Updated July 3, 2012, 2:28 pm
On July 4, 1976, the United States celebrated its Bicentential. In 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence.
Go to article »On July 4, 1872, Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president of the United States, was born. Following his death on Jan. 5, 1933, his obituary appeared in The Times.
Go to obituary » | Other birthdays »
On This Date
By The Associated Press
1802 The U.S. Military Academy opened at West Point, N.Y. 1804 Author Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in Salem, Mass. 1826 Death claimed the second and third presidents of the United States: John Adams died at age 90 in Braintree, Mass., while Thomas Jefferson died at 83 at Monticello, his home near Charlottesville, Va. 1831 James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States, died at age 73 in New York City. 1845 American writer Henry David Thoreau began a two-year experiment in simple living at Walden Pond near Concord, Mass. 1872 Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president of the United States, was born in Plymouth, Vt. 1939 Baseball player Lou Gehrig, afflicted with a fatal illness, bid a tearful farewell at Yankee Stadium in New York, telling fans, “Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth.” 1946 The Philippines became independent. 1958 Karol Wojtyla, the future Pope John Paul II, was appointed auxilliary bishop of Krakow in his native Poland. 1966 President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Freedom of Information Act into law. 1976 Israeli commandos raided Entebbe airport in Uganda, rescuing almost all of the passengers and crew of an Air France jetliner seized by pro-Palestinian hijackers. 1987 Former Getaspo chief Klaus Barbie was convicted by a French court of crimes against humanity and sentenced to life in prison. 2010 Gen. David Petraeus formally assumed command of the 130,000-strong international force in Afghanistan. Current Birthdays
By The Associated Press
Playwright Neil Simon turns 85 years old today.
AP Photo/Charles Sykes
Broadcast journalist Geraldo Rivera turns 69 years old today.
AP Photo/Red Huber
1918 Pauline Phillips, Advice columnist (“Dear Abby”), turns 94 1924 Eva Marie Saint, Actress, turns 88 1927 Gina Lollobrigida, Actress, turns 85 1938 Bill Withers, R&B singer, turns 74 1940 Karolyn Grimes, Actress (“It’s a Wonderful Life”), turns 72 1955 John Waite, Rock singer, turns 57 1962 Pam Shriver, Tennis Hall of Famer, turns 50 1965 Horace Grant, Basketball player, turns 47 1978 Becki Newton, Actress (“Ugly Betty”), turns 34
Historic Birthdays
Calvin Coolidge 7/4/1872 – 1/5/1933 American 30th president of the U.S.Go to obituary »
55 Jean-Pierre Blanchard 7/4/1753 – 3/7/1809
French balloonist; made first English Channel aerial crossing59 Nathaniel Hawthorne 7/4/1804 – 5/19/1864
American novelist and short story writer74 Giuseppe Garibaldi 7/4/1807 – 6/2/1882
Italian patriot81 E. R. Squibb 7/4/1819 – 10/25/1900
American pharmaceutical manufacturer37 Stephen Foster 7/4/1826 – 1/13/1864
American composer of minstrel and romantic songs87 Rube Goldberg 7/4/1883 – 12/7/1970
American satirical cartoonist72 Louis B. Mayer 7/4/1885 – 10/29/1957
Russian-born American movie executive54 Gertrude Lawrence 7/4/1898 – 9/6/1952
English musical comedy actress80 Meyer Lansky 7/4/1902 – 1/15/1983
American crime syndicate chief89 George Murphy 7/4/1902 – 5/3/1992
American actor and politician70 Lionel Trilling 7/4/1905 – 11/5/1975
American literary critic and teacher
