Happy Birthday RIP Pablo Picasso y Lopez(1881–1973) Sarah Colley(“Minnie Pearl” 1912–1996) William Bertanzetti(“Billy Barty” 1924–2000) Wilma Jeanne Cooper(1928–2013) ; Marian Ross–90 Helen Reddy–77 Nancy Cartwright–61 Samantha Bee–49 Joshua Henderson–37 “Katy Perry”(Katheryn Hudson)–34 Ciara Harris–33 ; 1945 – The Republic of China takes over administration of Taiwan following Japan’s surrender to the Allies
October 24
Happy Birthday RIP “Bob Kane”(Robert Kahn 1915–1998) ; Frederick Murray Abraham–79 Kevin Kline–71 Douglas Davidson–64 John Kassir–61 Casey Wilson–38 Oliver Jackson-Cohen–32 ; 1901 – Annie Edson Taylor becomes the first person to go over Niagara Falls, in a barrel ; 1926 – Harry Houdini’s last performance, which is at the Garrick Theatre in Detroit, Michigan
October 23
Happy Birthday RIP William “Hayden” Rorke(1910–1987) Frank Sutton (1923–1974) Johnny Carson(1925–2005) John Michael Crichton(1942–2008) ; Ang Lee( 李安 )–64 Weird Alfred Yankovic–59 Samuel Raimi–59 Ryan Reynolds–42 Emila Clarke–32; 1915 – Women’s suffrage: In New York City, 25,000-33,000 women march on Fifth Avenue to advocate their right to vote ; 1958 – The Smurfs, a fictional race of blue dwarves, later popularized in a Hanna-Barbera animated cartoon series, appear for the first time in the story La flute à six schtroumpfs, a Johan and Peewit adventure by Peyo, which is serialized in the weekly Spirou magazine
October 22
Happy Birthday RIP “Curly Howard”(Jerome Horwitz 1903–1952) Joan Fontaine(Beauvoir de Havilland 1917–2013) Annette Funicello(1942–2013) ; Sir Derek Jacobi–80 Christopher Lloyd–80 David “Tony” Roberts–79 Catherine Deneuve(Dorléac)–75 Deepak Chopra–72 Jeffrey Goldblum–66 Brian Boitano–55 Ned “Carlos” Mencia–51 “Spike Jonze”(Adam Spiegel)–49 Michael Fishman–37 Zachary Hanson–33 Kyle Gallner–32 ; 1746 – The College of New Jersey (later renamed Princeton University) receives its charter. ; 1883 – The Metropolitan Opera House in New York City opens with a performance of Gounod’s Faust
October 21
Happy Birthday RIP John “Dizzy” Gillespie(1917–1993) Carrie Fisher(1956–2016) ; Joyce Randolph(Sirola)–94 Manfred Mann(Lubowitz)–78 Judith “Judy” Sheindlin(Blum)–76 Kensaku Watanabe–59 Jade Jagger–47 Sasha Roiz–45 Jeremy Miller–42 William Estes Nipper–40 Matthew Dallas–36 Aaron Tveit–35 ; 1879 – Thomas Edison invented a workable electric light at his laboratory in Menlo Park, N.J. which was tested the next day and lasted 13.5 hours. This would be the start of the invention of the first commercially practical incandescent light. Popular belief is that he invented the light bulb, which he did not. He invented the first that for which use was practical.
October 20
Happy Birthday RIP Bela Lugosi(Blaskó 1882–1956) John Dewey(1859–1952) Jerome Orbach(1935–2004) Dr. Joyce Brothers(Bauer 1927–2013) William Christopher(1932–2016) Thomas Petty(1950–2017) ; Thomas Newman–63 Viggo Mortensen Jr–60 Calvin Broadus(“Snoop Dogg”)–47 Samuel Witwer–41 Niall Matter–38 John Krasinski–39 Adam Butcher–30 ; 1803 – The U.S. Senate ratified the Louisiana Purchase.
October 19
Happy Birthday RIP “LaWanda Page”(Alberta Peal 1920–2002) “Robert Reed”(John Rietz Jr 1932–1992) Harris Glenn Milstead(“Divine” 1945–1988) ; David Cornwell(“John Le Carré”)–87 Sir Michael Gambon–78 John Lithgow–73 Patricia Ireland–73 Jennifer Holliday–58 Amy Carter–51 Randolph “Trey” Parker III–49 Christopher Kattan–48 Desmond Harrington–42 ; 1987 – “Black Monday” the stock market crashed as the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 508 points, or -22.6 percent in value, the largest one-day percentage drop (worse than 1929 at -12.82%)
October 18
Happy Birthday RIP George Campbell Scott(1927–1999) Peter Boyle Jr(1935–2006) Erin Moran(1960–2017) Charles “Chuck” Berry(1926–2017) ; Dawn Wells–80 Michael Ditka(Dyczko)–79 Pamela Dawber–67 Martina Navratilova–62 Jean-Claude Van Damme(Varenberg)–58 Zachary Efron–31 ; 1867 – United States takes possession of Alaska after purchasing it from Russia for $7.2 million. Celebrated annually in the state as Alaska Day ; 1922 – The British Broadcasting Company is founded by a consortium, to establish a nationwide network of transmittersto provide a national broadcasting service
October 17
Happy Birthday RIP Edward Montgomery Clift(1920–1966) “Rita Hayworth”(Margarita Cansino 1918–1987) Thomas Poston(1921–2007) Robert “Evil” Knievel(1938–2007) Margaret “Margot” Kidder(1948–2018) ; James Seals–77 Michael McKean–71 George Wendt III–70 Norman Macdonald–59 David “Ziggy” Marley–59 Marshall Mathers III(“Eminem”)–46 David Matthew Macfadyen–44 Chris Lowell–34 Maximillian Irons–33 ; 1919 – RCA is incorporated as the Radio Corporation of America ; 1956 – The first commercial nuclear power station is officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II in Sellafield, Cumbria, England
October 16
Happy Birthday RIP Oscar Wilde(1854–1900) Michael Conrad(1925–1983) ; Angela Lansbury–93 Leonard Barrie Corbin–78 Suzanne Somers(Mahoney)–72 Timothy Robbins–60 Kim Wayans–57 Michael Balzary(“Flea”)–56 Paul Sparks–47 Johnathan Mayer–41 Brea Grant–37 ; 1923 – The Walt Disney Company is founded by Walt Disney and his brother, Roy