What Happened On
Face on Mars
July 31, 1976
NASA releases the famous "Face on Mars" photo, taken by Viking I.
See also "Happy Face Crater".
First Moon Drive
July 31, 1971
American astronauts Jim Irwin and Dave Scott take their Lunar Rover for a spin on the Moon's surface.
Photos from Mariner 6 as it approached Mars - July 29-31, 1969
Photos from Mariner 6 as it approached Mars - July 29-31, 1969
First Close-Up Pictures of Mars
July 31, 1969
The U.S. space probe Mariner 6 sends back pictures as it makes its closest approach to the planet.
First image of the Moon taken by a U.S. spacecraft
First image of the Moon taken by a U.S. spacecraft
First Photos of the Moon by a U.S. Spacecraft
July 31, 1964
Ranger 7 sends back a series of pictures as it impacts into the Moon's surface. It would transmit over 4,300 photographs during its final 17 minutes of flight.
King Hussein of Jordan
July 31, 1988
King Hussein of Jordan gives up all claims to the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
America's Last Playboy Club
July 31, 1988
America's last Playboy club closes in Lansing, Michigan.
The Living Daylights
July 31, 1987
The James Bond movie The Living Daylights premieres in the U.S., 16th in the James Bond series, and was the first of two Bond films to star Timothy Dalton as 007. It was also the first film to have Caroline Bliss as Miss Moneypenny, replacing Lois Maxwell.
The plot has James Bond assigned to help a KGB general defect.
Produced on a budget of $40 million, it earned $191.2 million at the box office.
AIDS
July 31, 1985
13-year-old Ryan White is barred from attending an Indiana public school because he has AIDS.
Compagnoni on the summit of K2 and the East Face of K2
Compagnoni on the summit of K2 and the East Face of K2
First Climb of K2
July 31, 1954
The peak of the world's second highest mountain K2 at 28,251 ft. (8,611 metres) is reached by Italian climbers Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli.
First Transatlantic Helicopter Flight
July 31, 1952
Two U.S. Air Force pilots - in separate helicopters - arrive in Prestwick, Scotland. They had departed from Massachusetts on July 15.
New York Stock Exchange Closes
July 31, 1914
Due to the war in Europe, the stock exchange closes for the first time since the Panic of 1873. It didn't reopen until December.
First U.S. Government Building
July 31, 1792
The cornerstone of the U.S. Mint is laid.
U.S. Patent Office Opens
July 31, 1790
The first U.S. patent is granted on this day to Samuel Hopkins for improvements in making potash and pearlash.
Birthdays
Photo Credit: Daniel Ogren
Photo Credit: Daniel Ogren
J.K. Rowling (Joanne "Jo" Rowling)
Born July 31, 1965
English author. Creator of the Harry Potter series (1997-2007), which have sold over 500 million copies and have been adapted into several movies.
The first novel in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone follows the young wizard Harry Potter who discovers his magical heritage on his eleventh birthday after he receives a letter of acceptance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
After the book was finished, Rowling's agent spent over a year trying to find a publisher for it as most rejected it, saying it was too long for a children's book.
Ted Cassidy (Theodore Crawford Cassidy)
Born July 31, 1932 d. 1979
American 6 ft 9 inch (206 cm) tall actor. TV: The Addams Family (1964-66, Lurch and Thing) and The Incredible Hulk (opening narrator and voice for Hulk's growls and roars).
During the time of the Kennedy assassination, he was working as a daytime disc jockey in Dallas and gave an in-studio radio report on the day of the assassination and was one of the first to interview eyewitnesses.
U.S. soldier wearing a kevlar-reinforced vest
U.S. soldier wearing a kevlar-reinforced vest
Inventor of Kevlar
Stephanie Kwolek
Born July 31, 1923 d. 2014
American chemist. Inventor of Kevlar (1965), which is five times stronger than steel by weight, and is used in bulletproof vests. It was originally used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires.
Sebastian Spering Kresge
Born July 31, 1867 d. 1966
American businessman. Founder of Kmart (1962).
Invented the Folding Cardboard Box
Robert Gair
Born July 31, 1839 d. 1927
Scottish printer and paper bag maker who invented the folding carton in 1879. A worker was making square-bottomed paper bags when a metal ruler used to crease the bags accidentally shifted position and cut through 20,000 seed bags, ruining them. This gave Gair the idea that by cutting and creasing paperboard in one operation, he could make prefabricated cartons.
Gair founded a paper empire and occupied several buildings in the area of Brooklyn, New York now known as DUMBO, many of which still bear his name.
Juliet Capulet
Born July 31, 1577 d. 1591
fictional character in the Shakespearean tragedy.
Wesley Snipes
Born July 31, 1962
American actor. Film: New Jack City (1991), Jungle Fever (1991), White Men Can't Jump (1992), Rising Sun (1993), and Blade (1998).
Evonne Goolagong
Born July 31, 1951
Australian tennis pro.
Karl Green
Born July 31, 1947
English bass player, with Herman's Hermits. Music: I'm Into Something Good (1964, #1 in UK), Mrs Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter (1965, #1), I'm Henry VIII, I Am (1965, #1), and There's a Kind of Hush (1967).
Geraldine Chaplin
Born July 31, 1944
American actress, Charlie's daughter.
Susan Flannery
Born July 31, 1939
American Emmy-winning actress. TV: Days of Our Lives (1966-75, Dr. Laura Spencer Horton) and The Bold and the Beautiful (1987-2012, Stephanie Douglas Forrester).
France Nuyen (France Nguyen Vannga)
Born July 31, 1939
French-Chinese actress. Broadway: The World of Susie Wong (1958, title role). Film: South Pacific (1958). TV: St. Elsewhere (Dr. Paulette Kiem).
Don Murray
Born July 31, 1929 d. 2024
American actor. TV: Knots Landing (1979-82, Sid Fairgate). Film: Bus Stop (1956, with Marilyn Monroe) and A Hatful of Rain (1957).
Curt Gowdy
Born July 31, 1919 d. 2006
American Hall of Fame sports announcer, "The Voice of the Redsox." TV: The American Sportsman (host).
Bill Todman
Born July 31, 1916 d. 1979
American TV producer. TV: To Tell the Truth, What's My Line?, The Price Is Right, and Family Feud.
Milton Friedman
Born July 31, 1912 d. 2006
American Nobel-winning economist (1976), free market economy advocate. He believed in the virtues of a free market economic system with minimal intervention. Friedman was an advisor to U.S. President Ronald Reagan and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
Inventor of the Pneumatic Drill
Edward Nash Hurley
Born July 31, 1864 d. 1933
American tool maker, founder of Standard Pneumatic Tool Co. of Chicago (1896). He created the first piston-type pneumatic drill (1896), forerunner to the modern jackhammer.
Richard Dixon Oldham
Born July 31, 1858 d. 1936
Irish geologist and seismologist. He discovered evidence of the Earth's molten core (1906) by studying the 1897 Indian Earthquake.
John Ericsson
Born July 31, 1803 d. 1889
Swedish-born American Naval engineer. He invented the twin-screw propeller and built the first armored turret warship (1862, USS Monitor). He originally offered the twin screw to the Swedish navy, but they rejected the idea, so he traveled to the U.S. where his design was used by the U.S. Navy.
Maximilian II
Born July 31, 1527 d. 1576
Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (1564-76).
Deaths
Bill Russell
Died July 31, 2022 b. 1934
American Basketball Hall of Famer. Russell played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969 as part of a dynasty that won 11 NBA championships during his 13-year career. A five-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) and a 12-time NBA All-Star, he is widely considered to be one of the greatest basketball players of all time. Standing at 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) tall, with a 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) arm span, his shot-blocking and man-to-man defense were major reasons for the Celtics' dominance during his career. Russell also led the NBA in rebounds four times.
Leroy Edgar Burney
Died July 31, 1998 b. 1906
U.S. Surgeon General (1956-61). He was the first U.S. federal official to acknowledge the connection between smoking and cancer (1957). The American Medical Association, which had investments in tobacco, countered in 1959 that there was insufficient evidence to warrant the assumption that smoking was the principal factor for the increase in lung cancer.
Burney himself was a smoker.
Invented the Folding Cardboard Box
Robert Gair
Died July 31, 1927 b. 1839
Scottish printer and paper bag maker who invented the folding carton in 1879. A worker was making square-bottomed paper bags when a metal ruler used to crease the bags accidentally shifted position and cut through 20,000 seed bags, ruining them. This gave Gair the idea that by cutting and creasing paperboard in one operation, he could make prefabricated cartons.
Gair founded a paper empire and occupied several buildings in the area of Brooklyn, New York now known as DUMBO, many of which still bear his name.
Andrew Johnson
Died July 31, 1875 b. 1808
American politician. 17th U.S. President (1865-69) and the 16th U.S. Vice-President (1865). He was impeached by the House of Representatives (1868), but was acquitted by the Senate. They were one vote short of the required two-thirds majority. The impeachment charges centered around his attempts to remove Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, who opposed Johnson's lenient treatment of the former Confederate States.
Harold Prince
Died July 31, 2019 b. 1928
American Tony-winning director, producer. Stage: West Side Story (1957), Fiddler On the Roof (1964, Tony), Cabaret (1966, Tony), Evita (1978, Tony), and The Phantom of the Opera (1986).
Jeanne Moreau
Died July 31, 2017 b. 1928
French actress. Film: Seven Days… Seven Nights (1960, Cannes Best Actress), Jules and Jim (1961) and Going Places (1974).
O'Loughlin as Lt. Eddie Ryker
O'Loughlin as Lt. Eddie Ryker
Gerald S. O'Loughlin
Died July 31, 2015 b. 1921
American actor. TV: The Rookies (Lt. Eddie Ryker) and Our House (Joe Kaplan).
Michael Ansara
Died July 31, 2013 b. 1922
American actor. TV: Broken Arrow (1956-58, Cochise), Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979-81, Kane), and as Klingon Commander Kang in three different Star Trek series. He was married to actress Barbara Eden (I Dream of Jeannie) from 1958 till their divorce in 1974.
Gore Vidal (Eugene Luther Vidal)
Died July 31, 2012 b. 1925
American author. Quote: "A narcissist is someone better looking than you are."
Mitch Miller
Died July 31, 2010 b. 1911
American music producer, arranger. Music: Let Me Go, Lover (1954, #1). The FBI used his songs in an attempt to drive the cult Branch Davidians from their compound during the Waco disaster (1993).
Paul-Henri Spaak
Died July 31, 1972 b. 1899
Belgian statesman, prime minister (1938-39, 1946-49), secretary general of NATO (1957-61), and the first president of the United Nations General Assembly (1946).
Jim Reeves
Died July 31, 1964 b. 1923
American Country Music Hall of Famer (1967). Music: Mexican Joe (1953, #1). He had 17 top 10 hits after his death.
Francis E. Stanley
Died July 31, 1918 b. 1849
American automaker. He and his twin brother formed the Stanley Steamer Co. (1897-1924), which produced steam-powered automobiles. He also invented a dry photographic plate, which he sold along with his photography business to the Eastman Kodak Co. He died from injuries sustained when he crashed his car into a woodpile while attempting to avoid farm wagons traveling side by side on the road.
Franz Liszt
Died July 31, 1886 b. 1811
Hungarian composer. He is famous for his Hungarian rhapsodies.
Benoît Fourneyron
Died July 31, 1867 b. 1802
French inventor, "Father of the Turbine." He designed the first practical water turbine (1827).
Samuel Wilson
Died July 31, 1854 b. 1766
American meatpacker, the original "Uncle Sam." During the War of 1812 he stamped his merchandise with "U.S." - the initials of his nickname - causing it to be confused with government approved packages.
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Died July 31, 1556 b. 1491
Spanish ecclesiastic. In 1535 he founded the Society of Jesus (Jesuit order).