World Events Today
- Governor Arthur Phillip raised the Flag of Great Britain at Sydney Cove today in 1788, the day is now celebrated every year as Australia Day
- The Scottish engineer and innovator John Logie Baird, demonstrated the first working television system today in 1926
- India became a republic, achieving full independence from Great Britain, today in 1950
Entertainment Events Today
- The American speed skater Charles Jewtraw won the first gold medal at the first Winter Olympics today in 1924
- The American action-comedy television series The Dukes of Hazzard, aired for the first time today in 1979 on the CBS network
- Andrew Lloyd Webber’s, The Phantom of the Opera, officially opened today in 1988 at the Majestic Theatre in New York City, it became the longest-running show in Broadway history
Family Events Today
- The American actor Paul Newman, who starred in many movies, including The Color of Money, The Hustler and Cool Hand Luke, was born today in 1925 in Ohio
- The American actor and future President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, married the American actress, Jane Wyman, today in 1940
- Salvatore Lucania, better known as the crime boss Lucky Luciano, the first official boss of the modern Genovese crime family, died today in 1962 aged 64
Main Event Today
- The Cullinan Diamond, the largest gem-quality rough diamond ever found, was discovered today in 1905 in South Africa, it weighed 3,106.75 carats
National Day Today
- Today, it’s National Spouses Day