What Happened in January 1972

Historical Events

"Promises, Promises"

Jan 1 Burt Bacharach and Hal David's musical "Promises, Promises", based on the 1960 Billy Wider film "The Apartment", closes at Shubert Theater, NYC, after 1281 performances, winning a Grammy and 2 Tony Awards

Jan 1 China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor, PRC
Jan 1 International Book Year begins
Jan 1 KDSD TV channel 16 in Aberdeen, SD (PBS) begins broadcasting
Jan 1 Policewomen are enlisted as full members of South African Police Force for the first time.
Jan 2 "Rothschilds" closes at Lunt-Fontanne Theater NYC after 505 performances
Jan 2 AFC Championship, Miami Orange Bowl: Miami Dolphins beat Baltimore Colts, 21-0
Jan 2 An anti-internment rally is held in Belfast, North Ireland

Wade Defeats Goolaging

Jan 2 Australian Open Women's Tennis: Virginia Wade of England wins her first Grand Slam title; beats home favourite Evonne Goolagong 6-4, 6-4

Tennis Player and Three-Time Major Champion Virginia Wade

Jan 2 Mariner 9 begins mapping Mars
Jan 2 NFC Championship, Texas Stadium, Irving: Dallas Cowboys beat San Francisco 49ers, 14-3

Rosewell Retains Title

Jan 3 Australian Open Men's Tennis: Ken Rosewall retains title for his 4th overall Australian crown; beats fellow Australian Mal Anderson 7-6, 6-3, 7-5

Tennis Player and Eight-Time Major Champion Ken Rosewall

Jan 3 The Irish Republican Army (IRA) explodes a bomb in Callender Street, Belfast, injuring over 60 people
Jan 4 Rose Heilbron becomes the first female judge to sit at the Old Bailey in London.
Jan 5 Largest crowd at Cleveland Arena (Cavs vs Lakers-11,178)
Jan 5 NYC transit fare rises from 30 cents to 35 cents

President Mujib Freed

Jan 5 President of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman freed by the newly elected President of Pakistan Zulfikar Ali Bhutto

Founding Father of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

Jan 5 US President Nixon signs a bill for NASA to begin research on a manned space shuttle
Jan 6 US female Figure Skating championship won by Janet Lynn
Jan 6 US male Figure Skating championship won by Kenneth Shelley
Jan 6 Vladimir Bukovski is exiled from USSR
Jan 7 Discovery of the first black hole Cygnus X-1 in the constellation Cygnus reported in a paper in "Nature" by Louise Webster and Paul Murdin [1]
Jan 7 Iberian Airlines 'plane crashes into 800ft peak on island of Ibiza, 104 die

Event of Interest

Jan 7 Lewis F. Powell Jr. becomes a US Supreme Court Justice

Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr.

Jan 7 Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Atlanta Hawks, 134-90 for their 33rd straight win, the longest winning streak in major professional sports
Jan 7 William Hubbs Rehnquist sworn in as US Supreme Court Justice

Shostakovich' 15th Symphony

Jan 8 Dmitri Shostakovich' 15th Symphony premieres in Moscow

Jan 8 NCAA announces freshman can play on teams starting in fall

Hughes Denounces Bio "A Fake"

Jan 9 Billionaire Howard Hughes says Clifford Irving's autobiography on him is a fake - Irving goes on to serve prison time for the hoax

Jan 9 British coal miners begin a national strike, the first for half a century

Laker's Streak Ends

Jan 9 Led by future Lakers star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Milwaukee Bucks beat LA Lakers, 120-104, ending LA's consecutive win streak at 33, the longest winning streak in major league sports history

Jan 9 Retired passenger liner Queen Elizabeth destroyed by fire in Hong Kong harbour
Jan 10 Geoge Harrison and Friends' triple live album set "The Concert for Bangladesh" released in UK
Jan 10 Sheikh Mujibur Rahman arrives in Dacca, East-Pakistan
Jan 12 Abu Sayeed Chudhury becomes President of Bangladesh and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Prime Minister
Jan 12 Tigers sign a lease to build a $126M domed stadium (doesn't happen)
Jan 13 An army commander stages a bloodless coup in Ghana, while the prime minister is in London
Jan 13 Bernice Gera wins anti-discrimination case against the National Baseball Congressl, initiated March 15, 1971 to be allowed to umpire
Jan 14 "Sanford & Son" starring Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson premieres on NBC TV

Margrethe II of Denmark

Jan 14 Margrethe II of Denmark becomes the first Queen of Denmark since 1412

Jan 14 WMAH TV channel 19 in Biloxi, Mississippi (PBS) begins broadcasting
Jan 14 WMAU TV channel 17 in Bude, Mississippi (PBS) begins broadcasting
Jan 14 WMAW TV channel 14 in Meridian, Mississippi (PBS) begins broadcasting
Jan 15 TV drama "Emergency" with Randolph Mantooth and Robert Fuller premieres on NBC TV

Frazier vs. Daniels

Jan 15 World heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier stops Terry Daniels in 4 rounds in New Orleans to retain his WBC and WBA titles

Jan 16 Dutch speed skater Atje Keulen-Deelstra becomes European Allround ladies champion, for the first of three consecutive years
Jan 16 Super Bowl VI, Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, LA: Dallas Cowboys beat Miami Dolphins, 24-3; MVP: Roger Staubach, Dallas, QB
Jan 17 "My Hang-Up Is You" single released by Freddie Hart (Billboard Song of the Year 1972)
Jan 17 Section of Memphis' Highway 51 South renamed Elvis Presley Boulevard
Jan 17 Seven men who were held as internees escape from the prison ship HMS Maidstone in Belfast Lough, North Ireland

West's Game-winning Jumper

Jan 18 22nd NBA All-Star Game, The Forum, Inglewood, Ca: West beats East, 112-110: MVP: Jerry West, LA Lakers, G, hits a last-second, 20-foot game-winning jumper

Jan 18 Garfield Todd, former Prime Minister of Southern Rhodesia and his daughter Judith, supporters of black majority rule in the country, are arrested
Jan 18 Prime Minister of Northern Ireland Brian Faulkner bans all parades and marches in Northern Ireland until the end of the year

Koufax, Berra, Wynn Elected

Jan 19 Sandy Koufax, Yogi Berra, & Early Wynn elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

Jan 20 Number of people out of work and claiming unemployment benefit in UK rises to over 1 million
Jan 20 Six oil exporting countries conclude meetings with Western oil companies; an agreement is reached to raise the price of crude
Jan 21 Assam's North East Frontier Agency becomes Arunachal Pradesh territory
Jan 21 Belgian government of Eyskens-Cools forms
Jan 21 Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura become separate states of the Indian union
Jan 21 Mizoram, formerly part of Assam, creates an Indian union territory
Jan 22 An anti-internment march is held at Magilligan strand, County Derry; as the march nears the internment camp it is stopped by members of the Green Jackets and the Parachute Regiment of the British Army, who used barbed wire to close off the beach
Jan 23 22nd NFL Pro Bowl, LA Memorial Coliseum: AFC beats NFC, 26-13; MVPs: Jan Stenerud, Kansas City Chiefs, PK; Willie Lanier, Kansas City Chiefs, LB

Schenk European Champion

Jan 23 Ard Schenk becomes European all-round skating champion

Jan 23 Bootlegger sells wood alcohol to a wedding party, killing 100 in New Delhi
Jan 23 Entire population of Istanbul is placed under 24 hour house arrest

Paul Simon

Jan 24 Columbia Records releases "Paul Simon", the second solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Paul Simon; it includes singles "Mother and Child Reunion" and "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard"

Jan 24 Japanese Sgt. Shoichi Yokoi is found hiding in a Guam jungle, where he had been since the end of World War II.
Jan 24 WRIP (now WDSI) TV channel 61 in Chattanooga, TN (IND) 1st broadcast

25th NHL All-Star Game

Jan 25 25th NHL All-Star Game, East beats West, 3-2; MVP: Bobby Orr, Boston, D, at Metropolitan Sports Centre, Bloomington, Minnesota

Jan 25 Ohio State center Luke Witte is stomped in face during a brawl in a game with Minnesota
Jan 26 Aboriginal Tent Embassy protest for land rights begins on the lawn of Parliament House, Canberra, Australia. Longest continuous protest for indigenous rights in the world.
Jan 26 Serbian air stewardess Vesna Vulovic survives 10,160m fall without parachute - world's highest fall without a parachute
Jan 27 The British Army and the Irish Republican Army engage in gun battles near County Armagh; British troops fire over 1,000 rounds of ammunition
Jan 27 Two Royal Ulster Constabulary officers shot dead by IRA in an attack on their patrol car in the Creggan Road, Derry

"Treemonisha"

Jan 27 World premiere of Scott Joplin's rediscovered opera "Treemonisha" at Morehouse College in Atlanta

Jan 28 Oral Roberts' Eddie Woods grabs 30 rebounds for 2nd consecutive game
Jan 28 The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association place "special emphasis on the necessity for a peaceful incident-free day" at the next march on 30 January in an effort to avoid violence
Jan 29 5th ABA All-Star Game: East 142 beats West 115 at Louisville, Kentucky
Jan 30 Bloody Sunday: 27 unarmed civilians are shot (14 are killed) by the British Army during a civil rights march in Derry, Northern Ireland; this is the highest death toll from a single shooting incident during 'the Troubles'
Jan 30 Pakistan withdraws from the Commonwealth of Nations

Mahalia Jackson's Funeral

Jan 31 Aretha Franklin sings at gospel singer Mahalia Jackson's funeral at the Greater Salem Baptist Church in Chicago, Illinois

Jan 31 Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev becomes 11th King of Nepal
Jan 31 British Home Secretary Reginald Maudling to House of Commons on 'Bloody Sunday', "The Army returned the fire directed at them with aimed shots and inflicted a number of casualties on those who were attacking them with firearms and with bombs"
Jan 31 Military coup ousts civilian government of Ghana
Jan 31 US launches HEOS A-2 for interplanetary observations (396/244,998)

Events in 1972

Famous Birthdays

Jan 1 Barron Miles, American Canadian Football Hall of Fame defensive back and coach (Montreal Alouettes, BC Lions), born in Roselle, New Jersey
Jan 1 DJ Shadow [Joshua Davis], American hip-hop DJ and songwriter (Endtroducing.....), born in San Jose, Clifornia
Jan 1 Garrett K. Gomez, American jockey (US Champion Jockey by earnings 2006-09; Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey 2007-08), born in Tucson, Arizona (d. 2016)
Jan 1 Lilian Thuram, French soccer defender (record 142 caps; Monaco; Parma; Juventus; Barcelona), born in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe
Jan 2 Christopher Lennertz, American television, film, and video game composer, born in Methuen, Massachusetts
Jan 2 Mattias Norström, Swedish ice hockey defenceman (LA Kings captain 2001-07; World C'ship gold Sweden 1998), born in Stockholm, Sweden
Jan 3 Kevin Puts, American composer ("Silent Night" - Pulitzer Prize for Music 2012), born in St. Louis, Missouri [1]
Jan 3 Nichole Nordeman, American pop and contemporary Christian singer-songwriter, born in Colorado Springs, Colorado
Jan 3 Yoon Chan, South Korean actor, born in Seoul, South Korea
Jan 4 James Longley, American documentary filmmaker, born in Eugene, Oregon
Jan 5 Sakis Rouvas, Greek pop-rock singer and musician ("Shake It"), born in Corfu Island, Greece
Jan 6 Nek [Filippo Neviani], Italian singer-songwriter, born in Sassuolo, Modena
Jan 6 Willie Clark, NFL cornerback (San Diego Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles), born in New Haven, Connecticut
Jan 7 Donald Brashear, American NHL left wing (Montreal Canadiens), born in Bedford, Indiana
Jan 8 Brandie Burton, American golfer (du Maurier Classic 1993, 98), born in San Bernardino, California
Jan 9 Angie Martinez, American radio and television personality, born in Brooklyn, New York

Jan 9 Eddie Mason, American NFL linebacker (NY Jets), born in Siler City, North Carolina
Jan 9 Jay Powell, American baseball pitcher (Florida Marlins), born in Meridian, Mississippi
Jan 9 Mat Hoffman, American BMX rider and businessman (Hoffman BMX Bikes), born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Jan 9 Sarah Beeny, English property developer and television presenter, born in Reading, England
Jan 10 Brian Lawler, American professional wrestler, born in Memphis, Tennessee (d. 2018)
Jan 10 Thomas Lewis, American NFL wide receiver (NY Giants), born in Akron, Ohio

Amanda Peet (52 years old)

Jan 11 American actress (The Whole Nine Yards; Identity; 2012), born in New York City

Jan 11 Dexter Seigler, NFL cornerback (Seattle Seahawks)
Jan 11 Marc Blucas, American actor (Riley Finn-Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Matthew Donnelly-Necessary Roughness), born in Butler, Pennsylvania
Jan 11 Rey Ordóñez, Cuban baseball infielder (Gold Glove Award 1997, 98, 99 NY Mets), born in Havana, Cuba
Jan 11 Yang Wenyi, Chinese swim star (WR/OR 50m freestyle), born in Shanghai, China
Jan 12 Dominique Ross, American NFL running back (Dallas Cowboys), born in Jacksonville, Florida
Jan 12 Jason Sklar, American twin comedian (Sklar Brothers), born in St. Louis, Missouri
Jan 12 Priyanka Gandhi, daughter of Rajiv Gandhi, born in Delhi, India
Jan 12 Randy Sklar, American twin comedian (Sklar Brothers), born in St. Louis, Missouri
Jan 13 Atoosa Rubenstein, Iranian-born American magazine editor
Jan 13 Nicole Eggert, Amercan actress (Charles In Charge: Baywatch), born in Glendale, California
Jan 13 Vitaly Scherbo, Belarusian gymnast (6 x Olympic gold CIS 1992; World C'ship gold x 12), born in Minsk, Belarus
Jan 14 Predrag Gosta, Serbian-American conductor (Makris Symphony Orchestra, 2015-present), harpsichordist, and baritone, born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia)
Jan 14 Raimondas Rumšas, Lithuanian cyclist, born in Šilutė, Lithuania
Jan 15 Claudia Winkleman, English television presenter (Strictly Come Dancing), born in London
Jan 15 Ernie Reyes Jr., American actor and martial artist (Ernie-Sidekicks), born in San Jose, California
Jan 15 Yang Yong-eun, South Korean golfer (PGA C'ship 2009), born in Seogwipo-si Jeju-do, South Korea
Jan 16 Dameon Clarke, Canadian actor (How to Be a Serial Killer), born in Mississauga, Ontario
Jan 16 Greg Page, Australian musician and actor (The Wiggles), born in Sydney, Australia
Jan 16 Joe Horn, American NFL wide receiver, 1996-2007 (KC Chiefs, New Orleans Saints, and 1 other team), born in New Haven, Connecticut
Jan 16 Richard T. Jones, American actor (Judging Amy; The Rookie), born in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan
Jan 16 Salah Hissou, Moroccan athlete (World C'ship gold 5,000m 1999; WR 10,000m 26:38.08 1996), born in Kasba Tadla, Morocco
Jan 17 Benno Fürmann, German actor, born in Kreuzberg, Berlin, Germany
Jan 17 Ken Hirai, Japanese singer and songwriter, born in Higashi-osaka, Osaka Prefecture, Japan
Jan 17 Stéphane Escoms, French jazz keyboard and accordion player, born in France
Jan 17 Wendall Gaines, American NFL tight end (Arizona Cardinals), born in Vernon, Texas
Jan 18 Dwayne Carswell, American football tight end (Pro Bowl 2001; Super Bowl 1997, 98; Denver Broncos), born in Jacksonville, Florida
Jan 18 Mike Lieberthal, American MLB catcher (Philadelphia Phillies), born in Glendale, California
Jan 18 Ryan Kuehl, American football long snapper (Washington Redskins), born in Washington, D.C.
Jan 18 Vinod Kambli, Indian cricketer (prolific Indian batsman 1993-), born in Mumbai, India
Jan 19 Drea de Matteo, American actress (Swordfish, The Sopranos), born in Queens, New York
Jan 19 Joana Benedek, Romanian-born Mexican actress, born in Bucharest, Romania
Jan 19 Princess Kalina of Bulgaria, titular Bulgarian royal family, born in Madrid, Spain
Jan 19 Ron Killings, American professional wrestler, born in Atlanta, Georgia
Jan 19 Tyrone Wheatley, American NFL running back (NY Giants), born in Inkster, Michigan
Jan 20 Alcides Catanho, American NFL outside linebacker (NE Patriots), born in Elizabeth, New Jersey

Nikki Haley (52 years old)

Jan 20 American politician and diplomat (Governor South Carolina, 2011-17; US UN Ambassador, 2017-18), born in Bamberg, South Carolina

Jan 21 Alan Benes, American baseball pitcher (St Louis Cardinals), born in Evansville, Indiana
Jan 21 Cat Power [Charlyn "Chan" Marshall], American indie rock-folk singer-songwriter (Jukebox), born in Atlanta, Georgia
Jan 21 Rick Falkvinge, Swedish IT entrepreneur and founder of the Pirate political party, born in Gothenburg, Sweden
Jan 21 Shelley Looney, American ice hockey forward (Gold USA, Olympics 1998), born in Brownstown Charter Township, Michigan
Jan 21 Xiaowei Zhuang, Chinese-American scientist, developed super-resolution imaging method STORM, born in Rugao, Jiangsu, China [1]
Jan 21 Yasunori Mitsuda, Japanese video game and film composer (Inazuma Eleven), born in Tokuyama, Japan
Jan 22 Gabriel Macht, American actor (Suits), born in The Bronx, New York
Jan 22 Gonzalo Rodríguez, Uruguayan racing driver, born in Montevideo, Uruguay (d. 1999)
Jan 22 Romi Paku, Japanese seiyu (voice actress), born in Tokyo, Japan
Jan 22 Steve Scifres, American football offensive lineman (Dallas Cowboys), born in Colorado Springs, Colorado
Jan 22 Terry Hill, Australian rugby league utility (9 Tests; NSW 14 games; Manly 126 games), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2024)
Jan 23 Ewen Bremner, Scottish actor, born in Portobello, United Kingdom
Jan 23 Gary Harrell, American football player (NY Giants, Frankfurt Galaxy), born in Miami, Florida
Jan 23 Kez McCorvey, American NFL wide receiver (Detroit Lions), born in Gautier, Mississippi
Jan 23 Marcel Wouda, Dutch swimmer, born in Tilburg, Netherlands
Jan 23 Tanya Harding, Australian softball pitcher (Olympic bronze 1996), born in Brisbane, Queensland
Jan 24 Beth Hart, American blues-rock singer-songwriter ("LA Song (Out of This Town)", Screamin' for My Supper), born in Los Angeles, California
Jan 24 Jay Walker, American football quarterback (Minnesota Vikings), born in Los Angeles, California
Jan 24 Naoshi Mizuta, Japanese composer, born in Kōchi
Jan 24 Ulla Werbrouck, Belgian judoka and politician, born in Izegem, Belgium
Jan 27 Bryant Young, American football defensive tackle (San Francisco 49ers), born in Chicago Heights, Illinois
Jan 27 Chad Askew, NFL wide receiver (NY Jets)
Jan 27 Guillermo, Mexican-born American TV personality
Jan 27 Janine Ilitch, Australian netballer
Jan 27 Mark Lawrence, Canadian NHL right wing (Dallas Stars, NY Islanders), born in Burlington, Ontario
Jan 27 Mark Owen, English pop singer (Take That - "Pray"; solo - "Four Minute Warning"), born in Oldham, Lancashire, England
Jan 28 Amy Coney Barrett, American jurist and lawyer (US Supreme Court 2020-), born in New Orleans, Louisiana
Jan 28 Elena Baranova, Russian WNBA center (Utah Starzz), born in Frunze, Kirghiz SSR, Soviet Union
Jan 28 Frank Garcia, American NFL center (GB Packers, Carolina Panthers), born in Phoenix, Aizona
Jan 28 Tunde Jegede, Nigerian-British cellist, kora player, and composer of contemporary classical, African and pop music, born in London, England
Jan 29 Simon Cook, Australian cricket fast bowler (2 Tests, 7 wickets, BB 5/39; Victoria, NSW), born in Hastings, Australia
Jan 30 Chris Simon, Canadian ice hockey player (Colorado Avalanche), born in Wawa, Ontario
Jan 30 Mike Johnson, American politician (Speaker of the House 2023-, Rep-R-Louisiana 2017-), born in Shreveport, Louisiana
Jan 31 Marvin Coleman, American basketball player (Calgary Stampeders), born in Las Vegas, Nevada
Jan 31 Pulu Poumele, American football guard (San Diego Chargers), born in Oceanside, California (d. 2016)
Jan 31 Reinier Robbemond, Dutch soccer player (Dordrecht '90), born in Dordrecht, Netherlands

Born in 1972

Famous Weddings

Aung San Suu Kyi

Jan 1 Politician Aung San Suu Kyi (26) weds author Michael Aris (25)

Famous Deaths

Jan 1 (Jennie Jane Morgan, British-American vaudeville, radio, and screen actress (Our Miss Brooks - "Mrs Margaret Davis"), dies at 91
Jan 1 Maurice Chevalier, French actor (Can Can; Gigi) and singer ("Thank Heaven For Little Girls"), dies at 83
Jan 3 Frans Masereel, Flem WWII resistance fighter (Le Soleil), dies at 82
Jan 4 Carl-Olof Anderberg, Swedish composer, dies at 57
Jan 5 Gerald Kelly, British painter, dies at 92
Jan 6 Chen Yi, Chinese military commander and politician (b. 1901)
Jan 7 Clarence Passailaigue, Jamaican cricketer (487 for 6th wkt for Jamaica), dies at 70
Jan 7 Eftichia Papagianopoulos, Greek lyricist (b. 1893)
Jan 7 John Berryman, American poet (The Dream Songs), dies at 57

Kenneth Patchen (1911-1972)

Jan 8 American writer (See You in the Morning), dies at 60

Jan 8 Wesley Ruggles, American actor, producer and director (I'm No Angel, Arizona, Too Many Husbands), dies at 82
Jan 9 Ted Shawn, American modern dance pioneer and choreographer (Ted Shawn and His Men Dancers ), dies at 80
Jan 10 Aksel Larsen, Danish politician (b. 1897)
Jan 10 Al Goodman, Russian-American orchestra leader (NBC Comedy Hour), dies at 81
Jan 10 Georg Rendl, Austrian miner, beekeeper and writer (Satan on Earth), dies at 68
Jan 10 Sverre Jordan, Norwegian composer, orchestra conductor and pianist (Norwegian Rapsody), dies at 82
Jan 12 Padraic Colum, Irish novelist and poet (Collected Poems), dies at 90
Jan 14 Frederik IX, King of Denmark (1947-72), dies at 72
Jan 15 Margaret "Daisy" Ashford, British child author who wrote "The Young Visiters" (Mister Salteena's Plan) aged 9, dies at 90
Jan 16 David Seville [Ross Bagdasarian], American songwriter ("Come On A-My House"), singer (Alvin & The Chipmunks - "Witch Doctor"), and actor (Rear Window), dies at 52
Jan 16 Teller Ammons, American attorney and politician (Governor of Colorado, 1937-39), dies at 76
Jan 17 Betty Smith, American novelist (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn), dies at 75
Jan 17 Rochelle Hudson, American actress (Les Misérables, Imitation of Life, That's My Boy), dies from pneumonia at 55
Jan 18 Rudolf Wittelsbach, Swiss pianist and composer, dies at 69
Jan 19 Michael Rabin, American violinist (In Memorium), dies at 35
Jan 23 Big Maybelle [Mabel Smith], American R&B singer (A Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On; Candy), dies from complications of diabetes at 47
Jan 24 Jerome Cowan, American actor (Blondie, Tab Hunter Show), dies at 74
Jan 25 Erhard Milch, German field marshal (b. 1892)

Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972)

Jan 27 American gospel singer ("Whole World In His Hands"), dies of a heart failure at 60

Jan 27 Richard Courant, German-American mathematician, dies at 84
Jan 28 Adriaan B "Jaap" Wagemaker, Dutch sculptor, dies at 66
Jan 28 Dino Buzzati, Italian writer (The Tartar Steppe), dies at 67
Jan 30 Karel Boleslav Jirak, Czech composer and pedagogue, dies at 81
Jan 31 Bir Bikram Shah Deva Mahendra, King of Nepal (1955-72), dies at 51
Jan 31 Fritiof Nilsson Piraten, Swedish writer (Bombi Bitt Och Jag), dies at 76
Jan 31 Howard Barlow, American conductor (Voice of Firestone), dies at 79
Jan 31 Istvan Szelenyi, Hungarian composer and musicologist, dies at 67

On This Day