On this day in 1974, Italian prosecutor Mario Sossi is kidnapped by the Red Brigades. It was the first time that the left-wing terrorist group had directly struck the Italian government, marking the beginning of tensions that lasted for 10 years. The Red Brigades were founded by college student Renato […]
Continue ReadingAaron Hits His 715th Home Run
On April 8, 1974, Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves hits his 715th career home run and breaks the long-standing record held by Babe Ruth. Aaron’s record-breaking 715th homer came in the fourth inning of the Braves’ home opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers, with over 53,000 fans in attendance […]
Continue ReadingAaron Sets New Home Run Record
On this day in 1974, Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves hits his 715th career home run, breaking Babe Ruth’s legendary record of 714 homers. A crowd of 53,775 people, the largest in the history of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, was with Aaron that night to cheer when he hit a […]
Continue ReadingThe Eurovision Song Contest Launches A Bona Fide Star
In Brighton, England, on April 6, 1974, the judges of the 19th Eurovision Song Contest crushed the hopes of tiny Luxembourg by denying that nation in its bid for a historic third straight victory at the pan-European musical event. Those judges did the rest of the world a favor, however, […]
Continue ReadingSeries Of Deadly Twisters Hits U.S. Heartland
On this day in 1974, 148 tornadoes hit the United States heartland within 16 hours. By the time the deadly storm ended, 330 people had died. This was the largest grouping of tornadoes recorded in its time, affecting 11 states and Ontario, Canada. At any one moment during the storm, […]
Continue ReadingThe Sting Sweeps The Oscars And Ragtime Composer Scott Joplin Gets His Due
The name Scott Joplin is now nearly synonymous with ragtime—the loose, syncopated musical style that swept the nation in the late-19th century and laid the groundwork for the emergence of jazz in the early 20th. Yet the most important figure in the history of ragtime was a virtual unknown as […]
Continue ReadingFaulty Door Dooms Plane
A DC-10 jet crashes into a forest outside of Paris, France, killing all 346 people on board, on this day in 1974. The poor design of the plane, as well as negligent maintenance, contributed to the disaster. Nearly two years earlier, on June 6, 1972, an American Airlines DC-10 was […]
Continue ReadingThe Symbionese Liberation Army Abducts Patty Hearst
Rosa to Los Angeles. Hearst agreed to give away $2 million to the poor in Oakland to have Patty released. The Black Muslims, Malcolm X’s former organization, were chosen to manage the food distribution, which turned into a riot when more than 10,000 people showed up and fought for the […]
Continue ReadingPatty Hearst Kidnapped
On February 4, 1974, Patty Hearst, the 19-year-old daughter of newspaper publisher Randolph Hearst, is kidnapped from her apartment in Berkeley, California, by two black men and a white woman, all three of whom are armed. Her fiance, Stephen Weed, was beaten and tied up along with a neighbor who […]
Continue ReadingSerial Killer Ted Bundy Strikes Again
On this day in 1974, University of Washington student Lynda Ann Healy disappears from her apartment and is killed by Ted Bundy. The murder marked Bundy’s entry into the ranks of serial killers as he had recently attacked his first victim, Sharon Clarke, in her Seattle home. By the time […]
Continue ReadingSamuel Goldwyn Dies
On this day in 1974, the pioneering movie producer Samuel Goldwyn dies in his sleep at the age of 91, at his home in Los Angeles. Born Schmuel Gelbfisz in Warsaw, Goldwyn left Poland when he was 11 for England and later New York, where he took a menial job […]
Continue ReadingFighting Continues In South Vietnam
The fighting continues in South Vietnam despite the cease-fire that was initiated on January 28, 1973, under the provisions of the Paris Peace Accords. This latest fighting was part of the ongoing battles that followed the brief lull of the cease-fire. The Peace Accords had left an estimated 145,000 North […]
Continue ReadingCyclone Wanda Causes Flooding In Australia
On this day in 1974, the last remnants of Cyclone Wanda cause severe flooding in Queensland, Australia, that results in the deaths of 16 people and leaves thousands homeless. The year 1973 had been an exceptionally wet one in Australia, and the beginning of the new year brought much of […]
Continue ReadingFootball Player-Turned-Murderer Born
Rae Carruth, the pro football player convicted of hiring someone to kill his pregnant girlfriend, was born on this day in Sacramento, California. On the night of November 15, 1999, Carruth, a receiver for the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, and his girlfriend, Cherica Adams, 24, went to see a movie in […]
Continue ReadingNotre Dame Beats UCLA To End 88-Game Winning Streak
On January 19, 1974, the University of Notre Dame men’s basketball team defeats the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) 71-70, in South Bend, Indiana, snapping UCLA’s record-setting 88-game winning streak. The Irish entered the game undefeated for the season and ranked No. 2 in the country. UCLA, coached […]
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