February 24

February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 310 days remaining until the end of the year (311 in leap years).

By Roman custom, February 24 is doubled in a leap year in the Julian calendar. The Mensis Intercalaris began on this day or the following day in intercalary years in the pre-Julian calendar. This custom still has some effect around the world; for example, with respect to name days in Hungary.

Events

• 303 – Galerius publishes his edict that begins the persecution of Christians in his portion of the Roman Empire.
• 484 – King Huneric removes the Christian bishops from their offices and banished some to Corsica. A few are martyred, including former proconsul Victorian along with Frumentius and other merchants. They are killed at Hadrumetum after refusing to become Arians.
• 1303 – Battle of Roslin, of the First War of Scottish Independence.
• 1387 – King Charles III of Naples and Hungary is assassinated at Buda.
• 1525 – Spanish-Imperial army defeat French army at Battle of Pavia.
• 1538 – Treaty of Nagyvárad between Ferdinand I and John Zápolya.
• 1582 – With the papal bull Inter gravissimas, Pope Gregory XIII announces the Gregorian calendar.
• 1607 – L'Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi, one of the first works recognized as an opera, receives its première performance.
• 1711 – The London première of Rinaldo by George Frideric Handel, the first Italian opera written for the London stage.
• 1803 – In Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court of the United States establishes the principle of judicial review.
• 1809 – London's Drury Lane Theatre burns to the ground, leaving owner Richard Brinsley Sheridan destitute.
• 1821 – Final stage of the Mexican War of Independence from Spain with Plan of Iguala .
• 1822 – The first Swaminarayan temple in the world, Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Ahmedabad, is inaugurated.
• 1826 – The signing of the Treaty of Yandabo marks the end of the First Anglo-Burmese War.
• 1831 – The Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, the first removal treaty in accordance with the Indian Removal Act, is proclaimed. The Choctaws in Mississippi cede land east of the river in exchange for payment and land in the West.
• 1848 – King Louis-Philippe of France abdicates the throne.
• 1863 – Arizona is organized as a United States territory.
• 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 in the Senate.
• 1875 – The SS Gothenburg hits the Great Barrier Reef and sinks off the Australian east coast, killing approximately 100, including a number of high-profile civil servants and dignitaries.
• 1881 – China and Russia sign the Sino-Russian Ili Treaty.
• 1895 – Revolution breaks out in Baire, a town near Santiago de Cuba, beginning the Cuban War of Independence, that ends with the Spanish–American War in 1898.
• 1916 – The Governor-General of Korea establishes a clinic called Jahyewon in Sorokdo to segregate Hansen's disease patients.
• 1917 – World War I: The 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 Mexico declares war on the United States.
• 1918 – Estonian Declaration of Independence.
• 1920 – The Nazi Party is founded.
• 1942 – The Battle of Los Angeles, one of the largest documented UFO sightings in history; the event lasted into the early hours of February 25.
• 1942 – An order-in-council passed under the Defence of Canada Regulations of the War Measures Act gives the Canadian federal government the power to intern all "persons of Japanese racial origin".
• 1944 – Merrill's Marauders: The Marauders begin their 1,000-mile journey through Japanese occupied Burma.
• 1945 – Egyptian Premier Ahmad Mahir Pasha is killed in Parliament after reading a decree.
• 1946 – Colonel Juan Perón, founder of the political movement that became known as Peronism, elected to his first term as President of Argentina.
• 1968 – Vietnam War: The Tet Offensive is halted; South Vietnam recaptures Hué.
• 1971 – The All India Forward Bloc holds an emergency central committee meeting after its chairman, Hemantha Kumar Bose, is killed three days earlier. P.K. Mookiah Thevar is appointed as the new chairman.
• 1976 – Cuba: national Constitution is proclaimed.
• 1980 – The United States Olympic Hockey team completes its Miracle on Ice by defeating Finland 4–2 to win the gold medal.
• 1981 – An earthquake registering 6.7 (surface wave magnitude) hits Athens. This intensity IX (Violent) shock killed 16 people and destroyed buildings in several towns west of the city.
• 1983 – A special commission of the U.S. Congress releases a report that condemns the practice of Japanese internment during World War II.
• 1984 – Tyrone Mitchell perpetrates the 49th Street Elementary School shooting in Los Angeles, killing two children and injuring 12 more.
• 1989 – Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini offers a US$3 million bounty for the death of The Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie.
• 1989 – United Airlines Flight 811, bound for New Zealand from Honolulu, rips open during flight, blowing nine passengers out of the business-class section.
• 1999 – The U.S. state of Arizona executes Karl LaGrand, a German national convicted of murder during a botched bank robbery, in spite of Germany's legal action to attempt to save him.
• 2006 – Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declares Proclamation 1017 placing the country in a state of emergency in attempt to subdue a possible military coup.
• 2007 – Japan launches its fourth spy satellite, stepping up its ability to monitor potential threats such as North Korea.
• 2008 – Fidel Castro retires as the President of Cuba after nearly fifty years.
• 2011 – Final Launch of Space Shuttle Discovery (OV-103).
• 2015 – A Metrolink train derails in Oxnard, California, following a collision with a truck, leaves more than 30 injured.

Births

• 1103 – Emperor Toba of Japan (d. 1156)
• 1500 – Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1558)
• 1545 – John of Austria (d. 1578)
• 1557 – Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1619)
• 1593 – Henry de Vere, 18th Earl of Oxford, English aristocrat, courtier and soldier (d. 1625)
• 1595 – Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski, Polish author and poet (d. 1640)
• 1597 – Vincent Voiture, French poet and author (d. 1648)
• 1619 – Charles Le Brun, French painter and theorist (d. 1690)
• 1622 – Johannes Clauberg, German theologian and philosopher (d. 1665)
• 1684 – Matthias Braun, Czech sculptor (d. 1738)
• 1693 – James Quin, Irish-English actor (d. 1766)
• 1709 – Jacques de Vaucanson, French engineer (d. 1782)
• 1723 – John Burgoyne, English general and politician (d. 1792)
• 1736 – Charles Alexander, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (d. 1806)
• 1743 – Joseph Banks, British botanist, President of the Royal Society (d. 1820)
• 1762 – Charles Frederick Horn, German-English composer and educator (d. 1830)
• 1767 – Buddha Loetla Nabhalai, Thai king (d. 1824)
• 1774 – Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge (d. 1850)
• 1786 – Martin W. Bates, American lawyer and politician (d. 1869)
• 1786 – Wilhelm Grimm, German anthropologist, author, and academic (d. 1859)
• 1788 – Johan Christian Dahl, Norwegian-German painter (d. 1857)
• 1827 – Lydia Becker, English-French activist (d. 1890)
• 1831 – Leo von Caprivi, German general and politician, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1899)
• 1835 – Julius Vogel, English-New Zealand journalist and politician, 8th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1899)
• 1836 – Winslow Homer, American painter and illustrator (d. 1910)
• 1837 – Rosalía de Castro, Spanish poet (d. 1885)
• 1842 – Arrigo Boito, Italian journalist, author, and composer (d. 1918)
• 1848 – Andrew Inglis Clark, Australian engineer, lawyer, and politician (d. 1907)
• 1852 – George Moore, Irish-English author, poet, and playwright (d. 1933)
• 1866 – Pyotr Lebedev, Russian physicist and academic (d. 1912)
• 1868 – Édouard Alphonse James de Rothschild, French financier and polo player (d. 1949)
• 1874 – Honus Wagner, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1955)
• 1877 – Rudolph Ganz, Swiss pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1972)
• 1877 – Ettie Annie Rout, Australian-New Zealand educator and activist (d. 1936)
• 1885 – Chester W. Nimitz, American admiral (d. 1966)
• 1885 – Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz, Polish author, poet, and painter (d. 1939)
• 1890 – Marjorie Main, American actress and singer (d. 1975)
• 1892 – Konstantin Fedin, Russian author and poet (d. 1977)
• 1896 – Richard Thorpe, American director and screenwriter (d. 1991)
• 1898 – Kurt Tank, German pilot and engineer (d. 1983)
• 1903 – Vladimir Bartol, Italian-Slovene author and playwright (d. 1967)
• 1904 – Isamu Kosugi, Japanese actor and director (d. 1983)
• 1908 – Telford Taylor, American general, lawyer, and historian (d. 1998)
• 1909 – August Derleth, American anthologist and author (d. 1971)
• 1909 – Riccardo Freda, Egyptian-Italian director and screenwriter (d. 1999)
• 1912 – Jiří Trnka, Czech puppet maker, animator, and director (d. 1969)
• 1914 – Ralph Erskine, English-Swedish architect, designed The Ark and Byker Wall (d. 2005)
• 1914 – Weldon Kees, American author, poet, painter, and pianist (d. 1955)
• 1919 – Nellie Connally, American wife of John Connally (d. 2006)
• 1919 – Betty Marsden, English actress (d. 1998)
• 1920 – Ernst Reiss, Swiss mountaineer (d. 2010)
• 1921 – Ingvar Lidholm, Swedish composer
• 1921 – Abe Vigoda, American actor
• 1921 – Douglass Watson, American actor (d. 1989)
• 1922 – Richard Hamilton, English painter and academic (d. 2011)
• 1922 – Steven Hill, American actor
• 1924 – Hal Herring, American football player and coach (d. 2014)
• 1924 – Erik Nielsen, Canadian lawyer and politician, 3rd Deputy Prime Minister of Canada (d. 2008)
• 1925 – Bud Day, American colonel and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 2013)
• 1926 – Jean Alexander, English actress
• 1926 – John Gunther Dean, German-American diplomat
• 1927 – Trevor Colbourn, American historian and academic (d. 2015)
• 1927 – Emmanuelle Riva, French actress
• 1929 – Kintaro Ohki, South Korean wrestler (d. 2006)
• 1930 – Barbara Lawrence, American model and actress (d. 2013)
• 1930 – Anita Steckel, American artist (d. 2012)
• 1931 – Dominic Chianese, American actor and singer
• 1931 – Brian Close, English cricketer and coach (d. 2015)
• 1932 – Michel Legrand, French pianist, composer, and conductor
• 1932 – Brenda Maddox, American journalist and author
• 1932 – Zell Miller, American sergeant and politician, 79th Governor of Georgia
• 1932 – John Vernon, Canadian-American actor (d. 2005)
• 1932 – Felix Werder, German-Australian composer (d. 2012)
• 1933 – Judah Folkman, American physician and biologist (d. 2008)
• 1933 – Ali Mazrui, Kenyan-American political scientist, philosopher, and academic (d. 2014)
• 1933 – David "Fathead" Newman, American saxophonist and composer (d. 2009)
• 1934 – Bettino Craxi, Italian lawyer and politician, 45th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 2000)
• 1934 – Renata Scotto, Italian soprano and director
• 1938 – James Farentino, American actor (d. 2012)
• 1938 – Phil Knight, American businessman, co-founded Nike, Inc.
• 1939 – Jamal Nazrul Islam, Bangladeshi physicist and cosmologist (d. 2013)
• 1939 – Joy Mukherjee, Indian actor and director (d. 2012)
• 1940 – Pete Duel, American actor (d. 1971)
• 1940 – Jimmy Ellis, American boxer (d. 2014)
• 1940 – Denis Law, Scottish footballer and sportscaster
• 1941 – Joanie Sommers, American singer and actress
• 1942 – Colin Bond, Australian race car driver
• 1942 – Paul Jones, English singer, harmonica player, and actor (Manfred Mann, The Blues Band, and The Manfreds)
• 1942 – Joe Lieberman, American lawyer and politician
• 1942 – Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Indian philosopher, theorist, and academic
• 1943 – Catherine Cesarsky, French astronomer
• 1943 – Pablo Milanés, Cuban singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1943 – Terry Semel, American businessman
• 1944 – Nicky Hopkins, English pianist (All-Stars, Screaming Lord Sutch and the Savages, and Quicksilver Messenger Service) (d. 1994)
• 1944 – Sheila Larken, American actress
• 1944 – Ivica Račan, Croatian politician, 7th Prime Minister of Croatia (d. 2007)
• 1945 – Steve Berrios, American drummer (d. 2013)
• 1945 – Barry Bostwick, American actor and singer
• 1946 – Grigory Margulis, Russian mathematician and academic
• 1946 – John Stapleton, English journalist
• 1947 – Mike Fratello, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster
• 1947 – Rupert Holmes, English singer-songwriter and playwright
• 1947 – Edward James Olmos, American actor and director
• 1948 – Jayalalithaa, Indian actress and politician, 16th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
• 1948 – Walter Smith, Scottish footballer and manager
• 1948 – Tim Staffell, English singer and guitarist (Smile, Humpy Bong, and Morgan)
• 1948 – Dennis Waterman, English actor and singer
• 1949 – John Lever, English cricketer
• 1950 – Steve McCurry, American photographer and journalist
• 1950 – George Thorogood, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1951 – David Ford, Northern Irish social worker and politician
• 1951 – Tony Holiday, German singer-songwriter (d. 1990)
• 1951 – Debra Jo Rupp, American actress
• 1951 – Helen Shaver, Canadian actress and director
• 1951 – Laimdota Straujuma, Latvian economist and politician, 12th Prime Minister of Latvia
• 1954 – Plastic Bertrand, Belgian singer-songwriter and producer (Hubble Bubble)
• 1954 – Sid Meier, Canadian-American game designer and programmer, created the Civilization series
• 1955 – Steve Jobs, American businessman, co-founded Apple Inc. and Pixar (d. 2011)
• 1955 – Eddie Johnson, American basketball player
• 1955 – Alain Prost, French race car driver
• 1956 – Judith Butler, American philosopher, theorist, and author
• 1956 – Sharon Kane, American porn actress and director
• 1956 – Eddie Murray, American baseball player
• 1956 – Paula Zahn, American journalist and producer
• 1958 – Sammy Kershaw, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1958 – Mark Moses, American actor
• 1959 – Beth Broderick, American actress and director
• 1962 – Outi Mäenpää, Finnish actress and screenwriter
• 1962 – Michelle Shocked, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1962 – Teri Weigel, American porn actress and model
• 1963 – Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro
• 1963 – Mike Vernon, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1964 – Andy Crane, English radio and television host
• 1964 – Todd Field, American actor and director
• 1964 – Russell Ingall, Australian race car driver
• 1964 – Takashi Nagasako, Japanese voice actor
• 1965 – Kristin Davis, American actress
• 1965 – Jane Swift, American politician, Governor of Massachusetts
• 1966 – Ben Miller, English comedian, actor, and director
• 1966 – Billy Zane, American actor and producer
• 1967 – Brian Schmidt, Australian astrophysicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1967 – Fernando Tejero, Spanish actor and singer
• 1968 – Mitch Hedberg, American comedian and actor (d. 2005)
• 1970 – Jeff Garcia, American football player and coach
• 1970 – Neil Sullivan, English-Scottish footballer and coach
• 1971 – Josh Bernstein, American explorer, author, and television host
• 1971 – Pedro de la Rosa, Spanish race car driver
• 1971 – Brian Savage, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1972 – Teodor Currentzis, Greek conductor and composer
• 1972 – Manon Rhéaume, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1973 – Stubby Clapp, Canadian baseball player and coach
• 1973 – Chris Fehn, American drummer (Slipknot and Will Haven)
• 1973 – Alexei Kovalev, Russian ice hockey player and pilot
• 1973 – Yordan Yovchev, Bulgarian gymnast
• 1974 – Chad Hugo, American keyboard player, songwriter, and producer (N*E*R*D)
• 1974 – Mike Lowell, Puerto Rican baseball player and sportscaster
• 1974 – Bonnie Somerville, American actress and singer
• 1975 – Ashley MacIsaac, Canadian singer-songwriter and fiddler
• 1976 – Crista Flanagan, American actress and screenwriter
• 1976 – Eric Griffin, American guitarist (Murderdolls and Wednesday 13)
• 1976 – Zach Johnson, American golfer
• 1976 – Bradley McGee, Australian cyclist and coach
• 1976 – Matt Skiba, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Alkaline Trio and Heavens)
• 1977 – Jason Akermanis, Australian footballer and coach
• 1977 – Bronson Arroyo, American baseball player and singer
• 1977 – Jay Kenneth Johnson, American actor
• 1977 – Floyd Mayweather, Jr., American boxer
• 1978 – Gary, South Korean rapper and producer (Leessang)
• 1978 – Shinya, Japanese drummer and songwriter (Dir En Grey)
• 1978 – John Nolan, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Straylight Run and Taking Back Sunday)
• 1978 – DeWayne Wise, American baseball player
• 1978 – Leon Constantine, English footballer
• 1979 – Jesse Billauer, American surfer
• 1979 – Vítor Ribeiro, Brazilian mixed martial artist
• 1980 – Anton Maiden, Swedish singer (d. 2003)
• 1980 – Shinsuke Nakamura, Japanese wrestler and mixed martial artist
• 1980 – Roman Sludnov, Russian swimmer
• 1981 – Felipe Baloy, Panamanian footballer
• 1981 – Nancy Castiglione, Canadian-Filipino actress and singer
• 1981 – Lleyton Hewitt, Australian tennis player
• 1981 – Mauro Rosales, Argentinian footballer
• 1981 – Mohammad Sami, Pakistani cricketer
• 1982 – Nick Blackburn, American baseball player
• 1982 – Fala Chen, Chinese-American actress and singer
• 1982 – Kevin O'Neill, New Zealand rugby player
• 1982 – Emanuel Villa, Argentinian footballer
• 1982 – Stella Young, Australian comedian and journalist (d. 2014)
• 1982 – Klára Zakopalová, Czech tennis player
• 1983 – Matt McGinley, American drummer (Gym Class Heroes and Kill the Frontman)
• 1983 – Ingemar Teever, Estonian footballer
• 1984 – Corey Graves, American wrestler
• 1984 – Clivio Piccione, Monegasque race car driver
• 1984 – Nicholas Saputra, Indonesian actor and model
• 1986 – Bryce Papenbrook, American kick-boxer and voice actor
• 1986 – Wojtek Wolski, Polish-Canadian ice hockey player
• 1987 – Mayuko Iwasa, Japanese model and actress
• 1987 – Kim Kyu-jong, South Korean singer, dancer, and actor (SS501)
• 1987 – Chieko Ochi, Japanese actress and singer
• 1988 – Emma Hayman, New Zealand tennis player
• 1989 – Trace Cyrus, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Metro Station)
• 1989 – Kosta Koufos, American basketball player
• 1990 – Stefan Müller, German footballer
• 1991 – Madison Hubbell, American ice dancer
• 1991 – Semih Kaya, Turkish footballer
• 1994 – Ryan Francis, Scottish footballer
• 1994 – Earl Sweatshirt, American rapper and producer (Odd Future)
• 1995 – Jacob Murphy, English footballer
• 2001 – Ramona Marquez, English actress
• 2009 – Encke, American-English race horse (d. 2014)

Deaths

• 616 – Æthelberht of Kent (b. 560)
• 1386 – Charles III of Naples (b. 1345)
• 1525 – Guillaume Gouffier, seigneur de Bonnivet, French commander (b. 1488)
• 1563 – Francis, Duke of Guise (b. 1519)
• 1588 – Johann Weyer, Dutch physician and occultist (b. 1515)
• 1666 – Nicholas Lanier, English composer and painter (b. 1588)
• 1674 – Matthias Weckmann, German composer (b. 1616)
• 1685 – Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Carlisle, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Cumberland (b. 1629)
• 1704 – Marc-Antoine Charpentier, French composer (b. 1643)
• 1714 – Edmund Andros, English politician, 4th Colonial Governor of New York (b. 1637)
• 1721 – John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby, English poet and politician, Lord President of the Council (b. 1648)
• 1732 – Francis Charteris, Scottish soldier (b. 1675)
• 1777 – Joseph I of Portugal (b. 1714)
• 1799 – Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, German physicist and academic (b. 1742)
• 1810 – Henry Cavendish, French-English physicist and chemist (b. 1731)
• 1812 – Étienne-Louis Malus, French physicist and mathematician (b. 1775)
• 1815 – Robert Fulton, American engineer (b. 1765)
• 1824 – Sir Albemarle Bertie, 1st Baronet, English admiral (b. 1755)
• 1825 – Thomas Bowdler, English physician and philanthropist (b. 1754)
• 1856 – Nikolai Lobachevsky, Russian mathematician and academic (b. 1792)
• 1876 – Joseph Jenkins Roberts, American-Liberian politician, 1st President of Liberia (b. 1809)
• 1879 – Shiranui Kōemon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 11th Yokozuna (b. 1825)
• 1914 – Joshua Chamberlain, American general and politician, 32nd Governor of Maine (b. 1828)
• 1925 – Hjalmar Branting, Swedish journalist and politician, 16th Prime Minister of Sweden, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1860)
• 1927 – Edward Marshall Hall, English lawyer and politician (b. 1858)
• 1929 – André Messager, French pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1853)
• 1953 – Gerd von Rundstedt, German field marshal (b. 1875)
• 1957 – Helen Sewell, American author and illustrator (b. 1896)
• 1970 – Conrad Nagel, American actor and singer (b. 1897)
• 1974 – Margaret Leech, American historian and author (b. 1893)
• 1975 – Nikolai Bulganin, Russian marshal and politician, 6th Premier of the Soviet Union (b. 1895)
• 1978 – Alma Thomas, American painter (b.1891)
• 1982 – Virginia Bruce, American actress and singer (b. 1910)
• 1984 – Tyrone Mitchell, American murderer (b. 1955)
• 1986 – Tommy Douglas, Scottish-Canadian minister and politician, 7th Premier of Saskatchewan (b. 1904)
• 1987 – Jim Connors, American radio host (b. 1940)
• 1989 – Sparky Adams, American baseball player (b. 1894)
• 1990 – Tony Conigliaro, American baseball player (b. 1945)
• 1990 – Malcolm Forbes, American publisher (b. 1917)
• 1990 – Sandro Pertini, Italian journalist and politician, 7th President of Italy (b. 1896)
• 1990 – Johnnie Ray, American singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1927)
• 1991 – John Charles Daly, American journalist and game show host (b. 1914)
• 1991 – George Gobel, American actor and singer (b. 1919)
• 1991 – Webb Pierce, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1921)
• 1993 – Danny Gallivan, Canadian sportscaster (b. 1917)
• 1993 – Bobby Moore, English footballer and manager (b. 1941)
• 1994 – Jean Sablon, French singer and actor (b. 1906)
• 1994 – Dinah Shore, American actress and singer (b. 1916)
• 1998 – Clara Fraser, American activist, co-founded Radical Women (b. 1923)
• 1998 – Antonio Prohías, Cuban-American cartoonist (b. 1921)
• 1998 – Henny Youngman, English-American comedian and violinist (b. 1906)
• 1999 – Andre Dubus, American author and educator (b. 1936)
• 2001 – Theodore Marier, American composer and educator, founded the Boston Archdiocesan Choir School (b. 1912)
• 2001 – Claude Shannon, American mathematician, cryptographer, and engineer (b. 1916)
• 2002 – Leo Ornstein, Ukrainian-American pianist and composer (b. 1893)
• 2003 – Bernard Loiseau, French chef (b. 1951)
• 2004 – John Randolph, American actor (b. 1915)
• 2006 – Octavia E. Butler, American author and educator (b. 1947)
• 2006 – Don Knotts, American actor (b. 1924)
• 2006 – John Martin, Canadian broadcaster, co-founded MuchMusic (b. 1947)
• 2006 – Dennis Weaver, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1924)
• 2007 – Bruce Bennett, American shot putter and actor (b. 1906)
• 2007 – Leroy Jenkins, American violinist and composer (b. 1932)
• 2007 – Damien Nash, American football player (b. 1982)
• 2008 – Larry Norman, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1947)
• 2011 – Anant Pai, Indian author and illustrator (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Infanta Maria Adelaide of Portugal (b. 1912)
• 2012 – Agnes Allen, American baseball player and therapist (b. 1930)
• 2012 – Jan Berenstain, American author and illustrator, co-created the Berenstain Bears (b. 1923)
• 2012 – Pery Ribeiro, Brazilian singer-songwriter (b. 1937)
• 2012 – Oliver Wrong, English nephrologist and academic (b. 1925)
• 2013 – Ralph Hotere, New Zealand painter (b. 1931)
• 2013 – Virgil Johnson, American singer (The Velvets) (b. 1935)
• 2013 – Con Martin, Irish footballer and manager (b. 1923)
• 2013 – Dick Yelvington, American football player (b. 1928)
• 2014 – Franny Beecher, American guitarist (Bill Haley & His Comets) (b. 1921)
• 2014 – Alexis Hunter, New Zealand-English painter and photographer (b. 1948)
• 2014 – Carlos Páez Vilaró, Uruguayan painter and sculptor (b. 1923)
• 2014 – Harold Ramis, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1944)
• 2015 – Mefodiy, Ukrainian metropolitan (b. 1949)
• 2015 – Rakhat Aliyev, Kazakh politician and diplomat (b. 1962)
• 2015 – Tyzen Hsiao, Taiwanese pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1938)
• 2015 – Thea Muldoon, New Zealand wife of Robert Muldoon (b. 1927)
• 2015 – Mirjana Puhar, Serbian model (b. 1995)

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast day:
  • Æthelberht of Kent
  • Blessed Ascensión Nicol y Goñi
  • Lindel Tsen and Paul Sasaki (Anglican Church of Canada)
  • Modest (bishop of Trier)
  • Saint Matthias
  • Sergius of Cappadocia
  • February 24 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Dragobete (Romania)
• Flag Day (Mexico)
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Estonia from the Russian Empire in 1918; the Soviet period is considered to have been an illegal annexation.
• National Artist Day (Thailand)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada