Justice

Hanno Pevkur is an Estonian politician who is currently the Minister of Defence. He is the former chairman of the Estonian Reform Party.

02/04/1976

Andreas Anastasopoulos, Greek shot putter

Andreas Anastasopoulos is a Greek track and field athlete in the shot put. From October 23, 2001 to October 22, 2003 he was suspended by the IAAF.

Rory Sabbatini, South African golfer

Rory Mario Trevor Sabbatini is a South African-Slovak professional golfer. Sabbatini won six times on the PGA Tour between 2000 and 2011 and was runner-up in the 2007 Masters. He spent 21 weeks in the world top-10 in late 2007 and early 2008, with a high of 8th. Sabbatini won the silver medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics, representing Slovakia.

02/04/1975

Nate Huffman, American basketball player (died 2015)

Nathaniel Thomas Huffman was an American professional basketball player, who played most of his career with Maccabi Tel Aviv. He was the 2001 Israeli Basketball Premier League MVP, as well as the 2001 FIBA SuproLeague Player of the Year.

Randy Livingston, American basketball player

Randy Livingston is an American former professional basketball player and current coach. He played parts of eleven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for nine different teams. The national high school player in the country in 1993, Livingston's college and professional careers were marked by a series of injuries that hampered his play.

Katrin Rutschow-Stomporowski, German rower

Katrin Rutschow-Stomporowski is a German rower and two-time Olympic gold medalist.

Pattie Mallette, Canadian author and film producer

Patricia Mallette is the mother of Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber and the mother-in-law of Hailey Bieber. She also managed her son's early career. Her autobiography, Nowhere but Up, was published in 2012 by Christian book publisher Revell, and was number 17 on the New York Times Best Seller list during its first week of release.

Pedro Pascal, Chilean and American actor

José Pedro Balmaceda Pascal is a Chilean and American actor. Known for his portrayals of parental figures, he has starred in television series and blockbuster films. His accolades include an Actor Award, in addition to nominations for a Golden Globe Award and four Primetime Emmy Awards. Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2023.

02/04/1974

Tayfun Korkut, Turkish football manager and former player

Tayfun Korkut is a football manager and former player. He was most recently the head coach of Hertha BSC. Born in Germany, he represented the Turkey national team internationally.

02/04/1973

Dmitry Lipartov, Russian footballer

Dmitry Viktorovich Lipartov is a former Russian professional footballer who played as a striker.

Roselyn Sánchez, Puerto Rican-American actress

Roselyn Milagros Sánchez Rodríguez is a Puerto Rican actress. On television, she is best known for her roles as Elena Delgado on the CBS police procedural Without a Trace (2005–2009), as Carmen Luna on the Lifetime comedy-drama Devious Maids (2013–2016), and as Elena Roarke on the new Fantasy Island (2021–2023). In film, Sánchez has appeared in Rush Hour 2 (2001), Boat Trip (2002), The Game Plan (2007), and Act of Valor (2012).

Aleksejs Semjonovs, Latvian footballer

Aleksejs Semjonovs is a retired Latvian international football midfielder, who also holds the Russian nationality. He obtained a total number of nine caps for the Latvia national football team, scoring two goals. His last club was Dinaburg FC. He also played in Estonia and Russia during his career.

02/04/1972

Eyal Berkovic, Israeli footballer

Eyal Berkovic is an Israeli former professional association footballer, football coach, team owner and television talk show presenter.

Remo D'Souza, Indian choreographer and dancer

Remo Gopi D'Souza is an Indian choreographer, film director, and producer. Over the course of his career spanning more than 25 years, D'Souza has choreographed more than 100 films. He is considered the most successful and renowned choreographer in the Hindi film industry and has served as a role model for many Indian choreographers. Additionally, he has been a judge on the dance reality show Dance Plus for seven consecutive seasons.

Calvin Davis, American sprinter and hurdler (died 2023)

Calvin Davis was an American athlete who competed mainly in the 400 meters, though his fame came from his success in the 400 meter hurdles.

Zane Lamprey, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter

Zane Lamprey is a comedian, actor, and author. After two decades pursuing a career in entertainment in Los Angeles, Lamprey landed his breakout role hosting the cult sensation Three Sheets for the now defunct MOJO HD channel.

02/04/1971

Edmundo Alves de Souza Neto, Brazilian footballer

Edmundo Alves de Souza Neto, better known simply as Edmundo, is a Brazilian football pundit and retired footballer who played as a forward. Nicknamed O Animal, he was a talented yet controversial footballer and drew attention both for his skill, as well as for his volatile behaviour, both on and off the pitch.

Jason Lewry, English cricketer

Jason Lewry is an English former cricketer. He was a left-handed batsman and a left-arm fast-medium bowler. Born in Worthing, he played for Sussex from the beginning of his career in 1994 until his retirement in 2009, a career spanning 16 years, in spite of numerous injuries.

Todd Woodbridge, Australian tennis player and sportscaster

Todd Andrew Woodbridge, OAM is an Australian broadcaster and former professional tennis player. During his playing career, he formed multiple Grand-Slam winning doubles partnerships with Mark Woodforde and later Jonas Björkman.

02/04/1969

Ajay Devgn, Indian actor, director, and producer

Vishal Virender Devgan, known professionally as Ajay Devgn, is an Indian actor, film director and producer who mainly works in Hindi films. He has appeared in over 100 films and has won numerous accolades, including four National Film Awards and four Filmfare Awards. In 2016, he was honoured by the Government of India with the Padma Shri, the country's fourth-highest civilian honour.

02/04/1967

Greg Camp, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

Gregory Dean Camp is an American guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist. He is best known as a founding member of the rock band Smash Mouth and served as a guitarist and songwriter across several stints. Camp is credited as one of the main songwriters for the band, and as such received a Grammy nomination for the song "All Star". Since leaving the band for a solo career in 2008, he has rejoined Smash Mouth periodically. Camp is currently a member of The Defiant.

Phil Demmel, American guitarist and songwriter

Phil Demmel is an American musician who played lead guitar in the heavy metal band Machine Head between 2002 and 2018, making him their longest running member in that position. He has also performed with other artists such as Vio-lence, Torque, Metal Allegiance, BPMD, Kerry King and Category 7, and briefly with Slayer, Nonpoint, Overkill, Lamb of God and Testament as a fill-in guitarist.

02/04/1966

Bill Romanowski, American football player and actor

William Thomas Romanowski is an American former football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. Nicknamed "Romo" and "RomoCop", he spent the majority of his career with the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos.

Teddy Sheringham, English international footballer and coach

Edward Paul Sheringham is an English football manager and former player. He played as a forward, mostly as a second striker, in a 24-year professional career. Sheringham was part of the Manchester United team that won the treble of the Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League in 1999. He scored the equalising goal and provided the assist for the club's winning goal in the 1999 UEFA Champions League final against Bayern Munich that sealed it, with both goals coming in injury time of the second half.

02/04/1965

Rodney King, American victim of police brutality (died 2012)

Rodney Glen King was an African American victim of police brutality. On March 3, 1991, he was severely beaten by officers of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) during his arrest after a high speed pursuit for driving while intoxicated on Interstate 210. An uninvolved resident, George Holliday, saw and filmed the incident from his nearby balcony and sent the footage, which showed King on the ground being beaten, to a local news station, KTLA. The station broadcast the film, which was rebroadcast by other stations, with this exposure precipitating riots.

02/04/1964

Pete Incaviglia, American baseball player and coach

Peter Joseph Incaviglia is an American professional baseball coach and former left fielder who is currently the manager for the Cleburne Railroaders of the American Association of Professional Baseball. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 12 seasons (1986–1998), for six different big league teams, and also spent one year in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Incaviglia was drafted in the first round by the Montreal Expos in the 1985 Major League Baseball draft out of Oklahoma State University, then was traded later that same year to the Texas Rangers. He debuted in the major leagues on April 8, 1986, without having spent any time in the minor leagues. His last MLB game was on September 27, 1998.

Jonathon Sharkey, American wrestler

Jonathon Tepes Sharkey is an American former professional wrestler and perennial candidate.

02/04/1963

Karl Beattie, English director and producer

Karl Beattie is an English television director, producer and cameraman. Beattie and wife Yvette Fielding co-own and run Antix Productions.

Mike Gascoyne, English engineer

Michael Robert Gascoyne is a British former Formula One designer and engineer.

02/04/1962

Pierre Carles, French director and producer

Pierre Carles is a French documentary filmmaker. He has been compared to Michael Moore for his use of the documentary form to denounce mainstream media, which he accuses of having conflicts of interest.

Billy Dean, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

William Harold Dean Jr. is an American country music singer and songwriter.

Clark Gregg, American actor

Robert Clark Gregg Jr. is an American actor, director, and screenwriter. He portrayed Phil Coulson in films and television series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe from 2008 to 2024, and voiced Coulson in an animated television series and video games.

02/04/1961

Buddy Jewell, American singer-songwriter

Buddy Jewell Jr. is an American country music singer who was the first winner on the USA Network talent show Nashville Star. Signed to Columbia Records in 2003, Jewell made his debut on the American country music scene with the release of his self-titled album, which produced the singles "Help Pour Out the Rain" and "Sweet Southern Comfort". Another album, Times Like These, followed in 2005.

Christopher Meloni, American actor

Christopher Peter Meloni is an American actor. He is known for portraying NYPD Detective Elliot Stabler on the NBC legal drama series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and its spin-off Organized Crime (2021–2025), for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. He also played Chris Keller on the HBO prison drama Oz (1998–2003), and starred in and executive produced the Syfy series Happy! (2017–2019).

Keren Woodward, English singer-songwriter

Keren Jane Woodward is an English singer/songwriter and, with Sara Dallin and Siobhan Fahey, a founding member of the girl group Bananarama. In 1986, the trio reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 with their version of "Venus". Woodward and Dallin are the only constant members of Bananarama, and both have been a part of the group for over 40 years since 1979.

02/04/1960

Linford Christie, Jamaican-English sprinter

Linford Christie is a Jamaican-born British former sprinter and athletics coach. He is the only British man to have won gold medals in the 100 metres at all four major competitions open to British athletes: the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games. He was the first European athlete to break the 10-second barrier in the 100 m and held the British record in the event for close to 30 years. He is a former world indoor record holder over 200 metres, and a former European record holder in the 60 metres, 100 m and 4 × 100 metres relay.

Brad Jones, Australian race car driver

Bradley Jones is an Australian former racing driver. Jones now acts as team co-principal with his brother Kim in the V8 Supercar racing team, Brad Jones Racing.

Pascale Nadeau, Canadian journalist

Pascale Nadeau is a Canadian news presenter for Télévision de Radio-Canada from Quebec. Previously a daytime presenter for the all-news network Réseau de l'information and a local presenter for CBFT in Montreal, she has been the weekend presenter of the network's flagship newscast Le Téléjournal from September 2008 to 2021.

02/04/1959

Gelindo Bordin, Italian runner

Gelindo Bordin is an Italian former long distance runner, winner of the marathon race at the 1988 Summer Olympics. He is the first Italian to have won an Olympic gold in the marathon and the only male to win both the Boston Marathon and the Olympic gold medal in this event.

David Frankel, American director, producer, and screenwriter

David Frankel is an American filmmaker. He directed the feature films The Devil Wears Prada (2006), and its sequel, The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026), Marley & Me (2008), Hope Springs (2012), and Jerry & Marge Go Large (2022). On television, his most notable directing works include the pilot episode of the NBC TV series Manifest (2018), the seventh and ninth episodes of the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers (2001), and the first and fourth episodes of the Netflix miniseries Inventing Anna (2022).

Juha Kankkunen, Finnish race car driver

Juha Matti Pellervo Kankkunen is a Finnish former rally driver. His factory team career in the World Rally Championship lasted from 1983 to 2002. He won 23 world rallies and four drivers' world championship titles, which were both once records in the series. Both Sébastien Loeb and Sébastien Ogier have since collected more world titles. Kankkunen's feat of becoming a world champion with three different manufacturers was unique until Ogier matched this achievement in 2020.

Yves Lavandier, French director and producer

Yves Lavandier is a French film writer and director.

Badou Ezzaki, Moroccan footballer and manager

Ezzaki "Zaki" Badou is a Moroccan football coach and former goalkeeper who currently manages the Niger national team.

02/04/1958

Stefano Bettarello, Italian rugby player

Stefano Bettarello is an Italian former rugby union player. He played as a fly-half for several clubs, mainly Rovigo and Benetton Treviso, winning an Italian Championship with each.

Larry Drew, American basketball player and coach

Larry Donnell Drew is an American professional basketball coach and former player who serves as assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

02/04/1957

Caroline Dean, English biologist and academic

Dame Caroline Dean is a British plant scientist working at the John Innes Centre. She is focused on understanding the molecular controls used by plants to seasonally judge when to flower. She is specifically interested in vernalisation — the acceleration of flowering in plants by exposure to periods of prolonged cold. She has also served on the Life Sciences jury for the Infosys Prize from 2018.

Hank Steinbrenner, American businessman (died 2020)

Henry George Steinbrenner III was an American businessman who was a part owner and co-chairman of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was the older brother of the team's principal owner and managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner.

02/04/1955

Michael Stone, Northern Irish loyalist paramilitary

Michael Anthony Stone is a British former militant who was a member of the Ulster Defence Association, a loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. He was convicted of three counts of murder committed at an IRA funeral in 1988. In 2000, he was released from prison on licence under the Good Friday Agreement. In November 2006, Stone was charged with the attempted murder of Martin McGuinness and Gerry Adams, having been arrested attempting to enter the parliament buildings at Stormont while armed. He was convicted and sentenced in 2008 to a further 16 years' imprisonment, before being released on parole in 2021.

02/04/1954

Gregory Abbott, American singer-songwriter and producer

Gregory Joel Abbott is an American singer, musician, composer and producer. Although he continues to record to date, he is best known for his singles in the mid-1980s including his platinum single, "Shake You Down", from his 1986 debut album.

Donald Petrie, American actor and director

Donald Mark Petrie is an American film director and actor.

02/04/1953

Jim Allister, Northern Irish lawyer and politician

James Hugh Allister is a Northern Irish unionist politician and barrister who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons for North Antrim since the 2024 general election. He founded the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) in 2007 and has led the party since its formation. Prior to his election to Westminster, Allister was a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for North Antrim, having been first elected in the 2011 Assembly election.

Rosemary Bryant Mariner, 20th and 21st-century U.S. Navy aviator (died 2019)

Captain Rosemary Bryant Mariner was an American pilot and one of the first six women to earn their wings as a United States Naval Aviator in 1974. She was the first female military pilot to fly a tactical jet and the first to achieve command of an operational aviation squadron.

Malika Oufkir, Moroccan Berber writer

Malika Oufkir is a Moroccan writer and former victim of enforced disappearance. She is the daughter of General Mohamed Oufkir and a cousin of fellow Moroccan writer and actress Leila Shenna.

Debralee Scott, American actress (died 2005)

Debralee Scott was an American actress best known for her roles on the sitcoms Welcome Back, Kotter; Angie; Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman; and Forever Fernwood.

James Vance, American author and playwright (died 2017)

James Vance was an American comic book writer, author and playwright, best known for his work from Kitchen Sink Press and in particular the lauded Kings in Disguise.

02/04/1952

Lennart Fagerlund, Swedish cyclist

Lennart Fagerlund is a Swedish former cyclist. He competed in the individual road race and team time trial events at the 1972 Summer Olympics. His sporting career began with Mariestadcyclisten.

02/04/1951

Ayako Okamoto, Japanese golfer

Ayako Okamoto is a Japanese professional golfer. She won 62 tournaments internationally, including 17 on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour in the 1980s and 1990s. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.

02/04/1950

Lynn Westmoreland, American politician

Leon Acton "Lynn" Westmoreland Jr. is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for Georgia's 3rd congressional district from 2007 to 2017 and the 8th district from 2005 to 2007. He is a member of the Republican Party.

02/04/1949

Paul Gambaccini, American-English radio and television host

Paul Matthew Gambaccini is an American–British radio and television presenter and author. He is a dual citizen of the United States and United Kingdom, having become a British citizen in 2005.

Bernd Müller, German footballer

Bernd Müller is a former East German footballer.

Pamela Reed, American actress

Pamela Reed is an American actress. She is known for playing Arnold Schwarzenegger's police partner Phoebe O'Hara in the 1990 film Kindergarten Cop and portraying the matriarch Gail Green in Jericho. She appeared as Marlene Griggs-Knope on the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation, as well as the exasperated wife Alison Langley in Bean.

David Robinson, American drummer

David Robinson is an American retired rock drummer. He has performed with many rock bands, including the Rising Tide, the Modern Lovers, the Pop!, DMZ and the Cars. In 2018, Robinson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Cars. To date, Robinson is also the only member of the Cars to not release a solo album.

02/04/1948

Roald Als, Danish author and illustrator

Roald Als is a Danish cartoonist best known for his editorial cartoons in Danish newspapers Weekendavisen and Politiken.

Dimitris Mitropanos, Greek singer (died 2012)

Dimitris Mitropanos was a Greek singer. He was renowned for his mastery of laïkó, a Greek music style.

Daniel Okrent, American journalist and author

Daniel Okrent is an American writer and editor. He is best known for having served as the first public editor of The New York Times newspaper, inventing Rotisserie League Baseball, and for writing several history books.. In November 2011, Last Call won the Albert J. Beveridge prize, awarded by the American Historical Association to the year's best book of American history. In 2019, he published The Guarded Gate: Bigotry, Eugenics, and the Law That Kept Two Generations of Jews, Italians, and Other European Immigrants Out of America. His most recent book is Stephen Sondheim: Art Isn't Easy (2026).

Joan D. Vinge, American author

Joan D. Vinge is an American science fiction author. She is known for her Hugo Award–winning novel The Snow Queen (1980) and its sequels, her series about a telepath named Cat, and her Heaven's Chronicles books. She also is the author of The Random House Book of Greek Myths (1999).

02/04/1947

Paquita la del Barrio, Mexican singer, songwriter and actress (died 2025)

Francisca Viveros Barradas, known professionally as Paquita la del Barrio, was a Mexican singer. She was a Grammy-nominated performer of rancheras, boleros and other traditional and contemporary Mexican musical genres.

Tua Forsström, Finnish writer

Tua Birgitta Forsström is a Finland-Swedish writer who writes in Swedish. She was awarded the Nordic Council Literature Prize in 1998 for the poetry collection Efter att ha tillbringat en natt bland hästar. Forsström's work is known for its engagement with the Finnish landscape, travel and conflicts within relationships. She often uses quotations in her work, sometimes placing them directly into her poems and at other times using them as introductions or interludes in her sequences. She has used quotations from Egon Friedell, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Hermann Hesse and Friedrich Nietzsche. In the collection After Spending a Night Among Horses (1997) Forsström uses quotations from the Andrei Tarkovsky film Stalker, they are placed as interludes in a sequence of pieces and sit alone on the page, without direct reference to their source on the page, leaving this to a Notes & Quotations section at the end of the book.

Emmylou Harris, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

Emmylou Harris is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana genre in the 1990s. Her music united both country and rock audiences in live performance settings. Her characteristic voice, musical style and songwriting have been acclaimed by critics and fellow recording artists.

Camille Paglia, American author and critic

Camille Anna Paglia is an American academic, social critic and feminist. Paglia was a professor at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1984 until the university's closure in 2024. She is critical of many aspects of modern culture and is the author of Sexual Personae: Art and Decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson (1990) and other books. She is also a critic of contemporary American feminism and of post-structuralism, as well as a commentator on multiple aspects of American culture such as its visual art, music, and film history.

02/04/1946

Richard Collinge, New Zealand cricketer

Richard Owen Collinge is a former New Zealand cricketer, who played 35 Tests and 15 ODIs. He was a New Zealand Cricket Almanack Player of the Year in 1971.

02/04/1945

Jürgen Drews, German singer-songwriter

Jürgen Ludwig Drews is a German schlager singer.

Guy Fréquelin, French race car driver

Guy Fréquelin is a French former rally and sports car driver.

Linda Hunt, American actress

Linda Hunt is an American actress. She made her film debut playing Mrs. Oxheart in Popeye (1980). Her portrayal of the male character Billy Kwan in The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) won her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, making her the first person to win an Oscar for portraying a character of the opposite sex. Hunt has also appeared in films such as Dune (1984), Silverado (1985), Eleni (1985), Kindergarten Cop (1990), Pocahontas (1995), Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World (1998), and Stranger Than Fiction (2006).

Reggie Smith, American baseball player and coach

Carl Reginald Smith is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder and afterwards served as a coach and front office executive. He also played in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for two seasons at the end of his playing career. During a seventeen-year MLB career (1966–1982), Smith appeared in 1,987 games, hit 314 home runs with 1,092 RBI and batted .287. He was a switch-hitter who threw right-handed. In his prime, he had one of the strongest throwing arms of any outfielder in the MLB. Smith played at least seventy games in thirteen different seasons, and in every one of those thirteen seasons, his team had a winning record.

Don Sutton, American baseball player and sportscaster (died 2021)

Donald Howard Sutton was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Sutton won a total of 324 games, pitched 58 shutouts including five one-hitters and ten two-hitters, and led the National League in walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP) four times. He is seventh on baseball's all-time strikeout list with 3,574.

Anne Waldman, American poet

Anne Waldman is an American poet. Since the 1960s, Waldman has been an active member of the Outrider experimental poetry community as a writer, performer, collaborator, professor, editor, scholar, and cultural/political activist. She has also been connected to the Beat Generation poets.

02/04/1944

Bill Malinchak, American football player

William John Malinchak is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver and special teams ace in the National Football League (NFL) during the 1960s and 1970s. He played college football for the Indiana Hoosiers

02/04/1943

Caterina Bueno, Italian singer (died 2007)

Caterina Bueno was an Italian singer and folk music historian.

Larry Coryell, American jazz guitarist (died 2017)

Larry Coryell was an American jazz guitarist, widely considered the "godfather of fusion". Alongside Gábor Szabó, he was a pioneer in melding jazz, country and rock music. Coryell was also a music teacher and a writer, penning a monthly column for Guitar Player magazine from 1977 to 1989. He collaborated with a number of other high-profile musicians, including Miles Davis, John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, Charles Mingus, Wayne Shorter, Miroslav Vitouš, Billy Cobham, Lenny White, Emily Remler, Al Di Meola, Paco de Lucía, Steve Morse and others.

Antonio Sabàto, Sr., Italian actor (died 2021)

Antonio Sabàto Sr. was an Italian actor, best known for his starring roles in Spaghetti Western and poliziotteschi films. He was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor for his performance in Grand Prix (1966).

02/04/1942

Leon Russell, American singer-songwriter and pianist (died 2016)

Leon Russell was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock and roll, country, gospel, bluegrass, rhythm and blues, southern rock, blues rock, folk, surf and the Tulsa sound. His recordings earned six gold records and he received two Grammy Awards from seven nominations. In 1973 Billboard named Russell the "Top Concert Attraction in the World". In 2011, he was inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Roshan Seth, Indian-English actor

Roshan Seth is a British-Indian actor, writer and theatre director who has worked in the United Kingdom, United States and India. He began his acting career in the early 1960s in the UK, but left acting the following decade and moved to India to work as a journalist. In the 1980s, he rose to prominence for his comeback performance as Jawaharlal Nehru in Richard Attenborough's Academy Award-winning film Gandhi, which brought him a BAFTA Award nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and reignited his interest in acting.

02/04/1941

Dr. Demento, American radio host

Barret Eugene Hansen, also known professionally as Dr. Demento, is a retired American radio broadcaster and record collector specializing in novelty songs, comedy, and unusual recordings from the dawn of the phonograph to the present.

Sonny Throckmorton, American country singer-songwriter

James Fron "Sonny" Throckmorton is an American country music songwriter. He has had more than 1,000 of his songs recorded by various country singers. He has also had minor success as a recording artist, having released two major-label albums: The Last Cheater's Waltz in 1978 on Mercury Records and Southern Train in 1986 on Warner Bros. Records. Throckmorton is a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and has been awarded Songwriter of the Year by both Broadcast Music Incorporated and the Nashville Songwriters Association International.

02/04/1940

Donald Jackson, Canadian figure skater and coach

Donald George Jackson is a Canadian retired figure skater. He is the 1962 World Champion, four-time Canadian national champion, and 1960 Olympic bronze medallist. At the 1962 World Figure Skating Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia, he landed the first triple Lutz jump in international competition and won the world title.

Mike Hailwood, English motorcycle racer (died 1981)

Stanley Michael Bailey Hailwood was a British racing driver and motorcycle road racer, who competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1958 to 1967, and Formula One between 1963 and 1974. Nicknamed "the Bike", Hailwood was a nine-time Grand Prix motorcycle World Champion, with four titles in the premier 500cc class with MV Agusta, and won 76 motorcycle Grands Prix across 10 seasons.

Penelope Keith, English actress

Dame Penelope Anne Constance Keith is an English actress and presenter, active in film, radio, stage and television and primarily known for her roles in the British sitcoms The Good Life and To the Manor Born. She succeeded Lord Olivier as president of the Actors' Benevolent Fund after his death in 1989, and was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2014 New Year Honours for services to the arts and to charity.

02/04/1939

Marvin Gaye, American singer-songwriter (died 1984)

Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. was an American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Commonly referred to as the "Prince of Motown" and "Prince of Soul", he helped to shape the sound of Motown and soul music in the 1960s and 1970s. A cultural icon, Gaye is often considered one of the greatest singers and songwriters of all time.

Anthony Lake, American academic and diplomat, 18th United States National Security Advisor

William Anthony Kirsopp Lake is an American diplomat and political advisor who served as the 17th United States National Security Advisor from 1993 to 1997 and as the sixth executive director of UNICEF from 2010 to 2017.

Lise Thibault, Canadian journalist and politician, 27th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec

Lise Thibault DStJ is a Canadian politician who served as the 27th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec from 1997 to 2007. She later spent six months in jail for misuse of public funds, which she was ordered to repay the government. As of 2026, she is the only Canadian vice-regal representative to have been incarcerated.

02/04/1938

John Larsson, Swedish 17th General of The Salvation Army (died 2022)

John Alfred Larsson was a Swedish Salvationist, writer and composer of Christian music and hymns, who was the 17th General of The Salvation Army.

Booker Little, American trumpet player and composer (died 1961)

Booker Little Jr. was an American jazz trumpeter and composer. He appeared on many recordings in his short career, both as a sideman and as a leader. Little performed with Max Roach, John Coltrane, and Eric Dolphy and was strongly influenced by Sonny Rollins and Clifford Brown. He died aged 23.

Al Weis, American baseball player

Albert John Weis is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an infielder from 1962 to 1971 for the Chicago White Sox and the New York Mets. A light-hitting batter with only seven career home runs, he is notable for hitting a dramatic home run in Game 5 of the 1969 World Series. He was a switch hitter until the end of the 1968 season, after which he batted exclusively right-handed.

02/04/1937

Dick Radatz, American baseball player (died 2005)

Richard Raymond Radatz was an American relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. Nicknamed "The Monster", the 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), 230 lb (100 kg) right-hander had a scorching but short-lived period of dominance for the Boston Red Sox in the early 1960s. Radatz is reported to have gotten his nickname during a game against the New York Yankees in Boston in 1963 in which he came in to pitch with the bases loaded and no one out. He consecutively struck out Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, and Elston Howard, after which Mantle grumbled about Radatz being "that monster". Over his career, Radatz struck out Hall of Famer Mantle 44 times in 63 at-bats.

02/04/1936

Shaul Ladany, Serbian-Israeli race walker and engineer

Shaul Paul Ladany is an Israeli Holocaust survivor, racewalker and two-time Olympian. He holds the world record in the 50-mile walk (7:23:50), and the Israeli national record in the 50-kilometer walk (4:17:07). He is a former world champion in the 100-kilometer walk.

02/04/1934

Paul Cohen, American mathematician and theorist (died 2007)

Paul Joseph Cohen was an American mathematician, best known for his proofs that the continuum hypothesis and the axiom of choice are independent from Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory, for which he was awarded a Fields Medal.

Brian Glover, English wrestler and actor (died 1997)

Brian Glover was an English actor and writer. He worked as a teacher and professional wrestler before commencing an acting career which included films, many roles on British television and work on the stage. His film appearances include Kes (1969), An American Werewolf in London (1981) and Alien 3 (1992).

Carl Kasell, American journalist and game show host (died 2018)

Carl Ray Kasell was an American radio personality. He was a newscaster for National Public Radio, and later was the official judge and scorekeeper of the weekly news quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! until his retirement in 2014.

02/04/1933

György Konrád, Hungarian sociologist and author (died 2019)

György (George) Konrád was a Hungarian novelist, pundit, essayist and sociologist known as an advocate of individual freedom.

02/04/1932

Edward Egan, American cardinal (died 2015)

Edward Michael Egan was an American Catholic prelate who served as bishop of Bridgeport in Connecticut from 1988 to 2000 and as archbishop of New York from 2000 to 2009. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 2001.

02/04/1931

Keith Hitchins, American historian (died 2020)

Keith Arnold Hitchins was an American historian and a professor of Eastern European history at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, specializing in Romania and its history.

Vladimir Kuznetsov, Russian javelin thrower (died 1986)

Vladimir Vasilyevich Kuznetsov was a Soviet Russian javelin thrower.

02/04/1929

Ed Dorn, American poet and educator (died 1999)

Edward Merton Dorn was an American poet and teacher often associated with the Black Mountain poets. His most famous work is Gunslinger (1968).

02/04/1928

Serge Gainsbourg, French singer-songwriter, actor, and director (died 1991)

Serge Gainsbourg was a French singer-songwriter, actor, composer, and director. Regarded as one of the most important figures in French pop, he was renowned for often provocative releases which caused uproar in France, dividing public opinion. His artistic output ranged from his early work in jazz, chanson, and yé-yé to later efforts in rock, zouk, funk, reggae, and electronica. Gainsbourg's varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorise, although his legacy has been firmly established and he is often regarded as one of the world's most influential popular musicians.

02/04/1927

Carmen Basilio, American boxer and soldier (died 2012)

Carmen Basilio was an American professional boxer who was a two-time Undisputed Welterweight Champion and Undisputed Middleweight champion, beating Sugar Ray Robinson for the latter title. Basilio combined technical ability with an aggressive approach; although capable of boxing strategically, he was generally inclined to engage opponents in close-range exchanges. An iron-chinned pressure fighter, Basilio was a combination puncher who had great stamina and eventually wore many of his opponents down with vicious attacks to the head and body.

Howard Callaway, American soldier and politician, 11th United States Secretary of the Army (died 2014)

Howard Hollis "Bo" Callaway was an American businessman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the United States House of Representatives from 1965 to 1967 and as the United States secretary of the Army from 1973 to 1975.

Rita Gam, American actress (died 2016)

Rita Gam was an American film and television actress and documentary filmmaker. She won the Silver Bear for Best Actress.

02/04/1926

Jack Brabham, Australian race car driver (died 2014)

Sir John Arthur Brabham was an Australian racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from 1955 to 1970. Brabham won three Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in 1959, 1960 and 1966, and won 14 Grands Prix across 16 seasons. He co-founded Brabham in 1960, leading the team to two World Constructors' Championship titles, and remains the only driver to have won the World Drivers' Championship in an eponymous car.

Rudra Rajasingham, Sri Lankan police officer and diplomat (died 2006)

Rudra Srichandra Rajasingham was a Sri Lankan police officer and diplomat. He was the Inspector General of Police and Sri Lankan Ambassador to Indonesia.

02/04/1925

George MacDonald Fraser, Scottish author and screenwriter (died 2008)

George MacDonald Fraser was a British author and screenwriter. He is best known for a series of works that featured the character Flashman. Over the course of his career he wrote eleven novels and one short-story collection in the Flashman series of novels, as well as non-fiction, short stories, novels and screenplays—including those for the James Bond film Octopussy, The Three Musketeers and an adaptation of his own novel Royal Flash.

Hans Rosenthal, German radio and television host (died 1987)

Hans Rosenthal was a German radio editor, director, and one of the most popular German radio and television hosts of the 1970s and 1980s.

02/04/1924

Bobby Ávila, Mexican baseball player (died 2004)

Roberto Francisco Ávila González, known as "Beto" in Mexico and as "Bobby" in the United States, was a Mexican professional baseball second baseman.

02/04/1923

Gloria Henry, actress (died 2021)

Gloria Eileen McEniry, known professionally as Gloria Henry, was an American actress, best known for her role as Alice Mitchell, Dennis' mother, from 1959 to 1963 on the CBS family sitcom Dennis the Menace.

Johnny Paton, Scottish footballer, coach, and manager (died 2015)

John Aloysius Paton was a Scottish professional football player, manager, coach, scout and later a professional snooker referee. He began his career in Scotland with Celtic and played in the Football League for Chelsea, Brentford and Watford. Paton later managed Watford and Arsenal 'A'.

G. Spencer-Brown, English mathematician, psychologist, and author (died 2016)

George Spencer-Brown was an English polymath best known as the author of the 1969 book Laws of Form, a study of mathematics and philosophy. He described himself as a "mathematician, consulting engineer, psychologist, educational consultant and practitioner, consulting psychotherapist, author, and poet".

02/04/1922

John C. Whitehead, American banker and politician, 9th United States Deputy Secretary of State (died 2015)

John Cunningham Whitehead was an American banker and civil servant, a board member of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation, and, until his resignation in May 2006, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation.

02/04/1920

Gerald Bouey, Canadian lieutenant and civil servant (died 2004)

Gerald Keith Bouey was a Canadian economist who served as the fourth governor of the Bank of Canada from 1973 to 1987, succeeding Louis Rasminsky. He was succeeded by John Crow.

Jack Stokes, English animator and director (died 2013)

John Albert Stokes was a British animation director best known for his work on the 1968 Beatles film Yellow Submarine.

Jack Webb, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1982)

John Randolph Webb was an American actor, television producer, director, and screenwriter, most famous for his role as Joe Friday in the Dragnet franchise, which he created. He was also the founder of his own production company, Mark VII Limited.

02/04/1919

Delfo Cabrera, Argentinian runner and soldier (died 1981)

Delfo Cabrera Gómez was an Argentine athlete, winner of the marathon race at the 1948 Summer Olympics in one of the most dramatic finishes in athletics history.

02/04/1914

Alec Guinness, English actor (died 2000)

Sir Alec Guinness was an English actor. In the BFI listing of the 100 most important British films of the 20th century, he was the single most noted actor, represented across nine films—six in starring roles and three in supporting roles—including five directed by David Lean and four from Ealing Studios. He won an Academy Award, a BAFTA, a Golden Globe, a Tony Award and a Volpi Cup. In 1959, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services to the arts. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960, the Academy Honorary Award for lifetime achievement in 1980 and the BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award in 1989.

02/04/1910

Paul Triquet, Canadian general, Victoria Cross recipient (died 1980)

Brigadier-General Paul Triquet was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest and most prestigious award for valour in the presence of the enemy that can be awarded to British and other Commonwealth forces. Triquet held the rank of captain at the time of his VC award and went on to achieve the rank of brigadier-general.

Chico Xavier, Brazilian spiritual medium (died 2002)

Chico Xavier or Francisco Cândido Xavier, born Francisco de Paula Cândido, was a popular Brazilian philanthropist and spiritist medium. During a period of 60 years, he wrote over 490 books and several thousand letters claiming to use a process known as "psychography". Books based on old letters and manuscripts were published posthumously, bringing the total number of books to 496.

02/04/1908

Buddy Ebsen, American actor and dancer (died 2003)

Buddy Ebsen, was an American actor and dancer, widely known for his role as Jed Clampett in the CBS television sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies (1962–1971) as well his title role in the television detective drama Barnaby Jones (1973–1980). Also known as Frank "Buddy" Ebsen.

02/04/1907

Harald Andersson, American-Swedish discus thrower (died 1985)

Harald "Slaktarn" Andersson was a Swedish discus thrower. In 1934 he won a European title and held the world record for eight months. The same year he was awarded the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal.

Luke Appling, American baseball player and manager (died 1991)

Lucius Benjamin Appling, nicknamed "Old Aches and Pains", was an American professional baseball shortstop who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox (1930–1950). He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1964.

02/04/1906

Alphonse-Marie Parent, Canadian priest and educator (died 1970)

Alphonse-Marie Parent was a Canadian priest, educator and academic administrator. He is best known for having given his name to the Parent Report on the reform of Quebec's education system.

02/04/1903

Lionel Chevrier, Canadian lawyer and politician, 27th Canadian Minister of Justice (died 1987)

Lionel Chevrier was a Canadian politician who was a Member of Parliament and cabinet minister.

02/04/1902

Jan Tschichold, German-Swiss graphic designer and typographer (died 1974)

Jan Tschichold (German pronunciation: [jan ˈtʃɪçɔlt]; born Johannes Tzschichhold;, also known as Iwan Tschichold or Ivan Tschichold, was a German calligrapher, typographer and book designer. He played a significant role in the development of graphic design in the 20th century – first, by developing and promoting principles of typographic modernism, and subsequently idealizing conservative typographic structures. His direction of the visual identity of Penguin Books in the decade following World War II served as a model for the burgeoning design practice of planning corporate identity programs. He also designed the typeface Sabon.

Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe (died 1994)

Menachem Mendel Schneerson, known to adherents of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement as the Lubavitcher Rebbe or simply the Rebbe, was an Orthodox rabbi and the Rebbe of the Lubavitch Hasidic dynasty. He is considered one of the most influential Jewish leaders of the 20th century.

02/04/1900

Roberto Arlt, Argentinian journalist, author, and playwright (died 1942)

Roberto Arlt was an Argentine novelist, storyteller, playwright, and journalist.

Anis Fuleihan, Cypriot-American pianist, composer, and conductor (died 1970)

Anis Fuleihan was a Cypriot-born American composer, conductor and pianist.

Alfred Strange, English footballer (died 1978)

Alfred Henry Strange was an English footballer who played most of his career as a half back with Sheffield Wednesday. He won 20 caps for England, including three as captain.

02/04/1898

Harindranath Chattopadhyay, Indian poet, actor and politician (died 1990)

Harindranath Chattopadhyay was an Indian English poet, dramatist, actor, musician, and a member of the 1st Lok Sabha from Vijayawada constituency. He was the younger brother of Sarojini Naidu, the second woman President of the Indian National Congress and first Indian woman to hold the position, and Virendranath Chattopadhyay, an international communist revolutionary. The Government of India awarded him the civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan in 1973.

02/04/1896

Johnny Golden, American golfer (died 1936)

Johnny Golden was an American professional golfer.

02/04/1891

Jack Buchanan, Scottish entertainer (died 1957)

Walter John Buchanan was a British theatre and film actor, singer, dancer, producer and director.

Max Ernst, German painter, sculptor, and poet (died 1976)

Max Ernst was a German-born painter, sculptor, printmaker, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and surrealism in Europe. He had no formal artistic training, but his experimental attitude toward the making of art resulted in his invention of frottage—a technique that uses pencil rubbings of textured objects and relief surfaces to create images—and grattage, an analogous technique in which paint is scraped across canvas to reveal the imprints of the objects placed beneath. Ernst is noted for his unconventional drawing methods as well as for creating novels and pamphlets using the method of collages. He served as a soldier for four years during World War I, which left him shocked, traumatised and critical of the modern world. During World War II he was designated an "undesirable foreigner" while living in France.

Tristão de Bragança Cunha, Indian nationalist and anti-colonial activist from Goa (died 1958)

Tristão de Bragança Cunha, better known as T. B. Cunha, was a Goan nationalist and anti-colonial activist. Referred to as the "Father of Goan nationalism", he was the organiser of the first movement to end Portuguese rule in Goa.

02/04/1888

Neville Cardus, English cricket and music writer (died 1975)

Sir John Frederick Neville Cardus CBE was an English writer and critic. From an impoverished home background, and mainly self-educated, he became The Manchester Guardian's cricket correspondent in 1919 and its chief music critic in 1927, holding the two posts simultaneously until 1940. His contributions to these two distinct fields in the years before the Second World War established his reputation as one of the foremost critics of his generation.

02/04/1884

J. C. Squire, English poet, author, and historian (died 1958)

Sir John Collings Squire was an English writer, most notable as editor of the London Mercury, a major literary magazine in the interwar period. He antagonised several eminent authors, but attracted a coterie that was dubbed the Squirearchy. He was also a poet and historian, who captained a famous literary cricket-team called the Invalids.

02/04/1875

Walter Chrysler, American businessman, founded Chrysler (died 1940)

Walter Percy Chrysler was an American industrial pioneer in the automotive industry, automotive industry executive, and the founder and namesake of American Chrysler Corporation.

William Donne, English cricketer and captain (died 1942)

William Stephens Donne was an English cricket player, and former president of the Rugby Football Union, and was a member of the cricket team that won a gold medal at the 1900 Summer Olympics.

02/04/1870

Edmund Dwyer-Gray, Irish-Australian politician, 29th Premier of Tasmania (died 1945)

Edmund John Chisholm Dwyer-Gray was an Irish-Australian politician, who was the 29th Premier of Tasmania from 11 June to 18 December 1939. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP).

02/04/1869

Hughie Jennings, American baseball player and manager (died 1928)

Hugh Ambrose Jennings was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager from 1891 to 1925. Jennings was a leader, both as a batter and as a shortstop, with the Baltimore Orioles teams that won National League championships in 1894, 1895, and 1896. During those three seasons, Jennings had 355 runs batted in and hit .335, .386, and .401.

02/04/1862

Nicholas Murray Butler, American philosopher and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1947)

Nicholas Murray Butler was an American philosopher, diplomat, and educator. Butler was president of Columbia University, president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, and the late James S. Sherman's replacement as William Howard Taft's running mate in the 1912 United States presidential election. The New York Times printed his Christmas greeting to the nation for many years during the 1920s and 1930s.

02/04/1861

Iván Persa, Slovenian priest and author (died 1935)

Iván Persa was a Hungarian Slovene Roman Catholic priest and writer.

02/04/1842

Dominic Savio, Italian Catholic saint, adolescent student of Saint John Bosco (died 1857)

Dominic Savio was a 19th-century Italian teenager who was a student of John Bosco and became a Catholic saint. He was studying to be a priest when he became ill and died at the age of 14, possibly from pleurisy. He was noted for his piety and devotion to the Catholic faith, and was canonized a saint by Pope Pius XII in 1954.

02/04/1841

Clément Ader, French engineer, designed the Ader Avion III (died 1926)

Clément Ader was a French inventor and engineer who was born near Toulouse in Muret, Haute-Garonne, and died in Toulouse. He is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation. In 1870 he was also one of the pioneers in the sport of cycling in France.

02/04/1840

Émile Zola, French novelist, playwright, journalist (died 1902)

Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism. He was a major figure in the political liberalization of France and in the exoneration of the falsely accused and convicted army officer Alfred Dreyfus, which is encapsulated in his renowned newspaper opinion headlined J'Accuse...! Zola was nominated for the first and second Nobel Prizes in Literature in 1901 and 1902.

02/04/1838

Léon Gambetta, French lawyer and politician, 45th Prime Minister of France (died 1882)

Léon Gambetta was a French lawyer and republican politician who proclaimed the French Third Republic in 1870 and played a prominent role in its early government.

02/04/1835

Jacob Nash Victor, American engineer (died 1907)

Jacob Nash Victor, son of Henry Clay Victor and Gertrude Nash, was a civil engineer who worked as General Manager of the California Southern Railroad, a subsidiary of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. Victor oversaw the construction in the early 1880s of the California Southern between Colton and Barstow, California, including the section that is now one of the busiest rail freight routes in the United States, Cajon Pass.

02/04/1827

William Holman Hunt, English soldier and painter (died 1910)

William Holman Hunt was an English painter and one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. His paintings were notable for their great attention to detail, vivid colour, and elaborate symbolism. These features were influenced by the writings of John Ruskin and Thomas Carlyle, according to whom the world itself should be read as a system of visual signs. For Hunt, it was the duty of the artist to reveal the correspondence between sign and fact. Of all the members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Hunt remained most true to their ideals throughout his career. He was always keen to maximise the popular appeal and public visibility of his works.

02/04/1814

Erastus Brigham Bigelow, American inventor (died 1879)

Erastus Brigham Bigelow was an American inventor of weaving machines.

02/04/1805

Hans Christian Andersen, Danish novelist, short story writer, and poet (died 1875)

Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales.

02/04/1798

August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, German poet and academic (died 1874)

August Heinrich Hoffmann was a German poet associated with the Young Germany movement. He is best known for writing "Das Lied der Deutschen", whose third stanza is now the national anthem of Germany, and a number of popular children's songs.

02/04/1797

Samuel Bogart, Texas state legislator (died 1861)

Samuel Bogart was an itinerant Methodist minister and militia captain from Ray County, Missouri who played a prominent role in the 1838 Missouri Mormon War before later moving to Collin County, Texas, where he became a Texas Ranger and a member of the Texas State Legislature. He is best remembered, however, for his role in leading opposition to Mormon settlers in northwestern Missouri, and for the active role he took in operations against them in the fall of 1838. These operations led to the expulsion of nearly all Mormons from the state following the issuance of Governor Lilburn Boggs' infamous Extermination Order in October of that year.

02/04/1792

Francisco de Paula Santander, Colombian general and politician, 4th President of the Republic of the New Granada (died 1840)

Francisco José de Paula Santander y Omaña was a Neogranadine military and political leader who served as Vice-President of Gran Colombia between 1819 and 1826, and was later elected by Congress as the President of the Republic of New Granada between 1832 and 1837. Santander played a pivotal role in the Colombian War of Independence being one of the main leaders of the Patriot forces and helped lead the Patriot Army alongside Simón Bolívar to victory. He is often credited with creating the legal foundations for democracy in Colombia, as well as creating the country's first system of public education. For these reasons he is considered a National Hero in Colombia and has thus commonly been known as "The Man of the Laws" as well as the "Organizer of Victory".

02/04/1789

Lucio Norberto Mansilla, Argentinian general and politician (died 1871)

Lucio Norberto Mansilla was an Argentine military officer, surveyor and politician who played a prominent role in the Argentine War of Independence, the Cisplatine War and the Anglo-French blockade of the Río de la Plata. He was the first governor of the Entre Ríos Province. Although he commanded several units in many battles, he is most renowned for commanding the Argentine forces in the battle of Vuelta de Obligado on the Paraná River during the Anglo-French blockade of the Río de la Plata.

02/04/1788

Francisco Balagtas, Filipino poet and author (died 1862)

Francisco Balagtas y de la Cruz, commonly known as Francisco Balagtas and also as Francisco Baltazar, was a Filipino poet and litterateur of the Tagalog language during the Spanish rule of the Philippines. He is widely considered one of the greatest Filipino literary laureates for his impact on Filipino literature. The famous epic Florante at Laura is regarded as his defining work.

Wilhelmine Reichard, German balloonist (died 1848)

Johanne Wilhelmine Siegmundine Reichard was a German aeronaut who was the first German female balloonist.

02/04/1755

Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, French lawyer and politician (died 1826)

Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin was a French lawyer and politician, who, as the author of Physiologie du goût, became celebrated for his culinary reminiscences and reflections on the craft and science of cookery and the art of eating.

02/04/1725

Giacomo Casanova, Italian explorer and author (died 1798)

Giacomo Girolamo Casanova was an adventurer and writer who was born in the Republic of Venice and travelled extensively throughout Europe. He is chiefly remembered for his autobiography, written in French and published posthumously as Histoire de ma vie. That work has come to be regarded as a unique and provocative source of information on the customs and norms of European social life in the 18th century.

02/04/1719

Johann Wilhelm Ludwig Gleim, German poet (died 1803)

Johann Wilhelm Ludwig Gleim was a German poet, commonly associated with the Enlightenment and Rococo movements.

02/04/1696

Francesca Cuzzoni, Italian operatic soprano (died 1778)

Francesca Cuzzoni was an Italian operatic soprano of the Baroque era.

02/04/1653

Prince George of Denmark (died 1708)

Prince George of Denmark and Norway, Duke of Cumberland, was the husband of Anne, Queen of Great Britain. He was the consort of the British monarch from Anne's accession on 8 March 1702 until his death in 1708.

02/04/1647

Maria Sibylla Merian, German-Dutch botanist and illustrator (died 1717)

Maria Sibylla Merian was a German-Dutch entomologist, naturalist, and scientific illustrator. She was one of the earliest European naturalists to document observations about insects directly. Merian was a descendant of the Frankfurt branch of the Swiss Merian family.

02/04/1618

Francesco Maria Grimaldi, Italian mathematician and physicist (died 1663)

Francesco Maria Grimaldi was an Italian Jesuit priest, mathematician and physicist who taught at the Jesuit college in Bologna. He was born in Bologna to Paride Grimaldi and Anna Cattani.

02/04/1602

Mary of Jesus of Ágreda, Franciscan abbess (died 1665)

Mary of Jesus of Ágreda, OIC,, was an abbess and spiritual writer. She is best known for her extensive correspondence with King Philip IV of Spain and her reports of bilocation between Spain and New Spain. She was a noted mystic whose popularity has endured.

02/04/1586

Pietro Della Valle, Italian traveler (died 1652)

Pietro Della Valle, also written Pietro della Valle, was an Italian composer, musicologist, and author who travelled throughout Asia during the 17th century. His travels took him to the Holy Land, the Middle East, Northern Africa, and as far as India.

02/04/1565

Cornelis de Houtman, Dutch explorer (died 1599)

Cornelis de Houtman was a Dutch merchant seaman who commanded the first Dutch expedition to the East Indies. Although the voyage was difficult and yielded only a modest profit, Houtman showed that the Portuguese monopoly on the spice trade was vulnerable. A flurry of Dutch trading voyages followed, eventually leading to the displacement of the Portuguese and the establishment of a Dutch monopoly on spice trading in the East Indies.

02/04/1545

Elisabeth of Valois, queen consort of Spain (died 1568)

Elisabeth of France, or Elisabeth of Valois, was Queen of Spain as the third wife of Philip II of Spain.

02/04/1473

John Corvinus, Hungarian noble (died 1504)

John Corvinus was the illegitimate son of Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary, and his mistress, Barbara Edelpöck.

02/04/0747

Charlemagne, Frankish king (died 814)

Year 747 (DCCXLVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 747 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

02/04/0181

Emperor Xian of Han, Chinese emperor (died 234)

Year 181 (CLXXXI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Burrus. The denomination 181 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Lives Remembered on 2nd April

On 2nd April, 98 remarkable people passed away — from 670 to 2025. Remember the lives and legacies of those we lost on this day.

02/04/2025

Khamtai Siphandone, Laotian politician, 4th President of Laos (born 1924)

General Khamtai Siphandone was a Laotian politician who served as the chairman of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party from 1992 to 2006 and as the fourth president of Laos from 1998 to 2006, when he was replaced by Choummaly Sayasone. He joined the Indochinese Communist Party in 1954 and became a member of the Central Committee of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party in 1956.

02/04/2024

Jerry Abbott, American country music songwriter and record producer (born 1942)

Jerry Bob Abbott was an American country music songwriter and record producer. He was the father of heavy metal musicians Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell, both formerly of Pantera and Damageplan.

John Barth, American writer (born 1930)

John Simmons Barth was an American writer best known for his postmodern and metafictional fiction. His most highly regarded and influential works were published in the 1960s, and include The Sot-Weed Factor, a whimsical retelling of Maryland's colonial history; Giles Goat-Boy, a satirical fantasy in which a university is a microcosm of the Cold War world; and Lost in the Funhouse, a self-referential and experimental collection of short stories. He was co-recipient of the National Book Award in 1973 for his episodic novel Chimera.

Maryse Condé, Guadeloupean novelist, critic, and playwright (born 1934)

Maryse Condé was a French novelist, critic, and playwright from the French Overseas department and region of Guadeloupe. She was also an academic, whose teaching career took her to West Africa and North America, as well as the Caribbean and Europe. As a writer, Condé is best known for her novel Ségou (1984–1985).

Christopher Durang, American playwright (born 1949)

Christopher Ferdinand Durang was an American playwright known for works of outrageous and often absurd comedy. His work was especially popular in the 1980s, though his career seemed to get a second wind in the late 1990s.

Larry Lucchino, American attorney and baseball executive (born 1945)

Lawrence Lucchino was an American lawyer and Major League Baseball executive. He served as president of the Baltimore Orioles, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the San Diego Padres, and president and CEO of the Boston Red Sox. He was also chairman of the Worcester Red Sox, the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox; chairman of The Jimmy Fund, the philanthropic arm of the Dana–Farber Cancer Institute; and president and CEO emeritus of Fenway Sports Group, the parent company of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool F.C. Lucchino played college basketball for the Princeton Tigers.

John Sinclair, American poet (born 1941)

John Alexander Sinclair Jr. was an American poet, writer, and political activist from Flint, Michigan. Sinclair's defining style is jazz poetry, and he released most of his works in audio formats. Most of his pieces include musical accompaniment, usually by a varying group of collaborators dubbed Blues Scholars.

Juan Vicente Pérez, Venezuelan supercentenarian (born 1909)

Juan Vicente Pérez Mora was a Venezuelan supercentenarian who, until his death aged 114 years, 311 days, was the world's oldest verified living man following the death of Spain's Saturnino de la Fuente García on 18 January 2022.

02/04/2022

Estelle Harris, American actress and comedian (born 1928)

Estelle Harris was an American actress and comedian, known for her exaggeratedly shrill voice. She was best known for her role as Estelle Costanza on Seinfeld. Her other roles included the voice of Mrs. Potato Head in the Toy Story franchise, Muriel in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, and Mama Gunda in Tarzan II. During her career, Harris starred in various television commercials.

02/04/2021

Simon Bainbridge, British composer (born 1952)

Simon Bainbridge was a British composer. He was also a professor and head of composition at the Royal Academy of Music, London, and visiting professor at the University of Louisville, Kentucky, in the United States.

02/04/2017

Alma Delia Fuentes, Mexican actress (born 1937)

Alma Delia Susana Fuentes González was a Mexican actress of film, television, and theatre.

02/04/2016

Gallieno Ferri, Italian comic book artist and illustrator (born 1929)

Gallieno Ferri was an Italian comic book artist and illustrator. He was born in Genoa.

Robert Abajyan, Armenian sergeant (born 1996)

Robert Abajyan was an Armenian junior sergeant in the Republic of Artsakh Defense Army. He was posthumously awarded the "Hero of Artsakh" which is the highest honorary title of the self-declared Republic of Artsakh.

02/04/2015

Manoel de Oliveira, Portuguese actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1908)

Manoel Cândido Pinto de Oliveira was a Portuguese film director and screenwriter born in Cedofeita, Porto. He first began making films in 1927, when he and some friends attempted to make a film about World War I. In 1931, he completed his first film Douro, Faina Fluvial, a documentary about his home city Porto made in the city-symphony genre. He made his feature film debut in 1942 with Aniki-Bóbó and continued to make shorts and documentaries for the next 30 years, gaining a minimal amount of recognition without being considered a major filmmaker.

Robert H. Schuller, American pastor and author (born 1926)

Robert Harold Schuller was an American Christian televangelist, pastor, motivational speaker, and author. Over five decades, Schuller pastored his church in Garden Grove, California starting in 1955. The weekly broadcast of Hour of Power television program followed began in 1970, and he led until his retirement in 2006. His grandson, Bobby Schuller, carries on the Hour of Power, which has aired for over fifty years. During his time as a minister, Schuller oversaw the construction of two churches in Garden Grove, California. The first church built under his tenure was the Garden Grove Community Church chapel which seated 500, and the second was the much larger Crystal Cathedral, which has a capacity of 2,200.

Steve Stevaert, Belgian businessman and politician, Governor of Limburg (born 1954)

Steve Stevaert was a Belgian politician of the Flemish Socialist Party: the SP.A.

02/04/2014

Urs Widmer, Swiss author and playwright (born 1938)

Urs Widmer was a Swiss novelist, playwright, an essayist, and a short story writer.

02/04/2013

Fred, French author and illustrator (born 1931)

Frédéric Othon Théodore Aristidès, known by his pseudonym Fred, was a French cartoonist in the Franco-Belgian comics tradition. He is best known for his series Philémon.

Jesús Franco, Spanish director, screenwriter, producer, and actor (born 1930)

Jesús Franco Manera, also commonly known as Jess Franco, was a Spanish filmmaker, composer, and actor, known as a highly prolific director of low-budget exploitation and B-movies. He worked in many different genres during his career, but was best known for his horror and erotic films, often incorporating surrealist elements.

Milo O'Shea, Irish-American actor (born 1926)

Milo Donal O'Shea was an Irish actor. He received nomination for the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer for his breakthrough role of Leopold Bloom in Ulysses (1967), and was twice nominated for the Tony Award for Best Lead Actor in a Play for his performances in Broadway productions of Staircase (1968) and Mass Appeal (1982).

02/04/2012

Jesús Aguilarte, Venezuelan captain and politician (born 1959)

Jesús Aguilarte was the Governor of Apure State in Venezuela from 1999 to 2000, and from 2004 to 2011. He died in a Maracay hospital on April 2, 2012, after being attacked by a gunman on March 24, 2012. He was 53.

Elizabeth Catlett, American-Mexican sculptor and illustrator (born 1915)

Elizabeth Catlett, born as Alice Elizabeth Catlett, also known as Elizabeth Catlett Mora was an American and Mexican sculptor and graphic artist best known for her depictions of the Black-American experience in the 20th century, which often focused on the female experience. She was born and raised in Washington, D.C., to parents working in education, and was the grandchild of formerly enslaved people. It was difficult for a black woman then to pursue a career as a working artist. Catlett devoted much of her career to teaching. However, a fellowship awarded to her in 1946 allowed her to travel to Mexico City, where she settled and worked with the Taller de Gráfica Popular for twenty years and became head of the sculpture department for the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas. In the 1950s, her main means of artistic expression shifted from print to sculpture, though she never gave up the former.

Mauricio Lasansky, American graphic designer and academic (born 1914)

Mauricio Leib Lasansky was an Argentine artist and educator known both for his advanced techniques in intaglio printmaking and for a series of 33 pencil drawings from the 1960s titled "The Nazi Drawings." Lasansky, who migrated to and became a citizen of the United States, established the program in printmaking at the University of Iowa, which offered the first Master of Fine Arts program in the field in the United States. Sotheby's identifies him as one of the fathers of modern printmaking.

02/04/2011

John C. Haas, American businessman and philanthropist (born 1918)

John Charles Haas was an American businessman and philanthropist, at one time considered the second richest man in Philadelphia. He was the chairman of global chemical company Rohm and Haas from 1974 to 1978. Under his leadership, the family's William Penn Foundation became a $2 billion grantmaking institution, ranking as one of the largest such institutions in the United States.

02/04/2010

Chris Kanyon, American wrestler (born 1970)

Christopher Morgan Klucsarits was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1994 to 2004, under the ring names Chris Kanyon, Kanyon, and Mortis.

02/04/2009

Albert Sanschagrin, Canadian bishop (born 1911)

Albert Sanschagrin, O.M.I. was Bishop Emeritus of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada, and the oldest Canadian bishop of the Roman Catholic Church at the time of his death.

Bud Shank, American saxophonist and flute player (born 1926)

Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank Jr. was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and throughout the decade worked in various small jazz combos. He spent the 1960s as a first-call studio musician in Hollywood. In the 1970s and 1980s, he performed regularly with the L. A. Four. Shank ultimately abandoned the flute to focus exclusively on playing jazz on the alto saxophone. He also recorded on tenor and baritone sax. His most famous recording is probably the version of "Harlem Nocturne" used as the theme song in Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer. He is also known for the soundtrack recordings with his group to the surfing films of Bruce Brown in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and for the alto flute solo on the song "California Dreamin'" recorded by the Mamas & the Papas in 1965.

02/04/2008

Yakup Satar, Turkish World War I veteran (born 1898)

Yakup Satar was a Turkish and Ottoman soldier who is believed to have been the last Ottoman veteran of the First World War. He died at age 110.

02/04/2007

Henry L. Giclas, American astronomer and academic (born 1910)

Henry Lee Giclas was an American astronomer and a discoverer of minor planets and comets. best known for hiring Robert Burnham Jr. at the Lowell Observatory. He worked on a notable proper motion survey with several relatively nearby stars bearing his name such as Giclas 99-49.

02/04/2006

Lloyd Searwar, Guyanese anthologist and diplomat (born 1925)

Lloyd Searwar was a career Guyanese diplomat, and later the Director of the Foreign Service Institute in Guyana.

02/04/2005

Lillian O'Donnell, American crime novelist (born 1926)

Lillian O'Donnell was an American crime novelist notable for being one of the first to introduce a female police officer as the lead character in a book series.

Pope John Paul II (born 1920)

Pope John Paul II was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death in 2005. He was the first non-Italian pope since Adrian VI in the 16th century, as well as the third-longest-serving pope in history, after St. Peter and Pius IX.

02/04/2004

John Argyris, Greek computer scientist, engineer, and academic (born 1913)

Johann Hadjiargyris FRS was a Greek pioneer of computer applications in science and engineering, among the creators of the finite element method (FEM), and later Professor at the University of Stuttgart and Director of the Institute of Structural Mechanics and Dynamics in Aerospace Engineering.

02/04/2003

Edwin Starr, American singer-songwriter (born 1942)

Charles Edwin Hatcher, known by his stage name Edwin Starr, was an American singer and songwriter. He is best remembered for his Norman Whitfield-produced Motown singles of the 1970s, most notably the number-one hit "War".

02/04/2002

Levi Celerio, Filipino composer and songwriter (born 1910)

Levi Celerio was a Filipino composer and lyricist who is credited with writing over 4,000 songs. Celerio was recognized as a National Artist of the Philippines for Music and Literature in 1997.

John R. Pierce, American engineer and author (born 1910)

John Robinson Pierce, was an American electrical engineer and author. He did extensive work concerning radio communication, microwave technology, computer music, psychoacoustics, and science fiction. Additionally to his professional career he wrote science fiction for many years using the names John Pierce, John R. Pierce, and J. J. Coupling. Born in Des Moines, Iowa, he earned his PhD from Caltech, and died in Sunnyvale, California, from complications of Parkinson's Disease.

02/04/2001

Charles Daudelin, Canadian sculptor and painter (born 1920)

Charles Daudelin was a Canadian artist who was a pioneer in modern sculpture and painting. He worked in a wide variety of media, including painting, metal and ceramic sculpture, jewelry, and marionettes which he made with his wife, Louise.

02/04/1998

Rob Pilatus, American-German singer-songwriter (born 1965)

Robert Pilatus was a German singer, dancer, and model. He was a member of the pop music duo Milli Vanilli with Fab Morvan.

02/04/1997

Tomoyuki Tanaka, Japanese director and producer (born 1910)

Tomoyuki "Yūkō" Tanaka was a Japanese film producer, best known as the creator of Godzilla. He produced most of the installments in the Godzilla series, beginning in 1954 with Godzilla and ending in 1995 with Godzilla vs. Destoroyah. He was one of the most prolific Japanese producers of all time, having worked on more than 200 films, including over 80 tokusatsu films and six of Akira Kurosawa's films, notably Yojimbo and Kagemusha.

02/04/1995

Hannes Alfvén, Swedish physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1908)

Hannes Olof Gösta Alfvén was a Swedish electrical engineer, plasma physicist and winner of the 1970 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on magnetohydrodynamics (MHD). He described the class of MHD waves now known as Alfvén waves. He was originally trained as an electrical power engineer and later moved to research and teaching in the fields of plasma physics and electrical engineering. Alfvén made many contributions to plasma physics, including theories describing the behavior of aurorae, the Van Allen radiation belts, the effect of magnetic storms on the Earth's magnetic field, the terrestrial magnetosphere, and the dynamics of plasmas in the Milky Way galaxy.

02/04/1994

Betty Furness, American actress, consumer advocate, game show panelist, television journalist and television personality (born 1916)

Elizabeth Mary Furness was an American actress, consumer advocate, and current affairs commentator.

Marc Fitch, British historian and philanthropist (born 1908)

Marcus Felix Brudenell Fitch , was an English historian and philanthropist.

02/04/1992

Juanito, Spanish footballer and manager (born 1954)

Juan Gómez González, known as Juanito, was a Spanish footballer who played as a forward.

Jan van Aartsen, Dutch politician (born 1909)

Johannes "Jan" van Aartsen was a Dutch jurist and politician of the Anti-Revolutionary Party (ARP).

02/04/1989

Manolis Angelopoulos, Greek singer (born 1939)

Manolis Angelopoulos was a Greek singer of Romani origin.

02/04/1987

Buddy Rich, American drummer, songwriter, and bandleader (born 1917)

Bernard "Buddy" Rich was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time.

02/04/1977

Walter Wolf, German academic and politician (born 1907)

Walter Wolf was a German politician and member of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD).

02/04/1974

Georges Pompidou, French banker and politician, 19th President of France (born 1911)

Georges Jean Raymond Pompidou was President of France from 1969 until his death in 1974. He had previously served from 1962 to 1968 as Prime Minister of France under President Charles de Gaulle, with whom he was closely associated throughout his career.

02/04/1972

Franz Halder, German general (born 1884)

Franz Halder was a German general and the chief of staff of the Army High Command (OKH) in Nazi Germany from 1938 until September 1942. During World War II, he directed the planning and implementation of Operation Barbarossa, the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union. Halder became instrumental in the radicalisation of warfare on the Eastern Front. He had his staff draft both the Commissar Order and the Barbarossa decree that allowed German soldiers to execute Soviet citizens for any reason without fear of later prosecution, leading to numerous war crimes and atrocities during the campaign. After the war, he had a decisive role in the development of the myth of the clean Wehrmacht.

Toshitsugu Takamatsu, Japanese martial artist and educator (born 1887)

Toshitsugu Takamatsu was a Japanese martial artist and teacher of Bujinkan founder Masaaki Hatsumi. He has been called "The Last Shinobi" by Bujinkan instructor Wolfgang Ettig.

02/04/1966

C. S. Forester, English novelist (born 1899)

Cecil Louis Troughton Smith, best known by his pen name C.S. Forester, was an English novelist known for writing tales of naval warfare, such as the 12-book Horatio Hornblower series depicting a Royal Navy officer during the Napoleonic Wars.

02/04/1954

Hoyt Vandenberg, US Air Force general (born 1899)

Hoyt Sanford Vandenberg was a United States Air Force general. He served as the second Chief of Staff of the Air Force, and the second Director of Central Intelligence.

02/04/1953

Hugo Sperrle, German field marshal (born 1885)

Hugo Wilhelm Sperrle was a German military aviator in World War I and a Generalfeldmarschall in the Luftwaffe during World War II.

02/04/1948

Sabahattin Ali, Turkish journalist, author, and poet (born 1907)

Sabahattin Ali was a Turkish novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist.

02/04/1942

Édouard Estaunié, French novelist (born 1862)

Édouard Estaunié was a French novelist. Estaunié trained as a scientist and engineer, working at the Post and Telegraph service and training further in Holland, before turning to the novel in 1891. In 1904, he devised the word "telecommunication" in his Traité pratique de télécommunication électrique. He was elected to the Académie française in 1923. He was also a reviewer, critic, and homme de lettres as well as a novelist.

02/04/1936

Jean Baptiste Eugène Estienne, French general (born 1860)

Jean Baptiste Eugène Estienne was a general of artillery and a specialist in military engineering, one of the founders of modern French artillery and French military aviation, and the creator of the French tank arm. He is considered by many in France to be the Père des Chars.

02/04/1933

Ranjitsinhji, Indian cricketer (born 1872)

Colonel Kumar Sri Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji II, often known as Ranji or K. S. Ranjitsinhji, was an Indian cricketer who later became ruler of his native Indian princely state of Nawanagar, from 1907 to 1933. The main part of his cricket career was from 1893 to 1904 when, as one of the greatest batsmen of his time, he played for Cambridge University, Sussex, London County and, in 15 Test matches, for England.

02/04/1930

Zewditu I of Ethiopia (born 1876)

Zewditu was Empress of Ethiopia from 1916 until her death in 1930. She officially adopted the regnal name "Zewditu" at the beginning of her reign, which was triggered by the dethroning of Lij Iyasu in 1916. Her coronation was held on February 11, 1917, in the Cathedral of St. George in Addis Ababa—a capital founded by her father. Forty years old and childless when crowned, she is the first and only empress regnant of the Ethiopian Empire. Described as the first modern female head of a nation in Africa, she was the last female Ethiopian head of state until the 2018 election of Sahle-Work Zewde as president. Her reign, which she is said to have closely patterned after the legacy of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, is noted for the reforms of her Regent and heir apparent Ras Tafari Makonnen – changes which she was at best ambivalent and often stridently opposed to, due to her staunch conservatism and strong religiosity.

02/04/1928

Theodore William Richards, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1868)

Theodore William Richards was an American physical chemist and the first American scientist to receive the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, earning the award "in recognition of his exact determinations of the atomic weights of a large number of the chemical elements."

02/04/1923

Topal Osman, Turkish colonel (born 1883)

Hacı Topal Osman Ağa, was a Turkish officer, a militia leader of the National Forces, a volunteer regiment commander of the Turkish army during the Turkish War of Independence who eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel, and was a perpetrator of the Armenian and Pontic genocides. Besides the Greeks and Armenians, he also terrorised the local Muslim population who opposed him.

02/04/1917

Bryn Lewis, Welsh international rugby player (born 1891)

Major Brinley Lewis, known as Bryn Lewis, was a Welsh international rugby union wing who played club rugby for Newport and Cambridge University. He is one of twelve Welsh internationals to have died in active duty during World War I.

02/04/1914

Paul Heyse, German author, poet, and translator, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1830)

Paul Johann Ludwig von Heyse was a German writer and translator. A member of two important literary societies, the Tunnel über der Spree in Berlin and Die Krokodile in Munich, he wrote novels, poetry, 177 short stories, and about sixty dramas. The sum of Heyse's many and varied productions made him a dominant figure among German men of letters. He was awarded the 1910 Nobel Prize in Literature "as a tribute to the consummate artistry, permeated with idealism, which he has demonstrated during his long productive career as a lyric poet, dramatist, novelist and writer of world-renowned short stories." Wirsen, one of the Nobel judges, said that "Germany has not had a greater literary genius since Goethe." Heyse is the fifth oldest laureate in literature, after Alice Munro, Jaroslav Seifert, Theodor Mommsen and Doris Lessing.

02/04/1896

Theodore Robinson, American painter and academic (born 1852)

Theodore Robinson was an American painter best known for his Impressionist landscapes. He was one of the first American artists to take up Impressionism in the late 1880s, visiting Giverny and developing a close friendship with Claude Monet. Several of his works are considered masterpieces of American Impressionism.

02/04/1894

Achille Vianelli, Italian painter and academic (born 1803)

Achille Vianelli or Vianelly was an Italian painter of landscapes with genre scenes, often in watercolor.

02/04/1891

Albert Pike, American lawyer and general (born 1809)

Albert Pike was an American author, poet, orator, editor, lawyer, jurist and Confederate States Army general who served as an associate justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court in exile from 1864 to 1865. He had previously served as a senior officer of the Confederate States Army, commanding the District of Indian Territory in the Trans-Mississippi Theater. A prominent member of the Freemasons, Pike served as the Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme Council, Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction from 1859 to 1891.

Ahmed Vefik Pasha, Greek playwright and politician, 249th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (born 1823)

Ahmed Vefik Pasha was an Ottoman statesman, diplomat, scholar, playwright, and translator during the Tanzimat and First Constitutional Era periods. He was commissioned with top-rank governmental duties, including presiding over the first Ottoman Parliament in 1877. He also served as Prime Minister for two brief periods. He also established the first Ottoman theatre and initiated the first Western style theatre plays in Bursa and translated Molière's major works into Turkish. His portrait was depicted on the Turkish postcard stamp dated 1966.

02/04/1872

Samuel Morse, American painter and academic, invented the Morse code (born 1791)

Samuel Finley Breese Morse was an American inventor and painter. After establishing his reputation as a portrait painter, Morse, in his middle age, contributed to the invention of a single-wire telegraph system based on European telegraphs. He was a co-developer and the namesake of Morse code in 1837 and helped to develop the commercial use of telegraphy.

02/04/1865

A. P. Hill, American general (born 1825)

Ambrose Powell Hill Jr. was a Confederate general who was killed in the American Civil War. He is usually referred to as A. P. Hill to differentiate him from Confederate general Daniel Harvey Hill, who was unrelated.

02/04/1845

Philip Charles Durham, Scottish admiral and politician (born 1763)

Admiral Sir Philip Charles Henderson Calderwood Durham, GCB was a Royal Navy officer whose service in the American War of Independence, French Revolutionary War and Napoleonic Wars was lengthy, distinguished and at times controversial.

02/04/1827

Ludwig Heinrich Bojanus, German physician and educator (born 1776)

Ludwig Heinrich Bojanus Latinized as Ludovicus Henricus Bojanus was a Franco-German physician, comparative anatomist, and naturalist who spent most of his active career teaching veterinary medicine at Vilnius University in Vilnius, then within the Russian Empire. His greatest work was a two-volume folio on the anatomy of the turtle Emys orbicularis published in 1819 and 1821. The Organ of Bojanus of molluscs is named after him. The Triassic mammal Lisowicia bojani was named in his honour in 2019.

02/04/1817

Johann Heinrich Jung, German author and academic (born 1740)

Johann Heinrich Jung, better known by his assumed name Heinrich Stilling, was a German author. He is often called by both surnames as "Jung-Stilling".

02/04/1803

Sir James Montgomery, 1st Baronet, Scottish judge and politician (born 1721)

Sir James Montgomery, 1st Baronet Stanhope, FRSE was a Scottish advocate, judge, country landowner, agriculturalist and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1766 to 1775. In 1783 he was a joint founder of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

02/04/1801

Thomas Dadford, Jr., English engineer (born 1761)

Thomas Dadford Jr. was an English canal engineer, who came from a family of canal engineers. He first worked with his father in the north of Britain on the Stour and the Trent, but later independently, contributing to a number of canal schemes, mainly in Monmouthshire and Glamorganshire but also in Montgomeryshire and Ellesmere, before dying at the age of 40.

02/04/1791

Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, comte de Mirabeau, French journalist and politician (born 1749)

Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, Count of Mirabeau was a French writer, orator, and statesman, and a prominent figure of the early stages of the French Revolution.

02/04/1787

Thomas Gage, English general and politician, Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (born 1719)

General Thomas Gage was a British Army officer and colonial administrator best known for his many years of service in North America, including serving as Commander-in-Chief, North America during the early days of the American Revolution.

02/04/1754

Thomas Carte, English historian and author (born 1686)

Thomas or John Carte (1686–1754) was an English historian with Jacobite sympathies, who served as a Church of England clergyman.

02/04/1747

Johann Jacob Dillenius, German-English botanist and mycologist (born 1684)

Johann Jacob Dillen Dillenius was a German botanist. He is known for his Hortus Elthamensis on the rare plants around Eltham, London, and for his Historia muscorum, a natural history of lower plants including mosses, liverworts, hornworts, lycopods, algae, lichens and fungi.

02/04/1742

James Douglas, Scottish physician and anatomist (born 1675)

James Douglas was a Scottish physician and anatomist, and Physician Extraordinary to Queen Caroline.

02/04/1720

Joseph Dudley, English politician, Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (born 1647)

Joseph Dudley was a colonial administrator, a native of Roxbury in Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the son of one of its founders. He had a leading role in the administration of the Dominion of New England (1686–1689), which was overthrown in the 1689 Boston revolt. He served briefly on the council of the Province of New York, from which he oversaw the trial which convicted Jacob Leisler, the ringleader of Leisler's Rebellion. He then spent eight years in England in the 1690s as Lieutenant-Governor of the Isle of Wight, including one year as a Member of Parliament for Newtown. In 1702, he returned to New England after being appointed governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay and Province of New Hampshire, posts that he held until 1715.

02/04/1672

Pedro Calungsod, Filipino missionary and saint (born 1654)

Pedro Calungsod, also known as Peter Calungsod and Pedro Calonsor, was a Catholic Filipino-Visayan migrant, sacristan and missionary catechist who, along with the Spanish Jesuit missionary Diego Luis de San Vitores, proselytized and converted the indigenous people of Guam, in some cases without consent, which led to both missionaries being martyred in 1672.

Diego Luis de San Vitores, Spanish Jesuit missionary (born 1627)

Diego Luis de San Vitores, SJ was a Spanish Jesuit missionary who founded the first Catholic church on the island of Guam. He is responsible for establishing the Christian presence in the Mariana Islands. He and his right-hand man Pedro Calungsod are controversial figures in some circles due to their role in the Spanish–Chamorro Wars, as well as the colonization and genocide of the Chamorro people.

02/04/1657

Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor (born 1608)

Ferdinand III was Archduke of Austria, King of Hungary and Croatia from 1625, King of Bohemia from 1627 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1637 to his death.

Jean-Jacques Olier, French priest, founded the Society of Saint-Sulpice (born 1608)

Jean-Jacques Olier, S.S. was a French Catholic priest and the founder of the Sulpicians. He also helped to establish the Société Notre-Dame de Montréal, which organised the settlement of a new town called Ville-Marie in the colony of New France.

02/04/1640

Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski, Polish author and poet (born 1595)

Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski, was a Polish poet. He is considered Europe's most prominent Latin poet of the 17th century, and a renowned theoretician of poetics.

02/04/1511

Bernard VII, Lord of Lippe, German nobleman (born 1428)

Bernard VII was the ruler of the Lordship of Lippe from 1429 until his death. Because of the many bloody feuds in which he was involved, he was nicknamed "the Bellicose". As Edler Herr of Lippe for 81 years, he was the longest-ever ruling European monarch.

02/04/1507

Francis of Paola, Italian friar and saint, founded the Order of the Minims (born 1416)

Francis of Paola, O.M., was a Catholic friar from the town of Paola in Calabria who founded the Order of Minims. He was named after Francis of Assisi and like him Francis of Paola was never ordained a priest.

02/04/1502

Arthur, prince of Wales (born 1486)

Arthur, Prince of Wales, was the eldest son of King Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York, and an older brother to the future King Henry VIII. He was Duke of Cornwall from birth, and he was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester in 1489. As the heir apparent of his father, Arthur was viewed by contemporaries as the great hope of the newly established House of Tudor. His mother was the daughter of the Yorkist king, Edward IV, and his birth cemented the union between the House of Lancaster and the House of York.

02/04/1416

Ferdinand I, king of Aragon (born 1379)

Ferdinand I named Ferdinand of Antequera and also the Just was king of Aragon, Valencia, Majorca, Sardinia and (nominally) Corsica and king of Sicily, duke (nominal) of Athens and Neopatria, and count of Barcelona, Roussillon and Cerdanya (1412–1416). He was also regent of Castile (1406–1416). He was the first Castillian ruler of the Crown of Aragon.

02/04/1412

Ruy González de Clavijo, Spanish explorer and author

Ruy González de Clavijo was a Castilian traveler and writer. In 1403–1405, Clavijo was the ambassador of Henry III of Castile to the court of Timur, founder and ruler of the Timurid Empire. A diary of the journey, perhaps based on detailed notes kept while traveling, was later published in Spanish in 1582 and in English in 1859.

02/04/1335

Henry of Bohemia (born 1265)

Henry of Bohemia, a member of the House of Gorizia, was Duke of Carinthia and Landgrave of Carniola and Count of Tyrol from 1295 until his death, as well as King of Bohemia, Margrave of Moravia and titular King of Poland in 1306 and again from 1307 until 1310. After his death, the Habsburgs took over Carinthia and Carniola and held them almost without interruption until 1918.

02/04/1272

Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall, English husband of Sanchia of Provence (born 1209)

Richard was an English prince who was King of the Romans from 1257 until his death in 1272. He was the second son of John, King of England, and Isabella, Countess of Angoulême. Richard was nominal Count of Poitou from 1225 to 1243, and he also held the title Earl of Cornwall from 1225. He was one of the wealthiest men in Europe and joined the Barons' Crusade, where he achieved success as a negotiator for the release of prisoners and assisted with the building of the citadel in Ascalon.

02/04/1244

Henrik Harpestræng, Danish botanical and medical author

Henrik Harpestræng was a Danish botanical and medical author. He was a canon at the Roskilde Cathedral. His name literally means harp string. His greatest work was an urtebog, written in Danish. The book consists of 150 chapters dealing with plants and plant parts. The main body of text is probably translations from two Latin works, De Viribus Herbarum by a person who calls himself Aemilius Macer, but is rather Odo Magdunensis, and De gradibus liber by Constantinus Africanus. However, there are a good many sections of which Henrik Harpestræng is undoubtedly the original author. The book is also an invaluable source for Danish medieval plant names. The best preserved copy of this manuscript dates from the 13th century - now kept in Stockholm.

02/04/1118

Baldwin I, king of Jerusalem

Baldwin I was the first count of Edessa from 1098 to 1100 and king of Jerusalem from 1100 to his death in 1118. He was the youngest son of Eustace II, Count of Boulogne, and Ida of Lorraine and married a Norman noblewoman, Godehilde of Tosny. He received the County of Verdun in 1096, but he soon joined the crusader army of his brother Godfrey of Bouillon and became one of the most successful commanders of the First Crusade.

02/04/0991

Bardas Skleros, Byzantine general

Bardas Skleros or Sclerus was a Byzantine general who led a wide-scale Asian rebellion against Emperor Basil II during the years 976 to 979.

02/04/0968

Yuan Dezhao, Chinese chancellor (born 891)

Yuan Dezhao (元德昭), probably né Wei Dezhao (危德昭), courtesy name Mingyuan (名遠), was an official of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period state Wuyue, serving as a chancellor during the rule of Qian Hongzong and Qian Chu.

02/04/0872

Muflih al-Turki, Turkish general

Muflih al-Turki was a Turkish military officer of the Abbasid Caliphate in the mid-9th century. He played a prominent role in the events known as the Anarchy at Samarra and was later killed in battle against the Zanj rebels of southern Iraq.

02/04/0870

Æbbe the Younger, Frankish abbess

Saint Æbbe of Coldingham, also known as Æbbe the Younger, was an Abbess of Coldingham Priory in south-east Scotland.

02/04/0670

Hasan ibn Ali the second Shia Imam (born 624)

Hasan ibn Ali was an Alid political and religious leader. The eldest son of Ali and Fatima and a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, Hasan briefly ruled as caliph from January 661 until August 661. He is considered as the second Imam in Shia Islam, succeeding Ali and preceding his brother Husayn. As a grandson of the prophet, he is part of the ahl al-bayt and the ahl al-kisa, and also participated in the event of the mubahala.

Celebrations & Special Days Worldwide on 2nd April

Christian feast day: Abundius of Como

Abundius, venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Abundius, was a bishop of Como, Northern Italy.

Christian feast day: Amphianus of Lycia

Amphian is venerated as a martyr by the Catholic Church and by the Eastern Orthodox Church. He is said to have died during the persecutions of the Emperor Galerius on April 2 in or around the year 305. In the Eastern Orthodox calendar, his feast thus falls on April 2, along with Aedisius, who is sometimes called his brother.

Christian feast day: Æbbe the Younger

Saint Æbbe of Coldingham, also known as Æbbe the Younger, was an Abbess of Coldingham Priory in south-east Scotland.

Christian feast day: Bronach of Glen-Seichis (Irish martyrology)

Saint Brónach was a 6th-century holy woman from Ireland, the reputed founder and patron saint of Cell Brónche, now Kilbroney, in County Down, Northern Ireland.

Christian feast day: Blessed Elisabetta Vendramini

Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name. Beati is the plural form, referring to those who have undergone the process of beatification; they possess the title of "Blessed" before their names and are often referred to in English as "a Blessed" or, plurally, "Blesseds".

Christian feast day: Francis of Paola

Francis of Paola, O.M., was a Catholic friar from the town of Paola in Calabria who founded the Order of Minims. He was named after Francis of Assisi and like him Francis of Paola was never ordained a priest.

Christian feast day: Francisco Coll Guitart

Francisco Coll Guitart was a Spanish Catholic priest of the Order of Preachers and founder of the Dominican Sisters of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin.

Christian feast day: Henry Budd (Anglican Church of Canada)

Henry Budd, the first Native American ordained an Anglican priest, spent his career ministering to First Nations people. He is not to be confused with Henry Budd, a wealthy Englishman.

Christian feast day: Blessed Laura Evangelista Alvarado Cardozo

Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name. Beati is the plural form, referring to those who have undergone the process of beatification; they possess the title of "Blessed" before their names and are often referred to in English as "a Blessed" or, plurally, "Blesseds".

Christian feast day: Blessed Nicholas Charnetsky

Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name. Beati is the plural form, referring to those who have undergone the process of beatification; they possess the title of "Blessed" before their names and are often referred to in English as "a Blessed" or, plurally, "Blesseds".

Christian feast day: Nicetius of Lyon

Saint Nicetius was Archbishop of Lyon, then Lugdunum, France, during the 6th century. He served from 552 or 553. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church.

Christian feast day: Theodosia of Tyre

Saint Theodosia of Tyre, according to the historian of the early Christian church Eusebius, was a seventeen-year-old girl who deliberately sought to be executed as a martyr to Christianity in the city of Caesarea in 307 AD. She was tortured, urged to reject Christianity, and, when she refused, thrown into the sea. She is commemorated on April 2.

Christian feast day: Urban of Langres

Urban of Langres was a Gallo-Roman saint and bishop. He served as the sixth bishop of Langres from 374 until his death. Leodegaria was his sister.

Christian feast day: Blessed Vilmos Apor

Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name. Beati is the plural form, referring to those who have undergone the process of beatification; they possess the title of "Blessed" before their names and are often referred to in English as "a Blessed" or, plurally, "Blesseds".

Christian feast day: April 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

April 1 - Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar - April 3

International Children's Book Day (International)

International Children's Book Day (ICBD) is a yearly event sponsored by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), an international non-profit organization. Founded in 1967, the day is observed on or around Hans Christian Andersen's birthday, April 2. Activities include writing competitions, announcements of book awards and events with authors of children's literature.

Thai Heritage Conservation Day (Thailand)

Public holidays in Thailand are regulated by the government, and most are observed by both the public and private sectors. There are usually nineteen public holidays in a year, but more may be declared by the cabinet. Other observances, both official and non-official, local and international, are observed to varying degrees throughout the country.

Unity of Peoples of Russia and Belarus Day (Belarus)

National holidays in Belarus are classified into state holidays and other holidays and commemorative days, including religious holidays. Nine of them are non-working days.

World Autism Awareness Day (International)

World Autism Awareness Day or World Autism Acceptance Day is an internationally recognized day that encourages member states of the United Nations to take measures to raise global awareness of autism, promote the acceptance, appreciation and inclusion of autistic individuals and recognize such individuals' local and global contributions. The date was chosen to mark the beginning of World Autism Awareness Month, an observance which serves a similar purpose.

Malvinas Day (Argentina)

Malvinas Day, officially Day of the Veterans and Fallen of the Malvinas War, is a public holiday in Argentina, observed each year on 2 April. The name refers to the Falkland Islands, known in Argentina as the Islas Malvinas.

What Happened on 2nd April?

41 significant events took place on Sunday, 2nd April — stretching from 1107 to 2025. Explore the moments that shaped history on this day.

02/04/2025

Liberation Day tariffs: U.S. President Donald Trump announces sweeping worldwide tariffs.

United States president Donald Trump announced a broad package of import duties on April 2, 2025—a date he called "Liberation Day". In a White House Rose Garden ceremony, Trump signed Executive Order 14257, Regulating Imports With a Reciprocal Tariff to Rectify Trade Practices That Contribute to Large and Persistent Annual United States Goods Trade Deficits. This order declared a national emergency over the United States' trade deficit and invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to authorize sweeping tariffs on foreign imports.

02/04/2024

Viertola school shooting: A 12-year-old pupil is killed and two others injured by a shooter of the same age in Vantaa, Finland.

On 2 April 2024, a shooting occurred at the Viertola school, Jokiranta site in Vantaa, Finland. The gunman, a 12-year-old fired a revolver at three students, all aged 12. One victim was killed while two were seriously injured.

02/04/2021

At least 49 people are killed in a train derailment in Taiwan after a truck accidentally rolls onto the track.

On 2 April 2021, at 09:28 NST (01:28 UTC), a Taroko Express train operated by the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) derailed at the north entrance of Qingshui Tunnel in Heren Section, Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan, killing 49 people and injuring at least two others, making it the deadliest railway accident in Taiwan in terms of confirmed deaths.

A Capitol Police officer is killed and another injured when an attacker rams his car into a barricade outside the United States Capitol.

The United States Capitol Police (USCP) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States with nationwide jurisdiction charged with protecting the United States Congress within the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its territories. It answers to the Capitol Police Board and is the only law enforcement agency appointed by the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States.

02/04/2020

COVID-19 pandemic: The total number of confirmed cases reach one million.

The global COVID-19 pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. It spread to other parts of Asia and then worldwide in early 2020. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on 30 January 2020 and assessed it as having become a pandemic on 11 March. The WHO declared that the public health emergency caused by COVID-19 had ended in May 2023.

02/04/2015

Gunmen attack Garissa University College in Kenya, killing at least 148 people and wounding 79 others.

On 2 April 2015, gunmen stormed the Garissa University College in Garissa, Kenya, killing 148 people, and injuring at least 79. The militant groups Al-Qaeda and Al-Shabaab, which the gunmen claimed to belong to, took responsibility for the attack. The gunmen took over 700 students hostage, freeing Muslims and killing those who identified as Christians. The siege ended the same day, when all four of the attackers were killed. Five men were later arrested in connection with the attack, and a bounty was placed for the arrest of a suspected organizer.

Four men steal items worth up to £200 million from an underground safe deposit facility in London's Hatton Garden area in what has been called the "largest burglary in English legal history."

In April 2015, an underground safe deposit facility in Hatton Garden, London, owned by Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Ltd., was burgled. According to official sources, the total stolen had an estimated value of up to £14 million, of which only £4.3 million has been recovered. The burglars entered through a lift shaft over the Easter bank holiday weekend and used a Hilti DD350 industrial power drill to bore through the 50 cm (20 in) thick vault walls.

02/04/2014

A spree shooting occurs at the Fort Hood army base in Texas, with four dead, including the gunman, and 16 others injured.

On April 2, 2014, a spree shooting occurred at several locations on the Fort Hood military base near Killeen, Texas. Four people, including the gunman, were killed while 14 additional people were injured; 12 by gunshot wounds. The shooter, 34-year-old Army Specialist Ivan Lopez-Lopez, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

02/04/2012

A mass shooting at Oikos University in California leaves seven people dead and three injured.

On April 2, 2012, a mass shooting occurred inside Oikos University, a Korean Christian college in Oakland, California, United States. Seven people were killed, and three others were injured. One L. Goh, a former student at the school, was taken into custody and identified as the suspect in the shooting. It is the deadliest mass killing in the city's history.

UTair Flight 120 crashes after takeoff from Roshchino International Airport in Tyumen, Russia, killing 33 and injuring 10.

UTair Flight 120 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Tyumen to Surgut, Russia. On 2 April 2012, the ATR-72 turboprop aircraft operating the flight crashed shortly after take-off from Roschino International Airport, killing 33 of the 43 people on board. Investigation carried out by the Russian Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) revealed that the aircraft had not been de-iced prior to its take-off, even though it had been parked for hours in snowy condition. The crew of the flight were aware that ice and snow had accumulated on the aircraft, but decided not to de-ice it.

02/04/2011

India wins the Cricket World Cup for the second time in history under the captaincy of MS Dhoni.

The India men's national cricket team represents India in international cricket. It is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and is a full member nation of the International Cricket Council with Test, One Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) status. India are the current holders of the T20 World Cup, the ICC Champions Trophy, and the Asia Cup.

02/04/2006

Over 60 tornadoes break out in the United States; Tennessee is hardest hit with 29 people killed.

A tornado, also known as a twister, is a rapidly rotating column of air that extends vertically from the surface of the Earth to the base of a cumulonimbus or cumulus cloud. Tornadoes are often visible in the form of a condensation funnel originating from the cloud base, with a cloud of rotating debris and dust close to the ground. Most tornadoes have wind speeds less than 180 kilometers per hour, are about 80 meters across, and travel several kilometers before dissipating. The most extreme tornadoes can attain wind speeds of more than 480 kilometers per hour (300 mph), can be more than 3 kilometers (2 mi) in diameter, and can stay on the ground for more than 100 km (62 mi).

02/04/2004

Islamist terrorists involved in the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks attempt to bomb the Spanish high-speed train AVE near Madrid; the attack is thwarted.

Islamism is a range of religious and political ideological movements that believe that Islam should influence political systems. Its proponents believe Islam is innately political, and that Islam as a political system is superior to communism, liberal democracy, capitalism, and other alternatives in achieving a just, successful society. The advocates of Islamism, also known as al-Islamiyyun, are usually affiliated with Islamic institutions or social mobilization movements, emphasizing the implementation of sharia, pan-Islamic political unity, and the creation of Islamic states.

02/04/2002

Israeli forces surround the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, into which armed Palestinians had retreated.

Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. It is bordered by Lebanon to the north, Syria to the northeast, Jordan to the east, and Egypt to the southwest. Israel's western coast lies on the Mediterranean Sea, its southern tip reaches the Red Sea, and to the east is Earth's lowest point near the Dead Sea. Jerusalem is the government seat and proclaimed capital, while Tel Aviv is Israel's largest urban area and economic centre.

02/04/1992

In New York, Mafia boss John Gotti is convicted of murder and racketeering and is later sentenced to life in prison.

New York, also called New York State, is a state located in the northeastern United States. Bordering New England to its east, Canada to its north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to its south, it extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes. New York is the fourth-most populous state in the United States, with over 20 million residents, and the 27th-largest state by area, with a total area of 54,556 square miles (141,300 km2).

Forty-two civilians are massacred in the town of Bijeljina in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Bijeljina massacre involved the killing of civilians by Serb paramilitary groups in Bijeljina on 1–2 April 1992 in the run-up to the Bosnian War. The majority of those killed were Bosnian Muslims. Members of other ethnicities were also killed, as well as Serbs deemed disloyal by the local authorities. The killings were committed by a local paramilitary group known as Mirko's Chetniks and by the Serb Volunteer Guard, a Serbia-based paramilitary group led by Željko "Arkan" Ražnatović. The SDG were under the command of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), which was controlled by Serbian President Slobodan Milošević.

02/04/1991

Rita Johnston becomes the first female Premier of a Canadian province when she succeeds William Vander Zalm (who had resigned) as Premier of British Columbia.

Rita Margaret Johnston is a Canadian politician in British Columbia. Johnston became the first female premier in Canadian history when she succeeded Bill Vander Zalm in 1991 to become the 29th premier of British Columbia, serving for seven months. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1983 to 1991, and served in the Vander Zalm ministry as part of the British Columbia Social Credit Party (Socred) caucus, including as deputy premier from 1990 to 1991.

02/04/1989

Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev arrives in Havana, Cuba, to meet with Fidel Castro in an attempt to mend strained relations.

The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until its dissolution in 1991. It was the world's third-most populous country, the largest by area, and bordered twelve countries. A diverse multinational state, it was organized as a federal union of national republics, with the largest and most populous being the Russian SFSR. In practice, its government and economy were highly centralized. As a one-party state governed by the Communist Party, it was the flagship communist state. Its capital and largest city was Moscow.

02/04/1986

Alabama governor George Wallace, a former segregationist, best known for the "Stand in the Schoolhouse Door", announces that he will not seek a fifth four-year term and will retire from public life upon the end of his term in January 1987.

Alabama is a state in the Southeastern and Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama is the 30th largest by area, and the 24th-most populous of the 50 U.S. states.

02/04/1982

Falklands War: Argentina invades the Falkland Islands.

The Falklands War was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial dependency, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The conflict began on 2 April 1982, when Argentina invaded and occupied the Falkland Islands, followed by the invasion of South Georgia the next day. On 5 April the British government dispatched a naval task force to engage the Argentine Navy and Air Force before making an amphibious assault on the islands. The conflict lasted 74 days and ended with an Argentine surrender on 14 June, returning the islands to British control. In total, 649 Argentine military personnel, 255 British military personnel and three Falkland Islanders were killed during the hostilities.

02/04/1980

United States President Jimmy Carter signs the Crude Oil Windfall Profits Tax Act.

James Earl Carter Jr. was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, Carter served from 1971 to 1975 as the 76th governor of Georgia and from 1963 to 1967 in the Georgia State Senate. He lived longer than any other president in US history, reaching age 100.

02/04/1979

A Soviet bio-warfare laboratory at Sverdlovsk accidentally releases airborne anthrax spores, killing 66 plus an unknown amount of livestock.

On 2 April 1979, spores of Bacillus anthracis were accidentally released from a Soviet Armed Forces research facility in the city of Sverdlovsk in the Soviet Union. The ensuing outbreak of the disease resulted in the deaths of at least 68 people, although the exact number of victims remains unknown. The cause of the outbreak was denied for years by the Soviet authorities, which blamed the deaths on consumption of tainted meat from the area, and subcutaneous exposure due to butchers handling the tainted meat. The accident was the first major indication in the Western world that the Soviet Union had embarked upon an offensive programme aimed at the development and large-scale production of biological weapons.

02/04/1976

Prince Norodom Sihanouk resigns as leader of Cambodia and is placed under house arrest.

Norodom Sihanouk was King, Chief of State and Prime Minister of Cambodia. He is known as Samdech Euv. During his lifetime, Cambodia was under various regimes, from French colonial rule, a Japanese puppet state (1945), an independent kingdom (1953–1970), a military republic (1970–1975), the Khmer Rouge regime (1975–1979), a Vietnamese-backed communist regime (1979–1989), a transitional communist regime (1989–1993) to eventually another kingdom.

02/04/1975

Vietnam War: Thousands of civilian refugees flee from Quảng Ngãi Province in front of advancing North Vietnamese troops.

The Vietnam War was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam and South Vietnam and their allies. North Vietnam was supported by the Soviet Union and China, while South Vietnam was supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations. The conflict was the second of the Indochina wars and a proxy war of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and US. The Vietnam War was one of the postcolonial wars of national liberation, a theater in the Cold War, and a civil war, with civil warfare a defining feature from the outset. Direct US military involvement escalated from 1965 until US forces were withdrawn in 1973. The fighting spilled into the Laotian and Cambodian civil wars, which ended with all three countries becoming communist in 1975.

02/04/1969

LOT Polish Airlines Flight 165 crashes into the Polica mountain near Zawoja, Poland, killing 53.

LOT Polish Airlines Flight 165 was an Antonov An-24 aircraft, registration SP-LTF, operating a scheduled passenger flight from Warsaw to Krakow Balice airport. It crashed into a mountain on 2 April 1969 at 16:08 local time (UTC+1) during a snowstorm. All 53 people on board were killed.

02/04/1930

After the mysterious death of Empress Zewditu, Haile Selassie is proclaimed emperor of Ethiopia.

Zewditu was Empress of Ethiopia from 1916 until her death in 1930. She officially adopted the regnal name "Zewditu" at the beginning of her reign, which was triggered by the dethroning of Lij Iyasu in 1916. Her coronation was held on February 11, 1917, in the Cathedral of St. George in Addis Ababa—a capital founded by her father. Forty years old and childless when crowned, she is the first and only empress regnant of the Ethiopian Empire. Described as the first modern female head of a nation in Africa, she was the last female Ethiopian head of state until the 2018 election of Sahle-Work Zewde as president. Her reign, which she is said to have closely patterned after the legacy of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, is noted for the reforms of her Regent and heir apparent Ras Tafari Makonnen – changes which she was at best ambivalent and often stridently opposed to, due to her staunch conservatism and strong religiosity.

02/04/1921

The Autonomous Government of Khorasan, a military government encompassing the modern state of Iran, is established.

The Autonomous Government of Khorasan was a short-lived military state set up in Iran. It was formally established on the April 2, 1921, and collapsed a few months later, on October 6, 1921. Their capital was Mashhad.

02/04/1917

American entry into World War I: President Wilson asks the U.S. Congress for a declaration of war on Germany.

The United States entered into World War I on 6 April 1917, more than two and a half years after the war began in Austria-Hungary. Apart from an Anglophile element urging early support for the British and an anti-tsarist element sympathizing with Germany's war against Russia, American public opinion had generally reflected a desire to stay out of the war. Over time, especially after reports of German atrocities in Belgium in 1914 and after the sinking of the RMS Lusitania in a torpedo attack by a submarine of the Imperial German Navy off the southern coast of Ireland in May 1915, Americans increasingly came to see Imperial Germany as the aggressor in Europe.

02/04/1912

The ill-fated RMS Titanic begins sea trials.

RMS Titanic was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the 2,208 passengers and crew aboard, approximately 1,500 died, making the incident one of the deadliest peacetime sinkings of a single ship. Titanic, operated by White Star Line, carried some of the wealthiest people in the world, as well as hundreds of emigrants from the British Isles, Scandinavia, and elsewhere in Europe who were seeking a new life in the United States and Canada. The disaster drew public attention, spurred major changes in maritime safety regulations, and inspired a lasting legacy in popular culture. It was the second time White Star Line had lost a ship on her maiden voyage, the first being RMS Tayleur in 1854.

02/04/1911

The Australian Bureau of Statistics conducts the country's first national census.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is an agency of the Australian Government that collates and analyses statistical data on economic, demographic, environmental and social issues to support policy research and development.

02/04/1885

Canadian Cree warriors attack the village of Frog Lake, killing nine.

The Cree are a North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations macro-communities. There are numerous Cree peoples and several nations closely related to the Cree, these being the Plains Cree, Woodland Cree, Rocky Cree, Swampy Cree, Moose Cree, and East Cree with the Atikamekw, Innu, and Naskapi being closely related. Also closely related to the Cree are the Oji-Cree and Métis, both nations of mixed heritage, the former with Ojibweg (Chippewa) and the latter with European fur traders. Cree homelands account for a majority of eastern and central Canada, from Eeyou Istchee in the east in what is now Quebec to northern Ontario, much of the Canadian Prairies, and up into British Columbia and the Northwest Territories. Although a majority of Cree live in Canada, there are small communities in the United States, living mostly in Montana where they share Rocky Boy's Indian Reservation with the Ojibwe people.

02/04/1865

American Civil War: Defeat at the Third Battle of Petersburg forces the Army of Northern Virginia and the Confederate government to abandon Richmond, Virginia.

The Third Battle of Petersburg, also known as the Breakthrough at Petersburg or the Fall of Petersburg, was fought on April 2, 1865, south and southwest Virginia in the area of Petersburg, Virginia, at the end of the 292-day Richmond–Petersburg Campaign and in the beginning stage of the Appomattox Campaign near the conclusion of the American Civil War. The Union Army under the overall command of General-in-Chief Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant, launched an assault on General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia's Petersburg, Virginia, trenches and fortifications after the Union victory at the Battle of Five Forks on April 1, 1865. As a result of that battle the Confederate right flank and rear were exposed. The remaining supply lines were cut and the Confederate defenders were reduced by over 10,000 men killed, wounded, taken prisoner or in flight.

02/04/1863

American Civil War: The largest in a series of Southern bread riots occurs in Richmond, Virginia.

The American Civil War was a civil war in the United States between the Union and the Confederacy, which was formed in 1861 by states that had seceded from the Union to preserve slavery in the United States, which they saw as threatened because of the election of Abraham Lincoln and the growing abolitionist movement in the North. The war ended with Union victory, the dissolution of the Confederacy and the abolition of slavery, freeing four million African Americans.

02/04/1801

French Revolutionary Wars: In the Battle of Copenhagen a British Royal Navy squadron defeats a hastily assembled, smaller, mostly-volunteer Dano-Norwegian Navy at high cost, forcing Denmark out of the Second League of Armed Neutrality.

The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted France against Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, Russia, and several other countries. The wars are divided into two periods: the War of the First Coalition (1792–1797) and the War of the Second Coalition (1798–1802). Initially confined to Europe, the fighting gradually assumed a global dimension. After a decade of constant warfare and aggressive diplomacy, France had conquered territories in the Italian peninsula, the Low Countries, and the Rhineland with its very large and powerful military which had been totally mobilized for war against most of Europe with mass conscription of the vast French population. French success in these conflicts ensured military occupation and the spread of revolutionary principles over much of Europe.

02/04/1800

Ludwig van Beethoven leads the premiere of his First Symphony in Vienna.

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer, conductor, and pianist. Mentored during the Classical period, Beethoven's musical style was a key driver of the transition to Romantic music, and the expansion of popular forms such as the symphony and string quartet. His compositions have attracted casual and scholarly interest, and remain among the most performed in the world.

02/04/1792

The Coinage Act is passed by Congress, establishing the United States Mint.

The Coinage Act of 1792, passed by the United States Congress on April 2, 1792, created the United States dollar as the country's standard unit of money, established the United States Mint, and regulated the coinage of the United States. This act established the silver dollar as the unit of money in the United States, declared it to be lawful tender, and created a decimal system for U.S. currency.

02/04/1755

Commodore William James captures the Maratha fortress of Suvarnadurg on the west coast of India.

Commodore (Cdre) is a rank of the Royal Navy above captain and below rear admiral. It has a NATO ranking code of OF-6. The rank is equivalent to brigadier in the British Army and the Royal Marines and to air commodore in the Royal Air Force. Commodore has been a substantive rank in the Royal Navy since only 1997. Until then the term denoted a functional position rather than a formal rank, being the title bestowed on the senior officer of a fleet of at least two naval vessels comprising an independent command.

02/04/1725

J. S. Bach's cantata Bleib bei uns, denn es will Abend werden, BWV 6, is first performed in Leipzig on Easter Monday.

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the orchestral Brandenburg Concertos; solo instrumental works such as the Cello Suites and Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin; keyboard works such as the Goldberg Variations and The Well-Tempered Clavier; organ works such as the Schübler Chorales and the Toccata and Fugue in D minor; and choral works such as the St. Matthew Passion and the Mass in B minor. He is known for his mastery of counterpoint, as heard in The Musical Offering and The Art of Fugue. Felix Mendelssohn precipitated the Bach Revival with a performance of the St. Matthew Passion in 1829. Ever since, Bach has been acclaimed as one of the greatest composers of classical music.

02/04/1513

Having spotted land on March 27, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León comes ashore on what is now the U.S. state of Florida, landing somewhere between the modern city of St. Augustine and the mouth of the St. Johns River.

Juan Ponce de León was a Spanish explorer and conquistador known for leading the first European expeditions to Puerto Rico in 1508 and Florida in 1513. He was born in Santervás de Campos, Valladolid, Spain, in 1474. Though little is known about his family, he was of noble birth and served in the Spanish military from a young age. He first came to the Americas as a "gentleman volunteer" with Christopher Columbus's second expedition in 1493.

02/04/1285

Election of Pope Honorius IV following the death of Pope Martin IV.

Pope Honorius IV was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 April 1285 to his death on 3 April 1287. His election followed the death of Pope Martin IV and was notable for its speed; he was chosen unanimously on the first ballot. Honorius IV's papacy occurred during a tumultuous period marked by political strife and conflict in Sicily, where he sought to navigate complex relationships with various rulers while maintaining papal authority. During his pontificate he continued to pursue the pro-French political policy of his predecessor. He is the most recent pope to take the pontifical name "Honorius" upon election, after his granduncle Pope Honorius III.

02/04/1107

Seljuq sultan Muhammad I Tapar begins the siege of Shahdiz, a fortress of the Nizari Ismailis.

The Seljuk Empire, or the Great Seljuk Empire, was a high medieval, Turko-Persian empire established and ruled by the Qïnïq branch of Oghuz Turks. The empire spanned a total area of 3.9 million square kilometres from Anatolia and the Levant in the west to the Hindu Kush in the east, and from Central Asia in the north to the Persian Gulf in the south, and it spanned the time period 1037–1308, though Seljuk rule beyond the Anatolian peninsula ended in 1194.

On this day

World Autism Awareness Day

International Children's Book Day

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2nd April in the Stars – Star Sign Aries

Personality Profile

Fun Facts About 2nd April

Famous Birthdays on 2nd April

Brenda Fruhvirtová, Czech tennis player

Adrián Liso, Spanish footballer

Diana Shnaider, Russian tennis player

Emma Myers, American actress

Rodrigo Riquelme, Spanish footballer

Josip Stanišić, Croatian footballer

Dillon Bassett, American race car driver

Abdelhak Nouri, Dutch footballer

Austin Riley, American baseball player

Zach Bryan, American singer-songwriter

André Onana, Cameroonian footballer

Zack Steffen, American soccer player

Pascal Siakam, Cameroonian basketball player

Keshorn Walcott, Trinidadian javelin thrower

Bruno Zuculini, Argentine footballer

Quavo, American rapper

Yevgeniya Kanayeva, Russian gymnast

Miralem Pjanić, Bosnian footballer

Amr El Solia, Egyptian footballer

Ellen Adarna, Filipino actress, model and public figure

Renée Good, American writer, poet and shooting victim (died 2026)

Jesse Plemons, American actor

Pablo Aguilar, Paraguayan footballer

Shane Lowry, Irish Professional Golfer, winner of the 2019 Open Championship and European Team Member for the 2021 and 2023 Ryder Cups

Ibrahim Afellay, Dutch footballer

Andris Biedriņš, Latvian basketball player

Drew Van Acker, American actor, model and producer

Thom Evans, Zimbabwean-Scottish rugby player

Stéphane Lambiel, Swiss figure skater

Engin Atsür, Turkish basketball player

Nóra Barta, Hungarian diver

Jérémy Morel, French footballer

Miguel Ángel Moyá, Spanish footballer

Arthur Boka, Ivorian footballer

Maksym Mazuryk, Ukrainian pole vaulter

Marco Amelia, Italian footballer

David Ferrer, Spanish tennis player

Michael Clarke, Australian cricketer

Kapil Sharma, Indian stand-up comedian, television presenter and actor

Avi Benedi, Israeli singer and songwriter

Adam Fleming, Scottish journalist

Gavin Heffernan, Canadian director and screenwriter

Ricky Hendrick, American race car driver (died 2004)

Wairangi Koopu, New Zealand rugby league player

Carlos Salcido, Mexican international footballer

Per Elofsson, Swedish skier

Michael Fassbender, German-Irish actor and producer

Hanno Pevkur, Estonian lawyer and politician, Estonian Minister of Justice

Andreas Anastasopoulos, Greek shot putter

Rory Sabbatini, South African golfer

Nate Huffman, American basketball player (died 2015)

Randy Livingston, American basketball player

Katrin Rutschow-Stomporowski, German rower

Pattie Mallette, Canadian author and film producer

Pedro Pascal, Chilean and American actor

Tayfun Korkut, Turkish football manager and former player

Dmitry Lipartov, Russian footballer

Roselyn Sánchez, Puerto Rican-American actress

Aleksejs Semjonovs, Latvian footballer

Eyal Berkovic, Israeli footballer

Remo D'Souza, Indian choreographer and dancer

Calvin Davis, American sprinter and hurdler (died 2023)

Zane Lamprey, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter

Edmundo Alves de Souza Neto, Brazilian footballer

Jason Lewry, English cricketer

Todd Woodbridge, Australian tennis player and sportscaster

Ajay Devgn, Indian actor, director, and producer

Greg Camp, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

Phil Demmel, American guitarist and songwriter

Bill Romanowski, American football player and actor

Teddy Sheringham, English international footballer and coach

Rodney King, American victim of police brutality (died 2012)