World Events Today
- The Panama Canal, the artificial waterway that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean, officially opened today in 1914
- India, officially known as the Republic of India, gained independence from the United Kingdom today in 1947
- The Omagh bombing, a car bombing by the Real Irish Republican Army, the IRA, in Omagh, County Tyrone, occurred today in 1998, 29 people died and over 200 others were injured
Entertainment Events Today
- The “All Blacks”, the New Zealand national rugby union team, played their first real international today in 1903, they beat Australia 22-3 at the Sydney Cricket Ground in Australia
- The original Woodstock, a music festival held on a farm in Bethel, New York, started today in 1969, an estimated audience of more than 400,000 attended the event
- The American epic war movie Apocalypse Now, directed, produced and co-written by Francis Ford Coppola, was released in the United States today in 1979, it was nominated for 8 Academy Awards
Family Events Today
- The French statesman and military leader Napoleon Bonaparte was born today in 1769 in Corsica
- The English actor, comedian and author, Sir Anthony Robinson, who played Baldrick in the BBC television series Blackadder, was born today in 1946 in London
- Anne, Princess Royal, the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was born today in 1950 in London
Main Event Today
- Victory over Japan Day, also known as V J Day, occurred today in 1945, it is the day Japan finally surrendered, it was the end of World War II
National Day Today
- Today, it’s National Relaxation Day