Historical Events
- Aug 2 Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 is passed in America, essentially rendering marijuana and all its by-products illegal
Event of Interest
Aug 6 Franco's artillery fires on Madrid
Francisco Franco
- Aug 6 MLB overturns NY Yankees 7-6 win over Cleveland Indians because of umpire error
- Aug 6 US and USSR sign trade treaty
- Aug 8 Bonneville Dam on Columbia River begins producing power
- Aug 9 Ranger (US) easily beats Endeavour II (England) in race 4 to wrap up the 17th America's Cup yachting series, 4-0; it's the final competition for 21 years
- Aug 10 5th Venice Film Festival opens
Film Premier
- Aug 13 Second Sino-Japanese War: Japanese forces begin the Battle of Shanghai, a conflict that will last 3 months and involve 1 million troops
- Aug 14 China declares war on Japan
- Aug 14 Detroit Tigers score 36 runs in double header vs St Louis Browns
- Aug 14 Appalachian Trail is formally completed, traversing 2,000 miles and 14 US States, Georgia to Maine
- Aug 18 1st FM radio construction permit issued (W1X0J (WGTR) in Boston MA)
- Aug 24 Republican offensive near Belchite, Spain
- Aug 24 In the Spanish Civil War, the Basque Army surrenders to the Italian Corpo Truppe Volontarie following the Santoña Agreement.
- Aug 25 Japanese fleet blockades Chinese coast
- Aug 26 Franco's troops conquer Santander
- Aug 26 Pumping to build Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay is finished
- Aug 27 Brooklyn Dodger Fred Frankhouse no-hits Cin, 5-0 in 7 2/3 inn game
- Aug 27 George E T Eyston sets world auto speed record at 345.49 MPH
- Aug 28 Toyota Motors becomes an independent company.
- Aug 29 Philadelphia A's Bob Johnson is 2nd to get 6 RBIs in an inning (1st)
Boxing Title Fight
- Aug 31 Det's rookie Rudy York sets record for HRs of 18 HRs in August
Famous Birthdays
- Aug 1 Al D'Amato, American lawyer and politician (U.S. Senator from NY), born in Brooklyn, New York
- Aug 2 Garth Hudson, Canadian pop musician (The Band-Life is a Carnival), born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada
- Aug 2 Ronald Brierley, New Zealand investor and company director, born in Wellington, New Zealand
- Aug 2 Billy Cannon, American football player (Heisman-1959), born in Philadelphia, Mississippi (d. 2018)
- Aug 3 Duncan Sharpe, Pakistani cricketer (3 Tests for Pakistan 1959-60), born in Rawalpindi, Punjab, British India
- Aug 3 Steven Berkoff, English actor (Rambo: First Blood Part II), born in Stepney, London
- Aug 3 Diane Wakoski, American poet (Motorcycle Betrayal), born in Whittier, California
- Aug 4 David Vickerman Bedford, composer
- Aug 4 Jacobus H "Koos" van de Merwe, South African attorney/CP parliament leader
Herb Brooks
Aug 5 Herb Brooks, American ice hockey coach (Olympic gold Medal 1980), born in Saint Paul, Minnesota (d. 2003)
Herb Brooks
- Aug 5 Alan Howard, theatre and film actor (Royal Shakespeare Company), born in London (d. 2015)
- Aug 6 Barbara Windsor, actress (Study in Terror)
- Aug 6 Baden Powell de Aquino, Brazilian guitarist (d. 2000)
- Aug 6 Paul Griffin, American session musician and pianist, born in Harlem, New York (d. 2000)
- Aug 6 Charlie [Charles Edward] Haden, American jazz double-bassist (Liberation Music Orchestra), born in Shenandoah, Iowa (d. 2014)
- Aug 7 Don Wilson, cricketer (England slow left-armer between 1963-71)
Dustin Hoffman
Aug 8 Dustin Hoffman, American actor (Graduate, Tootsie, Kramer vs Kramer), born in Los Angeles, California
Dustin Hoffman
- Aug 8 Louis Neefs, Belgian singer
- Aug 10 Lucinda Williams, US sprinter (Olympic gold 1960)
- Aug 10 Anatoly Sobchak, Russian politician
- Aug 11 Allegra Kent, US actress (Addams Family)
- Aug 11 Anna Massey, actress (De Sade, Doll's House)
- Aug 11 Taki Theodoracopoulos, Greek/British journalist/multi-millionaire
- Aug 12 Walter Dean Myers, African-American author, born in Martinsburg, West Virginia, (d. 2014)
- Aug 14 Brian Fenelly, American composer (A Thoreau Symphony), born in Kingston, New York (d. 2015)
- Aug 14 Brian Curvis, Welsh boxer and British welterweight champion (1960-1964), born in Swansea, Wales (d. 2012)
- Aug 15 Ronnie G. Flippo, former United States Congressman from Alabama (1977-91), born in Florence, Alabama
- Aug 16 David Behrman, American composer (On The Other Ocean), born in Salzburg, Austria
- Aug 16 Lorraine Gary, American actress (Jaws, Jaws 2, Jaws 4), born in NYC, New York
- Aug 16 Andrew J[efferson V] Offutt, American sci-fi author (Undying Wizard)
- Aug 16 David Anderson, Canadian politician
- Aug 17 Yevgeni Aleksandrovich Illyin, Russian cosmonaut
- Aug 18 William George Rushton, actor, author and cartoonist (TW3), born in London, England (d. 1996)
- Aug 20 Corrie Moret-de Jong, Dutch politician (CDA)
- Aug 20 George Thoma, German FR, cross country ski jumper (Olympic gold 1960)
- Aug 20 Jim Bowen, British TV game show host (Bullseye) and comedian, born in Heswall, England (d. 2018)
- Aug 20 El Fary, Spanish singer and actor (d. 2007)
- Aug 21 Robert Stone, American novelist (Dog Soldiers, WUSA), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2015)
- Aug 21 Donald Campbell Dewar, Scotish politician (1st minister of Scotland's first Parliament in almost 300yrs), born in Glasgow, Scotland (d. 2000)
- Aug 22 Donald MacLeary, British ballet dancer (Royal Ballet), born in Glasgow, Scotland
- Aug 22 Max Hebditch, British director (Museum of London), born in Yeovil, England
- Aug 24 Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola, Nigerian politician, born in Abeokuta, Nigeria (d. 1998)
- Aug 26 Tom Heinsohn, NBA star/coach (Boston Celtics)
- Aug 27 Alice Coltrane [née McLeod], American jazz musician (Journey in Satchidananda), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2007)
- Aug 27 Mark Potter, British court judge
- Aug 27 Phil Shulman, Welsh rocker (Gentle Giant), born in Glasgow, Scotland
- Aug 27 Tommy Sands, singer/actor (Teenage Rock, Dream With Me), born in Chicago, Illinois
- Aug 28 Ian Campbell, 12th duke of Argyll, Scottish Campbell-captain and large landowner
- Aug 28 Joe Osborn, American bass player (Bridge over Troubled Water), born in Mound, Louisana
- Aug 29 James Florio, American politician (49th Governor of New Jersey), born in Brooklyn, New York
- Aug 30 Bruce McLaren, New Zealand car racer and founder of eponymous race team, born in Auckland, New Zealand (d. 1970)
- Aug 31 Guido de Moor, Dutch actor (Apart, Because the Cats)
- Aug 31 Warren Berlinger, actor (Larry-Joey Bishop Shop, Take Two), born in Brooklyn, New York
Famous Deaths
Edith Wharton
Aug 11 Edith Wharton [-Jones], US Pulitzer prize-winning author (House of Mirth), dies at 75
Edith Wharton
Andrew Mellon
Aug 26 Andrew Mellon, American banker (Mellon Bank), industrialist and Secretary of the Treasury (1921-32), dies at 82
Andrew Mellon
- Aug 27 John Russell Pope, American architect (Jefferson Memorial, National Archives and Records Administration), dies at 63