Feburary 28

Mobster Bugsy Siegel born (1906); Basketball coaching legend Dean Smith born (1931); Record 106 million watch series finale of "M*A*S*H" (1983); Gulf War ends (1991); RIP actress Jane Russell (2011).

John Steinbeck

Did you know... 

... that today is the birthday of John Steinbeck (1902)? John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. was an American writer widely known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath (1939), East of Eden (1952) and the novella Of Mice and Men (1937). Celebrate by reading your favorite novel!

Feburary 27

Author John Steinbeck born (1902); Actress Elizabeth Taylor born (1932); RIP Nobel Prize-winning physiologist Ivan Pavlov (1936); 22nd Amendment is ratified, setting term limits for US presidents (1951); RIP Fred Rogers (2003).

Feburary 26

Levi Strauss born (1829); Grand Canyon National Park established (1919); Johnny Cash born (1932); HBD musician Erykah Badu (1971); World Trade Center bombing kills six, injures more than 1,000 (1993).

February 25

Hiram Revels becomes first African American in US Congress (1870); Beatles guitarist George Harrison born (1943); Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, defeats Sonny Liston to win his first world heavyweight title (1964); HBD actress Téa Leoni (1966); RIP playwright and poet Tennessee Williams (1983).

Feburary 24

Marbury v. Madison establishes the principle of judicial review in US (1803); HBD Nike cofounder Phil Knight (1938); Steve Jobs born (1955); Fidel Castro retires as president of Cuba (2008); RIP legendary Indian actress Sridevi (2018).

Feburary 20

RIP Frederick Douglass (1895); HBD actor Sidney Poitier (1927); John Glenn is first American to orbit Earth (1962); Musician Kurt Cobain born (1967); HBD Rihanna (1988)

Feburary 21

 "The Communist Manifesto" is published by Karl Marx (1848);  Musician Nina Simone born (1933); NASCAR founded (1948); Malcolm X assassinated (1965); RIP evangelist Billy Graham (2018).

February 19

Thomas Edison granted patent for the phonograph (1878); HBD musician Smokey Robinson (1940); Battle of Iwo Jima begins (1945); HBD musician Seal (1963); RIP “To Kill a Mockingbird” author Harper Lee (2016).

February 18

RIP artist Michelangelo (1564); “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” published in the US (1885); HBD television personality Vanna White (1957); HBD rapper and entrepreneur Dr. Dre (1965); Auto racing legend Dale Earnhardt killed in crash at Daytona 500 (2001).

Leslie Calvin “Les” Brown

(born February 17, 1945) is a motivational speaker, author, radio DJ, former television host, and former politician. As a politician, he is a former member of the Ohio House of Representatives. As a motivational speaker, he uses the catch phrase “it’s possible!” and teaches people to follow their dreams as he learned to do

Febuary 14

RIP Saint Valentine (269); Abolitionist Frederick Douglass born (1818); Pale Blue Dot photo taken by Voyager 1 (1990); Dolly the sheep dies; was first cloned mammal (2003); Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting; 17 killed and 17 injured (2018).

Febuary 13

HBD Chuck Yeager, first pilot to break sound barrier (1923); HBD talk show host Jerry Springer (1944); Nashville sit-ins begin (1960); RIP French opera singer Lily Pons (1976); Earthquake in El Salvador kills 315, injures 3,400 (2001).

Isaac Asimov

 (January 2, 1920 – April 6, 1992) was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books

Febuary 11

Inventor Thomas Edison born (1847); HBD Jennifer Aniston (1969); Iranian Revolution begins as Ayatollah Khomeini comes to power (1979); Nelson Mandela released from prison in South Africa after 27 years (1990); RIP Whitney Houston (2012).

Febuary 10

French and Indian War ends (1763); Ron Brown elected chair of Democratic National Committee, first African American to head an American political party (1989); RIP “Roots” author Alex Haley (1992); RIP American playwright Arthur Miller (2005); RIP Hollywood legend and diplomat Shirley Temple (2014).

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

(January 30, 1882 – April 12, 1945)(aged 63) The 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war. The only American president elected to more than two terms, he forged a durable coalition that realigned American politics for decades

Feburary 6

Babe Ruth born (1895); Ronald Reagan born (1911); Bob Marley born (1945); King George VI dies, Elizabeth II becomes Queen (1952); HBD Rick Astley (1966); RIP Arthur Ashe (1993).

Feburary 7

Charles Dickens born (1912); All Cuban imports and exports banned in US (1962); HBD Garth Brooks (1962); Beatlemania arrives in America (1964); RIP author and pilot Anne Morrow Lindbergh (2001).

Feburary 5

Roger Williams arrives in Boston (1631); HBD baseball legend Hank Aaron (1934); HBD English actress Charlotte Rampling OBE (1946); HBD Cristiano Ronaldo (1985); Medgar Evers’ murderer convicted after 30 years (1994).

Febuary 4

George Washington elected first president of the US (1789); Aviation innovator Charles Lindbergh born (1902); Rosa Parks born (1913); RIP pianist and entertainer Liberace (1987); Facebook is founded (2004).

Febuary 3

RIP printing press innovator Johannes Gutenberg (1468); American novelist Gertrude Stein born (1874); Musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper are killed in plane crash (1959); Luna 9 becomes first spacecraft to make soft landing on the Moon (1966).