On This Day: May 19

Updated May 18, 2012, 2:28 pm

On May 19, 1935, T.E. Lawrence, also known as “Lawrence of Arabia,” died in England from injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash.

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On May 19, 1890, Ho Chi Minh, the founder of the Indochina Communist Party and president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam from 1954 to 1969, was born. Following his death on Sept. 2, 1969, his obituary appeared in The Times.

Go to obituary » | Other birthdays »

On This Date

By The Associated Press

1536 Anne Boleyn, the second wife of England’s King Henry VIII, was beheaded after being convicted of adultery.

1588 The Spanish Armada set sail for England.

1935 T.E. Lawrence, also known as “Lawrence of Arabia,” died in England from injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash.

1962 Actress Marilyn Monroe performed a sultry rendition of “Happy Birthday” for President John F. Kennedy during a fundraiser at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

1967 The Soviet Union ratified a treaty with the United States and Britain banning nuclear weapons from outer space.

1992 Mary Jo Buttafuoco was shot and seriously wounded in Massapequa, N.Y., by her husband Joey’s teenage lover, Amy Fisher.

1992 The 27th Amendment to the Constitution, which prohibits Congress from giving itself midterm pay raises, went into effect.

1994 Former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis died in New York at age 64.

2001 Apple, Inc. opened its first retail stores, in Tysons Corner, Va., and Glendale, Calif.

2004 Specialist Jeremy C. Sivits received a year in prison and a bad conduct discharge in the first court-martial stemming from abuse of Iraqis at the Abu Ghraib prison.

2005 “Revenge of the Sith,” the final chapter of the “Star Wars” saga, opened in movie theaters.

2011 Katie Couric, the first regular solo anchorwoman of a network evening newscast, signed off the “CBS Evening News” for the last time after five years.

Current Birthdays

By The Associated Press

Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett turns 36 years old today.

AP Photo/Alex Gallardo

Rock musician Dusty Hill (ZZ Top) turns 63 years old today.

AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau

1934 Jim Lehrer, Broadcast journalist, turns 78

1935 David Hartman, TV personality, turns 77

1941 Nora Ephron, Screenwriter, director, turns 71

1944 Peter Mayhew, Actor (“Star Wars”), turns 68

1945 Pete Townshend, Rock musician (The Who), turns 67

1952 Grace Jones, Singer, actress, model, turns 60

Historic Birthdays

Ho Chi Minh 5/19/1890 – 9/2/1969 Indochinese leader; president of Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) from 1945 to 1969.Go to obituary »

85 Jacob Jordaens 5/19/1593 – 10/18/1678
Belgian artist; painted scenes of peasant life

51 Johann Gottlieb Fichte 5/19/1762 – 1/27/1814
German philosopher and patriot

78 Johns Hopkins 5/19/1795 – 12/24/1873
American merchant; endowed Johns Hopkins University and hospital

81 John Jacob Abel 5/19/1857 – 5/26/1938
American pharmacologist and physiological chemist

84 Nancy Witcher Astor 5/19/1879 – 5/2/1964
American-born English politician; first woman in the British House of Commons

74 Percy Williams 5/19/1908 – 11/29/1982
Canadian Olympic gold medal sprinter (1928)

72 Pol Pot 5/19/1925 – 4/15/1998
Cambodian leader of the Khmer Rouge

39 Malcolm X 5/19/1925 – 2/21/1965
American black militant leader

34 Lorraine Hansberry 5/19/1930 – 1/12/1965
American playwright; wrote “Raisin in the Sun”

1536	Anne Boleyn, the second wife of England’s King Henry VIII, was beheaded after being convicted of adultery.
1588	The Spanish Armada set sail for England.
1935	T.E. Lawrence, also known as “Lawrence of Arabia,” died in England from injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash.
1962	Actress Marilyn Monroe performed a sultry rendition of “Happy Birthday” for President John F. Kennedy during a fundraiser at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
1967	The Soviet Union ratified a treaty with the United States and Britain banning nuclear weapons from outer space.
1992	Mary Jo Buttafuoco was shot and seriously wounded in Massapequa, N.Y., by her husband Joey’s teenage lover, Amy Fisher.
1992	The 27th Amendment to the Constitution, which prohibits Congress from giving itself midterm pay raises, went into effect.
1994	Former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis died in New York at age 64.
2001	Apple, Inc. opened its first retail stores, in Tysons Corner, Va., and Glendale, Calif.
2004	Specialist Jeremy C. Sivits received a year in prison and a bad conduct discharge in the first court-martial stemming from abuse of Iraqis at the Abu Ghraib prison.
2005	“Revenge of the Sith,” the final chapter of the “Star Wars” saga, opened in movie theaters.
2011	Katie Couric, the first regular solo anchorwoman of a network evening newscast, signed off the “CBS Evening News” for the last time after five years.

1934	Jim Lehrer, Broadcast journalist, turns 78
1935	David Hartman, TV personality, turns 77
1941	Nora Ephron, Screenwriter, director, turns 71
1944	Peter Mayhew, Actor (“Star Wars”), turns 68
1945	Pete Townshend, Rock musician (The Who), turns 67
1952	Grace Jones, Singer, actress, model, turns 60

85	Jacob Jordaens 5/19/1593 – 10/18/1678 Belgian artist; painted scenes of peasant life
51	Johann Gottlieb Fichte 5/19/1762 – 1/27/1814 German philosopher and patriot
78	Johns Hopkins 5/19/1795 – 12/24/1873 American merchant; endowed Johns Hopkins University and hospital
81	John Jacob Abel 5/19/1857 – 5/26/1938 American pharmacologist and physiological chemist
84	Nancy Witcher Astor 5/19/1879 – 5/2/1964 American-born English politician; first woman in the British House of Commons
74	Percy Williams 5/19/1908 – 11/29/1982 Canadian Olympic gold medal sprinter (1928)
72	Pol Pot 5/19/1925 – 4/15/1998 Cambodian leader of the Khmer Rouge
39	Malcolm X 5/19/1925 – 2/21/1965 American black militant leader
34	Lorraine Hansberry 5/19/1930 – 1/12/1965 American playwright; wrote “Raisin in the Sun”