World Events Today
- Nancy Witcher Langhorne Astor, Viscountess Astor, better known as the American-born British politician Lady Astor, became the first female Member of Parliament today in 1923
- The first commercial instant camera, the Model 95 Land Camera by Polaroid, went on sale today in 1948, at the Jordan Marsh department store in Boston
- Mariner 4 was launched by NASA today in 1964, it performed the first successful flyby of the planet Mars and took the first close-up pictures of its surface
Entertainment Events Today
- WSM Barn Dance, which would later become the Grand Ole Opry, aired for the first time today in 1925, it is still running today
- The final episode of the Beavis and Butt-Head series, an American adult animated sitcom, was aired on MTV today in 1997
- The first of the three Hobbit movies, An Unexpected Journey, premiered at the Embassy Theatre today in 2012 in Wellington, New Zealand
Family Events Today
- The American comedian, writer, producer, and television host, Jon Stewart, who hosted the satirical news program The Daily Show, from 1999 to 2015, was born today in 1962 in New York City
- The English children’s writer Enid Mary Blyton, whose most famous works include The Famous Five, The Secret Seven and Noddy, died today in 1968 aged 71
- Jeffrey Dahmer, the American serial killer responsible for the murder of 17 men and boys between 1978 to 1991, was beaten to death today in 1994, whilst in prison
Main Event Today
- The Tehran Conference, a strategy meeting between Joseph Stalin, Franklin D Roosevelt and Winston Churchill, took place today in 1943, the primary decision was a commitment by the United States and Britain, to open a second front in the West
National Day Today
- Today, it’s National French Toast Day