April 21

Events

753 BC – Romulus founds Rome (traditional date).

43 BC – Battle of Mutina: Mark Antony is again defeated in battle by Aulus Hirtius, who is killed. Antony fails to capture Mutina and Decimus Brutus is murdered shortly after.

900 – The Laguna Copperplate Inscription (the earliest known written document found in what is now the Philippines): the Commander-in-Chief of the Kingdom of Tondo, as represented by the Honourable Jayadewa, Lord Minister of Pailah, pardons from all debt the Honourable Namwaran and his relations.

1092 – The Diocese of Pisa is elevated to the rank of metropolitan archdiocese by Pope Urban II

1506 – The three-day Lisbon Massacre comes to an end with the slaughter of over 1,900 suspected Jews by Portuguese Catholics.

1509 – Henry VIII ascends the throne of England on the death of his father, Henry VII.

1526 – The last ruler of the Lodi dynasty, Ibrahim Lodi is defeated and killed by Babur in the First Battle of Panipat.

1615 – The Wignacourt Aqueduct is inaugurated in Malta.

1782 – The city of Rattanakosin, now known internationally as Bangkok, is founded on the eastern bank of the Chao Phraya River by King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke.

1792 – Tiradentes, a revolutionary leading a movement for Brazil's independence, is hanged, drawn and quartered.

1802 – Twelve thousand Wahhabis under Abdul-Aziz bin Muhammad, invaded city of Karbala, killed over three thousand inhabitants, and sacked the city.

1806 – Action of 21 April 1806: A French frigate escapes British forces off the coast of South Africa.

1809 – Two Austrian army corps are driven from Landshut by a First French Empire army led by Napoleon as two French corps to the north hold off the main Austrian army on the first day of the Battle of Eckmühl.

1821 – Benderli Ali Pasha arrives in Constantinople as the new Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire; he remains in power for only nine days before being sent into exile.

1836 – Texas Revolution: The Battle of San Jacinto: Republic of Texas forces under Sam Houston defeat troops under Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.

1856 – Australian labour movement: Stonemasons and building workers on building sites around Melbourne march from the University of Melbourne to Parliament House to achieve an eight-hour day.

1863 – Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, declares his mission as "He whom God shall make manifest".

1894 – Norway formally adopts the Krag–Jørgensen bolt-action rifle as the main arm of its armed forces, a weapon that would remain in service for almost 50 years.

1898 – Spanish–American War: The United States Navy begins a blockade of Cuban ports. When the U.S. Congress issued a declaration of war on April 25, it declared that a state of war had existed from this date.

1914 – Ypiranga incident: A German arms shipment to Mexico is intercepted by the U.S. Navy near Veracruz.

1918 – World War I: German fighter ace Manfred von Richthofen, better known as "The Red Baron", is shot down and killed over Vaux-sur-Somme in France.

1925 – The Manifesto of the Fascist Intellectuals is published in Il Mondo, establishing the political and ideological foundations of Italian Fascism.

1926 – Al-Baqi cemetery, former site of the mausoleum of four Shi'a Imams, is leveled to the ground by Wahhabis.

1934 – The "Surgeon's Photograph", the most famous photo allegedly showing the Loch Ness Monster, is published in the Daily Mail (in 1999, it is revealed to be a hoax).

1941 – Emmanouil Tsouderos becomes the 132nd Prime Minister of Greece.

1945 – World War II: Soviet forces south of Berlin at Zossen attack the German High Command headquarters.

1948 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 47 is adopted.

1952 – Secretary's Day (now Administrative Professionals' Day) is first celebrated.

1960 – Brasília, Brazil's capital, is officially inaugurated. At 09:30, the Three Powers of the Republic are simultaneously transferred from the old capital, Rio de Janeiro.

1962 – The Seattle World's Fair (Century 21 Exposition) opens. It is the first World's Fair in the United States since World War II.

1963 – The Universal House of Justice of the Bahá'í Faith is elected for the first time.

1964 – A Transit-5bn satellite fails to reach orbit after launch; as it re-enters the atmosphere, 2.1 pounds (0.95 kg) of radioactive plutonium in its SNAP RTG power source is widely dispersed.

1965 – The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair opens for its second and final season.

1966 – Rastafari movement: Haile Selassie of Ethiopia visits Jamaica, an event now celebrated as Grounation Day.

1967 – Greek military junta of 1967–74: A few days before the general election in Greece, Colonel George Papadopoulos leads a coup d'état, establishing a military regime that lasts for seven years.

1970 – The Hutt River Province secedes from Australia as the Principality of Hutt River.

1975 – Vietnam War: President of South Vietnam Nguyễn Văn Thiệu flees Saigon, as Xuân Lộc, the last South Vietnamese outpost blocking a direct North Vietnamese assault on Saigon, falls.

1982 – Baseball: Rollie Fingers of the Milwaukee Brewers becomes the first pitcher to record 300 saves.

1985 – The compound of the militant group The Covenant, The Sword, and the Arm of the Lord surrenders to federal authorities in Arkansas after a two-day government siege.

1987 – The Tamil Tigers are blamed for a car bomb that detonates in the Sri Lankan capital city of Colombo, killing 106 people.

1989 – Tiananmen Square protests of 1989: In Beijing, around 100,000 students gather in Tiananmen Square to commemorate Chinese reform leader Hu Yaobang.

1992 – The first discoveries of extrasolar planets are announced by astronomers Aleksander Wolszczan and Dale Frail. They discovered two planets orbiting the pulsar PSR 1257+12.

1993 – The Supreme Court in La Paz, Bolivia, sentences former dictator Luis García Meza to 30 years in jail without parole for murder, theft, fraud and violating the constitution.

2004 – Five suicide car bombers target police stations in and around Basra, killing 74 people and wounding 160.

2010 – The controversial Kharkiv Pact (Russian Ukrainian Naval Base for Gas Treaty) is signed in Kharkiv, Ukraine, by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev; it was unilaterally terminated by Russia on March 31, 2014.

2012 – Two trains are involved in a head-on collision near Sloterdijk, Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, injuring 116 people.

2012 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 2043 is adopted.

Births

1488 – Ulrich von Hutten, German religious reformer (d. 1523)

1555 – Ludovico Carracci, Italian painter and etcher (d. 1619)

1630 – Pieter Gerritsz van Roestraten, Dutch-English painter (d. 1700)

1642 – Simon de la Loubère, French mathematician, poet, and diplomat (d. 1729)

1651 – Joseph Vaz, Sri Lankan priest, missionary, and saint (d. 1711)

1652 – Michel Rolle, French mathematician and academic (d. 1719)

1671 – John Law, Scottish economist (d. 1729)

1673 – Wilhelmine Amalia of Brunswick-Lüneburg (d. 1742)

1713 – Louis de Noailles, French general (d. 1793)

1730 – Antonín Kammel, Czech violinist and composer (d. 1788)

1752 – Pierre-Alexandre-Laurent Forfait, French engineer, hydrographer, and politician, French Minister of Marine and the Colonies (d. 1807)

1752 – Humphry Repton, English gardener and author (d. 1818)

1774 – Jean-Baptiste Biot, French physicist, astronomer, and mathematician (d. 1862)

1775 – Alexander Anderson, American illustrator and engraver (d. 1870)

1790 – Manuel Blanco Encalada, Chilean admiral and politician, 1st President of Chile (d. 1876)

1810 – John Putnam Chapin, American politician, 10th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1864)

1811 – Alson Sherman, American merchant and politician, 8th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1903)

1814 – Angela Burdett-Coutts, 1st Baroness Burdett-Coutts, English art collector and philanthropist (d. 1906)

1816 – Charlotte Brontë, English novelist and poet (d. 1855)

1837 – Fredrik Bajer, Danish lieutenant and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1922)

1838 – John Muir, Scottish-American environmentalist and author (d. 1914)

1851 – Charles Barrois, French geologist and palaeontologist (d. 1939)

1854 – William Stang, German-American bishop (d. 1907)

1864 – Max Weber, German economist and sociologist (d. 1920)

1868 – Alfred Henry Maurer, American painter (d. 1932)

1870 – Edwin Stanton Porter, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1941)

1874 – Vincent Scotto, French actor and composer (d. 1952)

1882 – Percy Williams Bridgman, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1961)

1885 – Tatu Kolehmainen, Finnish runner (d. 1967)

1887 – Joe McCarthy, American baseball player and manager (d. 1978)

1889 – Marcel Boussac, French businessman (d. 1980)

1889 – Paul Karrer, Russian-Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1971)

1889 – Efrem Zimbalist, Sr., Russian-American violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 1985)

1892 – Freddie Dixon, English motorcycle racer and racing driver (d. 1956)

1893 – Romeo Bertini, Italian runner (d. 1973)

1898 – Maurice Wilson, English soldier, pilot, and mountaineer (d. 1934)

1899 – Randall Thompson, American composer and academic (d. 1984)

1903 – Issy Bonn, English actor, comedian, and singer (d. 1977)

1903 – Luis Saslavsky, Argentinian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1995)

1904 – Jean Hélion, French painter (d. 1987)

1904 – Odilo Globocnik, Italian-Austrian SS officer (d. 1945)

1905 – Pat Brown, American lawyer and politician, 32nd Governor of California (d. 1996)

1911 – Ivan Combe, American businessman, developed Clearasil (d. 2000)

1911 – Kemal Satır, Turkish physician and politician (d. 1991)

1912 – Eve Arnold, American photojournalist (d. 2012)

1912 – Marcel Camus, French director and screenwriter (d. 1982)

1913 – Norman Parkinson, English photographer (d. 1990)

1914 – Angelo Savoldi, Italian-American wrestler and promoter, co-founded International World Class Championship Wrestling (d. 2013)

1915 – Garrett Hardin, American ecologist, author, and academic (d. 2003)

1915 – Anthony Quinn, Mexican-American actor (d. 2001)

1916 – Estella B. Diggs, American businesswoman and politician (d. 2013)

1918 – Eddy Christiani, Dutch singer-songwriter and guitarist

1919 – Don Cornell, American singer and trumpet player (d. 2004)

1919 – Roger Doucet, Canadian tenor (d. 1981)

1919 – Licio Gelli, Italian financer (d. 2015)

1920 – Edmund Adamkiewicz, German footballer (d. 1991)

1922 – Alistair MacLean, Scottish novelist and screenwriter (d. 1987)

1922 – Allan Watkins, Welsh-English cricketer (d. 2011)

1923 – John Mortimer, English lawyer and author (d. 2009)

1924 – Ira Louvin, American singer-songwriter and mandolin player (d. 1965)

1925 – Anthony Mason, Australian soldier and judge, 9th Chief Justice of Australia

1925 – John Swinton of Kimmerghame, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Berwickshire

1926 – Keith Davey, Canadian businessman and politician (d. 2011)

1926 – Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom

1926 – Arthur Rowley, English footballer, cricketer, and manager (d. 2002)

1927 – Ahmed Arif, Turkish poet and author (d. 1991)

1928 – Jack Evans, Welsh-Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1996)

1930 – Hilda Hilst, Brazilian author, poet, and playwright (d. 2004)

1930 – Silvana Mangano, Italian actress (d. 1989)

1930 – Dieter Roth, German-Swiss illustrator and sculptor (d. 1998)

1930 – Jack Taylor, English footballer and referee (d. 2012)

1932 – Slide Hampton, American trombonist and composer

1932 – Elaine May, American actress, comedian, director, and screenwriter

1932 – Angela Mortimer, English tennis player

1933 – Edelmiro Amante, Filipino lawyer and politician (d. 2013)

1933 – Easley Blackwood, Jr., American pianist, composer, and educator

1933 – Ignatius Zakka I Iwas, Iraqi patriarch (d. 2014)

1935 – Charles Grodin, American actor and talk show host

1935 – Thomas Kean, American academic and politician, 48th Governor of New Jersey

1936 – James Dobson, American evangelist, psychologist, and author, founded Focus on the Family

1936 – Reg Fleming, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 2009)

1937 – David Lucas, American rock and roll composer, singer, and music producer

1937 – Ben Zinn, Israeli-born American academic and former international soccer player

1939 – John McCabe, English pianist and composer (d. 2015)

1939 – Sister Helen Prejean, American nun, activist, and author

1940 – Jacques Caron, Canadian ice hockey player and coach

1940 – Souleymane Cissé, Malian director, producer, and screenwriter

1941 – David L. Boren, American lawyer and politician, 21st Governor of Oklahoma

1942 – Laine Kallas, Estonian runner and agronomist

1942 – Pierre Lorrain, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 2004)

1942 – Geoffrey Palmer, New Zealand politician, 33rd Prime Minister of New Zealand

1943 – Alan Fersht, English chemist and academic

1944 – Paul Geremia, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

1944 – Adrian Hurley, Australian basketball player and coach

1945 – Ian Bruce, English author and academic

1947 – Iggy Pop, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor

1947 – John Weider, English bass player

1948 – Gary Condit, American businessman and politician

1948 – Josef Flammer, Swiss ophthalmologist

1948 – Paul Davis, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 2008)

1948 – Dieter Fromm, German runner

1948 – Alan West, Baron West of Spithead, English admiral and politician, Minister for Security

1949 – Patti LuPone, American actress and singer

1950 – Bruce Duperouzel, Australian footballer and cricketer

1950 – Kielo Tommila, Finnish actress

1950 – Shivaji Satam, Indian actor

1951 – Tony Danza, American actor and producer

1951 – Michael Freedman, American mathematician and academic

1951 – Bob Varsha, American sportscaster

1951 – Steve Vickers, Canadian ice hockey player

1952 – Gerald Early, American author and academic

1952 – Cheryl Gillan, British businesswoman and politician, Secretary of State for Wales

1954 – Ebiet G. Ade, Indonesian singer-songwriter and guitarist

1954 – James Morrison, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter

1955 – Murathan Mungan, Turkish author, poet, and playwright

1955 – Doug Soetaert, Canadian ice hockey player

1956 – Peter Kosminsky, English director, producer, and screenwriter

1956 – Phillip Longman, German-American demographer and journalist

1957 – Hervé Le Tellier, French linguist and author

1957 – Jesse Orosco, American baseball player

1957 – Herbert Wetterauer, German painter, sculptor, and author

1958 – Andie MacDowell, American model, actress, and producer

1958 – Yoshito Usui, Japanese illustrator (d. 2009)

1958 – Michael Zarnock, American author

1959 – Tim Jacobus, American illustrator and painter

1959 – Olga Kuragina, Russian pentathlete

1959 – Arno Pijpers, Dutch footballer and coach

1959 – Robert Smith, English singer-songwriter and guitarist

1960 – Michel Goulet, Canadian ice hockey player and scout

1960 – Julius Korir, Kenyan runner

1961 – Carey Hayes, American screenwriter and producer

1961 – Chad Hayes, American actor, producer, and screenwriter

1961 – Neale Marmon, English-German footballer, coach, and manager

1961 – David Servan-Schreiber, French physician, neuroscientist, and author (d. 2011)

1962 – Les Lancaster, American baseball player and coach

1962 – Craig Robinson, American basketball player and coach

1962 – Aavo Sarap, Estonian footballer and coach

1963 – Ken Caminiti, American baseball player (d. 2004)

1963 – Roy Dupuis, Canadian actor

1963 – John Cameron Mitchell, American actor, director, and screenwriter

1964 – Alex Baumann, Czech-Canadian swimmer

1964 – Ludmila Engquist, Russian-Swedish hurdler

1965 – Ed Belfour, Canadian ice hockey player

1965 – Karen Foster, American model and actress

1965 – Gary Grant, American basketball player

1965 – Thomas Helmer, German footballer

1965 – Fiona Kelleghan, American academic, critic and librarian

1965 – Oliver McCall, American boxer

1965 – Teri Sue Wood, American illustrator

1967 – Emilio Valle, Cuban hurdler

1968 – Peter van Vossen, Dutch footballer and coach

1969 – John Kibowen, Kenyan runner

1969 – Toby Stephens, English actor

1970 – Jeff Anderson, American actor, director, and screenwriter

1970 – Glen Hansard, Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor

1970 – Rob Riggle, American actor and comedian

1970 – Nicole Sullivan, American actress and screenwriter

1971 – Axl Rotten, American wrestler (d. 2016)

1971 – Michael Turner, American author and illustrator (d. 2008)

1972 – Richard Chelimo, Kenyan runner (d. 2001)

1972 – Gwendal Peizerat, French ice dancer

1973 – Jonathan Nsenga, Belgian hurdler and coach

1974 – Maksim Gruznov, Estonian footballer

1974 – Orlando Jordan, American wrestler

1974 – David Peachey, Australian rugby league player

1975 – Danyon Loader, New Zealand swimmer

1976 – Rommel Adducul, Filipino basketball player

1976 – Petero Civoniceva, Fijian-Australian rugby league player

1977 – Doseone, American rapper and producer

1977 – Gyula Koi, Hungarian scholar and educator

1977 – Jamie Salé, Canadian figure skater

1978 – Jacob Burns, Australian footballer

1978 – Yuliya Pechonkina, Russian hurdler

1979 – Tobias Linderoth, French-Swedish footballer and coach

1979 – James McAvoy, Scottish actor

1980 – Jeff Keppinger, American baseball player

1980 – Hiro Shimono, Japanese voice actor

1980 – Vincent Lecavalier, Canadian ice hockey player

1980 – Tony Romo, American football player

1981 – Mads Junker, Danish footballer

1982 – Khalif Barnes, American football player

1982 – Micheal Luck, Australian rugby league player

1982 – Carnell Williams, American football player

1983 – Paweł Brożek, Polish footballer

1983 – Marco Donadel, Italian footballer

1983 – Tarvaris Jackson, American football player

1984 – Shayna Fox, American voice actress

1984 – Michael Tinsley, American hurdler

1985 – Andy Jones, American high diver

1986 – Audra Cohen, American tennis player

1986 – Alexander Edler, Swedish ice hockey player

1986 – Tina Obrez, Slovenian tennis player

1986 – Rodney Stuckey, American basketball player

1986 – Mirko Valdifiori, Italian footballer

1987 – Nadif Chowdhury, Bangladeshi cricketer

1987 – Eric Devendorf, American basketball player

1987 – Leroy George, Dutch footballer

1987 – Anastasia Prikhodko, Ukrainian singer

1987 – Lenira Santos, Cape Verdean sprinter

1987 – Ryan Adams American baseball player

1988 – Jencarlos Canela, American singer-songwriter and actor

1988 – Pedro Mosquera, Spanish footballer

1988 – Adam Rooney, Irish footballer

1989 – Jayson Bukuya, Australian-Fijian rugby league player

1989 – Tatyana McFadden, Russian-American sprinter and skier

1989 – Carlos Muñoz, Chilean footballer

1990 – Aleksandar Prijović, Swiss footballer

1992 – George Burgess, English rugby league player

1992 – Tom Burgess, English rugby league player

1992 – Isco, Spanish footballer

1992 – Rene Santos, Brazilian footballer

1994 – Mitchell Weiser, German footballer

1997 – Mikel Oyarzabal, Spanish footballer

Deaths

234 – Emperor Xian of Han, Chinese emperor (b. 181)

586 – Liuvigild, king of the Visigoths

847 – Odgar, Frankish monk and archbishop

866 – Bardas, Byzantine general

941 – Bajkam, Turkish commander

1073 – Pope Alexander II

1109 – Anselm of Canterbury, Italian-English archbishop and saint (b. 1033)

1136 – Stephen, Count of Tréguier Breton noblemen (b. c. 1058/62)

1142 – Peter Abelard, French philosopher and theologian (b. 1079)

1213 – Maria of Montpellier, Lady of Montpellier, Queen of Aragon (b. 1182)

1329 – Frederick IV, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1282)

1509 – Henry VII of England (b. 1457)

1557 – Petrus Apianus, German mathematician and astronomer (b. 1495)

1574 – Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1519)

1699 – Jean Racine, French playwright and poet (b. 1639)

1701 – Asano Naganori, Japanese daimyo (b. 1667)

1719 – Philippe de La Hire, French mathematician and astronomer (b. 1640)

1720 – Antoine Hamilton, Irish-French soldier and author (b. 1646)

1722 – Robert Beverley, Jr., English historian and author (b. 1673)

1736 – Prince Eugene of Savoy (b. 1663)

1740 – Thomas Tickell, English poet and author (b. 1685)

1758 – Francesco Zerafa, Maltese architect (b. 1679)

1792 – Tiradentes, Brazilian activist (b. 1746)

1815 – Joseph Winston, American soldier and politician (b. 1746)

1825 – Johann Friedrich Pfaff, German mathematician and academic (b. 1765)

1852 – Ivan Nabokov, Russian general (b. 1787)

1863 – Sir Robert Bateson, 1st Baronet, Irish politician (b. 1782)

1900 – Vikramatji Khimojiraj, Indian ruler (b. 1819)

1910 – Mark Twain, American novelist, humorist, and critic (b. 1835)

1918 – Manfred von Richthofen, German captain and pilot (b. 1892)

1924 – Eleonora Duse, Italian actress (b. 1858)

1930 – Robert Bridges, English poet and author (b. 1844)

1932 – Friedrich Gustav Piffl, Bohemian cardinal (b. 1864)

1938 – Muhammad Iqbal, Indian-Pakistani philosopher and poet (b. 1877)

1941 – Fritz Manteuffel, German gymnast (b. 1875)

1945 – Walter Model, German field marshal (b. 1891)

1946 – John Maynard Keynes, English economist and philosopher (b. 1883)

1948 – Aldo Leopold, American ecologist and author (b. 1887)

1952 – Leslie Banks, American actor, director and producer (b. 1890)

1954 – Emil Leon Post, Polish-American mathematician and logician (b. 1897)

1956 – Charles MacArthur, American playwright and screenwriter (b. 1895)

1965 – Edward Victor Appleton, English-Scottish physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)

1971 – François Duvalier, Haitian physician and politician, 40th President of Haiti (b. 1907)

1973 – Arthur Fadden, Australian accountant and politician, 13th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1894)

1973 – Kemal Tahir, Turkish journalist and author (b. 1910)

1974 – Chic Harley, American football player (b. 1894)

1977 – Gummo Marx, American vaudevillian and talent agent (b. 1893)

1978 – Sandy Denny, English singer-songwriter (b. 1947)

1978 – Thomas Wyatt Turner, American biologist and academic (b. 1877)

1980 – Alexander Oparin, Russian biochemist and academic (b. 1894)

1980 – Sohrab Sepehri, Iranian poet and painter (b. 1928)

1983 – Walter Slezak, Austrian-American actor and singer (b. 1902)

1984 – Marcel Janco, Romanian-Israeli artist (b. 1895)

1984 – Hristo Prodanov, Bulgarian engineer and mountaineer (b. 1943)

1985 – Rudi Gernreich, Austrian-American fashion designer, created the monokini (b. 1922)

1985 – Tancredo Neves, Brazilian banker and politician, Prime Minister of Brazil (b. 1910)

1986 – Marjorie Eaton, American painter and actress (b. 1901)

1986 – Salah Jahin, Egyptian poet, playwright, and composer (b. 1930)

1987 – Gustav Bergmann, Austrian-American philosopher from the Vienna Circle (b. 1906)

1989 – James Kirkwood, Jr., American actor, playwright, and author (b. 1924)

1990 – Erté, Russian-French illustrator (b. 1892)

1991 – Willi Boskovsky, Austrian violinist and conductor (b. 1909)

1996 – Zora Arkus-Duntov, Belgian-born American engineer and racing driver (b. 1909)

1996 – Dzhokhar Dudayev, Chechen general and politician, 1st President of Ichkeria (b. 1944)

1996 – Abdul Hafeez Kardar, Pakistani cricketer (b. 1925)

1996 – Jimmy Snyder, American sportscaster (b. 1919)

1998 – Jean-François Lyotard, French sociologist and philosopher (b. 1924)

1999 – Buddy Rogers, American actor (b. 1904)

2003 – Nina Simone, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and activist (b. 1933)

2004 – Mary McGrory, American journalist (b. 1918)

2005 – Gerry Marshall, English race car driver and journalist (b. 1941)

2006 – Johnny Checketts, New Zealand commander and pilot (b. 1912)

2006 – T. K. Ramakrishnan, Indian politician (b. 1922)

2006 – Telê Santana, Brazilian footballer and manager (b. 1931)

2007 – Lobby Loyde, Australian guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1941)

2010 – Gustav Lorentzen, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1947)

2010 – Juan Antonio Samaranch, Spanish businessman (b. 1920)

2010 – Kanagaratnam Sriskandan, Sri Lankan-English engineer and civil servant (b. 1930)

2011 – Catharina Halkes, Dutch theologian and academic (b. 1920)

2012 – Doris Betts, American author and academic (b. 1932)

2012 – Charles Colson, American lawyer and activist, founded Prison Fellowship (b. 1931)

2012 – Albert Falco, French captain and diver (b. 1927)

2012 – Charles Higham, English-American author and poet (b. 1931)

2012 – Jerry Toppazzini, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1931)

2013 – Kriyananda, Romanian-American spiritual leader (b. 1926)

2013 – Chrissy Amphlett, Australian singer-songwriter and actress (b. 1959)

2013 – Shakuntala Devi, Indian mathematician and astrologer (b. 1929)

2013 – Leopold Engleitner, Austrian Holocaust survivor, author, and educator (b. 1905)

2013 – Gordon D. Gayle, American general and historian (b. 1917)

2014 – Herb Gray, Canadian lawyer and politician, 7th Deputy Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1931)

2014 – Janet Gray Hayes, American politician, 60th Mayor of San Jose (b. 1926)

2014 – George H. Heilmeier, American engineer (b. 1936)

2014 – Win Tin, Burmese journalist and politician, co-founded the National League for Democracy (b. 1930)

2015 – M. H. Abrams, American author, critic, and academic (b. 1912)

2015 – Steve Byrnes, American sportscaster and producer (b. 1959)

2015 – John Moshoeu, South African footballer and manager (b. 1965)

2015 – Janaki Ballabh Patnaik, Indian politician, Governor of Assam (b. 1927)

2015 – Sydney Valpy Radley-Walters, Canadian general (b. 1920)

2015 – Betsy von Furstenberg, German-American actress (b. 1931)

2016 – Lonnie Mack, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1941)

2016 – Prince, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (b. 1958)

Holidays and observances

Christian feast day:

Abdecalas

Anastasius Sinaita

Anselm of Canterbury

Beuno

Conrad of Parzham

Holy Infant of Good Health

Shemon Bar Sabbae

Wolbodo

April 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

A&M Day (Texas A&M University)

Civil Service Day (India)

Day of Local Self-Government (Russia)

Grounation Day (Rastafari movement)

Heroic Defense of Veracruz (Mexico)

Kang Pan-sok’s Birthday (North Korea)

Kartini Day (Indonesia)

Local Self Government Day (Russia)

National Tree Planting Day (Kenya)

San Jacinto Day (Texas)

Queen's Official Birthday (Falkland Islands)

Tiradentes' Day (Brazil)

Vietnam Book Day (Vietnam)