Colin James Bundy is a South African historian, former principal of Green Templeton College, Oxford and former SOAS University of London director. Bundy was an influential member of a generation of historians who substantially revised our understanding of South African history. In particular, he wrote on South Africa's rural past from a predominantly Marxist perspective, but also deploying Africanist and underdevelopment theories. Since the mid-1990s, however, Bundy has held a series of posts in university administration. Bundy is also a trustee of the Canon Collins Educational & Legal Assistance Trust.

1944Rocío Dúrcal, Spanish singer and actress (died 2006)^[†]

María de los Ángeles de las Heras Ortiz, better known as Rocío Dúrcal, was a Spanish singer and actress with a career spanning more than four decades. She performed pop music, bolero, mariachi and romantic ballads and is widely regarded as one of the greatest Spanish singers of all time. Popular across Mexico and Latin America, she earned the sobriquet "Reina de las Rancheras".

1944Tony La Russa, American baseball player and manager^[†]

Anthony La Russa Jr. is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. His Major League Baseball (MLB) career has spanned from 1963 to 2022, in several roles. He is the former manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago White Sox. In 33 years as a manager, La Russa guided his teams to three World Series titles, six league championships, and 13 division titles. His managerial total of 2,884 MLB wins is second only to Connie Mack's.

1944John McFall, Baron McFall of Alcluith, Scottish educator and politician^[†]

John Francis McFall, Baron McFall of Alcluith, is a Scottish politician and life peer who has served as Lord Speaker, the presiding officer of the House of Lords, since 2021. He was a member of Parliament for the Labour and Co-operative Party from 1987 to 2010, first for Dumbarton and then from 2005 for West Dunbartonshire. He also served as Chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Committee. Following his appointment to the House of Lords, McFall served as Senior Deputy Speaker from 2016 to 2021 before succeeding Lord Fowler as Lord Speaker.

Notable Deaths

1944Al Smith, American lawyer and politician, 42nd Governor of New York (born 1873)^[†]

Alfred Emanuel Smith was an American politician who served as the 42nd governor of New York from 1919 to 1920 and again from 1923 to 1928. He was the Democratic Party's presidential nominee in the 1928 presidential election, losing to Herbert Hoover of the Republican Party in a landslide.