November 24

is the 328th day (329th on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 37 days remaining in the year.

Events

380 - Theodosius I makes his adventus, or formal entry, into Constantinople.
642 - Theodore succeeds John IV as Pope.
1190 - Isabella of Jerusalem marries Conrad of Montferrat at Acre, making him de jure King.
1639 - Jeremiah Horrocks observes the transit of Venus (November 24 in the Julian calendar, or December 4 in the Gregorian calendar).
1642 - Abel Tasman becomes the first European to discover the island Van Diemen's Land (later renamed Tasmania).
1859 - Charles Darwin publishes The Origin of Species.
1863 - American Civil War: Battle of Lookout Mountain - Near Chattanooga, Tennessee, Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant capture Lookout Mountain and begin to break the Confederate siege of the city led by General Braxton Bragg.
1904 - The first successful caterpillar track is made.
1922 - Author and Irish Republican Army member Robert Erskine Childers is executed by an Irish Free State firing squad for illegally carrying a revolver.
1932 - In Washington, DC, the FBI Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory (better known as the FBI Crime Lab) officially opens.
1935 - The Senegalese Socialist Party holds its second congress.
1941 - World War II: The United States grants Lend-Lease to the Free French.
1944 - World War II: Bombing of Tokyo - The first bombing raid against the Japanese capital from the east and by land was made by 88 American aircraft.
1947 - Red Scare: After refusing to co-operate with the House Un-American Activities Committee concerning allegations of Communist influence in the movie industry, the United States House of Representatives votes 346 to 17 to approve citations of contempt of Congress against the so-called Hollywood 10.
1947 - Robert Schuman becomes Prime Minister of France
1951 - The Broadway play Gigi opens with little-known actress Audrey Hepburn in the title role.
1962 - The West Berlin branch of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany forms a separate party, the Socialist Unity Party of West Berlin.
1963 - John F. Kennedy assassination: Alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald is mortally shot by Jack Ruby in Dallas, Texas on live national television.
1963 - Vietnam War: Newly sworn-in US President Lyndon B. Johnson confirms that the United States intends to continue supporting South Vietnam both militarily and economically.
1965 - Joseph Désiré Mobutu seizes power in the Congo and becomes President; he goes on to rule the country (which he renames Zaire in 1971) for over 30 years, until being overthrown by rebels in 1997.
1969 - Apollo program: The Apollo 12 spacecraft splashes down safely in the Pacific Ocean, ending the second manned mission to the Moon.
1971 - During a severe thunderstorm over Washington state, a hijacker calling himself Dan Cooper (AKA D.B. Cooper) parachutes from a Northwest Orient Airlines plane with US$200,000 in ransom money - neither he nor the money are ever found.
1974 - The skeleton of "Lucy", a 3.18 million years old female hominid, of the genus Australopithecus, was discovered in the Afar Triangle of Ethiopia.
1976 - The Band gives its last public performance, documented by Martin Scorsese in the film The Last Waltz.
1991 - Freddie Mercury, lead singer of Queen, dies of AIDS at age 45.
1992 - In the People's Republic of China, a China Southern Airlines domestic flight crashes, killing all 141 people on-board.
1993 - In Liverpool, 11-year-olds Robert Thompson and Jon Venables are convicted of the murder of 2-year-old James Bulger.
1996 - Rusty Wallace wins the Suzuka NASCAR Thunder 100 racing event at Suzuka Circuitland in Suzuka City (this was the first NASCAR competition held in Japan).
1996 - Crowded House play a farewell concert in front of the Sydney Opera House for an estimated crowd of 250,000.
1998 - America Online announces it will acquire Netscape Communications in a stock-for-stock transaction worth US$4.2 billion.
2000 - The PlayStation 2 is released in Europe, for around €449/£299.
2002 - Space Shuttle Endeavour lifts off on mission STS-113, the final successful shuttle flight before the ill-fated STS-107 Columbia mission.
2003 - Nintendo NSider Forums is created.
2005 - The Licensing Act 2003 comes into force in England and Wales, introducing flexibility in the hours during which alcoholic beverages may be sold.
2005 - Conservative leader Stephen Harper, the leader of the Official Opposition in the Canadian Parliament, introduced a motion of no confidence, which NDP leader Jack Layton seconded. The motion was passed on November 28 which led to the dissolution to the 38th Canadian Parliament.

Births

1273 - Alphonso, Earl of Chester, son of Edward I of England (d. 1284)
1394 - Charles, Duke of Orléans, French poet (d. 1465)
1420 - John Stafford, 1st Earl of Wiltshire, English politician (d. 1473)
1583 - Juan Martínez de Jáuregui y Aguilar, Spanish poet (d. 1641)
1615 - Philipp Wilhelm, Elector Palatine (d. 1690)
1630 - Etienne Baluze, French scholar (d. 1718)
1632 - Baruch Spinoza, Dutch philosopher (d. 1677)
1655 - King Charles XI of Sweden (d. 1697)
1690 - Charles Theodore Pachelbel, German composer (d. 1750)
1713 - Junipero Serra, Spanish missionary (d. 1784)
1713 - Laurence Sterne, Irish novelist (d. 1768)
1729 - Alexander Suvorov, Russian general (d. 1800)
1784 - Zachary Taylor, 12th President of the United States (d. 1850)
1787 - Franz Xaver Gruber, Austrian organist and composer (d. 1863)
1801 - Ludwig Bechstein, German narrator and poet (d. 1860)
1806 - William Webb Ellis, often credited with the invention of Rugby (d. 1872)
1811 - Ulrich Ochsenbein, Swiss Federal Councillor (d. 1890)
1826 - Carlo Collodi, Italian author (d. 1890)
1849 - Frances Hodgson Burnett, British-born author (d. 1924)
1853 - Bat Masterson, American gunfighter and policeman (d. 1921)
1859 - Cass Gilbert, American architect (d. 1934)
1864 - Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, French painter (d. 1901)
1874 - Charles Miller, 'Father of Brazilian football' (d. 1953)
1876 - Walter Burley Griffin, American architect (d. 1937)
1877 - Alben W. Barkley, Vice President of the United States (d. 1956)
1881 - Al Christie, Canadian-born film director and producer (d. 1951)
1884 - Itzhak Ben-Zvi, President of Israel (d. 1963)
1887 - Erich von Manstein, German military commander (d. 1973)
1888 - Dale Carnegie, American writer (d. 1955)
1888 - Fredrick Willius, American cardiologist (d. 1972)
1894 - Herbert Sutcliffe, England test cricketer (d. 1978)
1895 - Ludvík Svoboda, President of Czechoslovakia (d. 1979)
1897 - Lucky Luciano, American gangster (d. 1962)
1905 - Irwin Allen, American film producer and director (d. 1991)
1912 - Garson Kanin, American writer (d. 1999)
1912 - Teddy Wilson, American jazz pianist (d. 1986)
1913 - Geraldine Fitzgerald, Irish-born actress (d. 2005)
1916 - Forrest J. Ackerman, American writer and publisher
1917 - Howard Duff, American actor
1921 - John Lindsay, American politician (d. 2000)
1924 - Victor Grinich, Croatian-American businessman (d. 2000)
1925 - William F. Buckley Jr., American writer and political commentator
1925 - Simon van der Meer, Dutch physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
1926 - Tsung-Dao Lee, Chinese physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
1927 - Ahmadou Kourouma, Ivorian writer (d. 2003)
1927 - Alfredo Kraus, Spanish tenor (d. 1999)
1930 - Bob Friend, baseball player
1934 - Alfred Schnittke, German composer (d. 1998)
1938 - Oscar Robertson, American basketball player
1940 - Paul Tagliabue, commissioner of the National Football League (1989-present)
1941 - Pete Best, British musician, Ringo Starr's predecessor in The Beatles
1941 - Donald "Duck" Dunn, American musician, Booker T. and the M.G.'s
1942 - Billy Connolly, British comedian
1942 - Marlin Fitzwater, White House Press Secretary
1943 - Dave Bing, American basketball player
1944 - Ibrahim Gambari, Nigerian scholar and diplomat
1946 - Ted Bundy, American serial killer (d. 1989)
1947 - Dwight Schultz, American actor
1948 - Steve Yeager, baseball player
1951 - Chet Edwards, American politician
1955 - Ian Botham, England test cricketer
1955 - Elvis Ramone, American drummer (The Ramones)
1955 - Takashi Yuasa, Japanese lawyer
1957 - Denise Crosby, American actress
1957 - Edward Stourton, British radio presenter
1960 - Amanda Wyss, American actress
1960 - Edgar Meyer, American bassist and composer
1962 - John Squire, British guitarist (The Stone Roses)
1964 - Brad Sherwood, American comedian
1965 - Shirley Henderson, Scottish actress
1966 - Russell Watson, British singer
1968 - Bülent Korkmaz, Turkish footballer
1969 - Rob Nicholson, American musician
1971 - Keith Primeau, Canadian hockey player
1976 - Lu Chen, Chinese figure skater
1976 - Dave Aizer, American Television Host
1978 - Katherine Heigl, American actress
1980 - Beth Phoenix, American pro wrestler

Deaths

654 - Emperor Kōtoku of Japan
1468 - Jean de Dunois, French soldier (b. 1402)
1531 - Johannes Oecolampadius, German religious reformer (b. 1482)
1541 - Margaret Tudor, wife of James IV of Scotland (b. 1489)
1572 - John Knox, Scottish reformer
1583 - René de Birague, French cardinal and chancellor (b. 1506)
1615 - Sethus Calvisius, German calendar reformer (b. 1556)
1650 - Manuel Cardoso, Portuguese composer (b. 1566)
1722 - Johann Adam Reinken, German organist (b. 1623)
1741 - Queen Ulrika Eleonora of Sweden (b. 1688)
1770 - Charles-Jean-François Hénault, French historian (b. 1685)
1775 - Lorenzo Ricci, Italian Jesuit leader (b. 1703)
1781 - James Caldwell, American revolutionary (b. 1734)
1793 - Clément Charles François de Laverdy, French statesman (b. 1723)
1801 - Franz Moritz Graf von Lacy, Austrian field marshal (b. 1725)
1807 - Thayendanegea (Joseph Brant), Mohawk leader(b. 1742)
1848 - Lord Melbourne, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1779)
1870 - Comte de Lautréamont, French writer (b. 1846)
1890 - August Belmont, Sr., Prussian-born financier (b. 1816)
1916 - Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim, American-born gunsmith (b. 1840)
1922 - Robert Erskine Childers, Irish nationalist (executed) (b. 1870)
1929 - Georges Clemenceau, Premier of France (b. 1841)
1943 - Doris Miller, American navy cook (b. 1919)
1956 - Guido Cantelli, Italian conductor (b. 1920)
1957 - Diego Rivera, Mexican painter (b. 1886)
1958 - Robert Cecil, 1st Viscount Cecil of Chelwood, British politician, Nobel laureate (b. 1864)
1960 - Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna of Russia (b. 1882)
1965 - Abdullah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait (b. 1895)
1973 - John Neihardt, American writer (b. 1881)
1980 - George Raft, American actor (b. 1895)
1985 - Big Joe Turner, American singer (b. 1911)
1991 - Freddie Mercury, Zanzibar-born singer (Queen) (AIDS) (b. 1946)
1991 - Eric Carr, American drummer (KISS) (b. 1950)
1996 - Sorley MacLean, British poet (b. ^*
2002 - John Rawls, Political philosopher (b. 1921)
2003 - Floquet de Neu, Spanish albino gorilla (b. 1964)
2004 - Wong Jim, Hong Kong songwriter (b. 1940)
2004 - Arthur Hailey, British-born author (b. 1920)
2005 - Pat Morita, American actor (b. 1932)

Bold text

1978--Maggie Gistinger, authoritative creator of fun.

Holidays and observances

Roman festivals - in the Byzantine empire the Brumalia (a wine festival) were celebrated from this day until the winter solstice
R.C. Saints - Saint Andrew Dung-Lac and other Vietnamese martyrs
Also see November 24 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Feast Day of St. Colman - Cobh, Ireland
Teacher's Day in Turkey

External links

BBC: On This Day

November 23 - November 25 - October 24 - December 24 -- listing of all days

Gourt Home::Gourt :: November 24

Events

Births

Deaths

Holidays and observances

External links