August 14 birthdays & history

Famous people born on August 14

• 1867John Galsworthy, English novelist and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1966Halle Berry, American model, actress, and producer
• 1983Mila Kunis, Ukrainian-American actress
• 1777Hans Christian Ørsted, Danish physicist and chemist
• 1742Pope Pius VII, Head of the Catholic Church from 1800 to 1823
• 1959Magic Johnson, American basketball player and coach
• 1945Wim Wenders, German director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1984Giorgio Chiellini, Italian footballer
• 1953James Horner, American composer and conductor
• 1933Richard R. Ernst, Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate

What happened on August 14

• 1720The Spanish Villasur expedition, intended to slow the progress of French influence on the Great Plains of North America, ended in failure when it was ambushed by Pawnee and Otoe forces.
• 1848Oregon Territory is organized by act of Congress.
• 1880Construction of Cologne Cathedral, the most famous landmark in Cologne, Germany, is completed.
• 1885Japan's first patent is issued to the inventor of a rust-proof paint.
• 1888One of the first recordings of music, of Arthur Sullivan's "The Lost Chord", was played at a press conference in London to introduce Thomas Edison's phonograph.
• 1893France becomes the first country to introduce motor vehicle registration.
• 1901The first claimed powered flight, by Gustave Whitehead in his Number 21.
• 1920The 1920 Summer Olympics, having started four months earlier, officially open in Antwerp, Belgium, with the newly adopted Olympic flag and the Olympic oath being raised and taken at the Opening Ceremony for the first time in Olympic history.
• 1921Tannu Uriankhai, later Tuvan People's Republic is established as a completely independent country (which is supported by Soviet Russia).
• 1935Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Social Security Act, creating a government pension system for the retired.
• 1975The Rocky Horror Picture Show premiered in London, the first in its record-breaking run in cinemas, which continues in limited release.
• 2010The inaugural edition of the Youth Olympic Games opened in Singapore for athletes aged between 14 and 18.

Also observed on August 14

• Falklands Day is the celebration of the first sighting of the Falkland Islands by John Davis in 1592.
• Independence Day celebrates the independence of Pakistan from the United Kingdom in 1947.