January 15
January 15
Ford Foundation is born
On January 15, 1936, Edsel Ford, the son of auto industry pioneer Henry Ford, forms a philanthropic organization called the Ford Foundation with a donation of $25,000. The foundation, which…
A Year In History: 1936
Also Within This Year in History:
1936
The Spanish Civil War began in 1936. In England, King Edward VIII abdicated the throne to marry divorcee Wallis Simpson. American Jesse Owens won four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics, undermining Hitler’s claims of Aryan superiority. The British ocean liner Queen Mary and the German airship Hindenburg completed their maiden voyages, Girl Scout cookies began to be sold nationally and the Baseball Hall of Fame inducted its first five members, including the recently retired Babe Ruth.
January 16
January 16
“Moon Maniac” killer is executed
Albert Fish is executed at Sing Sing prison in New York. The “Moon Maniac” was one of America’s most notorious and disturbed killers. Authorities believe that Fish killed as many…
January 26
January 26
So‑called “Mad Butcher” terrorizes Cleveland
The dismembered body of Florence Polillo is found in a basket and several burlap sacks in Cleveland. The 42‑year‑old woman was the third victim in 18 months to be found…
January 29
January 29
This Day in History Video: What Happened on January 29
On this day in 1936, the U.S. Baseball Hall of Fame elects its first members in Cooperstown, New York: Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Matthewson and Walter Johnson.…
January 29
January 29
U.S. Baseball Hall of Fame elects first members
On January 29, 1936, the U.S. Baseball Hall of Fame elects its first members in Cooperstown, New York: Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Matthewson and Walter Johnson. The…
January 29
January 29
Baseball Hall of Fame inducts first members
On this day in 1936, in Cooperstown, New York, the Baseball Hall of Fame announces the election of five charter members: Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and…
February 8
February 8
Jay Berwanger picked No. 1 in first NFL draft
On February 8, 1936, at Philadelphia’s Ritz‑Carlton Hotel, University of Chicago halfback Jay Berwanger, the first Heisman Trophy winner, is picked No. 1 overall by the Philadelphia Eagles in the first NFL…
March 4
March 4
Scottish racing legend Jim Clark born
On this day in 1936, Jim Clark, who will dominate Formula One (F1) racing in the mid‑1960s and win two F1 world championships, is born in Scotland. Clark grew up…
March 7
March 7
Hitler reoccupies the Rhineland, violating the Treaty of Versailles
Nazi leader Adolf Hitler violates the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact by sending German military forces into the Rhineland, a demilitarized zone along the Rhine River in western…
March 28
March 28
Mario Vargas Llosa, Peruvian novelist, is born
Peruvian novelist and unsuccessful presidential candidate Mario Vargas Llosa is born. Llosa, who built his fame as a writer on works ranging from novels to plays to critical essays, was…
April 3
April 3
Bruno Hauptmann, convicted of kidnapping Lindbergh’s son, executed
Bruno Richard Hauptmann, convicted in the 1932 kidnapping and murder of the 20‑month‑old son of Charles A. Lindbergh, is executed by electrocution. On March 1, 1932, Charles Lindbergh Jr., the…
April 5
April 5
Tornadoes devastate Tupelo and Gainesville
On this day in 1936, two small towns in Mississippi and Georgia are devastated by tornadoes, killing 200 people in one of the deadliest spates of tornadoes in United States…
May 2
May 2
Manuscript of Edna St. Vincent Millay’s Conversations at Midnight destroyed in hotel fire
Edna St. Vincent Millay’s work in progress, Conversations at Midnight, is burned in a hotel fire on Sanibel Island, Florida, on this day in 1936. She recreated the work, which…
May 14
May 14
Pop star Bobby Darin is born
“Mack The Knife,” which held the #1 spot on the Billboard pop chart for an incredible nine weeks in 1959, was a big enough hit for Bobby Darin that it…
May 28
May 28
A single horsehair helps convict the killer of Nancy Titterton
On May 28, 1936, a killer is convicted on the basis of a single horse hair. That equine strand was the decisive clue in the rape‑murder of Nancy Titterton in…
June 3
June 3
Novelist and screenwriter Larry McMurtry is born
Bestselling novelist Larry McMurtry is born on this day in Wichita Falls, Texas. Many of his novels will be set in Texas and the West. McMurtry was raised by his…
June 3
June 3
Western author Larry McMurtry is born
Larry McMurtry, one of the most well‑known modern writers in the western genre, is born in Wichita Falls, Texas on June 3, 1936. McMurtry’s family had been involved in Texas…
June 30
June 30
“Gone With the Wind” published
Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With the Wind, one of the best‑selling novels of all time and the basis for a blockbuster 1939 movie, is published on June 30, 1936. In 1926,…
July 17
July 17
Spanish Civil War breaks out
On July 17, 1936, the Spanish Civil War begins as a revolt by right‑wing Spanish military officers in Spanish Morocco and spreads to mainland Spain. From the Canary Islands, General…
August 1
August 1
Hitler oversees Berlin Olympics opening ceremony
As more than 5,000 athletes from 51 countries march into a stadium packed with 100,000 onlookers, Adolf Hitler makes his only public statement of the Berlin Olympics at its opening…
