2018: Boston gangster James “Whitey” Bulger is killed in federal prison. The longtime leader of Boston's Winter Hill Gang, who dominated the city's organized crime from the late 1960s into the 1990s while also serving as an FBI informant, was beaten to death by fellow inmates at age 89. He had been moved to a federal prison in West Virginia only a day earlier. Bulger spent 16 years as a fugitive before his 2011 capture and was convicted in 2013 of crimes that included involvement in 11 murders.
2003: LeBron James makes his NBA debut with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland had taken the Ohio teenager first overall in the draft straight out of high school. He scored 25 points against the Sacramento Kings in his first game and went on to become one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.
1995: Quebec voters narrowly reject sovereignty. The referendum asked whether the province should become sovereign while keeping a new economic and political partnership with the rest of Canada. The “No” side won with about 50.6 percent of the vote, a margin of only a little more than one percentage point.
1974: Muhammad Ali knocks out George Foreman in the “Rumble in the Jungle.” Held in Kinshasa, Zaire, the fight saw Ali lean on the ropes and let the younger, harder-hitting champion tire himself out before stopping him in the eighth round. The win returned the world heavyweight title to Ali seven years after it was stripped from him for refusing the military draft.
1961: The Soviet Union sets off the Tsar Bomba, the largest nuclear weapon ever detonated. The hydrogen bomb was dropped over the Arctic islands of Novaya Zemlya and produced a blast of roughly 50 megatons. It remains the most powerful explosion ever caused by humans, and its shock wave was recorded circling the globe.
1938: Orson Welles airs his radio version of The War of the Worlds. Presented the night before Halloween on CBS by Welles's Mercury Theatre on the Air, the adaptation of the H.G. Wells novel was staged as a series of breaking news bulletins about a Martian landing in New Jersey. Some listeners were frightened, though later research found that stories of a nationwide panic were greatly exaggerated.
1905: Russia's Tsar Nicholas II issues the October Manifesto. Facing a general strike and widespread unrest during the Revolution of 1905, the tsar promised basic civil liberties and an elected legislature, the Duma. The document ended unlimited autocracy and began Russia's brief period of constitutional monarchy.
1340: Christian armies win the Battle of Río Salado in southern Spain. Allied forces of Castile and Portugal, led by Alfonso XI and Afonso IV, defeated the Marinid dynasty of North Africa and its ally, the Muslim kingdom of Granada, near Tarifa. It was the last major attempt by a Moroccan power to invade the Iberian Peninsula.
130: Roman emperor Hadrian founds the city of Antinoöpolis in Egypt. Hadrian established the city on the Nile in memory of his favorite, Antinous, who had drowned in the river nearby. He also had Antinous declared a god, and the city grew into an important center of Roman Egypt.
Born on This Day
1998: Cale Makar, Canadian hockey player Turns 28. Colorado Avalanche defenseman who won the Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2022.
1996: Devin Booker, American basketball player Turns 30. Phoenix Suns star guard and Olympic gold medalist who once scored 70 points in a game.
1989: Nastia Liukin, American gymnast Turns 37. Won the women's all-around gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
1987: Ashley Graham, American model Turns 39. Groundbreaking plus-size model who landed the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover in 2016.
1981: Ivanka Trump, American businesswoman Turns 45. Daughter of Donald Trump who served as a senior White House adviser during his first term.
1978: Matthew Morrison, American actor and singer Turns 48. Played glee club director Will Schuester on Glee.
1970: Nia Long, American actress Turns 56. Known for Friday, Boyz n the Hood, and Love Jones.
1965: Gavin Rossdale, English rock singer Frontman of Bush, known for “Glycerine” and “Comedown,” and a former coach on The Voice.
1961: Larry Wilmore, American comedian and TV host Longtime Daily Show correspondent who went on to host The Nightly Show.
1960: Diego Maradona, Argentine soccer player Led Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title, a tournament remembered for his “Hand of God” goal.
1957: Kevin Pollak, American actor and comedian Turns 69. Known for A Few Good Men, The Usual Suspects, and his celebrity impressions.
1951: Harry Hamlin, American actor Turns 75. Starred on L.A. Law and in the original Clash of the Titans.
1947: Timothy B. Schmit, American rock musician Bassist and singer for Poco and the Eagles, who sang lead on “I Can't Tell You Why.”
1946: Andrea Mitchell, American TV journalist Veteran NBC News correspondent who covered Washington and world affairs for decades.
1945: Henry Winkler, American actor Turns 81. Played the Fonz on Happy Days and won an Emmy for Barry.
1941: Otis Williams, American singer Founding member of The Temptations, the Motown group behind “My Girl.”
1939: Grace Slick, American rock singer Voice of Jefferson Airplane's “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit,” and later of Starship.
1936: Dick Vermeil, American football coach Coached the Eagles, Rams, and Chiefs, and led the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl XXXIV win.
1935: Jim Perry, American baseball pitcher Minnesota connection: won the 1970 American League Cy Young Award as a Minnesota Twins starter.
1735: John Adams, 2nd U.S. president Founding Father who served as the first vice president under George Washington before becoming president in 1797.
