Today in History

On May 20 in history ..

0325 - 1st Christian ecumenical council opens at Nicæa, Asia Minor
0526 - Earthquake kills 250,000 in Antioch, Syria
1293 - Earthquake strikes Kamakura Japan, 30,000 killed
1303 - Treaty of Paris restores Gascony to British in Hundred Years War
1310 - Shoes were made for both right & left feet
1347 - Rienzo calls Rome for people's tribunal
1495 - French King Charles VIII leaves Naples
1498 - Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrives at Calcutta India
1501 - Joao da Nova Castell discovers Ascension Islands
1521 - Ignatius Loyola seriously wounded by a cannon ball
1524 - Duke of Albany leaves Scotland
1570 - Egidius Coppens publishes Abraham Ortelius' "Theatrum Orbis Terrarum"
1571 - Venice, Spain & Pope Pius form anti-Turkish Saint League
1591 - Spanish troops in Zutphen surrenders to Willem Louis/Mauritius
1631 - German army under earl Johann Tilly conquerors Maagdenburg
1639 - Dorchester Mass, forms 1st school funded by local taxes
1690 - England passes Act of Grace, forgiving followers of James II
1704 - Elias Neau forms school for slaves in NY
1734 - 1st Jockey Club forms in SC
1774 - Britain gives Québec, Labrador & territory north of Ohio
1775 - Citizens of Mecklenburg County, NC declare independence of Britain
1781 - Petersburg captured by British and occupied until fall
1784 - England & Netherlands signs peace treaty (Peace of Paris)
1825 - Charles X becomes King of France
1830 - 1st railroad timetable published in newspaper (Baltimore American)
1830 - D Hyde patents fountain pen
1845 - 1st legislative assembly convenes in Hawaii
1861 - Cornerstone of University of Washington laid in Seattle
1861 - Kentucky proclaims its neutrality in Civil War
1861 - North Carolina becomes 11th & last state to secede from Union
1861 - US marshals appropriate previous year's telegraph dispatches, to reveal prosecessionist evidence
1862 - Homestead Act provides cheap land for settlement of West
1864 - Battle at Ware Bottom Church, Virginia, 1,400 killed or injured
1864 - Spotsylvania-campaign ends after 10,920 killed/injured person
1867 - Brit parliament rejects John Stuart Mills law on women suffrage
1867 - Royal Albert Hall foundation laid by Queen Victoria
1868 - Republican National Convention, meets in Chicago, nominates Grant
1870 - Second Chamber abolishes capital punishment
1874 - Levi Strauss markets blue jeans with copper rivets, price $13.50 doz
1875 - Intl Bureau of Weights & Measures forms by treaty
1879 - 5th Kentucky Derby: Charlie Shauer aboard Lord Murphy wins in 2:37
1882 - Germany/Austria-Hungary/France sign Triple Alliance
1882 - Henrik Ibsen's "Ghosts" (Gengangere) premieres in Chicago
1882 - St Gotthard-railroad tunnel between Switzerland & Italy opens
1892 - George Sampson patents clothes dryer
1892 - Triple Alliance between Germany, Italy & Austria forms
1895 - 1st commercial movie performance (153 Broadway, NYC)
1900 - 2nd modern Olympic games opens in Paris (lasted 5 months)
1902 - Cuba gains independence from Spain
1902 - US military occupation of Cuba (since Jan 1, 1899) ends
1910 - Funeral for Britain's King Edward VII
1911 - Edwin Boaler Alletson hits 189 in 90 mins Notts v Sussex
1913 - 38th Preakness: James Butwell aboard Buskin wins in 1:53.4
1915 - Bataafsche Petroleum Me begins oil extraction of Maracaibo
1916 - Codell, Kansas hit by tornado (also on same date in 1917 & 1918)
1916 - Saturday Evening Post cover features Norman Rockwell painting
1917 - Turkish govt authorizes Jews to return to Tel Aviv & Jaffa
1918 - 1st electrically propelled warship (New México)
1919 - Volcano Keluit on Java, erupts killing 550
1920 - Policemen raid the Cubs' bleachers & arrest 24 fans for gambling
1922 - "Egypt" sinks off Ushant after colliding with "Seine," killing 90
1922 - Babe Ruth & Bob Meusel, suspended on October 16, 1921, by Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis, return to the NY lineup & go hitless
1923 - Stanley Baldwin, becomes PM of UK
1926 - Belgian govt of Jaspar takes power
1926 - Congress passes Air Commerce Act, licensing of pilots & planes
1926 - Railway Labor Act became law
1926 - Thomas Edison says Americans prefer silent movies over talkies
1927 - At 7:40 AM, Lindbergh takes off from NY to cross Atlantic for Paris
1927 - Saudi Arabia becomes independent of Great Britain (Treaty of Jedda)
1930 - 1st airplane catapulted from a dirigible, Charles Nicholson, pilot
1930 - University of California dedicates $1,500 to research on prevention & cure of athlete's foot
1932 - Amelia Earhart leaves Newfoundland 1st woman fly solo across Atlantic
1932 - Engelbert Dollfuss becomes chancellor of Austria
1939 - "3 Little Fishies," by Kay Kyser hits #1
1939 - 1st regular transatlantic airmail (NY to Marsseille France)
1939 - Pan Am begins transatlantic passenger & air mail service
1940 - Gen Guderians tanks reach The Channel (British expeditionary army)
1940 - Igor Sikorsky unveils his helicopter invention
1940 - Soccer team HZVV forms in Hoogeveen
1940 - Trailing 7-1 in 9th to Pitts, Phils win 8-7
1941 - Archer's "Christian Calendar & Gregorian Reform" published
1941 - Former Dutch PM Colijn says Neth Indies not ready for independence
1941 - Germany invades Crete
1941 - White Sox Taft Wright sets AL record of RBIs in 13 consecutive games
1942 - US Navy 1st permitted black recruits to serve
1943 - French, British & US victory parade in Tunis Tunisia
1944 - US Communist Party dissolves
1945 - Keith Miller scores 105 in the 1st Victory Test Cricket at Lord's
1946 - Cubs Claude Passeau makes his 1st error since September 21, 1941, ending pitcher's fielding record of 273 consecutive errorless chances
1948 - 1st use of Israeli Air Force & 1st war victory, defeating Syrian army
1948 - Cleve Indians tie AL record of 18 walks (beat Red Sox 13-4)
1950 - 76th Preakness: Eddie Arcaro aboard Hill Prince wins in 1:59.2
1954 - Chiang Kai-shek becomes president of Nationalist China
1955 - Argentine parliament accepts separation of church & state
1956 - Atomic fusion (thermonuclear) bomb dropped from plane-Bikini Atoll
1956 - Jordan government of Samir resigns
1958 - US performs nuclear test at Enwetak (atmospheric tests)
1959 - Ford wins battle with Chrysler to call its new car "Falcon"
1959 - Japanese-Americans regain their citizenship
1959 - Shah of Persia visits Netherlands
1959 - Yanks sink to last place, 1st time since May 25, 1940
1960 - Baseball game in Milwaukee postponed due to dense fog
1961 - 87th Preakness: Johnny Sellers aboard Carry Back wins in 1:57.6
1961 - Henzes opera "Elegy for Young Lovers," premieres in Schwetzingen
1961 - Mauritania adopts constitution
1961 - White mob attacks "Freedom Riders" in Montgomery, Alabama
1962 - Patty Berg wins LPGA Muskogee Civitan Golf Open
1963 - Sukarno appointed president of Indonesia
1964 - Buster Mathis defeats Joe Fraizer to qualify for US Olympic team
1965 - Pakistani Boeing 720-B crashes at Cairo Egypt, killing 121
1965 - Yorkshire all out for 23 v Hampshire at Middlesbrough
1967 - 10,000 demonstrate against war in Vietnam
1967 - 93rd Preakness: Bill Shoemaker aboard Damascus wins in 1:55.2
1967 - BBC bans Beatle's "A Day in the Life" (drug references)
1969 - US troop capture Hill 937/Hamburger Hill Vietnam
1970 - 100,000 march in NY supporting US policies in Vietnam
1970 - 2 die in a NYC subway accident
1970 - Beatles' "Let it Be" movie premieres in UK
1971 - Pentagon reports blacks constitute 11% of US soldiers in SE Asia
1972 - "Different Times" closes at ANTA Theater NYC after 24 performances
1972 - "Hard Job Being God" closes at Edison Theater NYC after 6 performances
1972 - 5th ABA Championship: Indiana Pacers beat NY Nets, 4 games to 2
1972 - 98th Preakness: Eldon Nelson aboard Bee Bee Bee wins in 1:55.6
1972 - Cameroon adopts its constitution
1972 - Republic of Cameroon declared as constitution is ratified
1973 - "2 Gentlemen of Verona" closes at St James Theater NYC after 613 perfs
1973 - 25th Emmy Awards: Waltons, All in the Family & Mary Tyler Moore
1973 - Donna Caponi Young wins LPGA Bluegrass Golf Invitational
1974 - Soyuz 14 returns to Earth
1976 - USSR performs nuclear test at Sary Shagan USSR
1978 - 104th Preakness: Steve Cauthen aboard Affirmed wins in 1:54.4
1978 - 3 PFLP members kill a cop near El Al airlines in Orly Airport, Paris
1978 - US launches Pioneer Venus 1; produces 1st global radar map of Venus
1979 - "I Love My Wife" closes at Barrymore Theater NYC after 864 perfs
1979 - 1st western pop star to tour USSR-Elton John
1979 - Nancy Lopez wins LPGA Coca-Cola Golf Classic
1980 - 710 families in Love Canal area (Niagara Falls NY) are evacuated
1980 - Drummer Peter Criss quits Kiss
1980 - Fire in nursing home in Kingston Jamaica, kills 157
1980 - In a referendum, 59.5% of Québec voters reject separatism
1981 - Ipswich Town wins 10th UEFA Cup at Amsterdam
1983 - Larry Holmes beats Tim Witherspoon in 12 for heavyweight boxing title
1983 - Michael Dokes & Mike Weaver fight to a draw in 15 for hw boxing title
1983 - Phillies Steve Carlton passes W Johnson with 2nd most strike outs
1984 - "On Your Toes" closes at Virginia Theater NYC after 505 performances
1984 - Barb Bunkowsky wins LPGA Chrysler-Plymouth Charity Golf Classic
1984 - Boston's Roger Clemens beats Twins, 5-4, for his 1st victory
1985 - 1150 Lebanese/Palestinian prisoners exchanged for 3 Israelis
1985 - Dow Jones industrial avg closes above 1300 for 1st time
1985 - FBI arrests John A Walker Jr, convicted of spying for USSR
1985 - Indians-Brewers game at Cleve Stadium is 1st rain-out of 1985, ends record string of 458 ML games since Opening Day without a rain-out
1985 - Israel exchanges 1,100+ Arab prisoners for 3 Israeli soldiers
1985 - Larry Holmes beats Carl Williams in 15 for heavyweight boxing title
1985 - US began broadcasts to Cuba on Radio Marti
1986 - Christy Fichtner, 23, (Texas), crowned 35th Miss USA
1986 - Flintstones 25th Anniversary Celebration airs on CBS-tv
1987 - Götenborg wins 16th UEFA Cup at Dundee
1987 - Wrestler Jerry Lawler sues WWF & Harley Race for trademark name "king"
1988 - Howard Stern fans disrupt WMMR's & John DeBella's "Louie Louie" parade
1988 - Mike Schmidt hits his 535th HR, moving into 8th place
1989 - 115th Preakness: Pat Valenzuela aboard Sunday Silence wins in 1:53.8
1989 - China declares martial law in Beijing
1989 - Toonces The Cat takes the wheel on Saturday Night Live
1989 - Walter McConnel, 57, is oldest to reach 27,000' Mt Everest top
1990 - "Truly Blessed" closes at Longacre Theater NYC after 33 performances
1990 - Cindy Rarick wins LPGA Planters Pat Bradley Golf International
1990 - Hubble Space Telescope sends 1st photograph's from space
1991 - Chic Bull Michael Jordan, named NBA's MVP
1991 - Jeff Reardon gains his 300th career save
1991 - Soviet parliament approves law allowing citizens to travel abroad
1992 - FC Barcelona wins 373 Europe Cup 1 at London
1992 - India launches its 1st satellite independently
1992 - Rap singer raps 597 syllables in under 60 seconds
1992 - VP Quayle attacks Murphy Brown for being a single mother
1993 - 10m meteor comes within 150,000 km of Earth (1993KA)
1993 - 274th & final "Cheers" on NBC
1993 - Ukraine Premier Leonid Koetsjma resigns
1994 - Bobcat Goldthwait charged with misdemeanors for fire on Tonight Show
1994 - Miss India (Sushmita Sen) selected Miss Universe
1994 - Sony Theaters & Cineplex (NYC) hike movie ticket prices to $8.00
1995 - 121st Preakness: Pat Day aboard Timber Coutry wins in 1:54.4
1995 - CBS News fires co-anchor Connie Chung
1995 - Twins Marty Cordova ties rookie record of HRs in 5 consecutive games
1997 - Cosmos Zenit-2 Launch (Russia), Failed
1997 - Thor-2A Delta 2 Launch (Norway/USA), Successful
1997 - White Sox Frank Thomas reaches base safely for 15th straight time

Famous birthdays on May 20 ..

1364 - Henry Percy, [Harry Hotspur], British soldier/politican
1470 - Pietro Bembo, cardinal/theologian
1537 - Hieronymus Fabricius Ab, Aquapend Italy, physician (De Formato Foetu)
1547 - Melchior Bischoff, composer
1554 - Paulo Bellasio, composer
1593 - Jacob Jordaens, Flemish barok artist
1743 - [François D] Toussaint L'Ouverture, (à Breda), leader (Haiti)
1750 - Stephen Girard, bailed out US bonds during War of 1812
1754 - Hans Gram, composer
1759 - William Thornton, architect (Capitol building, Wash DC)
1764 - J Gottfried Schadow, German sculptor/cartoonist/lithographer
1768 - Dolley Dandridge Payne Madison, 1st lady (1809-17)
1772 - William Congreve, English officer (design fire rocket)
1799 - Honoré de Balzac, France, novelist (Pere Goriot, Human Comedy)
1806 - John Stuart Mill, UK, philosopher/political economist/Utilitarian
1812 - Gustav Adolf Mankell, composer
1815 - Barthélémy Menn, Swiss graphic artist/painter
1818 - William George Fargo, founder (Wells Fargo)
1822 - Emile Erckmann, [E-Chatrian], French writer (Waterloo)
1822 - Frédéric Passy, French economist/pacifist (Nobel 1901)
1825 - Antoinette Brown Blackwell, clergy (1st ordained US female minister)
1828 - James William Reilly, Brig General (Union volunteers), died in 1905
1830 - Amalia MdGA, princess of Saxon-Weimar-Eisenach/wife of prince Henry
1830 - Hector H Malot, French writer (Without Family)
1841 - Sara Louisa Oberholtz, social reformer, anti-smoking advocate
1844 - Henri Julien Felix Rousseau, French ambassador/painter (Dream)
1850 - Eaton Faning, composer
1851 - Emile Berliner, Germany, inventor (flat phonograph record)
1851 - Rose Hawthorne Lathrop, US, nun/daughter of Nathaniel Hawthorne
1856 - Henri E Cross [Delacroix], French painter
1872 - Albert Steinrück, German actor (Golem)
1874 - Folkert E Posthuma, Dutch minister of Agriculture/Industry
1876 - John Owen Jones, composer
1881 - Wladyslaw Sikorski, premier Poland (WW II general)
1882 - Sigrid Undset, Norway, novelist (Kristin Lavransdatter, Nobel 1928)
1883 - Paul Arntzenius, painter/graphic artist/etcher
1889 - Felix Arndt, composer
1889 - Margery Allingham, detective story writer
1889 - William Lawther, union leader
1890 - Beniamino Gigli, Italy, tenor (Enzo-La Gioconde)
1894 - Adela Rogers St John, journalist/author (Foreign Correspondent)
1895 - Reginald J "R" Mitchell, English aviation manufacturer (Spitfire)
1899 - Estelle Taylor, Delaware, actress (8 Commandments)
1899 - John M Harlan, Chicago, 91st Supreme Court justice (1955-71)
1901 - Max Euwe, Netherlands, world chess champion (1935-37)
1901 - Otto Waldis, Austria, actor (Port of Hell, Unknown World)
1902 - Hans Sahl, writer
1903 - Jerzy Fitelberg, composer
1904 - Russell Hardie, Buffalo NY, actor (Sequoia, In Old Kentucky)
1905 - Gerrit Achterberg, Dutch poet (Sailing)
1905 - Harry Campion, statistician/founder (Brit Central Statistical Office)
1908 - Jimmy Stewart, PA, actor (Mr Smith Goes to Wash, Wonderful Life)
1909 - Edward Moss Hutchinson, educationalist
1909 - John Arkell, director of administration (BBC)
1911 - Annie M G Schmidt, writer (Fam Doorsnee, Jip & Janneke)
1911 - Gardner F[rancis] Fox, US, sci-fi author (Kothar-Barbarian Swordsman)
1912 - Joseph Proce, 3rd victim of NYC's Zodiac killer (survives)
1913 - Henry Cadbury Brown, architect
1913 - Ion Dumitrescu, composer
1913 - William Hewlett, cofounder (Hewlett-Packard Co)
1915 - Moshe Dayan, Israeli general/minister of Defense
1915 - Peter Copley, actor (Victim, King & Country)
1916 - Cornelie Coposu, politician
1916 - John McIntyre, theologian
1916 - Owen Chadwick, chancellor (U of East Anglia)
1917 - Enyss Djemil, composer
1917 - Richard Charles Cobb, historian
1919 - George Gobel, Chicago Ill, comedian/TV personality (I Love My Wife)
1920 - Betty Driver, actress (Penny Paradise)
1920 - John Cruickshank, banker
1920 - William Simpson, British trade union leader
1921 - John Harrison, British vice admiral/surgeon
1921 - John Marchi, (Rep-R-NY)
1921 - W Borchert, writer
1922 - Clifford Butler, vice chancellor (Loughborough Univ of Technology)
1923 - Edith Fellows, Boston, actress (Pennies From Heaven, City Streets)
1923 - Hugh Beach, British General
1923 - Samuel Selvon, author
1924 - Betty Driver, actress (Coronation St, Pardon the Expression)
1924 - Peter Shore, MP (Labour)
1925 - D French Slaughter Jr, (Rep-R-VA, 1985- )
1926 - David Hedison, Providence RI, actor (Colbys, Voyage to Bottom of Sea)
1926 - John Lucarotti, scriptwriter
1926 - Vic Ames, rocker (Ames Brothers)
1927 - David Frederick Barlow, composer
1927 - Walter Aschaffenburg, composer
1927 - [Harold] Bud Grant, Wisc, CFL/NFL player/coach (Winnipeg, Minnesota)
1928 - David Berriman, CEO (Rose Thomson Young group of Lloyds Trustees)
1928 - David Hedison, actor (Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea)
1929 - André Carolus Cirino, Suriname/Indian poet
1930 - James McEachin, Pennert NC, actor (Harry-Tenafly)
1930 - Robert Bunyard, Commandant (British Police Staff College)
1931 - Chiharu Igaya, Japan, slalom (Olympic-silver-1956)
1933 - Constance Towers, actress (Capitol, Shock Corrider, Naked Kiss)
1933 - Danny Aiello, NYC, actor (Moonstruck, Do the Right Thing)
1936 - Anthony Zerbe, Cal, actor (Harry-O, Centennial, They Call Me Mr Tibbs)
1937 - Dave Hill, Jackson MI, PGA golfer (1967 Memphis)
1937 - Earl of Iveagh, pres (Guiness Pics)
1937 - Lord "Benjie" Iveagh, British brewer (Guinness)/large landowner
1937 - Teddy Randazzo, song writer (I'm on the Outside Looking In)
1938 - Alan Smithers, British professor
1938 - Christina Bass-Kaiser, 3K Dutch speed skater (Olympic-gold-1972)
1939 - Gro Harlem Brundtland, Norway, PM/feminist/conservatist
1940 - Sadaharu Oh, of Yomiuri Giants (Japan), hit 868 career HR
1940 - Shorty Long, soul singer/pianist (Here Comes the Judge)
1940 - Stan Mikita, NHL center (led NHL in scoring 4 times)
1941 - Goh Chok Sole, premier of Singapore (1990- )
1941 - Maria Liberia-Peters, premier of Dutch Antilles (198?-93)
1942 - Lynn Davies, long jumper
1942 - Paula, [Jill Jackson], Tx, singer (Hey Paula)
1942 - Simon Keswick, British financier/merchant (Hong Kong)
1943 - Deryck Murray, cricket wicket-keeper (West Indian 1963-80)
1943 - Ian Vallance, CEO (British Telecom)
1943 - Tison Street, composer
1944 - Boudouin de Groot, Dutch singer (Good night mister president)
1944 - Cipa Dichter, Rio de Janeiro Brazil, pianist/wife of Misha Dichter
1944 - David M Walker, Columbus Ga, Capt USN/astron (STS 51-A 30, 53, 69)
1944 - Joe Cocker, Sheffield Eng, rock vocalist (Little Help From My Friends)
1944 - Keith Fletcher, cricket captain (Essex & England)
1945 - Harold E Ford, (Rep-D-TN, 1975- )
1945 - Lord Hollick, CEO (MAI)
1945 - Nikolai Nikolayevich Fefelov, Russian colonel/cosmonaut
1945 - Wally Herger, (Rep-R-California)
1946 - Bakhaavaa Buidaa, Mongolia, wrestler (Oly-silver-1972) disqualified
1946 - Cher Bono, Cal, rocker/actress (I Got You Babe, Jack Lalane, Mask)
1946 - Craig Patrick, NHL coach
1947 - Iain Vallance, CEO (British Telecom)
1948 - Dave Thomas, St Catherines Ontario, comedian (SCTV, Grace Under Fire)
1948 - John Amiel, director (Queen of Hearts, Tune in Tomorrow)
1948 - John R McKernan Jr, (Rep-R-ME, 1983-86/Gov-Maine)
1948 - Samuel Gejdenson, (Rep-D-Connecticut, 1981- )
1949 - Nick Joe Rahall II, (Rep-D-WV, 1977- )
1951 - Michael D Crapo, (Rep-R-Idaho)
1951 - Thomas D Akers, St Louis, Major USAF/astronaut (STS 41, 49, 61, 79)
1951 - William Cullen Bryant, actor (Hell Squad)
1952 - Warren Cann, Victoria Canada, rock drummer (Ultravox)
1954 - Galina Vasilyevna Amelkina, Russia, doctor/cosmonaut
1954 - James Henderson, country singer (Black Oak Arkansas)
1955 - Nigel Griffiths, MP (Labour)
1955 - Steve George, rock keyboardist (Mr Mister)
1956 - Andrew Hilditch, cricketer (Australian opening bat 1979-85)
1956 - Tomas Smid, Czech, tennis star
1958 - Jane Wiedlin, Wisc, singer/guitarist (GoGos, Fur, Rush Hour)
1958 - Mike Engleman, Sonoma Calif, cyclist (Olympics-96)
1958 - Ronald Prescot Reagan Jr, LA, Pres son/TV host (Ron Reagon Show)
1959 - Bronson Pinchot, NYC, actor (Perfect Strangers, Beverly Hills Cop)
1959 - Peter Greene, Bkln NY, producer (After Midnight)
1960 - John Cowsill, rock vocalist (Cowsills-Hair)
1960 - Susan Cowsill, Newport RI, rock vocalist (Cowsills-We Can Fly)
1960 - Tony Goldwyn, LA Calif, actor (Ghost, Kuffs, Traces of Red)
1961 - Clive Allen, WLAF kicker (London Monarchs)
1961 - Kit Clarke, rocker (Danny Wilson-Mary's Prayer)
1961 - Nick Heyward, guitar/vocals (Haircut 100-Favourite Shirts)
1961 - Sally Quinlan, LPGA golfer
1961 - Vaughn Jefferis, Matangi NZ, equestrian 3 day event (Olymp-bronze-96)
1962 - Lydia Cheng, NYC, Ms Big Apple bodybuilder (1982) (Pumping Iron 2)
1962 - Sylvie Rauch, Munich German FR, nude model/actress
1963 - Brian Nash, Glendale Calif, actor (Joel-Please Don't Eat Daisies)
1963 - David Wells, Torrance CA, pitcher (Baltimore Orioles, NY Yankees)
1963 - Dipak Chudasama, cricketer (Kenya opening batsman 1996 World Cup)
1964 - Earl Charles Spencer, Sandringham England, brother of Princess Diana
1964 - Jeff Schwarz, US baseball pitcher (Calif Angels, Chicago White Sox)
1964 - Joseph Sinnott Edwards, Chicago, murderer (FBI Most Wanted List)
1964 - Paul W Richards, Scranton PA, astronaut
1964 - Todd Peat, WLAF guard (Frankfurt Galaxy)
1965 - Bruno Marie-Rose, French runner (world record 200 m indoor)
1965 - Fia Porter, Mexia Tx, actress (Audrey Ames-One Life to Live)
1965 - Joe Cioe, Cranston RI, Canadian Tour golfer (NH Open-1992, 93)
1965 - Todd Stottlemyre, Yakima WA, pitcher (St Louis Cardinals, Blue Jays)
1966 - Lawyer Tillman, NFL tight end (Green Bay Packers, Carolina Panthers)
1966 - Liselotte Neumann, Finspang Sweden, LPGA golfer (1988 US Women's Open)
1966 - Mindy Cohn, LA, actress (Facts of Life)
1966 - Paolo Seganti, actor (Damian-As the World Turns)
1967 - Beate Reinstadler, Stuttgart Ger, tennis star (1989 Futures Israel)
1968 - Damon Mays, NFL wide receiver (Pitts Steelers)
1968 - Phil Hansen, NFL defensive end (Buffalo Bills)
1969 - Alberto Mancini, Argentina, tennis star
1969 - Suzanne Lawrence, Humble Texas, Miss Texas-America (1991) (4th)
1970 - Jason York, Nepean, NHL defenseman (Anaheim Mighty Ducks)
1970 - Missy Cress, Burbank CA, female catcher (Colo Silver Bullets)
1970 - Niklas Andersson, Kungalv SWE, NHL forward (Team Sweden, NY Islanders)
1970 - Terrell Brandon, NBA guard (Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks)
1971 - Jonas Berqvist, Angelhorn SWE, hockey forward (Team Sweden, Oly-98)
1971 - Niklas Andersson, Kungalv Swe, NHL left wing (NY Islanders)
1971 - Sandy Schreur, Dutch soccer player (NEC)
1972 - Michael Cox, Hannibal Missouri, 1.5k runner
1974 - Brandon Jessie, tight end (NY Giants)
1977 - Angela Goethals, actress (VI Warshawski, Heartbreak Hotel)
1979 - Tamika Thomas, Miss Michigan Teen USA (1996)

Famous deaths on May 20 ..

1277 - John XXI, [Petrus Juliani/Hispanus], Port Pope (1276-77), dies
1444 - Bernardinus van Siena, Italian saint, dies at 63
1449 - Peter, Prince/regent of Portugal/writer (Virtuosa Benfeitoria), dies
1471 - Henry VI, king of England (1422-61, 70-71)/France (1431-71), dies
1506 - Christopher Columbus, explorer, dies in poverty, in Spain at 55
1509 - Catharina Sforza, Italian duchess of Forli, dies at 45
1597 - Matthijs Heldt, dies in battle
1622 - Osman II, sultan of Turkey (1618-22), dies
1648 - Wladyslaw IV Wasa, King of Poland, dies
1650 - Francesco Sacrati, composer, dies at 44
1669 - Joris van der Hagen, landscape painter, dies
1751 - Domingo Miguel Bernaube Terradellas, composer, dies at 38
1782 - Carlo Giovanni Testori, composer, dies at 68
1782 - Christoph Gottlieb Schroter, composer, dies at 82
1795 - Ignác Martinovics, Hungarian physicist/revolutionary, beheaded
1834 - Marie-Joseph-Paul-Yves-Roch-Gilbert de Motier, nobleman, dies
1834 - Marquis de Lafayette, French general, dies
1841 - Joseph Blanco White, theological writert, dies
1847 - Mary Lamb, writer, dies
1864 - John Clare, English poet (Little Trotty Wagtail), dies at 70
1875 - Amalia, wife of King Otto of Greece, dies at 58
1876 - Harold, grandson of English queen Victoria, dies at 8 days old
1876 - Khristo Botev, Bulgarian poet, dies
1880 - Eugène LFC prince the Ligne, Belgian prince of Ambise, dies at 76
1883 - William Chambers, author/publisher, dies
1895 - Ratu Agung-Agung Gdé Ngurah, radja van Mataram, Lombok, dies
1896 - Clara Josephine Wieck Schumann, composer/pianist, dies at 76
1900 - Gustav Heinrich Graben-Hoffman, composer, dies at 80
1910 - Jean-Baptiste Theodore Weckerlin, composer, dies at 88
1911 - E M Grace, cricketer (one Test v Australia 1880, 36 & 0), dies
1919 - Jacob Verdam, philosopher, dies
1923 - Hans Goldschmidt, German chemist, dies
1926 - Dick Pougher, cricketer (17 & 3-26 in only Test for Engld 1892), dies
1935 - Ivans, [Jacob van Schevichaven], lawyer/detective writer, dies at 68
1939 - Joe Carr, NFL hall of famer/NFL president (1921-39), dies at 59
1940 - Amar Singh, cricketer (of pneumonia Indian pace bowler 1932-36), dies
1940 - Joris [Georges] van Severen, Flem fascist/Member of parliament, dies
1956 - André Eugene Maurice Charlot, actor (Summer Storm), dies
1956 - Max Beerbohm, caricturist/writer (Yet Again), dies
1959 - Alfred Schutz, Austrian/US architect/philosopher, dies at 60
1968 - Albert Hartkopf, cricketer (one Test for Australia), dies
1968 - Kees van Dongen, Dutch/French painter, dies at 91
1969 - Fred Sherman, actor (Chain Lightning), dies after a stroke at 64
1969 - Royal Beal, actor (Death of a Salesman), dies of cancer, at 69
1972 - Cornelis J van der Klauw, Dutch biologist/zoologist, dies at 78
1972 - Walter Winchell, columnist/narrator (Untouchables), dies at 75
1975 - Barbara Hepworth, sculptor, dies
1975 - Dame Barbara Hepworth, English sculptor, dies in fire at 72
1975 - Jacques Stehman, composer, dies at 62
1980 - Jack Walsh, cricketer (at Wallsend)/commentator (NBN), dies
1984 - Peter Bull, British actor (Dr Doolittle), dies of a heart attack at 72
1985 - George Memmoli, actor (Earl-Hello Larry), dies at 46
1986 - Bernard Naylor, composer, dies at 78
1986 - Willem Pée, Belgian linguistic, dies at 83
1989 - Anton Diffring, actor (Zeppelin, Fahrenheit 451), dies at 70
1989 - Gilda Radner, comedienne (SNL, Haunted Honeymoon), dies at 42
1989 - John R Hicks, English economist (Nobel 1972), dies
1991 - Julian Orbon De Soto, composer, dies at 65
1993 - Max Klein, inventor (paint by numbers), dies at 77
1994 - Dallas Pratt, collector, dies at 79
1994 - Ronald Russell, actor/manager (We Are Angels), dies at 83
1994 - Vivien John, artist, dies at 79
1996 - Eric Davidson, comedy scriptwriter, dies at 65
1996 - George Malcolm Thomson, journalist, dies at 96
1996 - Jack Wyngaard, dancer, dies at 37
1996 - Janaki Ramachandran, PM of Indian state of Tamil Nadu (1988), dies
1996 - John Pertwee, actor (Dr Who), dies at 76
1996 - Julius Marmur, biochemist/geneticist, dies at 70
1996 - Lewis B Combs, naval commander/civil engineer, dies at 101
1997 - Virgilio Boat, president of Colombia (1986-90), dies