Monday, 2nd February 2026 in Lisbon

2nd February in the Stars – Star Sign Aquarius

Today, the zodiac sign Aquarius celebrates its birthday.

Personality Profile

Personality Those born on February 2 are cerebral thinkers with unconventional minds who question societal norms and forge their own paths. Their intellectual curiosity and drive for progress propel them to understand and reshape the world.

Strengths & Weaknesses They excel in originality, logical reasoning, and social consciousness. Their weakness lies in emotional distance and a tendency toward detachment, which complicates interpersonal relationships.

Love These Aquarians need partners respecting their independence and offering intellectual stimulation. Emotional depth develops slowly, but deep mental connections are essential for fulfillment.

Caree & Finance Careers in tech, innovation, science, or social sectors appeal to them. Financial stability matters, though they're less materialistic than other signs.

Health Mental stimulation and social engagement benefit them greatly. Regular physical activity and breaks from overthinking support emotional wellbeing and physical health.

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

Chinese year of the Snake (Wood).

Fun Facts About 2nd February

Name Days in Your Language: Aleta, Aletha, Alethea, Alida, Alita, Lita

Someone born on this day would be just 133 days old today — roughly 3,203 hours, 192,201 minutes, or 11,532,074 seconds spent on Earth so far.

It's the 33. day of the year. In 2026, 2nd February falls on a Monday.

There are 332 days still to come.

We’re currently in Week 6 — the year marches on.

Famous Birthdays on 1st February

On this day, 334 notable people were born on 1st February — spanning from 1208 to 2004. From world leaders to artists and scientists, discover who shares this birthday.

02/02/2004

Eleonore Caburet, French rhythmic gymnast

Eleonore Caburet is a French rhythmic gymnast, member of the French national group.

02/02/2001

Westcol, Colombian online streamer

Luis Fernando Villa Álvarez, better known by his online alias WestCOL is a Colombian online streamer and executive producer. He became the most followed streamer on Kick in 2024, having risen to fame through his gaming content. His career has been marred by controversies which have garnered media and legal attention.

02/02/2000

Munetaka Murakami, Japanese baseball player

Munetaka Murakami is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. His nickname "Murakami-sama", was given by fans because his feats at the plate could only be done by a kami-sama, or “god.” His nickname was Japan's word of the year for 2022.

02/02/1999

Jeff Okudah, American football player

Jeffrey Chidera Okudah is an American professional football cornerback. He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, earning unanimous All-American honors in 2019 before being selected by the Detroit Lions with the third overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft. Okudah has also played for the Atlanta Falcons, Houston Texans, and Minnesota Vikings in his career.

02/02/1998

Shiho Katō, Japanese singer and model

Shiho Katō is a Japanese actress, model, and singer. She is an exclusive model for the fashion magazine CanCam and starred as Ayaka Usagida in Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko! (2024−2025).

02/02/1997

Ellie Bamber, English actress

Eleanor Elizabeth Bamber is an English actress. She won third prize at the Ian Charleson Awards for her 2017 performance in The Lady from the Sea at the Donmar Warehouse. On television, she is known for her roles in the BBC series Les Misérables (2018), The Trial of Christine Keeler (2019–2020), and The Serpent (2021), and the Disney+ series Willow (2022).

02/02/1996

Christian Dvorak, American ice hockey player

Christian Dvorak is an American professional ice hockey player who is a center for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected in the second round, 58th overall, by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2014 NHL entry draft. Dvorak has also previously played for the Montreal Canadiens.

Paul Mescal, Irish actor

Paul Colm Michael Mescal is an Irish actor. His accolades include two BAFTA Awards and a Laurence Olivier Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award.

Harry Winks, English footballer

Harry Billy Winks is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for EFL League One club Leicester City.

02/02/1995

Paul Digby, English footballer

Paul Andrew Digby is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Scottish Premiership club Dundee. He has previously played for Barnsley, Ipswich Town, Mansfield Town, Forest Green Rovers, Stevenage and Cambridge United.

Aleksander Jagiełło, Polish footballer

Aleksander Jagiełło is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a winger.

Arfa Karim, Pakistani student and computer prodigy (died 2012)

Arfa Abdul Karim Randhawa (Urdu: ارفع عبد الکریم رندھاوا‎, Punjabi: ارفع عبد الکریم رندھاوا‎; 2 February 1995 – 14 January 2012) was a Pakistani student and computer prodigy who became the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) in 2004. She was submitted to the Guinness Book of World Records for her achievement. Arfa kept the title until 2008 and went on to represent Pakistan on various international forums, including the TechEd Developers Conference. She received Pakistan's highest literary award, the Presidential Pride of Performance from General Pervez Musharraf in 2005. A science park in Lahore, the Arfa Software Technology Park, is named in her honour. At the age of 10, Arfa was invited by Bill Gates to visit Microsoft's headquarters in the United States. She died in 2012, aged 16, from a cardiac arrest.

Curtis Lazar, Canadian ice hockey player

Curtis Lazar is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a forward for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the 2013 NHL entry draft.

Remilia, American professional gamer (died 2019)

Maria Creveling, better known as Remilia, was an American professional League of Legends player. She was the first woman and first transgender person to compete in the North American League of Legends Championship Series, debuting in the 2016 spring split as the support for Renegades. However, she took a sudden hiatus from professional play a few weeks into her debut season due to onstage pressure and online harassment. During her career she was particularly known for her mastery of the character Thresh, which earned her the nicknames "Thresh Queen" and "MadWife".

02/02/1994

Caterina Bosetti, Italian volleyball player

Caterina Chiara Bosetti is an Italian professional volleyball player who plays for Savino del Bene Scandicci and the Italian national team. She is an Olympic gold medallist.

02/02/1993

Bobby Decordova-Reid, English footballer

Bobby Armani De Cordova-Reid is a professional footballer who plays as a forward or left winger for EFL League One club Leicester City. Born in England, he represents Jamaica at international level.

Ravel Morrison, English footballer

Ravel Ryan Morrison is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for UAE Second Division League club Arabian Falcons.

02/02/1992

Lammtarra, American race horse (died 2014)

Lammtarra was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He ran only four times and retired undefeated. Lammtarra won three Group One races in 1995, in which year he was voted the Cartier Three-Year-Old European Champion Colt after winning the Derby in record time, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. He is one of only two horses to win all three races.

Joonas Tamm, Estonian footballer

Joonas Tamm is an Estonian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Liga II club Sepsi OSK and the Estonia national team.

02/02/1991

Nathan Delfouneso, English footballer

Nathan Abayomi Delfouneso is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker.

Gregory Mertens, Belgian footballer (died 2015)

Gregory Mertens was a Belgian professional football player. His usual position was central defender. He began his senior career with Cercle Brugge and was under contract with Lokeren before he suffered a fatal cardiac arrest during a reserve game in 2015.

Shohei Nanba, Japanese actor

Shohei Nanba is a Japanese actor who was represented by Box Corporation.

02/02/1989

Harrison Smith, American football player

Harrison Smith is an American professional football safety. He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft with the 29th overall pick.

Southside, American record producer

Joshua Howard Luellen, known professionally as Southside, is an American record producer, rapper and songwriter. Based in Atlanta, he is recognized in the music industry for his aggressive, trap-infused production work for prominent hip hop artists. After meeting hometown rapper Waka Flocka Flame, Luellen signed with his record label Brick Squad Monopoly—an imprint of Gucci Mane's 1017 Records—as in-house talent in 2010. Luellen and labelmate, fellow producer Lex Luger established the production team 808 Mafia that same year; it was credited on several commercially successful releases throughout the remaining decade.

02/02/1988

JuJu Chan, Hong Kong-American actress, martial artist, singer, and writer

JuJu Chan Szeto also known as JuJu Chan, is an American actress, martial artist, singer, and writer.

Zosia Mamet, American actress

Zosia Mamet is an American actress and musician. She is known for her breakout role as Shoshanna Shapiro in the HBO series Girls.

Brad Peacock, American baseball player

Bradley Joseph Peacock is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals, Houston Astros, and Boston Red Sox. Listed at 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) and 207 pounds (94 kg), he throws and bats right-handed.

02/02/1987

Anthony Fainga'a, Australian rugby player

Anthony Fainga'a is an Australian former professional rugby union footballer. His usual position is centre.

Saia Fainga'a, Australian rugby player

Saia Fainga'a is a retired Australian professional rugby union footballer.

Faydee, Australian singer

Fady Fatrouni, best known by his stage name Faydee, is an Australian singer. He is best known for his 2013 single "Can't Let Go", as well his international hit "Habibi " credited to Shaggy, Mohombi, Faydee and Costi.

Athena Imperial, Filipino journalist, Miss Earth-Water 2011

Athena Mae Duarte Imperial-Rodriguez is a Filipino news field reporter, communication researcher and beauty pageant titleholder. She entered the 2011 Miss Philippines Earth beauty pageant and was crowned Miss Earth-Water 2011.

Mimi Page, American singer-songwriter and composer

Mimi Page is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and composer.

Gerard Piqué, Spanish footballer

Gerard Piqué Bernabeu is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is considered to be one of the greatest defenders of his generation and is one of the most decorated players with 37 trophies. In 2022, he founded the Kings League sports league based in Spain and eventually across several countries and regions.

Javon Ringer, American football player

Javon Eugene Ringer is an American former professional football player who was a running back for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan State Spartans, earning consensus All-American honors in 2008. He was selected in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL draft.

Jill Scott, English footballer

Jill Louise Scott is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. The FIFA technical report into the 2011 Women's World Cup described Scott as one of England's four outstanding players; "[an] energetic, ball-winning midfielder who organises the team well, works hard at both ends of the pitch and can change her team's angle of attack."

Martin Spanjers, American actor and producer

Martin Brian Spanjers is an American actor. He played Rory Hennessy on the ABC sitcom 8 Simple Rules from 2002 to 2005, for which he won a Young Artist Award in 2004, and as Justin in Good Luck Charlie (2010–2014).

02/02/1986

Gemma Arterton, English actress and singer

Gemma Christina Arterton is an English actress. After her stage debut in Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost at the Globe Theatre (2007), Arterton made her feature-film debut in the comedy St Trinian's (2007). She portrayed Bond Girl Strawberry Fields in the James Bond film Quantum of Solace (2008), a performance which won her an Empire Award for Best Newcomer, and spy Pollyana "Polly" Wilkins / Agent Galahad in the action war film The King's Man (2021).

Miwa Asao, Japanese volleyball player

Miwa Asao is a female Japanese beach volleyball player. Referred to in media reports as the "pixie of beach volleyball" or simply "pixie of the beach" for her good looks, Asao helped to popularize beach volleyball in Japan. She became a national celebrity from the many articles written on her in Japanese magazines and newspapers, and through her numerous appearances on television.

02/02/1985

Morris Almond, American basketball player

Morris Almond is an American former professional basketball player. Almond is the founder of Almond Athletics. His last professional appearance would be for the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA Development League (D-League).

Masoud Azizi, Afghan sprinter

Masoud Azizi is an Afghan athlete. His personal best time in the 100m sprint is 11.11 seconds, achieved in April 2005 in Mecca. In 2013 Azizi failed a doping test at the 2013 World Championships, and was suspended for two years.

Renn Kiriyama, Japanese actor

Renn Kiriyama is a Japanese stage and television actor from Yokohama. His debut role was as Bunta Marui in The Prince of Tennis musical Absolute King Rikkai feat. Rokkaku ~ First Service. Kiriyama is also known for his role in Shotaro Hidari, the male lead and half of the eponymous hero of the television series Kamen Rider W.

Kristo Saage, Estonian basketball player

Kristo Saage is an Estonian professional basketball player who plays for Tere Kadrina Karud of the Saku I Liiga. He is a 1.85-metre-tall point guard. He also represented the Estonian national basketball team internationally.

Silvestre Varela, Portuguese footballer

Silvestre Manuel Gonçalves Varela is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a winger.

02/02/1984

Brian Cage, American wrestler

Brian Christopher Joseph Button, better known by the ring name Brian Cage, is an American professional wrestler and bodybuilder. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is a member of The Don Callis Family and a former one-time FTW Champion. He also performs in AEW's sister promotion Ring of Honor (ROH), where he is a former ROH World Television Champion and a former two-time ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champion.

Chin-Lung Hu, Taiwanese baseball player

Chin-Lung Hu is a retired Taiwanese professional baseball shortstop. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets, and in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) for the EDA Rhinos/Fubon Guardians and the Uni-President Lions. He was the fifth player — and first infielder — from Taiwan to play in MLB. His last name is the shortest in MLB history.

Mao Miyaji, Japanese actress

Mao Miyaji is a Japanese actress.

Rudi Wulf, New Zealand rugby player

Rudi Wulf is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays for Lyon in the French Top 14. He previously played for Toulon and Castres Olympique.

02/02/1983

Ronny Cedeño, Venezuelan baseball player

Ronny Alexander Salazar Cedeño, is a Venezuelan former professional baseball shortstop, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Seattle Mariners, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets, Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, and Philadelphia Phillies. Cedeño batted and threw right-handed.

Carolina Klüft, Swedish heptathlete and jumper

Carolina Evelyn Klüft is a retired Swedish track and field athlete who competed in the heptathlon, pentathlon, long jump and triple jump. She was an Olympic Champion, having won the heptathlon title in 2004. She was also a three-time World heptathlon champion, World Indoor pentathlon champion, a two-time European heptathlon champion and a two-time European Indoor pentathlon champion. Klüft is the only athlete to win three consecutive world titles in the heptathlon. She was unbeaten in 22 heptathlon and pentathlon competitions from 2002 to 2007, her entire combined events career as a senior athlete, winning nine consecutive gold medals in major championships.

Jordin Tootoo, Canadian ice hockey player

Jordin John Kudluk Tootoo is a Canadian former professional hockey player, who played for the Nashville Predators, Detroit Red Wings, New Jersey Devils and Chicago Blackhawks. Of Inuit, Ukrainian and English descent, he is the first Inuk player to play in the National Hockey League (NHL). Tootoo was widely regarded as one of the NHL's best agitators and was able to annoy and fight other players to help his team win. At the end of the 2016–17 NHL season, Tootoo had accumulated 65 goals, 96 assists and 1010 PIMs in 723 career NHL games since entering the league in 2003.

Jason Vargas, American baseball player

Jason Matthew Vargas is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Angels, Kansas City Royals, New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies. The Marlins drafted Vargas in the second round of the 2004 MLB draft. He made his major league debut in 2005. In 2017, he was an All-Star and tied for the American League lead in wins.

Vladimir Voskoboinikov, Estonian footballer

Vladimir Voskoboinikov is a retired Estonian professional footballer who played as a centre forward.

Alex Westaway, English singer-songwriter and guitarist

Alex Westaway is an English musician. He is the lead vocalist of Gunship and co-vocalist and guitarist of the rock band Fightstar alongside Charlie Simpson, Omar Abidi and Dan Haigh.

02/02/1982

Sergio Castaño Ortega, Spanish footballer

Sergio Castaño Ortega is a Spanish former footballer who played as a defensive midfielder, currently assistant manager of CD Eldense.

Kelly Mazzante, American basketball player

Kelly Anne Mazzante is an American retired professional women's basketball player who last played for the Atlanta Dream of the WNBA. After her collegiate career, she was the all-time leading scorer in Big Ten basketball history. The record stood until she was surpassed on the scoring list by Rachel Banham in 2016. The record was subsequently surpassed by Kelsey Mitchell in 2018 and Caitlin Clark in 2024.

Kan Mi-youn, South Korean singer, model, and host

Kan Mi-youn is a South Korean singer, actress, radio host, fashion designer, and businesswoman. Kan joined the South Korean girl group Baby V.O.X. in October 1997, which went on to become one of the most popular girl groups of that time. Kan went on to become a solo artist after the group disbanded in February 2006.

02/02/1981

Lance Allred, American basketball player and activist

Lance Collin Allred is an American former professional basketball player, who was the first deaf player to play an NBA game. Allred is legally deaf, with 75%–80% hearing loss due to Rh complications at birth. He is also an inspirational speaker and author, with his first book, Longshot: The Adventures of a Deaf Fundamentalist Mormon Kid and His Journey to the NBA, published by HarperCollins in 2009.

Emre Aydın, Turkish singer-songwriter

Emre Aydın is a Turkish rock singer-songwriter. The singer won the MTV Europe Music Awards 2008 in the "Europe's Favourite Act" category. He is also the former lead singer for the Turkish rock band 6. Cadde.

Michelle Bass, English model and singer

Michelle Bass is an English reality television star, columnist, model and media personality. She is best known for her appearance on the fifth series of Big Brother UK.

Salem al-Hazmi, Saudi Arabian terrorist, hijacker of American Airlines Flight 77 (died 2001)

Salem Muhammed al-Hazmi was a Saudi terrorist hijacker who was one of the five hijackers who assisted in the hijacking of American Airlines Flight 77 as part of the September 11 attacks. The aircraft was deliberately crashed into the Pentagon near Washington, D.C., killing everyone aboard the flight, including al-Hazmi.

02/02/1980

Teddy Hart, Canadian wrestler

Edward Ellsworth Annis is a Canadian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Teddy Hart. He currently works on the independent circuit. He is one-half of the RCW Tag Team Champions with Steven Styles. He is best known for his tenure with Major League Wrestling (MLW) as the leader of The Hart Foundation, where he held the MLW World Middleweight and MLW Tag Team championships. He has also wrestled known as a tenures for his time AAA, the short-lived Wrestling Society X, Jersey All Pro Wrestling, and Dragon Gate USA. He operates a wrestling school in Edmonton. He is the son of Georgia Hart of the Hart wrestling family and wrestler B. J. Annis. He is also the nephew of former professional wrestlers Bret Hart and Owen Hart. Hart achieved an early degree of fame when he became the youngest wrestler to be signed to the World Wrestling Federation. His subsequent release, controversial actions while wrestling on the independent circuit and various legal problems have earned him a measure of infamy.

Zhang Jingchu, Chinese actress

Zhang Jingchu is a Chinese actress. She first gained recognition for the film Peacock (2005), which won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival. Zhang is also known for her roles in the films Protégé (2007), Red River (2009), and Aftershock (2010).

Oleguer Presas, Spanish footballer

Oleguer Presas Renom, known simply as Oleguer, is a Spanish former professional footballer. Primarily a centre-back, he could also play as a defensive right-back.

02/02/1979

Urmo Aava, Estonian race car driver

Urmo Aava is a former Estonian rally driver who competed in the World Rally Championship between 2002 and 2009. His regular co-driver was Kuldar Sikk, who later became Ott Tänak's co-driver.

Fani Chalkia, Greek hurdler and sprinter

Fani Chalkia, also transliterated as Halkia or Khalkia, is a retired Greek hurdler. She won an Olympic gold medal in the women's 400 m hurdles at the 2004 Summer Olympics.

Christine Lampard, Irish television host

Christine Louise Lampard is a Northern Irish television and radio presenter. She has presented various television programmes with Adrian Chiles, such as The One Show (2007–2010) and Daybreak (2010–2011), while with Phillip Schofield she has presented Dancing on Ice (2012–2014) and This Morning. Lampard has also presented factual series for ITV including Off The Beaten Track (2013) and Wild Ireland (2015). Since 2016 she has been a presenter of the ITV lunchtime chat show Loose Women.

Shamita Shetty, Indian actress

Shamita Shetty is an Indian actress and interior designer. The younger sister of actress Shilpa Shetty, she made her acting debut with the romantic drama Mohabbatein (2000), which earned her the IIFA Award for Star Debut of the Year – Female. She went on to do films including Bewafaa (2005), Zeher (2005), and Cash (2007).

Irini Terzoglou, Greek shot putter

Iríni Terzóglou is a Greek shot putter. Her personal best put is 19.10 metres, achieved in June 2003 in Trikala. This is the current Greek record.

02/02/1978

Adam Christopher, New Zealand writer

Adam Christopher McGechan, who writes under the name Adam Christopher, is a New York Times Bestselling novelist known for his genre fiction. Born in New Zealand, he moved to North West England in 2006, where he lives with his wife.

Barry Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager

Barry Ferguson is a Scottish football coach, former player and pundit who was most recently interim head coach of Scottish Premiership club Rangers.

Dan Gadzuric, Dutch basketball player

Daniel Gadzuric is a Dutch-Serbian former professional basketball player. A center, Gadzuric attended preparatory school at The Governor's Academy in Byfield, Massachusetts, before playing college basketball for the Bruins at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2002 NBA draft.

Lee Ji-ah, South Korean actress

Kim Ji-ah, better known by the stage name Lee Ji-ah, is a South Korean actress. She rose to fame with her role in the television drama The Legend (2007), and has since further participated in Beethoven Virus (2008), Athena: Goddess of War (2010), Me Too, Flower! (2011), Thrice Married Woman (2013), My Mister (2018), The Penthouse: War in Life (2020–2021), and Queen of Divorce (2024).

Rich Sommer, American actor

Richard Sommer is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Harry Crane on the AMC drama series Mad Men (2007–2015) for which he earned two Screen Actors Guild Awards along with the ensemble cast. He is also known for his roles in the comedy-drama films The Devil Wears Prada (2006), Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012), The Giant Mechanical Man (2012), Hello, My Name Is Doris (2015), and BlackBerry (2023) as well as voicing Henry in the 2016 video game Firewatch. He guest starred in a number of Elementary episodes. More recently, he portrayed Detective Dean Riley in The CW crime drama television series In the Dark (2019).

Faye White, English footballer

Faye Deborah White, is an English former footballer who captained Arsenal Women in the FA Women's Super League and is the longest-serving female captain of England to date. Her Lionesses career spanned 15 years and five major tournament finals - a record four as captain. A UEFA Women's Champions League winner, she won both League titles and the FA Cup across three different decades with Arsenal. White was recognised for services to Sport in the Queen's New Year's Honours List 2007, being appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire In recognition of her achievements she was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2015.

02/02/1977

Shakira, Colombian singer-songwriter, producer, and actress

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll is a Colombian singer, songwriter, dancer, and record producer. Referred to as the "Queen of Latin Music", she has had a significant impact on the musical landscape of Latin America and has been credited with popularizing Hispanophone music globally, contributing to increased learning and use of the Spanish language worldwide. She is also credited with opening the doors of the international market for other Latin artists. Her accolades include four Grammy Awards and 15 Latin Grammy Awards.

Libor Sionko, Czech footballer

Libor Sionko is a Czech former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. At club level he started in his home town of Ostrava, playing for the youth teams of TJ Vítkovice and Baník Ostrava. Professionally, he played in his native country until 2004, featuring for clubs including Ostrava and Sparta Prague. He then went abroad, playing in Austria for Grazer AK and Austria Wien before heading to Scotland where he played for Rangers. He subsequently had a spell in Denmark with F.C. Copenhagen before returning to the Czech Republic to finish his career with Sparta, where he last played before retiring in 2012.

02/02/1976

Ryan Farquhar, Northern Irish motorcycle racer

Ryan Alan Robert Farquhar is a former professional motorcycle racer who primarily competed in road racing. Farquhar won the Geoff Duke Trophy as Champion of the Dukes Road Racing Rankings a record seven times. He won five races at the Cookstown 100 in one day and holds the most Irish national wins by any one rider, at 201. He previously raced a Kawasaki ZX-10R, a Kawasaki ZX-6R and a Kawasaki ER6.

James Hickman, English swimmer

James Hickman is a male English former competitive swimmer.

Ana Roces, Filipino actress

Ana Roces is a Filipino actress. Roces was formerly a teen idol in the 1990s and a cast member of That's Entertainment.

02/02/1975

Todd Bertuzzi, Canadian ice hockey player

Todd Bertuzzi is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger. Known as a power forward, he has played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Islanders, Vancouver Canucks, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks, Calgary Flames and Detroit Red Wings. He is widely known for his role in an infamous incident with Steve Moore, for which he was suspended by the NHL and IIHF, and criminally charged.

Donald Driver, American football player

Donald Jerome Driver is an American former professional football wide receiver who played for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for Alcorn State University, Driver was picked by Green Bay in the seventh round of the 1999 NFL draft. He spent his entire 14-season NFL career with the Packers and holds the franchise's all-time records for most career receptions and receiving yards. Driver was a member of the Packers team that won Super Bowl XLV. Every year in Cleveland, Driver holds the Donald Driver Football Camp for local kids which is held at the Cleveland High School Football field. Upon retirement, he won season 14 of Dancing with the Stars.

Ieroklis Stoltidis, Greek footballer

Ieroklis Stoltidis is a Greek retired international professional association football player, who played as midfielder, and is the current team manager of Super League 1 club Iraklis.

02/02/1973

Andrei Luzgin, Estonian tennis player and coach

Andrei Luzgin is a tennis coach and former Estonian tennis player. He achieved his career high ATP singles ranking in 1996 at No. 1212. The same year he also achieved his career high doubles ranking at No. 844.

Aleksander Tammert, Estonian discus thrower

Aleksander Tammert is an Estonian discus thrower.

Marissa Jaret Winokur, American actress and singer

Marissa Jaret Winokur, sometimes credited as Marissa Winokur, is an American actress and singer known for her Tony-winning performance as Tracy Turnblad in the Broadway musical Hairspray, an adaptation of John Waters's film, as well as her work on the Pamela Anderson sitcom Stacked. Some of her other TV credits include Curb Your Enthusiasm, Moesha, The Steve Harvey Show, Just Shoot Me!, Felicity and Dharma & Greg.

02/02/1972

Hisashi, Japanese musician

Hisashi Tonomura , better known by his stage name HISASHI, is a Japanese musician best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Glay. He is particularly associated with the brand Tokai, designing a series of personal signature guitars, based on their Talbo model.

Melvin Mora, Venezuelan baseball player

Melvin Mora Diaz is a Venezuelan-American former professional baseball infielder who currently serves as a hitting coach for the Leones de Yucatán of the Mexican League. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets, Baltimore Orioles, Colorado Rockies, and Arizona Diamondbacks, and in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) for the Mercuries Tigers.

Aleksey Naumov, Russian footballer

Aleksey Sergeyevich Naumov is a Russian former professional footballer, who played as defender. He played in Soviet First League, Russian Top Division and in Estonian Meistriliiga.

02/02/1971

Michelle Gayle, English singer-songwriter and actress

Michelle Patricia Gayle is a British singer, songwriter, actress and writer. Gayle had success as a soul and R&B singer in the 1990s, having achieved seven top-40 singles in the UK Singles Chart. These include "Sweetness" and "Do You Know". She released two top 40 albums through RCA Records but they parted company in 1997, and although Gayle has recorded other albums, they have not been released.

Arly Jover, Spanish actress

Araceli "Arly" Jover is a Spanish actress. She is best known for her role as the villainous vampire Mercury in the 1998 superhero film Blade.

Isaac Kungwane, South African footballer and sportscaster (died 2014)

Isaac Ramaitsane "Shakes" Kungwane was a South African football midfielder who played for Kaizer Chiefs, Jomo Cosmos, Pretoria City and Manning Rangers. As a part of the Kaizer Chiefs he wore the number 11 jersey after Nelson Dladla.

Rockwilder, American rapper and producer

Dana Stinson, more commonly known as Rockwilder, is an American hip hop producer and songwriter best known for his work with Redman, Jay-Z, LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, Xzibit, and Janet Jackson. He has appeared on every Redman studio album since 1994.

Hwang Seok-jeong, South Korean actress

Hwang Seok-jeong is a South Korean actress. She has mostly played supporting roles in films and television series, notably Secret Love (2013), Misaeng: Incomplete Life (2014) and She Was Pretty (2015).

Jason Taylor, Australian rugby league player and coach

Jason Taylor is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and a former professional rugby league footballer who played as a halfback in the 1990s and 2000s.

02/02/1970

Roar Strand, Norwegian footballer

Roar Strand is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder, mostly for Rosenborg. Strand was capped 42 times for the Norway national team. He is the player with the fourth-highest number of appearances in the Norwegian top division. He has won 16 league titles, more than any other player in history and the Norwegian Football Cup five times, and he has scored goals in 21 consecutive top flight seasons.

Erik ten Hag, Dutch footballer and manager

Erik ten Hag is a Dutch professional football executive, former manager, and player. He is set to work as technical director of Eredivisie club Twente at the start of the 2026–27 Eredivisie season.

Jennifer Westfeldt, American actress and singer

Jennifer Westfeldt is an American actress, director, screenwriter, and producer. She is best known for co-writing, co-producing, and starring in the 2002 indie film Kissing Jessica Stein, for which she received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best First Screenplay. She is also known for writing, producing, starring in, and making her directorial debut in the indie film Friends with Kids (2012).

02/02/1969

Dana International, Israeli singer-songwriter

Sharon Cohen, professionally known as Dana International, is an Israeli pop singer. She has released eight albums and three additional compilation albums. She was the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 1998 in Birmingham with the song "Diva" - the first transgender winner in Eurovision history.

Valeri Karpin, Estonian-Russian footballer and manager

Valery Georgiyevich Karpin is a Russian football manager and former player who manages the Russian national team. As a player, he was a midfielder and spent most of his career at Spartak Moscow, Real Sociedad and Celta Vigo. He holds citizenships of Russia, Spain and Estonia.

02/02/1968

Kenny Albert, American sportscaster

Kenneth Gary Albert is an American sportscaster, the son of NBA sportscaster Marv Albert and nephew of sportscasters Al Albert and Steve Albert. He is the only sportscaster who currently does play-by-play for all four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada.

Sean Elliott, American basketball player and sportscaster

Sean Michael Elliott is an American former professional basketball player who starred as a small forward in both the college and professional ranks. He attended the University of Arizona, where he had a standout career as a two-time All-American, winner of the 1989 John R. Wooden Award, the 1989 Adolph Rupp Trophy, the 1989 NABC Player of the Year, 1989 AP Player of the Year, and two-time Pac-12 Player of the Year.

Scott Erickson, American baseball player and coach

Scott Gavin Erickson is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees over 15 seasons. He was a member of the 1991 World Series champion Twins.

02/02/1967

Artūrs Irbe, Latvian ice hockey player and coach

Artūrs Irbe is a Latvian professional ice hockey coach and former goaltender. Born during the Soviet era, Irbe played for various Soviet league teams and the Soviet Union national team before moving to North America in 1991. Irbe played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the San Jose Sharks, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, and Carolina Hurricanes. In 2004 Irbe returned to Europe to play until he retired in 2007. He has served as a goaltending coach with Dinamo Riga, the Washington Capitals, and the Buffalo Sabres, as well as internationally with the Latvia men's national ice hockey team. He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2010. Irbe was rated number 93 on The Hockey News list of the Top 100 Goalies of All-Time in 2018.

Laurent Nkunda, Congolese general

Laurent Nkunda Mihigo is a Congolese former military officer and warlord who operated in the North Kivu Province during the Kivu conflict.

02/02/1966

Andrei Chesnokov, Russian tennis player and coach

Andrei Eduardovich Chesnokov is a former professional tennis player from Russia.

Robert DeLeo, American bass player, songwriter, and producer

Robert Emile DeLeo is an American musician, best known as the bassist for rock band Stone Temple Pilots. He is part of Delta Deep and he has also played in Talk Show and Army of Anyone. He is the younger brother of Stone Temple Pilots guitarist Dean DeLeo. He is also the former bass player for the supergroup Hollywood Vampires.

Adam Ferrara, American actor and comedian

Adam Ferrara is an American actor and comedian known for playing the role of Chief "Needles" Nelson on the FX series Rescue Me. He was a co-host on the U.S. version of Top Gear and played NYPD Sgt. Frank Verelli opposite Edie Falco on Showtime series Nurse Jackie. He also played Detective Tommy Manetti on the television series The Job.

Michael Misick, Caicos Islander politician, Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands

Michael Eugene Misick is a Turks and Caicos Islander politician who was the 7th Chief Minister of the Turks and Caicos Islands from 15 August 2003 to 9 August 2006 and was the 1st Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands from 9 August 2006 to 23 March 2009. Misick is a member of the Progressive National Party (PNP) and became chief minister when his party, after eight years as the opposition party, gained two parliamentary seats in by-elections. In addition to being premier, he was also the minister for Civil Aviation, Commerce and Development, Planning, District Administration, Broadcasting Commission, Tourist Board, Turks and Caicos Investment Agency, and Tourism. Several other members of Misick's family have been politicians in the Turks and Caicos Islands, and important leaders in the PNP. Washington Misick, his brother, is the current Premier, former Chief Minister and former Minister of Finance.

02/02/1965

Carl Airey, English footballer

Carl Airey is an English former professional footballer who made more than 200 appearances in the Football League playing as a centre forward during the 1980s.

Naoki Sano, Japanese wrestler and mixed martial artist

Naoki Sano is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist most notable for being the generational rival of legendary Japanese pro wrestler Jushin Liger. During the last years of his career he went by the name Takuma Sano .

02/02/1963

Ilya Byakin, Russian ice hockey player

Ilya Vladimirovich Byakin is a retired ice hockey player who played in the Soviet Hockey League and National Hockey League. He played for HC Spartak Moscow, Avangard Omsk, Edmonton Oilers, and San Jose Sharks. He was inducted into the Russian and Soviet Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988.

Eva Cassidy, American singer and guitarist (died 1996)

Eva Marie Cassidy was an American singer and musician known for her interpretations of jazz, folk, and blues music, sung with a powerful, emotive soprano voice. In 1992 she released her first album, The Other Side, a set of duets with go-go musician Chuck Brown, followed by a 1996 live solo album titled Live at Blues Alley. Although she had been honored by the Washington Area Music Association, she was virtually unknown outside her native Washington, D.C. area at the time of her death from melanoma at the age of 33 in 1996.

Kjell Dahlin, Swedish ice hockey player

Kjell Håkan Dahlin is a Swedish former professional ice hockey forward. He played for the Montreal Canadiens in the NHL in the mid-1980s.

Andrej Kiska, Slovak entrepreneur and philanthropist, President of Slovakia

Andrej Kiska is a Slovak politician, entrepreneur, writer and philanthropist who served as the fourth president of Slovakia from 2014 to 2019. He ran as an independent candidate in the 2014 presidential election in which he was elected to the presidency in the second round of voting over Prime Minister Robert Fico. Kiska declined to run for a second term in 2019. He has written two books about happiness, success, and his life.

Philip Laats, Belgian martial artist

Philip Laats is a Belgian judoka who competed at the international and world level.

Stephen McGann, English actor

Stephen Vincent McGann is an English actor, best known for portraying Dr Patrick Turner in the BBC One medical period drama series Call the Midwife. He is one of a family of acting brothers, the others being Joe, Paul, and Mark.

Vigleik Storaas, Norwegian pianist

Vigleik Storaas is a Norwegian jazz pianist and composer, and the younger brother of composer and bassist Gaute Storaas. He is known from a series of album releases and collaborations with jazz musicians such as Norma Winstone, Karin Krog, Terje Rypdal, Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Chet Baker, Jack DeJohnette and Warne Marsh.

02/02/1962

Philippe Claudel, French author, director, and screenwriter

Philippe Claudel is a French writer and film director.

Andy Fordham, English darts player (died 2021)

Andrew Fordham was an English professional darts player who competed in British Darts Organisation (BDO) tournaments. Nicknamed the Viking, he won the 2004 BDO World Darts Championship and the 1999 World Masters.

Luke Johnson, English businessman

Luke Oliver Johnson is a British entrepreneur. He is a former chairman of the PizzaExpress chain, the Royal Society of Arts and Channel 4.

Paul Kilgus, American baseball player

Paul Nelson Kilgus is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays, Baltimore Orioles, and St. Louis Cardinals.

Kate Raison, Australian actress

Katherine Raison is an Australian actress, best known for her roles on television and film, predominantly her numerous roles in soap operas.

Michael T. Weiss, American actor

Michael Terry Weiss is an American actor known for his role as Jarod in the television series The Pretender and for his role in Days of Our Lives.

02/02/1961

Abraham Iyambo, Namibian politician (died 2013)

Abraham Iyambo was a Namibian politician. Iyambo was a member of the National Assembly of Namibia since 1995, serving as Minister of Fisheries from 1997 to 2010 and Minister of Education from 2010 until his death. Iyambo was a member of both the central committee and political bureau of the SWAPO Party and the chairperson of its think tank.

Lauren Lane, American actress and academic

Lauren Lane is an American film, television, stage actress, and professor. She is best known for her role as C.C. Babcock on The Nanny (1993–1999).

02/02/1959

Dexter Manley, American football player

Dexter Keith Manley is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Washington Redskins. He also played for the Phoenix Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as well as in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Ottawa Rough Riders. Manley played college football for the Oklahoma State Cowboys and was selected by the Redskins in the fifth round of the 1981 NFL draft.

02/02/1958

Michel Marc Bouchard, Canadian playwright

Michel Marc Bouchard, is a Canadian playwright. He has received the Prix Journal de Montreal, Prix du Cercle des critiques de l'Outaouais, the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, the Floyd S. Chalmers Canadian Play Award, and nine Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards for the Vancouver productions of Lilies and The Orphan Muses.

02/02/1957

Phil Barney, Algerian-French singer-songwriter

Phil Barney is a French singer-songwriter. He was particularly successful with his 1987 song "Un Enfant de toi".

02/02/1956

Adnan Oktar, Turkish cult leader

Adnan Oktar, also known as Adnan Hoca or Harun Yahya, is a Turkish Muslim Quranist televangelist, Islamic creationist, author, and religious leader. His organization is commonly referred to as a cult, and he has been described as a cult leader.

02/02/1955

Leszek Engelking, Polish poet and author (died 2022)

Leszek Maria Engelking was a Polish poet, short story writer, novelist, translator, literary critic, essayist, Polish philologist, and literary academic, scholar, and lecturer.

Bob Schreck, American author

Robert "Bob" Schreck is an American comic book writer and editor. Schreck is best known for his influential role as editor and marketing director at Dark Horse Comics in the 1990s, co-founding Oni Press, and for his subsequent stint as editor for DC Comics. He is currently the Deputy Director of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

Michael Talbott, American actor

Michael Talbott is an American actor. He portrayed Detective Stanley Switek in the crime drama television series Miami Vice (1984–1989).

Kim Zimmer, American actress

Kimberly Jo Zimmer is an American actress, best known for her role as Reva Shayne on the CBS soap opera Guiding Light. For this portrayal, she has won four Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.

Jean-Michel Dupuis, French actor (died 2024)

Jean-Michel Dupuis was a French theatre, television, and film actor. Born on 2 February 1955, he died on 14 September 2024, at the age of 69.

02/02/1954

Christie Brinkley, American actress, model, and businesswoman

Christie Lee Brinkley is an American model. Brinkley appeared on an unprecedented three consecutive covers of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues in 1979, 1980, and 1981. She spent 25 years as the face of CoverGirl; has appeared on over 500 magazine covers; and has signed contracts with major brands, both fashion and non-fashion.

Hansi Hinterseer, Austrian skier and actor

Johann Ernst "Hansi" Hinterseer is an Austrian schlager singer, actor, entertainer and former alpine skier.

Nelson Ne'e, Solomon Islander politician (died 2013)

Nelson Ne'e was a Solomon Islands politician.

John Tudor, American baseball player

John Thomas Tudor is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, and Los Angeles Dodgers.

02/02/1953

Duane Chapman, American bounty hunter[citation needed]

Duane Lee Chapman Sr., also known as Dog the Bounty Hunter, is an American television personality, bounty hunter, and former bail bondsman.

Jerry Sisk, Jr., American gemologist, co-founded Jewelry Television (died 2013)

Gerald D. "Jerry" Sisk Jr. was an American gemologist who co-founded Jewelry Television (JTV) in 1993. Sisk also served as the executive vice president of Jewelry Television until his death in 2013.

02/02/1952

Dave Casper, American football player

David John Casper nicknamed "the Ghost", is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Oakland Raiders. Casper has been inducted into both the College Football Hall of Fame (2012) and the Pro Football Hall of Fame (2002).

John Cornyn, American lawyer and politician, 49th Attorney General of Texas

John Cornyn III is an American politician and former judge who is the senior United States senator for Texas, a seat he has held since 2002. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Park Geun-hye, South Korean politician, 11th President of South Korea

Park Geun-hye is a South Korean politician who served as the 11th president of South Korea from 2013 until her removal from office in 2017. A member of then Saenuri Party and the eldest daughter of the third president, Park Chung Hee, she was the first woman in the country and the first in East Asia to be elected as head of state. Park previously served as the acting first lady of South Korea under her father's presidency from 1974 until her father's assassination in 1979.

Ralph Merkle, American computer scientist and academic

Ralph C. Merkle is an American computer scientist. He co-invented public-key cryptography and invented cryptographic hashing, and has worked on molecular nanotechnology and cryonics.

Carol Ann Susi, American actress (died 2014)

Carol Ann Susi was an American actress whose career spanned 40 years. She debuted as the recurring character of semi-competent but likable intern Monique Marmelstein on Kolchak: The Night Stalker. More than three decades and countless supporting roles later, her level of celebrity was elevated for having provided the voice of recurring off-screen character Mrs. Wolowitz, mother of Howard Wolowitz, on the television series The Big Bang Theory.

02/02/1951

Vangelis Alexandris, Greek basketball player and coach

Evangelos "Vangelis" Alexandris is a Greek former international basketball player and coach. With a height of 1.82 meters, he played as a point guard and was nicknamed "The Tiger " due to his dynamic playing style. He is a notable figure of Greek basketball, who has won domestic and European honours at club level. His long-term presence and contribution to the sport exceeds 50 years. During his head coaching career, Alexandris won two European-wide club competitions, the FIBA Saporta Cup in the 2000–01 season and the FIBA Europe Champions Cup in the 2002–03 season.

Ken Bruce, Scottish radio host

Kenneth Robertson Bruce is a Scottish radio and television presenter. He hosted a weekday mid-morning show on BBC Radio 2 between 1986 and 1990, then again from 1992 to 2023. Since April 2023, he has presented the same slot on Greatest Hits Radio. In the 2023 Birthday Honours, Bruce was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to radio, to autism awareness and to charity.

02/02/1950

Osamu Kido, Japanese wrestler (died 2023)

Osamu Kido was a Japanese professional wrestler who wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He participated in the foundation of New Japan of 1972 and the foundation of Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF) in 1984. In 2005, after four years in retirement, Kido returned to the ring.

Libby Purves, British journalist and author

Elizabeth Mary Purves, is a British radio presenter, journalist and author.

Bárbara Rey, Spanish singer and actress

María Margarita García García, better known as Bárbara Rey, is a Spanish film and television actress. She is the daughter of Andrés García Valenzuela and Salvadora García Molina.

Barbara Sukowa, German actress

Barbara Sukowa is a German actress of screen and stage and singer. She has received three German Film Awards for Best Actress, three Bavarian Film Awards, Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress, Venice Film Festival Award, as well as nominations for European Film Awards, César Awards, and Grammy Awards.

Genichiro Tenryu, Japanese wrestler

Genichiro Shimada , better known as Genichiro Tenryu is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter. At age 13, he entered sumo wrestling and stayed there for 13 years, after which he turned to Western-style professional wrestling. "Tenryu" was his shikona. He had two stints with All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he spent the majority of his career while also promoting Super World of Sports (SWS), Wrestle Association R (WAR) and Tenryu Project. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. At the time of his retirement, professional wrestling journalist and historian Dave Meltzer wrote that "one could make a strong case [that Tenryu was] between the fourth and sixth biggest native star" in the history of Japanese professional wrestling.

02/02/1949

Duncan Bannatyne, Scottish businessman and philanthropist

Duncan Walker Bannatyne, is a Scottish entrepreneur, philanthropist, and author. His business interests include hotels, health clubs, spas, media, TV, and property. He is most famous for his appearance as a business angel on the BBC programme Dragons' Den. He was appointed an OBE for his contribution to charity. He has written seven books.

Jack McGee, American actor

Jack McGee is an American television and film character actor. He has appeared in more than 100 films and television series.

Yasuko Namba, Japanese mountaineer (died 1996)

Yasuko Namba was the second Japanese woman to climb the Seven Summits. Namba worked as a businesswoman for FedEx in Japan, but her hobby of mountaineering took her all over the world. She first summited Kilimanjaro on New Year's Day in 1982, and summited Aconcagua exactly two years later. She reached the summit of Denali on July 1, 1985, and the summit of Mount Elbrus on August 1, 1992. After summiting Vinson Massif on December 29, 1993, and Carstensz Pyramid on November 12, 1994, Namba's final summit to reach was Mount Everest. She signed on with Rob Hall's guiding company, Adventure Consultants, and reached the summit in May 1996, but died during her descent in the 1996 Mount Everest disaster.

Brent Spiner, American actor and singer

Brent Jay Spiner is an American actor best known for his role as the android Data on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994), four subsequent films (1994–2002), and Star Trek: Picard (2020–2023). In 1997, he won the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Data in Star Trek: First Contact, and was nominated in the same category for portraying Dr. Brackish Okun in Independence Day, a role he reprised in Independence Day: Resurgence. Spiner has also enjoyed a career in the theater and as a musician. He is also known for voicing the Joker in the animated series Young Justice (2011–2022).

Ross Valory, American bass player and songwriter

Ross Lamont Valory is an American musician who is best known as a founding member of the rock band Journey. He was the bassist for the band from 1973 to 1985 and again from 1995 to 2020. Valory was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio as a member of Journey in 2017.

02/02/1948

Ina Garten, American chef and author

Ina Rosenberg Garten is an American television cook and author. She is host of the Food Network program Barefoot Contessa and was formerly a staff member of the Office of Management and Budget. Among her dishes are Perfect Roast Chicken, Weeknight Bolognese, French Apple Tart, and a simplified version of beef bourguignon. Her culinary career began with her gourmet food store, Barefoot Contessa; Garten then expanded her activities to many best-selling cookbooks, magazine columns, and a popular Food Network television show.

Al McKay, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer

Albert Phillip McKay is an American guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. He is a former member of The Watts 103rd Rhythm Street Band and Earth, Wind & Fire. As a member of EW&F, during 2000, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He has also worked with artists such as Gene Harris, Patrice Rushen, The Temptations and Ramsey Lewis. McKay also leads his own band called the Al McKay All Stars.

Roger Williamson, English race car driver (died 1973)

Roger Williamson was a British racing driver and a two time British Formula 3 champion, who died during his second Formula One race, the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort Circuit in the Netherlands.

02/02/1947

Greg Antonacci, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (died 2017)

Greg Antonacci was an American actor. He portrayed Johnny Torrio in Boardwalk Empire in every season, from 2010 to 2014, and Phil Leotardo's right-hand man Butch DeConcini in The Sopranos from 2006 to the series finale in 2007.

Farrah Fawcett, American actress and producer (died 2009)

Mary Ferrah Leni "Farrah" Fawcett was an American actress. A four-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee and six-time Golden Globe Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she played a starring role in the first season of the television series Charlie's Angels.

02/02/1946

John Armitt, English engineer and businessman

Sir John Alexander Armitt is an English civil engineer, and the final chairman of the UK's National Infrastructure Commission.

Blake Clark, American comedian and actor

Blake Clark is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known as Chet Hunter on Boy Meets World, Harry Turner on Home Improvement, as well as his frequent collaborations with Adam Sandler. Clark has voiced Slinky Dog in the Toy Story franchise starting with 2008's Toy Story: The Musical, having inherited the role from his friend Jim Varney, who died of lung cancer in 2000.

Alpha Oumar Konaré, Malian academic and politician, 3rd President of Mali

Alpha Oumar Konaré is a Malian politician, professor, historian and archaeologist, who served as President of Mali for two five-year terms from 1992 to 2002 and was Chairperson of the African Union Commission from 2003 to 2008.

Constantine Papadakis, Greek-American businessman and academic (died 2009)

Constantine Papadakis was a Greek-American businessman and the president of Drexel University.

02/02/1945

John Eatwell, Baron Eatwell, English economist and academic

John Leonard Eatwell, Baron Eatwell, is a British economist who was President of Queens' College, Cambridge, from 1996 to 2020. A former senior advisor to the Labour Party, Lord Eatwell sat in the House of Lords as a non-affiliated peer from 2014 to 2020, before returning to the Labour bench.

02/02/1944

Andrew Davis, English organist and conductor (died 2024)

Sir Andrew Frank Davis was an English conductor. He was the long-time chief conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. He was music director at the Glyndebourne Festival from 1988 to 2000, and especially known for conducting the traditional Last Night of The Proms, including Last Night speeches. He was music director and principal conductor of the Lyric Opera of Chicago from 2000 to the 2020/21 season.

Geoffrey Hughes, English actor (died 2012)

Geoffrey William Hughes DL was an English actor. Hughes provided the voice of Paul McCartney in the animated film Yellow Submarine (1968), and rose to fame for portraying bin man Eddie Yeats in the long-running British soap opera Coronation Street from 1974 to 1983, making a return to the show in 1987. He is well known for playing loveable slob Onslow in the British sitcom Keeping Up Appearances (1990–1995) and "Twiggy" in the sitcom The Royle Family, playing the part from 1998 to 2008.

Ursula Oppens, American pianist and educator

Ursula Oppens is an American classical concert pianist and educator. She has received five Grammy Award nominations.

02/02/1942

Graham Nash, English-American singer-songwriter and guitarist

Graham William Nash is a British and American musician, singer and songwriter. He is known for his light tenor voice and for his contributions as a member of the Hollies and Crosby, Stills & Nash.

02/02/1941

Terry Biddlecombe, English jockey (died 2014)

Terry Biddlecombe was an English National Hunt racing jockey in the 1960s and 1970s. He was Champion Jockey in 1965, 1966 and 1969.

Lee Redmond, American woman with the longest fingernails (died 2023)

LeeAnn Redmond was an American woman who held the all-time record in the Guinness World Records for longest fingernails on a pair of female hands. It was broken by Diana Armstrong in 2022.

Cory Wells, American pop-rock singer (died 2015)

Cory Wells was an American singer, best known as one of the three lead vocalists in the band Three Dog Night.

02/02/1940

Alan Caddy, English guitarist and producer (died 2000)

Alan Caddy was an English rock guitarist, arranger, record producer and session musician. He was an original member of Johnny Kidd and the Pirates and the Tornados.

Thomas M. Disch, American author and poet (died 2008)

Thomas Michael Disch was an American science fiction writer and poet. He won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book—previously called "Best Non-Fiction Book"—in 1999. He had two other Hugo nominations and nine Nebula Award nominations to his credit, plus one win of the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, a Rhysling Award, and two Seiun Awards, among others.

Wayne Fontes, American football player and coach

Wayne Howard Joseph Fontes is an American former professional football player and coach. He was the head coach of the National Football League (NFL)'s Detroit Lions from 1988 to 1996. He is the longest tenured head coach in team history. His 67 wins and 71 losses are each the most for a head coach in team history. Fontes played as a defensive back for the New York Titans of the American Football League (AFL).

David Jason, English actor, director, and producer

Sir David John White, known professionally as David Jason, is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, television presenter and producer. He has played Derek "Del Boy" Trotter in the sitcom Only Fools and Horses, Detective Inspector Jack Frost in the drama series A Touch of Frost, Granville in the sitcoms Open All Hours and Still Open All Hours, and Pop Larkin in the comedy drama series The Darling Buds of May, as well as voicing several cartoon characters, including Mr. Toad in The Wind in the Willows, the BFG in the 1989 film of the same name, and the title characters of Danger Mouse and Count Duckula.

02/02/1939

Jackie Burroughs, English-born Canadian actress (died 2010)

Jacqueline Burroughs was a Canadian actress. Burroughs starred in over 100 films and television shows over her career, including Heavy Metal, The Care Bears Movie, The Grey Fox, and Anne of Green Gables, and was best known for her role as Hetty King in the TV series Road to Avonlea.

Mary-Dell Chilton, American chemist and inventor and one of the founders of modern plant biotechnology

Mary-Dell Chilton is one of the founders of modern plant biotechnology.

Dale T. Mortensen, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2014)

Dale Thomas Mortensen was an American economist, a professor at Northwestern University, and a winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences.

02/02/1938

Norman Fowler, English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Transport

Peter Norman Fowler, Baron Fowler is a British politician who served as a member of both Margaret Thatcher and John Major's ministries during the 1980s and 1990s. He held the office of Lord Speaker from 1 September 2016 to 30 April 2021.

Bo Hopkins, American actor (died 2022)

William Mauldin "Bo" Hopkins was an American actor. He was known for playing supporting roles in several major studio films from 1969 to 1979, especially for his breakout role in the ensemble cast of George Lucas's American Graffiti. His credits span several films and TV appearances.

Gene MacLellan, Canadian singer-songwriter (died 1995)

Gene MacLellan was a Canadian singer-songwriter from Prince Edward Island. Among his compositions were "Snowbird", made famous by Anne Murray, "Put Your Hand in the Hand", "The Call", "Pages of Time", and "Thorn in My Shoe". Elvis Presley, Lynn Anderson, Loretta Lynn, Joan Baez, and Bing Crosby were among the many artists who recorded MacLellan's songs.

02/02/1937

Don Buford, American baseball player and coach

Donald Alvin Buford is an American former professional baseball player scout, coach and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 1963 through 1972, most notably as the leadoff hitter for the Baltimore Orioles dynasty that won three consecutive American League pennants from 1969 to 1971 and won the 1970 World Series over the Cincinnati Reds. He also played for the Chicago White Sox and played in the Nippon Professional Baseball league from 1973 to 1976. Buford also played as an infielder and was a switch hitter who threw right-handed. In 1993, Buford was inducted into the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame.

Eric Arturo Delvalle, Panamanian lawyer and politician, President of Panama (died 2015)

Eric Arturo Delvalle Cohen-Henríquez was a Panamanian politician. He served as Vice President under Nicolás Ardito Barletta. Following the disputed 1984 election, and after Barletta's forced resignation, Delvalle served as President of Panama from 28 September 1985 until 26 February 1988.

Anthony Haden-Guest, British journalist, poet, and critic

Anthony Haden-Guest is an English-American writer, reporter, cartoonist, art critic, poet, and socialite who lives in New York City and London. He is a frequent contributor to major magazines and has had several books published.

Remak Ramsay, American actor

Gustavus Remak Ramsay is an American stage, film and television actor. Ramsay was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Caroline V. and John Breckinridge Ramsay.

Tom Smothers, American comedian, actor, and activist (died 2023)

Thomas Bolyn Smothers III was an American comedian, actor, composer, and musician, widely known as half of the musical comedy duo the Smothers Brothers, alongside his younger brother Dick. In the 1960s they were known for their network comedy and variety shows, The Smothers Brothers Show and The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.

Alexandra Strelchenko, Ukrainian actress and singer (died 2019)

Alexandra Ilinichna Strelchenko was a Soviet and Russian actress and singer. She was a performer of Russian folk songs, Russian romances and pop songs. She was awarded the People's Artist of the RSFSR in 1984.

02/02/1936

Metin Oktay, Turkish footballer and manager (died 1991)

Metin Oktay nicknamed the Crownless King by Galatasaray fans, was a Turkish footballer and one of the most successful goal scorers in Turkey.

02/02/1935

Pete Brown, American golfer (died 2015)

Pete Brown was an American professional golfer who was the first African American to win a PGA Tour event with his win at the Waco Turner Open. He was from Mississippi.

Evgeny Velikhov, Russian physicist and academic (died 2024)

Evgeny Pavlovich Velikhov was a Russian physicist and scientific leader. His scientific interests included plasma physics, lasers, controlled nuclear fusion, power engineering, and magnetohydrodynamics. He was the author of over 1500 scientific publications and a number of inventions and discoveries.

02/02/1934

Khalil Ullah Khan, Bangladeshi actor (died 2014)

Khalil Ullah Khan was a Bangladeshi film and television actor. He earned Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Gunda in 1976.

02/02/1933

M'el Dowd, American actress and singer (died 2012)

Mary Ellen Dowd was an American stage, musical theatre and film actress, and singer, whose career spanned half a century. Beginning in Shakespeare roles and films in the 1950s, Dowd continued to perform on stage, film and television into the 21st century. A frequent performer on Broadway in the 1960s, Dowd originated the role of Morgan le Fay in the musical Camelot.

Tony Jay, English-American actor (died 2006)

Tony Jay was a British actor. A former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, he was known for his voice work in radio, animation, film, and video games. Jay was particularly noted for his distinctive raspy baritone voice, which often led to him being cast in villainous or authoritative roles. His voice acting roles included Judge Claude Frollo in Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Megabyte in ReBoot (1994–2001), Shere Khan in The Jungle Book 2, as well as the TV series TaleSpin, the Elder God in the Legacy of Kain series of video games and Dr. Lipschitz in Rugrats.

Orlando "Cachaíto" López, Cuban bassist and composer (died 2009)

Candelario Orlando López Vergara, better known as Cachaíto, was a Cuban bassist and composer, who gained international fame after his involvement in the Buena Vista Social Club recordings. He was nicknamed Cachaíto after his uncle, the famous bassist and innovator of mambo music Israel "Cachao" López. His father and Cachao's older brother was Orestes López, also a famous bassist/multi-instrumentalist and composer.

Than Shwe, Burmese general and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Burma

Than Shwe is a retired Burmese military officer who ruled Myanmar as the second chairman of the State Peace, and Development Council as well as the commander-in-chief of Defence Services from 1992 until his resignation in 2011, and concurrently served as the eighth prime minister of Myanmar from 1992 to 2003. He previously served as the deputy commander-in-chief of Defence Services from 1985, and the vice chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, and deputy prime minister of Myanmar from 1988 until 1992.

02/02/1932

Arthur Lyman, American jazz vibraphone and marimba player (died 2002)

Arthur Hunt Lyman was a Hawaiian jazz vibraphone and marimba player. His group popularized a style of faux-Polynesian music during the 1950s and 1960s which later became known as exotica. His albums became favorite stereo-effect demonstration discs during the early days of the stereophonic LP album for their elaborate and colorful percussion, deep bass and 2-dimensional recording soundstage. Lyman was known as "the King of Lounge music."

Robert Mandan, American actor (died 2018)

Robert Mandan was an American actor, best known for his roles as Sam Reynolds on Search for Tomorrow (1965–1970), Chester Tate, the philandering businessman husband of Jessica Tate on the satirical sitcom Soap (1977–1981) and James Bradford on the short lived Three's Company spin off Three's A Crowd (1984–1985) that lasted for one season.

02/02/1931

Les Dawson, English comedian and author (died 1993)

Leslie Dawson was an English comedian, actor, writer, presenter, and pianist. He was known for his deadpan style, curmudgeonly persona, musical routines, and jokes about his mother-in-law and wife.

Glynn Edwards, Malaysian-English actor (died 2018)

John Glynn Edwards was a British actor who worked in television and films. He came to national prominence for his portrayal of the barman Dave Harris in the television comedy drama series Minder (1979–1994).

John Paul Harney, Canadian educator and politician (died 2021)

John Paul Ludger Harney, also known as Jean-Paul Harney, was a Canadian professor and politician.

Dries van Agt, Dutch politician, diplomat and jurist, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (died 2024)

Andreas Antonius Maria "Dries" van Agt was a Dutch politician, jurist and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 19 December 1977 until 4 November 1982. He was a prominent leader of the Catholic People's Party (KVP) and later its successor party, the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA).

Judith Viorst, American journalist and author

Judith Viorst is an American writer, newspaper journalist, and psychoanalysis researcher. She is known for her humorous observational poetry and for her children's literature. This includes The Tenth Good Thing About Barney and the Alexander series of short picture books, which includes Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (1972), which has sold over two million copies.

02/02/1929

Sheila Matthews Allen, American actress and producer (died 2013)

Sheila Mathews Allen was an American actress and producer.

George Band, English engineer and mountaineer (died 2011)

George Christopher Band was an English mountaineer. He was the youngest climber on the 1953 British expedition to Mount Everest on which Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first to ascend the mountain. In 1955, he and Joe Brown were the first climbers to ascend Kangchenjunga, the third highest mountain in the world.

Věra Chytilová, Czech actress, director, and screenwriter (died 2014)

Věra Chytilová was a Czech avant-garde filmmaker. Banned by the Czechoslovak government in the 1960s, she is best known for her 1966 Czech New Wave film Daisies. Among her subsequent films are Wolf's Hole (1987), A Hoof Here, a Hoof There (1989) and The Inheritance or Fuckoffguysgoodday (1992). For her work, she received the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, the Czech Medal of Merit and the Czech Lion award.

John Henry Holland, American computer scientist and academic (died 2015)

John Henry Holland was an American scientist and professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the University of Michigan. He was a pioneer in what became known as genetic algorithms.

Waldemar Kmentt, Austrian operatic tenor (died 2015)

Waldemar Kmentt was an Austrian operatic tenor, who was particularly associated with the German repertory, both opera and operetta.

02/02/1928

Ciriaco De Mita, 47th Prime minister of Italy (died 2022)

Luigi Ciriaco De Mita was an Italian politician and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Italy from April 1988 to July 1989. A member of Christian Democracy (DC), De Mita served as its secretary and leader from May 1982 until February 1989, becoming one of the most influential politicians in the country, as well as one of the most prominent members of DC's left-wing.

Gamal Hamdan, Egyptian scholar and geographer (died 1993)

Gamal Hamdan was an Egyptian geographer and scholar known for his work on Egypt's geography, history, and culture.

Jay Handlan, American basketball player and engineer (died 2013)

John Bernard "Jay" Handlan was an American college basketball star at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia from 1948 to 1952. He was born in Wheeling, West Virginia. A 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) forward, Handlan is best known for being a prolific scorer and for setting the still–standing National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) record for field goal attempts in a game with 71.

Tommy Harmer, English footballer and youth team coach (died 2007)

Tommy Harmer was an English footballer who played as a inside forward. He spent most of his career with Tottenham Hotspur before playing for Watford and Chelsea.

02/02/1927

Stan Getz, American saxophonist (died 1991)

Stan Getz was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of his idol, Lester Young. Coming to prominence in the late 1940s with Woody Herman's big band, Getz is described by critic Scott Yanow as "one of the all-time great tenor saxophonists". Getz performed in bebop and cool jazz groups. Influenced by João Gilberto and Antônio Carlos Jobim, he also helped popularize bossa nova in the United States with the hit 1964 single "The Girl from Ipanema".

Doris Sams, American baseball player (died 2012)

Doris Jane Sams, nicknamed "Sammye", was an American outfielder and pitcher who played from 1946 through 1953 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m), 145 lbs., she batted and threw right-handed.

02/02/1926

Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, French academic and politician, 20th President of France (died 2020)

Valéry René Marie Georges Giscard d'Estaing, also known as simply Giscard or VGE, was President of France from 1974 to 1981.

02/02/1925

Elaine Stritch, American actress and singer (died 2014)

Elaine Stritch was an American actress, singer, and comedian, known for her work on Broadway and later, television. She made her professional stage debut in 1944 and appeared in numerous stage plays, musicals, feature films and television series. Stritch was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1995.

02/02/1924

Sonny Stitt, American saxophonist and composer (died 1982)

Sonny Stitt was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his era, recording over 100 albums. He was nicknamed the "Lone Wolf" by jazz critic Dan Morgenstern because of his tendency to rarely work with the same musicians for long despite his relentless touring and devotion to the craft. Stitt was sometimes regarded as a Charlie Parker mimic early in his career, but gradually developed his own sound and style, particularly when performing on the tenor saxophone and even occasionally baritone saxophone.

Elfi von Dassanowsky, Austrian-American singer, pianist, producer (died 2007)

Elfriede "Elfi" von Dassanowsky was an Austrian-born American singer, pianist, and film producer.

02/02/1923

Jean Babilée, French dancer and choreographer (died 2014)

Jean Gutmann was a prominent French dancer and choreographer of the latter half of the 20th century. He is considered to have been one of modern ballet's greatest performers, and the first French dancer to gain international acclaim. Babilée has been called the "enfant terrible of dance."

James Dickey, American poet and novelist (died 1997)

James Lafayette Dickey was an American poet, novelist, critic, and lecturer. He was appointed the 18th United States Poet Laureate in 1966. His other accolades included the National Book Award for Poetry and a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Svetozar Gligorić, Serbian and Yugoslav chess grandmaster (died 2012)

Svetozar Gligorić was a Serbian chess grandmaster and musician. He won a record 11 titles at Yugoslav Chess Championship, a record 12 team medals at Chess Olympiad, and is considered the best player ever from Serbia and Yugoslavia. In 1958, he received the Golden Badge award for the best athlete of Yugoslavia.

Bonita Granville, American actress and producer (died 1988)

Bonita Gloria Granville Wrather was an American character actress and producer. The daughter of vaudevillians, Granville began her career on the stage at age three. She began as a child actress, making her film debut in Westward Passage (1932). She rose to prominence for her role in These Three (1936), which earned her an Academy Award nomination at age 14. Her prominence continued with the Nancy Drew film series and roles in Now, Voyager (1942) and Hitler's Children (1943).

Red Schoendienst, American baseball player, coach, and manager (died 2018)

Albert Fred "Red" Schoendienst was an American professional baseball second baseman and manager. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Giants, and Milwaukee Braves from 1945 to 1963, and was named to 10 All-Star teams. He then managed the Cardinals from 1965 to 1976 – the second-longest managerial tenure in the team's history. Under his direction, St. Louis won the 1967 and 1968 National League pennants and the 1967 World Series, and he was named National League Manager of the Year in 1967 and 1968. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989. At the time of his death, he had worn a Major League uniform for 74 consecutive years as a player, coach, or manager, and had served 67 of his 76 years in baseball with the Cardinals.

Liz Smith, American journalist and author (died 2017)

Mary Elizabeth Smith was an American gossip columnist. She was known as "The Grand Dame of Dish". Beginning her career in radio in the 1950s, for a time she also anonymously wrote the "Cholly Knickerbocker" gossip column for the Hearst newspapers. In the 1960s and early 1970s, she was the entertainment editor for the magazines Cosmopolitan and Sports Illustrated. Between 1976 and 2009, she wrote a self-titled gossip column for newspapers including New York Newsday, the New York Daily News and the New York Post that was syndicated in 60 to 70 other newspapers. On television, she appeared on Fox, E!, and WNBC.

Clem Windsor, Australian rugby player and surgeon (died 2007)

Dr. John Clement "Clem" Windsor was a rugby union player who represented Australia and a surgeon.

02/02/1922

Kunwar Digvijay Singh, Indian field hockey player (died 1978)

Kunwar Digvijay Singh, popularly known as "Babu", was an Indian field hockey player. He was born in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh. He is widely known for his passing ability and is considered by many to be the greatest dribbler of the game comparable only to Dhyan Chand.

Robert Chef d'Hôtel, French athlete (died 2019)

Robert Claude Henri Chef d'Hôtel was a track and field athlete from France, who competed mainly in the men's 400 metres during his career. He was born in Nouméa, Sud, New Caledonia in February 1922.

Stoyanka Mutafova, Bulgarian actress (died 2019)

Stoyanka Mutafova was a Bulgarian actress. During her career, she starred in over 53 theatrical plays and 25 films

James L. Usry, American politician, first African-American mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey (died 2002)

James Leroy Usry was the first African-American mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey. He was also a professional basketball player.

02/02/1920

George Hardwick, English footballer and coach (died 2004)

George Francis Moutry Hardwick was an English footballer, manager and coach. During his time as an active player, he was a left-sided defender for Middlesbrough and Oldham Athletic. He was also a member of the England national football team, playing in 13 international matches and serving as the team's first post-World War II captain in all 13 of those matches, and is the only England player to be captain in every one of his appearances.

John Russell, American Olympic equestrian (died 2020)

Colonel John William Russell was an American equestrian who won a bronze medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland. After serving in the United States Army during World War II, he began competing in international equestrian tournaments and was eventually selected to join the United States team at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. After his success at the 1952 edition, he continued to participate in events around the world, but military duties and a broken bone in his horse caused him to miss the 1956 Summer Olympics. He retired from active competition that year and became the head of United States Modern Pentathlon Training Center, where he coached six United States Olympic modern pentathlon delegations, twenty-two World Championship teams, and helped organize two World Modern Pentathlon Championships. He retired and opened the Russell Equestrian Center and was inducted into the United States Show Jumping Hall of Fame in 2001.

Arthur Willis, English football player-manager (died 1987)

Arthur Willis was a professional footballer who played for Tottenham Hotspur, Swansea City, Haverfordwest and England.

02/02/1919

Lisa Della Casa, Swiss soprano and actress (died 2012)

Lisa Della Casa was a Swiss soprano most admired for her interpretations of major heroines in operas by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Richard Strauss, and of German lieder. She was also described as “the most beautiful woman on the operatic stage”.

Georg Gawliczek, German footballer and manager (died 1999)

Georg Gawliczek was a German football manager and former player.

02/02/1918

Hella Haasse, Indonesian-Dutch author (died 2011)

Hélène "Hella" Serafia Haasse was a Dutch writer, often referred to as the "Grande Dame" of Dutch literature, and whose novel Oeroeg (1948) was a staple for generations of Dutch schoolchildren. Her internationally acclaimed magnum opus is Heren van de Thee, translated to The Tea Lords. In 1988 Haasse was chosen to interview the Dutch Queen for her 50th birthday after which celebrated Dutch author Adriaan van Dis called Haasse "the Queen among authors".

02/02/1917

Mary Ellis, British World War II ferry pilot (died 2018)

Mary Ellis was a British ferry pilot, and one of the last surviving British female pilots from the Second World War.

Đỗ Mười, Vietnamese politician, 5th Prime Minister of Vietnam (died 2018)

Đỗ Mười was a Vietnamese communist politician. He rose in the party hierarchy in the late 1940s, became Chairman of the Council of Ministers in 1988 and was elected General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) at the 7th Congress in 1991. He continued his predecessor's policy of ruling through a collective leadership and Nguyễn Văn Linh's policy of economic reform. He was elected for two terms as General Secretary, but left office in 1997 at the 3rd plenum of the 8th Central Committee during his second term.

02/02/1916

Xuân Diệu, Vietnamese poet and author (died 1985)

Ngô Xuân Diệu was a Vietnamese poet, journalist, short-story writer, and literary critic, best known as one of the prominent figures of the twentieth-century Thơ mới Movement.

02/02/1915

Abba Eban, South African-Israeli politician and diplomat, 1st Israel Ambassador to the United Nations (died 2002)

Abba Solomon Meir Eban was a South African-born Israeli diplomat and politician, and a scholar of the Arabic and Hebrew languages.

Stan Leonard, Canadian golfer (died 2005)

Stan Leonard was a Canadian professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s. Leonard won three PGA Tour events, eight Canadian PGA Championships, and 16 other significant events in Canada. He is a member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame.

Khushwant Singh, Indian journalist and author (died 2014)

Khushwant Singh FKC was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist and politician. His experience in the 1947 Partition of India inspired him to write Train to Pakistan in 1956, which became his most well-known novel.

02/02/1914

Eric Kierans, Canadian economist and politician, 1st Canadian Minister of Communications (died 2004)

Eric William Kierans was a Canadian economist and politician.

02/02/1913

Poul Reichhardt, Danish actor and singer (died 1985)

Poul David Reichhardt was a Danish actor, well known for his roles in Danish 1940s/1950s comedies. Later on, he also played more serious and varied roles; he has also starred in Huset på Christianshavn, Matador and as various minor characters in the Olsen-banden films.

02/02/1912

Millvina Dean, English civil servant and cartographer (died 2009)

Eliza Gladys Dean, known as Millvina Dean, was a British civil servant, cartographer, and the last living survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic on 15 April 1912 until her death in 2009. At two months old, she was also the youngest passenger aboard.

Burton Lane, American songwriter and composer (died 1997)

Burton Lane was an American composer primarily known for his theatre and film scores. His most popular and successful works include the Broadway musicals Finian's Rainbow (1947) and On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (1965).

02/02/1911

Jack Pizzey, Australian politician, 29th Premier of Queensland (died 1968)

Jack Charles Allan Pizzey was a Queensland Country Party politician. He was Premier of Queensland, in a coalition with the Liberal Party, from 17 January 1968 until his death on 31 July that year. To date, he is the most recent premier of an Australian state to die in office.

02/02/1909

Frank Albertson, American actor (died 1964)

Francis Healey Albertson was an American actor who had supporting roles in films such as It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and Psycho (1960).

02/02/1908

Wes Ferrell, American baseball player and manager (died 1976)

Wesley Cheek Ferrell was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball from 1927 through 1941. Primarily a starting pitcher, Ferrell played for the Cleveland Indians (1927–33), Boston Red Sox (1934–37), Washington Senators (1937–38), New York Yankees (1938–39), Brooklyn Dodgers (1940) and Boston Braves (1941). He batted and threw right-handed.

02/02/1905

Ayn Rand, Russian-born American novelist and philosopher (died 1982)

Alice O'Connor, better known by her pen name Ayn Rand, was a Russian-American writer and philosopher. She is known for her fiction and for developing a philosophical system which she named Objectivism.

02/02/1904

Bozorg Alavi, Iranian author and activist (died 1997)

Bozorg Alavi was an influential Iranian writer, novelist, and political intellectual. He was a founding member of the communist Tudeh Party of Iran in the 1940s and – following the 1953 coup against Premier Mohammad Mossadegh – spent the rest of his life in exile in East Germany, first during the Pahlavi regime, then returning to Germany once more following the 1979 revolution. Cheshm'hā'yash, which was published in Iran in 1952 and was subsequently banned, is considered his finest novel. Alavi was also a very close friend of Iran's famous writer Sadegh Hedayat; these two created a literary group when they were residing in Paris called "sab'e group". Although Her Eyes is considered his masterpiece, Alavi also wrote many other books, such as the novel "Chamedan" (suitcase) which was written under the influence of Freudian psychology. His other novels "Mirza", "Fifty Three Persons" and "Gilemard" are mentioned in Iranian high-school textbooks. He did return to Tehran after the revolution but did not stay too long and decided to head back to Germany. Bozorg Alavi's contribution to Iranian Literature is profound due to the modernization movement in which he was a key member.

02/02/1902

Newbold Morris, American lawyer and politician (died 1966)

Augustus Newbold Morris was an American politician, lawyer, president of the New York City Council, and two-time candidate for mayor of New York City.

John Tonkin, Australian politician, 20th Premier of Western Australia (died 1995)

John Trezise Tonkin was an Australian politician who was the premier of Western Australia from 3 March 1971 to 8 April 1974. A member of the Labor Party, Tonkin was a minister in the Willcock, Wise and Hawke state governments. He was a member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1933 to 1977, making him the longest-serving member of the Parliament of Western Australia as of 2021.

02/02/1901

Jascha Heifetz, Lithuanian-American violinist and educator (died 1987)

Jascha Heifetz was a Russian-American violinist, widely regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time. Born in Vilna, he was soon recognized as a child prodigy and was trained in the Russian violin school in St. Petersburg. Accompanying his parents to escape the violence of the Russian Revolution, he moved to the United States as a teenager, where his Carnegie Hall debut was rapturously received. Fritz Kreisler, another leading violinist of the twentieth century, said after hearing Heifetz's debut, "We might as well take our fiddles and break them across our knees."

02/02/1900

Willie Kamm, American baseball player and manager (died 1988)

William Edward Kamm was an American professional baseball player. He played as a third baseman in Major League Baseball from 1923 to 1935. Kamm played most of his career for the Chicago White Sox before finishing his playing days with the Cleveland Indians. He was the dominant defensive third baseman in the American League for most of his career.

02/02/1897

Howard Deering Johnson, American businessman, founded Howard Johnson's (died 1972)

Howard Deering Johnson was an American entrepreneur, businessman, and the founder of an American chain of restaurants and motels under one company of the same name, Howard Johnson's.

Gertrude Blanch, Russian-American mathematician (died 1996)

Gertrude Blanch was an American mathematician who did pioneering work in numerical analysis and computation. She was a leader of the Mathematical Tables Project in New York from its beginning. She worked later as the assistant director and leader of the Numerical Analysis at UCLA computing division and was head of mathematical research for the Aerospace Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

02/02/1896

Kazimierz Kuratowski, Polish mathematician and logician (died 1980)

Kazimierz Kuratowski was a Polish mathematician and logician. He was one of the leading representatives of the Warsaw School of Mathematics. He worked as a professor at the University of Warsaw and at the Mathematical Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Between 1946 and 1953, he served as President of the Polish Mathematical Society.

02/02/1895

George Halas, American football player and coach (died 1983)

George Stanley Halas Sr., nicknamed "Papa Bear", was an American professional football end, coach, and executive. He was the founder and owner of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL), and served as his own head coach on four occasions. He was also lesser-known as a player for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He is the namesake for the NFC Championship trophy.

Robert Philipp, American painter (died 1981)

Robert Philipp was an American painter influenced by Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, and known for his nudes, still lifes, and portraits of attractive women and Hollywood stars. Noted art critic Henry McBride called Philipp one of America's top six painters of his generation. He was an instructor of painting at the Art Students League of New York for 33 years, the American artist Itshak Holtz was a student of Philipp. Philipp was Secretary of the National Academy of Design, and National Academician, Benjamin Franklin Fellow, Royal Society of Arts in London. He was married to model and fellow artist Rochelle ("Shelly") Post, who frequently posed for him until her death in 1971. His compositions and painting style have been compared to the art of Edgar Degas and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Philipp won prizes in most of the important exhibitions of his time, and his paintings are in numerous museums and important private collections.

George Sutcliffe, Australian public servant (died 1964)

George Gribbon Sutcliffe was a senior Australian public servant, best known for his time as a Commissioner of the Commonwealth Public Service Board.

02/02/1893

Cornelius Lanczos, Hungarian mathematician and physicist (died 1974)

Cornelius (Cornel) Lanczos was a Hungarian, American, and later Irish mathematician and physicist. According to György Marx he was one of the Martians, a group of Hungarian scientific luminaries who immigrated to the United States to escape national socialism. He was remembered by his colleagues as an innovative scholar and an excellent educator.

Raoul Riganti, Argentinian race car driver (died 1970)

Raúl Riganti was an Argentine racing driver. He competed in the Indianapolis 500 three times, qualifying every year he was entered. Riganti was briefly an adviser of driver Juan Manuel Fangio.

Damdin Sükhbaatar, Mongolian soldier and politician (died 1924)

Damdin Sükhbaatar was a Mongolian revolutionary, founder of the Mongolian People's Party, and leader of the Mongolian partisan army that took Khüree during the Mongolian Revolution of 1921. For his part in the Mongolian revolution of 1921, he was enshrined as the "Father of Mongolia's Revolution".

02/02/1892

Tochigiyama Moriya, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 27th Yokozuna (died 1959)

Tochigiyama Moriya was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler. He was the sport's 27th yokozuna from 1918 until 1925. Generally he is considered one of the pioneers of modern sumo. He remains the lightest yokozuna in the history of the sport with a weight of 104 kg.

02/02/1890

Charles Correll, American actor and screenwriter (died 1972)

Charles James Correll was an American radio comedian, actor and writer who was best known for his work in the radio Amos 'n' Andy radio series with Freeman Gosden. Correll voiced the main character, Andy Brown, along with various lesser characters.

02/02/1889

Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, French general (died 1952)

Jean Joseph Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny was a French général d'armée during World War II and the First Indochina War. He was posthumously elevated to the dignity of Marshal of France in 1952.

02/02/1887

Ernst Hanfstaengl, German businessman (died 1975)

Ernst Franz Sedgwick Hanfstaengl was a German American businessman and close friend of Adolf Hitler. He eventually fell out of favour with Hitler and defected from Nazi Germany to the United States. He later worked for Franklin D. Roosevelt and was once engaged to the author Djuna Barnes.

02/02/1886

William Rose Benét, American poet and author (died 1950)

William Rose Benét was an American poet, writer, and editor. He was the older brother of Stephen Vincent Benét, and the younger brother of Laura Benét.

02/02/1885

Mikhail Frunze, Soviet revolutionary, politician, army officer and military theorist (died 1925)

Mikhail Vasilyevich Frunze was a Soviet revolutionary, politician, army officer and military theorist.

02/02/1883

Johnston McCulley, American author and screenwriter, created Zorro (died 1958)

John William Johnston McCulley was an American writer of hundreds of stories, fifty novels and numerous screenplays for film and television, and the creator of the character Zorro.

Julia Nava de Ruisánchez, Mexican activist and writer (died 1964)

Julia Nava de Ruisánchez, also Ruiz Sánchez, was a Mexican writer and an activist during the Mexican Revolution. She is also remembered for establishing the first Mexican institution for training social workers in 1936.

02/02/1882

Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark (died 1944)

Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark was the seventh child and fourth son of King George I and Queen Olga of Greece. He was a grandson of King Christian IX of Denmark and the father of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He was a prince of Greece and Denmark, both by virtue of his patrilineal descent.

James Joyce, Irish novelist, short story writer, and poet (died 1941)

James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist movement and is regarded among the most influential and important writers of the 20th century. Joyce's novel Ulysses (1922) is a landmark in which the episodes of Homer's Odyssey are paralleled in a variety of literary styles, particularly stream of consciousness. Other well-known works are the short-story collection Dubliners (1914) and the novels A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916) and Finnegans Wake (1939). His other writings include two books of poetry, a play, correspondence, and occasional journalism.

02/02/1881

Orval Overall, American baseball player and manager (died 1947)

Orval Overall was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball. He was a member of the Chicago Cubs dynasty of the early 1900s, making eight appearances for the Cubs in the World Series, including five as the starting pitcher.

02/02/1880

Frederick Lane, Australian swimmer (died 1969)

Frederick Claude Vivian Lane was an Australian swimmer who competed at the 1900 Summer Olympics.

02/02/1878

Joe Lydon, American boxer (died 1937)

Joseph Patrick Lydon was an American welterweight boxer who competed in the early twentieth century. He was born in Swinford, County Mayo, Ireland. He competed at the 1904 Summer Olympics, tying for a bronze medal in the welterweight division with fellow American boxer Jack Egan.

02/02/1877

Frank L. Packard, Canadian author (died 1942)

Frank Lucius Packard was a Canadian novelist.

02/02/1875

Fritz Kreisler, Austrian-American violinist and composer (died 1962)

Friedrich "Fritz" Kreisler was an Austrian and American violinist and composer. One of the most distinguished violin virtuoso of his day, he was known for his sweet tone and expressive phrasing with marked portamento and rubato. Like many great violinists of his generation, he produced a characteristic sound which was immediately recognizable as his own. Although it derived in many respects from the Franco-Belgian school, his style is nonetheless reminiscent of the gemütlich (cozy) lifestyle of pre-war Vienna.

02/02/1873

Leo Fall, Austrian composer (died 1925)

Leopold Fall was an Austrian Kapellmeister and composer of operettas.

Konstantin von Neurath, German politician and diplomat, 13th German Minister of Foreign Affairs (died 1956)

Konstantin Hermann Karl Freiherr von Neurath was a German politician, diplomat and convicted Nazi war criminal who served as Foreign Minister of Germany between 1932 and 1938.

02/02/1872

Abul Kasem, Bengali politician (died 1936)

Abul Kasem was a Bengali politician.

02/02/1869

Alexander Atabekian, Armenian physician and anarchist publisher (died 1933)

Alexander Movsesi Atabekian was an Armenian physician, publisher and anarchist communist.

02/02/1866

Enrique Simonet, Spanish painter and academic (died 1927)

Enrique Simonet Lombardo was a Spanish painter.

02/02/1862

Émile Coste, French fencer (died 1927)

Émile Louis François Désiré Coste was a French fencer who competed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He participated in Fencing at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris and won the gold medal in the foil, defeating fellow French fencer Henri Masson in the final.

Cornelius McKane, American physician, educator, and hospital founder (died 1912)

Dr. Cornelius McKane was a Guyanese-American physician and educator. With his wife Alice Woodby McKane, he founded medical schools and hospitals in Savannah, Georgia and Monrovia, Liberia. The descendant of an African king, he was urged by his grandmother to return to his African roots to help his people. Upon his family's return to the United States, the Doctors McKane founded a hospital for African-Americans.

02/02/1861

Solomon R. Guggenheim, American businessman and philanthropist, founded the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (died 1949)

Solomon Robert Guggenheim was an American businessman in needlework, gold, silver, copper, and lead and an art collector. He is best known for establishing the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City.

02/02/1860

Curtis Guild, Jr., American journalist and politician, 43rd Governor of Massachusetts (died 1915)

Curtis Guild Jr. was an American journalist, soldier, diplomat and politician from Massachusetts. He was the 43rd governor of Massachusetts, serving from 1906 to 1909. Prior to his election as governor, Guild served in the Massachusetts Volunteer Militia, seeing active duty in Cuba during the Spanish–American War. He was publisher of the Boston Commercial Bulletin, a trade publication started by his father.

02/02/1857

Jan Drozdowski, Polish pianist and music teacher (died 1918)

Jan Drozdowski (1857–1918) was a Polish pianist and music teacher.

02/02/1856

Frederick William Vanderbilt, American railway magnate (died 1938)

Frederick William Vanderbilt was a member of the American Vanderbilt family. He was a director of the New York Central Railroad for 61 years, and also a director of the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad and of the Chicago and North Western Railroad.

Makar Yekmalyan, Armenian composer (died 1905)

Makar Grigori Yekmalyan was an Armenian composer.

02/02/1851

José Guadalupe Posada, Mexican illustrator and engraver (died 1913)

José Guadalupe Posada Aguilar was a Mexican political printmaker who used relief printing to produce popular illustrations. His work has influenced numerous Latin American artists and cartoonists because of its satirical acuteness and social engagement. He used skulls, calaveras, and bones to show political and cultural critiques. Among his most enduring works is La Calavera Catrina.

02/02/1849

Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav, Slovak poet and playwright (died 1921)

Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav was a Slovak poet, dramatist, translator, and for a short time, member of the Czechoslovak parliament. Originally, he wrote in a traditional style, but later became influenced by parnassism and modernism.

02/02/1842

Julian Sochocki, Polish-Russian mathematician and academic (died 1927)

Julian Karol Sochocki was a Polish-Russian mathematician. His name is sometimes transliterated from Russian in several different ways.

02/02/1841

François-Alphonse Forel, Swiss limnologist and hydrologist (died 1912)

François-Alphonse Forel was a Swiss physician and scientist who pioneered the study of lakes, and is thus considered the founder. He was also professor at the University of Lausanne and the Father of limnology. Limnology is the study of bodies of fresh water and their biological, chemical, and physical features.

02/02/1829

Alfred Brehm, German zoologist and illustrator (died 1884)

Alfred Edmund Brehm was a German zoologist and writer. His multi-volume book Brehms Tierleben, which he co-authored with Eduard Pechuël-Loesche, Wilhelm Haacke, and Richard Schmidtlein, became a household word for popular zoological literature. He was the first director of the Zoological Garden of Hamburg.

William Stanley, English engineer and philanthropist (died 1909)

William Ford Robinson Stanley was an English inventor with 78 patents filed in both the United Kingdom and the United States of America. He was an engineer who designed and made precision drawing and mathematical instruments, as well as surveying instruments and telescopes, manufactured by his company "William Ford Stanley and Co. Ltd."

02/02/1803

Albert Sidney Johnston, American general (died 1862)

General Albert Sidney Johnston was a U.S. military officer who served as a general officer in three different armies: the Texas Army, the United States Army, and the Confederate States Army. He saw extensive combat during his 34-year military career, fighting actions in the Black Hawk War, the Texas-Indian Wars, the U.S.-Mexican War, the Utah War, and the American Civil War, where he died on the battlefield.

02/02/1802

Jean-Baptiste Boussingault, French chemist and academic (died 1887)

Jean-Baptiste Joseph Dieudonné Boussingault was a French chemist who made significant contributions to agricultural science, petroleum science and metallurgy.

02/02/1786

Jacques Philippe Marie Binet, French mathematician, physicist, and astronomer (died 1856)

Jacques Philippe Marie Binet was a French mathematician, physicist and astronomer born in Rennes; he died in Paris, France, in 1856. He made significant contributions to number theory, and the mathematical foundations of matrix algebra which would later lead to important contributions by Cayley and others. In his memoir on the theory of the conjugate axis and of the moment of inertia of bodies he enumerated the principle now known as Binet's theorem. He is also recognized as the first to describe the rule for multiplying matrices in 1812, and Binet's formula expressing Fibonacci numbers in closed form is named in his honour, although the same result was known to Abraham de Moivre a century earlier.

02/02/1782

Henri de Rigny, French admiral and politician, French Minister of War (died 1835)

Marie Henri Daniel Gauthier, comte de Rigny was the commander of the French squadron at the Battle of Navarino in the Greek War of Independence.

02/02/1754

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, French politician, Prime Minister of France (died 1838)

Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, 1st Prince of Benevento, then Prince of Talleyrand, was a French secularized clergyman, statesman, and leading diplomat. After studying theology, he became Agent-General of the Clergy in 1780. In 1789, just before the French Revolution, he became Bishop of Autun. He worked at the highest levels of successive French governments, most commonly as foreign minister or in some other diplomatic capacity. He served as the French representative to the Congress of Vienna. His career spanned the regimes of Louis XVI, the years of the French Revolution, Napoleon, Louis XVIII, Charles X, and Louis Philippe I. Those Talleyrand served often distrusted him but found him extremely useful. The name "Talleyrand" has become a byword for crafty and cynical diplomacy.

02/02/1717

Ernst Gideon von Laudon, Austrian field marshal (died 1790)

Ernst Gideon von Laudon, since 1759 Freiherr von Laudon, was an Austrian military officer of Baltic German descent and one of the most successful opponents of the Prussian king Frederick the Great.

02/02/1714

Gottfried August Homilius, German organist and composer (died 1785)

Gottfried August Homilius was a German composer, cantor and organist. He is considered one of the most important church composers of the generation following Bach's, and was the main representative of the empfindsamer style.

02/02/1711

Wenzel Anton, Prince of Kaunitz-Rietberg (died 1794)

Wenzel Anton, Prince of Kaunitz-Rietberg was an Austrian and Czech diplomat and statesman in the Habsburg monarchy. A proponent of enlightened absolutism, he held the office of State Chancellor for about four decades and was responsible for the foreign policies during the reigns of Maria Theresa, Joseph II, and Leopold II. In 1764, he was elevated to the noble rank of a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (Reichfürst).

02/02/1700

Johann Christoph Gottsched, German author and critic (died 1766)

Johann Christoph Gottsched was a German philosopher, author, critic and grammarian of the Enlightenment.

02/02/1695

William Borlase, English geologist and archaeologist (died 1772)

William Borlase, was a Cornish antiquary, geologist and naturalist. From 1722, he was Rector of Ludgvan, Cornwall, where he died. He is remembered for his works The Antiquities of Cornwall and The Natural History of Cornwall (1758), although his plans for a parish-by-parish county history were abandoned.

François de Chevert, French general (died 1769)

François de Chevert was a French general.

02/02/1677

Jean-Baptiste Morin, French composer (died 1745)

Jean-Baptiste Morin was a French composer and the Ordinaire de la Musique to Philippe, Duke of Orléans before and perhaps during his regency. From 1719 to 1731 Morin was Maître de musique of Louise Adélaïde d'Orléans, daughter of the Duke, at the royal abbey of Chelles, near Paris.

02/02/1669

Louis Marchand, French organist and composer (died 1732)

Louis Marchand was a French organist, harpsichordist and composer. Born into an organist's family, Marchand was a child prodigy and quickly established himself as one of the best known French virtuosos of his time. He worked as organist of numerous churches and, for a few years, as one of the four organistes du roy. Marchand had a violent temperament and an arrogant personality, and his life was filled with scandals, publicized and widely discussed both during his lifetime and after his death. Despite his fame, few of his works survive to this day, and those that do almost all date from his early years. Nevertheless, a few pieces of his, such as the organ pieces Grand dialogue and Fond d'orgue have been lauded as classic works of the French organ school.

02/02/1651

William Phips, Royal governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (died 1695)

Major-General Sir William Phips was a treasure hunter, military officer, and colonial administrator from the New England Colonies. He was the first royally appointed governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and the first native-born New Englander to be knighted. Phips was famous in his lifetime for recovering a large treasure from a sunken Spanish galleon but is perhaps best remembered today for establishing the court associated with the infamous Salem witch trials, which he grew unhappy with and was forced to prematurely disband after five months.

02/02/1650

Pope Benedict XIII (died 1730)

Pope Benedict XIII, born Pietro Francesco Orsini and later called Vincenzo Maria Orsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 May 1724 to his death in February 1730.

Nell Gwyn, English actress, mistress of King Charles II of England (died 1687)

Eleanor Gwyn was an English stage actress and celebrity figure of the Restoration period. Praised by Samuel Pepys for her comic performances as one of the first actresses on the English stage, she became best known for being a longtime mistress of King Charles II of England.

02/02/1621

Johannes Schefferus, Swedish author and hymn-writer (died 1679)

Johannes Schefferus was one of the most important Swedish humanists of his time. He was also known as Angelus and is remembered for writing hymns.

02/02/1613

Noël Chabanel, French missionary and saint (died 1649)

Noël Chabanel was a Jesuit missionary at Sainte-Marie among the Hurons, and one of the Canadian Martyrs.

02/02/1611

Ulrik of Denmark, Danish prince-bishop (died 1633)

Prince Ulrik of Denmark was a son of King Christian IV of Denmark and Norway and his consort Queen Anne Catherine of Brandenburg. As the fourth-born son, he bore the merely titular rank of Duke of Holstein and Schleswig, Stormarn and Ditmarsh; however, he had no share in the royal-ducal condominial rule of Holstein and Schleswig, wielded by the heads of the houses of Oldenburg (royal) and its cadet branch Holstein-Gottorp (ducal). In 1624 Ulrik was appointed administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin as Ulrich III. However, in 1628 Wallenstein's conquest of the prince-bishopric de facto deposed him. His father had to renounce all his family claims to prince-bishoprics in 1629. When in 1631 Swedish forces reconquered the prince-bishopric Ulrik failed to reascend as administrator.

02/02/1600

Gabriel Naudé, French librarian and scholar (died 1653)

Gabriel Naudé was a French librarian and scholar. He was a prolific writer who produced works on many subjects including politics, religion, history and the supernatural. In 1627, he published an influential book in the field of library science called Advice on Establishing a Library. Naudé was later able to put into practice all the ideas he had put forth in Advice when he was given the opportunity to build and maintain the Bibliothèque Mazarine, the library of Cardinal Mazarin at Paris.

02/02/1588

Georg II of Fleckenstein-Dagstuhl, German nobleman (died 1644)

Georg II of Fleckenstein Dagstuhl was the last baron of the house of Fleckenstein. He was the eldest son of Philipp Wolfgang of Fleckenstein-Dagstuhl and his first wife, Anna Alexandria of Rappoltstein. Georg II gained considerable power as guardian and regent of the still underage Count Friedrich Casimir and the counties of Hanau-Lichtenberg and Hanau-Münzenberg during the final phases of the Thirty Years' War.

02/02/1585

Judith Quiney, William Shakespeare's youngest daughter (died 1662)

Judith Quiney was the younger daughter of William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway and the fraternal twin of their only son, Hamnet Shakespeare. She married Thomas Quiney, a vintner of Stratford-upon-Avon. The circumstances of the marriage, including Quiney's misconduct, may have prompted the rewriting of Shakespeare's will. Thomas was struck out, while Judith's inheritance was attached with provisions to safeguard it from her husband. The bulk of Shakespeare's estate was left, in an elaborate fee tail, to his elder daughter, Susanna, and her male heirs.

Hamnet Shakespeare, William Shakespeare's only son (baptised; died 1596)

Hamnet Shakespeare was the only son of William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway, and the fraternal twin of Judith Shakespeare. Hamnet died at the age of 11. Some Shakespearean scholars speculate on the relationship between Hamnet and his father's later play Hamlet, as well as on possible connections between Hamnet's death and the writing of King John, Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, and Twelfth Night.

02/02/1576

Alix Le Clerc, French Canoness Regular and foundress (died 1622)

Alix Le Clerc, known as Mother Alix, was a French religious leader and founder of the Canonesses of Saint-Augustin of the Notre-Dame Congregation, a religious order created to provide education to girls, especially those living in poverty. They opened Schools of Our Lady throughout Europe. Offshoots of this order brought its mission and spirit around the globe. Le Clerc was beatified by the Catholic Church in 1947.

02/02/1551

Nicolaus Reimers, German astronomer (died 1600)

Nicolaus Reimers Baer, also Reimarus Ursus, Nicolaus Reimers Bär or Nicolaus Reymers Baer, was an astronomer and imperial mathematician to Emperor Rudolf II. Due to his family's background, he was also known as Bär, Latinized to Ursus ("bear").

02/02/1536

Piotr Skarga, Polish writer (died 1612)

Piotr Skarga was a Polish Jesuit, preacher, hagiographer, polemicist, and leading figure of the Counter-Reformation in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Due to his oratorical gifts, he has been called "the Polish Bossuet".

02/02/1522

Lodovico Ferrari, Italian mathematician and academic (died 1565)

Lodovico de Ferrari was an Italian mathematician best known today for solving the quartic equation.

02/02/1517

Gotthard Kettler, the last Master of the Livonian Order and the first Duke of Courland and Semigallia (died 1587)

Gotthard Kettler, Duke of Courland was the last Master of the Livonian Order from 1559 to 1561 and the first Duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1561 to 1587.

02/02/1509

John of Leiden, Dutch Anabaptist leader (died 1536)

John of Leiden was a Dutch Anabaptist leader. In 1533 he moved to Münster, capital of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster, where he became an influential prophet, turned the city into a millenarian Anabaptist theocracy, and proclaimed himself King of New Jerusalem in September 1534. The insurrection was suppressed in June 1535 after Prince-Bishop Franz von Waldeck besieged the city and captured John. John was tortured to death in the city's central marketplace on 22 January 1536, along with Bernhard Knipperdolling and Bernhard Krechting.

02/02/1502

Damião de Góis, Portuguese philosopher and historian (died 1574)

Damião de Góis was a Portuguese diplomat, historian, musician, and humanist philosopher. A friend and student of Erasmus, Góis is considered one of the most influential intellectuals of the Portuguese Renaissance. He was appointed secretary to the Portuguese factory in Antwerp in 1523 by King John III of Portugal. He compiled one of the first accounts on Ethiopian Christianity.

02/02/1494

Bona Sforza, queen of Sigismund I of Poland (died 1557)

Bona Sforza was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the second wife of Sigismund the Old, and Duchess of Bari and Rossano in her own right. She was a surviving member of the powerful House of Sforza, which had ruled the Duchy of Milan since 1450.

02/02/1467

Columba of Rieti, Italian Dominican sister (died 1501)

Columba of Rieti was an Italian religious sister of the Third Order of St. Dominic who was noted as a mystic. She was renowned for her spiritual counsel, devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, and fantastic miracles were attributed to her. She was beatified by the Catholic Church in 1625.

02/02/1457

Peter Martyr d'Anghiera, Italian-Spanish historian and author (died 1526)

Peter Martyr d'Anghiera, formerly known in English as Peter Martyr of Angleria, was a Savoyard historian at the service of Spain during the Age of Exploration. He wrote the first accounts of explorations in Central and South America in a series of letters and reports, grouped in the original Latin publications of 1511 to 1530 into sets of ten chapters called "decades". His Decades of the New World is of great value in the history of geography and discovery. He describes the first contacts of Europeans and Native American civilisations in the Caribbean, North America and Mesoamerica, and includes the first European reference to India rubber. The work was first translated into English in 1555, and in a fuller version in 1912.

02/02/1455

John, King of Denmark (died 1513)

Hans, or sometimes called John was a Scandinavian monarch who ruled under the Kalmar Union. He was King of Denmark from 1482 to 1513, King of Norway from 1483 to 1513, and King of Sweden from 1497 to 1501. Additionally, from 1482 to 1513, he held the titles of Duke of Schleswig and Holstein, which he governed jointly with his brother, Frederick.

02/02/1443

Elisabeth of Bavaria, Electress of Saxony (died 1486)

Elisabeth of Bavaria-Munich was a princess of Bavaria-Munich by birth and by marriage Electress of Saxony.

02/02/1208

James I of Aragon (died 1276)

James I the Conqueror was King of Aragon, Count of Barcelona, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276; King of Majorca from 1231 to 1276; and King of Valencia from 1238 to 1276. His long reign of 62 years is not only the longest of any Iberian monarch, but one of the longest monarchical reigns in history, ahead of Hirohito of Japan but remaining behind Elizabeth II of Britain, Queen Victoria of Britain, Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, and King Louis XIV of France.

Lives Remembered on 1st February

On 1st February, 155 remarkable people passed away — from 619 to 2025. Remember the lives and legacies of those we lost on this day.

02/02/2025

Brian Murphy, English comic actor (born 1932)

Brian Trevor John Murphy was an English actor. He was best known as the henpecked husband George Roper in the popular sitcom Man About the House and its spin-off series George and Mildred. He also played Alvin Smedley in Last of the Summer Wine, and other notable roles included Stan the shopkeeper in the 1990s children's series Wizadora, and Maurice in the comedy drama series The Booze Cruise. He also had a prolific career on stage.

02/02/2024

Don Murray, American actor (born 1929)

Donald Patrick Murray was an American actor, screenwriter, and film director. His debut film role as Bo Decker in Bus Stop (1956), opposite Marilyn Monroe, earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He subsequently had several major leading and supporting roles in films during the 1950s and '60s, including A Hatful of Rain (1957), Shake Hands with the Devil, One Foot in Hell, Advise & Consent, and Baby the Rain Must Fall.

Carl Weathers, American football player and actor (born 1948)

Carl Weathers was an American actor, director and gridiron football player. His prominent roles included boxer Apollo Creed in the first four Rocky films (1976–1985), Colonel Al Dillon in Predator (1987), Chubbs Peterson in Happy Gilmore (1996), and Combat Carl in the Toy Story franchise. He also starred in the 1988 film Action Jackson and portrayed Det. Beaudreaux in the television series Street Justice (1991–1993) and a fictionalized version of himself in the comedy series Arrested Development, and voiced Omnitraxus Prime in Star vs. the Forces of Evil (2017–2019). He had a recurring role as Greef Karga in the Star Wars series The Mandalorian (2019–2023), for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.

02/02/2023

K. Viswanath, Indian actor, director and screenwriter (born 1930)

Kasinadhuni Viswanath was an Indian film director, screenwriter, lyricist and actor who predominantly worked in Telugu cinema. One of the greatest auteurs of Indian cinema, he received international recognition for his works, and is known for blending parallel cinema with mainstream cinema. He was honoured with the "Prize of the Public" at the "Besançon Film Festival of France" in 1981. In 1992, he received the Andhra Pradesh state Raghupathi Venkaiah Award, and the civilian honour Padma Shri for his contribution to the field of arts. In 2016, he was conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest award in Indian cinema. He is popularly known as "Kalatapasvi."

Butch Miles, American jazz drummer (born 1944)

Charles J. Thornton, Jr., known professionally as Butch Miles, was an American jazz drummer. He played with the Count Basie Orchestra, Dave Brubeck, Ella Fitzgerald, Sammy Davis Jr., Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, and Tony Bennett.

02/02/2021

Captain Sir Tom Moore, British Army officer and charity campaigner (born 1920)

Captain Sir Thomas Moore, more popularly known as Captain Tom, was a British Army officer and fundraiser. He made international headlines in April 2020 when he raised money for charity in the run-up to his 100th birthday during the COVID-19 pandemic. He served in India and the Burma campaign during the Second World War, and later became an instructor in armoured warfare. After the war, he worked as managing director of a concrete company and was an avid motorcycle racer.

02/02/2020

Bernard Ebbers, Canadian businessman, the co-founder and CEO of WorldCom (born 1941)

Bernard John Ebbers was a Canadian-American businessman and the co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of WorldCom. Under his management, WorldCom grew rapidly but collapsed in 2002 amid revelations of accounting irregularities, making it at the time one of the largest accounting scandals in the United States. Ebbers blamed his subordinates but was convicted of fraud and conspiracy. In December 2019, Ebbers was released from Federal Medical Center, Fort Worth, due to declining health, having served 13 years of his 25-year sentence, and he died just over a month later.

Mad Mike Hoare, British-Irish military officer and mercenary (born 1919)

Thomas Michael "Mad Mike" Hoare was a British-Irish military officer and mercenary who fought during the Simba rebellion and was involved in carrying out the 1981 Seychelles coup d'état attempt.

02/02/2016

Bob Elliott, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter (born 1923)

Robert Brackett Elliott was an American comedian and actor, one-half of the comedy duo of Bob and Ray. He was the father of comedian/actor Chris Elliott and grandfather of actresses and comedians Abby Elliott and Bridey Elliott. He is most remembered for the character of radio reporter Wally Ballou.

02/02/2015

Joseph Alfidi, American pianist, composer, and conductor (born 1949)

Joseph Alfidi was an American pianist, composer, and conductor and initially a child prodigy. He was born in Yonkers, New York, as the son of American-born parents of Italian descent. His father, Frank Alfidi, was an accordion player who ran a music school in Yonkers. Known as "Joey" in his childhood, he was three when he started to play several instruments in his father's studio. By the age of four, he frequently improvised little compositions at the piano, and soon became fascinated by symphonic music as well.

Dave Bergman, American baseball player (born 1953)

David Bruce Bergman was an American Major League Baseball first baseman, designated hitter and left fielder who played between 1975 and 1992.

Andriy Kuzmenko, Ukrainian singer-songwriter and actor (born 1968)

Andriy Viktorovych "Kuzma" Kuzmenko was a Ukrainian singer, poet, writer, TV presenter, producer and actor. He was best known as the lead singer of the Ukrainian rock band Skryabin, founded in 1989.

Molade Okoya-Thomas, Nigerian businessman and philanthropist (born 1935)

Chief Molade Alexander Okoya-Thomas FCNA, MFR, OFR, KSS was a Nigerian businessman and philanthropist.

Stewart Stern, American screenwriter (born 1922)

Stewart Henry Stern was an American screenwriter. He is best known for writing the screenplay for the film Rebel Without a Cause (1955), starring James Dean.

The Jacka, American rapper and producer (born 1977)

Shaheed Akbar, better known by his stage name The Jacka, was an American rapper from Pittsburg, California. He began his career as part of the rap group Mob Figaz.

02/02/2014

Gerd Albrecht, German conductor (born 1935)

Gerd Albrecht was a German conductor.

Tommy Aquino, American motorcycle racer (born 1992)

Tommy Aquino was an American motorcycle racer who competed in the AMA Pro Daytona Sportbike Championship. His best result in the class was in 2011 when he finished third in the championship, with one win.

Nicholas Brooks, English historian (born 1941)

Nicholas Peter Brooks, was an English medieval historian.

Eduardo Coutinho, Brazilian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1933)

Eduardo de Oliveira Coutinho was a Brazilian documentary filmmaker, director, screenwriter, film producer and former reporter, known as one of the most important documentarists in Brazil.

Philip Seymour Hoffman, American actor, director, and producer (born 1967)

Philip Seymour Hoffman was an American actor. He was known for his distinctive supporting character roles and his memorable leading roles in many films and theatrical productions from the early 1990s until his death in 2014. He was voted the greatest actor of the 21st century in a 2024 ranking by The Independent.

Luis Raúl, Puerto Rican comedian and actor (born 1962)

Luis Raúl Martínez Rodríguez, better known as Luis Raúl, was a Puerto Rican actor, comedian and television host. He was known for his stand-up comedy and his various characters. He also hosted TeleOnce's talk and variety show Anda Pa'l Cará from 2001 to 2003 and Telemundo Puerto Rico's game show Pa' Que Te Lo Goces in 2006. He died early in the morning of February 2, 2014, from kidney failure which in turn led to cardiac and respiratory arrest.

Bunny Rugs, Jamaican singer (born 1948)

William Alexander Anthony "Bunny Rugs" Clarke, OD, also known as Bunny Scott, was the lead singer of Jamaican reggae band Third World as well as a solo artist. He began his career in the mid-1960s, and was also at one time a member of Inner Circle and half of the duo Bunny & Ricky.

Nigel Walker, English footballer (born 1959)

Nigel Walker was an English professional football midfielder. He played in The Football League for six clubs as well as the North American Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League. Walker's death, from cancer, at the age of 54 was reported on 2 February 2014. After football, Nigel was a teacher at Greencroft Business and Enterprise Community School.

02/02/2013

Abraham Iyambo, Namibian politician (born 1961)

Abraham Iyambo was a Namibian politician. Iyambo was a member of the National Assembly of Namibia since 1995, serving as Minister of Fisheries from 1997 to 2010 and Minister of Education from 2010 until his death. Iyambo was a member of both the central committee and political bureau of the SWAPO Party and the chairperson of its think tank.

John Kerr, American actor and lawyer (born 1931)

John Grinham Kerr was an American actor and attorney.

Chris Kyle, American soldier and sniper (born 1974)

Christopher Scott Kyle was a United States Navy SEAL sniper and author. Kyle served four tours in the Iraq War and was awarded the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and a Combat Action Ribbon. With a claim of 160 confirmed kills in combat, he is one of the most prolific snipers in military history. He was awarded one Silver Star and three Bronze Star Medals with "V" devices for valor.

Lino Oviedo, Paraguayan general and politician (born 1943)

Lino César Oviedo Silva was a Paraguayan army officer and politician, who was the leader of the National Union of Ethical Citizens, which split from the Colorado Party in 2002.

Pepper Paire, American baseball player (born 1924)

Lavone A. "Pepper" Paire Davis was a baseball catcher and infielder who played from 1944 through 1953 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m), 138 lb., she batted and threw right-handed.

P. Shanmugam, Indian politician, 13th Chief Minister of Puducherry (born 1927)

P. Shanmugam was the Chief Minister of the Union Territory of Pondicherry. He served from 22 March 2000 to 27 October 2001.

Walt Sweeney, American football player (born 1941)

Walter Francis Sweeney was an American professional football player who was a guard in the American Football League (AFL) and the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Syracuse Orange and was named to the school's all-century team. He also played in the North–South Bowl and the College All-Star Game. A first-round draft pick of the San Diego Chargers in 1963, Sweeney helped them win the AFL championship.

Guy F. Tozzoli, American architect (born 1922)

Guy Frederick Tozzoli was director of the World Trade Department of the Port of New York Authority in the 1960s. As such he was a driving force behind the development and building of the World Trade Center towers. Tozzoli was also a founder of the World Trade Centers Association, which fostered the development and operation of World Trade Centers globally. Tozzoli was the driving force from New York City, while his business associates Tadayoshi Yamada and Paul Fabry led the WTC effort in Tokyo and New Orleans respectively.

02/02/2012

Joyce Barkhouse, Canadian author (born 1913)

Joyce Carman Barkhouse was a Canadian children's writer best known for writing historical fiction. She is the aunt of Margaret Atwood, with whom she co-wrote the children's book Anna's Pet. Barkhouse achieved her greatest recognition for her novel Pit Pony.

Frederick William Danker, American lexicographer and scholar (born 1920)

Frederick William Danker was a Christ Seminary–Seminex Professor Emeritus of New Testament at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, Illinois. Danker was a noted New Testament scholar and the pre-eminent Koine Greek lexicographer for two generations, working with F. Wilbur Gingrich as an editor of the Bauer Lexicon starting in 1957 until the publication of the second edition in 1979, and as the only editor from 1979 until the publication of the 3rd edition, updating it with the results of modern scholarship, converting it to SGML to allow it to be easily published in electronic formats, and significantly improving the usability of the lexicon, as well as the typography.

George Esper, American journalist and academic (born 1932)

George Esper was an American journalist and academic known for his work as a foreign correspondent for the Associated Press during the Vietnam War.

Dorothy Gilman, American author (born 1923)

Dorothy Edith Gilman was an American writer. She is best known for the Mrs. Pollifax series of spy novels, about spy and grandmother Emily Pollifax, who becomes a spy in her 60s. In 2010, Gilman was the Mystery Writers of America's Grand Master Award recipient.

James F. Lloyd, American pilot and politician (born 1922)

James Fredrick Lloyd was an American military officer, businessman, and politician who served three terms as Democratic United States Representative from 1975 to 1981.

02/02/2011

Edward Amy, Canadian general (born 1918)

Brigadier-General Edward Alfred Charles Amy, DSO, OBE, MC, CD was a Canadian soldier who fought in World War II. He is one of Canada's most decorated soldiers.

Defne Joy Foster, Turkish actress (born 1975)

Defne Joy Foster was an American-Turkish actress, presenter and VJ.

Margaret John, Welsh actress (born 1926)

Margaret John was a BAFTA award-winning Welsh actress. She is often remembered for her later roles in TV comedies such as Doris O'Neill in Gavin & Stacey and Elsie "Mam" Hepplewhite in High Hopes.

02/02/2008

Barry Morse, Canadian actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1918)

Herbert "Barry" Morse was a British-Canadian actor, writer, and director. He was known for playing Lt. Philip Gerard, the principal antagonist of the American television series The Fugitive (1963–67), as well as Dr. Victor Bergman on Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's science-fiction programme Space: 1999 (1975–76).

Katoucha Niane, Guinean model and author (born 1960)

Katoucha Niane was a Guinean model, activist and author. Nicknamed "The Peul Princess", she worked, and later wrote, under the single name "Katoucha". She was known as the muse of Yves Saint Laurent during the 1980s.

02/02/2007

Vijay Arora, Indian actor (born 1944)

Vijay Arora was an Indian actor in Hindi films and television serials who was known for Yaadon Ki Baaraat and as Indrajit in the television serial Ramayan.

Billy Henderson, American singer (born 1939)

William Henderson was an American singer, best known for being an original member and founder of The Spinners, a soul vocal group.

Joe Hunter, American pianist (born 1927)

Joseph Edward Hunter was an American musician and keyboardist, known for his recording session work with Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers. One of the original Funk Brothers, Hunter served as band director from 1959 until 1964, when he left Motown and was replaced by Earl Van Dyke.

Filippo Raciti, Italian police officer (born 1967)

On 2 February 2007, football violence occurred between football supporters and the police in Catania, Sicily, Italy. The clashes occurred during and after the Serie A match between the Catania and Palermo football clubs, also known as the Sicilian derby. Police officer Filippo Raciti was killed; in response Italian football was suspended for about a week.

Eric Von Schmidt, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1931)

Eric von Schmidt was an American folk musician and painter. He was associated with the folk boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s and was a key part of the Cambridge folk music scene. As a singer and guitarist, he was considered to be the leading specialist in country blues in Cambridge at the time, the counterpart of Greenwich Village's Dave Van Ronk. Von Schmidt co-authored with Jim Rooney Baby, Let Me Follow You Down: The Illustrated Story of the Cambridge Folk Years.

Masao Takemoto, Japanese gymnast (born 1919)

Masao Takemoto was a Japanese artistic gymnast who won two world titles and seven Olympic medals.

02/02/2005

Birgitte Federspiel, Danish actress (born 1925)

Birgitte Federspiel was a Danish film, theater and TV actress. She won two Bodil Awards for best actress in 1955 (Ordet) and 1959.

Max Schmeling, German boxer (born 1905)

Maximilian "Max" Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in 1936 and 1938 were worldwide cultural events because of their national associations. Schmeling is the only boxer to win the world heavyweight championship on a foul.

02/02/2004

Bernard McEveety, American director and producer (born 1924)

Bernard E. McEveety, Jr. was an American film and television director.

02/02/2003

Lou Harrison, American composer and educator (born 1917)

Lou Silver Harrison was an American composer, music critic, music theorist, painter, and creator of unique musical instruments. Harrison initially wrote in a dissonant, ultramodernist style similar to his former teacher and contemporary, Henry Cowell, but later moved toward incorporating elements of non-Western cultures into his work. Notable examples include a number of pieces written for Javanese style gamelan instruments, inspired after his introduction to noted gamelan musician Kanjeng Notoprojo. Harrison would create his own musical ensembles and instruments with his partner, William Colvig, who are now both considered founders of the American gamelan movement and world music; along with composers Harry Partch and Claude Vivier, and ethnomusicologist Colin McPhee.

02/02/2002

Paul Baloff, American singer-songwriter (born 1960)

Paul Nicholas Baloff was an American singer, best known as the original lead vocalist of the thrash metal band Exodus. He was fired from Exodus shortly after the release of the band's 1985 debut album Bonded by Blood, which is considered one of the most influential thrash metal albums of all time. He sang with various other bands before rejoining Exodus in 1997. Baloff died of a stroke in 2002.

Claude Brown, American author (born 1937)

Claude Brown was the author of Manchild in the Promised Land, published to critical acclaim in 1965, which tells the story of his coming of age during the 1940s and 1950s in Harlem. He also published Children of Ham (1976).

02/02/1999

David McComb, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1962)

David Richard McComb was an Australian musician. He was the singer-songwriter and guitarist of the Australian bands, The Triffids (1976–89) and The Blackeyed Susans (1989–93). He also had a solo career including leading David McComb and The Red Ponies.

02/02/1998

Haroun Tazieff, German-French geologist and cinematographer (born 1914)

Haroun Tazieff was a Franco-Belgian volcanologist and geologist. He was a famous cinematographer of volcanic eruptions and lava flows, and the author of several books on volcanoes. He was also a government adviser and French cabinet minister. He also served in the Belgian resistance during World War II.

02/02/1997

Erich Eliskases, Austrian chess player (born 1913)

Erich Gottlieb Eliskases was a chess player who represented Austria, Germany, Brazil and Argentina in International competition. In the late 1930s he was considered a potential contender for the World Championship. Eliskases was granted the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 1952.

Sanford Meisner, American actor and coach (born 1904)

Sanford Meisner was an American actor and acting teacher who developed an approach to acting instruction that is now known as the Meisner technique. While Meisner was exposed to method acting at the Group Theatre, his approach differed markedly in that he completely abandoned the use of affective memory, a distinct characteristic of method acting. Meisner maintained an emphasis on "the reality of doing", which was the foundation of his approach.

02/02/1996

Gene Kelly, American actor, singer, dancer, and director (born 1912)

Eugene Curran Kelly was an American dancer, actor, singer, director and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style. Kelly sought to create a new form of American dance accessible to the general public, which he called "dance for the common man". He starred in, choreographed, and, with Stanley Donen, co-directed some of the best-regarded musical films of the 1940s and 1950s.

02/02/1995

Thomas Hayward, American tenor and actor (born 1917)

Thomas T. Hayward was an American operatic tenor. He was a cousin of opera singer Lawrence Tibbett.

Fred Perry, English tennis player (born 1909)

Frederick Towersey Perry was a British tennis and table tennis player and former world No. 1. He won 10 Majors, including eight Grand Slam tournaments and two Pro Slams single titles, as well as six Major doubles titles. Perry was the first player to win a "Career Grand Slam", lifting all four singles titles, which he completed at the age of 26 at the 1935 French Championships. He remains the only British player to achieve this feat.

Donald Pleasence, English-French actor (born 1919)

Donald Henry Pleasence was an English actor. He was known for his "bald head and intense, staring eyes," and played more than 250 stage, film, and television roles across a nearly 60-year career.

02/02/1994

Marija Gimbutas, Lithuanian-American archeologist (born 1921)

Marija Gimbutas was a Lithuanian archaeologist and anthropologist known for her research into the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of "Old Europe" and for her Kurgan hypothesis, which located the Proto-Indo-European homeland in the Pontic Steppe.

02/02/1993

François Reichenbach, French director and screenwriter (born 1921)

François Arnold Reichenbach was a French film director, cinematographer, producer, and screenwriter. He directed 40 films between 1954 and 1993.

02/02/1992

Bert Parks, American actor, singer, television personality; Miss America telecast presenter (born 1914)

Bert Parks was an American actor, singer, and radio and television announcer, best known for hosting the annual Miss America telecast from 1955 to 1979.

02/02/1990

Paul Ariste, Estonian linguist and academic (born 1905)

Paul Ariste was an Estonian linguist renowned for his studies of the Finno-Ugric languages, Yiddish and Baltic Romani language.

Joe Erskine, Welsh boxer (born 1934)

Joseph Erskine was a professional boxer from the Butetown district of Cardiff, Wales. He was an Amateur Boxing Association Champion, Inter-Services Champion, and British Army Champion in 1953. He began fighting as a professional in 1954 and was trained by Archie Rule and Freddie Elvin. He held the British heavyweight title from August 1956 to June 1958. In all, he won 45 of his 54 professional bouts, losing 8, with one drawn. His best wins were against George Chuvalo, Henry Cooper, Dick Richardson, Uli Ritter, Jack Bodell, Johnny Williams, Joe Bygraves, and Willie Pastrano.

02/02/1989

Ondrej Nepela, Slovak figure skater and coach (born 1951)

Ondrej Nepela was a Slovak figure skater who represented Czechoslovakia. He was the 1972 Olympic champion, a three-time World champion (1971–1973), and a five-time European champion (1969–1973). Later in his career, he performed professionally and became a coach.

Arnold Nordmeyer, New Zealand minister and politician, 30th New Zealand Minister of Finance (born 1901)

Sir Arnold Henry Nordmeyer was a New Zealand politician and Presbyterian minister. As a member of Parliament (MP) he played a crucial role in the Labour Party, serving from 1935 to 1969. He served as minister of finance (1957–1960) and later as leader of the Labour Party and leader of the Opposition (1963–1965). Although he was a prominent statesman, Nordmeyer never ascended to the role of prime minister.

02/02/1988

Marcel Bozzuffi, French actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1929)

Marcel Bozzuffi was a French film actor. Internationally, he appeared as a hitman in the Oscar-winning American film The French Connection. In 1963, he married French actress Françoise Fabian.

02/02/1987

Carlos José Castilho, Brazilian footballer and manager (born 1927)

Carlos José Castilho was a Brazilian football goalkeeper. He was born in Rio de Janeiro and played for Fluminense from 1947 to 1964 and for Brazil. He was a member of the Brazil squad in four World Cups: 1950, 1954, 1958 and 1962. Castilho has the all-time record of matches played in Fluminense FC history, with 699 appearances.

Alistair MacLean, Scottish novelist and screenwriter (born 1922)

Alistair Stuart MacLean was a Scottish novelist, who wrote popular thrillers and adventure stories. His books are estimated to have sold over 150 million copies, making him one of the best-selling fiction authors of all time.

02/02/1986

Anita Cobby, Australian murder victim (born 1959)

Anita Lorraine Cobby was a 26-year-old Australian woman from Blacktown, Sydney, who was abducted while walking home from Blacktown railway station just before 10:00 p.m. on 2 February 1986 and was subsequently raped, tortured and murdered. The case received widespread media coverage and public condemnation, including some who called for reinstating the death penalty.

Gino Hernandez, American wrestler (born 1957)

Charles Eugene Wolfe Jr. was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Gino Hernandez. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with the Dallas, Texas-based promotion World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) between 1976 until his death in 1986. Hernandez's death was initially ruled a murder case, but police later concluded that he had died of a drug overdose. Despite this conclusion, those close to Hernandez and fans alike continue to speculate about the circumstances surrounding his death.

02/02/1983

Sam Chatmon, American singer and guitarist (born 1897)

Vivian "Sam" Chatmon was an American Delta blues guitarist and singer who was a member of the Mississippi Sheiks.

02/02/1982

Paul Desruisseaux, Canadian lawyer and politician (born 1905)

Paul Desruisseaux was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician.

02/02/1980

William Howard Stein, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1911)

William Howard Stein was an American biochemist who collaborated in the determination of the ribonuclease sequence, as well as how its structure relates to catalytic activity, earning a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1972 for his work. Stein was also involved in the invention of the automatic amino acid analyzer, an advancement in chromatography that opened the door to modern methods of chromatography, such as liquid chromatography and gas chromatography.

02/02/1979

Jim Burke, Australian cricketer (born 1930)

James Wallace Burke was an Australian cricketer who played in 24 Test matches from 1951 to 1959. Burke holds the record for the most innings in a complete career without scoring a duck, with 44.

Sid Vicious, English singer and bass player (born 1957)

John Simon Ritchie, better known by his stage name Sid Vicious, was an English musician, best known as the second bassist for the punk rock band Sex Pistols. After his death in 1979 at the age of 21, he remained an icon of the punk subculture; one of his friends noted that he embodied "everything in punk that was dark, decadent and nihilistic".

02/02/1975

Gustave Lanctot, Canadian historian and academic (born 1883)

Gustave Lanctot, also spelled Gustave Lanctôt, was a Canadian historian and archivist.

02/02/1974

Imre Lakatos, Hungarian-English mathematician and philosopher (born 1922)

Imre Lakatos was a Hungarian philosopher of mathematics and science, known for his thesis of the fallibility of mathematics and its "methodology of proofs and refutations" in its pre-axiomatic stages of development, and also for introducing the concept of the "research programme" in his methodology of scientific research programmes.

02/02/1973

Hendrik Elias, Belgian academic and politician, 9th Mayor of Ghent (born 1902)

Hendrik Jozef Elias was a Belgian politician and Flemish nationalist, notable as the leader of the Vlaams Nationaal Verbond between 1942 and 1944.

02/02/1972

Natalie Clifford Barney, American author, poet, and playwright (born 1876)

Natalie Clifford Barney was an American writer who hosted a literary salon at her home in Paris that brought together French and international writers. She influenced other authors through her salon and also with her poetry, plays, and epigrams, often thematically tied to her lesbianism and feminism.

02/02/1970

Lawrence Gray, American actor (born 1898)

Lawrence Gray was an American actor of the 1920s and 1930s.

Bertrand Russell, English mathematician and philosopher, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1872)

Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, was an English philosopher, logician, mathematician, and public intellectual. He influenced mathematics, logic, set theory, and various areas of analytic philosophy.

Hannah Ryggen, Norwegian textile artist (born 1894)

Hannah Ryggen was a Swedish-born Norwegian textile artist. Self-trained, she worked on a standing loom constructed by her husband, the painter Hans Ryggen. She lived on a farm on a Norwegian Fjord and dyed her yarn with local plants.

02/02/1969

Boris Karloff, English actor (born 1887)

William Henry Pratt, known professionally as Boris Karloff, was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film Frankenstein (1931), his 82nd film, established him as a horror icon, and he reprised the role for the sequels Bride of Frankenstein (1935) and Son of Frankenstein (1939). He also appeared as Imhotep in The Mummy (1932), and voiced the Grinch in, as well as narrating, the animated television special of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966), which won him a Grammy Award.

02/02/1968

Tullio Serafin, Italian conductor and director (born 1878)

Tullio Serafin was an Italian conductor who specialised in the operatic repertoire. He was Musical Director at La Scala on three occasions.

02/02/1966

Hacı Ömer Sabancı, Turkish businessman (born 1906)

Hacı Ömer Sabancı was a Turkish entrepreneur, who founded a number of companies, which later formed the second largest industrial and financial conglomerate of Turkey, the Sabancı Holding. He initiated the establishment of a dynasty of Turkey's wealthiest businesspeople.

02/02/1962

Shlomo Hestrin, Canadian-Israeli biochemist and academic (born 1914)

Shlomo Hestrin was an Israeli biochemist.

02/02/1957

Grigory Landsberg, Russian physicist and academic (born 1890)

Grigory Samuilovich Landsberg was a Soviet physicist who worked in the fields of optics and spectroscopy. Together with Leonid Mandelstam he co-discovered inelastic combinational scattering of light, which is known as Raman scattering.

02/02/1956

Charley Grapewin, American actor (born 1869)

Charles Ellsworth Grapewin was an American vaudeville and circus performer, writer, and stage and film actor.

Truxtun Hare, American football player and hammer thrower (born 1878)

Thomas Truxtun Hare was an American Olympic medalist who competed in track and field and the hammer throw. He also played football with the University of Pennsylvania and was selected first-team All-American all four years. Sports Illustrated wrote, "Few early 20th Century players were as revered as Hare, who played every minute of every game." He was selected as a charter member of the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951.

Pyotr Konchalovsky, Russian painter (born 1876)

Pyotr or Petr Petrovich Konchalovsky was a Russian and Soviet painter. He was a founding member and Chairman of the Knave of Diamonds group.

02/02/1954

Hella Wuolijoki, Estonian-Finnish author and politician (born 1886)

Hella Maria Wuolijoki, known by the pen name Juhani Tervapää, was an Estonian-born Finnish writer, playwright, parliamentarian, businessperson and farmer. She is best known as a dramatist, particularly for the Niskavuori series of plays and for her collaboration with Bertolt Brecht on Mr Puntila and his Man Matti. Wuolijoki served as the Director General of Yle from April 1945 to June 1949 and was a member of the Parliament of Finland from 1946 to 1948. She also played a private role in the peace negotiations during the Winter War through her friendship with Alexandra Kollontai.

02/02/1952

Callistratus of Georgia, Georgian patriarch (born 1866)

St. Callistratus was Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia from June 21, 1932, until his death. His full title was His Holiness and Beatitude, Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi and Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia.

02/02/1950

Constantin Carathéodory, Greek mathematician and academic (born 1873)

Constantin Carathéodory was a Greek mathematician who spent most of his professional career in Germany. He made significant contributions to real and complex analysis, the calculus of variations, and measure theory. He also created an axiomatic formulation of thermodynamics. Carathéodory is considered one of the greatest mathematicians of his era and the most renowned Greek mathematician since antiquity.

02/02/1948

Thomas W. Lamont, American banker and philanthropist (born 1870)

Thomas William Lamont Jr. was an American banker.

Bevil Rudd, South African runner and journalist (born 1894)

Bevil Gordon D'Urban Rudd was a South African athlete, the 1920 Olympic Champion in the 400 metres.

02/02/1945

Alfred Delp, German priest and philosopher (born 1907)

Alfred Friedrich Delp was a German Jesuit religious priest and philosopher of the German Resistance. A member of the inner Kreisau Circle resistance group, he is considered a significant figure in Catholic resistance to Nazism. Falsely implicated in the failed 1944 July Plot to overthrow Adolf Hitler, Delp was arrested and sentenced to death. He was executed in 1945.

Carl Friedrich Goerdeler, German economist and politician (born 1884)

Carl Friedrich Goerdeler was a German conservative politician, monarchist, executive, economist, civil servant and opponent of the Nazi regime. He opposed anti-Jewish policies while he held office and was opposed to the Holocaust.

Johannes Popitz, German lawyer and politician (born 1884)

Hermann Eduard Johannes Popitz was a Prussian lawyer, finance minister and a member of the German Resistance against the government of Nazi Germany. He was the father of Heinrich Popitz, an important German sociologist.

02/02/1942

Ado Birk, Estonian lawyer and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Estonia (born 1883)

Ado Birk, was an Estonian politician who was the Estonian Prime Minister for the shortest time.

Daniil Kharms, Russian poet and playwright (born 1905)

Daniil Ivanovich Kharms was a Russian avant-gardist and absurdist poet, writer and dramatist in the early Soviet era.

Hugh D. McIntosh, Australian businessman (born 1876)

Hugh Donald "Huge Deal" McIntosh was an Australian theatrical entrepreneur, sporting promoter and newspaper proprietor

02/02/1939

Amanda McKittrick Ros, Irish author and poet (born 1860)

Anna Margaret Ross, known by her pen-name Amanda McKittrick Ros, was an Irish writer. She published her first novel Irene Iddesleigh at her own expense in 1897. However, it was reprinted by Nonesuch Press in 1926; the reprint sold out immediately. She wrote poetry and a number of novels. She has been described as a "writer with an immense power of words but uncertain use of them."

Bernhard Gregory, Estonian-German chess player (born 1879)

Bernhard Gregory was a Baltic German chess master.

02/02/1932

Agha Petros, Assyrian general and politician (born 1880)

Petros Elia of Baz, better known as Agha Petros, was an Assyrian military leader and warlord, best known for his role during World War I. He commanded both Assyrian and Armenian forces that defeated Ottoman, Kurdish, and Qajar armies in multiple battles across Mesopotamia and Persia, and he also led ethnic conflicts against Kurdish tribes within the region.

02/02/1926

Vladimir Sukhomlinov, Russian general and politician (born 1848)

Vladimir Aleksandrovich Sukhomlinov was a Russian general in the Imperial Russian Army who served as the Chief of the General Staff from 1908 to 1909 and the Minister of War from 1909 to 1915.

02/02/1925

Antti Aarne, Finnish historian and academic (born 1867)

Antti Amatus Aarne was a Finnish folklorist.

Jaap Eden, Dutch speed skater and cyclist (born 1873)

Jacobus Johannes "Jaap" Eden was a Dutch athlete. He is the only male athlete to win world championships in both speed skating and bicycle racing.

02/02/1919

Julius Kuperjanov, Estonian lieutenant (born 1894)

Julius Kuperjanov VR I/2, VR II/2 and VR II/3 was an Estonian military officer who helped to liberate Tartu during the War of Independence, and was the commander of the Tartumaa Partisan Battalion, posthumously renamed the Kuperjanov Infantry Battalion.

02/02/1918

John L. Sullivan, American boxer (born 1858)

John Lawrence Sullivan was an American professional boxer. Nicknamed the "Boston Strong Boy" and known as John L. among his admirers, he is recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing, de facto reigning from 7 February 1882 to 7 September 1892. He is also generally recognized as the last heavyweight champion of bare-knuckle boxing under the London Prize Ring Rules, being a cultural icon of the late 19th century America, arguably the first boxing superstar and one of the world's highest-paid athletes of his era.

02/02/1913

Gustaf de Laval, Swedish engineer (born 1845)

Karl Gustaf Patrik de Laval was a Swedish engineer and inventor who made important contributions to the design of steam turbines and centrifugal separation machinery for dairy.

02/02/1909

Carlo Acton, Italian pianist and composer (born 1829)

Carlo Eduardo Acton was an Italian composer and concert pianist. He is particularly remembered for his opera Una cena in convitto and for his sacred music compositions of which his Tantum ergo is the most well-known.

02/02/1907

Dmitri Mendeleev, Russian chemist and academic (born 1834)

Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev was a Russian chemist known for formulating the periodic law and creating a version of the periodic table of elements. He used the periodic law not only to correct the then-accepted properties of some known elements, such as the valence and atomic weight of uranium, but also to predict the properties of three elements that were yet to be discovered. The synthetic element mendelevium is named in his honor.

02/02/1905

Henri Germain, French banker and politician, founded Le Crédit Lyonnais (born 1824)

Henri Germain was a French banker and politician who founded Crédit Lyonnais.

02/02/1904

Ernest Cashel, American-Canadian criminal (born 1882)

Ernest Cashel was an American-born Canadian outlaw who became famous for his repeated escapes from custody.

William Collins Whitney, American financier and politician, 31st United States Secretary of the Navy (born 1841)

William Collins Whitney was an American political leader and financier and a prominent member of the Whitney family. He served as Secretary of the Navy in the first administration of President Grover Cleveland from 1885 through 1889. A conservative reformer, he was considered a Bourbon Democrat.

02/02/1881

Henry Parker, English-Australian politician, 3rd Premier of New South Wales (born 1808)

Sir Henry Watson Parker, was Premier of New South Wales. He fitted into colonial society and politics in the era before responsible government, but his style was not suited to the democratic politics that began to develop in 1856.

02/02/1861

Théophane Vénard, French Catholic missionary (born 1829)

Jean-Théophane Vénard was a French Catholic missionary to Indo-China. He was a member of the Paris Foreign Missions Society. He was beatified in company with thirty-three other Catholic martyrs, most of whom were natives of Tonkin, Cochin-China, or China. Pope John Paul II canonized him, with nineteen other martyrs, in 1988.

02/02/1836

Letizia Ramolino, Italian noblewoman (born 1750)

Maria-Letizia Bonaparte, commonly known as Letizia Bonaparte, was a Corsican noblewoman and the matriarch of the House of Bonaparte, as the mother of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French. Due to her status as the Emperor's mother, she was granted the title "Madame Mère".

02/02/1831

Vincenzo Dimech, Maltese sculptor (born 1768)

Vincenzo Dimech was a Maltese sculptor. He is best known for his religious sculptures, which include the titular statues of Gudja and Floriana. He also sculpted monuments or architectural features in Valletta and Corfu.

02/02/1804

George Walton, American lawyer and politician, Governor of Georgia (born 1749)

George Walton was a Founding Father of the United States who signed the United States Declaration of Independence while representing Georgia in the Continental Congress. Walton also served briefly as the second chief executive of Georgia in 1779 and was again named governor in 1789–1790. In 1795, he was appointed to the U.S. Senate, to complete the unexpired term of a senator who had resigned.

02/02/1802

Welbore Ellis, 1st Baron Mendip, English politician, Secretary of State for the Colonies (born 1713)

Welbore Ellis, 1st Baron Mendip, PC, FRS was a British politician who represented Cricklade, Weymouth and Melcombe Regis, Aylesbury and Petersfield in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1741 to 1794 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Mendip. He held a number of political offices, including briefly serving as Secretary for the Colonies in 1782 during the American War of Independence.

02/02/1798

Ferdinand Ashmall, English centenarian, Catholic priest, died in 73rd year of his ministry (born 1695)

Ferdinand Ashmall was an English centenarian and Catholic priest for the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

02/02/1769

Pope Clement XIII (born 1693)

Pope Clement XIII, born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 July 1758 to his death in February 1769. He was installed on 16 July 1758.

02/02/1768

Robert Smith, English mathematician and theorist (born 1689)

Robert Smith was an English mathematician.

02/02/1723

Antonio Maria Valsalva, Italian anatomist and physician (born 1666)

Antonio Maria Valsalva was an Italian anatomist born in Imola. His research focused on the anatomy of the ears. He coined the term Eustachian tube and he described the aortic sinuses of Valsalva in his writings, published posthumously in 1740. His name is associated with the Valsalva antrum of the ear and the Valsalva maneuver, which is used as a test of circulatory function. Anatomical structures bearing his name are Valsalva’s muscle and taeniae Valsalvae. He observed that when weakness of one side of the body is caused by a lesion in the brain, the culprit lesion tends to be on the side opposite (contralateral) to the weak side; this finding is named the "Valsalva doctrine" in his honor.

02/02/1714

John Sharp, English archbishop (born 1643)

John Sharp was an English divine who served as Archbishop of York.

02/02/1712

Martin Lister, English physician and geologist (born 1639)

Martin Lister was an English naturalist and physician. His daughters Anne and Susanna were two of his illustrators and engravers.

02/02/1704

Guillaume de l'Hôpital, French mathematician and academic (born 1661)

Guillaume François Antoine, Marquis de l'Hôpital was a French mathematician. His name is firmly associated with l'Hôpital's rule for calculating limits involving indeterminate forms 0/0 and ∞/∞. Although the rule did not originate with l'Hôpital, it appeared in print for the first time in his 1696 treatise on the infinitesimal calculus, entitled Analyse des Infiniment Petits pour l'Intelligence des Lignes Courbes. This book was a first systematic exposition of differential calculus. Several editions and translations to other languages were published and it became a model for subsequent treatments of calculus.

02/02/1688

Abraham Duquesne, French admiral (born 1610)

Vice-Admiral Abraham Duquesne, marquis du Bouchet was a French naval officer, who also saw service as an admiral in the Swedish navy. He was born in Dieppe, a seaport, in 1610, and was a Huguenot. He was the son of a naval officer and therefore became a sailor himself, spending his early years in merchant service.

02/02/1675

Ivan Belostenec, Croatian linguist and lexicographer (born 1594)

Ivan Belostenec was a Croatian linguist, lexicographer and poet.

02/02/1661

Lucas Holstenius, German geographer and historian (born 1596)

Lucas Holstenius, born Lucas Holstein, was a German Catholic humanist, geographer, historian, and librarian.

02/02/1660

Gaston, Duke of Orléans (born 1608)

Monsieur Gaston, Duke of Orléans, was the third son of King Henry IV of France and his second wife, Marie de' Medici. As a son of the king, he was born a Fils de France. He later acquired the title Duke of Orléans, by which he was generally known during his adulthood. As the eldest surviving brother of King Louis XIII, he was known at court by the traditional honorific Monsieur.

Govert Flinck, Dutch painter (born 1615)

Govert Teuniszoon Flinck was a Dutch painter of the Dutch Golden Age.

02/02/1648

George Abbot, English author and politician (born 1603)

George Abbot or Abbott was an English lay writer, known as "The Puritan", and a politician who sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1640 and 1649. He is known also for his part in defending Caldecote House against royalist forces in the early days of the English Civil War.

02/02/1594

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Italian composer and educator (born 1525)

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina was an Italian composer of late Renaissance music. The central representative of the Roman School, with Orlande de Lassus and Tomás Luis de Victoria, Palestrina is considered the leading composer of late 16th-century Europe. Palestrina was one of the few Renaissance composers never entirely forgotten, but it was the so-called "Palestrinian style" of counterpoint—especially as codified by Johann Joseph Fux—rather than his individual compositions that exerted the greatest influence.

02/02/1580

Bessho Nagaharu, Japanese daimyō (born 1558)

Bessho Nagaharu was a Japanese daimyō of the Sengoku period. He was the eldest son of Bessho Yasuharu.

02/02/1529

Baldassare Castiglione, Italian soldier and diplomat (born 1478)

Baldassare Castiglione, Count of Casatico, was an Italian courtier, diplomat, soldier and a prominent Renaissance author.

02/02/1512

Hatuey, Caribbean tribal chief

Hatuey, also Hatüey, was a Taíno Cacique (chief) of the Hispaniolan cacicazgo of Guanaba. He lived from the late 15th until the early 16th century. Chief Hatuey and many of his tribesmen travelled from present-day La Gonave by canoe to Cuba to warn the Indigenous people in Cuba about the Spaniards that were arriving to conquer the island.

02/02/1461

Owen Tudor, Welsh founder of the Tudor dynasty (born c. 1400)

Sir Owen Tudor was a Welsh courtier and the second husband of Queen Catherine of Valois (1401–1437), widow of King Henry V of England. He was the grandfather of Henry VII, founder of the Tudor dynasty.

02/02/1448

Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, Egyptian jurist and scholar (born 1372)

Ibn Hajar al Asqalani ., or simply ibn Ḥajar, was a classic Islamic scholar "whose life work constitutes the final summation of the science of hadith." He authored some 150 works on hadith, history, biography, exegesis, poetry, and the Shafi'i school of jurisprudence, the most valued of which being his commentary of Sahih al-Bukhari, titled Fath al-Bari. He is known by the honorific epithets Hafiz al-Asr, Shaykh al-Islam, and Amir al-Mu'minin fi al-Hadith.

02/02/1446

Vittorino da Feltre, Italian humanist (born 1378)

Vittorino da Feltre was an Italian humanist and teacher. He was born in Feltre, Belluno, Republic of Venice and died in Mantua. His real name was Vittorino Rambaldoni. It was in Vittorino that the Renaissance idea of the complete man, or l'uomo universale — health of body, strength of character, wealth of mind — reached its first formulation.

02/02/1435

Joan II of Naples, Queen of Naples (born 1371)

Joanna II was Queen of Naples from 1414 until her death in 1435, marking the extinction of the senior line of the Capetian House of Anjou. In addition to her primary title, she also claimed several other royal titles, including titular queen of Jerusalem, Hungary, Sicily, Dalmatia, Croatia, and Rama.

02/02/1416

Racek Kobyla of Dvorce

Racek Kobyla of Dvorce was a Bohemian landowner, hetman of Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia, and burgrave of Stříbrná Skalice and Vyšehrad during the Late Middle Ages.

02/02/1348

Narymunt, Prince of Pinsk

Narimantas, also known as Narymunt or Narimunt, was a Lithuanian duke and the second eldest son of Gediminas, the grand duke of Lithuania.

02/02/1347

Thomas Bek, Bishop of Lincoln, was the bishop of Lincoln (born 1282)

Thomas Bek was the Bishop of Lincoln from 1341 until his death. He was a member of the same family as Antony Bek, Bishop of Durham, and Thomas Bek, Bishop of St David's.

02/02/1294

Louis II, Duke of Bavaria (born 1229)

Louis the Strict was Duke of Upper Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1253. He is known as Louis II or Louis VI following an alternative numbering. Born in Heidelberg, he was a son of Otto II Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria and Agnes of the Palatinate.

02/02/1250

Eric XI of Sweden (born 1216)

Erik Eriksson, sometimes known as Erik XI or with the epithet the Lisp and Lame, was King of Sweden from 1222 to 1229 and again from 1234 to 1250. Being the last ruler of the House of Erik, he stood in the shadow of a succession of powerful jarls, especially his brother-in-law Birger Jarl, whose descendants ruled as kings after his death.

02/02/1237

Joan, Lady of Wales

Joan, Lady of Wales was an illegitimate daughter of King John of England, and the wife of Llywelyn the Great.

02/02/1218

Konstantin of Rostov (born 1186)

Konstantin Vsevolodovich was the eldest son of Vsevolod the Big Nest and Maria Shvarnovna.

02/02/1124

Bořivoj II, Duke of Bohemia (born 1064)

Bořivoj II was the duke of Bohemia from 25 December 1100 until May 1107 and from December 1117 until 16 August 1120. He was the younger half-brother and successor of Bretislaus II. His father was Vratislav II of Bohemia, his mother Świętosława of Poland.

02/02/0880

Bruno, duke of Saxony

Bruno, also called Brun or Braun, a member of the Ottonian dynasty, was Duke of Saxony from 866 until his death in 880. He is rated as an ancestor of the Brunonids, a cadet branch of the Ottonians, though an affiliation is uncertain. Bruno was killed fighting against Norse warriors in the Battle of Lüneburg Heath and is venerated as one of the Ebsdorf Martyrs.

02/02/0619

Laurence of Canterbury, English archbishop and saint

Laurence was the second Archbishop of Canterbury, serving from about 604 to 619. He was a member of the Gregorian mission sent from Italy to England to Christianise the Anglo-Saxons from their native Anglo-Saxon paganism, although the date of his arrival is disputed. He was consecrated archbishop by his predecessor, Augustine of Canterbury, during Augustine's lifetime, to ensure continuity in the office. While archbishop, he attempted unsuccessfully to resolve differences with the native British bishops by corresponding with them about points of dispute. Laurence faced a crisis following the death of King Æthelberht of Kent, when the king's successor abandoned Christianity; he eventually reconverted. Laurence was revered as a saint after his death in 619.

Celebrations & Special Days Worldwide on 1st February

Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day is a tradition observed regionally in the United States and Canada on February 2 of every year. It derives from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day and sees its shadow, it will retreat to its den and winter will go on for six more weeks; if it does not see its shadow, spring will arrive early. In 2026, the shadow was seen by Punxsutawney Phil, auguring six more weeks of winter.

Anniversary of Treaty of Tartu (Estonia)

All official holidays in Estonia are established by acts of Parliament.

Christian Feast Day: Adalbard

Adalbert I of Ostrevent was a 7th-century Frankish nobleman of the court of King Clovis II of France. He is recognized as a saint, and is commemorated on both 2 February and 2 May.

Christian Feast Day: Catherine de' Ricci

Catherine de' Ricci, OP, was an Italian nun in the Third Order of Saint Dominic. She is believed to have had miraculous visions and corporeal encounters with Jesus Christ. She is also said to have spontaneously bled with the wounds of the crucified Christ. She is known for her mystic visions and is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church.

Christian Feast Day: Jeanne de Lestonnac

Jeanne de Lestonnac, ODN, also known as Joan of Lestonnac, was a French Catholic nun who founded the Sisters of the Company of Mary, Our Lady in 1607. The institute, approved by Pope Paul V in 1607, was the first religious order of women-teachers approved by the Catholic Church.

Christian Feast Day: Martyrs of Ebsdorf

The Martyrs of Ebsdorf were the Saxon combatants killed in the winter of 880 CE at the Battle of Lüneburg Heath near Ebstorf, Lower Saxony. They were subsequently declared martyrs by the church, with their feast day being 2 February.

Christian Feast Day: Presentation of Jesus

The Presentation of Jesus is an early episode in the life of Jesus Christ, describing his presentation at the Temple in Jerusalem. It is celebrated by many churches on February 2nd, 40 days after Christmas on Candlemas, or the "Feast of the Presentation of Jesus". The episode is described in chapter 2 of the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament. Within the account, "Luke's narration of the Presentation in the Temple combines the purification rite with the Jewish ceremony of the redemption of the firstborn ."

Christian Feast Day: February 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

February 1 - Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar - February 3

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity), and its related observances: A quarter day in the Christian liturgical calendar (due to Candlemas). (Scotland)

In British and Irish tradition, the quarter days are the four dates in each year on which servants were hired, school terms started, and rents were due. They fell on four religious festivals roughly three months apart and close to the two solstices and two equinoxes.

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity), and its related observances: Celebration of Yemanja or Our Lady of Navigators (Candomblé)

Yemọja is a major water deity in the Yoruba religion. She is an oriṣa, and the patron spirit of rivers, particularly the Ogun River in Nigeria, and of oceans in Cuban and Brazilian Orisha religions. She is often syncretized with either Our Lady of Regla in the Afro-Cuban diaspora or various other Virgin Mary figures of the Catholic Church, a practice that emerged during the era of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. Yemọja is said to be motherly and strongly protective, and to care deeply for all her children, comforting them and cleansing them of sorrow. She is said to be able to cure infertility in women, and cowrie shells represent her wealth. She does not easily lose her temper, but when angered she can be quite destructive and violent, as the flood waters of turbulent rivers. This makes her sometimes associated with another major water deity, Olokun. Some of the priests of Yemọja believe that she used her fresh water to help Ọbàtálá in the molding of human beings out of clay.

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity), and its related observances: Chandeleur (France)

Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the Feast of the Holy Encounter, is a Christian feast day commemorating the presentation of Jesus at the Temple by Joseph and Mary. It is based upon the account of the presentation of Jesus in Luke 2:22–40.

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity), and its related observances: Liichtmëssdag (Luxembourg)

Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the Feast of the Holy Encounter, is a Christian feast day commemorating the presentation of Jesus at the Temple by Joseph and Mary. It is based upon the account of the presentation of Jesus in Luke 2:22–40.

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity), and its related observances: Our Lady of the Candles (Filipino Catholics)

Nuestra Señora de la Purificación y la Candelaria is a venerated image of the Blessed Virgin Mary enshrined in Jaro Cathedral and the patroness of Western Visayas region and Negros Occidental province.

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity), and its related observances: Virgin of Candelaria (Tenerife, Spain)

The Virgin of Candelaria or Our Lady of Candelaria, popularly called La Morenita, celebrates the Virgin Mary on the island of Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands (Spain). The center of worship is located in the city of Candelaria in Tenerife. She is depicted as a Black Madonna. The "Royal Basilica Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Candelaria" is considered the main church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the Canary Islands and she is the patroness saint of the Canary Islands. Her feast is celebrated on February 2 and August 15, the patronal feast of the Canary Islands.

Victory of the Battle of Stalingrad (Russia)

The Days of Military Honour are special memorable dates in the Russian Armed Forces dedicated to the most outstanding victories won by Russia. Some of these dates are state holidays but the majority of them are celebrated purely in the armed forces, while 7 November is marked by parades in Moscow and Samara.

World Wetlands Day

World Wetlands Day is an environmentally related celebration which dates back to the year 1971 when several environmentalists gathered to reaffirm protection and love for wetlands, which are water ecosystems containing plant life and other organisms that bring ecological health in abundance to not only water bodies but environments as a whole. The World Wetlands Secretary Department is originally from Gland, Switzerland. The adoption of the Ramsar convention in the Iranian city of Ramsar occurred on February 2, 1971.

What Happened on 1st February?

54 significant events took place on Tuesday, 1st February — stretching from 506 to 2025. Explore the moments that shaped history on this day.

02/02/2025

Slovenian NBA player Luka Doncic is traded from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis in one of the largest trades in American sports history.

Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, and Croatia to the south and southeast; its southwestern boundary consists of a 46.6-kilometre (29.0 mi) coastline on the Adriatic Sea. Slovenia is mostly mountainous and forested, covers 20,271 square kilometres (7,827 sq mi), and has a population of approximately 2.1 million people. Slovene is the official language. Slovenia has a predominantly temperate continental climate, with the exception of the Slovene Littoral and the Julian Alps. Ljubljana, the capital and largest city of Slovenia, is geographically situated near the centre of the country. Other larger urban centers include Maribor, Ptuj, Kranj, Celje, and Koper.

02/02/2021

The Burmese military establishes the State Administration Council, the military junta, after deposing the democratically elected government in the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état.

The Tatmadaw, also known as the Sit-Tat, is the armed forces of Myanmar. It is administered by the Ministry of Defence and composed of the Myanmar Army, the Myanmar Navy and the Myanmar Air Force. Auxiliary services include the Myanmar Police Force, the Border Guard Forces, the Myanmar Coast Guard, and the People's Militia Units. Since independence in 1948, the Tatmadaw has faced significant ethnic insurgencies, especially in Chin, Kachin, Kayin, Kayah, and Shan states. General Ne Win took control of the country in a 1962 coup d'état, attempting to build an autarkic society called the Burmese Way to Socialism. Following the violent repression of nationwide protests in 1988, the military agreed to free elections in 1990, but ignored the resulting victory of the National League for Democracy and imprisoned its leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The 1990s also saw the escalation of the conflict involving Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine State due to RSO attacks on the Tatmadaw forces, which saw the Rohingya minority facing oppression and, starting in 2017, genocide.

02/02/2012

The ferry MV Rabaul Queen sinks off the coast of Papua New Guinea near the Finschhafen District, with an estimated 146–165 dead.

MV Rabaul Queen was a passenger ferry owned by the Papua New Guinea company Rabaul Shipping. The ship, built in Japan in 1983, operated on short runs in that country, before being brought to Papua New Guinea in 1998 and plying a regular weekly route between Kimbe, the capital of West New Britain, and Lae, the capital of the mainland province of Morobe.

02/02/2007

Police officer Filippo Raciti is killed when a clash breaks out in the Sicily derby between Catania and Palermo, in the Serie A, the top flight of Italian football. This event led to major changes in stadium regulations in Italy.

On 2 February 2007, football violence occurred between football supporters and the police in Catania, Sicily, Italy. The clashes occurred during and after the Serie A match between the Catania and Palermo football clubs, also known as the Sicilian derby. Police officer Filippo Raciti was killed; in response Italian football was suspended for about a week.

02/02/2005

The Government of Canada introduces the Civil Marriage Act. This legislation would become law on July 20, 2005, legalizing same-sex marriage.

The Government of Canada, formally His Majesty's Government, is the federal executive of Canada, which includes ministers of the Crown and the federal civil service ; it is corporately branded as the Government of Canada. There are over 100 departments and agencies, as well as over 300,000 persons employed in the Government of Canada. These institutions carry out the programs and enforce the laws established by the Parliament of Canada.

02/02/2004

Swiss tennis player Roger Federer becomes the No. 1 ranked men's singles player, a position he will hold for a record 237 weeks.

Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket strung with a cord to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over or around a net and into the opponent's court. The object is to manoeuvre the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return. If a player is unable to return the ball successfully, the opponent scores a point.

02/02/2000

First digital cinema projection in Europe (Paris) realized by Philippe Binant with the DLP CINEMA technology developed by Texas Instruments.

Digital cinema is the digital technology used within the film industry to distribute or project motion pictures as opposed to the historical use of reels of motion picture film, such as 35 mm film. Whereas film reels have to be shipped to movie theaters, a digital movie can be distributed to cinemas in a number of ways: over the Internet or dedicated satellite links, or by sending hard drives or optical discs such as Blu-ray discs, then projected using a digital video projector instead of a film projector.

02/02/1998

Cebu Pacific Flight 387 crashes into Mount Sumagaya in the Philippines, killing all 104 people on board.

Cebu Pacific Flight 387 was a domestic flight from Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Metro Manila to Lumbia Airfield in Cagayan de Oro. On February 2, 1998, the 30-year-old McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 crashed on the slopes of Mount Sumagaya in Claveria. All 104 people on board died in the crash. It is the second deadliest air disaster in the Philippines after Air Philippines Flight 541, which occurred two years later.

02/02/1990

Apartheid: F. W. de Klerk announces the unbanning of the African National Congress and promises to release Nelson Mandela.

Apartheid was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an authoritarian political culture based on baasskap, which ensured that South Africa was dominated politically, socially, and economically by the nation's minority white population. Under this minoritarian system, white citizens held the highest status, followed by Indians, Coloureds and black Africans, in that order. The economic legacy and social effects of apartheid continue to the present day, particularly inequality.

02/02/1989

Soviet–Afghan War: The last Soviet armoured column leaves Kabul.

The Soviet–Afghan War took place in Afghanistan from December 1979 to February 1989. Marking the beginning of the 47-year-long Afghan conflict, it saw the Soviet Union and the Communist-led Afghan military fight against the rebelling Afghan mujahideen, aided by Pakistan. While backed by various countries and organizations, the majority of the mujahideen's support came from Pakistan, the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Iran, and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, in addition to a large influx of foreign fighters known as the Afghan Arabs. American and British involvement on the side of the mujahideen escalated the Cold War, ending a short period of relaxed Soviet Union–United States relations.

02/02/1987

After the 1986 People Power Revolution, the Philippines enacts a new constitution.

The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a sustained campaign of civil resistance against regime violence and electoral fraud. The nonviolent revolution led to the departure of Ferdinand Marcos, the end of his 20-year dictatorship and the restoration of democracy in the Philippines.

02/02/1982

Hama massacre: The government of Syria attacks the town of Hama.

The Hama massacre occurred in February 1982 when the Syrian Arab Army and the Defense Companies paramilitary force, under the orders of President Hafez al-Assad, besieged the town of Hama for 27 days in order to quell an uprising by the Muslim Brotherhood against the Ba'athist government. The campaign that had begun in 1976 by Sunni Islamist groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood, was brutally crushed in an anti-Sunni massacre at Hama, carried out by the Syrian Arab Army and Alawite militias under the command of Major General Rifaat al-Assad.

02/02/1980

Reports surface that the FBI is targeting allegedly corrupt Congressmen in the Abscam operation.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. An agency of the United States Department of Justice, the FBI is a member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and reports to both the attorney general and the director of national intelligence. A leading American counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and criminal investigative organization, the FBI has jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crimes. The FBI maintains a list of its top 10 most wanted fugitives.

02/02/1971

Idi Amin replaces President Milton Obote as leader of Uganda.

Awon'go Idi Amin Dada Oumee was a Ugandan military officer and politician who seized and held power as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until his overthrow in 1979. In 1971, he overthrew president Milton Obote, subsequently ruling as a dictator. He was ousted from power in 1979 after launching an unsuccessful war on Tanzania, living in exile in Saudi Arabia for the rest of his life. His eight years in power are widely reputed as one of history's most notorious and brutal dictatorships.

The international Ramsar Convention for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands is signed in Ramsar, Mazandaran, Iran.

The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It is named after the city of Ramsar in Iran, where the convention was signed in 1971.

02/02/1966

Pakistan suggests a six-point agenda with Kashmir after the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965.

Kashmir is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. The term has since also come to encompass a larger area that formerly comprised the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, and includes the Indian-administered territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, the Pakistani-administered territories of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, and the Chinese-administered territories of Aksai Chin and the Trans-Karakoram Tract.

02/02/1959

Nine experienced ski hikers in the northern Ural Mountains in the Soviet Union die under mysterious circumstances.

The Ural Mountains, or simply the Urals, are a mountain range in Eurasia that runs north–south mostly through Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the river Ural and northwestern Kazakhstan near the Caspian Sea. The mountain range forms part of the conventional boundary between the continents of Europe and Asia, marking the separation between European Russia and Siberia. Vaygach Island and the islands of Novaya Zemlya form continuations of the chain to the north into the Arctic Ocean. The average altitudes of the Urals are around 1,000–1,300 metres (3,300–4,300 ft), the highest point being Mount Narodnaya, which reaches a height of 1,894 metres (6,214 ft).

02/02/1954

The Detroit Red Wings played in the first outdoor hockey game by any NHL team in an exhibition against the Marquette Branch Prison Pirates in Marquette, Michigan.

The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The franchise is one of the "Original Six" teams, the first six teams of the league. Founded in 1926, the team was known as the Detroit Cougars until 1930. For the next two seasons, the team was named the Detroit Falcons, before changing their name to the Red Wings in 1932.

02/02/1943

World War II: The Battle of Stalingrad comes to an end when Soviet troops accept the surrender of the last organized German troops in the city.

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, the latter enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the only nuclear weapons used in war. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, causing the death of 60 to 75 million people. Millions died as a result of massacres, starvation, disease, and genocides, including the Holocaust. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.

02/02/1942

The Osvald Group is responsible for the first, active event of anti-Nazi resistance in Norway, to protest the inauguration of Vidkun Quisling.

The Osvald Group was a Norwegian organisation that was the most active World War II resistance group in Norway from 1941 to the summer of 1944. Numbering more than 200 members, it committed at least 110 acts of sabotage against Nazi occupying forces and the collaborationist government of Vidkun Quisling. The organisation is perhaps best known for conducting the first act of resistance against the German occupation of Norway, when on 2 February 1942, it detonated a bomb at Oslo East Station in protest against Quisling's inauguration as Minister-President.

02/02/1935

Leonarde Keeler administers polygraph tests to two murder suspects, the first time polygraph evidence was admitted in U.S. courts.

Leonarde Keeler was an American inventor best known for co-inventing the polygraph. He was named after the polymath Leonardo da Vinci, and preferred to be called Nard. He was a Berkeley high school student and amateur magician. He was captivated by John Augustus Larson's machine, a "cardio-pneumo psychogram", with the goal of detecting deception, and worked on it to produce the modern polygraph.

02/02/1934

The Export-Import Bank of the United States is incorporated.

The Export–Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) is the official export credit agency (ECA) of the United States federal government. Operating as a wholly owned federal government corporation, the bank "assists in financing and facilitating U.S. exports of goods and services", particularly when private sector lenders are unable or unwilling to provide financing. Its current chairman and president, John Jovanovic took office as chair and president on September 19, 2025.

02/02/1925

Serum run to Nome: Dog sleds reach Nome, Alaska with diphtheria serum, inspiring the Iditarod race.

The 1925 serum run to Nome, also known as the Great Race of Mercy and The Serum Run, was a transport of diphtheria antitoxin by dog sled relay across the US territory of Alaska by 20 mushers and about 150 sled dogs across 674 miles (1,085 km) in 5+1⁄2 days, saving the small town of Nome and the surrounding communities from a developing epidemic of diphtheria.

02/02/1922

Ulysses by James Joyce is published.

Ulysses is a modernist novel by the Irish writer James Joyce. Partially serialised in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, the entire work was published in Paris by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, Joyce's fortieth birthday. It is considered one of the most important works of modernist literature and a classic of the genre, having been called "a demonstration and summation of the entire movement".

The uprising called the "pork mutiny" starts in the region between Kuolajärvi and Savukoski in Finland.

The Pork Mutiny was an incident in Northern Finland in 1922. On February 2, an incursion group consisting of 67 armed officers and enlisted members of Soviet Russia crossed the Finnish-Soviet border near Kuolajärvi and Savukoski. They advanced to a logging yard owned by Kemi Oy. They arrested the heads of the yard and confiscated the cashbox.

02/02/1920

The Tartu Peace Treaty is signed between Estonia and Russia.

The Treaty of Tartu is a peace treaty that was signed in Tartu on 2 February 1920 between the Republic of Estonia and Soviet Russia, ending the 1918–1920 Estonian War of Independence. In the treaty, Bolshevik Russia recognized the independence of the newly established state of Estonia.

02/02/1913

Grand Central Terminal opens in New York City.

Grand Central Terminal is a commuter rail terminal at 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Grand Central is the southern terminus of the Metro-North Railroad's Harlem, Hudson and New Haven Lines, serving the northern parts of the New York metropolitan area. It also serves the Long Island Rail Road through Grand Central Madison, a 16-acre (6.5 ha) addition to the station located underneath the Metro-North tracks, built from 2007 to 2023. The terminal also connects to the New York City Subway at the Grand Central–42nd Street station. The terminal is the third-busiest train station in North America, after New York Penn Station and Toronto Union Station.

02/02/1909

The Paris Film Congress opens, an attempt by European producers to form an equivalent to the MPPC cartel in the United States.

The Paris Film Congress was a major meeting of European film producers and distributors in the French capital Paris from 2–4 February 1909. It intended to create an association to protect the interests of the participants through the formation of a trade organisation, a plan that ultimately failed.

02/02/1901

Funeral of Queen Victoria.

Victoria was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days, which was longer than those of any of her predecessors, constituted the Victorian era, a period of industrial, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. In 1876, the British parliament voted to grant her the additional title of Empress of India.

02/02/1899

The Australian Premiers' Conference held in Melbourne decides to locate Australia's capital city, Canberra, between Sydney and Melbourne.

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria and the second most-populous city in Australia. The city's name generally refers to a 9,993-square-kilometre (3,858 sq mi) area, comprising an urban agglomeration of 31 local government areas. The name is also used to specifically refer to the local government area named City of Melbourne, whose area is centred on the Melbourne central business district and some immediate surrounds.

02/02/1887

In Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, the first Groundhog Day is observed.

Punxsutawney is a borough in southern Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 5,769. It is located approximately 84 miles (135 km) northeast of Pittsburgh. Punxsutawney is known for its annual Groundhog Day celebration held each February 2, during which thousands of attendees and media outlets visit the community for an annual weather "prediction" by the groundhog Punxsutawney Phil.

02/02/1881

The sentences of the trial of the warlocks of Chiloé are imparted.

In criminal law, a sentence is the punishment for a crime ordered by a trial court after conviction in a criminal procedure, normally at the conclusion of a trial. A sentence may consist of imprisonment, a fine, or other sanctions. Sentences for multiple crimes may be a concurrent sentence, where sentences of imprisonment are all served together at the same time, or a consecutive sentence, in which the period of imprisonment is the sum of all sentences served one after the other. Additional sentences include intermediate, which allows an inmate to be free for about 8 hours a day for work purposes; determinate, which is fixed on a number of days, months, or years; and indeterminate or bifurcated, which mandates the minimum period be served in an institutional setting such as a prison followed by street time period of parole, supervised release or probation until the total sentence is completed.

02/02/1876

The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs of Major League Baseball is formed.

The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP) of 1871–1875, the NL is sometimes called the Senior Circuit, in contrast to MLB's other league, the American League, which was founded 25 years later and is called the "Junior Circuit". Each league has 15 teams.

02/02/1870

The Seven Brothers (Seitsemän veljestä), a novel by Finnish author Aleksis Kivi, is published first time in several thin booklets.

Seitsemän veljestä is the first and only novel by Aleksis Kivi, the national author of Finland. It is widely regarded as the first significant novel written in Finnish and by a Finnish-speaking author, and is considered a real pioneer of Finnish realistic folklore. Some people still regard it as the greatest Finnish novel ever written, and in time it has even gained the status of a "national novel of Finland". The deep significance of the work for Finnish culture has even been quoted internationally, and in a BBC article by Lizzie Enfield, for example, which describes Kivi's Seitsemän veljestä as "the book that shaped a Nordic identity."

02/02/1868

Pro-Imperial forces capture Osaka Castle from the Tokugawa shogunate and burn it to the ground.

The fall of Osaka Castle occurred between Imperial and Tokugawa shogunate forces during the Boshin War in Japan, where soon after the Battle of Toba–Fushimi, the Tokugawa-held Osaka Castle was captured by pro-Imperial "Kangun" forces on February 2, 1868.

02/02/1850

Brigham Young declares war on Timpanogos in the Battle at Fort Utah.

Brigham Young was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877. He also served as the first governor of the Utah Territory from 1851 until his resignation in 1858.

02/02/1848

Mexican–American War: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is signed.

The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, was an invasion of Mexico by the United States. It followed the 1845 American annexation of Texas, which Mexico still considered its territory because it refused to recognize the Treaties of Velasco, signed by President Antonio López de Santa Anna after he was captured by the Texian Army during the 1836 Texas Revolution. The Republic of Texas was de facto an independent country, but most of its Anglo-American citizens who had moved from the United States to Texas after 1822 wanted to be annexed by the United States.

02/02/1814

The last of the River Thames frost fairs comes to an end.

The River Thames frost fairs were held on the tideway of the River Thames in London, England in some winters, starting at least as early as the late 7th century until the early 19th century. Most were held between the early 17th and early 19th centuries during the period known as the Little Ice Age, when the river froze over most often, though still infrequently. During that time the British winter was more severe than it is now, and the river was wider and slower, further impeded by the 19 piers of the medieval Old London Bridge which were removed in 1831.

02/02/1797

The siege of Mantua ends after eight months when Count Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser surrenders the fortress of Mantua to Napoleon Bonaparte. The fall of Mantua secures French control over Northern Italy and marks the beginning of the conclusion of the Italian campaign of 1796-1797, and sets the stage for the end of the War of the First Coalition.

The siege of Mantua lasted from 4 June 1796 to 2 February 1797 with a short break where French forces under the overall command of Napoleon Bonaparte besieged and blockaded a large Austrian garrison at Mantua for many months until it surrendered. The siege was the focal point of the Italian Campaign of 1796-1797, lasting the vast majority of the campaign and being the hinge point that would determine which side would control Northern Italy. The eventual surrender, together with the heavy losses incurred during four unsuccessful relief attempts, led to Napoleon invading Austria and convincing the Austrians to sue for peace in 1797. The siege occurred during the War of the First Coalition, which is part of the French Revolutionary Wars. Mantua, a city in the Lombardy region of Italy, lies on the Mincio River.

02/02/1725

J. S. Bach leads the first performance of his chorale cantata Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin, BWV 125, based on Luther's paraphrase of the Nunc dimittis.

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.

02/02/1709

Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being shipwrecked on a desert island, inspiring Daniel Defoe's adventure book Robinson Crusoe.

Alexander Selkirk was a Scottish privateer and Royal Navy officer who spent four years and four months as a castaway (1704–1709) after being marooned by his captain, initially at his request, on an uninhabited island in the South Pacific Ocean.

02/02/1653

New Amsterdam (later renamed The City of New York) is incorporated.

New Amsterdam was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading factory gave rise to the settlement around Fort Amsterdam. The fort was situated on the strategic southern tip of the island of Manhattan and was meant to defend the fur trade operations of the Dutch West India Company in the North River. In 1624, it became a provincial extension of the Dutch Republic and was designated as the capital of the province in 1625. New Amsterdam became a city when it received municipal rights on February 2, 1653.

02/02/1645

Wars of the Three Kingdoms: In Scotland, the Battle of Inverlochy results in a Royalist/Irish victory.

The Wars of the Three Kingdoms is the collective term for a series of conflicts fought between 1639 and 1653 in England, Scotland and Ireland, then separate entities in a personal union under Charles I. They include the 1639 to 1640 Bishops' Wars, the First and Second English Civil Wars, the Irish Confederate Wars, the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland and the Anglo-Scottish War of 1650–1652. They resulted in the execution of Charles I, the abolition of monarchy, and founding of the Commonwealth of England, a unitary state which controlled the British Isles until the Stuart Restoration in 1660.

02/02/1536

Spaniard Pedro de Mendoza founds Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Pedro de Mendoza was a Spanish conquistador, soldier and explorer, the first adelantado of New Andalusia, and the founder of Buenos Aires.

02/02/1461

Wars of the Roses: The Battle of Mortimer's Cross results in the death of Owen Tudor.

The Battle of Mortimer's Cross was fought on 2 February, 1461 near Kingsland, Herefordshire, not far from the Welsh border. It was a major battle of the Wars of the Roses. The opposing forces consisted of, on one side, an army led by Jasper Tudor and his father, Owen Tudor, as well as nobles loyal to King Henry VI of the House of Lancaster, his wife, Margaret of Anjou, and their seven-year-old son, Edward, Prince of Wales. On the other side, was the army of Edward, Earl of March. Some sources say it was fought on 3 February, and the exact location has been the subject of some speculation.

02/02/1438

Nine leaders of the Transylvanian peasant revolt are executed at Torda.

The Transylvanian peasant revolt, also known as the Bábolna revolt was a popular revolt in the eastern territories of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1437. The revolt broke out after George Lépes, bishop of Transylvania, had failed to collect the tithe for years because of a temporary debasement of the coinage, but then demanded the arrears in one sum when coins of higher value were again issued. Most commoners were unable to pay the demanded sum, but the bishop did not renounce his claim and applied interdict and other ecclesiastic penalties to enforce the payment.

02/02/1428

An intense earthquake struck the Principality of Catalonia, with the epicenter near Camprodon. Widespread destruction and heavy casualties were reported.

The Catalan earthquake of 2 February 1428, known in Catalan as the terratrèmol de la candelera because it took place during Candlemas, struck the Principality of Catalonia, especially Roussillon, with an epicentre near Camprodon. The earthquake was one of a series of related seismic events that shook Catalonia in a single year. Beginning on 23 February 1427, tremors were felt in March, April, 15 May at Olot, June, and December. They caused relatively minor visible damage to property, notably to the monastery of Amer; but they probably caused severe weakening of building infrastructure. This would account for the massive and widespread destruction that accompanied the subsequent 1428 quake.

02/02/1347

Byzantine Empress Anna convenes a synod to depose patriarch Joseph XIV in Constantinople. The same night, conspirators let in her rival John VI Kantakouzenos which ends the Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347.

Anna of Savoy, born Giovanna (1306–1365), was a Byzantine Empress consort, as the second spouse of Andronikos III Palaiologos. She served as regent, with the titles augusta and autokratorissa, during the minority of her son John V Palaiologos from 1341 until 1347. In Byzantium, she was known as Anna Palaiologina, owing to her marriage to Andronikos.

02/02/1207

Terra Mariana, eventually comprising present-day Latvia and Estonia, is established.

Terra Mariana was the formal name for Medieval Livonia or Old Livonia. It was formed in the aftermath of the Livonian Crusade, and its territories were composed of present-day Estonia and Latvia. It was established on 2 February 1207, as a principality of the Holy Roman Empire, and lost this status in 1215 when Pope Innocent III proclaimed it as directly subject to the Holy See.

02/02/1141

The Battle of Lincoln, at which Stephen, King of England is defeated and captured by the allies of Empress Matilda.

The Battle of Lincoln, or the First Battle of Lincoln, occurred on 2 February 1141 in Lincoln, England between King Stephen of England and forces loyal to Empress Matilda. Stephen was captured during the battle, imprisoned, and effectively deposed while Matilda ruled for a short time.

02/02/1032

Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor becomes king of Burgundy.

Conrad II, also known as Conrad the Elder and Conrad the Salic, was the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 until his death in 1039. The first of a succession of four Salian emperors, who reigned for one century until 1125, Conrad ruled the kingdoms of Germany, Italy and Burgundy.

02/02/0962

Translatio imperii: Pope John XII crowns Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, the first Holy Roman Emperor in nearly 40 years.

Translatio imperii is a historiographical concept that was prominent among medieval thinkers and intellectuals in Europe, but which originated from earlier concepts in antiquity. According to this concept, the notion of decline and fall of an empire is theoretically replaced by a natural succession from one empire to another. Translatio implies that an empire can metahistorically be transferred from hand to hand and place to place, from Troy to Romans and Greeks to Franks and further on to Spain, and has therefore survived.

02/02/0880

Battle of Lüneburg Heath: King Louis III of France is defeated by the Norse Great Heathen Army at Lüneburg Heath in Saxony.

The Battle of Lüneburg Heath was a conflict between the army of King Louis the Younger and the Norse Great Heathen Army fought on 2 February 880 CE, at Lüneburg Heath in today's Lower Saxony.

02/02/0506

Alaric II, eighth king of the Visigoths, promulgates the Breviary of Alaric (Breviarium Alaricianum or Lex Romana Visigothorum), a collection of "Roman law".

Alaric II was the King of the Visigoths from 484 until 507. He succeeded his father Euric as King of the Visigoths in Toulouse on 28 December 484; he was the great-grandson of the more famous Alaric I, who sacked Rome in 410. He established his capital at Aire-sur-l'Adour in Aquitaine. His dominions included not only the majority of Hispania but also Gallia Aquitania and the greater part of Gallia Narbonensis.

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Personality Profile

Fun Facts About 2nd February

Famous Birthdays on 1st February

Eleonore Caburet, French rhythmic gymnast

Westcol, Colombian online streamer

Munetaka Murakami, Japanese baseball player

Jeff Okudah, American football player

Shiho Katō, Japanese singer and model

Ellie Bamber, English actress

Christian Dvorak, American ice hockey player

Paul Mescal, Irish actor

Harry Winks, English footballer

Paul Digby, English footballer

Aleksander Jagiełło, Polish footballer

Arfa Karim, Pakistani student and computer prodigy (died 2012)

Curtis Lazar, Canadian ice hockey player

Remilia, American professional gamer (died 2019)

Caterina Bosetti, Italian volleyball player

Bobby Decordova-Reid, English footballer

Ravel Morrison, English footballer

Lammtarra, American race horse (died 2014)

Joonas Tamm, Estonian footballer

Nathan Delfouneso, English footballer

Gregory Mertens, Belgian footballer (died 2015)

Shohei Nanba, Japanese actor

Harrison Smith, American football player

Southside, American record producer

JuJu Chan, Hong Kong-American actress, martial artist, singer, and writer

Zosia Mamet, American actress

Brad Peacock, American baseball player

Anthony Fainga'a, Australian rugby player

Saia Fainga'a, Australian rugby player

Faydee, Australian singer

Athena Imperial, Filipino journalist, Miss Earth-Water 2011

Mimi Page, American singer-songwriter and composer

Gerard Piqué, Spanish footballer

Javon Ringer, American football player

Jill Scott, English footballer

Martin Spanjers, American actor and producer

Gemma Arterton, English actress and singer

Miwa Asao, Japanese volleyball player

Morris Almond, American basketball player

Masoud Azizi, Afghan sprinter

Renn Kiriyama, Japanese actor

Kristo Saage, Estonian basketball player

Silvestre Varela, Portuguese footballer

Brian Cage, American wrestler

Chin-Lung Hu, Taiwanese baseball player

Mao Miyaji, Japanese actress

Rudi Wulf, New Zealand rugby player

Ronny Cedeño, Venezuelan baseball player

Carolina Klüft, Swedish heptathlete and jumper

Jordin Tootoo, Canadian ice hockey player

Jason Vargas, American baseball player

Vladimir Voskoboinikov, Estonian footballer

Alex Westaway, English singer-songwriter and guitarist

Sergio Castaño Ortega, Spanish footballer

Kelly Mazzante, American basketball player

Kan Mi-youn, South Korean singer, model, and host

Lance Allred, American basketball player and activist

Emre Aydın, Turkish singer-songwriter

Michelle Bass, English model and singer

Salem al-Hazmi, Saudi Arabian terrorist, hijacker of American Airlines Flight 77 (died 2001)

Teddy Hart, Canadian wrestler

Zhang Jingchu, Chinese actress

Oleguer Presas, Spanish footballer

Urmo Aava, Estonian race car driver

Fani Chalkia, Greek hurdler and sprinter

Christine Lampard, Irish television host

Shamita Shetty, Indian actress

Irini Terzoglou, Greek shot putter

Adam Christopher, New Zealand writer

Barry Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager

Dan Gadzuric, Dutch basketball player

Lee Ji-ah, South Korean actress