Updated April 23, 2012, 2:29 pm
On April 24, 1898, Spain declared war on the United States after rejecting America’s ultimatum to withdraw from Cuba.
Go to article »On April 24, 1905, Robert Penn Warren, an American writer and first poet laureate of the United States, was born. Following his death on Sept. 15, 1989, his obituary appeared in The Times.
Go to obituary » | Other birthdays »
On This Date
By The Associated Press
1792 The French national anthem, “La Marseillaise,” was composed by Capt. Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle. 1800 Congress approved a bill establishing the Library of Congress. 1877 Federal troops were ordered out of New Orleans, ending the North’s post-Civil War rule in the South. 1898 Spain declared war on the United States after rejecting America’s ultimatum to withdraw from Cuba. 1915 The Ottoman Empire rounded up Armenian political and cultural leaders in Constantinople at the start of what many scholars regard as the first genocide of the 20th century, in which an estimated 1.5 million Armenians died. 1916 The Easter uprising began when some 1,600 Irish nationalists seized several key sites in Dublin. 1962 The Massachusetts Institute of Technology achieved the first satellite relay of a television signal. 1980 The United States launched an abortive attempt to free the American hostages in Iran; eight U.S. servicemen died. 1996 The main assembly of the Palestine Liberation Organization voted to revoke clauses in its charter that called for an armed struggle to destroy Israel. 2005 Pope Benedict XVI was installed as leader of the Roman Catholic Church in cermonies at the Vatican. Current Birthdays
By The Associated Press
Singer Danny Gokey (“American Idol”) turns 70 years old today.
AP Photo/Matt Sayles
Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones turns 40 years old today.
AP Photo/Julio Cortez
1934 Shirley MacLaine, Actress, turns 78 1940 Sue Grafton, Author, turns 72 1942 Richard M. Daley, Former mayor of Chicago, turns 70 1943 Richard Sterban, Country singer (The Oak Ridge Boys), turns 69 1945 Doug Clifford, Rock musician (Creedence Clearwater Revival), turns 67 1953 Eric Bogosian, Actor, turns 59 1959 Glenn Morshower, Actor (“24”), turns 53 1964 Djimon Hounsou, Actor, turns 48 1964 Cedric the Entertainer, Actor, comedian, turns 48 1967 Omar Vizquel, Baseball player, turns 45 1977 Eric Balfour, Actor, turns 35 1977 Carlos Beltran, Baseball player, turns 35 1980 Danny Gokey, Singer (“American Idol”), turns 32 1982 Kelly Clarkson, Singer (“American Idol”), turns 30
Historic Birthdays
Robert Penn Warren 4/24/1905 – 9/15/1989 American novelist, poet, critic and teacher.Go to obituary »
79 St. Vincent De Paul 4/24/1581 – 9/27/1660
French founder of the Congregation of the Mission78 Giovanni Battista Martini 4/24/1706 – 10/4/1784
Italian composer, music theorist and teacher80 Robert Bailey Thomas 4/24/1766 – 5/19/1846
American publisher of “Old Farmer’s Almanac”67 Anthony Trollope 4/24/1815 – 12/6/1882
English novelist95 Henri-Philippe Petain 4/24/1856 – 7/23/1951
French general; World War I hero and head of French Vichy government (1940-44)63 John R. Pope 4/24/1874 – 8/27/1937
American architect; designed the National Gallery of Art63 Sir Stafford Cripps 4/24/1889 – 4/21/1952
English chancellor of the exchequer (1947-50)93 Willem de Kooning 4/24/1904 – 3/19/1997
Dutch-born American painter40 William Joyce 4/24/1906 – 1/3/1946
English propagandist for Germany during World War II (aka Lord Haw Haw)
