What Happened in April 1922

Historical Events

Rise of Joseph Stalin

Apr 3 Joseph Stalin is appointed General Secretary of the Russian Communist Party by an ailing Vladimir Lenin

  • Apr 4 WAAB (Baton Rouge La) becomes 1st US radio station with "W" calls
  • Apr 5 KOB-AM in Albuquerque NM begins radio transmissions
  • Apr 5 WDZ-AM in Decatur IL begins radio transmissions

Teapot Dome Scandal

Apr 7 Warren G. Harding's Interior Secretary, Albert B. Fall, leases the Teapot Dome oil reserves to Harry Sinclair, setting in motion the Teapot Dome scandals

  • Apr 14 Irish Republican Army rebels occupy the Four Courts (government buildings) in Dublin
  • Apr 15 The legendary Poodle Dog Restaurant closes in San Francisco

Oakley's Shooting Record

Apr 16 Annie Oakley sets women's record by breaking 100 clay targets in a row

  • Apr 16 Treaty of Rapallo between the German Republic and Soviet Union a is signed in Italy, normalizing diplomatic relations with each side renouncing their territorial and financial claims against the other

26th Boston Marathon

Apr 17 26th Boston Marathon won by Clarence DeMar in race record 2:18:10; his 2nd race victory; first of 3 consecutive wins

  • Apr 18 Netherlands soccer team defeats Denmark 2-0
  • Apr 21 The first Aggie Muster is held as a remembrance for fellow Aggies who had died in the previous year
  • Apr 22 South Ossetian Autonomous Region forms in Georgian SSR
  • Apr 27 Fritz Lang's "Dr Mabuse, der Spieler" premieres in Berlin
  • Apr 27 Yakut ASSR formed in Russian SFSR
  • Apr 28 WOI (Ames, Iowa) country's 1st licensed educational radio station
  • Apr 29 1st official International Weightlifting Federation Champ in Tallinn, Estonia
  • Apr 30 Chicago pitcher Charlie Robertson throws a perfect game as the White Sox beat Detroit Tigers, 2-0 at Navin Field
1922 History

Famous Birthdays

  • Apr 1 (Irving) "Duke" Jordan, American jazz pianist (Charlie Parker, Stan Getz, Sonny Stitt), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2006)
  • Apr 1 Emil 'Bus' Mosbacher, American yachtsman (America's Cup 1962 [Weatherly], 1967 [Intrepid]), born in White Plains, New York (d. 1997)
  • Apr 1 Jimmie Lloyd [Logdon], American country and rockabilly singer ("I Got a Rocket in My Pocket"), born in Panther, Kentucky (d. 2001)
  • Apr 1 William Manchester, American historian (Death of a President), born in Attleboro, Massachusetts (d. 2004)
  • Apr 2 Nicolay G. Basov, Soviet physicist who specialized in quantum electronics (laser, maser) and 1964 Nobel laureate, born in Usman, Russia (d. 2001)

Doris Day (1922-2019)

Apr 3 American singer, animal welfare activist and actress known as the "girl next door" actress (Pillow Talk, The Man Who Knew Too Much), born in Cincinnati, Ohio

  • Apr 4 Elmer Bernstein, American film music composer (The Magnificent Seven; To Kill A Mockingbird; The Age Of Innocence; Thoroughly Modern Millie), born in New York City (d. 2004)
  • Apr 5 Gale Storm [Josephine Owaissa Cottle], American singer ("I Hear You Knockin'"), and actress (My Little Margie; The Gale Storm Show), born in Bloomington, Texas (d. 2009)
  • Apr 5 Harry Freedman (Henryk Frydmann), Canadian composer, born in Lodz, Poland (d. 2005)
  • Apr 5 Tom Finney, English football player (Preston North End), born in Preston, Lancashire (d. 2014)
  • Apr 6 Dorothy Donegan, American boogie-woogie, swing jazz, and classical pianist, and vocalist, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1998)
  • Apr 7 Kenneth Peacock, Canadian pianist, ethnomusicologist and composer (Rituals of Earth, Fire and Darkness), born in Toronto, Ontario (d. 2000)
  • Apr 7 Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría, Cuban percussionist (Afro Blue), born in Havana, Cuba (d. 2003)
  • Apr 9 Carl Amery [Christian Anton Mayer], German writer, born in Munich (d. 2005)
  • Apr 9 Gerald Moverley, first Bishop of the Diocese of Hallam in Yorkshire, born in Bradford, England (d. 1996)
  • Apr 9 Michael Palliser, head of British diplomatic service, born in Reigate, Surrey (d. 2012)
  • Apr 11 Alexander Raichev, Bulgarian composer, born in Lom, Bulgaria (d. 2003)
  • Apr 11 Antoine Blondin, French writer (L'Europe buissonnière), born in Paris (d. 1991)
  • Apr 12 (Edwin) "Ted" Astley, British arranger, bandleader, and film and television composer (The Mouse That Roared; The Saint), born in Warrington, Lancashire, England (d. 1998)
  • Apr 13 Jean Topart, French voice and film actor regarded as "one of the inimitable voices of French cinema" (Fantastic Planet), born in Paris, France (d. 2012)
  • Apr 13 John Braine, English novelist (Life at the Top), born in Bradford, Yorkshire (d. 1986)
  • Apr 13 Julius Nyerere, Tanzanian politician and 1st President of Tanzania (1964-1985), born in Butiama, Tanganyika (d. 1999)
  • Apr 14 Ali Akbar Khan, Indian classical sarod player, composer, and music educator, born in Shibpur, Bengal Presidency, British India (now Bangladesh) (d. 2009)
  • Apr 14 David Alexandrovich Toradze, Soviet composer, born in Tbilisi, Georgia (d. 1983)
  • Apr 14 Maria Luisa Bemberg, Argentine filmmaker, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 1995)

Harold Washington (1922-1987)

Apr 15 1st African American Mayor of Chicago (Democrat: 1983-87), born in Chicago, Illinois

  • Apr 15 Michael Ansara, American actor (Broken Arrow, Centennial), born in Lowell, Massachusetts (d. 2013)
  • Apr 16 Christopher Samuel Youd, British sci-fi author (Tripods Trilogy), born in Huyton, Lancashire, England (d. 2012)
  • Apr 16 Eddie Bert, American bebop jazz trombonist, born in Yonkers, New York (d. 2012)
  • Apr 16 Kingsley Amis, English novelist (Lucky Jim; James Bond Dossier), born in London, England (d. 1995)
  • Apr 16 Leo Tindemans, Belgian statesman, Prime Minister of Belgium (1974-78), born in Zwijndrecht, Belgium (d. 2014)
  • Apr 18 Avril Angers, British stand-up comedian and actress (Coronation Street, The Family Way), born in Liverpool, England (d. 2005)
  • Apr 18 Barbara Hale, American actress (Della Street in Perry Mason), born in DeKalb, Illinois (d. 2017)
  • Apr 19 Billy Joe Patton, American golfer (Masters 1954 3rd; Walker Cup captain 1969), born in Morganton, North Carolina (d. 2011)
  • Apr 19 Erich Hartmann, German WW II pilot (downed 352 Russian aircraft), born in Weissach, Württemberg, Weimar Republic (d. 1993)
  • Apr 19 Luigi Barbarito, Italian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, born in Atripalda, Italy (d. 2017)
  • Apr 21 Allan Watkins, Welsh cricket all-rounder, (15 Tests, England @ 40.15, 11 wickets; Glamorgan), born in Usk, Wales (d. 2011)
  • Apr 22 Charles Mingus, American jazz bassist (Pithecanthropus Erectus), born in Nogales, Arizona (d. 1979)
  • Apr 22 Lou Stein, American pianist (Tonight! America After Dark), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2002)
  • Apr 22 Richard Diebenkorn, American painter (Ocean Park Paintings), born in Portland, Oregon (d. 1993)
  • Apr 23 Boy Ecury [Segundo Jorge Adelberto Ecury], member of the Dutch Resistance in World War II, born in Oranjestad, Aruba (d. 1944)
  • Apr 23 Diarmuid Downs, British automotive engineer, born in London (d. 2014)
  • Apr 24 John Donovan "J D" Cannon, American actor (McCloud, Ike, Call to Glory), born in Salmon, Idaho (d. 2005)
  • Apr 26 J. C. Holt, English medieval historian, born in Yorkshire, England (d. 2014)
  • Apr 26 Jeanne Sauvé, 23rd Governor-General of Canada (1984-90), born in Prud'homme, Saskatchewan, Canada (d. 1993)
  • Apr 26 Margaret Scott, South African ballet dancer and founder (Australian Ballet School), born in Johannesburg, Union of South Africa (d. 2019)
  • Apr 26 Mike Kellin [Myron Kellin], American actor (Pipe Dream, American Buffalo), born in Hartford, Connecticut (d. 1983)
  • Apr 26 Paul-André Gaillard, Swiss composer, born in Veytaux, Switzerland (d. 1992)
  • Apr 27 Daphne Anderson, British actress (Beggar's Opera, Hobson's Choice), born in London, England (d. 2013)

Jack Klugman (1922-2012)

Apr 27 American actor (Oscar-Odd Couple, Quincy, Goodbye Columbus), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

  • Apr 27 Martin Gray, Polish-born American writer, holocaust survivor, born in Warsaw, Poland (d. 2016)
  • Apr 28 Alistair MacLean, Scottish novelist (The Guns of Navarone), born in Shettleston, Glasgow, Scotland (d. 1987)
  • Apr 28 William Broomfield, American politician (Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan), born in Royal Oak, Michigan (d. 2019)
  • Apr 29 (Jean-Baptiste) "Toots" Thielemans, Belgian-American jazz harmonica player, guitarist, whistler, and composer, born in Brussels, Belgium (d. 2016)
  • Apr 29 George Allen, American NFL football coach (LA Rams, Washington Redskins), born in Nelson County, Virginia (d. 1990)
  • Apr 29 Helmut Krackowizer, Austrian motorcycle racer and journalist ("Motorcycle Sport", "The History of Famous Makes of Motorcycle"), born in Frankenmarkt, Austria (d. 2001)
  • Apr 29 Parren Mitchell, American politician (Rep-D-MD, 1971-87), born in Baltimore, Maryland (d. 2007)
  • Apr 30 Anton Murray, South African cricket all-rounder (10 Tests; 1 x 100; 18 wickets), born in Grahamstown, South Africa (d. 1995)
Born in 1922

Famous Deaths

  • Apr 1 Charles I, last ruler of Austria-Hungary (1916-18), dies of the effects of pneumonia at 34
  • Apr 1 Jane Bunford, Britain's tallest-ever person measuring 2.41 metres (7 ft 11 in) at the time of her death, dies at 26
  • Apr 2 Hermann Rorschach, Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst (inkblot test - Rorschach test), dies at 37
  • Apr 5 Charles Woeste, Belgian count and politician (Minister of Justice), dies at 85
  • Apr 5 Ramabai Dongre' Medhavi, India Christian social reformer (Mukti Orphanage), dies at 63
  • Apr 9 Patrick Manson, Scottish physician and parasitologist (Father of tropical medicine), dies at 77
  • Apr 12 František Ondříček, Czech violinist and composer, dies at 64
  • Apr 14 Cap Anson, American Baseball HOF first baseman (NL batting champion 1881, 88; 8 × NL RBI leader; Chicago White Stockings/Colts) and manager (Philadelphia A's, Chicago White Stockings/Colts, NY Giants), dies from a glandular ailment at 69
  • Apr 21 Alessandro Moreschi, Italian castrato (b. 1858)
  • Apr 24 Richard Batka, Austrian music critic and composer, dies at 53
  • Apr 26 Hans Sommer, German theatre composer, dies at 84
  • Apr 29 Kyrylo Stetsenko, Ukrainian composer (Burlaka), choral conductor, music critic, teacher, and later, Ukrainian Orthodox priest, dies of typhus while tending to the sick during an outbreak at 39