Today in History
2010 – The Country of Netherlands Antilles is Dissolved
The Caribbean Dutch dependency, also sometimes known as the Dutch Antilles, was formed in 1954. The dissolution came after a series of referendums to become independent states within the Kingdom of the Netherlands were passed on the Islands of Curaçao, St Maarten, Bonaire, and Saba.
1970 – Fijian independence
The British ruled the South Pacific Ocean island country since 1874. Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara became the first prime minister of independent Fiji.
1967 – Outer Space Treaty is Enforced
Also known as the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, it regulated the exploration and use of outer space and created the field of international space law. The treaty declared that outer space and all celestial bodies were the common heritage of mankind and could not be claimed by any one nation.
1964 – The Tokyo Summer Olympics Begin
93 countries participated in the first Olympics to be held in Asia. As a tribute to the horrors of the Second World War, Yoshinori Sakai, who was born in Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, the day an atomic bomb destroyed the city, was chosen as the torchbearer to light the Olympic flame during the opening. The Tokyo Olympics was also the first Olympic Games that used satellites – Syncom 3 in the United States and Relay 1 in Europe – to telecast the games. Some of the games were also broadcasted in colour for the first time.
1933 – United Airlines Boeing 247 explosion
In one of the oldest unsolved cases in aviation history, the airplane which was flying from Newark, New Jersey to Oakland California exploded mid-air and crashed near Chesterton, Indiana. All 7 passengers and crew members died in the incident. To this day, it is not known what and who caused the explosion.
Births On This Day, October 10
1979 – Mýa
American singer-songwriter, producer, dancer, actress
1969 – Brett Favre
American football player
1930 – Harold Pinter
English playwright, screenwriter, director, actor, Nobel Prize laureate
1861 – Fridtjof Nansen
Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian, Nobel Prize laureate
1813 – Giuseppe Verdi
Italian composer
Deaths On This Day, October 10
2010 – Solomon Burke
American singer-songwriter
2009 – Stephen Gately
Irish singer-songwriter, dancer, actor
2004 – Christopher Reeve
American actor
1985 – Orson Welles
American actor, director, producer, screenwriter
1875 – Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy
Russian poet, author, playwright
