Historical Events
- Apr 2 Dave Nourse takes 4 wickets and Reggie Schwarz 3 as South Africa wins the 5th cricket Test in Cape Town to complete a 4-1 series drubbing of England
- Apr 5 Mount Vesuvius erupts and devastates towns in the Naples province, killing more than 100 people
- Apr 5 St Pius X encyclical "On the Mariavites or Mystic Priests of Poland"
1st Animated Film
Apr 6 World's first animated cartoon is released, "Humorous Phases of Funny Faces" by J. Stuart Blackton
Roosevelt Denounces the Muckrakers
Apr 14 US President Theodore Roosevelt denounces "muckrakers" in US press, taken from John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress
San Francisco Earthquake of 1906
Apr 18 San Francisco earthquake and fire kills nearly 4,000 while destroying 75% of the city
- Apr 18 The Los Angeles Times story on the Azusa Street Revival launches Pentecostalism as a worldwide religious movement
- Apr 19 Belgian naval education ship Comte The Stain de Naeyer sets sail
- Apr 19 SF Earthquake ends killing 452
- Apr 22 Intercalated Games opens in Athens
- Apr 22 New rule puts umpire in sole charge of all game balls
- Apr 26 Motion pictures begin regular showings at the Orpheum Theater in Honolulu, Hawaii
Famous Birthdays
- Apr 1 Ned Glass, Polish-American actor (Sol-Julia, Uncle Moe-Bridget Loves Bernie), born in Poland (d. 1984)
- Apr 1 Sigve Lie, Norwegian sailor (Olympic gold dragon class 1948, 52), born in Haugesund, Norway (d. 1958)
- Apr 3 Kathleen Tillotson, Emeritus Professor of English (Bedford College), born in Berwick-upon-Tweed (d. 2001)
- Apr 3 Walter "Fats" Pichon American jazz pianist, singer, and big bandleader, born in New Orleans, Louisiana (d. 1967)
- Apr 4 Bea Benaderet, American radio and screen comic actress (Petticoat Junction - "Kate"; The Beverly Hillbillies - "Cousin Pearl"; George Burns and Gracie Allen Show - "Blanche"), born in New York City (d. 1968)
- Apr 4 John Cameron Swayze, American newscaster (The Hindenberg), and spokesperson (Timex), born in Wichita, Kansas (d. 1995)
- Apr 5 Grady Sutton, American actor (The Bank Dick; The Pruitts of Southhampton), born in Chattanooga, Tennessee (d. 1995)
- Apr 5 Guy Clutton-Brock, English social worker (declared as national hero in Zimbabwe), born in Northwood, Middlesex (d. 1995)
- Apr 5 Lord Buckley, American comedian, born in Tuolumne, California (d. 1960)
- Apr 6 Virginia Hall [Goillot], American spy with British Special Operations during WWII (1940-66), born in Baltimore, Maryland (d. 1982)
- Apr 8 Raoul Jobin, French Canadian operatic tenor, born in Quebec City, Quebec (d. 1974)
- Apr 9 Antal Doráti, Hungarian-American conductor (Minneapolis Symphony, 1949-1960; National Symphony, 1970-77), and composer, born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 1988)
Faisal of Saudi Arabia (1906-1975)
Apr 9 King of Saudi Arabia (1964-75), born in Riyadh, Emirate of Nejd and Hasa
- Apr 9 Hugh Gaitskell, British politician (Leader of the Labour Party), born in Kensington, London (d. 1963)
- Apr 9 Rafaela Aparicio [Rafaela Díaz Valiente], Spanish actress, born in Málaga, Spain (d. 1996)
- Apr 9 Victor Vasarely, Hungarian-French painter and author (Op Art), born in Pécs, Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Empire (d. 1997)
- Apr 10 Joseph "Fud" Livingston, American jazz clarinetist, arranger, and composer ("Im Thru With Love"), born in Charleston, South Carolina (d. 1957) [1]
- Apr 10 Kathleen Major, British historian and principal (St Hilda's College, England), born in Lincolnshire (d. 2001)
- Apr 11 Dalia "Dale" Messick, American cartoonist (Brenda Starr, Reporter), born in South Bend, Indiana (d. 2005)
- Apr 13 Lawrence "Bud" Freeman, American jazz tenor saxophonist, bandleader, and composer ("The Eel"; "Zen Is When"), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1991)
Samuel Beckett (1906-1989)
Apr 13 Irish novelist and playwright (Waiting for Godot, Nobel 1969), born in Foxrock, Ireland
- Apr 14 Hunter Johnson, American composer, born near Benson, North Carolina (d. 1998)
- Apr 15 Sandy Bell, South African cricket fast bowler (16 Tests, 48 wickets, BB 6/99; Western Province, Rhodesia), born in East London, South Africa (d. 1985)
- Apr 16 Cobina W "Coby" Molenaar, Dutch peace activist (d. 1994)
- Apr 16 Marion Lloyd Vince, American fencer (National champion 1928, 31), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 1969)
- Apr 17 Sidney Garfield, American physician and pioneer of health maintenance organizations (Kaiser Permanente), born in Elizabeth, New Jersey (d. 1984)
- Apr 18 (Eurreal) "Little Brother" Montgomery, American jazz, boogie-woogie and blues pianist, singer, and composer ("Vicksburg Blues"; "Crescent City Blues"), born in Kentwood, Louisiana (d. 1985)
- Apr 18 Clara Eggink, Dutch poet (Life with J C Bloem), born in Utrecht, Netherlands (d. 1991)
- Apr 21 Tom Burns, British-Chilean publisher and editor, born in Chile (d. 1995)
Eddie Albert (1906-2005)
Apr 22 American actor (Roman Holiday, Green Acres), born in Rock Island, Illinois
- Apr 22 Eric Fenby, English composer and president (Delius Society), born in Scarborough, North Yorkshire (d. 1997)
- Apr 22 Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, Swedish prince second in line to the Swedish throne, born in Stockholm Palace, Stockholm, Sweden (d. 1947)
William Joyce (1906-1946)
Apr 24 American-born Irish Fascist politician and NAZI propagandist, born in Brooklyn, New York
- Apr 25 Sally Salminen, Finnish writer (Katrina), born in Vårdö, Finland (d. 1976)
- Apr 25 William J. Brennan, Jr, American Supreme Court judge (1956-90), born in Newark, New Jersey (d. 1997)
- Apr 25 Zoltán Gárdonyi, Hungarian composer, born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 1986)
- Apr 27 Mark Alexander Abrams, English market researcher, born in Edmonton, London (d. 1994)
- Apr 27 Yórgos Theotokás, Greek novelist (Leonís), born in Constantinople, Ottoman Empire (d. 1966)
- Apr 28 Bart [Bartholomeus Jan] Bok, Dutch-American astronomer (Milky Way), born in Hoorn, Netherlands (d. 1983)
- Apr 28 Kurt Gödel, Austrian-American mathematician (Gödel's incompleteness theorems), born in Brünn, Austria-Hungary (d. 1978)
- Apr 28 Paul Sacher, Swiss conductor and entrepreneur, born in Basel, Switzerland (d. 1999)
- Apr 28 Pierre Boileau, French novelist (Vertigo), born in Paris, France (d. 1989)
- Apr 28 Tony "Big Tuna" Accardo, American mobster (St Valentine's Day) and boss of the Chicago Outfit, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1992)
Famous Deaths
- Apr 6 Alexander Lange Kielland, Norwegian writer (Gist; Fortuna; St. Hans Fest), and politician (mayor; governor), dies at 57
- Apr 8 Auguste Deter, German woman notable for being the 1st person diagnosed with Alzheimer's, dies of sepsis caused by an infected bedsore at 55
- Apr 10 Georgi Gapon, Russian-orthodox clergyman, and tsarist infromant agent, dies at 36
- Apr 11 Francis Pharcellus Church, American editor and publisher (The New York Sun - "Yes, Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus"), dies at 67
James Anthony Bailey (1847-1906)
Apr 11 American circus ringmaster and showman (Barnum & Bailey), dies at 58
- Apr 13 Richard Garnett, English librarian and writer (Keeper of Printed Books British Museum), dies at 71
- Apr 18 Luis Martín, Spanish Superior-General of the Society of Jesus, dies at 59
- Apr 19 Pierre Curie, French physicist (Nobel 1903) and husband of Marie Curie, dies in a cart accident at 46
- Apr 19 Spencer Gore, British tennis player (1st Wimbledon singles champion 1877), dies at 56
- Apr 20 Australian wombat; oldest known marsupial, dies in London Zoo at 26 (London, England)
- Apr 25 John Knowles Paine, American composer (Symphony No. 2 - In Spring), dies at 67
