October 20.
Events On This Day
2014
Oscar de la Renta, 2008.
© Andrew H. Walker / Getty Images Entertainment
Dominican-born American fashion designer Oscar de la Renta - whose work, blending European luxury with American ease, helped define standards of elegant dressing among socialites, U.S. first ladies, and red-carpet celebrities - died in Connecticut.
2011
Colonel Gaddafi (Pic: Getty Images)
Libyan de facto leader Muammar al-Qaddafi was killed by rebel forces following a revolt that received international military assistance.
2002
Blue Stream, the deepest underwater pipeline in the world, opened in Turkey and was put in use for the transportation of natural gas.
1977
Cleopatra Entertainment
A plane carrying Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, known for such songs as Free Bird and Sweet Home Alabama, crashed in Gillsburg, Mississippi, killing singer Ronnie Van Zant and guitarist Steve Gaines, among others.
1973
Richard Nixon, 1969.
U.S. Department of Defense
During the ongoing Watergate investigation, the U.S. President Richard Nixon ordered special prosecutor Archibald Cox fired, resulting in the resignations of Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William D. Ruckelshaus, both of whom refused to carry out his request; the events became known as the “Saturday Night Massacre” of Justice Department officials.
1968
Aristotle Onassis stands with his new wife Jacqueline Kennedy after their marriage
in the tiny chapel on the Island of Scorpios in Greece on Oct. 20, 1968. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy married Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.
1964
Former U.S. president Herbert Hoover died in New York City.
1931
Mickey Mantle.jpg
American baseball player Mickey Mantle - who was one of the game's greatest players, known for his tremendous power as a switch-hitter - was born.
Featured Event
1973
Opening of Sydney Opera House
Australia's Sydney Opera House — designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, whose dynamic, imaginative, but problematic plan won an international competition in 1957 — was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on this day in 1973.
REUTERS / David Gray
Biographies on This Day in History: October 20
Snoop Dogg
Jeff Kravitz / Getty Images for a Thriller
Snoop Dogg performs during the Triller Fight Club: Jake Paul v Ben Askren event at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
AMERICAN RAPPER AND SONGWRITER
BORN ON October 20, 1971 -
Snoop Dogg, an American rapper and songwriter who became one of the best-known figures in gangsta rap in the 1990s and was for many the epitome of West Coast hip-hop culture.
Muammar al-Qaddafi
Muammar al-Qaddafi, 2009.
MC2 Jesse Awalt / U.S. Department of Defense
LIBYAN STATESMAN
DIED ON 1942 - October 20, 2011
Muammar al-Qaddafi, de facto leader of Libya (1969–2011). Qaddafi had ruled for more than four decades when he was ousted by a revolt in August 2011.
Herbert Hoover
PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES
DIED ON August 10, 1874 - October 20, 1964
Herbert Hoover, 31st president of the United States (1929–33). Hoover's reputation as a humanitarian — earned during and after World War I as he rescued millions of Europeans from starvation — faded from public.
Danny Boyle
Danny Boyle after winning the Academy Award for best director at the 81st Academy Awards ceremony, 2009.
Jason Merritt / Getty Images
BRITISH FILMMAKER
BORN ON October 20, 1956 -
Danny Boyle, British director and screenwriter whose films were known for their bold visual imagery and exuberant energy. Boyle began his career in the theater, serving as the artistic director (1982–85).
Sir Richard Burton
Near death on the Nile… Richard Francis Burton became seriously i
ll looking for the river’s source. Photograph: Ernest Edwards / Getty
BRITISH SCHOLAR AND EXPLORER
DIED ON March 19, 1821 - October 20, 1890
Sir Richard Burton, an English scholar-explorer and Orientalist who was the first European to discover Lake Tanganyika and to penetrate hitherto-forbidden Muslim cities. He has published 43 volumes on his explorations