Events in History
Historic Event
Jan 2 Mahatma Gandhi begins march for peace in East Bengal
Historic Event
Jan 4 Emilio G. Segrè and Carlo Perrier announce technetium, a previously unknown element and the first artificially synthesized chemical element
Historic Event
Jan 8 General George Marshall becomes US Secretary of State
Historic Event
Jan 9 Elizabeth "Betty" Short, the black dahlia, is last seen alive.
- Jan 10 British stop ships Independence & In-Gathering from landing in Israel
- Jan 10 Greek steamer "Himara" strikes a wartime mine in Saronic Gulf south of Athens with loss of 392 of 637 aboard
- Jan 15 The brutalized corpse of Elizabeth Short ("The Black Dahlia") found in Leimert Park, Los Angeles, California
- Jan 16 Vincent Aurial elected President of France
- Jan 17 Ammunition factory explodes in Muiden, Netherlands, 16 die
- Jan 18 Small river steamer sinks on Yangtze River, kills 400
- Jan 19 SS Himera runs aground at Athens, kills 392
- Jan 20 Brigadier General Edwin K Wright, USA, becomes deputy director of CIA
- Jan 26 KLM Dakota crashes near Copenhagen, 22 die
- Jan 28 "Bay Psalm" book auctioned for a record $151,000
Theater Premiere
Jan 29 Arthur Miller's play "All My Sons" premieres in NYC
Birthdays in History
- Jan 1 Alexei Ivanovich Bobrov, Russian cosmonaut
- Jan 1 Peter Lankhorst, Dutch politician (PPR), born in Zwolle, Netherlands
- Jan 1 Vladimir Georgiyevich Titov, Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz T-8, TM-4, STS 63)
- Jan 1 Jon Corzine, American financial executive and politician (United States Senator from New Jersey, 2001-06; Governor of New Jersey, 2006-10), born in Taylorville, Illinois
- Jan 2 Jack Hanna, American zoologist
- Jan 3 Sergey Filipovich Protchenko, Russian cosmonaut, born in Senitsky, Bryansk, USSR
- Jan 5 Mike DeWine, American politician, senator-R-Ohio (1995-2007), Governor of Ohio (2019-), born in Springfield, Ohio
- Jan 7 Shobha De, Indian columnist & novelist, born in Satara, India
- Jan 8 Don Bendell, American author & former Green Beret, born in Akron, Ohio
- Jan 8 Samuel Schmid, Swiss politician, born in Rüti bei Büren, Switzerland
- Jan 9 Ronnie Landfield, American abstract painter, born in The Bronx, New York
- Jan 10 George Alec Effinger, American sci-fi author (Nick of Time), born in Cleveland, Ohio (d. 2002)
- Jan 10 Afeni Shakur, mother of Tupac Shakur, Black Panther Party member, born in Lumberton, North Carolina (d. 2016)
- Jan 13 Jacek Majchrowski, Mayor of Kraków
- Jan 15 Andrea Martin, American comedienne (SCTV, Club Paradise), born in Portland, Maine
- Jan 16 Georgette Mosbacher, American CEO (La Prairie cosmetics), born in Highland, Indiana
- Jan 16 Magdalen Nabb, British author, born in Lancashire, United Kingdom (d. 2007)
- Jan 16 Harvey Proctor, British politician, born in Pontefract, United Kingdom
- Jan 19 Paula Deen, American chef and restaurateur, born in Albany, Georgia
- Jan 20 Stephen A. Schwarzman, American CEO of The Blackstone Group & Chairman of President Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum, born in Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania
- Jan 23 Tom Carper, American politician (D-Delaware, Senator 2001-, Governor of Delaware 1993-2001, REP 1983-93 ), born in Beckley, West Virginia
- Jan 23 Megawati Sukarnoputri, 5th President of Indonesia, born in Yogyakarta, Indonesia
- Jan 23 Gatewood Galbraith, American author & attorney, born in Carlisle, Kentucky (d. 2012)
- Jan 24 David Randall, British priest, founder of Cara (d. 1996)
- Jan 27 Vyron Polydoras, Greek politician
- Jan 28 MJ Ainsworth, CEO (Institute of Chartered Secretaries)
- Jan 28 Valerie Bragg, principal (City Technology College-Kingshurst)
- Jan 29 Israel Wetrin, managing director (Elonex)
- Jan 29 Linda B. Buck, American scientist, Nobel laureate
- Jan 30 Les Barker, English poet, born in Manchester, United Kingdom
Deaths in History
- Jan 4 Forrest Reid, Irish author/critic (Young Tom, Apostate), dies at 71
- Jan 8 Tadeusz Kutrzeba, Polish general during the Second Polish Republic, dies at 61
- Jan 9 Karl Mannheim, German sociologist (Diagnosis of Our Time), dies at 53
- Jan 9 Lambertus Zijl, Dutch sculptor (Merchant Exchange-Amsterdam), dies at 80
- Jan 12 Jonas Cohn, German philosopher (Wertwissenschaft), dies at 77
- Jan 13 Veit Valentin, German/American historian (German People), dies at 61
Elizabeth Short
Jan 15 Elizabeth Short, American victim in the Black Dahlia case, murdered at 22
- Jan 17 Pyotr Krasnov, Russian counter-revolutionary (b. 1869)
- Jan 17 Jean-Marie-Rodrigue Villeneuve, French cardinal and Archbishop of Quebec, dies at 63
- Jan 20 Josh Gibson, Negro League slugger, dies of a brain tumor at age 35
- Jan 23 Pierre Bonnard, French painter and illustrator, dies at 79
- Jan 24 Felix Timmermans, Flemish painter and illustrator (Pallieter), dies at 60
Al Capone
Jan 25 Al Capone, Chicago gangster, dies of neurosyphilis at 48
