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September 16, 1939

Revisit the news, notable people, and historical moments connected to this date.

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Headlines from September 16, 1939

SAAR DRIVE GOES ON; Allies Turn Back Heavy Counter-Attack From Low-Flying Planes POSITION STRONGER Major Offensive is Now Expected Shortly as Gains Continue

By G.h. Archambault Wireless To the New York Times

Local action believed to herald major French offensive; map; Brit units reptd taking assigned places; Germans admit evacuation of Saar and Palatinate civilians; French push on Trier from Perl; little action reptd on front from Lauterbourg to Swiss border; French air victory reptd

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Notable Births

Breyten Breytenbach

1939Breyten Breytenbach, South African-French poet and painter (died 2024)[†]

Breyten Breytenbach was a South African writer, poet, and painter. He became internationally well-known as a dissident poet and vocal critic of South Africa under apartheid, and as a political prisoner of the National Party–led South African Government. He was also known as a founding member of the Sestigers, a dissident literary movement, and was one of the most important poets in Afrikaans literature.

Bill McGill

1939Bill McGill, American basketball player (died 2014)[†]

Bill "The Hill" McGill was an American basketball player best known for inventing the jump hook. McGill was the No. 1 overall pick of the 1962 NBA draft out of the University of Utah, with whom he led the NCAA in scoring with 38.8 points per game in the 1961–1962 season.