Monday 26 February 2024 Calendar with holidays, observances and special days

Holidays and observances

• Carnival Day
• Clinical Laboratory Worker Day in El Salvador (Día del profesional en laboratorio clínico)
• Cooperatives Day in Thailand (Adopted 14 February 1967)
• Day of Remembrance for Victims of Khojaly Massacre in Azerbaijan
• For Pete's Sake Day (if there’s a Pete in your life, why not do something for his sake?)
• Inconvenience Yourself Day (is celebrated on the fourth Wednesday of February of every year)
• Kuwait Liberation Day (commemorates the country's liberation in 1991, after the Gulf War)
• Maltese Carnival
• National Pistachio Day in USA
• Personal Chef Day
• Pink Shirt Day in Canada
• Saviour's Day (Nation of Islam)
• Saviours' Day (Nation of Islam)
• School Bus Driver Appreciation Day in USA (the 4th Wednesday in February)
• Tell a Fairy Tale Day
• The Day of Resistance to Occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol in Ukraine (official holiday)
• World Pistachio Day

Events

• 2008 – The New York Philharmonic performs in Pyongyang, North Korea; this is the first event of its kind to take place in North Korea.
• 1971 – U.N. Secretary-General U Thant signs United Nations proclamation of the vernal equinox as Earth Day.
• 1966 – Apollo program: Launch of AS-201, the first flight of the Saturn IB rocket
• 1952 – Vincent Massey is sworn in as the first Canadian-born Governor General of Canada.
• 1929 – President Calvin Coolidge signs an executive order establishing the 96,000 acre Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.
• 1919 – President Woodrow Wilson signs an act of Congress establishing the Grand Canyon National Park.
• 1914 – HMHS Britannic, sister to the RMS Titanic, is launched at Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast.
• 1909 – Kinemacolor, the first successful color motion picture process, is first shown to the general public at the Palace Theatre in London.
• 1794 – The first Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen burns down.
• 747 BC – Epoch (origin) of Ptolemy's Nabonassar Era.

Births

• 1986 – Hannah Kearney, American skier. Hannah Angela Kearney (born February 26, 1986) is an American mogul skier who won a gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics and a bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
• 1983 – Jerome Harrison, American football player. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the fifth round of the 2006 NFL Draft, and also played for the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles.
• 1982 – Nate Ruess, American singer-songwriter. As of 2015, he also performs as a solo musician.
• 1981 – Kertus Davis, American race car driver. He is currently the competition director for JD Motorsports.
• 1980 – Steve Blake, American basketball player. Steven Hanson Blake (born February 26, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player and currently an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns.
• 1977 – Marty Reasoner, American ice hockey player and coach. Martin Ernest Reasoner (born February 26, 1977) is an American former professional ice hockey center who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the St.
• 1976 – Chad Urmston, American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is the frontman for the Boston-area bands Dispatch and State Radio, and released solo music under the name Chadwick Stokes.
• 1973 – Jenny Thompson, American swimmer. Jennifer Beth Thompson (born February 26, 1973) is an American former competition swimmer and anesthesiologist.
• 1973 – Marshall Faulk, American football player, was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for twelve seasons. He played college football for San Diego State University, and was a two-time consensus All-American.
• 1971 – Erykah Badu, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress. Her first album, Baduizm, was released in February 1997.
• 1971 – Max Martin, Swedish-American record producer and songwriter. Karl Martin Sandberg (Swedish: ; born 26 February 1971), known professionally as Max Martin, is a Swedish singer, songwriter and record producer.
• 1959 – Rolando Blackman, American basketball player and coach. He was a four-time All-Star who spent most of his career with the Dallas Mavericks.
• 1958 – Greg Germann, American actor and director. Gregory Andrew Germann (/ˈɡɜːrmən/ GUR-mən; born February 26, 1958) is an American actor who is known for playing Richard Fish on the television series Ally McBeal, which earned him a Screen Actors Guild award.
• 1958 – Susan Helms, American general, engineer, and astronaut. Helms was a crew member on five Space Shuttle missions and was a resident of the International Space Station (ISS) for over five months in 2001.
• 1958 – Tim Kaine, American lawyer and politician, 70th Governor of Virginia. Kaine was the Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States in the 2016 election.
• 1957 – David Beasley, American lawyer and politician, 113th Governor of South Carolina. Beasley, a member of the Republican Party, served one term as the 113th Governor of South Carolina from 1995 until 1999; he was defeated by Democrat Jim Hodges in the 1998 election.
• 1957 – Joe Mullen, American ice hockey player and coach. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins between 1980 and 1997.
• 1957 – Keena Rothhammer, American swimmer. Keena Ruth Rothhammer (born February 26, 1957) is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder in two events.
• 1955 – Andreas Maislinger, Austrian historian and academic, founded the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service. Andreas Maislinger (born 26 February 1955 in St.
• 1953 – Michael Bolton, American singer-songwriter and actor. He became better known for his series of pop rock ballads, recorded after a stylistic change in the late 1980s.
• 1950 – Jonathan Cain, American singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer. Jonathan Cain (born Jonathan Leonard Friga; February 26, 1950) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter best known for his work with The Babys, Journey, and Bad English.
• 1949 – Elizabeth George, American author and educator. Susan Elizabeth George (born February 26, 1949) is an American writer of mystery novels set in Great Britain.
• 1948 – Sharyn McCrumb, American author. Sharyn McCrumb (born February 26, 1948) is an American writer whose books celebrate the history and folklore of Appalachia.
• 1946 – Ahmed Zewail, Egyptian-American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2016), was an Egyptian-American scientist, known as the "father of femtochemistry". He was awarded the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on femtochemistry and became the first Egyptian to win a Nobel Prize in a scientific field.
• 1945 – Marta Kristen, Norwegian-American actress. Marta Kristen (born February 26, 1945) is a Norwegian-born American actress.
• 1945 – Mitch Ryder, American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Mitch Ryder (born William Sherille Levise, Jr.; February 26, 1945) is an American musician, who has recorded more than 25 albums over more than four decades.
• 1944 – Ronald Lauder, American businessman and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Austria. He is an heir to the Estée Lauder Companies, and the president of the World Jewish Congress.
• 1943 – Bill Duke, American actor and director. William Henry Duke, Jr. (born February 26, 1943) is an American actor, director, producer, and writer of film and television.
• 1943 – Paul Cotton, American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Paul Cotton (born Norman Paul Cotton February 26, 1943 in Fort Rucker, Alabama) is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, most notable as a member of the band Poco and as the writer of the international hit song from that band, "Heart of the Night".
• 1932 – Johnny Cash, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 2003). John R. "Johnny" Cash (born J.
• 1931 – Robert Novak, American journalist and author (d. 2009), was an American syndicated columnist, journalist, television personality, author, and conservative political commentator. After working for two newspapers before serving in the U.S.
• 1928 – Fats Domino, American singer-songwriter and pianist, was an American pianist and singer-songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records.
• 1926 – Doris Belack, American actress (d. 2011), was an American character actress of stage, film and television.
• 1926 – Verne Gagne, American football player, wrestler, and trainer (d. 2015), was an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, football player, wrestling trainer, and wrestling promoter. He was the owner and promoter of the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling Association (AWA), the predominant promotion throughout the Midwest and Manitoba for many years.
• 1924 – Marc Bucci, American composer, lyricist, and dramatist (d. 2002). Influenced by Giacomo Puccini, his work is composed in a contemporary yet lyrical style, which frequently employs marked rhythms and memorable harmonies and melodies.
• 1921 – Betty Hutton, American actress and singer (d. 2007), was an American stage, film, and television actress, comedian, dancer, and singer.
• 1920 – Danny Gardella, American baseball player and trainer (d. 2005), was an American left fielder in Major League Baseball who played with the New York Giants (1944–45) and St. Louis Cardinals (1950).
• 1920 – Tony Randall, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2004), was an American actor, comedian and singer. He is best known for his role as Felix Unger in a television adaptation of the 1965 play The Odd Couple by Neil Simon.
• 1919 – Mason Adams, American actor (d. 2005), was an American character actor and voice-over artist. From the late 1940s until the early 1970s he was heard in numerous radio programs and voiceovers for television commercials, the later of which he resumed in the 1980s and 90s.
• 1918 – Otis R. Bowen, American physician and politician, 44th Governor of Indiana (d. 2013), was an American politician and physician who served as the 44th Governor of Indiana from 1973 to 1981 and as Secretary of Health and Human Services from 1985 to 1989.
• 1918 – Theodore Sturgeon, American author and critic (d. 1985), was an American fiction author, primarily of fantasy, science fiction and horror. He was also a critic.
• 1916 – Jackie Gleason, American actor and singer (d. 1987), was an American comedian, actor, writer, composer and conductor. Developing a style and characters from growing up in Brooklyn, New York, he was known for his brash visual and verbal comedy, exemplified by his bus driver Ralph Kramden character in the television series The Honeymooners.
• 1914 – Robert Alda, American actor, singer, and director (d. 1986), was an American theatrical and film actor, a singer, and a dancer. He was father of actors Alan and Antony Alda.
• 1912 – Dane Clark, American actor and director (d. 1998), was an American character actor who was known for playing, as he labeled himself, "Joe Average".
• 1908 – Tex Avery, American animator, producer, and voice actor (d. 1980), was an American animator and director, known for producing and directing animated cartoons during the golden age of American animation. His most significant work was for the Warner Bros. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios, where he was crucial in the creation and evolution of famous animated characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Droopy, Screwy Squirrel, George and Junior, and Chilly Willy.
• 1902 – Jean Bruller, French author and illustrator, co-founded Les Éditions de Minuit (d. 1991), was a French writer and illustrator who co-founded Les Éditions de Minuit with Pierre de Lescure. Born to a Hungarian-Jewish father, during World War II occupation of northern France he joined the Resistance and his texts were published under the pseudonym Vercors.
• 1900 – Fritz Wiessner, German-American mountaineer (d. 1988), was a German American pioneer of free climbing. Born in Dresden, Germany, he immigrated to New York City in 1929 and became a U.S. citizen in 1935.
• 1893 – Wallace Fard Muhammad, American religious leader, founded the Nation of Islam (disappeared 1934). He arrived in Detroit in 1930 with an obscure background and several aliases, and taught an idiosyncratic form of Islam to members of the city's black population.
• 1887 – Grover Cleveland Alexander, American baseball player and coach (d. 1950), was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He played from 1911 through 1930 for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and St.
• 1887 – William Frawley, American actor and vaudevillian (d. 1966), was an American stage entertainer and screen and television actor best known for playing landlord Fred Mertz in the American television sitcom I Love Lucy and Bub in the television comedy series My Three Sons.
• 1882 – Husband E. Kimmel, American admiral (d. 1968). Husband Edward Kimmel (February 26, 1882 – May 14, 1968) was a United States Navy officer.
• 1877 – Rudolph Dirks, German-American illustrator (d. 1968), was one of the earliest and most noted comic strip artists, well known for The Katzenjammer Kids (later known as The Captain and the Kids).
• 1866 – Herbert Henry Dow, Canadian-American businessman, founded the Dow Chemical Company (d. 1930), was a Canadian-born American chemical industrialist, best known as the founder of the American multinational conglomerate Dow Chemical. He was a graduate of Case School of Applied Science in Cleveland, Ohio.
• 1852 – John Harvey Kellogg, American surgeon, co-created Corn flakes (d. 1943). John Harvey Kellogg (February 26, 1852 – December 14, 1943) was an American medical doctor, nutritionist, inventor, health activist, anti-masturbation advocate, and businessman.
• 1846 – Buffalo Bill, American soldier and hunter (d. 1917), was an American soldier, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but he lived for several years in his father's hometown in Toronto Township, Ontario, Canada, before the family returned to the Midwest and settled in the Kansas Territory.
• 1829 – Levi Strauss, German-American fashion designer, founded Levi Strauss & Co. (d. 1902), was a German-American businessman who founded the first company to manufacture blue jeans. His firm of Levi Strauss & Co. began in 1853 in San Francisco, California.
• 1808 – Nathan Kelley, American architect, designed the Ohio Statehouse (d. 1871). Kelley (February 26, 1808 in Warren County, Ohio – November 20, 1871 in Columbus, Ohio) was a United States architect and builder.

Deaths

• 2017 – Joseph Wapner, American lieutenant and judge (b. 1919)
• 2015 – Earl Lloyd, American basketball player and coach (b. 1928)
• 2015 – Theodore Hesburgh, American priest, theologian, educator, and academic (b. 1917)
• 2015 – Tom Schweich, American lawyer and politician, 36th State Auditor of Missouri (b. 1960)
• 2014 – Phyllis Krasilovsky, American author and academic (b. 1927)
• 2009 – Johnny Kerr, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1932)
• 2009 – Norm Van Lier, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1947)
• 2005 – Jef Raskin, American computer scientist, created Macintosh (b. 1943)
• 2002 – Lawrence Tierney, American actor (b. 1919)
• 2000 – George L. Street III, American captain, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1913)
• 1998 – Theodore Schultz, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
• 1997 – David Doyle, American actor (b. 1929)
• 1993 – Constance Ford, American model and actress (b. 1923)
• 1989 – Roy Eldridge, American trumpet player (b. 1911)
• 1985 – Tjalling Koopmans, Dutch-American economist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
• 1981 – Howard Hanson, American composer, conductor, and educator (b. 1896)
• 1930 – Mary Whiton Calkins, American philosopher and psychologist (b. 1863)
• 1903 – Richard Jordan Gatling, American engineer, invented the Gatling gun (b. 1818)
• 1802 – Esek Hopkins, American admiral (b. 1718)