What Happened on August 23
Historical Events
- 79 Mount Vesuvius begins stirring, on feast day of Vulcan, Roman god of fire (goes on to destroy Pompeii) [approx date] [1] [2]
- 1305 Scottish patriot William Wallace is executed for high treason by Edward I of England at Smithfield, London
- 1542 Rabbi Joseph Caro completes his commentary of Tur Code
- 1850 1st US National Women's Rights Convention convenes in Worcester, Massachusetts
- 1942 Battle of Stalingrad: 600 Luftwaffe planes bomb Stalingrad (40,000 die)
- 1943 50th day of Battle of Kursk, USSR: Largest tank battle in history ends with Russia's defeat of Germany; over 10,000 tanks take part, nearly 250,000 combatants killed
- 1996 Osama bin Laden issues message entitled "A declaration of war against the Americans occupying the land of the two holy places"
- 2005 Hurricane Katrina forms over the Bahamas, later becoming a category 5 hurricane
- More Historical Events
Aug 23 in Film & TV
- 1933 First televised boxing match — 6-round exhibition at Broadcasting House in London between middleweights Archie Sexton and Lauri Raiteri; aired by BBC-TV
- 1946 "The Big Sleep" directed by Howard Hawks and starring Humphrey Bogart (Philip Marlowe) and Lauren Bacall, premieres
Aug 23 in Music
- 1994 Jeff Buckley releases his album "Grace", featuring his cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah"
Aug 23 in Sport
- 1933 First televised boxing match — 6-round exhibition at Broadcasting House in London between middleweights Archie Sexton and Lauri Raiteri; aired by BBC-TV
Did You Know?
World War II: last cavalry charge in history takes place at Isbushenskij, Russia; the Italian Savoia Cavalleria charges Soviet infantry
On August 23, 1942
Louis XVI
Gene Kelly
Keith Moon
River Phoenix
Kobe Bryant
Barbara EdenFamous Weddings
- 1876 Sharp Shooter Annie Oakley weds traveling show marksman Frank E. Butler
- 1942 "King Kong" actress Fay Wray (34) weds screenwriter and playwright Robert Riskin (45)
- 1962 British "Beatles" musician John Lennon (21) weds Cynthia Powell (22); divorce in 1968
Famous Divorces
- 2010 Former Swedish model Elin Nordegren (30) divorces professional golfer Tiger Woods (34) after 6 years of marriage
More Weddings & Divorces
William Wallace
George Villiers
Rudolph Valentino
Ed Warren
