Historical Events
- May 1 "Different Times" opens at ANTA Theater NYC for 24 performances
- May 1 North Vietnamese troops occupy Quang Tri Activities Committee
- May 1 Pulitzer prize awarded to Wallace Stegner for his novel Angle of Repose
- May 1 Radio's Mutual Black Network premieres
- May 2 126 killed in an electrical fire in Sunshine Silver mine, Kellogg, Idaho
- May 2 Lt General Vernon A Walters, USA, becomes deputy director of CIA
- May 2 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- May 4 "The Don't Make A Wave Committee," a fledgling environmental organization founded in Canada in 1971, officially changes its name to the "Greenpeace Foundation"
- May 4 Vietcong forms revolutionary government in Quang Tri, South Vietnam
- May 5 Alitalia DC-8 crashes west of Palermo Sicily; killing 115
- May 6 98th Kentucky Derby: Ron Turcotte aboard Riva Ridge wins in 2:01.8
- May 6 Deniz Gezmiş, Yusuf Aslan and Hüseyin İnan are executed in Ankara for attempting to overthrow the Constitutional order
- May 7 26th NBA Championship: LA Lakers beat NY Knicks, 4 games to 1
- May 8 Sabena aircraft at Lod International Airport, Tel Aviv, captured by Palestinians
- May 10 An Irish Republican Army bomb starts a fire that destroys the Belfast Co-operative store
- May 10 Overloaded South Korean bus plunges into reservoir, killing 77
- May 10 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
Baseball Trade
May 11 Giants trade Willie Mays to Mets for pitcher Charlie Williams & cash
Music History
May 11 John Lennon says his phone is tapped by FBI on "The Dick Cavett Show"
- May 11 Stanley Cup Final, Madison Square Garden, NYC: Wayne Cashman scores twice as Boston Bruins beat NY Rangers, 3-0 to take title, 4-2
- May 11 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- May 12 Milwaukee Brewers beat Minnesota Twins, 4-3, in 22 innings (completed 5/13)
Mary Had a Little Lamb
May 12 Paul McCartney & Wings release single "Mary Had a Little Lamb"
- May 13 115 die in nightclub atop 7-story Sennichi department store (Osaka Japan)
- May 13 Battle at Springmartin: following a loyalist car bombing of a Catholic-owned pub in the Ballymurphy area of Belfast, clashes erupt between PIRA, UVF and British Army
- May 13 Milwaukee Brewers beat Minnesota Twins, 4-3, in 22 innings (started 5/12)
- May 14 24th Emmy Awards: "All in the Family", Carrol O'Conner & Jean Stapleton win
- May 14 A 13-year old Catholic girl is shot dead by Loyalist paramilitaries in Ballymurphy, Belfast
- May 14 In Willie Mays' 1st game as New York Met, his homer beats San Francisco Giants, 5-4 (his former team of over 20 years), at Shea Stadium, New York
- May 15 "Hard Job Being God" opens at Edison Theater, NYC; runs for 6 performances
Assassination Attempt
May 15 Assassination attempt on US Governor George Wallace of Alabama by Arthur Bremer in Laurel, Maryland
- May 15 Bus plunges into Nile River killing 50 pilgrims in Minia, Egypt
- May 15 Ryukyu Is & Daito Is returned to Japan after 27 yrs of US control
- May 15 The island of Okinawa, under U.S. military governance since its conquest in 1945, reverts to Japanese control.
Don't Play Us Cheap
May 16 Melvin Van Peebles' musical "Don't Play Us Cheap" opens at Barrymore Theater, NYC; runs for 164 performances
- May 16 Phillies' Greg Luzinski's 500' HR hits Liberty Bell monument in Philadelphia Veteran's Stadium
- May 17 Netherlands & People's Republic of China exchange ambassadors
- May 17 The Irish Republican Army (IRA) fires on workers leaving the Mackies engineering works in west Belfast (Although the factory was sited in a Catholic area it had an almost entirely Protestant workforce)
- May 18 "Me and The Chimp" an American TV sitcom last airs on CBS in the US
- May 18 American basketball player John Sebastian makes 63 consecutive free throws while blindfolded
- May 18 American pop rock band Looking Glass release their single "Brandy"
- May 19 25th Cannes Film Festival: "The Working Class Goes to Heaven" directed by Elio Petri and "The Mattei Affair" directed by Francesco Rosi jointly awarded the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film
- May 19 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- May 19 WMAV TV channel 18 in Oxford, MS (PBS) begins broadcasting
- May 20 "Different Times" closes at ANTA Theater NYC after 24 performances
- May 20 "Hard Job Being God" closes at Edison Theater NYC after 6 performances
- May 20 5th ABA Championship: Indiana Pacers beat NY Nets, 4 games to 2
- May 20 97th Preakness: Eldon Nelson aboard Bee Bee Bee wins in 1:55.6
- May 20 Republic of Cameroon declared as its constitution is ratified
- May 21 "Heathen!" opens & closes at Billy Rose Theater NYC for 1 performance
Lost in the Stars
May 21 "Lost in the Stars" based on the novel "Cry the Beloved Country" by Alan Paton closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 39 performances
Event of Interest
May 21 Michelangelo's Pietà in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is damaged by a vandal
- May 21 The Official Irish Republican Army (OIRA) kidnaps and shoots dead William Best (19), a soldier in the Royal Irish Rangers stationed in Germany whilst on leave at home
- May 22 Ceylon becomes Republic of Sri Lanka as its constitution is ratified
- May 22 Over 400 women in Derry attack the offices of Official Sinn Féin in Derry, North Ireland, following the shooting of William Best by the Official Irish Republican Army
- May 22 Ton Sijbrands becomes world checkers champion
- May 22 US President Nixon begins visit to Moscow
- May 24 Glasgow Rangers of Scotland win 12th European Cup Winner's Cup against Dynamo Moscow 3-2 of the Soviet Union 3-2 in Barcelona
- May 24 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
Frazier KOs Stander
May 25 Heavyweight Joe Frazier KOs Ron Stander
- May 25 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- May 26 In the Republic of Ireland, the Special Criminal Court is re-instituted to deal with crimes arising out of the Northern Ireland conflict; as part of the measures trial by jury is suspended
- May 26 Joe Frazier TKOs Ron Stander in 5 for heavyweight boxing title
- May 26 The British state-owned travel firm Thomas Cook & Son is sold to a consortium of private businesses headed by the Midland Bank
- May 26 The Irish Republican Army (IRA) plant a bomb in Oxford Street, Belfast, killing a 64-year-old woman
- May 26 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
Event of Interest
May 26 US President Richard Nixon and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev sign SALT accord
Applause
May 27 Charles Strouse, Lee Adams, Betty Comden and Adolph Green's musical "Applause", starring Lauren Bacall, closes at Palace Theater, NYC, after 896 performances, winning 4 Tony Awards
- May 27 Indianapolis 500: Mark Donohue wins after leading only the final 13 laps; owner Roger Penske's first of eighteen Indy 500 victories
- May 27 Jimmy Castor Bunch's "Troglodyte (Cave Man)" hits #6
- May 28 Four Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteers and four civilians killed when a bomb they were preparing exploded prematurely at a house in Belfast
- May 28 White House "plumbers" first break in at the Democratic National Headquarters and install listening devices at Watergate Complex in Washington, D.C.
- May 29 LPGA Titleholders Championship Women's Golf, Southern Pines CC: Sandra Palmer wins first of 2 majors by a massive 10 strokes from Judy Rankin and Mickey Wright
- May 29 The Official IRA announce a ceasefire
- May 30 3 Japanese PFL terrorists kills 24, wound 72 at Tel Aviv's Lod Intl airport
- May 30 The Angry Brigade goes on trial over a series of 25 bombings throughout Britain.
- May 31 16th European Cup: Ajax beats Internazionale 2-0 at Rotterdam
Famous Birthdays
- May 1 Bobby Chouinard, Filipino baseball pitcher (first Filipino to play MLB), born in Manilla, Philippines
Dwayne Johnson (51 years old)
May 2 American pro wrestler (WCW C'ship x 2; WWE C'ship x 8; Royal Rumble 2000), actor and producer (Baywatch, Jumanji), born in Hayward, California
- May 2 Jill Savery, American synchronized swimmer (Olympic gold 1996), born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- May 2 Pandora Boxx [Michael Steck], American drag queen, comedian and TV personality (RuPaul's Drag Race), born in Jamestown, New York
- May 3 Brett Hayman, Australian rower (World C'ship gold LM8+ 1997; M4+, M2+ 1998; Olympic silver LM8+ 2000), born in Melbourne, Australia
- May 3 Shonie Carter, American MMA fighter, born in Chicago, Illinois
- May 3 Vyacheslav Kozlov, Russian ice hockey NHL forward (Detroit Red Wings), born in Voskresensk, Russia
- May 4 Gretchen Ulion, American ice hockey forward (Olympic gold 1998; 2 x Ivy League Player of the Year, Dartmouth College), born in Marlborough, Connecticut
Mike Dirnt (51 years old)
May 4 American rock bassist (Green Day - "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)"), born in Berkeley, California
- May 5 Brigitta Boccoli, Italian actress (Manhattan Baby), born in Milan, Italy
- May 5 James Cracknell, British rowing champion (Olympic gold 2000, 04), born in Sutton, London
- May 5 Mikael Renberg, Swedish NHL right wing (Philadelphia Flyers, TB Lightning), born in Piteå, Sweden
- May 5 Ronald Snook, Australian rower (Olympics bronze 1996), born in Dalwallinu, Western Australia
- May 5 Rushia Brown, American WNBA forward & center (Cleveland Rockers), born in New York
- May 5 Travis Jervey, American football running back (Super Bowl XXXI Green Bay Packers; Pro Bowl 1997), born in Columbia, South Carolina
- May 5 Žigmund Pálffy, Slovak NHL right wing (NY Islanders), born in Skalica, Czechoslovakia
Martin Brodeur (51 years old)
May 6 Canadian NHL goalie (NJ Devils, Team Canada), born in Montreal, Quebec
- May 7 Asghar Farhadi, Iranian film director (The Salesman, A Separation), born in Khomeyni Shahr, Iran
- May 7 Frank Trigg, American Mixed Martial Arts Fighter, born in Kendall, New York
- May 7 John Holecek, NFL linebacker (Buffalo Bills)
- May 9 Dan Hollander, figure skater (1996 Great Lakes champ), born in Royal Oak, Michigan
- May 9 Daniela Silivaș, Romanian gymnast (3 Olympic gold 1988), born in Deva, Romania
- May 9 Megumi Odaka, Japanese actress and artist
- May 9 Simon Hollingsworth, Australian 400m hurdler (Olympics 1992, 96)
- May 10 Emma Ridley, American actress (Return to Oz, Boy Meets World), born in Hampstead, England
- May 10 Farrell Duclair, CFL fullback (Calgary Stampeders)
- May 10 Radosław Majdan, Polish footballer
- May 10 Stuart Carlisle, cricketer (Zimbabwe Test batsman 1995-)
- May 11 Anita Hegh, Australian actress
- May 11 Concha Buika [María Concepción Balboa Buika], Spanish singer ("Niña de Fuego"), born in Palma de Mallorca
- May 11 Stefen Reid, CFL linebacker (Montreal Alouettes)
- May 12 Jason Kyle, NFL linebacker (Seattle Seahawks), born in Tempe, Arizona
- May 12 Paul Stout, American actor (Phillip-Scarecrow & Mrs King), born in Saugus, California
- May 12 Rhea Seehorn, American actress (Better Call Saul), born in Norfolk, Virginia
- May 13 Darryl Sydor, Canadian NHL defenseman (Dallas Stars), born in Edmonton
- May 13 Josh Taves, American football defensive end (New England Patriots), born in Watsonville, California
- May 14 Chad Cascadden, American NFL linebacker, 1995-99 (New York Jets), s), Two Rivers, Wisconsin
- May 14 Gabriel Mann [Mick], American actor (Bourne films - "Danny Zorn"; Revenge -"Norman"), born in Middlebury, Vermont
- May 14 Mark Ruskell, England-born Scottish politician
- May 15 David Charvet, actor (Melrose Place)
- May 15 Patrick Pothuizen, soccer player (Vitesse)
- May 15 Troy Drake, NFL tackle (Philadelphia Eagles)
- May 16 Andrzej Duda, Polish politician, President of Poland (2015-), born in Kraków, Poland
- May 16 Keith Burns, American football linebacker (Super Bowl XXXII, XXXIII Denver Broncos), born in Greeleyville, South Carolina
- May 16 Khary Payton, American actor (The Walking Dead; Bobbleheads:The Movie), born in Augusta, Georgia
- May 16 Matthew Hart, New Zealand cricketer (NZ lefty spinner), born in Hamilton, New Zealand
- May 17 Elena Wagner, Sofia Bulgaria, tennis star (1996 ITF/Redbridge-GBR)
- May 17 John Burrough, NFL defensive tackle (Atlanta Falcons)
- May 19 Aleksandr Golubev, Russian speed skater (Olympic gold 500m 1994), born in Karavaievo, Russia
- May 19 Jenny Berggren, Swedish pop singer-songwriter (Ace of Base - "All That She Wants", "The Sign"), born in Gothenburg, Sweden
- May 19 Roberto Carcassés, Cuban jazz pianist, born in Havana, Cuba
- May 19 Ronald Williams, CFL running back (Winnipeg Blue Bombers)
- May 20 Busta Rhymes [Trevor George Smith Jr.], American rapper (The Coming), born in New York City
- May 20 Christophe Dominici, French rugby union winger (65 caps; Stade Français), born in Toulon, France (d. 2020)
- May 20 Michael Cox, American 1.5k runner, born in Hannibal, Missouri
- May 21 Adriano Cintra, Brazilian dance-rock musician (CSS, 2003-11; I Love Miami), born in São Paulo, Brazil
The Notorious B.I.G. (1972-1997)
May 21 American rapper (Life After Death), born in Brooklyn, New York
- May 22 Alison Eastwood, daughter of actor Clint/actress (Tightrope)
- May 22 Anna Belknap, American actress (CSI NY), born in Damariscotta, Maine
- May 22 Mike Hollis, NFL kicker (Jacksonville Jaguars)
- May 23 Isabelle Fijalkowski, WNBA center/forward (Cleveland Rockers)
- May 23 Rene Ingoglia, running back (Buffalo Bills)
- May 23 Rubens Barrichello, Brazilian formula one driver
- May 24 Danny Bautista, Dominican baseball outfielder (Atlanta Braves), born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
- May 24 Greg Berlanti, American television writer and producer (Dawson's Creek, Riverdale, Arrowverse), born in Rye, New York
- May 24 Petra Schwarz-Ritter, Austrian tennis star (1988 Futures-Bari-ITA), born in Vienna, Austria
- May 24 Tito Paul, American NFL defensive back (Arizona Cardinals, Cincinnati Bengals), born in Kissimmee, Florida
- May 24 Viktor Ujčík, Czech hockey player (Team Czech Rep), born in Jihlava, Czechoslovakia
- May 25 Antonio Lang, American NBA forward (Cleveland Cavaliers), born in Columbia, South Carolina
- May 26 Alan Victor White, British rock drummer (Oasis, 1995-2004 - (What's the Story) Morning Glory?), born in Lewisham, London, England
- May 26 Patsy Palmer [Julie Merkell], British actress (Eastenders), born in London, England
- May 27 Antonio Freeman, American football wide receiver (Super Bowl XXXI Green Bay Packers; Pro Bowl 1998; First-team All-Pro 1998), born in Baltimore, Maryland
- May 27 Ivete Sangalo, Brazilian pop-reggae-Axé singer, musician, and songwriter, born in Juazeiro, Bahia, Brazil
- May 27 Karen Hecox, US 1500m runner
- May 27 Troy Sienkiewicz, NFL tackle/guard (San Diego Chargers)
- May 28 Cheryl Demkowski, American ice dance skater (with partner Gregory Maddalone), born in Syracuse, New York
- May 28 Guidoni Junior Doriva, Brazilian footballer and manager, born in Mirassol. Brazil
- May 28 Michael Boogerd, Dutch cyclist
- May 29 Közi, Japanese visual kei artist
Laverne Cox (51 years old)
May 29 American actress (Orange Is the New Black, Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word) and LGBT advocate, born in Mobile, Alabama
- May 29 Stanislas [Louis Stanislas Renoult], French composer and pop singer (L'Équilibre instable), born in Fontainebleau, France
- May 30 Anthony Cook, NFL defensive end/defensive tackle (Tenn Oilers)
- May 30 Jeff Jones, NFL tackle (Detroit Lions)
- May 30 Manny Ramirez, Dominican-American baseball outfielder (12 × MLB All-Star; World Series 2004 [MVP], 07; 9 × Silver Slugger Award; Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox), born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
- May 30 Renita Farrell, Australian field hockey midfielder (Olympic Gold 1996, 2000), born in Townsville, Queensland
- May 30 Soichiro Hoshi, Japanese seiyuu
- May 31 Archie Panjabi, British actress (The Good Wife), born in Edgeware, England
- May 31 Christian McBride, American jazz bassist, composer, broadcaster (Jazz Night in America), and artistic director (Newport Jazz Festival), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- May 31 Dave Roberts, American baseball outfielder (World Series 2004 Boston Red Sox) and manager (SD Padres 2015; World Series 2020, NL Manager of the Year 2016 LA Dodgers), born in Naha, Japan
- May 31 John Godina, American shot putter (World C'ship gold 1995, 97, 01; Olympic silver 1996), born in Fort Still, Oklahoma
Famous Deaths
J. Edgar Hoover (1895-1972)
May 2 American 1st Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (1924-72), dies at 77
- May 3 Bruce Cabot, actor (Diamonds are Forever), dies at 68
- May 3 Les Harvey, Scottish rock guitarist (Stone The Crows), dies from accidental on-stage electrocution at 27
- May 4 Edward Calvin Kendall, American chemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1886)
- May 5 [Reverend] Gary Davis, American blues and folk guitarist (A Little More Faith), dies of a heart attack at 76
- May 6 Deniz Gezmiş, Turkish Left-wing Political Activist (b. 1947)
- May 6 Donald Pritzker, American entrepreneur (co-founder and president of Hyatt hotels), dies of a heart attack while playing tennis at Honolulu, Hawaii Hyatt at 39
- May 10 Rhys Gemmell, Australian tennis player (Australasian C'ships singles & doubles 1921), dies at 76
- May 13 Dan Blocker, American actor (Cimarron City - "Tiny"; Bonanza - "Hoss"), dies of a pulmonary embolism at 43
- May 14 Sandor Rado, Hungarian-American psychoanalyst, dies at 82
- May 15 Nigel Green, South African-born British character actor (Zulu, Skull, Tobruk, Ipcress File), dies of an accidental barbiturate overdose at 47
- May 16 Maxime Dumoulin, French composer, dies at 79
- May 17 Sir Gordon Lowe, British tennis player, Member of Parliament (Australasian C'ship 1915), dies at 87
- May 18 Eero Sipilä, Finnish composer, dies at 53
- May 20 Cornelis Jakob van der Klauw, Dutch biologist and zoologist, dies at 78
- May 22 Cecil Day-Lewis, Irish poet (British Poet Laureate 1968-72) and detective writer (Nicholas Blake), dies of cancer at 68
- May 22 Margaret Rutherford, English actress (Murder Ahoy, VIP's), dies at 80
- May 24 Asta Nielsen, actress (Joyless Street), dies at 88
- May 24 Gavin Muir, American actor (Mary of Scotland, Johnny Trouble), dies at 71
- May 24 Ismail Yasseen, Egyptian comedian and actor (Isamil Yassine as Tarzan, Ibn Hamidu), dies of a heart attack at 59
- May 27 Roy K. Marshall, American astronomer and TV scientist (Nature of Things), dies at 64
Edward VIII (1894-1972)
May 28 King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire and Emperor of India (Jan 20th, 1936 until his abdication on Dec 11th, 1936), dies at 77
- May 29 Margaret Ruthven Lang, American composer (Irish Love Song), dies at 104
- May 29 Moe Berg, American baseball player and spy (b. 1902)
- May 29 Stephen Timoshenko [Stepan Tymoshenko], Ukrainian-American mechanical engineer (elasticity; strength of materials), and pedagouge, dies at 93
- May 30 Margaret Ruthven Lang, composer, dies at 104
- May 31 Walter Freeman, American physician (developer and practitioner of psychiatric surgery transorbital lobotomy), dies
