May 1922

May 1, 1922 (Monday)

It was Budget Day in the United Kingdom. Chancellor of the Exchequer Robert Horne estimated a surplus of £38 million and cut 1 shilling off income tax and 4 pence off a pound of tea, as well as lowering postal and telephone rates.

CKOC, the oldest continuously operating radio station in Canada, went on the air in Hamilton, Ontario.

Born: Vitaly Popkov, fighter pilot, in Moscow, Soviet Russia (d. 2010)

May 2, 1922 (Tuesday)

Venezuelan Congress unanimously elected Juan Vicente Gómez president.

American-born dancer Isadora Duncan and the Russian poet Sergei Yesenin were married in Moscow.

The Dutch comic Bulletje en Boonestaak first appeared.

Born: Roscoe Lee Browne, actor and director, in Woodbury, New Jersey (d. 2007)

May 3, 1922 (Wednesday)

General Zhang Zuolin's headquarters issued a triumphant statement reporting that rival warlord Wu Peifu had been killed by artillery fire. This report proved to be false.

Born: Robert De Niro, Sr., abstract expressionist painter, in Syracuse, New York (d. 1993)

May 4, 1922 (Thursday)

The city of Austin, Texas was hit by two different tornadoes in the space of half an hour.

Outside of Kirven, Texas, the body of missing 17-year-old white girl Eula Ausley was found sexually assaulted and beaten to death. Local townspeople immediately formed a posse to hunt down the assailant.

Born: Eugenie Clark, ichthyologist, in New York City (d. 2015)

Died: Viktor Kingissepp, 34, Estonian communist politician (executed)

May 5, 1922 (Friday)

The construction of Yankee Stadium began in New York.

Around Kirven, Texas, an African-American suspect was arrested in connection with the Ausley murder. The county sheriff attempted to drive the suspect to Waco, but a gathering lynch mob blocked the road so he drove him to the county jail in Fairfield instead. There the suspect allegedly confessed and implicated two other African-American men who were also arrested. The white mob soon gathered around the Fairfield jail and demanded the prisoners be handed over.

Born: Monica Lewis, jazz singer and actress, in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2015)

May 6, 1922 (Saturday)

The First Zhili–Fengtian War appeared to have ended in a Zhili clique victory. Wu Peifu ordered the arrest of several prominent officials, including Liang Shiyi.

The three African-American suspects in the Ausley murder were taken from the Fairfield county jail by a white lynch mob (accounts vary as to whether the police handed them over willingly or not) and brought back to Kirven. They were then burned alive in the middle of the town square at about 5 in the morning. Several weeks of race-related violence and murders ensued.

Utah's first radio station, KZN in Salt Lake City, went on the air.

Died: Shahaji II, 47, Maharaja of Kolhapur

May 7, 1922 (Sunday)

Jesse Barnes of the New York Giants pitched a 6-0 no-hitter against the Philadelphia Phillies at the Polo Grounds. He faced the minimum twenty-seven batters possible, but gave up a fifth-inning walk that was erased by a double play.

Red Star Olympique defeated Stade Rennais UC 2-0 in the Coupe de France Final.

The romantic drama film Beyond the Rocks starring Gloria Swanson was released.

Born: Darren McGavin, actor, in Spokane, Washington (d. 2006); Joe O'Donnell, documentarian, photojournalist and photographer, in Johnstown, Pennsylvania (d. 2007)

Died: Max Wagenknecht, 64, German composer

May 8, 1922 (Monday)

8 Russian priests, 2 laymen and a woman were sentenced to death for resisting the state confiscation of church property and for alleged participation in disturbances.

Died: Vincenzo Terranova, 35 or 36, Italian-American gangster (assassinated)

May 9, 1922 (Tuesday)

The engagement of Winifred Hudnut and Rudolph Valentino was announced.

The U.S. state of South Dakota got its first licensed radio station, WCAT of Rapid City.

May 10, 1922 (Wednesday)

The Council of Ambassadors ordered Germany to pay 9 million marks as a compensation for the Zeppelins that were destroyed instead of handed over to the Allies under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles.

Born: Nancy Walker, actress and comedian, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1992)

May 11, 1922 (Thursday)

In London, Georges Carpentier knocked out Ted "Kid" Lewis in the first round to retain the World Light Heavyweight Title of boxing.

Hawaii's first radio station, KGU, went on the air in Honolulu. It beat competitor KDYX by fifteen minutes.

Born: Ameurfina Melencio-Herrera, Associate Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court, in Cabanatuan, Philippines

May 12, 1922 (Friday)

Austria passed a law forbidding the sale of alcohol to minors.

Born: Murray Gershenz, actor and entrepreneur, in New York City (d. 2013); Bob Goldham, ice hockey player, in Georgetown, Ontario, Canada (d. 1991)

Died: John Martin Poyer, 60 or 61, 12th Governor of American Samoa

May 13, 1922 (Saturday)

Morvich won the Kentucky Derby.

Pillory won the Preakness Stakes.

Winifred Hudnut and Rudolph Valentino were married in Mexico.

Born: Otl Aicher, graphic designer and typographer, in Ulm, Germany (d. 1991); Michael Ainsworth, cricketer, in Hooton, Cheshire, England (d. 1978); Bea Arthur, actress, in New York City (d. 2009)

May 14, 1922 (Sunday)

Italian Fascist Party leader Benito Mussolini fought a sword duel with a rival newspaper editor over differences arising in their respective newspapers. Mussolini was declared the victor.

FC Barcelona beat Real Union 5-1 in the Copa del Rey Final.

Born: Franjo Tuđman, 1st President of Croatia, in Veliko Trgovišće, Kingdom of Yugoslavia (d. 1999)

May 15, 1922 (Monday)

The German-Polish Accord on Upper Silesia was signed in Geneva.

The U.S. Supreme Court decided Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Co. and Hill v. Wallace.

Born: Jakucho Setouchi, Buddhist nun, writer and activist, in Tokushima, Japan

Died: Leslie Ward, 70, English portrait artist and caricaturist

May 16, 1922 (Tuesday)

The White Star liner RMS Majestic completed its maiden voyage, reaching New York Harbor from Southampton in 5 days 14 hours 45 minutes. The Majestic was actually launched in Germany as the Hamburg America liner SS Bismarck in 1914, but was left incomplete for years due to the outbreak of the war and then sold to White Star.

Died: Rudolf Montecuccoli, 79, Austro-Hungarian admiral

May 17, 1922 (Wednesday)

Kenelm Lee Guinness established a new land speed record of 133.75 mph.

May 18, 1922 (Thursday)

In a reception at the White House, 50 steel executives agreed to President Harding's request to reduce the 12-hour workday on humanitarian grounds.

The musical stage comedy Whirled into Happiness with music by Robert Stolz and lyrics by Harry Graham premiered at the Lyric Theatre in London.

Born: Gerda Boyesen, psychologist, in Bergen, Norway (d. 2005); Bill Macy, actor, in Revere, Massachusetts; Kai Winding, jazz trombonist and composer, in Aarhus, Denmark (d. 1983)

Died: Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran, 76, French physician and recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

May 19, 1922 (Friday)

The Genoa Conference ended after six weeks.

Britain's House of Lords rejected the proposal to allow women to sit in the upper house.

Born: Joe Gilmore, barman, in Ireland

Died: Son Byong-hi, 60, Korean nationalist and independence activist

May 20, 1922 (Saturday)

The ocean liner SS SS Egypt collided with a cargo steamer and sank in the English Channel. 267 survivors were rescued but 86 perished.

Michael Collins and Éamon de Valera announced in the Dáil that they had agreed on an election pact with the election to take place on June 16.

Rudolph Valentino was arrested on a felony charge of bigamy because his divorce from his first wife was not finalized.

Babe Ruth and Bob Meusel were reinstated after being suspended the first six weeks of the season for barnstorming in violation of baseball's rules.

WCAX in Burlington, Vermont went on the air, the first radio station in that state.

May 21, 1922 (Sunday)

The iron-clad wooden steam freighter Conestoga caught fire and sank in the Saint Lawrence River.

The historical film Nero premiered at the Lyric Theatre in New York City.

Born: James Lopez Watson, judge, in Harlem, New York (d. 2001)

Died: Michael Mayr, 58, 2nd Chancellor of Austria

May 22, 1922 (Monday)

London recorded its hottest May temperature in 50 years with a mark of 32.8 degrees Celsius (91 degrees Fahrenheit).

Born: Quinn Martin, television producer, in New York City (d. 1987)

Died: William J. Twaddell, 37 or 38, Irish politician (assassinated)

May 23, 1922 (Tuesday)

Sinn Féin was outlawed in six Irish counties.

WDAY of Fargo, North Dakota, the first licensed radio station in that state, went on the air.

May 24, 1922 (Wednesday)

Italy and Soviet Russia signed a two-year commercial treaty in Rome. Russia later refused to ratify it.

Pope Pius XI opened the 26th International Eucharistic Congress in Rome. 30,000 people took part in the opening ceremony.

More than 20 were wounded in a clash in the Quartiere San Lorenzo of Rome when fighting broke out between Fascists and workers.

May 25, 1922 (Thursday)

A general strike was called in Rome in protest against the disorders in San Lorenzo. Thousands of pilgrims attending the Eucharistic Congress had to walk to St. Peter's Basilica to hear the Mass because all public transportation was shut down.

Babe Ruth was ejected for the first time as a Yankee when he threw dirt in an umpire's face after being called out at second base trying to stretch a single into a double. Heckled by a fan the way to the dugout, Ruth ran into the stands in an attempt to fight the spectator, for which he was fined $200 and suspended for one game.

Born: Enrico Berlinguer, politician, in Sassari, Italy (d. 1984)

May 26, 1922 (Friday)

Vladimir Lenin suffered a stroke.

The Fritz Lang-directed crime film Dr. Mabuse the Gambler was released in Germany.

Died: Ernest Solvay, 84, Belgian chemist

May 27, 1922 (Saturday)

25,000 Ukrainians paraded in New York City and then held a mass meeting in Madison Square Garden protesting the Polish military occupation of East Galicia. Although Poland claimed Galicia in the Peace of Riga, not all Ukrainians accepted the occupation as legitimate.

Born: Otto Carius, tank commander, in Zweibrücken, Germany (d. 2015); Christopher Lee, actor, in Belgravia, London, England (d. 2015)

May 28, 1922 (Sunday)

The Party of the Right won partial general elections in Luxembourg.

The Alexander von Zemlinsky opera Der Zwerg premiered in Cologne, Germany.

Born: Lou Duva, boxing trainer and manager, in New York City; Tuomas Gerdt, soldier and Knight of the Mannerheim Cross, in Heinävesi, Finland

May 29, 1922 (Monday)

British Liberal MP Horatio Bottomley was sentenced to seven years in prison for fraud.

The U.S. Supreme Court decided Federal Baseball Club v. National League and Ng Fung Ho v. White.

The Japanese cruiser Kinu was launched.

Born: Eleanor Coerr, children's author, in Kamsack, Saskatchewan, Canada (d. 2010); Iannis Xenakis, composer, in Brăila, Romania (d. 2001)

May 30, 1922 (Tuesday)

The Lincoln Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C.

The Latvian government and the Vatican signed a concordat.

Jimmy Murphy won the Indianapolis 500.

Born: Hal Clement, science fiction writer, in Somerville, Massachusetts (d. 2003)

May 31, 1922 (Wednesday)

Ignaz Seipel became Chancellor of Austria.

The Swedish Riksdag voted 105-94 against the ratification of the March 1 trade agreement with Russia.

Captain Cuttle won the Epsom Derby horse race.

Born: Denholm Elliott, actor, in Ealing, Middlesex, England (d. 1992)

Died: Joseph McGuinness, 47, Irish politician