1999 - U.S.A. Jack Kervorkian
1999: Jack Kervorkian was sentenced in Pontiac, Mich., to 10 to 25 years in prison for the second-degree murder of Thomas Youk, 52 who was in the final stages of ALS ( Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis sometimes called Lou Gehrig's Disease ). The assisted suicide in 1998 was videotaped and shown on the November 23rd, 1998 broadcast of "60 Minutes". Kevorkian served eight years of a prison sentence for second-degree murder. He was released on June 1, 2007, on parole due to good behavior Find More From What happened in 1999
1970 - U.S.A. Apollo 13
1970: An explosion caused by an exploding oxygen tank on Apollo 13 forced the astronauts to abandon their mission to the moon and head home, they were nearly at the moon when the problem occurred and they were forced to turn back.
2006 - U.S.A. Tornado Iowa City
2006: During the evening of Apr 13, 2006, one or more tornadoes strike Iowa City, causing severe property damage. It was the first tornado ever to be recorded to hit Iowa City directly. The Tornadoes that struck Iowa City are considered to be part of The Easter Week 2006 Tornado Outbreak beginning On Apr 13, (1) A complex of severe thunderstorms formed in eastern Iowa on Apr 13th, with unexpected reports of strong tornadoes, causing damage to property. (2) Another super-cell developed on Apr 14 across western Indiana, touching down a few more tornadoes. (3) A further system developed over the Upper Midwest and tracked across the Midwest on Apr 15 and 16 which leads to a further 40 reported tornadoes. (4) The final system developed on Apr 18 brought even more severe weather farther south in the lower Midwest, mainly Missouri with several more tornadoes reported.
1923 - Japan Storm
1923: One of the worst storms in many years hit the Japanese and Korean coastline and is believed to have claimed over 100 lives, rescue ships from the US have been delayed getting to help due to the severe winds and waves.
1931 - U.S.A. Chicago Tunnel Fire
1931: 10 men killed in Chicago tunnel fire, the cause of the explosion was spontaneous combustion and is the worst underground disaster in Chicago history.
1943 - U.S.A. Alcatraz Attempted Escape
1943: Four convicts attempted to escape from the prison at Alcatraz today. Two were drowned in San Francisco Bay after being shot and the other two were recaptured.
1943 - U.S.A. The Jefferson Memorial
1943: President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated the Thomas Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. dedicated to Thomas Jefferson, an American Founding Father and the third president of the United States.
1949 - Germany Nuremberg Trials
1949: The Nuremberg Trials ended with 19 top aids to Adolf Hitler receiving up to 25 years for their part in war crimes against humanity.
1954 - Hank Aaron First Major League Baseball Appearance
1954: Hank Aaron Makes First Appearance for the Milwaukee Braves with the number five on his uniform, he went on to break the legendary Babe Ruth record ending his MLB career on October 3, 1976, for the Milwaukee Brewers.
1957 - U.S.A. Marilyn Monroe
1957: Marilyn Monroe has checkup and speculation restarts that she may be pregnant.
1964 - U.S.A. Sidney Poitier
1964: Sidney Poitier becomes the first black actor to win the coveted Best Actor Oscar for his role in Lilies of the Field.
1965 - U.S.A. River Flooding
1965: The Midwest continued its problem weather after a large number of tornadoes on Palm Sunday rivers are now at flood conditions along the Mississippi affecting Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and North Dakota with mass evacuations and already a number of deaths caused by the flooding.
1975 - Lebanon Beirut Street Battle
1975: At least 17 people are left dead and 30 wounded in an ambush by right-wing Lebanese forces on a bus carrying Palestinians in Beirut. This signals the beginning of 15 years of civil war in Lebanon between The Maronite Christian groups and the Muslim militias.
1976 - U.S.A. $2.00 bill
1976: $2.00 bill issued nationwide with a portrait of Thomas Jefferson on the front and John Trumble's Portrait of the declaration on the back. Banks experienced long queues by those collectors who believed the bills would appreciate in value.
1983 - U.S.A. Harold Washington
1983: Harold Washington was elected as the first African American Mayor of Chicago.
1984 - U.S.A. Beauty Queen Killer Caught
1984: The Beauty Queen Killer ( Christopher Bernard Wilder ) who killed 8 women and abducted at least twelve women, is caught and during the arrest scuffles with State Troopers and dies due to gunshot wounds.
1987 - U.S.A. Mikhail Gorbachev
1987: President Reagan once again invited the Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev to talks in Washington but once again the Soviet Leader has declined the invitation.
1989 - Palestine Israeli Raids
1989: Israeli soldiers carry out a raid on a West Bank village leaving at least six Palestinians dead, this is part of the continuing attempts to quell the Palestinian uprising.
1992 - UK Princess Anne Divorce
1992: Princess Anne filed for an uncontested divorce from Mark Phillips after 2 1/2 years of separation.
1992 - U.S.A. Great Chicago Flood
1992: Chicago River pours into Unused Tunnels under the Chicago Loop flooding basements of many Loop office buildings and retail stores. Electrical power and natural gas were shut off as a precaution in much of the area including the financial district closing down the financial district by mid-morning.
1992 - UK Neil Kinnock Resigns
1992: Following the defeat of the Labour party by the Conservatives in the general election three days earlier Neil Kinnock resigns as Labour leader.
1997 - U.S.A. Tiger Woods Wins Masters
1997: Tiger Woods at 21 years old became the youngest ever golfer to win the Masters Tournament. Woods finished at 18-under-par 270, which was the lowest score ever shot during the Masters.
2005 - U.S.A. Eric Rudolph
2005: Eric Rudolph ( also known as the Olympic Park Bomber ), pleads guilty to carrying out the deadly bombing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics in Atlanta Georgia. Rudolph pleaded guilty to numerous federal and state homicide charges and accepted five consecutive life sentences in exchange for avoiding a trial and the death penalty.
2011 - Baseball Star Bonds Found Guilty of Obstruction of Justice
2011: Former baseball player, Barry Bonds, was found guilty of obstruction of justice after a trial about steroid use. Bonds was accused of lying about steroid use, and the guilty verdict related to his testimony to a grand jury on whether or not any person other than his physician had injected him with a needle. The jury had failed to determine a verdict on three other charges and the trial was declared a mistrial. Bonds had famously broken Hank Aaron's home run record in 2007, but his accomplishment had been overshadowed by steroid use accusations.
2012 - North Korea Rocket Launch Fails
2012: North Korea's much-anticipated rocket launch to test a long-range missile technology failed shortly after launch. Several countries who were monitoring the event said that the rocket was only in the air for a short time before it broke apart and crashed into the water. North Korean officials stated that the test was aimed at putting a satellite into orbit and that they had scientists analyzing what went wrong.
2013 - First Bird Flu Case in Beijing
2013: China's capital city Beijing reported its first case of the H7N9 bird flu that had been spreading throughout the country. The case was reported with a seven-year-old girl who had been infected with the flu. Thus far the UN had recorded a total of twenty-eight cases and a total of nine deaths from this flu in China.
2014 - Shooting at Kansas City Jewish Community Center
2014: Three people were killed when a man went on a shooting spree at the Jewish Community Campus and a Jewish retirement home in Overland Park. Police took a suspect into custody, a white man in his seventies who had been reportedly yelling anti-Semitic things while in the police car. The suspect was later identified as Frazier Glenn Cross, a white supremacist who had previous run-ins with the law and was associated with the Klu Klux Klan and other racist groups. All three victims were Christians.
Born This Day In History 13th April
Celebrating Birthdays Today
Howard Keel
Born: Harold Clifford Keel 13th April 1919 Gillespie, Illinois, U.S.
Died: November 7th, 2004 Palm Desert, California, U.S.
Known For: Howard Keel was an American actor and singer known for his roles in 1950's film musicals including Annie Get Your Gun, Show Boat, Calamity Jane, Kiss Me Kate, and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. In the eighties, he gained new fame and a new audience as Clayton Farlow in the popular TV series of its day "Dallas". The video shows how talented he was as a singer with a deep baritone voice.
Thomas Jefferson
Born: April 13, 1743, Shadwell, Virginia
Died: July 4, 1826, Charlottesville, Virginia
Known For: Thomas Jefferson was the third President of the United States, serving two terms from 1801 to 1809. He was also the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, Secretary of State under Washington, and Vice President under Adams. He oversaw the Louisiana Purchase during his presidency, effectively doubling the size of the United States at the time.
