The 1970s

1971 55 years ago

Charles Manson is sentenced to death (later commuted to life imprisonment) for conspiracy in the Tate–LaBianca murders

Charles Milles Manson was an American criminal, cult leader, and musician who was the founder of the Manson Family. He gained notoriety for ordering the Tate–LaBianca murders, wher…

Charles Manson is sentenced to death (later commuted to life imprisonment) for conspiracy in the Tate–LaBianca murders

1971 55 years ago

Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army and Razakars massacre approximately 3,000 Hindu emigrants in the Jathibhang

The Bangladesh Liberation War, also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalist and self-determination movemen…

Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army and Razakars massacre approximately 3,000 Hindu emigrants in the Jathibhang

1971 55 years ago

Erich Honecker becomes First Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, remaining in power until 1989

Erich Ernst Paul Honecker was a German communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic from 1971 until shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. He h…

Erich Honecker becomes First Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, remaining in power until 1989

1971 55 years ago

Seventy-eight people are killed when Aviogenex Flight 130 crashes on approach to Rijeka Airport in present-day Rijeka, C

Aviogenex Flight 130 was an international charter passenger flight from Gatwick Airport, London to Rijeka Airport, Yugoslavia. On 23 May 1971, the Tupolev Tu-134A servicing the fli…

Seventy-eight people are killed when Aviogenex Flight 130 crashes on approach to Rijeka Airport in present-day Rijeka, C

1971 55 years ago

Selena, American singer-songwriter, actress, and fashion designer (died 1995)

Selena Quintanilla-Pérez was an American singer-songwriter. Known as the "Queen of Tejano Music", she is known for her contributions to popular music and fashion, which made her on…

Selena, American singer-songwriter, actress, and fashion designer (died 1995)

1971 55 years ago

Seigo Yamamoto, Japanese racing driver

Seigo Yamamoto , known as "Boss", is a Japanese drift driver.

Seigo Yamamoto, Japanese racing driver

1971 55 years ago

Natasha Zvereva, Belarusian tennis player

Natalya "Natasha" Maratovna Zvereva is a former professional tennis player from Belarus. She was the first major athlete in the Soviet Union to demand publicly that she should be a…

Natasha Zvereva, Belarusian tennis player

1971 55 years ago

David Tennant, Scottish actor

David John Tennant is a Scottish actor. He is best known for portraying the lead character in Doctor Who as the Tenth Doctor (2005–2010) and Fourteenth Doctor (2022-2023). His othe…

David Tennant, Scottish actor

1971 55 years ago

Allan Houston, American basketball player

Allan Wade Houston Jr. is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1993 to 2005. A shooting guard, Houston pla…

Allan Houston, American basketball player

1971 55 years ago

Joetha Collier, a recent high school graduate, was killed in a shooting in Drew, Mississippi, attracting extensive atten

Joetha Collier was an American high school student who was shot and killed on the night of her graduation in Drew, Mississippi, United States. The killing, which was committed by a…

Joetha Collier, a recent high school graduate, was killed in a shooting in Drew, Mississippi, attracting extensive atten

1971 55 years ago

Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army slaughters at least 71 Hindus in Burunga, Sylhet, Bangladesh

The Bangladesh Liberation War, also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalist and self-determination movemen…

Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army slaughters at least 71 Hindus in Burunga, Sylhet, Bangladesh

1971 55 years ago

The Dahlerau train disaster, the worst railway accident in West Germany, kills 46 people and injures 25 near Wuppertal

The Dahlerau train disaster was a railway accident that occurred on May 27, 1971, in Dahlerau, a small town in Radevormwald, West Germany, in which a freight train and a passenger …

The Dahlerau train disaster, the worst railway accident in West Germany, kills 46 people and injures 25 near Wuppertal

1971 55 years ago

Pakistani forces massacre over 200 civilians, mostly Bengali Hindus, in the Bagbati massacre

Bengali Hindus are adherents of Hinduism who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. They make up the majority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Trip…

Pakistani forces massacre over 200 civilians, mostly Bengali Hindus, in the Bagbati massacre

1971 55 years ago

Mariner program: Mariner 9 is launched to map 70% of the surface, and to study temporal changes in the atmosphere and su

The Mariner program was conducted by the American space agency NASA to explore other planets. Between 1962 and late 1973, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) designed and built …

Mariner program: Mariner 9 is launched to map 70% of the surface, and to study temporal changes in the atmosphere and su

1971 55 years ago

In accordance with the Uniform Monday Holiday Act passed by the U

The Uniform Monday Holiday Act is an Act of Congress that permanently moved two federal holidays in the United States to a Monday, being Washington's Birthday and Memorial Day, and…

In accordance with the Uniform Monday Holiday Act passed by the U

1971 55 years ago

Michael Turner, American author and illustrator (died 2008)

Michael Layne Turner was an American comics artist known for his work on Witchblade, Fathom, Superman/Batman, Soulfire, and various covers for DC Comics and Marvel Comics. He was a…

Michael Turner, American author and illustrator (died 2008)

1971 55 years ago

Uli Herzner, German-American fashion designer

Ulrike "Uli" Herzner is a fashion designer originally from East Germany, currently living in Miami Beach, Florida. She was a contestant on the third season of the Bravo network rea…

Uli Herzner, German-American fashion designer

1971 55 years ago

Kumar Dharmasena, Sri Lankan cricketer and umpire

Deshabandu Handunnettige Deepthi Priyantha Kumar Dharmasena is a Sri Lankan cricket umpire and former international cricketer. He is a member of the Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and …

Kumar Dharmasena, Sri Lankan cricketer and umpire

1971 55 years ago

Soyuz 11 is launched

Soyuz 11 was the only crewed mission to board the world's first space station, Salyut 1. The crew – Georgy Dobrovolsky, Vladislav Volkov, and Viktor Patsayev – arrived at the space…

Soyuz 11 is launched

1971 55 years ago

Hughes Airwest Flight 706 collides with a McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II of the United States Marine Corps over the Sa

Hughes Airwest Flight 706 was a regularly scheduled flight operated by American domestic airline Hughes Airwest from Los Angeles, California, to Seattle, Washington, with several i…

Hughes Airwest Flight 706 collides with a McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II of the United States Marine Corps over the Sa

1971 55 years ago

The United States Supreme Court overturns the conviction of Paul Cohen for disturbing the peace, setting the precedent t

Cohen v. California, 403 U.S. 15 (1971), is a landmark decision of the US Supreme Court holding that the First Amendment prevented the conviction of Paul Robert Cohen for the crime…

The United States Supreme Court overturns the conviction of Paul Cohen for disturbing the peace, setting the precedent t

1971 55 years ago

The Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Division of the U

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), unofficially abbreviated as BATFE, is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice.…

The Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Division of the U

1971 55 years ago

Allegheny Airlines Flight 485 crashes on approach to Tweed New Haven Airport in New Haven, Connecticut, killing 28 of 31

Allegheny Airlines Flight 485 was a regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight between Washington, D.C. and Newport News, Virginia, United States, with three stop-overs, two in …

Allegheny Airlines Flight 485 crashes on approach to Tweed New Haven Airport in New Haven, Connecticut, killing 28 of 31

1971 55 years ago

Mauro Pawlowski, Belgian singer-songwriter and guitarist

Evil Superstars was a Belgian indie rock band led by Mauro Pawlowski. Among its members was Millionaire and Eagles of Death Metal guitarist Tim Vanhamel.

Mauro Pawlowski, Belgian singer-songwriter and guitarist