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1936

Year 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar.

Events of 1936

January-February

January 4 - England's first ever win over the All Blacks in Rugby Union, in particular the 2 famous tries by "The Prince" HH Alexander Obolensky.
January 15 - The first building to be completely covered in glass is completed in Toledo, Ohio, for the Owens-Illinois Glass Company.
January 16 - Serial killer Albert Fish executed in Sing Sing
January 20 - King George V of the United Kingdom dies. His eldest son succeeds the throne becoming Edward VIII. There will be a gap of twenty two years before the title Prince of Wales is next used.
January 31 - The Green Hornet radio show debuts.

February 4 - Radium E. becomes the first radioactive element to be made synthetically.
February 6 - The IV Olympic Winter Games opens in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
February 17 The first superhero to wear a skin-tight costume and mask, The Phantom, makes his first appearance in US newspapers
February 26 - The Imperial Way Faction engineers a failed coup against the Japanese government. Some politicians are killed.
February 29 - Emperor Hirohito orders the Japanese army to arrest 123 conspirators in Tokyo government offices - 19 of them are executed in July.

March-April

March 1 - Construction of Hoover Dam is completed.
March 7 - In violation of the Treaty of Versailles, Nazi Germany reoccupies the Rhineland.
March 9 - Pro-democratic militarist Keisuke Okada steps down as Prime Minister of Japan and is replaced by radical militarist Koki Hirota.
March 17-18, "St. Patrick's Day Flood" - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, suffers the worst flooding in its history.
April 3 - Bruno Richard Hauptmann, convicted of kidnapping and killing Charles Lindbergh III, is executed in New Jersey.
April 17 - Czech astronomer Jiří Grygar is born.
April 5 - A tornado hits Tupelo, Mississippi killing 216 and injuring over 700. It is the 4th deadliest tornado in U.S. history.
April 6 - Two tornadoes strike Gainesville, Georgia. The smaller tornado hit north Gainsville and the stronger tornado hit west side of town. The two paths eventually met but not the tornadoes. 203 die and 1600 are injured in the 5th deadliest tornado in U.S. history.
April 19 - The 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine against the British government and opposition to Jewish immigration begins.

May-June

May 2 - Peter and the Wolf, a Russian fairy tale of Sergei Prokofiev's composition, debuts at the Nezlobin Theater in Moscow, Soviet Union.
May 5 - Italian forces occupy Addis Ababa.
May 7 - Italy annexes Ethiopia.
May 9 - Italian East Africa is formed from the Italian territories of Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Italian Somaliland.
May 12 - The Santa Fe railroad in the United States inaugurates the all-Pullman Super Chief passenger train between Chicago, Illinois and Los Angeles, California.
May 14 - Universal Pictures' new film version of Show Boat, a faithful adaptation of the stage musical, premieres at Radio City Music Hall to ecstatic reviews. It preserves the famous stage performances of Irene Dunne, Charles Winninger, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, and Sammy White. It is a box office smash, but withdrawn from circulation in 1942 by MGM, due to their impending Technicolor remake, which does not appear until 1951. After its withrawal from circulation, the 1936 Show Boat will not be widely seen again until 1983, when it makes its debut on cable television.
May 25 - The Remington Rand strike of 1936–1937 begins, spawning the notorious "Mohawk Valley formula," a corporate plan for strikebreaking.
May 27

The first flight by the Irish airline Aer Lingus takes place.
British luxury liner leaves Southampton on her maiden voyage across the Atlantic

June - A major heat wave strikes North America; high temperature records are set and thousands die.
June 7

The General strike in France is ended by the Matignon Agreements.
The Steel Workers Organizing Committee is founded in the United States.

June 15 - Army laboratory explodes in Estonia - 60 dead.
June 19 - Max Schmeling knocks out Joe Louis in the twelfth round of their heavyweight boxing match at Yankee Stadium in New York City.

June 30 - Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone with the Wind is first published.

July-August

July 11 - Triborough Bridge in New York City is opened to traffic
July 13 to 14 - Peak of July 1936 heat wave. The states of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana all set new state records for high temperature. At Mio, in northern Michigan it soars to 113°F (45°C)
July 18 - Spain's civil war begins when nationalist troops under the command of General Francisco Franco rise against the existing republican government.
August 1 - 1936 Summer Olympics open in Berlin, Germany, and mark the first live television coverage of a sports event in world history.
August 3 - African-American athlete Jesse Owens wins the 100-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics.
August 14 - Rainey Bethea is hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky, in the last public execution in the United States, United States men's national basketball team wins the first ever Olympic Basketball tournament in the final game over Canada, 19-8.
August 19 - Beginning of the first of the Moscow Trials
August 30 - Ernest Nash flees Germany for Rome

September-October

September 6 - The last surviving Tasmanian Tiger dies in Hobart Zoo in Tasmania.
October 11 - Earl Bascom, rodeo cowboy and artist, designs and builds Mississippi's first permanent rodeo arena at Columbia, Marion County, Mississippi.

November-December

November 2

BBC launches world's first regular (then) high definition television service.
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) begins radio in Canada.

November 3 - U.S. presidential election, 1936: Franklin D. Roosevelt is reelected to a second term in a landslide victory over Alf Landon.
November 12 - In California, the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge opens to traffic.
November 20 - Levee of pond failure by continue massive rain at Mitsubishi Osarizawa mine, Kazuno, northeastern Akita, Japan, killing at least 375.
November 23 - The first edition of Life is published.
November 25 - Abraham Lincoln Brigade sails from New York City on its way to Spanish Civil War
November 26 - The Anti-Comintern Pact is signed by Germany and Japan.
November 30 - In London, the Crystal Palace is destroyed in a fire (it had been built for the 1851 Great Exhibition).
December 3 - Radio station WQXR is officially founded
December 5 - Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic is dissolved and the Armenia, Azerbaija, and Georgia become full Republics of the Soviet Union.
December 10-11 - King Edward VIII signs an instrument of abdication at Fort Belvedere in the presence of his three brothers, The Duke of York, The Duke of Gloucester and The Duke of Kent.
December 11

The British Parliament passes His Majesty's Declaration of Abdication Act 1936 on behalf of the UK, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
The King performs his last act as sovereign by giving royal assent to the Act.
Prince Albert, Duke of York, becomes King, ruling as King George VI
The abdicated King Edward VIII, now HRH The Prince Edward, makes a broadcast to the nation explaining his decision to abdicate. He leaves the country for Austria

December 12 - Irish Free State passes the External Relations Act to legislate for Edward VIII's abdication in that realm.
December 12 - Xi'an Incident: The Generalissimo of the Republic of China, Chiang Kai-shek was kidnapped by Zhang Xueliang.
December 29 - The United Auto Workers begins the Flint Sit-Down Strike in Flint, Michigan.

Undated

YMCA Youth and Government program founded in Albany, New York.
Mordecai Ham begins radio ministry.
Stress is first recognised as a medical condition.
Cocoa production in Gold Coast - 305,000 tons.

Births

January-February

January 2 - Roger Miller, American singer (d. 1992)
January 5 - Florence King, American writer
January 10

Stephen Ambrose, American historian (d. 2002)
Robert Wilson, American physicist and radio astronomer, Nobel Prize laureate

January 11 - Eva Hesse, American artist (d. 1970)
January 20 - Lady Frances Roche of Femoy, Princess Diana's mother (d. 2004)
January 23 - Jerry Kramer, American football player
January 27 - Troy Donahue, American actor (d. 2001)
January 28 - Alan Alda, American actor
February 6 - Kent Douglas, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
February 9 - Stompin' Tom Connors, Canadian country/folk singer
February 11 - Burt Reynolds, American actor
February 14 - Andrew Prine, American actor
February 17 - Jim Brown, American football player
February 19 - Sam Myers, American musician and songwriter (d. 2006)
February 20 - Larry Hovis, American actor (d. 2003)
February 20 - Shigeo Nagashima, Japanese professional baseball player and coach
February 24 - Lance Reventlow, English playboy, entrepreneur, and race car driver (d. 1972)
February 27 - Roger Mahony, fourth Archbishop of Los Angeles

March-April

March 4 - Jim Clark, Scottish race car driver (d. 1968)
March 4 - Aribert Reimann, German composer
March 5 - Dean Stockwell, American actor
March 6 - Marion Barry Jr., Mayor of Washington, DC
March 7 - Loren Acton, astronaut
March 9

Tom Sestak, American football player (d. 1987)
Mickey Gilly, American musician

March 11

Ralph Abernathy, American civil rights leader (d. 1990)
Antonin Scalia, U.S. Supreme Court Justice

March 15 - Howard Greenfield, American songwriter (d. 1986)
March 19 - Ursula Andress, Swiss actress
March 20 - Lee "Scratch" Perry, Jamaican musician
April 10 - John Madden, American football coach and sportscaster
April 12 - Charles Napier, American actor
April 14 - Kenneth Mars, American actor
April 21 - James Dobson, PH.D, Founder of Focus On The Family, child psychologist
April 22 - Glen Campbell, American musician
April 23 - Roy Orbison, American singer (d. 1988)
April 24 - Jill Ireland, English actress (d. 1990)

May-June

May 2 - Engelbert Humperdinck, British/American singer
May 9 - Albert Finney, English actor
May 12

Tom Snyder, American talk show host (d. 2007)
Frank Stella, American minimalist painter

May 14

Bobby Darin, American singer (d. 1973)
Dick Howser, American baseball shortstop/manager (d. 1987)

May 17 - Dennis Hopper, American actor and director
May 23 - Ingeborg Hallstein, German opera singer
June 8 - James Darren, American actor and singer
June 17 - Ken Loach, British director
June 22 - Kris Kristofferson, American singer, songwriter, and actor
June 28 - Chuck Howley, American football player
June 29 - Harmon Killebrew, baseball player

July-August

July 16 - Buddy Merrill, American musician, The Lawrence Welk Show
July 23 - Don Drysdale, baseball player (d. 1993)
August 1

Bradford Bishop, fugitive indicted for the murders of his three children, spouse and mother in 1976.
Yves Saint-Laurent, Algerian-born French fashion designer (d. 2008)

August 1 - Donald Neilson, British serial killer known as the Black Panther, currently serving five life sentences
August 6 - Robert Gnaizda, lawyer and social justice advocate
August 11 - Andre Dubus, American short-story writer (d. 1999)
August 18 - Robert Redford, American actor
August 21 - Wilt Chamberlain, American basketball player (d. 1999)
August 27 - David Clarke, English retired teacher
August 29 - John McCain, U.S. Senator, 2008 Republican Presidential candidate

September-October

September 7 - Buddy Holly, American singer (d. 1959)
September 14 - Walter Koenig, American actor.
September 16- Ken Forsse, American inventor and producer, creator of Teddy Ruxpin
September 21 - Yuriy Luzhkov, mayor of Moscow
September 24 - Jim Henson, American puppeteer, filmmaker, and television producer (d. 1990)
September 29 - Silvio Berlusconi, Italian politician, entrepreneur, and media proprietor
October 1 - Stella Stevens, American actress
October 5 - Vaclav Havel, Czech playwriter, writer and politician
October 11 - Larry Staverman, American professional basketball player and coach (d. 2007)
October 19 - Tony Lo Bianco, American actor
October 19 - James Bevel, Civil Rights Movement strategist and organizer
October 25 - Masako Nozawa, Japanese voice actress
October 29 - Akiko Kojima, Japanese model
October 31 - Michael Landon, American actor (d. 1991)

November-December

November 2 - Rose Bird, American judge (d. 1999)
November 4 - C. K. Williams, American poet
November 9 - Teddy Infuhr, American child actor (d. 2007)
November 17 - Dahlia Ravikovitch, Israeli poet
November 20 - Don DeLillo, American author
November 23 - Robert Barnard, British writer, critic and lecturer
December 5 - James Lee Burke, American writer
December 25 - Princess Alexandra of Kent, daughter of The Duke and Duchess of Kent
December 29 - Mary Tyler Moore, American actress

Deaths

January-June

January 9 - John Gilbert, American actor (b. 1899)
January 16 - Albert Fish, American serial killer (executed) (b. 1870)
January 18 - Rudyard Kipling, British writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1865)
January 20 - King George V of the United Kingdom (b. 1865)
January 23 - John Mills, Jr., "Mills Brothers" basso and guitarist (b. 1911)
February 3 - Sophie of Schönburg-Waldenburg, consort of William of Wied, Prince of Albania (b.1885)
February 4 - Wilhelm Gustloff, German leader of the Swiss Nazi Party (b. 1895)
February 8 - Charles Curtis, 31st Vice President of the United States (b. 1860)
February 19 - Billy Mitchell, U.S. general and military aviation pioneer (b. 1879)
February 26 - in the "February 26 Incident":

Takahashi Korekiyo, 11th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1854)
Saito Makoto, 19th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1858)

February 27 - Ivan Pavlov, Russian psychologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1849)
February 28 - Charles Nicolle, French bacteriologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1866)
March 16 - Marguerite Durand, French journalist and feminist leader (b. 1864)
March 21 - Alexander Glazunov, Russian composer and conductor (b. 1865)
April 3 - Bruno Hauptmann, German killer of Charles Lindbergh Jr. (b. 1899)
April 8 - Robert Bárány, Austrian physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1876)
April 18 - Ottorino Respighi, Italian composer, musicologist, and conductor (b. 1879)
April 30 - Alfred Edward Housman, English poet (b. 1859)
May 8 - Oswald Spengler, German philosopher (b. 1880)
June 11 - Robert E. Howard, American author (suicide) (b. 1906)
June 14 - G. K. Chesterton, English author (b. 1874)
June 14 - Maxim Gorky, Russian writer (b. 1868)

July-December

July 21 - Georg Michaelis, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1857)
August 2 - Louis Blériot, French aviation pioneer (b. 1872)
August 9 - Lincoln Steffens, American journalist (b. 1866)
August 15 - Grazia Deledda, Italian writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1871)
August 19 - Federico García Lorca, Spanish writer (b. 1898)
September 19 - Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande, Indian musician (b. 1860)
October 2 - Juho Sunila, Prime Minister of Finland (b. 1875)
October 3 - John Heisman, American football coach (b. 1869)
October 8 - William Henry Stark, American businessman (b. 1851)
November 25 - Andrew Harper, Scottish–Australian biblical scholar and teacher (b. 1844)
December 9 - Arvid Lindman, Prime Minister of Sweden (b. 1862)
December 10

Bobby Abel, English cricketer (b. 1857)
Luigi Pirandello, Italian writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1867)

Nobel prizes

Physics - Victor F. Hess, Carl D. Anderson ("for his discovery of cosmic radiation" / "for his discovery of the positron").

Chemistry - Petrus (Peter) Josephus Wilhelmus Debye ("for his contributions to our knowledge of molecular structure through his investigations on dipole moments and on the diffraction of X-rays and electrons in gases").

Physiology or Medicine - Sir Henry Hallett Dale, Otto Loewi ("for their discoveries relating to chemical transmission of nerve impulses").

Literature - Eugene Gladstone O'Neill ("for the power, honesty and deep-felt emotions of his dramatic works, which embody an original concept of tragedy").
Peace - Carlos Saavedra Lamas (Argentina)