Historical Events
- Jan 1 18th Rose Bowl: Southern California beats Tulane, 21-12
- Jan 1 Jacob Cocey Sr chosen as Mayor of Massillon, Ohio
Gandhi and Nehru Arrested
Jan 4 British Viceroy of India Lord Willingdon arrests Indian independence leaders Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru
- Jan 4 State of siege proclaimed in Honduras
- Jan 7 1st game played at Orchard Lake Curling Club, Mich
- Jan 8 Ratification of present San Francisco City Charter
- Jan 10 "Mickey Mouse" & "Silly Symphony" comics syndicated
- Jan 10 "Pete the Tramp" cartoon strip by C D Russell debuts
- Jan 12 Hattie W Caraway elected 1st woman senator (D-Ark)
- Jan 12 Philip Barry's play "The Animal Kingdom" premieres in NYC
- Jan 14 1st totalisator (to record racetrack bets) in US installed, Hialeah
Jockey Arcaro Wins 1st Race
Jan 14 Racing Hall of Fame jockey Eddie Arcaro wins his 1st race at Agua Caliente racetrack in Tijuana, Mexico - aged 16 years
- Jan 15 Record snowfall of 2 inches in city of Los Angeles, California
- Jan 19 Charlie Conacher becomes first Toronto player to score 5 goals in an NHL game as Maple Leafs rout the NY Americans, 11-3 at Maple Leaf Gardens
- Jan 21 USSR and Finland stop non-attack treaty
- Jan 23 El Salvador army kills 4,000 protesting farmers
- Jan 25 1st commencement exercises at Hebrew U in Jerusalem
- Jan 26 British submarine M-2 sinks in English Channel (60 dead)
- Jan 26 KUT-AM in Austin Texas changes call letters to KNOW
- Jan 28 1st US state unemployment insurance act enacted (Wisconsin)
- Jan 28 Japanese forces attack Shanghai.
- Jan 29 Test debut of Bill O'Reilly, vs South Africa at Adelaide
- Jan 30 Clarrie Grimmett 7-116 in South Africa 1st innings at Adelaide Oval
- Jan 31 US railway unions accept 10% wage reduction
Famous Birthdays
- Jan 1 Jackie Parker, American College and Canadian Football Hall of Fame utility (Mississippi State University; Grey Cup 1954-56; Edmonton Eskimos), born in Knoxville, Tennessee (d. 2006)
- Jan 2 Harchand Singh Longowai [Sant Ji], Indian Sikh leader and President of the Akali Dal during the Punjab insurgency of the 1980s, born in Gidariani, Sangrur, British India (d. 1985) [1]
- Jan 3 Anatoli Petrovich Kuklin, Russian-Soviet cosmonaut, born in Satka, Russia, USSR (d. 2006)
- Jan 3 Coo Coo Marlin, American auto racer (NASCAR nine top 5, 51 top 10 finishes in 165 Winston Cup starts), born in Columbia, Tennessee (d. 2005)
- Jan 3 Dabney Coleman, American Emmy Award-winning character actor (Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman - "Mayor Jeeter"; 9 to 5; Buffalo Bill; Boardwalk Empire), born in Austin, Texas
- Jan 3 Jaswick Taylor, West Indian cricket fast bowler (3 Tests, 10 wickets; 5/109 in Test debut 1958; Trinidad & Tobago), born in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago (d. 1999)
- Jan 3 Mara Corday [Marilyn Joan Watts], American actress, model and Playboy Playmate (Foxfire, Black Scorpion), born in Santa Monica, California
- Jan 4 Carlos Saura, Spanish film director ("Cría Cuervos"; "Carmen", "Tango"), born in Huesca, Spain (d. 2023)
- Jan 4 Richard Stahl, American actor (Howard-It's a Living), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2006)
- Jan 5 (Laten) Johnny Adams, American blues, jazz and gospel singer (Reconsider Me), born in New Orleans, Louisiana (d. 1998)
Chuck Noll (1932-2014)
Jan 5 American Pro Football HOF coach (Super Bowl 1974, 75, 78, 79; Pittsburgh Steelers 1969-91), born in Cleveland, Ohio
- Jan 5 Umberto Eco, Italian philosopher and author (Name of the Rose), born in Alessandria, Piedmont (d. 2016)
- Jan 6 Stuart A. Rice, American chemist, born in New York City
- Jan 7 Tormod Knutsen, Norwegian cross country skier (Olympic gold individual 1964, silver 1960), born in Eidsvoll, Norway (d. 2021)
Roberto Suárez Gómez (1932-2000)
Jan 8 Bolivian drug lord called the "King of Cocaine" whose story was the basis of the movie "Scarface", born in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
- Jan 9 Jane Ross [Breslaw], American actress (Star Trek, Rocket Attack U.S.A., Wild Is My Love), born in New York City (d. 1985)
- Jan 10 Lou Henson, American College Basketball Hall of Fame coach (all-time leader in victories University of Illinois and New Mexico State), born in Okay, Oklahoma (d. 2020)
- Jan 11 Alfonso Arau, Mexican film director
- Jan 12 Alain Teister, Dutch writer, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1979)
- Jan 12 Des O'Connor, British television presenter, singer and comedian, born in Stepney, London (d. 2020)
- Jan 12 John Berg, American art director (Columbia Records, 1961-85), winner of 4 Grammy Awards for album art, born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2015)
- Jan 14 Don Garlits, American racing driver (1st drag racer over 200mph for 1/4 mile), born in Tampa, Florida
- Jan 14 Grady Tate, American jazz drummer (Oliver Nelson, Lalo Schifrin, Quincy Jones, Jimmy Smith), and singer, born in Durham, North Carolina (d. 2017) [1]
- Jan 14 Harriet Andersson, Swedish actress (Cries & Whispers), born in Stockholm, Sweden
- Jan 14 Ian Wooldridge, British sports journalist (Daily Mail; British Sportswriter of the Year 1972, 74, 81, 89) and broadcaster (BBC), born in New Milton, England (d. 2007)
- Jan 14 Tony DeMarco, American boxer (NBA, NYSAC, The Ring welterweight titles 1955), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 2021)
- Jan 15 Dean Smith, American athlete (Olympic gold 4x100m relay 1952) and actor, rodeo cowboy and stuntman, born in Emporia, Kansas (d. 2023)
- Jan 15 Enrique Raxach, Spanish-Dutch contemporary classical and electro-acoustic composer (Pequeña Cantata; Equinoxial), born in Barcelona, Spain
- Jan 15 Lou Jones, American athlete (Olympic gold 4x400m relay 1956), born in New Rochelle, New York (d. 2006)
- Jan 16 Dian Fossey, American zoologist (Gorillas in the Mist), born in San Francisco, California (d. 1985)
- Jan 16 Jim Berry, American cartoonist (Berry's World), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2015)
- Jan 18 Peter Magubane, South African photographer who documented the cruelties and violence of apartheid, born in Vrededorp, Union of South Africa (d. 2024) [1]
- Jan 18 Robert Anton Wilson, American sci-fi author (Trick Top Hat), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2007)
- Jan 19 Joe Schmidt, College/Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker (10 x Pro Bowl; 8 x First-team All-Pro; NFL C'ship 1953, 57; Detroit Lions) and coach (Detroit Lions 1967-72), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Jan 19 Richard Lester, movie director (Hard Day's Night, Help!, Petulia)
- Jan 20 Frank Arok, Yugoslavian-Australian soccer coach (Australia 1983-89), born in Kanjiža, Serbia (d. 2021)
- Jan 21 Boris Shakhlin, Russian gymnast (Olympic gold, 1956, 1960, 1964; World Champion, 1958; European Champion, 1955), born in Ishim, Russia, USSR (d. 2008)
- Jan 21 Don Donoher, American College Basketball HOF coach (University of Dayton 1964-89), born in Toledo, Ohio (d. 2024)
- Jan 21 John Chaney, American Basketball Hall of Fame college coach (Cheyney University, Temple University), born in Jacksonville, Florida (d. 2021)
- Jan 22 Berthold Grünfeld, Czech-Norwegian psychiatrist, sexologist, and educator, born in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia (d. 2007)
- Jan 22 Piper Laurie [Rosetta Jacobs], American actress (Twin Peaks; Carrie; The Hustler), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2023)
- Jan 23 (Elmer) "Bud" Shuster, American politician (US Representative-R-PA, 1973-2001), born in Glassport, Pennsylvania (d. 2023)
- Jan 23 Bart LaRue, American character and voice actor, born in Foard County, Texas (d. 1990)
- Jan 23 James Rado [Radomski], American stage actor, playwright, director, and composer (Hair!; Rainbow), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2022)
- Jan 25 Constance Weldon, American symphonic tuba player (Boston Pops; Concertgebouw) and educator, born in Winter Haven, Florida (d. 2020)
- Jan 25 Moses "Whispering" Smith, American blues harmonica player and singer ("A Thousand Miles From Nowhere"; "Hound Dog Twist"), born in Union Church, Mississippi (d. 1984)
- Jan 26 Christopher Price, Director (Leeds Metropolitan U)
- Jan 26 Clement "Sir Coxsone" Dodd, Jamaican record producer, born in Kingston, Jamaica (d. 2004)
- Jan 26 George Clements, Black American priest and the first Roman Catholic priest in America to adopt a child, born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2019) [1]
- Jan 26 Ronald Allison, British journalist and press secretary to Queen Elizabeth II, (d. 2022) [1]
- Jan 27 Neville Trotter, British MP
- Jan 28 David Hennessy, Lord Windlesham, British peer and TV executive, Leader of the House of Lords (1973-4) (d. 2010)
- Jan 28 David Thompson, CEO (Gestetner Holdings)
- Jan 28 Parry O'Brien, American athlete (Olympic gold shot put 1952, 1956; silver 1960), born in Santa Monica, California (d. 2007)
- Jan 28 Thomas J. Bliley Jr., American politician (Rep-R-VA, 1981-2001), born in Chesterfield County, Virginia
- Jan 29 Beverly Kenney American jazz singer ("I Hate Rock n' Roll"; "Born To Be Blue"), born in Harrison, New Jersey (d. 1960)
- Jan 29 Raman Subba Row, English cricket batsman (13 Tests, 3 x 100, HS 137; Surrey CCC, Northamptonshire CCC), born in London (d. 2024)
- Jan 29 Tommy Taylor, English soccer striker (19 caps; Manchester United 166 games; died Munich air disaster), born in Smithies, West Riding of Yorkshire (d. 1958)
- Jan 30 Kazuo Inamori, Japanese business executive (Kyocera Ceramics Co), born in Yakushi, Japan (d. 2022)
- Jan 30 Knock Yokoyama, Japanese comedian and politician, born in Kobe, Japan (d. 2007)
- Jan 30 Vladimír Heger, Czech basketball coach (Czechoslovakia 1965-69, 72-76; Netherlands 1983-85), born in Prague, Czech Republic (d. 2021)
- Jan 31 Pieter Brattinga, Dutch graphic artist, born in Hilversum, Netherlands (d. 2004)
- Jan 31 Rick Hall, American record producer, songwriter, and creator of the "Muscle Shoals sound" (FAME Studio), born in Forest Grove, Mississippi (d. 2018)
- Jan 31 [Anna] Ottilie Patterson, Irish blues and jazz singer (Chris Barber Jazz Band), born in Comber, Northern Ireland (d. 2011)
Famous Deaths
- Jan 1 C. P. Scott, British journalist, publisher and politician, dies at 85
- Jan 5 George Forrest, Scottish botanist (plant hunter in western China), dies at 59
- Jan 7 Henri Stroethoff, Dutch actor (A Chique Little Boy, Bright Paradise), dies at 60
- Jan 8 Eurosia Fabris, Italian Catholic (model of holiness in the daily life of a Catholic family), dies at 65
- Jan 13 Sophia of Prussia, Queen consort of Constantine I of Greece, dies at 61
- Jan 15 Georg Kerschensteiner, German educational theorist (Theorie der Bildungsorganisation), dies at 77
- Jan 17 Albert Jacka, VC, Australian soldier (b. 1893)
- Jan 21 Lytton Strachey, English biographer and critic (Benson Medal 1923), dies at 51
- Jan 24 Alfred Yarrow, English shipbuilder (Yarrow Shipbuilders), die sat 90
- Jan 24 Paul Warburg, German-American investment banker who influenced and encouraged the design of the Federal Reserve, dies at 63
- Jan 26 William Wrigley Jr., American industrialist (Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company), and owner of MLB Chicago Cubs, dies at 70
- Jan 28 Franz Xavier Arens, German-American conductor and composer (Cleveland Philharmonic), dies at 75
