August 1924

August 1, 1924 (Friday)

• A larger, more elaborate housing for Lenin's Mausoleum, built from wood, was opened to the public in Moscow. Previously, a temporary structure had housed Lenin's body. The new structure would serve as Lenin's resting place until the opening of the permanent mausoleum in October 1930.
• A boiler fire on the French battleship Courbet killed three people and injured 10 others.
• Koshien Stadium opened near Kobe, Japan.
• Born:
• *Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, King of Saudi Arabia from 2005 to 2015; in Riyadh
• *Michael Stewart, American playwright, winner of the Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical in 1964 for Hello, Dolly!; in New York City
• *Georges Charpak, Polish-born French physicist and 1992 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate for his development of particle detectors and invention of the multiwire proportional chamber; in Dąbrowica
• *John Clive Ward, British-born Australian physicist who made significant contributions to quantum field theory and quantum electrodynamics, and for whom the Ward–Takahashi identity is named; in East Ham, London
• *Åke W. Sjöberg, Swedish expert on Assyriology, specialist in Sumerian literature; in Sala

  August 2, 1924 (Saturday)

• Another entrant in the first round-the-world flight attempt dropped out of the race as, the airplane Boston was forced to make an emergency landing in the Atlantic Ocean and sank while being towed for repairs. The crew was rescued, but only two airplanes remained in the race.
• The Allied Powers agreed in principle to the Dawes Plan and invited Germany to the London conference.
• The city of Boca Raton, Florida, was incorporated, initially with the name "Bocaratone". The name would be changed to Boca Raton on May 26, 1925.
• Born:
• *Carroll O'Connor, American TV actor known for portraying Queens resident Archie Bunker in the situation comedy All in the Family, and as Mississippi police chief Bill Gillespie in the TV drama In the Heat of the Night; winner of four Emmy Awards for outstanding lead actor in a comedy series, and one Emmy for outstanding lead actor in a drama series; in Manhattan, New York City
• *James Baldwin, American novelist, non-fiction author and playwright known for the novel Go Tell It on the Mountain, and the book Notes of a Native Son ; in Harlem, New York City
• *Alan Abel, American hoaxster known for his pranks that fooled The New York Times into publishing his obituary, and The Today Show into a report on a fake organization to clothe all unclothed animals; in Zanesville, Ohio
• *Berty Gunathilake, Sri Lankan actor and comedian on film and TV; in Ampitiya, British Ceylon
• *William D. Halyburton Jr., U.S. Navy hospital corpsman and posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor for his heroism during the Battle of Okinawa; in Canton, North Carolina. The U.S. Navy frigate USS Halyburton is named in his honor.

  August 3, 1924 (Sunday)

• Amanullah Khan, King of Afghanistan, declared a jihad war against six tribes who had commenced the Khost rebellion, led by Abd-al Karim in southeastern Afghanistan.
• Ja'far al-Askari resigned as Prime Minister of Iraq after the new nation's Constituent Assembly voted to ratify the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty approving the terms of the Mandate for Mesopotamia and making Iraq a British protectorate.
• On the tenth anniversary of its declaration of war against France, Germany observed its first memorial day, with a ceremony outside the Reichstag and two minutes of silence at noon. Communists disrupted the moment of silence, and police moved in with their clubs to restore order.
• Berlin Jews held a separate service for Jewish soldiers, as a Jewish preacher was forbidden from delivering a prayer in the Reichstag ceremony.
• A group of 150 Soviet troops crossed the border into Poland and attacked the town of Stołpce in a mission to free two jailed members of the Communist Party of Western Belarus, who had been seeking to reclaim territory lost in the Polish-Soviet War in 1921. Seven policemen in Stołpce were killed and three wounded, but the attackers failed to free the two prisoners.
• Giuseppe Campari of Italy won the French Grand Prix, driving an Alfa Romeo P2 and finishing first among 22 drivers, more than one minute ahead of Albert Divo of France.
• Born:
• *Leon Uris, U.S. novelist known for Exodus; in Baltimore
• *Connie Converse, American songwriter and singer; in Laconia, New Hampshire
• Died: Joseph Conrad, 66, Polish-born British novelist known for Lord Jim and other works

  August 4, 1924 (Monday)

• The first Women's International and British Games, also called the "Women's Olympiad", was held in London with women from six European nations competing. Track and field athletics events at the Summer Olympics had been limited to men only. The events staged were the 100-yard dash, races at 250 metres and 1000 metres, two relay races, hurdling, racewalking, and competition in the high jump, long jump, discus throw, shot put and javelin. Exhibition events were held for in cycling netball, and gymnastics.
• Jamaican-born political leader Marcus Garvey was indicted by a grand jury for filing an allegedly fraudulent income tax return for 1921.
• The British flying team of navigator Archibald Stuart-MacLaren, pilot W. N. Plenderleith, and flight engineer Sergeant W. H. Andrews ended their round-the-world flight attempt when their amphibious plane had to make a forced landing in the Bering Sea and was badly damaged. They were rescued from Bering Island by the Royal Navy ship HMCS Thiepval.

  August 5, 1924 (Tuesday)

• The American newspaper comic strip Little Orphan Annie, created by Harold Gray and syndicated by New York's Daily News, made its first appearance. Named for James Whitcomb Riley's 1885 poem "Little Orphant Annie", but not related to the well-known verse, the popular feature would be adapted to an NBC Radio show on the Blue Network from in 1931 to 1942, to two films and to the successful Broadway musical Annie in 1977. After Gray's death in 1968, Little Orphan Annie was continued by other artists but would finally cease on June 13, 2010.
• The German delegation, including Chancellor Wilhelm Marx and Foreign Minister Gustav Stresemann, joined the London reparations conference.
• John Ross Campbell was charged under the Incitement to Mutiny Act 1797 for the July 25 editorial in Workers' Weekly. The British public became bitterly split on what was known as the Campbell Case, as conservatives wanted Campbell locked up while liberals said that rights to free speech were being suppressed.
• The film Janice Meredith premiered at the Cosmopolitan Theatre in New York City.
• Born:
• *Kéba Mbaye, Senegalese judge who served on the International Court of Justice, the International Commission of Jurists, and the International Olympic Committee; in Kaolack, French Senegal
• *Billie Hayes, American comedian, TV and stage actress known for portraying "Witchiepoo" on the H.R. Pufnstuf series, and "Mammy Yokum" in the 1956 Broadway musical Li'l Abner; in Du Quoin, Illinois
• Died: Harold Albert Kullberg, 27, American World War One flying ace who had 19 aerial victories with the Royal Air Force and for Canada's Royal Flying Corps, was killed in a plane crash while instructing a student.

  August 6, 1924 (Wednesday)

• The Treaty of Lausanne, a peace treaty between Turkey and the Allied Powers signed on July 24, 1923, went into effect, thus completing the restoration of peace following the First World War.
• Con artist Charles Ponzi, known for the "Ponzi scheme", was released from prison in Plymouth, Massachusetts after serving less than four years of a five year federal sentence. He then reported to the District Attorney in Boston, where he faced 10 indictments by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and was arrested again. A benefactor from West Roxbury put up his bond of $14,000 and Ponzi was freed until a trial date could be set.
• Born: Ella Jenkins, U.S. folk singer; in St. Louis

  August 7, 1924 (Thursday)

• The Convention for the Suppression of the Circulation of and Traffic in Obscene Publications, signed by 34 nations on September 12, 1923, took effect 30 days after ratification by two nations.
• Japan and the Soviet Union began negotiations to bring about a normalization of relations.
• Born: Kenneth Kendall, British broadcaster; in British India
• Died: Bruce Grit, 68, African-American newspaper publisher, journalist, historian and writer. Born as a slave in Maryland in 1856 as a slave, he grew up to help create the Argus Weekly ; the Sunday Item and the Republican.

  August 8, 1924 (Friday)

• The United Kingdom signed the General Treaty and the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation with the Soviet Union, giving British exports most favoured nation status in exchange for the granting of a loan to the Soviet government.
• Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia, a first cousin of the late Tsar Nicholas II, declared himself as "Guardian of the Throne" for the Russian Empire.
• The Fortune Theatre opened for West End stage productions in Westminster, London.
• The Opera Nazionale Montessori opened in Rome.
• Born:
• *Gene Deitch, American film and TV animator, and creative director for Terrytoons; in Chicago
• *Berislav Klobučar, Yugoslavian Croatian-born conductor of the Vienna State Opera; in Zagreb
• Died: Karansinhji II Vajirajji, 78, the Thakur of the princely state of Lakhtar for 78 years, the sixth longest of any ruler in world history. He was succeeded by his son Balvirsinhji Karansinhji.

  August 9, 1924 (Saturday)

• In the first boxing match ever staged at Wembley Stadium, light heavyweight boxer Tommy Gibbons of the U.S. knocked out Jack Bloomfield in the third round of a non-title bout staged as part of the British Empire Exhibition. Bloomfield was knocked out in the 3rd round, and never fought again.
• The second World Scout Jamboree opened in Denmark at Ermelunden with thousands of Scouts from around the world, and closed on August 17.
• Born: Pat Maloney Sr., American trial lawyer for personal injury lawsuits; in San Antonio, Texas