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February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 310 days remaining, 311 in leap years. By Roman custom February 24 is the day added to a leap year, and the occurrence of February 29 is merely a consequence of this.
Events
- 303 - Galerius, Roman Emperor, publishes his edict that begins the persecution of Christians in his portion of the Empire.
- 1582 - Pope Gregory XIII announces the Gregorian calendar.
- 1711 - The London premiere of Rinaldo by George Friderich Handel, the first Italian opera written for the London stage.
- 1803 - The Supreme Court of the United States, in Marbury v. Madison, establishes the principle of judicial review.
- 1804 - London's Drury Lane Theatre burns to the ground, leaving owner Richard Brinsley Sheridan destitute,
- 1826 - The signing of the Treaty of Yandaboo marked the end of the First Burmese War.
- 1836 - Samuel Colt receives a patent for the Colt revolver.
- 1839 - William Otis receives a patent for the steam shovel.
- 1848 - King Louis-Philippe of France abdicates the throne.
- 1848 - The Communist Manifesto is published.
- 1863 - Arizona is organized as a United States territory.
- 1868 - The first parade to have floats occurs at Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Louisiana.
- 1868 - Andrew Johnson becomes the first President of the United States to be impeached by the United States House of Representatives. He is later acquitted.
- 1881 - China and Russia sign the Sino-Russian Ili Treaty
- 1909 - The Hudson Motor Car Company is founded.
- 1917 - World War I: U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom is given the Zimmermann Telegram, in which Germany pledges to ensure the return of New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona to Mexico if that country declares war on the United States.
- 1924 - Johnny Weissmuller finishes the 100-meter swimming event in 57 2/5 seconds and sets a new world record.
- 1925 - A thermite (magnesium bomb) is used for the first time by breaking-up a 250,000-ton ice jam clogging the St. Lawrence River near Waddington, New York.
- 1938 - A nylon bristle toothbrush becomes the first commercial product (DuPont) to be made with nylon yarn.
- 1942 - Propaganda: The Voice of America begins broadcasting.
- 1945 - Egyptian Premier Ahmed Maher Pasha is killed in Parliament after reading a decree.
- 1946 - Juan Perón is elected president of Argentina.
- 1948 - Cold War: The Communist Party seizes control of Czechoslovakia.
- 1968 - Vietnam War: The Tet Offensive is halted; South Vietnam recaptures Hué.
- 1970 - National Public Radio is founded.
- 1975 - Hard rock band Led Zeppelin release the classic double album Physical Graffiti.
- 1981 - Buckingham Palace announces the engagement of Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer.
- 1981 - Jean Harris is convicted of murdering Dr. Herman Tarnower, the author of the bestselling The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet.
- 1983 - A special commission of the U.S. Congress releases a report that condemns the practice of Japanese internment during World War II.
- 1988 - The Supreme Court of the United States sides with Larry Flynt's Hustler magazine by overturning a lower court decision to award Jerry Falwell USD $200,000 for defamation.
- 1989 - Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini offers a USD $3 million bounty for the death of The Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie.
- 1989 - A United Airlines Boeing 747 bound to New Zealand from Honolulu, Hawaii rips open during flight, sucking 9 passengers and crew out of the first class section.
- 1995 - The Corona reconnaissance satellite program, in existence from 1959 to 1972, is declassified.
- 1996 - The last occurrence of February 24 as a leap day in the European Union and for the Roman Catholic Church.
- 1999 - The State of Arizona executes Karl LaGrand, a German national involved in an armed robbery, in spite of Germany's legal action to attempt to save him.
- 1999 - A China Southern Airlines Tupolev TU-154 airliner crashes on approach to Wenzhou airport in eastern China killing 61.
- 2002 - February 8 through February 24 - 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah
Births
- 1500 - Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1558)
- 1557 - Mathias, Holy Roman Emperor
- 1709 - Jacques de Vaucanson, inventor (d. 1782)
- 1774 - Prince Adolphus of the United Kingdom, 1st Duke of Cambridge (d. 1850)
- 1786 - Wilhelm Grimm, philologist, folklorist (d. 1859)
- 1836 - Winslow Homer, artist (d. 1910)
- 1846 - Luigi Denza, composer (d. 1922)
- 1848 - Andrew Inglis Clark, Tasmanian Politician (d. 1907)
- 1852 - George Moore (novelist), writer (d. 1933)
- 1874 - Honus Wagner, Baseball Hall of Famer (d. 1955)
- 1885 - Chester Nimitz, United States admiral (d. 1966)
- 1885 - Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz (a.k.a. “Witkacy”), Polish writer and painter (d. 1939)
- 1890 - Marjorie Main, actress (d. 1975)
- 1903 - Franz Burda, German publisher (d. 1986)
- 1909 - August Derleth, writer (d. 1971)
- 1914 - Zachary Scott, actor (d. 1965)
- 1921 - Abe Vigoda, actor
- 1922 - Richard Hamilton, pop-art painter
- 1922 - Steven Hill, actor
- 1932 - Michel Legrand, composer
- 1934 - Bettino Craxi, Prime Minister of Italy (d. 2000)
- 1934 - Renata Scotto, Italian soprano
- 1938 - Phil Knight, founder of Nike, Inc.
- 1942 - Joseph Lieberman, politician, candidate for Vice President of the United States
- 1942 - John Neumeier, choreographer
- 1943 - George Harrison, member of The Beatles (d. 2001)
- 1943 - Hristo Prodanov, Bulgarian mountaineer
- 1945 - Barry Bostwick, actor
- 1947 - Edward James Olmos, actor
- 1948 - J. Jayalalithaa, Indian politician
- 1955 - Steve Jobs, computer pioneer
- 1955 - Alain Prost, Formula One driver
- 1956 - Paula Zahn, journalist
- 1958 - Sammy Kershaw, musician
- 1962 - Michelle Shocked, musician
- 1966 - Billy Zane, actor
- 1970 - Jeff Garcia, American football quarterback
- 1973 - Jordan Jovtchev, Bulgarian gymnast
- 1973 - Alexei Kovalev, ice hockey player\
- 1974 - Chad Hugo, musician and producer (The Neptunes)
- 1975 - Ashley MacIsaac, Cape Breton fiddler
- 1976 - Zuzana Belohorcova, slovak actress
- 1981 - Lleyton Hewitt, tennis player
- 1999 - Anthony Bain, actor
- 1999 - Michael Bain, actor
Deaths
- 616 - Ethelbert, king of Kent and Bretwalda
- 1810 - Henry Cavendish, scientist who calculated Newton's gravitational constant (b. 1756)
- 1815 - Robert Fulton, inventor (b. 1765)
- 1825 - Thomas Bowdler, physician and editor (b. 1754)
- 1856 - Nikolai Ivanovich Lobachevsky, Russian mathematician (b. 1792)
- 1953 - August Fieldorf, Polish general and leader of the resistance (b. 1895)
- 1975 - Nikolai Bulganin, Premier of the Soviet Union
- 1990 - Lech Falandysz, Polish politician
- 1990 - Malcolm Forbes, publisher (b. 1917)
- 1991 - John Daly (journalist), game show host
- 1991 - George Gobel, comedian (b. 1919)
- 1993 - Bobby Moore, English footballer (b. 1941)
- 1994 - Dinah Shore, actress, singer (b. 1916)
- 1998 - Henny Youngman, comedian (b. 1906)
- 1999 - Andre Dubus, writer
- 2001 - Claude E. Shannon, "father of information theory" (b. 1916)
- 2002 - Leo Ornstein, composer and pianist (b. 1912)
- 2003 - Christopher Hill, historian (b. 1912)
- 2003 - Bernard Loiseau, chef
Holidays and observances
February 23 - February 25 - January 24 - March 24 -- listing of all days
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