US bombers hit Ger mil installations, southwestern and northern France; RAF attacks Berlin and undisclosed objectives in western Ger and Cognac, Bergerac and other points in southwestern France; incomplete rept shows 14 Ger planes downed, 4 US bombers and 5 escort fighters missing; US Strategic Air Force hdqrs repts 23 US fighters missing in 1st Berlin raid; 15 Ger fighters destroyed; Lt W V Owens reptd 1st Fortress pilot over Berlin; Messerschmitt plant, Gotha, Ger, knocked out in Feb 24 US raid

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Notable Births

1944Richard Corliss, American journalist and critic (died 2015)^[†]

Richard Nelson Corliss was an American film critic and magazine editor for Time. He focused on movies, with occasional articles on other subjects.

1944Kiri Te Kanawa, New Zealand soprano and actress^[†]

Dame Kiri Jeanette Claire Te Kanawa is a New Zealand opera singer. She had a full lyric soprano voice, which has been described as "mellow yet vibrant, warm, ample and unforced". On 1 December 1971 she was recognised internationally when she appeared as the Countess in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro at the Royal Opera House in London.

1944Mary Wilson, American singer (died 2021)^[†]

Mary Wilson was an American singer. She gained worldwide recognition as a founding member of the Supremes, the most successful Motown act of the 1960s and the best-charting female group in U.S. chart history, as well as one of the best-selling girl groups of all-time. The trio reached number one on Billboard's Hot 100 with 12 of their singles, ten of which feature Wilson on backing vocals.

Historical Events

1944World War II: Soviet Air Forces bomb an evacuated town of Narva in German-occupied Estonia, destroying the entire historical Swedish-era town.^[†]

The Soviet Air Forces were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces were formed from components of the Imperial Russian Air Service in 1917, and faced their greatest test during World War II. The groups were also involved in the Korean War, and dissolved along with the Soviet Union itself in 1991–92. Former Soviet Air Forces' assets were subsequently divided into several air forces of former Soviet republics, including the new Russian Air Force. The "March of the Pilots" was its marching song.