EVENTS
- 1826 – The internal combustion engine is patented by Samuel Morey.
- 1865 – During the American Civil War, Confederate troops of General George Pickett were defeated and cut off at Five Forks, Virginia. This sealed the fate of Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s armies at Petersburg and Richmond and hastened the end of the war.
- 1867 – Singapore becomes British crown colony.
- 1891 – The Wrigley Company is founded in Chicago, Illinois.
- 1939 – General Franco proclaims victory in the Spanish civil war. The dictator ruled Spain until his death in 1975. His regime was responsible for gross human rights violations, including murdering numerous political opponents.
Francisco Franco - 1954 – The United States Air Force Academy is established in Colorado.
- 1957 – The BBC broadcasts the spaghetti tree hoax. The 3-minute film shown on the current affairs program, Panorama, portrayed a Swiss family apparently harvesting spaghetti from a tree. A number of viewers later contacted the BBC to inquire where to find and how to grow such a plant. The hoax is regarded as one of the best April Fools jokes ever pulled.
- 1976 – Apple Computer Company is formed by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak.
- 1998 – A federal judge in Little Rock, Arkansas, dismissed a sexual harassment case against President Bill Clinton, stating the case had no “genuine issues” worthy of trial. Although President Clinton had denied any wrongdoing, a unanimous ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in May 1997 allowed the case to proceed, thereby establishing a precedent allowing sitting presidents to be sued for personal conduct that allegedly occurred before taking office.
- 2001 – Slobodan Milošević is arrested. The former President of Serbia was arrested on corruption charges. Later he was put on trial before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague for war crimes during the Yugoslav wars.
- 2001 – The Netherlands becomes the first country to allow same-sex marriage. Despite opposition from conservative factions, gay and lesbian couples are today allowed to marry in many other countries also.
BIRTHDAYS
- 1578 – William Harvey (Scientist and doctor)
- 1815 – Otto von Bismarck (German politician, 1st Chancellor of the German Empire)
- 1873 – Sergei Rachmaninoff (Russian pianist, composer, conductor)
- 1875 – Edgar Wallace (English journalist, author, playwright)
Edgar Wallace - 1932 – Debbie Reynolds (Actress)
- 1938 – Ali McGraw (Actress)
- 1940 – Wangari Maathai (Kenyan environmentalist, Nobel Prize laureate)
- 1961 – Susan Boyle (Singer)
DEATHS
- 1917 – Scott Joplin (American pianist, composer)
- 1930 – Cosima Wagner
- 1976 – Max Ernst (German painter, sculptor, poet)
Max Ernst - 1984 – Marvin Gaye (American singer-songwriter)
- 2010 – John Forsythe (American actor)
