April 1953 in History

Events in History

Election of Interest

Apr 7 UN General Assembly begins session that will elect Dag Hammarskjöld of Sweden as Secretary-General

Event of Interest

Apr 8 Jomo Kenyatta convicted of involvement with the Mau Mau rebellion and sentenced to 7 years jail in Kenya

Apr 10 Dag Hammarskjöld becomes the 2nd Secretary-General of the United Nations
Apr 11 Oveta Culp Hobby becomes 1st at Health, Education, & Welfare
Apr 11 US Department of Health, Education and Welfare created
Apr 12 Keizo Yamada runs fastest marathon to date, at Boston
Apr 14 Viet-Minh offensive in Laos
Apr 15 Malans National Party wins South African elections

Event of Interest

Apr 16 British royal yacht Britannia launched by Queen Elizabeth II

Apr 23 USAF General Charles P. Cabell becomes deputy director of CIA, serves until 1962

Knighthood

Apr 24 Winston Churchill knighted by Queen Elizabeth II

Structure of DNA Published

Apr 25 Francis Crick and James Watson's discovery of the double helix structure of DNA is published in "Nature" magazine

Apr 27 1st general elections in British Guiana, won by the People's Progressive Party with Cheddi Jagan first person of Indian descent to be elected head of government outside South Asia
Apr 30 Little-Bigger League changes its name to Babe Ruth League

Birthdays in History

Apr 1 Barry Sonnenfeld, director (Get Shorty, Men in Black), born in NYC, New York
Apr 2 Jim Allister, Northern Irish politician, born in Listooder, Crossgar, Northern Ireland
Apr 4 Robert Bertrand, Canadian politician (Liberal Party of Canada), born in Fort-Coulonge, Quebec, Canada
Apr 9 Dominique Perrault, French architect (National Library of France), born in Clermont-Ferrand, France
Apr 11 Andrew Wiles, British mathematician (number theory, proved Fermat's last theorem), born in Cambridge, England
Apr 11 Guy Verhofstadt, 47th Prime Minister of Belgium (1999-2008), born in Dendermonde, Belgium
Apr 13 Brigitte Macron, French teacher and wife of politician Emmanuel Macron, born in Amiens, France
Apr 13 Stephen Byers, British politician (L), (MG Rover Group controversy), born in Wolverhampton
Apr 14 David Buss, American Evolutionary psychologist
Apr 16 J. Neil Schulman, American writer (Alongside Night), born in Forest Hills, New York
Apr 20 Sebastian Faulks, British novelist (The Girl at the Lion d'Or), born in Donnington, Berkshire
Apr 23 Fred Upton, American politician (US Representatives from Michigan, 1987-2023), born in St. Joseph, Michigan
Apr 24 John P. Hiler, American politician, U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana (1981-91), born in Chicago, Illinois
Apr 25 Ron Clements, American animation director (Moana), born in Sioux City, Iowa
Apr 27 Ellen S. Baker, American physician and NASA astronaut (STS 34, 50, 71), born in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Apr 28 Roberto Bolaño, Chilean author and poet (2666), born in Santiago, Chile (d. 2003)
Apr 29 Nikolai Nikolayevich Budarin, Russian cosmonaut (STS 71, TM-27), born in Kirya, Russia

Weddings in History

Alexander Fleming

Apr 9 Biologist Alexander Fleming (71) weds doctor Amalia Koutsouri-Vourekas (41)

Deaths in History

Apr 2 Jean Epstein, French director (Vive la Vie), dies at 56
Apr 4 Carol II, King of Romania (1930-40), dies at 59
Apr 4 Rachilde [Marguerite Vallette-Eymery], French author (Monsieur Venus, "Why I am not a Feminist"), dies at 93
Apr 6 Idris Davies, Welsh poet (b. 1905)
Apr 12 Lionel Logue, Australian speech therapist who treated King George VI (The Kings Speech), dies at 73
Apr 14 Emmanuel de Bom, Flemish writer (Scheldelucht), dies at 84
Apr 20 Erich Weinert, German communist writer, dies at 62
Apr 22 Top Naeff, Dutch writer (School Idyills), dies at 75
Apr 29 Moïse Kisling, Polish-French painter (La souris boiteuse), dies at 62