Today in History for 21st April 2025
Historical Events
1920 – John Galsworthy’s “Skin Game” premieres in London
1970 – The Principality of Hutt River (previously Hutt River Province) secedes from Australia – it remains unrecognised by Australia or other nations
1994 – The first discoveries of extrasolar planets are announced by astronomer Alexander Wolszczan
2004 – Rock for the Rainforest benefit concert held at Carnegie Hall, NYC; performers include: Sting, Elton John, James Taylor, Billy Joel, Bette Midler, and Little Jimmy Scott
2012 – Two trains in Sloterdijk, Netherlands, injure 117 people in a head on collision
Famous Birthdays
1930 – Don Tyson, American businessman, founder of Tyson Foods, born in Olathe, Kansas (d. 2011)
1936 – James Dobson, American evangelist and founder of Focus on the Family, born in Shreveport, Louisiana
1959 – Jerry Only [Gerald Caiafa Jr], American musician (Misfits), born in Lodi, New Jersey
1975 – Danyon Loader, New Zealand swimmer (Olympic gold 200/400m freestyle 1996), born in Dunedin, New Zealand
1978 – Jukka Nevalainen, Finnish heavy metal drummer (Nightwish, 1997-2014), born in Kitee, Finland
Famous Deaths
1821 – Thursday October Christian, son of Fletcher Christian (leader of the historical mutiny on the Bounty), dies at 40
1836 – Samuel Slater, English-American industrialist who brought the textile industrial revolution to America, dies at 67
1939 – Herman Finck, British conductor (Palace Theatre (London), 1900-20), theater and light classical composer (In The Shadows), dies at 66
1958 – Manuel Infante, Spanish composer and conductor, dies at 74
2001 – David Hollestelle, Dutch baritone singer (Dutch Radio Chorus), dies at 84
