Historical Events
- Apr 5 The Greco-Turkish War, also called "Thirty Days' War", is declared between Greece and the Ottoman Empire.
- Apr 19 1st Boston Marathon (B.A.A. Road Race), won by John J. McDermott in 2:55:10; the world's oldest annual marathon inspired by success of the first marathon at the 1896 Summer Olympics
- Apr 22 NYC Jewish newspaper "Forward" begins publishing (still active)
Discovery of the Electron
Apr 30 English physicist and head of the Cavendish laboratory J. J. Thomson announces his discovery of the electron in a lecture to the Royal Institution
Famous Birthdays
- Apr 1 Doc Alexander, American College Football Hall of Fame guard (Syracuse; All Pro 1921, 22; Rochester Jeffersons; NFL C'ship 1925; NY Giants), born in Silver Creek, New York (d. 1975)
- Apr 1 Lucille Bogan, American blues singer and songwriter ("Sweet Petunia"; "Black Angel Blues"), born in Amory, Mississippi (d. 1948)
- Apr 4 Pierre Fresnay, French actor (Monsieur Vincent, Grand Illusion), born in Paris, France (d. 1975)
- Apr 7 Erich Loewenhardt, German flying ace of World War I, born in Province of Silesia, Poland (d. 1918)
- Apr 7 Harald Sæverud, Norwegian composer (Rondo Amoroso; Sinfonia Dolorosa), born in Bergen, Norway (d. 1992)
- Apr 7 Walter Winchell, American journalist, gossip columnist, radio host, and narrator (the Untouchables), born in New York (d. 1972)
- Apr 8 Herbert Eimert, German composer and musicologist (Glockenspiel), born in Bad Kreuznach, Kingdom of Prussia (d. 1972)
- Apr 10 Ross Youngs, American Baseball HOF right fielder (World Series 1921, 22; NY Giants), born in Shiner, Texas (d. 1927)
- Apr 11 Caspar Neher, Austrian-German set designer and librettist, born in Augsburg, Germany (d. 1962)
- Apr 13 Werner Voss, German World War I flying ace, born in Krefeld, Germany (d. 1917)
- Apr 14 Barbara Wootton, Baroness Wootton of Abinger, British sociologist and criminologist, born in Cambridge, England (d. 1988)
- Apr 14 Claire Windsor, American actress (The Blot), born in Cawker City, Kansas (d. 1972)
- Apr 14 Olga Chekhova, Russian-German actress (Italian Strawhat, Cry of the Children), born in Aleksandropol, Erivan Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1980)
- Apr 15 Pedro Regas, Greek stage actor (Only Angels Have Wings, Pat Paulsen's Half a Comedy Hour), born in Goranoi, Greece (d. 1974)
- Apr 16 Arthur Charles Ernest Hoérée, Belgian-French composer, born in St. Gilles, Brussels, Belgium (d. 1986)
- Apr 16 Jaap Vranken, Dutch organist and composer (Stabat Mater), born in Utrecht, Netherlands (d. 1956)
- Apr 16 John Bagot Glubb, British commandant and writer (A soldier with the Arabs), born in Preston, Lancashire, England (d. 1986)
- Apr 16 Milton Cross, American radio announcer (Metropolitan Opera's Saturday Afternoon at the Opera, 1931-75), born in New York City (d. 1975)
- Apr 17 Antonius Coolen, Dutch author (Village by the River), born in Wijlre, Netherlands (d. 1961)
- Apr 17 Harald Saeverud, Norwegian composer (Saline), born in Bergen, Norway (d. 1992)
Thornton Wilder (1897-1975)
Apr 17 American playwright and writer (Bridge of San Luis Rey), born in Madison, Wisconsin
- Apr 18 Ardito Desio, Italian explorer and topographer, born in Palmanova, Friuli, Italy (d. 2001)
- Apr 19 Peter de Noronha, Indian businessman and philanthropist, born in India (d. 1970)
- Apr 19 Vivienne Segal, American Broadway actress and singer (Pal Joey), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1992)
- Apr 20 Gregory Ratoff, Russian producer, director and actor (Exodus, Skyscraper Souls, Corsican Brothers), born in Samara, Russian Empire (d. 1960)
- Apr 23 John Wengraf, Austrian actor (12 to the Moon, Pride & Passion), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1974)
Lester B. Pearson (1897-1972)
Apr 23 Canadian diplomat (Nobel Peace Prize, 1957) and politician (Prime Minister, 1963-68), and WWI aviator commonly known as "Mike", born in Newtonbrook, Ontario
- Apr 23 Lucius du Bignon Clay, American WWII general and military governor of West Germany, born in Marietta, Georgia (d. 1978)
- Apr 24 Andy Cooper, American Baseball HOF pitcher (East-West All-Star 1933, 36; Negro NL pennant 1929; 3 x Negro AL pennant; Detroit Stars, Kansas City Monarchs), born in Waco, Texas (d. 1941)
- Apr 24 Benjamin Lee Whorf, American linguist (the relation of language to thinking and cognition), born in Winthrop, Massachusetts (d. 1941)
- Apr 24 György Kósa, Hungarian composer, born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 1984)
- Apr 24 Manuel Ávila Camacho, 45th President of Mexico (1940-46), born in Teziutlán, Puebla, Mexico (d. 1955)
- Apr 25 Abraham van Oosten, Dutch architect, and stained glass designer, born in Assen, Netherlands (d. 1937)
- Apr 25 Haro Levoni Step'anian, Armenian composer, born in Ganja, Azerbaijan (d. 1966)
- Apr 25 Mary [Victoria Alexandra Alice Mary], Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood, born in York Cottage, Sandringham (d. 1965)
- Apr 25 Paula Trueman, American actress (Dirty Dancing), born in New York City (d. 1994)
- Apr 26 Douglas Sirk, German American film director (All That Heaven Allows), born in Hamburg, Germany (d. 1987)
Eddie Eagan (1897-1967)
Apr 26 American boxer (Olympic gold - light heavyweight, 1920) and bobsledder (Olympic gold - 4-man team,1932), born in Denver, Colorado
- Apr 28 Kálmán Tihanyi, Hungarian physicist and engineer (invented cathode ray tube for television), born in Üzbég, Kingdom of Hungary (d. 1947)
- Apr 28 Ye Jianying, Chinese communist general and politician (Head of State of the People's Republic of China 1978-83), born in Jiaying, Guangdong, Qing Empire (d. 1986)
- Apr 29 Bernard Verhoeven, Dutch poet (Pleidooi near een non), born in Arnhem, Netherlands (d. 1965)
- Apr 30 Humberto Mauro, Brazilian film director (Ganga Bruta), born in Volta Grande, Minas Gerais (d. 1983)
Famous Deaths
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Apr 3 German composer and conductor (Hungarian Dances; A German Requiem), dies at 63
