June 17, 1929

1929Bud Collins, American journalist and sportscaster (died 2016)^[†]

Arthur Worth "Bud" Collins Jr. was an American journalist and television sportscaster, best known for his tennis commentary. Collins was married to photographer Anita Ruthling Klaussen.

1929Tigran Petrosian, Armenian chess player (died 1984)^[†]

Tigran Vardani Petrosian was a Soviet-Armenian chess grandmaster. The ninth World Chess Champion from 1963 to 1969, he was nicknamed "Iron Tigran" due to his almost-impenetrable defensive playing style, which emphasized safety above all else. Petrosian is often credited with popularizing chess in Armenia.

1929The town of Murchison, New Zealand is rocked by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake killing 17. At the time it was New Zealand's worst natural disaster.^[†]

Murchison is a town in the Tasman Region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is near the western end of the "Four Rivers Plain", at the confluence of the Buller River and the Mātakitaki River. The other two rivers are the Mangles River, and the Matiri River. It is a rural service town for the surrounding mixed farming district, approximately halfway between Westport and Nelson. Murchison was named after the Scottish geologist Roderick Murchison, one of the founders of the Royal Geographical Society.