Historical Events
- 1618 Second Defenestration of Prague: Two Catholic Lords Regent and their secretary are thrown out of a window and amazingly are not seriously injured by the 70 foot (21m) fall. Triggers the Thirty Years' War.
- 1785 Benjamin Franklin announces his invention of bifocals
- 1813 South American independence leader Simón Bolívar enters Mérida, leading the invasion of Venezuela, and is proclaimed El Libertador ("The Liberator")
- 1934 American outlaws Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow - Bonnie and Clyde, are killed by police in an ambush near Sailes, Louisiana
- 1949 Federal Republic of [West] Germany created out of the American, British and French occupation zones
- 1958 Mao Zedong starts the "Great Leap Forward" movement in China
- 1998 The Good Friday Agreement is accepted in a referendum in Northern Ireland with 75% voting yes.
- More Historical Events
May 23 in Film & TV
- 1980 Horror film "The Shining" released directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall, based on book by Stephen King
May 23 in Music
- 2000 Eminem releases 3rd studio album "The Marshall Mathers LP", is fastest ever selling studio album (Grammy - Best Rap Album, 2001)
May 23 in Sport
- 1873 1st Preakness Stakes: G. Barbee aboard Survivor wins in 2:43 at Pimlico Race Course, Baltimore, Maryland
Did You Know?
Canada's North West Mounted Police Force forms (it didn't get the "Royal" until 1904)
On May 23, 1873
Philip I
Carl Linnaeus
Ambrose Burnside
Douglas Fairbanks
Hans Frank
Anatoly KarpovWould You Believe?
Chinese archaeologists announce findings of earliest use of barley in China to make beer, Shaanxi province 3400-2900 BC
On May 23, 2016
Famous Weddings
- 1200 Louis of France (Later Louis VIII) (13) marries Blanche of Castile (12), daughter of Alfonso VIII King of Castile at Port-Mort
- 1942 Comic book artist Jack Kirby (24) weds Roz Goldstein
- 1953 John F. Kennedy's sister Eunice Kennedy (31) weds activist and attorney Sargent Shriver at Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York City
Famous Divorces
- 1533 King Henry VIII of England & Catherine of Aragon's marriage declared null & void by authority English clergy not the Pope
- 1934 First wife Marguerite Van Kessel divorces NFL player Curly Lambeau (36) after 14 years of marriage
- 2016 Actress Amber Heard (30) files for divorce from fellow actor Johnny Depp (52)
More Weddings & Divorces
Bonnie Parker
Clyde Barrow
John D. Rockefeller
Heinrich Himmler
Sam Snead
Roger MooreArticles, Photos and Quiz
President Falls From Grace
Paul Deschanel had the makings of a fine President of France – until a series of bizarre incidents culminated in him falling out the window of a moving train.
May 23, 1920
Bonnie and Clyde Killed
FBI photo of the car carrying Bonnie and Clyde after the shootout
May 23, 1934
