On this day
Revisit the news, notable people, and historical moments connected to this date.
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surprise daytime alert; pub reaction praised by Comr Valentine, scored by LaGuardia; illus
Orders annual Annapolis-West Point football game shifted from Municipal Stadium, Phila, to Annapolis
USSR troops dent Ger lines around Stalingrad; Timoshenko forces gather momentum to press further attacks; USSR forces reptd intact; Ger tank losses, Sept 1-Oct 20, estimated; Gers claim slow Stalingrad advance
US forces repel Jap land thrust, Guadalcanal; planes harass foe; Sec Stimson stresses US operations unity; Berlin radio repts 2 US cruisers lost
1942Douglas Dunn, Scottish poet, critic, and academic[†]
Douglas Eaglesham Dunn, OBE is a Scottish poet, academic, and critic. He is Professor of English and Director of St Andrew's Scottish Studies Institute at St Andrew's University.
1942Bernd Erdmann, German footballer and manager[†]
Bernd Erdmann is a former German football player and manager.
1942Anita Roddick, English businesswoman and activist, founded The Body Shop (died 2007)[†]
Dame Anita Lucia Roddick was a British businesswoman, human rights activist and environmental campaigner, best known as the founder of The Body Shop, The Body Shop International Limited, a cosmetics company producing and retailing natural beauty products which shaped ethical consumerism. The company was one of the first to prohibit the use of products being tested on animals in some of its products and one of the first to promote fair trade with developing countries.
1942Michael Crichton, American author and screenwriter (died 2008)[†]
John Michael Crichton was an American author, screenwriter and filmmaker. His books have sold over 200 million copies worldwide, and over a dozen have been adapted into films. His literary works heavily feature technology and are usually within the science fiction, techno-thriller, and medical fiction genres. Crichton's novels often explore human technological advancement and attempted dominance over nature, both with frequently catastrophic results; many of his works are cautionary tales, especially regarding themes of biotechnology. Several of his stories center on themes of genetic modification, hybridization, paleontology and/or zoology. Many feature medical or scientific underpinnings, reflective of his own medical training.
1942Ralph Rainger, American pianist and composer (born 1901)[†]
Ralph Rainger was an American composer of popular music principally for films.
1942World War II: Allied forces commence the Second Battle of El Alamein, which proves to be the key turning point in the North African campaign.[†]
World War II or the Second World War was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the deadliest conflict in history, causing the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.
1942All 12 passengers and crewmen aboard American Airlines Flight 28 are killed when it collides with a U.S. Army Air Force bomber near Palm Springs, California.[†]
American Airlines Flight 28 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight that crashed on October 23, 1942, in Chino Canyon near Palm Springs, California, United States, after being struck by a United States Army Air Forces B-34 bomber. The B-34 suffered only minor damage, and landed safely at the Army Airport of the Sixth Ferrying Command, Palm Springs.
1942World War II: The Battle for Henderson Field begins on Guadalcanal.[†]
The Battle for Henderson Field, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal or Battle of Lunga Point by the Japanese, took place from 23 to 26 October 1942 on and around Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. The battle was a land, sea, and air battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II and was fought between the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy and Allied forces, mainly U.S. Marines and Army. The battle was the last of three major land offensives conducted by the Japanese during the Guadalcanal campaign.