Historical Events
- Feb 1 Outfielder Monte Irvin is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Special Committee on the Negro Leagues; fourth inductee through the committee
"The Midnight Special"
Feb 2 "The Midnight Special" late night rock music show debuts on NBC-TV; performers include Ike and Tina Turner, Curtis Mayfield, Don Mclean, the Byrds, and George Carlin
- Feb 2 Richard Helms, ends term as 8th director of CIA; succeeded by James R Schlesinger (until July)
Hadlee's Test Debut
Feb 2 Test debut of champion New Zealand cricket all-rounder Sir Richard Hadlee; drawn 1st Test v Pakistan, Wellington
- Feb 3 Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show's single "The Cover of the 'Rolling Stone'", written by Shel Silverstein, enters the top 40 and peaks at #6
- Feb 4 "No, No Nanette" closes at 46th St Theater NYC after 861 performances
- Feb 4 An International inspection team is sent to Vietnam to observe progress on the Paris truce agreement
- Feb 4 British Army snipers shoot dead a Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteer and three civilians at the junction in Belfast during the 'Troubles' in N Ireland
- Feb 4 Comic strip "Hagar The Horrible" by Dik Browne debuts
- Feb 4 Islanders & Sabres had a penalty free game
- Feb 4 Manfred Kokot runs world record 50m indoor (5.61 sec)
- Feb 4 Reshef, Israel's missile boat, unveiled
- Feb 5 Funeral held for US Army Lt. Col. William Nolde, last US soldier killed in Vietnam War
- Feb 5 Juan Corona sentenced to 25 consecutive life terms for 25 murders
- Feb 6 40,000 civil servants demonstrate at Binnenhof in The Hague, Netherlands, against higher pension contribution
- Feb 6 6th ABA All-Star Game: West 123 beats East 111 at Utah
Rich at Top of the Plaza
Feb 6 American jazz drummer Buddy Rich plays influential performance at the Top of the Plaza in Richmond, New York, later televised by PBS
- Feb 6 Bernice Fekete skips her curling rink to 2nd straight 8-ender, Edmonton, Alberta
- Feb 6 Nancy Ford and Gretchen Cryer's musical "Shelter" opens at John Golden Theater, NYC; runs for 31 performances
- Feb 7 1st time Rangers shut-out Islanders 6-0
Raw Power
Feb 7 Iggy Pop and The Stooges release their influential 3rd album "Raw Power"
- Feb 7 North Ireland's United Loyalist Council hold a one-day strike, loyalist paramilitaries forcibly try to stop people going to work
- Feb 7 US Senate creates Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities
- Feb 8 Jean Kerrs "Finishing Touches" premieres in NYC
- Feb 8 Mushtaq & Asif Iqbal make 350 stand for Pakistan's 4th wicket v NZ
- Feb 8 Senate names seven members to investigate Watergate scandal
Paul Williams on The Tonight Show
Feb 9 American singer-songwriter and actor Paul Williams sings the torch song "Here's That Rainy Day" in full Planet of the Apes make-up and costume on Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show"
- Feb 9 Pragati Legislature Party elects Patnaik as leader of opposition in the state assembly in Orissa, India
- Feb 10 2nd time Rangers shut-out Islanders 6-0
- Feb 10 83m wide gas tank on Staten Island explodes, 40 die
- Feb 10 Pakistani cricketer Mushtaq Mohammad scores 201 runs in a match against New Zealand
- Feb 11 1st one-day international for Pakistan & NZ
Sports History
Feb 11 1st sub 17-min 1,500m female free style swim (Shane Gould 16m56.9s)
Ali vs. Bugner
Feb 14 Muhammad Ali beats British heavyweight boxing champion Joe Bugner by unanimous points decision in 12 rounds at Las Vegas Convention Centre
- Feb 15 Friendsville Academy (Tenn) ends 138-game basketball losing streak
- Feb 15 USSR launches Prognoz 3 to study sun (589/200,300 km)
Sports History
Feb 16 West Indies v Australia at Kingston, 1st time since 1955 without Garfield Sobers
- Feb 17 Rodney Redmond scores 107 on debut v Pakistan, his only Test Cricket
Meeting of Interest
Feb 17 US National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger meets Chinese leader Mao Zedong, where the latter jokingly offers to send 10 million Chinese women to the United States
Daytona 500
Feb 18 15th Daytona 500: Richard Petty wins his 4th Great American Race by more than 2 laps from Bobby Isaac
- Feb 18 54-kg octopus measuring 7m across captured in Hood Canal, Washington
- Feb 18 Belgian Emiel Puttemans runs 3,000m indoor record 7:39.2
- Feb 19 "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" single released by Dawn featuring Tony Orlando (Billboard Song of the Year 1973)
- Feb 20 10th time Islanders shut-out-4-0 vs Penguins
- Feb 21 Chicago Black Hawks, record 262nd NHL game without being shut-out
- Feb 21 Israeli fighters shoot Libyan aircraft down, killing 108
- Feb 22 "Turkish Delight" Holland's most successful film, directed by Paul Verhoeven and starring Rutger Hauer is released
- Feb 22 US and China agree to establish liaison offices in Beijing and Washington, D.C.
- Feb 23 Gold goes up $10 overnight to record $95 an ounce in London
- Feb 25 Dutch speed skater Atje Keulen-Deelstra becomes Women's Allround World Champion at Strömsund, Sweden her second consecutive title and third in 4 years
- Feb 25 Mexican serial killer Juan Corona sentenced to 25 life sentences for 25 murders in California
A Little Night Music
Feb 25 Stephen Sondheim's musical "A Little Night Music" premieres at Shubert Theatre, later transferring to the Majestic, NYC; runs for 601 performances, winning 6 Tony Awards, ( Drama Desk Awards, and a Grammy
Academy of Country Music Awards
Feb 26 8th Academy of Country Music Awards: Merle Haggard and Donna Fargo win
Event of Interest
Feb 26 Triple Crown horse Secretariat bought for a record $5.7m
- Feb 27 American Indian Movement occupy Wounded Knee in South Dakota
- Feb 27 White Sox slugger Dick Allen signs 3 year $750,000 contract
- Feb 28 Iraq and Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC) reach an agreement on compensation for nationalization
- Feb 28 Suriname government of Jules Sedney arrests 13 union leaders
Famous Birthdays
- Feb 1 Makiko Ohmoto, Japanese voice actress, born in Okayama Prefecture, Japan
- Feb 1 Tiia Reima, Finnish ice hockey center (bronze Olympics 1998; World C'ships 1990, 92, 94, 97, 99; 4 x Euro C'ship gold), born in Tampere, Finland
- Feb 1 Yuri Landman, Dutch instrument inventor and musician, born in Zwolle, Netherlands
- Feb 2 Sergio Gonzalez, American pop singer (Menudo, 1986-90 - "Cannonball"), born in Gainesville, Florida
- Feb 4 Oscar De La Hoya, American boxer (Olympic gold 1992, 6-weight world champion), born in Los Angeles, California
- Feb 5 Diego Serrano, Ecuadorian-born American actor (Tomas Rivera-Another World), born in Quito, Ecuador
- Feb 5 Israel Raybon, American football defensive end (Carolina Panthers), born in Huntsville, Alabama
- Feb 5 Laura Espinoza-Watson, American baseball infielder (Silver Bullets), born in Torrance, California
- Feb 5 Richard Matvichuk, Canadian NHL defenseman (Dallas Stars), born in Edmonton, Canada
- Feb 5 Trijntje Oosterhuis, Dutch pop and jazz singer, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Feb 6 Amy Robach, American TV journalist and anchor (20/20; Good Morning America), born in St. Joseph, Michigan
- Feb 6 Fred Miller, American football offensive tackle (St Louis Rams), born in Houston, Texas
- Feb 6 Lulama Masikazana, South African cricket wicket-keeper (Kwazulu for E Province), born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa (d. 2011)
- Feb 7 Billy Baumhoff, American soccer midfielder/forward (Olympic gold 1996), born in St Louis, Missouri
- Feb 7 Juwan Howard, American NBA player and coach (Washington Bullets/Wizards), born in Chicago, Illinois
- Feb 7 Tim Bowens, American football defensive tackle (Pro Bowl 1998, 2002; NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year 1994; Miami Dolphins), born in Okolona, Mississippi
- Feb 8 Dave Dopek, American 200m runner, born in Bolingbrook Illinois
- Feb 8 Eric Kresser, American quarterback (Cincinnati Bengals), born in Cincinnati, Ohio
- Feb 8 Michelle Brogan, Australian basketball forward (Olympic bronze 1996)
- Feb 8 Tom King, Australian sailor (Olympic gold 470 class [Mark Turnbull] 2000), born in Melbourne, Australia
- Feb 9 Colin Egglesfield, American actor (All My Children, 2005-09- "Josh"; The Client List), born in Farmington Hills, Michigan
- Feb 9 Svetlana Boginskaya, Soviet-Belarusian gymnast (3X Olympic gold - 1988, 1992), born in Minsk, Belorussian SSR, USSR
- Feb 11 Ethan Iverson, American pianist, composer, and critic, born in Menomonie, Wisconsin
- Feb 11 Jeon Do-yeon, Korean actress, born in Seoul, South Korea
- Feb 11 Tom Tumulty, American linebacker (Cincinnati Bengals), born in Penn Hills, Pennsylvania
- Feb 11 Varg Vikernes, Norwegian black metal musician (convicted of murder and arson), born in Bergen, Norway
- Feb 12 Tara Strong, Canadian-American voice actress (Rugrats, The Powerpuff Girls), born in Toronto, Ontario
- Feb 13 Willie Smith, American NFL linebacker (Detroit Lions), born in Smithfield, North Carolina
- Feb 14 George Hegamin, American football offensive lineman (Dallas Cowboys, Frankfurt Galaxy), born in Camden, New Jersey
- Feb 14 Steve McNair, American football quarterback (Houston Oilers, Titans), born in Mount Olive, Mississippi (d. 2009)
- Feb 14 Tyus Edney, American basketball player (Boston Celtics, Sacramento Kings), born in Gardena, California
- Feb 15 Alex Borstein, American actress and animator (The Marvelous Mrs Maisel), born in Highland Park, Illinois
- Feb 15 Amy Van Dyken, US 50m/100m freestyle/100m butterfly swimmer (Olympic 2 g-96), born in Denver, Colorado
- Feb 16 Cathy Freeman, Australian athlete (Olympic gold 400m 2000; silver 1996; World C'ship gold 400m 1997, 99), born in Mackay, Australia
- Feb 16 Christian Bassedas, Argentine footballer (Vélez Sársfield_ and coach, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Feb 16 Luis Montenegro, Portuguese politician, Prime Minister of Portugal (2024-), born in Porto, Portugal
- Feb 17 Chris Robinson, NBA guard (Vancouver Grizzlies)
- Feb 17 Drew Barry, NBA guard (Atlanta Hawks)
- Feb 17 Frank Sanders, NFL wide receiver (Arizona Cardinals)
- Feb 17 Raymond Jackson, NFL defensive back (Buffalo Bills)
- Feb 18 Claude Makélélé, French footballer, born in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Feb 19 Terrence Rencher, American NBA guard (Phoenix Suns), born in The Bronx, New York
- Feb 19 Tommy Bennett, American NFL player (Arizona Cardinals), born in Las Vegas, Nevada
- Feb 21 Bowie Tsang, Taiwanese singer and TV host, born in Hong Kong
- Feb 21 Brian Rolston, American NHL left wing (Olympics 1994, NJ Devils), born in Flint, Michigan
- Feb 21 Heri Joensen, Faroese musician, born in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
- Feb 22 Claus Lundekvam, Norwegian footballer, born in Austevoll, Norway
- Feb 22 Dani Löble, Swiss-German heavy metal drummer (Helloween, 2005-present), born in Zurich, Switzerland
- Feb 22 Einar Kristian Tveitå, Norwegian athlete
- Feb 22 Juninho Paulista, Brazilian footballer, born in São Paulo, Brazil
- Feb 22 Kimberly Davies, Australian actress (Baywatch), born in Melbourne, Victoria
- Feb 22 Ntala Skinner, American biathlete (Olympics 1994), born in Sun Valley, Idaho
- Feb 22 Scott "Flip" Phillips, American songwriter, drummer and record producer (Creed; Alter Bridge), born in Atlanta, Georgia
- Feb 23 Jack Case, American artist
- Feb 23 Lars-Olof Johansson, Swedish musician (The Cardigans), born in Huskvarna, Sweden
- Feb 23 Robert Pipkins, American luge racer (Olympics 1994), born in Buffalo, New York
- Feb 24 Alexei Kovalev, NHL right wing (NY Rangers), born in Moscow, Russia
- Feb 24 Chris Fehn, American heavy metal percussionist (Slipknot, 1998-2019), born in Des Moines, Iowa
- Feb 24 Harold Morrow, full back (Minnesota Vikings)
- Feb 24 James Michael Kennedy, rocker (4 Fun-Unbelievable Fun Boys), born in Boston, Massachusetts
- Feb 24 Jordan Jovtchev, Bulgarian gymnast
- Feb 24 Kavis Reed, American CFL executive (GM Montreal Alouettes 2016-19) and coach (Edmonton Eskimos 2011-13), born in Georgetown, South Carolina
- Feb 25 Anson Mount, American stage and screen actor, producer (Hell On Wheels; Cook County), playwright, and educator, born in Mount Prospect, Illinois
- Feb 25 Julio Iglesias, Jr., Spanish model and pop singer ("One More Chance"), born in Madrid, Spain
- Feb 25 Justin Jeffre, American boy-band singer (98 Degrees - "Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)"), born in Mount Clemens, Michigan
- Feb 25 Normann Stadler, German athlete (Ironman Triathlon World Champion, 2004 & 2006), born in Wertheim am Main, West Germany
- Feb 26 Jenny Thompson, American 400m freestyle swimmer (Olympic gold 1992, 96), born in Danvers, Massachusetts
- Feb 26 Marshall Faulk, American NFL running back (Indianapolis Colts), born in New Orleans, Louisiana
- Feb 26 Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Norwegian football player and manager, born in Kristiansund, Norway
- Feb 27 Mark Taylor, Welsh rugby union centre and captain (52 Tests; Pontypool RFC, Swansea RFC, Scarlets, Sale FC, Ospreys), born in Blaenavon, Wales
Peter Andre (51 years old)
Feb 27 English singer (Flava, I Feel You) and TV personality (I'm a Celebrity), born in London, England
Eric Lindros (51 years old)
Feb 28 Canadian NHL forward,1992-2007, 6X All-Star (Philadelphia Flyers, and 3 other teams; Olympic Gold - 2002), born in London, Ontario
- Feb 28 Gary Walker, American NFL defensive tackle/defensive end, 1995-2005 (Houston Oilers, and 2 other teams), born in Royston, Georgia
- Feb 28 Nicolas Minassian, French-Armenian racing driver, born in Marseille, France
Famous Deaths
- Feb 2 Hendrik Elias, Flemish historian and Mayor of Ghent (1941-44), dies at 70
- Feb 3 Edward Lockspeiser, British composer and musicologist (Debussy: His Life and Mind), dies at 67
- Feb 6 Ira S Bowen, US physicist and astronomer (Mt Wilson/Palomar), dies at 74
- Feb 8 Herbie Taylor, South African cricket batsman and captain (42 Tests; 2,936 runs @ 40.77; 7 x 100s), dies at 83
- Feb 9 Max Yasgur, American dairy farmer, and owner Woodstock Festival site in Bethel, New York, dies of a heart attack at 53
- Feb 9 Vasiliki Maliaros, Greek-American actress (The Exorcist), dies at 89
- Feb 11 Elisabeth Achelis, American heiress, writer, and proponent of the 13-month World Calendar, dies at 93
- Feb 11 J. Hans D. Jensen, German physicist (Nobel prize 1963), dies at 65
- Feb 12 Benjamin Frankel, British composer, dies at 67
- Feb 15 Tim Holt [Charles John Holt III], American actor (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre), dies of bone cancer at 54
- Feb 15 Wallace "Wally" Cox, American comedian and actor (Mister, Underdog, Peepers, Hollywood Squares), dies of a heart attack at 48
- Feb 16 Herbert J. Krapp, American theatre architect and designer responsible for almost half of current Broadway venues, dies of a heart attack at 86
- Feb 16 Pieter Van der Bijl, South African cricket batsman (5 Tests, 1 x 100, HS 125; Western Province, Oxford University CC), dies at 65
Frank Costello (1891-1973)
Feb 18 Italian-American gangster (The Prime Minister of the Underworld), dies of a heart attack at 82
- Feb 20 Brigitte Reimann, German writer (Franziska Linkerhand), dies of cancer at 39
- Feb 20 Joseph Szigeti, Hungarian violinist (Violinist Notebook 1933), dies at 80
- Feb 20 Maurice Dallimore, British actor (The Collector, Me and My Girl), dies from Laennec's cirrhosis at 60
- Feb 22 Elizabeth Bowen, Anglo-Irish novelist (The Death of the Heart, Cat Jumps), dies at 73
- Feb 22 Hope Landin, American actress (I Remember Mama; Sugarfoot), dies at 79
- Feb 22 Jean-Jacques Bertrand, 21st Premier of Quebec (1968-70), dies at 56
- Feb 22 Katina Paxinou, actress (For Whom the Bell Tolls, Zita), dies at 72
- Feb 22 Winthrop Rockefeller, US governor (Arkansas), dies at 60
- Feb 23 Dickinson W. Richards, American physician (Nobel 1956 - development of cardiac catheterization and the characterisation of a number of cardiac diseases), dies at 77
- Feb 24 Art Smith, actor (Quicksand), dies of a heart attack at 73
- Feb 26 Doc Hayes, American basketball coach (Southern Methodist University 1947-67), dies in an auto accident at 67
- Feb 26 Mary Finney, American actress (Honestly Celeste), dies at 68
- Feb 27 Lucijan Marija Skerjanc, Yugoslav conductor and composer, dies at 72
- Feb 28 (Pablo) "Tito" Rodríguez, Puerto Rican timbalero, singer, bandleader ("Inolvidable"), and television host, dies of leukemia at 50
- Feb 28 Cecil Kellaway, South African-American stage and screen character actor (Guess Who's Coming to Dinner; The Luck of the Irish), dies at 82
