Updated June 5, 2012, 2:28 pm
On June 6, 1944, the D-Day invasion of Europe took place during World War II as Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy, France.
Go to article »On June 6, 1875, Thomas Mann, the Nobel Prize-winning German author, was born. Following his death on Aug. 12, 1955, his obituary appeared in The Times.
Go to obituary » | Other birthdays »
On This Date
By The Associated Press
1844 The Young Men’s Christian Association was founded in London. 1925 Walter Percy Chrysler founded the Chrysler Corp. 1933 The first drive-in movie theater opened, in Camden County, N.J. 1934 The Securities and Exchange Commission was established. 1966 Black activist James Meredith was shot and wounded as he walked along a Mississippi highway to encourage black voter registration. 1968 Sen. Robert F. Kennedy died at Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles, a day after he was shot by Sirhan Bishara Sirhan. 1978 California voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 13, a ballot measure calling for major cuts in property taxes. 1982 Israeli forces invaded Lebanon to drive PLO fighters out of the country. 1985 Authorities in Brazil exhumed a body later identified as that of Dr. Josef Mengele, the Nazi doctor who conducted medical experiments on inmates at Auschwitz during World War II. 1990 The 2 Live Crew album “As Nasty As They Wanna Be” was ruled obscene by a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 2004 Phylicia Rashad became the first African-American actress to win a Tony for a leading dramatic role for her work in a revival of “A Raisin in the Sun.” 2005 The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that people who smoke marijuana because their doctors recommend it to ease pain can be prosecuted for violating federal drug laws. 2011 After days of denials, Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., confessed that he had tweeted a lewd photo of himself to a woman and admitted to “inappropriate” exchanges with six women. Current Birthdays
By The Associated Press
Actor Paul Giamatti turns 45 years old today.
AP Photo/Dan Steinberg
Rep. Eric Cantor R-Va., the House majority leader, turns 49 years old today.
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
1934 Roy Innis, Civil rights leader, turns 78 1939 Gary “U.S.” Bonds, Rock singer, turns 73 1952 Harvey Fierstein, Actor, turns 60 1955 Sandra Bernhard, Actress, comedian, turns 57 1956 Bjorn Borg, Tennis Hall of Famer, turns 56 1959 Jimmy Jam, Record producer, turns 53 1959 Colin Quinn, Comedian (“Saturday Night Live”), turns 53 1960 Steve Vai, Rock musician, turns 52 1967 Max Casella, Actor, turns 45 1972 Natalie Morales, Broadcast journalist, turns 40 1974 Uncle Kracker, Rapper, rocker, turns 38 1974 Sonya Walger, Actress (“Lost,” “FlashForward”), turns 38
Historic Birthdays
Thomas Mann 6/6/1875 – 8/12/1955 German novelist and essayist.Go to obituary »
61 Diego Velazquez 6/6/1599 – 8/6/1660
Spanish 17th-century painter21 Nathan Hale 6/6/1755 – 9/22/1776
American Revolutionary patriot87 John Trumbull 6/6/1756 – 11/10/1843
American painter, architect and author51 Steele MacKaye 6/6/1842 – 2/25/1894
American playwright, actor and inventor46 Alexandra 6/6/1872 – 7/16/1918
Russian consort of emperor Nicholas II77 Sir Patrick Abercrombie 6/6/1879 – 3/23/1957
English architect and town planner85 William Cosgrave 6/6/1880 – 11/16/1965
Irish statesman and first president79 R. C. Sherriff 6/6/1896 – 11/13/1975
English playwright and screenwriter69 Sukarno 6/6/1901 – 6/21/1970
Indonesian statesman; leader of independence movement and first president (1949-67)45 Jimmie Lunceford 6/6/1902 – 7/12/1947
American jazz band leader74 Aram Khachaturian 6/6/1903 – 5/1/1978
Russian composer86 Bill Dickey 6/6/1907 – 11/12/1993
American athlete; catcher for the New York Yankees
