Historical Events
- Mar 1 Club of Rome publishes report "Boundaries on the Growth"
- Mar 1 David Rabe's "Sticks & Bones" premieres in NYC
- Mar 1 KHMA TV channel 11 in Houma, LA (IND) begins broadcasting
- Mar 1 Two Catholic teenagers shot dead by the Royal Ulster Constabulary while 'joy riding' in a stolen car in Belfast
Sports History
Mar 2 American jockey Bill Shoemaker wins his record 555th stakes race aboard Royal Owl in the San Jacinto Stakes at Santa Anita; Eddie Arcaro 554
Dictator Bokassa I
Mar 2 Jean-Bédel Bokassa appoints himself President for life of Central African Republic
- Mar 2 NASA launches its Pioneer 10 space probe to Jupiter, NASA's first mission to the outer planets
Event of Interest
Mar 3 Sculpted figures of Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson are completed at Stone Mountain Georgia
- Mar 4 Abercorn Restaurant bombing: a bomb explodes in a crowded restaurant in Belfast, killing two civilians and wounding 130
- Mar 4 Erhard Keller (Germany) skates world record 1000m (1:18.5)
- Mar 4 Last train run between Penrith to Keswick, UK
- Mar 4 Libya & USSR signs cooperation treaty
- Mar 5 Dutch speed skater Atje Keulen-Deelstra becomes Women's Allround World Champion at Heerenveen, Netherlands, her second title in 3 years
- Mar 5 Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis leaves communist party
Golf Record
Mar 6 Jack Nicklaus, passes Arnold Palmer as golf's all-time money winner
- Mar 6 Keswick to Penrith railway officially closes
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
Mar 7 "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" single written by Ewan MacColl, released by Roberta Flack (Billboard Song of the Year 1972)
- Mar 8 1st flight of the Goodyear blimp Europa (N2A); 1st airship flown over Britain in 20 years
- Mar 9 Four members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) die in a premature explosion at a house in Clonard Street, Lower Falls, Belfast
- Mar 9 Players on White Sox vote 31-0 in favor of a strike, if necessary
Music History
Mar 10 "What's Up, Doc?", Peter Bogdanovich's film homage to screwball comedies, starring Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, Madeline Kahn & Kenneth Mars premieres
- Mar 10 1st black US political convention opens in Gary, Indiana
- Mar 10 General Lon Nol becomes President & Prince Sirik Matak premier of Cambodia
- Mar 10 USSR performs nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeast Kazakhstan
- Mar 11 "Inner City" closes at Barrymore Theater NYC after 97 performances
- Mar 11 19th ACC Men's Basketball Tournament: North Carolina beats Maryland, 73-64
- Mar 11 OPEC threatens "appropriate sanctions" against companies that "fail to comply with ... any action taken by a Member Country in accordance with [OPEC] decisions."
Academy of Country Music Awards
Mar 13 7th Academy of Country Music Awards: Freddie Hart and Loretta Lynn win
Grammy Awards
Mar 14 14th Grammy Awards: Carole King's "It's Too Late"; Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine"; Carly Simon; Isaac Hayes; Muddy Waters; and Bill Evans win
Grammy Awards
Mar 14 Muddy Waters wins his first Grammy Award, for his album"They Call Me Muddy Waters"
- Mar 14 NBA's Cincinnati Royals, plagued by poor home attendance, announce they are moving franchise to Kansas City
- Mar 14 Two IRA members shot dead by British soldiers in the Bogside area of Derry
The Godfather
Mar 15 "The Godfather", based on the book by Mario Puzo, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino, premieres in NYC (Academy Awards Best Picture 1973)
- Mar 15 Danish airliner hit mountain in Sheikdom of Oman killing 112
- Mar 15 NASA selects 3 part configuration for Space Shuttle
- Mar 15 Two British soldiers killed when attempting to defuse a bomb in Belfast; an RUC officer is also killed in an IRA attack in Coalisland, County Tyrone
Music History
Mar 16 John Lennon and Yoko Ono are served with deportation papers by US Immigration Department
Music History
Mar 16 Singer James Brown performs two shows for over 1,000 detainees awaiting trial at the Adolescent Remand Shelter on Rikers Island, NYC
Back off Boogaloo
Mar 17 Ringo Starr releases single "Back off Boogaloo" in the UK
- Mar 18 China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor, PRC
- Mar 18 Cornell NCAA hockey team shut out for 1st time in 225 games (Boston U)
- Mar 18 Memphis' Larry Miller sets ABA record of 67 pts in a game
- Mar 18 Ulster Vanguard hold a rally of 60,000 people in Belfast; William Craig tells the crowd: "if and when the politicians fail us, it may be our job to liquidate the enemy"
- Mar 19 1st AIAW Women's Basketball Tournament, Immaculata beats West Chester State 52-48 in Normal
- Mar 19 India & Bangladesh sign friendship treaty
- Mar 19 Israeli musical revue "To Live Another Summer, To Pass Another Winter" closes at the Helen Hayes Theatre, NYC. after 173 performances
- Mar 19 LA Lakers beat Golden State Warriors, 162-99, by then record 63 pts
- Mar 20 19 mountain climbers killed on Japan's Mount Fuji during an avalanche
- Mar 20 Donegall Street bombing: the Provisional Irish Republican Army detonate its first car bomb on Donegall Street in Belfast; four civilians, two RUC officers and a UDR soldier killed while 148 people were wounded
- Mar 20 S Mansholt succeeds Malfatti as chairman of European Committee
- Mar 21 US Supreme Court rules states can't require 1-yr residency to vote
- Mar 22 In Eisenstadt v. Baird the US Supreme Court rules unmarried people have same right to contraception as married people.
Sports History
Mar 22 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar named NBA MVP
- Mar 22 Musical "The Selling of the President" opens at Shubert Theater, NYC; runs for 5 performances
- Mar 22 Nick Mileti purchases Cleveland Indians for $9 million
Event of Interest
Mar 22 US Congress approves the Equal Rights Amendment (still not ratified)
- Mar 22 Yankees trade Danny Cater to the Red Sox for Sparky Lyle
- Mar 23 Geoge Harrison and Friends' "The Concert for Bangladesh" concert film, directed by Saul Swimmer released in the US
- Mar 23 NY Yankees agree to continue playing ball in the Bronx
- Mar 24 Great Britain imposes direct rule over Northern Ireland
- Mar 25 "Selling of the President" closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 5 performances
- Mar 25 17th Eurovision Song Contest: Vicky Leandros for Luxembourg wins singing "Apres toi" in Edinburgh
Sports History
Mar 25 34th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: UCLA beats Florida, 81-76; 6th straight title for Bruins; future Hall of Fame center Bill Walton tournament MOP
- Mar 25 America's LP "America" goes #1
Sports History
Mar 25 Chicago Black Hawks Bobby Hull becomes the 2nd NHLer to score 600 goals, with a goal in Boston assisted by his brother Dennis
- Mar 25 UCLA wins its 6th consecutive national basketball title
- Mar 26 English translation of Dan Almagor's Israeli musical "Only Fools Are Sad" closes at Edison Theater, NYC, after 144 performances
- Mar 26 LA Lakers break NBA wins record by winning 69 of 82 games (69-13), record will stand for 24 years
- Mar 26 William Whitelaw appointed as the first Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
- Mar 27 Adolph Rupp retires after 42 years of coaching University of Kentucky
- Mar 27 Ulster Vanguard organise industrial strike against the imposition of direct rule on Northern Ireland by Westminster
- Mar 27 Venera 8 launches to explore Venus
- Mar 27 Wyoming officially names "Curt Gowdy State Park", in honor of the nationally recognized broadcaster
Burning Love
Mar 28 Elvis Presley records his final Top Ten hit, a cover of "Burning Love", written by Dennis Linde, and first recorded by Arthur Alexander
- Mar 28 USSR performs nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeast Kazakhstan
Sports History
Mar 28 Wilt Chamberlain plays his last pro basketball game
- Mar 30 North Vietnam launches a major conventional offensive against South Vietnam
- Mar 30 Northern Ireland's Government and Parliament dissolved by the British Government and 'direct rule' from Westminster is introduced
A Funny Thing
Mar 30 Revival of Stephen Sondheim's musical-comedy "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum", starring Phil Silvers, opens at Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, NYC; runs for 156 performances and wins 2 Tony Awards
- Mar 30 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
Black Tot Day
Mar 31 Final day of the rum ration in the Royal Canadian Navy
- Mar 31 Official Beatles Fan Club closes down
Famous Birthdays
- Mar 1 Yo-Sam Choi, South Korean boxer (Lineal & WBC light flyweight titles 1999-2002), born in Jeongeup, Jeollabukdo, South Korea (d. 2008)
- Mar 2 Richard Ruccolo, American actor (Two Guys and a Girl), born in Marlton, New Jersey
- Mar 3 Christian Oliver, actor (Baby Sitters Club, Brian-Saved by the Bell)
- Mar 3 Darren Anderton, English footballer
- Mar 3 Martin Prochazka, Slany CZ, NHL forward (Czech Olympic gold 1998), born in Toronto, Ontario
- Mar 4 Ivy Queen [Martha Pesante], Puerto Rican singer, rapper, and songwriter, born in Añasco, Puerto Rico
- Mar 4 Jos Verstappen, Dutch auto racer (24 Hours of Le Mans LMP2 class, LMP2 Drivers' title 2008), born in Montfort, Netherlands
- Mar 4 Pae Gil-Su, North Korean gymnast
- Mar 4 Robert Smith, American NFL running back (Minnesota Vikings), born in Euclid, Ohio
- Mar 4 Sherida Pawiroredjo, Suriname Miss Indra Maju (1993)
- Mar 5 Brian Grant, NBA forward (Portland Trailblazers, Sacramento Kings)
- Mar 5 Hernan Gumy, tennis star, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Mar 5 Luca Turilli, Italian symphonic metal composer, guitarist and keyboard player (Rhapsody), born in Trieste, Italy
- Mar 5 Mikael Tillstrom, Swedish tennis star
- Mar 5 Tom Hipsz, CFL defensive tackle (Montreal Alouettes)
- Mar 6 Jamal Anderson, American football fullback who was First-team All-Pro & Pro Bowl 1998; Atlanta Falcons, born in Newark, New Jersey
- Mar 6 Paul Frlan, CFL linebacker (Saskatchewan Roughriders)
Shaquille O'Neal (52 years old)
Mar 6 American Basketball Hall of Fame center (4-time NBA champion, 3-time NBA Finals MVP, Olympic gold 1996), born in Newark, New Jersey
- Mar 7 Jang Dong-gun, South Korean actor (Friend) and musician, born in Seoul, South Korea
- Mar 7 Maxim Roy, Canadian actress, born in Rigaud, Québec
- Mar 8 Angie Hart, Australian pop singer ("Tingly"), born in Adelaide, Australia
- Mar 8 Georgios Georgiadis, Greek soccer winger (61 caps; Panathinaikos, PAOK, Olympiacos), born in Kavala, Greece
- Mar 8 Pat Riley, NFL defensive end (Chicago Bears, Seattle Seahawks)
- Mar 9 Kerr Smith, American actor (Final Destination, Dawson's Creek), born in Exton, Pennsylvania
- Mar 9 Spencer Howson, Australian radio broadcaster, born in England
- Mar 10 Matt Kenseth, American race car driver
- Mar 10 Takashi Fujii, Japanese television performer (Matthew's Best Hit TV), born in Toyonaka, Japan
- Mar 10 Timbaland [Timothy Mosley], American musician, record producer, DJ, rapper, singer, and songwriter, born in Norfolk, Virginia
- Mar 11 Carl Greenwood, American NFL cornerback (NY Jets), born in Fort Ord, California
- Mar 11 Jamal Duff, NFL defensive end (NY Giants, Wash Redskins)
- Mar 12 Hector Luis Bustamante, Colombian actor
- Mar 12 James Maritato, American professional wrestler
- Mar 13 Avrom Smith, American football player (London Monarchs)
- Mar 13 Brian Saxton, NFL tight end (NY Giants), born in Whippany, New Jersey
- Mar 13 Trent Dilfer, American NFL quarterback (Tampa Bay Bucs), born in Santa Cruz, California
- Mar 14 Antowain Smith, American NFL running back (Buffalo Bills), born in Millbrook, Alabama
- Mar 14 Aris Brimanis, American NHL defenseman (Philadelphia Flyers), born in Cleveland, Ohio
- Mar 14 Clover Maitland, Australian field hockey goal keeper (Olympic gold 1996, 2000; World Cup gold 1998; Champions Trophy gold 1995, 97, 99), born in Maryborough, Australia
- Mar 15 Filip Dewulf, Belgian tennis star
- Mar 15 Mark Hoppus, American rock singer and bass player (+44; blink-182), born in Ridgecrest, California
- Mar 15 Mike Tomlin, American football coach (Super Bowl XLIII Pittsburgh Steelers; most consecutive non-losing seasons to begin NFL coaching career: 17), born in Hampton, Virginia
- Mar 15 Oliver Gibson, NFL defensive tackle (Pittsburgh Steelers)
- Mar 17 Marc Gunn, American podcaster (The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast), autoharp player, singer and producer (Brobdingnagian Bards), born in Germany
- Mar 17 Melissa Auf der Maur, Canadian rock bassist (Hole, 1994-99), born in Montreal, Quebec
- Mar 17 Mia Hamm, Anerican soccer forward (276 caps; FIFA Women's World Cup gold 1991, 99; Olympic gold 1996, 2004; Washington Freedom), born in Selma, Alabama
- Mar 18 Dane Cook, American comedian and actor
- Mar 18 Reince Priebus [Rheinhold Priebus], American lawyer and political operative who was Donald Trump's Chief of Staff (Jan-Jul 2017), born in Dover, New Jersey
- Mar 19 Nate Quarry, American mixed martial arts fighter (The Ultimate Fighter; co-host MMA Uncensored Live), born in Arcata, California
- Mar 20 Alexander Kapranos [Huntley], Greek-British musician (Franz Ferdinand), born in Almondsbury, Gloucestershire, England
- Mar 21 Boris Mironov, Russian ice hockey defenseman (Olympic silver 1998, bronze 2002; Edmonton Oilers, Chicago Blackhawks), born in Moscow, Russia
- Mar 21 Chris Candido, American professional wrestler, born in Edison, New Jersey (d. 2005)
- Mar 21 Kristen Anderson-Lopez, American songwriter (Frozen), born in New York City
- Mar 21 Large Professor [William Mitchell], American hip hop artist (Main Source), born in New York City
Elvis Stojko (52 years old)
Mar 22 Canadian figure-skater (World C'ship gold singles 1994, 95, 97; Olympic silver 94, 98), born in Richmond Hill, Ontario
- Mar 22 Pieter Christiaan, Prince of Netherlands, grandson of Queen Juliana, born in Nijmegen, Netherlands
- Mar 22 Shawn Bradley, German American NBA center 7ft 6 in tall (Dallas Mavericks, NJ Nets, Space Jams), born in Landstuhl, West Germany
- Mar 23 Joe Calzaghe, Welsh boxer, (unified & lineal world super-middleweight title 2007; Ring magazine light-heavyweight title 2008), born in Hammersmith, London, England
- Mar 23 Jonas Bjorkman, Swedish tennis player (World #1 doubles 2001; 9 x Grand Slam doubles titles; Davis Cup 1994, 97, 98; Tour Finals 1994, 2006), born in Vaxjo Sweden
- Mar 23 Judith Godrèche, French actress (The Man in the Iron Mask; L'Auberge espagnole), and novelist (Point de côté), born in Paris
- Mar 24 Steve Karsay, American baseball player
- Mar 25 Howard Battle, American MBA player (Philadelphia Phillies), born in Biloxi, Mississippi
- Mar 25 Mimi Jones [Miriam Sullivan], American jazz bassist, vocalist, composer, and bandleader (Hot Tone Music), born in The Bronx, New York
- Mar 25 Naftali Bennett, Israeli politician (Prime Minister of Israel 2021-), born in Haifa, Israel
- Mar 25 Phil O'Donnell, Scottish soccer midfielder (1 cap; Motherwell, Celtic, Sheffield Wednesday; PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year 1992, 94; dies while playing), born in Bellshill, Scotland (d. 2007)
- Mar 26 Leslie Mann, American actress (Knocked Up; The Change-Up), born in San Francisco, California
- Mar 27 Charlie Haas, American pro wrestler (3 x WWE Tag Team C'ship), born in Houston, Texas
- Mar 27 Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Dutch soccer striker who played 23 internationals; Leeds United, Atlético Madrid, Chelsea, Middlesbrough, born in Paramaribo, Suriname
- Mar 28 Keith Tkachuk, Melrose MA, NHL left wing (Winnipeg Jets, Phoenix, USA)
- Mar 28 Ledisi [Young], American Grammy Award-winning jazz and R&B singer-songwriter, and record producer (Pieces of Me; The Wild Card), born in New Orleans, Louisiana
- Mar 28 Mike Morton, linebacker (Oakland Raiders)
- Mar 28 Nick Frost, English comedian and actor
- Mar 29 Junichi Suwabe, Japanese voice actor, born in Tokyo
- Mar 29 Michel Ancel, French game designer (Ubisoft), born in Monaco
- Mar 29 Paul Kent, New Zealand swimmer (World C'ship SC gold 4x100m medley 1995), born in Auckland, New Zealand
- Mar 29 Priti Patel, British politician (UK Home Secretary 2019-22), born in London, England
- Mar 29 Rui Costa, Portuguese soccer midfielder (94 caps; Benfica, Fiorentina, AC Milan) and executive (President SL Benfica), born in Amadora, Portugal
- Mar 30 Brenden Stai, American NFL guard (Pittsburgh Steelers), born in Phoenix, Arizona
- Mar 31 Alejandro Amenábar, Chilean-Spanish film director (The Others), born in Santiago, Chile
- Mar 31 Andrew Bowen, American actor (Mortal Kombat), born in Boston, Massachusetts
- Mar 31 Jeffrey Gibson, Native American artist (Venice Biennale 2024), born in Colorado Springs, Colorado
Famous Deaths
- Mar 1 Victor Babin, Russian-American concert pianist (Vronsky & Babin), composer, and educator (Cleveland Institute, 1961-72) composer, dies at 63
- Mar 1 Violet Trefusis, English writer and socialite who had a famous affair with writer Vita Sackville-West, dies at 77
- Mar 1 Vladimir Golschmann, French-American conductor (St. Louis Symphony, 1931-57), dies at 78 [1]
- Mar 2 Bill Lawrence, American news anchor (ABC), dies at 56
- Mar 5 Nils Björkander, Swedish composer, dies at 78
- Mar 8 Erich von dem Bach, Nazi official (b. 1899)
- Mar 11 Fredric Brown, American sci-fi author (Martians Go Home), dies at 65
- Mar 11 Zack Wheat, American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (NL batting champion 1918; Brooklyn Superbas / Dodgers / Robins 1909–26), dies of a heart attack at 83
- Mar 13 Tony Ray-Jones, British photographer, dies of leukemia at 30
- Mar 14 Len Ford, American AAFC and NFL two-way end, 1948-58 (Cleveland Browns, and 2 other teams; 3 x NFL Champion, 4 X Pro Bowl), dies following a hear attack at 46
- Mar 15 Aleksandr Ivanovich Laktionov, Russian painter (b. 1910)
- Mar 16 Pie Traynor, American Baseball HOF 3rd baseman (MLB All-Star 1933, 34; World Series 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates) and manager (Pittsburgh Pirates 1934–39), dies at 72
- Mar 17 Manny Martindale, West Indian cricket fast bowler (10 Tests, 37 wickets; Barbados), dies at 62
- Mar 18 Jimmy Carroll, American pianist (Most Important People), dies at 58
- Mar 20 Aad de Haas, Dutch religious painter, graphic artist and cartoonist, dies at 51
- Mar 20 Jan Engelman, Dutch poet and art critic (At the Front), dies at 71
- Mar 20 Marilyn Maxwell, American actress and entertainer (Champion, The Lemon Drop Kid, East of Sumatra), dies of a heart attack at 50
- Mar 23 Cristóbal Balenciaga, Spanish couturier 'The Master', dies at 77
- Mar 27 M. C. Escher, Dutch graphic artist and lithograph carver (Praedestinatie), dies at 73
- Mar 27 Sharkey Bonano, American jazz musician, dies at 67
- Mar 29 J. Arthur Rank, British industrialist and film magnate, dies at 81
- Mar 30 Gabriel Heatter, American radio commentator famous for his WWII sign-on "There's good news tonight", dies of pneumonia at 81
- Mar 30 Peter Whitney, American actor (Rough Riders), dies at 55
- Mar 31 Meena Kumari, Indian film actress (Parineeta), dies at 38
