Major Events
- Apr 28 1st commercial flight across Pacific operated by Pan Am
- May 3 Margaret Mitchell wins Pulitzer Prize for "Gone With The Wind"
- May 6 German airship Hindenburg explodes in flames at Lakehurst, New Jersey, killing 35 of the 97 on board and 1 on the ground
- Jul 7 Japanese and Chinese troops clash at the Marco Polo Bridge, beginning the Second Sino-Japanese War
- Jul 30 Russian Politburo issues NKVD Order no. 00447, to repress former kulak and anti-soviets, 269,100 to be arrested, 76,000 to be shot. Part of the Great Purge.
- Aug 13 Second Sino-Japanese War: Japanese forces begin the Battle of Shanghai, a conflict that will last 3 months and involve 1 million troops
- Aug 26 General Franco's Nationalist troops conquer Santander during the Spanish Civil War
- Nov 5 Adolf Hitler informs his military leaders in a secret meeting of his intentions of going to war
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1937 in Film & TV
- Aug 11 "The Life of Emile Zola" directed by William Dieterle and starring Paul Muni premieres in New York (Best Picture 1938)
- Sep 21 J. R. R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit" is published by George Allen and Unwin in London
- Dec 21 "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", the first full-length animated feature film and the earliest in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theatre, Los Angeles
1937 in Music
- Nov 21 Dmitri Shostakovich's 5th Symphony premieres in Lenningrad, with the ovation lasting over an hour
1937 in Sport
- Feb 27 Australian cricketer Don Bradman scores 169 in 5th Test match v England in 223 minutes, ensuring Australia wins the Ashes 3-2
- Jun 22 Challenger Joe Louis KOs James J. Braddock in the 8th round at Chicago's Comiskey Park for the world heavyweight boxing title
Did You Know?
The world's first emergency call telephone service is launched in London using the number 999
More People Born in 1937
Fun Fact About 1937
Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe attempt to escape from American federal prison Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay; neither is ever seen again.
More 1937 Deaths
Articles About 1937
Hindenburg Disaster
The Zeppelin Hindenburg begins to fall seconds after catching fireMay 6Very Rare Photo of the Supreme Court
One of two photos ever taken of the United States Supreme Court in sessionJune 7Flannelfoot, The False Teeth Filcher
Flannelfoot, a burglar who operated in London but gained international notoriety, would steal almost anything that came to hand – even a set of false teeth!December 3
Famous Weddings in 1937
- Jan 2 Theoretical Physicist Paul Dirac (34) weds Margit Wigner
- Jan 27 Musician Nat King Cole (17) weds dancer Nadine Robinson in Ypsilanti, Michigan
- Feb 18 Actress Mary Astor (30) weds film editor Manuel del Campo (23) in Yuma, Arizona
Famous Divorces in 1937
- Sep 28 Martha Raye (21) divorces Hamilton "Bud" Westmore (19) on the basis of extreme cruelty
- Dec 9 Writer Walter Lippmann (48) divorces first wife Faye Albertson after 20 years of marriage
More 1937 Weddings