MAY 28 | Birthdays and Events

Notable Birthdays for May 28

P. G. T. Beauregard (1818-1893) - Confederate General credited with starting the Civil War at the Battle of Fort Sumter (1861).

Tony Pastor (1837-1908) - Performer often referred to as the "Dean of Vaudeville."

Jim Thorpe (1888-1953) - The first Native American to win a Gold Medal for the U.S. in the Olympics.

T-Bone Walker (1910-1975) - Musician and pioneer of the jump blues, West Coast blues, and electric blues sounds.

Robert Wentorf (1926-1997) - Physicist and inventor of the first synthesized diamonds.

Zelda Rubinstein (1933-2010) - Actress fondly remembered as the medium Tangina Barrons in the Poltergeist films.

Shlomo Riskin (1940-Still Living) - Rabbi who founded the Lincoln Square Synagogue (NY City).

Beth Howland (1941-2015) - Actress best known as the waitress named Vera on the t.v. sitcom Alice.

Gladys Knight (1944-Still Living) - Acclaimed singer for Gladys Knight & the Pips.

Patch Adams (1945-Still Living) - Physician, comedian, clown and author who founded the Gesundheit! Institute (nonprofit that travels around the world for patients dressed as a clown).

John Fogerty (1945-Still Living) - Musician and lead singer of CCR (Creedence Clearwater Revival).

Memorable Events for May 28

1830 - President Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act denying Native Americans their land rights and forcibly relocating them to reservations.

1923 - U.S. Attorney General declares it legal for women to wear trousers anywhere they choose.

1926 - Congress creates a Customs Court.

1929 - The first full color talking picture On With the Show is exhibited in NY City.

1937 - The Golden Gate Bridge opens to vehicles.

1946 - The patent for the hydrogen bomb is filed.

1953 - The first animated 3D cartoon in technicolor (Melody) premiers.

1956 - President Eisenhower signs a farm bill allowing the government to store agricultural surplus.

1987 - Stephanie Petit wins the 60th U.S. National Spelling Bee, spelling the word staphylococci.

2002 - The last steel girder is removed from the original World Trade Center site.