October 31 is the 304th day of the year (305th in leap years ) in the Gregorian Calendar , with 61 days remaining, as the final day of October.
Events
475 - Romulus Augustus was proclaimed Roman Emperor . 1517 - Protestant Reformation : Martin Luther posts his 95 theses on the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church. 1822 - Emperor Agustín de Iturbide attempted to dissolve the Mexican Empire . 1861 - American Civil War : Citing failing health, Union General Winfield Scott resigns as Commander of the United States Army . 1863 - The Maori Wars resumed as British forces in New Zealand led by General Duncan Cameron began their Invasion of the Waikato . 1864 - Nevada is admitted as the 36th U.S. state . 1892 - Arthur Conan Doyle publishes The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes . 1912 - The Musketeers of Pig Alley , directed by D.W. Griffith , debuts as the first gangster film. 1917 - World War I : Battle of Beersheba - "last successful cavalry charge in history" 1922 - Benito Mussolini becomes the youngest Premier in the history of Italy . 1926 - Magician Harry Houdini dies of gangrene and peritonitis that developed after his appendix ruptured. 1936 - The Boy Scouts of the Philippines was formed. 1938 - Great Depression : In an effort to try restore investor confidence, the New York Stock Exchange unveils a fifteen-point program aimed to upgrade protection for the investing public. 1940 - World War II : Battle of Britain ends - The United Kingdom prevents Germany from invading Great Britain . 1941 - After 14 years of work, drilling is completed on Mount Rushmore . 1941 - World War II : The destroyer USS Reuben James is torpedoed by a German U-boat near Iceland , killing more than 100 United States Navy sailors. 1941 - American photographer Ansel Adams takes a picture of a moonrise over the town of Hernandez, New Mexico that would become one of the most famous images in the history of photography . 1954 - Algerian War of Independence : The Algerian National Liberation Front begins a revolt against French rule. 1956 - Suez Crisis : The United Kingdom and France begin bombing Egypt to force the reopening of the Suez Canal . 1961 - In the Soviet Union , Joseph Stalin 's body is removed from Lenin's Tomb. 1968 - Vietnam War : Citing progress with the Paris peace talks, US President Lyndon B. Johnson announces to the nation that he has ordered a complete cessation of "all air, naval, and artillery bombardment of North Vietnam " effective November 1 . 1984 - Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi is assassinated by two Sikh security guards (riots soon broke out in New Delhi and nearly 2,000 innocent Sikhs were killed). 1994 - An American Eagle ATR-72 crashes in Roselawn, Indiana, after circling in icy weather, killing 64 passengers. 1996 - A Brazilian TAM Fokker-100 crashes into several houses in São Paulo, Brazil killing 98 including 2 on the ground 1998 - Iraq disarmament crisis begins: Iraq announces it would no longer cooperate with United Nations weapons inspectors. 1999 - EgyptAir Flight 990 traveling from New York City to Cairo crashes off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts, killing all 217 on-board. 1999 - Roman Catholic Church and Lutheran Church leaders sign the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification , ending a centuries-old doctrinal dispute over the nature of faith and salvation . 2000 - A Singapore Airlines Boeing 747-400 crashes immediately after takeoff in Taipei, Taiwan killing 81 2000 - A chartered Antonov AN-26 explodes after takeoff in Northern Angola killing 50 2000 - The last Multics machine was shut down. 2003 - Mahathir bin Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of Malaysia after 22 years in power.
Births 1345 - King Fernando of Portugal (d. 1383 ) 1391 - King Duarte of Portugal (d. 1438 ) 1620 - John Evelyn , diarist (d. 1706 ) 1632 - Johannes Vermeer , painter (he was actually baptised on that day, his birthdate is not confirmed) (d. 1675 ) 1705 - Pope Clement XIV (d. 1774 ) 1795 - John Keats , British poet (d. 1821 ) 1815 - Karl Weierstraß, German mathematician (d. 1897 ) 1851 - Princess Louise of Sweden (d. 1926 ) 1860 - Juliette Low , founder of the Girl Scouts 1875 - Eugene Meyer , American businessman and newspaper publisher (The Washington Post ) (d. 1954) 1887 - Chiang Kai-shek , Nationalist Chinese leader (d. 1975 ) 1892 - Alexander Alekhine , chess player (d. 1946 ) 1896 - Ethel Waters , singer, actress (d. 1977 ) 1912 - Dale Evans , singer, actress (d. 2001 ) 1920 - Dick Francis , novelist 1920 - Helmut Newton, photographer 1920 - Fritz Walter , German football player 1922 - Barbara Bel Geddes , actress 1922 - Illinois Jacquet , musician 1922 - Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia 1925 - John Anthony Pople , British theoretical chemist (d. 2004 ) 1927 - Lee Grant , actress 1929 - Eddie Charlton , Australian snooker player 1930 - Michael Collins, American astronaut 1931 - Dan Rather , American news anchor 1936 - Michael Landon , actor (d. 1991 ) 1937 - Tom Paxton , folk music singer 1939 - Ron Rifkin , actor 1944 - Kinky Friedman , musician, novelist 1945 - Brian Doyle-Murray , American comedian and actor 1947 - Deidre Hall , soap opera actress 1947 - Frank Shorter , marathon runner 1949 - Stephen Rea , actor 1950 - John Candy , Canadian comedian and actor (d. 1994 ) 1950 - Jane Pauley , news anchor 1953 - Michael J. Anderson , American actor 1959 - Neal Stephenson , author 1961 - Peter Jackson , New Zealand film director 1961 - Larry Mullen , Irish drummer for the rock band U2 1961 - Alonzo Babers , American runner 1963 - Fred McGriff , baseball player 1963 - Rob Schneider , actor 1964 - Marco van Basten , Dutch football player 1966 - Adam Horovitz , singer ("The Beastie Boys ") 1968 - Vanilla Ice , rap music singer 1971 - Alphonso Ford , Euroleague superstar (d. 2004) 1981 - S.H.E member, Selina Ren; Taiwanese girl-band 1986 - Christie Hayes , Australian actress
Deaths 1448 - John VIII Palaeologus , Byzantine Emperor 1732 - Victor Amadeus II of Savoy 1768 - Francesco Maria Veracini , composer 1879 - Jacob Abbott , American author 1916 - Charles Taze Russell , Jehovah's Witnesses founder 1926 - Harry Houdini , magician 1939 - Otto Rank , Austrian psychologist 1943 - Max Reinhardt , German director 1983 - George Halas , American football player, coach, team owner 1984 - Indira Gandhi , prime minister of India 1986 - Robert S. Mulliken , American physicist, chemist 1987 - Joseph Campbell , American author and expert on mythology 1988 - John Houseman , actor, director, teacher 1991 - Joseph Papp , theatrical producer 1993 - Federico Fellini , Italian director 1993 - River Phoenix , actor 1999 - Greg Moore , CART driver (b. 1975 ) 2000 - Ring Lardner, Jr., American screenwriter 2001 - Régine Cavagnoud, ski athlete 2001 - Paul Warnke, politician 2002 - Jam Master Jay (Jason Mizell), rapper (Run DMC ) 2003 - Dharmsamrat Paramhans Swami Madhavananda , Hindu guru 2003 - Richard Neustadt , political historian 2003 - Semmangudy, famous Carnatic vocalist
Holidays and observances October 30 - November 1 - September 30 - November 30 -- listing of all days
Results from FactBites:
eConsultant : Famous Birthdays : Born on October 31 : Ice, Horovitz, Mulroney, Jackson, Jr., Candy, Pauley, Hall, ... (272 words)
Chiang Kai-shek was born on 31st of October in 1887
Jane Pauley was born on 31st of October in 1950
Dermot Mulroney was born on 31st of October in 1963
October 2001 Weather (1739 words)
October 2001 was the 2nd coolest October of record for Austin/Bergstrom International Airport.
October 2001 was warmer than normal for Del Rio and Vicinity to south of Eagle Pass.
On Monday the 15th of October , conditions warmed up rapidly into the 80's, ahead of a dry cold front, that swept through the area the night of the 15th and early morning of the 16th.
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