September 21

September 21 in recent years

2024 (Saturday)

2023 (Thursday)

2022 (Wednesday)

2021 (Tuesday)

2020 (Monday)

2019 (Saturday)

2018 (Friday)

2017 (Thursday)

2016 (Wednesday)

2015 (Monday)

September 21 is the 264th day of the year (265th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 101 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 19BCE The death of the Roman poet Virgil; the creator of the Aeneid.
• 455 – Emperor Avitus enters Rome with a Gallic army and consolidates his power.
• 1217 – Livonian Crusade: The Estonian leader Lembitu and Livonian leader Kaupo the Accursed are killed in Battle of Matthew's Day.
• 1435 – An agreement between Charles VII of France and Philip the Good ends the partnership between the English and Burgundy in Hundred Years' War.
• 1745 – Battle of Prestonpans: A Hanoverian army under the command of Sir John Cope is defeated, in ten minutes, by the Jacobite forces of Prince Charles Edward Stuart
• 1776 – Part of New York City is burned shortly after being occupied by British forces.
• 1780 – American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold gives the British the plans to West Point.
• 1792 – The National Convention declares France a republic and abolishes the monarchy.
• 1843 – John Williams Wilson takes possession of the Strait of Magellan on behalf of the newly independent Chilean government.
• 1860 – In the Second Opium War, an Anglo-French force defeats Chinese troops at the Battle of Palikao.
• 1896 – British force under Horatio Kitchener takes Dongola in the Sudan.
• 1897 – The "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" editorial is published in the New York Sun.
• 1898 – Empress Dowager Cixi seizes power and ends the Hundred Days' Reform in China.
• 1921 – A storage silo in Oppau, Germany, explodes, killing 500-600 people.
• 1933 – Salvador Lutteroth ran the first ever EMLL (now CMLL) show in Mexico, marking the birth of Lucha Libre
• 1934 – A large typhoon hits western Honshū, Japan, killing 3,036 people.
• 1937 – J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit is published.
• 1938 – The Great Hurricane of 1938 makes landfall on Long Island in New York. The death toll is estimated at 500-700 people.
• 1939 – Romanian Prime Minister Armand Călinescu is assassinated by far-right legionnaires of the fascist paramilitary organization called the Iron Guard.
• 1942 – On the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, Nazis send over 1,000 Jews of Pidhaytsi (west Ukraine) to Belzec extermination camp.
• 1942 – In Poland, at the end of Yom Kippur, Germans order Jews to permanently evacuate Konstantynów and move to the Ghetto in Biała Podlaska, established to assemble Jews from seven nearby towns, including Janów Podlaski, Rossosz and Terespol.
• 1942 – In Dunaivtsi, Ukraine, Nazis murder 2,588 Jews.
• 1942 – The B-29 Superfortress makes its maiden flight.
• 1953 – LT No Kum-Sok a North Korean pilot defected to South Korea and is associated with Operation Moolah.
• 1961 – Maiden flight of the CH-47 Chinook transportation helicopter.
• 1964 – Malta becomes independent from the United Kingdom.
• 1964 – The North American XB-70 Valkyrie, the world's first Mach 3 bomber, makes its maiden flight from Palmdale, California.
• 1965 – Gambia, Maldives and Singapore are admitted as members of the United Nations.
• 1971 – Bahrain, Bhutan and Qatar join the United Nations.
• 1972 – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos signs Proclamation № 1081, placing the entire country under martial law and marking the beginning of his authoritarian rule.
• 1976 – Orlando Letelier is assassinated in Washington, D.C. He is a member of the Chilean socialist government of Salvador Allende, overthrown in 1973 by Augusto Pinochet.
• 1976 – Seychelles joins the United Nations.
• 1977 – A nuclear non-proliferation pact is signed by 15 countries, including the United States and the Soviet Union.
• 1981 – Belize is granted full independence from the United Kingdom.
• 1981 – Sandra Day O'Connor is unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate as the first female Supreme Court justice.
• 1984 – Brunei joins the United Nations.
• 1991 – Armenia is granted independence from Soviet Union.
• 1993 – Russian President Boris Yeltsin suspends parliament and scraps the then-functioning constitution, thus triggering the Russian constitutional crisis of 1993.
• 1999 – Chi-Chi earthquake occurs in central Taiwan, leaving about 2,400 people dead.
• 2001 – Deep Space 1 flies within 2,200 km of Comet Borrelly.
• 2001 – America: A Tribute to Heroes is broadcast by over 35 network and cable channels, raising over $200 million for the victims of the September 11 attacks.
• 2003 – Galileo mission is terminated by sending the probe into Jupiter's atmosphere, where it is crushed by the pressure at the lower altitudes.
• 2013 – Gunmen attack a shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya, killing at least 72 people.

Births

• 1051 – Bertha of Savoy (d. 1087)
• 1411 – Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York, English politician (d. 1460)
• 1415 – Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1493)
• 1428 – Jingtai Emperor of China (d. 1457)
• 1433 – Guillaume Fichet, French scholar (d. 1480)
• 1452 – Girolamo Savonarola, Italian priest and philosopher (d. 1498)
• 1559 – Cigoli, Italian painter and architect (d. 1613)
• 1629 – Philip Howard, English cardinal (d. 1694)
• 1645 – Louis Jolliet, Canadian explorer (d. 1700)
• 1706 – Polyxena of Hesse-Rotenburg (d. 1735)
• 1756 – John Loudon McAdam, Scottish engineer and road builder (d. 1836)
• 1758 – Christopher Gore, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 8th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1827)
• 1760 – Ivan Dmitriev, Russian poet and politician, Minister of Justice for Imperial Russia (d. 1837)
• 1819 – Louise Marie Thérèse d'Artois, French wife of Charles III, Duke of Parma (d. 1864)
• 1840 – Murad V, Ottoman sultan (d. 1904)
• 1842 – Abdul Hamid II, Ottoman sultan (d. 1918)
• 1846 – Mihály Kolossa, Hungarian-Slovene author (d. 1906)
• 1849 – Maurice Barrymore, Indian-American actor (d. 1905)
• 1853 – Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, Dutch physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1926)
• 1859 – Francesc Macià i Llussà, Catalan colonel and politician, 122nd President of Catalonia (d. 1933)
• 1860 – Wilson Kettle, Canadian centenarian (d. 1963)
• 1862 – James E. Talmage, American religious leader and author (d. 1933)
• 1863 – John Bunny, American actor (d. 1915)
• 1866 – Charles Nicolle, French-Tunisian bacteriologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1936)
• 1866 – H. G. Wells, English journalist, historian, and author (d. 1946)
• 1867 – Henry L. Stimson, American colonel, lawyer, and politician, 46th United States Secretary of State (d. 1950)
• 1872 – Henry Tingle Wilde, English chief officer on the RMS Titanic (d. 1912)
• 1873 – Papa Jack Laine, American drummer and bandleader (d. 1966)
• 1874 – Gustav Holst, English composer and educator (d. 1934)
• 1878 – Peter McWilliam, Scottish footballer and manager (d. 1951)
• 1882 – Geevarghese Mar Ivanios, Indian archbishop (d. 1953)
• 1890 – Max Immelmann, German pilot (d. 1916)
• 1890 – Charles William Train, English sergeant, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1965)
• 1892 – Olof Ås, Swedish actor and production manager (d. 1949)
• 1896 – Walter Breuning, American super-centenarian (d. 2011)
• 1899 – Frederick Coutts, Scottish 8th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1986)
• 1902 – Luis Cernuda, Spanish poet (d. 1963)
• 1902 – Allen Lane, English publisher, founded Penguin Books (d. 1970)
• 1902 – Howie Morenz, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1937)
• 1903 – Preston Tucker, American automobile designer, designed the Tucker Sedan (d. 1956)
• 1905 – Robert Lebel, Canadian businessman and politician (d. 1999)
• 1906 – Henry Beachell, American plant breeder (d. 2006)
• 1909 – Kwame Nkrumah, Ghanaian educator and politician, 1st President of Ghana (d. 1972)
• 1912 – Chuck Jones, American animator, screenwriter, and producer (d. 2002)
• 1912 – György Sándor, Hungarian pianist and composer (d. 2005)
• 1914 – Slam Stewart, American bassist (d. 1987)
• 1916 – Françoise Giroud, Swiss-French journalist and politician (d. 2003)
• 1917 – Phyllis Nicolson, English mathematician (d. 1968)
• 1917 – Jackie Gerlich, Austrian actor (d. 1960)
• 1918 – John Gofman, American physicist, chemist, and biologist (d. 2007)
• 1918 – Karl Slover, Slovak-American actor (d. 2011)
• 1919 – Mario Bunge, Argentinian-Canadian physicist and philosopher
• 1919 – Herman Fowlkes, Jr., American trumpet player and educator (d. 1993)
• 1919 – Fazlur Rahman Malik, Pakistani scholar (d. 1988)
• 1921 – John McHale, American baseball player and manager (d. 2008)
• 1924 – Hermann Buhl, Austrian mountaineer (d. 1957)
• 1925 – Konrad B. Knutsen, Norwegian politician (d. 2012)
• 1926 – Donald A. Glaser, American physicist and neurobiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2013)
• 1926 – Noor Jehan, Pakistani actress and singer (d. 2000)
• 1926 – Fereydoon Moshiri, Iranian poet (d. 2000)
• 1927 – Ward Swingle, American-French singer-songwriter and conductor (Les Double Six)
• 1929 – Héctor Alterio, Argentinian actor
• 1929 – Shafi Hadi, American saxophonist
• 1929 – Sándor Kocsis, Hungarian footballer and manager (d. 1979)
• 1929 – Edgar Valter, Estonian author and illustrator (d. 2006)
• 1929 – Bernard Williams, English philosopher and academic (d. 2003)
• 1930 – John Morgan, Welsh-Canadian actor and screenwriter (d. 2004)
• 1930 – Bob Stokoe, English footballer and manager (d. 2004)
• 1931 – Larry Hagman, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2012)
• 1933 – Allan Jeans, Australian footballer and coach (d. 2011)
• 1933 – Dick Simon, American race car driver
• 1934 – Leonard Cohen, Canadian singer-songwriter and author
• 1935 – Jimmy Armfield, English footballer and manager
• 1935 – Henry Gibson, American actor and singer (d. 2009)
• 1936 – Dickey Lee, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1936 – Yury Luzhkov, Russian politician, 2nd Mayor of Moscow
• 1936 – Sunny Murray, American drummer
• 1936 – Diane Rehm, American radio host
• 1937 – John D'Amico, Canadian ice hockey player and referee (d. 2005)
• 1938 – Doug Moe, American basketball player and coach
• 1939 – Agnivesh, Indian activist and politician
• 1940 – Ron Fenton, English footballer, coach, and manager (d. 2013)
• 1940 – Hermann Knoflacher, Austrian engineer
• 1940 – Bill Kurtis, American journalist and producer
• 1941 – Jack Brisco, American wrestler (d. 2010)
• 1941 – R. James Woolsey, Jr., American diplomat, 16th Director of Central Intelligence
• 1942 – U-Roy, Jamaican singer-songwriter and DJ
• 1944 – Steve Beshear, American lawyer and politician, 61st Governor of Kentucky
• 1944 – Fannie Flagg, American actress and author
• 1944 – Hamilton Jordan, American politician, 8th White House Chief of Staff (d. 2008)
• 1944 – Bobby Tench, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Gass, Hummingbird, Humble Pie, and Streetwalkers)
• 1945 – Jerry Bruckheimer, American film and television producer
• 1945 – G. C. Cameron, American singer (The Spinners)
• 1945 – Richard Childress, American race car driver
• 1945 – Shaw Clifton, Irish 18th General of The Salvation Army
• 1945 – Kay Ryan, American poet and educator
• 1946 – Moritz Leuenberger, Swiss lawyer and politician, 87th President of the Swiss Confederation
• 1946 – Mart Siimann, Estonian politician, 12th Prime Minister of Estonia
• 1947 – Don Felder, American guitarist and songwriter (Eagles)
• 1947 – Stephen King, American author and screenwriter
• 1947 – Marsha Norman, American playwright and author
• 1949 – Henry Butler, American pianist
• 1949 – Artis Gilmore, American basketball player and radio host
• 1949 – Odilo Scherer, Brazilian cardinal
• 1950 – Charles Clarke, English politician
• 1950 – Bill Murray, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1951 – Bruce Arena, American soccer player and manager
• 1951 – Aslan Maskhadov, Chechen general and politician, 3rd President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (d. 2005)
• 1952 – Dave Gregory, English guitarist (XTC and Big Big Train)
• 1952 – Anneliese Michel, German woman believed to be possessed by demons (d. 1976)
• 1953 – Arie Luyendyk, Dutch race car driver
• 1954 – Shinzō Abe, Japanese politician, 90th Prime Minister of Japan
• 1954 – Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor, English drummer (Motörhead and Waysted)
• 1955 – François Cluzet, French actor
• 1955 – Gulshan Grover, Indian actor
• 1955 – Richard Hieb, American engineer and astronaut
• 1955 – Mika Kaurismäki, Finnish director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1956 – Jack Givens, American basketball player and sportscaster
• 1956 – Marta Kauffman, American screenwriter and producer
• 1956 – Ricky Morton, American wrestler
• 1957 – Ethan Coen, American director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1957 – Mark Levin, American lawyer, radio host, and author
• 1957 – Sidney Moncrief, American basketball player and coach
• 1957 – Kevin Rudd, Australian politician, 26th Prime Minister of Australia
• 1957 – Penny Smith, English journalist
• 1958 – Bruno Fitoussi, French poker player
• 1958 – Rick Mahorn, American basketball player and coach
• 1959 – Crin Antonescu, Romanian politician, President of Romania
• 1959 – Dave Coulier, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1959 – Danny Cox, English-American baseball player and coach
• 1959 – Corinne Drewery, English singer-songwriter (Swing Out Sister and Working Week)
• 1959 – André Hennicke, German actor and screenwriter
• 1960 – David James Elliott, Canadian-American actor
• 1960 – Kelley Eskridge, American author
• 1960 – Sikandar Sanam, Pakistani actor and singer (d. 2012)
• 1961 – Billy Collins, Jr., American boxer (d. 1984)
• 1961 – Nancy Travis, American actress
• 1962 – Rob Morrow, American actor, singer, and director
• 1963 – Curtly Ambrose, Antiguan-Barbudan cricketer
• 1963 – Cecil Fielder, American baseball player
• 1963 – Angus Macfadyen, Scottish actor
• 1963 – Mamoru Samuragochi, Japanese impostor
• 1964 – Jorge Drexler, Uruguayan singer-songwriter
• 1964 – Lester Quitzau, Canadian guitarist
• 1965 – Frédéric Beigbeder, French author and critic
• 1965 – Cheryl Hines, American actress, director, and producer
• 1965 – Johanna Vuoksenmaa, Finnish director and screenwriter
• 1965 – David Wenham, Australian actor and producer
• 1966 – Kerrin Lee-Gartner, Canadian skier
• 1966 – Ronna Reeves, American singer
• 1967 – Glen Benton, American singer-songwriter and bass player (Deicide and Vital Remains)
• 1967 – Faith Hill, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
• 1967 – Tyler Stewart, Canadian drummer (Barenaked Ladies)
• 1968 – David Jude Jolicoeur, American rapper and producer (De La Soul)
• 1968 – Ricki Lake, American actress, producer, and talk show host
• 1969 – Jason Christiansen, American baseball player
• 1969 – Curtis Leschyshyn, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1970 – John Cudia, American actor
• 1970 – Melissa Ferrick, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1970 – Samantha Power, Irish-American diplomat, 28th United States Ambassador to the United Nations
• 1971 – John Crawley, English cricketer
• 1971 – Alfonso Ribeiro, American actor and director
• 1971 – David Vetter, American victim of severe combined immune deficiency syndrome (d. 1984)
• 1971 – Luke Wilson, American actor
• 1972 – Olivia Bonamy, French actress
• 1972 – Liam Gallagher, English singer-songwriter (Oasis, Beady Eye, The Rain)
• 1972 – Jon Kitna, American football player and coach
• 1972 – David Silveria, American drummer and songwriter (Korn and L.A.P.D.)
• 1972 – Scott Spiezio, American baseball player
• 1973 – Heather Brewer, American author
• 1973 – Vanessa Grigoriadis, American journalist
• 1973 – Oswaldo Sánchez, Mexican footballer
• 1974 – Bryce Drew, American basketball player and coach
• 1974 – Taral Hicks, American actress and singer
• 1974 – Jana Kandarr, German tennis player
• 1974 – Andy Todd, English footballer
• 1975 – Doug Davis, American baseball player
• 1976 – Jonas Bjerre, Danish singer-songwriter and guitarist (Mew and Apparatjik)
• 1976 – Poul Hübertz, Danish footballer
• 1977 – Andre Pärn, Estonian basketball player
• 1977 – Brian Tallet, American baseball player
• 1978 – Luke Godden, Australian footballer
• 1978 – Doug Howlett, New Zealand rugby player
• 1978 – Mario Miranda, Brazilian mixed martial artist
• 1979 – James Allan, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist (Glasvegas)
• 1979 – Bradford Anderson, American actor
• 1979 – Richard Dunne, Irish footballer
• 1979 – Chris Gayle, Jamaican cricketer
• 1979 – Julian Gray, English footballer
• 1979 – Monika Merl, German runner
• 1979 – Jaymee Ong, Australian model and actress
• 1980 – Stacy Clark, American singer-songwriter
• 1980 – Robert Hoffman, American actor, dancer, and choreographer
• 1980 – Kareena Kapoor Khan, Indian actress and singer
• 1980 – Nyree Kindred, Welsh swimmer
• 1980 – Aleksa Palladino, American actress
• 1980 – Autumn Reeser, American actress
• 1980 – Tomas Scheckter, South African race car driver
• 1981 – Phoenix Marie, American porn actress and model
• 1981 – Nicole Richie, American actress, singer, fashion designer, and author
• 1981 – Rimi Sen, Indian actress
• 1982 – Eduardo Azevedo, Brazilian race car driver
• 1982 – Marat Izmailov, Russian footballer
• 1982 – Danny Kass, American snowboarder
• 1982 – Parvati Shallow, American reality show contestant, winner of Survivor: Micronesia
• 1982 – Christos Tapoutos, Greek basketball player
• 1982 – Rowan Vine, English footballer
• 1983 – Fernando Cavenaghi, Argentinian footballer
• 1983 – Kristian Gidlund, Swedish drummer and journalist (Sugarplum Fairy) (d. 2013)
• 1983 – Maggie Grace, American actress
• 1983 – Greg Jennings, American football player
• 1983 – Joseph Mazzello, American actor
• 1983 – Anna Meares, Australian cyclist
• 1984 – Ben Wildman-Tobriner, American swimmer
• 1985 – Justin Durant, American football player
• 1985 – Maryam Hassouni, Dutch actress
• 1986 – Faris Badwan, English singer-songwriter (The Horrors and Cat's Eyes)
• 1986 – Lindsey Stirling, American violinist and composer
• 1987 – Jimmy Clausen, American football player
• 1987 – Marcelo Estigarribia, Paraguayan footballer
• 1987 – Murilo Maccari, Brazilian footballer
• 1987 – Ashley Paris, American basketball player
• 1987 – Courtney Paris, American basketball player
• 1987 – Ryan Guzman, American actor
• 1988 – Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Pakistani politician
• 1989 – Jason Derulo, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor
• 1989 – Emma Watkins, Australian singer (The Wiggles)
• 1990 – Al-Farouq Aminu, American basketball player
• 1990 – Allison Scagliotti, American actress
• 1990 – Christian Serratos, American actress

Deaths

• 19 BC – Virgil, Roman poet (b. 70 BC)
• 454 – Flavius Aetius, Roman general (b. 396)
• 687 – Pope Conon (b. 630)
• 1217 – Lembitu, Estonian military leader
• 1217 – Caupo of Turaida
• 1235 – Andrew II of Hungary (b. 1175)
• 1327 – Edward II of England (b. 1284)
• 1397 – Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel, English commander (b. 1346)
• 1558 – Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1500)
• 1576 – Gerolamo Cardano, Italian mathematician, physician, and astrologer (b. 1501)
• 1586 – Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle, French cardinal (b. 1517)
• 1626 – François de Bonne, Duke of Lesdiguières (b. 1543)
• 1719 – Johann Heinrich Acker, German author (b. 1647)
• 1743 – Jai Singh II, Indian king (b. 1688)
• 1748 – John Balguy, English philosopher (b. 1686)
• 1796 – François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, French general (b. 1769)
• 1798 – George Read, American lawyer and politician, 3rd Governor of Delaware (b. 1733)
• 1812 – Emanuel Schikaneder, German actor, singer, and playwright (b. 1751)
• 1832 – Walter Scott, Scottish author, poet, and playwright (b. 1771)
• 1860 – Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher and author (b. 1788)
• 1874 – Jean-Baptiste Élie de Beaumont, French geologist (b. 1794)
• 1875 – Princess Alexandra of Bavaria (b. 1826)
• 1880 – Manuel Montt, Chilean scholar and politician, 6th President of Chile (b. 1809)
• 1904 – Chief Joseph, American tribal leader (b. 1840)
• 1906 – Samuel Arnold, American conspirator (b. 1838)
• 1926 – Léon Charles Thévenin, French engineer (b. 1857)
• 1930 – Juhan Maaker, Estonian torupill player (b. 1845)
• 1933 – Kenji Miyazawa, Japanese author and poet (b. 1896)
• 1938 – Ivana Brlić-Mažuranić, Croatian author (b. 1874)
• 1939 – Armand Călinescu, Romanian economist and politician, 39th Prime Minister of Romania (b. 1893)
• 1942 – John Symes, English cricketer (b. 1879)
• 1944 – Artur Phleps, Romanian general (b. 1881)
• 1946 – Olga Engl, Austrian-German actress (b. 1871)
• 1954 – Mikimoto Kōkichi, Japanese businessman (b. 1858)
• 1956 – Bill Struth, Scottish footballer and manager (b. 1875)
• 1957 – Haakon VII of Norway (b. 1872)
• 1962 – Bo Carter, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Mississippi Sheiks) (b. 1892)
• 1963 – Paulino Masip, Spanish author, playwright, and screenwriter (b. 1899)
• 1966 – Paul Reynaud, French lawyer and politician, 118th Prime Minister of France (b. 1878)
• 1971 – Bernardo Houssay, Argentinian physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1887)
• 1972 – Henry de Montherlant, French author and playwright (b. 1896)
• 1974 – Walter Brennan, American actor and singer (b. 1894)
• 1974 – Jacqueline Susann, American author and actress (b. 1918)
• 1976 – Orlando Letelier, Chilean economist and politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs for Chile (b. 1932)
• 1982 – Ivan Bagramyan, Russian general (b. 1897)
• 1985 – Gu Long, Chinese author and screenwriter (b. 1937)
• 1987 – Jaco Pastorius, American bass player, composer, and producer (Weather Report and Trio of Doom) (b. 1951)
• 1988 – Glenn Robert Davis, American lieutenant and politician (b. 1914)
• 1989 – Rajini Thiranagama, Sri Lankan physician and academic (b. 1954)
• 1990 – Takis Kanellopoulos, Greek director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1933)
• 1991 – Gordon Bashford, English engineer (b. 1916)
• 1992 – Tarachand Barjatya, Indian film producer, founded Rajshri Productions (b. 1914)
• 1995 – Rudy Perpich, American dentist and politician, 34th Governor of Minnesota (b. 1928)
• 1997 – Jennifer Holt, American-English actress and singer (b. 1920)
• 1998 – Florence Griffith-Joyner, American runner (b. 1959)
• 2000 – Jacques Flynn, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1915)
• 2000 – Leonid Rogozov, Russian surgeon (b. 1934)
• 2002 – Robert L. Forward, American physicist and engineer (b. 1932)
• 2002 – Rocco Rock, American wrestler (b. 1953)
• 2004 – Bob Mason, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1952)
• 2006 – Tasos Athanasiadis, Greek author (b. 1913)
• 2006 – Boz Burrell, English singer-songwriter and bass player (Bad Company and King Crimson) (b. 1946)
• 2007 – Hallgeir Brenden, Norwegian skier (b. 1929)
• 2007 – Alice Ghostley, American actress and singer (b. 1926)
• 2007 – Rex Humbard, American evangelist and television host (b. 1919)
• 2011 – Troy Davis, American murderer (b. 1968)
• 2011 – John Du Cann, English guitarist (The Attack, Andromeda, Atomic Rooster, and Hard Stuff) (b. 1946)
• 2011 – Jun Henmi, Japanese author and poet (b. 1939)
• 2011 – Pamela Ann Rymer, American judge (b. 1941)
• 2012 – Henry Bauchau, Belgian-French psychoanalyst and author (b. 1913)
• 2012 – Ed Conlin, American basketball player and coach (b. 1933)
• 2012 – José Curbelo, Cuban-American pianist and manager (b. 1917)
• 2012 – Yehuda Elkana, Israeli historian and philosopher (b. 1934)
• 2012 – Sven Hassel, Danish-German soldier and author (b. 1917)
• 2012 – Gopalan Kasturi, Indian journalist (b. 1924)
• 2012 – Bill King, English commander, sailor, and author (b. 1910)
• 2012 – Michael Rye, American voice actor (b. 1918)
• 2012 – Mike Sparken, French race car driver (b. 1930)
• 2012 – Tom Umphlett, American baseball player and manager (b. 1930)
• 2013 – Ruhila Adatia-Sood, Kenyan radio host (b. 1982)
• 2013 – Kofi Awoonor, Ghanaian author, poet, and diplomat (b. 1935)
• 2013 – Michel Brault, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1928)
• 2013 – Harl H. Haas, Jr., American lawyer, jurist, and politician (b. 1932)
• 2013 – Taro Ishida, Japanese actor (b. 1944)
• 2013 – Francis Peay, American football player and coach (b. 1944)
• 2013 – Walter Wallmann, German politician, Minister-President of Hesse (b. 1932)
• 2013 – Ko Wierenga, Dutch politician (b. 1933)

Holidays and observances

• Autumnal equinox observances in the Northern hemisphere, vernal equinox observances in the Southern hemisphere (see September 22):
  • Arbor Day (Brazil)
  • Spring Day (Argentina)
  • Student's Day (Bolivia)

• Christian Feast Day:
  • Matthew the Evangelist (Western Church)
  • Nativity of the Theotokos (Orthodox Church)
  • September 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

• Founder's Day (Ghana)
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Armenia from the Soviet Union in 1991.
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Belize from the United Kingdom in 1981.
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Malta from the United Kingdom in 1964.
• International Day of Peace (International)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada