June 15

Events

763 BC – Assyrians record a solar eclipse that is later used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history.

844 – Louis II is crowned as king of Italy at Rome by pope Sergius II.

923 – Battle of Soissons: King Robert I of France is killed and King Charles the Simple is arrested by the supporters of Duke Rudolph of Burgundy.

1184 – King Magnus V of Norway is killed at the Battle of Fimreite.

1215 – King John of England puts his seal to the Magna Carta.

1219 – Northern Crusades: Danish victory at the Battle of Lyndanisse (modern-day Tallinn) establishes the Danish Duchy of Estonia. According to legend, this battle also marks the first use of the Dannebrog, the world's first national flag still in use, as the national flag of Denmark.

1246 – With the death of Frederick II, Duke of Austria, the Babenberg dynasty ends in Austria.

1300 – The city of Bilbao is founded.

1312 – At the Battle of Rozgony, King Charles I of Hungary wins a decisive victory over the family of Palatine Amade Aba.

1389 – Battle of Kosovo: The Ottoman Empire defeats Serbs and Bosnians.

1410 – In a decisive battle at Onon River, the Mongol forces of Oljei Temur were decimated by the Chinese armies of the Yongle Emperor.

1502 – Christopher Columbus lands on the island of Martinique on his fourth voyage.

1520 – Pope Leo X threatens to excommunicate Martin Luther in papal bull Exsurge Domine.

1580 – Philip II of Spain declares William the Silent to be an outlaw.

1648 – Margaret Jones is hanged in Boston for witchcraft in the first such execution for the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

1667 – The first human blood transfusion is administered by Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys.

1670 – The first stone of Fort Ricasoli is laid down in Malta.

1752 – Benjamin Franklin proves that lightning is electricity (traditional date, the exact date is unknown).

1775 – American Revolutionary War: George Washington is appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army.

1776 – Delaware Separation Day: Delaware votes to suspend government under the British Crown and separate officially from Pennsylvania.

1804 – New Hampshire approves the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratifying the document.

1808 – Joseph Bonaparte becomes King of Spain.

1836 – Arkansas is admitted as the 25th U.S. state.

1844 – Charles Goodyear receives a patent for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber.

1846 – The Oregon Treaty establishes the 49th parallel as the border between the United States and Canada, from the Rocky Mountains to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

1859 – Pig War: Ambiguity in the Oregon Treaty leads to the "Northwestern Boundary Dispute" between United States and British/Canadian settlers.

1864 – American Civil War: The Second Battle of Petersburg begins.

1864 – Arlington National Cemetery is established when 200 acres (0.81 km²) around Arlington Mansion (formerly owned by Confederate General Robert E. Lee) are officially set aside as a military cemetery by U.S. Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.

1877 – Henry Ossian Flipper becomes the first African American cadet to graduate from the United States Military Academy.

1878 – Eadweard Muybridge takes a series of photographs to prove that all four feet of a horse leave the ground when it runs; the study becomes the basis of motion pictures.

1888 – Crown Prince Wilhelm becomes Kaiser Wilhelm II; he will be the last Emperor of the German Empire. Due to the death of his predecessors Wilhelm I and Frederick III, 1888 is the Year of the Three Emperors.

1896 – The deadliest tsunami in Japan's history kills more than 22,000 people.

1904 – A fire aboard the steamboat SS General Slocum in New York City's East River kills 1,000.

1909 – Representatives from England, Australia and South Africa meet at Lord's and form the Imperial Cricket Conference.

1913 – The Battle of Bud Bagsak in the Philippines ends.

1916 – United States President Woodrow Wilson signs a bill incorporating the Boy Scouts of America, making them the only American youth organization with a federal charter.

1919 – John Alcock and Arthur Brown complete the first nonstop transatlantic flight when they reach Clifden, County Galway, Ireland.

1920 – A new border treaty between Germany and Denmark gives northern Schleswig to Denmark.

1921 – Bessie Coleman earns her pilot's license, becoming the first female pilot of African-American descent.

1934 – The United States Great Smoky Mountains National Park is founded.

1936 – First flight of the Vickers Wellington bomber.

1937 – A German expedition led by Karl Wien loses sixteen members in an avalanche on Nanga Parbat. It is the worst single disaster to occur on an 8000m peak.

1940 – World War II: Operation Ariel begins: Allied troops start to evacuate France, following Germany's takeover of Paris and most of the nation.

1944 – World War II: Battle of Saipan: The United States invade Japanese-occupied Saipan.

1944 – In the Saskatchewan general election, the CCF, led by Tommy Douglas, is elected and forms the first socialist government in North America.

1945 – The General Dutch Youth League (ANJV) is founded in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

1954 – UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) is formed in Basel, Switzerland.

1970 – Charles Manson goes on trial for the Sharon Tate murders.

1972 – Red Army Faction co-founder Ulrike Meinhof is captured by police in Langenhagen.

1978 – King Hussein of Jordan marries American Lisa Halaby, who takes the name Queen Noor.

1985 – Rembrandt's painting Danaë is attacked by a man (later judged insane) who throws sulfuric acid on the canvas and cuts it twice with a knife.

1991 – In the Philippines, Mount Pinatubo erupts in the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th Century. In the end, over 800 people die.

1992 – The United States Supreme Court rules in United States v. Álvarez-Machaín that it is permissible for the United States to forcibly extradite suspects in foreign countries and bring them to the United States for trial, without approval from those other countries.

1994 – Israel and Vatican City establish full diplomatic relations.

1996 – The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) detonates a powerful truck bomb in the middle of Manchester, England, devastating the city centre and injuring 200 people.

2001 – Leaders of the People's Republic of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan formed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

2012 – Nik Wallenda becomes the first person to successfully tightrope walk directly over Niagara Falls.

2013 – A bomb explodes on a bus in the Pakistani city of Quetta, killing at least 25 people and wounding 22 others.

2014 – Pakistan formally launches military operation against the insurgents in North Waziristan.

Births

1330 – Edward, the Black Prince of England (d. 1376)

1423 – Gabriele Sforza, Archbishop of Milan (d. 1457)

1479 – Lisa del Giocondo, Italian model, subject of the Mona Lisa (d. 1542)

1519 – Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1536)

1542 – Richard Grenville, English captain and explorer (d. 1591)

1553 – Archduke Ernest of Austria (d. 1595)

1605 – Thomas Randolph, English poet and playwright (d. 1635)

1623 – Cornelis de Witt, Dutch politician (d. 1672)

1624 – Hiob Ludolf, German orientalist and philologist (d. 1704)

1640 – Bernard Lamy, French mathematician and theologian (d. 1715)

1749 – Georg Joseph Vogler, German organist, composer, and theorist (d. 1814)

1754 – Juan José Elhuyar, Spanish chemist and mineralogist (d. 1796)

1755 – Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy, French chemist and entomologist (d. 1809)

1763 – Franz Danzi, German cellist, composer, and conductor (d. 1826)

1763 – Kobayashi Issa, Japanese priest and poet (d. 1827)

1765 – Martin Baum, American businessman and politician, Mayor of Cincinnati (d. 1831)

1765 – Johann Gottlieb Friedrich von Bohnenberger, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1831)

1767 – Rachel Jackson, American wife of Andrew Jackson (d. 1828)

1777 – David Daniel Davis, Welsh physician and academic (d. 1841)

1789 – Josiah Henson, American minister, author, and activist (d. 1883)

1792 – Thomas Mitchell, Scottish-Australian colonel and explorer (d. 1855)

1801 – Benjamin Wright Raymond, American merchant and politician, 3rd Mayor of Chicago (d. 1883)

1805 – William B. Ogden, American businessman and politician, 1st Mayor of Chicago (d. 1877)

1809 – François-Xavier Garneau, Canadian poet and historian (d. 1866)

1835 – Adah Isaacs Menken, American actress, painter, and poet (d. 1868)

1843 – Edvard Grieg, Norwegian pianist and composer (d. 1907)

1848 – Gheevarghese Mar Gregorios of Parumala, Indian bishop and saint (d. 1902)

1872 – Thomas William Burgess, English swimmer and water polo player (d. 1950)

1875 – Herman Smith-Johannsen, Norwegian-Canadian skier (d. 1987)

1878 – Margaret Abbott, Indian-American golfer (d. 1955)

1881 – Kesago Nakajima, Japanese lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army (d. 1945)

1882 – Ion Antonescu, Romanian field marshal and politician, 43rd Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1946)

1884 – Harry Langdon, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1944)

1886 – Frank Clement, British racing driver (d. 1970)

1888 – Ramón López Velarde, Mexican poet and author (d. 1921)

1890 – Georg Wüst, German oceanographer and academic (d. 1977)

1894 – Robert Russell Bennett, American composer and conductor (d. 1981)

1894 – Nikolai Chebotaryov, Ukrainian-Russian mathematician and theorist (d. 1947)

1898 – Hubertus Strughold, German-American physiologist and academic (d. 1986)

1900 – Gotthard Günther, German philosopher and academic (d. 1984)

1900 – Otto Luening, German-American composer and conductor (d. 1996)

1901 – Elmar Lohk, Russian-Estonian architect (d. 1963)

1902 – Erik Erikson, German-American psychologist and psychoanalyst (d. 1994)

1906 – Gordon Welchman, English-American mathematician and author (d. 1985)

1906 – Léon Degrelle, Belgian SS officer (d. 1994)

1907 – James Robertson Justice, English actor and educator (d. 1975)

1909 – Elena Nikolaidi, Greek-American soprano and educator (d. 2002)

1910 – David Rose, English-American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1990)

1911 – Wilbert Awdry, English author, co-created Thomas the Tank Engine (d. 1997)

1914 – Yuri Andropov, Russian politician (d. 1984)

1914 – Saul Steinberg, Romanian-American cartoonist (d. 1999)

1914 – Hilda Terry, American cartoonist (d. 2006)

1915 – Nini Theilade, Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, and educator

1915 – Thomas Huckle Weller, American biologist and virologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2008)

1916 – Olga Erteszek, Polish-American fashion designer (d. 1989)

1916 – Horacio Salgán, Argentinian pianist, composer, and conductor

1916 – Herbert A. Simon, American political scientist and economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2001)

1917 – John Fenn, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)

1917 – Michalis Genitsaris, Greek singer-songwriter (d. 2005)

1917 – Lash LaRue, American actor and producer (d. 1996)

1918 – Zhang Ruifang, Chinese actress (d. 2012)

1920 – Keith Andrews, American racing driver (d. 1957)

1920 – Alla Kazanskaya, Russian actress (d. 2008)

1920 – Sam Sniderman, Canadian businessman, founded Sam the Record Man (d. 2012)

1920 – Alberto Sordi, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2003)

1921 – Erroll Garner, American pianist and composer (d. 1977)

1922 – Jaki Byard, American pianist and composer (d. 1999)

1922 – Ronald King Murray, Lord Murray, Scottish judge and politician

1922 – John Veale, English composer and educator (d. 2006)

1923 – Erland Josephson, Swedish actor and director (d. 2012)

1923 – Ninian Stephen, English-Australian lieutenant, judge, and politician, 20th Governor-General of Australia

1924 – Hédi Fried, Swedish author and psychologist

1924 – Ezer Weizman, Israeli general and politician, 7th President of Israel (d. 2005)

1925 – Richard Baker, English journalist and author

1925 – Attilâ İlhan, Turkish poet, author, and critic (d. 2005)

1926 – Alfred Duraiappah, Sri Lankan Tamil lawyer and politician (d. 1975)

1927 – Ross Andru, American illustrator (d. 1993)

1927 – Ibn-e-Insha, Indian-Pakistani poet and author (d. 1978)

1927 – Hugo Pratt, Italian author and illustrator (d. 1995)

1930 – John Fretwell, English soldier and diplomat, British Ambassador to France

1930 – Victor Lundin, American actor and singer (d. 2013)

1930 – Miguel Méndez, American author and academic (d. 2013)

1930 – Marcel Pronovost, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2015)

1931 – Joseph Gilbert, English air marshal

1931 – Brian Sewell, English art dealer and critic (d. 2015)

1932 – David Alliance, Baron Alliance, Iranian-English businessman and politician

1932 – Mario Cuomo, American lawyer and politician, 52nd Governor of New York (d. 2015)

1932 – Zia Fariduddin Dagar, Indian singer (d. 2013)

1932 – Bernie Faloney, American-Canadian football player and sportscaster (d. 1999)

1933 – Sergio Endrigo, Italian singer-songwriter (d. 2005)

1933 – Mark Jones, English footballer (d. 1958)

1933 – Mohammad-Ali Rajai, Iranian politician, 2nd President of Iran (d. 1981)

1934 – Mikel Laboa, Spanish singer-songwriter (d. 2008)

1936 – William Levada, American cardinal

1937 – Pierre Billon, Swiss-Canadian author and screenwriter

1937 – Waylon Jennings, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2002)

1938 – Tony Oxley, English drummer

1938 – Billy Williams, American baseball player and coach

1939 – Ward Connerly, American activist and businessman, founded the American Civil Rights Institute

1941 – Neal Adams, American illustrator

1941 – Harry Nilsson, American singer-songwriter (d. 1994)

1942 – Ian Greenberg, Canadian broadcaster, founded Astral Media

1942 – John E. McLaughlin, American diplomat

1942 – Peter Norman, Australian sprinter (d. 2006)

1943 – Johnny Hallyday, French singer and actor

1943 – Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, Danish politician, 38th Prime Minister of Denmark

1943 – Lee Shallat-Chemel, American director and producer

1943 – Muff Winwood, English record producer, songwriter, and bass player

1944 – Robert D. Keppel, American police officer and academic

1945 – Miriam Defensor Santiago, Filipino judge and politician (d. 2016)

1945 – Robert Sarah, Guinean cardinal

1945 – Lawrence Wilkerson, American colonel

1946 – John Horner, American paleontologist and academic

1946 – Demis Roussos, Egyptian-Greek singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2015)

1947 – John Hoagland, American photographer and journalist (d. 1984)

1948 – Mike Holmgren, American football player and coach

1948 – Alan Huckle, English politician and diplomat, Governor of Anguilla

1948 – Henry McLeish, Scottish footballer, academic, and politician, 2nd First Minister of Scotland

1949 – Dusty Baker, American baseball player and manager

1949 – Simon Callow, English actor and director

1949 – Russell Hitchcock, Australian singer-songwriter

1949 – Jim Varney, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter (d. 2000)

1950 – Juliana Azumah-Mensah, Ghanaian nurse and politician

1950 – Lakshmi Mittal, Indian-English businessman

1951 – Vance A. Larson, American painter (d. 2000)

1951 – John Redwood, English politician, Secretary of State for Wales

1951 – Steve Walsh, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player

1952 – Dirceu, Brazilian footballer (d. 1995)

1952 – Satya Pal Jain, Indian lawyer and politician, Additional Solicitor General of India

1953 – Vilma Bardauskienė, Lithuanian long jumper

1953 – Eje Elgh, Swedish race car driver and sportscaster

1953 – Xi Jinping, Chinese engineer and politician, General Secretary of the Communist Party and President of China

1953 – Raphael Wallfisch, English cellist and educator

1954 – Jim Belushi, American actor and singer

1954 – Paul Rusesabagina, Rwandan humanitarian

1954 – Zdeňka Šilhavá, Czech discus thrower and shot putter

1954 – Beverley Whitfield, Australian swimmer (d. 1996)

1955 – Polly Draper, American actress, producer, and screenwriter

1955 – Julie Hagerty, American model and actress

1956 – Ava Cadell, Hungarian-American actress and therapist

1956 – Yevgeny Kiselyov, Russian-Ukrainian journalist

1956 – Lance Parrish, American baseball player, coach, and manager

1957 – Brad Gillis, American guitarist

1957 – Stephen Lloyd, Kenyan-English businessman and politician

1958 – Wade Boggs, American baseball player

1958 – Scott Norton, American wrestler

1958 – Riccardo Paletti, Italian race car driver (d. 1982)

1959 – Alan Brazil, Scottish footballer and sportscaster

1959 – Eileen Davidson, American model and actress

1959 – Vicki Genfan, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

1960 – Michèle Laroque, French actress, producer, and screenwriter

1960 – Marieke van Doorn, Dutch field hockey player and coach

1962 – Chris Morris, English actor, satirist, director, and producer

1962 – Andrea Rost, Hungarian soprano

1963 – Marina Azyabina, Russian hurdler

1963 – Mario Gosselin, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster

1963 – Helen Hunt, American actress, director, and producer

1964 – Courteney Cox, American actress and producer

1964 – Gavin Greenaway, English composer and conductor

1964 – Michael Laudrup, Danish footballer and manager

1965 – Annelies Bredael, Belgian rower

1965 – Karim Massimov, Kazakhstani politician, 7th Prime Minister of Kazakhstan

1965 – Adam Smith, American lawyer and politician

1966 – Raimonds Vējonis, Latvian politician, 9th President of Latvia

1968 – Károly Güttler, Hungarian swimmer

1969 – Jesse Bélanger, Canadian ice hockey player

1969 – Ice Cube, American rapper, producer, and actor

1969 – Idalis DeLeón, American singer and actress

1969 – Nasos Galakteros, Greek basketball player

1969 – Oliver Kahn, German footballer and sportscaster

1969 – Cédric Pioline, French tennis player

1970 – Christian Bauman, American soldier and author

1970 – Gaëlle Méchaly, French soprano

1970 – Leah Remini, American actress and producer

1970 – Žan Tabak, Croatian basketball player and coach

1971 – Edwin Brienen, Dutch-German actor, director, and producer

1971 – Isménia do Frederico, Cape Verdean sprinter

1971 – Christos Myriounis, Greek basketball player

1972 – Chloe Dao, American fashion designer

1972 – Marcus Hahnemann, American soccer player

1972 – Justin Leonard, American golfer

1972 – Andy Pettitte, American baseball player

1973 – Neil Patrick Harris, American actor and singer

1976 – Gary Lightbody, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist

1976 – Jiří Ryba, Czech decathlete

1977 – Michael Doleac, American basketball player and manager

1978 – Wilfred Bouma, Dutch footballer

1978 – Zach Day, American baseball player

1979 – Yulia Nestsiarenka, Belarusian sprinter

1979 – Christian Rahn, German footballer

1979 – Charles Zwolsman, Jr., Dutch race car driver

1980 – David Lyons, Australian rugby player

1980 – Craig Dietrich, Digital artist, scholar, and educator

1981 – Billy Martin, American guitarist, songwriter, and illustrator

1981 – John Paintsil, Ghanaian footballer

1981 – Jeremy Reed, American baseball player

1982 – Katie Chapman, English footballer

1982 – Mike Delany, New Zealand rugby player

1982 – Abdur Razzak, Bangladeshi cricketer

1983 – Derek Anderson, American football player

1983 – Julia Fischer, German violinist and pianist

1983 – Laura Imbruglia, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist

1983 – Josh McGuire, Canadian fencer

1984 – Luke Hodge, Australian footballer

1984 – Eva Hrdinová, Czech tennis player

1984 – Tim Lincecum, American baseball player

1984 – Mauro Rizzo, Italian footballer

1984 – Edison Toloza, Colombian footballer

1985 – Nadine Coyle, Irish singer

1986 – James Maloney, Australian rugby league player

1987 – Ani Mijačika, Croatian tennis player

1989 – Víctor Cabedo, Spanish cyclist (d. 2012)

1989 – Bryan Clauson, American racing driver (d. 2016)

1990 – Miwa, Japanese singer-songwriter

1991 – Kristina Bannikova, Estonian footballer

1991 – Emily Harman, American tennis player

1992 – Michał Kopczyński, Polish footballer

1992 – Mohamed Salah, Egyptian footballer

1992 – Dafne Schippers, Dutch heptathlete and sprinter

1993 – Kanna Arihara, Japanese singer

1993 – Carolina Marín, Spanish badminton player

1993 – Irfan Hadžić, Bosnian footballer

1995 – Tucker West, American luger

1997 – Madison Kocian, American gymnast

Deaths

923 – Robert I of France (b. 866)

960 – Eadburh of Winchester, English princess and saint

948 – Romanos I Lekapenos, Byzantine Emperor (b. c. 870)

991 – Theophanu, Byzantine wife of Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 960)

1073 – Emperor Go-Sanjō of Japan (b. 1034)

1184 – Magnus Erlingsson, King of Norway (b. 1156)

1189 – Minamoto no Yoshitsune, Japanese general (b. 1159)

1246 – Frederick II, Duke of Austria (b. 1219)

1337 – Angelo da Clareno, Italian Franciscan (b. 1247)

1341 – Andronikos III Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1297)

1361 – Johannes Tauler, German mystic theologian

1381 – John Cavendish, English lawyer and judge (b. 1346)

1381 – Wat Tyler, English rebel leader (b. 1341)

1383 – John VI Kantakouzenos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1292)

1389 – Murad I, Ottoman sultan (b. 1326)

1389 – Miloš Obilić, Serbian knight

1389 – Lazar of Serbia (b. 1329)

1416 – John, Duke of Berry (b. 1340)

1467 – Philip III, Duke of Burgundy (b. 1396)

1505 – Ercole d'Este I, Duke of Ferrara (b. 1431)

1521 – Tamás Bakócz, Hungarian cardinal (b. 1442)

1614 – Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton, English courtier and politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (b. 1540)

1679 – Guillaume Courtois, French painter and illustrator (b. 1628)

1724 – Henry Sacheverell, English minister and politician (b. 1674)

1768 – James Short, Scottish mathematician and optician (b. 1710)

1772 – Louis-Claude Daquin, French organist and composer (b. 1694)

1844 – Thomas Campbell, Scottish poet and academic (b. 1777)

1849 – James K. Polk, American lawyer and politician, 11th President of the United States (b. 1795)

1858 – Ary Scheffer, Dutch-French painter and academic (b. 1795)

1888 – Frederick III, German Emperor (b. 1831)

1889 – Mihai Eminescu, Romanian journalist, author, and poet (b. 1850)

1890 – Unryū Kyūkichi, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 10th Yokozuna (b. 1822)

1917 – Kristian Birkeland, Norwegian physicist and academic (b. 1867)

1934 – Alfred Bruneau, French cellist and composer (b. 1857)

1938 – Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, German painter and illustrator (b. 1880)

1941 – Otfrid Foerster, German neurologist and physician (b. 1873)

1941 – Evelyn Underhill, English mystic and author (b. 1875)

1945 – Count Albert von Mensdorff-Pouilly-Dietrichstein, Austrian diplomat

1961 – Giulio Cabianca, Italian race car driver (b. 1923)

1961 – Peyami Safa, Turkish journalist and author (b. 1899)

1962 – Alfred Cortot, Swiss pianist and conductor (b. 1877)

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

1968 – Sam Crawford, American baseball player, coach, and umpire (b. 1880)

1968 – Wes Montgomery, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1925)

1971 – Wendell Meredith Stanley, American biochemist and virologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904)

1976 – Jimmy Dykes, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1896)

1983 – Sri Sri, Indian poet and songwriter (b. 1910)

1984 – Meredith Willson, American playwright, composer, and conductor (b. 1902)

1985 – Andy Stanfield, American sprinter (b. 1927)

1989 – Maurice Bellemare, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1912)

1989 – Ray McAnally, Irish actor (b. 1926)

1991 – Happy Chandler, American businessman and politician, 49th Governor of Kentucky (b. 1898)

1991 – Arthur Lewis, Saint Lucian economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1915)

1992 – Chuck Menville, American animator, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1940)

1992 – Brett Whiteley, Australian painter (b. 1939)

1993 – John Connally, American commander, lawyer, and politician, 61st United States Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1917)

1993 – James Hunt, English race car driver and sportscaster (b. 1947)

1994 – Manos Hatzidakis, Greek composer and theorist (b. 1925)

1995 – John Vincent Atanasoff, American physicist and inventor, invented the Atanasoff–Berry computer (b. 1903)

1996 – Ella Fitzgerald, American singer and actress (b. 1917)

1996 – Sir Fitzroy Maclean, 1st Baronet, Egyptian-Scottish general and politician (b. 1911)

1996 – Dick Murdoch, American wrestler (b. 1946)

1999 – Omer Côté, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1906)

2000 – Jules Roy, French author, poet, and playwright (b. 1907)

2001 – Henri Alekan, French cinematographer (b. 1909)

2002 – Choi Hong Hi, South Korean general and martial artist, founded Taekwondo (b. 1918)

2003 – Hume Cronyn, Canadian-American actor (b. 1911)

2004 – Ahmet Piriştina, Turkish politician and mayor of İzmir (b. 1952)

2005 – Suzanne Flon, French actress (b. 1918)

2006 – Raymond Devos, Belgian-French comedian and clown (b. 1922)

2006 – Herb Pearson, New Zealand cricketer (b. 1910)

2008 – Ray Getliffe, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1914)

2011 – Bill Haast, American herpetologist and academic (b. 1910)

2012 – Phillip D. Cagan, American economist and author (b. 1927)

2012 – Capitola Dickerson, American pianist and educator (b. 1913)

2012 – Rune Gustafsson, Swedish guitarist and composer (b. 1933)

2012 – Barry MacKay, American tennis player and sportscaster (b. 1935)

2012 – Israel Nogueda Otero, Mexican economist and politician, 10th Governor of Guerrero (b. 1935)

2012 – Jerry Tubbs, American football player and coach (b. 1935)

2013 – Peride Celal, Turkish author (b. 1916)

2013 – Heinz Flohe, German footballer and manager (b. 1948)

2013 – José Froilán González, Argentinian race car driver (b. 1922)

2013 – Stan Lopata, American baseball player (b. 1925)

2013 – Dennis O'Rourke, Australian director and producer (b. 1945)

2013 – Kenneth G. Wilson, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1936)

2014 – Jacques Bergerac, French actor and businessman (b. 1927)

2014 – Casey Kasem, American radio host, producer, and actor, co-created American Top 40 (b. 1932)

2014 – Daniel Keyes, American short story writer and novelist (b. 1927)

2014 – Moise Safra, Brazilian businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Banco Safra (b. 1934)

2015 – Jean Doré, Canadian politician, 39th Mayor of Montreal (b. 1944)

2015 – Kirk Kerkorian, American businessman, founded the Tracinda Corporation (b. 1917)

2016 – Lois Duncan, American author (b. 1934)

Holidays and observances

Arbor Day (Costa Rica)

Christian feast day:

Augustine of Hippo (Eastern Orthodox Church)

Blessed Albertina Berkenbrock

Blessed Clement Vismara

Edburga of Winchester

Evelyn Underhill (Church of England and the The Episcopal Church)

Germaine Cousin

Maria Micaela of the Blessed Sacrament

Trillo

Vitus, Modestus and Crescentia

June 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Day of Valdemar and Reunion Day (Flag Day) (Denmark)

Earliest day on which Father's Day can fall, while June 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Sunday in June. (United States, and most other countries.)

Engineer's Day (Italy)

Global Wind Day (international)

National Beer Day (United Kingdom)

National Salvation Day (Azerbaijan)