Wednesday 18 October 2023 Calendar with holidays, observances and special days

Holidays and observances

• Azerbaijan Independence Day (celebrates the independence of Azerbaijan from the Soviet Union in 1991)
• Hagfish Day (Held on the third Wednesday of October)
• National Chocolate Cupcake Day in USA
• National Medical Assistants Day or US Medical Assistants Recognition Day
• No Beard Day
• Persons Day (Canada)
• Polish Post Day or Postman's Day
• Women's Global Happiness Day (directed against the epidemic of depression among women. The idea that arose in 2017 belongs to Carin Rockind)
• World Menopause Day (doctors call for women to take action at menopause, to prevent health problems in later life)

Events

• In 2017 Alphabet announces an improved version of the AlphaGo artificial intelligence, developed by its subsidiary Google DeepMind.
• In 2017 a German study finds a 75% reduction in flying insect biomass over the past 25 years, suggesting the possibility of large-scale ecological collapse.
• In 2016 a new automated system that can achieve parity with humans in conversational speech recognition is announced by researchers at Microsoft.
• In 2016 researchers at the University of Warwick discover the physical location of depression in the human brain, which is found to affect the lateral orbitofrontal cortex, implicated in non-reward.
• 1967 – The Soviet probe Venera 4 reaches Venus and becomes the first spacecraft to measure the atmosphere of another planet.
• 1963 – Félicette, a black and white female Parisian stray cat becomes the first cat launched into space.
• 1954 – Texas Instruments announces the first transistor radio.
• 1945 – The USSR's nuclear program receives plans for the United States plutonium bomb from Klaus Fuchs at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
• 1922 – The British Broadcasting Company (later Corporation) is founded by a consortium, to establish a nationwide network of radio transmitters to provide a national broadcasting service.
• 1914 – The Schoenstatt Movement is founded in Germany.
• 1912 – First Balkan War: King Peter I of Serbia issues a declaration "To the Serbian People", as his country joins the war.
• 1898 – The United States takes possession of Puerto Rico from Spain.
• 1867 – United States takes possession of Alaska after purchasing it from Russia for $7.2 million. Celebrated annually in the state as Alaska Day.
• 1851 – Herman Melville's Moby-Dick is first published as The Whale by Richard Bentley of London.
• 1779 – American Revolutionary War: The Franco-American Siege of Savannah is lifted.
• 1775 – African-American poet Phillis Wheatley is freed from slavery.
• 1775 – American Revolutionary War: The Burning of Falmouth (now Portland, Maine).
• 1648 – Boston Shoemakers form first American labor organization.
• 1599 – Michael the Brave, Prince of Wallachia, defeats the Army of Andrew Báthory in the Battle of Șelimbăr, leading to the first recorded unification of the Romanian people.
• 1565 – Ships belonging to the Matsura clan of Japan fail to capture the Portuguese trading carrack in the Battle of Fukuda Bay, the first recorded naval battle between Japan and the West.

Births

• 1991 – Tyler Posey, American actor and musician. Tyler Garcia Posey (born October 18, 1991) is an American actor, musician, model, producer and director, best known for his role as Scott McCall on the MTV series Teen Wolf (2011–2017).
• 1990 – Bristol Palin, American public speaker and reality television personality. She is the oldest daughter and second of five children of Todd and Sarah Palin.
• 1990 – Brittney Griner, American professional basketball player. She is the only NCAA basketball player to score 2,000 points and block 500 shots.
• 1990 – Drew Crawford, American basketball player. Andrew Eugene Crawford (born October 18, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for Gaziantep of the Turkish Basketball Super League (BSL).
• 1989 – Laci Green, American YouTube personality, video blogger, sex educator, and activist. Laci Green (born October 18, 1989) is an American YouTuber.
• 1987 – Zac Efron, American actor and singer. During this time, he also starred in the musical film Hairspray (2007) and the comedy film 17 Again (2009).
• 1985 – Andrew Garcia, American singer-songwriter and guitarist, was the ninth place finalist on the ninth season of American Idol.
• 1984 – Esperanza Spalding, American singer-songwriter and bassist. She was later both self-taught and -trained on a number of instruments, including guitar and bass.
• 1984 – Lindsey Vonn, American skier. Lindsey Caroline Vonn (née Kildow /kɪldaʊ/; born October 18, 1984) is an American former World Cup alpine ski racer on the US Ski Team.
• 1982 – Simon Gotch, American wrestler. Seth Lesser (born October 18, 1982) is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name Simon Gotch.
• 1979 – Ne-Yo, American singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer, and actor. The single's successful release in the United States prompted an informal meeting between Ne-Yo and Def Jam's label head and the signing of a recording contract.
• 1977 – Flavia Colgan, Brazilian-American journalist. Flavia Monteiro Colgan (Portuguese pronunciation: , born October 18, 1977) is a Brazilian - American Democratic strategist who is an active political contributor on MSNBC and serves as a special correspondent for Extra.
• 1977 – Ryan Nelsen, New Zealand-American soccer player and coach. Ryan William Nelsen ONZM (born 18 October 1977) is a former New Zealand professional football player and former head coach of Major League Soccer side Toronto FC.
• 1975 – Alex Cora, Puerto Rican-American baseball player and sportscaster. José Alexander Cora (born October 18, 1975) is a Puerto Rican former infielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB).
• 1975 – Josh Sawyer, American video game designer. Josh Sawyer (born October 18, 1975), is an American video game designer, known for his work on role-playing video games.
• 1970 – Doug Mirabelli, American baseball player and coach. Douglas Anthony Mirabelli (born October 18, 1970) is a former Major League Baseball catcher.
• 1967 – Eric Stuart, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and voice actor. Stuart (born October 18, 1967) is an American voice actor, voice director, musician, singer and songwriter, who worked for 4Kids Entertainment, NYAV Post, and Central Park Media.
• 1966 – Dave Price, American journalist and game show host. David M. "Dave" Price (born October 18, 1966) is an American journalist and weather forecaster who is currently working for WNBC-TV in New York as a weekday afternoon weatherman.
• 1965 – Curtis Stigers, American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He achieved a number of hits in the early 1990s, most notably the international hit "I Wonder Why" (1991), which reached No. 5 in the UK and No. 9 in the US.
• 1964 – Dan Lilker, American singer-songwriter and bass player. Lilker (born October 18, 1964 in Bayside, New York) is an American semi-retired musician best known as a bass player, but also guitarist, pianist, drummer and vocalist.
• 1962 – Vincent Spano, American actor, director, and producer. Spano (born October 18, 1962) is an American film, stage and television actor; he is also a film director and producer.
• 1961 – Rick Moody, American author and composer, was made into the film The Ice Storm. Many of his works have been praised by fellow writers and critics alike, and in 1999 The New Yorker chose him as one of America's most talented young writers, placing him on their "20 Writers for the 21st Century" list.
• 1961 – Wynton Marsalis, American trumpet player, composer, and educator. Marsalis has been awarded nine Grammy Awards and his Blood on the Fields was the first jazz composition to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music.
• 1960 – Erin Moran, American actress (d. 2017), was an American actress, best known for playing Joanie Cunningham on the television sitcom Happy Days and its spin-off Joanie Loves Chachi.
• 1959 – John Nord, American wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association and World Class Championship Wrestling in the 1980s as Nord the Barbarian and Yukon John and with the World Wrestling Federation, All Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling in the 1990s as The Berzerker and under his birth name.
• 1959 – Kirby Chambliss, American pilot. Kirby Chambliss (born October 18, 1959 in Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.) is an American world champion aerobatic and air race pilot who races in the Red Bull Air Race World Series under the Red Bull brand.
• 1959 – Milcho Manchevski, Macedonian-American director and screenwriter. 1994 Before the Rain Academy Award nomination 1995 Before the Rain Silver Condor for Best Foreign Film 1995 Before the Rain Independent Spirit Award for Best Foreign Film8 1995 Before the Rain MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video 1992 "Tennessee" Billboard Music Award for Best Video: New Pop/Rock Act
• 1958 – Thomas Hearns, American boxer. Thomas Hearns (born October 18, 1958) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1977 to 2006.
• 1957 – Jon Lindstrom, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter. He is well known for his role as Kevin Collins on the ABC Daytime soap opera General Hospital and its spin-off Port Charles.
• 1956 – Craig Bartlett, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and voice actor. Craig Michael Bartlett (born October 18, 1956) is an American animator, best known for writing and creating the Nickelodeon television series Hey Arnold! and the PBS Kids television series Dinosaur Train and Ready Jet Go!.
• 1956 – Jim Talent, American lawyer and politician. He is a Republican and resided in the St.
• 1956 – Martina Navratilova, Czech-American tennis player and coach. Martina Navratilova (Czech: Martina Navrátilová pronounced ; born Martina Šubertová pronounced ; October 18, 1956) is a Czechoslovak-born American former professional tennis player and coach.
• 1955 – David Twohy, American director, producer, and screenwriter. David Neil Twohy (/ˈtuːiː/ TOO-ee; born October 18, 1955) is an American film director and screenwriter.
• 1955 – Stu Mead, American painter and illustrator. Stuart "Stu" Mead (born October 18, 1955) is an American artist who lives and works in Berlin, Germany.
• 1955 – Vanessa Briscoe Hay, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player. Vanessa Briscoe Hay (born October 18, 1955 in Atlanta, Georgia) is an American singer for the Athens, Georgia bands Pylon, Supercluster and Pylon Reenactment Society.
• 1954 – Arliss Howard, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter. Leslie Richard "Arliss" Howard (born October 18, 1954) is an American actor, writer and film director.
• 1952 – Allen Ripley, American baseball player (d. 2014), was a pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for three different teams between the 1978 and 1982 seasons. Listed at 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m), 190 pounds (86 kg), Ripley batted and threw right-handed.
• 1952 – Chuck Lorre, American director, producer, and screenwriter. He also served as an executive producer of Roseanne.
• 1952 – Jerry Royster, American baseball player, coach, and manager. Jeron Kennis Royster (born October 18, 1952) is a Major League Baseball coach, who last served as the 3rd Base Coach under Bobby Valentine with the Boston Red Sox.
• 1952 – Paul Geroski, American-English economist and academic (d. 2005), was a leading economist in the United Kingdom. Although born in Pleasantville, New York, United States, Geroski studied and spent most of his career in Britain, where he settled permanently in 1975.
• 1951 – Pam Dawber, American actress and producer. Pamela Dawber (born October 18, 1951) is an American actress best known for her lead television sitcom roles as Mindy McConnell in Mork & Mindy (1978–1982) and Samantha Russell in My Sister Sam (1986–1988).
• 1951 – Terry McMillan, American author and screenwriter. Her work is characterized by female protagonists.
• 1950 – Wendy Wasserstein, American playwright and author (d. 2006). She was an Andrew Dickson White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University.
• 1949 – Gary Richrath, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (d. 2015), was an American guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist and a songwriter for the band REO Speedwagon from 1970 until 1989.
• 1949 – George Hendrick, American baseball player and coach. Louis Cardinals team that won the 1982 World Series.
• 1948 – Ntozake Shange, American author, poet, and playwright, was an American playwright and poet. As a Black feminist, she addressed issues relating to race and Black power in much of her work.
• 1947 – Laura Nyro, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1997), was an American songwriter, singer, and pianist. She achieved critical acclaim with her own recordings, particularly the albums Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (1968) and New York Tendaberry (1969), and had commercial success with artists such as Barbra Streisand and The 5th Dimension recording her songs.
• 1946 – Frank Beamer, American football player and coach. Paul “Bear” Bryant Lifetime Achievement Award (2019)
• 1946 – James Robert Baker, American author and screenwriter (d. 1997), was an American author of sharply satirical, predominantly gay-themed transgressional fiction. A native Californian, his work is set almost entirely in Southern California.
• 1945 – Chris Shays, American politician. He is a member of the Republican Party.
• 1945 – Huell Howser, American television host and actor (d. 2013), was an American television personality, actor, producer, writer, singer, and voice artist, best known for hosting, producing, and writing California's Gold, his human interest show produced by KCET in Los Angeles for California PBS stations. The archive of his video chronicles offers an enhanced understanding of the history, culture, and people of California.
• 1941 – Martha Burk, American psychologist and author. Martha Gertrude Burk (born October 18, 1941) is an American political psychologist, feminist, and former Chair of the National Council of Women's Organizations.
• 1940 – Cynthia Weil, American songwriter. Cynthia Weil (born October 18, 1940) is an American songwriter who wrote many songs together with her husband Barry Mann.
• 1939 – Lee Harvey Oswald, American assassin of John F. Kennedy (d. 1963), was an American Marxist and former U.S. Marine who assassinated United States President John F.
• 1939 – Mike Ditka, American football player, coach, and sportscaster. A member of both the College Football (1986) and Pro Football Hall of Fame (1988), he was the 1961 UPI NFL Rookie of Year, a five-time Pro Bowl selection and five-time All-Pro tight end with the Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles, and Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL).
• 1938 – Dawn Wells, American model and actress, Miss Nevada 1959. Dawn Elberta Wells (born October 18, 1938) is a beauty queen and an American actress who became known for her role as Mary Ann Summers on the CBS sitcom Gilligan's Island.
• 1938 – Robert Dove, American lawyer and politician. Dove (born October 18, 1938) is a former Parliamentarian of the United States Senate and a professor of political science at George Washington University.
• 1935 – Peter Boyle, American actor (d. 2006). Known as a character actor, he played Frank Barone on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond and the comical monster in Mel Brooks' film spoof Young Frankenstein (1974).
• 1934 – Inger Stevens, Swedish-American actress (d. 1970), was a Swedish-American film, television, and stage actress.
• 1933 – Forrest Gregg, American football player and coach, was an American football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL), the Canadian Football League and the NCAA. A Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive lineman for 16 seasons, he was a part of six NFL championships, five of them with the Green Bay Packers before closing out his tenure with the Dallas Cowboys with a win in Super Bowl VI.
• 1933 – Irwin M. Jacobs, American electrical engineer, businessman, and entrepreneur. Irwin Mark Jacobs (born October 18, 1933) is an American electrical engineer, a co-founder and former chairman of Qualcomm, and chair of the board of trustees of the Salk Institute.
• 1931 – Chris Albertson, Icelandic-American historian, journalist, and producer, was a New York City-based jazz journalist, writer and record producer.
• 1930 – Esther Hautzig, Lithuanian-American author (d. 2009). Hautzig (Hebrew: אסתר האוציג‎, born October 18, 1930 – died November 1, 2009 in America) was an American writer, best known for her award-winning book The Endless Steppe (1968).
• 1929 – Hillard Elkins, American producer and manager (d. 2010), was an American theatre and film producer.
• 1928 – Keith Jackson, American sportscaster and actor, was an American sports commentator, journalist, author and radio personality, known for his career with ABC Sports (1966–2006). While he covered a variety of sports over his career, he is best known for his coverage of college football from 1952 until 2006, and his distinctive voice, "a throwback voice, deep and operatic.
• 1927 – George C. Scott, American actor and director (d. 1999), was an American stage and film actor, director and producer. He was best known for his stage work, as well as his portrayal of General George S.
• 1927 – Marv Rotblatt, American baseball player (d. 2013), was a left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox in the 1948, 1950 and 1951 seasons. His ERAs in 1948 (7.85) and 1950 (6.23) were the highest in the majors.
• 1926 – Chuck Berry, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2017), was an American singer and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. Nicknamed the "Father of Rock and Roll", Berry refined and developed rhythm and blues into the major elements that made rock and roll distinctive with songs such as "Maybellene" (1955), "Roll Over Beethoven" (1956), "Rock and Roll Music" (1957) and "Johnny B.
• 1926 – Klaus Kinski, German-American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1991), was a German actor.
• 1923 – Jessie Mae Hemphill, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2008), was an American electric guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist specializing in the North Mississippi hill country blues traditions of her family and regional heritage.
• 1921 – Jesse Helms, American soldier, journalist, and politician (d. 2008), was an American politician and a leader in the conservative movement. He served from 1973 until 2003, and was elected five times as a Republican to the United States Senate from North Carolina.
• 1919 – Anita O'Day, American singer (d. 2006), was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appearances that shattered the traditional image of the "girl singer". Refusing to pander to any female stereotype, O'Day presented herself as a "hip" jazz musician, wearing a band jacket and skirt as opposed to an evening gown.
• 1919 – Camilla Williams, American soprano and educator (d. 2012), was an American operatic soprano who performed nationally and internationally. After studying with renowned teachers in New York City, she was the first African American to receive a regular contract with a major American opera company, the New York City Opera.
• 1918 – Bobby Troup, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and actor (d. 1999), was an American actor, jazz pianist, singer, and songwriter. He wrote the song "Route 66" and acted in the role of Dr.
• 1915 – Victor Sen Yung, American actor (d. 1980). Victor Sen Yung (traditional Chinese: 揚森; simplified Chinese: 扬森; pinyin: Yáng Sēn; Jyutping: Joeng4 Sam1; October 18, 1915 – c.
• 1904 – A. J. Liebling, American journalist and author (d. 1963). J." Liebling (October 18, 1904 – December 28, 1963) was an American journalist who was closely associated with The New Yorker from 1935 until his death.
• 1902 – Miriam Hopkins, American actress (d. 1972), was an American actress known for her versatility. She first signed with Paramount Pictures in 1930, working with Ernst Lubitsch and Joel McCrea, among many others.
• 1900 – Evelyn Berckman, American author, known for her detective and Gothic horror novels (d. 1978), was an American author noted for her detective and Gothic horror novels. In addition to her novels and screenplays, she also wrote four non-fiction titles about British naval history.
• 1897 – Isabel Briggs Myers, American theorist and author (d. 1980), was an American author and co-creator of a personality inventory known as the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). Isabel Myers created the MBTI with her mother, Katharine Cook Briggs.
• 1894 – H. L. Davis, American author and poet (d. 1960). Harold Lenoir Davis (October 18, 1894–October 31, 1960), also known as H.
• 1881 – Max Gerson, German-born American physician (d. 1959), was a German-born American physician who developed the Gerson Therapy, a dietary-based alternative cancer treatment that he claimed could cure cancer and most chronic, degenerative diseases.
• 1878 – James Truslow Adams, American historian and author (d. 1949), was an American writer and historian. He was a freelance author who helped to popularize the latest scholarship about American history and his three-volume history of New England is well regarded by scholars.
• 1874 – Christine Murrell, English medical doctor, first female member of the British Medical Association's Central Council (d. 1933). In 1924, she became the first female member of the British Medical Association's Central Council.
• 1865 – Logan Pearsall Smith, American-English author and critic (d. 1946), was an American-born British essayist and critic. Harvard and Oxford educated, he was known for his aphorisms and epigrams, and was an expert on 17th Century divines.
• 1836 – Frederick August Otto Schwarz, American businessman, founded FAO Schwarz (d. 1911), was a German-born American toy retailer known for founding FAO Schwarz.
• 1596 – Edward Winslow, American Pilgrim leader (d. 1655), was a Separatist who traveled on the Mayflower in 1620. He was one of several senior leaders on the ship and also later at Plymouth Colony.

Deaths

• 2015 – Robert W. Farquhar, American engineer (b. 1932)
• 2014 – Edward Regan, American academic and politician (b. 1930)
• 2014 – Sidney Shapiro, American-Chinese author and translator (b. 1915)
• 2013 – Bill Young, American sergeant and politician (b. 1930)
• 2013 – Bum Phillips, American football player and coach (b. 1923)
• 2013 – Tom Foley, American lawyer and politician, 57th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Albert Lee Ueltschi, American pilot and businessman, founded FlightSafety International (b. 1917)
• 2012 – Brain Damage, American wrestler (b. 1977)
• 2012 – David S. Ware, American saxophonist and composer (b. 1949)
• 2012 – George Mattos, American pole vaulter (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Slater Martin, American basketball player and coach (b. 1925)
• 2010 – Marion Brown, American saxophonist and musicologist (b. 1931)
• 2009 – Nancy Spero, American painter and academic (b. 1926)
• 2008 – Dee Dee Warwick, American singer (b. 1945)
• 2007 – Vincent DeDomenico, American businessman, founded the Napa Valley Wine Train (b. 1915)
• 2007 – William J. Crowe, American admiral and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (b. 1925)
• 2005 – Bill King, American sportscaster (b. 1927)
• 2000 – Gwen Verdon, American actress and dancer (b. 1925)
• 2000 – Julie London, American singer and actress (b. 1926)
• 1984 – Jon-Erik Hexum, American actor (b. 1957).
• 1982 – Bess Truman, American wife of Harry S. Truman, 40th First Lady of the United States (b. 1885)
• 1982 – Dwain Esper, American director and producer (b. 1892)
• 1980 – Edwin Way Teale, American photographer and author (b. 1899)
• 1977 – Gudrun Ensslin, German militant leader, founded the Red Army Faction (b. 1940)
• 1975 – Al Lettieri, American actor (b. 1928)
• 1975 – K. C. Douglas, American rural blues singer (b. 1913)
• 1973 – Leo Strauss, German-American political scientist, philosopher, and academic (b. 1899)
• 1973 – Margaret Caroline Anderson, American publisher, founded The Little Review (b. 1886)
• 1973 – Walt Kelly, American illustrator and animator (b. 1913)
• 1966 – Elizabeth Arden, Canadian-American businesswoman, founded Elizabeth Arden, Inc. (b. 1878)
• 1966 – S. S. Kresge, American businessman, founded Kmart (b. 1867)
• 1965 – Henry Travers, Irish-American actor (b. 1874)
• 1961 – Tsuru Aoki, Japanese-American actress (b. 1892)
• 1935 – Gaston Lachaise, French-American sculptor (b. 1882)
• 1933 – Christine Murrell, English medical doctor, first female member of the British Medical Association's Central Council (b. 1874)
• 1931 – Thomas Edison, American engineer and businessman, invented the light bulb and phonograph (b. 1847)
• 1892 – William W. Chapman, American lawyer and politician (b. 1808)
• 1889 – Antonio Meucci, Italian-American engineer (b. 1808)
• 1876 – Francis Preston Blair, American journalist (b. 1791)
• 1871 – Charles Babbage, English mathematician and engineer, invented the mechanical computer (b. 1791)