Historical Events
- May 4 Wilhelm Kienzl's opera "Der Evangelimann" (The Evangelist), 1st performed at the Neues Königliches Opernhaus in Berlin, Germany
- May 6 21st Kentucky Derby: James "Soup" Perkins aboard Halma wins last KD run over a distance of 1.5 miles (2.4km)
- May 7 Russian scientist Alexander Stepanovich Popov demonstrates to the Russian Physical and Chemical Society his invention - the world's first radio receiver in St. Petersburg. Celebrated as Radio Day in Russia.
- May 8 China cedes Taiwan to Japan under Treaty of Shimonoseki
W. G. Grace's 100th 100
May 17 W. G. Grace completes his 100th 100 v Somerset at Bristol
Oscar Wilde Sentenced
May 25 Oscar Wilde sentenced to 2 years imprisonment for gross indecency
- May 25 The Republic of Formosa is formed, with Tang Ching-sung as the president
- May 27 British inventor Birt Acres patents film camera/projector
- May 30 English cricket icon W. G. Grace scores 169 for Gloucestershire against Middlesex at Lord's for his 1,000th first-class run of the season in just 22 days
Famous Birthdays
Lorenz Hart (1895-1943)
May 2 American lyricist ("I Could Write A Book"; "My Funny Valentine") and half of the Broadway musical team Rodgers and Hart, born in Harlem, New York
- May 2 Peggy Bacon, American author and illustrator (Off With Their Heads), born in Ridgefield, Connecticut (d. 1987)
- May 3 Cornelius Van Til, Dutch philosopher and Christian apologist, Grootegast, Netherlands (d. 1987)
- May 3 Ernst Kantorowicz, German-American historian (Laudes regiae), born in Posen, Prussia (d. 1963)
- May 6 Fidél Pálffy, Hungarian National socialist (leading supporter of Nazism in Hungary), born in Szentgyörgy, Austria-Hungary (d. 1946)
- May 6 Júlio César de Mello e Souza, Brazilian writer (The Man Who Counted), born in Rio de Janeiro (d. 1974)
Rudolph Valentino (1895-1926)
May 6 Italian actor and silent movie idol (The Sheik, Eagle), born in Castellaneta, Italy
- May 8 Edmund Wilson, American literary critic and writer (Patriotic Gore), born in Red Bank, New Jersey (d. 1972)
- May 8 Fulton J. Sheen, America bishop (Life is Worth Living), born in El Paso, Illinois (d. 1979)
- May 8 James H. "Dutch" Kindelberger, American aerospace pioneer (d. 1962)
- May 8 Joselito [José Gómez Ortega], Spanish matador (bullfighter) prodigy, born in Gelves, Spain (d. 1920)
- May 9 Lucian Blaga, Romanian philosopher and poet (Dogmatic Aeon), born in Lámkerék, Szeben County, Austria-Hungary (d. 1961)
- May 9 Richard Barthelmess, American actor (Broken Blossoms, Noose, Heroes for Sales), born in New York City (d. 1963)
- May 11 Jan Parandowski, Polish writer and translator, born in Lwów, Austria-Hungary (now Lviv, Ukraine) (d. 1978)
- May 11 William Grant Still, American composer ("Afro-American" Symphony), born in Woodville, Mississippi (d. 1978)
- May 12 Jiddu Krishnamurti, Indian philosopher (Songs of Life), born in Madanapalle, India (d. 1986)
- May 14 Lew Lehr, American comedian (Stop Me if I heard this One), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1950)
- May 14 Renato Lunelli, composer Italian organist, composer, and musicologist, born in Trent, Austria-Hungary (now Trento, Italy) (d. 1967)
- May 15 Charles Lamont, American actor and director (Abbott & Costello films), born in San Francisco, California (d. 1993)
- May 15 William D. Byron, U.S. Congressman (d. 1941)
- May 18 Augusto Sandino, Nicaraguan patriot and revolutionary, born in Niquinohomo, Nicaragua (d. 1934)
- May 19 Albert Hay Malotte, American pianist, organist, composer (Disney staff, 1930's; The Lord's Prayer), and educator, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1964)
- May 19 Cecil Gray, Scottish composer and music critic, born in Edinburgh, Scotland (d. 1959)
- May 20 R. J. [Reginald Joseph] Mitchell, English airplane designer (Supermarine Spitfire), born in Butt Lane, England (d. 1937)
- May 24 Hunter "Stork" Hendry, Australian cricket all-rounder (11 Tests, 1 x 100, 16 wickets; NSW CA, Victoria CA), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 1988)
- May 24 Samuel I Newhouse Sr., American businessman and publisher (Parade, Vogue, Glamour), born in New York City (d. 1979)
- May 26 Dorothea Lange, American documentary photographer, born in Hoboken, New Jersey (d. 1965)
Paul Lukas (1895-1971)
May 26 Hungarian actor (Watch on the Rhine, Sphynx), born in Budapest, Hungary
Famous Deaths
- May 15 Joseph Whitaker, British publisher (Whitaker's Almanack), dies at 75
- May 19 Jose Marti y Perez, Cuban poet (Versos sencillos) essayist and politician (fought for independence from Spain), dies fighting the Battle of Dos Rios at 42
- May 21 Franz von Suppé, Austrian composer (Poet und Bauer), dies at 76
- May 21 Mary Harris Thompson, 1st American woman surgeon, dies at 66
- May 23 Franz E. Neumann, German mineralogist, mathematician and physicist, dies at 96
- May 24 Hugh McCulloch, US Treasury Secretary (1865-69, 1884-85), dies at 86
- May 24 Joseph Quinaux, Belgian painter (landscape paintings), dies at 73
- May 25 Ahmed Cevdet Paşa, Turkish statesman and historian (Minister of Justice), dies at 73
