On this day

October 25, 1940

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

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Headlines from October 25, 1940

Notable Births

1940Jimmy Herman, Canadian actor (died 2013)[†]

Jimmy Herman was an Indigenous Canadian actor who appeared in several films, including Dances with Wolves.

Bob Knight

1940Bob Knight, American basketball player and coach (died 2023)[†]

Robert Montgomery Knight was an American men's college basketball coach. Nicknamed "the General", he won 902 NCAA Division I men's basketball games, a record at the time of his retirement and sixth all-time record at the time of his death.

Notable Deaths

Thomas Waddell

1940Thomas Waddell, Irish-Australian politician, 15th Premier of New South Wales (born 1854)[†]

Thomas Waddell, an Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1887 to 1917, was briefly the premier of New South Wales during 1904, and was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 1917 to 1934. His 75 days in office marks the shortest tenure of any New South Wales premier.

Historical Events

Benjamin O. Davis Sr.

1940Benjamin O. Davis Sr. is named the first African American general in the United States Army.[†]

Benjamin Oliver Davis Sr. was a career officer in the United States Army. One of the few black officers in an era when American society was largely segregated, in 1940 he was promoted to brigadier general, the army's first African American general officer.